A Special Devil Fruit

After having his Devil Fruit extracted, Kaido’s face darkened, but he did not say anything.

A loss was a loss. As a Sea Emperor, Kaido could accept defeat. Besides, as long as he had not lost his life, he still had the confidence to rise again.

This time, aside from the Azure Dragon Fruit, Yota also obtained Kaido’s body structure blueprint.

Worthy of being called the Strongest Creature in the World, Kaido’s physical strength surpassed even Whitebeard’s. Other than a monster like Big Mom, probably no one possessed better innate physical conditions than him.

With Kaido’s and King’s body structures, Yota felt that he could modify himself once again.

As for Kaido, after losing the Azure Dragon Fruit, although he remained silent, his face turned pale and his aura abruptly weakened.

After all, Yota had hammered him with a barrage of Ora Ora, shattering every bone in his body and wrecking his muscles. If not for his powerful physique, the terrifying recovery of an awakened Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, and his considerable mastery of Life Return, he would have died long ago.

Although his injuries had improved somewhat after all this time, having the Azure Dragon Fruit suddenly extracted greatly reduced both his physical strength and recovery ability. Naturally, his old injuries flared up again.

He isn’t going to die just like that, is he? Yota felt faintly uneasy. Kaido had always claimed to be immortal, but anyone who had read the manga knew that was nothing more than bragging. His body might be incredibly tough, but it was far from indestructible. His recovery ability might be powerful, but he could not regenerate severed limbs.

With that thought, Yota casually injected a large amount of Yang Release Chakra into him, healing a considerable portion of Kaido’s injuries.

Just as Yota turned to leave, he heard Kaido speak. "Wait, brat."

Slowly pushing himself up, Kaido was no longer suppressed by the Sea Stone chains after losing his Devil Fruit. Though his injuries had only been brought under control to a certain extent, they no longer hindered his movements.

He fixed his bright gaze on Yota and asked, "You can completely heal my injuries, can’t you?"

The Yang Release Chakra within Yota had already reached the Six Paths Level. Even severe internal injuries could be easily healed without leaving any hidden damage, far surpassing the medical technology of the Pirate World.

Not to mention that he himself was a Medical-nin and had considerable experience in using Yang Release Chakra. If he used the Munch-Munch Fruit, despite Kaido’s grave injuries, he could fully heal him in an instant without even affecting his combat strength.

Kaido had sensed the wondrous nature of Yang Release Chakra. Recalling how Whitebeard’s strength had nearly returned to its peak during their previous battle, he finally asked.

"That’s right, but I still think your current state is better for everyone." Yota smiled faintly.

Kaido narrowed his eyes slightly. He knew the extent of his injuries. Even if they were healed, he would probably end up like Whitebeard before, riddled with illnesses and old wounds. After all, both the body’s recovery ability and Life Return had limits. Some subtle hidden injuries could not be healed even by Life Return.

But if Yota injected more of that strange energy into his body, then with Life Return, Kaido was confident that he could recover completely without any decline in strength.

As for how to persuade Yota…

"Do you want the Devil Fruits truly treasured by the Beasts Pirates?" Kaido looked at Yota and spoke in a low voice.

As one of the Four Emperors, the Beasts Pirates naturally had the habit of stockpiling Devil Fruits. Setting aside anything else, Yamato, Page One, and Who’s Who had all obtained their Devil Fruits from Kaido’s treasury.

In truth, Kaido’s subordinates were all Zoan-type Devil Fruit users not only because he liked gathering Zoan-type ability users as combat power, but also because the Beasts Pirates constantly plundered Zoan-type Devil Fruits from all over and distributed them to subordinates with merit.

Although Yota had obtained three Devil Fruits from Kaido’s Beasts Pirates before, they were clearly not the Beasts Pirates’ true treasures. After all, those Devil Fruits had all been ordinary varieties.

So what were Kaido’s true treasures? Even if there were no Mythical Zoans, there had to be some Ancient Zoans, right?

"So the Beasts Pirates’ true treasure was hidden on the seafloor? You’re a Devil Fruit user. That really is the last place I would have expected."

Yota looked at the coordinates Kaido handed him, surprise appearing on his face.

"But the Azure Dragon Form is a rare Fish-Fish Fruit with powerful resistance to seawater… Thinking about it that way, it isn’t so strange."

Kaido glanced at Yota. "There are three Devil Fruits in total. Two are Ancient Zoans, while the other is an extremely rare Special Common Zoan."

"A Special Common Zoan?" Yota said curiously. Kaido continued, "Even among ordinary animals, some possess exceptionally peculiar abilities, ones that can be even more astonishing than those of Ancient Zoans."

"For example, a chameleon’s ability to change the color of its body, an earthworm’s ability to regenerate severed parts, or a tardigrade’s tenacious vitality. Even ordinary Ancient Zoans may pale in comparison to them."

"What kind of fruit is that common variety?" Curiosity rose in Yota’s heart. What sort of Special Common Zoan could make Kaido collect it?

"It’s an ordinary Zoan-type fruit, the Shrimp-Shrimp Fruit, Mantis Shrimp Form." Kaido spoke as though recalling something. "Unlike the vast majority of ordinary Zoan Devil Fruits, this one possesses greater combat power than most Ancient Zoans."

Yota looked puzzled. He had to admit that he had never heard of mantis shrimp before. Still, he did not think Kaido would lie to him.

"Stronger than ordinary Ancient Zoans? Fine, then let me take a look."

After receiving the coordinates, Yota healed more than half of Kaido’s injuries. Then he prepared to inspect his gains before deciding whether to fully heal Kaido.

In truth, Yota did not know that mantis shrimp were known in the modern world as pistol shrimp. When attacking prey, they could launch the front of their raptorial appendages in one-fiftieth of a second, reaching a maximum speed of over eighty kilometers per hour. Their acceleration exceeded that of a 5.588-millimeter-caliber pistol bullet, producing an impact force of up to sixty kilograms. The intense heat generated by friction could even make electric sparks flash in the surrounding water.

It could be said that, at the same size, no animal could withstand one of its punches. With this trait, ordinary Ancient Zoans truly might not be as formidable as this common variety.