Chapter 292: The Man Of Fish-man District
Hearing the conversation between the two, Jinbe raised his head and began searching for their figures in the crowd.
Leaving aside ‘Alberich’ for now, but the name ‘Mien’ did indeed leave some impression on him.
As one of the few captives who had been taken to the Beasts Pirates back then, Jinbe had once been urged by Arlong and the others to accompany that group of brats and see him from afar, and the other’s sharp gaze had left quite a deep impression on him at the time.
『I didn’t expect the Navy the old man mentioned to be him… Not only that, even people from the CP organization have come.』
Jinbe’s brows furrowed; the Navy and CP coming together was never good news for Fish-Man Island.
After searching slightly in the direction from which the voices came for a moment, Jinbe spotted two figures wearing Justice Coats.
One of them had his hands in his pockets, walked with a very casual posture, and his gaze kept drifting toward those young and beautiful mermaids～
While the other figure stood ramrod straight, his left hand always resting on the two long swords at his waist, his entire frame very… gaunt?!
No, it couldn’t even be described as gaunt anymore; this was practically skin and bones!
Jinbe could hardly imagine this was the Navy Vice Admiral who had been sturdy and imposing back then…
For the other to still be able to move around in this state was already a miracle.
“Who?!”
Just as Jinbe was about to withdraw his gaze and head to the Fish-Man District, he suddenly heard a sharp shout!
It was Mien; the swordsman’s keen perception had detected Jinbe’s line of sight, and instantly a piercing, sharp aura stabbed into the space around Jinbe.
『So strong!』
The other’s sword hadn’t even been drawn, but that terrifying Sword Intent was already pricking Jinbe’s skin painfully.
This forced him to retract his earlier speculation… Though the other had become emaciated beyond recognition, his strength hadn’t declined in the slightest.
Instead, he was like a murderous sword charged with Sword Intent, just waiting for the moment it was unsheathed to draw blood and seal the throat!
“Gulp~”
Swallowing a mouthful of saliva, Jinbe instinctively took a step back, and this unusual action completely exposed his position.
“Hey, stop! You… hmm? Fish-Man?”
Seeing that the owner of the gaze watching him was actually a Fish-Man, Mien’s aura softened slightly.
After examining the other’s face more closely and confirming it wasn’t one of the people they were after or any wanted Fish-Man pirate, he fully withdrew his sharp aura.
『Looks like just an ordinary Fish-Man who’s a bit curious about humans.』
Thinking this, Mien apologized to Jinbe for his earlier behavior.
“Sorry, I startled you.”
“Ah, no, it’s fine.”
Seeing that the other hadn’t seen through his identity, Jinbe didn’t want any trouble and politely tried to leave after a few words.
Since the other had a grudge against the Beasts Pirates, Jinbe wondered if he should go back first and tell Brother Burufaruto to be more careful, as he was the only one here this time, while the other had an unknown number of helpers.
Having made up his mind, Jinbe turned and stepped toward the direction he had come from.
“Wait!”
『?!』
“…”
“Is there anything else?”
Suddenly called back by the other, Jinbe panicked inwardly, but kept his face impassive.
“Nothing much, just wanted to ask if you’ve seen this person lately?”
As he spoke, Mien signaled Alberich beside him to take out something like a bounty poster from his pocket.
“Hmm…”
As the folded photograph gradually unfolded, a Fish-Man’s face appeared in Jinbe’s eyes.
The Fish-Man in the photograph looked somewhat fierce, but dejected, with messy blond short hair and a heavy-looking metal collar around his neck.
『This person…』
“Well? Recognize him?”
“No.”
“Is that so… Sorry to bother you.”
Seeing Jinbe shake his head, the two put away the photograph and turned to leave decisively.
……
Quickening his pace back in the direction he had come, Jinbe pondered inwardly:
『The Fish-Man the Navy is looking for must be the acquaintance Brother Burufaruto mentioned… This is trouble!』
At the first glance of the photograph, Jinbe had associated it with the rockfish Fish-Man named Lahel that Burufaruto had mentioned.
He just hadn’t expected the Navy to be looking for him too.
