Tomioka had quietly appeared on the palace roof; he had finally arrived.
At this moment, only a few figures remained in the palace courtyard; the rest of the Royal Army had already rushed to the South Gate.
The woman known as Ms. All Sunday leaned against a pillar.
In front of her was Crocodile, whom he had met once on the streets of Alabasta.
And Alabasta's King Cobra was now pinned to the wall, his clothes pierced by several crude iron hooks.
"Pluton."
Crocodile's voice, full of oppression, echoed through the empty courtyard, "Where is it?"
Cobra, his face pale, heard the name but still gritted his teeth: "What are you talking about... I don't know."
"Pluton, it is the world's most fearsome ancient weapon, named after a god..."
Crocodile slowly stepped forward, carefully observing every subtle change in Cobra's expression, a cold sneer playing on his lips.
"I know, Cobra. It's hidden somewhere in this country. Your expression has told me I'm in the right place."
Just then, a sharp cry came from the sky.
A huge shadow rapidly swooped down; it was a falcon wearing special attire!
"Your Majesty!!!"
Pell's voice was filled with urgency and anger. Cobra saw him coming, a glimmer of hope in his eyes, followed by a deeper worry on his face: "Pell! Don't come here!"
Pell's sharp gaze locked onto Crocodile. "Crocodile!!!!"
He roared with fury, his talons gleaming coldly, as he swooped down from the sky.
Robin, standing nearby, subconsciously raised her hand, seemingly wanting to do something, but Crocodile stopped her with a casual gesture.
He even leisurely spread his arms, as if welcoming Pell's attack, an undisguised mockery on his face.
"Flying Claw!"
Pell's speed was so fast that he left only an afterimage in the air. His sharp talons, carrying the momentum to tear everything apart, directly struck Crocodile's chest.
However, the anticipated scene did not occur.
The moment the talons touched his body, Crocodile's entire body exploded, but it only turned into a sky full of flying yellow sand!
"What!?"
Pell's attack missed, but he quickly adjusted his mindset; his primary goal now was to save the King.
He glided without hesitation, landing beside Cobra, and began to destroy the iron hooks.
"So, it was to save His Majesty the King."
The scattered sand quickly reassembled nearby, forming Crocodile's intact figure. His tone was sarcastic: "Such good feelings, between King and subject."
He lightly raised his hand, gesturing to Robin.
Robin looked at Pell, crossed her hands in front of her chest, and softly chanted: "Tres Fleur."
In an instant, three pale arms grew out of thin air on Pell's muscular body. Like flexible vines, they wrapped around his arms and neck, a specific restraint that made it difficult for him to exert force.
"Wh-what?!"
Pell struggled in shock, but felt his strength rapidly draining away. Under the lock of these arms, his movements became sluggish.
Is that woman also a Devil Fruit user?
"Seis Fleur: Clutch."
Robin's voice sounded again, and three more pairs of arms appeared out of thin air. Two pairs tightly locked Pell's upper body, pulling him backward, while another pair firmly gripped his legs.
"Ugh!"
In just an instant, Pell completely lost his balance, was thoroughly subdued by Robin's combined joint technique, and fell heavily to the ground, finding it difficult to even maintain his animal form.
"Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha!"
Crocodile looked at Pell, who was instantly defeated, and let out a wild laugh, "Zoan type, it seems you haven't developed it very well yet, kid."
Cobra stared blankly at Pell, who lay on the ground unable to move for a while, a hint of despair already in his eyes.
Just a moment... one of the kingdom's strongest protectors, so easily... Is this the Shichibukai? Is this the power of Baroque Works?
"Cobra, it seems your loyal subordinate can't save you, what a pity."
"So now, can you tell me where Pluton is?"
Cobra closed his eyes, as if all his strength had been exhausted, but when he opened them again, his gaze was still firm, and he slowly shook his head.
He knew that no matter the situation before him, he could not reveal this secret, even if the cost was death. He could not let this secret fall into the hands of a pirate; this was the mission of his Nefertari family.
"I don't know where you heard it from? But this country truly has no such thing. As King, I have never heard of any ancient weapon."
Crocodile's eyes were cold. He had guessed this answer and looked towards the square of Alabasta: "Is that so..."
"Crocodile!!!!!"
A furious roar exploded from the front of the palace!
Tomioka's gaze in the shadows sharpened, following the sound. It was Luffy.
Tomioka's hand rested on the hilt of his nichirin blade. Although Ms. All Sunday was still clearly on Crocodile's side, Luffy had arrived now.
He could no longer wait; he had to seize the opportunity to directly resolve the country's greatest crisis.
Crocodile looked up at the persistent Straw Hat, a hint of surprise appearing on his face for the first time:
"Straw Hat? So you're not dead."
"Of course not! I'm..."
Luffy pulled down his Mugiwara, "...the man who's going to be the Pirate King!"
Immediately after, he lunged forward towards Crocodile, his arm extending to its maximum length!
"Gomu Gomu no Gatling!"
In an instant, countless fist shadows poured down like a storm, densely engulfing Crocodile!
Bang, bang, bang, bang!
A continuous barrage of blows sounded, and dust flew everywhere.
However, all of Luffy's attacks only caused Crocodile's figure to constantly scatter and reassemble within the fist shadows, turning into sand and immediately reforming. His face always bore that infuriating smile.
"Hey, hey, hey, why are you all doing such useless things?"
When the punches finally stopped, Crocodile once again displayed his unharmed body.
Luffy panted, looking at Crocodile, who could turn into sand, and showed a troubled expression: "It's a bit of a headache... just like the smokey guy."
Now!
From the shadows, Tomioka moved.
"Water Breathing, Eighth Form: Waterfall Basin!"
He leaped out, his nichirin blade tracing a deep blue arc in the air.