Entrustment

"This is truly unexpected..."

Kakuzu stretched out his hand, and countless tentacles snaked out, piercing directly into Ryokugyu's chest. Ryokugyu groaned and struggled slightly, then fell silent. A moment later, Kakuzu absorbed a beating heart into his body.

Throughout the entire process, Crocodile did not react at all. He simply took out a flattened cigar from his pocket, put it in his mouth, and started smoking.

The Straw Hat Pirates didn't react too much—although the Straw Hat and the others basically don't kill people, it doesn't mean they're really saints. Besides, Devil Fruit abilities are incredibly diverse, Kakuzu's ability just looks a bit cruel; it's not really anything surprising.

"Aaaaaah!? How scary, so scary!"

"Wow!? I'm so scared, I'm so scared!"

Well, not everyone in the Straw Hat Pirates was so calm. For example, the cowardly duo looked at Kakuzu as if he were some kind of demon or monster. They huddled together, trembling with fear.

"Kakuzu Heart Fruit User Heart Fruit- Heart Fruit, which allows him to use the fruit's power through other people's hearts. He can possess the power of up to five hearts!"

Kisame looked at the two trembling cowards and a sinister smile spread across his face:

"Of course, if it were the heart of an animal that had eaten Devil Fruit, it might have some other wonderful uses..."

"So that's how it is, it's not a monster!"

Usopp and Chopper breathed a sigh of relief. It was just the heart of Devil Fruit User, or rather, the heart of an animal that had eaten Devil Fruit...

Relieved, Chopper, who had been grinning foolishly, suddenly realized what was happening, hiccuped, rolled his eyes, and passed out.

With a casual wave of his hand, Crocodile Ryokugyu, whose heart had been removed, withered and dried up to the extreme, turning into a wisp of sand that flew away and disappeared.

"What... what exactly is going on?"

Princess Vivi's face was a little pale, but she still couldn't help but ask. She really couldn't figure out Crocodile in front of her. The two new ninjas who joined the Straw Hat Pirates seemed to know something as well, but Princess Vivi didn't dare to ask.

She's not one of those optimistic fools Straw Hat Pirates. If she really turns against them, those two ninjas plus a Shichibukai would be no match for the Straw Hat Pirates!

"Don't worry, Princess Vivi, I have no interest in Alabasta as it is now!"

Crocodile spoke coldly, his expression somewhat stiff and even mechanical, which only made him seem more serious.

"Your father is in my hands now, and I can hand him over to you later, but in my opinion, you'd better leave Alabasta as soon as possible!"

"Otherwise, the World Government will not let this go!"

"What? What do you mean?"

Crocodile did not answer Princess Vivi's question. He simply shook his head and said calmly:

"You should ask your father about these things! Perhaps he knows more about them!"

"There must be some dirty dealings between your father and the World Government. Otherwise, do you think a major power like Alabasta would be so easily kicked out of the alliance by the World Government?"

Alabasta ranks among the top 20 or 30 of all World Government Member States, unlike a tiny country like Drum Kingdom. If it weren't for some special reason, the World Government would never have used such an absurd excuse to exclude Alabasta from the Affiliated Nation.

Of course, the World Government also had other plans, which was to support Crocodile, one of the Shichibukai of the Sea, to become the King of Alabasta, and then let Alabasta rejoin the World Government Member States —after all, as long as enough Heavenly Tribute was paid, it would be very simple to rejoin the World Government.

For a large country like Alabasta, the amount of "Heavenly Tribute" it pays each year is astronomical, and the World Government certainly doesn't want to lose that money.

"I understand, I will ask my father."

Princess Vivi took a deep breath, gritted her teeth, nodded, and then asked:

"I wonder where my father is now?"

"He is currently being held captive in the Royal Mausoleum in the capital of Alabasta. Of course, it's more accurate to say he's being protected rather than imprisoned, otherwise he might already be dead."

Crocodile said a couple of words indifferently, then looked at the Straw Hat Pirates and suddenly asked:

"Straw Hat, I don't want to stay in Alabasta anymore. I wonder if I can board your pirate ship?"

"What?! Shichibukai has joined our Straw Hat Pirates?"

"Are you kidding me?! How could something like this be possible? You're still our enemy, you know?!"

"You bastard, you must be up to something! Luffy, don't agree..."

"OK!"

Before Usopp and the other crew members could finish speaking, Luffy had already agreed without hesitation, his face showing a hint of excitement.

Shichibukai! And a Logia Sand-Sand Devil Fruit User at that. Such an interesting person wants to join my pirate crew, so of course I have to agree!

"It's over..."

The doctor who had just regained consciousness from the Emergency Food rolled his eyes and fainted again after hearing these words.

The capital of Alabasta is called Alubarna, and when the Straw Hat Pirates arrived, there was already some chaos there.

After all, Alabasta was expelled from the World Government Member States, which means that even if pirates attack Alabasta, the Navy will not come to protect it. Even if the Navy itself plunders Alabasta, it will only have a bad reputation and will not be condemned at all.

Under these circumstances, it was natural that a large number of pirates would take action against Alabasta. In addition, during this period, Crocodile was busy with the Straw Hat Pirates and Marine Admiral Ryokugyu, and had no time to deal with those small pirates. As a result, many pirates even came directly to Alubarna, ready to plunder.

However, now that the Straw Hat Pirates and Crocodile have arrived, they naturally won't allow these small-time pirates to act recklessly. Crocodile transformed into a sandstorm and rushed into the outer perimeter of the city below.

The pirates who were originally loitering on the outskirts of Alubarna were almost caught in the sandstorm before they could even scream. They were instantly sucked dry and turned into dried corpses. Many pirates were terrified at the sight and shouted:

"Oh no! It's Shichibukai! It's that Crocodile!"

