After hearing Cavendish's question, Ray simply responded with a "Hmm."
Hearing this, Cavendish took it as a confirmation.
He immediately began to hype himself up, daydreaming about following his boss to conquer the Beast Pirates.
'When the Boss fights Kaido, I absolutely must have Frieda take a photo of me standing with both of them.'
'Following the Boss... what a glorious life!'
Why was Cavendish excited when following Ray to challenge Big Mom, but afraid when Kaido was mentioned?
The main reason was a painful memory.
When he first arrived in the New World, Cavendish had been incredibly ambitious.
To make a name for himself and attract countless beauties, he had chosen to challenge the Beast Pirates directly without even doing his research.
Before he could even enter Wano Country, he encountered a massive ship with a mammoth standing on it.
Seeing the Kaido symbol on that ship, Cavendish immediately charged forward to fight.
The result? He spent a month in bed!
And he was lucky at that.
If not for a sudden storm that separated the ships, he would have been trampled to death by that mammoth right then and there.
During his recovery period, Cavendish finally realized who that person was.
It was one of Kaido's three top executives—Jack the Drought.
And Cavendish had specifically chosen to fight Jack while the man was using his Mammoth Devil Fruit transformation...
Since he was "instantly wrecked" by Jack, completely overwhelmed without any chance to fight back, his fighting spirit had been shattered.
So, even though Cavendish's strength had improved over these past ten months, whenever Kaido was mentioned, he felt a deep, instinctive fear.
He essentially suffered from Beast Pirates PTSD!
However, Cavendish's fear this time was far less intense than usual.
The reason was simple: he was following a Boss who could kill a Yonko.
This time, when "visiting" Kaido, he had the ultimate backup!
...
After responding to Cavendish, Ray didn't pay any more attention to the dramatic prince.
He entered a state of deep thought.
'Why go looking for trouble with Kaido?'
Because in Ray's memory of the original timeline, Kaido had once chosen to attack the Whitebeard Pirates while they were heading to Marineford to save Ace.
Ray had some speculations about why.
Kaido is a warmonger and an ambitious schemer.
His ideal world operates on the "law of the jungle," where only the strong are free.
To achieve this ideal, he needs to shatter the world order and expand his military power.
That is likely why he chose to provoke Whitebeard.
Whether it was to weaken the Whitebeard Pirates before the war or to backstab an already injured Whitebeard once the war began, it was all profit and no loss for Kaido.
This man, known as the "World's Strongest Creature," is actually a ruthless strategist—profit-driven and great at seizing opportunities.
Since Ray had decided to join the Whitebeard Pirates in the Summit War, it was only natural to eliminate this troublemaker before the war even began.
'You, Kaido, are an opportunist who loves chaos.'
'I, Ray, am a planner who eliminates uncertainties.'
With plenty of time before the war began, Ray decided to strike first.
Kaido would be the second Yonko he killed!
...
One day later, on the Grand Line.
A massive, island-like pirate ship called Thriller Bark trapped the Thousand Sunny in its territory.
Luffy immediately decided to venture onto the island.
Even if the others objected, it was useless once Luffy made up his mind, so they resolved to explore.
At the island's center, Gecko Moria, the Shadow-Shadow Fruit user and one of the Shichibukai, stood at the highest point of his castle.
He glared fiercely at the Straw Hat Pirates who had entered his domain.
On his own turf, Moria was brimming with confidence.
He believed that with his trump cards—and the fact that Ray wasn't with them—dealing with the Straw Hat Pirates would be no problem at all.
...
At the same time, in Water 7.
The "Floating Artist" Pirates and the "Barto Club" arrived almost simultaneously at the water metropolis where the Enies Lobby incident had started.
Mikita prepared to lead Gem, Bon Clay, Marianne, Galdino and 1,000 of their subordinates into the city to restock supplies.
But as soon as they landed on the island, they were ambushed by the Franky Family.
Mikita and her crew were not like Zoro—they didn't hold back.
They were ready to slaughter these self-proclaimed "pirate hunters" who dared to ambush them.
The noise drew Mayor Iceburg to the scene.
Just as Mikita was about to kill them, Bartolomeo suddenly appeared.
He rushed in and explained that Franky, the leader of the Franky Family, had actually joined the Straw Hat Pirates.
This explanation saved the lives of Franky's underlings.
Everyone realized they were all acquaintances of the Straw Hat Pirates, so the tension vanished, and they began holding a banquet instead.
During the feast, Mikita and the others tearfully shared their grievances with Bartolomeo.
After the battle with Golden Lion, the floating island had collapsed.
They had to focus entirely on survival and lost their chance to meet up with the Straw Hats.
When they fell into the sea, they found themselves surrounded by Marines.
They had hoped to fight alongside Luffy and the others, but the Straw Hat Pirates' ship could fly!
With one burst of propulsion, the Sunny vanished from sight.
Mikita's crew, however, could only fight while retreating, feeling utterly frustrated.
Now, they had no idea where the Straw Hat Pirates had gone.
But there was one piece of information Mikita knew: the whereabouts of Ray.
Thinking of that silver-haired man, Mikita's face involuntarily flushed, and her gaze grew distant.
"Ray-sama is truly captivating... he's so powerful and free."
"But since I've missed the chance to become his companion, I must become the strongest female captain under his command instead."
Iceburg, Bartolomeo, and the others observed the female captain's demeanor.
They suddenly understood, nodding with thoughtful expressions.
Regarding Ray... though they weren't very familiar with him personally, they were truly impressed by his strength.
He fiercely battled an Admiral and a Yonko at Enies Lobby.
Not long ago, he went to the New World and killed the said Yonko.
A devastatingly handsome and powerful man.
If they were women, they'd surely be captivated by Ray too!
Especially Mikita, who had actually traveled with him for a while.
As for Gem, Galdino, Bon Clay, and the others, their reactions were much more calm; they were used to their captain's crush.
Whenever Ray was mentioned, Mikita would always act like this.
Of course, they too looked forward to the moment they would meet Ray again.
Strictly speaking, the 'Floating Artists' claimed to follow the Straw Hat Pirates, but their main loyalty was actually to Ray.
They preferred to follow "absolute strength."
But Bartolomeo was different.
He was moved by the Straw Hat Pirates' way of doing things.
He genuinely followed the "spirit of rebellion and freedom."
(Of course, he admired Ray-senpai too. Who wouldn't?)
After gulping down three more mouthfuls of strong liquor, Mikita's enchanting eyes grew somewhat dazed beneath her long eyelashes.
"What do you think Ray-sama is doing right now?"
"Is he about to reunite with Luffy and the others?"
Everyone agreed that should be the case.
But then again, who could truly predict the actions of a man like that?
...
Another day passed.
On the White Horse, Ray had just used his tail to knock out Chouchou.
The dog had awakened again and gone into a frenzy, so Ray had to subdue him and wrap him back up in his fluff.
Afterward, Ray walked from the bedroom out to the deck.
He looked ahead and saw a massive waterfall flowing upward against gravity.
He knew exactly where they were.
They have arrived at Wano!
--------
Wano country arc begin!