Instantly, the girls' eyes turned dangerous, all of them glaring at Makoto Nishikado.
If he didn't handle this right, it would be an absolute bloodbath!
Not that the great Makoto ever feared a love royale. A little something like this wasn't going to flip his car.
Under the girls' watchful gazes, Makoto said unhurriedly, "That depends on what kind of Devil Fruit we're talking about. The most suitable person gets it, obviously.
Airi, you specialize in Fire Release and Lightning Release. If we find a Wind-type Devil Fruit, of course I wouldn't give it to you.
Kotonoha, you mainly focus on taijutsu and the Eight Inner Gates, so you don't need a Devil Fruit right now either. Taking one would just gild the lily.
Megumi suits a stealth-focused support fruit, not a frontline combat type.
I'll distribute them based on everyone's fighting style."
Makoto made a fair point, but the girls were all dissatisfied.
After all, they'd been hoping to use this opportunity to see who weighed most heavily in Makoto's heart.
Unfortunately, his answer was watertight. They couldn't find a single flaw.
While they waited, Makoto had another task. He said to Nayuta in his arms, "Nayuta, go form a contract with him."
With that, Makoto pointed at Roger, who was standing not far away.
Although Makoto's group hadn't put handcuffs or restraints on Roger, most of his crew had been subdued, so he didn't dare make any sudden moves.
The Kuja pirates nearby blinked in confusion.
A contract? What was that?
Nayuta hopped out of Makoto's arms and landed in front of Roger.
"What, what are you doing?"
Stared down by Nayuta's eerie golden ringed eyes, Roger inexplicably felt a pressure no less intimidating than Makoto's own.
"I, wish to form a contract."
Nayuta's words carried a bizarre, almost hypnotic power, and Roger froze for a moment.
The next second, under the bewildered stares of both the Roger Pirates and the Kuja Pirates, Roger lowered his head as if in a trance, his eyes glazed over, repeating Nayuta's words.
"I wish to form a contract."
The legendary explorer Scopper Gaban felt a powerful sense of foreboding. He shouted, "Hey! What did you do to Roger?!"
Bam!
Beam clubbed Gaban from behind. "Quiet! Chainsaw-sama didn't say you could talk."
Makoto then had Nayuta form contracts with every member of the Roger Pirates.
And just like that, their blood bags were secured.
The players naturally understood why Makoto had Nayuta do this. After all, in the real world, Nayuta's abilities had already been demonstrated through the livestream.
But newer players like Miyuki Shirogane and Saeko Busujima, whose relationship with Makoto was limited, only knew the tip of the iceberg regarding Nayuta's capabilities.
Watching the battle-hardened legends of the Roger Pirates, each and every one of them kneeling motionless like soulless puppets, the women of the Kuja Pirates were dead silent.
Gloriosa leaned close to Shakky and whispered, "What is that child doing?"
Shakky shook her head.
But instinct told her this wasn't anything good.
By then, the Roger Pirates crew had come to, looking around blankly. "What, what just happened?"
Makoto grinned. "Nayuta, want to try out your new power?"
Nayuta raised an eyebrow and yanked the sword from Roger's waist: Ace.
Everyone except Makoto froze. They watched as Nayuta single-handedly lifted the sword Ace, which was taller than she was, with no idea what the little girl was planning.
The next second, Nayuta raised the Supreme Grade sword Ace above her head. The familiar stance made Rayleigh, Gaban, and the rest of the Roger Pirates' eyes widen in alarm.
"That stance..."
Slash!
In an instant, Nayuta's tiny body swung a single stroke, unleashing a crimson arc of sword energy that cleaved the ocean before them clean in two, carving out a deep trench as seawater from both sides came rushing in, unable to close for a long time.
Kamusari!
That's right! The ultimate technique developed by Roger himself, Kamusari!
"Why, why does that girl know that move?!"
The power was no weaker than Roger's own.
And it wasn't just the locals, the Roger Pirates and the Kuja Pirates. Even Megumi Kato, who as one of Makoto's wives spent more time with Nayuta daily than Makoto or Kotonoha, was left slack-jawed.
She knew Nayuta could transfer all damage she received to her contractors, but this was the first time she'd seen her actually show off.
"M-Makoto, is, is that really that child's ability?" Yukiko asked, swallowing hard.
Makoto nodded with a smile. "Yes. Nayuta can use all the abilities and experience of her contract targets, at an equivalent level of power. Whether it's ninjutsu, sword techniques, Devil Fruit abilities, or anything else."
As those words sank in, everyone, locals and players alike, stared at Nayuta, who had already tossed Ace aside and snuggled back into Makoto's arms, completely dumbfounded.
That ability was way too broken, wasn't it?
"There's more than one monster here..." Gloriosa murmured in awe.
They'd thought Makoto was the trump card of his group.
Looking at it now, the real ace seemed to be someone else entirely.
