"Deep cooperation?"
Sage raised an eyebrow. "What kind of cooperation do you have in mind?"
A Seven Warlord of the Sea teaming up with an ordinary pirate—what could they possibly collaborate on?
Crocodile exhaled a cloud of smoke and said, "If you want to claim territory in the New World, you'll need substantial funds. I can invest in you. In return, once I enter the New World, you'll assist me. How does that sound?"
Financially, he was in no short supply.
What he lacked most was influence and allies.
Sage was strong—Crocodile could sense that. Moreover, he was a rising newcomer, and their personalities were somewhat similar. Cooperation was feasible.
"Assist you? As your subordinate?"
Sage crossed his legs. "Are you joking, Crocodile?"
Crocodile's voice darkened. "Someone like you would never follow others. This is mutual exploitation. You ensure my plans go smoothly, and I'll do the same for yours."
This so-called cooperation was far from heartfelt trust. He wasn't that kind of person—by nature, he trusted no one.
But long-term mutual exploitation? That was entirely possible.
"Hmm..."
Sage nodded slightly, pondering for a moment before replying, "Fine. But I don't need your investment. My territory must remain under my control. Let's change the terms. As a Warlord, you have plenty of business ventures, right? How about letting me take a stake?"
Among the Seven Warlords, even Doflamingo couldn't match Crocodile's wealth of revenue streams. The man was practically the most business-savvy pirate around!
This was also the aspect Sage envied most.
Everything Crocodile touched turned to gold, while Sage struggled even with simple robberies.
The heist in Alabasta was probably the easiest he'd ever pulled.
Even so, as a newcomer, he'd already fought two battles back-to-back.
Had he been any weaker, he'd have been finished right there.
Amassing so much money only to have no way to spend it was its own kind of frustration. Neither he nor his subordinates were ready to venture into the New World yet.
Until then, having too much loot was just another problem.
Everyone loved money, but when you had too much and couldn't use it, it became a burden.
His ship was only so big—there was a limit to how much treasure it could hold. Was he supposed to stop raiding once his storage was full?
Aside from collectibles worth admiring, the rest of the money needed a purpose.
Without a territory, even burying his treasure was a hassle. He had absolute confidence in his bad luck—if he buried it today, someone would find it tomorrow.
This portion of his wealth was always meant for business. Only by owning tangible assets could he ensure that, even if he suffered a setback, he'd have the means to rise again.
Even without Crocodile, he'd planned to seize the right opportunity to start anew. Now, Crocodile's offer had handed him the perfect chance.
Becoming someone else's lackey was out of the question, but cooperation? That was entirely acceptable.
His luck was terrible—every venture he touched collapsed. But surely someone as business-savvy as Crocodile wouldn't suffer the same fate, right?
Investing a little now might just multiply his wealth later.
"A stake? That's not impossible. How much do you have?"
Crocodile certainly had numerous channels under his control. In the underground world, he was involved in businesses like finance, transportation, and warehousing.
He didn't accept investments, but if someone else invested in him, that was fine—it was just a matter of signing a contract for security.
Sage's eyes lit up upon hearing this. "Let's use the money we looted from Rainbase and Alubarna to invest. The scale of the business doesn't matter—even a small profit is fine!"
This way, his money would at least have a secure channel for storage, ready to be withdrawn whenever needed.
As for depositing it in a bank... He was a wanted man by the World Government—what kind of joke would it be to put his money in a bank?
A vein bulged on Crocodile's temple. "You rob money from my territory, then give it back to me, so I can help you make more?"
"Don't overthink it. Our contract is valid—it's all mine anyway. As for Alubarna, you play the hero, and I'll take the treasure," Sage said with a laugh.
Whether pirates could be trusted depended on the person, but most of them still valued promises and contracts highly.
Crocodile was one of them.
In fact, in this vast Sea, even small-time players didn't necessarily go back on their word.
Sage considered himself no small-time player, and Crocodile, as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, was undoubtedly a major figure.
