Doflamingo mulled it over, then nodded.
"Fuffuffuffu. Then why not just work with Sengoku?" he asked. "Wouldn't it be easier? You Marines catch pirates all the time."
"Sengoku won't agree," Jin said. "His Marines fight for 'justice,' not for money."
"Fuffuffuffu… Justice," Doflamingo said with open disgust. "Makes me sick. You really are an oddball among them, huh?"
"Something like that," Jin agreed. "I've never fit into their brand of 'justice.' So—I've made my own."
Doflamingo raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? Even a walking disaster like you has a justice?"
Jin's gaze drifted back toward the stage, where a white-haired old man in chains was being led out.
"Marines have to have a justice," he said. "So I picked one for myself."
He smiled wolfishly.
"I call it… Black Justice."
"Fuffuffuffu… just hearing it sends chills down your spine," Doflamingo cackled.
"Black justice is still justice," Jin replied, ignoring him.
His gaze stayed fixed on the old man.
Doflamingo noticed.
"You've been staring at that geezer since he walked out," he said. "Something wrong with him?"
He wasn't the only one curious. The others looked closer as well.
From a quick scan he was just… a tough old man. Stronger than most, sure, but nothing insane.
Jin's grin deepened.
"That old man is a legend," he said softly. "A real one."
"Mm?" Doflamingo kept staring, trying to place the face.
The old man seemed to sense the scrutiny. His eyes flicked briefly toward their box.
"Sharp Observation," Doflamingo muttered. "Fuffuffu… He picked us up that fast."
"So who is he?" he asked finally.
Jin's eyes gleamed.
"First mate of the Pirate King," he said. "The Dark King himself: Silvers Rayleigh."
"What?!"
The whole room exploded in shock.
Even Stella's eyes went wide. Pirate King. A man who'd conquered the Grand Line. And this was the right hand who'd stood at his side.
Now he was standing on an auction block with a collar around his neck.
Jin took a sip of wine, tone light.
"I heard a long time ago," he said, "that Roger turned himself in—traded his life for the safety of his crew. Looks like the World Government kept that deal."
"Turned himself in?" Doflamingo stared.
Another crack in the story the world had been told.
"Fuffuffuffu… So that's it," he said slowly. "I always did wonder why nobody tried to break him out. Turns out the whole thing was arranged. Fuffuffu…"
Diamante shot Jin a narrow look.
Turned himself in? The reports had all said he'd been caught by Garp.
"Just how much do you know?" Doflamingo demanded. "Fuffuffuffu. Humor me, tell me more."
Jin smiled.
"Not much," he lied. "Just a few things. Like where those four red stones are."
Doflamingo's foot slammed down on the table hard enough to make the glasses jump. Stella flinched, thinking they were about to start fighting.
Whatever those red stones were, they clearly mattered.
"You're not joking," Doflamingo said, voice low and dangerous.
Diamante, Buffalo, Sugar, Machvise, Monet—all of them stared with hungry eyes.
Jin took his time with his wine, then patted Stella's hand to calm her down.
He turned back to them.
"Nope," he said. "No jokes."
"What do you want?" Doflamingo said at once.
"Hmmmm…" Jin tapped his chin and let the silence drag until Doffy's patience frayed.
"Box-Box Fruit," he said at last. "Kill that little box-man from Whitebeard's sixth division and find the reborn Bag-Bag Fruit. Bring me those two."
He lifted his glass again.
"In return, I'll tell you one spot. For free, the first one."
He raised a finger.
"Back in the day, Roger slipped into Big Mom's territory. There's a red stone in her domain."
He shrugged.
"The next location… you get that after you bring me the fruits."
Inwardly he added: And then I'll tell you Kaido's got one. You like the Yonko so much? Go say hi up close.
Doflamingo stared at him, mind racing through the implications.
Three Emperors, red stones, the route to the end of the world…
"You're not lying?" he asked quietly.
"Nope," Jin said, smiling. "Swear on my 'Black Justice'."
"I'll find the Box-Box Fruit," Doflamingo said at last. "And I'll find a chance to take down that sixth division captain."
He sat, decision made.
"I'll bring them to you."
"I believe you, Doffy," Jin said. "You're too crazy not to."
"See that you keep your end," Doflamingo snapped. "The man-made fruit will be delivered. If we find those two, you'll have them as well."
He stood abruptly and left the box, clearly impatient to start moving.
He wants to watch the world burn, Jin thought, watching him go. Childhood like yours would twist anyone.
