Chapter 96: 1 Billion Volts - Divine Punishment VS Rising Dragon - Fire Dragon Thunder Bagua!
Without hesitation, Sanders thrust the Thunder God's Spear at Kaido.
A massive roar echoed across the coastline.
At the center of the battlefield, a giant mushroom cloud rose into the sky!
The ground was obliterated, and the dark clouds above were torn apart.
The terrifying shockwave blasted members of the Donquixote Family far away, even though they had retreated to a distant position.
"How is this guy so strong?!"
Doflamingo's face was grim, his body bent as he braced against the residual shockwaves of the battle.
If that attack had been directed at him, he felt certain he'd be dead!
Yet Sanders seemed completely unscathed, continuing to clash with Kaido as if nothing had happened!
"Advanced Conqueror's Haki?"
"I didn't expect you to know such a technique!"
As the smoke cleared from the battlefield, Kaido stood upright, leaning on his spiked club, looking at Sanders.
"Shiki taught me. Is it that difficult?" Sanders replied nonchalantly.
His eyes glanced over Kaido, who stood unscathed, filled with a tinge of envy.
He envied Kaido's unbreakable physique.
He envied Kaido's Mythical Zoan powers.
Too tough!
Even Sanders' terrifying thunder punch, which could annihilate a Vice Admiral in one blow, only managed to leave a faint mark on Kaido, not enough to truly hurt him.
Kaido was indeed the world's strongest creature on land, sea, and air.
His defense stats were maxed out!
"Shiki?!!"
"So, you learned this during your battle with Shiki."
"I was wondering why your swordsmanship had a bit of the Golden Lion's flavor to it."
Kaido looked at Sanders with surprise.
Earlier, he had already felt that Sanders' swordsmanship seemed familiar.
Now it was clear he had stolen it from Shiki.
What an incredible talent!
"Oh-ho-ho-ho!"
"You're quite an impressive opponent!"
"Let's have a real battle then!"
"Gundari Ryuseigun!"
Kaido's arms bulged with veins as he swung his spiked club with ferocious force.
Countless black-and-red streaks of lightning intertwined, radiating blinding brilliance.
The spiked club created a storm of shadows that tore through the atmosphere, shredding the surrounding space like a brutal storm.
The countless shadows of the club rushed toward Sanders, sealing off all his escape routes.
"Bring it on, Kaido!" Sanders showed no fear.
His fists, wrapped in Haki and crackling with lightning, struck out with unrelenting force.
The two continued their clash, their terrifying exchange causing shockwaves that reached even the distant city of Dressrosa.
The people were stunned, gazing toward the coastline, unable to comprehend what was happening.
No one knew how much time had passed.
At the edge of the battlefield, sweat poured down Diamante's face as he turned to Doflamingo in fear.
"Doffy, should we run?"
"This kind of high-level pirate is completely beyond us."
Everyone could see that Kaido was going all out.
And yet, even with that, Sanders was still holding his own in the fight.
Even if Sanders were ultimately defeated, he was clearly not someone the Donquixote Family could afford to provoke.
Kaido wouldn't stay to protect them forever.
Doflamingo's face was dark and sullen.
He knew the situation all too well, but the thought of leaving like a coward gnawed at his pride.
"Let's wait a bit longer..."
After hesitating, he added:
"Prepare some of the factory's materials. If things go south, we'll leave."
Compared to the treasures of the Dressrosa Kingdom, the factory was far more valuable.
Without it, Kaido wouldn't even bother with them.
Far away, aboard the Thunder God, Nami and the others watched the battlefield intently.
"This is even more terrifying than the battle with Golden Lion Shiki, isn't it?"
Nami exclaimed as she watched the two figures wreak havoc on the battlefield.
She had witnessed Sanders' fight against the Golden Lion before, but it had never been this horrifying.
From just a visual standpoint, Kaido seemed far more terrifying than Shiki.
"Shiki is old now, after all," Robin said softly.
"He's crippled, missing both legs, and hasn't fought in years. It's normal for his strength to be weaker than that of an Emperor like Kaido. Besides, Kaido is one of the strongest figures at the pinnacle of the seas!"
