Chapter 28: Sakura and Luffy vs Crocodile

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Luffy and Sakura stood together on the edge of the desert, watching as their friends rode off on the sand crab toward Alubarna. Despite the looming threat of Crocodile and his impending schemes, they knew what needed to be done: get Vivi to Alubarna to stop civil war from destroying the country. Alabasta was officially on a time limit, and no one could afford to waste even a moment.

"It doesn't matter if they make it, my men are already placed in Alubarna. All you and your friends are doing is walking towards the inevitable. You should've abandoned the princess and this country when you had the chance."

As Crocodile taunted them, boasting about his men being already stationed in Alubarna to thwart their plans, Luffy and Sakura remained resolute. They refused to let his mocking words rattle their determination.

As Sakura pondered Crocodile's calculated approach to achieving his goals, she couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. Unlike many adversaries they had faced before, Crocodile wasn't one to act on impulse or arrogance. He was methodical, strategic, and thorough in his planning, making him a formidable opponent. He refused to leave any stone unturned. Which was why he had been able to capture them in the first place and made their escape nearly impossible.

If only Sakura knew that even the key that Crocodile had tossed to the bananagator had been a fake, a lure for false hope that would sink them if they ever managed to achieve the goal.

He was flexible, shifting to situations almost as well as his sand. Which was yet another hindrance to their plans. And the main reason Sakura couldn't leave Luffy to face the warlord alone.

Despite Luffy's incredible strength and determination, taking on a cunning adversary like Crocodile required more than just brute force. It required strategy, cunning, and caution. This was going to be a task of trial and error, where one misstep could be the last. Especially when their battlefield was a giant sand field, with nothing but resources for Crocodile to use as he wished. Just as Gaara had the greatest advantage in the desert, Sakura was certain Crocodile's fighting ability would flourish here.

Luffy's reckless nature posed a significant risk in their current situation. He jumped before looking if there was a place to land. And what he wanted, he went for it, regardless of what stood in the way. It would be no different now. With his current determination set on beating down Crocodile.

It could be an admirable quality, to be unafraid of cautionary tales but nothing was without consequence. Sakura was going to make sure Luffy could step back from them before he had to suffer one.

Even she didn't know if they could come out of this unscathed. Their match-up wasn't ideal. The wrong weapons for the target, but they were yet to figure out what weapon would allow them to hit the target.

'Hopefully, we'll be able to find out when we fight,'

If that man had a weakness, he wouldn't be sharing it with them. So they had to force it out.

Luffy's glare caught Sakura off guard "What's wrong?"

"I'm mad because you weren't supposed to get off the crab," Luffy grumbled, his irritation evident in his tone.

Sakura sighed. "Are you kidding me right now?

"I wanna be the one to kick Crocodile's ass!"

"I know, but I couldn't just leave you to face Crocodile alone," she replied, her voice unwavering. "And besides, the crab was too far gone for me to go after it anyway."

Luffy pouted, clearly unhappy with Sakura's decision. But before he could protest further, Crocodile interjected, his voice dripping with disdain. "At the very least, it seems that you have a loyal crew straw hat. Even though that loyalty is going to get her killed."

Sakura bristled at Crocodile's words. "We'll see about that,"

Crocodile's contemptuous words echoed through the desolate landscape. "Truly, you all are so pathetic,"

Luffy nonchalantly dusted off his cap, "Vivi is a weakling, but she's always trying to help everyone. And because of that, she's always tortured. Even for this rebellion, she doesn't want anyone to die."

Crocodile scoffed dismissively, his smirk twisting into a mocking grin. "Nobody dying, you say? Naïve pacifists like her always think such deluded things. They don't understand the true nature of war. Don't you agree?"

"Yep," Luffy replied without hesitation. "But she'll continue to risk her life and fight as long as you're around. So I'm gonna stop you."

Crocodile threw his head back, laughing. "How absurd. You're just as hopeless too," he retorted, his voice dripping with derision. "I've tossed aside countless fools like you who'd die for the sake of friendship."

"I guess that makes you the stupid one," Luffy mocked back, hitting his fist in the palm of his hand.

