Vander Decken IX left, and the cell fell into darkness again.
Not long after the two of them left, a sigh of relief suddenly emanated from the dark cell.
For the mermaid slaves, no matter what kind of life they will face in the future, it will definitely be much better than the prison life they are experiencing now!
Various forces have now gathered on Fishman Island. Vergo and his group, who had just landed on the island, had no intention of acting rashly. After following Jinbei to the Fishman Island branch, they met with Arlong, the person involved at the time, in the base.
According to Arlong's description, the Red Hair Pirates were like the incarnation of evil spirits. When Shanks' crew members faced the "inspection" of their new navy, they killed them without any explanation.
In addition, he also emphasized the identity of the Red Hair Pirates as "pirates" in his words and gave their actions a cloak of "justice".
It is too difficult to manage a huge organization. No matter what the original purpose of Tsugumi Yoshikazu when he established the new navy, once this organization absorbed all kinds of different people, the attributes of this organization would inevitably become complicated.
Human hearts are never under control. Pursuing one's own interests is human instinct.
Aaron is actually such a person. The new navy's system may be able to restrain his behavior to a certain extent, but the new navy's system has no way to control people's hearts.
Facing the inquiries of Vergo and others, Aaron acted like a dedicated new navy.
The simple-minded Jinbei and Smoker were easily deceived by Aaron. As for Aramaki, who was traveling with him, he didn't bother with these details at all. He didn't care about this matter at all. He knew what his responsibilities were. It was Vergo who was leading the investigation.
His existence as Huangmu is at best a "thug" role.
Peacock has been brought up by He since he was a child, and he is a cunning person. Although Aaron was excited and passionate when he said these words, Peacock was not led by the other party's emotions, and he kept looking at Aaron with a calm expression.
As for Virgo, who was leading the investigation of the case, he looked calm in the face of Aaron's passionate speech.
Virgo is a "talent", a real talent.
He was able to go undercover as a pirate in the Marine Headquarters for so many years without being suspected, and even gained the trust of the headquarters, and infiltrated the New Navy as a spy.
Even ten Aarons couldn't catch up with Vergo's cunning.
Vergo distrusted everyone, and from Aaron's words, Vergo also heard a lot of problems.
After Arlong finished describing what happened, Vergo, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke up: "The person you wanted to kill at that time was named Uta, a member of the Red Hair Pirates."
"She is the daughter of Red-Haired Shanks, and she is only 11 years old."
"She wasn't on the wanted list, so what prompted you to order the killing of that girl named Uta?"
"Is it because of your status as a member of the Red Hair Pirates?"
Although Vergo was just a lieutenant like Aaron, when Vergo said this, Aaron inexplicably felt a strong sense of oppression.
This sense of oppression does not come from the other party's identity as the "main navy", but from the other party's strength.
The fishmen's perception of danger is countless times more acute than that of ordinary humans. Aaron felt the breath of danger from Vergo.
Aaron, who was being questioned, suddenly lowered his head and looked at the human in front of him who was much shorter than him.
Why?!
How could a mere lieutenant, a mere human, dare to question me like that?!
The fierce light in Aaron's eyes flashed away, and his face darkened. He stared at Virgo, nodded slightly, and replied indifferently:
"yes!"
"The other party is a pirate. I ordered him to be killed. What's the problem?!"
Aaron's tone was flat, but the meaning of dissenting in his words was clearly revealed.
similar!
Vergo looked at Aaron in front of him, and for some reason, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
A faint smile suddenly appeared on his serious face. Virgo shook his head slightly and said with a smile:
"No, no problem, no problem at all."
"I'm just asking casually."
"Captain Aaron, I have nothing more to ask you about. Please go ahead and do your work."
Hearing Vergo's words, Aaron grinned and snorted, then said hello to Jinbei and turned to leave the meeting room. However, just as he reached the door, Vergo suddenly spoke from behind him:
"Captain Aaron, I hope you can understand one thing. Your current situation is very dangerous."
"The Red Hair Pirates are vindictive, and they've got you in their sights."
"Don't leave the branch base unless necessary!"
Aaron suddenly stopped in front of the door, turned around and glanced at Virgo, without saying anything else. Just as he was about to step out of the conference room door, a sharp scream suddenly came from outside the corridor.
A flash of cold light appeared at the edge of the sky, and in just a blink of an eye, it flew directly in front of Aaron. Before Aaron could react, a dagger was inserted into Aaron's strong right arm.
The enormous force pulled Aaron backwards, and the finger-long blade completely penetrated into Aaron's muscles. Blood slowly flowed out of the wound.
Aaron was not careful for a moment and fell backwards to the ground. The severe pain made him groan.
