On the outskirts of a city in Alabasta, at the time Luffy and his group arrived at Nanohana.
Not far from the outskirts, the sandy ground was stained deep red, and fragments of bodies lay scattered across it like torn paper.
"Attempting to pillage not just anywhere, but right under my nose at Rain Base... Are you out of your mind?"
"I stabbed you with my sword—so why...!"
At the center of the scene, Crocodile stood, lifting a man high by the scruff of his neck.
The man being held had driven his sword through Crocodile's chest with his right hand, but Crocodile didn't bleed a drop as he spoke calmly.
"You dared attack me without even the slightest information on me... Do you even know what a Logia-type Devil Fruit is?"
"By the way, keep going with what you were about to say earlier—I think you were talking about government dogs or something...?"
"Please spare me... w-water...!"
With those words, the man's skin, including his face, dried up and in an instant he became a mummy-like husk.
Crocodile dropped the man's body to the ground, and the sword that had pierced his chest clattered beside him.
From the wound where he had been stabbed, instead of blood, fine sand poured out, carried by the blowing wind and scattering into the air.
"As expected from Crocodile! He took down those pirates in an instant!"
"He's this city's... no, Alabasta's guardian deity!"
"Moving here was the best decision ever!"
While dozens of people at the city gate cheered Crocodile, he opened the lid of the device on his wrist and spoke to the small Transponder Snail hidden inside.
"They weren't great pirates who'd merit you stepping in yourself, though."
"There's no harm in maintaining the image of being one of the Warlords of the Sea and a hero of the Alabasta people until the operation starts, Miss All Sunday."
"The preparations for the operation I ordered are complete, right?"
"The 100 elite agents known as the Billions—just below the company's Frontier Agents—have already arrived, and the rest of the employees assigned by the company's orders are also gathering in Alabasta."
"How did you handle the traitors at Whiskey Peak?"
"We just left them alone. In a situation where we might need every available soldier for the operation, there's no need to expend our forces."
"It's unfortunate, but there's nothing we can do... What about the Official Agents?"
"They'll gather at Rain Base tonight, and I even called Mr. 2 back since he couldn't find Wapol."
"Understood. There's not much time left until the operation day, so act carefully."
"I will."
After the call ended, Miss All Sunday, Robin, collapsed onto the sofa she had been sitting on.
She covered her face with her palms and, through the gaps between her fingers, stared at the light emitted by the chandelier on the ceiling.
"There's not much time left... I just need to hold on a bit longer."
*****
Under a cloudless, clear sky, the scorching heat of the sun poured down on the desert as Luffy and his party walked.
By now, they were dressed like the people of Alabasta, with Vivi leading the way at the front as they made their way across the desert.
"Huff, huff... It's so hot."
"Karoo, are you okay?"
"Little Garden was comparatively better—Luffy, how are you able to endure it so well?"
"For someone like me, I can withstand this level of heat easily... And honestly, when you compare it to here or Little Garden, the heat's about the same."
"I actually disliked it more because it was so humid and made me sweat—how about everyone else?"
"Karoo and I grew up in this country, so we're used to it—Nami and Hancock, how about you two?"
"I can handle it, too, Luffy, but Nami..."
"It's fine, I can still hold out."
"Luffy, I think the Ero-Cook must have secretly drunk water along the way—otherwise why is he enduring it so easily like that?"
Zoro, squinting from the heat, looked at Sanji—who, like Luffy, seemed unaffected by the heat—and said.
"Don't slander me, Marimo! Isn't this proof of the gap between me and you?"
"Sanji's the kind of guy who's got heat resistance to begin with; that's why he can toss ingredients into flaming pans while cooking and not flinch."
"Even in the manga's extra notes, the author said Sanji has a high tolerance for fire, which is why he can use [Diable Jambe]..."
While Luffy was thinking that, Usopp, reaching into his overalls pocket, began pulling out a water barrel larger than a person's torso with the power of his Devil Fruit.
"Ahh~! I can't take it anymore, I'm just going to have one sip!"
