IW: Chapter 171 - Old John: My brother and I are of one mind, but is he playing mind games with me?
Naruto Bai Ye: [Speaking of which, the struggle among the Three Legendary Pirates has already begun on your side, hasn't it?]
It seemed that after Rocks' death, the pirate world also began to surge with activity.
Ambitious individuals started appearing one by one, but it made sense. Back when the Rocks Pirates were around, even the Roger Pirates were constantly on the run.
Roger couldn't even find a place to settle in the New World.
Now that Rocks had been dead for quite some time, this era certainly didn't lack ambitious people.
Pirate Bai Ye: [Yes, it has already begun. My reforms in Wano Country are also complete, so I'm preparing to go out and see things for myself.]
This time, Bai Ye planned to go out alone and not bring his pirate crew with him.
Mainly, he didn't want to expose the fact that Wano Country was under his control just yet.
Wano Country was a natural barrier for him; with its existence, he could develop completely there.
With the downfall of Rocks,
the New World entered a period of contention among three great pirates. The three great pirates, led by Whitebeard, Roger, and Golden Lion, turned the New World upside down.
The Marine also began to enter a period of rapid development. After fighting Red Count, while Red Count's name spread across the seas, he was also captured by Garp, who arrived later, and imprisoned in Level 6 of Impel Down.
Following this, there was an order for Kong to be promoted from Fleet Admiral of the Marine, but Kong temporarily refused.
The Marine's current Admiral candidates were originally based on Sengoku, Garp, and Zephyr.
Unfortunately, Garp once again refused the promotion to Admiral, and Zephyr, whose family was murdered by pirates, resigned as Admiral and trained many new recruits for the Marine.
Two of the original Three Admirals positions were vacant, and Kong naturally also refused the promotion.
At the same time, three monstrous rookies appeared in the Marine: Sakazuki, Borsalino, and Kuzan.
The powerful figures from the anime were now making their appearances one by one.
"Old John, haven't you found that idiot Kaido yet?"
Bai Ye stretched, he didn't know how long that idiot Kaido had been gone. Ever since he said he was going out to form his own crew, Kaido had simply vanished.
He still hadn't been found, and Bai Ye even seriously suspected whether that guy Kaido had been captured by the World Government for research.
"I don't know, that guy is hiding somewhere. Could he have gone back on his word?"
Captain John shook his head. He was very clear about the agreement between Bai Ye and Kaido.
If Kaido just ran off, wouldn't that be a loss?
Damn it!
He shouldn't have let Kaido take the Eight-Headed Serpent form. He could have sold that fruit for a lot of money!
Now, money was scarce in every aspect!
The gold Bai Ye acquired from Sky Island last time was almost depleted.
Setting up factories, transforming Wano Country, and recruiting crew members all required money. After all, others weren't allowed to rob within Wano Country, so what could be done? They could only produce things themselves.
In the early stages, everything required money, and he had to buy things back from outside step by step. Various equipment, renovating land, and cultivating crops all needed money.
Captain John felt that following Bai Ye, he was no longer a pirate but a finance minister of a country. What he had to worry about every day was not finding treasure, but how to boost the national GDP, and then let more people have money, and more people be able to afford food.
However, he quite liked this life. He liked treasure, and he didn't necessarily have to steal it. Now, life in Wano Country was getting better and better, and once various goods could be produced for export, they would have a continuous stream of money.
Not to mention, Wano Country still had a lot of Sea Stone, which would all be money in the future!
This made Captain John feel that using Wano Country as a base was a very wise choice.
"Going back on his word wouldn't be his style. That guy doesn't want to leave the pirate crew; he wants to take my Captain position. If he ran off, wouldn't he give up the Captain position?"
Bai Ye wasn't worried about Kaido running away at all.
That guy had his pride. Before he defeated Bai Ye, he would absolutely not run. Moreover, he was still in his growth phase, and if his strength improved, he would definitely come looking for Bai Ye.
Most likely, he really went to form his Beasts crew.
Bai Ye was also a bit curious. If the Beasts Pirates were truly formed into a crew later on, then his pirate crew would seem quite strong, but it would still lack high-end combat power.
At least for now, although Ginny ate the Hurricane Fruit, she wasn't good at fighting. John's combat power was only at the mid-level Shichibukai level. Kuma's strength would be very strong later, but it wasn't enough. To replicate and surpass the Rocks Pirates, more powerful combat forces would be needed.
"You really aren't worried at all. That guy Kaido is an Oni, and he also ate the Blue Dragon Fruit."
Old John grumbled, he couldn't understand what Bai Ye was thinking to offer Kaido such a condition.
"The physique of an Oni, huh."
