Upon seeing the blue Fish-Man leading the group, Luffy's face immediately lit up with joy, and he waved and shouted, " Jinbe! What brings you here?"
"Hahaha, Luffy, I've come to pick you up! I saw your ship falling from the sky from afar! So here I am!" Jinbe said with a smile, walking towards Luffy and the others.
The Fish-Man and mermaids following behind him remained standing still, as Jinbe had instructed them beforehand; they were simply to stay put.
Although Luffy and Jinbe didn't experience as many things as in the original story due to Xia Chen's actions during the Paramount War, the two are still quite familiar with each other.
Luffy's easygoing personality, combined with his connection to Ace, led to a quick and easy rapport between the two.
"Brother Luffy, how have you guys been these past six months? I haven't heard from you at all," Jinbe asked curiously as he walked over.
"Oh, that! We've been training for half a year, and I'm not the same person I was half a year ago!" Luffy said with a laugh, shaking his fist.
"I see!" Jinbe nodded, then turned his gaze to the side and said with a slightly respectful tone, "Mr. Xia Chen!"
" Jinbe, stop calling me 'sir'! Don't be so formal. Just call Xia Chen by his name. He's not some monster, what's there to be afraid of!" Sanji walked over and put his arm around Jinbe's shoulder.
Hearing this, Xia Chen smiled and said, "That's right, Jinbe, just call me by my name. I'm a very gentle person! Don't make me seem like someone difficult to approach!"
"Mild?"
Hearing those two words come out of Xia Chen's mouth, Jinbe felt somewhat strange.
Although Xia Chen does look kind and benevolent now, he hasn't forgotten how Xia Chen treated the Five Elders and the Marines like chickens during the Paramount War.
There was absolutely no gentleness about it back then!
Besides... the person in front of him is currently the World's Strongest, so it's normal for him to be a little reserved, okay? It would be strange if he wasn't!
Unlike Luffy, he had spent so much time with Xia Chen that he didn't feel any distance even as Xia Chen became stronger, and their way of getting along remained unchanged.
For someone who doesn't know Xia Chen or isn't familiar with Xia Chen, nervousness is the most common reaction!
Since Xia Chen had said so, Jinbe smiled and said, "In that case, I'll call you Xia Chen from now on!"
"Hmm!" Xia Chen nodded, then said:
"By the way, Jinbe, there's something I think you might need to know!"
"What is it that I need to know?" Jinbe asked curiously.
" The Arlong Pirates were destroyed by my own hand!"
Xia Chen said calmly, while observing Jinbe's expression.
Xia Chen didn't mention this when he first met Jinbe in Impel Down Jinbe because his focus was on rescuing Robin at the time, so he didn't pay much attention to it.
But the situation is different now. If nothing unexpected happens, Jinbe has a very high probability of becoming their ally.
Since that's the case, he needs to make things clear: Arlong was originally Jinbe's subordinate, and now he's killed Arlong. This needs to be made clear!
Otherwise, if we don't bring it up now, but it comes up later when we've become partners, and Jinbe doesn't know about it, then the problem will be difficult to solve.
"I know!" Jinbe said calmly.
"I already knew about this when your pirate crew was wiped out, but it's not your fault. Arlong and the others brought it on themselves!"
"They harbor hatred for humanity and have been ruthlessly bullying and humiliating us. It was only a matter of time before this happened! Even without you, they would have been dealt with by someone else!"
" Arlong!!" Nami's body trembled the moment she heard that name.
Even though she could easily deal with Arlong now with her current strength, the fear and oppression Arlong had inflicted on her were real, so hearing that name again still cast a shadow over her mind.
Xia Chen keenly sensed Nami's emotions, slowly walked over, embraced her, and gently patted her back.
Nami trembled again the moment Xia Chen embraced her, but this time it was different from before. After this tremor, Nami's whole body and mind relaxed, and she gently leaned against Xia Chen's chest.
"Huh? What's going on with them?" Jinbe asked, a hint of confusion on his face.
How come they were discussing life and death one second and then hugging each other the next?
At that moment, Usopp slowly walked over and explained the situation between Nami and Arlong to him...
After a while~
"I never imagined that Arlong had done so many heinous things. I didn't know before; I thought he had only done some evil deeds!" Jinbe said in a low voice.
Then Jinbe walked up to Nami, looked at her solemnly, and said, "I'm sorry!"
" Arlong has caused you so much harm, Nami. Although he's no longer my subordinate, I still have to apologize!"
"It's alright, it's alright! Jinbe, this has nothing to do with you! Besides, Arlong and the others were killed by Xia Chen, let bygones be bygones!" Nami said with a smile.
"Hey! Stop chatting, I'm starving! Anything good to eat?"
Seeing that the others wanted to continue talking, Luffy finally couldn't hold back any longer. He hadn't eaten for a while in order to come and taste the food of Fish-Man Island, and now he was starving. If he didn't eat something soon, he would really starve to death here.
"Hahaha... There's so much delicious food!" Jinbe said with a laugh.
"Come on! I'll take you to eat! By the way, the snacks on Fish-Man Island are really delicious!"
"Dessert!!"
(☆▽☆)!
Luffy, Chopper, and Usopp all showed excited expressions. Usopp exclaimed excitedly, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go eat some snacks!"
"Alright! Follow me!"
Having said that, Jinbe walked ahead, leading the group towards the people he had brought.
Upon approaching, Jinbe pointed to one of the tall, blue-haired mermaids and introduced him to the group, "This is Prince Fukaboshi of the Ryugu Kingdom!"
"Hello everyone!" Fukaboshi greeted everyone with a smile.
"Please allow me to take you to see the Dragon Palace, the royal Ryugu Palace of the Ryugu Kingdom. The snacks you wish to eat will also be delivered to you then."
"And when it comes to desserts, the ones at the royal palace are definitely the best!"
"Oh ho, really?" Luffy was excited, his mouth watering at the thought of the delicious snacks.
Sanji, on the other hand, seemed a bit curious and asked, " The Ryugu Kingdom? Are there kingdoms on Fish-Man Island?"