"How's it going, brother? Don't tell me you've got some insight?"
Jack took a deep breath and said, "I didn't see the battle inside, but I have a pretty good idea how fierce it must have been. Judging by the level of destruction, it was a brutal fight."
"This isn't exactly insight, just common sense... I honestly didn't expect that Ryuma could hold his own against Kaido for so long—and remain undefeated at that. That's impressive," King said deeply, exhaling slowly.
Jack nodded slowly. He had to admit, that was true. If it were anyone else, they probably wouldn't have lasted this long.
But Ryuma seemed to have no major issues. You could even say his body was quite sturdy.
"No, no, no, I don't agree. I think the best choice now is to flee and focus on ruling the country. After all, there are thousands of troops waiting for us outside!" Quinn said with a smile.
"You have a point; escaping now does seem like the best option. But tell me, what do we do after we run away?" Jack said coldly.
After Jack spoke, Quinn fell completely silent.
Seeing Quinn not say a word, Jack sighed and gently patted his shoulder. "Listen... things have already come this far. Don't rush too much. I believe Ryuma can kill Lord Kaido. And even if he can't, driving him out is definitely possible."
Jack took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and stopped speaking. In his heart, he kept wondering what their next move would be if Ryuma failed.
Ryuma stared at Kaido and slowly said, "Your Dragon-Dragon Fruit is indeed powerful, but it still falls short compared to my Phoenix-Flower Fruit."
"Is that so? Hahaha... But all I know is that my Dragon-Dragon Fruit made me one of the Four Emperors. Your Phoenix-Flower Fruit seems like nothing more than a useless gimmick. I want the Phoenix-Flower Fruit only to fill the gaps in the Beast Pirates' abilities—not like you."
"You don't need to tell me what I am..." Ryuma said, and with that, he used his Shadow-Shadow Fruit to create multiple illusions!
Kaido, standing nearby, almost popped his eyes out when he saw this. He had heard from Jack that this guy might be able to copy Devil Fruit powers. At first, he didn't believe it, but now he had no choice but to accept the truth.
At this moment, Kaido's eyes were slightly red.
He thought to himself, "I have to get that power for myself!"
He believed that Ryuma's ability to absorb Devil Fruit powers meant he must have acquired some kind of secret treasure—otherwise, this wouldn't be possible.
Ryuma took a deep breath and said, "Rest assured, today will be your death day."
"Hahaha, didn't expect you to have such a Devil Fruit power... If you tell me how you copied a Devil Fruit, I'll grant you endless wealth and glory. You're from Wano, aren't you? How about I make you the Great General of Wano?"
"Even if I become a general, I wouldn't serve as yours. Under your rule, Wano is nothing but a conquered land..."
Suddenly, Ryuma's shadow split into many parts. When the shadows reappeared, each held a black blade named Shusui, their expressions full of resentment.
"You should just die!"
At this moment, it was clear the black blades were spinning slightly. When they were ready, the shadows suddenly lunged forward blindly!
All the illusions attacked Kaido simultaneously!
Kaido stared at the scene, swallowed hard, and laughed, "Interesting. Truly interesting..."
Then Kaido roared loudly, and from his mouth emerged a burst of breath!
The breath instantly dispersed all the illusions nearby.
Only Ryuma remained standing.
Ryuma took a deep breath and stepped back, surprised that Kaido's roar could dissolve all his shadows!
"You... are truly ridiculous! Under my Dragon-Dragon Fruit's power, your ability is nothing but a useless gimmick. Do you understand what I mean?"
Kaido smiled slowly, enunciating each word with a teasing glint in his eyes.
Ryuma merely smiled faintly and shook his head gently.
"Oh? The things you don't see are still yet to come."
With that, Kaido's wounds suddenly flickered with flames, and countless bursts of fire within his body exploded outward, inflicting him tremendous pain!
At the moment he saw the flames flickering among his scales, discomfort flickered across his face. Fixing his gaze steadily on Ryuma, he said word by word, "You bastard… how exactly did you do that?"
"Nothing special. Didn't you just say my Phoenix-Flower Fruit was nothing but a useless gimmick?" Ryuma said with a smile.
After Ryuma finished, Kaido only took a cautious step back.
When Kaido transformed back into his dragon form, he was like a storm sweeping across the sky, suddenly lunging forward to bite down fiercely!
Ryuma's mouth twitched at the sight, but he quickly grabbed hold of Kaido's massive head. With Kaido's overwhelming strength, Ryuma was dragged forward like the wind itself!
Ryuma took a deep breath, a trace of embarrassment crossing his expression. When he saw a wall looming behind him, he understood clearly: if he were slammed against it, his life might end right there.
Fixing his gaze unwaveringly on Kaido, Ryuma said, "You've ruined Wano… You're a sinner of our country. Today, I will kill you right here."
Kaido chuckled softly at those words. "Aren't you that ancient Dragon Slayer? What's wrong? Is the Dragon Slayer all talk and no action? Words are worthless—show me what you've got!"
As he spoke, he beckoned Ryuma with a hand, eyes gleaming with anticipation, as if eager for Ryuma to kill him.
The feeling was strange indeed.