Chapter 340: The End (Part 2)
In the Arena
The seawater surged and roared through the crisscrossing cracks, the force of the current further eroding and ravaging the island's foundation. It was clear that Chesterton Island was about to meet its end.
"Although that technique is still somewhat immature, it's the only way I can use it now."
Rhodes thought to himself, then gradually withdrew the lightning radiance from his body. He exited his lightning acceleration mode, because speed wasn't the main focus now.
He didn't stop after withdrawing the lightning.
Under the slightly surprised gazes of the spectators, he sheathed his sword and then gripped the hilt of another blade at his waist.
It was Stormcutter.
Although Stormcutter wasn't as sharp as the Supreme Grade Blade, Phantom Edge, its affinity with lightning made it even more suitable for the upcoming burst of power.
Gripping the hilt, Rhodes slightly spread his legs, lowered his body, and arched his spine, like a fully drawn divine bow about to unleash a devastating attack.
"..."
The next moment, Rhodes gently closed his eyes, focusing intently on sensing the lightning power and Armament Haki within his body.
The prolonged, intense battle, while leaving Rhodes mentally and physically exhausted, had also placed him in a special state.
This state was profound. Rhodes felt that his control over his power was stronger than ever before—almost perfect.
If the battle ended, he might slip out of this state and never have the chance to enter it again.
After all, from now on, it would be difficult for anyone to push him to such a near-desperate position as Kaido of the Beasts had.
"Lightning... Armament Haki..."
As Rhodes focused, silver lightning power and jet-black Armament Haki simultaneously appeared on the sword.
CRACKLE!
Intense lightning flashed, colliding violently with the Armament Haki. Under Rhodes's control, the two began undergoing a deep fusion.
His somewhat imprecise control caused some power to dissipate, affecting the sword.
"Buzzing."
Stormcutter trembled, seemingly unable to bear the weight.
In fact, if Rhodes hadn't diverted some of his Armament Haki to protect the blade, even a Great Grade Sword like Stormcutter would have been torn apart by this violent force.
This technique was inspired by Kurman Luke.
Luke could fuse Armament Haki with fire energy, so Rhodes could certainly fuse lightning with Armament Haki.
However, due to limited time, this technique was still in its rudimentary stage and far from perfect. Otherwise, it wouldn't be affecting the sword this way.
"It should be like this... like this..."
In this special combat state, Rhodes's combat intuition was off the charts, and almost instantly, he made a slight breakthrough in the technique of fusing Armament Haki with energy.
The outward manifestation was that the sword's vibration became much smaller.
This meant the degree of power dissipation and waste was much less.
To make a long story short, when Rhodes controlled the energy to an acceptable range, less than half a minute had actually passed.
He slowly opened his eyes, feeling that what he held in his hand was no longer a sword, but a volcano, a meteor, containing world-destroying power.
"Kaido, this is my strongest strike so far. Come—let's settle this."
"..."
Kaido's expression turned solemn.
He could feel the incredibly violent energy fluctuations emanating from Rhodes.
The silver-black light flashing on the sword, in Kaido's eyes, was even more threatening than the previous purple lightning bolt.
The energy intensity was similar, even slightly weaker than before.
But the attack types were completely different.
The purple lightning bolt had been vast and abundant—the might of nature, a domineering and irresistible force.
Even Kaido, the World's Strongest Creature, had been utterly ravaged by it, three of his dragon horns broken off.
Rhodes's sword, however, under human control, was mostly concentrated on the blade. Its sharpness seemed capable of slicing through anything!
"Interesting."
Kaido's face flashed with morbid excitement, but his beastly eyes remained cold as ice.
He bent his knees, lowered his body, and assumed a charging stance.
The two faced each other thousands of meters apart, a chilling atmosphere gradually spreading across the entire island.
Everyone on the ships stared wide-eyed, not wanting to miss a single detail.
Shanks was engrossed in watching, but Beckman suddenly snapped his cigar in half and shouted: "Quick, retreat! Full speed ahead! Get away from the island as soon as possible!"
The Red Hair Pirates were startled by his words but quickly reacted. They worked together to start the ship, and with some kind of special propulsion, the Red Force rapidly retreated.
Only Shanks remained standing at the bow, gazing at the battlefield on the island.
Sengoku and Tsuru reacted around the same time as Beckman.
Watching the island recede into the distance, Gion paused slightly, then suddenly a possibility occurred to her. She couldn't help but take a step forward, only to find herself surrounded, making a breakthrough impossible in a short time.
"Stay where you are, Gion."
Tsuru's expression turned cold. Though Gion was like a younger sister to her, in this situation, the greater good came first.
