Instinctive Fear

Hoo... hoo...

The sea breeze blew across the small boat, but only one figure remained.

Crocodile, draped in his fur coat, took out a cigar, lit it, and took a slow puff.

He looked around; Aiven Lindsey was long gone, leaving behind only traces of Ancient Armament Haki that swayed in the wind like seaweed.

"Hoo..."

Savoring the taste of the cigar, he slowly exhaled a cloud of white smoke.

"What a guy who loves to join in the fun!"

After the attack broke out, "someone" from the Donquixote Family had boarded the deserted island and headed straight for the tent where the two kings were meeting.

Lindsey let out a laugh, activated his Devil Fruit ability, and then leaped into the air.

Seeing this, Crocodile dispersed the sand around him.

Cobra was his overt friend, and Alabasta was an important base he had painstakingly managed for a long time. It absolutely could not suffer any losses because of this.

But since Aiven Lindsey had already made his move, there was no need for him to rush.

The combat power of that Primitive Man was beyond doubt, so Cobra's safety was guaranteed. Crocodile, on the other hand, could take this opportunity to investigate something he cared more about...

He looked back towards the sea of fire.

"What exactly attacked the outer patrol boats?"

Crocodile took out his binoculars and a Den Den Mushi, observing the distant sea while listening to the internal communications from Alabasta.

"Flames have formed a high wall!"

"Its goal is to surround us, swim inward, quickly!"

"Has the Drum Kingdom gone mad? Are they really planning to start a war?"

"Something's wrong, I think I saw a Drum Island ship being attacked too!"

"..."

"Hmm?"

Crocodile's gaze shifted slightly.

A Drum Island ship was also attacked, which meant the attacker was most likely that "fourth party" who had never shown their face!

"Hehehehe, interesting..."

Crocodile's expression turned grim. He raised the sail of the small boat and headed towards the sea of fire.

"I'd like to see who the hell dared to interfere!"

Deserted Island.

BOOM--

Whoosh...

The large negotiation tent exploded, fabric and iron frames scattering everywhere.

The immense shockwave rippled outwards, sending those inside flying a short distance.

"Whoa!"

Jace and Crocomon of the Drum Kingdom were farthest from the center of the impact, so they were affected the least.

They rolled on the ground a few times, clutching their dazed heads, and managed to stand up.

Looking not far away at Wapol lying on the ground, unconscious, they felt that everything had happened too quickly.

Their "advisor" had suddenly barged into the negotiation tent, knocked out Wapol, and was about to attack Cobra.

Two Alabastan guards stepped forward to intervene, but they couldn't stop the "advisor" at all.

Just as the "advisor" was about to succeed, another dark shadow descended from the sky, smashing the negotiation tent. The intense impact also blew everyone away.

"This... this..."

Jace looked at the scene before him in astonishment, seeing... a monster? confronting the "advisor"...

In short, it was definitely some kind of terrifying unknown creature!

A burly body, thick limbs, red skin and eyes, and a pair of dark green Demon Horns...

"What in the world is going on!!!"

Jace had never seen such a terrifying creature and immediately trembled uncontrollably, his legs too weak to move.

Crocomon beside him was so scared that his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

In contrast, the two Alabastan guards—Bepo and Jaka—though more seriously injured, fared much better.

They both took a direct hit from Vergo, spitting blood and feeling like their bodies had fallen apart, but their movements were not hesitant in the slightest.

Maintaining his half-animal form, he endured with the strong physical constitution of an Zoan-type Devil Fruit user, barely making it to Cobra's side.

"Your Majesty!"

Bepo supported Cobra's body, urgently asking, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

Cobra shook his head and, in turn, supported Bepo. "It's you who are seriously injured..."

"As long as Your Majesty is safe."

Jaka on the other side wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, gripped his sword tightly, and said in a deep voice, "Bepo, you protect His Majesty, I'll go help Lindsey first... Ugh!"

Before he could finish speaking, Jaka clutched his chest and knelt down.

