Are You Interested in Deep Cooperation?

Sage stared at the woman in front of him. She wore a hat and a coat of the same color, but underneath, she was quite coolly dressed.

But most importantly, it was that face, beneath the black hair and blue eyes, a face that resembled his own.

As Sage turned his head, Nico Robin also paused for a moment, but quickly returned to normal, displaying a smile.

Sage pulled the lever of the slot machine, seeing that he still hadn't won, he said, "Did your machines cheat? I haven't won a single time."

"Just joking,"

Robin chuckled softly, and with a wave of her hand, the machines in Sage's row suddenly began to spin. Among them, a few machines displayed three Crocodile symbols, revealing a large number of golden chips.

"Guest, perhaps changing the environment will help you win."

"Is that so?"

Sage stared at her for a moment, then shook his head and smiled, "Forget it, lead the way."

The two acted as if they didn't know each other. In fact, they really didn't know each other well; at least Sage was sure that Robin didn't know him.

As for this woman, he had only heard rumors about her, and this was their first meeting.

Lily followed closely beside Sage, glancing at the woman several times, and followed her into a passage within the casino.

At the end of the passage, there were two signboards. Sage looked at them curiously and asked, "What is the Pirate passage?"

Robin maintained her smile, "It's a dead end. If you go in, you'll fall into a trap."

"Which idiot would fall for that? What a twisted sense of humor."

Sage chuckled and followed Robin toward the so-called VIP room. Upon opening the door, what greeted them was a huge staircase, and below it was an equally large hall, where a giant Crocodile was swimming in a large tank.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha!"

In the middle of the hall, at a desk, a strange laughter echoed as a chair spun around, revealing Crocodile's gloomy face, biting a cigar, and he said in a deep voice, "Are you having fun? Norton Sage."

"What fun is there in losing money?"

Sage walked down and sat on a nearby sofa, "Bring me a good drink; I don't drink cheap stuff."

"Miss Sunday," Crocodile called out.

From the liquor cabinet, a hand emerged from nowhere, took out a bottle, and poured a glass of wine. At the same time, countless hands extended from the cabinet, bringing the wine glass to the table in front of Sage, raising it toward him.

"Please enjoy." Robin smiled from behind.

Lily's pupils constricted, "Ability User."

"I'm an Ability User who has eaten the Flower-Flower Fruit; I can grow any part of my body anywhere,"

Robin casually extended a hand, and three more hands sprouted from her elbow, smiling at Lily, "Just like blooming flowers."

Sage swirled the wine glass, downed it in one gulp, and leaned back on the sofa, "Didn't you say I could have fun? But there are no card games here?"

"Ha, ha, ha, ha."

Crocodile laughed, "To the north of Naruhara is the Royal Capital Albana. Even if you come from the Saint Dora River, you should be heading east. Did you come here just to gamble?"

"Is that not allowed?" Sage grinned.

Whoosh! His figure transformed into sand and disappeared, reappearing behind Sage, a hand hovering in front of him.

Clang! Just as Lily drew her Bai Lei, a hand sprouted from her wrist, forcefully pushing the sword back down.

"Don't move recklessly; it's dangerous," Robin said gently with a smile.

Lily's gaze turned cold, but she glanced at Sage and remained silent.

Crocodile's hand held out a cigar, offering it to Sage.

After taking it, he returned to the opposite sofa and sat down, saying, "Rumor has it you like to rob Kings, but it seems you're not just after Kings; you want to rob me, a Seven Warlords of the Sea."

Sage picked up a lighter from the table, lit the cigar, took a puff, and slowly exhaled the smoke, his grin turning sinister, "Are we going to fight?"

Whether he was discovered or not was irrelevant.

He wasn't the type to sneakily rob; he just preferred to take what he wanted without paying a price.

But now that his intentions had been discovered, he wouldn't hesitate. It was just a fight, after all. Whether Crocodile discovered it or not, he was determined to rob Rainbase.

"I'm not interested in fighting you."

Crocodile exhaled a puff of smoke, "Status and wealth mean nothing to me. To me, being a Pirate is just a business; let's make a deal, Sage."

