Chapter 165: Kaido: All That… Just for a Few Damn Handcuffs?!
"That damned old hag!!"
Kaido's thunderous roar shattered the silence of the ruined hall of Onigashima.
His massive muscles bulged as veins crawled across his arms. In his crimson pupils, a fury like a collapsing mountain surged uncontrollably.
Crack—crack—
Within seconds, the once-lively Den Den Mushi was crushed into a sticky pulp.
The remains dripped through Kaido's fingers and splattered onto the ground.
He shook his hand in disgust, as if the crushed snail were something filthy.
It was no wonder he was so furious.
In Kaido's eyes, his daughter Yamato and Straw Hat Luffy were practically a match made in heaven.
Yamato might be a bit stubborn and reckless, always acting first and thinking later.
But she had inherited Kaido's powerful physique and straightforward nature.
Her features carried both the liveliness of a young woman and the heroic spirit of a warrior.
Such beauty and strength were rare even across the entire New World.
Kaido had long seen through his daughter's feelings.
Ever since Luffy caused chaos on Onigashima, Yamato's mouth had been full of nothing but "Luffy" and "freedom."
The light in her eyes—
It was a burning passion Kaido had never seen before.
If that wasn't the seed of love, what was?
As for Straw Hat Luffy, he was an even rarer gem.
At such a young age, he already possessed the strength to challenge a Yonko.
His fearless spirit and the strange charisma that drew people to him…
He was basically a younger version of Kaido himself, maxed out.
The more Kaido thought about it, the more satisfied he became.
A wild grin spread across his face.
"As long as that brat isn't gay, with my daughter's looks and strength, winning him over would be easy!"
"Wororororo!!"
Kaido burst into booming laughter.
He slapped his thigh as his mind wandered into the future.
Straw Hat Luffy becoming his son-in-law…
Joining the Beasts Pirates…
Standing beside Yamato as Kaido's right and left hands.
At that time—
The entire New World would kneel beneath his feet.
His dream of creating the strongest pirate crew would finally come true.
The thought alone made his laughter grow louder.
…
"Boss! We're back!!"
A shrill scream like a ghost's wail burst into the hall.
An enormous figure stumbled through the doorway.
The man wore blood-stained striped overalls covered in mud and soot.
It was one of the All-Stars of the Beasts Pirates—
Queen the Plague.
Behind him shuffled a dark mass of people.
They were the miners from Udon Prison's quarry.
Their faces were gaunt and yellowed with starvation.
Their prisoner uniforms were torn and filthy.
Heavy chains bound their necks, wrists, and ankles.
The iron links dragged across the stone floor with harsh clanking sounds.
Each step looked painfully heavy—like corpses crawling out of hell.
Their eyes were hollow.
Yet they still carried a faint fear of Kaido as they followed Queen forward.
"Boss Kaido—!!"
Queen spotted the towering figure in the hall.
His already pitiful face twisted into an exaggerated expression of misery.
Huge tears streamed down his cheeks, mixing with grime and blood.
With arms spread wide, his enormous body lunged toward Kaido like an out-of-control cannonball.
But—
Before he could reach him—
A shadow suddenly shot down from the beams above.
So fast it looked like a blur.
A massive kick slammed directly into Queen's belly.
BOOM!
The dull impact shook the air.
Queen's several-hundred-pound body flew backward even faster than he had charged in.
He crashed heavily onto the stone floor.
Dust exploded everywhere as fragments of rock scattered.
"King! You bastard!!"
Queen struggled upright.
His round face was covered in dust and tears, snot hanging from his nose.
He planted his hands on his hips, trembling with rage as he glared at the black figure who had just landed.
King the Wildfire stood calmly.
His black wings folded behind him, his mask hiding most of his face.
Only his cold, sharp eyes were visible.
"Just because you've followed Boss Kaido longer than me," Queen shouted, "doesn't mean you can humiliate me like this!"
King merely glanced at him.
His voice was flat and merciless.
"A useless idiot who couldn't even defend Udon has the nerve to cry like this?"
His gaze swept over Queen's filthy appearance.
"Look at you."
"Pathetic and disgusting."
"What right do you have to stand near Boss Kaido?"
