Evening.
Alubarna, inside the Royal Palace.
Cobra and several important ministers gathered together, with Uta and Karu sitting beside them, drinking water in large gulps.
Especially Karu, who had been running in the desert for several hours and was almost bursting with thirst.
At this moment, he was drinking from a bucket with tears in his eyes.
Beside them, Pell, the vice-captain of the Royal Guard, held a letter in his hand, an incredulous expression on his face, and exclaimed in surprise,
"This… this is indeed Princess Vivi's handwritten letter."
Another vice-captain, Chaka, was covered in cold sweat, his expression shocked, and he murmured,
"How could this be?!"
Cobra held his forehead with his hand, his face filled with anger and shock, staring blankly ahead, and said,
"This blow is indeed a bit big."
"Because he was on the World Government's side, I was careless."
"I didn't expect 'Crocodile' to want to overthrow this country for such a thing."
At this moment, Chaka suddenly spoke up.
"What should we do now, Your Majesty?"
"Should we believe these pirates, as the letter says…?"
"Hand over the fate of Alabasta… to a group of pirates?!"
As Chaka spoke, his eyes held doubt and worry.
This was a matter concerning the life and death of Alabasta; entrusting it entirely to a group of pirates, they truly dared not be careless.
Cobra was also indecisive and struggling greatly at this moment.
Although in the letter, Vivi had made it extremely clear that he should trust these pirates.
However… as the ruler of a country, it was still too difficult for him to make this decision.
Just then, Uta suddenly looked at Pell and Chaka and spoke.
"Are you two the strongest people in this country?"
Pell and Chaka were startled by her words and looked at Uta in confusion.
Although they didn't know what she meant, they still silently nodded.
Uta smiled slightly at their response and politely said,
"Then... I apologize for my rudeness!"
Both of them, including Cobra, looked puzzled by Uta's strange behavior.
However, the next second, all three of them simultaneously widened their pupils, looking extremely shocked.
Uta's figure suddenly vanished from her original spot.
By the time the three of them could perceive her again, Pell and Chaka had already been sent flying.
Cobra's pupils constricted, and he looked at Uta in disbelief.
The two strongest warriors of the kingdom were dealt with so casually?!
Even if Uta hadn't explicitly stated that she was going to fight, as two warriors facing an enemy attack, they didn't even react and were completely helpless, which also indicated a huge disparity in their strength.
At this moment, Pell and Chaka also looked extremely shocked, clutching their chests and painfully getting up from the ground.
They looked at Uta with horror, deeply conquered by her strength.
They prided themselves on being the strongest warriors in the kingdom, but facing Uta, they felt utterly powerless to retaliate.
At this point, Uta continued speaking.
"Originally, I wouldn't interfere with your decisions."
"But this is a mission Luffy gave me, and it's also Vivi's request."
"That's why I took action."
"Now… can you trust us?"
After Uta finished speaking, the three of them looked at each other.
They all saw the same expression in each other's eyes.
Then, Pell and Chaka both nodded slightly to Cobra, indicating their acceptance.
Cobra, after nodding in response to them, turned to look at Uta, his eyes filled with gratitude and hope, and bowed to Uta while saying,
"Alabasta… I entrust it to you!"
Pell and Chaka also bowed at the same time, expressing their gratitude.
Initially, they didn't doubt the credibility of this group of pirates; after all, they were willing to trust anyone Vivi trusted so much.
So at that time, they only doubted their capabilities.
But now, when Uta effortlessly struck down the two strongest warriors of their kingdom, they no longer had any doubts.
Afterward, they took Uta and, following Luffy's plan, began to act, preparing for tomorrow's decisive battle.
...
Rainbase!
Inside a huge office!
Crocodile sat on a luxurious chair, with the Unlucky Duo reporting to him.
Crocodile frowned, the cigar in his mouth trembling uncontrollably, and his eyes filled with rage as he said in a deep voice,
"You're saying Mr. 3 failed his mission and fled with Ms. Goldenweek?!"
The Unlucky Duo nodded in unison.
Then, in the blink of an eye, they wrote a line of text on a piece of paper.
"Should we go after them~?"
Crocodile glanced at it, and although extremely angry, he still shook his head.
"There's no time for such trash now."
"The most important thing is to ensure tomorrow's plan proceeds smoothly."
"What about Vivi? She didn't meet Kohza, did she?"
The Unlucky Duo quickly wrote another string of words on the paper.
"Vivi and the Straw Hat disappeared from Nanohana."
"However, our hidden members in the Rebel Army said they've been watching Kohza and haven't seen Vivi meet him."
