Zaraki entered the Oni Slayer's command room and closed the metal door behind him.
A faint scent of black tea lingered in the air.
Navigation charts covered the central table, with the Calm Belt route marked in red and Kalles Island circled near the far edge of the map.
He had barely sat down when the encrypted command Den Den Mushi inside his coat began ringing.
Purupurupuru...
Zaraki placed it on the table and answered.
Noise exploded from the receiver.
Plates clattered, meat sizzled over charcoal, and hundreds of voices shouted over one another. The sound resembled a pirate banquet more than anything permitted inside Marine Headquarters.
Zaraki held the snail farther from his ear.
"Old man, did you empty every kitchen in Marineford?"
The Den Den Mushi's face transformed into Garp's broad grin.
"Bwahahaha! Three nearby branches surrendered their freezers after I asked politely!"
"You punched the doors open, didn't you?"
"They were taking too long."
Another voice thundered from behind him.
"Garp! Stop describing theft from Marine supply depots as polite negotiation!"
The snail's expression shifted into Sengoku's round glasses and furious brows.
Zaraki leaned back in his chair.
"So the feast started."
"This is not a Warlord inauguration," Sengoku said immediately. "The charter remains provisional until every condition is signed."
Garp's face returned.
"It's close enough!"
Behind him, an enormous burst of laughter shook the receiver.
Dorry's distinctive voice boomed through the plaza.
"Gegyagyagyagya! I told you the coin landed on the wrong side!"
Brogy answered from somewhere nearby.
"Gababababa! A warrior accepts defeat, even when the battlefield is a coin!"
"You flipped it!"
"You dropped it!"
Oimo and Kashii joined the argument so loudly that the Den Den Mushi's eyes bulged from the volume.
Zaraki could picture the scene without difficulty.
Dorry, Brogy, Oimo, and Kashii had reunited at Marineford after the judicial administration formally ended the two guards' service at Enies Lobby.
The single Warlord charter listed Dorry as provisional representative of the Giant Warrior Pirates, while Brogy retained equal command as co-captain.
Neither arrangement diminished the authority they held over one another, which was probably why the paperwork had already required twelve revisions.
Garp lowered his voice, though the result remained louder than most people shouting.
"I called because these giants are sitting on a century of combat experience, and Sengoku keeps pretending the Marines cannot learn anything from them until the ink dries."
"That is not what I said," Sengoku replied.
"It is what your face said."
"My face said you are not allowed to promise Marine resources without authorization."
Garp ignored him.
"Dorry and Brogy agreed to spend part of their provisional service training the Marine giant squads. Large-target coordination, Observation Haki against fast opponents, selective Armament use, and the principles behind synchronizing attacks like Hakoku Sovereignty."
Zaraki tapped one finger against the table.
"That might make the giant units less slow."
Sengoku's voice came through again.
"It may also prevent them from treating size as a substitute for technique. Their performance at Sabaody demonstrated control that our older records did not reflect."
Garp bit into something hard enough for the crack to pass through the receiver.
"I told you barbecue would convince them."
Dorry's voice boomed from the background.
"WE AGREED BEFORE THE BARBECUE!"
Brogy followed.
"THE BARBECUE IMPROVED THE AGREEMENT!"
Garp laughed until the Den Den Mushi shook.
Zaraki's mouth curved slightly.
No one at Marineford mentioned the Eight Gates.
They did not know its name, its structure, or that Zaraki had tested even the First Gate.
The giants had never learned it, and Law knew only that Zaraki had briefly forced his body beyond its normal limit under medical supervision.
That knowledge remained private.
Sengoku eventually forced his way back into the conversation.
"Enough. Zaraki, the Kalles mission has not changed. You will identify the candidate, determine whether he is willing and suitable, and return with a complete report. Gion is there to observe the process and prevent you from deciding every problem with Nozarashi."
From the other side of the room, Gion called out without looking away from the navigation chart.
"That final objective may be impossible."
Zaraki glanced toward her.
"You're supposed to be helping."
"I am helping Sengoku maintain realistic expectations."
Sengoku sighed through the receiver.
"Tsuru informed me that the route may be compromised."
"That is one way to describe an island filled with hidden CP0 agents and seastone launchers."
The banquet noise fell quieter.
Garp stopped chewing.
"You confirmed it?"
"The relay from Monkey's control network caught part of the Elders' conversation. Dapus has three Aegis operatives waiting, and Nusjuro may be there as well."
Sengoku's expression changed on the Den Den Mushi.
"Turn the ship around."
"No."
"That was not a suggestion."
"Then it was a bad order."
Gion closed her eyes.
Garp started laughing again.
Sengoku's face reddened.
"You fought Kaido four days ago!"
"He left."
"He left after Garp, Borsalino, two giants, and half the Sabaody defense fleet joined the battlefield!"
"And now I know exactly where the next group is waiting."
"That does not make the trap safe!"
Zaraki rested one hand near Nozarashi's hilt.
"It makes it easier to choose where to cut."
Silence followed.
Garp was the first to answer.
"Bwahahaha! At least take Gion seriously when she tells you not to destroy the island."
"I always take her seriously."
Gion turned from the chart.
"No, you don't."
"I remember most of what you say."
"That is not the same thing."
Sengoku pressed two fingers against his temple.
"Maintain contact every six hours. Do not enter Kalles harbor until Marine Intelligence sends the updated map. If Saint Nusjuro appears, you withdraw."
Zaraki smiled.
"That last part depends on him."
The Fleet Admiral's eye twitched.
Before he could begin shouting again, Dorry and Brogy started another argument over which Marine giant squad would receive the first training session.
The banquet swallowed the receiver in noise.
Zaraki ended the call.
The command room became quiet again.
Outside, the Oni Slayer's paddle wheels continued driving the warship through the Calm Belt toward Kalles Island.
Gion looked at the circled destination on the chart.
"You realize the Government may have leaked the Kalles rumor intentionally. Hancock may not be the only pirate changing course."
"Good."
"That was not reassurance."
Zaraki rose from the chair and looked through the forward window at the gray horizon.
Somewhere ahead waited a hostile candidate, three Aegis operatives, seastone weapons, and perhaps one of the Five Elders.
The trap remained intact.
The only difference was that Zaraki had heard it closing.