Orochimaru knows his weaknesses and strengths. Compared to top fighters, his attack power is too weak and can't deliver a knockout blow in battle.
But aside from this flaw, Orochimaru can be said to have no weaknesses. He has mastered a wide range of abilities, including huge area-of-effect skills. He also possesses the world's ultimate physical body, matched with a strong will.
Orochimaru's physical strength is ridiculously high, no different from a real dragon.
However, Orochimaru's power increase after becoming a user is actually not that fast. The speed of his progress is slow.
This is because Orochimaru's starting point is too high, and dragons are true ancient creatures, even older than the sages. They're native creatures that are rejected by the ninja world.
As for why they're rejected, it's because they are too strong. Many of the abilities dragons have touch on the authority of the world's will.
Not every creature that can do this is a Sage of Six Paths. Clearly, dragons can't cheat like the Sage of Six Paths.
So, Orochimaru is the same now. By becoming a dragon through the Devil Fruit, he naturally has to deal with certain things when he gets this power.
But from the start, Orochimaru knew this, so he's going in a different direction than others.
He doesn't have top-level Haki for attacking, top-level Haki for kings, or top-level Haki for seeing.
Orochimaru can't compare to the top fighters of the ninja world in these three areas, but his will has already begun to merge with his body. He can already use his "dragon" body to carry his will.
This special quality is unique to Orochimaru's "dragon" form. It constantly strengthens his dragon form, including how much will it can handle.
Because of this, Orochimaru's growth speed seems slow. So, what Orochimaru needs is to find an attack method that can deliver a knockout blow.
"Orochimaru-sama, are we heading straight to the east next?"
Kidomaru saw Orochimaru return and quickly asked.
Hiruko, standing next to him, saw that Orochimaru wasn't quite right. He'd obviously run into something in the center of the Red Line.
"Go full speed ahead towards that area."
Orochimaru nodded, but looking at these tens of thousands of people, he felt it would be too difficult for them to cross the Red Line. Not everyone can pass through the center.
"Take the sea route, and hurry."
"It seems there's something scary in the center."
Hiruko looked at Orochimaru, curious.
The entire pirate crew started to board the ships, sailing along the coastline.
"The center has the world's leftover will. It's different from the world's will like the dragon veins. It's a world will with powerful targeting."
"It should be left over from Shanks' previous battle. Shanks is probably badly hurt too."
Orochimaru said, not hiding anything from Hiruko.
"It seems you're ready."
"I'm almost ready, but what you want will probably be difficult."
Orochimaru nodded solemnly.
As time goes on, even Orochimaru in his human form looks more imposing. This is the effect of the Devil Fruit's power. The merging of will and body also makes his human body stronger.
"If it doesn't work, we'll just find another way."
Hiruko said with emotion. He hasn't finished researching his Devil Fruit yet. As he goes deeper into the research, Hiruko has also discovered that many things conflict with each other.
It's nearly impossible to merge all the bloodline abilities.
But he's not willing to give up.
"There's not much time left. The creation of the Land of Gods will happen in this battle. They will definitely succeed. The only difference is how much they sacrifice."
"And when that happens, the Red Line will also change."
Orochimaru reminded him. He went all over to find Hiruko because he needed Hiruko's help, and he still does.
He doesn't want his "comrades" to be left behind.
"Don't worry!"
Hiruko crossed his arms and replied coldly.
They initially cooperated with Orochimaru for profit, but now, it's obviously not for profit anymore.
Orochimaru has the spirit, the spirit to become a ruler.
The times have changed. It's no longer the age of ninjas, no longer the age of doing things for the village.
Hiruko doesn't say it, but he already sees Orochimaru as his "captain."
So, how could he hold him back?
Meanwhile, on the ships further behind, the others' thoughts were also heavy.
Compared to a year ago, Kidomaru has become more mature. There's no trace of youth left on his face.
It's not just his appearance that has lost its childishness, but also his heart.
At least Kidomaru now won't fight with Kimimaro over who Orochimaru trusts the most.
In this great age, Kidomaru has seen his own talent, but he's also seen things beyond talent.
