"You bastard, what are you thinking?" Brian looked at Shiki covering his buttocks, his face dark with exasperation.
This shameless guy, where did his mind wander?
What kind of person was Brian?
A bona fide straight man, leading a crew full of fair-skinned beauties, each with exotic charm.
Beast Girls could satisfy all the needs of someone with particular tastes.
The stronger they were, the more perfect they became.
As someone who had experienced it firsthand, Brian had to give a thumbs-up.
Not to mention his hundreds-strong Maid Corps.
Although they were clones, with genetic technology, they were almost indistinguishable from real people.
With so many options, how could a straight man like him possibly be interested in someone like Shiki?
If you're selling your ass, don't do it in front of him.
Disgusting!
Absolutely revolting!
"Oh, that's a relief." Shiki instantly relaxed.
As long as it wasn't his buttocks, everything was negotiable.
"I don't need your ass, you disgusting guy."
"Shiki, as your savior, it's only right for you to repay me, isn't it?"
"Gyahahaha, of course! I'm not someone who takes things lightly."
"You saved me this time. Whatever you want, I'll do my best to fulfill it."
"From the Celestial Dragon exchange goods, I want half of your Devil Fruits. Only the Zoan Types will do." Brian stated his first condition.
"Damn, you're too ruthless, you bastard!"
"These Devil Fruits are all high-end goods, and you want half of mine?" Shiki was instantly dumbfounded.
After all, the Devil Fruits obtained this time were so premium that even Rocks was tempted by them.
Let alone Shiki.
Previously, he had lost two of his three division commanders.
He had been planning to use this batch of high-end goods to cultivate a few more experts.
At least to make his forces look less shabby.
But Brian swooped in and demanded half.
It really put Shiki in a difficult position.
"What, do you think your life isn't worth a few measly Devil Fruits?"
"Don't worry, I won't take all of your share." Brian also knew this request was somewhat excessive.
Out of the twenty Devil Fruits obtained from this trade, he and Shiki would each get six.
Twelve in total.
The remaining eight Devil Fruits would go to Whitebeard (two), Linlin (two).
The last four would be taken by Rocks.
Silver Axe and the others, including other executives, got none.
They only received Berries and a small portion of those rare materials.
Rocks always emphasized rewards and punishments clearly, and this was the real reward for the two of them as meritorious contributors.
Among the twenty Devil Fruits, the truly valuable ones were actually three Mythical Zoans, two Logia Types, and two Ancient Types.
These ten would clearly be entirely taken by the two of them.
Brian's goal was obvious: he wanted to take all five Zoan Types for himself.
The two Logia Types could be left for Shiki; otherwise, he'd throw a fit.
After Brian's explanation, Shiki calmed down considerably.
After thinking it over carefully, he nodded in agreement.
"Jie ha ha ha, alright then. After all, it's a life-saving favor—being too stingy wouldn't suit my status."
"I'll do as you say. I'll hand everything over to you after we return."
"If you have any other demands, state them clearly now."
"My second demand: when I need it, you and all your forces must assist me once."
"No matter the circumstances, as long as I require it."
"Of course, I won't ask for anything outrageous. You can rest assured of that."
Clearly, by making such a demand, Brian was already laying the groundwork for God Valley a year later.
Only then would Golden Lion Shiki be most useful, yielding the greatest impact.
Upon hearing Brian's words, Shiki fell into contemplation once more.
The phrase "when I need it" was too broad.
Even with Brian's reassurance, he still felt uncertain.
"Shiki, you wouldn't want your miserable state today to be known by the entire pirate crew, would you?"
Seeing Shiki hesitate, Brian played his trump card.
"You..."
"Damn you, Brian! You have no shame."
Shiki was utterly provoked. What kind of outrageous talk was this?
His first reaction was absurd, as if he were being forced into something disgraceful.
But he quickly realized—
This bastard was threatening him with those pictures.
Shiki wanted to refute, even fight back.
But his body simply wouldn't allow it.
Then Brian waved the Den Den Mushi in his hand, making his intention perfectly clear.
"Hiss—"
"So this is what you meant by 'leeching off me for life,' you bastard."
"Damn you! You're utterly disgusting."
Shiki understood that with this leverage in Brian's hands, he was in for a rough time.
Though it had nothing to do with death,
sometimes social death was a kind of death in itself.
To someone like Shiki, whose pride was ridiculously strong,
social death was far more terrifying than actual death.
Gritting his teeth, he nodded in agreement.
"Fine, I'll help you once."
"But it can't be too outrageous, and it can't endanger my own safety."
"Also, you must delete all those pictures. No copies allowed."
After agreeing, he laid out his conditions.
"Deleting them is out of the question. I'll need to keep them for a few years as a memento."
"Don't worry, as long as we get along, these pictures will never see the light of day."
"You'll still be the tall, arrogant Golden Lion Shiki in the pirate crew."
"I give you my word on that."
Deleting them was absolutely not happening.
Never in this lifetime.
If he deleted them, Shiki would definitely turn on him without a second thought.
They were both pirates—each knew exactly what the other was like.
If Brian were in Shiki's position,
he'd risk social death to take down such a shameless bastard.
Unless the other party was Rocks, whom he simply couldn't defeat.
Unfortunately, this young Shiki still prioritized his dignity above all else.
Ah, young and powerful—your pride is always your greatest weakness.
Brian understood this well and merely gave his promise.
After a heated exchange, Shiki finally agreed.
No deletion, but absolutely no leaking.
Otherwise, he and Brian would be locked in a fight to the death.
Brian agreed.
They reached a consensus.
"How am I supposed to explain these injuries when I get back?"
"Just say you got them from fighting Garp and the other two alone."
"These are medals of honor. No one on the ship will doubt you since they didn't witness it firsthand."
"With your Float-Float Fruit ability, they'll believe you."
"You're right. That makes perfect sense."
"Alright then, hurry up and take me back. I need to recover from my injuries."
"Let's go."
"Damn it, you have no idea how insane those Navy guys were, especially Garp—he was like a rabid dog."
Brian nodded as Griffin hooked her wings under Shiki again.
The three of them set off once more, swiftly flying into the distance.
Their destination: Hachinosu.
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