"Holy shit... that Kai guy we picked up was an absolute monster! Three hundred and fifty million?!"
The captain stared at the wanted poster his subordinate had just shoved into his hands.
The photo was a still taken by a surveillance Den Den Mushi back in Level 2 of Impel Down, capturing the exact moment Kai realized he was being watched. He looked a bit rough around the edges, sure. But after days of brutal conditioning, his physique had filled out. Paired with his sharp, resolute features, he looked undeniably intimidating.
Three hundred and fifty million Berries was an astronomical sum.
At least to the crew of this merchant vessel, it was. In the East Blue or even the South Blue, how many pirates ever managed to break the ten-million mark?
A seasoned guard stared at the paper, his eyes wide. "That guy... he broke out of Impel Down!"
"What the hell is Impel Down?"
"I don't know!"
"I've heard of it," another muttered, his face turning pale. "They say it's the World Government's inescapable underwater prison. The last guy to break out of there was the Golden Lion!"
"Golden Lion Shiki?! The legend who went toe-to-toe with the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger?!"
"Yeah! And rumor has it, Shiki had to chop off his own legs and rely on his Devil Fruit just to pull it off."
The crew fell into a stunned silence. Their perception of Kai instantly skyrocketed.
He wasn't just a tough guy. He was a certified freak of nature.
Which meant... everything he had casually mentioned on the deck was probably true.
A Marine Admiral really did chase him for three days. And he actually slipped right through their fingers!
Across the first half of the Grand Line and deep into the New World, the name 'Kai' crashed onto the desks of every major power.
And unlike the clueless general public, these top-tier factions knew a lot more than what the Marines let slip to the press.
The official story was simple, Kai freed the prisoners and organized the riot.
But the Navy conveniently forgot to mention who exactly had escaped.
The outside world assumed Kai was the lone runaway. In reality, some of the most vicious, bloodthirsty criminals in history had slipped out, monsters that even the Four Emperors wouldn't take lightly.
Underground brokers were also whispering that Admiral Kizaru had hunted Kai for three consecutive days and completely failed to bring him in.
That alone was proof of his terrifying strength.
To the heavy hitters, a 350-million bounty was almost an insult to kai's threat level. If Kizaru couldn't put him down, his head was easily worth a billion Berries, minimum.
"Gahahaha! Looks like another crazy brat just stepped onto the board!"
"I'm hearing some of the Level 6 freaks got out too!"
"Douglas Bullet... that monster is roaming free again?! Who knows what kind of bloodbath he's planning!"
The Warlords. The Four Emperors. The Revolutionary Army. All eyes were locked on kai and the ghosts of Impel Down.
Meanwhile, Marine Headquarters was in full crisis mode. All three Admirals had been deployed to hunt down the Level 6 escapees. It wasn't a total failure, they managed to drag two of them back to hell. The sheer pressure forced the rest of the exhausted convicts deep underground. They needed time to lick their wounds and rebuild their strength. For the short term, they wouldn't be causing any major storms.
East Blue. Aiya Island.
The morning paper hit the stands, and it didn't take long for the locals to recognize the face on the front page.
People had literally just seen him walking around their island.
Nobody had a clue that the quiet guy was a 350-million-Berry super-criminal!
Sheer terror gripped the port town. Thank god no one had tried to pick a fight with him, or they'd be dead and buried by now.
Frantic citizens flooded the local Marine branch with reports of Kai's whereabouts.
But the Aiya Island base didn't dare make a move. A monster of Kai's caliber was way above their paygrade. Even a Vice Admiral from Headquarters would think twice before engaging him.
The local branch could only pass the buck, frantically relaying the intel to Marineford.
From there, the message was beamed straight to Garp. The Marine Hero had already left Headquarters, his warship currently cutting straight through the Calm Belt en route to the East Blue.
Kai, of course, was completely oblivious. He didn't know the specifics of the Marines' counterattack, only that they wouldn't just let him walk away.
After sleeping like the dead for two solid days, Kai finally stepped out of his room.
That's when he noticed it.
Wherever he walked, a ten-meter void formed around him. The streets practically parted. The moment anyone caught sight of him, they bolted like startled rabbits. Some were so terrified they tripped over their own feet, scrambling away on all fours.
A 350-million-Berry pirate!
In a backwater place like the East Blue, that number was astronomical. You could count the number of ten-million-Berry bounties in this sea on two hands. A hundred-million bounty? Literally zero.
Looks like the Marines finally made their move, Kai mused, taking in the empty streets.
It was exactly as he expected. The wanted posters were out.
I wonder what my starting price is?
He strolled down the street, completely unfazed by the mass panic, and casually found a place to eat.
The restaurant owner, sweating profusely and shaking like a leaf, personally served up their best dishes and absolutely refused to charge him a single Berry.
You know... this feeling isn't half bad.
After polishing off his meal, Kai grabbed a discarded wanted poster on his way out, thoroughly enjoying the perks of a free meal.
He finally saw the number.
350,000,000 Berries!
Not low, but not incredibly high either.
At least, in Kai's eyes, it was just a starting point. But it was more than enough to make his name echo across the seas and force the top-tier factions to remember his face.
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