Oni Island, Dungeon.
"Kaido!"
Ace jolted upright, fearfully patting himself down as images of being brutalized by Kaido flooded his mind.
When his vision cleared and he saw the bloodstained bandages wrapping his body, his consciousness wavered momentarily.
So it had been a nightmare.
Clank clank clank—
The chains sounded unbearably heavy.
Raising a hand to his forehead, Ace noticed the Sea Prism Stone Shackles on his wrists—confirmation of his predicament.
He'd been defeated by Kaido.
An unprecedented sense of defeat washed over him.
"Damn that monster!"
Ace punched the wall in fury, leaving bloodied fist marks as he vented his frustration.
Against any other foe, no matter how strong, he'd always believed victory would ultimately be his.
But Kaido was different.
His proud flames had merely tickled Kaido's skin, seemingly incapable of inflicting any real damage.
It made no sense!
He couldn't comprehend it.
Without his flame powers, his physical strength alone was hopelessly outmatched—utterly crushed in every aspect.
"Captain Ace!"
His crew's voices came from outside.
Ace rushed to the cell bars, spotting his crewmates in the opposite cells—all clad in prisoner garb, their spirits broken.
Though he'd expected it, seeing his captured crew filled him with anguish and desperation.
"Even you all..."
"We're sorry, Captain Ace."
His crew hung their heads in shame.
They'd become their captain's burden.
"The one who should apologize is me."
Ace slumped against the cell door, pressing a hand to his face.
If not for his stubborn insistence on challenging Emperor Kaido in Wano Country, his crew wouldn't have ended up like this.
What right did he have to call himself captain when he couldn't even protect his own crew?
He was too weak.
Clomp clomp clomp—
After an indeterminate time, heavy footsteps approached.
A familiar rough voice sounded.
"Take these intruders to the Prisoner Quarry."
"Aye!"
Ace's pupils contracted.
Kaido's voice!
Springing up, Ace watched helplessly as pirates dragged his crew away, shouting desperately at Gurd: "Kaido! Where are you taking my crew?!"
"Where?"
Gurd turned to Ace, lips curling.
"To hell, of course."
"..."
Eyes bloodshot, Ace roared uncontrollably: "Kaido! Release them now! If you want someone, take me!"
"Losers don't make demands."
Gurd's gaze turned icy.
"And I'm not Kaido."
"You're not Kaido?"
Ace was stunned.
This monstrously strong opponent wasn't even Kaido?
"I am Groudon Gurd, an officer of the Beasts Pirates."
Gurd stated matter-of-factly: "Kaido is a hundred times stronger than me. Against an ignorant brat like you, he'd need just one strike. Pity he's not currently in Wano Country."
"What?!"
Ace's fists clenched in rage.
Kaido could defeat him with one strike?
What kind of joke was this!
This underestimation had gone too far!
Pulling up a chair, Gurd studied the seemingly broken Ace with some concern.
Originally, he'd planned for an evenly matched fight with Ace before negotiating mutually beneficial terms.
Who would have thought this kid would turn into his personal RBQ.
If it were a pretty girl, fine—he could keep her around for "mana replenishment." But it was a man, and a restless one at that.
He had no interest in making life harder for himself.
From what he knew of Ace, plus the firsthand experience of their fight, the kid was stubborn as hell—almost impossible to tame.
The Beasts Pirates weren't some warm, fuzzy family. They couldn't pull off Whitebeard's schtick. Ace's personality made him fundamentally incompatible with the Beasts.
Keeping Ace around would likely just mean the Prisoner Quarry gained an SSR-tier laborer—utterly pointless for him.
Killing him after use? That'd be dishonorable. He still needed to put the kid to work, and killing the goose that lays golden eggs was a bit much.
As for eating him—
What the hell kind of suggestion was that?!
Too damn horrifying.
Gurd quickly dismissed the idea.
Ace was just a Devil Fruit user, not the fruit itself. Even if eating him worked (which was doubtful), the act itself was unacceptable.
He was a villain, not a pervert.
Back to business.
Gurd stared at Ace. "Want to save your crew?"
"What do you mean?" Ace tensed.
He was a prisoner now—there was no reason for the other to spare him.
Gurd grinned. "I could let you and your crew go."
"What's the price?" Ace asked grimly.
He wasn't his idiot little brother. He knew everything came at a cost—if they were being spared, there had to be conditions.
Gurd pulled out a stack of bounty posters and tossed them at Ace. "This is your crew's collective price—roughly 400 million berries. Let's round it up to a clean billion. A billion berries for all your lives—pretty fair, right?"
"A billion berries?!" Ace gaped.
He hadn't expected Gurd to demand ransom.
Truly a Pirate's way of doing things.
But rounding up to a billion?! What kind of rounding was that?!
Fair his ass!
Ace's face twisted in frustration. "I don't have that kind of money!"
"No problem. You can write an IOU." Gurd cheerfully produced a pre-prepared contract. He'd already had Ace's ship looted—he knew the kid was broke.
If Ace could pay, he wouldn't even want the money.
What he wanted was the debt itself.
Just imagining the future—pulling out this IOU to intimidate Whitebeard's crew of paupers—made it hard to keep his smirk in check.
Try paying up first, idiots!
Kehahaha—!
"Interest will be 30% annually."
"Tch—!" Ace sucked in a sharp breath.
30% interest—that's 300 million a year!
Even "Loan Shark King" Du Feld wasn't this ruthless!
How the hell was he supposed to repay this?!
Gurd raised an eyebrow. "What, not willing?"
"N-no, I'll do it!" Ace gritted his teeth.
No amount of money was worth more than his crew's lives.
Gurd cackled and pulled out a Photographing Den Den Mushi. "Good. Sign and fingerprint this."
"Oh, and hold the IOU against your chest. I need photos as evidence—can't have you denying it later."
"Ace, my boy… You wouldn't want your debt photos circulating worldwide, would you?"
"..."
Ace's eyes went hollow as Gurd manhandled him like a puppet.
Tears shimmered faintly in his eyes.
This was it. If this got out, he'd be the laughingstock of the world—especially back home in Windmill Village.
This was worse than killing him.
Yet, there was even more cruelty to come.
"Gyahahaha, strip off your clothes too!"
"Stop your damn nonsense!"
"Do it yourself, or should I help you?"
"Do you still want to save your comrades or not?"
In the end, those stubborn little pearls of his finally fell.
Ace closed his eyes in agony.
A devil—this guy was absolutely a devil!
"SUPERB!!!"
Gurd, holding a stack of photos, put them away with great satisfaction.
"Now, let's discuss the second condition!"
"There's more?!"
Ace glared at Gurd in grief and indignation.
If it weren't for the seastone cuffs suppressing his abilities, he would have absolutely blown this bastard in front of him to pieces!
Blown him to pieces!!!
"Don't worry, this condition is simple."
Gurd's gaze turned icy.
"Kill someone for me!"
"Who?"
"General Orochi!"
Pirates clashing, the general meeting a violent end.
And he and Yamato would turn the tide, propping up the collapsing empire—when Kaido heard the news, he would surely find it music to his ears!
(End of Chapter)