As countless News Coo soared across the sky, carrying freshly printed newspapers to every corner of the world—
a bombshell dropped into the world itself, stirring up an enormous uproar.
"Can this world ever get a break? Why has another great pirate suddenly appeared?"
"Well, not exactly. That crew has never admitted they were pirates, and they don't attack civilians either."
"The World Government says they're pirates, so they're pirates. Just because they claim otherwise doesn't make it true."
"At the end of the day, the part about not harming civilians is only what the paper says. Who knows what they're really like in private?"
"Too terrifying… thank goodness our hometown isn't in the direction they're headed."
Arguments like these erupted among civilians. Some believed the rise of the Demon Pirates was a disaster in the making.
Some thought it was acceptable as long as they did not harm ordinary people. Others believed the World Government's judgment was the only truth.
Pirates were pirates—how could there possibly be pirates who did not prey on civilians?
At the same time, some also took notice of the Angel of Glory that had formally appeared during the Dressrosa incident.
A reporter had managed to photograph them, and the densely packed swarm of winged creatures was especially eye-catching.
But to ordinary civilians, such things were simply too far beyond imagination.
As a result, the discussion around them was much quieter.
Compared to that, however, there were also voices that did not fit the general tone.
"The Demon Pirates are so unique! I want to go out to sea and follow someone like that!"
"To the sea! I want to join them too! What kind of skill is there in bullying civilians?"
"Count me in! We'll learn from the Demon Pirates and go rob pirates together!"
At the same time, some sharp-eyed people also noticed how the newspaper described the Demon Pirates.
"The Demon Pirates have a flying ship?"
"No way, really? A flying ship? Then what does it use to move? And what does it use to fly?"
"You idiot, don't you know about the treasures of the sea?"
"Wouldn't that mean the Demon Pirates can go wherever they want?"
"Come to think of it, what are those flying things? They look like female angels in armor."
"Who knows? Maybe some kind of special race?"
"Or maybe some treasure of the sea."
Chaotic discussions rang out at all times.
In the Grand Line and across the Four Blues, there were countless people in taverns who paid close attention to news from the sea.
Naturally, this article stirred a wave of panic among civilians.
But after people learned more about the Demon Pirates' past deeds and the effects they had left behind, that fear gradually began to subside.
In contrast, the pirates' doubts only grew stronger by the day.
"That guy again? He disappeared for almost two months. I thought he was dead…"
"Hey, hey, seriously? He fought a Yonko and even left a permanent scar?"
"That's Kaido, the World's Strongest Creature!"
"Could it be the reporter took his money and deliberately exaggerated things to build up his reputation?"
"That's possible."
"The World Economic Journal might exaggerate, but it doesn't fabricate fake news!"
"How would you know? Do you work there? If not, shut up."
"The World Economic Journal is the number one newspaper!"
"Hah? As if that means it's impossible!"
Most pirates who saw the paper found it impossible to believe. After all, the name of the Yonko thundered like legend itself.
Still, because it came from the World Economic Journal, very few believed it was completely fake.
Most thought the truth had simply been exaggerated, since Morgans had done similar things before.
And yet, among them,
there were also those whose attention had fallen elsewhere.
On an island tavern somewhere along the Grand Line—
"What do you think, Kid?"
Killer, wearing his blue-and-white striped mask pierced with several small holes, asked the question.
"Sitting down."
Kid lowered the newspaper and stared at Ren's portrait. "But if we take this guy down, we should be just about ready to challenge a Yonko, right?"
"A threshold, huh?"
Killer let out an eerie laugh. "If this guy's reputation really is just fabricated hype, he's definitely going to regret it in the future."
That was the truth.
Because he had already been marked by them.
At the same time, on another island in another sea—
Outside a tavern thick with the smell of gunpowder, corpses were strewn everywhere.
A pirate crew that had only arrived not long ago had been forced off the stage by death itself.
Capone Bege, fresh from victory, had his men clean up the battlefield while he examined the face in the newspaper.
"Demon Ren, huh? Heh. Go ahead and enjoy the spotlight. Once I find you, your fame will become mine."
Bege tossed the newspaper aside, drew his gun, and pulled the trigger, leaving a bullet hole straight through Ren's face in the picture.
Then, without a care in the world, he pulled out a cigar, lit it, and took a satisfied drag.
Clearly,
among the most vicious pirates, represented by Killer, Kid, and Bege,
some had already begun treating Ren—the man who had fought a Yonko—as a stepping stone before challenging a Yonko themselves.
Pirates chased fame and fortune, going mad for them to the extreme.
But no matter how brainless they were, anyone could understand the weight carried by the Yonko. They were legends people had heard of since childhood.
To play it safe, the best choice for those ambitious schemers
was to treat the Demon Pirates and Ren as their first target. Beating him would mean securing a ticket to challenge the Yonko.
Of course, there were also special individuals who did not fall into this category.
On one route of the Grand Line, in a calm stretch of sea, a pirate ship slowly sailed onward.
The Grudge Dolph, belonging to the Hawkins Pirates.
