Katorea lay in central Alabasta, an industrial city built on an oasis. But that was in the past-now, the oasis had long since dried up, leaving only cracked earth and dilapidated factories.
The Flame Emperor stopped in a barren valley twenty kilometers from Katorea. Lin Yan, Ace, Isuka, and Robin changed into desert traveling clothes and continued on foot.
"According to the map, once we get around that stone forest ahead, we'll see Katorea's outer outpost." Robin pointed ahead. "Fifty Baroque Works agents are stationed there, led by Mr. 4 and his partner, Miss Merry Christmas."
"Mr. 4?" Ace recalled. "That big guy with the Four-Ton Bat?"
"Yes. He's a Zoan Dog-Dog Fruit, Dachshund Form user. He can turn into a dachshund, and together with Miss Merry Christmas's Mole-Mole Fruit, he specializes in underground ambushes," Robin explained in detail. "I suggest going around them so we don't alert the enemy."
Lin Yan nodded and looked at Isuka. "Is there another route?"
Isuka unfolded a hand-drawn contour map-he had drawn and supplemented it using nautical charts during their voyage.
"Yes. We can circle around the west, through a stretch of quicksand, but there are no outposts there." Isuka pointed at the map. "The downside is that the quicksand covers a large area. Crossing it on foot will take at least three hours, and we might run into a sandstorm."
"We'll take that route," Lin Yan decided. "Time isn't an issue. Staying hidden matters most."
The group changed direction and entered the wasteland to the west.
Daytime temperatures in the desert reached fifty degrees, and heat waves distorted the air. But Lin Yan used his flames to form a thin thermal shield around everyone-not to block heat, but to balance the temperature. It absorbed excess heat and released it at night, keeping the temperature they felt at around thirty degrees.
"That's impressive." Ace enjoyed the comfortable coolness. "When did you learn that, big brother?"
"I figured it out last night," Lin Yan said. "Flames are essentially energy, and energy can be converted. High temperatures are thermal energy, and low temperatures are thermal energy too-just in different directions."
Robin walked in the middle of the group, quietly observing Lin Yan. Along the way, she had already seen several sides of this man: his dominance in battle, his concentration when thinking, his patience when teaching, and the meticulous care he showed now.
This was somewhat different from her understanding of the "D. Clan." Most members of the D Clan recorded in historical documents were bold, unrestrained people who paid little attention to details. Someone like Lin Yan, who combined strength with sensitivity, was rare.
"Miss Robin." Isuka came up beside her and offered her a canteen. "Have some water. It's easy to get dehydrated in the desert."
"...Thank you." Robin took it and had a sip. The water was cool, clearly chilled by some means.
"Doctor Chopper prepared it," Isuka said with a smile. "He specially formulated an 'Anti-Dehydration Potion' and mixed it into the water. It maintains the body's fluid balance."
Teamwork.
Once again, Robin felt the weight of that word. In Baroque Works, everyone was Crocodile's tool, with nothing between them but competition and suspicion. But here, everyone contributed their own strength to the team.
"Mr. Isuka," Robin asked, "why did you choose to follow Captain Flame Emperor?"
Isuka paused, then smiled. "Because Captain Ace saved my life. Three months ago, pirates attacked my merchant ship, and Captain Ace came to our rescue. Later, he said he was disbanding the Spade Pirates to join his older brother's ship, so I came along."
"That simple?"
"That simple," Isuka said earnestly. "But after coming aboard, I realized Captain Flame Emperor was someone worth following. He's strong, but he doesn't bully the weak; he's ambitious, but he doesn't sacrifice his companions; he has secrets, but he doesn't hide the dangers-he tells us clearly what we'll face next and lets us choose for ourselves."
She looked at Lin Yan up ahead. "Captains like that are far too rare in this era."
Robin fell silent.
Yes, far too rare. In her twenty years of wandering, she had met far too many pirate captains-some brutal, some greedy, some hypocritical. This was the first time she had met one like Lin Yan, who gave his crew the right to choose.
