As the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the desert in hues of deep amber and violet, the crew began settling into their own routines—some resting, others lost in thought. The soft crackle of the desert wind whispered through the quiet, broken only by the steady *thud* of a shovel meeting sand.
Zino stood near the entrance of the ice dome, arms crossed as he watched old Toh Toh continue his tireless digging.
After a moment, Zino pushed off the wall. "Let's help the old man dig for water."
Ussop, who was polishing his slingshot nearby, blinked. "Eh? But don't we already have water in your weird storage?"
Zino gave a faint smile. "We do. But this isn't about thirst. It's more satisfying to lend the old man a hand. It's about the effort—the spirit."
Without waiting for further debate, Zino raised a hand, and with a glimmer of frost, several ice shovels formed out of the air, solid and cool to the touch. He handed them out one by one.
"These'll last an hour, maybe two. Whether we strike water or not... that's up to fate."
He strode off a short distance from Toh Toh and stabbed the ice shovel into the sand, beginning to dig with strong, steady strokes.
Zoro grabbed his own and rolled his shoulder. "Tch. I'll hit water before this thing melts."
Sanji scoffed. "Please. I'll dig up a spring in under an hour."
Gin calmly picked his shovel. "I say thirty minutes, tops."
The three of them locked eyes, sparks flying. A familiar air of competition crackled between them.
Alvida, took her own ice shovel, let out a loud snort. "Men and their egos."
Then, without warning, she stormed forward and *slammed* her shovel into the sand with such force that the ground shook slightly.
"Outta the way, amateurs!"
The trio jumped back, startled, as she carved a trench like a bulldozer.
Zoro, recovering quickly, smirked. "She's serious, huh."
"Fine then," Sanji muttered, already moving.
"Let's see who finds water first," Gin added, adjusting his gloves.
With one last competitive glance, the three each picked their own digging site, spaced a few meters apart.
On the other side of the camp, Ussop groaned loudly as he half-heartedly jabbed his shovel into the sand.
"This is ridiculous," he muttered. "Why are we digging when we already have water? This is a desert, not a sandbox!"
Despite the complaints, he kept digging—albeit at a slower, dramatically exhausted pace.
Nearby, Stev adjusted his goggles, a glint of excitement in his eyes. "Manual labor, huh…?" he mused. "Nah. I've got just the thing."
Hibari and Binko, who had just started picking their shovel, noticed Stev fiddling with a black marble-shaped device in his hand.
"Hey, Stev. Don't," Hibari warned.
"Stop!" Binko added sharply.
But it was too late.
"Fire in the hole!" Stev shouted, hurling the marble.
BOOM!
The ground shook as the device exploded, sending a column of sand blasting into the air. A shockwave of dust swept across the area.
Ussop shrieked as a wave of sand buried him waist-deep. "I knew this would happen!"
Nearby, Alvida's well-dug trench was completely refilled. She paused mid-dig, eye twitching, then slowly turned toward Stev with murder in her eyes.
"…Oops?" Stev laughed nervously.
"YOU LITTLE—!"
Before he could run, Alvida and Ussop both lunged at him.
A moment later, Stev was groaning on the ground, several cartoonish bumps swelling on his head as he lay in defeat. Hibari stood nearby, arms crossed, looking unimpressed.
"Next time, think before you throw one of your toys," Hibari said sharply. "And ask for permission!"
"Yeah," Binko added. "Or next time, you'll be the one getting buried."
"I got it, I got it…" Stev winced, rubbing his head.
Once the chaos died down, Hibari, Binko, and Kruz each grabbed their own shovels and joined the digging effort properly. The energy shifted back to focused work, as the sun fully slipped beneath the horizon, leaving the desert bathed in a soft indigo twilight.
Chloris and Moris, who had been watching curiously from the side, exchanged glances.
"Let's help too," Chloris said.
The two dryads took out small pouches of seeds they had collected earlier. With practiced grace, they scattered them into the sand and kneeled beside them. Closing their eyes, they placed their palms gently on the earth.
A faint green glow surrounded their hands as they activated their dryad ability. The seeds sprouted rapidly, their roots burrowing deep beneath the surface.
"Let's send the roots to search underground," Moris said softly. "If there's water anywhere nearby, they'll find it."
As tiny vines and roots spread like a web beneath the sand, the rest of the crew continued their digging with renewed determination.
What had started as a simple gesture of goodwill now turned into a shared mission—one filled with effort, teamwork, chaos… and maybe, just maybe, a little hope for water beneath the desert sands.
...
Night fell.
The desert had cooled, stars scattered across the dark sky like scattered gemstones. After hours of digging and mishaps, the crew finally decided to call it a day. Though not everyone found water, the effort had brought them closer together—and covered in sweat and sand.
In the end, the results weren't too bad.
Chloris and Moris were the first to succeed. With their dryad abilities, they traced the underground flow using plant roots, drawing water up little by little. Small pools began forming at the surface as vines coiled and twisted like living ropes.
Next came Zino. His sensitivity to cold allowed him to detect subtle changes in underground temperature. With steady digging, he struck a damp patch and drew water from it.
Hibari, Binko, and Kruz, who had formed a tag team, also succeeded. Their combined effort, coordination, and quiet persistence paid off as they celebrated around a shallow well they had dug together.
The rest… well, their results were less glamorous.
Zoro claimed the sand was too loose.
