"Hmm?"
Compared to the unperturbed Chinjao, the others on the Happo Navy's warship were clearly much more nervous.
Especially Sai, who had an impatient temper and even directly raised his weapon.
"Everyone, stand down, you foolish boys."
Seeing his juniors acting as if facing a great enemy, Chinjao shook his head and let out a long sigh.
'Ah, this temperament is far worse compared to that kid Sasuke.'
How could he feel at ease passing the leadership of the Happo Navy to Sai?
For who knows how many times, Chinjao thought again—
If only Sasuke were his own child.
Of course, while thinking these random thoughts, Chinjao didn't reveal them in his words.
"A golden bird... can speak human language. Should be that unreliable little girl Sasuke mentioned, right?"
Unlike Sai and the others, Chinjao had genuinely watched the entire Summit War, so recognizing Karin in this form wasn't strange.
"But she seems smaller than in the broadcast."
He stroked his beard, recalling carefully.
Although Karin's current transformed size could be called a 'bird of prey', it was still much smaller compared to the giant bird that could contend with the Five Elders during the Summit War.
"Sasuke? What bad things has that arrogant guy been saying about me behind my back?"
Hearing Sasuke's name from the other, Karin let go of much of her hostility and wariness.
'It seemed like this guy was an acquaintance of Sasuke's.'
So she first signaled to Naomi that it was safe, then shrank in size and landed on the deck in front of Chinjao.
This ability to freely change size made Sai and the others stare dumbfounded. They crowded around as if seeing some rare creature.
The consequence, naturally, was being blown into rolling gourds all over the deck by a sudden strong gust of wind.
"Oh? This is truly a miraculous ability."
Chinjao didn't answer whether Sasuke had spoken ill of Karin behind her back. Instead, he looked at Karin before him with a serious expression.
He had also heard of some Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit users who, besides transforming into animals, could also master abilities only found in legends.
'That kid Sasuke was like that, and this girl too.'
'That guy Naruto... really trained quite a few remarkable juniors.'
"But since you're Sasuke's friend, you're also a friend of the Happo Navy."
"You foolish boys, prepare for a feast!"
Just as Chinjao gave the order and Sai and the others were about to shout, Karin interrupted.
"Friends or not, let's set that aside for now... Old man, could you explain their situation?"
Karin didn't seem very interested in the so-called feast… instead, she looked towards the cabin.
"Answer carefully, okay? This will determine whether we are enemies or friends."
She wasn't intimidated by the guy before her at all.
Seeing Karin look towards the cabin, Sai and the others' expressions changed slightly.
Only Chinjao remained composed, sitting in place, looking at Karin.
"Wahahaha... You dare to say that, little girl."
Suddenly, he stroked his beard and laughed.
"Some questions shouldn't be asked."
"Aren't you afraid I'll fight you right here?"
Neither of them showed any intention of backing down, staring into each other's eyes.
The silence didn't last long. Chinjao seemed to read something from Karin's eyes and suddenly laughed out loud.
"Hah... Brother Gancho, no need to hide. Come out."
Hearing his voice, King Gancho of the Tontatta Tribe, escorted by soldiers like Leo, came out from the cabin's cracks.
"Brother Chinjao—"
He didn't quite understand. Although Chinjao had said to avoid exposing them in front of outsiders, why let them come out now?
The Tontatta Tribe didn't understand, but the Tontatta trusted their friends.
"Don't worry, this little girl means you no harm. Am I right?"
As he spoke, he looked at Karin.
After Gancho appeared, Karin's gaze softened a bit, especially after seeing the interaction between Gancho and Chinjao. The slightly tense atmosphere finally dissipated completely.
"It seems you're not those who want to capture the Tontatta Tribe."
Hearing this, Chinjao raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? Listening to you... little girl, have you seen other Tontatta somewhere?"
Chinjao's intuition was sharp.
Gancho seemed to understand now and quickly ran up to Karin.
It was hard to tell, but this white-bearded, trembling Tontatta could run so fast that even Leo couldn't catch up.
"Miss... Big Bird, have you really seen those children?"
"Are they alright!?"
Saying this, the emotionally rich King even cried directly, catching Karin somewhat off guard.
"Alright, alright, don't cry... you're getting snot on me."
"They're all fine, and don't call me 'Big Bird'… why are all you Tontatta like this..."
After all, the Tontatta Tribe easily trusted others, and there might be ill-intentioned people targeting them, so whether it was Karin or Chinjao, being cautious in this regard was understandable.
Now that the misunderstanding was cleared up, things became easier.
The large cargo ship and the Happo Navy's warship anchored side by side, and a long gangplank was extended from the opposite deck.
At Karin's call, the little people rescued from Punk Hazard all popped out, running across the gangplank onto the Happo Navy's ship.
Kalifa and Naomi also came over with them. Seeing Karin and Chinjao seemingly having established a good relationship, they both breathed a sigh of relief.
Chinjao was, after all, a legendary pirate. Although his battle record was a bit lackluster, he was still an old-timer from Garp's era.
Especially Kalifa… the more she knew about the Happo Navy, the more cautious she became.
—As for Naomi, she was simply instinctively scared by the imposing presence of so many ships and people.
"Your Majesty!!!"
"Wah... we're back!"
"I thought I'd never see you again."
Since Gancho had brought almost the entire remaining tribe on this voyage, the Tontatta little people from Punk Hazard saw their long-lost relatives on this ship.
For a moment, the joyful and touching atmosphere also made many crew members show genuine smiles.
...
The feast was still held, except many more little ones participated.
"...So that's how it is? Then we owe it to you. Otherwise, when we arrived, we probably would have found nothing."
From Karin's mouth, Chinjao finally learned the ins and outs of the Punk Hazard incident.
"You dealt with those guys too. Truly remarkable."
Chinjao had heard from Sasuke that Karin was about the same age as him.
'One after another, so remarkable at such a young age.'
And then he looks at his own grandson...
Chinjao glanced at Sai, who was gulping down wine from a jug, and sighed deeply again.
"By the way, why haven't you changed back yet? Isn't this inconvenient?"
At this moment, Sai suddenly walked over, drunkenly asking Karin.
He watched Karin tear apart the steak on the dining table with her claws, then peck at it bit by bit with her beak, feeling something was off.
When this topic was brought up, Karin, Kalifa, and Naomi showed different expressions.
Karin suddenly fell silent. Kalifa adjusted her glasses… she wouldn't say a word more before the captain explained voluntarily.
As for Naomi?
She was like a startled deer, looking at Sai one moment and Karin the next.
'Oh dear... why does this long-faced guy bring up such a topic?'
'What if Captain gets angry and attacks later?'
Naomi seriously considered how to comfort Karin if she lost her temper.