Ash didn't pay much attention to Youki's so‑called interesting news. His full attention was locked onto the large bag of cigarettes and strong liquor he was carrying.
When Ash took the items from Youki's hands, Youki didn't object, assuming Ash would simply store them in his storage ring.
Instead, Ash expertly opened a pack of cigarettes right in front of him and brought it up to his nose to sniff the tobacco.
Youki was so startled he nearly snatched the cigarettes back. Heaven knew what kind of lecture he'd get from the village chief and his uncle if they found out that Ash had come back from a stroll with him carrying cigarettes and liquor.
Ash sniffed once, as if comparing the tobacco in this new world to what he once knew. Then, noticing the change in Youki's expression, he smiled and, without giving Youki a chance to react, placed all the cigarettes and alcohol into his ring.
"What's wrong, Bro Youki?" Ash asked with a relaxed smile.
Youki snapped back to reality, grabbing Ash's arm in a panic. "Ash, promise me. Don't smoke before you're of age, especially not in front of the village chief and my uncle! I'll be dead if they find out!"
Ash laughed. "Don't worry. You know my ability is special. These things won't harm me. For now, this is all I need anyway."
Remembering Ash's ridiculous ability to drink and smoke without consequence by elementalizing his entire body, Youki finally relaxed.
That brat Ash was different from everyone else. He didn't just drink and smoke; when bored, he could manipulate elemental forces like they were toys.
Fortunately, Ash listened to good advice — most of the time.
Relieved, Youki took two packs of cigarettes back from Ash, tucked them into his clothes, then leaned in and whispered mysteriously, "Guess what I heard in the illegal zone?"
"What news?" Ash asked, uninterested in guessing. What interesting news could there be in the illegal zone of *Sabaody Archipelago*? Slave trading and pirate infighting were the usual topics — none of which fascinated him.
"It's an auction!" Youki blurted, then saw that both Ash and Saff weren't very impressed. "Fine, I'll just tell you."
"Auction," Ash repeated, interest finally stirring in his eyes. A huge sum of one billion Berries was nothing if left unused, but real money if spent on the right things.
"Aha! You're interested now, aren't you!" Youki's voice lit up when he saw Ash's expression.
"Anything worth seeing?" Ash asked.
"I heard there'll be Devil Fruits, famous swords, and other rare treasures, but they haven't given full details yet," Youki replied, producing a flyer and handing it over. "They did list prices for slaves though."
"Slaves?" Saff frowned. "Isn't human trafficking banned everywhere? How can this be legal?"
Youki waved it off. "Oh, those being sold are criminals or citizens from nations not affiliated with the World Government. Besides, the auction house is in Area 1, which is an illegal zone anyway."
Saff thought for a moment and said, "Terrible as it sounds, I guess rules are rules."
Youki shrugged. "Even though human trafficking is prohibited, slaves still appear in the Four Seas and the Grand Line. The *Benbona Kingdom* has plenty of poor people or criminals who choose to sell themselves just to survive."
Ash watched their expressions quietly, saying nothing. Even people like Youki and Saff, who had strong senses of justice, didn't blink at slaves from non‑World Government nations. What else could he say? Force‑feeding ideological arguments was pointless.
Words held power for humans, but more often they were powerless.
During his time with his new companions, Ash had already voiced many unconventional ideas. Some were accepted, some raised eyebrows, but rarely did others react strongly.
So sometimes, direct action spoke louder than any words.
Setting that aside, Ash took the flyer and scanned it. In big letters at the top were the words:
*Slave Trading*
Below that was smaller text stating the same thing Youki had told them — that the slaves were criminals or non‑World Government citizens.
Next was a list of starting prices for different races:
Humans: 500,000 Berries*
Dwarves, Minks, Longarms, Longlegs, Snakeheads: 700,000 Berries*
Fishmen & Mermen: 1,000,000 Berries*
Mermaids under 30: 70,000,000 Berries*
Mermaids over 30: 10,000,000 Berries*
Giants (male): 50,000,000 Berries; female: 10,000,000 Berries*
* Devil Fruit users and rare species: auctioned by market value
"Interesting," Ash murmured.
He wasn't interested in playing the hero and rescuing slaves. His sense of justice wasn't cheap or sentimental. First, he'd never been a slave, so there was no personal empathy. Second, none of these people were his friends or allies, so no emotional attachment. And lastly — he wasn't a saint who loved everyone.
His upbringing taught him to respect other nations and not interfere blindly in their internal affairs. If he didn't catch them, why rush to save them?
Wouldn't he wake up a Hat‑Hat Fruit user like King Judge just to have a giant hat slapped on him?
"Let's go. I want to see what's actually at this auction," Ash said with a grin. "If there's a rare Devil Fruit or a legendary sword, it might be worth spending some Berries."
Youki laughed. "I'll see if there's fine wine I can take back for the village chief and uncle to try."
Saff lifted the jewels on her wrist. "With all the treasures in Skypiea, I doubt this auction will outshine them."
"Haha, whatever. Maybe we'll find something interesting," Ash said. "We're not short on Berries anyway. And if we spot someone with talent worth rescuing, buying them isn't the worst idea."
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Patreon = _Zeph