15 Haki*
Victor's Photo(AI Generated):
**
"In a deal, both parties should offer equal value. If I help you to eliminate the threat of Bege permanently what will I get in return?"
"We are willing to split the resources we can loot after the war equally and you won't even have to fight in the frontlines. Lend me your best men and I promise to win you this war." Sofia tried to negotiate.
"I'm not much interested in treasures, I want long-term access to your trading channels and intelligence network. In return, the Moriarty family will promise a strategic defense partnership with the Sanchez Family. I think it will be helpful for our mutual interest." Victor offered.
"What will I gain from this deal?" Sofia questioned as she looked at Victor with doubt.
"Influence, power, and long-term security. I'll fund the alliance while you will be in charge of the intelligence gathering, I heard you guys were very good at it. My goal is simple, unite all the unaffiliated factions under one banner. Even if we eliminate one Capone Bege, another will rise up to take his place in the future so we have to become smarter and stronger than our enemies. What are your thoughts on this?" Victor didn't know about Sofia Sanchez in the original story, she probably also died at the hands of Capone during his conquest. He has no idea about her strengths so he will test her in this war before further commitments.
Sofia was silent for a few moments as she processed the information. 'The potential of such an alliance will be huge, but how big are your ambitions Victor? How many enemies do we have to face before it ends?'
"If we create such an alliance then who will lead us? Who else will join the organization and what will be our end goal?" She asked curiously.
"I'll be a secret organization for now, we will create a network of like-minded people who crave strength, money, or influence in the underworld. To prevent betrayal we will hold a stringent selection process where a new member can only join after a referral from a previous member. There will be three major bodies, The High Table which will make the rules, the Enforcers who will safeguard the rules and the Militia which will control the military. The leader of the organization will have veto powers to cancel any referendum but if the majority of members want an impeachment then a new election will be held. The Veto powers will be nullified in that case."
"Count me in! That's a very well-thought-out plan. So as the founding member of the group, give it a name."
"I'm very bad at naming so let's keep it simple and call it 'The Syndicate' whose only goal will be to unite the West Blue underworld under one banner and prevent other forces from causing chaos. What do you think?"
"Great!! I vote yes." Sofia said with a soft smile, she didn't know how this decision would spread ripples around the globe in the future.
"As for Capone Bege, his devil fruit allows him to become a moving fortress so we have to catch him when he is in the most vulnerable state. We'll have major losses if he lands on the shore so we'll have to drown him in the sea. I'll ask my men to monitor his location, you do the same before we can plan further." Victor suggested.
"Understood! I'll prepare for war." She said firmly with newfound hope and resolve to face the challenges.
"Let's try to keep our casualties as low as possible. Contact Captain Smith if you have to relay any urgent message." After a few moments of exchanging information and refining plans against any variables, Victor left with his entourage.
At the top floor of Maiden's Bar:
"Madam! Was he telling the truth?" Maria, her assistant questioned doubtfully.
"Yes! He had not lied once in our conversation, my devil fruit powers were activated the whole time. He genuinely believed in whatever he said and had the confidence to back it up." Sofia said as he looked at Victor's back from the window. She had eaten the Sensu-Sensu no Mi: A Paramecia-type Devil Fruit that allows the user to increase all of their senses to their maximum potential and sense abstract concepts like emotions, lies, and deception.
"Your mother will be angry if she heard you allied with a man." Maria teased playfully.
"Times are changing Maria, if we can't adapt and unite then we'll be wiped out by our enemies. It is refreshing to meet a trustworthy ally for once. It seems like the intel about him being a prodigal was a well-crafted lie."
"Madam! What should we do now?"
"Return to base and prepare for battle, also mobilize our network to monitor that ruthless bastard."
***
Inside the dojo:
In the past few weeks, Victor has trained intensely for multiple hours daily to awaken Haki, the manifestation of someone's will and the ultimate power source in this world. It may sound abstract but if one tries to explain it in simple terms, it is an internal source of energy processed by every being on this planet but you have to awaken it with proper knowledge and training. This energy can be projected at any object(organic and inorganic) to exponentially increase its durability and power moreover it can also bypass logia devil fruit intangibility. Others can also train to spread this energy to their surroundings which gives the user a sixth sense of the world around them, allowing them to sense the presence, strength, and emotions of other people, even if they are out of sight or far away. On an advanced level, it becomes too OP, you can predict your opponent's movement, their emotions and even foresee a short period into the future.
"Victor! I have taught you how to awaken both Armament and Observation Haki, as for the Conquerors Haki, not anyone alive can help you awaken it other than yourself. Everyone who has this blessing has their own individual understanding of this power, what I can suggest is to identify your true self."
"Thank you Sensei! I'll keep your words in mind." Victor bowed with respect, even though Don Chinjao acts like a tsundere his teaching skills were impeccable.
"Don't let your talent get in your head, you'll be squashed like a fly in the Grand Line if you grow complacent with your training. Now I will teach you Hassoken, it is a secret martial art created by my grandfather and passed through the Chinjao family for generations. After learning this you will also carry the pride of the Chinjao Family with you, so don't even dare to lose to some no-name character and tarnish our reputation." Chinjao said extremely seriously. Secret arts aren't usually taught to outsiders.
"I'll not let you down Sensei!"
***
Meanwhile, inside a run-down bar that was filled with corpses and blood, a man sat calmly on a table as he drank a bottle of rum. There was a severed head of a corpse and its bounty poster on the table as the man drank from the bottle very leisurely as if he were sitting in a park. The tanned man had long, thin limbs and fingers. He was tall, very muscular and his head was shaven and bald like a coconut. His most striking feature is probably the black unibrow, right over his round eyes. Suddenly his den den mushi started ringing and when he picked up the call another voice spoke.
"You have got a big job request, they are offering 50 million bellies for your service "Killer'."
"Who's the target?" Killer aka Daz Bonez asked in his cold tone.
"Sofia Sanchez, the head of the Sanchez Family. Dealing with the Mafias might get messy, I personally suggest you give it second thoughts." His handler in the Bounty Hunting business said solemnly.
"Tell them to prepare the money and send me of the date and time."
*Sigh*
"Understood, They'll be happy that 'The Killer' accepted the offer." Daz Bonez has not yet sailed to the Grand Line and currently making a name for himself as a bounty hunter in West Blue. His infamy along with his epithet 'The Killer' spread due to his brutal syle and tack record of never failed any assassination mission.
