Crocodile carefully stepped out from the shattered basement stairwell. He was greeted by a wall of chaos—tables overturned, water dripping from every angle, and terrified patrons fleeing through the grand entrance. The entire casino was soaked and ruined. And then—
"RAIMEI HAKKE!"
A girl's shout.
BOOM.
A blinding bolt of lightning cracked through the ceiling, followed by the crushing blow of a shock wave that demolished half the upper floor and most of the eastern wall. Stone, steel, and glass rained down like shrapnel. Crocodile's coat billowed from the force of the blast as he stumbled back, shielding his eyes with his weakened desert spada.
He saw a tall woman standing amid the rubble, perched atop the broken archway like a goddess of war; the horned woman was smiling, her kanabo resting on her shoulder.
Rain poured in through the gaping hole above, drenching everything. Crocodile gritted his teeth. His powers rapidly became unstable; water was seeping into his sand-covered limbs, weakening his control. His logia form sputtered with every droplet. This wasn't a coincidence.
He was about to retreat into the drier shadows when—
WHOOSH!
A teenage boy rocketed in like a comet, his entire body wreathed in flame. The sheer heat pushed back the rain momentarily, creating a hissing halo of steam around him. The fire from his feet propelled him at terrifying speed, a blur of red and gold that barreled straight into Crocodile's chest.
CRASH!
The impact sent the Warlord flying backward, ripping through stone pillars before slamming into the aquarium wall. A monstrous shattering sound echoed as the massive tank gave way. Thousands of gallons of water burst free, washing over the casino floor in chaos. Bananagators flopped helplessly, snarling and thrashing as they slid across the flooding tiles.
Crocodile slammed into the ground, coughing, drenched, and humiliated.
Jacob hovered in the air, fire trailing behind his limbs, his eyes glowing red. "Crocodile," he called down. "Your reign ends today."
From the wreckage, Yamato gave a short laugh. "After so many boring days, I finally can let loose! Now, who will be my enemy?"
And behind them, stepping through the destroyed entrance with confident steps and soaking wet clothes, came Kuina, Alvida, and Desire —ready for war.
Miss Valentine sputtered, coughing up aquarium water. She gripped the edge of the shattered tank, dragging herself free from the jaws of a dazed Bananagator. All of the Bananagators had been electrocuted to death. Beside her, Mr. 5 flopped out like a drowned rat, wheezing and groaning.
"What… the hell is going on!?" she gasped, eyes wide with disbelief.
The basement—no, the entire Rain Dinners—had become a warzone.
Flames roared across the room as a fire-wreathed boy blasted through the air. His body radiated intense heat, and he exhaled a devastating Katon's Breath, igniting half the chamber before hurling a massive Fire Fist that barreled straight for Crocodile. The Warlord barely dodged, skidding across the soaked floor, his sand form sluggish and cracking under the continuous downpour.
A feral cry erupted nearby as a horned white-furred dog-looking girl launched herself into Mr. 1 and Miss Doublefinger, clashing her weapon with terrifying strength. Her huge kanabo quickly tore through Mr. 1 steel body, and her every movement was a blur of animalistic precision.
Miss Valentine turned just in time to see Mr. 2 flung across the room by a brutal mace strike. The attacker emerged effortlessly from a reflective silver tray. A striking woman with dark hair down to her buttocks.
A familiar figure with a dark halter top darted from the destroyed stair at unmatched speed. She was the infamous swordswoman who defeated hundreds of Whiskey Peak's bounty hunters. Her blade clashed with Mr. 3's wax constructs, slicing through them as she narrowly avoided Miss Goldenweek's brushstrokes. One swipe of color nearly nicked her, but she somersaulted over it, slashing a wax wall in two.
Chaos reigned.
A red-haired, thuggish-looking girl pulled two cards from her deck in the far corner. With a burst of red light, a triceratops and a raptor materialized. The summoned beasts charged toward Mr. 4, who struggled to aim his bazooka, and Miss Merry Christmas, whose mole burrow paths were suddenly collapsed by the stampeding triceratops. The girl pulled another card, and she materialized a big bazooka. She aimed it toward Mr. 4.
Miss Valentine sat frozen, her soaked hat drooping down her face, jaw slack. "We're under attack?"
Mr. 5 staggered up beside her. "I will not risk my life helping a man who almost killed me."
