"Yes, Koala, it's just thunder."
The family in the room wore forced smiles. Initially, the gunfire wasn't noticeable, but as the battle intensified and the weather changed, Koala also sensed the anomaly outside the village.
However, everyone in the village told her in unison that it was just the sound of thunder, nothing to worry about.
"Come, Koala, here are new clothes for you. Try them on."
Pulling Koala away from the window, her mother handed her a brand-new outfit. Although the Sun Pirates' brand on her back caused a stir in her heart, she quickly concealed it.
She didn't want her daughter to be taken away again. Even though it was unfair to that Fishman, he was just a Fishman after all.
.....
Not long ago, at the seaside, Ah Long led the remaining Fishmen in a confrontation against the encroaching naval warships.
"Destroy their rudder! The injured hide underwater, Jinbe will definitely bring the big brother back!"
"Idiot! Leave one ship intact, we still need to retreat!"
Ah Long commanded another part of the Sun Pirates to engage in battle with the Navy. Their ships had already been destroyed under the bombardment, and all the Fishman Race had submerged deep into the sea.
Once they approached from below, the artillery's range couldn't target them, and the Flintlock Gun's bullets were hampered by the water resistance, rendering them ineffective.
The Fishman Race could easily exploit their explosive power to destroy the enemy's rudder underwater. Various types of Fishmen had unique abilities, using their racial gifts to engage in guerrilla warfare in the vast ocean.
"Ah Long, Jinbe is back!"
"Alright, go and bring them over!"
Tiger had many wounds on his body, but due to the Fishman Race's nature, they possessed a special resistance to injuries exposed to water, and it wasn't a major issue. However, Jack didn't intend to board the captured warship.
"Can't board the ship, go underwater."
"Hmm? But Tiger needs rest, if we don't treat him soon..."
As the ship's doctor, Aladine expressed a different opinion; while the Fishman Race wasn't that afraid of water when injured, he couldn't administer treatment amidst the turbulent currents.
The Navy's warship had more advanced medical facilities, and he wanted to utilize them.
"Our ship isn't too far from here, Mandfeish can't hold that Navy off for long. If we seize the warship, we'll be sitting ducks. Let's go underwater, and wait for Mandfeish to return."
"Listen to him, let's go, that Navy is indeed hard to handle."
There wasn't any time to waste, Jinbe quickly agreed with Jack's words, forgoing the captured warship from Ah Long. Even Ah Long didn't object because Mandfeish was actually covering Tiger's retreat.
Tiger held great importance in his heart, so he wouldn't speak out of turn.
Led by Jack, they quickly returned to Mandfeish's ship.
...
"Where's Big Brother?"
"Big Brother is covering our retreat, he'll be back soon. This is the mission's target, he's badly hurt, let's hurry up and treat him."
Jack briefly explained the situation to Pierman, and then took Tiger to the medical room. Upon boarding, the Sun Pirates visibly divided into two factions.
One comprised Fishmen who had originally joined the Hundred Beasts under Mandfeish, including Hatchan and Jinbe, who accepted goodwill from humans.
The other group of Fishmen distrusted these humans, unwilling to leave Tiger in their hands. Accompanied by a few others, they entered the medical room with Aladine.
The ship's doctor quickly concluded that the injuries themselves weren't fatal, but there was significant blood loss. Aladine agreed with the assessment, and all that was left was to remove the bullets, stitch the wounds, and perform a blood transfusion to finish the treatment.
"What's your leader's blood type?"
"Type S RH-negative. Only Tiger has this blood type on our ship, do you have any stored in your blood bank?"
Most pirate ships wouldn't have a blood bank. Although the Hundred Beasts' ship was much more advanced than average, conventional vessels only stored the blood type of their onboard warriors.
Ship space was limited, and the blood types in the Pirate World were particularly complex, making it impossible to store all types.
"Type S RH-negative? No, that blood type is too rare. Arceus was right, hey, who has the medicine given by Lord Arceus?"
During treatment, the ship's doctor held the highest status aboard—that was the iron rule of the ship, allowing him to command anyone aboard at such times.
The crew exchanged looks before turning to Pierman.
"Don't look at me, Mandfeish always carries it with him."
"I have it, Mandfeish gave me the medicine earlier."
Outside, Jack handed over the medicine. This ship was Mandfeish's flagship, and when designed, Jack's growing physique wasn't taken into account. As he continued to grow taller, he couldn't fit into the medical room, so he could only wait outside.
"Alright, just inject this and he'll slowly recover."
Speaking, he intended to administer the injection to Tiger, but Tiger reacted with some resistance.
"Is this medicine... made by humans?"
"Nope, this is a specially-made medicine by the divine, it'll bring you back as long as you have breath."
Tiger's initial words were promptly shut down by the ship's doctor. Mandfeish's support saved him, and he acknowledged the favor, but the Navy's onslaught shattered his internal defenses.
He initially intended to refuse human pharmaceuticals and blood, willing to die even. But the ship's doctor's words short-circuited his thoughts, so before he could react, the injection was administered.
"Wait! Aren't you going to do a sensitivity test?"
"Huh? No need for that, Lord Arceus' medicine works for everyone, unless you're a Blasphemer, otherwise you won't die."
Aladine was left dumbfounded hearing this, as human technology developed far faster than that on Fishman Island—it was evident from the medical equipment in this room. However, he never expected a doctor using such advanced gear to utter such superstitious words.
Nevertheless, the medicine's effect kicked in instantly. Within less than a minute of injection, Tiger fell asleep, but his breathing grew stable, and the bleeding wounds stopped hemorrhaging and began to heal. It's no wonder he wanted to remove the bullets first before treatment.
...
"It's alright now, Tiger is saved."
This news spread quickly among the Fishmen aboard, followed by cheers. Ah Long received the news with joy, but his expression remained solemn as he gazed at the sea.
"What's wrong, Ah Long?"
"Jinbe, why hasn't Mandfeish, that trickster, come back yet?"