Chapter 276: An Indirectly Brilliant Mind?
"Let me correct you right there. I'm the one who was originally supposed to come on this mission. You were the one who forcefully tagged along."
Before Amphelite could even speak, Chloe quickly shut down Yamato's whining.
A flower raised in a greenhouse cannot withstand the violent storms of the outside world, and a fledgling raised in a cage will never learn how to truly soar across the sky. No matter how peerless one's innate talent might be, accumulating real-world experience was an absolutely indispensable phase of growth.
Transitioning from purely honing martial arts in a controlled training ground to venturing out and experiencing the brutal reality of the sea was a universal rite of passage.
Practically every top-tier powerhouse currently dominating the sea had a history of wandering the world alone in their youth. For children like Chloe, being able to gain this experience while still partially shielded by their parents' immense umbrella of protection was an incredibly fortunate luxury.
As Chloe grew older, she was gradually assigned more practical responsibilities. This particular trip to Alabasta was specifically designed as a trial for her—not just to temper her physical instincts, but to familiarize her with the Ryugu Kingdom's covert operations.
"I promise I won't cause any trouble! You have to trust me!" Yamato pleaded. "We've known each other for years now!"
Yamato had only demanded to tag along after overhearing that Chloe was leaving on an external mission. Under normal circumstances, outsiders were strictly forbidden from participating in these classified affairs. However, given Yamato's unique status, Nereus eventually approved it, deciding she could use the practical experience.
Although Kaido wouldn't mind if his daughter grew up to be a mindless, hyper-violent brute who only knew how to swing a club, since Nereus had formally agreed to act as her instructor, he naturally refused to raise her that way.
If word ever got out that Nereus's highly anticipated "disciple" was a brain-dead thug, it would severely damage his reputation. Nereus absolutely refused to end up on some future "Worst Teachers in History" ranking list.
"It is precisely because I know you so well that I find that promise completely unbelievable," Chloe deadpanned, crossing her arms.
Having known her for a considerable amount of time, Chloe understood Yamato's personality perfectly. If she were to summarize Yamato in a single sentence...
"A hot-blooded idiot who acts entirely on impulse."
In many ways, Yamato's approach to problem-solving was frighteningly similar to Kaido's. The only difference was that Kaido possessed such overwhelmingly absolute martial might that he literally didn't need to use his brain.
Yamato, however, had inherited his monstrous physical constitution but clearly hadn't inherited a shred of Kaido's cunning intellect.
Chloe didn't say anything further, simply staring silently at Yamato until the older girl began to visibly sweat and lose her confidence.
"Dance Powder," Amphelite suddenly interjected smoothly, breaking the awkward silence.
"What's that?" Yamato asked, tilting her head.
"It is a highly unique, miraculous powder exclusive to the Kingdom of Alabasta. By either spraying it directly into the cloud layer or burning it and allowing the smoke to ascend into the sky, it forcefully condenses localized moisture to generate massive rain clouds.
"Because Alabasta is a desert nation where water is an incredibly precious resource, the citizens would often dance with unbridled joy whenever it rained. Hence the name: Dance Powder."
"I get it now!"
Yamato suddenly clapped her hands together, her eyes widening as if she had just experienced a world-shattering epiphany.
"During that unprecedented, legendary liberation... a sudden, apocalyptic torrential downpour engulfed Mary Geoise! Mr. Nereus used Dance Powder back then, didn't he?!"
It wasn't Amphelite who answered her, but rather Chloe—who was staring at Yamato with an expression of profound, absolute shock.
Chloe genuinely couldn't comprehend how Yamato's usually sluggish brain had suddenly managed to connect those complex, historical dots so flawlessly. This sudden burst of deductive reasoning completely shattered Yamato's established character profile!
"What on earth did Uncle Wobbegong write in that damn biography...?" Chloe muttered under her breath.
She assumed Wobbegong had injected so many heavily romanticized, fictionalized details into Nereus's biography that Yamato had inadvertently memorized the tactical nuances. So many historical misunderstandings were born exactly like this.
It was a good thing Wobbegong hadn't taken creative liberties with Nereus's physical appearance; otherwise, who knows what kind of terrifying monster the outside world would imagine Nereus to be?
"Dance Powder is strictly classified as highly illegal contraband within Alabasta; it is not a standard commercial good," Amphelite explained calmly. "Strictly speaking, our mission here is not a formal state-sponsored trade agreement, but rather a covert smuggling operation."
