"Nice meeting you," Ko grinned, extending her hand to the silent man who simply shook her hand. They were to set off with a huge boat, only a small group joined them but they wouldn't set foot on Wano. Ko was very clear with what she had seen and learnt. Wano didn't welcome strangers, much less strangers who could pose a big threat.
The man, Big Mom's child, didn't disagree with her proposition to go with only the both of them, he knew Kaido's temperament, taking his crew along would just burden them. They would only accompany them along the journey.
Ko observed the pirate thoughtfully, she knew of the rumors that he could see seconds into the future thanks to his advanced Observation Haki but she wanted to test it. She knew Katakuri wasn't the type to act overly-friendly and that didn't bother her, she didn't mind the silence. But she was still determined to gain more information on the man during their trip together.
With that thought in mind, she jumped up to the crow's nest choosing it as her spot for the next week or so of travel. Looking down, she could see Katakuri giving out instructions to his crew. With a flick of her finger, a kunei flew to his head. Without looking up he caught it between his fingers.
He finally looked up at her, glaring at her-or perhaps he was simply staring, she couldn't really tell.
She waved at him with a smile, swinging her legs over the edge. Seeing how quick he was to return to his activities, she deduced he wasn't easy to piss off. But then again, she knew how important this mission was for Big Mom, and thus for him. He probably wanted to avoid useless conflicts.
That only made her want to push him more.
It only took her a day to figure out his weakness. It was surprising to say the least, he seemed to be ashamed of his mouth scars and his gluttonous appetite for donuts. As much as she wanted to use that against him, she didn't find it in herself to do so. She liked sweets herself and mocking someone for that just didn't seem fair.
Katakuri was a very calm man, she found out. He was very admired by his crew for his mysteriousness and strength. He wasn't overly severe with them nor boastful. He didn't lose his temper despite her numerous pranks, nothing seemed to bother him.
But more importantly with those 'pranks' she learnt more about the extent of his Observation Haki. He could accurately predict a few seconds into the future and more at times. That made him practically invincible.
Though the future could be changed and he didn't seem to see all futures, it would take someone as proficient as him in Observation Haki to hope to beat him. Because no matter how strong one was, if he could predict it, it was useless. Unless one overwhelmed him with monstrous strength he couldn't prevent or avoid.
Anyway, Ko could hardly see any way to beat him in a direct fight, not that it should be necessary in the near future. Ko was neutral, it wasn't her job to make enemies out of people, not that it would benefit anyone either way. After all, her information network was very valuable.
She was surprised when the next day, she found Katakuri reading a very familiar journal on the deck-Masked Truth.
On the front cover, the page was black with white lettering: The tragedy of the Buster Call.
Ko knew very well the content of that journal, she was the one who supplied the pieces of information after all while Dawn wove them all into a clever article.
"Find anything interesting?" Ko asked, tilting her head to watch him. She found an impassive face. Anyone would feel a twinge of pity or anger after reading what happened on Ohara, followed by the relentless attempts by the Marine to erase all traces by killing a child. And the recent blunder that almost led to an entire island being decimated. There was some pretty nasty stuff revealed in that article.
But from what she had observed, she knew it would take more to elicit a reaction from the man, and as expected he plainly ignored her question, choosing to ask his own.
"You're playing with fire." He said, closing the journal and throwing it in her face-with no real strength behind it. It was an unofficial certainty by now that Ko was the one behind Masked Truth. Only, he didn't know why she put her life on the line to unearth secrets from decades ago. These people were long dead, they would be neither thankful nor grateful. She had nothing but enemies to gain from doing that. By now, it was pretty certain that she was to be killed on sight by the Marines. They would spare no efforts to eliminate her. "Why?"
Ko understood his point of view but she simply laughed in response. "I do it because I can, it's as simple as that." She jumped on the edge of the boat, hands behind her back as she tiptoed along the edge. "If anyone wants to stop me, they're welcome to try." She laughed, like a madman with nothing to lose, eyes hazy and lips turned at an unnatural angle. "I will be waiting."
Katakuri shook his head before walking away. Anyone who could make it this far had to be a little deranged.
A few days later, they arrived at their destination. Katakuri and Ko entered the capital before announcing their presence with a small burst of Haki. They were warmly welcomed by attacks from some henchmen of the Beasts Pirates.
Ko hid as soon as the fight started, choosing to observe Katakuri fighting from her spot on the building top. He was faring very well without her help anyway. Plus, she was still injured, reopening her wounds didn't seem like a fun experience.
After what felt like an hour, a man in a black armor appeared. "Our captain wants to see you, son of Big Mom."
Ko gathered from the whispers that the man was one of the right arms of Kaido, King. The next second, she appeared beside Katakuri-he seemed to have expected this-but King momentarily flinched before regaining his composure and leading the way.