The real game had only just begun

On the Rocks Pirate Ship, a few pirates saw Bob, Wang Zhi, and Silver Axe sitting together on the deck, and immediately understood a gambling match was about to begin.

With their shouts, the pirates who hadn't been on deck before now crowded over to join the fun.

In no time, several rows of people were standing around Bob. Some crew members on the outside even fetched crates and barrels to stand on, while the inner circle was occupied by the commanders.

Whitebeard looked at Wang Zhi and Silver Axe, their faces eager and brimming with confidence as they sat at the gambling table. He could tell both already felt victory within their grasp.

He chuckled at the sight, because he knew Bob never actually lost money—and had even saddled John with a mountain of debt. The thought made him burst out laughing, which in turn reached Shiki ears and made that pirate grin too.

"Gihahaha, Edward, your good pal Bob hasn't even started yet!"

"You're not seriously thinking Bob can win, are you?" Shiki puffed on his cigar, grinning as he spoke.

"Mind your own business. Can't I think of something pleasant and have a laugh?" Whitebeard shot Shiki a sideways glance as he replied, unfazed by the mockery. When the real winner of the gambling match was clear, everyone would know who the real clown was.

As the two bantered back and forth, the atmosphere at the table started to grow more intense.

"Bob, lay out all the money you brought. Let everyone see what's at stake!" Wang Zhi set the deck of cards in the middle, then opened his own bag of treasure. In an instant, the gleaming fortune on the table drew every pirate's hungry gaze.

Bob just smiled.

He picked up one of the bags and tossed it onto the table; with a deft flick of his wrist, the bag slowly unraveled itself.

Bob bag held both stacks of cash and treasures. It was actually the haul he'd taken from John last time and never bothered to sort. Finally, he had a chance to put it to use.

Silver Axe did the same, placing his money on the table.

Suddenly, the gambling table was piled high with three huge bags of treasures. The clatter of treasure as they dumped it out made an itch spread through every pirate present.

"Commanders don't play around. That kind of money could keep me set for life!"

"Yeah! I've never seen stakes this high since I became a pirate!"

"Being a commander really is a different world—treasure as far as the eye can see. I wonder if I can make commander someday myself!"

"Yeah, right! Any of these commanders could beat ten of you at once!"

"Shut up and watch—see how the commanders play!"

The pirates' eyes glistened at the sight of so much treasure. If this were any regular gambling den, the place would already be awash in drawn swords and chaos.

Just what was on the table right now was more than most pirates could amass in a lifetime.

For pirates who'd spent years looting and pillaging, the temptation was enormous. But, thankfully, they all had enough sense not to jump in and grab it for themselves.

"Enough talk! Let's play!" Wang Zhi had been waiting impatiently ever since Bob put out his treasure.

"Hold on! Someone's got to deal the cards. You're not expecting us to deal our own, are you?" Bob said, glancing over the crowd. Among all the onlookers, Kaido burly figure stood out.

"Kaido, get over here!"

Kaido, hearing his name, stiffened as his gaze met Bob, his cheek twitching in irritation.

It was clear Bob was making Kaido act as the card dealer—a task Kaido considered beneath someone of his stature, and he felt thoroughly insulted.

Ordinarily, he'd refuse. But since Bob was his commander, after hesitating a moment he begrudgingly shuffled over, picked up the cards, and began dealing them one by one, wearing a look of utter boredom.

As cards were dealt out to each commander, the raucous crowd started to quiet down.

Shiki wore a mocking grin, Whitebeard sat with arms folded, and John hadn't even shown up yet.

The cards were quickly dealt, leaving three face-down cards in the center. Time to call.

Silver Axe called first.

He tapped on the table, opting to fold.

Bob fold as well, because his Observation Haki told him the hidden cards were a two, a six, and a nine—which didn't work well with the cards in his hand.

With both of them folding, Wang zhi win this round.

The initial bet was one million Berries, and if a bomb hand appeared, the stakes would double. As luck would have it, Wang Zhi landed a strong hand and took the first round, pocketing two million Berries in mere minutes.

Even Shiki at the side couldn't help looking envious—this was easy money.

The second round started, and again, Bob didn't call. Though his hand and the hidden cards were decent, he preferred to let his opponents win a little up front before turning the tide.

Wang Zhi won another four million Berries.

During the match, Bob noticed something: whenever Wang Zhi or Silver Axe made a play, it was rare for them to give him an easy card to work with. Whenever they did, it usually meant the round was about to end.

That told him they could probably read all the cards in his hand—they also possessed Observation Haki.

But that was to be expected. As commanders within the Rocks Pirates, if they didn't even have that much skill, they wouldn't have lasted this long.

As time went by, Bob ended up losing fifteen million Berries, while Silver Axe lost over seven million.

Silver Axe face grew increasingly sour. Since both he and Wang Zhi were rivals, each with ambitions to win the most from Bob, they hadn't formed any meaningful alliance.

That much money lost in a heartbeat stung deeply.

Bob noticed this as well, because the way those two played was always at each other's throats.

So, every round of Poker, all three played their hands openly, everyone could see exactly what the others had.

Throughout, Wang Zhi was on a winning streak. By now, he was certain Bob was just an amateur who liked gambling, couldn't read the table, and had no clue how to play a good hand.

"Lost over ten million Berries already… Commander Bob seriously doesn't know how to play!"

"I could do better than Commander Bob! His card skills are just terrible!"

"Yeah! Must be nice to have money to burn—he just throws it away!"

"I wish it was me sitting across from Bob, I'd be rich overnight! Who would bother being a pirate after that?"

A few pirates watched Bob constant losing streak and the previous calm faded, replaced with noisy chatter as they complained about his dreadful skills and how he was just handing out free money.

They all wished it was their own seat at the table, since with Bob's performance, anyone would think they could make easy winnings.

But as far as Bob was concerned, the real game had only just begun.

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