Preparations for Causing Trouble

"This is Doflamingo, is that Rono?" Doflamingo put down a Den Den Mushi he was talking on and said.

"Doflamingo, I need your help with something." Rono got straight to the point.

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"Oh? You need my help? Fufufufu, what is it that requires my assistance? You're in the Grand Line, and I'm in the New World." Doflamingo grinned, his eyes hidden by sunglasses, his thoughts unreadable.

"You know about that recent Flame-Flame Fruit user, right?"

"Of course, I keep track of all Logia-type Devil Fruit users." Doflamingo's lips curled upwards, he likely knew what Rono wanted him to do.

"I want to kill him recently. Can you help me find the fruit?" Rono knew of Doflamingo's ability to find Devil Fruits. Besides himself, eight out of his ten subordinates had Devil Fruit Abilities (except for the Fighting Fish Fishman Gerard and Ao). Every year, several Devil Fruits were put up for auction. To say he didn't have a special ability to acquire Devil Fruits, Rono stated that whether you believed it or not, he certainly didn't.

"Fufufufu, this is a Logia-type Devil Fruit. What price are you willing to pay?" Doflamingo's smile deepened. Devil Fruits? If it weren't for Gerard and Ao not wanting to eat Devil Fruits, Doflamingo's executives would have had one each long ago, and none of them weak.

"What do you want?" Rono knew he would have to pay a price before making the call. The other party wasn't Spandam, with whom he had a good relationship, nor was it Baroque Works, his subordinate. The other party was also a Shichibukai, and Rono had no reason not to offer something.

"Fufufufu, I just want one of your moves." Doflamingo lowered his head, hiding the expression in his eyes. Although Doflamingo was powerful in the Dark World, almost omnipotent, codenamed Joker, the king in a deck of cards, he was still inferior to the Yonko. He had practically given away Artificial Devil Fruits to Kaido, though it's not impossible he had a backup plan. Kaido was suspicious, of course, but he didn't care. His subordinates were expendable to him, stepping stones to achieve his dream of becoming the Pirate King. Rono's abilities gave Doflamingo an idea. If he could tie Rono to his chariot, he would have the confidence to challenge Kaido. Kaido might be unkillable (he'd be killed by Luffy's cheat later anyway), but his subordinates weren't. With Sairona's sniping skills, eliminating Kaido's three calamities would make Kaido's dream of becoming Pirate King virtually impossible.

One move was just the beginning. With the first, there would soon be a second.

"I didn't expect my move to be so valuable." Rono looked at the Den Den Mushi, Gelu was already leaning close to its face.

"Fufufufu, it's not just you, it's Sairona too. I want one move from your Red Devil Pirates." Doflamingo looked at the Den Den Mushi, which had suddenly transformed into Gelu's appearance and was shouting at him. Veins bulged on his forehead, but he smiled even more brightly.

"Gulu gulu!" Gelu was unhappy. He was a member of the Red Devil Pirates too.

"I know, I know. Yes, I agree." Rono soothed the Little Treant and agreed to Doflamingo's terms.

"Then let's go, Sairona." Rono picked up his luggage from the bed and called out to Sairona.

"Help me carry some things." Sairona's expression was blank.

"Easy peasy, where is it?" Rono looked at his own muscles and flexed his biceps.

Ten minutes later. Rono, carrying a bullet box weighing over two hundred pounds and a gun maintenance kit, found a dark red two-masted ship. Through the clear sea, Rono could see two turbines, one on each side. The hull was triangular, and its sharp ram bow could easily pierce the wooden planks of other ships. There was only one main cannon, custom-made for the Red Devil Pirates. The main cannon's position was also different from usual ships, located below the ram bow, usually retracted within the hull and only extending when in use. The ship had only four rooms: two bedrooms upstairs, and downstairs only a toilet and a dining room. Simple and practical. The hull was made entirely of a lightweight alloy with high hardness. It was designed for one thing: speed.

Rono put away his luggage and ammunition boxes. Gelu slid down from Rono's shoulder and rushed into the bedroom, throwing himself onto the large, soft bed and rolling around. Sairona patted the new ship, "It matches our pirate crew well."

"Of course. Tens of millions of Belly from the Research Department every year aren't for nothing." Rono said proudly. This suggestion was his idea.

"What kind of energy powers this?" Sairona asked curiously.

"I don't know. Anyway, the ship's hold is full of those barrels. It's enough for navigation no matter what." Rono didn't care. He wasn't a shipwright, he just had to sail it.

Rono went to the ship's wheel and found that there was not only a ship's wheel but also a lever. Rono's eyes lit up, and he pulled it all the way down.

"Vroom--" The two turbines activated, and the ship slammed into the dock planks with a bang.

"Rono, I'm going to kill you." Sairona said this calmly.

"Waaahhh—" Little Treant Gelu was clearly terrified and burst into tears.

Hearing Gelu's cries, Rono quickly pulled the lever, apologized to the Marines on the dock, and then ran into the room...

Ten minutes later, the Red Devil Pirates raised their flag—the left half of the skull was White Bone Armor, and the right half was a crisscross of muscle tissue, grinning sinisterly—and set sail. Little Gelu was still sniffling, placed in Rono's hand, looking up at Rono, trying his best to hold back his Tears.

"How can a man cry?" Rono chided Gelu. Gelu immediately held back his tears, not letting them fall. Sairona was at the Ship Wheel; with the Eternal Pose, as long as it wasn't a shipwreck, he could still handle it.

"Rono, are you really going to start training Gelu this early?" Sairona put down the Ship Wheel and took a sip of wine from the table.

"Ah~ he's not that young anymore, it's time to start training." Rono looked at Gelu, who had stopped crying, and patted his head in praise.

"Gulu gulu" Little Gelu agreed with Rono's statement. Sairona shrugged; since the person involved wasn't worried, he didn't need to worry for Gelu. During combat, he could just headshot anyone who threatened him.

Although daily training no longer yielded Enhancement Points, Rono persisted every day; it had become a habit. Little Treant Gelu followed along in a proper manner, drinking water and resting when he was tired.