They were also one of the pirate crews whose bounty had skyrocketed during this period.
But compared with Demon Ren, Captain Hawkins' brilliance had clearly been overshadowed by quite a lot.
And at this moment,
Hawkins was performing a divination to determine his attitude toward Demon Ren.
One glowing tarot card after another hovered in midair, fixed in place by straw extending from his body, while different images surfaced upon each card.
This was Hawkins' Devil Fruit ability, allowing him to use divination to glimpse a portion of the future's fortune and misfortune.
For example, the probability of victory in a certain battle, or the chance of an accident occurring.
Most of the time, Hawkins would decide his course of action based on the results of his divinations.
Only this time, the result was somewhat strange…
"Fifty percent? A half-and-half probability. Does that mean I already possess power approaching that of a Yonko, or… something else?
Or could it be that the distance is too great, beyond the range of perception, making the divination inaccurate?"
Hawkins lowered the cards with a puzzled expression.
The direction of his divination just now had been: if he encountered the Demon Pirates, would it bring fortune or misfortune?
The result had been fifty percent—half good, half bad.
Very strange… Under normal circumstances, if he had the strength to win, the probability should have been above fifty percent.
"…Let's try seeing what my odds are if it becomes a fight to the death."
After thinking for a moment, Hawkins moved again. In any case, using his Devil Fruit ability only cost him some stamina.
The tarot cards reassembled themselves, and new images surfaced on their faces.
But this time, the result exceeded his expectations.
"…All of these are zero percent?"
Hawkins' expression turned grave.
This divination had been even more detailed, and the results were detailed as well.
Under the premise that he and the Demon Pirates entered a fight to the death—
his probability of victory was zero percent!
His probability of escape was also zero percent!
And yet, strangely enough, his probability of death was fifty percent.
He was in a state where he had a fifty percent chance of dying and a fifty percent chance of living—the same result as the last reading of fortune versus misfortune.
"…Again."
Hawkins continued the divination, this time changing the conditions.
'The probabilities in a one-on-one battle against Ren.'
The tarot cards glowed and rearranged themselves, calculating a new result.
"Probability of evasion: zero percent. Probability of victory: zero percent. Probability of dealing damage to him: zero percent. Probability of escape: zero percent. Probability of death: fifty percent.
So that's how it is? I cannot win. My life and death lie in the enemy's whim, which is why my chance of survival is half and half…"
Hawkins kept repeating the divination, but the results were more or less the same.
Almost all of them came back as zero percent.
Since Hawkins had first made his debut, this was the first time he had ever seen such a result.
Even when being hunted by a Marine Vice Admiral, the various probabilities he divined had never fallen all the way to zero percent.
There was only one meaning behind that.
Demon Ren—
was absolutely not someone the current him could hope to reach.
The other party had probably truly gone head-to-head with a Yonko and even come out ahead.
"Someone I need to avoid, then?"
Hawkins stared deeply at the newspaper, imprinting that face into his mind.
He was not the type to defy fate by deliberately seeking out and provoking such a person.
Rather, if he did not believe in fate, he would never have studied divination in the first place.
Compared to the pirates' many different reactions,
the Yonko's reactions were even more peculiar.
In the New World, Wano Country—
Inside a cavern on Onigashima, Kaido drank heavily while staring at the newspaper before him.
The Beast Pirates lackey who had delivered it was trembling nonstop, because the atmosphere inside the cavern was so oppressive it felt as though a mountain itself was about to crush him.
But in the next instant, accompanied by Kaido's booming laughter, that suffocating pressure turned into the howl of a raging gale.
Then came an order, full of interest.
"You all saw it, didn't you? I took a loss. Even though I won, it was the same as not winning at all.
He lost the fight, but he won in every other way—reputation, purpose, probably all of it.
But I don't care about that. That kind of thing has no meaning whatsoever. The one thing that cannot be ignored is the artificial Devil Fruits."
A massive shadow suddenly lowered, and Kaido revealed a cold face.
"Find him for me!"
"Yes, sir!"
In the New World, Totto Land, Whole Cake Island—
Inside BIG MOM's palace, Charlotte Linlin was drinking tea when she received today's newspaper.
She had long pink curly hair, heavy lipstick, and pale purple eye shadow. She wore a pirate hat and a loose pink dress.
At a glance, she looked almost like an ordinary old woman—but her body was astonishingly enormous.
Even in her normal state, she stood at 8.8 meters tall.
"Mamamama— Kaido really is pathetic. To think he actually stumbled over a brat like that.
The older he gets, the worse he gets. I really don't know what he's doing."
Charlotte Linlin gave a scornful laugh, then looked toward the man standing before her.
"But since he managed to make Kaido suffer a loss, his strength definitely can't be weak.
Hmm… those strange creatures with wings on their backs? They look pretty strong, and there are so many of them… almost like an army.
Perospero, the next Tea Party should be soon, right?
Send this little friend an invitation.
I'd really like to hear how he made Kaido suffer a loss. And while we're at it, let me see exactly what those flying things are."