Mr. 1 stared coldly at Sage as he dismounted from the crocodile, saying calmly, "Indeed, you're a big shot. Rumors say you've plundered many Kings. Did you partner with the boss because you've set your sights on this country's King too?"
"Of course, that's exactly why I'm here."
Sage smirked, glancing at the agents. Some looked familiar, but he couldn't quite recall.
"Quite a crowd. Has it already begun?"
A red dot flashed across his pupils as he instinctively looked up the steps. Through Observation Haki, he could sense the thick aura of slaughter emanating from the massive city.
"Yes, the war has begun."
Mr. 1 replied, "We received word that Princess Vivi would lead a force to stop the rebellion. To be safe, we're waiting here."
Rainbase and Alubarna lay to the west and east respectively. Waiting at the western gate was the best strategy—no matter where they appeared, they'd be spotted.
"Then carry on. Keep an eye on these crocodiles for me—I still need them for transport. Don't let anything happen to them."
With that, Sage ignored the agents and ascended the steps with his subordinates.
The massive staircase was flanked by sheer cliffs. Destroying it would trap everyone below, leaving them stranded.
Within the vast city, gunfire and the clashing of blades echoed through streets and alleys alike.
Even at the city gates, Sage could smell the thick scent of gunpowder and blood.
But judging by the numbers, it didn't seem too crowded yet.
The rebel forces would take time to arrive—they wouldn't all gather at once, likely coming in waves.
For now, the city remained relatively empty. Each street stretched endlessly, the distant buildings mere silhouettes on the horizon.
At the northernmost point, the dome of a grand structure loomed.
That must be the Royal Palace.
"No commoners in sight..."
Renetia glanced around. "Did they evacuate already?"
"Cobra seems decent enough," Sage remarked. "Knowing war was coming, he probably had the civilians evacuated long ago. War means death, after all—those commoners wouldn't be much use. Fine by me—less resistance when we rob the place."
Whether Cobra was a good King or not didn't matter to Sage. Even if he were as saintly as a Buddha, Sage would still scrape off a layer of gold.
When it came to robbery, morality was irrelevant.
A Royal City couldn't possibly have only the King as the wealthy one. Pulling a golden pocket watch from beneath his cape, Sage checked the time.
"It's 10 AM now. The city explodes at 4:30 PM—we'll wrap up by 3:30, leaving an hour to evacuate. Priority is the Royal Palace. If we finish early, we'll hit other rich spots."
Maintaining a nation required Nobles—and those guys were surely loaded too.
But with limited transportation, Sage had only brought a small crew. They'd have to focus on one target first.
With Sage included, fifty-seven men stepped into the wide streets. As they advanced, the smell of gunpowder grew thicker. Before long, two groups burst out from a nearby alley.
One group wore scale armor and cloaks, while the other was dressed in ordinary attire. Both sides bore injuries as they roared and charged at each other.
Then—thud.
Before their feet could even take a step, their eyes rolled back, mouths gaping wide as they collapsed to the ground.
"Don't block my path with these weaklings. I won't go out of my way for the likes of you."
Sage glanced at them dismissively, stepping over their bodies as he continued forward.
Observation Haki allowed him to sense the number of people and roughly gauge their strength. If he wanted to avoid them, Sage could have easily reached the Royal Palace undetected.
But why bother? He wasn't the type to yield for others. The straight path was always the fastest.
Whether it was armies clashing ahead or individuals darting out from the sides, anyone who appeared before Sage simply went limp and fainted on the spot.
By the time he reached the Royal Palace, thousands of soldiers stood in formation at the base of the equally massive staircase, exuding an aura of deadly resolve.
They were the palace guards, the last line of defense, determined not to let the rebel army advance any further.
"Someone's coming!"
A soldier standing rigidly at the front noticed something amiss. His sharp gaze fixed on one of the streets, and as he called out, the other soldiers turned to look. In the distance, a group of figures emerged from the long stretch of road.
