Kaido stared at Michael, at those eyes, at the colossal Wings blotting out the sky behind him.
He actually... Began to tremble.
Yes, his hands gripping the kanabo were shaking faintly!
But Kaido knew this wasn't fear—quite the opposite...
It was excitement!
Unparalleled excitement!
What Celestial Dragons? What Wano Country? What alliances? What ambitions?
None of it compared to this battle before him, grand as the world's destruction!
"Is this your full power, Michael?"
"Is this your true form?"
"How... terrifying."
"Standing on the same battlefield as you is my fortune!"
"Great Virtue: Thunder Bagua!"
The attack came with lightning speed.
Wrapped in Conqueror's Haki and lightning, Kaido swung his kanabo with the fastest speed he'd ever mustered in his life.
His Conqueror's Haki and lightning condensed to their utmost limits in that instant.
Michael watched Kaido charge toward him, his eyes devoid of sorrow or joy.
He simply swung "Morning Star."
No Armament Haki, no Conqueror's Haki.
Not a single flame of the Seraphim Fruit...
Only that tangible Holy light, shadowing his every move.
As Kaido swung his weapon, an inexplicable song suddenly echoed in his ears...
Though the language and melody were incomprehensible, they carried a sacred essence that resonated deep within one's soul.
Yet, the holy hymn could not sway the monster wholly immersed in battle.
The spiked club clashed with Morning Star as expected.
Amid the detonation of Conqueror's Haki, the highly condensed lightning abruptly exploded!
In an instant, a violent blast erupted like a nuclear explosion!
A massive mushroom cloud rose over Onigashima.
However, with just one sweep of those sky-obscuring Wings, the mushroom cloud dissipated into nothingness.
As for Michael...
He remained completely unharmed.
Kaido, on the other hand, was sent flying from the impact. He barely managed to regain his balance midair before landing on the ground.
But the next moment...
A crisp "crack" sounded.
One of Kaido's horns was severed clean at the root.
Staring at his fallen horn on the ground, Kaido exhaled deeply...
The next instant, the Dragon reappeared.
Though missing a horn, the Dragon's form now seemed slightly unbalanced.
But that hardly mattered...
Michael merely watched calmly as the Dragon ascended once more into the sky, his own body gradually rising as well.
He didn't appear to be flying—rather, it was as if he was being lifted by those enormous Holy Light Wings.
"Kaido, your defeat is certain," Michael said, his indifferent gaze fixed on the Dragon. "Had this been me five years ago, I might have suffered a significant loss against you..."
"What nonsense are you spouting, Michael?" Kaido's voice brimmed with excitement. "If it were the you from five years ago, that wouldn't even be enough to satisfy me!"
"Is that so?" Michael tilted his head slightly, as if confirming something. "Don't you still harbor ambitions to conquer the entire world?"
"That kind of thing... pales in comparison to this greatest war of all time!"
The transformed Dragon threw his head back and laughed—so hard that tears even streamed down his face.
"Dragging everyone into the battlefield, whether they're rulers or commoners! That's true freedom! That's true equality! Only war..."
"Can determine the worth of humanity!"
Kaido's roar shook the heavens.
Michael's eyes gradually widened, and then...
A gentle, approving smile spread across his face, as though he were truly an angel descended upon the world to embrace all with benevolence.
"So that's how it is."
"Kaido... it seems the you from back then never truly died..."
"That's good..."
"Rather than the current 'Beast' Kaido, I'd much rather face the young man who hadn't yet become the 'Beast' in a proper duel!"
A grotesquely human grin twisted across the Dragon's face.
In the next moment, streaks of lightning crackled across his body.
Flames soon engulfed Kaido's draconic form.
His Dragon body was already colossal to begin with.
But now, wrapped in seemingly endless flames, it grew large enough to rival even Michael's sky-veiling Holy Light Wings.
"Look at me, Michael!"
"This is my ultimate strike!"
"Flame Dragon Torch!"
Michael gazed at the hornless Dragon.
These flames were no ordinary fire—they were the product of his Devil Fruit powers, Armament Haki, and Conqueror's Haki, all burning together in a single force.A faint smile rose from within Michael's heart.
If the original Luffy had encountered this version of Kaido standing before him...
Of course, he would still win—after all, protagonist plot armor was no joke.
But Wano Country would likely still enter its countdown to destruction under such terrifying power.
"Burning all your strength just to drag me down from the heavens..."
"Kaido, you've earned my respect anew!"
"Therefore... I shall grant you my utmost respect!"
The Morning Star in Michael's hand seemed to come alive, voraciously devouring every ounce of energy within his body.
Haki, Devil Fruit power...
Until even the holy light wings that once blotted out the sky behind him had completely vanished.
Now, Michael appeared to have lost all his strength.
But... Kaido didn't see it that way.
His eyes remained locked onto the Morning Star in Michael's grasp.
"Michael! Tell me! What kind of world are you trying to create?!"
"One where everyone can eat their fill, drink their fill, and live happily, of course!" Michael replied, his gentle smile unwavering as he looked at Kaido.
"And naturally, 'everyone' includes you."
"I can't live in a peaceful world!"
"That's alright, because I love all of you. Besides, the world needs people like you—those who will take up arms when someone tries to make things worse... I just hope next time, you won't walk down this wrong path again!"
Michael raised his sword high.
"Paradise Lost·Lucifer!"
"Dragon Rising·Flame Bagua!"
Michael's ultimate strike collided violently with Kaido's all-consuming flames.
After a brief stalemate...
An incomparably terrifying force erupted and scattered across the sky!
Beyond Onigashima, whether it was the civilians of Wano or those fighting along the coast...
Whether it was Hancock locked in fierce combat with the Donquixote Family, or Bullet and his crew who had nearly reached Wano's shores...
All raised their heads to gaze toward Onigashima.
The sight was apocalyptic.