"As expected of Chainsaw-sama!"
Beam wasted no opportunity to kiss up. "You're having the Control Devil form contracts with this world's strongest, building an invincible new Control Devil, right?!"
At those words, the faces of both the Kuja Pirates and the Roger Pirates changed yet again.
If that actually happened, they couldn't even begin to imagine how terrifyingly strong that little girl curled up in Makoto's arms could become.
"Let's not go that far." Makoto waved it off.
He didn't really have such ambitions.
The reason he had Nayuta form contracts with Roger's crew was primarily as insurance, giving Nayuta a steady supply of blood bags.
Secondly, Nayuta could monitor her contractors' status at any time through the bond. They were about to sell Roger off, after all. If Roger didn't deliver Ace, the Reincarnation Game quest couldn't be completed.
So Makoto decided to keep an eye on things, just to make sure Roger didn't kick the bucket by accident.
"Boss, we're back!"
At that moment, the Fab Four's shouts rang out from the direction of the town behind them.
Everyone turned to see the Libido Devil and his three companions approaching with a group of Marines in blue-and-white uniforms.
Makoto's group had made quite a commotion on the island, but since they hadn't harmed any civilians, the Marines had largely looked the other way.
More importantly, they knew they couldn't do anything about it even if they wanted to.
Seeing the Roger Pirates lined up on their knees, the lead Marine, clad in a Marine coat with the insignia of a Colonel on his shoulders, nearly dropped his jaw to the ground.
A bunch of people capable of subduing the Roger Pirates?!
"Ah, hello."
The Marine Colonel leading the group saluted Makoto and introduced himself. "I'm Commodore Comil of the Malad Island Marine branch. I heard you wanted to speak with my Fleet Admiral?"
Comil?
Makoto blinked.
After thinking for a moment, he vaguely recalled that being the name of a Marine Vice Admiral later on. But then again, there were quite a lot of Marine Vice Admirals. They were basically speed bumps.
Unless it was someone like a Admiral candidate on the level of Tokikake or Chaton, Makoto didn't have particularly strong impressions of any of them.
Makoto didn't dwell on it. He just pointed a thumb at the kneeling Roger Pirates. "I want to make a deal with the Marines. I figure only the Fleet Admiral has the authority to negotiate with me, right?"
Comil swallowed hard and nodded. "Of course. But with my rank, I can only reach the Admirals. One moment..."
With that, Comil pulled a Den Den Mushi from his coat, turned away from Makoto's group, and dialed.
Morgans helpfully provided some context from the side. "The current Marine Admirals consist solely of Kong. The two Admirals of this era, one was killed by Rocks a few years ago, and the other recently retired due to old age."
"Oh, a paper-pushing Admiral." Makoto said, sounding thoroughly unimpressed.
Morgans and the others looked at him blankly.
A paper-pushing Admiral? What are you talking about?
Comil turned around quickly and placed the Den Den Mushi in front of Makoto, hitting the speaker button.
Immediately, the snail, which had been feigning sleep with its eyes shut, snapped them open, its features morphing into the outline of a stern, hard-faced old man.
"Whoa! Amazing snail!" Kotonoha and the others perked up with interest.
Even Nayuta hopped out of Makoto's arms and poked the Den Den Mushi.
"Um, little one, please don't do that..." Comil tried to stop her.
Shakky and the others were speechless.
Little one... you have no idea she could peel your skull open like a lid.
The Den Den Mushi spoke in a human voice. "I heard you want to trade using the Roger Pirates? You actually captured Roger?"
From the other end of the line, the current Marine Admiral, Kong, spoke with clear disbelief.
Even though his subordinates had confirmed it, he still found it hard to credit.
If it had been Rocks who captured them, that was plausible. But some nobodies taking down Roger's crew? Was this a joke?
Makoto flicked his fingers.
Yu Ishigami understood immediately. One of his fingers transformed into a gun barrel, aimed squarely at Roger.
Bang!
"Gah!" In pain, Roger let out an involuntary grunt.
The Den Den Mushi's expression shifted ever so slightly.
Makoto said coolly, "Surely you wouldn't mistake Roger's voice? If not, why don't you call Garp? You two are best buddies, aren't you?"
"Who, who's whose buddy?" Roger growled through gritted teeth as he dug out the bullet.
On the other end, Kong fell into a brief silence before asking, "A trade? Are you unsatisfied with the bounty amount?"
A typical bounty hunter would've just handed the Roger Pirates over to the local Marine branch and collected the reward.
But Makoto had specifically requested to speak with Marine high command, which led Kong to believe he wasn't happy with the bounty money.
"I've never touched money. I have absolutely no interest in money."
Makoto declared. "Top-tier Devil Fruits. One fruit per Roger Pirates member.
Otherwise, I'll just let them go and let this bunch run loose across the seas again. You wouldn't want that, would you?"
