But since the other side had taken the initiative to tear up their non-aggression pact, there was no longer any question of letting a tiger return to the mountains.
Against a king of Kaido's caliber, once you became enemies, you had to uproot everything—leave no future trouble behind.
"I don't care who that man you mentioned is, and I don't care what old grudges you have with Charlotte Linlin,"
Tenma said coldly, hovering in midair with his longsword in hand.
"But since you're bent on seeking death, I'll grant your wish."
As he spoke, Tenma turned to Yamato and Hancock, who were both poised and ready nearby.
"Yamato, stay back and watch carefully. As for Hancock—go and claim the Devil Fruit ability that should have been yours in the first place."
With the two women obeying and withdrawing, Kaido's aura swelled once more, expanding wildly.
Since he hadn't chosen to retreat after Linlin's defeat, Kaido had already made up his mind.
He didn't even bother considering how much Haki Tenma had left after defeating Linlin.
In those dragon eyes filled with ferocity, a faint crimson glow flickered.
The dragon might of the "Strongest Creature," along with an aura like a primeval ferocious beast, burst forth without restraint.
Just the outward release of that presence made the decks of nearby ships creak and crack, wood splintering and flying.
Kaido locked his gaze onto Tenma, surging battle intent suddenly flooding his rugged face.
Only by fighting a true powerhouse could he feel any joy left in this dull world!
Purple lightning crackled violently around the kanabo held before him, radiating a heart-stopping aura of destruction.
—Boom!
The deck beneath Kaido's feet exploded apart as he kicked off.
Gripping the kanabo tightly, his right arm bulged instantly, veins writhing like coiling dragons.
All of his violent Haki seemed to condense into a single point, smashing down toward Tenma with unstoppable might.
Humm—!
An equally terrifying sword momentum rose in response.
Tenma's eyes flashed. He swung his blade instantly, slashing head-on into Kaido's attack.
The rampaging airwave raised by the kanabo collided violently with the razor-sharp sword aura unleashed by Shidarezura.
In that instant, even the surrounding light twisted from the extreme compression of energy, as if the void itself were about to be torn apart by the storm.
Facing this howling strike, Kaido's expression shifted—but a flash of wild joy crossed his eyes.
The Haki in his body finally found an outlet, surging madly into the kanabo.
BOOM!
CRACK!
After several seconds of deadlock in midair, a crisp sound like shattering glass suddenly rang out.
The atmosphere went berserk.
Centered on their clash point, the air was violently squeezed apart, forming a visible shockwave ring.
Even the crowds far below—who had already retreated as far as possible—were blown off balance by the explosive airflow.
Kaido's face twisted savagely, every muscle in his body tensed to the limit. Explosive power detonated again and again, producing layer upon layer of sonic booms around him.
But if it was just a contest of raw physical strength, how could Kaido at this moment compare to Charlotte Linlin, who had burned her lifespan to enter a giant form?
With the amplification from sword momentum alone, Tenma was already able to fight Kaido to a standstill.
In fact, when it came to controlling and releasing power, Tenma was clearly superior.
He abruptly drew Shidarezura back, using an extremely refined unloading technique. As he dissolved Kaido's attack, the blade transformed into a streak of light, shooting straight for Kaido's face.
In that awkward instant—old strength spent, new strength not yet born—Kaido had no time to defend.
By instinct alone, he snapped his head aside at top speed, trying to minimize the damage.
—Szzrk!
With Kaido's Armament Haki defense completely broken through, the sharp slash tore directly across his chest.
At the same time, the terrifying sword momentum that erupted in that instant skimmed dangerously past his barely-shifted head.
The horn that symbolized the pride of the Oni race snapped clean off amid spurting blood and Kaido's roar of pain, crashing heavily to the ground.
The mangled wound writhed, as if trying to heal itself.
Kaido clutched the injury in clear disarray, a trace of shock flashing through his eyes.
