A/N Authors Note: Hey everyone! Sharkteeth here with a special chapter for the Reibi! I know that I'll get flames about "how the Reibi is not an actual tailed beast" but I do believe it is and my explanation for it's origon is within the chapter. Enjoy and review!
"Someone talking."
"Someone thinking."
"Techniques being used."
"Demons talking."
!######! Sound effects
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or Naruto
Chapter 10: Reibi: Bonds of Hatred
(Alabasta-Tomb of the Kings)
Things were not going well for Sir Crocodile of the Shichibukai, not well at all.
At the moment Crocodile was marching through the long hallways of Alabasta's royal tomb. His normally calm expression was decidingly absent as he was now boiling with rage. The source of his rage was the fact that Baroque Works, the criminal organization that he worked tirelessly creating, was being destroyed by a hidden enemy. The mere thought of the destruction of his criminal empire made him bit through his fifth cigar of the day.
It was inconceivable that someone would dare attack his organization but it was the truth. Someone was undermining Crocodile and his plans. His schemes for the desert kingdom should've gone off flawlessly but here he was, Baroque works in near ruins and he had no idea where his top agents were at. Crocodile contemplated how everything had gone so wrong so quickly but no matter how hard he tried, nothing seemed to stand out in his mind.
He doubted that he had a traitor amongst his generals. He knew that his agents couldn't be considered a loyal bunch, but he also knew that they feared him too much to go against him. Of course he had 'coerced' them to join his organization and had slowly made them believe that they wanted to help him; that his goals were their goals. In truth, it was his agents' fear of him that kept them in line, as none of them wanted to die.
And now all of it was for naught…
"Rarrgghh!" Sir Crocodile slammed his fist into the nearby wall, seething even as the massive stone wall was reduced into a large pile of sand.
Crocodile breathing was labored as he fought to reign in his rage. Normally Crocodile maintained a cool façade, even in the direst of situations, but the stress of the past couple of weeks was finally wearing away at his mind and his patience. It all started so innocently at first, a few lost members of the Billons, a ship or two gone silent, nothing truly eye catching considering what kind of place the Grand Line was.
But that all changed when he learned that he had a spy in his organization.
'If only I had gotten rid of that blasted princess when I had the chance."
With that thought Crocodile finally managed to get his breathing under control and resumed his trek through the tomb. As he continued walking, Crocodile's mind was inevitably drawn back to that meddling princess. A few weeks ago, Crocodile learned that the Princess of Alabasta, Nefertari Vivi, had infiltrated his organization for the sole purpose of saving her precious kingdom.
At first Crocodile had believed that the naïve girl would never been a series threat and decided to let her continue her futile struggling; but then he learned that she had found out that he was the hidden boss of Baroque Works. While disconcerting, Crocodile did not panic; instead, he sent out Mr.5 and Miss. Valentine's Day along with the Unluckies to take care of the princess.
He never heard from them again.
After the disappearance of four of his top agents everything started to spin out of control. Reports started to flood in of Billions ships being destroyed by an unknown enemy and the businesses that helped fund his organization were being burnt to the ground in seemingly random "accidents". Before he could even attempt to find out who was behind these attacks on his organization, his other spies had alerted him to a worrying fact; Vivi had returned to Alabasta in the company of a Marine Captain by the name of Smoker and his platoon of Marines.
Deciding that it would be best to focus on only one problem, Crocodile entrusted his top agent with the mission to find out who was attacking the organization.
His "left hand" man, Mr. Rei.
Crocodile briefly glanced down at the hook that replaced his left hand as he thought about the "left hand" of his organization.
Mr. Rei was an enigma that was wrapped in mystery and deceit. Unlike his right hand agent, Miss All-Sunday, who took care of all of his personal orders, Mr. Rei dealt exclusively from the shadows, handling all the work that required a certain degree of…subtlety. There was no doubt in Crocodile's mind that Mr. Rei could locate and eliminate the people responsible for the attacks on Baroque Works while he took care of his other plans.
Crocodile's musings were cut short as he finally found the room which contained the object that he had be desperately searching for many months, the Poneglyph. Crocodile paused just short of the doorway and took a quick scan of the room, idly noting that Miss All-Sunday was already in the room along with King Cobra. Then his eye's landed on the Poneglyph in the center of the room.
