"What is that?"
Zoro stared up blankly.
A battle that should only take place in legends was now unfolding in the sky.
Golden flames in the shape of swords collided with a massive wolf's mace, while dark, domineering lightning shot out like spider webs.
Lightning bolts even fell from the sky, creating massive craters upon hitting the ground.
The terrifying pressure of the wind continued to push downward, to the point where Zoro could barely keep his eyes open.
The mere aftermath of their clash felt like a natural disaster! This was the first time Zoro had witnessed Ian unleashing his full power.
So strong!
Truly, so strong!
Both of them were so powerful that Zoro couldn't have imagined it before!
Even in his wildest fantasies, Zoro never envisioned such strength!
"Zoro!" Beside him, Kuina said, stunned, "These are the people at the top of the world!"
"Kuina!"
Zoro turned to her, the shock in his eyes gradually fading, replaced by excitement and determination. He looked into the eyes of his dear friend.
"We'll get that strong too! No! We must get that strong!"
There are two types of people in this world.
Those who retreat when faced with difficulty, and those who charge forward despite it.
Clearly, Zoro was the latter.
"Yeah!"
Kuina nodded firmly.
Having seen the vastness of the world, they understood more than ever that they could never stop climbing. If they did, they would never reach the summit of their dreams.
Since they had come to this world, since they had seen how vast it was, how could they not aim for the peak?
In the sky.
Once again, the sound of swords clashing echoed as Ian was knocked backward by the tremendous force.
"Kaido-sensei," he said with a smile, "Isn't it time to wrap up the warm-up?"
"Ah ha ha ha ha!!"
Kaido burst into hearty laughter, "Then let me see just how much you can do, kid!"
His appearance began to change.
His eyebrows became like swirling clouds, slightly curved.
His upper body muscles bulged, and the scales on his body lightened in color.
His claws and teeth became sharper, especially his teeth, which were as sharp as saw blades.
The domineering, lightning-like Conqueror's Haki surrounding the iron staff suddenly grew thicker and more viscous, almost resembling thick smoke from a distance.
Ian whistled.
Let's call this form the "Demon Form" for now.
Because it truly looked as terrifying as a demon.
It was somewhat similar to Kaido's slaughterous form when he was drunk, but this seemed even more ferocious.
In this state, Kaido's abilities were enhanced across the board.
Based on the original story, it was probably an increase from getting beaten by the fifth gear to overpowering Nika, forcing Luffy to use his Gomu Gomu no King Kong Gun to settle the fight.
"Thunder Roar!"
Clouds gathered beneath Kaido's feet. "Bagua!!"
The iron staff was already right in front of Ian.
Fast enough!
Red light flickered in Ian's eyes. His body leaned back, narrowly dodging Kaido's attack.
He even managed to calmly swing his sword at Kaido's chest.
"Hmph!"
The left hand, covered in fine scales, grabbed Ian's Flame Sword and then threw him downward.
Not only was the movement speed fast, but the reaction speed was also shockingly fast!
Ian, with the howling wind, fell like a meteor.
Just before he was about to crash into the ground, his wings spread wide, and with a sudden flap, the downward momentum stopped instantly amidst the roaring wind.
"Heat Breath!"
A massive, blazing fire pillar howled downward.
Ian took a deep breath. "Blaze Cannon!"
A laser-like stream of flame shot straight into the sky.
Boom!!
The two flames collided, and a new sun blossomed in the sky. The explosion's fireball was almost half the size of Onigashima, and the terrifying shockwave immediately sent flying a large group of unlucky pirates who had fainted.
"Waaahhh!!"
Viola, watching from the sidelines, screamed nonstop. "It's so hot! We're going to be roasted alive!!"
It was just like facing the brilliance of the sun itself!
"Oh!!!"
Ace, transformed into a dragon, nearly sparkled with excitement in his eyes.
This was the true breath of a dragon!
"You guys continue."
Ian looked down at the fierce battle between Yamato and Jin, grinning and speaking.
Then, with a flap of his wings, he soared into the sky.
