Gear Second!

Meanwhile, on Polka Street in the capital city, strange screams and curses echoed through the empty streets.

"Behold my Okama Kenpo: Explosive Swan Dance!"

"How can a swan head be worn on your feet?! You pervert!"

Bang!

Bang!

"Well, what do you think? A kick with the power to rival a rifle—that's the charm of an Okama."

Bon Clay wore a blue striped spherical skirt on his lower body and a pink cape. His playful expression seemed even more exaggerated on his heavily made-up face.

At this moment, he took off the swan decoration from his back and attached it to his feet. Combining the swan's flexible neck with its steel-like beak, all the destructive power was concentrated into a single point.

Though Sanji felt the other party was spouting nonsense, he couldn't help but be secretly shocked watching the smooth, round holes punched through the wall, from which a wisp of smoke still rose.

"You've got some tricks up your sleeve, don't you?"

The two had been fighting for a while, and the opponent's difficulty had exceeded his imagination.

Sanji's expression turned serious. He rubbed his black leather shoe on the ground to extinguish his cigarette butt, then charged towards Bon Clay.

"But if you think that's enough to take my life, you're a hundred years too early!"

Sanji lunged forward with a whip kick. When the opponent parried with the same move, he used the force to twist his body, immediately following up with a spinning flying kick.

Bon Clay crossed his arms, barely managing to block, but unexpectedly, Sanji hooked his foot, directly using Bon Clay's arms as a leverage point to push himself up, raising his other leg. The black leather shoe appeared before Bon Clay's eyes in a flash.

"Neck Meat Kick!"

Bang!

Bang!

His foot imprinted on Bon Clay's face, pushing the flesh of his cheek to one side. The next moment, Bon Clay flew sideways rapidly, crashing heavily against the wall and sliding down like soft mud.

"Cough, cough!"

Squatting on the ground, Bon Clay raised a hand to wipe a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth. His eyes fixed on Sanji, who was closing in. He quickly got up, stepping into a ballet leap into the air.

His feet, now adorned with swan heads, contracted, gathering power. The next moment, he rapidly swung his legs, attacking Sanji.

The sharp swan beaks poured down like a sudden rain of bullets.

"Explosive Swan Serenade!"

"Spinning Full Goose Feast!"

Sanji placed his hands on the ground, constantly spinning his body. His two long black legs repeatedly kicked out, retracted, and kicked out again at the swan heads.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Dull and rapid thuds echoed as both their legs swung, creating blurs, fiercely colliding in mid-air.

Soon, with a loud crack, a fissure appeared on the swan head on Bon Clay's foot, followed by its collapse, as if it could no longer bear the strain.

The curved swan neck instantly burst into countless shattered pieces, scattering. In Bon Clay's astonished eyes, a black leather shoe came into view.

"Spicy Braised Goose Head!"

Amidst Sanji's roar, a fierce whip kick struck Bon Clay's face, sending him slamming to the ground before he quickly bounced back up.

Then, Sanji leaped into the air, his legs continuously swinging, creating blurs, striking various parts of Bon Clay's body. His feet dug hard into Bon Clay's form, as if two wooden mallets were furiously pounding ground meat.

"Five-Spice Goose Wings!"

"Braised Goose Body in Sauce!"

"Poached Goose Leg Meat!"

The relentless assault, like a sudden downpour, made it impossible for Bon Clay to parry. With each successive impact, he reeled back, his arms, body, and thighs rapidly becoming bruised and swollen.

"And finally, Stir-fried Goose Butt!"

With a final roar, Sanji, still airborne, twisted his body, head down, hands on the ground, bending his two black legs. He unleashed all his strength, suddenly thrusting upward, heavily kicking the other person's backside.

"Wait, wait, not there!"

Bon Clay panicked, seeing the black legs aimed squarely at his backside. The exaggerated makeup on his face twisted and squeezed together.

"My darling's butt!"

Leaving behind a sharp wail, the next moment, Bon Clay flew out like an arrow from a bow, transforming into a shining cross in the sky in the blink of an eye.

Click!

A flame flickered from the lighter, dancing in front of Sanji's black suit, slowly lighting the cigarette in his mouth.

"You pervert, how could an Okama ever compare to a real woman?"

He turned his gaze towards the magnificent building in the distance, brushed the dust from his clothes, and strode towards the palace.

***

Meanwhile, in the underground crypt beneath the Burial Temple, west of the palace.

