Krokodile: I'm Not Scared! I Just Genuinely Want to See Saint Shaya

"Hey! Crocodile..."

"The one who invited us this time is that young master from the Figarland family. You'd better go with me..."

"The Figarland family, tsk tsk, they're not ordinary at all..."

"Even among the Celestial Dragons, they are an extremely special family!"

Just as Crocodile and CP0 were having a conflict, Doflamingo, with his hands in his pockets and walking with a swagger, came up beside Crocodile and said with a chuckle.

"Huh? Why should I, a nobody like you, go see some young master from the Figarland family? Don't think everyone is a slave to you Celestial Dragons! Bastard..."

"Doflamingo, you have no right to make decisions for me! Nor do you have the right to order me!"

Crocodile said angrily after hearing Doflamingo's words.

"Fufufufu..."

"It seems we've failed to reach an agreement, Crocodile..."

Doflamingo glanced at Crocodile, who was spewing insults at him, and then burst into laughter...

Immediately after, a hint of killing intent flickered in Doflamingo's eyes.

However, the killing intent came and went quickly...

Doflamingo thought to himself that he didn't need to conflict with Crocodile over an outsider.

It would be better to use this opportunity to win over Crocodile and strengthen his own influence and power.

Thus, in the blink of an eye, Doflamingo's expression changed. He put on a poker face, his emotions unreadable. As if he had figured something out, a confident smile appeared on his face. He casually stepped between Crocodile and CP0 and said softly, "It's raining now, which will seriously affect your abilities, Crocodile, right?"

"Since that's the case, consider it a favor you owe me. I'll handle these CP0 agents here. You should leave quickly before the surrounding Marines surround us."

"Huh? Who wants to owe a bastard like you a favor?"

Crocodile said angrily after hearing Doflamingo's words.

"Hey! You two..."

Doflamingo had no intention of paying attention to the tsundere Crocodile. He looked at the two CP0 agents in front of and behind him and said softly, "Clearly, Crocodile doesn't want to go with us to see that young master from the Figarland family! His personality is incredibly stubborn. Even if you force him, it's inevitable that he might do something to that young master."

"Believe me, this bastard has such a lawless personality. He's definitely not the type to be scared into inaction just because the other party is a Celestial Dragon! So, for my sake, let's just forget about inviting him. It's for the best for everyone involved..."

"Sorry, we are under orders from the Celestial Dragons!"

After hearing Doflamingo's words, the two CP0 agents exchanged glances and then said coldly.

"Fufufufu..."

Upon hearing the words of the two CP0 agents, Doflamingo burst into laughter again.

Doflamingo held his belly and laughed heartily...

"They're just dogs that we Celestial Dragons keep outside!"

"You dare speak to me like that? How arrogant!"

"Are you trying to turn against me here, you bastards..."

"Celestial Dragons don't need dogs that bite their masters!"

However, in the very next moment, Doflamingo suddenly dropped his smile, his expression turning furious in an instant...

His forehead veins bulged, and his eyes beneath his sunglasses radiated powerful Haki. He coldly said to the two CP0 agents in front of and behind him.

"Uh..."

As Doflamingo erupted in anger...

The expressions of the two CP0 agents drastically changed. Their faces wavered instantly.

Even though Doflamingo was no longer a Celestial Dragon, he still possessed some of their privileges. Therefore, Doflamingo's words put the two CP0 agents in a very difficult position.

Just as Doflamingo said, CP0 are merely dogs of the Celestial Dragons! Even though Doflamingo was no longer a Celestial Dragon, he still had Celestial Dragon blood in him, making him their half-master.

"Forget it, it's not bad to go..."

However, just as Doflamingo was challenging CP0 to win over Crocodile, Crocodile, who had been silent, suddenly spoke.

"Hm?"

Crocodile's words immediately made Doflamingo's expression turn grim. He had gone so far as to offend the young master of the Figarland family for Crocodile...

And now, Crocodile, who had just said he would never bow to the Celestial Dragons' might, was saying he wanted to go? Didn't that mean he had not only offended the young master of the Figarland family earlier but also failed to gain any favor from Crocodile?

Wasn't this a case of trying to steal a chicken but ending up losing the bait, losing the wife and the soldiers?

