Chapter 70: The Enemy Revealed.

"Ahhh~~"

"I don't want to die..."

"Charge!"

"Mom—"

The chaotic cries erupted among the pirates. In fact, they probably didn't even know what they were shouting. The sounds they made were just a way to vent their fear of death.

In the face of a powerful enemy, some people cowered, some charged mindlessly, some lost their composure, and some followed the plan. But:

No matter what, they all rushed towards Crocodile!

It wasn't because they were brave, but because they had no choice. The armor that once made them invincible had now become their prison, and their lives were no longer in their own hands!

"So boring."

Crocodile stood in the center of the battlefield with his arms crossed, exuding a calm and composed demeanor. He completely ignored these 'moths to the flame' because the numerous sand blades swirling around him were enough to create an impenetrable defense! However:

Splat,

A pirate wearing strange armor charged into the sandstorm. Although the white armor on his body had amazing defense, Crocodile's high-speed sand blades were tireless cutting machines! Sparks and screeching sounds erupted as the two clashed.

Interesting...

Crocodile glanced slightly, and a sand blade suddenly 'accelerated'! It turned into a yellow blur, wrapped around the pirate's waist, and with a high-pitched metallic screech and countless sparks, it cruelly cut the pirate in half!

However, as the pirate in strange armor was cut in half, a not-so-loud 'splash' sound was heard, and a large amount of blood mixed with water engulfed the pirate and the sand blade, merging the deadly weapon with the pirate's body!

Hmm?

Crocodile raised his bare eyebrows. These 'armored pirates' had large barrels of water strapped to their backs! As each pirate was killed, the water mixed with blood splattered everywhere, breaking through Crocodile's 'sandstorm defense'.

"Charge forward, charge! We can win! He has a weakness!"

The burly pirate leader roared, waving his 'weapon': the cold body of a Baroque Works officer, pointing at Crocodile!

"Roar roar roar~~"

"Kill!"

The most terrifying thing for people is despair, but once there is hope—even if it's very slim—humans can unleash incredible fighting power!

After witnessing other pirates pave a bloody path with their bodies, the once hopeless pirates' eyes ignited with hope again. They continued to charge at Crocodile with meaningless shouts.

Many clever pirates picked up prepared buckets, water bottles, ladles... and threw them all towards the center of the battlefield! As the sand blades cut through them, the splashed water immediately turned the flying sand into muddy sludge that fell to the ground!

"That's it, that's it—"

Several pirates in white armor broke through the tattered sand blade defense, their water-soaked weapons aimed at Crocodile, their eyes filled with excitement at the sight of victory! But:

"It's useless,"

On the edge of the battlefield, Robin, with her arms crossed, calmly watching the scene, shook her head.

If the mighty Seven Warlords of the Sea could be defeated so easily, wouldn't the Marines just need a water gun?

Facing the pirates with water-soaked weapons from all directions, Crocodile calmly extended his right hand, and a golden curved blade appeared in his grasp.

—Desert Saber - Condense.

"Die!"

"The Seven Warlords of the Sea are nothing special—"

"Your head is mine!"

Facing the imminent threat and weapon, Crocodile's gaze seemed to still be fixed on the 'Desert Saber' in his hand. However, in an instant, the reflection of the sunlight on his scimitar flickered, as if the blade had trembled slightly, but it was so subtle that it was almost invisible to the naked eye.

In the next moment, the pirates charging madly around him seemed to be suddenly paused, all frozen in mid-air! Then, a red line appeared on their necks, quickly thickening... and then, blood splattered everywhere!

Splat, splat, splat, splat,

Several pirate heads flew into the sky, their faces still frozen with ecstatic expressions, but their eyes were filled with confusion! It was as if they had been struck by some kind of sorcery and died inexplicably.

There was no sorcery.

In the blink of an eye, Crocodile had swung his 'Desert Saber' in a circle around him and quickly returned it to its original position. The speed was so fast that it seemed as if he hadn't moved at all.

Terrifying!

This...

With just one slash, the remaining pirates were scared out of their wits, their morale plummeting! But it didn't matter, because from the beginning, no one expected them to have 'morale' in the first place.

Facing Crocodile, who had effortlessly killed a group of pirates, the remaining pirates still charged 'fearlessly', their steps resolute, ready to die! But:

"Ahhh~~~"

"Stop, stop——"

"Let go of me, let go..."

"Boss!!"

Their cries and wails, with tears and snot all over their faces, had nothing to do with 'bravery'.

Of course, to Crocodile, it didn't matter how his opponents behaved; they were just ants, not worth a second glance or a single word.

"Slash!"

