While Shirogai Yamikuro was conversing with Crocodile, Mr. 1 silently crept up from behind.
"Great Slash!"
His legs morphed into sharp blades, slicing fiercely at Shirogai's legs.
"Heh, as expected. Rumors are always accurate. Settle down, Mr. 1."
Shirogai lightly sidestepped the incoming attack, his gaze falling on the assassin he'd deliberately left for Zoro to surpass—his intended stepping stone for unlocking Armament Haki.
"You're not qualified to fight me," Shirogai said flatly. "You're too weak, Mr. 1."
He reached out, seized Mr. 1 by the head, and slammed him into the ground with brutal force. Mr. 1 could barely register the shock before a fist coated in Armament Haki followed through, knocking him out cold.
"Annoying pests don't bite, but they sure buzz loudly."
With a casual step onto Mr. 1's unconscious body, Shirogai smiled at the stunned chief commanders nearby.
"Hey, you lot—quiet down. I've got business with your boss. Shhh... don't interrupt."
A chilling aura radiated from Shirogai's eyes, sweeping across the room like a storm. The air thickened, pressing down on every assassin present.
Obey—or die.
A whisper echoed in their minds, calm but absolute:
"Move again, die."
Terror gripped their hearts. In their minds, gruesome images of death flashed uncontrollably:
Heads lopped off mid-motion. Bodies bisected. Limbs severed. Flesh crumbling into ash beneath black flames. Corpses sprouting grotesque mushrooms before collapsing as nutrients drained away.
Each hallucination more grotesque than the last.
Snapping out of the haze of death, they realized they were still alive. But Shirogai's amused gaze made them freeze in place.
Assassins were not warriors. They thrived in shadows, preying on the unguarded—not standing defiant before monsters.
The chief commanders, paralyzed by Shirogai's Conqueror's Haki, didn't dare to breathe too loudly.
From the corner, Crocodile's cigar glowed brightly as he muttered, a rare flicker of disbelief in his eyes:
"Conqueror's Haki..."
His gaze narrowed, voice hoarse and thick with emotion:
"I didn't expect you to be one of those with that one-in-a-million will... A king's Haki."
Shirogai caught the bitterness in Crocodile's tone and grinned.
"Ah, you've felt it before... from Whitebeard, right? Was that how you lost to him?"
Crocodile's face twitched. He scowled, forcing calm into his voice.
"Hmph, for a rookie, you sure talk a lot."
The jealousy was unmistakable. Shirogai wasn't just strong. His Devil Fruit ability allowed him to replicate others. He had Conqueror's Haki. He had presence. And he wasn't even aiming to become Pirate King.
Conqueror's Haki couldn't be trained—it was born into those destined to lead.
Eyeing the mysterious man before him, Crocodile growled:
"The Plunderer... you disguised yourself as Mr. 5 to meet me. What do you want? Trying to stop me from taking this country?"
"Stop you?" Shirogai scoffed. "How boring."
He walked over to the glass tank, amused by the Banana Crocodiles within. Without turning back, he spoke with a smirk:
"Crocodile, you've gone through all this trouble to control Alabasta just to find the blueprints for the Ancient Weapon Pluton, haven't you?"
"You—!!"
Crocodile's face contorted with shock. His glare shot toward Robin.
"You told him?!"
Robin, still frozen from earlier, tried desperately to shake her head. Her eyes trembled, silently pleading innocence.
"Clang... clang..."
Shirogai tapped the glass casually, his voice calm yet piercing:
"Relax, Crocodile. Blaming your own partner for your failure? Not very warlord-like."
Crocodile exhaled sharply and muttered:
"Fine, talk. What do you want? If it's Pluton, we can cooperate."
"Pluton?" Shirogai chuckled and shook his head. "I'm not interested. You can have it if you want."
That answer stunned Crocodile. He stared at Shirogai as if trying to solve a puzzle.
"No interest in Pluton? Then why are you here?"
Shirogai turned, his smile slowly turning wicked.
"I want you."
In that moment, Crocodile burst into swirling yellow sand, hurling himself toward Shirogai like a sandstorm.
But Shirogai's form scattered into the same golden grains of sand—his mastery over the Sand-Sand Fruit mimicking Crocodile perfectly.
Boom!
The two sandstorms clashed in midair, tearing through the room like twin tornadoes. When they finally broke apart, both men reformed into human shapes.
Crocodile's face was cold.
"Shirogai, if this is your idea of a joke, it's not funny."
Shirogai smiled. "Calm down. I meant it literally—I want you to join me."
Crocodile sneered.
"Ridiculous. You want me, a Warlord of the Sea, to join the Straw Hat Pirates?"
Shirogai waved a hand dismissively.
"No. Not the Straw Hats. Me."
Crocodile narrowed his eyes.
"What's the difference? You're the Straw Hats' Vice Captain, aren't you?"
"I am. But I have... other plans."
"You think I'd ever join someone else's crew? I'll become Pirate King with my own power!"
Shirogai smiled again.
"My Captain has the same dream. I don't care for that title. I'm after something far more interesting."
Crocodile scoffed.
"Oh? And what's that?"
Shirogai's gaze darkened. His smile vanished, replaced by a calm, chilling power.
"You'll know."
BOOM!
A wave of Conqueror's Haki erupted from Shirogai like a tidal wave of darkness, swallowing the entire Rain Dinners.
Gamblers collapsed mid-bet.
Guards fell without warning.
The Banana Crocodiles slumped unconscious in their tanks.
Even the chief commanders, hardened killers, dropped like puppets with their strings cut.
Silence.
Only Crocodile and Shirogai remained standing in the entire building.
Crocodile clenched his jaw, sweat forming at his brow.
"Such terrifying Haki... It's almost on par with Whitebeard's!"
He stared at Shirogai in disbelief. This wasn't a rookie. This was a monster.
And then—
Shirogai turned around, his face devoid of humor, his voice like steel:
"My goal... is to reduce Mary Geoise—the Celestial Dragons' Holy Land—to rubble."
Crocodile's cigar slipped from his lips.
He's insane.
Shirogai's gaze locked onto his, unwavering.
"So I'll ask you again, Crocodile. Will you join me?"
---
100 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter
200 Power Stones = 3 Bonus Chapters.