...
At the God Valley site, the Five Elders felt as though they had swallowed several thousand needles. It was a suffocating, furious, yet utterly helpless feeling.
The light screen broadcast was like an omnipresent, unblockable "Eye of Omniscience," exposing every lie meticulously woven by their World Government, the dirty deals hidden beneath their halo, their cruel exploitation of various races...
Even the existence and partial abilities of the highest authority, Imu, were laid bare before the entire world without anything held back.
Their underwear had been completely stripped off, and their dignity had been swept to the ground.
What frustrated them even more was that this light screen was protected by some rule beyond their understanding and could not be destroyed by conventional means.
Furthermore, the God Valley area was now shrouded in an invisible "restraint" due to the appearance of the light screen.
At least for the time being, large-scale chaotic battles and surprise attacks on key figures were being suppressed by some force.
If they could act, they would have unhesitatingly rushed forward long ago — first joining forces to eliminate Dragon, Rocks, and Roger, the biggest "historical problems," then cleaning up "unstable factors" like Harald.
Finally, they would erase all the "spectators" who had witnessed things they should not have seen.
But in reality, they could not go up, nor did they dare to act rashly. The "rules" of the light screen were unknown. Acting impulsively could trigger unpredictable consequences that might be even worse than the current situation.
They could only stand there like prisoners nailed to a pillar of shame, forced to watch their own "great achievements" being played back over and over...
Watching the pirates cheer and jump with joy, watching the people's faith collapse, and watching potential allies grow distant and disloyal.
This suffocating frustration was more unbearable than being killed.
On the light screen, the situation took a sharp turn for the worse.
Luffy had been forced out of Gear 4 and entered an extremely weakened state after exhausting his stamina and Haki by forcibly unleashing the "King Kong Gun Barrage"...
He collapsed softly to the ground, barely having the strength left to stand.
This was his most dangerous and helpless moment.
How could Charlotte Linlin in the sky possibly miss this opportunity? The shock and doubt on her face had been replaced by even more vicious cruelty!
The brief moment of confusion caused by Luffy's "perseverance" remark and his violent barrage had now completely transformed into even stronger killing intent!
"Mam-ma-ma-ma~ Rubber brat! Go to hell for me!!!"
Grinning savagely, her massive body rode the thundercloud Zeus and instantly closed in.
The Emperor's sword Napoleon, wrapped in Prometheus's flames, was raised high and swung down toward the limp Luffy below with the force to split mountains and cleave seas!
Sword energy entwined with flames and Conqueror's Haki tore through the sky, vowing to cut Luffy in half!
"Luffy!!"
At the critical moment, a figure rushed out from the side!
It was Zoro! He had somehow already struggled out of the rubble where he had been struck by lightning. Although his entire body was charred black, his hawk-like eyes remained sharp!
Using his last remaining strength, he suddenly pounced to Luffy's side, grabbed Luffy by the collar, knocked aside a nearby piece of rubble for cover, and barely managed to drag Luffy out of Napoleon's slashing trajectory!
BOOM!!!
The flaming giant sword struck the ground, carving a deep trench dozens of meters long that burned with raging flames!
The scorching shockwave sent both Zoro and Luffy flying, rolling together in an even more disheveled state. But at least... they were alive.
"Hah... hah..."
Zoro struggled to push himself up, shielding the unconscious Luffy behind him. Although he held his three swords, his arms were trembling uncontrollably.
Linlin's strike missed, and her rage grew even greater. She was about to follow up with another sword strike...
But in that extremely brief moment of pause caused by her swinging motion!
A figure moving at extreme speed appeared like a ghost behind her massive body!
It was none other than Trafalgar Law!
He had somehow already adjusted from the injuries caused by the lightning. Although his face was still pale, his eyes were as cold and sharp as a scalpel.
His left hand was spread open, with high-frequency vibrating electricity jumping at his fingertips.
"Cardiac Shock!"
Law let out a low shout and suddenly pressed his thumb against Linlin's broad back, which was as thick as a castle wall!
The high-frequency electricity ignored the powerful physical defense of the "Steel Balloon" and, like countless tiny needles, instantly invaded her body, striking directly at her heart's conduction system and major nerve clusters!
"AAAAAHHH!!!"
Even Charlotte Linlin, known as the "Steel Balloon" whose physical defense was comparable to a monster's, was caught completely off guard and let out a piercing scream from this bizarre internal-targeting attack!
Her massive body suddenly stiffened and began violently trembling as though she had been electrocuted!
The pain that penetrated deep into her bones and struck her soul, along with the spasming of her internal organs, caused her to temporarily lose partial control of her body. Napoleon nearly slipped from her grasp!
"You... damned... Trafalgar!!!"
Big Mom's eyes turned blood-red. Pain and violent rage intertwined as she violently twisted her body, trying to shake Law off or crush him.
But Law had already succeeded with his strike. He quickly retreated, putting distance between them, the corner of his mouth curving into a cold arc.
His goal — to interfere and heavily injure her in order to create an opportunity for the others — had been achieved.
At the same time Law launched his surprise attack on Linlin, Kid and the recently risen Killer on the other side had locked their targets onto the seemingly unconscious Kaido in the deep pit.
