"Wano Country.
"Kaido-sama there's dreadful news!" Sneider burst into the Skull Dome, still agitated from his recent ordeal. Thankfully, he was quick-witted enough to avoid getting caught like the other four.
Upon seeing Sneider's brash entrance, Kaido scowled. "What's the commotion? You look like a beaten dog."
Just as Kaido finished his rebuke, his expression soured. "You're the only one who made it back. What about the others?"
Sneider's face twisted into a grimace. If he could, he wouldn't reveal the truth. Being caught while his teammates escaped would leave him with a tarnished reputation.
However, he had already come to terms with the situation.
"Them..." Sneider trailed off, his expression turning grim.
He didn't want to admit it, but he knew that escaping alone was the most sensible option. It was unfortunate, but abandoning his teammates was his only hope for survival.
Luckily, he had a plan in place.
He inhaled deeply, regulated his breathing, and stated, "Your Excellency, unfortunately, the Whitebeard Pirates captured all four of my companions. In order to save my own life, I had to retreat. The enemy's strength was overpowering, and I had to prioritize delivering the information to you. It was a tactical decision for the greater good."
This explanation seemed reasonable.
Although Kaido was unhappy with the situation, he couldn't fault Sneider's actions.
Nonetheless, Kaido was distressed by his recent failures.
Sasaki's drinking mishap had tarnished Kaido's reputation among the beast pirates, and now four out of the five Tobiroppo members had been caught!
How could Kaido not be infuriated by this turn of events?
King, sensing Kaido's anger, spoke up, "The Whitebeard Pirates have been acting rather boldly lately! They keep testing our Beasts Pirates' strength, as if they won't stop until we retaliate and teach them a lesson!"
Turning to Sneider, King asked, "Who exactly did you and your companions encounter? They nearly wiped out your team!"
Queen and Jack also directed their attention towards Sneider.
The strength of Tobiroppo members should not be underestimated!
Particularly Who's Who, whose power could even pose a slight threat to Jack.
However, it seemed that they had encountered an incredibly powerful enemy who almost wiped them out!
Sneider was sweating profusely as he felt the scrutinizing gazes of Kaido and the Three All-Stars.
Sasaki had previously mentioned this, but he was ridiculed by everyone at that time.
Now, if Sneider said the same thing, wouldn't he be laughed at too?
On the sidelines, Sasaki sneered as he watched Sneider's struggle.
What an idiot!
Should he believe everything he sees?
Sasaki continued to sneer, "Who else could it be? Besides Whitebeard himself, I'm afraid only Marco is capable of capturing all five of them in one go!"
Although Diamond Jozu could have fought against the five Tobiroppo members, he would not have been able to capture all of them if they tried to flee simultaneously.
As Sneider listened to the conversation between the Beasts Pirates, he couldn't help but feel a sense of despair. It seemed that their defeat was inevitable, and he regretted ever joining the Beasts Pirates.
Sasaki noticed Sneider's expression and sneered, "What's wrong? Regretting your decision to join us? It's too late now."
Sneider gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, feeling angry and humiliated. He couldn't let Sasaki get the best of him again.
Meanwhile, the discussion among the Beasts Pirates continued. Queen suggested that Marco was the one who captured the tobiroppo, and King and Jack agreed. Kaido expressed his displeasure at the thought of Marco being a potential threat, but also acknowledged his strength.
"If he can be brought under my command, he would be a valuable asset in our war against the Whitebeard Pirates," Kaido said, his eyes gleaming with ambition.
Sneider couldn't help but wonder if Marco would ever join the Beasts Pirates, or if he would continue to fight for the Whitebeard Pirates. Either way, he knew that the battle ahead would be fierce and bloody.
Kaido, being the king of beasts, places great importance on the abilities of Zoan types, particularly those of the Mythical variety, as they are incredibly powerful. He had intended to bestow a Mythical Zoan on one of his subordinates, but to his surprise, his daughter Yamato had consumed it. Yamato had consumed the Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Okuchi no Makami, which is a Devil Fruit that allows her to transform into a divine wolf and a hybrid of human and divine wolf.
Kaido was infuriated by this event and had contemplated killing his daughter more than once. Meanwhile, Sneider was feeling ambitious as he listened to the serious conversation of the big guys.
"Kaido-sama, Marco was not the one who took them away," admitted Sneider, knowing that it was better to confess than to let the misunderstanding fester and become more difficult to explain later on.
Kaido and the Three All Stars all wore a frown upon hearing this news.
"Then who could it be?" Kaido wondered aloud, his frustration mounting. "Is it Whitebeard behind this? He's becoming more audacious by the day! It's a disgrace to the Four Emperors that he would stoop so low as to personally carry out such a deed!"
Despite their past history as fellow members of the Rock Pirates, Kaido begrudgingly respected Whitebeard's sense of righteousness and generosity. Now, however, he was forced to confront him personally.
King interjected with his own analysis: "If Whitebeard did it, it suggests that his crew may be involved in some sort of sinister plot. He's likely trying to eliminate any witnesses to keep his secrets safe."
