Disclaimer: Godzilla and One Piece are the sole properties of Toho Co. LTD and Eiichiro Oda respectively. KP360 claims no ownership of anything save for any OCs, abilities, and locations.

Alabasta Arc opening: Know Know Know by Does (Gintama Op. 15)

"Wow… Rainbase is quite the city of glamour!" Gian whistled as they entered the oasis of Alabasta. It was a sentiment everybody shared; even though they knew the reason behind it.

"Yes… Rainbase was unaffected by the drought as it had other sources of income, hence you can see the numerous gambling houses located here." Vivi pointed out anxiously "This has allowed it to separate itself from all the hardships faced by this country."

"Gambling huh? Then there's a chance we can rake it in big here!" Nami's eyes glittered.

"We have an important mission, greedy witch!" Zoro snapped, already sensing where her thoughts were.

"It was just a thought…"

"Well, now that we're here we really need a plan of action." Gian stated "It's safe to say that Crocodile already knows that we are here, and has his subordinates looking for us. However, there's a big chance that he doesn't expect us to get to his home base this quickly, so finding him is still doable."

"Now, if I were the leader of a criminal organization where would I put my HQ?" he looked around, before spotting the large pyramid shaped building with a golden Bananawani atop it.

"I'm like 90% certain that's the place, how much do you want to bet?"

"That's the Rain Dinners Casino, it's the largest within the city. I think Gian-san is correct there" Vivi spoke up.

"Well that settles it. Now we just need a way in. it's best if we don't attract too much attention so we should-"

"CROCODILEEEEEE! I'M COMING TO KICK YOUR ASS!" and the entire group was drowned in a cloud of dust as their captain dashed towards the casino. He was immediately followed by Usopp and Chopper, both frothing at the mouth due to dehydration.

"…Or we can do that…" Gian seethed "Somebody go and get those 3 idiot before we're all caught red handed"

"We might as well go now…" Vivi smiled apologetically "Besides, the sooner we act the sooner we can finish this!"

"I really don't know why I come up with these suggestions…

Fortunately the 3 were more interested in quenching their thirst than making a commotion, Gian soon found them by a bar close to the casino, demanding liquid substance.

"Is it too much to ask you guys to slow down for just a second? The rest of us are- What are you 3 looking at?" Gian chided before noticing their wide stares to their right. His gaze look up, and what he saw made him internally scream.

"Oh, come ON!"

"Strawhat…" none other than Captain Smoker and Master Chief Petty Officer Tashigi were sitting just mere feet away from them.

"AHHH IT'S SMOKEY!" Luffy screamed before dashing off with Usopp and Chopper close behind him.

"Smokey huh… That's even better than Chaser!" Gian had to stifle a chortle "I'm totally going to start calling you that from now on-Ok I'm leaving too!" then sprinted after them when Smoker let out a low growl.

The resulting chase ended up with yet another entire squadron of Marines hot on their tails.

"FOR CRYING OUT LOUD DO YOU EVER REST?!" Gian shouted back at the pursing captain.

"HOW DOES HE KEEP FINDING US?!" Usopp cried.

"HELL IF I KNOW! IT'S LIKE BACK WHEN HE SAW LUFFY IN LOGUETOWN HE JUST GOT A BUILT IN TRACKING DEVICE SOLEY FOR HIM!"

The remaining crew members, who were trailing behind a bit, looked in dismay as the quartet brought their pursuers right to them.

"Why did you bring them toward us?!" Zoro snapped.

"DO YOU SEE A BETTER PLACE TO RUN TO?!" Gian shot back.

"You four are ridiculous… we need to split up now!" Nami chided.

"Vivi, which way to Crocodile?" Luffy reminded, to which the princess once again pointed to the large pyramid shaped casino. Luffy nodded gratefully as he raced towards the building, with Gian, Nami, Zoro and Usopp going after him. Chopper and Sanji went and escorted Vivi to safety themselves.

"None of you will escape!" Smoker shouted from behind them. "White Blow!" The cloud of smoke soared towards the group, intent on cutting them off. Fortunately Gian managed to dice it to pieces by spinning Atom Splitter around. The action cost him some time however, as he was forced to block an incoming strike from the marine captain's jitte.

Dislodging the man, they managed to enter the casino with Smoker still after them. Soon however, they spotted something else.

