Kaido imagined the Beasts Pirates unleashing their blue dragons, his breathing becoming heavy like that of a real wild beast.
He paced back and forth in his office a couple of times, then burst into laughter.
The laughter was so loud it made the ceiling lights sway. Stella downstairs frowned, glanced at the ceiling, and then continued reviewing documents.
"Hehehe-- Roy!"
The best thing I ever did in my life was forming an alliance with you back then!
Jin stood silently in the corner, but Roy noticed that his fingers tightened around the hilt of the Flame Blade.
This taciturn second-in-command of the Beasts Pirates is not easily moved, but the fact that "everyone has the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon " clearly touched a chord deep within him.
After Roy and Kaido's initial excitement subsided, they continued to arrange the operations:
"We'll depart tomorrow. Ark Maxim is the fastest; we expect to arrive at Egghead that afternoon."
I have finalized the list of personnel for the operation:
"Me, Bullet, Hawk Eyes, Tesoro, Kyros, Kuma, Katakuri, plus the two of you, that makes nine."
Kaido counted on his fingers and nodded:
Nine top-tier combatants against a single Egghead?
"Wouldn't that be giving Kizaru too much face?"
"It's not about giving Kizaru face, it's about ensuring absolute success."
" Vegapunk's laboratory contains a batch of equipment that the World Government has spent decades accumulating. If Kizaru were to resort to desperate measures and blow up the island, all that equipment would be destroyed."
I must crush him with overwhelming superiority, leaving him no chance to even bomb the island.
That makes sense.
Kaido stood up and stretched his neck.
"Then I'll go have some fun with you."
It's been a long time since I've met a decent opponent; this is a good opportunity to stretch my muscles.
That evening, the training ground on Hachinosu was unusually quiet for a while.
It's not that everyone's taking a break; it's that Kaido and Bullet are fighting.
The cause is very simple.
Bullet boasted that his White Tiger Gundam couldn't even stop Roy, Kaido found unacceptable.
The two argued for less than three minutes before heading straight to the training field.
Then the entire Hachinosu felt the tremor.
Roy stood by the office window, watching the dark red Inazuma and orange flames exploding in the direction of the training field. He rubbed his temples, sighed, and walked towards the training field with his coffee cup in hand.
Hopefully, Egghead can withstand the chaos caused by these lunatics.
On the morning of the third day, before dawn, Ark Maxim slowly sailed away from the port of Hachinosu.
The fog on the sea was cleaved by the bow of the ship, creating white waves on both sides.
Tesoro stood in the cockpit, his hands resting on the engine control panel, golden arcs of electricity continuously flowing from his palms into the power core.
The Ark Maxim's hull trembled slightly under the force of the lightning, and the speedometer needle had already soared into the red zone.
Three times the speed of Marine warship, at this speed, they can reach Egghead before noon.
On the deck, Kaido leaned against the ship's railing, drinking, while Hassaikai leaned against him.
Bullet was doing push-ups to warm up, one finger supporting him on the deck, his body rising and falling, each movement accompanied by a dull whistling sound.
Hawk Eyes leaned against the mast, closing his eyes to rest, while Black Blade Yoru lay across his lap.
Ember hovered in mid-air, scouting, its Pteranodon wings gleaming with a dark red luster in the dawn light.
Katakuri stood at the stern, arms crossed, his scarf fluttering slightly in the sea breeze.
He looked at Roy's retreating figure at the bow of the ship, his expression complex.
Hachinosu shocked him far more than he had anticipated—multi-Devil Fruit technology, lunar technology, and a group of monsters whose strength rivaled that of Governor Kaido.
When Roy killed Big Mom, he thought Hachinosu was just another Four Emperors- level power, but now it seems its ambitions go far beyond that.
Kaido finished his gourd of wine, casually tossed the empty gourd into the sea, and roared at Bullet:
"Little Tiger, let's see who takes down the most people when we get to Egghead!"
Bullet sprang up from the deck, clenched his fist, and made a series of cracking sounds.
"Afraid of you? One White Tiger Gundam of mine could crush half of you!"
Hawk Eyes opened his eyes and coldly interrupted their argument:
"You two, don't smash up the lab."
Roy said the equipment inside is very important.
Kaido snorted and said nothing more.
Bullet pursed his lips and squatted down again to continue doing push-ups.
Jin descended from the sky, folded his wings, and landed on the ship's side, reporting to Roy:
There are no patrol boats within three nautical miles of the Egghead.
The World Government was confident that no one would dare to touch the island guarded by Kizaru.
"Then let them pay the price."
Roy turned around, his gaze sweeping over everyone on the deck.
"We'll arrive in an hour. Get everything ready."
Bullet stretched his limbs, the tiger stripes throbbing excitedly beneath his skin:
"Finally, I can move around a bit."
"I'm practically going crazy from all this training these past few days."
Kaido slung the Hassaikai over his shoulder; he was still slightly drunk, but the fighting spirit in his eyes was already burning.
"I'm so bored!"
The last time we fought the Navy was many years ago. I wonder if that old bastard Kizaru has improved in the last two years.
With half an hour's flight time to Egghead, Roy dialed Vegapunk's encrypted Den Den Mushi.
The phone was answered in less than two rings.
Vegapunk's voice was very low, and in the background, faint mechanical sounds and footsteps could be heard:
"Have you arrived?"
"Attack will commence in half an hour. Are you ready?"
"All the data has been packed, and the core equipment has also been boxed."
The laboratory's defense system has been activated; the shield's energy reserves are sufficient to withstand Kizaru's full-force attack for at least half an hour.
"No need to hold out for that long," Roy said. "Let's finish this in ten minutes."
Vegapunk paused for a second, then asked a question he had been holding back for days:
Who exactly did you bring?
Roy truthfully reported the list of those to be taken into account:
" Kaido, Bullet, Hawk Eyes, Tesoro, King, Kyros, Kuma, Katakuri, and me, that makes nine."
There was a full three seconds of silence on the other end of the phone.
Then Vegapunk said in a voice that was a mixture of shock and wry smile:
"This is quite a grand display!"
"For your safety, Doctor, no amount of seriousness is justified!"
Vegapunk took a deep breath, and Roy could imagine him rubbing his temples right now:
Okay, I believe you.
You know where the laboratory is located—it's that white domed building in the center of the island.
I'll lock the door and wait for your signal.
The call has ended.
Roy turned around and nodded to Tesoro in the cockpit.
Tesoro understood and pushed the power output to its limit.
The ship of Ark Maxim suddenly accelerated, leaving a long white trail in its wake on the sea.