One Piece: Rayquaza of the Beasts Pirates

Countless Den Den Mushi stretched out their heads, emitting satisfied "brubru" sounds as they enjoyed their meal.

In the vast and well-organized Den Den Mushi breeding base, a short, stout figure stands out.

Shinobu, a former female ninja of the Oniwabanshu, was moving between rows of breeding units. Occasionally, when she saw a small Den Den Mushi, she would stop and extend her palm.

Under the influence of the ripening fruit, the young Den Den Mushi grows rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Within a mere ten seconds, they skipped the long growth period and directly transformed into adult Den Den Mushi ready for use.

Kane stepped into the farm.

His arrival immediately attracted the attention of the busy Dongtata tribe and Aren.

"It's Kane Lando!"

"Kanelando is here!"

The little Dongtata tribe members immediately put down their work and happily gathered around.

Leo, who was leading the group, puffed out his chest and proudly reported, "Kanelando! Look, thanks to everyone's efforts, we've raised 11,025 Den Den Mushi! And they're all very healthy!"

Kane bent down, a genuine smile on his face, and gently patted the heads of the dwarves: "Well done! You far exceeded my expectations. You are all heroes."

At the same time, he didn't forget A-Ren, who seemed to have lost some weight: "You've worked hard these past few days."

The last time he came here, the farm only had one or two thousand animals, but in just a few months, it has grown to tens of thousands. You can imagine how much effort the Dongtata tribe and Aren have put in.

Ah Ren simply crossed her arms, turned her face away, and replied stiffly, "Hmph, I'm just keeping my promise."

Kane wasn't angry at her coldness.

He was always willing to give more patience and preferential treatment to people with special talents.

He calmly took out a simple brass key from his pocket and casually tossed it to Ah Ren.

Ah Ren instinctively caught the key, then frowned as he looked at it in his hand: "What does this mean?"

"It's for you."

Kane spoke casually, as if he were talking about something trivial, “This is a house near the Flower Capital, Yamato City. The location and scenery are quite nice.”

Since Ah Ren is so cooperative, he naturally won't treat her unfairly.

The practice of allocating housing to highly skilled personnel is a timeless method.

"I do not need."

Ah Ren almost instinctively refused, wanting to throw the key back.

Working for Kane was already against her conscience; if she were to accept Kane's gifts as well, wouldn't she, Ah Ren, become a person who betrays principles for personal gain?

But Kane interrupted her, his gaze calm: "What about your brother, Shinobu? If I remember correctly, he seems to have recently found a nice girlfriend. As family, don't you want him to have a decent house to settle down, start a family, and begin a new life?"

He paused, then softened his tone: "Please accept it without worry. There's no other meaning behind it. This is just a normal reward for your outstanding work during this period."

These words struck a chord with Ah Ren, hitting the softest spot in his heart.

Since leaving the Oniwaju, the siblings have been living a life of constant hiding and uncertainty in order to escape persecution from Kurozumi Orochi.

Forget about saving money, even having enough to eat and wear is often a luxury.

Now, a house in the Flower Capital, near Yamato City, is right in front of her, and it's also connected to her brother's marriage...

I just can't bring myself to say no.

Ah Ren took a deep breath, her tone no longer so sharp, and said stiffly, "I will earn money to pay you back."

"what ever."

Kane shrugged dismissively, turning his gaze to the already sizable breeding farm before him, and asked with concern, "Now that the number of Den Den Mushi has increased so many times, can you manage on your own?"

"This is all thanks to the hardworking and dedicated employees you found."

Ah Ren paused, but swallowed the word "slave" back down his throat.

If she hadn't spent the past few months with these little ones, she would have found it hard to believe that there were such simple, hardworking, and unpaid free laborers in the world.

If Kane hadn't treated the Dontatas relatively well, she would have even considered breaking her promise and running away with them.

Kane nodded in understanding and immediately decided to send more people to alleviate the workload of the Tontatta tribe.

You can't keep fleecing one sheep.

Previously, the Tontatta tribe needed to research how to raise Den Den Mushi, but now that things are on track, repetitive tasks like moving feed and cleaning the area can be handed over to the outside members.

“Aren.”

Kane looked at her and formally issued the appointment, "I hereby appoint you as the deputy director of the Den Den Mushi farm, with full authority over the upcoming capacity expansion."

"This scale... and it's going to expand?!"

A-Shinobu was so surprised that his mouth dropped open, and he even subconsciously ignored the title of "vice-manager" he had suddenly acquired.

“Of course.” Kane’s expression turned serious. “My goal for you is to add 50,000 new Den Den Mushi that meet the sales standards within a year. And this is just the beginning; the number will continue to increase later, so be prepared.”

Is 50,000 too many?

