The following morning, the Kingdom of Sand greeted them with another cloudless sky.
The sun had barely climbed above the eastern horizon, yet the dry heat already seeped into every corner of Nanohana. Warm desert winds drifted through the streets, carrying the scent of salt, sand, and distant spices from the harbor market. Merchants reopened their stalls, fishermen hauled in the morning's catch, and travelers prepared for another long journey across the endless dunes.
To anyone passing by...
It looked like an ordinary morning.
Inside a modest inn overlooking the harbor, however, the ART Pirates were finishing breakfast before beginning the assignments Arthur had given them the day before.
Sugar groaned dramatically as she dropped her forehead onto the wooden table.
"I've changed my mind... I don't like deserts." Nobody looked up.
"You decided that before we even left the harbor." Kuina calmly folded her napkin.
"Because I was right. The sun is trying to kill me." Sugar pointed accusingly toward the window.
"It hasn't even been an hour," Koala laughed.
"It feels like three days."
Across the room, Bepo slowly emptied another glass of water before letting out a long sigh.
"I think I've already sweated out everything I drank yesterday..."
"You probably have," Law replied without looking up from the newspaper he had purchased earlier that morning.
"...Can bears melt?" Bepo stared at the empty glass.
The question drew a few chuckles around the table.
"I suppose we'll find out before noon." Even Hancock smiled behind her teacup.
Baby-5 couldn't help laughing as she placed another pitcher of cold water in front of Bepo.
"I prepared extra."
"I had a feeling someone would need it."
"You're amazing, Baby-5..." Bepo said with genuine gratitude.
"I know."
Arthur finished his tea in silence before setting the cup aside.
"Time to move."
The lighthearted mood faded as everyone rose from their seats. There was no need to repeat yesterday's briefing.
Each group already knew where they were headed. After exchanging a few final reminders and confirming their Den Den Mushi frequencies, they stepped outside into the warm morning air.
Law, Sabo, and Bepo disappeared into the crowded marketplace near the harbor.
Monet, Hancock, and Baccarat joined a caravan bound for Rainbase, their figures gradually fading into the sea of travelers crossing the western desert.
Koala, Kuina, and Sugar rented a Sandora lizard-drawn carriage heading toward Alubarna.
Sugar was still complaining about the heat before the carriage had even left the city gates.
Her voice echoed all the way down the street.
One by one, they departed. Arthur watched until the last carriage disappeared into the distance. Then he turned toward Robin and Baby-5.
"Shall we?"
Robin fell into step beside him.
Baby-5 followed a step behind.
Together, the three of them left Nanohana behind, walking toward the endless golden desert stretching across the horizon. None of them noticed the pair of unfamiliar eyes watching from the rooftop of a nearby warehouse.
The figure remained hidden beneath a long cloak until the three silhouettes became little more than distant specks against the sand. Only then did he quietly disappear into the bustling streets.
Far away...
Deep beneath the glittering lights of Rainbase...
A Den Den Mushi slowly began to ring.
...
Far away...
Inside Alubarna Palace.
King Cobra stood beside the wide balcony overlooking the capital. From there, he could see the city slowly coming to life beneath the morning sun.
Yet his thoughts were elsewhere.
"...Still no word?"
The palace attendant lowered his head apologetically.
"No, Your Majesty."
"None from Princess Vivi."
Cobra remained silent. It had already been over a month since Vivi had secretly left the kingdom to investigate Baroque Works.
No letters.
No reports.
Nothing.
Only silence.
"Princess Vivi is resourceful. I'm certain she's safe with Igaram beside her." Pell stepped forward.
"I know." Cobra smiled faintly, though the worry in his eyes remained.
"I've always believed in her." He looked toward the endless desert beyond the city walls.
"But she's still my daughter."
"No father can remain at ease after a month without hearing from his child."
The room fell quiet. Even Chaka and Pell lowered their eyes.
They shared the same concern.
Vivi had chosen the most dangerous path imaginable, infiltrating a criminal organization whose true leader remained unknown to almost everyone in the kingdom.
All they could do now...
...was wait.
A hurried knock suddenly echoed through the chamber. A royal guard entered before dropping to one knee.
"Your Majesty."
"What is it?" Cobra turned.
"The ART Pirates have left Nanohana. They've split into several groups."
"And The Art of Death Arthur?" Pell instinctively straightened.
The guard swallowed.
"According to our scouts..."
"...he's on his way to Alubarna."
Silence settled over the chamber once again.
Cobra slowly exhaled.
"So..."
"...he's coming after all." He turned toward the palace entrance.
"Prepare the audience chamber."
"If the Uncrowned Emperor has come to speak..."
"...I intend to hear what he has to say."
Outside, beneath the brilliant desert sky... three figures continued their long journey across the sands.
With every step they took... the distance between Arthur and the King of Alabasta grew shorter.
And neither of them realized... that another pair of eyes was already watching them from the shadows.
...
The further they traveled from Nanohana...
The quieter the world became.
Gone were the bustling streets and crowded marketplaces. In their place stretched an endless sea of golden dunes beneath a blazing sky. The road toward Alubarna was little more than a winding trail carved by countless caravans over the years, disappearing and reappearing beneath drifting sand.
Occasionally, a merchant caravan passed in the opposite direction.
Sometimes they exchanged polite greetings.
More often...
They simply kept walking. Everyone seemed to be conserving both water and hope.
Robin quietly took in every detail. She had crossed deserts before, but none had felt quite like this one. Alabasta wasn't empty.
It was exhausted.
Hours passed beneath the relentless sun. The first village they encountered looked abandoned at first glance. Only after entering did they realize people still lived there. A cracked well stood at the center of the square.
Its bucket rested at the bottom.
Dry.
Several women waited nearby with empty clay jars, yet none of them bothered lowering another rope. They already knew there was nothing left to draw.
Children sat beneath the narrow shade of a dead tree, too tired even to play.
No one complained.
No one cried.
They had simply grown accustomed to disappointment.
"...How long has it been since it rained here?" Baby-5 slowed her steps.
"Long enough for people to stop waiting for rain." Arthur glanced toward the empty well.
They continued walking.
Not far beyond the village, they found a caravan preparing to leave.
Families loaded the last of their belongings onto wagons pulled by giant lizards. Furniture, blankets, cooking pots, and sacks of grain were stacked together without order, as though people had packed in desperate haste.
One elderly man paused beside the road.
He looked back toward the small house he was leaving behind.
For several long moments...
He simply stood there. Then, without a word, he climbed aboard the wagon. The caravan slowly disappeared into the desert.
Robin watched until the final wagon vanished beyond the dunes.
"They're abandoning their home..."
"Some villages no longer have enough water to survive." Arthur nodded.
"...So they leave." His answer was calm.
Almost too calm.
Robin understood why.
After seeing enough tragedies...
Even sorrow could become familiar. The road gradually climbed higher. By midday, the white walls of Alubarna finally appeared on the horizon.
Unlike the villages scattered across the desert, the royal capital stood proud beneath the brilliant sunlight. Tall towers overlooked massive stone walls, elegant fountains decorated the outer plazas, and rows of date palms lined the broad avenues leading toward the palace.
From a distance...
It looked untouched by hardship. Yet appearances faded as they entered the city. At first glance, the capital seemed untouched. The fountains still flowed. The gardens remained green.
But conversations stopped whenever the words "rain" or "rebellion" were spoken. Royal soldiers patrolled every major street. Posters calling for order had been nailed to walls throughout the city.
Several buildings still bore scars from recent riots.
A broken window here.
A burned storefront there.
No one needed to explain what had happened.
The city carried its own memories.
Robin looked around slowly.
"So even the capital isn't at peace..."
"No."
Arthur continued walking without slowing.
"The closer a kingdom comes to collapse..."
"...the quieter its capital becomes."
Baby-5 frowned.
"I thought people would panic."
"They already did."
Arthur's gaze drifted toward a nearby patrol.
"What you're seeing now..."
"...is what comes afterward."
Silence.
Fear.
Waiting.
No one spoke again.
The palace gates soon came into view.
Towering white walls rose above them, flanked by rows of royal guards standing at attention beneath banners bearing the crest of the Nefertari Family.
