"Baroque Works," Vivi said. "It's not my father, Koza. It's Crocodile. He's the one stealing the rain. He's the one who destroyed Yuba. He's playing us both."
Koza stared at her. The silence in the tent was deafening, the weight of the revelation hanging in the smoky air. The fuse of the civil war had just been paused, but the spark was still dangerously close to the powder keg.
"Crocodile?"
Koza repeated the name, the word feeling foreign and heavy on his tongue. He looked at Vivi, his childhood friend, the princess who had vanished, now standing before him in the clothes of a traveler, dirt on her face but royalty in her spine.
"Yes, Koza," Vivi implored, stepping closer, ignoring the swords still half-raised by the guards. "My father hasn't stolen the rain. He never did. The Dance Powder found in the palace was planted. The destruction of Yuba, the droughts... it's all been orchestrated by Crocodile. He wants us to destroy each other so he can swoop in as the 'hero' and take the throne."
A murmur ran through the tent. The lieutenants looked at each other, confusion warring with their deeply ingrained anger.
"A Warlord?" one of the older men muttered. "Why would a pirate want to run a desert kingdom?"
"For power!" Vivi cried. "Please, Koza. You know my father. You know my father. Would King Cobra truly let his people starve?"
Koza's hand trembled on the hilt of his saber. He remembered King Cobra. He remembered the man who had bowed his head to a commoner to save a child.
Could I have been wrong? Could this entire war be a lie?
"Don't listen to her, Leader Koza!"
The shout cut through the fragile moment of connection like a whip.
A lieutenant standing to Koza's right stepped forward. He was a gaunt man with a jagged scar across his chin, known as Zaba.
"This is a trick!" Zaba yelled, pointing a shaking finger at Vivi. "She is the King's daughter! Of course, she would lie to save her father's neck! While we rot in the sun, while our children die of thirst, she has been living in luxury!"
"I haven't!" Vivi protested. "I've been fighting! I infiltrated Baroque Works!"
"Convenient story!" another lieutenant, a burly man named Muro, chimed in, moving to flank Koza. "Leader, look at them. They bring outsiders. Strange men with swords. This is an assassination attempt! If we stop the war now, the King will use the time to crush us. We cannot show weakness!"
"But..." Koza hesitated, looking between Zaba and Vivi. "If she's telling the truth..."
"The risk is too great!" Zaba roared, his eyes manic. "We have the advantage! We march tomorrow! If we stop, we lose momentum! Capture her, Koza! If she is the Princess, she is the ultimate hostage. We can drag her before the gates of Alubarna and force the King to abdicate to save her life!"
"Capture her!" Muro echoed.
"Hostage!" A third man shouted from the back.
The mood in the tent shifted violently. The desperation of the rebels was a dry tinderbox, and Zaba had just struck a match. The guards tightened their grips on their rifles. The air grew electric with violence.
Zoro's thumb clicked the guard of Wado Ichimonji. His eyes narrowed.
"Things are getting ugly," he muttered to Nami. "Get behind me."
Sabo shifted his stance, his gloved fingers curling into a dragon claw. "They're pushing too hard," he whispered to Koala. "That's not just skepticism. That's incitement."
Standing calmly in the center of the storm was Ben.
He hadn't moved. He hadn't reached for a weapon. He simply stared.
His eyes were focused intently on Zaba, Muro, and the third loud shouter.
Legilimens.
Ben didn't need a wand for this. He projected his mind forward, slicing through the mental barriers of the agitators like a hot knife through butter.
The world of the tent faded for Ben, replaced by a flash of disjointed images and thoughts from Zaba's mind.
...Money... Millions of berries promised...
...Mr. 1's orders... Ensure the war starts...
...Code name: Billions Agent 14...
...Kill Koza if he hesitates...
...The plan must succeed... Crocodile is watching...
Ben shifted his gaze to Muro.
...Baroque Works tattoo itching under the shirt...
...Don't let the Princess speak...
...Shoot the swordsman first...
Ben pulled back, the connection severing. A cold smirk touched his lips.
"Got you," he whispered.
Zaba saw Koza wavering. He saw the doubt in the leader's eyes. He realized that Vivi's words were working.
Plan B, Zaba thought. Kill them all.
"MEN!" Zaba screamed, drawing his pistol. "THEY ARE ASSASSINS! PROTECT THE LEADER! KILL THEM! FIRE!"
"WAIT!" Koza shouted, reaching out.
But it was too late. The tension snapped.
Zaba, Muro, and the third agent raised their guns. Following their lead, five other confused rebels raised their rifles, panicked by the shouting.
The barrels were leveled at Vivi, Nami, and Ben.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Muzzle flashes illuminated the dim tent. Smoke erupted.
Vivi flinched, closing her eyes, waiting for the impact.
Koza screamed her name.
But the impact never came.
"Protego Maxima."
