Chapter 153: Punching Jinbe
As he walked toward the coast, Ian pondered Jinbe's possible intentions.
Ian wasn't surprised that Kuma had come to find him; their connection dated back to their first meeting at the Isshin Dojo when he was a child. However, he had never met this Warlord, Jinbe, before and had no connection to him whatsoever, which made his sudden appearance feel abrupt.
Although he couldn't guess Jinbe's purpose, Ian knew it at least wouldn't be anything bad. Jinbe was probably the Warlord who got along least with the World Government, so there was no way he'd help them capture Ian.
When Ian reached the coast, all the combat-capable members had already gathered there. The black bear Mink came up and gave Ian a "Grrluchu!" before asking, "Captain, is this Warlord Jinbe here to catch us?"
Before Ian could even speak, several Fish-Men angrily retorted, "Don't talk nonsense! Jinbe isn't that kind of person!"
It was clear that Jinbe, the current captain of the Fish-Man Pirates, held immense prestige among the Fish-Man tribe.
The Fish-Man Pirates hadn't arrived on just one ship, but three. As the vessels drew closer, Ian not only saw their pirate flag but also spotted a Fish-Man standing with his arms crossed on the bow of the lead ship.
This Fish-Man was Jinbe. His build seemed somewhat bulky, and he wore a patterned bathrobe. On his exposed chest, the mark of the former Sun Pirates could be seen.
Jinbe's face was distinctive, with two large canine teeth protruding, a thick, coarse black beard on his chin, and three cracks on each side of his neck.
When Ian spotted him, Jinbe on the ship also saw Ian surrounded by the crowd.
After all three ships docked, Jinbe came ashore, and he wasn't alone—many Fish-Men followed behind him. Ian could only recognize one of them: their ship's doctor, Aladdin, who carried a large iron trident.
Seeing so many Fish-Men disembarking, all armed, Ian's group instinctively tightened their grips on their weapons.
These weapons were all seized from Marine soldiers at Mary Geoise. However, upon seeing this, Jinbe spoke first, "We have not come to fight!"
Ian thought, "Just as I suspected," and waved his hand to signal everyone to relax. He then said, "Jinbe, let's talk inside."
The two walked toward the island's interior, while the others—whether Sardine's group or the Fish-Man Pirates members Jinbe had brought—all consciously refrained from following.
After walking to a secluded spot, they each found a rock to sit on.
"I'm curious, Jinbe, how did you find us?" Ian asked first.
"This island is known to many among the Fish-Man tribe," Jinbe said gravely. "I searched all over the New World for you without success before thinking of this place."
Ian nodded. That was somewhat reassuring; when Jinbe and his crew had appeared earlier, Ian had even worried that the island might have been exposed.
Just then, Jinbe said, "Why do you not show your true face?"
Jinbe's manner of speaking always carried an old-fashioned tone, which Ian found a bit uncomfortable. Still, after hearing his words, Ian smiled slightly and pulled down his face mask.
Since his conversation with Kuma the day before yesterday, Ian knew his concerns had been resolved, so he didn't mind letting Jinbe see his face. Besides, given Jinbe's character, even if he knew, he wouldn't tell the World Government.
"You are so young!" Jinbe seemed somewhat astonished. Then, he asked Ian seriously, "And as a human, why did you rescue those slaves at Mary Geoise?"
Ian found this a bit strange and replied, "Does saving people require distinguishing by race?"
Jinbe didn't know how to answer that, and a mix of emotions churned within him. When he'd first seen the news and wanted posters, he couldn't tell what kind of person Ian was and had wondered if another Fish-Man hero had emerged to repeat Tiger's feat from years ago.
But after landing on the island and seeing Ian, he realized Ian was human. This left him with an indescribable feeling.
Years ago, when Jinbe first set sail with the Sun Pirates, he initially followed Arlong's example, killing attacking humans out of revenge. However, after hearing Fisher Tiger's lesson about "an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind," Jinbe gradually changed his ways, and his hatred for humans lessened significantly. But conversely, after Fisher Tiger's death, Arlong's group became increasingly extreme.
