Kaido, popularly known as "Kaido of the Beasts," is one of the primary antagonists of the manga and anime series One Piece created by Eiichiro Oda. His name was initially mentioned in Chapter 795 of the manga, wherein Kaido was featured as one of the Four Emperors ruling the New World in the Grand Line. He has the title "The Strongest Creature in the World," and he became one of the strongest foes in the series upon his debut by being referred to as "Captain of the Beast Pirates.".
Background
Very little is known about Kaido's past except for him having been part of the legendary Rocks Pirates some time in the past, serving under Rocks D. Xebec alongside several future renowned figures like Charlotte Linlin (Big Mom) and Edward Newgate (Whitebeard), among others. Afterwards, once his crew was defeated at God Valley, Kaido gathered his crew—the Beast Pirates. Eventually, he would conquer Wano Country, turning it into a toxic wasteland while using its resources to build up an army of artificial Devil Fruit users called SMILE.
Appearance
Kaido is a giant of a man, standing at 710 cm. His body is incredibly large and muscular, with a relatively small head and a long, thick handlebar mustache resembling horns. His most distinctive features are the scale-like tattoos on his arms and the large scar on his torso. Kaido is mostly seen wearing dark pants and a thick fur coat draped over his shoulders, belted at the waist by a belt with a skull-shaped buckle. He becomes an enormous, serpentine Eastern dragon with blue scales in his dragon form.
Personal Information
Name: Kaido
Epithet: "Kaido of the Beasts"
Age: 59
Height: 710 cm (23'3.5")
Birthday: May 1
Bounty: 4,611,100,000 berries
Devil Fruit: Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon (Uo Uo no Mi, Model: Seiryu)
Affiliation: Beast Pirates (Captain) Rocks Pirates (Former Member)
Position: Emperor of the Sea (Yonko)
Personality
Kaido has an extremely bipolar personality, as he can become drunk and merry one second and then suddenly go violently enraged the next. He has attempted suicide several times to have a great death but failed each time due to his inhuman durability. He respects only power; therefore showing regard for those capable of opposing him, as in the case of Kozuki Oden. Though being a sadist, he has still showed respect on several occasions, such as in the case of the punishment of criminals who harmed innocent people living in his domain.
Motives and Objectives
Kaido's main motivation is to trigger "the greatest war the world has ever seen." According to him, the world is far too peaceful and needs to be taken back to its original form—the state of constant warfare. This then leads to the objective of dying a glorious death on the battlefield. Kaido also seeks the Ancient Weapons, primarily Pluton, which is said to be hidden in Wano. The alliance with Big Mom, crafting an army of artificial Devil Fruit users—everything serves his vision of a world drowned in war.
Fighting Styles
At the very foundation of his style, Kaido is excessively resilient and powerful; he is known for his ability to tank, quite literally, extremely powerful attacks with minimal damage. This resilience isn't some passive ability but rather an integral part of his combat strategy. He would mostly let his opponents tire out by hitting him hard, and then strike them with a blow that would defeat them. This approach was apparent during his first battle against Monkey D. Luffy. The guy took his onslaught, then, with just one powerful strike, he knocked him out.
His fighting style, mostly finished off by the powers of the Devil Fruit known as Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon, which is a Mythical Zoan-type fruit, Kaido has been granted the power to turn into a humongous Eastern dragon, which endows him with capabilities such as flying and elemental manipulation. He can change into a dragon and thus summon or control tornados, which adds an element of environmental control to Kaido's fighting.
One of his patented techniques in his dragon form is his "Boro Breath". It's a mighty attack where Kaido lets out a high-pressure stream of flames from his mouth right at the opponents, which can do tremendously massive damage. It was first shown when Kaido attacked Oden Castle, which had huge damage potential.
Besides the power of the Devil Fruit, he has mastered advanced Haki techniques. He has mastery over all three kinds of Haki: Observation, Armament, and Conqueror's. What is more, about Kaido's mastery of Conqueror's Haki: he is able to coat his attacks with it, referred to as "Coating" or "Infusion." This advanced application of Haki increases the power of his strikes drastically, so he can even damage opponents that would be invulnerable to regular physical attacks.
Kaido has at his command many powerful named attacks among his repository of techniques. One of these techniques is the "Thunder Bagua" : swinging a kanabo, essentially a traditional Japanese war club, with monstrous force and speed that he often infuses with Conqueror's Haki, which was powerful enough to knock out Luffy in their first encounter.
Another famous technique in Kaido's arsenal would be "Shoryu: Kaen Hakke", which literally means Rising Dragon: Flame Commandment. This attack fuses Kaido's dragon form with the ability of breathing fire. In his dragon form, brimmed with fire, he charges at high speed, sending a shockwave that can destroy entire areas all at once.
Another interesting thing about his fighting style would be Kaido's "Drunken Dragon Bagua" or "Shuron Hakke". This will turn on when Kaido is drunk, and his fighting style changes into one that is even more unpredictable and dangerous. His drunken condition appears to enhance, rather than inhibit, his abilities during battle, adding an element of chaos in his already formidable potential.
Kaido's hybrid form, being a mixture of his human and dragon forms, enhances even more his combat effectiveness. He takes on most of the features of his dragon form while still retaining his human shape: he now has scales, horns, and other draconic features. This makes him a hybrid form, combining the brute strength of his dragon form with the agility and finesse of his human form, ruling out any final hopes against him.
Role in the Plot
Kaido's role in the story began much, much further back than when he actually appeared. A former member of the legendary Rocks Pirates, he was part of the crew that challenged Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp at God Valley. Although this historic event was not directly shown, it makes Kaido's overall presence throughout piracy so old and intertwining with other powerful figures.
