The Burosu Sea, a remote region in the New World. The area had very few islands, and most of them were barren, with sparse vegetation and mostly rock, almost completely uninhabited. Most importantly, it was quite far from both Kaido's and Bege's territories.
On this day, Bege arrived on a small skiff at one of the small, deserted islands in the Burosu Sea. This was the location he and Kaido had agreed upon for their duel.
A massive warship was already anchored on one side of the island, flying the flag of the Beasts Pirates. Kaido had arrived ahead of him.
At the base of a rocky mountain on the island, a large, man-made cave had been carved out. Several members of the Beasts Pirates stood guard outside. Deep inside the cave, Kaido was sitting on the ground, leaning against the rock wall, a gourd of sake in his hand, continuously pouring it into his mouth. In front of him was a large, roasted beast.
Kaido grabbed the beast and took a huge bite, tearing off meat and bone together. He chewed it all up, the bones crunching loudly, and then swallowed.
Sitting next to Kaido was a burly giant, though he was still a good deal smaller than Kaido himself.
It was King the Wildfire. Only King was allowed to sit so close to Kaido; the other crew members were all huddled in other corners of the cave.
A giant figure rushed into the cave. It was Jack the Drought. He came before Kaido and said urgently, "Captain, Demon Dragon is here."
For this duel, both King the Wildfire and Jack the Drought had come. Kaido had originally wanted to come alone; in his eyes, Bege was not yet an opponent worthy of such caution.
King, however, thought differently. He was worried that the Fire Tank Pirates would mobilize their entire crew to ambush Kaido. Even though Kaido was terrifyingly strong, the full might of the Fire Tank Pirates was also a chilling prospect. So, he and Jack had come along to back Kaido up.
Kaido's eyes lit up. He shot to his feet, his massive frame exuding an immense pressure.
"He's finally here! He's finally here!" Kaido strode out of the cave, swallowing the rest of the roasted meat in two bites and taking a huge swig of sake. He let out a booming laugh, and a terrifying aura shot into the sky, sweeping across the island.
Bege, who had just landed, immediately sensed the fearsome presence.
"What a powerful aura. Bege, you have to be extra careful this time," Modi said, his expression grave. Just the aura radiating from Kaido was enough to make him feel a trace of fear.
"Don't worry, Uncle Modi," Enel said fiercely. "If things get bad, we'll all just jump him together. I don't believe for a second that all of us combined can't take down one guy."
Bege placed a hand on Enel's head and ruffled his hair roughly, laughing. "Don't worry. After my Castle-Castle Fruit awakened, my strength has increased in every aspect. And I have more than a few tricks up my sleeve. Kaido may be strong, but if he wants to kill me, I'm afraid he won't be able to."
"That's true," Modi said with a slight nod. He knew that Bege had prepared a lot for this duel. With his strength and the measures he had prepared, even if he were to be defeated, it would be very difficult for him to be killed.
As they were talking, a giant figure fell from the sky, crashing down in front of them and shattering the ground. From within the cloud of dust, the incredibly burly figure of Kaido emerged.
He exuded an extremely intense, murderous aura. An ordinary person would not be able to remain calm in his presence.
Even Modi and the others looked on with shock and gravity.
"Brat, you're finally here," Kaido said, looking down at Bege. His large, bell-like eyes swirled with a complex mixture of anger, excitement, and other emotions. "I thought you'd have forgotten about our duel while you were off causing trouble for the World Government."
Faced with Kaido's demonic, terrifying presence, Bege remained completely unfazed. His own Ferocious Beast Swordsmanship was the pinnacle of savagery. When it came to killing intent and brutality, he was in no way inferior to Kaido.
"A battle between us is a matter of great importance. I would not miss it," Bege said, meeting Kaido's gaze calmly. "Kaido, after this fight, regardless of life or death, you must not set foot on the sky island. You should keep your word, right?"
A grin spread across Kaido's face, and he let out a booming laugh. "Of course! My word is my bond! I always do what I say. As long as you're still alive, I promise I won't touch the sky island."
