"You...!" The face projected by the Den Den Mushi—an old man with crescent-shaped hair and dark sunglasses—was twisted in fury.
Standing nearby, Alpha broke into a cold sweat. Was she even allowed to hear this? That man... he actually dared to insult the Five Elders.
Normally so arrogant, she now shrank like a frightened quail, silent and still, terrified of drawing the attention of either side.
Watching Leno curse at the Den Den Mushi without a trace of fear, Alpha's eyes were filled with awe. What a terrifying man. She secretly swore never to provoke this monster.
"Enough with the chitchat. If you've got something to say, spit it out! I've got no patience for you old fossils."
These geezers again. If he hadn't been in such a hurry to relocate Amazon Lily last time, Leno would've loved to drop by Mary Geoise and breathe a few dragon blasts into the place.
From the Den Den Mushi came several deep, angry inhalations before a voice finally replied.
"Adventurer Leno, we hope you'll refrain from further excessive actions against the World Government. In return, we will no longer interfere in certain... matters of yours."
"Oh? You make it sound like I started this. Let's get something straight—you're the ones who provoked me first, even kidnapped my family to threaten me. Now you want to sweep it all under the rug? Bit late for that, don't you think?"
As soon as he finished, the Den Den Mushi's face shifted into a bald man with glasses, his tone sharp with fury.
"Adventurer Leno, we're giving you the honor of negotiating with us. Don't think we're powerless. The World Government's resources are beyond your imagination."
"Oooh, soft talk didn't work, so now you're trying the hard way, huh? I heard Mary Geoise is a beautiful place. Wonder if it'll look even better with a dozen islands crashing down on it."
"How dare you—!" The Den Den Mushi's face flickered rapidly, showing all five of the old men in turn.
It wasn't hard to imagine their expressions—furious, humiliated. No one had ever dared to threaten them so openly.
But truth be told, there was nothing they could do about Leno right now. Not with that troublesome Float-Float Fruit of his.
And with the speed of his Rumble-Rumble Fruit—almost instantaneous movement—if he really decided to go after the World Government, they'd be powerless to stop him.
It was humiliating. They'd even received word that Leno had relocated his homeland. After much deliberation, this call had been their reluctant solution.
Now, hearing Leno threaten to drop a dozen islands on Mary Geoise, their hearts pounded with fury... and a trace of fear.
"What's there to be afraid of? I'm an unattached person now, but you guys are different—things like the Heavenly Tribute, the supply routes—none of that interests me one bit."
Leno lazily listed off the lifelines of the World Government, watching their impotent rage with amusement.
"Enough! Adventurer Leno, stop your nonsense. Name your terms—we'll consider them." The crescent-haired, glasses-wearing face reappeared, shouting in anger.
Leno smirked. "Well, I've always had a fondness for Devil Fruits. I heard your World Government has quite the collection. How about giving me... oh, 8 or 10 of them? Let me broaden my horizons."
"Impossible! Don't push your luck—we can't hand over that many Devil Fruits!"
The immediate rejection was sharp and panicked. After a pause, another voice continued, reluctantly.
"We can give you five. Animal-type only."
"Fine, five it is. But they'd better all be Ancient Zoans. Otherwise, no deal."
Silence. Then, after a long moment, one dry wordscame through the Den Den Mushi: "...Agreed."
The line went dead.
Clearly, they didn't want to say another word to him.
With a chuckle, Leno tossed the Den Den Mushi to the dumbstruck Alpha and turned toward Nami and the others.
But after a few steps, he looked back. "Oh, right—Kalifa. She's your sister or your cousin again?"
"Huh? What?" Alpha blinked, startled, then quickly replied, "Oh, she's my older sister."
"I see."
Watching Leno's departing back, Alpha lowered her head in thought. Why did he suddenly ask about Kalifa? Did something happen between them that I don't know about?
When Leno returned, Nami and the others immediately surrounded him, bombarding him with questions.
"You big dummy, who were you talking to just now?"
"Who else? Those five old geezers on Mary Geoise."
"The Five Elders?!!!"
Everyone froze in shock. The Five Elders?! Hancock's eyes sparkled with admiration.
"W-what did they want? Don't tell me the last incident isn't over yet!"
Nami's voice trembled slightly. It made sense—the chaos they caused at Marineford had been enormous.
Hearing her worry, the others' faces also turned uneasy.
"What? Nah—they wanted to make peace."
"Peace?!"
Nami gave him a look like he'd lost his mind. "You're insane. Those are the Five Elders! After everything you did, they'd rather die than 'make peace' with you!"
"Tch, fine then. Don't believe me. Not like I care." Leno shrugged and walked ahead, clearly unbothered.
But beside him, Hancock threw her arms around his, eyes full of adoration. "As expected of Lord Leno."
Robin nodded thoughtfully. "It's not impossible. They can't deal with us right now, and they're afraid we'll retaliate. Making peace does make sense."
Leno felt speechless looking at their skeptical faces: "You don't believe me, do you? You'll know later. I'm too lazy to bother with you."
Before they could go far, a massive shadow appeared before them.
Bartholomew Kuma.
His towering figure radiated pressure, making Chopper and Carmen instinctively huddle close to Leno, watching warily.
But Kuma made no threatening move. Instead, he bowed slightly and said, "Thank you, Adventurer Leno."
Then, without another word, his figure vanished.
"???"
Chopper and Carmen stared blankly. What just happened? We were ready to cling to Leno's leg—and he's gone?
Nami stepped forward confidently. "I know about this! The big dummy said before that Bonney is Kuma's daughter. He probably came to thank us for helping her."
"I see... so Bonney is Kuma's... d-daughter?" Hearing Nami's explanation, Chopper and Carmen exchanged looks and breathed a sigh of relief. But as they processed the words, their eyes widened.
"Nani?!!!"