One Piece: Shanks' Little Jasmine

Chapter 155 A New Deal

Looking at the letter in her hand, Moko's eyes crinkled with a smile. "Hiyori-chan, if this is your wish, then I will obey and not interfere anymore. However, you are my lovely little sister. Since you have been bullied, I will naturally bully you back. Kaido, let's leave him for now."

Moke lit the candlestick and placed the thin sheet of letter on the flickering flame, letting the orange flame slowly engulf it. In the rising flame, one could vaguely see the few words on the letter—"Slay your enemy with your own hands."

Following the wind flowing outside the window, the ashes from the burning fire mixed with flower petals scattered into the air, blended into the bustling street, and disappeared from sight in the blink of an eye.

"Miss Moko, it's time to go."

Spring's gentle voice came from outside the paper door. Mo Ke handed the cloth bag embroidered with lilies to Mi Hua, patted Mi Hua's head, and Mi Hua naturally hid her scent and flew up to the roof.

Mihua indeed has no offensive power, but her ability to conceal her presence is unmatched. In fact, Mihua has been by Moke's side for the past few days, and even openly played with Ella. However, because her presence was completely integrated with her surroundings, no one noticed her existence at all.

Moko has complete confidence that even in front of Kaido, she can wander around without any restraint. After all, when they were children playing hide-and-seek, Moko never lost because of Moko's ability to hide her aura. As long as Moko doesn't reveal her aura, even Roger can't easily detect her. Moreover, Moko's power is stronger than before.

However, Mika's abilities were ineffective against Moko and Shanks, and it's unclear whether Mika deliberately displayed her aura to them.

Moko gently smoothed down Ella's tuft of hair that had sticked up from sleeping, picked up the still-sleepy Ella, and opened the paper door. Outside the door was Chunhe, who had been waiting for a long time. Chunhe seemed to want to say something, but in the end, she didn't speak. Moko took in Chunhe's changing expressions and patted Chunhe's head.

"Let's go."

It's time to go home after we've had enough fun, otherwise the old man at home might really bring his army to start a war.

Watching Moko walk downstairs, Chunhe forcefully held back her tears and quickly followed. She was sure she could do it; she was all prepared. She was sure she could escape with Miss Moko. She was sure she could.

Even upstairs, the strangeness of the surroundings was immediately apparent. The bustling streets were now eerily quiet, a stark contrast to the atmosphere when they first arrived in the Flower Capital. The entrance on the first floor was filled with members of the Kaido Pirates, each with a fierce expression, exuding an aura of impending storm.

Both Jin and Maria looked serious. When they saw Moko come out, Jin did not go forward as he used to. Moko did not mind and took Chunhe's hand to sit in the sedan chair that had been carefully made for her.

The moment she revealed her murderous intent, Moko had no intention of continuing to pretend. Her relationship with Jin ended there. As for that inexplicable sense of familiarity, Moko was too lazy to investigate it further. She was a lazy person by nature, and since he wasn't anyone important, she might as well forget about him.

Without any delay, the group quickly returned to Onigashima. To prevent Moko from throwing a tantrum, the pirates carrying the palanquin didn't give her a chance to get off. They carried her all the way from the Flower Capital to the castle on Onigashima without ever putting the palanquin down.

Judging from the speed at which the sedan chair was carried, it was obvious that they had been scared by Mo Ke. Unfortunately, the group didn't know that Mo Ke had no intention of messing with them this time. After all, it was the last day, and she couldn't keep fooling them. She was quite happy to see them running around like crazy these past few days.

When Moko stepped down from the sedan chair, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Their eyes clearly showed that they were liberated. Moko found this amusing. Without saying anything, Moko turned around and prepared to enter the castle.

As Moko was about to step through the door, Jin's fingers trembled, as if he wanted to say something, but he didn't speak until Moko was far away. Watching the petite figure gradually disappear into the red corridor, Jin's hands hanging at his sides unconsciously clenched.

Jin didn't understand why he felt inexplicably depressed, or why his heart felt so hot and painful, as if his blood was flowing backwards. And yet, what was he thinking now? He hoped that Moko wouldn't go to see Kaido. What was wrong with him? How could he have such thoughts? He should unconditionally obey Lord Kaido's orders. Lord Kaido was the person he had decided to serve for the rest of his life.

Kaido has decided to hand Moko over to Doflamingo, so Moko's fate will no longer be related to Kaido. This is why Kaido doesn't care even though he knows Moko is hiding her strength. He has already gained enough benefits through Moko as a bargaining chip, but who knows what will happen next?

At sea, there are no permanent enemies, only permanent interests. Whether it's Kaido or Doflamingo, in their hearts, the value of Moko as a bargaining chip is far more important than her value as a beautiful woman. Therefore, even if the deal is completed, neither of them will easily let Moko go. This is an obvious reality that everyone knows.

What should he do? King was completely at a loss. His usually sharp mind was now stuck, unable to function at all. He didn't know if Moko, who was hiding her power, could escape. Even in the worst-case scenario, he could only watch and couldn't help, because he had sworn that he would always be loyal to Lord Kaido.

