"How about this, Senior Chinjao," Moria said, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "When I have completely mastered every single one of your shadow's abilities and combat techniques, I will return your shadow to you. How does that sound?"
Chinjao shook his head emphatically. "Absolutely not. Setting aside the fact that you might never be able to master certain advanced techniques, even if you did, how would we know? You could simply lie. You could deliberately stall your progress or claim you haven't 'completely' mastered it yet, allowing you to keep my shadow forever."
"Then what timeframe do you suggest?" Moria asked directly, not bothering to argue the point.
'Zero seconds,' Chinjao thought, though he obviously couldn't say that out loud. After a moment of deliberation, he countered, "I will give you one year. With the strength of my shadow, one year is more than enough time for you to hunt down and steal the shadows of other powerhouses to replace it."
"One year is far too short. I need at least ten years," Moria retorted immediately. There was no way he was giving up a legendary shadow that quickly.
Hearing "ten years," Chinjao's bushy beard practically stood on end with rage. "Ten years?! I might not even be alive in ten years! No! Absolutely impossible!"
"..."
The two veterans haggled back and forth, relentlessly negotiating terms. Finally, they reached a compromise: a three-year contract. In exchange, the Happo Navy would provide Moria with certain resources and compensations over that period. After exactly three years, Moria was contractually obligated to release Chinjao's shadow.
"Leader Chinjao, I'm going to sever your shadow now," Moria said, drawing his massive scissors. "You will temporarily lose consciousness, but don't worry. When you wake up, your body will be perfectly fine. The only thing you absolutely must avoid is direct sunlight."
Having achieved his goal, Moria was in high spirits. However, he deliberately refrained from his usual "Kishishishishi" laughter, not wanting to antagonize Chinjao and risk the old man backing out of the deal at the last second.
"Do it," Chinjao ordered, closing his eyes. "But let me make this perfectly clear. If you break this agreement three years from now, the entire Happo Navy will hunt you down."
Chinjao desperately consoled himself, repeating over and over in his mind that all this humiliation was worth it to get his drill back. But it still felt incredibly suffocating. 'This is all Garp's fault!' Chinjao cursed internally. 'If that bastard hadn't flattened my head in the first place, my fight with Bardock never would have ended like this!'
Meanwhile, halfway across the world, on the first half of the Grand Line.
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp was currently dozing off on the couch in the Fleet Admiral's office. Suddenly, a violent chill ran down his spine. He snapped awake, violently sneezing and startling Sengoku, who was diligently sorting through a mountain of paperwork.
"GARP! Get the hell out of my office and go back to your own desk!" Sengoku roared, his voice echoing down the hallways.
The Marine guards stationed outside didn't even flinch. They simply stared straight ahead, pretending they hadn't heard a thing.
"Bwahahaha! I suddenly got the feeling someone was cursing my name," Garp laughed heartily, completely immune to Sengoku's rage. "Was it you, Sengoku?"
Ignoring the fact that he was supposed to be working, Garp casually opened Sengoku's private desk drawer, pulled out a hidden bag of premium rice crackers, ripped it open, and began loudly crunching on them.
With every single crunch, the vein throbbing on Sengoku's forehead bulged a little wider.
When Garp finally started choking on the dry crackers and casually demanded that Sengoku brew him some tea, the Fleet Admiral finally snapped.
In one seamless, practiced motion, Sengoku grabbed Garp by the collar of his suit, physically threw the hulking Vice Admiral out the door, slammed the door shut, and sat back down at his desk to resume his paperwork. It was a beautiful, perfectly executed sequence that truly spoke to decades of friendship and deep-seated annoyance.
Back in the West Blue, Moria successfully severed Chinjao's shadow and absorbed it into his own body. As expected, Chinjao immediately fell into a deep, comatose sleep.
"So, Moria," Bardock finally spoke up, leaning against the wall. "Have you actually tested out the Shadow Training plan yet? How were the results?"
Since Bardock had fulfilled his end of the bargain—even if Moria only got the shadow for three years—Moria had developed a baseline level of trust in the boy.
"It's exactly as you predicted," Moria admitted, his expression turning serious. "The Shadow Training plan is highly feasible, but it comes with the exact fatal flaw you mentioned. If a novice inherits the techniques of a master, the physical recoil is devastating. The host either needs an absurdly durable, monstrous physique to begin with, or they require a top-tier medical team on standby at all times to constantly treat the injuries."
"Oh? Did you not go recruit Dr. Hogback?" Bardock asked, slightly surprised.
"I found him, but Hogback still has some reservations," Moria explained. "I agreed to give him some time to think it over. I'm confident he'll join my crew eventually."
