As for his agreement with Hody Jones, did Vander Decken IX even care? He had originally thought that with the New Fish-Man Pirates' massive army, taking over Ryugu Palace would be a walk in the park.
Who would've guessed that the so-called "New Fish-Man Pirates," boasting a hundred thousand strong, would collapse before the battle even began, with seventy percent already knocked out?
Those flashy officers who strutted around arrogantly, acting all high and mighty, turned out to be nothing more than weaklings propped up by ES steroids.
Now that Hody Jones's forces were in shambles, leaving him as a lone commander, Vander Decken IX had absolutely no reason to keep listening to his orders. He didn't even spare him a glance.
But Vander Decken seemed to forget one crucial thing: while Hody Jones was indeed no match for Straw Hat Luffy, the enormous amounts of ES steroids he'd consumed made him more than capable of crushing Vander Decken.
Seeing Vander Decken disrespect him like that—rubbing salt in his wounds—Hody Jones's crimson eyes flashed with madness. He clenched his trident tightly and, without hesitation, thrust it straight into Vander Decken's side.
"Decken, you brought this upon yourself! For a woman, you actually dared to betray me.
Now I'll skewer your kidneys and send you straight to hell, where you can reunite with Princess Shirahoshi!"
Faced with the crisis Noah posed, Shirahoshi had indeed been prepared to sacrifice herself and leave Fish-Man Island. Since she was the locked target of the Target-Target Fruit, Noah would follow her wherever she went. If she left Fish-Man Island, Noah would follow, sparing the island.
But what Shirahoshi never expected was that before she even got the chance to act, Vander Decken IX would get stabbed in the kidneys by Hody Jones, dying with his eyes wide open in disbelief.
With Vander Decken's death, the power influencing Noah vanished, and the massive ship, having lost its momentum, began plummeting straight down—directly towards Fish-Man Island!
If nothing was done, when Noah crashed, the soap bubble surrounding Fish-Man Island would undoubtedly burst. And once it did, the deep-sea pressure at ten thousand meters would crush the entire island into dust.
The Straw Hat crew looked up at the growing shadow in the sky with solemn expressions. Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji—the three main powerhouses—had already prepared corals that could generate soap bubbles. They were ready to charge out of Fish-Man Island and stop Noah's descent.
But Hody Jones, now utterly insane, wasn't about to let the Straw Hats interfere.
He poured every last ES steroid he had left into his mouth, gulping them down like water. His hair turned completely white, and his muscles bulged explosively. He then charged at the three main fighters of the Straw Hat crew with astonishing speed!
In the depths of the sea, it was different. On Fish-Man Island, Hody wasn't Luffy's match, but underwater? That was a whole different story.
In the entire world, only the Merfolk could swim faster than Fish-Men.
Even if the Straw Hat crew's top three fighters were powerful, their limited movement space underwater put them at a massive disadvantage. Not to mention, Luffy was a Devil Fruit user—how could he possibly fight Hody in the depths of the ocean?
With the insane amounts of ES steroids he consumed, Hody's strength had surged to its peak. Seeing the Straw Hats leaving Fish-Man Island's safety, Hody finally felt like he had the upper hand.
He dove at them in a flash, unleashing a "Fish-Man Karate: Water Shot," aiming to shatter the soap bubbles protecting Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji from the crushing depths.
But before Hody could even launch his attack, his instincts screamed danger. He turned his head, but it was too late—a black fist filled his vision, rapidly growing larger.
BOOM!
The punch smashed into Hody's face, instantly caving it in and shattering all his teeth. His entire body flew backwards at a terrifying speed.
How fast did he fly? Let's put it this way: the seawater that had been displaced by his body couldn't even fill the gap before he had already shot miles away.
Hody Jones flew for dozens of nautical miles, crashing into the massive soap bubble surrounding Fish-Man Island. His body smashed through a luxurious building in Ryugu Palace, creating a massive trench that stretched for dozens of miles before finally coming to a stop.
