Thunder split the sky as a black kanabō, crackling with black-red lightning, swept across with overwhelming force, tearing through the air!

Clang!

Boom!

First came the sharp clash of metal, then a massive shockwave burst forth like a roaring storm.

Arcs of black-red lightning surged upward, blasting apart the clouds overhead. That devastating kanabō, seemingly capable of destroying everything in its path, collided head-on with a three-fingered dragon claw. The resulting sparks lit up Kaidou's rugged face.

"Kaidou-sama!!"

Seeing the towering figure with his cloak billowing behind him, Queen's face turned bright red with excitement, his eyes welling up with tears. He nearly burst out crying.

In that instant, looking at Kaidou's broad, mountain-like back, he felt every past beating from Kaidou-san was worth it!

"I knew you'd come to save me! Even though you always beat me half to death, deep down you care!"

"Quit embarrassing yourself—get lost!"

Kaidou didn't even turn around, just barked coldly.

"Got it!"

In truth, before Kaidou had even finished speaking, Queen was already scrambling backward like a man on fire, his legs spinning like wheels as he bolted.

Kaidou shook his head, narrowed his eyes, and stared hard at Daren, who now stood like a demonic god.

A flicker of unprecedented seriousness and caution flashed in Kaidou's eyes.

The aura Daren was giving off didn't just feel dangerous—it felt unfamiliar.

"Daren, brat… I let you stay here to recover, and now you're trying to beat up my crew? Don't you think that's going a bit far?"

Kaidou's voice was hoarse as he spoke.

Even as he talked, his body grew taller, harder. Dragon scales surfaced across his skin, a thick tail sprouted from his spine, and the legendary pressure of a mythical beast radiated from him, crashing into Daren's wild energy like two titanic forces colliding.

Daren sneered.

"If I hadn't roughed up that fat bastard, you'd have kept spying on me with your Observation Haki, wouldn't you?"

"You hid your aura well—normally, I wouldn't have noticed a thing."

Kaidou was stunned for a moment, then broke into a guttural laugh.

"Worororo! Interesting—this is getting interesting!"

"So this is your new trick? You've forced your body past its genetic limits."

"But if I'm not mistaken, your Devil Fruit is Paramecia-type. Awakening that type shouldn't boost your body like this—it's supposed to affect the world around you."

Daren grinned.

"Who says a Paramecia has to develop outward?"

The moment the words left his mouth, he drove his knee upward.

The air cracked with a sonic burst as a white shockwave exploded out.

Like a divine whip, Daren's kick carried impossible force, streaking through the sky like a meteor straight toward Kaidou's head!

Kaidou's eyes sharpened.

Without a word, his tail lashed out.

BOOM!!

The impact split the air, black and red Haki lightning surged wildly in all directions.

Both fighters slid backward across the ground, skidding dozens of meters. Their heels dug in, stopping their momentum, then they lunged at each other again, grinning like monsters.

"Come on then, Daren! Let's see if you can take my title as 'Strongest Creature on Land, Sea, and Air'!"

Kaidou's bloodshot eyes gleamed as he let out a thunderous laugh. The pressure radiating from him soared higher and higher, becoming more primal, more intense—fierce and raw like a wild god.

Gripping the kanabō "Hassaikai" with both hands, Kaidou's speed spiked to its peak as he launched himself skyward.

Zzzzzzz!!

Purple lightning erupted across the sky, coiling like serpents through the air.

The condensed thunder channeled into Kaidou's arms, then surged through the kanabō.

His cloak, bearing the Beasts Pirates' emblem, flared behind him as he hovered high above, glaring down at the black-haired youth below.

Then he dove—like a meteor crashing down to earth!

"Daiitoku Raimei Hakke!"

Like thunder ripping the heavens—or a nuke detonating.

From afar, Queen and Dragon barely caught a flash of lightning before Kaidou's figure smashed into the ground, dragging blinding light behind him.

"Don't think I don't know what this is... that's just a swing packed with Conqueror's Haki!"

Daren snarled, his power surging without restraint.

As he stepped forward, his dragon claws slashed through the void like shadows from the abyss.

Blue lightning erupted behind him like a galaxy bursting into bloom.

"Magnetic Storm: Dragon Claw!"

In the next instant, the two closed the distance.

Kanabō and dragon claw—collided with a thunderous crash!

For a moment, the world fell silent.

Blinding white light swallowed everything. Then came the storm—a hellish explosion of force.

And then, a deafening boom rocked the entire island of Onigashima.

In the aftermath...

In Kaidou's blood-red, narrowed eyes, the kanabō he had swung downward... was being pushed back—bit by bit—by Daren's claw, rising from below!

"This strength...!"

Daren bellowed with a crazed grin as he threw Hassaikai aside.

"Times have changed, Kaidou-sensei!"

...

"Those two... monsters."

In the distance, Dragon stood frozen, staring at the two figures locked in brutal combat, their eyes bloodshot, laughter crazed. For a moment, his gaze went blank.

The way they fought—feral, unrestrained—no longer resembled humans at all. They looked like wild beasts deep in a primeval forest, tearing into each other in a savage contest for the title of "strongest creature."

Every strike was aimed at a vital point. The sheer force and explosive power behind each blow could easily kill a Vice Admiral even in full defense.

Blood sprayed in thick arcs from both of their bodies with every collision, yet neither of them slowed down for even a second.

It was as if pain and fatigue didn't exist.

But as time went on, something changed in Dragon's eyes—they began to shine.

He could win.

He could see it now—subtle, almost imperceptible—but in the midst of this ferocious clash, Daren, in his "Magnetic Field Rotation" state, was starting to gain the upper hand against Kaidou.

Even though Kaidou was using Conqueror's Haki at its highest form—Conqueror's Haki Infusion.

"He's... unbelievably strong."

Dragon's blood surged with heat, and he couldn't help but clench his fists.

No one else could truly grasp what this scene meant.

After all, he was one of the few—just like Daren—who had challenged Kaidou in Wano again and again.

He knew what it meant to fight that monster: the endless defeats, the brutal beatings, the near-death experiences... that deep-rooted instinct to recoil the moment he saw that black kanabō.

He'd lived that hell more times than he could count.

"No... this can't be real..."

At some point, the fat man in suspenders had wandered up beside Dragon. His expression was blank, his eyes locked on the two warriors as disbelief filled his face.

"Someone in this world... can actually go head-to-head with Kaidou-sama—and suppress him!?"

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