Chapter 181: Fish-Man Karate – Ichibō Style
"…" In front of the building, everyone fell into silence.
That bar name was a bit too much. They'd expected something bold, but hearing it out loud…!
Luo Han still gave Sister Spoon a thumbs-up. That's our Sister Spoon—fierce, few words, and she even extorts you right to your face.
"Well then! Since you've decided, I'll go ahead and carve it," Luo Han said, turning to Sister Spoon.
"Go ahead," she replied.
Luo Han nodded. With a thought, the words "Shaki's Rip-Off BAR" were engraved above the entrance.
"No further requests? I'll solidify it then," he asked again.
Sister Spoon waved it off, indicating all was good. Luo Han smiled and proceeded to harden it with psychic power—just a few moments, and it was done.
"Alright! That's a wrap for today!" Luo Han called out.
"Let's grab some food and throw a feast tonight to celebrate the bar's completion," Aishi suggested.
Looking at the sky, the sun was nearly setting. Time to prepare dinner.
"Alright, let's all go grocery shopping together," Luo Han laughed.
"Heehee, let's go!" the group responded.
And so, the six of them headed off toward Island 24—like one big family.
…
Meanwhile, 10,000 meters under the sea on Fish-Man Island, shadowy figures moved everywhere. From appearances and body types, it was clear some were humans—pirates.
"Kill these slave-trading pirates!"
"Take out these fish freaks and we'll be rich, boys!"
"Attack—!"
At the massive merfolk plaza, the usual joy was gone. Countless pirates and Ryugu Palace soldiers clashed fiercely.
Among them, a giant fish-man with orange facial hair stood out, drawing the most attacks.
Clang! It was Neptune. Calmly, he swung his trident, blocking a huge sword strike. With a twist and a pivot, he countered with a punch to the attacker.
"Die, you filthy pirate slavers!" Neptune roared, hurling the pirate back with a thunderous blow.
Clang-clang-clang! He spun and blocked attacks from three more pirates. With a mighty heave, he forced their arms upward with sheer strength.
"What power!" the three exclaimed in shock.
Before they could react, Neptune surged forward and swept his trident—bam! bam! bam!—sending them flying and crashing through the crowd, raising clouds of dust.
"Your Highness! Bad news—some terrifying pirates have broken into Ryugu Palace!" a soldier called as he flew toward Neptune.
"What? The gate to the palace wasn't opened! How did they get inside?" Neptune's eyes turned cold. Without going through the massive sealed corridor, it was impossible to enter—unless they breached the protective bubbles.
The soldier trembled. "A pirate wielding twin swords slashed a hole in the bubble and broke in. He then opened the palace gates from within…"
"What…?! A human managed to cut through the palace's bubble shield underwater?! No… My mother and Akatsuki are still inside!" Neptune's eyes widened.
His sister was still locked in the Shell Tower. If the slavers found her, she wouldn't even have a chance to run. He couldn't bear the thought of what might happen.
With a powerful tail flick and help from the floating bubbles, Neptune rocketed toward the palace.
"Go alert my father!" he shouted.
"Yes, Your Highness!" the soldier replied, rushing off to inform the king—just in case the initial messenger had been intercepted.
…
"These pirates don't look like they're heading to the New World… they look like they came from it. What's going on?" Neptune wondered as he flew.
He'd been patrolling the sea outside Fish-Man Island for days, as his father had ordered. Then suddenly today, dozens of coated pirate ships appeared out of nowhere.
He ordered soldiers to attack the bubbles and delay them while he returned to report—but they were overwhelmed instantly. As soon as Neptune set foot on the island, the pirates followed.
Chaos erupted. Neptune had to fight while ordering civilians to evacuate into the sea. Among the invaders, over a dozen humans were extremely powerful—even regular soldiers couldn't hold them back.
Thankfully, his father had arrived in time to pin down the enemy captains and contain the fight to the plaza. But… Neptune looked toward Ryugu Palace, a grim shadow in his eyes.
"Looks like stronger ones are still coming… Mother, Akatsuki, please be safe."
Elsewhere, 3,000 meters from the plaza, over a dozen figures clashed in a storm of shockwaves. Swords clanged and thunderous impacts echoed—waves of force rippling outward like a storm.
