Talking Fire Fist Ace into It

Luo Ji held Nidai Kitetsu and headed straight for the Seastone processing plant and finished goods warehouse.

"Move! Pack all the Seastone weapons and Seastone crafts into crates.

Whoever packs the fastest, I'll let them go first!"

Luo Ji shouted at the prisoners and slaves, casually cutting down several Beasts guards.

"You! I know you—Hyo of the Flower, the Flower Capital's underworld boss.

Hurry up and help organize these samurai. I can tell you a surprise."

"Oh, right. The underworld bosses of Udon, Hakumai, Kibi, and Ringo, step out!"

Luo Ji shouted rapidly, and before long, all the people he had named came over.

"Help me pack up all these finished Seastone goods, and I'll release you.

Also, I'll tell you a secret: your former shogun, Kozuki Sukiyaki, isn't dead yet!

As long as you obey, I'll tell you where Sukiyaki is!"

Luo Ji smiled faintly, immediately drawing the attention of everyone present.

One straw-hatted figure in a prison cell was especially agitated, his webbed hands gripping the prison bars tightly.

"What? The former shogun isn't dead?"

"Didn't Kurozumi Orochi say the former shogun died of illness?"

Hyo of the Flower and the other underworld bosses cried out excitedly.

Ever since Kozuki Sukiyaki's reported death from illness, Kozuki Oden's execution, and Kozuki Momonosuke's disappearance, they had believed the Kozuki Family was finished.

That had left them in utter despair.

"Get to work! The faster you finish, the sooner you'll learn Kozuki Sukiyaki's whereabouts."

Luo Ji ordered sternly. The Seastone mine was enormous and had numerous processing lines.

To seize more Seastone weapons and other tools, he intended to mobilize every laborer and strip the entire Seastone mine clean.

Upon hearing Luo Ji's command, the Flower Capital's underworld boss, [Bold Blade] Hyo of the Flower, and Udon's underworld boss, [Blood Letter] Omasa,

Hakumai's underworld boss, [Broken Straw Hat] Tsunagoro, Kibi's underworld boss, [Snake Eyes] Yatappe, and Ringo's underworld boss, [Moonflower] Ocho,

the five underworld bosses quickly rallied the samurai prisoners and slaves in the Seastone mine, gathering all the finished Seastone products, semi-finished goods, and even freshly mined Seastone ore

into the Seastone warehouse where Luo Ji was. Those that needed crating were packed into crates, while those that needed crates had crates made for them.

They were determined to carry out Luo Ji's packing and transport orders.

Meanwhile, Yamato was enthusiastically releasing the imprisoned captives and helping them remove their Seastone restraints and ordinary iron shackles.

After all, Seastone was extremely precious. Not every prisoner was qualified to wear Seastone restraints.

Karamatsu, one of the Nine Red Scabbards, was also rescued by Yamato along the way.

This fish-man also wanted to learn Kozuki Sukiyaki's whereabouts from Luo Ji.

He eagerly worked his way closer to Luo Ji as well.

But when he saw Luo Ji summon scroll after scroll and store crate after crate of Seastone inside them,

a terrifying thought surfaced in his mind.

Why did this look so much like Raizo's scroll sorcery?

He had heard Oden, who had gone out to sea, as well as Nekomamushi and Inuarashi, say that Wano Country's so-called sorcerers were actually Devil Fruit users from overseas.

Each type of Devil Fruit ability was unique.

Only when the previous owner died would the Devil Fruit ability reappear and be acquired by someone else.

"Could Raizo already be dead?"

Karamatsu staggered back several steps, trembling, utterly unable to accept that possibility.

If Raizo was dead, did that mean Lord Momonosuke, Brother Kin'emon, Kikunojo, Kanjuro, and the others had all met with disaster too?

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

Karamatsu clenched his fists, his breathing turning ragged as his mind went blank.

"No! Lord Oden said there were Devil Fruit abilities with similar powers too, known as superior and inferior abilities!

This young man's sorcery might simply be similar to Raizo's.

Yes, that had to be it. Raizo and the others definitely hadn't come to harm.

Lady Toki's Toki Toki no Mi ability definitely couldn't have gone wrong!"

Karamatsu kept hypnotizing himself into accepting that guess. Lord Oden's prophecy had to be right, and Lady Toki's ability had to be safe.

"Luo Ji! What are you doing? Come help me save people and beat up these bastards!"

Yamato was incredibly excited, fighting to her heart's content. Seeing the prisoners regain their freedom one after another filled her with immense joy.

Defeating the Beasts Pirates and liberating Wano Country had been one of the things she most wanted to do all these years.

"You can handle these minor matters. Next, we're going to the Flower Capital!"

Luo Ji kept storing crate after crate of Seastone, a broad grin on his face. How much money would this shipment fetch if he sold it?

Even if he did not sell it and kept it for himself, it would still be an enormous fortune.

Fire Fist Ace watched as the two of them took control of the situation so quickly and even commanded so many prisoners to work.

For a moment, he wanted to get acquainted with them.

Perhaps they could even form an alliance and defeat the Beasts Pirates together.

He did not know whether they were free agents or pirates.

If they were free agents, Ace even wanted to invite them aboard his ship.

"Hey, friends, are you pirates too? Your ability is pretty impressive!"

Sensing that Yamato was the greater threat, Fire Fist Ace chose to probe Luo Ji for information.

This young man looked like a support-type crew member.

"Portgas D. Ace, I know you!"

"Your sworn brother Sabo isn't dead. Do you want to know where he is?"

"If you do, then do a few things for me."

As Luo Ji collected the crates of Seastone, he opened with a trump card, leaving Fire Fist Ace utterly dumbfounded.

"What? You said Sabo isn't dead? Who are you? Why do you know about me and Sabo?"

Fire Fist Ace was extremely agitated. Very few people should have known that he, Sabo, and Luffy had become sworn brothers.

How did this unfamiliar young man know such a secret?

Was he from Foosha Village, or one of old man Garp's people?

"My name is Luo Ji, and I'm an ability user who can see parts of people's fates!"

Luo Ji gave Fire Fist Ace a meaningful look, while his hands did not slow in the slightest.

"Fate?"

Fire Fist Ace's expression turned serious. A Devil Fruit ability involving fate?

That was truly outrageous!

"What do I need to do for you to tell me about Sabo?"

Fire Fist Ace asked skeptically. He still wanted to test him further.

"Just follow me for a few days."

"Oh, and your younger brother, Straw Hat Luffy, is quite an extraordinary guy!"

Luo Ji made a simple request and revealed another piece of information, making Fire Fist Ace trust him even more.

"You saw Luffy too?

What are you planning to do over the next few days?

I have other things to take care of."

Fire Fist Ace hesitated before asking again. He still needed to go to Onigashima and challenge Beast Kaido, one of the Four Emperors.

"What important business do you have? Oh, right—the Beasts Pirates have already set out on a major overseas expedition. Beast Kaido probably won't be in Wano Country for the next few weeks.

If you want to know about Sabo, you should follow me for a few days first!

I'll take you to defeat this country's evil shogun!"

Luo Ji wore an expression as if he saw through everything, making Fire Fist Ace's eyes widen again.

This guy even knew that he was planning to challenge Beast Kaido?

They had only just met for the first time.

It seemed his ability to see part of the future was real!