Speaking of which, it didn't seem so scary, did it? After all, he seemed to have it too, and not just the Oni physique. He also possessed the physiques of Blackbeard and Big Mom. Looking at it this way, even if he didn't eat another Mythical Zoan fruit,
he could easily suppress Kaido just by relying on Haki. Kaido's physical advantage was in recovery; the strongest in defense was Big Mom's Iron Balloon!
This was not what Bai Ye needed to consider at the moment. He had a very serious problem to deal with.
"Old John, it seems Wano Country is running out of money recently, isn't it?"
Currently, Wano Country was still consuming resources. Although many nobles had been eliminated and all their possessions confiscated,
money was currently Wano Country's most pressing need.
The main reason was that there was no industrial foundation here before. First, the nobles exploited the common people, and then the common people couldn't even get enough to eat, surviving on meager farming work.
It's no wonder that after Kozuki Oden taught some farming and construction techniques, he immediately won the deep affection of the residents.
It could be said how much the former Wano Country was exploited.
Due to years of isolation, it was very backward, and the nobles monopolized everything.
It was either being exploited or joining the ranks of villains.
Bai Ye also dealt with the uncooperative nobles and villains. Now, Wano Country was in ruins awaiting reconstruction.
"The way you're looking at me is really off!"
Captain John looked at Bai Ye's eyes, and his heart sank. He felt like Bai Ye was acting very strangely!
Don't look at me with that gaze!
Every time he looked at him with that gaze, it was with ill intentions.
"Old John, I have a risky... no, an angel investment plan here. Would you like to hear about it?"
There was a lot of gold in Golden Township, but Bai Ye had been continuously transforming Wano Country recently.
He didn't plan to mess up Wano Country like Kaido did, but to transform it seriously and painstakingly. Therefore, many facilities were invested with real money.
So, the money was being spent very quickly. Even with the gold from Golden Township, if the transformation continued at this pace, it would likely not last.
Plus, the armed helicopters and various weapons that were about to be delivered.
All of these would require him to set up production lines later.
So, all of this required money.
Then, without money, where would he get it?
Isn't there someone right in front of him?
"No money, no life!"
Old John knew something was off the moment he saw Bai Ye's gaze, especially with his now undisguised words. He immediately lifted his leg, ready to run!
What a joke!
How did Bai Ye sweet-talk him when he first joined the pirate crew?
He had promised that not only would he not touch his treasure, but all future treasures obtained would be handed over to him for management.
It was because of this that John admitted he was tempted. Plus, he and Bai Ye were good brothers, and he wanted to bring his talent from the Rocks Pirates to Bai Ye.
But this was completely different from what Bai Ye said before. Now, not only had he not seen any money, but he was also being misled by Bai Ye. It seemed Bai Ye was already eyeing his treasure.
"Old John, we've already invested so much gold from Golden Township. Later, our weapons factory can sell weapons, and Sea Stone can also be sold at high prices. Likewise, the light industrial products and luxury goods we produce later can harvest the entire world.
We're just a little short on cash now. If you invest a bit, won't vast amounts of money flow into our Wano Country later?"
Bai Ye grabbed John's shoulder to stop him from running, then spoke with a hint of temptation in his voice.
Now, it was just one crucial step away. He couldn't just give up everything, could he?
Besides, he wasn't just giving John false hopes; many things, if truly carried out, would indeed be profitable.
Listening to Bai Ye's words, John gulped. He was actually very clear about the immense potential of everything Bai Ye was doing.
At least, the once impoverished Wano Country was now starting to prosper internally.
And with the appearance of these products and concepts, Captain John wanted to open Bai Ye's head to see why he had so many brilliant ideas inside.
Making money was indeed only a matter of time.
"John, didn't you say before that you wanted to swim in treasure? With these things, building a golden swimming pool or a golden amusement park wouldn't be a big deal, would it?"
Bai Ye continued speaking. Captain John admitted that he was indeed a bit tempted.
What was he collecting treasure for?
Wasn't it for the joy of collecting, and then the joy of building a treasure museum?
As long as he had money, he wouldn't even need to steal treasure; he could just buy it directly.
Our Old John is also a civilized person. If he can buy it, he naturally won't steal it. Of course, if he has no money, he'll go steal!
"Bai Ye, you are my dearest friend! How much do you need?"
Captain John's throat moved, and he finally decided to make an investment.
After all, keeping the treasure wouldn't make money. Investing could help him get more money; this was what Bai Ye taught him.
Money is not saved!
Bai Ye chuckled inwardly. It seemed that the ideological work he had been doing with Captain John recently had been quite effective.
His continued presence in Wano Country was essentially to change their way of thinking.
John was fine; his personality was easy to change. But the other three were different.
