Chapter 28 - Kaido: I Choose Renji, He's My Dream Opponent!
"The Goro Goro no Mi, no wonder you haven't come to train with me these days!!"
Rocks, seated on the throne, grinned widely with an exaggerated smile. He had always doubted that Renji would give up. But what Renji had been doing these past few days piqued his curiosity.
To abandon one's own training and leave, there must be something that could significantly boost one's strength in a short period of time. Otherwise, Rocks couldn't think of any reason why Renji would do that.
Now, seeing the Goro Goro no Mi, Rocks understood why Renji had done it. However, since Renji knew the location of the Goro Goro no Mi, why didn't he go for it earlier?
Clearly, this wasn't a fruit that Renji had just discovered by chance. If it were, Renji's luck would be astronomical.
"You ate a devil fruit?! You didn't say a word when you came back!!"
John roared at Renji, furious that he hadn't mentioned it upon returning.
"Well, you didn't ask, did you?" Renji replied. "If I had just walked up to you and said, 'John, I ate the Goro Goro no Mi,' wouldn't that just be showing off?"
Renji waved his hand dismissively, completely unfazed by John's deathly glare. It wasn't like John had asked, so he couldn't just go up and brag about eating the Goro Goro no Mi, could he?
"You have a point," John admitted, scratching his head. He suddenly realized that his reaction might have been a bit too harsh. He instinctively wanted to apologize to Renji, acknowledging that he had misunderstood him. It wasn't Renji's fault; he just hadn't asked.
"Whoa?!! Did you just get fooled that easily? Where's your brain?" Golden Lion glanced at John, his eyes filled with a mix of pity and a look of disdain, as if he were watching a fool.
It seemed that among all the captains of the Rocks Pirates, John was the least sharp-minded. No wonder Renji liked to mess with him; he had been tricked and let it slide so easily.
"Forget it, it's none of my business," Golden Lion thought to himself. However, since he disliked Renji, he felt a strange urge to warn John.
But in the end, he let it go. He was Golden Lion, after all; he wouldn't stoop to such petty behavior. That was something Renji would do!
Despicable, shameless, without limits, and a show-off—Renji had all these flaws. He was good for nothing except for his good looks.
Indeed.
That was Golden Lion's assessment of Renji.
But now, Golden Lion had added another label to his perception of Renji: limitless potential. It wasn't just that Renji himself had strong potential; the fact that he had eaten the Goro Goro no Mi was a game-changer. Anyone with half a brain could see that he was destined to become a great pirate in the future.
"It looks like this battle will be over soon. You guys can stop making a fuss. Kaido, the kid over there, pick someone to fight!" Rocks glanced at Renji's arena, where he had already defeated everyone.
It seemed that despite having eaten the Goro Goro no Mi only recently, Renji had already developed it quite well.
He knew that no matter how many more people came at Renji, they wouldn't make much of a difference. The Goro Goro no Mi wasn't afraid of numbers; in fact, the more opponents, the easier it was to deal with them.
Moreover, this match wasn't just about the captains' strength; it was also about Kaido's potential. The Rocks Pirates were investing a lot in this young Oni, and Rocks wanted to see if he was truly worth it.
After Rocks finished speaking, everyone's attention turned to a tall boy with two sharp horns on his head, standing below the stage.
Kaido looked not much different from his adult self. Renji observed him with interest, noting that the scars left by Oden were not yet present. Should he be the one to leave a mark on Kaido instead?
Renji thought for a moment, and in the next second, he abandoned the idea. It was mainly because it was a bit boring. Kaido, who hadn't eaten the Seiryū no Mi yet, wasn't worth him deliberately leaving a scar on him.
Only after eating the Seiryū no Mi could Kaido become a part of Renji's play.
Kaido, who was called out, also began to think seriously. The other pirates no longer had the qualification to challenge.
Whitebeard had brought him here, and he had seen him, so he wouldn't choose Whitebeard.
He had also heard of Golden Lion and Charlotte Linlin. People like John, Ochoku, and Silver Axe were not weak either. The weakest one should have been Renji.
Kaido had initially wanted to choose Renji as his opponent.
But now that Renji had eaten the Goro Goro no Mi and his strength had probably increased significantly, he glanced at Ochoku, John, and Silver Axe, and in the end, Kaido still chose Renji.
He was confident that his physique could defend against the power of the Goro Goro no Mi. If Renji had eaten it a long time ago, he wouldn't have chosen him. But it was clear that Renji had just eaten it. After joining the Rocks Pirates, Kaido had also gained some understanding of the inner workings of the pirate crew.
Those with strong武装色could easily break through his defense, but Renji's武装色was probably not that strong. Moreover, after eating the fruit, Renji had likely been focusing on training his fruit ability. So, as long as he could withstand Renji's Goro Goro no Mi, Renji wouldn't be able to defeat him.
After figuring this out, Kaido raised his head, pointed at Renji, and said, "I choose Renji!"
"Why do I feel like I'm a female guest in a dating show? Am I on If You Are the One or something?"
Standing on the stage, Renji felt a bit strange inside. He hadn't thought much about it before, but now at this selection stage, he felt like he was the female guest being chosen.
However, he wasn't very surprised that Kaido chose him.
In the original story, Kaido seemed to be a rough and simple guy with not many tricks up his sleeve, but in fact, he was quite cunning and adept at all kinds of conspiracies and schemes. He still had a bit of a sense of justice.
After joining the Rocks Pirates, he definitely wouldn't be content with just being a subordinate. Naturally, with the opportunity to become a captain here, he wouldn't be foolish enough to choose someone who seemed more formidable.
"Alright, then this will be the last match. Kaido, you fight Renji. If you win, you'll be the captain of the fourth division today!!"
Rocks stood up and announced the final battle.
"Don't disappoint me, Renji. It would be even more embarrassing to lose after eating the Goro Goro no Mi than not eating it at all!"
Rocks looked at Renji with interest and teased him. If Renji still had the same level of strength, it wouldn't be shameful to lose. But now that he had eaten the Goro Goro no Mi, losing would be a major embarrassment.
(End of Chapter)
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