The following day.
After the Fire Festival, under Kaido's orders, the Plague—Queen—reluctantly led Souta Kiryuu's Dragon Fang crew to the Udon Prison Mine, where the Seastone quarries were located, to select prisoners.
The Dragon Fang pirates intended to purchase some capable prisoners to use in their experiments. At the same time, the Beasts Pirates were to hand over a number of Devil Fruit–user prisoners as a down payment for Souta Kiryuu's perfected artificial Devil Fruits.
The troublemaker, Yamato, was once again confined under Kaido's strict watch until Souta Kiryuu's airborne warship completed its delivery. Kaido would not allow him to take Yamato away prematurely.
After all, Yamato's strength was immense. Not only did he wield Conqueror's Haki infusion, but he also possessed a Mythical Zoan power, putting his combat level nearly on par with Souta Kiryuu himself.
If Souta Kiryuu ever chose to turn hostile, Kaido would find himself forced to suppress both him and Yamato at the same time—a nearly impossible task.
Thus, Kaido would only hand over Yamato once he had already secured what he wanted from Souta Kiryuu.
Land of Wano · Udon · Prison Mine
Queen the Plague led Souta Kiryuu and his men into the prison to select their captives. Souta's eyes quickly locked onto Kawamatsu.
"That one's off limits," Queen snapped immediately. "This fish-man is a critical rebel. We're keeping him as bait."
The Akazaya Nine remained a primary target of the Beasts Pirates, and Kawamatsu was the only one they had successfully captured. They still planned to use him to lure out the remnants of Wano's rebellion hiding in the shadows.
Moreover, Kaido still hoped to win over Ashura Doji, the powerful ronin entrenched in Kuri. That was why he had never publicly executed Kawamatsu.
Kaido had sent envoys many times to recruit Ashura Doji, whose swordsmanship rivaled that of Jack the Drought. Kaido admired strength like his.
"Holding back even a single prisoner? If that's the case, our cooperation won't last long," Souta Kiryuu said with a cold smile, his words laced with disdain as his oppressive Haki pressed down on Queen.
"Listen here, Souta Kiryuu—this is Beasts Pirates territory!" Queen barked, his face stern though his heart trembled. With Kaido absent on Onigashima, he knew full well he could not defeat Souta's crew. Still, he put on a show of defiance, determined to uphold the pride of the Beasts Pirates.
In truth, Queen looked down on Souta Kiryuu. To him, no matter how famous the Dragon Fang pirates had become, Souta was still just a modified experiment created by Vegapunk—a mere plaything of science.
"Good. Remember that attitude, fat pig," Souta sneered, before turning away.
After Capone Bege finished collecting several Devil Fruit users, Souta purchased Hyogoro the Flower as well—a master of Ryuo Haki—before preparing to leave Udon to search elsewhere in Wano.
Hyogoro had once taught Monkey D. Luffy Ryuo in just a single day. Clearly, he had value.
Ryuo—the Wano style of Armament Haki emission—was more refined and easier to master than the crude version used across the seas. It allowed even weaker Haki users to project their power outward effectively.
In contrast, the Armament emission of the outside world was about raw quantity and brute force. The stronger your body and Haki reserves, the more destructive your outward projection became.
Douglas Bullet, the "Demon Heir," could unleash Armament Haki so vast it resembled Conqueror's Haki, drowning an entire island in indiscriminate destruction.
Ryuo, however, was uniquely Wano's. Passed down through generations, it conserved Haki and lowered the barrier to mastery. It was akin to the Kuja tribe's arrow-infusing Haki—widely practiced and effective.
Just as most warriors of Wano could use Ryuo, most Kuja women had mastered Haki-coated arrows, granting them piercing and explosive power. By contrast, in the wider seas, only the strongest warriors achieved true Haki emission, survivors of countless trials across the Four Blues, Grand Line, and New World.
Those who lived to master it were the genuine elite.
When Bege unfolded the compact Ark Maxim and restored it to full size, the Dragon Fang crew boarded their airborne vessel.
"You planning to leave Wano already?" Queen asked, trying to mask the unease in his voice.
"What business is it of yours? If you've got the guts, bring Kaido himself to watch over us," Souta replied icily, before the Ark Maxim lifted off and soared out of the quarry.
Queen's scalp prickled with dread. He had clearly angered Souta Kiryuu, and he feared it might jeopardize their artificial Devil Fruit trade. If Kaido found out, would he beat him half to death?
Immediately, Queen contacted Orochi via Den Den Mushi, instructing him to keep track of Souta Kiryuu's movements.
As one of Kaido's top officers, Queen also knew of the Pluton battleship hidden beneath Wano. He had been there with Kaido when a fish-man diver confirmed its existence.
That secret—the greatest of Wano—must never fall into Souta Kiryuu's hands. If it did, the consequences would be catastrophic.
Looking back, Queen thought bitterly that he should've just handed Kawamatsu over to get Souta out of Wano sooner.
Aboard the Ark Maxim
The Pirate Empress and Enel fumed, both wishing to kill Queen for his insolence. Souta, however, raised a hand to stop them.
"Kuma," he ordered, his voice calm but firm, "go to Kuri's Amigasa Village. Bring back a little girl named Tama and the masked man known as Tenguyama Hitetsu. Most importantly, secure the blade he holds—the one inscribed with Poneglyph text."
"Enel, Lafitte—you head to Ringo. Capture the sohei who's been stealing weapons. He's actually a fox who ate a Mythical Zoan fruit. How you handle it is your problem. I only care about results."
He handed them a rough map of Wano, his tone leaving no room for argument.
"Understood, Captain," Lafitte replied, tipping his hat respectfully before transforming into a great white bird and taking off. Tracking people was his specialty.
Enel vanished into lightning, serving as both muscle and wide-range observation Haki support.
Kuma, having been given descriptions of Tama and Hitetsu, disappeared as well. A fixed pair living openly as guardian and ward would be easy enough to locate.
Meanwhile, Souta led the rest of his crew toward the Flower Capital in search of Shinobu, wielder of the Ripe-Ripe Fruit.
Kurozumi Orochi's bloodline and Kozuki Hiyori's twin great blades were also on Souta's list.
And then there was the Mythical Zoan power of the Yamata no Orochi. Souta intended to create a perfected artificial version of that fruit.
Whether it would be powerful or as useless as Orochi himself… that remained to be seen.