Kaidou's expression was tense, his brows furrowed. "Linlin, long ti no see… You're still the sa as ever."
Charlotte Linlin let out a booming laugh, eyeing him teasingly. "It has been a while, Kaidou. You've matured quite a bit—starting to look like a real man now!"
"Damn it…" Kaidou's glare was sharp, as if she had just jabbed him in a sore spot.
From a distance, Ortoren watched with interest, mories flashing back to the book Rocks himself had penned—Haki: From Beginner to the Grave. He vaguely recalled it ntioning sothing about Kaidou's secret crush. It even went on to say that, back when they were on the sa ship, Kaidou had once confessed to Charlotte Linlin, only to be turned down with the words, "I don't like kids."
Hearing her now say, "Starting to look like a real man," made it easy to guess what she was poking fun at. No wonder Kaidou looked so uncomfortable.
After her jab, Charlotte Linlin's expression turned serious. "You should know what I an, right, Kaidou? The technology those scientists have can make my dream co true—to create a giant. So this ti, don't try to snatch it from !"
"Being a pirate ans taking what you want. You're the one who taught that, Linlin. My Beasts Pirates need them too!" Kaidou shot back without hesitation.
Kaidou had never been skilled at running territory, whereas Charlotte Linlin excelled at it. Totto Land might be a pirate nation, and its citizens might have to pay a periodic soul tax, but beyond that, she was surprisingly lenient with her people. There were no pointless tyrannical acts, and she didn't go around slaughtering the islands under her rule—unless she had a bout of eating disorder or soone failed to deliver the sweets tribute she demanded.
During his ti in the Marines, Ortoren had studied nurous reports and assessnts on Totto Land. The data showed that its economy was thriving, public safety was stable, and its surrounding waters were relatively secure. Even with the soul tax, people traveled from faraway lands to join Totto Land. As a result, the Marines had steadily raised the Big Mom Pirates' threat rating over the years.
With such well-managed territory, Charlotte Linlin naturally had wealth. Kaidou, on the other hand, was always strapped for cash and had to rely on the Wano Country nobility to exploit the people just to keep up his image. That was why he sought a stable source of inco for his crew, like… the arms trade.
And he had done well with it. In the original story, Kaidou's arms business had grown so massive that he beca a secret supplier for the World Governnt itself. In theory, every cannonball the Marines fired had a bit of Kaidou's handiwork in it.
"So there's no deal?" Charlotte Linlin's lips still curved in a smile, but her gaze grew sharper and more dangerous.
Kaidou might not be able to fully handle her, but he wasn't afraid. If he let fear rule him, what kind of pirate captain would he be? He hefted his kanabō onto his shoulder and said firmly, "No deal!"
"Hmph!" Charlotte Linlin snorted. "Then let see just how much you've improved over the years!"
As soon as she finished, she stomped hard on the ground. The charred, crystallized surface shattered instantly, and her figure vanished from sight.
Kaidou's heart sank. He poured Haki into his kanabō, Observation Haki flaring at full power. He knew exactly how terrifying Charlotte Linlin's strength was—he had to go all out from the very start, or defeat was certain.
In an instant, countless scenarios ran through his mind, along with responses to each. For years, he had treated Charlotte Linlin, his forr big sister figure, as an imagined rival, envisioning battle after battle in his mind. He was sure that whatever her first move was, he could handle it.
But the very next mont, Kaidou was stunned.
And he wasn't the only one—Ortoren was just as shocked. Only a second earlier, Charlotte Linlin had looked ready to clash with Kaidou, yet the mont she moved, her target wasn't him at all—it was her wayward son!
Kaidou's speed was never his strong suit, sothing Ortoren knew well from their earlier fights. In his impression, Charlotte Linlin's speed had never been particularly remarkable either—at least, she had shown no exceptional speed during her ti as one of the Yonkō.
But at that mont, Ortoren, wielder of the Goro Goro no Mi, was nearly caught off guard by Charlotte Linlin!
No fire, no lightning, not even the soul power she was so proud of—just a simple, pure punch, wrapped in an overwhelming wave of Conqueror's Haki that crashed toward him with suffocating force.
"Mama has missed you so much, my precious son!" Charlotte Linlin's lips curled into a vicious smile.
Ortoren finally reacted. He could match her speed and was certain that if he wanted to, he could dodge her strike completely. But for so reason, he didn't want to evade. He wanted to test it—to see just how big the gap was between his own power and that of Charlotte Linlin, whose strength ca from the sa bloodline as his own.
Facing the sudden blow, Ortoren roared, "Don't look down on !"
Without hesitation, he wrapped his fist in Conqueror's Haki and threw a punch straight at Charlotte Linlin's incoming fist.
Against Kaidou, Ortoren had traded blows evenly, even holding an advantage in sheer power. But against Charlotte Linlin, he felt that crushing pressure imdiately.
After only two seconds of deadlock, her Conqueror's Haki shattered his completely. The next instant, their fists collided in full force.
The "absolute strength" Ortoren had always prided himself on was nowhere near absolute before Charlotte Linlin!
The ground beneath his feet crumbled under the pressure, the fragnts crushed into dust by the shockwave that blasted through his body. His legs sank deep into the earth like nails hamred into the ground.
Even so, he had caught the punch—Charlotte Linlin hadn't broken through.
But before that thought could settle, she sneered, "Looks like the Marines trained you well. You're a lot stronger than you were a year ago, brat!"
As her words fell, the muscles in her arms suddenly swelled, ruining any semblance of elegance and giving her a grotesquely overdeveloped look. It wasn't pretty—but the raw strength behind it was world-shaking.
With a sharp crack, the Haki around Ortoren's fist shattered entirely. His arm buckled under the force, driven back into his chest. His legs, once firmly planted, gave way, and his body was forced backward.
With a thunderous bang, Charlotte Linlin landed with both feet on the ground, lowering her stance into a bow, her arm driven into the earth as her fist pressed down on Ortoren.
In a pure contest of strength, one blow of Charlotte Linlin's monstrous power had completely overwheld him.
Pinned with her fist pressing into his ribs, Ortoren could feel several of them crack. A deep, churning pain tore through his insides—the combined result of the earlier lightning strike and this devastating blow.
His throat burned, and he coughed up a mouthful of dark blood mixed with bits of shredded organ, his aura weakening rapidly.
"With that little skill, you've got nothing to be proud of, Ortoren…" Charlotte Linlin said with a glint in her eyes.
The mont the words left her mouth, a shadow flickered into place before her. A fist, like a cannonball, smashed into her face before she could react.
"What's your problem with my n, you damn pirate?!"
It was Garp!
His iron fist carried enough force to tear straight through her guard. Blood welled on Charlotte Linlin's face as her massive fra was sent hurtling away, smashing into the sa cliff Kaidou had broken earlier. She only stopped after a hundred ters.
From the rubble, a hand shot out. Charlotte Linlin climbed free, casually wiping the blood from her face as she looked at Garp. "Still as rude as ever, Garp!"
...
(50 Chapters Ahead)
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