One Piece: Blue Scale Admiral

Vivi wanted to run away, but Sotok's movements were too fast in his anger, and a small girl couldn't escape at all.

In Sotok's arms, the desert dancer he had captured had her hands clasped together.

Not far behind, on the street, a young man with freckles on his face flickered a spark from his fingertips.

Hundreds of pirates wore sinister grins.

The chaotic crowd on the long street looked on with pity.

call!

Just as the cold, deadly blade was about to slice through the girl's skin, a violent gust of wind suddenly swept across the street.

The ground beneath Sotok and Vivi's feet rapidly turned to sand, with wisps of yellow sand swirling upwards, flying past the girl's ears, and transforming into a giant hand of yellow sand that firmly grasped the axe blade that Sotok was slashing down.

Then, a deep, resonant voice echoed down the street.

"Hey, pirate, what do you want to do to the country I'm protecting?"

"who!"

Sotok looked up abruptly and saw a tall man in the middle of the street in front of him, wearing a black cloak, a cigar in his mouth, and a golden hook on his left hand. He stretched out his right hand and blocked the little girl's upturned face, catching the axe that was about to strike with one hand.

"You actually managed to grip the sharp axe blade with one hand! Who are you?!"

Sotok's expression turned serious.

He was fully aware that he hadn't held back just now, intending to kill Weiwei with a single axe blow.

But this man appeared out of nowhere, grabbing the axe he was about to strike with.

He tried to pull out the axe, but to no avail; the other man's fingers were like steel clamps, firmly gripping the blade of the giant axe.

"Crocodale!"

Suddenly, the residents on the street shouted excitedly.

"The national hero of Alabasta, the guardian of this desert land, the great Shichibukai Crocodile has arrived! We are saved!"

The residents, who were initially panicked and fearful, calmed down the moment Crocodile appeared. With admiration and surprise on their faces, they came out of their houses and gathered around Crocodile.

“You…” Sotok’s face turned ugly.

He shoved the desert woman away from his arms, gripped his axe with both hands, and strained his arm muscles as he tried to pull it out.

He gritted his teeth and exerted his strength, pushing off the ground with both feet.

But the axe seemed to be glued to Crocodile's right hand, remaining completely still.

"He is Mr. Crocodile, the guardian of Alabasta."

Vivi's beautiful eyes flickered slightly as she looked up at the tall man who had suddenly appeared, her cute little face upturned in a daze.

The other person had a horizontal scar that divided their face, but it didn't look ferocious at all; instead, it gave people a strange sense of security.

"Captain Sotok!"

"Attack together! Kill him!"

The pirates behind him drew their swords and charged towards Crocodile.

Crocodile remained calm and first looked down at Vivi, who was looking at him, and smiled gently. "Little girl, please hide in a safe place. I need to deal with these despicable pirates first."

"Okay... okay!"

Weiwei blushed and quickly ran to her companion.

Then, Crocodile exhaled a puff of smoke into Sotok's face, his eyes turning cold as he said in an icy tone, "Alabasta is the country I, Crocodile, protect. This is my homeland, and I will not allow anyone to run wild here!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than sharp swords and spears came slashing from all directions, cutting directly into his body and piercing through his torso.

Another pirate raised his flintlock pistol and fired at him.

Gunshots rang out along the long street, and several large holes appeared in Crocodile's tall body.

The left side of his head was pierced by a spinning bullet and blown to pieces.

“Mr. Crocodile!” Vivi couldn’t help but exclaim.

"Hahaha! Serves you right for being so arrogant and cocky! You damned Shichibukai!"

The pirates burst into laughter.

But Sotok couldn't laugh.

His face turned pale, and cold sweat poured down his forehead.

Because in front of him, Crocodile, pierced by bullets and cut by swords, still stood indifferently.

The large hole exposed in his shattered body contained not bloody flesh, but thick sand.

Strands of flying sand flowed back from beside his blown-out left eye, gradually piecing together half of his head.

"Logia type...Devil Fruit user!" Sotock's mind went blank, and he was about to beg for mercy.

But in the next instant, Crocodile moved, his right arm sweeping outwards in a circle. Strands of yellow sand flew from his arm, forming a crescent-shaped blade that stretched for more than ten meters, instantly passing through the dozens of pirates crowded around him!

"Crescent-shaped dunes!"

Crocodile let out a low growl.

