99 Preparation
[A Certain Sea in the New World]
One of the Eustass Pirates' vessels cruised the waters near their base on Tora Island. On board were Kid, Gin, Saga, and some henchmen. Kid's restlessness drove him to constantly move, so he often sailed out to hunt pirates in the vicinity.
On an uninhabited island close to the Eustass Pirates' main base, two well-known pirate crews were locked in a fierce battle.
Kid was lying on the ship's prow while Gin kept watch and Saga steered, until they sailed past an island.
"Gin-san! Looks like someone on land!" called out one of the crew, prompting Gin to take out his spyglass and get a closer look.
"Pirates…" He muttered, as he spotted the Jolly Roger of the ship anchored on the island. Nearby, there were about two dozen Battle Boats, fish resembling sailfish that appeared to be tamed and outfitted with attachments for riding. Gin then turned to Kid and informed him "Boss, Wake up! We're near land! There are some pirates ashore, one of them is Green Beard"
"Green Beard?" Kid lifted himself up, scratching the back of his head as he let out a yawn "What kind of stupid names is that?"
"He's one of Blackbeard's subordinate crews, I remember him from the bounty posters. There is a 132 million on his head" Gin mentioned, then quickly looked back towards the island "Seem like he's fighting someone else"
Kid's expressions immediately changed upon mentioning the Emperor's name "Blackbeard?!" His fists tightened as he scowled, recalling the last encounter with the Blackbeard Pirates at Pirate Island "Hahahaha! This is the perfect chance to start paying back that fucker for what he did to us last time!"
"You wanna fight?" Gin asked.
Kid's bloodthirsty grin spread across his face as he replied "I wanna kill!"
"Chief! Please think this through, won't Blackbeard retaliate if we kill one of his subordinates?!" One of the henchmen urged.
"I don't care, Kai would do the same. There is a limit to how much disrespect one can take"
Saga chimed in and said "Actually, I heard Blackbeard doesn't really care about his subordinate crews so it's highly unlikely that he'll be avenged even if we kill him"
"Hahahaha! Then it's time to crucify them!"
…
Meanwhile, on the island, two pirate crews stood in confrontation, the Green Beard Pirates, led by Greenbeard, a subordinate crew of the notorious Blackbeard Pirates, and the Sweet Pirates, led by Desire from East Blue..
"Greehahahaha!! I received my name Greenbeard from my master, Blackbeard who I serve!! Remember it! And fear Blackbeard!" Greenbeard laughed maniacally while standing a few meters away from Desire. There was around two hundred men with him.
Greenbeard is a towering muscular man with a square like jaw, a short brown hair and a green mustache which curls upwards at the ends and a long goatee with a slight downward curl.
Desire was on her knees, injured and breathing heavily. She is a woman with red hair in a wild, Mohawk style. She wears a long blue coat resembling those of Wano's Street thugs. Underneath, she wears a traditional Wano Sarashi binding and frilly light blue pants with the letter "S" in the center. She also wears dark red heeled boots and carries a walking stick.
(Pictures of her)
Behind her, lies her defeated crew, the Sweet Pirates, an all-female band of pirates. They were overwhelmed and outnumbered by their enemies.
"Damn... he's tough." Desire glared at Greenbeard with resentment as she struggled to rise, only for him to swiftly approach her and kick her aside.
"Greehahahaha!! Resistance is futile!...There are some pretty faces on your crew, if you can please me and my men I might let you live as my slave instead of killing you right here!" Greenbeard said, licking his lips while looking at her with lust.
"Screw you!" Desire seized her weapon, a metal pipe, and charged at Greenbeard, swinging it down toward his head.
However, Greenbeard easily blocked it with his left arm before he grabbed her by the neck and lifted her up "Greehahahaha!! Give it up, there is no way for you to escape!"
"Captain Desire!!!" Desire's crew stared in horror, then begged for their captain's life "Please take our lives instead, just spare her!!"
"I told you I don't want your lives, I want--"
KA-BOOOOM!! All of a sudden, a huge explosion grabbed everyone's attention on shore. They looked over to see Greenbeard's ship torn in two, blazing and sinking into the sea.
