"Video Through Anime: Inventory of the Top Ten Combat Ceilings"

Kaido's flesh seemed to be splitting apart. As Ryūō Banketsu descended, its movement appeared slow but was completely unstoppable.

For a brief moment, under everyone's watchful eyes, the enormous dragon claw—capable of crushing entire islands—was visibly shrinking.

Sweat poured down Kaido's forehead. A strange force was pulling his dragon claw toward the blade's edge, preventing him from breaking free no matter how hard he struggled.

The pain was unbearable. The sword had already cut deep into his muscles and was nearing the bone.

Under the immense pressure, Kaido concentrated all his strength on the affected area, forcing his Azure Dragon form to deactivate.

At the same time, he raised his kanabo (spiked club), his Haki surging, his face twisted in rage as he swung it toward the massive Ryūō Banketsu.

"Thunder Bagua!!!"

With a desperate, full-power strike, Kaido landed a precise hit on the point of impact. His left hand finally broke free!

The wound had already reached the bone marrow—had he been a second slower, his entire left hand would have been severed!

As his kanabo shattered upon impact, Kaido yanked his left hand away, and Mihawk, having exhausted every last ounce of his strength, lost consciousness instantly.

Shanks was still staring at Kaido's exposed hand bone, eyes wide in shock.

"The power of that strike… it's absolutely earth-shattering!"

Before Mihawk could collapse completely, Shanks rushed to support him. Kaido's left hand was now completely numb, with severed nerves and ruptured dragon tendons.

Kaido's fury exploded.

"Mihawk! I'm going to kill you! How dare you wound me?!"

Rage consumed Kaido—his supposedly indestructible body had been injured for the first time in ages!

Unforgivable!

Kaido leaped into the air, soaring dozens of meters as he charged toward Mihawk's unconscious body.

"Kaido! If you take one more step forward, I swear I'll bury you here today!"

Shanks glared at Kaido, and with just his gaze, he froze the Yonko in place, rendering him motionless.

Shanks had another trump card, though he wasn't ready to reveal it just yet. Doing so would disrupt his plans.

But Mihawk's life was non-negotiable. If Kaido forced his hand, then so be it.

Kaido clenched his fractured left hand tightly, his furious eyes locked onto Shanks and Mihawk.

Ever since becoming one of the Four Emperors, he had never suffered such humiliation!

Even a fool could see that the current situation was no longer in his favor.

"Mihawk, Shanks—mark my words! One day, I'll make you pay in blood!"

Kaido's teeth ground together, his pale complexion betraying his pain. Behind him, thousands of Beast Pirates stormed toward the battlefield, while Shanks' crew rushed in response.

Shanks sneered.

"Then get the hell out of here!"

Kaido didn't hesitate. He turned and fled.

He hadn't reached his position as a Yonko by brute strength alone—knowing when to retreat was just as important.

Live to fight another day—that was survival instinct.

The live broadcast screen flickered violently before cutting to black.

"Saitama-sensei! That monster got beaten! Whoa! That was insane—such a massive sword! It could probably split an entire city in half!"

Genos was still immersed in the battle between Shanks, Mihawk, and Kaido, unable to snap out of his awe. Seeing Kaido's Azure Dragon form forcibly broken sent shivers down his spine.

That towering Ryūō Banketsu nearly severed Kaido's dragon claw!

Even the Hero Association had just issued an emergency report:

"The creature in the live broadcast is confirmed to be at least a Dragon-level threat—perhaps even beyond!"

And the swordsman who wielded that divine blade?

Easily a top-three hero in the world!

"That fight got my blood pumping! That was incredible! Hahaha!"

Uchiha Madara couldn't help but praise what he had just witnessed.

Even just watching the battle gave him the same rush he once felt when fighting Hashirama Senju!

"If Hashirama used his Thousand-Armed Buddha technique, even that might not withstand such a slash!"

Madara hadn't felt this excited in years.

There was no longer a worthy opponent on the ninja battlefield.

But if he could go all out against those monsters in the video…

Perhaps—just perhaps—it would be as thrilling as fighting Hashirama!

"Maama! That Mihawk kid—why didn't he just cut off Kaido's dragon claw?! I wanted to roast it!"

Hearing Big Mom's words, Perospero broke into a cold sweat. Thank goodness Kaido didn't lose his arm—otherwise, I'd be in deep trouble.

"Brother, something's off with Mom… It looks like she's about to go into one of her food rampages. If it's Kaido's dragon claw she's craving, what do we do?"

Oven stepped forward, his expression grim.

Perospero licked his candy cane staff, his voice trembling slightly.

"If she really goes into a hunger frenzy… then we'll have no choice but to hunt down Kaido."

After all—Big Mom must not die.

And the Beast Pirates weren't just about Kaido—they had plenty of monsters of their own.

"Beautiful! Mihawk! I knew I didn't misjudge you! That damn Kaido is finally down!"

Sengoku was overjoyed. In the final moments of the broadcast, he had seen Kaido fleeing in disgrace.

That alone was a massive victory!

"That fight was glorious! Mihawk nearly crippled Kaido! Who would've thought that brute would actually make a smart decision in the heat of battle?"

Had Mihawk severed Kaido's left hand, it would have changed everything.

Once the Marineford War was over, the Marines would have immediately launched a full-scale hunt for Kaido!

As the broadcast feed faded to black, a single line of text slowly appeared on screen…