"They really named it after Pangaea City? These scumbags don't deserve that title."

Mariejois—home of the Celestial Dragons—sat atop the Red Line, pristine on the surface, rotten at its core.

As Vane and Kaido stepped out from the ruins of the shattered colosseum, a wave of elite guards closed in—over thirty of them, fully armed, but visibly shaken.

They weren't just facing any pirates.

This was Kaido of the Beasts.

And standing beside him was the infamous god-killer—Rhett Vane.

Terror paralyzed the guards. Weapons trembled in their hands, but no one dared move forward.

Vane raised a hand, his expression unreadable, and with a single punch, he slammed it into the ground. The earth screamed. Cracks spiderwebbed outward as the shockwave—infused with the power of the Gura Gura no Mi—ripped through the guards like paper. Bodies were flung backward, tossed aside like leaves in a hurricane.

Kaido blinked. "The Tremor-Tremor Fruit… still surprises me every time. That power…"

His tone carried a hint of respect.

"Kaido," Vane said calmly, "It's time we took things up a notch."

They were now on one of the main thoroughfares of Mariejois. The earlier impact from Kaido's fall had already triggered alarms, and more guards began spilling into the streets.

But the moment they saw Kaido and Vane, their courage turned to ash.

No one forgot the name Vane. He was the man who had slaughtered four Celestial Dragons—a feat so blasphemous no one dared even whisper it. To the guards, he was a god of destruction.

"Isn't that him?"

"The one who killed the noble Celestial Dragons…"

Even with weapons drawn, they hesitated. None stepped forward.

"Kaido," Vane said, glancing at the frightened soldiers, "ever tasted a different kind of power?"

Kaido frowned. "What do you mean, 'different'?"

Vane didn't answer directly. He spread his stance, palms together, and inhaled deeply.

Then—he breathed fire.

"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"

A sea of flame erupted from Vane's mouth, sweeping across the main street. The heat hit like a tidal wave. Screams erupted, and within seconds, the frontline of guards were engulfed.

Without a water-style defense, there was no surviving the blaze.

When the flames cleared, only scorched earth and smoldering armor remained.

Kaido's brows shot up. "You breathed fire… with that much power? What ability is that?"

"I told you," Vane said with a smirk, "a different power system."

Without waiting for a reply, he knelt down and pressed his palm to the charred ground.

A strange formation lit up beneath him, glowing red like embers in the dark.

Kaido stepped back instinctively. "You're not summoning something again, are you?"

Vane closed his eyes. "Summoning: Nine-Tails."

The air cracked. The ground split open.

From the rupture, a massive orange-red fox exploded into view, nine colossal tails whipping behind it. It roared, shaking the heavens. The ground cracked further beneath its paws.

Kaido reeled backward, stunned.

"What the hell is that!?"

Vane rose from his stance. "Just a pet."

"Just a pet?!"

The creature—the Kyuubi—let out another roar that shattered nearby windows. Its sheer size dwarfed most of the buildings around them. Its presence was soaked in rage, power, and hatred.

It was raw destruction.

"Kyuubi," Vane called, "wreak havoc."

"I know what to do," the beast growled, its voice deep and powerful.

Kaido blinked. "It talks?!"

Before he could say more, the Nine-Tails surged forward, a blur of violence and fury. It crashed through the palatial buildings of Mariejois, leveling them effortlessly. Screaming guards were trampled, and towers crumbled beneath its paws.

Some Celestial Dragons who had been sleeping never woke up. Their homes became their tombs.

Kaido watched in awe. "That thing… it's insane."

Vane turned toward the center of the city. "Now's our chance. We go to the palace. The Void Throne awaits."

The fox raged in the background, tearing through everything. The distraction was complete.

Even CP0 operatives who arrived too late were swept aside like insects.

At the same time, far below the streets, chaos spread through the slave dungeons.

The slaves—freed by Vane's earlier command—had begun to revolt. Shackles clattered to the floor. Chains were broken. Rage that had been building for years now exploded into rebellion.

While Kyuubi laid waste to the city, Vane and Kaido advanced toward the palace—the heart of the world government.

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