"I just wanted to take a little vacation, but you, you bastard, keep dragging me into your messes," said the man who had sent Hody flying—none other than Wood, who had been watching the show the entire time.
At that moment, Wood finally understood why Madame Shyarly's prophecy had predicted the Straw Hat crew would be the cause of Fish-Man Island's destruction.
Fish-Man Island was under his protection; not even Big Mom's pirates would dare mess with it over something as trivial as sweets.
It turned out that the prophecy pointed to this very event. If Wood hadn't stepped in to send Hody flying, even with the Straw Hat crew's strength, they wouldn't have been able to stop Noah from falling due to Hody's constant interference.
"Wood? What are you doing here?"
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji looked genuinely surprised to see him. But there was no time for small talk—Noah was still falling, and the three turned to rush after it.
"Leave it to me," Wood said calmly. "Noah is called the 'Ship of Promise.' It holds special meaning for Fish-Man Island.
You three were probably planning to destroy it, weren't you?"
Hearing Wood's words, the trio looked slightly embarrassed. That had indeed been their plan.
Given Noah's massive size, what other option did they have besides smashing it to pieces?
"You three just sit tight. I'll handle the rest."
As soon as Wood finished speaking, his figure vanished, reappearing near a cluster of deep-sea reefs. He placed his hand on the rocks, inscribing blue magic circles on each one.
When Wood returned to Luffy and the others, Noah was mere moments away from smashing through the outer soap bubble of Fish-Man Island.
The three Straw Hats watched as Noah drew closer, their hands gripping weapons and fists tightening.
They didn't understand why Wood, after saying he'd take care of it, hadn't done anything yet. But they knew if something didn't happen soon, there would be no time left to stop Noah's descent.
Meanwhile, the residents of Fish-Man Island had gathered anxiously in the central plaza. Noah's massive shadow engulfed the island, and anyone with half a brain knew just how dangerous the situation was.
"Luffy, we can't wait any longer! I don't know what Wood is doing, but if we don't act now, even if we destroy that ship, the falling debris will break Fish-Man Island's soap bubble!"
Zoro had already drawn his three swords, holding Wado Ichimonji in his mouth. Sanji, too, was preparing his Devil Jambe.
Just as Luffy prepared to bite his thumb and activate Gear Third, Wood reappeared before them, speaking confidently: "Relax. I said I'd handle it, and I meant it. Noah isn't going to fall.
Royal Ice Composite Magic—Snowflake Hexagon!"
Wood extended his hand, grasping the air as if clutching something. With that motion, the magical circles he'd set up earlier activated.
Brilliant blue light erupted like a star in the depths of the sea, shooting out six massive ice pillars from different directions.
The pillars stretched out with incredible speed, freezing the surrounding water as they expanded, finally converging in the sky to form an enormous hexagonal snowflake.
That colossal snowflake, shimmering with icy brilliance, held up Noah like a massive plate, halting its descent.
The three main fighters of the Straw Hat crew stared, stunned. They had always known Wood was strong, but after two years of training, they thought maybe they'd caught up. Yet, seeing this display of power, it became clear the gap hadn't shrunk at all.
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji recalled what their mentors had told them during training:
Rayleigh had once called Wood one of the most dangerous men on the sea, someone even he couldn't fully understand.
Jinbei had repeatedly urged Luffy never to provoke Wood, warning that doing so could mean turning the entire world against them.
Hawkeye Mihawk even admitted that during the Summit War, Wood had beaten him in swordsmanship, despite not specializing in it.
Ivankov had warned Sanji as well—Wood was far stronger and more dangerous than anyone realized.
Two years of training had made them stronger, but to Wood, it was like watching infants grow into toddlers.
Wood cracked his neck and looked back at the Straw Hats. "Well? Are we done with the surprises, or are you guys ready to actually fight?"
Seeing the sheer scale of Wood's power, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji couldn't hide the fighting spirit blazing in their eyes. It wasn't just admiration; it was genuine battle lust.
