Page One stayed completely quiet the whole time, looking like a wild beast ready to strike, his muscles tightened to their absolute limit.
Every muscle seemed ready to explode with power at any second.
Sharp claws slowly slid out from his fingertips, shining coldly as they lightly scraped the dirt, leaving deep cuts in the ground.
X Drake frowned, silently thinking over his next move.
His position here was complicated—as an undercover Marine spy, he understood just how messy this battle was about to get.
Were they really going to fight to the death today? A quick flash of doubt crossed his eyes, but his grip on his sword tightened without him realizing it.
He knew that in this absolute chaos, he had to play his cards perfectly.
A single wrong move would not only ruin his mission, but it would also cost him his life.
"These guys are way too arrogant! Cut them down!"
"That's right! Slice him to pieces!"
"Chop him into fish bait!"
"Make him regret ever opening his mouth!"
The lower-ranking pirates started shouting one after another, and for a moment, roars of pure anger echoed across the entire battlefield.
The faces of the Tobi Roppo were carved with absolute rage and embarrassment.
As high-ranking officers of the Beasts Pirates, sitting right below the Calamities, they had always looked down on everyone else—when had they ever been treated like total garbage?
This was an insult they simply could not swallow.
Black Maria suddenly let out a sweet laugh, but her laughter carried a freezing coldness that sent shivers right down the spine.
She tilted her head slightly, her stare both beautiful and totally ruthless, as she looked up toward King and said in a sickly sweet voice.
"King, why not leave him half-alive... so I can properly 'entertain' this arrogant swordsman~"
As she spoke, the flaming wheel in her hand began to slowly spin, its sharp blades throwing off freezing glares under the sunlight.
Ulti, completely unable to hold her anger back any longer, screamed right at the sky.
"King! If you cannot finish him off in three moves, let me tag in! I will blast this bastard's head to mush with my Ulti-Mortar!"
The low-ranking members of the Beasts Pirates were so terrified by the boiling rage rolling off the Tobi Roppo that they naturally took several steps back.
Their faces were packed with fear and panic.
They nervously looked at each other, their eyes showing deep, sinking dread.
Some of the more cowardly pirates could not help but whisper to themselves.
"It's over, it's over... the Tobi Roppo are actually pissed off this time..."
Another grunt agreed, "That dual-wielding guy is dead meat... When the Tobi Roppo get angry, they are absolute monsters."
As he spoke, he shrunk his neck down into his shoulders, already feeling the massive, crushing pressure bearing down on them.
Another grunt remembered a terrifying story and whispered, "The last guy who pissed off Black Maria... he is still hanging on her spiderweb right now... What she did to him was just too gross."
At this, he could not help but shiver, his eyes full of pure terror.
...
Hovering high in the air, King stayed perfectly still.
The corners of his mouth curled into a tiny smirk beneath his mask as he listened to his crew's furious screaming.
Slowly, he raised his freezing katana, dark flames dancing wildly along the sharp edge.
"Hear that, Vista?" King's voice was low and rough, carrying undeniable authority. "Those guys... seem pretty annoyed with your choice."
His stare stayed locked onto Vista, as if trying to read right through him.
Vista just shrugged with an easy, totally relaxed elegance. His twin swords spun perfectly around his fingers before he pointed them right at King's head.
His eyes were overflowing with a cocky challenge.
"Then let them stay annoyed." Vista grinned, showing off a row of perfectly white teeth that looked incredibly sharp against his smile.
"After all... my target is the 'leader' of the Calamities!"
His voice boomed with total confidence, cutting clearly through the noise of the battlefield.
Those words acted like a spark to a barrel of gunpowder, completely blowing up the Tobi Roppo's fury.
Instantly, curses and screams filled the battlefield all over again, a wall of angry noise threatening to tear the sky in half.
And finally, a true, burning fighting spirit ignited in King's eyes.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, carefully studying the arrogant swordsman standing in front of him.
This man truly deserved to be his opponent!
While the Tobi Roppo were still screaming in pure rage, the ground at the very edge of the battlefield began to shake faintly.
Then, a violent sandstorm roared to life like a waking beast, sweeping heavily across the area!
Yellow sand completely blocked out the sky, swallowing the world in a thick, choking, yellow fog.
From inside this blinding sandstorm, a dark shape slowly stepped forward.
Crocodile's famous silhouette flashed in and out of view through the swirling dust.
His signature cigar hung from his lips, while his heavy golden hook shined with a freezing, cold light in the weak sunlight filtering through the sand.
"How annoying, you small fries." Crocodile lifted his chin slightly, blowing out a thick cloud of smoke.
His rough, gravelly voice carried easily through the loud sandstorm, dripping with natural disrespect and total arrogance.
"If you are going to fight, then get on with it. Stop squawking like a bunch of loud birds."
Almost at the exact same time, the Tobi Roppo snapped their heads around, their attention firmly locked onto this sudden interruption.
Black Maria narrowed her eyes, her stare showing both caution and total confusion as she spoke slowly.
"Oh? If it isn't the former Warlord of the Sea. What, here to join the fun?"
Crocodile did not immediately answer Black Maria's question. Instead, he slowly raised his right hand.
As all eyes locked onto his movement, something completely unbelievable happened.
His right arm turned into fine, flowing sand that seemed to have a mind of its own, drifting smoothly through the air.
Then, a layer of tough, sand-colored scales rapidly covered the flowing sand, wrapping the arm in heavy, unbreakable armor.
Finally, his entire arm shifted and grew into the terrifying, deadly claw of a Sand Dragon!
"Two Devil Fruit abilities?!" Sasaki's pupils instantly shrank, his face turning dead pale as he naturally took half a step backward.
His heart filled with total shock and panic as he yelled in pure disbelief, "How is this possible?! You got a second power, too?!"
After a brief second of total shock, Sasaki seemed to finally put the pieces together.
His eyes showed a flash of realization mixed with absolute terror as he shouted at the top of his lungs.
"You joined the Eternal Divine Kingdom?!!!"