One piece: I,Akaino will not die easily

"Hey, hey, did you see that? That couple pushing a baby stroller over there," a navy soldier asked in a hushed voice, nudging his comrade with his elbow.

"How could I not notice? But how are they staying so calm?" The other marine stared intently at the sweet-looking couple—a fish-man and a mermaid—walking ahead.

The first marine shrugged. "No idea. If it were me, I would've lost it and gotten a divorce already."

Another soldier joined their quiet discussion. "Yeah, I mean, the difference is so obvious."

"Eh? By the way, can fish-men and mermaids even get married? Aren't the Fish-Men and Merfolk tribes living separately on Fish-Man Island?"

"They probably can, right? I mean, it's not super common, but we've seen quite a few fish-men and mermaid couples while patrolling these past few days."

A marine waved his hand with a strange smile. "You're missing the point, missing the point. This isn't about whether they can get married!"

Bringing the topic back to the original question, he said, "Why did a great white shark fish-man and a mermaid end up having a tiger shark merfolk kid?!"

Although these marines weren't completely illiterate, there were some navy officers among them who had read related materials.

Nearby, a navy major suddenly turned his head sharply. "Silence! Pointing fingers and gossiping like this is incredibly rude! A bunch of idiots! When a fish-man and a mermaid have children, the offspring can be one of four types: merman, mermaid, male fish-man, or female fish-woman."

Startled by their superior, the marines glanced toward the vice admiral at the front of their formation. Good, it seemed like he hadn't noticed what was happening at the back of the ranks.

Not convinced, the marines muttered in low voices, "Sir, this doesn't make sense! Even if there are four possibilities… this situation goes beyond species differences, doesn't it?"

"Exactly! A great white shark and a tiger shark—are they even the same species?! I may not know much about biology, but don't try to fool me!" Another marine looked on with a face full of sympathy.

If that possibility was ruled out, then the truth—there could only be one conclusion!

The marines gazed at the great white shark fish-man, who was gently kissing his mermaid wife, with faces full of pity.

In their eyes, the deep blue of the great white shark fish-man's back seemed to be faintly tinged with green—a green so lush, so full of life.

Amen.

One soldier, his eyes full of sympathy for the supposed tragic protagonist of their discussion, tried to be kind and think of a reasonable explanation. He turned to his teammate and asked, "Or maybe Fish-Man Island has its own cultural norms? Could it be that both polygamy and polyandry are accepted there?"

Unexpectedly, that statement made half of the marines' eyes light up, immediately derailing the conversation.

"⊙∀⊙!Wait—can we humans apply for Fish-Man Island citizenship?" A few marines, now brimming with excitement, whispered amongst themselves.

A sinister voice came from behind them. "Oh? You're welcome to try."

Along with the voice came a looming shadow, engulfing the gossiping marines.

"V—Vice Admiral!!"

"We sincerely apologize!"

"We're doomed, we're doomed!"

"We're finished, we're finished! Remember to burn my finest photo albums on my grave later."

The marines' faces were filled with despair. ing

Sakazuki's face remained rigid. "What are the regulations when carrying out a mission? It looks like you've all forgotten, haven't you?"

"Full! Focus! No! Chattering!" He emphasized each word with a punch. Sakazuki intended to discipline these overly relaxed soldiers, but he had no intention of actually injuring them.

After his thunderous roar, the marines were now huddled on the ground in defensive crouches, each with a large swollen lump on their heads that pushed their navy caps up high.

"Fish-Man Island practices monogamy, even the royal family," Sakazuki stated flatly, shattering the marines' absurd fantasies.

The marines, clutching their heads, exchanged glances. If it was monogamy, then… what else could the great white shark fish-man do? Of course, he had to choose forgiveness!

The marines' eyes were filled with both admiration and pity. This was their tribute to the true "man among men" standing before them—the one who could endure being publicly cheated on and still show off his love with such composure.

What a display of fortitude, what an immense heart! To calmly walk around flaunting affection with a child who clearly wasn't his own and a wife who had betrayed him!

Bro… respect!

A vein bulged on Sakazuki's forehead. "Idiots! Don't look at him with that kind of asking-for-a-beating expression!"

For the first time, the Vice Admiral of the Navy Headquarters felt a deep sense of shame, but he had no choice but to educate these muscle-headed fools. "Because fish-men and merfolk inherit their genetic memory from their ancient ancestors, the species they are born as doesn't necessarily match that of their direct parents. That's why no one finds it strange when children are born with different appearances in their families."

This was, in fact, a classic example of regional cultural differences and variations in racial perspectives.

On the other hand, for these land-dwellers—who were used to identifying familial ties based on facial resemblance—this concept was much harder to accept.

Though this was just a small matter, Sakazuki could see the deeper issue behind it.

Humans harbored numerous misunderstandings and even discrimination toward fish-men and merfolk. Conversely, Fish-Man Island also held resentment and hostility toward humans.

This was precisely why he had yet to touch the highly sensitive, racially-charged issue of Fish-Man District.

Aside from external factors—such as the negative influence of human pirates and traffickers exacerbating tensions—Sakazuki knew that even within Fish-Man Island, most residents looked down upon and despised those born in Fish-Man District. Even within a community already discriminated against by outsiders, internal regional discrimination still persisted.

Ultimately, it all boiled down to the act of dividing people into different social classes based on race or location and treating them differently.

Even in his previous life, where the so-called "world's greatest enforcer of justice" ran around acting high and mighty, similar issues had plagued it.

The self-proclaimed beacon of democracy and equality—America—still had widespread discrimination against Black and Asian communities.

From the Montgomery bus boycott to the present day, how many years had passed?

White people discriminated against Black people, Black people discriminated against Asians. Geographic regions with economic prosperity looked down on poorer regions. Even within a single country, different ethnic groups held deep-seated biases against one another.

But to be fair, every country more or less had these issues. It was precisely because discrimination still existed that people saw the need for societal progress and worked toward change.

This was the "normal" abnormality of any diverse society.

If such problems persisted even in a highly developed modern world, it was hardly surprising that a society roughly at a 16th- to 17th-century level would have them as well.

Sakazuki understood that even if Fish-Man Island's law enforcement was now effective, truly resolving these racial and regional conflicts in one go was unrealistic.

Because these were issues that couldn't be solved overnight.

Racial discrimination was the result of history, ideology, economics, politics, and culture all combined.

Correcting these views would require the slow passage of time, countless struggles, and the efforts of those willing to fight for a better future.

"Vice Admiral, urgent call from Mr. Lindemann." A communications officer hurriedly ran up from the front of the formation.

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