The climate of the Grand Line was a fickle mistress. Just days ago, the Going Merry had been encased in ice, sailing beneath the pink snow of Drum Island. Now, the air shimmered with heat. The sky was a hard, relentless enamel of blue, and the sun beat down like a physical weight.
They were in the Sandora River climate zone. Alabasta was near.
CLANG-CLANG!
The ship's bell rang twice. A clear, happy sound resonating from the mast.
"Land ho!" Merry's voice chirped through the ship's speakers, sounding delighted. "Alabasta is on the horizon! I detect sand! Lots and lots of sand!"
The crew poured out onto the deck. They had shed their winter coats for lighter, desert-appropriate wear (or in Luffy's case, just his vest and shorts).
"Finally!" Vivi cried, gripping the railing. Her knuckles were white. "We're here. My home."
"It's hot!" Chopper panted, his heavy fur coat already becoming a liability. He flopped onto the deck in his Brain Point form. "I'm melting... reindeer aren't made for ovens..."
"Hang in there, Chopper," Sanji said, handing him a glass of cold lemonade. "We'll get you some lighter clothes in the city."
Suddenly, the water off the starboard bow erupted.
SPLAAAASH!
A massive creature breached the surface. It was huge, covered in sea-green scales, but its head... its head was unmistakably feline. It had whiskers, pointed ears, and a cute, cat-like nose.
It was a Sea Cat.
The reaction of the "Monster Trio" was instantaneous and terrifyingly synchronized.
"FOOD!" Luffy roared, drool snapping from his mouth.
"PREY!" Zoro grunted, drawing Yubashiri halfway.
"INGREDIENTS!" Sanji yelled, his eyes locking onto the tenderloin sections.
"It looks tasty!" Luffy yelled. "Sanji! Prepare the grill!"
"I'll slice it into sashimi," Zoro volunteered.
"I'll make a desert-style curry!" Sanji declared.
They lunged. Three monsters of destruction descending upon the local wildlife.
WHAP-WHAP-WHAP!
A blur of blue and gold motion intercepted them.
Vivi appeared in front of them, moving faster than the eye could follow—her new Cheetah DNA kicking in with explosive speed. She wielded a broomstick she had grabbed from the deck cleaning supplies.
She struck them. Not with strength, but with precision and supersonic speed.
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji were knocked backward, three distinct red bumps rising on their heads.
"NO!" Vivi screamed, her eyes blazing. "YOU CANNOT EAT IT!"
"Why?!" Luffy whined, rubbing his head. "It's a giant cat-fish! It's meat!"
"It is a Sea Cat!" Vivi explained, pointing at the creature which was now looking at them with mild confusion. "In Alabasta, they are sacred! They are considered the guardians of the river! If you eat one, the entire country will turn against us before we even dock! Do you want to be cursed?!"
"Cursed?" Usopp shivered. "No thank you! Let the cat go! Shoo, kitty!"
The Sea Cat, realizing it wasn't going to be lunch, gave a haughty sniff and dove back underwater.
"My curry..." Sanji wept.
"My sashmi..." Zoro grumbled.
"MY MEAT!" Luffy wailed.
"Focus!" Nami commanded. "Usopp! Get to the crow's nest! We need intel on the harbor!"
"Aye aye!" Usopp shouted. He didn't climb the ladder. He simply leaped, his new leg muscles propelling him halfway up the mast, where he scrambled the rest of the way with gecko-like adhesion.
Inside the crow's nest, Usopp adjusted his goggles.
"Alright," he whispered. "Let's see what these new eyes can do."
He focused. He tapped into the Golden Eagle DNA coursing through his veins. His pupils contracted. The world zoomed in.
The blur of the horizon sharpened. He could see the coastline. He could see the city of Nanohana. He could see the individual grains of sand on the dunes.
He swept his gaze to the harbor.
He saw merchant ships. He saw fishing boats.
And then, he saw the Jolly Rogers.
Dozens of them. The mark of the Billions—the lower-ranking agents of Baroque Works. Their ships lined the docks like a blockade.
"Bad news!" Usopp called down. "Baroque Works is here! There's a whole fleet of Billions!"
"Expected," Ben said calmly from the deck. "What else?"
Usopp squinted harder. He looked past the pirate ships. He saw a sleek, white vessel with blue seagull markings.