Greenbeard's eyes popped out from that sight "MY SHIP!!!!"
Desire took that opportunity to kick him away and free herself from his grasp.
"You bitch!!...Who the hell did that?!!! You will pay for it dearly!!"
"Captain Greenbeard... Look up! Someone's coming down towards us!" a henchman exclaimed, noticing the shadowy figure descending from above.
"Huh?..."
FWOOOOSH!! BAAAM!! In an instant, Kid swooped down on Greenbeard, delivering a swift kick to his head and driving it into the ground. With a self-assured stance, Kid loomed over him, his red coat and hair fluttering in the breeze.
Everyone looked at Kid in shock, their mouths and eyes wide open.
"C-C-Captain Kid?!!!"
"NANI?!!!"
Desire was also taken aback by the sudden appearance of such an infamous New World pirate "Captain Kid, what is someone like him doing here?"
Kid's ship approached the shores afterwards.
"That flag…"
"It's the Eustass Pirates!!!"
""Ugh!... Why... Why are you doing this?... Huff..." Greenbeard managed to choke out amidst the blood covering his head, clinging desperately to consciousness.
Kid stood silent, then raised his foot and smashed Greenbeard's head again, this time with enough force to crack the ground beneath them.
"AUUUGGGHHH!!--"
When Greenbeard's crew saw that they tried to interfere and help their captain.
"--You bastard! Don't you know that we work for Emperor Blackbeard?!"
"--If he finds out about this he will surely come for revenge!"
Kid's forehead veins bulged when he heard that "Blackbeard?" He muttered, lifting his feet up again "Hahahaha! That's precisely why I'm doing this, you bunch of pussies ain't seeing the light of another day!!"
*Thunder*--*Thunder*--!! Kid released a strong burst of Conqueror's Haki that rendered every single one of Greenbeard's crewmembers' unconscious.
"STOP IT!!" Greenbeard looked in horror as Kid's feet smashed his face again causing him to pass out after throwing a mouthful of blood. His teeth, jaw and nose broke from the force of that.
BAM! BAM! BAM! Kid didn't halt his assault; he continued stomping on Greenbeard's face until it shattered, drenching his clothes and shoes in blood, much to the horror of the bystanders.
"…"
"Fuck! I went overboard, now my clothes are all dirty" Kid remarked while trying to wipe the blood off of him.
Gin and Saga stepped off the ship and headed towards Kid after stopping near the shore.
"You really hate Blackbeard, don't you?" Saga casually strolled to his side, unfazed by the scene before him.
"I just needed someone to vent my anger on"
"What do we do with the rest of them?" Gin asked.
"Twist their limbs and crucify them"
"As ruthless as ever, boss"
Kid then turned back to leave before Desire nervously approached him from behind.
"Excuse me!!"
Kid glared back at her "Huh? Do you wanna fight as well?"
"No! No! actually…"
"…I don't know how to pay you back, I owe you my life!" Desire sincerely thanked Kid "If it weren't for you, we would've surely died by the hands of Greenbeard and his crew. That bastard ambushed us on this island when we were relaxing. We were just out of a fight exhausted and still recovering so we didn't stand a chance, so…"
"…Please, let me pay you back for saving us!!"
Kid frowned at those words "I was here for Blackbeard's subordinate. I had no intention of saving you"
"Still, I feel I'm in debt to you!"
"…"
Seeing how Desire was persistent, Kid decided to give her an offer "If you insist then join me"
"Huh?!"
"I'm going to the top, the Eustass Pirates are gonna reach the pinnacle of this world and become the greatest pirate crew to ever sailed the seas, so come and join me. I could make use of some loyal subordinates…you may not be much right now, but you have the potential to develop since you've managed to make it this far in the Grand Line"
Desire stood dumbfounded for a second before she replied with a smile "YES!!"
"You keep your crew; you'll serve as a part of my fleet…we just so happened to be in need of manpower"
…
…
…
[A Few Days Later…Tora Island]
At this very moment, the island teemed with energy as thousands of pirates swarmed the place, with around twenty ships anchored along the shores.
