Ch. 29- Conchcorde Plaza


One Piece © Oda

Joe and Moon © Me


At the Fishman District, someone is heard sobbing loudly in despair. It is soon revealed to be Vander Decken…with the top of his head now completely bald.

"Look at this!" he cried. "Her rejection hurt so much that I had to shave my head!"

"Just the top of it?!" the Flying Pirates questioned.

"Captain, don't be so gloomy!" said one of Decken's men. "There are other fish in the sea!"

"Don't you patronize me!" Decked snapped as he put his hat back on. "At first, Shirahoshi was still just a kid! I wanted to fulfill my ancestor's wished by marrying her, but do you know what happened?!"

" 'You are not my type.'

Hurt when I hear that from her

This feeling of love…

I think"

-A haiku poem from Vander Decken IX.

"Now…all I wanna do is kill that bitch!" Decken said with angry tears, "but she's still alive! I keep trying to throw things at her, but that damned, detestable Straw Hat and White Wolf keeps blocking them!"

He then seethed angrily…but then he gasped, as if realization had struck.

"Oh…oh~!" he gasped. "That's it!"

"Uh…Captain? What's up?"

"That's it! I'll just…destroy everything!"

"W-what? What do you mean, destroy everything?!"

"Bahohoho…!" Decken snickered as he looked up at the Noah. "Bahohohohoho…! I just got…a brilliant idea! BAAAAHOHOHOHOHOHO~!"

The Flying Pirates suddenly felt a great sense of dread for whatever Decken had planned.

XXX

Out in Fishverly Hills of Fishman Island, the townsfolk stood, dumbstruck, shocked…and horrified.

"In the end…" said a Fishman, "it only took a few Sea Beasts…to completely crush the Neptune Army!"

"The Minister of the Left and Right have been defeated, too!" cried a Mermaid.

There, lying scattered around haphazardly in crumpled heaps on the ground…is the defeated Neptune Army, as well as the Ministers.

"So…so close…" the Minister of the Left wheezed. "We were…so very close…! Your dream…was finally going to come true with this year's Reverie…Queen Otohime!"

The townspeople looked down in concern upon hearing this.

"And now this…please…watch over us all! At this rate…in one hour…your husband, the King…will be dead! Please, Queen Otohime! Please, save the King!"

XXX

At the Conchcorde Plaza, the impromptu execution platform of King Neptune, as well as the place of Otohime's assassination, everyone is gathering around outside the plaza gate…but it looked like the entrance had been blocked off by the New Fishman Pirates. The citizens could hear their shouting, so they knew they must be in the plaza by now.

They had decided to climb up to the top and gather around to see what was going on below…and what they saw terrified them.

The plaza is filled with thousands of pirates, a pack of vicious Sea Beasts, Surume the Kraken sitting at the top, Hody and his officers, some defeated Neptune Soldiers…and most of all…King Neptune, himself, chained to two sticks.

"My soldiers-jamon," Neptune groaned.

Sitting on a throne made of coral is Hody, looking at an Energy Steroid…but now, he looked different. His round stomach had disappeared and is now more toned and muscular. In fact, his whole body became buffer. Not just that, but he is no longer wearing his trademark hat, and his hair is now a bleached white.

The New Fishman Pirates laughed at the defeated soldiers.

"Look at 'em! What a bunch of fools!"

"Yeah! They tried to save their country, and look what happens!"

Suddenly, one of the Neptune Soldiers slowly staggered to his feet.

"Hody…!" he hissed as he held up…some dynamite.

"Hey, that soldier is up to something," said Zeo.

"KYA-KYA! Where?!" asked Daruma.

"He probably wants to blow us up with that dynamite-KABOOM!" Dosun roared.

"Oh, iz 'ee now~?" Hyouzou asked, drinking from his sake flask.

"Muchhi! I'll be turned into a dried squid snack!" cried Ikaros, worriedly.

PLUP! A drop of water formed from Hody's hand.

"If I can just…take out at least one of them," said the soldier as he prepared to light the dynamite, "before the princes arrive…I'll have fulfilled my duty!"

"Captain Hody!" cried the New Fishman Pirates. "Watch out!"

Just when the soldier was mere seconds from lighting the fuse…

"Water Shot!"

FWUP! BOOM! The bullet of water that Hody threw at the soldier ended up not only hitting him, but going straight through his chest, through the wall of the plaza, through a large coral tree, through more coral reefs and cliffs, and over the Mermaid Inlet until it fell into the sea passed the other half of Fishman Island!

The crowd that had gathered around the plaza stared in absolute disbelief. Even the New Fishman Pirates seemed surprised by this.

"I thought that a Water Shot was only as strong as a simple punch," said one of the pirates.

Neptune stared, silent, but shocked nonetheless.

