Half a month later, on Sphinx Island.
After the fishing tournament, Ortoren was shouting at the top of his lungs in the middle of the street, while Gion, looking utterly embarrassed, was holding him from behind, trying to drag him away.
"Rigged! It's absolutely rigged!"
"Those bastards must've messed with my bait! How else could over a hundred contestants catch something while I caught nothing!?"
"They're manipulating the competition! This goes against justice and fairness! I'll kill those damn cheats!!!"
Sparks were practically dancing over Ortoren's body when Gion tugged at him, trying to calm him down.
"Alright, alright, let's not stoop to their level..."
She finally managed to drag him off the street to a quieter spot. Ortoren still looked furious, grumbling, "This island's rotten to the core! If they dare rig a fishing contest, who's to say they won't rebel against the World Government next? Are we really just going to let this go?"
"Tell me," Gion said with a teasing smile, amused by his outburst, "is there even the slightest chance... that you just weren't good enough?"
"Impossible!" Ortoren replied with full confidence. "Go ask around G-5 if you don't believe me! My title as the Fishing King wasn't given for nothing! Out of everyone in G-5, who's better at fishing than me!?"
Gion eyed him for a moment, then said thoughtfully, "Could it be... that the so-called rigging happened in G-5 instead?"
Ortoren froze, staring at her indignantly.
"You think I used my authority to scare everyone into letting me win!? Do you take me for that kind of person?"
"No, no, you've got it all wrong..." Gion said, covering her mouth as she laughed. "I just think everyone in G-5 respects you so much that no one wanted to beat you. That's all."
Ortoren blinked, then rolled his eyes. "Isn't that basically the same thing?"
Their little exchange eased the tension, and Ortoren's anger began to fade.
Still, he looked around the gloomy streets with clear distaste. "This place reeks of corruption. It's suffocating. I've had enough—let's head to our next destination. Didn't you say you wanted to see the beaches on Ramani Island?"
"But our tickets are for tomorrow..." Gion said, amused.
Ortoren pouted, clearly frustrated. "Then pay extra. Get tickets for today. I don't want to stay here another minute."
Gion couldn't help but smile at his stubbornness. She found it endearing and agreed. The two set off toward the harbor, chatting and laughing as they went, hoping to find a ship bound for Ramani Island that day.
But just as they arrived at the port, the thunder of cannon fire echoed in the distance. The harbor quickly erupted into commotion, though it didn't immediately descend into chaos.
Gion and Ortoren exchanged a glance and hurried toward the source of the noise.
The bombardment continued, but it didn't seem to be aimed at the port. The locals of the New World were clearly used to this sort of thing—after a brief stir, they returned to calm. As long as the fighting wasn't directed at them, it was just another show to watch.
Before Ortoren and Gion reached the docks, rumors were already spreading.
"It's the Whitebeard Pirates! They're chasing down Bloodhand Lion Reingal's ship!"
"How did they end up fighting? Did Bloodhand Lion try to raid Sphinx Island?"
Hearing this, Ortoren and Gion exchanged a look of surprise.
Sphinx Island was within the Whitebeard Pirates' territory—it even flew their flag. Maybe the Whitebeard Pirates really were protecting the island after all.
But Bloodhand Lion Reingal was another story. He was practically a ghost of the seas now. Once a top officer under Golden Lion Shiki, he had eaten the Zoan-type Neko Neko no Mi, Ancient Model: Cave Lion. He had already awakened his powers back when Ortoren was still new to the seas, earning Shiki's deep trust and a bounty of 300 million Belly.
After Shiki's fall, his forces had completely disbanded—some were wiped out in the ensuing power struggle, while others defected and joined different major crews.
The Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates had absorbed quite a few former members of Shiki's Flying Pirates. However, Bloodhand Lion Reingal seemed to remain fiercely loyal to Shiki. To this day, he was the only Great Pirate in the New World who still called himself a member of the Flying Pirates.
Rumor had it that Kaidou once tried to recruit Reingal personally—but was flatly rejected.
By all logic, Reingal shouldn't have had any reason to provoke the Whitebeard Pirates. So what was going on?
While these thoughts crossed their minds, Ortoren and Gion soon reached the docks. They looked out toward the open sea and immediately spotted what was happening.
"That's the flagship of the Whitebeard Pirates' Third Division—Diamond Jozu's ship!"
Gion, sharp as ever when it came to intelligence work, recognized the attacking vessel at a glance.
"The Moby Dick isn't here?" Ortoren arched an eyebrow as he came to a quick conclusion.
Whitebeard himself wasn't present!
Without Whitebeard around, the situation became much easier to handle. Lightning surged across Ortoren's body, his hair crackling as sparks danced through the air.
In the next instant, an invisible wave of Observation Haki spread outward, merging with his lightning powers and swiftly expanding until it covered both pirate ships locked in pursuit.
This was Mind Thread—an Observation Haki technique Ortoren had developed using the Goro Goro no Mi. It allowed him to eavesdrop over a wide range, even picking up fragments of inner thoughts.
"If that Namur guy were here, I'd just slice Reingal's ship clean in half with one swing!"
"Yeah, but what if that Devil Fruit goes down with the ship? I'm a Devil Fruit user—you can't stay underwater that long either..."
Ortoren caught parts of their conversation, but just as he tried to listen further, a sudden force shattered his Observation Haki. In that final moment, he sensed who it was!
"Someone's spying on us!"
Kozuki Oden frowned, turning toward the port. "There's a strong presence over there!"
Like Roger, Kozuki Oden possessed an extraordinary gift—he could hear the Voice of All Things. So the instant Ortoren's Observation Haki reached him, he noticed.
At the port, Ortoren opened his eyes, surprise flashing across his face.
"Not only is Jozu from the Third Division there, but Kozuki Oden from the Second Division too... And it looks like they're chasing after a Devil Fruit. Seems Reingal's got quite a valuable one on him," Ortoren said.
Gion rested a hand on the Konpira at her waist and smiled.
"Since we're already here, how about we play pirates for a while?"
"What do you mean 'play pirates'? As Marines, we stand for justice! Crushing pirates' looting schemes and picking up some spoils along the way—sounds fair and reasonable to me!" Ortoren laughed heartily.
Before they could make a move, however, a sudden explosion tore through Bloodhand Lion Reingal's ship—not from Jozu's assault, but from inside the vessel itself.
Through the thick smoke, a figure shot upward, clutching a Devil Fruit. Standing atop the mast, he let out a wild, triumphant laugh.
"Ahahahaha! You foolish pirates! This power—belongs to me now!"
Moments later, another figure burst out of the smoke in pursuit. It was Bloodhand Lion Reingal himself, his furious gaze locked on the man above.
"Aramaki! You betrayed us!?" he bellowed.
"Betrayal?" Aramaki sneered. "Don't kid yourselves, you stupid pirates. I was never one of you. I only played along long enough to get this Devil Fruit's power."
Back at the port, Ortoren's eyes gleamed as he watched. He had wondered what kind of Devil Fruit the Whitebeard Pirates were after—but even if he couldn't yet identify the fruit, he certainly recognized the man.
Aramaki—the very same man who, alongside Issho, would one day be recruited through the World Military Draft and rise to the rank of Admiral.
If things hadn't strayed too far from the original course, then the fruit in his hand was most likely the legendary Logia-type Mori Mori no Mi.
...
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