On the vast snowfield, blood spread like spilled ink, staining the pure white landscape with a gruesome crimson.
The roar of his intense battle with Kaido had deafened Gecko Moria to everything else. But now, as the clash paused, the screams of his crew finally reached him. They pierced his ears like a thousand needles, and the confident, ambitious smile on his face froze solid. He turned, and his eyes, which had been burning with the dream of becoming the Pirate King, reflected a scene from hell.
His companions, the men who had been cheering for him just moments ago, were being slaughtered. They were not fighting; they were being torn apart like paper dolls.
He watched in horror as one of Kaido's men, with a black, fiery wing, swept across the battlefield. His most trusted navigator was caught in the attack, wailing as inextinguishable flames consumed him, reducing him to a charred corpse in seconds. A hail of bullets from another of Kaido's commanders ripped through his forces. His proud captains, strong men he had fought alongside for years, were cut down in waves, "blood flowers" blooming on their chests before they fell into the snow. They never even had a chance to fight back.
Through the chaos, he saw his oldest friend, the man who had sailed with him from the very beginning. They had sworn an oath to see him become king. Now, that same friend was impaled on an ivory longblade, lifted high into the air with an expression of pure disbelief frozen on his face.
This wasn't a battle. It was a one-sided massacre.
"Gigi… hee…?" An incomprehensible, strangled sound escaped Moria's throat. He couldn't process what he was seeing. His proud pirate crew, his loyal companions… they had all been annihilated while he was busy fighting their leader.
"No… NO!"
A heart-wrenching roar tore from his chest, filled with a rage and regret so deep it felt like it was ripping him apart. He abandoned his fight with Kaido and transformed into a swarm of black shadows, rushing desperately toward the Three Disasters who were finishing off the last of his men.
"Don't you dare touch my crew!" he screamed.
Shadows at his feet sharpened into deadly spears, shooting toward Queen, who was still firing his machine gun into the bodies on the ground.
"Oh? You still have time to worry about others?" Queen chuckled, effortlessly dodging the attack. He turned his Gatling gun on Moria, unleashing an even more ferocious storm of bullets.
Moria weaved through the gunfire, his movements clumsy and desperate. He wanted to save them, but there were too many enemies, and they were all monstrously strong.
"Flame Emperor!"
King appeared at his side in a blur of motion, his leg wreathed in fire as he delivered a devastating kick that struck like a battleaxe. Moria barely managed to parry with his giant scissors, but the immense force sent him flying. He tumbled across the snow, rolling over a dozen times before skidding to a halt.
He struggled to his feet, spitting a mouthful of bloody saliva onto the ground. His gaze fell upon Jack, who was smashing the last of his standing subordinates into the snow with his giant mammoths. The sickening crunch of shattering bones echoed clearly across the field.
"Ahhhhhhhh!" Moria completely lost his mind. His eyes turned bloodshot as he threw aside all reason and defense. He began swinging his weapon wildly, using his own large body to block the attacks from the Three Disasters, trying to create even a sliver of hope for the few men he had left.
Wounds opened up all over his body, and his blood stained his leather jacket, but he didn't seem to feel the pain.
"Captain Moria…" a one-armed swordsman whispered from behind him. Moria had shielded him with his own back. Tears and snot streamed down the swordsman's face as he looked at his captain's broad, scarred back.
"Captain! Don't worry about us!" he yelled. "Go! Go and defeat Kaido! That's how you'll achieve your dream!"
The few other dying crew members found their voices as well. "He's right, Lord Moria!" one cried out. "For us… just being able to be your companions… it was the greatest honor of our lives!"
They weren't afraid to die. Their only regret was seeing their captain like this. The man who had always smiled with such confidence, who had promised to lead them to the top of the world, was now covered in blood and fighting like a mad beast, all to protect them—his burdens.
Their words hurt Moria more than any physical attack. His entire body trembled, and his frantic movements slowed for just a moment.
"Wororororo!" Kaido's deep, mocking laughter boomed from behind him. "What a touching display of camaraderie, Moriah!"
Moria turned to face the towering figure.
"Unfortunately, the weak don't get to choose their own fate," Kaido sneered, his voice dripping with condescension. "They certainly can't protect anyone else. A captain who can't even protect his own crew? What right do you have to talk about becoming king!?"
Kaido raised his grotesque, spiked kanabo high above his head. In an instant, the wind and snow seemed to stop. An invisible, crushing pressure descended upon the entire battlefield. Black and red lightning surged around the massive club, crackling with the undeniable power of Conqueror's Haki.
"I'll let you and your pathetic companions rest in peace together in this snow!" Kaido roared. "Thunder Bagua!"
Meanwhile, on a cliff overlooking the battlefield, a man named Kyle yawned. He stuffed the last piece of oden from a skewer into his mouth and muttered to himself, "Well, I guess I can call this a post-meal workout. A walk after dinner keeps you living to ninety-nine, they say."
Before the words had fully left his mouth, his figure vanished from the giant rock.
Down in the center of the snowfield, Kaido's world-destroying blow came crashing down.
Moria didn't even look up. He simply knelt on the ground, his eyes hollow and lifeless. He reached out a hand, futilely trying to grasp the fading shadows of his fallen comrades.
So, this is it, he thought. My dream, my companions… everything is over.
CLANG!
The sound of shattering bones he expected never came. Instead, a sharp, piercing sound of metal striking metal rang out. The entire world seemed to fall silent.
Moria slowly lifted his head, and his pupils contracted in shock.
Somehow, a figure had appeared between him and Kaido. It was a man in a long, black trench coat. His hands were casually tucked in his pockets, and he stood with a relaxed posture, as if he were just taking a leisurely stroll through his own backyard.
Kaido's spiked club—the weapon wreathed in the black-red lightning of a Yonko, capable of destroying an island with a single swing—was stopped dead. The man was holding it down with one of his feet, halting the attack less than an inch from Moria's head.
The ground beneath the man's feet cracked, with spiderweb-like fissures spreading out for dozens of meters, yet he himself remained perfectly still. Only the hem of his coat fluttered in the wind.
Time seemed to have frozen.
The Three Disasters, who had been enjoying their massacre; the last remnants of the Moria Pirates, who were clinging to life on the ground; and even Kaido himself, still holding his club in a striking pose, were all completely stunned.
Kaido's muscles bulged as he tried to force his weapon down, but he could feel an unshakeable, immense power pushing back. His ultimate, full-power attack… had been stopped by a single foot?
Kyle yawned again, looking bored, and pressed down slightly with his foot.
Crack.
Kaido felt a powerful force rebound through his kanabo. A sharp pain shot through his hand, and a visible crack appeared on the massive spiked club that had been his trusted weapon for many years.
"It's been a while, Kaido," Kyle finally said. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to every person on the battlefield.
He looked down at the future Yonko with an air of utter indifference.
"I'm taking Moria," he stated, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Understand?"
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