"Yo, what does that sign say?" Luffy pointed.

"VIP… it pretty much means very important person. That could refer to anybody." Gian answered.

"There seems to be an opening there! We can try to go through that way!" Zoro suggested.

"There's even a group of people beckoning at us!" Nami pointed out.

"I don't know... wait, how did they know we are coming?" Gian suddenly realized, but before he could get a warning out:

"We should go there! They're welcoming us!" Luffy pointed before indeed going off in the direction, all the while screaming blue murder about the head of Baroque Works.

"Luffy, wait! That's too-" Zoro started, but he didn't listen.

And that's how the group ended up in the worst situation they could be since they came to the country. The minute they made the turn, the ground beneath them disappeared and they all went tumbling down. Down, until they hit the bottom roughly. When they opened their eyes, they realized they were held captive in what appears to be a holding cell.

"I told you to wait! Now look, we fell for their trap!" Zoro scowled.

"That was way too obvious… why do I get the feeling this was made solely for our dim-witted captain?" Gian sighed, before glaring at Smoker, who in his haste was also trapped alongside them "This is all your fault! If you weren't so gung ho about your duty we wouldn't be in this mess!"

"Have you noticed the cage we're held in?" the captain growled, ignoring that little outburst. And only then did Gian realized that the air around them was surprising heavy. As he focused on the bars of the jail, a wave of nausea washed over him. There was only one thing that had this effect.

"Kairoseki… this cage is made out of Kairoseki…" the same substance embedded in both their weapons were also present in these bars. As long as they are within, neither of them can use their powers.

"Glad to see you still know what it is. This cage is specifically made to capture those with Devil Fruits."

"Wah?! Smokey is here with us?!" Luffy deadpanned, just noticing the marine captain and earning him a scowl.

"Luffy… don't touch the bars." Gian sighed.

"What? Why?" Luffy tipped his head and did exactly that, which resulted him drooping to the floor exhausted.

"WHAT DID I JUST SAY?!"

"My, My… you lot certainly are loud… I didn't expect my guests to have this much energy…" a deep voice jolted them from the action. Rage overcame their features as they realized who set the trap; even though they have never met, they could easily deduce this newcomer's identity, considering they've heard so much about him already.

"CROCODILE! LET ME OUT OF HERE SO I CAN KICK YOUR ASS!" Luffy shouted, grabbing the bars of the cell only to fall to the ground again.

"Kuhahahahaha… how pitiful… stuck in a cage, absolutely helpless. I will admit the bunch of you surprised me with your tenacity, but in the end you still end up in such a predicament. I would've never expected the infamous 'Strawhat' Monkey D. Luffy and his crew to be this gullible." The shichibukai chuckled sadistically.

"Crocodile! What are you planning?!" Smoker demanded from the cage.

"And how can I forget about such a valued guess like yourself, Captain Smoker! I suppose this is what happens when you stick your nose too deep into the business of other people. I expected you to be a wild card; you never did exactly comply with what the World Government wanted after all! They wouldn't normally send marines here to investigate."

"What you're doing here will get you Shichibukai status revoked!" Smoker snarled at the pirate, who only laughed in response.

"Well, that's why the only one that knows will die along with the Strawhats then! I'd much rather the World Government not be concerned with what I'm doing." Crocodile sneered "I will ask that you be a bit patient right now, there's still one more valued guest that needs to be brought here, and my partner just informed me that she just arrived!"

"LET VIVI GO!" Luffy shouted when he realized the implication. But Crocodile only cackled as he exited the room to fetch the captured princess.

"Well shit… Never expected it to happen like this…" Gian sighed before sitting down. Vaguely aware that Luffy and Usopp were taking this time to do impressions of members of the crew, he watched them for a while before realizing the impression of himself was completely off.

"You two missed the mark completely with that one!" he groaned, while the two only stuck their tongue out at them.

"Hmph, at a time like this you're more concerned with trivial matters such as this." Smoker grunted from behind him.

"You're one to talk, couldn't you at least call Tashigi and tell her where you are?"

"The room is jamming the signals of my Den Den Mushi, I can't get anything out." Was the captain's reply.

"What were you doing here anyway?" Gian inquired "And don't give me that jazz about how you predicted us to turn up here, because the last time I checked none of us told you where we were going."

