45

"Human Demon Fist—Human Demon Chop!"

"Candle Shackles!"

Mr. 3, Galdino, and Mr. 2, Bon Clay, quickly launched an attack on Tony.

But….They were stunned.

"What's going on?!"

They were filled with confusion, their voices tinged with fear.

Their attacks passed right through Tony's body, completely missing their target. It was as if they had struck nothing.

Though they knew Tony was strong, this... was beyond anything they had imagined. It could only be described as invincible.

They had no way of dealing with him.

The powers of a Logia-type Devil Fruit were truly terrifying, making all physical attacks completely ineffective.

At this moment, Crocodile's voice rang out, slowly speaking, "You bunch of useless fools, step aside and go deal with the others. This one's mine."

"The Logia Devil Fruit user is beyond your capability to handle. His body is fluid, and without Haki, you can't do anything to him."

"Don't make things difficult for me, or I'll kill all of you too!"

When Crocodile spoke, both Mr. 3 (Galdino) and Mr. 2 (Bon Clay) felt a wave of fear in their hearts. They knew their boss's temper all too well... he really would turn on them.

Not daring to argue, they slowly withdrew, focusing their attention on the king, Nami, and Vivi.

Igaram, seeing the surrounding assassins closing in, also found himself in a passive position.

Although Tony was confident in his ability to defeat Crocodile in a one-on-one battle, the situation before him made it difficult to focus on both Nami and Crocodile at the same time.

Crocodile, aware of Tony's current limitation, was determined to stop him. Even if he couldn't kill him, he intended to stall him.

As long as the king and Vivi were dead, the kingdom would fall into his hands. The vast military and treasures would all belong to him, the nation's so-called "hero." At that point, he wouldn't have to fear a mere Logia Devil Fruit user.

Crocodile's plan was well thought out, and as a villain, he possessed a level of cunning that others did not.

As a wanted criminal of the Marines, Tony's name would not be believed by the people of Arabasta. When it came down to it, between the national hero and a pirate, the people would believe the former without question.

Crocodile unleashed his terrifying power, his gaze locked on Tony, his murderous intent fully apparent.

He had never forgiven Tony for the earlier provocation. The debt of having his most important "ally," Nico Robin, taken away had yet to be settled. Now, Tony had come to interfere with his plan to take Arabasta. Crocodile had even begun to suspect that Tony was sent by the heavens to stop him.

Tony, holding his Zanpakutō, also focused on Crocodile. Although he could sense that his Haki was above Crocodile's, he couldn't afford to be careless, especially since both were Logia-type Devil Fruit users.

At that moment, Crocodile saw through Tony's thoughts and let out a relaxed, sinister smile, pulling a cigar from his mouth.

"Kuahaha, Tony, your expression tells me that you're worried. You're worried about the safety of your friends."

"After all, they are your most important comrades! You'd better protect them well!"

As his words dropped, Crocodile suddenly raised his arm, his body transforming into sand, and he launched a crescent-shaped sand blade towards the king.

Swish!

Crocodile's sand blade moved with incredible speed, not only possessing the power to slice through rock in an instant but also the terrifying ability to absorb moisture from the body.

In Crocodile's mind, he already saw the king being sliced in two, his body turning into a dried-up corpse.

"Scum!"

Tony had no choice. Just as the sand blade was about to strike the king, he intercepted it.

He coated his Zanpakutō with Haki, and two serpent-like Haki forces gradually rose and coiled around the blade.

In an instant, Tony disappeared from his original position and rushed toward the king, severing Crocodile's sand blade.

Boom!

The sand blade was split in two, falling onto the walls on either side. The walls were immediately marked by two deep slashes, and the surfaces began to dry out.

Clearly, this was the ability of the Sand-Sand Fruit, which sucked away moisture.

Tony stared at the scene, starting to feel a headache coming on.

"This is a troublesome ability..."

Tony wasn't worried about himself. He was worried about Nami and Vivi, who were nearby. If they were to be exposed to such a terrifying ability, having their moisture sucked away and turning into dry corpses, it was something Tony couldn't accept.

Tony now treated Crocodile as his natural enemy. This ability, which caused rapid aging, had to be eradicated.

This was the perfect opportunity to test his own strength against Crocodile's.

"Bakudō #30: Shitotsu Sansen (Triple-Flash Beak Slash)!"

Tony spread his fingers and locked onto Crocodile. Three huge, pointed beams of light shot forward at incredible speed, pinning him to the wall.

~----------------------------------------------------------

T/N:

Powerstonesssss