A brutal, earth-shaking fight erupted between Luffy and Crocodile. Sandstorms met rubbery fists in a whirlwind of vengeance.
Mario, having done his part, now leaned against the cold stone of the mausoleum wall, his arms crossed as he observed with a critical eye. He was a silent sentinel. When a chunk of shattered pillar or a blade of compressed sand flew towards the stunned King Cobra or the recovering Robin, Mario's hand would flicker out—a casual Tobu Shigan that sliced the debris from the air, protecting them without ever leaving his post.
He would not interfere unless absolutely necessary. This was Luffy's fight. Mario wanted to see the Luffy's growth, to let this desert tyrant temper his friend's resolve into unbreakable steel.
Cobra and Robin were too shocked to even speak, their minds reeling from the sudden rescue and the raw power on display. A quiet relief also settled in Mario's chest; a quick glance confirmed Robin, while shaken, was not seriously hurt.
The battle raged. Mario watched as Crocodile, in a fit of rage and desperation, unscrewed his golden hook, revealing the glint of a cruel, poisoned blade beneath. Luffy, ever adaptable, was dodging and weaving, but the game had changed. Mario's eyes narrowed. He saw an opening Luffy didn't, a near-invisible thrust aimed not to injure, but to deliver a fatal dose of toxin. Mario's finger twitched.
Fwip!
An invisible air bullet—a discreet Shigan—sliced through the air, deflecting the poisoned tip by a mere centimeter, just enough for Luffy to twist away from certain death. It was a small intervention, but Crocodile, a master of combat, felt the slight, unnatural shift in the air.
„YOU VERMIN! STOP INTERFERING!" Crocodile roared, his attention snapping from Luffy to Mario for a split second.
„I'm not going to stop until I pummel you into the ground!" Luffy growled, using the distraction to land a solid Gomu Gomu no Pistol to Crocodile's jaw, forcing the Warlord's focus back onto him.
They finally parted, creating a distance in the rubble-strewn chamber. Crocodile was panting, his clothes torn, his composure fraying into raw, seething hatred. He pointed his poisoned hook, first at Luffy, then sweeping it to include Mario in his glare.
„You… It was you!" he snarled, his voice a venomous hiss. "My whole plan… my years of work… destroyed because of you!" He was no longer just a calculating villain; he was a man watching his life's ambition crumble. "Vivi! Little Garden! Yuba! Rainbase! Stopping the revolutionaries! EVERYTHING IS YOUR FAULT!"
His roar of pure, unadulterated rage echoed through the chamber as he lunged again, his poisoned hook swinging in a wild, deadly arc. "Some stupid, little, insignificant pirates dared to interfere!"
But Luffy was different now. He was no longer the rookie who fell for every trick. He evaded the frenzied swings with a newfound grace, his movements sharper, his predictions almost precognitive. He was learning, adapting, and growing stronger with every passing second. A small, proud smile touched Mario's lips.
„This country would already be MINE!" Crocodile roared, his form dissolving into a whirlwind of sand only to reappear directly behind Luffy. The poisoned hook thrust forward in a lethal stab. Thinking fast, Luffy stretched his neck with one hand, yanking his own head out of the way with a rubbery fwip.
„Phew! That was close!" Luffy gasped, continuing his frantic evasion. But Mario, from his vantage point, saw the problem immediately. Luffy's punches were becoming less effective, no longer packing the wet, solid impact that had previously hurt the Warlord.
His bandages are drying out, Mario thought, his mind racing. He's running out of time.
„You! That hateful woman! Everyone is just getting in my way!" Crocodile bellowed, his attacks growing more frenzied as he sensed the shift. „I'll kill you all and take this country and make a new kingdom! I will just pin the blame on you! A couple of dirty pirates killed the king as I tried to stop them! A perfect story, don't you think!" He laughed, a manic, grating sound that echoed his crumbling sanity as he pressed his advantage.
Mario's gaze snapped from the fight to Nico Robin. His voice was calm, a stark contrast to the chaos. „Miss Sunday, I'll take that vial of water you have."
She looked at him, shock giving way to a slow, knowing smile. Of course he knew. She reached into her inner coat and produced a small, crucial vial of clear water.
„I guess I should not be surprised anymore," she said, shaking her head in weary admiration.
„Oh," Mario replied, catching the vial, „there will be plenty more surprises down the road."
In one fluid motion, he became a blur of motion. He ran towards the fray, and as he passed a panting Luffy, he tossed the vial. No words were needed. Luffy's eyes lit up with understanding, his hands snatching it from the air.
Soru!
