Escaping by force was impossible.
Her Devil Fruit could not overpower him, and even if she managed to free herself, they were already too far from Whiskey Peak for her to flee across the sea.
Deception would be difficult because he was far more perceptive than she had expected.
That left cooperation... at least temporarily that is.
Crocodile had never trusted her.
She had never trusted him either.
Their partnership existed only because each possessed something the other needed.
If Shiki truly intended to confront Crocodile, then perhaps this situation was not entirely unfavorable.
She might not need to escape him immediately.
Perhaps she only needed to ensure that when Shiki and Crocodile finally collided, she was standing on the side least likely to be crushed.
Nico Robin's smile slipped back into place as if it had never vanished. In a soft voice, she called out:
"Captain."
When no reply came, she pressed on.
"Isn't it dull? Most pirates would be bragging about the treasure they'll steal or fantasising about the fame they'll earn after bringing down Crocodile, yet here you are—silent and severe."
This time, Shiki broke his silence, casting a glance over his shoulder.
"Curious which goal I'm chasing?"
"Just making conversation," Robin answered lightly.
She shifted against the ropes binding her to the mast. The movement tightened them at her waist, but her composure never faltered.
"Staying quiet while tied up is a recipe for a painfully dull voyage, don't you think?"
Shiki turned his gaze back to the horizon and replied, calm as ever.
"Then count the waves."
"..."
Robin bit back a sigh, words failed her for an instant, yet she chose to speak on all the same.
"My hands are occupied."
"Use your eyes."
A light laugh escaped her. He had batted the question away, but without annoyance—that meant she could keep probing.
"You aren't after Crocodile's Warlord seat, are you?"
"No."
"Hmm… then is it his wealth?"
"No."
"His organisation, perhaps?"
"Not particularly."
Robin rolled her eyes. Conversing with him was like chipping at granite.
"Then maybe you're doing this for Princess Vivi?"
Shiki finally turned, golden eyes glinting with quiet amusement as they met Robin's.
Robin realised at once she had overplayed her hand. Her guesses might not be wrong, but she had revealed far too much of her intent.
"You ask a lot of questions for a prisoner," Shiki remarked.
"A prisoner?" She glanced down at the ropes pinning her to the mast. "And here I thought this was merely an enthusiastic invitation to sail together."
"Call it whatever helps you sleep tonight."
"My quality of sleep may depend on whether you plan to keep me tied up."
"That depends on whether you behave." Shiki stepped away from the bow and halted directly before her.
The instant he approached, Robin's posture shifted ever so slightly.
"If I were chasing money," he said, gaze never leaving hers, "you'd bargain with Crocodile's fortune.
"If I wanted notoriety, you'd dangle information that would swell my legend.
"If I sought power, you'd steer me toward something stronger.
"And if I were helping Vivi simply out of fondness, you'd play on that feeling as well."
Robin said nothing, but her body had already gone rigid. Every possibility he mentioned had crossed her mind.
Not as part of some carefully constructed plan, but as potential openings she could exploit if the situation turned dangerous.
Escape routes, bargaining chips, anything she might use to protect herself when the time came.
Shiki leaned in, bracing one hand against the mast just above her shoulder.
"You've stayed alive by sensing what people want and feeding them just enough to keep yourself breathing… haven't you, Nico Robin?"
Robin's blue eyes flew wide. The calm façade she had clung to shattered, replaced by a flicker of fear.
For several seconds she could only stare at him.
Then her lips moved.
"When…?"
Her voice was barely above a whisper. "When did you realise?"
"From the very beginning," Shiki replied without a moment's hesitation.
Robin searched his face for the faintest hint of a bluff and found none.
"From the very beginning…" she echoed under her breath.
That meant he had known her identity before pulling her down from the cabin roof.
He had known she was the infamous Devil Child.
The sole survivor of Ohara.
A woman with a bounty placed on her head since childhood.
Robin lowered her gaze, a swirl of thoughts she couldn't quite name drifting behind her lowered lashes.
