Wano Country, Onigashima.
In the middle of a magnificent pavilion, Kaido sat cross-legged on a giant bed. He held a sake gourd in his right hand, and with a resounding "Glug! Glug! Glug!" he chugged its contents until it was empty.
"Ah… what a boring day."
In a drunken state, Kaido burped, his voice filled with a heavy melancholy. His mind wandered, drifting back to the past.
He was born in the Voka Kingdom, a small country that was a member of the World Government. However, Voka was not a wealthy nation. They had to constantly wage and win wars to get the money needed to pay tribute to the Tenryubito, or the Heavenly Gold. If they failed, the Voka Kingdom would lose its status as a member of the World Government, and its people would lose all basic human rights, free to be captured and enslaved.
Born in a war-torn country, Kaido, who had extraordinary talent, was naturally recruited as a soldier. In the faint memories of his childhood, the earliest scene he could remember was himself, only five or six years old, holding a weapon and fighting the enemy. He couldn't remember it clearly anymore. However, he remembered very well that at the age of ten, he was already the strongest soldier in the Voka Kingdom.
Tragedy struck at the age of thirteen. The King of Voka sold him to the Marines in exchange for an invitation to the World Conference, a meeting only attended by the most important countries. Kaido, who didn't want to be a political tool, escaped on his way to Marine Headquarters.
At that time, he was still a teenager, his strength far below what it was now, and he had no experience in the world. He lived as a wanderer, often starving. Because of that, the Marines became his favorite "cafeteria." He would let himself be caught, eat and drink to his heart's content, then escape once he felt full.
As time went by, at the age of fifteen—long before he ate the Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, the Uo Uo no Mi, Model: Azure Dragon—he had already become a criminal with a bounty of 70 million Berries. He then joined the Rocks Pirates, fighting under one flag with crazy people like Big Mom, Whitebeard, Golden Lion Shiki, Wang Zhi, and Silver Axe.
The Rocks Pirates' base on Hachinos Island was a gathering place for the most brutal criminals. They mastered the arts of burning, killing, and plundering. Kaido, who was educated in such a place, changed from a lawless boy into a cruel criminal who didn't hesitate to persuade people with physical force.
"Hmm!?"
Half asleep, Kaido felt a strange sensation in his pants pocket. He took out a few white Life Cards. These were the cards of the Disasters, the main commanders of the Beast Pirates. Kaido himself kept their cards, while the cards of the ordinary pirates were kept by the Disasters. He didn't care at all about the fate of the "small fry."
He shuffled through the pile of cards and found one with the name "Queen." Slowly, from the corner of the card, the ashes began to spread, turning it into a half-fragile piece of paper.
Usually, this condition meant the card's owner was on the verge of death!
Seeing that sight, half of Kaido's drunkenness instantly vanished. His heart pounded with shock and was filled with rage.
'Queen… dead?!'
He valued this old subordinate of his very much. In addition to his strength, Queen was also an expert in scientific research. All the technological innovations of the weapon factories in Onigashima were basically his work.
"GET IN HERE!" Kaido roared.
A subordinate pirate hastily entered, his face trembling with fear. "My lord, what is your order?"
"Queen! Where did he go?"
"L-Lord Queen seems to have gone to Kigan Island to take care of the steel factory…"
"His life card is burning! Quickly investigate what happened to him!"
"Yes, sir!"
The subordinate immediately ran, contacting Queen's fleet and the officers on Kigan Island. In a short time, the survivors on the sailing ships and the pirates who managed to escape death on the island reported everything that had happened.
A moment later, the same subordinate returned, this time with extreme panic. "Bad news, Lord Governor! Lord Queen… has been killed by a Marine Commodore from G-5 Headquarters! His name is Carl D. Sephiroth! Nicknamed 'The Neck Slasher'!"
"Carl D. Sephiroth?!… Him… again?!"
Kaido's eyes radiated a wild aura, his tone filled with shock. He didn't expect that man to still be alive. Didn't he manage to escape last time?
He looked at Queen's life card which had now completely turned into ash in his palm, carried away by the wind. An extraordinary tyrannical aura took over his heart.
"DAMN MARINES!!! I'LL MAKE YOU PAY!!!"
Kaido roared, stood up, and with thundering steps left the pavilion. From his giant body, a cold murderous aura emanated, making the surrounding pirates feel the temperature drop drastically, as if they had fallen into an icy abyss.
When the pirates came to their senses, Kaido had already disappeared. They immediately looked for King the Wildfire to report the situation.
"What? Queen is dead?!"
Wearing a black leather jacket with a pair of black wings on his back, King, the Fire Disaster, slightly lifted the corner of his mouth from behind his mask. He and the fat Queen never got along. They always argued and almost fought every time they met. If it weren't for Kaido suppressing them, the two would have killed each other.
King's reaction after the shock was admiration. Queen was not a weak opponent. In the Beast Pirates, his strength was second only to Kaido. He never expected a Marine named Sephiroth to be able to kill him.
"What did Lord Kaido say?" he asked.
"Governor Kaido said he would make the Marines pay! After that, he left immediately," the subordinate replied.
King frowned. He took out a white Life Card from his sleeve, which he got directly from Kaido. Only King, the second in command, was allowed to hold Kaido's life card. It was proof of his loyalty and irreplaceable position.
He stared at the card. Slowly, the card moved in a certain direction, showing Kaido's location. After thinking for a moment, King decided to follow. He flapped his wings and shot into the air, leaving Onigashima.
Thousands of meters above, the wind howled and white clouds stretched. King stared at the life card in his hand while flying at a speed of more than 200 kilometers per hour.
'Kaido… where is he going?'