Thinking of this, Doflamingo's face turned green!

He, Doflamingo, never accepted losing deals.

"Heh heh~"

In response, Crocodile slightly turned his head, signaling Doflamingo to look at their side.

"Hm?!"

Doflamingo's expression darkened. Following Crocodile's gaze, he turned his head to look.

Then Doflamingo saw them: under the dark, overcast, and rainy sky, grinning at him were 'Iron Fist' Garp, 'Black Arm' Zephyr, and behind them, Vice Admiral Tsuru, wearing a justice coat, a pink suit, and with her hair impeccably styled.

"..."

Doflamingo fell silent.

He thought to himself, This makes sense, this makes sense...

Crocodile was indeed brave, even daring to challenge Whitebeard...

But he wasn't a suicidal fool!

With Garp, Zephyr, and Tsuru in front, and Sengoku and Steel-Bone Kong behind, it was as if the entire Marine Headquarters had been moved here!

Let alone a mere Crocodile...

Even if Whitebeard and Golden Lion arrived together, or if Roger, who had just been executed by the Marines, were to be resurrected at full strength, they would still leave in regret.

Fight? Fight what!

This was suicidal...

"Don't get me wrong! I'm not scared..." As Doflamingo remained silent, Crocodile, who always looked defiant towards everyone, said coldly, "I just genuinely want to meet that incredibly famous young master of the Figarland family!"

Although Crocodile had only heard the name "Figarland" for the first time today! It didn't stop him from feeling a genuine admiration for the Figarland family from the bottom of his heart.

Cough cough...

"Gentlemen, please this way..."

After both Crocodile and Doflamingo had calmed down...

CP0 breathed a sigh of relief. The two first bowed slightly to Doflamingo and Crocodile, then gestured for them to follow.

"..."

For a moment, Doflamingo and Crocodile fell silent. The situation was beyond their control, so they could only follow CP0's lead towards a Marine warship docked near Loguetown.

Before long, the four arrived beside the Marine warship.

Once Doflamingo and Crocodile stepped onto the warship's deck, they saw a young man wearing a raincoat, with a Marine justice cap underneath.

Beside the young man was another youth wearing a scarf and a black trench coat, and a third youth wearing a cowboy hat, exuding an air of laziness.

"So strong!"

With just a glance, Doflamingo and Crocodile felt the immense power emanating from the three youths. Without a doubt, these three were monstrously powerful, each seemingly stronger than them.

The young man wearing the Marine cap's gaze, sharp as a blade, swept over Doflamingo and Crocodile. He said coldly, "You are Doflamingo and Crocodile?!"

"Indeed!"

Doflamingo and Crocodile nodded neither servilely nor pushily.

"Heh heh..." After confirming their identities, the young man nodded slightly to the two CP0 agents who had accompanied Doflamingo and Crocodile and said, "You may pass."

And so, After enduring the initial intimidation, Doflamingo and Crocodile, with serious and low-key expressions, were led by CP0 into the cabin of the World Government warship.

As the two entered the cabin...

They were met by a young man with short, fiery red hair, whose appearance was strikingly similar to Shanks, a trainee from the Roger Pirates, but he was wearing the exclusive attire of a Celestial Dragon (clothing resembling a spacesuit).

This young man was naturally Figarland Saint Shaya.

"Heh heh, my father and the Five Elders are always worried about my safety, so they dispatched all the forces that were supposed to be stationed at Marine Headquarters to act as my guards. I hope we haven't alarmed you!"

Before Doflamingo and Crocodile could speak, Shaya addressed them.

"Why did you summon us here?"

Doflamingo and Crocodile exchanged a glance before asking Shaya.

"Here you go~"

Shaya said nothing further, instead handing a document to Doflamingo and Crocodile.

"Shichibukai?!"

Doflamingo and Crocodile's pupils contracted slightly as they looked at the document in their hands.

"Hmph hmph hmph..."

"As you can see, the pirate era will not end with Roger's death!"

"On the contrary, Roger's death is the key to unlocking the Great Age of Sailing!"

"Roger's death proved the existence of ONE PIECE, and after his death, the legendary Great Treasure, ONE PIECE, will once again be ownerless!"

"Right now, the entire world has its eyes on this legendary Great Treasure. From today onwards, countless people will hoist skull flags and set sail in search of treasure..."

