Alabasta, Rainbase.
Inside a secret room, under dim lighting, Crocodile sat on a sofa with a suffocating air about him. The cigar in his mouth had already burned down more than halfway, smoke curling thickly around his body. In his hand was a document that had just been delivered, and disbelief surged in his eyes.
"Resolution on the Complete Abolition of the Shichibukai System"
The contents caught Crocodile completely off guard.
"The Shichibukai… got abolished?" Crocodile repeated in a low voice, rough and hoarse. Then he slammed the document onto the tea table in front of him with a dull 啪.
Nearby, Mr. 1—Daz—stood in silence. He'd naturally seen the document too. His expression didn't change much, but a trace of heaviness flashed through his eyes. He knew exactly what those words meant.
Daz asked in a deep voice, "Boss, what now? Do we need to recall the other senior officers of Baroque Works?"
Crocodile didn't answer right away. He stared hard at the document, his feelings tangled beyond description.
Why? What was this for?
His mind raced as he replayed everything he'd done over the years—his cooperation with Alabasta's King Cobra, and how he'd conducted himself on the World Government's side.
With his help, Alabasta had cleaned up the pirates rampaging through the surrounding seas, winning the people's gratitude and trust. And on the World Government's side, he'd always maintained a cooperative posture, never once disobeying any of their orders.
In Crocodile's view, everything had been moving forward smoothly. Cobra—that soft-hearted old king—trusted him deeply. Before heading to Mary Geoise to attend the Reverie, Cobra had even said he would definitely voice his trust in the Shichibukai at the conference.
And yet now, the Shichibukai system had been abolished just like that? At a moment like this?
For a moment, Crocodile couldn't even tell what kind of person Cobra really was anymore. Had that guy actually expressed goodwill toward him at the Reverie? Otherwise, why would the World Government revoke the Shichibukai?
The moment this resolution appeared, it meant Crocodile's identity as a "Shichibukai"—that protective layer that let him operate legally in Alabasta—had been torn off by the World Government's own hands!
From this point on, every move he made in Alabasta would lose all legitimacy and become pure pirate activity. The Marines could hunt him at any time, and Cobra would have more than enough reason to expel him—or even launch a campaign against him!
"Cobra!" Crocodile squeezed the name out through clenched teeth. He couldn't understand it. There hadn't been any conflict between him and Cobra—on the surface, their relationship was even quite cordial—so why would a resolution so blatantly harmful to him pass at the Reverie? Had Cobra noticed something?
No… impossible. His plan was extremely well-hidden. Baroque Works' members had all infiltrated perfectly. There was no way Cobra had discovered it.
Unless… something had changed on the World Government's side?
Questions churned violently in Crocodile's mind. That feeling of his plan being disrupted made him dangerously restless and furious.
Then his gaze shifted to a corner of the room. There, a black-haired woman in a dark coat and cowboy hat sat quietly behind a small desk, flipping through an ancient book. She was the archaeologist Crocodile had placed great hopes in shortly after she joined Baroque Works—Robin.
"Robin." Crocodile's voice carried an edge of impatience. "Any leads on the Poneglyph?"
Hearing him, Robin closed the book in her hands and looked up. Her expression didn't change. She gave a slight shake of her head.
"Unfortunately, Crocodile-san. Based on what I've gathered so far and cross-checking with ancient records, Alabasta's Poneglyph is most likely not stored in an ordinary ruin or tomb."
She paused, meeting Crocodile's eyes as she continued, "It's extremely likely it's being kept in secret deep within Alabasta's royal palace, guarded personally by the kings of each generation. The most direct way to find it is to ask the current king directly—Cobra-sama."
"Deep in the palace… Cobra?" Crocodile's face darkened as he chewed on those words. This was one of the scenarios he feared most. If the Poneglyph was truly in the palace, then he would have to face Cobra head-on—or seize the palace outright.
Because Cobra would never voluntarily tell him about the Poneglyph's existence.
And now that the Shichibukai status had been abolished by the World Government, he'd lost even the foundation for acting "legally" in Alabasta. Cobra should still be at Mary Geoise attending the Reverie, not yet back. But once Cobra returned, what attitude would he take toward a former Shichibukai whose status had been revoked? Would he keep up the surface-level peace—or flip the table immediately?
And the Marines? Would they seize this chance to purge him?
One thorny problem after another spun through Crocodile's mind, grinding him into a deadlock.
Stay in Alabasta? The risk was enormous.
But to abandon Alabasta and leave? Even more impossible. For Pluton, Crocodile had poured in years of effort. He'd arranged the entire situation in Alabasta over those years and paid a massive price for it. Telling him to give up now… that would feel worse than killing him.
He couldn't accept it.
Crocodile took a savage drag of his cigar, smoke blasting from his nostrils. The room's atmosphere grew so oppressive it was hard to breathe.
Mr. 1 waited silently for orders. For him, whatever Crocodile decided, he would support it unconditionally.
Robin lowered her head again and looked down at the ancient text in her hands, as if she couldn't care less about the predicament in front of them.
Crocodile's eyes swept over Mr. 1 and Robin, and finally returned to the document about abolishing the Shichibukai system.
"Recall the officers?" Crocodile shook his head and gave a cold laugh, staring at Mr. 1. "No need. Even if we called the other senior officers back right now, it wouldn't help. Let those idiots keep lying low."
He strode to a wall where a map hung, eyes locked on Alabasta's position.
"We have to accelerate the plan."
"The World Government thinks it can abolish the Shichibukai whenever it feels like it—like our opinions don't matter." Crocodile's voice carried a hint of madness. "Not that easy. This is Alabasta. Their hands don't reach that far!"
He turned around, looking at Mr. 1 and Robin, his tone razor-sharp.
"Cobra should still be at Mary Geoise, not back yet. This is our last chance. We must get the Poneglyph before he returns—find the whereabouts of the Ancient Weapon."
(End of Chapter)
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