Seeing the latter sentence, Crocodile breathed a sigh of relief, but the former sentence still made him look puzzled.
"Disappeared? No trace of them found at all?"
Soon, the Unlucky Duo's answer appeared on the paper again.
"All the members in Nanohana were defeated by Straw Hat and Fire Fist Ace while trying to surround and kill Vivi; no one noticed the Straw Hat's whereabouts."
Seeing Fire Fist Ace's name, Crocodile's pupils visibly trembled, and there was apprehension and doubt in his eyes.
Ace had been in Alabasta for many days, and he had received the news long ago.
But he had never known his purpose.
Now, learning that he suddenly helped Luffy, he was filled with worry and doubt, and asked,
"Why would Fire Fist Ace help Straw Hat?"
The Unlucky Duo shook their heads, then wrote down the answer.
"I heard that he and Straw Hat were eating at the same restaurant at the time, and they just happened to be surrounded by the people led by Mr. 3."
Upon seeing this answer, Crocodile immediately couldn't control his anger and cursed again.
"Mr. 3, that idiot!"
"When you reported his mission failure, I was wondering how 500 Billion Members and Millionaires couldn't kill Vivi from a trash pirate with a bounty of 60 million Berries?"
"It turns out that idiot brought Fire Fist Ace into it."
The more Crocodile thought about it, the angrier he got, wishing he could dry up Mr. 3 into a mummy right now.
If he hadn't been so stupid, Vivi would have been dealt with long ago.
Just as Crocodile was cursing Mr. 3 in his mind, the Unlucky Duo again held up a piece of paper and presented it to him.
"Ms. All Sunday is back, and is currently on her way to Rainbase."
When he saw this text, Crocodile's pupils visibly flickered, then he frowned again, with doubt in his eyes.
"Wasn't she captured by the Straw Hat? How could she suddenly be back?"
The Unlucky Duo shook their heads simultaneously.
Seeing this, Crocodile no longer paid attention to them but took out a den den mushi.
Soon, a voice came from the other side.
"It seems you've already received the news, Mr. 0!"
Crocodile curled his lips, his face sinister, and said in a low voice,
"Weren't you captured by Straw Hat?"
Robin's reply came from the other end of the phone.
"Straw Hat is a rubber man; my abilities are ineffective against him, which is why I was captured."
"After arriving in Nanohana, I escaped using my ability when Straw Hat wasn't around."
Regarding Robin's answer, Crocodile had suspicion in his eyes and said in a deep voice,
"You should know, shouldn't you? Our Baroque Works doesn't allow failure. How dare you come back?"
"...Nico Robin!"
Hearing Crocodile call out her real name, Robin knew that he was no longer pretending with her, and she replied directly and clearly,
"You won't kill me."
"We have a cooperative relationship, unlike those agents; this was agreed upon from the beginning."
"I am for the Poneglyphs, you are for Pluton; we cooperate to achieve our respective goals."
"Isn't that right?"
"Crocodile!"
Hearing Robin's words, the suspicion and anger in Crocodile's eyes gradually disappeared, replaced by a sinister and confident smile, and he slowly said,
"Welcome back… Ms. All Sunday!"
...
The night in Alabasta is beautiful.
The sky is filled with twinkling stars, endless, adorning Alabasta like a dream, making one intoxicated.
Accompanied by the vast starlight, the merry go slowly sailed upstream along the Saint Dora River.
At some point deep in the night, Nami's voice suddenly rang out on the ship.
"We're here, this is it!"
She held a map in her hand, pointing to a coastline near Alubarna on it, and said,
"Based on our sailing speed and the distance on the map, our current position is the closest coastline to our target location."
Upon hearing that they had finally reached their destination,
A series of exclamations immediately sounded on the ship.
"Ah… we're finally here!"
"Finally, I can go to sleep!"
"It's so cold, the desert night!"
At this moment, Luffy spoke.
"Alright, we'll drop anchor here, and after securing the merry go, we'll rest."
"Tomorrow morning, we'll officially set off for Alubarna!"
"Oh! (x6)"
...
Not long after Luffy and the others rested, two figures infiltrated the royal palace in Alubarna and quietly abducted Cobra.
Somewhere in the shadows.
Pell whispered worriedly,
"Will His Majesty the King really be alright?"
Chaka's voice was equally low.
"Let's just trust the Straw Hat! After all, they even anticipated something like sending people to quietly abduct His Majesty the King."
Pell nodded.
"At this point, we can only trust them."
...
In the morning, as a touch of red glow appeared on the horizon,
A long day began!
The port city of Nanohana!
On one of the busiest streets.