His blood ran cold.
"MARINES!" Usopp shrieked. "A Marine Battleship!"
"If we dock there, we're walking into a war," Nami said, biting her thumb. "Marines on one side, Baroque Works on the other. We can't fight them now and alert the enemy."
"We won't have to," Ben said.
He walked to the figurehead. He placed his hand on Merry's head.
"Merry," he said softly. "Evasive Maneuvers. Protocol: Ghost Ship."
"Aye aye, Ben!" Merry's voice chimed. "Deploying Mist!"
Ben raised his wand. He didn't aim at the enemy; he aimed at the Merry herself.
"Disillusionment Maxima."
A shimmer passed over the ship. To anyone looking from the harbor, the Going Merry simply... faded. She didn't become invisible, but she became uninteresting. She became a part of the background scenery, a trick of the light on the water. A Notice-Me-Not Charm layered with Merry's own exhaust mist.
"Steer us to the western cape," Ben commanded. "There's a rocky outcrop away from the main docks. We slip in the back door."
The ship banked silently, drifting away from the Marine blockade like a shadow, unnoticed by the hundreds of eyes scanning the horizon.
---
The Going Merry docked silently in a secluded cove hidden by massive sandstone formations. The heat was immediate and oppressive, a dry furnace blast that made the air shimmer.
The crew gathered on the deck.
Nami, now fully recovered and dressed in a light, dancer-like outfit suited for the desert, clapped her hands.
"Alright, listen up! We are in enemy territory. The Marines are here. Baroque Works is here. We are undercover. That means NO TROUBLE."
She pointed a finger at Luffy.
"Especially you. No fighting. No eating weird things. No announcing you're the Pirate King. We get supplies, we get information, and we head to the desert. Got it?"
Luffy stood there, vibrating. His eyes were locked on the city in the distance. He could smell it. The spices. The roasting meat.
"Got it," Luffy said. He isn't paying attention to what Nami is saying.
"Good. Now, the plan is—"
ZOOOM.
A cloud of dust exploded on the deck.
Nami blinked.
Luffy was gone.
There was a cartoonish outline of him left in the air where he had been standing a millisecond ago.
Far, far in the distance, a trail of dust was already tearing across the desert toward the city.
"MEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAT!" Luffy's voice echoed, Doppler-shifting away.
Nami stood frozen, her finger still pointing at empty space.
A vein throbbed on her forehead.
"H-HE'S GONE!" she shrieked. "I DIDN'T EVEN FINISH THE SENTENCE! HE'S SO FAST NOW! WHY DID WE MAKE HIM FASTER?!"
Ben sighed, dusting sand off his coat. "Well... the one most likely to cause a commotion has already left. That simplifies things, in a way."
"Simplifies?!" Usopp yelled. "He's going to lead marines right to us!"
"Fate," Zoro grunted, jumping off the ship. "Can't fight it."
Ben reached into his pocket. He pulled out a handful of small, silver ear-pieces.
"Here," he said, tossing them to the crew. "Comms. They connect directly to Merry. We can talk to each other and to the ship from anywhere on the island."
Everyone put them in.
"Testing! Can everyone hear me?" Merry's voice rang clearly in their ears.
"Loud and clear, Merry," Sanji said.
"Assignments," Nami said, rubbing her temples. "Dorry, Brogy. You stay here and guard the ship."
"GABABABA! Understood!" Brogy said, sitting down with his axe. "We will guard the little sheep!"
"Robin," Ben added. "You're a high-profile target. If Crocodile knows you're here, he'll accelerate his plans. Stay on the ship. Read a book. Keep the Giants company."
Robin nodded, opening her book. "A quiet afternoon. Sounds lovely."
"The rest of us," Ben said, "split up. We need supplies for the desert crossing. Water, food, clothes."
"I'll handle the clothes!" Sanji volunteered instantly, his eyes scanning Vivi's desert outfit. "I need to ensure the ladies have the most fashionable, breathable, and beautiful desert wear! Chopper, you're with me! You have a good eye for fur!"
"I do?" Chopper asked, excited. "Okay!"
"Zoro..." Nami looked at the swordsman. "Just... try not to get lost. Stay near the ship."
"I'm going for a walk," Zoro said, immediately walking in the wrong direction toward the endless dunes. "I see a town over there." (There was no town over there).