As the wind and dust settled, the first thing visible was a head of white hair—neither too long nor too short, parted into two strands at the center of the forehead, swaying with each step. The same motion rippled through the black, red-trimmed fur cloak draped over the figure.
A rebel? Was there someone like this among them? "On guard!!"
A commanding soldier barked the order. The front ranks raised their crescent-spade-like weapons, tension evident on their faces.
They didn't even know why they felt so tense. After all, the approaching group numbered only a few dozen.
There was no way they could stand against thousands—bzzzt! In the next instant, the soldiers' eyes rolled back, mouths slackening as they collapsed unconscious.
One soldier knelt on the ground, seemingly struggling to hold on, desperately fighting to keep himself from falling. His gaze locked onto the white-haired man approaching, his fingers tightening around his weapon—or trying to. With a clatter, the weapon slipped from his grasp, and his body finally gave way.
"My, my, still holding on? What a man of strong will."
Marika pressed a hand to her cheek, sounding genuinely surprised.
"There are always those with strong wills."
Sage stepped over the fallen bodies, addressing the kneeling soldier. "But right now, it'd be better if you just passed out."
No sooner had he spoken than the soldier succumbed, collapsing completely.
The group ascended the steps. Renetia raised her Mechanical Hammer, its Power-driven mechanism extending it into a long-handled claw hammer. With a whoosh through the air, she swung it with full force at the palace gates.
Boom!!
The massive doors were sent flying from the Impact of the Power-driven strike.
Sage let out a sinister laugh. "Alright, boys—loot everything worth taking!"
"Yes, Captain!"
Fifty or so men surged into the Royal Palace.
Meanwhile, outside, at the base of the western gate's steps...
"They're... here... oh."
Mr. 4 lowered his binoculars, speaking slowly from his perch on a rock.
"Is it the princess? Is it the princess? She's really here—how strange. Isn't she afraid to die?" Miss Merry Christmas chattered rapidly, her voice a mix of urgency and excitement.
Mr. 2 spun in place and looked toward the plume of dust ahead, suddenly freezing. "Something's not right, yo! There are too many people, yo!"
"Too many? The Straw Hat Kid Luffy was already dealt with in Rainbase. Even if there are more, it can't be that many," Miss Doublefinger said while picking up a pair of binoculars. The moment she looked through them, her pupils dilated in shock. "The Navy?!"
Within the dust cloud, there was no sign of Vivi. Instead, it was a troop riding swiftly on camels, all clad in standard Navy uniforms.
Leading them was a silver-haired man speeding across the desert on a motorcycle. Seated behind him on the bike was a woman with long pink hair, dressed in a rose-red suit and draped in a Navy cape.
"That's 'White Hunter' Smoker?! And 'Black Cage' Tashigi?!" Miss Doublefinger exclaimed. "What's going on? Why is the Navy here?!"
How could the Navy have entered the heart of Alabasta? Their boss's identity hadn't been exposed. As one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, the Navy had no authority to interfere. "Natural Disaster!"
Miss Doublefinger's expression darkened as realization struck. "Did they come because of Natural Disaster? What a grand show. What do we do now?"
Mr. 1 narrowed his eyes, lowering his crossed arms. His voice was grave. "Natural Disaster is collaborating with the boss. We can't let these Navy soldiers ruin our mission."
He stepped forward, facing the oncoming Navy forces as blades sprouted from his arms. "Even if it's the Navy, we'll stop them!"
"Those must be the agents of the criminal organization Baroque Works. To think they'd use Dancing Powder to plunge the country into chaos and seize control... Quite the scheme, Crocodile," Smoker muttered around his cigar, eyeing the figures standing amidst the sand and rocks not far below the steps. The smoke he exhaled was swiftly carried away by the wind.
"Watch your words, Smoker," Tashigi warned. "Without orders from the government, Crocodile remains our ally as a Warlord. Baroque Works has no official ties to him. Tashigi is only here to capture Natural Disaster. Not long ago, he destroyed three of our patrol warships."
