As Xia Qiu swam, the scent in the seawater grew stronger, an urge that permeated his very being, making it impossible for him to resist.
Xia Qiu sensed something was wrong. This urge surpassed his desire to eat; it was dominating his body.
This made Xia Qiu wary.
Not only that, but fish around him were also swimming in that direction.
Something was definitely attracting him and the other fish.
And this substance was widely used on fish.
Why would they do this?
Fishing?
At this moment, Xia Qiu noticed that the fish being attracted were somewhat strange. Most of them had sharp teeth and were larger, at least over seventy centimeters, all being carnivorous fish.
Smaller fish, and those that fed on plankton and crustaceans, mostly stayed put.
Among all the fish, some of the larger ones hesitated in place.
Most of the fish with sharp teeth were attracted, the small fish stayed, and some fish hesitated.
So, this scent targeted specific types of fish, first avoiding the small ones, meaning it definitely contained components that acted on large fish.
And since some fish were attracted while others hesitated, it must be a certain component that affected specific types of fish.
Therefore, this scent was specific to a certain type of sea fish, and this sea fish, at least in terms of size, avoided the small fish.
It was like a trap.
What exactly were they doing?
And the direction was towards Naruto Village. Were the people of Naruto Village doing this?
Xia Qiu had a premonition of danger. He slowed down, approaching little by little, surfacing and looking into the distance.
What is that?
Xia Qiu discovered a massive Marine warship in the distant sea. The area where the fish were gathering was not far from the warship.
The Marines. It was the Marines doing this.
Luring sea fish here.
And they hadn't set up fishing nets, which meant they weren't fishing.
They were looking for specific fish.
Xia Qiu remembered that two months ago, he had attacked a Marine, and then a Marine warship had been roaming this area for a long time.
Were they looking for him?
It wasn't impossible.
Regardless of whether that was the case, he knew that the Marines had placed these things. Approaching further would be useless.
Eating the sea fish that were lured?
Who knew if there was anything strange in the scent.
With this thought, Xia Qiu turned around and swam away, intending to leave this part of the sea.
But he didn't notice a seagull circling continuously in the sky, directly above him.
...
"Colonel, there's a seagull circling there, drawing an '8'. It might have found prey."
Kurume said to Colonel Lido after watching through his telescope for a while.
"Is it here?"
Colonel Lido picked up his telescope and looked at the sky. The released seagull was circling continuously in the sky; these were specially bred by the Marines.
Like messenger birds and Den Den Mushi, they were unique creatures in the world of One Piece. These seagulls could be used to detect enemy activity.
Pirate Ships, sea fish, Sea Kings.
Depending on the target, they would draw different patterns, and the patterns would be used to identify the target.
Looking at this pattern, it was a large sea fish, at least ten meters in size.
Judging by the altitude, it wasn't a Sea Beast or a Sea King.
"It should be, but why is it moving away?"
Colonel Lido looked at the seagull's flight path in the distance, somewhat puzzled.
It should be approaching, so why was it getting farther and farther away?
"Colonel Lido, could it be that it discovered the trap?" Kurume couldn't help but ask.
"How is that possible?"
Colonel Lido said instinctively, but then frowned and said, "I remember when you captured it, it not only avoided the trap but also dodged the direction of the cannons?"
Avoiding traps was one thing, but if it could also dodge cannons, then it was a bit too clever.
Kurume nodded and said, "That's right, he dodged the cannon fire and sealed the surface of the sea to prevent Lieutenant Colonel Berio from surfacing for air."
"Then it's certainly possible it discovered our trap."
Lido nodded and said, "Its departure confirms it's the one. Set sail, pursue this Sea Fish."
Following Lido's command, the sailors began to raise the sails and set off.
The Marine warship moved towards Xia Qiu, pursuing him.
...
Xia Qiu swam towards the distance, but he didn't swim in a straight line away from the Marine warship, as that would take him too far into the ocean.
He planned to take a detour to the side of the island and evade the Marine warship.
After swimming for a while, Xia Qiu suddenly felt something was wrong.
The disturbance in the water.
Xia Qiu possessed excellent senses of smell and sight, as well as a lateral line system, which allowed him to feel the flow of water around his body.
He felt the water flow approaching from behind him.
He quickly looked back and, through the water, saw a massive Marine warship not far away.
They're chasing me?
Xia Qiu was slightly surprised by this. Was it a coincidence, or had they discovered him?
Xia Qiu immediately dove down and swam in another direction.
They're not following?
After swimming a distance, Xia Qiu noticed the Marine warship hadn't followed and felt relieved.
"Change course."
The next moment, the Marine warship turned and began pursuing Xia Qiu again.
They're definitely chasing me.
Xia Qiu had no idea how they had discovered him and were pursuing him.
But if he was their target, Xia Qiu wasn't going to wait around to be caught.
He didn't choose to flee but instead swam towards the Marine warship.
Suddenly accelerating away might provoke them to fire their cannons, and the Marine warship's cannons were powerful; Xia Qiu didn't want to take a direct hit.
Secondly, Xia Qiu had another idea.
If he could get to a place beyond the reach of their cannons, would someone strong from the Marine warship come down into the water to hunt him?
He needed to consume powerful humans to strengthen himself.
Even that Marine officer from last time could have helped him get stronger.
Even if he was stronger than that officer, Xia Qiu was no longer the same as he was then.
In nearly two months, he had grown from seven meters to eighteen meters long, and had evolved some organs that could aid him in underwater combat.
Not only that, but after consuming that Marine and the pirates, he had been strengthened twice, making his body more robust.
Bigger, stronger.
If he were to face that Marine again, Xia Qiu felt the other party wouldn't even be able to injure him.
Xia Qiu believed that even if he faced someone a tier stronger than that Marine, he would still have a good chance of winning.
Moreover, in the seawater, a human's combat effectiveness was greatly reduced. Why should he worry?
As Xia Qiu thought this, he swam towards the Marine warship, using it as cover for his body, and waited silently.
...
"Colonel Lido, it's that black fish! It's charging towards the warship."
Kurume shouted as he watched the dark silhouette approach.
"Why is it coming over here on its own? Is it trying to ram the warship?"
Colonel Lido frowned, unable to understand the black silhouette's actions.
Kurume said, "Could it be attracted by the bait left on the hull? It was far away earlier, but now it's close, so it's coming here."
"That's possible."
Colonel Lido nodded and said, "It's here, so prepare to kill it. Bring me my weapon and equipment."
As he finished speaking, Lido took off his clothes, revealing his strong chest.
Then, a nearby sailor handed him a long spear with a sharp tip, a pair of goggles, and a round fruit.
Lido took the spear, put on the goggles, took a deep breath, and popped the fruit into his mouth.
Then, he leaped into the seawater and lunged towards the black fish.
"Shark Hunter Lido."
Kurume watched Colonel Lido jump into the sea and couldn't help but say, "Colonel Lido's Shark Spear has killed countless sharks. This Sea Fish can only go this far."
-----------
Translation by: randomtranslator.com
Read 2500+ original & fanfic translations and Translate for Free at: randomtranslator.com