Kaido of the Beasts

The enormous pirate ship sailed on unopposed.

The massive, burly figure standing on its deck put unparalleled pressure on the Marines at the branch.

The Strongest Creature: Kaido of the Beasts!

Rumor had it that Kaido was the strongest in a one-on-one fight.

Lofan had no idea just how many "strongest" people the pirate world had.

But the lunatic facing him certainly had a chance of claiming the top spot.

For this battle, Lofan was fully focused.

Kaido's black hair fell over his shoulders, and a pair of long horns pointed toward the sky.

His upper body was bare, with an X-shaped scar on the right side of his abdomen. Presumably, that was the one Oden had left.

He carried his Kanabo in his right hand and drank deeply with his left, his eyes fixed on Lofan as he stepped through the air.

His intense killing intent made the air around Lofan feel thick.

"Wororo! Brat, come and die!"

After a rough shout that resounded across heaven and earth, Kaido leaped up.

The Kanabo in his hand broke the sound barrier as he swung it straight at Lofan's face.

Lofan dared not dodge with Flash Step, or Kaido's blow would surely slam into the Marine Branch.

That did not fit the persona he had established.

So he drew his blade to face him head-on and took the blow directly, testing his opponent's strength in the process.

The Kanabo hurtling toward him was named Hassaikai, and it had accompanied Kaido in slaying countless enemies.

Though the blow barely shifted Lofan, both his hands went numb.

The collision sent countless waves surging across the sea beneath his feet.

"Not bad, brat!"

Using Lofan's force, Kaido landed steadily back on the deck and drained the wine from his huge gourd in one gulp.

Anyone who could take a blow from Kaido could already roam unhindered below the Four Emperors.

Kaido decided to increase the force, and lightning instantly crackled over the Kanabo in his hand.

This was Kaido's famous move: Thunder Bagua!

Not only was it immensely powerful, but its speed meant that even someone with Observation Haki capable of Future Sight might not be able to dodge it completely.

Lofan had no intention of fighting an all-out battle here, so he deliberately provoked Kaido, smiling with a puzzled expression as he asked with concern:

"Haven't eaten?"

"..."

Every Marine at the branch had been standing rigid, bracing for a great battle.

Yet in an instant, they had no idea how to respond to this situation.

"Come and die!!!"

Kaido, who had not been insulted like this in years, practically burned with rage. A single stomp shattered the pirate ship beneath his feet.

Kaido shot into the sky, but Lofan had already used a high-speed step to get away, heading through the air toward his destination island.

Boom!!!

Dark clouds filled the sky, and the sea churned below.

An enormous blue dragon appeared, too vast to take in at a glance.

Lightning covered his body as he furiously pursued the white speck on the horizon.

"Ain, can Vice Admiral Lofan handle him?"

Binz looked worried. Kaido's arrival had made him fully understand what stood at the summit of the New World.

Even after only a single look at him, Binz was still shaken.

"I don't know, but we have to believe..."

Ain clenched her fists tightly. She really was still too weak. Apart from believing, there was nothing she could do.

Marineford.

Sengoku received the battle report. Fighting had now begun on both fronts.

Akainu's side held the advantage. As long as Lofan could hold Kaido off for half a day, this Marine operation...

Would all but end in victory.

Beside Sengoku stood an old man whose white hair was shaped like the character for "mountain."

He had a powerful physique and an air of ferocity.

He was the World Government's Commander-in-Chief: Kong!

"I really didn't expect that brat to stir up this much trouble the moment he got out."

Kong folded his arms, the muscles on his thick arms bulging and knotting fiercely. He truly lived up to the name Steel Bone.

"What exactly is going on with Lofan's hypnotic ability?"

Sengoku had placed his trust in Lofan because of that ability.

But at a critical moment, that same lack of understanding filled him with worry.

"I don't know, but you should know that throughout three years of training, his build never changed at all.

It wasn't until he boarded the ship to head out to sea that I immediately noticed he had grown considerably taller."

A trace of gravity appeared in Kong's eyes.

"For three years, I never noticed anything unusual.

If he hadn't deliberately come clean, I'm afraid I would have spent my whole life thinking that was what Lofan looked like.

Do you understand what that means?"

Sengoku narrowed his eyes, a rare fear rising within him.

If that was the case, did Lofan really look like this now?

Was what they saw only what he thought they could see...?

"There's no need to dwell on that. I believe Lofan has justice in his heart, and that's enough.

Did those old men give you any trouble?"

Kong had spent a long time with Lofan, so he felt quite reassured.

"Just political games. They told me they disapproved, yet authorized the operation. They've covered themselves either way."

Kong shook his head without speaking. There was little more he could say on the subject.

The World Government, that incomparably vast institution.

The higher one rose, the more one understood the true nature of certain things.

Lofan and Kaido reached the isolated island at almost the same time.

Although Kaido could fly in his Azure Dragon Form, he lacked agility.

Seeing that Lofan had stopped moving, he immediately unleashed a blast of breath from the air.

A heat wave several kilometers long completely vaporized a mountaintop on the island.

Unharmed, Lofan found an opening and used Flash Step to slash Kaido across the nose.

But he left only a slight scratch, making Lofan frown.

After landing his strike and pulling away, Lofan prepared to hold steady and respond to whatever came, but Kaido reverted from his transformed state.

Using the tremendous momentum of his fall, he launched a fierce Thunder Bagua straight at Lofan.

It seemed Kaido was still rather sore about Lofan asking whether he had eaten.

Lofan did not meet him head-on.

Though his own body was extremely tough, he was at a considerable disadvantage compared to his opponent.

Why pit myself against his strength? After all, I'm not part of the protagonist's crew. I really haven't mastered the skill of getting back up over and over.

Kaido's blow slammed straight into the ground, making the earth quake like a natural disaster.

After a high-speed step, Lofan slashed at Kaido's neck with his Zanpakuto coated in Armament Haki, simultaneously releasing his reiatsu to suppress him.

The instantaneous combination did indeed keep Kaido from defending completely.

But that immensely powerful soul actually withstood its first encounter with reiatsu.

Though his movements were restricted, Kaido still caught Lofan's strike with the demonic horns on his forehead.

"Boy, this power of yours is a lot like Big Mom's ability."

Kaido had spent considerable time with Big Mom, so presumably he had experience with it.

Understanding in an instant, Lofan brushed his left hand over his Zanpakuto's blade and replied with a smile.

"They do work in different ways to similar effect."

"A Devil Fruit? Hah, that alone isn't enough, boy!"

Kaido was extremely fast in his normal form. The moment he finished speaking, he swung the pitch-black Hassaikai at Lofan's waist.

Lofan wanted to dodge with a high-speed step, but Kaido had anticipated his plan.

His enormous body twisted into a spiral, purple lightning crackling in every direction.

Caught off guard, Lofan was sent flying by the blow, blood spraying from his mouth.

He flew sideways into the rainforest, knocking down dozens of towering trees.

"I really do lack practical combat experience..."

Even though Lofan's growth was monstrous thanks to Aizen's talent and learning ability.

And he could hold his own against Kaido for a time at their very first meeting.

His opponent was, after all, a ruler who had risen through decades of life-and-death struggles.

The gap in their experience of familiarizing themselves with an opponent was far from small.

A move like Flash Step presumably only qualified as presentable in Kaido's eyes.

It would not cause him the slightest trouble.

Yet Kaido did not pursue after landing his blow.

He had changed his move at the last moment. Though it had been powerful, it had been difficult to control where it struck.

He wanted to observe Lofan's hidden cards a little longer.

Kaido would never believe that someone who had just fought him to a standstill would fall so easily.