Conquer Totto Land, Welcome Cobra Home

"Princess overseeing the kingdom?"

Crocodile looked in surprise at the pretty blue-haired girl standing next to Ma Qiao.

His usually sharp mind went blank at that moment.

In Crocodile's memory, this blue-haired girl whose name he didn't even remember always existed as Ma Qiao's partner.

She has been with Baroque Works for exactly two and a half years now, and her status has risen from an intern to Miss Valentine, partnered with Mr. 7, Ma Qiao.

From any perspective, this woman has absolutely no connection to the princess of Alabasta, does she?

"Are you sure she's the princess of the Alabasta Kingdom, that old Cobra —no, I mean, the daughter of King Cobra's brother?" Crocodile suppressed his almost out-of-control expression and grabbed Chaka, asking.

"That's right, Captain Crocodile!"

Chaka nodded and answered earnestly, "She is our country's sole heir to the throne, Princess Vivi!"

"This is utterly absurd!!"

Crocodile, exasperated, demanded, "Didn't you say Princess Vivi was missing? And my position as the Commander-in-Chief of the King's Guard was filled because the previous commander went to sea to search for the princess?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

Chaka said apologetically, "The situation is rather complicated. To be specific, we suspected that an organization called Baroque Works was detrimental to our country, so Her Highness volunteered to infiltrate Baroque Works. Former Commander-in-Chief of the King's Guard, Lord Igaram, also joined Baroque Works..."

As Chaka listened to his rambling account, the Crocodile on his face began to twitch.

Finally, he almost shouted it out:

"Are you... are you all idiots? It's just intelligence gathering, isn't Igaram enough on his own? Even if one person isn't enough, aren't there you, Pell, and the other officers of the King's Guard? Why send the princess on such a risk?"

"Furthermore, if Baroque Works really is a vicious criminal organization, and assuming—and I mean assuming—that I am the leader of that organization, wouldn't the simplest and most direct way to overthrow this country be to capture Cobra's only daughter and force him to concede?"

"You sent the kingdom's only heir to the throne to infiltrate the inner circle of a conspirator plotting to usurp the throne. Isn't this... isn't this testing the limits of an old cadre with beauty?"

Crocodile refers to the most senior member of Baroque Works, namely Ma Qiao.

At this moment, Vivi, who had finally revealed her identity, nervously tugged at the corner of Ma Qiao's scarf and buried her head in her hands.

"I'm sorry, Uncle Ma Qiao, I didn't mean to hide anything from you..."

"Fool."

Ma Qiao sighed, reaching out to gently lift Vivi's delicate face. "It's alright. Would I look down on you because of your decadent, traditional noblewoman status? In your teacher's heart, you'll always be that barefoot little rascal who spat in my breakfast..."

"Really?" Vivi looked up.

"Really." Ma Qiao smiled faintly.

"Then I'm going to report it!"

Vivi pointed her little hand at the Cat Burglar being fed dog food nearby. "Nami did it too!"

Pfft!

Ma Qiao almost spat out his saliva. "I didn't do it... Nami, no, what are you talking about?!"

"I mean Nami did it too, she spat in your breakfast too!"

"Vivi said with a serious expression."

King Cobra of Alabasta has been suspected of being kidnapped by a high-ranking Big Mom Pirates.

Such news would be considered a minor news item even on the high seas.

Surprisingly, this did not cause much of a stir in the Alabasta Kingdom.

The people had grown accustomed to the king's absence.

Only Vivi, as his daughter, and other close confidants of the king like Chaka and Pell were deeply worried about His Cobra's safety.

Vivi hastily attended the coronation ceremony of the regent princess and became the future queen of Alabasta.

Then, she began preparing for the operation to rescue her father.

The speed was astounding; Emperor Huizong was speechless, while Emperor Zhu Qizhen wept.

Unfortunately, Vivi isn't Wanyan Gou, but Crocodile is certainly not Yue Fei!

"You want me to lead five thousand Alabasta troops to attack Whole Cake Island and bring back Cobra? Are you kidding me?"

Crocodile slapped the letter of appointment that Vivi had given him away, turning it into dust.

Originally Cobra had finally been kidnapped in broad daylight, under the watchful eyes of everyone, and by that extremely cruel Charlotte Linlin, but then someone else jumped in and stole his prize.