"Y-you…!"
Queen's face turned purple.
He pointed at King but couldn't finish a sentence.
Behind him, the prisoners lowered their heads in terror.
The hall fell silent except for Queen's heavy breathing and the faint rattling of chains.
…
"Queen… what happened to you?"
Kaido paused mid-drink and frowned.
King had contacted Queen earlier, so Kaido didn't yet know the situation.
Then his eyes shifted downward.
He noticed the horrifying wound on Queen's chest.
The slash was nearly half a meter long.
The edges shimmered with a strange black-red aura.
Tiny sparks of Haki flickered around it.
Even from several meters away, Kaido felt a familiar pressure.
"…Hmm?"
Kaido lowered the sake jug slowly.
His brow furrowed deeper.
That aura…
Advanced Conqueror's Haki infusion?
Someone capable of coating a sword strike with that level of Conqueror's Haki and injuring someone like Queen…
There were only a handful of such people in the New World.
Queen finally found his chance to complain.
He collapsed to his knees and hugged Kaido's leg.
"Boss! You have to stand up for me!!"
"Udon… Udon was attacked!"
His voice trembled.
"A white-haired old man with glasses suddenly appeared and attacked without warning!"
"So you got one-shotted?" King said calmly from the side.
His tone carried blatant mockery.
But inside—
King's heart was already in turmoil.
The white-haired old man Queen described…
Was the same man King had encountered earlier on Onigashima.
…
"Of course not!!"
Queen's face flushed red.
"I fought that old man for hours!"
"If I hadn't run out of stamina, how could I have lost?!"
The moment those words left his mouth—
The hall erupted with thunderous laughter.
"Wororororo!!"
Kaido clutched his stomach as he laughed wildly.
It took half a minute before he stopped.
"You fought him for hours?"
"You mean Dark King Rayleigh?!"
Queen froze.
The words "Dark King" hit him like a hammer.
Meanwhile—
King's body stiffened.
Behind his mask, his pupils shrank.
That old man…
Was the legendary right-hand man of Gol D. Roger—
Silvers Rayleigh, the Dark King.
Suddenly, everything made sense.
Of course Queen had been defeated instantly.
If Rayleigh had personally taken action…
Then the incident at Udon was far from trivial.
…
Queen's arrogance vanished instantly.
He slumped in relief.
Surviving an encounter with Rayleigh was already a miracle.
Kaido's laughter faded.
His expression turned serious.
Of course he knew Queen had exaggerated.
Rayleigh could defeat Queen in seconds.
But that wasn't what concerned him.
Why had Rayleigh suddenly appeared at Udon?
And why had he attacked Queen?
"So…"
Kaido's eyes narrowed like a hawk's.
"What did Rayleigh go to the quarry for?"
His mind replayed the battle he had fought against Straw Hat Luffy.
Now that he thought about it—
That battle might have been a distraction.
Luffy kept him occupied…
While Rayleigh infiltrated Udon.
Such coordination wasn't a coincidence.
What had Rayleigh taken?
That was the real question.
Queen scratched his head nervously.
After thinking for a long moment, he muttered:
"Uh… I think he took a few Seastone handcuffs…"
For a moment—
Kaido was silent.
Then—
"Wororororo—!!!"
He burst into even louder laughter.
But this time there was no humor in it.
Only pure rage.
He smashed the sake jug onto the floor.
Ceramic shards exploded everywhere.
"So let me get this straight…"
Kaido's voice dropped to a terrifying growl.
Black-red lightning crackled around his body.
His Conqueror's Haki surged through the hall like a tsunami.
The stone pillars trembled violently.
"Dark King Rayleigh slaughtered people in the quarry…"
"Straw Hat fought me all night…"
"And all of that—"
His roar shook the entire hall.
"WAS JUST FOR A FEW DAMN HANDCUFFS?!"
The final words exploded like thunder.
His crimson eyes were bloodshot with fury.
The violent black-red lightning illuminated the hall in flashes.
Kaido felt utterly insulted.
He was an Emperor of the Sea.
Yet those two clearly hadn't taken him seriously at all.
The crushing pressure of his aura filled the hall.
Queen and King both fell silent.
Neither dared to speak another word.
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