Kaido's expression shifted slightly as he said,
"Roya taking out three Navy Admirals in such a short amount of time… it shows that the World Government is no longer what it once was."
"In the past, with all the forbidden powers they had at their disposal, they could have crushed someone like Roya into dust using a hundred different methods."
Charlotte Linlin let out a giggle.
"So what you're saying is—the reason that person hasn't acted yet is because his power is finally beginning to decline?"
"He's just observing, waiting to see how far Roya can really go, before deciding what to do?"
Kaido nodded.
"Exactly. That's why I can't wait any longer. I'm ready to start my New World Plan."
Linlin laughed, "Then you'd better take care of that Momonosuke brat first."
"The heir of the Kozuki Clan has returned, and he's sure to rally massive support. Kurozumi Orochi might not be able to hold onto Wano for much longer."
Kaido snorted,
"If that kid had spent the last eighteen years struggling in exile and then returned to Wano, I might actually worry about him."
"But he's just a little brat—an eight-year-old pulled forward in time by the Toki Toki no Mi."
Linlin's tone turned slightly serious.
"Just because someone controls the Time-Time Fruit doesn't mean they can't see glimpses of fate."
"If Kozuki Toki chose to send her son to this exact point in time, there must be reasons only she knew."
Kaido fell silent for a moment, then replied,
"I honestly can't imagine what he could possibly do to stop me."
He shrugged and added with a twisted grin,
"Then again… if he really can stop me, maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing."
"Because honestly—living is getting pretty damn boring."
---
Meanwhile, at Mary Geoise, within the chambers of the Five Elders—
"The third Admiral…"
"The Navy's reputation is in ruins… and so is that of the World Government, gentlemen!"
The elder in the black flat-topped hat finally lost his usual calm and composed tone. His voice now carried a tinge of panic and desperation.
BANG!
The bald, beardless elder slammed his longsword onto the floor.
With a roar, he said,
"Talking like this solves nothing! At this point, we have only two options—either we lift the restrictions on Vegapunk's forbidden experiments, and hope he can give us some stronger biological weapons…"
"Or, we old relics go out there and fight him ourselves!"
The long-bearded elder spoke quietly,
"Those tremors underground a few days ago… you all don't seriously believe Vegapunk's story about it being just a lab accident, do you?"
The blond elder said grimly,
"What, you think it wasn't an accident? Are you saying Roya broke into Impel Down?"
The black-hatted elder slammed his armrest and shouted,
"Enough!"
"All this bickering is meaningless."
"I vote we lift the restrictions on Vegapunk's experiments. Unlike Roya, whose motives are unknowable—that man only ever wanted to do his research. That's always been clear."
The tentacle-bearded elder, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke.
"Let me ask… how exactly did we end up on Roya's bad side to begin with?"
The black-hatted elder sighed and said softly,
"Our existence itself—is inherently at odds with someone like him."
The tentacled elder lowered his voice, perhaps intentionally, perhaps not.
"Honestly… I'm not afraid of Roya anymore."
"I'm more afraid of Imu-sama…"
"In the past, we worried about disturbing him. But now I'm beginning to worry—"
A dry cough interrupted him.
The black-hatted elder waved his hand.
"This meeting's over. Dismissed."
---
Meanwhile, on Sphinx Island, in a tranquil, scenic bay—
A small fishing boat gently rocked with the waves.
Whitebeard and Sengoku sat back-to-back, each with a fishing rod in hand.
After his ordeal with Prototype One, Whitebeard's body had shrunk down to nearly the same size as Sengoku's. It was a dramatic change.
But at least—the old fire had returned to his eyes.
Sengoku reeled in yet another empty line. This time, he didn't even bother rebaiting the hook and just tossed it back in.
Leaning his shoulder against Whitebeard's back, he asked,
"Hey. If I remember correctly, wasn't Momonosuke born on your ship?"
Whitebeard played dumb.
"Was he? The age doesn't quite match up. The one declaring war now looks like he's only seven or eight. The one I knew would be pushing thirty."
Sengoku's face darkened.
"Don't act like you don't know his mother was Kozuki Toki, the one with the Time-Time Fruit."
Whitebeard let out a hearty laugh.
"I've always been a bit of an airhead, you know. Not like you—always had elite spies feeding you intel."
"Say, old man… you're not a Navy Admiral anymore. Why are you still worrying about this stuff?"
Sengoku sighed.
"So you're really not going to help him?"
Whitebeard fell silent for a while, then sighed too.
"It's not that I'm afraid to die. And I know exactly how dangerous Kaido's ambition is."
"But you need to understand—this is Kaido we're talking about."
"Even at my absolute peak, I couldn't guarantee I'd beat him."
"And now he's teaming up with Charlotte Linlin, who's like a sister to him."
"The two of them together… no one in the world can beat them."
Sengoku raised a brow.
"Not even Roya?"
Whitebeard replied without hesitation—
"Not even Roya."
Just then, Roya lightly landed on the bow of the boat, grinning.
"Old man, you're unbelievable," he said. "I swing by to check on your peaceful retirement—and from a hundred meters away, I hear you trash-talking me."
Whitebeard pointed at Sengoku and laughed.
"He was the one talking trash. Not me!"
Sengoku grunted and twisted his beard irritably.
Roya turned to him.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku—did you know there's an experimental facility beneath Mary Geoise?"
Sengoku froze for a second.
"You said where? Beneath Holy Land Mary Geoise? There's a lab down there?"
Roya frowned slightly, then gave a small smile.
"Forget I asked. Don't worry about it."
Turning to Whitebeard, he said,
"Old man, I'm heading to Wano now. Keep an eye on the papers."
"Let's see if Kaido and Charlotte Linlin are really as invincible as everyone says."
With that, Roya used the gentle sway of the boat to launch himself off—drifting through the air toward the distant shore.
Whitebeard watched his figure fade away, then let out a long sigh.
"That brat… you can't hide anything from him."
Sengoku grumbled,
"You old fool. You're such a damn sentimental softie."
Just as the two old men began exchanging insults again, a battleship sped past their tiny fishing boat.
A towering wave slammed into them, soaking them both like drenched rats.
From the warship, a chorus of loud, rowdy laughter echoed out as it raced past Sphinx Island.
On deck, Nico Robin glanced at the compass and called out crisply:
"Thirty-three degrees to port! Course set for Wano! Full speed ahead!"
Jinbei spun the ship's wheel, repeating,
"Thirty-three degrees to port! Full speed ahead!"
PS: Access the complete chapters/series at