Shanks stood at the front of the wildly shaking ship.
"Looks like our timing isn't great. I didn't expect something this big to be happening in Wano," he said in a serious tone, his sharp eyes fixed on the island ahead.
"Shanks, do you think they can beat Kaido?" Yasopp asked casually beside him.
"With their current strength, there's no way they can win," Beckman said firmly before Shanks could even respond.
Shanks, standing at the front of the ship, seemed to silently agree.
"So what do we do now? Shanks, didn't you say there's a Road Poneglyph hidden here too?" Lucky Roux asked while taking another big bite of the meat still stuck to the bone in his hand.
"They can keep fighting all they want, but this time, we *must* get the Road Poneglyph. We're running out of time!" Shanks said, sounding a bit rushed.
He was clearly getting impatient.
"Yeah, we can't waste any more time on Kaido. Things are getting weird all over the seas," Beckman said, closely following up.
"Let's land!" Shanks gave the order without hesitation.
"Yes, sir!"
"Aye, Captain!" the rest of the crew replied in unison.
~~~
Meanwhile, in Wano Country, the battlefield was like a storm-tossed lake, waves crashing everywhere.
Three captains, along with Yamato—the rebellious daughter—were fighting Kaido with everything they had. Right now, all three—Luffy, Kid, and Law—were seriously hurt, with only Yamato still holding up strong.
Kid and Law had each taken a direct hit from Kaido's Thunder Bagua, and their bodies were a mess—barely a single bone intact.
Luffy was doing slightly better thanks to his rubber body. Even after being hit twice by Kaido's powerful Haki attacks, he was still standing.
Blood dripped from the corner of Yamato's mouth. She looked at Kaido with eyes full of fire—not just fighting spirit, but deep hatred too.
"Wororororo!"
"The Worst Generation, huh?"
"Hey!"
"You brats think that's all it takes? You seriously believe *this* is enough to become Pirate King?" Kaido looked at the beaten and bruised group supporting each other on their feet, eyes filled with scorn and contempt.
He hadn't even bothered to drink before this fight, and he still knocked them all down without breaking a sweat. It was boring beyond belief.
"Damn it!"
"Kaido, I'm not down yet!" Yamato shouted, eyes blazing.
She couldn't take his mockery any longer. Gripping her kanabo, she charged like a wild beast. Seeing that, Luffy immediately dashed forward to back her up.
Kid and Law clenched their teeth and refused to stay behind. They too rushed forward like a fierce wind.
Kaido saw them all coming again and lit up like an excited kid, laughing madly. His kanabo swung forward like a raging dragon, targeting Yamato first.
"Destructive Thunder Bagua!"
With a thunderous roar, Kaido's kanabo came down, wrapped in terrifying black flames. Black and red lightning slithered across the weapon like angry snakes.
The four in front of him turned pale at the sheer power of Kaido's strike, but none of them backed down. Instead, they unleashed their strongest moves.
"Ice Fang Slash!"
"Gum-Gum Giant Monkey King Gun!"
"Magnet Bull!"
"K-Room: Shockwave Pierce!"
Yamato, Luffy, Kid, and Law all launched their attacks like blazing meteors crashing into Kaido's Destructive Thunder Bagua!
*BOOM!!!*
A deafening explosion roared through the sky like the world itself was being torn apart!
The energy from their clash exploded in all directions, destroying every building and hill in its path!
But shockingly, their attacks didn't overpower each other—they were locked in a standoff!
In that moment, Kaido completely lost it. For the first time, he actually felt some pressure.
But across from him, the four fighters felt like they'd fallen into a freezing pit—their hearts weighed down with dread.
Even their strongest combined attack… only ended in a tie with Kaido.
————
In the Flower Capital of Wano…
The Straw Hat Pirates, the Kid Pirates, the Heart Pirates, and the former Kozuki retainers were now facing one of the All-Stars of the Beasts Pirates— the Plague!
Alongside him were members of the Flying Six: Who's Who, Black Maria, Sasaki, Ulti, Page One, and even X Drake!
Plus, the headliners: Basil Hawkins, Speed, Babanuki, Daifugo, Dobon, Solitaire, Holdem, Sheep's Head, Bao Huang, Briscola, Mizerka, Fourtricks, Hamlet, Poker, and Ginrummy!
Add to that the current power in the Wano shogunate — Orochi and his crew!
Both sides had nearly torn up the entire Flower Capital, but at this point, the Beasts Pirates clearly had the upper hand. The so-called Supernova pirates were completely outmatched!
They hadn't been using Haki for long at all!
In fact, most of the members from the Straw Hat Pirates, the Kid Pirates, and the Heart Pirates didn't even know how to use Haki yet!
Right then, a thunderous boom exploded from outside the city. It was like a wave of thunder crashing down, instantly drowning out all other sounds in the Flower Capital.
Both sides froze like they were hit by a stun spell, eyes wide in fear as they looked toward the city outskirts. It was obvious now — the battle outside was way beyond anything they had imagined!
"Mr. Kaido really is the strongest!"
"That kind of scary Haki... only Boss Kaido could do that!"
"Admiral Kaido is unstoppable!"
The Beasts Pirates broke out into excited cheers across the Flower Capital.
Kaido's crew was more than familiar with his Haki. After all, they often got hit by his wild Conqueror's Haki attacks whenever he got drunk.
This time was no different.
Even though they couldn't see what was going on outside, their limited Observation Haki was enough to sense that Kaido was completely dominating the fight.
Meanwhile, the Straw Hats, the Kid Pirates, the Heart Pirates, and the remaining loyalists of the Kozuki clan were all feeling a growing sense of dread.
Their three captains, plus Yamato — who had already learned how to use Advanced Conqueror's Haki — still couldn't bring Kaido down.
It filled everyone with a very bad feeling.
"Believe in Luffy!"
"He's going to be fine! Hasn't he always pulled through since we first set sail together?" Usopp shouted with all his might.
"That's right!"
"Trust our captain!"
"There's no way they'll lose! They'll beat Kaido for sure!" The other two pirate crews joined in, shouting and raising their fists.
---
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