"What a pain in the ass..."
That sudden sand blade ambush it wasn't the first time Ozz had seen that move.
He'd taken it head-on with sheer brute force.
Now, Sakazuki's upper and lower halves slowly shifted apart as his eyes drifted downward. From the swirling sands, a human figure began to take shape.
It was Crocodile.
"Sakazuki, your head'll make a fine announcement piece for my rise to fame."
"Arrogant to the extreme!!"
Sakazuki's face turned grim. The split torso was already beginning to bubble with heat. Streams of molten magma hissed from the wound, and his body slowly fused back together.
Crocodile wasn't the only one with elemental powers.
Sakazuki was a Logia user too.
"That's more like it. You've fought Ozz, after all. How could someone like you go down so easily?"
Sakazuki grit his teeth. The moment she mentioned that name, he remembered the order he'd been given.
Even as anger surged in his chest, he still spoke.
"If you leave now, I'll act like I never saw you."
To him, Crocodile was nothing special.
But her identity mattered she was one of Ozz's rare companions. Killing her might tip the scales and spark conflict between Ozz and the Navy or worse, the World Government.
The Fleet Admiral's orders were clear. Unless absolutely necessary, do not engage.
"Leave now?"
Crocodile laughed, like she'd just heard a bad joke.
"I came here to kill you, dumbass!!!"
Her arm slowly dissolved into flowing sand, now coated in blackened Armament Haki. The dark sand reshaped into a massive curved blade, and she swung it directly at Sakazuki.
"Desert Saber!!"
The attack kept extending an elegant, fluid sweep of sand laced with force.
Clearly, she had no intention of holding back.
Sakazuki's face darkened with fury. This woman was courting death.
Fine then. No more holding back.
His fist clenched tight. In an instant, magma bloomed like a supernova. Channeling the explosive pressure of a volcanic eruption, he launched a flaming punch toward the incoming desert blade.
"Great Eruption!!"
Boom!!
The magma fist and the black desert saber collided mid-air. The impact blew a gaping hole into the warship's deck, and dozens of Marines leapt into the sea to escape the destruction.
Back on the battlefield.
Crocodile staggered several steps backward, visibly shaken. She only stopped herself by rolling and using the momentum to regain footing.
Sakazuki, meanwhile, stood tall, glaring at her with raw fury.
She couldn't believe it.
How?
This was the same Vice Admiral who had once ganged up on Ozz and nearly lost. How could she not beat him?
"What a joke!"
"Mega Sandstorm!!"
She wouldn't accept it. Even bit through her cigar in rage who knew where the end of it flew off to.
With a wave of her arm, a sandstorm like a natural disaster swept toward Sakazuki.
Ozz had actually evaluated Crocodile's strength before though she hadn't been around to hear it.
His take?
Stronger than the average Vice Admiral, but not by a wide margin.
Still, with her Logia abilities and the infuriating properties of the Sand-Sand Fruit, she could tangle with just about anyone.
Both of them fought with wide-range, high-impact area attacks basically walking natural disasters.
After just a few exchanges, the warship was officially scrapped and sinking fast.
Neither of them could touch seawater. Especially Crocodile unlike Sakazuki, who could harden magma into volcanic rock and briefly stay afloat.
Her sand, once wet, was useless.
So she turned into a swirling sandstorm and fled toward a nearby deserted island.
And Sakazuki?
His ship was gone, he'd taken a few hits, and he couldn't exactly slink away after all this.
Especially not after already making a move.
Boom!!
His entire body transformed into flaming magma, propelled forward by the force of volcanic explosions. He launched himself after Crocodile with the intensity of a missile.
Even if he didn't kill her, he was definitely going to make her pay.
And it was precisely this battle that taught Crocodile a new fact of chemistry.
Something called...
Crystallization of sand.
...
"What?! Crocodile got caught by the Navy?!"
The news hit Sami like a punch to the gut.
Her first thought was, Has the Navy lost their minds?
To arrest one of Ozz's companions outright was this a declaration of war?
Were they seriously picking a fight with the underground world?
Way too reckless!
But as she kept reading the report, things became clearer.
Apparently, Crocodile had been the one who started it. She picked a fight... and lost. Sakazuki captured her on the spot.
Whether she really couldn't escape, or was just too stubborn to run it didn't matter now.
She'd already been taken back to Marineford. They said Sakazuki didn't even have a ship left, and had to sail back using a pirate vessel.
"What a maniac..."
Sami sighed, rubbing her forehead in exasperation. She figured she'd better try contacting the Navy.
Maybe she could pull some strings use Ozz's name to get Crocodile released.
It should work, right?
If it didn't…
If it didn't work, then Crocodile might just be headed straight for Level 6 of Impel Down.
...
And it wasn't just Sami who was worried.
Marineford itself was in chaos.
At Navy HQ.
In the Fleet Admiral's office, Sengoku sat on the couch, Tsuru beside him. Across the room, Vice Admiral Sakazuki stood at attention, face serious.
Behind the desk, Fleet Admiral Kong leaned forward, arms resting on the table, brows furrowed.
After a moment of silence, he finally broke it.
"All right. We've brought her in. We can't just keep her here indefinitely. We need to decide what to do."
He turned toward Sengoku, his chosen successor.
Sengoku's face was grim. Seeing Kong's expectant gaze, his stomach turned.
Don't tell me...
"Sengoku. Let's hear your opinion."
The "Strategist Admiral" didn't answer right away. Inwardly, he cursed his luck.
"This is... tricky."
Crocodile was a walking PR disaster.
Too dangerous to release, too controversial to keep.
If word got out that the Navy had been attacked and then politely let the attacker go, wouldn't that demoralize the ranks?
Unrest would spread like wildfire.
But if they didn't let her go.
Sengoku thought of Ozz. Of that man's power. Of that man's real identity...
They were damned if they did, damned if they didn't.
Just as the top brass continued weighing their options.
Brrrrrr brrrrrrr brrrrrrrrr...
The sudden sound of a Den Den Mushi snapped everyone's attention.
All the officers looked up, startled.
"That's..."
Kong frowned.
"Everyone but Sengoku, step outside for now."
There was a brief pause, but all complied, saluting before exiting.
Only Sengoku remained Fleet Admiral in training, and the only one granted exception.
Kong gave Sengoku a subtle glance, a silent warning to keep quiet. Then he picked up the receiver.
The Den Den Mushi's face transformed into a cold, commanding expression, and the voice that followed rang with imperious weight.
"Kong. You need to be informed.
Ozz has begun to inquire.
About Sand Crocodile."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
That's it for now, we've caught up to the raws!
This chapter wraps up everything that's been released so far. I've marked this fanfic as complete for now, but if there are any updates down the line, I'll be sure to let you all know!
Thanks a ton for sticking with Ozz's journey up to this point!
Really appreciate all the support.
While waiting for more chapters, feel free to check out our other fanfics too!