Kong's face darkened on the Den Den Mushi, muttering inwardly about a madman.
The Roger Pirates crew, as well as Gloriosa and Shakky, felt a spark of hope.
Is he really going to let us go, benefactor?
After a brief stalemate, Kong replied, "Logia-type Mag-Mag Fruit. I'll trade it for Roger."
Makoto's eyes lit up.
Oh!
The Mag-Mag Fruit, the very Devil Fruit that would one day belong to Akainu.
It was already in existence.
Nice. Though not exactly surprising.
After all, Akainu had become one of Zephyr's students early on, and was quickly dubbed a monster of the first Naval Academy class by his peers. Earning enough recognition to be awarded the Mag-Mag Fruit was hardly strange.
For that matter, Kizaru might already have the Glint-Glow Fruit, and Aokiji his Chilly-Chilly Fruit. Same deal.
Actually, Kizaru might have already been a Fruit user before enrolling. Otherwise, Zephyr wouldn't have kept complaining about him relying too heavily on Devil Fruit powers.
"Just one?" Makoto asked.
"I'll start by trading the Mag-Mag Fruit for Roger. You can hand over the others to me first. I'll immediately dispatch my subordinates to locate high-grade Devil Fruits for them. As soon as I find them, I'll send them to you right away," Kong replied.
"Hahaha, are you kidding me?"
Makoto laughed heartily. "I already have the people in my hands, and you think I'll believe you'll actually hand over the fruits?"
"I am a Marine Admiral. I have some integrity," Kong growled.
Not that Makoto would trust a single word from a Celestial Dragon lapdog.
Makoto thought it over and said, "Marine Rokushiki training manual plus the Mag-Mag Fruit, and you can have Gaban and Rayleigh."
He figured that just one Mag-Mag Fruit would only benefit one of his women, but the Rokushiki techniques could benefit everyone.
Sure, in the later arcs nobody bothered with that stuff, but it was solid for building foundations.
The moment she heard Makoto was about to trade Rayleigh away, Shakky, who had barely managed to keep her composure until now, couldn't sit still anymore.
"I told you, I want Roger!" Kong said dissatisfied.
"You're in no position to haggle with me."
Makoto said flatly. "A single Logia for Roger? That's too easy. Unless you can dig up something on the level of Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit or the Dark-Dark Fruit."
He continued, "If you don't agree, I can find someone else. The Roger Pirates have plenty of enemies on the high seas. I'm sure others would love to make a deal."
Kong gritted his teeth inwardly. He could tell Makoto wasn't bluffing. If he missed this opportunity, catching Roger again wouldn't be so easy.
Suddenly, Kong recalled that the Marine's armory held Kinpira, one of the 21 Great Grade swords. He said, "Throw in a Great Grade sword as well, and you can have Roger and Rayleigh."
At the words "Great Grade sword," Makoto raised an eyebrow. Noting Saeko Busujima standing beside Kotonoha Katsura, he replied, "Add the Shodai Kitetsu as well, and Roger and Rayleigh are yours."
"Impossible!" Kong barked.
The Shodai Kitetsu did indeed exist, but it wasn't in Marine possession. It was in the hands of the World Government, specifically as one of the Five Elders' personal blades. How could he possibly give that away?
"Then we have nothing to discuss."
With that, Makoto moved to hang up.
At the same time, he counted silently in his head: 3, 2, 1.
Just as he reached one, sure enough, Kong shouted, "Wait! Let me petition my superiors. I'll get back to you."
Makoto smiled in satisfaction.
He'd spent his past life haggling at the vegetable market. Bargaining came naturally.
He might not have been on the level of those fierce aunties, but dealing with the simpletons of the pirate world was more than manageable.
"Give me a time tomorrow. I want to hear the result."
With that, Makoto ended the call for real.
Stretching his arms above his head, Makoto surveyed the group. "No reason to keep hanging around this town."
"Yay!" Nayuta bounced excitedly.
She'd been bored of this place for ages.
Makoto looked around and pointed at the Oro Jackson, still moored at the docks. "Let's take that ship and go."
At that moment, Shakky suddenly spoke up. "Um, Mr. Nishikado, it seems like no one on your crew knows how to navigate. Why not let me and the Kuja Pirates sail you there?"
"Trying to rescue them on the sly, huh? Boobies." Reze teased.
At the word "boobies," Eriri and Yotsuba instinctively looked down, then scanned their eyes across every woman in the Kuja Pirates.
Damn it!
Why is every woman in this world so stacked?
Without exaggeration, even someone on Haruno's level would be considered flat here.
Shakky's face went slightly pale.
Makoto said breezily, "That's fine. Go ahead, rescue them."
Under the stunned gazes of the Kuja Pirates, Makoto added with a grin, "Just don't let my people catch you. Otherwise, what happens next is out of my hands."