Rono's Rumors, and the Probing by Golden Lion, John, Silver Axe, and the Others
The New World, Hachinosu, the Rocks Pirates' headquarters.
After Rocks informed them that they were to attend the banquet that evening, the officers all prepared to go.
On the way to the banquet venue, John, Ochoku, Silver Axe, Charlotte, Shiki, and the others happened to run into one another.
"Have you heard? [Most Evil Criminal] Rono has joined us," Silver Axe said bluntly when he saw them.
"I know. He's the rookie who hijacked the Heavenly Tribute and killed Celestial Dragons."
"Tonight's banquet is also to welcome him," Ochoku said, sounding a little sour.
As far as he could remember, this was the first time a new recruit had joined and the entire Rocks Pirates had turned out to attend.
Was this guy really that important?
"Exactly. I heard he even defeated Garp and escaped from Kong, Sengoku, and Zephyr alongside Whitebeard."
John recounted Rono's deeds. He seemed to be very interested in everything Rono had done.
"Defeated [Iron Fist] Garp? No wonder his bounty is as high as 1.5 billion."
This was the first time Shiki had heard about it, and he couldn't help being surprised.
Garp was also a Marine the Rocks Pirates often ran into. His [Iron Fist] had left an extremely deep impression on the officers of the Rocks Pirates.
Garp had been defeated? This Rono sounded pretty powerful.
"Mamamama, he's a handsome young man, judging by his Bounty Poster. I've got to make him mine as soon as possible!"
Charlotte Linlin, who hadn't yet grown plump, chuckled. She was looking forward to meeting Rono.
A handsome guy with such impressive strength ought to have a child with her.
The child the two of them had together would surely be powerful!
"How disgusting."
The others were all revolted by Charlotte Linlin's words and instinctively moved farther away from the crazy woman.
She was the famous Rocks Pirates' public bus. The members of her crew were all children she'd had with men of various races.
Charlotte Linlin had also made advances toward Shiki, John, Silver Axe, Ochoku, and even Whitebeard.
But they all thought she was dirty and were afraid of catching something, so they turned her down without hesitation.
"But do you know what's strangest about Rono?" John suddenly said.
"What?"
At that, Golden Lion, Ochoku, Silver Axe, Charlotte, and the others immediately pricked up their ears, eager to hear more.
"They say Rono has a terrifying talent. He can quickly learn other people's signature moves!"
"He can even learn them just by watching once!"
"Rono grasped Garp's [Iron Fist] in the middle of their battle, and that's why Garp lost," John said smugly.
He was very interested in Rono, so he knew the rumors about him. The reason for his interest was simple.
John loved money, and Rono was at odds with the Celestial Dragons.
John wanted to recruit Rono. Since Rono specialized in killing Celestial Dragons, John could follow right behind him and pick up some of their treasure. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?
"Learn an enemy's moves during battle? How could that be possible!"
Golden Lion immediately retorted when he heard this.
Golden Lion had experienced Garp's [Iron Fist] firsthand.
The last time he fought the Marines, Garp had punched him, and the wound still ached faintly.
[Iron Fist] was Garp's signature move. He'd trained for a long time before developing it. How could anyone learn it just by watching once?
Golden Lion had his own signature moves, too.
Cleaving Wave, Two-Sword Style, Lion-Cut Valley, and the development of the Float-Float Fruit were all techniques he'd spent a long time figuring out.
No one could learn them just by watching once. It had to be a rumor.
"Exactly. The World Government's reports always exaggerate!"
"It's definitely just a rumor. John, you're always spreading this kind of hearsay." Silver Axe and Ochoku also thought John was talking nonsense.
How could anyone quickly learn other people's signature moves?
You could learn a technique that someone had spent more than ten years developing just by watching once?
Did he really think all the strong people in the world were useless?
"Heh heh, there's a banquet tonight. Why don't we put him to the test? We could make a bet, too." John grinned.
When he first heard the rumor, he'd reacted just like Shiki and Silver Axe, not believing it at all.
But he'd sent people to investigate, and it seemed the story was true.
John realized this was a chance to make a fortune.
"A bet? Sure. What do you want to bet?" Golden Lion, Silver Axe, and the others perked up at once.
It was easy to tell who would win this kind of bet. It was a chance to pick up money.
"How about 1 billion Beli? If the rumor's true, each of you gives me 1 billion Beli!"
"If the rumor's false, I'll give each of you 1 billion Beli!" John steeled himself, gritted his teeth, and said.
Golden Lion, Ochoku, Silver Axe, and the others were all startled.
They wondered if the John standing in front of them was an impostor.
After all, why had John, who normally valued money above all else, suddenly become so generous?
He was betting 1 billion Beli at once? That was no small sum.
After all these years with the Rocks Pirates, John had probably only saved up that much.
Could the rumor really be true?
Everyone began to wonder, but they quickly shook their heads and dismissed the idea.
Impossible. How could anyone have the talent to learn a move just by watching once?
If anyone had that kind of talent, they wouldn't have to train hard every day for all those years.
"Fine, let's bet. We shouldn't turn down money we can earn for free!" Ochoku and Silver Axe immediately agreed to the bet.
After all, to them, this money was practically lying on the ground.
And 1 billion Beli was no small sum, even for great pirates like them.
"I'm in, too. But John, will you have enough money to pay when you lose?"
Golden Lion also decided to join the bet. There was no reason to turn down 1 billion Beli.
But he was worried John wouldn't have enough money to pay.
After all, if it was 1 billion per person, that would be 3 billion Beli. Did John really have that much?
Or even if he did, would he really be willing to hand it over?
"Don't worry, I won't welch. Besides, I'd have to be pretty stupid to welch on all three of you at once."
John assured Golden Lion.
Golden Lion, Silver Axe, and Ochoku nodded at that, thinking John had a point.
"Fine, then. If you dare welch, you can forget about getting a share of the loot when we go out robbing from now on," Silver Axe said confidently. He knew how strong John was.
He wasn't strong enough to take on even Golden Lion alone, let alone all three of them together.
If he really dared welch, he could expect a beating. He could also forget about getting a share of the loot ever again.
"Then it's settled." John decided to take a gamble and trust the information his men had brought back.
Once they had settled the bet, the group headed toward the banquet venue together.
Before long, Golden Lion, Silver Axe, and the others reached the designated location.
At a glance, they saw that the captain, Rocks, Whitebeard, the commander of the First Division, and that [Most Evil Criminal], Rono, had already taken their seats.