Regardless of their concerns, action had to wait for morning. While venturing out at night wasn't impossible, the fatigue from the day's voyage, coupled with the poor visibility and their unfamiliarity with the terrain, made a successful search unlikely. They agreed to take turns keeping watch and rest.
Come morning, however, they discovered that the Baroque Works agents, save for Mr. 11, who was still tied to the Going Merry's mast, had vanished without a trace.
"Well, well… Looks like you were abandoned," Zoro remarked.
"If they failed their mission, they knew there would be consequences… They're in the same boat, or rather, were, but with so many of them, they might have tried to escape."
That said, with no ship and surrounded by debris, their escape options were limited to hiding somewhere on the island.
Adding to their unease, another problem had arisen.
"Where's Martin?"
Martin, the boy they had rescued yesterday, who had been sleeping in the men's quarters with Luffy and the others, was gone. While his injuries made it unlikely he could move easily, he might have ventured out, worried about his family. Sanji, the last to leave the room before Luffy, had confirmed the boy's presence, making his disappearance all the more peculiar. The fact that Sanji, who had been on watch during that time, hadn't noticed anything was even stranger.
"What were you even looking at, you idiot cook?" Zoro asked.
"It's odd… I'm certain I was watching the area around the ship…" Sanji was perplexed.
Luffy, with a resigned laugh, decided to search the ruined town. Zoro, prone to getting lost, was left behind to guard the ship.
They split up and Luffy wandered aimlessly through the debris-strewn streets. Though the town was reduced to rubble, a mountain loomed in the distance. Perhaps survivors had sought refuge there.
"Right, let's go!"
Stretching his arm, Luffy grabbed a nearby piece of debris, using the recoil to propel himself towards the mountain. It wasn't a large mountain, so the search shouldn't take long. As he walked, he foraged for edible plants, his cheeks bulging like a squirrel's. While his initial intention had been to search for survivors, the quest for food had become his primary focus.
"Hmm… No one here…"
With the town in ruins, it was uninhabitable unless cleared. Though Luffy hadn't reached this conclusion through logic, the mountain was the most likely place to find survivors. Yet, despite his search, there was no sign of human life. Wildlife, however, was abundant.
Just as he was about to give up and return to town, he stumbled upon a large, yellow duck, big enough to ride.
"Quack?!"
"A duck… I wonder if it's edible?"
"QUACK?!"
Sensing danger, the duck turned and fled.
"Wait, food!"
"QUACK!!!"
Luffy pursued the fleeing duck. Finally, the duck sought refuge behind a woman.
Luffy stared at the woman, the first person he had encountered on the island. She had long, blue hair, and bandages wrapped around her arms and legs. Her complexion was pale, and she clutched the terrified duck protectively, glaring at Luffy.
"Who are you? Why were you chasing Karoo?"
"Oh, I was wondering if he was edible."
"You were going to eat him?!"
The woman's glare intensified.
Luffy swallowed the contents of his mouth and introduced himself.
"I'm Luffy. A pirate."
"A pirate…!"
As expected, his declaration was met with apprehension, the woman instinctively raised her guard – then, a loud rumbling echoed through the air. The woman blushed, embarrassed by her growling stomach, while Luffy, after a moment of confusion, burst into laughter.
"Ahahahaha!!! What, are you hungry?"
"Shut up! My ship was sunk, I have no survival skills, and I haven't eaten anything decent in days!"
While a nearby spring provided water, she had no experience with survival, subsisting on whatever edible plants she could find. While wild animals were present, she couldn't rely on Karoo, the duck, for hunting. She herself had little hunting experience, having been chased by boars and tigers more often than she had chased them.
"Tough luck," Luffy remarked nonchalantly.
"Don't act like it's not your problem…!"
"Well, whatever. I'm looking for people too. I just entered the Grand Line, and I need someone to ask about things."
Though primarily Nami's suggestion, Luffy had no objections. The photograph he had been shown was forgotten. He simply needed to bring back someone, anyone.
"What's your name?"
"…Vivi."
"You're hungry, right? Wait here."
Descending the mountain would require energy. Luffy foraged for nearby plants and mushrooms and returned with a handful.
"Here, eat this."
Vivi accepted the offering while murmuring her thanks.
"Th-thank you…"
"Don't mention it."
"By the way, this mushroom has a strange pattern… Are you sure it's safe?"
"Yeah, it's a Laughshroom."
"It's a poisonous mushroom, you idiot!!"
Vivi threw the mushroom to the ground, discarding the others as well. They were far too dangerous to eat. She was appalled that Luffy had offered them so casually, but her hunger and anger made her legs weak. She clung to Karoo, her knees buckling as she clutched her head.
"I… I have to go back…!"
"You want to go home?"
"Yes. You wouldn't understand, but I have a reason to return."
"I see. Want a ride?"
"You… you're a pirate, right? Why would you…"
"It's on the way."
While his ultimate destination was Laugh Tale, he wasn't particularly concerned about the route. If he didn't like a particular island, he could simply sail around it. A slight detour was no problem for Luffy. His crewmates had their own objectives, but none involved a specific island.
Vivi, however, was hesitant to trust a pirate. But with no ship and facing the prospect of starvation, she decided to gamble.
"Alright, I'll accept your offer."
"Sure, leave it to me!"
Then, as he shook Vivi's hand, Luffy asked, "Which way is the town?"
"…."
Perhaps she had chosen the wrong person to rely on. Vivi thought this as she watched Luffy with a perplexed expression on his face.
***
By the time they returned to town, it was past noon. While riding Karoo, Vivi guided Luffy to the edge of town, while Luffy followed the aroma of Sanji's cooking back to the harbor. The rest of the crew had already returned and were preparing lunch outside the ship.
