Ben, Za, Alvida, Rubis and Emeraude walked down through the cave towards the altar with a shiny orb.

  “There is another orb ahead,” Za said.

  “So this is the altar,” Emeraude looked at it. It was a long stone structure with a bowel on top.

  “And that is the orb which will turn into someone to fight,” Rubis said.

  “Yes and someone who might need to be avoided,” Alvida said.

  “I wonder who we will be fighting now,” Za said. Robin said.

  “Let's keep our eyes open for now,” Ben said. They walked towards the shiny orb. There were some markings on the floor. The floor around the altar was concrete.

  As they stepped onto the concrete, the orb started to glow. Suddenly everyone had a vision of Za as a baby. Her mother had given birth and put her next to her. She smoked a cigarette and looked at baby Za and walked away. Za was crying. Another dy picked her up and smiled. She gave her a bottle. Za drank it. The dy looked happy but scared. The scene changed to Za crawling around. There were needles on the floor and dirty clothes. Za saw several men walking around. The dy picked her up and took her away. The scene changed to the dy having a bandage on her eye. She was putting Za, who was a child, in a barrel. She smiled at Za and gave her a piece of bread. Za took the bread and the dy patted her head. Za smiled back. The scene changed to Za as a kid on an isnd. She was wandering around the street crying and barefoot. She had asked for food and got kicked. The scene changed to Za stealing food and eating the piece of bread. The scene changed to Za walking around and seeing a girl with blonde hair. Her clothes were rag and she was crying. The scene changed to both of them smiling and ughing. They both stole from shops, ate food. The scene changed to an old man kicking the blonde girl. He was shouting at her. Za kicked the man. They both ran away. The older man released his goons. The two girls ran away towards a departing ship. They both split ways to evade the goons. The scene changed to Za alone again. She had split away with her friend. She was stealing food and running away. She stole a fruit which she ate and thought it was awful. The scene changed to Za joining Baroque works. She then met the blonde hair once again, Mikita. The scene changed to Za working for Baroque works. Then the scene changed to Za meeting Ben and joining him.

  Ben thought Za and Mikita had simir lives. He thought that pce looked like a whorehouse.

  Before they all could respond, the orb started to glow. There was a bright light. From the bright light a figure started to form. They saw a tall man with a wide chest, broad shoulders, muscur arms and legs, and a thick neck. He had pale skin and nape-length bck hair. He had a long-stitched scar at the bridge of his nose that stretched across his face and a rge hook made from a tough gold alloy in pce of his left hand. He had bck eyes and thin eyebrows. He had a thick cigar in his mouth. He wore a bright orange, bck-striped button up vest over a long-sleeve peach shirt. “Phantasm Crocodile,” Phantasm Crocodile said.

  “Crocodile,” Za remarked.

  “Is that your old boss?” Rubis asked.

  “My love beat him,” Alvida said as she held Seraphina.

  “We beat him,” Ben said. He added, “And we will beat him again.”

  “Sables,” Phantasm Crocodile said as he raised his hand as a swirling vortex of sand began to form around him. The sand twisted and expanded, growing into a massive tornado of destruction. With a powerful thrust, he sent the raging sandstorm hurtling toward the group of girls, its roaring winds tearing through the air.

  Ben transformed into his hybrid form. “Demon Inferno Fire,” Ben said as he released a torrent of bck, searing fmes from his mouth. The fire roared to life, resembling a massive fmethrower, its intense heat radiating outward.

  The fmes cshed against the tornado of sand, the two forces colliding in a fierce struggle. The bck fmes licked at the swirling sands, their heat turning grains of sand into molten gss in pces. The tornado roared in defiance. However the fmes began to overpower the tornado, forcing it to weaken and dissipate. The remaining sand fell harmlessly to the ground, leaving a haze of heat and smoke in its wake.

  “Shave,” Alvida said as she vanished in a blur of speed, dashing straight toward Phantasm Crocodile.

  “Kanabo Reaper,” she said as she swung Seraphina in a devastating wide arc, the spiked club cutting through the air with a menacing whistle. She struck Crocodile in the face with a sickening crack. The sheer power of the impact sent him flying backward, his body skidding across the ground before crashing into the cave wall.

  Crocodile groaned as he stood, his golden hook glinting in the light. He wiped the corner of his mouth, a streak of blood marring his face where Alvida’s kanabo had struck.

