"Ah!"
On Whole Cake Island, people looked up in terror. In that single instant, the sky was torn asunder by a gargantuan force! A massive surge of Conqueror's Haki lashed the entire island, causing it to shake incessantly. Those standing upon it felt as if the apocalypse had arrived, letting out screams of primal fear.
At the epicenter of the Haki blast, Kaido's mace clashed head-on with Linlin's Napoleon. At this moment, their strengths were perfectly matched.
Linlin was not yet the gargantuan "stomach-on-legs" of her later years; she had not entered old age and was at the very absolute peak of her power. Kaido, meanwhile, was not in his human form. He had consumed the Devil Fruit provided by the World Government: the Cat-Cat Fruit, Mythical Type, Model: White Tiger. This was a top-tier Mythical Zoan, no less potent than the Azure Dragon Fruit consumed by Beltz.
His body turned pale with black rhythmic stripes, a character for "King" (王) appeared on his forehead, and his fangs grew razor-sharp. His already burly frame expanded to more than double its original size. Facing the mighty Linlin, he had entered his Hybrid Form immediately.
Furthermore, after being captured by Imu, he had been branded with the mark of the Holy Knights. Like Harald, he had been brainwashed, but his resistance was lower than Harald's, and since the mark had been implanted for a longer duration, the indoctrination was total. The Depths Covenant not only brainwashed him but granted him immortality and immense strength, further augmenting his natural power.
Though Kaido was still some distance from his natural prime, being much younger than Linlin, the blessing of the Depths Covenant allowed him to match the strength of Linlin in her prime!
!
Even Linlin was shocked by this sudden surge of power. She said grimly, "I was confused before; the seas said you obtained a White Tiger fruit, and I thought you found it yourself. Now it seems the World Government used this fruit to break you, didn't they?"
"You've truly disappointed me! To be bought off by the World Government like this... it's utterly... pathetic!"
Linlin had always viewed Kaido as a younger brother. Back in the Rocks Pirates, she had done her best to protect him, and the two often acted in tandem. Her current fury was laced with genuine heartbreak; she hadn't expected that only a few years after the Rocks crew disbanded, Kaido would become a lapdog for the Government. This was not the "brother" she remembered.
In that case, she would kill him! Linlin charged at Kaido, Napoleon swinging down with crushing force. Kaido swung his Hassaikai in response, black lightning coiling around their weapons as the atmosphere grew increasingly oppressive. Whole Cake Island shuddered under the weight of two titans.
...
!
"Charlotte Linlin has been captured?!"
Back in the New World from the North Blue, Beltz met Liltotto once again. By now, Liltotto had vomited up the Five Elders from her stomach—all of them, including Saint Peter, whom she had eaten long ago. After experiencing that peak power, returning to her original state felt slightly jarring, but she couldn't stay in the World Government forever.
The life of a Celestial Dragon in the One Piece world was pleasant, but they eventually had to return to the Wandenreich. They had been out long enough; it was time to check in, depending on how much business Beltz had left to conclude here. Because she was leaving, the World Government had squeezed every drop of value out of her before her departure.
The Government's three-pronged operation had been half a success and half a failure. The Op-Op Fruit was gone, stolen by Beltz. While Whitebeard wasn't captured, he was presumed dead in the Government's eyes, counting as a partial win. The third mission, however, was a perfect success: Kaido had captured Charlotte Linlin.
"I only just found out," Liltotto said. "Imu can speak directly to the Holy Knights without going through the Five Elders. Until Kaido brought Linlin back to the Holy Land, even we didn't know."
"It doesn't matter," Beltz said. "Let them take her. It only proves the World Government is getting desperate. Tomorrow... the whole world will be in an uproar."
The Navy's failure in the North Blue would never be publicized. But the "execution" of Whitebeard and the destruction of the Charlotte family were world-shaking events! Two of the most powerful pirates in the world had been "easily" neutralized by the Government. The prestige the Government lost due to Beltz's existence would likely be restored by these two actions, making people fear them once more.
"Come back to Wano with me for a while. Let's see how the tides of the sea change."
Beltz decided to take Liltotto to Wano. He was waiting for two things in the One Piece world. First, the Hogyoku extracted by Vegapunk; once the seal was removed, Beltz planned to implant it into either Erensig or Keiko. He couldn't take it himself because it would be too easily detected by Yhwach when he returned to the Wandenreich. Keiko was a good candidate since she already held Soul King power, but her "loadout" was already high. Erensig, however, lacked a "cultivation accelerator."
The second reason was also for Erensig: he was waiting for the Azure Dragon Fruit to be replicated. With a Hogyoku and a replicated Dragon Fruit, Erensig's strength would skyrocket. Beltz's goal was for all three of his "bodies" to reach "Emperor-level" before beginning the final fusion.
And when it came to reaping rewards, it wasn't just Bleach world that was ripe for the picking. The One Piece world... was no different. He had considered "farming" Imu before but deemed it too dangerous. Yhwach gave power only to take it back with interest, but Imu's power overwrote your very mind. Beltz refused to let his consciousness be tampered with.
But things were different now. He had performed "psychological therapy" on Harald and Whitebeard and had gained experience dealing with Imu's mental overwriting. If he used it on himself, he was confident he could protect his ego. Of course, he couldn't go personally—Imu wouldn't trust him. But his two clones were unknown entities. He could send them to infiltrate the Government as new "war assets."
He already had a rough plan since obtaining the Op-Op Fruit. The World Government was searching for warriors to turn into weapons, right? With the Op-Op Fruit, he could "assemble" these warriors into a singular weapon. To the Government, it would look like he was building them an army, but in reality, he could dismantle the "monster" with a single thought whenever he chose.
Of course, this was a long-term plan. Keiko would need years of medical study to master the fruit's potential.
It was the following day when Beltz arrived in Wano with Liltotto. The previous events had only taken half a day, but the flight back took a full day because Beltz was exhausted. Maintaining multiple high-level combatants across worlds had taken a severe toll.
As they arrived, the morning newspapers were being distributed. Beltz bought a copy and read it slowly. As expected, there was no mention of the North Blue failure. The focus was entirely on the two "victories." The death of Whitebeard and the capture of Charlotte Linlin sent shockwaves through the globe!
It was unbelievable! People had viewed Whitebeard and Linlin as the top contenders for the "Emperors of the Sea," yet they were wiped out or captured in the blink of an eye. The World Government was still the ultimate power. People assumed Beltz had only succeeded through trickery; in a real fight, even the strongest pirates were no match for the Government. The fact that the Government acted simultaneously meant they could handle at least two "Emperors" at once. Terrifying.
Beltz clicked his tongue and tossed the paper aside. The content was hollow, but it surely terrified everyone else—especially the pirates. They could all see that the Government was finally drawing its sword against the Great Pirate Era.
Even the Roger Pirates, the freest crew on the sea, fell into a rare, heavy silence. Others were one thing, but... that was Whitebeard. Since the Rocks Pirates disbanded, the Whitebeard Pirates had been Roger's greatest rivals. They knew his strength better than anyone. And now, he was dead?
"He might not be dead," Rayleigh said, seeing the low morale. "According to our intel, his status is 'unknown.'"
"Unknown means dead," Gaban couldn't help but say. "If he were alive, would he let his 'sons' be hunted down like this?"
After Whitebeard vanished, his crew had splintered. They had initially broken through the Navy blockade at Sphinx to find him, only to realize he was long gone. Liltotto hadn't been interested in them, or she could have wiped them out then. They searched for half a day but found nothing, eventually fleeing when Navy reinforcements arrived. If Whitebeard were able, he would have appeared to save his family.
"Perhaps he's heavily injured and recuperating on an island, out of touch with the news," Roger said. He refused to believe Newgate was gone. They were enemies, but Roger had always admired him and considered him a friend, much like Garp. They had clashed countless times, but those battles built respect, not hatred.
"Gaban, turn the rudder!" Roger suddenly commanded.
"Huh? We're not going to the West Blue?"
"No. We're going to Wano!" Roger shouted. "I bet Shiki knows something!"
The papers mentioned Shiki, saying he and Newgate teamed up but were still defeated, resulting in Shiki's escape and Whitebeard's death. If Shiki was there, he had to know the truth. Roger had been uneasy lately; he felt a mysterious force was targeting pirates, causing masters to vanish. He was certain that neither Garp nor Sengoku was the one who took down Whitebeard and Linlin. So who was it? How much hidden power did the Government have?
"We should stay calm," Rayleigh cautioned. "Besides Shiki, Beltz is there too."
"Don't worry. He has a grudge against the Government; he won't side with them."
Rayleigh wasn't worried about Beltz helping the Government; he was worried about the danger of Wano being Shiki's stronghold filled with powerful fighters. But seeing Roger's resolve, he could only return to the newspaper, trying to find clues hidden between the lines of the Government's self-glorification.
"Bullshit!"
In Wano, Shiki saw the paper and flew into a rage, tearing it to shreds. "Saying I ran away?! I think Morgans is tired of living!"