"Get Kaido out of Wano?"
As a Warlord, Mihawk knew well that this was the territory of the Yonko, Kaido.
The scenes along the villages horrified him, many had starved to death.
Yet he also knew just how twisted Kaido truly was.
One of the Four Emperors of the New World, Kaido was hailed as the "strongest creature in the world, land, sea, and air."
In his youth, he had endured seven failed executions, been captured 18 times, and had repeatedly rampaged through Marine headquarters and other Emperors' territories. Every attempt to kill him had failed. He had tried countless methods of suicide, even jumping from extreme heights, all in vain.
Mihawk hesitated.
Tenguyama Hitetsu could sense his thoughts and spoke solemnly:
"This isn't a request I'm making, it's what you're about to face.
When you enter Wano, Kaido will already know of your presence. This is his territory, and your actions will be seen as a provocation.
Kaido will not let you off easily. You now have a choice: either flee Wano with your broken blade or agree to my conditions."
"What?! That old Whitebeard guy! How does he even get recognized? An old relic of the past, really?!"
Kaido roared, downing a jug of sake. The old man was already in his seventies, how could he be counted? The title of the strongest in the world should belong to him!
His subordinates trembled, presenting him a newspaper: news had spread that Whitebeard's crew was advancing on Marineford. Panic swept the people, and the Marines were mobilizing, an era-defining war was about to begin.
"Whitebeard's crew heading to Marineford? Looks like I'll have to get involved! Whitebeard! Just wait!"
Kaido laughed wildly, gnashing his teeth.
"Either kill me or be killed! Hahaha..."
"Lord Kaido, an uninvited guest has entered Wano, perhaps you need to deal with them personally," a subordinate reported nervously.
Kaido threw an empty sake jug to the ground with a loud crash, shocking everyone nearby.
"Mihawk, one of the Seven Warlords, arrived this morning in Kuri, Komusou Village. No one knows what he intends to do."
Kaido laughed, excited:
"A Warlord daring to trespass in my territory? Truly, they don't respect my Yonko title!
His strength must be decent, perfect, he can go train with those kids in the mines!"
"Report! Red-Haired Shanks, another Yonko, has landed in Wano. Purpose unknown, but Lord Fire Disaster has been incapacitated!"
"Trash! All of them are trash!"
Kaido crushed another sake jar in his hand, reducing it to powder. Even dozens of barrels at his feet were kicked to pieces.
"Shanks! Just you wait!"
Kaido's furious roar left everyone in the cave unconscious.
Mihawk had no choice but to agree to Tenguyama Hitetsu's request.
To strengthen himself, he needed a replica of the Demon Blade Thousand Edge.
As for Kaido's power, he was curious to see if the legends were true. Could he truly hold the title of the world's top swordsman?
"Blup blup… blup blup…"
Mihawk calmed himself and connected to the Marine HQ's communication device.
"Lord Mihawk, thank you for answering. HQ has issued an urgent order: you must report to Marineford within one week to respond to the impending war. Failure will result in revocation of your Warlord title."
Mihawk frowned. The stability the Warlord title brought was not something he wanted to give up.
Yet he could not leave now, and Tenguyama Hitetsu had promised that the replica of the Demon Blade Thousand Edge would be completed as quickly as possible.
"I have matters to handle in Wano. Reporting to Marineford on time might be difficult."
"Wano?" the Marine on the other end asked, surprised. After a pause, a different voice continued:
"Lord Mihawk, HQ has an additional order for you if you are in Wano. It carries risk."
"What is it?" Mihawk asked.
"Coordinate with the Yonko Red-Haired Shanks to stop Kaido from reaching Marineford!"
The information left Mihawk momentarily stunned. Could Shanks secretly have ties to the Marines?
Red-Haired Shanks was indeed a respected rival. They had been friends and rivals for years, often dueling, teaching and learning from each other in swordsmanship.
"Understood," Mihawk said. The call ended. In the One Piece world, a day passed quickly.
Mihawk spent nearly the entire day analyzing Assassin Qi's combat patterns: purely offensive, no defense, using the Demon Blade Thousand Edge, each piece breaking separately.
He realized something never tried before. Grabbing the blade, he closed his eyes and spent half an hour distributing advanced Haki-infused flow over each fragment of the blade, enabling the broken pieces to separate and combine at will.
A small bead of sweat dripped from his forehead, but Mihawk was absorbed in the process.
"So this is it… controlling a thousand blades simultaneously. Unheard of."
In a demon-infested area, Blaine was lucky to encounter a group of C-rank demons. They lunged at him, drooling foul blood.
Ding!
The secret black-and-red Haki spread from Blaine, radiating like a shockwave.
All C-rank demons instantly lost consciousness. Wayne behind him was stunned: how many secrets did his good friend still have?!
"What did you do?! These C-rank demons are dumbstruck, unreal!"
Blaine, with Armament Haki covering his right fist, struck one after another, crushing the demons' skulls and cleaning up trouble in the area.
"Oh my god! You can manifest the three types of Haki now? Teach me, I want to learn too!"
Just now, he thought his Ancient Devil Fruit made him strong, but Blaine was even stronger by several multiples.
"I'll teach you three-color Haki when the time comes. In this world, there's no such set-up yet, so you don't really need it for now."
Blaine didn't want his brother suffering; the video rewards were exhausted this time. Once richer, he would strengthen those around him.
Beep beep beep…
Blaine wiped the blood from his hands, took out his phone, opened the Multi-Anime Projection app, and received a new system message.
PS: Some readers pointed out the Tyrannosaurus Devil Fruit is an ancient type. Apologies. After much consideration, yes, it is indeed an ancient species.