However, another problem arose.
"What's wrong?" Seeing frowning, Vice Admiral could not help but ask.
Sengoku let out a long sigh. "At the time, I was too focused on expressing my dissatisfaction with the World Government. I only gave Ash Thalos a bounty of 800 Berries."
He scratched his head in frustration. "Recruiting him as a Shichibukai is a good idea, but a Shichibukai with a bounty of only 800 Berries is nothing but a joke!"
Tsuru frowned as well. "But raising his bounty is complicated. We cannot publicly mention that he killed a Marine Lieutenant Colonel. And from Lieutenant Daan's report, that boy already resents the idea of being a pirate. If we increase his bounty too rashly, it might only deepen his hostility toward the Marines."
Tsuru sighed and glanced at , who was sitting across from her, still stuffing his face with food.
"That Lieutenant Colonel Siz… just as Garp said, he really was trash. Even in death, he leaves us with a mess to clean up."
"Maybe we should send someone to contact this young man?" Tsuru suggested.
Sengoku shook his head. "We do not even know where he ran off to. For now, we can only plan for the long term."
Tsuru sighed again. "Sigh…"
Garp sighed even louder. "Ha…"
Sengoku snapped, "Damn it, Garp, put down my tea!"
After bidding farewell to the villagers of Diwen Village, Pini used wind to drag Dicken behind Ash Thalos, and the three of them quickly flew toward the small island where the Wolf-Guzzling Pirate Group had once hidden.
Although the pirates on the island had already been wiped out by Ash, there was still one thing left behind.
A pirate ship.
Setting sail without a ship was obviously impossible.
However, after chatting halfway through the journey, the three of them came to a horrifying realization.
None of them knew how to sail.
It was not surprising. Ash was a modern man in his previous life, and he had never even touched a real sailboat before.
As for Pini and Dicken, they were hunters in the village. It had always been Sali and Youki who went out to sea to fish or hunt Sea Kings.
Fortunately, there was still a solution.
Along the way, Pini used his Devil Fruit ability to generate wind and push the sails, treating it as practical training.
Ash and Dicken both thought it was a brilliant idea.
The sailboat moved steadily across the sea, its pirate flag long since removed.
Pini sat miserably on the crow's nest, constantly manipulating wind currents to propel the ship forward while refining his control.
Meanwhile, Ash had already crafted a few simple lounge chairs using wood and was now comfortably sunbathing on the deck.
"Ash, what do you think of this mask?" Dicken asked, handing over the object he had been working on the entire trip.
Ash took it and examined it carefully.
It was a bird-shaped mask with spread wings. The bird's head covered the nose perfectly, while the wings extended outward, leaving only space for the eyes on the upper half of the face.
"Wow, Brother Dicken, your craftsmanship is insane," Ash said sincerely.
Dicken laughed. "It's nothing special. As long as you like it."
Then he added, "When we reach the Royal City, I will buy some dyes and finish it properly."
"I can already see the Royal City island," Pini called from above.
Ash grinned behind the uncolored bird mask. "I won't be showing my face from now on, so I'll leave the shopping to you two."
"Fresh fruit wine, fruits and vegetables, changes of clothes, toiletries, and a lot of seasonings, right?" Pini confirmed again after they docked. "Are you sure you do not need anything else?"
"That's enough," Ash replied. "We can always catch fish or Sea Kings for meat. No need to waste Berries."
Dicken nodded. "We are short on cash anyway. The Berries the village chief gave us will not last long."
Pini sighed. "You really don't realize how fast Berries disappear until you start living on your own. If I had known, I would have collected and sold all those pirates' swords. That alone would have been worth a fortune."
Ash laughed. "Relax. I already have a plan. Soon, we won't have to worry about Berries at all. Just trust me."
"Hunting pirates for bounties?" Dicken said. "The sea is huge. Pirates are not exactly easy to run into."
Ash smiled mysteriously. "It's a secret for now. Just go buy what we need."
Then he added, "Hurry back. I want to see Reverse Mountain as soon as possible."
Pini waved his hand. "We are already very close. At most, three days."
Watching their figures disappear into the city, Ash leaned back into his lounge chair.
At first, he had only wanted a few companions to avoid loneliness. But this trip reminded him of something important.
Specialization mattered.
"These guys from Diwen Village are strong, but most of them only know how to fight," Ash muttered to himself. "No wonder Monkey D. Luffy recruits people like crazy. His choices actually make perfect sense."
He began listing roles in his head.
"Fighter or swordsman, navigator, sniper, cook, doctor, archaeologist, shipwright, musician…"
He paused.
"Wait, what exactly does Jinbe do again? Helmsman, right?"
Ash snapped his fingers. "Sali knows how to sail. He can be the helmsman."
"Pini insists he is a long-range fighter and uses a bow. A Mythical Zoan sniper sounds terrifying."
"Youki and the Daly brothers can serve as frontline combatants. Dicken can handle cooking for now."
He frowned slightly. "Still, I need a real professional cook. Food is not something you can compromise on."
"Navigator, cook, doctor, historian, shipwright, musician… I am missing too many roles."
Ash began mentally sorting through locations.
"Cooks can be found in Gourmet Cities. Doctors are easy in Drum Kingdom. Shipwrights are all over Water 7."
Then he tilted his head.
"But honestly, with Devil Fruit abilities, a doctor and a shipwright might not even be necessary."
"And do I really need a historian? In the entire world, isn't the only real one Nico Robin?"
Ash smirked. "Should I go kidnap her?"
Then he shook his head.
"It's 1515. She probably hasn't even entered the Grand Line yet. And getting close to her now would just attract that stalker Aokiji."
"I'll deal with that ice freak after I can beat him."
His thoughts drifted again.
"Robin and Nami are both pretty impressive in their own ways…"
Then his eyes lit up.
"Nami is easy to find. At this time, Arlong should have been ruling Cocoyasi Village for about a year."
Ash's smile turned sharp.
"That's perfect. I descend like a god, crush Arlong, and naturally take the girl along."
"Feelings are best nurtured early, after all."
He chuckled darkly.
"And speaking of cute girls, Perona is still undefeated in that department. Moria should have already regrouped in the West Blue by now."
"Based on the timeline, he must be in the Florian Triangle."
Ash's eyes gleamed with interest.
"Thriller Bark and the black blade Shusui are both worth the trip."
"And compared to random Devil Fruit users, Moria and his subordinates are easy to locate."
Ash was not thinking of Perona only because she was cute.
She was a Devil Fruit user.
And Moria was energy.
Plenty of it.
As for taking her along, Ash had no such illusions.
He planned to kill Moria. Anyone tied to Thriller Bark would never truly follow him.
But Ash did not care.
In this world, only a handful of people mattered to him.
Everyone else was just background.
Four days ago, they were nothing but fictional characters on a screen.
Now?
They were resources.
Just as Ash was lost in thought, Pini and Dicken finally returned with a massive amount of supplies.
"Oi, you little monster," Pini said. "You didn't fall asleep, did you?"
Ash laughed. "Of course not. I was guarding the ship."
"I'll believe that when pigs learn to swim."
"Alright," Ash said, standing up. "Everything is ready."
He turned toward the sea, eyes hidden behind the bird mask.
"Our target is the Grand Line."