THE STRONGEST CREATURE OF THE BEAST PIRATES

The red-haired Shanks took a deep breath. The matter had come to this point—he could only fight now.

"Scatter!"

The eight core cadres of the Red-Haired Pirates jumped out of the range of Kaido's intense heat with perfect coordination.

Shanks pulled out his sword, Griffin, and swung it to cut through the heat breath. The attack was sliced cleanly in two, but the remaining force left behind two deep pits exuding scorching breath on the island.

"It's quite capable. So what?" Kaido's blue dragon body roared. "wind!"

Kaido opened his mouth, releasing countless wind blades that tore through the Red-Haired Pirates' formation.

Beckman said, "Though it's more against less, at this point, we can't afford to be cautious. Let's go together and drive Kaido back first."

The seven core cadres, including Usopp's father, Lucky Roo, Bonk Punch, and Limejuice, all nodded in agreement.

With that, the Red-Haired Pirates, including Shanks, launched a coordinated assault on Kaido.

Shanks unleashed his saber, cutting down the wind blades that came his way, then jumped into the sky and slashed at Kaido's dragon scales.

Beckman and Lucky Roo fired bullets coated in their Haki, while the rest bombarded Kaido's dragon body with a variety of attacks—swords, guns, electric shocks, and shock waves.

However, Kaido's dragon scales proved to be impenetrable. Most of their attacks didn't even leave a scratch, but Shanks and Beckman managed to inflict some damage.

Kaido roared in pain, but immediately burst into wild laughter. "It hurts! This kind of pain is the real battle! Keep going, brats!"

"Tornado!"

Kaido whipped up a swirling vortex of air, creating a massive tornado that lifted Shanks into the sky and threw him to the ground.

The destructive force was overwhelming. The ground and trees on the island were uprooted, leaving the core cadres of the Red-Haired Pirates stunned.

"With destructive power like this, no wonder they call him the strongest creature in the sea, land, and air," Lucky Roo muttered.

Meanwhile, several ships from the Beasts Pirates appeared on the horizon. Yamato watched the battle unfold from the deck of one of the ships. She spoke with a confident smirk, her red lips gleaming.

"That old man is really bragging," Yamato said. "He got hurt so soon."

Queen, standing nearby, scoffed. "After all, Kaido's facing an entire group of Red-Haired Pirates. No one else could fight off such a force alone. Kaido's the only boss in this sea!"

King observed the scene carefully. "There are only nine enemies, but once Mr. Kaido unleashes his power, this island will be obliterated. Half-baked fighters shouldn't join the war."

King transformed into a pteranodon and took flight toward the island. He couldn't stand by and let his revered leader Kaido be overwhelmed.

Shortly after, Queen, Flying Six, and several other reliable fighters joined him on the island.

Yamato was the last to act, carefully selecting her opponent. Since her chains were broken by Alastor, Yamato had been free to unleash her full strength.

Though she hadn't had much time to train as Wano's general, she could feel that her strength had subtly grown. Her haki had sharpened—her willpower was stronger than ever.

She wanted to test her newfound power and experience the strong outside world for herself.

The opponent Yamato had initially wanted to face was none other than Shanks, as she had read about him in Oden's diary. However, Shanks was already engaged in battle, leaving no opening for Yamato.

Instead, Yamato focused on someone else—someone radiating immense power.

She soon sensed a formidable presence—someone with a graying back and blue cloak.

"You are the one!" Yamato declared, stretching her muscles and popping her chest out proudly.

Strangely, after her transformation in the hot spring bath, Yamato felt like she had grown noticeably larger. But that wasn't something she cared much about.

With a leap, Yamato launched herself into the air and charged directly at the man with the gray back.

As Beckman was strategizing how to repel Kaido, a warning instinct suddenly surged within him. A dangerous aura was approaching.

He quickly turned around and scanned the battlefield. None of the usual suspects—Flame Calamity Ashura, Plague Queen, or even Thunder Calamity Alastor—seemed to be behind the attack.

But the person who appeared before him was someone entirely unexpected—a strange woman.

Beckman frowned, his sharp intellect struggling to place her. "Who are you? I don't want to harm a woman. Maybe I should call for Ashura…"

Yamato smirked. "My name is Joy Boy! If you want to defeat me, you'll have to face him later."

Beckman's hand holding the cigarette trembled. With his wisdom and calmness, he was rarely caught off guard, and for a moment, he wondered if his ears had deceived him.

After a few moments, Beckman looked at Yamato with a strange expression and spoke in disbelief:

"You're Joy Boy? Stop joking—such jokes aren't funny!"

Yamato responded seriously, "I'm not joking. Remember, I'll become Joy Boy! Take this—Thunder Bagua!"

Yamato charged forward, her mace crackling with purple lightning, enveloped by Haki.

Beckman was about to scoff, dismissing the idea that Joy Boy could be a woman, especially since that Devil Fruit was already consumed by Luffy. But when he saw Yamato's Thunder Bagua entwined with Haki, his expression froze.

"Conqueror's Haki?" Beckman muttered, his eyes widening. Only a handful of the strongest could wield such power. "Who the hell is she?"

Beckman knew he could no longer underestimate Yamato. His entire body tensed as he prepared to defend with his own Haki.

The two clashed, unleashing a violent wave of power that swept across the island. Beckman was sent flying, coughing up blood and injured from Yamato's devastating blow.

The Red-Haired Pirates and their crew watched in stunned silence, witnessing the vice-captain of their crew being overpowered. The question rang in their minds—where had the Hundred Beasts found such a powerful woman who could injure Beckman?

At the center of the island, the red-haired Shanks, who was locked in a fierce battle with Kaido, sensed the disturbance and frowned, feeling something was off.

"The Hundred Beasts have a fighter like that, and the world knows nothing about her?" Shanks muttered, confusion flickering in his eyes.

"Hmph, are you surprised?" Kaido grinned. "Though Yamato's an unfilial child, he's my descendant—it's natural he's strong!"

The redhead's brow furrowed as he briefly thought of his own daughter, Uta. The comparison gnawed at him.

"Red Hair, don't get distracted by the brats. They say you have the strongest Conqueror's Haki—show it to me!" Kaido's fighting spirit surged. "Let me see if you're truly worthy!"

Kaido transformed into his full dragon form, his massive blue body towering over the island. His eyes gleamed with anticipation as he roared, "Show me your true strength!"

The red-haired Shanks gritted his teeth, knowing he couldn't hold back anymore. He unleashed his own Conqueror's Haki, the black-red aura pulsing with terrifying intensity. Boulders cracked under the pressure.

Thanks to King's warning, most of the Beasts Pirates had stayed away from the island, or they would've been incapacitated by the force of Shanks' Haki.

"Ha! This Conqueror's Haki feels just like Captain Roger's and Captain Rocks' from back in the day!" Kaido exclaimed, his grin growing wider.

"I regret not facing them," Kaido admitted, his voice filled with longing. "The strongest title I carry is one earned by defeating opponents one by one, but those two—Rocks and Roger—I'll never have the chance to fight them."

"Red Hair, can you fulfill my wish?" Kaido's excitement reached a fever pitch.

The redhead's expression became more serious, but he knew deep down that even with his formidable Conqueror's Haki, it wouldn't be enough to sway Kaido.

Kaido continued his relentless assault, activating his own Thunder Bagua, even fiercer and more destructive than Yamato's. His mace crackled with electricity, flames, and Haki, his momentum increasing with each strike.

"Thunder Bagua!"

A deafening roar erupted as Kaido smashed his mace toward the red-haired Shanks, the sky splitting and crackling with black and red lightning.

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