https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-96-What-Kind-of-Calamity-Called-the-Overlord-of-the-Sky/12608637/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-98-Quite-the-Spectacular-Fireworks-/12608639/
Chapter 97: Overbearing and Arrogant, Asking for Death! (6k)
Chapter 97: Overbearing and Arrogant, Asking for Death! (6k)
Mr. 1 fixed his gaze on Sag, who had just climbed down from the crocodile's back, and said calmly, "You are indeed a formidable figure. It is said that you have plundered numerous kings, and your collaboration with the boss is also because you have your eyes on the king here?"
"Of course, that's why I'm here."
Sag hooked the corner of his mouth and scanned the agents present. They seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn't quite place their faces.
"There sure are a lot of you. Has it begun already?"
A red dot appeared in his pupil, and he subconsciously glanced up at the stairs. With his observational abilities, he could sense the murderous aura emanating from within the massive city.
"Yes, the war has already started."
Mr. 1 replied, "We received information that Princess Vivi will be leading a force here to stop the rebellion. As a precaution, we are waiting here."
The best place to wait for Raindi and Albana to arrive was at the West Gate, as it would allow them to cover both the east and west sides of the city. No matter where their targets appeared, they would be able to spot them.
"Then let's continue. By the way, help me keep an eye on these crocodiles. I still need them for transportation, so make sure they don't mess up."
Without another word, Sag led his men up the stairs, paying no heed to the agents.
The massive stairs were flanked by sheer cliffs. Destroying these stairs would trap anyone here, making it impossible for them to descend.
Within the enormous city, the sounds of gunfire and clashing blades reverberated through the streets and alleys alike.
Even at the city gate, Sag could smell the strong scent of gunpowder and blood.
However, when he sensed the number of people present, he realized that it wasn't as large as he had expected.
It would take time for the rebel forces to gather, and they wouldn't all be assembled in one place. Most likely, they would be arriving in batches.
At the moment, the city still felt relatively spacious. Every street was incredibly long, and one could barely see the end of them. The distant buildings had turned into mere outlines, appearing very far away.
At the northernmost position, one could make out a massive domed structure.
That must be the royal palace.
"I don't see any ordinary people around."
Renitia looked around curiously. "Have they already been evacuated?"
"Kobra is not a bad guy, after all."
Sag commented, "Knowing that a war is about to break out, he probably arranged for the civilians to take refuge early on. After all, people die in wars, and those civilians won't be of much use. Besides, having fewer people around means less resistance when it comes to looting."
Whether the king was a good or bad person didn't matter to Sag. Even if the king were as virtuous as a Buddha, Sag would still strip him of his wealth.
When it came to looting, one didn't discriminate based on the morality of the target.
"In a kingdom, it's not just the king who should be rich, right?"
Sag reached into his cloak and pulled out a golden pocket watch. Flipping it open, he glanced at it and said,
"It's ten o'clock in the morning now. The city will explode at four-thirty in the afternoon. We need to finish up by three-thirty and leave ourselves an hour for evacuation. The royal palace is our top priority. If we have time after that, we can pay a visit to other wealthy individuals."
After all, maintaining a kingdom required nobles, and those individuals were bound to be affluent as well.
However, due to transportation limitations, Sag had only brought along this many people. As such, they could only target one location at a time.
Including Sag himself, a total of fifty-seven individuals stepped onto the spacious street. As they drew closer to the palace, the smell of gunpowder became increasingly pungent. Before they had gone far, two groups of people suddenly burst out from a side alley.
One group wore scale armor and cloaks, while the other was dressed in ordinary attire. Both groups bore injuries, and they charged towards each other while shouting furiously.
But then, they collapsed.
Their steps hadn't even properly begun before their eyes rolled up, and they fell to the ground, mouths agape.
"You bunch of weaklings, don't block my path. I won't go out of my way just because of you."
Sag glanced at them disdainfully and stepped over their bodies, continuing forward.
With his observational abilities, Sag could sense the number of people and roughly gauge their strengths. If he had wanted to avoid detection, he could have reached the royal palace without anyone noticing.
But what was the point of that?
He wasn't the sort of person who would go out of his way to accommodate others. The straight path was the fastest route.
Whether it was the armies clashing in front of him or individuals bursting out from the sides, as long as they appeared in Sag's path, their bodies would go limp, and they would collapse unconscious.
All the way to the royal palace, at the foot of similarly massive stairs, thousands of soldiers stood guard, exuding a chilling aura.
They were the defenders of the royal palace, the last line of defense, and they would not allow the rebels to approach.
"Someone's coming!"
