"You came here for this Devil Fruit?" Kaido asked, lifting the Mythical Zoan Daibutsu Fruit in his hand, feeling as if it were burning hot.
Kaido deeply regretted coming here.
If he had known that Kuke had set his sights on this, he would have never shown up. Wouldn't it have been better to just stay in his lair, drinking?
Yamato didn't bother answering. "Old man, less talking, more fighting."
She raised her kanabo, ready to charge forward.
Not playing by the rules.
Kaido had been thinking that if she had simply confirmed that this was what Kuke wanted, he would have obediently handed it over, and everyone could have gone their separate ways in peace.
But Yamato, the battle maniac, had thrown his entire plan into disarray.
Frustrated, he glared at his so-called filial daughter.
You really are ruthless to your old man.
"Yamato, we agreed that today's battle would be led by me," Belo Betty intervened at the crucial moment, pulling Yamato back.
Only the three of them had come today.
Taking the Daibutsu Fruit wasn't the main objective.
Kuke had told them that if they could get it, great. If someone else ate it, that was fine too.
Once they obtained the Dark-Dark Fruit, they could just take it back later.
So there was no need for the full force of the Sun and Moon Pirates to mobilize.
The three of them had volunteered to come.
Yamato, simply because she was bored.
Kuina, because she was eager to encounter powerful swordsmen and improve through battle.
Belo Betty had an even clearer goal.
"I'm so close. My fruit ability is awakened, but I still can't develop the Immortality Surgery. There's just something missing."
Belo Betty's dream was to develop the Immortality Surgery for Kuke and her comrades.
For seven years, she had trained relentlessly.
She had fully developed the Op-Op Fruit's power and awakened its abilities.
But she still hadn't unlocked the Immortality Surgery.
Today, she had come in hopes that battle would help her find the missing piece.
So right now, they weren't focused on the Mythical Zoan in Kaido's hands—they were focused on Kaido himself.
To them, Kaido was an enemy.
A training dummy.
Battle was the best way to grow stronger.
That's why they had actively turned down Charlotte Linlin and Gion, telling them not to come.
If they had, there would be no real pressure in this fight.
Without pressure, there would be no improvement.
Kaido wasn't stupid.
He sensed that something was off.
His eyes darted around.
The thought of escaping crossed his mind.
Since Kuke wasn't here, Kaido had no interest in actually defeating Yamato and the others.
"What a joke. I'm not an idiot. If I really hurt them, that monster Kuke could appear the next second."
Few knew about Kuke's bizarre teleportation abilities, but figures like Kaido did.
After all, that power had nearly wiped out Mariejois.
"Old man, if you dare to run early, you're finished," Yamato warned.
Kaido's face turned red, like a pig's liver.
This was too much bullying.
With a heavy sigh, he resigned himself to his fate.
Fine.
Losing face was one thing.
But losing face to Kuke personally showing up and humiliating him would be far worse.
Might as well be a stepping stone now and get it over with.
At least his daughter was among them.
Whoosh!
Belo Betty disappeared in an instant.
She had long since spread the Op-Op Fruit's operating field over a massive area.
"Internal Surgery."
She drew the Kitetsu II, its blade seemingly coated with an enigmatic layer of spatial energy.
She slashed toward Kaido.
"Thunder—" Clang!
Kaido immediately withdrew most of his strength.
He only defended.
He didn't counterattack.
His spiked club met Kitetsu II head-on.
Kaido was confident in blocking it.
After all, this wasn't Kuke himself.
Even if it were Gion, he was certain he could defend himself with ease.
But in the next instant—
Kaido grunted in pain.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
He staggered back a few steps.
"What kind of ability is this?" Kaido looked at Belo Betty's blade in disbelief.
He had clearly blocked the attack.
So why was he injured internally?
This wasn't the advanced form of Armament Haki's internal destruction.
Kaido knew the difference. He could counter that.
This was something far more advanced.
This was the power of the awakened Op-Op Fruit.
Whoosh!
Belo Betty vanished again.
Her mastery over the Op-Op Fruit had reached astonishing heights.
At this moment—
Belo Betty's combat power had reached 190,000.
With Kuke's meticulous training over seven years, her innate talent, and the top-tier Op-Op Fruit, her power had surpassed that of most Emperor-level right-hand men.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Belo Betty teleported unpredictably, attacking from all angles.
Her awakened ability-infused blade relentlessly struck at Kaido.
"If I don't take this seriously, I might actually be in danger."
Kaido dared not let his guard down.
He transformed into his strongest Hybrid Beast Form.
Defensive barriers were raised.
With a casual swing of his sword—
Belo Betty sliced through the rooftops of the golden city, sending debris flying into the sky like floating feathers.
With a flick of her finger—
Hundreds of tons of debris cascaded toward Kaido, forming a mountain of wreckage.
"So strong!"
Pirates who had ducked for cover felt chills down their spines.
"The Sun and Moon Pirates' officers are monsters!"
Their expectations of Emperor crews had been completely shattered.
After all, there were high-ranking officers of Emperor crews here.
Marco was still present.
He was Whitebeard's First Division Commander, widely recognized as his second-in-command.
And yet, Marco's earlier performance didn't compare to Belo Betty's.
"I don't think I could beat her…"
Marco himself was in disbelief.
"I can accept that figures like Gion, the Empress, or the Witch are stronger than me… but how is even Belo Betty this strong? Just how much have the Sun and Moon Pirates' officers grown over the years?"
Marco took a deep breath.
He completely abandoned the thought of trying to take the Mythical Zoan Daibutsu Fruit.
He couldn't afford to mess with them.
Kuke was untouchable.
And now, even his officers were too much to handle.
Boom!
The mountain of rubble crumbled apart as Kaido burst out.
Unscathed.
"If I don't fight back, I'm not getting out of here today."
Kaido finally understood.
Simply defending wasn't enough.
"Descending Three Worlds—Hell's Dragdown!"
In his Hybrid Beast Form, Kaido let out a roar and leapt into the air.
His kanabo spun wildly, coated in Conqueror's Haki, black lightning crackling.
He slammed it downward.
But—
His strike was noticeably slower than usual.
Because Belo Betty had disappeared.
Only once he was sure she was no longer in front of him did he dare to bring down his club at full force.
Boom!
A massive shockwave erupted, shaking the entire island.
A kilometer-wide crater formed where the kanabo had struck.
The impact sent tremors through the island, knocking down countless pirates, many of whom were flung away by the blast.
The overwhelming strength radiating from Kaido was even greater than before.
"So he wasn't even serious earlier?"
Ace clenched his fists.
He had thought he had seen the full extent of an Emperor's power.
But clearly, he hadn't.
Belo Betty reappeared at a distance, still affected by the shockwaves.
She slid back several dozen meters.
"Yamato, Kuina, fight with me," she said, realizing the gap was too great for solo combat.
"I was already ready," Yamato roared, charging forward with her kanabo.
Kuina drew her blade, her presence shifting.
Like a chillingly sharp sword, she advanced without hesitation.
------
DONT FORGET POWER STONE
________________________________
P/S: If you are interested, you can read up 50+ chapters at patreon.com/Emik01.