Whitebeard's flag did not put an end to the human trafficking on Fishman Island, but it did intimidate many petty criminals; quite a few abandoned the idea simply out of fear of Whitebeard's power.
Greed may move men's hearts, but life is the most precious: even when Whitebeard was alive there were still those driven by profit and ambition who dared to cross his bottom line, but for the most part they kept their heads down.
It wasn't until Whitebeard's death that they finally dared to make their move.
But just as their ambitions surfaced, they were doused with a bucket of cold water.
It was true that Whitebeard was dead and Fishman Island had lost his protection, but in the blink of an eye, the island raised the banner of the Beasts Pirates.
Moreover, thanks to Buggy's efforts, countless priceless images from the Summit War have circulated.
Kaido proved his might in front of reporters from around the globe: even the younger Whitebeard was not his match in a life and death fight.
What's more, compared to the previous "Strongest Man," Kaido—the "Strongest Creature"—is far more violent in his methods; crossing him carries consequences even harsher than offending Whitebeard.
"Captain. What do we do?"
They hadn't done anything; it was just a flag that made them hesitate. They knew the terror of the Four Emperors, which was why none dared attack here while Whitebeard was alive.
And precisely because they understood how fearsome pirates of this caliber were, they became overly cautious.
"It's fake, it has to be fake. The Summit War ended just recently, how could Fishman Island have made contact with the Beasts Pirates so quickly? It's impossible, absolutely impossible!"
The pirate leading them kept denying what the catfish Minister of the Left had said; it was less a matter of convincing others and more him deceiving himself.
"Stop joking, you stinking Fish-Men! What gives you the right to be associated with so many monsters?!"
"Captain, that ship over there looks like the Beasts Pirates' ship."
When a pirate crew becomes famous, not just its members but even its ships draw more attention.
Although Beasts Pirates' flagship is Kaido's ship, he is rarely seen on board. Most of the time, Kaido relies on his own powers to fly around, and only in rare instances does he travel by ship.
Nowadays the Beasts Pirates' flagship serves largely as a transport vessel; spotting it in the New World means reinforcements from the Beasts Pirates have arrived.
Although Arceus's actions are relatively covert, Genesis also had its moment in the spotlight during the Summit War; now this ship, like Whitebeard's Moby Dick, has become iconic.
Those aboard the ship were attending a banquet in Ryugu Palace, so the ship was naturally docked in Fishman Island's harbor. This group of pirates hadn't paid much attention to it until the Minister of the Left hoisted the Beasts Pirates' flag—they then realized why that ship was here.
"."
The hoisted flag and the Beasts Pirates' ship appearing together on Fishman Island needed no explanation; the leading pirate had a very ominous feeling.
The only good news was that they hadn't taken any action yet; their earlier bravado was merely talk, so in a sense it was still possible to salvage the situation.
"Actually, this is just a joke, part of our show. The seas are too dangerous nowadays; for the safety of Fishman Island, we wanted you to have heightened awareness of the threats, which is why we said what we did."
He had been so arrogant just moments ago, and now he was equally humble; the pirate captain forced a smile, hoping to brush off what had occurred.
Unfortunately, reality is always cruel.
"Boss! We've caught a few Merfolk. What are you still doing here?"
"."
This had been their plan before entering Fishman Island: upon disembarking, they would split forces. As captain, he would lead some men to draw the Fishman Island guard's attention, while the rest went ashore to capture Merfolk.
It seemed the plan had succeeded; just at the worst possible time. For the first time, the pirate captain felt resentment toward his subordinates' efficiency.
Moreover, they were facing an even bigger problem.
Because they had Merfolk in tow, the Neptune Army merely surrounded them, but other pirates had also set their sights on them.
They weren't the only pirate crew to land on Fishman Island; others had various motives but hadn't acted yet. Now this bunch of loudmouths was offering the other pirates an opportunity to kick them while they were down.
Now the pirates watching the spectacle began drawing their weapons, their eyes shining with deadly intent.
"What are you planning to do?!"
