Chapter 56 – Hello, This Is a Robbery!
With both hands tucked casually into his pockets, Akira narrowed his eyes with a faint smile as he looked at the man standing before him—the leader of the Revolutionary Army, Monkey D. Dragon.
"You've already seen the Sea Stone cargo on that ship, right?"
"Genuine goods from the Land of Wano. Guaranteed, no scams."
"So—did you bring the money?"
Hearing that, Dragon glanced sideways at Sabo.
Without a word, Sabo tossed the large money chest he was carrying straight toward Akira.
"Mingo, count it."
Akira gestured for Donquixote Doflamingo, who was standing behind him, to inspect the chest of money Sabo had handed over.
Even though Doflamingo was seething inside over this oppressive "nine-to-one" profit split, on the surface he still looked perfectly respectful.
"Lord Akira, the amount is correct. A total of 2,000,000,000 Berries!"
Behind his sunglasses, a flash of greed flickered through Doflamingo's eyes.
Even though he—no, his company—only received a single share worth 200 million…
As the saying went, even scraps of pork still left behind a layer of fat.
The profit might not be huge—
But even the tiniest mosquito was still meat!
"As long as I stick with this monster, money will come sooner or later!"
Doflamingo comforted himself like that.
Akira nodded lightly.
"Good."
He turned his gaze back to Dragon.
"Now then, you're free to board the ship carrying the Sea Stone and leave."
Dragon, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, had always carried an air of mystery and authority.
This time, however, he didn't leave right away.
His deep, piercing eyes fixed themselves on Akira.
"Your name is Akira, correct?"
"So young… and so full of promise."
Dragon's voice was low and steady, carrying the natural charisma of a leader.
"Someone as strong as you…"
"With power that terrifying, and potential that astounding…"
"Are you really… content with being nothing more than a 'black market merchant' here?"
Dragon extended his hand.
"The seas are rotting."
"The rule of the Tenryuubito has left this world scarred and bleeding."
"We need strength like yours!"
"Join the Revolutionary Army."
Sincerity filled Dragon's gaze.
"Fight… for the liberation of this world!"
"With your abilities, you could become a commander under me—leading tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of soldiers!"
Beside him, Sabo also looked at Akira with hopeful eyes.
If they could recruit a monster capable of suppressing even a Yonko—
The Revolutionary Army's cause would leap forward in a single bound.
However—
"Liberate the world?"
"Liberate myself?"
Akira snorted dismissively.
He dug a finger into his ear, as if he had just heard an incredibly boring joke.
"Not interested."
"Sounds exhausting."
Akira shrugged.
"I don't have grand ambitions."
"I just want to make money, get stronger, and then…"
"Enjoy life."
A flicker of disappointment passed through Dragon's eyes.
"I see…"
"Then, Dragon."
Akira's tone shifted. Those aggressive eyes of his turned sharply toward Dragon instead.
"How about…"
"You work for me?"
"..."
Dragon and Sabo froze at the same time.
"Work for me."
Akira's voice carried a dangerous hint of temptation.
"Way more interesting than fighting the Tenryuubito."
"And besides—"
"I'll even pay you."
"..."
Dragon was completely speechless.
He shook his head slowly, the corner of his lips lifting into a bitter smile.
"No."
"Our paths are different."
"Alright."
Akira didn't press the matter.
"Then goodbye."
"Please, go on. I won't see you off."
Dragon and Sabo said nothing more.
They boarded the transport ship loaded with Sea Stone.
"Haah—"
Sabo let out a long breath.
"Even if we couldn't recruit him, at least the transaction went smoothly."
"Mm."
Dragon nodded quietly, standing at the bow as he watched Dressrosa slowly drift farther away.
The ship gradually departed the harbor.
After sailing several hundred meters—
Back at the pier.
Doflamingo stared at the retreating ship, confusion filling his heart.
"That bastard Akira…"
"He's really just letting them go like that?"
"This doesn't seem like his style."
