"What's up with those two?"
Kaido, having hung up the Den Den Mushi, walked over to Hanafuda and looked curiously at the two who had charged into the forest to fight.
"King cheated."
Hanafuda explained with a laugh, "And twice, at that. He completely played Bazel for a fool."
"It seems King trusts Bazel a lot."
Kaido sat down cross-legged, rubbing the stubble on his chin with his right hand.
In his impression, whenever outsiders were present, King always maintained a cold and serious demeanor.
It was only when alone with him that this 17-year-old youth would show his true colors.
"Speaking of which, Hanafuda, where are your men?"
"I sent them to repair the ship. We'll need to set sail later, plus they're too rough. This place also has Bazel's woman."
Hanafuda jutted his lips towards Toki, who was preparing barbecue not far away.
"I was worried those guys might get drunk and say something outrageous. For their own safety, it's better they don't come near here."
"A wise choice." Kaido grinned, "If Toki got harassed, Bazel would definitely get angry. He might even turn your crew into a zombie army."
"By the way, Kaido-sama, this is for you."
Hanafuda suddenly took a Devil Fruit from the pack on his lower back and tossed it over.
"My hobby is collecting Ancient Zoan Devil Fruits. This one is the Ryu Ryu no Mi, Model: Pteranodon. Consider it my joining tribute."
Kaido toyed with the Devil Fruit that looked somewhat like a shark egg case, a flash of wild joy in his eyes.
"This Devil Fruit came just in time! I was wondering how to hide King's features!"
"Hey, Abel, Bazel, stop fighting and get over here!"
Hanafuda suddenly asked, "Kaido-sama, regarding King's race... is he from a special tribe? Humans shouldn't have wings, right?"
"Have you heard of the Lunarian Tribe?" Kaido countered, taking advantage of the fact that King and Bazel hadn't returned yet.
"The Lunarian... Tribe?" Hanafuda looked puzzled.
He had never heard of this race.
"It's normal you haven't heard of them. I only heard rumors about this race in the lab."
"A divine tribe that bloomed briefly nine hundred years ago, possessing the special ability to survive in any environment."
"Like pure-blooded Ancient Giants, they are an extremely rare race on the seas today."
Watching Bazel carry King back, Kaido couldn't help but shake his head helplessly.
"Bazel, get your venom out of Arber. We have business to discuss before the real banquet starts."
A moment later, King got up, rubbing his head and shaking it.
"Damn it, your venom is really troublesome!"
"You should call me Big Bro."
Bazel found a place to sit down.
"You're a year younger than me, and you just lost again. According to our deal, you should call me Big Bro Bazel."
King's face flushed red. His mouth moved several times, but he found he couldn't get the words 'Big Bro' out.
"B-Big Bro Bazel..."
"What was that? Speak up! Didn't you eat dinner!?" Bazel deliberately moved his ear closer to King.
"Piss off! Once is enough! Next time, I will definitely beat you!"
An embarrassed and angry King pushed Bazel away.
"You're only one year older than me, and you're not Kaido-san!"
Unexpectedly, Bazel, upon hearing this, still wore a smile. Unhurriedly, he took out an image Den Den Mushi.
Kacha--
[B-Big Bro Bazel...]
Volume increased.
[B-Big Bro Bazel...]
[B-Big Bro Bazel...]
"You bastard! Delete that recording right now!!"
Seeing the two about to start fighting again, Kaido picked up his kanabo and slammed it hard on the ground.
"Misbehaving brats get a lesson from me personally."
Bazel and King sat down obediently.
"Good. Here, this is for you. It's Hanafuda's tribute."
King caught the Devil Fruit. Before he could even ask, Kaido began explaining about this Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit.
"Wait, Big Bro Kaido."
Bazel stopped King just as he was about to eat the Devil Fruit.
"Even though this Ancient Zoan is very rare, King is the Second-in-Command of the Beasts Pirates. My little brother..."
The corner of King's mouth twitched, "The last sentence is superfluous!"
