ONE PIECE: KAIDO'S SON

"Ah… I… Jack will only obey Kaido-sama in this life!"

Jack's voice was guttural, blood dripping from his mouth and ears. His body, though transformed into the mammoth hybrid form, trembled under the crushing force of Ragnar's grip. His Haki-coated skin groaned under the pressure, cracks webbing out from his joints.

Ragnar's eyes narrowed, but his expression remained calm.

"Oh? Still loyal?"

He raised an eyebrow, then slowly began lifting Jack higher into the air with a single arm. Jack's body convulsed.

"Then it's time for Kaido to appoint a new All-Star."

"What… are you saying?" Jack's eyes widened, a flicker of panic breaking through his rage.

"You think being one of the Disasters is your birthright?" Ragnar's voice echoed, laced with a divine sharpness. "If Kaido can elevate you, I can cast you down."

With that, Ragnar's fingers clenched.

A shockwave burst outward from his hand, coated in a roaring spiral of Haoshoku Haki (Conqueror's Haki). The impact shattered the air, and with a twist, Jack was hurled like a meteor.

"GAHHH—!"

He tore through Onigashima's outer cliff and exploded into the sea below, sending a pillar of water hundreds of meters into the sky.

On every level of the Skull Dome, pirates froze.

"Th-that was Jack!"

"Did he… did he just throw an All-Star like garbage?!"

Inside the castle, Black Maria's fan fell from her hand. She turned toward Kaido, who stood silently atop his throne, arms crossed in dragon-man form.

"Kaido-sama… that was your All-Star," she said cautiously.

"Hmph." Kaido let out a breath of smoke. "I named him 'Drought' for what he left behind... but lately he's just been dragging my crew down."

He glared toward the battlefield. "If Ragnar wants the throne… he'll have to earn it with more than just strength. But he is the one I've been watching."

"Then…" Black Maria paused. "You're serious about handing down leadership of the Beasts Pirates?"

Kaido's expression darkened. "Jack got comfortable. Strength isn't enough anymore. The next king of beasts needs ambition, bloodlust… and vision."

In the distance, Ragnar—now hundreds of meters tall—stepped forward. From the center of his forehead, a third eye opened, gleaming with golden divine energy.

The night sky above Onigashima was ripped open by a blinding shaft of light, illuminating the island.

"A third eye…?!" whispered Sasaki.

"What the hell is he?" Ulti muttered, eyes twitching.

As Ragnar's third eye between his brows slowly opened, a blinding divine light radiated outward. The sheer pressure from it slammed into the senses of every pirate nearby. Those who dared lock eyes with it felt as if their minds had been forcibly erased—momentarily stunned, dazed, and utterly defenseless.

It was no ordinary Haki—it was as if Haoshoku Haki itself had taken a physical form.

"Could he have... spotted me?"

In the shadows of Onigashima, hidden with advanced stealth, Plague Queen—Queen—froze.

Thanks to his modified body and enhanced invisibility, superior even to the Raid Suits of Germa 66, Queen had silently slinked within striking distance of Ragnar.

But the moment that divine third eye opened, an unbearable sensation washed over him.

It was as if someone had peeled away every layer of deception and stared directly into his soul.

Queen's fat face, even cloaked in transparency, twitched.

"Impossible... Even Germa tech couldn't be seen through like this. My invisibility isn't that weak!"

Yet even as the thought surfaced, Ragnar's cold, divine voice cut through the fog:

"Nothing is impossible."

A chill passed through Queen's gut.

"C-Can he hear my thoughts too?!"

His mind spun. There was no way this could be mere Conqueror's Haki—Ragnar hadn't even moved. No violent clash. No burst. Just pure, suffocating pressure.

And then came the unmistakable:

Ragnar's glowing third eye narrowed, locking onto a spot that to everyone else seemed... empty.

The spectators were bewildered.

"Is he talking to... nothing?"

Some exchanged puzzled glances. Others whispered nervously, unsure if the pressure had cracked Ragnar's mind.

But Queen knew better.

The spot Ragnar stared at?

That was exactly where he was hidden.

"That eye... It doesn't just see invisibility. It peels back everything!"

Queen's legs shook beneath his massive frame.

"Kaido-sama's power is overwhelming... but it's brute force. This guy's power is something else—like a god!"

Ragnar's voice echoed once more—low, composed, unyielding:

"Come out on your own… or I'll drag you out."

A deep gulp broke the eerie silence.

Gulu—!

The sound echoed across Onigashima's scorched plateau.

Then, under the stunned eyes of the crowd, the air before Ragnar rippled.

A distortion shimmered.

And Queen's massive figure gradually became visible—transitioning from clear, to foggy, to fully exposed in front of everyone.

His mechanical limbs trembled, and his face was drained of color.

The mighty All-Star of the Beasts Pirates—Plague Queen—had been seen through and forced to reveal himself without a single strike.

And across the battlefield, everyone now understood—

This was not just a brawler.

This was not just a devil fruit user.

This… was something far more terrifying.