Crocodile gave Sage a deep look, lit another cigar, and waited for the smoke to rise before speaking. "Fine. I accept your terms. But don't rob Rainbase—after all, it's my asset. For valuation, I'll count your capital as 500 million Belly."
"Deal." Sage thought for a moment and agreed to the valuation.
It wasn't an economic hub like Log Town—just a gambling city in the desert, so the scale was limited. Though he was more interested in Crocodile's wealth, the man didn't keep all his money in Rainbase.
Compared to securing a partnership, he could let this city go.
"Originally, sending you to Alubarna was just an extra layer of security for my plan. But since you're willingly involved, I might as well tell you what lies behind my Utopia Plan," Crocodile said slowly.
The so-called Utopia Plan was to incite a battle between the Royal Army and the Rebel Army in the Royal City of Alubarna, while simultaneously detonating specialized bombs hidden in Alubarna to eliminate the King and most of the military forces.
Without leadership, Crocodile—the hero of the desert—would naturally be embraced by the people, effectively taking control of the Kingdom.
Whether he became King or not didn't matter—as long as the country fell into his hands.
"Buried deep in this desert is a terrifying weapon, capable of destroying an entire Island with a single strike. Only by gaining control of this country can I find it. To achieve that, I need Alabasta's military completely wiped out. Once I'm in charge, I'll have enough time to locate that weapon."
After hearing Crocodile's plan, Sage seemed unimpressed. "I'm not interested in that kind of thing. True strength comes from oneself."
He vaguely remembered something like that being here, but he couldn't recall exactly what—not that it mattered.
Others might rely on external tools, but he couldn't.
With his Bad Luck, finding it was one thing—whether it would even work was another. He'd rather spend that time improving himself.
Personal strength was the only guarantee that his plans would proceed without a hitch. This had always been his way.
"Personal strength, huh..."
Crocodile paused slightly as he bit down on his cigar, lost in thought for a moment before shaking his head. "I have my own plans. You just need to make sure you can deliver."
"Is that so..."
A red glint flashed in Sage's eyes as he smiled. "Very well then. But you should be careful—staying too long in this desert can easily dull one's spirit. Wouldn't want to be defeated by some random little pirate, like..."
Bam! From the cage in front of them, several figures suddenly tumbled out, crashing onto the ground.
"...some overly enthusiastic little pirate."
Sage turned his gaze to the straw-hatted boy in the cage, who had been knocked senseless by the fall but was already getting back on his feet.
"Crocodile!"
The Straw Hat Kid gripped the bars of the cage, shouting at Crocodile, who sat leisurely on the sofa. "Fight me!!"
A shadow crossed Crocodile's face as he slowly turned to Sage. "Are you underestimating me...?"
With that, he stood up and faced the people in the cage. "You think trash like this can defeat me? Don't be in such a hurry. The main guests haven't arrived yet. Once they do, I'll deal with all of you at once."
"Damn it! You used a dirty trap... I can't move..."
Luffy, who had been gripping the bars, suddenly went limp and collapsed to the ground again.
"That was an avoidable trap! Why did you have to take the pirate passage when we could've gone through the VIP room?!" Nami yelled at Luffy.
"Hahahaha, this is beyond my expectations. Who in their right mind would take that idiot passage?"
Sage burst into laughter. "The sea truly is full of wonders."
He had just been wondering what kind of fool would take the passage marked 'Pirate,' and sure enough, someone had walked right into it.
Inside the cage were four people.
Aside from Luffy, there was a green-haired swordsman, a long-nosed guy, and a clever-looking woman with orange hair.
"Hey, what are you doing here?"
Zoro rested his hand on the hilt of his knife, glaring at Sage as he spoke in a low voice. "Are you working with Crocodile now?"
"Natural Disaster!"
Nami and Usopp clung to each other, trembling in fear. "We're done for! Why is he here too?!"
Two hundred and seventy million... That number was far beyond anything they could have imagined.
Luffy's bounty was only thirty million—not even a fraction of Sage's.
"We'll just beat them all together!"
Luffy struggled back to his feet, glaring at Sage before grabbing the bars again. "You're definitely a bad guy... Ugh, no strength again."