"Say what you want," Smoker replied, twisting the throttle to accelerate. "First, we deal with those agents!"
At the foot of the southwestern city gate's steps, a flock of large ducks raced forward at breakneck speed.
These were Alabasta's fastest 'Running Rams,' carrying Vivi and the Straw Hat Crew as they rapidly closed in on the massive staircase.
Alongside the Running Rams, however, was a man gliding on what resembled a sand sled. Flames erupted from the sled's rear, propelling him forward at a speed that matched the ducks effortlessly.
"Is this really okay?" Nami glanced over. "Won't this delay your search?"
"Yeah, it's fine. You guys saved me—this is the least I can do," Ace replied, steadying himself on the sled as the towering steps drew nearer. He adjusted his hat. "I trust Luffy can handle Crocodile, but Sage won't be so easy to deal with."
...
"Male."
"Male!"
"It's a male!!"
Inside the Royal Palace, Sarg strode through the vast halls, his expression growing darker with each room he barged into. Veins bulged at his temples, and the black lines in his eyes multiplied, even adopting Akin's accent.
"Sarg, are you trying to say it's empty?" Renetia tilted her little head.
"Shut up!"
Sarg shot her a fierce glare, his face stormy as he kicked open another door. Inside was a bedroom setup—completely devoid of treasure.
After an hour of combing through the palace, Sarg had started with high spirits, but the longer he searched, the more something felt off.
It wasn't that they hadn't found the Treasure Room—it was that the Treasure Room was empty too.
He knew Cobra was a good King, but no matter how good a King he was—"Damn it, he's still a King!"
Sarg punched a hole through the door, snarling, "How can he be this poor? Even poorer than me, a Pirate! I'm the thief here!"
"Lord Sarg, it's not like there's no money at all..."
Paru obsequiously pulled out a stack of Belly. "We did find 500,000 Belly."
"Lily," Sarg called.
Bam! The next instant, Lily launched a kick that sent Paru flying into the opposite wall.
"You even stole a girl's savings? Have you no shame?! And what can this paltry sum do? This is the Royal Palace!" Sarg roared in frustration.
To say they found nothing wasn't entirely true.
They'd discovered a room with Vivi's photos and the 500,000 Belly. For an ordinary person, that was a considerable amount.
But for Sarg, who possessed 500 million Belly and piles of gold and jewels—and had just invested another 500 million with Crocodile—this was pocket change he couldn't care less about!
After all this effort, running through the night to reach Alubarna, only to find 500,000 Belly? What was that worth? Ten lousy Knives? He could mug a random passerby in Rainbase and get that much!
"Put the money back. Search again—thoroughly. I want Treasure! Gold! Jewelry!"
Sarg shot a glare at Paru, who was twitching on the floor, then gritted his teeth and marched out of the corridor.
Beyond the hallway lay a grand hall, at the head of which stood a sizable Throne—except it was "made of stone!"
Sarg plopped onto the Throne, pulled a Cigar from inside his cloak, lit it, and took a deep drag. The smoke swirled in his mouth before he exhaled.
Unlike cigarettes, he rarely inhaled this stuff.
"I heard Alabasta's Royal Palace has a history of around 4,000 years. Maybe this Throne—" Lily trailed off.
"Grab a handful of rocks from any island, and they'll be at least 10,000 years old."
Sarg rolled his eyes. "Who cares about history? I've got zero interest in stories of the past. I only care about the here and now."
He was illiterate—couldn't read a single character! What use did he have for history? Even as a collector, who'd want a lousy rock?
Carved into a Throne or not, it was still just stone! "Damn that Cobra. At least embed some gems in the rock—what kind of King is he? The Kingdom of Nadia was better. That Old Glass at least had a decent Throne."
"It's Natia!" Lily corrected. "We've left the East Sea, Sarg. Let it go."
"Captain Sarg."
Just then, Akin emerged from another passage with his Subordinates and approached the foot of the Throne.
"We didn't find any treasure."
"Then go out and steal it!"
