"Get the hell out of my way, Sengoku!"
Kaido's thunderous roar rolled across the chaotic battlefield.
Cold killing intent filled his blazing dragon eyes, along with an absolute determination that refused to be stopped.
There was nothing left to discuss.
Finding King was one of the main reasons Kaido had come here in the first place. No matter who stood in his way, he would crush them without hesitation.
Even if that person was Sengoku, an old enemy he had clashed with for decades.
Kaido had no interest in exchanging words or testing the waters.
The only thing that mattered was breaking through and finding King.
So he attacked at once.
"Conqueror of Three Worlds—Ragnaraku!"
Kaido's roar shook the sky.
His enormous Azure Dragon body reared upward, towering over the battlefield like a mountain.
Black-and-red lightning crackled violently around his massive claws.
Conqueror's Haki coated them so densely that the surrounding air seemed to distort beneath the pressure.
Then both claws came crashing down toward Sengoku—
and the prison gate behind him.
This was no ordinary strike.
It carried Kaido's monstrous physical strength, enough to tear apart mountains with brute force alone, combined with the terrifying destructive power of advanced Conqueror's Haki.
The attack descended like the end of the world.
Sengoku's expression hardened.
"Buddha's Wrath!"
Golden light erupted from his body.
The enormous image of a golden Buddha behind him rapidly solidified, becoming almost tangible beneath the brilliant glow.
Top-tier Armament Haki spread across the giant figure, darkening its surface in places like black flames burning over gold.
Under Sengoku's control, one enormous palm rose.
Then it struck forward.
There was no attempt to dodge.
No attempt to redirect Kaido's attack.
Sengoku met it head-on.
On one side—
the dragon claws of destruction and domination.
On the other—
the wrathful palm of the Buddha, representing the order and justice Sengoku had spent his life defending.
Then they collided.
BOOOOOOOOM!!!
The impact shook all of Marineford.
A spherical shock wave erupted from the point of contact and blasted outward in every direction.
The ground shattered beneath them.
Layers of stone buckled and broke apart like brittle crackers, while enormous chunks of rubble were thrown into the air.
Buildings closest to the collision vanished almost instantly.
The shock wave tore through them with such force that walls, roofs, and support beams were pulverized before they could even properly collapse.
Even Bullet's colossal magma giant, still locked in battle with Magellan farther away, was forced to sway under the blast.
Its enormous body shook.
Cracks spread through the ground beneath its feet.
For something of that size to be affected at all made the scale of the collision obvious.
Above Marineford, the thick clouds were torn apart.
The shock wave ripped open the sky and exposed a vast stretch of blue beyond.
Yet beneath that clear sky, the battlefield looked more violent than ever.
Golden light surged like a raging river.
Black-and-red lightning twisted through it like demonic claws.
Every time the two forces collided, violent bursts of energy erupted between them.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Sengoku grunted.
The ground beneath his feet cracked again.
Deep fractures spread outward through the plaza.
But he did not move.
His enormous golden palm remained firmly pressed against Kaido's claw.
Not one step backward.
His entire body strained beneath the pressure, yet Sengoku held his ground with stubborn determination.
Behind him was the prison.
He could not afford to yield.
Kaido's enormous dragon eyes widened slightly.
For a brief instant, surprise appeared there.
Then it vanished.
A savage grin spread across his face instead.
The resistance had only made his fighting spirit burn hotter.
...
"You old bastard! Your bones are tougher than I thought!"
Kaido's thunderous voice rolled across the battlefield, his words full of mockery even as the excitement in his eyes grew stronger.
Failing to break through Sengoku with a single blow only made him more aggressive.
His enormous dragon tail whipped across the air like a mountain range set in motion, generating a screaming gale wherever it passed. At the same time, scorching energy began gathering in his jaws once again as another Bolo Breath took shape.
Sengoku answered with a furious roar of his own.
His hands moved without pause, launching one golden shock wave after another toward Kaido. Each attack carried tremendous force, tearing through the air as the two veterans of the old era exchanged blows without restraint.
Both had stood among the strongest figures on the sea for decades.
Now, at Marine Headquarters' most desperate hour, neither had any intention of yielding.
Every collision sent tremors through Marineford.
Already damaged buildings collapsed under the repeated shock waves, while rubble and dust filled the battlefield until whole sections of Headquarters looked like ruins.
Yet Kaido was fighting for more than the thrill of battle.
King's whereabouts still burned in his mind.
So did his rage toward the World Government.
Those emotions mixed together into something even more violent, feeding his already monstrous strength like fuel thrown into a furnace.
Every attack became heavier.
More reckless.
More determined to smash through anything in his way.
"WOOOOOOH!"
Kaido let out a savage roar.
"BREAK!"
Black-and-red lightning erupted around his claws.
The force pressing against Sengoku's golden Buddha palm suddenly surged.
What had been a deadlock only moments earlier was shattered in an instant.
"What?!"
Sengoku's pupils contracted.
A tremendous wave of power came pouring through Kaido's claw, one violent surge after another.
The golden palm created from his Mythical Zoan power and reinforced with top-tier Armament Haki began to crack under the strain.
Crack… crack…
Fine fractures spread from the point of contact.
Then—
CRACK!!!
The enormous golden palm shattered.
Golden fragments of energy scattered through the air like sparks from a broken sun before fading away.
Sengoku's expression changed.
The destruction of the Buddha palm immediately sent the backlash through his body.
His face went pale.
His entire frame shook.
It felt as though a mountain had slammed into him head-on.
Pain tore through his chest as his internal organs were violently shaken.
"Guh!"
Blood burst from Sengoku's mouth.
Then his body was launched backward.
BOOM!
He crashed into the remains of a half-collapsed wall.
The already damaged structure gave way under the impact and collapsed completely, burying Sengoku beneath a mountain of rubble and dust.
"FLEET ADMIRAL!!"
The Marines watching from farther away screamed in horror.
For many of them, Sengoku had always been one of the pillars holding the Marines together.
Seeing him blasted away and buried beneath the ruins struck what little morale they had left.
Some stared in disbelief.
Others could barely bring themselves to keep watching.
Kaido grinned viciously.
His enormous dragon eyes remained fixed on the rubble.
He had no intention of allowing Sengoku time to recover.
Destructive energy began gathering in his throat once more.
Heat distorted the air around his jaws as flames rapidly intensified.
Kaido intended to finish this.
One more attack.
One final blast to erase the obstacle standing between him and the prison.
"Bolo Breath!!"
Just as Kaido prepared to unleash the killing blow—
a cold figure appeared between him and the rubble.
Almost as if he had teleported there.