Clashes of Conqueror's Haki have always been the rarest and most visually spectacular scenes in the pirate world.
Logically, a Conqueror's collision between two Emperor-level powerhouses should tear the sky apart. It's the hallmark of the strongest.
But today's sky was unnaturally resilient.
After this clash of kings, the dark clouds in the sky merely trembled slightly without dispersing.
Why were they so tough?
Because Ray's template fusion rate had now reached 76%.
He had broken through the 3/4 threshold.
When his demonic energy was released on a large scale, it could already trigger celestial phenomena.
The quality of his demonic energy was no different from Sesshomaru's, only lagging slightly in total volume and recovery speed.
Therefore, tonight's dark clouds were composed of dense demonic energy, naturally not so easily shattered by mere shockwaves.
Ray had a feeling that the strength of Sesshomaru he'd experienced in the Demon Realm corresponded to at most 80-90% fusion rate of the template.
If 90% represented Sesshomaru's peak strength after having children, then what would 100% be?
As the fusion rate increased, not only were certain memories beginning to stir, but even the template system seemed to be growing increasingly mysterious.
...
CLANG! BOOM!
Ray's serious punch versus Kaido's normal swing could only be described as evenly matched.
Neither gained an advantage, and naturally, neither suffered a disadvantage.
Then, the two distanced themselves and began a new round of clashes.
Ray could feel that Kaido's strength was similar to Big Mom's.
But in terms of Conqueror's Haki infusion, he was indeed more proficient than Big Mom in her normal state.
After all, Big Mom had been accustomed to a life of luxury and sweets, and had already entered old age.
But Kaido, as an Oni at only 57 years old, was in his prime.
His frontal combat power was indeed somewhat stronger than the obese, elderly Big Mom.
However, Ray's fusion rate had increased by a full 5% compared to the 71% during his fight with Big Mom.
So he didn't lose to Kaido in their Haki clashes either.
As the fight progressed, Ray drew the blade at his waist.
SHING!
Channeling demonic power into the sword, it transformed into the massive fang-blade, Tessaiga.
CRASH!
Their weapons clashed again.
Thunder bagua sent shattered ground debris flying everywhere.
After ten exchanges, even the dark clouds formed by Ray's demonic energy were shaken apart.
Wherever Emperor-level powerhouses battled, the heavens didn't fare well.
...
Everyone around had been watching the battle intently.
Originally, King and Queen wanted to support Kaido, but Ray and Kaido moved too fast, constantly shifting positions like lightning bolts.
The two All-Stars genuinely struggled to keep up visually.
Moreover, Yamato stood right in front of them, glaring fiercely.
Being Kaido-sama's "son", without explicit orders from Kaido, they couldn't make a move against Yamato.
As for Black Maria and Who's-Who, they were completely unable to intervene.
The power gap was too large—it was better to just watch quietly and not get squashed.
Thus, the five-person spectator group formed, talking while watching the battle.
Queen pulled out a pack of sunflower seeds.
"Crunch, crunch."
"Hey King, what do you think of Kaido-sama chances?"
King refused Queen's sunflower seeds, instead pulling out a pack of spicy strips from his own pocket.
"Kaido-san won't lose. He is after all, the future Pirate King."
Black Maria drooled slightly, fanning herself.
"Such handsome men... I really want to devour them~"
Who's-Who said nothing, simply watching silently behind his mask.
He was betting on Kaido's victory—after all, if Kaido lost, he would have nowhere to hide from the World Government.
(Brief explanation: He was an early member of CP9. When he was young, he was on escorting the Gum-Gum Fruit mission but had it stolen by Shanks, then was held accountable and imprisoned. Later he broke out of Impel Down and joined the Beast Pirates.)
'This rookie is truly terrifying. The only ones who can fight Kaido like this are the Yonko and Admirals.'
'Even Admirals probably wouldn't confront him directly in a slugfest like this, but would use their abilities to attack from range instead.'