Sneider quickly corrected them, "No, it wasn't Whitebeard either."
The group was growing increasingly exasperated with Sneider's vague responses. Queen, taking a drag from his cigar, demanded, "Then who was it? Quit beating around the bush!"
Sneider hesitated for a moment before stammering out his answer, causing Jack to grow irate and slap him upside the head for his poor communication skills.
Sneijder was shocked and quickly explained, "It was one of the Whitebeard Pirates' patrol members!"
"What!? Are you joking?" Jack thought he misheard and slapped Sneijder again.
"No, I'm serious! Jack-sama, the patrol members of the Whitebeard Pirates are incredibly powerful! Didn't Sasaki encounter them before? Ask him if you don't believe me!"
Despite his firsthand encounter, Sneider still found the situation unbelievable.
They were the mighty Tobiroppo, yet they were defeated by mere patrol members of the Whitebeard Pirates!
At this point, Sasaki was asked to testify, having had a similar experience.
Sasaki sneered and said, "Do you think the Whitebeard Pirates' patrol members can even stand up to you, Sneider? I'm pretty sure that 80% of you were drunk and got attacked by the patrol members of the Whitebeard Pirates, but were too scared to admit it and made up this ridiculous excuse!"
Sneider's face changed anxiously as he realized that Sasaki was taking revenge on him.
"Kaido-sama! What I said is true. The patrol members of the Whitebeard Pirate Group are incredibly strong. I've seen it with my own eyes. We've encountered at least 40 patrol members on all of our ships, and each one of them can take on the strength of one of the Tobiroppo and come out on top. If we all fought them at once, we would have no chance!"
Sneider's words were still somewhat understated. He wanted to save face for himself and the other Tobiroppo, so he deliberately downplayed the strength of the Whitebeard Pirates' patrol members.
However, Sasaki burst into laughter and said, "Hahaha! The more you talk, the more ridiculous it sounds! So you're saying that the patrol members of the Whitebeard Pirates can all take on the Tobiroppo and win?"
Sasaki had a grudge against Sneijder, and he couldn't believe that the Whitebeard Pirates had so many powerful patrol members.
He had only encountered two of them himself, so he thought Sneijder's claim of more than 40 was ridiculous. Kaido also didn't believe it, thinking that if the Whitebeard Pirates were really that strong, they would have defeated the Beast Pirates long ago.
"Governor-sama!! Master Who's who and Master Black Maria have returned!"
A report came in at that moment.
Soon after, two figures entered through the main entrance.
"Hmm? Sneider, didn't you claim that the rest were all taken away by the Whitebeard Pirates' patrols?" Kaido questioned Sneijder about his previous claim, as it seemed contradictory to the return of the two Tobiroppo members.
As Queen saw who's who and Black Maria return, her eyes flashed fiercely as she looked at Sneider.
"How dare you deceive us in front of the Three All-Stars and Kaido-sama! You will pay for this with your life!"
Sneider couldn't help but glance at who's who and Black Maria, his eyes almost brimming with tears as he said, "Weren't you caught? Why are you back?"
"We were released by them," who's who replied, as he strode towards Kaido.
With who's who's statement, Sneider breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness someone corroborated my story, otherwise, I would have been in hot water even if I fled to the North Blue!
"Did you really catch them?" Queen narrowed his eyes and asked, "Sneider claimed that you encountered more than 40 members of Whitebeard's pirate group. Can each of those members fight against you?"
While Sneider's words may have been untrue, who's who's statement was mostly accurate. Not because he was an honest person, but because both who's who and King were experts in gathering intelligence, given their past experiences as CP9 and the Deep Sea Prison guard respectively.
Therefore, who's who would be unlikely to lie in front of his peers.
Upon hearing King's question, who's who frowned and asked, "What did Sneider say?"
"Is he lying?" Queen asked as he grabbed Sneider by the neck.
who's who shook his head and replied, "Yes!"
"This kid is such a liar!" Queen shouted in anger as he raised his hand and struck Sneider across the face a few times.
Sneider stared at Venus, dazed and disoriented. It took him a while to come to his senses.
"Fuck you! Are you out of your mind, who's who? Did the Whitebeard Pirates use their Thousand Years of Death technique on you?" Sneider shouted angrily.
"You idiot!" who's who shouted back at Sneider, his expression fierce.
Sneider was not convinced and said, "What are you staring at? You wronged me first! I only revealed your flaws!"
Who's who was furious and replied, "Idiot! I didn't wrong you! You claimed that each of the more than 40 Whitebeard Pirate patrol members could fight against us, but in reality, each patrol only has 8 members!
"Did you really think you could fool us? Anyone here could take down Ulti and Page One single-handedly. Do you really think you could trick us?"
Who's who glared at Sneider coldly.
Sneider was rendered speechless when questioned.
In that moment, Black Maria chimed in, saying: "Seems like some people are just desperate for recognition."
After giving Sneider a disdainful glance, Black Maria continued: "To put it simply, any patrol member of the Whitebeard Pirates possesses the same level of strength as our Tobiroppo!"
