40 40. Striking an Agreement. The Whitebeard Pirates leaving Early.

│3rd Person POV│

[Grand Line, New World, G5 Marine Base…]

"Pops!"

At this moment, Marco had returned, wearing a smile that clearly indicated success.

"Marco, how did it go?"

"What price did the Beasts Pirates agree to pay?"

Seeing this, Jozu, Vista, and the others asked out of curiosity.

Even Ron couldn't help but show a curious expression.

Given the current circumstances, there was no doubt that the Beasts Pirates were determined to destroy G5.

Under such conditions, while Kaido was still fighting, King, as the second in command, would undoubtedly be the one to make decisions and he would have to agree to pay a certain price to resolve the issue.

Without any concealment, Marco extended three fingers and explained, "King promised to give us three thousand catties of seastones.

"Three months after this incident, they will prepare everything they promised for us to take back, including the Artificial Devil Fruits."

After delivering this information, Marco paused for a moment before adding, "I have my doubts about them providing us with the Artificial Devil Fruits. They will probably choose to replace the fruits with much fewer Paramecia-type real Devil Fruits when the time comes."

Upon hearing this, Thatch and others frowned.

There were quite a few artificial Devil Fruits here, at least a hundred.

Although they had side effects, there was no denying their significant value. A direct loss like this would not be considered good news.

"Dad, I think this is a positive development."

Suddenly, Ron stepped forward and shared his perspective.

"Um?"

This statement left everyone present, including Whitebeard, somewhat confused. Discarding fifty or sixty artificial Devil Fruits was not considered good news, given their value.

"Why?"

Instinctively, Whitebeard inquired. Others, including Marco, also looked at Ron with curiosity.

"It's simple!"

With a calm smile, Ron explained, "Just because the Artificial Devil Fruit has defects and side effects doesn't mean that consuming it guarantees a 100% success rate of gaining Zoan-type powers.

"Otherwise, why would the Beasts Pirates have only a bit more than a hundred guys in their Beasts Legion with Zoan-type powers?

"If it were a guaranteed 100% success, the Beasts Legion would already be several hundred people strong. Because just this batch of Artificial Devil Fruits numbers more than one hundred.

"Imagine just how many batches of Artificial Devil Fruits the Beasts Pirates had already successfully bought and will buy in the future.

"So, even if we get fifty or sixty Artificial Devil Fruits, the most likely possibility is that we will gain maybe a dozen or two new members with Zoan-type powers.

"But what if the Beasts Pirates give us real Devil Fruits? We don't need too many, just about two dozen Paramecia-type Devil Fruits will do. They will prove more useful than these Artificial Devil Fruits.

"After all, the Beasts Pirates are all Zoan users, and except for Logia, I don't think they would be interested in Paramecia-type Devil Fruits."

Hearing this, Whitebeard and others suddenly realized the potential benefits of this situation.

If Ron's speculation turned out to be true, then this turn of events could indeed be considered favorable.

Thinking of this, Marco remarked, "If that's the case, it is indeed a positive outcome. However, the specifics will be known when the time comes. If we can obtain more than a dozen Paramecia fruits, it will indeed be of greater value to us."

As soon as these words were said, Thatch and others nodded in agreement.

After all, a defective Artificial Devil Fruit would always be inferior in comparison to the real deal.

"Alright."

At this moment, Whitebeard made up his mind and stated, "Since we have reached an agreement, let's not waste any more time.

"Let's go; it's almost time for us to leave here. We should quickly finish things here as we still have more pressing issues to address."

"Yes!"

Hearing this, Marco and others acknowledged the urgency of the situation.

They understood what Whitebeard was referring to.

Compared to the time spent here, Ochoku's capture of Beehive Island also held some importance.

Without hesitation, the group swiftly followed Whitebeard, turning around to leave.

"It's a pity that I can't stay to witness the fight till the end!"

Ron also followed suit, but his gaze lingered on the intense battle between Kaido and Zephyr.

The showdown between one of the Four Emperors and one of the former Marine Admiral was at its peak; both showcasing the fullest extent of their physical skills, Haki, and abilities.

Though he couldn't participate directly, observing such a battle provided valuable insights.

Regrettably, Ochoku's attack on Beehive Island happened too suddenly, preventing him from witnessing the outcome of the duel.

"Hey, why did those Whitebeard Pirates leave so abruptly?"

"What's going on with the Whitebeard Pirates? Where did they go?"

"Gone? Did Whitebeard just leave like that?"

"..."

With the departure of the Whitebeard Pirates, both the Marines and the Beasts Pirates found themselves in a state of confusion.

Everyone was perplexed, unable to comprehend why Whitebeard would choose this moment to depart with his crew.

The only ones privy to the information were the three All-Stars.

However, they had no intention of divulging the details, making it impossible to inform the Marines that Whitebeard left to counteract the Marine-backed reinforcements.

"Ron!"

Just as Ron and his entourage reached the ship, ready to depart, a shout echoed.

Glancing toward the source, students from the Marine elite training camps, including Binz, Ain, and others, were present near the dock.

Standing their ground, they glared at Ron's departing back with intense gazes.

When Ron turned to face them, Binz and his fellow students shouted.

"We'll make you pay for today's humiliation tenfold!"

"You may have won this time, but we will defeat you next time."

"Instructor Zephyr's teachings were not wrong; it's because of our laziness that we could not live up to the expectations. Next time, it will be your turn to face defeat!

Hearing this, Ron smiled.

His eyes swept over Binz and the others, knowing that only two of them would survive if things went as they did in the Canon World.

Thinking that they would defeat him later was just daydreaming on their part.

However, he didn't say this outright.

Instead, he raised his hand slowly and waved at Ain and the others, saying, "Those who have been defeated by me can't be my opponents.

"You can strive to catch up, as I'll not be waiting for you on my journey to the top."

After uttering these words, Ron stopped caring about them, turned around, flicked his sleeves, and followed Whitebeard and his crew in the direction of Moby-Dick.

"Ron!"

"Arrogant brat!"

"One day, you will be defeated by one of us."

"..."

Observing Ron's departing figure, the students from elite training camps on the coast were red-faced.

Clenching their fists and gritting their teeth, their only thought was to become stronger and regain their reputation.

=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

A/N: 40 Chapters already. It feels like I just started translating this yesterday. If this had been an original novel, next chapter would have a locked one. 😅😅😅

If you like this FF, please help me reach it to more audience by giving the FF Power Stones, or adding it in your Library, or by posting a Review.

See ya next week, fellas! ✌️

Anyway,

Shameless P@treon & Coffee plug...;

👉 patreon.com/ChaosWriter;

👉 buymeacoffee.com/ChaosWriter;

You can read up to 20 chapters ahead of Webnovel. Your support would be appreciated, but don't feel pressured to join. I'll upload stuff outside it and not keeping it behind a paywall forever.