A wild thought even flashed through Blackbeard's mind: he wanted to recruit these two as his crewmates. But he quickly came to his senses, knowing it was nothing more than an unrealistic fantasy.
"But now isn't the time for me to make a move. I still need to build up my strength," he muttered to himself, a hint of patience and ambition glinting in his eyes.
Suddenly, Blackbeard's expression changed drastically, as if he had sensed something terrifying beyond measure.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. A monster is coming," he said, his voice trembling slightly as cold sweat instantly broke out on his forehead, his presence suddenly becoming extremely faint.
He frantically suppressed his presence to the lowest possible level, terrified of being discovered by that entity.
Meanwhile, atop a sand dune in the desert, Spandam was clutching his head in a panic.
He was utterly overwhelmed by the chaotic situation before him, his mind consumed with how to complete the mission and get a promotion and raise, pinning all his hopes on Rob Lucci.
But just then, he noticed that Rob Lucci's expression was off. The usually calm and composed Rob Lucci now had fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Spandam asked anxiously.
Rob Lucci's expression was grave, his eyes fixed intently on the distance, as if something there warranted his caution.
"It seems we don't need to gather intel on Hashirama Senju anymore."
"He's already here."
His eyes could clearly see, on the distant horizon, a figure in red armor slowly approaching. The armor gleamed under the sunlight, and long black hair swayed in the wind.
The moment Hashirama Senju appeared, the entire battlefield seemed to freeze, instantly falling silent.
Everyone's gaze was drawn to that slowly approaching figure.
"Ah, it's that old guy again."
Luffy's signature carefree laugh instantly shattered the silence. Standing among the Straw Hats, he showed no fear at Hashirama's arrival; instead, he was filled with a strange excitement.
Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and the others, however, looked utterly shocked, as if they'd seen a ghost.
Ace was also quite surprised to see Hashirama Senju. However, his surprise was more pleasantly so.
After Hashirama and Whitebeard had fought, they had developed a mutual respect and often drank and chatted together aboard the ship, becoming good friends over time.
Seeing Hashirama now, Ace's face broke into a delighted smile.
"Ah, so you're here too, Hashirama-san," Ace said, quickly walking over to greet him warmly.
"Oh, it's Ace. What are you doing here?" Hashirama Senju's hearty laughter immediately rang out across the desert. The laughter seemed to possess a strange power, involuntarily relaxing everyone's tense nerves.
He strode towards Ace, and the two began chatting casually like old friends who hadn't seen each other in a while, completely ignoring the towering, sky-covering form of Crocodile.
This scene made Crocodile's face turn livid in an instant. The fury in his heart blazed like a lit powder keg.
He prided himself on being the ruler of this desert, a presence no one dared to belittle.
Yet Hashirama and Ace's actions made him feel utterly disregarded, and this feeling of being ignored filled him with immense anger and humiliation.
"Hey, I'm right here," Crocodile roared, his voice filled with rage and resentment.
With his roar, the entire desert began to tremble violently. The already sky-obscuring sandstorm grew even more ferocious, with massive sand whirlwinds spinning wildly as if to consume everything, all to draw Hashirama and Ace's attention.
Only then did Hashirama Senju seem to notice the presence of others. He slowly turned his head and looked at Crocodile.
"Ah, hahahaha, this power feels just like the One-Tail."
Hashirama Senju wore a curious smile as he examined the sandstorm Crocodile had created, as if observing a cute pet.
After all, to someone who had once tamed the Nine-Tails, the Nine-Tails was merely a pet, let alone the One-Tail.
His dismissive gaze pierced straight into Crocodile's heart, pushing his anger to its peak.
His eyes practically blazed with fury. He would make Hashirama Senju pay for his arrogance.
The aura around him suddenly turned violent, determined to bury these two in the depths of this desert.
"Desert Inferno!"
Crocodile roared towards the sky. With his roar, the entire desert began to riot wildly.
Countless razor-sharp blades of sand erupted from the ground, shooting towards Hashirama and Ace at tremendous speed.
These sand blades arced through the air, shrieking as they went.
Not only that, but the desert floor began to heave violently, like surging waves, crashing down on the two in layer after layer.
Each layer of sand held immense power, colliding and merging to form an unstoppable force.
A manic light shone in Crocodile's eyes as he screamed at the top of his lungs, "Die!"
In the blink of an eye, the overwhelming waves of sand completely enveloped Hashirama Senju and Ace, the whole world swallowed by the endless sea of sand.
Yet, amidst this seemingly hopeless sea of sand, Ace remained remarkably calm.
He stood with his arms crossed, a relaxed smile on his face.
Because he knew, with Hashirama there, he didn't need to act.
He had already witnessed Hashirama's strength and now simply watched with interest.
"Ahahaha, this is very similar to the techniques of Sunagakure. This power is at least at the Kage level, no, stronger than a Kage."
Standing in the heart of the sand sea, Hashirama Senju moved as if on a casual stroll, showing no signs of tension or fear.
He dodged the sand blades while commenting on Crocodile's techniques with interest, as if he weren't in a fight but enjoying a captivating performance.
His voice echoed clearly through the sand sea, reaching Crocodile's ears and fueling his fury further.
His face flushed bright red.
"Hey, Ace! Old guy!" Luffy shouted from a distance, his heart racing as he watched Hashirama and Ace engulfed by the sand.
Without hesitation, Luffy moved to rush over and help. He leaned forward slightly, bending his knees, ready to spring.
But the next moment, just as Luffy was about to act, the entire desert underwent a cataclysmic upheaval.
Hashirama Senju's expression suddenly turned serious as he swiftly pressed his hands together.
"Deep Forest Emergence!"
---