Several more days passed…
Dressrosa Kingdom, Southern Outskirts.
A giant dragon descended rapidly from the sky, showing no intention of slowing down before landing.
"Hey, Kaido, there are other people on your back!!"
"Who cares about that? I'm the captain!"
Left with no choice, Bazel, holding Toki in his arms, leaped off the dragon's head.
Before he even started falling, he activated his transformation into the Yamata no Orochi form.
Boom…
The colossal beast crashed down, sending up clouds of dust that obscured the area for miles around.
"Worororo! Bazel, your Yamata no Orochi form has gotten bigger! Looks like your strength has increased again!"
A massively muscular arm suddenly stretched out from the deep crater, followed by the ferocious upward-pointing dragon horns and Kaido's familiar face.
"Kaido-san..."
King descended slowly, holding the lizard, Elizabeth, in his left hand and Olga in his right.
"Bazel is right. Please be more careful next time. If something happened to Olga, how would you find that alchemist scientist?"
Kaido shook his body, violently flinging the small rocks and debris caught in his hair and clothes to the side.
"Who cares about that! I'm the captain. The Pure Gold matter is entirely Bazel's responsibility."
"Then why did you come here?" King retorted with a deadpan stare.
"Because there's a comrade here that I've taken a liking to!"
Kaido pulled a rolled-up newspaper from the small of his back.
"This guy just arrived in the New World recently, but I've been keeping an eye on him since he was back in Paradise!"
'Bounty: The King of Lizards, Hanafuda, Bounty 530,000,000 Berries, Dead or Alive]
"King of Lizards?"
King took the newspaper and examined it, his left hand brushing over the sparse stubble on his chin.
"Kaido-san, when did you get this newspaper? Why have I never seen it before?"
"Don't worry about little details like that! Bazel, I'm leaving it to you to defeat this guy!"
Kaido pointed at the man on the wanted poster who wore a mask reminiscent of Batman's cowl.
"King and I already have bounties. Since you've become a pirate, you can't not have a bounty."
"Let's go! That man's pirate crew shouldn't have left this island yet!"
…
Meanwhile, within the kingdom's borders.
Lover's Avenue, at an open-air drinks stall…
"Hanafuda-sama!"
"This place is the Dressrosa Kingdom in the New World. There aren't many notable islands on the sea routes ahead, and the only one we really need to be wary of is the territory of Whole Cake Island!"
"Whole Cake Island? What's that?"
Hanafuda removed the newspaper covering his face. His golden slit pupils, visible behind the black mask, looked toward the crewmate running toward him.
"Oh, right, I remember now. That sea is controlled by a big-shot pirate from the old era, right?"
"I think her name was…"
"Charlotte Linlin? That woman is famously a great beauty out on the seas!!"
"I'd really love to have a thrilling romance with that great beauty! Hahahaha!!"
The pirate sitting next to Hanafuda pushed his glasses up his nose and slicked the bangs on his forehead back.
"Captain, better not. That 'great beauty' you speak of has already had many, many husbands."
"I couldn't stand sharing with that many men."
"You don't get it, Costa." Hanafuda licked the corner of his mouth, "Marriage is marriage, and romance is rom… Hm? Who are you?"
The figures blocking the sunlight were none other than Kaido and his group.
Bazel glanced from the wanted poster to Hanafuda.
"The King of Lizards, Hanafuda. Correct?"
Hanafuda stood up, his right hand, clad in a metal gauntlet, gripping his scythe.
"You don't seem friendly. You aren't bounty hunters, are you?"
The pirates of the Lizard Pirates immediately stood up, drawing swords and guns to form a protective wall in front of their captain.
"I'm Kaido! Captain of the Beasts Pirates!"
Crossing his arms, Kaido grinned widely.
"Hanafuda! I like you! Join the Beasts Pirates!"
'Kaido of the Beasts!?'
Hanafuda's expression turned grave, "And if I refuse?"
The target refusing was completely expected. Kaido clapped Bazel on the shoulder.
"We're all pirates here, so let's do this by pirate rules. This is my brother, Bazel."
"He'll fight you. If you win, we'll let you leave. If you lose, you join the Beasts Pirates!"
'Bazel?'
'A name I've never heard of...'
Hanafuda stopped his crewmates who were about to attack.
"Fine. If I beat him, we can leave, right?"
"Captain!!"
"Hanafuda-sama!"
