Chapter 37: Capture

Nia stood there, completely dumbfounded. Just a moment ago, everyone had agreed to stay put, wait for the Marines to land, reveal their identity, and then make a quick exit. And now, in the blink of an eye, His Highness had enthusiastically transformed into wind and vanished?

At that moment, Stussy spoke up, trying to calm Nia. "Don't worry. His Highness isn't weak. He probably sensed something interesting. He won't do anything too dangerous. Let's just wait for the Marines here."

Meanwhile, Crocodile, full of energy and bravado, was about to charge the Marines head-on and show them what he was made of. But suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew past him, scattering his body into countless particles of yellow sand, sent whirling into the air.

It took Crocodile a moment to pull himself back together, reforming his body. When he did, he noticed someone standing a short distance away. His first instinct was to think this was a Marine, but on closer inspection, this person looked more like a noble.

Crocodile didn't care. He raised his hand, forming a blade from yellow sand, and without a word, launched it at the stranger, intending to cut him down.

Claudius smiled, amused by Crocodile's immediate aggression. "This guy's really fierce attacks first without even asking a question," he thought to himself.

The sandy blade sliced through Claudius's body, but he remained unharmed. Seeing this, Crocodile's eyes widened in surprise. "Logia?" he muttered.

Claudius laughed. "Hahaha, yep! Logia, just like you, kid!"

"Hmph," Crocodile snorted. "Even among Logia users, there's a difference in strength. You're not Marine, so why are you stopping me?"

If it were a lesser opponent, Crocodile wouldn't have bothered with any conversationhe would have just killed them. But being proud of his Logia abilities, and now facing another Logia user, his curiosity was piqued.

"I'm here to save your life. Do you even know what you're up against?" Claudius asked with a grin.

"What else? Just some hypocritical Marines pretending to be righteous, right?" Crocodile said dismissively.

"No, not quite. You are facing Marines, yes, but this is a Buster Call. If you rush out now, it won't end well for you," Claudius explained with a laugh. "With your strength, you'd be walking straight into death."

"Buster Call?" Crocodile repeated, confused.

Seeing that Crocodile had no idea what he was really facing, Claudius filled him in on what a Buster Call entailed. When he was done, he added, "So you understand now? Sengoku, an Admiral from Marine Headquarters, is on this island. Your little tricks won't pose any threat to him. If you charge out there, you're just signing your own death warrant."

Just as Claudius finished speaking, a flash of golden light appeared on the distant coastline. Both Claudius and Crocodile turned their attention toward it.

They watched as a massive golden Buddha—a manifestation of Sengoku's Devil Fruit power unleashed a shockwave from its palm, obliterating a group of pirates trying to approach the warship, turning them into nothing more than scattered flesh and debris.

"See that?" Claudius said, pointing toward the scene. "That's an Admiral one of the Marine's strongest fighters. Your small body would be reduced to ashes in seconds."

Crocodile stood there, speechless. He had heard stories of Buster Calls and Admirals, but seeing it in person shook him. Still, he wasn't willing to give up so easily.

"Our Captain John won't go down without a fight!" Crocodile shouted, still clinging to hope. "He'll strike from the submarine soon, and we'll hit the Marines from both sides! Wait, why am I telling you this? Get out of here!"

"Captain John? That explains the Buster Call. His name alone would be enough to justify it. But a submarine, attacking from both sides? You're dreaming, Crocodile," Claudius thought to himself.

Before Claudius could respond, Crocodile raised his hand and sent another sandy blade flying toward him. This time, the sand was infused with Armament Haki, adding more force to the attack.

"Idiot," Claudius said calmly. "You've been duped by your captain. He's never coming to save you. He's abandoned you."

With those words, Claudius reached for the sword at his waist. Instead of dodging the incoming sand blade, he stood his ground, raising his weapon. The two clashing forces of Armament Haki met, and with a deft movement, Claudius deflected the sand blade with minimal effort.

The sword Claudius wielded wasn't just any blade it was the demon sword Shindō, which he had acquired from the Sabaody Archipelago years ago.

"Don't talk nonsense! Captain John isn't that kind of person!" Crocodile yelled, enraged, and lunged at Claudius, intent on turning him into a desiccated corpse.