"You were rolling on the ground in pain from taking too many Energy Steroids earlier-ch!"

"Your hair has turned white and your body has become so muscular, too," Zeo noted. "Tell me, how do you feel Captain?"

"….Perfect…!" Hody whispered in awe.

Just then, KLANG! The gate to the plaza suddenly bursts open, revealing the Neptune Princes riding on their Giant Oarfish! The crowd immediately burst into cheers upon seeing Neptune's 3 sons.

"The Princes are here!"

"We're saved!"

"If anyone can stop Hody and his goons, it's the Neptune Brothers!"

"Give them hell, Fukaboshi! Show 'em what for!"

The Princes looked down and saw the defeated Neptune Soldiers lying scattered amongst the ground.

"Soldiers…why did you not wait for us?!" Manboshi asked.

The New Fishman Pirate underling gasped and mumbled in fear upon seeing the three royal brothers.

"Oh, crap!" cursed one of the New Fishman Pirates. "The Princes are here!"

"Oh, man! Are we even a match for them!?" asked another one, swallowing the lump in his throat.

"Fukaboshi! Ryuboshi! Manboshi!" Neptune called. "Be careful, my sons! All the Sea Beasts and Fishmen have token those drugs!"

"The Neptune Army could never be so easily defeated in fair fight-re mi fa so~!" Ryuboshi sang as he drew his swords. "Just hang in there, Father!"

GRRAAAAAAAAAWWWR! The Sea Beasts roared as they lunged at the Princes, preparing to devour them whole!

"Why can you not understand, Hody Jones?!" Fukaboshi questioned, angrily. "You're will is weaker than anyone else on this island!"

"…Weak?" Hody repeated.

"Yes!" Fukaboshi answered. "While our people are willing to forget centuries of discrimination and forgive the humans for murdering our hero and Queen, you will stop at nothing to stand in their way! The people are willing to work hard to build a better and brighter future! They've pledged to make it a reality! WHY CAN YOU NOT SEE THEIR POWERFUL YET PEACEFUL DETERMINATION!?"

He then began to spin his trident around in his hands.

"Merman Arts! Spear of the Ages!" he shouted.

"Seven Great Treasures!" Manboshi shouted as he wielded his sword.

"Dragon Tower Gate!" Ryuboshi exclaimed.

SLASH! SHUNK! SLISH! SLASH! The Princes started going all out, attacking the Sea Beasts one-by-one before they could even so much as touch them, much to the shock of the New Fishman Pirates and the amazement of the citizens!

"A pack of hateful, revenge-obsessed fools," Fukaboshi began, "are not going to take our King's head, our people's homes, or the Ryugu Kingdom!"

"YOU WILL TAKE NOTHING FROM US!"

As they said this…the Sea Beasts were behind them, bloodied and battered.

"We will defeat you and build a future of peace with the humans!" Manboshi declared.

"If you win, you will only initiate centuries of bitter conflict!" Fukaboshi added.

THOOM! At that moment, the Sea Beasts collapsed!

"No! The Sea Beasts have lost!" cried the New Fishman Pirates.

"This is not good! I knew we didn't stand a chance!" shouted another one.

The citizens, however, burst into an uproar of cheers.

"They're so strong!"

"Of course they are! They're the strongest Mermen in the whole of Ryugu Kingdom!"

"I knew we'd be saved! There's still hope for us yet!"

"Go get 'em Princes! Save this kingdom!"

Hody only seethed before he glared at the Princes.

"Say whatever you want," he said. "In the end…this country…will belong to the victor, and that's us!"

With that, Hody's officers moved in to attack, but not before popping an Energy Steroid into their mouths. The Princes charged as well, preparing to fight for the future of their kingdom…or die trying.

XXX

Meanwhile, not too far away…

"Hurry, Megalo! Please, hurry!"

SHAA-SHAAA!

"I hope we're not too late."

Right now, Shirahoshi is riding on Megalo's back with Jimbei, Joe, and Moon, hurrying to the Conchcorde Plaza.

"…Father…please be all right!" Shirahoshi said, worriedly.

"Do not fear, Princess!" Jimbei said. "We'll make it! We have to!"

"That's right," Joe agreed. "If we don't…this kingdom is doomed to fall into ruin."

Moon whimpered as she held onto Megalo's back.

I hope they remember the plan well, she thought.

As they headed for the Conchcorde Plaza to save King Neptune, several questions remain. Will the Princes be able to save their Father and their kingdom? Will Hody and his men become victorious and force the good citizens of Fishman Island to leave their beloved home? And more importantly…where could Luffy and the others be?

TO BE CONTINUED…


Sorry that this is so short, but I'm hoping that the next chapter will be a bit longer.

Review, please!