The Eustass Pirates, boasting a fleet of eleven ships, including the Victoria Punk, the New Giant Warrior Pirates, and the Sweet Pirates, alongside is Crocodile's fleet, which counts about seven ships, including the Sea Scourge. Additionally, among Crocodile's vessels is a ship once belonging to Buggy, accompanied by some of his subordinates, whom he lent to Crocodile.
After Kid returned, Kai, Crocodile, and the New Giant Warrior Pirates arrived shortly after, causing quite a stir with their entrance. The sight of the towering giants left everyone astonished, especially when they learned that these renowned warriors had joined forces with the Eustass Pirates fleet.
"Chief Kai's returned!" A voice rang out, drawing everyone's attention. Killer, who had been outside, swiftly moved to welcome him.
"--Hey, look over there" Someone pointed out, seeing the giants walking behind Kai.
"Wow!...They're so big!"
"They must be the infamous pirate crew from Elbaf"
"I can't believe the Chief got them on our side"
"…murmur…murmur…"
Killer approached Kai, smiling behind his mask before he greeted him "Welcome back! It looks like your mission was successful"
"Yeah, meet Hajrudin, captain of the New Giant Warrior Pirates, our new buddies" Kai gestured towards the giant who looked down at Killer and gave a nod "Killer here is one of my closest pals, known him since we were kids"
"Nice to meet you!" Killer said.
"Likewise," Hajrudin responded.
"Is everyone gathered?" Kai inquired.
"Yeah, we were just waiting your arrival" Killer led the way towards the castle.
"Alright, everyone, follow me. I'll introduce you to my brother," Kai said to the giants as he trailed behind Killer. Along the way, Killer filled him in on the Sweet Pirates joining their fleet after Kid's invitation and the entertaining battle they had against Blackbeard's subordinate crew, the Greenbeard Pirates. Kai found the story amusing and was satisfied with the outcome.
After a short walk, Kai and the others reached the imposing castle perched atop the island's hill. Outside, tables overflowed with an array of food and drinks, hosting a gathering of notable figures, among them the Eight Olympian Captains of the Eustass Pirates.
It was the time to start discussing the plan for taking down one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, Big Mom.
Kid sat at the largest table's center, with Desire standing behind him. Silence fell over everyone as Kai and Crocodile entered.
"Did you find yourself a girlfriend while I'm away?" Kai smirked at his brother's direction when he saw the red-haired woman standing behind him.
Desire stood firm and introduced herself "Nice to meet you Chief Kai! I'm Desire, Captain of the Sweet Pirates!"
"Ah, Killer told me about you, just relax and take it easy"
Kid clicked his tongue impatiently before saying, "Quit stalling and grab a seat, we've been waiting"
"Kahahaha! You're so impatient. Well before that, let me introduce the new faces…" Kai introduced the giants to Kid and then sat down beside them as they began discussing the plane.
With a serious look Kid spoke "So, it's finally time to step up our game"
"Play time is over, from now on we will be targeting the bigshots. I will bring down every one of those damn Emperors of the Sea starting with Big Mom…" Kai sat, one leg casually crossed over the other, before gently rubbing his right eye, feeling a slight ache from his scar "…Its time to claim the One Piece"
Kid grinned upon hearing the words before chiming in, "With her status, she's gotta have one of those Road Poneglyphs. Let's snatch it along with her Emperor of the Sea title!" he declared.
"*Munch*-*Munch*…*Gulp*…Why did you chose Big Mom first anyway?" Bonney asked while shoving a large piece of meat into her mouth.
"Wano is an impenetrable fortress that even the Government cannot attack with Kaido, the Strongest Creature residing there, I would rather not make it my first choice. As for Blackbeard, not only does he have two of the most powerful devil fruits in the world but also the support of a previous Marine Admiral and a bunch of infamous criminals from Impel Down" Kai stated.
"Lastly is Red Hair Shanks…" Kai squinted, his brow furrowing as he pressed on "He is the most mysterious out of the four and the fact that he doesn't possess a devil fruit ability as someone with his status only proves how powerful he is, so that leaves us with Big Mom, Killer tell us what we know about her"
Killer nodded before he placed a wanted poster on the table.
