Chapter 80: Morning Chaos on Fishman Island

While Karl and the others slept soundly, the Transponder Snail in Fleet Admiral Hill’s New World office started ringing.

“Bloop bloop!”

“Hello, is this Fleet Admiral Hill?”

“What? Is that true?”

“Understood. Rest assured, Fleet Admiral Hill.”

“Clack!”

“I never thought Karl would be on Fishman Island right now.”

Thanks to Hill’s call, Sengoku now knew Karl was currently on Fishman Island.

No one was sure of Karl’s exact motives, but he would soon be passing through both his and Garp’s area of command. Hopefully, they’d stay alert to prevent any major losses.

Sengoku didn’t dwell on it. He immediately had the Transponder Snail dial Garp.

Garp wasn’t too worried when he heard the news. In his view, Karl wouldn’t attack a Navy branch in the New World.

Still, he had his men keep a closer watch.

The next morning!

Karl sat up from his coral bed, unleashed his Observation Haki, and froze for a moment.

Everyone else—Davis and the rest—had vanished from his senses. In other words, he was now the only one left in the house.

“Were they all in such a rush?”

Brown had tidied up yesterday and left in a flash. Clearly, he was the first to spend the night out.

The others must have headed out this morning.

Karl walked outside, heading toward Coral Hill. Even with Fishman Island in political turmoil, Coral Hill remained one of the island’s busiest port districts.

This was the very place where, in the original story, Sanji had his famous blood transfusion. The renowned Mermaid Café was located here, too.

“Whoa!”

“That guy’s huge!”

At eight meters tall, Karl’s presence on the street drew a chorus of gasps.

Humans and fishmen alike filled the street, haggling over goods. Fishman Island’s unique products drew plenty of bargain-hunting humans, who then sold those wares to the world’s nobles for a hefty profit.

Mixed in were fishman traffickers, hiding among the crowds.

“Sir, would you like to buy one?”

“You could give it to your sweetheart.”

“It’s cheap, just 50 Berries.”

Karl followed the voice and looked down. A fishman girl, barely over a meter tall, hugged a violet flower almost taller than herself. The flower gave off a captivating fragrance—one you could only find deep underwater.

It was called the Sea God’s Love, a blossom that grew by the giant sea kings. Legend had it that if two fishmen in love found this flower and used it for a proposal, the Sea God would bless their marriage, making their bond unbreakable.

“What’s your name?”

He took the flower, inhaled its scent, and thought he hadn’t brought Linlin a gift yet—this would suit her perfectly.

“My name’s Lia.”

Karl crouched, handed Lia a gold coin worth 500 Berries, then stood back up to go on his way.

“Here you go. Guess the flower belongs to me now, huh?”

“Sir, that’s way too much.”

Lia eyed Karl’s towering form and looked a bit nervous, but her mother had taught her never to accept extra money easily.

“It’s fine, take it as a reward.”

Karl waved without turning back then strode off.

Fishman Island had fishmen over seven or eight meters tall, but a human this size was a first, so people made sure to keep their distance.

Karl paid it no mind. He wandered down the street, buying a few local specialties.

“Boom!”

“Clang!”

Suddenly, a huge crash echoed from the distance!

“Iron Mountain Lean!”

At first Karl ignored it, but when he caught the familiar phrase, he hurriedly tossed some Berries on the vendor’s stall and dashed toward the commotion with his loot.

“Sir, that’s too much!”

The old lady at the booth tried to call him back after he dropped off a big pile of Berries, but he just ran off even faster.

“Boom!”

“Fish-Man Karate: 5,000-Watt Straight Punch!”

Karl raced down the street, the shouting getting clearer and closer.

“It’s Notty.”

Karl was sprinting because he worried about what hidden forces might lurk on Fishman Island.

After all, this wasn’t a storybook—it was reality. No way did he believe Fishman Island could go so long without its own powerhouses.

