After interpreting the Poneglyph's information, Kai didn't immediately leave as Cobra expected.
"Since you've been so cooperative, I should show some appreciation."
Kai's face carried a meaningful smile.
"Huh?" Cobra was completely confused.
Kai didn't explain further but walked straight to that massive Poneglyph.
He bent down, his hands gripping the stone's base.
"Up."
As Kai's arm muscles bulged, that incredibly heavy stone was lifted from the ground through sheer physical strength, then steadily hoisted onto his shoulder.
"Heh, heavier than expected."
Kai casually adjusted the weight on his shoulder as if carrying not a Poneglyph but a bag of cotton.
Thinking about it, Poneglyphs make pretty decent weapons. This is nearly indestructible material—otherwise the World Government would have long since collected and destroyed all Poneglyphs. Using it to hit people would be devastatingly effective.
Gulp—
Cobra watched Kai shoulder the giant stone, eyes nearly popping out as he swallowed hard.
Is this truly power humans can possess?!
"What? Reluctant?"
Kai glanced at him. "I'm doing this for your own good. News of my appearance in Alabasta can't be hidden from the Marines, especially since I came to the royal tomb—they'll definitely interrogate you."
While he'd traveled without seeing a Marine's shadow, that was because Marines didn't dare provoke him. But the Marines wouldn't completely ignore his movements either.
Cobra's body trembled as cold sweat instantly formed on his forehead. He immediately understood Kai's intent.
Right—Kai openly taking the Poneglyph actually helps me immensely. Otherwise, I couldn't tell the Marines that Kai's group came here to pay respects to Alabasta's past kings. That excuse is less believable than saying Kai came for tomb treasure.
"Publicly, just say we threatened your daughter's life to force you to guide us."
Kai smiled indifferently, unconcerned about this accusation about to be thrown at him.
Cobra looked at his bewildered daughter Vivi beside him, then at Kai, eyes full of shock.
You calculated even this? Lord Kai is truly formidable!
"In that case—that letter absolutely cannot remain."
Cobra's expression became solemn as he silently made his decision. Compared to a possible catastrophic disaster, his ancestor's secret letter must be sacrificed.
Thus, Kai shouldered the heavy Poneglyph, turned with stable steps, and led the way out of the royal tomb.
Just stepping outside, Kozuki Hiyori and the others' expressions collectively changed.
Ten figures. All radiating killing intent.
The leading man wore a fur coat, cigar clamped in his mouth, a scar crossing his face horizontally, his left hand's signature golden hook glinting coldly in sunlight.
None other than Warlord of the Sea, "Desert Crocodile" Crocodile!
"Yo, isn't this Old Sand? How ya doing?"
Kai greeted casually as usual. He couldn't take the situation seriously. Crocodile had long since lost his former courage, his Haki all but forgotten, his strength now relying solely on the Sand-Sand Fruit.
To put it bluntly, the current Crocodile couldn't last more than a few moves against Ace in a direct fight.
Crocodile obviously had no interest in pleasantries. His gaze locked onto the Poneglyph on Kai's shoulder, brows deeply furrowed.
As expected, the worst situation has occurred! This bastard truly obtained Pluton's clues!
Should I intercept?
The question flashed through Crocodile's mind. This wasn't a choice at all. That was the dream he'd pursued half his life—the power that could place him at the world's pinnacle!
"Huff~"
Crocodile deeply inhaled his cigar, letting the harsh smoke circulate through his lungs before slowly exhaling.
He raised his sinister eyes, voice hoarse and threatening. "Natural Disaster Kai, put down the Poneglyph. I can pretend I never saw you and let you leave."
Huh? His ears weren't mistaken, right?
Kai's face instantly showed a bizarre expression as he turned, exchanging glances with equally bemused companions behind him.
The next second—
"Hahaha—"
Uncontrollable laughter suddenly echoed through the tomb entrance.
Kai even covered his stomach with one hand, bending over with laughter, the Poneglyph on his shoulder trembling slightly.
Even the usually serious Kuma couldn't control the corners of his mouth twitching upward.
Though "Warlord of the Sea" carried extreme weight for ordinary pirates or even nations, for the Beast Pirates—no, for Rayquaza's crew—they were nobodies.
