"Still not dead, Straw Hat Luffy? With just a punch like that, there's no way..."
Bang!
Before Crocodile could finish his sentence, that punch struck him hard in the face, sending him flying and skidding across the ground.
"Heh!"
Sage sneered, "You're really careless, can't even notice when you're covered in water."
Having his thoughts interrupted, he didn't mind.
In comparison, it's more important that Crocodile doesn't fail.
Sage flexed his hands and feet, looked up at Luffy on the roof of the Royal Palace, carrying a bucket, and said:
"Let me handle this. Don't worry, in honor of your grandpa, I won't let you die, but don't interfere with my plans. That Crocodile is crucial to my fortune."
"Grandpa!" Luffy was startled, "You know my grandpa?!"
"Don't get in the way, Sage."
From behind, Crocodile stood up, his eyes bloodshot, "I want to finish him myself!"
"You caught him in Rain Land, yet he's here now, so don't spout that nonsense."
Sage said coldly, "I don't care about your plans; my plan cannot fail!"
"Then we'll defeat you together!" Luffy clenched his fist and shouted.
"Hehehe..."
Sage let out a disdainful chuckle, shook his head, and was about to make a move.
Boom!!
Suddenly, not far from the Royal Palace, a plume of smoke mysteriously blew open and rose upwards.
Smoke?
Sage instinctively glanced over, a red dot flashed in his eyes, and with Observation Haki, his expression turned stern.
"Rubber Rubber Gun!"
Luffy stretched out a punch directly towards Sage.
Thoom!
The sound of air being stomped on resounded as the punch missed, while Sage's figure bounced into the sky, completely ignoring Luffy, as a circle of airwaves exploded beneath his feet, propelling him like a cannonball downward.
"Huh? Did he leave? What was he here for?"
Luffy tilted his head, puzzled, but quickly snapped back to focus, shouting ahead: "Crocodile! Let's settle this once and for all!!"
...
"Power Fluctuations!"
At the mouth of a street in front of the Royal Palace, Renedia held the Mechanical Hammer, from its head erupted a gust of force, blowing away the oncoming smoke.
Underneath the smoke were a few subordinates lying on the ground.
She stared at the smoke and shouted loudly: "Why is the Navy here, what's going on! Hey, I remember you, you're the smoke cripple defeated by Sage in Nalohara, what are you doing here!"
Within the smoke, Smoker's figure gradually appeared, his lower body hidden in the smoke, upper body converged above, "Twenty-three million Belly, Renedia? I'm not interested in small pirates like you. Tell me, where is the Calamity?"
Renedia raised the Mechanical Hammer, "Sage's not in a good mood, he definitely won't want to see you, I'll be enough!"
Smoker shook his head, "Then I'll just have to capture you to bring out the Calamity!"
His hands reached into the smoke, causing it to solidify and incompletely envelop Renedia.
"White Snake·Wring!"
The dense white smoke left no chance for Renedia to counter, even as she tried using the Mechanical Hammer to unleash the Air Cannon, dispersing some smoke in front, but was quickly engulfed by the remaining smoke.
"Cough cough cough!"
The dense smoke made it hard for her to breathe, making her cough continuously, as the coagulated smoke wrapped around her arms and body, holding her tightly and ready to squeeze.
Boom!!
The smoke was suddenly blown apart, the solidified smoke broke, and with the turbulence of the airwave, the thick smoke dispersed.
"Smoker!"
Amidst the dispersed smoke, Sage appeared in front of Smoker in midair, with hands infused with Haki, ready to strike towards his body.
"North Star..."
"Fire Fist!"
A pillar of fire shot from the side, engulfing Sage in flames.
Smoker paused, looking sideways, he saw a man on a building's rooftop, stretching a fiery hand with a smile.
"Portgas D. Ace..."
He said in a deep voice, "What are you doing here?"
Ace leaped down from the rooftop, looking ahead, smiling, "For the same reason as you."
From above, the blast of flames dropped a fire-encased object, heavily slamming down beside Renedia, kicking up a cloud of dust and debris.
"Sage?" Renedia instinctively asked.
"Get back a bit, Renedy."
From within the dust, Sage's calm voice emerged.
As the dust cleared, his burn-ridden body was revealed.
Only now, those burned areas were rapidly healing, turning back into normal skin.
"A navy and a pirate teaming up, the sea truly is amazing," Sage said coldly as he glanced at them.
"I won't team up with a pirate."
Smoker descended, taking on his usual form, pulling out his Jitte and pointing it at Sage, "But capturing you is a priority, and once I have you, I'll go after 'Fire Fist' Ace."
"Smoke and fire can't typically be distinguished on the battlefield, capturing me won't be easy."
Ace stood beside him, assuming a fighting stance, smiling, "But for now, I won't let you interrupt Luffy's fight."
"You really are exuding a powerful presence..."
Sage slightly closed his eyes, suddenly opened them, grinning ferociously, "Courting death!"