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Chapter 170: Who's Going to Play House with Hody?
🕑 Added 2025-09-04 13:44:58 +0000 UTCChapter 170: Who's Going to Play House with Hody?
"How unsettling," Marco said, rubbing his temples as he looked at the unconscious Teach.
Anyone with a bit of ambition would probably not be too happy to find out that their Devil Fruit ability was to turn into a fly.
But Teach was a simple, unambitious man. For him to have such a violent reaction was strange.
Was it because he had drunk too much?
Marco looked at Teach's flushed cheeks.
Probably.
In any case, it's better to get him back to the ship soon, and let Pops and the others help him through this.
"My sincerest apologies, Your Majesty," Marco said, looking up at King Neptune.
Teach's rampage had caused quite a bit of damage, and the main hall would take some time to repair.
"Compared to your kindness, a small thing like this is nothing," Neptune said, shaking his head dismissively.
"I also apologize,"
Shane said, crouching down and patting Blackbeard's arm with a sigh. "After all, I was the one who brought this fruit out. I never thought it would make Teach so upset."
"How could it be your fault, little brother Shane?!" Marco quickly waved his hand. "Teach was the one who took a liking to the fruit in the first place, and I was the one who asked you for it. It has nothing to do with you! Please don't blame yourself!"
"That's right! Teach was just talking nonsense! Don't take it to heart, Lord Shane!" Namur also said. "In the end, it's just this idiot being too impatient. Big Brother Marco even told him to wait until we got back and asked Pops before he ate it."
The banquet was already coming to an end.
And with a solution to Princess Shirahoshi's problem found, Marco and the others were not planning to stay long. They picked up Blackbeard and were about to leave.
"Well, it's getting late. We should be going, Your Majesty. Thank you for your hospitality."
"What should have been a joyous banquet was overshadowed by my daughter's troubles. Please forgive my poor hospitality," Neptune said with a slight nod. "You are welcome to visit the Ryugu Palace again anytime."
"We will," Marco said with a smile. He then looked at Shane. "Little brother, my offer of a favor still stands. And when you officially enter the New World, if you have time, you are welcome to come and visit us on our ship. We can have a big party! The sooner, the better! Pops has been wanting to meet you for a long time!"
"I will,"
Shane said with a smile and a nod. He and Marco had already exchanged phone numbers at the banquet, so they could contact each other at any time.
And his answer was not just a polite formality.
Whitebeard's wool… no, a legendary figure like Whitebeard, who stood at the pinnacle of the world, was indeed worth meeting.
But he wondered why the old man was so eager to see him.
If he wanted to test the strength of a junior and have a spar, then that was a good thing.
Shane was also curious to know just how big the gap was between him and a true powerhouse at the pinnacle of the world.
But if he had taken a liking to him and wanted to adopt him as a son, to fill Oden's vacant position…
…then he'd have to pass.
…
Shane and Neptune escorted the Whitebeard crew to the entrance of the Ryugu Palace, and the two groups waved goodbye.
Watching their retreating figures, Shane's gaze flickered and lingered on Marco's shoulder.
Blackbeard was still unconscious.
This guy, he didn't know if he had completely given up on his dreams of conquest, or if he was just going to continue to bide his time and wait for the real Dark-Dark Fruit to appear…
In theory, once you've eaten one Devil Fruit, you can't eat a second one.
But Blackbeard, whether it was because of the special nature of the Dark-Dark Fruit or because his own constitution was different from that of an ordinary person, could possess multiple Devil Fruit abilities.
So, in the future, there was still a possibility that he would find the Dark-Dark Fruit and expel the Fly-Fly Fruit from his body.
But it didn't matter.
Shane looked away and sneered.
Just now, he had clearly felt Blackbeard's resentment and killing intent. And to cut the weeds and pull out the roots was a good habit he had cultivated over the years.
Blackbeard would not be an exception.
Since Marco had invited him, the next time they met would probably be on Whitebeard's ship.
And then, under the watchful eye of Whitebeard, perhaps he could use the item he had bought a few months ago to completely cut off Blackbeard's path to life.
Also…
Shane glanced at his system panel.
A long stream of information had been refreshed.
[You have sacrificed Marco's glasses and received 2700 points.]
[You have sacrificed Namur's dagger and received 1200 points.]
[You have sacrificed Blackbeard's claw and received 5800 points.]
Marco was a good, righteous guy.
To take his things like this did seem a little unethical.
Tsk, I'll just consider it an advance payment for taking care of Blackbeard.
But why is this claw so valuable? It's almost as much as Rayleigh's severed arm.
