Under a single Bolo Breath, the Mink Tribe suffered catastrophic losses.
The destructive power unleashed by Kaido was terrifying. A single blast was enough to erase a small mountain, and against a concentrated population, its lethality was even greater.
Screams echoed across Zou.
Any Mink directly struck by the attack was either killed instantly or left gravely wounded. Very few could withstand the overwhelming force of the blast.
Yet that was only the beginning.
Before the smoke had even settled, another Bolo Breath descended from the sky.
The Mink Tribe simply wasn't strong enough to force Kaido into a serious battle. There was no need for him to enter his Hybrid Form. In his full dragon form, his destructive capability was at its peak.
Explosions thundered across the island.
Buildings collapsed one after another. Entire streets vanished beneath fire and debris. Flames spread through the city while smoke and scorched earth replaced the peaceful scenery that had existed only moments before.
Within a short time, the once tranquil Zou had become a living hell.
"Run! Hide!"
The stronger Minks desperately organized the evacuation.
They protected the elderly, the children, and those incapable of fighting, guiding them toward the Whale Forest as quickly as possible.
High above, Kaido's colossal dragon body hovered in the sky.
His enormous eyes swept across the fleeing masses below. From his vantage point, every movement on the island was plainly visible.
"I'll say it one last time."
Kaido's voice rumbled like thunder.
"Hand over the Road Poneglyph."
"You've already seen my power. Is a stone you can't even use really worth sacrificing your entire race for?"
His patience was rapidly running out.
Kaido wanted battle. He wanted worthy opponents capable of injuring him.
Crushing the weak brought him little satisfaction.
"As long as you surrender the stone, I'll spare your people."
"Even if you seek revenge against me afterward, I don't care."
The Duke of the Mink Tribe glared at him.
"We refuse."
"No matter what you want, our answer remains the same."
"We will give you nothing."
His voice was unwavering.
A huge number of their people had already died at Kaido's hands. Hatred had taken root.
Surrender was impossible.
The Mink Tribe was a stubborn race by nature. In some ways, they resembled the Giants. Once they committed themselves to something, they would carry it through to the end.
Kaido had threatened countless enemies before.
Few had remained this resolute.
"In that case..."
A cruel smile appeared on his face.
"Then perish."
Kaido's eyes narrowed coldly.
Since they had chosen to become enemies, he saw no reason to show mercy.
He could already see the hatred burning in the Minks' eyes.
A blood feud had already been forged. As far as Kaido was concerned, that changed nothing.
The Mink Tribe was merely another obstacle.
Even if Wano stood behind them, he had already considered that possibility before launching this operation.
In fact, the Mink Tribe could practically be considered one of Wano's allied forces.
Destroying them would only weaken Wano.
Since he had already offended them, he might as well finish the job.
The process didn't matter.
Only the result did.
Another Bolo Breath began gathering inside Kaido's jaws.
This time, however, his target was not the warriors resisting him.
It was the fleeing civilians.
The women.
The children.
The wounded.
"No!"
The Duke's expression changed dramatically.
"Stop him!"
Every Mink still capable of fighting moved without hesitation.
One after another, they leapt into the sky and charged directly at Kaido.
They had only one goal.
Stop the attack.
Unfortunately, their efforts were meaningless.
The current Kaido had not yet received a single scar.
His dragon scales remained flawless.
Lightning crackled around his enormous body as he completely ignored the Minks' desperate assault.
The Mink Tribe's greatest strength lay in Sulong.
Under the full moon, their power would experience a tremendous leap.
But it was daytime.
There was no moon.
No Sulong.
No miracle.
Furthermore, the overall strength of the Mink Tribe had not yet reached the level it would possess years later.
Having remained isolated from the outside world for generations, they lacked true combat experience.
The strongest among them, the Duke, possessed strength roughly equivalent to a pirate worth around 500 million berries.
That level was impressive.
But compared to Kaido, the gap was still enormous.
The gathered energy finally erupted.
The Bolo Breath roared forward.
Electricity and fire collided violently.