Miss All Sunday, standing nearby, gave a soft chuckle that seemed to irk Crocodile. "Would you like to die as well, Nico Robin?"

"Feel free to do as you wish," she replied nonchalantly, her demeanor unbothered as she turned away, leaving Crocodile, Sakura, and Luffy behind.

Crocodile turned back to Sakura and Luffy, tossing the hourglass into the sand, he declared that they had three minutes. Luffy wasted no time and launched himself at Crocodile with a stretchy-armed punch. However, the warlord effortlessly turned into sand, closing the gap between them.

Sakura jumped away when Crocodile emerged in front of them swinging his hood and Luffy managed to dodge the attack. Undeterred, Luffy followed up with a powerful kick, but once again, Crocodile transformed into sand, rendering the attack ineffective.

Crocodile, amused by Luffy's futile attempts, attempted to explain the hopelessness of the situation. However, Luffy refused to listen, launching a barrage of punches at Crocodile. Each blow tore through Crocodile's sandy form, leaving behind holes, but the warlord remained unfazed.

Meanwhile, Sakura observed the battle closely, searching for any sign of weakness in Crocodile's defense. She knew that defeating him would require more than just brute force, she just didn't know what it would take. A battle of attrition? A week spot that could be hit?

She didn't know. But she hoped they had the power to do it. Hopefully, this wouldn't be like the sea beating on a mountain.

Luffy raised his foot high into the sky and brought it down with tremendous force, attempting to stomp Crocodile into the desert sand. However, to their dismay, Crocodile emerged unscathed, proving the futility of such attacks against him.

Crocodile, seizing the opportunity to taunt Luffy once again, "No matter how hard you struggle, a rubber man like you will never be able to defeat me,"

Luffy interrupted him by delivering a punch directly to his mouth, silencing him momentarily.

However, the punch only served to further enrage Crocodile. Sensing danger, Sakura and Luffy swiftly dodged as Crocodile retaliated by sending a massive wave of sand hurtling towards them. The force of the attack was enough to split the ground of the desert.

"Crap that's deep!" Sakura observed the sand falling into the abyss. 

"Devil fruit powers can be extremely strong in battle depending on how you use it. Unlike those fools satisfied with merely having devil-fruit powers. I've honed mine."

As Crocodile continued to boast about the strength of his Devil Fruit powers, he unleashed a devastating move called Desert Girasole. The ground beneath Luffy and Sakura's feet softened, causing them to sink into a pit of sand that threatened to bury them alive.

"Luffy grab on!"

Quick to react, Sakura made a split-second decision and threw Luffy into the air, allowing him to stretch out his rubber limbs and grab her, pulling her out of the sinking sand pit. From their vantage point, they could see the immense scale of Crocodile's attack.

Sakura's mind raced as she assessed the situation. "We can't keep this up, Luffy. Physical attacks won't work against him."

Luffy's brows furrowed "Maybe I can catch him!" Sakura watched as Luffy began to wove his rubber fingers together into a makeshift net. But she pulled back his arms preventing him from falling into Crocodile's range early.

"Have you learned anything? He's just going to slip right through it!" 

"Then what can we do?"

Honestly, she didn't know. But Luffy's unconventional attacks weren't going to get anywhere as long as Crocodile could continue to turn into sand. Preventing that was the challenge.

As they landed on the solid ground once more, Sakura turned to Luffy. "Give me thirty seconds,"

Luffy blinked, puzzled by her sudden request. "Thirty seconds? What for?"

"I need to try something," Sakura replied firmly. "Just give me thirty seconds to see if I can find a weakness in Crocodile's defenses."

"But I wanna kick his ass," he protested.

She bulked at his whining, "Really….If I can't figure it out in 30 seconds feel free to jump in!"

Crocodile scoffed at their exchange, "Another lost cause,"

"We'll see about that," Sakura sprinted forward, her footsteps beating against the hot sand, kicking up grains behind her.

As Crocodile raised his hand, manipulating the sand like a puppet on strings, Sakura disappeared from his sight, literally dematerializing before his eyes. Utilizing the distraction to her advantage. With precise agility, she reappeared behind him in a flash, her fist poised for a strike.

