A subordinate force affiliated with the Red Hair Pirates had been completely wiped out by Jack's team due to conflicts of interest.
This was Shanks' justification for war.
Simple, wasn't it?
But on these seas, it was more than enough.
After exchanging Den Den Mushi contact numbers with Morgans, Kai lost interest in continuing to entangle with this troublesome news bird.
Instead, he pulled out his Den Den Mushi and called the Beast Pirates' executive vice-captain.
"Hello?" King's voice was as cold as always.
After Kai shared Morgans' intelligence, the other end of the call fell into brief silence, with only faint breathing audible through the connection.
After a while, King's calm voice spoke again. "Faster than I expected, but still within our predictions. When will you return?"
Kai thought briefly. "We'll depart tomorrow, arriving in Wano in five days at the earliest."
"I understand." He hung up directly without ceremony.
Kai put away the Den Den Mushi, his expression unreadable.
Actually, he wasn't too concerned about this development. He was more worried about the Beast Pirates suffering due to delayed intelligence.
Now it seemed Kaido and the others weren't entirely unprepared either.
Indeed, no one was a fool in this game.
Large-scale military operations were extremely difficult to completely hide from all interested parties, unless Shanks planned to launch a surprise attack using only his flagship, the Red Force.
"Kai-sama, what are your plans next?" Stussy stepped forward at the right moment, asking softly.
"To find Tesoro." Kai's lips curved into a meaningful arc. "To discuss a deal that could change the world."
Gran Tesoro reception hall.
Kai and Tesoro sat facing each other on luxurious sofas, the air filled with the scent of expensive cigars and vintage champagne.
"A deal?"
Tesoro swirled his crystal glass filled with golden liquid, his face showing just the right amount of confusion. "From what I know, isn't the Beast Pirates' weapons and Seastone trade fully delegated to Joker?"
He leaned forward slightly, showing calculated interest. "Are you planning to change partners? If so, I'd be very interested in discussing terms."
Though he and Doflamingo were business partners, wasn't backstabbing between allies perfectly normal in their world?
But Kai slowly shook his head. "No, we have no intention of changing partners. Doflamingo has always been very sensible in our dealings. What I want to discuss with you is something entirely different."
With that, he pulled out an ordinary-looking, sleeping Den Den Mushi from his chest and gently placed it on the golden coffee table between them.
As for why he wasn't approaching Doflamingo directly, Kai simply believed you shouldn't put all your eggs in one basket.
Moreover, Tesoro himself was one of the talents he wanted to recruit for future endeavors.
"Den Den Mushi?"
Tesoro glanced at the small creature, his tone becoming somewhat dismissive. "If the Beast Pirates need communication services, I can provide the best retail locations for free."
In his mind, how much profit could a mere Den Den Mushi business possibly generate?
The world's largest Den Den Mushi merchants had annual revenues of at most a few billion berries.
Such small profits weren't worth his personal involvement or attention.
Hearing this response, Kai chuckled with amusement. "Are you absolutely sure? The number of Den Den Mushi I can stably provide isn't exactly small."
"How many? One hundred? Two hundred?" Tesoro sipped his champagne dismissively, inwardly mocking Kai's apparent lack of business vision.
So much for Emperor pirate crews, getting their boss to personally negotiate over mere Den Den Mushi commerce.
"Five hundred, every six months." Kai calmly raised five fingers. "And that's just the ordinary communication models. Special types for imaging, surveillance, and monitoring aren't included in that count."
"Cough cough!"
Tesoro choked violently on the wine he'd just swallowed.
His female companion paled in fright, quickly pulling out an embroidered handkerchief to wipe his mouth.
"Are you serious?" Tesoro ignored his loss of composure, jerking his head up to stare at Kai with wide eyes.
"Of course."
Kai leaned back into the plush sofa, his posture completely relaxed. "The Beast Pirates have mastered the core technology for large-scale, stable Den Den Mushi breeding."
He paused, dropping news that made Tesoro's heart skip several beats. "Five hundred is just the beginning production run. If we expand our operations, one thousand, ten thousand, or even more are simply matters of time and resources."
Tesoro couldn't help but gasp audibly.
If Kai's words contained even a grain of truth, even with half the exaggeration squeezed out, it would be enough to completely overturn the world's entire communication landscape.
The wealth and power behind such a monopoly was truly immeasurable!
"I'll take this business."
Tesoro made his decision almost instantly, bursting into hearty laughter. "Thank you, Kai-san, for this incredible opportunity. I only need a ten percent profit share."
His mind was already racing with possibilities.
Once he controlled exclusive distribution rights to this revolutionary business, even if Gran Tesoro was no longer the world's number one entertainment city, he'd be confident in ensuring a steady stream of customers and revenue.
