Starting from One Piece with the Rinnegan

Marineford, in front of the Marine Headquarters building—

Mihawk and the other Shichibukai arrived at the location Kaito had mentioned, only to find him already standing on the edge of Marineford's outer wall.

Kaito had his back to them, eyes fixed on the inner bay beyond the wall, estimating it to be around three hundred meters in diameter.

If he needed to use Susanoo later, this bay would be spacious enough.

Everyone looked around but didn't see any suitable terrain for battle, leaving them confused.

Were they really going to fight right in front of Marine HQ? Was this Shikiryū planning to renovate the whole area?

Mihawk, however, didn't seem to care. Since Kaito clearly wasn't concerned, why should he be? All that mattered to him was the fight.

He was already fully prepared. Looking at Kaito, he said,

"Can we begin our battle now?"

Kaito turned around with a slightly mysterious smile and said,

"Of course. But first, I need to create a more suitable battlefield."

"A suitable battlefield? We're not fighting here?"

"No. This is Marine Headquarters. If things get destroyed, are you going to pay for the repairs?"

"Uh…"

For once, an awkward expression crept across Mihawk's face. Paying to fix up the Marine HQ? That was ridiculous.

Kaito knew there was no way this guy would ever fork over money for that, so it was better to avoid damaging HQ in the first place.

After all, Marineford was like his home in this world, and he definitely wouldn't allow anyone to destroy it.

No one but himself was allowed.

With that thought, Kaito's body began to float. It looked like he was about to make a move. Mihawk reached for his back and drew his black blade, Yoru. Tension quickly filled the air.

Just then—

"Stop right there! Are you trying to tear down Marine HQ?!"

Boom! A towering figure dropped from the sky—it was Sengoku, who had just jumped out the window from his office.

The moment he landed, he rushed between Kaito and Mihawk, glaring sternly at Mihawk.

"This isn't the place for a fight. If you insist on going through with this, it'll be considered a declaration of war against the Marines!"

Mihawk frowned and glanced at Kaito.

Kaito didn't disappoint. He looked at Sengoku and replied,

"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, don't worry. The battle won't damage a single brick of Marineford."

"Oh? And how do you plan to manage that?"

Kaito smiled faintly. Black flames ignited in both his hands. Strangely, the flames didn't radiate any heat—instead, they emitted a piercing cold.

Sengoku's pupils contracted as he saw the black fire in Kaito's hands. He recognized it instantly—it was one of the unique abilities granted by the Nekomata Fruit.

He'd been the one to personally hand over that fruit to Kaito. There was no way he'd forget it.

But what was Kaito trying to do now, suddenly using this ability?

Kaito didn't bother explaining. Sengoku would understand soon enough.

Harnessing the power of the Deva Path, Kaito flew directly toward the bay, heading straight for the sea.

The Shichibukai were startled by his movement.

They all knew Kaito was a Devil Fruit user. And it was common knowledge that Devil Fruit users couldn't swim.

To them, this looked like suicide.

Hancock panicked instantly. She rushed forward to the edge, clearly about to jump down after him.

Luckily, Sengoku grabbed her arm just in time. He knew Kaito wasn't afraid of seawater and wasn't worried for his safety.

Hancock turned to glare at Sengoku, furious.

"What's wrong with you?! Don't you know he's a Devil Fruit user?! Hurry up and save him!"

Sengoku was dumbfounded by her reaction. What was up with this Boa Hancock? Wasn't she known for hating men? Why did she look so worried about Kaito?

Still, seeing how agitated she was, Sengoku explained,

"Kaito's situation is... special. He's not affected by seawater. Calm down."

"What kind of nonsense is that?! How can a Devil Fruit user not fear the sea?!"

"See for yourself."

Hancock, still fuming, looked down—and immediately spotted Kaito standing steadily on the surface of the water.

She let out a deep breath of relief.

She wasn't interested in why he could stand on the sea. For her, as long as Kaito was safe, that was all that mattered.

This was the love-struck mindset of the Pirate Empress.

At that moment, Kaito suddenly knelt on one knee atop the water. His hands, wreathed in black fire, pressed against the sea's surface.

The tomoe in his right eye began to tremble. Kaito called out in his mind,

"Modis, have you slept enough?"

"Heehee~ You finally remembered me, Master. I thought you'd forgotten all about me!"

The sultry voice of Modis echoed—it was the long-absent nekomata spirit.

As Kaito's Rinnegan continued to grow stronger, Modis, who resided within it, had been nourished by the surging ocular power.

But because that power had increased so quickly, she had fallen into a deep sleep.

Only after the Rinnegan's power stabilized did she awaken.

Still groggy, she hadn't bothered Kaito unless he called. She'd just stayed inside the Rinnegan, occasionally scolding that fire-breathing dog.

