Chapter 146: Let the Smackdown Commence

"So strong, the whole land has become almost like steel!"

Marco and the others squeezed the ground with their hands out of curiosity, finding the hardness to be beyond imagination. Their hands couldn't even crush the soil, only leaving handprints. Of course, they weren't using full strength – in the pirate world, turning iron into mud is practically a routine maneuver.

But Luo Ning's intervention was enough to delay Onigashima's collapse, at least from the immediate aftereffects of the Whitebeard-Kaido fight.

"That's good... that's amazing!"

Witnessing the full-force collision between Kaido and Whitebeard, Yamato now understood that while her own strength was good, she still fell far behind such top tiers. The combat power of Emperors and Admirals represented a qualitative leap.

No matter how Luffy defeated Shichibukai before, no matter how he conquered strong enemies, against the Emperors, he hammered away for ages without breaking their defense, ultimately being defeated in seconds. This strength gap was simply extreme.

It was only natural that Doflamingo would be defeated by Aokiji. With Doflamingo's strength, he could fight a post-awakening Luffy, who in turn needed Gear Fourth to win. However, Luffy, similar to Ultraman, wouldn't fare well against Doflamingo in a prolonged battle.

Of course, Luffy's strength did improve somewhat after the later stages of the Whole Cake Island ordeal. He likely could have dealt with Doflamingo with ease by then, but what about Aokiji? A single move from him could directly freeze Doflamingo.

The idea seemed a bit silly at first, but with Admirals and Emperors being almost on the same level, such an outcome became acceptable.

Kaido can overpower Luffy in Gear Fourth with a single attack, so why wouldn't Aokiji be able to defeat Doflamingo easily? This disparity in strength is truly vast.

This battle raged on for several hours. In other worlds, such intense battles are typically measured in minutes, but the world of One Piece operates differently. Whitebeard and Kaido had been fighting for hours.

For a significant portion of those hours, Kaido, already at a disadvantage, was utterly suppressed by Whitebeard and sustained numerous injuries. Conversely, Whitebeard remained largely unscathed.

Kaido's attacks couldn't land on Whitebeard, while Whitebeard's strikes proved too much for Kaido to fully block.

This frustrated Kaido immensely. Against the previous Whitebeard, he could have dragged the fight out until his opponent succumbed to exhaustion. However, this current Whitebeard, resembling a monster, seemed invincible.

"Whitebeard, you're picking on the weak! I concede defeat!" Kaido resorted to trickery, transforming fully into a beast, a monstrous Azure Dragon.

Soaring into the sky as a blue dragon, Kaido blinded Whitebeard. Whitebeard lacked the ability to fly, and while his Devil Fruit possessed a broad area of influence, Kaido's altitude rendered Whitebeard's power ineffective.

This exemplified the disparity between those who could fly and those who couldn't. Flight granted a significant advantage in suppressing grounded opponents.

Despite the preexisting gap in strength, the current situation left Whitebeard feeling utterly helpless.

Kaido, now airborne, unleashed a torrent of flames from his mouth. The power of Kaido's flame breath was such that it could vaporize mountains. He could even breathe fire through a mountain.

However, this time he faced Whitebeard. Before the flames reached Whitebeard, his Naginata, imbued with the Gura Gura no Mi's power, met the attack head-on, shattering Kaido's firestorm. Countless sparks rained down upon Onigashima and the surrounding waters, resembling a celestial maiden scattering flowers.

"What's the matter, Kaido? Can't win fair and square, so you resort to childish tactics?"

Whitebeard boomed at Kaido in the sky, but the taunt didn't faze Kaido in the slightest.

"Winners and losers, Whitebeard. You're a stubborn old fool!"

Kaido spat disdainfully. He'd always vowed to never give up on his goals, regardless of the means employed. As long as he emerged victorious, the methods used were trivial matters. Now, flying provided him with a way to outmaneuver Whitebeard, hence his disregard for the old pirate's ideals.

"Really? You think Whitebeard's the only one you have to contend with? Whitebeard, step back. I'll handle him."

Luo Ning appeared before Kaido seemingly out of nowhere. Upon seeing Luo Ning, Whitebeard swiftly withdrew his weapon.

"Then I leave it to you. This bastard's flying around, and I can't do a thing about it!"

In his current state, Whitebeard could overpower Kaido with brute force, but Kaido's ability to fly rendered their fight a contest of physical strength, Whitebeard's biggest weakness at this point.

Aging wasn't an injury – the decline in physical strength was irreversible. There was no way to heal it. He couldn't compete with these younger, stronger fighters in a battle of raw power. The past few hours of fighting had significantly depleted his physical reserves.

Therefore, Whitebeard simply withdrew from the battlefield. While he truly desired to avenge Kozuki Oden by killing Kaido, facing a flying Kaido rendered him helpless.

Even for a recovered Emperor, killing another Emperor is a monumental feat.

"Luo Ning!"

Kaido's attention instantly shifted to Luo Ning, the sight of his most dreaded adversary appearing before him causing a pang of annoyance.

Everyone knew Luo Ning's immense strength, but more importantly, Whitebeard obeyed Luo Ning. Unlike the Whitebeard Kaido knew, this Whitebeard would actually stand down at Luo Ning's command.

It was utterly outrageous. He, Kaido, had been wrong. With Luo Ning on Whitebeard's side, there was nothing left for him to achieve. He might as well just quit.

"Indeed," Luo Ning said, eyeing the dragon form Kaido had assumed. "Honestly, I'm disappointed to see you like this. After all, dragons still hold a high place in my heart."

Though Kaido's form wasn't that of a true Azure Dragon, the resemblance was undeniable, and Luo Ning wouldn't let the opportunity slip away. His purpose this time was also to acquire something.

With a quick glance at Kaido, Luo Ning launched himself forward at an incredible speed, appearing directly in front of the beast before unleashing a devastating punch. The force behind his fist far surpassed anything Kaido had ever experienced.

BOOM!

Kaido's massive form slammed into the ground like a meteor after taking the full brunt of the punch.