After careful consideration, Kenma gave up on the idea of taking all these pirates with him.
There were too many of them.
If he took them all, even if he were to one day reach the first rank of spiritual power and become a powerhouse like Yamamoto or the Monk, he still wouldn't be able to sign a contract with all the dead souls in the world.
There were still many worlds waiting for him to explore and excavate. He couldn't just sign a contract with a large number of ordinary souls who weren't Shinigami every time, could he?
It would be too draining for Kenma, and the gains would not outweigh the losses.
He had initially signed a contract with the entire Uchiha clan as a precaution.
That was also because the number of Uchiha was not too large, and Kenma could still bear it.
After seeing the high aptitude displayed by the Uchiha clan, he was even less willing to let them go.
Now that the Uchiha clan was beginning to show its strength, it was enough for Kenma to command.
In the future, it would be better to only sign contracts with those who had the aptitude to become Shinigami.
This alone would be enough for Kenma's power and influence to grow to a height that no one could shake.
As for these ordinary souls, he would just let them be after bringing them back to the Soul Society.
Would they expose the existence of other worlds... Kenma wasn't too worried about that.
With the Uchiha clan's members who possessed spiritual pressure, they were more than enough to subdue those ordinary souls and could help Kenma with some management.
Even if the Uchiha's management was not in place, how many Shinigami would pay attention to ordinary souls?
And how many people would believe the words of these souls?
The number of souls Kenma had brought back was far from enough to affect the balance of the three realms, so it simply wasn't worth the Shinigami's effort.
If it really came to that point in the future, Kenma's power would already be established, and there would be even less to fear!
What's more, perhaps his actions had already been discovered. Kenma had never forgotten the five in the sky!
No, there should only be four now.
Until now, they had not appeared to stop him, which meant they had acquiesced.
Hearing Kenma's words, Whitebeard nodded. "The first point is naturally not a problem. Since you've said you'll let them be free, we naturally won't have the face to ask for your protection again."
"The second point..."
Whitebeard's heart stirred, and he suddenly asked, "What kind of aptitude are you talking about?"
"Naturally, the qualification to become a Shinigami."
Kenma pointed to Fugaku at his side, and to the Uchiha clansmen who were supervising the many souls.
"Like them."
Whitebeard and the others looked at Fugaku beside the pile of rubble, a look of surprise on their faces.
"You mean... we can also become gods like them?"
They had experienced the pressure from these people several times before. The impact on a person was even more suffocating than Conqueror's Haki.
The oppressive feeling that went deep into the soul was almost no different from that of a god.
They had thought that such strength was a power that only a born deity could possess.
But now they learned that such a ridiculously strong power, like that of a god, could actually be cultivated.
This was undoubtedly a huge shock to Whitebeard and the others.
"Not gods. Shinigami is just a profession. But for ordinary people, it is no different from being a god."
Kenma shook his head, and after explaining, he threw another bucket of cold water on them.
"You'd better not get your hopes up. Souls with the aptitude to become Shinigami are very rare. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it's one in ten thousand."
"For a group like yours, it would be a miracle if two or three appeared. It's also normal if there are none at all."
Whitebeard frowned and asked, "If that's the case, perhaps even Ace, Oz, and I won't be able to become Shinigami. Won't all your effort in making a contract with us be in vain?"
"There is such a possibility, and the possibility is not small."
Kenma looked at Whitebeard with bright eyes.
"But that doesn't stop me from admiring you very much. You are worth all this trouble."
"As for the specifics, after you sign a contract with me, you will understand better by experiencing it yourself."
Kenma's face showed no expression, but from his series of words and actions just now, Whitebeard could deeply feel the other's sincerity.
This serious and kind attitude did not seem fake.
"In that case, I have no other questions."
At the side, Ace, seeing that his Pops and Kenma had come to an agreement, breathed a sigh of relief.
At least this way, the souls of his many comrades could be properly settled.
The giant Oz, behind the group of souls, didn't have too many thoughts.
"Since Pops and Ace have agreed, I have no objections either."
"Very good."
Seeing that all three had agreed, Kenma stood up and walked down from the pile of stones.
At the same time, he drew the Zanpakuto from his waist and came to Whitebeard's side.
"Next, it's time to sign a contract with you."
"When we sign, I have a new idea I want to try. Don't refuse then."
"That's no problem," the three of them nodded. Whitebeard then asked, "But how should we cooperate with you?"
"You just need to agree in your hearts."
Kenma held his Zanpakuto horizontally in front of him and told the three of them the contents of the contract.
"After I sign a contract with you, I will be able to obtain a portion of your abilities. In the same way, I can also give you some blessings. But there is one thing I must make clear in advance."
"Once the contract is completed, there will be no room for regret. You will live and die with me, and you must not have any rebellious thoughts. If you betray me, you will surely be met with the sword and die a violent death!"
Whitebeard looked at his two sons and nodded at Kenma. "That's no problem."
Ace and Oz also echoed their agreement.
"Very good."
Seeing that the three had no objections, Kenma no longer hesitated and released his Zanpakuto.
"Connect, Kiritsugu!"
As the release command was spoken, a clear light shone from the blade. The light turned into three threads and connected to the chests of Whitebeard and the other two.
The magnificent will that rose in their hearts felt exactly the same as the Kenma before them.
Their gazes fell on Kenma. They could naturally recognize that this will came from him.
The three of them were already prepared and all nodded heavily.
"So be it. The contract is made."
But the clear light and the threads on the Zanpakuto remained. Only the thread connected to Oz began to fade and then disappeared.
But the two threads connected to Ace and Whitebeard did not immediately become invisible.
Kenma's actions were not over.
He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, precisely controlling the two threads that extended to Whitebeard and Ace.
The threads emerged from their bodies, extending infinitely, stretching to the distant horizon, as far as the eye could see.
Fugaku's brow furrowed. This was not the same as when their Uchiha clan had made their contract.
He looked at Shisui, who also shook his head in confusion.
He also didn't know what Kenma was doing, and he hadn't told him before.
After a moment, Kenma suddenly let out a loud shout, "Sever, Kiritsugu!"
As his voice fell, another burst of light erupted from the blade.
The spiritual pressure in Kenma's body surged. A layer of fine sweat appeared on his face, and then he breathed a sigh of relief.
The threads that had stretched to an unknown place began to retract. In the blink of an eye, they returned to this place, back into Ace's and Whitebeard's bodies.
First Ace's, then Whitebeard's.
Fugaku's and Shisui's vision was the best. Even though it was only for a moment, they saw it clearly.
At the end of the two threads, something rather illusory was hooked. It looked like some kind of fruit, with spiral patterns on its surface, looking quite strange.
Under the pull of the threads, the phantoms of these two fruits were embedded into Ace's and Whitebeard's bodies.
The threads connecting the two also gradually faded into invisibility.
"Hah~"
Kenma slowly let out a breath of turbid air, the tense expression on his face relaxing a lot.
The great work was accomplished.
"This..."
"This is?"
Whitebeard and Ace looked at their own hands, their pupils trembling, a look of disbelief on their faces.
They could feel that they were now closely united with Kenma in some way.
Like a community of fate.
Kenma's figure suddenly became much taller in their hearts, and there was a sense of intimacy that came from the bottom of their hearts.
This was naturally due to the contract; the two of them knew it well.
But besides these psychological effects produced by the contract, what shocked them so much was something else entirely.
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]