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One Piece: The Dragon All-Star - 116
🕑 Added 2025-09-24 18:27:20 +0000 UTCChapter 116: Arriving at Fish-Man Island
New World, the coast of some uninhabited island.
After two and a half weeks of sailing, Rayquaza finally reached this predetermined island to undergo the crucial coating process.
Fish-Man Island was located 10,000 meters beneath the sea. Any ship, unless it was a specially-made submarine, had to be coated to withstand the terrifying water pressure and dive into the deep sea.
For this trip to Fish-Man Island, Kai had specifically brought along Kawamatsu and Jack, both fishmen.
On the coast, Bonney and Yamato were chattering excitedly about various legends of Fish-Man Island they had read in books.
"The book says it's an underwater paradise! With glowing coral forests and giant bubble cable cars!"
Bonney gestured enthusiastically.
Yamato listened with sparkling eyes, full of longing.
Jack stood to the side with crossed arms, pretending to be deep and silent while playing the expert, but his ears were secretly perked up. He wanted to learn about his homeland that he had never seen, so he could better serve Kai-aniki in the future.
"Kai-sama!"
Robin gracefully approached, reporting: "The Coating Mechanic has completed the coating. We can set sail anytime."
Hearing this, Kai turned to look.
On the coast, Rayquaza's hundred-meter hull was now perfectly covered with a transparent film that hugged its contours. Under the sunlight, the film shimmered with brilliant rainbow-like colors.
"Since we're ready, let's depart!"
Kai waved his hand, ordering departure.
"Ohhhh!"
Everyone immediately cheered, eager to witness that legendary underwater kingdom filled with beautiful mermaids and wonders.
As soon as they boarded, Bonney and Yamato were like children discovering a small puddle, curiously bouncing on the coating-wrapped deck.
"Wow! It won't break!"
Yamato jumped experimentally, feeling the soft, bouncy sensation underfoot.
"That's natural." Kai's lips curved in a smile as he explained: "This bubble coating has to withstand the terrifying pressure of 10,000 meters deep—it's not easily broken."
The film also had a special property—normal attacks could only pass through it, not pop it like a balloon. Of course, that only applied to normal attacks.
Rayquaza slowly departed the shore, entering open waters.
"Kai-sama, we need to inflate the coating and prepare to dive," the craftsman requested.
After getting Kai's approval, the craftsmen began operating.
Soon, the originally tight-fitting film began slowly expanding, like a giant balloon being inflated, gradually "swallowing" everyone on deck. Before long, a perfect spherical bubble completely encased the entire Rayquaza.
"Begin diving!"
With the order given, the ship quickly sank below the surface.
"Wow! Papa, look, we really sank into the sea!"
Bonney looked up excitedly, watching the azure seawater gradually cover the railings and pass overhead. Colorful small fish curiously approached, swimming around outside the transparent bubble coating.
"Yes." Kuma lovingly stroked his daughter's pink hair, his face beaming with contentment.
Since joining the Beast Pirates, nothing brought him more joy than letting his daughter travel everywhere, watching the things she'd read in books come to life before her eyes.
Others' excitement was no less than Bonney's. Diving 10,000 meters into the deep sea was a first for most of them.
Even Jack and Kawamatsu, both fishmen, were equally thrilled. They were fishmen who had ended up on land—neither had ever been to Fish-Man Island.
Watching his companions' faces radiating wonder and excitement, Kai smiled.
This was only possible in the One Piece world—in his previous life, deep-sea diving would not be such a romantic experience. Submarine crews were absolutely the most oppressive of all military branches.
As diving depth continuously increased, sunlight could no longer penetrate the heavy water, and the surrounding environment quickly became pitch black and abyssal, as if falling into an endless void.
Kai now experienced some of his previous life's submarine crew's suffering. That oppressive loneliness of seemingly being alone in the world was too painful.
Even the fearless Ace, Zoro, and Sanji unconsciously moved closer to each other.
"Mm..."
Violet suddenly released an uncomfortable moan, clutching her chest as her face turned pale, cold sweat beading on her forehead.