Smoker glared at him for a bit, before letting out a sigh "There has been many things recently that have aroused my suspicions about Alabasta in the recent years. It was a country that was previously peaceful, nothing out of the ordinary, yet somehow there is a civil war brewing within." He growled upon hearing this "Unfortunately, Crocodile being a Shichibukai means that the World Government usually tends to look the other way unless there's absolute proof he's had a hand in the matter. So I took it upon myself to see to this personally. That part was due to a lower member of the organization we apprehended a few days prior. We also managed to intercept a call that had key elements of Princess Nefeltari Vivi's absence from the city, as well as Crocodile being aware of the Strawhat Pirates, though that was all we got from it. Everything else was mere assumptions, but that's all become clear now."

"And being the ever vigilant captain that you are, you decided to take matters into your own hands and do a little private investigation and maybe capture us on the side, am I correct?" Gian theorized.

"Precisely, though it seems like Crocodile was aware of my intentions as well." Smoker huffed "It's like they always say: once a pirate, always a pirate."

"He is right about one thing: you always did like to poke your head into things that don't concern you." Gian sighed "It's like that one time when Kenichi and I pulled that milk prank on Tashigi's 18th birthday, we even covered our tracks well and you still found out about it."

"No, you only thought you covered your tracks, but any seasoned tracker can find you out easily, and that's exactly what I did." Smoker rebutted.

"Hey, cut me some slack! I didn't have the street knowledge I have now I thought we did a pretty good job!"

"You really are taking this whole pirate thing really well aren't you, you punk…"

"Well, that's all subjective but none of it matters now…" he lean backed and began humming lightly "What can I say… except… we'll die soon…"

A moment later is when a triumphant Crocodile returned to the holding area, followed by his partner. The princess was led right behind her, and her eyes widened in helplessness when she saw who were all captured. Miss All-Sunday's gaze was unreadable as always, though when she passed by the cell, she made brief eye contact with the Kaiju-Zoan user, seemingly hinting at something.

"Well, we're all here Nefeltari Vivi! Or should I say, Miss Wednsday!" Crocodile chuckled again "You certainly made it quite hard for my assassins to find you, seems like the time you spent with us weren't all a waste."

"Crocodile…" Vivi growled in rage "I would run through a thousand knives just to see you die!"

"Funny, given the situation it appears you and your friends are the ones that are about to die. But none of that matters now, Project Utopia is about to come to fruitation. And, the one that ultimately falls, will be this country itself!"

Vivi could contain herself no longer as she threw out a Peacock Slasher, the spinning blade whirled towards the man's head. Crocodile made no effort to dodge, and just as the blade connected, his head exploded into a cloud of sand.

"Kuhahahaha…" the Shichibukai's dark laughter sounded as sand drifted across where his head used to be, as everyone in the room watched wide-eyed (save for Smoker and Miss All-Sunday) as the sand gradually settled until Crocodile's head emerged again "Did you like that performance? You may have found out about my identity, but it seems you haven't found out everything about me. Everyone in this country knows the power of my Suna Suna no mi; you can even see it in your surroundings! The fruit has granted me other powers too, shall I demonstrate them on you?" the shichibukai reached out his right hand.

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER, CROCODILE!" Luffy roared from the cage.

"Logia… of course he has a logia…" Gian gritted, gripping the staff on Atom Splitter even tighter.

"It is past 7 now, Mr. 0" Miss All-Sunday announced from the side.

"Has it been that soon? Then I supposed we shall begin the final steps of Project Utopia!" Crocodile heeded triumphantly "Nelfeltari Vivi, I must congratulate you, you have the first seat in viewing your country's destruction! But then you've seen it already have you? That pitiful oasis? It's hilarious really, how that old fool keeps trying to dig away his problems." He grinned maliciously when he saw Vivi's eyes widen in horror "That's right, I was the one that constantly bombarded Yuba with Sandstorms! I'm surprised they haven't all shriveled up and died yet."

"How can you do this?! How can you be so cruel?!" Vivi cried.

"My goals are far beyond what you can comprehend. All the trouble I went through to acquire the necessary amount of Dance Powder, all the work I did to sow the seeds of mistrust, it will all lead to this! Now, there is only one last thing to do. And you, my princess, will be our special guest in our little conversation with your dear father!" Crocodile cackled "That's right! We are headed to Alubarna this instant!"

