Ultimately, the reason Cain had been forced to use Observation Haki to glimpse the future back then was simple—he had not been strong enough.
He lacked the power to finish his enemies in a single strike, and most of his techniques came with too many limitations.
Afterward, during his training with Rayleigh, Cain had stubbornly clung to the old man and pushed himself harder than ever.
He trained desperately and grew stronger until he finally created Human Path, a technique capable of forcing an enemy to expose an opening in an instant.
From there, he developed the entire set of techniques known as the Six Paths of Reincarnation.
…
"So… do I pass now?"
Cain looked at Yasopp expectantly.
"Well, barely," Yasopp replied casually, though privately, he was still shaken.
If anyone weaker had been caught by that technique, they might have raised their own weapon and killed themselves before they even understood what was happening.
It was a truly vicious ability.
Still, Yasopp forced himself to remain calm and offered his evaluation.
"That move isn't bad. Even the boss would probably find it troublesome. It wouldn't affect him too badly, but it'd still give him a headache for a while."
Then he held out his hand toward Cain.
"What?" Cain asked, instinctively taking a step back.
"What else? Time to calculate your tuition."
Yasopp began counting on his fingers.
"There's the cost of your training over the past several days, the stage construction, finding a venue, purchasing all the musical equipment, and my travel expenses for coming all this way."
"It's not much. Just one billion and ten million Beli."
Cain froze.
His feet quietly began gathering strength beneath him.
He knew better than anyone that he had practically no stable income.
The first money he ever received had come from Grandpa Garp, and he had already spent part of it in Alabasta.
Later, on Sabaody, he had sold the old man to Rayleigh.
Although he had not lost money and had even earned a little, Shakky had immediately swindled away most of it, and Cain had given another portion to Law.
He had not earned anything since then.
All he had left was a single bag of Beli.
Then the Merry needed new furniture, and he had spent another large sum while shopping with Uta.
He still had some money left, but…
It was nowhere near enough to cover even the smallest fraction of what Yasopp demanded.
The instant that thought crossed his mind, Cain spun around and fled.
"YOU'RE CHARGING ME?!"
He shouted while running.
"Why are you exactly like that old bastard Rayleigh?! With our relationship, can't you just let me train for free?!"
"Of course not! Whose money do you think paid for all this running around?" Yasopp roared as he chased him. "That came from the Red Hair Pirates' shared funds!"
The moment Cain heard that, his eyes lit up.
He twisted around while running and shouted back,
"Then why are you asking me for it?! I'm a member of the Red Hair Pirates too!"
"And most of that money wasn't even spent on me! The concert is for Uta, isn't it? Show some mercy and let me go!"
"Brat, those are separate matters!"
Yasopp continued chasing without slowing down.
"The entire crew agreed that you're paying tuition! Not just this time either. Next time, the time after that, and every time after that—we're keeping a running account!"
"This is forced buying and selling! You people are completely unreasonable!" Cain cried indignantly.
"Whose fault is it for laying your hands on Uta?"
"We love each other! Why do you have to make it sound so filthy?!"
Then Cain suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, right! I do have money! I have money!"
He turned toward the rapidly approaching Yasopp.
"Before I became a pirate, I defeated Golden Lion. There was definitely a reward for that."
Cain's voice grew quieter.
"It's just… not with me."
"Oh? Where is it?"
Yasopp tilted his head and immediately pressed him for an answer.
"Uh…"
Cain fell silent, poking his index fingers together as he tried to change the subject.
But Yasopp stared him down until Cain finally admitted helplessly,
"My grandpa has it!"
Yasopp's mind raced.
Garp was currently somewhere in the New World with Shanks and the others.
Technically, Yasopp could verify Cain's claim with a call, but the problem was that no one could get through to them.
The two groups had apparently spent this entire period drinking together. Yasopp had no idea how the people still aboard the ships had survived.
Either way, Cain was obviously trying to make him go back and collect the money from Garp.
Whether he could actually get it was one thing.
But if Yasopp went back now, wouldn't this brat simply run away?
"You little bastard! You're trying to trick me!"
Yasopp raised his rifle and unleashed another barrage.
Cain hurriedly dodged the bullets and shouted in despair,
"I'm not lying! The money really is with my grandpa!"
…
At the same time, Blue Station in Water 7 was still packed with travelers despite the late hour.
