Ambush in the Oasis

"This is Alabasta. Welcome to my country!"

The girl with light blue hair greeted the Straw Hat Pirates with a big smile.

"Is this Princess Vivi's country? It certainly looks very prosperous!"

The blond chef praised Sanji without hesitation, but neither Zoro nor Luffy seemed to agree with what Sanji said.

The facilities at the Rape Flower Dock look pretty good, but they seem somewhat poorly maintained. As Alabasta's most important port, it's quite lively with many people working there.

However, almost everyone here had a gloomy expression, and their clothes were often patched, making it easy to tell that they were quite poor.

It's important to understand that, due to their geographical location, these port cities are among the most prosperous and wealthy places in any country.

If even the people here wear patched clothes and have sallow complexions, then the other ordinary civilians in the country are probably barely clothed and starving.

"The atmosphere here feels so dull."

"It was lifeless, and it seemed like none of these people were doing very well."

Hearing Luffy and Zoro's words, Princess Vivi couldn't help but feel a little ashamed.

"Alabasta hasn't seen rain for three years, which is why everyone is facing difficulties..."

"This isn't Princess Vivi's fault! It's clearly all the fault of that Baroque Works!"

Sanji, the beautiful girl's loyal admirer, immediately began to comfort Vivi. After hearing this, Princess Vivi simply nodded.

"Thank you everyone. If it weren't for you, I probably would have died at Baroque Works long ago."

The girl named Vivi is the princess of Alabasta. In order to save her country, she goes undercover in the Baroque Works and tries to investigate the Baroque Works's conspiracy.

While it sounds touching that a foreign princess personally went undercover in the enemy camp without fear of danger, in reality, this princess only seemed reliable, and her undercover work was quite baffling.

Without makeup or disguise, she simply changed her hairstyle and dressed up as a rebellious girl before stupidly entering the studio.

It's fortunate that everyone in the Pirate World is a bunch of scatterbrains that the delinquent version of Princess Vivi wasn't directly discovered. As for how well she did her intelligence work...

Hmm... For example, in the original work, Princess Vivi and the Straw Hat Pirates bumped into Mr. Bon Clay, the executive of Baroque Works.

The princess knew perfectly well that Mr. 2 was a tall male ballet dancer, dressed in a swan costume, speaking in a female tone, and even remembered the words "Hungry Ghost Festival" on the back of his costume—yet she simply didn't recognize Bon Clay.

Frankly speaking, with this level of expertise, Princess Vivi can basically say goodbye to the so-called intelligence industry.

After working at Baroque Works for a long time, Princess Vivi eventually ran into trouble. This time, she accidentally exposed herself, but with the help of the Straw Hat Pirates, she managed to escape danger.

Compared to her hesitant attitude in the original story, Princess Vivi has much more confidence in the Straw Hat Pirates this time.

The main reason is that the Straw Hat Pirates are now frighteningly high, and it can be said that they have swept the first half of the Grand Line, making them truly unique.

Luffy alone has a bounty of 600 million Beli, Sanji and Zoro also have bounties of over 100 million, and even Usopp's bounty is comparable to Crocodile's.

Princess Vivi, who judges pirates' strength solely by their bounties, believes the Straw Hat Pirates are an absolute powerhouse. Dealing with Baroque Works would be a piece of cake for them.

As for the Straw Hat Pirates... the main trio are all incredibly brave and fearless, while the cowardly trio, now lacking Nami as their backbone, have no chance of stopping Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji.

"It's alright, it's alright. Isn't it normal to help you? Besides, you even brought us such an excellent doctor Chopper!"

Luffy waved his hand and spoke.

Yes, the Straw Hat Pirates have gained another member this time, none other than Chopper, who wears many hats: the ship's doctor, pet, and Emergency Food!

Although Nami wasn't sick this time, Luffy's crew still encountered this moose doctor.

Because the original king of the Drum Kingdom, the Devil Fruit User, was captured by Vegapunk long ago, Drum Kingdom is still a major medical country, and it's not that there aren't other doctors with excellent medical skills.

