Kaido had brought his strongest officer, King, and caused tremendous destruction throughout the territory of his old enemy Gecko Moriah. Since the Shichibukai had taken the initiative to admit defeat and surrender, there was no longer any need to continue systematically demolishing the massive ship. One way or another, the dragon-man emperor absolutely intended to claim Captain Rocks's legendary treasure ship for himself.
In order to ease the violently tense atmosphere, the kilometer-long Azure Dragon currently flying high above slowly descended and transformed back into human form upon landing. Kaido in his hybrid devil form stood more than seven meters tall—half a head taller than even Gecko Moriah. The two of them standing together resembled a pair of miniature giants, their combined presence dominating the ruined landscape.
Seeing that his captain had already ceased hostilities, King withdrew his massive blade from Absalom's body with a wet, sucking sound. He had to admit—however grudgingly—that the zombie-modified creature before him possessed remarkable tenacity regarding vitality. The lion-man stubbornly refused to die even after being stabbed through several supposedly vital organs.
Gecko Moriah turned toward the rubble and called out with urgency: "Stop playing dead and get out here! Dr. Hogback, dig yourself and your girlfriend out of those ruins!" His voice carried the weight of command mixed with genuine concern. "Treat Absalom's injuries immediately. None of you are permitted to die today."
Dr. Hogback, who had been struck by falling ceiling debris during Kaido's tornado attack and appeared thoroughly disoriented, nodded obediently despite his confusion. Responding to his boss's earnest expectations, the eccentric physician began employing his considerable medical knowledge to treat his colleague's extensive injuries. He had to glance nervously in Kaido's direction every few moments, unable to help himself. Today he had finally witnessed the true strength of the Four Emperors with his own eyes. The monsters who ruled as Sea Emperors were genuinely invincible forces of nature.
After considering the situation carefully, Dr. Hogback privately resolved to advise his captain against causing further trouble for Four Emperor Kaido in the future. This would allow them all to survive their encounter with an absolutely unbeatable opponent. Perhaps the sentimental Lord Gecko Moriah might actually listen to such counsel. The doctor hoped his employer would cherish the people currently standing before him and cease making trouble that could get them all killed.
"My sincerity should be sufficient for today." Kaido's voice rumbled with barely-contained power as he fixed the Shichibukai with an intense stare. "Moriah, tell me everything you know about this situation."
The Emperor exuded a terrifying aura of dominance that made the air itself feel heavy. He would employ his considerable intellect to distinguish truth from falsehood in whatever intelligence information Moriah provided. As for liars attempting to deceive him directly to his face with fabricated nonsense—such foolishness had never occurred in Kaido's presence and lived to tell about it. For a powerful individual of his caliber, the only absolute requirement he demanded from subordinates was complete honesty. Never deceive your boss. Never lie to colleagues sailing the same ship.
Gecko Moriah could only bow his head in humility before the enemy standing before him. He desperately didn't want to lose his crew and makeshift family again—not after everything he'd already suffered. Drifting alone across the seas was not a pleasant existence. Even though zombies had accompanied him during those isolated years, they remained merely animated corpses in the end. They could never compare to the genuine emotional value that living people brought to his life.
After carefully organizing his thoughts, Moriah revealed all the intelligence he possessed: "You should be quite familiar with the name Joy Boy by now. That title represents the mortal enemy of the Celestial Dragons throughout history." He paused, ensuring Kaido was listening carefully. "The Five Elders want you dead specifically because the Sky Screen exposed your connection to that prophesied figure..."
Under direct orders from the World Government's highest authority, virtually all of the Shichibukai had been assembled for this specific operation—a coordinated ambush designed to eliminate Kaido of the Beasts. Gecko Moriah himself had been included in the list. However, he had vehemently opposed selecting the Devil's Triangle as the battlefield for this trap from the very beginning. He absolutely could not tolerate having a war literally at his doorstep, potentially destroying everything he'd built.
Unfortunately, the Five Elders had refused to adopt any alternative plans for ambushing Kaido in other sea regions. Those five ancient Celestial Dragons remained absolutely determined to use the Devil's Triangle as their chosen location, and the reasoning behind their insistence wasn't particularly difficult to deduce. After receiving Moriah's guidance and explanation, Kaido immediately pieced together all the disparate information into a coherent picture.
"These five elderly manipulators are truly calculating," Kaido said, his voice mixing grudging respect with cold fury. "They're afraid that Joy Boy's spirit will guide me on that Advance Sun power and willing to trap me permanently in this place where sunlight never penetrates year-round."
After figuring out the complete conspiracy, Kaido threw his head back and laughed wildly, the sound echoing across the ruined deck. The Beasts Pirates had been conducting extensive business with the World Government both openly and through secret channels—selling massive quantities of seastone mined from Wano Country's unique deposits and weapons mass-produced by Wano's forced-labor factories. He genuinely hadn't expected this group of supposedly allied Celestial Dragons would suddenly turn against him so decisively. He was receiving truly unprecedented attention from the world's highest powers.
