A blast of scorching breath—
It obliterated at least ten incoming missiles in an instant, triggering a chain of massive explosions.
More missiles came flooding in, but Kaido no longer had time to unleash a second blast of his fiery breath.
With a fierce twist of his dragon body, his tail lashed out like a whip, smashing six of the nearest missiles to pieces.
But then...
One missile struck him hard in the abdomen.
Followed by a second, a third...
Until a violent explosion engulfed his entire massive dragon form.
The thunderous explosions rumbled for over half a minute.
When the dust finally settled,
The colossal Azure Dragon reappeared, but not a single part of his body remained unscathed.
Yet, despite the grisly wounds,
A closer look revealed that none were fatal.
Even more astonishing, his injuries were healing at an unbelievably rapid pace.
His crimson dragon eyes scanned the surroundings desperately, seeking the attacker.
But the ocean's surface was empty.
Only when Kaido expanded his Observation Haki to its fullest extent did he finally pinpoint the enemy's location.
However, he was powerless.
Because the target was beneath the waves—diving quickly.
Soon, it slipped out of his Observation Haki range and vanished completely.
Rage burned fiercely within him.
He lifted his head, releasing a thunderous dragon roar—
Echoing across the sky!
---
Luo Lan did not allow Akainu or Momousagi to board the Danaan.
Instead, they were sent to the first warship.
The secrets of the Danaan were still too sensitive to share with outsiders.
Even Momousagi's knowledge of the Danaan remained limited.
After all, Luo Lan couldn't guarantee Momousagi wouldn't quietly inform Tsuru of anything.
Of course, as Momousagi spent more time in the capital, this issue would fade away.
At this moment, Luo Lan was on a call with Tsuru.
"Aunt Tsuru, in about six hours, four warships will arrive at the G1 branch. About that Devil Fruit..."
"Don't worry. I was already at the G1 branch two days ago, and I brought the item with me!"
"Hmph… Aunt Tsuru, you came personally?"
"Why, afraid I'd swallow you whole?"
Hearing Luo Lan's hesitant tone, Tsuru smiled for the first time in a while.
"Not at all..."
"By the way, Aunt Tsuru, don't you want the training service? It's cheap—a single Devil Fruit covers full training for four crews!"
Trying to change the subject, Luo Lan quickly pitched the offer.
Although Tsuru had already declined before,
Luo Lan swore she only worried they wouldn't know how to use the ships properly, not trying to profit from the Devil Fruit.
Believe it or not—
Luo Lan truly believed this.
"No need. You kid say things so boldly. Even if these ships differ from older ones, the Navy isn't at a point where you need to teach us."
"And one Devil Fruit for that? Better get some sleep—you can have anything in your dreams!"
Well then.
Luo Lan sighed helplessly.
I really want to teach, but you won't let me...
Just because you can sail a sailing ship doesn't mean you can handle a modern warship.
That's a joke!
The controls are worlds apart.
Without proper training, the Navy would struggle even just to get these warships moving,
Let alone deploy them in battle.
---
Six hours had passed since the call with Tsuru.
The long wait was mostly due to Luo Lan having to regroup with the other three warships.
Those three had previously been heading toward the G5 branch.
Only after regrouping could they proceed together to the G1 branch.
This caused some delay along the way.
At this moment, at the G1 branch,
All warships originally docked had already set sail.
They enforced strict control over the entire ten nautical mile radius around the base.
The atmosphere was tense, as if anticipating an imminent battle.
"Strategist/Chief of Staff Tsuru, is this really worth it?"
"That's a total of seventeen Devil Fruits, including one Logia type and one Mythical Zoan."
Regarding those two fruits, Kuzan knew well.
They were originally reserved by Sengoku to cultivate the next generation of the three Admirals.
However, since this generation of Admirals, the Navy's younger ranks had fallen into a gap, with no promising talents emerging.
Therefore, those three Devil Fruits had been gathering dust in the Navy's vault for over a decade.
Such precious treasures, traded for just four warships?
That's madness!
"Kuzan, many of you have fallen into a misunderstanding."
"The question remains—how can we truly end the era of pirates?"
"You think it means defeating the Four Emperors and other major pirates. That's not wrong, but…"
"If that's all your goal is, then the great pirate era will never truly end."
On a large warship,
Tsuru stood at the bow, speaking calmly.
Kuzan listened intently.
Though only a Vice Admiral, Tsuru was one of the few people Kuzan respected most within Headquarters.
"Strategist Tsuru, what's wrong with that idea?"
"The problem is... it's huge!"
Tsuru shook her head.
She used to think the same way.
Defeat the Four Emperors and other major pirates—
With no top-tier pirate forces left, naturally,
The Navy could end this era.
But many years ago, a young man spoke to her just as she was now speaking to Kuzan.
Yes, that alone could never end the great pirate era.
She had never forgotten that conversation.
Despite Sengoku's strong opposition,
Tsuru forcibly transferred that young man to her advisory team.
"Kuzan, if you were a civilian,
Who would you fear more—the Four Emperors or those countless low-tier pirate crews not even worthy of a bounty?"
"Of course, the Four Emperors!"
Tsuru chuckled.
Kuzan was left puzzled.
Was he wrong?
Compared to the Four Emperors' power, what threat could those low-level pirate crews—unworthy even of bounties—possibly pose?
"Kuzan, let me give you some numbers."
"Since Roger's execution in 1498, marking the start of the great pirate era,
In just twenty years, over nine million people have died directly or indirectly at the hands of pirates."
"Nine million—that's almost 5% of the world's population!"
"And that's only what we can track. The real number is probably much higher."
"Now, do you know how many of those nine million died at the hands of major pirate crews, and how many were killed by those insignificant, overlooked low-tier pirate crews?"
"The answer is—fewer than 100,000 died by major pirate hands.
The remaining over 8.9 million..."
"Were all slaughtered by those countless, looked-down-upon..."
"Low-tier pirate crews!"
At this moment, Kuzan's eyes widened.
He was utterly shocked.