Several rays of sunlight pierced through the broken ceiling, illuminating the ancient, mysterious frescoes and brightening the dim crypt.

Luffy gritted his teeth, focused on the endless stream of crocodile-shaped sand that kept surging forward, constantly dodging and weaving, his fists flying so fast they seemed to smoke.

In contrast, Blue Ogre and Red Ogre effortlessly wielded their greatswords and round shields, parrying, slashing, and stabbing. With each casual strike, they shattered the attacking crocodiles, making it look incredibly easy.

But Crocodile's attacks came one after another; as soon as one was neutralized, another immediately followed.

Reiner had initially held them back from unleashing their full power, planning to rely on the boost from their animal forms to fight a war of attrition against Old Sand.

That approach would have been safer, but looking at the current situation, there was no sign of the opponent's stamina depleting. Reiner couldn't help but frown.

If this continued, his stamina might not outlast the opponent's, because if Blue Ogre and Red Ogre used Haki, his physical energy would deplete very quickly, not to mention he still needed to save Haki Nation as a trump card.

Having made up his mind, Reiner simply thought, and Blue Ogre and Red Ogre crouched down, then pushed off with a sudden burst of power. The ground cracked like a spiderweb spreading outwards with a bang, and the two shot forward.

Flinging their round shields to shatter the incoming attacks into scattered sand, Blue Ogre and Red Ogre, flying forward one on each side, activated their Armament Haki. A glossy, jet-black coating covered the greatswords in their hands.

"So fast!"

Crocodile was startled. The sand wall he had just raised was not yet fully formed when his opponents leaped over it, reaching him in a flash.

Seeing the two greatswords about to strike with a rapid chop and a parry, Crocodile instantly elementalized his body, the sand scattering outwards, creating gaps in the parts about to be struck.

At the same time, he raised his hands, conjuring small whirlwinds, and unleashed them at Blue Ogre and Red Ogre.

"Small Sandstorm!"

The fact that they could use Armament Haki meant that elementalization couldn't directly withstand the attack, but it didn't mean he couldn't dodge.

However, Blue Ogre and Red Ogre had more than just Armament Haki; their Observation Haki had already predicted Old Sand's movements.

Ignoring the opponent's attack, letting the incoming Small Sandstorm hit and cut through their bodies, they twisted their wrists, turning their greatswords, and fiercely struck the elementalized Crocodile.

Pffft! Pffft!

BANG! Crocodile was sent flying, crashing heavily to the ground and rolling several times. Two significant gashes were clearly visible on his body.

"Cough, cough!"

Old Sand gritted his teeth, squatted up, and coughed up a mouthful of blood. He glared ferociously ahead. Taking advantage of the moment the sandstorm halted his opponents' movements, he raised his large hand.

"Desert Sword!" A massive sand blade erupted from the sandy ground beneath Blue Ogre and Red Ogre's feet, slicing at their waists.

It actually cut a deep gash!

Isn't that the same slash that hit Akainu during the Marineford War?! Don't tell me we're really going to lose.

Reiner's heart pounded with fear. The next moment, he began to activate his ability, repairing the wounds on Blue Ogre and Red Ogre's waists.

"I'm going to use that move, Reiner!"

Suddenly, a loud shout rang out from the field. Reiner reacted, turning his head sharply, only to see Luffy with his legs spread, half-crouched, one hand on his knee, the other clenched into a fist, propped on the ground.

"Wait, Luffy! Gear Second is too risky—"

"Don't say anything, Reiner!"

Luffy yelled, cutting Reiner off. Maintaining his Gear Second stance, he stared intently at Crocodile, his eyes resolute.

"This Crocodile is strong! Even you aren't sure you can win, are you?

"If we lose, we'll have nothing!"

Currently, Gear Second had side effects. After using it, one would be completely exhausted and unable to fight back. Frequent use could even shorten one's lifespan.

"I understand."

Hearing this, Reiner stopped trying to dissuade him. He truly wasn't confident. Even his two strongest Undead had taken a hit from the opponent.

Crocodile's strength completely surpassed his imagination. In the original story, Luffy only barely defeated him after two losses. This time, there wouldn't be so many opportunities.

The power system in One Piece was hard to describe; the gap between the early and late stages was too vast.

In this book, Crocodile's strength two years ago was positioned as slightly stronger than a top Vice Admiral, otherwise the title of Seven Warlords of the Sea would be too weak.

But a 1.9 billion bounty wouldn't be given to him, otherwise, no one would be able to fight him, no matter what.