"As I mentioned earlier about the favor I wanted—I want Crocodile's life, and his title as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
So I need the Revolutionary Army to send someone strong enough—strong enough to take the lead against him.
In exchange, you'll receive Nico Robin alive, along with a Poneglyph that records the location of the warship Pluton."
He paused. "So… shall we make a deal?"
That was Ren's final statement before ending the call.
Belo Betty's reply had been cautious—she said she couldn't decide on her own and needed to consult others. She promised an answer within a day, hoping Ren would understand.
After all,
This man—known only as the one who lost to an Emperor—had suddenly dropped a bombshell no one could have predicted.
The matter involved Bonney, Kuma, Nico Robin… even Pluton itself.
A single commander couldn't possibly make that decision alone. The Revolutionary Army was vast, with its own hierarchy and strategic divisions.
Ren merely said they could verify anything if they wanted evidence.
After all—
He had all the photos of Bonney they could ever want, and Robin's poses in as many varieties as they pleased.
Everything beyond that? That was the Revolutionary Army's problem.
"Boss, you…"
Robin's expression was complicated; for a moment, she didn't know what to say.
Everything unfolding before her was completely at odds with the grim future she had always imagined.
"When I don't have the urge to kill someone," Ren said with a relaxed smile, crossing one leg over the other, "I prefer convincing them to work for me willingly.
As you can see, not everyone ignores the existence of the Void Century.
Where there are the sins of the World Government, there will always be those who seek to expose them.
The Revolutionary Army is such an organization—and I can assure you, their desire for you runs deep.
Largely because you're the last survivor of Ohara.
To them, the scholars of Ohara were among the first to ignite the flame of rebellion against the world's tyranny.
Of course…" he smiled faintly, "you should probably be thinking about something else right now."
"...?"
Robin tensed again, recalling Ren's conversation with the Revolutionary Army. Everything he'd said hinged on one assumption—that the Poneglyph in Alabasta truly recorded Pluton's location.
She didn't think he was lying; even she knew that until someone read a Poneglyph, no one could be certain what it contained.
Crocodile had built Baroque Works entirely upon the rumor that Pluton slept in Alabasta.
Her own scholarly judgment told her the rumor might be false.
But—
The man before her, this so-called "prophet," had spoken with such certainty that the Poneglyph recorded Pluton's whereabouts.
That alone raised its credibility tremendously—enough to shake her own resolve.
Yet another question gnawed at her: why would he tell her this so openly?
"You're wondering why, aren't you?" Ren chuckled. "It's simple—I prefer loyalty born from conviction, not fear.
I'm not the type who sells empty dreams. I've already eaten my fill of those.
So yes—my promise still stands. Within a week, you'll see the Poneglyph with your own eyes."
He smiled knowingly at her. "And yes—I really do know a lot."
"The second Poneglyph's location?"
Robin's tone firmed as she pieced it together. "You want me to work for you, calmly and without resistance—your target is Crocodile?"
"That's right," Ren nodded. "Even if the Alabasta Poneglyph doesn't hold the knowledge you seek, I can still give you the location of another one.
I don't know its contents either—but at least that gives you hope, doesn't it?
Though you got one thing wrong." He straightened his posture, smile fading. "The target isn't just Crocodile—
—it's everything he owns, including Baroque Works' entire treasury."
Ren never treated anyone as a caricature of their canonical selves.
He understood well that those who assumed others were idiots were, in truth, the biggest fools.
Especially when facing someone like Nico Robin—a veteran survivor with both brains and fangs.
The moment one believes a small advantage guarantees control over her… that's when the counterbite hurts most.
The best way to handle her—
Was to give her a path forward. A visible, living path.
Then, offer her a new home—one better than Crocodile's shadow.
Finally, grant her an irresistible reason to live.
Even if she later learned that the Alabasta Poneglyph held nothing of what she sought, she would still fight for him—for the chance at the next one.
From this moment on, Robin had become one of those who absolutely did not want Ren to die.
At least—
Until she discovered the Sky Island Poneglyph's location.
And yes, it was no coincidence Ren already had Sky Island in mind.
That moment marked the first time Robin truly lowered her head. Respectfully, she reported,
"Boss, Baroque Works' most readily accessible funds amount to roughly four hundred million Berries.
If you require it, we can have it delivered here by tomorrow. Given a week, we can raise six hundred million.
If allowed a month—by selling fixed assets—we could reach around one billion.
If we dismantled Baroque Works entirely and liquidated every resource, the total could reach two billion.
But much of our funds are tied up maintaining secrecy—bribery networks, cover organizations.
Those expenditures can't be reclaimed.
And a significant portion also funds personnel and safehouse maintenance—those costs are sunk as well."
Robin's report was exhaustive, laying bare the inner workings of Baroque Works.
Running such a massive organization covertly was no easy task. Killing was convenient—but not everyone could be killed, nor was everyone expendable.
Violence was the fastest path to results, yet it could never achieve Crocodile's precious secrecy.
So Robin had learned from the spider—
To weave layer after layer of invisible webs across Alabasta's deserts.
To build a shield of greed around Baroque Works itself.
It was costly, of course.
But the results spoke for themselves—
Nine out of ten missions the organization carried out concerned Alabasta's internal stability, and yet—no one truly noticed.
At most, there had been one "odd" case: a princess sneaking into her own country disguised as an agent.
Yes—Vivi had been exposed long ago, according to Robin.
After all, Her Highness had believed that with a quick change of hairstyle and a shabby outfit, she could infiltrate undetected.
Robin had stared at Vivi's personnel photo for half an hour, dumbfounded, before realizing the girl was simply… too trusting.
