"Leader!"
The moment Karasu and the others saw the figure, they became extremely excited and gathered around him.
Caesar raised an eyebrow and said mockingly, "Oh! I thought that last strike would have killed you."
"Cough cough... almost did."
Dragon clutched his chest, blood still trickling from the corner of his mouth.
Countless bones throughout his body were fractured, and both his arms were twisted beyond recognition.
Fortunately, as an awakened Logia user, he could transfer most of his injuries to the natural wind.
The damage Dragon had actually sustained was equivalent to only about thirty percent of Caesar's total attack power.
Yet even this thirty percent had nearly killed Dragon outright.
The ground trembled slightly again as the earth was lifted like a blanket, and a giant climbed out from beneath.
"Morley!" Ivankov exclaimed, then noticed Sabo in Morley's arms and hurried over.
"Is Sabo alright?" Ivankov quickly examined Sabo's injuries.
Soon, his expression turned extremely grim.
Sabo had long lost consciousness, his injuries horrifying to behold.
Not only were numerous bones and muscles shattered throughout his body, but many internal organs were also damaged, with massive internal bleeding.
Without immediate medical treatment, he might not survive.
Without hesitation, Ivankov gritted his teeth and injected Sabo with excitement hormones, stimulating his adrenaline to keep him from dying in the short term.
After catching his breath for a moment, Dragon looked up at Caesar with complex emotions.
"I never expected you could withstand an attack of Destructive Power. Moreover, you seemed to completely neutralize it. Caesar, how did you do it?"
"Hmph! Why should I tell you? Dragon, you're the one who can wield power like Rocks and control an awakened Logia ability. That makes you very interesting to me!"
Caesar stared intently at Dragon, debating whether to use swift means to capture him and control him with the Memory Fruit.
But soon, Caesar frowned.
Because from his Observation Haki that allowed him to briefly foresee the future, he discovered that the Dragon before him wasn't the real Dragon at all.
Instead, it was an avatar composed of raging winds, similar to Doflamingo's Black Knight technique.
"You're quite cautious, Dragon!"
Dragon smiled faintly, thinking to himself.
'When dealing with you, if I weren't cautious, would I even survive to continue being the Revolutionary Army's leader?'
"Let's not dwell on that, Caesar. Have you given any thought to our potential cooperation?" Dragon continued.
"Cooperation isn't a problem."
Caesar didn't avoid the subject, speaking directly in front of everyone.
"But I won't change the previous conditions. One hundred Billion Berries in compensation, plus three countries in the New World, and you immediately get the hell out of Wano Country - as far away as possible, so I don't suddenly change my mind."
Dragon was taken aback and began to say.
"Pluton..."
"Don't even think about it! Everything here belongs to me - the land, the treasures, the women."
As he spoke, Caesar pinched Hiyori's fair chin, making her blush deeply, her cheeks burning hot.
His tone was extremely domineering, leaving no room for Dragon to bargain.
Beside Dragon, Karasu and the others wore grim expressions, deeply displeased by Caesar's arrogant attitude.
Our leader is the head of the Revolutionary Army, and you, a mere pirate, dare speak to him like this? You clearly don't take our million-strong Revolutionary Army seriously.
Hearing Caesar's resolute tone, Dragon showed a bitter smile on his face.
He knew that after being defeated by Caesar and finding himself at a disadvantage, he no longer had any qualifications to negotiate terms.
It seemed the ancient weapon Pluton would still fall into Caesar's hands.
'I wonder if Caesar can activate this ancient warship and utilize its deterrent power?'
While Dragon pondered this internally, he sighed and said.
"Fine. This time, we were presumptuous and caused some losses to your territory. The compensation money will be delivered to Totoland soon. As for the three countries, you'll need to send people to take over."
At this point, a subtle gleam flashed in Dragon's eyes.
"I must remind you, these three countries are all located beneath the Red Line in the New World. Although we control most of their territories, the World Government's forces continue to infiltrate and attack. If you want to take them over, you'll probably need to send some stronger combat forces."
"No need for you to worry about that," Caesar said noncommittally.
Territory?
If he had the strength, Caesar would indeed want to occupy them.
But currently, his military forces were far from sufficient.
Judge's clone army and scientific experiments hadn't even begun operation yet.
He couldn't possibly send Kaido and Linlin to garrison those places, could he?
If the Marines launched a surprise attack and he lost one or two of them, wouldn't Caesar be heartbroken?
So what Caesar truly wanted was actually the populations of the three countries.
With population, he would have the prerequisite for mass troop production, allowing him to rapidly expand his forces.
Following the elite route like the Roger Pirates would never allow him to occupy vast territories across the seas in his lifetime.
Dragon nodded, then looked toward Koala and Betty in Black Maria's hands, signaling Caesar with his eyes.
Caesar tilted his chin toward Black Maria.
"Maria, these two haven't caused you any trouble, have they?"
"Reporting, sir, they meant us no harm. This woman and that giant even stopped those who wanted to kill us," Black Maria quickly explained.
Caesar nodded. "Then let them go."
"Thank you." A smile finally appeared on Dragon's face.
"Ten billion Berries each, no bargaining," Caesar said dryly.
'I'll scam you rich bastard to death, since your Revolutionary Army is so wealthy!'
Dragon's smile instantly froze...
"By the way."
Suddenly, Caesar's tone changed, turning somewhat cold as he addressed Black Maria.
"You just said some people wanted to kill you? Who were they?"
Beside Dragon, Karasu and Lindbergh's expressions changed abruptly, a sense of foreboding rising in their hearts.
Sure enough, as soon as Caesar asked this question.
Black Maria directly cast an angry gaze toward them, pointing at Karasu and speak furiously.
"Caesar-sama! He said yesterday he wanted to exterminate all of us, along with the steel mill workers!"
Then she pointed at Page One beside her.
"Page One had his head cut off by him with one slash! If not for... receiving rescue, Page One would probably be completely dead by now!"
"What? Little Page!" Ulti was startled by Black Maria's words, quickly pulling the helpless-looking Page One into her arms to carefully examine his neck.
Dragon's expression changed as he felt a surge of murderous intent emanating from Caesar.
Caesar, holding Hiyori, looked coldly at Karasu.
"Dragon, will you do it yourself, or shall I?"
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