Unknown Variable

|Crocodile's POV:|

...

Everything had been going smoothly until now.

The years of preparations and planning just to get to this point had been completely fruitful, and there was seemingly nothing that had escaped my plans.

Sure, a few minor details over here and there weren't to my satisfaction. However, they weren't such big mistakes that they would affect the whole plan.

All in all, everything seemed to be working perfectly...

The Rebel Army's patience was reaching its limits.

The Royal Guard was already preparing for war.

My subordinates were already completely infiltrated in both bands, ready to incite them even further into a conflict if necessary...

The discontent of the people with the king was reaching its maximum...

Everything was going exactly as I had predicted...

...

There was nothing that would have gone wrong... No matter how much I thought about it.

There were no marines suspicious of me, no bounty hunters that weren't under my control, and everyone believed that the King was the culprit behind the disappearance of the rain, while I, on the other hand, was viewed as a hero who had nothing to do with what was happening.

I had made sure that this plan was perfect, and perfect it had indeed been...

... That was, however, only until today.

What should have been another peaceful day, working things up, and preparing for the plan even further just in case anything strange were to happen, suddenly became chaotic from one moment to another.

And...

...It was all because of this bastard!

"Desert La Espada!!"

"Don't you get bored of saying what you are going to do?"

"Shut up!!"

A suspicious and completely strange bastard who had appeared today looking for trouble at my casino.

Of course, it wasn't as if something like this had never happened before. There were always foolish weaklings thinking that they would take me on, and come here especially to challenge me.

I had thought that he was probably here because of that same motive, or maybe something along those lines.

Just another weakling that had come to challenge me, thinking that he was the strongest.

However, I was wrong. This bastard was everything but a weakling.

"On your right!"

-Bam!!!-

"Argh...!!!"

He was a monster... His speed, strength, and reflexes were on a completely different level from any other person that I had ever seen in this sorry-ass kingdom.

Moreover, he even had control over Haki, which rendered my invulnerability to almost all kinds of attacks as a Logia user completely useless!

His existence in this kingdom was something completely absurd... How would I have expected that in a kingdom like this, where even the strongest of their warriors can't do anything against me, would be the living place of a monster like this?!

"Sables!!"

-Fwoooooosh!!!-

"Woah..."

His existence was an unknown variable that I would have never expected. Not even in a hundred years... And as the biggest variable right now, he was also the biggest threat to the plan that I had been cultivating for so many years.

And as the dangerous variable that he was, I could not let him walk away in one piece... I had to do everything in my power to eliminate him.

... Otherwise, all these years would go to waste.

"Desert Grande Spada!!"

"Oh shit...!"

Fortunately, he was far from being as strong as that damn Whitebeard... So even though he was a monster, he was still something that I would deal with...

After all, even if he was strong, that wouldn't matter at all if I absorbed all the moisture from his body.

The empty and lifeless shell of a monster, was, after all, still just an empty and dead shell in the end.

I was going to show this bastard one way or another what it really meant to fight me in my domain!

...

°

°

°

|3rd Person POV:|

...

The earth shook, cracks appeared on the floor, and screams of confusion filled the air as dozens of people ran away, wondering what in the world was happening at that moment.

-Booooom!!!-

-Craaaaaack!!!-

-Baaaaam!!!-

It seemed as if the world was about to end. All that was left was for a storm to start for the people there to really believe that the world was coming to an end.

But, how had things come to this?

A few minutes earlier, a wall had suddenly exploded and made everyone at Crocodile's casino ran away in confusion, thinking that something dangerous was happening.

The guards had looked at whoever had been behind that explosion. However, no matter how hard they looked, they never managed to find anyone.

It seemed as if they had been banished, or as if there had never been a culprit in the first place.

But why would a wall explode out of nowhere, in the first place?

It all really seemed too suspicious for there to be no culprit.

Thus, a few minutes after that, things calmed down, and people started reuniting around Crocodile's casino to see what was happening, unable to contain their curiosity.

Even a few marines appeared at the scene, worried that a pirate might have been the one causing trouble.

In just a few minutes, Crocodile Casino was bustling with an enormous crowd, and the whole area became full of noise.

That was, however, until suddenly small vibrations on the ground appeared.

The people there didn't notice it at first. However, soon, the vibrations increased in potency, and eventually, they became a small earthquake, making all of the people there start considering leaving the area for their own safety.