The power of that bamboo staff far exceeded their imaginations; even the bodies of Zoan-type Devil Fruit users struggled to withstand it.

"Damn it!"

Jaka gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand.

But when he looked up and saw Aiven Lindsey's back, he couldn't bring himself to draw his sword and advance.

It was as if his survival instinct was screaming a warning: if he drew his sword and advanced, only certain death awaited him!

That premonition of death wasn't from "hostility," but an inevitability when facing an "unknown behemoth."

"I... what is this..."

Jaka's body trembled.

He was one of Alabasta's recognized guardian deities, having once single-handedly wiped out a pirate stronghold of over ten thousand men.

Even in such desperate, isolated circumstances, Jaka had never felt an ounce of fear, but now he couldn't even move!

Fear consumed his heart, then transformed into a few drops of tears, squeezing from the corners of Jaka's eyes.

"Deep breaths."

Cobra's voice came, gently patting Jaka's shoulder, without any hint of blame.

Fear was natural.

Earlier, on the Nanohana coastline, due to the backlight and the distance, Cobra hadn't recognized him.

Now, he remembered.

Not long ago, that wanted poster that had shocked the world bore the name "Aiven Lindsey," along with that inhuman, bizarre physique!

"[Demon]..."

"Has the [Demon] arrived..."

Looking up at the massive, abnormal body, Vergo twisted his neck, producing a series of crisp cracking sounds.

"What is your goal? [Sand Crocodile]? Alabasta's secret? Or something else..."

WHOOSH!

Before he could finish speaking, a thick fist flew from afar, smashing towards Vergo.

The latter's figure suddenly vanished; he had leaped into the air with extreme speed, dodging the fatal blow.

Rokushiki - Geppo!

Vergo had been undercover in the Navy for many years and had mastered this elite Navy combat technique.

By stomping on the air with powerful leg strength, he could walk in the air as if treading on stairs!

But even using this technique, Vergo could clearly feel that his "dodge" was extremely difficult.

The [Demon]'s movements were too fast!

"Tsk..."

Vergo's brow furrowed, truly feeling the power represented by that 650 million bounty.

Brutal, swift, insane, incomprehensible, and without hesitation!

Facing such a terrifying monster, one wrong step would result only in death!

But how could Vergo just sit and wait for death?

He gripped the bamboo staff in his hand, dark Armament Haki spreading over it, while simultaneously stomping his legs, dodging and weaving in mid-air.

After consecutively dodging several fatal punches, Vergo's expression grew increasingly grim.

Is it just brute strength? Or...

He's underestimating me!

Since the opponent was being careless, Vergo wouldn't let this rare opportunity slip by.

Using the aerial Geppo and the high-speed Soru simultaneously, Vergo instantly appeared behind Lindsey.

He aimed for the back of the opponent's head and brought down his bamboo staff with all his might.

Demon Bamboo!

Bang!

Boom!

A dull thud echoed, the immense force impacting Lindsey's body, causing the ground around him to sink slightly.

This was a solid killing blow!

But before Vergo could breathe a sigh of relief, Lindsey, with his mouth agape, softly uttered a single word—

"Itchy!"

Hearing this, Vergo felt a chill run down his spine.

Just as he tried to retreat, he saw Lindsey slam the ground, and several earth spikes shot up, completely blocking Vergo's escape route.

Emerald scales sprouted along Lindsey's spine, his body elongating. At the same time, he twisted his neck and unleashed a roar at Vergo!

ROAR!

There was no escape!

The perimeter, a sea of fire.

Sandstorm raged!

Crocodile conjured a sandstorm, mixing gravel with the surrounding flames in an attempt to obscure "his" vision.

However, the result was minimal!

A colossal black shadow spread its wings, engulfing Crocodile's small boat, followed by sharp claws.

Swish!

The boat was destroyed, but Crocodile had already leaped into the air, laughing grimly:

"Hehehehe, this is getting more and more interesting!"

He twisted his body, transforming into a vast sandstorm that spread in all directions.

A fierce battle!