One of the soldiers at the front, standing ramrod straight, noticed something amiss and focused his gaze on one of the streets. Following his shout, the multitude of soldiers turned their eyes in that direction as well. In the long street, they spotted a group of figures.
As the wind and sand blew past, the first thing that came into view was a head of white hair. The hair was neither long nor short, and two strands fell on either side of the forehead, swaying with each step. Similarly swaying was the black cloak with red trim that the person wore.
A rebel?
Was there such a figure among them?
"Be on guard!!!"
A commanding soldier bellowed, and the front row of soldiers aimed their crescent-shaped weapons forward, their faces tense.
They didn't know why they felt tense, as it seemed that the opposing group only numbered a few dozen.
There was no way they could be a match for the thousands of soldiers here.
Buzz!
In the next instant, the eyes of the few thousand soldiers rolled up, and they unconsciously opened their mouths, collapsing to the ground.
One soldier knelt on the ground, seemingly trying to support himself. He stared fixedly at the white-haired man who was walking closer, and he attempted to grip his weapon tightly. But how could he still hold on? As his weapon clattered to the ground, his entire body went limp.
"Oh dear, you're still trying to hold on?
"He's a man with formidable willpower."
Marika touched her face in surprise.
"There are always some people with strong willpower."
Sag stepped over the bodies and said to the soldier who was still kneeling, "However, at a time like this, it's better to pass out."
The soldier couldn't hold on any longer, and he collapsed.
The group ascended the stairs, and Renitia took out her mechanical hammer. With the power drive, it extended and transformed into a long-handled battle hammer. With a ripping sound, she smashed it into the palace gates.
Boom!!
The massive gates were blown away by the force of the impact and crashed to the ground.
Sag cackled, "My little ones, go ahead and ransack the place!"
"Yes, Captain!"
All fifty-odd individuals rushed into the palace.
Meanwhile, outside at the West Gate stairs...
"They're here."
Mr. 4 lowered his telescope and slowly spoke.
"Is it the princess? Is it really her? How strange. Isn't she afraid of death?" Miss Christmas hurriedly asked.
Mr. 2 spun in place and looked towards the cloud of dust kicked up by an approaching group. He suddenly stiffened, "That's not right! There are too many of them!"
"Too many? The Straw Hat Luffy has already been dealt with, and even if there are others, there shouldn't be that many."
Miss Doublefinger picked up a telescope and took a look. Her pupils dilated as she exclaimed, "Navy?!"
In the cloud of dust, they didn't see any sign of Vivi. Instead, they spotted a group riding camels, quickly approaching, dressed in standard Navy uniforms.
Leading them was a man with silver hair, riding a motorcycle through the sandy terrain.
Seated behind him on the motorcycle was a woman with pink hair, wearing a magenta business suit and a Navy cape.
"That's 'White Demon' Smoker and 'Black Jail' Tina!"
Miss Doublefinger exclaimed, "What's going on? Why is the Navy here?!"
How could the Navy have entered the interior of Alabasta? Their boss's identity hadn't been exposed yet, and as a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, the Navy had no authority to intervene.
"Catastrophe!"
Miss Doublefinger realized something and her face fell, "Is it because of the catastrophe that they're here? This is quite a spectacle. What should we do?"
Mr. 1's eyes narrowed, and his crossed arms dropped to his sides, "The catastrophe is also working with our boss, and we can't let this group of Navy personnel disrupt our mission."
He stepped forward, facing the approaching Navy forces, and blades sprouted from his crossed arms, "Even if they're Navy personnel, they must be stopped!"
Southwest of the West Gate stairs, a group of Fast-Running Ducks was swiftly approaching.
These were the fastest ducks in Alabasta, carrying Vivi and the Straw Hat crew, rapidly closing in on the massive stairs.
Alongside the ducks, there was a man riding what appeared to be a sled, with flames spewing from its rear, matching the ducks in speed.
"Is this okay?"
Nami looked over and asked, "Won't this delay your search for the person?"
"Ah, it's fine. After all, you saved me, so I should return the favor."
Ace stood on the sled, his gaze fixed on the massive stairs drawing closer, and adjusted his hat, "I believe Luffy can handle Crocodile, but Sag won't be so easy to deal with."
...
"Male."
"Male!"
"It's a male!"
Sag walked through the palace, and with each room he entered, his expression grew grimmer. Veins popped out on his forehead, and his eyes narrowed with anger. He even started speaking in Akainu's accent.
"Sag, are you trying to say it's empty?" Renitia tilted her little head.
"Shut up!"
Sag glared at her angrily and kicked open another door. It led to a bedroom, devoid of any treasures.
After an hour of searching the palace, Sag had initially been excited, but the more he explored, the more something felt amiss.
