“Mining… mining? Brother Jinbe, you must be joking, right?”
Hearing Jinbe’s suggestion, Wallace was momentarily at a loss for words. Mining could indeed bring in a decent income, but the cost of a ship wasn’t cheap. It seemed like an incredibly time-consuming endeavor no matter how you looked at it.
“Of course, I’m not joking,” Jinbe replied. “Your physique should be pretty good. If you all work together for a while, you should be able to afford a standard ship. But if you’re aiming for a premium ship made from Treasure Tree Adam, then that’s definitely not enough—and besides, we don’t have ships like that here.”
Building ships was a specialized skill. Most islands only offered ship repair services. If one wanted to build a ship, they would have to travel to specialized islands, such as Water 7, which has established itself in the Grand Line by excelling in this industry.
New Fishman Island’s decision to sell ships had been made after discussions between Otohime and Neptune. The Fish-Man race didn’t lack skilled shipwrights and had produced many legendary craftsmen over the years. Leveraging these skills, New Fishman Island, with its ability to build high-quality ships, has established a new foothold in the New World.
Aside from custom-built vessels, the shipyards also offered standardized ships, primarily intended for unfortunate souls like Ace, who found themselves running into perils of the sea.
The weather in the New World was notoriously unpredictable. The numerous abnormal weather patterns, coupled with bizarre meteorological phenomena, severely restrict shipping and technological advancements in the New World.
With the skewed technological development of this world, inventing airplanes wasn’t difficult. However, in the Grand Line, such devices were practically useless. If airplanes did exist, they would likely be delayed 25 hours out of a 24-hour day.
The complex weather almost entirely eliminates the possibility of flight.
“Uh… Brother Jinbe, is there any way that’s a bit faster?”
“There isn’t,” Jinbe replied. “Unless Queen Otohime or King Neptune gifts you a ship. Or are you suggesting you’d rather use the pirate’s way?”
Out of consideration of him being a fellow Fish-Man, Jinbe patiently answered his questions while subtly warning him against any evil thoughts.
If it were the Beasts Pirates or Whitebeard asking for a ship here, there would be no hesitation in handing one over, as both parties had contributed significantly to the development of Fishman Island.
Former members of the Sun Pirates could also request ships, but they either follow Jinbe or Tiger, so theoretically, there shouldn’t be such a demand.
For pirates, the fastest way to get a ship was by stealing it—even from their own kind. If anyone tried to steal a ship from here, Jinbe would not show any mercy.
“Ah, of course not, but do you encounter any troublesome pirates here? Let us handle them when the time comes, and it would be great if we could take their ship as a reward.”
Ace wasn’t a villainous pirate; he wouldn’t plunder recklessly, especially in his crew member’s homeland. His goal was to snatch a ship from other pirates.
“There are some, but…”
Hearing Ace’ words, Jinbe became slightly intrigued. It had been a while since he’d encountered such a naive pirate.
“This is the New World. Do you really think you can handle those pirates, rookie?”
“How would I know if I don’t try?”
“Alright then, if the opportunity arises, go ahead and give it a shot.”
Jinbe didn’t reject his suggestion outright. Although New Fishman Island was relatively safe, troublemakers still popped up from time to time. Many coveted the Merfolk.
The main defense was still his responsibility, and in battle, it’s inevitable that members of the Sun Pirates will get injured. If someone else was willing to take on this task, Jinbe wasn’t about to refuse.
Jinbe is very chivalrous, but chivalry also requires contrast. Between a pirate crew he doesn’t know and his home island along with his longtime companions, the latter is more important to him.
In the end, Ace and his crew ended up working a few days as day-laborer miners. With no money, they had to find a way to earn some funds for their living expenses.
…..
【No one would believe that our New World journey would restart with mining.】
Deuce wrote in his novel, feeling utterly helpless about their current situation.
While there, they encountered a peculiar individual—a red Fish-Man.
During the miners’ breaks, this Fish-Man would attempt to talk to them about something while holding a notebook, but very few were willing to listen.
“What’s that big guy up to? The Fish-Men here seem to respect him quite a bit.”
“Not sure. Let’s ask Wallace when he gets back. He seems to be… preaching? Do the Fish-Men have some unique religion? I’ve never heard of it.”
The Fish-Man preaching was, of course, Tiger, but he is different from Misu.
Misu’s missionary work in Wano Country has been very successful, as it can be seen as a temporary divine kingdom with many miracles occurring there. Coupled with years of effort, a solid foundation for missionary work has long been established.
However, the people here come from all over the world, and they were able to sail to the New Fishman Island on their own. They already have their own goals, so it’s not easy to change their beliefs.
Many Fish-Men who followed Tiger were somewhat influenced by him, but Tiger himself wasn’t satisfied. He could tell that their belief was fundamentally different from his. They follow his suggestions blindly out of admiration for him.
Most Fish-Men shared this attitude. For this reason, Tiger was trying to learn how to preach properly by training in the outside world, but so far, the results have been minimal.
“After a day of hard labor, everyone’s exhausted. Talking about this sort of thing now—no one’s going to listen,” Mihar remarked as he approached the dejected Tiger. For someone with mild social anxiety, initiating conversation like this was rare.
As a teacher, Mihar empathized with Tiger; he also used to feel bad when no one listened to his lectures at first.
“I know, but this is something that can cleanse the soul. Imagining the world of Lord after a tiring day is a wonderful thing. You seem different from the others—would you like to learn more?”
Looking at Mihar, who took the initiative to strike up a conversation, Tiger became interested as well. Perhaps this could be a successful example. However, his response failed to capture Mihar’s interest; he couldn’t understand this kind of fanatic speech
Listening to someone prattle after a tiring day would just make him drowsy. He couldn’t understand why Tiger thought it was wonderful, so he politely declined.
“By the way, I heard from Jinbe that you’re here for a ship? What happened to your old one?”
“It sank in a shipwreck. Our captain has his own goals.”
“To become the King of the Pirates?”
“No, he wants to surpass the Pirate King. The journey will be difficult, but we’ll keep moving forward, one step at a time.”
“Is that so? So, where do you plan to start? Red Hair? Big Mom? Whitebeard? Or maybe the Beasts Pirates?”
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