Most of the crew had fallen asleep, with a few stationed on deck and at the guard post for night duty.
Whether in the unknown sea or the waters around the six continents, the crew always kept watch at night to handle any emergencies.
But before they even realized it, they had sailed right into a trap that had been set long ago...
In a room on the boat, Larry, who had been asleep just moments ago, suddenly opened his eyes, a flash of surprise lighting them up.
A new breeding line had just popped into his mind, and the progress was incredibly fast.
He wasn't sure which Pokemon it belonged to, but one thing was clear: danger was near.
Instantly, Larry was on his feet, fully dressed, his brow furrowed as he quickly scanned his surroundings.
The situation wasn't looking good.
"Captain, what are you doing?" Matthew, with his watermelon-shaped head, scratched his head in confusion, not understanding why Larry had suddenly appeared on the splint, his expression unusually serious.
Matthew was also on duty that night.
Since there were enough crew members, they worked in two shifts, day and night.
"Something's happened," Larry said calmly.
He stretched out his fingers to make a flicking gesture, pointing his hand upwards and lightly flicking.
Suddenly, a small orb made of his aura shot upward and struck the bell on the security platform.
The bell, usually silent, suddenly rang out in a rapid, continuous clanging, dinging and ringing so loudly it startled everyone aboard.
The sound jolted countless sleeping crew members awake; danger was near.
Without hesitation, people rushed to the plywood platform as hurried footsteps echoed around.
Because this mission was so risky, most crew members slept in their regular clothes, ready to respond immediately to any threat.
Though some officers on duty looked confused, they quickly grew alert.
Their eyes, however, seemed dull and cloudy, as if a fog had settled over them; unbeknownst to them, they were already being affected.
"What kind of danger are we facing this time?" Beyond spotted Larry right away and hurried over to ask.
Larry nodded.
"Do you see the black mist around us?" he said. "Even though it's dark, you can clearly see the black fog with Nen."
Hearing this, everyone started using their Nen instinctively.
What they saw shocked them: under the cover of night, a thick black fog surrounded the ship, and within it, strange, looming shapes moved ominously.
"Normally, we should have detected this black mist long ago." Ging's face grew serious, his aura flaring as he spoke. "It seems this fog has some kind of special effect that's been hiding it from our sensors."
Suddenly, the crew burst into focused thought, their Nen flaring brightly across the ship, lighting up the night as they prepared for the unknown threat lurking in the shadows.
The strong aura coursing through their bodies made everyone feel more confident, ready to face whatever crisis came next.
"There's no way to use en to detect it, so we can't tell how many things are inside," Beyond said, taking a deep breath.
His thought aura continued to expand, spreading out like a black mist.
But when it touched the mist, his en seemed to hit an invisible barrier, cutting it off from the outside world.
After testing several times, he still couldn't get any information.
Suddenly, Matthew struck out toward an empty spot behind him.
His fist was wrapped in intense thought aura, sending out bursts of wind.
"Bang!"
His punch hit a wooden splint, leaving a dent surrounded by cracks.
"Matthew! What are you doing?!" Ginta, the fisherman, shouted angrily, confusion clear in his voice.
As Matthew's friend, he couldn't understand why Matthew was acting this way.
"What do you mean? There was an enemy here just a moment ago! I was just a bit slow to attack, but it ran off," Matthew replied, dull and stiff, his expression unnatural, as if someone else was controlling him.
Everyone could tell something was wrong.
There was clearly nothing there!
"Is he being controlled? But by what?" Miluk asked seriously, eyeing Matthew, who still looked out of it.
"No, he's not controlled. He's hallucinating," Larry said, shaking his head.
Suddenly, a pair of scarlet eyes appeared behind him, and dark waves of thought aura quietly spread out like a tide, washing over everyone on the boat.
No one else reacted, except Matthew and a few night watch members, who trembled as wisps of black gas escaped their bodies.
After a moment, their eyes cleared again.
"No matter what's going on, let's try to clear this black fog first," Larry said quietly, reaching out to Meowth beside him.
"Hold onto me, Meow!"
Meowth patted his chest confidently, then pulled out a strange object, a huge leaf taller than a person, covered in countless intricate patterns.
At the same time, the object emitted a glowing green light that immediately made it clear this was no ordinary item.
It was called the Big Wind Leaf, and all you had to do was wave it vigorously to create a powerful gust of wind.
This tool was actually a modified version of Meowth's aura device.
While its original function remained intact, Meowth had removed some of its restrictions to enhance its capabilities.
After several forceful waves, strong winds suddenly appeared out of nowhere, starting right from the
leaf and blowing forward like invisible giant hands.
These gusts thoroughly disrupted the thick black mist, sweeping it away as if it were nothing more than a pile of trash.
With the fog cleared, everyone could clearly see what lay beyond, and their faces quickly shifted to expressions of shock, especially unsettling in the darkness of night.
Within the ink-like sea water, shadowy figures became visible.
Their lower bodies were obscured beneath the water, but their upper halves were exposed and easily recognizable.
"Are those… mermaids?" Bushidora asked nervously, swallowing hard and sounding uncertain.
These creatures, so-called mermaids, looked quite strange.
Their hair was as thick as hemp ropes, colored a deep sea blue, with faint cold glimmers at the tips.
Their upper bodies were covered in dense green scales that shimmered with a metallic sheen under the faint moonlight.
But the most striking feature was their faces, they had three holes!
Two small black holes that barely resembled eye sockets, and a larger black hole for a mouth, surrounded by a full "en" of sharp teeth.
Aside from these three openings, their entire faces were covered in the same green scales, giving them an incredibly eerie appearance.