Kaido floated in the sky, the fierce flames from the explosion lighting his face. Even he could feel the scorching heat.
He watched as, within the explosion, the bird of flames spread its wings and soared again. As it rose, the flames dissipated, and the Golden Dragon appeared once more amid the fire.
Ian, the kid he had picked up from a deserted island, possessed shocking talent.
His physical strength alone far surpassed that of ordinary people. That was already remarkable, but when his ability was added to the equation, he was even stronger than Kaido and Linlin had been at the same age!
Ian had already flown above his head. He deactivated his ability and landed weakly atop Kaido's head. "I can't do it. I can't win, Teacher Kai."
"Brat!!"
A shrill howl, like the roar of a vicious ghost, came from below.
The flames from the explosion had already faded, revealing a massive crater dozens of meters wide. Its surface, along with the surrounding ground, had been slightly melted, with a layer of lava radiating heat.
At one side of the crater, Moria, his body in tatters, threw back his head and howled.
His companions lay scattered around him. Most had been burned beyond recognition and groaned in agony, while even more had already become corpses.
Other than Moria himself, only a handful of them could still stand.
Only they had been able to use Armament Haki to protect themselves. Their other companions had been incapable of doing so.
Even Moria bore some signs of burns.
The others were even worse off, their bodies ragged and covered in burns.
"Didn't you do quite well, brat?"
Kaido did not hold back his praise. "Worororororo! I couldn't have done something like that at your age."
"That's because everyone besides Moria was too weak."
Ian sat sprawled atop Kaido's head with his legs apart, speaking as though it were only natural.
Aside from Moria, the others could use Haki as well, but they were still too weak. They simply could not withstand the intense heat.
Besides, Zoan abilities, unless they were special types or awakened, did not grant their users additional stamina. They merely made them tougher.
Ian did not yet have the stamina to use his ability without restraint.
If Teacher Kai had not been there, even with the advantage he had gained, he would surely have been cut down by the enraged Moria by now.
"Brat, you're right. It's all because they're too weak!"
Kaido's body suddenly shrank as he transformed into human form and crashed down.
His immense weight smashed a hole into the ground.
Ian clutched his teacher's hair tightly to keep from being flung away.
"So, brat, you must become strong!"
"Kaido!!"
Moria stared fixedly at Kaido, who had returned to human form.
"Worororororo! What do you think of my kid?"
Kaido casually rested his spiked club on his shoulder and said mockingly, "Compared to your worthless companions, he's clearly on a whole different level, isn't he?"
"Kaido!! I'll kill you!!"
The furious Moria had completely lost his mind and charged at Kaido like a madman.
"Worororororo!! Thunder Bagua!!"
A little later.
On this ruined battlefield.
Snowflakes began drifting down from the sky once more.
Ian stood at the edge of the battlefield, his expression somewhat gloomy.
The battlefield was littered with corpses.
It was his first time seeing so many dead people, and many of them had been killed by his own hands. It was a strange feeling.
The Moria Pirates who had tenaciously survived the bombardment of his Divine Phoenix were now all dead as well. They had died horribly, their bodies twisted and broken from the beating.
Ian felt that he would never forget the sight of those people charging Kaido on their own initiative.
"Worororororo! I don't particularly dislike tenacious people."
Kaido laughed heartily with his spiked club over his shoulder. "Moria? I'll wait for you to come back for revenge."
Moria had still escaped.
His companions had risked their lives to hold back Teacher Kai. He had wailed and roared, but in the end, under the desperate sacrifice of his companions, he had fled.
It was hard for anyone not to break after an experience like that.
Ian could somewhat understand why he would eventually give up on himself.
Still, the Shadow-Shadow Fruit really was powerful. Moria only needed to place his shadow somewhere far away, then directly switch places with it to escape.
"This trip was fairly enjoyable. Brat, we're heading back."
Kaido transformed into an azure dragon once more, and Ian grabbed his mane as they flew into the sky together.
Today, he had witnessed the destruction of an idealist.
The azure dragon, hundreds of meters long, flew over Wano Country, crossing the entire nation from north to south.
As they passed over the country, Ian saw countless factories. Plumes of thick black smoke poured from chimneys, darkening Wano Country's skies.
This country was beginning its march toward ruin.
Kozuki Oden really could put up with this.
Ian sighed inwardly.
They had reached the end of Wano Country's land, and Teacher Kai flew out over the sea.
However, this was not the sea of the New World, but Wano Country's inland sea.
To protect Pluton, Wano Country had erected great walls around the nation. Water accumulated over eight hundred years had formed an inland sea that submerged the islands surrounding it.
Before long, an island with a gigantic skull-shaped head appeared in Ian's sight.
They had arrived at Onigashima.
The azure dragon Kaido had become flew directly through one of the empty eye sockets in Onigashima's skull. He deactivated his ability and landed on the top-floor terrace of the main building.
Ian could not help letting out a long breath. They had finally returned safely.
"Dad!"
The instant they landed, a small figure came scampering out from the room on the top floor and happily hugged Kaido's calf.
Well, Kaido was simply a little too tall.
"You're back!"
The little girl looked up happily, her round little face full of smiles.
She had beautiful hair that faded from white to green and then blue. Dressed in a tiny white kimono, she looked utterly adorable.
"Mm."
The moment Teacher Kai nodded, the little girl began climbing up his leg, all the way to his head. Teacher Kai did not say anything about it.
"Ian!"
Holding onto one of the horns on her father's head, the little girl looked at Ian, who was sitting on Kaido's shoulder, with a grin. "So? Was it fun outside?"
"Boring."
Ian merely yawned. "This whole country is boring."
"You're definitely trying to fool me!"
The little girl, Teacher Kai's daughter Yamato, pouted. "I obviously wanted to go too!"
"You're still far too weak."
Teacher Kai raised a hand, grabbed his daughter by the back of her collar, pulled her down from his head, and held her before him as he sternly scolded her. "Since you keep saying you want to surpass me, hurry up and get stronger! At the very least, don't fall too far behind Ian!"
"Mm!"
Yamato nodded with a grin. "I'll definitely surpass Dad!"
Ian tilted his head and looked at the slight upward curve of Teacher Kai's lips. He felt quietly relieved.
The efforts of the past three years had still been effective.
The most significant result of those three years was, of course, that Teacher Kai and Yamato, who had been locked in a life-or-death struggle in the original story, now got along quite well. They really did look a little like father and daughter!
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