The question hung in the silent air of Jozu's pocket dimension.
Ron's tone was light, almost conversational, but the weight of his words landed on the Golden Lion like a ton of bricks.
"In return?"
Shiki froze mid-thought, the blazing fire of desperation in his eyes flickering for a moment.
He had been so caught up in the glorious vision of regaining his power, of walking on his own two legs again, that he'd completely overlooked the most fundamental part of any deal.
The price.
"Exchange... right, the exchange," he stammered, his mind scrambling for an answer.
What did he have? He was a legend! A king of the skies! He had... he had...
"I can offer you money!" he blurted out, the answer coming to him in a rush of relief.
"Jihahaha! That's right, kid! I'm the Golden Lion Shiki! I can give you more money than you've ever dreamed of!"
"Money?" Ron repeated the word slowly, a strange, almost pitying look on his face.
The corner of his mouth curled into a knowing smirk.
"Shiki-san, correct me if I'm wrong, but haven't you poured every last Berry you have into those... experiments of yours on Merveille?"
"What?!" The Golden Lion shot up from his chair as if he'd been tasered.
He stared at Ron, his face a mask of pure shock, his jaw hanging open.
It was as if he was looking at a ghost.
"How... How in the hell could you possibly know about that?"
His grand plan, the culmination of twenty years of secret research and development, was supposed to be completely under wraps!
No one outside of his inner circle knew the details, let alone the dire state of his finances.
How could this kid, this upstart from Newgate crew, know his most protected secret?
Shiki's mind reeled with astonishment and a growing sense of dread.
He couldn't wrap his head around it.
Did this young man in front of him possess some kind of all-seeing power?
Or was there a traitor in his ranks?
Had he been under investigation this entire time?
The possibilities raced through his head, each one more unsettling than the last.
Seeing the utter panic on the old pirate's face, Ron simply smiled.
He offered no explanation, no grand reveal.
He knew that in this moment, his silence was a far more powerful weapon than any words could be.
Let Shiki's imagination run wild.
Let him feel the suffocating unease of being completely outmaneuvered.
The Golden Lion stood frozen, his emotions a chaotic storm.
He tried to reassess the young man before him, desperately searching his calm expression for any hint of a bluff, any crack in the facade.
But there was nothing.
Ron was an enigma, shrouded in a veil of absolute confidence that was infuriatingly impenetrable.
Just as the silence became unbearable, Ron spoke again, his voice cutting through the tension like a knife.
"Shiki-san, let's change the subject for a moment, shall we? Tell me... how is your master plan to destroy the East Blue coming along?"
If the last question was a shock, this one was a physical blow.
Shiki stumbled back a step, the blood draining from his face.
His eyes widened in sheer, unadulterated disbelief.
He stared at Ron, a primal, inexplicable fear beginning to bubble up from the pit of his stomach.
This wasn't a lucky guess.
This wasn't a rumor he'd overheard.
This kid knew everything.
'Just how much does he know? And how did he find it all out?!'
Shiki took a deep, shuddering breath, forcing his racing heart to slow down.
He couldn't let this kid control the conversation.
He had to regain some semblance of power, of dignity.
Forcing a strained, unnatural-looking smile onto his face, he tried to play it cool.
"Oh... that. Ah, well, you know... it's still a work in progress. But I believe we'll be seeing a breakthrough very, very soon."
The lie felt like ash in his mouth.
Ron just nodded, as if the answer was exactly what he'd expected.
He then casually waved a hand, gesturing for the Golden Lion to sit back down.
His eyes held an unshakable calm, the quiet confidence of a chess master who was already ten moves ahead.
"Don't get so worked up, Shiki," Ron said smoothly after the pirate had hesitantly retaken his seat.
"Your little projects have nothing to do with me. Honestly, I couldn't care less if you turn the entire East Blue into a petting zoo for your mutant animals. I know a lot of things. You'll find it's easier if you just get used to it."
Shiki stared at Ron, searching his gaze for any sign of deception.
He found none.
The kid genuinely didn't seem to care about his ambitions, and that, strangely, eased his anxiety a little.
However, it immediately brought him back to the original, terrifying question: If Ron didn't want to stop his plans, then what did he want?
And what could he possibly offer to get it?
His initial plan now seemed laughably naive.
