Charles told Kaido he wouldn't lose, but he also didn't think he would definitely win.
From the start, Charles never said the line "I'm fired up," because his fighting spirit truly hadn't flared to its peak.
Although Otama's experience left Charles quite angry, it still hadn't touched his own bottom line, and he didn't have the drive and resolve to fight at full tilt.
He was keenly aware of this, so even if he focused all his attention on the fight itself, he couldn't reach the state he had when going all out.
Even so, Charles was confident he wouldn't lose… That said, Kaido's health bar was so thick it left him speechless.
In the original plot he weathered a gauntlet of the Akazaya Nine, the Supernova alliance, Yamato, and awakened Luffy without ever flagging from start to finish, which shows how terrifying his endurance is.
Kaido's madness made Charles click his tongue; he would rather eat Charles's blade just to land a swing of his club, the kind of "hurt the enemy eight thousand and yourself ten thousand" move only a health-bar freak like Kaido could pull off.
Yet even so, Charles found he was the one getting the worse end of the exchanges, which left him especially helpless.
Kaido wasn't having it easy either. After a full three days and nights of fighting, even he was covered in wounds.
Since the cross-shaped scar Kozuki Oden left on his abdomen twenty years ago, this was the first time anyone had inflicted so many wounds on him.
The black grime on the broken scales across his body was all dried blood, a testament to how brutal the battle had been.
However, three straight days of fighting also cooled the hot blood in Kaido's head, and he began thinking about how to wrap this up.
The whole sea knew Kaido of the Beasts, one of the Four Emperors, was a madman, but no one ever treated him as just a madman.
As a sea emperor, Kaido's presence and wits were anything but lacking. It's just that most problems he could solve with his kanabo never required other methods.
But don't forget how Kozuki Oden died: even if his own folly played a part, the trap was Kaido's doing.
So Kaido now understood he couldn't take Charles down. And after three days of fighting, the outskirts of Onigashima had been practically flattened by the two of them.
If they kept going, it would be a fight to the death, and his base of many years would be completely ruined.
Kaido had to admit he'd gotten carried away, actually brawling on Onigashima with someone not weaker than himself.
But thinking carefully, this time it seemed Charles had come to pick the fight.
In the past Kaido had been the one picking fights; suddenly being the one picked on had left him slow to react.
As a pirate—especially one bearing the title of sea emperor—being provoked to this extent almost made Kaido want to forget Onigashima and go all-in against Charles.
But after the three-day, three-night war, Kaido was in a calm bordering on sage-like and could weigh the pros and cons.
Most importantly, Charles had shown the strength to speak to him as an equal.
Kaido, leaning on his kanabo, said, "We've fought this long. You should tell me what you actually want."
Charles knew the conditions for negotiation were in place. He drove the War God greatsword into the ground and said, "My terms are simple. I want one of your farms in Kuri. From now on that farm is under my control, and your Beasts Pirates are not to make trouble!"
Kaido was taken aback. He hadn't expected this kid to come fight a Yonko like him just for a farm.
But without the fight, there really would have been no room to negotiate. That was why Charles stated his terms only after they were done, and it was the normal way to deal with pirates.
Kaido laughed. "Worororo, you've got guts, trying to snatch something from pirates!"
"So you refuse?" Charles looked him in the eye.
Kaido shook his head. "No. Think of it as a prize you earned by not going down to me. A mere farm—I'll give it to you!"
Charles eased his taut nerves a little, released the Nibelungen Ring, and took to the air as flaming wings unfurled from his back.
"As a return gift, I can tell you something: Vegapunk used your lineage factor to make a copy of the Fish-Fish Fruit, Mythical Zoan.
He considered it an imperfect work, but other than the color, that fruit is no different from the one you ate!"
Kaido's expression didn't change. He looked up at Charles and said, "Information without much meaning."
Charles said nothing more and turned to fly toward Amigasa Village.
He'd only brought up that Kaido-related intel on a whim—just to placate Kaido so he wouldn't feel too shortchanged and secretly trip him up later.
But as Kaido himself had said, the intel wasn't very meaningful.
Devil Fruits and their users have always made each other. Fruits have differences in power, but with proper development they can all yield formidable combat strength.
For example, it wasn't the Tremor-Tremor Fruit that made Whitebeard the world's strongest man; it was Whitebeard who gave the Tremor-Tremor Fruit its peerless reputation.
It was the same for Kaido. The Fish-Fish Fruit, Mythical Zoan: Azure Dragon is powerful, but eating it doesn't make you the Strongest Creature on land, sea, and air. In the end, what's strong is Kaido himself.
In any case, Charles had achieved his goal.
He certainly wasn't foolish enough to demand Kaido leave Wano or dismantle the weapons factories—terms he would never accept.
Charles hadn't come to save all of Wano this time, only to solve Otama and the others' livelihood problems.
The former would only be possible by going to all-out war with the Beasts Pirates and winning, and Charles wasn't arrogant enough to think he alone could crush a Yonko's thousands-strong force.
Getting Kaido to hand over a farm was hard enough.
Charles flew straight back to Amigasa Village and rejoined Stella and Otama, who had been waiting there.
She trusted him, but after waiting three full days and seeing him so battered, Stella still hurried over, worried. "Charles, are you hurt? Are you alright?"
Charles waved a hand. "Relax, they're all surface wounds. The opponent is a top powerhouse in this world—ending up like this is already pretty good.
But I did take too long and make you worry."
Otama came over too. She knew why Charles had gone out this time, and seeing the scars on him, she began to feel guilty.
"Big Brother Charles, you got hurt because of Otama. I…"
Charles laid a palm on her head and said solemnly, "No need to say more. I, your big brother, like seeing people with beautiful qualities find happiness.
It's enough if cheerful, kind Otama keeps on being happy!"
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