Ryugu Castle
- Region
- Grand Line (Fish-Man Island)
- First seen
- Ch. 612
Ryugu Kingdom (royal seat) · first appeared: Ch. 612
Profile
The Palace of King Neptune (caption Ch. 612 p. 12) — the coral-and-shell royal castle of the Ryugu Kingdom on Fish-Man Island, ruled by King Neptune. Its walls are described as Impel-Down-thick, and a heavily-sealed inner tower keeps the mermaid princess Shirahoshi sequestered (pp. 16-18). Run day-to-day by Neptune’s two chief ministers, the Minister of the Left (catfish merman) and Minister of the Right (seahorse merman).
Etymology
VIZ also renders it “Ryugu Palace.” Canonical note path is Ryugu Castle , with Ryugu Palace as an alias. (Ryugu / Ryūgū-jō = the dragon-god’s undersea palace of Japanese myth — etymology flag routed to the etymology specialist.)
Key chapters
- Ch. 612 — first appearance: King Neptune returns here aboard Megalo with the crew and is scolded by his ministers (p. 14); Luffy wanders into the sealed inner tower and discovers the giant Shirahoshi (pp. 16-20).
- Ch. 613 — the sealed inner tower is named Shell Tower (Shirahoshi’s ten-year refuge from Vander Decken IX); Luffy reaches it via Megalo and befriends the princess (pp. 4-12). At the castle’s front entrance (location splashes p. 4 “Ryugu Castle, The Kingdom of Ryugu” and p. 13 “Front entrance, Ryugu Castle”), Ryugu soldiers corner Usopp, Nami, Brook and Camie to arrest the Straw Hats preemptively; Zoro (held in the castle dungeons) breaks himself out to join them.
- Ch. 617 — besieged by the New Fish-Man Pirates; Hody Jones holds King Neptune hostage and breaches the walls to flood the palace with the sea. Zoro stays to face Hody one-on-one (“This kingdom is mine.”); Usopp’s Green Star: Rafflesia routs the rank-and-file fish-men.
- Ch. 621 — (flashback, “Fish-Man Island, 16 years ago” — VIZ renders the palace “Ryugu Palace” here): home of King King Neptune, Queen Otohime and their children (the infant Shirahoshi + three sons). Otohime is noted as the first royal to leave the palace and mingle with common folk (p. 7); the court discusses her safety and Whitebeard’s protection of the island (pp. 10-11). Fisher Tiger says he has “business at Ryugu Palace” on returning (p. 14).
- Ch. 629 — called an “impregnable fortress”; the New Fish-Man Pirates evacuate it for Conchcorde Plaza, leaving only a few guards. Its indoor pool holds the caged prisoners Zoro, Usopp and Brook (p. 18-19); Pappag is left behind.
Cross-links
- Ryugu Kingdom — the kingdom it is the seat of
- King Neptune — its king
- Shirahoshi — sequestered in the inner tower
- Minister of the Left, Minister of the Right — the court ministers
- Shell Tower — the sealed tower wing (named Ch. 613) that holds Shirahoshi