One Piece: Transmigrated as Crocodile

Chapter 350

"Celestial Dragons?" Bonney and the others stood up and moved slightly outward. For many pirates, Celestial Dragons were still a curiosity. After all, most people never saw the world's true elites in their entire lives, so curiosity was natural.

But Bonney was different. She knew the Celestial Dragons, feared them, and hated them.

"They're coming this way? I heard that when you see a Celestial Dragon, you're supposed to kneel and bow. Heh, I have no interest in kneeling to that kind of trash." Kid looked irritated. Though his injuries were still severe, he supported Killer and prepared to avoid them.

After all, being seen and refusing to kneel was troublesome. Out of sight, out of mind. But they underestimated the speed at which the Celestial Dragon was approaching.

Or rather, Saint Shalria deliberately sped things up. She told the slave captain beneath her that if he didn't move faster, she would detonate the collar around his neck.

The slave captain had clearly been enslaved by the Celestial Dragons for some time. He wasn't afraid of death, but he feared explosions. An explosion might not kill him, but it would certainly leave him worse than dead.

"Impudent wretches! Seeing this palace and daring not to kneel—who gave you permission to stand within my sight!" Her voice arrived before she did.

Rosen frowned slightly. Seeing the slave captain crawling on hands and knees, covered in blood, and the sudden appearance of a Celestial Dragon, he immediately sensed trouble.

Clearly, she had spotted Rosen and the others. Urouge and the crew also felt uneasy. Kneel or not? They all looked at Urouge, who felt a headache coming on.

Why did a Celestial Dragon suddenly appear and put them in such a dilemma?

Seeing this, Bonney immediately lay down and pretended to be dead. Drake and Hawkins, who were about to get up, glanced sideways. It really was a Celestial Dragon procession, so to avoid kneeling, they stayed down as well.

"Let's go." Kid glanced at Saint Shalria. He clearly didn't want to provoke a Celestial Dragon. Leaving now would at most count as disrespect; it wouldn't bring an admiral after them.

"Stop! Did I allow you to leave?" Seeing Kid and the others turn away, Saint Shalria flew into a rage, pulled out an exquisite pistol, and aimed at Kid.

She pulled the trigger decisively, without hesitation, but Kid easily dodged it. His expression was ugly, yet he didn't retaliate foolishly. Instead, he turned into a side street and disappeared.

"Bastards! Mere lowly commoners, daring not to kneel before me. You—go capture those two from earlier." Saint Shalria's face was dark. She had never been ignored like this.

"Yes." Four suited guards immediately nodded and chased after Kid and the others. What would happen next was unclear.

But with just a few guards, it was obvious they were unlikely to succeed.

"And you—why aren't you kneeling?" Saint Shalria turned toward Rosen and Urouge's group. Too many people were still standing. Where was she supposed to put her dignity? These lowly people were utterly disrespectful.

"So you're here." Seeing Rosen, Alberton finally felt relieved. He made a hand signal, and the entire surrounding district was gradually encircled by Marines.

Rosen frowned. What was going on? He could have left openly like Kid. That would have been a good choice and wouldn't have caused any disturbance.

But at this moment, countless Marines had surrounded the entire area.

Then Rosen saw Alberton whisper a few words to Saint Shalria. She then looked at Rosen and said, "Oh? So you're a lowly commoner who's actually a pirate captain, and you were even involved in the murder of a Celestial Dragon. Truly heinous crimes. If you're willing to obediently become my slave, I might consider sparing your life. But you'll have to use your entire lifetime to atone for your ignorance."

A scheme?

Rosen didn't know Alberton, but from his actions, this was clearly aimed at him. Bringing a Celestial Dragon to cause him trouble—why? Did he think Rosen wouldn't dare touch a Celestial Dragon? No, that wasn't it. Rosen had once kidnapped a Celestial Dragon and had him killed. That should be well known within the Marines.

Even so, Alberton still brought a Celestial Dragon. That meant his goal was for Rosen to die. Only that made sense.

Otherwise, there was no need to surround him.

If Rosen ignored the Celestial Dragon, he could break out of the encirclement immediately. That was doable. But he didn't know if the Marines had other contingencies.

Doing so would also thoroughly enrage the Celestial Dragon and cause her to lose face. Since it would be a direct confrontation, Marine Headquarters might later order a manhunt against him. That was very possible.

And if he resisted or killed a Celestial Dragon, the situation would be even worse. An admiral would not sit idle. No matter what, he would gain nothing.

"We're surrounded by the Marines," Urouge walked over and said.

"We fight our way out," Valentine said coldly.

Bonney and the others also realized something was wrong. Why were there suddenly so many Marines around? How were they supposed to keep pretending? Surrendering was obviously impossible.

"So this is the real disaster," Hawkins stood up from the ground. Seeing the Marines steadily closing in, he also felt the situation was extremely tricky. They didn't want to clash with a Celestial Dragon.

But if there was truly no choice, then there was nothing to be done. They were pirates after all. Though they feared admirals, if things spiraled out of control, their lives and freedom mattered most.

"You handled this very well," Saint Shalria said with satisfaction as she saw the Marines surround the area, praising Alberton.

"Serving Saint Shalria is my honor," Alberton said modestly. This way, the Celestial Dragon and Crocodile were bound to clash.

Whether Crocodile fled or fought, Alberton's goal would be achieved. If Saint Shalria were injured, an admiral would mobilize in response. With a bit of instigation, it would be enough to make the Celestial Dragon family completely furious and take the matter seriously.

And if Crocodile chose to flee, Saint Shalria would not let it go. Alberton could use the Celestial Dragon's authority to issue a manhunt. If handled well, even a Buster Call might be launched.

Because the Celestial Dragons were the rulers of this world.

His son had died in the Liquor Capital. At first, he had hoped that Vice Admiral Onigumo could intimidate Crocodile, but unexpectedly, Onigumo was killed.

At the time, he felt something was off and suspected Crocodile's involvement. But Crocodile was still a Shichibukai then, and there was no evidence, so he could do nothing.

After the Lantis incident, however, he understood. Crocodile definitely harbored malicious intent. He even carefully studied the routes involved and consulted Vice Admiral Doberman, discovering that Onigumo was very likely killed through a calculated scheme.

Moreover, recent rumors said Crocodile had been in contact with Moris. This made him suspect that his son had been jointly set up and killed by the two in the Liquor Capital. Simply stripping Rear Admiral Harry of his rank was far from enough.

He wanted Crocodile dead.

Though he was only an inspector dispatched by the World Government to various garrisons, his authority was immense.

He could also mobilize the Marines. But Crocodile's strength was extremely high, and he couldn't command an admiral, so he could only approach this from the Celestial Dragon angle.

As for a Celestial Dragon being killed? Impossible. He never even considered it. No matter how vicious Crocodile was, even if he had indirectly killed a Celestial Dragon before, the Sabaody Archipelago was right next to Marine Headquarters.

Unless he was an idiot, he wouldn't do such a thing.