The Curly Hat Pirates Arrive

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The flashback continues with Jack standing in mammoth form before the minks. The splash emphasizes his name, "JACK," and his bounty of "1 Billion" berries as his men cry "Jack-sama!" and "Rargh!" The narration brands him a barbarian: "A barbarian stands before them! Jack the Drought!" The page frames Jack as the overwhelming threat behind Zou's destruction, with his Beasts Pirates surrounding him and the earlier battle against the minks still raging.

Master Nekomamushi recognizes Jack's mammoth form, saying it must be the ancient form of the Zou-Zou no Mi, and calls it "a rare delicacy" to be eaten. A translator note explains that "Zou" means elephant. Jack says it is funny that there are still true warriors left on the island, but Nekomamushi answers that Jack should have left back when the "mangy mutt" took the courtesy of showing him the exit. He boasts that the minks have enough warriors to rival any of Jack's big nations.

Nekomamushi calls out to Bepo and says the Heart Pirates are still in his care, though if they do not want to fight that is no skin off his back. Bepo insists that is not how it will go down, because although he may have become a pirate, this place is still his home. The Heart Pirates rally behind him, shouting that it is their friend's home. Nekomamushi is pleased, and the battle resumes as minks and Heart Pirates crash into Jack's forces together.

The fight explodes across Claw City as Nekomamushi and Jack trade heavy blows and the minks clash with Jack's soldiers. Buildings shake and smoke erupts from the impact of the battle, while the defenders press the invaders from multiple directions. Nekomamushi faces Jack head-on, and the Heart Pirates and guardians join the wider melee. The page is mostly action and sound effects, showing that even after Jack's terrifying introduction, the minks and their allies can drive the Beasts Pirates back.

Wanda's narration explains that the fighting continued for five days and nights through sunrise and sunset without even a lull. Ship after ship of reinforcements arrived for Jack, making it impossible to halt the advance of his troops; the enemy seemed like an endless army of zombies. Nevertheless, the minks gradually began to gain the upper hand. There was only one member of the enemy army they could not suppress: Jack himself. Calling him a monster, Wanda says, does not do him justice.

In the present, Luffy and Zoro sit by Inuarashi's bed and marvel that a monster like Jack is Kaido's errand boy. Wanda says Jack was equally unsuccessful in defeating either Duke Inuarashi or Master Nekomamushi, and that perhaps the minks' steadfastness caused his patience to run out. On the fifth day Jack brought out his weapon: "That poison gas weapon." She names it "Slaughter Gas," explaining that it spread across the country with the speed of an explosion and was all over in the blink of an eye. No one could hope to avoid something like that.

The gas swallowed up the entire town and half the forest, leaving the minks completely trapped except for those who had taken refuge deep within the fortress. Wanda says that what came next is something she does not want to remember. In the poisoned ruins, Jack's men demand an answer about the warrior from Wano Country: "Where is the warrior from the Wano Country?!" The minks can only answer, "N-not here..." and "We don't know," while the Beasts Pirates laugh and the victims lie helpless in the gas.

Wanda says Jack's men went around destroying the country and slaying their warriors while repeating a question whose answer they had already learned by heart: "Where is the warrior from the Wano Country?" The particularly strong minks were crucified and tortured, yet they could only keep saying they did not know. Inuarashi, badly injured, begs Jack to stop, saying not a single person in the country has the knowledge he seeks. He asks whether causing death for so little benefit pleases Jack, and calls his actions beyond merciless.

Nekomamushi, also brutalized, glares at Jack and says, "I won't forget that face of yours, Jack. Even when I'm no longer of this world." He vows that his cat's malice will follow Jack until the day it curses him to death. Wanda says the gruesome spectacle continued for almost a full day. On the sixth day, perhaps because Jack's appetite for destruction had been sated or because he was tired of hearing the same answer again and again, Jack left the island with only a few underlings remaining behind.

The present-day group learns that Jack's departure, which saved the minks from total annihilation, happened because of Doflamingo. They only realized it after reading Jack's obituary in the newspapers: Jack left Zou on the day Luffy's group defeated Doflamingo, apparently to save him, proving the two were deeply connected. Wanda explains that the people who drove that monster out of the country were Luffy's group, and the Straw Hats realize that the day Nami's group arrived on Zou was the day after Doflamingo was defeated.

In the flashback to the Curly Hat Pirates' arrival, Sanji, Nami, Chopper, Brook, Momonosuke, and Caesar reach Zou and are stunned by the giant elephant. Sanji warns that he is against going ashore, while Caesar fumes at being ordered to pipe down and carry everyone over there. The group notices the island is under attack and that the place is full of gas. As they approach from the Sunny, Caesar is forced to help manage the gas, while the others prepare to enter the devastated country.

Inside the ruined city, Brook says the place is definitely under raid and offers to watch over Nami while Sanji scouts the area. Sanji answers that it should not be a problem and vows to protect Nami too. Nami cries for help as a Beasts Pirate chases her, and Sanji tells the "squirrel-chan" to wait up before kicking into the fight. The pirate, wanting only to "crucifix and chill," is caught off guard as Sanji rushes in, while Brook moves through the wreckage alongside Nami and Chopper.

The remaining attacker mistakes Nami for the victim, but Sanji angrily declares that the man is obviously the bad guy, which makes the girl the victim. Nami asks Brook to teach the enemy some manners, and Brook answers, "On it!" He uses "Soul Parade" and the ice technique "Eisbahn," freezing the ground under the enemy's feet. The note explains that Eisbahn is German for a thin layer of black ice on roads. The Beasts Pirate panics as the ground freezes and Brook's soul power turns the chase into a rescue.

Nami thanks Brook, calling him awesome, while the rescued mink is startled that the pile of bones and the eel just talked. The crew asks what is going on and realizes the island is full of gas. Brook is shocked by the collapsed bodies, asking whether they are all animals, and the mink snaps that these are all minks and asks whether he has never heard of them. Seeing the gas still blanketing the town, they decide to head back to the forest for now because the gas will get them too.

The flashback shows Duke Inuarashi and Master Nekomamushi crucified and horribly wounded, with narration saying the claws of life brought gruesome destruction in their wake. Chopper notices that the victims are still breathing and asks whether the newcomer is with the attackers. Pedro identifies himself and begs for help: "I'm Pedro... I need your help. Please... Duke Inuarashi and Master Nekomamushi... Please treat their wounds! Or they're going to perish." Chopper realizes those two, of all people, must not be allowed to die because the world is waiting on them. The chapter ends.

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