Zephyr's statement was even more shocking than his own defeat by Setsuna.
Everyone found it hard to believe. This former Marine Admiral, who had rebelled against Marine Headquarters, was actively joining the ranks of a Warlord.
Ochoku's face contorted, veins bulging on his forehead. "Useless! Even more useless than the Marine Admirals Rocks killed back in the day!"
He had been counting on Zephyr to buy more time, but now Zephyr had directly joined the other side.
Kizaru, for once, set aside his nonchalant smile, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "Setsuna-sama's ship seems to have excellent benefits. Maybe after I retire, I should go work as an officer on his ship?"
Ace rubbed his temples, looking pained. "The vice-captain position is getting harder and harder to hold."
He counted on his fingers. "Enel, Uta, Hancock, Teach, and now a former Marine Admiral who's even more formidable… My vice-captain position is in jeopardy."
The NEO Marines were also in an uproar. Ain asked in confusion, "Sensei, why?"
Zephyr's voice was low but firm. "I want to gamble one last time with the remainder of my life."
Setsuna stood to the side, contemplating with interest, 'Once I obtain the Yami Yami no Mi, I'll have Zephyr eat it.'
The idea of a former Marine Admiral, once a symbol of light, consuming the fruit representing darkness… this ironic pairing filled him with anticipation.
'Admiral of Darkness… sounds pretty good.'
At that moment, a massive pirate fleet suddenly surged into the waters around Hachinosu. On the lead pirate ship flew the flag of the Beasts Pirates.
"Wororororo." An earth-shaking dragon's roar echoed from the sky. Kaido, transformed into a blue dragon, spiraled down. His enormous draconic body blotted out the sky.
"Ochoku, your situation seems quite dire. Want to join me?"
His gaze swept over Crocodile and Moria. "You two as well. As long as you're willing to submit, I can overlook your previous offenses."
"Kaido, do you think you're Captain Rocks? You actually want to recruit me?" Ochoku was extremely displeased. Back in the day, Kaido was just a trainee on Rocks' ship.
"Wororororo! I've already surpassed Captain Rocks from back then! If you're unwilling to bow your head, then just die!" Kaido laughed uproariously.
Conflicting emotions flickered in Ochoku's eyes. He thought to himself: 'I'll agree for now. I can always betray him later and take over his forces.'
Thinking this, Ochoku sneered. "Since you have such ambition… I'll submit to you."
On the other side, however, Moria roared in fury. "You damn bastard! You killed so many of my men and still want me to bow my head?!"
The blue dragon snorted, exhaling two puffs of scorching steam. "The bones of you Kozuki Clan's members are still just as hard, huh? Kozuki Moriya."
Moria was stunned, frowning. "What Kozuki Moriya? I'm Gecko Moria!"
Kaido scratched his head with a dragon claw. "You're not from the Kozuki Clan? Impossible. The samurai of Wano think you're dead. They even erected a monument for the hero, Kozuki Moriya."
Moria's face darkened. "I have nothing to do with any damn Kozuki Family."
Setsuna wasn't surprised at all. The people of Wano were deeply subservient, believing only in the Kozuki name, trusting no other.
Moria dared to rebel against Kaido, so of course he was a hero. And a hero must be from the Kozuki Family.
"Kaido, don't think picking this fruit will be so easy." Setsuna took a step into the air, his figure walking across the sky as if on solid ground.
Seeing Setsuna, Kaido finally remembered the purpose of his trip and roared in fury. "You brat, don't get too cocky! Last time, I was just careless! How dare you spread everywhere that you beat me?"
"That wasn't me saying it," Setsuna smiled slightly. "It was the consensus after everyone saw the newspapers. What? Was it not you who was sent flying that day?"
Hearing this, Kaido grew even angrier. "That was because I was careless! I didn't dodge!"
"Whether you were careless or not doesn't matter. We'll just fight again today," Setsuna flexed his fists. "Now that I've also mastered Future Sight, you no longer have an advantage."
Kaido was somewhat surprised but quickly accepted it. After all, his opponent was someone he acknowledged. Mastering Future Sight in such a short time wasn't strange.
"Perfect. Saves you from complaining that I had an unfair advantage if you lose," Kaido opened his draconic maw wide, spewing forth a torrent of scorching Bolo Breath.
"Bolo Breath again. How unoriginal." Setsuna raised his Conqueror's Haki, charging straight through the Bolo Breath.
His right hand formed a claw. Five sharp claw-winds tore through the air, fiercely slashing towards Kaido's underbelly.
[Single Claw Rending Heaven!]
Kaido's dragon tail lashed out like a steel whip. Setsuna was smashed down towards the sea surface by this strike, while Kaido's dragon tail was torn open, bleeding profusely.
At the instant before hitting the water, Setsuna pressed his palms downward. A blast of air propelled him back up into the sky.
Kaido's injuries healed at a visible rate. By the time Setsuna flew back up, his dragon tail was already fully restored.
'The future is constantly being rewritten,' Setsuna mused, intrigued by this mysterious change.
The future he had foreseen was Kaido's dragon belly being torn open by him. Although he wasn't sure what future Kaido had foreseen, it had likely also changed.
This chaotic stream of information assaulted his thoughts, but he couldn't abandon Future Sight either. Otherwise, the initiative would completely fall into Kaido's hands.
"Then I'll batter your brain!" Setsuna abruptly closed in. His fists, wreathed in black and red lightning, rained down like hail on Kaido's massive draconic head.
In pain, Kaido's draconic body writhed violently, entangling Setsuna within it.
The several-hundred-meter-long dragon body constricted like a giant serpent. Setsuna's bones emitted ominous cracking sounds.
But Setsuna simply shrank his bones to slip free, then grabbed a dragon scale with one hand. Wrapping his legs around the dragon's body, he 'rode' on Kaido's back like a dragon rider.
"Get off me!" Kaido thrashed wildly. The surface of his body suddenly erupted in scorching flames.
"Fire Dragon Great Torch!"
Kaido dove down from the sky, rampaging wildly across Hachinosu.
Wherever the dragon's body passed, cliff faces collapsed, the ground cracked. The entire island shook violently.
The various forces battling on the island fled in terror. Even powerful combatants like Crocodile didn't dare stand in Kaido's destructive path.
"Is this the strength of an Emperor?" Crocodile's eyes darkened. Although he had regained his peak strength, he was still far inferior to an Emperor.
"Tsk, good thing Setsuna-sama is holding the front," Kizaru felt a wave of relief. If Headquarters had sent him alone, dealing with Zephyr first and then facing Kaido's attack… he'd have had no choice but to flee.
As Kaido crashed around wildly, Setsuna clung stubbornly to the dragon scale. His right fist gathered power, repeatedly striking the same spot on the dragon's spine.
When Hachinosu's main peak was shattered by the impact, Kaido finally couldn't bear it any longer and transformed into his hybrid dragon-man form.