Ben didn't yell. He merely flicked his wand—a blur of movement that no eye could track.
A translucent, shimmering blue dome erupted around the Straw Hat group.
The bullets slammed into the barrier.
PING! PING! RICOCHET!
The lead rounds flattened against the magical shield, glowing red hot, and then dropped harmlessly to the dirt floor like heavy rain.
Silence.
Absolute, stunned silence.
The rebels stared at the floating blue wall. They looked at their smoking guns. They looked at the bullets on the ground.
"What...?" Zaba stammered, his pistol shaking. "Devil Fruit?"
Ben lowered the shield. He stepped forward, the smoke swirling around his trench coat. The lenses of his sunglasses glinted in the lamplight.
"You attacked a Princess under a flag of truce," Ben said, his voice cold, echoing slightly with a menacing reverb. "Bad move."
Zaba panicked. "RELOAD! KILL THE MONSTER!"
He raised his gun again. Muro drew a jagged sword and charged. The confusion was total; the other rebels didn't know who to fight, so they prepared to attack everyone.
Ben sighed. "I don't have time for this."
He raised his wand high. The tip glowed with a harsh, violet light.
He swept it in a wide, horizontal arc, encompassing everyone in the room except Koza and his own team.
"Petrificus Totalus Totalum!" (Total Body-Bind).
The effect was instantaneous and terrifying.
It wasn't a wave of force. It was a snapping of strings.
Every single rebel in the tent—Zaba, Muro, the guards, the lieutenants—suddenly went rigid. Their arms snapped to their sides. Their legs locked together.
THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD.
One by one, like falling dominos, twenty men toppled over. They hit the ground stiff as boards. Their eyes were wide open, darting around in panic, but they couldn't move a muscle. They couldn't speak. They couldn't even blink.
The tent was suddenly very quiet.
Koza stood alone in the center of a room of statues.
He held his saber, but his hand was shaking so hard the blade rattled. He looked around at his paralyzed men. He looked at Ben.
"W-What..." Koza choked out. "What did you do? Are they dead?"
"No," Ben said, tucking his wand back into his coat. "Just... paused. Nobody needs to die today, Koza."
Koza lowered his sword, his legs giving out. He slumped onto a map table, staring at Ben with a mixture of awe and terror. "Who are you people? Devil Fruits? You defeated my command unit in a second."
"We are the Straw Hat Pirates," Ben said simply. "And we are Vivi's friends."
Ben walked over to one of the paralyzed rebels—a young boy, no older than sixteen, who looked terrified.
"I know you don't believe us yet," Ben said to Koza. "Words are wind, especially in a desert. You need proof."
"Proof?" Koza looked up, sweat stinging his eyes. "You paralyzed my men. Is that proof of power?"
"No. That was self-defense," Ben corrected. "The proof is in the details."
Ben waved his hand over the young boy.
"Finite."
The boy gasped, sucking in air as the paralysis lifted. He scrambled back, terrified.
"Stay down, son," Ben ordered gently. "You're not the enemy."
Ben walked around the room, unfreezing the confused, loyal rebels one by one. He left three men on the floor, still rigid as stone.
Zaba. Muro. And the third agitator.
The loyal rebels huddled against the tent walls, weapons forgotten, watching Ben with wide eyes.
"Koza," Ben said, gesturing to the three frozen men. "These three were the loudest, weren't they? The ones urging you to kill Vivi. The ones telling you to attack."
Koza nodded slowly. "Zaba... Muro... Kenji. They are my officers."
"Are they?" Ben asked. "Or are they actors?"
Ben walked over to Zaba. He grabbed the collar of the man's shirt and ripped it open.
There, tattooed on the man's chest, just above his heart, was a symbol.
A cross. Or rather, a number.
BW. And underneath it: Millions.
Koza's eyes widened. He stepped forward. "What is that?"
"The mark of Baroque Works," Ben explained. "Millions. It's the rank of their foot soldiers."
Ben moved to Muro. He ripped the sleeve off the man's shirt.
On his bicep: The same symbol. A bat-like crest with a number.
Ben moved to Kenji. He pulled up the man's pant leg.
On his calf: The symbol again.
The silence in the tent was different now. It wasn't fearful; it was horrified.
The loyal rebels murmured. They checked their own skin, finding nothing. They looked at the men they had fought beside, realizing they had been sleeping next to vipers.
"They infiltrated you," Ben said, his voice hard. "They aren't fighting for water, Koza. They are fighting to make sure you die. They are fighting to ensure the Rebel Army crashes into the Royal Army so that Crocodile can sweep up the ashes."
Koza stared at the tattoo on Zaba's chest. He remembered Zaba whispering in his ear for months. The King hates us. Attack now. Burn the villages.
Every bad decision, every escalation... there was always one of these men pushing for it.
Koza fell to his knees. The saber clattered to the floor.
