"Luffy! Finish him!"
"Alright!"
Since the hostages were safe and Luffy clearly had the upper hand, Ray decided to let him take the win.
Luffy roared, coated both fists in his last reserves of Haki, and charged.
The weakened Crocodile was powerless to resist.
He just had to stand there and take the beating, spitting out mouthfuls of blood.
As he felt himself nearing death, a memory flashed through his mind.
It was him, younger, covered in blood, glaring at the massive Whitebeard.
'Whitebeard... I will defeat you someday!' He'd charged, Haki on his poison hook, only to be effortlessly swatted away by the Yonko, who hadn't even used his Devil Fruit.
But the Crocodile back then was different.
He was more like... Luffy. He kept getting up, kept attacking, over and over, until he physically couldn't move.
When he woke up, abandoned on a deserted island, the fear of that overwhelming powerlessness had infected him.
He gave up.
He convinced himself effort was meaningless against "talent."
He became a loser, a bully who preyed on rookies in the first half of the Grand Line, addicted to the thrill of crushing the weak.
He chased external power, like armies and Ancient Weapons, all to get revenge.
But now... as Luffy's punches rained down, he was silent.
He couldn't understand why this weak kid was beating him.
'Could it be... that effort does matter?'
Luffy kept failing, kept getting up, kept challenging him.
The gap between them was huge, just like the gap between him and Whitebeard.
But Luffy had succeeded.
'Did that mean... if I had just kept training, I could have beaten Whitebeard, too?'
At that thought, Crocodile let out a self-mocking laugh.
He activated his sand power, forcing Luffy back.
Struggling to stand, he started talking to himself.
"I was once scared out of my wits by that man... Since when did I become so convinced my talent was inferior? I was the man who would become the Pirate King! I grew strong! I became a Warlord!"
His voice rose.
"How could my talent be inferior to anyone's?!" He looked at Luffy.
"Straw Hat Kid... I should actually thank you."
Luffy's expression turned grave.
He could feel Crocodile's whole aura change.
Ray, watching from a distance, understood perfectly.
'He's regained his confidence. His invincible mindset.'
'If that's the case...' Ray murmured, 'He's about to awaken.'
…
Crocodile suddenly understood.
'Why fear a challenge? If you want to kill me, I'm ready.'
In that instant, the sand and stones for a kilometer around them began to tremble, as if welcoming back their king.
Crocodile could feel his control over the desert skyrocket.
His long-dormant Haki returned to its peak.
He was stronger now than he'd ever been.
He looked at Luffy with pure indifference. "It's over, Luffy."
With a wave of his hand, the sand beneath Luffy's feet enveloped him.
A thin line of sand connected Crocodile's hand to the new sand-coffin.
Long-distance desiccation.
Ten meters away, Luffy once again became a dried-up corpse.
Crocodile tossed him into the nearby inland sea.
He didn't finish him off.
"Straw Hat Kid," he said, "if you can still survive, I'll accept your challenge again. But for now... Pluton is waiting."
He shot a sinister, crocodile-like glare at Robin.
"Nico Robin," he said, his voice dripping with new confidence, "I hope you won't try any more tricks. Cross the sea on your own. I'm going ahead to Alubarna."
With that, his lower body dissolved into sand, and he flew off.
After he was gone, Ray walked to the seaside, fished Luffy out with his whip (he'd already re-hydrated), and turned to Robin.
"What's your plan?"
Robin knew what he was asking. 'Do you still want to help us, or are you crawling back to him?'
"He's an ambitious man," Robin said, her voice steady. "To him, there are no comrades. Only profit. And... I don't like him."
Ray nodded. That sounded like the truth. "You three," he said to Robin, Mikita, and Gem, "keep an eye on Luffy. I'll go deal with Crocodile."
He took off his mask, dropped his cloak, and, using Hiten, shot into the sky, flying after the Warlord.
…
An hour later, the "Peace Talks"...
It wasn't Mr. 2. King Cobra himself was there, boldly revealing Crocodile's entire plan to the rebel leader, Koza.
Koza was stunned, but he was smart.
It all clicked.
When he heard Cobra had already contacted the Marines to save the 200,000 trapped rebels, he broke into a happy smile.
'This is the king I remember.'
But just then, all hell broke loose.
"To think that you, the Okama Swan, have actually fallen?"
Four of the "King's guards" (Mr. 1, Miss Doublefinger, Mr. 4, and Miss Merry Christmas) revealed themselves.
"It's clear our plan's been exposed," Mr. 1 said calmly.
"That's the real king."
"But the outcome won't change," Miss Doublefinger added. "We just kill Cobra and Koza here. The plan proceeds."
The four officers charged.
At the same time, three of Koza's personal guards drew guns and aimed them at Cobra.
At that critical moment, Nami gave the order.
"Zoro! Sanji! Chopper! Move!"
Triggers were pulled. Blades were drawn. The Baroque Works assassins went in for the kill.
At that critical moment, Zoro's three swords flashed, slicing the bullets aimed at Cobra.
Sanji's leg shot out, blocking Mr. 1's blade-arm.
Chopper went Heavy Point, stopping Mr. 4's giant baseball bat.
And Nami drew her Clima-Tact, clashing with Miss Doublefinger's spiky daggers.