"So this is the Poneglyph of Alabasta…?" Crocodile said as he walked into the room with his usual slow gait. As he stepped into the room, Crocodile took a closer looked at the large stone block in the room with a greedy glint in his eyes. It didn't seem all that special at first glance but looking at it now, there was a sense of enduring strength around it.
A strength that would soon be his.
"So…" Crocodile began as he looked at the strange letters that were inscribed on the glyph. "Can you read it Miss. All-Sunday?"
Robin briefly glanced at Crocodile before she returned her attention back to the Poneglyph. "Yes…"
"Read it out loud then," Crocodile said, already thinking on how to use Pluton to his advantage. "The True History..."
Robin then walked up to the stone cube and started to run her fingers over the ancient letters that were etched into it. After a bit of time spent deciphering the ancient letters she began to speak.
"In the year 239 Goxilla conquered all of the tribes and built this kingdom. In the year 269 the Dima family is the strongest tribe in the great desert. During the year 306, Arimar completed the Fuda Holy Temple…."
"What the hell is this?!" Crocodile roared, cutting Robin off. "I don't give a damn about this country's history! All I want to know is if Pluton is buried here!"
Robin looked Crocodile dead in the eye and spoke in a flat tone. "There's nothing like that here. It's just history."
Before Crocodile could even respond to Robin's answer, a low, smooth voice echoed from the hallway where he had just entered from.
"Now, now Robin…you know it's terribly impolite to lie to our 'Boss' like that."
A form exited from the shadows and stepped into the light of the torches that illuminated the room, revealing it to be a tall man who was carrying a large bulging sack. Most of the man's body was covered in a long black cloak but from the subtle clinking sounds that he made whenever he moved it was clear that the man was wearing armor beneath the cloak. The man wore a pair of open toed sandals, an oddity considering that they were in the desert, and black fingerless gloves. Finally, as his most distinguishing features, the man wore a white Noh mask that hid his face and an old Straw hat that covered his dark hair.
"Mr. Rei…" Crocodile began to say with confusion and anger still in his voice. "What are you doing here? I already gave you a mission."
Rei seemed to ignore Crocodile's question and walked up to the Poneglyph, dropping the sack that he was carrying onto the ground a she did so. The man clasped Robin's shoulder for a moment, as she gave a small smile to Rei in response, before he returned his attention back to the large stone block. Rei's eyes, hidden behind his mask, began to trace over the etchings that were inscribed on it and began to speak in a low tone.
"For those whose desire to seek the truth of the world, find the Ten Keys of the Demon. Contained within the Ten Keys the power of human sacrifice awaits for those who seek the truth. When all ten keys are gathered the door to the past opens and the true history shall be revealed."
With that, Rei turned his head to Crocodile and spoke, amusement clear in his voice. "Well, there's more on the Poneglyph but that's the gist of it, more or less."
Crocodile confusion was starting to give way to an even deeper level of anger. The whole situation didn't make any sense at all. First off Miss All-Sunday, who is supposedly the only person in all of the four seas who can read the ancient texts, says that the there was only the history of the country written on the stone block. But then Mr. Rei, who was supposed to be finding out who was threatening the organization, appears and starts reading the Poneglyph, all the while spouting off a completely different message. The situation was spiraling out of his control and Crocodile did not like it one bit.
"Mr. Rei, answer my question… I already gave you a mission; did you eliminate the people who are attacking Baroque Works or not?"
While Crocodile was trying to decipher the mystery of what was happening, Cobra was staring at Rei with widened eyes.
'It's him…' Cobra thought as he took in the young man's dark form. 'The young man who told me about Baroque Works, but… he works for Crocodile?'
Cobra instantly remembered the night that he first laid eyes on the mysterious man; it was also the night that he learned of Baroque Works.
XXXXXXXXXXX
(-Flashback-Alabasta Throne Room; Two Years Ago-)
Within the palace of Alubarna, the capital city of Alabasta, King Cobra was looking over some reports that he had just received from his soldiers at Nanohana. He had only gotten through the first few pages of the report and already it did not look good. From what the reports indicated, a large amount of Dance Powder had been smuggled into the country; and for a country that was a year into a drought, the possession of Dance Powder was a capital offense. While finding the Powder before it could've been used was a definite good thing, it was what happened afterwards that had the King of Alabasta worrying.
Apparently when they were caught, the smugglers had shouted in front of the entire town of Nanohana that they were acting under his direct orders. A lie of course, but after a year of no rain fall a seed of hatred had been sown into his people's hearts.
