That night — Fish-Man Island, Mermaid Bay.
The grand banquet hosted by Sugisawa Yuuto and the members of Fairy Tail began.
Young and beautiful mermaids sang and danced with joy, filling the bay with lively laughter and music.
A moment later—
"Ah, it's Neptune-sama!"
"Prince Shark!"
"Prince Ryusei! Prince Crash!"
"And Boss Jinbei is here too!"
The sudden arrival of the royal family caused the mermaids to cheer excitedly.
"Oooh—it's the princess!"
"Princess Shirahoshi!"
"My lady princess, long time no see!"
Shirahoshi's appearance made the festive atmosphere even brighter.
"Shirahoshi-chan, over here!" Nami, Vivi, and the others waved warmly.
"Everyone!"
Shirahoshi smiled happily, waving back before quickly joining the Fairy Tail sisters, her earlier nervousness gone.
As the banquet continued, more and more guests arrived—
not only from Coral Hill, but even residents from faraway districts who had heard the news.
The celebration soon turned into a grand carnival that swept across the entire island.
Two Days Later
After two days of endless revelry, the grand festival finally came to an end.
Led by Jinbei, Sugisawa Yuuto and his companions arrived at Sea Forest.
The magnificent sight of colorful coral reefs and glowing waters left the Fairy Tail girls in awe.
Passing through a grove of radiant coral, a massive stone soon appeared before Yuuto and Robin's eyes.
"That's a Poneglyph!" Robin's eyes shone brightly.
"As expected, Ms. Robin would be interested," Jinbei said with a small smile.
"Thank you, truly!" Robin replied, then began studying the stone carefully.
"This is... a letter from Joy Boy, written to the mermaid princess eight hundred years ago…"
Jinbei nodded. "Exactly."
Yuuto pointed to the empty space beside the stone. "Jinbei, there should've been another Poneglyph here once, right?"
"As expected of Chairman Sugisawa Yuuto," Jinbei replied seriously. "Yes, there was another one here before—a red one."
"The Road Poneglyph, huh?" Yuuto said curiously.
As a traveler between worlds, Yuuto already knew the significance of the Red Poneglyphs.
To reach the final island, Raftel, one must gather all four red signposts.
Of the four, Yuuto knew the locations of three:
One with Big Mom in Totto Land, another in Wano with Kaido of the Beasts, and one on Zou, the island upon the back of the giant elephant Zunesha.
The last Red Poneglyph, however, had once rested here—on Fish-Man Island—over twenty years ago.
But it had since vanished, and the only known clue pointed to a man known as Burn Scar.
"Sorry, Chairman Sugisawa," Jinbei said with a regretful shake of his head.
"I don't know much. But I've heard rumors—that a man with burn scars took the Red Poneglyph away."
"As I thought… the Burn-Scarred Man," Yuuto muttered, nodding slightly.
Leaving Robin to her research, Yuuto turned back toward the group.
"Chairman Sugisawa," Jinbei said suddenly, his tone solemn. "There's something else I must tell you."
Yuuto's expression didn't change; he already knew what this was about.
"Those words," he said quietly, "you should say to my navigator."
Not long after—
"I see… you were the one who bailed out Arlong and let him return to the East Blue," Nami said, her head lowered. Her face was unreadable.
"Yes," Jinbei admitted. "I wanted him to reflect on his mistakes, not cause more harm. I never expected the pain he'd bring to you and your home. The fault lies with me. Whatever the consequences, I'll accept them."
"So, you've finally come to your senses," Nami said softly.
Jinbei nodded. "Yes."
Without another word, Nami raised her small pink fist—
Thwack!
It landed gently on Jinbei's head. It didn't hurt at all.
"Miss Nami, this is…?" Jinbei blinked in confusion.
"It's over," Nami said with a lighthearted smile. "My grudge with Arlong ended long ago."
With that, she turned away, running into Sugisawa Yuuto's arms.
Jinbei blinked in surprise, then quickly followed.
"Wait—there's something else I need to ask! Please, don't misunderstand. I was entrusted by someone with a special request for Chairman Sugisawa and Fairy Tail!"
"Entrusted by who?" Erza asked, her tone sharp. The others gathered, curiosity piqued.
"It's from my friends—the Second Division Captain Fire Fist Ace, First Division Captain Phoenix Marco, and Sixteenth Division Captain Izo of the Whitebeard Pirates!" Jinbei announced solemnly.
"They wish to entrust Chairman Sugisawa Yuuto and Fairy Tail with a mission—to subdue one of the Four Emperors… Kaido of the Beasts!"
"The Four Emperors?!"
Nami, Vivi, Perona, Bonney, and Kalifa all gasped, eyes wide in shock.
They all knew what that title meant—rulers of the seas, unmatched in power and influence.
Jinbei began to explain further, but—
Yuuto was already walking away.
"Sorry," Erza said firmly, her tone cool. "Fairy Tail doesn't accept revenge requests from pirates."
"Runti-chan! Why are you spacing out? Let's go!" Perona called.