Sengoku remained silent, but a chilling aura emanated from him as he locked onto Gion.
"..."
Gion's eyes were clear and cold, containing a certain resolve.
But before she could act, the two on the island moved simultaneously.
BOOM!
Kaido of the Beasts stomped his foot, the surging air sending nearby rubble and debris flying. The ground trembled violently, cracking into countless spiderweb-like fissures. At the same time, he leaped toward Rhodes like lightning.
During his charge, Kaido created a powerful, high-pressure column of crimson air, the tip of which resembled a dragon's head, carrying an overwhelming, destructive force as it hurtled forward.
Under this punch, the heavens and earth paled, space itself trembled, as if about to shatter.
"Raimei Hakke!"
Kaido roared, the world changing color. He unleashed his ultimate power, the air itself distorting, as he struck toward Rhodes.
"..."
A fierce gust of wind, like a Category 12 typhoon, sent debris flying, Rhodes's black hair whipping wildly behind him.
Rhodes remained calm. He didn't move quickly, maintaining a steady pace.
He gripped the hilt of his sword, slowly drawing it, pointing it diagonally skyward, and then uttered a single word:
"Slash."
Even with his Armament Haki energy fusion still in its nascent stage, this sword strike naturally had no name.
But that didn't diminish its power.
WHOOSH!
The sword energy soared into the sky, reaching tens of meters high. The silver-black sword energy was earth-shattering, seemingly capable of cleaving heaven and earth in two.
Countless people watched from afar, their faces filled with awe.
This sword energy, though not particularly grand in appearance, was far more terrifying, for it had condensed its power to the extreme—almost tangible.
At this moment, Rhodes's eyes were fixed solely on Kaido of the Beasts. He took a step forward, his movements earth-shattering, and then his sword, tens of meters long in manifestation, slashed down—a streak of light seemingly capable of cleaving the island in two.
BOOM!
Thunder roared through heaven and earth, the entire island trembling violently as if struck by a catastrophic earthquake. Light erupted from both fighters, like a collision of two worlds, aftershocks radiating in all directions.
Behind Rhodes, a world of sword energy manifested, densely packed, with lightning surging and weaving through it.
Behind Kaido, however, was a sea of crimson heat, the earth melting, the air trembling violently.
Their hair billowed backward, wildly whipped by astonishing force, swords and fists clashing, unleashing terrifying power, accompanied by deafening thunder.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The devastating shockwaves continued spreading, the clash growing ever more intense.
With each exchange, the entire island creaked and groaned, like an aging structure being shaken to its foundations.
Soon, massive waves crashed outward, capsizing some ships that couldn't react in time.
But the spectators remained transfixed, staring in disbelief at the battlefield.
What terrifying monsters were these two? After a day and night of fighting, they could still unleash such devastating power.
CRACK, CRACK, CRACK...
Finally, Chesterton Island succumbed to the pressure, collapsing with a deafening roar, sending towering waves crashing down and obscuring the view.
"What's the outcome?"
At this point, even Sengoku and Shanks, with their status and composure, tensed slightly, their eyes glued to the scene.
The next moment, the waves subsided, and people finally saw the aftermath.
On a piece of island ruins, Rhodes stood with one hand on his sword, the other clutching his chest. A section of his chest had caved in, many ribs broken or even shattered, and blood was spilling from his mouth.
He seemed oblivious, staring intently at another piece of ruins.
There, Kaido's situation was even more dire. He'd been directly severed in two by Rhodes's sword, the cut extending from his left shoulder to his right abdomen, passing through his heart.
Rhodes's final strike had been incredibly powerful. Though Kaido had avoided a fatal blow to the head, his heart was inevitably damaged, and he'd been cut in two.
Kaido had survived Shanks's sword severing his neck before, and this time was no exception.
Kaido's two halves began moving toward each other on their own.
With his head and arm still attached to the upper half, Kaido managed to support himself with his right arm as he crawled.
But the other half was somewhat horrifying, resembling a headless torso—yet still slowly moving toward its other half.
Seeing Kaido's condition, Rhodes sighed inwardly:
"I must have consumed too much special energy before breaking through to Great Swordsman. Otherwise, he wouldn't be in this state."
The battle was clearly heading toward the second possibility Shanks had predicted.
"Dwelling on this is pointless. The battle isn't over yet."
Rhodes shook his head inwardly, taking a step forward, but a larger amount of blood suddenly gushed from the corner of his mouth. He felt excruciating pain throughout his body, and his mind was spinning.
"I only have a little bit of special energy left to guarantee my survival. I must defeat Kaido of the Beasts before it runs out."
