People who had retreated nearly ten miles from the colosseum, thinking themselves safe, trembled in fear as the ground shook violently.
They couldn't clearly see who had fallen from the sky, but they knew one thing...
A natural disaster had arrived!!
...
——
Rustle—
Brushing off the gravel from his shoulders, Kaido's neck cracked with crisp sounds.
"It's the freezing brat following Garp..."
"Long time no see."
Just by standing there, Kaido's massive frame loomed like an insurmountable mountain.
Terrifying Conqueror's Haki rolled out in waves, black and red lightning tearing through the atmosphere.
The forty-seven-year-old Kaido calling the thirty-seven-year-old Kuzan a "brat" wasn't entirely reasonable—strictly speaking, they belonged to the same generation.
...
"You're that brat who followed Rocks! Still as arrogant as ever!"
Saint Miya swung her lance to disperse Kaido's overflowing Conqueror's Haki, coldly stating, "Do you really think we can't deal with you? Challenging the World Government's authority again and again!"
"Kaido!!"
Rocks...
This name wasn't unfamiliar to Kuzan.
Though he hadn't joined the Marines during the God Valley incident, and that event had been highly classified by the World Government.
But one shouldn't forget who his teacher was.
While Sengoku would occasionally tell younger Marines about those days, Garp—who cared even less about World Government restrictions—had long ago told him about the Rocks Pirates.
The current three Pirate Emperors, as well as the legendary pirate Shiki from before, were all former members of that pirate crew.
One could imagine how terrifying Rocks must have been to gather so many powerful figures.
...
Garp's exact words at the time were something like...
"It was me and Roger working together who defeated Rocks! I couldn't have done it alone! That guy was ridiculously strong, hahahaha!!"
Having always considered Garp the strongest, Kuzan found this difficult to accept. He could hardly believe the Navy Hero would collaborate with the Pirate King, his worldview severely shaken.
Garp patted his shoulder and casually said, "Sometimes, teaming up with pirates is unavoidable. You'll understand one day!"
Understand one day...
...
...
Kaido's gaze fell upon Saint Miya, as if thinking for a moment...
"Who are you? Where's that crescent-headed one?"
"Never mind, it's normal I wouldn't remember someone this weak."
...
"What did you say!?"
Saint Miya gritted her teeth, dark energy swirling around the tip of her knight's lance. A black serpent, thick as a water bucket and nearly materialized, hissed as it lunged at Kaido.
"Misfortune Serpent!!"
...
"I said... you're weak."
BOOM!!!!
Kaido didn't even move as his suddenly intensified Conqueror's Haki lightning tore the serpent apart, the black energy exploding!!
Thud—Thud—
Emerging from the deep crater, Kaido's shadow completely dominated their field of vision.
"What use is something like luck?"
Unlike some fools who only know how to use fists, feet, and swords, Kaido—despite his brutish appearance—was among the few pirates who preferred to plan before acting.
Through the miniature Den Den Mushi left on Kari, Kaido had already learned about this guy's ability.
Misfortune Fruit...
This kind of status-afflicting ability could be dispersed simply by using Haki of sufficient intensity!
It was only because a brat like Kari lacked pure enough Haki that he could be affected by such an ability.
...
Kaido's feet stomped violently on the ground, his hands gripping the Eight Precepts tightly. Pitch-black Armament Haki intertwined with black and red lightning, pulsating like burning dark flames, instantly causing the heavens to change!
——
"Raidon——Hakke!!"
An ear-splitting roar exploded with the pressure of Conqueror's Haki, Kaido's figure vanished from his original position as if teleporting, leaving only a black afterimage.
The spiked club swept out with a screech that tore through everything, carrying unparalleled brute force!
Even though Saint Miya's Observation Haki foresaw the attack trajectory, her body simply couldn't react in time!
Boom————!!!!!!
With the roar of furious thunder, Saint Miya's body flew through the clouds like a broken kite, her scream crushed before it could escape, leaving only reverberating echoes and a battlefield numbed by the impact!
The glacial earth cracked with enormous fissures, and at the far end, Kaido stood bathed in black and red lightning, like a god or demon.