Shane couldn't help but take a closer look at the details—
[Blackbeard's Bladed Claw]
[Quality: Epic]
[Value: 5800 Points]
[Appraisal: The weapon of the future Emperor of the Sea, Blackbeard Teach, which he used for many years before becoming a Devil Fruit user. It accompanied him from a rookie to a famous great pirate. He once used this claw to leave a permanent, indelible scar on the face of another Emperor of the Sea, Red-Hair.]
Shane suddenly realized.
So it's a Red-Hair-specific weapon!
…
A moment later, back inside the Ryugu Palace, Shane, after a conversation with Neptune, followed him to the Hard-Shell Tower.
On the front of the tower, on the steel-forged gate, were various embedded weapons. Neptune couldn't help but let out a long sigh.
"F-Father, is that Lord Shane?"
Shirahoshi timidly peeked out from behind her bedroom door, her long, pink hair cascading down like a waterfall, her azure eyes a mixture of fear and curiosity.
"Yes, Shirahoshi,"
Neptune nodded. "Don't be afraid. Lord Shane is a guest I have specially invited to help you with the Vander Decken matter."
So big!
Shane had to crane his neck to see the giant mermaid, who was already over ten meters tall, even though she wasn't yet an adult.
Although the descendants of Fish-Men could have a throwback to any type of fish, and it wasn't strange to have any type of Fish-Man born, Shirahoshi's size was a little too big, wasn't it?
He didn't know how the petite Queen Otohime had managed to give birth to her…
Shane waved to Shirahoshi with a grin. The young woman was still too scared to come out and just nodded, clutching the edge of the large door and biting her lip.
"Lord Shane," Neptune said, turning to him, his expression solemn. "Since you have helped us to find a solution, I will definitely not let you suffer a loss. That Logia-type Sand-Sand Fruit, please, name your price. Even if it costs five hundred million, a billion Berries, I will…"
"I'm not short on money. Let's just forget it,"
Shane said with a smile, shaking his head and taking out the Sand-Sand Fruit.
He was willing to help for two reasons. One, the little girl, Shirahoshi, had been threatened by a pervert for so many years. It was a pitiful situation, and he couldn't help but feel a little sympathy.
And two, as the current "Sea King," Shirahoshi was a worthy investment. If he could earn her gratitude, a mere Logia-type fruit was nothing.
The ship had no shortage of Logia-types.
Huh, now that I think about it, Shirahoshi is the Sea King, and I'm the ( ) King. It has a nice ring to it.
He was about to toss the Sand-Sand Fruit to Neptune.
But just then, a "Purupurupuru" sound suddenly came from his coat.
"Sorry, just a moment. I have to take this,"
Shane said, and he began to talk on the phone, tossing the fruit in his other hand. Neptune didn't want to interrupt, so he just watched the fruit in his hand, up and down…
A moment later, Shane hung up the phone and looked up at Neptune.
"That was one of my subordinates,"
Shane's expression was a little strange. "It seems… we don't need to give Shirahoshi the fruit after all."
…
A short while earlier, in the Fish-Man District.
Jack, having applied a swimming coating to his body, had followed the two whispering Fish-Men into the sea and had arrived at the deepest part of the district.
There was a large open space here, filled with a large number of Fish-Man pirates. Some were drinking, some were gambling, and some were gathered in a corner, talking, their eyes dark.
"Hey, where's Boss Hody?" the Fish-Man who had been reporting asked a passing comrade.
"He's in there, in a meeting with the officers,"
the man said, in a hurry to get to his gambling, and he impatiently pointed to a dilapidated warehouse at the end of the street. "But you'd better not go in and disturb him now. The boss seems to be in a bad mood today."
"Don't worry,"
this Fish-Man said with a grin. "When he hears what I have to report, Boss Hody's mood will improve!"
There were guards at the warehouse entrance. After a few words, the two Fish-Men were allowed to enter.
And Jack, who had originally planned to just walk up and knock out the guards if they didn't let him in, after thinking about the captain's instructions, he decided that it was better not to alert the enemy.
So, he found a blind spot, quietly circled around to the back of the warehouse, and peeked in through a crack in the window—
…
The warehouse was large, but the lighting was dim. Only a special type of stone on the wall was emitting a faint glow.
In the center was a rough wooden table, with some sea charts scattered on it. Around it sat several fierce-looking Fish-Man officers.
And in the main seat, a tall, pale-skinned shark Fish-Man was sitting with his legs crossed, coldly looking at the Fish-Man who had come to report.
"Well, what is it?"