The Minks gritted their teeth and unleashed every ounce of strength they possessed. But numbers alone could not bridge an overwhelming difference in power.
The moment the attack connected, their resistance shattered.
Led by the Duke, the assembled defenders were blasted away. Bodies flew across the battlefield. One after another, they crashed into the ground, completely incapacitated.
At that moment, the Mink Tribe's remaining high-level combat power was effectively destroyed.
Their ability to resist vanished.
Meanwhile, the forces of the Beasts Pirates finally reached Zou.
Climbing up Zunesha's gigantic leg, they quickly arrived on the island and immediately sensed the scale of the destruction.
In the distance, they saw Kaido's enormous dragon form.
"You're a bit slow."
Kaido glanced down at them. Of course, he understood how difficult it was to reach Zou in the first place.
"Kill them."
"Exterminate the Mink Tribe."
"Yes, Governor!"
The Beasts Pirates responded enthusiastically.
With the strongest Minks already defeated, the remaining survivors posed little threat.
Weapons were drawn.
Cruel smiles spread across their faces.
They rushed forward, finishing off the wounded and pursuing the fleeing survivors.
Kaido no longer bothered participating.
The strongest enemies had already fallen. He had no interest in slaughtering women and children himself.
That task could be left to his subordinates.
The Mink population was never particularly large.
They numbered only in the tens of thousands, relying on Zunesha's daily water sprays to sustain their civilization.
As for what would become of them afterward, Kaido couldn't care less.
Meanwhile, King continued circling the Whale Tree.
While Kaido attracted everyone's attention, King and Crayel quietly infiltrated the island.
Reality quickly proved that they had overestimated Zou's defenses.
"This is it."
After circling the Whale Tree once, they discovered a pathway built directly into the massive structure.
Following it upward, they found exactly what they had anticipated.
A hidden chamber.
A sealed stone door.
King smashed it open without hesitation.
Beyond it stretched a winding passage descending into darkness.
Light from the broken entrance illuminated the corridor as they advanced.
At the end lay a spacious underground chamber.
And there it stood.
A massive red stone.
The Road Poneglyph.
A small amount of moss clung to its edges, suggesting that someone had visited it relatively recently.
There was little need to guess who.
The Roger Pirates.
The crimson stone stood silently in the darkness.
A treasure that countless people would be willing to die for.
"That was easier than expected."
Crayel smiled faintly.
To most people, the stone itself was worthless.
Its true value only existed for those pursuing the final island.
His attention quickly shifted elsewhere.
The future development of the Beasts Pirates interested him far more.
Still, curiosity remained.
"King."
Crayel looked toward him.
"Is this thing really that important?"
"Why is the Governor so determined to obtain it?"
"And who exactly are we waiting for?"
King remained silent for a moment. Then he answered.
"A man from long ago left behind a prophecy."
"He said someone would eventually reveal the truth of the Void Century."
Crayel's eyes narrowed.
"The Pirate King?"
"But Roger already existed."
"I'm not sure."
King shook his head.
"Roger is dead."
"So he wasn't the one."
"Yet as Pirate King, he undoubtedly learned the truth."
"Why he never revealed it... I don't know."
King frowned slightly.
"Still, the Great Pirate Era, the collapse of the world's order, and everything that followed..."
"It all feels like preparation."
"Preparation for that person's arrival."
Crayel thought carefully. Then realization flashed through his eyes.
"In other words..."
"If the prophecy is real..."
"The person the Governor is waiting for is the next Pirate King."
King nodded.
"Most likely."
He did not elaborate further.
"Let's signal the Governor."
"We can't move something this large without him."
A brilliant flare exploded high above the Whale Tree.
Far away, Kaido immediately noticed it. His eyes lit up.
The signal had arrived.
Without hesitation, he flew toward the source.
Soon, he arrived before the hidden chamber. King and Crayel were already waiting outside.
"This is the Road Poneglyph."
Crayel pointed toward the stone.
"But moving it will require your help."
Kaido stepped forward.
