"Um, uh..."
"Well, actually..."
"Shyarly is just a child..."
Neptune and the others trembled, their expressions stiffening as they looked at Daren's half-smiling face.
Suddenly—
"Shyarly, wake up! Explain it to Vice Admiral Daren!"
Neptune abruptly grabbed the unconscious Shyarly by the shoulders and shook her violently, making her head loll uncontrollably. His forehead was drenched in cold sweat, and he gritted his teeth desperately.
But no matter how hard he shook her, Shyarly showed no sign of waking up.
"Forget it..."
Daren said impatiently, sitting cross-legged on the floor with his arms resting on his knees, chin propped on his hand.
"I never really bought into these so-called prophecies."
Divination was inherently vague. Judging from Shyarly's earlier state, she hadn't conveyed anything clear either—just glimpses of fragmented images. Without seeing the full picture, placing blind faith in it could easily lead to mistakes and end up being more harmful than helpful.
Rather than trusting something so unreliable, it would be better to visit Wano Country a few more times, train harder under Kaidou-sensei, and grow stronger.
In the end, strength rules this world.
Without enough power, pinning your hopes on a so-called prophecy...
It was just plain foolish.
As for Shyarly's "You're dead," Daren didn't take it to heart at all.
Who doesn't die eventually?
Seeing that the Vice Admiral didn't seem angry, Neptune and the ministers of Ryugu Castle finally let out a long sigh of relief.
"Brr... brr..."
At that moment, the sharp ringing of a Den Den Mushi broke the silence.
Daren paused, then pulled a military Den Den Mushi from his coat and connected the call.
"This is Daren."
"Daren, how's the situation on Fish-Man Island? I've already sent Garp over to support you!"
Sengoku's anxious voice came through the Den Den Mushi.
Garp?
Daren frowned slightly.
He hadn't seen him.
"Admiral Sengoku, I haven't met Vice Admiral Garp yet, but Roger's pirate crew has already fled Fish-Man Island."
"They fled!?"
On the other end of the line, Sengoku suddenly sat up straight on the sofa, his expression changing.
"What happened?"
If it were only Daren, there was no reason Roger's pirate crew would choose to escape.
Sengoku trusted his own judgment.
Especially with Roger's battle-crazed personality—whenever he met an opponent of equal strength, he would definitely fight to the bitter end, and no one could hold him back.
Daren briefly recounted his confrontation with Roger's crew.
Afterward, there was a long silence from the Den Den Mushi.
Half a minute passed, and seeing Sengoku still hadn't said anything, Daren couldn't help but call out,
"Admiral Sengoku? Are you still there?"
Then, without hesitation, he plugged his ears with his fingers.
Neptune and the others looked on in confusion—only to be startled a second later...
All he heard was a barrage of furious shouting from the Den Den Mushi:
"You little brat! How dare you use Enma on Fish-Man Island!?"
"Are you insane!?"
"Fish-Man Island is a Member Nation of the World Government! I even praised you for your steady judgment!"
"If you lost control of its power, would you have slaughtered millions of citizens!?"
"Could you even take responsibility for that!?"
"Damn it! What's the casualty situation on Fish-Man Island!?"
"..."
Sengoku's furious roars thundered through the line, the Den Den Mushi vividly mimicking his rage—face flushing red, smoke practically pouring from his head.
Sengoku was well aware of just how terrifying Enma's power could be.
In fact, right after the battle where Shiki invaded Marineford, the top brass of headquarters had held a secret meeting with the Marine Special Science Group.
The purpose of that meeting had been to assess the maximum power of Enma, the cursed blade that had "consumed" the Moa Moa no Mi.
Sengoku clearly remembered that during the meeting, Borsalino, the head of the Marine Special Science Group, had given a vague conclusion:
Enma's power largely depended on the user—meaning Daren's development of the Devil Fruit abilities—but even with the Moa Moa no Mi's basic 50-fold enhancement in size and speed, its minimum destructive force could already rival a Marine Buster Call.
That would be enough to level half of Fish-Man Island!
"Say something, Daren!"
After a long silence, Sengoku's voice came through gritted teeth.
Daren lazily scratched his ear, then said unhurriedly,
"Relax, Admiral Sengoku, I know what I'm doing... Actually, I'm currently having a drink with King Neptune and the senior officials of Ryugu Castle."
"If you don't believe me, you can speak to them directly."
With that, he pushed the military Den Den Mushi toward Neptune, picked up a bottle of liquor, and casually took a swig, giving Neptune an indifferent glance.
Caught by Daren's gaze, Neptune shrank back instinctively, but quickly forced a bright smile at the Den Den Mushi.
"Admiral Sengoku? This is Neptune."
"Vice Admiral Daren is absolutely right. In fact, Ryugu Castle has prepared a celebratory banquet in his honor... If not for Vice Admiral Daren's timely arrival and his driving away of the vile Roger Pirates, we truly wouldn't have known what to do!"
"Damage? Oh, it's nothing—just the gate was broken. A trivial matter, really."
"Yes, yes, please rest assured. We will make sure Vice Admiral Daren is treated like family... We'll make him feel right at home."
"From now on, Fish-Man Island will be his second home. He's welcome back anytime!"
At first Neptune spoke a bit awkwardly, but he quickly found his rhythm, eventually slapping his chest forcefully in assurance.
The Turtle Prime Minister watched in stunned disbelief, unable to believe his eyes. The other ministers quickly turned their heads away.
"Bru."
After much back-and-forth, the Den Den Mushi finally disconnected.
Neptune let out a long, shaky breath, then carefully handed the military Den Den Mushi back to Daren with both hands.
Taking the Den Den Mushi, Daren paused for a moment before saying,
"Actually, besides dealing with Roger's pirate crew, there's another reason I came this time."
"Please speak, Vice Admiral Daren!"
Neptune responded solemnly.
"I want to meet Fisher Tiger of Fish-Man Island."
Daren finally revealed the true purpose of his visit, a faint smile curling at the corner of his lips.
"I have a business deal I'd like to discuss with him."
Business?
Neptune and the others froze for a moment before replying instinctively,
"But Vice Admiral Daren, Tiger isn't a businessman—he's an adventurer."
...
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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