A Deal

Teach's gaze fell on Rayleigh, burning with anticipation, as if he were waiting for something.

That was their battle.

"When will the battle begin?" Teach asked, seemingly impatient.

"Give me a day, it's been a long time since I've done anything." Rayleigh didn't refuse, and was even a little expectant.

However, after several years without fighting, coupled with his advancing age, his strength has indeed declined somewhat, and he needs time to regain his form.

With a day to recover, Rayleigh needs to take this battle seriously.

After all, Teach is no longer the unknown pirate who hadn't even formed a pirate crew.

He is the captain of the Night Pirates has made a name for itself among the Great Pirate. He is known as the "Dark Emperor" and possesses monstrous strength.

Rayleigh dared not let his guard down in the fight against Teach.

Teach someone Rayleigh definitely needs to take seriously now.

"Hmm." Teach nodded. He could wait a day; he wasn't in a hurry to leave the Sabaody Archipelago.

Rayleigh looked up, downed the wine in his glass in one gulp, and then stood up, because he sensed that Teach seemed to have something to say to Shakky, as if something was amiss.

It's not appropriate for him to be here; if you want to know, you can ask Shakky later.

Moreover, he also needs to prepare for tomorrow's battle and adjust his condition. If he is the setting sun at dusk, then Teach is the blazing sun with dazzling light.

The two were in very different states, and in that respect alone, Rayleigh was already at a slight disadvantage.

After Rayleigh left, Shakky smiled at Teach and asked, "Is there anything else, Teach?"

Shakky believes Teach needs some more important intelligence.

However, she was completely wrong, and never expected this.

"I need to establish an intelligence organization for the Night Pirates, but building it from scratch is too troublesome, and I can't afford to wait."

Teach spoke, Shakky seemed to realize something as well, "So, I need your intelligence network."

Teach stated his purpose directly, meaning he wanted to turn the intelligence organization in Shakky's hands into the Night Pirates.

Shakky froze slightly, her hand wiping the wine glass also stopping in mid-air.

Unexpectedly, Teach was so bold. Others would certainly not agree, but Shakky's words required careful consideration.

She liked Teach's directness; he didn't beat around the bush with her, otherwise, it would have displeased her.

The intelligence organization under her control had no powerful backing, meaning it lacked substantial funding and, similarly, no specific objective.

This objective is the main focus of intelligence organization development, such as planting and training spies, and obtaining intelligence on other organizations and forces.

Since there was no powerful backing and no specific objective, a large amount of money was saved, which is why Shakky's intelligence organization was able to continue operating.

This is a very simple intelligence organization that specializes in selling and acquiring intelligence; there are many such intelligence organizations at sea.

Intelligence organizations formed by powerful forces, despite having substantial financial backing and rapid development, cannot sell intelligence; all intelligence belongs to these forces.

Organizations like the Navy, the World Government, the Dark Council, the Kingdom's intelligence agencies, and the Flying Pirates are all like this. As a result, these intelligence agencies cannot make money and instead devour large amounts of funds every year like money-devouring beasts.

This is also the difference between the intelligence organizations of these forces and ordinary neutral intelligence organizations.

Shakky has already retired from the intelligence business. As an intelligence expert, the organization could continue to operate even without her. Besides, she rarely interferes with the organization's operations now, unless there is a mission that requires intelligence.

Therefore, she had no reason to refuse Teach's request.

Shakky thought about it carefully. After all, this was a big deal for her. She had developed a strong attachment to the intelligence organization over the years, and besides, it was her secure job—this was what she had always done.

Although she had already trained some subordinates to manage the organization, they were quite capable.

However, it's hard to guarantee that no one will harbor disloyal intentions, or that other forces will take notice. Without protection, one wrong step could lead to utter ruin.

Having been in this industry for so many years, she knows very well that intelligence organizations frequently change hands, and this has little impact on the organization itself, as it has its own self-sustaining system.

