Chapter 33: Weakness
The value of the treasure accumulated in God Valley was inestimable, gathered from across the entire world.
Pirates who left God Valley alive all gained something, some even securing their future "startup funds."
Among the many pirates, Kaido was probably the most direct one. Aside from the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon he snatched from Charlotte Linlin, his harvest was infinitely close to zero.
Right now, his pockets were cleaner than his face. Apart from the kanabo (iron club) on his back and the clothes on his body, he couldn't find anything else of value.
If he let Nereus continue talking, who knows what old debts might be dug up.
Although he had eaten a Devil Fruit, Kaido was well aware of the gap in strength between them.
The fruit definitely enhanced his power, but not enough to surpass the man in front of him.
Inviting Nereus was just a whim; the current Kaido didn't want to find himself another boss.
Thinking about how to change the subject, Kaido suddenly spotted Dragon controlling the sails.
For Kaido, picking a fight was a great way to change the subject. And compared to getting beaten up, beating up someone else was definitely better.
"Kaido, I'm not blind. Do you think this Marine would still be alive right now if I didn't want him to be? Just say what you want to say."
Nereus didn't intervene physically. He could tell whether Kaido intended to kill or was just playing around.
However, Dragon beside them felt differently. Currently, he was just a recruit in the Marines—in a sense, his treatment was far worse than Koby's (in the future).
Although Kaido's club stopped in mid-air, the gust of wind it generated slammed into Dragon's face, making cold sweat break out on his forehead.
"Worororo, is this your bad taste again? Looks like this Marine is a bit unlucky."
Weak.
This was Kaido's only assessment of Dragon. Since Nereus was interested in him, Kaido naturally wouldn't do anything more.
After knowing each other for so many years, Kaido was aware of some of Nereus's habits.
When facing extremely weak opponents who didn't know their place, Nereus sometimes got playful, using his abilities to toy with them like a cat catching a mouse.
"Originally, I was just hungry and wanted to find something to eat. I didn't expect this warship to be yours now. You don't mind if I raid the pantry, do you?"
"Find it yourself. The storage room should be at..."
"I know where it is. Then I won't be polite."
Saying this, Kaido found the warship's storage room with familiar ease. Since many soldiers in the Marines were large in stature, the corridors on warships were built with a certain degree of expansion.
Although it was a bit cramped for Kaido, he could still walk through.
Watching Kaido navigate the warship's structure so familiarly, Dragon felt conflicted, unsure how to evaluate this.
Nereus's people liked to hijack warships for their own use, and Kaido often used warships as his cafeteria. Over time, all of them had become very knowledgeable about Marine vessels.
Before long, Kaido found some smoked or cured food meant for long preservation. Not caring much about the taste, he ate casually, only complaining a couple of times about not finding any alcohol.
"Kaido, you were at that battle in the center of God Valley earlier too, right? I saw you fly over there."
"That... yeah, I was there at the start."
"What happened back there?"
By the time Nereus arrived, Kaido and the others had already left, leaving only Garp, Roger, and the controlled Rocks.
Although Nereus had heard about the events from Garp, Roger, and Rocks's soul, he still wanted to hear what others had to say.
"At that time, I had just gained my fruit ability. I sensed that strange thing and wanted to go fight it.
That woman Linlin was chasing me the whole time too. She looked furious that I snatched the fruit, Worororo!"
Speaking of this, Kaido didn't feel embarrassed at all. But then, he suddenly turned serious.
"Me, Linlin, Newgate, Rocks, plus Garp and Roger—we all launched attacks on that thing together.
But it was useless. That spider-like monster had a black shadow on its back. Our attacks hit that thing with zero effect, like it couldn't be killed.
If I had to give an example... it's very similar to your ability."
Even using Haki to inflict damage felt useless. In Kaido's impression, the only person with that kind of power was Nereus.
"Can't be killed... No, Kaido. There is nothing in this world that truly cannot be killed. If you can't kill it... it just means you haven't found its weakness yet."
"Oh? Does that apply to you too?"
"Correct. The same applies to me—provided you can find the weakness."
Kaido didn't continue asking. Asking further would be rude, practically asking for a beating.
Nereus wasn't joking either. Sunlight and silverware had no effect on him—unless someone found a "God Fruit" to bless those items first.
His own weakness... was his heart.
Breaking through Nereus's Haki shield and destroying his heart while bypassing his elemental-like regeneration ability would kill him once.
Repeat this process countless times, and the goal would be achieved.
"By the way, Nereus, what do you plan to do next?"
"Head back to Fish-man Island first. It's time to prepare for some actions."
"Is that so? You're heading back to the New World anyway, right? Let me hitch a ride for a few days. I haven't decided whether my first step should be finding a ship or recruiting a few subordinates."
"Suit yourself. But like I said, don't cause me any extra trouble."
"I know. Before the new voyage begins, I should rest and build up my strength too."
Kaido agreed to Nereus's terms and found an open spot on the deck to rest. Nereus didn't pay him much more attention.
Kaido was a man who didn't care about the means to achieve an end. If his own strength was sufficient, he wouldn't mind a fair duel.
But when his strength was insufficient to achieve a must-win goal, Kaido wouldn't stick to conventions. He didn't care about sneak attacks or underhanded tactics. This was the survival rule Kaido had learned since stepping onto the battlefield as a child soldier.
However, on small matters like this, Kaido could be trusted. After all, there was no conflict of interest between them now, and they had some camaraderie from their time on Hachinosu.
"Marine. What about you? What do you plan to do next?"
Nereus looked at Dragon, who had finished securing the sails, and asked casually.
"I... I don't know. I have things I want to go back and ask about clearly. After that... I will quit the Marines."
Dragon's tone carried confusion about the future, but his resolve to quit the Marines was firm.
After witnessing what happened on God Valley, he couldn't convince himself to continue upholding so-called "Justice" in this army that buried its head in the sand.
"Good choice. Want to consider working for me?"