"Do what? I can't stand the sight of you guys, so I'm gonna take you out!"
"That's right, that's right—arriving at the Sabaody Archipelago at the same time as trash like you is a real disgrace!"
The situation couldn't be patched up, so the pirate captain reverted to his true self.
"Don't put on your saint act! Weren't you all here for the same reason?!"
Looking at the two pirate captains beside him, posing as paragons of justice, the pirate at the center of the storm immediately exposed their true motives.
"Don't think I don't know what you two are plotting! You want to step over me to join the Beasts Pirates? Dream on! The Beasts Pirates wouldn't deign to recruit trash like you! And don't get me wrong—I'm not some rookie like you."
The pirate who had wanted to attack him was also a rookie of this year, but under the halo of the Worst Generation, the Marines and World Government paid them little heed. From the Marines' perspective, such pirates would end up cannon fodder in the New World before long.
The pirate bent on kidnapping Merfolk was different, he had spent some time on the Grand Line. When he first entered the New World, its cruelty shattered him, and he retreated back to the first half of the Grand Line. Thus, he knew just how stringent the Beasts Pirates were in recruiting subordinates.
Someone like this, who has no real skills and lacks principles, wouldn't even pass the Beasts Pirates' open recruitment trials.
"I advise you two to drop those crooked ideas. While no one from the Beasts Pirates is here yet, stick with me and make a break for it; you might get a taste of the spoils that way. That's in your best interest."
After the Summit War, the Beasts Pirates' reputation soared, and the number of pirates wanting to join them skyrocketed. The moment these two stepped up, the pirate captain naturally knew what they were thinking.
It was simply an attempt to curry favor with the Beasts Pirates so they could earn the right to hoist the Beasts Pirates' flag.
He wasn't afraid of pirates like this, but he had no desire to get entangled here. If he could put enough distance between himself and the island, the Beasts Pirates might not find him, but if he gets stuck here, he is as good as dead.
The Beasts Pirates had only just taken over Fishman Island, and here he was abducting Merfolk; if he were caught, they would surely use his head to establish their authority.
"Don't take us for fools. We don't know if you'll share the money or not, but if we catch you, the Beasts Pirates won't just kill us, right? At worst, we can trade you for some cash."
"Yeah, you still want to drag us into your mess? Compared to the Emperor of the Sea, a coward who doesn't dare enter the New World is definitely easier to handle."
There were shrewd ones among pirates too, and these two rookies were the type not easily fooled. Seeing his bluff fail and the seahorse Minister of the Right quietly whispering something to the soldiers beside him, the pirate captain prepared to throw caution to the wind.
"Use those Merfolk as hostages! Kill our way out!"
"Abandon that idea. This is the deep sea, you can't escape from here. Release our people first, and we can negotiate the rest."
"Bah! You said it yourself, this is the deep sea. Once I'm back on the surface, I'll naturally release them. Now get out of my way! Don't blame me for being ruthless!"
Because of the hostages, the Neptune Army found it difficult to act right away. Fishman Island's defenders hadn't expected someone to lose their patience so quickly.
Powerful individuals like Jinbe and Tiger, those who could resolve the trouble, were all in Ryugu Palace; even if the Minister of the Right ordered the soldiers to call them, it would take time for them to arrive.
They were unsure they could rescue the hostages from those pirates; to ensure the hostages' safety, the Neptune Army decided to hold back temporarily.
The two other pirate crews had fewer qualms, but they were no match for this pirate captain.
Though frightened off by the New World, he had survived a long time in the first half of the Grand Line, making him a somewhat capable pirate.
He easily dealt with those two pirates whose bounties were only around thirty million. Seeing that the troublesome ones were taken care of and the Fishman Island forces hesitating, he thought he was safe, when suddenly he heard a new voice in his ear.
"Give it up, you won't succeed today."
On a nearby reef, Hawkins sat tinkering with his tarot cards, divining the fate of the pirate captain.
"I'm afraid the probability of you seeing the sun above the surface again is zero."
Previously at the Sabaody Archipelago, Hawkins had been shaken that he couldn't forsee the future, so he led his crew to the New World.