Even if the intelligence organization changes hands, the intelligence personnel working below might not even know it.

Just like her, within the entire intelligence organization, only a few of Xia Qi's trusted subordinates knew Shakky true identity.

After all, an intelligence organization is very large, and most of its members would not recognize the other side even if they were standing right in front of them.

If her organization has the protection of the Night Pirates, it's actually a good thing. She can also see the potential of Teach and the Night Pirates. Teach will definitely have a place among the protagonists who will stir up the storm on the seas in the future.

However, there are also risks. Moving from neutrality to the protection of the Night Pirates is tantamount to becoming an enemy of the Navy and the World Government. If discovered and something happens to the Night Pirates, they could be wiped out.

However, the possibility is very small; most likely, they will transform into neutral intelligence organizations after experiencing some fluctuations and huge losses.

Many neutral intelligence organizations originated from intelligence agencies established by certain powers.

Seemingly sensing Shakky's thoughts, "The information-selling business can continue, but it will only be irrelevant information."

That's for sure. They've already established their own intelligence organization, so why would they reveal their information to others?

This can also be seen as a protective shield. It's an intelligence organization exclusive to a certain faction, and all intelligence is internal. The formation of an intelligence organization is inherently a clandestine affair. By cloaking itself in the guise of a neutral intelligence organization, it can better provide intelligence to Teach.

It can also prevent other forces from targeting the Night Pirates.

"You can also help manage this organization." After all, Shakky is very capable, especially in intelligence. With Shakky's help, the development of the intelligence organization will definitely be much faster.

There's really nothing to worry about with Shakky; she's already retired.

Moreover, it's just about helping with management. Teach needs is a foundation, the root of an intelligence organization. Building this foundation from scratch takes several years. This is just a small intelligence organization, limited to one place.

The larger the intelligence organization, the wider its intelligence coverage, the more solid its foundation, and the longer it takes—at least several decades.

Like Mostima's intelligence organization, which took several years to build in the New World —no, it wasn't even an organization, just some spies—that monitored the various powers.

It's impossible to train spies to obtain intelligence from the Navy or the World Government.

Currently, Teach obtains intelligence through the intelligence agency of the West Blue Dark Council, which is absolutely powerful within the West Blue, but it is far less effective outside.

Stephanie, the Queen of Glorious Street, has access to some of the World Government's and Navy's intelligence, which is extremely important. However, Stephanie doesn't dare to obtain intelligence casually, otherwise, she might attract unwanted attention.

Finally, there's Mostima's intelligence in the New World.

However, Shakky is still an outsider. It's okay if she knows what she should know, but Teach won't let her know what she shouldn't know.

Shakky was well aware of this, but Teach didn't offer her any tangible benefits or any reason to tempt her.

This intelligence organization was her brainchild; it was originally hers, so how could she possibly give it away to Teach?

At this point, we need to talk about practical benefits. This is a transaction, and we can't let her make unilateral sacrifices.

Even though Shakky somewhat admired Teach.

"One hundred billion Beli, and the first two commitments remain unchanged." Teach finally pulled out his trump card.

Upon hearing this, Shakky's pupils contracted. This was undoubtedly a huge sum of money, one that even she had never seen before.

I thought Teach would only come up with a few hundred billion Beli at most, but I didn't expect him to come up with a hundred billion Beli all at once.

A hundred billion Beli seems like a small sum compared to a large intelligence organization that has been around for decades.

After all, intelligence organizations invest tens of billions of Beli every year, and Shakky's intelligence organization is self-sufficient and even generates some revenue each year.

However, the most important thing for an intelligence organization is intelligence; without intelligence, it has no value.

Although Shakky's intelligence network spans the world, her focus shifted early on to the Grand Line, where competition is not fierce.

But this intelligence wasn't important to Teach. Shakky knew what kind of intelligence Teach wanted: intelligence from the New World, from the Navy, and from the World Government.

Paying 100 billion for this intelligence is undoubtedly a high price.

