Kaido: Rocks, He's Trying to Kill Me!!!

Whitebeard glanced over, then quickly looked away again, hardly caring. If Rocks had not suddenly run up there, he would still have been sitting atop the ship, sipping liquor and enjoying the salty sea breeze.

"Boring. I'm going back to sleep." Whitebeard answered casually, then pushed Stussy away from where she leaned against him and turned to walk into the ship.

Stussy swayed slightly from the push. Instinctively brushing back a lock of golden hair hanging by her ear, she raised her face to watch Whitebeard's broad back recede into the distance. She gave a soft snort and pouted. "What a blockhead..."

At the harbor, Ron, in his Tailed Beast Transformation, looked down at Kaido. The instant he opened his mouth, a Tailed Beast Bomb had already begun to take shape.

"Crackle!"

That faint gleam expanded at tremendous speed. Bolstered by the immense power of the Sage Body, the point of light became a gigantic sphere of energy in the blink of an eye.

Kaido's pupils abruptly shrank to pinpoints. He instinctively staggered three steps back, his voice taut with alarm. "What the hell?! You bastard, are you trying to kill me?!"

Weren't we just sparring? From the looks of it, this newcomer really was trying to kill me!

Ron remained silent. Once he felt it was about enough, he suddenly fired the Tailed Beast Bomb.

"Whoosh!!!"

The Tailed Beast Bomb, brimming with terrifying power, howled through the air.

Kaido's expression stiffened, and he immediately decided to dodge. But the Tailed Beast Bomb was simply too enormous; its area of coverage had long surpassed the limits of where he could evade.

"Bastard!!!" Kaido cursed angrily, swiftly coating the spiked club in his hand with Armament Haki. The next second, he saw a figure appear soundlessly at his side.

"Sigh~~~"

A long, drawn-out sigh filled with helplessness drifted lightly through the smoke-filled air.

"Kids fighting is dangerous... You always go too far when you don't know your own strength."

Before the words had even faded, Rocks had drawn his sword. The hum of the blade leaving its sheath had yet to disperse when Conqueror's Haki roared around the entire blade like a black-purple storm.

Then his figure vanished completely from where he stood.

When he reappeared, he was already standing before the Tailed Beast Bomb.

"Slash!!!"

The long blade, carrying terrifying force, swept upward and fiercely cut out an incomparably sharp black arc.

Then the blade collided violently with the energy on the Tailed Beast Bomb's surface.

"Boom!!!!!"

A terrifying explosion beyond description suddenly erupted.

A violent blast of air exploded outward like a tsunami, sweeping in every direction in a ring.

Yet the Tailed Beast Bomb did not explode. Instead, at the instant the blade made contact, an irresistible, immense force twisted its trajectory and sent it shooting into the sky.

It then carved a lonely arc through the air before crashing viciously toward the distant sea.

At the same time, aboard the Roger Pirates' ship, which had just sailed away.

After sensing danger with Observation Haki, several figures burst out of the ship.

Then they saw a gigantic sphere of energy plunge into the sea.

"Hiss!!!"

A blinding, ghastly white light burst forth from the depths of the ocean.

Then a dull explosion echoed through the area.

"Boom!!!!!!!!!"

The sea surface bulged upward, and a gigantic mushroom-shaped wave, its edges churning with pale foam, surged into the sky.

Roger, Rayleigh, and Gaban almost simultaneously turned their gazes toward the island.

"Did those Rocks Pirates bastards get into a fight with someone?" Gaban frowned deeply.

Rayleigh narrowed his eyes and stared in the direction of the recent explosion. After pondering for a moment, he spoke slowly. "Judging purely from that power just now, it probably didn't come from anyone in the Rocks Pirates."

Rayleigh knew most of the Rocks Pirates well, whether it was their Devil Fruit abilities or their fighting styles.

"Hahahaha." Roger, however, burst into laughter. "Looks like... Rocks has run into quite a bit of trouble."

Rayleigh did not agree. Instead, he lightly shook his head. "It could also cause us plenty of trouble in the future. With Rocks's personality, when he encounters a strong person, he won't kill them—he'll recruit them onto his ship."

Gaban immediately nodded at those words, his tone serious. "We may not have any deep grudge against Rocks's crew, but once the day comes when interests are divided unevenly, we'll inevitably stand on opposing sides."

Roger stopped laughing, his face gradually turning solemn. His gaze was sharp as he looked toward the island and slowly said, "A pirate crew without feelings is nothing but a pile of sand destined to collapse. It is not the wind that destroys it, but every grain of sand forgetting why it stands beside the others."

Just as Rayleigh and Gaban were both forming different thoughts about those words, Roger threw an arm around each of their shoulders and said with a grin, "Come on, let's go back and drink."

At the harbor.

The violent residual energy gradually dispersed, and the swirling dust slowly settled. Ron reverted from his Tailed Beast Transformation to his original form.

"Hey, hey, hey, Rocks, did you see that? This guy was trying to kill me!" Kaido was fuming. You told me to spar with him, and I nearly got killed. If you don't give me some kind of explanation, that just won't fly.

Hearing this, Ron looked surprised. He could guarantee that he had absolutely never had such an intention. This was pure slander.

"Look, look! That bastard still has that carefree look on his face!" Kaido said furiously.

Ron frowned. What the hell are you talking about, man??

"Wororororo~~~" Rocks sheathed his long sword and laughed. "Kaido, you're being too sensitive. Young people fighting—sometimes they can't help but go a little overboard."

"Huh~" Kaido's mind froze for several seconds. When he finally recovered, his face was full of disbelief. "Are you kidding me? Rocks, I absolutely refuse to accept that explanation."

Rocks smiled and slowly raised his hand, making a V sign.

Ron was somewhat bewildered. What was that supposed to mean? Were the two of them supposed to gang up on him?

Hmm~ Very possible. Was this how the Rocks Pirates handled things? Their way of solving problems really was brutal.

"Two?" Kaido grumbled inwardly. It seemed... maybe I really was being a little too sensitive.

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