The moment Arthur stepped into the open plaza...
Every guard instinctively stiffened. Hands moved toward sword hilts. Spears lowered slightly.
Not because they intended to attack—
But because none of them wanted to make the wrong move.
The captain of the palace guard quickly stepped forward. His expression remained composed despite the visible tension in his eyes.
"Captain Phantasm D. Arthur."
"I've come to request an audience with His Majesty." Arthur inclined his head politely.
The captain hesitated. Under ordinary circumstances, no pirate—especially an Emperor—would ever be granted such a request. But Arthur wasn't an ordinary pirate.
And King Cobra's orders from the previous day echoed clearly in every guard's mind.
If they request an audience... they will be received as guests.
"I'll inform His Majesty immediately."
"We'll wait." Arthur nodded once.
The captain disappeared through the palace gates at a brisk pace. Several guards remained nearby, watching the three visitors carefully.
Not with hostility.
With curiosity.
"They're afraid of you." Robin noticed it immediately.
"Not really." Arthur smiled faintly.
"They're afraid of making the wrong decision."
Robin considered those words as silence settled over the plaza once more. Only the sound of flowing water from the nearby fountain broke the stillness.
A few minutes later...
The massive palace doors swung open. The same captain returned, stopping several steps before Arthur.
"His Majesty will receive you."
"Thank you." Arthur gave a courteous nod.
Without another word, the three of them crossed the palace threshold. Behind them, the heavy doors closed with a deep echo that resonated through the marble hall. Ahead lay the royal audience chamber.
And with it...
The first conversation that could quietly alter the future of the Kingdom of Sand.
...
The royal audience chamber was far less extravagant than Robin had expected.
Its marble pillars stood tall beneath a vaulted ceiling painted with scenes of Alabasta's long history. Sunlight streamed through towering windows, illuminating the room with a warm golden glow. At its center sat King Cobra upon a modest throne, flanked by Pell, Chaka, and Igaram.
None of them appeared relaxed.
Even after granting the audience...
Their eyes never strayed far from Arthur.
Cobra was the first to speak.
"Welcome to Alubarna."
"Thank you for receiving us, Your Majesty." Arthur inclined his head politely.
"I couldn't very well refuse." A faint smile crossed Cobra's face.
"The moment I learned you had entered my kingdom without harming a single civilian..."
"...I became curious."
"I've never had any interest in conquering kingdoms." Arthur returned the smile.
"I know." Cobra's answer came without hesitation.
"Otherwise, Alabasta wouldn't still be standing."
The atmosphere softened ever so slightly. Even Pell's rigid posture relaxed.
Arthur stepped forward and reached into his coat before placing a small Eternal Pose, its destination deliberately left unlabeled, on the table between them.
The needle pointed steadily west.
"I came to ask about this."
The room instantly fell silent. Pell's eyes narrowed. Chaka exchanged a brief glance with Igaram. Cobra looked down at the Eternal Pose for several long seconds before raising his eyes again.
"...Where did you obtain this?"
"Is it important where I got this?" Arthur shook his head.
"I only know such a place exists, and I want to gather information before taking my crew there."
Robin noticed the subtle change in Cobra's expression.
It wasn't fear.
It was surprise.
After a long silence, Cobra exhaled quietly.
"There is an island." He slowly rose from his throne and walked toward one of the large windows overlooking Alubarna.
"It doesn't appear on any Log Pose of the seven routes at Paradise."
"Only the Alabasta royal family possesses an Eternal Pose leading there."
"It's an old place."
"Almost forgotten."
"What kind of island is it?" Robin listened carefully.
"If history has been kind..." Cobra smiled faintly.
"...then little more than ruins remain."
"So it really exists." Arthur nodded.
"It does."
Cobra turned back toward him.
"But I still don't understand."
"If your purpose wasn't Laughtale..."
"...why seek that island?"
"I enjoy exploring places the world has forgotten." Arthur answered without hesitation.
The answer drew a small laugh from Cobra.
"Strangely enough..." The chamber grew still.
"I believe you. There is something I wish to ask you as well, descendant of the Anemone Family." Cobra's expression turned serious once more. Arthur met his gaze.