Here, the Ryugu King alone fought against a dozen pirate captains. No soldiers could approach their battlefield.
"Your Majesty! Kill those filthy humans!"
"They're no match for you!"
"That's right!"
On the sidelines, soldiers cheered for their king.
Boom! One figure was sent flying, crashing into a distant coral ridge with a deep thud.
Crash! As debris scattered, Kaine Iron Hoof pulled himself from the rubble, slumping to the ground with a stunned gaze.
"No wonder he's on par with a Vice Admiral candidate… Less than an hour of fighting and I'm already this messed up."
Wiping the blood from his brow, Kaine's body was a mess of injuries. Were it not for his Iron Bull Zoan powers, he'd be dead. That same durability also made him the one forced to bear most of the King's attacks.
Thump-thump-thump! One by one, the other pirate captains landed beside him—these were the same ones Mike had gathered from that New World island. Everyone was wounded and bloodied.
Only Monk Sanlong remained in peak form. The rest had noticeably declined in strength.
"Still breathing, Captain Iron Hoof?" Mike panted, eyes locked on the approaching Ryugu King.
"I'm good. Still standing," Kaine growled, getting up.
"Thank goodness," the others sighed. Without Kaine, they couldn't withstand the king's onslaught.
"He's coming. Brace yourselves. Just hold on a little longer—the big shot will be here soon," Sanlong said grimly. Everyone focused on the approaching figure.
Step… step… The Ryugu King walked forward, his aura intensifying with each stride.
"I'll send you bastards to hell. This is what you get for invading Fish-Man Island."
Then, in a deep voice, he roared, "Fish-Man Karate – Ichibō Style!" With his right hand clenched, he punched toward the pirates.
Boom! The air around his fist twisted. A massive, translucent white shockwave blasted forward at lightning speed.
In an instant, Sanlong and the others knew they were out of time.
"We can't dodge—hit him with everything we've got!" they all thought at once.
They launched their strongest attacks, forming a torrent of energy to meet the King's strike.
Clang! The moment both sides clashed, the sound of steel grinding echoed, followed by a shockwave even greater than before—soldiers on the sidelines were blown into the sky.
But in the end, the King's "Ichibō Style" overwhelmed their combined assault and surged toward them.
"Not good! Scatter!" Sensing the breach, Sanlong leapt away to the right.
"That bastard!" the others cursed. He was the strongest among them, yet he dodged first. Still, they tried to escape as well.
But it was too late. Everyone except Sanlong was caught in the blast.
Boom! The wave swept through Mike and the others, carving a 15-meter-wide semicircular path through the coral.
"Are they dead?!"
"They must be."
"No one could survive His Majesty's ultimate move head-on."
Nearby soldiers, just recovering from the shockwave, began murmuring.
Thud! Sanlong, who had leapt away, landed next to Mike and the others.
"Are they dead?" he asked calmly.
Mike and the rest were covered in blood, lying motionless. A strike from someone at Vice Admiral candidate level was no joke.
"Huff! Close call…" Mike groaned, pushing a fellow pirate off of him and sitting up, patting his chest.
"Captain Mike, you're truly shameless," Sanlong said with disdain—but inside, he was wary. The fact that Mike had dragged another pirate in front of him to absorb the blow showed how ruthless he really was. Underestimating him could cost lives.
"Haha, survival is survival," Mike laughed, saying no more.
Suddenly—plop! Mike and Sanlong froze and looked toward the sound.
"Huff! That was close, nearly died," Kaine Iron Hoof said with a goofy grin, pushing a pirate off him.
"…" Mike's face darkened. Sanlong said nothing.
Kaine got up, saw their dumbfounded expressions, and glanced down at the pirate beneath him.
He scratched his head awkwardly. "I didn't mean to. Just grabbed someone out of reflex."
Sanlong silently moved farther away from both Kaine and Mike. Mike also stepped aside.
Looking at Kaine's still-innocent face, they both came to the same conclusion:
He's the most dangerous one of all.
Crunch—gravel shifted under heavy footsteps. The three looked up, eyes narrowing at the blue figure approaching again.
"Why hasn't that monster arrived yet?! Damn it!" they all cursed inwardly.
(END CHAPTER)
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