Sabaody Archipelago.
The main building's conference hall was enormous. Even though it was already packed with people, it still didn't feel cramped.
In the crowd, Jinbe—Sea Knight Jinbe—was just about to take a seat when his eyes suddenly went wide. He cried out in disbelief:
"Big Brother… Princess Otohime?!"
Off to the side, seated together with Nixidon and the others, Fisher Tiger turned his head. A smile spread across his face as he greeted him.
"Yo. Jinbe. Long time no see."
Princess Otohime beside him also smiled warmly and gave Jinbe a small nod.
But Jinbe's mind completely short-circuited.
What… what is going on?
Brother Fisher and Princess Otohime were supposed to be dead! Was he dreaming? Was this some kind of hallucination?!
Yet he could clearly see Nixidon chatting and laughing with Otohime as if this were the most natural thing in the world. There was no way this was just his imagination.
Could someone be impersonating them?
Questions exploded in Jinbe's head one after another, piling up until his brain nearly seized.
At that moment, Jinbe slapped the shoulder of Aladine, who was just as frozen in shock, and demanded:
"Does it hurt?"
"It hurts!" Aladine answered blankly, still dazed. Why was Jinbe hitting him?
Of course, he was just as concerned as Jinbe was. The real issue was the same:
Fisher Tiger and Princess Otohime—two people who had been dead for years—were sitting here alive.
Finally, after Nixidon and the others explained everything, Jinbe and Aladine learned what had happened back in Fish-Man District.
When they heard that Nixidon's group had nearly been executed by Hody Jones, both of them were so furious they practically wanted to start killing on the spot.
But as the story continued, the shock only grew.
By the time it ended, they finally understood the whole sequence of events.
Even so, the expressions on their faces refused to settle. It still felt unreal—like a dream they hadn't woken up from.
They had long since heard Lin Xuan's name like thunder, especially after he executed the Celestial Dragons. For fish-men like them, it was nothing short of exhilarating.
Over the years, far too many fish-men had been captured as slaves, auctioned off for the Celestial Dragons to toy with, and then discarded to die miserable deaths.
Because of that, Jinbe had come with his people to attend the World Conference hosted by the Ninja Guild.
Jinbe didn't really understand what "Edo Tensei" was, but bringing the dead back to life…
That kind of power was practically divine.
In that moment, Jinbe's awe of Lin Xuan deepened even further. And he felt all the more grateful that after the war at Sabaody, he hadn't ended up becoming enemies with the Ninja Guild.
Soon, Jinbe sat down with Fisher Tiger and Otohime, and the three of them talked happily.
When Jinbe told them about everything that had happened to the Sun Pirates over the past few years, Fisher Tiger couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
But in truth, their conversation kept circling back to Lin Xuan and the Ninja Guild—because in these past years, the biggest events in the world had all been tied to the Guild's actions.
As they spoke, Jinbe's eyes swept across the room. Before long, surprise flashed across his face again.
There were too many big names here.
The most eye-catching, naturally, were Whitebeard, Roger, Rayleigh, and Red-Haired Shanks.
Jinbe also recognized many kings and princesses from different nations.
Beyond that, he spotted plenty of familiar faces.
For instance, Boa Hancock.
Now that Amazon Lily was under the Ninja Guild's protection, it wasn't strange to see the Pirate Empress here.
And then there was the man seated in the very center—a figure in a long coat.
Jinbe recognized him at once.
Monkey D. Dragon of the Revolutionary Army.
Beside him sat the Revolutionary Army's chief of staff, Sabo.
The "Okama King," Emporio Ivankov, was there too.
And sitting next to Ivankov…
Was Bartholomew Kuma—another former Warlord of the Sea, just like Jinbe.
Jinbe couldn't hide his surprise.
He hadn't expected to see Kuma here.
Ever since the war at Sabaody, Kuma had vanished without a trace. Many people assumed he was dead.
Yet here he was.
And when Jinbe looked closer, he realized Kuma had changed a lot.
Most noticeably, his face looked far more human than before.
Before long, Jinbe spotted someone else that made him pause.
"Avalo Pizarro… the Corrupt King."
So even he had come.
But Jinbe quickly understood why.
Not long ago, Lin Xuan had destroyed Impel Down, and all the prisoners locked inside had been released.
Pizarro had been held on Level 6. Even when Straw Hat Luffy and Sabo caused chaos in Impel Down, he hadn't been freed.
It was only after the prison was destroyed that he finally got out.
And he wasn't the only one.
Catarina Devon, Sanjuan Wolf, Barorick Redfield…
All of them had been released as well.
And now, they were all here.
Looking around at so many powerful and infamous figures, Jinbe couldn't help but draw in a breath.
If an ordinary person saw a scene like this, they'd probably die of fear on the spot.
There were simply too many terrifying individuals gathered in one place.
Jinbe couldn't stop himself from exclaiming:
"The Ninja Guild's influence… it's unbelievable."
At this point, the hall had become noisy.
Many of the people present were pirates—rough men with no manners. Once they sat together, it was impossible to expect order. They found acquaintances and shouted over one another, chatting loudly.
Some of the more hot-tempered ones were already close to fighting.
But the moment Kaguya Otsutsuki and Konan appeared, countless voices died instantly.
No one dared make trouble anymore.
These days, a lot of people were genuinely afraid of Kaguya and Konan.
The broadcast from earlier had left too deep an impression on them.
No one wanted to be the next example.
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T/N:
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