Chapter 197: Being a Pirate Requires a Background Now?
The same sentence can mean different things to different ears.
To those who hadn't heard his lies, Ralph's phrase "'current' boss" sounded like:
So you're the boss of Baroque Works.
But to those who knew he was the former boss of Baroque Works, these words were undoubtedly a declaration—a former boss announcing his intent to reclaim the organization from the current boss.
Crocodile's mind was now in complete disarray.
What troubled him wasn't the matter of former or current bosses; what troubled him was:
Did this Ralph truly have ties to Ivankov from Kamabakka Kingdom?
Combined with the clearly "betrayed" okama Mr. 2, Bon Kurei...
In an instant, Crocodile felt as if he had fallen into a massive trap.
He had been lecturing his subordinates about his plan to seize a country, acting as though his schemes were unparalleled and he had everything under control.
Could it be... he had been part of someone else's calculations all along?
Was Ivankov plotting against him?
That shouldn't be... He wasn't that kind of person... right?
Crocodile had always believed he was the chess master, controlling every piece on the board and seeing through everyone's hidden cards.
Now, he realized he couldn't understand anyone.
Why did Mr. 2 betray him?
Who exactly was this Ralph?
What was his relationship with Ivankov?
How much did they really know?
But having navigated the seas for so many years, Crocodile was no pushover.
He quickly regained his composure.
He had seen too many people trying to bluff their way through.
Perhaps this Ralph was merely putting on a show of strength. Maybe he knew nothing at all and had just coincidentally mentioned Ivankov's name...
He needed confirmation.
"Ralph."
Crocodile's voice returned to calm, at least on the surface.
"May I call you that? What exactly do you know? About me."
He had guessed correctly.
Ralph was indeed trying to intimidate him.
In truth, Ralph didn't know the specifics of Crocodile's secret.
He only knew it was related to Ivankov and that Crocodile had a weakness in Ivankov's hands.
But Ralph couldn't show weakness.
He smiled faintly.
"Does it matter whether I know or not?"
Ralph said, "As an honorable Pirate on the seas, I have no intention of blackmailing you. What I want, I will earn with my own strength."
His words were well-spoken.
They avoided the question while making him appear principled.
Crocodile narrowed his eyes.
"Oh? What do you want to take from me?"
"What was never yours to begin with."
As Ralph spoke, his gaze swept across every corner of the office.
"Daz Bonez, Mr. 1, wielder of the Supa Supa no Mi."
"Paula, Miss Doublefinger, wielder of the Toge Toge no Mi, publicly the proprietress of the Spider's Café."
"Bon Kurei, Mr. 2, wielder of the Mane Mane no Mi."
"And Mr. 4, Miss Merry Christmas, along with that gun that ate the Inu Inu no Mi... Lassoo."
He listed the codenames, real names, and even the abilities of all the senior agents in one breath.
The agents exchanged glances.
Some of their real names were unknown even to their colleagues.
Crocodile's expression grew increasingly grim.
"You want them to help you seize Alabasta?"
Ralph shook his head, his tone laced with undisguised mockery.
"Don't even dream about it."
The atmosphere in the lavish office grew heavy as iron.
Everyone sensed that a major battle was about to erupt at any moment.
However, some believed Ralph had come to stop the takeover of Alabasta.
A few individuals, on the other hand, thought Ralph intended to seize Crocodile's Baroque Works.
Those earlier words could also be interpreted as:
These are all my people—why should they follow you in doing such things?
Among these "few individuals" was Bon Clay.
Watching the conversation between the old and new bosses, Bon Clay, who loved dance and drama, imagined a grand power struggle in his mind—
Betrayal, conspiracy, revenge, seizing power...
But what he didn't expect was that the next climactic fight scene would be initiated by him.
"Take out the traitor Mr. 2 first!"
Crocodile's command was cold and decisive.
The senior agents reacted with lightning speed.
Mr. 1 Daz Bonez's arms instantly transformed into sharp blades, while Miss Doublefinger Paula's fingers turned into sharp spikes. The two of them attacked Bon Clay almost simultaneously.
Blades sliced through the air, spikes aimed at his back.
"Yikes!"
Bon Clay yelped in surprise, relying on the agility of Okama Kenpo to execute a graceful spin, narrowly avoiding these two lethal attacks.
