Chapter 81Crocodile took an hourglass from his person and tossed it next to Luffy, his voice carrying a condescending sneer: "I'll give you three minutes. If it takes longer than that, I don't have the patience to play with you."Before the words even faded, Luffy threw a punch.Chapter 109: How is it possible that you know Haki?!"Utterly foolish."Crocodile sneered, "Let me give you a piece of advice, Straw Hat. I am a Devil Fruit User, a sand human. Your attacks can never harm me, no matter what. You and I are simply on different levels as pirates!"Swish, swish, swish...His arm turned into sand, and at the same time, he made a throwing motion. The arm, transformed into a sand blade, shot out an attack and then grew larger.A slash resembling purple lightning flew rapidly toward him.A flash of red light flickered in Luffy's pupils. He walked forward slowly, tilted his head, and dodged the slash:"Too slow."Crocodile's expression grew even gloomier.The power of a Devil Fruit can be constantly evolved into powerful combat styles depending on the method of use and level of training.This is what is known as Devil Fruit development.Crocodile was different from those idiots who just used their abilities simply. He utilized the properties of the Sand-Sand Fruit to develop various techniques.However..."Your development of the Gum-Gum Fruit seems pretty good too."The previous perception and the current dodging were both very impressive.Was it a type of ability developed for the Gum-Gum Fruit? Crocodile subconsciously thought in this direction, even though there was another, simpler possibility that fit better.An ability he also possessed.Observation Haki!"It's not just pretty good, it's incredibly impressive. Can you stop being so stubborn?"Whenever the development of a Devil Fruit was mentioned, Luffy clearly got agitated.Do you know how I got through all of this?It's one thing to develop a Devil Fruit during the day, but having to continue developing it in your dreams at night?Compared to his various Gear Second and Third Gear, Crocodile's fruit ability didn't seem like much to him."You don't look like anything special either.""You reckless brat."One sentence from Luffy completely infuriated Crocodile. His body completely turned to sand, and he rushed toward Luffy like a sandstorm."You don't understand a damn thing about the nobility of a Logia! Physical attacks are useless against me."Facing the surging sandstorm, Luffy appeared exceptionally calm.Elementalization?It wasn't his first time seeing it.Smoker had already told him how to fight against a Logia-type Devil Fruit User.But."Sand doesn't look like anything special. It's very ordinary, not even as good as smoke."Whoosh!In the midst of the sandstorm, Crocodile's true form suddenly coalesced. His golden hook, carrying a sharp, air-piercing sound, stabbed straight at Luffy's heart. The strike was vicious, tricky, and filled with the intent to kill.However, Luffy's reaction was astonishingly fast.Observation Haki had already captured the trajectory of Crocodile's attack. He twisted his body at an almost impossible angle, dodging the fatal strike of the golden hook by the narrowest of margins, while simultaneously whipping his Rubber arm out to counterattack toward Crocodile's face."Such fast reflexes."Crocodile was slightly startled. He hurriedly tilted his head to dodge, bringing his golden hook back to block.Bang!Luffy's fist collided with the golden hook, emitting a dull thud.Luffy's speed was very high, and his powerful martial arts surprised even Crocodile. He wasn't someone who excelled in martial arts, but Luffy's martial arts were simply too strong.It didn't look like something someone of his age should have.It's not like he started training from the womb.This time, Luffy didn't immediately use Armament Haki because he wanted to personally experience the basic strength of this Seven Warlords of the Sea.Just how strong was this so-called great pirate?As the force of the collision traveled through, Luffyraised an eyebrow, a flash of surprise in his eyes.The opponent's strength didn't seem as formidable as he had imagined?At least, in terms of pure physical strength, he felt he had the upper hand!The Seven Warlords of the Sea, is that it?Luffy shook his wrist and looked at the grim-faced Crocodile, speaking bluntly: "Is that all the strength you have?"The sentence struck Crocodile's sore spot hard.Ever since he failed to challenge Whitebeard and pinned his hopes on Ancient Weapons, he had indeed neglected the tempering of his own body and Haki, relying more on Devil Fruit abilities and schemes.But even when mocked by Whitebeard, he was able to retort. To be so belittled by a fledgling brat was simply a supreme humiliation!He bit down on his cigar, his expression gradually turning fierce.The earlier statement about ending the battle in three minutes was already thrown to the back of his mind; Crocodile wanted to toy with this guy to death!Logia types were invincible. And this was a desert, his home turf.Crocodile's body turned to sand again, attempting to exhaust Luffy using the properties of elementalization."Sharp-tongued brat.I can make countless