Sailing: I was falsely accused of watching Nami bathe, but I'm blind.

The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder, blood, and... the chaotic and dangerous aura of various Devil Fruit powers!

Kai could clearly sense that the final battle had been scattered across various areas of the highlands!

In one direction, a terrifying sword aura, seemingly capable of cleaving the heavens and earth, is colliding with another... a massive rock force, like a mountain collapsing and the earth splitting!

It's Zoro! He's engaged in a life-or-death battle with Pica, one of the Donquixote Family's top executives, the "Rock Assimilation Man"! Kai can sense that Pica is using his Stone-Stone Fruit ability to merge himself with the rocks of the entire King's Highlands, transforming into a... terrifying stone giant hundreds of meters tall, like a mountain! Its strength and defense are so immense that it's practically a moving natural disaster!

Zoro, on the other hand, was like a tiny ant, shuffling and weaving beneath the enormous stone giant! But the three famous swords in his hands, covered in jet-black Armament Haki, carried terrifying power with each swing, enough to cut through steel and even cleave mountains! The sword energy crisscrossed, constantly leaving deep wounds on the giant stone statue!

...................

This is an extreme confrontation between strength and skill, between the enormous and the insignificant!

In another direction, a wild, half-human, half-machine aura, filled with the smells of steel, gunpowder, and cola (?), is engaged in a fierce battle with another aura... like swimming on land, filled with a strange, greasy feeling and a certain... perverted gentleman (?) style!

It's Franky! He's fighting another member of the Donquixote Family, Señor Pick, a user of the "Water-Water Fruit" (?)! Franky's modified body and various bizarre weapons (lasers, explosives, iron fists...) are incredibly powerful! Meanwhile, Señor Pick, using his strange ability to move freely through any solid surface like swimming, constantly ambushes and harasses Franky! Their fighting styles are both incredibly imaginative (or perhaps, perverse?)!

Another battlefield was filled with...tragedy and rage! Kai sensed that Cyrus, the legendary warrior who was once a hero of the Dressrosa Arena but was later turned into a one-legged toy soldier, was wielding his sword against Diamanti, the "Cube" who was skilled in all sorts of despicable means and could turn anything into something as soft or hard as a fluttering flag, in a death match for honor and revenge! Cyrus's swordsmanship was superb, filled with anger and determination! Diamanti, on the other hand, was cunning and treacherous, using his strange Flutter-Flutter Fruit ability to constantly create various traps and distractions!

Every battlefield was exceptionally fierce! Every battle was a test of life and death! The Straw Hat crew's allies, for their own reasons, were fighting with all their might against the Donquixote Family's executives!

Kai did not interfere in these battlefields.

His only goal is... Luffy and Law, who are at the very top of King's High and are having their final showdown with Doflamingo!

However, just as Kai was about to reach the top floor of the palace, he was once again drawn to the aftermath of the battle between Zoro and Pica!

Because… he sensed a terrifying slashing power… unprecedented, even… beyond his comprehension! It was… brewing, about to erupt!!!

Kai immediately projected his perception!

He "saw" it!

Zoro! That green-haired swordsman! He was somehow...thrown... into the air by an ally (who seems to be Bartolomeo, the one who can create barriers?)?!

Then! He gripped the three famous swords tightly with both hands! He poured all his strength, all his will, all his domineering aura... without reservation... into the blades!!!

"The Ultimate Technique of the Three-Sword Style!!!"

Kai could clearly "hear" Zoro's thunderous roar!

"One...Great...Three...Thousand...Great...Thousand...Worlds!!!!!!!!!"

Om-! ! !

A terrifying, pitch-black sword aura tornado—unimaginably huge, seemingly capable of cleaving the entire sky in two—formed instantly!

It carried an unparalleled momentum! With a determination to cleave everything in its path! It fiercely... cleaved the colossal stone giant Pica... in half!

Snap! Boom! ...

There was absolutely no suspense! (Chuan)

Chapter 122 In front of Garp! Kill! Die! Luffy!

