Gulu gulu.
Bzzz.
"Moshi moshi. Long time no see, Five Elders."
The Den Den Mushi perfectly mimicked the expression of the Five Elders on the other end—an old man with a bushy white beard, his face twisted in anger.
"Doflamingo, recognize your place. Otherwise, the next time we see your name, it will be on a Marine bounty poster."
The Den Den Mushi then mirrored Doflamingo's amused smirk.
"Oh? And what exactly is my place? A Celestial Dragon? Or do you plan to return the Donquixote family's chip to me?"
His condescending tone made the Five Elders seethe with rage.
"Why did you do this?" The long-haired, long-bearded Elder spoke, his expression as blank as ever.
But to Doflamingo, their intimidation meant nothing.
"I just went home to pick up a few things. Some foolish servants tried to stop me, so I dealt with them accordingly. Besides, isn't Vegapunk worth far more than a few dead guards? Don't be so stingy—think bigger."
"You're challenging the authority of the World Government—eight hundred years of power, Donquixote Doflamingo! You're betraying the legacy of the twenty-three kings!"
"Fuffuffuffuffu. Legacy? So, I really do have the same filthy blood as you?" Doflamingo sneered.
"Then why was I forced to struggle in this wretched world?"
He let out a mocking laugh. The ancestors he acknowledged were certainly not the ones in Mary Geoise.
And as for his mother's suffering... with two minds in one body, he remembered every bit of it all too well.
We don't want to hear this!!!
On the ship's deck, the crew huddled together in sheer panic. If they could, they would have ripped off their own ears to avoid hearing this conversation.
Words like status,home, and servants made their hearts race.
Unfortunately, Doflamingo had bound them tightly with his threads, making it impossible to even cover their ears.
"Enough with this pointless argument, Five Elders. Let's talk about something more interesting. Seastone—surely that piques your interest, doesn't it? I've discovered a new supply chain."
Doflamingo cut through their nonsense. These five old men just wanted to save face. If they really had the guts, they could come up to Skypiea and kill him themselves.
A brief silence followed.
"Name your terms."
No matter the era, powerful Devil Fruit users were always the biggest threat on the seas. Many of them became pirates, and the best way to counter them was with Seastone. A new acquisition method was worth considering.
"Fuffuffuffuffu. My request is simple. I already have the scientists from Punk Hazard. Now, all I need is some detailed research data from their experiments."
Most of Punk Hazard's experiments were failures, but that didn't matter. As long as the data on Vegapunk's perfected artificial Devil Fruits remained, it was enough.
Caesar and Judge should be able to replicate at least some of it.
"Impossible. We can let you handle the slave trade in Sabaody—you understand their value." The Elder with the handlebar mustache rejected him outright.
Punk Hazard's research contained countless unspeakable experiments. Even if Caesar and the kidnapped scientists could recreate some of them, if Doflamingo leaked the details, the World Government's reputation would be in shambles.
Doflamingo was momentarily stunned.
Wait, what?
Do they still think I actually care about life in Mary Geoise? That I'm obsessed with playing slave master?
I want power, not playthings.
Raising an eyebrow, he let out a mocking laugh.
"No, no, no. I have no interest in being a supplier for those bloated pigs. That's worthless to me."
"Then what exactly do you want, Doflamingo?"
The Five Elders were growing increasingly irritated. First, he refused the deal, now he was playing hard to get? Even if what he said was true, it wasn't his place to judge.
And those who lose their status... always crave what they once had.
They're this desperate, yet still negotiating?
Looks like Kaido's control over Wano isn't going as smoothly as they'd like. Seastone's value just went up.
Doflamingo's grin widened.
"Fuffuffuffuffu. I have no interest in money. Exchange it for Devil Fruits and gold instead. In addition to my share of the profits, I only ask for a little something—a legal trade license and some private time with Vegapunk."
To the World Government, money was meaningless. If needed, they could just print more, inflation be damned.
But Devil Fruits were priceless, and gold had special properties.
As for Vegapunk? Controlling him meant controlling all technology in this world.
"Gold and Devil Fruits—we can agree to that. But Vegapunk is out of the question. Pick something else, Doflamingo."
The Five Elders refused without hesitation. No one understood Vegapunk's value better than they did. Not even for Seastone would they hand him over.
Doflamingo had expected this. So, he smoothly changed the subject.
"Then call off those mutts sniffing around me. Vice Admiral Tsuru, in particular, is far too energetic for her age."
From the start, he hadn't expected to get Vegapunk. It was a long shot. But he had backup plans.
Bringing up this demand was purely to break the ice—to push negotiations further.
If the Marines backed off, it would make his operations much smoother.
Lately, Tsuru's purging of the North Blue had seriously hurt the Donquixote Family's arms trade.
Thankfully, he had found some compensation on Skypiea.
Tsuru's an old woman already... So what does that make us? A bunch of immortals?
The Five Elders frowned but remained silent.
Finally, the bald, sword-wielding Elder spoke.
"Fine. In exchange, Germa 66 will cease all unprovoked attacks on World Government nations in the North Blue."
"Of course. That's fair. We'll meet in Sabaody."
Doflamingo accepted without hesitation.
Restraining Germa 66 was meaningless to him.
Anyone in the North Blue who dared oppose him was already gone.
Besides, he had completed his initial accumulation of power and secured his future. Otherwise, he wouldn't have moved Germa 66 to Skypiea.
The so-called peace in the North Blue? That was just the result of Tsuru's Wash-Wash Fruit.
By controlling the arms supply, he could plunge the region into chaos anytime he wanted—just to remind them who truly ruled the underworld.
Not all kings and nobles were righteous.
And in this twisted world, everyone had their own desires.
Besides... they only agreed to stop in North Blue.
No one said anything about attacking elsewhere.
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+100 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg