The Rebel Army stronghold—Katorea.
Ever since discovering the Royal Army's movements, Koza had immediately ordered all rebel forces to begin constructing fortifications in Katorea and evacuating all nearby civilians. However, just as they were frantically running around, digging trenches, and building high walls with tense expressions, their intelligence officers brought them astonishing news.
"You say the Royal Army withdrew?!" Koza stared at the messenger in shock, his expression fluctuating wildly.
"Yes, leader." The intelligence officer nodded with a strange look on his face. "Those Royal Army troops suddenly did a 180-degree turn, made a big loop, and then ran toward the north without slowing down."
"I didn't dare believe my own eyes at first, but they really did return the way they came."
"Is that so..." Koza lowered his head in deep thought, looking solemn. "The Royal Army... just what the hell are they planning?"
"Leader," Koza's adjutant suddenly spoke up. "Regardless of the reason, the Royal Army's withdrawal is a good thing for us rebels."
"But it's also possible the Royal Army is plotting some kind of trick. We have to be on guard."
Hearing his adjutant's suggestion, Koza nodded in agreement, then announced loudly, "That's right. Pass the order down: have all rebel forces continue constructing fortifications and hold their positions..."
Although he was hot-blooded, hot-bloodedness didn't mean he was an idiot; he could distinguish clearly between when to attack and when to defend.
Pell watched the Royal Army troops on the ground, who had inexplicably turned around and started running back. His eyes were so wide with shock that they nearly popped out of his head.
If it were one or two people, it wouldn't be much, but when an army of 300,000—men and camels alike—turned around in unison, the scene was beyond merely "spectacular."
"Did... did you do this? Sherlock," Pell asked the Sorcerer lying on his back, his voice filled with uncertainty.
This was a full 300,000 people! What on earth did he do to make so many people suddenly run back? Could this handsome young man with glasses really perform sorcery?
"It's an illusion..." After casting Phantom Mirror, Sherlock pushed up his glasses, looking a bit weary. "Everything they perceive around them right now is an illusion I created. The illusions make them think they are walking in a straight line, but in reality, they are going in the complete opposite direction."
"This only works because the desert is such a monotonous place. Otherwise, with so many people, I really wouldn't be able to pull it off."
"As long as the sun is still hanging in the sky and they are still in this desert, they won't realize it."
Sherlock forced himself to cheer up as he explained to Pell. Although the effects of the Sanmona drug were very short-lived, the side effects were also much lighter. Sherlock had already tested this on Mr. 11; otherwise, with his style, he would never have risked his own safety.
"Now, let's hurry back to Alubarna. If I'm not mistaken, Mr. Crocodile, who has likely decided to go for broke, should be arriving soon..."
"..." Pell looked solemn upon hearing this. The Guardian Deity, his heart tied to the King, immediately exerted one hundred and twenty percent of his strength and flew toward the north.
G-17 Fortress.
Recognized as the most powerful of the three Devil Fruit types, the Logia class not only grants the user the ability to transform into elements and become immune to physical attacks, but with just a little development, the destructive power of a Logia ability is absolutely catastrophic.
And this time, Sir Crocodile gave the Marines of the G-17 Fortress a proper demonstration.
At this moment, the Marine fortress was completely unrecognizable. More than two-thirds of the buildings had been turned into rolling fine sand by Crocodile. The Marine casualties were over half, and everyone was wounded. If not for Vice Admiral Hisoka holding him back, the casualties would have been even more severe.
Crocodile looked at the disheveled, naturally curly blonde Marine before him and smiled with considerable contempt. "I wondered who it was. Turns out it's the once-famous [Golden Asura], Vice Admiral Hisoka. What? Do you think you can defeat me with just a wooden sword?"
"Crocodile!"
Hisoka wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, then glanced at "Black Cage" Hina, who had fallen to the side and fainted. Flames of extreme rage burned within his usually lazy, dead-fish eyes.
"Does a Warlord of the Sea intend to declare war on Marine Headquarters?!"
"Heh, I had no choice. Who asked you Marines to capture such a very important person?" Crocodile shook his head. "As for the title of Warlord, I never cared for it anyway!"
—Sables!
Crocodile suddenly waved his hand without warning. A massive blade of sand roared toward Hisoka, carried by a fierce wind. The latter hurriedly dodged the sharp attack sideways, simultaneously reversing his grip on the wooden sword. His feet stomped the ground in rapid succession, and he shot forward like a bolt of lightning.
From a distance, he looked like a streak of golden lightning shooting forth!
—Severing Jade!
The wooden sword traced a stunning arc, its exaggerated speed creating a piercing whistle, before colliding violently with Crocodile's prepared golden hook on his left hand.
Boom!!!
A thunderous explosion rang out in the air, and a terrifying shockwave visible to the naked eye scattered from the point of impact. What followed was a fierce clash of sword light and sandstorms. Vice Admiral Hisoka showed no sign of his usual decadent self; he was like a wild wolf, his blade moving like the wind, his momentum like a rainbow. The gale generated by their clash blew through his natural blonde curls, making his image appear even more uninhibited and wild.
Bang!!!
Another incredibly powerful clash occurred. The hard ground, affected by the aftershock of the collision, collapsed with a crash, forming an exaggerated crater as the two used the opportunity to distance themselves from each other.
(This guy seems to get braver the more he fights. Is this battle gradually awakening his dormant combat instincts?)
Crocodile glanced warily at Hisoka's wooden sword, which had turned black due to Armament Haki. Frowning slightly, he shook his slightly numb arm, thoughts of retreat already forming in his mind.
(As expected of the Golden Asura from back then, the man in the Marines with the most hope of surpassing Hawkeye...)
His original intention was to wipe out all the Marines in the G-17 Fortress, but now it seemed that even if he could win, the price would be more than he could currently accept...
After pondering for a moment, Crocodile, not planning to delay any longer, activated his ability again. Rolling sand and dust covered the sky and earth, shrouding toward Hisoka. Subsequently, he transformed himself into a wave of sand and flew into the distance.
Vice Admiral Hisoka intended to pursue, but he was held back by the annoying dust. By the time the dust settled, Crocodile had run so far that not even his shadow remained.
"Bastard! He got away..." Hisoka spat out saliva tinged with blood. Looking at the devastated G-17 Fortress, his entire body trembled slightly with anger.
Just then, a crisp voice rang out from the distance.
"Brother! Brother!"
Hisoka's sister ran over with a panicked look. When she saw that a certain blonde natural-curl was merely disheveled but otherwise unharmed, she breathed a long sigh of relief. Then, her expression changed, and she ran even faster.
"Pearl..." Seeing his precious sister running toward him, Hisoka was so moved he almost cried. He stuck his beloved sword into the ground and hurriedly extended both arms.
(What could be more healing than a warm hug from one's cute sister after a bitter battle?)
Thinking this silently, the blonde natural-curl closed his eyes full of anticipation.
The distance between the two gradually closed.
Brother and sister brushed past each other. Simultaneously, Hisoka's expression froze instantly.
The distance between the two gradually widened.
"Colonel Hina, are you alright!" Squatting down, Pearl anxiously helped up the somewhat dusty-faced Black Cage Hina. However, the latter kept her eyes tightly closed, and even her heartbeat and breathing seemed to have stopped. If not for the aura of the living still emanating from the female Marine, Pearl would have thought Colonel Hina had already died a glorious death.
"Damn it..." Pearl gritted her silver teeth, then reached out and pressed firmly on Hina's full left chest a few times. Seeing that the effect was lacking, the blonde girl didn't hesitate to lean down, slowly bringing her tender lips toward Black Cage Hina's mouth...
Although she only had a rough understanding of medicine, Pearl, who had excellent grades in professional theory courses, knew very well that artificial respiration was the most effective method at a time like this.
"..." Hisoka turned his head blankly, watching the seemingly "very aesthetic" scene before him. In his heart, it felt like ten thousand Sea Kings were stampeding past.
(What happened to the agreed-upon warm hug??!!)
The blonde natural-curl, sister-complex, idiot, decadent Vice Admiral roared internally. Even though Hina was a woman, as a supreme sis-con, he had an urge to draw his sword.
"Brother! Why are you still standing there like an idiot? Hurry up and use the Transponder Snail to contact Headquarters!"
"Right, right, right, I got it!" Hisoka hurriedly ran into the distance as if his butt were on fire.
A Marine warship loaded with pirates was sailing rapidly toward Alubarna, the capital of Alabasta.
Incidentally, although he hadn't wiped out the G-17 Marines, Crocodile had been clever enough to destroy all the remaining warships.
"Now, there are only two paths before you..." Crocodile stood atop the cabin, looking down imperiously at the pirates he had released from the G-17 Fortress.
"Submit, or die!"
When he said the word "die," a chilling murderous intent rose in Crocodile's emotionless eyes. Many weaker pirates began to tremble involuntarily under this cold killing intent.
Ironically, most of these pirates had been captured by Crocodile, the "Guardian Deity," just a while ago, and now they had been released by his own hand.
Precisely because of this, having already witnessed Crocodile's terrifying power, how could this group of pirates dare to say a word of refusal?
"Why are you doing this? Sir Crocodile."
A tall, gloomy-looking man with long light-yellow hair suddenly asked in confusion, "Aren't you a Royal Warlord of the Sea? Why go against the Marines?"
The other pirates also looked up at Crocodile in confusion upon hearing this.
Crocodile looked the speaker up and down, then the corner of his mouth hooked into a sinister arc. "You must be General Gasparde. The Marines' greatest stain, with a bounty of 95 million Berries. Not bad, not bad."
Although he said "not bad," his extremely mocking tone contained no praise whatsoever.
"I've given up being a Warlord and returned to being a pirate. As for the reason..." Crocodile glanced imperceptibly at Nico Robin, who was sitting quietly on a chair to the side reading a book with great composure, then spoke in an icy tone, "I don't seem to have any need to explain it to you."
"You just need to tell me your choice!"
"Submit to me, and I will give you wealth and status far beyond what you had before." Crocodile tempted them, simultaneously extending a hand. A miniature sandstorm instantly appeared in his palm.
"Otherwise, you can all go to hell!"
Gasparde was first rendered speechless by Crocodile's hardline attitude. Then, on second thought, becoming a subordinate of such a powerhouse didn't seem like a bad thing.
Strength is respected; the weak are prey to the strong. This law of the jungle was particularly prevalent in the pirate world. At the same time, the rallying power of a powerful pirate was absolutely immeasurable.
Besides, when Gasparde defected from the Marines to become a pirate, wasn't it exactly for higher status and more wealth?
"..." Thinking of this, the Marine disgrace knelt on one knee without hesitation, his attitude humble, his choice self-evident.
Seeing that Gasparde, the strongest among them, had already made his stance clear, the rest of the pirates immediately knelt down in a large mass, following suit.
"Hahaha..." Seeing this scene, Crocodile laughed with extreme arrogance.
"Very good. In that case, my first mission for you is..."
The slender fingers turning the pages paused. Even holding a book, Nico Robin was in no mood to read. She gently closed the book, looked up into the distance, her eyes filled with anxiety.
(Is the answer I want... really there?)
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