The three of them exchanged glances with Patri Vic. They could tell that this man was not to be trifled with.
"As long as you don't reveal anything about us, we won't cause you any trouble," Sengoku said, his tone much gentler.
Patri Vic smiled faintly. "Don't assume everyone's interested in your business."
"To be safe, we'll still leave one person behind."
"Suit yourselves. But don't get in my way. Otherwise, none of you will leave this island," Patri Vic reminded them.
Then he returned to his place behind the bar. He wasn't a waiter, but the owner, so serving drinks wasn't his job.
He'd only helped out because they were short-staffed.
As for Sengoku and the others, they decided to leave Garp behind.
The tavern was busy with people coming and going. Hachinosu Island had no shortage of pirates, so business was good.
As a hot-blooded man, Garp had spent his time in the first half of the Grand Line either fighting or on his way to a fight.
But now he had to sit in this stuffy, noisy tavern, keeping an eye on Patri Vic.
It was unbearable. How dreary could things get?
The two of them sat there all afternoon, right through to nightfall.
Garp was getting restless. Sitting here with nothing to do was torture for him.
"How much is your bounty?" Garp asked with interest.
"I don't have one."
Patri Vic had once been a waiter and had only recently gained the system. Since he hadn't gone out to sea, he naturally had no bounty.
"Are you friends with Edward Newgate?" Garp pressed on.
As evening fell, the crowd began to thin, and the tavern quieted down enough for him to hear the conversation at a nearby table.
He could hear them talking about Patri Vic, saying he was friends with Whitebeard, a famous pirate on Hachinosu Island.
"What's wrong?" Patri Vic asked, looking up in confusion.
"You must be pretty strong, right?" Garp asked with a grin.
On their way to Hachinosu Island, they'd learned a little about the pirates there.
Whitebeard was a well-known pirate on the island, so they knew how strong he was. After all, his bounty was as high as 400 million Berries.
And as Whitebeard's friend, Patri Vic might not be an ordinary man, even without a bounty.
Besides, he'd said earlier that although he was a tavern owner, killing him instantly wouldn't be easy.
So now Garp was curious about Patri Vic's strength.
"What kind of strength could a tavern owner like me have?" Patri Vic replied calmly, his legs crossed as he read the newspaper.
"Want to fight?" Garp asked.
He was incredibly bored sitting there waiting.
"Fight?"
Garp nodded.
Patri Vic was slightly taken aback. He hadn't expected Garp to suggest that out of the blue. After a few seconds' hesitation, he replied calmly,
"Sure, why not?"
To improve Hashirama Senju's character completion, he needed to advance his Nintaijutsu progress, and fighting was the best way to do that.
Now he had a chance to improve his Nintaijutsu, and he could also see how strong Garp was at this point. All in all, it was a good opportunity.
"Then let's get started." Garp grinned and flexed his muscles.
"Let's fight outside." Patri Vic closed the newspaper and walked out, with Garp following behind.
They headed to the ground outside the tavern, where the earth was riddled with cracks left over from his earlier fight with Whitebeard.
"Come on, let's see what kind of strength Edward Newgate's friend has." Garp grinned, his arm coated in Armament Haki.
"Armament Haki?" Patri Vic was briefly surprised, but soon understood. Garp was young, but he'd surely already mastered Haki.
But so what if Garp had Haki? Patri Vic wasn't afraid of a fight.
Besides, this was just a spar, not a fight to the death.
"Bang!"
Patri Vic had trained in Nintaijutsu, so his Body Technique was no pushover. He drove his leg into the ground, leaving a small crater, then darted forward and attacked Garp.
"Bang!"
Garp swung his fist, coated in Armament Haki, and slammed it toward Patri Vic's fist.
Their fists collided, unleashing a powerful gust of air that swept outward like ripples.
"What strength!"
Patri Vic immediately felt as if his arm were tearing apart. It was the result of Garp's tremendous power.
But that was no reason to back down. Fighting powerful opponents was the fastest way to grow stronger.
"Boom!"
Patri Vic unleashed the power of Nintaijutsu. Purple steam enveloped his body, and the immense pressure bore down on Garp.
As they fought, Patri Vic began to study the power of Armament Haki. He was already close to mastering it.
But he was still a step away.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Their fists clashed again and again, and Patri Vic felt himself drawing closer and closer to mastering Armament Haki.
Night fell, and the moon hung high, casting down its pure, silvery light.
They'd been fighting for about an hour, and Patri Vic was already getting tired.
Garp was much stronger than him, making it hard to keep fighting.
Garp, on the other hand, hadn't used his full strength, so he was still quite relaxed.
"Still just a little short." Patri Vic looked at his hands and sighed. He still hadn't quite touched the threshold of Armament Haki.
Just as they were about to continue fighting, a familiar voice rang out nearby.
"That's enough!" Sengoku shouted at Garp from a short distance away.
"What are you doing here?" Garp asked, slightly surprised.
"Why were you fighting him?" Tsuru asked, looking at Patri Vic in confusion.
"We were just sparring," Garp replied, scratching his head.
"It's time to leave," Sengoku said, patting Garp on the shoulder.
They'd gathered enough information, so there was no need to stay any longer.
After all, Patri Vic was here, and he knew their identities. He was a ticking time bomb.
Sengoku turned and walked over to Patri Vic, then leaned in and said quietly, "Remember, the Marines were never here."
"You want me to keep quiet? Aren't you going to give me something in return?" Patri Vic replied calmly.
He might as well squeeze a little money out of them before they left.
"Do any of you have money?" Sengoku pondered for a moment, then turned and called out to Garp and the others in resignation.
"I've got a little." Garp took some Berries from his pocket.
Tsuru took out some Berries as well, and Sengoku rummaged around and found a few more. He handed them to Patri Vic, saying, "I hope you'll keep this to yourself."
"Of course," Patri Vic replied with a smile.
Whatever the Marines had come here for today,
it didn't matter. Their objective was bound to fail anyway.
He was a transmigrator, and his arrival in this world might cause a butterfly effect.
But for now, this butterfly had little influence in the Pirate World—maybe none at all.
Even if the Marines and pirates ended up fighting, the Rocks Pirates would still be fine.
After all, this butterfly didn't have the strength to influence the conflict between the pirates and the Marines.
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