"What are you talking about?" Ace came over, holding a skewer of lizard meat roasted golden brown. "Want some? I just caught it and roasted it with my flames. Crisp outside, tender inside!"
Robin looked at the skewer, still sizzling with fat, hesitated, then took it. "...Thank you."
She took a bite. It really was delicious.
"Right? Right?" Ace said proudly. "My flame-roasted meat is second to none! When we reach Katorea, I'll treat you to roasted Sand Scorpion. Now that's a delicacy!"
"...All right."
Robin lowered her head and ate the meat, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly without her realizing it.
It had been a long time since she had experienced such a relaxed atmosphere.
At three in the afternoon, the group reached the edge of the quicksand.
Before them stretched an endless golden sea of sand. Its surface rippled like water in the hot wind, with occasional bubbles rising to reveal the dangerous quicksand beneath.
"On this scale..." Isuka frowned. "If we force our way across and get caught in the center, even if the captain can escape with his flames, we'll have a hard time."
"We don't need to cross it." Lin Yan crouched and picked up a handful of sand. "Robin, do you have any information on the distribution of Katorea's underground waterways?"
Robin took a rolled-up chart from her bag. "Yes. This is the Alabasta Hydrological Map I stole from Rainbase. Crocodile uses it to control the country's water sources."
On the chart, blue lines represented underground waterways, while red crosses marked where they had been cut off. There had originally been three major waterways beneath Katorea. Now, all of them had been diverted toward Rainbase.
"Just as I thought." Lin Yan pointed to one of the waterways. "This Sigma Aquifer originally flowed through this quicksand area. Crocodile cut it off, causing the quicksand to expand. If we restore the waterway, the quicksand will temporarily solidify and form a passable route."
"How do we restore it?" Ace asked. "We can't exactly dig three hundred meters down, can we?"
"No digging necessary." Lin Yan stood and pressed both hands against the sand. "All we need is...a little heat."
He closed his eyes, and crimson-gold flames poured from his palms into the sand.
This was not an attack, but infiltration-the flames extended downward through the gaps between grains of sand, their temperature held at around two hundred degrees. It would not turn the sand to glass, but it was enough to evaporate moisture deep below.
One minute, two minutes, three minutes...
Steam began rising from the sand, but instead of dispersing, it was contained within a specific area by Lin Yan's power. More and more steam accumulated, and the pressure kept rising.
"Now." Lin Yan thrust both hands upward!
Boom-!!!
The sand burst open.
It was not an explosion, but an "eruption"-the hot steam formed a high-pressure chamber underground, lifting away the entire layer of sand above and exposing the severed underground riverbed beneath. The riverbed had dried up, but its rocky walls were still damp.
"We'll take the riverbed." Lin Yan jumped down first. "It leads straight to Katorea's Underground Reservoir. It's the shortest route."
Ace, Isuka, and Robin followed close behind.
The riverbed was dark and damp, but Lin Yan created several floating balls of flame to light the way. The four moved swiftly along it, encountering a few underground creatures-giant Sand Scorpions and Blind Lizards, all of which Ace casually roasted for reserve food.
An hour later, light appeared ahead.
"We're here." Robin lowered her voice. "The entrance to Katorea's Underground Reservoir is just ahead. There are guards, about ten of them."
Lin Yan signaled for everyone to stop, then went to the corner and peered around it.
It was an enormous underground cavern, with a dried-up pool in the center. Its bottom was piled with mechanical parts and chemical materials-the Dance Powder production line. Ten agents in Baroque Works uniforms stood around the pool, led by a tall, thin man wearing glasses.
"Mr. 3, a Wax-Wax Fruit user," Robin whispered into Lin Yan's ear. "He can produce hard wax and specializes in defense and restraint. The little girl beside him is Miss Goldenweek. She isn't a Devil Fruit user, but she can use colors to hypnotize people and control their emotions."
"Understood." Lin Yan withdrew behind the corner. "Ace, take Mr. 3. End it quickly. Isuka, clear out the rank and file. Robin, find an opening to restrain Miss Goldenweek. Don't let her use her ability."
