Night at Ohara's port.
Sharn didn't wake Wolf, Moly or Moria. He moored the ship with rope to the quay and dropped anchors from the four captured warships that drove their hull. It was just past midnight, yet the tavern in the port burned with the usual life.
After eating the Devour-Devour Fruit, Sharn's metabolism ran hot — he was hungry again. Kaido, impatient, dragged him straight to the tavern. All kinds of people showed up there: merchants, pirates, local scholars, late travelers. Sharn sat at the bar — fastest place to order and eat. Kaido planted himself nearby; food wasn't his obsession, but he'd eat for the joy of it.
"Boss — give me meat and everything delicious!" Captain Sharn raised his fork and knife, eyes gleaming. "And the best West Blue liquor." Kaido slapped the counter with a giant hand; the innkeeper knew instantly trouble had come in: these two were pirates, and not the sort you wanted to offend. He hurried the kitchen.
Someone swallowed nervously and stared at their backs. "Hey — wasn't that Kaido? His bounty is huge. What's a pirate at that level doing in Ohara?" A West-Blue pirate took out a wanted poster and compared. Finding Sharn's face on a sheet made him sweat. "That guy's bounty is over a hundred million — supposedly he did something awful, so bad it won't be printed. One hundred million for pure evil."
"Pure evil?" A white-haired woman at the next table had been eavesdropping. A long hunting rifle lay on the table before her; dressed in a coat with a noble nose, she looked more like a hunter than an academic. She wasn't fussed about Sharn or Kaido; she was waiting for Professor Clover's departure. This voyage would take them to decode a script — the very break that years later would change history.
The tavern settled. No one wanted to talk too loudly about monsters from the New World; certain names were taboo. Someone joked about killing Celestial Dragons and was immediately slammed flat by an angry patron — no one spoke such curses lightly. The white-haired woman sipped coffee and nibbed at a late snack. For her, history mattered more than bounties.
Kaido drank himself into tears, a terrible drunk. "Sharn — we should head to the New World! Find a place the Marines can't reach and build power. Wano, they say, is the one!" he slurred. "You be general, I'll be the overlord!" His eyes watched food; Sharn stuffed roasted bread and meat between slices, pressing together into sandwiches and swallowing them down. After the Devour-Devour Fruit, food seemed to convert directly into energy — the fruit's effect on digestion was uncanny. Sharn's mouth and guts had changed; he could chew through and repurpose material — even metal — and his body rearranged what he swallowed.
"He should've been the one for Ling Ling," Sharn mused, thinking of how convenient Devour would be for someone always hungry. He scarfed down dozens of steaks at once. "Not bad." Kaido snored again after three dozen servings and two days' fruit stores as dessert. Sharn hoisted Kaido onto his shoulder and tossed a handful of high-purity gold coins onto the counter. The innkeeper cradled them like a relic — bountied pirates don't normally pay.
Outside, Sharn breathed the sea air. Professor Olivia (a young archaeologist), waiting for Professor Clover's ship, saw a fleet of iron warships approach the port — ten or more heavy vessels. Sharn eyed a new sailboat to swap for their old hull; they had the money. "This alloy's low grade — let me test it." Looking at Kaido's half-useful alloy club, Sharn opened his mouth and ate it — along with a lamppost and a plank from a Marine warship. He spit out a forged alloy kanabō, much stronger than the one before, and handed it to Kaido.
That stunt drew the Marines' attention.
"Sons of b—! We didn't catch Whitebeard; we caught you!" Garp indignant, rolling up his sleeves. He hadn't expected to be chasing Whitebeard tonight; instead he'd been tailing Sharn and Kaido. "Send these rotten pups to Impel Down!" Sengoku looked down from his golden giant form, sleepless and stern. Both officers had been up all night; Sharn was casually finishing a midnight snack.
"Been a while, Garp! Sengoku!" Sharn greeted, unfazed. He knew how fast warships traveled — but after a good meal, what was the hurry? They'd come to Ohara for a new ship — it's quicker to take a good hull than to build one.
The tavern crowd poured out as warship lights brightened. When people saw the Vice Admiral Sengoku and the Marine hero Garp on deck, they sobered. "No way — it's Garp and Sengoku from the papers!" someone shouted. The harbor dissolved into chaos.
Professor Olivia blinked at Sharn's crew and wondered if all pirates were so… large. She towered at nearly 1.9 m thanks to good genes; seeing Sharn's crew made her feel very normal.
"Quick! We must go!" Professor Clover cried, "We confirmed earlier texts — we must sail now to decode the rest of the ancient records." Yet the harbor had lost order; fighting broke out. Powder barrels ignited. Garp ordered Bogart and three other vice-admirals to protect the civilians. Sengoku's giant Buddha-like form glowed golden.
"You brats! Should've died at God Valley!" Sengoku's Buddha-punch thundered toward Sharn. "Kaido!" Sharn countered by compressing air with Paw-Paw into an impact wave, using Kaido's massive body as a shield. Kaido snapped awake, murderous in the face — "I found a new ship, Kaido!" Sharn didn't care about Kaido's squeals. His eyes were on Professor Clover's vessel.
A golden shockwave met Sharn's compressed-air blast; the night lit up from the clash — sea and air trembling under the two titans.
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