As Crocodile uttered a cold word, a desolate aura swept out in all directions! Just the aura alone made one's skin crack and moisture evaporate, as if the air inhaled was scorching hot sand! Even holding one's breath felt like turning into a mummy in the next second!

Swoosh—

The blade light flashed, and all the pirates on the battlefield, regardless of distance or strength—including the burly pirate who had charged at Crocodile—fell to the ground in an instant. Their 'armor' that was as hard as steel became as fragile as paper, and the water covering their bodies was useless.

Massacre!

All the pirates fell to the ground in pieces, and if one had to say, they still retained a bit of 'human shape'. After all, the paper armor and water prepared for them were not entirely useless.

"Well, a bit of exercise now and then isn't bad."

Crocodile, who had caused this terrifying scene, waved away the 'Desert Saber' in his hand, took out a cigar, and flicked the ash. Although these guys had a bit of 'cunning',

 it was just a small trick—

Splat!

Just as the dust settled and the outcome was decided, the corpse of the burly pirate leader at Crocodile's feet suddenly split open, and a nimble figure sprang out, the swordand turning into a crimson streak slashing at Crocodile, who was holding a cigar!

The blade was like a bolt of lightning, swift and fierce!

Before making a move, there was no sign, but once he struck, the killing intent was overwhelming!

The lightning-fast blade light instantly approached Crocodile's skin, the blood on it enough to solidify the yellow sand! With a splat, a head with slicked-back hair flew into the sky.

"Good,"

The calm yet imposing voice of the middle-aged man made the attacker's eyes flicker. In the next second, his knife mercilessly slashed at the 'headless corpse' in front of him, tearing it in half with a rip! But:

Damn it! The sand crocodile had already turned into sand in advance—

"Tsk tsk tsk, not a bad attack."

Amidst the rustling sound, the flying head and the split body reformed into Crocodile's figure from yellow sand. At the same time, without a doubt:

Completely unharmed.

"Are you the mastermind behind this attack?"

Facing Crocodile's question, the blood-soaked Roman had no intention of answering. Because it was meaningless, all he needed to do was defeat the opponent, nothing more!

Zoom—

His entire body turned into a crimson afterimage, and Roman's long sword once again slashed towards Crocodile! But this time, the opponent seemed to have grown tired of such futile efforts, so:

Clang!

With a sharp collision sound, Roman's sword clashed fiercely with Crocodile's golden hook on his left hand, the sparks flying made Crocodile, who was holding a cigar, raise an eyebrow.

"An attack method similar to my sand blades?"

Indeed, Roman's sword had always had high-speed rotating 'saw teeth', and Crocodile's sand blades were also high-speed moving sand. In principle, both relied on high-speed friction to cut enemies. However:

"This is a trick I played with when I was nine years old. If this is all you have—"

With a wave of his free right hand, a crescent-shaped sand blade enveloped Roman! Whether it was speed, power, or timing, it was perfect, as if it was naturally formed.

Even without the Devil Fruit, Roman wouldn't believe that Sand Crocodile didn't have the strength of a swordsman!

Clang!!

With a melodious collision sound, Roman raised his shield to block Crocodile's attack. Although using a shield gave a 'minion' impression, the shield's defensive power, which had spanned the entire history of human cold weapons, fully demonstrated its practicality!

Not only that—

Taking advantage of the moment when they were close, Roman's long sword tilted upwards, stabbing straight at Crocodile's chin, while the shield in his other hand forcefully deflected the opponent's sand blade. It was a complete 'life for life' tactic!

"Ridiculous."

Splat,

Splat,

Two light sounds rang out simultaneously, Crocodile's chin was pierced into a cloud of yellow sand, while Roman was split in half by the opponent's hook.

Now!!

At the moment when Crocodile's head reformed from yellow sand, Roman, who was split in half, aimed his shield at this Logia Seven Warlords of the Sea. The paper on the shield quickly peeled off, revealing a picture:

The picture showed a large iron-barrel-like mouth.

"Swallow Swallow - Big Water Spray!"

Splat splat—

The large mouth on the shield opened, and a torrent of seawater sprayed all over Crocodile's head and face, making this man, who had been unscathed and exuding domineering attitude since the start of the battle, taste 'embarrassment' for the first time.

"You dare—"

Got him!

Rustle,

The split body reformed into sheets of white paper, and Roman turned the shield into a long sword, charging forward with dual blades!

As long as he didn't let Crocodile use his right hand's 'water absorption' ability, then in the situation where he could break the opponent's 'elementalization' while still being able to use 'elementalization' himself:

He could win!

Within seven steps, my sword is faster than your fruit ability—

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