Nami still eyed Luffy warily, doubting every word that came out of his mouth.
"So, what do you want this time?
Let me make one thing clear—I've already allocated where every Berry at the base should be spent. At most, we can squeeze out another 300 million Berries."
"That's enough! It'll do for now!" Luffy grinned, taking Nami's hand as he gently guided her to sit on the sofa in the office.
Wrapping his large hands around her shoulders, Luffy began to outline his grand recruitment plan.
But the moment Nami heard he intended to expand the army, she shot up from his arms like a cat with its fur bristling.
"What?! You want to expand the army to 12,000 people?!
Do you have any idea how much that will cost? Do you think I'm some kind of god who can conjure money out of thin air for you?!"
"Hey, hey, hey—it's just 10,000 people for the Marine. The other 2,000 are Olivia's responsibility, so we don't have to pay for them."
Luffy quickly patted her back, trying to soothe her with a soft voice.
"But even so, we can't afford that much!
Don't forget, you only own half of the Company. Dividends are paid quarterly. Without the company, our monthly revenue barely reaches 600 to 700 million Berries, and that's just from seastone and taxes.
After deducting all the expenses, how much do you think we'll have left?
How do you plan to feed an extra 6,000 soldiers with that?
Even if headquarters provides weapons, what about housing for the soldiers? What about their clothing, food, and other essentials?
And their wages—you don't seriously think that once they get enlisted, they'll work for free, do you?!"
Luffy couldn't help but feel a bit relieved after hearing Nami list all the financial hurdles.
Good thing he hadn't mentioned the spaceship construction yet. If he had, this little spitfire would've probably fought him to the death.
"Small problems, all small problems~
Haven't you always had your eyes on the gold mine in Wano Country?
I'm giving you the green light. Go ahead and dig it up. and brought it into the finance department."
Nami's eyes sparkled the moment Luffy finally agreed to let her tap into Wano Country's gold mine, and she immediately felt some of her stress dissipate.
But soon, she frowned again and shook her head.
"No, not since those guys from the Revolutionary Army dumped a ton of gold on the black market.
Gold prices aren't high right now, so even if we mine it, we can't sell it off in a rush.
Wait a minute, let me think of a solution…"
Nami, ever the meticulous planner, wasn't about to sell gold at a loss just because of market fluctuations. The gold could be sold—but not now.
However, gold was still a precious metal and a rare resource, perfect for use as collateral on a loan.
"Yes, that's it! Some chambers of commerce recently arrived on Onigashima, planning to open banks here to offer deposit and withdrawal services for the nobles passing through.
I'll go to them now and negotiate an interest-free loan. If they want to do business in our territory, I think they should give me at least that much respect!"
With that, Nami didn't wait for Luffy's response. She grabbed the coat of justice from the hanger and strode toward the door.
Before leaving, she paused, turned back, and shot Luffy a fierce glare.
"Next time, don't you dare gave away money without consulting me first.
I'll cut that thing off while you're sleeping."
As she spoke, she made a scissor gesture with her fingers and leaned forward menacingly toward Luffy.
Luffy, terrified, clamped his legs together instinctively, his whole body trembling slightly.
Seeing her threat had worked, Nami smirked triumphantly and marched out to handle her business.
It wasn't until her figure disappeared from view that Luffy let out a long sigh of relief and relaxed.
Leaning back on the sofa, he chuckled to himself, thinking about Nami's fiery attitude.
Even though she always claimed she didn't want to help and complained about money, whenever Luffy asked, she somehow found a way to get him the funds he needed.
And she wasn't wasteful either—every Berry was spent wisely and effectively. That's exactly why Luffy had given her full control over the finances.
"Alright, now that we've got the money sorted, the rest can be handed over to Ain and the others."
With that, he stood up and made his way toward his office.
As expected, Luffy's unilateral decision to recruit soldiers without consulting anyone drew heavy criticism from Koala, Hina, and the others.
Luffy had to repeatedly assure them that this would definitely be the last time he made such a move without discussing it first. He promised to coordinate with them in the future before taking any further actions.
Though the women were still a bit annoyed, they eventually carried out his plan.
Soon, news of the Marine's recruitment drive spread throughout Wano Country.
The entire nation, from local residents to tourists visiting Onigashima, buzzed with excitement.
Anyone who wanted to join the Marine could sign up for the selection process.
This announcement caused an uproar across Wano.
After more than half a year of development, Wano Country was no longer the poverty-stricken land plagued with pollution and suffering. Instead, it had transformed into a thriving, prosperous region, drawing attention from all corners of the New World.
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