Wood raised an eyebrow. "You three... you're not seriously thinking of fighting me now, are you?"
Luffy grinned, stretching his arms. "Wood, these two years, we got a lot stronger. Rayleigh and Jinbei both told me that I'm probably still not your match... but I wanna see just how big that gap really is."
It had been two long years since Luffy last saw Wood. Among everyone Luffy knew, Wood was undoubtedly one of the strongest. Fighting Hody Jones didn't even give him a proper sense of his growth; the guy was just too weak. But now, with Wood right in front of him, Luffy wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to test his strength.
Wood snorted, shaking his head. "You've both learned Armament Haki and Observation Haki. I can tell. You're stronger than you were two years ago... but don't get cocky, brats.
Your understanding of Haki is still at its most basic level. Sure, we're friendly enough, but did you forget? I'm not some training dummy, and I'm definitely not here to pad your experience points."
Wood's tone grew colder. "If you want to fight me, I won't stop you. But don't think for a second that I'm gonna hold back like I did in Alabasta. That was just a free lesson because you were greenhorns back then.
But now? You've been through the ringer, made it through the New World... if you really want to challenge me, you'd better be ready to die."
As soon as Wood's voice dropped, a powerful, invisible force flooded the area. His Conqueror's Haki poured out in waves, crashing towards Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji like a tidal wave.
It wasn't just ordinary Conqueror's Haki; it was thick, dark, almost ink-like in its intensity, carrying with it the bloodlust of countless battles.
Luffy gritted his teeth, refusing to back down. He stepped forward, releasing his own Conqueror's Haki in response. Rayleigh had taught him that the best way to withstand another's Conqueror's Haki was to counter it with your own.
But reality was cruel. Although both of them possessed Conqueror's Haki, the difference in mastery was painfully obvious.
Wood's Haki was like a stormy sea, crashing down with overwhelming pressure. Luffy's aura, though strong and filled with fighting spirit, was like a candle flame flickering in a hurricane.
The moment the two auras clashed, Wood's ink-black Conqueror's Haki shattered Luffy's red aura as if it were made of glass, dispersing it instantly.
The impact was so strong that Luffy staggered back a few steps, his eyes wide with shock. Zoro and Sanji tensed up as well; the sheer pressure made it hard for them to even stay standing.
"Tch... and here I thought you guys got stronger," Wood scoffed, shaking his head. "I wasn't lying when I said you've improved. But there's a big difference between 'improved' and 'strong enough.'"
Luffy steadied himself, wiping the corner of his mouth with his wrist. He didn't seem discouraged—in fact, his grin only grew wider. "This... this is perfect! I knew you were strong, but this is exactly what I wanted!"
Zoro unsheathed his swords, the blades gleaming dangerously. "You know, it's been two years since I fought someone that really pushed me. I can't wait to cut you down, Wood."
Sanji cracked his neck, his leg igniting with blue flames. "You better not think I'm just here to watch. I owe you one for Alabasta... I'm paying you back today."
Wood couldn't help but laugh. It wasn't a mocking laugh—it was the laugh of someone who genuinely appreciated their spirit. "You idiots… you're serious, huh?"
He stretched his arms, cracking his knuckles audibly. "Fine. You wanna see the gap? I'll show you. But if you three end up in a coma, don't expect me to drag your asses back to Fish-Man Island."
Without another word, Wood's aura flared up again, but this time, it was accompanied by arcs of crackling electricity. The very ground beneath him seemed to hum and vibrate under the sheer force of his Haki.
The ocean currents around them began to ripple and twist, almost as if the water itself feared the power Wood was about to unleash.
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji took their stances, their faces filled with determination. For them, this wasn't just a fight—it was the ultimate test of their two years of brutal training.
Wood's grin remained, full of confidence and just a hint of madness. "Alright then... don't disappoint me."
The currents roared, the seabed trembled, and at that moment, the underwater depths of Fish-Man Island became the stage for a clash that would be spoken of for ages.