But doctors are a truly high-income group, and the only one truly willing to Luffy is this little deer.

"That's right, that's right, we're pirates, isn't helping others our only duty?!"

Chopper, who popped out from behind Luffy, wiggled his hooves and said with a grin, while Usopp rolled his eyes:

"Are you kidding me? Helping others is a matter of course, shouldn't that be the navy's job?!"

"Huh!? Is that so? Oh, I see!"

Chopper scratched his head and gave a goofy smile, which made Usopp feel a little helpless.

I have a feeling that there are more and more problematic people on this ship! There's a captain who lacks common sense, a swordsman who can't keep his hands off his feet, a cook who swoons over any pretty girl, and now there's another easy-to-scam ship doctor who's just part of the Emergency Food.

Sigh, as an ordinary, normal person, being among them always makes me feel so much pressure!

"Usopp, let's go! What are you still sitting here for?"

Seeing his companions already far away, Usopp, whose legs were trembling, quickly struggled to his feet:

"I... I just have this strange illness that makes my legs weak as soon as I get to the island!"

"Hahaha, Usopp, are you scared? You're a pirate with a bounty of over 80 million now! How can you still be such a coward?"

"Stop talking! That terrifying bounty! Stop talking about it!"

Well, it's clear that Usopp, overflowing with negative emotions, is hardly a normal person.

Just after the group left, two visitors from the Ninja World, dressed in Akatsuki cloak, appeared at the spot where the Straw Hat Pirates had left.

"Is this the pirate crew we're supposed to join? Something feels off. How do guys this naive survive?"

Kakuzu spoke coldly, his pale green eyes devoid of any emotion.

"Actually, there are quite a few people like this in the world, and I feel that's not so bad."

Kisame smiled, revealing a mouthful of sharp teeth. Although he was the kind of ninja among ninjas, his outward appearance was cold-blooded and ruthless, only caring about the mission.

But in reality, Kisame is cold on the outside but warm on the inside, and he quite likes the simple atmosphere that permeates the entire Pirate World.

It's hard to say which world is more peaceful and happy, the Pirate World or the Ninja World, but the Pirate World definitely wins in terms of freedom and simplicity.

Kisame, an honest man who has spent a long time in the Ninja World and has been tricked and schemed by a bunch of cunning old men, clearly prefers the simple and unpretentious atmosphere of the Pirate World.

Kakuzu gave a soft hum, somewhat regretfully putting away the Straw Hat's bounty poster, his black coat with black and red cloud patterns fluttering in the wind.

"Let's go check on these kids. It would be embarrassing if they got killed. Since I can't get the bounty on these kids, then nobody else should get it either!"

"Yes, yes, Kakuzu- senpai!"

Kisame shrugged helplessly and followed Kakuzu, silently setting off with the Straw Hat Pirates.

Both Kisame and Kakuzu are experienced and highly capable ninjas, excelling in tracking and concealment. The Straw Hat Pirates, lacking anyone with Awakening wide-range Observation Haki, are a group of carefree individuals who naturally failed to notice the tail following them.

"It really came so easily... I never expected that this princess would also be hanging out with the Straw Hat Pirates!"

"It seems that even if I don't ask you to take action, you'll still have to face the Straw Hat in the end."

With a smile on his face, Ryokugyu took out the intelligence and handed it to Crocodile, who was smoking a cigar.

Crocodile gazed at the intelligence report in his hand, his expression neither joyful nor sorrowful. After a moment, the entire intelligence report gradually dried up, cracked, and crumbled, turning into fine powder.

Immediately, Kuro's pupils twitched violently, and he stood up, gripping the table:

"Now that they've shown up, let's just make our move! Aren't they going to cross the Desert? I happen to know of an Oasis in that Desert, which is a place they'll inevitably pass through. Let's ambush them there!"

"Oh, so enthusiastic?!"

Ryokugyu made a joke, but didn't really suspect anything. He stood up and put on the Navy's righteous cloak.

"Since you've asked, let's set off right away!"

