One Piece: The user of the Nen-Nen Fruit, who overturned the sea.

Faced with Luffy's sudden attack, Kaido had no time to swing his club.

He could only concentrate his Armament Haki in his abdomen at the moment Luffy's attack was about to come.

The fist slammed into Kaido's stomach.

The impact was deafening.

Kaido's pupils contracted slightly as the power of Ryuo pierced through his defenses, directly impacting his internal organs.

That power exploded within him, causing his body to tremble involuntarily.

Immediately afterwards, a burst of energy emanated from Kaido's back, and Kaido was blasted away by Luffy's outburst.

The massive body, nearly seven meters tall, tumbled across the rooftop, smashing through several huge rocks and sending debris flying.

With a loud bang, Kaido's body slammed into a rock wall before coming to a stop.

The deafening roar of the collapsing rocks shook the entire Skull Palace.

There was a moment of silence on the rooftop.

Everyone stared blankly at Luffy.

Luffy's right arm remained in a punching stance, the flames on his fist dissipated, leaving behind white smoke, and the power of Ryuo slowly dissipated from his fist.

······

The roar of the landslide still echoed over Ghost Island.

Kaido stood up from the pile of rubble.

He looked down, sensing the dull pain left inside his body after the power of the Flowing Cherry Blossom had penetrated his defenses.

He hadn't felt this kind of pain in a long time.

When was the last time?

Barrett?

Garp?

Over the years, very few people have been able to truly hurt him.

Aside from the few monsters in the Roy Pirates, Whitebeard is one, Roger is another, and that's about it.

Now there's a straw hat boy.

Kaido emerged from the pile of rubble, each step he took causing rocks to fall from the mountainside.

He walked to the open space behind the Skull Palace, looked up at the group of people regrouping on the roof, and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hehehe—Straw Hat Boy! Well done!"

Kaido slammed the Eight Guardians into the ground, creating a crater.

"In just half a month, not only did he master the Ryuo form, but he also managed to combine it so skillfully with the Gum-Gum Fruit—"

Your progress, kid, is truly surprising.

On the rooftop, Luffy stood at the very front, his right fist still emitting white smoke.

Hearing Kaido's praise, his expression remained unchanged, still that serious look in his eyes, devoid of any ulterior motives.

"I said I was going to beat you to a pulp."

Kaido narrowed his eyes as he looked at Luffy. The smile on his face did not disappear, but a hint of seriousness appeared in his eyes.

He flicked his eight-pointed vows, the spikes on his mace gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

"The technique of internal destruction using Armament Haki is something that very few people in the entire New World can master."

You learned it in just half a month—Roy was right, you're definitely a promising kid.

"I'm really looking forward to seeing you more and more."

Luffy did not answer.

He simply clenched his fists tighter, stood with his feet shoulder-width apart, and squatted slightly, his whole body resembling a fully drawn bow.

Meanwhile, deep within the main hall of Oni Island.

Roy sat cross-legged on the floor of his room, eyes closed, his telekinetic energy covering the entire Ghost Island like an invisible giant net.

Every collision of attacks on the rooftop, every footstep, and every flow of domineering energy within each person was so clear to him that it was as if he were seeing it with his own eyes.

A palm-sized black energy ball floated in front of him, the power of the Dark-Dark Fruit spinning rapidly inside the ball.

But his attention is not on the Dark-Dark Fruit now.

He had already clearly sensed the effect of Luffy's punch using his Observation Haki.

The power of Ryuo pierced through Kaido's defenses and exploded inside his body.

This was also the first time Luffy had truly injured Kaido, not just a minor scratch, but a substantial injury that made Kaido feel pain.

But that's all.

Roy opened his eyes and lightly tapped his finger in the air.

"The gap is too big."

Roy sighed inwardly. Based on his understanding of Kaido, he figured Kaido was only using about 50% of his strength at this point.

His defense was only at a basic level. With the passive defense of the dragon scales and the physical enhancement brought by multiple heart transplants, he didn't even use his Haki very seriously.

His attack power was restrained; he didn't even unleash half the power of his Conqueror's Haki Entanglement, and he only used the most basic version of Thunder Bagua.

He is fast, but that's due to his physical attributes, not the power of his Devil Fruit.

He didn't use any of the elemental attacks from the Azure Dragon Fruit, and he didn't even use his awakened abilities.

On the other hand, the Straw Hat Alliance...

Luffy's punch just now was already an exceptional performance; with Gear Fourth and Advanced Sakura, he practically exposed all of Luffy's trump cards.

While Zoro and Sanji's Ryuo (Advanced Armament Haki) can injure Kaido, its power is far less than Luffy's; at most, it will only cause Kaido some pain.

Kidd's attacks are powerful enough, but the frequency is too slow. Kaido can't just stand there and let him hit him.

Although the Nine Red Scabbards' swordsmanship is exquisite, their attacks without the enhancement of Ryuo (Advanced Armament Haki) are practically like tickling Kaido's defenses.

Roy drew several intersecting lines in the air, making the difference in strength between the two sides even more intuitive.

"You've been pushed to this point with only 50% of your strength," Roy muttered to himself, shaking his head.

His plan was never to have Luffy and his crew defeat Kaido.

Even with Zoro, Sanji, Kidro, the Nine Red Scabbards, and the two Mink Tribe kings all combined, Luffy at his current level still couldn't defeat Kaido at full power.

This is not a gap that quantity can make up for; it is a gap in understanding and skill.

What he needs is for Luffy to break through under Kaido's pressure.

Just like in the original story, Luffy awakens the Nikka form in a desperate situation, and the Straw Hat Luffy can only trigger the true power of that fruit when he is on the verge of death.

But the problem now is that Kaido seems to be too hard a whetstone.

Although Luffy's punch injured Kaido, it was far from enough to force Kaido to use his full strength.

If Kaido continues to use only five-tenths of his strength to suppress Luffy, even if Luffy fights until he is exhausted, he may not be able to trigger his awakening.

"This is a real hassle," Roy muttered.

······

At the same time, Roy turned his gaze toward Ghost Island Square.

The fighting in the square continues.

Although Hyogoro's samurai army and mink warriors were tightly confined to the perimeter of the square, their resistance was much stronger than expected.

Those old samurai were all fearless and valiant. Although their swordsmanship couldn't compare to the level of the Nine Red Scabbards, their teamwork was excellent, forming a sword formation of ten men each.

They actually withstood several waves of attacks from the Beasts Pirates' remaining forces.

The Mink warriors were even fiercer.

Although Inuarashi and Nekomamushi went to the rooftop to support Luffy, the elite members of the Musketeer Team and the Saga were still there.

These mink warriors are born with the ability to use static electricity, and combined with the combat instincts they have developed over years of fighting giant beasts on Zou Island, they are more lethal than the samurai in the melee.

The Beasts Pirates' remaining forces suffered heavy casualties.

Despite their numerical advantage, these warriors fought the mink warriors with a reckless, death-defying ferocity.

Even if you get slashed, they'll retaliate; once bitten, they won't let go; even if knocked to the ground, they'll cling to your leg and let their companions come and slash them.

This fighting style was very difficult for the Beast Pirates' henchmen, who were used to overwhelming battles, to adapt to, and their casualties far exceeded those of the past.

Roy didn't care whether these henchmen lived or died.

But King cares, and so does Kaido.

The Beasts Pirates are Kaido's core strength. If the remaining troops are wiped out by these samurai and mink,

Even if Kaido kills the invading enemy in the end, he will still be very unhappy.

Thinking of this,

Roy's telekinetic power spread out silently.