On Egghead Island, a man with a deep red tattoo on his face sat silently in a chair, his head bowed. His eyes were deep and cold, and he wore his usual dark green cloak.
"Vegapunk, I need your help!"
Dragon suddenly snapped his head up, his hawk-like gaze fixed on Vegapunk. His tone was utterly sincere.
Vegapunk was sipping a cup of hot tea, his long tongue making the action look particularly comical.
"It's not that I don't want to give it to you, it's that the thing is still unstable. I have no desire to cause some kind of unforeseen destruction to this world!" Vegapunk slowly swallowed a mouthful of tea, shaking his enormous head as he spoke softly to Dragon.
"But you must understand, this is my only chance!"
Dragon's eyes burned with intensity. He stood up and began to pace slowly around Vegapunk.
"I don't understand any of that!" Vegapunk continued to back down.
"I only know that this thing is terrifying. Perhaps I never should have researched it in the first place!" Vegapunk's gaze drifted toward the dome of the lab, his tone suddenly turning negative as if lost in a painful memory. A heavy melancholy settled over him.
"If that's how it's going to be..."
"Then don't blame me for what I do next!!"
Suddenly, Dragon's eyes narrowed. An immense power erupted from him in an instant, filling the entire laboratory with arcs of black and red lightning. A gale-force wind immediately swept through the room.
CRASH!!
The wind sent objects flying, creating a cacophony of impacts. Countless pieces of equipment tumbled from their shelves, and various cables snapped, causing the lights in the room to flicker erratically.
Vegapunk was stunned by the scene, slumping powerlessly in his chair.
When he looked again, Dragon was gone.
"I understand this world less and less," Vegapunk murmured to himself.
Elsewhere, Dragon had already arrived in a room brimming with advanced technology. Edison lay on the floor, knocked unconscious. Dragon's target was the massive sealed container in the center of the room, inside of which a single flame burned quietly.
This was the Mother Flame, a creation of Vegapunk's research. It was an imitation of an ancient energy source, later acquired by Imu and named the Mother Flame.
Few people knew that Vegapunk had succeeded in replicating this ancient power, but Dragon was one of them. A recent series of uncontrollable major events had pushed the normally cautious and secretive Dragon into a state of urgency. This was why he had come to Egghead to seize the Mother Flame.
"Found you!"
"How mesmerizing!"
A look of boundless joy appeared in Dragon's eyes. He walked slowly toward the sealed container, whispering to himself.
Meanwhile, in the Wano Country, Kaido had finally reached the port.
"Queen, is this your handiwork?"
Staring at the collapsed cliffs, Kaido's face was a mask of disbelief. He whirled around and furiously confronted Queen.
"Lord Kaido, I..."
Queen hung his head, trying to say something but finding no words. No matter what excuse he offered now, it couldn't hide the fact that he had completely botched the situation.
BAM!!
This only enraged Kaido further. With a crackle of black and red lightning, his thick dragon tail slammed into Queen's body. A spray of blood erupted as Queen was sent flying like a cannonball.
"Useless trash!!" Kaido roared, clenching and unclenching his fists.
Jack and Cracker, standing cautiously beside Kaido, didn't dare move a muscle, terrified they would be the next target of his rage.
Ryuuto, however, had already taken Yamato to Leftovers Town, where he regrouped with Hancock and the others. The sudden turn of events told him something major was happening, and the best course of action was to gather everyone together.
The group was now sitting in Tsuru's tea house.
After some explanations, Yamato had gotten to know the members of the Ryuuto Pirates. For her, anyone who opposed Kaido and Kurozumi Orochi was a good friend.
"Yamato, do you know what lies beneath Wano?" Ryuuto suddenly asked, turning to face her.
"That is what the Kozuki clan has guarded for generations! It's what Oden—what I... would give my life to protect!" Yamato had never thought someone would ask her this question. But as Oden, she could pound her chest and declare it loudly to Ryuuto.
This response made Hancock, Nami, and the others incredibly curious.
"In that case... have you thought about how you're going to continue protecting this thing beneath Wano now?" Ryuuto asked, his expression serious. He didn't know if Yamato had truly grasped Oden's spirit, or if... she had only copied the surface.
"Once Wano is opened..."
"Everything will resolve itself!!" Yamato said nonchalantly, her mind filled with a massive sense of accomplishment. She had already done something greater than Oden. Now, she truly was Oden!
"Uh..."
Hearing this, Ryuuto was genuinely speechless.
Fortunately, they still had the Ark Maxim. If things went south, he planned to make a quick escape. He had already sensed an incredibly powerful presence approaching from across the sea. This was one of the benefits of his lightning powers; he could use the thunderstorms high in the sky to perceive events over a vast area.
Crocus had sensed it as well, prompting him to pilot the Ark Maxim to an even higher altitude.
Tsuru watched this exchange with a happy smile. She couldn't wait to inform Kin'emon and the others overseas. She desperately wanted to tell them that Wano had successfully been opened!
Tenguyama Hitetsu, however, was filled with doubt.
Is this the kind of opening that Lord Oden wanted? he wondered. This doesn't seem to have changed Wano's situation at all.
But for Tama... all of this was far beyond her.
As a child, Tama's happiness was incredibly simple. Ever since she met Ryuuto and his crew, she no longer had to go hungry. Perhaps in her mind, a full stomach was the most important thing in the world. As for remembering Oden... that was just remembering the era the adults talked about, an era when no one went hungry.
After Denjiro relayed the news to Kurozumi Orochi, the Shogun became restless. As the ruler of Wano, he naturally knew the country's secrets. It was possible that Wano would soon become the center of the world's attention, and this terrified him. After all, he was just a puppet emperor who survived by clinging to Kaido.
