CHAPTER 105: THE WARLORD'S BINDING
The moment Sugar collapsed, the spell over Dressrosa shattered. All across the island, toys of every shape and size reverted to screaming, weeping, confused humans. People ran into the streets, embracing loved ones they had forgotten for years, their memories flooding back in a chaotic, joyous, and terrifying wave. The cheerful music of the island was drowned out by a rising tide of shock, anger, and celebration.
Inside the palace, the atmosphere was frozen in dread.
"I said, no sneaky moves," Satoru's voice cut through the tension, calm and final. "That warning wasn't just for him." His gaze, hidden behind the blindfold, swept across the stunned faces of the Donquixote officers. Each one felt a piercing, cold sensation, as if their deepest secrets and weaknesses had been laid bare. It was the feeling of being prey, frozen under the gaze of an apex predator. They shuddered, their fighting spirit crumbling.
Doflamingo was the first to break the stalemate. He understood the situation with chilling clarity. If the Admiral wanted him captured or dead, he would already be so. This was a negotiation.
"All of you!" Doflamingo barked, his voice rough with suppressed fury and fear. "Go! Contain the unrest in the city! I will handle this alone."
"Young Master, are you sure—?" Trebol started, his concern genuine.
"NOW!" Doflamingo roared. "And take Sugar with you! When she wakes, have her use her ability again on the rabble!"
"Yes, Young Master!" The officers moved swiftly, scooping up the unconscious girl and leaping from the palace windows, their priority shifting to damage control.
The room was now silent save for the distant, growing roar from the city below. Doflamingo turned back to Satoru, forcing his posture to relax, his trademark grin returning, though it didn't reach his eyes. "If you have business, Admiral White Dragon, state it. You clearly haven't come for an arrest, or you wouldn't be standing there so patiently."
"Observant," Satoru acknowledged. "I'm here to offer you a contract. The 'Seven Warlords of the Sea' agreement."
"Seven Warlords?" Doflamingo repeated, the term unfamiliar. His vast information network hadn't yet picked up on the newly-minted system.
"In simple terms," Satoru explained, as if to a child, "the World Government is recruiting seven powerful pirates to be its official attack dogs. In return, you get legitimacy, a pardon for your past crimes, and the right to keep your ill-gotten gains… like this kingdom, for instance. Your reign here would be recognized by the World Government, not seen as the pirate usurpation it is."
Doflamingo's mind raced. Legitimacy. Government backing. Freedom to operate in the shadows with official cover. It was a devil's bargain, but the benefits were immense. "Fufufu… That does sound like good news for me."
The grin widened, then vanished. "And if I refuse?"
"Then," Satoru said, his tone not changing in the slightest, "you would be a pirate resisting arrest from an Admiral, and I would be forced to subdue you. By any means necessary." He tilted his head. "Doflamingo. Would you like to try? To see if you can walk out of this room alive?"
Their eyes met. Doflamingo's Conqueror's Haki surged instinctively, a silent roar of defiance that made the very air in the room crackle. Satoru didn't even flinch; his own presence remained an impassive, infinite wall.
The clash lasted only a second. Doflamingo's aura collapsed in on itself. He was a master of reading power dynamics. Fighting here meant annihilation for him and his entire family. The calculation was brutally simple.
The sly smile returned to his face, a mask of concession. "I accept. Signing this 'Warlord' agreement, gaining a legalized pirate status… it seems all benefit and no harm for someone in my position."
"Wise choice," Satoru said, sounding almost disappointed. "I was hoping you'd refuse. Would have given me a perfectly valid reason to end you right here."
A cold trickle of sweat traced a path down Doflamingo's temple. The casual admission confirmed his suspicion: the Admiral had come with a license to kill, and only his immediate compliance had saved him. "Heh… not a funny joke, Admiral."
"It's no joke. Our Fleet Admiral despises you. Personally." Satoru let that hang, a reminder of the vendetta that had been stayed, not forgotten. "And you agreed so quickly… it's robbed me of all the fun. I barely got to stretch."
Doflamingo forced a laugh. "I have a healthy sense of self-preservation. Fighting you is a guaranteed death sentence. I know my limits."
Satoru sighed, a theatrically disappointed sound. "Too smart for your own good. People like you are exhausting. I prefer the simple, punchable types." He pulled a rolled-up official document from inside his jacket and tossed it onto a nearby table. "Sign it. The terms are as I said. You'll get your official notice and bounty freeze within the week."
Doflamingo moved to the table, scanning the dense legal text. He scrawled his flamboyant signature without further hesitation.
"Good," Satoru said. "Now, a few ground rules since you're a 'colleague.' The Navy will leave you alone, but don't mistake that for freedom. Keep your… hobbies… discreet. And when the Marine Headquarters summons the Warlords, you will answer. Unconditionally."
"Of course, Admiral White Dragon," Doflamingo said, the picture of cooperation. "As a servant of the World Government, I will naturally stand with the Marines."
"If you weren't a Warlord now," Satoru said, his voice dropping to a deadly softness, "you'd already be a corpse."
Doflamingo understood the truth in that. His life now existed on a bureaucratic technicality.
"Oh, and one more thing," Satoru added, as if an afterthought. "I need you to do a job for me. Immediately."
"Name it."
"Use that underworld network of yours. Find Dracule Mihawk for me. Hawk-Eyes. The World's Greatest Swordsman."
Doflamingo's eyebrows shot up, his sunglasses dipping slightly. "The World's Strongest Swordsman? He's a target as well?"
"That's right," Satoru confirmed, a spark of genuine anticipation finally entering his voice. "He's not just on the list. He's the main event."
(End of Chapter)
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