"How about it, Sand Crocodile? Not bad following me, huh?"
After a year away, Buggy and the others had returned to the New World, and their first move was to seek out Shanks. The two sides joined forces to take on Big Mom, and both had brought in reinforcements.
Shanks' recruit was a Naval Hunter who had made quite a name for himself lately. Buggy had to admit the kid was genuinely skilled. The ally Buggy brought in was Crocodile.
In truth, Crocodile's original target had been Whitebeard.
After all, Roger was dead, Shiki was imprisoned, and now everyone said Whitebeard was the man closest to becoming the Pirate King. That reputation brought Whitebeard enormous fame, but it also put a target on his head from countless pirates who dreamed of claiming that title.
However, just as Crocodile was about to coat his ship at the Sabaody Archipelago and head into the New World, he ran into Buggy. At first, neither side could stand the other.
The outcome was obvious: a Sand Crocodile who hadn't yet mastered Haki was no match for Buggy's crew. Even Kawamatsu, the weakest among them, had handed Crocodile a crushing defeat.
Once Buggy had the upper hand, his mouth was even more relentless. He immediately laid into Crocodile with a barrage of trash talk.
Still, he figured the guy was at least somewhat promising material. After a whole lot of sweet-talking, he dragged Crocodile into working for him.
"Following you? Red-nosed bastard, we're partners, nothing more. Don't forget you promised to teach me that power called Haki!" Crocodile's mouth was still tough even when he'd lost.
He hadn't given up on his dream of becoming the Pirate King. How could he possibly admit he was following Buggy?
That would put him down a whole tier right there. He'd lose all face.
Besides, after fighting alongside Buggy's crew against Big Mom, he'd realized that without Haki, it was impossible to make any headway in this New World. Crocodile figured Haki was the only thing he lacked. Once he mastered it, taking Whitebeard's head would be a cinch.
This guy still hadn't grasped the gap between himself and the true powerhouses.
Even with Haki, the difference between people could be insurmountable. If he went at Whitebeard with some half-baked Haki, getting pummeled would be nobody's fault but his own.
The only reason Buggy had recruited Crocodile was because he was a Logia Devil Fruit user. He was useful for crowd control.
"I'll definitely teach you Haki, don't rush. Look at it this way: so many pirates who charged into the New World have already vanished without a trace. You've been rolling with me, and not only have we taken down a Big Mom Pirate crew, your bounty's gone up several times over."
Hearing that, Crocodile actually nodded. Though he genuinely couldn't stand Buggy, he had to admit the man made a fair point.
For rookie pirates like them, most newcomers to the New World could only scrape by in the shadows of the great pirates. If they wanted to make a decent living, joining a major pirate's crew was essentially the only option.
If someone actually made Crocodile be someone's underling, he'd never agree. He'd rather not come to the New World at all.
But without joining, making a name for yourself was incredibly difficult.
As for antagonizing the great pirates right off the bat, Crocodile was just relieved he hadn't done something that stupid. Otherwise, he truly wouldn't know how the word "death" was spelled.
That Gecko Moria who'd been the talk of the town recently, word was he'd been incredibly arrogant when he first entered the New World. He'd not only attacked a Marine base but also burned Inazuma's flag.
Thinking about it, Crocodile couldn't help but sigh at the unpredictability of fate.
He was musing on this while leaning against the railing, drink in hand, when three figures leapt over from the other ship. Crocodile glanced up and recognized all three.
Standing in the center was Red-Haired Shanks, on his left was his first mate, and the other was Mihawk. Crocodile couldn't beat a single one of them, but he'd be damned if he'd show it. He still looked at them through narrowed, disdainful eyes.
"Yo, Sand Crocodile, what are you still standing around for? Come to my ship for a party!" Shanks wasn't looking for trouble. They'd just teamed up to temporarily drive off that Charlotte Katakuri fellow, and now they were planning to throw a banquet and figure out their next move.
Buggy's crew was small, and after a whole year they hadn't gained a single new member, so Shanks decided to invite everyone over.
Buggy and his crew didn't stand on ceremony. They were all pretty familiar with each other by now. The two captains might not see eye to eye, but everyone quietly agreed that they had a great relationship.
"Since even Charlotte Katakuri was defeated by us, the next step wouldn't be facing Big Mom herself, would it?"
Kawamatsu's face turned a sickly shade of blue as he spoke, the color draining at a visible rate.
Everyone always said Katakuri was the finest product of the Charlotte bloodline, but they all knew the truth deep down. The gap between Katakuri and Big Mom was enormous. If that old woman went all out, several Katakuri's wouldn't be enough for her to swat down.
"I don't think so. After all, we managed to beat Katakuri thanks to several of us working together, and we came prepared. That's the only reason Katakuri took such a beating at our hands," Beckman said, taking a swig of his drink.
To be fair, if several division commanders joined forces and still couldn't take down a second-in-command like Katakuri, that would be utterly laughable.
"The next enemy we face might be two Sweet Commanders and several Ministers," Enel also chimed in.
If things kept escalating like this, it would clearly evolve into a full-scale war.
When enough Sweet Commanders and Ministers showed up, they'd be hard-pressed to hold them off. And in the Big Mom Pirates, there was no shortage of mid-to-low-tier combat forces.
Over the years, many up-and-coming pirates who'd entered the New World had become Big Mom's sons-in-law. All of them added to her ranks.
"Defeating Katakuri was only the first step. We can hardly call it a real victory yet!" Buggy's ambitions were massive. He pulled out a sea chart, slapped it down on the deck, and pointed toward the waters of Totto Land.
"Wait for those Big Mom Pirates goons to come knocking on our door?"
"I don't recall us needing to be that passive!"
"Since we're already at war with that old hag, we might as well strike first!"
Seeing Buggy's swaggering bravado, even Enel was taken aback, and Shanks could barely keep a straight face. Attack Totto Land directly? Where did he get the nerve?
At a time like this, only Crocodile, who had absolutely no sense of his own limits, thought Buggy's words made perfect sense.
In his view, if you wanted to be a Pirate King, this was exactly the kind of attitude you needed.
So the Sand Crocodile tossed his wine cup aside and stepped forward.
[
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