I, the Navy Apprentice, Crocodile

"Target spotted."

A young man with slicked-back hair and a cigar between his lips soon appeared in the scope.

He was the target of this mission, Crocodile of the Sand.

"Shall we attack?"

Evens took a deep breath and asked quietly.

Xia Le casually waved a hand, giving the order to engage.

Lately, most of the fighting had been handled by the Apprentice Marines under his command. He usually left them to it, only stepping in when Evens and the others were outmatched.

Understanding his meaning, Evens nodded to Rosinante, Yagyu Hyoe, and the others.

The six immediately moved out, advancing cautiously through the snow.

When they were roughly fifteen hundred meters from the town ahead, Evens waved a hand, and all six immediately took cover.

"At this range, I can hit that guy easily."

Evens adjusted his rifle, quickly centering his scope on the man smoking the cigar.

"He's a Logia user. Will gunfire even work?"

Rosinante asked curiously.

"Who knows? This is my first time seeing a Logia user, let alone fighting one."

Evens's expression was grave.

Soon, he held his breath and trained his sights on the spot between his target's eyebrows.

Holding a pair of binoculars, Yagyu Hyoe surveyed the surroundings. He discovered that the man's pirate crew had occupied the entire town, but the civilians were still safe.

The crew seemed fairly disciplined. Though they had occupied the town, they hadn't harmed the civilians and were actually getting along with the locals. The townspeople even looked relaxed as they went about their business.

"Whew!"

Evens let out a breath, his eyes suddenly sharpening.

The next second, he squeezed the trigger.

Bang!

A muffled gunshot rang out, quickly fading as the snow absorbed the sound.

All the while, he kept his eyes fixed on the slick-haired man in his scope.

Almost immediately, he saw Crocodile's head jerk. A hole appeared in the center of his forehead, and surprise and astonishment filled his eyes.

Then the man slowly turned his head, his gaze instantly locking onto Evens's position.

Grains of sand drifted up from the hole before quickly filling it in. Crocodile's wound healed, leaving him completely unscathed.

The cigar in his mouth still glowed with embers, and a mocking look crossed his face.

"It's the Marines!"

"Kill them!"

Shouts erupted one after another as large numbers of pirates poured out of the town, charging toward them with loud cries.

"Bullets really don't work on him at all."

Looking grim, Evens put away his rifle.

By then, Xia Le had walked up behind him.

"To deal with Logia users, you need special bullets made of seastone, or you have to coat them in Armament Haki."

Evens froze, then gave a bitter smile.

Seastone was among the world's most precious resources, and most of it was controlled by the World Government and the Marines. As for Armament Haki, he was still a long way from mastering it.

"If neither of those options is available to you, there's another way to deal with Crocodile."

"Coat your bullets in seawater or blood."

"Then you can easily kill him with that gun of yours."

Xia Le's next words sent a jolt through Evens, filling him with delight.

So even a Logia user could be killed easily, as long as you found the right method!

"Let's move, Little Penn."

"We're on a tight schedule!"

Calling out, Xia Le strode toward the pirates charging at them.

T Bone, Evens, and the others immediately ran after him.

"These annoying bastards again."

With his cigar between his lips, Crocodile gave an icy smile. His legs had already turned into sand, carrying him swiftly to the front of the pirates.

He couldn't simply ignore someone who had shot at him.

Ever since obtaining the Sand-Sand Fruit, he had encountered virtually no worthy opponents. He had been at the top from the moment he set sail, and Bullet was the only opponent he considered worth his attention.

He also intended to challenge Whitebeard someday, to see just how far he stood below the world's strongest. If he could kill him, he would become a new legend himself.

As for Roger?

After becoming the Pirate King, that man had disbanded his crew and vanished. Crocodile couldn't find him, either.

"I'll deal with these small-fry Marines first!"

"Only eight of you, and you dare attack me, Crocodile?"

Crocodile felt nothing but contempt.

Still young, he was at the height of his arrogance and had yet to suffer a single setback.

"That young flag officer must be their leader, right?"

"I'll kill him first!"

Crocodile beckoned with his right hand, and a swirling tornado of sand instantly appeared.

In the blink of an eye, barely fifty meters remained between the two sides.

