ONE PIECE: KAIDO'S SON

"Who!"

Yamato and Ace turned simultaneously, their expressions tightening as a figure emerged through a radiant golden light.

"Portgas D. Ace."

"Yamato."

"Long time no see."

The newcomer stepped forward calmly—Ragnar, his three eyes glowing faintly, his presence commanding attention. Both Ace and Yamato instinctively tightened their grip on their weapons, their instincts telling them this was no ordinary man.

"You don't have to fight anymore," Ragnar said coolly. "Go rest in the quarry for the New Year."

He didn't even glance at the incoming Thunder Bagua and Fire Fist from opposite sides. His voice was calm—too calm for someone caught between two devastating attacks.

"Get out of the way!" Ace shouted, frustrated by the interruption.

He tried to retract the Fire Fist mid-release, but Ragnar moved faster—his palm outstretched. The blazing inferno, which had once burned down entire fleets, stopped dead in its tracks, caught like a tame flame in the hand of a god.

"Are you crazy?!" Ace's eyes widened in disbelief.

But then, disbelief turned into awe.

The sea of flames vanished, sucked into Ragnar's mouth with a single breath. The heat lingered in the air, but the fire was gone.

"How… how is that possible?"

Ace stared, stunned. His Mera Mera no Mi—the Flame-Flame Fruit—was supposed to grant him near-absolute control over fire. And yet…

"Frog in a well," Ragnar said coldly. "You think the New World plays by your rules?"

Ace's pupils shrank.

"Who are you?!"

"You want Kaido's head," Ragnar replied. "But you don't even know who he trusts most."

Before he could say more, Yamato hoisted her mace back onto her shoulder.

"Ace, if you can't beat him, don't even think about touching Kaido."

Ace blinked. "Is he… famous?"

Yamato nodded. "His name is Ragnar. Kaido's most trusted son."

"True Lord Ragnar…"

The name hit Ace like a cannonball. He had heard of him—everyone in the New World had. The one who rode a dragon to Onigashima. The one who crushed the Beasts Pirates' elite—the Three Calamities, the Tobi Roppo—in a single day. The man who took over Kaido's empire.

In less than 24 hours, Ragnar had claimed the title of True Lord of the Beasts Pirates.

If the Four Emperors were once the pillars of the New World, now there were five—and the Beasts Pirates were no longer a one-emperor crew. They were now a crew of two emperors.

Ace narrowed his eyes, still tense. "Before we fight," he asked, "you're not like… her, are you? Not trying to kill your old man too?"

Ragnar sighed, rubbing his temple. "Unfortunately, she's my sister. A filial daughter who gives me headaches."

Then his gaze turned steely. "You've now got another reason to stay in the quarry for the New Year."

Ace smirked. "I don't know what all that means, but it sounds like I've found the right guy. If I beat you, Kaido'll have to come out."

He pointed upward, his voice rising with the temperature. "Once I take down both emperors of the Beasts Pirates, I'll only be one step away from becoming Pirate King!"

Flames exploded outward, filling the sky over Yamato's residence. The heavens were ablaze, and Portgas D. Ace, the Flame Emperor, stood defiant—ready to challenge a new god of the sea.

From a distance, the sky shimmered like a furnace, warped by the intense heat of the battlefield.

The air itself trembled, rippling with the aftershock of concentrated Haki and flames.

"Pirate King?"

Ragnar stood unfazed amidst the heatwaves, hands tucked casually in his trouser pockets.

"You call yourself that, and yet you dare attack me? Should I say you're brave... or just foolish?"

Ace narrowed his eyes.

"Who knows?"

Though his tone was casual, the memory of Ragnar devouring his Hiken—Fire Fist—with just his mouth still lingered in his mind, cooling his rage with creeping dread.

But he wasn't going to retreat.

"Cross Fire!"

With a sharp gesture, Ace raised both arms, index and middle fingers forming an "X" before his chest.

Twin spirals of flame gathered in his palms—then shot forward in a blazing cross-shaped inferno, its center locked precisely on Ragnar.

BOOM!

The moment the flames struck, they sank deep into Ragnar's chest like spears of molten fury. The attack was intense, leaving behind a vortex of scorched earth and molten stone.

But as the smoke cleared, Ace's expression twisted into disbelief.

Ragnar stood there, body singed but unscathed. No burns. No pain. Not even a flinch.

Only his gaze—piercing and contemptuous.

"Pathetic."

Ragnar's voice was calm as ever.

"You bear the will of Gol D. Roger? If so, the seas must truly be weeping."

Ace clenched his fists.

"What the hell are you saying!?"

Ragnar sighed and shook his head slowly.

"To stand atop the sea... to be King... requires more than strength."

He stepped forward, the scorched ground cracking beneath each step.

"You need unwavering resolve, fearless spirit, and the patience to endure a thousand storms."

He looked Ace dead in the eye.

"And I see none of that in you."

With a flick of his wrist, Ragnar finally pulled one hand from his pocket and brushed the flames clinging to his coat.

Ssshh—

Despite the flames' searing heat, they vanished like specks of ash, as if they were nothing but dust.

Ace's heart pounded.

For the first time since he set sail...

He felt powerless.