However, before they even had the opportunity to do so, the shaking increased enormously, and soon the earth started cracking apart as if an enormous earthquake was happening at that moment.

Furthermore, small explosions could also be heard coming from below the ground, as if something was occurring down there, causing enormous chaos and making all the people in the Casino run away immediately, the guards included.

And thus, the situation became like that, with everyone entering into a state of chaos and confusion, and causing a lot of people to look from far away at what was happening over Crocodile's casino, completely confused.

After all, everything was happening only there, and not in the rest of the city.

As if... Something specific was causing all the chaos over Crocodile's Casino.

-Craaaaaaack...!!!-

-Boooom!!!-

""That's...!""

-Swoooosh!-

-Gasps!-

Their confusion, however, lasted only for a few minutes, as suddenly two figures emerged from the ground and flew high into the air, making all the eyes focus solely on them.

"Crocodile-sama?!"

"Who's that guy?!"

Voices of surprise and shock spread through the people observing the situation, as the figures that had emerged from the ground were actually two people.

Crocodile, one of the seven Shichibukai, and the person that the people of Arabasta considered a hero, as he had taken down several dangerous pirates that were causing trouble in their kingdom.

And a mysterious youth with black hair and black eyes, whose clothes were a disaster and seemed to be on par in terms of strength with the Shichibukai in front of him.

These both people were face to face, aiming their fists and weapons at each other, seemingly in a fight.

"Who's he fighting with?! Is he a pirate?!"

"Were they the ones who were causing all this destruction?!"

The people looked at each other in confusion, as they glanced at both figures with shocked eyes. Not expecting to see their hero be fighting someone so suddenly.

However, as if not interested in the crowd looking at them, the two men looked at each other fiercely while ignoring their surroundings, before then they started exchanging blows in mid-air and caused enormous shock waves that resembled thunders due to how loud they were.

-Booom!!-

-Baaam!!-

-Crashhh!!-

The power of their blows could even be felt by the people dozens of meters away, as the vibrations of the air and the enormous gusts of wind that they were creating whenever they hit each other's body was enough for the people there to understand what kind of monstrous level did each of these men have.

-Booom!!-

-Swoooosh!-

Then, out of nowhere, as all the eyes were focused directly on the two figures as if looking at the most amazing spectacle of their lives, Crocodile received a kick directly to the face and was sent flying like a comet outside of the city, making all of the people there to open their mouths widely.

"Crocodile was sent flying away?!"

"Who's that guy? And how is he able to fight a Shichibukai?!"

"Hey, do you know who he is?! There's no way someone so strong isn't known!"

Shocked gasps and shouts were heard all over the city, and as they watched with amazement at the figure of Crocodile flying away at a terrific speed, soon they noticed the mysterious youth falling back to the ground with a serious expression on his face.

-Thud!-

"What an annoying guy... He surely can take a beating"

Landing on the ground after kicking Crocodile away, the youth muttered something with a slight frown on his face, before he then kicked the ground and started running at an enormous speed in direction of where Crocodile had landed. Leaving all the people there with their mouths hanging in astonishment.

"..."

"What just happened?"

"I don't know..."

...

°

°

°

|Outskirts of Rainbase City...|

...

-Swooooosh...-

-Baaaaam!!-

-Tssss...-

Landing heavily on the sand of the desert and creating an enormous dust cloud, Crocodile pained coughs echoed amidst the silent surroundings, before he then stood up limply and cleaned some of the blood running down his face with his sleeve as he muttered something in a low and pained voice.

-Rustle...-

"His kicks sure are terrifying... Fortunately, I managed to reduce a lot of the power behind that kick from before by moving the sand in my body in a way that most of the energy behind that kick passed through me instead of hitting me directly... Though, I have to say... That still hurt like hell... -Ptu!-"

Spitting on the ground, Crocodile chuckled silently as if finding the situation amusing, before he then fixed his clothes, and brushed his disheveled hair back as it used to be.

His face, despite wearing a deep frown and having a lot of injuries here and there, for some reason still had a big grin full of confidence... As if everything had gone as he planned.

... As if the wounds surrounding his body were nothing to worry about.

Then, chuckling wickedly as he looked at the blood tainting his clothes, Crocodile's frown deepened, before he then glanced all around him and muttered in a low voice.

