Charlotte Linlin had no idea that Kaido was contemplating how to manipulate her.
After the two sides exchanged pleasantries for a while, Charlotte Linlin said, "I can't deal with that monster Whitebeard by myself. But with you, it should be manageable. And then there's the Marines to consider."
Kaido nodded but said nothing.
Charlotte Linlin continued, "But we don't need to worry about the Marines for now. I've made this alliance so public that the whole world knows about it. The Marines should understand that our first target isn't them, but Whitebeard. Given the Marines' calculating nature, they'll probably wait until we're fighting Whitebeard, maybe even until the battle gets fierce, before they make their move. But in that kind of situation, as long as we're careful, they shouldn't find an opening. If they really dare to come, we'll deal with them first."
Kaido remained silent but nodded in agreement with Charlotte Linlin's assessment.
Charlotte Linlin glanced at Kaido, then said meaningfully, "Since you don't have any objections on that front, let's discuss the alliance itself."
Kaido was quiet for a moment before continuing. "I don't have many elite fighters under my command, but my military strength is still formidable. At the same time, I can manufacture excellent weapons to solve your Big Mom Pirates' needs in that area—"
"I've already considered all that, Kaido." Charlotte Linlin cut him off with a wicked smile. "What I mean is, if we form an alliance, there must be a leader, right?"
Kaido glanced at Charlotte Linlin and said, "Then let's fight. Let's see who's stronger between the two of us. Whoever wins will be the leader!"
Although Kaido had already accepted reality in his heart and was willing to swallow his pride for future gains by letting Charlotte Linlin lead, when it came to this critical juncture, he still had to fight for position. If nothing else, just to make his stance clear.
They couldn't let Charlotte Linlin gain these concessions too easily.
Charlotte Linlin's smile turned sinister. "We're about to form an alliance, so why fight each other? You're just embarrassing yourself, Kaido. Let me be blunt. What can your Beasts Pirates possibly compare with my Big Mom Pirates? In terms of capable officers, you only have King and Queen worth mentioning, while I have many powerful subordinates. In terms of territory, you only hold Wano Country, while my Totto Land has swept across a quarter of the New World. In terms of population, how many people does Wano Country have? My Totto Land has a population of tens of millions with more than enough troops. Not to mention wealth, which I have in abundance. From every angle, Kaido, you're no match for me right now. If you claim you want to be the boss, will my people accept it?"
Charlotte Linlin's words were extremely impolite, but she said them anyway because she understood perfectly well that being polite to Kaido was useless. You had to crush him completely to make him submit.
"You're so long-winded!" Kaido roared, then continued, "Back on Rocks' ship, everything was decided by strength alone. Isn't that how we pirates determine who becomes boss and captain? No matter how much the weak possess, it's nothing but charity from the strong, Linlin!"
"Are you suggesting you can take all this from me?" Charlotte Linlin grinned wickedly.
As she finished speaking, her aura suddenly erupted, pushing the table between them slightly aside. Kaido glared at Charlotte Linlin and released his own powerful aura. The two forces raged wildly within the castle, seemingly ready to clash at any moment if words failed.
"Don't forget, you owe me a huge favor," Charlotte Linlin said seriously.
When this matter was mentioned, Kaido's expression shifted slightly, his aura weakening somewhat, though he still retorted, "That was many years ago. You're still going to bring that up?"
"That's a favor you'll never repay in full. Have you forgotten who gave you your ability? It was me! Who took the best care of you back on Rocks' ship? It was me! Now that you've grown stronger and more independent, are you going to turn against your big sister?" Charlotte Linlin scolded.
Surprise flashed through Katakuri's eyes in the distance, and Jack looked equally shocked.
Charlotte Linlin's words seemed to reveal a secret.
Back when they were on Rocks' ship, Kaido had been Charlotte Linlin's younger brother?
Although Katakuri was surprised, after thinking it through carefully, he felt it seemed quite plausible. After all, Kaido hadn't refuted these claims.
Then he thought further. His mother had once mentioned that Kaido's Zoan-type Fish-Fish Fruit, Mythical Beast Model: Azure Dragon had been given to him by her
In other words, before that, Kaido hadn't been a Devil Fruit user.
Which meant his strength must have been significantly reduced back then.
So during that time on the ship, it wasn't impossible that Kaido's status had actually been lower than his mother's.
Kaido's expression wavered uncertainly as he stared intently at Charlotte Linlin, while Charlotte Linlin stared back into his eyes, as if they'd fight at any disagreement.
After a long while, Kaido finally relaxed his aggressive stance and snorted coldly. "I'm not afraid of you. I'm just repaying the favor you showed me back then!"
Charlotte Linlin also subsided, smiling. "Then let's get along well like we used to..."
"Hmph!" Kaido still snorted coldly.
But this was also a statement of his position: after the alliance formed, Charlotte Linlin would be the boss.
Charlotte Linlin looked extremely satisfied and couldn't help smiling broadly.
It was hard to say who'd truly won in this invisible confrontation. Although Kaido had failed to secure the leadership position, he hadn't expected to succeed in the first place. He'd also taken advantage of this incident to repay all those "favors" from the past in one stroke and salvage his reputation. It was like getting something for nothing.
So it was clear that Kaido, though he appeared to be a simple brute on the surface, was actually quite cunning.