"Shut up!" Hanafuda stared intently at Kaido, "That guy is Kaido of the Beasts, hailed as the strongest creature alive on land, sea, and air!"
"You're definitely no match for him!"
"Let's take this to the outskirts."
Bazel tossed the wanted poster to Toki and turned to walk out of the town.
"My ability isn't really suited for a place like this. If I used it here, by the time the fight ended, this town would be turned into a wasteland."
…
At the outskirts of the Dressrosa, the two groups stood facing each other on opposite sides.
Unlike the Lizard Pirates, neither Kaido nor King showed any trace of nervousness.
They truly didn't know Hanafuda's strength, but they were very clear on Bazel's power.
If Bazel got serious, he could absolutely end the fight within half an hour.
Remembering the bizarre serpent venom and terrifying speed, King couldn't help but frown and ask, "Kaido-san, are you sure we shouldn't find a doctor in advance?"
"Bazel's serpent venom isn't like a normal serpent's poison. If it's not treated properly, it could lead to shock."
Kaido waved his hand dismissively, "Bazel can suck the venom back out. Hanafuda will just be weakened for a while at most. Don't worry."
…
On the battlefield, Bazel stretched his body and looked at Hanafuda.
"Ready?"
"Hahahahaha... I'm really being looked down on, huh."
Hanafuda cracked his neck, grinning ferociously.
"Kid, don't blame me if you die. I am Hanafuda, known as the Terrifying King of Li…???"
The colossal form of the Yamata no Orochi abruptly appeared, its eight serpent heads, each larger than a full-grown man, looking down at its target.
"What did you just say you were the King of?"
Staring at the enemy's massive body, several times larger than his own, Hanafuda fell into silence, cursing inwardly, 'If you'd said you were a Mythical Zoan user earlier, I would have introduced myself differently!'
Bazel had no habit of letting the enemy strike first. Two of the serpent mouths on his sides gaped open.
Poison mist and venomous flames instantly shot out, rushing toward the enemy at extreme speed.
Catching a whiff of the foul, putrid smell, Hanafuda felt his vision swim and nearly stumbled.
'This is… poison?'
"Fall back! Costa, get everyone back a hundred meters! No! Two hundred meters!"
"This guy's poison isn't something any of you can touch!!"
Roaring, Hanafuda himself quickly leaped backward, his body swelling and becoming covered in scales after several rapid expansions.
His back tore through his clothes as a ferocious sail made of skin, membrane, and bone erected itself.
His head elongated forward, transforming into that of a spinosaurus.
Roar!!
The sonic wave from the violent roar only halted the poison mist and venomous flames for a few seconds.
Hanafuda frantically swung his scythe, the resulting gust of wind diverting Bazel's attack toward the sky.
His left hand grabbed a chain and swung it, sending a morning star the size of half a man flying toward the Yamata no Orochi.
"Serpent Spirits."
Humm…
One of the Yamata no Orochi's heads turned semi-transparent and azure blue. Its long serpent neck undulated before shooting out ten phantom-like serpent spirits, each about ten meters long!
"Yamata's Phantoms!"
The similarly semi-transparent serpent spirits split into two teams, one spewing poison mist, the other venomous flames.
Freed up, Bazel's main heads rapidly shrank amidst a swirl of smoke.
Hybrid form: Fire Flow Body!
Bazel swung his arm, the wind dispersing the smoke and dust swirling around him.
"Here I come!"
Swish…
Hanafuda, watching the enemy appear directly in front of him in an instant, felt his breath catch, his pupils constricting to pinpricks.
'This guy's speed is insane!'
"Hiken!"
A fist wrapped in Armament Haki successfully slammed into the scales on the enemy's abdomen.
With a shout from Bazel, the scales on the enemy's stomach shattered under the dual assault of physical force and explosion. Hanafuda himself coughed up a mouthful of blood as he was sent flying backward at high speed.
"Serpent Spirits!!"
The phantom serpent spirits stopped spewing mist and flames, swiftly slithering through the grass on the ground before shooting toward the enemy from all directions.
"Venom Body!"
His scales instantly turned a deep purple!
Bazel didn't rush to pursue. Instead, he vanished into the poison mist left behind by the serpent spirits.
Boom…!!!
Three of the darting serpent spirits were smashed apart by the scythe and the crashing morning star.
Hanafuda's expression was grave. He hadn't expected the enemy's speed to be this fast.
"Where are you looking?" Suddenly, Bazel's murmur sounded from behind him, "Venom Body: Venom Injection!"