Still, Robin had taken precautions—she quietly reassigned Vivi to Whiskey Peak.
Even so, Robin never truly believed that what she was doing was right.
She often found herself leaking bits of intelligence almost subconsciously.
Ren understood this perfectly.
In the original timeline, Robin had spared the Straw Hats multiple times—Even rescuing Luffy after he'd been buried alive by Crocodile's sandstorm.
And later, in the underground tomb, she'd read the Poneglyph detailing Pluton's location.
Despite knowing Crocodile would kill her for his failure, she'd lied and said it contained nothing.
In truth—Robin was merely a victim shaped by circumstance into a "false villain."
Ren, however, had no intention of lecturing her. He focused instead on the profits.
Baroque's long-term value would take time to realize—but its short-term yield? Now that was worth celebrating.
He could already imagine his next ten-billion-Berry prize.
The Next Morning
The golden sun rose over the sea, scattering brilliance across the waves.
Darwin Island returned to its lively rhythm, the previous day's thunderstorm washing everything anew.
Ren's mood was equally bright—he had just received Robin's transfer of funds.
Four hundred million Berries.
The stack on the table looked like a small mountain, and Nami's eyes immediately turned into glowing Beli signs.
"So much money! Hey, Ren! How much of this can I take? You said you'd pay me back triple, remember!?"
Ren had indeed borrowed from her and Nojiko earlier to fund his plan's key items.
And since her sister's money was her own—well, it was her loan.
And, of course—Nami never lent without interest. Triple repayment was her rule!
"You money-grubbing woman…" Zoro muttered, twitching his mouth.
They were shipmates—some things could be overlooked.But this one?
In the next instant, Nami's fist blurred through the air and cracked against his skull.
"I heard that! Paying back debts is basic morality!"
"And what the hell are you hitting me for!? You wanna fight, huh!?" Zoro roared, a green aura flaring faintly around him.
"Oh? The great swordsman wants to bully a poor little woman now?" Nami pouted, face full of faux innocence.
"What!? You're the one who started it!"
"Well maybe if you didn't say such nasty things! What's wrong with liking money? It's not like everyone's obsessed with swords like you!"
"That's it—we're fighting!"
"Enough, enough! Stop arguing!"
Nojiko intervened with a sigh.
Sure enough, Nami and Zoro were at it again. By now, it was practically a daily ritual.
A dull thunk followed by a hiss of pain confirmed the obvious—Zoro had lost again.
Ren didn't even have to look; Zoro was too honorable to ever hit a woman.
Nami knew it—and exploited it mercilessly.
Ren ignored the scuffle. "No splitting this time. I've got plans. Keep all the money together."
"Huh!?"
Nami slumped onto the sofa, sulking.
Zoro now sported two new lumps on his head, grumbling as Nojiko tried to soothe him.
Of course, she couldn't calm him—his frustration was with himself.
He had always fought female opponents with the blunt side of his blades, and it had cost him many a duel.
Even in the original timeline, that stubborn chivalry had slowly turned into resignation.
In matters of money, though, Ren had the final say.
After all, everyone here owed him something. In truth, he was their investor—the ultimate creditor.
As for why Nami, despite owing over three hundred million, still demanded triple repayment?
That was simple.
When she'd officially joined Ren's crew after losing all her private funds with the sinking of the Pipi Shrimp, she had negotiated to repay her debt through wages.
To seal the deal, she'd even gone so far as to don the "Succubus Angel" outfit she'd bought back in Loguetown—the one Ren had hidden under his bed ever since.
Just once—but enough to make him relent.
With everything settled, Ren turned to the next phase.
He poured the entire four hundred million into the system.
First priority: replenish consumables.
Mana Crystals. Redstone.
Mana Crystals were, without question, the foundation of his entire Thunder System.
Of all his planned combat styles, the Thunder build had been the first to fully come online—a battlefield of lightning.
Under a raging storm, everyone could fly at high speed using the Riptide Enchantment.Only Nami and Nojiko complained that the heavy rain impaired visibility.
Originally, the Gáe Bolg combined with the Loyalty, Riptide, and Channeling enchantmentshad already reached terrifying destructive potential.
Without even relying on a thunderstorm, one shot could kill a man—one shot per second.
But under thunderclouds, those spears became devastating bolts of divine punishment.
Each Thunder Spear exploded on impact,its area damage obliterating groups with ease.
Accuracy wasn't even required—near misses still paralyzed and killed.
With Riptide boosting speed, the attack paths became nearly impossible to predict.
According to Nojiko's observations—
Even agents like the Mr. 5 duo, with bounties in the tens of millions and Devil Fruit powers,had no answer to the relentless bombardment of thunder.
Explosions couldn't break the durable spears,and each discharge scattered electric arcs across the field.
A single spark was nothing—but sustained arcs formed paralysis zones.
It couldn't outright kill instantly,but the half-second spasms were fatal in battle.
Gem himself had died that way—his muscles locked by lightning,a single misstep sending the spear through his chest.
Ren's Electrocution Mark had finished off Zala and that okama agent—both strong,yet rendered helpless under lightning's domination.
Simply put,the Thunder System had no weaknesses—except its cost.
Its core fuel was Mana Crystals,and Ren's reserves were now empty.
His earlier plans had burned through all of them.
Now, with fresh funds,his first purchase was obvious—Mana Crystals.
The High-Tier VIP Roulette spun wildly, seventy million gone in minutes.
Dozens of glittering Mana Crystals appeared in the hall, alongside heaps of rare loot.
Forty Mana Crystals in total. Thirty bonus prizes of one million each.
(End of Chapter)