"Why would they ban something like that?" Yamato asked, perplexed. "Isn't making it rain a good thing in a desert?"
"Because the rain created by Dance Powder isn't generated out of thin air. It forcefully plunders the ambient moisture from the surrounding atmosphere. The price of abundant rainfall in one localized area is catastrophic, artificial drought for all the neighboring regions.
"To Alabasta, it is illegal contraband. But to the Ryugu Kingdom, possessing the ability to artificially summon torrential storms on demand drastically amplifies the combat effectiveness of our amphibious soldiers. To us, it is a critical, high-value strategic resource."
Yamato didn't bother asking why the Ryugu Kingdom didn't simply manufacture the powder themselves. In her mind, if Alabasta could produce it, simply buying it from them was the easiest solution.
In reality, the Ryugu Kingdom had attempted to synthesize it. Wobbegong had even completely broken down and reverse-engineered its chemical composition.
The reason Fish-Man Island didn't mass-produce it wasn't due to a lack of technological capability, nor was it because of severe environmental pollution. It was simply because the creation of Dance Powder possessed an incredibly bizarre "geographical exclusivity."
Much like the unique, floating resin bubbles that could only exist within the specific climate of the Sabaody Archipelago, Dance Powder could only be manufactured upon the soil of this specific desert nation.
Even if one flawlessly replicated the chemical formula, manufacturing process, and ambient temperature elsewhere, the final product simply wouldn't work.
What exactly was hidden deep beneath the sands of Alabasta that caused this anomaly? Neither Wobbegong nor Nereus knew, nor did they particularly care; they weren't professional archaeologists.
Since the sea was already filled with countless bizarre, geographically exclusive anomalies, they simply accepted it and established a routine, covert purchasing channel.
Besides, Dance Powder had an incredibly long shelf life. The massive stockpiles already secured in Fish-Man Island's armories were more than sufficient for any immediate military deployment. They merely needed to periodically restock a small amount to maintain their absolute strategic reserve.
The Ryugu Kingdom's covert orders actually fed quite a few desperate people in Alabasta. Because the nation's landmass was so massive and predominantly covered in endless, inhospitable desert, the Royal Family's actual administrative control was largely confined to the major cities. Whatever happened deep within the dunes was largely beyond their sight.
Since Fish-Man Island strictly purchased the powder and never actually used it near Alabasta, the Alabastian Royal Family remained entirely oblivious to the operation. It had proven to be a highly stable, lucrative underground supply chain.
Nanohana, the southeastern port city of Alabasta.
As the primary hub for the nation's international maritime trade, it was naturally Chloe and Yamato's destination.
Under normal circumstances, this would be an incredibly straightforward mission: locate the contact, exchange the money, secure the cargo, and leave.
However, this time, the situation was slightly different.
"This is the Dance Powder you requested," the contact muttered nervously, handing over a heavy crate in a secluded alleyway.
"The quantity is correct," Yamato said, nodding before her eyes suddenly narrowed dangerously. "But... are you trying to double-cross us? Who is that guy hiding behind you?"
Yamato pointed her finger directly toward a massive sand dune in the distance.
Observation Haki allowed the user to perceive the "threat level" and "presence" of living organisms. Having trained rigorously for years, both Yamato and Chloe had already grasped the fundamental applications of both Observation and Armament Haki.
Compared to these nervous, ordinary smugglers standing before them, the presence lurking behind that distant dune was radiating a distinctly sharper, highly threatening aura.
However, Yamato's accusation left the smugglers completely bewildered.
"Behind us? It's just the three of us! There's nobody behind us!" the contact stammered, looking around frantically.
"Did you hear something over there? Don't tell me it's a Sandora Dragon..." another smuggler whispered, terrified.
Their panicked reactions didn't resemble hardened, treacherous underground mafia bosses accustomed to backstabbing; they looked exactly like ordinary, desperate civilians terrified of being caught peddling illegal contraband.
When confronted, the smugglers showed absolutely no intention of drawing weapons. Instead, they quickly snatched the briefcase of Berries and looked ready to sprint away from this dangerous location as fast as possible.
Although it didn't seem like they had planned a betrayal... it was blatantly obvious that someone had secretly tailed them to the drop site.
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