Sage gritted his teeth and said, "Search outside the Royal Palace, check the houses of the wealthy. Everyone, move quickly!"
"Yes, Captain!"
Akin immediately led the men out of the Royal Palace.
"Lily, you go too. More hands mean more loot," Sage said to Lily and the others.
"Understood, Sage."
Lily nodded and left the Royal Palace with the other two.
"What the hell! Are they really this poor?" Sage clicked his tongue in annoyance, then suddenly sensed something and glanced sideways. "So you've come, Crocodile."
Meanwhile, at the platform inside the western gate of the Royal Palace, Vivi was commanding some soldiers to hold a long fuse.
"Light it!"
Vivi declared firmly, "Only by blowing up the Royal Palace and drawing the rebels' attention can I negotiate with them properly—tell them the truth behind the civil war and expose Crocodile's true nature. This is the fastest way to end the conflict!"
The soldiers in front of her broke into a cold sweat as they raised torches to ignite the fuse. But just then, a violent gust of sand suddenly swirled, extinguishing the torches and knocking the soldiers to the ground.
The sand swiftly gathered atop the structure, taking the form of Crocodile.
"Crocodile! Father!" Vivi cried out.
Under Crocodile's arm was Cobra.
"You really do enjoy dangerous stunts, Miss Wednesday."
He looked down at Vivi, his lips curling into a grin. "Ha, ha, ha, ha! Don't go around destroying things—after all, this will soon be my home."
"Your home is so damn poor it's laughable!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a voice rang out from inside the Royal Palace.
Boom! The inner door of the Royal Palace burst open, and Sage stepped out onto the platform, glancing up at the man in Crocodile's grip. "Hey, you're Cobra, right? For a King, you're so broke it's infuriating!"
"Oh? No luck with the loot, Sage?" Crocodile chuckled.
"Don't look down on me when you talk, Crocodile. I'm not in the best mood," Sage said coldly.
Crocodile let out a low laugh before dissolving into sand again, reforming on the platform and tossing Cobra against the wall.
"That doesn't matter, Sage. Our partnership still stands. As for money, there'll be plenty in the future."
He turned to Cobra and said gravely, "Once I take over this country, my plans will proceed smoothly."
Cobra staggered to his feet, glaring at him. "The World Government won't allow it, Crocodile!"
"That's why I need that thing! With enough military power, even the World Government won't be able to stop me!"
Crocodile clenched his fist tightly. "Tell me—where is Pluton?!"
Cobra froze, horrified. "How do you know—"
"Pluton?"
Sage blinked, lost in thought. "That's the name, right? Is it here? Doesn't seem like it's in Alabasta..."
Beside them, Nico Robin was also taken aback and instinctively turned her gaze toward Sage.
This man—"Crocodile!"
Suddenly, a booming voice rang out from below. Two hands gripped the palace walls, quickly retracting as a familiar figure leaped into view.
"I'm gonna take you down!!"
He swung his fist forward, aiming straight for Crocodile.
"Still alive? Straw Hat Kid Luffy... With just a fist like that, how could you possibly—"
Bam! Before Crocodile could finish, the fist slammed hard into his face, sending him flying backward and skidding across the ground.
"Hmph!"
Sage sneered. "How careless. Can't even tell he's soaked in water."
His train of thought interrupted, he didn't seem to mind.
Compared to that, Crocodile's failure was far more important.
Sage stretched his limbs and looked up at Luffy, who had appeared atop the palace with a water barrel strapped to his back.
"Let me handle this. Don't worry—out of respect for your grandfather, I won't kill you. But don't interfere with my plans. That crocodile is key to my fortune."
"Grandpa?!" Luffy blinked. "You know my grandpa?!"
"Stay out of my way, Sage."
Behind them, Crocodile rose to his feet, his eyes bloodshot. "I'll finish him myself!"
"You had him in Rainbase, yet he still ended up here. Spare me the nonsense."
Sage's voice darkened. "I don't care about your plans, but mine cannot fail!"