She had been unconsciously activating her Stare-Stare Fruit ability to explore the surroundings, not expecting her ability to become a burden here. Everything before her was pitch black—only occasional unnatural water disturbances proved massive creatures silently passed through the darkness.
Fear stemmed precisely from this uncertainty.
Violet had to close her eyes, actively stopping her fruit ability.
Then a warm, large hand embraced her shoulders.
"Don't be afraid. In these seas, no creature can match us. Relax."
Kai's confident yet gentle voice perfectly soothed Violet.
"Kai-sama~"
Violet seemed to find her anchor, naturally nestling into Kai's solid embrace as the fear in her eyes was quickly replaced by deep love and dependence.
Bonney tilted her little head, watching the two almost glued together, immediately making a face: "Sister Violet, shame shame! Bonney isn't scared at all!"
"Yes, yes, our Bonney is the bravest."
Kai chuckled, using his free hand to ruffle Bonney's incredibly soft pink hair, then ordered: "Prepare the lights!"
"Yes!"
The ship's illumination quickly lit up.
To avoid excessively attracting deep-sea creatures' attention, lighting was strictly controlled, only illuminating a small area around Rayquaza. Though insufficient to dispel all darkness, it at least prevented complete blindness.
This bit of light, like a lighthouse in the night, instantly brought everyone tremendous security.
However, just as everyone had barely relaxed—
BOOM!
From the darkness, a sudden violent undercurrent struck Rayquaza's right side like a hammer, slamming into the bubble coating!
The entire ship immediately tilted violently, lurching leftward!
"Ah!"
Everyone on deck was caught off guard, screaming as they tumbled in chaos.
Then a massive maw suddenly emerged from the pitch-black seawater—an enormously large tiger-headed Sea King, its huge eyes glowing with fierce light in the darkness.
"ROAR!"
It opened its fang-filled mouth, viciously biting toward the light-emitting Rayquaza.
Obviously, the ship's lights had attracted it.
"Ahh—! Papa! There's a monster!"
Bonney screamed in terror, instinctively hugging Kuma's leg tightly.
But Kai's lips curved upward. Something really dared to charge into the gun barrel.
"SCRAM!"
Kai's eyes flashed as invisible Haki burst forth, precisely crushing toward that massive tiger-headed Sea King.
The Sea King's enormous body suddenly stiffened, its gaping mouth frozen mid-air—biting seemed wrong, not biting also seemed wrong. Its originally fierce, savage eyes instantly became clear.
Without hesitation, this previously arrogant deep-sea predator immediately nimbly turned its massive body around and fled without looking back.
Kai shook his head.
This hundred-meter-long small Sea King obviously had limited intelligence, acting purely on instinct. If it were those super-large Sea Kings over 5,000 meters long that had survived countless years, possessing higher intelligence, they would never risk destroying human ships.
After this minor incident, Rayquaza encountered several more waves of mindless sea beasts and medium-sized Sea Kings attracted by the lights.
But as he had just said, in these deep seas, they really posed no threat. Usually just displaying his Conqueror's Haki was enough to scare these unwelcome visitors into fleeing in panic.
After Rayquaza slowly entered the enormous underwater cavern directly beneath the Red Line, those sea beasts and Sea Kings seemed to have agreed never to appear again.
After sailing for some time, weak but warm light suddenly began appearing in the pitch-black water ahead.
As Rayquaza continued approaching, the light grew brighter and clearer until finally, a dreamlike island appeared like a pearl set within a giant double-layer bubble, completely presenting itself before Kai and others.
"Wow, there really is sunlight!"
Bonney pressed against the railing, eyes wide with amazement, releasing incredible cheers.
But how could there be sunlight in the deep sea?
"That's thanks to the Sunlight Tree Eve."
Robin, the most knowledgeable among them, explained: "After the Sunlight Tree Eve's crown absorbs sunlight, it can transmit it through the trunk to the deep-sea roots, making the roots emit strong sun-like light. Also, Fish-Man Island's air is delivered by its root system."
"You could say without Sunlight Tree Eve, there would be no Fish-Man Island."