No one could withstand this!

Crocodile had wanted to quit and leave for a long time.

What kind of damn Alabasta Kingdom Guard Commander-in-Chief is this? Let whoever wants the position be it!

However, just two days ago, the old Garp sent Crocodile a message saying that he was about to arrive in Shurima and wanted him to continue playing with him.

After much deliberation, Crocodile decided not to quit his job.

After all, he didn't know where he was going next.

Pluton is unwilling to give up, has no other pursuits in life, and starting a new business seems difficult.

Surely I can't just go and work for the Five Emperors?

Speaking of which, that Emperor Clown Buggy who stayed in Alabasta a few days ago seems to be a promising prospect.

As the Fifth Emperor of the sea, Buggy currently only has one ship, and his crew is a bunch of worthless scoundrels.

Crocodile's feelings were quite complicated when Crocodile discovered that his former useless subordinate, Mr. 3 Gal Dino, had become Buggy's first mate.

He shook his head, banishing the absurd thought from his mind.

The idea that he Buggy Pirates and become Gal Dino's subordinate is utter nonsense.

However, even more absurd than this nonsense is the battle plan proposed by this idiotic princess to rescue her father.

"I've never been afraid of any Four Emperors Five Emperors, but this idiotic plan to go to Whole Cake Island to rescue people from that crazy woman is just too outrageous!"

Crocodile slammed his hook on the table, roaring, "Hey, you bastards, do you even know how valuable the title of Sea Emperor is?!"

"Emperor of the Sea..."

Whether it was Vivi at the conference table, or the two brilliant minds, Chaka and Pell, they all unconsciously scratched their chins, looked up at the ceiling, and a scene appeared in their minds at the same time.

At a grand banquet, a man with Red Nose was seen singing and dancing, sticking chopsticks into his mouth and nose.

Seem...

It's not that dangerous?

Crocodile waved his hand, using a small sandstorm to disperse the cloud of images above their heads, and said loudly with exasperation:

"Do you really think that Buggy the Clown, who left the Marine Headquarters helpless and made Shanks retreat, is as shallow as you see him?"

No, absolutely not. Every one of these seasoned pirates who have been on the high seas for so long is cunning and has many hidden cards up their sleeves.

"I know that!"

Vivi raised her hand and interjected, "Uncle Ma Qiao gave me a lesson, specifically about playing your trump cards and being cautious."

"That's right."

Crocodile would like to say that these theories of his were also forcibly instilled into him by that kid Ma Qiao who kept nagging him back then.

However, after thinking about it, he decided against revealing everything.

After all, once he acknowledges his identity as the president of Baroque Works...

There's no other reason; Baroque Works has already cleared its name. The only reason is that he can't afford to lose face like that.

His former underlings are now either high-ranking Emperor's Deputy, partners of the Navy, guests of honor of the Five Emperors, regents of a nation, or the only hope for the reconstruction of Baroque Works.

Crocodile really didn't know how he should approach Gardino and Ma Qiao.

Shaking his head, Crocodile pressed his advantage, echoing Vivi's words as regent. "Since you know the Sea Emperor's power is unfathomable, you should give up on rescuing your father and just be your queen!"

"No, Captain-Commander Crocodile, if I can abandon even my own father, what right do I have to rule this country?" Vivi shook her head firmly.

"I'm not being modest!"

Crocodile shook his head. "If it were about taking down Whitebeard, I might be interested, but as for the Big Mom Pirates, you'd better find someone else!"

"However, our Getan Alliance meeting has already decided that you will serve as the Admiral of this expeditionary force! This matter has already been reported to the Marine Headquarters. Look, this is the electronic appointment letter issued by Fleet Admiral Sengoku!"

Vivi pulled out a Big Bird Den Den Mushi and said confidently, "As Shichibukai, Master Sha must obey the orders of the Marine Headquarters, right?"

Crocodile stared dumbfounded at the Den Den Mushi screen. This thing even had e-signatures?

Besides, who says that the Shichibukai have to obey the orders of the Marine Headquarters?

Is this a joke?

Aside from that clumsy Kuma, which of the Shichibukai doesn't treat the Navy like a cash cow, only taking the benefits while not putting in any real effort?

And...

"Summoning the Shichibukai requires at least Vice Admiral to relay the order, right? It's just an electronic signature; who knows if it's real?" Crocodile questioned.

