Daichi stood calmly, smiling at Captain Hardor across the projection.
His face had healed enough that smiling didn't hurt anymore—and besides, he had all the time in the world to wait.
For the first time, Captain Hardor found himself unable to read a child's intentions—but he had no choice. He couldn't just ignore this.
If he did, what had all his sacrifices meant?
He had to negotiate.
"What do you want?" Hardor asked, voice tight. "Whatever it is, I'll give it to you—just give me back my son!"
His thoughts added coldly: Even if I gave you all the treasure, so what? This planet's already becoming uninhabitable.
Hearing exactly what he'd wanted, Daichi eased the blade a little and grinned. "Didn't expect you to actually care about your son. Funny, I heard you didn't give a damn about him. Hey, Flock—what do you think about that? Speak up."
He pulled his hand away from Flock's mouth.
The boy instinctively turned around, ready to demand an explanation—but Daichi's low voice came from behind: "Didn't you say your father didn't care? You heard what he just said. You were wrong. Say it now. It's the perfect chance, you idiot."
Only then did Flock realize—Daichi was helping him.
He turned to face the projection. "Dad… do you really still care about me and Sarah? You've locked yourself away in the captain's chamber for months. You never looked at us! This—this isn't the father we wanted! You never even tried to understand us!"
Captain Hardor looked visibly shaken. But his moment of vulnerability was quickly drowned by fury.
"What would you know, boy?! Do you have any idea how much I sacrificed when I promised your mother I'd take care of everything? And now you side with an outsider in front of me?! You can't spare a single ounce of sympathy for your father?!"
Flock, flustered and overwhelmed, suddenly wrenched free from Daichi's grip.
Daichi cursed inwardly. Damn it! I should've used Might Strength before the speech—this brat's too impulsive!
The boy kept arguing with his father, but Daichi knew it was too late—the negotiation had failed.
Because the moment Flock broke free, Daichi knew Hardor would trigger the Maelstrom Generator.
And then, they'd all be going to the bottom of the sea.
Sure enough, before Daichi could restrain him again, the whirlpool had begun to form beneath their boat.
He couldn't fight that kind of force. He didn't have Ocean or Water sigils. So he just watched helplessly as the ship began to sink.
Before it all went under, he released the Sleep spells on Gian and Suneo. If he didn't, they might drown unconscious—and that would be on him.
Then he spotted Shizuka, frozen in shock at the chaos, getting grabbed by one of the thin pirates.
He knew Sarah was beyond saving in that moment—but he could still stop Shizuka from being taken again.
Without hesitation, Daichi dove into the sea.
Gian and Suneo had just woken up, ready to confront him—only to see him leap overboard.
They hesitated. Was he running away from responsibility?
They had no time to think. The waves swallowed them whole.
Beneath the surface, Daichi activated Might Strength and Wind Step sigils, cutting through the water like a torpedo.
He shot toward the pirate vessel. Sure enough, Sarah had already fallen from above.
He caught her mid-plunge.
Then he heard Captain Hardor's voice: "Bring that girl—Shizuka—back to the ship!"
Two pirates responded, but before they could act, Daichi burst out of the water with a massive splash.
Before either man could react, he kicked both square in the head—knocking them out cold.
No Sleep spell this time. He didn't care if they died.
After what they'd done… mercy was no longer part of the plan.
He grabbed Shizuka, who hadn't even registered what had happened yet, flashed a dazzling smile at Hardor—and dove back into the water with both girls.
Captain Hardor slammed his fists against the keyboard in frustration and immediately ordered a full-scale attack.
Daichi surged through the water with the two girls, surfacing only briefly to let them breathe.
Soon, he spotted the others—floating on a makeshift raft.
They cheered as he brought Shizuka and Sarah back.
Sarah threw herself into her brother's arms, while Shizuka ran into Nobita's. Gian and Suneo exchanged looks and silently mouthed: You're so dead.
But Nobita, entirely overwhelmed by Shizuka's embrace, just whispered dreamily, "If this is how I go, I die without regrets…"
Dekisugi smiled quietly. Seeing everyone safe and together again was enough.
Daichi, however, had a different mood.
He let them bask in the joy for a moment—then marched over to Flock and socked him in the head.
"You little brat! Do you know how much trouble you just caused?!"
Flock clutched his head. "Ow! What did I do? You're the one who told me to speak!"
"Oh, so now it's my fault?! If you hadn't broken free, your dad wouldn't have had the chance to trigger the vortex! We're stuck out here now, all because of you! I was trying to negotiate to save the planet, genius!"
Everyone froze.
"…Save the planet?" they echoed.
Daichi sighed. "Fine, let me spell it out. I lip-read Hardor's projection. He said something like, 'The future is destroyed. I have to extract Earth's energy to preserve humanity's final spark.'"
"In the future, Earth's energy is under strict control. That's why he came back to this era."
"Now, think carefully—what exactly are we floating over?"
Dekisugi and Doraemon's faces paled.
They checked the map.
Then slumped.
Gian and Suneo were confused. "What is it? Why are you guys so freaked out?"
Dekisugi, drenched in cold sweat, explained, "This is the central Atlantic Ocean. And according to legend, there's a massive active volcano beneath us, with a crater four kilometers wide. The planet's geothermal energy surges up from here as lava."
"If Hardor's really here, then that legend is true. If he drains this energy, it will obliterate Earth's ecosystem!"
Daichi looked skyward. "Take a look up. We're already running out of time."
Everyone glanced at the sky—dark clouds, thick and swirling, had replaced the sunlight.
The temperature was dropping.
"What's happening?!" some panicked.
Doraemon answered grimly, "The extraction is cooling the planet. The clouds above us formed due to temperature drop. And this… is just the beginning."
"If we don't return that energy to the volcano, the temperature will keep falling. Rain will cease. Clouds will block sunlight. Then comes mass plant extinction."
"We'll all die."
A stunned silence followed.
Until Dekisugi broke it.
"We can't just wait for the end. We have to stop John Hardor! If we don't—this planet is doomed!"
Doraemon stepped forward and pulled out a gadget he'd hoped never to use—the Flying Fish Skimmers.
He handed one to each of them. "Our mission: stop John Hardor from destroying the world. Let's go!"
Everyone saluted.
"Aye aye, captain!"
They hit the thrusters. Like arrows loosed from a bow, they soared toward Treasure Island.
The mist ahead thickened—but no one hesitated.
Gian roared with excitement. "This is what it means to be a man!"
Flock, never missing a chance to jab, called out, "Man? You sure it's not fear? Sounds like you're just psyching yourself up!"
They bickered at the back while Daichi, riding ahead, looked wistfully at the captain's hat they'd left behind on the escape raft.
Shame. He might've needed it later.
Nobita, Doraemon, and Dekisugi kept their focus. In their hearts, the same prayer echoed: We'll win. We have to win.
Daichi sensed their shared determination through their soul waves.
He silently vowed the same.
Then, suddenly—his perception picked up a cannon shell.
Headed straight for Doraemon.
"Doraemon—left!"
He dodged just in time.
A woman's voice echoed from the fog.
"Small world, isn't it? I'm not letting you through!"
Daichi instantly recognized her.
One of the pirate bastards from the ship.
He rose into the air, channeling the Sky sigil. The mist around him spiraled into a vortex.
Wreathed in snow, wind, and lightning, Daichi hovered like a god.
"Well, well," he said coldly. "Small world indeed."
He raised his staff, eyes locked on the pirates below.