The four eventually returned to Hachinosu, where Rocks greeted them the moment they stepped onto the stone path.
He immediately noticed Borsalino's ability and praised Thor for bringing in someone valuable, almost as if Thor had stumbled upon a hidden treasure that the others failed to notice.
Several members of the crew tried to convince Borsalino to join under them instead, but both Borsalino and Thor rejected every offer without hesitation.
As the days went on, Borsalino realized that Thor had a personality that felt oddly close to his own.
Both of them preferred to relax whenever possible and avoided unnecessary conflict unless boredom pushed them into something more troublesome.
Thor did not demand anything from him either, which confused Borsalino even more, since he expected that joining the Rocks Pirates meant being ordered around from the moment he arrived.
Thor treated him almost like a companion who happened to be nearby, rather than someone who needed to be useful every minute.
One afternoon, while they were both lying on the top of the large dome that had now taken the shape of a skull, Borsalino asked something that had been on his mind for a while.
"What kind of life would we even have if the entire Rocks Pirates were to separate," Borsalino said, his eyes half closed while staring at the drifting clouds above the island.
"We will get our chance to be busy. You already know my dream, and that dream is something I want to make happen no matter how long it takes. All of this is nothing more than a small beginning. So enjoy these moments while they last, because the later parts will not be so peaceful," Thor answered, which made Borsalino even more unsure of what Thor truly meant.
Time passed, and Borsalino stayed on Hachinosu, spending most of his days eating, drinking, napping, and listening to the stories the others shared.
He started to think that being a pirate was not as chaotic as the rumors claimed, and that maybe this was all there was to it.
That belief vanished when Linlin suddenly burst into the common room one evening. Most of the crew had gathered to drink with Rocks, who already had several empty cups near him.
Linlin walked in with a huge bundle of papers, her eyes wide with excitement, before she broke out laughing.
"Mamamamama, I found it," she said, spreading the papers across the large table.
Her contacts had discovered information about a certain temple run by a federation that received large donations from people all over the sea.
Linlin had been looking for this specific place for some time, since temples with this level of wealth were rare.
Rocks laughed loudly after hearing the details and quickly began planning their next attack. Borsalino watched this with growing confusion.
He had assumed the federation was providing aid to several poor nations, so stealing from them felt wrong.
However, he kept quiet until the meeting ended and everyone was told to rest because they would leave in the morning.
As Thor and Borsalino walked back toward their rooms, Borsalino finally asked what had been bothering him the whole time.
"Aren't you working so hard to clean the reputation of the giants? Why would you help in plundering an innocent country," Borsalino asked.
Thor laughed the moment he heard the question.
"You seem to have a completely different understanding of what Linlin explained. You did not notice the parts that mattered. It does not matter.
It is easier to show you tomorrow than to convince you with words," Thor replied, then entered his room. Borsalino returned to his own room still unsure.
Before sleeping, Thor activated his entire Observation Haki, which could now cover the whole island. He searched for what he already expected, and soon enough he heard it.
"Yes, that is right. We will attack the International Philanthropy Federation. Make sure my payment is in cash this time. Converting gold was troublesome," the voice said. Thor recognized it immediately. It was Ochoku, leaking their plans to the Marines.
Thor smiled to himself. He already knew Ochoku would betray them again during the God Valley Incident.
Thor planned to use him for the moment, but once everything was over, he intended to take his head without hesitation. He then turned off his Observation Haki and rested.
The next day, they began their assault on the International Philanthropy Federation. The entire crew worked together to haul the large piles of gold and money stored throughout the temple.
These were donations meant to help poor countries, but the fake priests had been stealing every last piece.
Thor refused to let them get away with it. He covered the entire island with ice and froze the priests where they stood. He shattered them one by one whenever they crossed his path.
Borsalino watched with a sinking feeling and his opinion of pirates dropped even lower, at least until he followed Thor into the vaults.
Inside the vaults, countless logbooks were stacked together. When they opened them, Borsalino read page after page of shocking information.
The federation had been selling children into slavery. They attracted orphans who had nowhere else to go and sold them to buyers with specific preferences.
The donations they received were being used to support these crimes. The more Borsalino read, the more horrified he became.
Thor looked at him and said, "Sometimes appearances are not what they seem."
As they prepared to leave with the others, the lift moved up before Borsalino, Thor, Kaido, Kyo, and Newgate could get on it.
Newgate tried to contact Shiki and Ochoku, but before anyone could respond, a grenade was thrown into their area.
Borsalino, already irritated by what he learned, reacted instantly. He flew upward, caught the grenade, and returned it to the one who threw it.
It exploded close to Shiki, who barely avoided being injured. Borsalino remained unharmed because his elemental form protected him.
Newgate then grabbed the air itself and tilted the entire island, which allowed them to escape the narrow space they were stuck in.
Many of the others complained afterward while Kyo confronted Shiki about his carelessness.
Thor stared at Ochoku, who was grinning to himself, and began thinking of which punishment the traitor deserved before eventually killing him.
Not long after, the Marines arrived, but no priests remained alive. Borsalino sought out the ice sculptures and smashed them apart without hesitation.
The Rocks Pirates handled the Marines the same way they handled every danger that approached them.