One Piece: Deriving All Things

The group ran at full speed, quickly reaching the Thunder God. Seeing the ship so close, Law and the others sighed in relief. Here, they were safe; the auction house wouldn't dare cause trouble on the Thunder God.

They jumped onto the deck, breathing heavily, especially Shachi, who had been carrying the mermaid. "Serves you right, you idiot!" Penguin grumbled at the exhausted Shachi.

The mermaid, now on the deck, glanced fearfully at Law and the others, worried she'd just escaped one dangerous situation only to enter another. At that moment, Rayleigh stepped out of the cabin holding an oil lamp.

"Oh, you brought a mermaid back?" he said.

"Rayleigh," Law greeted him, standing up. They had met Rayleigh briefly when they'd first returned to the ship. "We rescued her from the slave auction. We were hoping she could guide us safely to Fish-Man Island."

Rayleigh chuckled approvingly. "It looks like Sanders' crew is more resourceful than him. You actually thought ahead to have a mermaid guide you."

Rayleigh then called toward the cabin, "Hatchan, come out here and see if you know this mermaid." Hatchan, who'd been helping Rayleigh with some tasks, came out, still rubbing his sleepy eyes.

"A fish-man?" Law and the others were surprised to see Hatchan, not expecting another fish-man to be on their ship.

Rayleigh explained, "Hatchan is a friend of mine, here to help with coating your ship."

When the mermaid saw Hatchan, her face lit up with excitement. "Hatchan?!"

Hatchan, hearing his name, looked over and was just as surprised. "Ishilly? How did you end up here?"

Seeing a familiar face, Ishilly's eyes filled with tears, and she began to cry, finally releasing the fear and anxiety that had built up over the past days. Rayleigh laughed, saying, "Looks like you saved someone Hatchan knows. Good work, Law."

Law and the others were equally surprised; they hadn't expected the mermaid they rescued to know Rayleigh's fish-man friend.

Hatchan walked over, concerned. "Ishilly, weren't you on Fish-Man Island? How did you end up here?" Ishilly tearfully recounted how she'd been captured by humans, taken to the auction house, and eventually rescued by Law and his crew.

"Thank you for saving my friend," Hatchan said gratefully. "When we get to Fish-Man Island, I'll treat you all to takoyaki."

"No need to thank us, Hatchan," Law replied. "It was the least we could do."

Ishilly, finally calmed down, introduced herself, "My name is Ishilly, a striped beakfish mermaid. Thank you for saving me. I can't imagine what would have happened if I'd been sold."

"There's no need to thank us, Miss Ishilly. It was the right thing to do," Penguin chimed in, while Shachi rolled his eyes and stayed silent.

"You wanted to go to Fish-Man Island, right?" Ishilly said. "I'll help guide you there."

Hatchan patted his chest reassuringly. "Ishilly, you should head back first. I promised Rayleigh I'd guide the Thunder God Pirates to Fish-Man Island. It's been a long time since you've been home. I'm sure Kami's been worried."

Ishilly hesitated. While she was grateful to Law and his crew, she wanted to return home; life on land had felt anything but safe.

"Miss Ishilly, you can return home first," Law said. "With Hatchan leading us, we'll make it safely to Fish-Man Island."

stays or not."

Ishilly nodded. "You're the Thunder God Pirates, right? I'll remember that. When you get to Fish-Man Island, make sure you visit my cafe."

"That's right, we're the Thunder God Pirates. Our captain has a bounty of 2.8 billion, and even our vice-captain has a bounty over a billion," Penguin said eagerly, proud to talk up the crew's reputation.

For Penguin and Shachi, who used to be small-time troublemakers, joining the Thunder God Pirates was a big honor.

"2.8 billion Berries?!" Ishilly was familiar with Fish-Man Island, but she didn't know much about the world above. Still, she understood that a 2.8 billion Berries bounty was no small matter. The protector of Fish-Man Island, Whitebeard, one of the Four Emperors, had a bounty of 5 billion Berries, and even his right-hand man, Marco, only had a bounty in the billions. It amazed her that the crew that saved her was led by someone with such a high bounty.

