At those words, Kaido and Big Mom both fell silent. When they first formed this alliance, they'd loudly declared they would topple the world government and seize the seas. But deep down, neither of them truly believed they could bring down that monster.
Even Kaido—who'd once dreamed of igniting a war that engulfed the entire world, dragging those high‑and‑mighty Celestial Dragons down into the mud to create "true equality"—
As he grew stronger and learned more about the world, the more he realized how absurd that dream was. How could mere mortals topple the world government, a behemoth that had endured for eight hundred years? Even Joy Boy had failed. So how could he possibly succeed?
In truth, even Kaido no longer knew why he still clung to the idea of a world‑shaking war. Maybe he just needed an excuse—an excuse to seize the One Piece.
His declared goal was to unleash a global war. So why was he so fixated on the One Piece itself? Was it simply because he was a pirate?
Marco studied the suddenly silent pair, unable to read their thoughts, then broke the quiet.
"Speaking of Kaido… we three Emperors have been allied for so long. Are you still not going to tell us about Pluton?"
Kaido's hand froze halfway to his mouth, the sake sloshing in his cup. He stared at Marco in disbelief. Beside him, Big Mom's pupils shrank sharply as she snapped,
"Pluton? Kaido, is Pluton in your hands?"
Kaido didn't answer right away. He kept his eyes fixed on Marco, still stunned, and finally asked,
"Marco… how do you know about this? Did Oden tell you?"
"I know you admire Oden a lot, but it wasn't him," Marco replied, his lips curling into a teasing smirk. "It was Roger."
Kaido's face darkened as if he'd just bitten into dirt. He immediately barked.
"Bullshit! How could this old man admire that good-for-nothing Oden?"
Marco chuckled and pressed.
"Then why was your first reaction to ask if Oden told me?"
Shadows crossed Kaido's face. Even he didn't know why Oden had been the first name out of his mouth. Was it that stupid daughter of his, Yamato, rubbing off on him?
He snorted coldly, refusing to answer. Big Mom, however, wasn't about to let it go.
"So, Kaido… Pluton really is in your hands?"
"Mm." Kaido gave a short nod, admitting it.
He then turned back to Marco.
"So Roger told Whitebeard about Pluton?"
"Mm." Marco nodded. "Before Roger turned himself in to the Marines, he came to see Pops once. He told him a lot of things."
"So that's how it is," Kaido muttered, listening closely.
Big Mom's chest burned with envy, jealousy, and rage. Not only had Kaido grown this strong, but he was also holding an Ancient Weapon. She slammed her words at him:
"You bastard, Kaido! You've actually got Pluton! Something like that should be shared within the alliance!"
Kaido ignored her completely, focusing only on Marco.
"If Roger told Whitebeard about Pluton… did he also tell him the locations of the other two Ancient Weapons, Uranus and Poseidon?"
Big Mom's expression turned grave as she, too, fixed her gaze on Marco. His lips lifted slightly as he answered.
"Mm. He told me everything."
"What? Where?" Kaido blurted, unable to hide his excitement. He had never imagined Marco would actually know the whereabouts of the Ancient Weapons.
With both emperors staring at him expectantly, Marco tilted his head and asked in return,
"Kaido, where is Pluton?"
Kaido's brow creased, his tone turning slightly stiff.
"Pluton is indeed in my hands… in Wano Country."
Marco pressed on. "It's at the bottom of the sea in Wano Country, isn't it?"
"You know that too?" Kaido's eyes widened in surprise once again.
Big Mom looked even more lost. "Underwater? Hey, you two, don't play guessing games with me."
Kaido shot her a cold glance. But with Pluton's location already exposed by Marco, he no longer bothered to conceal it. He grumbled, "Pluton is indeed in Wano. It's been hidden beneath Wano's waters, submerged in the sea for eight hundred years. I don't even know if it can still be used."
"Could it be…" Kaido trailed off, then fixed his gaze on Marco. "Do you know how to use Pluton?"
Marco spread his hands in a helpless shrug. "How would I know? It probably needs someone who can read ancient texts to use it."
Kaido's pupils shrank again, and then he broke into a toothy grin. "Worororo… looks like that old man Whitebeard really left you a lot of inheritance. I once took a submarine down to observe Pluto's warships up close. All the writing on Pluton is in ancient script."
