When Bardock told Capone Bege that he needed the Capone Family's intelligence network to track down the renowned hero of the West Blue, Gecko Moria, Bege's expression was one of absolute disbelief.
Just that? Just for some trivial errand, you practically wiped out the entire Capone Family headquarters?! If they had just offered him a few million Berries, he would have gladly taken the job! If he had died today over a simple bounty-board request, he would never have been able to close his eyes in the afterlife!
But as the saying goes, a man standing under someone else's eaves must bow his head. What else could Capone Bege do? He gritted his teeth, forced a smile, and agreed to the request.
Having secured Bege's promise and exchanged Den Den Mushi numbers, Bardock summoned the Flying Nimbus, scooped up his crewmates, and rapidly flew away. There was no point in lingering; their continued presence would only make the Capone Family more nervous anyway.
Watching Bardock's group disappear into the clouds, Vito leaned in, his expression solemn. "Godfather, are we genuinely going to help them find Gecko Moria?"
"Of course we are," Bege replied, his face darkening. "Not only are we going to help them, we are going to use every single resource at our disposal to find Gecko Moria as fast as humanly possible."
Bege had already adjusted his mindset. Despite being covered in bandages and still wincing from the pain, his calm, decisive demeanor instantly reassured his shaken subordinates. "Gecko Moria is a monster. Yes, the rumors say he suffered a crushing defeat in the New World, but a wounded beast is still incredibly dangerous. Let those two monsters tear each other's throats out."
Bege narrowed his eyes, chewing on the end of his cigar. "Furthermore, put the word out to our underground contacts. I want to know exactly what kind of ability that kid used to instantly knock out our entire crew. Hmph. This world truly is fascinating. To think a power like that actually exists..."
"Yes, Godfather. I will arrange it immediately." Vito bowed and quickly hurried off to execute the orders.
Left alone with Gotti, Bege stared at the empty sky where Bardock had vanished. Though he didn't say it out loud, today had been an absolute, humiliating disgrace. He had never been beaten down so thoroughly in his entire life, forced to beg for mercy just to avoid getting pummeled to death in his own home.
'Just you wait,' Bege swore internally. 'Once I gather enough intel and formulate a flawless plan, this debt will be repaid in blood.'
Back on the White Dragon, Bardock's crew settled back into their routine.
"Bardock, is it really okay to just leave him like that?" Robin asked, her brow furrowed in concern. "Capone Bege won't let this go easily."
"Don't worry about it," Bardock waved his hand casually. "You're right, Bege absolutely won't let this go. But he's a tactical mastermind who plans every move meticulously. He won't strike unless he is absolutely certain he has a foolproof method to win. As long as our strength continues to outpace his calculations, he will never find an opening."
Having already factored Bege's personality into his equations, Bardock wasn't worried. He turned his attention to Daz Bonez. "Bonez, how does it feel to be in the realm of cutting steel? Because the next step is awakening Haki."
"Boss, I've completely memorized the sensation," Bonez replied, his eyes gleaming with newfound confidence. "Entering the state where I can feel the 'breath of all things' is incredibly easy now. I'm certain I can awaken Haki very soon." The bounty hunter had spent the entire flight back meditating on his new power, and he was currently riding a massive high of adrenaline and motivation.
"Captain! I want to awaken Haki too!" Leo cheered, throwing a tiny punch into the air. As the man destined to become the Commander of the Tontatta Corps, he naturally craved strength, and Haki was the most incredible power he had ever witnessed.
"Hahaha! Alright, alright, we'll get there!" Bardock laughed, rubbing the dwarf's head. "Don't rush it. We're all still young. The future of the seas belongs to us!"
Bardock stood at the bow of the ship, looking out over the endless ocean, eagerly anticipating his clash with one of the legends of the sea.
With the Capone Family's vast intelligence network running at full capacity, Bardock quickly received multiple sightings of Gecko Moria. The Warlord-to-be was currently wandering aimlessly across the West Blue, leaving a trail of bizarre rumors about "zombies" and "walking corpses" in his wake.
Unfortunately, Moria never stayed in one place for long. Bardock chased down several leads, only to arrive days or even hours too late.
Finding a needle in a haystack was difficult, but tracking a single moving target across the vast ocean—even with intelligence support—was a nightmare. This was precisely why the Marines, despite possessing overwhelming military dominance in the Four Blues and Paradise, could never simply wipe out all pirates in one fell swoop. The ocean was simply too vast.
