Teach's Trump Card

"What? Who's cursing me?!" Thatch groggily opened his eyes.

Teach took a closer look. Good lord—people who came to Impel Down were either miserable or furious and unwilling to accept their fate! Yet this old man had come all the way to Impel Down just to sleep!

"Zehahahaha! Thatch, you idiot! You actually got caught and thrown into Impel Down! And you can still fall asleep in prison? You've really got some nerve!" Taking advantage of everyone else's distraction, Teach frantically signaled Thatch with his eyes.

"Teach?" Thatch froze, then noticed Teach's exaggerated facial expressions. Uh, how should he put it? It looked like Teach had a ton of flies in his eyes!

Still, Thatch had known Teach for a long time, so he could pick up on some of the more subtle messages.

Of course, the most important thing was that Thatch trusted Teach completely. They had known each other for years, and he believed he understood Teach quite well.

On the surface, Teach was a Shichibukai aligned with the Marines, so he couldn't stay there too long or do anything suspicious. If someone started suspecting him, he'd be screwed.

After mocking Thatch for a while under everyone's watchful eyes, Teach returned to his quarters and summoned Laffitte and the others.

"Captain, do you have something to tell us?" As the Blackbeard Pirates' navigator and strategist, Laffitte naturally guessed that Teach was planning something.

"Now that everyone's here, sit down first!" Teach snapped out of his thoughts. "Is anyone else nearby?"

"Don't worry, Captain! Everything within fifty meters of this residence belongs to us! And I've checked carefully—there aren't any surveillance Den Den Mushi devices!" Laffitte and the others sat before Teach. Seeing the meaningful look in their captain's eyes, the blood of every battle-hungry man present began to boil.

"Everyone, you should all know that I'm Whitebeard's son! Though I've accepted the title of Shichibukai from the Marines on the surface, I will always be a member of the Whitebeard Pirates!" Teach swept his gaze around. Everyone remained expressionless, as if they had expected this long ago.

"Since that's the case, I'll keep it short!" Teach pulled out a special white Den Den Mushi from Dark Space. He had bought this Den Den Mushi, which interfered with electromagnetic waves, at a high price. With it, even if the Marines had hidden listening devices somewhere extremely secretive, they would never be able to learn what they were about to discuss!

"First, the Blackbeard Pirates will definitely stand with the Whitebeard Pirates! But we can't expose ourselves too early! At the critical moment, we'll deal the Marines a fatal blow and secure victory in this war!"

"However, winning this war only means rescuing our companions! As for how much damage we can inflict on the Marines, that'll depend on all of you here! Remember—kill freely! Kill as many as you can! Since Marine HQ dared lay hands on my comrades, they naturally have to pay the price!"

At that, Teach paused. Sure enough, eager expressions appeared on everyone's faces, as though they could already imagine the thrill of slaughtering freely on the battlefield!

"Second, Fuckyou, I have an extremely important mission for you!" Teach looked at Fuckyou, whose face immediately flushed red.

"What important mission, Captain? I never thought you valued me this much!" Fuckyou narcissistically rose to his feet and spoke excitedly.

Teach smiled, then took out a strangely shaped fruit.

"This is..."

"The Logia-type Swamp Fruit!" The moment Teach finished speaking, blazing light appeared in Fuckyou's eyes!

"Is this for me, Captain?" Fuckyou pointed at himself in disbelief, then looked at the Swamp Fruit in Teach's hand. "Giving a Logia Devil Fruit to me... isn't that a bit of a waste..."

"Bullshit!" Teach suddenly exploded in rage. "How can you say something so pathetic when you're my crewman?! Remember this—my crewmen are all one in ten thousand, the finest among men! This Devil Fruit is the one that lucked into you, not the other way around! Do you understand? If you ever say something like that again, I'll throw you into the sea and let you experience what it's like to be dragged behind a ship!"

Teach's furious outburst made Fuckyou tremble all over, but then waves of warmth rose in his heart.

"Thank you, Captain!" Fuckyou caught the Devil Fruit, but he did not eat it.

"What is it?"

"Captain, you once said there had to be people on our ship who hadn't eaten Devil Fruits! But now, with so many people aboard, more than half are Devil Fruit users. If I become one too, what will we do if something unexpected happens later?"

"Zehahahaha! You're really stupid! Isn't Rando much stronger than you? It's precisely because you're the weakest among the Blackbeard Pirates that I'm giving this Devil Fruit to you! Hurry up and eat it! You're a grown man, so stop dragging your feet!"

"Oh! Crunch, crunch!"

Teach: ...

Everyone else: ...

"Ah, this taste really is... too wonderful!" Watching Fuckyou savor it with lingering delight, Teach and the others sank into deep thought...

"Oh right, Captain, you still haven't told me what important mission you're giving me!" Fuckyou sheepishly pulled back his tongue, which had been licking his fingers as he relished the lingering flavor.

"Cough, cough! Back to the point. Since Marine HQ plans to go to war with the Whitebeard Pirates, their defenses elsewhere must be extremely weak! And your task, Fuckyou, is to go to the Marines' supply warehouses and take everything!" Teach looked at Fuckyou with a faint smile. In the instant Fuckyou wasn't paying attention, Teach abruptly scooted his chair backward.

"Huh? Doesn't that mean I won't get to go to the battlefield?"

"Bullshit! You're so weak—are you going to the battlefield to serve as cannon fodder?!" (Actually, Fuckyou was not weak at all. He was roughly as strong as a pirate with a bounty of 300 million!)

"But Captain, how am I supposed to transport all those supplies?"

"Hmph, what do you think the Devil Fruit I just gave you is for? The Swamp Fruit can create a storage space!"

Fuckyou: ...

"So from now on, my position on the ship is warehouse..."

After discussing everything with the group, Laffitte and the others left Teach's quarters. Teach, meanwhile, took out two small Den Den Mushi.

"Zehahahaha! Red-Haired, it's time to repay the favor you owe me!"

"Is this because of the Marines and the Whitebeard Pirates?"

"Smart as always. Just what I'd expect from you!"

"Forgive me, but I can't agree."

"What? You still owe me a favor!"

"This is not possible! It's a matter of principle! Other than this, you may make any other request!"

"Oh, really? I seem to remember you have a daughter named Uta? You see, I'm still missing a wife, so how about..."

"How did you know that?!"

"Is that important? What's important is that you just said I could make any other request! So, what do you say..."

"Stop! I agree, I agree! I'll help you, I'll help you!"

"What about your principles?"

"Principles? Do me a favor and forget that principle!"

"..."