Chapter 338: Achilles heel

Let’s go back in time a little bit, in the royal palace of Alubarna.

King Cobra was listening to the report of the Guard. After entering the kingdom, Ian didn’t intend to hide his identity, so the news of his presence was naturally reported to his majesty.

It is reasonable to say that when a Shichibukai appears in countries within the alliance of the World Government, and if he has a little etiquette, he should come to the palace to pay them a visit, but the purpose of Ian’s trip was not related to the Nefertari family, so he did not come to the palace and meet Cobra.

However, Cobra was not annoyed by this. He doesn’t care about such etiquette. What he is thinking about now is what Ian, the new Shichibukai member, wants from his trip to Alabasta.

Cobra isn’t a young immature king. He has been working hard, taking care of his country, for a long time. His face alone shows how much he had experienced… Alabasta was having a hard time this period. Despite the long-term drought, even the rebels have established an organization that got to a threatening point and they started moving, which worries Cobra a lot!

Such a turbulent country often attracts greedy people. During this time, the number of wicked pirates in Alabasta has gradually increased. If Crocodile had not helped suppress it, the guards alone would found themselves powerless against such disorder…

Although Crocodile takes away the goods robbed by the pirates as booty every time he exterminates a group, no one has minded this. Crocodile’s reputation in Alabasta was very high, even Cobra, in the absence of the truth, was very grateful for Crocodile’s help.

Therefore, as soon as the news of Ian’s presence in Alubarna reached his majesty, Cobra first thought of Crocodile. He couldn’t figure out Ian’s intentions, so he was worried that Ian was looking for Crocodile.

“Chaka!” Cobra turned his head and asked Chaka, one of two head guards in the Alabasta kingdom, which was standing beside him. “Do you know anything about this young man called Ian?”

The black-haired Chaka is a Zoan-class Devil Fruit user that allows him to transform into a jackal. He and Pell the Falcon has the same rank, and they both have Zoan-class Devil Fruits that Alabasta regarded them as Guardian Gods, so the whole royal family relies on them very much, and the two are also quite loyal to Cobra.

“I have gathered some information regarding this matter!” Chaka nodded, and said: “I think this new Shichibukai is a very dangerous person.”

“How is that?” Cobra asked as he touched his beard.

Chaka said: “When he first appeared on the surface, he started by setting the Holy Land on fire, went on a war against the World Nobles, the Celestial Dragon, and then fought against an Admiral twice, plus I just got some news recently that the King Wapol of the drum island was killed by a pirate…”

“Wapol!?” Cobra looked at Chaka with surprise: “He…he was killed!?”

“Yes!” Chaka seriously nodded: “Although I didn’t like that king because of what he has done to our beloved Princess Vivi, the news is true. It is said that a very powerful pirate killed Wapol, and the Drum Island is on the same route with Alabasta…”

Cobra thoughtfully said: “You mean, the person who killed Wapol is probably the new Shichibukai?”

“It’s just a guess!” Chaka said: “After all, he suddenly appeared in Alabasta, it’s not very likely that he came here flying…”

As explained by Chaka, Cobra also felt that Ian was the most suspected for this crime…

“Killing the king of a country…” Cobra’s face was a little gloomy: “So… what does he want to do in Alabasta?”

“That’s unpredictable!” Chaka shook his head: “So during this time, Pell and I will always be by your side!”

This is why Chaka said that Ian is a dangerous person. Because he was suspicious of killing Wapol, no one can predict Ian’s will by coming to Alabasta.

However, he didn’t know why, Cobra’s opinion on Ian was somewhat different from that of Chaka. If they focus on Ian’s past carefully, they will find that his targets were all evil people. Celestial Dragon needless to say, although they are World Nobles, even Cobra is very uncomfortable with their behavior. Wapol was the same, although he is a King of a country, Cobra doesn’t see any qualifications of being a king in him.

Regarding what Chaka said, to protect him personally, Cobra felt indifferent, he thinks that Chaka’s concerns may not be necessary, but of course, he could not refuse his kindness.

He suddenly started talking and asked his royal guard: “Have you heard anything from Vivi recently?”

Since the beginning of the drought in Alabasta, this abnormal climate has caused some doubts in the royal family, but at this time, Princess Vivi has found a mysterious organization, Baroque Works, operating in her country, so her intuition told her that this organization may be carrying out some shady activities in Alabasta, and she volunteered to join them as an undercover.

