As the Straw Hats ran to get out of town, Smoker called of the hunt and ordered one of his men to call in reinforcements. When he was told about his superiors possibly denying the request, he snapped at him saying that he didn't give two shits about what his superiors thought.
-With Luffy's group-
All of them kept on arguing on how to get to Alubarna before they spotted the biggest crab any of them had ever seen.
"A CRAB?!" Usopp shouted as his eyes bugged out to mimic the crab's eyes.
"That's a moving crab!" Vivi said.
"Look who's riding him!" Yosaku beamed. Everyone looked to see Chopper holding some reins that were attached to the crab's giant mouth. Sitting next to him were Eyelash, Gin, Valerie, and Greg. All three Straw Hats looked banged up with bandages around them, with Greg and Gin sporting two huge lumps on their heads. As they all boarded the crab, Chopper explained that he's a friend of Eyelash's since he was born in this town, and that his friend was also a bit of a perv.
"Glad to see you guys are alright!" Johnny said.
"Yeah...but what happened to you three?" Usopp added.
"We ran into Miss All-Sunday." Valerie said in shame. "We...weren't a match for her."
"That bitch nearly broke my spine!" Gin said.
"She did that to you three?!" Nojiko said.
"She ate the Hana-Hana Fruit!" Greg said as he nursed the giant bumps on his head. "She can make any part of her body bloom like flowers on any surface."
"That explains the bone breaking," Grace said. "But what's with the giant bumps? That's not her style."
"Blame him!" Greg shouted as he pointed a finger at Sanji. "He did this to us!"
"Why would you do that?!" Chopper shouted hysterically, not hearing his part.
"When he found out we let Vivi get taken away, he kicked us!" Gin grumbled.
"And when he found out that we tried to defend her by taking on Miss All-Sunday, he kicked us again!" Greg said.
"It's your fault for attacking a lady, and for also letting Vivi-swan get taken away!" Sanji said.
"THAT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!" most of them shouted at Sanji.
"Wait a minute?! Where's Pell?!" Vivi asked.
"He went after you shortly after you were taken away." Valerie said.
"Anyway, we're wasting time talking." Zoro said. "Let's get going!"
"Right!" Chopper said as he snapped the reins. "Here we go!" And just like that, they all took off at an amazing speed. All of them were enjoying the ride for a moment, until...
"AAAAHHHHH!" Vivi screamed as she found herself being pulled away by Crocodile's hook. Everyone looked on in horror as the hook was bringing her towards it's owner.
"Chopper! Stop the crab!" Zoro shouted.
"No! Keep going!" Luffy shouted as he stretched over to her, got her out of the hook, and threw Vivi back towards the others before they all took off.
"LUFFY!" they all shouted.
"I'LL BE FINE! GO ON AHEAD!" Luffy shouted. "GET VIVI TO ALUBARNA! PROMISE ME!" Everyone was looking at him with mixtures of shock and horror, but one was of acceptance.
"Moron!" Zoro said before turning to Chopper. "Don't stop! No matter what!"
"Right!" Chopper said with tears in his eyes. "You heard him crab! Don't stop!" he said as the crab continued onward, despite the various protests from everyone else.
"We gotta go back for Luffy!" Vivi yelled.
"Leave him! He'll be fine!" Nami said. "It's Crocodile who isn't gonna wake away from this fight!"
"Yeah! Big Bro will show that stupid sand man!" Johnny yelled.
"Like Big Bro could lose to that guy!" Yosaku yelled.
"Vivi," Zoro said. "No matter what happens, you need to survive. If the Rebels and Royal Army clash, Alabasta's done for. So from now on, no matter what happens to Luffy or any of us, you're the only one who can stop this war now. Nothing else matters."
"Moss Head's right for once." Sanji said. "You started this fight against a powerful and corrupt organization...but don't think for a second that you have to fight alone anymore." Vivi's eyes widened at that before shouting at Luffy.
"LUFFY! WE'LL WAIT FOR YOU IN ALUBARNA!"
"YEEEEAAAAAHHHH!" Luffy yelled back.
