The giant broadcasting screen displayed the current, tense situation in Wano Country. A stark, glowing message flashed across the bottom of the monitor for the entire world to see. It read, "Countdown: 01:25!" On this massive screen, only one hour and twenty-five minutes remained in this terrible countdown.
Yet, despite the quickly ticking clock, the surrounding seas of Wano Country remained completely uneventful and quiet. The waters were perfectly still. It seemed as if Straw Hat Luffy had absolutely no intention of showing up to save his grandfather. It also looked as though the loyal samurai of Wano Country had completely abandoned their young lord, Momonosuke, to his dark fate.
At this very moment, all the high-ranking executives of the dangerous Beasts Pirates were gathered together in one place. They stood waiting inside the grand General's Residence. This huge building was located right in the center of the beautiful Flower Capital. Surrounding the General's Residence was a massive, intimidating crowd of powerful people from all over the world. There were countless arrogant Celestial Dragons present to watch the event. Former members of the powerful World Government were standing there as well. Many strong Marine soldiers were also deployed to guard the area. They were all preparing themselves for the massive public execution that was about to happen very soon.
Out on the choppy seas around Wano Country, there were countless Beasts Pirates' ships waiting in tight formation. There were so many warships that they completely dyed the entire ocean a deep, menacing black. Everyone on those ships looked extremely grim. Every single pirate was completely ready for a bloody battle.
All the people around the world who witnessed this war through the screen truly felt the terrifying might of the Beasts Pirates. Looking at them, it was no wonder this Yonko crew had managed to defeat the powerful World Government and the strong Marines. Just looking at such a massive, dark formation was enough to make anyone's heart palpitate with deep fear.
Just then, Queen the Plague, who was the third-in-command of the Beasts Pirates, slowly walked up to the front. He was smiling widely with an excited, thrilled expression on his face.
"Big Brother, are you ready? Should I go do it now?"
"Yes, go do it, Queen!"
"You got it, Big Brother!"
As Queen turned and departed to follow his orders, the high-ranking Marine officials felt very nervous. These officials, who had been invited to sit below Kaido's high position, questioned the huge pirate with deep unease.
"Kaido, what exactly are you going to do?"
Kaido simply grinned, a dark and evil look in his eyes.
"Haven't you always wanted to know if the legendary Ancient Weapon Pluton is actually in my hands? Wororororo, you're going to find out right now."
Meanwhile, far away on the vast and magnificent ocean, a massive fleet was moving. These powerful ships were advancing quickly towards Wano Country. Leading the incredible charge, sailing side by side, were six distinct ships.
From left to right, the sight was absolutely legendary. First was the Whitebeard Pirates' massive ship, the Moby Dick. Next to it was the Red Hair Pirates' famous ship, the Red Force. In the middle was the Straw Hat Pirates' beloved ship, the Thousand Sunny. Beside it sailed the Buggy Pirates' colorful ship, the Big Top Circus. Next was the Revolutionary Army's main ship, the Wind Granma. Finally, there was the Heart Pirates' yellow submarine, the Polar Tang.
Sailing right behind these six legendary pirate crews was a giant, towering pirate ship. This huge ship was completely filled with the massive warriors of the giant race. And sailing closely behind these seven great pirate ships was a massive fleet of smaller pirate ships. They were all officially affiliated with these seven great pirate crews. They all shared the exact same goal today. They all wanted to challenge the invincible existence known as Kaido of the Beasts.
On the grassy deck of the Thousand Sunny, an unbelievable group of people had gathered together. Standing there were Fire Fist Ace and Marco the Phoenix. Red-Haired Shanks, Benn Beckman, and Yasopp stood firmly beside them. Naturally, Straw Hat Luffy, Roronoa Zoro, Sanji, and Jinbe were at the front. Buggy the Clown and Sir Crocodile were also present. Even the world's strongest swordsman, Dracule Mihawk, and the Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock, had joined the alliance. The Revolutionary Army's Chief of Staff, Sabo, stood with his four powerful army commanders. Trafalgar Law and the loyal Nine Red Scabbards completed the amazing group.
In the past, these opposing forces would never have been able to safely gather together in one place. This was because they were simply too powerful and too proud. This was a combined force that was truly capable of overturning any single power on this vast ocean. That included defeating the Marines and the entire World Government. But right now, in order to fight against Kaido, everyone had put aside their differences and assembled as one.
However, even with such formidable and world-shaking power on their side, no one felt relaxed. Everyone's expression at this very moment was extremely serious and tight. Their intense gazes were fully focused on observing every single move in Wano Country through the broadcast television. Upon seeing the immense, overwhelming momentum of the Beasts Pirates on the screen, everyone's expressions became even more solemn and worried.
"Luffy, are you ready for this?" Shanks asked.
The fate of this entire world had now deviated very far from the peaceful destiny that Shanks had once envisioned. As a former Celestial Dragon, Red-Haired Shanks completely understood the dark reality of the situation. Kaido's complete victory in this war against the World Government meant something very important. It meant that Shanks himself was no longer strong enough to be Kaido's opponent.
