Strength and Brains

"Perhaps the modified body has given you some illusions! The real great pirates possess not only a flawless and powerful physique, but also an overwhelming Haki and an invincible belief!"

"Trying to fight me alone is your biggest mistake!"

After hearing Kaido's words, Vegapunk tilted his head slightly:

"Um... you seem to have made a mistake?"

"I've always been very careful about my own position. Why would you think that a scientist like me would come and fight a great pirate like you?"

As he spoke, Vegapunk waved his hand slightly, and a large number of Advanced Mechanical Warriors and Biochemical Modified Weapons poured out of the prison behind him.

At the same time, a flash of light appeared around the Beasts Pirates, and a large number of creations made by Vegapunk instantly surrounded the entire Beasts Pirates.

Damn it! I was just joking, can you please take these people back?!

Kaido swallowed hard. These robots didn't look like ordinary grunts at all. Under normal circumstances, the Beasts Pirates wouldn't be afraid of them.

But now... Kaido looked at his weak and feeble Devil Fruit User. Almost all the strong Beasts Pirates had eaten Zoan Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit, and the next-ranking elites had eaten Artificial Devil Fruit. Now they were almost all wiped out.

The only ones left with any fighting ability are the grunts. Can you really expect these small fry to deal with Vegapunk's combat robots? Kaido isn't that naive.

"Etc!"

Kaido waved his hand and spoke somewhat hastily:

"Kozuki Hiyori, you're supposed to be the daughter of a samurai family, you wouldn't lay a hand on a defenseless opponent, would you? And Yamato, the Kozuki Oden you admire isn't the kind of person who bullies the weak, is he?"

Kaido is a battle maniac, and with his confidence in himself, he is not afraid of the robots' attack. However, protecting his subordinates under the robot's siege is a difficult task for him.

It's easy for Kaido to kill people, but he doesn't have the ability to protect so many. Besides, his Devil Fruit power isn't in that direction either.

If all of his elite subordinates were to perish here, it would be no different from the Beasts Pirates being wiped out. Kaido doesn't want to be a commander without any troops!

"Their opinions are irrelevant. As a scientist, I don't care about honor or anything like that. They've even resorted to such underhanded tactics. Do you think I care about such things?"

Vegapunk had a smile on his face, looking all smug, which made Kaido angry that he wanted to smash his club across Vegapunk's face—and Kaido did just that.

"Go to hell! If I kill you, nothing will happen!"

The spiked Spiked Club swinging in mid-air suddenly stopped, Kaido felt his whole body stiffen, as if some strange force was controlling his body.

The stiff Kaido lowered his gaze slightly and saw Vegapunk's shadow extend out, completely merging with his own enormous shadow.

Shadow Imitation Technique! A signature Ninjutsu of the Nara Clan Konoha, it may seem ordinary and unremarkable, and its destructive power may not be strong, but in reality, the effect of this control Ninjutsu is extremely amazing.

Basically, once a strong opponent of the same level is controlled, they have no chance to escape. It also has a huge restraining effect on stronger opponents. If there are partners around to help, even an opponent two or three levels higher can be taken down by the strong control and critical hit if you're not careful!

In the Ninja World, the Nara Clan's Shadow Technique is already quite Daimyo. Almost every Genin who hasn't just graduated from the Ninja Academy has some understanding of this mysterious and strange Ninjutsu.

However, even with such a reputation, the Nara Clan's pineapple-shaped hairstyle is quite distinctive, and every year countless ninjas still fall victim to the Nara Clan's shadow techniques. This is not only due to the Nara Clan's inherited high intelligence, but also because the shadow techniques themselves are indeed silent and difficult to defend against.

Not to mention that this was the first time Shadow Ninjutsu had appeared in the Pirate World, and it also came with the effect of killing on first sight, so it naturally controlled the unsuspecting Kaido instantly.

Although Vegapunk's raw strength surpasses Kaido's, not to mention that Kaido is currently under restrictions, in a real fight, a user of Conqueror's Haki like Kaido would almost certainly go into a state of extreme power. Even if Vegapunk managed to win after fighting tooth and nail, he would probably be beaten half to death and severely injured.

