Dragon Breath!

"That brat called Su Yu! Get your ass out here!"

After saying that, Kaido threw caution to the wind and opened his enormous maw. He tilted his head back as though gathering power, light pooling in his mouth, then aimed at Red Tree No. 13 and unleashed a blast of Dragon Breath.

A terrifying beam of searing, ferocious energy burst from Kaido's mouth and shot straight toward Red Tree No. 13. Wherever it passed, space itself seemed unable to withstand its immense power and began to tremble violently.

"Oh no!"

Kizaru's heart jolted at the sight of Kaido's attack, but the beam was too fast. He had no time to reach it and could only watch as it struck the enormous trunk.

In truth, even if Kizaru had made it in time, he had no confidence that he could stop that terrifying beam. To him, it hardly looked like an attack a human could produce.

The other civilians and pirates stared wide-eyed at the world-destroying beam, the scene before them looking like the end of days. Despair filled their hearts, and quite a few burst into tears from sheer terror.

The beam struck the enormous tree head-on. For an instant, the entire world seemed to fall silent. Then an indescribably deafening explosion erupted, shaking the whole island without pause.

The point of impact seemed to warp space itself, collapsing violently toward the center as though shrinking into a single point. Then the contraction stopped, and it began expanding rapidly outward from the center, releasing a dazzling radiance. A tidal wave of energy erupted from its core and swept outward. The entire area of Red Tree No. 13 was like a lone boat tossed about in a storm, pitiful, frail, and helpless.

An enormous ball of energy now bloomed at the point of impact, while winds rivaling a typhoon ravaged the surrounding space.

The catastrophe continued for a long time before gradually subsiding. When the smoke cleared, nothing remained where the tree had once stood, only an enormous crater.

Fortunately, the site was some distance from the residential areas, so there were no casualties.

The civilians and pirates who had escaped disaster stared at the enormous crater, still shaken. They trembled, not daring to speak. That monster in the sky truly had the power to destroy the world!

Kizaru was shaken as well, muttering, "This really is... so frightening!"

Rayleigh inwardly shook his head too. A monster indeed. An attack like that was far too outrageous.

Suddenly, someone remembered that the monster in the sky seemed to have shouted something before attacking. Had he come looking for someone?

Meanwhile, the pirates still inside Su Yu's bar had only just recovered from their panic. Their eyes involuntarily turned toward Su Yu, whose expression remained calm, as though nothing had happened. Their gazes held a complicated mixture of fear, gloating, and confusion.

Clearly, they had heard what Kaido had shouted earlier. Now they were all curious how this previously cocky owner would act when faced with Kaido, one of the Four Emperors. Would he kneel and beg pathetically for mercy, or would Kaido burn him into nothingness with a blast of Dragon Breath, just like that tree?

"Boss..."

Miland walked over to Su Yu, still rattled and unsure what to do. He had seen the power of that blast perfectly clearly. He knew that even with the God Cloth of Pegasus, merely surviving an attack of that caliber would be an impressive feat. His boss was certainly stronger than him, but he had no idea whether Su Yu could stop the monster in the sky.

"Relax. Wait here. I'll go out and take a look."

Su Yu reassured his boy. Against someone like Kaido, even if he stood there and let him do whatever he pleased, Kaido would not so much as break through his defenses!

The surrounding pirates reacted differently to Su Yu's words, unsure whether he was putting on a brave face or genuinely had something to back him up. Miland, however, trusted Su Yu completely and immediately relaxed upon hearing his reassurance.

Su Yu then put down the book in his hand, rose from the couch, and calmly walked outside.

Outside, dark clouds still shrouded the sky, though the massive explosion had dispersed a good portion of them. Kaido's body was now exposed: a mystical azure dragon over a hundred meters long, baring his fangs and brandishing his claws as he circled overhead.

Everyone was stunned by Kaido's enormous body. They stared blankly at the Divine Dragon twisting through the sky, their mouths hanging open, oblivious even to the drool trickling out.

"You little shit! Get your ass out here!"

Unleashing a blast of Dragon Breath seemed to have calmed Kaido considerably. Though he was still shouting, his tone no longer seemed quite as savage as before.

Su Yu stepped out of the bar and wasted no time. He flew straight into the sky, stopping a few hundred meters in front of Kaido's dragon head.

"What do you want with your daddy?!"

Su Yu's voice echoed through the air as though amplified, matching Kaido's booming volume.

Seeing Su Yu finally come out, Kizaru breathed a sigh of relief. As for the fact that Su Yu was flying outright rather than using Geppo, he could no longer be bothered to feel surprised. After all, Su Yu was incredibly powerful. Being able to fly was perfectly reasonable...

Kaido now noticed the "little speck" before him as well. Upon hearing Su Yu's insolent words, he immediately flew into a rage. Brutal and short on words, he opened his mouth and fired another blast of Dragon Breath straight at Su Yu.

The crowd below watched the familiar beam with pounding hearts, silently mourning Su Yu as he stood in its path. In their eyes, he was as good as dead.

Most of the pirates who knew Su Yu were filled with malicious glee. In truth, no matter who stood in that position, so long as it was not them, they would gloat over the loss of a life. That was what real pirates were like.

Watching the beam hurtle straight toward him, Su Yu started opening his mouth, only to clamp it shut halfway through. He had originally intended to swallow the Dragon Breath outright, since that would look more visually spectacular. But just as he was about to do it, a thought struck him. Wait a second! This fucking beam came out of Kaido's mouth!

At that thought, Su Yu immediately felt uncomfortable, a wave of belated dread washing over him. If I caught it like that, wouldn't it basically mean swallowing Kaido's spit?! There's no way I'm taking this one with my mouth!

Thank goodness I came to my senses at the last moment. Phew...

Su Yu then extended his right hand. It was pale, clean, and slender, forming a stark contrast to the explosive beam. Yet that seemingly powerless hand stood directly in its path.

Seeing Su Yu simply stand there without guarding himself, casually holding out one hand, Kaido erupted with rage. You little bastard! How dare you insult me like this! He poured even more power into his attack, making the already massive Dragon Breath thicker still!