He could clearly feel that the damage from Tenma's strike was fundamentally different.
It wasn't just stronger—far more terrifying was that the wound's self-healing ability seemed forcibly suppressed by some kind of power.
It was as if residual sword aura—or that profound, mysterious "momentum"—was still clinging to the wound, continuously destroying his cells.
Kaido's strength, unlike Charlotte Linlin's steel-balloon body and innate brute force, lay in the near-immortal recovery and endurance granted by his awakened Mythical Zoan.
And Tenma happened to fear exactly this type of damage-soaking opponent the least.
That was precisely why he dared to face the Dual Emperor Alliance head-on.
In fact, to some extent, he could even say:
"In a one-on-one fight, you're actually easier to kill than Charlotte Linlin."
With Tenma's battle against Linlin concluded, the duel between Kaido and the Flying Sky General instantly became the sole focus of the battlefield.
At first, everyone could feel that the two were evenly matched—needle against awl.
Every clash erupted with terrifying fluctuations that made hearts seize.
But no one expected that after just a few short minutes…
That towering figure, like an ancient demon god, was now being driven steadily backward in full view of everyone.
The opposing figure was clearly much smaller in stature, yet radiated suffocating pressure, forcing the so-called "Strongest Creature" into an obvious dead end.
King, who was locked in battle with a powerful foe, caught sight of this out of the corner of his eye. His heart skipped a beat, disbelief filling his pupils.
By all logic, even if Kaido couldn't ultimately defeat the Flying Sky Admiral, he should never have fallen into such a one-sided decline.
After all, Tenma had just finished a heaven-shaking war of attrition with that madwoman BIG MOM.
In terms of stamina and Haki reserves, Kaido—who had waited fresh—should have held an absolute advantage.
As if sensing his opponent's distraction, a peerlessly sharp slash tore through the air, delivering a silent answer.
Mihawk swung his black blade, his tone calm yet piercingly cold:
"Whether it's Armament Haki or swordsmanship, you're undoubtedly a top-tier powerhouse.
"With the monstrous physique, speed, and racial flame control granted by an Ancient Zoan, you deserve the position of the Beasts Pirates' number one ace."
"But unfortunately, your swordsmanship never crossed that critical threshold into the realm of a Great Swordsman. So you can't comprehend just how terrifying that level's use of 'momentum' truly is."
"And that," Mihawk continued, eyes sharp as an eagle's, "is the fundamental reason General Tenma can sit firmly atop the throne of the world's greatest swordsman."
Perhaps witnessing Tenma completely suppress Kaido stirred something even in this proud swordsman, prompting Mihawk to say more than usual in battle.
High above the battlefield!
Amid shattered decks!
Two figures moved like chasing meteors, colliding wildly at every possible foothold.
The balance of the battle was visibly tipping. Kaido, who had once traded blows evenly, could now only raise his arms in disarray, struggling to block the rain of sword light.
Panting heavily, he growled like a wounded beast:
"You… how did you do this? I've never seen attacks like this before!"
As a monster who had rampaged across the seas for decades, Kaido had seen countless powerful slashes.
From Pirate King Roger, to the Flying Pirate Golden Lion, to Kozuki Oden—the man who haunted him even in death.
He had personally experienced the pain of the latter two's blades.
But unlike those techniques, which were simply devastating and left gruesome scars, Tenma's sword aura carried a bone-chilling, continuous damage on top of its destructive power.
Normally, even if he were cut open, his awakened recovery would seal the wounds before blood could even flow, the pain vanishing in an instant.
But now everything was wrong.
Not only was the healing speed dozens of times slower—even the earliest wounds still felt as if countless tiny blades were twisting inside, grinding relentlessly.
It was like an invisible blade was drilling tirelessly into the depths of his injuries.
Even Kaido, with his terrifying vitality, could only grit his teeth and endure—but the layered, accumulating damage forced him from furious offense into humiliating defense.
