On What Grounds Do You Dare Gamble With Me?

Many of the dealers knew the outcomes of the bets. Gato only needed to use False Tsukuyomi to force the answer out of them. But then gambling would lose all its fun, wouldn't it? So up until now, Gato had been playing honestly. Yeah... honestly losing.

"Big! Big! Big!"

Like the other gamblers whose eyes had gone red with desperation, Gato shouted along with them, as if yelling could make the dice land on big.

However, their willpower could not change the outcome of the bet. Gambling had always been cruel and thrilling.

The result was in. It was. The gamblers who had been shouting erupted from angry roars into cheers, while those who had bet on big, Gato included, looked as though they had lost their parents, unable to say a word.

Gato was downcast as well, though not as visibly as the others. When they gambled, they might win or lose, but Gato seemed to have genuinely never won even once... so he was used to it.

"Pah! This kind of betting is too simple. There's no skill involved! Otherwise, how could I have lost?"

After a moment of silence, he cursed under his breath and left the table to try other games.

After gambling for a while, he realized that he really was not cut out for it. He had spent half the day in the casino, yet had not won a single game.

Naturally, Gato was not using his own money. He did not have that much money either, but every casino was more than happy to lend money to gamblers. Gato did not dress like a commoner; to a casino, he was a premium customer.

Now, Gato had finally spent every last bit of that money. He had gotten his fill of fun, at least.

Without hesitation, he headed for the doors of Rain Dinners, looking entirely at ease, as though he had never incurred an enormous debt here.

Just as expected, Gato was immediately stopped by a man in a black suit. A casino that had grown this large always offered courtesy before force when dealing with such matters.

The man in the black suit was quite polite to Gato. Once a casino had reached this scale, it always offered courtesy before force in situations like this.

"Sir, you still owe our casino some money. How about you repay us before leaving?"

Gato put on a puzzled expression.

"Are you kidding? I've never gambled here at all. Would I lose at something like gambling?"

The man in the black suit did not change expression. He had seen all kinds of tricks used to dodge gambling debts, including playing dumb. Those who dared default on debts owed to Rain Dinners Casino would meet a miserable end.

"Sir, have you thought this through? This is Rain Dinners Casino, an enterprise belonging to Mr. Crocodile. He is one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. His terror—"

"Stop, stop, stop! Do I need you to tell me that?"

The man in the black suit was not offended. Thinking Gato understood the gravity of the situation, he pointed toward a counter.

"Then, sir, you may pay the relevant fees over there."

"You're a strange one. When did I say I was giving you money? No, that's not right. I didn't lose at all, so why should I pay? On the contrary, when are you going to bring me the money I won?"

Although he had seen plenty of people play dumb, this was the first time the man in the black suit had encountered someone who had clearly lost and racked up a massive debt, yet insisted that he had won and demanded money from the casino.

"Looks like you're looking to die."

The slave trade in the pirate world was highly developed. Casinos did not need to worry too much about lending money to gamblers. If they truly had no money, selling them off after capturing them was nearly as good.

The man in the black suit calmly reached for Gato. Since Gato knew Lord Crocodile's power, there was no need to worry that this pauper would resist. Capturing him and selling him as a slave was only natural.

Gato could not help but sneer. This kind of trash dared lay hands on him? Was he tired of living? He tensed his body slightly, used no ninjutsu at all, and threw a straight punch into the black-suited guard's face.

The man was sent flying backward like a cannonball, smashing several machines along the way and knocking over more than a dozen unsuspecting gamblers before finally being stopped by a wall, where he was embedded deep into it.

The black-suited man's nose had been completely flattened, and a dark fist mark still remained on his face. It was a truly miserable sight.

The casino manager saw this and widened his eyes, pointing at Gato as he trembled too hard to speak.

He was not frightened. It was only a bit of brute force; how could it compare to Crocodile's calamity-like power?

He was furious at Gato. He had never expected someone to truly dare disrespect Rain Dinners Casino. What if Crocodile blamed him for this?

"What are you standing around for? Get him! All of you, get him!"

A group of black-suited men moved at the command, charging Gato in complete disorder.

Dull thuds continually rang out from the pile of bodies, but it was not Gato being beaten. It was the black-suited men being sent flying one after another by Gato.

Before long, they had been completely wiped out. Gato strolled over to the manager, rubbing his fists as he asked with a smile, "I heard I lost a lot of bets and owe you money? How come I don't know anything about that?"

By now, the manager was no longer angry. Instead, he felt profound fear. Anyone who knew Crocodile's name and still acted this arrogantly was either an idiot or a ruthless person who had come specifically to cause trouble. Judging by the situation, he believed Gato was the latter.

"Don't be afraid. I'm a very reasonable person. I really didn't lose."

Gato walked past him to a gaming table and, with a slight exertion of force, flipped it over.

Chips spilled across the floor like a flowing stream, yet not a single gambler who usually loved money dared pick them up. Faced with this sudden upheaval, the gamblers shoved one another aside as they fled this place of trouble.

"Did I lose? No, because I can flip the table over. Just like now, even if I refuse to admit that I lost, there's nothing you can do about it.

"Hurry up and call your boss. Take a look in the mirror—what makes you think you're qualified to gamble with me?"

Being able to state such bandit logic with complete peace of mind, Gato truly was something else.

It was over. Everything was over.

The manager collapsed weakly to the floor. This man really had come specifically to cause trouble. No matter how things ended, his own outcome probably would not be good.

At that moment, a magnetic voice rang out through the empty hall.

"Hehehe... then am I qualified to gamble with you?"

The newcomer wore a desert cloak draped over his shoulders. A savage scar ran across his handsome face, and he casually held a cigar between his lips, displaying the air of a true overlord. This man was Crocodile.

Gato knowingly asked, "And what makes you think you can bet against me?"

Crocodile laughed in fury. "Hahahaha! Because I'm Crocodile! Die, idiot!"

Crocodile transformed into a mass of yellow sand, sweeping toward Gato like a massive sandstorm.

Gato grew serious as well. Crocodile was no small fry he could casually dispose of with a wave of his hand. Even though Pluton's power had clouded his judgment, the fierce and arrogant Sand Crocodile remained deadly.