Crocodile stared at Reno with venomous eyes.
His cloak had become rags, and his body was crisscrossed with whip marks, bleeding profusely.
Reno's water whips seemed to have a homing device, no matter how he dodged, they would accurately strike his body.
Wait... is it Observation Haki?!
The belated Crocodile was startled, almost fainting from anger just now.
Damn it, this is only the first half, why would he encounter someone who can use Haki?!
Especially since Reno was from the East Blue, it was simply inconceivable.
"So what if you can use Observation Haki, Reno, don't be too arrogant!!!"
"Crescent Moon Sand Dune!!!"
Crocodile snorted coldly, his figure suddenly disappearing, and reappearing behind Reno.
A sand blade condensed from quicksand directly slashed at Reno's neck.
"Crocodile, you're too slow!!"
Teleport!
Their positions swapped.
Appearing behind Crocodile, Reno threw a punch, boom!!!
Crocodile's face instantly twisted and deformed, his nose bridge was directly broken, and several teeth, mixed with blood, flew out of his mouth.
Crocodile traced an arc in the air before crashing heavily onto the ground again.
His somewhat distorted face once again made intimate contact with the ground.
"I was going to give you a quick death, but you have such a foul mouth, daring to threaten Robin."
"You..."
Crocodile had just uttered a single word when Reno teleported again.
He kicked him in the face once more.
Crocodile spat out a few more bloody teeth, and his entire body was sent flying dozens of meters, only stopping when he crashed into a wall, breaking several thick stone pillars along the way.
Robin watched wide-eyed as Crocodile flew past her.
"This..." Robin covered her face with both hands, completely losing control of her expression.
Was that really Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, who just flew by?!
In front of Reno, why did he look like a mere chick?!
He was passively taking a beating the entire time, utterly powerless to resist.
And what Reno said earlier, it seemed he was teaching Crocodile a lesson because of her, right?!
This bloody scene, why did it feel a little touching?!
"Don't worry, I'll take care of him right away." In a daze, a gentle voice drifted into her ears as Reno walked past her.
Robin nodded subconsciously.
In the corner of the palace, Crocodile, lying on the ground like a dead dog, his vision blurred.
He let out a painful groan.
Reno's punch and kick had almost sent him to meet his great-grandmother.
Bastard!!!
Even when he challenged Whitebeard back then, he had never been this pathetic.
"You possess both Observation Haki and Armament Haki, who exactly are you?!"
Crocodile leaned on a nearby stone pillar, enduring the pain to stand up, glaring menacingly at Reno who was walking towards him.
He recalled that he too had mastered these two types of Haki.
At that time, he encountered Douglas Bullet, a member of the Roger Pirates, and after a great battle, neither of them emerged victorious.
In the same year, inflated with self-confidence, he challenged the great pirate Whitebeard, only to be brought back to his senses by a single slash from Whitebeard.
From then on, he left the New World and came to Alabasta, beginning his plot to seize the ancient weapon pluton.
But in this region, with his Sand-Sand Devil Fruit Ability, he could sweep aside everything.
Over time, he neglected his Haki training.
The current Crocodile could only recognize Observation Haki and Armament Haki, but how to use them, he had long forgotten completely.
After twenty years of peace and quiet, Crocodile never expected to encounter a tough opponent like Reno today.
"What?! You want to go all out?!" Reno looked at Crocodile disdainfully, thinking he had an invincible blood-locking cheat like the main characters?!
"Damn it!!" Crocodile glared at Reno, his eyes bloodshot.
This guy clearly had the ability to defeat him, yet he kept toying with him, humiliating him.
Was it really just because of that threatening remark earlier?!
Just a mere woman; people of their status could have as many as they wanted.
"There's one more thing..." Reno suddenly remembered something and drew out his words, his gaze shifting downwards.
"When you looked for Ivankov back then, was it really for—"
Boom!!!
Before Reno could finish his sentence, adrenaline instantly took over Crocodile's body, and an incomparably fierce aura suddenly erupted from him, no less potent than during his prime.
That killing intent, which almost materialized, instantly changed Robin's expression, who had originally relaxed. She subconsciously hid in the corner.
She didn't know why Crocodile would react so strongly after hearing that sentence.
It was like stepping on a cat's tail.
Crocodile's overreaction immediately piqued Robin's curiosity. Even when his plan of several years failed, she hadn't seen Crocodile lose his composure like this.
Ivankov?! That Okama?!
Robin had already begun to automatically imagine the love-hate relationship between them.
Could it be true?!
Reno mused inwardly.
He even had such a strange fetish.
"Reno!!!"
