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...

Notoriety was a common thing on the high seas, the amount of Wanted posters scattered around any bar or saloon would explain just what kind of world people lived in. By no means was it a perfect society and more often than not the common folk did not get along with pirates and scoundrels. Very few pirates had the audacity to simply burn and destroy anything and everything they could come across, as such immense destruction would bring the authorities raining down on them.

Which it was, because of this style of thinking that the villagers living on this particular island had no way to prepare themselves for what occurred.

Cannon fire rained down from the sky relentlessly, destroying everything in it's path. That wasn't the worst of it though, as only minutes after the initial destruction whoever had remained alive was given minimal chance to flee into the surrounding wilderness, as pirates ruthlessly mowed down everything in their path. No man, woman or child was safe from their wrath, other than those who had been specifically instructed to be kept alive.

'Slay all but one tenth but do not let them forget who you are.'

Kuro's words had been few but were drooling in his accustomed tone of voice, essentially telling both his crew and Krieg's that any screw up to the plan would be dealt with accordingly. Needless to say, the two crews took the threat very seriously.

From the safety of his vessel, Kuro adjusted his glasses as he gazed upon the raging inferno which had engulfed the island. He had felt no need to sully his blades on such pitiful adversaries and had instead opted to use this time to contemplate just what he had gotten himself into. Shifting his gaze to the side he was able to look at the ship that his 'partner' sailed upon.

Unlike himself, who was still believed by nearly the entire world to be dead, Don Krieg was still a name that many feared and as such he was vital in both ensuring that word spread around and that there was someone to shift the blame towards in the worst case scenario. The man, while not the most intelligent man in the world, had onced manage to amass fifty ships to his armada in an attempt to conquer the Grand Line. Fifty ships that were brought down by a single man.

A Shichibukai, sure, but still a man none the less.

The fact that Don Krieg had wanted to recreate his fleet to tackle the Grand Line once more spoke both volumes of the man's courage, stubbornness and stupidity. Sadly since he boasted these traits so openly about how he was invincible, it was also the best way to get other ships to sail under them. It wouldn't take long for the Marines to catch wind of them, they weren't exactly being subtle, however this was East Blue, the sea which many labelled as the weakest. Hence the Marine forces in the area were fodder compared to those elsewhere in the world. Easy pickings as it were.

The main concern he had was waiting for Don Krieg to make another attempt on his life, the cocky man would likely at some point come into full belief that he had no need for an equal. The man was too brash for something like an assassination and he wouldn't risk losing half his crew during a direct confrontation. Kuro was crafty though and would plan accordingly for the day that the cannons were directed at his ship.

He had plenty of time.

...

Much like Kuro had predicted it was but a week later when another pirate ship was spotted sailing towards them. "What should we do captain?" shouted one of Krieg's men who was spoiling for a fight. The rambunctious roar from the crew had Krieg consider his options for a minute. There had yet to be any cannon fire, and if they were that confident that they wouldn't be fired upon then negotiations could be made.

Sure, he could do his old routine, step onto their ship, show off his weapons, kill the first mate before getting them to sign their allegiance to him, but as he gazed through his telescope at the oncoming vessel he could see less than a dozen men aboard the ship. He had encountered a few crews like this before during his time and more often than not, the crew comprised itself on childhood friends seeking adventure together. Killing off one of them would likely cause them to either turn their weapons on them or have them sign up to only bail at a later date.

While they would be annihilated without question, times were tough and every crew member was necessary.

For the moment.

"Kuro!" bellowed Krieg towards the Black Cat pirate ship where the captain was standing, still wearing his suit. A small tilt of the head was all the indication that Kuro was listening. "Let's see if ya can negotiate, we need their men and their ship. Worst case scenario, leave the ship intact."

Kuro hated having to take orders, three years as a butler to a helpless woman could do that to a man, but knew that Krieg had a point in this case. Hence as he armed himself, instead of taking his patented clawed gloves he merely grabbed a single butter knife. The flag they hung in the wind was not recognisable, raising the question as to whether this captain even had a bounty on his head.