Refusing to return to the Ilusia Kingdom empty-handed, Bardock's crew relentlessly followed the breadcrumbs.
Late one night, under the light of a full moon, the White Dragon sailed smoothly through calm waters.
Suddenly, Bardock squinted, peering into the distance. A ship was slowly emerging from the fog. As it drew closer, the Jolly Roger painted on its sails became clear. It was a pirate ship.
Despite recognizing the flag, Bardock didn't immediately order an attack. The One Piece world was incredibly weird; sometimes people who never did anything villainous still proudly called themselves "pirates" just for the aesthetic of freedom. Still, he called Robin, Perona, and the others up to the deck to remain on standby.
Robin immediately crossed her arms, activating her Flower-Flower Fruit to gather reconnaissance. Perona excitedly summoned a few ghosts, sending them flying over to the approaching ship to scout.
A few moments later, Robin opened her eyes, a strange expression on her face. "Bardock... I think we're finally about to catch up to Moria."
"Oh? Is Moria on that ship right now?!" Bardock perked up, genuinely surprised. That would be insanely lucky.
"No, he's not," Robin clarified patiently. "But every single pirate on that ship is currently unconscious on the deck. More importantly... none of them have shadows. You mentioned that Moria's Devil Fruit allows him to steal shadows. It's highly likely they ran into him recently and had their shadows stolen."
"I see!" Bardock grinned. "Bring us alongside them!"
"You really love saying that line, don't you, Bardock?" Robin sighed, shaking her head in amusement as she adjusted the helm.
Once the ships were parallel, Bardock extended a bridge of Flying Nimbus, and the crew crossed over onto the silent pirate galleon.
Down in the ship's cabin, Daz Bonez grabbed one of the unconscious pirates by the collar and shook him violently. When that didn't work, Bonez simply slapped the man across the face a few times until his eyes finally snapped open.
The moment the pirate woke up, he thrashed wildly, screaming in absolute terror. "NO! DON'T CUT MY SHADOW! I DON'T WANT TO BE A PIRATE ANYMORE! AHHH!"
Smack!
Bonez delivered another heavy slap, finally snapping the pirate out of his panic attack. The man slumped against the wall, trembling uncontrollably.
"I'm going to ask you some questions, and you're going to answer them," Bardock said coldly, stepping forward. "If you answer well, I won't kill you. Did you see Gecko Moria? An incredibly tall guy with horns on his head?"
The pirate nodded frantically, tears streaming down his face.
"Good. When did you run into him, and where?"
"Th-This morning! Near Troia Island!" the pirate sobbed. "We had just finished raiding a town and were heading back out to sea when we ran into that demon! He was terrifying! We couldn't even fight back! He stole all of our shadows! Waaah!" The pirate broke down into a blubbering mess.
"Troia Island is just a few hours ahead of us. We should hurry, Bardock," Robin advised, having memorized the local nautical charts.
"Bardock, the treasure room is completely empty! That onion-headed freak stole all their loot!" Perona complained, having sent her ghosts sweeping through the entire ship.
Hearing that their stolen treasure was gone, the pirate began wailing even louder.
"Alright, we're done here. Let's go!" Bardock turned back toward the bridge. "Bonez, put a hole in their ship."
"WHAT?!" the pirate shrieked, instantly forgetting his tears. "You liar! You promised you wouldn't attack us if I answered your questions!"
"If you choose to set sail under a Jolly Roger, you should always be prepared to feed the fishes," Bardock replied without looking back. "Besides, I kept my promise. I'm not attacking you. Bonez is just going to give your ship a little ventilation."
As Bardock stepped back onto the White Dragon, Daz Bonez casually launched a flying slash through the floorboards, carving a massive hole in the pirate ship's hull. Seawater instantly began violently gushing in.
Screaming in panic, the pirate scrambled past his unconscious crewmates without even attempting to wake them up, running straight for the sole emergency lifeboat.
Bardock shook his head, knowing the man was already a dead man walking. He hadn't brought any food or water onto the lifeboat, and more importantly, people without shadows couldn't be exposed to sunlight. An open lifeboat offered absolutely zero cover. The moment the sun rose in a few hours, the pirate would instantly turn into ash.
"Let's move out," Bardock ordered. "Next stop: Troia Island. Let's hope Moria hasn't left yet."