It wasn't that they hadn't found the treasure chamber, but rather, the treasure chamber was empty.
He knew Cobra was a good king, but even a good king...
"He's still a king!"
Sag balled his fist and punched a hole in the door, his anger unleashed, "How can he be so poor? He's a king, for crying out loud!"
"Sag, there is money here..."
Palu hastily took out a stack of Berry and offered it to him, "We also found 500,000 Berry."
"Lily." Sag acknowledged her with a single word.
Boom!
The next moment, Lily kicked Palu, sending him flying into the wall opposite the door.
"You even took a girl's private stash? Don't you have any shame? And what's this pittance for? This is a palace!" Sag roared in anger.
It wasn't that they hadn't found anything at all.
"They found a room with Vivi's photo and 500,000 Berries inside."
To an ordinary person, this was indeed a considerable sum of money.
But to Sag, who possessed 500 million and a vast hoard of gold and treasures, and who had also invested 500 million in Crocodile, this amount was utterly insignificant!
After going through so much trouble and traveling through the night to reach Albana, was this measly sum all they had to show for it?
What could they even do with this money?
Buy ten crappy swords?
He could rob that much from any random passerby in Raindi!
"Put the money back and search more thoroughly. I want treasures! Gold! Jewels!"
Sag glared at Palu, who was twitching on the ground, and gritting his teeth, he strode out of the corridor.
Beyond the corridor lay a vast hall, with a sizable throne at the center. However,
"It's made of stone!"
Sag plopped down on the throne, pulled out a cigar from within his cloak, lit it, and took a deep puff, letting the smoke swirl in his mouth before exhaling it out again.
Unlike tobacco, this was meant to be enjoyed without inhaling.
"I heard that the Alabasta royal palace has a history of around four thousand years. Perhaps this throne..." Lily trailed off.
"You could find an island and grab a rock that's at least tens of thousands of years old."
Sag rolled his eyes. "Who cares about history and stuff? I have zero interest in history or stories; I only care about the here and now."
As an illiterate man, he couldn't even recognize a single character! Why would he care about history?
Even if it was for collecting, he wouldn't bother with a broken stone throne!
It was still a stone carving!
"Damn Kobra, he could've at least embedded some gems on it. How pathetic for a king. Nadia Kingdom is better off; that old geezer at least had a decent throne."
"It's 'Natiya'!" Lily corrected him. "Now that we've left the East Blue, Sag, stop bringing it up."
"Captain Sag."
At that moment, Akin led his men out from another passage and stood beneath the throne.
"We didn't find any treasures."
"Then get out there and loot!"
Sag barked, "Go outside the palace and check the homes of those rich folks. Get moving!"
"Yes, Captain!"
Akin immediately led his men out of the palace.
"Lily, you guys go too. The more hands, the more we'll find." Sag instructed Lily and her group.
"Understood, Sag."
Lily nodded, and the three of them also left the palace.
"What a joke! Are they this poor?" Sag clicked his tongue, then suddenly sensed something and glanced sideways. "Is that you, Crocodile?"
On the platform inside the western gate of the palace, Vivi was currently commanding some soldiers, ordering them to hold on to a long fuse.
"Blow it up!"
Vivi declared resolutely, "Only by blowing up the palace and attracting the rebels' attention can I talk some sense into them and reveal Crocodile's true face. That's the fastest way to quell the unrest!"
The soldiers in front of her were drenched in cold sweat as they held lit torches, about to ignite the fuse. But just then, a gust of strong wind and sand suddenly swirled, extinguishing the torches and knocking the soldiers to the ground.
The wind and sand quickly gathered on top of the building, taking the form of Crocodile.
"Crocodile! Father!" Vivi exclaimed in surprise.
Crocodile had King Cobra pinned under his arm.
"You're quite the daredevil, Miss Wednesday."
He looked down at Vivi, a smile tugging at his lips as he said, "Ha, ha, ha, ha! Don't go around destroying things recklessly. After all, this will be my home from now on."
"Then your home is pathetically poor!"
Just as he finished speaking, a voice rang out from inside the palace.
Boom!
A door within the palace burst open, and Sag strode out, making his way to the platform. He glanced up at the man in Crocodile's grasp and scoffed, "Hey, are you Cobra? For a king, you're embarrassingly poor!"
"Oh? Not a good haul, Sag?" Crocodile chuckled.
"Don't look down at me when you speak, Crocodile. I'm not in a good mood." Sag retorted coldly.
Crocodile chuckled softly and once again transformed into a whirlwind of sand, gathering on the platform before releasing Cobra, who slammed into the wall.
"That doesn't matter," Crocodile continued, "Our partnership still stands, and there will be plenty of money in the future."