"What about you?" Ace asked.
"I'll destroy the production line." Lin Yan looked at the complex machinery in the center of the cavern. "The core of that equipment is a Thermal Reactor. I need to overload it with intense heat and destroy it from the inside."
Their roles were assigned.
Ace charged out first, blue-white flames blazing in both hands.
"Fire Fist: Rapid Fire!"
Boom, boom, boom-!
Dozens of fireballs shot toward Mr. 3. He reacted quickly, bringing his hands together.
"Candle Wall!"
White wax surged from the ground, forming a thick wall. The fireballs struck it, blasting crater after crater into its surface without breaking through.
"Useless!" Mr. 3 sneered behind the Candle Wall. "My wax is three times harder than steel-huh?!"
Before he could finish, countless fine cracks suddenly split the Candle Wall. Then blue-white flames surged through them!
"Blue Flame penetrates ten times better than ordinary fire," Ace's voice came from above. "Your wax can't stop it."
Mr. 3 looked up to see Ace descending from the air, his right foot covered in searing flames.
"Fire Fist: Falling Star!"
Boom-!!!
The Candle Wall shattered completely. Mr. 3 was kicked into the air and slammed into the rock wall, passing out.
Meanwhile, Isuka drew her sword and charged the rank and file. Her swordsmanship combined Soru and Geppo of the Six Powers, making her as fast as a phantom. Before the agents could react, they had already been knocked down by the back of her blade-Lin Yan had instructed them to avoid killing whenever possible.
Robin appeared behind Miss Goldenweek, arms sprouting from the girl's shoulders and gently pressing against her temples.
"Don't move, little girl. Just go to sleep."
Miss Goldenweek stiffened, then slumped to the ground-Robin had used her Flower-Flower Fruit power to press her sleep-inducing pressure points.
The battle ended within thirty seconds.
Only then did Lin Yan approach the production line. He jumped into the dried-up pool and came before the three-meter-tall cylindrical reactor. Complex pipes and gauges covered its surface, and it was giving off a low hum, clearly in operation.
"So this is the Dance Powder synthesis furnace..." Lin Yan pressed his hand against its wall, extending his Observation Haki inside to sense its internal structure.
At its core was a high-temperature, high-pressure reaction chamber filled with various chemical powders. Under normal conditions, these powders would synthesize Dance Powder at a specific temperature. But if that temperature went out of control...
"Overload."
Crimson-gold flames poured from Lin Yan's palm, their temperature instantly rising to three thousand degrees!
The furnace began to glow red and warp. Inside, the pressure gauge needle swung wildly, soon passing the safety threshold.
"Everyone, get back!" Lin Yan shouted.
Ace, Isuka, and Robin swiftly retreated to the riverbed entrance.
Lin Yan took one last look at the reactor, then turned and rushed into the air using Geppo.
The instant he left, the furnace ruptured.
Boooom-!!!!!!!
It was not an explosion, but a "release"-the accumulated high-temperature, high-pressure gas surged out like a volcanic eruption, blasting the entire production line, all the materials, every piece of equipment, and the dried-up pool into the ceiling!
Flames, fragments, and chemical dust mixed into a terrifying compound shock wave. But Lin Yan spread a flame barrier across the exit, containing the entire shock wave within the underground space without letting any of it reach the surface.
A minute later, the dust settled.
The underground space was a wreck. The production line was completely ruined, and the dangerous chemical materials had either burned or been buried, unable to produce Dance Powder ever again.
"Mission complete." Lin Yan landed and brushed the dust off himself. "Let's go. We'll get out of here before dark."
The four quickly withdrew.
Ten minutes after they left, a squad of Baroque Works reinforcements arrived. At the sight before him, their leader, Mr. 2 Bon Clay, turned livid.
"Report to the boss immediately!" he roared at his subordinates. "The Katorea factory...has been destroyed!"
At the same time, in Alubarna, Alabasta's capital.
Inside the palace, King Cobra paced anxiously in his study. His two daughters stood before him-Princess Vivi and her younger sister.
