The Death of the Hero! A Shocking Truth of Tiger!

Guided by an Eternal Pose, the Sun Pirates sail toward the village where Koala was born. The crew gives the freed girl a fresh start, new clothing and a haircut, though her old reflexes linger as she keeps doing chores unprompted and waiting for commands. Aladine remarks that wounds like hers do not heal overnight. Aboard the ship she discovers that fish-men bear no resemblance to the Celestial Dragons, and Jinbe finds himself reconsidering his bitterness toward humanity, recalling Otohime's words and beginning to suspect she had a point. Arlong remains the lone holdout who cannot warm to her.

Fisher Tiger escorts Koala the final stretch to her mother, and the tearful reunion moves her to thank him and promise she will always remember him. He answers only with a smile and turns back toward the ship.

On his return route Tiger is cut off by Marine forces under Rear Admiral Strawberry, who reveals that the townsfolk themselves tipped off the navy. The islanders accepted the assault as the price of keeping Koala from being dragged back into slavery. Hearing the gunfire, Jinbe and Arlong race to help; Arlong seizes one of the navy vessels and they reach their captain, but the rescue comes too late to spare him from grievous bullet wounds. Koala is kept ignorant of the truth, her mother saying nothing.

Aboard the captured warship Aladine prepares a transfusion, since fish-man and human blood are compatible, yet Tiger flatly refuses it. He will not take blood from a race that despises his kind, calling it tainted and declaring he would sooner die than rely on humans.

In his final moments Tiger lays bare his hidden history as an escaped slave and explains why he liberated so many others. He admits Otohime was right, that only an unprejudiced generation like Koala can carry peace forward, and he begs his crew to hide both the betrayal and their hatred for the sake of that future. Confessing that a demon in his heart will never let him love a human, he passes away as Jinbe and Aladine plead with him to live, and the Sun Pirates grieve their captain. The anime expands the villagers' fear of Tiger and the farewell with Koala, shows less blood than the manga, depicts Jinbe striking Strawberry directly, and adds a flashback of Tiger fighting for control of the Fish-Man District.