In the New World, aboard the Whitebeard Pirates' Moby Dick.
All members of the Whitebeard Pirates had gathered on the ship today for a grand banquet.
The endless wars preceding this moment had kept the various division commanders fighting across distant territories, rarely gathering around Newgate.
Now both sides were preparing for the decisive battle. With no active combat, this represented an excellent opportunity to assemble like this.
At the same time, before battle commenced, they needed to gather everyone together and provide a proper feast.
The Second Division, ever since Kozuki Oden's death, had lacked an official captain on Newgate's ship.
Therefore, until now, the Second Division was loosely led by veteran crew member Teach.
Although he wasn't the actual captain, everyone in the Second Division deferred to him due to his seniority.
Because of the impending direct confrontation with Kaido, Newgate had also received news related to Wano Country.
He'd learned that his former close friend, Kozuki Oden—the former Second Division Captain—had been killed by Kaido.
Old man Whitebeard had nearly vomited blood upon learning this. In fact, this was one of the primary reasons he'd committed to war against Kaido and Big Mom.
He wanted to avenge Kozuki Oden.
The Moby Dick was massive. The deck area was spacious enough to accommodate these pirates for eating and drinking.
Among the crowd on deck at this moment, Rob Lucci—the young man Finn had planted as an undercover agent with the Whitebeard Pirates years ago—had grown into a twenty-year-old adult.
There was no sign whatsoever of him being an infiltrator. After living on Whitebeard's ship for so many years, he looked like a genuine pirate.
However, Lucci was remarkably handsome and well-featured, so he still stood out among this group of rough-looking men.
After Lucci had arrived on Newgate's ship, he'd joined the Second Division. Sitting beside him was the future Blackbeard, Marshall D. Teach.
Before revealing his true ambitions, Teach maintained the persona of a good-natured man on the ship, maintaining positive relationships with everyone.
Whether this was to establish his character or for some other reason remained unclear.
In any case, he took excellent care of Lucci.
Therefore, their relationship was quite strong.
Lucci was an Zoan Devil Fruit user—a carnivorous one at that. Furthermore, he possessed tremendous combat talent and had received Marine training since childhood, so he hadn't been hindered by conditions aboard Newgate's ship.
On the contrary, he'd experienced battles of all sizes, enriching his practical combat experience.
Nowadays, in terms of strength, he could be considered among the most outstanding members of the Whitebeard Pirates.
This was despite him concealing some of his capabilities. After all, it wasn't convenient to use the Marines' Six Powers techniques as a pirate.
To be honest, he'd developed genuine affection for the Whitebeard Pirates over the years. After all, the internal atmosphere among the crew was genuinely excellent.
But fortunately, Lucci was stubborn at his core. Although he felt attachment to these people, he understood he ultimately walked a different path from them. He was a Marine.
And he would carry out his dark justice as an undercover Marine agent.
"Alas, once war starts, we won't see such lively scenes anymore. I don't know if we'll have another chance to gather here for a banquet in the future..." Teach sighed with seemingly genuine melancholy.
If you didn't know him, you might think he maintained deep bonds with these brothers and profound feelings for the Whitebeard Pirates.
Lucci held a wine bowl in his hand and took a long sip. "You pay for what you've done sooner or later. As pirates, aren't we all risking our lives constantly? If we want to eat meat and drink wine to our hearts' content, if we want to establish ourselves firmly in the New World and build our reputation, how can we do it without fighting for our lives?"
"You pay for what you've done sooner or later... Hahahaha, well said! Zehahahaha!" Teach laughed.
Yes, sooner or later you paid for what you'd done.
In fact, Teach sometimes considered that if he couldn't find the Dark-Dark Fruit, perhaps he'd simply die under Whitebeard's flag on this ship. Wouldn't that be acceptable?
That's right—even though Teach would turn ruthless after obtaining the Dark-Dark Fruit, willing to kill his comrades without hesitation and betray his father figure...
Before he actually acquired the Dark-Dark Fruit, Teach was genuinely gambling. If he lost the bet, he truly planned to serve under Newgate for life.
"Speaking of which, your bounty increased again, Lucci. Two hundred fifty million berries. 'Killing Machine'... You're too ruthless. I've rarely seen anyone survive encounters with you." Teach smiled, glancing at Lucci beside him.
Lucci's methods were indeed brutal. This might relate to his personality, or perhaps he was venting internal pressure.
Not many people knew Lucci's true identity—only Fleet Admiral Sengoku, Chief Instructor Zephyr, and a few others.
To reduce the risk of Lucci's exposure, they hadn't even informed the rest of the Marines. So there was nothing inflated about Lucci's bounty. It had been earned through genuine pirate-style actions.
"Bounties are meaningless. It's enough to have Pops' name protecting us. Isn't that what you taught me, Senior Teach?" Lucci smiled.
He felt increasingly certain that Teach was no ordinary person.
After all, the fact that Admiral Finn had noticed Teach proved he wasn't common.
As a result, after getting to know him gradually, Lucci discovered how extraordinarily strong this man was—something beyond his initial imagination.
It seemed that every time Teach faced an enemy, he appeared to give maximum effort, barely defeating his opponent through good fortune.
Initially, Lucci had been genuinely fooled. But since Lucci had come here specifically to monitor Teach, after several encounters, he'd noticed something wrong.
This guy acted the same way when facing strong opponents and weak opponents alike.
Over time, Lucci realized that even with his current strength, he couldn't truly see through Teach's capabilities. There was no doubt—Teach's strength definitely exceeded his imagination.
This was just the first point.