  “Stinger Lance,” Za said as her hand transformed into a sleek, razor-sharp nce. She lunged forward with incredible force, aiming directly for Phantasm Crocodile’s chest.Phantasm Crocodile reacted swiftly, raising his golden hook to intercept the attack. The sharp metallic sound reverberated as the nce collided with the hook, both forces locked in a brief but intense struggle.

  “Vert Thrust,” Emeraude said as she thrusted her spear forward aimed at Crocodile’s torso.

  Simultaneously, Rubis moved in from another angle. “Rouge Devastating,” she said as she poured all her strength into a powerful stab.

  The two spears struck Crocodile in unison, each finding its mark on his chest. The impact sent shockwaves through the air as Crocodile staggered back. Crocodile hissed in pain, clutching his chest where the spears had struck.

  “Demon Kick,” Ben said as he channeled his dark energy into his leg. He delivered a powerful kick directly to Phantasm Crocodile’s face. The impact sent Crocodile stumbling back, his head snapping to the side as he growled in frustration.

  “Sables Pesado,” Phantasm Crocodile said as he summoned a swirling mass of dense, compacted sand in his hand. The sand radiated as he prepared to unch it.

  But before Phantasm Crocodile could act, Alvida raised her weapon high. “Kanabo Smash,” she said as she swung Seraphina down with tremendous force. The strike came down like a meteor, directly targeting Phantasm Crocodile’s sand-filled hand.

  The two forces collided in an explosive csh, the dense sand meeting the raw power. The sand mass began to destabilize under the impact, swirling chaotically before dissipating entirely into harmless grains.

  “Good job Alvida,” Ben said.

  “Thank you my love,” Alvida responded.

  “Stinger Kick,” Za said as her leg transformed into a long, razor-sharp spike. She unleashed a powerful kick at Crocodile, the spike slicing through the air like a bde. The attack sshed across Phantasm Crocodile’s chest, creating a deep cut. Phantasm Crocodile snarled as he spat blood out.

  “Vert Assault,” Emeraude said as she swung her spear in a wide, arcing motion. The spear's edge struck Crocodile, smming into his torso and sending him skidding back a few steps.

  Before Crocodile could regain his footing, Rubis stepped forward with her spear abze. “Rouge Bze Thrust,” she said as the spear ignited with red fmes, and she thrusted it forward with devastating force. The burning tip seared through the air and struck Crocodile directly, leaving a scorch mark on his chest. The combined impact of Emeraude and Rubis’s attacks caused Crocodile to stagger further.

  “Good job you both,” Ben said as he raised his hands. “Demon Abyssal Chains,” he said as he summoned dark, writhing chains from his palms. The bck chains shot forward, coiling around Crocodile. They tightened around his arms, legs, and torso, restricting his movements entirely “Now is your chance,” Ben added.

  “Stinger Falcon Strike,” Za shouted as she leapt high into the air. As she soared upward, she pressed her feet together, transforming them into a single, razor-sharp spike. Spinning rapidly like a deadly drill, she descended with incredible force, aiming directly at Crocodile. The spinning spike pierced through the air with a sharp whistle before striking him, causing him to stagger as it impaled his shoulder.

  “Kanabo Crusher,” Alvida said. She lifted the massive weapon high above her head, muscles straining with power, and brought it crashing down in a thunderous arc. The ground beneath Crocodile trembled as Serphina connected with his stomach. Crocodile let out a grunt of pain, the crushing force driving him backward slightly.

  Emeraude and Rubis locked eyes. “Vert Dual Pierce,” Emeraude said.

  “Rouge Dual Pierce,” Rubis said.

  The two sisters stepped side by side, aligning their spears together like a unified bde. In perfect harmony, they thrust their weapons forward with explosive force, aiming at Crocodile's chest. The combined energy from Emeraude and Rubis created a blinding burst of light as their spears connected.

  The four simultaneous attacks struck Crocodile with overwhelming power. The impact forced him to release a guttural roar as his body. Ben released the chains and Phantasm Crocodile was hurled backward like a rag doll and rolled on the ground.

  “That was teamwork,” Za remarked.

  “We do make a good team,” Emeraude added.

  “We do for sure,” Rubis agreed.

  “He is still not down yet,” Alvida said.

  Phantasm Crocodile got up once more. His chest has multiple wounds. There were deep cut marks and deep stab wounds. His head was bleeding. His mouth was bleeding.

