Chapter 81: The Pirate Crew Expands Again
"Next, I plan to expand by four more divisions!" Lister said.
No one was surprised by this.
This was how the Money Pirates had always operated.
Every time they defeated a pirate crew, they would immediately recruit them on the spot.
Now that they had defeated Baroque Works, they would naturally also recruit those people.
"How are the officers of Baroque Works now?" Lister asked Zoro.
"Although they are seriously injured, our ship's doctor has treated them, and they are not in any major danger now. Daz Bonez, Bon Clay, and the others woke up this morning!" Zoro replied.
"Johnson, go and bring the officers of Baroque Works here!" Lister said.
"Yes, Captain!" Johnson responded and left the Money號.
Soon, he returned with Daz Bonez and the others.
Lister looked at Daz Bonez.
In the original story, this guy had given Zoro a lot of trouble. If it weren't for Zoro's last-minute power-up, he probably would have died at his hands.
However, in this timeline, Zoro had been trained by Lister and had comprehended the art of cutting steel early on, so he was easily defeated.
Then, Lister turned his gaze to Bon Clay.
This guy was an okama, an okama whose appearance made people feel chills all over.
However, he was quite loyal.
During the Summit War arc, in Impel Down, Bon Clay's performance made many viewers shed tears.
Lister also had some admiration for him.
Finally, Lister's gaze fell on Mr. 3.
This guy, like Usopp, was a wild card, often able to help the protagonist turn the tide in a desperate situation.
He could also be considered a lucky charm.
It wouldn't be bad to have him in the Money Pirates.
"Are you all willing to join my Money Pirates?"
Lister asked.
"If we are not willing, how will you deal with us?" Daz Bonez was the first to ask.
"You tried to overthrow Alabasta. If you are not willing to join my Money Pirates, I will hand you over to the Alabasta royal family and have you publicly executed!" Lister said faintly.
The officers of Baroque Works couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
He was truly ruthless.
If they didn't agree to join, they would be executed directly.
"Captain Lister, Marian and I are willing to join the Money Pirates!" Mr. 3 quickly raised his hand.
"I am also willing to join!" Bon Clay shouted.
"I am also willing to join!" Paula said.
Seeing that all his companions had chosen to join the Money Pirates, Daz Bonez naturally did not resist any longer.
After all, he had only known his boss, Crocodile, for three days.
He hadn't been with him for long and didn't have much loyalty to him.
Lister being able to defeat Crocodile meant that following Lister was more promising than following Crocodile.
There was no reason to refuse.
"I am willing to join the Money Pirates!" Daz Bonez bowed to Lister!
"Welcome to the Money Pirates," Lister extended his hands and said with a friendly smile.
"Daz Bonez, from today onwards, you are the fifth division commander of my Money Pirates. Paula will be the sixth division commander. Bon Clay will be the seventh division commander. Mr. 3 will be the eighth division commander!" Lister said.
"Yes!" The members of Baroque Works quickly responded.
"Zoro, same old rules. After the meeting, take Johnson and reorganize the eight divisions!" Lister looked at Zoro and said.
The so-called old rules were to shuffle all the existing members of the Money Pirates and the recruited members of Baroque Works, and then reorganize them.
This would not only allow the old crew members to lead the new ones and help them integrate into the Money Pirates as quickly as possible, but it would also allow the old crew members to get a promotion and give them something to look forward to.
"Okay!" Zoro nodded and accepted the mission.
"That's all I have to say. Does anyone have anything to add?" Lister looked around at everyone and asked.
Hearing this, everyone shook their heads.
"Alright, since no one has any objections, that's it for the meeting. Dismissed!" Lister announced.
Soon, Zoro led Johnson and the others off the new Money號 to reorganize the pirate divisions.
After watching the men leave, Nami looked back at Lister and said, "Lister, are you also going to decide the ownership of the last Devil Fruit by drawing lots?"
"It's a tradition of my Money Pirates to decide the ownership of Devil Fruits by fate. Drawing lots is the most fateful and fairest way. Of course, we'll decide by drawing lots!" Lister said with a faint smile.
"Alright!" Nami had no objection to this.
"In that case, the Devil Fruit encyclopedia I asked you to find is completely useless," Robin said with a faint smile.
"It may not be useful now, but it may be in the future. Besides, it's not bad for me to learn more," Lister said.
Then, Lister took out another bamboo tube that he had already prepared.
There were a total of twelve sticks in this bamboo tube. Like before, only one stick had the word "fate" written on it, while the rest were blank.
"Come on! All the girls who haven't eaten a Devil Fruit, draw a stick. Let's see who is fated to have this Devil Fruit."
"I'll go first!" With her previous experience, Nami was the first to jump out.
She directly drew a bamboo stick from the tube, and upon closer inspection, it was a blank stick.
"It's a blank stick again!" Nami was speechless.
"It can only mean that you are not fated to have this Devil Fruit," Lister said with a dumbfounded smile.
The probability was one in twelve.
If you had bad luck, you might not win even once in a hundred times.
It was perfectly normal for Nami not to win twice.
"Vivi, you draw a stick too!" Lister said.
"Okay!" Vivi nodded.
Back on Whiskey Peak, she had watched Nami and the others play, so she was familiar with the process. She wasn't coy and went up to draw a stick directly.
But unfortunately, like Nami, it was a blank stick.
"Continue!"
Blank stick!
Blank stick!
Blank stick!
After Vivi, five or six girls in a row drew blank sticks.
The people behind them didn't go up for a while, because they had all discovered a pattern: the earlier you drew, the more likely you were to get a blank stick.
The later you drew, the more likely you were to get the "fate" stick.
So they all waited for others to draw all the blank sticks, and then they would win by default.
Koala looked at her sisters to her left and right and found that none of them were willing to draw.
So, she took a few steps forward, and without deliberately choosing, she randomly took a stick from the bamboo tube.
The next moment, the word "fate" on the stick was deeply imprinted in her eyes.
"I think I won!" Koala said with some surprise.
"What?" The girls, hearing this, immediately crowded around.
When they saw the word "fate" on the stick, they all exploded.
"You really won."
"Koala's luck is too good!"
"Last time, she almost won by default. This time, she won directly."
"I'm so envious!"
"Let me see," Lister said.
"Yes!" Koala handed the "fate" stick to Lister.
Lister took it and looked at it. After confirming it was correct, he smiled and said, "That's right, Koala did win. Then this Devil Fruit belongs to Koala!"
After speaking, Lister handed the last Devil Fruit to Koala.
Koala quickly took it and bowed to Lister, "Thank you, Captain!"
"Eat it!" Lister kindly reminded her.
"Yes!" Koala responded and ate the Devil Fruit directly.
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