This was...
The power of the strongest creature on land, sea, and air!!
...
Gulp—
As mentioned before, this wasn't Kuzan's first encounter with Kaido.
Kaido had challenged Whitebeard and Marine Headquarters multiple times, having already suffered five defeats.
The one Kuzan personally experienced was four years ago, when Kaido transformed into a azure dragon and descended from the sky to attack the warship where Vice Admiral Garp was stationed.
For the strong on the seas, ages forty to sixty were considered prime years.
Garp in his early sixties still packed the same power in his iron fists, especially with Kuzan assisting nearby, they defeated Kaido without any suspense.
But they couldn't stop Kaido from escaping.
At that time, Mr. Garp had already determined that Kaido could grow to become a hegemonic-level force like Whitebeard.
...
Now... had that time come?!
For the first time in a long while, Kuzan felt the hot blood boiling within him.
Assuming his stance, his pitch-black fists became covered with diamond-like ice crystals, sparkling with brilliant light.
Thud—
The spiked club slammed into the ground, Kaido looked down at Kuzan and grinned: "Not bad spirit!"
"Let me see how much of Garp's fists you've learned! Worororororo!!!"
...
Crack—
"Ice Glove——"
"Raidon——Hakke!!"
——
Kari's figure darted through the flying debris, racing toward the direction where Saint Miya had been sent flying.
Originally they had agreed to target the Celestial Dragon, coordinating to try and kill her first.
But when Kaido actually entered the fray, after sending Saint Miya flying with one blow, he showed no intention of pursuing, his eyes fixed only on Kuzan.
He completely disregarded their so-called plan...
Kari didn't know how much that blow had weakened Saint Miya. By the time he reached her, with her recovery ability, she might already be fully healed.
Whatever, he'd deal with it when he found her. Fighting alone wasn't impossible either.
As he moved, Kari covered his entire body with Fire Release Chakra.
If Kuzan hadn't suppressed him earlier, Saint Miya's Devil Fruit Ability might not have affected him.
...
In the residential building ruins.
Saint Miya struggled to stand up, the pulverized flesh on her chest rapidly healing.
"Damn it... how is he so strong!!"
...
"Are... are you okay? Your injuries look serious"
A freckled boy approached, his eyes filled with concern and worry.
...
Swish—
Saint Miya raised her hand and waved, creating a powerful wind pressure that twisted the boy's neck, ending his life instantly!
"Tch... what gives you the right to look at me with those eyes!"
This bloody scene caused others who had been considering approaching to scatter in panic, screaming as they fled.
...
Such noisy commotion... how irritating!
Saint Miya frowned, raising her hand as dark energy dissipated.
Within mere seconds.
Among those fleeing, some twisted their ankles and fell, only to be pierced through the heart by inexplicably falling lightning rods. Others had their throats slit by shattered glass fragments, or were struck in the back of the head by falling flowerpots...
Only when screams turned to wails, then faded into silence, did Saint Miya's brow relax slightly.
Seeing the approaching flames in the distance, she broke into a radiant smile.
...
How dare they chase after me... they must have a death wish!
She raised her knight's lance, coated in pure black Armament Haki, with faint dark threads swirling along its surface.
...
Kari spread his flaming wings behind him, tracing a fiery line across the sky.
Fire Release Moonwalk - Flame Fang Rush.
This technique combined the explosive power of Fire Release, the high-frequency stepping of Moonwalk, and integrated sword arts.
It released massive flames in a short burst to propel the body forward, superimposing flame impact with physical strike at the moment of contact to create a devastating blow.
Its power was even sufficient to pierce through Kuzan's Ice Wall!
There were drawbacks, however. This technique required building momentum from a distance - the farther the distance, the greater the power.
Moreover, its extreme speed made direction changes impossible, limiting it to straight-line attacks.
Fortunately, the opponent showed no intention of dodging.
...
In that instant—
Blade and lance tip collided with explosive force, crimson flames and black light erupting into a violent vortex of energy. The shockwave swept outward like a circular tsunami!!