  “They are strong,” Ben remarked.

  ”Desert Grande Espada,” Phantasm Crocodile said. Ben saw sand forming near Rubis and Emeraude. He quickly dashed towards them and pushed them out of the way. A sand bde came from the ground hitting Ben and sending him flying backwards. He nded on the ground. He touched his side and there was some blood.

  Rubis and Emeraude fell to the ground. “Ben,” Za said.

  "Slipstream Cannon," Alvida said as she spun her body at high speed, creating a vortex of air that she compressed and fired like a powerful projectile at Phantasm Crocodile. Phantasm Crocodile got hit on the chest and staggered back. He spat blood out.

  Phantasm Crocodile got to hit feet. “Desert Spada,” Phantasm Crocodile said. He formed several solid bdes with fan-shaped edges made from sand and sent them towards the group. Ben saw it coming and quickly moved dodging the bdes.

  Ben hovered in the air. He looked at Phantasm Crocodile. “Let’s end this,” Ben said. “Demon Abyssal Big Missile,” Ben said as he channeled an immense amount of his dark energy into his hands. The energy formed into a rge, projectile resembling a missile. Its head was a cone. The body was long and it had fins. With a flick of his wrist, he aimed at Phantasm Crocodile and unched it with incredible force. The missile screamed through the air, leaving a trail of dark energy in its wake.

  The missile collided with Phantasm Crocodile. A deafening explosion rocked the battlefield as the missile detonated, enveloping him in a massive burst of bck fire and smoke. The ground shook, and a shockwave rippled outward, scattering debris.

  “Stinger Dual Lance.” Za said. She pressed her hands together, transforming them into a single, elongated spike. She dashed towards Phantasm Crocodile and thrusted it forward with incredible force, the impact piercing through Phantasm Crocodile's chest and pushing him back.

  “Slide Ssh,” Alvida said as she spun her arm like a whirlwind. The rapid motion generated a sharp, compressed bde of air that tore through everything in its path. The slicing wave sped towards Phantasm Crocodile, cutting through the smoke and striking him across his torso.

  Emeraude and Rubis together said, “Shōryū no Mizu.” They both unscrewed a bottle of water into their hands. The twin streams of water spiraled and merged into a powerful bst. With a synchronized thrust, they unleashed the attack, the water surging forward with devastating force. The bst struck Crocodile head-on, sending him skidding backward, his golden hook scraping against the ground.

  Phantasm Crocodile levitated from the ground. His body spun around and turned into light and went back into the orb.

  “Good job girls,” Ben commented.

  “He is finally down,” Za said.

  “He was strong but the real one is stronger,” Alvida remarked. “We had numbers so we were able to overwhelm him,” Alvida added.

  “Alvida is right there,” Ben said. He added, “But that is the pn. We have numbers, we use our powers, our strength together and win.”

  “Ben, are you okay?” Emeraude asked.

  “You did save us,” Rubis added.

  Ben transformed into his human form. “I am fine,” Ben responded. “I think it is already healed,” he added.

  Emeraude pulled his shirt up. She examined his side. She looked around and saw there was no cut. The wound had healed. She thought that was interesting. She saw his abs and six packs. She licked her lips.

  “My love, we still have stuff to do here,” Alvida teased.

  Emeraude snapped out of it. “It is fine,” she said, looking flushed. Rubis giggled but she thought he had a good body. Ben smiled, she was a little direct.

  “That was a new attack Za?” Ben asked.

  “Yeah I have been working on a few,” Za responded.

  “Rubis and Emeraude you both have combo attacks,” Za remarked.

  “They looked cool,” Ben said.

  “We were just practising,” Emeraude responded.

  “Practising hard,” Rubis said.

  “A reward is needed for that my love,” Alvida teased.

  “You did fight him before,” Mikita said.

  The orb started to shake as it also levitated and turned into a light and went into the air. The momentum which held the orb threw out a devil fruit.

  Ben walked to it and picked up the devil fruit.

  [It is the Ryu Ryu no Mi, Model: Therizinosaurus]

  (Thank you Sweetie)

  “Another devil fruit, my love?” Alvida asked.

  “Yes, it is an ancient zoan,” Ben responded.

  “They are rare for sure,” Za added.

  “Let's keep moving and see what we can find,” Ben said. They all nodded and walked ahead.