"He even dared to extort Whitebeard. He even dared to extort the Marines…"
"Could it be… he really has some kind of 'special impression' of the Revolutionaries?"
While Doflamingo was still struggling to make sense of it—
"Mingo."
Akira's voice suddenly rang out.
"Yes?" Doflamingo replied instinctively.
Akira flashed a wide grin.
Revealing a row of neat, white teeth that somehow looked downright terrifying.
"Come on."
"Follow me. Chase them."
"..."
Doflamingo was stunned.
"Chase them? For what?"
Akira straightened his collar, then spoke two words with a completely blank expression.
"Rob them."
"..."
"..."
The corner of Doflamingo's mouth twitched.
"I knew it!!"
"I knew this bastard couldn't possibly be that nice!!"
…
Out at sea.
The transport ship surged forward at full speed.
Dragon and Sabo stood at the bow, discussing the hard-to-read existence known as Akira.
"That man's Haki aura… it's very strange,"
Dragon said in a heavy voice.
"It doesn't feel like the result of normal training—more like raw power that's been forcibly stuffed into his body."
"And his physical condition is far too excessive…"
Suddenly—
Vrrrrrrrr—!!!!
A deafening roar of wind erupted from the sky!
"Watch out!!"
Sabo's Observation Haki screamed a warning!
But before he could react—
Countless nearly invisible, transparent threads—
Like a divine net of punishment—
Covered the sky and earth, enveloping everything!
"This… this is Doflamingo's String-String Fruit ability?!"
Sabo cried out in shock.
"No—wrong!"
Dragon's expression changed dramatically!
"This overwhelming aura… it's far stronger than Joker's!!"
Crack—!!!
The threads wrapped tightly around the entire transport ship—its hull, its masts, even its keel!
The massive vessel, which had been charging forward at full speed just moments ago, came to an abrupt halt!
As if it had been forcibly grabbed by an invisible hand!
"Pull back—"
Back at the pier.
Akira gripped the mass of threads that had fused into a single bundle with one hand.
His nearly three-meter-tall body leaned back slightly.
The muscles in his arm bulged like coiling dragons!
"Come back!!!"
"ROOOOAAAR——!!!!"
The ground shook!
The sea churned!
That gigantic ship, loaded with tens of thousands of tons of Sea Stone—
Was actually—
With just one hand—
Forcibly—
Dragged back!
From hundreds of meters away across the sea!!
"What… what the hell?!"
Sabo stood at the bow, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets!
"What kind of strength is this?!"
"Is he even human?!"
"Akira!!!"
Dragon's face darkened instantly!
Boom!!
The ship was yanked back into the harbor at terrifying speed and slammed violently into the pier.
Akira lightly hopped onto the deck.
He brushed the dust from his hands and looked at the two of them with a mischievous grin.
"Gentlemen, why are you in such a hurry to leave?"
"What are you trying to do?!"
Dragon glared at Akira, fierce winds swirling violently around his body.
"Are you… are you planning to break our agreement?"
"Agreement?"
Akira looked genuinely puzzled.
"What agreement?"
He pointed toward the shore, toward the money chest in Doflamingo's hands.
"You mean the Sea Stone purchase deal?"
"That… was already completed, wasn't it?"
Akira spread his hands.
"Money and goods exchanged."
"No fraud involved."
"Then what is the meaning of this?!"
Sabo shouted angrily.
"Isn't it obvious?"
Akira pointed at the ship beneath his feet, then at Dragon and Sabo.
"Hello."
"This is a robbery."
"People and goods—we're taking everything."
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Read ahead and support the story on Patreon:
🔗 patreon.com/FaaanzKun
✅ 20+ chapters ahead of WebNovel
✅ 2 new chapters every day (Monday–Saturday), exclusive on Patreon
🌙 Note: Sunday is a rest day, so there will be no updates tomorrow. Regular uploads resume as usual on Monday.
Thank you all so much for your amazing support 💖
Your encouragement keeps this story alive and growing stronger every single day! 🌟
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —