Yamato knew that the man before her was likely walking on eggshells. "Just do your own thing, Drake. You don't need to worry about me. I promise I won't cause any trouble for your mission."
"I wouldn't dare think such a thing, Young Master," Drake replied respectfully, his posture rigid. "You are the Young Master of the Beasts Pirates; there is no such thing as you causing trouble."
"Haha, you're quite the smooth talker! You're much better at this than that simpleton Jack," Yamato laughed, leaning back against the railing. "He only knows how to argue with me and has never said a single nice word in his life. He's a hopeless, straight-laced guy; whatever you do, don't learn from him."
Drake's eyes twitched at the casual insult directed toward an All-Star. How could the Young Master of the Beasts Pirates be so different from the terrifying "Onihime" he had imagined? Moreover, she had just called Jack the Drought—a man feared across the New World—a "straight-laced guy." Drake didn't even dare to formulate a response.
"That's just how she talks. You'll get used to it," Haruko whispered from the side, a faint smile playing on her lips.
Drake nodded stiffly. "I... I see."
He hadn't expected Yamato to be so unrestrained and unconventional. She was nothing like Kaido, whose presence was an oppressive weight of pure malice. The only similarity between them was the underlying sense of danger—the unmistakable aura of absolute, crushing strength.
"By the way, Drake," Yamato said, sitting down and looking at him with genuine curiosity. "I have some things to ask you. How much do you know about the other members of the Worst Generation?"
Drake snapped out of his thoughts. "I'm from the North Blue, so I have some understanding of the two from my home sea, but I don't know much about the others."
"You mean Trafalgar Law and that Hawkins guy, right?" Haruko interjected.
"Exactly. They are from the North Blue just like me," Drake shared, grateful for a more professional topic. "Hawkins brought his crew to the New World recently, much like I did. As for Trafalgar Law, he became one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea not long ago."
"So, Drake," Yamato asked, taking a cup of black tea from Haruko. "Why did you take the initiative to join us? Why the Beasts Pirates?"
Drake's eyes flickered with a practiced neutrality. "The New World is a place ruled by the Four Emperors. For rookies like us, even if we made a name for ourselves in the Paradise, we are as weak as children before the Yonko. We really only have two choices: develop on our own and get crushed, or seek refuge under a powerful banner. Since I'm an Ancient Zoan user, joining the Beasts Pirates felt like the most logical path. As it turns out, I was right. I was given a role immediately."
Yamato nodded slowly, sipping her tea. "And do you have a goal? Objectives? Ambitions? Don't tell me you want to spend the rest of your life as a lackey for my Idiot Old Man."
"..."
Idiot Old Man? Drake's eyelids jumped. Only the woman in front of him would dare to refer to the "Strongest Creature" with such blatant disrespect.
"Ahem... The Young Master is right. I do have a goal," Drake lied smoothly. "I want to achieve a higher status in the crew—ideally, to become an All-Star."
"An All-Star, huh? Hmm..." Yamato leaned forward, staring at him. Her golden pupils seemed to shimmer with a deep, knowing light.
Under her gaze, Drake felt a cold sweat prickle his neck. It felt as if she were looking right through his skin, reading the secrets written on his bones.
"Well, that's a fine goal! Keep it up. I have high hopes for you, young man," Yamato said suddenly, breaking the tension with a bright smile.
Drake felt his lungs finally expand with a sigh of relief.
"However, Drake—and I'm not looking down on you—but with your current Haki, there's zero hope of you taking down Jack," Yamato added bluntly.
Drake was stunned for a second, but he quickly recovered. "I understand that. That's why it's a goal; even if I can't do it now, it doesn't mean I won't be able to in the future."
"Well said! You have spirit!" Yamato laughed, slapping her knee. "I truly hope that one day you can knock that simpleton Jack flat on his back. I'll stand right in front of him and laugh at his face. Just thinking about it is exciting, hahaha!"