"Boss Hody!"
the Fish-Man quickly came forward and bowed respectfully. "We have news! That Ta… no, the one who is called the World's Greatest Swordsman, Shane, and his crew have entered Fish-Man Island!"
"Oh?"
Hody Jones looked interested and slowly sat up. "You're talking about the Shane who defeated Boss Arlong and the others in the East Blue all those years ago?"
"That's him!"
the reporting Fish-Man said fawningly. "The same Shane you've been so concerned about for all these years! There's no mistake!"
"Some of our men saw their ship on the beach with their own eyes! Everything matches," the other Fish-Man immediately added.
"Is that so? Hahaha! Then you two have done a great service!"
Hody laughed wildly, licking his sharp teeth, a crazed look in his eyes. "Finally… finally, you've come, Shane! For so many years, I've been waiting for this day!!!"
The surrounding officers exchanged a look and also broke into savage, excited grins.
"Boss Hody, what should we do?"
a giant oarfish Fish-Man named Ikaros Muchi asked impatiently. "Muhehehe! We have to avenge Senior Arlong! Should we gather all our brothers now and go and wipe them out?"
Hody didn't answer immediately. He turned and went back to the sofa, picking up a steroid, ES, from the table and playing with it in his fingertips.
"No rush,"
he said with a cold smile. "To be safe, let's wait until they've left Fish-Man Island and are in the deep sea. Don't underestimate that guy. His new title is pretty scary, isn't it? The World's Greatest Swordsman… hmph, ridiculous. A mere human, and he dares to bear such a title."
"Kaka! That's right!"
a cigar-shark Fish-Man officer named Daruma, who was squatting on the table, cried out. "The inferior race loves to brag! Forget comparing him to Boss Hody, they haven't even asked the number one swordsman of the Fish-Man race, Hyouzou!"
"I'm just helping you guys for the money, you brats," a drunken Hyouzou burped. "Don't just assume I'm your subordinate. I have no interest in fighting for that kind of title."
"As you wish,"
Hody sneered. "In any case, Shane is mine. I will personally take his head. No one is to interfere. But he has a famous female swordsman under him, doesn't he? She's all yours, Hyouzou."
"If you pay enough,"
Hyouzou said, taking another swig of his liquor and muttering, "But bullying a human is one thing, and a woman at that. It's not very interesting…"
"But it will make you famous, won't it?"
a low voice said. A wobbegong Fish-Man with stripes all over his body suddenly appeared on the empty sofa. He said slowly, "Kill that Shane, and then take care of all his subordinates. Those who are willing to surrender can be our cannon fodder, and those who are not, we'll send them to join their captain. Then our strength will be expanded again, and we can make a name for the New Fish-Man Pirates throughout the world."
"That's right, Zeo!"
Hody grinned. "Then our plan can even be moved up! We won't have to cooperate with that ghost in the deep sea anymore! With our own fame, we can recruit a large number of subordinates, and then overthrow the Neptune Army, go to war with the surface world, and trample all the lowly humans under our feet!"
BOOM!
Just then, a loud crash!
The entire wall was shattered by a massive force, and in a cloud of dust and debris, a tall, burly, tower-like figure strode in.
"So this is the Fish-Man District?"
the newcomer said with a sigh. "What a complicated place. To be able to produce such renowned, good men as Fisher Tiger and Jinbe, and also to produce clowns like you, who hide in the shadows, have never seen the world, and yet love to dream."
"Who's there?!"
"What's going on?!"
The officers in the room were all shocked and enraged, and they all drew their weapons and aimed them at the collapsed wall.
And Hody also raised an eyebrow and slowly turned to look.
The dust gradually settled, and all the officers had thought that the newcomer was a human. But to their surprise, the one standing before them was also a Fish-Man.
"Hey, what's the deal… a fellow Fish-Man, and you're serving a human pirate?" Hody's gaze grew cold.
"You're still talking nonsense. I was wondering what kind of people were plotting against Boss Shane, and it turns out to be a bunch of small-fry like you,"
Jack said, not bothering to answer him, his face impassive. He beckoned to the Fish-Men. "A small matter like this, it seems I don't need to trouble the boss. He would have no interest in playing house with you guys. Hurry up, all of you, come at me at once."
"You arrogant bastard! You're looking for death!"
Ikaros Muchi roared and was the first to charge forward, his dozen or so tentacle-like hands swinging their blades.
"Get lost,"
Jack said, not even looking at him, and he casually slapped him.
BAM—!
Ikaros Muchi's body was sent flying, and he crashed into the wall, a spray of blood splattering. He didn't even have time to scream before he was reduced to a pulp.