"Looks like the princess got away." Robin said with a smile.
"No matter. The agents are in place in Alubarna." Crocodile said as he glared down at Luffy. "Straw Hat, I'd say you've taken this nonsense a little too far."
"Vivi doesn't think it's nonsense." Luffy said as he sat up and removed the blue scarf from his head before throwing his robe off. "Unlike most people, Vivi truly cares about others. Deep down, she's an optimist who believes that nobody in this revolt needs to die."
"No one needs to die?" Crocodile asked in slight amusement with a smirk. "That's the problem with idealists like Princess Vivi. They take a stand without any comprehension of what is truly involved in a real fight. Am I right?"
"Yeah, you're right." Luffy said as he glared at Crocodile. "Still, it won't change the fact that as long as you're around, Vivi'll fight until she either wins or dies trying. And since neither me or my friends want her to die, I'm gonna kick your ass all over this desert!"
"Fool." Crocodile said with a smirk. "Despite what the idealists cry about, there's always one constant truth. On the rough battlefields of life, you either kill or die. Which is why I'll glady put a bullet through every bleeding heart I meet." Luffy only smirked before cracking his knuckles.
"Then you're a bigger fool." he said, causing Crocodile to get angry and bite his cigar in half. Robin chuckled slightly at his comment, causing Crocodile to side-eye her.
"You think this is amusing?" he asked in a dangerous voice. "Maybe you'd like to keep him company on his journey to the afterlife Nico Robin?!"
"Kill me if you wish." she said as she walked away. "And didn't we agree that you'd never call me by that name?"
"Where are you going?" he asked.
"To Alubarna. See you there." she said.
"I'll never understand what goes through that woman's head." Crocodile said as he reached into his coat, pulled out a tiny hourglass, and threw it at Luffy's feet. Luffy glanced down at it as Crocodile spoke. "I've got three minutes to spare." he said. "After that, I won't have anymore time to waste on you." The wind blew past them as Luffy glared at Crocodile. "Your three minutes are counting down. It's your move kid." he said as he raised his hook.
"Alright." Luffy said as he raised his fist over his shoulder. "I won't hold back!" he said as he thrust his arm to the side, causing the blood to pump over before going back and causing his body to steam as his skin turned red. "Gear: Second!" Crocodile raised an eyebrow at his red skin before Luffy aimed at him. "Gum Guuuuum..." he said.
"Heh. You hate me so much, you're turning red all over from anger rubber boy?" Crocodile said.
"JET PISTOL!" he cried out as he aimed the punch at Crocodile's gut. Before Crocodile knew what had happened, he suddenly found himself skidding across the desert dunes before stopping.
'W...what the-' Crocodile thought as he staggered to get up before he coughed up some blood. 'He actually hit me?! How?!' he thought as he glared at Luffy before his eyes widened at him...or rather, his blackened knuckles. 'That's...Haki!' he thought as he got to his feet as Luffy returned to normal. 'Haki all the way out here near the beginning of the Grand Line.' he thought. "You're no ordinary rookie!"
"And you're not as unbeatable as everyone claims you are!" Luffy said with a grin. Crocodile just glared at him as a vein stood out of his forehead.
"Don't get cocky brat!" he growled. "You may have Haki, but it'll take more than that to defeat me!" he said as he got to his feet and formed a blade of sand out of his hand. "Desert SPADA!" he cried out as he sent a blade of send out along the ground and speeding towards Luffy. Luffy only watched as it got closer before calmly turning to his side and letting the attack go right by, leaving nothing but a deep ravine in the sand. Luffy only smiled as he glared while running towards Crocodile. 'Armament AND Observation Haki?!' he thought.
"Gum Guuuuum STAMP!" he cried out as he sent his foot towards Crocodile, only for Crocodile to dodge before swiping at Luffy's leg with his hand.
"Crescent CUTLASS!" he yelled as a crescent shaped bit of sand swiped Luffy's leg before Luffy rolled away from Crocodile and yelled in pain.