[Captain of the Big Mom Pirates – 'Big Mom' Charlotte Linlin, Dead or Alive ℬ 4,388,000,000]
"That's a lot of berries on one person's head" Wyper remarked.
"She is the matriarch of the very large Charlotte Family whose many children make up the majority of her crew's military power. Big Mom rules over Totto Land as its queen and she's known for her inhuman strength and tremendous superhuman durability due to her extremely tough skin" Killer stated, pausing for a second before he continued "As for her territory, Totto Land is a massive archipelago with Whole Cake Island, Big Mom's base of operation, in its center, and dozens of subsidiary islands arranged around it with each of them ruled by a member of the Charlotte Family as its minister"
"Dozens? The fuck?! How many kids does the bitch has?!" Krieg questioned, taken aback by that number.
"Some say around 70 or 80, but we don't know the exact number" Killer stated "Out of the Four Emperors, it could be said that she has the most organized crew. The Big Mom Pirates consist of the Captain, Big Mom and answering directly to her is the Four Sweet Generals and below them are other powerful officer who themselves have personal squads and even fleets"
Killer proceeded to reveal the wanted posters of the Four Sweet Generals.
[Charlotte Katakuri, Dead or Alive ℬ 1,057,000,000]
[Charlotte Smoothie, Dead or Alive ℬ 932,000,000]
['Thousand Arms' Charlotte Cracker, Dead or Alive ℬ 860,000,000]
[Charlotte Snack, Dead or Alive ℬ 600,000,000]
"So, we will be outnumbered like always" Crocodile commented.
"That's to be expected, she's been reigning over for decades" Kai remarked.
Killer nodded in agreement before he added "Most importantly, she also like the other emperors has subordinate pirate crews severing under her. The most notable one is the Worst Generation Capone 'Gang' Bege who joined her recently"
"Bege, huh?" Kid said.
"That is good for us; from what I know about him I doubt that he will be loyal to her. He might switch sides if he sees it beneficial" Kai stated. Though he knows for sure that Bege is very cunning and he's not loyal to Big Mom at all, but in fact he's just plotting to back stab her and take her down when he sees the right opportunity.
'All I have to do is to show him that we have a chance to win' Kai contemplated.
Crocodile nodded attentively, took a couple of drags from his cigar, exhaled a cloud of smoke, and then inquired, "Alright, when and how do we move into her turf?"
Killer proceeded to answer that question "Big Mom is famous for holding lavish tea parties. The candy tribute produced by every one of her protectorate islands would be collected monthly for the tea party. Big Mom would also send invitations to people who interest her to attend her tea parties, many of whom are powerful figures of the underworld…her children would also be present as well making sure everything goes as plan"
"So, all the focus would be on the Tea Party, and no one would expect someone to attack at that time" Kid noted.
"I still imagine that launching a sneak attack like we did in Hachinosu is gonna be hard this time" Crocodile said.
"Sneak attacking with our large fleet will be very hard. Our plan instead is to deploy the strongest individuals to board the Victoria Punk. We will initiate the attack on the Tea Party, drawing attention away and allowing the rest of the fleet to follow with minimal interference" Kai explained.
"Won't that leave you dealing with the entirety of Big Mom Pirates on your own?" Hajrudin asked.
"I'm pretty confident in our ability to hold them off until the rest arrive" Kai responded, breaking into a grin "I can transport the Victoria Punk there without anyone noticing"
'And while we're at it, I will exploit the only known weakness to Big Mom. I will destroy the portrait of Mother Caramel and make her go on rampage' Kai thought in his mind.
"Well, that's basically it. We can speak about the details on the way there" Killer concluded.
"I'm not much of a plan guy, but I think this is pretty good" Kid nodded his head in satisfaction.
"I'll put my trust in you, Eustass Kai" Crocodile said.
"We the Giant Warrior Pirates will support you regardless of the consequences just like I promised you!!" Hajrudin declared.
Stansen smiled before he added "We've got your back brother!!"
"Well then, it's time to set off!!" Kid exclaimed, getting up from his seat.
After that, everyone rose to their feet. Kai turned to Killer and said "Killer, tell everyone to get ready and prepare the ships!!"
"Right away!!"
"We're heading to Totto Land!!"