That colossal stone giant, constructed entirely of rock from the King's Highlands and possessing terrifying defensive capabilities... was actually... sliced ​​cleanly in two like butter cut by a hot knife! by Zoro's earth-shattering strike!

The massive upper body of the stone statue groaned under the weight, and then... collapsed with a deafening roar! Like a mountain collapsing and the earth splitting apart! It crashed down onto the royal city below, causing even greater chaos and destruction!

Pica, hidden within the core of the statue, was also affected by the terrifying power of this strike! Although he immediately used Armament Haki to defend himself, he was still shaken to the point of spitting blood! His aura instantly weakened! Clearly, he had suffered extremely severe injuries!

Zoro... he's actually... this powerful?!

Kai was filled with unprecedented shock!

The power of this strike... it's probably... infinitely close to, or even reached, the level of... the world's greatest swordsman, Hawkeye Mihawk! (Although there might still be a gap in skill and control, the sheer destructive power is already terrifying!)

The Straw Hat crew... their growth rate... is simply... monstrous!!!

Kai realized that he... might have... really underestimated these guys! Especially... that seemingly simple-minded, green-haired swordsman who only knew how to sleep and drink!

This realization cast a shadow over Kai's heart once again.

The Straw Hat Pirates... are getting harder and harder to deal with!

Just as Kai was shocked by the terrifying strength Zoro displayed, the battle on the top floor of the palace entered... the most crucial and brutal stage!

He clearly sensed that Trafalgar Law, in order to create an opportunity for Luffy to attack Doflamingo, actually... chose to... sacrifice himself?!

Using the unpredictable nature of the Op-Op Fruit's power, along with his exceptional wisdom and cunning, Law outmaneuvered Trebol, the top "667" executive who was also a master of manipulating people's minds, and successfully... induced Doflamingo to launch... a seemingly fatal attack against him!

Kai could feel that Law had been struck several times by Doflamingo's bullet-like threads coated with Armament Haki! Blood stained his clothes! His life force instantly... became extremely weak! Even... almost nonexistent?!

"Law!!!" Kai could "hear" Luffy's roar filled with shock and anger!

Doflamingo, on the other hand, let out a triumphant laugh filled with cruelty and mockery: "Fufffuff... How foolish! Law! You think... you can outwit me with such petty tricks?! Is it worth it for that straw hat kid?!"

Looking at (and sensing) Rona lying in a pool of blood like a rag doll, seemingly "dead," Kai felt a complex mix of emotions once again.

He didn't have a good impression of Luo, this scheming guy who manipulated others.

But... seeing that he was actually willing to pay the price of his life (at least it seemed that way) to create an opportunity for Luffy for the sake of a so-called "alliance" (even if it was just mutual exploitation)... Kai had to admit... this guy... could be considered a... courageous "tyrant"?

But at the same time, he also felt that this further confirmed his view on the "pirate alliance" as a thing—full of scheming and manipulation, and ultimately... often ending in tragedy.

To sacrifice one's life for an ally who might not even be trustworthy? In his view, that was still an extremely foolish act.

However, Law's "sacrifice" (or rather, a scheme? Kai couldn't be entirely sure if Law was really dead) did indeed... create a... perfect opportunity for Luffy!

Just as Doflamingo relaxed his guard briefly after "dealing with" Law, and just as Trebol lowered his guard due to his overconfidence,

Luffy! He's moved!!!

Moreover... in a terrifying form that Kai had never perceived before, a completely new form, brimming with explosive power and resilience!!!

"Fourth gear!!!"

With a roar like thunder, Kai clearly sensed that Luffy's body... had undergone an incredible transformation!

He blew air into his muscles?! Making his body inflate like a balloon?! Turning him into... a powerful... elastic giant?!

Not only that! His entire body... was covered with a layer of... extremely thick, extremely tough, and... like armor, constantly emitting billowing steam... jet-black Armament Haki!!!

What...what is this?! Armament Haki...and the properties of the Gum-Gum Fruit...perfectly combined?! Forming a...completely new, never-before-seen fighting style?!

Kai's heart pounded wildly at this unprecedented, visually stunning scene!