Sighing heavily, Cobra rose from his throne and walked to one of the many windows that lined his throne room. Looking out of the window Cobra took in the sight of Alubarna as the stars and moon illuminated the streets below. Such a sight would've normally warmed his heart, but tonight it only increased the fear that he held for his country's future.
"What is happening to my country?" Cobra asked himself as he stared out the window.
"Well I can answer that myself your majesty."
Cobra spun around at the unfamiliar voice and found himself staring into the blank eyes of a Noh mask. Leaping away from the mysterious figure, Cobra finally got a good look at the man who had sneaked into the most secure place of his palace. Even in the light of the full moon Cobra had some difficulty in seeing the full form of the figure, but he could clearly see the Noh mask and the Straw Hat on his head.
"Who are you? How did you get in here?" Cobra demanded as he subtly started to inch his way to the door to the hallway.
The figure then held his hands up in a peaceful manner as he began to walk towards the suspicious king.
"Now, now your majesty I'm just a concerned citizen that's here to help." The man said in a surprisingly young voice. "And as to how I got in here… I walked in through the front door…"
Cobra was now sure that this young man, who was barely older than his daughter Vivi if the boy's voice was anything to go by, was extremely dangerous. Cobra sent a subtle look to the doors of his throne room, wondering why the guards had not burst in at the sound of the intruder's voice. Cobra's attention was again brought back to the mysterious young man as he started to talk once more.
"Oh and if you're wondering what happened to your guards…" The masked youth then reached behind his back and threw something at Cobra's feet. Looking down at the object, Cobra felt his eyes widen at what it was, a bloody and dented guard helmet. "They're currently indisposed of right now."
Cobra knew that his guards were dead and that he may very well be next. So with no other choice, Cobra drew the hidden knife that he always kept on him and charged at the masked youth. The young man made no move to show that Cobra's attack worried him; in fact he kept his hands raised in the air.
"Kage Shishi (Shadow Limb)"
As Cobra drew closer to the mysterious individual dozens of pale, transparent hands formed shot out from the shadows that clinged to the masked man and shot out towards Cobra.
'He's a fruit user!' Cobra thought as the hands grabbed him and prevented him from moving a single muscle.
"Now, now your majesty that's not nice." The young man said as he walked closer to the bound king. He then bent down a bit to scoop up the helmet that he had thrown earlier.
"Besides…" the young man said as he turned the helmet so Cobra could look inside of it. There, right at the base of the back of the helmet, were the initials "BW". "They weren't very loyal to you."
Cobra stared at the initials that were inscribed on his guard's helmet for a few seconds before he returned his attention back to the younger masked man. Cobra's expression quickly morphed into a more professional one as he looked into the narrow slits of the man's Noh mask.
"Who are you and what do you want?"
The painted smile on the mask seemed to become more sinister in the shadows of the moonlight. "Well your majesty, who I am doesn't matter, its how I can help you save your kingdom that you should wonder about…"
XXXXXXXXXXX
(-Flashback End-)
Cobra was brought out of his musings at the sound of Rei's voice as he continued to talk to Crocodile.
"Well 'Boss'…" Rei began as his voice slowly began to take on a mocking tone. "It would be hard to eliminate Baroque Work's hidden enemy…"
As quick as a striking snake, Rei kicked the sack that he had been carrying into the air, allowing its contents to spill out for all to see. Dozens of pieces of cloth fluttered around in the air as Crocodile's eyes lit up with rage and confusion as he saw what was on the pieces of cloth. Each was inscribed with the initials of B.W. and each covered in splotches of blood.
"Because, that would go against my plan!" Rei shouted out in mad glee as his plan was revealed.
"Rei…YOU'RE BEHIND THIS!?" Crocodile screamed out in anger at one of his top agent's betrayal.
"That's right 'Boss'" Rei said as he stepped on a Baroque Works flag. "And now that you've outlived your usefulness Crocodile, it's time for you to go."
With that, four large, transparent snake-like creatures shot out from the darkness of the passage way behind Crocodile. Each creature bit down on one of Crocodile's limbs and to his shock, he couldn't transform them into sand. The creatures then lifted Crocodile off the ground and pulled him into the hallway with Rei straight on their heels.
XXXXXXXX
(Tomb of the Kings)
Crocodile stood in the middle of the Tomb, his breathing was slightly heavier as he tried to predict where his enemy was.
