The underlings of the Beasts Pirates trembled violently, terror written across their faces. Some collapsed outright, unable to withstand the suffocating aura radiating from Kaido of the Beasts.
One pirate with bat wings fell to the ground in shock, his lips quivering as he stammered, "Kaido-sama… Kaido-sama is furious! Help me! I don't want to die!"
Around him, others wailed in despair. They knew Kaido's temper—violent, merciless, and often directed at his own men. With such a disaster at hand, they feared he might kill them all in his rage. Some even lost control of their bladders as they scrambled to flee.
But escape was futile.
Kaido swung his kanabo, unleashing his terrifying technique. "Thunder Bagua!"
A shockwave tore through Onigashima's great hall, lightning crackling and winds howling. The pirates never even touched Kaido's weapon; they were flattened by the sheer force of his aura, collapsing unconscious in heaps.
"Whitebeard Pirates! Ashveil!" Kaido roared, his voice shaking the heavens. "If I don't kill you, I swear I'm not human!"
Still not satisfied, his body expanded rapidly, scales forming across his skin as he transformed into an enormous azure dragon. His roar echoed like thunder across the skies. With a single beat of his wings, Kaido ascended into the storm clouds.
The skies darkened further, thunder splitting the heavens. The storm grew so fierce it spread beyond Onigashima, blanketing the whole of Wano Country.
The people of Wano shivered as they looked upward. In the sky above, a monstrous dragon coiled through the storm clouds. They knew him well—the feared ruler Kaido, allied with the shogun Orochi.
"Run! The dragon is coming!" villagers cried in terror. Shops slammed shut, and the streets filled with panicked crowds fleeing in every direction.
Kaido's roar boomed again across the country.
"King, Queen! Jack has been killed! Return to Onigashima at once—we march on the Whitebeard Pirates!"
His voice rumbled like thunder, echoing across Wano.
High above the clouds, King, mid-flight on patrol, froze in shock. Down at Udon quarry, Queen's broad face twisted in disbelief.
Jack… was dead?
He wasn't the strongest among them, but in terms of sheer endurance, Jack had always been unyielding—even more so than they were. Who could have possibly slain him? Whoever dared had spat directly in the face of the Beasts Pirates.
Fury burned in their eyes. Without hesitation, King spread his vast pteranodon wings, diving toward Onigashima. Queen shifted into his brachiosaurus form, thundering across the land in Kaido's direction.
Far away on Totto Land's Cake Island, Perospero, candy staff in hand, approached his mother with a grave expression.
"Reporting, Mama," he said with forced composure. "Morgans' intelligence confirms it. Jack has been slain by the Zero Division Captain of the Whitebeard Pirates."
Big Mom's round cheeks jiggled as she burst into a thunderous laugh.
"Mamamama! If that drunk Kaido hears this, he'll explode in rage! Mamamama!"
She was one of the Four Emperors as well, and she knew the humiliation of losing a key subordinate. For Kaido, this was a wound to his pride.
"According to Morgans' reports, Jack was killed instantly," Perospero continued, his voice low.
Big Mom's laughter slowed. She tore into a cream cake, chewing with a pensive expression. Instant kill…
Even Katakuri, her most reliable commander, might not be able to guarantee Jack's defeat in a single blow. For a boy to do so, this Thorne Ashveil was far more dangerous than she had first imagined.
"Zero Division Captain, huh…" she mused, her eyes gleaming. "An extraordinary child indeed. Could it be… he's the strongest below the Emperor level?"
Her lips curved into a smirk.
"This boy named Ashveil… he's exceeded my expectations. Jack may not mean much to me, but his bounty of a billion Berries proves his weight. For Ashveil to cut him down in an instant—this is a boy worth paying attention to."
She turned sharply toward Perospero.
"I recall telling you to bring this boy into our fold. What became of that?"
Perospero's forehead beaded with cold sweat. He remembered her order all too well. His voice was respectful, though strained.
"Reporting, Mama. I already dispatched Pekoms to recruit Ashveil."
Big Mom scoffed and waved her hand dismissively.
"Pekoms? Hmph, not nearly good enough. Call him back. I'll send Katakuri personally."
The room fell into stunned silence. For Big Mom to involve Katakuri herself, her second-in-command, was no small gesture.
Katakuri was feared across the seas for his Observation Haki, honed to the point of glimpsing the future. A Conqueror's Haki user, unrivaled in strength except by Big Mom herself.
To have Katakuri extend an invitation meant Ashveil was being offered the highest level of respect the Big Mom Pirates could bestow.
Perospero, though nervous, felt relief wash over him. Recruiting Ashveil had been a daunting task—now it was in Katakuri's capable hands.
He left swiftly, summoning his brother.
Stomp. Stomp. Stomp.
Katakuri entered, towering and calm, his scarf covering his mouth as always. Unlike his siblings, he did not tremble before Big Mom. He listened in silence as she explained.
At her command, his lips curled into a faint smile beneath the scarf.
"Interesting. A boy who could kill Jack instantly… I'll invite him myself."
Without another word, Katakuri turned, striding out of the hall. His massive figure vanished into the distance, his mind already set.
Thorne Ashveil had caught the attention of yet another Emperor of the Sea.
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