"I told you we'd arrive before evening, Usopp! Look over there!"
Vivi pressed down on the water barrel emerging from Usopp's pocket with one hand and pointed ahead with the other.
Everyone focused their gaze forward, and there, as she had said, they saw the outline of a small city.
"The Oasis City, Katorea."
"...and it's the current stronghold of the rebel army."
Luffy, recalling his meeting with Coby and Hibari at a restaurant a few hours ago, replied to Vivi.
*****
"Mmm~ this place is amazing; the spices are unique but sprinkled at just the right level."
"I properly researched and chose this restaurant, Luffy."
"Turning an important meeting spot into a restaurant based on its reputation..."
"I didn't get the chance to greet you properly last time, Luffy-senpai, so let me do it now!"
As Usopp looked on in confusion at Coby's words, Hibari stood and saluted.
"I'm Hibari, at your service! Nice to meet you!"
"Should I call you senpai like Coby does?"
"I know of your exploits from Senpai Coby, and since you're Senpai Coby's idol, it's only right that I call you senpai."
"Do as you like... But I'm not in the Marines anymore, so you don't have to salute."
"Understood!"
Luffy grinned, remembering Bartolomeo calling him 'senpai,' when Zoro spoke up from beside Hibari just after she sat down.
"Now that we've finished eating, tell us, Luffy—how did we end up in this situation?"
"Coby successfully tracked our ship and called the Den Den Mushi on board, Zoro."
"You gave him our ship's number?"
"...he remembered the number I used before."
"Wait—did you use the same number as our shared Den Den Mushi?!"
"Aw, come on...That can't be right, can it, Luffy?"
At the questions from Zoro, Sanji, and Usopp one after another, all eyes turned to Luffy.
"The thing is, guys... when I was in the Marines, I needed lots of numbers for different situations."
"There were so many patterns that coming up with new ones was a headache, so I just used the number I happened to remember—the one I used for one-on-one contact with Coby..."
"Is that even an explanation?!"
Hearing Luffy's words, everyone except Vivi and Hancock lunged at him.
Zoro started by punching him in the side, Sanji grabbed both his shoulders from behind and drove his knee into Luffy's back, Usopp poked him in the eye with a finger, and Nami yanked his cheek hard.
"Aaaah! I'm really sorry~!"
"Using my own phone number as the first one you think of... you deserve every hit."
"Kuwak!"
Hancock, puffing her cheeks, glared at Luffy, while Karoo tickled his foot and Vivi smiled awkwardly with Coby and Hibari, who had met Nami's gaze.
"Hibari, if you have those wanted posters I mentioned..."
"Yes, Senpai Coby, I'll show them right away."
Hibari placed several wanted posters on the table cleared of plates, drawing everyone's attention.
Vivi recognized some of the faces among the posters as Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine, whom they had met at Whiskey Peak.
"These wanted posters are...."
"Wanted notices for all of Baroque Works' Official Agents, excluding Wapol, who has no bounty."
"What?!"
"Discovering the identity of Baroque Works was my main focus after I left the Marines."
Just as everyone reacted in shock, Luffy, looking more scarred than before, continued speaking.
"After meeting Vivi, I got involved in this mess again, and when Coby reached out, instead of hanging up, I chose to send him the evidence I'd gathered after leaving the Marines."
"Thanks to that, I was able to confirm all the information on Baroque Works' Official Agents, whom you'd been tracking since way back."
"I've been truly impressed by the precise information you gathered after you quit the Marines, Luffy-senpai! Even though you said you hated it, it seems you couldn't let go of the navy...!"
"Don't flatter yourself—you're just using me. Don't get the wrong idea."
"Hahaha! I know you're just embarrassed to admit it!"
'After quitting the Marines, I wandered around East Blue capturing pirates, so how would I know the identities of Official Agents who operate only on the Grand Line?'
'Of course it was possible because of my knowledge of the original story, but I still needed to verify aspects that diverged from canon, like Wapol being Mr. 3.'
