"A poneglyph?" Neptune's heart pounded violently in shock.
His first reaction was that the remaining poneglyph in the Sea Forest was about to be sent by Jinbe to BigMom.
"No!" Neptune shouted, stopping him!
Fish-Man Island once possessed two poneglyphs, one of which was a red Road Poneglyph.
More than ten years ago, when Whitebeard was protecting Fish-Man Island, Neptune handed that red poneglyph over to Whitebeard as a token of sincerity for their agreement.
Although Whitebeard wasn't interested in the poneglyph itself, he ultimately accepted it to stabilize the uneasy residents of Fish-Man Island and reassure the Ryugu Royal Family.
Now that Whitebeard is dead, the whereabouts of that poneglyph are naturally unknown; perhaps Marco, as the Emperor's Consort, would know.
"No, Your Majesty, what I mean is, I obtained a new one!"
Jinbe looked solemn. "Because of the Marineford War, the Marine revoked my Warlord of the Sea title. So, on my return journey, I concealed my tracks and took a detour, reaching a certain sea area..."
Jinbe then recounted a journey from a few days prior.
In a port city on a small island, the "Bald Sea Monster," having been banished from Fish-Man Island, was wandering aimlessly underwater. Then, being hungry, he ate the offerings placed on the shore by the city for the worship of the "Sea God."
Because the word "Sea God" was written on the *Torii* gate where the offerings were piled, the simple-minded Bald Sea Monster thought those items were gifts from the humans in the port city.
Unexpectedly, this fellow was surprisingly polite and knew that receiving a gift required giving something in return.
To thank the humans for their kindness, he threw some underwater ruins into the harbor. These ruins had long been the homes of the Sea Beasts.
Seeing their homes appear in the human harbor, the Sea Beasts naturally assumed the humans had "stolen" them.
The Sea Beasts couldn't tolerate this and began attacking the port city, thus triggering the incident known as the "Harbor Monster Attack."
Jinbe, who happened to pass by, was furious when he learned the full story and taught the Bald Sea Monster a good lesson.
This simple and cute Sea God was truly unlucky, having been consecutively beaten up by Taro and Jinbe within a few days.
And among those underwater ruins that were thrown ashore, there was a poneglyph.
After quietly listening to Jinbe's account, Neptune still shook his head.
"Jinbe, even so, I still disagree with you giving that poneglyph to BigMom!"
Jinbe frowned deeply, a hint of anger in his voice. "Your Majesty the King trusts Taro so much, why is that?"
Neptune stared at Jinbe, and after a long pause, slowly uttered a sentence: "Because Taro is the one who will guide Shirahoshi to correctly use her own power!"
"Impossible!" Jinbe exclaimed, staggering back several steps in shock.
"Nothing is impossible, Jinbe!" Neptune coiled his enormous tail beneath him and sat down. "I say this based on Madam Shyarly's prophecy..."
This time, it was Neptune's turn to speak, and Jinbe listened.
Blue Fatty's expression gradually became serious, then turned slightly doubtful.
"Even if that's the case, we can't be certain that Taro is that person. Isn't that too arbitrary, Your Majesty the King?"
Neptune nodded. "It is a bit hasty."
Then he shook his head again. "However, Taro also has the ability to protect Fish-Man Island's safety. I don't think you would deny that!"
Jinbe, who had participated in the Marineford War and personally witnessed Taro's strength, naturally wouldn't deny it.
"That Marine is indeed very powerful!"
Seeing Jinbe also agree, Neptune laughed heartily twice. "Hohohoho! Based on this premise, all I need to know is that compared to Taro, BigMom is even less likely to be the one who guides Shirahoshi!"
Jinbe fell silent upon hearing this. After a long while, he raised his head and looked at Neptune. "Then, how should I deal with this poneglyph I obtained?"
Neptune thought for a moment, then shook his head. "You found it, so naturally, you should dispose of it. However, ultimately, the Sea God was defeated by Taro before being banished. Your acquisition of this poneglyph is somewhat related to Taro. Perhaps..."
Neptune didn't finish his sentence, but Jinbe already understood his meaning. However, Jinbe felt great resistance in his heart, especially since Taro had played an "important role" in Whitebeard's death!
Sensing Jinbe's displeasure, Neptune didn't press the issue. "It's just a suggestion; it is your property after all."
Pausing, he added, "Since the matter has been clarified, I will resume contact with Taro, which I had previously suspended because you stopped me. I hope you..."
Jinbe clenched his hands into fists and let out a deep breath.
"I am currently being hunted again by the World Government. To avoid bringing trouble to Fish-Man Island, I won't stay here long. You are the King... you decide!"
Having said that, Blue Fatty turned and left.
Neptune watched Jinbe's retreating figure and muttered to himself, "Taro, I have staked all of Fish-Man Island on you. I hope you won't disappoint me!"
"You are this generation's Joy Boy, aren't you?!"
...Alabasta, Nanohana Port.
A Warship slowly sailed into the port. A red-haired youth was the first to leap off the bow, his left arm covered by a layer of iron armor.
"Hey, Mac, is Taro in this country?"
The youth turned back and shouted toward the ship, "Where is he? This place doesn't look like it has a Marine Base!"
Mac looked resentful. "Grant, I've told you many times, you must address Taro as Vice Admiral Taro! And I am a Major; you are only a Captain, please respect me!"
"Tch, you can't beat me anyway!" Grant said arrogantly. "Hurry up and contact Taro!"
Taro looked surprised when he received the call. They arrived so quickly?
The work in the Elmal District had already been deployed, and everything was proceeding according to plan. Taro decided not to disturb the others, took off from the roof of the Government Hall, and flew toward Nanohana Port.
"Mac, Mac, where are you?" Taro landed on the deck and loudly called out the old guy's name.
"You're Taro?" A figure swiftly rushed out from the stern, leaping high. The strange Armored Gauntlet on his left arm released astonishing power, and a punch shot straight toward Taro.
Taro clenched his right fist, and pale blue Internal Energy permeated out of his body.
"Gum-Gum Pistol!"
A punch shadow flew out, smashing toward the figure leaping in the air.
"Bang!"
The two forces instantly collided. In just a flash, the figure spun several times in the air, flew backward, and plunged into the sea.
"Ah? Vice Admiral Taro, you're already here?"
Just then, Mac poked his head out of the ship's cabin.
Taro glared at him. "You old rascal, you did that on purpose, didn't you?"
Mac chuckled. "That little brat Grant has been arrogant all the way. He deserves a lesson from you!"
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