From the moment Kaido was reborn in this world, he knew one thing for sure: the science from his old life didn't apply here.
It was a foolish mistake to think that Admiral Kizaru's Light-Light Fruit actually moved at the true speed of light. The same went for Eneru's Rumble-Rumble Fruit.
The Flame-Flame Fruit and the Mag-Mag Fruit followed the same strange logic.
In his old world, fire could easily be made to burn hotter than magma. But in this world, magma was superior to fire. It just was.
Kaido suspected he knew why. The power of Devil Fruits didn't come from science. It came from imagination.
And in the collective imagination of the people in this world, the raw, unstoppable power of magma erupting from a volcano was simply more terrifying than a simple, controllable flame.
This rule didn't just apply to Devil Fruits. The very materials of this world seemed to follow that same principle.
Like the situation he was in right now.
Kaido was deep inside Mount Fuji, surrounded by a world of fiery red, rolling, and flowing magma. He was in his massive dragon form, wreathed in his own powerful flames. He used his immense physical strength to charge straight down into the crushing pressure.
Logically, the temperature of magma shouldn't change that much, even deep down.
But as Kaido swam deeper and deeper, he could clearly feel the surrounding magma becoming even hotter.
His own flames were already incredibly hot. They could easily melt everything they touched, including solid rock. It was the only reason he could ignore the scorching magma and swim in it at all.
Normally, if he were in the open air, Kaido could fly from the summit of Mount Fuji to its base in just a few minutes. But now, he was slowed down. The hot, flowing magma was thick, and the surroundings were mostly hard rock. Kaido's downward speed was not fast.
Half an hour had passed, but Kaido felt he had only covered about one-third of the distance.
Yet, even at this depth, he could feel that the temperature of the volcano's magma was gradually beginning to surpass that of his own fire.
This result was unexpected. He had originally thought he could last longer.
It doesn't matter.
As Kaido's expression solidified, dark, black Armament Haki emanated from his fiery red dragon body. It wrapped around his scales in a powerful, invisible coat.
Kaido instantly felt the pressure from the surrounding magma lessen. The defensive capability of Haki was not only for Devil Fruits. Armament Haki could defend against all attacks, including this crushing heat.
Thus, Kaido continued to twist his massive body, charging downwards. At the same time, his Observation Haki was fully expanded. No movement around him could escape his perception.
So, the question is, he thought, where exactly is the legendary Ancient Weapon, Pluton?
Boru boru... Boru boru...
On the sea outside Impel Down, an unprecedented meeting was taking place. Three different factions had gathered.
The Marine forces, led by five massive warships.
The pirate forces, led by "Fire Fist" Ace, Jinbe, and Crocodile.
The Shichibukai forces, led by Blackbeard.
Clap... clap... clap...
At this moment, Teach, who had boarded the long corridor outside Impel Down from his ship with several of his subordinates, looked excitedly at Ace, who had escaped and regained his freedom. He clapped his hands and shouted enthusiastically.
"Zehahahahaha! Hey, Ace, we meet again!"
And at this moment, seeing Teach appear before him once again, Ace's expression turned ice-cold.
"Teach...!"
He took a small step forward, looking like he wanted to charge, but he forcibly held himself back.
Seeing this scene, Teach let out a wild laugh.
"Hey, Ace, what's wrong? You're not gonna charge at me? Did losing to me once take away all your courage? You just gonna stand there? Zehahahaha! You don't seem like the fiery captain I knew."
Crocodile also looked at Ace curiously.
Seeing this, Ace kept his eyes locked on Teach and said in a solemn tone, "Be careful. Teach ate the Dark-Dark Fruit. It has the ability to nullify the powers of Devil Fruit users. The darkness he releases has a powerful gravitational pull and can absorb all abilities. Only Haki and physical strength can defeat him."
Upon hearing this, not only Crocodile but also Admiral Kizaru, who was nearby, frowned.
"Is it that kind of Haki?" Crocodile asked with interest.
"No..." Ace said. "That feeling of powerlessness... it's more like Sea Stone, or even stronger than Sea Stone."
"Zehahahahaha! Ace, it seems you gained a lot of information from me in that battle. But so what?" As Teach said this, he raised his right hand high, and black smoke permeated the air. "Nothing can escape the engulfment of darkness!"
Seeing Teach's arrogant demeanor, Crocodile's face was full of displeasure.
Even Admiral Kizaru, who was nearby, looked at this uninvited guest with some dissatisfaction. He slowly said, "Ooh, Blackbeard. Shouldn't you be at Marineford right now? Hmm? Could it be that you've also betrayed the Marines?"
As Admiral Kizaru said this, a golden light flashed in his eyes, and a terrifying aura emanated. This aura was completely different from when he was dealing with Ace and Crocodile just now.
Teach also felt it. A few drops of cold sweat ran down his forehead, but he quickly burst into laughter.
"No... no... how could that be? I still value my Shichibukai status quite a bit. And it seems I've arrived just in time!" Teach said. "Hey, Admiral Kizaru, want to spar? If 'Fire Fist' Ace escapes during the public execution later, the Marines and the World Government might lose face, wouldn't they?"
Upon hearing this, Ace's expression became even uglier. Originally, they were already having trouble dealing with one Admiral. Now Blackbeard had arrived.
Unfortunately, Admiral Kizaru seemed to have no intention of responding to Blackbeard's "invitation." Instead, he asked, "Blackbeard, you still haven't answered my question. Why are you here? If you don't give this old man an answer, I'll have no choice but to eliminate you along with Ace and the others. Ooh, that would be so~ much paperwork for me."
At this, Blackbeard's face also turned grim.
But just then, the Den Den Mushi in Admiral Kizaru's arms rang.
"Borsalino!" It was the voice of Fleet Admiral Sengoku. "Spar with Blackbeard. Immediately bring 'Fire Fist' Ace to Marineford!"
"Ehh?" Admiral Kizaru was full of doubts. No matter how he looked at it, Blackbeard's appearance here was definitely not to help the Marines. But Sengoku's next words left Kizaru with no choice but to obey.
"This is an order from the World Government!"
Inside Impel Down, in the control room on the first floor of the sea, Warden Magellan was furious. He felt that everything was out of his control. He had finally managed to get away from Yamato and had contacted the World Government.
"Magellan, the World Government understands the situation at Impel Down, and the orders have been issued," the voice on the other end said. "Next, what you need to do, besides defending Impel Down, is to ensure 'Kaido's daughter' and 'Straw Hat.' Their mischief has gone on long enough. Let them remain in Impel Down forever."
"I understand."
Magellan hung up the Den Den Mushi and looked at the monitor screens.
He could see them clearly on the security feeds. From the direction of the Fourth Floor, the Blazing Inferno, Kaido's daughter, Straw Hat Luffy, and Ivankov of the Revolutionaries were quickly running upwards, heading for the exit.
At the same time, in the New World, Wano Country...
Within the lava of Mount Fuji, Kaido also encountered trouble...
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