"W-what are you planning to do with father?!"

"It's a simple question really: Does he value the people of the country over his precious daughter, or the other way around! Kuhahaha!"

"CROCODILE! I SWEAR IF THIS CAGE WASN'T AROUND ME-" Luffy was really mad now, and the rest of the crew were close by with him.

"…Hmm? Ah, I forgot about you lot. Well I suppose I shall dispose of you soon as well." a hatch to the right of the room suddenly shifted open, and the people can hear growling coming from it.

"That's… never a good sign…" Gian mumbled. And he would be right, 4 pairs of crimson eyes glowed out of the darkness, followed by the scaled bodies of multiple Bananawani, all of them snapping their jaws in delight of their potential meal. Crocodile simply smirked before revealing a key in his coat; the key to the cage. With a simple flick he tossed the material to a nearby Bananawani, who promptly snapped it up.

"I should also warn you guys that this base is located atop of a lake." Crocodile nonchalantly mentioned "Even as we speak, water is flowing in from the sides and the whole room will disappear in less than an hour. It really is a refreshing sight to see you all so pitiful."

"Vivi! Let us out of here, we'll beat him up right now!" Luffy shouted, but the princess could only look on helplessly as the massive crocodilians circled the cage.

"Even now you're still so hardheaded… it would be inspiring to see if it wasn't so pathetic." Crocodile scoffed "I supposed I should leave and-"

*purupurupurupurupurupuru!

"…who could it possibly be this time?" Crocodile growled with irritation. He told all of his subordinates that they were not to contact him; even his enforcer prowling the desert knows this.

*Katcha!

And out came a voice that the entire crew recognized.

"Hello, is this the shit restaurant?"

"Wait a minute… YOU! You were that voice back on-" Realization dawned on Crocodile.

"Glad you recognized me there, sir! I'd thought you forgot about me!"

"Who the hell are you?!"

"Me? I go by many titles. You however, can address me as: Mr. Prince!"

"SAVE US, MR. PRINCE!" Luffy Usopp and Nami called out.

This 'Mr. Prince' was seriously getting onto Crocodile's nerves, he quickly exited the room, intent on punishing this daring individual, but not before blocking one last escape attempt from Vivi, making the crew cry out with concern. Miss All-Sunday soon wordless followed, though not before giving Gian one last passing glance.

"Wow… he actually went after him…" Gian shrugged.

"Forget that! How are we supposed to get out of here?!" Usopp yelped. The water was flowing in at a larger volume now. It may not even need an hour to completely fill the room. All the while the remaining Bananawani's are still circling the cage.

"I can… still get help…" Vivi got up from the floor, slightly dazed but just as determined. "Just wait everyone! I'll come back with help!" dodging the large reptiles as best as she could, she managed to scurry from the room. Promising to return soon.

"Meanwhile, maybe we can get one of these crocs to break the cage!" Nami suggested. She tried her best to act as bait, and a few of them actually took it. Unfortunately, even their strength was unable to even make a dent in the Seastone.

"Goddammit… if only the cage wasn't made out of Kairoseki… I would transform and fully burst out of the cage, along with the whole building with it!" Gian cursed.

"Did you forget about the fact that this building is built within a lake? If you want your friends to drown then that's your problem." Smoker grunted at that remark.

"Oh… right…"

"How much do you lot know about this plan of theirs?" the captain asked again.

"We know enough, and the rest we could probably figure out on our own." Gian replied.

"You are hopeless. I hope you know just who you're dealing with here. The woman earlier beside Crocodile, she's a dangerous element as well. She's wanted by the World Government with a bounty of 79 million."

"That's almost as high as Crocodile's before it was frozen!" Gian exclaimed "What kind of people does he have on his side?!"

"Hell if I know, but if those two wish to, they can easily turn the world on its head, especially considering what she can do." Smoker didn't get any more specific with that, which made Gian once again wonder just what kind of person Miss All-Sunday is.

"Why are you two talking about that when we should be worrying how to escape?!" Usopp cried.

Before the Bananawanis can attack once again, the ceiling of the room suddenly cracked open. One of the crocs was directly underneath the falling debris, and was instantly flattened when a black leg slammed itself onto its head.