At this moment, Robin truly felt the terror of the Yonko.
Just watching the battle was heart-pounding enough.
She couldn't even imagine what it would feel like to be in the middle of that battlefield.
Probably torn apart by the shockwaves alone, she thought.
The battlefield was filled with raging winds and flying debris.
The clash between the Thunder God and the Beast seemed to shake the entire world.
Even the heavens and earth appeared to change color in response.
The skies above the coast were completely shrouded in dark clouds.
The only light came from the blinding flashes of battle at the heart of the storm.
Sanders, as the wielder of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, could freely command lightning.
Kaido's Mythical Zoan Azure Dragon form, similarly, wielded thunderous power.
This was evident in many of Kaido's techniques.
"Sanders, I admit your strength!" Kaido roared.
"But if you think you can challenge the throne of an Emperor of the Sea, you're still a bit lacking!"
Kaido suddenly leaped into the sky, his spiked club gleaming with a chilling aura.
"Three Realms—Descent Into Naraka!"
The dark clouds above surged wildly.
Bolts of lightning fell upon Kaido's spiked club, one after another.
Conqueror's Haki, coiling in red lightning like serpents, wrapped tightly around the club, exuding an oppressive and terrifying aura.
With a roar, Kaido swung his club downward with immense force.
"You're joking, old man! I'm not lacking at all!" Sanders roared, veins bulging as he focused his power.
Countless bolts of lightning gathered around his fist.
"Moa Moa no Mi—Tenfold Strength!"
His fist, wrapped in Haki and lightning, launched upward like a thunderbolt.
The clash between fist and club erupted with a deafening explosion.
The sound was louder than the roaring thunder in the skies, nearly deafening.
The shockwaves it created swept across the land like a swordsman's flying slash, effortlessly slicing through rocks and trees.
Kaido's immense strength caused the ground beneath Sanders to cave in, sinking him into the earth.
But Sanders showed no signs of backing down.
Kaido, staggered by Sanders' overwhelming strength, was forced back a few steps.
His eyes widened in shock as he looked at Sanders.
"Your strength... it suddenly increased tenfold!"
Before Kaido could say another word, Sanders appeared above him in a flash.
Another tenfold-strength punch came crashing down.
Caught off guard, Kaido was sent flying.
Staggering out from a pile of rubble, Kaido shook his head and growled, feeling the pain in his skull.
"How did your strength increase so much all of a sudden?"
Even Kaido's formidable defenses had struggled against the terrifying combination of Conqueror's Haki and lightning.
"It's just a special ability," Sanders replied nonchalantly, not bothering to elaborate.
"Then why didn't you use it earlier?!" Kaido demanded.
"Were you looking down on me?!"
"Damn it, Sanders! Even against me, you dare to hold back?!"
Kaido's eyes burned with fury, feeling insulted by Sanders' apparent lack of respect.
With a roar that rumbled like thunder, Kaido's body began to transform.
He rapidly swelled in size, his flesh covered in scales that gleamed with a cold light.
His limbs morphed into ferocious dragon claws, and his entire body was soon covered in blue scales.
His head resembled a camel's, with antlers like a deer's, eyes like a rabbit's, ears like a cow's, neck like a snake's, belly like a clam's, scales like a carp's, and claws like an eagle's.
In mere moments, Kaido had transformed into a majestic Eastern Dragon.
The colossal Azure Dragon floated in the air, supported by fiery clouds beneath its claws.
Sanders' eyes sparkled as he gazed at the awe-inspiring dragon before him.
"So cool!" he muttered, unable to hide his admiration.
As a transmigrator, Sanders held a particular fascination for Eastern dragons, which only deepened his desire for Kaido's mythical Zoan fruit ability.
Even from afar, people were awestruck by Kaido's transformation into a massive dragon.
"Is this the Azure Dragon form of Kaido's Mythical Zoan Fish-Fish Fruit?"
"How terrifying!"
"Is this really a creature humans can fight against?"
Members of the Donquixote Family couldn't help but voice their amazement.
In the face of such a mythical beast, humans felt as insignificant as ants.
Kaido, now a gigantic dragon coiled in the sky, opened his enormous maw. A terrifying energy began to gather within.
