"Anyone who isn't afraid to die is welcome to try!"
The words were heavy and powerful, instantly silencing the room. Every eye widened in shock.
CLANG!
The moment he finished speaking, a troop of fully armed, masked soldiers carrying strange-looking weapons flooded in from the doorway, surrounding everyone.
The atmosphere in the office became incredibly tense.
The bosses' faces changed, their brows furrowing as they turned to Kaneshiro, their eyes filled with cold, questioning glares.
"What is the meaning of this?" a burly, middle-aged man in a black suit demanded.
"Are you planning to keep us all here?"
These were all top-tier figures in the underworld. They wouldn't be so easily intimidated. On the contrary, they didn't believe for a second that Kaneshiro would dare to harm them.
Setting aside the question of whether he could handle the consequences, it was doubtful these soldiers could even get the job done.
Having risen through the ranks of the underworld, they were no strangers to darkness and death. They had weathered countless crises. Each of them possessed more than enough strength to protect themselves. Soldiers? They didn't even register as a threat.
Facing a dozen pairs of cold, dangerous eyes, Kaneshiro met their gazes without flinching. He tapped a finger on the desk, his voice low and steady. "As I said, anyone who isn't afraid to die is welcome to try."
His confidence came from Wilder, and from the two members of the Royal Guard Wilder had specifically sent to protect him.
As Kaneshiro spoke, two figures with distinctly different masks stepped out from the ranks of the soldiers. They walked to his sides and stood at attention, not even sparing the underworld bosses a glance.
The appearance of these two immediately gave everyone a sense of unease. A flicker of gravity crossed their faces.
This, in turn, stoked the flames of their anger. They clenched their fists, a murderous aura emanating from them as they glared at Kaneshiro.
As prominent figures in the underworld, when had they ever been treated with such disrespect in the office of a mere company? Not even Joker had ever treated them this way. They would never allow such a person to exist in their world.
Red Leaf must be destroyed!
They exchanged glances, the same thought rising in all their minds.
"Hehehe..." A low, cold laugh suddenly broke the silence.
The man with the silver chain looked up, his eyes like a wolf's as he stared at Kaneshiro. He bared his teeth in a cruel smile. "Do you have a death wish?"
"Or..." he glanced dismissively at the soldiers surrounding them, "...do you really think these men can keep us here? Or... do you actually have the guts to kill us all?"
Kaneshiro watched him coldly, his hands flat on the desk, a single finger tapping a steady rhythm. He said nothing.
"Hahaha! That's hilarious!" the man roared with laughter.
Then, his smile vanished. He leaned in close to Kaneshiro, his expression turning grim. "Who are you trying to scare?" he said coldly.
Kaneshiro's finger continued its rhythmic tapping as he stared back, his face a mask of indifference. The two men locked eyes.
At a certain moment, the tapping stopped.
Click... BANG!
Blood sprayed from a hole in the silver-chained man's forehead. A bullet had passed through his skull without any warning. Less than ten centimeters from his face, the black muzzle of a gun smoked. The soldier to Kaneshiro's right coolly retracted his weapon and stood perfectly still, as if nothing had happened.
An eerie silence fell over the office. A dazed look remained on everyone's faces, as if they hadn't yet processed what had just happened.
It was only after the gunshot had echoed in their ears and the body had hit the floor with a dull thud that the dozen underworld bosses finally snapped back to reality. Their eyes widened, their pupils dilating as they stared in disbelief at the corpse at their feet.
The man who had been so arrogant just moments before was now lifeless, his face frozen in a rigid expression as blood pooled on the floor beneath his head.
Silence.
Everyone stared at Kaneshiro in disbelief, a chaotic mix of shock, fear, and other emotions flashing across their faces.
No one spoke, but their expressions were grim. They looked at the body on the floor, the silver-chained man's words still ringing in their ears.
You dare to kill us? Who are you trying to scare?
Looking at the lifeless corpse now, a chill rose from the depths of their hearts, and they couldn't calm their racing thoughts.
They couldn't believe it. He had actually done it.
The fat man with the vicious scar on his face had a dark, uncertain expression. After a long moment, he finally tore his gaze away from the body and looked up at Kaneshiro.
He stared at him coldly for a long time before finally gritting his teeth. "Since we are not welcome here, we will take our leave."
With that, he turned and walked toward the door without another word. The others, their faces grim, also stared at Kaneshiro for a long moment before following the fat man out of the office.
Kaneshiro didn't stop them. He watched the doorway with a dark expression, his finger tapping a steady rhythm on the desk.
The dozen men who left the office had incredibly dark expressions. As they walked down the stairs, they exchanged murderous glances.
"When we get back, we'll gather our forces and level this place! Leave no one alive! Especially that bastard Kaneshiro! I don't care who's backing him! He's finished today!"
The fat man's grim voice reached everyone's ears, thick with a terrifying killing intent and rage.
His words resonated with them. What had happened today was an unprecedented humiliation. If they didn't destroy Red Leaf, they would never be able to quell the fury in their hearts.
But just then, a series of Den Den Mushi began to ring.
"What's going on?" They all stopped, exchanging surprised glances.
They saw the same look in each other's eyes as before.
The situation was just like when they had received the news of Joker's capture. A sense of unease crept into their hearts, and they worried that more bad news was on its way.
"Answer them," the fat man said, holding his own Den Den Mushi hesitantly. He was the first to connect the call.
"Boss, we just got word. The machine guns Joker was selling... the source is the Red Leaf Company."
"Boss, the source of the machine guns is the Red Leaf Company. All the arms dealers in the New World know now."
"Boss... the weapons are from the Red Leaf Company."
"Boss... the machine guns..."
"Boss..."
