Chapter 283: Open and Honest
Ian made no response to the masked man's words, his expression blank. Seeing this, the masked man wisely took his leave.
After he left, Fujitora spoke up: "Wano Country? Is that the country in the New World that's closed off, doesn't accept outsiders, and hasn't joined the World Government?"
"That's the one!" Konenai said. "I've heard that country has a special profession called 'samurai.' But why would he suddenly bring that up? What's he trying to say?"
Ian snorted coldly and said, "There are many layers to it. First, it means the World Government already knows about my relationship with Ace. They're probably investigating Ace's origins and background right now. Second, they want to use my connection with Ace to see if they can pull a division commander away from the Whitebeard Pirates and recruit them into the World Government as a Warlord."
"It seems they've already found out about your falling out with the Whitebeard Pirates," Fujitora said. "Your current position is quite unique."
"Yeah, that's right," Ian nodded.
Ian's position was indeed unique. First, as a Warlord, he was nominally on the side of the World Government and the Marines. Second, he was brothers with the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. Third, he had parted ways with the Whitebeard Pirates because he assassinated their member, Teach. This peculiar relationship put Ian in a very delicate position, so the World Government seemed to want to use him as a breakthrough point to see if they could poach someone from the Whitebeard Pirates.
But they were destined to be disappointed, because there was another meaning Ian hadn't voiced: Wano Country was a complete mess right now, and Ian absolutely wouldn't get involved.
As for what kind of mess, a little calculation of the timing made it clear: Kaido of the Beasts was probably in Wano Country right now.
Ever since Ian heard Whitebeard say that Kaido himself hadn't shown up during the standoff at the Salamis Island battle, only sending his Three Calamities, Ian had a vague understanding. Kaido was likely in Wano Country at the time, so he couldn't make it.
From what Ian remembered, he knew Ace had indeed visited Wano Country once. He seemed to have learned how to weave straw hats there, and later made one for the Whitebeard Pirates' giant, Little Oars Jr., to shield him from the sun and rain. Ace was truly a gentle person when it came to his comrades and brothers.
Ace should be fine in Wano Country. He was one of Whitebeard's men, and even if Kaido was there, he wouldn't do anything to Ace unless he wanted a fight to the death with the Whitebeard Pirates. But if Ian went, the situation might be different.
Kaido was likely in Wano Country now, trying to seize control of the country. With the intervention of this Yonko, Wano was probably caught in schemes and turmoil. If Ian, a Warlord, showed up there at this time, it would definitely cause big trouble.
The World Government probably also knew about the connection between the Poneglyphs and the Kozuki Family, since the Kozuki Family were the craftsmen who inscribed the Poneglyphs. For various reasons, the World Government had always strictly guarded against anyone researching or seeking the Poneglyphs. Ian guessed they might have learned that Kaido had entered Wano Country. With no other options, they wanted to send someone in to stir things up and see what could be done.
Coincidentally, Ace had gone to Wano Country at this time, so the CPO agents casually let this information slip to Ian, trying to see if he would rush off to Wano.
But they were destined to be disappointed. Ian wasn't stupid. As a transmigrator, knowing full well that Wano was a powder keg, how could he recklessly go looking for Ace?
Besides, he had Ace's Den Den Mushi number. If anything important came up, couldn't he just call to give a heads-up?
Regardless, Ian understood from this why all the Warlords distrusted the World Government. The World Government granted the Warlords privileges, but treated them like tools, constantly trying to use them. This created a situation where the World Government didn't trust the Warlords, and the Warlords didn't trust the World Government either. Their relationship was one of mutual exploitation and mutual wariness.
For Ian, the newest Warlord and the youngest, the World Government definitely wanted to test him, to see if he would act impulsively. But Ian was equally shrewd. He had long figured out how to handle the Warlord position: no matter what the World Government said, just ignore them. This way, he could largely avoid falling into the traps the World Government set.
Ian knew Ace probably wouldn't be in any danger for a while. In fact, as he became more active in the Whitebeard Pirates, his bounty would likely increase again. So Ian didn't need to worry about Ace for now.
Now that the ten billion Berries were in hand, his top priority was to recharge them.
