"How did it go?" Uristin already knew the outcome just from Jora's expression, but he asked anyway.
"It went south. He cursed at me, said a load of weird stuff, told me I was exactly like the captain." Jora grumbled.
"Really? Maybe the captain did something to tick him off."
Uristin had no clue what was going on, so he could only piece things together from the fragments. But his guess wasn't far off. Whatever Shirakawa had done, it hadn't exactly angered the man, but it had left him deeply conflicted.
"Forget it, I don't need it. It's not the only fine blade out there."
Jora spoke with a sulk, then went off to find Shirakawa. He wanted to ask when they were leaving. He couldn't stand to be in this place a single moment longer.
"Three days at least. Did something happen?" Shirakawa asked, puzzled. To Jora, it shouldn't matter where he was; all he had to do right now was train like a madman.
"Captain, you don't understand. That Kulokam guy..." Jora launched into a vivid retelling of the whole encounter.
"We were talking, getting along just fine, but the moment I asked for the sword, his face just flipped. He said I was just like you. Captain, please tell me you didn't ask for the same sword."
"I guess I did ask for a sword, but not that one. A different one."
Shirakawa rubbed his nose. Jora's failure to get the sword might really be his own fault.
"But don't worry. I will get you that blade. Even if I can't get that exact one, I'll find you a Great Grade sword of the same tier."
"Really? Thank you, Captain."
"Alright, off you go. I've still got things to handle here. We'll leave once I'm done."
"Okay." With Shirakawa's promise, Jora strutted off, already picturing the two famed swords he'd soon own. He'd probably laugh himself awake in his sleep.
Though he had no idea his captain possessed a Supreme Grade sword. When he found out, who knew what he'd think.
After Jora left, Shirakawa glanced in Kulokam's direction. He figured the man had already made up his mind but was too proud to admit it.
A personal invitation from Shirakawa was needed.
Shirakawa didn't think inviting him would cost him any dignity. It wasn't just about the blade. Kulokam was a rare talent, not only in swordsmithing but also in sheer combat ability.
If Kulokam joined the Silver Pirates now, he'd instantly become the second-in-command. Aside from Shirakawa, no one else on the ship could keep him in check.
He mulled it over, then walked over to Kulokam and sat down beside him, right where Jora had been sitting.
"Well? Figured it out yet? You coming with me?"
"Did your crewman tell you?"
"Tell me what?" A bunch of question marks popped into Shirakawa's head. This guy was talking in riddles.
"Oh, he didn't say anything. Good." Kulokam breathed a sigh of relief. He'd realized it would have been rash to relay a message through someone else. He should have told Shirakawa himself.
"Don't you want to see the outside world? Don't you want to witness the majesty of the strongest man, Whitebeard, like I told you about last night? Don't you want to see the other Supreme Grade sword in his hands?"
Shirakawa fired off three questions in a row, determined to stoke the fire of curiosity in Kulokam's heart.
At the name Whitebeard, a gleam lit up Kulokam's eyes. Shirakawa had given him and his son a brief introduction to Whitebeard the day before.
The title of the world's strongest man carried tremendous weight. After Shirakawa described a few battle scenes, both father and son had been utterly captivated.
"Fine. I agree."
Shirakawa was about to say more, but Kulokam agreed so abruptly that the rest of his words got stuck in his throat.
"You don't want to hear more? You agreed that rashly?" Shirakawa suddenly felt a bit unsatisfied. He had a whole pile of words stored up.
"No need. And my decision wasn't rash. I thought it over all last night. I made up my mind this morning."
"Oh, so that's how it is."
Since Kulokam didn't want to listen anymore, no matter how much it ate at Shirakawa, he couldn't just shove his words down the man's throat. That would hurt his future authority as captain.
"But now that you're willing to sail with me, that makes you a crewman. And crewmates should help each other out, right?"
"Just say it. What do you need?"
"This might sound a little awkward, and I'm a bit embarrassed to ask, but Jora really has his heart set on that sword you forged."
"If he likes it, give it to him. I forge swords for people to use. There's a whole pile of them in my warehouse at home. If you want, you can take them all."
"Really? Then bringing you aboard was definitely the right call."
The ship's weapon reserves would be more than ample now, and every single piece would be top-notch.
"But I have one small condition."
"Name it." Since Kulokam had already joined him, Shirakawa was naturally willing to hear his little request. If it was something easy, Shirakawa would gladly help.
"If you're going to be my captain, then you have to let me test your strength. If you turn out weaker than me, I think I'll take back what I just said."
"Of course."
Shirakawa smiled. He'd been wanting to test Kulokam's abilities himself.
"Looks like we're in for a good show soon." Uristin, whose Observation Haki was especially strong, also had exceptionally sharp hearing. Maybe that was a sniper's perk. He had caught every word of the exchange between Shirakawa and Kulokam.
"What's going on?" Jora asked, confused.
Hadn't the captain gone to get him a sword? Where was this show coming from?
"You'll see in a bit." Uristin smiled mysteriously. He was very much looking forward to the coming spectacle. He wanted to see what kind of sparks would fly when those two clashed.
And he'd never witnessed Shirakawa's true strength. He hoped this would open his eyes.
"Go get Salar too. I've got a feeling this show is something he shouldn't miss."
"Alright."
Jora had no idea what it was, but if Uristin said it would be interesting, it definitely wouldn't be boring.
/-\
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