Chapter 172: Crashing Beast Pirate

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"Kunmoku… He couldn't even withstand a single strike!"

The remaining three members of the Tobiroppo stared at Byakuya in utter shock, fear flickering in their eyes. 

Kunmoku, while the weakest among them, was still a member of the elite Tobiroppo. 

The gap in strength among them wasn't supposed to be this vast. 

For Byakuya to have slain Kunmoku with a single slash meant that they, too, wouldn't stand a chance. At best, they might survive two strikes.

The realization was sobering. A powerhouse like Byakuya was far beyond their league. 

Even the Calamities wouldn't be a match for him. This was undoubtedly a fighter with Admiral-level strength. 

Only Kaido himself could hope to take him down. Jack noticed the fear in his Tobiroppo comrades' expressions and smirked disdainfully. 

'Now you're scared? He thought. Did you think Byakuya would be that easy to deal with?' 

'You fools believed you could kill him and earn the right to challenge me?'

'If you had the strength to defeat Byakuya, you wouldn't just qualify to become a Calamity—you could leave the Beast Pirates and establish your Emperor-level crew in the New World.'

Turning his thoughts inward, Jack recalled the scene of Kunmoku being sliced in two. He couldn't shake his disbelief at Byakuya's growth. 

How did this guy get so much stronger in just a few months?

Kaido, too, was deeply unsettled. He hadn't expected Byakuya's strength to rival that of the Marines' Admirals—perhaps even surpassing them. 

If not for Caesar Clown being in Byakuya's hands, Kaido would've preferred to avoid such a confrontation.

And this battle hasn't even truly begun, Kaido thought grimly. We've already lost a high-ranking officer. 

What a terrible start. Still, he couldn't afford to show weakness in front of his subordinates.

Kaido roared furiously, "You damned Marine! You'll pay for what you've done to my men!"

Kaido charged toward Byakuya, each massive step leaving craters in the ground and causing the entire island to tremble. 

Despite his enormous size, Kaido moved with astonishing speed. 

In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Byakuya, his fist—large as a house—hurtling down like a meteor.

The sheer force of Kaido's punch created a powerful gust of wind, causing Byakuya's Justice cape to flap wildly. But Byakuya was faster. 

He sidestepped with precision, reappearing behind Kaido, ready to strike.

Just as Byakuya raised his blade caught the faintest hint of a smirk on Kaido's lips. 

A foreboding sense of danger surged through his Kenbunshoku Haki.

"Raimei Hakke!" Kaido roared, swinging his massive kanabo with lightning-fast speed. 

The weapon, cloaked in Haoshoku Haki, crackled with black and purple lightning, distorting the very air around it. 

The sheer force of the attack caused the ground to quake, and the space around it seemed ready to shatter.

Damn it! Attacking from behind like a coward? Byakuya cursed inwardly, instantly coating his sword in Busoshoku Haki, turning its blade an ominous black. 

At the last moment, Byakuya spun around and raised his sword to block the incoming strike.

"CLANG!"

The collision produced a deafening boom, followed by a shockwave that tore through the island. 

Trees were uprooted, and debris filled the air. 

Jack and the Tobiroppo shielded their ears, barely managing to keep their footing against the sheer force of the blast.

From a distance, they couldn't believe what they were witnessing. Is Byakuya really on par with Kaido-sama?

Kaido himself was equally shocked. Byakuya had not only blocked his full-force Raimei Hakke, but he had done so without moving a single step. 

This meant Byakuya had withstood Kaido's might head-on and still had strength to spare.

Kaido retrieved his kanabo and looked at Byakuya with newfound respect. "I never imagined that a Marine Vice Admiral could possess such power." 

"To be honest, I'd say you're even stronger than Akainu from the last time we fought. The Marines… truly unfathomable."

Byakuya remained silent, standing tall with Kazekiri in hand. 

He knew that Kaido's surprise stemmed from the fact that he had just showcased far more strength than a Vice Admiral should possess. 

Though Byakuya had been holding back for the sake of maintaining his cover, Kaido's sneak attack had forced him to retaliate with his full strength.

In truth, Byakuya deliberately kept his apparent strength at the level of a top-tier Admiral. 

It was enough to handle most situations, even against an Emperor. Anything more would draw suspicion from Sengoku or the World Government. 

After all, his ultimate goal was to rise through the ranks—to become an Admiral, or even Fleet Admiral—and take full control of the Marines to harvest immense world energy. 

Exposing his full strength now would jeopardize that ambition. Kaido, meanwhile, was growing uneasy. 

For all his bravado about finding death exciting, he had no real desire to die, especially not today. 