Cobra, along with a group of the King's Army, suddenly appeared.
This scene immediately attracted countless onlookers from the surrounding crowd.
"H-How did His Majesty the King come?"
"That bastard stole our rain; he doesn't deserve to be king."
"Lord Cobra…"
The voices of the crowd varied; occasionally there were those who expressed anger and contempt for Cobra among the people, but most maintained respect.
Most people still chose to believe Cobra.
Just then, Cobra suddenly spoke.
"I've come to apologize to everyone."
"It was I who stole the rain from this country!"
"To make everyone forget that unpleasant incident with the Dance Powder..."
As he spoke, Cobra's expression suddenly turned ruthless, and he said in a deep voice,
"I've decided to destroy Nanohana!"
With that, Cobra immediately ordered the Royal Army behind him,
"Thoroughly destroy this evil city, burn it down!"
"Yes, sir!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a group of Royal Army soldiers drew their swords and guns, causing destruction and setting fires everywhere in the city.
The onlookers, seeing this scene, showed expressions of horror and disbelief, and anger also surfaced in the eyes of more people.
The once clean and beautiful town instantly became chaotic.
Gunshots, screams, wails, and raging fires filled the air.
Just then, a man galloped up on horseback and stopped in front of Cobra.
The person who arrived was Kohza, the leader of the Rebel Army.
When he learned that the King had suddenly appeared in Nanohana, his heart was filled with doubt and confusion.
And now, seeing such a scene, he was even more furious and incredulous.
He asked angrily in a low voice,
"What are you doing... you bastard?!"
Cobra's tone was calm as he said,
"I've come to apologize."
No sooner had Cobra finished speaking than Kohza violently swung his arm and roared,
"Shut up!"
"Don't joke around..."
Even seeing it with his own eyes, Kohza still couldn't believe it.
But more than that, it was anger.
Cobra continued,
"The one who dried up this country with Dance Powder was..."
Before he could utter the word "I," Kohza suddenly went berserk and charged towards Cobra, while hysterically roaring,
"Didn't I tell you to shut up, you bastard?!"
Before he could reach Cobra, Kohza was stopped by a group of Royal Army soldiers.
But Kohza's eyes saw no one else at this moment; he stared at Cobra with immense fury, roaring and shouting angrily,
"Do you know what was in the hearts of those people who collapsed in the dried-up cities when they died?"
"They didn't hate you, they didn't resent you!"
"Every single one of them trusted you until their last breath!"
Kohza became incredibly agitated and furious at this moment, roaring at Cobra with all his might,
"Even if it's a lie, you should say, 'This wasn't me.'"
"Otherwise, how can you face those who trusted you!!!"
Just then, a Royal Army soldier beside Cobra raised his gun.
Bang!
With a gunshot, Kohza slowly fell in anger and despair.
He had completely lost hope in this King, in this country!
"Kohza?!"
"Ahhh..."
"Those bastards..."
The crowd became incredibly chaotic at this moment, with screams and wails unending, and everyone's face was filled with anger and panic.
Cobra, at this point, led the Royal Army away.
"Kohza!"
A Rebel Army officer rushed over, calling Kohza's name with concern.
Kohza's eyes were open, unblinking, his expression more resolute than ever before.
We can't... wait any longer!
He said in a cold, deep voice,
"Inform everyone, this is... the final battle!"
The subordinate immediately said with concern upon hearing this,
"A decisive battle? But our weapons aren't fully prepared!"
Just then, another subordinate suddenly ran up, reporting anxiously to Kohza,
"Kohza!"
"A ship suddenly rushed into the port, and a large quantity of weapons fell out of it."
Kohza's eyes were filled with hatred as he said in a deep voice,
"It's simply divine will!!!"
...
Rebel Army Headquarters, Cattleya.
Kohza, with bandages wrapped around his waist, stood on a high platform.
Below in the square were countless Rebel Army soldiers, densely packed.
Kohza clenched his fist, raised it above his head, and shouted angrily,
"Listen, Rebel Army!"
"Alabasta is dead!"
"This is the final battle, we must... conquer Alubarna!"
As he finished speaking, the crowd below erupted, their cheers shaking the heavens.
"Attack Alubarna, we absolutely cannot forgive the King!! Him!"
"Oh oh oh oh oh..."
...
As the Rebel Army began to move, Mr. 1 and the others, having completed their mission, also advanced towards Alubarna to prevent Vivi from coming to stop the war.
And on the west side of Alubarna, by the Saint Dora River.
Straw Hat was ready to go.
"Let's go!"
At Luffy's command, the group also advanced towards Alubarna.