"What is this?"
On the desert sands, Robin watched in astonishment as Aomori flicked that small black sphere into the distant sky.
Immediately following, an irresistible suction force emanated from the black sphere. The highly fluid sand scrambled to fly into the sky, forming a terrifying sandstorm vortex that pulled upward from the ground.
A shocked Robin felt her own body moving uncontrollably toward it. Fortunately, Aomori reached out a helping hand; she reflexively clung to his arm, narrowly escaping the fate of a moth to a flame.
Crocodile was not so lucky. He had been moving rapidly underground, calculating strategies for various scenarios, when a sudden foul premonition gripped his heart. Before he could react, his body, along with the surrounding sand, spiraled upward, plunging into the giant sand sphere that was growing larger by the second in the sky.
Once the dust settled and the sandstorm dissipated, Robin stared in daze at the giant crater hundreds of meters wide that had appeared before them.
Looking up, a colossal sphere of sand, looking like a fallen moon, blotted out the entire sky.
"Phew..." She took a deep breath, barely managing to accept the reality before her.
"Chairman," Robin couldn't help but remark, "with this one move alone, you could walk unchallenged anywhere in the Grand Line."
Compared to the scene of the frozen ocean she had witnessed in her youth, this was even more breathtaking. Perhaps the mysterious man beside her possessed power even more terrifying than an Admiral.
Becoming his true partner might mean I never have to hide again. But... can I really become a true partner? Although a smile always hung on Aomori's face, Robin could tell at a glance it was a flawless, practiced mask, just like her own. He was the type of person who used smiles to hide his true thoughts.
No one but himself likely knew what he was thinking. Getting into his heart would be difficult, very difficult.
Heh, why think so much? A mercenary relationship is fine too. In just a few seconds, Robin's mind weathered a storm of conflicting thoughts.
"What are you thinking about?" Aomori took her hand and flew into the sky, with Ditto following behind in the form of a Pidgeot.
"I was thinking... if I betrayed you, would I also be sealed inside a rock that big?"
"Rest assured, I won't give you the chance to betray me."
"What a domineering Chairman."
While talking, they arrived in front of the giant stone sphere.
"Is Crocodile inside?"
"Mhm, I can sense his location. However, Logia fruits are indeed powerful; his injuries aren't heavy." Aomori raised an eyebrow and pulled Robin back a distance. "Old Croc is quite tough."
As soon as he spoke, cracks began to spiderweb across the surface of the giant stone.
With a thunderous boom, the cracks exploded, spewing out a massive volume of sand. Among the debris, crescent-shaped sand blades shot out in all directions.
Chibaku Tensei carries a sealing effect, but it seems to have a limited impact on him. I underestimated him, Aomori thought as he hovered in the air, observing quietly. He didn't even need to move; his energy shield blocked every attack.
In the original story, Crocodile's defeat at Luffy's hands really was a case of "plot armor."
At the breach in the stone sphere, Crocodile stepped out with a dark expression. His fur coat was tattered, but there were no obvious wounds.
"You... who the hell are you?" Facing such a terrifying technique, he would have found it hard to escape if not for his Sand-Sand Fruit. Any other Warlord might have been finished. For a powerhouse this significant to be completely unknown to Crocodile's intelligence network was unbelievable.
"My name is Aomori. I'm a Hero," Aomori said with a smile.
"A Hero?" Crocodile sneered. He glanced at Robin, who was holding hands with Aomori, then looked Aomori in the eye. "I know you want to help Princess Vivi take back Alabasta. I can abandon my years of planning to satisfy you and the Princess. However, I'm taking her, and one thing from this kingdom, with me."
"Sorry, it seems you still haven't grasped the situation." Aomori held up his palm, folding his fingers back one by one. "Whether it's Nico Robin, everything in the Kingdom of Alabasta, or even you... I'm taking it all!"
"Greedy brat! Do you really want to fight to the bitter end?" Crocodile's eyes widened in fury. "Do you actually think you can win against me?"
"Why wouldn't I?" Aomori tossed Robin onto Ditto's back and instructed, "Move back. I'm going to play with Old Croc for a bit."
"Chairman, you'd better win. My life is in your hands," Robin said, waving as Ditto carried her further away.
"Hear that? Your Vice President is only cheering for me now," Aomori joked. He suddenly realized the line sounded a bit odd and shook his head to clear away the bad influences from his previous world-hop.
"It doesn't matter. Once I slaughter you, she'll wise up and come back to me," Crocodile said indifferently, seemingly well-versed in the theories of betrayal.
The two faced each other, silently building their power and presence. Sensing the increasingly oppressive atmosphere, Robin gave up on trying to get info from Ditto and waited tensely for the battle to begin.
A gust of wind howled past, kicking up sand from the breached sphere and obscuring their vision.
Now! Crocodile's face contorted into a snarl. His hands transformed into two giant sand blades. "Desert Spada!"
However, Aomori had anticipated it. He flickered behind Crocodile, his fist glowing with Holy Light as it slammed into the Warlord's head, only for it to explode into a pile of sand.
The sand drifted and reformed into Crocodile's head a short distance away. He looked at Aomori's clenched fist and laughed. "So, you don't know how to use Haki. In that case, I've already won this fight!"
Holy Light doesn't work? Then Lightning and Darkness would be the same, completely useless against him.
Aomori had expected this. Unless it was a specific elemental counter, like water against sand, rubber against lightning, or magma against fire, pure energy attacks couldn't effectively damage a Logia user.
From what he knew, Haki originated from human willpower. From that perspective, that move might work.
In a flash, Aomori had his counter-strategy. He dodged another Desert Spada, crouched low, and pulled his right fist to his waist. Energy gathered at his fist in a visible, dazzling glow.
