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A sudden bout of an excruciating, splitting headache wakes Kidd up from his deep slumber. His heavy and labored breathing is the only sound present in his captain quarter. Kidd holds his throbbing head with his right arm, silently congratulating himself for not foolishly reaching with what was left of his left arm, something that is now seldom yet still happens from time to time. Even after months and months have passed since he first lost it.
Kid glances to the small window situated on the left side of the room. From the faint blue glow streaming in, casting long shadows on his wooden floor, Kidd concurs that it’s still the wee hours of the night.
It seems that sleep won’t come to him again for quite some time.
Deciding to clear his mind, Kidd leaves his bed and grabs his coat. As he heads towards the deck, several of his crewmates in the middle of their nightguard shift greet him, to which he gives a quick nod of acknowledgment.
Mere seconds into leaning on the railing of his ship, Kidd realizes that he had fallen asleep in his full gear. Goggles, belt buckles, and all. No wonder he had trouble sleeping earlier.
Kidd highly suspects it’s also a leftover from his fight in Onigashima. Killer told him about everything that happened during his showdown fighting the hag that is essentially a walking, talking natural disaster. The following guilt filtering through his partner’s voice from not taking down Hawkins faster had prompted Kidd to grab Killer’s shoulder and squeeze it. Reminding his vice-captain that it was still thanks to his quick thinking, Kidd managed to take down one of the Emperors of the Seas.
Well. With the help of one Trafalgar Law.
Kidd lets out a snort. It’s been days, nearing a week by now, since he escaped that floating island and the throes of enemies that followed with it. And yet, to him, it all seemed to happen just yesterday. He’s no longer interested in forging an alliance, not after the betrayal he experienced the last time. However, Kidd has to admit that standing alongside like-minded people, those who will never want to bow down to the Four Emperors, feels quite great.
Not as great as reaching the pinnacle of his piracy career in the foreseeable future, of course.
Hell, despite his vicious nature and notorious reputation, Kidd is capable of giving some modicum of respect. He smirks slightly. Regarding the drive to tear down the older generation, Kidd supposes those who fought alongside him on the top of the island deserve at least that from him.
Kidd blinks. He directs his gaze from the countless sparks sprinkled across the purplish, dark blue night down to his hand. It seems that he’s been absentminded for quite a while, lost in the sea of stars, failing to notice the presence of a metal bolt, nut, and springer held tight inside his palm. He supposes he took them out from the pocket of his pants. It’s his habit to always carry some around for a quick fix for his metal hand or other fighting purposes.
Kidd hums and sends the parts up in the air, pulling them from one side to another with a flick of his fingers. It’s a kind of therapy for him to exercise his power in a small amount after thoroughly exhausting it just days prior.
During the fights, Kidd noticed that his rivals were not the same people as two years ago. Trafalgar was without his creepy smiles, yet his steps and gait were lighter and steadier. Strawhat carried himself differently after Marineford. Witnessing the death of a family member like that is bound to change someone.
Kidd lets out a deep, reverberating chuckle. What is he thinking? He’s also a different man compared to the man standing in front of the auction and fighting Marines years ago.
Kidd sends his metal parts flying higher, then catches them easily mid-air.
Kidd knows it won’t be long until he meets up again with his fellow Supernovas. No more temporarily joining up forces like back in Sabaody or Wano. This time, they’ll fight it out for good to lay a claim on the One Piece.
And when the time comes, Eustass Kidd with the Kidd Pirates will be more than ready for it.
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