Crocodile faced off against Rob Lucci, a cold smirk curling at the corner of his mouth.
"Your speed isn't bad," his voice sounded particularly icy amidst the wind-blown sand, "but before my Sand-Sand Fruit, it's still too slow."
As his words still echoed in the air, Crocodile's body suddenly dissolved into countless grains of sand.
These sand particles swept toward Rob Lucci with extreme speed, instantly surrounding him in a dense cloud.
The sand, sharp as blades, made a piercing sound as it sliced through the air, continuously cutting into Rob Lucci's body.
Rob Lucci gritted his teeth, his Tekkai ability activated, barely allowing him to withstand this storm-like onslaught.
Just as he struggled to hold on, a flicker of cold intent flashed in his eyes.
In an instant, his fingers turned jet black as a dense wave of Armament Haki surged forth, and his figure reappeared around Crocodile with ghost-like speed.
"Shigan." Rob Lucci's low shout accompanied his finger, wrapped in the formidable power of Armament Haki, thrusting straight toward Crocodile.
This strike directly negated Crocodile's elemental form, forcing his body to momentarily solidify.
"Rankyaku." Without giving Crocodile a moment to recover, Rob Lucci seized the opening before his opponent could fully react, raising his leg high before delivering a swift and powerful kick.
A series of slashing attacks, each imbued with Armament Haki, surged toward Crocodile.
Crocodile failed to dodge in time, taking the full brunt of the assault and spitting out a mouthful of blood.
"Rokuogan." Rob Lucci unleashed his ultimate technique.
He crouched slightly, then lunged forward with explosive speed, striking toward Crocodile.
Seeing this, Crocodile's pupils sharply contracted, and his expression grew grave.
He pushed his Devil Fruit ability to its absolute limit, and in an instant, a sky-obscuring sandstorm began spreading rapidly from his position.
Amidst the chaotic sandstorm, Crocodile seamlessly merged into it, vanishing from sight.
"How dare you..." Crocodile's voice echoed from within the sandstorm, filled with rage and humiliation.
He never imagined that he, a Warlord of the Sea, would be injured by a Cipher Pol agent—to him, this was an utter disgrace.
Yet, he was also somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected this seemingly ordinary CP9 agent to be proficient in Armament Haki and possess such formidable strength.
"But you will die here." Crocodile erupted in fury, his enraged roar echoing across the desert.
This was his territory—he was the king of the desert—and he would not tolerate anyone challenging his authority in his domain.
In his mind, within this vast desert, even Whitebeard or Hashirama Senju would be powerless against him.
The terrifying sandstorm, like a rampaging beast, rapidly engulfed Rob Lucci.
"Die." Crocodile's killing intent boiled over; he was ready to deliver a fatal blow, to permanently eliminate the man who had humiliated him.
But suddenly, a violent tremor came from afar, followed by a colossal pillar of flame erupting into the sky, blazing brilliantly against the desert sky.
Crocodile's gaze snapped toward the source of the disturbance, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
"That's... Fire Fist Ace?" His voice carried a mix of suspicion and wariness.
Taking advantage of the moment, Rob Lucci broke free from the sand's grip, his body retreating like a cannonball to put distance between them.
He stared at the sandstorm before him with lingering fear, inwardly marveling at the strength of a Warlord—especially in the desert, where Crocodile's power seemed amplified several times over. His chances of victory were slim.
Moreover, he followed Crocodile's gaze toward the distant pillar of flame and muttered to himself, "The captain of the Whitebeard Pirates' second division?"
Elsewhere, Luffy and his crew were pleasantly surprised to run into Ace.
Ace was clearly overjoyed, even though his purpose for being out was to hunt down Blackbeard.
Not long ago, Blackbeard had shockingly killed Thatch and stolen the Dark-Dark Fruit, and Ace had been tracking his trail ever since.
Now, seeing his younger brother Luffy, his happiness was unmistakable, and he even felt like showing off his current strength.
Ace shifted his stance, raising his right arm as a ball of searing flames rapidly condensed in his hand, growing larger and larger until the surrounding air began to warp from the intense heat.
Then, he threw a punch. "Fire Fist!"
With a low shout, the fireball shot forward like a blazing cannonball, trailing waves of scorching heat toward a massive boulder in the distance.
A deafening "boom" echoed as the boulder was instantly consumed by the flames.
The sheer power of the attack left Luffy, Zoro, and the others with serious expressions.
"Are all the big shots out on the sea this strong?" Zoro instinctively gripped his sword tighter, his brow furrowed with a hint of gravity.
As a swordsman, he understood the gap in strength; this attack had brought him a pressure he'd never felt before.
"Ace, you've gotten so strong."
Luffy's eyes were wide with awe. He felt both pride in his brother's strength and a renewed determination to become stronger himself.
But before the group could fully process their amazement at Ace's power, a sudden change occurred.
A tidal wave of sand surged in from all directions like a flood, instantly enveloping them.
Crocodile had appeared, his signature black coat billowing in the wind-blown sand, a cold smile on his face as his eyes locked onto Ace.
"Captain of the Whitebeard Pirates' second division, what brings you here?"
Crocodile had temporarily abandoned his pursuit of CP9, his tone thick with wariness.
In his mind, Alabasta was his territory—any outsider could pose a threat to his plans.
"Damn it. First a Marine Admiral, then Hashirama Senju, then CP9, and now the Whitebeard Pirates are here too?"
Crocodile fumed internally. All he wanted was to lie low in Alabasta and search for the legendary Pluton—why were so many people suddenly appearing and disrupting his plans?
"Who are you?" Ace looked at the man who had appeared before him and couldn't help but burst out laughing.
He didn't recognize Crocodile.
"What, I tried to assassinate Whitebeard back in the day. Didn't he send you?"
Crocodile asked suspiciously, assuming Ace had been dispatched by Whitebeard to deal with him.
"Huh? That happened? The old man never mentioned it. Guess he forgot." Ace scratched his head, replying with an innocent look.
And those words, like a spark, utterly ignited the fury within Crocodile.
"You dare look down on me?"
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