A cold glint flashed in Doflamingo's eyes, and he suddenly extended his slender palm, reaching directly towards Orochimaru's direction.
In an instant, the Parasitic Strings hidden in his fingertips shot towards Orochimaru with lightning speed.
In the blink of an eye, they attached themselves to Orochimaru's body. Orochimaru was instantly controlled, like a puppet, his legs dangling in the air, swaying precariously.
"Hmph! Are you toying with me, you bastard?" Doflamingo's eyes widened in fury, as if flames were burning within them.
"The Celestial Dragons were clearly provoked by you. Don't try to deny it!"
However, Orochimaru, suspended in mid-air, acted as if nothing was wrong, even a slight curve forming on his lips.
He slowly raised his head, his gaze like a bottomless, dark pool, staring directly at Doflamingo, and said, word by word,
"No... that was Luffy who hit them. It has nothing to do with me."
Upon hearing this, Doflamingo's face instantly turned ashen, veins throbbing on his forehead. He trembled with rage, one hand shaking uncontrollably.
His teeth gnashed together, and he directly pulled the person in mid-air closer, grabbing Orochimaru's chin.
"Straw Hat! Isn't he your brother?"
Orochimaru, however, blinked a few times nonchalantly, then slowly opened his mouth:
"Even between brothers, accounts must be settled clearly. He did the hitting, but I paid the money. What's wrong? Joker, are you trying to default on your debt?
And you even dare to try and violate a guest? It seems your so-called 'Underground King' is nothing but an empty title. It's only 118 billion, after all."
Orochimaru looked at Doflamingo with a playful expression.
"Only???" Doflamingo looked as if he had heard the most ridiculous joke in the world, so angry that he laughed.
He extended his thumb, and with a hint of ambiguity, gently caressed Orochimaru's cheek.
"You're really something. Are you putting the Celestial Dragons' 100 billion on my tab too? Although you're good-looking, buying you wouldn't cost that much money."
Orochimaru's lips curved slightly upwards, and he stared meaningfully at Doflamingo, slowly saying, "Aren't you... a Celestial Dragon?"
A flicker of alert flashed in Doflamingo's eyes, and he subconsciously took two steps back. With a wave of his hands, white threads spread rapidly like surging spider silk, instantly sealing the space around them tightly.
"What exactly do you want?" Doflamingo's voice was deep and cold.
Orochimaru chuckled softly, raised his arm, and easily broke free from the Parasitic Strings that bound him. He twisted his neck and stretched his body.
"I think this is the moment I should say, it's easy to talk to smart people. I have two demands.
First, I want my 18 billion back. That amount shouldn't be a problem for you, right? If you can't produce it, then I'll go enjoy myself in Dressrosa for a year, and you'll cover the expenses.
Second, I want something, something that's easy for you to get. In the underground laboratory of Punk Hazard, there's an Artificial Devil Fruit, a confirmed failed defective product made by Vegapunk. I want it.
Then you can just find any trashy Devil Fruit to replace it, preferably one that's disgusting and not very useful. If there really isn't one, a preserved apple will do."
Doflamingo's expression grew increasingly solemn, and he was secretly astonished. This person actually knew all about his dealings with Caesar.
"Hmph, not enough. What's in it for me? A transaction is always two-sided. Since you know I'm a Celestial Dragon, you should understand that such petty tricks won't threaten me."
Orochimaru had been standing for a long time and felt a bit tired. He began to look around, his gaze falling on the Parasitic Strings that sealed the space. He slowly walked over and channeled the Chakra within him.
The externalized Chakra, like a sharp blade, easily cut off a portion of the threads. Orochimaru skillfully manipulated it into the shape of a mattress, then quickly formed a pillow, threw it on the ground, and collapsed onto it without any regard for his image.
"Hmm... I'm going to stay with you for a year, aren't I? I remember you seemed to want me to be your lover before.
Well, how about this? I'll be your lover for a year, and that can be my compensation."
Orochimaru said lazily, as if this were an incredibly good deal.
Doflamingo's face was dark, veins subtly throbbing on his forehead. He stared wide-eyed at Orochimaru. This guy actually turned the product of his Devil Fruit ability into bedding!
Are you being my lover? You're going to be my ancestor!
Orochimaru looked at Doflamingo's increasingly darkened face, realizing he might have gone a bit too far. His eyes darted around, and he spoke again.
"How about this then? If Luffy passes through your territory and beats you up in the future, I'll step in and pull you out, so you don't get locked up in Impel Down and become the 'Newspaper King'."
Doflamingo desperately took deep breaths, trying to calm the stifling feeling in his chest.
Leaving aside why he would even fight that Straw Hat Luffy, more importantly, why did this guy assume he would definitely lose? This was simply preposterous.
If Crocodile were here and saw this scene, he would definitely feel a sense of déjà vu. Oh, right, and Moriah too. If things continued this way, the Shichibukai might one day become the "Orochimaru's Seven Victims Group."
(„• ֊ •„)੭
Orochimaru looked at the silent Doflamingo, let out a big yawn, his lazy demeanor as if the sky falling had nothing to do with him.
"Hey, don't take this lightly. You have no idea how valuable my promise is.
If I save you, that guy Luffy will definitely get angry, and he's not easy to appease when he's mad.
And I can assure you, I won't leak the details of your deal with Caesar to anyone else.
However, if Luffy and the others are later overcome with a sense of justice, discover Caesar's experiments, and shut them down, you can't blame me, okay?"
Doflamingo was truly speechless at this point. He felt like he was being played in the palm of someone's hand. This guy was completely trying to get something for nothing.
But surprisingly, every word he said made sense, it was truly outrageous!
This time, he was genuinely gritting his teeth and glaring at Orochimaru, his heart filled with unwillingness and anger.
"Fine! When are you coming to get that thing?" Doflamingo practically squeezed the words through his teeth.
He had originally planned to conduct some experiments on that Devil Fruit to see if it still had any value, but now he felt that this cunning snake was deliberately toying with him.
Even if that Devil Fruit truly had some potential value, what then? It had been discarded for so many years. If it were truly useful, why would the World Government sit idly by?
Orochimaru was silent for a moment, then rolled over on the bed made of white Parasitic Strings, enjoying the comfort of this peculiar "mattress." And indeed, it was quite comfortable.
"Hmm... I'll see. After the Marineford War ends, I'll contact you before I go.
Give me a transponder snail number."
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