While Whitebeard was holding Kaido, their fight tore the sky with thunderous blows. Each collision left craters on the ground, as if nature itself was trying to escape from this battle. My puppets, although powerful, were unable to approach this confrontation. I could feel the time of Whitebeard's summoning running out, and every second was worth its weight in gold. Concentrating, I tried to call up his projection again, but at that moment there was a new hum.
Kaido's army appeared on the horizon. The crowd, like a flood, covered everything in front of them, reflecting the light with the metallic sheen of weapons. Jack and Queen were marching in front, and behind them were four Tobioppos and twenty thousand soldiers. It was a display of absolute might, as if Vano himself had mobilized all his resources for a single strike.
I sent my puppets to attack. Doflamingo, Enel and King, recently captured, rushed to Jack and Queen. Their appearance caused confusion among the enemies. Quinn looked at King in disbelief.
"Are you... a traitor?" His voice was trembling with anger and disbelief.
King did not answer. His attack was lightning fast — he brought his sword down on Jack, forcing him to go on the defensive. Doflamingo deftly wove threads, blocking any movement of Quinn, forcing him to defend himself from invisible attacks.
Jack, fighting back furiously, still tried to figure out what had happened.
— King! What are you doing? We are brothers in arms!
He received no reply. Just a silent, relentless onslaught. King, Doflamingo, and my other puppets attacked nonstop, moving like parts of a single machine.
To the side, another part of the battle was unfolding between Ulti, Paige Van, Enel, Trebol, and Diamante against the remaining Tobiroppos. The war was escalating, but my eyes were on Jack and Quinn.
I moved closer, hiding in the shadow of the destruction, and focused all my will on capturing the threads of their spiritual bodies. Jack, though massive, moved more slowly and posed less of a threat. His heavy punches were power, but not speed, and I easily found windows to establish control. Gradually, his movements began to slow down, and his punches lost their power. His body trembled, and his gaze turned blank.
It turned out to be more difficult with Quinn. Smart and quirky, he quickly noticed that something was going on, and to get rid of my presence, he activated his plague gas. A greenish cloud instantly spread around, forcing King and Doflamingo to retreat.
I couldn't afford to lose control. Increasing the distance, I continued to attract the threads of his consciousness. His rage was almost palpable.
"What kind of creature are you?" — he shouted, noticing my flickering movements. "Hiding like a rat and getting into people's heads!"
His body slowed down, his movements became sharper and more uncertain. I could feel his will resisting, like a strong spring that was slowly but inevitably being broken.
It was all over in a few seconds. Jack and Quinn froze, and then slowly turned to me, their eyes empty, devoid of fire. The two strongest Kaido stars were now mine.
In that instant, the battlefield changed. Doflamingo and King stopped their attacks, allowing the newly converted puppets to take their place. Quinn attacked his former soldiers, spraying poisonous gas, and Jack crushed them with his immense might.
My control only took ten seconds to capture them, so I wasn't too worried about their actions. I just had to keep fighting them. However, King blew away the poison with a flame and continued his offensive.
Dust and shreds of earth flew into the air with each blow, tearing apart the battlefield. Kaido was the rage of the incarnation, a huge dragon wreaking havoc, his roar ripping through eardrums, and his movements seemed to embody the destructive power of nature. But his power didn't scare me. She just needed to be turned to my advantage.
Whitebeard disappeared, and with him — the illusion of an equal battle. The opponent instantly noticed the loss of projection, his eyes narrowed, and his breathing became more measured. I knew that I didn't have much time: if Kaido turned his attention to my real powers, the situation would become more complicated. His army was already pushing back my puppets, and even the stars that had become my toys could not hold back the onslaught for long.
I sent Jack, Queen, and Doflamingo to Kaido, at the same time starting to capture his spiritual body. Their combined attacks looked chaotic, but every step was calculated. Jack tried to crush Kaido with brute force, Quinn sprayed toxic gas, and Doflamingo wrapped threads around the dragon to slow down its movements. But Kaido did not give in — with every swing of his mace, he crushed everyone who dared to approach.
I stayed on the edge of the battlefield, hiding in a pall of dust and debris. Kaido's capture wasn't just difficult—his will was like hardened steel, unyielding, almost impenetrable. Every thread I clung to resisted, as if trying to escape from my hands. I needed time—too much time.
