One Piece: Starting by Refusing Shanks

Kaku's request didn't bother Neptune at all, and he casually said, "Of course, you can stay."

However, his seahorse subordinate couldn't help but protest again, "Your Majesty, you mustn't! This is the royal palace, and you're the king. How can you let someone else lead you by the nose like this?"

Neptune muttered, "But they seem to like it here a lot. Guests are guests, and reasonable requests should be accommodated, shouldn't they?"

"Reasonable requests? Do you call this reasonable?" The seahorse was nearly exasperated, "My king, we know nothing about these people. Letting three strangers wander freely around the royal palace is absolutely out of the question. Please, Your Majesty, take back what you just said!"

"Huh?" Neptune muttered, "But I've already said it... isn't it too late to take it back now? Give me some time to think about it."

"Your Majesty, really, is there even anything to think about?"

Suddenly, Fukaboshi interjected, "Besides rescuing a mermaid lady, they are also wanted by the World Government in the world above the sea."

Neptune asked in surprise, "Is that true?"

Fukaboshi nodded and glanced at Takumi, continuing, "The first time I saw this kid, I thought he looked familiar. After a search, I found their bounty posters: Takumi - 1.54 billion berries, Enel - 130 million berries, Kaku - 50 million berries."

"Wha-what? 1.54 billion?" The seahorse was utterly shocked.

Neptune was taken aback as well. He immediately thought of a notorious incident from a few years ago, his gaze shifting to Takumi. "You're the kid who killed the Celestial Dragon at Sabaody a few years ago?"

Takumi nodded calmly.

Neptune glanced at his previously protesting seahorse subordinate.

The seahorse remained silent.

Neptune pondered for a moment.

Although he was the king of Ryugu Kingdom on Fish-Man Island, he only left for the surface during World Government conferences. Otherwise, he always stayed on Fish-Man Island.

Ryugu Kingdom had the privilege to attend these conferences, but each time they traveled to Mary Geoise, even with his intimidating stature that made many wary, he and his people would still encounter prejudiced looks.

He couldn't say he hated humans, but Neptune didn't particularly like them either, especially the high and mighty Celestial Dragons who lived in Mary Geoise.

Everyone in the world knew of the Celestial Dragons' status. Regardless of one's strength, no one dared to provoke them easily, let alone harm them. If anyone dared attack a Celestial Dragon, they would be making an enemy of the entire World Government.

Even injuring a Celestial Dragon would prompt the Marines to dispatch an admiral to take care of the offender. Killing one was a different story altogether!

After a moment of silence, Neptune finally said, "I've decided. As a thank-you for your help to my people, I will host a feast for you for three days and three nights!"

"Uh?" The seahorse was surprised. "Your Majesty, are you serious? Hosting a feast for three days and nights? They're wanted criminals, and not just any criminals—they're directly wanted by the World Government! If those people find out we're hosting them here, won't our kingdom be in danger?"

Neptune feigned ignorance and asked innocently, "Wanted criminals? Are there any criminals here? I see no such thing. I only see people who helped my citizens."

The seahorse: "..."

Fukaboshi chuckled and shook his head, then said, "Since Father has spoken, so be it."

"Mm-hmm," Neptune nodded, then laughed, "Hohohoho, this is great! It's been a long time since we've had a feast in the palace. Hohohoho. By the way, Ryuboshi and Manboshi are with Shirahoshi. Fukaboshi, go let them know."

Ryuboshi and Manboshi were Fukaboshi's younger brothers, while Shirahoshi was their youngest sister.

Although Shirahoshi was the youngest, her size surpassed even Neptune's... Neptune was over twelve meters tall, whereas Fukaboshi and his brothers were around seven meters.

Hearing his father's words, Fukaboshi nodded, "Yes, Father. I haven't seen my sister in a few days, so I'll go now."

"Alright," Neptune replied.

Kaku mused, stroking his chin, "A mermaid princess, huh? Sounds like she must be a real beauty."

Enel's curiosity was piqued too, "Whether she's a beauty or not, we'll know when we see her."

The seahorse overheard their conversation and, quite agitated, said, "Gentlemen, Princess Shirahoshi does not meet with strangers. You should give up on meeting her!"

"Not even a glance?" Kaku chuckled.

Neptune directly replied, "I'm afraid my daughter cannot receive visitors at the moment. Before you arrived, I had my men prepare food for the feast. Gentlemen, please follow me to the banquet hall. Hohohoho."

Neptune happily changed the subject and personally led the way.

However, the more Neptune tried to divert the topic and prevent them from meeting Shirahoshi, the more curious Kaku and Enel became.

They exchanged glances, silently agreeing to find a way to meet Shirahoshi themselves.

Though Ryugu Palace was enormous, Enel's Observation Haki covered a considerable range, making it relatively easy to locate Shirahoshi.

Even though they hadn't said a word, just exchanged glances, Takumi could tell what they were thinking.

Considering that their mission's progress was likely connected to Shirahoshi, Takumi decided to communicate telepathically with Kaku and Enel, saying, "I'm coming too."

The two were stunned upon hearing Takumi's voice in their heads.

It wasn't the first time Takumi had used this ability to talk to them—he'd done it several times over long distances. Though they'd felt it was unusual, they hadn't given it much thought at the time.

"Captain, did you just speak?" Kaku used his Devil Fruit power to envelop the three of them in a bubble, ensuring their conversation remained private.

Takumi replied nonchalantly, "Yes."

Enel was bewildered, "Wait a minute, you didn't open your mouth just now. How did I hear your voice?"

"Captain," Kaku said with a mix of amusement and exasperation, "Do you have some other unique 'ability' that Enel and I don't know about?"

Takumi explained casually, "It's telepathy. I don't need to speak to convey my thoughts to you."

"No way!" Enel's jaw tightened in astonishment. "You've never been seen training, yet you have all these abilities—when and where did you learn them? And that time on the monkey island, you even created a clone that seemed like an independent entity. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed that someone with a heartbeat and their own presence was just your clone..."

"Exactly. I've wanted to ask about that too," Kaku added with a resigned expression, "But I figured even if I asked, you'd never answer. And if I kept pushing, I'd probably get beaten up, so I never did."

"That was the Shadow Clone technique," Takumi said indifferently, "If you want to know anything in the future, just ask. If I'm in a good mood, I might answer."

Kaku and Enel looked at each other in shock.

They hadn't expected Takumi to say something like that, and they both suddenly felt strangely flattered.