Once he had been pulled out of the Crocodile wordlessly dispatched the four serpents that held his limbs in place with a quick slash of Haki infused sand. A skill that he had loathed to use in such a simple place as the "Paradise" portion of the Grand line but he knew what the wraith-like snakes were and who they belonged to.
"I can assume that your apart of Agent Rei's little takeover plan aren't you…Miss. Halloween!?"
"Damn, so the shit-head finally caught on did he?" A bored voice said from a behind one of the pillars in the room.
From the shadows of the tomb an odd looking woman emerged. The woman honestly looked like a demon of some sort. The woman wore a plain grey tunic and black pants and her skin was a deep brown color. She had long red hair that ran past her shoulders and three large boney horns that grew from the top of her head. To complete her demonic appearance, both of the woman's eyes were an unnatural shade of yellow and black.
The woman was none other than Uzumaki Tayuya wielder of the Akuma Akuma No Mi: Model Siren, otherwise known as Miss. Halloween and the partner of Agent Rei.
"It took you long enough to figure it out..." Tayuya said as she idly twirled a flute in her hand. "I thought that you would've wised up after I sunk that the third warship of yours…heh, I guess I gave a shithead like you too much credit."
Crocodile didn't bother with replying to Tayuya's insults, as he sent a blade of sand at the traitor to his organization. Tayuya looked at the incoming wave of sand without a bit of fear in her eyes as she lifted her flute to her mouth and played a quick note on it.
Crocodile didn't deem to respond to Miss Halloween's insults but to send a large wave of sand at the woman. Said woman looked at the wave without an ounce of fear, merely lifting her flute to her mouth before she began to play.
"RAGGH!"
From the shadows of the ceiling came a large, ogre-like creature that leapt in-between Tayuya and Crocodile's attack. The ogre attempted to block the attack within its arms but that proved to be fatal as it quickly dried up as the moisture in its body was absorbed by the sand. Miss Halloween clicked her tongue in annoyance before the creature disappeared in a cloud of white smoke before its body could be completely destroyed.
Crocodile wasted no time as he launched over a dozen of small, sharp blades at the woman in an attempt to shred her to pieces. His attack went wide however as Rei appeared behind him, and landed a brutal straight kick at the older man's back, surprising him as he was sent flying by the strong kick from Rei.
'That shouldn't have been possible!' Crocodile thought as he crashed through the walls and pillars of the tomb.
Once Crocodile was out of the room, Rei vanished once more to reappear next to Tayuya. Tayuya glanced at her partner before she looked to where Crocodile was sent flying with a bored look in her eyes.
"What took you so long you lunk-head? You get lost on the way here?" Tayuya said.
"Tayu-chan how you wound me so…" Rei said in a mock hurt tone," Have you taken care of the bomb yet?"
Miss. Halloween responded by smacking him against the head with her flute. " Luffy-BAKA! How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that shitty nickname you came up with?!" She whacked him a couple more times before stopping as her temper cooled. "And, yes, I did take care of the bomb. Had to get rid of a couple of frogs though."
Rei, or Luffy, stopped rubbing the back of his injured head and laughed. "Shishishishishishishi... I knew that the plans Crocodile came up with would be easy to derail, but I never thought it would be this easy."
His laughter was cut off as the area around them to begin to shake. Bits of the ceiling cracked and crumbled, allowing in an ever-increasing amount of sand to begin to pour into the room. In the distance, Crocodile was slowly getting back up, glaring bloody murder at Rei and Tayuya as the sand danced around him.
"Looks like the "boss" isn't playing around anymore." Rei chuckled before he turned towards his companion, "You can head out now. While I appreciate that you came, I can take care of the "boss" myself."
"Finally…" Miss Halloween said as she summoned up three more ogre-like creatures. "I thought that we would never kill that shit-head." She then jumped on one of her ogres' shoulders and turned to look down at Rei. "I'll do my part to take down that walking man-purse so you better not mess up or else!"
With that, Tayuya blew a quick note through her flute which made her ogres jump into the upper areas of the Tomb of the Kings. Seeing his partner take off further into the building, Luffy couldn't help but release a quick chuckle.
"Ahh that Tayu-chan, so full of spunk, she is right though…" Luffy then looked down at his body, as if examining himself. "Though I suppose I should get into my proper 'attire' for croc hunting, after all it is dangerous to underestimate a cornered animal."
