Whitebeard's Conditions

The Pirates had repeatedly crossed Uchiha and the others' bottom line. This time, they were truly serious about applying pressure.

If Kenma had not stopped them in time, aside from the three Lost Souls he had personally acknowledged as his concern, every other Lost Soul present would have been crushed to death by their Spiritual Pressure.

The gap between Shinigami and ordinary Lost Souls was unimaginably vast.

Whitebeard panted heavily.

Naturally, he could sense the goodwill of the Enma before him. Otherwise, he probably would never have seen his sons again.

And for the sake of his sons' future, he did not mind lowering his head.

"Huff... huff... Sorry. My sons were disrespectful just now. I apologize to you on their behalf."

"And thank you for stopping them in time."

Kenma said, "Whitebeard, you should know who I did that for, shouldn't you?"

Who else could it have been for?

Wasn't it for Whitebeard, Ace, and Little Oars?

The Spiritual Pressure placed on Whitebeard was not particularly intense, nowhere near as heavy as that bearing down on the other Pirates. After a few breaths, he recovered.

"So what you mean... is that you only intend to take the three of us away. As for everyone else who died, whether Pirates or Marines, you'll simply leave them alone."

"That's right." Kenma nodded.

After receiving confirmation, Whitebeard swept his gaze around, taking in the familiar faces of his sons one by one.

Then his heart stirred as he noticed something strange in the man's words.

If the targets were only the three of them, why had he allowed these deceased Lost Souls to come and meet them?

The Red-Eyed Shinigami present were enough to suppress all the Lost Souls.

Yet he had agreed to let the Lost Souls come over earlier...

Whitebeard was not as single-minded as his sons. Quite the opposite—he was extremely sharp.

Otherwise, he would not have battled wits with Mastermind Sengoku for so many years.

With only a moment's thought, he saw through the other party's intentions.

It was blackmail!

"Enma, to put it plainly, you intend to use my sons to threaten me and force me to agree to your demands, correct?"

"Whitebeard, you're supposed to see through it without saying it aloud. Saying it out loud puts me in an awkward position."

Kenma's face remained expressionless, without the slightest hint of embarrassment.

Still, he did not deny Whitebeard's guess.

"You people are far too undisciplined. This is merely a measure to ensure success."

He had never tried to conceal his intentions or thoughts in the first place.

What surprised him was that Whitebeard had seen through the restraint he had hidden away so easily.

I thought it would take a little longer.

Such insight truly befitted Whitebeard.

Though stating it so bluntly had somewhat disrupted Kenma's original expectations, seeing how exceptional Whitebeard was only made Kenma more determined to win him over.

Bringing Whitebeard and the others to the Soul Society would not be difficult.

The difficult part was making Whitebeard willingly serve him.

Kenma had no particular twisted hobby. He did not want his Subordinates to resent him while constantly looking for a chance to assassinate him.

Yes, he was talking about you, Aizen.

Hearing Kenma's words, Whitebeard's eyes flickered as he finally understood everything.

Given the current situation, the other party truly had him by the throat.

But the conversation between Whitebeard and Kenma stirred up waves of noisy discussion among the Pirates.

Most of them could not grasp the deeper implications. They only heard from their Old Man that he was being threatened, and fierce dissatisfaction immediately erupted.

"They're actually using us to threaten Old Man! That's just too... damn wrong!"

"Even if we don't know exactly how they're threatening Old Man, don't worry about us. Do what you think is right."

"Old Man has shown us great kindness. We can't become burdens that hold him back."

"Even in the world of Pirates, there's honor and loyalty. Isn't that what Old Man taught us? Now is the time for us to repay him."

After being taught several lessons through Uchiha and the others' Spiritual Pressure earlier, these Pirates at least knew to restrain themselves, which was why they did not recklessly insult anyone.

As the discussions on the field grew louder, a sudden roar stopped the increasingly heated atmosphere.

"All of you, shut up first!"

Hearing that familiar voice, the Lost Souls all turned in its direction.

It was Ace.

The tear tracks on Ace's face had dried, though a trace of resolve still lingered between his brows.

When Whitebeard and the others looked at him, he said nothing. Yet his eyes were as firm as iron, and he had clearly made up his mind.

"Ace, what are you planning to do..."

Whitebeard looked at Ace, all sorts of emotions welling up in his heart. Yet he did not stop him, and his voice gradually trailed off.

Ace did not answer Whitebeard. He merely gritted his teeth and took a step forward.

Naturally, that action drew Kenma's attention.

"Ace, it seems you've made up your mind?"

Ace asked through gritted teeth, "King Enma, if you brought all the Lost Souls here to the Soul Society you mentioned, it shouldn't take too much effort, should it?"

Seeing that the fish had finally taken the bait, Kenma was satisfied inside. His expression did not change as he merely nodded and said softly, "Correct. For me, it would be effortless."

"If that's the case, then take them to the Soul Society as well. In exchange, from this day forward, I will become your subordinate and serve you loyally." The determination on Ace's face grew ever firmer.

It was because of him that his companions had lost their lives.

If he did nothing, he would never be able to forgive himself.

Moreover, he could never stand by and watch his companions be ruthlessly abandoned.

At this moment, he had been given a chance to atone.

"Ace..."

Whitebeard fell silent.

How could he not understand what Ace was thinking? He even shared Ace's guilt and self-reproach.

In the end, the sons who had died alongside them had also died because of his decision.

Since they had died because of him, he had a responsibility to save them as well.

Shisui, guarding behind Kenma, looked at the young Pirate named Ace and felt a familiar sense of recognition rise within him.

Back then, he had also pleaded with Lord Kenma in this way. Fortunately, Lord Kenma had agreed in the end, allowing Uchiha to achieve their current, relatively good outcome.

With this scene repeating itself, Lord Kenma would surely agree this time as well.

With that thought, his gaze fell upon Kenma before him, his eyes filled with gratitude and understanding.

Seeing that the ritual had finally entered its proper course, Kenma ignored Ace and instead turned his gaze toward Whitebeard.

Ultimately, Whitebeard was the key.

"Whitebeard, what about you?"

"After all, Pirate Whitebeard would never abandon his companions."

Whitebeard sighed. He knew that they had always been meat on the other party's chopping block.

And for the stronger side to remain so polite was already no easy thing.

The goodwill shown since their meeting was enough to demonstrate the other's respect for him.

"I can agree to your demands and submit to serve you, but I have one condition."

Whitebeard knew that making such a request now was truly pushing his luck.

But for the sake of his sons, he had to swallow his pride.

"Speak!"

"I hope that after you take them to the Soul Society, you won't make things difficult for them. They're only insignificant people to you anyway, so let them be free."

Whitebeard's expression was incomparably solemn.

"As long as you agree to this request, I, Edward Newgate, will follow you from this day onward and never betray you."

Hearing Whitebeard's resounding words, Kenma looked over the motley bunch of Pirates, stroked his chin, and considered the matter carefully before finally reaching a decision.

"Whitebeard, I can agree, but I have conditions as well."

Hearing Kenma agree, Whitebeard's face lit up with joy. "What conditions?"

Kenma raised two fingers.

"First, I have no issue with setting them free, but I will no longer be responsible for any of their food, clothing, shelter, or other needs afterward."

"Second, after bringing them over, I will have someone assess your potential. If anyone has aptitude, I will still make a contract with him and have him become my subordinate."

"No problem with that, right?"