Yamato's eyes shone: "What an amazing tree."
Rayquaza slowly approached Fish-Man Island.
Stretching before them was the first layer of giant bubble wrapping Fish-Man Island—also Fish-Man Island's most important external barrier.
Any ship attempting unauthorized forced entry would have its coating dissolved by the bubble's special properties the moment it violently pierced this layer. Ships would fall directly into the air layer between the two bubbles, crashing to pieces.
Even if people aboard did not die from the fall, they would still face thick seawater layers—not something ordinary people could break through.
Kai and others naturally had no need to choose such foolish and meaningless forced entry.
So Rayquaza sailed steadily toward Fish-Man Island's front gate.
A small queue had already formed before the gate—several merchant ships and even a pirate ship with a flag were obediently waiting for entry inspection.
A team of well-equipped, serious-looking fishman soldiers guarded outside the gate, systematically inspecting every ship wanting to enter Fish-Man Island.
Kai loudly ordered: "Sail the ship over there!"
As Beast Pirates members, how could they obediently queue?
"Stop! That ship! No cutting in line!"
Fishman soldiers maintaining order quickly noticed Rayquaza's movement, immediately gathering with raised weapons and loud rebukes.
"Bastard! Which blind fool dares cut my line?!"
A pirate captain aboard a ship that had been queuing and was about to get his turn immediately cursed angrily.
But before finishing his words, a sharp-eyed subordinate desperately covered his mouth.
"Captain! Stop shouting! Look at their flag!"
The subordinate's voice trembled with extreme fear: "It's—it's the Beast Pirates!"
After seeing Rayquaza's flag clearly, the previously boastful captain immediately fell silent, anger instantly replaced by pallor as cold sweat poured out.
He shrank his head like an ostrich, not daring another glance.
No choice—Beast Pirates were the bosses! Forget cutting in line—even if they robbed them, he would not dare say a word.
Those fishman soldiers who had been aggressively shouting also froze in place, unanimously swallowing hard, faces full of panic and helplessness.
Had they really just told that ship to stop?
"Quick! Go to Dragon Palace and get King Neptune!"
The lead fishman squad leader's voice trembled, almost crawling as he screamed at his subordinates.
This was beyond what small soldiers could handle.
A fishman soldier hurriedly returned to Fish-Man Island to call for help while the remaining soldiers rode sea beasts to Rayquaza's front.
Despite their inner terror, they still mustered courage to inquire about Kai's and others' intentions.
"Cooperation?"
The fishman squad leader showed surprise but quickly realized he had no right to question or object.
He immediately indicated he could provide convenience, first guiding them into Fish-Man Island.
No choice—even if Rayquaza refused cooperation, they could not intercept it. Rather than futile conflict, it is better to obediently cooperate and at least maintain surface order.
With fishman soldiers' cooperation and other ships "voluntarily" yielding, Rayquaza entered Fish-Man Island without delay.
After passing through a long tunnel, Fish-Man Island's interior finally perfectly appeared before everyone.
"So beautiful." Kozuki Hiyori could not help widening her eyes.
"There are even blue skies and white clouds here." Yamato looked up at the sky in amazement.
Before everyone stretched a bustling area with distinct Fish-Man Island characteristics.
Various buildings were artistically constructed along massive coral reefs, decorated with shells and other seabed specialties. Many buildings were half-submerged in clear seawater, half above water, convenient for both mermaids and fishmen.
Above water were crisscrossing transparent waterways where many mermaids elegantly swam and moved.
At the harbor, Rayquaza's appearance seemed to drop a depth charge, triggering screams.
"What? Beast Pirates are attacking?"
"Beast Pirates are going to occupy Fish-Man Island!"
"Everyone run!"
Kai ignored those panicked people, his gaze looking toward the distance where Dragon Palace was clearly visible.
They did not wait long—suddenly, a mass of dark shadows emerged from distant waterways, rapidly approaching the harbor.
Leading them was an extremely burly, imposing male merman wearing a golden crown and holding a giant trident.
Neptune.
King of Fish-Man Island.