Luffy then stepped back into the shadows of the pillars until only his white Noh mask was visible. The mask began to twitch and thrash about violently until it now hovered a good dozen feet off the ground. A voice then seemed to come from the Noh's mask; it was deep and seemed to echo even in the tight confines of the tomb.
"Shishishishi, it's time to end this charade once and for all."
XXXXXXXXXXX
(Crocodile's POV)
Crocodile lurched out of the rubble that he found himself in after being hit from Rei's surprise attack. Every surface that he touched was instantly reduced to sand as his anger became even greater. The mere fact that Rei's attack actually connected with him without the use of any liquids could only mean one thing; Rei knew the ways of Haki. That made his former left-hand even more dangerous since he could nullify his fruit defense.
'How could I have not known about this?' Crocodile thought as the sand around him started to float into the air. 'I've been watching him ever since he joined Baroque Works…when could he have learned it? Before he joined us?'
Before Crocodile think any further, dozens of pale translucent hands seemed to form from the shadows of the tomb and flew towards Crocodile. The traitorous Shichibukai morphed into a cloud of sand and flew in between the fingers of the hands before reforming back into the upper body in the air above them.
"Desert la Spada!"
Six gigantic swords made of Haki infused sand appeared in mid-air before reducing the spectral hands to shreds. Crocodile reformed the lower half of his body the lightly landed on the ground as he looked around for the owner of the attack.
"WHERE ARE YOU REI?!"
"I'm right here Crocodile" A smooth and dark voice whispered into his ear.
Crocodile didn't have enough time to think as he was once again sent flying through the air as a large object smashed into his back. Crocodile dissolved into sand just as his body hit a stone pillar, dispersing it into a cloud of sand. The cloud flew around in the air for a bit, dodging the ghostly hands that tried to swat it out of the air, before it reformed back into Crocodile a few dozen feet away.
"Aww…" The same dark voice said as a large creature lowered itself from the shadows of the ceiling. "I missed…"
Never in Crocodile's entire life had he ever seen such a creature before. It looked like a giant leach but its skin resembled old spilt blood, both in color and texture. It also had a main of hair composed of five long streaks of crimson-red hair. But on top of the beast's face was an object that was frighteningly familiar to Crocodile; it was Rei's mask.
"Rei…?"
"Please Crocodile, I think that we're past titles now…" The leach, Rei, said as it slithered around a couple of pillars. "Call me Luffy, for it will be the last name that you'll hear!"
With that proclamation Luffy's body created another dozen Shadow Limbs and sent them hurtling towards Crocodile. Crocodile sent out a wave of sand towards the spectral hands which collided with Luffy's attack, destroying them both. Crocodile whipped his attention back to Luffy, only to find that his traitorous subordinate was already gone. Crocodile barely had any time to think when a large red shot out from the shadows of the tomb and latched onto his leg.
Crocodile attempted to turn his leg into sand but was shocked to find that he could not do so. Before he could try and cut the limb, Crocodile was yanked off his feet and into the air. Luffy emerged from the shadows as a grinning mouth full of ivory molars formed just below the Noh mask. Another red limb sprouted from Luffy's body before he released Crocodile's leg and delivered a devastating punch straight to his mid-section.
Crocodile went flying through the air and crashed into the stone walls of the tomb, causing him to cough up a bit of blood.
"What kind of beast is he…?" Crocodile thought as he tried to make sense of what he was fighting against. It made no sense, even without the use of Haki, Rei was still able to hurt him with his normal attacks. That alone made no sense whatsoever since the only way he could've done it was with the use of a liquid but Crocodile was sure that Luffy never used anything on those limbs of his.
"Tell me 'Luffy"…" Crocodile said as he sent a wave of 'at the mysterious creature that was once his top assassin. "You're using a mythical logia fruit aren't you?
"Shishishi, you got it in one Crocodile…" Luffy said as he shot around the tornado of sand. "Allow me to tell you a story... A long time ago, when all of the world's land was still formed a single continent, there was a beast unlike any other..."
Luffy then attempted to crush Crocodile with a wall of both his Shadow Limbs and his own arms. Crocodile dodged the attack by turning into sand and flying in-between the individual punches. As Crocodile dodged his assault, Luffy continued to tell his story as though he wasn't trying to kill the warlord.
