Ace's eyelids twitched violently. He wanted to argue, but found no reason to refute.
Through the Marineford War, he had finally seen clearly—those Marine powerhouses wanted nothing more than to eliminate him, the son of the Pirate King.
In their eyes, killing him was no less significant than killing Whitebeard himself.
Barrett thought for a moment and said:
"Vice-captain, if needed, you can call me too. After all, he's the captain's son."
Rayleigh, the Dark King, let out a long breath and nodded.
"I know."
With Ace's identity, even staying at his side didn't feel secure. The son of the Pirate King was too heavy a title.
If it weren't for not wanting to disturb old comrades, Rayleigh would've already tried to reunite the Roger Pirates.
As they conversed, Red-Haired Shanks suddenly looked toward Naruto, smiling as he asked:
"Uzumaki Naruto, what's your next move? Planning to head into the New World!?"
"That's right." Naruto nodded.
Shanks' heart immediately sank.
Because of the Marineford live broadcast, the seas had already been thrown into turmoil.
Not only were countless people setting sail as pirates…
Even many strong individuals, seeing the Navy's loss, now believed the Marines no longer had the strength to control the seas, and thus planned to make their own mark.
And now, if Uzumaki Naruto, with his strength and influence, entered the New World…
The balance there would be shattered.
The New World was far too small to allow for another emperor. To seize territory, one had to fight for it.
Naruto seemed to notice Shanks' concern and grinned:
"Relax, I'm not interested in your territory. You're one of the Yonko, yet your territory is less than one-tenth of Whitebeard's."
Shanks coughed twice, embarrassed.
After all, he had only recently become a Yonko, and his crew was far too small to control vast territory.
Hearing their exchange, Whitebeard seemed to realize something and rumbled with laughter:
"Uzumaki Naruto, so whose territory are you planning to take? Big Mom, Kaido, or maybe mine? Gurararara…"
Naruto chuckled, then turned his gaze toward the New World, licking his lips:
"Kaido. The Hundred Beasts Kaido."
He didn't hide his target, directly naming Kaido.
Whitebeard, Shanks, Rayleigh, and the Golden Lion were all stunned.
"Not Big Mom!?"
Among the Four Emperors, Whitebeard was recognized as having the most territory, followed by Big Mom, then Kaido, and finally Shanks.
In terms of sheer combat strength, however, Kaido was known to be stronger than Big Mom.
Naruto knew this well, yet still chose Kaido. He smirked:
"I'm very interested in Wano, which Kaido controls. As for Kaido himself—I can take him down alone."
The others instantly understood.
They remembered Naruto's identity.
A ninja!
And in all the seas, the only place with ninjas was Wano, controlled by Kaido. Clearly, there was some deep connection there.
Naruto then said with a grin:
"Whitebeard, don't forget our deal. You'll have to send men to help me against Kaido."
Whitebeard laughed boisterously and agreed without hesitation.
Others might fear Kaido, but he certainly didn't.
Soon, ship after ship left Fishman Island, coated with bubble membranes like bottled ships drifting toward the New World.
"Lord Naruto…" Uchiha Izumi, Guren, and others gathered excitedly around him.
"Are we going to fight Kaido next!?"
"No." Naruto looked toward the pirates outside Dragon Palace and smiled.
"First, we're returning to the shinobi world. After all this preparation, it's about time I brought them over for a visit—to show our faces."
Oto Village, an empty training ground.
"Flying Thunder God! Flying Thunder God! Flying Thunder God!"
Golden light flashed again and again across the field, and with each flash, several figures appeared.
The young ninjas of Oto, and even Uchiha clan brats, all stared wide-eyed as more and more figures materialized.
"Wait… what are those!?"
"They're blue all over, with fins, sharp teeth—are they shinobi from the Land of Water!?"
"Not just those guys—there's even giants here, as tall as mountains!"
"And that man—his arm is so long…"
"That guy, why is he covered in steel? He's condensed a giant arm made entirely of metal…"
"They're all so tall, even the shortest is nearly two meters…"
Shock and astonishment rippled across the crowd.
The pirates of the One Piece world had just set foot in the shinobi world—and already left the locals utterly stunned.
After all, in the seas, two meters in height was nothing unusual, with three, four, even five or six meters being common.
But here in the shinobi world, even a single such figure left jaws dropping.
"Boss Naruto, this is your homeland?" said Law, gripping his sword and glancing around, his face pale.
The other pirates weren't faring much better—looking half-dead and struggling.
Having lived their whole lives in the seas, suddenly arriving in the shinobi world meant confronting the thin-oxygen environment first.
Even strong men found it hard to adapt.
"That's right. Welcome to my homeland, the Shinobi World! A hidden continent above the seas—and the people here are very, very dangerous."
(End of Chapter)
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