Resolution

"What good news?"

Rune looked at Kuma curiously. Since joining his crew, Kuma had always been calm and hardworking. Rune rarely saw Kuma looking this openly pleased.

"My Devil Fruit ability has awakened."

"Uh... it hadn't awakened before?"

Rune paused. Kuma's Devil Fruit ability had already been incredibly powerful before. Unless he encountered an opponent with exceptionally strong Conqueror's Haki, Kuma could rely on his Fruit ability to remain undefeated.

But such a powerful Devil Fruit ability...

Had still been unawakened?

"Yes, it awakened today."

Kuma smiled faintly. "Perhaps it was because life has been relatively easy since I came aboard. Seeing Bonney happy every day helped untie some knots in my heart. My Devil Fruit ability is now dozens of times stronger than before."

"What are the specific effects?"

Rune pulled Kuma over to sit by the doorway, watching him curiously. The unawakened Paw-Paw Fruit had already been so formidable. How powerful would it be after awakening?

"Before, I could at most teleport a ship the size of the Thousand Sunny. But now... my Paw-Paw Fruit ability can cover the entirety of Fish-Man Island, with room to spare."

Kuma smiled faintly. "And the Paw-Paw Fruit's abilities are no longer limited to my palms. I can activate them with any part of my body. I can also turn objects I have touched into paw pads and have them activate my abilities for me."

That was more or less what Rune had expected. One of the signs of a Paramecia Fruit awakening was the ability to assimilate the surrounding environment.

"If that's the case..."

Rune thought for a moment, then suddenly came up with a method. On Fish-Man Island, the most troublesome thing for Rune was the seawater outside the island.

If Fish-Man Island's "bubble" broke and seawater poured in, Rune's combat strength would drop by at least half. Not only would the Dark-Dark Fruit be difficult to use underwater, but he also could not attack too fiercely with Haki.

Otherwise, he would directly rupture the "bubble." Rune was not a fish-man and could not breathe underwater.

But now that Kuma's Fruit had awakened, they had another option for dealing with Hody Jones.

They could slap the entirety of Fish-Man Island up to the surface!

Then Bonney could simulate the Ice-Ice Fruit's ability and leave Hody completely stunned.

Still, slapping the entire Fish-Man Island to the surface would be far too conspicuous. If Kuma's Paw-Paw Fruit ability could cover the whole island, dealing with Hody Jones would become much simpler.

There was no need to send all of Fish-Man Island away. Sending Hody Jones and his men away would be enough.

With a little preparation, they could not only deal with Hody Jones.

They could also take Princess Shirahoshi away openly and legitimately.

And put Neptune and the others more at ease while they were at it.

Hody Jones had been gathering strength with the New Fish-Man Pirates, intending to overthrow Dragon Palace's rule and become the king of Fish-Man Island himself. But over the past few days, Hody Jones had heard some strange news.

Neptune was seriously ill, and the three princes, who had once been so close, had gotten into quite a few disputes. Prince Shark Star and Prince Ryuuboshi had even fought in public.

That made Hody Jones smell an opportunity.

Perhaps this was his best chance to overthrow Dragon Palace and crown himself king!

Surging undercurrents churned beneath the sea as Hody Jones amassed his forces and waited for the right moment.

With members of the Whitebeard Pirates still present, Hody Jones did not dare act rashly. After all, that legend of the seas was still far too intimidating.

Only after the ship flying the Whitebeard Pirates' flag left Fish-Man Island did Hody Jones wait another three days.

Once he confirmed they would not return, Hody Jones suddenly made his move. Tens of thousands of troops shattered the Neptune Army's defenses with thunderous force, while Hody Jones led his officers straight for Dragon Palace.

Then they saw a towering figure.

Enormous paw pads enveloped all of Fish-Man Island, and everyone on the island was affected by their power. Yet only Hody Jones and his subordinates vanished one after another in bizarre fashion.

"They finally made their move..."

Rune stood on an uninhabited small island, holding Yamato's A-Ken in his hand. Whenever Kuma teleported someone over, Rune would step forward and knock them unconscious with a single swing.

Then the Neptune Army, which had been lying in ambush there beforehand, tied them up one by one and threw them onto the ice near the island.

After this cooperation, the way Neptune looked at Rune had completely changed. Rune and his crew possessed more than enough strength to wipe out Fish-Man Island entirely.

Yet he had been willing to negotiate with Neptune amicably instead of simply taking his daughter by force.

Neptune felt that perhaps his old friend Whitebeard deserved some credit for that, but it also showed that this young man, Rune, recognized Whitebeard's ideals.

With careful planning against an unsuspecting enemy, absolute superiority in strength, and Kuma moving the battlefield to a location better suited for Rune, this plan against Hody Jones and his group captured them all with almost no effort.

And when Rune saw Hody Jones, Conqueror's Haki silently coiled around A-Ken in his hand.

"Thunder Bagua!"

Rune did not know Thunder Bagua, but he could at least put on a convincing act. Besides, to Hody Jones, Rune's Conqueror's Coating attack with a spiked club—

Was no different from Thunder Bagua.

Either way, it was a single blow to the head. To someone at Hody Jones's level, there was no difference between Rune and one of the Four Emperors.

Either one could kill him in a single strike.

"Alright. After this, Fish-Man Island shouldn't see any more trouble for at least the next few years."

Rune smiled faintly and returned A-Ken to Yamato. Then, seeing Kuma appear in an instant, Rune waved to him.

"Kuma, I'll have to trouble you to teleport them all back to Fish-Man Island."

Kuma waved a hand, and the Paw-Paw Fruit's power spread across the entire island. The Fish-Man Island Neptune Army soldiers and the captured prisoners were all teleported back.

Since they were being teleported into the sea, and all of them were fish-men or merfolk, there was no need for such precise control. As long as they landed in the sea near Fish-Man Island, they could swim back on their own.

"Rune... you've given this old man quite a surprise."

Jinbe, who had just received the news and returned not long ago, felt deeply conflicted after seeing Rune cause such a huge commotion on Fish-Man Island. He respected Whitebeard, but he had never joined the Whitebeard Pirates.

And now, he had received another invitation.

"Jinbe, join us."

Rune looked at Jinbe with a faint smile. "I need a helmsman."