'She's fast!'

"Shannaro!" she exclaimed, unleashing her attack.

As Sakura's fist connected with Crocodile's body, she observed with frustration as his form dispersed into grains of sand. Despite her efforts, it seemed she hadn't inflicted any significant damage.

Crocodile's body swiftly reformed from the scattered sand, but Sakura noticed a subtle change in his demeanor. Brows furrowed as if something weighed on his mind. Perhaps he wasn't expecting that kind of attack from her? It was a typical reception when she engaged in combat.

But Sakura couldn't realize that there was something else brewing.

Crocodile grimaced in pain, a sensation he hadn't experienced in quite some time. Touching his chest, he contemplated the sensation. Had she managed to crack his bones? Or was it something else entirely? It felt as though something had penetrated him upon impact, briefly solidifying before he reverted to sand.

'Did she use water?' That was his one true weakness as a devil fruit user and a sandman, but it wasn't one he freely advertised. He knew secrets only remained as such when one person held them. Not when they were torn and scattered to others.

'I should've known it wouldn't work,' Sakura clicked her tongue. Her recent punch had seemed to cause Crocodile discomfort, yet it hadn't yielded the desired effect of inflicting significant damage. Leading her to conclude they were ineffective.

Sakura observed Crocodile as he tactically re-positioned himself, reassessing the situation with a keen eye. Despite his outward confidence, Sakura detected a flicker of concern in his demeanor – a subtle acknowledgment of the threat she posed. He seemed thrown off by her speed, perhaps that was the reason.

Crocodile was now keeping a firm eye on Sakura. While her captain's attacks weren't an issue, she seemed to be able to inflict a limit of damage she wasn't aware of yet. He wasn't going to allow them to discover that.

As Luffy launched yet another Gomu Gomu punch at Crocodile, Sakura's mind raced to find a solution to dealing with the warlord once and for all.

"Fighting sand... if only we could contain it somehow!"

Unlike Luffy, who seemed willing to keep pounding away despite the lack of results, Sakura was determined to find a more effective strategy.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden, unexpected move from Luffy. In a display of spontaneity and audacity, he inflated his head and chomped down on Crocodile's upper body. It was a move so unconventional that Sakura couldn't help but be surprised; even Naruto, with all his spontaneity, might not have devised a tactic that was unorthodox.

"LUFFY THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!"

Crocodile, visibly disgusted by Luffy's antics, had finally reached his limit, escaping from his mouth.

"Enough of your games!" Crocodile exclaimed, "Sables!"

He opened his palm, and they could feel the grains of sand hitting their bare skin like small bullets, scraping against them. Sand gathered around Crocodile's hand and swirled like a whirlwind. The sand grew in intensity, whipped by swirling winds that lashed out at Sakura and Luffy. In the midst of it all, Crocodile remained eerily calm, his satisfaction evident in his demeanor.

"Listen well. Winds here blow North to South. Where do you think this storm will hit?" Crocodile's tone taunted through the storm of sand.

"Yuba," Sakura hissed. Realizing Crocodile's angel instantly.

Luffy's eyes became wide with anger at the mention of Yuba as he understood what Crocodile's intentions were now. "The dried-up gramps have nothing to do with this!"

But Crocodile had already let go of the storm he had created and left it to its own device, allowing the winds to take it, and there was nothing they could do now to stop it.

"CROCODILE!" Luffy called out, rushing up to the warlord, in a rage-filled stupor that he ignored Sakura's warning not to rush in. Crocodile wasn't going to wait to be scattered to the winds again, he drew his hook forward until it met with resistance and pushed till he felt the warmth of Luffy's blood on his arm.

"LUFFY!"

Sakura lunged at Crocodile, striking him with a heavy punch that sent him vanishing into the swirling sandstorm. Her hand went over Luffy's gaping wound, feeling the blood run hot against her skin as she attempted to treat the wound.

"I've got you Luffy," 

But as she focused on saving Luffy, she failed to notice the danger looming behind her. In an instant, Crocodile materialized from the sand. "But who has you?"