"AH! MY LEG'S A MUMMY!" he shrieked before glaring at Crocodile. 'Crap! I got careless!' he thought before doing his best to fumble towards his cloak and reaching for the water barrel. He then began to drink from it before his leg returned to normal. "That's better."
"DESERT GIRASOLE!" Crocodile yelled as area of sand around Luffy suddenly sunk in and started disappearing under him.
"Yikes!" Luffy yelled as he started sinking before breaking into a mad sprint to get out.
"I'm guessing you're not a fan of quicksand. It makes for a convenient desert burial when you want someone to disappear. The sand is sinking into the underground waterways, which I happen to have the good fortune of being able to detect with my powers." Crocodile said as he wiped the blood from his mouth. "That alone makes me unbeatable in the desert."
"IT'S GONNA TAKE MORE THAN A BUNCH OF STUPID SAND TO BEAT ME!" Luffy yelled before he started jumping up into the air before falling a safe distance away.
"Heh. Well, aren't you full of surprises?" Crocodile said before speeding towards Luffy, ready to impale him with his hook. Luffy bent backwards to avoid it before aiming a kick at Crocodile's ribs, nailing him hard and sending him skyward before he fell back down onto the sand.
"Yeah," Luffy said as he raised his fists. "And each one's ready to help me kick your sandy ass!" he said before a sandstorm kicked up around them.
"Shame that you don't have anymore time to try them." Crocodile said as the last grain of sand fell in the hourglass. Luffy glared at him as the sandstorm from Crocodile's hand grew larger as Crocodile closed his eyes as the wind whipped around them all. "The desert wind feels nice. Very dry." he said before glaring at Luffy. "Listen carefully. The prevailing winds always blow from North to South. And if this infantile sandstorm were to catch on to this wind, where do you think it would hit?" he asked. Luffy only glared at him as Crocodile smirked. "It's seems you know exactly where it would hit...Yuba."
"Leave that old guy alone!" Luffy said in a growl. "He's got nothing to do with our fight!" Crocodile only smiled at him as the sandstorm grew and started blowing south.
"Look. It's started." Crocodile said. "Yuba's fate is already sealed. That sandstorm will gather strength. Soon, even I won't be able to stop it." he said before closing his eyes and smiling. "Yuba is finished."
"I TOLD YOU TO STOP THAT STORM!" Luffy bellowed as a massive wave of Haki burst from inside him, which wiped the smile from Crocodile's face as it was replaced with a look of shock and fear.
'He even knows THAT form of Haki?!' he thought before he felt a fist in his gut, sending him back before Luffy ran towards him again, screaming in fury as he took a swung at him, only for Crocodile to turn into sand and disappear.
"WHERE ARE YOU, YOU BASTARD?!" Luffy roared as he looked around wildly before his eyes widened and he stared off at nothing. Soon, nothing could be heard except for the sound of a steady drip as Luffy's body was slightly hoisted into the air with a hook through his stomach.
"I commend you on your strength." Crocodile said. "But, it seems that it has done nothing to keep you alive. You lose, Straw Hat." Crocodile said. Luffy just hung there on Crocodile's hook before his hands suddenly flew up and grabbed Crocodile's hook. "What?!" he cried out before Luffy brought his foot up and slammed it backwards into Crocodile's stomach, causing Crocodile to take a few steps back as Luffy pulled himself off of his hook. Luffy stumbled around as he turned at Crocodile, not noticing that he was getting to close to the quicksand before sliding down into the center and quickly disappearing. He struggled to stay up, but it was hard to run with a hole in his gut. Crocodile looked down as Luffy struggled in vain.
"This is the price you pay for fighting someone else's battle." he said. "If you had rid yourself of the hindrance called friendship, you may have lived a long life." he said with a smirk before disappearing into sand. "Farewell."
"Bastard!" Luffy growled as he kept trying. He let Crocodile get to him again by his threat to Yuba, losing his Haki for a split second and letting Crocodile get him. He kept trying to get out, only to find himself up to his neck in sand. Right before his head was swallowed up, he screamed to the Heavens, "MMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTT!"
A/N: And that's the first fight. Short, but to the point. Hope you all enjoyed.