Sanders' expression shifted when he realized what technique Kaido was about to unleash.
Quickly, he summoned a surge of lightning.
"Heat Breath!"
A horrifying jet of scorching energy burst from Kaido's mouth, forming a massive beam.
The searing heat swept across the battlefield as if it could vaporize the very earth.
"600 Million Volts: Thunder Fist!"
Sanders swung his fist powerfully, aiming directly at the Heat Breath.
A massive column of lightning erupted from his fist, crackling with devastating energy.
The lightning beam clashed head-on with Kaido's Heat Breath.
The collision created an apocalyptic spectacle.
Destructive energies tore through the heavens and earth, shaking the sky and deafening all who bore witness.
The coastal battlefield was enveloped in a doomsday-like scene, with shockwaves tearing apart the landscape.
In the Dressrosa Kingdom, residents—both humans and toys—fled in panic, desperate to escape the chaos.
"Blade of Wind!"
Kaido pressed his advantage, unleashing a barrage of wind blades from his massive dragon maw.
Sanders relied on the speed of his Rumble-Rumble Fruit to evade the attacks.
"Kaido's control over his fruit ability is terrifying!" Nami couldn't help but complain as she watched Kaido continuously unleash wind blades.
"Thunder, fire-like heat breath, and now wind blades—are mythical Zoan abilities really this powerful?"
Robin, ever composed, responded calmly:
"Mythical Zoans are rarer than even Logias. Their strength is beyond question."
Meanwhile, Sanders was forced to dodge Kaido's relentless barrage of wind blades.
Each wind blade carved deep gashes into the ground, leaving a trail of destruction.
Punching aside a wind blade, Sanders darted toward Kaido, weaving through the chaos with precision.
He appeared right in front of Kaido and unleashed a devastating attack.
"600 Million Volts: Thunder Fist!"
His lightning-charged fist smashed down onto Kaido's massive dragon head, slamming the Emperor from the sky.
"1 Billion Volts: Divine Punishment!"
Sanders looked up at the darkened sky, summoning an enormous arm of pure lightning from the clouds.
This time, the Divine Punishment was different from the one that had sent the Golden Lion Shiki to his grave.
Sanders infused the lightning arm with Conqueror's Haki, amplifying its destructive force even further.
The massive lightning arm, crackling with Haki and raw energy, descended upon Kaido with overwhelming power.
Fed up with being suppressed by Kaido's advanced Observation Haki and ability to foresee the future, Sanders unleashed his strongest technique with unrelenting fury.
He was determined to leave a mark on the so-called "strongest creature."
"Are you kidding me?!"
Doflamingo, watching from afar, trembled as he stared at the colossal lightning arm in the sky.
"Sanders actually developed the Rumble-Rumble Fruit to this level?!"
For the first time, Doflamingo felt that Sanders' victory over Aokiji had not been a fluke.
"With this kind of power, if he can't defeat an Admiral, then the title of Marine Admiral would be a joke!"
"If this doesn't topple an Emperor of the Sea, then the Four Emperors as a concept would become laughable. The Marines could wipe them all out!"
Nearby, Diamante was wide-eyed, his face illuminated by the dazzling lightning in the sky.
"Doffy, Sanders truly has the strength to stand at the pinnacle of the seas. I think we should abandon this place."
Doflamingo took a deep breath, his expression grim.
"Order our men to speed things up. We're leaving Dressrosa!"
Regardless of the outcome of the battle, he knew he had no choice but to flee.
Still, it pained him to leave behind the territory he had painstakingly built and his status as a Shichibukai.
Once word of what happened in Dressrosa spread, his reputation would be irreparably damaged.
The World Government would undoubtedly strip Doflamingo of his Shichibukai title and reinstate his bounty, marking the end of his untouchable status.
"Huh? Where's Violet?"
Doflamingo's eyes scanned the area, but he couldn't spot Viola anywhere.
"Not sure. She was here just a moment ago," Pica replied in his gruff voice.
"Get to the factory, now!" Doflamingo barked, his expression darkening.
"Alert everyone—prepare for immediate evacuation! Damned Sanders, damned Law!"