His hand slowly brushed across the surface of the crimson stone.
Years ago, during the Rocks era, he had seen another Road Poneglyph in Big Mom's possession.
At the time, however, it belonged to Rocks himself. Nobody had dared make a rubbing.
Suddenly, Kaido clenched his fist.
Boom!
His punch slammed directly into the stone.
The Road Poneglyph trembled slightly.
A deep metallic sound echoed throughout the chamber.
Yet the surface remained completely untouched.
Not a single crack appeared.
"Worororo!"
Kaido burst into laughter.
"So it's real."
The indestructibility of the Poneglyphs was legendary.
Now he had confirmed it for himself.
"Let's go."
His voice echoed across Zou.
The Beasts Pirates immediately began withdrawing.
The operation was over.
Behind them remained a devastated island.
Ruins.
Corpses.
Burning homes.
No one knew exactly how many Minks had died.
The losses were staggering.
Entire generations had been wiped out.
Many had perished directly beneath Kaido's Bolo Breaths.
Others had fallen during the Beasts Pirates' subsequent massacre.
The Mink Tribe resisted fiercely.
Even ordinary Minks fought with Electro and refused to surrender.
That stubborn resistance inflicted losses on the Beasts Pirates as well. Had the battle continued much longer, the invaders would have paid a heavier price.
Fortunately for them, the Road Poneglyph had been located quickly.
Ironically, that discovery likely saved many Mink lives.
Yet the damage had already been done. The tribe's overall strength had been shattered.
Only a handful of elite warriors survived.
Most of those remaining were Musketeers who had chosen to protect civilians rather than continue fighting.
For the Mink Tribe, this day would forever be remembered as one of tragedy.
Everything they had guarded had been taken.
Their homeland had been devastated.
Countless tribesmen had died. And they had been powerless to stop it.
The Beasts Pirates departed.
The Azure Dragon disappeared into the clouds.
Its enormous claws gripped the crimson Road Poneglyph as it carried King and Crayel away.
Rain soon began falling across Zou.
As though even the heavens mourned.
One by one, surviving Minks emerged from the Whale Forest.
They stared silently at the destruction surrounding them.
Their homes were gone.
Their streets reduced to rubble.
Bodies lay scattered across the ruins as blood mixed with rainwater.
Was it over?
No.
Not even close.
The hatred remained.
It would continue burning.
They wanted revenge.
Revenge against the Beasts Pirates.
Revenge against Kaido.
They would never forget the suffering inflicted upon them that day.
One by one, fists tightened.
Hatred filled their eyes.
Compared to the destruction of their homeland and the deaths of their loved ones, the Road Poneglyph itself seemed insignificant.
Most Minks didn't even know it existed.
Even so, answers were needed.
After all, countless lives had been lost over a stone whose purpose they didn't understand. To them, it felt like a disaster that had fallen from the sky.
No one blamed themselves for refusing to surrender it.
People were selfish by nature. Under such circumstances, self-reflection was impossible.
Eventually, the tribe's surviving leaders began investigating.
Through contacts outside Zou and records preserved by the Dukes, the truth gradually emerged.
The stone Kaido had taken was one of the four Road Poneglyphs.
A key necessary to reach Laugh Tale and become Pirate King.
It was also believed to be one of the two Road Poneglyphs originally connected to Wano Country.
Long ago, the Kozuki Clan had entrusted it to the Mink Tribe for safekeeping.
In truth, the relationship between the two sides had weakened greatly over the centuries.
The bond remained more a matter of tradition than personal attachment.
Only years ago had members of the Kozuki Family and the Roger Pirates visited Zou again.
Guarding the Poneglyph had become little more than an ancestral duty.
Nevertheless, this matter had to be reported to Wano.
A disaster brought by Wano's treasure had devastated their homeland.
Wano could not remain uninvolved.
More importantly, the Mink Tribe now needed strength.
They had personally witnessed how powerless they were against the Beasts Pirates.
One thing had become absolutely certain.
They would seek revenge.
No matter how long it took.
No matter the cost.