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In other words, Kaido was extremely talented. Like Big Mom among the Four Emperors, he had shown superhuman potential since childhood, and later ate a Devil Fruit perfectly suited to him. 

On top of that, his Armament Haki had reached the very peak of the world.

Kain's Tailed Beast Bomb had consumed almost half of the chakra in his body, yet it carried enough power to destroy a medium-sized island in the One Piece world — stronger even than the legendary Pluton.

With the speed of the Thunder Fruit and the destructive power of the Tailed Beast Bomb, Kain could easily force any enemy to take a direct hit.

"It'll probably take a day or two to fully recover... The human body is still different from the pure chakra aggregate of a tailed beast — unless I stay in Sage Mode continuously,"

Kain thought to himself while flying leisurely, feeling the consumption in his body.

Naturalization (Sage Mode) could indeed quickly absorb natural energy to accelerate recovery, but maintaining it continuously would drain his stamina. It wasn't worth the cost right now.

Meanwhile, the battle at Marineford raged on behind him.

He had no plans to intervene again — unless Blackbeard or his crew appeared.

His objective of establishing dominance had already been half achieved. Now, he only needed to see if Im would retaliate for the destruction of the Holy Land of Mariejois.

If Uranus attacked, it would hardly pose a threat to him.

To others, Kain appeared to be simply a Thunder Fruit user, but he had long since overcome the usual limitations of Devil Fruit abilities.

"One and a half tailed beasts still isn't enough... If I swallow a few more, it'll be much better. As for the Gedo Statue... let's keep it for research," Kain mused.

After thinking it over, he decided he didn't really need the Gedo Statue.

By absorbing all nine tailed beasts, he could create his own version of the Sage of Six Paths.

Even Uchiha Sasuke had only temporarily reached that level by using Susanoo as a vessel for the tailed beasts' chakra.

Kain, however, could use his own body as a permanent carrier.

Moreover, thanks to the Munch-Munch Fruit ability, he could even digest the tailed beasts' memories — allowing him to wield Tailed Beast Bombs with expert skill and even unleash barrages of them, like a walking fortress.

The reason Kain wasn't impressed with Pluton and Poseidon was because the so-called "Ancient Weapons" were, frankly, overrated.

Sure, Pluton could destroy an island with one shot — impressive at first glance — but nothing more.

Compared to that, Kain had blueprints for a railgun capable of destroying the moon.

If he built it and brought it into the One Piece world, even Im would be polishing Kain's shoes.

As for Kaido — the explosion from the Tailed Beast Bomb had blasted him dozens of kilometers away and buried him deep in an ocean trench.

Kain had already recorded Kaido's life magnetic field, so no matter how weak his aura became, Kain could still sense him within a certain range.

Not bothered by seawater but disliking the inconvenience of getting wet, Kain simply coated himself with a protective magic spell before diving in and retrieving Kaido quickly.

The towering man, more than seven meters tall, had completely lost consciousness.

Kain casually wrapped him several times with the seastone chains he had prepared in advance, and then threw him into his pet bag.

The plan was simple:

First, lock him up and draw blood for two years, accumulating enough bloodline factor to mass-produce a dragon-type biomechanical army.

Then, study how to modify Kaido's powerful body for further use.

Such a durable body would be a shame to waste.

"By the way, the bloodline factor in Kaido could also strengthen the fire dragon... Both my mount and Orochimaru's fire dragon army could benefit from it."

It seemed Kaido's full-body transformation plan would have to be delayed.

Blood extraction would take at least four or five years.

"Once I get back, I'll have the Red Queen develop a special nutrition and blood-replenishing regimen for him," Kain concluded.

Kaido was truly a treasure trove — a goldmine of value.

When Kain returned, he even planned to break off Kaido's horns and mount them on the wall as part of his collection.

However, he sighed inwardly:

Without Kaido ever having successfully overcome his alcoholism and destructive tendencies, the "achievement" of reforming him would forever be missing from the collection's true glory.

The war at Marineford was still raging.

After collecting Kaido, Kain no longer participated, instead waiting for the battle to end near the battlefield.

However, Blackbeard still hadn't shown up, which made Kain a little suspicious.

The war was almost over, and yet there was no sign of him.

Could it be that he was accidentally caught in the blast of the Tailed Beast Bomb and thrown hundreds of miles away?

Currently, Kain's range for monitoring with radio waves extended about 100 kilometers.

He could stretch it farther if needed, but doing so would put a heavy burden on him.

The more living beings within range, the more information flooded back, requiring even more mental processing.

His radio wave monitoring worked by collecting and analyzing electromagnetic signals across all frequencies, then forming a clear answer — a process demanding immense mental calculation, and therefore, a strong soul.

At present, Kain was using the feedback of the electromagnetic waves to generate a real-time mental map of the battlefield.

Whitebeard, having recovered from half of his injuries, was now desperately fighting the two Admirals.

He seemed to regain the demeanor of his prime years, and with a single punch, shook the already crumbling Marineford into further ruins.

Meanwhile, with the help of the Revolutionary Army and the escapees from Impel Down, Luffy gradually made his way toward the execution platform.

Under the desperate cover fire of the Whitebeard Pirates, he managed to punch Garp and rescue Ace.

However, Ace later died at the hands of Akainu.

Akainu viewed Whitebeard's existence as a failure: a man with great strength and reputation, but without the corresponding ambition to dominate.

