Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 47 You're a good person, Crocodile!

Forty minutes later, Crocodile was already very angry.

He finally couldn't contain his restlessness any longer. He turned around in his boss's chair, stopped pretending to be deep, and got up to go upstairs to see what that damn Bane was up to.

If he wanted to provoke himself, then so be it, he succeeded.

But just as he got up and walked to the door, it was suddenly pulled open, and a tall figure walked in.

While described as tall, this was only relative to the average person; for Crocodile, it was nothing special, as he was even taller than that figure.

That's right, Crocodile is over 2.5 meters tall, while Bane, who came in, is only 2.3 meters tall. So, in this world, his height is really nothing special.

Crocodile was stunned for a moment because he arrived so abruptly without knocking.

Before he could even speak, Bane across from him broke into a happy smile, speaking in a warm tone as if he were seeing his own brother or dearest friend. He laughed and extended his hand, saying, "Mr. Crocodile, it's great to finally meet you! I'm so sorry, I'm just a country bumpkin who hasn't seen much of the world. The buffet upstairs is so delicious that I couldn't help but eat a little more than I should have. Sorry to have kept you waiting."

Crocodile had originally thought that Bane would be very angry, after all, that was how Nico Robin had described him.

Unexpectedly, this guy was very polite from the start, and even belittled himself by saying things like he had never seen the world, which left Crocodile with a belly full of anger but nowhere to vent it, after all, you can't hit a smiling person.

At that very moment, he suddenly realized something: this might all be Nico Robin's conspiracy!

She was trying to sow discord between me and Bane. I had only thought that she would instigate Bane, but I hadn’t noticed that the woman could also instigate me!

Whether it was her previous description of Bane or her asking her to call Bane down just now, it could all be a little trick she played. For example, she might have deliberately delayed for a while before telling Bane that she was waiting for him.

It must be said that Crocodile is a very deep thinker, and therefore has many ideas.

Moreover, his idea doesn't seem to have any problems!

Crocodile, having instantly grasped these thoughts, naturally couldn't continue following Nico Robin's lead. He had initially planned to put on airs and express his anger towards Bane, but at this moment, he suppressed his emotions, a somewhat benevolent smile appearing on his face. With his only remaining hand, he grasped Bane's palm and said, "It's nothing. I've always been very patient with talented individuals, and Bane, you are the kind of talent I've been waiting for."

Bane gripped Crocodile's hand tightly, his expression filled with excitement, and said, "What a kind person! You're such a kind person, Mr. Crocodile! Not only did you not mind my rudeness, but you also shook my hand so sincerely. I don't know what to say!"

Crocodile was a little puzzled. Had this guy never been respected before? Was it really necessary to get so excited about a handshake?

But before he could figure these things out, Bane continued, "To be honest, I'm also a Logia-type Devil Fruit user. The reason I've come to visit you is to discuss some tips and tricks about Logia-type users with you, especially since there's a question that's been bothering me for a while."

Crocodile felt that this guy was overly enthusiastic and somewhat inappropriate for the occasion. "It's our first meeting, and you want me to give you pointers? Is that appropriate?"

However, he patiently asked with a smile, "Oh? What's the problem? I'd be happy to help you."

"Aren't all of us natural-type ability users supposed to be able to transform into elements? But why can't I? That's why I really want you to demonstrate it for me." Bane grinned, revealing a dangerous smile.

Crocodile looked at his dangerous smile and instinctively felt a sense of unease. He immediately tried to pull his hand back, but when he exerted force, he discovered that the guy opposite him was incredibly strong!

It actually prevented him from getting rid of it!?

At the same time, Crocodile planned to use his ability to escape, but as soon as he thought about it, he was suddenly shocked to find that his ability was not responding!

"What did you do!?" Crocodile stared at Bane with a look of shock and anger.

It was at this moment that he realized that, without him noticing, wisps of faint black smoke were emanating from the hand that Bane was holding.

"Hahahaha." Bane laughed and patted Crocodile on the shoulder, saying, "I just praised you as a good person, and that came from the bottom of my heart, because since I became a user of the Dark-Dark Fruit, you're the first user who's been willing to shake my hand."

A strong sense of crisis erupted from his heart. Crocodile didn't reply, but instead raised his other hand and swung his hook, trying to kill Bane with his poison hook.

However, just as he raised his arm, Bane made his move first. Bane exerted force with his arm, pulled Crocodile directly up from the ground, and then slammed him hard to the ground!

With a loud bang, Crocodile's solid floor tiles, which had cost a fortune to lay, were smashed to pieces by his body. At the same time, the excruciating pain caused blood to trickle from the corner of Crocodile's mouth.

He felt as if he had been struck by a giant!

Honestly, it's been over twenty years since Crocodile arrived in the first half of the Grand Line, and he hasn't experienced pain since.

He was momentarily stunned when he was suddenly slammed to the ground like that!

He was distracted, but Bane wasn't going to let him get away with it. He still held Crocodile's wrist with one hand, then stomped his foot hard on Crocodile's golden hook, crushing the hook, which contained a large amount of deadly poison, with one stomp. Then he moved his foot and firmly stepped on Crocodile's severed arm.

It was at this moment that Crocodile finally came to his senses, and a look of anger flashed in his eyes.

But before he could even turn his gaze to Bane, a fist wrapped in Armament Haki appeared in his line of sight and delivered a powerful punch to his nose!

This blow broke Crocodile's nasal bridge, deformed his facial features, and caused the back of his head to slam hard into the broken tiles, denting it slightly.

That wasn't all. Bane gave Crocodile no chance whatsoever, unleashing a barrage of heavy punches, targeting only his head and ignoring everything else.

Robin outside the door was stunned. This was completely different from what they had agreed on!

Didn't you say you'd come in and exchange pleasantries with Crocodile, then attract his attention while I activated the mechanism to flood the area with seawater, using that method to defeat Crocodile?

Why is it that as soon as I walked in, I saw Bane brutally beating Crocodile?

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

Most importantly, Crocodile, the oldest and one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, who is known as one of the three major powers on the sea, and who has been a ruthless pirate who has been running rampant in Alabasta for more than 20 years, is now being beaten by Bane without any power to fight back!

With each punch Bane landed, the entire office trembled. From the moment he raised his fist, Crocodile's head was already buried in the ground. The only thing that could still be seen was the blood dripping from Bane's knuckles as he raised his fist.

Just as Bane was about to deliver another punch, he paused slightly, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Domineering?"

That's right, Crocodile finally remembered his true name at this moment. He was a great pirate who had roamed the New World, not some second-rate pirate!

He's a man with a commanding presence!

"But it's too late to think about using these powers now!" Bane sneered.

Then his muscles surged, and a surge of energy seemed to climb up from his tailbone, converging in his blood-soaked fist in the blink of an eye.

"Feel the warmth from the giants! Elbaf Power - Deliberate Fist!!!" Bane roared.

As mentioned before, what Bane learned from Dorry and Brogy was not just the Hegemony, but also the combat techniques of Elbaf. Most of these techniques were unusable for him due to his physique. However, he had mastered the techniques for generating power, even though he hadn't learned them!

Whether a nation is a hegemon or a powerful nation, its core lies in the techniques of exerting force.

At this moment, this punch is the same!

The heavy punch, imbued with Haki, slammed down. Crocodile's Armament Haki might be stronger, but it hadn't been used for many years. Faced with this extremely powerful blow, the Haki failed to protect his head.

With a loud bang, the entire banquet hall trembled several times. The guests upstairs thought it was an earthquake and were all in a panic.

(End of this chapter)