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Crocodile didn't sense any threat from Byakuya, who seemed as ordinary as a passerby on the street, with nothing unusual about him.
However, this very normalcy made Crocodile even more uneasy, indicating that Byakuya's strength was likely immense.
Responding to Crocodile's words filled with killing intent, Byakuya calmly asked, "Are you threatening me?"
Crocodile, his murderous intent unyielding, replied, "I'm simply reminding you of the rules you should follow on the seas."
"I don't know what organization you belong to, but making an enemy of me is an extremely foolish decision."
Byakuya had initially intended to kill Crocodile on the spot, but recalling his original plan, he decided there was more he needed to do.
"Oh? I'm quite curious—what gives you, Crocodile, the right to make such claims?"
A light breeze swept through, lifting small grains of sand into the air between the two groups.
Byakuya suddenly exerted tremendous force with his right foot, launching a powerful kick into the sand.
In an instant, the sand grains, propelled by Byakuya's kick, shot toward Crocodile and his men like a barrage of machine guns.
Crocodile's face darkened as he quickly used his Devil Fruit ability to transform his body into sand, reappearing at a distance and reforming into his human shape, his expression grave.
While Crocodile could escape using his powers, his subordinates were not so fortunate.
A single grain of sand piercing the body might only cause minor pain, something they could endure.
But when thousands of grains of sand penetrate the body, it would turn anyone into a sieve.
As Crocodile evaded, several Baroque Works officers behind him were too slow to react.
Before they could even defend themselves, three were killed instantly, their bodies riddled with tiny wounds as blood began to pour out—an extremely gruesome sight.
Daz Bonez, having only been struck by the weaker sand grains, transformed his body into blades as hard as steel.
The sand grains collided with his body, producing a sharp clinking sound before falling harmlessly to the ground, unable to penetrate his steel-like form.
However, the impact did force him back a few steps. This caught Byakuya's attention.
He turned to Lucci and said, "Did you see that? That guy who can turn his whole body into steel blades—he's yours to handle later."
Lucci nodded, his eyes fixed on Daz Bonez. For some time, Byakuya had been training Lucci to use Armament Haki.
Given Lucci's natural talent and strong physical foundation, he quickly became aware of Armament Haki's existence.
He was now just one step away from covering his body with it, and this might be the breakthrough opportunity he needed.
Crocodile's gaze toward Byakuya now carried a trace of fear.
Although he could easily kill those three fallen officers, doing so with the same ease as Byakuya was far beyond his reach.
For the second time, Crocodile doubted whether he could win.
Crocodile first felt this way when he entered the New World and challenged the "strongest man in the world," Whitebeard.
The result was disastrous—Whitebeard's full-strength punch left him severely injured, forcing him to flee disgracefully and abandon the New World.
At that moment, Crocodile swore that one day he would return to the New World and personally take down Whitebeard.
After learning about the existence of the ancient weapon Pluton in the Alabasta Kingdom, Crocodile began to plot everything that followed.
But now, this mysterious figure in front of him, someone who seemed to appear out of nowhere, was instilling a fear in him equal to what he felt from Whitebeard back then.
This person undoubtedly had the power to kill him. 'No, I can't let all these years of effort go to waste,' Crocodile thought.
A crazy idea popped into his head, and he spoke in a somewhat softer tone,
"I'm curious, what exactly did the Kingdom of Alabasta offer you? To have found someone as powerful as you to deal with me?"
"Sorry, that's classified information. I can't tell you," Byakuya replied.
Crocodile's expression changed, and he quickly said, "Whatever they offered you, I'll triple it, as long as your organization doesn't interfere in this matter."
Vivi and Pell's faces immediately turned pale. Who would have thought that the always-dominant Crocodile would back down in front of Byakuya?
Vivi bit her lip and thought, The deal I made with Byakuya was to exchange the location of Pluton.
However, if Crocodile were willing to offer the same thing and Byakuya decided not to intervene, Crocodile could probably locate Pluto within a year.
By that time, the Kingdom of Alabasta would become a living hell.
Thinking about this, Vivi's face turned paler, and she fearfully tugged at Byakuya's sleeve like a helpless little animal about to be abandoned by its master.
Byakuya continued, "If you're willing to tell me your plan and pay ten billion Berries plus five Devil Fruits of any kind, our organization might consider withdrawing from this operation."
Hearing Byakuya's words, Vivi instantly became as white as a sheet, as if all the strength drained from her body, and she could barely stand.
She never imagined that Byakuya would break their agreement. Pell, standing nearby, was equally devastated, his eyes blank and his expression dazed.
He muttered repeatedly, "It's over, it's all over." Having witnessed Byakuya's power firsthand, he knew that only Byakuya could defeat Crocodile.
If Crocodile, or even worse, swayed Byakuya, if Byakuya and Crocodile joined forces, the Kingdom of Alabasta would have no hope at all.
Even Crocodile was taken aback by Byakuya's outrageous demands. Ten billion Berries plus five Devil Fruits.
The lowest price for a Devil Fruit is five billion Berries, which are incredibly rare.
Over the years, most of the Berries Crocodile had accumulated were invested in developing the Baroque Works.
He had roughly eight billion Berries left, and his subordinates had already consumed most of the Devil Fruits he acquired.
He couldn't possibly meet the mysterious man's demands.
But, recalling Byakuya's terrifying strength, Crocodile still agreed to Byakuya's conditions.
Once he got his hands on Pluton, Whitebeard and this guy in front of him would be nothing more than ants.
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