One Piece: How & When Did King and Kaido Meet?

Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece is known, among other things, for its great world-building aspect. This has also been translated to the characters, as we’ve seen that even most secondary characters, villains included, have gotten some amazing backstories. The most recent episode of One Piece has given us King’s backstory, presented in the shadow of his epic clash with Zoro, in which King lost. Now, in this article, we won’t be focusing on the battle, but we will bring you King’s backstory, as you will find out how and when King met Kaido, who would soon become his captain.

Being born 47 years ago in a Lunarian tribe, King was taken by the World Government and held in Punk Hazard’s Third Research Institute, where he was experimented on because of his heritage. Kaido was a research subject there himself at the time, and when he broke out, he asked King, then named Alber, to come with him and become part of his future pirate crew. After Kaido said that they would change the world, Alber accepted and was broken out; he also received the nickname King soon after.

In this article, we have gathered all we could to provide you with a comprehensive, detailed, and thorough guide – as always – on this intriguing question, as we will tell you how it fits into the story. The article will be dedicated to King and his early days and his relationship with Kaido, his captain. As you might assume, the article will contain many spoilers, so be careful how you approach it.

King was saved by Kaido when he was experimented on in Punk Hazard

King was born 47 years ago as Alber in a Lunarian tribe somewhere on the Red Line; Mary Geoise had not been built at the time. As a young man, the World Government kidnapped him and locked him in a Punk Hazard laboratory to perform experiments on him. When Kaido, another prisoner, broke free, he recognized which race he belonged to and told him they would never let him go, claiming to have witnessed the experiments on his resistance. He admitted that he was leaving and was planning to start a crew, asking him what he would do.

Kaido responded that he was the only person who could alter the world, and Alber agreed when he asked him if he felt he could. As soon as they were free, the two set fire to the structure and left. When Kaido asked him to divulge his name, he acknowledged that he was incredibly strong and suggested he call himself “King,” urging him to stand by his side and promising he would not let anybody capture him.

Later, when Kaido questioned him about his conviction that he was in the presence of the new Joy Boy, who would bring about the world he wished, Alber responded that stories were just that—legends—and that he no longer desired anything, while also making it clear that he was grateful to him for saving his life. He continued by saying that until he made him the pirate king, he was the strongest and would never be vanquished.

He was present when Kurozumi Higurashi came to Kaido 26 years before the story begins to suggest that he settle down with his crew in the Wano Country and form an alliance with Kurozumi Orochi, which his commander approved. The Hundred Beasts Pirates battled the Gekko Pirates in Ringo twenty-one years before the beginning of the story, killing all but the captain.

Three years later, in Udon, Kaido’s group engaged Kozuki Oden and his followers in combat. They were ultimately defeated, imprisoned in the Flower Capital, and then put to death by boiling after being charged with treason against the shogun. After Oden passed away, King ordered to set Kuri Castle on fire. One day Kaido informed him that Yamato had begun discussing Joy Boy and had no idea where he had heard about it.

The captain of his team said that he knew who the man was that he, too, was waiting for, indicating that he would be the one to defeat him, in response to the All-Star’s remark that Oden appeared to want to open the borders of the Wano Country in preparation for his arrival. King then retorted with a smile that he would never show up. He left Onigashima two years before the story’s beginning, along with Kaido and other crew members.

King’s loyalty to Kaido was unswayable

As you can see, King and Kaido have an exceptionally close bond, as Kaido basically saved King’s life and gave him a new purpose in life. This is why King was so loyal to Kaido. They met about 30 years before the story’s beginning, and since then, King has come to enjoy a deep level of trust from Kaidou and, being staunchly loyal to his Governor General, is always willing to execute missions in his name. When Big Mom and her children arrived in Wano Country, King quickly attacked and sent his ship to the bottom of the sea, on his own initiative and not on Kaidou’s orders.

King also immediately lent Kaidou his sword so he could decapitate Orochi with it as soon as the shogun protested Kaidou’s takeover of the Flower Capital, despite not having received any direct instructions to do so, proving the great degree of trust and knowledge of another present between them.

Another display of King’s loyalty to his Governor-General was when he forcefully and immediately rejected Big Mom’s offer to join her crew, despite her willingness to forgive King’s transgressions against him.

Kaidou, despite viewing King as one of his closes allies, did not give him any special treatment, as h agreed to give the lower-ranking Tobiroppo a chance to challenge any crewmember he wanted for their position, as the power of an individual determines the crew hierarchy; this is something that King, on the other hand, never complained about. King, at one point, came to believe that Kaidou was Joy Boy, but that is a wholly different story.