Somewhere in the North Blue, an unnamed deserted island.
This island wasn't even marked on nautical charts, surrounded by hidden reefs and perpetually shrouded in mist.
Apart from occasional seabirds resting here, not even pirates would visit this godforsaken place.
But today, it was unusually lively.
"Hurry up! Move that crate inside! Handle it gently - it's fragile!"
Kane stood on the beach, directing Kuzan who was using an ice slide to transport massive sealed containers into an underground cavern.
Sakazuki was sealing the cave entrance by welding rocks together with magma, even refining the stone to a granite-like texture in pursuit of perfection.
Borsalino was using a Log Pose to record the island's magnetic field.
Five hours later.
Over fifty billion Berries worth of treasure was deeply buried beneath the deserted island.
As the sun set in the west, it cast long shadows of the four men.
Standing on the warship's deck, watching the gradually receding deserted island, Kane felt his heart bleeding.
That was money!
Fifty billion!
Though nominally under joint management, burying that much money to gather dust in the ground was more painful than killing him.
After dealing with the "loot," the warship set sail again.
Returning to the central deck.
Over two hundred marine soldiers stood in neat formation, all gazing eagerly at the remaining pile of crates containing approximately fifteen billion Berries.
Though they didn't know the exact amount, the heavy weight during transport told everyone this was undoubtedly a colossal fortune.
Kane cleared his throat and walked to the front of the formation.
"Ahem! Comrades! You've all worked hard during this North Blue expedition!"
Kane spoke with a serious expression, his eyes scanning every face.
"Facing vicious enemies like Germa, you didn't retreat or fear, perfectly demonstrating the caliber of headquarters elites! I'm proud of you!"
The soldiers straightened their backs. Though they had basically done nothing except cheer from the ship, being praised always felt good.
"However!"
Kane's tone shifted, becoming grave. "This mission was extremely dangerous and involved World Government secrets. I don't want any details of this mission leaked, to avoid causing panic among civilians. This is for the world's stability!"
Kane waved his hand grandly, and several nearby crates snapped open.
Rustle!
Bundles of Berries were exposed to the air, stimulating everyone's optic nerves.
"Here is one hundred million Berries."
Kane said calmly. "Though not much, this is illicit gains seized from Germa. According to regulations, all this money must be handed over."
The soldiers' eyes dimmed, with audible swallowing sounds rising and falling among them.
"However!" Kane suddenly raised his voice. "I believe rules are rigid, but people are flexible! Making our brothers shed blood, sweat, and tears—that's not my Justice! This 100 million Berry should be distributed as special allowances to all the brothers present!"
The room fell dead silent.
One second later.
BOOM!!!
"Holy shit?!"
"100 million? Split between two hundred of us?"
"500,000 each?! We're rich!!"
"That's five years of my salary!"
The soldiers erupted, their eyes turning red with excitement. 500,000 Berry was an absolute fortune for these low-ranking marines!
"But after taking this money, I think everyone knows what should and shouldn't be said, right?" Kane asked with a smile. "How much did we seize this time?"
The soldiers glanced at each other, then shouted in unison:
"Report, Ensign Kane! We seized 149 billion Berry! Absolutely no more than that!"
"The rest was destroyed by Vice Admiral Sakazuki's magma!" a quick-witted sergeant loudly added.
Sakazuki's face twitched, but he didn't refute it.
"Excellent!" Kane nodded with satisfaction. "Distribute the money!"
Cheers soared to the skies, startling even the fish in the sea.
"Long live Ensign Kane!"
"Long live Justice!"
What Germa? What treasury? All they knew was that following Commander Kane meant getting a share of the spoils! Did this money feel dirty? No! This was the reward of Justice!
Watching these "accomplices" happily counting their money, Kane felt slightly less pained about the expenditure. Spending 100 million to buy the loyalty and silence of two hundred men—this deal was far from a loss.
...
Night fell.
The warship sailed steadily through the waves while the soldiers reveled below deck, the sounds of money being counted rising and falling.
Kane alone hid in the captain's quarters' bathroom, locking the door and sitting on the toilet.
He felt empty inside.
The stark contrast of having handled hundreds of billions only to become penniless again left him desperately needing some stimulation to fill the void.
"System, open the panel."
A pale blue screen unfolded across his retina.
[Host: Kane]
[Violation Value: 90,000 points]
Seeing the nearly six-digit number, Kane's breathing grew rapid.
Aside from the original 40,000-plus points, this Germa mission—whether through extortion, destruction, looting, arson, or ultimately establishing a private slush fund, corrupting colleagues, and bribing subordinates—had each action contributed massively to his Violation Value.
"Almost 100,000 points..."
"Just one top-tier ability from the draw, and I'll have the capital to truly protect myself in this world!"
Kane gritted his teeth, his eyes turning wild.
"System! Give me a big one!"
"Activate the [Lottery Wheel]! Invest 50,000 Violation Points!!"
[Ding! Warning: This is a high-risk, high-reward gamble. Confirm consumption of 50,000 Violation Points for one wheel spin?]
"Confirm! Draw! Tonight's the night I turn a bicycle into a motorcycle!"
Kane felt his palms sweating. 50,000 points! How long had he saved up this fortune?! If he drew some trash, he'd just jump into the sea and end it all.
With Kane's will, a massive wheel visible only to him appeared on his retina. The wheel emanated an ancient and mysterious aura, densely covered with various rewards.
The pointer began to spin.
Hum—
The pointer whirled rapidly.
[Soul Slayer Sword - Flowing Blade Like Raging Fire]... passed.
[Super Saiyan Bloodline]... slipped by.
[Doraemon's Spare Pocket]... also passed.
Kane's heart leaped to his throat as he stared fixedly at the red pointer.
"Stop! Stop! Damn it, don't go past that one!"
The pointer slid past a causality skill called [100% Guaranteed Empty-Handed Blade Catch], making Kane break out in a cold sweat. Though powerful, it was too embarrassing and didn't suit his righteous image.
The roulette wheel slowed gradually.
Bizarre prizes flashed before his eyes.
[Navy Six Styles - Ultimate Manual]... trash, not interested.
[Top-Tier Observation Haki]... somewhat useful, but not exciting enough.
[Maxed Out Defense Because I Was Too Scared of Pain]... what kind of talent is this? Get lost!
[Thank You for Your Patronage]... the pointer trembled toward this black slot.
"No! Bro! System Daddy! Don't screw me over!" Kane clasped his hands together, bowing frantically to the air. "I'll trade Sakazuki's lifetime of romantic luck for one grand prize!!"
As if some mysterious sacrifice had taken effect, the pointer exhausted its last bit of momentum, slowly and laboriously scraping past the edge of the black slot before settling squarely in the center of a slot radiating pure cyan light.
At that moment, golden light erupted in the bathroom!
[Ding! Congratulations, Host! Luck of the Gods!]
[Acquired Logia-Type - Top-Tier Devil Fruit!]
[Reward distributing...]
A bizarrely shaped fruit materialized in Kane's hand.
It was deep cyan overall, covered in white spiral patterns that resembled flowing gas, feeling almost weightless in his grasp.
Kane took a deep breath and opened the item description.
His pupils instantly dilated.