The Desperate Straw Hat Crew

"Saint Sumer!"

The moment Rob Lucci, Califa, and Sumer appeared, Kaku and Jabra, who had been fighting fiercely, immediately pulled away from Luffy and Zoro. Then they turned toward Sumer and dropped to one knee.

Bruno, Kumadori, and Fukurou, who had surrounded Nami and the others, did the same.

"That guy is a Celestial Dragon?"

Nami immediately locked onto Sumer in Califa's arms.

She had thought he would have three heads and six arms, but he looked perfectly ordinary, nowhere near as terrifying as Robin had described.

Atop the embankment.

Sumer looked down from above, his black eyes filled with scrutiny.

The hotheaded Monkey D. Luffy, the tough three-sword-style Roronoa Zoro, the lecherous simp Sanji, the lucky Usopp, emergency food Chopper, the female dinosaur Nami, and the mature beauty Nico Robin—

They were all here.

The Straw Hat crew was still very green at this point, both in temperament and age.

Only Nico Robin looked especially beautiful and mature, her age and curvaceous figure setting her apart.

Nami, on the other hand, was just an underage girl brimming with youthful energy.

She seemed to have only just turned eighteen.

"Take them down!"

Sumer had no intention of leaving Califa's soft, fragrant embrace. He merely waved a hand lightly and gave the order.

Whoosh!!!

Rob Lucci vanished in an instant. At the same time, Kaku and the others rose from the ground and fixed their eyes on their respective opponents again.

"Watch out."

Sanji took a sharp drag from his cigarette. Seeing Rob Lucci flicker through the air, leaving behind afterimages, he immediately shielded Nami, Usopp, Chopper, and Robin behind him.

In a blur.

Rob Lucci appeared in front of Sanji. His speed made Sanji feel as though he faced a formidable enemy, and Sanji immediately launched an attack.

"Sliced Meat."

Sanji leaped up and kicked at Rob Lucci's forehead, but the blow that should have landed was easily evaded.

Splat~

The sound of something sharp piercing flesh rang out. Before Sanji could land, Rob Lucci flickered like a ghost, his index finger effortlessly piercing Sanji's body.

Blood sprayed from Sanji's mouth. He let out a muffled groan, his face turning pale on the spot.

"Weak."

A trace of disdain flashed across Rob Lucci's cold face. He twisted around and delivered a heavy back kick to Sanji's bloodied chest.

The sound of bones breaking rang out. Sanji shot away like a cannonball, crashing into the embankment and making the entire structure seem to jolt.

"Sanji!"

Nami, Robin, Usopp, and Chopper's hairs stood on end as they stared wide-eyed at Sanji, embedded in the embankment with blood all over his face. They were both shocked and terrified.

"Argh—"

A scream shot into the air.

Usopp doubled over and spat out a mouthful of blood. Rob Lucci did not waste any time and simply pierced him.

"Usopp!"

"Twenty Fleur."

"Mist Tempo."

"Arm Point."

In the blink of an eye.

Robin, Nami, and Chopper all attacked, their determination to protect their companions overpowering their fear.

But it was useless.

The gap between them was simply too vast. Rob Lucci was utterly crushing them.

Not to mention Kumadori and Fukurou were nearby as well.

Before the three could even unleash their attacks, Nami and Chopper screamed as their bodies suffered heavy blows. Blood burst from their mouths and noses as they were sent flying.

Kumadori and Fukurou now stood where they had been moments before.

"Nami, Chopper—"

"Devil Child Nico Robin, futile resistance is useless."

Rob Lucci stood where he was and entered Iron Body mode, merely glancing at Nico Robin as she crossed her hands and activated her Flower-Flower Fruit power.

Numerous hands appeared on his body, attempting to bend him in half.

"How could this be..."

Cold sweat covered Nico Robin's face. No matter how hard she tried, she could not bend his body in half.

His body was like a thick steel plate.

"Finger Pistol: Pull."

Suddenly.

Rob Lucci released Iron Body mode and flicked his bent finger. A bullet-like air projectile shot straight at Nico Robin's face.