"... But it's over for him... I managed to get exactly where I wanted... -Cough, Cough!-"

Coughing the last remains of blood inside his mouth, Crocodile smiled wickedly before he then looked into the distance and saw Farid rapidly approaching with terrifying momentum.

"Annoying brat... I will make sure to teach you your place..."

Growling in a low voice, Crocodile closed his eyes for a brief moment while taking took a deep breath in the process, before he then opened his eyes again and looked at approaching Farid with an arrogant look in his eyes as he muttered something in a low and deep voice.

His tone completely full of smugness and confidence, as if the beating that he had taken until now was nothing to worry about.

"... After all, here... I am invincible"

Then, as if responding to his words, suddenly the sand surrounding him started swirling around his body, creating an enormous tornado of sand, and stopping Farid from approaching him any further.

-Fwooooosh!!!-

"What in the...?"

Noticing the swirling wall of sand in front of him, Farid came to an alt, before he then felt an enormous force engulf his body, and rapidly covered his eyes with his forearm.

"Shit..."

Sand was known to enter even the smallest places, and he certainly didn't want sand to enter his eyes.

-Saaaaaaaashhhh...!!!"

Like a furious storm, soon the sand tornado grew in size and rapidly started engulfing everything on its path, and Farid, who could only watch confused everything happening through his Observation Haki, immediately started looking for Crocodile, before he then clicked his tongue and frowned slightly.

'Did he run away? Devil fruits sure are annoying...'

Looking all around him with his Haki, Farid was unable to find Crocodile... it was as if he had vanished completely, or as if he had never existed in the first place.

Was that another technique of the Suna Suna no mi? Or had Crocodile run away once he noticed that he couldn't defeat him? Farid had no way to know.

That was, however, until he noticed one thing.

'His presencee is... all over the place?'

Even though Crocodile's presence was very thin at the moment, Farid could feel him everywhere... As if he had become the environment itself.

Then, as if confirming his suspicions, suddenly a hearty and wicked laugh started echoing all around him, making him frown slightly in annoyance.

"Ha... ha... ha... It's over brat. You may be strong, however, you have entered my domain... Here, I am on the level of a God!!"

Then, without any warning, an extremely fast and deadly blade of sand appeared from within the tornado and aimed directly at Farid, who was facing the opposite direction, threatening to cut off his head.

-Swish...!-

However, as if he had eyes behind his head, Farid rapidly ducked and dodged the sand blade.

Standing back up, Farid's closed eyes frowned for a little moment before then a composed smile appeared on his face.

"So that's your plan, huh?... Unfortunately, it doesn't work against this!"

Scoffing in a low voice, Farid covered his fist with Haki once again, before he then launched a punch directly towards the tornado of sand engulfing him.

"...?!"

However, as if his hand had some kind of repellent, suddenly the sand there avoided Farid's fist and moved away, making him not hit anything, and leaving Farid perplexed.

"... Or maybe it does..."

"Hahaha, in this state, I can see your every move! Even if you try to hit me with your Haki, I will simply dodge before you can touch me!"

Hearing Crocodile's ridiculing voice, Farid clicked his tongue.

"Annoying bastard"

"Die!!"

Then, out of nowhere, from behind Farid, another pair of sand blades appeared and aimed directly at his back. However, just like before, Farid turned around and easily dodged each of these blades as if it was the easiest thing in the world.

"...!"

However, just as he was thinking that the attack had ended, a dreadful feeling filled his entire body and made him turn around in a hurry.

'This guy...!'

There, he saw Crocodile materializing from the sand of the tornado, aiming his hand directly at his neck... As if it had been his objective all along.

"Die!"

'Oh no, you don't'

However, before Crocodile even had the opportunity to touch him, Farid rapidly aimed his fist toward Crocodile's face and hit it with all his strength, creating an enormous shock wave that echoed all around the area and made Farid smile in satisfaction.

-BAM!!-

"K-khfgh!"

Receiving the powerful impact, Crocodile's face turned to the side because of how powerful the blow had been, as a long trail of blood escaped from his mouth due to the several fractures and injuries that the blow had created.

Then, as if losing consciousness, Crocodile's eyes suddenly started turning blurry, making Farid sigh internally in relief.

However, as if it had been a lie, Crocodile's eyes suddenly turned livid once again, before then a vicious grin spread across his face as he turned to look at Farid again.

"It's over!"

Then, out of nowhere, Crocodile's hand caught Farid's arm and squeezed it with all of his strength.

"Desert Encierro!"

