Under Sabo's mana bombardment, the surrounding sea surged upward.
Fish in the water were blasted out of their hiding places, many of them flung all the way onto the shore, flopping helplessly on the rocks.
At the same time, a massive Sea King floated up from the depths.
Its body was covered in wounds, bruises and scorch marks everywhere. It looked so miserable that no one could bear to stare for long, especially at the swollen bumps on its head, the charred left leg, and the shredded flesh on its back, still cracked open from an explosion.
Every mark on its body silently told the tragic story of this so-called overlord of the sea, the Lord of the Coast.
The poor thing had really had it rough.
For some reason, today it had suffered three separate attacks.
First, it had been sleeping peacefully when something disturbed it.
With a terrible case of "do not wake me up" temper, it had rushed up to the surface, planning to scare the life out of whoever dared ruin its nap.
The moment it emerged, though, it got beaten up by a random brat.
Those fists, as big as cooking pots, hammered down on its head again and again.
To think that a mighty ruler of this stretch of sea lost to a tiny kid...
Crushed in body and soul, the Lord of the Coast dove back down, tears in its eyes, ready to curl up on the seabed and sleep off the pain.
Just as it was finally about to drift into unconsciousness, the top of its head suddenly felt a rush of heat from above.
An instant later, the area around it was lit up by an enormous fireball.
Luckily, its reaction was fast enough, or it would have been roasted on the spot. Even so, its left leg had been burned badly.
Cold light flashed in the Lord of the Coast's eyes as it began to rise slowly toward the surface, planning to sneak up and take revenge on those pests on the ship.
But before it could even fully surface, despair hit it again.
Because Sabo, who had just obtained the Ancient Relic Pipe, chose that exact moment to demonstrate his new toy on the sea.
And so, under the combined "bombing practice" of the three brothers, the poor Lord of the Coast finally passed out completely.
...
"S... sugoi!"
Luffy really was a very dedicated little fanboy.
Seeing the devastation caused by Sabo's attack, his eyes once again turned into sparkling stars.
"So strong!"
Looking at the destruction he had caused, Sabo tightened his grip on the Ancient Relic Pipe, his face full of delight.
As a man, who did not dream of having a good weapon that truly fit them?
One hundred thousand Berries. Worth every single coin.
"Mr. Amon, arigato."
Sabo put the weapon away carefully, then bowed deeply to Amon. His eyes were filled with admiration.
In this moment, all three brothers regarded Amon as the person they respected most.
With Amon's invisible help, it was not hard to imagine that ten years later, each of them would rise to carve out their own legends on the seas.
And the man they revered in their childhood, Amon, would surely be someone whose name shook the world... but that was a story for another time.
"Old man Garp, do you still think these jars are expensive at one hundred million Berries each?"
As a man of very broad... pettiness, Amon felt it was absolutely necessary to dig at Garp a little at a time like this.
Garp, being Garp, pretended not to hear.
As a Marine, he told himself, he had to be magnanimous.
"Um, Mr. Amon, can I open a jar too? I only have one hundred thousand Berries though..."
While Amon was teasing Garp, Makino bit her lip and asked softly.
After seeing all the miraculous things that had come out of the jars, she could not help wanting to try one herself.
But she only had one hundred thousand Berries. If Amon made her pay like Garp and asked for one hundred million, then she simply could not do it.
Seeing her anxious eyes fixed on him, Amon's lips curved and his voice turned gentle.
"Of course you can, Miss Makino. For everyone here, aside from old man Garp, the price is one hundred thousand Berries per jar."
Amon genuinely had a good impression of this gentle, beautiful woman.
Besides, the jars had been priced at one hundred thousand from the very start.
That one hundred million was purely a petty revenge tax on Garp for being rude to him earlier.
"Really? That is wonderful. Thank you, Mr. Amon!"
Overjoyed, Makino grabbed Amon's hand before she could stop herself.
She realized what she had done a heartbeat later. Her pretty face flushed red, and she yanked her hand back like she had touched a hot stove.
As a fairly reserved young woman, she felt that impulsive gesture was a bit improper.
"Hahaha, there is no need to thank me, Miss Makino. I am just a merchant."
Amon had seen her flustered reaction clearly, but he chose not to tease her, using small talk to gently move past the moment.
"Right, Miss Makino, which jar would you like?"
He never forgot business.
After seeing what the three brothers had drawn, he was already impatient to open his own exclusive jar, but first he had to sell ten.
"Mr. Amon, could you get me that pink clay jar at the end?"
At a glance, Makino's eyes had been drawn to a pink jar sitting on the edge of the shelf.
"Alright. I hope you can open a pink memory that belongs only to you."
With a small smile, Amon took down the jar for her.
Hearing him say that, Makino's face reddened again, her heart thumping like a startled fawn.
"Miss Makino, do you want to smash it yourself, or shall I do it for you?"
Holding the jar in one hand and his small wooden mallet in the other, Amon looked at her and asked.
"Can I really do it myself?"
Makino carefully took the mallet, as if it were something precious.
"Of course."
Amon nodded.
"In that case, Mr. Amon, could you help me?"
Makino raised her head and looked at him with quiet expectation.
"Of course. It would be my honor."
Amon smiled, took the mallet back, and brought it down in a light tap.
The clay jar cracked open, and its contents tumbled out onto the deck, landing in front of Makino's eager gaze.