Well. With Kaido and Big Mom both standing in the way, you're not getting your hands on the full set anyway.
Speaking of… I should get down to Fishman Island and print that stone before Shanks walks off with it.
Rayleigh's turn on stage came and went. He was sold off for a measly eight hundred thousand to a freckled, overweight noblewoman.
Jin shook his head.
Old man's definitely getting robbed halfway home.
He pulled out a Den Den Mushi and dialed a familiar number.
"Brrrrip… brrrrip… click."
"This is Vice Admiral Arakaki Jin. Put Mjosgard on."
"One moment, sir," an old voice replied. A butler, likely.
"Hello? Jin? What do you want?" Mjosgard's peevish voice came through, with the background noise of fighting and screaming.
Jin blew smoke.
"I want to open an auction house with you," he said. "High-end only."
"Hm? Auction house?" Mjosgard sounded puzzled. "What kind of 'high-end'?"
Jin shifted into bullshit mode.
"Well… you Celestial Dragons complain you've got a shortage of strong-bodied slaves, right? I'll fix that. I'll grab the strong pirates and sell them to you."
On the other end he could faintly hear the butler explaining in a low voice.
Jin took his time with another drag.
Then distant shouting: "Damn slave, how did you lose? Useless!"
Followed by Mjosgard's triumphant roar: "Hahaha! Charlos, the bet's mine this time!"
"Damn you, Mjosgard! I'll find a stronger slave next time!" Charlos howled, and a gunshot cracked. One more corpse for the pile.
Mjosgard was in a very good mood when he returned to the line.
"So," he asked, "just you and me?"
"And one other man," Jin said.
"Hm?" There was instant displeasure in Mjosgard's tone.
"Relax. He's useful. He can source… other merchandise. We can't sell just pirates."
Mjosgard thought about that.
"…You're right," he said slowly. "Send me the location. I'll dispatch someone to negotiate."
"Number One Auction House. Box Eight," Jin said.
The line clicked dead immediately.
Jin chuckled and set the snail down.
He turned to Stella, who'd been fidgeting with questions she didn't dare ask.
"Want to ask something?" he prompted.
"Um… Mr. Bai," she said hesitantly, "you… are a Marine, right?"
"Yeah," he said easily.
He dragged the other sofa closer and gestured for her to sit. She hesitated—she was his "purchase," after all. Some habits didn't fade in a day.
He tugged her gently down anyway.
"Sit. Ask."
She smoothed her skirt, stole a glance at his face, then blurted:
"Why… open a slave auction house?"
Jin couldn't help a small laugh.
He'd expected that one.
"Well," he said, "if you want the noble version: every pirate we sell is one less civilian getting hurt."
He lifted his glass.
"This auction doesn't take commoners. Only scum—the kind of pirates who've earned their bounties in blood."
He took another sip.
"The ugly version? We're feeding trash pirates to brain-dead nobles."
He leaned back.
"Once the slavers realize pirates sell better than helpless civilians, they'll shift their nets. They'll target pirates more and more, and ordinary people just a little bit less."
He met her eyes.
"It won't save everyone," he said. "Maybe it won't even save many. But it's the limit of what I can do from this angle. I'm no god, Stella. I can't protect the whole world."
Stella's heart unclenched.
So he wasn't just another monster dressing cruelty up in pretty words.
Her gaze grew soft, full of a quiet, deep affection she didn't bother to hide.
They grew quiet together, watching slaves and treasure and strange beasts cycle across the stage as they waited.
About half an hour later, an elderly butler entered, followed by two men.
"Vice Admiral Jin," the butler said with a respectful bow, "thank you again for saving Lord Mjosgard. From now on, you'll be dealing with me. These two are the auction's current managers. As of today, they're yours."
Professional, Jin thought with some satisfaction. You really can't beat old-money support.
"Good," he said aloud. "Introduce yourselves."
"Honored sir," the first man said, bowing low. "My name is Kristen. I've been managing this auction house. From today, I serve under you."
"And this is my most capable deputy," he added, motioning to the man behind him. "No matter the task, he sees it done. His name is Ehadlin."
"Honored to meet you, my lord," the deputy said, bowing even lower. A neat little moustache sat above his lip. "If you find my name troublesome, you may call me Little Mustache."
Jin nodded and Ryder out the rules, the structure, the cut, the target "inventory."
Then his eyes lingered just a bit longer on the man who called himself Little Mustache.
A man who knew which way the wind was blowing… and wasn't afraid to cut down his own boss to ride it.
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/StrawHatStudios