"Hope you all didn't wait too long!" Sanji grinned as he dusted himself off and every one (save for Smoker), before turning lovestuck at the sight of Nami "I'm sorry I'm so late Nami-swan!"

"Hurry up and get us out of here, Ero-cook!" Zoro snapped.

"Will you be patient?!" the cook shot back.

"Alright Sanji, one of the giant crocs you see circling us ate the key to the cage" Gian informed him "I don't know which one it is so you might have to-"

"It's the 3rd one." Smoker motioned flatly.

"-wait, really? How could you tell?"

"Unlike the rest of you I was actually paying attention to it; it was the third one that entered the room and it was the one that swallowed the key."

"Well let's give it a shot! Anti-Matter Kick Course!" Sanji threw his leg directly under the croc, denting its torso and sending it flying towards the roof once again. The force was so much that the reptile blacked out, but not before spitting out a white ball.

"That's not a key…" Luffy whined.

The ball spun around for a bit, before cracking open to reveal a dried up man. He soon became rehydrated however, as a few drops of water landed on him, restoring his vitality. Mr. 3 groggily looked up before he recognized the group within the cage and let out a scream.

"WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING HERE?!"

"Hey… I just remembered… he can produce wax!" Gian perked up "We can get him to make us one!"

"Don't be ridiculous! Why would I help you?" Mr. 3 scoffed, before Sanji's shadow fell over him.

"OK… Here you are…" A beaten up Mr. 3 muffled out. Sanji was really convincing when he had to be.

The remaining crocs all snarled now that their prey was in the open, but soon found out that, once free, they could fight back, soon they lay unconscious on the floor, though it did not end there. Another crack sounded, this time not bringing luck, but trouble as liters of water flowed into the room, flooding it completely. The 3 devil fruit users were instantly drained of their strength, and had to be carried out by those who were unaffected.

"I… really hate water…" Gian panted as he regained consciousness. Looking to the side, Luffy was waking up too. It seems like everybody was fine, until Gian was forced to block another strike from Smoker's Jitte as he aimed for the captain.

"Enough, don't you have to take care of things around here?" Gian stated, Smoker only glared at him.

"I didn't ask for your help! Why did you save me?"

"I was out of it too. You'd have to thank one of our swimmers for that." Gian pointed.

"I was just following orders, besides Luffy would not approve of us leaving you down there." Zoro shrugged.

"If I were able to swim, I would've saved you regardless. Even if we are on opposite sides now, you are still the one that watched over me back in Loguetown. For looking out for Kenichi, Goro, Hiroshi, and Rokuro, and the rest. It isn't right for you to perish here." Gian stated firmly.

"…Very well." Smoker let out a resigned sigh "You should probably leave."

"Just letting us go like that?" Sanji asked.

"You've helped me here, I will not go after you today. Besides, if you think you are all crazy enough to go after Crocodile, then that's an area I cannot touch. Only you guys can help the people here." Smoker began walking off, before turning back and glaring at them once more "But be warned. This is the only time I'm letting you off the hook. The next time I encounter you again, I will capture you!"

"I believe it." Gian smiled softly "Never change, Captain Smoker."

"Yeah, you're a pretty good guy, Smokey!" Luffy grinned, earning him another scowl.

Rumbles were heard in the distance, and the group spotted a massive crab crawling towards them. Before they can brace themselves, the crab stopped in front of them. Out from its back waved the familiar face of Tony Tony Chopper, along with a relieved Vivi.

"Oh thank goodness, you are all safe!" Vivi cried out.

"Guys, this is Eyelashes' friend! He'll carry us to Alubarna!" Chopper called out. The camel standing beside the crab grinned.

"Alright! Let's make it there before Crocodile!" Luffy announced.

"I hope the distraction gives us enough time." Sanji looked back worriedly as the large crustacean began scrambling towards the capital city.

Soon, however, it became apparent that the distraction wasn't enough, as Luffy let out a warning cry as a golden hook flew towards them, a trail of sand following it aiming straight at Vivi. However, Luffy jumped in front of the hook at the last minute, the weapon grasping him instead.

"Luffy-san!" Vivi cried out.

"Don't worry about me! Just keep going! I will handle this!" the boy cried as he is dragged off.

"But-"

"Trust him! He will handle this!" Sanji assured her "We have to get you there as soon as possible!"