Under Mayor Iceburg's strict arrangements, everyone attending the concert was required to take the Sea Train to the venue.
Although the concert was being advertised as taking place in Water 7, it was not actually being held on the main island.
Instead, several nearby islands had been selected as concert sites.
Iceburg had personally coordinated every detail, and the exact location of the main venue had deliberately not been announced to the public.
This was all part of the Marines' plan.
Anyone who wanted to attend the concert had no choice but to pass through Water 7.
The train tickets were free and also served as the concert's only entrance passes.
The Marines used the ticket inspection process to identify and separate pirates from ordinary civilians, directing them onto trains traveling in different directions.
The island designated for pirates had already been completely evacuated.
Every supposed resident there was actually a disguised Marine.
Any pirates who tried to cause trouble would immediately be arrested by Marines posing as local security officers.
Aokiji knew none of this.
Wanting to keep watch over the pirates and prevent any disturbances, he purchased a ticket and prepared to travel with them.
However, while looking at the young woman behind the counter, he could not help asking,
"Miss, have we met somewhere before?"
"Pfft—sorry! I'm sorry."
The woman behind the counter could not stop herself from snickering when she saw Aokiji's outfit.
She hurriedly lowered her head and apologized.
"I don't believe we've met before… pfft."
In the end, she failed to hold it in and laughed again.
Aokiji looked puzzled and leaned forward for a better look, but the woman hurriedly pressed down the brim of her hat as if deliberately hiding her face.
The middle-aged man beside the counter quickly stepped in.
"I'm sorry, sir. This young lady is new."
"Please rest assured, we've received strict training. Under normal circumstances, we would never laugh at a customer… unless we couldn't hold it in."
Aokiji scratched his head, accepted his ticket, and soon walked away.
The two people behind the counter released simultaneous sighs of relief.
After pulling down the ticket-window shutter, they immediately burst into laughter.
"Your disguise is terrible, Gion. I just saved you, so how about marrying me as repayment?"
"Absolutely not!"
Gion thought back to Aokiji's ridiculous appearance and nearly started again.
"Who could've imagined a Marine Admiral dressing like that?"
Tokikake did not seem particularly affected by her rejection.
"Well, I'm not giving up."
He glanced at the time.
"It's about time. You should head to the main venue. Leave this place to me."
"Even though we've compared everyone against the bounty posters and redirected most of the pirates, a few might still slip through and reach the civilian venue."
Gion's smile disappeared as she nodded seriously.
"I'll leave security here to you, then."
"But you saw how many people have already gathered, and it's still the middle of the night. When the concert officially begins tomorrow…"
She clicked her tongue.
"Just imagining it gives me a headache."
"What can we do? These are only the people arriving from the waters surrounding Water 7. Uta's true popularity hasn't even had a chance to show itself yet."
Tokikake shrugged, then lowered his voice as his expression grew more serious.
"If she truly begins a worldwide tour without restrictions, the number of people attending could easily multiply several times over."
"Still, Headquarters has given us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to distinguish ourselves."
"Think about it. They didn't call us in even for a battle on the scale of the Summit War, yet for Uta's concert, they specially transferred us back from the New World to oversee security."
"That shows how seriously Headquarters is taking this."
"We need to handle everything perfectly and produce real results. With an Admiral position about to become vacant, perhaps one of us might actually have a chance."
"Idiot. Becoming an Admiral isn't that easy."
Gion gave him an exasperated look before analyzing the situation properly.
"Headquarters only transferred us here because pirates and civilians will be mixed together, the crowd is enormous, and there are too many unpredictable variables."
"On top of that, neither of us participated in the Summit War. We've also spent most of our time carrying out missions in the New World, so the public rarely sees our faces."
"That's why Headquarters specifically chose us."
…
The Marines had already prepared an extremely detailed deployment to maintain order during the concert, prevent anything from going wrong, and avoid alerting the pirates.
Tokikake was fully responsible for ticket inspections and crowd separation in Water 7.
Security at the main concert venue had been entrusted to Gion.
Meanwhile, the island created specifically to gather the pirates was under Admiral Akainu's command.
Aokiji knew none of this.
The ticket in his hand would not take him to the island where Uta's real concert would be held.
It would take him directly to the island filled with every pirate the Marines had identified.
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