mistakes, but you only need to be caught by me once, and you're dead.A first bounty of 50 million Berries—the eyes of those guys at Marine Headquarters are still sharp, it's a pity. You should have had a chance to see the New World, but now, your journey ends here!"Crocodile was already laughing.To have a first bounty of 50 million Berries was indeed impressive. It was a pity he had encountered him. If not, if he had the chance to reach the second half of the Grand Line, he might have grown up.Sand blades, Desert Spada, Ground Death... Crocodile manipulated the sand, launching various long-range attacks, keeping his distance to toy with Luffy in the palm of his hand.Watching Luffy's attacks pass through his sanded body again and again without effect, a smug sneer reappeared on his face, and he began to judge him with the attitude of a senior:"Your speed is okay, your strength is not bad, but it's a pity you rely too much on your fruit ability. In the face of absolute power, these little tricks are meaningless!"Just then, Luffy suddenly laughed, revealing a mouthful of white teeth:"Hey, Sand Crocodile. I met a Logia user back in Loguetown, that guy was emitting smoke all over. Guess how I hit him back then?"Before the words faded, surging steam instantly filled Luffy's body, and his skin turned bright red.Gear Second, activate!"What?!"Crocodile's pupils shrank. Luffy's speed suddenly skyrocketed, tearing through the sand curtain like a red flash, instantly closing in."Gum-Gum Jet Pistol!"This time, the fist Luffy swung was covered in a layer of solid, jet-black color.Armament Haki, Hardening!"Oh no!" Alarm bells rang in Crocodile's heart. He wanted to fully elementalize to dodge, but Luffy's speed was too fast, and the distance was too short!Thud!The fist imbued with Haki punched solidly through his abdomen, which hadn't yet fully turned to sand.It was no longer passing through a phantom; the fist hit with a clear sound of impact."Ugh!"Crocodile was sent flying backward, slamming heavily into the sand, splashing up a cloud of dust.He let out a painful grunt, his body arching like a shrimp, his eyes bulging, and a mouthful of blood sprayed out.The raging sandstorm around them suddenly ceased."Impossible! Armament Haki? How is it possible that you know Haki?!"Chapter 110: You even have Conqueror's Haki?!Crocodile's face was filled with unacceptable shock.Some of the high-ranking agents of Baroque Works nearby almost had their eyes pop out."Hey, the Boss was sent flying?""Wasn't he in the lead just a moment ago?""Who on earth is this Straw Hat?"Crocodile also wanted to know who this Straw Hatin front of him was. He clutched his painful lower abdomen, struggling to lift his head, his face written with disbelief as he stared fixedly at Luffy's jet-black fist.That was Armament Haki.Of course he knew Haki!He had possessed it once too!What was Haki? It was related to a person's presence, killing intent, willpower, and ambition—those invisible and intangible things.After Crocodile's battle with Whitebeard failed, his ambition was frustrated, his will was dispirited, and he thought about finding Ancient Weapons and using the power of Ancient Weapons to rule the world.For many years afterward, he had been operating schemes in places like Alabasta. As time went on, his willpower was eroded, and his Hakidisappeared.In other words, if you stay with losers for too long, you naturally become a loser.He never expected that a rookie pirate who had just come out of the weakest East Blue would have already mastered such high-end power.Had this world become a place he didn't recognize?"Is Haki that hard?"Luffy retracted his fist and asked with an expression of matter-of-factness mixed with suspicion: "You actually don't know it?"Wasn't this one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea?The so-called great pirate of this sea actually didn't even know how to use Haki."Pfft!"The secondary damage caused by this sentence was far heavier than that punch just now. Crocodilewas so angry he almost spat out another mouthful of blood, his face turning from green to purple.Damn it! Too arrogant!This brat is just too arrogant!"Straw Hat, what are you so smug about?"Crocodile steadied his stance and stood up, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, and sneered, putting on a brave front:"So what if you know Haki? Using Haki consumes a massive amount of stamina. Let's see how long you can keep it up!""Knowing Haki only means you can fight me."He pointed to the considerable number of high-ranking officers and the remaining agents around them, trying to regain his footing:"Look around you. These are all my subordinates. Even if they stood there and let you kill them, they could exhaust you to death! I can wear you out!"He patted the dust off his high-end suit, the corners of his mouth still twitching.Clearly, Luffy's words and the attack that followed had made him feel unprecedented humiliation and anger.But Crocodile was good at utilizing everything around him; his thousands of subordinates could do whatever they wanted.Let alone people, even if there were thousands of pigs, they could still exhaust Luffy to death.
