Chapter 255: Occupation of Wano Country
Kaido grabbed King and Queen's hands and paused.
A slight chill crept up his neck, causing his pupils to dilate.
A genuine sense of death overtook him—this time, it was real.
His Observation Haki screamed in warning, flooding his mind with images of himself being beheaded.
No matter how he tried to escape, there was no avoiding this fate.
"Am I really going to die?!"
Kaido looked up, watching as a massive slash plummeted from the sky.
"I never expected it to end like this… My life… what a failure!"
His thoughts drifted back to his past.
From his early days as a war hero, only to be betrayed by his kingdom—sold to the World Government by the very king he fought for.
He had suffered inhumane experiments, turning him into a monster.
Then came Rocks, who rescued him from that nightmare and made him his subordinate.
After Rocks' fall, he dreamed of ruling the world.
But now—he would die at Charlotte's hands.
"Is this… fate?"
Kaido muttered under his breath.
Looking down at the brothers he had taken in—
The ones who stood beside him as they built the Beasts Pirates together.
"Brothers! Let me, as your elder brother, give you one last gift!"
Kaido clenched his final ounce of strength.
His gaze fell upon King and Queen.
As if sensing something, they looked up, their faces filled with dread.
"Brother!"
King and Queen shouted in panic.
"Live well! Carry on my will! Take care of my daughter!"
Kaido used everything he had left—
And hurled King and Queen away with all his might!
"Brother—!"
King felt a powerful gust of wind engulfing him—before his body was thrown uncontrollably into the distance!
Kaido let out a loud, booming laugh.
"Wororororo!"
Blood sprayed through the air.
A massive head plummeted to the ground.
Kaido's thousand-meter-long dragon body followed, crashing down.
His form shrank rapidly, reverting to his human state.
At that moment—
King's eyes burned with grief.
"Brother!!!"
A cry of pure sorrow erupted from him.
In the distance—
A pterosaur flapped its wings, grabbing Queen before flying toward Onigashima.
"That's where Brother's final thoughts reside!"
And on Onigashima—
A small horned girl, lying in a cradle, suddenly burst into uncontrollable tears.
The servants hurriedly rushed to comfort her, but nothing seemed to work.
Meanwhile, Charlotte landed back on the ground.
His gaze lingered on Kaido's lifeless body.
His head was completely severed.
Charlotte's expression remained complicated.
There had been a time—**in his past life—**when he had admired Kaido as a character.
But now—Kaido was dead.
There was no need to think about it any longer.
"Give him a proper burial. Let him be laid to rest at the summit of Udon's Rabbit Bowl."
Charlotte sheathed his sword and turned toward his ship.
The swordsmen standing nearby exchanged glances before quickly setting off to carry out his orders.
Claiming Wano
Charlotte stepped onto the ship.
At the bow, the six Martha girls watched him with worried expressions.
Even though the bleeding on Charlotte's face had stopped, his face was still covered in dried blood.
He looked terrifying.
"Don't worry, I'm fine," Charlotte said, flashing a slight smile.
He scanned his surroundings.
Large parts of Wano Country had been covered in volcanic lava from the earlier eruption.
The sky remained choked with thick layers of volcanic ash.
His original purpose for coming here—**treasure hunting—**was now completely ruined.
The Devil Fruits he had hoped to find were most likely buried beneath molten rock.
Finding them now would be impossible.
The only thing that still interested Charlotte in Wano—
Was Seastone.
He gazed upon the devastated land.
Then, turning to Barrett, he issued his command.
"Barrett, take out our flag and plant it here. Let the world know—Wano now belongs to the Rockefeller Pirates!"
Charlotte would inherit everything Kaido had built.
Upon hearing this, Barrett silently entered the cabin, retrieved a fresh Rockefeller Pirates flag, and walked toward an open area near the port.
Without hesitation, he planted the flag firmly into the ground.
Charlotte gazed at the flag fluttering in the wind.
A wave of emotions washed over him.
From this moment forward—
He would bear the weight of this flag.
At last, he understood.
"Heavy is the head that wears the crown."
Reflections & Aftermath
Toki approached him, her expression conflicted.
She had only come to Wano to visit…
How had it come to this?
She knew deep down that it wasn't entirely Charlotte's fault.
But still—
Her homeland had been destroyed.
The once beautiful land of Wano had been reduced to ruin.
The volcano erupted—everything was lost.
Charlotte exhaled deeply.
This time—
He had accomplished nothing.
Sure, Kaido was dead.
But the cost was immense.
His men had suffered severe injuries.
First, they had clashed with the samurai of Wano.
Then, they fought the Beasts Pirates.
Although few had died, the number of wounded was staggering.
Charlotte sighed.
Not only had he failed to obtain the Devil Fruits, but he hadn't even explored Wano properly.
He knew that Wano hid Pluto, the ancient weapon.
But now…
With magma flowing everywhere, reaching it was impossible.
"Everyone, rest for now. We'll stay here a while."
Charlotte called out.
"Yes!"
His crew forced themselves to respond, exhaustion evident in their voices.
The Rockefeller Pirates disembarked, cleaning up the battlefield and piling the corpses.
Though Kaido was dead, King and Queen had escaped.
Many of Kaido's weaker subordinates had also fled when no one was watching.
But Charlotte didn't care.
They were insignificant.
They posed no threat to him.
He glanced toward the horizon.
"Onigashima… I nearly forgot about it."
Turning back to his ship, Charlotte approached Martha and the others.
"Charlotte, does your face hurt?"
Elena asked, her eyes filled with concern.
She pulled out a handkerchief and gently began wiping the dried blood off his face.
Charlotte winced slightly.
"It's nothing. I've had worse."
He brushed it off casually.
After all—
There was a baby in her belly.
Elena rolled her eyes, unimpressed.
She continued gently cleaning his wounds.
A Feast & Recovery
"Prepare some food. I'm hungry."
Charlotte rubbed his stomach.
At once, the maids scurried to the kitchen, preparing a feast.
Soon, massive plates of grilled meat were served on deck.
Charlotte sat down, eating ravenously.
As he devoured pot after pot of barbecued meat, a strange phenomenon occurred.
Wisps of white steam began rising from his body.
The **wound on his forehead—**the mark left by Kaido's mace—
Began healing rapidly.
Charlotte grinned.
He hadn't forgotten about this little cheat.
No matter how severe his injuries were—
As long as he kept eating meat, he would recover.
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