To the hand that was out reached towards her, Sakura was quick to counter and strike back at it. However, Crocodile didn't simply scatter as she intended but wrapped that sand around Sakura's form until she was engulfed.

A drive in her screamed to get out, but she had already felt the effects of Crocodile's attack. Her skin began to tighten against her flesh and bones, and she began to feel like a wet cloth being wrung out. Her face contorted into itself, skin sticking directly onto the bone, her color turning into an ashy grey, lips cracking as Crocodile drained the water from her body.

She looked at her bony fingers that were more like dried-out twigs of a dead tree. Crocodile scanned over her satisfied with the results.

"Now you won't be meddling." Crocodile kicked them both towards the quicksand pit he had created, leaving them to their fate.

Sakura watched as Crocodile vanished from her line of vision, it was harder to hold onto anything when you were half your body weight, severely dehydrated, and waist-deep in a pile of quicksand.

"Hold on Luffy," Sakura tugged at her captain to keep his head above the sand. With her free hand, she pulled on the small barrel of water around her neck, lifting it to her mouth and chugging as fast as she could. Remembering what happened when Mr. 3 had also been in that state.

The water wasn't much though, not nearly enough to fill her entire body, but it did give her the strength to toss Luffy into the air and out of the pit. He was still wounded and that wasn't an elegant send off but it was the best she had to offer.

She didn't move too much afterward, not wanting to aggravate the quicksand any further. Now she had to figure out a way to get herself out of this mess, she was literally waist-deep in.

That's when she heard it. The shuffling sands above her. Was Luffy up?

"Luffy?" Sakura called.

But who stepped into the light of the sun was none other than Crocodile's partner. Why had she come back? Perhaps Crocodile sent her to make sure they were finished off?

Sakura glared back at the women, "Well? What do you want?"

"You look terrible." She crossed her arms and Sakura felt her body lift from the sand, she felt hands clutching her body and pulling her out, but there was nothing attached further than the arms.

Finally, she was out. Dropped right in front of a dying Luffy.

"Luffy!" She rushed to him, carefully watching the other women. "Why did you do that? What do you want?"

Blood seeped from Luffy's wound as Sakura worked to heal him, her strength waning from the dehydration inflicted by Crocodile.

"S-Sakura, you're shriveled up," Luffy rasped. Tasting blood on his tongue as he tried to gather the strength to sit up, but Sakura wouldn't allow him.

"Don't worry," Sakura wheezed. "I'll be fine after I have some water, just relax and let me heal you."

Luffy's wound was deep, the gash cut straight through, gaping wide. Compared to that, a drink of water was the least of her problems. Luffy looked over at 'Miss All Sunday' Or Nico Robin as Crocodile recently revealed. She seemed to be waiting for Luffy to notice her presence as well because when he did she addressed him.

"Those who carry the name D, why do you fight?"

Luffy remained silent.

"Evidently you don't know what I'm talking about."

Without another word, Robin took Luffy's hand from the sand and tossed it to him. Sakura watched in silence, her guard still up but her curiosity piqued by Robin's actions.

"Is that why you came back, just to ask a question?" Luffy's name carried a D in it and Sakura assumed it was a family initial but was she implying something by it? And why was it so important that she was willing to save her enemy?

A shadow stretched along the desert, a bird's shadow, for a moment Sakura thought it might be vultures, eager for a surprise take-out meal. But fortunately, it was not the case. The shadow grew in size as the source neared land.

A giant falcon, in every sense but its eyes too human and dressed in a white robe. Then it molded into a man right before them. Wounded, and disheveled.

"I found you!" He was breathing harshly, glaring passed Sakura and Luffy, over to Robin. "Now that I understand your powers, I won't be done in so easily."

"Give it a rest, you're injured enough as it is," Robin said with a cold smile, she turned away. "Perhaps you'd like to tend to those two injured? They're the ones who escorted your precious princess all the way to this country,"

Wait, he knew Vivi?

Robin went towards her ride, which looked similar to a bananagator only leaner and wearing a saddle to seat one. "In any case, the princess is on her way to Alubarna, but who knows what will happen to her from here on."

They watched as Robin sped away leaving them behind to the dessert.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked.

THAT'S ALL FOLKS!

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