Bon Clay had been too cocky. Riding on his Devil Fruit, most of his missions had gone smooth. So when Cobra casually loosened his tongue, Bon Clay happily spilled everything.
"How is this a trap? How did you learn my true identity?" he demanded, suddenly serious. He'd never been caught in the act before.
"That's none of your concern," Oguro said, drawing his zanpakutō.
The objective was simple now: capture Bon Clay and the rest was done.
"I'm Mr. 2, I won't be taken so easily," Bon Clay replied, then sprang into action.
He launched a flashy attack, all power focused into a single explosive kick, announcing it as his okama style. Oguro met it with haki-tinged strength, his blade chopping downward.
The swan ornament on Bon Clay's shoe shattered, and his face went pale. He probably broke his shinbone.
"Don't underestimate me," Bon Clay hissed. He ripped off the ruined swan, strapped its head to his foot and fired another barrage of kicks, each one packing deadly, spring-loaded force.
Oguro wove his sword in a tight defense, blocking every strike. Bon Clay's injured leg slowed him down. Oguro moved in behind him and slashed.
"Quick Slash."
A blade of light cut through the air and into Bon Clay's back. The simple, brutal speed of Oguro's original move did the job. Bon Clay cried out and collapsed, temporarily out of action.
The two Baroque operatives who had been trailing him were already subdued by Vivi and Kousha. With them captured, Vivi at last smiled. Kousha, grim-faced, said he would explain things to the rebels. Now only Crocodile, the mastermind, remained.
They turned to Oguro, because Crocodile was a Warlord, and they were outmatched without help.
Oguro was about to speak when his eyes darted, and he sent his sword through the window. A crescent of blade pressure struck a dark object with a blast. Outside, a vulture flew by carrying an otterpack — an assassin team.
"That's the Doom Pair," Vivi said, recognizing the attackers, "they handle surveillance and executions. They probably saw Bon Clay fall and came to finish him."
Crocodile's ruthlessness showed itself again.
"What should we do with him?" Cobra asked, pointing to Bon Clay on the floor.
"If this attack happened in your kingdom, deal with him yourselves," Oguro shrugged, "but a heads-up: don't execute him. Call the Navy to take him away. You've seen his ability, it can overturn any power structure."
Everyone shivered at the thought. Bon Clay's perfect disguise made him an existential threat in the wrong hands.
"Once this is done, I'll contact the Navy," Vivi decided.
At dawn, Crocodile received the report: the Doom Pair had failed, Mr. 2's plot had collapsed.
"Damn Oguro, he ruined everything," Crocodile said, crumpling the report in frustration. "If that's how it is, we'll just capture Cobra and squeeze him for the location of the Ancient Weapon."
His obsession was the legendary Pluton, said to be able to level entire nations. After being crushed in the New World, Crocodile wanted Pluton for revenge and domination. If he couldn't take Alabasta, Pluton would do.
Meanwhile, Oguro's group had reached the Baroque Works cache where the Dance Powder was stored. The five-thousand-strong royal guard was on alert; the fifty thousand troops in the capital were locked down to prevent any stragglers from using the powder.
Seeing the sacks of Dance Powder made Vivi's face hard.
"Destroy it all," she ordered, "I never want to see this stuff again."
Soldiers dumped the powder into prepared pits and poured corrosive agents in. The mixture sizzled and gave off a foul stench. Suddenly distant rumbling reached them.
A scout raced in, breathless, "Princess, Crocodile is approaching, his advance can't be stopped!"
A massive sandstorm rose on the horizon. In the desert, Crocodile's Sand-Sand Fruit reached terrifying potency.
"Pull your men back," Oguro warned, "natural-type Devil Fruit users aren't something ordinary troops should face. They'll die needlessly."
Vivi didn't hesitate and sounded the retreat. The forward units fell back.
Crocodile ignored the ordinary soldiers and strode straight toward the pit where the powder was being destroyed. Watching his treasure go up in smoke, his eyes twitched. That was money, power, and plans literally being turned to ash.
"Sith Oguro," Crocodile snarled, his scarred face dark with rage. "You keep wrecking my plans and standing in my way, thinking a billion-berry bounty makes you untouchable."
"Untouchable is too strong a word," Oguro said with a mocking smile. "But I am confident I can handle you, a washed-up New World leftover."
Crocodile's fury exploded. "You bastard! I'll drain every drop of water from you, you'll die the slowest, most painful death imaginable!"
***
If you're interested and wish to support me, you can read advanced chapters:
p-atreon.com/Redestro666