Then, as if delivering a death sentence, Crocodile's dreadful and deep voice echoed all over the place, before then the whole tornado dispersed, and Crocodile's entire figure emerged completely from the dust.

His face was victorious, and his eyes were full of confidence.

"What... is this...?"

On the other hand, Farid, had a shocked expression on his face, as out of nowhere his body was starting to turn skeletal as if he had not drunk or eaten anything in months.

"It's my special technique... Thanks to the Suna Suna no mi, not only can I control sand, but I also gain the power to absorb the moisture from everything... Even human bodies"

Looking at Farid as he turned thinner and thinner, Crocodile smiled wickedly as he explained his technique while enjoying the perplexed expression of his opponent, who was watching terrified as his body became nothing more than a skeleton.

His hand was not letting Farid go even one second as he explained.

"Human bodies need water to live... So, what do you think will happen if there's no water left in your body?"

Laughing at Farid's shocked expression, Crocodile increased the strength of his grip, before he then chuckled silently as he cleaned some of the blood left on his face.

Then, as if delivering the finishing blow, Crocodile's arrogant grin widened even more, before he then approached Farid's trembling body and whispered to him in an angry voice directly in the ear, similar to a devil's whisper

"I guess you can already guess it, right? You will die while watching your own body dehydrate and turn into sand... Ha... ha... ha... ha... This... is the price for whoever dares to fight m...-!"

-BAAAM!!!-

However, just as he was about to finish speaking, suddenly an incredibly rapid blow hit Crocodile's head and made his limp body fly away while spinning in a disturbing manner as if all of his bones had been broken.

-Swooosh...-

-Thud!-

...

"Ugh..."

Landing heavily on the ground, Crocodile's pained groans escaped from his mouth, Before he then looked at Farid, whom he thought was about to die just a few seconds ago, and noticed him standing there completely unaffected by the fact that most of the water in his body was gone.

His fist raised high into the air as if telling him that he had been the one to punch him just now.

"How...?"

Widening his eyes enormously, Crocodile looked with bloodshot eyes at Farid, before he asked in a raspy and confused voice.

Then, letting out a snort, the corner of Farid's mouth curled up in amusement, before he then spoke while looking down on the defeated Crocodile lying several meters away.

"You talk way too much, you know?"

Saying so, Farid walked towards Crocodile's body, before he then kneeled in front of him and looked at him with a respectful expression on his face.

"I guess Shichibukais really are in a different league than normal pirates... This is the toughest fight that I've had in a while"

Massaging his shoulders with a slight frown on his face, Farid looked smugly at the beaten Crocodile, before he noticed him looking at him with bloodshot eyes, and raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Why are you looking at me like that? Don't tell me you are a sore loser or something like that?"

"How... How were you able to move when your body is in that state?!"

Asking in confusion and dread, Crocodile looked at the dehydrated Farid with a dumbfounded expression, before suddenly his eyes noticed Farid's body slowly turning back to normal as if it was rehydrating itself somehow, and widened them enormously in shock.

The view was simply too unnatural for him to believe that the person in front of him was human.

Looking at his own body slowly rehydrating, Farid frowned for a short moment, before soon his expression returned to normal and he looked at Crocodile with a leisure smile on his face.

"This? Oh, tis but a scratch"

Then, as if not wanting to continue talking, Farid raised his first high into the air, before he then aimed directly at Crocodile's face and delivered the final words.

"It was a good fight"

"W-wait!"

Then, without warning, Farid's fist descended on Crocodile's face like a meteorite and caused an enormous shock wave that resounded all around the area.

-BAM!!-

Like that, Crocodile's consciousness faded away, as his eyes rolled back to confirm his unconscious state, and made Farid sigh in relief.

-Sigh...-

"What a long fight, he sure took a good beating without batting an eye... Hmm?"

Then, suddenly frowning heavily as if noticing something wrong, Farid looked back at the unconscious Crocodile, before then his eyebrows rose and his eyes widened enormously.

"Oh shit... I forgot to interrogate him to know whether he was the culprit or not..."

Staying silent for a few seconds, Farid closed his eyes, before he then looked at the sky and muttered in a tired and exhausted voice.

"I am not going to get sued... Right?"

...

-To be continued...-

°°°

A/N: No university today, woohoo!

Also, I ate two full bags of spicy potato chips... and I feel my stomach bursting already...

These may be my final words...