"So... even Kaido couldn't win against Michael, huh?"
Watching the explosive shockwaves rapidly dispersing through the air, Bullet sighed.
They had anticipated this outcome.
But not this soon.
"Shiki's battle with Michael was extremely brief because after removing the rudder, his life was already at its end... with less than ten minutes left."
"But Kaido possessed Conqueror's Haki no weaker than Shiki's, a stronger and healthier body, and was in his prime... I thought he'd last at least a full day and night against Michael."
"To think it ended in just two hours?"
"No matter... If that's the case, we'll take Wano and Michael's life for ourselves!"
Bullet's voice rumbled deeply.
Meanwhile, Redfield sat perched on the protruding midsection of Bullet's 30,000-meter-tall combined robot—the very spot where Bullet's true body resided.
"Do you still have the confidence to defeat Michael now?"
"Under the combined power of the Union-Union Fruit and the More More Fruit, this 30,000-meter-tall giant robot created surpasses all living beings in terms of physical strength by a hundred percent."
"But you must understand, sometimes strength isn't the sole factor determining victory."
"Then it just means... the strength isn't strong enough!"
"Is that what you think?" Redfield raised an eyebrow and sighed. "Anyway, I'm already very old... In the past, I was always alone, existing by myself on this vast sea."
"Now, even though I've met you two rather unpleasant fellows, you're still companions I've never had before..."
"So I'll accompany both of you until the very end."
Upon hearing the Lone Red's words, Bullet snorted coldly.
"Old man, why the sentimental talk? When disaster strikes, we'll each flee for ourselves."
"Except... I probably won't be able to run."
Meanwhile, the voice of the World Destroyer, Bryndy World, echoed from the base.
"You two, must you be so pessimistic...?"
"With my current fruit ability, while maintaining the hundredfold amplification of the combined robot, I can still boost your speed once more... probably by less than thirty times."
"Success or failure depends on this one strike."
...
"Fufufufufu, no matter who the victor is over there, the ultimate winner will definitely be me!" Doflamingo suddenly lashed out with a move and swiftly retreated.
"Five-Colored Strings!"
From each of his five fingers, he produced an almost transparent, extremely thin thread, wielding them like beast claws to deliver sharp and resilient slashing attacks.
Hancock frowned, covering her legs with Armament Haki to neutralize the strike.
Doflamingo's fruit ability gave him a slight advantage against opponents who didn't use weapons.
After all, most of the String-String Fruit's techniques were related to "cutting" or "sharpness."
Fortunately, Armament Haki was in no short supply for Hancock.
And having trained under Garp, she had her own unique understanding of Armament Haki manipulation, so there was no worry of exhaustion.
However...
Hancock coldly stared at Doflamingo, who had suddenly burst into laughter...
Wasn't this guy getting a bit too arrogant? He had been on the defensive the entire time just now...
"Boa Hancock, are you wondering why I'm laughing?"
"I am indeed a little puzzled, but not at all curious." Hancock made a "stop" gesture.
"After all, I only need to beat you until even a single thought would paralyze you with pain."
"Tch, you really sound like Garp!"
Doflamingo casually glanced around, seeing the Donquixote Family executives scattered across the ground.
To be precise... they had been wiped out in the first exchange with Boa Hancock.
But...
He had never said these "executives" were real.
"Shadow Clone Strings: Imposters!"
With a flick of his fingers, the Donquixote Family executives on the ground instantly revealed their true forms.That wasn't a person, but rather clusters of threads condensed together...
A puppet dummy.
These threads instantly shot into midair before scattering in all directions.
"What are you... doing?"
"I might as well tell you... As a Vice Admiral, you should know what Dyna Stone is, correct?"
"Dyna Stone... Wait, how did you get your hands on that!?"
"I can only say, some people want you to suffer this major setback even more than us pirates." Doflamingo hooked his right index finger, and a strange light instantly flashed across the empty mountain in the distance.
The next moment, it was flattened in a violent explosion.
Hancock looked toward the direction of the explosion, her expression turning grim.
"My subordinates have buried Dyna Stone throughout Wano Country... especially around the Flower Capital, there's an extraordinary amount of it." Doflamingo licked the corner of his mouth.
"And only I, through my strings, have anchored all the locations and can detonate them with my threads... In other words, if you try to kill me, I'll blow the entire Wano Country sky-high."
Hancock's brow furrowed sharply.
This... was truly a difficult situation!
Defeating Doflamingo himself wasn't hard...
But doing so while protecting the civilians was nearly impossible.
Though there was a chance he was bluffing...
Hancock didn't dare take that gamble.
In her current state, she didn't have the mental fortitude to bear the weight of an entire nation's lives.
...
"What was that explosion?" Kozuki Toki wiped the blood from Oto and Kogarashi, her attention drawn by the explosion outside the city.
"Momonosuke, Hiyori, did you hear that?"
"Mother, it's due south..." Momonosuke frowned. "I'll gather the guards stationed in the Flower Capital to investigate immediately."
"Be careful."
"Yes, Mother."
After Momonosuke left with Hiyori, Kozuki Toki continued meticulously cleaning Oto and Kogarashi.
Nearby, what had been two people had now become four and a half.
Diamante, the Flag-Flag Fruit user, was completely dead.
"Demon Bamboo" Vergo, thanks to his stronger Armament Haki and physical resilience, was barely clinging to his last breath.
In his dying moments, Vergo gave Kozuki Toki an indescribable smile.
"Ha... hahaha, that explosion... soon, similar sounds will echo in every corner of Wano Country."
"This nation will either become Doffy's possession..."
"Or be blown to smithereens!"
Kozuki Toki walked up to him and without hesitation drove Oto into Vergo's forehead with her right hand.
"How tiresome..."
"Tch, now I have to clean it again."
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