Chapter 30: Crocodiles incompetent Rage!

 Crocodile's right hand transformed into sand, lunging to grab Ace.

"Tch!"

The moment Crocodile's sand enveloped him, Ace remained still, his body igniting into billowing flames.

"What? Your sand wants to absorb the moisture from my flames?" Ace's lips curled up in a mocking smile.

"Portgas D. Ace!" Crocodile snarled, turning into a streak of sand that spread towards Ace.

"I promised my lovely crew member Vivi not to cause trouble here. So, let's take this somewhere more open, Crocodile." Ace's smile widened.

"Buzz! Clang!" Ace's hands suddenly turned dark with Armament Haki.

"Haki?!" Crocodile's pupils shrank in surprise.

"Crocodile, is your Haki still usable, or have you lost it?" Ace taunted.

"R!!!" Crocodile's expression twisted with anger.

"Boom!"

With Crocodile momentarily stunned, Ace punched him in the face.

"Get out!"

The force of Ace's punch sent Crocodile hurtling out of the rain feast, flying at a terrifying speed.

Ace glanced at the shocked Robin and smiled slightly.

"Whoosh!" Ace's figure turned into an afterimage as he pursued Crocodile.

"Call out!!!"

Crocodile's cheeks twisted slightly from the impact, and he flew towards the ground at an alarming speed.

"Boom!"

Crocodile's body crashed through the wall at the edge of the rain feast, leaving a deep mark in the desert. Finally, the force dissipated, and Crocodile fell onto the desert floor.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Ace's figure followed closely, appearing in the desert.

"Hah!"

Lying like a lifeless corpse, Crocodile turned into countless grains of sand.

"!"

In the next moment, the sands condensed, reforming Crocodile's body. For a Logia-type like Crocodile, the impact was just a way to disperse force; it caused him no real pain. However, the swelling and pain on his right cheek remained.

"Haki, you actually know how to use Haki?!" Crocodile's cheek twitched, the pain making his expression even gloomier.

In the New World, Haki users were common, but in the first half of the Grand Line, especially among newcomers, they were rare. Most rookies lacked the capacity to use Haki.

But now...

Crocodile looked at Ace with a dark expression. This kid makes me so angry!

"Yes, it's Haki. But Crocodile, you who once faced Whitebeard and failed, now you've placed all your hopes on Pluton, hiding and scheming. You don't have it anymore, do you?" Ace mocked, looking at his Haki-covered hand.

Crocodile's complexion changed, becoming livid with rage.

In the desert, Ace and Crocodile faced each other.

Ace wore a playful smile, contrasting with Crocodile's gloomy expression.

"You..."

Crocodile's face was pale, devoid of his usual air of control. His fists clenched tightly, knuckles audibly cracking.

Why did this brat know about his history with Whitebeard? It had been nearly twenty years since then. After losing to Whitebeard, Crocodile had fixated on the legendary weapon "Pluton". With it, he believed he could dominate the world and reclaim his losses. But the pursuit had its costs. Years of planning had weakened his Haki to the point of uselessness.

"It seems your judgment is worse than I thought, Crocodile," Ace remarked, noting Crocodile's livid reaction, his smirk widening.

Failure wasn't the issue; it was losing faith in oneself afterward. Crocodile had gambled everything on external power, reducing his own potential. "How can you hope to use sand to absorb the moisture of my flames without Haki?" Ace teased.

With his elemental powers and Observation Haki, Ace knew how to neutralize Logia attacks. What seemed like a direct hit was actually just a joke.

Suddenly, Ace vanished and reappeared before Crocodile, whose face twisted with surprise.

"Armed!"

Ace's fist, covered in jet-black Armament Haki, struck Crocodile's arm with brutal force, cracking bone and causing intense pain.

Since his crushing defeat by Whitebeard and departure from the New World's second half, no one in the first half had posed such a threat to Crocodile. Logia users without Haki were defenseless against those who wielded it. This realization fueled Crocodile's determination to obtain Pluton, even if he could no longer use Haki.

But now, facing Ace's overwhelming strength, Crocodile could only use his physical body to endure blows that even giants would find daunting.

Ace's relentless assaults sent Crocodile skidding across the desert, leaving deep marks with each impact.

"Darn you, kid!!!" Crocodile's eyes blazed with fury as he transformed his legs into sand blades, slashing ferociously at Ace.

Ace, now a fiery form, effortlessly dodged the attacks, demonstrating his mastery over elementalization.

"Don't you get it?" Ace's tone turned icy. "You who abandoned Haki could never be in my league."

Crocodile's attempts to strike back with his poisoned hook failed against Ace's Armament Haki-empowered fist, further infuriating him.

"It's pathetic, Crocodile," Ace remarked calmly, shattering the hook with ease.

Crocodile's expression shifted from twisted fury to a haunting emptiness.

Why?! This wasn't how it was supposed to end.

The Utopia Plan was meant to unfold flawlessly. Alabasta was supposed to be his, and the legendary Pluton was meant to be his path to supremacy. But then, in the first half of the Grand Line, Portgas D. Ace appeared?!

Crocodile's features contorted in disbelief.

"You've dabbled in too many schemes, Crocodile," Ace said, amusement flickering in his eyes as he recounted Crocodile's intricate plots—using dancing powder, manipulating spies, inciting rebellion—all to seize Alabasta and find Pluton.

"Operation Utopia," Ace concluded calmly, "is rather... boring."

Crocodile's fist clenched, drawing blood as his nails dug into his skin.

"What do you know, you brat! If it weren't for you, Alabasta would be engulfed in civil war right now. It was meant to fall into my hands. Pluton was meant to be mine!" Crocodile's voice trembled with rage.

Ace's laughter echoed as he revealed an image phone bug cloaked in the strange light of the Comprehension Field.

"What a revelation, Crocodile," Ace chuckled.

Across Alabasta, the image of Crocodile's treachery broadcasted to all, igniting outcry and disbelief among the people, the rebels, and even his own agents.

"Your Majesty!" Jaka and Pell exclaimed to King Cobra, who watched the unfolding drama with astonishment.

"That boy Ace," Cobra mused, "defeated Crocodile and exposed his schemes."

As the revelations spread, even on warships near Alabasta, figures like Smoker and Hina were shaken by Ace's prowess and resolve.

Vivi and her companions, witnessing the aftermath, were moved by Ace's heroic intervention, which had saved Alabasta from chaos.

"Ace really did it," Vivi whispered tearfully, overwhelmed with gratitude.

As Ace faced Crocodile with the image phone bug in hand, the field of understanding ensured that every phone bug in Alabasta projected the same scene.

"What is that you're holding?" Crocodile demanded, his face contorting in disbelief.

"A video phone bug," Ace replied casually, "broadcasting our little encounter to all of Alabasta."

The realization hit Crocodile hard, and he spat blood, the emotional pain worse than any physical blow.

His hatred for Portgas D. Ace burned like a demon's fury.

"Portgas D. Ace!!!!"