sea calendar 1496.
Last year, Kaido had already received an invitation from Kurozumi Higurashi, who wanted him to be stationed in Wano Country.
Kaido agreed at the time, but since he had just arrived in the New World, he wanted to explore with his subordinates for a while before going.
This delay lasted for a year, and the Kurozumi siblings were somewhat anxious, fearing that Kozuki Oden might suddenly return.
After all, Orochi was able to secure the position of Shogun of Wano Country because they first conspired to imprison Kozuki Sukiyaki, and then Kurozumi Higurashi, a user of the Imitation-Imitation Fruit, mimicked Kozuki Sukiyaki's appearance to pass the title to Orochi.
They themselves lacked powerful martial arts, and Kozuki Oden was also the commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' second division. Some of the daimyo in Wano Country were already suspicious of this.
If Kozuki Oden were to return to Wano Country with the Whitebeard Pirates and these daimyo joined forces, the three of them wouldn't even know how they died.
Therefore, they urgently needed a pirate crew with strong power to deter these daimyo and also to resist the potential arrival of the Whitebeard Pirates.
"Kurozumi Higurashi, you old hag, I didn't expect you to still be out at sea."
Kaido looked at the former member of the Rocks Pirates, his tone full of mockery.
"Kaido, how much longer are you going to drag out what you promised me?"
Kurozumi Higurashi ignored Kaido's mockery, or rather, she didn't dare to show any temper.
Otherwise, if she angered Kaido, an old hag like her probably wouldn't survive the day.
Although they were both members of the Rocks Pirates in the past, their relationship wasn't particularly close; they merely knew each other and had an impression.
What's more, Rocks was so many years ago, and she was someone who had no strength and no background.
If she wasn't still somewhat useful, Kaido wouldn't bother with her.
"Wurorororo..."
"Are you that anxious, old hag?"
Kaido sat on a large rock, his weapon, hassaikai, leaning casually beside him.
King and Queen stood on either side of him, King as expressionless as ever, and Queen had put away his playful smile, his face serious, like two loyal guards.
Several important squad leaders also stood by, ready to execute Kaido's orders at any time.
The only one still speaking recklessly was Karl, but he didn't want to!
"Karl, I'm hungry, let's go play after we eat!"
A very childish voice sounded.
"Hey, hey, hey, Yamato, don't move around!"
"Huh? Karl, that old hag is so ugly!"
"Karl, will Yamato also become like that in the future?"
"Yamato doesn't want to become like that, it's so ugly."
...Kurozumi Higurashi listened to the two brats chattering, her already dark face grew even darker.
"Kaido, is this your Beasts Pirates? There are two brats causing trouble at such an important occasion!"
Kaido laughed loudly at her words, "Wurorororo..."
"Old hag, those are my most favored crewmate and my daughter. If you say one more word, I don't mind taking your corpse to Wano Country."
Kurozumi Higurashi secretly glanced at the white-haired loli held by the other ice-blue-haired person, subconsciously ignoring the ice-blue-haired one. "Is this Kaido's daughter?"
Kurozumi Higurashi's thoughts raced, wondering what bad ideas she was brewing.
"Alright, everything that needed to be said has been said. Old hag, you can leave."
Kaido saw all of Kurozumi Higurashi's small movements but didn't stop her, instead giving the order to leave.
"Kaido, you still haven't told me when you're going to Wano Country!"
Kurozumi Higurashi was a bit anxious; why was he suddenly chasing her away?
"Three months from now."
After speaking, Kaido hoisted his kanabo and left first, King and Queen following closely behind.
Especially King, who gave Kurozumi Higurashi a deep look before leaving. Just that one glance made Kurozumi Higurashi feel a chill down her spine, as if she had been targeted by some great terror.
Karl, this brat, had followed him for a year of training, and he couldn't help but praise Karl's abnormality, while also being very optimistic about this future strong person.
Being spoken to like that by Kurozumi Higurashi inevitably made him feel uncomfortable.
"Let's go, Yamato, let's go eat something delicious."
"Let's go, depart!"
Before leaving, Karl also glanced at Kurozumi Higurashi indifferently, just like King.
This glance made Kurozumi Higurashi, who was already in a cold sweat, feel even colder, her teeth chattering uncontrollably.
Karl didn't respond to Kurozumi Higurashi's earlier words not because he didn't want to, but because Yamato in his arms was too restless, squirming around, making him flustered.
"Boss Kaido, is it really okay to expose Yamato to that old hag like this?"
Karl caught up with Kaido's pace; he didn't quite understand why Kaido would reveal that Yamato was his daughter.
"If she's killed by that old hag Kurozumi Higurashi, then it proves she's not worthy of being my daughter, Kaido's daughter."
"And I entrusted her to you, so her safety is also part of your responsibility!"
"Wurorororo..."
Hearing this, Karl's forehead was covered in black lines. With this kind of upbringing, even if Yamato didn't read Oden's diary in the future, she would probably still be a great filial child.
But it wouldn't be as heaven-defying as in the original story.
One can only say that Oden caused a lot of harm!
And looking at that old hag Kurozumi Higurashi, she probably wasn't harboring any good intentions, so they had to be on guard when they went to Wano Country.
"Karl, when are we eating! I'm so hungry!"
Yamato's childish voice pulled Karl, who was still deep in thought, back to reality.
Looking at Yamato, who was clinging to him like a sloth, Karl unconsciously ruffled her white hair.
It must be said, young Yamato was truly adorable!
"Soon, we'll have barbecue later!"
Hearing about barbecue, Yamato couldn't help but cheer.
"Yay, barbecue!"
Kaido's mouth curved slightly as he caught a glimpse of Yamato and Karl's interaction.
After a period of rest on the island, the Beasts Pirates set off again.
According to Kaido's original plan, they were supposed to explore the New World for a few years before considering territory issues, but due to Kurozumi Higurashi, this plan had to be shortened to two years.
Kaido said he would go to Wano Country in three months, mainly because he didn't want to be with that old hag Kurozumi Higurashi.
After exploring a few more islands, the Beasts Pirates slowly made their way towards Wano Country.
Of course, the training of Karl along the way was indispensable. Sailing at sea was inherently boring, and guiding Karl's training was also a good form of entertainment, at least that's what Kaido and King thought.
Karl's training method had evolved from initially focusing solely on physical conditioning to fighting with other crew members of the Beasts Pirates; in essence, it was getting beaten up.
Apart from the small fry, Karl couldn't defeat any of the Beasts Pirates' executives, mainly because he was too young.
Sometimes, when Kaido's hands were itching, he would personally join the training, which, simply put, was just beating people up.
Karl protested more than once, but Kaido always dismissed him by saying that's how he trained in the past.
This made Karl grit his teeth in anger, secretly vowing that once his strength surpassed Kaido's, he would definitely give him a good beating.
However, there was one thing that comforted Karl: whenever he was getting beaten, Yamato, this fearless little one, would run over, shouting not to bully Karl, and even punching and kicking Kaido.
Even Kaido was no exception. Yamato would shout, "You bastard father, don't hit Karl!" and then unleash a barrage of attacks on Kaido's shin, causing Kaido's face to darken, and his punches on Karl became even harder.
Although it didn't really do anything, this sentiment was commendable. In this cold Beasts Pirates, Yamato was the only one who stood by him