“Listen to this first.”
Anyone could tell something was off about Rocks.
That impatience didn’t fit his usual composure.
So Charlotte Linlin took out a Den Den Mushi.
It was a specially modified recording-type Den Den Mushi, used to play back recorded messages.
This model was fairly large—much bigger than a standard Den Den Mushi—and was usually installed in surveillance rooms alongside visual Den Den Mushi.
But in Linlin’s hands, the size looked almost fitting.
After a quick adjustment from Linlin, a recorded voice began playing in the room.
At the same time, everyone received a printed intelligence report.
“Cough, cough.
Whoever is receiving this message, I guarantee everything I’m about to say is true!
This is a slave transport ship of the Celestial Dragons.
They are holding a game for their own amusement.
Treasure, Devil Fruits, and special slaves are the prizes.
Each of those treasure chests is worth at least one billion berries!
Their destination is God Valley in the West Blue.
The exact coordinates are…”
A low female voice spoke rapidly, laying out the situation in detail.
There was no pleading, no crying for help—only information about the value of what was on that island.
With the World Government leading and the Navy escorting them, those who constantly preached “justice” were the very ones running this death game.
She understood perfectly that the only thing she could rely on was greed.
Money moved hearts.
If the reward was high enough, someone would take the risk.
Chaos was the only chance of escape.
“Isn’t this way too suspicious?
Where did this information come from?” Wang Zhi asked, clearly unconvinced.
Buckingham Stussy suspected it might be someone within the Navy whose conscience had started to crack, leaking the information.
But most of them… had their attention elsewhere.
“Shakky is alive!”
“Where is she?!”
“Idiot, didn’t it say God Valley?!”
“I’m asking where God Valley is!
I’m not a navigator—who knows coordinates like that?!”
Amid the chaotic shouting, a few people were still analyzing the situation.
“So it was the World Government bastards who took Shakky?!
No, of course it was them… no wonder my channels couldn’t find her…” Ganzui muttered.
As a smuggler deeply entrenched in the underworld, he controlled many secret routes.
After Shakky’s disappearance, none of his contacts along those routes had reported anything—which had frustrated him for a long time.
“So what now?
We’re going to take Shakky back?”
“You idiot Silver Axe, what kind of question is that?
Of course we are.
Maybe she’ll fall in love with whoever rescues her.”
Shiki immediately shot down Silver Axe’s comment—but was quickly rebutted himself.
“No, forget Shakky, what about the treasure?!
She should fall for whoever gets the most treasure!”
That was Captain John, infamous for his greed.
Compared to Shakky, the priceless treasure clearly mattered more to him.
The discussion spiraled rapidly around Shakky, as the meeting gradually drifted off-topic—slowly turning into something resembling a “sexual repression support group.”
“Once we rescue Shakky… Roger will thank me too…”
That was Gloriosa’s thought.
She was deeply infatuated with Gol D.
Roger.
Since Shakky came from Amazon Lily and had once been her vice-captain and heir to the throne, rescuing her was only natural.
Buckingham Stussy had no interest in Shakky, but she did care about the treasure.
She was about to discuss a joint raid with Whitebeard when he spoke first.
“As a friend, I think we should go save her.
If she ends up falling in love with me because of it, I wouldn’t mind.”
“Newgate, what are you even talking about?!”
Rocks remained silent.
But the coordinates alone confirmed it.
God Valley.
His homeland.
Unlike the chaotic magnetic fields of the Grand Line, navigation in the Four Seas still relied on relatively normal compass readings.
That meant those coordinates were unmistakably familiar to him.
Charlotte Linlin, however, did not join the noise.
Instead, she walked over to Nereus.
“Nereus, let’s form a temporary alliance.”
“I was probably the first to receive this message.
But the way it’s spreading is crude—others must have noticed it too.”
“The Navy, the Celestial Dragons, and a bunch of pirates… that island is going to be chaos.
Let’s team up, take the Devil Fruits and treasure first, then split everything afterward.”
Among everyone here, she found Nereus the most trustworthy—relatively speaking.
In a crew like the Rocks Pirates, everyone had to watch their backs.
Even Rocks himself wasn’t an exception.
Linlin had even warned Kaido before not to trust anyone too easily.
“I don’t mind.
A temporary alliance works.”
Nereus accepted.
He already knew how God Valley would end, though not the finer details.
That was enough for now.
“Hold on, Nereus, Linlin—you’re both ability users, right?
Devil Fruits won’t do anything for you anymore!”
“Kaido, what are you talking about?
Even if you don’t eat them, you can sell them.
A rare fruit like that would fetch a fortune on the black market.”
Nereus glanced at Kaido.
Among the men present—aside from Rocks and himself—Kaido was the only one completely unaffected by Shakky’s so-called “curse.”
He wasn’t interested in women at all.
Only in raw strength and Devil Fruits.
Still, in Nereus’s eyes, his logic was flawed.
“If that’s the case, count me in.
I only need one.”
Kaido put himself forward.
In the original timeline, without Nereus’s involvement, Linlin would have temporarily partnered with Kaido.
That alliance would later fall apart when Kaido betrayed her and stole the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon.
Now, Linlin had a better option—and had no need to actively seek Kaido out.
But Kaido came to her anyway.
Bang!
“Enough!”
Before Nereus or Linlin could respond, Rocks slammed his fist onto the table.
The stone table instantly cracked in all directions, on the verge of collapsing.
“Dividing the spoils now is too early!
Listen up, everyone—Shakky, treasure, Devil Fruits… none of it is in our hands yet.”
“We’ll form a temporary alliance and take everything first.
We’ll decide how to split it later.
Any objections?”
“The cowards can stay on the island.
Anyone going to God Valley—get ready to sail.”