"Oh, you're back."
"You were late, Luffy. We were wondering what happened to you since you didn't come back for lunch."
"Well, a lot of things…"
"By the way, who's this lovely lady…? Wait, is that Princess Nefertari Vivi?!"
"Uh, yes… but how do you know my name?"
"He told me."
As Sanji excitedly spun around, Usopp pointed at Mr. 11, who was still tied to the Going Merry's mast. Vivi, seeing the Baroque Works agent, instinctively raised her guard, but Mr. 11, oblivious, was fast asleep.
"How did you find the princess, Luffy?"
"She was on the mountain."
"Surviving out there, huh? Impressive."
"I almost starved to death…"
"Sanji! I want lunch!"
"Just a minute."
Sanji, having been part of the search party, hadn't eaten either. Zoro and Nami were sipping soup, while Luffy, chanting "meat, meat, meat," awaited Sanji's preparations. Vivi, feeling slightly awkward, sat down and took a sip of the soup.
"…Delicious."
"Glad you like it. There's more, so eat as much as you want."
"Sanji, more!"
"Show some restraint!"
Sanji admonished Luffy, who, unfazed, continued to gulp down the soup. Vivi, who hadn't eaten properly in days, savored the warm soup while looking to the dish Sanji was finishing. Sprinkled spices just before serving. She eagerly devoured the food. Karoo also ate, making up for the past few days of meager meals.
Once they had finished and were relaxing, the search party, excluding Luffy and Zoro, reported their findings.
"I didn't find anyone."
"Me neither."
"Me neither. Are there really any survivors in this town?"
Sanji, Usopp, and Nami shrugged, their search having yielded no results. Even the Millions, who had supposedly pursued Vivi, were nowhere to be found. Though they might be hiding, there weren't many places to conceal themselves in the ruined town.
Vivi, glancing at Luffy, who was sprawled out after overeating, turned to Sanji with a question.
"Speaking of which, Luffy said he was looking for people too."
"Yeah, we need to store the Log Pose's record for this island. Though I'm not sure if Luffy understands that."
"So, you don't know how many days you need to stay."
"That's right. It would be easier to plan our voyage if we knew roughly how long we needed to stay on each island."
"But what about Martin? I feel bad leaving a child behind like this."
"Martin?"
Vivi, unfamiliar with the name, tilted her head. Usopp, noticing her confusion, quickly explained.
"He's a child we found on the island yesterday. He was buried under the rubble, and Luffy found him by chance… but he disappeared this morning."
"You… found him yesterday? A child?"
"Uh, yeah…"
Usopp's voice faltered under Vivi's intense gaze. She pondered his words. Zoro, noticing this, spoke up.
"Is something wrong?"
A person could survive for a day or two under rubble.
However…
"I arrived on this island three days ago. And the town was already like this then."
The Baroque Works agents had arrived a day before Luffy and his crew. Since the town was already in ruins when they arrived, everyone assumed the pirates had attacked a day or two before.
But Vivi had arrived before Baroque Works, and the town was already destroyed. This meant Martin had been trapped under the rubble for longer than they thought.
While a healthy person could survive for a few weeks on water alone, it was unlikely a child, injured and trapped under rubble, could survive for so long without food. Moreover, finding water would be difficult without rain, and according to Vivi, it hadn't rained in several days.
Questions piled upon questions.
The boy who disappeared without a trace.
The missing Millions.
The ships sunk upon arrival.
The vanished townspeople.
"We thought this town was destroyed by pirates… but it seems there's more to it than that."
Perhaps they should leave the island before things got worse. Fortunately, Vivi still had her Log Pose, which hadn't been lost with her ship. Having been on the island longer than Luffy and his crew, the record was already stored.
Zoro suggested they leave before any further trouble arose, and everyone, except Luffy, agreed.
"Aw, I wanted to explore…"
"Don't be stupid! We could lose our ship too! Then we'd be stuck here!"
Usopp's tearful protests finally convinced Luffy, who reluctantly agreed to leave.
They tossed Mr. 11 off the ship and prepared to depart.
"So, our ultimate destination is the Alabasta Kingdom, right?"
"Yes. But we can't reach Alabasta on this route. We need to find an Eternal Pose somewhere…"
"An Eternal Pose?"
It was a type of Log Pose that, once set, permanently pointed towards a specific island. Igaram, Vivi's bodyguard, had possessed the Eternal Pose for Alabasta, but they had departed without it.
"I don't know the route from this island either. We'll have to see where we end up."
They needed to find an Eternal Pose for Alabasta somewhere along the way and change course. Nami, understanding this, nodded, formulating a plan for their voyage. They needed to leave this island, with its unseen dangers, as soon as possible, and acquire supplies and information on the next island.
They began loading the dishes and other items back onto the ship. Just as they were finishing, Usopp noticed something strange.
"…Hey, what's that?"
"What's what? What are you…"
Zoro followed Usopp's gaze. A cloud of dust was rising in the distance, near the mountain. Though initially unclear, as it drew closer, its true nature became apparent.
A stampede of wild animals.
Dogs, cats, elephants, giraffes, lions, tigers… a diverse array of creatures, all racing towards them. It was a bizarre, unsettling sight.
"What the…?!"
"Hurry! We have to get the ship out of here!"
They frantically finished their preparations. Just as the animals reached the harbor, they were ready to depart.
–However, fate had other plans.
"Are you leaving already? Why not stay a little longer? I went through all the trouble of preparing a welcoming party, so there's no need to rush."
Her tight suit and pink hair were striking. The woman sat casually on the edge of their ship as she watched them with a cruel smile.