Wherever the crescent-shaped sand dune in his hand passed, pirates screamed in terror.

Amidst the excited and admiring gazes of countless residents, the pirates who were arrogant and fierce just a moment ago rapidly withered and turned into desiccated corpses, collapsing one after another.

The same goes for Sotock, whose bounty is as high as 5500 million peles.

His once tall and strong body was quickly drained of moisture, and in the blink of an eye, he became a skeletal, emaciated man who knelt down in front of Crocodile with a thud.

Without the support of muscles, the neck droops down.

Crocodile's right-hand arcing sand blade didn't stop, grazing Sotok's skinny neck once more.

Click!

A skull-like head flew high into the air and rolled onto the street.

At this moment, Crocodile, draped in a black cloak, was surrounded by billowing yellow sand. He was tall and exuded a calm and imposing aura.

He took the cigar out of his mouth, looked up and smiled at the crowded residents on the street.

"Don't be afraid, everyone. As long as I, Crocodile, am here, no pirate will be able to run rampant in the Rain Oasis or the Alabasta Kingdom!"

"Whoa whoa whoa! Long live Mr. Crocodile!"

"So reliable, Mr. Crocodile!"

The residents were moved to tears and chanted Crocodile's name.

The crowd surged forward like a tide, surrounding Crocodile and flanking him like stars around the moon.

Someone brought him fresh fruit as a token of their gratitude.

Crocodile had a smile on his face throughout, nodding to the crowd from time to time.

In the distance behind them, the freckled youth watched this scene with a look of surprise.

"I never expected that Crocodile would be so unlike other pirates, who are so cruel. Instead, he is a protector who loves his people like his own children."

The desert woman, who had been captured by Sotok, also lowered her clasped hands and stood silently to the side, watching Crocodile being surrounded by the joyful crowd.

At the street corner, Weiwei handed a few apples she had picked up from the ground to her companion. She also turned to look at this scene, and a touching smile appeared on her little face.

“Look, although Alabasta has suffered from drought year after year and has encountered unprecedented difficulties, there are still people silently protecting this country. Crocodile, the guardian of the desert, when will I be able to protect this country like him…”

.

.

.

After the excited crowd dispersed, Crocodile, still with a gentle smile, followed the desert woman into the rain-soaked casino, carrying a large pile of apples and bread.

The smile vanished instantly as he stepped into the casino, replaced by a cold expression.

He impatiently tossed the apples and bread he was holding into the trash can in the corner.

Following the woman in front, Crocodile entered the room at the end of the passage, sat on the leather sofa behind the table, lit another cigar, and began to puff away.

"Nicole Robin, how's the preparation for the new batch of dance fans going?"

As he casually spoke, he was about to pick up the red wine on the table when the woman standing next to him reached out and took it from him, pouring him a glass of blood-red wine.

Watching Crocodile take a sip of red wine, Robin smiled and said softly, "It's all ready and on its way. It's being transported by a rookie pirate crew that just came from the Four Seas, to ensure it won't attract the attention of anyone with ulterior motives."

“Excellent! Once the dancing powder arrives, we can officially begin Operation Utopia. Have Mr. 2 get to the capital as soon as possible and imitate Cobra’s appearance.”

Crocodile put down his glass with satisfaction.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Robin immediately went to the door, looked outside, and then opened the door.

"Miss-all Sunday, with the latest newspaper from the World News Agency. Up...up there..."

The newcomer's face showed an undisguised panic, which made Robin frown slightly.

"You go down."

Robin took the newspaper, closed the door again, and then turned to Crocodile, who was sitting behind the table.

Her eyes swept across the newspaper, glancing at the news about Rorschach, before her pupils contracted sharply when she saw the list of the dead in the corner.

"Has anything major happened recently? Has the conflict between the Four Emperors in the New World come to a conclusion...?"

Crocodile had a large cigar dangling from his mouth, slowly swirling the red wine in his glass with his right hand, and taking the newspaper Robin handed him with his left.

When he finally saw the full contents of the newspaper, the smile on his face gradually froze.

Clap!

With a crisp sound of shattering glass, the wine glass in his right hand was crushed by his fingers.

Crocodile's eyes were bloodshot, and he clenched the newspaper in his hand tightly.

An angry growl erupted from his throat, causing Robin, who was standing next to him, to tremble slightly.

"Mr. 1! He's dead!"