He raised his hand, and the lightning cage began to compress. Umit's body was slowly crushed, his bones creaking under the unbearable pressure.
"Wait!" Umit finally showed fear. "We can talk! What does Crimson Dawn want? The shipping business? I can give up half of it!"
Enel sneered. "The captain said we want to annex, not cooperate. Once you're dead, all your shipping business will be ours. And most importantly—"
Umit stared at Enel, waiting for his next words.
"You actually made me look this pathetic."
The lightning cage closed completely, drowning Umit's screams in a blaze of thunder.
A moment later, the cage dissipated, and Umit lay charred on the ground, fast asleep.
Enel dismissed his Thunder God form and landed lightly on the ground, clapping his hands. "Done."
Tesoro walked over from a distance, glanced at the sleeping Umit, and chuckled. "Well done, though wasn't the commotion a bit too much?"
Enel shrugged. "The captain never said we had to be discreet."
Tesoro shook his head with a laugh, then took out a Den Den Mushi. "Captain, mission accomplished. Umit has 'agreed' to hand over all his shipping business."
Rhett's lazy voice came from the other end. "Good. Next is resource integration—that's on you, that's on you. Hey~ Laboon, I'm scissors, you're paper! Quick, quick, hand over the fish jerky."
Tesoro sighed. "Understood."
He put away the Den Den Mushi and looked at the devastated port in the distance, murmuring, "This will shake the underworld to its core. Seems like another massive project."
"Time to get to work."
He raised his hand, palm facing downward. Golden ripples spread from his fingertips, instantly locating Umit's vault.
"Golden Control·Universal Assimilation."
In an instant, the wreckage of buildings destroyed by Enel's lightning, shattered ships, scattered cargo—even the dust in the air—were all coated in a dazzling layer of gold. Under Tesoro's power, the entire port transformed into a golden kingdom.
"Whoa, isn't this a bit too much? This setup's just like the captain's style," Enel remarked, raising an eyebrow. Though he knew Tesoro's abilities, witnessing such a large-scale golden transformation always left him awestruck.
Tesoro ignored his teasing and snapped his fingers lightly.
"Golden Control·Reconstruction."
The gold on the ground flowed like liquid. Collapsed buildings rose anew, shattered ships were restored, and even the charred decks from the lightning strikes looked brand new. Within minutes, the ruined port had become a more luxurious golden trade hub than before.
"Now repairs won't be a hassle," Tesoro nodded in satisfaction.
"Truly domineering, Gild Tesoro." Enel, who had no real concept of money, found it all incredibly flashy.
He strode toward Umit's office, his Observation Haki expanding. The entire building's internal structure unfolded clearly in his perception.
Three hours. That was all Tesoro needed.
He finished reviewing all of Umit's ledgers, transaction records, client lists, and the locations of secret warehouses.
"So that's how it is…" Tesoro narrowed his eyes. "His business is even larger than imagined. He's even involved in transporting supplies for the World Government and Charlotte Linlin's crew."
He turned to Enel. "The captain was right. By annexing Umit's forces, our shipping network can cover the entire New World."
Enel yawned. "Then take your time. I'm heading back to sleep."
He'd been treated like a pack mule, hauling things up and down—all because his Mantra was stronger. Ah, being invincible was truly lonely.
Tesoro smiled but didn't stop him. He picked up the Den Den Mushi and dialed another number.
"Baccarat, have the finance team from 'Gran Tesoro' come immediately to take over all of Umit's assets."
"Also, notify all the underworld brokers—from today onward, Crimson Dawn decides the shipping business."
Though handled discreetly, Tesoro and the others had been at Crimson Dawn's new base for a month, managing all of Umit's enterprises.
But this month had left the other kings of the underworld sleepless.
Under the cover of night, on a secluded island in the New World, an unmarked black merchant ship quietly docked.
Inside a towering castle, candlelight flickered as several grim-faced figures—the "kings" of the underworld—sat around a round table.
"Crimson Dawn… moved faster than expected," said Du Feld, the Loan Shark King, chewing on his cigar, fingers tapping impatiently on the table.
"That old fool Umit didn't even last three hours," sneered Drug Peclow, the Funeral Director. "Seems the so-called 'Shipping King' wasn't much."
"Don't mock so quickly," Stussy, the Queen of Pleasure, sipped her wine, her sharp eyes glinting. "Crimson Dawn annexing Umit means their reach is now in our territories. Do you want to be swallowed one by one?"
The room fell into brief silence.
"So, what do we do?" Giberson, the Warehouse King, asked gravely. "Just sit back and wait for them to take us down?"
"Cooperate," Stussy set down her glass, her voice calm. "Alone, none of us stand a chance against Crimson Dawn."
"Cooperate?" Du Feld scoffed. "You want us to huddle for warmth, or are you just probing our weaknesses to report back to Rhett?"
Stussy smiled faintly, neither confirming nor denying. The World Government had already tasked her with curbing Rhett's growth.
"Enough!" Peclow slammed the table. "This isn't the time for infighting! Crimson Dawn's threat is right before us—we need a plan!"
"A plan? Ha." Giberson smirked. "Even Kizaru suffered at Rhett's hands. What do we have to fight back with? Your funeral business to supply his coffins?"
"You—!" Peclow glared.
"Surrender to Crimson Dawn?" Du Feld stood abruptly, cigar ash scattering. "Are you insane?! That guy won't treat us as allies—he'll just swallow us like he did Umit!"
At the round table, Giberson's face darkened, his fingers tapping unconsciously as he muttered, "But do we have any other choice? If even a Marine Admiral can't handle Rhett, what can we do?"
The room's atmosphere froze.
"Pathetic," Peclow sneered. "Surrendering before even fighting? No matter how strong Crimson Dawn is, can they really take us all down at once?"