"Beast Father and his absurdly devoted child?"
"Love and kill each other?"
Yamato froze for a moment. With her straightforward way of thinking, she clearly couldn’t quite process what Lucas meant. Nevertheless, she glared at him and said,
"No! I don’t believe Kaido would kill me!"
"You don’t believe it?"
Lucas smiled. His right hand shot out like lightning, grabbing the explosive collar around Yamato’s neck before casually tossing it toward the Saiga Man.
The sudden turn of events caused the Saiga Man’s pupils to contract violently.
All this time, they had believed that once the explosive collar was put on, there was no way to remove it except with the key.
They had never imagined that someone could simply tear it off with his bare hands.
Seeing the explosive collar flying straight toward him, the Saiga Man had no time to think. He immediately turned and fled.
BOOM!
A tremendous wave of explosive force erupted.
The Saiga Man had only managed to flee seven or eight meters before the enormous blast sent him flying.
The sheer destructive power of the explosion reduced everything within several dozen meters to rubble.
Yamato was completely dumbfounded by the sight.
In the original story, Yamato had indeed wanted to defeat Kaido time and again and fulfill Kozuki Oden’s dying wish of opening Wano’s borders.
But she had always believed that when Kaido threatened to kill her, he was merely joking.
That was why she had acted so fearlessly, constantly trying to "die of filial piety" against Kaido.
It was only after discovering the secret behind the explosive collar around her neck that she realized Kaido genuinely intended to kill her.
Otherwise, when Ace came to Onigashima and intended to challenge Kaido, Yamato—Kaido’s "most devoted child"—wouldn’t have stepped forward to fight in Kaido’s place.
In her eyes, she was at most a rebellious child. Surely that didn’t mean Kaido would actually kill her, right?
Yet what had just happened completely overturned Yamato’s understanding.
Kaido really did intend to kill her!
"That bastard Kaido! You really did want to kill me!"
Yamato’s face turned pale as she finally recovered from the shock, and she roared,
"No—rather, since I am Kozuki Oden, of course you would want to kill me!"
"But that’s fine, too. Now I can finally steel my heart and open Wano’s borders!"
"Please, hurry up and remove these Seastone cuffs for me. I need to teach them a proper lesson."
"You broke it with your bare hands? Young Master Yamato’s explosive collar was removed just like that! Who exactly is this guy?!"
The Rat Man was utterly shocked.
Seeing the Saiga Man struggling to rise from the rubble in the distance, the Rat Man had no time to think.
"Bat! What are you waiting for?! Move! Cover us!"
"If Lord Kaido finds out that we let Young Master Yamato escape, we’re dead!"
The Saiga Man also crawled out of the rubble, his body covered in blood and grime.
Seeing that Yamato had escaped the explosive collar, he likewise understood how serious the situation was.
Ignoring the pain shooting through his body, the Saiga Man immediately tensed every muscle and looked toward Batman, their leader.
As long as Batman made a move, the Saiga Man and Rat Man would immediately launch a desperate attack.
However, the instant their eyes met, both the Saiga Man and Rat Man’s pupils contracted.
They looked as though they had seen a ghost.
Batman, who normally had enough strength to operate independently and had even accompanied the Flying Six on voyages before returning alive, was now acting as though his soul had been scared out of him.
Without the slightest hesitation, he really did move.
But what he did completely overturned their understanding.
Under everyone’s stunned gaze, Batman violently beat his wings and fled for his life.
"Bat! Have you lost your mind?! Why are you running?! If Lord Kaido finds out that we let Young Master Yamato escape, we’re dead!"
The Saiga Man and Rat Man’s expressions changed dramatically as they shouted after him.
But what they heard next caused the last thread of their composure to snap.
"We’re dead either way! Dying later is still better than dying right now!"
"That guy is the Marine’s Fourth Admiral—the man who wiped out the Flying Six and defeated Lord Jack! Why the hell would someone like him appear here?!"
The terrified exclamation left the Saiga Man and Rat Man deathly pale.
They looked back at Lucas, who now seemed vaguely familiar.
This time, they didn’t hesitate for even a moment.
They immediately turned and fled.
Allowing Yamato to escape from the explosive collar would indeed mean certain death.
But in their eyes, compared with a Marine Admiral arriving in Wano, that was merely a minor matter.
Perhaps they could even offset their mistake with their subsequent achievements.
Right now, they had only one objective:
Survive and escape this place.
"You—you are the Marine Admiral? The guy who defeated Jack?"
Yamato was visibly stunned, clearly surprised.
But seeing the fleeing Gifters, she immediately became anxious.
"Why aren’t you chasing them?! If they get too far away and inform Kaido, that won’t be good!"
"Chase them?"
Lucas smiled and took a swig of shōchū.
"Don’t worry. They won’t get away."
"Let’s remove your cuffs first."
Lucas drew the Monohoshizao from behind.
A flash of cold light followed.
The Seastone cuffs shattered on the spot.
At the same time, Batman and the other two had already fled several kilometers away.
Still shaken, they nervously looked back.
Seeing nothing behind them, they couldn’t help but freeze.
"Bat, is that really a Marine Admiral? Why isn’t he chasing us? Could it be that he can’t catch us?"
The Rat Man couldn’t help asking.
"Looks like he’s not as terrifying as the rumors claim. Since he can’t catch us, we’d better quickly report what happened here to Boss Kaido."
"That Marine Admiral suddenly appearing alone inside Wano... Who knows what he might do?"
As he spoke, the Rat Man pulled out a Den Den Mushi.
But before he could activate it, an enormous shadow had already fallen over them.
Their hearts tightened.
The moment they looked up—
They were greeted by a sight straight out of a nightmare.
A massive warship was floating in midair, dominating the sky above them.
The Marine Admiral hadn’t come alone!
He had arrived with an entire warship, descending upon Wano like a conqueror.
And what was even more frightening were the numerous figures standing on the deck, each radiating an intimidating presence.
The Den Den Mushi slipped from the Rat Man’s hand and fell to the ground.
His face was filled with disbelief.
"Are they here to destroy the entire country?"
Batman and the Saiga Man were equally dumbfounded.
At this point, they no longer had any desire to run.
Their instincts told them that no matter how they tried to escape, only death awaited them.
Meanwhile, Yamato stared at the Seastone cuffs that had been cleanly cut apart in Lucas’s hand, her face filled with shock.
"Are you the great swordsman mentioned in Kozuki Oden’s journal?"
"If you’re not a great swordsman, you absolutely couldn’t have cut through Seastone, right?"
"Wait... You suddenly came to Wano. Don’t tell me you’re like me—a great swordsman who admires Kozuki Oden and has come here to follow his dying wish?"
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