As for Yamato, she was extremely excited.
Today was the day she had the best chance of accomplishing her mission.
"Ray-oniisan! Do your best! You must kill my father!"
These words shocked King, Queen, Maria, and Who's-Who all at once!
Onii-san... of Young Master Yamato?
'Is he .... Kaido's actual illegitimate child?!'
But the clever Queen and Who's-Who quickly thought of another possibility.
This "Onii-san" was probably someone Yamato privately acknowledged to kill her own father.
And this brother seemed to treat Yamato quite well, having even removed the explosive shackles from her hands.
....
Flashback
When departing from the inland sea earlier, Ray had casually used Ryuo to remove those bombs and threw them onto the sea surface.
BOOM!
Instantly, the bomb exploded.
The terrifying power nearly blasted through the 100-meter deep inland sea, and the resulting waves almost capsized Jack's massive Mammoth ship.
Witnessing this, Yamato's pupils shook violently.
This explosive lock was installed on her wrists by Kaido since childhood—it would explode if she left Wano Country.
She had naively believed Kaido wouldn't actually kill his own child, that this bomb was just for show.
But judging by the bomb's power she saw today, her bastard father really intended to blow her arms off or kill her.
Thus, Yamato resolved to sever the father-child relationship with Kaido completely today.
...
The two Emperor-level powerhouses continued their close-quarters combat.
But the situation among the spectators had changed slightly.
Queen and King received Kaido's order.
"Kill Yamato."
Kaido declared he didn't need a son who betrayed him.
"Understood."
Yamato also picked up her kanabo and actively charged toward King's position.
Queen saw this and thought, "Well now, ignoring me?"
ZOOM!
He immediately activated his ability, transforming into the Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Zoan, Brachiosaurus Model.
He became a giant dinosaur about 25 meters tall and 60 meters long, preparing to ambush Yamato with his thick, long tail.
Just then, a small white dog flew out from Kaido and Ray's battlefield, landing directly in front of Queen.
POOF!
Immediately, the red-eyed white puppy began to change.
In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a giant Demon Dog standing 12 meters at the shoulder and 25 meters in body length.
After eating the Pet Pet Fruit, Chouchou's size had increased further.
Even in its berserk state, its size wasn't much larger than Queen's massive dinosaur form.
But the sinister Demonic Power and ferocity radiating from Chouchou's body still gave Queen considerable pressure.
"Well now... this looks even fiercer than a Sea King!"
Queen's subconscious told him he must proceed with caution.
Thus, the massive Brachiosaurus began rapidly circling around the Demon Dog.
Queen attempted to circle behind Chouchou to attack its weak point.
It looked rather ridiculous..... a fat dinosaur trying to be sneaky.
SNAP!
But Chouchou wouldn't give Queen any chance, immediately biting toward his long neck.
This frightened Queen immediately!
"Damn it! You stupid dog! Don't you know animals should circle each other before fighting?!"
"This rule was established back in the dinosaur era, you bastard!"
...
In another battlefield.
CLANG! CLANG!
Yamato's spiked club and King's longsword were frequently clashing.
The two appeared to be evenly matched, currently at a complete stalemate with neither side injured yet.
Only the ground of Onigashima was complaining internally.
'Damn... you guys fight and I break apart. Small cracks here, big cracks there. Whatever, I'm tired, just destroy me already.'
In Yamato and King's combat area, Armament Haki collisions were causing the ground to shatter in 10-meter sections.
Over at Ray and Kaido's location, Conqueror's Haki collisions were shattering the earth in 50-meter chunks with each impact.
Black Maria and Who's-Who were currently feeling somewhat overwhelmed.
While both considered themselves strong, they felt they couldn't intervene in any of the battlefields without dying instantly.
"So... should we just stand here?" Who's-Who mumbled.
"I think so," Maria replied, still watching Ray.
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