"Boss..."
Standing in the hallway of the Red Leaf Company building, listening to the calls, the dozen men were completely dumbfounded.
Clatter.
Another Den Den Mushi slipped from someone's hand and fell to the floor, unnoticed.
After a moment of stunned silence, the fat man turned to the others, his face a mask of shock. "This Red Leaf Company... who the hell are they?"
At the same time, the news spread like wildfire through the underworld, as if an invisible hand were guiding it. Everyone who received the news was shocked.
"The machine guns came from that Red Leaf Company? Didn't the rumors say they were from Morass?"
"Red Leaf has a powerful backer... I get it now! It's Morass!"
The underworld bosses who had witnessed the execution of the silver-chained man had been ready to declare war on Red Leaf. But now, they all calmed down.
"We can't make a move on Red Leaf." Those who had been planning to attack broke out in a cold sweat.
They were powerful in the underworld, and some even had dealings with the Four Emperors. But that didn't mean they were willing to provoke a force like Morass.
As members of the underworld, their information channels were extensive. They knew more than most.
Morass... what kind of power was it? They had never seen an organization with a structure like Morass's.
They couldn't fully grasp its composition or its deeper functions, but they knew one thing: the number of its members was enormous, almost on par with a Yonko's crew.
And they had a feeling that when this massive force made its move, it wouldn't be as simple or predictable as other powers.
Dangerous.
That was the underworld's consensus on Morass.
If the power behind Red Leaf was really Morass...
And based on the current intelligence, it was highly likely...
At this thought, some of them felt a wave of fear, relieved that they hadn't acted yet. Otherwise...
The thought of confronting such a massive force was daunting.
No one would risk everything they had to fight a power of that scale.
Suppressing their desire to attack Red Leaf, the underworld bosses' thoughts turned to the machine guns. Their minds began to churn with new ideas.
Back in the hallway of the Red Leaf Company, the dozen men looked at each other, their mouths open but unable to speak.
This news...
Was it incredibly timely?
Or incredibly untimely?
By now, the news that Red Leaf had executed the silver-chained man had also spread throughout the underworld.
And not only that, but another piece of news quickly reached the men in the hallway and the other underworld bosses.
The silver-chained man's territories were under attack. His forces were being crushed, completely unable to fight back. In less than half an hour, his entire operation had been dismantled. The attacking force had landed and seized his properties, and it was the same group that had attacked Joker's businesses.
Hiss!
This news sent another shockwave through the underworld. The various bosses were stunned into silence.
No one was thinking about destroying Red Leaf anymore. This was clearly a warning, a show of force. Having witnessed Red Leaf's power and its likely backing by Morass, no one was foolish enough to provoke them.
"Gentlemen."
In the quiet hallway, the fat man finally spoke.
The others looked at him.
The fat man clenched his fists, then slowly relaxed them. He seemed to sigh. "The operation is canceled."
The others didn't speak, but they nodded in agreement.
"However," the fat man continued, "it seems we have to go back to that rather unpleasant office."
"Hmm?" The others stared at him, then, as if realizing something, their breathing quickened, and their eyes lit up with the familiar gleam of a merchant spotting a profit.
Seeing their expressions, the fat man knew they understood. He grinned and strode back toward the office. The others hurried to keep up, some even breaking into a run to get ahead of him, as if there were some great prize waiting for them and they were afraid of being late.
"Hey! What are you running for? Stop right there!" the fat man and the others yelled, quickening their pace.
"You stop if you want to! I'm not an idiot! If I'm late, you'll get all the good stuff!" the man at the front shouted back without turning. The others gritted their teeth in frustration. "You just wait!"
The dozen men swarmed back into Kaneshiro's office. The soldiers inside reflexively raised their guns and aimed at them.
"Don't! Don't shoot! We're here to talk business!"
They all rushed in at once, only to be greeted by the sight of dozens of gun barrels. Cold sweat broke out on their foreheads. A single wrong move could get them killed.
Kaneshiro sat behind his desk, his expression unreadable as he watched the men who had just left come rushing back in.
But no one dared to underestimate this plain-looking man with an unimpressive demeanor anymore.
The fat man wiped the sweat from his brow and forced a warm smile. He walked up to Kaneshiro's desk.
"Is there something you need, gentlemen?" Kaneshiro asked coolly before he could speak.
The fat man was taken aback for a moment, but he quickly recovered, his expression becoming sincere. "Mr. Kaneshiro, please, let's forget about the unpleasantness from before. To be honest, I have a great deal of admiration for you..."
Kaneshiro cut him off impatiently. "If you have something to say, get to the point."
"..."
"I heard that the machine guns came from your Red Leaf Company. Is that true?"
"It is," Kaneshiro nodded directly. "Why do you ask? What does that have to do with you?"
"Excellent!" The fat man clapped his hands, conveniently ignoring Kaneshiro's pointed question. "Let's not beat around the bush. I'd like to purchase a batch of machine guns and ammunition from your company."
"Me too!" The others, no longer willing to wait, surged forward.
"And me! I'm willing to establish a partnership with the Red Leaf Company. You must sell me some machine guns!"
That's right. Their objective had shifted from destroying Red Leaf to profiting from it.
With Joker gone, their supply of machine guns was cut off. This was the real reason they had been so angry about his businesses being taken over. But now, the situation was different. The machine guns were still available. And without Joker as the middleman, buying directly from the source would undoubtedly be cheaper.
Merchants chase profit, especially black-hearted merchants like them. With a new source of income available, they couldn't care less about Joker's fate.
Although Kaneshiro had anticipated something like this, he hadn't expected this scene. He frowned. Whether or not to supply them with machine guns... that was not a decision he could make.