Somewhere at a port in the first half of the Grand Line.
Aboard the Sun Pirates' ship.
"This is bad. It seems Marine Headquarters is serious this time. They're forcibly requiring all the Shichibukai to take part in the war."
Aladdin, the ship's doctor and vice-captain, set down the Den Den Mushi in his hand, clicked his tongue twice, and turned to look to the side.
"Boss, what do we do now?"
The man addressed as boss was Jinbe, clad in a yukata and wooden sandals.
Jinbe stared out at the sea in silence.
Not long ago, he had only been the vice-captain. Ever since the Sun Pirates had been founded, their captain had always been Fisher Tiger, the big brother revered by all Fish-Men.
But last August, Fisher Tiger had helped the former slave girl Koala return to her hometown, only to be betrayed by the local residents and ambushed by the G2 Branch Marines.
The operation had been led by Kizaru himself, then an admiral candidate. The Sun Pirates had fought bitterly but were no match for him, falling into a desperate situation.
Yet at the critical moment, Kizaru had suddenly chosen to withdraw. Only later had the Sun Pirates learned that he had received a call from Noah.
The Fish-Men had ultimately escaped with their lives, but they had suffered grievous casualties. Fisher Tiger had even lost an arm. He blamed himself deeply, believing that the "sins" he had committed years ago had made him a constant thorn in the World Government's side.
If he continued to serve as captain, he would undoubtedly drag down the Fish-Man pirate crew, and even all of Fish-Man Island.
So half a year ago, he had chosen to leave the Sun Pirates, entrusting the burden of captaincy to Jinbe while he