"Don't panic, he's just a Shichibukai! There are so many of us... Ah!!"

"Run! Everyone, run!"

"No, this thing can fly! The sandstorm is too fast... Ugh!"

"Damn it, we can't escape! Everyone, let's fight him! Ugh!"

Kuro, who transforms into a sandstorm, is simply not something that ordinary mortals can withstand. Once caught in a sandstorm, the water in one's body will be continuously drawn out, enough to turn an ordinary person into a dried-up corpse within minutes.

Although it's not like Crocodile's direct attack, which could turn an ordinary person into a dried-up corpse upon contact, the sandstorm is invisible and intangible. Not to mention ordinary people, even powerful individuals with Haki would be unable to retaliate if their Observation Haki was slightly weak.

More importantly, the sandstorm's attack range far exceeded that of Crocodile's main body. Even hundreds or thousands of people could easily be swept into it. The pirates surrounding Alubarna numbered in the thousands, yet they suffered heavy casualties in just five minutes.

At least half of the pirates were drained of their life force and turned into dried corpses. The remaining half were terrified and fled without a trace. However, in this Desert country, their headless escape method made it unlikely that they would return alive. Instead, they were more likely to die in the Desert.

After all, not every pirate is as resilient as the Straw Hat Pirates. Even Usopp, who is known as the weakest, suffered a comminuted fracture of his skull and was able to recover to about 70-80% health with just a bandage.

A moment later, Crocodile transformed into a whirlwind of sand and dust, reforming his form. He glanced at the surrounding desiccated corpses, then merely snorted and spoke:

"Alright, Princess Vivi, let's go inside!"

Princess Vivi nodded and took the lead. When the soldiers guarding Alubarna saw Princess Vivi, they dared not stop her and opened the city gates directly.

Although many pirates came, the vast majority of them didn't even enter Alubarna's city gates, so they didn't have any impact on the city.

As for the old king who was secretly imprisoned by Crocodile, he was replaced by his subordinate, the Mimic Fruit User, and it did not cause much of an impact.

When Princess Vivi saw her elderly father in the royal mausoleum, she noticed that he not only did not look haggard, but actually seemed to have gained some weight.

Although Cobra was imprisoned, Crocodile didn't make things too difficult for him. The entire mausoleum was decorated like a luxury hotel, and he was provided with three meals a day without any shortage of food. In addition, there was no need to worry about the national drought here, so Cobra was actually fattened up and looked much more energetic.

"Father!?"

"Ah!? It's Vivi!"

Princess Vivi threw herself into her father's arms and burst into tears. After a long conversation, the father and daughter calmed down.

After hearing Princess Vivi recount the World Government's decision, Cobra's expression changed slightly, but he didn't show any particular surprise.

After the father and daughter finished their conversation, Cobra seemed to have made a decision and went directly to Crocodile.

"Mr. Crocodile ... or whoever you are, judging from your actions, you shouldn't be a bad person. I have a favor to ask of you."

Crocodile, who had been resting with his eyes closed, opened them, glanced at Cobra, and smiled slightly.

"Is it about Princess Vivi? You want Princess Vivi to join the Straw Hat Pirates?"

Cobra nodded gravely, not surprised that Crocodile had seen through his thoughts, just as he had noticed that something was very wrong with Crocodile. There was nothing between them that they had kept secret.

Crocodile was originally a typical ruthless and domineering character, but after imprisoning himself about half a month ago, he became much stranger and didn't seem like a human being at all.

Furthermore, Cobra himself was replaced by that Mimic Fruit User, which is why he has some speculations about Crocodile's current situation.

As for Crocodile seeing through Cobra's almost entrusting his son to someone else, that's perfectly normal.

Crocodile, or rather those behind him, understood Cobra's character to some extent. Whether it was a pathetic retreat from the throne or a futile attempt to lead the people of Alabasta in rebellion against the World Government, neither was an option.

In this case, maintaining the dignity of the king to the very end, and then finding a way to hand over the throne to a trustworthy person, sacrificing his own life to bring Alabasta back into the ranks of the World Government Member States, is his only option.

As a result, the only person he could care about was his daughter. Although Princess Vivi had impulsively gone to Baroque Works to infiltrate and then messed up the intelligence work, she wasn't particularly capable, but she inherited the family's consistent temperament.

If she had stayed in Alabasta, she would probably have had to do the same things as Cobra naturally didn't want his daughter to die with him.

"You can just tell Straw Hat about this. He has a very good temper. As long as you like him or make a request, Straw Hat is happy to accept it."

Crocodile spoke calmly, saying that even a Shichibukai like himself, who was not exactly a good person in the past, could easily join the Straw Hat Pirates. If Princess Vivi wanted to join the Straw Hat Pirates, it would naturally be even easier.

Moreover, given the Straw Hat Pirates' personal charm and Princess Vivi's affinity with them, it's unlikely that Princess Vivi herself would have any objections.

In the original story, if it weren't for her concern for Alabasta, Princess Vivi would definitely have joined the Straw Hat Crew. Now, with her father pushing her, it's naturally not a difficult task.

"Of course I know the Straw Hat wouldn't refuse my daughter, my daughter is the best!"

A smug look appeared on Cobra's face. Crocodile thought to himself, "With that expression, anyone who didn't know better would think you were giving away your daughter in marriage!"

However, a wry smile then appeared on Cobra's face:

"But the Straw Hat's personality means that his journey will not be peaceful. I just hope that my daughter can grow up safely, so of course I have to entrust her to someone more stable."

"Is that so, sir from the Umbrella Corporation?"