Since I'm not a combat-oriented character, I'll just stay a support role! In any case, given the difference in strength between the two sides, no matter how much Kaido unleashes his power, he won't be able to break free from the Shadow Imitation Technique before Vegapunk runs out of Chakra.

As for exhausting Vegapunk's Chakra, it would probably take at least seven or eight hours—let alone seven or eight hours, if Vegapunk just pulled out some advanced technology, Kaido dared not dodge, he could be taken down in seven or eight seconds!

"You... you bastard! What kind of weird Devil Fruit ability are you using?! Let me go!!"

"Stop talking nonsense, just stand here and watch! You bunch of idiot pirates who are all Devil Fruit are too easy to deal with!"

With a slight pursing of his lips, Vegapunk's Mechanical Creations had already begun fighting against the Beasts Pirates' grunts. Without elite core members, the enemy was easily routed.

Furthermore, with all the strongmen down, the ragtag soldiers had little desire to fight, and a large number of them quickly surrendered.

Giant pirate crews like the Beasts Pirates are practically Sea Kingdom. They can't possibly maintain their bonds through partnerships like smaller pirate crews. Therefore, ordinary pirates only see the Beasts Pirates as a source of support, and they don't have much loyalty to them.

"Damn it, you bastard, you scoundrel! Vegapunk, you bastard, let me go and fight you head-on!!!"

Kaido, who was under control, roared angrily, while Vegapunk remained indifferent and directly refused:

"Sorry, I'm all about brains, I don't want to wrestle with someone like you who relies on muscle."

Just then, Jin, who had been panting and crouching on the ground unnoticed, suddenly leaped up, condensing an energy ball of flames and ice in his hand.

"Ice-Fire Grand Explosion!"

As the energy sphere formed by the two energies exploded instantly due to its internal instability, it directly blasted Vegapunk back two steps.

But most importantly, in the intense light of the explosion, the shadow connecting Vegapunk and Kaido disappeared without a trace, finally freeing Kaido.

"Well done, Jhin!"

Kaido was overjoyed, and his Conqueror's Haki surged forth, even causing black Inazuma in the air.

"Die, you damned Vegapunk! Thunder Bagua!"

"This is really troublesome..."

Vegapunk muttered to himself, stretched out his hand, and easily blocked Kaido's spiked Spiked Club with his clean, calloused hand, which wasn't even covered by Haki.

Kaido's eyes narrowed slightly. Then, he released his Spiked Club and slammed down with a powerful punch. This time, the effect was far greater than Thunder Bagua, sending Vegapunk flying back several steps.

"Did you figure it out? Tsk, I hate guys like you who fight without thinking, relying on guts. You can find weaknesses just by intuition."

Vegapunk said with a hint of helplessness. The reason he was able to easily withstand Thunder Bagua was not because his physical body was so Kaido's, but simply because the Spiked Club used to unleash Thunder Bagua was controlled by his Electromagnetic Ability.

Even with the addition of Chakra, Vegapunk could only barely contend with Kaido in terms of physical strength alone, and it wouldn't be possible for him to hold out for very long.

Of course, whether it's Devil Fruit abilities or the Chakra system, Vegapunk belongs to the energy attack type, so it's normal that his physical body is not as strong as Kaido's.

"Don't think you can defeat me with some tricks and schemes! As a veteran pirate, let me teach you the most basic principle! Only strength matters! Absolute strength can suppress everything!"

Kaido's expression was somewhat excited, revealing a ferocious smile. Dark Haki crawled up his large hands, even carrying faint black Haki, Inazuma he vaguely broke through the seal of the Sea Stone Factor, growing fine dragon scales.

Tilting his head, Vegapunk wore an amused expression:

"What you say makes a lot of sense... but the question is, do you have any absolute power?"

The idea that absolute power can sweep away all conspiracies and schemes is not entirely wrong, but the requirement for such absolute power is truly enormous.