Seeing Yamato lose herself in laughter, Drake felt a wave of cognitive dissonance. This was the legendary Onihime? A pirate with a bounty of 1,869,000,000? She was certainly a blow to the terrifying image the Marines had of her.
"Sigh, Young Master..." Haruko murmured, shaking her head.
The mission was a simple weapon transport and was completed within two weeks. Upon returning to Wano Country, Yamato prepared to head back to her own quarters.
"Drake, don't forget your goal! Strive to knock Jack down as soon as possible. I'll be there to cheer for you," she shouted over her shoulder.
Drake didn't dare reply. If Jack heard that, it would be a miracle if the All-Star didn't make his life a living hell.
This woman is even more unpredictable than I imagined, Drake thought, watching her walk away. I can't figure her out at all. She gives me the constant feeling that she has seen through me, even though there's no way she could know. She's harder to handle than Kaido. If you try to plot against her, you're just inviting death.
He realized then that Yamato was the true number two of the crew. Whether it was her raw strength or her sharp intuition, she was an extraordinary monster. 1.8 billion was far too low a bounty; she was undoubtedly Yonko-level. Drake quickly began summarizing his observations into intelligence reports for SWORD.
On the way to Maria's residence, Haruko looked at Yamato curiously. "Young Master, why were you messing with Drake like that? He's a newcomer. What if you scared him away?"
"Was I? I was just chatting," Yamato shrugged.
"It didn't feel like chatting. It felt like you were testing him with every word. Is there something wrong with him?" Haruko asked.
"Exactly. There's something very wrong with him," Yamato nodded. "But I was mostly just teasing him. Who told him to be an undercover Marine agent?"
"Undercover?!" Haruko was shocked. "But he's a defector! He was a Rear Admiral who turned to piracy. Everyone knows that."
"Identities are just things you give yourself, Haruko. Their credibility isn't that high," Yamato said. "He probably has some special purpose, but it doesn't matter. He can't achieve anything on his own against us."
Haruko sighed. "You're far too relaxed about having a mole in the crew."
"With my Idiot Old Man holding the fort, what can one spy do? If he actually causes some trouble, it'll at least be a good show to watch," Yamato replied indifferently.
In Wano, the Beasts Pirates continued to swell, their numbers reaching twenty thousand. One afternoon, King called Yamato to his office.
"Second Uncle, what's the big emergency?" Yamato asked, seeing King handling paperwork while sipping tea.
"Young Master, it's the scale of the crew. We've exceeded twenty thousand members. It feels bloated and disorganized. Do you have any thoughts on how to handle this?"
"There's not much we can do, Second Uncle," Yamato said, curling her lip. "The Idiot Old Man is reluctant to send people out to develop their own territories. We have too many people, but they're all just sitting here."
"I agree," King sighed. "Big Brother won't allow the 'carriages' to disconnect from the 'locomotive.' But this growth is unhealthy."
"Then let it be," Yamato said casually. "As long as there aren't any major disasters, don't worry about it. When someone finally comes to challenge us, maybe we'll have a chance to 'snip-snip' and help the crew lose some weight."
"The rookies?" King shook his head dismissively. "Kid got his arm cut off by Beckman. Bege chickened out and joined Big Mom. Drake is with us. These 'Worst Generation' members are a joke. I doubt they'll even make it to a Yonko's face, let alone defeat one."
"Who knows about the future? Rookies need time to grow," Yamato replied, her gaze turning toward the window. "But for now, focus on your own strength. That's the only thing that's real. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life as a shut-in in Wano, Second Uncle?"
King smiled faintly. "Of course not. I just want to help Big Brother achieve his goal."
"That's fine, but look long-term. This model is going to crash eventually. And when that happens... that will be the time for the Beasts Pirates to be reborn."
King was visibly shaken. Yamato spoke of the crew's defeat as an inevitability, yet she didn't seem afraid. He wanted to argue that Kaido was invincible, but he found he couldn't. Everything Yamato had predicted so far had come to pass with terrifying accuracy.
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