The eight-armed magma giant's last two hands lunged for the dragon's head.
Kaido thrashed wildly, his serpentine body writhing in a desperate struggle. Energy built in his jaws, golden light flickering between razor fangs. As the two colossal hands closed in, he unleashed a deafening roar:
"Heat Breath!"
A beam of compressed, searing energy—hotter than the heart of a volcano—shot from his mouth, streaking gold across the sky.
BOOM!!!
The blast struck the magma giant's head dead-on, vaporizing it in an instant. The golden flames melted the magma, carving a massive, semicircular crater dozens of meters wide where the giant's face had been.
A direct hit. But Kaido's expression only grew darker.
From the headless stump, the magma writhed and pulsed—then, in mere moments, the giant's head reformed, molten and menacing. The two giant hands never even faltered. One gripped Kaido's thick dragon neck, pinning him down as the magma giant bent low.
Seven massive hands, all coated in Armament Haki, pressed Kaido's azure dragon form to the ground, each pinning a different segment of his body. There was no escape.
The last free hand clenched into a fist and rose high overhead. From its shoulder and elbow, magma erupted with a volcanic roar, channeling all its force down the arm.
The fist came crashing toward Kaido's head.
His pupils shrank to pinpoints. Haki flooded his skull, a desperate shield.
BOOOOOM!!!
The explosion was deafening. On the pirate ships at the shore, men screamed and clapped hands over their ears.
At the heart of the blast, shockwaves ripped outward, flattening everything in their path. Kaido took the blow head-on, his mind spinning, vision swimming.
But the magma giant's arm lifted again, ready for another strike.
A surge of danger snapped Kaido back to his senses, but his battered body refused to move.
High above, King steadied himself in the gale, wings beating against the chaos. He shifted, transforming into a massive pteranodon.
His head snapped back like a slingshot.
"Tempura Udon!"
He let loose—a shockwave so sharp and fast it sliced the air like a laser.
Whoosh—!
The beam blasted into the magma giant's right side, striking the raised arm and the ends of two others.
BOOM!
With a thunderous detonation, all three arms were severed, tumbling away like broken branches.
Freed from the front, Kaido strained upward. Magma gushed and bubbled from the giant's shoulders, already molding new arms.
But Kaido's body was changing. Flames erupted from his head, racing down his form, wrapping him in a blazing shroud. The heat was so intense, the hands gripping him began to melt.
Sensing the pressure lessen, Kaido roared, pouring every ounce of power into his flames. In an instant, his entire dragon body was engulfed—a living inferno.
He had become a fire dragon.
"Flame Dragon Torch!"
"Rising Dragon: Flame Bagua!"
Twisting free, Kaido gathered the raging fire at his head, coating it in Armament Haki and lacing it with Conqueror's Haki. He launched himself at the magma giant's chest, a comet of fire and fury.
BOOM!!!
The impact detonated at the giant's core, blowing its upper body apart. Chunks of molten rock shot skyward like meteorites.
Kaido's shape shrank, shifting into his hybrid form. He staggered, shaking off the pain from the collision.
King landed beside him, reverting from his pteranodon form. Both stared, tense, as only half the magma giant remained.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Footsteps echoed from beneath the swirling smoke.
A silhouette emerged, voice calm and cold:
"In the end, it's just a construct of Devil Fruit power. Easy to break apart."
As the words faded, Sakazuki stepped from the haze, his eyes fixed on Kaido.
Hatred blazed in Kaido's bloodshot eyes. He ground his teeth, voice trembling with rage:
"SA! KA! ZU! KI!!!"
Sakazuki let out a low, mocking laugh.
"Can't believe that last move didn't kill you back then. Guess you got lucky."
Kaido's mind flashed to his missing lung, the years of agony since that day. Hatred surged, drowning out reason.
He became a blur, charging forward.
"Big Bro Kaido!" King shouted, racing after him. Not now—don't lose your head, not against him!
Without warning, a spiked club appeared in Kaido's hands, crackling with Haki and lightning.
"Thunder Bagua!"
Sakazuki grinned, eyes flashing. With a flick of his wrist, magma coalesced, forming a spiked club of his own—pitch black, dense with Armament Haki.
He met Kaido's charge head-on.
CLANG!
The clash of metal and magma rang out, sharp enough to make ears ring. Lightning exploded from both clubs, arcing wildly through the air.
Face twisted with hatred, Kaido roared:
"AAAAAAAHHHHH!!!"
Power surged through his body, pressing down on Sakazuki with unstoppable force.
But Sakazuki only grinned wider, his body igniting into Red Lotus Mode. From his back, shoulders, and elbows, volcanic force erupted, overwhelming Kaido in an instant and driving him backward.
Above, King swooped in, diving like a black arrow. His right foot, cloaked in Armament Haki, shot toward Sakazuki.
Just as he closed in, Sakazuki's club exploded, unleashing a shockwave that sent Kaido hurtling away like a meteor.
Those burning golden eyes turned, expressionless, toward King.
A chill ran down King's spine—too late!
CLANG!
King's kick struck Sakazuki square in the chest. But the Admiral, sheathed in Armament Haki, didn't budge an inch.
King beat his wings, trying to escape, but Sakazuki's left hand shot out, seizing his ankle and yanking him down.
King crashed helplessly toward Sakazuki, who drove a magma-charged fist into his gut.
Crack!
Bone snapped. King coughed up blood.
"Ugh...!"
Sakazuki's voice was flat, merciless.
"Great Eruption!"
A wave of blistering heat exploded from King's abdomen. His pupils shrank as the burning energy surged through him.
BOOM!!!
A torrent of magma burst from Sakazuki's fist, fanning out like a giant scarlet fan across the island. Everything in its path was swallowed, the flow stretching to the island's edge and spilling into the sea.
Sakazuki glanced at Kaido, who was already staggering to his feet, desperate to escape. With a flicker, the Admiral became a crimson blur, giving chase.
Meanwhile, King dragged himself from the magma, coughing blood.
"Cough... cough..."
Suddenly, he felt a chilling sense of danger—he was being targeted.
No time to think. He shot skyward.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh—!
Blades of wind screamed past, slashing through the spot he'd just vacated. Each arc, charged with Haki, exploded in the air.
A cold sweat broke out on King's brow as he spotted his attacker in the distance.
Karol appeared, gliding on Moonwalk, Sakura Ten in hand.
"One-Sword Style: Storm Rain."
With a single swing, he unleashed a crescent-shaped wave of sword energy, spinning toward King. In the blink of an eye, it split again and again, multiplying into a storm of razor-sharp blades.
From one to many, large to small—they fell like a rainstorm, blanketing King's escape route.
~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~
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