"Hold on… do you guys feel that?!" Gian suddenly became alerted.

"Feel what? There's nothing around here!" Zoro answered.

"No, there's definitely something here!" Gian looked around. It wasn't something he could describe, but just a few moments earlier, he could've sworn he felt a presence, a presence that was coming in their direction… a presence that felt… dark… as if it was… directly UNDER them-

"EVERYBODY DOWN!" Gian let out a roar as he ripped Atom Splitter off his back in a defensive pose, and just then the ground beside the crab burst open, and a leather clad man burst out of the ground, twirling twin axes as his salivating jaws opened. Gian quickly stepped in front of Vivi, protecting her from impact but that resulted him being knocked off their mount.

"Oh no! Gian-san in trouble!" Vivi called out from atop the crab, as she realized, with a chill in her heart, who exactly attacked them.

"What was that? It happened so fast I couldn't see!" Chopper whimpered.

"That… was Mr. 0.5…" Vivi let out a hoarse whisper.

"THAT WAS HIM?!" Nami yelped.

"Everybody!" They heard Gian call out at them as the ground around him rippled "Keep going! Don't look back! Luffy and I will take care of this and reunite with you all soon!" the crew had no choice but to keep going.

Once sure that there were far enough, Gian braced himself for further combat, as a chilling growl sounded from around him.

"Kihehehe… such a brave little rat… throwing his life away to save his friends…"

"How about you come up here? And I'll show you how brave I can be?" Gian challenged. His heart however, was pounding hard. The evil presence around him only got stronger; it felt almost sickening.

"I must say… I didn't except you to be able to sense Aura this quickly… if left to develop you can actually have some skill… too bad you will never reach that point again!"

"Aura… wait, don't tell me that you're-"

The ground behind him ripped open as the man jumped out again, swinging and ax down hard in a blow that Gian was barely able to block. He landed in a flip, before leering back with a savage grin.

"Kihehehe… it's so good to finally meet you, 'Beast Warrior' Gian! I've been dying to bite into your flesh ever since I've heard of your arrival!"

"Mr. 0.5…" Gian gritted as he braced himself.

"Gian!" he was suddenly alerted by Luffy landing beside him "How did you get here? I thought I said to go with Vivi!" when Gian pointed at the balaclava clad man, Luffy tipped his head "Who's the ninja?"

"Luffy that's not a-"

"You missed your target, Mr. 0.5…" Crocodile grunted with annoyance as he appeared over the ridge, sand wisps floating around him.

"I had a little roadblock… but I'll have fun with him!" the killer growled savagely.

"I suppose it's unavoidable… yet perhaps it could be destiny. To have both 'Strawhat' Luffy and 'Beast Warrior' Gian here in our way."

"Wha? That's Mr. 0.5?" Luffy gaped.

"Not the time…" Gian panted.

"It does not matter, we will eliminate you here right now. I already told Strawhat that it will only take me 3 minutes to end his life. I will add you to that as well." Crocodile scoffed.

"You might wanna retire then Boss, because I will feast on their corpse in half that time!" And Mr. 0.5 burrowed underground once again, dashing towards the two pirates. Erupting directly under them, he swung his ax up, forcing the two to roll to the side.

"Gomu Gomu no… Pistol!" Luffy lashed his fist towards the Shichibukai, who didn't even attempt to dodge, the fist smashed right through his chest, leaving behind a gaping hole that sand quickly covered.

"What the hell? It was like that earlier! All he did was turn to sand and I couldn't hit him!" Luffy yelped.

"That's because Crocodile has a Logia fruit! He can't be hit by physical attacks." Gian swung Atom Splitter in wide arc before leaping at the veteran pirate "Except for this one!"

The blade impacted against Crocodile's golden hook with a loud CLANG, the two locked gazes for a moment, before Crocodile swung his hood upwards, sending Gian flipping back "Such arrogance… thinking you can beat me with just a Seastone weapon… I'll show you the errors of your mistake! Desert Spada!"

Crocodile's hand sank into the ground, before a massive blade of sand ripped towards the two, forcing them to side step as the blade cut a wide crevasse into the desert.

"OH MY GOD, THE DESERT GOT CUT IN HALF!" Luffy yelped.

"Just how powerful is he?" Gian whispered.