"Vice Admiral?"

Vivi nodded. "Yes, there are. They're even old acquaintances of yours!"

"Masaka..."

The image of an old man with silver hair and a silver beard appeared in Crocodile's mind. A bead of sweat appeared on Crocodile's forehead, and the back of his head began to throb again.

Vivi glanced at her phone's schedule and murmured, "Judging by the time, Vice Admiral Garp should be here soon. He'll personally deliver your orders then!"

"No need!"

Crocodile jumped to his feet. "Saving Brother Cobra is of utmost urgency! We can't let him fall into Charlotte Linlin's clutches! I must set off immediately!"

"However, an army of five thousand men on a long expedition requires many ships and a great deal of provisions; there's simply no way to gather them so quickly!"

Chaka, standing nearby, advised, "Besides, since I'm accompanying you on this expedition, we need to select the bravest warriors from the King's army..."

"No need!"

Crocodile scoffed, "Even if it's you and Pell, what use would you be in the New World? I don't want to bring so much trash into the way."

"But..."

Being called trash didn't bother Chaka much.

After all, Crocodile had been active in Alabasta for quite some time, and he was well aware of the vast gap in strength between himself and his opponent.

"There are no 'buts'."

Crocodile refused decisively, saying, "As for my subordinates, I actually have some acquaintances. You don't need to worry about them. Rest assured, I will at least present your letter of credence to the Charlotte Family."

With that, Crocodile picked up the letter of state that Vivi had prepared earlier from the table, and turned to leave.

Suddenly, as if he had thought of something, he stopped and turned around to ask, "By the way... what is that 'Getan Alliance Conference' you mentioned earlier? 'Getan Alliance,' what is that?"

"Ah, Captain Crocodile, haven't you been keeping up with the recent domestic news?"

Chaka quickly explained, "Her Highness Vivi, the Regent of Alabasta, and His Majesty Ma Qiao, the Regent of the Goa Kingdom, have jointly decided that, starting this week, the Alabasta Kingdom will establish a comprehensive partnership with the Goa Kingdom, a major power in the East Blue. They will be each other's most-favored-nation trading partners and have signed a series of treaties, including the 'Defense Cooperation Agreement' and the 'Overseas Residency Agreement'..."

"In short, one day in the future, our Regent Vivi will swear a blood oath with His Majesty Ma Qiao, and the two nations will form an unbreakable alliance!"

Chaka longed for such a scenario.

As an idealist with similar ideas to Cobra, Chaka also dreams of the day when every country puts aside its differences and barriers and unites closely together, ultimately leading to a world of great harmony.

Although this goal is far away, Princess Vivi and His Majesty Ma Qiao are undoubtedly pioneers of the times.

Chaka greatly admired this.

However, Crocodile heard a completely different story.

"Wait, Ma Qiao?"

Although Crocodile was determined to seize the Alabasta Kingdom and euphemistically called his actions "Operation Utopia," he actually only wanted to seize Pluton.

Although from God's perspective, it's clear that even if Crocodile successfully seized the Alabasta Kingdom and deciphered the Ancient Script, he still has a whole universe's worth of work to do before he can conquer Wano Country right under Kaido's nose, open Wano to the Wano Country, and ultimately obtain the Ancient Weapons.

But Crocodile didn't know that!

He thought that by usurping the throne of Alabasta and deciphering the Poneglyphs, he had gained Pluton.

He had never considered how to govern a country, let alone understood diplomatic relations between nations.

However, while Crocodile may not understand politics and diplomacy, he does understand Ma Qiao.

Where is that kid, Ma Qiao?

Crocodile questioned, "Isn't he the regent of your—no, our—allied nation? How could he possibly stand idly by in such a momentous event as the conquest of Tavern Totto Land? Wasn't he supposed to be sworn in with your princess?"

"Captain Sha, don't worry."

With red eyes, Vivi said, "Uncle Ma Qiao... he... is undertaking a much more difficult and dangerous mission than you..."

"Yes..."

Chaka also looked on with admiration. "Regent Ma Qiao is truly a righteous and chivalrous man... He... received an invitation to the Big Mom Tea Party..."

"In other words, Captain Crocodile, you're on the front lines, while Lord Ma Qiao... he's heading to the enemy's rear, directly facing Big Mom!"