Sakura was the one who had made the first move against Kaido regarding Wano Country.
Strictly speaking, according to pirate rules for contesting territory, that land should be considered her spoils of war now that Kaido had been defeated.
Although Sakura had made no move on Wano, for Shiki to directly take it would necessarily require considering Sakura's prestige. The methods he could use were nothing more than two:
First, fight her and take the land with superior violence. Second, give up a portion of the interests so that everyone could reach an agreement on dividing the cake.
She hadn't accepted his previous proposal to jointly rule Wano, so now he would have to open his treasury and let her pick and choose.
"Hmm? You actually have a Mythical Zoan in your collection!"
Sakura found a pleasant surprise in the list Shiki had handed over.
Hearing the girl's voice, Shiki's eye twitched.
This fruit was originally intended for nurturing a powerful subordinate in the future.
But he currently had nothing good to offer that was truly presentable, so he had reluctantly put it on the trading list.
"I want this fruit." Sakura rubbed her chin. "And also, the option to purchase forty percent of the shares of your future weapons factory."
"Forty percent? Why don't you just rob me? Five percent! Take it or leave it!"
In all his years, Shiki had never been on the receiving end of such an outrageous demand. He was so angry his beard and mustache flared.
Although it was through a subscription method, given that he would need to conduct a major purge after taking over Wano, Sakura would essentially be subscribing to original shares of his weapons factory.
If she took forty percent of the profits from every transaction in the future, then wouldn't Shiki, running around doing all the work, be just begging on his knees?
"Thirty percent. And yes, I am robbing you, right now."
The girl's sweet face beamed with a brilliant smile.
Although Wano was a mess that she had no interest in taking over, that didn't mean she wasn't interested in getting a piece of the weapons manufacturing business there.
Now, beset by internal and external contradictions, many ambitious people were rubbing their hands together, staring at the ownership of this fat piece of meat.
The poison of a battle royale was about to shrink to the final circle.
And at this time, the biggest fish and the smallest fish in the circle generally become the primary targets of the wolves around them.
As fate would have it, Shiki, who had the power to move islands but few elite soldiers and fierce generals under his command, fit both descriptions.
He had the greatest threat but the smallest force. If the situation spiraled out of control, Sakura could even foresee the harmonious scene of Big Mom riding Kaido to chase down Shiki while the World Government and the Marine blocked the bridge outside.
"Fifteen percent! No more! Otherwise, I'd rather go find Newgate!"
Shiki closed his eyes, his face turning green. He took a deep breath to calm his blood pressure.
Although a fifteen percent share also made his heart bleed, it was still less than the price of asking Newgate to help.
He would just have to grit his teeth and bear it. Life had to go on!
"Fine. Let's sign, then!"
Sakura pulled an agreement out of her pocket like a magic trick. It was a subscription agreement for shares in the weapons factory, and even the fifteen percent subscription terms were written in advance.
"Tch!"
Shiki lit a cigar and took a deep drag.
'Damn it. This girl had calculated this.'
Annoyed as he was, he still had to sign the terms. After all, he knew that if he missed this chance, it wouldn't come again.
Sakura watched him sign his name with a smile and reached out to shake his hand.
"Then, happy cooperation~"
"Hmph!"
…
Elsewhere, Totto Land, Whole Cake Island.
At the center of the huge castle was a party hall large enough to accommodate five hundred people. It was generally only used when entertaining guests recognized by the Emperor, Big Mom.
The spacious hall was filled with the various ministers of Totto Land, as well as two guests who did not belong there.
"Mama mama! I never thought you'd end up like this, Kaido!"
The towering woman sat on a candy throne, surrounded by caramel puffs.
She ate her sweets in large mouthfuls while mocking the man sitting not far from her, whose body was covered in bandages. There was no trace of the worry she had shown during her food madness episode a few days ago.
"And King, since your boss has lost to someone else, why not just join my crew instead?"
Charlotte Linlin raised her hand toward the man in leather lying on a stretcher nearby. "There's no one as rare as your race in this Totto Land yet~"
Such frivolous words made King, who had always regarded Kaido as his great benefactor, feel insulted.
"Damn you! Are you humiliating us, Big Mom!"
The crimson eyes behind King's mask opened wide, red veins spreading across the whites.
He struggled to get up from the stretcher, and the Lunarian flame behind him ignited.
"Stop it, King. Don't do anything pointless right now!"
Kaido stopped King. His spirit was low as he grabbed a large bowl of sake and drank deeply.
The injuries left over from his recent defeat by Sakura's peculiar fruit ability had not yet healed, despite his physique and the best medical care in Totto Land.
At this moment, Kaido knew deeply that only by borrowing the old woman's power would he have a chance to fight his way back to Wano and fight to the death again with that terrifying woman.
So now was the time for them to endure and lie low.
The ability to be large or small, to rise or hide, to billow clouds and spew mist when large, or to hide scales and form when small… that was why the will of the Azure Dragon fruit favored Kaido.
"Mama mama! That's the right attitude for the basis of cooperation~" Seeing Kaido give in, Linlin squinted her eyes with pleasure.
Originally, in the struggle for supremacy in the New World, their power groups had supported each other, firmly occupying the middle section of the New World route, gazing at the sea area occupied by Whitebeard in the latter half and the One Piece beyond.
Although her junior Kai was now down and out, Senior Lin was still willing to support his comeback.
After all, the two had supported each other all the way to get to where they are today since the Rocks era, as 'companions'.
Moreover, Junior Kai could be considered to have pirate morality. In a pirate world full of traitors, he was a breath of fresh air.
Senior Lin was not a strict party weightlifting champion, so she would naturally be generous with other fresh air.
Of course, there was another more important reason!
According to intelligence returned by the Charlotte Family's information network that spanned the seas, Haruno Sakura, that woman, had a giant village of around several hundred people within her sphere of influence.
Who in all of Totto Land didn't know that the giant race was Linlin's heart's desire!
So the question was… why did you build your power on top of my giant clan's village?
"Old hag, don't underestimate that woman!"
Kaido, seeing her arrogant demeanor, reminded her: "I used my full power, but I still lost in my fight with her."
"Mama mama, just a brat from Roger's ship. This old woman is the one who will become the king of these seas!" Linlin raised her thumb and pointed at herself.
The ferocity hidden beneath her obese body revealed itself. Beneath her brown eyes seemed to swirl with blood-red vortexes, containing her fierce, murderous spirit.
Conqueror's Haki thunder radiated out in a resounding shockwave, spreading in all directions.
"Wororororo! Then I'll go crazy with you one last time!"
Kaido's ferocity was stirred. His overbearing overlord's will also roared and raged, colliding with Linlin's spirit.
As if trying to shred the entire space.
Then, the two put their arms around each other's shoulders and loudly announced to the many members of their pirate crews:
"We, the 'Big Mom' Pirates." / "And the 'Beasts' Pirates."
"Hereby form an alliance!" x2