Uneven Division of the Spoils

"What do you mean, hogging it all? Didn't I stop and wait for you after shaking off those seals?"

Even while lying, John spoke with complete confidence.

"If that's how you think of me, then I'm truly heartbroken. Apologize to me!"

"Sorry."

Newgate, Linlin, Shiki, and Kaido did not hesitate in the slightest. They promptly lined up and bowed to John in apology.

No one would ever turn their nose up at money!

"Mm, I forgive you." John nodded in satisfaction. That emotional validation had been delivered perfectly.

"Hehe."

Seeing how easygoing John was, Kaido bashfully rubbed his hands together and got down to business.

"Let's talk about how we divide it."

"Didn't we agree from the start? Split it evenly!" Shiki shot Kaido a fierce glare.

He felt that this horned guy had something wrong with his head. The optimal distribution had been decided long ago, so what was there left to discuss?

"Bullshit!"

John panicked and sprang up from the ship's rail.

"I contributed the most, bore all the blame, and drew the hatred of every pirate. I'm a public enemy now, so I should get the biggest share!"

The person who had done the most work receiving the same reward as those who had slacked off—that was the greatest inequality. The greatest unfairness!

Hearing that, the four exchanged looks and reached an agreement.

"Go on, then. How do you want to divide it?" Shiki lit a cigar and tilted his chin at John.

"I want half!" John stated bluntly.

"Half?!"

Such an enormous appetite made all four of them cry out in alarm.

This golden ship appeared to be over a hundred meters long and twenty meters wide. It had to be worth at least fifty billion Beli.

If they split it evenly, each of the five would receive twenty percent, worth over ten billion Beli each.

They could tolerate John taking thirty percent, but they would never allow him to take fifty!

Otherwise, their shares would plummet from over ten billion to merely six or seven billion, nearly halved!

"Bastard! If you don't want to split it, just say so. At worst, we'll fight!"

Kaido rolled up his sleeves, battle intent surging through him. He had been wanting to test the power of the Azure Dragon Fruit on these old companions.

Shiki and Linlin also assumed fighting stances, weapons in hand as they warily watched their surroundings.

"If we can't settle this by talking, then we'll solve it the pirate way!"

"Calm down, all of you. Haven't there been enough headaches today?" Newgate scratched the back of his head in irritation.

He still held some affection for the Rocks Pirates. Now, Rocks's fate was unknown, and the crew's dissolution was already a foregone conclusion.

He did not want to see these companions, who had gotten along fairly well, part ways on bad terms. Even if they were each going to pursue their own ambitions, they should at least retain some friendship.

"Then let's fight! Who's afraid of who?!"

Ignoring Newgate's attempt to mediate, John unleashed both his Conqueror's Haki and Rumble-Rumble Fruit powers. Ferocious bolts of lightning surged forth like writhing serpents.

Kaido, Linlin, and Shiki refused to be outdone, each releasing their own Conqueror's Haki.

In an instant, the sea that had been gently stirred by the breeze became violently turbulent, while overwhelmingly fierce shockwaves swept outward in every direction.

Fish and sea beasts floated to the surface, belly-up and white-eyed. Even the clouds hanging in the sky were blasted into water vapor and scattered away.

Alice clutched Teach as she huddled at the stern. Though their special bloodline kept them from being knocked unconscious by the Conqueror's Haki, their minds still grew hazy and breathing became difficult.

"Don't think that just because I can't beat all of you, I'm easy to bully."

John raised a hand and angrily pointed at these heartless bastards.

"At worst, I'll sink this golden ship into the deep sea and make sure none of you gets anything!"

"Bastard, you're threatening us? Go ahead and try!"

Shiki spoke harshly, but his body was far more honest. He bent over and pressed a hand against the deck.

At once, the Float-Float Fruit's power activated. The entire golden ship lost gravity and rose into the air.

"Fine, I'll try!"

Surging currents burst from John's body, transforming into a powerful magnetic force that dragged the golden ship downward.

The Float-Float Fruit's power, which could be moved even by a storm, had no ability to resist such powerful magnetism. In the blink of an eye, the golden ship smashed heavily into the sea, throwing up towering waves.

And it was not over yet. Even after crashing into the ocean, the golden ship continued sinking. Seawater quickly rose over the railings and flooded onto the deck.

As the seawater submerged their calves, Shiki and the other Devil Fruit users felt a faint discomfort. Only then did their eyes flicker as they gave in.

"Stop! Half it is!"

"John, you damned lunatic, get the ship back up!"

"You already have so much treasure, yet you can't bear to give us a little more. You're truly a miser without equal in this world!"

"Hmph!"

John snorted coldly and raised the golden ship back up.

At the same time, he used Thunder Metallurgy to open several drainage holes along the hull and drain out the seawater.

"You could've agreed earlier. Why make things so unpleasant? It's not like any of you are good people."

He had always believed in one principle: dignity was earned through strength, not begged for by wagging one's tail.

If he lacked the strength to win in a fight, then he would rely on being ruthless!

As long as he was ruthless enough, he could earn respect all the same!

"Tch!"

Shiki and the others turned their heads away in displeasure, but did not continue causing trouble.

They were quite surprised that John had become so domineering, yet they happened to respond well to that sort of strength.

Only that could earn their approval.

Conversely, if John had cried and begged them, they would not only have looked down on him, but would have stripped him clean of everything.

Next came the very pleasant process of dividing the spoils.

They found a deserted island, where John used lightning to refine the golden ship into an enormous gold brick, then cut off half for himself.

Newgate then used Murakumogiri to divide the remaining half into five equal portions. After the four each took one...

They began arguing over the remaining portion again.

Kaido proudly raised his head, displaying the sword scar on his chest that had not fully healed.

"If I hadn't held off Rocks, none of us would've escaped God Valley. This share should go to me!"

"You stole my Devil Fruit, so use this gold to compensate me."

"I took a kick from Rocks too! There's still a shoeprint on my face!"

Shiki tilted his head and raised a hand to point at his left cheek, where a shoeprint had indeed yet to fade.

Newgate sat on a stone stool nearby with one leg crossed over the other, watching them argue as he sighed helplessly.

Originally, he had wanted to gather these people together and establish another pirate crew, one as warm and close as a family.

But now, it seemed that if these bastards got together, they would have a small fight every day and a major one every three days.

Forget it. He should find someone else.

"Um..."

John set down the coconut with a golden straw stuck in it and raised his right hand to show that he wanted to speak.

Once the three bastards turned their eyes toward him, he pointed at Alice and Teach beside him.

"Rocks's fate is unknown. Leave this share of gold to the mother and son for living expenses. I'll hold on to it for them first."