The discussions were mostly concluded, and by all accounts, Nero should have been leaving by now, but she pointed to the burning Mary Geoise.
"Hmm, so, may I look around a bit more?"
"...As you wish."
What "look around a bit more"? What is there to see in a raging fire? It clearly must be because of the slaves who just escaped, the Gorosei thought to themselves.
And that was precisely Nero's intention. As long as she remained there, the Gorosei and even the World Government would be forced to divert a portion of their forces to keep an eye on her.
As for why she didn't directly offer to help Tiger and his group, the reason was her standing.
As an emperor, Nero would not openly declare her support for slaves; this would make her position ambiguous.
Given Nero's current status, if she were to send such a signal to the outside world, she would undoubtedly immediately become the spiritual leader of the slaves.
Who are the slaves currently hoping for? The Revolutionary Army!
Slaves all over the world are hoping for them to come and reshuffle the deck!
And after today, Fisher Tiger should also become a spiritual leader for slaves, a great hero of the liberation movement, and so on.
To dare snatch food from the Celestial Dragons' mouths—such a fierce man is hard to find in a decade!
They can hope for the Revolutionary Army, they can view Tiger as a hero, but from the same perspective, if it were Nero...
With many sacrifices, great ambitions arise; we dare to call upon the sun and moon to usher in a new era!
This rotten World Government has sat at the top long enough! Today, under the leadership of His Majesty Nero, we formally declare that we do not recognize the legitimacy of the World Government.
The decaying order is about to collapse, and Nero Claudius, the reincarnation of the Sun God, is destined by fate!!!
Nika would have to take two slaps and be called a fake.
The fire gradually subsided, and the echoes of that noisy escape seemed to linger... "Next, we will be enemies of the world. Those who are prepared, step forward!"
Tiger raised an iron rod branded with a sun, the end of the mark glowing red hot.
He looked at the group of Fishmen who had decided to follow him. Some were from Fish-Man Island, others he had rescued from Mary Geoise.
To make everyone equal, he planned to use this sun mark to cover the Celestial Dragons' slave brands.
Once everyone was branded, Tiger loudly announced the formation of the Sun Pirates.
"Hmm, well, congratulations then! I have an unknown Devil Fruit here; consider it a congratulatory gift."
Flapping her dragon wings, Nero landed on the ship's deck.
Who said there was nothing in the great fire? Nero really did find something good. Based on its appearance, it seemed to be a common Zoan type, which would come in handy.
"Lady Nero! It's wonderful that you're alright." Tiger's attitude was respectful. He had noticed Nero at Mary Geoise that day.
So he knew that Nero had played a significant part in their successful escape from Mary Geoise.
"It's fine! It's fine! I'm in a hurry to go to Water Seven, and I just happened to meet you all to rest my feet."
Nero waved her hand. Everyone on the ship also recognized Nero, the street wanderer who often went to Fish-Man Island.
The deep sea at 10,000 meters, which others feared, Nero visited every time she went out, and what was absurd was that she never encountered any danger.
"By the way, are you all going to be alright with so few people?"
Nero surveyed the group. They were a disorganized rabble, and only Jinbe seemed somewhat capable.
"No problem! It's not easy to catch Fishmen on the open sea!"
Tiger patted his chest, assuring her there was no problem. He was quite famous now, and many people were secretly willing to help him.
Nero thought so too; Fishmen had full mobility.
However, there was still one person: Admiral Kizaru Borsalino, a Logia-type Devil Fruit user. If he got involved, it would still be troublesome.
The damage Nero had inflicted on him back then was probably mostly healed by now.
(Borsalino: I really do need to lie down for another month. Nero's attack also included spiritual damage! I'll probably need more time to recuperate after a month.)
After Nero informed Tiger about Kizaru, Tiger's expression indeed became much graver.
"Try to avoid him! And the guys under you need to get stronger. Hmm, even though this isn't the New World, they're too weak!"
"Ah, I also plan to train them well. Going out to sea without Haki really won't do."
Nero and Tiger chatted as if no one else was there, successfully making the other Fishmen's expressions increasingly grim. However, due to Nero's strength, no one said anything.
"Lady Nero!" A shark Fishman named Arlong stepped out from the crowd, interrupting Nero and Tiger's conversation.
"I heard you are a powerful ruler of the world. May I witness your strength?"
"Arlong!" Tiger frowned and reprimanded him.
"No matter! I quite enjoy these small recreational interludes in life."
Nero looked at Arlong playfully: "So, how do you wish to witness it? I can even go without weapons!"
With a playful smile and relaxed posture, Nero clearly didn't take Arlong seriously.
"Don't misunderstand, Lady Nero! I just want to witness your arm wrestling strength as a top-tier expert."
Arlong felt an even stronger displeasure at Nero's attitude, but he also knew that Nero's strength was absolutely not something he could challenge.
So he proposed an arm wrestling match. A Fishman's arm strength is ten times that of a human, and even if she was one of the Four Emperors, she was still just a human girl.
He wasn't without a chance of winning!
Thinking this, Arlong even resorted to provocation: "Of course, Lady Nero, it's fine if you refuse. After all, Fishmen do have an advantage over humans in arm strength."
"Hmm, it's fine, I accept!"
Nero pretended to ponder for a moment: "How about this! I'll only use one finger. No matter what, if you can bend it, I'll concede defeat. How about that?"
"One... one finger?" Arlong's smile twisted, his sharp teeth grinding audibly: "Isn't that a bit too overconfident?"
"It's fine! It's fine! Hmm!" Nero smiled and wiggled her index finger from side to side.
"After all, you're very weak!"
"Nani?!" Arlong's blue skin flushed an unnatural crimson, and he laughed in extreme anger: "Heh heh, then let's see!"
"Arlong! Don't be foolish!" His rival, Jinbe, stepped out, wanting to symbolically stop him.
But Tiger stopped him: "Forget it, that idiot! A little loss isn't a bad thing."
"Here I come!" Arlong announced, but his body shot forward in an arrow-like motion, hands crossed, directly colliding with Nero's finger.
He wasn't really an idiot. Nero's confident demeanor clearly indicated something was up. How could Nero, who frequently visited Fish-Man Island, not understand Fishman arm strength?
Yet she still made such a request; it definitely seemed suspicious, but for his dignity, Arlong had no other choice.
His full body weight combined with inertia felt like hitting a hard piece of metal. Arlong's palms stung from the impact, but the finger remained completely still.
Then, regaining his senses, Arlong began to pull Nero's finger with force, but no matter how much strength he used, the result remained the same.
"Damn it! I don't believe it! It's just one finger!!!"
Arlong roared! Arlong bellowed! Arlong used all his might!
But the result still didn't change.
"Hmm, I understand. Remember to train hard in the future! Go into the sea and cool down properly for now!"
Seeing that she had played enough, Nero lightly moved her finger, and Arlong's body was flung into the sea.
Splash!
This strike wasn't forceful, but Comrade Arlong probably wouldn't be coming up for a while, because he was a little bit dead.
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