Storm is coming!

Somewhere in the New World.

On the calm sea, a massive ship resembling a whale is slowly moving forward.

This is the main ship of the Whitebeard Pirates—the Moby Dick.

On the deck, which is much broader than that of an ordinary ship, the previously harmonious and amiable Whitebeard crew is now enveloped in a somber atmosphere.

The man renowned as the world's strongest, Whitebeard, sits on a chair, drinking heavily in a bold manner.

Surrounding him, led by the third division commander Jozu, many crew members watch their father with serious expressions.

Whitebeard's decision will largely determine the direction and stance of the Whitebeard Pirates on the seas.

On the other side, Izo, along with Nekomamushi and Inuarashi, also look at Whitebeard. They know that no matter how strong their forces are, even if they rally the entire Mink Tribe, they won't have as much influence as convincing Whitebeard. After all, only monsters can contend with monsters in this vast sea.

Numbers don't matter against monsters, especially when they are up against the Kaido Pirates, who have occupied Wano for decades, and the terrifying strength of Nicholas and his crew.

Without Whitebeard holding off Kaido and Nicholas, they have no chance of victory.

As Whitebeard, who had been drinking on the chair in the middle of the deck, suddenly puts down his bowl of sake, he turns his head.

Upon turning his head, he hears a familiar laugh from above.

Whitebeard's lips curve slightly, clearly lifting his spirits, which had been troubled by Oden's death and the dilemma of whether to dispatch troops to Wano.

Hearing the laughter, Jozu and the others are slightly surprised and immediately look to the sky.

With the laughter, a figure with wings of azure flame gracefully descends from the sky.

"Old man, long time no see."

Marco lands on the deck of the Moby Dick, and the burning wings instantly retract.

Whitebeard gives a sideways glance at the unfilial son who had been away for a long time, saying nothing.

Marco, unfazed, sits cross-legged on the deck in front of Whitebeard.

"Hey, hey, Thatch, I've finally come home. Don't tell me there's no sake left?"

Marco jokes, looking at Thatch, who handles the logistics of the Whitebeard Pirates.

"Hehe, there's plenty of sake."

Moments later.

The crew brings out the finest sake from the ship.

Marco uses his thumb to pop open the bottle cap, a familiar yet distant aroma wafting from the bottle.

"Nothing beats the sake at home."

Marco says, savoring the aroma.

Hearing Marco's words, Whitebeard smiles.

"Gurararara, if the sake at home is so good, why don't you come back more often?"

"Ahahaha, old man, you know there are always some blind fools trying to mess with you. As your son, it's my duty to take care of them."

After saying this, Marco takes a large swig from the bottle, burps, and then looks at Izo and the four others with him, calmly saying, "Though I was upset by Oden's decision to leave the Whitebeard Pirates, he was still our family since the moment we accepted him aboard. That fact doesn't change just because he left later. Now, someone has harmed our family and friends. We can't just let that slide."

"Marco, do you really want us to fight both Thunder God Nicholas and Beast Kaido? Do you understand what that means?"

Teach speaks up from the side.

"Of course I understand. Fighting Nicholas and Kaido simultaneously means many of us here, including myself, could die in this war…"

Marco scans the core members of the Whitebeard Pirates around him, then continues, "But let's not forget what's most important to the Whitebeard Pirates! If we ignore Oden's death today, what about tomorrow when it's our turn? Anyone who dares to challenge the Whitebeard Pirates' bottom line will face our wrath!"

After speaking, blue flames ignite in Marco's hand, and he crushes the sake bottle.

Hearing Marco's words, Whitebeard's face remains unchanged as he takes a massive bowl of sake and drinks several large gulps.

"Gurararara, that's my beloved son."

After downing the bowl, Whitebeard slams it onto the armrest of his chair and laughs heartily. Clearly, Marco has demonstrated the responsibility that is worthy of the first division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates.

Whitebeard then stands up from his exaggerated chair, grabs the bisento placed beside him, taps it on the deck, and roars.

"Everyone, gather our allied pirate crews. Our destination is Wano!"

"Yes!"

"Understood, old man!"

"On it!"

Although some on the ship are reluctant to face Kaido and Nicholas, once Whitebeard has spoken, they will obey without question, for they are the Whitebeard Pirates!

"Old man..."

Seeing the crew mobilizing after Whitebeard's order, Izo is moved to the verge of tears.

After his initial anger, he had to admit Teach's point: fighting just Kaido, the Whitebeard Pirates still had a certain victory, but adding Nicholas to the mix made even a victory costly, if not impossible.

"Gurararara, Izo, now is not the time for tears."

Whitebeard says, looking down at Izo.

"Yes, old man!"

Izo wipes his tears with his sleeve, then solemnly says, "Old man, I will be at the forefront of this war! I won't let any brothers die before me!"

.......

In the New World, at Wano Country's Onigashima.

"Glug... glug... glug..."

In a dimly lit room within the Beasts Pirates' stronghold, sounds of heavy drinking can be heard. Someone is gulping down large amounts of sake.

Through the dim light, empty sake jars can be seen scattered on the floor.

The room is filled with a rich aroma, indicating the sake is not cheap.

This is Kaido's room, leader of the Beasts Pirates.

"Burp—"

Kaido pulls the sake jar from his lips and exhales a mix of sake breath and belch.

A few cautious members of the Beasts Pirates are steadily bringing in more sake jars, eyeing Kaido, who is sprawled on his chair, drinking heavily.

They are careful, knowing that a drunken Kaido is unpredictable. One careless move could result in a fatal blow.

"Sniff... Sniff..."

Kaido hiccups, then slams the jar onto the table, starting to sob.

"King... King, how can I live without you, boohoohoo..."

Crying, Kaido suddenly remembers something. "And Queen, what will I do without you?"

Seeing Kaido start his drunken rampage, everyone in the room keeps their heads down, not daring to speak.

"Kaido-sama, bad news! A pirate crew has landed at Ringo and killed many of our men!"

An urgent voice suddenly echoes from outside.

"Sniff... sniff..."

Hearing this, Kaido's eyes flash with a violent light. "Sniff!!! Who dares to trouble me now?!"

Kaido's terrifying laughter echoes over Onigashima.

Members of the Beasts Pirates on the island look toward their leader's location.

In that direction, a giant dragon rises into the sky.