The Fish-Man Island.
Bartolomeo, following Luffy's orders, immediately went to Moria and brought Jinbei along.
Led by Jinbei, the group headed to the Fish-Man District to settle accounts with the new Fish-Man Pirates.
Thanks to their actions, Luffy felt completely at ease.
At that moment, after reaching an agreement with Big Mom, Luffy stood up and left the room, returning to the tower where Shirahoshi was.
"Shirahoshi, how do you manage to go to bed so early at such a young age?"
Opening the door and entering, Luffy caught a glimpse of Shirahoshi lying in bed, asleep.
"Luffy?"
Shirahoshi rubbed her eyes. "Sorry, I was a little tired after walking all day today and fell asleep before I realized it."
Luffy jumped onto the table and said:
"Did you forget our promise?"
"Promise? Hmm~!"
"Go on, cry."
Luffy ordered decisively.
"Huh?" Shirahoshi seemed stunned. "Why should I cry?"
"To call the Sea Kings—I want Fish-Man Island to rise to the ocean's surface. But I can't do it alone. In short, cry quickly."
Hearing this, Shirahoshi suddenly remembered that when she was six years old, her cries had drawn several enormous Sea Kings.
Although she didn't know exactly what Luffy intended, she nodded in trust.
Getting ready!
Getting ready!
Shirahoshi held her face and said shyly, "I'm so happy today that I can't cry."
Luffy:
"Luffy?" Shirahoshi looked at his expression, speechless, and pouted. "Sorry…"
Being cute wasn't enough—if she wanted to cry, she had to actually cry.
Luffy thought for a moment and suggested:
"How about thinking of something sad?"
"But I'm so happy right now, I can't think of anything."
"You have to think! Imagine your mother being killed, dying young. Don't you want to get revenge on whoever did it?"
Shirahoshi was startled, her face filled with pain.
Luffy said helplessly, "In short, you're in such a good mood that you can't cry. It's easy to fix—I'll find someone to make you feel negative."
With that, he immediately unleashed his Observation Haki.
Quickly, he found Perona.
She was resting in the guest room, leaning against the bed, motionless.
Was she out of her body?
Luffy continued expanding his Haki until it covered the entire Fish-Man Island.
Finally, he located Nami and the others at a café.
He immediately sent a wave of thought.
---
Mermaid Café.
The manager of the café was a mermaid named Shyarly. She was 29 years old and a mako shark mermaid.
At the same time, she was also a seer, reputed to make 100% accurate predictions, known as Madame Shyarly.
"Really? Arlong caused all that trouble in East Blue?"
At that moment, after hearing about Arlong from Nami, Shyarly's eyes darkened. "I'm sorry. Actually, Arlong and I are half-siblings. He caused so much trouble for you."
"Huh?!" Nami was surprised. "Madame Shyarly, aren't you a mermaid? Arlong is a fish-man, right?"
Shyarly held her pipe, took a light puff, and explained:
"That's very common on our Fish-Man Island. When a fish-man and a mermaid marry, there are four possibilities for the child's birth: a male or female fish-man, or a merman or mermaid. Isn't that amazing?"
Upon hearing this, Nami became curious about something else:
"So, how do you get pregnant?"
Shyarly's face froze. "I don't know."
How could she know something she had never experienced before?
"Seriously, don't ask unanswerable questions."
Perona was floating in the air, holding a small, cute parasol:
"I've heard that mermaids and humans aren't reproductively isolated and seem capable of having children without issues. Madame Shyarly, is that true?"
"Yes, it's true."
"Unbelievable!" x3
Nami, Vivi, and Perona all sighed in unison.
"Let's end this topic!" Shyarly said, unable to tolerate these women. "I apologize for the Arlong matter. He's that kind of person—full of hatred toward humans. When the Fisher Tiger incident happened… many fish-men became that way."
It wasn't just because of Fisher Tiger. The hatred between fish-men and humans lasted for a very, very long time.
It would be more accurate to say that was just the fuse.
"It's fine. That's all in the past. He killed my mother, but now he's dead. There's no need to hold on to hatred."
Nami smiled lightly, understanding in her heart why Shyarly wanted to apologize.
"By the way, you can just call me Shyarly."
"Shyarly, when I was shopping, I heard you're a very powerful seer. Could you help me?"
"What do you want to know?"
"I…"
Nami really wanted to ask if Luffy had a woman she didn't know about. Last time he returned from the Dome War, he smelled very nice. It must have been a woman, since Luffy doesn't use perfume.
But when the words reached her lips, she swallowed them.
It was truly unnecessary. Just like with Vivi, Luffy would explain in due time.
"When will Luffy become the Pirate King?" she asked with a smile.
Shyarly remained silent for a moment, then said, "Actually, my predictions aren't 100% accurate."
After a pause, she added in a mysterious tone: "In the past, my predictions must have been accurate. I also foresaw the beginning of the Dome War, but the outcome was different than I predicted. Ace survived, and the main reason for that is your captain, Monkey D. Luffy."
"What does that mean?"
Nami and Vivi looked at each other and asked in unison.
"His existence interfered with my prophecy. He prevented Ace from dying! Later, I tried to make another prediction, but I failed every time…"
Shyarly cared deeply about this.
[I'm sorry about that]
Suddenly, a voice came to her mind.
Shyarly was startled, looking around with wide eyes.
[Don't look, I'm in the castle]
After another voice, Perona also heard it.
[Perona, I need you to return. I have something to ask of you]
"What do you want me to do?"
Perona's face showed resistance.
She couldn't help but recall those punishments.
Until now, she had only experienced two levels and had no idea what else awaited her…
[I need your strength, hurry]
"I know! You're not cute, you pervert~!"
Perona muttered discontentedly.
After explaining to Nami and the others, she passed through the wall and left the Mermaid Café.
Shyarly watched in astonishment.
"She was just talking to herself a moment ago…?"
"That was Luffy calling her. Did you hear it too?" Nami said helplessly. "Once, when I was sleeping in the morning, I got startled the same way."
He was in the palace, yet his voice could be transmitted directly here, even echoing in the minds of others…
---
(End of Chapter)
"Hmph. If you really want to be useful, then entertain me, try to throw those pathetic power stones at me. Let's see if even your insolence can amuse a king."