Upon hearing this, Roen smiled, then threw out a pot of fine wine.
"Twenty-year aged," Roen's voice clearly came through, "This time, it's on me."
"Gurarararara, Little Roen, I heard you were expelled from the Marine. Do you want to join this old man's ship?"
This unexpected move caused an uproar throughout the entire scene.
Sengoku, watching from the execution platform, his eye twitched: "When did these two...?"
Garp, however, burst into laughter: "Interesting! Too interesting!" He slapped the railing hard, "Roen, you scoundrel, you actually hid such good wine! How come even I didn't know? That's too much."
"...."
On the wind-swept battlefield, Roen's appearance was like a giant rock thrown into a calm lake, stirring up a thousand waves.
The reactions of the various forces differed, with undercurrents surging.
And under everyone's watchful eyes, Kaido's face grew increasingly gloomy, his fingers squeezing the wine gourd with a creaking sound, the anger in his eyes almost materializing.
"Hmph!"
A deafening cold snort suddenly exploded, and Kaido slammed the wine gourd onto the deck, amber wine splashing everywhere.
"Roen!" he roared, his voice full of disdain, "This isn't your old friends' tavern!"
The pressure of his dragon form erupted again, but this time it was clearly directed solely at Roen.
Kaido's dragon scales gleamed with a cold blue light under the sun as he continued to roar: "Want to drink? Wait until this old man finishes this fight!"
Immediately, he sharply turned his head to look at Sengoku on the execution platform, a horrifying smile suddenly pulling at his ferocious face: "Hey! Lu Ban!" This deliberate address instantly turned Sengoku's face ashen, "I've supported you so many times, how about I support you again this time?"
Kaido's gaze pointed directly at Whitebeard, and his words caused an uproar throughout the entire scene: "Let's take care of this old geezer first, we'll settle our scores later!"
These words were like a bomb detonating in the center of the battlefield.
The Marine soldiers looked at each other, hardly believing their ears. The dignified Four Emperors Kaido, the Kaido of the Beasts, who was known as the "Strongest Creature in the World," actually proactively proposed to cooperate with someone?
"What a joke!" Vice Admiral Onigumo exclaimed.
But others clearly didn't think that way; instead, they looked thoughtfully at the battlefield. If Kaido was truly willing to cooperate, their losses would be minimized, and they could even take down a Four Emperors!
However, while cooperating with pirates was disgraceful, they had done it before.
As long as the battle could be won!
The change in the Marine immediately made the Whitebeard Pirates tense, because once the two sides joined forces, they would definitely not win, and might even be completely annihilated!
Marco immediately transformed into his Phoenix form and ascended into the sky: "Kaido! Do you have no shame left?!"
Even the usually calm Hawkeye Mihawk frowned, his hand unconsciously gripping the hilt of his black blade, Yoru.
This kind of behavior was indeed a bit shameless.
Whitebeard, however, burst out laughing, his Murakumogiri striking the deck heavily: "Gurararara... Kaido, have you finally admitted that you can't beat this old man alone, you little brat?"
Kaido: .....
Roen stood atop the Sea Kings, the purple patterns of light flickering, as if about to come alive.
The purple devilish patterns actually reacted to Kaido's beast transformation, feeling eager for a fight!
He calmly watched Kaido, his voice not loud but clear enough for everyone to hear: "Twenty years have passed, and you're still so disappointing, Kaido."
These words were like a sharp sword, directly piercing Kaido's most sensitive pride.
On the Beasts Pirates' battleship, King and Queen and others had already assumed their battle stances, just waiting for their Captain's command.
The air on the battlefield seemed to solidify, everyone holding their breath, waiting for the next development of this century-long confrontation.
The atmosphere on the sea surface suddenly became tense.
Kaido's proposal of cooperation exploded like thunder, causing all forces to show expressions of disbelief.
Sengoku's forehead veins bulged with anger at Kaido's "Lu Ban" remark, but what shocked him even more was Kaido's proposed cooperation.
The Fleet Admiral immediately realized the danger within; if the Marine and the Beasts Pirates joined forces against Whitebeard, even if they won, that madman Kaido would never abide by any agreement afterward.
However, it would indeed reduce the Marine's losses. Cooperation... might not be impossible.
"Kaido, you....." Sengoku was about to speak but was pulled back by Staff Officer Tsuru.
"Don't fall for it," Tsuru warned in a low voice, her face obscure and difficult to read, "He's testing our bottom line."
On the Whitebeard Pirates' side, Marco and Jozu were on high alert, while Vista drew his twin swords and sneered: "A dignified Four Emperors joining forces with the Marine? How increasingly shameless."
Whitebeard himself was surprisingly calm; he simply gave Roen a meaningful look: "It seems someone is more popular than this old man, Gurararara..."
Upon hearing this, Shanks's lips curled into a sharp smile. He placed one hand on the hilt of his renowned sword, "griffon," his entire being like a drawn sword, radiating sharpness.
"Kaido," his voice was not loud, but it carried a terrifying Haoshoku, "If you insist on starting this war..." griffon slowly unsheathed three inches, a cold glint appearing, "Then let me be your opponent."
These words were like thunder exploding on the sea, the Haoshoku pressure spreading outwards as if it were tangible.
The seawater around the Red Force sank, seemingly bearing immense pressure. Benn made a tacit gesture, and the Red Hair Pirates' officers immediately formed a battle formation.
Kaido's dragon eyes suddenly constricted, his facial muscles twisting into a ferocious expression: "Red Hair!" He growled through gritted teeth, "When did you start wearing the same pants as Whitebeard? Dignified Four Emperors, actually ganging up on me?"
Shanks chuckled lightly at the words, his gaze growing even sharper.
He casually drew griffon completely, the sword tip pointing diagonally at the sea: "Ganging up?" His tone carried a hint of disdain, "I just simply can't stand your opportunistic behavior."
"Besides... I also want to know, after all these years, your strength..." He deliberately paused, a layer of dark red Haki appearing on the sword blade, "Has it declined or not?"
These words completely ignited Kaido's fury.
"You're asking for death!"
He roared, his body instantly expanding, a hundred-zhang giant dragon soaring into the sky, the flame clouds beneath its dragon claws violently churning, the entire sea boiling with his rage.
But Shanks remained unmoving, his eyes only growing colder, each step he took rippling out a circle of dark red Haki.
"If you want to fight... I'll see it through to the end." Battle intent burned in Shanks's eyes.
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