Amidst it all, the only one who hadn't lifted a hand yet, the raven-haired girl, hovered in the air, electricity dancing across her skin as she surveyed the battlefield. Her eyes were glowing bluish-white.
And from above, thunder rumbled again.
"Y-you know what?" Mr. 5 stammered, raising both arms. "Screw this. Hey, thunder girl, I surrender. I'm done, Okay?"
He sprinted toward Raki, slipping past the scorching floor tiles and shattered debris, arms waving.
Raki's gaze briefly flicked to him. Silent.
As he ran beneath her, she said nothing—no blast, no warning. Mr. 5 vanished into the broken casino wall, disappearing into the alleyway behind Rain Dinners.
Miss Valentine, watching from behind, scrambled to her feet. "Oh, hell no. I surrender as well!"
She took off in the same direction—but as soon as she passed under Raki's radius, a sharp crack of thunder boomed.
Lightning speared from her body like divine judgment, striking her back mid-step. Her scream was sharp and brief before her body dropped to the ground with a thud, steam rising from her clothes.
Raki finally spoke, voice low and unreadable. "I can overlook one, but not two." Then she smirked faintly. "Besides, you will be a war spoil."
Her body dispersed into a storm of electrical light, and in an instant, both she and the unconscious Miss Valentine vanished in a flash—teleported straight to the Embercloud.
***
BOOM!
A massive iron bat slammed into the ground where Desire stood just a moment ago, the shockwave sending tiles flying. From the smoke stepped Mr. 4, holding his absurdly large four-ton bat like it weighed nothing; Desire's earlier bazooka attack did nothing to the large, powerful man.
Miss Merry Christmas ducked into the ground and burrowed like a mole through her Mole-Mole Fruit powers.
On her side, the wild-eyed bazooka-dog Lassoo began coughing—
BOOM!
—launching explosive baseballs at her from its mouth.
Desire skid-rolled and slapped a glowing black card.
"Shield Draw: Queen of Diamonds – Fortified Guard!"
A glowing, crystalline barrier rose just in time to take the brunt of the explosion. The blast cracked the shield, but she held her stance.
"You're outnumbered and outgunned, girl," Miss Merry Christmas taunted from below. "Ain't no card tricks gonna save ya!"
Desire narrowed her eyes. "Then I guess I'll have to play better hand."
She slapped a card into the ground—it glowed red.
"Beast Draw: Ten of Hearts – Pterodactyl!"
In a flash of red, a pterodactyl materialized from shimmering red mist. Her earlier summoned beast, the triceratops, and the raptor roared to the pterodactyl soaring above.
Mr. 4 let out a slow grunt and swung his bat—meeting the triceratops head-on in a quake-inducing clash. The beast staggered but didn't fall. The velociraptor pounced at Miss Merry Christmas just as she popped out of a hole behind Desire. The mole woman yelped and was forced to dive back underground.
"A heart Ace: Flash Burn!" Desire yelled, drawing a Fire Card from her deck and fusing it with her velociraptor summon.
The raptor burst into flames, becoming a living inferno as it chased the ground trails left by Miss Merry Christmas.
Boom! Boom!
Explosive baseballs from Lassoo rained down around her, burning her shoulder as one exploded too close. She grits her teeth and slaps a healing card on her wound.
"Draw: Joker – Wild Surge!"
The air shimmered as the Joker card unleashed random effects. One lit up the triceratops with speed-boosting energy; another blasted Lassoo with wind, slamming the bazooka-dog into a wall.
Miss Merry Christmas burst out from below with claws bared—only to get gored in the stomach by the speeding triceratops.
She screamed and collapsed. Her consciousness was fading.
Mr. 4 finally smashed the beast aside and came at Desire.
"Draw: Queen of Spades – Guillotine Storm!"
The air bent. Above Mr. 4, dozens of spectral blades formed like cards a hurricane threw.
SLASH. SLASH. SLASH.
Mr. 4 raised his bat but couldn't block them all. He roared in pain as the blades tore into him from above, and with a final blast from the pterodactyl's talons, he collapsed beside his partner.
Lassoo, confused and whimpering, barked once before Desire slapped a capture card onto it.
"You're coming with me, mutt."
Lassoo disappeared into a flash of red mist.
Desire took a long breath, she felt exhausted but victorious; this was her first time dealing with Grand Line fighters, after all.