Teach's eyes settled on Silvers Rayleigh, anticipation burning in them.
The fight.
That was what he had been waiting for.
"When do we begin?" Teach asked directly, his tone carrying undisguised eagerness.
"Give me a day," Rayleigh replied calmly. "I haven't been active for years."
He did not refuse.
In truth, he was looking forward to it as well.
Age had caught up to him slightly. His strength had not vanished, but it had dulled around the edges. He needed time to readjust, to sharpen himself again.
If he was the setting sun, then Teach was the blazing noon sky.
Rayleigh understood the difference in momentum between them. In that sense alone, he was already at a small disadvantage.
Teach nodded.
A single day meant nothing.
Rayleigh finished the wine in his glass and stood up. He sensed there was more Teach wished to discuss with Shakky. It was not appropriate for him to remain.
Besides, he had preparations to make.
After Rayleigh left, Shakky leaned casually against the counter and looked at Teach with a faint smile.
"So? What else do you need, Teach-lad?"
She assumed he wanted information.
She was wrong.
"I need an intelligence organization that belongs to the Nightfall Pirates," Teach said plainly. "Building one from scratch takes too long. I don't have that time."
Shakky's wiping hand paused slightly.
"And so?" she asked.
"So I need yours."
Silence lingered for a brief moment.
Teach did not circle around the matter. He wanted the organization under her control and intended to convert it into the Nightfall Pirates' intelligence arm.
Bold.
If it were anyone else, Shakky would have rejected the idea immediately.
But this was Teach.
She appreciated that he did not play games with words.
The intelligence organization she controlled lacked factional backing. That meant no massive funding stream, but also no binding allegiance or fixed objective. It operated as a neutral broker, buying and selling information.
That neutrality allowed it to sustain itself.
Organizations backed by major forces like the Navy or the World Government grew quickly due to funding, but they could not sell their intelligence. Their information belonged exclusively to their patrons. They were money-consuming beasts.
Shakky's organization was different.
Pure.
Independent.
And self-sufficient.
She had already retired. The network functioned largely on its own. Only a few trusted subordinates knew her true identity. Most agents within it would not recognize one another if they stood face to face.
Ownership changes were common in this world. Often, those at the bottom never even realized it.
Still, this organization was her life's work.
She had nurtured it for decades. Emotional attachment could not be dismissed.
At the same time, she understood the danger of remaining unsupported. Without a powerful umbrella, one misstep could result in annihilation.
If the Nightfall Pirates became that umbrella, the organization would gain protection.
But that protection came at a cost.
Supporting Teach meant indirectly opposing the Navy and the World Government.
Seeing her hesitation, Teach continued.
"The information-selling business can remain. But not anything sensitive."
Naturally.
If it became his organization, his intelligence would not be sold to others.
This arrangement would allow the network to retain its public neutral identity while secretly serving him. A mask was useful.
"You can continue managing it," Teach added.
He needed the foundation, not merely the structure.
Building an intelligence network from nothing required years, even decades for something substantial. He did not have that luxury.
Currently, his information channels were limited.
The West Blue's Dark Council provided regional intelligence.
Stephanie of Brilliance Street had access to certain World Government and Navy information, but her reach was restricted. Excessive probing would raise suspicion.
Mostima's efforts in the New World were barely more than scouts observing major factions.
It was insufficient.
Shakky listened carefully.
Still, admiration alone was not enough.
This was a transaction.
She would not give away her life's work for nothing.
Teach finally spoke his decisive offer.
"One hundred billion Berries. And the first two promises remain unchanged."
Shakky's pupils contracted.
One hundred billion.
Even she had never handled such an amount.
An intelligence organization required constant investment. Tens of billions annually were not uncommon for large factions. Her organization was self-sustaining, but it lacked depth in critical areas such as the New World and Marine intelligence.
And that was precisely what Teach wanted.
For information about the New World, the Navy, and the World Government, one hundred billion was a very high price.
Refusing became difficult.
Her work would remain largely the same. She would gain immense capital. The organization would gain powerful backing.
After a long pause, Shakky smiled.
"Then let's discuss the details."
They talked for some time.
Beyond the initial one hundred billion, Teach agreed to allocate fifty billion Berries annually to expand operations. Training spies. Cultivating intelligence personnel. Establishing covert agents.
The focus would shift back toward the New World, the Navy, and the World Government.
Eventually, control over the most sensitive operations would transition fully to the Nightfall Pirates. Intelligence could not remain permanently in outside hands.
As for the neutral information trade, Shakky would continue managing it.
"And the headquarters?" she asked.
That decision mattered most.
"Saint Louis Island."
Shakky froze briefly.
She understood immediately.
So that was his real objective in the Sageros Sea.
Establishing the intelligence headquarters on Saint Louis Island meant Teach intended to seize it and make it the Nightfall Pirates' core base.
Bold indeed.
The organization she controlled was internally called RK, named after Rocks D. Xebec, a private memento of her former captain. Publicly, it operated under another name.
Now, ownership would change.
Public operations would continue unchanged.
But the secret division focused on espionage would receive a new codename.
Black Hole.
BH.
Teach could not produce one hundred billion in liquid cash immediately. But gold, treasures, and assets were abundant. The transfer would be completed in stages.
With this, half of the Nightfall Pirates' objectives at the Sabaody Archipelago were complete.
Ship coating.
Securing intelligence infrastructure.
And tomorrow, the battle with Rayleigh.
Teach had long planned this move. Intelligence was leverage. At critical moments, it determined survival.
Spies were even more valuable.
The most representative example was Vergo, Doflamingo's agent within the Navy, who rose all the way to Vice Admiral and commanded a Marine branch. A high-ranking infiltrator capable of shaping outcomes from within.
Teach needed such a piece.
The sea was changing.
The Navy was changing.
The present was already different from the future he remembered.
He required an internal Hidden Piece.
Someone with potential.
At minimum, someone capable of rising to Rear Admiral or higher.
Rather than wait for chance, he would cultivate them himself.
Such matters would be delegated. He would not personally oversee the grooming of a spy.
For now, his thoughts shifted to tomorrow.
The duel.
Teach left Shakky's tavern, anticipation quietly building.