"This is simply the power of mastering your devil fruit, I've had plenty of time to hone my skills, and now you will bear witness! Desert Girasole!"

This time, the moment the sandman slammed his hand into the ground, the ground around Gian and Luffy instantly formed into a massive sand pit, constantly draining downwards. The two were quickly caught in the sinkhole and began to feel the pull, running only made it worse.

"The Sand! It's sucking us down!" Luffy yelped as he struggled.

"Yes, The Suna Suna no mi allows me to detect underground rivers, which I can then use to create quicksand! The two of you are now nothing more than another casualty within the sand!"

"If I can't reach you, then I'll shoot you down! Atom Ray!" Gian fired, before Luffy finally freed himself and pulled his hands back "Gomu Gomu no… Bazooka!" But Crocodile simply jumped over the attacks, before leaping at Luffy with his hand outstretched, grabbing one of the boy's arms before he can retract them.

"AHHH! MY ARM IS SHRINKING!" he yelped as he stared at the shriveled up appendage. Fortunately, he remembered the barrel of water Toto gave him, and took a sip, restoring it back to normal "Phew, that was close!"

"He not only can create sand, but he also drains the moisture from people?! This is bad!" Gian yelped as he fired another Atom Ray, but this time, it never reached its target:

"Lava Pulse!" an orange beam of heat burst from underneath the ground, and collided with the Atom Ray. Gian had to block another of Mr. 0.5's ravaging assaults from down below in a follow up attack.

"He can go underground… he's like a fish in water there! I'm unable to see him, or hit him…" Gian thought desperately "I'll have to transform if I even want the slightest chance!"

But he never finished gathering energy as Mr. 0.5 burst from the ground again, this time successfully pinning him down; Gian watched in horror as the enforcer was already Partially Transformed, and grinning savagely into his face.

"Trying to transform? How predictable; you're completely helpless without it." The assassin growled "It's sad really, how a powerful Kaiju-Zoan fruit ended up under someone like you. In theory, the difference in strength between the Goji Goji no Mi and my Ragon Ragon no Mi should be quite apparent. However, you are untrained, your control is weak, almost null! And of course, when I'm using the environment around me, I am every bit your superior!"

"It really is a shame, a valued Kaiju-Zoan could be a good asset… Crocodile sneered from above him, throwing Luffy to the ground. "How about I offer you a place within the organization? You can hone your skills under Mr. 0.5, and your power will aide me in any further endeavor. You really should be under someone stronger than this brat you call a captain."

"Oh, I was just thinking of the same thing! Ok! I accept, as long as you give me 99.9% of all your money, give me control of the entire organization, and let me be leader! I think that's a good deal!" Gian drawled.

"Insolent punk…" Crocodile seethed "If you're so keen on biting the hand that feeds you, then you can both die with Yuba!" Gian's eyes widened as a small gust formed within Crocodile's hand.

"Sables!"

A howling gale quickly formed, the tornado of sand once again blowing towards the desert town. Gian and Luffy were both caught in the sandstorm and were completely blinded. It was then that the chilling voice of Mr. 0.5 sounded once more.

"And this, is the true degree of being one with your environment! Desert Shred Assault!"

And just like that, Luffy and Gian were bombarded by Strikes from the Kaiju-Zoan user. They can feel their skin rip open, lacerations everywhere, as Mr. 0.5 leapt to and fro from underground, cackling manically all the while. And there was nothing they can do; they could hardly see! When the sandstorm finally subsided, both were bloody rags, panting but still refusing to fall.

"This persistence is really irritating now, for two amateur pirates that know nothing of how the world works, you're in over your heads!" Crocodile hissed.

"That sandstorm… you sent it towards Yuba… don't you think you've gone too far?!" Luffy shouted and mustered the last of his strength and leapt at Crocodile, but it was futile, and with a single swing of his hook, Luffy found himself dangling, a good 2 inches of the hook impaled through his back.

"LUFFY!" Gian screamed.

"Kihehehe… that boy is sure feisty! I think I will eat him too!" Mr. 0.5 cackled before diving into the sand, swimming right towards the injured boy.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" finally mustering the strength to Partially Transform, Gian leapt towards to save him. Crocodile glanced briefly at him, before swinging out his right hand.

"Barjan!"