As Crocodile reached out, yellow sand began to pour from his hand, aiming to drain the life from Claudius's body. But Claudius wasn't having it. "Damn, Crocodile! How did you go from being so cunning in the future to being this naïve now? Can't you see you're being played?" Claudius thought.

Realizing that words weren't going to get through, Claudius decided it was time to end this. His expression turned serious as the full force of his Devil Fruit power erupted. A cold mist began to swirl around him, and he extended his arm toward Crocodile.

"Eternal Frost," Claudius muttered.

A white mist shot from his arm, engulfing Crocodile. Crocodile tried to retreat, but it was too late. His arm was caught in the mist, and a sudden, bone-chilling cold spread through it.

Moments later, Crocodile's arm was completely numb. He staggered back, barely avoiding the rest of the mist. When he glanced down at his arm, it was covered in a layer of frost. With a light touch, the arm crumbled into dust.

"What... What kind of power is this? Is it some kind of ice Logia? Are you... Kuzan?" Crocodile stammered in shock.

Claudius didn't bother answering. He knew Crocodile could regenerate his arm with his sand powers, and indeed, within seconds, Crocodile had reformed his limb using yellow sand.

"No, my name is Claudius," he said with a grin. "And I'm here to save you, kid. You and I are destined to meet, so how about you stop wasting your time with this pirate nonsense and come work for me instead? Trust me, being my subordinate has a lot more potential than being stuck in some pirate crew."

Crocodile scowled. "Don't underestimate me!!!" he roared, summoning two large sand whips that lashed out at Claudius from both sides.

At this point, Claudius had had enough. He wasn't going to keep playing around. While Crocodile's powers were impressive, he was still inexperienced. Claudius knew every trick in Crocodile's playbook, but Crocodile didn't know anything about him.

Letting the sand whips strike him, Claudius didn't even flinch. The attacks bounced off an invisible barrier, leaving him unharmed. Crocodile's momentary triumph faded into confusion as he realized his attack had failed.

Before Crocodile could react, Claudius drew a plain-looking short sword from his side.

"Shoot him, Shinsō," Claudius said softly.

In a flash, Crocodile felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. Blood spattered across his vision, and he instinctively shut his eyes.

"Not good!" Crocodile thought, panicking.

Before he could open his eyes again, he felt a hand clamp around his throat, lifting him off the ground.

"Now you're done," Crocodile thought triumphantly. "Once I drain him, it'll be over..."

But something was wrong. Instead of drawing the life from Claudius, Crocodile felt a crushing pressure in his lungs. Something was being forced into his nose and throat, cutting off his air supply. He gasped, trying to cough, but the choking sensation overwhelmed him.

"The Choke of Death," Claudius said quietly. "Forced coma."

Crocodile's world began to blur as the lack of oxygen took its toll. His body went limp, and he slipped into unconsciousness.

In truth, Claudius wasn't that much stronger than Crocodile at this point in time. The key difference was that Claudius knew all of Crocodile's techniques, while Crocodile knew nothing about his. It was no wonder that Crocodile, still inexperienced, had been bested so quickly.

"Well, well, isn't this convenient?" Claudius said with a satisfied grin, holding Crocodile's unconscious body. "I was just wondering where I could find someone with potential, and here I stumble across both Dragon and Crocodile on the same day. What luck!"

In truth, if Claudius hadn't interfered, Crocodile would never have been caught by the Marines. He would have used his abilities to slip away underground and escape unscathed.

Only later would Crocodile realize he had been betrayed by Captain John, someone he once trusted. This betrayal twisted his personality, pushing him to go out to sea on his own. His first claim to fame would come from hunting down and killing Captain John, the very man who betrayed him.

From there, Crocodile would go from being just another rookie pirate to a rising star on the seas. His journey would be marked by significant events.

First, he would cross paths with Douglas Bullet. Although the outcome of that fight remained unknown, it would be a key moment in his rise. After lying low for a few years, he would re-emerge to clash with Whitebeard, a battle that would cement his reputation.

His fame would eventually catch the attention of the World Government, leading to their invitation for him to join the ranks of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

The rest, as they say, is history. Ultimately, his fall from grace would come at the hands of Luffy, who would beat him down and send him to the underwater prison Impel Down.

But right now, things were taking a different turn. Claudius had found Crocodile early young, inexperienced, and full of potential. And now that Claudius had him in his grasp, Crocodile's destiny was sure to change in ways neither of them could foresee.