However, with so much money, Ian didn't want to cause misunderstandings among the Dragon Hunter Pirates' members. After all, the entire crew was one unit, and a share of this money should belong to them. But to successfully achieve the Supreme VIP condition, Ian had to recharge all of it at once, without setting aside any to distribute.
So, he needed to explain himself to everyone.
With that in mind, Ian clapped his hands to gather all the Dragon Hunter Pirates' members around.
"Captain, is something up?" Dorry and the others asked.
"Our crew has been together for nearly a year now," Ian said, looking at everyone. "Whether you've been with me from the start or joined later, we're all on the same ship now. There's no need to distinguish between us. We're companions, so we should be of one mind."
Among them, Zeke, Sardine, and the others had been with Ian from the beginning, while Old K, Fujitora, Konenai, Walnut, and Yardy had joined later. Hearing Ian bring this up suddenly, they knew he had something important to say, so they all listened intently.
Baby-5 hadn't been deliberately sent away this time, so she got to listen in as well. Watching Ian speak so confidently, she felt a strange sensation. His words about being on the same ship seemed to include her, which left her with mixed feelings.
"Since we're companions, I won't hide certain things from you anymore," Ian said. "Before, we were always being pursued, so I never had the chance to have an open and honest talk with you. Now that we've settled down, it's time to properly explain my abilities."
No one interrupted, listening quietly. They had heard Ian casually make up a name for his "Exchange Fruit," but honestly, they didn't know what that fruit was all about.
"It all started with the Mary Geoise incident," Ian said, choosing his words carefully. "Before that, I was just a swordsman. I infiltrated Mary Geoise because I heard the South Blue country of Pear Blossom had offered two Demon Fruits to the Celestial Dragons, one of which was extremely rare."
Konenai and the others nodded slightly. They knew about this.
"After stealing those two Demon Fruits in Mary Geoise, I ate the rare one," Ian said, telling a small white lie. His card system was too bizarre, so he had to use this excuse to cover it up.
Walnut tilted her head and asked, "So your abilities come from that rare fruit?"
"Yes," Ian nodded, then continued, "You've all seen me fight. You know my abilities aren't limited to swordsmanship. I have other special powers, and quite a few, right?"
Everyone nodded. They had actually found this strange for a while. Demon Fruit abilities were usually singular, never like Ian's case. They just hadn't felt comfortable asking.
"The true ability of this fruit is like this..." Ian pulled a stack of Berry bills from his pocket and said, "Let me give you a demonstration."
With that, Ian placed the stack of bills in his palm, making sure everyone could see it. Under everyone's watchful eyes, he silently chanted, "Recharge!"
Then, the stack of bills vanished from Ian's hand.
Everyone was astonished. Walnut even grabbed Ian and searched him, thinking he had done a magic trick and hidden the money.
"Don't bother, it's really gone," Ian said with a smile, ruffling her hair, which earned him a dissatisfied glare from Walnut. He continued, "My true ability is to convert money into special powers. The more money, the stronger the ability."
Everyone suddenly understood. Konenai said, "No wonder you demanded ten billion Berries from the World Government. I thought you wanted to become a billionaire!"
Ian said, "So what I want to tell you is that whether it's my swimming ability in the sea or any other ability I've shown, it all comes from money. The ten billion I asked from the World Government is to strengthen myself. I need to use that money to convert into my own power."
After hearing this, Fujitora shook his head with a smile and said, "What a strange Demon Fruit. I've never heard of anything like it. But maybe that's why it's considered an extremely rare fruit."
Everyone nodded in agreement. Konenai curiously asked, "So, your immunity to Seastone is also a converted ability?"
"Of course," Ian nodded. "The converted abilities are strange. They have certain rule limitations, but they do allow me to be immune to Seastone."
"Is this the strongest Demon Fruit?" Yardy said, clicking his tongue. "This is the first time I've seen a Demon Fruit that's immune to Seastone and seawater!"
Fujitora laughed and said, "Not quite. If it were truly the strongest, our captain would have already beaten Kizaru to the ground."
Everyone laughed at that, but they now understood the source of Ian's abilities. After this open and honest conversation today, they believed that no matter what unique abilities Ian showed in the future, they wouldn't be surprised.