Toying with Crocodile

Inside the Royal Tomb, before the Poneglyph.

"Everything recorded here is Alabasta's history. There's nothing about Pluton."

Robin looked Crocodile straight in the eye and spoke calmly.

"Say that again!"

Crocodile glared at Robin, his face dark as he asked.

He could not read the Poneglyph.

But he knew the Poneglyph had been carved before Alabasta existed. How could it possibly record Alabasta's history?

She was treating him like an idiot!

If Robin had not been the only one who could read the Poneglyph, he would have drawn his blade and cut her down already.

"I said there is no information here about Pluton's whereabouts."

Robin did not change her expression as she hit him right where it hurt.

Of course, she was lying. It clearly stated that Pluton was hidden in Wano Country.

But she did not want a weapon like that to fall into the hands of someone as vicious as Crocodile, so she lied.

Looking at Crocodile's furious face, Robin suddenly felt a flicker of pleasure.

"Good. Very good. Neither of you has any respect for me!"

Crocodile was practically choking with rage, breathing heavily.

His painstaking five-year plan to steal the country, along with the Baroque Works he had worked so hard to build, had been completely ruined by Luo Wen.

Now that he had finally gotten close to a clue about Pluton, the translator he had worked with for years was playing him too.

Crocodile clenched his fists. He was already on the verge of exploding.

Cobra, standing nearby, was dumbfounded. He had thought Crocodile was about to succeed, but it turned out there was someone even more formidable.

Cobra looked at Robin curiously. She was a good person with a story of her own, too!

"Since it only contains Alabasta's history, you are no longer of any use to me."

Crocodile stared coldly at Robin, his expression grim.

Unfortunately, he did not see even a trace of fear on Robin's face. She remained utterly calm.

A Robin like this would never tell him Pluton's location, even if she knew it.

Now, Robin truly was useless.

Crocodile clenched his fist, ready to grant Robin a quick death.

Seeing Crocodile move, Robin closed her eyes, regret rising in her heart.

What a pity. She still had not found the Poneglyph that recorded the century of blank history, and could not fulfill Ohara's wish.

What a pity. She could not keep living for Saul and her mother's share as well.

"Dereshishishi."

At the final moment of her life, Robin chose to end it with Saul's laugh.

Seeing Robin's strange laughter, Crocodile's teeth ached with anger.

You're looking down on me this much? You're about to die, and you still have to piss me off?

Crocodile threw a swift punch, intending to end Robin's life.

Just as Crocodile's fist was about to smash into Robin's head, a massive sword flew in.

"Boom!"

Carrying tremendous force, the greatsword instantly sent Crocodile flying and introduced him intimately to the wall.

"Looks like I arrived just in time."

Luo Wen entered the Royal Tomb with Vivi in his arms.

"It's Vivi, and Warrior Luo Wen!"

Cobra's eyes lit up, and he was immediately overjoyed.

But why was his daughter in that man's arms? Was that not a little too intimate?

"Father, it's wonderful that you're alive!"

Vivi climbed down from Luo Wen and hurried to Cobra's side, speaking happily.

Robin stared blankly at Luo Wen, feeling a little grateful.

Sure enough, even if she had prepared herself for death, surviving still felt much better.

"What, did you come here to die too?!"

Crocodile rose from beside the wall with a vicious grin.

Luo Wen had ruined his plans again and again, destroying every part of his arrangement.

And now, even when he was trying to kill a traitor, Luo Wen had to interfere. He had reached the limit of his patience.

"No. I just thought you looked too lonely, so I came to send you off to reunite with your subordinates."

Luo Wen looked completely serious, as though he truly were considering Crocodile's feelings.

"..."

Crocodile's face began to twitch, and his vicious grin abruptly turned gloomy.

The next moment, Crocodile could no longer hold back and roared in fury!

"What kind of joke is this?!"

"Do you know who you're facing?!"

"I am one of the Shichibukai, Crocodile!!!"

Crocodile curled his right hand into a claw and viciously slashed at Luo Wen.

Faced with Crocodile's attack, Luo Wen neither dodged nor moved, allowing the strike to land on his body.

Seeing Luo Wen act so arrogantly, Crocodile revealed a cruel smile.

He could already picture Luo Wen being disemboweled.

"Rip!"

Crocodile tore through Luo Wen's clothes, leaving several bloody marks on his body.

"How is that possible?!"

Crocodile looked at Luo Wen in disbelief.

He had struck with all the strength his body could muster in that furious claw.

Back when he had pretended to be a hero in Alabasta, any pirate who came causing trouble would owe him three lives after one swipe of that claw.

Yet when the claw landed on Luo Wen, it had only left bloody marks. It had barely broken the skin.

Was this physique not absurdly powerful?

"You've still got some strength. I acknowledge you."

Feeling the force behind the strike, Luo Wen smiled.

That kind of strength really did warrant a little seriousness.

However, Luo Wen glanced at the not particularly sturdy Royal Tomb and decided to change locations.

If they fought here and it collapsed, he would be fine, but Vivi and the others would probably be done for.

"I don't want to be buried underground. Let's find somewhere more spacious to fight."

"Armament Hardening!"

Luo Wen's right hand suddenly turned pitch-black, and he seized Crocodile's right arm with a backhanded grab.

"Haki?!"

Crocodile's pupils shrank as he sensed trouble.

"Whoosh!"

Taking advantage of Crocodile's shock, Luo Wen dragged him out of the Royal Tomb and into a patch of desert outside the palace.

Before leaving, Luo Wen did not forget to bring his greatsword.

"You actually know Haki?!"

After recovering his senses, Crocodile easily broke free from Luo Wen's grip and stared at him in disbelief.

Back when he had roamed the New World, Haki users were everywhere. If someone did not know a trick or two of Haki, they would be embarrassed to call themselves a New World pirate.

But in the first half of the Grand Line, especially at the Grand Line's first stop, seeing Haki was practically unheard of.

Yet Luo Wen, standing before him, had shattered that understanding.

Not only did Luo Wen know Haki, his Haki was exceptionally powerful.

"What, you don't?"

Luo Wen looked at Crocodile, the corner of his mouth curling upward.

"You...?!"

Crocodile's expression turned ugly.

Of course he knew it, but he was far from proficient. He had only just entered the basics.

After failing to challenge Whitebeard back then, he had retreated to the first half of the Grand Line.

There were no opponents here who required Haki. The Sand-Sand Fruit alone let him run rampant, and after neglecting his training for so long, his Haki naturally had not improved.

Compared to Luo Wen's Haki, his own was not even worth showing.

"Don't get cocky, brat!"

"With my Fruit powers alone, I can kill you a hundred times!"

Being outclassed by his enemy—a newcomer who had only just entered the Grand Line—made Crocodile fly into a rage as he shouted.

A newcomer knowing Haki had indeed caught Crocodile off guard.

But he was not afraid. Back in the New World, he had killed plenty of powerful opponents who knew Haki.

"If you can do it, then by all means, give it a try!"

Luo Wen smiled disdainfully, utterly dismissive of Crocodile's words.