She looked around, as if trying to spot the legendary captain worth 2.8 billion.

"The captain's not here," Shachi explained, noticing her curiosity. "Besides us and Rayleigh-san, there's no one else on board. The rest of the crew is still out on Sabaody."

At that moment, Hachi leaned over to whisper to Ishilly, "You know, Arlong was killed by Sanders. He's a powerful guy."

Ishilly shivered. She knew Arlong as well—she had once worked at the Mermaid Café on Fish-Man Island, which was run by her. However, unlike Arlong, who held a deep-seated hatred for humans, Ishilly was actually curious and open-minded about them.

"Are you sure you'll be okay here?" Ishilly asked, a bit worried. "Maybe I should be the one to take them to Fish-Man Island. I've already been missing for days; a few more won't matter. Or, you could take a message back for me," she offered.

She understood why Arlong's gang had been wiped out and was concerned that the powerful pirate Sanders might hurt Hachi as well.

"No worries! Rayleigh assured me that Sanders won't harm me. Plus, I've already apologized to Nami and earned her forgiveness," Hachi replied confidently, patting his chest.

Without Nami's forgiveness, he would never have dared set foot on the Thunder God.

"That's a relief," Ishilly sighed, visibly relaxing.

Law and his crew exchanged surprised looks, not expecting that this mermaid and their vice-captain had such a backstory with the Fish-Man Island crew.

"Well, I'll head back then. When you get to Fish-Man Island, you must come visit me at the Mermaid Cafe," Ishilly said, looking at Law and the others.

"No problem, Ishilly-san, we'll definitely come!" Penguin said, thumping his chest in promise.

As the crew watched, Ishilly leaped gracefully into the sea, waving to them as she disappeared beneath the waves.

Elsewhere, the slave auction house manager was frantically calling one of Doflamingo's subordinates. After a harsh scolding, he immediately began organizing a team to recapture the escaped slaves, especially the mermaid. They had already advertised her for the auction tomorrow, and it would be a huge blow to Doflamingo's reputation if the mermaid wasn't there.

Despite searching through the night, the auction house managed to find a few of the runaway slaves, but the mermaid remained missing.

Early the next morning in Dressrosa, Doflamingo woke up and sat at the dining table for breakfast. Diamante approached him.

"Doffy, we had an incident at one of our slave auction houses on Sabaody Archipelago. Dozens of slaves escaped, including a mermaid." Diamante summarized the situation in a few words.

Doflamingo paused, his expression instantly turning icy.

"Fufufufu!" he chuckled darkly. "Useless fools! Grind every responsible one of them into fish food," Doflamingo said with a chilling calm.

"Understood!"

"Did we find out who was responsible for this?" Doflamingo asked.

"According to the captured slaves, there were four of them—three young men and a talking bear," Diamante reported.

"A talking bear? A Mink, how interesting," Doflamingo mused, showing a hint of excitement. Minks were even rarer than Fish-Men. If he could capture one for auction, it might fetch an even higher price than a mermaid. In his black-market empire, he dealt not only in humans, Fish-Men, and mermaids but in creatures of all races.

"The slaves mentioned that the leader called himself 'Law,' and that he possesses a Devil Fruit ability," Diamante continued. "He can decapitate someone without causing pain or bleeding, and reattach the head as if nothing happened."

"Fufufufu! Is it Law?" Doflamingo's eyes widened in surprise and delight. "It's been a while since I last heard anything about him! I didn't expect him to reappear with such a surprise. As expected of my acknowledged 'brother,'" he said with a satisfied grin.

Only Law's powers would allow such bizarre surgery-like effects, cutting without blood and seamlessly reattaching body parts. And that name—Law—Doflamingo knew it could only be his beloved "Heart."

The news of the auction house incident had initially soured his mood, but learning about Law's presence brightened it considerably. The losses at the auction house suddenly felt trivial by comparison.

