Instantly, his body transformed into a massive saber-toothed tiger, with Armament Haki covering his entire form.
The enormous saber-toothed tiger looked imposing and majestic, but in reality, Who's-Who only wanted to escape.
His claws dug into the hard rock, if Kaido could buy him just one minute, he was confident he could flee to the pirate ship.
Unfortunately, his wish failed.
Because, after dealing with Ulti, Sakazuki turned his gaze toward him.
"Roar!!"
Facing Sakazuki's stare, Who's-Who let out a furious roar, though everyone could hear the lack of confidence and fear in it.
"You're afraid of me, aren't you?" Sakazuki's eyes were filled with ruthlessness and killing intent.
"Fang Flash!!" Like a cat with its fur standing on end, Who's-Who ignored his fear of Sakazuki and followed his instinct, unleashing his strongest attack.
The saber-toothed tiger's gaping maw revealed two gleaming fangs, seemingly capable of snapping Sakazuki's neck in a single bite.
Sakazuki remained expressionless, not even paying attention to Kaido's attack from behind.
"A defected World Government agent? How interesting. Iron Body!"
With Iron Body activated, Sakazuki's right arm was simultaneously coated in Armament Haki as he punched toward Who's-Who's open mouth.
Crack.
The saber-toothed tiger's sharp fangs bit down on Sakazuki's arm, producing nothing but sparks. Sakazuki remained completely unharmed.
Who's-Who's eyes were filled with disbelief.
'How is this possible...?'
He knew he was no match for Sakazuki, but failing to even break his defense was beyond his imagination.
"Wait, I know many Pirates..." Who's-Who wanted to sell information to Sakazuki in exchange for his own survival, but Sakazuki had no intention of listening.
His arm, bitten by Who's-Who, began to turn crimson and scorching hot.
"Meigo!"
Even Whitebeard failed to block this move, and it exploded directly inside Who's-Who's oral cavity.
The soft muscles were utterly incapable of resisting the penetrating force of Dark Dog.
A stream of magma splattered out from the back of the saber-toothed tiger's head.
Thud.
The saber-toothed tiger's body fell heavily to the ground as Sakazuki shook his hand.
Kaido, who was behind him, finally caught up to Sakazuki's back.
Enraged, he didn't have time to observe Sakazuki's movements. He leaped into the air, gripping his spiked club with both hands.
Conqueror's Haki instantly enveloped the spiked club as he smashed it down toward the crown of Sakazuki's head.
"Raimei Hakke!!"
Carrying the lightning from the sky, Kaido wielded his spiked club like an unstoppable ancient god of war.
Sakazuki didn't choose to dodge.
Instead, he launched another Great Eruption attack toward Kaido. He intended to meet force with force!
Boom!
Sakazuki's right fist collided with Kaido's spiked club.
This time, Kaido was better prepared.
The full power of his Raimei Hakke far surpassed the hastily executed Great Eruption.
Sakazuki was driven into the rock from the waist down by Kaido's forceful blow. His right hand was severely injured.
If he hadn't activated Iron Body in time, his right hand might have been crippled by that strike.
However, Kaido didn't escape unscathed either. The recoil from Sakazuki forcefully blocking the attack tore open the wounds on Kaido's body once more.
Blood continued to flow, but Kaido paid it no mind.
Sakazuki's left hand gathered magma anew.
"Dai Funka!"
Kaido instantly vanished from his spot, reappearing in the distance.
The Great Eruption didn't disappear because Kaido dodged; instead, it shot straight into the sky, exploding into a massive firework display.
Boom!
Seizing the moment while Sakazuki remained in place, Kaido brought his spiked club down once more toward the top of Sakazuki's head.
Sakazuki's left arm formed a shield of magma, coated with Armament Haki, to clash with Kaido.
Although he couldn't avoid the wounds inflicted by the Conqueror's Haki coating, such attacks alone were insufficient to defeat him.
"Hmph, just because those trash pirates call you one of the Three Emperors, you really think you're strong? Back at the God Valley battle, you were nothing more than a low-ranking soldier on the outskirts. If you hadn't run away back then, you probably would've died there."
Sakazuki rarely talked trash, but that didn't mean he couldn't.
Now, facing Kaido, he would employ every means to secure victory, including provoking his opponent to lose rationality in a fit of rage.
Such tactics would hardly work on Shanks, and they weren't effective against Charlotte Linlin either.
But against the reckless, brawl-loving Kaido, it was a surefire kill.
His eyes brimmed with boundless fury and killing intent as he gritted his teeth and snarled.