In fact, there was only one person left on this ocean who could actually defeat Kaido. That was Luffy, the young man standing right before him. Therefore, during these past three days, Shanks, Garp, and Dragon had pushed themselves hard. They had taught Luffy absolutely everything they knew about fighting. They were placing all of their final hopes securely on his shoulders. They did this because he truly had no other choice left.
Feeling Shanks's deep earnestness, Luffy clenched his fists tightly together. A bright, highly confident smile beamed across his face.
"Don't worry, Shanks! I'll definitely defeat Kaido and free this whole world!"
"I know you will. I believe in you, Luffy!"
Just then, everyone on the deck noticed a slight but important change in the screen's image. The giant rock walls surrounding Wano Country suddenly began to act exactly like an active volcano. They suddenly began to fiercely spew out countless clouds of white steam. Mount Fuji, which was Wano Country's beautiful and sacred mountain, also started emitting very thick smoke. It looked exactly as if a massive volcano was about to erupt at any second.
"What's going on over there?" someone asked in shock.
Just as everyone was feeling deeply puzzled by the strange sight, a loud noise happened. "Boom!" The thick rock walls encircling the entire border of Wano Country suddenly cracked wide open. Countless streams of scorching red magma aggressively surged out from the cracks. Endless amounts of heavy rubble began to loudly roll down from the heights above.
"Could it be?" Shimotsuki Yasuie whispered.
Among the loyal samurai of Wano Country, the man who was once a Daimyo saw this terrible scene and his eyes widened in absolute shock. He seemed to fully understand exactly what Kaido was trying to do.
"Lord Yasuie, do you know something about this?" Kin'emon asked curiously.
His questioning words quickly attracted everyone's attention on the deck. Shimotsuki Yasuie nodded his head with a very grim expression. His voice was incredibly heavy as he spoke to the group.
"This is the very thing that Lord Oden once desperately wanted to do, but ultimately couldn't accomplish. Kaido is trying to completely open Wano Country."
"What?!"
Before everyone could fully react to his words, the shocking scenes unfolding before them on the screen made them fully understand. The incredibly thick rock walls finally couldn't withstand the immense internal water pressure building up behind them. After the hot, red magma heavily flowed out of the giant cracks, an ocean of trapped seawater forcefully surged out from these exact same fissures. The immense, unstoppable impact of the rushing water made these cracks grow larger and larger by the second.
Then, with a truly resounding crash that shook the earth, the giant rock walls surrounding Wano Country completely shattered into pieces. The massive amounts of seawater that had been safely stored within the country's borders for eight hundred years broke free. The water transformed into massive, devastating waves that violently rolled out towards the surrounding ocean.
This horrifying scene easily reminded people of the legendary Summit War at Marineford two years ago. It looked just like when Whitebeard used his Devil Fruit ability to cause a massive, destructive seaquake. But just as it seemed these colossal, roaring waves would completely engulf the surrounding fleets of the Beasts Pirates' ships, a very strange scene occurred.
Beneath the pitch-black surface of the sea, there seemed to be some kind of immense, unseen power at work. The raging tsunami was directly and forcefully pulled down into the depths. Visibly, centered directly on Wano Country, a massive dark chasm appeared in the ocean. It looked like a giant natural barrier had opened up in the sea. The sky-high waves of seawater immediately began to violently pour down into the bottomless pit. A massive, terrifying suction force began to aggressively engulf absolutely everything in the surrounding area.
Fortunately, the surrounding pirate ships belonging to the enemy forces were well-prepared for this event. They were all firmly anchored to the sea surface, safely fighting against the terrible drag. At this intense moment, it wasn't just the seas directly around Wano Country that reacted. Even the massive Straw Hat Grand Fleet, which was sailing far outside Wano Country's immediate waters, felt the effects. They felt the sudden, violent surge of powerful ocean currents moving deep below their hulls.
And just a few tense minutes later, the massive geological event began to settle. As the raging seawater around Wano Country slowly finished pouring into the great chasm, the surrounding sea level actually began to drop significantly. To everyone's complete astonishment, as the water cleared away, a large expanse of hidden land appeared from the depths. Along with the land, ancient, towering buildings were revealed to the light of day once again.
Seeing this unbelievable scene, the most excited people on the ship were undoubtedly the loyal samurai of Wano Country.
"That's the original Wano Country from eight hundred years ago!"
And high above in the sky, another incredible event took place. The six floating islands, which had been dragged by Kaido's magical flame clouds and suspended in the air, slowly began to descend. They fell gently around the borders of the former Wano Country. This created a truly peculiar and awe-inspiring sight for everyone watching.
The important people standing inside the General's Residence in the Flower Capital also watched this magnificent scene. They stood in stunned silence, completely captivated by the raw power on display. They remained completely silent until Kaido's booming voice rang out across the area.
"Excellent. Now the grand battlefield is perfectly set. Next, we just wait for your adorable grandson, Garp..."