But, but, but!

Why does it feel like my blood is flowing backwards inside my body? It's so painful. Why is this happening?

"Lord Jin, Lord Kaido is waiting for you in the front hall."

The servant's voice sounded beside him, and Jin suddenly snapped back to reality. He felt the cold sweat seeping through his body, let out a deep breath, and shook off all the chaotic thoughts in his mind. He glanced once more at the red corridor hidden in the cherry blossom forest, which seemed to have no end. This time, no god would appear. His eyes, slightly lowered behind the mask, held a variety of unreadable emotions. Jin withdrew his gaze, turned around, and strode away.

The castle still had the same spring-like scenery all year round, but now was not the time to admire it. After half a month, Kaido finally made time to meet with Moko. After all, it was a meeting with the Emperor of the Sea. Even though Moko didn't want to dress up specially, Maria still took her back to her room to dress her up.

This time, Moko truly experienced the treatment of an ancient noble lady, having everything done for her. Although she was with Shanks, it just felt different.

The huge hot spring was filled with wisps of steam, and pink flower petals floated on the surface, exuding a faint fragrance. In the moist and hazy mist, Moko was languidly soaking in the hot spring water, while the maids stood respectfully by her side with their eyes lowered.

Perhaps worried that Moko would escape, Maria specially arranged a new group of maids to serve Moko. Without Moko even needing to investigate, she knew that these maids were definitely Maria's subordinates and were probably quite capable. After all, Maria was a pirate captain, and she naturally had many capable people under her command.

Her long hair was gently spread out by the water ripples, intertwining with the flower petals in the water. The soft sound of water filled the bath, inspiring all sorts of thoughts.

Ella lay in the specially prepared wooden tub, enveloped in the warm hot spring. She closed her eyes comfortably, letting the tub drift along with the current in the hot spring.

Moko gazed at the setting sun in the distance, ignoring the gaze of the maid behind her, and slowly stood up from the water. Now it was her turn to negotiate. As for the bargaining chips, she wondered how Kaido would react when he found out his island had been bombed. It was something to look forward to.

Moko walked lightly ashore, letting the maids help her put on a bathrobe, and then returned to her room with great fanfare. Everything in the bedroom was ready. Moko sat in front of the dressing table and watched the maids begin to serve her.

The maid behind her gently combed Moke's cascading long hair, carefully weaving each strand into an intricate bun, adorned with a few delicate gold and jade hairpins that shimmered softly in the candlelight.

Her delicate eyebrows were outlined, like distant mountains shrouded in mist, gentle and charming. A thin layer of rouge was lightly swept across her eyelids, making her bright eyes even more luminous. Her lips parted slightly, and a vibrant red bloomed from between them, like a peony in its first bloom, both delicate and reserved.

After finishing her makeup, Moko slowly rose and took off her yukata. Two maids walked to the kimono rack and took down the kimono she was to change into. It was an extremely luxurious and exquisite black furisode, with a black base, colorful dyed prints, and dark gold trim. The outer robe was embroidered with large areas of bright yet elegant colorful floral and butterfly patterns, with various delicate butterflies interspersed among the large areas of flowers in different shades, and gold foil embellishments. The workmanship was exquisite.

The pale yellow sash features a pattern that echoes the kimono, with a delicate bright red cord in the center.

Moko gently raised her wrist, and the maid helped her put on a kimono, carefully adjusting it. Moko's every move exuded elegance and grace, showing no sign of nervousness as she was about to face the Emperor of the Sea.

After everything was prepared, the maids couldn't help but marvel. They had heard long ago that Moko's beauty was no less than that of Lady Maria. At first, they didn't believe it and even scoffed at it. However, after seeing Moko, they knew that the rumors were true.

The person before her didn't even need much makeup; a gorgeous dress accentuated her slender figure. Even the elaborate and ornate wide sleeves couldn't conceal Moke's curvaceous body. The black fabric only made Moke's fair skin appear even more like snow. A delicate ebony folding fan was tucked into her waistband, and her long pink hair was pulled back, adorned with various intricate gold and jade hairpins. The magnificent and elaborate patterns and decorations couldn't suppress Moke's innate noble elegance.

Mo Ke slightly lowered her chin, her fair and slender neck extending downwards and hidden in the snow-white lining. Her back was straight, her hands folded in front of her, and she stood gracefully, looking down at the maids with a gentle smile.

Under the glow of the lights, the colorful embroidery and gold leaf shimmered with a delicate, sparkling light on the pure black kimono, highlighting Moko's exquisite features and making her seem otherworldly.

"As expected of Miss Moko, you always catch my eye whenever I see you. It's a pity that time is up, otherwise I would have had a long talk with Miss Moko by candlelight. As for now, Miss Moko, please come this way. Lord Kaido is already waiting for you in the banquet hall."

Maria covered her mouth and smiled faintly, bowing slightly and waving to indicate the swaying lights of the corridor. Moko lowered her eyes to hide the dark glint in them, her lips always holding a smile that revealed no emotion. Guided by Maria, she stepped towards that dangerous end.

And so, the new transaction has finally begun!