In a sense, Yamato's childhood has become quite rich now, with Kaidou always engaging her in various games, though they are somewhat perilous.
If not for these, her regular training would be similarly intense, adding a lot more variety.
What she doesn't know is that some of these activities are even arranged by Arceus, like the current survival game on Ghost Island, where her goal is to break through from the rooftop to the ground floor amidst a siege by over a hundred pirates.
Combat is inevitable, and all the pirates are wearing masks and have changed into uniform outfits.
Kaidou's orders can't be disobeyed, but actions requiring force make them quite apprehensive. If Yamato holds a grudge, it might not matter now, but ten years from now, it could be different.
So now these pirates are all dressed like bandits, leaving only the eyes visible, and pursuing and intercepting Yamato as per Kaidou's orders.
Meanwhile, the battle offshore hasn't ceased either. With pirates fighting each other today, the Navy naturally has its own major operations. They haven't intervened in the fights among New World pirates but have let these acts continue.
Currently, their focus is on the Four Seas and Paradise.
Among the new pirates venturing out, there's a mix of those who truly seek adventure and those who take the opportunity to commit misdeeds, adding a considerable burden to the Navy in the Four Seas.
On the Grand Line, the Buster Call has been launched, not to destroy any particular island but to capture Douglas Bullet.
After Roger's death, Bullet lost his goal. Once someone who challenged the strong, he turned to aimless destruction, causing far more harm than typical pirates. To capture Bullet, the Buster Call was launched.
And in the New World, the teams of King, Queen, Olga, and Zeraora also began to converge.
The routes they took formed a semicircle. After a few months of sailing, most have accomplished their objectives, leaving just this last island, which they had planned as their meeting point.
However, when King's ship arrived here, the sound of cannon explosions could still be heard from the island, suggesting the battle wasn't over.
"What's going on?"
"Don't know, Brother King. According to the plan, Brother Queen should be in charge here. Three days ago, we received word that the Brachiosaurus was nearby."
"That idiot is indeed dragging us down. Call him to find out what's happening."
"Yes!"
After a series of hoots from the Radio Snail, Queen's voice came through.
"Hello, King? You pervert finally made it?"
"I've arrived a full day ahead of schedule, but you, on the other hand, haven't even managed to land in three days?"
King's Winged Dragon had already spotted the Brachiosaurus on the sea, leading to this conclusion. In their past battles, they'd each faced formidable opponents. Most of these islands were occupied by remnants of the Golden Lion's forces.
After all, Legendary Great Pirates, those who held high positions under the Golden Lion, weren't weak. The longest battle for King lasted over a month, but it hadn't crossed his mind that Queen couldn't land even after three days.
Among the four teams, Queen's progress was supposed to be the smoothest. After all, he carried the Plague Bomb on his ship, and his constant research on Muk's secretions and Weezing's gas wasn't just child's play; they were for making weapons.
Usually, Queen had no chance to use the Plague Bomb, as it makes no distinction between friend and foe, and using such a weapon in his own territory would only cause trouble.
But it's different on islands occupied by other pirates; his people's lives are far more important than the enemies'.
"Ran into some trouble."
"What about your Plague Bomb?"
King understood Queen's nature; although there were many restrictions on using the Plague Bomb, Queen would certainly use those weapons when facing an island that resisted his attacks, as he always took pride in them.
"It's not a problem with the Plague Bomb. It's just impossible to land on that island. You'll know when you get here; some things need to be said face to face."
Soon the Brachiosaurus and the Winged Dragon met on the sea. Seeing the condition of Queen's ship, King's expression turned grim.
The ship was quite tidy, with only a few wounded, all with old injuries, clearly indicating Queen hadn't launched any effective offensives in the past few days.
"What are you waiting for?"
"The people on that island are problematic. After brief contact, they retreated back to the island, and it's filled with highly infectious gas. It's impossible for ordinary people to get on there.
As soon as there's even a tiny tear in the protective suits, those toxins invade the body. Initially, I lost quite a few men because of this."
Queen had tried landing but was driven back. He himself was fine, with internal modifications and specially developed antidotes to detoxify at any time, but he couldn't conquer an entire island alone.
The limited supply of antidotes he carried was insufficient for everyone.
The islanders' protective measures were even more advanced than theirs, and his Plague Bomb needed contact with the body to be effective. In such circumstances, he was helpless.
"Who are the people on the island?"
"Hundred Poison Barolome, a former Golden Lion officer, with a bounty of 670 million Belly, and a Paramecia-type: Shroom-Shroom Fruit user. The island has been turned into a toxin-filled domain.
The poison is constantly changing, making it impossible to create antidotes on a large scale. Only the Universal Antidote made from the Pecha Berry is somewhat effective, but I didn't bring much. How much do you have on your ship?"
"Not much, only enough for about a dozen people. Is that guy strong?"
"Stronger than me. If I could take him down, I would have long landed on the island. I suggest we wait for Zeraora and Olga to arrive. We have enough antidote for a few of us. Once we take out Barolome, the island will be ours."
In the three days, Queen hadn't been idle; at least he'd identified the enemy's identity and abilities.
"Then what are you firing at?"
"Daily bombardment. The island's toxins are very vulnerable to high heat, and cannon explosions temporarily clear a region, but it quickly spreads again. They seem to have cultivated many toxic plants continuously releasing poisonous spores.
Also, the island's humidity is high, and though I've tried using incendiary bombs, they were quickly extinguished."
Queen's repeated attempts have led to the conclusion that one Brachiosaurus is useless against this situation since he knows from developing the Plague Bomb that in this case, more people would be a burden.
Only by first dealing with Barolome can the island be conquered, so he's both shelling the opponent and waiting for his reinforcements...