In Akainu's eyes, allowing someone like Whitebeard to remain a Yonko was a stain on the Marine's honor.

Ace could not tolerate Akainu insulting the man he revered most.

Blinded by rage, he fought Akainu head-on — but the difference in power was stark.

Even if Ace could fight Jinbei to a draw, neither his Haki nor his Devil Fruit mastery could match Akainu's overwhelming force.

After Ace's death, Whitebeard, in his final fury, unleashed the last of his strength and wreaked havoc — but ultimately, he was killed under the joint efforts of Akainu and four Vice Admirals.

"That should be about it..."

Sensing Whitebeard's death, Kain immediately Apparated to his side.

Under the stunned eyes of Akainu and the others, he casually stored Whitebeard's corpse into his pet bag.

Inside the bag, a shadow clone of Kain was already prepared, and Whitebeard's body was quickly placed in special preservation equipment.

Akainu questioned sharply, "Mage, what are you doing?"

Having witnessed Kain's terrifying strength — and his unpredictable behavior — Akainu reined in his usual aggression slightly.

"I'm just taking Whitebeard's body," Kain replied calmly.

"This war has nothing to do with me. You can continue as you like."

Although he hadn't managed to intercept Blackbeard, securing Kaido — and now Whitebeard's corpse — was more than enough of a reward.

"Dad's body... damn it! What are you going to do with Dad's body!?"

The captains of the Whitebeard Pirates, furious beyond reason, shouted at him.

Even facing someone more than twice their strength, they showed no fear — ready to fight for their father's dignity.

They knew all too well the kinds of horrors performed on corpses by people like Gecko Moria.

They would not allow their father's body to be desecrated.

"Stop your nonsense," Kain said coldly.

"Talk any more, and none of you will leave here alive."

Just one sentence from him broke the captains' resolve.

Ultimately, they had all decided to honor Whitebeard's last command — survival.

Meanwhile, Akainu gave the order for all Marines to hunt down the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates.

Without the Blackbeard Pirates to divide Marine firepower, their chances of survival looked grim.

At that moment, however, the "Deserter King" Koby finally mustered his courage.

He stood in front of Akainu, babbling a few words about cherishing life and pleading for the battle to stop.

Kain shook his head at the scene.

The Marshal of the Marines hasn't abdicated yet...

Instead of wasting time pleading with the hawkish Akainu, Koby would have been better off kneeling before Sengoku and begging him to prioritize the wounded.

After all, Sengoku had more political concerns to weigh — and his decision-making could actually stop the battle.

Begging Akainu was simply a waste of breath.

"Who are you?" Akainu growled.

"You've wasted a few seconds of my time just to spew such nonsense. Marines don't need soldiers who sympathize with the enemy."

After Akainu finished speaking, he was about to kill Koby, but the red-haired Shanks, who had arrived just in time, stopped him.

The moment Shanks appeared, Kain noticed something strange — an electromagnetic wave with no feedback, which immediately caught his attention.

Normally, whether it was Observation Haki or Conqueror's Haki, it should leave some kind of spiritual trace.

The so-called "king's qualification" — Conqueror's Haki — should come from a natural spiritual talent, allowing one to gather their willpower and shock others.

But a spirit strong enough could disrupt the frequency bands of electromagnetic waves, making knowledge and sensing abilities ineffective.

Even Kain could only detect an abnormal fluctuation, without being able to predict Shanks' next move precisely.

Still, that was enough.

Recognizing the anomaly allowed Kain to stay prepared; he didn't need to predict exact actions. He wasn't a physicist trying to measure particle behavior — he was a fighter who needed to survive.

While Kain pondered these things, the Red Hair Pirates took their positions and began negotiating.

If the Marines refused to stand down, the Red Hair Pirates would intervene directly.

After a long internal debate, Sengoku finally agreed to Shanks' request.

The Whitebeard Pirates still had the strength to fight, and adding the Red Hair Pirates to the mix would tip the scales dangerously.

Even if the Marines pushed for total destruction, their own losses would be catastrophic, and they would no longer have the strength to control the New World.

Unless Kain joined the battle — but he had made it clear he would not intervene — Sengoku had little choice but to accept the truce.

Besides, the Marines had already gained significantly: two Yonko were down, and although the Beasts Pirates' main force remained, Kaido himself was gone. The remnants weren't as frightening.

Just as Kain was about to leave, Shanks called out, "Mr. Mage, please — do me a favor. Hand over Whitebeard's body so we can give him and Ace a proper funeral."

Kain stopped, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.

"I refuse," Kain replied bluntly.

"Why should I give you face? Are you going to give me face too? How about this — bring me fifty Devil Fruits. When you do that, I'll hand over Whitebeard's body."

He firmly rejected the offer. Why should I do a favor for a stranger I just met?

Shanks sighed, disappointed, but he showed no intent to fight.

After all, he was here to end the war, not start another one.

Just then, Kain suddenly turned around, raising his arms high, and in a voice like a thunderclap said, "Ah, good thing you reminded me — I almost forgot. Thunder!"

From the dark clouds overhead, a bolt of lightning condensed and, in an instant, blasted down.

A massive thunder pillar struck Jack the Drought's pirate ship, sinking it completely.

Mammoth tusks are valuable, and Jack himself is worth even more.

Seeing Kain fly toward the place where Jack had fallen into the sea, Shanks loosened his grip slightly on the hilt of his sword.

He had a feeling — New World was about to face an unprecedented catastrophe.

…

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