Suddenly, he saw the young officer's eyes widen, and even the air seemed to shudder.

P.S. Thanks to Cat in the Cloud Bamboo, Kongmengyan, a Wolf, Mo Yuchen, Shattered Glass, Fox Above the Clouds, Bar Night Watch, The Kid Wants Candy, eopul, and Silken Sword Layers for the monthly votes!!!

I, Apprentice Marine Crocodile

Humm!

The snow in the woods trembled, and everything seemed to freeze.

Crocodile's pupils contracted as an inexplicable terror welled up inside him. Beside him, one of his underlings fell with a thud, landing face-first in the snow and lying motionless.

He turned to look. The other pirates' eyes rolled back as they collapsed one after another.

"Damn it!"

"What's going on?"

Crocodile's voice trembled, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

At that moment, his entire body felt weak. He couldn't even summon the will to resist, and the sensation was suffocating. The invisible pressure left his body rigid and his head spinning. He could barely stay upright.

When he turned back, the young officer had vanished.

A fierce gust struck his face, and a billowing white cloak swept into view. Snowflakes whirled upward as Crocodile raised his head.

The young officer suddenly appeared, his gloved right hand already clenched into a fist, poised to plunge down and strike.

It's no use!

I can turn into sand!

As those thoughts crossed Crocodile's mind, a mocking smile instinctively tugged at his lips.

He had no idea what that overwhelming burst of pressure had been, but this young officer was still far too inexperienced.

Then, in the very next second—

An iron-hard fist smashed into his cheek with savage, brutal force, filling his vision with stars. His entire body crashed to the snowy ground with a boom.

The other side of his face crushed the snow beneath it. The ground split, and a crater more than ten meters across erupted with a rumble.

At that moment, his consciousness completely faded into darkness.

Standing beside the crater, Xia Le was briefly stunned. He looked down at Crocodile, who lay motionless with his head buried in the ground.

"He's not dead, is he?!"

He wasn't sure exactly how strong Crocodile was at this point in time. That was why he hadn't put his full strength into the punch, relying only on his physical power.

And even then, he had only used thirty percent.

After all, as far as he was concerned, even a Logia user couldn't exert any power while suppressed by Seastone Gloves.

T Bone and the others hurried over. Seeing the unconscious pirates scattered across the ground and Crocodile's unmoving body, they exchanged speechless looks, though they weren't particularly surprised.

"Sir, you hit him too hard."

"Did you burst his skull?"

Slo, the shipwright, was at a loss for words.

He could clearly see blood rapidly staining the ground where Crocodile's head was embedded.

Fortunately, after Evens and the others quickly checked him, they let out quiet sighs of relief. "He's still alive."

"This guy's skull is tough. He actually survived Officer Xia Le's iron fist, though his skull is cracked."

Cleaning up afterward was much simpler.

T Bone contacted the nearby Marines to arrest the unconscious pirates, while Rosinante carried Crocodile over his shoulder all the way back to the warship.

At Xia Le's direction, Mina gave Crocodile's head some basic treatment and bandaged it.

I hope he pulls through!

If he ends up in a vegetative state, I'll have no choice but to give him another punch.

Xia Le sighed inwardly.

He felt rather helpless, too. For one thing, he had underestimated his own power when paired with the Seastone Gloves. For another, he had overestimated how much punishment Crocodile could take.

Still, the fact that Crocodile had remained standing under the force of his Conqueror's Haki showed that he did have something going for him.

A full five or six days passed before the first glimmer of light finally entered Crocodile's dark world.

When he slowly opened his eyes, he saw a stretch of blue sky and seagulls flapping their wings as they cried overhead.

"Where am I?"

"And who am I?"

Confusion swept through Crocodile's mind. Bracing himself with his arms, he slowly sat up.

"You're awake?"

A figure stood straight-backed ahead of him, draped in a Justice Cloak. The voice had come from that man.

For some reason, the sight of that back stirred an instinctive fear in Crocodile, making him nervous. At the same time, a fierce pain surged through his head, drawing a muffled groan from him.

"Who are you?"

He struggled to open his mouth. His throat was parched, and his voice was terribly hoarse.

"My name is Xia Le!"

Xia Le turned around.

As he stared at Crocodile, doubt arose in his mind.