Sanji blamed Stev's earlier explosion for messing up the soil density.
Ussop blamed everything except himself.
And speaking of Stev—he was currently tied up with rope, seated near the igloo wall like a prisoner of war. After his *second* unauthorized "experiment" caused another mini-blast and buried half the camp in sand again, the crew had reached a unanimous decision.
No more bombs.
Inside the large igloo Zino had created, a huge circular table made of crystal-clear ice gleamed under the soft light of floating lamps. Plates of hot food were spread across the table, and everyone—sweaty, tired, but satisfied—was seated, enjoying their reward.
Sanji had pulled out all the stops tonight.
"Eat up, everyone," he said, proudly placing another steaming dish in front of the group. "You've earned it."
Toh Toh, the old man who had been digging alone for years, sat at the table with them—eyes wide, overwhelmed by the luxurious feast in front of him. He took a bite, then another… and paused, a few tears glistening at the corner of his eyes.
"This is… incredible," he whispered.
"Hehehe, eat more, old man," Zino chuckled, patting him on the back.
"We've got enough Sea King meat to last a week," Sanji said, flipping a pan. "You can eat until your belly bursts."
"Sea King?" Toh Toh blinked in surprise. "You mean… the real thing?"
"Oh yeah," Stev piped up from where he was tied, voice muffled with food, in front of him was a smaller table, full of dishes. "It swallowed us whole! But then the Captain here—" he nodded toward Zino, "—killed it from the inside! Now we're dining on revenge!"
"Goodness…" Toh Toh turned to Zino, jaw dropping.
Zino shrugged coolly. "It had it coming. Shouldn't have swallowed us in the first place."
"It swallowed *you* because you were being smug," Mikita muttered, sipping soup.
That broke the tension—everyone burst into laughter.
The night went on with stories, jokes, and clattering utensils. The air, though cool, was warm with laughter and full bellies. For a while, even in the middle of a desert full of chaos and rebellion, the Orca crew found peace.
...
Early Morning.
The desert air was still cool as the sun began to peek over the horizon, casting a soft golden hue across the sand dunes.
Zino was the first to rise. Stepping out of the igloo, he stretched his limbs, taking a breath of the crisp air before returning inside to wake the others.
"Up. Time to move," he said, nudging each crew member with the back of his hand.
Ussop groaned, buried beneath a thick blanket of ice-cooling cloth. "Five more minutes… I was dreaming I was the Pirate King…"
"You can keep dreaming while walking," Zino replied bluntly.
One by one, the Orcas began to stir, groggy but cooperative. Sanji lit a small flame to heat some tea, while others packed up the supplies and folded up the cooling dome. Toh Toh was already up, continuing his digging as if the night's rest had been nothing more than a blink.
After breakfast, Zino turned his attention to Vivi, who was standing silently, staring toward the west where the sun had begun its climb.
"So," Zino asked, "what's your plan?"
Vivi turned toward him, worry in her eyes. "I need to head back to Nanohana. That's where the rebels are headed. If I can just reach Koza… maybe I can still stop this."
Zino nodded slightly. "Makes sense. But before we move, want to hear my plan?"
Vivi tilted her head. "What do you have in mind?"
Zino turned to face the rest of the crew, drawing their attention. "I want us to split up into smaller groups."
Alvida crossed her arms. "Split up? Why? We're stronger together."
"Normally, yes," Zino said, "but this isn't just about strength. It's about strategy."
He looked back at Vivi. "You said Crocodile has been officially based in Alabasta for four years, right?"
Vivi nodded. "He came under the guise of protecting the country from pirates."
"And Baroque Works?" Zino pressed.
Her brow furrowed. "They were already active here when I was a child… whispering ideas into the ears of the people, fueling distrust."
Zino's eyes sharpened. "Exactly. That means Crocodile's infiltration didn't start when he arrived as a Shichibukai—it started long before that. Years of silent manipulation. He planted seeds of rebellion, waited for chaos to grow… and now, he's harvesting the result."
Silence fell over the group.
Zino continued, his voice firm, "Does that sound like a man who's just after the throne? No. Crocodile's plans run deeper than we realize. The rebellion is just the surface."
"That bastard…" Sanji muttered, clenching his fists.
"He is… a genius," Stev added, adjusting his goggles.
Ussop gave him a sidelong glance. "He's even more of a genius than you."
"Oi," Stev frowned, puffing his cheeks. "That guy is a genius in a bad way. I'm a genius inventor. Huge difference."
"That's the same," Alvida said flatly, crossing her arms. "Don't forget what you did yesterday." Her sharp gaze landed on him.
Stev shrunk slightly, pulling his scarf up to his nose. "That… that was just a minor miscalculation…"
Everyone gave him a look.
Zino cut through the moment with a calm voice. "Anyway. I don't know the full extent of Crocodile's goal. But I have some guesses. That's why I want us to form separate groups, to move faster and cover more ground."
The air grew still as the others waited for more.
"I've thought about this all night," Zino said. "We can't beat Crocodile just by brute force or chasing after him blindly. He's likely got layers to his plan—cover operations, distractions, even bait. We need to outmaneuver him."
He walked to the center of the gathering and pointed at a rough map Vivi had drawn yesterday on a paper.
"There are three areas we need eyes on. Nanohana, where the rebel army is gathering. Rainbase, Crocodile's stronghold. And finally, the capital, Alubarna, just in case the chaos reaches the king."