He had figured he could intimidate the kid, force him to hand over the Phoenix ability, and then simply fly away, reneging on whatever deal they made.
If Newgate came after him, he'd deal with him then.
But that entire strategy was built on the assumption that he held the power.
Now, the tables had been turned so completely it was dizzying.
His scheme had been exposed before it even began.
"What about... my ferocious beasts?" Shiki ventured, a glimmer of hope returning to his eyes.
"Listen to me, Ron, these aren't just animals! They're genetically enhanced weapons! They're insanely powerful—you won't regret it! An army of them would be unstoppable!"
Ron didn't even pretend to consider it.
He just shook his head, a look of mild disgust on his face.
"No."
The word was cold, sharp, and laced with absolute disdain.
"Frankly, Shiki, your 'ferocious beasts' are trash. They're big, stupid, and more trouble than they're worth. I've seen Sea Kings that would make better crewmates. They aren't even fit to be used as emergency food rations, let alone as a bargaining chip."
The Golden Lion's face fell, a flush of awkward embarrassment creeping up his neck.
But he couldn't give up.
He pressed on, "Then... what about my islands? The ones floating in the sky! I have a dozen of them!" he asked, his voice now sounding a bit desperate.
"Think of it, Ron! Your own kingdom in the clouds!"
Ron actually scoffed at that, raising an eyebrow as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Are you even listening to yourself, Shiki? Unclaimed islands in the middle of nowhere? What value do they have? Maybe I could set up a nice vacation spot, but as a trade for a Mythical Zoan ability? You're insulting my intelligence." He leaned back, a mocking smirk playing on his lips.
"Besides, once I have the power of your Float-Float Fruit, I can make my own damn islands."
He was left completely speechless by Ron's brutal dismissal of his every offer.
He forced another awkward smile, but he was fresh out of ideas.
Beyond his failed experiments and some floating dirt, he truly had nothing of value left.
His legend was all he had, and it seemed that wasn't worth much these days.
After a long, humiliating silence, Shiki, the man who once terrorized the Grand Line, swallowed what little remained of his pride.
"Well... how about a tab?" he pleaded, his voice barely a whisper.
He couldn't even look Ron in the eye.
"I... I still have a lot of men. If I get them all to empty their pockets, today or tomorrow, I'm sure I can scrape together at least 3 billion Berries."
He looked up, his eyes wide with a pathetic, shameless hope.
"Just give me the ability first, and I swear on my name, I'll pay you back! Every last Berry!"
To him, pride, dignity, and his reputation were all worthless compared to the chance to fix his broken body and reclaim his former glory.
Ron couldn't help it.
He burst out laughing.
It wasn't a mocking laugh, but one of genuine, surprised amusement.
The audacity of it was just too much.
A legendary pirate, trying to open a line of credit with him.
"Shiki, I think you've misunderstood the fundamentals of this transaction," Ron said, wiping a tear of mirth from his eye.
"First of all, I don't give out loans. Second, even if I did, you've forgotten a key component."
He leaned forward, his smile vanishing, replaced by a cool, serious expression.
"Besides the payment, I also need the blood of the target ability user."
"..."
The Golden Lion's hopeful expression shattered.
His mind went completely blank.
The blood.
He had completely, utterly forgotten about that crucial detail.
But Marco the Phoenix was with the Whitebeard Pirates.
Getting his blood now was a completely impossible demand.
Seeing the look of absolute despair dawn on Shiki's face, Ron smiled faintly.
Everything was going exactly as planned.
"Shiki, if you don't have the resources," Ron said slowly, letting the words hang in the air, "I do have... a compromise. A different way for you to pay your debt."
The deeply troubled pirate's head snapped up.
A path forward? A solution? His eyes, which had been dull with defeat, suddenly blazed back to life with fervent hope.
He looked like a drowning man who had just been thrown a life raft.
"A way? What way?!" he asked urgently, his voice cracking with anxiety.
He leaned over the table, his face a mask of desperate eagerness.
"Just say it, Ron! Whatever it is! As long as it's something I, the Golden Lion, can do, I won't so much as bat an eye!" He slammed his fist on the arm of his chair, his old fire returning in a massive burst.
"You want the head of Sengoku? Consider it done! I'll go all out and bring it back to you on a silver platter!"
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