At this point, Shakky had no choice but to accept. Her job would remain unchanged, and she would receive 100 billion Beli —why not?

"Then let's talk about the specifics of the organization." Shakky's face lit up with a bright smile.

After some discussion, Teach finally decided that, in addition to the 100 billion Beli he would give Shakky, he would temporarily give Shakky 50 billion Beli annually to develop an intelligence organization, train intelligence personnel, and cultivate spies and secret agents.

Regarding the re-shift of intelligence focus to the New World, the Navy, and the World Government.

However, this espionage work is only temporarily entrusted to Shakky, since she is experienced and efficient. It will be handed over to the Night Pirates, as this information must be kept in their hands.

As for the intelligence-selling business, Teach didn't care; that was something Shakky managed.

"Where is the headquarters located?" Shakky asked Teach, as this was an important base for the organization.

"Saint Louis Island." Teach smiled; naturally, it was his future base of operations.

Recalling the information about Saint Louis Island in her mind, Shakky realized something and looked at Teach in surprise.

"That's quite a move! I didn't expect you to be so bold." Shakky suddenly understood and exclaimed in surprise. The Night Pirates were setting up a plan in the Saguros Sea, with their ultimate target being Saint Louis Island.

Everyone knows the importance of intelligence organization headquarters, so it must be placed in an absolutely secure location, just like the headquarters of the Marine Headquarters' intelligence agency is naturally located at Marine Headquarters.

The fact that they're setting up their new headquarters on Saint Louis Island means that Teach has his eye on the Saint Louis Island and intends to make it the base of the Night Pirates.

The intelligence organization that Shakky controls is called "**K", which is an abbreviation of the name of the former captain, Rocks D. Xebec. It can be said to be a kind of longing.

They publicly use a different name, which has not been traced. This intelligence organization existed before the Rocks Pirates were formed. It was a small intelligence organization that was later chosen by Shakky, who directly replaced the leader of the organization, and then gradually developed into what it is today.

The World Government doesn't have such a "literary inquisition," so he wasn't targeted by the World Government. After the destruction of the Rocks Dynasty, the main focus was on the remaining forces of the Rocks Pirates.

Now that the intelligence organization has changed its leader, the name naturally needs to be changed as well. On the surface, it will remain unchanged, with its main business being the sale of intelligence.

However, the espionage operations that were secretly developed were named "Black Hole," or "BH" for short.

However, it won't be that quick. Teach naturally can't come up with over 100 billion Beli, but he has plenty of gold.

In this way, the Night Pirates have already accomplished half of their goal of reaching the Sabaody Archipelago. Apart from coating their pirate ship, this is the only other task, along with completing their battle with Rayleigh.

Teach had long harbored the idea of establishing his own intelligence organization, so he set his sights on the intelligence organization controlled by Shakky and simply took what was readily available.

Intelligence always comes in handy at crucial moments, and spies play an even greater role. In addition to intelligence, they can provide many other conveniences. The most representative example is Vergo, the spy Doflamingo planted in the Navy. He eventually rose to the position of Marine Vice Admiral and became one of the strongest Marine Vice Admiral, as well as the head of an important Marine Branch.

This was definitely a high-ranking officer in the navy, something even Sengoku couldn't have imagined.

His main objective was to plant spies within the navy. The sea was constantly changing, and so was the navy. The navy of today was different from the navy of his memory, and that was why he needed intelligence from within the navy.

He needs a crucial hidden asset.

He was also considering who could become the key player in his game.

First and foremost is potential. One must possess the combat power to become a high-ranking naval officer, or at least the potential to become Rear Admiral. Only those who reach the admiral level can be considered high-ranking naval officers.

Thinking like that is useless. We should cultivate it ourselves. As long as we have the potential, we will definitely stand out and show our true strength at a young age.

Moreover, such tasks are delegated to other people, so it's natural that he wouldn't do them himself.

Looking forward to tomorrow's battle, Teach left the tavern.