His gaze turned cold and sinister. "As long as you're still alive," he sneered. "Brat, do you think you can survive?"
"Who will win and who will lose, who will live and who will die, is not yet certain. Kaido, don't be too confident."
In an instant, Bege's own ferocious Conqueror's Haki erupted. A bloody aura spread from his body, and the terrifying pressure tore through Kaido's killing intent, crashing down on him.
Kaido's eyes narrowed, and his grin widened. An equally terrifying, abyss-like aura exploded from his own body.
The two savage, violent presences clashed wildly, grinding against each other. The sky seemed to darken as the wind kicked up sand and stone. Dark red lightning crackled, filling the surrounding space. The force of their combined auras sent the men from both crews flying.
"A powerful and ferocious Conqueror's Haki. This is getting more and more interesting. I can't wait to crush you," Kaido's expression was a mixture of savage excitement, his eyes filled with a vicious killing intent and a burning desire for battle.
Suddenly, a massive arm, like a pillar of heaven, created a sonic boom as it shot toward Bege's head like a bolt of lightning.
Without any warning, Kaido had attacked, his terrifying fist arriving in an instant.
Bege's reaction was just as swift. He drew the cursed sword Hannya in a flash, coating it in Armament Haki.
The iron-pillar-like arm and the cursed sword collided with a massive boom that shook the deserted island. A circular shockwave instantly shot out for a thousand meters, blasting away everything in its path. The men from both crews were thrown back again, sent flying for over a kilometer.
A battle between two Emperors was not something that lesser fighters could interfere with.
The colossal, sky-collapsing force made Bege's brow furrow. The ground beneath his feet instantly shattered, and countless fragments of rock shot outwards.
He was thrown back, the ground crumbling beneath his feet as he was pushed for over a hundred meters. It was a testament to how terrifying Kaido's punch was. Countless shadows flew from his body-castle, and he swallowed them all. His body began to grow, and a vast power surged from within him.
"Hahaha! Brat, use whatever tricks you have!" Kaido roared, swinging his left fist in another ferocious attack.
Bege instantly drew his Fire Cloud Sword and met the fist with a slash. Another terrifying shockwave swept out.
The ground beneath Bege's feet cracked again.
A look of surprise appeared in Kaido's massive, bell-like eyes. He hadn't expected Bege to be able to block his punch. But his expression quickly turned to one of even greater excitement. His massive, Haki-clad foot shot through the air, aimed at Bege.
Bege met the attack with his own kick, tearing through the air. The two massive limbs collided with another ferocious boom.
This time, Bege was sent flying back dozens of meters, while Kaido was only pushed back two steps.
Bege shook the numbness from his arm and leg, his expression growing more and more grim. Kaido's strength was astonishing, and he was certain that this was not the full extent of his power.
In terms of strength, I'm definitely no match for him. But I'm a master swordsman. Who would want to trade blows with him head-on?
His Castle Skin appeared on his body, a deep gray color. After his Devil Fruit had awakened, his Castle Skin had also become much tougher.
He had tested its defensive power. Even a slash from Oars at eighty percent of his strength couldn't completely shatter it.
Its defensive power was extremely strong.
This was one of the sources of Bege's confidence.
A bloody aura coiled around his swords, igniting into a blood-red flame. A terrifyingly fiendish and demonic sword intent shot into the sky, shaking the very soul.
"Good, good, good! Such a sharp sword aura! Brat, give me everything you've got! Let's see if you can kill me!" Kaido's expression was one of pure excitement, his eyes filled with a strange longing.
Kaido had a bizarre hobby: suicide. He loved to travel the world alone, trying to kill himself. In the original story, he had gone to a sky island just to jump off and try to commit suicide. Even a fall from ten thousand meters couldn't kill him.
In his life, he had challenged the Marines and the Four Emperors alone, been captured 18 times, and been tortured over a thousand times.
He had been sentenced to death 40 times, but no one had ever been able to kill him. He couldn't even kill himself.
His title as the "Strongest Creature in the World" was absolutely well-deserved.
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