The atmosphere on the deck was extremely tense. Although Kuzan was in no hurry to make a move, the obvious frost on his face had not dissipated.
If the fish-men's answer was not "correct," then he could only act and wipe out the Sun Pirates completely.
"We... were coerced."
After a long silence, Jinbe slowly spoke those words. He seemed weighed down by them, but once he said them, Kuzan immediately withdrew from his battle stance.
Those words meant that the remaining members of the Sun Pirates no longer had anything to do with Tiger.
In that case, it did not matter whether they were employees or pirates.
No matter their identity, those under the Shichibukai would ultimately receive special pardons.
"In that case, this was all a misunderstanding. You can sail without worry. What happened before can be treated as a misunderstanding."
Kuzan had another reason for doing this: Tiger had not killed anyone.
Whether they were Marines pursuing them or bounty hunters coveting money, Tiger had never taken their lives. At Tiger's request, the other members of the Sun Pirates had followed that order as well.
That premise, combined with the special status of the Shichibukai, ultimately led to this outcome.
Kuzan walked toward the rail as though completely unguarded. Before leaving the deck, he added, "It'll be fine once that guy thaws out. Don't smash him to pieces, or that'll be troublesome."
With that, he jumped onto his bicycle and leisurely rode off into the distance.
The other fish-men did not feel much, but Jinbe sensed an invisible pressure quietly lifting away.
Some people were admiral candidates because they could only ever be candidates.
Others were admiral candidates merely because they were waiting for the time to be promoted. Jinbe's instincts told him that if Kuzan had