"The monster was a true avatar of destruction as its very presence drove people to the brink of madness and despair. Many tried to slay the beast but all fell before its might…until a lone sage faced the monster in single combat. After a mighty battle it was the sage that emerged victorious over the beast…but this victory was not without its consequences…"
Crocodile reformed himself right above Luffy's leach-like body and attempted to grab onto his back with his hand. If Crocodile could grab onto Luffy's leach-like body then he could drain all the liquid out of his body. Before Crocodile could grab onto Luffy, he twisted his body out of the way out of the way of the grapple and hit his opponent with a vicious backhand.
"The blood of the beast that was spilt in the battle absorbed the monster's hatred and ager and gained new life! The blood became a living creature that fed on the hatred and misery in human hearts and I am that creature, the Reibi!"
"As fascinating as that bed time story was…" Crocodile said as he pushed himself glared up at the Noh mask that served as Luffy's face. "What does any of it have to do with this fight?"
While Crocodile glared at Luffy he made sure to keep his right hand planted firmly on the ground. When Crocodile had been sent flying into the wall, he knew that he would d need something stronger. Making sure that the palm of his hand was out of Luffy's line of sight, Crocodile slowly sent his sand throughout the corners of the tomb. If he could establish control over the natural sand of the tomb by spreading his own sand throughout it then he could still win this fight. But this ability took time to use, time that he did not have.
'That's right keep talking…" Crocodile thought as he asked Luffy another question. 'Keep talking in that smug tone of yours and pretty soon…'
"I'll crush that Noh mask of his into dust."
Crocodile froze when Luffy spoke, as the shock of what he heard had literally stunned him into a stupor.
'Wha-what?! How did he know what I was thinking? N-no don't think like that, it has to be a trick of some kind. He's just…'
"Trying to trick me! There's no way he could read my mind."
Luffy merely laughed at the shocked expression on Crocodile's face. "Shishishishi, that's right Crocodile, you've been running around in the palm of my hand since the very beginning. All of your plans, your desires, and even your true name were laid bare before me. The only reason why you were allowed to get this far with your schemes was because they helped my own goals."
Crocodile couldn't even speak after all, how could he after such a shattering revelation? Had he really underestimated the situation that much, to not know when he was being manipulated? He should've been the hidden boss behind the scenes but it seemed as if he was a patsy in his own subordinate's schemes.
That's when he heard the sound of a flute being played.
All of a sudden, the world around Crocodile started to melt and spin around him as if he was looking through the ripples of water. Before he could even comprehend what was happening, both of Crocodile's arms snapped up so they were stretched out from his body. Crocodile tried to regain control of his limbs but no matter what he did his limbs would not respond to his commands.
No…
Not just his arms but to Crocodile's shock he couldn't move any part of his body. He instantly attempted to turn into sand and get out of whatever was causing this phenomenon. After a few moments of nothing happening, Crocodile's eyes widened when he realized that he couldn't change his flesh and blood body into sand.
"W-what is this?!" Crocodile yelled as the world around him continued to melt and spin.
Then, as suddenly as it started, the world stopped melting and ever snapped back into place. Only the world around him was different then how he remembered it. Crocodile no longer found himself in a tomb, but now he was in a wasteland of some sort. As far as his eyes could see, Crocodile saw nothing but an endless forest of spears that were impaled into the blood red ground. The sound of the flute suddenly got louder as the familiar figure of Miss Halloween walked out of the forest of spears.
"Halloween! What is this place?!" Crocodile yelled as he attempted to stand up, only to be held down as if he was trapped by dozens of chains
Tayuya stopped playing her flute, which did not stop the eerie flute music from being played , and looked down at Crocodile's prone with a nasty smirk on her face, "Well 'boss' this is my World of Illusions. Here I control everything; the world itself reshapes itself to my will. So if I wanted to do something like this…"
Tayuya then snapped her fingers and Crocodile felt true pain. He looked towards his bound arms and was shocked when he saw that he arms were melting. Crocodile looked back up at Miss. Halloween and felt his eyes widened when he saw the ghastly form of Luffy hovering behind Miss Halloween.
"This little game has gone on long enough Crocodile. It's time for you to join your precious Baroque Works in oblivion!"
Dark smog began to emit from Luffy's red skin, its very presence spoke of untold levels of hatred and malice that surpassed even Crocodile's deep hatred. Just thinking of how the enemy before him had once again surpassed him made his hatred for Luffy surge, and that's when he noticed that the smog just got bigger. Before Crocodile could even consider what that could mean, Luffy's cheeks bulged as his dark tone spoke.
