"What an astonishing ability!"
Seeing that Ryūjin had already prepared the battlefield, Red Hair understood that a fight between him and Ryūjin was unavoidable.
After sighing in admiration, Red Hair stopped wasting words. He leaped into the air and landed directly on the frozen sea.
"I heard you defeated Hawkeye with a single sword strike. I thought you were also a Great Swordsman, but I didn't expect you to be a Devil Fruit user."
"This is the first time I've seen an ability user with swordsmanship this outstanding. You truly live up to your reputation, Ryūjin!"
Red Hair praised him sincerely, then immediately drew Gryphon. In an instant, he transformed into a streak of light and charged toward Ryūjin.
In the blink of an eye, he appeared before him.
With a slash of Gryphon, a terrifying sword aura burst forward, cutting straight at Ryūjin.
"So fast!"
Nami and Nico Robin's expressions shifted slightly in shock.
Even Crocodile, a former Warlord of the Sea, narrowed his eyes with visible seriousness.
Red Hair truly deserved his title as one of the Four Emperors. A casual attack already displayed the strength of a top-tier powerhouse.
Putting everything else aside, his speed alone was enough to make it difficult even for Crocodile to react.
Swish!
However, just as Gryphon was about to strike Ryūjin, he suddenly vanished.
"Nani?! That speed!"
Red Hair's pupils contracted violently.
Ryūjin's speed had reached an absurd level.
Even Red Hair struggled to react.
"Not good!"
Without hesitation, Red Hair instinctively turned and swung Gryphon diagonally toward his right.
Only then did he see it.
Ryūjin's fist, carrying overwhelming force like a meteor crashing from the heavens, slammed toward him.
"Good reaction speed."
Ryūjin gave a small nod of approval.
Even so, his movement never stopped.
The punch continued forward with unstoppable momentum.
"Is he insane?!"
Red Hair's expression changed.
His blade was heading straight for Ryūjin's fist.
Did this man really intend to block Gryphon barehanded?
The next moment, Ryūjin's fist turned pitch black.
Armament Haki.
Still, using only Haki to block Gryphon with his bare hand?
Even Red Hair felt Ryūjin was being absurdly arrogant.
Clang!
A deafening metallic sound echoed across the frozen sea.
An overwhelming force crashed into Gryphon, instantly transferring into Red Hair's body.
Boom!
Like a cannonball, Red Hair was blasted backward by Ryūjin's punch.
He flew over thirty meters, as if someone had violently smashed a ball across a battlefield.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Even after landing, Red Hair staggered several steps backward, cracks spreading beneath his feet.
That was only what others could see.
What nobody knew was that his sword arm had already gone numb.
The force behind Ryūjin's punch made his chest churn violently.
"What?! How is this possible?!"
Shock spread across Red Hair's face.
Ryūjin's strength was far beyond expectations.
It was complete suppression.
Subconsciously, Red Hair looked toward Ryūjin's fist.
There wasn't even a scratch.
Forget injuries, Gryphon had not left the slightest mark.
"What a terrifying physique…"
Waves surged through Red Hair's heart.
Armament Haki could increase defense and attack power, sure.
But this?
This was ridiculous.
Even Garp's legendary fists felt inferior in comparison.
"The Captain got sent flying with one punch?!"
"Ryūjin blocked Gryphon barehanded! What kind of monster is this?!"
The two executives beside Red Hair nearly lost their composure.
Even after losing an arm in East Blue, Red Hair remained one of the Four Emperors.
Yet in front of Ryūjin, he looked completely outmatched.
"Ryūjin, you truly deserve your reputation."
"There were rumors that you defeated the entire Whitebeard Pirates by yourself. I originally thought it was exaggerated."
"But now… I can see it wasn't."
Red Hair stared at Ryūjin with undisguised admiration.
"Against a monster like you, I can't afford to hold back."
As soon as he finished speaking, Armament Haki surged out.
Gryphon instantly turned jet black.
Armament Haki was not only effective against Logia users, it also drastically increased offensive power.
Swish!
In another flash, Red Hair disappeared.
Like a beam of light, he rushed toward Ryūjin once again.
Black sword shadows filled the battlefield.
Each slash was significantly stronger than before.
Yet…
The result remained the same.
Ryūjin never used flashy techniques.
He relied solely on his fists.
Pure physical strength completely overwhelmed Red Hair.
Bang!
Not long after, another devastating punch sent Red Hair flying.
This time, he rolled across the ice several times before barely regaining his footing.
"T-This is Ryūjin?!"
"He's overpowering the Captain with pure taijutsu!"
"Terrifying… this guy is a complete monster!"
Cold sweat soaked Red Hair's subordinates as disbelief filled their faces.
Huff… huff…
Heavy breathing echoed.
Red Hair stood there, gripping Gryphon tightly as he stared at Ryūjin.
Then, gathering all his strength, he raised his sword.
With one hand, he unleashed a slash through the air.
Clang!
A terrifying sword strike exploded outward.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The thick ice Ryūjin created split apart effortlessly, as though it were paper.
A massive fissure surged toward Ryūjin like a giant zipper tearing the battlefield apart.
The sheer force looked capable of splitting heaven and earth.
"T-This is the power of a Yonko!"
Nami and Nico Robin inhaled sharply.
