"Ugh... Huff..."
Everything was black in Crocodile's vision. The earth-shattering thunder still echoed in his ears, and his head was a mess.
Gradually, the thunder subsided, and Crocodile finally regained consciousness.
Did I... pass out?
No, not really, just a brief moment of being out of it.
In Crocodile's memories, the last thing he saw was Rowan holding up a huge wall of sand with one hand, blocking all of the endless thunderballs.
Then, because he didn't expect the thunderballs to explode, Crocodile was the first to take the brunt of the impact and was sent flying, it seemed.
"Huff..."
After taking a deep breath, Crocodile finally came to his senses and opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was a white ocean below.
It was the "White Sea," which only exists near the Sky Islands and has the same characteristics as the normal sea. Devil Fruit users will still drown in it.
Crocodile moved his feet and was surprised to find that there was nothing below him.
Where am I?
After a few breaths, Crocodile's body regained feeling, and he noticed that something was holding his hand.
Turning his head, Crocodile's face darkened.
He saw that his hand was on Rowan's shoulder, and Rowan was pulling him, and they were gliding together in the air.
Behind Rowan, two sand wings that had shrunk countless times were spread open and slowly adjusting their angle, controlling the direction they were going.
Crocodile: "..."
Come to think of it, if Rowan could control sand wings to help an entire ship glide through the air, then it would obviously be easy for him to glide through the air with just one person.
It made sense, but Crocodile still felt annoyed.
He looked down and around, but he didn't see the Four Seas Alliance ship, so he asked suspiciously:
"Where are they?"
Rowan's flying ability is based on gliding, which isn't as good as someone who can actually fly, like a bird-type Devil Fruit user.
If Bell was here, they would probably have much better mobility in the air.
But Rowan shook his head and explained, "They were swept away by the currents created by the explosion. They were going too fast to keep up with gliding."
Crocodile frowned and used sand to take a new cigar out of his pocket, and put it in his mouth.
Looking around, he saw that the White Sea had calmed down and returned to a beautiful, pure white scene. It seemed that the person who attacked them had temporarily stopped.
"Damn bastard, don't let me find him..."
Crocodile rarely fought such a frustrating battle, and he didn't even see the enemy's real face!
"Huff..."
Crocodile took a deep breath and took a puff of the unlit cigar. "So, are we going to look for them?"
"There's not much wind here, so we can't glide for very long, or fly very far."
Rowan looked into the distance and saw a raised part made of white clouds.
That was the "solid land" above the Sky Island, made of special clouds, and the foundation of the Sky Island civilization.
"Let's go to the land first."
Rowan said.
Crocodile nodded.
He couldn't control sand to glide through the air like Rowan, but he didn't want to keep his hand on Rowan's shoulder for too long.
...
A few minutes later.
The two of them landed safely, and the wings on Rowan's back turned back into sand and returned to his body.
Then, Crocodile suddenly squatted down, looking odd.
He reached into the pocket of his fur coat, took out a lighter, lit his cigar, and took a deep puff.
"Ha..."
Crocodile forced himself to stand up straight and rubbed his forehead.
"My head hurts. Is it from the thunder earlier?"
"No."
Rowan also took a deep breath. "It's because of the special climate at high altitudes. Using your powers on a large scale before getting used to it will definitely cause discomfort."
Crocodile glanced at Rowan and understood his plan. "So that's why you gathered a large group of doctors from Drum Island first?"
Rowan nodded.
Crocodile now understood why Rowan wasn't in a hurry to find the ship of people.
After all, those people were already strong fighters, and with a team of doctors with them, they would soon adapt to the Sky Island climate.
Rowan looked around and moved his fingers slightly, using sand to create a model of the surrounding area.
Two small dots represented him and Crocodile.
"We should be in the middle layer of the Cumulonimbus Cloud right now, surrounded by the White Sea route, and the main part of the Sky Island is above us."
Crocodile nodded. "In that case, let's go to the Sky Island first. It'll be easier to find people there."
But Rowan refused, "No, I actually have a better way."
Crocodile was surprised.
Right, that old guy's Conqueror's Haki is incredibly strong, so he might have already sensed the ship's location!
But then, Rowan's actions surprised Crocodile.
Rowan reached into his pocket and took out a Den Den Mushi.
Crocodile: "..."
Rowan picked up the receiver and said with a smile, "Technology is so convenient, isn't it!"
Crocodile: "..."
Bell's voice came from the Den Den Mushi.
"Ancestor? Are you alright!"
"We're fine, we landed safely." Rowan nodded. "What about you?"
"Many people on the ship are showing symptoms of sickness, but with the help of the doctors, most of us have recovered."
Bell replied, "But we're moving along with the currents of the White Sea, and it looks like it will be hard to turn back."
Rowan said, "Okay, we'll meet you on the upper layer of the Cumulonimbus Cloud."
"Understood."
Click!
The Den Den Mushi hung up, and Rowan looked at Crocodile, who was quietly smoking a cigar.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
...
With a specific direction to go, the two began to look for a way out.
The cloud ground of the Sky Island is a little softer than dirt, and feels like a blanket, giving you a comfortable feeling when you step on it.
Crocodile climbed over a cloud hill, gently touched the ground with his right hand, and silently used his erosion ability.
In an instant, a small piece of cloud was drained of all its moisture, turning into a pile of white sand.
A dark smile returned to Crocodile's face.
Since his erosion ability can be used, it means that his fighting power hasn't weakened.
That's the best thing.
Crocodile felt good, looked up, and suddenly froze. "What's that?"
Hearing this, Rowan looked in the direction of his voice and also froze.
On the white beach in the distance, there were large patches of charred marks, as if a large number of lightning strikes had passed through, leaving winding patterns.
"Was it caused by the thunderstorm earlier?" Crocodile guessed.
Rowan shook his head to deny this. "No."
He came to a charred mark and pulled a charred spear out of the sand.
"These marks aren't new, they've been here for a long time."
Just then, an old voice sounded beside them.
"You two, are you travelers?"
Rowan and Crocodile turned their heads and saw an old man wearing a brown shirt.
He had two small wings on his back, and he was a local resident of the Sky Island.
The old man gave the two an Sky Island greeting, pointed in one direction, and explained, "There's no one here anymore. If you want to resupply, just go to the city on the upper level."
After thinking for a moment, the old man added, "But it's best to leave here as soon as possible."
Rowan asked curiously, "Why?"
"There's a war going on!"
The old man sighed and said heavily, "Two Sky Islands have started a war. Although it hasn't spread here, as you can see, this kind of beach on the border is often affected."
Hearing this, Crocodile immediately touched his forehead, sighing inwardly.
Trouble...
His "trouble" wasn't referring to what the old man said, but to Rowan.
Crocodile was sure that when the old man mentioned the "war between the Sky Islands," Rowan's eyes lit up!
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