"Then what do you intend to do with me?" she asked quietly. "Turn me over to the Navy and cash in my bounty?"
Shiki regarded her as though she'd uttered the most nonsensical idea imaginable.
Robin's brow furrowed at his unexpected expression. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Without warning, Shiki raised a hand and gave the top of her head a light, sharp tap.
Smack.
Robin stiffened, eyes going wide. It didn't hurt, yet no one had treated her so off-handedly in years.
"Are you an idiot?" Shiki asked, almost conversational.
Slowly, Robin lifted her gaze to meet his. "...I beg your pardon?"
"Why would I ever do the Navy a favour?" Shiki sounded genuinely perplexed.
"And besides—" he added, almost dismissively, "your bounty isn't even that impressive."
Robin's brow twitched. She had never prided herself on the number attached to her name, yet hearing him belittle it so casually was oddly vexing.
"Seventy-nine million berries is hardly pocket change."
"For ordinary folk, perhaps."
Turning away, Shiki let his gaze drift back over the rolling sea.
"Humour me for a moment." He spoke without raising his voice, yet the deck seemed to hush around them. "Tell me this: what's the real difference between the kingdoms that pay Heavenly Tribute to the World Government… and the islands under the 'protection' of the Four Emperors?"
At that, Robin's expression changed. A flicker of understanding and concern crossed her eyes.
The Heavenly Tribute was an enormous tax paid to the Celestial Dragons by nations affiliated with the World Government.
Countless countries drove their citizens into poverty merely to maintain that protection.
Territories under the Emperors paid in different ways, but the principle was not entirely dissimilar.
After thinking for a moment, Robin answered.
"The islands under a Yonko's flag don't pay the Heavenly Tribute."
"And why is that?"
"Strength," Robin replied evenly. "The World Government has no interest in a pointless war with a Sea Emperor—the risk is too great."
Shiki nodded, evidently pleased.
"Exactly."
He let one hand settle on the hilt of his sword.
"With power like mine, I could strip a kingdom bare whenever I fancied," he said simply, but it didn't sound boastful, merely like a statement of fact. "Billions of berries in a single night."
Robin believed every word... only hours ago she had watched him cleave the sea in two with a single swing. To someone like that, a kingdom was nothing.
"But then what?" Shiki went on, voice quiet. "I'd have more money than I could ever spend. Another palace. Another mountain of gold."
He gave a faint, dismissive laugh.
"What would any of that prove?"
"You've misunderstood something about me, Nico Robin."
Shiki's golden eyes narrowed, cool and steady.
"I would never crawl to the Marines to strike a bargain, just to hand over a woman."
Robin's eyes widened at the blunt disdain in his tone.
"I have no need for their bounty money, and I'm not interested in presiding over some insignificant kingdom."
A gust swept across the deck, sending his coat billowing like a black sail.
"What I seek is the very pinnacle of this world."
Robin felt goose-pimples race along her arms... she could not look away.
"When I reach that place, wouldn't everything beneath it already belong to me?"
His words did not sound like the empty boasts of an ambitious pirate.
There was no feverish excitement in his voice, for him It was a simple declaration.
A future he had already accepted as inevitable.
Shiki turned his gaze to the far horizon, the line where sea and sky met in shifting shades of blue.
"What is a king who cannot even defend his own kingdom?" he asked, voice quiet yet edged with disdain.
His lip curled a fraction. "What claim to authority does such a man have if he can't safeguard his people, his throne—or even his dignity?"
Robin held her peace, listening like a well-behaved student.
"Without strength," Shiki went on, "they're nothing but ordinary men dressed in royal trappings."
The words sliced through the salt-tinged air.
"Their crowns can't even secure their own lives. They kneel before the World Government, pay tribute to the Celestial Dragons, and dare to call themselves rulers while praying that someone stronger doesn't stroll in and take everything."
At those final words, the deck fell utterly silent, save for the rhythmic slap of waves against the hull.
Even Nami, who had been standing near the helm, had stopped pretending not to listen.
Vivi stood near the cabin entrance, her expression complicated.
