"Commander Kong! What should we do now? Kaito's strength is far beyond us! Even if we join forces, we will be defeated! The other Marine generals have already been held back by the officers of the Kaito Pirates!"
"If the two of us continue like this… the consequences…" Kizaru's expression was difficult to read, his voice trailing off.
Although the sentence was left unfinished, Kong understood exactly what Kizaru meant.
Kong frowned deeply and spoke in a heavy, solemn tone. "Kizaru, you must understand something. Today's battle is not just about who controls the New World. It is about the reputation of the Marines before the entire world. No matter the outcome, we cannot retreat."
"If we take even a single step back, it will mean that the Marines fear pirates, and fear Kaito. If that happens, our reputation across the world will fall to its lowest point."
"I understand. But the two of us alone…" Kizaru began.
Before he could finish, a furious roar echoed across the battlefield.
"Then add me! Justice must never bow to evil!"
Akainu strode forward, his body surging with molten lava, his face dark and twisted with killing intent. His eyes locked onto Kaito in the distance, hostility spilling out without restraint.
As for King, who had been fighting Akainu moments earlier, he clicked his tongue in irritation. "Tch. I'm done here."
Without hesitation, King disengaged and moved off to find another opponent. After joining the Kaito Pirates, he had long since learned of his captain's true strength from Douglas Bullet. A single Marine Marshal and two Admirals were nowhere near enough to challenge someone capable of crushing Marine Headquarters alone.
This level of opposition was not even worthy of making their captain bare his fangs.
Shaking his head, King changed direction. He headed toward Vice Admiral Dalmatian.
Akainu glared at Kaito, his voice filled with rage. "Red dogs that bite do not bark? Don't get arrogant, brat!"
"Damn it! This old man will kill you!"
Lava erupted violently around Akainu as he raised his arm. Molten magma gathered rapidly, forming a massive lava fist that came crashing toward Kaito.
"Too weak."
Kaito's voice was calm, almost bored.
A violent shockwave burst outward as his Armament Haki surged. He stepped forward, his fist extending as his body shot ahead like a meteor.
Boom! Boom!
The two attacks collided head-on.
Kaito's blackened fist released a terrifying shockwave that rippled across the battlefield. The enormous lava fist shattered instantly, exploding into fragments of molten rock. The remaining force continued forward, slamming directly into Akainu.
The Admiral's body burst apart into flowing lava as the white shockwave tore through him, drilling straight down into the frozen surface below.
The ice cracked open violently, revealing a bottomless chasm. Far beneath, seawater could be faintly seen.
"Kaito!" Akainu roared coldly.
The scattered magma surged back together, reforming Akainu's body. His face was twisted with fury.
"Here."
A calm voice sounded from directly behind him.
Akainu's expression changed instantly. Before he could react, a bone-shattering impact struck his back. A sharp pain tore through his chest as the sound of breaking bones rang out.
His body was sent flying, slamming across the ice for dozens of meters and carving a deep, jagged trench into the frozen ground before finally coming to a halt.
"That was Admiral Akainu!"
"How is this possible?!"
"Marshal Kong and the Admirals can't match him at all! Just how strong is Kaito?!"
Reporters watching from afar stared in horror, their mouths hanging open as they desperately recorded everything.
"Damn you, bastard!" Akainu snarled as lava erupted around him once more. "The old man will capture you and throw you into Impel Down!"
"Really?" Kaito replied indifferently. "Then I'll deal with you first. To me, you're nothing more than slightly larger ants."
Floating in midair, Kaito glanced briefly toward Kong in the distance before stepping forward.
The air exploded.
In the next instant, he appeared directly in front of Akainu, as if he had teleported.
Akainu's lips curled into a grim smile. "I've been waiting for this."
He swung his arm as the lava around him boiled violently, the temperature rising at an alarming rate. A massive lava hound formed before him, charging forward with a ferocious roar.
Its fangs dripped with molten magma, its body blazing like it had crawled straight out of hell.
This was Akainu's signature technique, Hellhound.
"One kick."
Kaito lifted his leg and struck forward without hesitation.
A beam of white compressed air erupted from his kick, colliding head-on with the charging lava hound. The two forces met for only an instant before the lava beast was pierced straight through, shattering into scattered magma.
The remaining force did not stop. It continued directly toward Akainu.
"How is that possible?!" Akainu's pupils shrank, disbelief flashing across his face.
However, he made no attempt to evade. As a Logia user, elemental transformation was more than enough to handle such an attack.
Lava surged as a massive hole opened through his torso, but the gap began to close rapidly as molten magma flowed back into place.
"You have too many impossibilities."
Kaito's voice sounded calmly behind him.
Akainu's body stiffened. Cold sweat appeared on his forehead.
"Damn it…"
Yet before the next blow could fall, a massive golden figure appeared between them.
Sengoku, transformed into a golden Buddha, stood firmly in place, his gaze steady as he faced Kaito.
"This battle ends here," Sengoku said calmly. "The Marines admit defeat. The New World will be yours. The Marines will withdraw."
The moment those words were spoken, the battlefield erupted into chaos.
"What?!"
"Marshal Sengoku!"
"Don't do this! Just kill Kaito!"
At first, only a few Marines shouted in protest. Soon, the voices multiplied, spreading like wildfire across the battlefield.
Sengoku remained unmoved.
He understood the situation better than anyone. Kong had already suffered severe injuries and was effectively out of the fight. Akainu had been overwhelmed repeatedly. On top of that, Whitebeard and Kaito had both shattered Marine plans.
From the very beginning, the Marines had been at a disadvantage.
If the battle continued, the entire strength of Marine Headquarters could be wiped out here.
"Sengoku," Kaito said with a cold smile, "you were the ones who started this war. You don't get to decide when it ends. What do you take my crew for?"
"If you continue, both sides will suffer," Sengoku replied, narrowing his eyes.
"Both sides?" Kaito scoffed. "You think too highly of the Marines. Once your Admirals fall, what can the rest do besides surrender?"
"So you refuse to stop?" Sengoku's voice turned cold.
"What a waste of words."
Kaito kicked forward once more.
"One kick."
A white beam of compressed air shot from his leg, racing toward Sengoku.
"Hmph. Do you really think I fear you?"
Golden light exploded from Sengoku's body. He appeared like an ancient Buddha descending upon the world, sacred chants echoing as golden lotus petals filled the air.
A massive golden palm thrust forward.
"Great Buddha Impact!"
A colossal shockwave surged outward from the palm, forming a massive column of force that rushed directly toward Kaito.
In the next instant, the two terrifying shockwaves collided head-on, shaking the battlefield to its core.
___
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