That thought instantly detonated the fury in Garp's heart.
Attack Kaido's stronghold.
Right here, right now, in front of Kaido, he would blast the fortress that bastard had spent years building, along with all those Beasts, straight into the bottom of the sea.
The muscles on Garp's face twitched slightly, and the madness and unreasonable savagery rooted deep in his bones began gathering around him, making even the surrounding air turn thick and heavy.
The Marine soldiers behind Garp found it difficult to breathe, as though an invisible hand had seized them by the throat.
"Kaido."
Garp spoke again, his voice stripped of all emotion, calm like the eve of a storm.
"I'll say this one last time. Call back that mad dog of yours named Jack. Otherwise, today, I'll let you taste what it feels like to have your home stolen out from under you."
Before his words had even finished, an invisible wave of Haki erupted from Garp's not particularly tall body like a shockwave.
Hum—!
The sea beneath the dog-headed warship suddenly sank downward, sending out a visible white ring of waves that spread madly in every direction.
Kaido's laughter stopped abruptly.
His golden eyes narrowed slightly, and the drunken arrogance on his face finally receded a little.
Kaido could tell that Garp was not joking.
This old bastard, mad enough to even ignore the Celestial Dragons when pushed too far, was absolutely capable of doing something like that.
"Wororororo... Threatening me? Garp, have you gone senile?"
Kaido hoisted his kanabo back onto his shoulder, the huge head of the club striking the deck with a dull thud.
"With just that broken ship of yours?"
Although his mouth was still mocking, the violent aura around Kaido had already turned heavy as a painting.
What Kaido was wary of had never been that single warship.
It was the man named Monkey D. Garp.
In an instant, the atmosphere tightened to its absolute limit.
It was like a bowstring pulled as far back as it could go, ready to snap at any moment and release a tremendous crisis.
Just then, a voice utterly calm and devoid of emotion came from behind Kaido.
"Vice Admiral Garp, please calm yourself."
King the Wildfire, his entire body wrapped in black leather, slowly stepped forward and stood at Kaido's side.
No expression could be seen on King's masked face. Only those sharp eyes quietly watched Garp.
"Regarding Jack's attack on the G-18 Branch, Kaido-san has already sent word to Marine Headquarters. It is merely a return gift for the Marines' previous offense. Officially, it is a limited reprisal."
A faint trace of mockery entered King's tone.
"Whether G-18 can survive that return gift is another matter."
Sent word?
Garp's brows twisted into a knot, and the unease in his heart grew even stronger.
This bastard was deliberately twisting the situation!
How could Sengoku possibly accept that kind of bullshit arrangement with Kaido?
King seemed to see through Garp's thoughts, but his voice remained flat.
"Besides, it is already too late for you to worry now. According to the news we just received, that precious brat you keep protecting, the Marine Headquarters special envoy Zaraki, has already arrived at the G-18 Branch and engaged Jack in battle."
"What did you say?!"
Garp's eyes instantly turned red.
The Haki that had only been gathering around him moments earlier now completely slipped out of control, turning into black-red lightning that lashed wildly around him and tore at the ship's railing until it creaked.
Zaraki was facing Jack alone?
That brat—how dared he?!
"Vice Admiral!"
Bogard shouted in a low voice, his hand already pressing against the hilt at his waist.
An equally sharp aura rose from him as he tried to suppress Garp's runaway anger, if only slightly.
"Calm down! They're deliberately provoking you!"
But how could Garp still listen to reason right now?
His mind was filled with the image of Zaraki facing that monster alone, and his heart felt as though it had been seized by a giant hand, squeezed so hard he could barely breathe.
"Wororororo!"
Seeing Garp furious yet unable to move recklessly, Kaido burst into delighted laughter.
"See that, Garp? This is the powerless rage of the weak! That brat of yours has probably already had every bone in his body crushed by Jack! Stay here obediently and wait for the news of his death!"
Kaido turned around, seemingly too lazy to continue dealing with Garp, ready to return to Onigashima and enjoy his victory wine.
Purupurupuru...
Purupurupuru...
At that moment, a rapid Den Den Mushi ring rang out across the deck of the Beasts Pirates flagship.
Kaido paused, then spread his mouth into a grin.
He took the anxious-looking Den Den Mushi from his subordinate, his huge palm almost able to wrap around it completely.
Kaido glanced contemptuously at Garp in the distance, raised the Den Den Mushi to his mouth, and deliberately spoke in an amplified, mocking voice.
"Is that you, Ginrummy? How's it going? Has Jack had enough fun yet? Tell him not to kill that brat Zaraki all at once. Make sure he leaves him one breath. I want Garp to hear that brat's screams before he dies! Wororororo!"
The surrounding Beasts Pirates burst into roaring laughter.
On the dog-headed warship, the Marines' faces turned ashen, and their fists clenched tightly.
Every gaze, whether filled with gloating or furious anxiety, locked onto that small Den Den Mushi, waiting for the cruel verdict.
But from the other end, there was no proud report as expected.
Only silence.
Then came Ginrummy's heavy, chaotic, terrified breathing.
Kaido's smile stiffened slightly.
"Talk!" Kaido roared impatiently.
In the next second, a sharp, hoarse female voice, completely twisted out of shape and seemingly forced out with every last ounce of strength, exploded from the Den Den Mushi's mouth and clearly spread across the deathly silent sea.
"Ka... Kaido-san..."
"Jack-sama... Jack-sama, he..."
"He was killed!"
"He was finished by that Zaraki's final slash!"
Click.
Time seemed to freeze in that instant.
Even the strange clouds above seemed to solidify into a motionless oil painting.
The wild, arrogant smile on Kaido's face froze there, like a waterfall sealed in ice.
The hand with which Kaido held the Den Den Mushi also stopped in midair, utterly motionless.
For the first time, blank confusion appeared in those golden eyes that looked down upon the world.
What had he just heard?
What the hell was that?