"Are all the guys who train in Armament Haki just a bunch of battle-crazed lunatics who go around picking fights?!"
Seeing the belligerent glint in his opponent's eyes, Crocodile couldn't help but recall another man he'd once fought to a draw. That man, however, hadn't been nearly as agile as the one standing before him now. Nor had he countered Crocodile's moves with such alarming speed.
The guy who'd deliberately come knocking today was like an upgraded version of that man from his past.
The thought made Crocodile's expression darken, a sense of unease settling in. If he'd known he'd end up being targeted by a monster like this, he would've never accepted the World Government's invitation to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
That title was nothing but a flashy name with no real benefits. Worse, it turned him into a tool for the World Government, bait to lure and deal with other pirates.
Now that he thought about it, did he really need the Warlord title to achieve his goals? Whether it was gaining the public's admiration, seizing control of a kingdom, or searching for the ancient weapon Pluton, he could've done it all without this burdensome status.
He could've become a bounty hunter or even infiltrated Alabasta Kingdom directly, quietly building his power in the shadows. Either way would've been far more prudent than his current predicament.
For some reason, Crocodile's mind was suddenly clearer than ever, thoughts flooding in that he'd never considered before.
But Will wasn't concerned with what was going through Crocodile's head. Nor did he have the patience to wait for his opponent to sort out his thoughts. Seeing Crocodile dare to zone out in the middle of their fight, Will's brows furrowed, and his legs exploded with force.
Boom!
With a shattering sound, Will vanished from his spot, the sandy ground beneath him collapsing in a crater.
Whoosh!
In the blink of an eye, a figure too fast for the naked eye to follow tore through the air, kicking up a storm of sand as it streaked toward Crocodile.
"Nani?!"
Crocodile snapped back to reality at the sound, his eyes widening as he stared ahead, but it was already too late.
"Ugh…!"
Before he could react, a pitch-black hand shot forward, seizing his throat and hoisting him high into the air.
"Crocodile, you had your chance, but you blew it."
Will's eyes were as cold as frost, his words sending a chill through Crocodile despite the scorching desert heat. "You dare get distracted while fighting me? Who gave you the nerve?"
As Will's grip tightened, Crocodile's face flushed red, bloodshot veins creeping into his eyes.
"Damn it… I can't… breathe…"
Under the looming shadow of death, a fierce will to survive surged within Crocodile. His hands instinctively shot up, clutching the arm strangling him.
Without hesitation, he activated his Devil Fruit power—dehydration. Anything he touched, living or not, could have its moisture drained in an instant, reducing it to a mummified husk or a pile of crumbling sand.
But Will was prepared. His Armament Haki coated his arm, forming a barrier that blocked Crocodile's terrifying ability. Still, the skin where Crocodile's hands gripped began to show faint signs of change.
"Oh?"
Will's eyes flickered with surprise. He quickly channeled more Haki into his arm, reinforcing it until the changes subsided.
"What?!"
Crocodile's heart sank as he realized his dehydration ability was losing its effect. "Armament Haki… Just how much Haki does this guy have?!"
Will, meanwhile, was piecing things together. His gaze shifted, thoughts racing. As expected, Armament Haki can only block or mitigate a Devil Fruit user's powers. It can't nullify them completely like the Dark-Dark Fruit. In close combat, I need to stay on guard. If I'm not careful or don't use enough Haki, a tricky ability like this could catch me off guard.
As Will reflected on the fight, Crocodile—still dangling from his grip—was struggling to breathe, his neck on the verge of snapping under the crushing force. Driven by desperation, he kept his senses sharp, searching for any chance to survive.
"Now's my chance…!"
Spotting a moment when Will seemed distracted, Crocodile's bloodshot eyes gleamed with determination. His right arm dropped, transforming into a cascade of sand before surging forward in a sudden strike.
"Desert Spada!!"
Shrrk!
With a tearing sound, the sand coalesced into a massive blade, piercing straight through Will's torso. Unable to fully coat his body in Armament Haki in time, Will's shirt was shredded instantly, and the force of the blade sent him staggering back, his grip on Crocodile loosening.
Seizing the opportunity, Crocodile elementalized into sand, retreating frantically to a safe distance over a hundred meters away before reforming. Panting heavily, he fixed his gaze on Will, not daring to let his focus waver again.
Will, shaken from his thoughts by the attack, glanced at Crocodile's grim expression in the distance. Lowering his head, he inspected the white scratches left by the sand across his chest, a smirk tugging at his lips.
"Not bad, not bad. That's more like it!"
Raising his head, he met Crocodile's wary gaze with a wide grin. "Too bad you went and ruined my clothes, Crocodile."
With that, Will tensed his muscles, shattering the remaining scraps of fabric clinging to his body.
"Shirtless Surge!!"
Since his shirt was already destroyed, he decided to lean into it, activating his technique. This fight was about to end anyway.
"Hm? What's that?!"
Crocodile, standing far off, sensed a sudden spike in Will's aura, the threat emanating from him growing even stronger. Combined with Will's earlier words, a wild thought crossed Crocodile's mind.
Ripping off his clothes boosts his strength?! That's impossible!
He quickly dismissed the absurd idea, convincing himself that Will was only ramping up his aura because his defenses had nearly been breached.
Steeling himself, Crocodile began gathering massive amounts of sand, preparing for the next clash to avoid being caught off guard again.
But Will, now fully in control of his enhanced power, didn't charge immediately. Looking at Crocodile, surrounded by swirling sand, he shouted, "Got any stronger moves? If you do, use them now!"
His eyes burned with battle lust as he added, "If you don't, my next attack might just kill you."
Without waiting for a response, Will bent his knees slightly, positioning his hands—one high, one low—in front of him, gathering strength. His aura surged, his arms hardening with a thick layer of Armament Haki, turning pitch black.
"Hm?!"
Crocodile recognized the stance—Will was clearly preparing a devastating attack. After a moment's hesitation, his eyes narrowed, and he made a decisive choice not to hold back. Raising both arms, he transformed them into swirling torrents of sand before slamming them into the ground.
"Desert Tsunami!!"
Buzz!
A powerful tremor shook the earth. The sand in front of Crocodile surged upward, forming a towering row of dunes. The massive wall, spanning over a hundred meters, began rolling forward like a tidal wave, sweeping up more sand as it barreled toward Will.
The wave grew taller and wider, soon becoming a colossal desert tsunami nearly a hundred meters high, its sheer scale terrifying to behold.
"Huff… huff…"
After unleashing the attack, Crocodile felt his stamina plummet, his breathing ragged as he stood with a grim expression. "This is a desert tide that could bury an entire town. That should be enough to trap him, right?"
But as he watched the massive wave surge forward, a heavy realization hit him, his gaze growing solemn as if he'd made a critical decision in his heart.
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