"Yami No Shuraudo (Shroud of Darkness)"
From Luffy's mouth a black wind of pure hatred bellowed out and devoured everything it touched. Crocodile could not move an inch as the wave of death washed over him submerging his entire being into a pitch black world. Bit by bit, Crocodile felt his body erode away as the whispers of loathing washed over his form. The beggar who looks up at the king's palace, the people who died of thirst as others drank to their fill, and the parents who were forced to bury their children; Crocodile felt every bit of their malicious hatred and spite as more and more of himself was swept away by the dark wind of Luffy's breath. Eventually the dark wind died down but where there was once Crocodile, Shichibukai of the marines and former leader of Baroque works, there was nothing…
Then the world shattered like glass.
XXXXXXXXXX
(Real World-Alabasta Tombs)
Luffy quickly transformed back into his human form and silently landed onto the stone floor of the tomb. He then raised his left hand upwards and pulled the Noh mask off his face, finally revealing it for the first time in what felt like a lifetime. Luffy's dark eyes snapped to the spot where Crocodile once was and, for the briefest of moments, one could see sadness and guilt as they flickered through his eyes. Luffy then started to slowly chuckle to himself, as if enjoying an inside joke that he had just recalled.
No longer in her own transformation that her Devil Fruit granted her, Tayuya looked to Luffy with an annoyed expression on her face. "What's so funny you baka?"
Luffy stopped chuckling to himself and stared down at the mask in his hands. He then smiled a small little smile as his eyes gained a very tired look in them, as though he was weary from the thoughts that weighed upon them.
"I was just marveling how easy it is to act like a monster…" Luffy said before lifting the mask into the air, towards his face. "When I cover my face with this mask…" He drew the mask down, "Although, I did create this mask myself from my flesh after all."
Luffy then crushed the mask with his hand but, instead of shattering into pieces, the mask burst into a reddish-brown liquid that was quickly absorbed into his skinTayuya looked at Luffy for a few seconds with a soft look in her eyes….
!BANG!
"OW!" Luffy yelled as he rubbed the spot where Tayuya had smacked him in the head with her battle flute.
"Don't you dare to be going soft on me Monkey D. Luffy! You shouldn't feel bad about putting shit-head's like him down. He was already starting this Project Utopia plot when we joined Baroque Works and if we hadn't had steered it in the direction that we did, then a lot more people would've died." Tayuya said, holding her flute in a ready position to smack him again should he try to talk back to her.
When no such response came, Tayuya looked at him for a moment before turning around with a huff. She then began to walk back into the Poneglyph chamber, muttering something about stupid idiots and their damn mood swings.
Luffy stopped rubbing the back of his head before he followed Tayuya. 'Shishishishishi...' He thought to himself with a smile on his face. 'I wonder when Tayuya-chan will realize that she just called me by my real name.'
XXXXXXXXX
(Poneglyph Chamber)
Luffy entered the Poneglyph with a slight spring in his step and a grin on his face. After Tayuya had bashed him on the head, he managed to get his own personal demons back under control so he was in a much better mood. After all, the culmination of three years' worth of planning was finally about to pay off so why wouldn't Luffy be happy?
Luffy noticed that Tayuya was now next to Robin and was telling the black-haired woman about how he was too "chicken" to fight Crocodile by himself and that he had needed her help to finish the 'walking handbag' off. Robin seemed to be listening to Tayuya but Luffy could tell that her attention was on him the instant that he walked into the room.
Nico Robin was something of a recent addition to Luffy's band of companions alongside several other former Baroque Works agents that he had managed to convince to join him. It had been hard to make Robin believe that his intentions were good and that he didn't plan to betray her, like so many others had in the past, but... he had persisted and eventually Robin had begun to believe him. It also helped that he too knew how to read the ancient language of the Void Era, to show that he wasn't working for the World Government since they would execute him for possessing 'forbidden knowledge'. From that point on, she had become a welcome addition to his nakama.
On the other side of the room, Cobra was looking at Luffy with no small amount of wonder in his eyes. He was probably marveling about how he took down one of the seven Shichibukai and come out relatively unharmed. Of course, lying below the wonder, Luffy could see a healthy amount of distrust was bubbling beneath the surface, no doubt wondering what Luffy would do now that he toppled his former boss.
Luffy grinned wider for a bit before he performed a mock-bow in front of the injured king. "Don't worry, your Majesty: Crocodile is quite dead and your kingdom is safe. Your daughter and her Marine friends are cleaning up the last remnants of Baroque Works and the rebellion is winding down. By tomorrow morning the newspapers should also get a 'package' that details all the crimes that Crocodile has done to your kingdom."
