Alubarna, Capital of the Alabasta Kingdom.
Boom, boom, boom, boom…
Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble…
Clang, clash, screech, clang…
"Kill! Kill all these rebels!"
"Fire, fire! Hold them back!"
"Drive them out!"
"Charge! Teach these Royal Army soldiers a lesson!"
"Kill! Overthrow the King! Establish a new nation!"
The ground shook. Cannon fire roared, deafening the ears. Gunsmoke filled the air, the smell of gunpowder practically blanketing the entire city.
Like marching ants in the desert, the densely packed rebel forces surged like a tide, frantically attacking the South Gate of Alubarna.
Facing the overwhelming numbers of the tidal rebel army, the Royal Army soldiers stationed in Alubarna, the capital's defense force, and the palace guards were holding their ground with all their might.
Both sides screamed different slogans, and for a time, the sounds of slaughter dominated. Broken blades, damaged firearms, severed limbs lay everywhere. Blood streamed down the massive stairs, staining the desert below red.
The path from the South Gate to the Royal Palace was clogged with people. Half the city was engulfed in the flames of war. The sheer scale and number of combatants even surpassed the war Aeridar and Doflamingo had jointly launched in Aznat.
"My, what a spectacular sight!" Aeridar stood suspended in the air above Alubarna, looking down at the city engulfed in war, a flicker of bloodlust in his eyes.
The war had erupted just as Crocodile had planned and hoped for. His plan also involved letting Luffy and his crew escape, just as in the original story.
Yesterday, Aeridar had mooched a meal and left with the show-boating Crocodile. Sanji, who had transformed into Mr. Prince, had successfully fooled Crocodile and rescued Luffy and the others.
This was also because of the 'Utopia Operation'; Crocodile had moved the guards stationed at Rainbase. Otherwise, those several hundred elites with a Doriki over one hundred would have been more than enough to give the newly-debuted Straw Hat Pirates a run for their money.
And now, just as in the original story, the escaping Luffy caught up to Crocodile and engaged him in a battle.
Crocodile, true to his Logia Devil Fruit ability and his status as a Warlord of the Sea, defeated Luffy with overwhelming power, nearly killing him.
But, just as Aeridar had foreseen, Robin ultimately saved Luffy from the brink.
Now, the Straw Hat Pirates had arrived in Alubarna and were battling the Senior Agents of Baroque Works. The recovered Luffy had also reached the Alubarna Palace and was commencing the second round of his fight with Crocodile.
However, history seemed to have undergone a subtle shift.
"Fire Fist!!!"
Surging flames formed a massive, fist-like column of fire, rapidly extending and scorching the palace plaza ground black. At least a dozen people were enveloped by the Fire Fist, instantly reduced to charred corpses.
Ace was completely bathed in flames, descending like a god of destruction.
Whoosh! Boom!
Luffy's water-soaked arm stretched out. His powerful, bullet-like fist instantly punched a large hole in the wall.
"Damn it! Is the Whitebeard Pirates trying to start a war with me, Portgas D. Ace?!" Dodging Luffy's punch, Crocodile's face was grim.
Using Mr. 2's abilities and the insider he had placed in the Royal Palace, Crocodile had transported over three hundred elite subordinates with a Doriki over one hundred into the palace, effectively controlling the entire structure.
This force was sufficient to handle the disruption of the Straw Hat crew, but Crocodile hadn't anticipated that the new arrivals would include not only the Straw Hat Kid Luffy, whom he thought was dead, but also Fire Fist Ace, a great pirate with a bounty of 550 million Berries.
While his subordinates were strong, they were only strong compared to average rookie pirate crews. Facing a powerhouse of Fire Fist Ace's caliber, a mere three hundred men without Seastone weapons were simply not enough.
"Relax, Crocodile. This is just my personal intention. After all, having such an unreliable little brother gives me, the older brother, a massive headache." Ace ignored the gunshots, smiling at Crocodile. "However, I won't interfere in my brother's fight with you. This battle belongs to him."
"Little brother, is it?!" Crocodile's eyes turned savage. He glared fiercely at Ace and roared, "You insolent fool! You dare to look down on me! I'll settle you once I've killed this brat!"
"Die! Desert Spada!!!"
BOOM!
Crocodile swung his arm. A massive sand blade sliced out, streaked with purple lightning arcs, instantly tearing the ground and splitting the palace plaza open.
"Whoa! That was close!" Luffy stood next to the newly formed fissure, patting his chest.
Then, Luffy poured more clean water onto himself, threw a punch, and his arm stretched rapidly: "Gomu Gomu no—Pistol!!!"
"Such a petty trick is useless if I dodge it. Whether you're wet or not, my hand can absorb the moisture from everything!" Crocodile tilted his body, dodging Luffy's attack, and simultaneously grabbed Luffy's extended arm.
Luffy's arm visibly withered at a speed noticeable to the naked eye, becoming like a dried-out branch drained of all moisture.
"Crap! I forgot he had that ability!" Luffy was shocked. He hastily dashed forward and launched a kick.
Crocodile voluntarily turned to his elemental form, dissolving into a heap of sand, only to reconstitute himself into a human form elsewhere in the palace grounds.
Luffy in mid-air quickly drank water from a bottle to replenish the moisture lost from his withered arm.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Then, carrying a large water barrel, Luffy drenched himself once more and utilized the weakness of the Sand-Sand Fruit, engaging Crocodile in another fierce exchange.
"Fire Fist!"
"Heat Haze!"
"Fire Gun!"
Meanwhile, nearby, the palace was ablaze. Ace swiftly eliminated the elite pirates with a Doriki over one hundred, preventing them from interfering with Luffy's fight against Crocodile.
"Seriously, that Crocodile guy… didn't he learn from his past mistakes?" High in the sky, watching the battle below, Aeridar slapped his forehead, his eye twitching.
Not to mention the hand Whitebeard chopped off, when Aeridar debuted years ago, he had used Crocodile's arrogance to land a fierce punch, letting him know the benefits of body techniques and Haki.
Yet, after all these years, this guy was still at the same level. He had mastered his Devil Fruit ability to an incredible degree, but in terms of physical fighting, once his elementalization was negated, his weakness became glaringly obvious.
What was even more frustrating was his Haki proficiency. He supposedly knew some Observation Haki, having even used it a few times during his fight with Aeridar back then, but now he hadn't used it at all, as if he couldn't.
"Did this guy spend all his energy on expanding his power? That idiot!" Aeridar gnashed his teeth. He decided he couldn't let this guy continue like this. He would let the bastard suffer a defeat; he could still get out later anyway.
After all, this guy had a strong foundation. If he just put in the effort and made up for his shortcomings in body techniques and Haki, with the power of his Logia Sand-Sand Fruit, he wouldn't be inferior to Doflamingo.