One Piece: King of the World-Chapter 295: Shiryu—Oops, Is This the Feeling of a Heartbeat?

After reading the newspaper, Shiryu became intrigued by the man who called himself Blackbeard, Marshall D. Teach.

There was no particular reason, just pure instinct.

A man who had remained unknown for nearly thirty years had suddenly acquired a Devil Fruit, and in the blink of an eye, became the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates.

There seemed to be no flaws in his rise, yet Shiryu could keenly sense a scent, one called ambition.

"An interesting guy..." Shiryu muttered softly.

Of course, just reading about Teach in the newspaper wasn't enough to make Shiryu immediately admire him or recognize him as a worthy leader. At this stage, Teach had merely piqued his interest.

It meant that Teach had entered his line of sight.

For some reason, Shiryu had a nagging feeling that his future might be tied to this man.

"I'll keep watching you... Blackbeard, Marshall D. Teach." He closed the newspaper, a wicked grin tugging at the corner of his lips as he murmured to himself.

Though Teach had caught his attention, there wasn't much else to observe for now. Shiryu decided he would continue monitoring this man, waiting to see if he would do something truly interesting.

And if he did?

Perhaps Shiryu would take action alongside him.

Once again, he glanced around his dark office.

Impel Down was never meant to see the light.

"The sea is vast… so why the hell am I still stuck here?" Shiryu muttered to himself, a hint of frustration creeping into his voice.

His gaze dropped back to the newspaper.

Teach's face, grinning wide with several missing teeth, was plastered across the page, a smile so carefree and arrogant that Shiryu felt something stir inside him.

A twinge of longing.

Maybe even… envy?

"Damn… is this what they call a heartbeat?"

For the first time in a long while, Shiryu felt something shift within him.

As he looked up from the newspaper and cast his eyes toward the iron cages of Impel Down, something seemed… different.

He couldn't quite place what had changed.

But it had changed.

---

The Dragon Palace of Fish-Man Island

At this moment, Claudius was visiting the Dragon Palace as a guest.

Over the years, Fish-Man Island had undergone tremendous changes.

First, the chaos brought about by the Great Pirate Era had been effectively controlled. With Marine Headquarters establishing a base and CP-X setting up a branch on the island, security had drastically improved.

Internally, many of the conflicts that once plagued Fish-Man Island had been resolved.

For years, tension had simmered between the royal faction and Fish-Man Street, a lawless zone that had become a haven for criminals and pirates.

However, things finally changed when Fisher Tiger ventured beyond the island, experiencing the outside world firsthand.

Under Claudius's guidance, Fisher Tiger eventually became a contractor rather than a pirate.

And with that, the chaos of Fish-Man Street finally began to settle.

After all, most of the people who gathered there weren't criminals by choice.

It was a matter of survival.

Fish-Man Street was home to hundreds of thousands of orphans, children abandoned by the world, raised without education, without opportunities, and without a future.

What else could they do?

They had no skills. No jobs. No way to make an honest living.

Strength was the only thing they had.

But how many jobs on Fish-Man Island actually needed brute force?

With no upward mobility, no escape from their circumstances, their only option was to turn to crime.

But now?

Everything had changed.

Fisher Tiger led over 100,000 people from Fish-Man Island to the Calm Belt…

And opened mines.

Now, instead of aimless chaos, these former street dwellers had stable jobs with fixed monthly salaries.

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They even got two weekends off every week.

The once violent and restless energy of Fish-Man Street had been redirected turned into wealth.

With stable incomes and opportunities to change their lives, who would choose to go back to being criminals?

Who would willingly choose to be a nobody?

Of course, not everyone was happy with the change.

But Fisher Tiger was the undisputed leader of Fish-Man Street, and influential figures like Arlong deeply admired him.

As for those who still refused to cooperate?

They were nothing more than rotten leftovers, troublemakers with no value.

And the Dragon Palace wasn't about to let such nuisances disrupt progress.

Once the majority of Fish-Man Street's conflicts were settled, the stubborn few who refused to adapt were swiftly removed.

Now, these fish-men had the ability to earn legal income.

They were among the highest-paid workers on Fish-Man Island.

And though they themselves might never receive a formal education, the wealth they accumulated could be passed down to their children.

They had never been to school.

But now, they could afford to send their kids.

This was the start of a cycle of upward mobility, a direct path toward a brighter future.

And once a man had such a future, he would fight to protect it.

Nobody needed to tell them that.

It was obvious.

Now, if anyone dared to suggest shutting down the mines, the very workers themselves would be the first to riot.

With Fish-Man Street cleaned up, the land, once the most chaotic and worthless part of the island had been transformed into a thriving economic hub.

Tesoro had invested heavily, constructing various processing plants to refine and polish deep-sea treasures like pearls, corals, and gems.

With the delicate craftsmanship of mermaids, these raw materials were turned into exquisite jewelry.

And where were these high-end accessories sent?

Straight to the Gran Tesoro, the world's largest entertainment district.

The Gran Tesoro attracted the richest people in the world, including a large number of Celestial Dragons.

Underwater, these deep-sea treasures were barely worth anything.

But in the Gran Tesoro?

They were among the most coveted luxury goods.

Ever seen a crown made entirely of black pearls the size of a fist?

No?

Then head to the Gran Tesoro to buy one.

Otherwise, what kind of king are you?

If you don't own one, the other kings might just cut off diplomatic ties with you out of sheer embarrassment.

The factories on Fish-Man Street had created new sources of wealth, new jobs, and a booming economy.

Fish-Man Island was thriving.

Over the years, Sabaody Archipelago had become an important connection point for Fish-Man Island and the surface world.

With efforts from all sides, the cultural gap between fish-men and humans had begun to close.

And ridiculous superstitions about fish-men eating humans?

They were dying out.

If someone still believed such nonsense, people would just laugh at them.

No one wanted to be the idiot who still clung to outdated myths.

Through exposure and interaction, the two societies had begun to merge.

Princess Otohime had always dreamed of this outcome.

She wanted the people of Fish-Man Island to live freely under the sun, instead of being trapped in the deep sea for hundreds of years.

Now, Claudius was here to continue pushing that dream forward.

And to further strengthen his ties with Fish-Man Island.

CP-X had established a branch on the island, and two mermaids, Mero and Lenny had become devoted admirers of Claudius, constantly singing his praises.

His efforts had truly changed Fish-Man Island.

At this point, his reputation here was practically godlike.

He could eat at any roadside stall for free, just flash his face, and the owner would happily throw in extra meat.

Holding a glass of wine, Claudius glanced toward the adorably round blue figure standing guard at the palace entrance.

He nearly laughed out loud.

Thanks to Fisher Tiger never becoming a pirate, Jinbei had never resigned as captain of the royal guard.

He never became a Warlord of the Sea.

Hell, he didn't even go by "First Son of the Sea"

Had Claudius scammed him out of that fate?

But looking at Jinbei's warm, simple smile, Claudius thought—maybe…

This life suited him just fine.

"Your Highness?"

Hearing Otohime's soft voice, Claudius snapped out of his thoughts and smiled apologetically.

"Ah, sorry, Princess Otohime… I got a little distracted."

***

This book is completed so you can read all chapters on: /Blownleaves.