A visible vortex of low pressure swirled through the room. Yellow sand danced restlessly through the air, dyeing the bright sunlight streaming in through the window a murky yellow with almost no visibility.
Like Crocodile's utterly unpleasant, gloomy scarred face, this suffocating atmosphere had persisted for an entire day since the negotiations had ended on bad terms.
At the sight of this hazy veil of yellow sand, few dared disturb the Shichibukai during his solitude.
Yet someone still cluelessly knocked on the office door.
"Lord Crocodile!"
"Another pirate ship has appeared at the docks!"
In Rainbase, pirates had already become a rare breed.
Because as long as those unlucky pirates wandered into Crocodile's territory, he would inevitably use them as props to put on a show before the people of Rainbase.
Their already inglorious lives would ultimately become mere embellishments to Crocodile's false title as the "Hero of Alabasta."
Thus, fewer and fewer pirates dared come to Rainbase. Crocodile often found himself short on material for his performances, forcing him to have his subordinates constantly watch the docks.
The moment pirates were spotted, Crocodile would tirelessly rush before the public and put on a grand show of "eliminating evil and protecting the people."
But that had been before.
After hearing his subordinate's report, Crocodile did not even feel like getting up. With a distant wave of his hand, he used a whip formed from sand to twist open the locked office door.
As soon as the door opened, the subordinate who had come to report saw Crocodile's dark expression and heard his harsh rebuke.
"From now on, you don't need to report this kind of thing to me anymore!"
Crocodile no longer had much interest in playing the hero.
As long as Garen held that earth-shattering leverage over him, he