'So I combined the information from my Marine investigation with canon knowledge to create leads that were 100% probable and 50% confirmed.'
'Coby, still a Marine, did the first round of verification, and I followed up to reach 100% certainty. Those are the wanted posters laid out on the table.'
"Luffy, once this is over, will you return to the Marines...?"
"No, I'm not going back. That wasn't the deal."
"Still, it's surprising that the head of Baroque Works turned out to be Crocodile."
"The reason the Marines aren't stationed in Alabasta right now is that Crocodile offered to take on some of the Marines' duties himself."
"After betraying the World Government by inciting a rebellion in their own allied nation, he planned to take a country already weakened by war...."
"Coby, might we be able to get the Marines' help in Alabasta?"
"Princess, about that..."
"One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea is supposed to be under the World Government, Vivi."
Before Coby could answer, Luffy spoke up.
"Since one of the Warlords of the Sea plotted against an allied kingdom, you'd need more solid evidence than these wanted posters if you're going to ask for help."
"Otherwise, the World Government, responsible for appointing Crocodile as a Warlord, won't even consider investigating him."
"By the time the World Government realizes Crocodile's true intentions, Alabasta will already be his domain."
"Still, it's fortunate we have advance knowledge of the company's main assets."
"If we head to the rebel base in Katorea and persuade them, we can take out the Official Agents first and then deal with Crocodile...."
"If it's Yuba... ah, the rebels have moved their base, Princess. It's now closer here in Katorea."
"That's great news, Coby! If their base is in Katorea, we can arrive even faster...!"
"Wait, hold on... Princess, are you saying you plan to go to the rebel base first instead of Crocodile's Rain Base?"
"Of course. If we don't stop the rebel army, the country's 100,000 citizens will be caught in an all-out war!"
Coby and Hibari looked at each other in dismay as they stared at Luffy.
Luffy met Coby's gaze with a cold expression, and when he looked away, Hibari spoke.
"Princess, have you thought of a method to persuade the rebel army?"
"I am the princess of this country; if I persuade them...."
"From my reconnaissance in Katorea, the situation there looked very different from what you might expect, Princess."
"If we have proper preparations, the mood there is ripe to march on the capital, Alubarna, where King Cobra resides."
"Given the widespread distrust of the royal family among most of the rebel army, I don't think we can be certain you can sway them, Princess."
"This situation can only be resolved by stopping the mastermind Crocodile. Yet you want to go to Katorea, where there's no guarantee of persuasion?"
"If we can't persuade the rebels, there will be an all-out war with the government forces and many people will die; if it weren't for Crocodile's conspiracy, these people wouldn't have reason to fight and kill each other!"
Coby, looking at Vivi and Hibari, spoke with a cool gaze.
"If every member of the rebel army were persuaded by you, Princess, it would be fine, but we can't be certain of that situation."
"Ev-en so, to not even try...!"
"Princess... you really want a path where no one dies?"
"Isn't that obvious? The bad guys are Crocodile and his henchmen!"
"Princess... right now, Alabasta is a battlefield divided between the royal army and the rebel army, each with 100,000 troops."
"In such a situation, to hope for a result where no one dies... do you really think that's possible?"
"Th-that's...!"
'He's got a point. Vivi-chan's plan is based entirely on the assumption that the princess herself will succeed in persuading the rebels.'
'At first I thought he was just like Bartolomeo because he was grinning, but he's someone who can see the heart of the issue properly.'
"Why are you talking to Vivi like that just because you showed up out of nowhere?! What do you know about Vivi to speak like that...!"
"Nami, wait just a moment."
"Hancock!"
As Zoro and Sanji thought this, Nami stood up and shouted, but Hancock raised her arm to block her.
At that moment, Nami was speechless, and in the frozen silence, Vivi stood from her seat.
"What's wrong with thinking that people shouldn't have to die?!"
"...I realized this a long time ago, Princess."
He recalled the time when, except for Luffy and himself, the entire Inspection Unit squad was slaughtered by Kaido and King in the flames.
"No matter how much you struggle... people end up dying."