Kaido's flesh was being sliced open, Flowing Sakura Ten-Thousand Edge descended slowly, yet with a force that nothing could resist.
Before everyone's eyes, the massive dragon claw that could crush an island began shrinking visibly as the sword cut deeper.
Sweat poured down Kaido's face. A strange force held his dragon claw tightly against the blade; no matter how he pulled, he couldn't break free.
Agony burned through him. The blade had already pierced into muscle and was about to reach the bone.
Under the overwhelming pressure, Kaido focused every ounce of power into the wounded spot, his Azure Dragon form was forcibly undone.
At the same time, Kaido gripped his kanabo. Haki surged around it. Snarling, he brought the club smashing toward the immense Flowing Sakura Ten-Thousand Edge.
"RAIMEI HAKKE!!!"
His full-strength strike landed squarely on the pressure point. With that impact, he finally freed his left hand!
The wound had reached the marrow, had he been even a second slower, his left arm might have been severed entirely.
His kanabo shattered from the impact, but Kaido ripped his hand away. Mihawk, having lost his target, collapsed unconscious from exhaustion.
Shanks stared at Kaido's exposed hand bone in disbelief.
"The power of that slash… it shook the heavens…"
Before Mihawk could hit the ground, Shanks caught him. Kaido's left arm hung limp, its nerves severed, dragon tendons torn.
"Mihawk! I'll kill you! How dare you wound me!!"
Rage exploded in Kaido's chest. His supposedly indestructible body… had been injured.
Unbearable humiliation.
With a violent leap, Kaido launched himself dozens of meters into the air, charging straight toward Mihawk's unconscious body.
"Kaido! If you take one more step, I swear I'll bury you here today!"
Shanks glared at him, just the look in his eyes froze Kaido in place.
Shanks still had a trump card. He didn't want to reveal his full power yet; it would ruin his plans.
But Mihawk's life, his friend's life, he would protect without hesitation. If Kaido insisted on a death match, then so be it.
"Shanks…"
Pain pulsed through Kaido's wrist. Holding his nearly broken left hand, he glared at Shanks and the unconscious Mihawk.
Since becoming a Yonko, he had never suffered humiliation like this.
Even a fool could see the situation no longer favored him.
"Mihawk… Shanks… I'll remember this. One day, you'll pay with blood."
Grinding his teeth, face pale, Kaido backed away. The Beast Pirates surged in behind him. The Red-Hair Pirates rushed to meet them.
Shanks snorted coldly.
"Then get lost."
Kaido didn't hesitate, he turned and ran. Beyond brute force, he possessed sharp instincts for survival. He knew when to retreat.
Live now, fight later, he understood that better than anyone.
The livestream image shook violently, then cut to black.
"Sensei Saitama! That monster got defeated! Holy crap! That sword was huge, big enough to split a whole city in half!"
Genos was overwhelmed by the fight between Red-Hair Shanks, Dracule Mihawk, and Kaido. When Kaido was forced out of his dragon form,
When Flowing Sakura Ten-Thousand Edge nearly chopped off his dragon claw,
Even Genos' scalp tingled. The Hero Association had already issued a notice: the monster in the broadcast was at least Dragon+ level.
And the man who swung that sword could rank top three in the entire Hero Association.
Unbelievably strong.
"That battle got my blood pumping! Hahaha!"
Uchiha Madara clicked his tongue in admiration. Just watching the livestream gave him the same thrill he felt battling Hashirama.
"With that sword… even Hashirama's Thousand-Armed Kannon would get smashed instantly."
He hadn't felt such excitement in ages. His blood boiled. But the shinobi world had no opponent who could challenge him anymore.
If only he could fight the monsters from that video, he could finally go all out again.
Maybe he wasn't weaker than them at all.
"Mamamama… Why didn't that brat Mihawk keep going and cut Kaido's claw off? Mama wanted to roast dragon claw meat!"
Perospero broke into a cold sweat. Thankfully Kaido survived, if he had lost his claw, Mama's cravings would've turned him into food.
"Brother, Mama's acting weird. Looks like her food craving sickness might flare up. If she wants Kaido's claw… what do we do?"
Oven stepped forward anxiously. Perospero licked his candy cane, voice trembling.
"If Mama really enters her craving state… we'll have to follow her to Kaido. We can't let Mama die outside."
And the Beast Pirates weren't just Kaido, there were plenty of other monsters there.
"Beautiful! Mihawk! I knew I didn't misjudge you! Kaido's headache has finally been dealt with!"
Sengoku was overjoyed. In the final moments of the stream, he saw Kaido fleeing in disgrace. He nearly jumped with excitement.
"That fight was incredible! Kaido was almost crippled! Didn't expect that idiot Kaido to actually make the smart choice at the crucial moment."
If Mihawk had truly cut off Kaido's left arm, once the Marineford War ended, the Marines would certainly hunt him down.
The broadcast hadn't stopped. In the darkness, a line of text slowly appeared:
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