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"Mouse!"
The veins on Sengoku's forehead bulged. He practically ground the words through his teeth."Explain. Properly. Now!"
"Yes, Fleet Admiral!"
Mouse began recounting everything from the start.
But the moment he mentioned a small black dot flying toward them from the sky—
"Wait a second."
Akainu cut him off immediately."Did you just say… from the sky? Are you telling me that brat can fly?!"
"Yes, Admiral Sakazuki! He can fly! No warning at all—just appeared up there like some ghost!"
Garp's finger froze halfway up his nose, his jaw dropping."Fly? That kid's… a Devil Fruit user?"
Tsuru's brows furrowed, forming a deep crease.
Everyone else in the room thought of the same thing.
Someone who could fly…
Ninety-nine percent chance he had to be a Devil Fruit user!
And then Mouse mentioned it—top-tier Conqueror's Haki.
When they learned that his Conqueror's burst had locked three vice admirals stiff on the spot, leaving them unable to move for several seconds, the entire room fell into heavy silence. One by one, brows knit tight.
So young.
And yet his Conqueror's Haki was that overwhelming?
That kind of potential was terrifying to even think about.
"Flying, and top-tier Conqueror's Haki…" Sengoku's voice was ice. "But what about Doberman? His defense is supposed to be ironclad!"
Mouse looked even more shaken."That brat… he had another move! Something weird!"
"He shouted things like 'Open Gate! Rest Gate!'—kept calling them one by one until 'Seventh Gate!'"
"Every time he shouted, his aura spiked higher—"
"First it was green steam. Then blue steam… Doberman was punched while the brat was covered in that blue steam…"
Mouse broke into a cold sweat as he remembered it."Just one punch—and Doberman was sent flying! His Iron Body… didn't even slow it down!"
The office went dead quiet.
Even Kizaru's eternal lazy look faltered a bit as he muttered,"Oh my, oh my Open Gate? Blue steam? Now that's something new"
Akainu's glare darkened, his tone cold enough to freeze magma."So, not a Devil Fruit?"
Mouse shook his head violently."Absolutely not! That power—pure, raw, violent—was nothing like any Devil Fruit ability we know!"
"And at the end… he tried to open an 'Eighth Gate'!"
"His entire body was letting out blood-red steam!"
"We could feel it. If he actually opened that gate, our lives would have been at risk. We… we had no choice but to retreat!"
Blood-red steam.
A threat to the lives of three vice admirals.
Sengoku felt the room spin, nearly choking on his own breath.
His palm slammed down on the desk with a thunderous crack."Damn it!"
"What kind of monster is this kid?!"
"How could that bastard Kaido have a spawn like this—like this freak?!"
For once, Garp didn't laugh. His face was grave."Opening gates to boost power… sounds like some kind of extreme martial arts technique."
"But for a one- or two-year-old to pull that off? That's insane."
Tsuru's voice was calm but grim."This ability doesn't exist in any intel we have. And his origins… there's nothing on record about this child at all."
Sengoku drew a deep breath, forcing himself to stay collected.
He swept his gaze across the top brass in the room."This child's threat level is beyond what we imagined."
"A kid not even two years old has already crippled a vice admiral and forced our entire force to retreat!"
"If we let him grow up—"
The consequences were unthinkable.
The atmosphere in the room turned suffocating.
"We have to kill him in the cradle."
Akainu's voice was pure murder, the air around him shimmering from the heat of his magma."A monster like that—he can't be allowed to live."
Kizaru lazily adjusted his glasses."Ahhh maybe, but Kaido isn't exactly easy to deal with either, you know"
Even Aokiji opened his eyes, looking mildly interested."A kid who can fly and punch like that… yeah, that's a big problem."
Sengoku's sharp gaze swept over them all."We can't wait any longer."
"Effective immediately, we put a bounty on his head!"
He spoke each word with cold precision.
"Kaido's son—Dan!"
"The bounty will be…"
Sengoku's fists clenched until his knuckles went white.
"One. Billion. Berries."
"Dead or alive!"
A billion?!
Everyone in the room glanced at one another, stunned.
Even Garp whistled low."Wahahaha! A billion for a little brat? Now that's a first!"
Tsuru nodded."Given his potential and the threat he poses… it's justified. The world needs to know just how dangerous this child is."
Kizaru smirked."A billion This is going to get fun. Every bounty hunter in the world will be drooling"
Akainu's voice was a growl."The bounty is just the start. We need to locate him and wipe him out—fast."
Sengoku slammed the table again."Then it's decided! Execute immediately!"
Meanwhile — New World, Onigashima
BOOM!
A thunderous crash shook the entire island as Kaido's massive, mountain-like frame landed in the middle of Onigashima, his rage crashing down like a storm.
"King!!!"
His roar made the whole island tremble.
"Where is my son?! Where is Dan?!"
He had just gotten a call on a Den Den Mushi—only one sentence: Young Master Dan is unconscious.
He turned into a dragon instantly and raced back at top speed.
The killing intent rolling off him was so intense that every Beast Pirate on the island went pale with fear.
King, usually calm, rushed forward with several officers."Kaido-san! Please calm down!"
There was a rare flicker of emotion on King's face."Young Master Dan is fine—he just passed out from exhaustion!"
"Exhaustion?!"
Kaido's massive eyes glared down at King, rage ready to erupt again."Who did this?! Which bastard laid a hand on my son?! I'll tear them apart!"
King took a deep breath."Kaido-san… it's complicated. You should hear Sasaki's report yourself."
Soon, Sasaki—still bandaged and battered—was dragged forward.
Kaido listened to Sasaki's broken, feverish account of what happened.
By the time he finished, Kaido's furious expression had faded—replaced by something else entirely.
Shock.
Disbelief.
And… blank astonishment.
"Conqueror's Haki… knocked out thousands of Marines?"
"Flying… actually flying?"
"Open Gate… green steam, blue steam… and punched a vice admiral into next week?"
"And blood-red steam at the end scared the Marines into retreat?"
Kaido started counting each event off on his thick fingers, his expression twisting as he processed it all.
Then he turned to King."King… did Sasaki get hit too hard in the head? Is he just talking nonsense?"
King's face was equally strange."Kaido-san… I'm afraid he's telling the truth. When we arrived, the Marines were in full retreat. And based on the destruction at the scene… and the state we found Doberman in…"
Kaido fell silent.
Slowly, his enormous dragon head lowered, staring at the massive fists that could crush boulders.
And then he thought about Dan's tiny body—not even half a meter tall.
"Pfft…"
A strange sound escaped Kaido's throat.
And then—
"Heh… heh heh…"
"Hehahahaha!"
"Uwoooooooooooooooo!!"
His laughter and roar shook the entire island, echoing through the New World.
"..."
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