Translator: PapaSmurf0700
When the wave of Luffy's Conqueror's Haki washed over Gyoncorde Plaza, everything seemed to freeze. The hundreds of colossal sea beasts and nearly eight thousand pirates stood still, paralyzed. In that moment, they did not see a man; they saw a king.
The Kraken, the giant sea monster the pirates had wrangled into service, bore the brunt of the pressure. Its massive body trembled uncontrollably, yet it dared not retreat, fearing it would draw the wrath of the figure before it. The sea beasts behind it, now fully sobered from Hody's control, stared at Luffy in primal terror.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Like dominoes, thousands of pirates under the invisible weight of the Haki collapsed, their eyes rolling back in their heads. The Fish-Man pirates who remained standing looked upon their fallen comrades not with scorn, but with profound envy. At least they didn't have to face him.
Maybe if I just fall over, one thought desperately, no one will notice.
"Straw Hat Luffy… his Conqueror's Haki has grown even stronger," King Neptune murmured, his voice filled with awe. He looked at his daughter, Shirahoshi, and understood. "No wonder she found such courage after only a short time with him."
"Step aside," Luffy commanded. His tone was calm, but to the Kraken and the other sea beasts, it was a decree of amnesty.
With terrified wails, the once-aggressive monsters scattered, vanishing from the plaza in an instant. Now, only the remaining Fish-Man pirates stood in Luffy's way, their weapons trembling so violently they could barely hold them. Though their will to fight had been completely shattered, they didn't dare retreat. Hody Jones would execute them for cowardice. Advancing might lead to death, but retreating was a certainty.
As Luffy began to walk slowly toward them, a relaxed confidence settled over his crew.
"It's only at times like this that Luffy seems especially reliable," Nami said with a satisfied smile.
"He's our captain," Usopp added, rubbing his nose with a casual air. "It'd be strange if he didn't have this kind of presence."
"Yohohoho! Well, this certainly thins the herd," Brook chuckled, his hand resting on the hilt of his cane sword.
"Don't bother," Zoro said, sheathing his black blade, Shusui, at his waist. "Those guys are no match for him." A rare, genuine smile touched his lips. "He's finally back."
Following Zoro's gaze, the others looked up. A figure with long white hair, dressed in a familiar robe, was walking across the water's surface toward them. It was Bai Ye.
He stopped before the Straw Hats, looking at the terrified Fish-Men who were trapped between their fear of Luffy and their fear of Hody.
"We can't have you interrupting Luffy's battle," he said with a soft chuckle.
Bai Ye raised his right hand and gently grasped the empty air.
"Dominion: Isolate."
"This presence…!" Jinbe, who had been observing quietly, now stared at Bai Ye's back in shock. As a master of Fish-Man Karate, he was acutely sensitive to the currents. The moment Bai Ye made that gesture, an irresistible, absolute power descended upon the entire plaza.
The Fish-Man pirates felt it most keenly.
"I… I can't move."
That was the last thought they had before a mysterious force took hold. As Bai Ye swung his hand to the side, every pirate on the plaza—conscious or not—was lifted and swept away, clearing the battlefield in a single, silent motion.
Luffy felt that strange, familiar power at his back. He didn't turn, but the corner of his mouth tilted up in a grin. Now, there was only one enemy left.
"ROAR!"
A monstrous bellow echoed across Fish-Man Island, so powerful it seemed to shake the dark waters for miles. It was followed by a series of earth-shattering tremors that drew every eye.
"STRAW HAT… LUFFY!"
A gargantuan monster leaped into the plaza. Even underwater, its landing crushed the ancient coral architecture, sending debris flying in all directions.
"Boss Hody…" one of the guards muttered, his face pale. He had just watched Hody Jones swallow every last Energy Steroid they possessed—a dose that should have been instantly fatal. Instead, it had granted him a power beyond imagining.
Luffy stopped, looking up at his enemy. Hody now stood thirty meters tall, dwarfing even the giant Vice-Admirals from the war at Marineford. His muscles bulged with grotesque strength, and razor-sharp bone spurs jutted from his limbs. He opened his mouth in a silent roar, revealing rows of fangs as his pale hair floated around his head like a spectral mane. He was a vision of pure, drug-fueled rage.
"Fish-Men are the greatest race in the world!" Hody screamed, his voice distorted. "You destroyed Arlong's dream, and now you dare to stand in my way!"
Before the words were even out, he lifted a foot the size of a warship and brought it crashing down on Luffy. The movement displaced a colossal amount of water, creating a powerful vortex that even Shirahoshi struggled against. Bai Ye simply raised a hand, erecting a calm barrier in front of the others, even pulling Neptune and his sons behind the shield to watch the coming battle in peace.
BOOM!
Hody's foot obliterated what was left of Gyoncorde Plaza.
But such an attack was no threat to Luffy. He had already launched himself into the water, rocketing upwards until he was level with the monster's crimson eyes.
He bit his thumb. "Gear Third."
His arm inflated in an instant. Hearing Hody's words, Luffy's expression, which had been calm and focused, twisted into a mask of pure fury.
"Dream?!" he roared, his voice booming with the indignation of a king. "You don't get to call it a dream! Anything built on the suffering of others is just a nightmare!"