With a bang, Shin, who had been smashed from the air, fell several dozen meters below the ground.
"Cough, cough, cough!" Shin wanted to get up again, but Kaido slammed his club into Shin's chest.
"Ugh!" A mouthful of blood spurted out of his mouth. However, though seriously injured and bleeding, Shin was not to be outdone. Using his Munch-Munch Fruit ability, his right hand transformed into a spear with a metallic sheen and thrust toward Kaido from below.
Kaido's face darkened as he shifted his body to evade the blow. Still, Shin's weapon imbued with armament haki managed to leave a deep scar on Kaido's lower abdomen.
"Haha, I thought you wouldn't even dodge that move," Shin said with a grin, slowly getting up.
Kaido frowned, not at Shin's taunt—anyone seeing such a tactic would feel an involuntary urge to step back. What truly surprised him was Shin's incredible vitality.
Shin hadn't backed down after a few hours of fighting. He exchanged blows with Kaido in a fierce, relentless style. Now, Kaido bore more than a dozen wounds, while Shin's injuries were even more severe.
Shin had coughed up several times the blood of an average person, and his major bones had been broken dozens of times. In the heat of battle, even his internal organs were severely injured, and fragments of them had been spat out.
However, Shin still seemed full of energy, showing no signs of dying. Even his physical stamina didn't seem particularly drained.
Of course, that was because Shin's recovery relied on chakra, not stamina. Though chakra depletion can give the impression of physical exhaustion, Shin's chakra now flows like a vast ocean. His injuries barely dented his chakra supply, allowing him to recover fully without significant loss.
Kaido muttered, "What kind of devil fruit has this kid eaten? It feels like he's getting more energized, even stronger, the longer we fight!"
The increase in Shin's strength was natural. Kaido, experienced as he was, understood that haki—a collection of will, killing intent, and fighting spirit—could intensify through combat. When properly wielded, it transforms willpower into a weapon known collectively as Haki.
This power could be trained and enhanced over time. But reaching a higher level required extreme combat, especially against someone with superior haki. As long as one's spirit wasn't crushed, confidence and fighting spirit would naturally grow, fostering rapid improvement—though at high risk.
The issue now was that Shin lacked Conqueror's Haki, which Kaido considered a fatal flaw. Yet, this indomitable man refused to yield.
Kaido had only seen this level of resilience once before, and he himself had developed his formidable haki by cultivating resilience through countless battles with powerful opponents. Now, however, he faced an opponent who seemed even more unyielding.
In truth, Shin was also surprised; he hadn't even used the full powers of his Munch-Munch fruit yet.
The regenerative abilities of his Sage body and Kaguya clan heritage seemed to mesh perfectly with the pirate's combat dynamics.
Bones would heal in seconds; internal injuries faded with just a few deep breaths. Unless his head was decapitated or he was beaten into a pulp, Shin felt practically invincible.
Judging by Kaido's frustrated expression, Shin knew his resilience had made a serious impression.
At this moment, the entire battlefield was in chaos. Kaido's Beast Pirates had arrived two hours earlier, igniting fierce combat.
But now, the Beast Pirates appeared to be at a disadvantage. Queen, one of Kaido's top officers, had already been taken down by the combined forces of Wano. King had fought everyone in a grueling initial encounter and only got backup two hours later.
King, facing so many formidable enemies on his own for two hours, was gravely injured, his fighting power greatly reduced.
Among the top three, the only one still relatively unscathed was Jack, the weakest. Currently, Ace was pummeling him—everyone knew the woolly mammoth was the least resilient.
The remaining Tobiroppo fought against Wano's masters. Asura Doji held off the weakened King, while Yamato single-handedly faced off against Black Maria and Page One. Denjiro and Kawamatsu battled the other Tobiroppo members.
As for the numerous artificial devil fruit users, they had switched sides under the influence of Tama's Dango-Dango fruit. With Kurozumi Higurashi and Otama protected by the Barrier Fruit's power, the two brainless giants of the Beast Pirates were futilely hammering at the unbreakable barrier.
The barrier's defensive power was astounding; even Kaido would struggle to break it. Against these artificial giants, it was unbreakable.
With the defeat of so many Beast Pirates, what should have been a balanced battle was now tipping in Wano's favor.
Seeing this, Kaido's face turned deadly serious. He prepared to end things quickly. "I never thought a brat like you could push me this far… This was meant to be a move for Whitebeard."
Kaido's voice grew louder, booming like thunder. His form expanded, transforming into a massive dragon in the sky.
Flames wrapped around his body, rapidly expanding. Kaido, who was already hundreds of meters long in his dragon form, now transformed into a colossal dragon spanning thousands of meters. The fire dragon filled the sky, flames roaring across the heavens, scorching the air and making it feel as though the earth itself was burning.
"Kid, feel honored! This is the ultimate move I developed after my devil fruit awakening!"
"You and these rebels will burn to ashes!"
"Rising Dragon – Flame Bagua!"
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