Fire Dragon Torch!
One of Kaido's last remaining trump cards.
Unfortunately...
This mighty power wasn't being used to finish off Kairos Flint, but to flee instead.
"Kairos Flint! I swear I'll get my revenge!!"
Kaido was engulfed in a torrent of heat. The ground beneath him was already beginning to melt, and the temperature of the surrounding air spiked dangerously.
The once lush landscape was scorched dry in an instant—without even catching fire.
Even the sea began to boil, and thick steam hissed upward, cloaking the area in a ghostly mist.
"Do you really think you can run away from me?" Kairos shrugged casually.
The molten earth beneath his feet would have incinerated anyone else, but he stood there completely still. Where he stepped, the lava solidified beneath him—into crystal-clear slabs of ice.
He let out a slow breath.
In that very instant, the magma around his feet froze solid, forming a gleaming sculpture of ice.
"Run if you want," Kairos said coldly.
Kaido didn't hesitate. With one final threat thrown over his shoulder, he burst into the sky, not even daring to look back.
In the Fire Dragon Torch state, every cell in Kaido's body was pushed to its physical limit. His massive body elongated, twisting into a sinuous dragon form, surging upward like a blazing comet.
As his intense heat collided with the cold upper atmosphere, a violent chemical reaction erupted between fire and ice.
Thunderclouds boiled into existence, and rain began to pour down in relentless torrents.
In the New World, weather was already notoriously unstable.
Without elite navigators trained specifically to understand the climate, most ships would never make it through this part of the Grand Line.
Now, even the climate had become a weapon.
The heavens were dark and grim. Kaido knew this was his one and only shot to escape.
But Kairos just smirked, watching the skies.
"It's dark alright… but you think you can just fly away?"
With the dominance of a true Emperor, Kairos's Haki still reached high into the air, relentlessly pressing in on Kaido's position.
Just as he prepared to leap into the sky and pursue, the ground below let out a deafening groan.
A thunderous rumble tore through the battlefield.
The titanic clash between Kairos and Kaido had brought the entire island to the edge of collapse.
Suddenly—BOOM!
The island's tectonic plates cracked and shattered.
Huge geysers of magma exploded upward, creating a wall of molten chaos.
Kairos's pursuit was cut off in that instant.
Kaido, now in full retreat and boosted by the Fire Dragon Torch's immense speed, finally broke free of Kairos's Haki range.
He had escaped.
Kairos frowned.
"Tch. Saved by a natural disaster," he muttered.
But he wasn't angry. He'd already made up his mind—Kaido might've slipped away for now, but he wouldn't get far.
"You can run from a middle school fight… but not from graduation."
Kairos decided: his next destination would be Wano Country.
The land of Wano was crawling with elite pirates and warlords.
He planned to harvest them all—and reap an ocean's worth of high-value pirate crystals.
Each of Kaido's top three commanders, the so-called "Calamities," carried bounties exceeding a billion berries. And they each had powerful Zoan-type Devil Fruits.
Not just ordinary Zoan either—rare species, capable of producing epic-quality Devil Fruit Crystals.
As for the legendary god-tier crystals… those would probably come from Kaido himself.
Now that the island beneath him had completely collapsed, there was nowhere left for Kairos to stand.
Just then, the Mythical Sky—his flying ship, piloted by Nami and crew—arrived overhead and extended a rope ladder.
Kairos stepped onto the deck with a calm expression.
"Why did Kaido run away?" Nami asked, already turning the ship to get them out of the storm zone.
Kairos just shrugged with a sly smile. "Gotta let the big fish swim sometimes."
Robin walked up beside him, holding an umbrella to shield him from the downpour.
"So, you're planning to head to Wano Country next?" she asked, reading him like a book.
Kairos simply smiled, saying nothing.
"Wano Country? What's that?" Uta popped her head under the umbrella, full of curiosity.
Kairos didn't answer. He wasn't sure of Wano's exact location yet.
The New World was vast, and without a Vivre Card linked to Kaido, tracking him down wouldn't be easy.
Still, he wasn't worried. Wano was his next prey. It was only a matter of time.
Truth be told, there weren't many true threats left in the pirate world—not for someone like him.
"So where are we headed now?" Nami asked, adjusting the sails to leave the rain-drenched region.
"Doesn't matter," Kairos replied. "Wherever we land is fine."
He recalled that King Neptune had promised to send him a Devil Fruit soon.
For now, a bit of rest sounded perfect. Once the Devil Fruit arrived, he could start crafting a new slate.
Nami nodded and led the crew to calmer waters.
Elsewhere…
Whole Cake Island.
At the peak of lunch hour, inside the luxurious palace on Cake Island, Big Mom—Charlotte Linlin—sat at the head of a massive dessert banquet table.
The table overflowed with cakes, tarts, puffs, and pastries of every imaginable flavor.
Soul-infused puppet soldiers delivered tray after tray of sweets.
All her children surrounded her, eating quietly.
Except for Katakuri, who stood at the back, arms folded, his expression stern.
"Mmm! It's delicious! Absolutely divine!" Big Mom said, shoving an enormous slice of cake into her mouth with glee.
"Oh, by the way…" she said between bites, "I asked you all to gather every portrait and poster of Kairos Flint you could find. Where are they?"
The moment she brought it up, all her children paused mid-bite and instantly reached into their clothes or bags, pulling out stacks of sketches and wanted posters of Kairos Flint.
"Lord Kairos is so dreamy…" Big Mom muttered.
She tossed her dessert aside and eagerly snatched up every photo, hugging them close and fawning over them with hearts in her eyes.
Then she started poking the images—tapping his face repeatedly with an insane, lovesick grin.
Her children stared in horror, their faces pale. No one dared say a word, though.
To ruin her mood now would mean death.
Suddenly, Big Mom slammed her hand on the table.
"I've made up my mind!" she bellowed. "Katakuri! My sweet son! Form a team—we're going to sea!"
Her words shocked everyone in the room.
Decades had passed since Charlotte Linlin last left Cake Island. Even during the great Reverie summit years ago—Kaido showed up, but she hadn't.
Now, all of a sudden, she wanted to sail again?
"Mom… are you serious? Where would you even go?" Katakuri asked, visibly rattled.
"To find your new father," Linlin said, her eyes twinkling with delusion.
The entire Charlotte family fell silent.
"…Mom," Katakuri finally said, clearly troubled, "I don't think this is wise. Kairos Flint… he's not someone even Vice Admiral Garp could handle anymore."