"King-sama, take us with you!"
Snow Wind, seeing chaos about to erupt, hurriedly rushed out, wanting to follow.
But King paid her no mind. Instead, he dashed to Gusion's side, grabbed him, and, along with the two children in Gusion's arms, took off into the air.
They had already prepared to set sail on the White Sea earlier that day. Since the main ship was too large and unwieldy, they had chosen a medium-sized vessel to head to the Sky Island.
King flew with Gusion and the sibling pair, Ulti and her brother, toward the ship. Gusion, looking out for his regular clients, called out, "Bring a few capable hands with me!"
After the Blizzard Adventurer Team were absorbed, they became his direct subordinates, giving him the right to command them.
Snow Wind was delighted to hear this. She quickly called her adventurers to follow, retreating from the main battlefield and boarding the ship together.
True, their goal in the New World was to fish in troubled waters, but even so, they had to know when to back off.
Who in their right mind would try to pick up scraps during a Yonko clash? That's just asking for death. Any of the commanders, All-Stars, or Tobiroppo would be a nightmare to face; if you got caught in the chaos, you'd likely never come back alive.
What they truly wanted was to get to the Sky Island, the perfect place for explorers like them to scavenge in the midst of chaos.
As everyone boarded the ship, the battle on the small island erupted in full force.
Kaido and Big Mom collided like monsters, their clashes sending shockwaves through the island and churning the surrounding seas.
Meanwhile, Issho squared off against Katakuri, the top Sweet Commander, immediately suppressing the Mochi-Mochi Fruit user with overwhelming force.
Thanks to his strength, the Beasts Pirates completely dominated, nearly crushing the Big Mom Pirates.
However, due to a certain tacit understanding between the Yonko crews, no one was going all out to kill—for now. Most of the officers were cautious, waiting to see their leaders' attitudes.
After all, Kaido and Big Mom had a history together, once crewmates on the same ship, and Kaido's Devil Fruit even came from Big Mom. Their subordinates couldn't be sure if their two bosses might patch things up tomorrow after fighting today.
If the crews killed each other's core members and then had to ally later, it would be awkward, to say the least.
Of course, a Yonko war is no children's game. While the top brass avoided fatal blows, the ordinary officers weren't so lucky.
For instance, a typical officer caught by Katakuri would be dead in an instant.
Same for Big Mom's regular officers—Issho and his crew showed no mercy.
So even though the battle had only just begun, there were already casualties.
…
Meanwhile, Gusion and his group boarded the ship. Snow Wind and her people, having sailing experience, immediately set the sails. King stood guard, keeping watch.
In fact, Kaido sent King to the Sky Island for several reasons: to protect Gusion and the others from the battlefield, and to consider King's own wishes.
He knew this old friend always worried about the Lunarian tribe on Sky Island, so if a top fighter was to lead the team, it had to be King.
Moreover, the route to the Sky Island required a flier for protection; otherwise, the path from the Ballon Terminal was almost certain death.
….
"Yare yare, how terrifying..."
As the Yonko clashed, a navy warship approached the port. Watching Kaido and Big Mom's collision, their Conqueror's Haki sent waves surging. Borsalino, in his peculiar tone, commented, "Truly terrifying monsters."
"Borsalino-san, the people over there are preparing to land!"
Aramaki's attention was not on the Yonko conflict. After witnessing Kaido and Big Mom's power, his eyes cleared up instantly.
He realized that trying to take out a Yonko was impossible. Better to go after Gusion.
Borsalino raised a finger, sending out a harmless beam of light to illuminate the ship, seeing who was aboard. "Oh, Gusion is among them. Are you going?"
Aramaki, spotting his target, got excited. That area was away from the main battle, with Kaido tied up by Big Mom and unable to assist. That meant the credit was his for the taking!
"Someone come with me!"
After a quick scan, Aramaki pointed to Rear Admiral Strawberry. "Strawberry, let's go. You handle King, and I'll take out Gusion in one shot."
Strawberry hesitated, wanting to say, "Me, fight King?"
But on this ship, Aramaki and Borsalino were equals, and Borsalino had no intention of intervening. He couldn't refuse Aramaki's order.
Strawberry looked pleadingly at Borsalino, hoping for help from his usual faction leader.
