The other members of the Flying Six who had rushed to the scene were left stunned by the spectacle.
Up above, their seemingly invincible captain was locked in a furious stalemate with an Emperor who was supposed to be on his deathbed.
"Whitebeard actually came here?" one of them stammered in disbelief.
"You idiot," another snapped back, his voice tight with anxiety.
"Have you forgotten? Whitebeard isn't the same man he was a month ago. He has the regenerative powers of a Mythical Zoan now. Any vitality he loses is restored in the blink of an eye, He is the strongest man in the world for a reason!"
"Terrifying..." a third whispered.
"I feel like... Whitebeard isn't even going all out yet," Black Maria analyzed, her brow furrowed with a deep, unsettling feeling.
Page One clenched his fists and let out a derisive snort.
"I think Kaido-sama isn't going all out either. Don't overestimate the enemy, and don't you dare underestimate our captain."
"Ugh! This is so boring!" Ulti stomped her feet, radiating pure frustration.
"Whitebeard came all by himself, and now we don't even get to fight!"
Her complaint suddenly made Black Maria realize what had been bothering her.
Her eyes widened as the truth dawned on her, a cold dread washing over her.
Of course.
Given Whitebeard's personality and the unwavering loyalty of his crew, it was impossible for him to come to Wano alone.
If the old man was here and creating a massive distraction, then his sons... his commanders...
"Everyone," Black Maria said, her voice dropping to a grave, urgent tone.
"Something is very wrong. Whitebeard would never come alone. There must be others hiding nearby. Fighting by himself isn't the Whitebeard Pirates' way!"
Her warning snapped the group to attention.
"Damn it!" Page One exclaimed. "We've fallen right into their trap!"
"What's wrong, Pagey?" Ulti instantly bristled.
"Who tricked you? I'll beat them to death!"
At that moment, the ground trembled as Jack the drought, the third All-Star, arrived on the scene.
He looked up at the titanic struggle between the two Yonko in the sky, his expression instantly darkening with fury.
He turned on the Flying Six, his voice a low, angry growl.
"Why are you just standing here? Why aren't you assisting Kaido-sama?"
Black Maria had to physically restrain herself from rolling her eyes.
Is this guy's head filled with rocks? she thought.
Anyone who interferes in that fight now would be vaporized without knowing how.
"Jack, something's not right here," Page One voiced, trying to explain their suspicions.
Jack's expression grew even darker, but before he could explode, Bao Huang's frantic voice suddenly rang out from a nearby Mary.
"Everyone! Bad news! There are multiple Kizarus running wild all over Onigashima!"
"What? Multiple Kizarus?" Ulti said incredulously.
"Bao Huang, are you drunk?"
"Ah, no, no! I mean, many people with abilities like Kizaru's! They're moving all over the island, searching for something!" Bao Huang's voice was sharp with panic.
"They're everywhere! The warehouses, the prisons, the kitchens... even the bathhouses show signs of their presence! These people move like lightning—it's impossible to track them all!"
Just as the chaos hit its peak, another urgent report came through.
"Wait! We've also detected an intruder with Logia-type lightning abilities near Orochi's location!"
"That one hasn't moved," Bao Huang added, a trace of worry in his voice.
"He's been staying near Orochi this whole time."
Jack, who had been simmering with rage, finally found a target for his fury.
"That idiot Orochi is useless," he snarled. "Fine. I'll capture that bastard myself."
He turned to the Flying six and ordered.
"You lot, handle the intruders across the island!"
After issuing his orders, Jack stormed off, leaving the deeply dissatisfied Flying Six standing there.
Sasaki let out a cold snort. "Hmph. Who wants to listen to him? I'm staying here to watch Kaido-sama."
"Since when does he get to give us orders?" Page One added.
He then turned his gaze to the silent Black Maria, who seemed to be deep in thought.
"But the intruders on the island must be stopped," she said, her tone serious and firm. "Whatever they're looking for, it can't be good for us." She sighed, a hint of resignation in her voice.
"Let that big, dumb elephant have his moment of glory."
With that, she was the first to turn and leave, her own subordinates following close behind.
"Let's go," Page One called to the others. "We need to stop those Glint-Glint Fruit users. Quickly."
"Hmph!" Ulti grumbled, but she followed her brother nonetheless, eager for a fight, no matter who it was against.
**********
Meanwhile, chaos reigned on Onigashima.
The Whitebeard commanders empowered by the Glint-Glint Fruit had become ghosts of pure light, intangible and unstoppable.
They darted through Kaido's fortress, turning every corner upside down.
Sturdy walls, locked doors, hidden passages—nothing could stop their relentless advance.
They have only one goal: find the treasure.
