"Alubarna..."
In a dimly lit room, Sir Crocodile sat alone on a sofa, staring at the Den Den Mushi in front of him, lost in thought.
Princess Vivi, who knew his true identity, was being protected by the Straw Hat crew. Mr. 2's assassination attempt had failed, and the group was likely about to arrive in Alabasta.
Meanwhile, the rebel leader, Koza, had been hijacked by Allen's crew...
He could understand a conflict breaking out over stolen munitions, but their current march toward the royal capital was baffling, especially right before the war was about to erupt.
Crocodile frowned, a strong sense of foreboding rising in his chest.
He couldn't figure out what in the royal capital was attracting Allen's crew, but he knew that if Koza and Nefertari Cobra were allowed to meet, the impending war would very likely be quelled.
Thinking of this, Crocodile glanced at a map, then spoke into the Den Den Mushi in a deep voice.
"Head to Alubarna immediately and lie in wait near the royal palace. The moment you spot them approaching the palace, wipe them out."
"Understood."
Mr. 1's response came through the receiver.
After hanging up, Crocodile dialed another number. The Den Den Mushi's eyes snapped open, revealing heavy makeup and long eyelashes.
"Where are you right now, Mr. 2?"
"Moshi moshi! I've already landed in Alabasta, little Zero!"
"I've received your orders! I'm currently preparing to disguise myself as Koza and head to the rebel base!"
As he spoke, the Den Den Mushi blinked its long eyelashes and winked.
A vein throbbed on Crocodile's forehead. His expression darkened as he forcibly suppressed his irritation and said grimly, "There's been a change of plans. I need you to go to the royal capital..."
...
Meanwhile.
The *Freewill* sailed slowly along the coastline. On the bow deck.
"I really don't understand why you agreed to work with her. No matter how you look at it, that woman just wants to use you to deal with Crocodile," Nami said, her arms crossed in clear dissatisfaction.
Lounging in a deck chair, Allen smiled dismissively. "I was going to go after Crocodile whether we teamed up or not. Since that's the case, having an extra layer of insurance right by his side isn't a bad thing."
"That might be true, but the thought of you being used by her just pisses me off," Nami grumbled, turning her head away.
Allen looked at her, slightly puzzled. "Is that so? I only knew you were stingy with money, but I didn't expect you to be just as stingy with people."
"Ah, I get it now."
Realizing something, Allen stroked his chin and said with a completely straight face, "This must be what jealousy looks like."
"It is not!" Nami glared at him fiercely.
Allen held up an index finger and chuckled. "Now you're just trying to cover it up."
"And what about now?" Nami asked, a vein popping on her forehead. She raised a fist, giving him a fake, tight-lipped smile.
Allen's mouth twitched. "I guess this is flying into a rage out of humiliation."
Nami rolled her eyes at him, lowered her fist, and let out a helpless sigh.
"Anyway, that woman is far from simple. That's my sixth sense as a woman talking. I highly advise you to be careful."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Allen waved his hand dismissively.
...
By the afternoon, the *Freewill* finally arrived at Alabasta's eastern port. It was a nearly abandoned port city, far more desolate than Nanohana.
They searched the coastal area and eventually found a secluded, hidden spot to dock the ship.
Leaving a few members behind to guard the vessel, the rest headed into town to purchase supplies and mounts for crossing the desert.
Soon, the procession of around a hundred people marched grandly into the vast, boundless yellow desert.
The sun was still beating down harshly. The scorching rays slanted across the wasteland, radiating waves of intense heat.
"It's so hot..."
"So thirsty... I really want some water..."
The Nyaban Brothers slumped weakly against the camel humps, their tongues hanging out as they looked completely sickly.
Due to the severe drought, they hadn't been able to buy much fresh water in town—not even by offering extra money.
Even with the reserves brought from the ship, their drinking water was in incredibly short supply. Allen had to leave a third of his crew on the ship just to ensure the rest had enough water to cross the desert to Alubarna.
According to Robin, Crocodile's original plan was set to execute at seven o'clock in the morning, three days from now.
