Kaito Sakamoto's sudden betrayal left Bucky furious.
But he hadn't expected this guy to be so weak. Kaito was instantly split in half, yet no blood spilled. Was that normal?
"Cabaji!" Bucky shouted.
Cabaji, sensing the urgency, quickly turned his head, flames bursting from his mouth.
However, at that precise moment, a hand holding a silver staff swung upward, striking his chin from below.
Cabaji's flames shot upwards.
Taking advantage of the moment when Cabaji was dazed by the blow, Kaito swiftly followed up, swinging the staff in a rapid series of strikes, hitting Cabaji in the chest, forcing him to stagger back.
Finally, with one powerful swing, Kaito struck Cabaji across the left side of his face, knocking him out cold and sending him flying onto the rooftop of the tavern on the right side.
Everything happened so quickly. Kaito had sent Cabaji flying to the roof in just a few seconds. The speed was so incredible that no one could react in time. They could only watch, stunned.
More than that, they were all dumbfounded—how did Kaito possess the same dismemberment ability as Bucky?
Bucky and his subordinates were filled with this very question.
"How... how is this possible?" Bucky muttered.
Looking at Kaito's body, separated at the top and bottom, controlling his floating hands as he wielded the staff, it was clear—this was exactly the same dismemberment ability Bucky himself had!
How could this be?!
"You... how do you have my ability?" Bucky couldn't stop himself from asking.
Kaito smirked slightly. "Want to know? Too bad, I won't tell you."
Bucky froze for a moment, then his expression turned into a vicious snarl.
"You bastard!"
"You think you can beat me? I'm Bucky the Clown!"
"Dismemberment—Cannon!!"
Bucky roared in anger, raising both hands. His left hand grabbed his right arm at the elbow, and his right hand held a dagger, which he shot forward like a missile, aiming directly for Kaito!
"Heh."
Kaito let out a light chuckle, completely unfazed. He didn't dodge. Instead, he controlled his floating hand, using the staff to deflect Bucky's hand.
"Dis... Dismemberment—Pancake!"
Bucky stabilized his hand in midair, then his lower body split off, with blades extending from his feet. It spun like a flying disc, aiming directly for Kaito.
Kaito swiftly took a step back and jumped, avoiding Bucky's lower half, while his other hand seized another staff, splitting it into two.
It didn't transform into blades—still just staffs.
It was ridiculous to think that a blade could cut through a dismemberment ability user's body.
Bucky's lower half returned, spinning toward him, but Kaito didn't even flinch. He allowed it to slice through him once again, his body once more split in half. But for him, who had the ability to replicate the dismemberment fruit, this wasn't an issue.
With both hands gripping the staff, Kaito slammed them down hard toward Bucky.
Bucky quickly raised both hands, using a dagger between his fingers to block the staffs.
As Bucky's lower half reattached to his upper half, Kaito's own lower body swiftly followed suit. Once their bodies were back together, Kaito kicked Bucky in the stomach with a powerful force, sending him flying backward with a resounding crash.
Bucky crashed through a number of tables and chairs, landing hard on the ground. He struggled for a few moments before managing to get back up, his body looking thoroughly beaten.
"Cough, cough!"
Bucky coughed twice, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth as sweat poured down his forehead.
He now understood—this guy, who had connections with Shanks, was no ordinary person! At the very least, he couldn't beat him.
Damn Shanks!
(Meanwhile, out at sea, Shanks suddenly sneezed.
Shanks: "A cold? No way! Someone must be thinking about me. Hahaha.")
"Hee hahaha, Kaito."
"I think we have a misunderstanding here, don't we?"
"You know Shanks, and I know Shanks. What's the harm in sitting down and having a chat? Why all this fighting?"
Upon hearing this, Kaito calmly controlled his lower body and floating hands to return to his side.
"Perfect opportunity!"
This was exactly what Bucky had been waiting for—Kaito's moment of distraction.
"Special—Mini—Bucky Cannon!!"
Bucky's lower body launched off, and from a mechanism in his feet, a small Bucky Cannon shot out. Though it was only the size of a marble, its power was several times greater than the usual cannonball.
"I was waiting for this move!"
In an instant, Kaito pulled his lower body and hands back into position. As his body fully reformed, the miniature Bucky Cannon struck Kaito square in the chest.
Bucky grinned, thinking this was it—his victory. But that grin quickly faded as he stared in disbelief.
The cannonball hit Kaito's chest but didn't explode. Instead, it left a deep dent in his chest and bounced back toward Bucky.
This was the power of the Gum-Gum Fruit.
Through this, Kaito realized something—his power had a limitation. While he could replicate the abilities of others, he could only use one Devil Fruit ability at a time.
For example, to use Luffy's Gum-Gum abilities, he had to retract his dismemberment body before he could activate them.
As Bucky and his subordinates stood frozen in shock, they were soon engulfed by an intense firelight.
A massive explosion erupted, tearing off half of the tavern's roof and collapsing several buildings behind it—true physical destruction.
When the smoke finally cleared, Bucky's crew lay scattered on the ground, all of them completely incapacitated.