"What method?"
Vivi was the first to speak up, unable to contain herself. She knew that to stop Crocodile's scheme, there was no time to waste—they had to seize any possible breakthrough.
Bahr glanced at her sideways and said bluntly, "To touch the physical body of a Logia-type ability user, aside from exploiting their weakness, the only other way is through Haki."
"Haki???" The group looked utterly confused, with Luffy even scratching the back of his head and spinning in circles.
"Haki is a latent power hidden within the human body," Bahr said, eyeing Luffy and Zoro. "Explaining it to you now is pointless. This power can only be realized on your own. At your current level, you're not strong enough to wield Haki's power. You'd be better off focusing on Crocodile's weakness."
He was just casually mentioning it—showing off a little—without any need to explain in detail.
Truth be told, Bahr himself couldn't explain it clearly. His Haki had appeared just like his transmigration—he woke up one day with it, and after some training, it improved by leaps and bounds.
As for whether revealing it early would disrupt the plot and cause uncontrollable variables... Who cared? He was doing them a favor!
"Oh... So you're saying..." Zoro rested his hand on his sword hilt, smirking at Bahr. "You know Haki?"
Bahr raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "What, you wanna test me?"
He didn't care about the future "World's Greatest Swordsman." He didn't go looking for trouble, but that didn't mean he was afraid of it. If someone dared to mess with him, he'd fight even the heavens themselves.
"Alright, anyway, we know Crocodile's weakness is water," Nami interjected, raising an eyebrow to steer the conversation elsewhere.
Bahr turned to Nami and said, "Nami, you sure you don't wanna come with me? I'm plenty strong—I can protect you, you know!"
He thought... it was still worth trying to recruit the high-value Nami.
Nami looked at Bahr, then at the grinning Luffy and the aloof Zoro with his arms crossed, sighing helplessly. "Even though these two are idiots most of the time... I still want to go on adventures with them."
This made Luffy grin wide, flashing his white teeth, while Zoro smirked proudly.
"Fine, suit yourself!" Bahr shrugged and stood up. "You guys handle things here. I'm gonna go rest."
He kicked Mr. 5 and tossed out an order: "You, go get us a ship and stock up on supplies. If you skimp on anything, I'll kill you on the spot."
"Y-Yes, sir!" Mr. 5 nodded frantically, sweat soaking his collar.
With that, Bahr wrapped an arm around Miss. Valentine and strode off without looking back, waving a hand. "See ya, Nami. Good luck. If things get too rough, you know where to find me—I'll always have a spot for you."
He respected Nami's choice, so he wouldn't force her. Right now, he had other important matters to attend to. The rest was up to them to figure out.
Nami watched as Bahr's hand, wrapped around Miss. Valentine's waist, gave a couple of teasing squeezes. She rolled her eyes but couldn't help a small laugh.
This bastard... Though he was shameless, he wasn't entirely a lost cause.
Vivi watched his figure gradually disappear, feeling a twinge of regret. She had a vague sense that if this man had stayed, Alabasta's crisis might have been resolved more smoothly.
However... even without him, she had to stake everything to protect her country and its people.
...
The sun was already high in the sky.
Miss. Valentine was practically draped over Bahr's arm, her coral-painted lips releasing continuous peals of silver-bell laughter, cheeks still flushed from last night's lingering excitement. Gone was any trace of the tense vigilance she'd shown earlier.
She'd never been a woman with grand ambitions. After witnessing Bahr's strength, an instinctive sense of worshipful dependence had welled up in her heart.
Wasn't it perfectly normal for women to admire the strong?
The only regret Miss. Valentine had was that she'd been blindfolded the entire night, never getting to see the mysterious "boss's" true face.
"Boss~" Miss. Valentine deliberately drew out the ending tone, the lemon slices on her earrings swaying dizzyingly. "Where are we going now?"
Bahr glanced sideways at her, a smile curling beneath his mask. This woman adapted quickly—in just one night, she'd gone from "trembling lemon spirit" to "clingy little temptress."
That said, this "lemon spirit" wasn't just eye-catching in figure, but also sufficiently obedient. She'd cooperated without the slightest hesitation, even knowing how to actively respond. Truly comfortable.
He'd practically picked up a "treasure"—at least the voyage wouldn't be boring.
Giving her lower back a firm pat, Bahr drawled lazily: "To Alabasta."
That's right—Bahr's destination was Alabasta.
To reach the New World, there were generally only two routes: either obtain World Government approval to pass through the special channel beneath the Holy Land Mariejois, or sneak through Fish-Man Island.
Of course, there was another path—crossing the Calm Belt—but without proper conditions, that was basically suicide!
The first route was impossible for someone like him who was already on the government's radar, leaving only Fish-Man Island. And regardless of which path he chose, he'd have to go to Sabaody Archipelago first.
Taking the conventional route to Sabaody would require stopping at multiple islands and waiting for the Log Pose to store magnetic charges—both time-consuming and troublesome. For someone like Bahr who was being watched by the World Government, this slow pace was far too dangerous.
Without reaching the "New World" quickly, he'd feel unsafe. That's why Bahr needed to obtain an Eternal Pose to Sabaody Archipelago.
Eternal Poses were rare items, not something available on just any small island. As a major nation, Alabasta would definitely have a direct Eternal Pose to Sabaody—this was Bahr's true target.
Unlike the Straw Hat crew's adventurous journey with stops along the way, he planned to use the Log Pose for direct travel, making the journey shorter in both distance and time.
"Alabasta? Isn't that walking into the lion's den?" Miss. Valentine froze abruptly.
Baroque Works' headquarters was there, and their leader was none other than the ruthless Seven Warlords of the Sea member. Wasn't this basically suicide?
"What's there to panic about?" Bahr shot her a sidelong glance. "With me here, Crocodile is nothing."
Hearing the undisguised disdain in Bahr's voice, Miss. Valentine felt somewhat reassured. If the "boss" knew about Crocodile yet still dismissed him so contemptuously, it didn't seem like an act.
Besides, someone who could instantly defeat Mr.5 might genuinely have the capability to challenge a Warlord.
Thinking this, she deliberately snuggled closer into Bahr's embrace, her voice dripping with saccharine sweetness: "I'll follow whatever the boss says~"
Feeling the soft pressure on his arm, Bahr found it quite enjoyable. This "lemon spirit" really knew how to play the sour game well.
"Um... Boss, the ship and supplies are all ready!" At the harbor, Mr. 5 saw Bahr walking slowly with Miss Valentine in his arms and hurried over.
He had considered escaping, but the mere thought of that silent silver flash made cold sweat break out on the back of Mr. 5's neck.
"Got it. Let's go." With that, Bahr walked toward the dock with Miss Valentine still in his embrace.