Crocodile

"I don't know," Rono replied bluntly.

"..." I must be cursed to agree to this, Sairona thought.

"In any case, let's take care of that annoying sniper first," Rono changed the subject.

"Do you have a plan?" Sairona didn't hold out much hope for Rono. This sniper was more troublesome than Deng, too seasoned. He hadn't targeted Sairona during Rono's fight, but waited until Sairona was completely relaxed. If not for Rono's half-baked Observation Haki, Sairona would have already returned to town for a free hot spring bath.

"It's simple, you just tell me his location," Rono flashed a brilliant smile.

"I do know that. When he fired, he was on the second highest rooftop, the red one, in the southeast," Sairona frowned. "Given how seasoned the opponent is, he should have already moved. At least changed his position."

"Huh? By the way, how did you know the second highest building was the red one?" Rono asked, genuinely curious.

"Is that what you're focusing on, you idiot!" Sairona sarcastically retorted with a calm expression. But he still answered Rono's question, "I saw it on the way up. To be precise, I remember everywhere I passed."

"..." Looking at Sairona calmly stating something so perverse, Rono felt he should drink more brain-boosting supplements. Yeah~ nowadays, Six Walnuts are all the rage.

"So what do we do next, Rono?"

"Call me Captain!" Rono corrected him seriously. "Of course, we charge straight ahead!"

Without waiting for Sairona to reply, he stepped out of cover. BANG! Rono dodged sideways as if he had known it was coming.

"North!" Sairona shouted.

Rono's leg muscles bulged, his skin peeled away, BANG-- Rono vanished from his original spot, leaving behind only a smoking crater.

Using the walls for leverage, Rono moved at incredible speed, quickly reaching the sniper's vicinity. The sniper stopped running, holding his gun with both hands, his expressionless face saying, "If the intel hadn't been wrong, my plan wouldn't have failed."

"You're right, Captain Haddaway. If I hadn't held something back, I might have been toyed to death by you already," Rono's usual cheerfulness was gone. Although it was highly likely the sniper was Haddaway, seeing him in person still brought a sense of loss to Rono.

Haddaway leaped backward violently. BANG BANG BANG-- Three shots fired in rapid succession. Rono couldn't dodge them all. Even with Observation Haki, his body couldn't react in time.

Rono dodged the bullet aimed at his head and the one aimed at his chest, but his lower leg was hit. A hole pierced through Rono's left calf, making him lose his balance and fall to the left. BANG BANG BANG-- Three more shots came, targeting Rono's chest, head, and arm.

Rono's pupils dilated. Berserker Mode was finally activated. Rono twisted his body in a posture that completely defied the laws of physics. CRACK, his left leg bone, unable to bear the strain, snapped into two pieces. Bone fragments pierced Rono's muscles, yet his expression remained unchanged. His right arm muscles bulged, his skin gradually disappeared, and bone spurs retracted throughout his body. SLASH! This was the sound of bone piercing Rono's palm. THWACK! This was the sound of it piercing Haddaway's body. Rono stood on one leg, his body sideways. Below his right forearm, there was no flesh and blood, only a massive, bone-white spike extending forward. Its tip was embedded in Haddaway's back. Rono flashed a bloodthirsty smile. With a thought, the bone spike within Haddaway swelled like a startled pufferfish, forming a spiky ball, then rotated. If Rono didn't have his monstrous regenerative ability, Haddaway would have certainly died. Even the most skilled doctor couldn't help, as Haddaway's internal organs were completely shredded.

"Aaaah!!" Haddaway spat blood, mixed with fragments of internal organs. The sniper rifle slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground. His breathing gradually ceased. Haddaway, deceased.

"!" Rono pushed off his right leg, leaping away from his previous position. A blast of yellow sand impacted where Rono had just been standing.

Rono grabbed his left leg and pulled, forcibly correcting its position. The power of Super Regeneration healed it at a visible speed.

The bone spike on his right hand retracted, and his forearm began to grow back. Rono was now at his weakest moment.

The yellow sand coalesced into a human form. A pair of reflective black leather shoes stepped onto the floor. He wore a yellow checkered suit, brown trousers, and a grey-green coat. His hair was styled in a pompadour. In his left hand was a golden hook, a cigar was clenched in his mouth, and a stitched scar ran across his face over the bridge of his nose. Crocodile!

Crocodile glanced at the deceased Haddaway, then ignored him. "Brat, I have to admit, your combat talent is indeed high. If you can grow, the pirates in this sea area will be in trouble."

"..." Rono didn't reply. At this point, he had to seize every second to recover from his injuries and stamina.

"Oh my, your injuries are recovering so quickly~" Crocodile once again turned into yellow sand and lunged at Rono.

Rono's calf bones had already been reconnected. With a clumsy roll, he dodged Crocodile's attack.

It had to be said, Crocodile was already crippled. Ever since he was defeated by Whitebeard, he had only pursued Devil Fruit Abilities, basically neglecting physical training, and his Haki cultivation was even worse. To be defeated by Luffy, who had just entered the Grand Line, although with protagonist halo buffs, if his physical skills were stronger, or even if his Observation Haki was still maintained, Luffy probably wouldn't have been able to touch him.

From the moment Crocodile spoke, Rono had already called for help.

"System! Come out and help!" Rono's voice was calm, yet held an undeniable authority.

"Beep, due to necessity, the system will temporarily activate Haki reinforcement."

"Reinforce Armament Haki completely." Rono had accumulated some reinforcement points on the ship, and with the development of the recent events, Rono's reinforcement points reached a total of 37.

"Beep, please wait... Reinforcement complete. Host's current Observation Haki is level 0, Armament Haki is level 3. Remaining reinforcement points: 7." The system's electronic sound rang out.

"Tsk, ten reinforcement points to raise only one level? I don't know if it's enough."

There was no time to think further, Crocodile's attack arrived again. This time it was his right hand. Although Rono didn't know why he wasn't using the more damaging hook, his Berserker instincts screamed at him to dodge, danger. Just as Rono was about to dodge, suddenly, Rono's eyes turned red. "Roar~~" Armament Haki covered his intact left hand, and he clashed with Crocodile.

Crocodile clearly didn't expect Rono to have Armament Haki. Caught off guard, he was hit and took two steps back to steady himself.

"It's not over yet!" A bone whip coated with Armament Haki lashed out at Crocodile.

He turned to sand. Crocodile was left with only his head in human form, the rest of his body turning into yellow sand to evade Rono's attack.