"Haha, just as you think, this era is about to descend into chaos. Therefore, we, the World Government, must also prepare for the arrival of the new era!"

"No matter how chaotic this era becomes, the divine authority of the Celestial Dragons must not be shaken in any way..."

Shaya said softly to Doflamingo and Crocodile.

"Fufufufufu..."

"So you World Government thought of a way to use pirates to fight pirates?"

"Let the pirates fall into disarray and deplete their strength from within?"

Doflamingo crossed his arms in front of him and sneered.

"A great plan, isn't it?"

Shaya looked at Doflamingo and retorted.

"It really is quite good~"

"I have no reason to refuse~"

As Shaya questioned him, a smile spread across Doflamingo's face.

The news Shaya brought about the Shichibukai was exactly what Doflamingo needed, like someone offering a pillow when you're about to fall asleep. It was perfect!

"That's straightforward. I really did see you correctly..."

"Choosing the Donquixote family first was indeed the right choice~"

Shaya said, handing Doflamingo another document with his back turned.

"Hm? What's this..."

Doflamingo's expression faltered slightly as he looked at the document Shaya handed him.

"The king of the Kakapo Valley Kingdom in the South Blue, along with his eighty-year-old mother, were sent to Mary Geoise to dance a striptease!"

"The impoverished citizens of the Kakapo Valley Kingdom have thus lost their king, so..."

Shaya looked at Doflamingo and said softly.

"Fufufufufu..."

"Since we Celestial Dragons have taken the king from those foolish people of the Kakapo Valley Kingdom, we must give them one back!"

"I believe those foolish people would definitely want their next king to be handsome, talented, and capable of making all their citizens prosperous..."

Upon hearing this, Doflamingo took the King's Commission issued by the World Government and personally authorized by the Five Elders, which Shaya had given him~

From today onwards, he, Donquixote Doflamingo, would officially take the throne of the Kakapo Valley Kingdom~

Doflamingo was undoubtedly a beast, but he was a capable one!

Although Doflamingo's methods were not clean, during his reign in Dressrosa, the entire kingdom had developed unprecedentedly, and the citizens' happiness index ranked among the highest in the world...

"Pleasure doing business with you, cousin~"

Seeing Doflamingo take the commission, Shaya extended his hand and smiled at him.

"Fufufufufu..."

"Pleasure doing business with you, my brother~"

Doflamingo grinned and laughed heartily.

Due to frequent intermarriage within the Celestial Dragons, Doflamingo and Shaya could indeed call each other cousins...

"Since you, cousin, have become a Shichibukai, remember to go for your annual check-up!"

"Don't worry, it's just like those Marines, a simple blood draw, a formality..."

Shaya continued looking at Doflamingo.

"I understand, I understand it all~"

Doflamingo, having benefited, nodded slightly.

It was only many years later, when Doflamingo saw the Seraphim that Shaya had created using his bloodline factors, that he finally couldn't laugh anymore...

"Heh heh~"

Shaya let out a cold laugh, looking at Doflamingo, who seemed to have gained immense benefits.

The Kakapo Valley Kingdom was now completely under his surveillance. Giving the Kakapo Valley to Doflamingo was merely a way to better monitor him...

Furthermore, starting today, Shaya would also get involved in Doflamingo's various businesses~

As for the powerful Devil Fruits Doflamingo would later find, like the Gold-Gold Fruit, Shaya felt no shame in taking them all...

He, Shaya, never did business at a loss~

"Next..."

Shaya said, looking at Crocodile, who had remained silent.

"Crocodile, would you like to cooperate with me?"

Shaya asked Crocodile.

"Cooperate? For what?"

Crocodile retorted, asking Shaya.

"To search for the ancient weapon rumored to possess a god's name..."

"Pluton! The one that can completely destroy an island with a single cannonball!"

Shaya said with a smile to Crocodile.

"Oh? A legendary Ancient Weapon? Interesting, please elaborate..."

Crocodile, who had been looking rather nonchalant, suddenly had his eyes light up upon hearing Shaya's words, and he smiled back at Shaya.

"Hehehe..."

Shaya merely chuckled in response.

Continuing, a massive chapter of four thousand characters~