A five-year-old who could wield Conqueror's Haki…
Miss Bakkin couldn't make sense of it.
Even with the experience she'd gained back when she followed the Rocks Pirates, she still couldn't imagine the sea producing a monster like this.
And the most frightening part wasn't simply that the child had Conqueror's Haki—
it was the fact that his Conqueror's Haki wasn't "newly awakened" at all.
It was already refined.
Polished.
Approaching mastery.
That was what shook her to the bone.
Miss Bakkin swallowed hard, staring up at the sky.
Her wrinkled, ugly face was frozen in fear, her eyes wide and empty as she locked onto the child above the deck—unable to look away.
"…Monster."
Only after a long moment did the word finally slip from her mouth.
Beside her, Weevil wore the same vacant expression.
He turned his head and stared at the pirates collapsed across the ship, then asked in a dazed voice, "Mom… what just happened? Why are they all on the ground?"
"We ran into something terrifying," Miss Bakkin said, forcing herself to breathe.
"Weevil—listen carefully. Don't underestimate him. The moment you move, you go all out."
At that instant, after witnessing that world-shaking burst of Conqueror's Haki, she no longer dared to look down on Kai—
even if he was only five.
A five-year-old with Conqueror's Haki at that level…
It was beyond common sense.
Even Miss Bakkin—well-traveled and well-informed—had never heard of anything like it.
"Okay, Mom," Weevil replied obediently, nodding like an idiot.
He didn't truly understand how terrifying Conqueror's Haki was, so his emotions didn't rise much.
At the same time—
Kai's Conqueror's Haki had wiped out over a hundred pirates in an instant.
And that scene was just as clearly seen by Zephyr and the others watching from the nearby Navy warship.
Smoker, Tina, and the cadets stood there like statues, brains short-circuiting.
"S-so strong…"
One cadet's mouth hung open.
"So this is… the legendary Conqueror's Haki?"
Smoker's eyes went unfocused, his mind shaking.
They'd heard rumors for a long time that Kai possessed Conqueror's Haki—
but seeing it with their own eyes was something else entirely.
A hundred men…
erased in a single breath.
"Kai is a monster," the cadets muttered, almost in unison.
"One in a million… the 'qualities of a king'…"
Zephyr's eyes narrowed as he stared upward, astonished.
He could sense it too—
the Conqueror's Haki Kai just unleashed was far stronger than what he'd shown a year ago back at Marineford, during that incident.
"In just one year…"
"That kid has refined even his Conqueror's Haki to this extent?"
Zephyr's amazement quickly sank back into worry.
"But Conqueror's Haki won't mean much against someone like Whitebeard's 'son.'"
"How are you planning to do this…?"
High above, Kai stood in midair on Geppo, looking down at the pirate ship and the "cleared" deck.
A faint smile lifted the corner of his mouth.
"Trash finally took itself out."
"Now…"
"we can get to the point."
His eyes narrowed.
Then—
he dropped.
BOOM! BOOM!
Each Geppo step cracked the air like a sonic burst as he descended.
A moment later, Kai landed on the pirate ship's deck with a steady thud.
He lifted his head and quietly studied the fat figure before him.
Six or seven meters tall.
A grotesque little giant.
A heavy pressure rolled off the man's body like a tide.
Aside from the snot hanging from his nose and the vacant, idiotic stare—
he had every feature of a powerhouse.
Just…
stupid.
A brutal idiot.
But there was no denying it:
Edward Weevil was strong.
Even if he was only in his early twenties and hadn't yet reached his peak, his strength still wouldn't be inferior to a current Warlord.
Kai's gaze shifted to the woman behind Weevil.
Old.
Ugly.
Short.
The first impression she gave him was simple:
a wicked crone.
Her physique and presence were nothing like Weevil's.
It was honestly hard to imagine how someone barely over a meter tall could "give birth" to a six- or seven-meter giant.
Maybe they weren't related by blood.
Then again…
looking at the ugly faces on both of them, Kai could almost believe they were family.
Ugly in the same way.
As Kai studied them, they studied him.
"A five-year-old monster…"
Miss Bakkin's eyes were heavy with caution as she stared him down.
"Unbelievable."
Kai's eyes gleamed, and he spoke with an easy smile.
"So—are you coming with me voluntarily…"
"or do you want me to personally escort you to Impel Down?"
The moment the words fell—
Miss Bakkin's expression darkened.
Weevil tightened his grip on his naginata, murderous intent rising in his eyes.
He looked ready to move the instant Miss Bakkin gave the order.
Miss Bakkin took a breath, forcing calm back into her voice.
"Let us go. We don't want to fight you."
"You hurt our men. We'll call it even."
"I admit it—I misjudged you. I shouldn't have targeted your warship. I shouldn't have attacked you."
"But don't think you can just 'eat us alive.'"
"If we fight, you may not be able to take us down."
"You might even die here."
"So… how about we stop now?"
Her words were rational, but the hesitation behind them was obvious.
Kai's Conqueror's Haki had rattled her hard enough that she was already looking for an exit.
The deck around them was littered with pirates—collapsed, unconscious, foaming at the mouth.
Even the helmsman and navigator were out cold.
Meaning this pirate ship…
couldn't even be sailed away right now.
So Miss Bakkin had only two choices:
Either fight—kill Kai and wipe out the Marines aboard the warship, then wait for her crew to wake up…
Or both sides disengage.
Kai laughed softly.
"Stop?"
"Hey, hey…"
"Are you misunderstanding something?"
"You're pirates."
"And I'm a Marine."
"If pirates run into Marines, why would I just watch you stroll away right in front of me?"
"Are you dreaming?"
Since they'd crossed paths—
he had no intention of letting them go.
Besides…
the violent itch in his blood was rising again, almost beyond restraint.
Every cell in his body felt like it was cheering—
begging him to clash with a true top-tier opponent.
Marines arrest pirates.
That was natural law.
Weevil hadn't reached his peak yet, but his strength was still extraordinary—easily comparable to a Warlord.
A chance like this didn't come often.
Kai had trained for a full year without a real fight.
And the beast inside him had been choking on that restraint.
Now, Edward Weevil was the perfect target to vent it.
"Honestly…"
"I want to see it too."
"After a year of training… just how strong am I now?"
Kai stared at Weevil, a crimson glint flashing in his eyes.
A heavy pressure began to pour off him—slowly, steadily.
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