"Kid... That Straw Hat might be reckless, but his attack just now... actually seemed effective!"
Killer panted, staring at the massive dragon body at the bottom of the pit. A ruthless glint flashed in his eyes. "This is the best chance to finish off Kaido!"
Kid did not speak, but killing intent filled his eyes.
With a wave of his single arm, the larger scattered metal fragments on the battlefield were once again attracted by his magnetic power.
Killer also endured his injuries. His rotating sickles turned into an afterimage as he attacked from the side toward Kaido's neck joint, trying to widen the wound.
The two men's attacks coordinated well — one frontal, one from the side, one hard, one soft — aiming to either land a killing blow or inflict irreversible heavy damage!
However, at that moment...
In the deep pit, those huge dragon eyes that had been rolled back suddenly snapped open!
Flames reignited within them, even more intense and violent than before!
There was no longer any trace of confusion or pain — only pure, crushing indifference and destructive desire!
Kaido... had awakened!
He did not even glance at the approaching Kid and Killer, as if they were nothing more than insignificant flies.
His massive dragon head slowly lifted. His dragon eyes swept over the entire chaotic battlefield from above.
The weakened Luffy and Zoro, Linlin who was trying to shake off the effects of Cardiac Shock in her rage, the wary Law, Kid, and Killer...
Tornadoes roared around his body. Thunderclouds rolled and gathered in the sky due to his and Linlin's auras.
An absolute sense of oppression, like a tangible iceberg, pressed down on the hearts of every rebel.
"ROAR!!"
A low dragon's roar filled with endless pressure rang out. It was not an attack, but rather a declaration of awakening.
Along with the dragon's roar, Kaido's massive azure dragon body began to slowly rise from the deep pit in a spiraling motion!
This time it was not rapid. It was a slow, steady movement filled with power and pressure.
The moment his body moved, something unbelievable happened.
Every subtle shift of his massive dragon body, the friction between his scales and the air, and even the mere spread of his dragon's might naturally stirred violent movements in the surrounding atmosphere!
Visible streams of air, as if summoned by a king, spontaneously coiled around his rising dragon body and accelerated and grew stronger as he spiraled upward!
WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH!!!
In just a few breaths, several terrifying tornadoes with diameters exceeding ten meters and reaching from the ground to the sky had already formed with Kaido at their center!
These tornadoes were not techniques he deliberately released. They were simply "accompanying phenomena" created by the natural resonance between the immense energy contained within his Azure Dragon form and the elements of heaven and earth as he moved!
The wind howled. Sand and stones flew!
With every movement of the giant dragon, natural disasters were stirred!
This was the true power of the Mythical Zoan Azure Dragon Fruit!
It did not merely grant transformation and elemental control. Its very existence was enough to trigger drastic changes in the natural environment. It was a walking "incarnation of natural disaster"!
Their attempt to "finish him off" appeared so pale and laughable in the face of the awakened azure dragon Kaido, who was now displaying part of his true power.
Outside the light screen, seeing the terrifying sight of the Azure Dragon Fruit stirring natural disasters with every movement,
Charlotte Linlin once again could not help but fiercely glare at the Kaido beside her. Her eyes were filled with undisguised envy, jealousy, and a trace of resentment over "wasting a treasure."
"Such a powerful Mythical Zoan fruit... If one of my outstanding children had eaten it, what kind of invincible monster army could have been created?!"
Linlin thought with frustration.
The young Kaido keenly noticed Linlin's "unfriendly" gaze and immediately turned his head toward her, a trace of confusion in his eyes: "Linlin... What's with that look?"
His casual question was like lighting the fuse on a powder keg!
Linlin, who had already been in a bad mood because of Luffy's "perseverance" line and the power of Kaido's fruit in the future scenes, instantly exploded like a cat whose tail had been stepped on!
"Mam-ma-ma-ma~! What look?! Kaido, don't act so smug over there!"
Linlin's massive body turned toward Kaido. Her voice rose sharply, filled with gunpowder. "I'm pissed off that you ate my Azure Dragon Fruit!
Look at you! Getting beaten down by a brat until your eyes rolled back!"
The more Big Mom spoke, the angrier she became. She pointed at the azure dragon circling on the light screen. "Such a good thing ended up in your hands. It's such a waste! If it had gone to my children..."
Kaido's brows furrowed and his expression darkened. "Linlin, what do you mean? Old man is strong because old man is Kaido! What does that have to do with the fruit?!"
The "friendly exchange" between the two future Emperors of the Sea completely forgot that there was a large crowd of people like Rocks and Roger watching nearby.
...
On the light screen, the awakened azure dragon Kaido had now fully risen into the high sky. His massive dragon eyes coldly looked down at the tiny figures below like ants.
The unconscious Luffy, the heavily injured Zoro, the furiously panting Linlin, the vigilant Law, Kid, and Killer...
Tornadoes roared around him. Thunderclouds rolled and gathered due to his and Linlin's auras.
An absolute sense of oppression, like a tangible iceberg, pressed down on the hearts of every rebel.
...