Another Warlord, "Heavenly Yaksha" Doflamingo, was currently diligently earning money for the Beast Pirates!
"A bunch of bastards!"
"How dare you mock our boss!"
Behind Crocodile, Baroque Works officers all showed righteous indignation, burning with fury. Their pride demanded action—they had to make this arrogant group pay dearly.
However, unexpectedly, their usually proud, cruel boss now stopped them.
"So—negotiations have completely broken down." Crocodile's eyes flashed with extremely dangerous light.
"What else?"
Kai chuckled, his tone carrying undisguised mockery. "Even if I'm merciful enough to give you this stone, can you understand what's written on it?"
"That doesn't concern you."
Crocodile bit down hard on his cigar, left hand's golden hook swinging. "Attack!"
The officers behind him, like desert hyenas smelling blood, instantly swarmed forward.
"Tsk tsk, blinded by desire?"
Kai's mouth curved upward as he calmly turned, exposing his defenseless back to the enemies while casually ordering, "Play with them."
How many of these people ultimately survived depended on their own luck.
Kozuki Hiyori, Violet, and others exchanged glances, charging to meet the oncoming Baroque Works officers.
Almost simultaneously, Crocodile's right hand swung violently.
"Desert Spada!"
A massive sand blade formed from rapidly vibrating sand suddenly burst from underground like a lurking viper, aimed at Kai's back.
Kai neither dodged nor evaded—someone would block it.
"Thunder Bagua!"
With a clear shout, the lightning-wrapped kanabo suddenly swept horizontally, intercepting the sand blade's path.
The sharp sand blade capable of easily cutting through ground was forcibly blocked midway, stopped dead in its tracks.
Yamato's face lit up with battle-hungry excitement as her right foot stomped down powerfully, driving the kanabo forward along the sand blade's trajectory.
In her wake, the supposedly invincible sand blade was like butter before a hot knife.
"What?!"
Crocodile watched Yamato easily break his technique and charge toward him, his heart suddenly sinking.
So easily destroying my move?
Humiliation flooded through him immediately.
Who was Yamato? Kaido's daughter, that's who.
Couldn't I even defeat her?
I'm a man who once challenged Whitebeard!
"Desert La Spada!"
Enraged, Crocodile's right hand suddenly turned to sand and expanded rapidly, instantly becoming two massive sand blades infused with his rage, viciously slashing at Yamato!
"Bring it on!"
Yamato's delighted shout rang out. Finally, a decent opponent!
"Namuji Glacier!"
The bone-chilling frost-wrapped kanabo carved a cold arc, boldly meeting the two sand blades.
Boom!
The instant the kanabo and sand blades collided, accumulated frost explosively released!
Wrapping the sand blades at speeds barely visible to the naked eye, the bone-chilling cold current, like a white tide, instantly swept up, completely freezing the sand blades.
Those ice-sealed sand blades lost all momentum and sharpness, and were easily shattered by the following kanabo.
The kanabo's momentum continued unabated, heading straight for Crocodile's face.
Crocodile's eyes suddenly sharpened. Just as the kanabo was about to strike, faint darkness instantly covered his right arm.
Simultaneously, the left hand's golden hook, like a scorpion's tail, silently stabbed toward Yamato.
"Oh? Still has some Haki in him?"
Kai, watching from a distance with interest, raised his eyebrows. Though very thin, it was definitely Armament Haki.
Was Crocodile about to reclaim his former ambition and regain his strength mid-battle? Wouldn't that make him the protagonist?
Simultaneously—
Bang!
A figure in a fur coat was struck solidly by the kanabo, flying backward like a kite with its string cut, tracing an arc in midair as blood sprayed faintly from the impact.
Yamato stood in place, touching her right arm as the Armament Haki faded, her face showing slight confusion. "Such a weak attack."
She couldn't understand why Crocodile would rather take her strike head-on just to use a completely unthreatening hook for a sneak attack.
Kai, who had watched the entire exchange, couldn't help but shout in Crocodile's direction. "Hey! Sand Crocodile, you've really hit rock bottom! Resorting to dirty tricks like poison hooks already?"