"Hopefully, we can survive."
The sea breeze blew on Kidomaru's face. His already dark skin was even darker after a year of sun and wind.
His six unusual arms have also become stronger. Kidomaru is carrying six swords on his back. He's already switched to swordsmanship, but unfortunately, he doesn't have enough talent. These six swords are more like a symbol.
"Your strength is high. It won't be hard to survive."
Jugo's voice came from behind. Jugo and Suigetsu had just boarded the ship, and their strength wasn't strong, but it wasn't weak either.
"You don't understand. We're facing more than just the Marines."
Kidomaru shook his head.
This time, they're standing with Shanks.
The meeting a year ago still left Kidomaru with lingering fear. That seemingly ordinary man.
A battlefield of tens of thousands of people, tens of thousands of pirates swept away by the waves, dark clouds in the sky, roaring thunder, countless lightning bolts falling from the sky. The entire ocean was like hell.
That man only had one sword in his hand. That was the first time he saw Shanks. At that time, he struggled to even maintain the flow of Chakra in front of Shanks.
And this time when they meet again, he shouldn't be like before, but Shanks has also become stronger. Even though they're not enemies, they're only not enemies for now.
And the opponents Shanks is facing are the former top power of the ninja world, those world nobles hidden in the dark side of history, high above.
Those are Shanks' enemies. Although he's not facing Shanks, facing Shanks' enemies is just as stressful.
Kidomaru thought silently, what role can his strength play in this era?
Looking at his companions on the distant ship, who didn't seem worried at all, Kidomaru could only put aside his thoughts.
He closed his eyes and entered "Spider Demon" state. The hairs on his body stood up at that moment, as if they were blown up.
Invisible spider webs, with Kidomaru as the center, spread out into the distance. The spider webs are made of energy. Their only purpose is to sense the movement of objects within range.
The benefit of this ability is that the sensing range is large.
After an unknown amount of time, a large number of abnormal movement patterns appeared within Kidomaru's sensing range.
"It's Marine warships, over a hundred of them, coming towards us."
Kidomaru opened his eyes. At the same time, the Four Great Ninja Villages alliance on the other side also discovered Orochimaru's group.
All the warships immediately started to turn and load weapons. Blue light began to flash on the blue sea. A large number of Chakra cannons were being loaded.
The flashing blue light illuminated the "Justice" on the warships' sails. At this time, the Marine soldiers also felt the pressure of the battlefield. Although they haven't made contact yet, they could tell from their officers that this war would definitely be different.
The Marine officers were basically ninjas. They naturally knew the dangers of the battlefield, and they also knew the various benefits after this war.
As for some officers who rose through the ranks within the Marines, they'd experienced many battles and knew the cruelty of the battlefield. They wouldn't underestimate this battlefield in the slightest.
"They're here!"
"Beasts Pirates!"
"This pressure."
Rumble!!
Dark clouds filled the sky, and a wave of pressure came down. Everyone felt a sinking feeling in their hearts. Some people in the Marines even turned pale, started shaking, and dropped their weapons on the ground.
"Hold your weapons! This war is for yourselves, for justice."
"Cheer up!"
The officers roared, not expecting their Marines to have such poor mental strength.
However, looking at the increasingly violent sea, even they felt a little nervous.
Boom!!
A bolt of lightning struck down. A giant shadow covered the entire sea. Dozens of huge pirate ships emerged from under the shadow.
"Fire!"
All the warships flashed at the same time. A huge blue flash erupted, lighting up half the sky.
More than a hundred Chakra cannonballs were fired. At the moment the cannonballs were fired, a visible depression appeared in the air above the Marine warships.
The huge impact pressed the Marine warships down, and the sea surface also sank. Seven warships directly sank under this wide range of reaction force, their hulls broken.
On Orochimaru's pirate ship on the other side, Kidomaru's pupils shrank. In that instant, he only saw the dense Marine warships on the distant sea disappear, as if they were swallowed by the waves.
Then blue light lit up in the sky. In mid-air, he saw the depression and the torn air. Then, more than a hundred huge Chakra balls, each over thirty meters in diameter, flew over from a distance.