He felt my presence. His eyes—cold, piercing, full of hatred—found me in the crowd. In the next second, he soared into the air, turning into a hybrid, and rushed towards me like a predator on prey. His mace sliced through the air an inch from my head, shattering the stone pillar behind me. I dodged by moving through the blazing fire left by his punch.
Every moment I felt him coming—the whistling of the air from the blows of the mace, the heat of his breath. He was as persistent as death itself. But I was more persistent.
My fingers froze in the air, and I reached for the Historical Void again. This time, the hand encountered resistance—a familiar, comforting weight. I pulled it out. Belous. A ghostly figure covered in an aura of grandeur appeared on the battlefield. He raised his naginata and hit the ground, creating waves of destructive force that knocked Kaido back.
But it was just a distraction. Whitebeard restrained Kaido, holding his attention while I continued to spin my threads. The minutes passed painfully slowly. I could feel Kaido's will cracking like ice under pressure, but it wouldn't break. His every growl and every move was aimed at breaking me. He attacked Whitebeard with fury, but she was not blind. He knew that the source of the threat was not Whitebeard.
My puppets, freed from the need to restrain Kaido, attacked Tobiroppo. Quinn cleared the way with poison gas, Jack crushed opponents with his mass, and Doflamingo deftly controlled the battlefield. But even with their efforts, the enemies began to gain the upper hand. I could feel the battlefield engulfing my servants. It was a war of attrition, and I knew I couldn't let it drag on.
Kaido rushed towards me again. His speed and strength increased, as if he sensed that something was amiss. His blow caught me off guard — a fiery mace passed by, burning my skin, and I had to move behind Whitebeard to dodge. But I knew that my work was almost done. I could feel his will breaking like a broken spring. He started to slow down. His movements became less precise, his punches less deadly. There's only a second left.
And suddenly his eyes froze. Second. And he became mine.
The whirlwind of battle slowed down, as if the whole world was holding its breath. The titanic Kaido stood in front of me, lowering his mace. His eyes, once blazing with rage and defiance, were now empty, like an ocean that had lost its waves. Whitebeard, barely discernible in the scattering dust, was dissolving, returning to the Historical Void. But his job was done: Kaido was now my puppet.
The remnants of the Beast army, shocked not only by the appearance of Whitebeard, but also by the betrayal of King and Queen, stopped. The soldiers looked around, their faces reflecting confusion and fear. Jack, Queen, and King continued to destroy the enemy ranks like machines without tiredness or hesitation. None of them understood what had happened.
I stepped out of the shadow of the destruction, leaving footprints in the cracked earth. My presence caused a murmur among the remaining fighters. Their gazes darted between me and Kaido, who was still standing motionless like a statue.
"Kaido—sama!" Give the order! We are waiting for your instructions! One of the Tobioppos shouted. His voice was trembling, but he tried to maintain an appearance of confidence.
The Kaido puppet looked up, and I felt my control strengthen, permeating every thread of his being. He stepped forward, stomping loudly on the ground, as if the mountain itself had moved. The troops quieted down.
— Retreat... or die," he said, his voice low and menacing, but devoid of the old fury.
The soldiers didn't know how to react. Some confusion gripped their ranks. Kaido rarely ordered a retreat. Some began to back away, while others tightened their grip on their weapons, as if resisting an inexplicable fear.
Quinn, smiling his beastly smile, stepped forward, brandishing his weapon.:
"You heard me, you fools! Kaido-sama doesn't say it twice! Get out of my sight!
These words caused a commotion. Some officers began shouting orders to retreat, and the army, like a wounded beast, began to spread out. The remnants of the Animals threw down their weapons, ran into the jungle or into the mountains, fleeing for their lives.
But not all of them.
"It's a trap!" Maria shouted from the front. She took a step closer, her gaze burning with suspicion. "Something's wrong!" Kaido-sama, is that you?! Why are you letting these traitors stand around?!
She turned around, her gaze fixed on me. I grinned, barely noticeably.
"He's my subordinate now,— I said calmly.
Maria, despite her fear, sensed something was wrong. She rushed at Kaido, determined to test her suspicions by force. But her attack was interrupted by a mace suddenly raised by Kaido. With one blow, he threw her away like a rag doll. It was a loud, irrefutable statement for all those who remained.
I stepped closer, my puppets lined up around me. The doflamingo entwined the space with thin threads, as if erecting an invisible dome, not allowing anyone to escape.
"Listen to me, the remnants of the army of Beasts," I began loudly, addressing everyone. "Your king has fallen. He's my puppet now. Anyone who dares to challenge me will share his fate.