Crocodile's defeat

"Domain Expansion!"

"Unlimited Void!"

Dazzling white light instantly spread from beneath Satoru Gojo's feet, swallowing everything around him.

The sand, the sky-everything was completely wiped away in that instant.

In the end, only Satoru Gojo and Crocodile remained in this space.

What those outside the space saw was an enormous black sphere.

"What is that black sphere?"

"How did it suddenly appear?"

The civilians standing in the distance buzzed with astonished discussion.

"Is this Lord Gojo's handiwork?!"

Kolat shouted excitedly.

"He actually had to use Domain Expansion! Is Elementalization really that powerful?"

Esdeath murmured to herself.

It was not that Domain Expansion was the only way to win, but that only Domain Expansion could guarantee defeating Crocodile without killing him!

Inside the black sphere

Just as white light surrounded everything, the entire space was instantly dyed a deep black again.

Chirping insects, birdsong, bubbles rising through water, the whisper of a breeze-all the sounds in the universe poured into Crocodile's ears.

Images of land, oceans, skies, birds, and more constantly appeared before his eyes.

In a single instant, Crocodile received countless pieces of information.

Only then did Crocodile react, but he could do nothing, yet could think about everything.

"What's happening?"

"Did I lose?"

"I can't see anything. I can't feel anything."

"No, I can see everything and feel everything. All kinds of information come without end, so I can't do anything..."

Crocodile stood rooted in place, unable to move, unable to perceive anything, yet able to know everything.

Satoru Gojo instantly moved to Crocodile's side and spoke.

"This is the inside of Unlimited Void. You can't do anything here. Naturally, you can't even activate Elementalization!"

Although Crocodile could not move, the shock within him was already beyond words.

He finally understood why Satoru Gojo remained so confident that he could defeat him despite having no Armament Haki!

He actually possessed such an absurd ability! Was this really a rookie pirate? He was simply a monster!

"If I attack you now, you'll get hurt! Watch!"

As he spoke, he punched Crocodile in the stomach.

"Urgh!"

Unable to use Elementalization, Crocodile immediately spat blood, but he could not move now; spitting blood was only an instinctive response.

Satoru Gojo rested a hand on Crocodile's shoulder, freeing him from Unlimited Void's effects.

"Cough! Cough! Cough!"

Freed from Unlimited Void's effects, Crocodile violently coughed up blood.

After all, that punch had landed squarely on his solid body.

"Looks like I won!"

"Why have I never heard of someone as powerful as you before?"

"Because I only recently decided to set sail and become the fifth emperor of the seas! Heh!"

Satoru Gojo flashed a mischievous grin.

"If you'd said that when we first met, I would definitely have scoffed. Cough! Cough! But now, I can't laugh."

"So, are you going to honor our bet and join my pirate crew now?"

"You said you wanted to become the Fifth Emperor. How exactly are you going to do that?"

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Crocodile did not answer Satoru Gojo's question.

"By defeating the Four Emperors, of course! And claiming a throne as an emperor of the seas! If you'd like, I could even defeat Whitebeard for you!"

Whitebeard was hailed as the World's Strongest Man. Countless people wanted to defeat him, but no one could actually do it.

Yet Satoru Gojo calmly made the audacious claim that he would defeat Whitebeard, as though he could certainly do it.

"Why bring Whitebeard into this?"

"Didn't he defeat you before? Don't you want to see what he looks like when he loses?"

Satoru Gojo raised an eyebrow and made the suggestion with sly intent.

"You even know about that."

"If I want to recruit you into my pirate crew, I have to know something about you, don't I? So? Joining?"

"I lost the bet. I'll honor it."

"If you're joining, just say so. You still have to beat around the bush! Such an old tsundere, Crocodile!"

Crocodile: "..."

"All right, enough joking. Next, we need to put on a show."

"A show?"

"Yeah, we can't give up your Shichibukai status! So we need to put on a show of you fighting valiantly for the Navy to see!"

"Seems your goal isn't just to become an emperor of the seas!"

"Come on, let's get a little higher. If we're putting on a show, we need to let the audience see clearly, don't we?"

Satoru Gojo did not answer that question, instead bringing Crocodile up higher.

"How do we act this out?"

"You need a few injuries to make a valiant fight look convincing!"

"Don't tell me..."

Crocodile had a bad feeling.

Outside the black sphere

"Crack!"

With that crisp cracking sound, the black sphere shattered into countless glowing fragments, drawing everyone's gaze to the area.

Several dozen meters up in the air, two figures slowly emerged.

The silver-haired man stood proudly in midair, while the other man spat blood, drifting down horizontally through the air.

"That's..."

Those who recognized the man knocked down as Crocodile of the Shichibukai could not help feeling stunned.

Yet no one recognized the man who had struck Crocodile down.

Was another powerful figure about to emerge upon the seas? Some people speculated.

"The Shichibukai are nothing special!"

Satoru Gojo took a step through empty air and dove down, slamming a vicious kick straight into Crocodile's abdomen.

To make the performance more convincing, Crocodile did not use Elementalization.

"Urgh!"

Blood sprayed through the air. A trace of unwillingness still lingered in Crocodile's eyes as he fell, finally crashing into the yellow sand below and throwing up a cloud of dust.

Crocodile's acting-in one word, superb! Satoru Gojo thought admiringly.

After watching Crocodile crash into the yellow sand, Satoru Gojo deliberately lingered in the air for several seconds before descending to the ground.

It was to let people get a good look at who had defeated a Shichibukai. Becoming an emperor of the seas required enough prestige, and defeating a Shichibukai was just the achievement to boost it.

The civilians watching from far away were in an uproar.

The Shichibukai-only pirates powerful enough to intimidate everyone were qualified to be chosen as members.

Yet one had actually been defeated by an unknown young man who looked no older than eighteen, and was very handsome too!

A Shichibukai had been defeated. Without a doubt, this would become another major piece of news that shook the world!

"Miss Robin, your boss wouldn't join my pirate crew, so I gave him a beating. If you call a doctor now, he might still be saved! Until next time, Miss Robin!"

He waved at Robin, then turned and left.

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