The banana plantation had been running smoothly for years without a hitch, but of all times, trouble had to crop up now.
And it wasn’t a small issue either. If he didn’t go in person, he probably wouldn’t be able to get to the bottom of it. Given the complexity of the situation, an average person would have a tough time figuring it out.
Only someone with sufficient knowledge of Tropius bananas, viruses, and bacteria could properly resolve this issue. This is like reading Queen’s ID card.
Even though Nightin was skilled in botany, Queen was better in all other aspects.
Queen suspected this might be some kind of trap, but he lacked decisive evidence. After all, he’d been the scapegoat for so long. Besides, the Beasts Pirates had more than one plantation; this was just one of the more important ones.
No one could say for sure that he’d actually leave just because of this issue, and Queen had no proof that it was a plot against him. He still held on to a sliver of hope.
“Get in touch with Tesoro and ask him to bring in a few specialists to take a look.”
After thinking it over, Queen managed to temporarily restrain himself. On the surface, Beasts Fruits were in charge of those bananas and had their own experts who specialize in agricultural issues.
Following Queen’s instructions, his men relayed the request to Tesoro, and a team of specialists soon arrived at the plantation, carrying large bags and packages.
As time went on, Queen received an update.
The good news: they’d identified the root of the problem. There’s been an issue with the rainfall on that island recently. The rainwater contained a virus that had been damaging the banana trees, ultimately causing their death.
This virus only parasitizes plants and is very easy to kill. Without a host, it will die quickly and won’t pose a threat to other plantations.
The bad news: they couldn’t handle it. One attempt to intervene even accelerated the plants’ demise.
“Boss, according to the report, we can wait until all the plants on that island die out. After some time, we should be able to replant. Although it’s the biggest banana-producing island, if we cut back on bananas a bit, we can still make it through this year.”
“Cut back on bananas? No way, that would ruin all the fun in my life. Those good-for-nothing, I guess I’ll have to step in myself.”
As their business expanded, their output was fixed in distribution, and cutting back on bananas wouldn’t just affect one person. As a hedonist, he placed great importance on his lavish lifestyle, and his belly was the best proof of that.
Yet, he still didn’t leave Onigashima. Instead, he opted to direct the people on the island remotely, instructing them on creating a medicine to tackle the crisis. In the end, however, he still failed.
“Useless! You’re all useless! I’ve made it so clear, and you still haven’t figured it out?!”
Queen yelled at the screen, frustrated that even after teaching them everything he could, they still couldn’t deliver satisfactory results.
As the fruiting season approached, if they didn’t hurry up and solve the problem, this batch of bananas would really be scrapped.
“Miss Yamato hasn’t returned, Lord Arceus is away… that leaves only Boss Kaido…”
Queen didn’t want to give up on survival or his food, so he thought about looking for a powerful protector to go with him. Even though he himself is one of the top-ranked experts on the sea, he’s become extraordinarily cautious now.
—
Feeling apprehensive, Queen went to find Kaido, who was currently on the Sky Island watching his mount fight.
Unlike Pokémon who gain a massive size only after Dynamaxing, Hydrachton, Emboar, and Tyranitar were giant beasts even in their normal state.
Typically, a Pokémon’s birth order determines its seniority, and the youngest, Hydrachton, was undoubtedly the “little brother.”
But following Kaido, its personality had become increasingly aggressive, so it refused to see itself as little brother.
As another being created by Arceus, Hydrachton also had tremendous strength. It wanted to be the “Big brother!” So it was trying to use force to challenge the two “Sis” for that position.
It wasn’t sure what it would gain from this, but it felt that doing so might please both its master and creator.
Whether Arceus would be pleased or not was uncertain, but Kaido was certainly pleased at the moment. Watching his mount, which perfectly matches his personality, Kaido had been laughing for quite a while.
With the advantage of flight, Hydrachton was indeed stronger than Emboar and Tyranitar in a one-on-one match. However, as the youngest and challenging both “Sis” at the same time, the two weren’t pleased with their little brother’s inflated arrogance and teamed up to take him down a peg.
When Queen arrived, Kaido was busy comforting his mount.
“Worororo, don’t be discouraged. You took on both of them at once, and you’re still young. Queen, what brings you here?”
Patting Hydrachton’s main head, Kaido turned to Queen.
“Um, Boss, there’s a production issue on one of the outer islands. Could I trouble you to come with me to take a look?”
“Hm? You need me for something so minor? Just find anyone to deal with it.”
“No, Boss, it’s complicated. No one else can handle it—I have to go personally. If we mess this up, it could damage our business reputation. Lord Arceus worked hard to establish this good reputation.”
“Then you should go handle it yourself. What, you think you’re a kid?”
At this, Kaido suddenly stopped. He wasn’t fooled by Queen’s sweet talk, instead he caught another key point from his words.
“Queen, don’t tell me you’re too scared to go out on your own?”
Queen’s excuses might work on Yamato, but trying to fool Kaido was a whole other matter.
“Well, I… uh…”
“Enough, no need to explain.”
“Boss, let me explain…”
“No! As one of my All-Stars, you’re afraid because of something like this? It’s… all because I neglected my job! Waaahhh!”
At that, Kaido suddenly burst into tears. Queen’s gaze shifted to the scattered sake barrels on the island cloud nearby—clearly, Kaido had drunk quite a bit while watching the fight.
Seeing that something was unusual, Queen tried to sneak away, but Kaido grabbed his shoulder.
“Boss…Boss Kaido…”
“This is my fault. If you were a bit stronger, you wouldn’t be troubled by this. So… let me help make you stronger!”
“Wait! No, please don’t!”
As Kaido picked up his kanabo, Queen tried to escape, but it was clearly impossible. With a single swing, Kaido completely blocked his path.
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