The distance was too short. Even though Nico Robin dodged as much as she could, her shoulder was still struck, spraying blood.

Before Nico Robin could catch her breath, Rob Lucci appeared in front of her again with teleportation-like speed.

One punch.

With only a light punch to Nico Robin's abdomen, she bent over like a shrimp, clutching her stomach as she fell to her knees.

Having succeeded with one blow, Rob Lucci ignored her. He had complete confidence in his strength. In the blink of an eye, he vanished from the spot and charged toward Luffy and Zoro, who were fighting Kaku and Jabra.

Behind him.

Pain twisted Nico Robin's beautiful face, and blood uncontrollably spilled from her mouth and nose.

She felt as if her entire body had fallen apart.

"As expected of Brother Enjoyment!"

Atop the embankment.

Sumer could not see at all how Rob Lucci moved. He only saw him take down Sanji, Usopp, and Robin in two or three moves.

The Straw Hat crew was still far too inexperienced at this stage.

Especially since they had yet to undergo the trials of Sky Island.

"Sanji, Nami, Usopp, Chopper, Robin, get out of my way!!!"

In the open area.

Luffy was frantic. Again and again, he tried to break through Jabra's blockade, but each time he was forced back.

He could only watch helplessly as the five of them were heavily injured by Rob Lucci.

"All right! I'll let you go."

Jabra, still in his hybrid form, had a crafty glint in his eyes. He stepped aside, signaling for Luffy to hurry and save his companions.

Luffy froze. Seeing Jabra truly move aside, he rushed forward without a second thought.

But just as they passed each other, Jabra, who had been wearing an innocent expression, suddenly became vicious and feral.

"There's an opening."

"Iron Body: Wolf Fang."

Jabra's right claw gleamed with cold light as it shot toward Luffy's back like lightning. Luffy had focused all his attention on Robin and the others and had never expected Jabra to deceive him.

Little did he know.

Jabra was best at using despicable schemes to deceive his opponents.

In the past, he had relied on cunning and deception to kill opponent after opponent and complete mission after mission.

"Argh~"

The sharp wolf claws slammed heavily into Luffy's back. Blood sprayed as Luffy cried out in pain and flew away, rolling across the ground and kicking up clouds of dust.

Jabra knew well the principle of finishing someone while they were down.

He gave Luffy no chance to catch his breath, quickly charging into the dust. In the next instant, Luffy flew out of it again.

"Straw Hat Monkey D. Luffy, the man who defeated Seven Warlord of the Sea Crocodile."

A cold voice came from behind him. Before Luffy could land, Rob Lucci appeared.

He straightened his index finger, which was wrapped in the Armament Haki he had only just begun to master, and mercilessly thrust it at Luffy.

Luffy did not dodge Rob Lucci's attack.

Because he could not.

But he could not simply take the blow either. Enduring the pain, he suddenly stretched his right arm backward, then twisted it until it was coiled like a rope.

"Pistol: Yellow Lotus."

"Gum-Gum Spinning Bullet!"

Scalding blood sprayed from Luffy's chest like a fountain, and he could not help letting out a miserable scream.

Rob Lucci's sharp finger had pierced deeply into Luffy's body, even creating a shockwave behind him.

At the same time.

Luffy's spinning bullet also shot toward Rob Lucci's face. Yet Rob Lucci had no intention of dodging the attack.

He directly entered Iron Body mode, even coating himself in Armament Haki.

—Boom!

The spinning bullet struck Rob Lucci squarely in the face, but apart from a faint trail of smoke rising, it could not even force him back a single step.

"Cough, cough, cough—"

Luffy clutched his bloody chest with one hand and knelt on the ground, gasping for breath. His face was pale as paper.

"Did you really defeat Crocodile?"

Rob Lucci's upper body, which had been bent backward, straightened. He looked down at Luffy, who was constantly coughing up blood, his cold face full of doubt.

With this level of strength, he had defeated one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea?

If he remembered correctly.

Crocodile seemed to be the user of the Logia-type Sand-Sand Fruit. Judging by Straw Hat's condition, he clearly did not even possess Haki.

So how had this guy defeated Crocodile?