But when he arrived at Fishman Island, he chose to stay, because the divination told him that remaining here was more conducive to achieving his goals. So Hawkins did not head immediately into the New World, but lingered on Fishman Island for a time.
His reason for setting out was simple: the divination had shown him that venturing onto the sea was the best choice. In Hawkins' view, one who can bend fate will surely emerge victorious in this era, and at that moment he conceived a new plan.
And now, he found his chance.
"Success rate: 78.6%. May I ask you to surrender? You have no future, to be precise, you have a 98% probability of destroying your last chance yourself. And you, Minister of Fishman Island, you should seize this opportunity."
Retracting his tarot cards, Hawkins coldly eyed the pirate before him and then said something strange to the seahorse Minister of the Right.
"Get lost!"
Seeing Hawkins' obstructing him, the pirate captain wasted no words and slashed at him several times in quick succession.
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
Hawkins' body was cut by the sword aura, but not a drop of blood flowed out as several severed straw dolls crawled out of his body.
"Ah!"
A scream came from behind the pirate captain. When he turned around, he saw that his subordinates holding the hostages had all collapsed on the ground, blood spurting everywhere.
A Merfolk who was afraid of blood even fainted outright, though this wasn't the thing that caught the pirate captain's attention. He was amazed to find that the wounds on his men were in exactly the same spots where they had struck Hawkins.
With the pirates who were holding the hostages downed, nearby Neptune Army rushed over and shielded the hostages. Only then did the Minister of the Right grasp what Hawkins' words meant.
"I told you, you would destroy it yourself. And now, your face is already showing signs of death."
"Basil Hawkins. I don't recall offending you, do I?"
The hostages had been rescued, meaning the Neptune Army no longer had any qualms. If he was stalled by them, all that awaited him was death.
"No, you haven't. But you could become a stepping stone to my success. Killing you with my own hands would raise my plan's success rate by another 7%."
Hawkins resumed fiddling with his cards, but the pirate captain's rage had reached its peak. He rushed past Hawkins while swinging his sword, the blade slicing across Hawkins' neck.
"You talk too much nonsense! So what if you're a Super Rookie? You've never seen the power of Haki, have you?"
At that moment, the weapon in his hand was dyed black by Haki; he assumed it would do damage to Hawkins. Yet the result was the same as before. The head of a severed straw doll fell from Hawkins, and correspondingly, one of his own subordinates' heads was also cut off.
Haki can touch the physical body of a Devil Fruit User, but it cannot nullify the user's ability.
Hawkins is a Paramecia-type user of the Straw-Straw Fruit.
He can fight through straw effigies, which transfer damage inflicted on him to others via voodoo dolls, thereby nullifying attacks.
His slash did indeed hit Hawkins and inflicted damage, only that the damage was ultimately transferred away.
As long as there are enough straw dolls stored within Hawkins, killing him is extremely difficult; only by attacking a part where the damage cannot be transferred can one harm him effectively.
"Indeed, I haven't seen it before. Guess I died again this time."
Hawkins drew the weapon at his waist, but as it left its sheath, what appeared before everyone was not an ordinary blade, instead it was a twisted mass of growing straw.
"Paddy Straw Blade."
He gripped the hilt and stabbed forward. The twisted straw revealed extraordinary hardness, piercing straight through the pirate's body.
At the same time, the pirate in front of him slashed his chest, but it still had no effect; instead, another hole appeared in the pirate's own heart.
Hawkins' death substitute is an ability of his Straw-Straw Fruit, allowing him to inhabit another person's body. He must prepare in advance to designate a substitute, though the method isn't complicated; mere physical contact is enough.
While he was watching earlier, he had already used his extending straw to complete the inhabiting process. And during the battle just now, he inhabited his opponent's body.
He knows a bit of Armament Haki, but it is still far from being able to nullify abilities.
"The audience has arrived. Your fate... can end now."
At this time, Hawkins saw Queen's figure out of the corner of his eye. Now, he could kill the enemy before him without any reservations.
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