A butter knife would suffice.

For many, the jump between ships would be impossible with the gap between them easily thirty feet in length. For someone capable at moving faster than the naked eye was capable of seeing however this was child's play. "Is the crossbones recognisable?" asked Kuro of his fellow captain.

The skull and crossbones in question featured the skull having a vibrant green snake coil around the collection of bones before it's head popped out the eye socket to bare it's fangs. Points for originality.

"No," stated Krieg not feeling as if he should sully his memory with the flags of his potential enemies.

"Very well then," said Kuro as the oncoming ship raised its sails and drifted towards them. At least the crew seemed like capable sailors, it would be a tragedy if he had to kill them all. He had to use that knife to spread his butter and jam after all.

Much like his leap to Krieg's ship, he replicated the technique to land upon the new vessel and succeeded in startling the entirety of the crew who were not expecting to be boarded so quickly. "Which of you is the Captain?" asked Kuro, adjusting his glasses with one hand while concealing his weapon with the other.

"That'd be me!" declared a boisterous voice, Kuro looking to the side to see a taller than average man walking towards them with what looked like a decorated sabre strapped to his waist. Much like the flag above them, this man also had a snake etched upon him, the tattoo escalating up his left arm and onto his face. Intimidating to the common man by all means.

Kuro was not a common man.

"We've come to negotiate sailing under Captain Krieg!" he declared. "I will have words with him."

"Don Krieg and I are in an alliance as it were," said Kuro already hating this man's arrogance. It seemed as though despite the fact they had sailed up to them in good faith this was the first time the man had talked around a fellow captain. As one would expect, he was doing his best to flex his muscles to try and make it look as if he was their equal.

He wasn't.

"Then who are you?" asked the captain.

"I am Captain Kuro and you will negotiate with me mister..."

"Captain Jashi, the snake worth two million beli!"

"Two million beli, cute," said Kuro, loud enough to be heard by the entirety of the crew who became visibly irked by the comment. "Tell me, did you earn your bounty for shoplifting or for not helping an elderly woman with her groceries?"

Surprisingly, Captain Jashi remained silent at the comment. While he didn't recognise Kuro he was more than aware that Don Krieg's bounty was that of seventeen million. If such an infamous man was partners with someone this confident when aboard an enemy vessel than it was safe to say that his bounty was roughly equal to the of Krieg's.

"Very well then," said Kuro glad that his provocation hadn't caused an uproar. "What is it you wish to negotiate?"

"We would like to join your alliance!" declared Captain Jashi, his crew sounding off their approval.

"You would see us as your equal," said Kuro in a threatening tone as he once more adjusted his glasses. "You do realise that you are severely outgunned, severely outnumbered and severely outclassed. You are not our equal!"

One of the crew, clearly having had enough insults being thrown at his captain, pulled his pistol out of his pocket. By the time though he had put his finger on the trigger, Kuro had vanished from sight but he could feel the cold tinge of metal against his throat. The rest of the crew, captain included, took a nervous step back at the sudden realization that they may have been foolish in their quest to sail alongside Don Krieg.

"Allow me to offer you an ultimatum," stated Kuro as he removed the knife from the pirate's throat, ignoring the stench of urine that was insulted his sense of smell. "You will not sail with us, you will sail for us. Not as an equal but as our underlings. You will leave us today and go out to increase your bounty to ten million beli within the week. Failure to comply will automatically result in your release from your services to us and your immediate termination when next we meet. Am I understood?"

The crew looked towards their Captain, who was biting at the corner of his mouth as he weighed up the situation. No matter what way he looked at it, he was a dead man unless he was able to rally his men to the point where they could raise their fame by another eight million beli. A difficult task but one that would be necessary for their survival.

"We accept," said Captain Jashi, clearly upset without how his plan to join had gone down.

"Excellent, I await news of your new bounty in the post," said Kuro. "Now, begone."

With that he vanished from the deck and back aboard Don Krieg's ship. "What happened?" asked the armoured clad pirate.

"Negotiations, nothing more, nothing less."