This was Uchiha Hikari's first time in the One Piece world.
Sure, she'd seen it countless times in manga and anime, but seeing these characters in real life sparked an odd feeling.
How to put it… it was just weird.
She'd encountered plenty of bizarre-looking folks before—Dragon Ball's animal people and aliens, Jujutsu Kaisen's two-faced Sukuna, Naruto's Kisame Hoshigaki—none of them exactly normal. But toss them into the One Piece world, and they'd practically pass for runway models.
The people here had wildly unique appearances and sizes that defied logic. Besides Runti and Page One, every Beasts Pirates member in the room was over three meters tall. Kaido himself towered at a staggering 7.1 meters—nearly three times Yamato's height. Even sitting down, he loomed like a dark, imposing mountain.
And yet, Kaido wasn't even the tallest in the room.
That title went to Black Maria, an 8.2-meter-tall beauty in a kimono. At just over 1.5 meters, Hikari felt like she could do cartwheels in the woman's palm.
Of course… compared to the Giants or Oars' race, Kaido and his crew were small fry. Those guys averaged around 100 meters, and the bigger ones could stand toe-to-toe with a fully formed Susanoo.
"…Who are you people, and how'd you get in here?!"
After the initial shock, Runti gripped her mace tightly and shouted.
Jinbe, Black Maria, and the others tensed, immediately assuming Hikari and Esdeath's sudden appearance was the work of a Devil Fruit ability.
"Space-traversing fruit users? From Wano, or somewhere else?"
"They're so tiny—especially the black-haired one. She's barely a meter tall…"
"…?"
Hikari shot a glare at the pirate lackey muttering in the corner.
Okay, she wasn't that tall, but come on—who's so nearsighted they'd mistake 1.5 meters for one? Did she look like an eight-year-old?
At that moment, Kaido's deep voice rumbled from his seat. "Kid, you're the 'Miss Hikari' Yamato mentioned? You've got some guts barging in here with just the two of you. But… you ready to pay the price for that?"
"…Look, Kaido-san, I came here hoping to have a calm, reasonable talk."
Hikari let out a soft breath, her tone steady and unhurried. "I know Yamato hasn't exactly been the obedient daughter, and you two have had your issues over Kozuki Oden. But that's all in the past. Right now, Yamato just wants to sail out and see the world. As her father, I hope you'll give her that chance."
Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried a strange, piercing clarity, reaching every corner of the hall.
Kaido clearly hadn't expected this. He paused, then furrowed his brow. "Kid, what kind of nonsense are you spouting? Yamato's my daughter, and I've got plans for her future. Sailing? She can talk about that after she beats me!"
"Huh?" Hikari grinned. "You said it, not me."
Her smile widened. "As you can see, I'm a peaceful person. I like reasoning things out. But if reason doesn't work… then let me see what one of the New World's Four Emperors is made of!"
The provocation in her words was unmistakable.
Before Kaido could respond, Runti and Page One lost their cool. Shouting, "Don't disrespect Lord Kaido!" they charged forward—Runti swinging her mace, Page One throwing a fist, both aiming for Hikari's group.
"Miss Hikari, watch out—"
Yamato instinctively called out.
But before she could move to intercept, Hikari's figure blurred, like a TV screen flickering with bad reception. When she stabilized, a clang echoed as Runti's mace hit the floor.
More accurately, it wasn't just the mace—Runti and Page One froze mid-charge, their faces stuck in confusion, as if they hadn't processed what happened.
"?!"
It all happened so fast.
Only a handful—Esdeath, Yamato, Kaido, and a few others—caught Hikari's move. She'd simply raised her right hand, pointed two fingers, and tapped the air twice toward Runti and Page One. A force, not unlike Conqueror's Haki, enveloped them, locking their bodies in place.
—Kinbaku no Jutsu.
A trick she'd picked up from Master Roshi. It used "ki" to seal the opponent's pressure points, paralyzing them. Similar to the Sharingan's binding genjutsu, but way more convenient.
After casually neutralizing the two, Hikari turned to Kaido with an innocent smile. "So, Kaido-san, does this catch your eye?"
Kaido's brows twitched as he reached for the mace propped against his chair.
As one of the Four Emperors, his instincts were sharp. From that one move, he knew this girl was beyond the Tobi Roppo's league.
But before he could act, Jin stepped forward, positioning himself in the center of the hall.
"Lord Kaido, leave this to me. You don't need to deal with someone like her."
As he spoke, the orange flames behind Jin flared, his presence surging into a tangible pressure that swept through the hall.
"Ugh…" Esdeath sighed, stepping forward as well. An even stronger aura erupted from her, dropping the room's temperature several degrees. Ice-blue snowflakes materialized, drifting through the air, making weaker pirates shiver on the spot.
"General against general, king against king," Esdeath said. "This guy looks kinda weak, but… I'll handle him. Hikari, the horned guy's all yours."
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