"It has to be him. His age, name, and abilities all match up," Diamante confirmed.

"Excellent. I didn't expect him to show up on Sabaody Archipelago. I thought it would be years before I'd hear anything about him again," Doflamingo said, smiling.

"Take a team to Sabaody yourself, Diamante. Make sure you bring him back."

"Understood, Doffy!"

With the mermaid still missing, the auction house's reputation took a major hit. The manager and the seven guards responsible for the incident disappeared without a trace that very day.

Meanwhile, Law and his crew were in high spirits after successfully disrupting Doflamingo's operations. They wandered around Sabaody Archipelago, enjoying the island's unique attractions.

On this day, the group exited a restaurant, patting their full stomachs.

"That was great! Today's the day we finally head to Fish-Man Island. I wonder what kind of food they have down there," Penguin said, wiping his mouth with satisfaction.

"Yeah, and we'll get to visit Shirley-san's place too. I bet Fish-Man Island has plenty of beautiful mermaid ladies!" he added with a grin.

"Stop daydreaming. Let's get back to the ship and gather the others," Shachi said, crossing his arms.

At that moment, Law suddenly halted in his tracks.

"What's wrong?" Penguin asked, seeing the serious expression on Law's face as he stared ahead.

Looking in the same direction, he saw a group of a dozen men blocking their path. Leading them was a towering figure, five meters tall, wearing a fur-edged hat and a red cape that gave him the appearance of a tribal warrior. He had two face tattoos, a rapier at his waist, and a menacing smile.

"Long time no see, Law!" Diamante sneered.

"Diamante!" Law said, gritting his teeth, eyes narrowing with apprehension. "He's one of the top officers of the Donquixote Family. Run!" he shouted to Penguin and Shachi, raising his hand to activate his Devil Fruit ability.

"Army Flag!" Diamante was faster, striking first.

Law suddenly felt the ground beneath him become as loose and unstable as a billowing flag, making it impossible to keep his balance. Penguin and Shachi lost their footing entirely, stumbling to the ground.

It was the power of the Hira Hira no Mi!

Diamante sneered, "Is this your crew, Law? So weak, it's disappointing."

When Diamante first arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago, he expected Law's group to be somewhat formidable, given that they had reached this far. But seeing them now, he was unimpressed.

"You all go ahead, I'll hold him back!"

"ROOM – Scalpel!"

Law activated his Ope Ope no Mi abilities, launching an attack directly at Diamante's heart, but it had no effect.

"Hahaha, Law," Diamante laughed mockingly. "Did you think I wouldn't be prepared? I already know your tricks."

Having anticipated Law's move, Diamante covered himself with Armament Haki. As a top officer of the Donquixote Family, he was no stranger to the New World's dangers.

"Show me how much you've grown over these years, Law."

Diamante drew his rapier and closed the gap between them with blinding speed.

"Snake Sword!"

Diamante's rapier suddenly loosened like cloth, whipping toward Law in unpredictable, snake-like motions. Caught off guard, Law barely managed to raise his own sword, Kikoku, to defend.

Boom!

The impact hurled Law backward, slamming him into a nearby wall. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

Seeing Law overwhelmed, Bepo roared and charged at Diamante, only to be effortlessly kicked aside. Penguin and Shachi, struggling to maintain their footing, pulled out pistols, attempting to shoot, but Diamante dodged with ease.

"Pathetic," Diamante sneered. "How did you even survive this long? Seems like pure luck."

"Let Law go! Or you'll regret it!" Penguin shouted, pulling the trigger with each word.

"Oh? And who exactly are you?" Diamante mocked.

"Law is the ship's doctor of the Thunder God Pirates!" Shachi yelled. "If you harm him, our captain won't let you off!"

Diamante burst into laughter. "The Thunder God Pirates? You think that scares me?"

Law, catching his breath, shouted, "Is that so? Try laying a hand on one of them and see what happens!"

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T/N:

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