The ocean currents swept through each carriage, and the Fishmen quickly reached Tom's location.
"You guys..."
"Brother Tiger brought us to rescue you, Tom. Let's go."
Aladine, wielding a trident, took down a guard in the room. CP5 is not CP9; they are stronger than ordinary people, but in a water-filled environment, they are no match for the Fishmen.
Spandam and his men still wanted to extract some information from Tom, so they provided emergency treatment for his gunshot wounds. Although Tom was in his seventies, his body was still very robust.
With Aladine and Ah Long leading the way, they quickly exited the ship container and retreated to a preplanned location.
The Fishmen's attack was sudden, and their retreat was swift. By the time everyone reacted, Tiger and his group had already disappeared across the vast sea.
Aside from some guards who were killed in Tom's carriage, most were only injured. As they looked at the turbulent sea around them, they had no way of dealing with the escaping Fishmen, so they could only wait for rescue inside the floating carriage.
At the same time, they began rescue efforts for Spandam.
Although this officer was useless, his father's connections were too powerful. If Spandam really died here, they would be in a difficult position.
Moreover, Spandam's luck was quite strong, and the agents eventually managed to rescue an inflated, soaked Spandam.
On an island near Water Seven, Aladine further treated Tom's wounds.
"Thank you all, but I have to break my promise. Given the current situation... I'm afraid I won't be able to help you build a ship for the time being."
Tom understood very well what Judicial Island represented; if it weren't for his disciples, he would not have taken on this responsibility.
Tiger and the others rescued him, but he could not return to Water Seven. Being exposed to the public eye wouldn't benefit him.
"It's okay; there's plenty of time. When we find a safe place, we can build a new ship together. But Uncle Tom, what are your plans from here?"
Tiger wasn't concerned about the delay; with Tom, the world's greatest shipwright, shipbuilding was just a matter of time.
"We'll take it one step at a time. I can't go back to either Water Seven or Fishman Island right now..."
"Uncle Tom, I wanted you to build a ship to form an adventure team to search for things. We still lack an excellent shipwright. Why not join us?
If you don't want to continue adventuring, I do have a good place where you can realize your ambitions."
As Tiger spoke, he took out a small waterproof notebook. Those like Ah Long who had been with Tiger for a long time knew what was about to happen—it was Tiger's new hobby of "spreading the faith."
However, everyone's situation is different. Tom didn't have an immediate epiphany like Tiger. Instead, he temporarily joined Tiger's group, and living with his compatriots seemed like a good future.
On the other side, Spandam's prisoner was hijacked on the way to an important institution of the World Government. This was a serious matter for the World Government.
After questioning the survivors, they drew several portraits based on descriptions. Even though they didn't have a portrait of Tiger, they were all members of the Sun Pirates.
The World Government couldn't find where Tom went, but they could locate Fishman Island and Jinbe.
...
"Jinbe! These people are all members of the Sun Pirates, aren't they? Do you have anything to explain about this?"
"No, those few have long since left the Sun Pirates."
"Jinbe, we mean no harm. Hand over the hijacked prisoners and those people, and there will be no problem with Fishman Island and your position as a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."
"If you arrest a pirate and then go after their home country, how many countries would be left in this world? Which island can guarantee that no pirates have ever appeared there?"
At the World Government's office in the Shampodi Islands, Jinbe arrived as requested to explain the "malicious incident" that had occurred.
The World Government originally intended to confront Neptune on Fishman Island directly, but they didn't dare to go underwater, so they resorted to this method instead.
Whether faced with a tough or a soft approach, Jinbe remained indifferent and answered everything fluently, but firmly denied any connection to those people.
"Why did they leave the Sun Pirates?"
"Because you killed Brother Tai!"
Mentioning this, Jinbe made a table-flipping gesture, startling the officials opposite him.
As Jinbe said, if they started holding states or others responsible because they couldn't find the main perpetrator, there wouldn't be many left on this sea. The World Government never intended to act against Fishman Island or Jinbe because of this.
They truly didn't want to bother with Fishman Island but neither wanted to push them to the brink. If all five million inhabitants of Fishman Island rebelled, it would be a disaster for the sea.
Jinbe, being a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, barely remained a face card of the World Government, so they couldn't slap themselves over this.
The most critical issue on Tom was the Pluton designs, but after his arrest, every part of him was searched, and the designs were not on him. The Five Elders also knew where the real Pluton was.
If it hadn't been for Spandam's exaggerated claims, the previous actions might not have happened. The accountability now seemed more like they needed a way to back down.
When the conversation reached a stalemate, the questioning official suddenly received a call from above, stating that the matter would be dropped.
The officer in charge looked bewildered, and Jinbe did not understand what was happening either; he just returned to Fishman Island with the new information.
...
In Mary Geoise, the World Government's highest authority, the Five Elders were also discussing the matter.
They withdrew the officials because they found a suitable way to back down, but this seemed a bit strange to them.
"Why did Mjosgard propose this idea?"
"I don't know. Maybe he just likes Fishman slaves. I heard that he recently visited Fishman Island, encountered a shipwreck, and was finally accompanied back to the Holy Land by the Dragon Palace Kingdom's Princess themselves."
Donquixote Mjosgard, a Celestial Dragon, and it was his proposal that made the World Government temporarily drop the matter. Since returning from Fishman Island, he seemed to have changed completely.
"No matter; it's not a big deal. A person can't memorize an entire design blueprint. Rather than worry about this, we should worry that the Pluton beneath Wano Kuni might be dug out by Kaidou."
"Isn't he out searching for stones all over the world? Pirates like him are simpler to deal with than people like Roger. But you're right, it's not unusual for there to be some oddities in the Donquixote family."