When the Four Emperors had done whatever they pleased throughout the second half of the Grand Line for years, the World Government had never stood up to enforce justice or challenge their dominance. But considering that the Sky Screen had identified him as Joy Boy reborn, it seemed these paranoid Celestial Dragons genuinely feared ancient prophecies. They were even more terrified of being overthrown and defeated by later generations who might fulfill those dark predictions.
In truth, Kaido didn't particularly care whether he actually was Joy Boy or merely someone the prophecy referenced. But given the way the World Government had treated him today—attempting to trap and execute him through elaborate conspiracy—he chose to fully acknowledge that legendary name. He would strike these arrogant Celestial Dragons hard across their faces with an iron club, demonstrating clearly that times had changed and their absolute authority was ending.
"I have a reliable method for leaving the Devil's Triangle," Moriah offered quickly, desperate to avoid further conflict. "You can depart whenever you wish. I'll guide you out personally."
The Shichibukai absolutely did not want a catastrophic war erupting on his own territory. If genuine large-scale combat broke out here, he wouldn't be able to adequately protect his subordinate officers. There existed a terrifyingly high probability that they would all be killed as collateral damage. Moreover, he had no idea who he could possibly sell this enormous ship to if it were destroyed. He refused to engage in business transactions guaranteed to result in devastating losses.
However, the Shichibukai's hopeful attempt to divert the flames of war elsewhere was directly and immediately rejected by Four Emperor Kaido. "There is no more appropriate battlefield than this exact location," he declared with absolute conviction. "This place holds profound importance to me personally. I believe somewhat in fate and destiny."
It was on this very ship—decades ago when he was still young and relatively weak—that Kaido had participated in a chaotic multi-party melee. The legendary Rocks Pirates had faced simultaneous assault from the elite Holy Knights, the Marine forces personally led by the Hero Garp, and the Roger Pirates at the height of their power. The result of that apocalyptic battle had been the complete disintegration of the Rocks Pirates and the literal disappearance of the Valley of the Gods from all world maps forever.
Charlotte Linlin had stolen the Uo Uo no Mi, Model: Seiryu (Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon) from a Celestial Dragon during the chaos of God Valley and Kaido in that chaotic moment manage to take a bite of the Devil Fruit before Big Mom secure the fruit to be given to one of her children.
This Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit had proven remarkably suitable for Kaido's unique physiology. It merged seamlessly with his naturally demonic body and fully amplified his already-exceptional close-combat abilities. He had traveled further and further along the path toward ultimate strength, and before he fully realized what was happening, he had claimed one of the four thrones ruling the seas.
Reflecting on these dusty memories from the distant past, Kaido felt profound emotion welling up within his chest. He had walked off this ship as a defeated survivor many years ago, had spent decades becoming progressively stronger, and now fate had brought him back to this same ship. Perhaps everything that had occurred was guidance from destiny itself, deliberately bringing him back to this significant location. A crisis even greater than God Valley was gathering around him at this very moment—he could feel it approaching like an oncoming storm.
Kaido's raw strength had not improved meaningfully during the past several years. He recognized that his fundamental state of mind had failed to evolve, which prevented his combat power from continuing to grow stronger. He had previously attempted to break free from this psychological cage through dramatic external measures—repeated suicide attempts designed to shock his system into transformation. But judging from the disappointing results, that approach had been a complete failure.
The life-and-death crisis currently gathering around him represented another opportunity granted by fate or God or whatever higher power might exist. Kaido possessed a vague but powerful premonition: as long as he successfully took this critical step forward, he might finally reach that higher realm of power he'd been seeking. Then he could look down upon the entire world from an even more elevated position.
Kaido of the Beasts did not want to leave this place. He intended to deliberately use overwhelmingly powerful external enemies to forcibly break through his own limitations. If he failed to survive this brutal process and died here on this deck, then he simply wasn't worthy of living any longer. Compared to continuing his miserable existence as merely one of the Four Emperors—powerful but stagnant—it would be infinitely better to die gloriously on a battlefield worthy of his legend.
"King." Kaido turned to face his most loyal subordinate directly. "You and I will wait for them here together. Let us continue becoming stronger side by side."
Feeling the heartfelt sincerity in his captain's declaration, King thought back to the terrible days when both he and Kaido had been captured and experimented upon by government scientists. The two warriors shared nearly identical traumatic experiences—torture, dehumanization, being treated as laboratory specimens rather than living beings. It was only natural and right for them to help each other achieve success and transcend their current limitations together.
The title of Pirate King might prove to be merely one footnote among many in Kaido's ultimate legacy. King wanted to personally witness everything this extraordinary man would accomplish. He would follow Kaido forever, through whatever came next, whether that meant glorious victory or honorable death. Serving this captain made his entire existence in this world worthwhile.
"I will stand with you until the end, Captain," King said simply, his voice carrying absolute conviction. "Whatever comes through that fog, we'll face it together."