As for Charlotte Linlin, she knew in her heart that the favors she'd shown back then were essentially worthless now. Talking about gratitude and honor with a pirate like Kaido was ridiculous.
If she didn't demand repayment now, he'd probably never return it. Rather than that, she might as well test it. Sure enough, it had some effect. Anyway, she'd achieved her objective and suffered no loss.
Soon after this exchange, Kaido and Charlotte Linlin reached an agreement, and the two sides concluded a pirate alliance. During the alliance period, Charlotte Linlin would take the lead in operations.
Afterward, during a three-day banquet on Totto Land's Cake Island, news of the official alliance between the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates spread throughout the world via newspapers.
Many pirates in the New World were shocked by this development.
Although they'd heard rumors of this trend before, no one had expected it to be formalized so quickly.
With the alliance between the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates, the pirate landscape in the New World had been divided into two major camps.
On one side stood the Whitebeard Pirates. On the other, the alliance between Charlotte Linlin and Kaido.
At least from the current situation, if anyone still wanted to survive in the New World, they couldn't avoid these two major forces. They'd have to choose one to join.
Once both sides were prepared, there would inevitably be a massive battle between these two powers!
Undoubtedly, as news of Kaido and Charlotte Linlin's alliance spread, many intelligent observers realized that the New World, which had been relatively quiet since Shiki's capture, was about to witness its battle for the pirate throne!
In the end, would the Whitebeard Pirates, known as the world's strongest, prevail? Or would the current monstrous combination of Big Mom and Kaido's alliance triumph?
Over the past few years, the Big Mom Pirates and the Whitebeard Pirates had engaged in endless conflicts, but in most cases, the Whitebeard Pirates had emerged victorious.
Charlotte Linlin had consistently suffered more losses than wins.
But it was undeniable that even so, the Whitebeard Pirates had been unable to destroy the Big Mom Pirates. Totto Land continued to develop.
Therefore, most observers believed that although the Whitebeard Pirates were stronger, Charlotte Linlin wasn't weak either.
Now, Charlotte Linlin had found Kaido as reinforcement, and the two major pirate crews had joined forces to face the Whitebeard Pirates.
At this point, it was genuinely difficult to predict who would win or lose, making it uncomfortable for many to place their bets.
In short, with the alliance between these two organizations, the situation throughout the entire world had been shaken.
Even the Five Elders working on reconstruction projects in Mary Geoise were growing uneasy because of the alliance between Kaido and Charlotte Linlin, which resembled the Rocks Pirates of old.
At this moment in the Five Elders' office, the Five Elders were discussing these matters with Fleet Admiral Kong.
"Didn't Finn and Sakazuki go to the New World? Did they fail to prevent the alliance?" Saint Saturn asked, looking at Fleet Admiral Kong.
Fleet Admiral Kong shook his head. "Actually, they're pursuing the Straw Hat Pirates. We suspect the Straw Hat Pirates might evolve into something resembling the Roger Pirates of the past. As for this alliance, our Marines' intention is to let them fight among themselves first."
The Five Elders weren't particularly anxious, just somewhat uneasy. After hearing the calm response from Fleet Admiral Kong, they felt somewhat relieved. Then Saint Saturn asked, "And after that?"
"After that, our Marines will contain them in the New World. According to analysis from our intelligence staff, even if Kaido and Charlotte Linlin's alliance wage war against the Whitebeard Pirates, the possibility of either side completely eliminating the other in a short period is extremely low. We estimate this contest will likely transform into a long-term, stable struggle after an initial fierce battle. This could last five years, or even ten years," Fleet Admiral Kong said seriously.
The Five Elders nodded again and felt considerably more relaxed. After thinking it through carefully, the current situation could be considered evenly matched. How could a victor be decided so easily?
"Since your Marines have a strategy, we won't ask further questions. We'll leave it to you. After all, you're the professionals," Saint Peter said with a smile.
It was clear that the World Government and the Five Elders' attitude toward the Marines was indeed much kinder than before.
Fleet Admiral Kong also smiled. "Yes, please rest assured, my lords."
Fleet Admiral Kong spoke with confidence because he knew the Marines now had the strength to provide backup. No matter what kind of chaos these pirates caused, as long as the Marines were determined to act, they could contain it and wouldn't let the situation deteriorate to an uncontrollable level.
That's why he was so stable!
"Let's talk about Finn and the others, and this Straw Hat Shanks. What about the Straw Hat Pirates? Do you really think they have the potential to become the next Roger Pirates? Is that why they must be eliminated in advance?" Saint Warcury asked.
Fleet Admiral Kong nodded seriously. "Straw Hat Shanks was originally a member of Roger's pirate crew. Even though most of Roger's former crewmates are now in hiding, he's never given up on being a pirate. We only noticed his real threat recently after his actions in the New World—"
Just as Fleet Admiral Kong was explaining these matters to the Five Elders...
At this moment in the New World, Finn's fleet of armed merchant ships, flying the Amway Group flag, was gradually approaching their destination!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Writing takes time, coffee, and a lot of love.If you'd like to support my work, join me at [email protected]/GoldenGaruda
You'll get early access to over 50 chapters, selection on new series, and the satisfaction of knowing your support directly fuels more stories.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~