The next day.
Aboard the Rocks Ship, inside Bob room. After drinking the night away, Bob was slumped over his desk, drifting in and out of sleep, when a commotion outside jolted him awake. He rubbed his eyes and squinted out the window, seeing the sun already high in the sky. It was nearly noon.
Meanwhile, across from Bob, Whitebeard had never come back to his room last night and was currently sprawled asleep on the table. Shaking his head, Bob got up and tried to pick up Whitebeard, but given the size difference, it just wasn't working. So Bob simply picked Whitebeard up and carried him over to the bed. Throughout the entire process, Whitebeard didn't stir at all, still deep in sleep. They'd been drinking together last night and totally overdid it. With Whitebeard being so massive, most of his legs stuck out from the edge of Bob's bed, but it was still better than sleeping hunched over a desk.
Bob walked over and opened the door, the noise immediately flooding in. Raising his eyebrows at what he saw, Bob looked out. Out on the deck, several crew members were working out with gym equipment. Some were lifting barbells, others dumbbells, and a few were doing push-ups with massive iron weights on their backs. As they moved up and down, loud grunts came from their mouths. Leading them was the organizer of this morning workout the vice-commander in Bob team, Kaido.
He wasn't just watching either—he was observing the others while lifting a pair of iron blocks that looked to weigh several tons apiece. A crowd of pirates from other teams stood nearby, whispering among themselves. On the Rocks Pirates ship, seeing a group actually organized and training together like this was a rare thing. Aside from Whitebeard's crew, the other commanders basically left their teams to fend for themselves with no real supervision.
Looking at the scene before him, Bob couldn't help but smile. He hadn't expected Kaido to actually keep his word—he lost their bet yesterday and had immediately started up training today. It was a bit different from what Bob had imagined, but seeing them take action was good enough. Right then, the crew spotted Bob coming out and immediately stopped what they were doing.
"Good morning, Commander Bob!"
Hearing everyone greeting him, Bob nodded slightly and said,
"Good, keep going. Don't mind me!"
With that, the crew returned to their unfinished workouts, but noticeably put more energy into it than before. Bob turned and walked over to Kaido, saying,
"Kaido, I appreciate your attitude and enthusiasm!"
Kaido set down the massive blocks and gave a big grin.
"Hahaha! So, what do you think of my training methods?"
"I'd say it suits your taste perfectly."
Bob replied coolly, then glanced at the still-working crew. Even though everyone looked to be working hard, there were some real gaps in ability among them. Bob couldn't help but think that after the battle at God Valley, the Rocks Pirates would break up, and his agreement with Rocks would be over. That meant Bob could finally put together his own pirate crew.
Thinking about this, Bob realized he had a problem to work out. Because the people joining his crew now would probably become his real crewmates in the future—and there was no way Bob was going to let his crew be a bunch of useless nobodies. So, sometime soon, he'd have to test all of them, keep only the ones with the right strength and potential, and let the best rise to the top. Then he'd have to recruit even more suitable crewmates out in the pirate world.
Gathering his thoughts, Bob spoke up.
"Keep at it! Train hard!"
He turned to leave, but after a couple steps suddenly thought of something and called back to Kaido,
"Next time, pick a different spot."
Bob destination was John room. No helping it that old geezer just wouldn't come over Bob had to go visit personally. Strolling across the deck with his hands behind his head, Bob looked straight ahead. Someone was walking toward him. It was a man dressed in a red robe with a rapier at his waist.
John!
"Bob, I was just on my way to find you! Didn't expect to run into you here!"
As Bob noticed John, John noticed him, too.
"Well, fancy that. I don't even need to come knocking?"
Figuring John had come to pay his debt, Bob realized maybe he'd misjudged him—the old geezer seemed to be keeping his word after all. Upon hearing this, John's expression shifted slightly. He placed a hand on Bob's shoulder and said,
"Bob, can we talk privately for a minute?"
Bob frowned but followed along. John led Bob to a quiet corner of the Rocks. Not a soul in sight just the sound of the waves lapping against the hull.
"What's this about? Why the big secret just to pay me back?"
Bob was baffled by John's behavior; he had no clue what he was up to.
"Paying you back can wait for a second."
John said awkwardly.
"What, trying to skip out on your debt?"
Hearing this, Bob's face darkened. So John was planning to stiff him? Bob fist was ready to go.
"No, no! Do you think I, John, would ever short you that money?"
"Here's the thing. After we got back from that gambling match, Wang Zhi and Silver Axe came and talked to me,"
John said, lowering his voice and blinking slyly.
"And then?"
Bob relaxed his fist and asked.
"I told them I won five hundred million from you. As soon as they heard it, their eyes went wide with envy and jealousy!"
"They decided right then to challenge you to another round of gambling!"
"And with me as the one arranging the match!"
At this, John grin turned downright sneaky. At that moment, Bob couldn't help but smirk. Now he saw what John was up to using Bob big loss as bait to make him look like a sucker when it came to gambling. Anyone with half a clue would think they could easily win some money off Bob. Then John would set up a game and get Wang Zhi and Silver Axe to approach Bob for a match.
Talk about setting up your own friends. Bob cursed silently. These three might seem close, but in the Rocks Pirates, friends were just people waiting to stab each other in the back.
"So?"
Bob narrowed his eyes.
"Silver Axe and Wang Zhi will come to play with you."
"Their gambling is decent, but they're not as good as me. You'll be able to handle them, no problem!"
"When the time comes, you can…"
At this point, John was already imagining the look on those two's faces after they lost, and couldn't help but start to laugh.
"Oh?"
"They really ought to thank you for being such a reliable friend, huh?"
"Hahaha! Lay off the sarcasm! I'm lining up a money-making opportunity for you here!"
John had zero qualms about stabbing his friends in the back. As long as he could profit, there was nothing he wouldn't do.
"Deal!"
Bob was more than happy to go along with John plan. He could win money off two commanders without putting in any effort himself—free money. What problems might follow after he won? That was John problem, not his.
"So what's your angle in all this?"
Bob doubted John was just being generous and handing him a couple of easy marks.
"Hahaha!"
"It's just… Since I'm the middleman, I'd get a little cut, right?"
John rubbed his hands together, grinning and speaking slowly. John wanted more than just to see Wang Zhi and Silver Axe lose he also wanted a bit of the action. After all, how often did opportunities like this come along?
"We'll see how you do."
Bob replied, patting John on the shoulder.
"Hahaha, great!"
"I'll bring Wang Zhi and Silver Axe over in a bit…"
With that, John turned and left.
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