As he thought this, a sudden change occurred in the arena.
WHOOSH!
A black shadow suddenly traversed a large distance, condensing surging dark power that transformed into a thick spear, which then shot forward.
"Die, Kaido... Shadow Horn Spear!"
The spear formed from shadows possessed incredible power, having once pierced through Little Oars Jr. during the Paramount War.
Now, it suddenly shot out, aiming directly at Kaido of the Beasts' eye.
"Moria?"
Rhodes chuckled, then shook his head. The fool was courting death.
Sure enough, the next moment, a strange clang came from the Shadow Spear.
Kaido had one eye closed, using his eyelid to block Moria's sneak attack, while his other eye looked at Moria indifferently.
Moria was utterly incredulous and terrified by that emotionless gaze. He involuntarily took two steps back, cold sweat pouring down his forehead, his face contorted with extreme fear.
"How... how is this possible..."
He couldn't believe it. Though his entire crew had been wiped out by Kaido's Beasts Pirates, he'd later become a Shichibukai, witnessing countless powerful figures. He wasn't exactly weak, was he?!
He was a Shichibukai!
One of the Three Great Powers alongside the Yonko and Marine Headquarters!
Yet now, he couldn't even breach the eyelid of a heavily wounded and weakened Kaido?!
"Monster..."
Moria's heart was filled with endless fear. A darkness more terrifying than his Shadow-Shadow Fruit enveloped his mind. He instinctively retreated, wanting to escape, just like before.
But at that moment...
CRASH!
Kaido slammed his right arm into the ground, launching half his body into the air, his massive, millstone-like hand grabbing Moria's slender neck.
"..."
Without giving Moria any time to utter last words, Kaido of the Beasts clenched his right hand, unleashing tremendous force, and crushed Moria's neck as easily as crushing an insect.
He casually tossed Moria's corpse aside, not even glancing at it, and merged with the half of his body that had just arrived.
"Dead... dead? That's fine. My friends, I've come to find you."
Moria's life force drained away with his broken neck, his eyes growing increasingly dim, until he finally succumbed.
Meanwhile, Kaido, now merged, staggered a few steps. He was severely injured, but not fatally. The awakened power of his Mythical Zoan Dragon Fruit was simply too strong—almost immortal.
However, healing his wounds, coupled with the loss of his heart, had drained Kaido of tremendous life force and energy.
The once ten-meter-tall titan Kaido had shrunk considerably, his once robust and imposing body now appearing almost skeletal.
"What a complete monster."
Seeing Kaido recover, Rhodes shook his head slightly. He took a breath and prepared to continue the unfinished battle.
But at that moment, a huge sense of crisis suddenly rose in his heart.
His Observation Haki fluctuated violently.
He was still in battle mode, and his sense of danger was extremely sharp. It felt as if something was aimed at his heart, or perhaps at his head.
Rhodes knew the two sensations were because the attacker's Observation Haki was extremely powerful, enough to confuse his senses.
In this situation, Rhodes could only sacrifice mobility to protect his head, doing his best to defend the vital point.
BANG!
The next moment, a jet-black, sharp bullet shot out, incredibly fast—even faster than lightning—seemingly empowered by some special force.
Rhodes reacted, but his body was too weak and exhausted. The bullet, without any hesitation, pierced through Rhodes's heart and passed right through his body.
Logically speaking, a bullet piercing the heart would surely kill an ordinary human unless they were something like Kaido of the Beasts.
But the enemy's attack from the shadows didn't stop there. Because Rhodes's power in this battle had been so astonishing, the enemy decided to adopt the most conservative approach.
WHOOSH!
A purplish-black cylindrical object seemed to traverse space, instantly arriving above Rhodes, less than three or four meters away.
"Dyna Stone?!"
Upon seeing this, Rhodes's pupils shrank to their limit. Without hesitation, he slammed his hand on the ground, releasing the power of his Door-Door Fruit ability, connecting to an unknown location, then opened the door and entered.
"BOOM!"
A beautiful mushroom cloud instantly shot into the sky, reaching hundreds of meters high. Even from hundreds of kilometers away, this massive mushroom cloud could be seen, and the area within a hundred meters of the ruins where Rhodes had stood was completely enveloped by it.
The mushroom cloud even burst from the ruins, and the surging high-pressure shockwave sent the newly recovered Kaido flying.
The sky and earth trembled, like an asteroid impact.
Dyna Stone!
In the original story, former Admiral Zephyr had attempted to destroy the New World using it. Its power surpassed all conventional weapons, even exceeding the imagination of ordinary people, and already bore some resemblance to nuclear weapons!
(End of Chapter)
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