But Kaito hadn't summoned her for so long, it made her feel abandoned. In protest, she decided to ignore her "two-timing" master—unless he came begging.

And yet... the moment he called, her resolve collapsed.

Truly, she had lost her nekomata pride today.

"Modis, I'm about to fully awaken your power. Are you ready?"

"You mean that awakened state, right? It's fine, I'm always ready!"

With her reply, Kaito felt reassured. Modis was a life form he had created, and before fully awakening the Nekomata Fruit, he wanted to make sure it wouldn't harm her.

Since Modis was fine, it was time to begin.

Once awakened, a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit not only boosts physical abilities significantly, but its special traits also grow immensely stronger.

Ocular power surged into the tomoe in Kaito's right eye that represented the Nekomata Fruit.

The awakening had begun.

Behind him, the shadow of a demonic black cat materialized, and a flowing ribbon of black flame coiled around Kaito's body.

The black fire on his hands burned fiercer, and an intense cold spread outward. Many Marines within Marineford shivered involuntarily.

Feeling the air rapidly cool, Sengoku looked down at Kaito in shock.

This sensation—it was like Aokiji's Ice Age!

But Kaito's current state clearly indicated he had awakened the Nekomata Fruit.

Sengoku had also awakened his own Human-Human Fruit, Model: Buddha. He wouldn't mistake it.

But how many years had it taken him to achieve that?

And how many had Kaito needed?

This might not even be the first Devil Fruit Kaito had awakened!

From Akainu and Aokiji, Sengoku had already heard whispers that Kaito's Goro Goro no Mi might be awakened.

Now, he was witnessing this scene—he could hardly process it.

A wild, absurd thought formed in Sengoku's mind:

"Is Kaito already strong enough to annihilate a Yonko crew?!"

Kaito had no idea Sengoku's thoughts were spiraling.

Right now, he had completed the Nekomata Fruit's awakening.

The pupil in the center of his Rinnegan's right eye had transformed into a flickering black flame.

Narrowing his eyes, Kaito said in a deep voice,

"Realm of Extreme Cold."

Whoosh! The black fire burst from his hands, and in an instant, it spread across the entire inner bay, setting the sea ablaze.

But it didn't stop there—the flames expanded further, reaching well beyond Marineford's waters.

Kaito stood calmly in the center of the blazing black sea and uttered a single word.

"Seal."

In the very next second, the black flames—which looked like they could never be extinguished—vanished completely.

What the others now saw was a boundless expanse of ice radiating bone-chilling cold.

With a flash, Kaito reappeared atop the wall.

He looked at the still-stunned Mihawk and smiled.

"So? Does this battlefield meet your expectations?"

Mihawk paused for a moment, then asked the question everyone else was dying to know:

"Exactly how many abilities do you have?"

Kaito, already used to this kind of situation, started spouting nonsense with a completely straight face.

"Ever heard of adaptive abilities? Mine can change depending on the situation."

To everyone's surprise, Mihawk nodded seriously and said in a deep voice,

"I see. That's a terrifying power."

The people behind them couldn't help but mutter,

"You actually believed that!?"

Mihawk ignored the group's complaints. He glanced at the ice below, then leapt down to the surface, silently waiting for Kaito to follow.

Kaito was a bit thrown off by Mihawk's sudden straightforwardness, but quickly snapped out of it and followed him.

Once on the ice, Mihawk stomped hard with one foot to test its strength. Satisfied with the ice's durability, he looked toward the empty-handed Kaito and asked,

"Where's your weapon?"

Kaito thought for a moment, then flicked his hand. A black rod appeared in his grip.

In the next instant, a purple gleam flashed through his Rinnegan. The thin, cylindrical black rod began to morph, slowly reshaping into a long, pitch-black blade.

Since Mihawk wanted a sword fight, Kaito figured he'd humor him. After all, brute strength could work miracles.

With his current eye power, Kaito had a high level of control over Yin-Yang Release—enough to perform some simple shape transformations with the black rod. But it was still nowhere near the flexibility of Truth-Seeking Orbs.

In Naruto, Obito used those things with flair, turning them into all sorts of ridiculous shapes. Kaito would easily crown him the flashiest user of Truth-Seeking Orbs.

Gripping the long blade formed from his Yin-Yang black rod, Kaito spun it once in a flourish, then looked at Mihawk to signal that he was ready.

Mihawk's eyes narrowed. Without another word, he gripped the black blade Yoru with one hand and leapt into the air, swinging downward at Kaito with a powerful slash.

Kaito's blade hummed with vibration as he infused it with Advanced Armament Haki. He mirrored Mihawk's single-handed grip, raising his sword to block.