"You don't think this makes you 'clever,' right? No way! No way?!"
"Pfft!"
The already injured and bleeding Crocodile, stung by these words, felt his throat tighten and spat out another mouthful of blood.
He tried to prop himself up with his left hand, but his gaze unconsciously fell on that golden poison hook he'd once displayed so proudly, which now seemed pathetically ironic.
Rage suddenly flared within him. When did I start depending on such things!
Snap!
He ripped off the poison hook, revealing his perfectly intact left hand underneath.
"I'm getting serious now."
Crocodile wiped the blood from his mouth, his eyes becoming fiercer and more focused than ever.
He plunged both hands violently into the ground.
"Ground Death!"
With his hands as the center, the surrounding ground rapidly and visibly lost moisture, cracking and turning to sand. Moreover, the range kept expanding!
At this moment, he couldn't worry about those officers struggling against Kai's crew members. If he lost here, everything would be finished!
After artificially creating a small desert, the ground centered on Yamato suddenly began twisting and sinking, forming a massive quicksand vortex, its powerful suction trying to swallow her!
Yamato frowned slightly, her knees bending, preparing to leap and escape.
Waiting for you.
Crocodile's mouth curved into a vicious grin, confidence surging.
A massive sandstorm suddenly erupted around Yamato, crashing down like a crushing yellow wave, instantly engulfing her in endless quicksand!
This wasn't over.
"Desert Grande Spada!"
With Crocodile's hoarse roar, a massive blade formed from extremely compressed sand suddenly tore through Yamato's location!
This spectacular scene instantly attracted everyone's attention on the battlefield!
Kozuki Hiyori, Robin, and the others' hearts jumped to their throats, their faces filled with worry, fearing Yamato would suffer under such fierce attacks.
While Baroque Works' surviving officers' eyes burst with wild joy!
That's our boss—taking out their ace in one move!
Kai thought: You're celebrating too early.
Crocodile's combo looked impressive but couldn't bridge the massive strength gap.
As expected, the next second, Yamato's energetic voice came from inside the sand prison.
"Hah!"
The seemingly impregnable sand prison shattered like paper as brutal force from within punched through, revealing a perfectly unharmed Yamato.
Around her, frost radiated outward continuously, freezing the approaching sand.
Yamato leaped lightly, escaping the quicksand vortex, then created a small platform in mid-air. She stomped down and shot like an arrow straight at Crocodile.
"Thunder Bagua!"
Crimson-black lightning wrapped around the kanabo, striking viciously at Crocodile.
Not good! It's Conqueror's coating!
Crocodile's pupils contracted sharply. Without thinking to block, his body instinctively turned elemental.
Boom!
In the kanabo's wake, yellow sand exploded outward. Crocodile's body, transformed to sand, was completely scattered by the strike's impact.
Yamato lightly landed, planting her kanabo in the ground, her hand shading her eyes like a hunter seeking prey, scanning her surroundings with interest.
"What? He already fled?"
After waiting a few moments with no sign of Crocodile reappearing, she couldn't help pouting, her face showing disappointment. "So boring, no warrior spirit at all."
Nearby, Kai shook his head with amusement. "After so many comfortable years, where's his warrior spirit?"
The pirate world was like this—playing too many easy games made you soft.
Don't be fooled by how Crocodile always shouted about obtaining Pluton to get revenge against Whitebeard and reach the world's pinnacle. His fighting spirit had long been eroded by years of scheming.
People can easily deceive others but have difficulty deceiving themselves. No matter how sincere the words, the heart knows the truth.
In the distance, beneath seemingly calm sand dunes, Crocodile, who heard their conversation clearly, clenched his fists tightly, his eyes sinister.
Humiliation. Unprecedented humiliation.
But this humiliation wasn't from losing to Yamato—it was because in that moment, the first and clearest thought that had flashed through his mind was—flee!
Can't even beat Kaido's daughter, much less Kai.
His remaining rationality frantically reminded him: Run! Must run! While I still have a chance, run as far as possible! As long as Kai's group leaves, I still have an opportunity for a comeback!
This thought, like a desert viper, coiled around his heart, cold yet tempting.
But—
I'm Sand Crocodile!