The heavy double doors of Arlong Park creaked open, and Davy Jones, along with Alvida and Kuro, stepped inside.

Who are they?

Strangers?

The surrounding fish-men immediately grew alert, preparing to close in—but Arlong raised a hand and stopped them.

He narrowed his eyes, scanning Davy Jones from head to toe.

"So it's you—the one they call the 'Deep Sea Reaper' on the wanted posters? Do you even understand what that title means to us fish-men? How dare you call yourself that."

Unlike the villagers of Cocoyasi, Arlong wasn't isolated from world affairs.

He regularly kept up with the news via newspapers, always preparing for the day he would return to the Grand Line—leading fish-men and merfolk to a glorious future.

So of course, Arlong had heard of Davy Jones, whose reputation had recently skyrocketed.

Davy Jones observed the assembled fish-men. They came in all sorts of strange forms, but all bore fish-like traits—and all had a tattoo resembling a sun somewhere on their bodies.

"Sha-ha-ha-ha—!" Arlong suddenly burst into laughter, not angry at Davy Jones' silence, but amused. "I've seen your work. Excellent stuff—humans should be trampled underfoot."

"If we joined forces, we'd be unstoppable in the entire East Blue. You came here seeking an alliance, didn't you?"

Still, Davy Jones gave no response. He was searching for the sea beast Momoo, but saw no sign of it. The courtyard led directly out to sea, but the creature depicted in the sketch was nowhere to be seen.

"But you know, Davy Jones…" Arlong's tone suddenly turned cold. "You formed a pirate crew with humans—a lowly race—and even brought them here. That's something I can't overlook."

His eyes gleamed like sharpened blades as they swept over Alvida and Kuro, both of whom instinctively tensed and gripped their weapons tightly.

"And this cannon fire outside…" Arlong added, "That's your doing too, isn't it? Should I take that as a declaration of war? Are you planning to swallow up my pirate crew?"

With those words, the atmosphere plummeted to freezing cold.

The Arlong Pirates stepped forward, surrounding Davy Jones and his crew.

"I'm tolerant of my fellow fish-men," Arlong said darkly, "but there's one thing I will never forgive—traitors who side with humans!"

"If you kill these two humans here and now, and promise never to ally with their kind again, I'll let it go."

Alvida and Kuro both went cold. Their eyes turned to their captain.

They hadn't been with Davy Jones long—they didn't know what he was truly thinking. And these fish-men... they really did seem to be his kin.

Would he be persuaded to betray them? Would he actually strike them down?

If so, there was no escape. Not while surrounded by this many fish-men.

Davy Jones looked calmly at the escalating standoff.

He offered no explanations—only a single, flat response:

"It seems our principles are completely incompatible."

The fish-men didn't catch the implication.

But Kuro did.

It was a cold, definitive statement—meaning these fish-men, who now stood in their way, held no value. They could be discarded.

Davy Jones was not the type to tolerate commands, even from his own "people."

Kuro let out a quiet breath of relief—but immediately tensed again.

What if he lost his value someday? Would the captain kill him, too?

Arlong's face grew darker.

"You're just like that fool Jinbe—completely beyond saving! Kill them!"

The fish-men charged forward, confident in their strength. Compared to ordinary humans, their bodies were tougher, stronger—they didn't even see Alvida and Kuro as threats.

Only Davy Jones might pose a challenge.

But in the next instant, Alvida and Kuro taught them a lesson.

With a glance from Davy Jones, both moved into action.

Alvida, possessing monstrous strength, swung her spiked mace and sent fish-men flying like rag dolls—each strike crushing bodies and splattering blood.

Kuro, with his silent step technique, effortlessly dodged attacks and slipped behind his targets, his sharp Cat Claws plunging precisely into their gills.

Fish-men screamed in agony, clutching their bleeding wounds—only to have their eyes gouged out a moment later.

Seeing his subordinates fall one after another, Arlong slammed a fist into the table in fury.

"Hatchan! Kuroobi! Take them down! Kill those arrogant humans!"

"Yes, sir!" the two officers of the Arlong Pirates responded in unison.

Hatchan, the six-armed octopus fish-man, ran to the edge of the courtyard and shouted out toward the sea:

"Momoo! Momoo! Get over here!"

Huh?

Davy Jones looked curiously at Hatchan—smashing the skull of a fish-man trying to ambush him with a crab claw while thinking to himself:

He's calling the sea beast's name?

So he's the one in charge of it?

Hatchan called out a few more times. Soon, the water outside the courtyard began to stir.

With a loud splash, the sea surged into the courtyard, and a massive beast the size of a hill emerged before them.

It looked like a giant cow—with horns, spots, and even a nose ring—but also had fish-like traits: scales, fins, and a tail.

Its appearance seemed gentle, even harmless… but when enraged, its destructive power was terrifying.

Alvida swallowed nervously and could only hope the captain would handle it.

"Mooo~" Momoo halted at the courtyard edge, mooing in response to Hatchan's call.

Hatchan pointed at Davy Jones and the others. "Momoo, crush them! And I'll give you an extra treat tonight!"

"MOOO!!" Momoo became wildly excited, slapping the sea's surface with its fins before charging forward like a battleship—heading straight for Davy Jones!

The fish-men scattered to avoid getting caught in the charge.

BOOOOM—

In the next moment, an indescribable, overwhelming pressure erupted from Davy Jones' body—like a physical force blasting out across the battlefield.

It struck Momoo with full force, stunning the beast.

But not only that—nearly two-thirds of the surrounding fish-men collapsed, eyes rolling back, unconscious from the sheer force of will.

Kuroobi looked on in disbelief as his comrades dropped like flies. Even his own arms were trembling. He scowled, his face grim.

Even Alvida and Kuro couldn't hide their shock.

Their hearts pounded violently, and for a moment, both felt an intense dizziness. Luckily, the sensation faded quickly.

Oh?

Davy Jones glanced around, realizing this was his own doing.

So this is... Conqueror's Haki?

But just now, he hadn't intentionally released it. It had surged out uncontrollably—triggered by instinct, not will.

He still had a long way to go before mastering it.

As a fish-man who had once sailed the Grand Line, Arlong was no stranger to the concept of Haki.

And now he understood.

That intense pressure just now—it had to be the extremely rare Conqueror's Haki!

It was said only one in a million could awaken it—a sign of someone destined to rule.

Meaning… Davy Jones had even greater potential than him?!

Arlong grit his teeth, rising to his feet with rage.

"Momoo! What are you waiting for?!"

But Momoo was already shaken to its core by the Haki blast. It couldn't even hear Arlong's words anymore. Its eyes were fixed solely on Davy Jones—frozen in fear.

"Leave." Davy Jones pointed toward the sea. "Wait for me offshore, and I'll spare your life."

It was as if Momoo understood. It slowly turned around and slipped back beneath the waves.

No matter how loudly Hatchan called from behind, it didn't respond.

Within moments, it vanished from sight.

"Momoo!" Hatchan kept calling to the water. Simple-minded as he was, he didn't grasp what had just happened. The Conqueror's Haki hadn't registered in his head.

He was only confused—why wasn't Momoo listening?

Why did it look so afraid… of Davy Jones?

Before he could puzzle it out, Arlong could no longer contain his fury.

"Haki? Devil Fruit powers? All that nonsense people hype up—let me show you that my strength, my body, and my will are superior to all of it!"

"I am the true king! The Emperor of Fish-Men!"

He grabbed the massive jagged blade hanging on the wall, eyes sharp with murderous intent, and stormed toward Davy Jones with heavy, thundering steps.

PS: Access advance chapters at