What awaited him was—
"Descending Three Worlds: Hades' Call!!"
Thunder struck from the heavens.
Ian tightly gripped the Flame Sword in his hand, pouring all the flames into the large sword.
The sword now glowed like a laser blade, and at the same time, ominous black mist surged more violently.
The stark contrast between the pitch-blackness and the shining light made the sword seem even more extraordinary.
This strike was named,
"Rising Sun Blade!"
Boom!!
The moment Kaido's iron staff collided with Ian's Flame Sword, the terrifying golden flames erupted, instantly engulfing Kaido within.
Another massive sun bloomed in the sky, even larger than the previous one.
The principle was to concentrate a massive amount of flames onto the edge of a large sword, and upon hitting the opponent, the flames would completely explode, burning the enemy to ashes.
Within the flames, Ian fell once again.
This display of willpower is truly exaggerated!
He couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
In terms of technique, he had already caught up, but when it came to sheer power, Kaido was still a step ahead.
This applied to both the Armament Haki and the Conqueror's Haki.
However, Kaido was also blasted into the air by the immense force of the explosion, and the scorching flames made him look disheveled.
Haki can resist flames, it can withstand high temperatures, but it doesn't completely block them.
With Ian's terrifying flame temperature, and under a charged strike, even Kaido's mastery of Armament Haki still caused his armor to blacken slightly.
"See you again."
Ian steadied himself after spreading his wings and waved at King, who was not far away.
King looked at Ian with a look of amazement in his eyes.
This kid, he's really getting ridiculously strong!
"Stop looking around, King! Lower Three Heavens—Yin Naraku!"
The same technique was now used by Yamato, and with a powerful blow to the head, King was sent crashing to the ground, creating a massive hole that broke through the skeleton of Onigashima, sending King into the town below.
Ian couldn't help but sigh as he watched.
King's indestructible body should have been fine.
But repairing this hole would be quite a hassle.
Wasteful.
"Hahahaha! King! Keep going!"
The wasteful one, still unaware, charged into the large hole below and continued chasing after King.
She wouldn't destroy the entire town, would she?
However, Ian didn't have much time to worry about that now. "Muahahaha! Great Might—"
Lightning struck from the heavens, and Kaido, like a bolt of lightning, instantly appeared before Ian. "Thunderous Eight Trigrams!!"
This was probably the first time Kaido had truly unleashed an unforgiving strike.
So.
Boom!!
A steel rod soared through the air, and the mere pressure from the wind it created stirred up an intense typhoon above Onigashima.
But unfortunately, such a terrifying blow missed.
In that moment, Ian transformed into flames, easily dodging the Kaido's killing blow.
At the same time, the sword of flames in his hand became a deep crimson.
The same dark patterns spread across the blade, and the same ominous black mist surged.
Ian swung his sword.
This strike was called,
"World's Ashes!"
To be honest, this name didn't quite fit.
After all, if Ian's sword were to hit, no ashes would be left.
Instead, it would be instantly destroyed, leaving not even a trace!
But.
"You brat!"
Red light flashed in Kaido's eyes. "You're not the only one who can glimpse the future!"
Tail!
Kaido's long tail suddenly lashed upward from below, like a steel whip, striking the side of Ian's crimson sword.
The great sword's trajectory instantly changed, and Kaido took the opportunity to retreat, counterattacking with wind blades aimed directly at Ian.
Ian completely ignored the sharp wind blades. Under the protection of both his overwhelming willpower and abilities, those blades were useless.
"Huh?"
He just stared at Kaido's tail, surprised.
It hadn't been damaged at all.
Well, that tail had struck the crimson sword with powerful Conqueror's Haki from the side, not directly opposing it. It had only altered its path.
So this was Kaido's solution?
After being struck by a sword last time, he immediately figured out how to counter it.
As expected of Kaido-sensei!
Ian let out a light laugh. Flames erupted from behind him, propelling him forward.
The crimson glow in his eyes flickered, and his Observation Haki was pushed to its limits.
**********
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