As the three ships drew closer, the hazy horizon sharpened into view. Jack narrowed his eyes, his massive frame stiffening as recognition flashed in them.
"Stop!" he barked.
His voice boomed across the sea, deep and commanding — a sound like thunder rolling over the waves. The calm waters trembled, rippling outward as an invisible pressure filled the air. The aura of countless battles, of blood and slaughter, radiated from him like a storm.
The crew on his ship trembled beneath that killing intent.
Doflamingo, still caught in Kaito's grasp, gave a shaky laugh.
"Fufufufu! You wouldn't dare kill me! That ship—" he tilted his head toward the approaching fleet, "belongs to one of the Four Emperors of the New World, the Beasts Pirates."
He grinned wildly.
"That's Jack the Drought! One of Kaido's three Calamities! I've worked with Kaido before — he needs me. If you kill me, you'll have the entire Beasts Pirates hunting you down!"
In his mind, Doflamingo was confident. As long as Kaito wasn't an idiot, he wouldn't provoke Kaido. If Kaito hesitated, there was still a chance to live.
But what Doflamingo didn't understand was simple — Kaito feared no one.
To him, even the Beasts Pirates could be crushed with sheer power.
Kaito's gaze turned cold, pity flickering in his eyes. His grip tightened.
Doflamingo's smirk faltered. His body hardened under a layer of Armament Haki, and crystal-thin threads burst from his fingers, wrapping around Kaito in a desperate attack.
A sharp screech filled the air — the sound of metal grinding against lightning.
Kaito sneered.
"Still struggling?"
Lightning crawled across his body, gray-black and furious, crackling like a storm given form. The current surged through Doflamingo's threads, and his confident expression twisted into horror.
His entire body convulsed violently as electricity consumed him. Smoke rose from his flesh. In seconds, his skin charred, muscle burned, and his form disintegrated into ash. The Donquixote family's king vanished into dust — not even bones remained.
The ships of the Beasts Pirates hadn't gone far when Jack roared from the deck, his fury shaking the air.
"You dare kill him!"
Murderous intent erupted from Jack like a tidal wave. He leapt high into the sky, his enormous figure blotting out the sun.
The ground quaked when he landed. Dust exploded around him, and a crater formed where he stood.
Kaito raised an eyebrow, slightly impressed. He hadn't expected Jack to close the distance with a single leap from ship to port. For someone often called a brute, his combat instincts weren't dull.
"So this is Jack the Drought," Kaito muttered. "Not as mindless as people say."
"Joker! You killed Joker!" Jack's bellow shook the port, his beastlike eyes burning with rage. "Do you know how important he was to Kaido-sama?"
Kaito's face remained calm, a faint grin curving his lips.
"I don't know, and I don't care," he replied coldly. "Whatever happens between you and Kaido… is none of my business."
"You're looking for death!"
Jack's killing intent thickened the air until it stank of blood. He drew two massive, sickle-shaped blades and charged forward, the earth cracking beneath each step. His sheer size and power could make ordinary men faint from pressure alone.
But Kaito was unmoved.
He extended one hand, his expression still indifferent.
"Shinra Tensei."
A violent shockwave burst from his body. The air itself warped from the pressure.
The repulsive force smashed into Jack like a divine hammer. Despite his immense size, he was thrown backward helplessly, blasted clear off the port and into the sea.
Water exploded into towering waves, sending ripples racing across the ocean.
When the chaos settled, a massive crater — nearly a hundred meters wide — marred the port.
Kaito's expression didn't change. He took a single step, and space distorted. In the blink of an eye, he reappeared above the water's surface, looking down at where Jack had fallen.
He raised his arm slightly. A wave of suction pulled at the sea, dragging water upward as though devoured by an invisible beast. The ocean twisted, forming a colossal whirlpool.
From within the swirling waves, Jack's massive figure emerged. His once-furious expression was gone, replaced by shock.
He wasn't smart, but even he knew one thing: a person could only eat one Devil Fruit. Any more than that, and their body would explode.
Yet this man — Kaito — had already displayed multiple powers. Repulsion, attraction, lightning… three separate abilities that defied logic.
His instincts screamed danger. A fear he hadn't felt even toward Kaido now gripped him.
"Impossible…" he muttered. "Is this man… stronger than Kaido-sama?"
Before he could finish the thought, Kaito's mocking voice reached his ears.
"What's wrong? Is Kaido's 'Calamity' really this weak?"
Lightning danced around Kaito's body, reflecting in Jack's wide, terrified eyes.
____
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