"Wororororo... Zephyr, the warm-up is over."
As Kaidou's voice fell, his form began to transform. In an instant, Kaidou's body morphed into a ferocious and powerful physique, covered entirely in blue scales. His wild, unkempt hair radiated terrifying energy, while four furious horns gleaming with dark light pointed toward the heavens. His two long legs bent backward from the hips, supporting his massive frame, and his feet transformed into a fusion of eagle claws and tiger paws, continuously treading on air. A thick, long tail swayed behind him.
"As expected, dealing with someone like you requires going all out!" Kaidou, now in his Hybrid form, remarked to Zephyr as the throbbing pain in his arm quickly subsided.
Truly worthy of an Admiral. Even without Conqueror's Haki, relying solely on his meticulously honed Armament Haki and its internal destruction characteristics, he could still inflict some damage on Kaidou's arm even through Hassaikai.
If not for his current physical prowess being far beyond what it once was, he might have ended up on the experimental table again for some time.
"This is... the Human-Beast Form?" Zephyr, though somewhat startled by Kaidou's transformation, immediately launched an attack.
Zephyr stepped on the air and vanished from his original position, reappearing not far from Kaidou. His pitch-black fist struck directly at Kaidou.
"Wororororo... Come on! Let me see your strength!" Kaidou retorted without backing down, instantly counterattacking.
"Boom—!"
Their attacks collided once more, producing a powerful roar.
However, unlike before, this time Zephyr was forced back a short distance by Kaidou's immense strength. Even though it was only a small gap, both combatants noticed the difference.
"Wororororo... I am invincible!" Kaidou laughed heartily.
Then, terrifying Conqueror's Haki continuously emanated from Kaidou, with black and red lightning running rampant across the sea.
As Kaidou released his Conqueror's Haki, the first to suffer were the marines on the nearby warships. One by one, they began losing consciousness and collapsing on the decks.
"Quick, start the warships immediately and retreat!" Some officers on the warships reacted promptly, issuing commands.
"Dammit, this brat already possesses Conqueror's Haki of this level?!" Zephyr thought to himself, inwardly shocked as he watched Kaidou relentlessly release his Conqueror's Haki.
Kaidou pressed on with an unstoppable momentum.
"Yamāntaka·Thunder Bagua!!!!"
"Brat, don't get too cocky." Despite being somewhat astonished by Kaidou's current power, Zephyr resolutely engaged him in battle once more.
"Black Arm·Star Radiance!"
Both moved at speeds barely visible to the naked eye, continuously attacking each other in the air.
"Boom—!"
"Boom—!"
"Boom—!"
At this moment, no figures could be seen in the sky, only the incessant roar of collisions, causing the surrounding sea to surge with massive waves.
....
"Dammit, how is this possible? Kaidou just escaped from the lab not long ago! How can he be this strong!"
"You've got to be kidding me? With this level of strength, how was Kaidou ever put on an experimental table!?"
Some officers on the warship stared in stunned silence as Kaidou fought evenly with Admiral Zephyr.
Meanwhile, similar reactions were occurring among those watching from Kaidou's pirate ship.
"That's Admiral Black Arm Zephyr, right? How is Big Brother Kaidou fighting him like this? Impossible?" Queen exclaimed in disbelief as he watched Kaidou and Zephyr exchanging blows in mid-air.
King beside him remained silent, but his pupils were equally filled with shock.
Though both knew Kaidou's strength had improved significantly recently, neither had imagined he could now trade blows with a Navy Admiral. After all, an Admiral represented the pinnacle of power across the entire world.
Zephyr was currently at his peak, while Kaidou - merely twenty-seven years old - was still in his rapid growth phase. How powerful would Kaidou become in the future? This completely surpassed Queen and King's expectations.
"Not good! Big Brother Kaidou's in danger! King, go help him!"
While watching the battle, Queen suddenly noticed Kaidou's situation turning precarious and immediately urged.
"No need to tell me!" King retorted instantly, his wings already vibrating as he prepared to fly toward Kaidou.
···
In the distance, Zephyr and Kaidou continued their aerial clash.
Finally, Zephyr found an opening and appeared directly above Kaidou.
"Kaidou, sink to the ocean floor!"
"Black Arm·Star Extinction!"
Zephyr unleashed his full power against Kaidou, confident that even if Kaidou survived the blow, the tremendous force would still send him plunging into the sea.
Any Devil Fruit user falling into the ocean would become as helpless as a fish on a cutting board.
But the moment Zephyr's fist descended toward Kaidou's head, Kaidou seemed to foresee it, tilting his head just enough to evade the fatal strike.
Kaidou's body then began expanding rapidly, transforming into a kilometer-long dragon within moments.
"Divine Dragon Tail Swing!"
Kaidou spun his massive body, his enormous tail coated in black Armament Haki sweeping toward Zephyr.
Facing the sudden dragon tail assault, Zephyr didn't hesitate, clenching both fists to meet it head-on.
"BOOM——!"
The colossal tail and black fists collided with deafening impact.
Thanks to his massive size advantage, Zephyr was sent flying hundreds of meters backward.
Of course, Kaidou didn't escape unscathed - two clearly visible fist marks now dented his massive tail.
As Zephyr flew backward, he pondered rapidly: Was that coincidence or Observation Haki's future sight?!
He gazed warily at the terrifying leviathan resembling a divine demon in the distance.
If he remembered correctly, Kaidou was only twenty-five this year. If left unchecked, this Kaidou would inevitably become an unstoppable force.
"Ruinous Wind!"
Kaidou opened his enormous dragon maw, releasing dozens of mountain-splitting wind blades that shot continuously toward Zephyr.
"Hmph!"
Facing the incoming wind blades, Zephyr let out a light snort and continuously moved through the air, dodging when possible and directly shattering the wind blades with a punch when unavoidable.