BAM!!
The more he thought, the angrier he became. Orochi swept everything off his desk in a furious motion. Porcelain shattered on the floor, sending shards flying everywhere. The servants in the Shogun's castle immediately grew fearful, terrified that Orochi's wrath would turn on them.
Denjiro stood beside him, silently contemplating their next move.
Kaido had already returned to Onigashima with Queen, Jack, and Cracker. His mood was foul. He sat on his throne, his brow furrowed, as if worried about what was to come. A suffocatingly oppressive atmosphere filled the Skull Dome.
THOOM!!
Out on the vast, boundless sea, the silhouette of Zunesha was steadily approaching Wano. Each step it took sent a colossal, muffled boom across the water. Its pace was incredibly fast.
On Zunesha's back, in the country known as Zou, Duke Inuarashi stood at the highest point of the Whale Forest. He had already noticed that something was wrong with Zunesha. Never before had the elephant moved with such haste, with a sense of urgency, as if rushing to fulfill some ancient promise.
"This is very strange!" Duke Inuarashi murmured, his gaze fixed on the distant sea.
"Wait, what is that?"
Suddenly, a towering, blurry black shadow appeared on the horizon. A feeling of dread washed over Duke Inuarashi, and he couldn't help but cry out.
In the next instant, he moved in a blur. When he reappeared, a spyglass was in his hand.
Peering through the lens, he saw a mountain peak rising abruptly from the sea amidst the thick ocean mist. Its shape was unmistakably familiar to him. A faint sense of foreboding crept into his heart.
As time ticked by, Zunesha drew closer and closer to Wano. Duke Inuarashi could now clearly see the mountain's features through his spyglass.
"Wano Country!!"
"Why? Why is Zunesha charging straight for Wano?"
Duke Inuarashi was not just shocked; a thousand questions flooded his mind. The commotion even woke Master Nekomamushi, the ruler of the night.
"Huh? What's going on?"
"It's not nighttime yet, is it?" Master Nekomamushi yawned, a pipe dangling from his mouth. He then spotted Duke Inuarashi at the top of the giant tree and called out to him.
"See for yourself."
Duke Inuarashi didn't waste words, simply tossing the spyglass down to him.
In a flash of movement, Master Nekomamushi was standing beside him, holding the spyglass to his eye. He took one look and froze, so shocked that the spyglass slipped from his grasp.
"How is this possible!!"
Back in Leftovers Town, Ryuuto looked at the others, his expression suddenly grave. He said in a low, urgent voice, "It's here!!"
Then, he vanished in a flash of lightning, disappearing from Tsuru's tea house.
"What's happening?"
Hancock, Van Augur, and the others were bewildered. They had never seen Ryuuto look so serious. A moment later, they all vanished from the spot as well.
"What's going on? No way!! I have to see this too!" Yamato slammed her hands on the table and shot out of the building in a streak of white light.
"Why is everyone leaving?"
In the span of a few breaths, Tama found herself alone at the table with Tsuru. She mumbled to herself, quickly swallowed the food in her mouth, and rushed outside.
High in the sky above Leftovers Town, Ryuuto stared with a grim expression at the colossal figure of Zunesha, which was growing clearer by the second.
"What is that?"
"How can an elephant that big exist in this world?!"
"That's unbelievable!"
"A creature like that actually exists!"
"That's so cool!"
Aside from Ryuuto, none of the others had ever seen Zunesha before, and they were utterly astonished. They never knew such a massive creature, thousands of meters tall, roamed the seas. One by one, they cried out in shock.
The "so cool" came from Nami.
"What's happening?"
"Let me see, let me see!!" Tama shouted from below, hopping up and down as she yelled at the group in the sky. A kid's wishes deserve respect, too!
Fortunately, Vivi stepped in. She manifested a small bird made of flowing wine, which swooped down and carried Tama into the air.
"Whoa... an elephant as tall as an island!!" Tama yelled in amazement the moment she saw Zunesha.
Unfortunately, Zunesha was heading directly toward the coast facing both Kuri and Onigashima. Thus, just a few seconds after Ryuuto had sensed it, Kaido became aware of the fact as well.
ROOOAR!!
A dragon's roar echoed as Kaido instantly transformed into his azure dragon form and shot into the sky.
WHOOSH!!
Hearing the commotion, King abruptly spread his wings, flames igniting behind him as he transformed into his Pteranodon form and followed Kaido into the air. He was a user of the Ancient Zoan, Pteranodon Model Devil Fruit.
"So the legends were true!" Kaido said softly, looking at the approaching behemoth. He then let out a heavy sigh, the suspense he'd been feeling finally giving way to grim certainty.
As Kaido spoke, King turned his gaze toward him.
"Get ready!" Kaido said, nodding at King before turning his solemn gaze back to Zunesha. "We might have to stop that monster!"
Closer and closer...
Five thousand meters!!
Four thousand meters!!
Three thousand meters!!
Two thousand meters!!
One thousand meters!!
When Zunesha finally closed the distance to one thousand meters from Wano, its form was so massive it seemed to be right in front of them. The entire country of Wano was now within Zunesha's striking range. At this moment, anyone in Wano with an unobstructed view could clearly see an elephant, larger than their entire island, standing just off the coast.
"What kind of creature is that? How can it be so enormous?!" countless people cried out in terror.
Zunesha stood 35,000 meters tall, while Wano itself was only about 7,000 meters high. When the giant elephant arrived, an overwhelming sense of dread fell over the land.
ROOOAR!!
Just as Kaido had predicted, Zunesha let out a furious bellow, then swung its massive, powerful trunk down toward the Wano Country.