Big Mom snapped impatiently, "Who cares whether it can be used or not! Just have someone drag Pluton out so we can take a look! Why leave it soaking in seawater?"
"Tch, what do you know?" Kaido shot back irritably. "You haven't seen the size of that ship with your own eyes. It's on par with Thriller Bark. To haul Pluton out, you'd have to destroy Wano's nation-protecting wall."
He continued coldly, "Once that wall is gone, Wano's natural barrier disappears. And if I expose Pluton before I'm properly prepared, it'll definitely bring the World Government down on me from all sides."
Having said that, Kaido turned back to Marco, his expression serious. "Your turn. You just said Roger told Whitebeard a lot of secrets, including those about the three Ancient Weapons. As the successor of the Whitebeard Pirates, do you also hold the power of an ancient weapon?"
As his words fell, Big Mom also turned to stare at Marco, disbelief in her eyes as she waited for his answer.
Marco chuckled. "Mm. As for Poseidon, it is indeed in my hands. But the situation's similar to yours."
Kaido's brows knit together. "Similar to mine? You can't use it?"
"That's part of it. Poseidon is definitely difficult to use... but more than that, it's hard to control," Marco replied.
"Hard to control?" Kaido repeated, frowning slightly.
Marco nodded. As a transmigrator, he naturally knew Poseidon was Shirahoshi and Fish-Man Island was under the Phoenix Pirates' protection, so it wasn't wrong to say Poseidon was in his hands.
But Shirahoshi herself couldn't control Poseidon's power. Even if Marco brought her here, she might not be able to wield it, so he had simply left that power dormant for now.
Besides, Marco trusted the strength granted by his system more than any ancient weapon. The power he gained from adding attribute points was permanently his. Shirahoshi's power, on the other hand, was far too unstable. If it were exposed, she'd instantly become a prime target for the World Government's assassins. Better to keep Shirahoshi hidden for the time being.
"I see," Kaido muttered, finally understanding.
Big Mom was frozen in disbelief.
It was already hard enough for her to accept that Kaido and Marco individually outclassed her in raw strength. Still, she had always taken pride in her hundred thousand Homies. Even if she couldn't win against either of them in a straight one-on-one clash, she was convinced that, in terms of overall military power, the Big Mom Pirates were not inferior to the Beasts Pirates or Marco's forces. In her mind, she had always been the strongest of the three emperors.
Yet reality had blindsided her.
Kaido and Marco each held a trump card of their own: one controlled Pluton, the other Poseidon.
The Big Mom Pirates' greatest weapon had been those hundred thousand Homies—but during the battle on Cake Island, they had been completely exhausted. Now, stripped of that overwhelming army, she was painfully aware that she had become the weakest of the three.
A chilling thought crept into her mind: would the Big Mom Pirates be swallowed up by these two monsters?
Kaido broke the silence. "What about Uranus?"
Marco didn't bother to conceal anything. "It should be with the World Government. Of course, that's just my guess. I can't say for sure that it's really in their hands."
"So the World Government might be holding Uranus… one of the Three Ancient Weapons." Kaido's face hardened as the words sank in. He had thought that with Pluton alone, he would one day dominate the world. But if the world government truly possessed Uranus, he would have to tread carefully.
As Kaido drank and mulled it over, Marco's lips curled into a faint smile. Suddenly, he spoke up, "Kaido, since everyone's gathered here today, we should decide the course of our alliance. If we all act on our own, the Marines and the World Government will just pick us off one by one."
Kaido's eyes gleamed, and he burst into laughter. "Worororo! You've got a point, Marco. Do you have something in mind?"
Marco's smile deepened. "Ever since I lost to you last time, I haven't been sleeping well. I keep tossing and turning. So—" He leaned forward slightly. "I want to fight you again."
Kaido's brows knitted together. He already knew Marco's phoenix flames had changed from blue to black and that the man had grown even stronger since their last clash. "Oh? So you think you can beat me now?"
Marco's gaze sharpened, his lips still curved in that calm smile. "Mm. And besides, the Three Emperors Alliance needs a leader—someone to give unified commands."
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