The blades grazed the hem of his clothes, while the spikes left deep holes in the wall behind him.
"You... you're really serious!"
After landing, Bon Clay patted his chest, still shaken.
And this became the signal for the battle to begin.
"Clang!"
Three swords were drawn simultaneously.
Zoro barged into the three-person skirmish, positioning himself in front of Bon Clay.
"A Supa Supa no Mi user," Zoro stared at Mr. 1, a fervent grin spreading across his face, "I've been wanting to meet one for a long time."
This was part of the plan from earlier.
When Zoro heard that the opponent had a Supa Supa no Mi user—a guy who could "turn his entire body into blades"—he immediately chose him as his opponent.
In his own words:
"Only by cutting down someone like this can he improve!"
Originally, Bon Clay was struggling a bit against the two-on-one assault, but with Zoro joining the fray, the four of them were evenly matched for the moment.
Mr. 1's blades clashed with Zoro's swords, producing a harsh metallic screech.
Miss Doublefinger's spikes attacked Zoro's flank from tricky angles but were deflected by another of his swords.
Bon Clay seized the opportunity to counterattack, his Okama Kenpo moves both dazzling and bizarre, forcing Mr. 1 and Miss Doublefinger to split their attention.
But Baroque Works' senior agents didn't end there.
Seeing the situation, Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas also wanted to join the fight.
The Mr. 4 duo, seemingly two people, were actually three—they also had a dog.
To be precise, it was a gun that had eaten the Inu Inu no Mi, Dachshund Model, named Lassoo, capable of spitting baseball-shaped timed bombs from its mouth.
As for Mr. 4 himself, he was a burly man wielding a four-ton iron club, possessing immense strength.
Add to that Miss Merry Christmas, a Mogu Mogu no Mi user with the ability to burrow and travel underground.
With their seamless coordination, they could execute all sorts of bizarre tactics.
It could be said they attacked simultaneously from above and below, with bombs and iron clubs flying everywhere.
They seemed incredibly troublesome.
But Ralph declared:
I have my top general Munch-Munch, capable of taking on three at once.
"Little guy," Ralph patted the little dinosaur's head, "It's your time to shine."
Then, under everyone's gaze, the small black dinosaur began to change.
This was also the first time it revealed its true form in front of others.
How could it remain a small dinosaur after eating so much every day?
After a roar, Munch-Munch's body began to swell.
Twice, three times, five times, ten times…
When it finally stopped growing, it had transformed into a colossal beast over ten meters long.
Its surface was covered in yellowish-brown sand and stone, like heavy armor, with green stripes—pigments left behind from the plants it had devoured earlier.
Its massive head was encased in a bony exoskeleton, with three sharp horns pointing skyward, gleaming coldly under the light.
Its tail was thick and powerful, tipped with an unknown metal—remnants of a weapon it had swallowed earlier.
The entire sight stirred Ralph's heart with excitement.
"Munch-Munch Modification: Third Form!"
He took a deep breath and shouted the name he had rehearsed countless times in his heart:
"Rampage Dragon!"
The office—no, now it should be said, half of the Rain Dinners—was torn apart by this colossal beast.
With just a slight lift of its head and a sweep of its tail, Crocodile's luxurious office, along with most of the casino's structure, turned into ruins.
Wood splinters, bricks, and shards of glass rained down noisily.
Trapped in her cage and unable to join the fight, Lufia had initially felt disappointed, but upon seeing Munch-Munch's transformation, she couldn't help but exclaim:
"So cool! That's so awesome!"
Seeing his casino destroyed, Crocodile was far from willing to let it go.
"Bastard!"
He roared, his body dissolving into yellow sand as he prepared to strike.
But a wave of scorching flames surged toward him.
Ace stood in his way.
"Your opponent is me."
Ace said.
Crocodile gritted his teeth in fury:
"Fire Fist Ace! I've never provoked you, nor have I provoked the Whitebeard Pirates!"
"Why are you siding with them against me?"
Ace grinned:
"Because the Straw Hat Girl is my sister."
Those words, like the final straw, shattered Crocodile's composure.
"What I hate the most…"
His eyes turned blood-red, "are you pirates who rely on your connections!"