"Bang!!" The sudden change startled everyone present. Aramaki and Jinbe reacted the fastest. They rushed out of the door one after another and came to the corridor outside the meeting room. They looked around, looking for suspicious people.
Peacock and Smoker immediately became alert, their hands falling on their weapons.
Only Virgo appeared somewhat calm. He looked outside the house intently, then came to Aaron's side and looked down at the dagger that had pierced the muscle on Aaron's right arm.
"Captain Aaron, are you okay?!"
"Someone actually attacked you in our New Navy branch. It seems that the Red Hair Pirates are not the only ones targeting you!"
As he spoke, Vergo grabbed the dagger as if no one was around, and without warning Aaron, he directly pulled the dagger out of Aaron's arm. In an instant, blood gushed out.
The pain made Aaron's face become extremely distorted. He pressed his left hand tightly on the wound, his face gloomy.
Vergo held the dagger in one hand and looked at it carefully.
It is a very delicate dagger. The pattern does not seem to be something made on land. The handle is carved with corals and mermaids, which looks like a picture of mermaids playing in the water.
Vergo's eyes lit up slightly. He calmly and elegantly took out a handkerchief, wiped the blood off the dagger, and then handed it to Aaron. He smiled and asked, "Captain Aaron, do you know who attacked you?"
While Vergo was speaking, Jinbei and Aramaki, who hadn't noticed anything, had already returned to the conference room. Upon hearing Vergo's words, Jinbei immediately chimed in, "Virgo, we haven't found any attackers."
"How did you know for sure that the attacker was targeting Aaron?"
"If it's really coming for Aaron..."
"The murderer is most likely from the Red Hair Pirates!"
Jinbei's words actually make some sense, but...
Vergo has now set his sights on Aaron, a "common kind". Although there is no direct evidence, Vergo knows that the fishman captain in front of him may not be as simple as he and his people think.
"I don't know. Base Captain Jinbe is right. I guess it's the Red Hair Pirates' revenge!"
"They want to kill me!"
Vergo did not comment on Aaron's words, nor did he say anything nonsense. He put the dagger in the pocket on the front of Aaron's military uniform and patted it lightly:
"Captain Aaron, please pay more attention to your safety."
Arlong was suddenly attacked in the naval base, which made the navy of the entire branch nervous. Jinbei sent out people to investigate the situation.
As for Vergo and others, they did not seem to be in a hurry to complete the tasks assigned by the headquarters. Instead, they temporarily settled down in the branch under Jinbe's arrangement.
Fishman Island, located deep in the sea, has day and night just like on land.
Fishman Island is located near the "Sun Tree Eve", a giant underwater tree that can transmit sunlight from the land into the depths of the sea.
When the land turned dark, Fishman Island also became dark.
The night sky of Fishman Island is deeper than that of the land.
The moonlight was sparse, and as night fell, the entire Fishman Island was plunged into darkness. Electricity was not widely available on Fishman Island, and the islanders rarely went out at night. Most streets were deserted, and only a few bars at the docks were still open.
That night, the new navy stayed at the Fishman Island branch.
Zefa and his group, who had just visited Dragon Palace in the afternoon to understand the situation, also returned to their warship.
After a busy day, Zefa learned about the disappearance case on Fishman Island from King Neptune, and in the afternoon he took out the relevant files from Ryugu Castle.
When King Neptune learned that Zephyr intended to investigate the matter, he cooperated very well.
He also has full trust in Zefa, the former admiral of the navy.
Fishman Island is the New Navy's sphere of influence, so they shouldn't have any contact with Marinford?!
Neptune had never thought of such a thing. He was a king, and everything he did had to prioritize the interests of Fishman Island itself.
Yoshiichi Tsugikuni doesn't mind Fish-Man Island betting on both sides, and the World Government has not revoked Fish-Man Island's status as a member state. King Neptune will naturally continue to show goodwill to the World Government and Marinford.
Otherwise, how could Fishman Island realize trade with the mainland? !
After receiving the files, Zefa also buried himself in the papers. The disappearance cases on Fishman Island were far more complicated than Zefa had imagined. He had originally thought there would be only one or two, but he didn't expect there would be dozens or even hundreds.
Furthermore, the missing persons comprise a complex group, including young mermaid girls, young mermen, and even children. Even according to King Neptune, the matter is more complex. Not only are the natives of Fish-Man Island reported missing, but even merchants visiting the island for trade have reported missing persons.
However, this part of the files is not in the control of Ryugu Castle, but in the control of the New Navy. The New Navy believes that it was caused by pirate looting.
Zefa only had a preliminary understanding of the matter, but he already felt the complexity of it. There was probably a huge interest group behind it.
It is hard to imagine what kind of criminal, a "masochistic killer", could be responsible for such a large number of missing persons cases.
No one is found alive, no body is found after death, and the scale of the incident is so large, it is most likely abduction.
