From a distance, Reynolds watched the two men exchanging blows on the battlefield. Reynolds was already convinced that following Pain was a wise choice.
He could watch a duel between Peak powerhouses up close, learn some combat techniques he didn't understand, and also unravel the abilities of this mysterious man. Reynolds felt he had bet on the right horse this time.
In just a dozen seconds, Crocodile was trapped by Pain in a water prison, which then began to exert a suction force, continuously drawing in surrounding sand and growing larger and larger.
"If it were me, could I defeat Crocodile?... The answer seems to be no... At most, I could maintain a stalemate... but I wouldn't be able to do anything to Crocodile either?..."
Reynolds, observing the battle, put himself in their shoes and realized his weakness was, in fact, a lack of offensive methods.
The earth sphere slowly rose into the sky, growing larger and larger. The suction continued for about ten seconds before stopping. After the suction disappeared, the earth sphere, now about half the size of a pirate ship, stopped ascending. Then, under Pain's control, it violently exploded with a tremor.
Even though it was an earth sphere condensed from sand, it had become hard rock due to the immense suction. After the explosion, there were giant rock fragments and dust flying everywhere, but no sign of Crocodile's body. A gust of wind blew, and a pile of sand floating in the air gradually solidified into Crocodile's body in the distance.
At this moment, Crocodile had lost his previous elegant demeanor. Although still alive, it was clear he was severely injured. His once luxurious clothes hung in tatters, and subtle cracks, like ceramic patterns, appeared all over his body.
Judging by the blood oozing from the cracks, these were not patterns but bloodstains from injuries covering his entire body. The cigar in his mouth was long gone, and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. He stood in the distance, glaring solemnly at the indifferent Pain.
Crocodile was lucky, but also tragic. If it were a Ninja-type powerhouse from Pain's previous life, those without special body characteristics would be miraculously alive after enduring Pain's Chibaku Tensei.
Because once Chibaku Tensei is unleashed, it generates an extreme suction force (the magnitude of which is related to the amount of Chakra) centered on the target.
After the material drawn in by the suction solidifies, an extreme repulsive force (also related to the amount of Chakra) explodes outwards, creating a powerful blast that tears the target's body apart. Whether Chibaku Tensei explodes or not is entirely up to the caster's will.
Because Crocodile is a Suna Suna no Mi Ability User, coupled with his ability to turn into sand, when the sand drawn in turned into rock, breaking through the water prison and exploding with the repulsive force, he was still able to timely turn his body into sand, significantly reducing the damage.
Although he turned into sand in time, his body being wet combined with the immense repulsive force meant his sandy body was still severely injured, leading to his current appearance.
At this moment, Crocodile was very conflicted.
"Flee?... Or continue to fight?..."
Although the battle time was not long, due to his lack of understanding and underestimation of Pain's abilities, he paid a heavy price. The once confident Crocodile was no longer full of self-assurance. To flee, his pride wouldn't allow it, and with his current severely injured body, he didn't know if he could escape.
To fight, with his current severely injured body, he probably couldn't win. A never-before-seen confusion appeared in the mind of the once confident Crocodile, which dealt a significant blow to his inner self.
"Don't try to change the predetermined outcome... Your corpse is mine for the taking..."
Pain believed that Crocodile, in his current state, must be thinking of an escape plan, and used words to declare his unwavering determination.
"Mine for the taking?..."
"Gulu... Hahaha..."
"You're after my corpse?... So I guessed your purpose wrong from the start?..."
"Guhaha... Cough cough... Ha..."
Crocodile laughed wildly, even coughing as the laughter pulled at his wounds, but he couldn't stop laughing.
"So I was wrong from the beginning... Is my value merely my own corpse?..."
Crocodile laughed wildly, his laughter tinged with inexplicable sadness. Since he couldn't escape and Pain wanted his corpse, he would fight to the death.
As his laughter ceased, Crocodile reluctantly unleashed his ultimate ability, "Desertification World," which he had never used before.
Because once this ability is released, Crocodile loses control, and after casting the spell, whether he kills his opponent or not, he will instantly be drained of all strength, becoming a lamb to the slaughter.
"Since the opponent hasn't given me a way out, let's die together!" Crocodile thought frantically.
"Desertification World!..."
Crocodile roared loudly. Following his roar, rolling yellow sand, imbued with the characteristic of corroding all things, surged from all directions towards Pain.
Reynolds, observing from afar, instantly sensed the dangerous aura as the battlefield changed. Reynolds didn't know if Pain could survive this deadly move.
Although he wanted to go forward and assist Pain, taking him away from the range of the terrifying yellow sand attack, he ultimately did not act. It wasn't that Reynolds wasn't worried about Pain's danger, but rather Reynolds believed that with Pain's mysteriousness, he couldn't be defeated by what he considered this level of danger. Furthermore, Pain had previously said he didn't need his intervention, and he didn't want to disobey Pain's command.
Pain also sensed the danger the moment Crocodile roared. Having experienced countless wars in his previous life, Pain's sensitivity to danger was certainly higher than most people's.
Moreover, Pain understood that his current body was not a corpse, not the Heavenly Dao that could be repaired if damaged, nor was he in his Peak state. Before the bone-corroding yellow sand rolled and surrounded him, Pain used his movement technique to turn and dart through a gap before the yellow sand completely enclosed him, fleeing all the way.
Pain ran very fast, his Chakra adhering to the soles of his feet, making his running speed and jumping power astonishingly strong. But this yellow sand seemed to be demonic, pushing the Suna Suna no Mi's ability to its limit, as if it wouldn't stop until it devoured its target, and its speed was also astonishingly fast. Seeing that he couldn't escape the pursuit of the sky-filling yellow sand, Pain decided to take a gamble.
While running, Pain quickly formed hand signs for "Summoning Jutsu." When the Jutsu was complete, a giant Summoned Beast appeared above Pain.
The Summoned Beast had a frog's head and a snake's tail, seemingly a combination of many animals. Its large eyes were also like Pain's, with circular ripples expanding outwards from the inside. It was 3-4 meters tall, 7-8 meters long, and weighed about 2 tons.
Upon its appearance, the Summoned Beast immediately acted according to Pain's will. It spat a water bullet at the yellow sand, and at the same time, its tongue curled around Pain, sucking him into its mouth. With Pain enveloped in its mouth, the Summoned Beast instantly turned transparent and leaped aside to avoid the yellow sand attack.
No sooner said than done, the water bullet only delayed the yellow sand for about a second before being directly absorbed by it. After absorbing the water bullet, the yellow sand instantly lost its target and drifted in a different direction from Pain.
The moment the Summoned Beast appeared, Pain knew he had gambled correctly. The Summoned Beast of the Dao did not belong to his previous life or this world. Since it could be used in his previous life, it should be fully usable in this world as well.
This was also due to Pain's extensive combat experience and his ability to remain calm in a crisis. The moment danger arrived, multiple countermeasures had already surfaced in his mind. Even if the summoning failed, Pain still had other ways to turn the danger into safety.
Looking at Crocodile, who lay in the desert, staring at the sky, quietly awaiting his end, Pain dispelled the Summoned Beast and slowly walked over.
"Is it over?..."
"Is this the only end I can reach?"
"All my actions in this Issho, I've been a warlord, but in the end, I can only fall to the point where my corpse is used by others?..."
"I'm unwilling..."
"But what can unwillingness do?..."
"The Shinigami is getting closer and closer to me..."
Crocodile lay in the desert, quietly contemplating, casting aside his previous hysteria, leaving only the calm of awaiting death...