Cover
From the ship decks of the world, part 9: “Syrop – medical student Kaya”.
Within the span of two years, Kaya has aged and gotten prettier too. She is learning medicine, on a pile of books she has hung a cut-out section from the current newspaper with Usopp’s picture. Lamb, meanwhile, has to fend off a horde of the student’s admirers.
Storyline
The Sun Pirates were finally able to get hold of an Eternal Port for Koala’s hometown. This was neatly fixed up by the fish people again. When she starts cleaning again, Hatchan wants to stop her. But ship’s doctor Aladine says to let her do it, since trauma should be treated slowly. Arlong notes he must know what he’s talking about, since he used to be a slave himself. In reality, he would prefer to kill her, the Sawshark Fishman explains. He believes that parents teach their children, like Koala, to hate the fish-men and as long as no one stops this cycle, race relations can never improve. Surely his comrades must have noticed this from the looks on people’s faces during their three years at sea. Jinbe thinks this is just a part of humanity and he noticed fear in people. He asks Koala why they are afraid of them. She replies that they just don’t know enough about them and that’s why they are afraid. This reminds Jinbe of Otohime, who also meant similar things about people. He tells the girl that her opinion might change if she meets the fish people. Koala says yes and plays with Hatchan afterwards.
Within the next few weeks, the Sun Pirates do a lot of things with Koala and become good friends in the process.
Finally they reach Foolshout, Koala’s home. A farewell to her follows, who promises to tell the inhabitants that there are many nice fish people in the world.
While Fisher brings Tiger Koala to their village, Arlong thinks that she will eventually think the same as the rest. No one will believe her, just as Otohime’s ideas of contacting the humans fall on deaf ears.
In the village, Koala is reunited with her mother. Tiger receives fearful looks from the inhabitants, while Koala says goodbye to her rescuer with tears in her eyes. The latter smiles as he bids her farewell.
On his way back to the ship, Tiger is caught by Rear Admiral Strawberry’s unit. These received tips from people that the pirate would come to this island. The villagers also agreed to betray him in exchange for overlooking Koala’s slave past.
While Fisher Tiger is being shot at from all sides, his gang also realizes that they have been surrounded by the navy. After their ship is sunk, some flee into the ocean, while the others rush towards their captain, who refuses to go down and is already badly injured fighting off the soldiers shooting at him. In her village, Koala asks if her mother also hears the sounds, to which she replies in the negative.
The Sun Pirates finally escaped on a captured Navy ship. Tiger’s life is in danger unless he gets blood transfused. Since he has a rare blood type that none of his men possess, they have to rely on the blood packs on board the ship. Tiger, however, refuses to accept the blood of humans, he wants to be grateful to that blood still people something. For all the years of his last voyage he was not adventuring, but to the amazement of the crew he was a slave in Mary Geoise! He finally just managed to escape, but from what he saw, had to return and free the other prisoners as well. He regrets that he and his faith have always stood in Otohime’s way, but realizes that she is right and fish people and humanity should live together in peace. Only people like Koala, who don’t know about the “next era” yet, can make this happen. Therefore, nothing should be known on Fish-Men Island about the tragedy that has befallen them. Tiger knows that there are nice people, but the number of them is rapidly decreasing. A “demon” has, by his own admission, taken hold of his heart and would reject human blood. Despite all he has been through, he can never love a human! After Aladine tells him he is the hero of Fish-Man Island, Fisher Tiger dies. His entire crew mourns.
Foolshout: Arlong, in tears, had returned to the island to kill all those who betrayed Tiger to the Navy, but there he met the then Vice Admiral Borsalino and was defeated. The latter now plans to take the fish-man with him….
| Manga volumes | Fish-Man Island Arc (Manga) |