"This is the perfect fusion of Devil Fruit ability and swordsmanship,"
Tenma said, with no intention of explaining further.
A flick of his wrist sent another barrage of terrifying sword auras screaming forth, pushing Kaido into further chaos.
"You always said that as long as Haki is strong enough, it can nullify any Devil Fruit ability."
That was Kaido's long-boasted, deeply held belief—Haki above all.
"But if my sword momentum breaks through your Haki first, can that body of yours still block the infiltration of Devil Fruit power?"
Humm—!
Before the words finished, Tenma's sword didn't move at all—yet a soul-shaking sword momentum seemed to take form, swirling violently around him.
With a light flick of his finger, that long-accumulated power detonated like a keg of explosives, blasting straight toward Kaido.
Sensing the destructive aura rushing toward him, Kaido's face darkened instantly.
His beastly instincts screamed warnings—he knew that if he took this head-on in his current state, the fragile balance he was maintaining would collapse immediately.
Whoosh—!
The kanabo whipped up a gale. Driven by survival instinct, Kaido swung with all his might, desperately trying to smash open a path through the tearing air.
The invisible sword momentum shattered instantly upon contact—
And then—
CRACK!
A sharp, piercing fracture sounded abruptly from the tip of the kanabo.
A thick crack, like a venomous serpent, spread downward at visible speed.
In just a few breaths, the Hassaikai, the weapon that had accompanied Kaido through decades of battle and drunk the blood of countless strong foes, began to crumble piece by piece before his disbelieving eyes.
Shrrk—!
Before he could recover from the shock of his weapon shattering, a piercing sound beyond neural reaction speed reached his ears.
The invisible sword momentum slammed directly into Kaido's old wounds.
In that instant, his face went deathly pale.
"The development of Paramecia abilities sometimes isn't about brute force—it requires a bit of wild imagination, Kaido,"
Tenma said, pinching the air lightly between thumb and forefinger, as if grasping something unseen.
With a playful curve to his lips, he continued calmly:
"Especially at the awakening stage. When strong fighters clash, those flashy, large-scale moves are easy to guard against. It's these seemingly insignificant tricks that often become the final straw."
"As long as I will it, even something as intangible as sword momentum can be freely manipulated through my Devil Fruit. I can even bury it inside your flesh and let you experience what true internal detonation feels like."
Kaido—who had always relied more on instinct than intellect—suddenly understood.
The persistent agony in his body was the result of Tenma multiplying his attack power again and again, the energy expanding inside him and perfectly counteracting his famed regeneration.
Unfortunately, by the time he confirmed this truth from Tenma's own mouth, it was already too late.
Like a volcano that had finally found an outlet, the accumulated hidden injuries inside his body erupted all at once.
"PFF—!"
Kaido clutched his chest and spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs.
At that instant, Tenma moved.
His entire body surged upward, speed skyrocketing as he seemed to teleport, appearing above Kaido in the blink of an eye.
Haki flooded without reservation into Shidarezura. All sword momentum was compressed into a single point at the blade's tip, descending upon Kaido with void-rending pressure.
No escape!
Kaido's dragon scales instinctively tightened, every last drop of Haki in his body exploding outward.
Staring at Tenma's sword—condensed with his entire spirit—Kaido's eyes flared with savage light, the ferocity of a cornered beast.
He raised his thick arm as well, gathering all his strength into a single punch that thundered toward Tenma's abdomen!
BOOM—!
The instant Kaido threw that punch, the Conqueror's Haki coating triggered a celestial phenomenon, thunder roaring across the heavens once more.
Tenma did not dodge.
Even if he had to take some damage, he would eat this blow head-on.
Because once this sword fell, this long, drawn-out war would finally come to an end!
Humm—!
The cold light was no larger than the blade of Shidarezura itself—not even a third the width of Kaido's chest.
Yet the explosive power contained within felt as if it held the entire sky.
