Chapter 361: Better Than Being Whitebeard's Son

The night air was slightly cool; Crocodile lay on the sand, breathing heavily, his heart colder than the desert night.

He had actually been defeated.

Defeated by four interns of the Morning Star Group.

Even though Barzab Saint Saint Saiwen had not intervened, nor even offered a single word of guidance, the four interns fought him from daybreak until late night before finally defeating him.

Even though he could not accept it at all.

But defeat is defeat.

When he was defeated by Whitebeard back then, he could still make excuses: Whitebeard was, after all, a Sea Emperor who had sailed the seas for many years; failure was normal.

Now, defeated by four interns of the Morning Star Group, what was the reason?

Was it because he was obsessed with the plan to steal the country, focusing his mind on schemes and conspiracies to seize the Ancient Weapon Pluton, rather than concentrating on improving his own strength?

Or was the Morning Star Group truly as terrifying as this?

Even four interns with little reputation could possess such formidable combat power?

For a moment, Crocodile could not distinguish which reason led to his crushing defeat.

Or perhaps both reasons were at play?

The star river was so brilliant, yet Crocodile's eyes grew dimmer and dimmer, until a detestable face appeared in his line of sight.

"Welcome to the Morning Star Group."

"Hmph." Crocodile turned his head away.

Seeming to realize that lying there lacked the bearing of a strong man, Crocodile ignored the hand extended to him and supported himself to sit up on his own.

"If I wait until the day I defeat them, can I leave?"

Crocodile had always been proud and arrogant, believing that serving under others was far less comfortable than ruling a domain alone.

The humiliation of being defeated by four interns today would surely be washed away in the future!

"You seem to have some misunderstanding about me."

As soon as the words fell, Saint Saint Saiwen raised his hand and lightly waved his sword; a blade of light grazed past Crocodile's cheek.

Colorful light streams, carrying the flying slash, extended forward, forcibly plowing a chasm several zhang wide and endless in the desert.

"In my place, there are never two words: 'quit the group'."

What a joke.

You think you can quit just like that? One day you are my man, forever you are my man.

Want to quit the group? No way.

Crocodile's face turned deathly pale; Saint Saint Saiwen's handsome face looked like the Grim Reaper in his eyes, and when his peripheral vision caught the four interns' stunned expressions, he turned his head to look.

With just one glance, he froze in place, dazed.

A casual strike could split the heavens and crack the earth; could this be the strength of a top-tier powerhouse?

The gap was actually so huge!

He did not understand; how exactly did Barzab Saint Saint Saiwen cultivate? Did he start rigorous training from the womb?

Otherwise, how could he possess such terrifying strength?

When he was Barzab Saint Saint Saiwen's age, he had just challenged Whitebeard, been defeated, and helplessly left the New World.

Yet the other party, so young, possessed achievements that many people could never reach in a lifetime; Crocodile fell into deep thought.

After striking with a stick, Saint Saint Saiwen began to offer sweet dates.

"Considering your reputation as the Sand Crocodile, I'll give you a chance: once you defeat those four, whether to stay or leave is your choice."

To deal with someone as proud and arrogant as Old Sand, one must first crush his spirit severely, break his arrogance, and then show both kindness and authority to give him face.

Mere tolerance would only make him arrogant and increasingly conceited.

Having spoken, Saint Saint Saiwen looked at Lachy Lu and the others, and took out four flying cloaks, handing them over one by one.

"Congratulations to all of you for becoming official crew members."

Although Saint Saint Saiwen said only one sentence, Lachy Lu and the other three understood the subtext: if you lose to Crocodile in the future, you will have a hard time.

The four held the cloaks and promised in unison.

"Captain, we will never lose!"

Crocodile wants to defeat the four of them?

Go dream; dreams have everything, and besides, they do not want to be written in the Captain's little notebook.

Putting on the flying cloaks, except for Jack who already possessed flight ability, Lachy Lu, Foxy, and Corazon could not wait to start trying to fly.

Seeing this, Crocodile's gaze tightened slightly.

The flight ability of the Morning Star Group executives was actually due to these small cloaks?

It was truly unbelievable!

From this day on, Crocodile never mentioned quitting the group again; he stayed in the Morning Star Group with only one thought: first defeat those four interns.

To wash away today's humiliation.

As for quitting the group, let's talk about it when there is confidence to defeat Barzab Saint Saint Saiwen.

This guy turns hostile the moment he wants; one second he is smiling, the next he draws his sword; at that moment, Crocodile truly thought he was going to die.

The oppressive pressure was even stronger than Whitebeard's back then.

Thinking of this, regarding the matter of joining the Morning Star Group, Crocodile found: it seemed not as hard to accept as he initially imagined.

At least, it was far better than Whitebeard's offhand remark back then: "Be my son."

Joining the Morning Star Group, they are partners standing side by side, with equal status and no hierarchy.

But if one becomes Whitebeard's son, one is immediately one generation lower, inferior to Whitebeard in every way.

Comparing the two, the superiority and inferiority are immediately clear.

Thus, Crocodile successfully convinced himself, even preparing to bring Mr. 3 along to join the Morning Star Guild.

"I still have a few subordinates..."

"Bring them all—we'll wait for you at the port."

Regarding Crocodile's Baroque Works, one phrase best describes it: together, they're a pile of shit; apart, they're stars across the sky.

While on salary, they all slacked off; after Baroque Works disbanded, each one showed off their true abilities.

For instance, during the Summit War—

Mr. 3 infiltrated the execution platform guarded by the Marines' top combatants, disguised as the executioner, and unlocked Ace's seastone handcuffs.

It sounds utterly fantastical.

Remember, that was a high-stakes battle with the Marine Admiral stationed there, the Marine Hero escorting, and all three Marine Admirals present.

Just this feat alone is enough to deify him.

Not to mention before that.

Mr. 3 once single-handedly captured the two captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates, Dorry and Brogy, nearly wiping out the Straw Hat Crew and nearly forcing Zoro to become a five-sword style swordsman.

Such a man, Saint Saint Saiwen would never miss.

Although at this point in time, Crocodile likely has only a few Baroque Works members left, Saint Saint Saiwen wants as many as he can get.

Even a pile of shit can still be useful.

Watching Saint Saint Saiwen and the others depart through the portal, Crocodile sighed, pulled out a Den Den Mushi to contact Mr. 3, and headed toward the secret base.

He planned to send off the Gluttony Trio first.

After all, the Moria Trio had come to help hold the fort—they were loyal and righteous.

Even if they'd eaten a billion Berries in a month.

Not long after, Crocodile returned to the base and informed the Gluttony Trio of his joining the Morning Star Guild, testing Moria's reaction.

And when he saw the smiles on the corners of the Moria Trio's mouths, Crocodile finally understood.

He had been set up.

You sneaky, double-faced Moria—I trusted you so much, and you betrayed my trust!

"Ha... ha... ha..."

Hearing this, Moria raised an eyebrow.

"Brother Crocodile."

"First, congratulations on joining the Morning Star Guild. But no matter what, we brothers care about money, not people—pay us, and we'll work for you."

"Three Devil Fruit rewards—leave out even one, and I won't let you go."