"Could it be the slave trade?"
In the cabin, Zefa, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, was carefully flipping through the files.
"clatter!"
As night fell, a dark shadow suddenly fell from the deck of Zefa's warship at a high speed. Luffy grabbed the railing with both hands, stretched out his arms, and his feet were already standing on the shore.
"Pah~"
As Luffy's feet touched the ground, his hands loosened their grip on the railing, and his stretched arms retracted directly into his body with a slight sound.
Luffy took advantage of the cover of night and sneaked off the warship.
"Let's go, Luffy."
And it wasn't just Luffy, Ace and Sabo also sneaked off the ship.
Zephyr spent the entire day entertaining and negotiating with King Neptune. Even though they had come to Fishman Island, they had not yet had the chance to fully appreciate the charm of this dreamy island.
Ace, Luffy and the others are at the age where they are keen on novelty. Is there anything more interesting than exploring at night?
The deep darkness deep in the streets is enough to move the hearts of Ace, Luffy and others.
After slipping off the boat, Ace and the others quickly walked into the streets and disappeared into the night.
A cool breeze blew across the empty streets.
The temperature difference between day and night on Fishman Island is quite large. The temperature difference between when there is sunshine and when there is no sunshine is at least 20 degrees.
"Hey, Ace, I want to go back."
Luffy and the others who sneaked off the ship originally wanted to experience the prosperity of Fishman Island at night. At the very least, they wanted to find some excitement on this unknown island.
But after wandering around for over an hour after disembarking, Ace and the others didn't find anything interesting. Fishman Island was different from mainland China. There was no such thing as night scenery. The local residents had gone to bed early, and there were almost no pedestrians on the streets. After such a long time, they only encountered one or two people.
After walking for so long, Luffy was tired of it, had lost interest, and wanted to go back.
In the middle of the street, Ace put his hands in his pockets and couldn't help but sigh softly. He also said with some disappointment:
"Well, let's go back."
"I didn't expect it to be so boring."
As they spoke, Ace and Sabo simply identified the direction and led Luffy into a narrow path towards the warship.
Not long after the three disappeared into the shadows, three tall figures appeared at the entrance of the trail, stood still for a few seconds, and then followed Ace, Sabo and the others.
"It's really boring. It's more lively during the day."
"Hey, Ace, let's go somewhere farther tomorrow? I heard there's a mermaid bay on Fishman Island that's really beautiful."
"I overheard those guys on the boat talking. Want to go take a look?"
Luffy was holding a branch of coral that he had picked up from some building, and he was waving his little hand casually as he walked.
Beside him, Ace nodded and showed an interested look:
"Okay?!"
However, just as Ace finished his promise, a huge sack came directly towards him. Ace felt his already dim vision suddenly become pitch black, and a huge force came over him, lifting him up.
"Ace?!"
When Luffy heard the noise, he saw a burly black shadow beside him. The next second, Luffy's eyes went dark and a big sack directly covered him.
At the same time, Sabo was also attacked, but Sabo reacted very quickly. He tilted his head slightly and quickly dodged the attack with a forward roll, causing the attacker to murmur in disbelief: "Huh?!"
"Ace!"
"Luffy!"
"Who are you guys!"
Sabo narrowed his eyes slightly, looked at the three fishmen who suddenly appeared in the alley and attacked them, and growled.
"Shuer, you loser, you can even fail like this?!"
However, the attackers ignored Sabo, and the tall green-skinned fishman in the middle even had the leisure to tease his companions.
"Tsk, the little guy is just lucky."
As he spoke, the blue-skinned fishman who had lost his grip grabbed the sack and slowly approached Sabo.
With the dim light, Sabo saw the attacker clearly. It was a three-spotted murloc with a strong body but long limbs, looking like a spider.
The fishman wore a linen vest on his upper body, with his chest bare, and shorts on his lower body.
As he approached Sabo, Sabo could smell a strong, fishy odor. It wasn't the sea-like smell of a murloc, but a different, more unidentifiable scent that Sabo couldn't place.
Seeing the other party approaching with a bad look, Sabo's face turned slightly cold, and he suddenly said:
"Ace, how long are you going to play?"
"These guys are enemies, take them and give them to the teacher!"
Sabo's sudden words startled the fishmen, and then they sneered:
"Is this kid scared?"
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
At this moment, a red light suddenly appeared in the sack that Ace was wearing.
A low voice rang out in the alley:
"Fire Fist!"
The raging flames instantly burst the sack, and thick flames burst out in an instant. A loud bang directly broke the quiet night of Fishman Island.
"boom!!!"
Flames burst out from the entrances and exits at both ends of the alley, and the flames shot up into the sky, instantly illuminating the night sky of Fishman Island.
(End of this chapter)
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