Among the other three, Ivankov was relatively easy to reform, Kuma was a bleeding heart, and Ginny wasn't much different. Fortunately, he had done a good job with their ideological work, so now they also agreed with his ideas.
Tengetsu Toki was even easier to fool. That big sister was completely taken in the first time she met him.
"Old John, we're brothers, right?"
"Of course!"
Old John put his arm around Bai Ye's shoulder, a sincere expression flashing across his face.
Brothers!
He absolutely had to be his brother!
We climbed Sky Island together!
Although it was Bai Ye climbing, and he was just watching.
"Then, Old John, why don't you just give me all your treasure?"
Before, Old John had transported all his treasure over.
Bai Ye had wondered why Buggy always remembered Captain John's treasure.
Now he understood. This was comparable to Golden Township. How much treasure did Captain John actually amass?
Could Roger's Great Treasure be yours?
"Damn it!!!"
Captain John's eyes widened as he stared at Bai Ye in disbelief. He had originally thought Bai Ye would at most ask for a quarter, and he would haggle with Bai Ye, then offer a fifth to settle the matter. But what he didn't expect was that Bai Ye was trying to carve him up!
My brother and I are of one mind, but is he playing mind games with me?
"John, perspective! We need perspective! I told you before that money isn't saved. I won't take your money for nothing; I'll definitely give you dividends when we make money later!"
Bai Ye said, unconsciously observing the other party, wanting to see what John was thinking.
John was somewhat tempted, but giving up all his treasure, he was truly very reluctant deep down.
Yet, he also felt that Bai Ye was right; money isn't saved.
"Bai Ye, tell me honestly, will you run off with my treasure?"
Old John took a deep breath. Although he asked a very foolish question, he just wanted Bai Ye to give him an answer.
After all, a deceiver wouldn't admit to deceiving you. He sought comfort, which also meant Old John was willing to trust Bai Ye. After all, this was his life's savings!
"Am I crazy? If I don't want this place, where would I run off to?"
"Alright then, you can take my treasure to use. But afterward, you must make money for me! If you don't make money, I'll definitely arrange ten or eight ugly women to kill you!!"
Captain John gritted his teeth. He would just consider all his money invested.
But after this, Bai Ye absolutely had to make money for him. If he used his investor's money to play around, he would never let Bai Ye off!
"Old John, don't you trust me?"
"Trust, of course I trust you! Who said we're the best brothers!!"
Captain John decided that if Bai Ye really dared to do that, he would definitely drug Bai Ye and send him to Charlotte Linlin!
"By the way, Old John, I'm entrusting the matters of Wano Country to you. I plan to leave for a while."
"You're also going out to stir up trouble, huh?"
Captain John's eyes flickered, his expression saying, 'I saw through you long ago.'
Captain John didn't believe Bai Ye would stay in Wano Country forever, missing out on such exciting opportunities.
"Yes, Whitebeard and Golden Lion, those two scoundrels, can do it, so why can't I?"
As the Marine's most wanted criminal, his disappearance from public view had led to many speculations.
Some said he had long been captured and imprisoned in Level 6 of Impel Down, others said he was torn to shreds by the Celestial Dragons for his actions, or that he was simply too afraid to show himself.
Regardless of the speculation, the consensus was that Bai Ye would not come to a good end, and he couldn't tolerate that!
"You're right. Recently, everyone has been chasing after the so-called Pirate King to the Final Island. It's completely different from our time!"
In their time, under the leadership of Rocks, they fought against the Celestial Dragons. Now, every pirate wanted to become the Pirate King. Captain John felt a sense of nostalgia.
"Isn't the infighting among pirates something the World Government, those scoundrels, have been deliberately guiding all along?"
Speaking of which, over the years, there had probably been more than one Pirate King or news of the Red Poneglyphs released.
What the World Government needed was global chaos. Coupled with the previous massacre of the Celestial Dragons by Bai Ye, they already had the idea of eliminating a group of powerful pirates internally.
As pirates continuously set sail, the number of people joining the Marine was not proportional at all, which would make it difficult for them to even suppress the first half of the Grand Line.
"They have always been manipulating the world, but unfortunately, we can only play within these rules!"
Captain John took a sip of sake, speaking with clouded eyes.
They were not the rule-makers, just players, so they had to follow the established rules.
Did they not know?
In fact, everyone knew, but they exploited the pirates' greed to control them into fighting each other and to control the entire world.
"Rules are meant to be broken, Old John. So, I'm leaving this place to you. If I don't go out soon, the world will forget about me!"
---
Want to read 40 chapters ahead? Join my Patreon! Want to read 10 FREE chapters ahead? Join as a free member!
patreon.com/Rogue_Reader