"What?! Each patrol member is as powerful as a Tobiroppo?" Kaido couldn't contain his astonishment.
If it were just Sneider making such claims, Kaido might have been skeptical, but with Who's who and Black Maria confirming the same thing, it had to be true.
Over 40 individuals at the level of Tobiroppo!
[Sneider intentionally claimed that each of them fight 40 Patrol members]
This kind of power meant that Kaido's Beasts Pirates, except for himself and the Three All Stars, could be easily defeated.
Kaido looked at them with a serious expression and asked, "What in the world is going on? Have you found out the reason why the Whitebeard Pirates have so many powerful individuals?"
Who's who replied, "I have no idea."
Black Maria concurred, saying, "I have no clue either."
As they were prisoners, there was only so much information they could gather.
Queen then voiced his confusion, "Wait, where are Ulti and Page One?"
Who's who shook his head and replied, "I don't know, but I think they should be handed over to the Whitebeard Pirates."
Queen was puzzled and asked, "Handed over to the Whitebeard Pirates? Then why did they release the two of you? As our enemy, wouldn't it be better to kill you?"
Who's who's expression was still, and after exchanging a look with Black Maria, he said with a self-deprecating tone, "Initially, I didn't understand it either, but I came to a realization on the way back."
Queen leaned in, intrigued, "What did you realize?"
"In fact, it's very simple," Who's who continued, "We can't even defeat their patrol members, and even if we were to die, it wouldn't pose a threat to them. The decision to kill or release us was merely a single thought for them. They don't consider enemies of our level as a real threat."
There was a moment of silence in the hall as everyone heard Who's who's explanation. While his words were comforting, they couldn't deny the truth of the situation. After all, the strong have no need for a reason to release the weak. It's all based on the strong's mood at the time. Thus, there was a prolonged silence in the hall.
King was the first to break the silence.
"Boss, it's certain that the Whitebeard Pirates have a big problem. We need to investigate this matter. Or we could send Jack," King suggested.
Jack, on the other hand, was cursing internally 'What the hell! You talk and I have to run around like crazy! If I can't beat you, I want to slam you into the wall!'
Kaido was concerned about the strength of the Whitebeard Pirates' patrol members.
"We need to figure this out. With so many powerful fighters, it's possible that Whitebeard has the ability to create powerful fighters in batches," he said.
This ability to create fighters in batches would be equivalent to the Tobiroppo!
"If I had this ability, my dominance of the sea would be a sure thing! If the Whitebeard Pirates really have this ability, They can surely defeat me!" Kaido thought.
"No, Jack doesn't need to go. I have a better candidate," Kaido said, relieving Jack.
Queen, on the other hand, was not happy about this.
'Damn it! The only better candidate than Jack is me! I'll probably be running errands now!' Queen cursed.
But he decided to take the initiative and said, "Boss, I'll go personally and find out the reason."
Kaido shook his head and said, "No, you don't need to go."
Queen was initially prepared for a journey filled with hatred, but he was pleasantly surprised to learn that it wasn't him or Jack being chosen for the mission, but King. King, an ancient pterosaur with exceptional flying ability, was highly valued by their boss.
King also appeared confused. He looked at Kaido and asked, "Boss, am I going?"
"No! I think I'm not the only one interested in this. I'll call Linlin," Kaido replied, showing a cunning grin.
Soon, the den den mushi was connected.
"Kaido? Why did you remember to call me, you bastard?"
When Charlotte Linlin received Kaido's call, she thought it was a mistake.
After confirming carefully, she realized that it was indeed Kaido's call.
Kaido's expression is menacing, but his tone is casual as he addresses Charlotte Linlin: "Hey, Linlin, of course I thought of you when there's something good!"
Charlotte Linlin laughs at Kaido's comment: "Come on, Kaido, why can't you just be straightforward? You always say outrageous things!"
Kaido takes it in stride and chuckles, "Oh, come on now, you gave me a great gift with that Devil Fruit, I've been wanting to repay you."
Charlotte Linlin knows better than to trust Kaido's words completely, despite her naive dream of ruling all nations. She understands the benefits of the Devil Fruit she gave Kaido.
But then Kaido mentions something that piques Charlotte Linlin's interest: "Hey, don't you always want to try the desserts from Fishman Island?"
Desserts are Charlotte Linlin's only weakness, and she has been coveting those from Fishman Island for a long time. However, since the Whitebeard Pirates claimed the island as their own, she hasn't been able to obtain them.
Kaido then shares some information he recently obtained from Doflamingo: "Whitebeard left his crew and went to Drum Island."
"Drum Island?" Charlotte Linlin asks.
"Yes, and he's been searching for the old witch Kureha there," Kaido reveals.
Charlotte Linlin's eyes widen in realization. She knows who Kureha is and what that might mean for Whitebeard. Kaido continues, "He's been on Drum Island for two months now, and he doesn't have much longer to live."
Kaido ends the call by telling Charlotte Linlin he just wanted to share the information and let her decide what to do with it.