As a princess, Shiki's words should have angered her.
Yet she could not deny them.
Alabasta possessed a king.
It possessed soldiers, laws, cities, and a history stretching back thousands of years.
But Crocodile had still brought the entire kingdom to the edge of destruction.
Her father's crown had not been enough to stop him.
Robin stared blankly at Shiki's face.
She had spent twenty years running. Twenty years surrounded by lies, betrayal, and false promises. Had met countless men who spoke of dreams, justice, wealth, and power.
Most of them were merely trying to convince themselves. Others were attempting to deceive the people around them.
Robin had become skilled at seeing through such lies.
Shiki displayed none of them.
Robin's lips curled and a quiet chuckle slipped out.
Shiki tilted his head. "Oi—what's so funny?"
"Oh, nothing," Robin replied, meeting his gaze. "I was just thinking… you're an extraordinarily arrogant man."
"Heh—gotten cheeky, have we?"
"Maybe so." She flashed a playful smile, lifting her bound hands a fraction. "Since you're not planning to sell me to the Marines, I suppose that means you're keeping me all to yourself, Captain. I'll be in your care."
Shiki looked Robin up and down, taking his time before answering.
"That doesn't sound half-bad."
Robin's smile faltered, a faint trace of pink appeared upon her cheeks. She had expected him to dismiss the remark, not return it so effortlessly.
Catching that flicker of colour, Shiki's lips curved, as though he'd found a private joke worth keeping.
"Come to think of it... you're the last survivor of Ohara. That means you can read the Poneglyphs, right?"
The moment he voiced the thought, a new scheme crystallised—one that could forge the mightiest crew on the seas and etch his name higher than any legend who'd sailed before him.
'So that was it.'
In the end, he was the same as Crocodile.
Another man seeking the power of the Ancient Weapons.
If he already possessed such overwhelming strength, then obtaining an Ancient Weapon would make him…
Smack!
Another light blow landed on top of her head.
Robin's thoughts scattered as a dull buzzing filled her skull.
Shiki's voice was almost casual, as though picking a stray thought from the air. "You suspect I'm after the Ancient Weapons, don't you?"
A single bead of sweat slid down Robin's temple. She lifted her head slowly, eyes narrowing with wary curiosity.
"…You can't read minds, can you?"
Shiki chuckled at her suspicion. "Hardly. But you should know something about the One Piece."
"The prize every pirate chases," he went on, tone even. "Yet almost none have the faintest clue where it actually lies."
Robin studied him through half-lidded eyes. "Captain…"
"It sounds... as though you might have an idea where that treasure could be found."
Shiki didn't even try to deflect, he simply nodded, as though she had asked whether the sea was wet.
"The last island can't be reached with a normal Log Pose," he said. "There are four special scarlet stones— the Road Poneglyphs—scattered across the world. Each one records the coordinates of a single point."
Robin's eyes widened. "Road Poneglyphs…"
"When you plot those four points on a map," Shiki went on, "the lines cross in a single spot."
He met her gaze squarely.
"The final island."
All trace of playful banter drained from Robin's face. In the silence that followed, her blue eyes gleamed, weighing this revelation and the man who spoke it with fresh intensity.
Four red Poneglyphs.
A hidden location revealed only by bringing them together.
A method designed to ensure that no ordinary navigator could stumble upon the island by chance.
"No wonder…"
Robin murmured to herself.
Her thoughts drifted back to the scholars of Ohara, the World Government, and the terror surrounding every fragment of the Void Century.
"No wonder they were so afraid of us…"
If this were all true and not deceit...
Then those people…
They had not merely feared Ohara because its scholars could expose the events of the Void Century.
They had feared the path that knowledge could open.
Shiki flicked her forehead.
Robin blinked and returned to the present.
"You're too self centered."
"That's rather rude… What gave you that idea?"
Shiki's reply was calm, almost matter-of-fact. "Whether it's the price on your head or your talent for unearthing an Ancient Weapon, I don't need you for either."