"Someone grab him," Nami ordered. Usopp sighed and ran after Zoro.
"I'll gather intel," Ben said. "I have a... meeting."
"A meeting?" Vivi asked. "With who?"
"A friend," Ben smiled. "Someone who can help us. I'll meet you all back here in an hour."
With the plan (sort of) set, the crew dispersed into the scorching heat of Alabasta.
---
The city of Nanohana was bustling. The streets were filled with merchants selling spices, carpets, and perfumes. But beneath the vibrant surface, there was a tension. People looked tired. Water barrels were guarded. The joy of the city felt brittle, ready to crack.
Ben moved through the crowd, his black coat blending into the shadows of the alleys. He didn't need to buy clothes; he could transfigure his outfit at will.
Ben turned down a narrow, winding side street. He moved away from the market, away from the Marines patrolling the main square. He headed toward the old, abandoned quarter of the city—buildings half-buried in sand, forgotten by the bustle of commerce. This was the place which dragon told the meeting would take place.
He stopped in front of a decrepit, sandstone building. The door hung off its hinges.
Ben stepped inside.
The room was cool and dim, sheltered from the relentless sun. Dust motes danced in the shafts of light coming through the cracked ceiling.
Sitting on a crate in the corner was a young man with blond, wavy hair. He wore a blue noble's coat, a cravat, and a top hat with goggles. He held a pipe—not for smoking, but as a weapon—loosely in his hand. He radiated a calm, confident power.
Next to him, leaning against the wall, was a woman with short orange hair and a red cap. She looked impatient, checking a pocket watch.
"You're late," the woman said, though she smiled.
"A wizard is never late, nor is he early; he arrives precisely when he means to," Ben replied, stepping into the light.
The blond man stood up. He smiled—a smile that was hauntingly similar to Luffy's, yet tempered with a maturity and intelligence the rubber captain lacked. A scar marred his left eye, a reminder of a past he had forgotten and then remembered.
Sabo. Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army.
And Koala. Fishman Karate Master.
---
While Ben was engaging in high-level geopolitical conspiracy, Luffy was engaged in a much more immediate struggle: finding lunch.
He tore through the streets of Nanohana like a sandstorm. And was now on the outskirts of the port city.
"MEAT!" he yelled,. "WHERE IS THE FOOD?!"
He skidded to a halt near a small house. Then he went towards the house and sees sacks of green powder.
Luffy tasted the green powder and spat it. "It tastes weird." then he throws.
Then he throws the remaining powder in the fire nearby, and then from the smoke rain clouds starts gathering and it rains.
A man hurriedly came out and froze, seeing what Luffy did. "You... you know what this is?" and starts scolding Luffy.
Luffy, fed up with the scolding, beats the man.
"Oh! You certainly are strong," the man says with bruises on his face.
"No one can beat me," Luffy says.
"Yeah, I would think not. Not with your strength! My apologies!"
"No, no! I apologize for burning your important stuff!"
"Oh, uhh, no, let's just... call it a mutual apology! In any case please keep it a secret!"
"Hey, what was that powder?"
"Y-You don't know?"
"Nope! It was yucky." Luffy sticking his tounge out.
The man sighed. "That stuff is Dance Powder. It calls the rain. But it steals rain from the neighboring villages. It's illegal. The King used to use it... that's why there's a drought."
The man launched into a tragic, detailed explanation of the civil war, the framing of King Cobra, the environmental disaster caused by the powder, and the suffering of the people. It was a heartfelt, crucial piece of exposition that explained the entire political conflict of the Alabasta Arc.
Luffy listened. He nodded. His face was serious.
The man finished. "So you see... the country is dying."
Luffy blinked.
"So..." Luffy said slowly.
"Yes?" The man asked, hoping he had reached the boy's conscience.
"Where is the restaurant?"
The man fell over.
"DID YOU LISTEN to A WORD I SAID?!"
"I'm hungry!" Luffy complained. "Rain powder is boring! I can't eat powder! I want meat! Big meat! With the bone in it!"
He sniffed the air.
Suddenly, his nose twitched. A scent cut through the dry air. Spices. Smoke. Roasting lamb.
"FOUND IT!"
Luffy ignored the Dance Powder, the man, and the tragic backstory of the nation. He spun on his heel and launched himself back into the street.
"MEEEEEEEAAAAT!"