"What! Did! You! Say!!"
Disregarding the damage to his body, Kaido's arm muscles swelled with power once more.
A surge of immense force traveled through his spiked club and pressed down on Sakazuki.
It seemed as if he intended to crush Sakazuki straight into the depths of the earth.
"Hmph, you were never up to the task back then, and it seems you still aren't now!"
Sakazuki's right arm regained enough mobility, so he pressed his Armament Haki-coated hand against the surface of the spiked club.
"Emission!"
Both hands simultaneously unleashed the advanced application of Armament Haki—Emission.
Using a brief burst of strength, he pushed Kaido's spiked club away, then quickly transformed his body into magma and plunged deep into the earth.
The spiked club smashed heavily into the ground, and Kaido's furious roar echoed across the entire island.
"Everyone, evacuate Onigashima immediately! Save as many as you can, don't stay here!" Kaido understood Sakazuki's intention.
The reason Sakazuki boarded Onigashima alone was because of his Devil Fruit ability.
The Magma-Magma Fruit was the most offensively powerful among the Logia Devil Fruits.
At full power, Sakazuki wouldn't distinguish between friend and foe. It was a calamity-level Devil Fruit capable of sinking a small island in minutes.
If Navy soldiers had landed on this island, Sakazuki wouldn't have been able to unleash his full strength.
But this way, Kaido's subordinates would suffer heavy casualties.
Since leaving the Rocks Pirates, Kaido spent a long time gradually becoming one of the overlords of the New World.
He gathered core members like the Lead Performers and the Tobiroppo.
Now, he already lost two.
He dared not imagine how many more would have to die next.
What Kaido didn't know was that he thought Sakazuki was here alone.
Or perhaps Sakazuki's sudden appearance and the heavy casualties suffered by the Beasts Pirates captured Kaido's attention, causing him to overlook the fact that another Admiral of the Navy was also here in the New World.
While Kaido was still pondering the seemingly pointless Great Eruption by Sakazuki, unbeknownst to him, the distant battleships were already heading toward Onigashima under Raleigh's command.
"It looks like Admiral Sakazuki has caused quite a stir on Onigashima!"
"Admiral Sakazuki's strength is unmatched!"
"Sakazuki-sama must have slain a tremendous number of pirates!"
On the battleship, every Navy soldier prepared for battle was filled with admiration for Sakazuki's combat prowess.
Within the Navy, Sakazuki also had a considerable number of ardent supporters.
At this moment, Raleigh's deck was crowded with Vice Admirals.
Doberman, Momonga, Cleveland, Tokikake, and others. They all came to request assignments from Raleigh.
"Raleigh-sama, I volunteer to be the first to charge onto the island!"
"Admiral Sakazuki was the first to charge onto the island, I'll be the second!"
"Admiral Raleigh, you be the judge. It's been so long since I've been assigned a main assault role. The men under me are complaining. It should be my turn this time."
"What nonsense? We are all Navy men fighting for Justice. What's this about main assault and support? I suggest we decide by strength! Since I am the strongest, I should naturally lead the main assault."
The Vice Admirals argued one after another, giving Raleigh a headache.
The people on the deck were either deeply connected to Raleigh or to Sakazuki.
Each one was a hardliner, and Raleigh couldn't easily decide between them.
Bang!
Raleigh suddenly slammed his hand on the railing and roared. "Enough arguing! If you keep this up, I'll reassign you to intercept the Red Hair Pirates and the Charlotte Family."
The Vice Admirals on the deck immediately fell silent.
The interception forces were already stationed on the designated islands.
Being reassigned to interception now would mean being stuck in the middle with nothing to gain.
They could only look at Raleigh with pleading eyes.
"Hmm..." Suddenly, Raleigh's eyes lit up as an idea flashed in his mind.
"Forget about support roles! All of you will be on the main assault. Listen clearly. For this operation to capture Onigashima, there will be no distinction between main assault and support roles among the battleships. Whoever fights the fastest will be the main assault force. I've given you all the opportunity. Whether you can seize it is up to you."
A smile played at the corners of Raleigh's lips.
Upon hearing this, the Vice Admirals' faces lit up with pleasant surprise.
They initially worried that Raleigh might use his position to secure combat merits for the Vice Admirals under his command.
Now it seemed Raleigh had no such intention—he didn't even distinguish between main attacks and supporting roles.
It would all come down to who had the skill to claim the spoils.
The Vice Admirals bid farewell to Raleigh one after another, returning to their battleships to roll up their sleeves and prepare to make their mark.