He cast one last glance at the battlefield, his face a mask of frustration and rage.
Aboard the Thunder God
Law stared at the massive lightning hand in the sky, his shock palpable.
At that moment, he finally grasped the extent of his captain's power.
No wonder the other crew members, who had joined before him, remained unfazed during Sanders' temporary struggles.
"Will this move defeat Kaido?" Nami asked, her face full of anticipation as she gazed at the heavens.
"If Kaido is defeated, does that mean the captain will become an Emperor of the Sea?"
Robin shook her head with a small smile.
"It's not that simple. The Four Emperors represent not just overwhelming power but also formidable territories and influence."
She continued:
"Besides, Kaido has lost before, many times in fact, but he remains an Emperor.
Kaido had been defeated and captured countless times during his lone challenges against the Marines and other Emperors, yet none of that ever stripped him of his fearsome title.
Back on the battlefield, Kaido, sensing the terrifying energy within the massive lightning hand, refused to underestimate it.
"Flaming Dragon Torch!"
Scorching flames erupted around Kaido, forming a massive fire dragon that coiled around him. The intense heat threatened to melt everything in its path.
"Rising Dragon!"
The flaming dragon raised its head high, its enormous maw aimed directly at the descending lightning hand.
Kaido infused the fire dragon's head with Conqueror's Haki, amplifying its destructive force.
"Flaming Bagua!"
Kaido's ultimate technique, Ascending Dragon Flaming Bagua, combined the full force of his flames and Haki to create a devastating head-on assault.
The flaming dragon collided with the lightning hand, triggering a massive explosion.
The resulting detonation was blinding, a light too intense to look at directly.
The shockwave radiated outwards, creating hurricane-force winds and sending towering waves crashing onto the shore.
The two energies—lightning and fire—fought fiercely for dominance, neither yielding.
The devastating collision was felt across the entire island, causing tremors and destruction.
Fortunately, the initial stages of the battle had already driven the nearby civilians far from the coastline, sparing Dressrosa from complete annihilation.
In the end, it was hard to tell if the flaming dragon had consumed the lightning hand or if the hand had punched through the dragon.
What was clear, however, was the aftermath: both Kaido and Sanders were hurled back by their own unleashed forces.
Kaido was sent crashing into the earth, while Sanders plummeted from the sky, landing hard on the ground.
Moments later, the flaming dragon dissipated, and the lightning hand vanished.
When the dust settled, both combatants emerged from the smoke, battered but standing.
"Ohohohoho!"
Kaido's massive dragon eyes gleamed as he let out a booming laugh.
"Sanders! I acknowledge you!"
Kaido's body bore scorch marks all over, his flowing black hair now frizzed into curls by the lightning. Blood trickled from his mouth and face.
Sanders was in no better shape. His body was charred by the intense flames, his lips stained with blood, and his face smeared with ash.
For a moment during the clash, Sanders had even blacked out, his consciousness briefly overwhelmed by the sheer force of the Ascending Dragon Flaming Bagua.
Despite his injuries, Sanders grinned, though his heart was filled with curses.
"You're not bad yourself, Kaido!" he replied cheerfully, feigning nonchalance.
Inwardly, though, he was screaming:
This guy is insane! How on earth did Luffy beat him in Wano?
Sanders couldn't wrap his head around it.
In the beginning, Luffy couldn't even withstand a single blow from Kaido's kanabo.
Yet somehow, Luffy had managed to triumph later? Unbelievable!
Kaido truly lived up to his reputation as a "six-sided warrior" with no apparent weaknesses.
It was no wonder he dared to challenge the Marines and the other Emperors on his own.
If not for Sanders' mastery of Conqueror's Haki infusion, breaking through Kaido's defenses would have been nearly impossible.
"Hahaha! Let's see who falls first!" Kaido roared as he shifted into his hybrid form.
Having exhausted his strongest techniques without taking down Sanders, Kaido knew staying in dragon form was a disadvantage.
Sanders' speed, enhanced by the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, turned his massive dragon body into an easy target.
"Sounds good to me!" Sanders said, grinning as he charged back into the fray.
He couldn't afford to stop now—not until he claimed what he wanted from Kaido.
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T/N:
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