He never imagined! That seemingly ordinary, even somewhat comical rubber fruit... could actually... be developed to such a... terrifying degree?!

This...this is simply...a genius idea! No! This is simply...monstrous creativity!!!

And Luffy, having entered Gear Fourth: Bounce Man form, has elevated his speed and power to a completely new level... one that even Kai finds terrifying!

His enormous fist, covered in jet-black Armament Haki and shaped like a cannonball, delivered a terrifying whooshing sound and... astonishing power like a compressed cannon with every swing!

His body, like a giant bouncy ball that never stops bouncing, moved and attacked freely in the air, completely disregarding inertia and air resistance... at high speed and unpredictably!

"Rubber rubber... King Monkey Gun!!!"

"Rubber rubber... Rhino Grenade Launcher!!!"

"Rubber rubber... Giant Snake Cannon!!!"

Luffy's attacks, like a raging storm, like the wildest beast, poured down on... that previously arrogant, self-assured Donquixote Doflamingo!

Bang! Bang! Bang! Boom!

Doflamingo's proud String-String Fruit defense and Armament Haki seemed... somewhat... vulnerable in the face of Luffy's monstrous new Gear Fourth power!

Kai could clearly sense it! Doflamingo was being forced back step by step! He was spitting blood! Even his signature sunglasses were knocked off! Revealing his eyes... filled with shock, anger, and... a hint of unbelievable fear!!!

He simply couldn't understand it! How could this Straw Hat kid... become so strong... in such a short time?! This power... this speed... this... unheard-of fighting style!!!

Kai, hidden in the distance, was also deeply shocked!

Luffy...this guy...his potential...his growth rate...is it simply...limitless?!

Kai originally thought that after two years of hard training, his strength was enough to leave Luffy far behind.

Even... one day in the future, we could easily crush and eliminate them!

But now... seeing Luffy's terrifying "Gear Fourth" form... for the first time... Kai felt a very slight... wavering and... uncertainty about his future path of "revenge"?

This little straw hat guy, 893...964...or maybe 460...will really become...his most terrifying...nemesis in his life?!

Luffy's Gear Fourth "Boundman" attack, as fierce as a storm, indeed dealt an unprecedented blow to the arrogant Doflamingo! Kai could clearly sense that Doflamingo's breathing had become chaotic, and many of his bones might have cracked. Even his ever-present evil smile was distorted by the pain and disbelief!

However, as the king of the underworld who can dominate a region in the New World and trade with the Yonko Kaido, "Heavenly Demon" Doflamingo is not someone who can be defeated so easily!

Just as Luffy temporarily stopped his attack due to the immense strain of Gear Fourth, preparing to unleash an even more powerful strike!

A terrifying force—even more bizarre, more powerful, and capable of distorting the surrounding environment—suddenly erupted from Doflamingo's seemingly near-limit body!

"Fufufufu... I really... underestimated you, Straw Hat Boy!" Doflamingo's voice was hoarse and frantic, carrying a kind of... hysterical rage! "You actually managed to push me to... this point! But... do you think it's over?! How naive!!!"

"Let me show you... the true power of a Devil Fruit! This is... a whole new level!!!"

Accompanied by his frantic roar! Kai's "Mind Network" instantly captured... a scene that even he found chilling!

Centered on Doflamingo! The surrounding...the hard rocky ground! The dilapidated royal palace buildings! Even...the cold steel ruins! They...began to...twist! To deform! And then...from them...countless...white threads, as if controlled by his own body!

These threads seemed to grow from the very "soul" of matter itself! They spread, intertwined, and surged rapidly! Transforming the entire area around Doflamingo into a terrifying domain... a white wave composed of countless sharp threads!!!

"String-String Fruit... Awakening!!!" Doflamingo's voice echoed within the domain, filled with madness and destructive pleasure! "In this world made of 'strings'! I am... God!!!"

Devil Fruit...Awakening?!

Kai's heart skipped a beat! He had seen scattered records about Devil Fruit "awakening" in some top-secret naval documents! It was said that it was a higher level of achievement that only a very few exceptionally talented Devil Fruit users could reach, those who had developed their fruit abilities to the extreme!