He turned to Cobra and said sternly, "As long as I take over this country, my plan will succeed."
Cobra staggered to his feet, staring intently at Crocodile. "The World Government won't allow it!"
"That's why I need that item! With enough military might, the World Government won't be able to touch me!"
Crocodile extended his hand and clenched it tightly. "Tell me, where is Pluto?"
Cobra's eyes widened in shock. "How do you know about—"
"Pluto?"
Sag paused, thinking. "Wasn't that the name? Is it here? Doesn't seem like it's in Alabasta, though."
Nico Robin, standing nearby, also paused, her eyes instinctively flicking toward Sag.
This man...
"Crocodile!"
Suddenly, a voice filled with vigor rang out from below, and two hands grasped the edge of the palace's wall. With a swift contraction, a familiar figure leaped into view.
"I will defeat you!"
He swung his fist forward, aiming a punch directly at Crocodile.
"Still not dead?
"Rubber Rubber Pistol!"
Luffy punched forward, aiming at Sag.
A sound like air being crushed rang out, and his fist struck nothing but air. Sag, on the other hand, leaped high into the sky, completely ignoring Luffy. With a stomp of his foot, he sent out a circle of air waves, propelling himself like a missile toward the ground below.
"Huh? Is he leaving? Why did he come here?"
Luffy tilted his head, confusion evident on his face. But soon, he came to a realization and shouted toward the front, "Crocodile! Let's settle this once and for all!!!"
...
"Power Surge!"
At the mouth of a street leading to the royal palace, Renitia held her mechanical hammer and unleashed a burst of propulsion from the hammerhead, blowing away a large amount of smoke that had gathered there.
Beneath that cloud of smoke lay a few of her subordinates, lying on the ground.
She stared at the smoke, shouting, "Why are there Navy personnel here? Hey, I remember you! You're the Smoke Cripple who was defeated by Sag in Ohara. What are you doing here?"
Within the smoke, the figure of Smoker gradually appeared. The lower half of his body was hidden within the smoke, while the upper half hovered in the air. He said, "Three hundred and twenty million Berries, Renitia? I have no interest in small-time pirates like you. Tell me, where is Catastrophe?"
Renitia held her mechanical hammer forward and replied, "Sag is in a bad mood, so he definitely doesn't want to see you. I'm enough to deal with!"
Smoker shook his head. "Then I'll have to capture you and make Catastrophe show himself!"
He extended his hands into the smoke, causing a large amount of it to solidify and envelop Renitia.
"White Snake Bind!"
The vast amount of white smoke left Renitia with no opportunity to counter. Even when she used her mechanical hammer to blast out air cannons, it only managed to disperse some of the smoke at the front, and she was quickly enveloped by the rest of it.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
The dense smoke made it difficult for her to breathe, causing her to cough uncontrollably. The smoke that had solidified restrained her arms and body, binding her tightly, ready to constrict further.
Boom!
Suddenly, the smoke was blown away, and the solidified smoke shattered, its air waves rolling and dispersing the thick smoke.
"Smoker!"
As the smoke cleared, Sag's figure appeared in the air above Smoker. With a menacing aura, he was about to strike at Smoker with his fists.
"North Star."
"Fire Fist!"
A pillar of fire shot out from the side, engulfing Sag in flames.
Smoker stood there, taken aback, and looked toward the side. On the rooftop of a building, a man with a flaming hand smiled at him.
"Portgas D. Ace," Smoker muttered, his eyes narrowing.
Ace jumped down from the roof, his gaze fixed on the front, and he said with a smile, "My goal is the same as yours."
A flaming object fell from the air above, where it had been enveloped in flames, and it smashed onto the ground next to Renitia, causing stones to scatter and a cloud of dust to rise.
"Sag?" Renitia asked, her eyes widening.
"Move away, Renitia."
Within the cloud of dust, Sag's calm voice echoed.
As the dust settled, his body was revealed, covered in burns.
But at that moment, the burned parts of his body began to heal rapidly, returning to normal.
"A Navy and a pirate, working together? The sea truly is a magical place." Sag stared coldly at them.
"I would never work with a pirate."
Smoker also descended, returning to his normal size, and he pointed his Ten Hands at Sag, saying, "However, arresting you is my priority. After capturing you, I will go after Portgas D. Ace."
"Smoke and fire are evenly matched. It won't be so easy to capture me."
Ace stood beside him, assuming a battle stance, and smiled. "But for now, you won't be interfering with Luffy's fight."
"You two really are leaking out your aura."
Sag narrowed his eyes, then suddenly opened them wide, his mouth twisting into a sinister grin as he said, "Asking for death!"
(End of Chapter)
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