What made Lucci feel even more absurd was that this bastard Teach had been on Whitebeard's ship for so many years, with his subordinates all carrying high bounties, yet he still maintained a bounty of zero.
In other words, the moment Teach left the Whitebeard Pirates' ship, he'd be a law-abiding citizen.
Who would suspect he was a veteran who'd served on Whitebeard's ship for over ten years?
Therefore, Lucci couldn't understand why Teach concealed himself so thoroughly.
If being a pirate wasn't for fame or profit, wouldn't it be better to go home and farm sweet potatoes?
What a waste of his strength.
Moreover, how had such an unknown person attracted Admiral Finn's attention?
And why had the Admiral arranged for him to monitor Teach so seriously?
Just because of some hypothetical Dark-Dark Fruit?
What kind of logic was that?
Over the years, Lucci couldn't figure it out. So he'd simply stopped overthinking and just followed the Admiral's arrangements.
"Zehahahaha, you envious? I don't have a bounty. This is my lifestyle. When I get older, I'll simply leave the ship and integrate into any environment as an ordinary person. I feel excited just thinking about it. Zehahaha!" Teach laughed heartily.
It seemed this was the reasoning and excuse he'd established on the Whitebeard Pirates' ship.
The other Whitebeard Pirates members didn't find anything wrong with his "lack of ambition."
After all, not everyone had to remain a pirate until death or old age.
Look at former legends like Silvers Rayleigh and others who'd once rampaged across the seas. Weren't they retired now?
Even on the Whitebeard Pirates' ship, many people harbored similar thoughts. When they grew old, they'd collect their share and retire peacefully.
In his heart, Lucci disagreed completely with what Teach said. But externally, he raised his chin with deliberate disdain. "I'm different. I will become a great pirate in the future!"
"Zehahahaha, then I wish your dream comes true!" Teach laughed.
Actually, Teach had selfish motives for taking such excellent care of Lucci.
On one hand, as a Second Division veteran, caring for his teammates was reasonable. There was nothing questionable about it.
On the other hand, when Lucci had boarded the ship, he'd still been a teenager, only in his early teens. It had been Teach taking care of him the entire time. Therefore, in Teach's eyes, he was also Lucci's mentor figure.
At the same time, he highly recognized Lucci's talent and abilities, understanding this young man hadn't reached his peak yet. Judging by his age, there'd be no problem with him becoming a division commander-level figure comparable to the Whitebeard Pirates' best in the future.
In other words, Lucci was worth nurturing and recruiting.
In Teach's assessment, his relationship with Lucci was undoubtedly the strongest on the entire ship. If he truly found the Dark-Dark Fruit in the future and went independent, perhaps he could recruit Lucci as a powerful subordinate.
Considering the feelings and relationship between them, there should be no problem, right?
In fact, until now, Teach had only contemplated going independent after finding the Dark-Dark Fruit. He hadn't considered killing his comrades on the ship, much less betraying Pops so suddenly.
It was just that circumstances changed too rapidly. Plans couldn't keep pace with changes.
"By the way, that matter you told me about before..." Lucci suddenly said.
Upon hearing this, Teach covered Lucci's mouth with his hand and whispered urgently, "Didn't I tell you not to leak it? I was planning to give everyone a surprise later..."
That's right. Teach hadn't told anyone about his search for the Dark-Dark Fruit—except for Lucci, the young man he'd raised.
After all, Teach genuinely trusted and valued Lucci highly.
Of course, he'd only told Lucci that he wanted to find the Dark-Dark Fruit, become an ability user, and surprise his comrades on the ship.
Lucci broke free from Teach's hand and whispered, "Don't worry, I haven't told anyone..."
Teach nodded. Seeing that no one around was paying attention to them, he asked, "What's wrong? Do you have news?"
When this topic arose, Teach's eyes sparkled with excitement.
Lucci shook his head slightly, then whispered, "Some related information. I heard that certain people are also actively searching for the Dark-Dark Fruit recently..."
Teach's expression shifted. A dark, murderous look flashed through his eyes before he quickly returned to normal. He whispered, "Who is it? Who else shares my vision and desires the Dark-Dark Fruit?"
"It seems to be that Heavenly Yaksha. Do you know him? He wields tremendous power in the underworld and is also the largest Devil Fruit dealer in the dark world. Not long ago, he apparently spent 200 million berries to obtain a Flame-Flame Fruit. Now, he's even posted a bounty of five hundred million berries in the underworld, specifically searching for someone to acquire the Dark-Dark Fruit..." Lucci spoke quietly.
"Doflamingo?" Teach looked mildly surprised.
Isn't he a Devil Fruit user himself?
Why would he still search for the Dark-Dark Fruit?
Did someone commission him?
"Five hundred million berries?" Teach murmured. Everyone on the Whitebeard Pirates' ship lived modestly, and Teach was no exception. Otherwise, he would've wanted to post a bounty in the underworld himself.
Anyway, if asked to spend five hundred million to obtain the Dark-Dark Fruit right now, he couldn't do it.
Because he had no money.
After considering for a moment, Teach whispered to Lucci, "Please keep monitoring this Heavenly Yaksha for me. If you have any news, tell me immediately."
Lucci didn't refuse. He nodded casually. "Understood. But does it have to be the Dark-Dark Fruit? Nothing else works?"
"Nothing else works. I'm betting my entire life on this Devil Fruit. Otherwise, I'd rather not be an ability user at all." Teach spoke carelessly.
There was nothing to hide about this because it was normal behavior.
It was said many people were still frantically searching for Shiki's Float-Float Fruit. Being determined not to settle for other abilities was quite common.