More importantly, this meant he'd be aboard the Beast Pirates' rapidly rising bandwagon.
Kai nodded slightly, directly agreeing to the terms.
As for voluntarily increasing the profit share? He wasn't feeling that generous.
He was even confident he could force Tesoro to take this business while making no profit or even accepting losses.
Of course, there was no need to push a potential ally to such extremes.
"Pleasant cooperation."
Kai raised his refilled glass, lightly clinking it with Tesoro's. "My only requirement for you is this: make Den Den Mushi completely widespread across these seas."
"My ultimate goal is for every family, even every individual person, to own at least one."
Tesoro's smile instantly froze, his brow furrowing tightly with concern. "With all due respect, Kai-san, that's extremely difficult to achieve. There are too many poor people scattered across the seas. Having them spend hundreds of thousands or millions of berries on a Den Den Mushi is completely unrealistic."
"Then." Kai smiled mysteriously, his eyes gleaming with hidden knowledge. "What if Den Den Mushi prices dropped to one hundred thousand berries, or even ten thousand berries each?"
"That would be even more economically thankless." Tesoro blurted out, his face full of genuine confusion.
This was clearly an exclusive, monopolistic business opportunity.
Others simply didn't possess the Beast Pirates' technological advantages.
How could wild capture efficiency possibly compare to large-scale artificial breeding programs?
They could clearly sell Den Den Mushi at luxury prices without worrying about sales volume. Why voluntarily abandon most profits for a high-volume, low-margin approach?
This business strategy wasn't capitalist thinking at all.
"No, no, no, Tesoro, your vision is being blinded by immediate monetary gains."
Kai raised a finger, gently waving it before the golden emperor, his tone carrying condescending scrutiny. "Don't you think this world is far too quiet and monotonous?"
This sea's isolation between individual islands was truly indescribable. Even neighboring islands rarely had meaningful opportunities to communicate with each other.
"Think carefully, Tesoro! Once everyone possesses a Den Den Mushi, how incredibly interconnected will the world's information and communication networks become! Can't you see the immense business opportunities this development contains?!"
Kai suddenly stood up, arms spread wide, eyes burning with fervent vision. "Take the simplest example: a star who was once only famous within her home country or island could instantly have her voice and dance performances seen by hundreds of millions worldwide through Den Den Mushi broadcasts!"
"Her fame and influence would expand beyond anything previously imaginable!"
"Broadcasting... worldwide..." Tesoro's eyes widened as Kai's words became a key, instantly unlocking a corner of his heart that had been completely buried beneath mountains of gold.
"Your voice is wonderful, Tesoro."
In his treasured memories, a blonde woman with the warmest smile said gently, "You'll definitely become a big star someday."
Tesoro closed his eyes tightly, took a shuddering breath, and forcibly pushed back the bitter tears threatening to spill from his eyes.
He was now the famous Golden Emperor. He absolutely couldn't afford to display such emotional weakness.
Kai's impassioned speech continued without pause. "No matter how packed your giant ship becomes, how many guests can it realistically hold? Tens of thousands? Hundreds of thousands? The market that Den Den Mushi technology brings us is the entire world!"
"Whether having stars broadcast live performances for donations or merchants broadcast product demonstrations and sales, the prospects are unimaginably vast and profitable!"
"Even just collecting tiny handling fees from each transaction, the accumulated wealth would make even your current fortune tremble in comparison!"
Den Den Mushi's current market positioning was like the brick phones of Kai's previous life. Very few people owned them due to cost and scarcity.
Kai's ambitious plan was to directly skip intermediate stages and enter the smartphone internet era of his previous world. That represented a truly vast blue ocean of untapped potential.
Moreover, widespread Den Den Mushi adoption carried strategic significance far beyond mere monetary profits.
It meant he would control the world's most powerful communications network, capable of delivering unexpected devastating blows to the World Government at critical moments, just like certain influential figures had done in the past.
Commercial profits alone weren't worth Kai's direct personal involvement.
"Very tempting prospects, I must admit. This isn't merely a castle built in the air. It could actually be realized with proper execution. But..."
Tesoro forced himself to recover from his initial shock, grasping the core issue with business-minded precision. "Why me specifically?"
There was no logical reason for such a tremendous windfall to fall directly into his lap.
Quick to sober up from excitement, as expected of a successful businessman.
Kai smiled slightly, returning to the sofa and elegantly crossing his legs. "Two primary reasons. First, you're a genuinely rare commercial genius. I recognize and respect your abilities. This undertaking requires exactly your particular talents."
"As for the second reason..."
Kai deliberately drew out his words, glancing meaningfully at Tesoro's various subordinates standing at attention nearby. "Have these irrelevant people leave us."