"Oh! Coming!" Runti stumbled after them. "Kaido of the Beasts… that name sounds familiar somehow."
With Robin's translation complete, and the beauty of the Sea Forest fading behind them, Fairy Tail set sail once again.
That Night — Ryugu Palace
Another banquet—Fairy Tail's farewell celebration.
By morning, they would leave Fish-Man Island and head for the New World.
"Waaah! Lord Sugisawa! Everyone! Please don't go!"
Shirahoshi cried loudly, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"My daughter has a tender heart," King Neptune apologized. "Please forgive her, Chairman Sugisawa."
"It's fine. I don't mind," Yuuto said with a faint smile.
"King Neptune, you called me aside—did you have something important to discuss?" Yuuto asked directly.
After a moment of silence, Neptune nodded gravely.
"That's right, Chairman Sugisawa. I'll be frank—do you know why the Sea Kings gathered that day?"
Yuuto's lips curved slightly. "Yes. I know."
Neptune looked momentarily surprised, but then sighed.
"The Mermaid Princess of legend… Poseidon. I suppose you already know the truth."
"I do," Yuuto said. "I have an excellent archaeologist in my crew."
"Indeed," Neptune said, patting his forehead. "Every few centuries, a special mermaid princess is born who can communicate with the Sea Kings—the true Poseidon."
He paused, expression softening.
"Eight years ago, Queen Otohime and I discovered Shirahoshi's gift. We wanted her to live as an ordinary girl, away from the chaos of the world. But after the recent incident, too many saw her powers. If word spreads, she'll become a target."
Yuuto nodded. "That's true."
"So I beg you, Chairman Sugisawa—please take Shirahoshi with you. Under Fairy Tail's protection, she'll be safe. And she adores you all—she'll be happy traveling with you."
Yuuto smiled gently. "Of course. I'll accept."
The legendary Poseidon joining Fairy Tail—there was nothing to hesitate about.
The Next Day — The Port
"Waaaah! Father! Brothers! I don't want to leave!"
Shirahoshi sobbed again, tears falling like pearls.
"Shirahoshi, don't cry!" the second prince Ryusei said hurriedly.
"Didn't you say you wanted to stay with your Fairy Tail sisters?" the eldest prince Shark reminded her.
"But… but I don't want to leave my family either!" Shirahoshi hiccuped between tears.
She was timid by nature, afraid of new places and unfamiliar faces.
"Shirahoshi," said the third prince, Crash Star, "you've always wanted to see the real forests on the surface, haven't you? This is your chance. When you come back, tell us all about what you've seen!"
Those words lit a spark in her heart.
Her tears slowed, replaced by a timid but growing excitement for the unknown.
Finally, after steadying her nerves, Shirahoshi took a deep breath—and boarded the Fairy Tail ship.
Under the watchful eyes of King Neptune, the princes, and Jinbei,
the Fairy Tail rose from the seabed, broke through the waves, and soared toward the New World.
Meanwhile — Dressrosa
A bolt of lightning tore across the darkened sky, illuminating the palace on the plateau of Dressrosa.
In his luxurious hall, Doflamingo lounged on a beach chair, veins throbbing visibly on his forehead as his unease grew stronger.
The incident at Sabaody—he thought he had erased every trace of his involvement.
Even if someone investigated, they shouldn't have been able to link it back to him.
Yet now…
A rumor had begun to spread across the seas.
"Fairy Tail's next target is a Shichibukai of the New World!"
It was obvious who they meant.
Whether someone had leaked information, or issued a commission against him, one thing was certain—
it was bad news for the Donquixote Family.
If Fairy Tail set foot in Dressrosa… not even his empire could stop them.
Days of dread passed, and Doflamingo's anxiety reached its breaking point.
"Torrebol! Contact Onigashima!" he barked. "I need to speak with Kaido of the Beasts!"
But just as Torrebol reached for the Den Den Mushi, Doflamingo hesitated.
"No…" He stopped abruptly.
"Dover? What's wrong?" Torrebol asked, confused.
Doflamingo's eyes darkened.
"I'll go to Wano myself."
New World — The Sphinx
"It's no use," sighed Division Four Captain Thatch. "Jinbei said Fairy Tail rejected our request."
"Thief-hahaha! Of course they did!" Blackbeard laughed. "Fairy Tail's strong, but they're not suicidal enough to pick a fight with a Yonko for no reason!"
"Hey, Ace—where are you going?" asked Third Division Captain Jozu.
Ace clenched his fists. "It's our fault. We had Jinbei deliver the request instead of doing it ourselves. Fairy Tail probably thought we were being arrogant. So this time… I'll talk to them in person!"
He jumped onto his flame-propelled boat.
"Don't act on your own, Ace!" warned Fifth Division Captain Vista.
But Marco, the First Division Captain, raised his hand. "Let him go. In fact, Izo and I are going too."
Izo nodded. "We've already got Pops' permission."
"Really? Great—let's go!" Ace grinned.
The flame flared brighter as the ship sped toward the horizon.