The original Sun Pirates no longer existed. The original crew members had gone their separate ways due to differing ideals. Arlong went to the East Blue and formed his Arlong Pirates. Maculo and his group, also former Sun Pirates members, left to continue their old trade: human trafficking. Only Jinbe took over Tiger's leadership position, continuing as captain of the Sun Pirates.
However, everything changed when Jinbe accepted the World Government's invitation to join the Seven Warlords. The Sun Pirates' name was abandoned, replaced by the Fish-Man Pirates.
Jinbe had agreed to become a Warlord to ease the racial conflict between Fish-Men and humans. But things didn't go as he'd hoped. A Warlord's position wasn't enough to change this. Human discrimination against Fish-Men persisted, and Fish-Men's hostility toward humans remained unresolved.
After the Great Pirate Era began, many of his fellow Fish-Men from his home, Fish-Man Island, were kidnapped by the influx of human pirates. The World Government was powerless to stop it. In the end, it was only a word from the Four Emperors, Whitebeard, that curbed this trend.
And now, Ian had appeared, repeating Tiger's feat—and he was human!
So Jinbe's feelings were deeply conflicted. The ones who kidnapped his Fish-Man brethren were humans, and the ones who protected them were also humans. He no longer knew if he could truly trust humans...
He kept staring intently into Ian's eyes, trying to see if Ian was lying. But Ian had no idea about this emotional turmoil and just found Jinbe's gaze baffling.
Finally, Jinbe spoke again, "May I know your name?"
"Call me Ian," Ian replied directly, without hiding it.
But unexpectedly, Jinbe paused slightly and said, "Ian? That name sounds familiar... Are you from the East Blue?"
"How do you know?" Ian asked, puzzled. Even if he had been a famous pirate hunter in the East Blue, there was no way his reputation could have spread to the New World!
Jinbe suddenly stood up and bowed to Ian, saying, "If you are the pirate hunter Ian from the East Blue, then I must apologize to you here."
"What do you mean?" Ian felt completely confused. Communicating with this Jinbe was so difficult.
"My apology is not for anything else, but for Arlong," Jinbe said. "Arlong was once my compatriot and a member of the same pirate crew. When you captured Arlong back then, the government and the Marines let him go quietly out of respect for me. I only learned of this afterward..."
"You...!" Ian's anger flared, and he abruptly stood up as well.
Arlong had been let go?! What the hell was going on?!
When Ian had gone after Arlong back then, it was partly for the bounty, but also to end the suffering of Nami and her people. Even if he hadn't ended up recruiting Nami, the genius navigator, onto his ship, he'd considered it a good deed to earn some karma.
But now you're telling me the government and Marines secretly let him go?! And all because of Jinbe's influence?!
What did that mean? It meant Arlong could very well return to Cocoyasi Village, and Nami and the others would suffer a second round of harm!
Damn it all!
This made Ian think of Kuina's situation. Every time he tried to change something, this damn historical inertia would quietly emerge, throwing his expected results off course.
The more Ian thought about it, the angrier he got. Forgetting that the man before him was one of the Seven Warlords, he couldn't help but punch Jinbe in the face.
His strength was considerable now, and Jinbe was knocked to the ground by the blow. After throwing the punch, Ian suddenly snapped back to reality and immediately assumed a defensive stance, ready for Jinbe's counterattack.
But to his surprise, Jinbe had no intention of fighting back. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, sat on the ground, and lowered his head to Ian, saying, "Arlong was my compatriot. When you captured him, I held a grudge against you. But now, you have saved my fellow Fish-Men at Mary Geoise. This debt of gratitude moves me deeply. That is why I apologize to you. This punch I accept without resistance; to do otherwise would violate the code of chivalry!"
Hearing this, Ian was at a loss. He sighed and sat back down, saying, "The person you should apologize to isn't me..."
If Nami still sets sail with Luffy in the future, you can apologize to her like this then... Ian thought to himself.
"Alright, Jinbe, is there anything else you came here for?" Ian asked, deflated. "Just say it."
Jinbe looked up at Ian and said, "It's clear that your ship is damaged. I can leave one of my ships for you, along with supplies of water and food. But in exchange, please allow me to take my fellow Fish-Men away!"