"Then stop touching them!"
Zoro shouted before furrowing his brow. "Wait, why are you losing strength...?"
"Sea-Prism Stone."
Sage shifted into a more comfortable position on the sofa, stubbing out his cigar in the ashtray before pouring himself a drink. "A stone imbued with the energy of the sea. If an Ability User relies solely on their powers, it'll leave them powerless."
With that, he downed the drink in one gulp and stood up. "I'm heading out, Croc. Get me some Log Poses and mounts. Since we're not looting Rainbase, I'll take my subordinates to Alubarna."
"Don't call me 'Old Croc'!"
Crocodile's expression darkened. "As for the items, I'll have someone deliver them to you. Coincidentally, my agents should be arriving soon. I'll send them a message so they don't get in your way."
Sage shrugged and headed up the stairs.
...
After obtaining several Log Poses and a few crocodile-drawn carriages from Crocodile, Sage set off with his crew in grand fashion.
"Huh? No more robbing? I was all ready to go."
A crocodile pulled a massive carriage swiftly across the desert, kicking up clouds of dust in its wake.
Inside the spacious carriage, only Sage and his three companions sat. Renetia sipped water through a straw, freshly replenished from Rainbase, and remarked,
"No need. I used the money from Rainbase to invest. We'll just rob Alubarna instead."
Sage stretched his arms behind him, resting them on the back of the sofa, exuding an air of confidence as he grinned at the three. "Life's full of surprises, but that's a good thing. With a business channel secured, my dream is one step closer. Now we've got a place to stash all the money we steal."
"Weapons, huh?"
Lily, however, pondered for a moment before asking, "A weapon that can destroy an Island with a single strike—does something like that really exist? Reti, as a technician, have you ever considered this?"
They had all shared in Sage's intel and now knew Crocodile's true objective.
"I'm a shipwright, not a weaponsmith."
Renetia shook her head. "If we're talking about Cannons, they'd need to be a hundred times larger than current ones, with barrels a hundred times bigger, and firing speeds a hundred times faster—only then might it be possible. But just the amount of Gunpowder required would be catastrophic if it misfired. My skills aren't advanced enough for that yet."
"What a terrifying weapon."
Marika's smile remained unchanged. "So that's what that Seven Warlords of the Sea is after? If he gets his hands on it..."
"It won't change much."
Sage slowly straightened his head, which had been leaning back. "The power to destroy an Island isn't unheard of On the Sea. That Crocodile has just grown narrow-minded... Come to think of it, ever since his defeat by Whitebeard, he's lost his ambition."
"Whitebeard?" Lily asked.
"Yeah."
Sage nodded. "Seems he once challenged Whitebeard. Funny—in this desert, I've met three Natural Type users, and all three are failures."
One was exiled to the East Sea, bound by his superiors' orders, unable to act freely.
Another had also challenged Whitebeard, only to be defeated and become his subordinate.
And then there was that Crocodile—after his defeat, he became a Seven Warlords of the Sea, dreaming big at the entrance of the first half of the Grand Line.
Though now, that dreamer was technically his business partner.
As for whether Crocodile would lose... from what he remembered, he did, but that was without Sage's involvement.
"Even though I owe Garp a favor..."
Sage lifted the curtain and gazed at the desert racing past outside. "But with a fortune-making scheme right in front of me, I won't let Crocodile fail when the time comes."
He wouldn't let a valuable business partner go down so easily!
Five hundred million Belly was nothing—but the business channel was everything.
If Crocodile were to lose, where would he find another like him? The Seven Warlords of the Sea could come and go, and the country didn't matter—what Sage needed to ensure was that his money had a place to go! Everything else held no interest for him.
Anyone who disrupted his grand money-making scheme and his path to becoming a landlord would be his enemy.
Sparing Luffy's life was already a favor he granted out of respect for Garp.
There was no helping it—even Pirates had to uphold some sense of honor.
Sage wasn't some petty, unreliable man without principles. Otherwise, something like Conqueror's Haki wouldn't even exist.