That attack was absurd.
Yet Ryūjin remained completely indifferent.
He simply shrugged slightly.
No dodging.
No movement.
Instead, he casually stretched out a hand.
"Does Ryūjin want to take it head-on?! Impossible!"
Red Hair clenched his teeth.
He knew the power of this attack.
Even Kaido would not walk away unharmed.
Then suddenly…
Ryūjin's eyes changed.
Ripple-patterned pupils emerged.
"Shinra Tensei."
Boom!
An overwhelming repulsive force erupted instantly.
Red Hair's sword slash shattered on impact.
Not only that, the force continued forward with unstoppable momentum.
Everything in its path was crushed.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The frozen sea exploded into fragments.
Ocean waves beneath the ice surged violently.
The destruction was overwhelming.
"Nani?!"
Red Hair's eyes widened in disbelief.
That power felt like a natural disaster.
Impossible to resist.
The next second, his body was thrown backward like a leaf caught in a storm.
He flew dozens of meters before crashing violently into the sea.
"Captain!"
"Captain!"
The two executives shouted anxiously.
Boom!
A massive wave exploded upward.
A figure burst out from the ocean and landed lightly on a floating chunk of ice.
It was Red Hair.
Since he wasn't a Devil Fruit user, seawater posed no danger to him.
The moment he fell, he forced himself back out using brute strength.
Even so…
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Ryūjin's Shinra Tensei had already left him with internal injuries.
"Ryūjin is truly terrifying."
Red Hair wiped the blood from his mouth and sighed.
Then he sheathed Gryphon.
"No need to continue."
"I am not your opponent."
Although he still had strength left to continue fighting, Red Hair had not come to risk his life.
He came to negotiate.
A brief clash was enough.
There was no reason to fight to the death.
Besides, losing to Ryūjin wasn't exactly embarrassing.
Too many monsters had already fallen at his hands.
[Ding! Host has defeated Red Hair Shanks. You may receive one of the following rewards:]
"One, Shanks' Swordsmanship."
"Two, Shanks' Conqueror's Haki."
"Three, Shanks' Observation Haki."
"Four, Shanks' Armament Haki."
The Sign-in System notification echoed in Ryūjin's mind.
He was quite satisfied.
Haki at the level of a Yonko was every bit as valuable as an overpowered Devil Fruit.
People rarely saw Red Hair fight in the anime, so many abilities were never properly shown.
Observation Haki included.
And his was far from weak.
"Boring."
Ryūjin glanced at Red Hair with little interest.
"I thought I could smack you around a bit longer."
"But since you gave up, whatever."
Red Hair: "…"
"Ryūjin, even if my words don't mean much to you, I still hope you'll reconsider."
"There's no need to clash with Kaido. Wouldn't it be better for everyone if the seas stayed stable?"
Ryūjin nearly rolled his eyes.
Red Hair really loved sticking his nose into everything.
Whether the seas were peaceful or chaotic had nothing to do with him.
"Red Hair, I'll visit your crew someday."
Ryūjin grinned.
Every Yonko crew had powerful fighters.
The Red Hair Pirates were obviously no exception.
Defeating just Shanks felt far from enough.
He still had plenty of rewards left to collect.
The moment Red Hair heard that, his expression changed.
"I apologize, Ryūjin. I definitely talked too much."
Without another word, he immediately ordered his crew to leave.
The retreat was so fast it almost looked like they were escaping.
What a joke.
A monster like Ryūjin visiting their ship?
Yeah right.
Nobody wanted that problem.
"Ryūjin-san, why do I feel like Red Hair got scared away from just one sentence?"
Nami covered her mouth as she laughed softly.
After Red Hair left, Ryūjin entered the System Space and selected Observation Haki as his reward.
The moment he made his choice, Red Hair's powerful Observation Haki merged with his own.
Instantly, Ryūjin felt his perception expand dramatically.
Thousands of kilometers.
He could sense emotions.
Read intentions.
Even briefly glimpse the future.
Ridiculous.
Ryūjin was extremely satisfied.
At this point, his Observation Haki was likely among the strongest in the world.
"Anyway… where were we?"
Ryūjin turned toward Nami and Nico Robin.
"You two didn't peek at my cards, right? Let's continue."
The three happily resumed their game of Fight the Landlord.
The journey continued in a relaxed atmosphere.
Neither Ryūjin, Nami, nor Nico Robin cared much about what had happened.
To them, Kaido wasn't worth worrying about.
In front of Ryūjin, he was just another loudmouth waiting to get punched.
However, tension across the seas continued rising as Kaido's forces and Ryūjin's side drew closer.
"In this historic battle between Kaido and Ryūjin, who do you think will win?"
"Ryūjin, obviously! That's the guy who defeated three Admirals!"
"Still, a bounty reaching ten billion that quickly feels insane."
"Even so, he captured three Admirals!"
"Do you think Ryūjin can actually kill Kaido?"
Across the seas, countless people discussed the upcoming battle.
All eyes were fixed on the confrontation between Kaido and Ryūjin.
===
Read 100+ chapters ahead on Patreon, with every chapter organized into collections.
Subscribing a membership gives you access to "ALL" fanfictions,
Or you can buy only the collection you want, to gain access to chapters ahead.
P-a-t-r-e-o-n.com/_Zeph.