“Even human traffickers are using submarines now. This business really must be profitable; their equipment upgrades are faster than the Marines’.”
After reading Karma’s report, Nereus did not immediately revise the curriculum. Fishman Island had plenty of skilled shipwrights who were also experts at dismantling ships, but submarines were another matter…
Ships could serve as bases during long voyages, but submarines were practically useless to Fish-Men and Merfolk. It was not that they knew absolutely nothing about them, but their knowledge was limited.
Tom of Water 7 counted as one expert, but Tom was currently busy with the Sea Train project. It seemed they would have to make time to send someone over and learn from him first.
“Sebastian, notify all patrol teams. From now on, pay more attention to what’s underwater during patrols. For the time being, just sink them by force.”
There was a reason the Marines had not widely adopted submarines, and it was very simple: there was no need.
In an era when wooden ships were still the mainstream, the cost of building a small submarine was enough to build a sturdy, heavily-armed large warship.
Moreover, submarines were not suited for boarding combat; for the strong, they are actually a hindrance. Especially when fighting against Fishman Island, a submarine would be nothing more than a sealed iron coffin underwater.
Even without Fishman Island’s soldiers, the Sea Beasts of the deep sea posed an enormous threat to submarines.
Sebastian had just left when Amphitrite approached carrying a stack of documents, all annual reports from the officials responsible for the various districts.
Today’s Fishman Island, after multiple expansions, was no longer a solitary island underwater, but rather a complex of deep-sea structures resembling a honeycomb.
Each satellite island had its own administrator, and these people were all high-ranking officials of Fishman Island.
The army’s training progress, recruitment in the Academy District, and other general information had all been compiled into summaries.
Beyond that, there were also numerous matters concerning changes on Delta Island in the outer sea, development in the North Blue region, discoveries made by exploration vessels, and development and communications with other affiliated nations.
A large portion of the tedious paperwork had already been filtered out. What remained required Nereus to personally review and confirm.
“How has Yamato been lately?”
“She gets along well with Chloe and is another energetic child, but her conflict with Kaido is very serious. Chloe says that whenever Kaido is mentioned, the girl always has endless grievances to complain about.”
“That isn’t surprising. Kaido doesn’t know how to reason with people, or rather, his fists are the only reason he believes in.”
Nereus had fought Kaido plenty of times himself. Kaido’s current attitude toward Nereus stemmed from their old friendship and his acknowledgment of Nereus’s strength, but that acknowledgment had also been beaten into him by Nereus.
“Put that way, the girl is still somewhat like her father, though not nearly as extreme. She’s been competing quite a lot with that child named Jack recently.
Jack may not be as strong as Yamato, but that recovery ability of his… If I weren’t certain he hadn’t eaten a Devil Fruit, I would suspect he was a Zoan user.”
As someone now known among the people of Fishman Island as a “genius,” Jack had demonstrated his talent in several areas.
Nanamo and Chloe were strong, but in the eyes of Fishman Island’s citizens, their strength was only natural.
As Nereus’s children, they inevitably lived beneath the halo of their father. Only if they were excessively weak would people begin to gossip.
Jack, on the other hand, was a genius who had emerged from an orphanage, making ordinary people feel that the distance between them was much smaller.
“That child Jack is holding in a great deal of determination as well. He seems unwilling to lose to an outsider. In any case, Yamato’s arrival has been quite meaningful.”
Healthy competition would further stimulate others and make them work harder. As an outsider, Yamato had, in a sense, acted like a catalyst. Even Nanamo had developed a slight desire to strive harder because of this competitive atmosphere.
From Ryugu Palace, they could just see a training ground situated below. It was filled with figures drenched in sweat. They were still weak now, but they possessed far broader futures ahead of them.
Given enough time, their names would likewise resound across the seas.
…
Some time later, Karma returned to the Sabaody Archipelago with a group of rescued slaves. Hancock and her two sisters were among those saved from the submarine.
Not only were the people of the Ryugu Kingdom accustomed to such sights, but anyone who had stayed in the Sabaody Archipelago for long knew what it meant.
A group of fortunate people had been rescued, and another band of human traffickers had fallen into Fishman Island’s hands. Based on past experience, those people had undoubtedly already been sunk into the sea.
With Gloriosa and Shakuyaku’s help, Hancock and her sisters returned to Amazon Lily. However, outsiders knew nothing about what they had experienced or how Gloriosa had persuaded Nereus to intervene.
Meanwhile, in the first half of the Grand Line, a ship flying the flag of the Ryugu Kingdom was sailing across the sea.
“Don’t be afraid. We aren’t bad people. I’ll take you home.”
Tiger sat cross-legged on the deck, comforting a little girl with messy hair in front of him.
As Governor-General of the North Blue, Tiger should theoretically have remained stationed there. However, the various affairs of the North Blue had now largely stabilized, and diplomatic matters were gradually being transferred to others.
This was not the result of any struggle for power. It was simply wasteful to keep someone of Tiger’s strength in the North Blue indefinitely.
The experience he had gained over the years had allowed Tiger to accumulate considerable political expertise. He had now been transferred from a regional administrator of the North Blue to Ryugu Kingdom’s Minister-designate of Foreign Affairs.
Tiger was currently on leave. He would only formally assume office after returning to the Ryugu Kingdom and completing the handover, though in practical terms there was little difference already.
The little girl beside him was named Koala. She was only four years old and had been rescued by Tiger from a slave ship.
“Even such a young child was being sold as a slave… How could those people be so cruel to their own kind…?”
“Can b*stards who see nothing but profit even be called human? This girl was fortunate enough to encounter us. Otherwise, who knows what sort of future she might have endured?”
Compared to the original timeline, in which she became a slave of the Celestial Dragons, did not dare cry for the sake of survival, and constantly forced a false smile onto her face, this experience was indeed far better.
Although she had been taken from her homeland for several months, she had not endured anything too brutal. After all, slave traders still needed their slaves alive.
After learning that Koala’s homeland was called Foolshout Island, the crew unanimously agreed to change their vacation destination to that island.
However, Tiger’s ship did not possess an Eternal Pose to Foolshout Island. Even after adjusting their course, it still took them quite some time to reach the surrounding waters.
Over the course of several months together, the young Koala gradually realized that the people aboard this ship only looked different on the outside. Within, they possessed the same kind hearts as anyone else.
The things the elders on her island had said seemed to have been nothing more than misunderstandings born from appearances.
You can read ahead upto 45 chapters on my patreon and I’ve also activated (date to date) subscription model on my patreon.