Alliance

"What the hell did you call me here for, Shiki?!"

Kaido's deafening roar exploded among the clouds, his azure dragon scales reflecting a chilling gleam beneath the sunlight.

His enormous body coiled high in the sky, blotting out the sun, while his dragon whiskers trembled violently with each heavy breath.

The man named Shiki did not answer Kaido. Instead, he clacked into the building behind him in his wooden sandals.

"Come down first, Kaido. The banquet is about to begin, and I prepared some top-quality liquor this time."

Hearing there was good liquor, Kaido said nothing more and transformed back into human form before landing on the ground.

King, who had been following behind him, and Burufatt, who was holding King's claw, landed as well.

"Boss Kaido, this is..."

"Go inside first!"

Kaido had already guessed Shiki's purpose, but he gave nothing away as he strode carelessly into the banquet hall.

The banquet hall had a unique style. Unlike the rough-and-ready pirate banquets that could make do with a few chairs and a long table, this hall was not only enormous but also lavishly decorated with carved beams, painted rafters, gold, and silver.

Huge logs that looked immensely valuable stood around the hall as supporting pillars, each evenly coated in eye-catching red lacquer.

Rows of low tables lined both sides of the polished wooden floor, each neatly laden with wine and food. Fine velvet cushions sat behind the tables, and quite a few people had already taken their seats.

At the far end of the hall stood three enormous seats. Shiki was standing before the middle one with his arms spread wide, welcoming Kaido's arrival.

"Wahahaha! You made it, Kaido! Sit down. The banquet will begin soon."

Kaido did not waste words. He merely glanced at the figure on the left seat, who was stuffing her face, then sat on the cushion to the right and picked up a jug of liquor from the low table, gulping it down in great swallows.

King and Burufatt also took seats below him, though neither touched the wine on the table.

"Speak. What do you want, calling me and this old hag here?"

"Mamamama~ Kaido! You little brat have become more and more rude after just a few years apart!"

The huge figure seated on the left raised her face from a cake dozens of layers tall upon hearing Kaido's voice, snapping back without courtesy.

"These Fish-Man Island sweets are delicious! Too bad Newgate got there first!"

There was no doubt that this enormous woman was Charlotte Linlin, known as BIG MOM.

A former member of the Rocks Pirates, the sea queen who occupied most of Totland Sea, and one of the rulers of the New World.

Though she was nearing forty and had already given birth to several children, she remained slim, slender, and full of charm. That was, if one ignored the fact that she stood a head taller than Kaido.

After Kaido's group had taken their seats, Shiki sat back down in the main seat once he saw that nearly everyone had arrived.

The pirates below, who had been drinking and exchanging toasts, also stopped what they were doing and turned their eyes toward him.

Feeling everyone's gaze, Shiki grinned broadly and laughed wildly. "First of all, welcome to my territory! My Floating Island has pretty good scenery, doesn't it? Shihahahaha~"

The Flying Pirates' crew and the captains of pirate crews affiliated with Shiki naturally echoed his words. Golden Lion already had more than a dozen pirate crews under his banner.

"Haha, even an island this huge can be lifted into the sky. Captain Shiki's power really is incredible~"

"That's right! Just as expected of a legend of the seas."

"In the entire New World, probably only Whitebeard can compare with Boss Shiki."

"Hey! Shiki, did you call me here just to put on this boring show? Spit it out. If the desserts weren't so good, I would've flipped the table already!"

Charlotte Linlin, who had already finished an entire table full of sweets, urged him impatiently without giving him any face.

"Still as impatient as ever, Linlin!"

Shiki turned to look at BIG MOM, whose mouth was covered in cream, but he did not get angry.

"Well then, let's get straight to the point. I called you all here today for one reason only—taking Hachinosu Island!"

The moment those words fell, the pirates below fell silent, followed by an uncontrollable uproar.

Everyone knew what this meant. In an era when "ONE PIECE" was still unknown to the world, the treasure left behind by Rocks was almost the most maddening thing upon the seas.

And Hachinosu Island had once been the headquarters of the Rocks Pirates!

"Mamamama~ So you're finally making a move on John?"

"That's right. John has kept that treasure for me long enough. It's time to take it back." Shiki wore a confident smile, making no effort to conceal his ambition.

"After all, this little bit of power I have now is nowhere near enough to conquer the world! Shihahahaha!"

So declared the man who stood nearly at the pinnacle of the New World.

"So you called me here because you want me to be your muscle? Can't you handle it alone?"

"If it were just John alone, of course there'd be no problem. But I don't know what terms that bastard used to pull Silver Axe and Ochoku to his side.

Their ships are all on Hachinosu Island now. If I went alone, the losses would be too great." Shiki admitted it frankly.

Of course, there was another reason he did not say aloud. If he did not drag these two into it now, then once he and John had both been wounded, they would surely jump in to clean up the aftermath and reap the benefits.

"What about Newgate? Isn't he coming?" Charlotte Linlin suddenly thought of another old acquaintance.

"I asked him. He's still the same as before, with no interest in treasure. He spends all day with those 'sons' of his. We don't need to worry about him."

Shiki had always scoffed at Whitebeard's ways. Despite possessing such immense power, he still pursued something as boring as so-called family.

"So we only need to deal with John and those other two?" Charlotte Linlin continued shoveling down the freshly served desserts.

"Mamamama~ Rocks' treasure... I wonder what it contains. How exciting~"

"I didn't expect us remnants of Rocks to start killing each other again so soon. How thrilling." Kaido's tone carried a hint of eagerness.

There was no doubt that their attitudes showed they had accepted Shiki's proposal for an alliance.

"Shihahahaha! Then I hereby declare that the Flying Pirates and its affiliated pirate crews, the Beasts Pirates, and the BIG MOM Pirates have officially formed a Pirate Alliance."

"Our target—Hachinosu Island! Let's seize Rocks' Treasure!" Shiki raised the wine of alliance and drained it in one gulp.

"OH!!!!"*n

The moment he finished speaking, deafening cheers erupted from below.

"I hope it'll be a battle that doesn't bore me!"

"Mamamama~ I hope you won't disappoint me, Rocks' Treasure."