However, because Koza had been taken away, Crocodile feared the rebel army would slip out of his control. Thus, he planned to have Mr. 2, who possessed the Clone-Clone Fruit, disguise himself as Koza to take over the rebels.
But the Clone-Clone Fruit could only replicate a person's physical appearance and voice; it couldn't copy their behavioral habits or mannerisms. Maintaining the disguise for a long period was practically impossible.
To avoid any unexpected mishaps, Crocodile decided to move the operation up to noon tomorrow. Before then, he intended to silence Koza and eliminate Allen's group for interfering with his plans.
Honestly, Allen hadn't expected Crocodile to be so decisive, even risking a premature launch of his operation. It clearly showed just how desperate the man was to seize Alabasta.
But it made sense. After all, he had been laying the groundwork smoothly for years. Now, right as he was about to reel in the net, a random group suddenly popped up to disrupt his plans. If Crocodile didn't act immediately, he probably wouldn't even be able to sleep at night.
Allen turned his head to look to the side.
Koza and Pell were each riding a camel, followed by a third camel carrying Chaka, who was wrapped head to toe in bandages.
Gin had been absolutely ruthless. Even after the Isshi-20 had spent half the day treating him, Chaka still hadn't fully recovered.
"Once we reach Alubarna, you two take Koza to the royal palace. The Baroque Works agents will probably be waiting there in advance, but you won't need to worry about them," Allen said to Pell.
Pell stared at him, falling silent for a moment before replying, "I understand..."
He pursed his lips as if wanting to say more, but ultimately held his tongue.
That morning, after failing the king's orders to rescue Koza and being taken captive, he had learned the entire truth from the rebel leader.
The mastermind manipulating the civil war from the shadows was none other than Sir Crocodile, the man revered by countless citizens as a hero. When Pell first heard the news, he could hardly believe his ears.
But upon carefully scrutinizing all the strange occurrences in Alabasta over the years, everything perfectly aligned with the details they had been told.
However, all of this could only prove the crimes of Baroque Works; it couldn't be traced directly back to Crocodile.
Even with the truth laid bare, they still lacked sufficient evidence to prove that Mr. 0 was Crocodile. This meant they couldn't request the Marines' power to arrest him.
Meanwhile, Crocodile possessed the legal status of a Warlord of the Sea. Once the nation's regime collapsed, he would step forward to quell the war, ultimately being elected as the new king by the deceived populace.
The mere thought of it brought a suffocating sense of helpless despair.
At this point, Pell finally understood the meaning behind that woman's words.
To shatter Crocodile's conspiracy, they had no choice but to rely on the hands of pirates—people powerful enough to ignore all the rules.
And right now, the only option available to them was Allen's crew standing right in front of them.
...The condition was 10 billion Berries.
Pell clenched his jaw tightly. Just thinking about the price Allen had demanded made his heart ache as if it were being sliced by a knife.
The national treasury simply couldn't produce that kind of money. Pell knew this perfectly well, which was why he hadn't agreed outright, only stating that they would discuss it in detail once they met with the king.
In Igaram's words, this was called feigning compliance or something like that. Regardless, to secure the safety of the nation, they desperately needed this crew's strength right now.
Allen also knew that Nefertari Cobra couldn't cough up that much cash, so he had considerately given him a two-year deadline.
Alabasta had a population of over ten million. If divided equally among the citizens, it would only amount to a thousand Berries per person.
Converted to the currency he was familiar with, that was about fifty bucks a head. Where was the damn difficulty in that? It all came down to whether Cobra was willing to let his people foot the bill.
If he wasn't willing, that was fine too. Once everything was over, Allen would just have his subordinates spread the story, moving the citizens to tears over their king's benevolence so they would "voluntarily" start a donation drive.
A thief never leaves empty-handed. Even though he was going to beat up the Sand Crocodile anyway, how could he let others take advantage of him for free? He would squeeze out every last penny he could.
'I'm definitely going to become the Bandit King.'
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