Boom!!!!
The colossal fists of Luffy and Silver Serpent finally collided midair, exploding with a blinding flash.
Crack!!
The collision of their Haki-infused fists tore through the stormy, thundercloud-filled sky, sending a shockwave across the surrounding air and sea.
Bang!
The force of the impact hurled both combatants backward, halting their evenly matched duel.
"Wah! Wah! Wah! Leaking!"
Luffy was blasted backward, tumbling in an absurd, comical arc. His terrified, exaggerated facial features trailed behind him like a floating caricature.
"Ah ah ah ah… I can't stop!!!"
Pfft!
Yamato, watching from the ground below, clutched her stomach and doubled over in laughter.
"Hahahahaha! Luffy is just too much fun!!!"
Admiral Silver Serpent fared no better. He had been propelled into the air by the backlash, his chaotic silver-white lightning scattering wildly. As he recovered, Luffy charged at him again.
"Gah!!!!"
The Straw Hat's flying, backward collision struck Silver Serpent directly in the groin. The impact nearly made the Admiral's eyes bulge from the pain.
"Ah!!! You… this… bas—"
A shriek tore from Silver Serpent, laced with a mix of pain and disbelief, echoing through the clouds.
"Ah ah ah ah… Sorry!!!"
Luffy's grin remained intact despite the chaos, spinning midair with dazed, playful eyes.
"Straw Hat, you bastard…"
Silver Serpent weakly jabbed at Luffy's shoulder in response, his face twisted in agony. Both spiraled through the sky, losing all sense of direction until they crash-landed heavily into the forest below.
Boom!!!!
"Ugh…"
Yamato stared at the enormous dust-filled crater, mouth twitching. She scratched her head and laughed awkwardly.
"I have to admit, that battle looked intense…"
"A farcical battle!" Kaido muttered from below, his disdainful glare fixed on the scene. To the Emperor, war was art—and this seemed like a childish spectacle.
Admiral Silver Serpent, lying in the crater, slowly opened his eyes. He surveyed the dense forest around him, replaying the events in his mind. A slow, knowing smile spread across his face.
"Luffy…"
"You called me?"
A familiar, grinning head peeked above the crater, smiling with playful mischief.
"Long time no see. Looks like your mental state hasn't deteriorated."
Silver Serpent chuckled, brushing himself off. His grin widened as he spoke.
"Have you finally learned to control your powers properly with Kaido?"
"Huh…?"
Luffy blinked, taken aback by the Admiral's face. It seemed oddly familiar, yet strange.
"You…"
Bang!
Before he could react, a massive, dark figure flashed before Silver Serpent.
"Roaring Thunder Eight Trigrams!"
Kaido's iron club, glowing with Conqueror's Haki, descended at lethal speed. If it connected, Silver Serpent would have been obliterated instantly.
"Kaido, you're impatient!" Silver Serpent quipped, lips curling in amusement as he faced the strike.
Zzz!!!
His left hand shimmered with silver-white Yin-polar lightning, while his right glowed deep blue with Yang-polar energy. The two currents swirled and merged, forming a lightning barrier shaped like a glowing Yin-Yang Taiji diagram in midair, intercepting Kaido's Haki-infused club.
"Yin-Yang Lightning Polarity Diagram!"
Crack-zzzzz!!!!
Kaido's spiked club, saturated with deep purple Conqueror's Haki, slammed into the rotating Taiji diagram—but it held firm, impervious to his attack.
Crack!!!!
The deep purple Haki fused with the Taiji lightning, being absorbed and redirected, its energy spilling outward over the surrounding sea.
Crack!!!
The sky itself seemed to warp under the intensity, massive waves rising around the battlefield, reflecting the terrifying power of their clash.
"Ohrororororo!!!!"
Kaido's dragon-human form twisted and roared amid the lightning, both terrifying and majestic.
"I didn't expect the newly appointed Marine Admiral Silver Serpent to rival you like this!"
Kaido sneered, retracting his Eight Precepts. He studied Silver Serpent with ferocious amusement, his eyes glittering with excitement.
"Shirogai!!! I've been waiting for this moment again!!!"
Boom!!!
Kaido's massive roar reverberated as he transformed into his beast form—a colossal azure dragon, scales gleaming amid streaks of lightning. The clouds shuddered beneath his wrath.
"Ever since our battle over half a year ago, I've been longing to clash with you again! Come! Let my battle intent, restrained for months, finally be unleashed!!!"
Silver Serpent tilted his head, smirking at the towering dragon above him.
"Hey, hey, hey! Do we really need to fight to the death the moment we meet, Kaido?"
"Shirogai? This Admiral is… Shirogai?"
Luffy blinked in shock, then leapt into Shirogai's arms, elation overtaking him.
"Shirogai!!! I missed you so much!!!"
"Huh… The leader of the Sky Island Alliance, Omnipotent God King, is now a Marine Admiral?" Yamato's jaw dropped. Her mind struggled to process the chaotic scene.
Shirogai stroked Luffy's head, smiling calmly as he surveyed Kaido, who bared his teeth in battle-ready anticipation.
"Next time, for sure," Shirogai said, his calm tone belying the intensity of the situation.
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