Guidance

"Don't worry! Even if I can't go home... the Sea Bass is my home! I'm a Sailor on this ship, aren't I?"

After Sig's words of comfort, Triton's mood brightened slightly. Seeing that dawn was breaking, she swayed her fish tail and returned to the ship's cabin...

Having "healed" another Mermaid, Sig was in high spirits—he had helped someone and, at the same time, advanced his "Mind Reader" persona.

To comfort a comrade who longed for home and could no longer return wasn't just about having a silver tongue. Sig would constantly use his "Mind Reader" ability to observe the other person's emotional changes, allowing him to "counter each move with a specific strategy" and be a "big brother (little brother) who truly understood."

After Triton went back, footsteps sounded from behind. Sig wasn't surprised; he had already noticed that Boss Fisher Tiger had been watching him from the side.

"Little Fei, thank you for your help during this time." Fisher Tiger had noticed everything Sig had done.

Fisher Tiger, who hailed from the Fish-Man District, could simply beat Arlong if he was in a bad mood. However, he was too clumsy with words to comfort the hearts of his fellow countrymen who had been rescued.

"It's nothing, I can understand their feelings," Sig said with a sigh.

Fisher Tiger's expression shifted slightly, reminding him of his own time as a slave and those dark days.

"But... when you comfort your fellow countrymen, do you seem to pick and choose?" Fisher Tiger asked cautiously, paying attention to his tone so it wouldn't sound like an accusation.

Sig keenly sensed Fisher Tiger's emotions, but there was nothing to hide. "Because the nascent form of my Observation Haki can discern that everyone's emotions are different, and some people genuinely prefer to be alone."

"Oh, I see." Fisher Tiger's expression turned a little strange—Oh, I thought you only chose to comfort female Mermaids...

Suddenly, Fisher Tiger's expression changed, and he looked at Sig strangely.

Sig deduced that Fisher Tiger had finally realized something—his emotions could also be detected by Sig!

"How is your Devil Fruit ability coming along?" Fisher Tiger changed the subject.

However, this time Sig didn't follow Fisher Tiger's lead but directly stated, "Boss Fisher Tiger, actually... you really dislike humans, don't you?"

"You... what did you see?" Fisher Tiger instinctively wanted to deny it, but considering Sig's abilities, he finally sighed.

"Yes, Boss Fisher Tiger has always seemed to... ummm..." Sig hinted.

Upon hearing this, Fisher Tiger said apologetically, "No, it's not you specifically..."

"So the only thing I could think of was 'humans'." Sig appeared unconcerned.

Fisher Tiger's expression changed, and after much hesitation, he admitted, "I'm sorry..."

"No, there's no need for Boss Fisher Tiger to apologize to me, is there? Back in Mary Geoise..." Sig trailed off, seeming lost in thought, but quickly caught himself and didn't continue.

Back in Mary Geoise, Sig couldn't quite recall the year. During the initial hopeless days, and when he finally woke up on the operating table, he had been waiting for Fisher Tiger or the Revolutionary Army to appear.

But if he said that out loud, it would be too strange—how could Sig know that Fisher Tiger would rescue slaves?

Fisher Tiger was about to say something else, but at that moment, footsteps came from the direction of the hatch, and he quickly stopped talking.

His hatred for humans...

Although most of the crew felt the same way, if they knew Fisher Tiger's attitude and his experiences, they would stray further from the right path, which was something Fisher Tiger didn't want to see.

Fisher Tiger gestured with his eyes for Sig not to say anything. Sig understood his meaning and nodded almost imperceptibly—a silent understanding between men.

"Sig, how much longer until the next island?" Arlong asked casually as he saw Sig.

"Three to five days... You've asked that so many times!" Sig replied impatiently.

Without a reliable sea chart, he could only estimate the voyage, and Sig wasn't sure.

"I knew we should have kept more..." Arlong said, looking at Sig, then suddenly paused, and let out a "hmph" before leaving.

Arlong was talking about Rum!

Two days ago, the Sun Pirates had defeated a pirate crew that was plundering a merchant ship.

Although they had defeated the enemy, several of the merchant ships had sunk, and supplies were severely lacking. Boss Fisher Tiger, being righteous and helpful, had distributed a significant portion of the supplies to them.

The Fish-Man Race didn't lack food or drink in the sea, but the lack of alcohol made Arlong quite uncomfortable.

However, Arlong didn't dare to say more, otherwise, this Sig fellow would surely go to Boss Fisher Tiger and report him!

Arlong had learned his lesson, so to speak...

Still, there were quite a few people looking forward to the next island—because on the next island, everyone could go ashore and relax!

On ordinary small islands, Fish-Men couldn't act too freely. Hachi, for example, wore a cloak when he went to a tavern.

But the island they were about to reach was the famous "Shipbuilding Island" in the first half of the Grand Line—Water Seven!

At this time, Water Seven was not yet dominated by the Galley-La Company, but it was already a mecca for shipwrights, with numerous shipyards scattered throughout.

Water Seven itself wasn't very large, but unlike ordinary small islands, the entire island showed signs of artificial modification and construction, making its utilization rate close to 100%!

Unlike Machu Picchu Island, which had only a small town and considerable forest areas.

The center of Water Seven looked like a giant "round fortress" with staggered layers. It utilized the nearby special ocean current fluctuations to act as a super water pump, constantly drawing seawater to the top of the round fortress, from where it flowed down through seven waterways, hence its name, the Seven Water Island.

In addition to the seven main waterways that ran through each layer, not only were the planar waterways within each layer of the round fortress structure interconnected, but the non-central areas around the round fortress also had a city-like aquatic environment. The interior of the round fortress was mostly shipyards, and transportation between them was entirely by water.

Due to its developed shipbuilding industry, Water Seven was naturally the pearl of the sea and the darling of the era in this great age of seafaring.

Its high degree of openness allowed various races to appear in Water Seven, and the presence of Fish-Men was not unusual.

Moreover, many pirates visited regularly. As long as they weren't there to cause destruction or plunder, Water Seven wouldn't make a fuss, as pirates were also an important customer base.

In fact, due to Water Seven's unique environment, it was considered the island most favored by Fish-Men besides Fish-Man Island, and there were many native Fish-Men living there.

Tom, the world's greatest shipwright who built ships for Roger, was of Fish-Man descent and currently lived in Water Seven. The Sea Bass was built by his younger brother, Dan, a Mermaid shipwright from Fish-Man Island. Many modifications that Dan felt only Tom could accomplish were left unfinished.

The Sun Pirates had come directly with a Log Pose. Log Poses for such famous islands were actually more common.

However, what puzzled Sig was—did the Sun Pirates visit Water Seven in the original story? Later, Franky didn't seem to know Jinbe.

And when it came to the purpose of this trip to Water Seven, Sig instinctively sensed that neither Boss Fisher Tiger nor Boss Jinbe had revealed the true reason