Borsalino sighed, "Aramaki, King is a Yonko's right hand. That's a tough ask for Strawberry."
Aramaki frowned. "Then I'll handle King. You take out Gusion, and I'll share the credit."
Strawberry hesitated, but as an ambitious officer, the lure of promotion was too strong. If he succeeded, he'd be promoted for sure.
"Roger!"
He saluted, decision made.
"Strawberry..." Borsalino frowned, wanting to say more, but stopped.
He was a slacker, but he couldn't expect others to do the same. He had hoped his colleague understood the unspoken rules, but seeing the ambition in Strawberry's eyes, he knew not everyone wanted an easy life.
Strawberry would risk anything for power, justice be damned.
With the Five Elders' top order before them, anyone who succeeded would be promoted—too tempting to refuse.
Seeing Strawberry determined, Borsalino didn't try to talk him out of it. If Strawberry really succeeded, he'd do what he could to hold Kaido back.
As soon as Strawberry agreed, Aramaki raised his hand, creating a wooden bridge from the warship to the island, sprinting toward the Ballon Terminal.
"You damn navy! Dare to attack the Yonko!?"
A Beasts Pirate officer yelled in warning.
But Aramaki and Strawberry didn't pause, heading straight for Gusion. At their speed, less than a kilometer was covered in the blink of an eye.
On the just-departed ship, King sensed danger, soared up, and slashed behind him, sending a giant fire dragon at Aramaki and Strawberry.
Boom—
The fire dragon collided with a wooden dragon, flames soaring, wood splinters flying.
Through the fire, King's eyes showed a hint of surprise—not at the navy's audacity, but at the number of strong opponents he had recently faced.
First, Issho, whom he'd never heard of before. Then this unremarkable navy vice admiral.
King wondered if the man was simply too low-key, or if he was a recent addition to the navy. Either way, he'd never heard of such a powerhouse.
This man could control wood, yet King's flames couldn't suppress it. Clearly, his mastery over his fruit was terrifying, far beyond a typical vice admiral.
A formidable foe, not much weaker than Issho!
"Mr. Gusion, set sail!" King shouted, urging Gusion to go.
The enemy was too strong for King to split his focus; he had to go all out, undisturbed, to have a chance.
"So this is the Calamity? Impressive indeed."
Aramaki, halted by King's fire dragon, wore a grave expression.
He realized he had underestimated the world's powerhouses. Not just the Yonko—their right hands were no easy targets either.
"Strawberry, go."
Aramaki used his Mori Mori Fruit powers to create a massive gust, opening a safe passage for Strawberry to flank the ship, while he confronted King directly.
He didn't expect to defeat King quickly, but as long as he held him off, Strawberry would finish everyone on that ship.
According to intelligence, Gusion was a civilian, a strategist, not a fighter worthy of a top post.
Strawberry, though only a rear admiral, was a renowned dual-blade swordsman with many victories at sea—even the Sun Pirates had suffered at his hands.
Seeing Aramaki send Strawberry around, King tried to cut the wooden bridge, but Aramaki was ready, blocking with more wood and counterattacking as a giant tree-man, striking at King.
King had no choice but to meet him head-on. "Damn navy, do you know who you're fighting? By attacking me, you're declaring war on the Beasts Pirates!"
Aramaki was unfazed. He was bold, unafraid of the Yonko. If not for the fleet admiral's orders to be cautious, he might have targeted King himself.
King was the infamous Calamity, Kaido's right hand; killing him would guarantee promotion.
Besides, both he and Borsalino had a secret order from Saturn: kill Gusion, and all consequences would be handled.
If Kaido wanted to start a war with the world government over a new subordinate, they were ready to take him on and show the world that, even in this pirate era, the world government was still supreme.
"Pirate, do you know who you're fighting?"
Aramaki sneered. "It's the navy's duty to hunt pirates, isn't it?"
With that, he unleashed his Mori Mori Fruit's ultimate move, transforming into a giant tree over thirty meters tall, wrapped in fire-resistant wood to counter King's flames.
This move combined strength and flexibility, blocking most shockwaves and slashes.
As a Logia user, he could also split his body to dodge fatal attacks.
Aramaki's punch, wrapped in advanced Armament Haki, hammered King's sword and sent him flying. If not for King's wings, he'd have been plunged into the White Sea.