Cobra couldn’t stop her, so he had to send Igaram, the captain of the Alabasta royal guard, to join with her the Baroque Works, and protect her.

Up to now, Princess Vivi has been working undercover in this organization for a year…

Hearing Cobra’s question, Chaka shook his head: “Princess Vivi sent back a message saying that the Baroque Works is likely to be related to this drought, but there may be a very powerful person behind it. But she still can’t determine who it is…”

Cobra nodded, and was about to say something, but at this time, a member of the guard suddenly ran into the hall and said with a horrified tone: “Your Majesty, the two Shichibukai, Sir Crocodile and Ian, are fighting in the city of Alubarna…!”

“What!?” Cobra was shocked and immediately stood up.

“There is also a huge sandstorm in the city!” The guard continued his report.

Cobra and Chaka ran out of the great hall, standing on the balcony of the palace, looking toward the city. Sure enough, a tornado suddenly appeared there, carrying a large amount of sand…

But strangely, the sandstorm didn’t move, but rotated rapidly in the same place.

Not only Cobra, but almost everyone in Alubarna saw the storm.

“Hurry up! Go immediately and evacuate the people nearby!” Cobra was anxious and immediately ordered the guards.

Alabasta’s guards were dispatched urgently, moving towards the sandstorm, while Cobra and Chaka stood and watched the storm in the sky.

At this time, Cobra suddenly thought of the frequent sandstorms in the past two years, then he placed two fingers on his forehead and said: “Could it be that this sandstorm is related to Crocodile!?”

Everyone knows that Crocodile’s power comes from the Sand-Sand Fruit, but Crocodile has never shown what he’s capable of in front of anyone, and no one saw him launching a sandstorm. This time, if it wasn’t for Ian, Cobra wouldn’t witness the sudden occurrence of the sandstorm in the capital.

Afterward, a clear scream came from the sky. Cobra looked up and saw another head guard, the Falcon Pell flying down… When he landed near the king, he went back to his human form, then he said to the king: “Your Majesty, would you like me to check the situation of the battle?”

“No, don’t go!” Cobra immediately stopped Bell’s plan, saying: “This is a battle between two Shichibukai, we can’t intervene!”

Chaka and Pell don’t know why Cobra made this decision, but their obedience made them nod.

Cobra turned back and looked at the storm in the distance. At this time, Ian’s Black Dragon waves have already rushed into the sky, and they were rotating around each other. The sand got evaporated, and soon the sandstorm disappeared. This made Cobra feel a bit relaxed.

“Sure enough, it’s him…” Now that the Black Dragon Wave has become Ian’s signature, Cobra has confirmed his appearance when he saw the raging dragons, but Cobra’s doubts got even worse.

Combined with the powerful behind-the-scenes figures mentioned in the news from Vivi, and the sandstorm that suddenly appeared in the center of the city, Cobra became more suspicious of Crocodile.

Ian didn’t know that his fight with Crocodile turned out to be an opportunity for the royal family to investigate the president of the Baroque Works. After all, as a low-level agent, Vivi could never find out the identity of her Boss!! So this time, they can say that their investigation has determined a general direction…

Because of such doubts, Cobra made a decision “not to interfere”, he just ordered the guards to evacuate the residents of the city.

Ian didn’t think of these things at the moment. He was concerned about another matter… he didn’t expect Robin to ignore herself and try to rescue Ian from the bottom of the quicksand pit!

“Hey! What are you doing!?” Ian was getting rolled over by the hands of Robin’s ability, pulling him out of the pit. This rolling feeling made him a bit dizzy, but he still shouted: “Stop it! You are going to be drowned by the quicksand!”

However, Robin did not pay attention to Ian’s shouting, her body was sinking a bit by bit, but she kept pushing Ian up.

At this time, Crocodile suddenly emerged from the sand in the pit, grabbed Robin’s neck, and coldly said: “How dare you helping him!? Do you want me to kill you first?”

Although Robin was in a lot of pain, he still smiled and said: “You won’t kill me because I’m still useful to you!”

“…” Green veins appeared on Crocodile’s forehead, but he didn’t say a word, Robin was really smart, and she immediately poked his “Achilles heel”