A trail of sand following the swing of the arm in the form of a sickle. It quickly sliced through Gian's torso, but instead of cutting, everything below him dried up like a flower in the sun. Instantly Gian was snapped out of his Partial Tranformation as he let out a choke cry, and that wasn't the end of it. As he fell to his knees, Mr. 0.5 erupted from the ground, jaws open wide and crunching down on his right arm, eliciting a cry of absolute pain.

"Forget what I said earlier, that display was truly the pinnacle of pathetic. You let go of every instinct just to save boy who's already close to dead! You didn't even stop to think I'd perhaps led you into that!" The enforcer sneered.

"This is what happens to all that stands in my way. Today, this country dies, and you two die with it." Crocodile shrugged dismissively. He was just about to leave when a powerful grip latched onto his arm. Luffy refused to die, and after the water pouch he received from Toto was punctured, he realized that Crocodile was tangible if he was wet.

"I'm not… dying here… I'm going to… become the Pirate King!"

Veins popped up on Crocodile's forehead; just why isn't this cockroach dying?! "Pirate King? As if you cannot sound any more naïve, the path to that is impossible for a brat like you! You were lost from the start if you thought you even had the slightest chance of doing so! Every day, there are countless people like you, people who think they have what it takes to have a dream like yours. And all of them fell just you have today." he swung his arm down, and Luffy landed in the still swirling quicksand left earlier "Now you two can dry up in the sun! Mr. 0.5, we're leaving."

"I really want to eat them right here…"

"Enough time wasting, you mongrel! Let's go!" Crocodile snarled before walking off. Mr. 0.5 snarled at that last comment, before turning his eye back to a barely conscious, but still defiant Gian.

"I will leave your corpse to ripen, then devour you later. But first… I'll leave with an appetizer!" Gian's eyes popped out as searing white pain erupted from his arm, and his screams became unrestricted; Mr 0.5 had ripped an entire strip of flesh from his arm, white bone could be clearly seen as the cannibal ravenously chomped down the strip. When he blacked out at last, it was a blessing.

"I'll see you soon, try not to rot before then!" Mr. 0.5 wiped his bloody mouth before disappearing into the sand.

Luffy and Gian lay in the sand, battered, wounded, and soon, broken; yet a part of them still refused to fall. As the quicksand began to swallow them, their minds were a jumble of thoughts, but even in the face of such facts, they feel like they still must continue on.

Yes, they have to succeed, even if it appears that they are outclassed.

Completely, and utterly outclassed.

A/N: Wow, this chapter took quite a bit of time. But I'm glad it's finally here! There's not really much to say, but Alabasta Arc is roughly 50% done at this point, I think. So as you can expect, the rest will be even more intense than this, and by then the fight between Gian and Mr. 0.5 can go all out!

G: Yo… that ending was dark… when did you become so edgy?

It's a sign of the times, my friend, it's a sign of the times…

Responses to Reviews:

To Vergil Leonidas:

First part starts now!

G: I get bodied, what the shit! That is-

Live with it, it's part of life.

To anquan16:

G: He can cash me outside how-

NO! WE ARE NOT GOING THERE. I AM DRAWING THE LINE AT THAT!

G: Dude… I was just kidding… but don't worry, we'll work something out, and if he doesn't he'd better be prepared to catch these hands.

To Change Green G King:

I'm generally trying to make this series a bit more serious, but considering what I'm working with that's impossible, so you can expect humor between the down times of each major plot point. But the first encounter of the two monsters are here now!

To haruaji11:

Ah, the voice actor question. If I had to put it, Gian looks more like Jonathan but acts more like Joseph so I'm probably leaning towards Tomokazu Sugita (who also voices Gintoki! So that works even better), still looking through the list!

Do I really have to?

G: You must

Fine… It Just Works…

G: Actually King Crimson's Ability is-

Long explanation is Long

To Tamagat:

In a sense yes, if Blackbeard is able to touch a Kaiju-Zoan user BEFORE he/she transforms, he is able to negate their ability; this means if Gian was touched before he transforms, he would be unable to heal from any damage taken. A Partial Transformation will revert back to a human. However, Full Transformation, for reasons yet unknown, are immune to this effect.

And that's all for this time! We'll see you again soon!

Leave a review and Gian will start using Pokemon Refresh!

G: I actually forgot about that feature…