"Bang!"
A dull thud echoed as a figure was sent flying instantly.
Kai watched with interest as the man he had just kicked was launched over ten meters away. With a calm smirk, he said, "The Betrayer Blade—Squard! Man, I would've been pissed if I missed this show 'cause of Blackbeard's nonsense. That would've been way less fun!"
The moment he resurfaced from the sea, Kai saw a scene straight out of the original story. He didn't hesitate—riding his Nimbus, he swooped in and kicked Squard away. But he held back. He wanted to see how Whitebeard would handle this mess.
If he'd really put some force into it, the guy would've been done for!
Kai never had patience for fools who got manipulated so easily. The battlefield wasn't even locked in, no great ice walls were stopping them, and yet they let themselves be tricked into betrayal. No brain cells to spare, huh?
Sure, his own crew could be a handful sometimes, but they trusted each other to the core. A cheap divide-and-conquer scheme like this? It would never fly on his ship.
"Appreciate it, Kai, my boy."
Whitebeard's deep voice rumbled across the battlefield as he nodded toward Kai in thanks. Then, he turned his gaze to Squard, his expression unreadable. After a long pause, he finally spoke:
"You fool… why would you do this?"
Squard's face twisted with emotion. He pushed himself up, his voice shaking with rage. "Still playing dumb, Whitebeard?!"
"Why didn't you tell me Ace was Roger's son?!You knew my entire crew was wiped out by Roger's pirates!"
"And you already made up your mind, didn't you?! You were planning to sacrifice all of us just to save Ace and your own crew! Wasn't that the deal?!"
"What?!!"
The battlefield fell into stunned silence.
Disbelief rippled through Whitebeard's fleet. Murmurs broke out among his allied captains. "Could this be true…? Would Pops really do something like that?"
For a split second, doubt poisoned their hearts.
Whitebeard's eyes darkened.
Squard clenched his jaw and took a step forward. "Since I failed to assassinate you, fine—just do it! Kill me!"
He spread his arms wide, closed his eyes, and waited for the strike.
Whitebeard strode toward him.
Every eye on the battlefield was locked onto them now. The fighting had nearly stopped. What happened next could decide the course of the war.
Whitebeard stopped in front of Squard and raised his arm.
!!!
The entire battlefield held its breath.
Whitebeard's pirates tensed, frozen with anticipation, afraid to even blink.
Then—
Whitebeard pulled Scuyard into a crushing embrace.
"Foolish son," he said, voice steady. "Ace is my son. And so are you. Your ship is moored outside. If you want to leave, you can leave whenever you want."
"It's true that Ace is Roger's son. But tell me this—should a son bear his father's sins? Think about it. You and Ace—how many battles have you fought together?"
"No matter what you do, I will never blame you."
Squard's eyes widened. His breath hitched. "Dad…?"
He looked up.
And met Whitebeard's gaze—an unwavering, fatherly stare.
Tears welled up instantly. His hands trembled. He stared at them in horror.
What the hell had he just done?
He'd let the Marines' words get to him. He'd stabbed his own father. He'd turned his back on the brotherhood he shared with Ace.
Guilt crashed down on him like a tidal wave.
But… at least he hadn't truly harmed Whitebeard. If he had… he would never be able to forgive himself.
Squard choked on his emotions. His gaze flickered to Kai, filled with silent gratitude.
Kai, however, didn't bother looking at him.
"I don't deal with idiots," he muttered to himself. "They bring your IQ down."
Whitebeard straightened, his presence expanding across the battlefield. Then, he roared:
"WE ARE PIRATES! WE DECIDE FOR OURSELVES WHO TO BELIEVE IN!"
"OHHHHHH!!!"
The warzone erupted with renewed fire. The Whitebeard Pirates' morale soared.
"I knew it! Pops would never betray us!""Damn those Marines, trying to turn us against each other!""KILL 'EM ALL!!!"
Whitebeard turned his gaze toward Sengoku. "This is just like you, Sengoku."
But Sengoku wasn't looking at him. His attention was locked onto one person.
Kai.
Pure, seething hatred burned in the Fleet Admiral's eyes.
Kai smirked. He could feel Sengoku's glare drilling into him. He spread his arms, feigning innocence.
Sengoku's fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms.
"I should've eliminated you the moment I heard your name!"
If he'd taken action earlier—if he'd crushed Kai before he gained momentum—none of this would be happening. Whitebeard would have been critically wounded by now. The war would already be tilting in the Marines' favor.
But no—Kai had ruined everything. Again.
Sengoku's blood boiled.
Kai, meanwhile, wasn't concerned in the slightest. He'd made plenty of enemies. What was one more?
But right now, something else had his attention.
Whitebeard's condition.
Kai could see it clearly.
The old man was running on fumes.
Even without this war, even with proper medical care, Whitebeard's body wouldn't last much longer. Decades of injuries, battle scars, and sheer wear had finally caught up to him.
Now, it made sense why Whitebeard had taken Scuyard's blade without dodging in the original timeline. Kai had assumed it was just fatherly sentiment, but no—Whitebeard's body was failing him.
He simply couldn't move like he used to.
But here, with Kai's intervention, that wound had never happened.
Which meant…
Would his battle with Akainu play out differently now?
Kai's lips curled in amusement.
He glanced toward a certain part of the battlefield—waiting to see what would happen next.