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"Hey, Luffy!"
"Vivi! And the duck too!"
Not long after Luffy left the restaurant, Vivi caught up to him.
"Luffy, hop on! I know where Crocodile is right now!"
"OH!!! Then I'm counting on you, Vivi! And you too, duck!"
The Poneglyph
The Poneglyphs were indestructible stone tablets created by the ancestors of the Kozuki Clan during the Void Century.
And deep beneath the royal palace of Alabasta, in the Royal Mausoleum to the west, one of these Poneglyphs was kept.
It supposedly contains information about the location of an Ancient Weapon—Pluton.
Crocodile had only learned of this a few days ago.
Originally, he planned to come here only after launching his ideal utopia plan.
But because of Vivi and the arrival of Straw Hat Luffy, that plan had completely fallen apart before it even began.
Still, Crocodile didn't care anymore.
He grabbed Robin and brought her here—to the royal family's tomb.
"Robin, you know as well as I do—stalling won't help you."
Underground, in front of the Poneglyph, Crocodile was smoking a cigar. His expression was calm, his tone flat and emotionless.
But Robin could feel it clearly—that icy calm was covering up a rage like a storm underneath.
"Don't push me, Nico Robin. You won't like what happens."
Robin glanced to the side.
Mr. 2 was lying flat on the ground, unconscious—or maybe worse.
Crocodile had sucked all the moisture from his body. He looked like a dried-out husk.
But Robin… wasn't afraid. Not even a little.
She knew that whether this Poneglyph contained info about Pluton or not…
Whether she told the truth or lied…
Once she was done reading it—Crocodile was going to kill her anyway.
But Robin had stopped fearing death a long time ago.
She had lost her homeland and her family when she was just eight years old—
And she had lost her friend, Saul, who had given his life to protect her.
"Robin, remember—out on that ocean, no one stays alone forever!"
"Go to sea, Robin."
"You might be all alone now—but someday, out on that wide ocean…"
"You'll find people who will protect you!"
Those were Saul's last words to her.
"...Sorry, Saul."
Thinking back on everything she'd been through all these years, Robin whispered:
"I think I let you down… I still haven't found anyone."
She didn't know why, but just then, two faces popped into her mind—
One wore a straw hat.
The other… a long robe.
If it were them...
But Robin quickly shook her head, brushing away the images in her mind.
She focused on the Poneglyph in front of her again.
As a scholar, nothing gave her more satisfaction than deciphering these ancient writings.
But this might be her last time.
After all those years of hiding and running… Robin was finally just tired.
Feeling Crocodile's cold gaze on her back, Robin made her decision.
She opened her mouth slowly and began reading:
"Year 239 of the Sea Calendar… Kacira conquers Alabasta..."
"Year 260… Teima rules over the Bitine Dynasty..."
"Year 306… Eruma builds the Tavor Cathedral..."
"Year 325..."
"That's ENOUGH!!!"
Crocodile's furious voice echoed through the mausoleum.
"Nico Robin. I told you—DON'T test my patience."
His right hand clenched tightly, all four of his rings gleaming, like he was doing everything he could to stay in control.
"I don't care about this country's damn history. I only want to know—"
"Where the hell is Pluton, the Ancient Weapon hidden in this land!!!"
"Translate that for me. That's all I need!"
But before he could finish, Robin calmly looked him in the eyes and said:
"It's not here."
"This Poneglyph only records this country's history."
"There's no mention of Pluton at all."
Crocodile fell silent.
He stared hard at Robin, like he was trying to read her thoughts through her eyes.
But she didn't flinch, staring right back at him without fear.
"...Heh. Heh heh… HAHAHAHAHA!!!"
Crocodile suddenly burst into laughter.
He had endured years of patience just for this.
He'd even put his own strength on the back burner for this goal.
And now? This?
He suddenly realized—he looked like a damn clown.
After a while, he finally spoke again.
"So that's how it is? Well… what a damn shame."
Then—his body turned into a swirl of sand, and he instantly appeared right in front of Robin.
Her pupils shrank in shock, and she started to move—
But Crocodile grabbed her by the neck before she could react.
"Too bad… but I'm going to kill you now, Nico Robin."
"Remember our deal?"
"I bring you to the Poneglyph, and you tell me where Pluton is."
His grip tightened. Robin started to struggle.
"Whether you lied or not..."
"You're useless to me now."
Suddenly—Robin whipped out a small glass vial and smashed it toward Crocodile's head.
It was filled with water—something she had prepared in advance.
After working with him for so long, she knew.
Water—was Crocodile's greatest weakness.
If she could soak him, even a normal blade could hurt him.
But just as she reached for the dagger hidden on her body, her face changed drastically.
The vial didn't break.
Right before it hit his head, a sand-formed arm stretched out from behind Crocodile—
And caught the vial in midair.
Crack!
He crushed it, spilling the water uselessly onto the floor.
Crocodile let out a cold, terrifying laugh:
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!!"
"What the hell did I do to make you misunderstand me so badly?"
His tone was calm—but his face was twisted with rage, like he'd been deeply insulted.
BAM!!!
Robin was hurled across the room and slammed hard into the Poneglyph.
"You really thought THAT was enough to kill me?!! Just a little water?!"
For some reason…
That one move Robin made—
It hurt Crocodile more than the time Whitebeard cut off his left hand.
"You really think I'm some nobody?!!"
The sand roared—
And in an instant, it formed a massive arm.
Robin was being crushed in the grip of that giant sand arm.
Crocodile's voice boomed again:
"I'm Crocodile, dammit!!!"
His face twisted into something even scarier as he stared at the struggling, pain-stricken Robin.
"This is the end for you, Nico Robin!"
The sand arm squeezed tighter and tighter—Robin was slowly suffocating.
...Am I gonna die?
For some reason, that thought just popped into Robin's head.
What a shame... I won't get to see more of the true history.
That was her last thought.
BOOM!!!
Right then, a loud explosion blasted from the top of the tomb. A huge hole was blown open in the ceiling.
Barely conscious, Robin looked up.
Scorching sunlight poured in from above...
A shadowy figure stood against the blinding light—Descending from the sky.
THUD!!!
Luffy landed hard, one hand holding down his straw hat.
The gust of wind from his arrival swirled around him like it was welcoming royalty.
He looked up at Crocodile and Robin, a slight grin forming on his face as he said softly:
"Finally found you two."
"....."