A faint glimmer flashed in Robin's eyes. "You don't need me to locate an Ancient Weapon?"
"Correct."
The answer came without a heartbeat's pause. "I already know where they are."
Robin stared, lost for words. Nearby, Nami and Nefertari Vivi—eavesdropping from behind a hatch—both drew sharp breaths.
"You know the locations of the Ancient Weapons?" Robin's voice rose, disbelief and shock woven through every syllable.
"At least enough to find them."
"Then where…"
"One of them is hidden within the legendary Land of Samurai… Wano."
Robin's breath caught at the sudden revelation.
Shiki delivered the information as casually as if he were discussing the weather.
"Wano Country…"
Robin repeated the name under her breath.
The isolated nation had no affiliation with the World Government and almost no contact with the outside world.
Even obtaining reliable information about it was exceedingly difficult.
Yet Shiki had just claimed that an Ancient Weapon was hidden there.
"And the others?" Robin asked, her eyes fixed on him with an eagerness for information.
Shiki smiled playfully.
"It would be more interesting for you to witness them with your own eyes."
Robin continued searching his face for some sign of deception, but there was none.
Shiki stepped closer and reached behind her.
The ropes binding her to the mast loosened and fell around her feet.
Robin remained still for a moment.
After being restrained for so long, the sudden freedom almost felt unnatural.
She slowly rolled her shoulders and rubbed her wrists.
"You may move freely," Shiki said. "But don't test my patience."
Robin looked down at the ropes before raising her eyes toward him.
"Once we reach Alabasta, you may leave if that's what you choose."
Shiki turned away from her.
"Whether I've lied to you or not, you can read the Poneglyph hidden in Alabasta and discover the truth for yourself."
Robin's expression became solemn.
He knew about the Poneglyph beneath the royal tomb. He even knew what information it contained.
"If, after that, you decide to join my crew, you'll be welcome."
Shiki glanced over his shoulder.
"If not, then do as you please."
Robin stared at his back and inquired softly.
"You would simply allow me to leave?"
"Yes."
"Even though I can read the Poneglyphs?"
"You seem to have misunderstood again."
Shiki's golden eyes gleamed beneath the sunlight.
"You are useful, Nico Robin."
"But you are not the only path that can take me to the final island."
The wind passed over the deck once more.
Robin went silent after that.
For twenty years, countless people had pursued her because they believed they could use her knowledge.
Some wanted the Ancient Weapons.
Some wanted the history of the world.
Others merely wished to sell her to the highest bidder.
Yet this man...
A faint smile tugged at Nico Robin's lips.
"Captain Shiki… You truly are an extraordinarily arrogant man."
"I believe you already mentioned that."
"Ara-ra~ It felt worth repeating."
From the helm, Nami finally snapped. "Oi! Can the two of you quit flirting and tell me what you mean by a 'final island' you can't reach with a Log Pose?!"
Robin covered her mouth as a quiet laugh escaped her.
Vivi glanced back and forth between Shiki and Robin, still trying to grasp how a chat about bounties had morphed into directions to the world's greatest treasure.
With a casual flick of his hand, Shiki pushed open his cabin door and vanished inside to rest, saying, "Any questions, ask the archaeologist."
Nami pivoted at once, arms folded and eyes blazing at Robin.
Robin met the glare with her usual serene smile.
"I've only just been freed from captivity, you know," she said, voice honey-smooth.
"Surely you'll allow me a moment to recover from the emotional trauma?"
A vein throbbed on Nami's forehead—why did this woman always find a way to toy with her?
PS: I have some bad news...
Kidding!
I've started a brand-new novel:
Naruto: Minato Died, So I Took His Wife
Ahem...
The title alone should tell my fellow men of culture exactly what to expect. Yes, you guessed it—there will be R-18 content from the earlier chapters.
But don't worry, it won't be mindless smut. The plot is refreshing, the story has actual direction, and there's plenty more to enjoy beyond the mature content.
So, check it out if you're looking for a breath of fresh air from the usual Naruto fanfics!
Tagged below 👇