"??"
"??"
Charlotte Linlin on the Queen Mama Chanter and Edward Newgate on the Moby Dick both paused for a moment, their gazes toward Kaido turning strange, as if they were looking at a fool.
"Hmph, I knew this kind of scene would be incomplete without you, the war maniac!"
Sengoku watched the blue dragon soaring through the sky, its feet resting on the blazing Flame Cloud, without surprise. Once again, amidst the buzzing sound, he unleashed a golden light that transformed into a massive golden Buddha.
"Shockwave!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he opened his enormous right palm and struck upward, instantly releasing an overwhelmingly powerful shockwave that sent heavy waves of air bursting forth.
"Ruinous Wind—Ha—"
Kaido opened his dragon mouth, unleashing massive blades of wind to meet the oncoming pale golden shockwave.
[Bang!!]
As the two collided, the former was utterly obliterated by the latter, crashing heavily against the blue dragon, causing it to emit a pained roar as it was sent flying backward.
"Too bad, you're not qualified to be arrogant in front of me!"
Suddenly, the golden Buddha vanished from the warship and, in an instant, reappeared high in the sky, above the dragon. This was a demonstration of the ultimate application of the Six Styles, 'Soru' and 'Moonwalk,' allowing Sengoku's seemingly cumbersome form to exhibit explosive speed in battle.
[Bang!]
This time, the Buddha did not strike with palm power but instead hammered down with a golden fist onto the dragon's head, producing a loud crash that nearly left Kaido dazed as he plummeted into the vast ocean below.
If it were an ordinary Devil Fruit user, they might succumb to weakness, unable to swim or breathe, sinking to the seabed.
But he was a Fish-Fish Fruit user; although he would feel a sense of weakness, he could still breathe normally. With his formidable Haki and physical constitution, he was capable of moving and utilizing his powers for a short time.
The blue dragon that Kaido had transformed into unleashed Armament Haki to its surface, creating a barrier against the encroaching seawater. Then, he spun his long dragon body, performing a rapid circular motion like a top, instantly forming a massive tornado that whipped up a large volume of seawater, while he himself soared out through the eye of the storm.
From an external perspective, it looked as if a gigantic whirlpool had suddenly appeared beneath the sea, swelling higher and higher, transforming into a water tornado that reached up to the sky.
Its emergence directly swept away several nearby pirate ships, while the navy's warships, relying on their size and tonnage, barely managed to stabilize their hulls.
[Bang!!]
However, the water tornado appeared quickly and vanished just as fast, as the shockwave from the golden Buddha's palm struck it, obliterating it on the spot and adding several layers of water to the torrential rain falling from the heavens.
"Linlin—Whitebeard—"
Seeing that the golden Buddha, resembling an Arhat, charged toward him once more, Kaido's mood instantly sank. He instinctively glanced at his two 'partners.'
In his view, this grand naval battle should have been a collaboration among the three of them, with BIG MOM and Whitebeard as the main forces, while he assisted from the side.
There was no way around it; he was much younger than them, having only awakened his fruit powers a few days ago, and his strength was certainly inferior to those two.
Previously, he had rushed down in a drunken frenzy, eager to join in once he saw the two of them make their moves, planning to create a center of chaos and coordinate with the two outside.
Now, after fighting with Sengoku for so long, why was there no movement from their side?
"You! You guys…"
But when Kaido scanned the area, he was shocked to discover that the Queen Mama Chanter and the Moby Dick were retreating. This scene nearly made his dragon eyes pop out.
'Whitebeard' felt he had already found the answer; there was no need to clash with the navy. The key was that Garp and Sengoku were present. Without their leadership, he might consider taking the treasure from those two ships.
As for Charlotte Linlin, she was not interested in treasure at all, thinking, what use is it if it can't be eaten? She had come here to vent her pent-up anger; her previous move, 'Tenman Daijizai Tenjin,' had already caused significant casualties among the navy.
So, upon realizing that the Whitebeard Pirates were leaving, she immediately chose to return the way she came.
To be honest, if Edward Newgate truly wanted to engage in a fierce battle with the navy, BIG MOM would be more than willing to join in.
But now that he was leaving, she didn't want to face Garp and Sengoku's combined forces, and as for Kaido, he was still too green and couldn't be considered peak combat power.
"Mom, if we withdraw from the Whitebeard crew, Kaido won't be able to escape," her eldest son Perospero teased with a long tongue sticking out.
Charlotte Linlin was overjoyed at this moment, laughing, "Mamama, it's not like this is the first time he's been captured. He'll always find a way to get out~~"
Ah, being able to trap that foolish little brother once again, for some reason, she felt a bit pleased inside, not worried at all that Kaido would meet his end.
This guy had been captured so many times before, yet he never died and always managed to escape. She figured this time would be no different! "But Mom, from what I understand, Kaido was captured before his powers awakened."
Katakuri said solemnly as he gazed at the distant battlefield.
"The navy didn't lock him up in Impel Down; he was only held at a branch in the New World. Usually, Kaido breaks free during transport, but this time…"
"Hmm?"
BIG MOM paused for a moment after hearing this, then began to ponder. She wasn't particularly fond of thinking, but she did have some concern for her troublesome little brother.
"Right, if that brat gets captured this time, the ones transporting him will be Sengoku and Garp leading ten warships. The chances of him escaping during transport are practically nonexistent, so he'll be sent straight to Mary Geoise. No, he'll be brought back to Marineford with the fleet, and right next to Marineford is…"
After realizing this, the big woman's expression turned quite awkward, feeling that she had really put Kaido in a terrible spot this time.
"Quickly contact 'Whitebeard' and ask if he's willing to join forces with me to rescue him!" Charlotte Linlin instructed, stroking her slightly plump chin.
"Yes, Mom."
Her fifth son, Opera, the Cream Minister, hurriedly dragged his sticky body covered in cream to make contact. Soon, he returned, weakly conveying the message from the other side.
"'Whitebeard' said he's not familiar with Kaido, and if we want to rescue him, we should go ourselves."
"Not familiar?"
Charlotte Linlin's head was filled with a series of black lines, her eyes filled with anger. Wasn't that nonsense? They had known each other for decades; how could they not be familiar? "So what do we do now, Mom? If we go over now, we'll have to face Sengoku and Garp at the same time, along with those two admirals as backup."
Her eldest son Perospero cautiously observed BIG MOM's gloomy expression and reminded her, as he didn't want to take risks for Kaido, fearing that she might act impulsively.
"Eh—"
Fortunately, Charlotte Linlin wasn't foolish enough to go that far, nor did she suffer from a craving for food. She still had enough rationality left, and she sighed.
"Mama, let him be. He's not the type to easily meet his end; at most, he'll be locked up for a few years and find a way to get out. He's not the kind of man who would end things so easily.