In the blink of an eye, Mario reappeared, not at Crocodile's side, but directly in front of him. The Warlord's eyes widened in surprise. Before he could fully dissolve into sand, Mario's right hand became sheathed in that familiar, terrifying black gloss.
Fear, pure and unadulterated, flashed in Crocodile's eyes. He was too slow. Mario drove a perfect, devastating uppercut into his jaw. The impact was sickeningly solid, lifting Crocodile off his feet and rocketing him toward the stone ceiling.
„FINISH IT!" Mario commanded, his voice cutting through the thunderous impact.
Luffy was already in motion, using Mario's steadfast shoulder as a launching pad to propel himself skyward.
„OF COURSE! GOMU GOMU NO... GATLING GUN!"
„GAH!" Crocodile managed to summon a desperate forest of sand spears to defend himself, but it was futile. Luffy's fists, now freshly soaked and gleaming water, tore through the brittle defenses as if they were paper. The relentless barrage of, water-enhanced punches began, pinning the despot against the ceiling.
„ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA!" Luffy roared, each blow a cathartic release of all the pain and betrayal Crocodile had inflicted on his friends and this country.
The ancient stone of the ceiling could not withstand the concentrated fury. With a final, explosive crack, it gave way, and a broken, defeated Crocodile was blasted upward through the hole, thrown from the depths of his own conspiracy and into the blinding light of the Alabasta sun.
With a final, heavy pant, Luffy landed beside him, his chest heaving but his posture triumphant. "See? I told you I would pummel him to the ground… I mean, ceiling?" He tilted his head, a look of genuine confusion crossing his face. "It's the same, no?"
Mario laughed heartily, the sound a welcome relief in the crumbling chamber. "I think that counts. Although you certainly wrecked the ceiling."
"Shishishi! It's not my fault it's so old!" Luffy grinned, scratching the back of his head without a shred of remorse.
The hesitant voice of King Cobra cut through their moment. He approached them slowly, his expression a mixture of awe, gratitude, and deep confusion. "You… what are you two…?"
Mario offered the king a warm, reassuring smile. "Oh, just your friendly neighborhood pirates," he laughed, the title feeling perfectly apt.
His eyes then flickered to the spot where Nico Robin had been standing. She was gone, vanished like a ghost. He wasn't surprised; he had a strong hunch their paths would cross again, and soon.
A loud groan from above drew their attention. A large chunk of stone dislodged from the shattered ceiling and crashed nearby, sending a cloud of dust billowing through the chamber. The structural integrity was failing fast.
"But it is time for us to go," Mario said, his tone shifting to one of urgency as more debris began to rain down. "Unless we want to be buried here." He looked pointedly at King Cobra. "Also, your people need you. Now more than ever."
The truth of his words hit the king hard. The rebellion, the confusion—Alabasta needed its ruler to step out of the shadows and restore peace.
"Right! Let's get out of this dusty place!" Luffy declared, already stretching an arm to grab a protruding stone ledge to pull himself up towards the newly created skylight.
Mario gave the king a supportive nod before turning to follow his captain, the two of them ascending from the dark tomb of Crocodile's ambitions and into the hopeful light of a new day for Alabasta.
***
Mario knelt, offering his back to the weary king. "Sire, we need to move quickly. Hold on." As Cobra wrapped his arms around his shoulders, Mario's eyes, scanning the chamber one last time, fell upon the massive, indestructible Poneglyph nestled in the shadows.
And he froze.
Wait.....what the hell!
It was as if a silent thunderclap had gone off in his mind. The ancient, blocky script—the language said to be lost to the world, known only to a select few scholars and a hunted archaeologist—was not gibberish to him. His eyes traced the lines, and meaning, clear and terrifying, unfolded in his mind as easily as reading a morning newspaper.
I can read it??? How?!
The realization was a physical blow, a shiver that wracked his spine. This wasn't possible. He was Mario, a completely normal guy from another world who had just gotten ridiculously lucky learning Rokushiki. He had no special heritage, no secret training. In his old world, this was just a fictional language in a manga! But here, now, the words were real, and he understood them.
Is this part of the transmigration? A side-effect? A damn system glitch I didn't know about?
The questions were a frantic, silent scream in his head. This was a knowledge that got people obliterated. Knowing this was a death sentence.
He could not let it show. He was just a guy trying to help his friends; he wasn't ready for the weight of the Void Century. Atleast for now…
"The exit is this way!" Luffy called, already leading the charge back into the maze.
Mario stood, adjusting the king's weight, his face a perfect, neutral mask.
"Right behind you!" he called back, his voice steady despite the earthquake in his soul.