The moment Yoru clashed against Kaito's sword, a massive, invisible shockwave burst outward. The clouds above split open in a rift that stretched across the entire sky.

From that first exchange alone, Kaito could already gauge Mihawk's strength—at the very least, it was at the level of a pseudo-Yonko.

If his sword hadn't been reinforced with Advanced Armament Haki, the black rod formed from Yin-Yang Release might not have held up under that attack.

Seeing his initial strike fail, Mihawk swiftly retreated to put distance between them. Then he raised Yoru high overhead.

Kaito's expression turned serious at the sight—this was clearly the same stance Mihawk had used during the war at Marineford when preparing to strike at Whitebeard.

As expected, Mihawk brought Yoru down in a fierce slash, unleashing a massive wave of green sword energy that surged toward Kaito.

Kaito didn't raise his blade to defend. Instead, he thrust out his hand, aiming it at the incoming slash.

"Almighty Push!"

Vmmm! An invisible repulsive force erupted from his palm, colliding directly with the green sword energy.

The two forces clashed in a tense standoff. But after a few seconds, the intimidating green slash finally lost its strength and burst apart into scattered green light.

Even after neutralizing the slash, the residual force of the Almighty Push surged toward Mihawk. He swung his sword again, releasing another wave of sword energy to cancel it out.

After that attack, Mihawk looked at Kaito and thought to himself:

"Another new ability—and incredibly powerful. But why isn't he using sword techniques anymore?"

If Kaito had heard that thought, he probably would've sighed and said:

"Believe me, I want to... but I seriously suck at swordsmanship!"

The Almighty Push he used just now had been the directional kind—fired straight from his palm in a focused blast.

This type had a smaller area of effect but packed more punch. It clearly showed how seriously he was taking Mihawk's swordsmanship.

Still, thinking back to that green sword wave from Mihawk, Kaito couldn't help but complain in his head:

"Seriously? Not even a name for that move? Someone get this guy to hang out with Minato for a few days!"

You're supposed to be the world's greatest swordsman. Can't you at least name your attacks?

Roger swings his blade and calls it Divine Departure. Even Kaido has Thunder Bagua when he swings that club. But Mihawk? This guy never says a word. Just slashes.

And don't even get me started on Roger—he's already a legendary figure. Let's talk about Zoro, Mihawk's supposed disciple.

Sure, the guy's got no sense of direction, but when it comes to naming moves, he's practically a professor compared to Mihawk.

Not only does Zoro love naming his attacks, he'll recite a whole chant while he's at it.

Meanwhile, Mihawk? In this whole fight with Kaito, he's used two moves—both crazy powerful—but they're basically just "I slash!" and "I slash again!" It's seriously lacking in style.

Mihawk stood there watching Kaito, who still hadn't made a move. Finally, he spoke up:

"Why aren't you using your sword? Are you saying my swordsmanship isn't on par with Golden Lion's?"

Kaito shook his head and replied:

"Your swordsmanship is definitely not inferior to Golden Lion's.

"But I should clarify—Golden Lion didn't lose to my swordsmanship."

"Oh? Then would you let me witness the ability you used to defeat him?"

Seeing Mihawk's serious expression, Kaito had no choice but to go for it.

Looks like it was time to bring out the Susanoo's greatsword.

With that thought, a towering, fully manifested Susanoo, three hundred meters tall, materialized out of thin air. Kaito reached out and clenched his fist tightly, then said in a deep voice,

"Condense!"

The deep purple Susanoo appeared, dominating the entire inner bay.

Sengoku, watching from the back, was seeing Susanoo for the first time—and the sudden emergence of that massive purple giant left him stunned.

He couldn't help it. A three-hundred-meter-tall Susanoo was an overwhelming visual shock.

For reference, even Little Oars Jr., at thirty-eight meters tall, was already a giant among giants. When he appeared at Marineford, it was a major spectacle.

Now compare that to Kaito's Susanoo—at a terrifying three hundred meters tall. The impact was on a whole different level.

Staring up at the towering figure, Sengoku muttered,

"So this is the purple giant Tsuru mentioned? It's even more terrifying than I imagined..."

Doflamingo was already trembling uncontrollably. The pressure coming from Susanoo was even more intense than Kaido's.

No wonder Kaido hadn't been able to do anything against this 'Purple' last time. This kind of power was beyond what any human should possess.

He wasn't even part of the D. clan, yet he held power that rivaled the gods. Just where the hell did this Purple Giant come from??

As for Hancock—no need to even ask. Her eyes had already turned into heart shapes. She'd gone full fangirl mode.

Even Mihawk, standing directly before the Susanoo, was visibly shaken. But his gaze soon locked onto the hundred-meter-long greatsword at Susanoo's waist.

With a thoughtful look, he said,

"So this is your version of 'swordsmanship,' huh?"

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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