"Then I'll take you both down!" Luffy clenched his fists and shouted.
"Keh keh keh..."
Sage let out a derisive chuckle, shaking his head as he prepared to strike.
Boom!!
Suddenly, not far below the palace, a cloud of smoke inexplicably billowed upward, dispersing into the air.
Smoke?
Sage instinctively looked over, a red dot flashing in his eyes. As his Observation Haki expanded, his expression darkened.
"Gum-Gum Pistol!"
Luffy stretched out his fist, aiming a direct punch at Sage.
Boom! A sound of compressed air rang out as the fist struck empty space. Sage's figure had already leaped high into the air, completely ignoring Luffy. With a burst of air beneath his feet, he shot downward like a shell.
"Huh? He left? What did he even come here for?"
Luffy tilted his head in confusion, but quickly snapped back to attention, shouting ahead, "Crocodile! Let's settle this!!"
...
"Power Surge!"
At the entrance of a street in front of the Royal Palace, Renetia wielded her Mechanical Hammer, unleashing a shockwave from its head that dispersed the thick smoke rushing toward her.
Beneath the smoke lay several of her fallen subordinates.
She glared at the dissipating haze and yelled, "Why the hell are the Navy here?! What's going on?! Hey, I remember you—you're that smoke cripple who got wrecked by Sage in Naruhara! What are you doing here?!"
From within the smoke, Smoker's figure slowly emerged. His lower body remained hidden in the mist while his upper half solidified above. "Twenty-three million Belly, Renetia, right? I have no interest in small-time pirates like you. Tell me, where is Natural Disaster?"
Renetia raised her Mechanical Hammer defiantly. "Sage's in a bad mood—he definitely doesn't wanna see you. I'm more than enough!"
Smoker shook his head. "Then I'll just have to capture you and force him out!"
His hands plunged into the smoke, solidifying it into dense tendrils that swiftly coiled around Renetia.
"White Snake: Strangle!"
The thick white mist gave her no chance to counterattack. Even as she used the Mechanical Hammer to blast air cannons, it only scattered the front layers of smoke before the rest engulfed her completely.
Cough! Cough!
The dense fumes choked her, making it impossible to breathe. The solidified smoke tightened around her arms and torso, preparing to crush her—
Boom!!
The smoke was violently blasted apart, the solidified tendrils snapping as a shockwave dispersed the suffocating haze.
"Smoker!"
From within the clearing smoke, Sage's figure appeared right in front of Smoker, his hands coated in Haki as he thrust toward the Navy officer's body.
"Big Dipper—"
"Fire Fist!"
A pillar of flames erupted from the side, engulfing Sage in searing fire.
Smoker blinked in surprise, turning to see a man standing on a rooftop, his hand ablaze, grinning at him.
"Portgas D. Ace..."
His voice darkened. "What are you doing here?"
Ace leaped down from the roof, grinning as he looked ahead. "Same reason as you."
From the sky, a flaming object crashed down beside Renetia, sending rubble flying and kicking up a cloud of dust.
"Sage?" Renetia muttered instinctively.
"Stay back, Reti."
Sage's calm voice echoed from within the settling dust.
As it cleared, his body—covered in burns—was revealed.
At this moment, the burned areas were rapidly healing, turning into normal skin.
"A Navy officer and a Pirate, working together? The Sea truly is full of wonders," Sage said coldly, glaring at them.
"I would never team up with a Pirate."
Smoker also condensed downward, returning to his normal size. He drew his Ten Hands and pointed it at Sage, declaring, "However, arresting you takes priority. Once I've captured you, I'll go after 'Fire Fist' Ace next."
"Smoke and fire are evenly matched. Catching me won't be so easy."
Ace stood beside him, adopting a fighting stance, and grinned, "But right now, I won't let you interfere with Luffy's fight."
"You're really overflowing with Haki, aren't you?"
Sage slightly narrowed his eyes, then suddenly widened them, baring his teeth in a savage grin. "Looking to die!"