Fishmen were born physically stronger than most humans, especially the ancient lineages—some could reach rear admiral-level strength practically from birth.

If he thought the canon cast was all there was, he’d have to be out of his mind.

“Slap!”

“Whoa!”

“Splash splash!”

Karl hurried through the coral and finally saw what was happening.

Notty was fighting an unfamiliar fishman, just as big as he was and covered in rippling muscles.

But seeing Notty on the ground and a pool of blood in front of him—

It was obvious Notty was no match for this stranger.

Karl didn’t step in, though. For one, he wanted his crew to have real, evenly matched fights. For another, Notty didn’t seem seriously hurt.

“Thud thud thud!”

“Whoosh whoosh!”

“Wait—hold on, don’t go over there yet.”

Karl heard voices behind him and turned around.

It was Davis and the others. He held them back at first.

“Notty’s fine. We finally found someone stronger who isn’t overwhelmingly so. This is perfect for him to gain some hands-on experience.”

Hearing this, Davis and the rest relaxed, dropping their tense expressions.

They found spots to lean or sit, watching the scene unfold.

Karl had realized the problem for a while now—their strength was rising too fast, leaving them without worthy opponents in the Four Seas.

So, he had to help them build up real battle experience. Here in the New World, all kinds of abilities turn up and one slip can end your life.

Rather than risk disaster later, better to find them strong, evenly matched sparring partners now.

Notty soon stood, wiped blood from his lip, and struck a serious pose, ready with the Eight Extremities Fist.

“You’re really strong.”

“Let’s go again.”

“Fish-Man Karate: 8,000-Watt Mountain Shatter!”

The unknown fishman immediately countered with his own move.

“Earth Cannon!”

Notty blocked with his left, then swung his right elbow at the fishman’s skull.

The fishman reacted fast, raising his left arm to block.

Their elbows collided a moment later.

“Bang!”

A dull thud echoed out.

“Whoosh!”

Seeing his strike blocked, Notty didn’t hesitate. He snapped his right foot up, aiming a lightning-fast kick at the fishman’s left knee.

The fishman couldn’t react in time; his right hand shot out toward Notty’s left cheek.

“Smack!” “Clang!”

Both fighters flew off in opposite directions.

“Boom!”

Notty ended up embedded in a chunk of reef, his left cheek swelling instantly, but he just ignored the pain.

The fishman crashed through a patch of coral, his left knee blazing red.

Neither was badly hurt. Once they were on their feet again, they charged at each other.

“Wham!”

They went right back into fierce combat.

“How long are they going to keep this up?”

Jennifer, watching from the side, was already feeling some visual fatigue.

Fields, nearby, gave an honest answer. Besides Karl, only he really knew what Notty was capable of.

He and Notty were both martial arts maniacs and knew just how much strength and stamina Notty had.

“By the look of it, this’ll go on for hours.”

“Seriously? It’s going to take that long?”

“Can I maybe…”

Jennifer wasn’t keen on watching the fight—especially with so many people around, she knew there’d be no real danger.

She was busy discussing medicine with doctors on Fishman Island and didn’t want to waste this time.

Fields kept his eyes locked on the two fighters, totally focused.

“It’s fine, go enjoy yourselves. I’ll stay here and keep watch.”

“Yeah right, you’re just itching to get in there yourself.”

Brown saw right through him.

On this ship, only Fields and Notty were truly obsessed with fighting.

“Alright then, everyone go do your own thing. Fields and I can keep an eye on things here.”

Karl watched the battle, unable to tell who might win. Having so many people standing around was just wasting everyone’s time.

So he suggested they all go do their own thing for now.

“Okay, let’s go.”

“Here I come, pretty lady!”

Brown, as usual, was the first to strut off toward the heart of Fishman Island, whistling.

The others soon followed.

Only Davis, Fields, and Karl were left at the scene.

The three exchanged a smile—they’d only stayed behind because they worried Notty might get hurt.

……