Rubble and flames danced wildly in the hurricane-force winds, countless building fragments swirling upward into the sky!
——
——
——
——
"This goes far beyond some mere competition..."
At the port, the Red Hair Pirates looked toward the cumulonimbus clouds gathering over the royal capital. They didn't even need Observation Haki - the abnormality was visible to the naked eye.
Beckman looked at Shanks, whose expression had turned grave: "Some formidable figures are battling there. Should we still go?"
Shanks nodded: "I have an ominous premonition. This fight could become severe enough to claim countless lives..."
"Let's hurry and check it out!"
...
...
Meanwhile, on the other side of Dressrosa.
The White Wolf anchored several nautical miles from the port, with Griffin watching from the bow through binoculars.
"Quite intense..."
Battles between the top-tier powers on the sea could affect areas measured in entire "countries."
Dressrosa was a small-to-medium sized island nation, its area even smaller than Punk Hazard where the Marine Science Unit was currently stationed.
The battle between Akainu and Kuzan had permanently altered that region's environment. If Kaido went all out, destroying this country wouldn't be particularly difficult.
...
"Commodore Griffin! We've received a distress call from King Riku!!"
A lieutenant hurried over, handing him a Den Den Mushi.
As Dressrosa was a World Government Member Nation, one of the G-1 Branch's responsibilities was protecting nearby countries.
Griffin took the Den Den Mushi, which had grown hair resembling a Super Saiyan in imitation of King Riku, and heard it say urgently: "Hello, is this G-1 Branch!? This is Riku III of Dressrosa! We urgently need Marine assistance!"
...
"What level of assistance do you require? Is it a pirate invasion? How many warships do you need?"
There was silence for a few seconds on the other end, followed by King Riku's helpless sigh.
"It's difficult to explain... The scale of this conflict is beyond our participation. I'm currently evacuating our citizens to the eastern port. We request sufficient vessels for evacuation."
"Even the dangerous seas of the New World are safer than Dressrosa right now!!"
"Sending a ship would be too late. I see many pirate ships docked at the harbor—let's borrow one..."
The island of Dressrosa wasn't large. Since Kari's appearance, some quick-witted pirates had immediately fled.
They were much faster at escaping than ordinary residents.
Several pirate ships had already raised their sails, preparing to depart.
...
"Damn it! It's Kari! Why would that guy appear in Dressrosa? What a calamity!"
"Tell me about it... Judging by the situation, another Marine Admiral must have arrived. Good thing we ran fast!"
"Stop talking and hoist the sails!"
"Heh heh, good thing I'm clever—I snatched plenty of treasures in the chaos. Too bad there wasn't time to grab any women. Let's hit the pleasure district later!"
"Kekeke! As expected of our captain, even while fleeing you don't forget to plunder!"
"Of course! I'm Captain Morris, the 'Ghost Thief' with a 43 million berry bounty!"
...
"Not bad. Quite professional."
A calm voice suddenly rang out.
The pure white Justice Coat stood out like a crane among chickens amidst the bizarrely dressed pirates.
The first mate, who was hoisting the sails and only saw the figure from behind, immediately shouted angrily: "Hey! Stinking Marine! Do you know who we are?!"
"Our captain is—"
He didn't notice that the captain, who could see the marine's face, was already trembling like a spinning top.
Not that it mattered anymore—before he could finish speaking, his head had already rolled across the deck.
...
Griffin smiled with narrowed eyes: "I don't like hearing introductions repeated multiple times."
"Gri... Gri... Gri... Griffin..."
Morris's fingers trembled, his teeth chattering in fear.
"Nor do I like stutterers."
...
...
Passing by a deck littered with pirate corpses, Griffin flicked the blood off his saber and said to the marines behind him:
"Clean up the bodies. You can take fifty percent of the treasures. Distribute the rest to the Dressrosa civilians who will arrive later."
"YES, SIR!"
...
...
After clearing enough ships, Griffin habitually lay down to rest...
Thump—
Thump—
Thump—!
His back, which had just settled, immediately straightened again. The stinging pain from his eyes made him instinctively raise his hand to cover them.
This is...
His Eye Power was being triggered!
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