One Piece: Alucard the Immortal

Chapter 671 - 670: Hancock’s Form Change

Hancock was sent flying by the sweep of Kaido’s fist, crashing through several stone walls before finally coming to a halt. Her back slumped against a final standing wall, which spider-webbed with dense, circular cracks from the impact.Kaido walked forward slowly. The walls obstructing his path might as well have been made of paper; they were utterly flimsy before him, shattered effortlessly as he strode through.

"Stop right there, you bastard!"

Sandersonia and Marigold immediately entered their respective Snake-Snake Fruit forms, transforming into two serpent-hybrids whose physical volume rivaled Kaido’s own.

However, parity in size did not mean parity in power. When the two sisters’ hair transformed into vipers to strike Kaido from both flanks, Kaido didn’t even turn his head. He simply reached out both hands and snatched the venomous snakes spawned from their hair.

"Hmph!"

Kaido began dragging Sandersonia and Marigold toward him. The two sisters dug their heels into the ground, trying desperately to retreat, but they were inexorably pulled forward step by step.

"This beast... such monstrous strength," Sandersonia grunted, her brow furrowed in strain.

"Sandersonia-sama! Marigold-sama!"

The women of the Kuja Pirates drew their bows. The instant their fingers touched the notches, they coated the arrows in Armament Haki. A volley of over a hundred arrows whistled through the air simultaneously.

"Heh, what is this supposed to be?"

Kaido let out a short laugh, completely ignoring the Haki-infused projectiles. He allowed them to strike his body, sneering, "This doesn’t even count as an itch."

With a sudden, violent jerk of his hands, he yanked the two sisters off their feet. Just before they collided with him, Kaido balled his hands into fists and delivered a heavy double-strike, sending them hurtling hundreds of meters away.

"Curse you... Beast... Kaido..."

Sandersonia managed to choke out a few broken words before the sheer pain forced her into unconsciousness.

"Damn it!" Scarlett drew the knight’s sword from her waist. "I’ll..."

"Wait, Scarlett-nee!"

Koala, barely maintaining her composure, moved to block Scarlett. "If we rush in, we’ll just be cannon fodder. For now, we must retreat. We need to regroup with the Black Thorn Pirates and Barto Club before we continue the fight. There are too many casualties already."

It was rare for Koala to think so clearly in such chaos, but Kaido had no intention of letting them have their way. He swung his kanabo in a wide arc; the resulting hurricane-force wind was so intense the remaining Kuja warriors could hardly breathe.

Sshhh—

Nearby, blood from an unknown Kuja warrior trickled toward Hancock’s collapsed form by the wall. With her hair disheveled and sticking to her face, Hancock had lost her usual peerless elegance. In this moment, she looked battered and spent.

"Ugh..."

Forcing herself up, Hancock looked at the blood flowing near her face. Since becoming a vampire, she didn’t need normal food, to be precise, she fed on blood. Yet, she was the Empress of Amazon Lily; even if she were to drink blood, it would have to be of the "highest grade."

But seeing Kaido’s relentless suppression, and seeing him beginning to slaughter her people, Hancock’s rage finally boiled over. She flicked out her delicate tongue and tasted the river of blood on the ground.

WHOOOOSH!!

Hearing the sudden atmospheric shift, Kaido instinctively stopped swinging his kanabo and looked toward the source of the commotion.

A pillar of red light shot into the sky. The pool of black-red blood began to climb to a height of over a hundred meters, morphing into several colossal crimson serpents during its ascent. Unlike the previous familiar, which was merely a rough outline, these now possessed distinct facial features, visible fangs, and were even more massive than before.

"Situation A... The Cromwell approval is now in effect..."

At that moment, Kaido and the surviving members of the Immortal Pirates heard Hancock’s voice drifting from the blood pool. It was low, husky, and raspy, completely devoid of her usual arrogant tone.

"Hold release until target is silenced. Releasing Restrictions System... Open!"

As Hancock finished her proclamation, the giant serpents launched a fierce, coordinated assault on Kaido.

Kaido curled his lip in disdain. "You think getting bigger means you can beat me?"

Vroom!

His entire body turned obsidian as he fully coated himself in Armament Haki once again!

"Hah!!"

Several giant pythons sank their fangs into Kaido’s shoulders, thighs, and waist.

The result was drastically different from before. A look of genuine pain crossed Kaido’s face. He grabbed the underbelly of the snake biting his shoulder and ripped it away. "God dammit..."

Suddenly, one of the snake’s mouths opened even wider than humanly possible. A dark shadow burst out from within, aiming a vicious kick directly at Kaido’s face.

BANG!

The kick landed squarely on the bridge of Kaido’s nose. Scarlett and the others thought they heard the distinct crunch of breaking bone.

The figure landed on the ground. Her hair was a wild mess, and she wore a dark red, tight-fitting suit fastened with silver studs, a garment that perfectly accentuated every curve of her long, lithe body.

It was Hancock!

However, her appearance was now entirely different. From her clothes to her expression, to the sharp fangs faintly visible in her mouth, her entire aura had shifted. She looked like a demon princess clawing her way out of hell.

"Form... change?" Scarlett murmured.

She recalled the release chant; those were words Alucard had spoken before. Scarlett felt a pang of inadequacy alongside her shock. Not only could Hancock summon familiars, but had she already mastered the Vampire Form Change?

Kaido used his right thumb to shove his crooked nose back into place with a sickening pop. He stared at the woman, who looked like a completely different person. "What the hell is this?"

Hancock’s eyes had lost all trace of white or black; they were entirely crimson, glowing with a predatory light. "Your blood... your flesh... shall I devour every last bit of you?"

Kaido laughed in pure, white-hot fury. "You think landing one lucky hit means you can look down on me?! Don’t push your luck, brat!"

Ignoring the risk of injury, Kaido tore the remaining giant snakes off his body. Faint bits of his own flesh could be seen caught on the snakes’ fangs as they were ripped away.

"I was just thinking you women were too weak! If you can actually fight, then bring it on!!"