As he spoke, the Armament Haki around Kaido's body exploded wildly once again, like a volcano erupting.
The thick, heavy energy wrapped entirely around the arm holding Hassaikai like solid darkness, making him look like a demon god stepping out of ancient times.
Purple-black lightning danced wildly across his massive spiked club, each flash snapping with loud, crackling sounds.
"I have been training my Haki day and night..." Kaido's voice was overflowing with confidence.
"Having multiple Devil Fruit abilities does not mean everything—Haki is the true foundation of strength!"
He gripped his spiked club tightly.
The bulging muscles on his thick arms rose up like mountain ridges, his veins popping as if he were ready to tear heaven and earth apart at any second.
A satisfied smile appeared on Whitebeard's rough face as he steadily blocked Hassaikai with Murakumogiri.
The giant naginata, shining with freezing cold light, did not move an inch despite clashing head-on with the spiked club.
"Gurararara..." Whitebeard laughed loudly, his booming voice rolling like thunder across the sea.
In the very next second, both monsters pushed forward at the exact same time!
"BOOM—!"
The massive sound struck the world like a war drum, earth-shattering and completely deafening.
The ocean waves seemed to freeze in place, the air turning thick with a heavy, crushing pressure.
Another world-shaking clash!
The massive shockwave created by the strike exploded outward like an angry tsunami, lifting the surrounding seawater into hundred-foot-tall waves.
This time, the two giants charged at each other again, attacking with speeds that blurred the sky.
High in the air, their movements became way too fast for the naked eye to follow, leaving behind nothing but countless flashing afterimages among the clouds.
Every single strike triggered thunderous explosions, the roaring sounds shattering the quiet sky and making the entire heavens shake.
Suddenly, Whitebeard changed his timing.
Murakumogiri slashed upward from an incredibly tricky angle.
The angle of the attack was so strange that it became impossible to predict for a split second.
Kaido's Dragon pupils instantly shrank.
Goosebumps exploded across his back—if that hit landed, he would definitely be coughing up blood.
At this split-second moment, he violently twisted his body to the side, his Oni strength exploding to its absolute limit!
He barely managed to avoid a fatal hit by twisting into a completely impossible angle.
Yet, even so, several tough Dragon scales were shaved right off, shining in the air as they fell toward the ground like shooting stars.
"You old bastard..." Kaido licked the blood from the corner of his mouth.
His fighting spirit burned even brighter, his eyes showing a crazy, absolute obsession.
Only in this kind of battle did he ever feel truly alive.
"Now this is more like it!" Kaido roared.
The two charged at each other again, Hassaikai and Murakumogiri clashing dozens of times in mere seconds!
Every single hit sprayed sparks like rain, drawing beautiful, burning trails through the dark sky like a massive fireworks show.
Without even realizing it, both fighters had pushed their Conqueror's Haki to the absolute limit.
The invisible Haki surged like tidal waves to push their attack power even higher.
The entire sky seemed to be swallowed by the crushing pressure, turning dark and gloomy as the Haki shockwaves spread outward, destroying the surrounding clouds.
Suddenly, Whitebeard saw an opening.
His left fist gathered the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, a glowing white bubble of energy forming over his hand.
Instantly, world-breaking power focused into his fist as he smashed it hard right toward Kaido's stomach.
"Air Shock!"
With a fierce shout, the air itself shattered like a broken mirror, countless white cracks flying outward in all directions.
Kaido grunted hard, feeling a massive, crushing force slam into his stomach as his tough Dragon scales cracked inch by inch.
The pain felt like it was drilling right into his bones.
But he stubbornly pushed through it.
Kaido flashed a savage grin. "Whitebeard, the older you get, the trickier you become."
He instantly paid him back with a wild swing of his club, slamming it right into Whitebeard's shoulder with the exact same amount of force.
This blow carried almost all of his strength.
Whitebeard's massive body swayed as if he had just been hit by a falling mountain. He stumbled back but quickly dug his feet in and caught his balance.
"Exhilarating!"
Both men backed away at the exact same time, pulling apart in the dark sky, only to charge right back in like two crashing meteors, clashing fiercely once again.
The absolute chaos of their battle looked like it was going to flip heaven and earth upside down!
...
At the exact same time, all of Onigashima was swallowed in a tense, murderous air.
The very air seemed to turn solid under the heavy fighting spirit pouring off the pirate crews.
Just as Kaido and Whitebeard—the two true rulers of the sea—fought their world-breaking duel, the shockwaves from their massive power were still echoing through the air like invisible, roaring beasts.
But suddenly, a blindingly bright light exploded from another side of the battlefield.
This glowing light looked like the first ray of morning sun breaking through the dark, or a bright star tearing through the night sky, completely standing out against the chaos of the war.
"Nami, now!" Ron narrowed his eyes slightly, his stare locked onto the battlefield down below.
A confident smile curled on his lips as he lowered his voice and gave the order to Nami beside him.
Hearing Ron's words, Nami gave a sharp nod.
She took a deep breath, and in a flash, a mysterious, glowing pink energy began to gather in her mouth.
The energy twisted and burned, giving off a terrifying, choking heat.
"Bolo Breath: Pink Flame!"
In the very next second, a pink pillar of fire over thirty feet wide shot down from the sky like a punishment from the gods!
This massive laser of fire looked like a roaring pink dragon, carrying total destruction as it blasted toward its target.
The boiling heat acted like an invisible blade, bending the air around it and making the sky itself shake from the insane temperature.
Wherever the pink pillar of fire passed, the clouds instantly vanished into steam like wet paper, leaving behind a massive, empty hole in the sky.
The blinding pink glow, like a giant flower blooming in the heavens, lit up the horrified faces of every single pirate standing on Onigashima.
Their eyes were packed with total terror and defeat, looking as if they were watching the end of the world.
The burning heat instantly boiled the water in the ponds on the battlefield below, turning it into thick white steam that rose up like a creepy fog over the brutal scene.
"Hmph!" King, who had stayed completely on guard this whole time, frowned deeply.
His eyes showed a flash of cold determination.
He snapped his head up to look at the pink pillar of fire crashing down like judgment from the heavens.
His giant black wings snapped open with a sharp swish—wings as wide and powerful as the night itself, each beat kicking up a freezing gust of wind.