"I..." Koza's voice broke. tears of frustration and guilt welled up. "I almost... I almost killed Vivi. I almost destroyed the country... because I listened to snakes."
Vivi rushed forward. She knelt beside him, wrapping her arms around her childhood friend.
"It's not your fault, Koza!" Vivi cried. "Crocodile is a Warlord! He's a genius at manipulation! He fooled my father too!"
Koza gripped Vivi's arm, his knuckles white. "I'm sorry, Vivi. I'm so sorry."
Sabo stepped forward, his face grim. "Apologies can wait. Right now, you have a crisis. If there are three in this tent, there are dozens more outside."
Koza looked up, the steel returning to his eyes. The grief was replaced by a cold fury.
"Yes," Koza hissed. He stood up, towering over the frozen form of Zaba.
"Traitors," Koza spat.
He turned to his loyal men.
"Listen to me!" Koza commanded. "Round up every officer! Every soldier! Strip them! Check everyone! If they have this mark, bind them! If they resist, cut them down!"
"YES SIR!" The loyal rebels shouted, their fear of Ben replaced by rage at the betrayal. They scrambled out of the tent to execute the orders.
Koza turned to Ben. "I believe you. I'll purge the army tonight."
"Good," Ben nodded. "But the purge isn't enough. You need to stop the march."
"Consider it stopped," Koza said. "I'm not moving a single soldier toward Alubarna until this filth is cleaned out."
"Give us a week," Vivi said, standing up. "One week. We will go to Rainbase. We will take down Crocodile. We will prove to the world what he did."
"One week," Koza agreed. He looked at Vivi with a sad smile. "You always were stubborn, Vivi. But... I'm glad you are."
Ben waved his wand. "I'm leaving these three frozen. They'll stay that way for about four hours. Use them for interrogation."
"I will," Koza said darkly. "They have a lot to answer for."
Ben motioned to his team. "Let's go. We're done here."
He tapped the top of his head again.
Like a heat shimmer, Ben, Zoro, Nami, Vivi, Sabo, and Koala faded from view. To Koza, it looked like they simply dissolved into the air.
"Good luck," Koza whispered to the empty space. "And... thank you."
---
The night air outside the camp was freezing, a sharp contrast to the heated emotions inside the tent.
The invisible group walked away from the Rebel Army, moving past the confused shouts and the beginning of the great purge as officers began checking soldiers for tattoos.
Once they were over the first dune and well out of earshot, the shimmer faded. They reappeared under the starlight.
"That..." Vivi let out a long breath, her legs shaking. "That was close."
"You did good, Princess," Zoro said, adjusting his swords. "You stood your ground."
"And Ben was terrifying," Nami shivered. "That spell... you froze them all instantly. Remind me never to steal your wallet."
"It's just a body-bind, Nami," Ben shrugged.
Sabo was looking at Ben with a calculating expression. "Basic? You neutralized a command squad without drawing blood. The Revolutionary Army could use techniques like that. Dragon would be... very interested in your powers."
"Maybe one day we'll trade notes," Ben deflected smoothly. "For now, let's get back. I'm starving."
They crest the final dune.
Below them, nestled in a small canyon protected from the wind, was the Straw Hat campsite.
It was a scene of utter, chaotic domesticity.
A magical campfire (courtesy of Sanji) burned with a steady, smokeless blue flame.
Sanji was at the stove, flipping steaks with the elegance of a conductor.
Usopp and Chopper were chasing each other around a rock, screaming about a 'Desert Ghost' (which was probably just a tumbleweed).
The Giants, Dorry and Brogy, were sitting back-to-back, drinking, laughing so hard the ground shook.
Merry was sitting on a rock, holding a stick with a marshmallow on it.
And in the center of it all sat Luffy.
He was holding a bone the size of his head, gnawing on it with ferocious happiness. His face was covered in sauce. He looked like the happiest creature on the planet.
The infiltration team walked down the slope.
Luffy's ears perked up. He swallowed the meat whole.
"OI!"
He waved the bone.
"YOU'RE BACK!"
Luffy stretched his arm, grabbing Nami and Vivi and pulling them down the dune (much to Nami's annoyance).
"Did you fix the war?" Luffy asked, as casually as asking if they picked up milk.
"Yes, Luffy," Vivi smiled, exhausted but relieved. "We fixed it. Koza stopped the march."
"Awesome!" Luffy grinned. "I knew you could do it! Nami is scary, so she probably yelled at them, right?"
"I did not yell!" Nami protested, though she grabbed a plate of pasta that Sanji offered her immediately.
"And Zoro didn't get lost?" Luffy asked, shocked.
"Shut up," Zoro grunted, grabbing a bottle of sake.
"So," Sabo asked, accepting a skewer of grilled lizard from Sanji. "What now?"
Ben sat down on a crate, accepting a cup of coffee from Merry. He looked at the map projected from his wristband.
"Phase One is complete. The Civil War is paused. Crocodile has lost his shield."