When the sword aura erupted, its presence was vast and majestic, overpowering even the thunder above. The air across the battlefield seemed to freeze into solemn stillness.
This was ultimate attack power, layered with multiple amplifications from the Momo Fruit and stacked sword momentum.
Shrrk—!
That streak of cold light passed through Kaido's body as easily as cutting tofu.
RUMBLE—!
The sword aura did not weaken. Several Totto Land warships along its path were sliced cleanly in half like paper.
The sea exploded, waves hundreds of meters high surging skyward.
And still the terrifying momentum did not stop, roaring all the way into the depths of the ocean.
In less than a few seconds—
A bottomless chasm carved straight through the sea. Residual sword intent formed invisible walls along both sides, forcibly holding the seawater apart, refusing to close for a long time.
Silence.
A deathly silence.
When Kaido's massive body finally collapsed into the ruins, more than half of the Beasts Pirates unconsciously froze, staring blankly in that direction.
"Ka… Kaido-sama…"
Only after more than ten seconds did a pink-and-blue-haired girl snap out of it. She scrambled forward in a miserable crawl, trembling as she peered into the crater.
At the bottom of the pit—utterly ravaged by residual sword aura—Kaido's battered body lay sprawled on his back, completely motionless.
His eyes were closed, his presence so faint it seemed ready to extinguish at any moment.
Even more horrifying was the massive, shocking gash that ran across his entire body like a monstrous centipede.
With just one glance, one could clearly see the mangled flesh within—over half of his exposed bones shattered to pieces.
Seeing this scene, the girl—who had still clung to a shred of hope—felt her mind explode with a loud buzz. Her world collapsed, despair and disbelief written across her face.
"Kaido-sama… actually… actually lost…"
She lifted her head mechanically, gazing at the figure still standing tall in the sky, her face pale as paper, lips trembling uncontrollably.
That was Kaido!
Even when he had fought the "Strongest Man in the World," Whitebeard, he had never been beaten like this!
High above, Tenma pressed a hand to his abdomen, which still throbbed faintly. Taking Kaido's desperate Conqueror-coated punch without Armament defense had been rough, even with his current physique.
Fortunately, the injury was still within manageable limits.
He pulled a glass vial filled with a mysterious liquid from his coat and tilted his head back, drinking it in one gulp.
It was a fusion product of Pure Gold and Mansherry's Heal-Heal Fruit ability. The moment it went down, his injuries and condition began recovering at an astonishing speed.
Looking down at where Kaido lay fallen, Tenma's eyes flickered with mild surprise.
Though it had been a relentless sword storm, the final strike's penetration had been absolute—nuclear-level.
It had shattered Kaido's proud Armament defense and even split the sea itself.
And yet, Kaido still had a breath left in him.
Truly worthy of the title "Strongest Creature."
That monstrous recovery and endurance—though Tenma found it the easiest trait to counter—was precisely what allowed Kaido to survive a guaranteed kill.
But now, Kaido was no more than a guttering candle in the wind.
The direction of this war was no longer in doubt.
Below, the battlefield finally broke its silence.
"It's over… it's really over…"
"How could this happen… even that monster…"
Not just the girl—every Beasts Pirate, every Totto Land soldier, from nameless fodder to billion-berry commanders, even the Charlotte siblings, all reacted the same way.
An emotion called despair spread through the crowd like a plague.
These pirates—who had once worshiped Kaido as a god, as their final hope—were now completely at a loss.
The fighting spirit that had burned so fiercely just minutes ago was gone without a trace.
Then, the thousands-of-meters-deep trench that seemed to split the planet itself began to roar as seawater poured back in.
The warships clustered on the surface were caught by the sudden, violent currents, dragged uncontrollably toward the abyss.
Panicked screams rose one after another, growing ever louder.
Faced with the ocean's most terrifying fury, everyone knew what being swallowed by a deep-sea vortex meant—
No bones left behind.
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