"Pfft!"
In the suffocating silence, Crocodile glanced at Shanks and suddenly let out an ear-piercing snort of laughter.
That laugh was filled with undisguised mockery.
"Spineless coward!"
The next second, Crocodile bit through the cigar in his mouth. His black coat suddenly flapped violently in the windless forest as his figure moved in an instant.
Yellow sand rose from the ground, and the once lush grass and trees around them were instantly drained of moisture in a fraction of a second, withering, cracking, and turning to powder.
"Desert King Kong Blade!!!"
Along with a hoarse, wild roar, four enormous sand blades condensed from sand under extreme pressure formed in Crocodile's hands.
The four giant blades, each as large as a door, tore through the air with terrifying force that threatened to split everything in two, slashing mercilessly toward Ross and the two women beside him!
Shanks did not dare draw his sword, but Crocodile did!
He had once lost to Whitebeard and had once been driven from the sky into the ground by Shirahoshi's single strike. Each time, he had come within a hair's breadth of death, but never once had he lowered his proud head.
If he had to be like Shanks, watching the woman he loved being held in an enemy's arms and groveling just to survive, then he would rather die fighting here.
Crocodile had refused to join the World Government because he was unwilling to compromise this wretched life of his.
If, in the end, he still had to tuck his tail between his legs like a dog before a powerful enemy, then what had been the point of refusing their offer of amnesty?
"I don't have as much baggage as you people! Die!!"
The wild sand blotted out the sky, and the edge of the