"What did you say!?" Kaido's good mood vanished at the suggestion of shutting down his Devil Fruit factories.
"Governor, don't get upset. Please let me show you the numbers," Gusion said as he erased the board and drew a table. "I said our factories have a 100x profit margin—but not the Devil Fruit factories."
The officers looked at the board like attentive students.
The table showed: with a 9,000 Beli monthly wage, the weapons factory had a 93x profit margin, the seastone factory 119x, but the artificial Devil Fruit factory… just 2x.
Yes, 2x is technically high, but compared to the other lines, it stood out.
"Why is that?" Kaido frowned, always thinking the Devil Fruits were the most profitable.
Gusion explained, "There are many reasons. We pay low wages, and artificial Devil Fruits sell for high prices, but their raw materials and equipment are extremely expensive. Labor costs are negligible; the real cost is in materials and machinery."
He showed a list of the Devil Fruit factory's construction and equipment costs, plus the cost per fruit. Compared to these, labor was nothing.
"It's really that expensive?" Kaido looked around. The officers shared his confusion.
But Kaido soon realized: it wasn't that the artificial Devil Fruits were so costly, but that he'd never calculated the profit margins of his other businesses—they were just so much higher.
"This is an ideal scenario. In reality, costs could be even higher. According to last year's financials from Mr. King, the artificial Devil Fruit line actually brought in the least revenue," Gusion said.
"That's because we eat most of the artificial Devil Fruits ourselves, not sell them. So you can't just look at the numbers," Maria pointed out.
"True. But I calculated the profit margin as if we sold all of them at market price, including what we consumed," Gusion said. "Despite growing wealth, our expansion is slow because too much is tied up in artificial Devil Fruits."
"Gusion, maybe you don't know, but my goal in making money is to build the strongest Devil Fruit army," Kaido said, still calm.
"We can discuss the army's effectiveness in a moment. But let's get back to costs," Gusion said. "Why are they so high? It's because this industry is long and complex, and we don't control every part—Doflamingo supplies some materials, Caesar provides tech, and we buy all the core equipment from them. The tech blockade means most profit goes to them."
This was a rhetorical trap, but Kaido, thinking about the other factories' high margins, suddenly realized most of the profit from artificial Devil Fruits went to Doflamingo.
After all, the high-tech items were all imported—they couldn't make any of it themselves.
"Mr. Gusion, those two are our partners. We can't expect them to make nothing. Otherwise, it wouldn't last," King said. "And as Kaido-san just said, the Devil Fruit line isn't just business—it's military spending."
"Military spending? Is it really effective?" Gusion smiled, making King pause.
"With the artificial Devil Fruits, we've built an army of over a thousand Gifters. Isn't that military spending?" King asked.
Gusion looked speechless. He pointed outside. "Mr. King, do you think a thousand Gifters could beat you?"
He turned to Kaido. "Governor, why not try using your Conqueror's Haki outside and see how many Gifters can stay standing?"
The room went silent. King compared their fighting power and realized he could probably kill all the Gifters in under a minute. Kaido also realized that his Haki would probably drop all but ten of them.
The other officers' faces changed as they realized the Gifters were weak.
"So after more than ten years in Wano, spending astronomical sums to build a Devil Fruit army, is it really effective?" Gusion pressed.
Kaido's face darkened. He suddenly realized he'd wasted years—he hadn't become an Emperor because of the Gifters, but through his own strength and his loyal officers.
"Governor, whose idea was it to build this Devil Fruit army?" Gusion asked.
Bang—the wall behind Kaido shattered as his Conqueror's Haki flared. He was furious.
"Doflamingo…" he growled. "That bastard tricked me!"
Gusion thought, "Poor King of Newsreading, but yes, Doflamingo should take the blame—he's the only one smart enough in that process."
"I don't know the details, but the results speak for themselves. Artificial Devil Fruits are unreliable, maybe giving a minor boost, but nothing like real ones. Worse, they prevent swimming and have major side effects, like robbing people of their expressions. I suspect they even affect the brain, ruining a person's potential."
He continued, "In the worst case, our Gifters might have been stronger without eating artificial Fruits—they could at least swim in naval battles."
Kaido's face grew even darker. The blow was heavy—he'd spent over a decade on this, thinking it would help him build a world-crushing army.
But Gusion's harsh facts made it clear: the army was useless. Even after another century, he'd never overthrow the World Government.
"Shut down all artificial Devil Fruit factories!" Kaido roared. He finally realized he was the only one actually consuming artificial Devil Fruits—Doflamingo never gave any to his own men, meaning he knew about the side effects.
So, for over ten years, the money went to Doflamingo, and all Kaido got was a useless army.
"Looks like you've figured it out, Governor. The Devil Fruit factories are a waste—no military value, just wasted time and money," Gusion said.
"Gusion has a point, but if we stop the Devil Fruit factories, what do we do instead?" King asked. He was lost, too—he'd believed in this project for years.
If the Devil Fruit army was useless, how could they ever overthrow the Celestial Dragons?
"I don't know," Gusion answered simply. "Governor only asked me to help manage Wano and make money. From a business standpoint, just switch to weapons and seastone factories."
"Gusion, tell me—how can we truly make the Beast Pirates stronger?" Kaido asked, staring.
Gusion was surprised—he hadn't expected to become the Beast Pirates' strategist so quickly.
But he straightened up and looked at Kaido. "Kaido, what is your dream?"
Depending on Kaido's answer, he'd offer different advice.
Kaido noticed Gusion's change of tone. He pondered, then spoke in his deep voice: "I want to drag those so-called nobles and rulers addicted to comfort onto the battlefield, to let war decide everyone's worth again..."
He paused. "Simply put, I want to overthrow the Celestial Dragons and create a fairer world where only ability determines value."
Some officers were shocked—most didn't know Kaido's ultimate dream. His words made it clear: he wanted to challenge the world's absolute authorities—the Celestial Dragons.
"So, Kaido, do you want to overthrow the Celestial Dragons and become king of the world?" Gusion asked.
Kaido shook his head. "What's the point of being world king? I just hate the Celestial Dragons. I don't care about ruling the world. If I must be king, I only want to be Pirate King."
Gusion wasn't surprised—Kaido was straightforward. He had no interest in ruling; he just wanted to fight the Celestial Dragons.