One Piece: Hashirama Template

"Desert Spada!"

Crocodile's arm transformed into a blade of sand, slashing down at Link like a swordsman's flying strike, carrying enough force to easily tear the ground and shatter both steel and stone.

Link merely moved a finger, and a massive tree branch shot up from the ground, colliding with the descending sand blade.

Although the sea of trees was in ruins from the sand tornado, Link could still freely control all the trees within it.

This was because these trees were all grown by Link using his chakra, and they still contained his chakra.

Like his own arms, Link could not only control them at will but also use them to perform other Wood Release techniques.

The massive branch that shot up was not severed by the sharp sand blade; instead, it shattered the descending blade.

However, a large gash was left on the branch.

Seeing this, Crocodile's expression changed slightly.

Clearly, the toughness of the branch exceeded his expectations.

One must understand, this was a desert where life withered. To be able to create a sea of trees of such a stunning area already proved that Link's stamina was astounding.

But now, these trees were actually so tough that even his sand blade, which could easily tear the ground and slice through buildings, couldn't cut them.

It was no wonder Crocodile was startled; after all, Logia users possess a natural arrogance.

Having spent several years in the Alabasta Kingdom, Crocodile, who often used sandstorms to create giant tornadoes, had come to treat this move as a common technique.

He could create a city-destroying tornado with minimal stamina, forcing Link to expend a vast amount of chakra to create a sea of trees just to defend. He had assumed his other techniques could crush Link's wood just as easily.

Little did he know, the reason his sandstorms were so powerful with such little cost was entirely due to the terrain advantage.

The toughness of Hashirama Senju's Wood Release was such that even the katana of a Perfect Susanoo, which could slice off several mountains in a single swing, would struggle to cut through it.

Although Link's Wood Release couldn't compare to Hashirama Senju's, its toughness and hardness were not something Crocodile's sand blade could easily shatter.

Swoosh—

After one branch shattered the sand blade, another shot out, thrusting towards Crocodile.

Rather than a thrust, it was more like a battering ram.

The branches were simply too massive, each one as thick as what a dozen men could encircle.

"Hmph!"

Staring at the tip of the oncoming branch, Crocodile snorted coldly and once again swung the arm that wasn't a golden hook. "Crescent Sand Blade!"

His arm once again transformed into a crescent-shaped sand blade, colliding with the tip of the branch.

This time, the branch failed to shatter the sand blade and was instead split in two down the middle.

Upon closer inspection, one would find that what split the branch was not its sharpness that could tear the earth, but a desiccating power that absorbed all moisture.

That sand blade had directly drained the branch's life force, turning its core into deadwood before easily slicing it apart.

Seeing this, Link's eyebrows raised slightly.

Immediately, he formed hand seals. A blue aura flared up around his body, and then he made a lifting gesture with both hands.

In an instant, a dozen massive branches, like a nest of vipers being released, shot towards Crocodile.

Crocodile sneered, intending to use his elemental form to ignore Link's attack.

But in the next second, as if he had discovered something, Crocodile's face changed drastically. Without hesitation, he expended a large amount of his power, his body spinning and transforming into a massive sand tornado.

"Crescent Sand Blade!"

Countless sand blades, imbued with the power of desiccation that would drain moisture on contact, shot out from the tornado like a torrential downpour, colliding with the surging swarm of wooden serpents.

If one looked closely, they would see that the surfaces of these massive branches were seeping with water, as if they were in a rainforest that had just experienced a heavy storm.

This was the reason for the drastic change in Crocodile's expression, and why he didn't dare to block with his elemental form.

The Suna Suna no Mi's weakness is water. To be precise, it fears any liquid that can solidify sand.

Other Logia users only become powerless and tangible when their entire bodies are submerged in water.

But the Suna Suna no Mi was different. As long as an enemy's attack was wet, it could strike his real body.

It was precisely because of this fatal weakness that Crocodile, who had lost or never mastered Haki and couldn't defend with Armament Haki, was defeated by Luffy's blood-soaked fists.

Now, Link could make the surface of the wood seep with water, which sent Crocodile into a panic.

His home-field advantage was gone!

Not only that, but the threat level of those wooden branches had transformed from "tough wood" to "lethal weapon"!

This brat... he's developed the Logia-type Mori Mori no Mi to this extent!

Little did he know, Link wasn't a Logia-type Mori Mori no Mi user at all.

Perhaps if the Mori Mori no Mi were developed to its peak, it could connect its roots to the sea beneath the island, absorb the ocean's life source, and make the trees seep water, but that would definitely require an astonishing amount of stamina.

Link's Wood Release didn't need to be so troublesome.

Wood Release is a Kekkei Genkai formed by the fusion of Water Release and Earth Release nature transformations.

As someone who had mastered both nature transformations, as long as Link had enough chakra and was willing to spend it, he could imbue the trees with the hardness of Earth Release, just as he had shattered Crocodile's sand blade earlier.

At the same time, Link could also enhance the Water Release nature transformation, causing water to seep from the trees' surfaces.

This was a technique Link had mastered back in the East Blue.

It was for this very reason that Link dared to fight Crocodile on his home turf.

Even without using water, his Wood Release wouldn't be countered by Crocodile.

But if he only used Wood Release, it would still be difficult to defeat Crocodile.

Gazing at the sand tornado that was unleashing a barrage of sand blades, draining the branches' moisture and cutting them down, the corners of Link's mouth curled up slightly. Then, he secretly formed a hand seal.

The First Hokage, Hashirama Senju's, strength... did not lie in his Wood Release alone