Seizing the chance, Cobra and Koza, protected by their loyal guards, scrambled to safety, with Vivi and Usopp standing guard in front of them.
The melee began.
Seeing Mr. 1, a man made of blades, Zoro's eyes lit up.
He immediately yelled at Sanji to switch opponents.
After a bit of their usual bickering, Sanji kicked down the traitors in Koza's guards and then leaped over to Vivi's side.
He became her personal bodyguard.
He had no choice, really – his stupid chivalry wouldn't let him kick Miss Doublefinger or Miss Merry Christmas.
So he just had to watch anxiously as Nami squared off against Miss Doublefinger, his heart aching.
Usopp, though terrified, saw Sanji's predicament, mustered his courage, and moved to stand behind Chopper.
Battle Formations:
Zoro vs. Mr. 1 (Daz Bonez)
Sanji guarding Vivi, the King, and Koza.
Nami vs. Miss Doublefinger (Paula)
Chopper & Usopp vs. Miss Merry Christmas & Mr. 4
The battle split up.
A short while later, Ray arrived, hovering in the distance.
In his hand, he was casually carrying Crocodile, who looked more dead than alive.
…
45 minutes earlier...
Crocodile, flying through the desert, suddenly stopped and turned.
Standing on the sand behind him was a silver-haired man in a white cloak, staring at him coldly.
"Ray, the 'Cold Prince'." Crocodile snorted. "What? Here to avenge your captain?"
Crocodile had no idea how Ray had found him.
'Did he track me all the way from Luffy? If so... this guy is terrifying.'
Ray didn't answer.
He just drew Tokijin as Demonic energy swirled around him and his aura intensified.
Crocodile sensed it with his Haki and got serious.
'This level of power... it's in a completely different league from Luffy.'
The two locked eyes, and the battle began.
Ray swung his sword, sending a four-meter green-gold energy sphere hurtling at Crocodile.
Crocodile sensed the immense power and didn't try to just sand-form his way through it.
He was being cautious.
'If Luffy knows Haki, this guy definitely does.' He immediately scattered into sand, barely dodging the sphere, which left a two-kilometer-long crater in the desert.
Moments later, Crocodile reappeared, his poison hook (coated in Haki) clashing with Ray's sword.
"Sword Pressure!"
As their weapons hit, Ray unleashed his technique.
Several new cuts instantly appeared on Crocodile's body.
'It's that strange energy! It's cutting me just like Haki!'
Gritting his teeth, Crocodile jumped back.
In just two exchanges, he knew he was outmatched in close combat.
"Hmph. Since my Devil Fruit has awakened," Crocodile sneered, "I'll make you the first to test it. Desert La Spada!"
He touched the sand, and a massive 200-meter quicksand trap opened up right under Ray.
It was way faster and deeper than before.
Ray just leaped into the air, ready to strike Crocodile down.
But Crocodile had a new trick.
"Sand Drizzle!"
Hundreds of giant, cone-shaped sand spikes shot towards Ray in mid-air.
"Hovering in the air, wide open," Crocodile grinned. "How will you dodge now?"
He'd underestimated Ray.
Ray could fly.
Ignoring the spikes, Ray accelerated, moving almost invisibly fast, and closed the distance in an instant.
Just as Ray swung for the killing blow, Crocodile, pushing himself to the limit, yelled.
"Sand Wall!"
A massive wall of hardened sand materialized.
Ray shattered it instantly, but it bought Crocodile just enough time to retreat, cold sweat dripping down his forehead.
'He's faster than me, too!'
Even with his awakened powers, he knew he'd lose a straight fight.
"You may be strong," Crocodile growled, "but this is the desert!"
The sand for two kilometers around them instantly swirled into a blinding sandstorm, and Crocodile vanished within it.
Ray just stood still.
He wanted to see what this awakened Sand-Sand Fruit could really do.
Then, from all directions, Crocodile's voice echoed.
"Awakened Technique: Domain of Sand! Within this realm, I am a god!"
Ray could feel the sand itself come alive, becoming harder, sharper, more lethal.
"Desert Greatswords!"
Several 100-meter-long sand blades formed in the air and attacked Ray from all sides.
Unlike the simple spikes he'd used on Luffy, these could slash, chop, and stab.
They were on a whole different level.
Ray flickered around, parrying, but his normal blocks couldn't even break them.
On top of that, Crocodile was creating new sand spikes and the sandstorm itself was now sharp enough to cut.
After parrying dozens of attacks, Ray snorted.
He coated Tokijin in Demonic Power and Haki.
With a simple swing, he shattered the greatswords.
He then released a few orbs of demonic power, obliterating the rest of the sand-weapons and clearing the storm.
He was now standing on the ground, which was rapidly turning into quicksand.
Crocodile, fused with the desert, laughed.
"What's this? Giving up? Once you're trapped in my Desert, no one escapes. Are you surrendering to me? I admire your strength. Swear loyalty to me and I'll stop this."
Ray just shook his head, his gaze icy.
"I've seen all you can do. Accept your defeat."
Ignoring the quicksand already swallowing his calves, Ray plunged Tokijin straight into the sand.
Then, all the blue Demonic Power in his body surged violently outward in every direction.