"Crash!" The deafening sound of debris pulverized against the stone echoed in the ears of Gion, a Marine Admiral candidate. Her head throbbed, and her senses were overwhelmed by a cacophony of wails, screams of agony, and frantic cries for help. "What happened?" she whispered, her mind struggling to process the carnage.
As she forced herself to stand and clear the ringing from her ears, the blinding radiance of the scene made her squint. Slowly, the world came into focus: the Marine building at the Red Port had been reduced to jagged ruins, and massive warships had been tossed onto the shore like toys by an unseen force. Marines lay scattered everywhere, their bodies broken and their expressions hollow.
She touched her forehead and felt a sharp, stinging pain. A smear of bright red blood darkened her hand, and the memory returned. Moments ago, she had been preparing to defend the sea against the Beasts Pirates' massive fleet. Then, a roar had shattered the atmosphere, followed by a light so intense it blinded her, and an impact so violent it rendered her unconscious.
She paused, looking at the unnatural, daylight-like glow bathing the area. It should have been night. Her eyes widened as the realization hit her: the Red Line, the Holy Land of Mary Geoise! She spun around, and for the first time in her long career, she felt the paralyzing grip of true fear.
She was not alone in her terror. Across the base, the surviving Marines stared at the horizon, their faces crumbling into expressions of madness. Above the sea, the Red Line—the fabled iron wall that divided the world—had been pierced. A massive, gaping chasm now tore through the structure, and seawater poured through the breach with a thunderous crash. Debris rained from the sky: crumbling masonry from the Holy Land, shattered buildings, and the lost lives of slaves, guards, and Celestial Dragons alike. At this moment of absolute destruction, there was no distinction between master and servant.
A wailing wind whipped through the breach, clearing the dust and revealing a sight that defied logic: a colossal tree, radiant and beautiful, glowing with an endless light that illuminated the heavens.
On the deck of the Beasts Pirates' flagship, King stared at the towering structure, his eyes filled with complex emotion. Queen leaned over the railing, his voice hushed. "Brother Jin, is that the divine tree rumored to be as famous as the Treasure Tree Adam? The Sun Tree Eve?"
"That is correct," Enel replied, his gaze fixed on the gargantuan trunk that seemed to soar infinitely into the clouds.
Suddenly, tiny black dots descended from the top of the tree, landing before the fleet. There were eight of them, human in shape but radiating a dangerous, elitist aura. The leader, an old man with a crescent-shaped hairstyle and a long sword at his waist, looked at the pirates with murderous intent. "Beasts Pirates, retreat now, or face death!"
"Die!" he shouted again, but only the howling wind and the roar of the ocean answered him.
A cold, gravelly voice cut through the air. "!!!"
The eight Holy Knights tensed, their faces twisting in terror as they turned toward the source of the sound. High above in the swirling clouds, two scarlet eyes—each the size of an island—stared down with a predator's hunger. "Kaido!!!"
Figarland Garling, the leader of the Holy Knights, gripped his sword hilt, his face grim. The chasm in the Red Line proved that Kaido's power had surpassed the limitations of the mortal world. Only one person remained capable of contending with such a monster.
Kaido did not offer a dialogue. He issued a single command: "Take them out. I do not want anyone disturbing me."
As a sound of space tearing echoed through the sky, the giant dragon hidden in the clouds surged toward the crown of the giant tree.
"Stop right there, Kaido! That is not a place for a creature of the lower world!" Garling moved to strike, but a wall of scorching flames intercepted him. From the inferno emerged King, his white wings spread wide. "I am sorry, but from this moment on, I will not allow you to take another step."
"Boom!"
Kaido, in his dragon form, pierced through the layers of white clouds, ascending toward the zenith of the world. By fusing the Mother Flame with the Sacred Lightning, his cultivation technique had reached the perfection of the second layer, triggering a total evolution of both body and soul. His physical form had expanded to a size rivaling that of the ancient elephant, Zunesha.
He had reached the absolute limits of Haki and Devil Fruit mastery. In this state, he finally perceived the fundamental rules governing the cycle of this world: the earth and sky could only permit two individuals who had touched the true limits of power to exist at once.
The first era was defined by the Sun God and the Earth God. The second era belonged to the Forest God and the Sun God. Now, the third era had arrived. Ordinarily, this era would belong to the Sun God and the great villain—a cycle of destiny meant to culminate in Luffy, as Nika, versus Imu.
The Ocean God had never been intended to be the protagonist of this world, but Kaido's arrival had shattered the cycle. He had to reach the summit before Luffy awakened his true power. If he failed, the world itself would turn against him, and he would be reduced to nothing more than a stepping stone for the protagonist. He chose not to strike at the unawakened Luffy yet; the unknown consequences of altering destiny were too great to gamble with so recklessly.
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