Katakuri followed behind Brook and soon saw the host who had invited him to come as a guest in a large hall.
"Oh, so Nicholas, you're planning to use those guys along with Fish-Man Island's stimulant drugs as the vanguard to attack Mariejois?"
"That's right. Since these scum of the seas want to seize this opportunity to achieve their ambitions, why not give them a chance? But only if they can withstand the side effects of using the stimulant drugs extensively."
Nicholas spoke coldly, as if the lives of those pirates were of no importance.
Hearing the conversation between the two in the hall, Katakuri couldn't help but feel a chill run through his heart, but he quickly suppressed any change in his expression, maintaining a cold demeanor.
"Nicholas..."
Perhaps to inform Nicholas, Brook spoke up and said, "Katakuri is here."
Nicholas was chatting and laughing with Kizaru when he heard Brook's words. He looked up and, smiling, said to Katakuri, "I didn't expect you to actually come alone. As expected of the most outstanding product of the Charlotte family."
Of course, Nicholas was aware of Katakuri's arrival. As a strong individual, even without deliberately using Observation Haki, he could easily sense any anomalies in his surroundings.
Seeing Katakuri's serious expression, as if he wouldn't be surprised if Nicholas killed him in the next moment, Nicholas chuckled helplessly and said, "No need to be so tense. Also, this Navy Admiral here has no interest in attacking you. I asked you to come here just to discuss a business deal. Don't be shy, have a seat."
Katakuri's eyes flickered, but he still followed Nicholas's suggestion and found a seat, instinctively choosing one away from where Kizaru was sitting. After all, suddenly sitting next to a Navy Admiral wasn't something he had the nerves for.
At this point, Nicholas casually picked up a cup of tea from the table, took a sip, and slowly said, "Relax, Katakuri. I brought you here without any malice, just to discuss a business deal with you and the Charlotte family behind you.
Originally, if you hadn't come, this man, Borsalino, would have taken some friends to Totto Land, but since you're here, that won't be necessary."
"What do you mean by that?"
Katakuri's eyes narrowed. He wasn't a fool; he could easily hear the implied meaning in Nicholas's words. If he hadn't come today, then Borsalino might have led a group to Totto Land, and it certainly wouldn't have been a social visit.
"It's simple. I plan to appoint you as the New World's Commander of the Pirate Suppression Operations. As for your subordinates, they'll be all the current members of the Charlotte family. If you perform well, I don't mind negotiating with the Navy and Revolutionary Army to allow the Charlotte family to continue governing Totto Land after the war."
"What if I refuse?"
Katakuri looked at Nicholas and said. This position, New World's Commander of the Pirate Suppression Operations, didn't sound like a good one, especially since it meant making enemies with all the pirates in the New World. Even the Charlotte family didn't have that much courage.
It was easy to imagine that if Katakuri agreed to Nicholas's terms, the endless battles in the future would surely lead to significant casualties for the Charlotte family.
Boom!
A cold, blood-red aura erupted from Nicholas's body, directly pressing down on Katakuri.
"I'll kill you, Katakuri," Nicholas said coldly.
"This is how the sea works. The weak cannot decide their own fate. My fist is bigger than yours; you either follow my orders or die. That's the truth."
Feeling the almost tangible killing intent and the overwhelming pressure like being drowned, Katakuri took a deep breath and said, "You're right, but I'm still not happy about this, so let's have a fight, Nicholas. I want to see how big the gap between us really is!"
Hearing Katakuri's words, Nicholas smiled and asked, "Are you serious?"
"Absolutely."
"Alright, I'll give you this chance."
As Nicholas finished speaking, another figure, identical to Nicholas, appeared beside him amidst flashes of lightning.
"Nicholas! What do you mean by this!?"
Katakuri's grip on his trident tightened, veins bulging, clearly indicating that in his mind, he wanted to challenge the real Nicholas, not some replica created from lightning!
Nicholas looked at the furious Katakuri and said calmly, "It's enough to deal with you."
Swoosh!
Without saying a word, Katakuri reversed his trident, thrusting it into the ground. An invisible wave spread from the shaft, causing the ground to quickly soften and spread around.
"Sticky Mochi: Mochi Hell!"
The ground rippled like soft mud, and as Katakuri thrust up with his trident, a wave of mochi surged toward Nicholas. At the same time, the surrounding buildings were transformed into mochi, with large blocks of mochi covered in Armament Haki flying toward Nicholas.
After doing all this, Katakuri's arms turned into mochi as well, swelling up and finally transforming into a spiral shape, covering his trident, turning it into something resembling a giant drill. The mochi spiral was also coated with a thick layer of Haki.
Katakuri launched himself into the air, following the wave of mochi he had just created, and thrust his attack towards Nicholas.
"Mochi Drill!"
Nicholas raised an eyebrow, observing the buildings around him that had completely turned into mochi. "An awakened ability, huh…"
"But in the end, it's just a special Paramecia-type fruit which is slightly stronger than other paramecia. The upper limit of its ability is fixed; it doesn't have the kind of destructive power that could destroy the world."
Crackle…
Dark red lightning gathered in his hand. Soon, an exaggeratedly shaped lightning sword appeared in Nicholas's hand.
Nicholas raised the sword and said, "I wonder how well a heated blade will cut mochi?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Nicholas swiftly swung the lightning sword, which instantly transformed into countless blue slashes that flew towards Katakuri.
It seemed Katakuri had anticipated this. As the slashes sliced through the mochi wave, he fully activated his Observation Haki, moving like a willow leaf in the wind, dodging through the gaps between the slashes.
Despite the dense slashes, not a single one hit him; they all flew past his body.
"Nicholas, you really do have a bad habit of toying with kids, don't you?"
Kizaru, sipping a cup of hot tea, watched Katakuri fighting against the lightning clone and said.
"Life always needs a bit of spice, right? And do you really have the nerve to say that to me?"
Nicholas changed his posture to make himself more comfortable lying down and rolled his eyes at Kizaru.
When it comes to bad habits, who could be better than this guy right here?
In the Sabaody Archipelago, he single-handedly knocked out all the Supernovas, yet not a single one was captured.
During the Summit War, he kicked Luffy out of a deadly situation right into Whitebeard's hands.
"But that guy's Observation Haki…"
Watching Katakuri's performance, Borsalino showed a look of surprise. "He's already able to briefly foresee the future?"