In the seas not far from Onigashima, several massive pirate ships were heading toward the island. It was the Beasts Pirates.
The explosion from the handcuffs earlier had caught the attention of all the crew members onboard. Of the All-Stars, the strongest and most composed, King the Wildfire, turned around without a word and walked straight to the rear cabin, where Kaido was drinking.
Kaido was holding a gourd of alcohol in one hand and wiping his mouth with the other. Seeing King enter, he asked,
"What's going on?"
"Something's happened on Onigashima!"
"What? Don't tell me it's that Yamato brat again?"
"Doesn't seem like it. That explosion sounded more like… explosive handcuffs."
Hearing that, Kaido sobered up halfway. His idiot "son" didn't just lose his mind and take those cuffs off himself, did he?
Those cuffs were custom-made. If they exploded at such close range, even Yamato might not survive it.
Kaido might've been tough on Yamato, but she was still his child. He didn't want her to die just like that—especially not by his own hand!
With that thought, he smashed the gourd in his hand into pieces, then burst out of the cabin, transforming mid-air into a massive blue dragon and soaring into the sky.
King, uneasy, followed suit, activating his Devil Fruit powers to fly after Kaido.
The rest of the crew onboard exchanged looks of confusion. Most of them had Zoan-type Devil Fruit abilities but no way to fly, so they could only wait anxiously on the ship.
Their home base might be under attack, and they were stuck here twiddling their thumbs. It was frustrating, to say the least.
The hot-tempered Jack the Drought grabbed a random underling by the collar, spit flying as he shouted in his face,
"Get this damn ship moving, now!"
...
Meanwhile, back on Onigashima—
Yamato stared at Kaito in disbelief. He actually rejected her? Wasn't he the one who encouraged her to leave the island?
Kaito shot Yamato a disdainful glance. This big-boobed airhead was really trying to latch onto him? He only stirred the pot because he couldn't stand that an idiot like Oden had such mindless fans—it's not like he wanted to inherit those fans.
But clearly, he had underestimated Yamato's level of shamelessness. Seeing him reject her, she steeled herself, ran up to Kaito, and threw her arms around him. She rubbed her face hard against his chest, smearing tears and snot all over his clothes as she cried out,
"No way! I've made up my mind! You're either taking me with you or killing me right here!"
"Tch."
Kaito sucked in a breath. He remembered Ace had wanted to follow him too, but even when he refused, Ace hadn't acted like this.
Yamato was six years older than Ace, but why did she act even more childish?
Watching Yamato sobbing harder and harder in his arms, an idea suddenly popped into Kaito's head:
Why not just bring her along?
The thought came quickly—and he didn't reject it. The more he considered it, the more sense it made.
Like Ace, Yamato came with baggage, but after his little trip to Mary Geoise, Kaito realized the World Government seemed wary of him for some reason. They weren't about to start trouble over something like this.
As long as he kept quiet, they'd turn a blind eye. And besides, Kaido wasn't the Pirate King—if Yamato stayed obedient, there was no need to make a big deal out of it.
Plus, Yamato was strong. And easy on the eyes. Keeping her around just meant an extra mouth to feed.
Having made up his mind, Kaito reached out and patted the still-sobbing Yamato, who was clinging to him like a koala.
"Alright, alright. Quit crying already. I'll take you with me."
The words had barely left his mouth when Yamato suddenly lifted her head, her tear-streaked face transforming instantly into one of pure joy.
"Yay!"
"…"
Kaito was genuinely stunned by the speed of her mood swing.
You're a girl, can't you be a little more reserved?
Just as he was about to give her a good smack for acting like this, a deafening roar echoed from the sky—
"Who dares cause trouble on my turf?!"
Yamato's whole body froze. That voice… she knew it all too well.
It was her father—Kaido.
Her joyful expression dimmed in an instant, the light in her eyes vanishing. She glanced regretfully at Kaito. Even though he didn't show the slightest reaction, as if he hadn't even heard the roar, it brought her no comfort.
She didn't want Kaito to die at her father's hands.
Pushing herself away from his chest, Yamato spoke with a low, heavy tone,
"My father's back. You should leave. Looks like I'm fated to spend the rest of my life here…"
It sounded like she was a girl sneaking out for a secret rendezvous, only to be caught by her strict parent.
Kaito stared at her dejected expression and suddenly felt a surge of frustration. He raised his hand and flicked her hard on the forehead.
He didn't care about her hurt look as she clutched her head, and said irritably,
"I told you before—if it's your old man, I can handle him on my own."
"But you don't know how terrifying he is! You can fly—you can still make it out of here. Take your woman and go! I'll hold him off!"
"…"
"Why aren't you saying anything? Don't worry, he's still my dad. He's not gonna kill me… probably. At worst, I'll get beaten half to death. If you've got even a shred of conscience, come back for me later!"
Kaito couldn't be bothered arguing anymore. He opened the Door-Door Space and called out to Kalifa,
"Kalifa, take this girl inside. I'll call you both out once I'm done."
"Yes, Boss. Be careful."
Kalifa didn't waste words. She walked over to Yamato and reached for her hand—but Yamato wouldn't budge.
She was dead set on making Kaito leave.
Seeing this, Kaito grabbed the front of her shirt and tossed her straight into the Door-Door Space. Kalifa followed with a perfect Soru dash.
Once Kalifa was inside, the space shut behind her.
Yamato stumbled to her feet inside the green-lit space, rushed to the wall, and began pounding on it with all her strength, shouting,
"Let me out! Let me face him with you!"
Kalifa came up beside her, gently rested a hand on her shoulder, and comforted her softly,
"You have to trust him. If he says he can do it, then he can."
Something about her tone made Yamato fall silent. She turned her head and stared blankly at Kalifa's warm, motherly expression, unsure what to say.
Kalifa, for her part, really did see Yamato as a child. Even if her body looked twice as big, her mindset was no different from a kid's.
Once Yamato calmed down, Kalifa reached out and embraced her, gently patting her back.
"You're lucky to have met him. Just leave everything to him now."
Yamato lay quietly in Kalifa's arms, sniffled, and softly asked,
"What's your name?"
"Kalifa."
Yamato gave a small "mm" in response and said nothing more.
...
Outside, Kaito had no idea there was a heartwarming "mother and child" scene unfolding inside his Door-Door Space.
His eyes were locked on the vaguely serpentine shadow hovering in the sky not far away.
He let out a cold snort, and suddenly—blinding golden light erupted from his body.
Bathed in that light, his Rinnegan turned brilliant gold. Four thick golden arms sprouted from his shoulders and tore through his clothes, golden runes spreading all across his skin.
But the most terrifying part was his sheer size.
Under the golden glow, Kaito's height swelled to a staggering 800 meters—an even more overwhelming presence than Kaido in his dragon form.
This transformation was granted by the awakened Mythical Zoan Asura Fruit.
At that moment, Kaido had just arrived above Onigashima.
He looked down and went completely blank.
Wasn't that the same young Marine from before?
Last time, he summoned a massive purple giant—
This time, he became an even more absurd golden one?!
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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