Match standard Perl POD item validation in Protocol::IRC

Start with the failing t/99pod.t checks and compare the reported Protocol-IRC source lines with standard Perl's Test::Pod behavior. Trace whether the mismatch is in the bundled Test::Pod implementation, POD parsing, or PerlOnJava semantics, then add a focused regression and verify both JVM and interpreter backends plus the unchanged Protocol-IRC 0.13 suite.

Summary

PerlOnJava does not reproduce standard Perl behavior for the POD validation in Protocol-IRC 0.13. The unchanged upstream suite passes under system Perl but fails under PerlOnJava because valid numbered POD items are rejected.

CPAN evidence

CPAN random tester run 20260915-094334-6702:

• Distribution: Protocol-IRC 0.13
• System Perl: 17 test files and 269 tests pass
• PerlOnJava: 2 of 269 tests fail in t/99pod.t
• All 16 functional test files pass under PerlOnJava
• The failure reproduces in the PerlOnJava target run and the regression run
• Both JVM and interpreter behavior should be verified during implementation

The failing diagnostics are:

blib/lib/Protocol/IRC.pm (56): You have '=item 2' instead of the expected '=item 1'
blib/lib/Protocol/IRC.pm (97): You have '=item 2' instead of the expected '=item 1'
blib/lib/Protocol/IRC.pm (103): You have '=item 3' instead of the expected '=item 1'
blib/lib/Protocol/IRC.pm (635): You have '=item 2' instead of the expected '=item 1'
blib/lib/Protocol/IRC.pm (641): You have '=item 3' instead of the expected '=item 1'

The same POD passes the standard Perl Test::Pod check.

Expected behavior

PerlOnJava should accept the same valid POD item numbering accepted by standard Perl and allow t/99pod.t to pass without changing the upstream distribution.

Investigation scope

Determine whether the mismatch is in the bundled Test::Pod implementation, POD parsing, or PerlOnJava semantics exposed to the POD checker. Compare the exact source and parser state at each reported =item and test both execution backends.

Add a focused project-owned regression that is validated with system Perl first, then passes on both PerlOnJava backends. Re-run the complete unchanged Protocol-IRC 0.13 suite after the fix.

This is a pure-Perl compatibility defect, not a timeout, native dependency, service, or platform prerequisite issue.

Related but distinct: #1357 concerns valid POD directives after executable code being parsed as Perl source.