'Cyrus!'
Crocodile's heart tightened, his eyes fixed on Cyrus, who had turned to look at the sky.
He had also noticed the situation with the News Birds in the air.
'Was he preventing the News Birds from photographing their meeting?'
Crocodile guessed in his mind.
He had seen the rising temperature and the meteorites falling from the sky in the desert outside the city with his own eyes.
He was already extremely wary of Cyrus.
But now, even more so.
"I'm going to establish an organization!" Cyrus turned to look at Crocodile and spoke.
"I need someone to help me build the framework of this organization, and you are one of the candidates I've chosen."
Crocodile was taken aback, looking at the calm-faced Cyrus.
Robin quietly took a step back to stand behind Cyrus.
Issho, tapping the ground with his Cane Sword, also walked to stand behind Cyrus.
"Why should I agree to you!" Crocodile frowned in silence, then spoke.
"You have no other choice," Cyrus said, shaking his head.
"Such arrogance! This is my home turf!"
Anger appeared on Crocodile's face and wisps of sand began to swirl around him.
'As expected, he won't listen without a beating.'
This was also why Cyrus had been so direct.
Seeing Crocodile like this, Cyrus shook his head slightly and turned to Issho beside him.
"How about you do it? Consider it collecting some interest. But leave him alive. I'll tell you about this matter afterward."
Issho, with his whitened eyes, was startled.
He turned his head toward Cyrus, then nodded lightly.
"Alright!"
After nodding, Issho took a step forward.
"Bastard, what do you take me for? I am a..."
Seeing Cyrus's dismissive attitude, Crocodile's face darkened as he began to speak, but before he could finish, a strange, immense force descended upon him.
BOOM!
Crocodile's entire body was sent flying sideways into the sky.
Issho followed closely after him.
The other Baroque Works officers were dumbfounded by this scene.
They just started fighting?
So what should they do now?
Everyone's gaze turned to Daz.
The dents Robin had made on Daz's chest had already recovered.
Daz looked gravely at Cyrus.
Before he could even speak, he felt an invisible shockwave pressing down on him.
Under this strange pressure, Daz's mind went completely blank.
Thud!
A series of thuds echoed.
Everyone, including Daz, rolled their eyes back and fainted.
After unleashing his Conqueror's Haki, Cyrus strode towards the Rain Banquet.
...
The ground trembled slightly.
Outside the city, the battle between Issho and Crocodile had already begun.
Robin glanced at the fallen people, then turned to look in the direction Crocodile had been sent flying, before turning to follow Cyrus into the casino.
"I thought you would first explain to him what exactly you want to do."
Cyrus walked to the previous gambling table and sat down.
However, the once bustling Rain Banquet was now completely empty.
Even the staff had fled.
Watching Cyrus toy with a chip in his hand, Robin asked in confusion.
"We were going to fight anyway. With someone like Crocodile, talking won't get you anywhere. It's better to beat him up first. He should be willing to listen quietly to me then."
"So you just reversed the order?" Robin was a little speechless.
"But he is a Shichibukai, after all. If you do this, he might rather die..."
"He's a smart man. Smart men know what choices to make and when."
Cyrus wasn't concerned.
He could hand over the entire task of establishing the Hunter Association to Crocodile.
Even if Crocodile developed it into his own power, it wouldn't matter.
In the end, this world runs on strength.
If you lack strength, whatever you possess is like a rootless duckweed.
Once you fail, everything you once had will vanish into thin air.
Cyrus, who knew what the future of this world held, felt this deeply.
In other words, without a powerful set of rules to bind everyone, this world still follows the law of the jungle.
Even the World Government is just at the top of this food chain.
If the World Government had the ability to restrain this world, it wouldn't have become like this.
"He doesn't seem like a smart man!" Robin sat down next to Cyrus, resting her chin on her hand as she looked at him.
"He clearly knew I was with you, yet he still invited me and even attacked me."
"That was his test!"
Cyrus smiled and turned to look at Robin.
"A test? To test you?"
"Of course, to test me, or rather, to test my purpose. In his heart, he has actually already made a choice. I am an opponent he cannot fight right now, but he is unwilling to abandon his enterprise in Alabasta."
Robin fell silent, pondering Cyrus's words, still with some confusion in her eyes.
"He thinks he's very valuable."
Seeing Robin like this, Cyrus reached out and tapped her on the head.
"You're clearly younger than me, but your mind is much more complex!"
Robin leaned her head back after being tapped, then teased him.
"It's nothing. If you understood him well enough, you could have figured this out too," Cyrus said with a slight shake of his head.
"Then what about that old man? Is he joining us from now on?" Robin asked about Issho.
"I suppose so. Issho is very strong. Even on the grand stage of the seas, he's one of the top-tier powerhouses. You can compare him to an Admiral."
Robin's eyes widened upon hearing this.
"He's that strong?"
Robin was very surprised.
She could tell from Cyrus's previous attitude that Issho was strong, but she didn't expect Cyrus to say he was on par with an Admiral.
"Then can you defeat him?"
Robin suddenly spotted the blind spot, looking at Cyrus in astonishment.
Having been by Cyrus's side during the two previous encounters with the Admirals, Robin knew that according to Cyrus, he wasn't necessarily a match for the two Admirals under normal circumstances, but holding his own for a while was no problem.
"Hmm perhaps, our fight from before was more of a friendly exchange," Cyrus shook his head.
After all, their goals were different, so the fight was naturally limited.
But as soon as he said this, Robin thought of the rising temperature and the meteorites falling from the sky earlier.
'That's what he calls a friendly exchange?'
Alright, she couldn't understand the world of these people anymore!
"This sea is vast. There are many strong people like Issho who aren't famous. For various reasons, they didn't become Pirates or join the Navy. Perhaps they're just staying in one place," Cyrus said softly.
"So, I hope that when the Association is established, it can attract these people to join."
"But these people are difficult to manage," Robin reminded him.
"Who said anything about managing them? The Association isn't a tightly-knit organization. It can even have villains," Cyrus turned to look at Robin.
"It's just about giving these people all sorts of goals, so they don't just thinking about that damn One Piece!"