He looked at Sage and said, "The treasure of Rainbase can be yours, in exchange, I want you to rob Alubarna."

"Give me money and have me rob? Is there such a good deal? What do you want?" Sage asked.

Crocodile extended his right hand and gripped firmly, "This country!"

Sage was taken aback and laughed, "You want to be Doflamingo?"

Crocodile's expression turned cold, "It seems you know what that guy has done, but I'm not like him. In any case, this deal won't harm you; our goals don't conflict."

With a bounty of 270 million and his past deeds, having defeated the Whitebeard Second Division Captain, even if Crocodile didn't care, he wouldn't look at Sage as if he were a small Pirate.

There was no need to conflict with someone like him.

The underlying motive behind his desire for this country was that weapon; once he obtained it, he didn't care what happened to the country.

And all Sage wanted was wealth.

"Given your style, you were probably going to Alubarna anyway. I can't think of a reason for you to refuse. Or are you one of those hot-blooded, strange Pirates? Here to compete with me over some inexplicable bond?"

Crocodile raised his head, the corners of his mouth gradually curling up, "Are you aiming for my head as a Seven Warlords of the Sea?"

"I'm not interested in your head worth 80 million; even if I got it, it wouldn't change anything for me."

Sage waved his hand, beckoning Lily over, "Go tell the people below, once we're done playing, we'll start the robbery."

As he spoke, he looked at Crocodile and smiled, "Deal."

Hearing this, Crocodile relaxed his brow, "Unnecessary."

"I'm a Pirate; what I want, I'll take myself. Your wealth is wealth, and the wealth of these gamblers is also wealth; I want it all."

Sage clenched his fist, grinning, "Even being a King requires money; if you really want to be a King…"

"What do you mean?" Crocodile's gaze darkened.

Even Robin beside him narrowed her eyes slightly.

"No, I just feel that someone like you wouldn't be so simple, but that's none of my business. I want the treasure; just don't interfere with me," Sage said.

Crocodile stared at him for a moment, then extinguished the cigar in the ashtray, "I'll return the same words to you; the contract is established. If you go back on your word, I'll show you how formidable I am as an 80 million Pirate in the desert."

"Ha, ha, ha, save that bravado for someone else," Sage laughed, "Don't worry, being a Pirate also requires a sense of justice."

Sage just wanted to rob; he was too lazy to conflict with someone like him. He probably knew what Crocodile was planning; it was just shifting the blame, and it wasn't even that, because he really intended to rob Alubarna.

Now he could effortlessly rob Rainbase, whether it was an active or passive robbery, the result was what mattered.

His plan was being implemented methodically.

"Hm?"

Suddenly, Robin seemed to sense something, adopting a listening posture, and smiled, "A group of interesting characters has arrived, Mr. 0; the Straw Hat Crew has broken into Rainbase."

"Annoying little Pirates,"

Crocodile clicked his tongue, "Fine, let them into the VIP room; I'll personally entertain them."

"Understood." Robin nodded, glancing at Sage before turning to leave.

"Speaking of which,"

Crocodile watched Robin leave, then glanced at Sage, who was pouring himself another glass of wine, his gaze shifting back and forth, "The Sea is truly mysterious; you resemble her."

"You said the Sea is mysterious, so isn't it normal to resemble each other?" Sage replied nonchalantly.

"True."

He had no doubts because he knew quite a bit; currently, the only survivor from Ohara was that one.

As for Sage's intense, lawless aura that was almost suffocating, it was certainly not something a scholar should possess.

One came from the East Sea, and the other from the West Sea; there was no way they could be connected.

Moreover, this guy… Crocodile exhaled a puff of smoke and glanced at Sage again.

He was convinced that, to some extent, they should be of the same type.

"You want so much money; are you planning something?" Crocodile suddenly asked.

"Just to become a big landlord in the New World; the money I rob is all for enjoying life as a landlord in the future," Sage answered directly without hiding anything.

"The New World, huh."

Crocodile revealed a strange expression, pausing for a moment before laughing, "Ha, ha, ha, ha! Every Pirate's necessary path; the New World isn't so easy to navigate. But…"

"Sage, are you interested in deep cooperation?"