Chapter 129: Otohime!

Asa wore a calm smile. He knew Princess Otohime could hear the thoughts of others, but... so what?

He had never cared about such things. Secrets meant nothing to him unless they were turned into actions—otherwise, they were just useless noise.

Besides, as long as he didn't actively think about something, there would be nothing to hear. If she could still read his mind without him thinking anything, well—he'd probably find that hilarious.

Still, no matter how open-minded someone is, nobody appreciates having their thoughts read for no reason.

...

"Otohime… if you dare continue listening to my thoughts, I'll kill Neptune on the spot." Asa thought viciously, though his face remained calm and unchanged.

He entertained the idea of using thunder to sink the entire Fishman Island. In his mind's eye, the island was obliterated, fishmen screaming, limbs torn, and blood surging through the waters.

"Ah!!" Princess Otohime recoiled in horror, taking half a step back. Her face turned pale, and she no longer dared look Asa in the eyes.

Her heart was kind—cheerful and full of hope. She always believed everything could improve. To hear such catastrophic thoughts in an instant and not collapse from fear spoke to her strong will.

"Is this how Fishman Island welcomes guests?" Asa mocked, flashing a dangerous smirk toward Neptune. His eyes gleamed with menace.

Tiger and Jinbe immediately stepped in front of Neptune, assuming fighting stances with Fishman Karate.

All the nearby palace guards gathered, pointing their weapons at Asa with hostility.

Asa grinned even wider. He licked the corner of his lips and asked, "Oh? Planning to fight? That's fine... let me see if there are any real warriors on Fishman Island!"

"Wait! There's been a misunderstanding!" Neptune quickly stepped forward to de-escalate.

A battle here would destroy Ryugu Palace—and they weren't ready for a war with Asa.

"Hippolyte D. Asa, Fishman Island is not a place where you can run wild!" Fisher Tiger said sternly. "You're a Devil Fruit user in the deep sea. It's unwise to make enemies of the fishmen here."

His temper wasn't great either. Just the fact he hadn't already lashed out at humans was impressive. As an adventurer, the thought of retreat never crossed his mind.

"Hahahahaha!!" Asa suddenly threw his head back and laughed arrogantly. "What I love most is doing whatever I want, you idiot!"

"Wisdom? Reason? Who needs that junk? If someone has to tiptoe around even in battle, then what's the point of living?"

"If Fishman Island doesn't give me a satisfactory answer today... then you'll all die here."

He was smiling—but his words were laced with chilling intent.

"Asa, do you really think you can match the fishmen in the deep sea?" Jinbe stepped forward, furious. In this moment, he didn't resemble the peace-seeking man he would become in the future.

Zzzzzzttt…!

Lightning began crackling wildly around Asa.

"You want to find out the hard way? Then step up!" he challenged, thunder building up around him.

"No—this is all my fault!" Princess Otohime spread her arms and quickly stepped between Asa and Jinbe.

"This all happened because of me. I took it upon myself to peer into your heart—to see if you harbored ill will toward Fishman Island!"

"Otohime, stand back!" Neptune barked. As king, he couldn't retreat at a time like this. "I was the one who invited Mr. Asa. It was my idea for Otohime to read his thoughts. Just tell me what kind of compensation you want!"

He had no choice but to yield. Asa might be a Devil Fruit user, but there was no guarantee they could contain him without risking the lives of Fishman Island's citizens.

"Compensation... huh? That's not impossible," Asa replied, the electric current fading from around him as he raised his hand and pointed at Otohime.

"She's the one I want compensation from."

"What?!"

"That's impossible!"

Neptune's anger exploded, and the surrounding guards roared, their spears rising once again.

"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm not interested in her. She's too ugly," Asa said bluntly.

Her future daughter, Princess Shirahoshi, was decent-looking. But Otohime's round face didn't appeal to him at all.

"I just want to ask her one question. Answer truthfully, and I'll leave without causing further trouble for Fishman Island."

Upon hearing this, Otohime immediately brightened. "As long as we don't fight, I'll answer anything," she said without hesitation. She didn't take Asa's insult to heart at all.

"Your ability to hear the inner voices of others—this power you were born with—how far does it reach? Have you had it since childhood?" Asa asked.

He wanted to explore the scope of Observation Haki. Otohime was born with this ability, but did the ability improve with use? How deep could it go?

Asa was deeply curious about how diverse and advanced Observation Haki could become.

He himself was already near the peak in terms of coverage—but he couldn't predict the future or hear the voices of others.

When he had visited Skypiea, Enel's "Heart Cultivation Manual" had pointed to several possible directions. At the time, Asa thought he'd stumbled upon a hidden treasure and believed he could reach the pinnacle by following it.

But he was too naïve. The book only outlined vague theories. There was no actual core guidance, something Asa only realized after gaining more firsthand experience.

As for predicting the future—he was confident he could achieve it. He had natural talent in that area. Whims and intuitive hunches came easily to him. With enough deep cultivation, he'd reach that level sooner or later.

Another advanced form of Observation Haki was Image Embodiment.

As the name suggested, within the detection range of Haki, one could sense a target's presence, airflow, and attacks—but also mentally visualize the entire area with clarity, like seeing it with one's own eyes.

True surveillance.

Currently, Asa could only perceive a white silhouette, breath patterns, wind direction, and general positioning to make decisions. If he reached a truly profound level, it wouldn't just be sensing—it would be perfect real-time perception.

And nothing would escape him within that range.

But hearing the voices of others—that remained an unknown. He only had a vague idea of how it might work.

...Could it be possible to control brain waves through further development of electromagnetic abilities? And by doing so, hear thoughts directly?

(End Of Chapter)

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