First mentioned during the Thriller Bark Arc, Kaido actually only physically appears during the Marineford Arc. During that major battle, he appeared in an attempt to intercept Whitebeard while on his way to Marineford but was blocked by Shanks, which prevented him from perhaps having changed the dynamics of the fight and affecting the outcome of the Paramount War.
Kaido's role is central to the Dressrosa Arc. It is revealed that he has a business deal with Donquixote Doflamingo concerning artificial Devil Fruits called SMILEs. When Luffy and Law disrupt this by defeating Doflamingo, it sets a future stage of conflict for Kaido.
The Zou Arc is really where Kaido's involvement gets increased. It becomes evident that he is occupying the land of Wano and turning it into a polluted industrial wasteland as a means to fuel his SMILE production. This arc also introduces Jack, one of the higher-ranking commanders under Kaido, which further goes on to emphasize the extent of his power and the strength of people who serve under him.
Kaido's full introduction occurs in the Whole Cake Island Arc, dramatically falling from the sky onto his base at Onigashima. This scene reveals his incredible durability and introduces his suicidal tendencies as essential features of his character that become very relevant in future events.
The Wano Country Arc is where Kaido really comes into his own in terms of plot relevance. As he is the main antagonist for this entire arc, much of the plot is moved by Kaido's actions and motivations. His occupation of Wano, the alliance with Big Mom, and the resulting conflict with the Straw Hat Pirates and their allies shape most of the plot in this arc.
Kaido's past gets revealed a little more during the Wano Arc. He was somehow related to Kozuki Oden and took part in executing him 20 years ago. This origin story gives meaning to the ongoing conflict and adds depth to Kaido's character.
The climax of Kaido's role came in his fight against Monkey D. Luffy on Onigashima. Within this lengthy battle, finally all of his power was able to be let loose, becoming a major plot point in the series. This is certainly a long battle, running several chapters long, in which there are some revelations about Luffy's Devil Fruit powers and ultimately ends in Kaido's defeat.
He has undergone some subtle development throughout his appearances. Interactions with characters, such as Big Mom, his own daughter Yamato, and even with enemies, show different facets of his personality. He heavily drinks, sometimes to the point where it affects his fighting style and decision-making, which makes him unpredictable in a way.
Kaido's defeat at the end of the Wano Arc completely rebalances the power in the One Piece world. By the elimination of one Yonko, a lot of other paths are opened for the story to proceed and set up ensuing conflicts.
Major Battles
Among the oldest known battles Kaido had fought was as a member of the Rocks Pirates against the combined forces of Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp's Marines. This battle, called the God Valley Incident, ended in defeat for the Rocks Pirates. Exactly what Kaido did during this fight has not been fully revealed, though it is an important event in his character's past and in that of One Piece overall.
One of the famous fights after the Rocks Pirates' dissolution was between Kaido and Gecko Moria. The fight took place in the New World, and Kaido was victorious. The defeat was so awful for Moria that he lost his entire crew, and this huge defeat changed his piracy ways, and he began making an army of zombies instead of real crew members.
One of the most famous, narrative-wise, Kaido had fought was against Kozuki Oden 20 years before the events of the main storyline. There are a few reasons this fight against Kaido stands out. First of all, it showed how ridiculously strong Oden was, since he could actually damage Kaido—something few have been able to accomplish. This battle ended controversially, with Kaido emerging victorious due to what most would view as underhanded techniques: the distraction provided by Kurozumi Higurashi disguised as Oden's son, Momonosuke. It was a defeat that led to Oden's execution and Kaido taking over Wano Country, making way for the events of the Wano Arc.
The Wano Arc features several major fights involving Kaido alone. Probably the most famous of these is that with the Akazaya Nine, a group of retainers who used to serve Kozuki Oden. This was an extraordinary battle since it proved that he can easily fight against his many opponents all at once. During this fight, Kaido first revealed his hybrid form—a transformation that combines his human and dragon attributes, further empowering already strong abilities.
Probably, Kaido's most awaited and lengthiest fight is the one he engages in with Monkey D. Luffy. This battle is the one that will characterize the climax of the Wano Arc and is remarkable in terms of the length and the different stages it goes through. The fight begins on the roof of Onigashima, pitting Luffy against both Kaido and Big Mom, together with other members of the Worst Generation, including Zoro, Kid, Killer, and Law. This part will help to highlight Kaido's power to coordinate with another Yonko—something which basically reveals the danger that comes with their union.
Finally, it evolves into a one-on-one fight between Luffy and Kaido. This part of the fight is relevant to this chapter because it describes the moment when Luffy's powers from the Devil Fruit come into being, which makes him realize that Gomu Gomu no Mi is actually a Zoan-type legend of Hito Hito no Mi: Model: Nika. There are several techniques applied by both fighters during the fighting process. Kaido uses Ragnaraku, which is infused with Advanced Conqueror's Haki and works as the power swing of his kanabo. Luffy reveals a new Gear 5 transformation that will let him go head-to-head with Kaido.
Another interesting thing about this fight is its actual duration. The epic fight happens during one night, despite its size. This is explained by the intensity of combat and critical damage both fighters are able to inflict on each other in a very short period of time, comparing to some other dragged-on fights in the series.
The final processes of the battle find both Kaido and Luffy at the peak of their abilities. Kaido's last named attack is "Rising Dragon - Flame Commandment," while that of Luffy is the "Bajrang Gun," which is a giant fist powered by Gear 5 and Advanced Conqueror's Haki. This clash resulted in Kaido's defeat, which ended his reign over Wano and his status as an Emperor.