His deepest secret exposed, Crocodile completely lost his sanity.
He no longer cared about any plans or Pluton.
At this moment, he had only one thought: to eliminate Reno.
"You die! Erosion Cycle!!"
Furious, Crocodile roared and decisively unleashed his ultimate move!
The power of sand activated, and with him as the center, sandstorms rapidly spread in all directions.
As the sandstorms swept through, the ground, walls, and stone pillars—all tangible objects—were instantly assimilated, and the entire grand hall became part of a sand world under this power.
Ivankov was a taboo in Crocodile's heart, a name no one could mention in front of him!
His plan could even fail, but that matter absolutely could not be known by anyone.
Anyone who knew that secret had to die!!!
"Desert Spada!!!"
Crocodile swung his gold hook, and the flowing sand on the ground seemed to come alive, rapidly moving.
The moment it approached Reno, an enormous sand blade suddenly swept out, slashing towards Reno's head.
The Desert Spada not only possessed the sharpness of a blade but could also drain the water from a person's body, turning them into a mummy.
"So, you're getting angry out of shame?! It seems the rumors are true." Reno chuckled as he blocked Crocodile's attack.
Knowing the truth, he could no longer look at Crocodile directly.
A chill ran down his spine.
Wasn't the original configuration good enough?!
He just had to do something flashy.
"Reno, shut up!!"
"Desert Grande Espada!!"
Crocodile's right arm suddenly plunged into the quicksand, becoming one with it.
At the same time, Reno's Observation Haki within him suddenly warned him.
Teleport!
The moment Reno's figure vanished, a giant quicksand sword suddenly struck, slashing at the spot where he had just been.
The slash missed, and the giant sword disintegrated, merging back with the quicksand.
"Crocodile, it seems you've gotten used to the good life in Alabasta all these years, truly slacking off on your training."
"If these are all your tricks, then you can die now!!!"
Reno flipped his palm and slowly raised the long sword in his hand.
Seeing Reno's movement, Crocodile's heart sank.
Although she didn't have Observation Haki, she distinctly smelled the scent of death.
Run!!!
Without any hesitation, with a bang, Crocodile's body scattered, completely merging with the quicksand in the palace.
"Trying to run?!"
Reno's gaze sharpened, his Observation Haki firmly locked onto Crocodile, and the long sword in his hand suddenly swung out!
"Hakoku!!!"
Boom!
A gigantic energy shockwave, like a cannonball fired from its barrel, shot out, carrying an irresistible force towards Crocodile.
"No—"
Crocodile's terrified voice echoed in the sand river. The next second, the slash, empowered by Armament Haki, directly struck his main body, splitting him in two.
The quicksand disappeared, and Crocodile's main body reappeared.
Still not completely dead, Crocodile opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to say something, but he lasted less than a second before drawing his last breath.
Inside the palace, it was terrifyingly silent.
"He's dead?!" Robin looked at Crocodile lying in a pool of blood with a stunned expression, feeling a dreamlike unreality.
After all, Crocodile was the strongest person she had encountered, apart from Admiral Akainu and Admiral Aokiji.
After a long pause, Robin finally accepted the fact.
Crocodile was truly dead.
"Captain, you did a really good job." Seeing Crocodile dead, Robin's worries completely vanished, and she finally showed her true self.
"Who told him to bully our Princess Vivi, and Ms. Robin?" As he spoke, Reno's right hand was already possessively wrapped around Robin's slender waist.
Robin was slightly flustered but quickly recovered.
"Captain, you're so—lustful, I'm really worried about my future." Robin spread her hands, her expression helpless; she could already foresee what she was about to face.
She had disguised herself for so many years, protected herself for so many years, and finally managed to keep it until now.
It seemed she would have to say goodbye to that thing in a few days.
"No rush for that. I'll take you to see the poneglyph first." Ignoring Robin's playful glare, Reno led her directly to the deepest part of the palace.
In another battlefield.
Clang!
Clang!
Several sounds of metal clashing echoed through the night sky.
Tashigi's figure, hidden in the shadows, continuously unleashed several slashes.
"Shadow Moon Consecutive Slashes!!"
Tashigi spoke expressionlessly, then sheathed her Wado Ichimonji!
Rip!
Rip!
The next second, Daz Bonez's skin instantly split open, revealing several deep slash marks.
Crimson blood gushed out, staining the ground red.
"You..."
Daz Bones slowly lowered his head, staring in disbelief at the gruesome wound on his chest.
He couldn't understand why the opponent's move could penetrate his steel-hard skin.
But his gradually blurring consciousness no longer allowed him to think too much. With a thud, he collapsed into a pool of blood.
