Barn slowly put on his clothes, picked up the First-Generation Onikiri beside his pillow, and stood up with a smile.
"Dadan, I want some crocodile meat too."
The chrysanthemum-like smile on Dadan's face was still blooming, though it had grown rather stiff. Her lips moved slightly as she muttered.
"Catch it yourself if you want some. You're so strong anyway."
"What did you say?"
Barn was still smiling as he looked at Dadan.
"N-nothing! Lord Barn, we'll get it ready right away!"
"Boss Dadan, why do we have to listen to him?"
One of her underlings had just shouldered a harpoon to go catch a crocodile when he turned back and asked the ashen-faced Dadan.
"Shh!"
Dadan suddenly perked up and pressed a finger to her lips, signaling them to keep their voices down.
"He's a legendary pirate! We can't afford to cross him."
"Then why would someone that powerful come to the East Blue, the weakest sea, and move into our home?"
The underling asked another question, but Dadan's face turned ashen again as she replied dejectedly.
"How should I know? Everything changed after that damn Garp brought that brat Ace here. We don't have a shred of dignity left as mountain bandits..."
"Yeah..."
"Sigh..."
Their three shadows grew longer in the light of the rising sun, yet their dejected figures looked as though they had sunk into twilight...
"Hey! Ace!"
Jig was still chasing him, but Ace ignored him completely, pressing ahead and leaping from branch to branch.
"Damn it! Where did he go?"
A long while later, Jig stood alone atop a large tree, looking around miserably. He had clearly lost him...
The next day...
"Ace! Wait for me!"
The third day...
"Lost him again..."
Then came the seventh day...
"Hey, Sabo, are you here?"
On the