The moment Doflamingo spotted the Buggy Pirates, he ordered his men to prepare for battle. The Donquixote Family had quite a few members under his command. None of their bounties had crossed ten million yet, but together they were still a formidable force.
But right now, every one of them was on full alert.
Because what they were about to face was likely the entire Buggy Pirates.
The Buggy Pirates had actually risen to fame much later than the Donquixote Family. It was only last year, when they burned Big Mom's flag, that they made a name for themselves. Logically, they shouldn't have been a match for the Donquixote Family, which had been building power for years.
But the Buggy Pirates could really fight. Doflamingo had just heard that, allied with a few other pirate rookie crews, they had beaten down the Charlotte Family's finest creation.
How were they supposed to fight that?
Doflamingo might be arrogant, but he knew his limits. Honestly, he was absolutely no match for Charlotte Katakuri. If the two sides accidentally clashed, his only move would be to swallow his pride and avoid a fight.
Sure, the Donquixote Family had torn things up in Paradise and across the Four Seas. But over in the New World, they were really just a second-rate pirate crew.
Inazuma's Fatui executives, Big Mom's Sweet Commanders, the top-ranking Whitebeard Pirates division commanders—any one of those squads was roughly on par with the entire Donquixote Family.
The Buggy Pirates of today weren't just strong on their own—they also had Big Mom gunning for them. Doflamingo had no desire to get tangled up with them.
Besides, he didn't have a good relationship with the Buggy Pirates to begin with. This bunch had no respect for the rules, and they'd clashed back in Paradise.
Naturally, Doflamingo had no pleasant expression when he saw them. By now he was fully treating them as people coming to cause trouble.
Still, he only made ready for battle. He didn't strike at once. Only when the ships drew closer did he make out three figures standing on the deck.
"Well, if it isn't the famous vice-captain of the Buggy Pirates. What, aren't you busy enough making trouble for Big Mom? You really have to come make trouble for the Donquixote Family too?"
Enel and Inuarashi saw Doflamingo's whole crew standing armed on deck, looking ready to attack at any second. Both of them wore expressions of pure awkwardness.
"Whoa, don't be tense, Doflamingo. We're not here to make trouble," Enel said hastily.
"Right, right, exactly! Um, Doffy, actually... we're on the same side!" Inuarashi chimed in quickly.
"Same side?" Doflamingo was almost laughing from sheer irritation.
Listen to that. Did that even count as words?
If you're on the same side, why were you always messing with my business?
"Who's on the same side as you rule-breaking bastards?"
"You're 'Explosive Demon Man' Enel, right? Go back and tell that red-nosed captain of yours—last time, at the Korodian Islands, you seized nearly a billion berries' worth of our goods. I'll settle that score with you sooner or later!" Doflamingo said coldly.
But the moment he finished, one of his family members stepped forward, looking puzzled, and asked in a low voice: "Young Master, why wait until next time? These three are alone right now. Grab them now and make that clown pay ransom for them!"
Wait—
Doflamingo thought it over. Right—why wait until next time?
Wasn't right now the perfect opportunity?
It was all because he'd been talking tough so much lately that he'd forgotten he could just take action.
Still, Doflamingo didn't underestimate them just because there were only three. All three were very strong. That long-eared one in particular was practically on par with the red-nosed captain.
But Enel and the others weren't here to fight. The moment they saw the other side about to attack, they panicked.
"Stop, stop, stop! Don't attack! We really are on the same side!"
"If you don't believe me, I'll give you the code phrase."
Enel quickly called out. It wasn't that he was afraid of Doflamingo.
Back when he hadn't known the other side's identity, fighting was one thing. But now that he knew they were on the same side, how could he fight them?
So he hurriedly shouted: "Love you walking alo—ah, no, wait. The Great Path is Vast!"
The moment those four characters came out, it was Doflamingo's turn to be stunned.
"Same side?" Doflamingo's beady eyes almost popped out from behind his glasses. He looked at Enel, then at Trebol, the two of them staring at each other in mutual bewilderment.
"The code matches!"
Seeing Doflamingo and his crew lower their weapons, Enel and Inuarashi let out a breath of relief and said quickly: "See, Doflamingo? We really are on the same side!"
Though Doflamingo no longer looked ready to attack, his face grew darker than before.
He flicked his foot, stepping on invisible threads in the air and leaping onto Enel's ship. "If we're on the same side, why do you Buggy Pirates bastards keep messing with us?" he snapped.
Doflamingo was genuinely furious. Before, when he'd been angry, he could at least write Buggy's crew off as brainless hotheads—enemies from the start.
Now it turned out these bastards were on his side. So Doflamingo had basically let himself get robbed by his own people. What the hell kind of situation was that?
"Um, well... we didn't know before, did we..." Seeing how angry he was, Inuarashi could only try to soothe him humbly.
"Forget it!" Doflamingo felt exhausted, and since he couldn't blow off steam right now, he just crossed his legs, sat down somewhere, and glared at the three of them with his arms folded. "Spit it out. What do you want from me?"
"We want you to help us. Take us into Big Mom's tea party," Enel said bluntly, not bothering with pleasantries.
"You're going to make trouble for Big Mom at the tea party?" Doflamingo thought he'd misheard. He asked again, his face full of shock. To his surprise, the two men and the dog all nodded in unison.
"Well? Not a bad plan, right?"
"After this job, Totto Land belongs to Inazuma, and the balance of the New World will be completely rewritten!" Enel said temptingly.
Doflamingo started to imagine the scenario Enel described.
Honestly, if this operation succeeded, then forty to fifty percent of the New World's territory would probably fall to Inazuma.
And with Totto Land gone, the only great pirates left ruling the New World would be Inazuma and Whitebeard. That would open up far more opportunities for Doflamingo!
Without Totto Land, the New World would belong to the new generation of pirates.
For a moment, Doflamingo was tempted.
[
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