Unlike his future self, who actively kidnapped people and stole corpses, this version of Moria still possessed the pride of a true pirate captain. He preferred his crewmates to join him willingly.
"Well, since you've officially started the Shadow Training, we should get moving immediately," Bardock suggested. "My crew and I are going to be training at the Jewel Ice Sheet for a while. You should stay here with us. Having a sparring partner for live combat will accelerate your mastery of Chinjao's techniques far faster than training alone."
Truthfully, Bardock had originally been hoping Moria would betray him right then and there so he would have a justifiable excuse to beat the Warlord up and steal his colossal Thriller Bark ship. But since Moria was being so surprisingly cooperative, Bardock had to resign himself to the tragic reality that the island-ship simply wasn't destined to be his.
"Kishishishishi! That sounds perfect. I wasn't entirely satisfied with how our last fight ended anyway. I'll definitely pay you back this time," Moria grinned, genuinely tempted. He knew solo training was highly inefficient. "I'll go grab my newest subordinate and bring him here."
With that, Moria quickly departed into the night.
Bardock shook his head in amusement. 'He couldn't just wait until morning?'
Looking down at the sleeping Chinjao, Bardock decided to fulfill his end of the medical bargain. He pulled out a Blood Dandelion and pressed it against the old pirate. In seconds, Chinjao's shattered arms and legs were completely healed. Hopefully, waking up fully restored would soften the blow of losing his shadow.
Moria returned at the crack of dawn. Trailing behind him was a man Bardock immediately recognized: Absalom, one of Moria's future 'Three Mysterious Ones'. At this point in time, Absalom was still completely human—he hadn't undergone any of Dr. Hogback's bizarre animal modifications yet—but he had already consumed the Clear-Clear Fruit.
Absalom was currently wrapped in thick bandages, and the strong scent of medicinal ointment wafted off him even from a distance. It was obvious that Moria had been using him as a guinea pig to test the physical recoil of the Shadow Training.
Bardock generously offered Absalom a Blood Dandelion. The moment Absalom's severe internal injuries vanished, Moria finally understood what Bardock meant by a 'miracle drug'. It was no wonder the boy had been so supremely confident that his crew was the missing link to perfecting the training method.
For the next day, Bardock completely immersed himself in training. He frequently used the Flying Nimbus to generate artificial gravity and resistance during his workouts, constantly pushing his physical limits. His stamina reserves were growing deeper, allowing him to maintain peak output for longer periods.
The following day, Don Chinjao finally woke up.
"Leader Chinjao. Sorry for the inconvenience," Bardock greeted him, walking into the room.
"Hmph. My skills were inferior to yours. There's nothing more to say," Chinjao grunted, sitting up.
He flexed his arms and legs, deeply surprised to find them not just healed, but feeling stronger and more limber than they had in years. It was as if his entire body had been rejuvenated. Eagerly, he reached up and felt the top of his head. The sharp, proud point of his drill was still there. It felt incredible.
Unfortunately, the absence of his shadow cast a heavy gloom over his joy.
'Now that I have my drill back... can I defeat Moria and take my shadow back by force?' Chinjao wondered internally. After a moment of consideration, he decided against it. Without his shadow, he couldn't fight in the sunlight, which was a massive tactical disadvantage. He would have to bide his time.
Bardock didn't mind Chinjao's grumpy tone. "I'm here to collect the first and third favors."
Chinjao's expression darkened. "Fine. I will teach your crew the Hasshoken. But the knowledge is strictly limited to your organization; you are absolutely forbidden from teaching it to outsiders. What is your third condition?"
"The third condition is very simple," Bardock smiled. "I want you to allow Sai to join our crew. We've already spoken, and he's willing, but he explicitly said he needs your permission first."
Bardock had planned this third condition from the very beginning, but he had deliberately waited to voice it until he had a chance to speak with Sai privately.
"WHAT?!" Chinjao roared, his drill instantly turning bright red with fury. If he had hair, it would have literally caught fire. "Sai is the designated heir to the Happo Navy! He is the future 13th Leader! And you want to abduct him?!"
"Leader Chinjao, we aren't 'abducting' him," Bardock clarified calmly. "He can still be the next Leader of the Happo Navy. He would simply also be a member of our adventuring crew. The two identities don't conflict, do they?"
"You—!"
"Grandpa. Captain Bardock. Please, let me speak for myself."
Sai stepped into the room, his expression resolute.
"Alright," Bardock nodded, stepping back toward the door. "I'll give you two some privacy. It's all up to you, Sai."
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