"You know the whereabouts of Pluton?!!"
Crocodile recovered quickly, his eyes locked onto Roy with deadly intensity.
Roy's sudden appearance had stunned all four people in the room—it was too abrupt.
"Finally, we meet… Monkey D. Luffy." Roy turned his gaze to the bloodied and battered young man.
"Old man, who are you?" Luffy panted, still catching his breath.
"I'm looking for a companion, but I lost the trail halfway and had no choice but to come find you," Roy replied.
"You're looking for your companion? Who is it? I still gotta beat this guy first, old man. Talk later!" Luffy said, already refocusing on Crocodile.
"Warlord of the Sea, Crocodile… Seems like you don't remember me." Roy glanced, turning to Crocodile.
"Who the hell are you?" Crocodile couldn't recall where he had seen Roy before.
"But that Doesn't matter. Since you know Pluton's location, spit it out—now."
In a flash, Crocodile lunged, appearing behind Roy. His missing golden hook had been replaced with a venomous dagger.
"Old man, watch out!" Luffy shouted.
"So disobedient."
Roy reached out his hand, and everyone saw Crocodile caught in his grasp. Then—
"Boom!"
The crocodile was slammed hard into the ground, blood streaming from its head, lying there motionless.
The other three opened their eyes wide in shock. One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Crocodile, had been taken down just like that?
Luffy, who had fought Crocodile firsthand, knew just how strong the man was. What he saw now was nothing short of overwhelming.
He could tell, from instinct, that Roy was the most terrifying person he had ever met.
"Oops... used a bit too much strength… Looks like the place is about to collapse." Roy looked up. The underground chamber had already been badly damaged from the battle, and with just a little more force, it began to cave in.
"You still got any strength left? Punch us a way out, or we're all getting buried." Roy said to Luffy.
"Old man… just who are you?" Luffy asked again.
"Me? I'm Ace's companion. I came to bring him home," Roy said with a smile.
"So you're Ace's companion, huh?" Luffy's face immediately lit up with a smile.
"Yeah, I'm looking for him." Roy nodded.
"Gotta break through, or we're toast!"
Luffy leapt into the air, fists clenched, and he attacked the wall.
"Gomu Gomu no… GATLING GUN!!!"
The chamber shook violently as Luffy's barrage tore through the walls. With the ruins collapsing around them, escape was their only option.
Luffy managed to blast an exit, but the effort drained him completely. Still, he dragged Cobra and Robin to safety. Roy, meanwhile, casually tossed Crocodile's unconscious body out before stepping through.
"Old man…!" Luffy gave Roy one last grin before passing out.
Outside, the rain had finally come, halting the war. Roy could hear Vivi's desperate cries and the approaching footsteps of the Straw Hat crew.
"What are you doing?" Cobra eyed Robin warily.
"What are you trying to do?" Cobra looked warily at Robin.
"He was poisoned by a scorpion. I have the antidote," Robin said, forcing herself up and pouring it into Luffy's mouth.
"Where did he put it…?"
Roy checked Luffy's belongings but found no Vivre Card. He remembered, Luffy kept Ace's Vivre Card inside his hat. But the straw hat was nowhere to be seen.
"You know Pluton's location?" Robin turned to Roy.
"I do."
"And the Poneglyphs?"
"I know part of it."
"How can I learn the whole history?"
"Keep walking your path. You'll find out."
Robin studied him for a long moment before clutching her injured stomach and limping away.
Cobra carried Luffy away, while Roy remained behind, looking troubled. He didn't expect Luffy to lose his straw hat. If he couldn't find Ace's vivre card, he'd have to head to Jaya Island early, kill Teach, and bring Ace back.
"Crocodile is over here."
Marines arrived, led by Tashigi. Spotting the unconscious Warlord—and Roy—she approached cautiously.
"Sir, did you see what happened here?"
"I saw a boy in a straw hat defeat him," Roy said smoothly.
"As expected, Straw Hat Luffy…" Tashigi didn't overthink it. Roy didn't seem like a wanted man. Judging by his clothes, she assumed he was a citizen of Alabasta.
"Dad!"
Loxus arrived, leading the camel and waving.
"That guy…" Tashigi frowned, recognizing something familiar about Loxus. But her priority was securing Crocodile.
"Dad, why are you talking to Marines? And that guy they dragged away—was that…?"
"Yeah. Warlord Crocodile."
"Huh. No wonder he looked familiar. Did you find the Vivre Card?"
"No."
"So what now?"
"Either we wait three days, or head out to sea right now to keep searching for Ace."
"Will three days be enough?"
"Yes, we should be able to find it by then."
"Then let's wait three days."
"Alright."
Three days later, the Straw Hat crew prepared to depart with a new member in tow.
"Congratulations on your new crewmate."
Robin had already charmed everyone except Zoro. The sudden voice made Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji jump into defensive stances.
"You're…" Luffy squinted, struggling to recall.
"Captain, you forgot? It's the man from Alabasta. Fire Fist Ace's crewmate," Robin explained calmly.
"Oh! Right! You're Ace's friend!" Luffy beamed.
"Ace's crewmate… Then that means…" Sanji muttered.
"Whitebeard Pirates," Zoro finished grimly.
"Ace's crewmate? What do you want?" Nami relaxed slightly—if they weren't enemies, that was good.
"We're looking for our captain. Do you know where he is?" Loxus asked.
"You're Ace's subordinate? Cool! I'm Luffy!"
"I'm Loxus, a Second Division member of the Whitebeard Pirates. This is my father, Vice Captain Roy."
"VICE CAPTAIN?!"
"The Whitebeard Pirates have a vice captain?"
"I've never heard of a vice captain in the Whitebeard crew."
Sanji, Zoro, and Robin all said at the same time.
"Newgate just made it up. Ace disobeyed the captain's orders and left the Whitebeard Pirates on his own. I came to bring him back. But my dumb son lost Ace's vivre card, so we had to come find you. You should still have a piece of it—can you give me a small part?"
...
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