King had only ever acknowledged Kaido as his elder brother in his entire life.
From his teenage years, he had followed Kaido into countless battles. In his heart, Kaido was the very symbol of invincibility.
Today, King witnessed firsthand the extraordinary presence of another invincible figure.
Caesar—Kaido own elder brother!
Freshly awakened, he had utterly crushed the Marines' newly appointed Admiral, Green Bull, with absolute dominance.
A single drop of his blood had completely restored King from the brink of death, returning him to peak condition!
"Caesar-sama."
Looking up at the face that bore a seventy percent resemblance to Kaido, King almost felt as if time had rewound thirty years—were it not for the man even more towering stature.
King spoke respectfully "Caesar-sama, what do you plan to do next?"
Caesar rubbed his stomach, which let out a thunderous growl, and sighed.
"After sleeping for thirty years, I need to eat something. And... I need a woman."
The respect King had just felt vanished in an instant as he stared at Caesar, speechless.
"What? Can't do it? I'm starving to death! I'm both hungry and horny. Kid, do you get it?" Caesar clapped King on the shoulder.
BOOM!
King was slammed into the ground, leaving only his head exposed.
Over an hour later, in the ruined Udon Prison, King led a dozen trembling low-ranking pirate grunts, carrying steaming plates of roasted meat to Caesar, who sat cross-legged.
"That's all the food? Not even enough to get stuck between my teeth."
Caesar couldn't help but grumble, yet his hands were already moving.
In less than two or three minutes, over a thousand pounds of roasted meat vanished. Caesar turned his expectant gaze back to King.
King spread his hands helplessly. "Apologies, Caesar-sama. All the food here was taken by the samurai of Wano. What you just ate was from a boarcodile I happened to run into outside."
Disappointed, Caesar licked his lips, then asked hopefully.
"Then... a woman? Got any?"
King grew even more exasperated. Scanning the surroundings, he pointed at the dozen pirates behind him.
"My lord, does this look like a place with women? Though, if you're not picky, there is one over there..."
"Oh?" Caesar followed King finger, then his face darkened instantly—he saw Big Mom sprawled on the ground like a mountain of flesh.
"You looking to die?"
King chuckled and pulled out a Den Den Mushi from his pocket, handing it over.
"This is... a Den Den Mushi?"
"It was taken from Admiral Green Bull. It's a direct-line Den Den Mushi with only one fixed number. Whoever's on the other end is definitely no small fry—most likely Fleet Admiral Akainu."
King glanced at the distant cell where Admiral Green Bull lay, shackled and chained in Seastone restraints, bound in an artistic sprawl.
"Fleet Admiral Akainu? Who's that? Wasn't Kong the Fleet Admiral? When I fell asleep, I heard Admiral Sengoku was about to be promoted to Fleet Admiral." Caesar frowned in confusion.
"My lord, that was decades ago. Sengoku stepped down as Fleet Admiral two years ago, succeeded by the former Admiral, Akainu."
Unbothered by the dirt, King sat opposite Caesar and recounted the changes in the world landscape over the past thirty years, along with major events that had transpired.
As he listened, Caesar expressions shifted—sometimes burning with battle lust, sometimes filled with disdain, other times breaking into cold laughter.
Until he heard about the two years, the Summit War and Whitebeard death, Caesar fell silent, speechless for a long time.
After a long while, Caesar finally sighed.
"Newgate, how could you die so soon? The world's strongest man? I haven't even had the chance to fight you again!"
King added "Now, with Big Brother Kaido and Big Mom defeated, the world balance seems to have shifted dramatically. But we've been locked up in Udon Prison with no news from the outside. If you want to know the latest developments, you'll probably need to go to the Flower Capital."
"The Flower Capital?" Caesar grinned eerily, licking his lips.
"Plenty of delicious food and women there, right?"
Hearing this, King was once again at a loss for words.
Why was this man still so... straightforward?
"In that case, I'll have a little chat with the Marine new boss first. Borororo!"
Caesar picked up the Den Den Mushi. His hand was so large that the snail seemed dirt in comparison.
"Purupurupuru."
The Den Den Mushi rang and after a moment, a deep male voice came through from the other end.
The snail appearance morphed into that of a square-jawed man with a cigar in his mouth.
"Hey, Aramaki, what's up?"
Caesar "What the hell this gibberish sound? I'm Caesar! Are you that Akainu guy or what?"
***
Two years after the Summit War, the Marine had poured immense effort into transforming the G-1 Branch in the New World into the new headquarters of the Marine forces.
The layout was similar to the former Marineford—a massive circular island with a wide inner bay at the front, leading to an enormous plaza capable of accommodating 300,000 people.
The previous Marineford had felt cramped with just 100,000 soldiers, so the G-1 Branch had undergone extensive land reclamation to expand its size.
At the center of the plaza stood a colossal fortress hundreds of meters tall.
The symbol of justice—a giant seagull emblem—was emblazoned on the fortress front, while an equally massive seagull statue stood atop it.
Inside the Fleet Admiral office, the new Marine Fleet Admiral, Akainu, held the Den Den Mushi.
Scars were clearly visible on his face and neck.
Frowning, Akainu stared at the Den Den Mushi on his desk—since the snail could accurately mimic the appearance of the caller.
But now, instead of resembling Aramaki, the snail had taken on the form of a stranger with twin horns and an imposing, domineering face.
Akainu sensed something was off, yet the face seemed vaguely familiar.
After a moment thought, his mind buzzed with realization.
Kaido!
'Why does it look like Kaido? No, wait—there's a difference. This one looks much younger. Could it be Kaido rumored hidden son?'
The Marines had heard rumors that Kaido had a son, but his true appearance remained unknown.
"I am Caesar!"
An extremely arrogant voice came through, as if the speaker had zero regard for the Fleet Admiral of the Marines.
Akainu fury flared instantly. He slammed the desk and growled coldly.
"Who the fuck are you ? I've never heard of you. Now, answer me—why the hell do you have Aramaki Den Den Mushi?! Speak honestly, or else..."
"Or what? Borororo, you little bastard, do you really think you're some big shot? In the Marines, the only one I acknowledge is that bastard Garp. As for the rest, they're all trash—I don't even spare them a glance!"
"WHAT DID YOU SAY? You've got some nerve!" Akainu was so furious he was practically jumping with rage, steam beginning to rise from his body.
An utterly arrogant voice rang out again.
"Akainu? So, just a Marine dog, huh? Borororo, let me make this clear! That so-called useless Admiral Green Bull is in my hands right now. I'll give you three minutes—get Garp or Sengoku on the line to talk to me! Once those three minutes are up, I'll kill this worthless Admiral myself!"
Click.
Before Akainu enraged roar could reach the other end, the Den Den Mushi was hung up.
Akainu gritted his teeth so hard they creaked, and crimson-red magma began to seep from his body.
"Someone! Fetch former Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Garp for me at once!"