Kai froze when he heard the name Ken.
Memories surged through his mind—
that night, revenge, pain, rage, betrayal, disappointment.
All of it came rushing back, as if his wounds had reopened.
He walked back toward the two wounded pirates and asked coldly:
"Where do you know Ken from?
Are you… his older brothers?"
Their eyes widened in shock. One of them spoke in a trembling voice:
"You… you know where Ken is? Please, tell us! Where is he now? Is he alive? We searched everywhere but never found him… please!"
Hearing this, Kai understood—they were telling the truth.
"He's gone," Kai said calmly.
Shock filled their eyes.
"Because of Ken, I'm still alive," Kai continued.
"His last words were: 'I'm sorry I couldn't fulfill our dream together.'"
Tears slowly streamed down their faces.
"Thank you…" one of them whispered.
"Now that we know Ken is dead and with our parents… we can finally leave this hell."
Kai was silent for a moment, then said:
"If you see Ken… tell him that I forgive him."
Without another word, Kai turned and headed toward the place where Momonga's ship should have been.
But when he arrived, he frowned—Momonga still hadn't returned.
Kai immediately knew something was wrong.
Meanwhile, Momonga had already wounded the pirate captain with a single strike and was about to finish him off, when the other pirates suddenly brought out hostages.
Seeing this, Momonga stopped.
He could kill the pirates.
But he could not sacrifice innocent lives.
Now he stared coldly at the nine pirates holding the island's residents.
The pirate captain, trembling from fear, noticed the hesitation and burst into laughter:
"HAHAHA! What's wrong, Marine?! Drop your weapons, or we'll slit their throats!"
Under the pressure of blades and guns, the villagers screamed in terror.
The Marines were furious—but forced to comply.
Earlier, Kai had sensed that no one was nearby.
He instantly transformed into mist and used it to fly.
While airborne, he activated his Mist Radar, locating Momonga and the others.
When he confirmed the Marines' position, he also sensed the nine pirates with hostages—and immediately understood why Momonga was delayed.
Then, suddenly, Kai felt a subtle movement.
Momonga was nodding.
Kai was surprised, but quickly understood.
Momonga knew he was here.
That nod was permission.
Free the hostages.
Kai reverted to human form and appeared behind the nine pirates.
His sword hand trembled. The tension was immense—one mistake, and people would die.
He didn't hesitate.
"Kira Kira no Mi… Hidden Mist Technique."
Dense mist erupted from Kai's body, instantly engulfing the pirates.
"What the hell?!"
"Where did this mist come from?!"
"I can't see anything!"
"Where's the captain?!"
In Kai's mind, the positions of every enemy were perfectly mapped.
Taking a deep breath, he stepped forward.
At the same time, the pirate captain—still mocking the Marines—heard his men shouting. Turning around and seeing the mist, he realized something was wrong and opened his mouth to order the hostages' execution.
But it was too late.
Momonga vanished.
"Soru."
He appeared behind the captain.
"Finger Pistol."
The strike was instant. The pirate captain collapsed, dead.
The other Marines, seeing the mist and how quickly Momonga killed the captain, assumed everything was his doing and charged forward to support the attack.
When the mist finally cleared, they froze.
All the pirates lay dead—headless.
And off to the side stood the blind boy they had mocked.
His uniform was soaked in blood.