"I'll be off, then."
He gave Jinbe a slight smile, then turned and jumped onto his little boat.
Boom!
Propelled by his flames, the boat sped toward the gate, where other lobster Fish-Men were already waiting.
They were the relief shift Prince Fukaboshi had brought and left behind.
Jinbe watched Ace until he passed through the bubble and vanished into the deep sea. Only then did he withdraw his gaze and turn toward the Fish-Man District.
There was still a mountain of work waiting for him there.
Looking at the Fish-Man District and his countless fallen kin, Jinbe was enveloped in sadness.
Honestly, he did not blame Silver Hair, even though Silver Hair had caused all of this.
But that was how the world worked: the strong preyed on the weak. To the powerful, ordinary people were little different from ants.
He did not blame Silver Hair, but he grieved for Fish-Man Island.
Located at the boundary between the New World and Paradise, this island had shown him countless tragedies throughout his life.
Having witnessed so much evil as a child, he had not always been the man he was now. Though never as extreme as Arlong or Hody Jones, he too had hated humans.
His outlook had only gradually changed after he began following Fisher Tiger, under his big brother's belief that vengeance only bred more vengeance.
That was why he understood his kin in the Fish-Man District and grieved for them.
In this Great Pirate Era, on this sea, the weak had no right to choose. They could only survive by clinging to someone stronger.
That was Fish-Man Island.
He saw it with absolute clarity.
Neptune in Ryugu saw it clearly too.
"Haah..."
His sigh was filled with helplessness and a faint sorrow.
Chapter 333: Gus, are