In Vegapunk's view, for power to completely compensate for cunning, it would have to be the difference between modern technology and the feudal era! Anyway, with Kaido's power, saying that would definitely only make people laugh.

"Hmph! Sharp-tongued! Just wait until I catch you, then you'll see if I have absolute power!"

Kaido, clenching his fists, was ready to continue his attack, but Vegapunk had already lost all will to fight.

He was never one to enjoy fighting. Moreover, every battle he fought was actually a combat program in his Brain Chip directing his physical body, which could not possibly improve his combat experience or enhance his Haki aura.

Vegapunk was unwilling to do anything that offered no benefit and could even result in injury.

With a casual reach, a powerful Magnetic Field instantly transformed into Wormhole, spreading out in an instant.

Kaido's eyes widened in surprise, then he realized what was happening and flew into a rage:

"You bastard! Don't you have any shame?! You just ran away like that!!"

Unfortunately, by the time Kaido rushed over, the Wormhole had already enveloped Vegapunk, Kozuki Hiyori, Yamato, and then vanished instantly.

Kaido's fist, brimming with power, merely shattered the air and sent the dozen or so robots that emerged from the prison flying.

A large number of robots charged forward without hesitation, their Laser Weapon and High-Frequency Vibration Sword causing Kaido to frown.

Even without the boost from Haki, the lethality of these high-tech weapons is no less than that of a regular swordsman's basic attack. Kaido at his peak could completely ignore them, at most only expending some of his stamina. However, with his Devil Fruit powers suppressed, there was still a possibility that his defenses could be breached.

"Hateful..."

After knocking away several more robots, Kaido had no choice but to cover his entire body with Armament Haki and glance around.

At this moment, the other members of the Beasts Pirates had basically been captured by the robots. The robots didn't bother to manage the Beasts Pirates' grunts, but instead grabbed the Devil Fruit User were currently limp and threw them into a mechanical Teleportation Array that they had created on the spot.

"Damn it, just how many robots does this guy have? We can't let this go on!"

"That Teleportation Array... could it be a place where prisoners are held?"

Kaido frowned, undecided, but seeing that even the greatly weakened King was showing signs of being unable to hold on, he finally made up his mind.

"If this continues, I'm afraid even I'll eventually be worn down! These robots are just too sturdy!"

Vegapunk's robots don't have any special features. They use Laser Weapon and high-frequency oscillation weapons for attack, and high-strength shape Memory Metal for defense.

Even if it's smashed to pieces, as long as other robots are there to piece it back together, it can regain its fighting power as the Memory Metal restores it.

Despite fighting for so long and having nearly a hundred robots destroyed by Kaido, his actual achievements are probably less than double digits. As long as the destroyed robots are not damaged in some core areas, they can be fully restored by simply piecing them together.

Kaido, however, is already feeling a slight drop in stamina. Even though Four Emperors- level pirates can often fight for days and nights, they rest while fighting, not constantly using Haki to defend and attack.

Not to mention the Sea Stone Factor enveloped the entire Onigashima, which also had a huge impact on Kaido, a Devil Fruit User, causing his stamina consumption rate to increase by dozens of times.

Under the influence of all these circumstances, Kaido knew very well that he could only fight for three to five hours at most, and given the robots he saw, three to five hours would definitely not be enough for him to break through.

Not to mention that the entire Beasts Pirates were captured and escaped, and he, a Four Emperors, escaped alone... Does Kaido have no dignity left?

Under these circumstances, Kaido gritted his teeth and unleashed a powerful burst of Conqueror's Haki Infusion without hesitation, blasting away all the mechanical warriors in one direction and charging towards the Teleportation Array.

As for where the Teleportation Array would take him, Kaido didn't care at all. In any case, it couldn't be worse than it was now. Even if he ended up in some prison cell, this Strongest Creature in the Sea, Land, and Air was confident that he could escape!

With a swing of his Spiked Club, Kaido instantly sent the machine warriors who tried to stop him flying. Then, he plunged headfirst into the Teleportation Array.