The Slave Hunters' New Captain

Jinbe's earlier suggestion had been to "take over the magpie's nest."

They couldn't let Sig risk going alone, especially not by making him a slave again, even for just a few days. That was Fisher Tiger's principle.

The other Fish-Men couldn't hide, either, so... they would just kidnap the entire slave-hunting crew!

Afterward, Sig would disguise himself as their captain. Aladdin could put on a robe to hide his tail and pass himself off as an officer, while Jinbe and the others hid in the hold. Once they reached Vila, they could launch a surprise attack!

They would need some of the slave hunters' officers to lead the way and go through the motions, but not too many...

After Arlong used brute force to identify the seven officers of the Dadara Slave Hunters, they were all brought before Sig.

Sig was gripping the One-Eyed Captain by the chin and lifting him up.

"So it's you lot? Starting today, I'm your captain." As he spoke, Sig covered his right hand in Armament Haki.

The One-Eyed Captain seemed about to say something, but with Sig pinching his chin, he couldn't get a word out.

Then, right at that moment, Sig whispered, "Imprison."

The One-Eyed Captain's whole body twisted, like a ball of ink being sucked into the intake in Sig's palm. After a brief distortion, he vanished completely. His clothes, captain's hat, hook, and eyepatch fell to the ground.

As he'd declared himself captain, Sig picked up the hat, dusted it off, and put it on. Then he looked over the seven men. "Any objections?"

The seven officers reacted in different ways. One sharp-faced man struggled in the grip of the two Fish-Men holding him and roared, "Damn Fish-Men! What are you doing? The Giant Axe has the Dadara Trading Company under his protection!"

Sig walked over with an impassive face and pinched the top of the man's head. Only his clothes were left scattered on the ground.

"W-wait! I surrender! I'll cooperate! I... I even know where some captured Fish-Men are being held!"

Another man broke down and begged for mercy, but Sig made him "disappear," too.

Whether they begged for mercy or wept and repented, Sig acted as though he couldn't hear them. He made six of them "disappear," leaving only the last one: a sturdy-looking, onion-headed giant of a man.

The giant was already so terrified that tears and snot streamed down his face...

Sig didn't care how they answered. He had been using the Telepathist's ability to observe them all along. Anyone who showed the slightest thought of "resisting" or "pretending to cooperate" was immediately imprisoned!

The onion-headed giant he'd left behind was genuinely scared out of his wits.

"Name," Sig said coldly.

"Baguta... I've only been in this business for a year, I swear! Just one year!" the onion-headed giant begged at once.

"One year? Don't tell me you've never been to Vila." Sig frowned and slowly reached a hand toward him.

"No! I've been there! I know the whole process!" Baguta hurriedly said.

"Good. From now on, you're the vice-captain. Pick out any crewmen you think won't obey me... No problem, right?" Sig looked perfectly amiable as he patted Baguta on the shoulder.

The sailors who had already been subdued immediately began to fear for themselves. Several of them tried to fight back on the spot.

Baguta's courage had been completely crushed. His expression gave him away more and more, and Sig could read him like an open book!

"H-he... him, and him..." Baguta began to tremble as he sold out his crewmates.

Sig waved a hand, and the Fish-Man warriors dragged out the men Baguta had pointed to, one by one.

Of course, Sig kept watching Baguta's expression the whole time.

In the end, they dragged out nineteen men. Baguta had identified twelve, and seven more had been cursing, so they were dragged out as well. Sig "imprisoned" seventeen of them one by one, leaving two behind—both of whom Baguta had identified.

As the men disappeared one after another into the hands of the Fish-Man Race's "Devil," terror spread through the crowd.

But Sig's decision to pass over two of them made Baguta's heart leap into his throat.

Sig turned and smiled at him, then instead released the two men who were still bound. "You two are going to be the vice-captain's 'bodyguards.'"

That was right. Sig had already realized that those two men Baguta had picked out... had a personal grudge against him!

There might not be any good people in a slave-hunting crew, but since the two men weren't particularly brave and could keep Baguta in check, Sig decided to make use of them for now.

Baguta lowered his head, too frightened to speak. He knew Sig had seen through his little scheme completely.

If Sig were free to do as he pleased, he would have killed them all. What was there to distinguish among the slave hunters? Unless one of them was an undercover agent...

But they had more important things to do right now, so Sig had only imprisoned the captain, the officers, and the troublesome crewmen!

After the slaves aboard the ship had been freed, Fisher Tiger turned to Makoro. "Take some men and use those two ships to send them to other suitable islands." As he spoke, he handed Makoro two Eternal Poses.

"Don't worry, boss. Leave it to me!" Makoro took some Fish-Man sailors and the newly freed slaves aboard the Dadara's two escort ships.

The Sun Pirates then temporarily split into two groups. The Dadara and the Sea Bass headed together for Vila.

Vila wasn't far from the Galadi Archipelago, about a five-day voyage.

Fortunately, the sea stayed calm the whole way. As they neared Vila Island, the Sea Bass prepared to submerge...

"Jinbe, Little Fei, I'm leaving this ship to you. The Sea Bass will be right below you. If anything goes wrong, take everyone and jump into the water at once." Fisher Tiger gave Jinbe and Sig his instructions.

Once they reached Vila, Sig would turn into a human and pose as the Dadara's new captain.

Jinbe would stay in the hold with Arlong and the others, in the place where the slaves had originally been kept. They would take control of the crew and disguise themselves. That way, they wouldn't count as slaves...

The moment Sig gave the signal, they would burst out!

Fisher Tiger would take Willy and some of the Fish-Man warriors aboard the Sea Bass, following the Dadara underwater and ready to provide support at any moment.

Over the past few days, Sig had also kept his Fish-Man appearance, wearing a captain's hat, eyepatch, and hook to get used to the role.

He had also used those days to observe what everyone in the slave-hunting crew was thinking. He gradually imprisoned more than a dozen of them and deftly quashed any thoughts of resisting in the near future.

He also did his best to imitate the bastards in the slave-hunting crew, cultivating the sort of "obviously a human trafficker" air that let him blend in perfectly.

The Telepathist's ability to toy with people's minds had been put to full use over those five days, and Sig felt his progress at playing the part had improved rapidly.

And once they reached Vila, an even greater test awaited!

The more convincingly Sig played his role, and the longer it took them to see through him, the more smoothly the Sun Pirates' operation would go.

This would require Sig to keep a close eye on his own side to ensure no one gave them away, while also constantly watching the people of Vila, dispelling their suspicions and accurately judging whether they could keep their cover...