"I can't wait anymore! I'll take on both of them! That old geezer Andrew and that so-called Demon Dragon, Capone Bege! Let 'em come at me together! I'll grind them into the dust!" Kaido had drunk a bit too much, and he was slurring his words, but his meaning was perfectly clear: he was going to crash this war.
"Captain, after you crush them, the Fear Pirates' territory will be ours!" Jack roared with laughter.
"Of course it will! No one can take a territory I've got my eyes on," Kaido declared, glugging down more and more sake.
"Captain, trouble!" a lookout suddenly shouted from the crow's nest. "There's a pirate ship ahead, and it's heading right for us!"
"It's the Red Hair Pirates! They're right in front of us!"
The lookout's voice was strained with panic.
"Red-Haired Shanks... That brat dares to block my path?" Kaido's eyes bulged with fury. The murderous aura radiating from his body was so intense that the crewmen on deck began to tremble in fear. His mood was as foul as it could be; he was a powder keg, ready to explode at the slightest spark.
"Ram them!"
"What are you all standing around for?! Charge!" Jack, a vicious grin spreading across his face, immediately carried out Kaido's order. The ship surged forward, aiming straight for Shanks' vessel.
"Shanks, you've picked a troublesome opponent this time," Benn Beckman said, his face grave as he took a drag from his cigarette.
Shanks' expression was equally somber. They had come to lend Bege a hand, specifically to intercept anyone looking to swoop in and take advantage of the chaos.
It was clear they'd run into Kaido. Shanks knew Kaido's temperament and personality; he was definitely here to cause trouble, which was why Shanks had prepared to intercept him.
"Kaido didn't bring many men with him this time. We should be able to hold them off for a while and buy Bege some time," Shanks said, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword, his gaze firm.
"Well, if the captain's made up his mind, what can we do? Let's do this! It's not like we haven't fought the Beasts Pirates before. Who's afraid of who?" Lucky Roux declared with swagger, stuffing a massive chicken leg into his mouth.
"That's right! All hands, prepare for battle! Our opponent is the Beasts Pirates! Everyone, on your toes!" Shanks laughed, drawing his saber as his Haki erupted, soaring towards the heavens.
"Sir!" the Red Hair crewmen responded, their expressions serious, showing no trace of fear or cowardice.
Meanwhile, in another stretch of sea, another massive pirate ship was sailing towards Fear Island. It was a colossal ship shaped like a cake.
In the New World, there was only one person who used such a bizarrely shaped vessel: Big Mom, Charlotte Linlin.
She, too, was rushing over, eager to join the fray.
As the cake ship approached the waters around Fear Island, the once clear sky suddenly turned violent. A fierce gale kicked up, and a torrential downpour began. The entire sea roiled, and forty-meter waves crashed against the ship.
Dark clouds blotted out the sun, and lightning flashed across the sky, painting a scene of apocalyptic doom.
And yet, a thousand meters away, the weather was still clear and pleasant, the sun shining brightly.
Only the thousand-meter patch of sea occupied by the cake ship was being battered by a thunderstorm. It was an incredibly strange sight.
Within a swirling vortex of wind, a figure rode the gales. The violent winds poured from his hands, the very weather shifting at his command.
The man in the wind wore a deep green robe, and a peculiar red, blocky tattoo covered the left side of his face.
Needless to say, this was the leader of the Revolutionary Army, Monkey D. Dragon.
He had also come to back Bege up. He was here to intercept Big Mom, to prevent her from interfering in the battle on Fear Island.
Bege, this is all I can do for you. With your talent and wisdom, you should be able to achieve victory.
Bege, everyone has underestimated you. They think this war is merely a battle between the hegemons of the New World, one that will drastically change the balance of power. But I am the only one who knows that this war will change the entire world. The moment you ascend to the position of Emperor, it will be the beginning of the world being turned upside down.
Bege, you must win, Dragon thought, his gaze piercing through the storm, looking towards the invisible Fear Island with a blank expression.
Dragon had always believed that Bege shared the same revolutionary ideals as the Revolutionary Army; they simply walked different paths.
Once Bege became an Emperor, given the excellent cooperative relationship between him and the Revolutionary Army, Dragon was certain that both sides would develop at an astonishing speed. This would fundamentally shake the very foundations of the World Government.
Bege, of course, had no idea that Red Hair and Dragon were holding off two Emperor-class pirate crews for him. At this very moment, he too was trapped in a bitter struggle.
Though the Demon Lord of Fear, Farian Andrew, was old and his physical condition had declined, his terrifying ability to absorb the power of fear through his Devil Fruit made his combat strength absolutely monstrous.
From the moment their battle began, Bege had been consistently overwhelmed by Andrew.
The two had fought their way from the main square all the way into the forests of Fear Island, destroying vast swaths of buildings and landscape in their wake.
BOOM!
Andrew's iron fist shattered the air as it smashed against Bege's cursed sword, Hannya. The impact blew apart the ground beneath Bege's feet, and the Armament Haki coating his body fractured, beginning to dissipate.
Without hesitation, Bege swung his Fire Cloud Sword in a vicious slash aimed at Andrew's abdomen.
Andrew's left hand shot out to block the blade, unleashing another violent shockwave.
"You're too green, brat! Get out of my way!" Andrew bellowed, his eyes shot through with blood-red veins.
He suddenly lifted his right leg, his kick whipping through the air and lashing out at Bege.
Bege's reaction was just as swift. He immediately raised his left leg to meet Andrew's whip kick. The instant they connected, a deafening explosion rang out. A wave of energy rippled from the point of impact, and arcs of black lightning spread out, whipping their hair into the air. Concentric shockwaves erupted from their feet, and a hurricane of force tore up the ground, sending sand and stone flying like a tidal wave.
"Get lost!" Andrew roared, suddenly putting more force into his kick and sending Bege flying. Bege tumbled through the air, forcing his body under control to land quickly, skidding for more than ten meters across the ground.
Andrew charged forward, leaping into the air. An arm as thick as a pillar holding up the heavens generated a sonic boom as it shot like a bolt of lightning towards Bege's head.
Before the fist even arrived, the pressure of his advanced Armament Haki was already pressing down on him, instantly pulverizing the stones at his feet.
Bege tightened his grip on his swords, his Armament Haki flaring to life once more. A savage grin spread across his face as the blood in his veins began to boil, a powerful fighting spirit erupting from his eyes. He was in a state of extreme excitement.
The cursed sword Hannya in his right hand trembled, and an eerie, blood-red light began to seethe.
This light spread up his arm, enveloping his entire body.
So, you're getting impatient too? Good. It's time to show him the pinnacle of a truly malevolent and demonic sword style.
An uncanny, bloody light spilled from Bege's crimson, vicious eyes. It was as if monstrous beasts were roaring within his body, a formless roar that only those with profound Observation Haki could perceive.
One by one, the phantoms of incorporeal, ferocious beasts appeared behind Bege, numbering in the hundreds.
The charging Andrew's Observation Haki caught these formless beasts. His expression darkened, and his feet stomped through the air even faster, accelerating his rush towards Bege.
"I don't care what kind of tricks you're pulling! I'll smash you all to pieces with a single punch!"
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