The numbers may seem impressive, but compared to Kane's true vision, they are but a drop in the ocean.

His ultimate goal is to make Den Den Mushi (snail telephone slugs) as essential as basic necessities in every ordinary household on this vast sea.

To achieve this goal, the demand for Den Den Mushi (snail phone) will be in the tens of millions.

The Kingdom of Alabasta alone has a population of over ten million.

This doesn't even take into account the continuous replacement needs due to the natural lifespan of the Den Den Mushi.

Of course, limited by multiple factors such as sales channel development, market acceptance, and pricing strategies, he cannot launch a saturation attack right from the start.

He considered investing 50,000 units initially to test the waters and gauge market reaction to be the safest strategy.

But that's still a lot. Based on the current market price of Den Den Mushi, roughly estimating, 50,000 Den Den Mushi means a potential revenue of over 20 billion Berries per year!

That's equivalent to being able to buy five Kaido heads in a year.

Of course, Kane understood that with the large-scale release of his Den Den Mushi, the price of this communication tool would inevitably drop significantly due to changes in supply and demand.

But he not only welcomed this, he even wanted to give it a push.

Compared to the user platform that can only be built on a huge user base and the derivative value it brings, the profit from simply selling Den Den Mushi hardware is just a drop in the ocean.

In extreme cases, he could even learn from rice, setting the profit margin for Den Den Mushi at 5% and befriending his customers.

Having settled the matters concerning the Den Den Mushi breeding farm, Kane could finally set off for Elbaf with peace of mind.

but……

Robin frowned slightly, pointing out an undeniable reality: "The route to Elbaf must pass through the territory of the Red-Haired Pirates."

Elbaf, hailed as the "world's strongest nation," possesses formidable strength and naturally has neither the need nor the inclination to accept the protection of any of the Four Emperors.

Unfortunately, its location is precisely surrounded by Shanks' vast territory.

To reach the land of giants, Shanks' territory is an unavoidable route.

As for the relationship between the Beasts Pirates and the Red-Haired Pirates... well, it's not exactly a case of mutual respect, but rather sworn enemies.

Kane smiled calmly upon hearing this: "Don't worry, Redhead is a smart man and won't do anything unwise."

Unfortunately, reality did not unfold exactly as Kane had envisioned.

Not long after the Rayquaza entered the edge of the Red-Haired Pirates' territory, the Redfords arrived and blocked its path with an undeniable presence.

"Cairne the Cataclysm!"

Shanks stood at the bow of the ship, the sea breeze ruffling his red hair, revealing his cold and handsome face below.

He gripped Griffin tightly in his right hand, his eyes sharp as an eagle's: "You've crossed the line. Do you want another all-out war between our two families?"

Behind him, Ben Beckman, Yasopp, and other core members were all on high alert, their cold gazes fixed on the Sky Piercer and Kane.

Especially Yasopp and his group, their eyes were practically spitting fire.

They haven't avenged the first mate's severed arm yet!

"Humph!"

Seeing this, Yamato, Hiyori, and the others stepped forward without showing any weakness, their powerful aura surging as they confronted their opponents from a distance.

For a moment, the air in the entire sea area seemed to freeze.

The heavy atmosphere was suffocating, and even the waves seemed to have calmed down.

Just then...

“Sashiburidana, Shanks.”

Kane's calm voice broke the silence, a composed smile even playing on his lips: "There's no need to be so heartless. I was just visiting a friend at his house."

"Friend? Who? Would you mind if I introduced us?" Shanks' eyes suddenly narrowed.

"Yes." Kane still had a smile on his face as he introduced the four giants who were on board the ship: "These are my giant friends. They warmly invited me to visit Elbaf, and I naturally couldn't refuse."

"Hey, Kane brothers, are we going to fight?!"

Having been away from Elbaf for nearly a century, Dorry and Brogy had no idea who the famous Shanks was in front of them and thought they had encountered pirates who were trying to rob them.

They immediately grabbed their weapons, ready to teach these ungrateful bastards a lesson for their friends.

Even Kashi and Oimo, who knew the Red-Haired Pirates' strength because they had worked on Enies Lobby, followed their captain's lead without hesitation.

"Titans? Or the Titans of Elbaf?!"

The usually composed Beckman nearly bit off his cigarette when he saw the four imposing giant warriors.

As a core member of the Red-Haired Pirates, he was well aware of the friendship between his captain and the giants of Elbaf. He had even accompanied Shanks to the island and received a warm welcome.

Now, Kane has actually gained the giant's approval and friendship?

It's not that giants can only be friends with the Red-Haired Pirates.

However... this friendship between the giant and Kane will inevitably cast an unpredictable shadow over the future.

Chapter 166 First Arrival in Elbaf

The Red-Haired Pirates ultimately chose to give way.