In the face of Byakuya's overwhelming strength, the retreat began to seem like the most prudent option.

King should have reached G-5 by now to retrieve Caesar, Kaido reasoned. With the mission complete, losing Kunmoku isn't the worst outcome.

Turning to Jack, Kaido barked, "Find Queen in the forest and prepare to retreat!"

Jack and the Tobiroppo froze, stunned by the order. Kaido was planning to retreat?

They didn't dare question him. Without hesitation, they turned and ran into the forest to carry out his command.

Byakuya's sharp gaze followed their movements. "Running? You think I'll let you escape?"

He swung Kazekiri, releasing a crescent-shaped slash that tore through the sky, heading straight for Jack and the others. The Tobiroppo panicked, realizing they had no means to counter such a powerful attack.

Just as the slash was about to reach them, a kanabo reinforced with Busoshoku Haki intercepted it.

Another earth-shattering clash erupted as Kaido blocked Byakuya's attack. 

Despite the Haki reinforcement, his kanabo sustained a deep gash, and the impact sent a tremor through his hands. 

The sheer force left Kaido's palm numb and his grip faltering. Kaido stared at Byakuya, the severity of the situation sinking in. 'This Marine… could kill me.'

Kaido realized that if he didn't use his full strength today, even if he managed to escape, his subordinates would all fall to Byakuya.

"Byakuya, let me show you just how powerful the so-called 'strongest creature' truly is!"

Kaido tossed aside his damaged iron kanabo. The multi-ton weapon hit the ground with a massive thud, kicking up a cloud of dust. 

Byakuya could tell that Kaido was preparing to unleash the full power of his Devil Fruit—the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon, a Mythical Zoan.

This Devil Fruit was said to have been gifted to Kaido by Big Mom after the dissolution of the Rocks Pirates. 

For Big Mom to casually give away such a powerful fruit spoke volumes about their relationship, which was undoubtedly more complicated than it appeared.

Kaido raised his head and let out a thunderous dragon roar. His massive body began to transform, elongating rapidly into a serpentine shape. 

Pale blue scales emerged, shimmering with a near-indestructible toughness. 

His spine was adorned with flowing black mane-like hair, and sharp claws sprouted beneath his soft underbelly. 

Flames wreathed his form as new dragon horns resembling antlers grew alongside the curved horns above his brows.

The colossal dragon, hundreds of meters long, coiled in the sky, radiating an overwhelming sense of power and awe. 

The sight was leagues beyond the transformation seen in Momonosuke's awkward dragon form.

Kaido's enormous dragon head loomed over Byakuya, his deep voice resonating. 

"You're one of the few people on this sea who has forced me to use my Devil Fruit abilities."

Byakuya smirked, his gaze fixating on Kaido's four horns. "Nice horns," he remarked, his eyes alight with anticipation.

Ever since he had cut off Jack's mammoth tusks, Byakuya had been wondering if Kaido's dragon horns could also be harvested. 

Perhaps they could even be forged into Kazekiri to enhance its power. He hadn't expected the opportunity to come so soon.

Before either side could make a move, Jack and the three Tobiroppo who had just fled into the forest came stumbling back out.

Kaido's face darkened with rage. "What are you doing? Didn't I tell you to leave immediately?"

Jack, visibly uneasy, pointed toward the depths of the forest, his expression grim. 

Kaido and Byakuya both turned to look, only to see three figures emerging—or rather, five if you included the two being carried by the man leading the group.

Byakuya's eyes widened with surprise and delight as he recognized the newcomer. "Zephyr-sensei?"

He then shifted his gaze to the two familiar figures trailing behind Zephyr. "Ain? Tashigi? Are you all right?"

Ain and Tashigi smiled, their voices tinged with relief. "We're fine, Senior Byakuya."

Hearing their reassurances, Byakuya finally relaxed. When he saw Zephyr, he had already guessed that the former instructor had saved Ain and Tashigi.

Kaido, on the other hand, was seething with fury. His rage only grew when he realized who Zephyr was carrying—Queen and Page One. 

As for Sasaki, who hadn't shown up, it was clear he had likely been killed by the Marines.

Although Zephyr's strength had waned with age, he still retained the power of a lower-tier Admiral. 

Against opponents like Page One and Queen, it was only a matter of time before they fell.

Kaido hadn't expected this mission to result in such devastating losses. 

Not only had he lost two high-ranking officers, but two others, including one of his Calamities, had been captured. 

Even with Caesar in hand, the cost was astronomical.

The crushing defeat left Kaido simmering in fury, not just at Byakuya but also at Doflamingo. 

The warlord had grossly underestimated the risks involved, and Kaido was now paying the price.

<End Chapter>

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