And not only that, it seemed the CP people were also after him…
『I need to hurry and tell Brother Burufaruto about this!』
Since everyone’s goal was the same person, leisurely waiting for the old Fish-Man to find him and leave as originally planned wouldn’t work anymore.
The current situation required preparation for possible conflict.
……
On the other side, after walking a short distance, Mien suddenly stopped.
“Hmm? What’s up? Why’d you stop again?”
“Turn back, follow that Fish-Man from earlier.”
Saying this, Mien turned decisively, and his gaze instantly caught Jinbe, who was already far away.
“Eh?! Not going to the mermaid cafe anymore? The desserts there are even something BIG MOM…”
“Useless.”
“I know my own body; aside from that girl’s cooking, I can’t eat any other food.”
Because he hadn’t eaten properly while a captive at the Beasts Pirates, going on a hunger strike and nearly starving himself to death, Lahel had heard about it and personally cooked his three meals a day during that time.
Worried that his will to die was too strong, Lahel had even used 【Delicious】, that pure and domineering Cooking Heart, making his body instinctively eat obediently.
And the end result didn’t disappoint; not only did the hunger strike plan fail, but when Mien was sent back, he had gained dozens of pounds, even more than Sengoku.
However, upon returning to Navy Headquarters with no more of Lahel’s prison food to eat, Mien’s nightmare began.
Because Lahel’s cooking was too domineering, afterward Mien’s body could no longer accept other food; even dishes made by the top chefs at headquarters canteen tasted like horse dung in his mouth.
Even if Mien forced himself to swallow them down despite the disgusting feeling of shit, his body would instinctively vomit them back up afterward.
As a result, for so many years Mien could only survive on nutrient fluid, and his weight had dropped to less than half of what it was.
But even as his body grew weaker day by day, his swordsmanship had made rapid progress during this time.
The torment of the flesh made his mind ever tougher, and the anger from his close friend’s death kept pushing him forward…
And that golden figure, even though he could no longer remember their appearance, the fear and helplessness etched into his soul had all transformed over the long time since into the obsession in his sword.
Jinbe was right; rather than calling him a person now, he was more like a sword of vengeance!
……
Seeing Mien already striding several meters ahead, Alberich hurriedly turned to follow, not forgetting to ask:
“Why follow that Fish-Man from earlier? Didn’t he say he didn’t know?”
“He’s lying.”
Mien answered decisively.
“When you showed that Fish-Man the photograph, his body suddenly stiffened without warning; he clearly knows the person in it.”
“Moreover, the direction he was originally heading is completely different from the one he’s going now… He decided to change course after running into us.”
“That guy definitely has some connection to the person we’re after!”
All these inconsistencies made Mien almost certain that Jinbe was hiding something.
“Roar~ So you were observing that closely; as expected of Vice Admiral Mien~”
“Enough of that nonsense; let’s hurry and catch up. The guy’s speed isn’t slow.”
“Don’t lose him.”
“Yes, yes~”
……
“Wah~~ Wah~~”
In the deepest part of the Fish-Man District, in a pitch-black alley full of garbage and moldy stench, a grubby blond Fish-Man opened his eyes.
He was awakened by the crying of the infant in his arms.
Having gone days without food, it took him a moment to fully recover consciousness from the dizziness caused by hunger, then he hurriedly and clumsily pacified the infant in his arms.
“Oh oh oh~ Don’t cry, don’t cry~”
His clumsy rocking and humming didn’t stop the child in swaddling clothes from crying; instead, it made the cries even more intense.
He knew the other was hungry, but the man was helpless.
Navy and World Government people had already appeared on the island; they had likely exposed their whereabouts while out foraging for food before, and now going out rashly without knowing their location would be walking into a trap.
The child’s cries continued, echoing out from this deep, filthy alley; helplessly, he gently covered the infant’s mouth with his hand, hoping to muffle the sound.
Gradually, the infant’s voice grew quieter, probably too hungry to cry loudly anymore.
The man breathed a slight sigh of relief and removed his hand from the other’s mouth, but looking at the infant in his arms, a sense of despair slowly crept into his heart…
