Although the three little boys had gathered their courage, none of them dared walk in front. They all hid behind Kairo, barely even daring to peek ahead.
Before long, the four of them left Syrup Village and arrived at a small cliff overlooking the sea.
A sloping path led down from the cliff to the beach below.
But once the boys reached the edge of the cliff, they couldn't take another step.
The endless explosions echoing from the shore had already turned their legs to jelly.
"Let's stay here."
Seeing their reaction, Kairo didn't laugh. Instead, he gently patted Pepper on the head.
"You've already done very well just coming this far."
"Mr. Kairo, we—"
Pepper looked up, about to explain himself—
but the moment his eyes reached the battlefield below, the words died in his throat.
In front of him, dozens of warships were spread across the sea.
From the shore, a single travel ship was firing shell after shell into the sky. The cannon rounds arced through the air before exploding among the fleet.
Under the dense bombardment, one warship after another was destroyed.
Some were blown into floating wreckage.
Others burned fiercely, thick black smoke rising high into the sky.
At the very front of the devastated fleet stood one enormous warship.
On its deck, a man in golden armor was frantically firing weapons to intercept the incoming shells. Explosions detonated in the sky above him again and again, and the shockwaves rippled across the air.
"The Dreadnought Sabre…"
Kairo's eyes showed a hint of surprise.
"So it really is the Krieg Pirates."
"With a fleet this large… how did they manage to dodge the Marines' sweep?"
"Mr. Kairo," Pepper swallowed nervously. "Is the ship by the shore… your travel ship?"
Even from a distance, he could see the figures moving on the deck.
Actually, "moving" might have been the wrong word.
One tiny figure was jumping around frantically.
The others?
One was reading a magazine.
One was calmly drinking coffee.
And another seemed to be standing there doing nothing.
Then suddenly—
The explosions stopped.
When the final shell fell into the sea and detonated, the once-mighty Krieg fleet had been reduced to a single surviving warship: the Dreadnought Sabre.
All the others had either been blown apart into drifting wreckage or burned to ashes.
"Damn it! Damn it!"
On the deck of the Dreadnought Sabre, Don Krieg roared with bloodshot eyes.
"They destroyed my fleet!"
"I'll kill them all!"
At the same time…
Near the travel ship, two figures silently surfaced from the sea.
They were Gin and Pearl, the Krieg Pirates' commanders.
Using the ship's hull as cover, Gin suddenly leapt upward and landed on the deck.
Green Rabbit, who had been standing near the railing, stiffened instantly when Gin appeared out of nowhere.
His ears shot upright and his eyes widened like he'd seen a ghost.
Gin quickly scanned the deck before glancing back toward the sea.
When he saw the wreckage of the entire Krieg fleet and heard the desperate cries of the survivors, a cold killing intent flashed through his eyes.
But he didn't attack immediately.
Because in his view, there was no way a few animals could destroy fifty warships in such a short time.
On the deck:
Green Rabbit stood frozen like a statue.
Jerry looked up in surprise.
Droopy had already gone back to reading his magazine after granting the mortars infinite ammunition.
The Elegant Fox was still calmly sipping coffee, as if Gin's appearance meant nothing at all.
Seeing this, Gin dismissed the animals completely.
He turned toward the cabin door and spoke in a low voice.
"How long are you planning to hide?"
Jerry blinked in confusion.
"Green Rabbit… is this guy stupid? Why is he talking to the air?"
Green Rabbit nodded blankly.
Meanwhile, Gin had his own confusion.
The mouse…
had just spoken.
"A talking mouse?!"
At that moment, Don Krieg's furious voice echoed from the flagship across the water.
"Gin! What are you doing?!"
"Kill them already!"
Hearing the order, Gin stopped thinking and moved instantly.
His hand shot forward like lightning, grabbing straight for Jerry.
He was fast—
but Jerry was faster.
With a blur, the mouse vanished and reappeared on the magazine Droopy was holding.
"Droopy! This idiot tried to bully me!"
Droopy turned his head and looked at the Elegant Fox beside him.
His expression was calm.
"Mr. Fox… can you help?"
"No problem."
The fox surprisingly didn't refuse.
He made an OK gesture, set his coffee cup down, and called toward the shore:
"Mr. Kairo, Droopy needs assistance."
Gin's eyes twitched.
First the mouse talked.
Then the dog talked.
Now the fox talked.
Even though he had never personally seen it before, he had heard of Zoan-type Devil Fruits.
Animals that ate such fruits could sometimes gain human intelligence, speech, and the ability to stand upright.
Devil Fruits were incredibly rare though.
Most people never saw one in their lifetime.
But that wasn't the important part right now.
The important part was that the fox had just called someone.
"Mr. Kairo…"
Which meant these animals likely belonged to someone powerful.
Someone who had somehow turned every pet on his ship into Devil Fruit users.
Who exactly was this "Mr. Kairo"?
Gin's mind raced as he turned toward the shore, following the fox's gaze.
Then—
A voice suddenly rang out.
"Coming, coming!"
Before Gin could react, a terrifying pressure swept across the deck.
In the next instant—
A figure appeared directly in front of him.
"So… fast!"
Gin's eyes widened as his body instinctively stepped back.
The man who had just arrived was Kairo.
Kairo rubbed his temples and glanced at the Elegant Fox.
"Droopy asked you to help."
"That means you handle it."
"It doesn't mean you call me."
"I'm busy over there, you know."
Then he waved a hand dismissively.
"And besides…"
"For a small fry like this—"
"Why would you even need me to step in?"
"A single pebble would've been enough."
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