"Father, we can't hesitate any longer." Vivi wore a desert dress that allowed her to move freely, her gaze resolute. "Crocodile's plot has been exposed. We must unite every force we can. Since that 'Flame Emperor' dares declare war on Crocodile, he's our ally."
"But he's a pirate!" Cobra sighed. "Alabasta is one of the World Government Member States. If word gets out that we're cooperating with pirates..."
"That's still better than losing our country!" Vivi raised her voice. "Father, look outside! It hasn't rained in Alubarna for three months! The people are starving, and the oases are disappearing! Meanwhile, Crocodile is using Dance Powder to create artificial rain in Rainbase. He's clearly inciting rebellion!"
Cobra closed his eyes in anguish. How could he not know all this? But Crocodile was a Shichibukai, a "legal pirate" recognized by the World Government. Without conclusive evidence, Cobra could not touch him.
"Your Majesty." The captain of the guard entered the study. "A visitor requests an audience."
"Who?"
"She says...she represents the Flame Emperor Pirates."
Cobra and Vivi both froze.
"Show her in."
A few minutes later, a figure entered the study.
It was not the fierce pirate they had expected, but a young woman in a Marine uniform-Tashigi.
She gave Cobra a regulation Marine salute.
"Your Majesty, King of Alabasta, I am Tashigi, a petty officer from Marine Headquarters. I am currently accompanying the Flame Emperor Pirates as an 'observer.' On Captain Monkey D. Yan's orders, I have come to deliver a proposal for cooperation."
She handed over a document.
Cobra took it and opened it. Its contents were simple.
First, the Flame Emperor Pirates pledged not to harm any civilians or plunder any property during their stay in Alabasta.
Second, the Flame Emperor Pirates would assist Alabasta in exposing Crocodile's plot.
Third, upon success, Alabasta would grant all lawful research access concerning "ancient history."
"Lawful research access..." Cobra looked at Tashigi. "You want the Poneglyph?"
"Not 'want.' 'Study,'" Tashigi corrected him. "The captain said that Poneglyphs record not only the past, but also concern the world's future. As an ancient kingdom with the most complete historical heritage, Alabasta has a responsibility to bring the truth back to light."
Those words were artfully phrased-they stated the objective while giving the other side a graceful way to accept.
Cobra considered for a moment. "Why should I trust you?"
"Because of this." Tashigi handed him a Visual Den Den Mushi.
Cobra pressed the playback button.
The images showed the destruction of Katorea's underground factory. Lin Yan blocking the shock wave with a flame barrier had been clearly recorded.
"This is...what happened in Katorea three hours ago," Tashigi said. "Captain Flame Emperor has already destroyed Crocodile's Dance Powder factory and cut off his foothold in the west. Next, he will head to Rainbase to face Crocodile directly."
Vivi's eyes lit up. "Father! This is our chance!"
Cobra watched the black-haired young man's back in the recording and finally made his decision.
"...Very well. I agree to cooperate." He looked at Tashigi. "But I want to meet the Flame Emperor himself. Some matters must be discussed face-to-face."
"That can be arranged." Tashigi nodded. "The captain said he would reach Alubarna within three days. Before then, please make preparations, Your Majesty-Crocodile will strike back soon. He may use the charge of 'the king colluding with pirates' to incite the Rebel Army to attack the palace."
"I know." Cobra drew a deep breath. "I'll strengthen our defenses. Also..."
He looked at Vivi. "Go prepare 'that thing.'"
Vivi froze. "Father, do you mean..."
"Yes." Determination flashed in Cobra's eyes. "If Crocodile really dares to come, we'll show him that Alabasta's Royal Family isn't so easily pushed around."
Watching the father and daughter, Tashigi felt complicated emotions rise within her.
She had originally been a Marine. She should have stood with the World Government and regarded pirates as enemies. But along this journey, she had seen Crocodile's treachery, Alabasta's suffering, and Lin Yan's insistence on "doing only what is right."
Justice...what exactly is it?
Once again, she asked herself.
And this time, the answer no longer seemed so clear.
Before you continue