"Everyone out."
Tesoro remained silent for a long moment, then waved his hand with authority.
He had a growing feeling that Kai's next words would directly determine the course of his future path.
The heavy golden doors slowly closed with a resonant thud.
Soon, only Kai and Tesoro remained in the vast, opulent reception hall.
"Kai-san, may I ask about the second reason now?" Tesoro leaned forward slightly, narrowing his eyes with anticipation.
Kai mirrored his posture, hands crossed under his chin, smiling with absolute confidence. "The second reason is naturally because we share common, fundamental interests that run deeper than business."
"Common interests? You mean making money?" Tesoro frowned with confusion.
"No. It's pulling down those self-proclaimed gods, the insufferably lofty Celestial Dragons!"
Kai's voice suddenly turned murderous as he stared directly at Tesoro, dangerous predators lurking in his eyes.
Tesoro startled visibly, his wine glass unconsciously shaking as some amber liquid spilled onto his expensive suit, but he was too distracted by the implications to care.
"That kind of joke isn't funny at all, Kai-san."
Tesoro feigned composure, though his voice carried a slight tremor. "Those are the Creator's descendants, the supreme Celestial Dragons! We businesspeople are too busy trying to please them and earn their favor. How could we possibly dare..."
"Is that so?" Kai looked at Tesoro with growing disappointment, slowly shaking his head, his eyes full of undisguised contempt.
"So you've forgotten about Stella's revenge."
BANG!
Tesoro's head snapped up, extreme shock making his fingers lose all control as the expensive wine glass shattered completely in his grip, glass shards and wine splattering everywhere.
"What! What did you just say? You knew Stella?!"
Tesoro completely lost his carefully maintained composure, even forgetting respectful honorifics as he shot to his feet, his entire body trembling from violent emotions threatening to overwhelm him.
"I know a little about her story. She was a gentle, kind girl who tragically died from a Celestial Dragon's casual whim. But you seem to have forgotten her completely, wallowing in wine and pleasure instead."
Kai's words were deliberately full of cold mockery and cutting contempt.
"You're lying!" Tesoro's forehead veins bulged prominently as he let out a beast-like growl of pure rage.
Under violent emotional turmoil, all the golden objects throughout the hall began stirring restlessly, responding to his awakened Devil Fruit powers.
Tesoro had temporarily forgotten Kai's identity and terrifying reputation, roaring with uncontained fury. "You outsider, how could you possibly understand what Stella meant to me?! How dare you question my feelings for her?!"
"I haven't forgotten for a single day! Not for even a moment!"
Tesoro spread his arms wide, his face becoming as fierce as a demon's. "Let me show you the results of my years of relentless effort and training!"
Instantly, all the gold throughout the hall surged toward Kai like a bursting flood of molten lava.
However, just before the golden tsunami could close around him, Kai vanished completely from his position.
The next moment, he appeared directly before Tesoro, staring into his eyes while completely ignoring the golden avalanche behind him.
"Awakening your Devil Fruit in just a few years? Not bad progress at all. And then what? Continue doing business and making money? Collecting gold to eventually fight the Celestial Dragons?"
Kai pointed directly at Tesoro's chest, enunciating each word with devastating clarity. "Ask your heart honestly. Do you truly dare challenge them now?"
"I!" Tesoro was about to reflexively argue, but his throat felt strangled by an invisible hand, unable to squeeze out the remaining words he desperately wanted to say.
After a long, tense moment, all his accumulated momentum deflated like a punctured balloon, his raised arms falling powerlessly as only immense bewilderment and crushing dejection remained on his features.
Then he stared at Kai with hollow eyes, muttering words that seemed directed both at convincing Kai and desperately convincing himself. "What else can I realistically do? The Celestial Dragons are so incredibly powerful... they have complete Marine protection! What can my limited strength possibly accomplish? I can only keep making money, keep accumulating power and influence..."
"Pathetic excuses!"
Kai ruthlessly exposed the truth. "Luxurious living is gradually corrupting your spirit. Your flames of revenge are steadily dimming with each passing day."
"No! I haven't..."
Tesoro roared like a cornered wild beast, trying to prove himself through sheer volume and intensity.
"As long as I keep making money, controlling the world's berries... no, even just half of them... I can make even Celestial Dragons kneel before me in submission."
"Delusional pipe dreams."
Kai snorted coldly with derision. "Money is merely an accessory to real power. Don't you even understand this most basic principle?"
"On these seas, only absolute power serves as the foundation that dominates everything else."
In Kai's experienced view, Tesoro's twisted logic represented nothing more than elaborate self-comfort after his ideals had been thoroughly shattered by harsh reality.