After Hancock revealed the awakened state of the Medusa Fruit, Kaito quickly grasped the scope of its awakened powers.
Once awakened, Hancock no longer needed to physically touch her target or hit them with her Heart Beam.
Just like the mythological Medusa, anyone who met her gaze—or came into contact with the serpents formed from her hair—would instantly be turned to stone.
The most overpowered part of this ability, though, was that as long as the target felt even the slightest love in their heart, they could be petrified. Especially those who yearned for love—like Elder Nyon, who had been turned to stone the first time due to this very ability.
The stronger the emotion, the more intense the petrification. Without exceptional Haki, this move was nearly impossible to counter.
In Kaito's eyes, this ability was a complete nightmare for the so-called "pure-hearted warriors." He even wondered: if Obito encountered Hancock, would he still have a chance to escape into Kamui space?
And what about Madara and Hashirama? Sasuke and Naruto...? Wait, that line of thought was going off track.
In short, Hancock in her awakened state was undeniably nearing the level of a Yonko. The only thing holding her back now was her Haki training.
Maybe having her fight Kaido would push her power to the next level.
As for Hancock, she was only briefly surprised by her fruit's awakening before tossing the thought aside.
To her, nothing in this world was more important than Kaito's embrace. All she wanted now was to marry him! In fact, thanks to her vivid imagination, she had already walked through the entire wedding process with him in her mind at least ten times.
In her mental image, Ain and Kalifa were both present at the wedding—but with tear-streaked faces.
...
Inside the room, Hancock quietly nestled in Kaito's arms. Her clothing was rather loose, leaving quite a bit of skin exposed—especially the back of her neck.
Through her open collar, Kaito spotted a small glimpse of a pink mark known as the "Hoof of the Soaring Dragon." He only saw the upper part—a tiny triangle.
Kaito gently tugged down her collar, revealing most of the mark.
In an instant, Hancock froze like she'd been struck by lightning. She had become too absorbed in Kaito's embrace and forgot to hide the mark that had caused her so much pain.
It was a memory she never wanted to recall. But the more she tried to avoid it, the more it crept back at the worst moments.
Still, Hancock didn't try to stop Kaito. At this point, she had fallen into complete despair. She believed he now knew her secret—and probably found her utterly disgusting.
Tears welled up in her eyes. That mark had tormented her for years—wasn't that suffering enough? And now it was going to take Kaito away from her, too?
She hated them. She hated those Celestial Dragons of Mary Geoise.
She swore that once Kaito left her, she would stop running. She would storm Mary Geoise in a full-blown rampage—just like Fisher Tiger once did.
But unlike Tiger, she would go in prepared to die. Kaito now meant more to her than her own life, and if he was going to leave her… then what reason did she have to stay?
A dark, ominous aura of death began to seep from Hancock's body. Her head hung lower and lower. Now that her secret had been discovered, she felt worthless, like dirt. Unfit to dream of remaining by Kaito's side.
Kaito noticed the sudden shift in her mood and realized that seeing the mark had deeply traumatized her. Clearly, her imagination was spiraling again.
With a helpless sigh, Kaito placed his hand over the mark.
As soon as Hancock felt his palm press against that spot, her body began to tremble violently again, as though she were enduring unbearable pain.
Kaito studied the so-called "Hoof of the Soaring Dragon" closely.
Based on the anime, Hancock had been branded with a scorching-hot iron. She had even said the mark could never be removed.
But Kaito wasn't buying it. In essence, it was just a burn scar. Hard to heal, yes, but not impossible.
And he had his own way of dealing with this.
A wave of green energy enveloped Kaito's hand and slowly spread across the mark.
Hancock felt that patch of skin suddenly become warm and tingly—but not in a painful way. It was soothing, almost comforting.
Under the effect of the green energy, the pink mark gradually began to fade, turning into healthy skin that blended perfectly with the surrounding area—smoother and whiter than ever.
Before long, the mark that was said to last a lifetime—the Hoof of the Soaring Dragon—vanished completely.
Kaito dispelled the green energy and lifted his hand.
Her back was now flawless, as if sculpted by an artist.
Kaito admired his handiwork, quite pleased with himself for having learned this technique from that guy Kabuto all those years ago.
What he had just used was a healing jutsu from the Naruto world: Mystical Palm Technique.
Its purpose was to heal wounds and injuries. But using it required an extremely precise control of chakra, as well as knowledge of how to manipulate Yang Release chakra.
The stronger the Yang Release, the more effective the healing. And for someone like Kaito—who possessed Hashirama's cells—this was nothing.
Even a burn that had existed on Hancock's back for who-knows-how-many years was fully healed under his Mystical Palm Technique.
Once everything was done, Kaito gently patted Hancock's back and softly said:
"Hancock, the mark on your back is gone. Forget it now."
Hearing those words, Hancock couldn't believe her ears.
She suddenly looked up at Kaito, her face full of disbelief.
Kaito gave her a reassuring smile. With a wave of his hand, a mirror made of water formed behind her.
Turning her head slightly, Hancock looked into the water mirror—and what she saw was the smooth, flawless skin of her back. The mark she had once deemed hideous was gone without a trace.
Tears spilled from her eyes again. She covered her mouth with both hands. Everything that had just happened felt like a dream.
She had already cried so many times today, but this moment shook her more than anything else.
Hancock couldn't hold back anymore. She threw herself into Kaito's arms and broke down sobbing.
Kaito said nothing. He simply ran his fingers gently through her long black hair.
He knew that any words right now would only seem hollow. Better to let her cry—let her release all the anger and sorrow she had bottled up over the years.
He believed that once she emerged from this darkness, she would be reborn.
And that version of her—would be truly worthy of the title Empress.