"Tch, bluffing. Without Haki, it's impossible for you to hurt me!" Crocodile roared, clasping his hands in front of his chest. He gathered all the surrounding sand into a massive spear, which shot toward Aomori with a sonic boom.
"Die! Desert Spear of Longinus!"
Aomori's face remained tranquil. He condensed his own will and lightning energy into his right fist and struck forward slowly.
Simultaneously, Crocodile's pupils shrunk. In his vision, a sky-high giant suddenly appeared.
The giant radiated purple light, its face and posture identical to Aomori's. It swung a fist even larger than the Desert Spear.
BOOM!
Crocodile's full-power attack was instantly shattered into flying dust. The giant fist continued unabated, punching straight toward him.
"It's useless! You can't hurt me!" An invisible pressure pinned Crocodile in place, forcing him to watch as the massive, aura-heavy fist landed on his body.
THUD!
The fist slammed squarely into Crocodile. The impact of the immense force caused his face to contort violently. He coughed up blood, his eyes rolled back, several teeth flew out, and his body was launched like a cannonball toward the ground.
Another massive crater appeared in the desert.
Before losing consciousness, one question circled in his mind: Why? Why didn't I turn into sand? Why was he able to hit me?
"What happened? Is it over?" From Robin's perspective, she only saw Aomori extend his fist, a flash of light, the sand spear exploding, and Crocodile being sent flying.
"Looks like it works," Aomori said, retracting his fist and slowly exhaling.
He had just used the Thunder-Light Duality Fist, infused with his pure Fist Intent. Aomori could feel that when Crocodile was suppressed by the Fist Intent, his consciousness lagged, affecting his subconscious ability to reflexively "elementalize."
Attacks imbued with Fist Intent shared a similar principle with Haki.
"Though this is a bit of a hassle. It's not as convenient as Armament Haki for punching people whenever I want." Aomori decided to find an opportunity to learn Haki. With his intellect, it should be a breeze.
With a wave, he, Robin, and Ditto landed beside the unconscious Crocodile.
"I didn't expect you to actually beat him." Seeing the once-arrogant Crocodile reduced to this state, Robin felt a wave of irony. "If he hadn't met you, Crocodile might have actually succeeded."
"No, he would never have succeeded. Even without me, someone else would have come to stop him," Aomori said firmly. "Justice is never absent."
"Is that so?" Robin shrugged. "So, Chairman, what do we do next?"
"What do you think?"
"Hmm. First, gather evidence of Crocodile's crimes and reveal them to the King. That way, even a Warlord appointed by the World Government won't escape being imprisoned in Impel Down. As for the members of Baroque Works, I can use my identity as Miss All Sunday to lure them in and wipe them out in one go."
"You're quite ruthless," Aomori said, shaking his head. "But that's a bit too crude."
"Oh? I'm all ears."
"First, the people in Baroque Works don't know that Mr. 0 is Crocodile. So, why can't I be Mr. 0? With your cooperation, I can easily gain their trust."
"True. Crocodile has kept his identity strictly secret for years. Aside from Princess Vivi, no one should know who Mr. 0 is." Robin rested her chin on her hand, seriously considering the feasibility. "With my help, there's a high chance of winning their trust."
"Even if they find out, so what? The Chairman defeated Crocodile himself; there's nothing wrong with him becoming the President."
"Exactly. That's the idea. Some of them still have a conscience. we should guide them back to the right path and have them contribute to creating a real 'Utopia'," Aomori said calmly. "As for the stubborn ones... let them fight it out with other pirates."
"Yes!" Having seen Aomori's "Chairman" persona, Robin quickly found her place. "I will get started on this immediately."
"Good." Aomori looked at the unconscious Crocodile and smiled. "As for him, we can't just hand him over to the Marines for nothing."
"Ditto, let's collaborate on another play. It's called: 'The Real and Fake Hero'."
…
Hundreds of miles away, Vivi and her group had just arrived at Yuba, once a famous oasis city.
But now, Yuba was a ghost town, nothing left but ruins buried in the sand.
"How could this happen? I've only been gone a few months." Vivi covered her mouth, staring in disbelief at the scene.
"Princess Vivi, don't worry. Many household items are missing. They probably just moved elsewhere in advance," Igaram said.
"Mhm, I know." Vivi's expression quickly turned resolute. "Please check if anyone is still living here. We need to find out where the rebel army moved."
"Yes!"
"Quack!"
"Fine." Pidgeot glanced at Vivi and soared into the sky, overlooking the desolate landscape.
A moment later, it spotted a figure in a patch of sand and circled back to guide Vivi and the others.
"Thank you, Pidgeot!" Vivi was overjoyed.
"Hmph, I'm not helping just to get a compliment from you," Pidgeot said bashfully. It led the group to the person. "There he is."
"A bird that talks? How miraculous." The person left behind was an old man with white hair, holding a shovel, seemingly digging in the ground.
"Wait... are you the Captain of the Guard?" The old man rubbed his eyes as he spoke to Igaram. Those curls were truly unforgettable.
"Are you... Toto?" Igaram recognized him.
"You're Toto-jichan, Koza's father?" A surprised Vivi pulled back her hood. "Do you remember me? I'm Vivi."
"Of course I remember. Princess Vivi looks just like she did as a child, though much prettier now."
Vivi smiled sheepishly but quickly turned serious. "Toto-jichan, do you know where Koza took the rebel army?"
"They've all moved to Katorea," Toto said. "Princess, I've always believed the King is a good man, but they won't listen to me. Please, go stop them."
"Mhm, I will. That's exactly why I'm here." Vivi smiled. "Don't worry. Light will return to Alabasta soon."
"Because a true Hero has arrived."
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NOTE: This fic has been completely translated. If you want to read the whole story head over to my p-atre-on: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]