Kaido of the Beasts barely lifted an eyelid at his daughter’s mockery.

“Kaido, my little brother, what the hell happened to you?”

Charlotte Linlin looked at Kaido with utter disdain.

He was a mess.

Where was the majesty of a Sea Emperor? He looked like nothing more than a useless slob waiting for death.

Kaido’s eyelid twitched again.

He had no desire to speak.

Did she think he wanted to be like this? With the Sun and Moon Pirates reigning over the seas, what else could he do?

He couldn’t win.

Any ambition, any goal—just a joke.

“Huh? Linlin, is that you?”

Kaido, who had been barely paying attention, suddenly widened his eyes in shock when he got a proper look at Charlotte Linlin. He shot up from his slouched position, visibly startled.

“How the hell did you get younger?”

His eyes flickered with suspicion.

Was this really the Linlin he remembered?

There was an undeniable air of confidence and elegance about her now.

It was as if she were a completely different person.

Kaido then glanced at himself.

And, for the first time, he felt a pang of shame.

They were both once feared as Sea Emperors, but the difference between them had grown staggering.

“What kind of magic does the Sun and Moon Pirates possess?” Kaido thought bitterly, his gaze filled with envy as he looked at Linlin.

He envied her current state.

He envied that she hadn’t ended up like him, waiting for the end.

She had regained her strength and dignity.

Kaido recalled how, years ago, he had laughed when Linlin was captured by Kuke.

But now, looking back, he realized—

She was the luckiest one among them.

“What do you want?”

Kaido’s overweight body slumped back lazily.

It wasn’t that he was being deliberately dismissive.

He had simply given up.

Take whatever you want. Do whatever you want.

Just pretend I don’t exist.

“Disgraceful. Old man, our captain wants your power.”

Yamato was thoroughly unimpressed.

Kaido’s eyes suddenly flashed.

For the first time, the former Emperor of the Seas showed a glimpse of the majesty he once had.

“You need my strength for something big?”

Kaido abruptly stood up, causing the ground beneath him to tremble.

He looked at Kuke with excitement.

Was this it?

Were they finally making a move against the World Government?

Were they planning to destroy the world?

No matter what it was, Kaido wanted in.

Even if it meant following Kuke, even if he had to lower himself to being Kuke’s subordinate—he wanted to be a part of it.

“Tell me, who are we fighting? Kaido will be the first one to charge in!”

Kaido slapped his barrel-sized chest with enthusiasm.

“Idiot. Who said you were coming? Our captain only wants your power, not you.”

Yamato rolled her eyes.

Kaido’s excited expression froze.

The light in his eyes dimmed.

“You… plan to take my power?”

Kaido clenched his fists, then released them.

Then clenched them again.

Then let them go weakly.

Stealing a Devil Fruit user’s power.

Kaido had no doubt that the mysterious Kuke could do it.

And every Devil Fruit user who had their power stolen—

Died.

“So, my time has finally come.”

Kaido slowly closed his eyes.

Then reopened them, sharp and determined.

The result couldn’t be changed.

But he wouldn’t die without a fight.

“Old man, you better cooperate. If you do, you might live. If not, you’re dead for sure.”

Yamato’s voice was firm—yet there was a subtle hint of concern.

“I can live?”

Kaido was stunned.

He didn’t doubt it.

Kuke had no reason to lie to him. The power gap between them was too great for such tricks.

“Even Whitebeard cooperated. Old man, be smart about this. You’re already useless. Losing your Devil Fruit won’t change anything.”

If Kaido had been the same arrogant beast he once was, Yamato wouldn’t have even bothered.

But seeing him in this pitiful, slothful state—

She actually felt bad for him.

So she gave him a chance.

Kaido fell silent.

Right now, his own power wasn’t even his main concern.

Other thoughts ran through his mind.

Kaido curiously scanned Kuke and the other Sun and Moon Pirates.

His pupils shrank.

He couldn’t sense any dominant aura from Kuke anymore.

Yet he was sure—

Kuke was far more terrifying than ten years ago.

The ones behind him, though—

Kaido felt crushing pressure from them.

Some of them—

Just a single glance from them made him feel as if he were being stared down by monsters on his level.

In his mind, Kaido thought:

“Has the Sun and Moon Pirates turned into an army of monsters? And even after becoming this powerful, they still need the Azure Dragon Fruit? Just how strong is the World Government hiding its real forces? No wonder the Sun and Moon Pirates have been so quiet for the past ten years. Something happened at Mary Geoise back then…”

No conqueror is an idiot.

Kaido had figured out a lot.

“Just how powerful are both sides? I guess I’ll find out soon enough.”

Kaido’s excitement flared again.

He was certain—

He was about to witness the greatest war in history.

“Fine. Take my Devil Fruit. Even if I can’t fight, at least my power can.”

Kaido barely hesitated before agreeing.

Resistance was pointless.

And truthfully, Kaido despised the World Government and the Marines even more than the Sun and Moon Pirates.

If Kuke won—

Kaido knew that he and the Beast Pirates would still have a chance to live, to exist.

But if the Sun and Moon Pirates fell—

Then the World Government, with its secrets exposed, would surely purge the seas.

They wouldn’t let any pirate who knew their hidden strength survive.

Kaido agreed.

His subordinates had no say in the matter.

Soon—

The Mythical Zoan—Azure Dragon Fruit was in Kuke’s hands.

A fruit on par with the Phoenix Fruit.

One of the top-tier Mythical Zoans.

He also took:

King’s Pteranodon Fruit (Ancient Zoan) Queen’s Brachiosaurus Fruit (Ancient Zoan) Jack’s Mammoth Fruit (Ancient Zoan) Saber-Toothed Tiger Fruit (Ancient Zoan) Triceratops Fruit (Ancient Zoan)

A total of six Devil Fruits.

The Beast Pirates had lost nearly all of their top combatants’ abilities.

One Mythical Zoan.

Five Ancient Zoans.

The Beast Pirates had lost a significant chunk of their power—

But they were still monsters.

Kaido, even without his Azure Dragon form, was still one of the strongest beings on the seas.

King’s true strength had always come from his Lunarian heritage.

Queen’s greatest power came from his scientific knowledge.

Like the Whitebeard Pirates—

Even without Devil Fruits, they were still rulers of the New World.

Now, among the Four Emperors—

Whitebeard and Kaido had lost their Devil Fruits.

Red-Haired Shanks had been captured.

And Kuke had no interest in ruling the New World.

But even without their Devil Fruits—

Whitebeard and Kaido were still the two strongest monsters alive.

Now, Kuke had three Mythical Zoan Fruits in his possession.

“That should be enough. Time to return to the first half of the Grand Line.”

After leaving the Beast Pirates’ territory—

Kuke checked the time.

There were only fifteen days left until Shanks’ execution.

There was no need to waste time hunting for more powers in the New World.

That could wait until after the war.

“Hancock, take this route.”

Kuke traced a straight line on the map—

From the Beast Pirates’ territory—

Directly to the first half of the Grand Line.

The shortest route possible.

——

DONT FORGET POWER STONE

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep