"Desert Cutlass!!"
Crocodile slammed his intact right hand onto the floor.
With a deafening rumble, the entire castle began shaking violently in an instant.
"Too noisy."
Ian frowned. "Shiryu, can't you quiet him down?"
"My apologies, Lord Ian!"
Shiryu blurred into a phantom, flashing toward Crocodile in the blink of an eye. But even faster than his movement was the blade wrapped in pitch-black Haki, its razor-sharp edge already poised to pierce Crocodile's neck.
However, right as the blade was about to stab in, Crocodile's neck split open like a crack, and Shiryu's sword passed straight through the gap.
"Don't underestimate me!"
Even if he died, he intended to inflict as much damage as possible on these bastards before going down.
Sweat had begun to bead on Shiryu's forehead.
All those years as teammates—how had he never realized Crocodile was this troublesome?
Of all times, this bastard had to erupt now. If this lowered his standing in Lord Ian's eyes, what was he supposed to do?
How was this damn mongrel going to compensate him?!
As expected, now that he'd returned to his peak, Crocodile's strength was still nothing to scoff at.
Ian thought to himself, if no one interfered—an actual one-on-one fight—Shiryu might not necessarily be able to defeat Crocodile.
He'd wanted to give Shiryu a chance to show off, but if he didn't step in soon, this entire castle was going to collapse.
"Uta."
Ian spoke casually. "Handle him."
"Hm?"
Big Mom was slightly taken aback.
Let that girl make a move?
Was he joking?
Whether viewed with the naked eye or sensed through Observation Haki, the girl appeared utterly ordinary.
Her looks were undeniably beautiful, but her presence was no different from a regular person.
Crocodile's strength might not be overwhelming, but sending such a little girl to deal with him was far too unrealistic.
Unless… this girl possessed some kind of extraordinary Devil Fruit ability?
Aunt Linlin immediately made the connection.
After all, no matter how you looked at Ian, he didn't seem like the type to joke around at a time like this.
"Leave it to me."
Uta stepped forward.
A spark of excitement flashed across the beautiful girl's face.
She had been part of the Beasts Pirates for years, but during all that time, she had only ever acted as a songstress sailing the seas—known to the world for her mesmerizing voice.
But she could fight too.
Uta's red lips lifted slightly as she drew in a breath.
"Yo-ho-ho-ho-ho…"
For a moment she didn't know what to sing, so she chose the most famous pirate song known across the seas.
Singing?
Aunt Linlin frowned.
Why would she start singing at a time like this?
But before she could figure it out, she froze—Crocodile, who had been fiercely battling Shiryu, suddenly rolled his eyes back and collapsed straight onto the ground.
"Eh?"
Aunt Linlin was baffled.
What was that?
Did singing just knock him out?
It was beautiful, sure—but was it really that beautiful?
No.
It was the girl's ability.
An ability triggered through sound—through song?
Aunt Linlin fell into deep thought.
At the same time, Shiryu had already turned to look at Ian.
Scratching the back of his head awkwardly, he forced a stiff smile. "Lord Ian…"
"What are you hesitating for?"
Ian glanced at Crocodile lying motionless on the ground. "Since he's already made his choice, give him his conclusion."
"Yes!"
Shiryu nodded firmly.
It was over.
His evaluation in Lord Ian's eyes had definitely dropped.
Crocodile, you damned bastard!
Cursing inwardly, Shiryu stepped forward and drove his blade straight through Crocodile's heart from the front.
The next second, Crocodile's tightly shut eyes snapped open.
A surge of agony rushed through his body, and shock and disbelief twisted across his face.
He hadn't even figured out what had happened. Just a moment ago, it felt as if he'd been pulled into another world.
When he finally returned, it felt as if everything had already come to an end.
Yes.
Everything… had already ended.
Strength drained from his body bit by bit, his limbs rapidly growing weak.
The world before his eyes faded into darkness, and every sound drifted farther and farther away.
Crocodile understood. He was sinking into the dark.
An endless abyss that would swallow him forever, never allowing him to return to the light.
So in the end, he hadn't even caused Ian the slightest trouble?
What a pathetic, wasted life.
His final thought disappeared into the void, and the Desert King… withered away.
Mihawk let out a barely audible sigh.
They had never been close, but there was still some bond between him and Crocodile.
After all, both of them had once gone to Loguetown to witness the Pirate King's execution.
But the one with the most complicated feelings was the man standing silently to the side—Redfield.
In the end, he still hadn't fought Ian to the death.
Redfield had chosen to yield.
At the very least, he had to fulfill Moria's final wish—protect that girl, Perona.
Over the years, he had not only become friends with Moria, but his adopted daughter had gotten along with him as well.
She often cooked for him, and just earlier she'd even brewed him a cup of coffee.
For someone as solitary as Redfield, that girl was already like a daughter to him.
"Lord Ian," Shiryu approached with a cheerful grin. "Crocodile was even more troublesome than I expected. Sorry to disappoint you."
"That doesn't matter."
Ian replied, "From here on, the Cross Guild will be handled by you and World. That won't be a problem, right?"
Shiryu's expression froze for a moment.
The Cross Guild had always been managed by Crocodile.
Not only was his strength formidable, but his leadership and organizational skills were exceptional.
That massive organization had been run perfectly by him alone, leaving the other officers with nothing to do but enjoy themselves.
But because of that, almost all the Cross Guild's officers only recognized Crocodile as their true leader.
And even more so for those pirates Crocodile and Moria had brought out of Impel Down.
To them, Crocodile was the only one worth following.
"So," Ian spoke calmly, "is there a problem?"
"No!"
Shiryu grinned brightly. "Of course there's no problem! Not a single one!"
Solving this issue was definitely difficult. At the very least, Shiryu had no idea how to calm those officers who were absolutely loyal to Crocodile.
So he simply chose not to calm them at all.
If the problem couldn't be solved, then he would just solve the people who might become a problem.
Besides, he had long been curious about what it felt like to kill his own comrades.
Only then did Ian nod in satisfaction.
He didn't care what methods Shiryu used. As long as the task was completed, nothing else mattered.
Of course, there was one more requirement.
**********
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