Only flashing blue Chakra balls remained in the dim sky. Behind the Chakra balls were pale blue tails, making them look beautiful, more dazzling than shooting stars in the sky.
Of course, life under these Chakra balls would also become like shooting stars, not dazzling, but fleeting.
"Block those cannonballs!"
"Everyone spread out!"
Kidomaru roared.
At this moment, he truly felt the power of the World Government. This terrifying power was a complete crushing victory in terms of technology and resources.
This isn't a one-person fight, not a one-person battlefield. One person's strength can't move the whole world.
Unless, his name is Shanks.
The six swords were drawn. Kidomaru immediately turned into his spider demon form. The swords were wrapped in spider silk and firmly gripped by Kidomaru.
The blades of the six swords were already aimed at the frontmost Chakra ball coming towards his ship. Kidomaru felt dizzy. A bolt of lightning struck down, and raindrops fell on his forehead. He seemed to have returned to the battlefield where he first saw Shanks.
In the sky, a huge dragon-shaped shadow flew down.
And Kidomaru jumped up from his ship. The blade in his hand burned with a faint purple light. The next moment, six flashes of light flashed past. The huge Chakra ball was directly shattered, turning into harmless pale blue Chakra that dissipated in the air.
Jirobo on the other side also stood out. The Human-Human Fruit, Model: Buddha form, was activated. His body was imposing, and his hands emitted a faint golden light.
"Buddha: Crushing Fist!"
Both fists combined into one strike. The huge Chakra ball in front of him was directly intercepted by Jirobo in mid-air. Then, the Chakra ball shattered, and then.
Boom!!
The huge explosion directly swallowed Jirobo, and the ship behind him was affected by the aftershock of the explosion. The entire ship swayed wildly on the sea, the deck shattered, and the mast directly broke.
Other ships that were too close to the cannonballs were the same. The diameter was thirty meters, and the central range of the explosion exceeded one hundred and fifty meters.
Once it exploded next to the ship, the entire ship was basically gone.
And there were more than one hundred cannonballs!!
Boom!!
Boom!!!
There were huge explosions everywhere on the sea. Some of the cannonballs flew into the distance and smashed out a huge fireball on the sea. Outside the fireball was evaporated steam.
Only a few cannonballs actually hit the fleet, but even these few cannonballs made half of Orochimaru's ships directly paralyzed, and a large number of pirates fell into the water.
However, Orochimaru didn't care about these. Orochimaru in dragon form stood in front alone, blocking most of the Chakra ball attacks for the entire pirate crew.
Explosions continued to come from mid-air. The white dragon whiskers were stained blue in the explosions. Orochimaru's eyes were cold. These Chakra balls didn't cause any damage to him.
"Tiny..."
"Weak..."
"Spiritual power without cohesion..."
"In front of true experts, if the power doesn't reach a certain level, no matter how much there is, it's not enough!"
Orochimaru's arrogant voice came from the explosion. In mid-air were burning flames and the blue afterglow of Chakra. From this island-sized fire, a majestic dragon head stretched out.
Orochimaru looked down on the entire sea, and on the Marine fleet, with his arrogant eyes.
"The Four Great Ninja Villages are here. It seems the World Government really values me."
"But, why isn't Tsunade here?"
"Ah, I remember, the Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan belong to the same lineage. Tsunade is also a world noble. No wonder she's not with you."
Orochimaru mocked, his eyes full of contempt for the Four Great Ninja Villages, a bunch of trash bound by the World Government.
"Orochimaru, you've worked so hard for the position of Four Emperors, but Golden Lion took that position first. Doesn't that feel bad?"
Orochimaru was sharp-tongued, but the Kage of the Four Great Ninja Villages weren't the kind of people who wouldn't poke at his wounds.
"Anyone can become a Four Emperor. Golden Lion is strong, so he can be one."
"But, I'm not weak either."
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes, and his dragon claw reached towards the sky.
"As for you all, you're not good enough!"
As the dragon claw pointed down, an island with dragon vein energy crushed the dark clouds and fell towards the sea.
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