"Shouldn't we try to find an even rarer Mythical Zoan fruit for him?"
Bazel selectively ignored the fuming King and analyzed seriously, "I feel a Mythical Zoan would suit him better. At the very least, it'd be more impressive. As for this fruit... we can keep it as a backup. It's not like King is lacking in combat power right now anyway."
"Well..."
After listening to the analysis, Kaido's face was full of conflict.
Bazel was indeed right. As the future top executive of the Beasts Pirates, an ordinary Ancient Zoan simply couldn't compare to a Mythical Zoan.
If it weren't for the appearance of the Yamata no Orochi fruit, Kaido wouldn't have given it much thought.
'But if he could gather three Mythical Zoan top executives...'
'If such a future could truly be realized, how powerful would the Beasts Pirates become...'
'The Three Calamities = The Three Mythical Gods?!'
"Hiss~!"
Kaido sucked in a sharp breath.
"Bazel, you're right. That future really would be incredibly splendid!"
"King, what do you think?"
Compared to the conflicted Kaido, King was indifferent. Even without this Pteranodon Fruit, he could still fly.
The wings on his back weren't just for show.
Unlike the flawed, impure descendants in Skypiea, he was a pure-blooded Lunarian. His wings were the real deal, capable of supporting him in free flight.
If he could indeed obtain an even more powerful Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, that would be even more suitable.
"I don't really mind. But Kaido-san, the reason you want me to eat this Devil Fruit is actually to cover this, right?"
His black wings flapped a few times behind him.
Kaido nodded, "Correct. Linlin already knows your identity. We can't rule out the possibility of this information leaking."
"Using an Ancient Zoan as cover is most appropriate."
King fell into thought, then spoke after a moment, "Let's do as Bazel says for now. Keep this fruit as a backup. If we can find a better one, that would be ideal."
"As for my appearance, we can just claim I ate a Devil Fruit. Later, I'll have some special clothing and a mask custom-made."
Bazel, who had been listening, stroked his chin, lost in thought.
Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits were even rarer than Logia.
Aside from those already owned by someone, he could only remember a handful.
Batto Batto no Mi, Model: Vampire.
Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Okuchi no Makami.
Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika.
Uma Uma no Mi, Model: Pegasus.
And the Tori Tori no Mi, Model: Nue, which was eaten by the non-canon character, Toratsugu.
The first four were out of the question, as Bazel had no idea where they were.
But the last one...
That fruit, called the Nue Model, came from a non-canon artwork for the 20th anniversary of One Piece.
It told the story of Straw Hats and Toratsugu defeating an enemy together in Wano Country.
The supporting character, Toratsugu, had eaten this Devil Fruit on the shores of Wano Country.
Compared to the mundane Pteranodon, Bazel much preferred King to eat that Nue Fruit, which could distinguish good from evil.
As for the reason...
Perhaps it was because of a secret conversation he once had with Dragon back at Marine Headquarters.
Due to the unconventional ideals instilled by Garp, Dragon held no respect for the Celestial Dragons or the World Government.
In the beginning of the year Dragon left the Marine Headquarters, he encountered some traveling Celestial Dragons.
After returning from that incident, Dragon found Bazel to drink away his frustrations and mentioned what happened.
The Celestial Dragons, who are hailed as descendants of gods, turned out to be butchers who killed innocents indiscriminately.
This discovery made Dragon begin to question the Marines' justice.
He questioned whether the justice they upheld was true justice.
…
Flashback - March, year 1491 of the Sea Circle Calendar.
"Bazel, I intend to go search for true justice."
Dragon put down his glass, the light in his eyes growing firmer.
"The justice of the Marines is not the justice I wish to see. The Celestial Dragons, protected by the Marines, are actually the most vicious butchers on these seas!"
"If one day in the future we meet again at the top of the seas, I will definitely tell you about the justice I have found!"
"These seas do not need the lawless Celestial Dragons!"
"True justice is absolutely not the justice of the Celestial Dragons!"
"It is absolutely not justice that allows willful tyranny!!"
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