Some of the commanders, cleverer than the rest, had captured a pair of informants, skillfully coercing them into revealing the locations of the main vaults.
The moment they blasted open the massive doors, even these veteran pirates were stunned silent by the sight before them.
Gold and jewels didn't just fill the room; they were the room.
Massive chests were piled up like small mountains, and countless gems overflowed from their containers, creating a glittering, crystalline river across the floor.
The sheer, dazzling brilliance of it all was blinding.
"Brothers, we've hit the jackpot!" one of them finally roared, his voice echoing in the treasure-filled cavern.
"Empty this place!"
"Hahaha, take as much as you can carry!" another shouted. "What we can't carry, we stash! Leave them not a single coin!"
They worked with supernatural speed, a whirlwind of light and motion, emptying the vaults in mere minutes.
Moments after they vanished, the warehouse doors were torn from their hinges.
The members of the Flying Six rushed inside, expecting to find their captain's legendary fortune.
Instead, they were met with a cavernous, echoing emptiness.
"It's over," Page One whispered, his voice thick with despair.
"The warehouses... they're all empty."
"Kaido is going to lose his mind," Ulti trembled, her bravado gone. "Without this wealth, how are we supposed to eat or drink?!"
Black Maria stood to the side, her face pale as a sheet.
This was the accumulation of Kaido's entire life of plunder, and it had vanished overnight.
The thought of facing his wrath sent a cold, sharp dread down her spine.
"Stop standing around!" she finally snapped, her voice sharp with panic.
"Hurry up and catch those bastards!"
But the chaos was only beginning.
Unbeknownst to them, another team of intruders had just reached the main prison, their goal not to steal treasure, but to unleash the legion of powerful warriors Kaido had locked away.
...
Miles away, in Wano's Flower Capital, the once-thriving Pleasure House was shrouded in a storm of lightning.
The elegant structure looked as if it had been cursed by an enraged deity, its walls covered in scorched, blackened marks left by merciless thunderbolts.
The air was thick with the acrid, suffocating stench of smoke and ozone.
Shogun Kurozumi Orochi cowered on the floor, his eyes wide with pure terror.
"Y-you… you, stay away from me!" he shrieked, his body instinctively inching backward.
His fine kimono was burned to tatters, and his legs twitched uncontrollably from sheer fright.
Izou advanced on him, each step slow and deliberate.
Nearby, hidden in the shadows, Komurasaki watched in stunned disbelief, her heart seeming to stop in her chest.
It couldn't be... but after confirming it again and again, she knew.
The man before her, the man from her childhood who had left such a deep impression, was Izou.
He had grown so powerful that his mere presence sent a shiver of fear down her spine.
But she didn't dare reveal herself.
She knew Orochi was merely a puppet; the true evil poisoning their country was the Yonko, Kaido.
Until he was dealt with, Wano's fate would never change.
Suppressing the storm of emotions in her heart, she continued her charade, feigning terror as she trembled on the ground, appearing as weak and helpless as any other courtesan.
"Someone! Anyone! Help me!" Orochi wailed, his soul practically fleeing his body.
"Thirty Million Volt Thunderbird!" Izou commanded.
Countless bolts of lightning converged into a shrieking bird of pure energy, which lunged and engulfed the cowering shogun.
"AHHHHHH! Save… me…" Orochi's head lolled to the side as his world went dark.
"Hmph. Trash." Izou stepped forward and checked Orochi's breathing, confirming the man was truly and completely lifeless.
"Consider this a small repayment of interest for Lord Oden," he murmured, his gaze turning hard as steel.
"Kaido, one day I'll kill you with my own hands."
As he turned to leave, his gaze inadvertently landed on Komurasaki.
For a fleeting moment, an inexplicable sense of familiarity washed over him, but he couldn't quite place it.
Seeing his attention on her, Komurasaki's heart raced.
She quickly lowered her head, terrified of being recognized.
After more than twenty years of enduring this living hell, she could not afford a single mistake.
'Izou-san, I'm sorry', she thought, a silent apology from a heart full of pain.
Now is not the time.
Just as Izou was about to speak, a deafening roar erupted from outside.
"Thunder brat, get the hell out here and face me!"
"Another trash," Izou murmured, his attention shifting from the mysterious woman to the window.
Through it, he saw a colossal mammoth slowly approaching, its long, sharp tusks gleaming in the sunlight.
"Beasts Pirates, one of the Three Disasters—Jack the drought," a faint, dangerous smirk curled at the corner of Izou's lips.
"I've been wanting to meet you."
--------------------------------
Read 40 chapters ahead and support me on patreon.
patreon (.)com/Newbietranslator