The sea current swept through every carriage, and the Fish-Men quickly reached the location where Tom was.
“You guys…”
“Boss Tiger brought us to rescue you, Senior Tom. Let’s go quickly.”
Aladine, holding a trident, knocked down the guard in the room. CP5 was not CP9. They were stronger than ordinary people, but in an environment full of water, they were no match for the Fish-Men.
Spandam and others still wanted to extract some information from Tom, so they had provided emergency treatment for his gunshot wounds. Although Tom was over seventy years old, his body was still hale and hearty.
Led by Aladine and Arlong, they quickly left the carriage and retreated to a predetermined location.
Fish-Men’s attack was sudden, and their retreat was also swift. By the time everyone reacted, Tiger and his group had already disappeared into the vast sea.
Apart from some guards in Tom’s carriage being killed, most of the remaining people were only injured. Seeing the raging sea currents around them, they were powerless against the escaping Fish-Men and could only wait for rescue in the floating carriages.
At the same time, they also began the rescue operation for Spandam.
Although their chief was a good-for-nothing, his father has strong connections. If Spandam were to die here, it would create huge problems for them.
And Spandam also proved to be quite resilient as the agents eventually managed to rescue the bloated Spandam.
On an island near Water 7, Aladine further treated Tom’s wounds.
“Thank you all, but I’m afraid I can’t keep my promise. Given the current situation, I fear I won’t be able to help you build the ship for a while.”
Tom knew very well what Enies Lobby signifies. If it weren’t for his apprentices, he wouldn’t have taken the responsibility for this crime.
Tiger and his group rescued him, but he can’t return to Water 7 anymore. Exposing himself in the public eye wouldn’t do him any good.
“It doesn’t matter. We have plenty of time. Once we find a safe place, we can build a new ship together. But Uncle Tom, what are your plans now?”
Tiger didn’t mind the delay. With Tom, the world’s best shipwright, building the ship was just a matter of time.
“I’m going to take it one step at a time. Right now, it’s inconvenient for me to return to either Water 7 or Fishman Island…”
“Uncle Tom, my purpose in having you build the ship was to form an exploration team to find something. Currently we lack an excellent shipwright. Why not join us? If you don’t want to continue adventuring, I have a good place for you where you should be able to fulfill your ambitions.”
Tiger took out a small waterproof notebook as he spoke. Arlong and others who had been with Tiger for a long time knew what was going to happen when they saw that notebook. It was Tiger’s recently acquired new hobby—”preaching.”
However, not everyone’s circumstances are the same. Tom didn’t have a sudden enlightenment like Tiger. He temporarily joined Tiger’s crew, considering it a decent future to live among his fellow Fish-Men.
Meanwhile, on the other side, the prisoner being escorted by Spandam was snatched away, and it happened while en route to a crucial World Government facility. This was a serious matter for the World Government.
Through questioning the survivors, they drew several portraits based on descriptions. Although Tiger’s portrait was not among them, all of them were members of the Sun Pirates.
World Government couldn’t find where Tom went, but they could find Fishman Island and Jinbe.
……
“Jinbe! These people are all members of the Sun Pirates, right? Do you have anything to explain?”
“No, they left the Sun Pirates a long time ago.”
“Jinbe, we mean no harm. Hand over the kidnapped prisoner and those people, and neither Fishman Island or your Shichibukai position will be affected.”
“If you go after the country of every pirate you can’t catch, how many countries would be left in this world? Which island can guarantee that no pirates would ever appear from there?”
At the World Government office in the Sabaody Archipelago, Jinbe came as requested by them to explain the “heinous incident” that occurred.
Originally, the World Government intended to send these people to Fishman Island to question Neptune in person, but they dared not go underwater to Fishman Island, so they changed to this approach.
Whether they acted like good guys or bad guys, Jinbe remained indifferent and responded calmly to everything, insisting that those people had nothing to do with him.
“Why did they leave the Sun Pirates?”
“Because you killed Boss Tai!”
Mentioning this, Jinbe directly flipped the table, startling several officials across from him.
As Jinbe said, if they were to hold countries and others accountable simply because they couldn’t find the true culprit, there wouldn’t be many people left on the seas. The World Government never intended to act against Fishman Island or Jinbe because of this.
They really don’t want to deal with Fishman Island, but they also don’t want to push them to the brink either. With a population of five million, if Fishman Island was forced to revolt, it would be a disaster for the sea.
Jinbe, as a Shichibukai, barely counted as a face for the World Government, so they couldn’t afford to undermine their own reputation because of this.
The most critical issue concerning Tom was the blueprint of Pluton. However, after his capture, every part of him had been searched, and Pluton’s blueprint was not on him. The Five Elders also knew where the real Pluton was.
If it weren’t for Spandam’s boasts, the previous operation might not have even happened. This questioning was more about giving themselves a way out of this embarrassing situation.
As the conversation reached an impasse, the questioning official suddenly received a call from above, stating that the matter was settled.
The officials in charge were bewildered, and Jinbe didn’t understand what had happened either, but he returned to Fishman Island with the new information.
……
Mariejois.
The Five Elders, the highest authority of the World Government, were also discussing this matter.
They withdrew the officials because they found a suitable way out, although this step seemed strange to them too.
“Why did Mjosgard suggest this?”
“Don’t know. Maybe he just likes Fish-Men slaves. I heard he went to Fishman Island recently, encountered a shipwreck there, and was personally escorted back to the Holy Land by the Queen of the Ryugu Kingdom.”
Donquixote Mjosgard, a Celestial Dragon, was the one who suggested letting the matter go. Since his return from Fishman Island, he seemed to have changed completely.
“It doesn’t matter. It’s not a big deal anyway. People can’t memorize that blueprint. Instead of worrying about that, we should be concerned about Kaido digging out Pluton beneath the Wano Country.”
“Isn’t he searching for stones all over the world? Pirates like him are less troublesome than someone like Roger. But you’re right, it’s not surprising for the Donquixote family to have some more oddballs.”
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