Neptune could never have imagined it.
He hadn't even held out much hope, yet the result was already in front of him—
A result both unbelievable and… completely logical.
Gojo Satoru was now carrying a bloodied Van der Decken across the deep sea, heading back to Ryugu Castle.
"Damn it… what is this human?!"
Decken, his consciousness fading, stared at Gojo Satoru's back and cursed silently.
No one knew how long they had been traveling underwater.
Gradually, a light appeared ahead.
Gojo Satoru smiled as he saw it.
It was the glow of Fish-Man Island.
Realizing they were almost at their destination, Gojo picked up his speed.
Feeling the change, Decken also looked up.
The enormous Fish-Man Island slowly came into view.
"This is… Fish-Man Island?"
Decken's eyes glazed over. He had almost forgotten how long it had been since he last returned.
He couldn't help but sigh softly.
"Ah… Fish-Man Island, still as beautiful as ever..."
But before he could finish speaking, something caught his eye.
Just outside the island, he spotted something that looked like a dense, red-black coral reef.
Decken blinked, confused.
"What…? Has such a large coral formation grown outside Fish-Man Island since I left?"
As they got closer, Decken began to see the "coral" more clearly.
And when he did, his pupils shrank in horror. His entire body began to tremble like a leaf.
"No… it can't be."
"You've got to be kidding me!!"
"What happened to Fish-Man Island?!"
Decken's voice shook with panic.
What he had mistaken for coral—wasn't coral at all.
It was a forest of severed heads.
A gruesome sea of black and red.
Tens of thousands of human heads had been impaled and displayed just outside the island!
Suddenly, a deep voice rang out nearby.
"Caught him already?"
Gojo turned his head.
Bang (Bang-gu) stood there, smiling.
Gojo glanced at the horrifying scene and responded calmly.
"Looks like you're done too."
Bang nodded.
"We were just about to head back. Cleaning up those pests took longer than expected."
Soon after, Konan, Madara, and the others arrived.
Konan's cold gaze fell on Decken.
"Is that the one who attacked the captain?"
Gojo nodded silently.
If the captain hadn't specifically said to bring him back alive, Decken would've died hours ago.
After a brief exchange, the group returned to Ryugu Castle together.
But Decken never recovered from what he had seen.
At that moment, a terrible realization dawned on him:
He had provoked something he should have never provoked…
Not long after, they arrived back at Ryugu Castle.
Decken was tossed to the floor before Kronos.
"Boom!!"
His bloodied body landed with a thud.
Shaking from head to toe, Decken felt death closing in.
Across the hall, Neptune and the princes—Shark Star, King Star, and Rollover Star—stared wide-eyed at Decken, horrified.
He was caught… in less than a day?!
Despite all the resources and manpower Fish-Man Island had used in the past, they could never find him.
He had vanished into the pitch-black depths of the ocean.
But this man… this Gojo Satoru… had brought him back alone, and in less than a day!
Kronos glanced at the stunned Neptune and the others.
Then, he picked up the axe with the rose pattern and stood.
"You recognize this axe, don't you?"
He held it before Decken.
Looking down at him coldly, Kronos said flatly:
"You attacked me with this."
"I-It's a misunderstanding!!"
"I never meant to attack you!"
Decken burst into tears, terror etched across his face.
Albedo, Gojo Satoru, Madara, and the others stared at him like hungry wolves.
Decken felt like prey trapped in a den of monsters, moments away from being torn to pieces.
Seeing his pitiful state, Kronos grinned.
"Scared?"
Decken nodded frantically.
In response, Kronos just laughed.
"Good."
"Fear is only natural…"
With that, he raised the rose-patterned axe—and calmly decapitated Van der Decken.
"Pfft!!"
Dark red blood sprayed across the floor.
Even Neptune, a seasoned king who had seen much, turned his head away—unable to watch.
And at that moment, one truth was carved into the minds of everyone present:
You never oppose Kronos or the Kamui Pirates.
This day was a message.
To stand against them meant only one end—
Death.
And not a quiet one.
The next day, news of the events on Fish-Man Island spread like wildfire.
The Forest of Human Heads…
The territory flag of Fish-Man Island, now changed…
It was all printed in the global newspaper.
Carried by delivery gulls to every corner of the world.
A chilling announcement:
From now on, Fish-Man Island is Kronos' territory.
Whoever dares to stir trouble here…
The bloody forest of heads is the price.
New World — Somewhere at Sea.
Aboard the flagship of the Whitebeard Pirates, the Moby Dick...
Whitebeard stared at the newspaper, blue veins pulsing on his forehead.
He slammed it down.
"You... arrogant brat!!"
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