As he spoke, huge petals sprouted from the Ryokugyu's head again, flying out like dandelions.

"Yes... it'll be too late if we don't go now..."

Watching the Ryokugyu fly away, Crocodile muttered to himself, his expression momentarily dazed, revealing a strange look. He then shook his head, seemingly recovering somewhat, before transforming into a sandstorm and flying out of the window as well.

Meanwhile, on the Straw Hat Pirates, due to the lack of the reliable anchor Nami, the group of unreliable guys started causing trouble again in the Desert. Even Usopp, who was slightly more reliable, was clearly unable to handle his teammates.

Fortunately, although the group lacked common sense, they at least had the ability. After spending two or three times as much time, they finally got on the right track in the Desert.

"Excellent, that's the Oasis!"

Princess Vivi pointed ahead with an excited smile. Upon hearing this, the Fast Running Duck and the little reindeer under her instantly became excited.

Finally... finally we're out of those guys' clutches! Lately, because we've run out of food, those Straw Hat Pirates have been looking at us animals with increasingly strange eyes, and we're seriously lacking a sense of security!

A few nights ago, the two animals heard Zoro sleepwalking and sharpening his sword, Sanji reciting the names of dishes in his sleep, and Luffy his lips and saying "It smells so good" in his sleep. The two animals were so scared that they huddled together and couldn't fall asleep at all.

If they hadn't subsequently chopped down a giant Desert scorpion and replenished their food supplies, Fast Running Duck and Chopper thought they might have ended up in their teammates' stomachs!

"Oasis! Water and food!!"

Upon hearing Princess Vivi's words, Luffy became excited and ran forward with a whoosh. Usopp also charged forward frantically, heading straight for the Oasis.

"Honestly, if it weren't for the fact that you guys always get lost, we would have been here by now!"

Zoro, the Green Algae Head, had only spoken halfway when he heard a loud crash as Princess Vivi and Sanji smashed a pot and a spatula on his head.

"Damn it, if we hadn't been looking for you, would we have been lost for so long?!"

Not only Sanji, who has always been at odds with Zoro, but even Princess Vivi, who is usually very good-natured, couldn't hold back and started beating Zoro up.

Some distance away, two ninjas dressed in Akatsuki cloak also had dark lines on their faces, and seemed to be thinking of rushing up and beating them up.

The two of them had been following the Straw Hat Pirates in circles for a long time, initially thinking they had noticed they were being followed, but it turned out they were just looking for someone with a terrible sense of direction...

Even though ninjas have much greater patience than these pirates, the two of them were still furious.

Of course, there's another point...

"These idiots... can't they see the problem with that Oasis at all?"

"There were no birds flying around, nor any animal sounds. There must be an ambush at that Oasis!"

Ordinary ninjas in the Ninja World spend almost every battle in the process of ambushing and counter-ambushing. As a result, their observation and perception abilities are maxed out to the extreme. Even top-tier ninjas who do not have innate perception abilities will have various reconnaissance ninjutsu learned later to assist them.

So, even though they were still a long way from the Straw Hat Pirates and even further from the Oasis, both Kisame and Kakuzu had already noticed that something was wrong with the Oasis.

"Hehe, let's see how strong these kids are. With such a high bounty, they shouldn't be taken down so easily, right?"

Kakuzu spoke in a sinister tone, while Kisame also had a slight smile on his face. Both of them had been enhanced by Vegapunk and even modified to possess certain physical characteristics of humans in the Pirate World, and were able to learn Haki and Life Return.

Although their Haki and Life Return are still in their initial stages due to the short time they've had, combined with their existing ninjutsu and Vegapunk's Artificial Devil Fruit, the two of them are definitely not to be underestimated.

Even so, when Vegapunk assigned tasks, he only asked the two to join the Straw Hat Pirates to be Luffy's initial support, which naturally made the two quite curious about Luffy's strength and potential.

Just as the two were filled with curiosity, the entire Oasis suddenly expanded with a rumbling sound, and countless huge trees instantly surrounded the entire Straw Hat Pirates.