"Phew."
Seeing Daz Bones fall unconscious and lose his combat ability, Tashigi finally let out a long breath.
This was the first opponent she had encountered whose name she could recall.
Defeating Bones still brought a sense of accomplishment.
"Go find Reno." Tashigi happily ran off.
Halfway, as if remembering something, Tashigi returned to her original path.
She had forgotten to finish him off.
One must never be soft-hearted towards enemies!
Meanwhile, in the palace garden.
With a crash, the pavilion collapsed, and Miss. Doublefinger was directly buried under the rubble.
"Miss. Doublefinger, you are no longer my match, so why struggle in vain?!"
"Someone like Crocodile is not worth us risking our lives for."
Miss.Mikita strolled over casually and pulled Miss. Doublefinger out of the rubble.
"Cough, cough, cough... You scoundrel, can't you be a little gentler?!" Miss. Doublefinger spat fiercely at Mikita.
Her spikes were almost broken by her.
"When did your strength become so powerful?!"
Defeated, Miss. Doublefinger had no desire to fight anymore and simply retracted her spikes.
Miss.Mikita, seeing this, proudly raised her head, "Of course, it's because of the Captain. Come on, I'll take you to him."
"The Captain intends to invite you to join the Reno Pirates. You should consider it carefully."
Unlike the previous two battlefields, Nami was now standing with her hands on her hips, stomping her feet in anger.
"Hey, you two... no, you three! Can you get up and fight me for a bit longer?!"
No one responded.
Mr.4 Daz, his partner Miss.Mikita, and the dachshund were all lying on the ground, unconscious.
Black smoke continuously drifted from the two people and one dog; they had been electrocuted into numbness.
Nami, possessing the Weather-Weather Fruit Ability and Three Types of Haki, was simply a dimensionality reduction strike against them.
"How boring," Nami pouted, turning to leave with a lack of interest.
Inside the palace.
Reno led Robin into a secret room deep within the palace.
While Robin was curious as to why Reno knew about this place, she also felt a sense of anticipation.
As a survivor who inherited the will of countless scholars and her mother from Ohara, Robin had harbored an unchanging dream since childhood: to decipher true history and uncover the truth of the "Void Century."
Reno held Robin's hand, clearly feeling her excitement at this moment.
"Go take a look." Reno gave Robin a look, then released her hand.
Reno knew that Robin was destined to be disappointed.
Because the content recorded on this poneglyph was not what Robin was looking for.
It indeed recorded the location of the ancient weapon pluton, but it was not in Alabasta; it was in Wano Country.
Robin took delicate steps towards the poneglyph before her, touching the words inscribed on it countless years ago.
At this moment, she seemed to resonate with those who came before her; these words seemed to be waiting for her arrival, waiting for her to decipher them.
Reno stood aside, waiting quietly.
After Robin read the content on the poneglyph, a trace of disappointment and sadness flashed in her eyes.
Reno had indeed not lied to her; it truly recorded the location of the ancient weapon pluton, something Crocodile had plotted for years.
But to her, it held no value.
"Don't worry, I know where there are other poneglyphs, and I'll take you to find them in the future." Amidst her disappointment, a warm hand rested on her shoulder. Robin looked up at Reno beside her.
"Captain, why do you always know exactly when to comfort a girl?!"
"That sentence of yours just now, it really moved me, you know?!"
At this moment, the pouting Robin was like a ripe peach.
Reno pulled Robin closer, met her gaze, and said word by word, "Robin, I once told you that no one is ever alone on this vast sea."
"Your dream, I share it too!"
It was that sentence again!
Robin's brain instantly crashed, a blank slate.
After a while, she smiled and looked at Reno: "Captain, don't move me anymore, I'll really cry."
With that, she actively took Reno's hand and turned to walk out of the secret room.
As the two reached the entrance, the darkness had just receded, and the first ray of morning sunlight shone upon Reno and Robin, warming both of them.
Feeling the warmth of his body, Robin was momentarily lost in thought, instinctively leaning on Reno's shoulder, deeply imprinting this scene.
"Reno, my opponent was too weak!"
"Reno, I defeated Daz!"
"Captain, Miss. Doublefinger has agreed to join the Reno Pirates!"
Nami, Tashigi, and Mikita ran towards Reno from different directions, wearing the smiles of victors.
Of course, there was also the dejected Miss. Doublefinger, held by Mikita.
"Robin, do you see? You'll be just like them in the future." Reno nodded to the girls while softly speaking to Robin beside him.
Robin looked at the three girls running in the gentle sunlight, a bright smile appearing on her face, a smile she hadn't shown in over twenty years.
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