On the designated day of the hostage exchange, Bardock had genuinely anticipated that Doflamingo would try to pull some kind of underhanded trick. Surprisingly, the Underworld broker played strictly by the rules, dispatching his subordinates to deliver exactly three Devil Fruits as promised.
Naturally, this didn't mean Doflamingo was suddenly terrified of Bardock. It simply meant he was entirely preoccupied. Compared to his grand, world-shaking scheme to hijack the Heavenly Tribute, a temporary setback in the North Blue was a trivial matter.
He currently had to keep his eyes glued to the highly classified shipping routes of the World Government's tribute vessels, ready to strike at a moment's notice. If he missed this incredibly narrow window of opportunity, he might never get a second chance to blackmail his way into the Seven Warlords. Since even his massive intelligence network couldn't track every single detail of the Government's logistics, he had to focus entirely on the critical transit nodes to ensure a guaranteed, flawless strike.
The two individuals Doflamingo sent to deliver the ransom were figures Bardock was highly familiar with: the user of the Paramecia-type Spin-Spin Fruit (Guru Guru no Mi), Buffalo, and the user of the Paramecia-type Arms Fruit (Buki Buki no Mi), Baby-5.
By utilizing Buffalo's ability to transform into a literal human helicopter, the duo possessed incredible aerial mobility. This ensured they could execute the transaction rapidly and immediately evacuate with Diamante, minimizing any chance of a prolonged conflict.
Seeing the maid-outfitted assassin land on the deck, Bardock couldn't help but sigh internally. Truthfully, the Arms Fruit was a direct, top-tier superior version of Daz Bonez's Dice-Dice Fruit. Yet, in Baby-5's hands, its infinite potential was completely squandered.
Her combat application of the fruit barely scratched the surface of its true destructive power. Forget about turning into a literal nuclear warhead—even the World Government's Pacifistas could fire highly condensed laser beams. Yet, despite being a literal weapon human, Baby-5 had never once figured out how to transform her body into a basic laser cannon. And what defined a "weapon," anyway? Wouldn't a supersonic fighter jet count as a weapon? A heavily armored tank? A railgun? The limits were bounded only by her imagination, yet she restricted herself to simple swords, flintlocks, and basic missiles.
Likely having received incredibly strict orders from Doflamingo to avoid escalating the situation, Buffalo and Baby-5 were completely well-behaved, standing rigidly on the deck without provoking the White Dragon crew.
However, Bardock wasn't about to let the opportunity pass without causing a little trouble.
"Hey, Baby-5," Bardock said casually, leaning against the railing. "How about you just give me those three Devil Fruits for free, and we just leave Diamante locked up in the brig?"
Baby-5's expression instantly froze. She dropped the heavy wooden crate, forcefully clutched her cheeks with both hands, and her eyes began to visibly sparkle with tears. "Gasp! Is he... is he saying he needs me to give him the fruits?! Well, since you need them so badly, I suppose I could..."
"STOP RIGHT THERE!" Buffalo shrieked in absolute panic, violently interrupting her.
If Buffalo let Baby-5's ridiculous, pathological psychological flaw dictate her actions, they would completely fail the Young Master's critical mission, and Doflamingo would likely slaughter them both.
"Baby-5! Remember the Young Master's absolute orders! We are here for the exchange!" Buffalo roared, his massive teeth grinding together.
Hearing Doflamingo's title, Baby-5 violently snapped out of her delusion. Realizing she had almost just given away their ransom, she glared fiercely at Bardock, biting her lip in anger.
"Hmph."
Bardock let out a cold snort. He shifted his gaze toward Buffalo, allowing a highly condensed, suffocating wisp of his Conqueror's Haki to wash directly over the large man. Buffalo instantly choked, his eyes rolling back slightly as a wave of sheer terror paralyzed his muscles and drenched his back in cold sweat.
With Buffalo temporarily silenced, Bardock turned back to the maid.
"Baby-5. What is the point of continuing to follow a cruel man like Doflamingo?" Bardock smiled, his voice dropping into a smooth, highly persuasive tone. "Why don't you join my crew instead? As it turns out, the White Dragon is in desperate need of a dedicated, powerful combat maid."
"Gasp!"
Baby-5's defenses instantly shattered once more. Her face flushed bright red, and she clutched her heart, completely overwhelmed. "I'M BEING NEEDED AGAIN! I... I ACCEPT—"
Before she could finish her sentence, Buffalo desperately tried to reach out and stop her, but the lingering pressure of Bardock's Haki kept him frozen in place.
Puru puru puru puru!
Suddenly, the small Den Den Mushi strapped to Baby-5's waist began to ring aggressively.
The shrill sound snapped Baby-5 out of her trance like a bucket of ice water. She quickly looked at Bardock's highly amused smirk and finally realized the truth: this handsome, terrifying Captain explicitly knew about her psychological weakness and was actively, maliciously exploiting it to mess with her.
She quickly grabbed the receiver. It was Doflamingo.
"Buffalo. Baby-5," Doflamingo's dark voice echoed from the snail. "Has Diamante been successfully recovered?"
Before Baby-5 could speak, Bardock casually snatched the receiver directly out of her hand. "Almost!" he declared cheerfully, before tossing the receiver right back to the stunned maid.
Flustered, Baby-5 quickly delivered her status report to Doflamingo, making sure to explicitly complain about Bardock's shameless attempt to recruit her.
Upon hearing this, a deeply chilling, ominous laugh echoed from the snail. "Fuffuffuffuffu..."
A few moments later, Daz Bonez hauled Diamante up from the brig. The Executive looked haggard and pale. Seeing Buffalo, Baby-5, and the active Den Den Mushi, Diamante immediately fell to his knees in profound shame.
"I'm so sorry, Doffy!" Diamante cried out to the snail. "I've caused you massive trouble! I swear on my life, there absolutely will not be a next time!"
"We'll talk when you return," Doflamingo replied coldly, immediately hanging up.
With the transaction complete, Bardock completely ignored the Donquixote pirates, fully focusing his attention on prying open the three small chests to verify the Devil Fruits inside.
Diamante scrambled to his feet. Having been utterly humiliated, he didn't want to stay on this cursed golden ship for a single second longer. Coincidentally, Buffalo felt the exact same way; he desperately wanted to escape the terrifying aura of the White Dragon's Captain.
Without exchanging another word, Buffalo activated his Spin-Spin Fruit, transforming his hair and waist into massive, roaring helicopter blades. He grabbed Diamante and Baby-5, rapidly launching them into the sky and fleeing the scene as fast as physically possible.