The king's shoulders sagged for a bit at hearing what Luffy had just said to him. Not from weariness though, oh no, to Cobra hearing that his daughter and country would be fine seemed to lift a great weight from his shoulders. And, oddly enough, it seemed as if he owed the young man in front of him a debt for killing Crocodile and saving his life.
Before Cobra could say anything, Luffy spun around and started to walk towards the Poneglyph. "Of course there is the matter about payment for services rendered…" Luffy began as he walked up to the Poneglyph and looked up at the symbols carved in its side. "Yes, this will do nicely."
Luffy then raised a single finger as a pale blue flame of energy ignited at its tip. He then started to trace the symbols on the Poneglyph in a seemingly random order, but each ancient letter lit up with the same blue energy that Luffy was producing. Eventually Luffy traced one final letter on the stone block and took a step back from the Poneglyph. The lit letters started too slowly plus with the strange energy before all the other symbols on the Poneglyph lit up with an intensity that forced Cobra to look away from it. Tayuya looked on at the scene with some mild amount of interest, since she had seen something similar to this before. Robin on the other hand was staring at the Poneglyph with no small amount of wonder in her normal stoic eyes. Even she, who had dedicated her entire life into researching into the void century, had no idea on what she was seeing.
"It's quite amazing really, the ingenuity of the Ancients…" Luffy said to no one as he stared straight at the glowing Poneglyph without flinching. "To make sure that their secrets would reach a new generation, they sealed clues within indestructible chests that would ensure that they would survive. Of course you need the power of the Void Century to open the chests…"
Then a sound like heavy stones scrapping across each other was heard as the massive stone cube seemed to shift, for lack of a better word, until a hollow space within the Poneglyph was revealed. Resting within that hollow space of the block was a single book. The book itself was completely unremarkable looking, bound in simple leather that was dyed a light green. It didn't even have a title, only the symbol of an hourglass adorned its cover.
Luffy, ever so gently, picked the book up the book and started to flip through its pages. After a few seconds Luffy shut the book and stared at the hourglass symbol with a smile on his face.
"The journal of the Wind Shadows… a tome of untold knowledge for those who seek the True History." He then slipped the journal into the sleeves of his robes and walked over to Robin and Tayuya. "And did we get our other prize Robin?"
Robin smiled and pulled a piece of fruit from one of her pockets. The fruit was strange to say the least. It resembled a spikey melon, like the ones that were more commonly found in certain areas of the desert, but it was different at the same time. The fruit was covered in swirl marks that ended in the spikes that lined its surface and its stem had more curl then a normal fruit. This fruit was none other than the Suna Suna no Mi.
"I must admit Luffy-san; I had some doubts about when you told me to keep this desert melon I did think that you were playing with me but when it turned into Sir Crocodile's devil fruit I can see that my worries were unfounded." Robin said in her usual tone of voice as she handed the Suna Suna no Mi to Luffy.
"You've been planning this out from the beginning haven't you?" Robin asked with a hint of mirth in her voice.
Luffy grinned widely at her question, showing off all of his teeth in a gigawat smile. "Shishishi, Robin you give me too much credit. So shall we be off then? The others should be waiting for us by now."
With that Luffy turned back to Cobra and gave the King one last mock bow. "Well your majesty, I believe it's time for me and my crew to depart from your land. So without further ado…Goodbye."
With that Luffy threw a small ball onto the ground which released a thick cloud of smoke, obscuring him and his two partners from view. Once the smoke was cleared, Cobra could see that the three were gone and the Poneglyph was back into its original condition. Unexpectedly, cobra began to chuckle to himself as he got to his feet and started to shamble to the exit of the tomb.
"Reibi no Luffy…I wonder how far you'll go for the truth?"
Techniques:
Kage Shishi (Shadow Limb): On of Luffy's moset used techniques, both in and out of his Reibi form, this ability generates a ssemingly infinite amount of "shadow limbs" that can be controlled with a single thought from Luffy.
Desert La Spada: An altered version of Desert Spada. Crocodile now forms several solid blades with fan-shaped edges instead of one large blade made from sand. This is the only time Crocodile has formed solid objects out of sand, although a sufficiently powerful blow will shatter it back into sand.
A/N: And that's Reibi! Remember leave a review on the way out or Sniper Kitty will get you.