"You know what's happening in my kingdom."
"You know far more than any outsider should."
"You even knew about an island that almost no one remembers."
He paused.
"So tell me..."
"...why haven't you helped us?"
Robin glanced toward Arthur.
It was the same question she had asked yesterday.
Only now...
It came from a king carrying the weight of an entire nation.
Arthur remained silent for a moment.
Then he looked beyond the open window, where the white rooftops of Alubarna stretched beneath the afternoon sun.
"Because this is your kingdom." His voice was calm.
"Not mine."
"If I remove every obstacle standing before humanity..."
"...humanity will never learn to walk on its own."
Cobra lowered his eyes but said nothing.
Arthur continued.
"Crocodile isn't the disease."
"He's only the symptom."
"If another man can manipulate an entire nation after him..."
"...then nothing will truly have changed."
Robin watched Cobra carefully. For the first time since entering the palace, she saw uncertainty replace the composure of a king.
Arthur picked up the Eternal Pose from the table.
"I won't interfere."
"But I will leave you one piece of advice."
Cobra listened without speaking.
"Trust the people who have remained beside you."
"Pell, Chaka, Igaram."
"Vivi... and her friends."
Arthur's eyes shifted toward each of them.
"When the time comes..."
"...don't hesitate."
No further explanation followed.
None was needed.
Cobra slowly inclined his head.
"I understand."
Arthur gave a respectful nod before turning toward the exit. Robin and Baby-5 followed.
No one tried to stop them.
The massive palace doors closed quietly behind the three visitors.
As they descended the long staircase leading away from the palace, Robin finally broke the silence.
"You already knew the answer."
"I knew most of it." Arthur glanced at her.
"But not all." He raised the Eternal Pose between two fingers.
"I came here to confirm the parts history never recorded."
Robin smiled faintly. No book in Ohara had ever taught her that. History wasn't only written in stone.
Sometimes...
it lived within the people who chose to protect it.
The three continued down the palace road as the afternoon sun slowly began its descent toward the western horizon.
Behind them...
King Cobra remained standing beside the window, watching Arthur disappear into the city.
"Do you trust him?" Pell stepped beside him.
Cobra did not answer immediately.
Instead, he looked toward the distant desert beyond the capital walls.
"I trust..."
"...that he could have taken this kingdom today."
His gaze remained fixed on the horizon.
"And chose not to."
...
Deep beneath the glittering lights of Rainbase. A Den Den Mushi clicked to life.
"Mr. 0." The cloaked agent knelt on one knee.
"The audience has ended."
"And?" Crocodile sat motionless behind his desk.
"Arthur met King Cobra. He stayed less than an hour. He left peacefully."
Silence.
Crocodile slowly removed the cigar from his mouth.
"...Interesting."
"What did they discuss?"
"We couldn't hear."
No one answered immediately.
Then...
For the first time since Arthur arrived in Alabasta...
Crocodile stood.
His heavy hook scraped softly against the stone floor as he walked toward the window overlooking Rainbase.
Outside, the casino bustled with life.
Inside...
His instincts warned him otherwise.
"He came all the way here..."
"...just to speak with Cobra."
A faint smile formed beneath the cigar.
"No."
"I don't believe that."
He turned toward the kneeling agent.
"Prepare my carriage."
The agent blinked.
"Sir?"
Crocodile's eyes narrowed.
"If Arthur won't make the first move..."
"...then I will."
The setting sun bathed Alabasta in crimson light. One Emperor walked away from the royal palace. One Warlord left the safety of his casino.
Neither sought battle. Yet both were already moving toward the same destination.
The next meeting would no longer be through spies...
It would be face to face.
...
Far away...
Beyond the western coastline of Alabasta...
A lone vessel skimmed across the sea.
Unlike ordinary ships, it carried neither sails nor oars. Flames burst rhythmically from its stern, propelling the small craft across the calm waters at remarkable speed. The waves hissed into clouds of steam each time the blazing fire touched the ocean's surface.
Only one man stood aboard. He wore an orange hat adorned with two familiar smiling faces.
The young pirate gazed toward the desert kingdom rising beyond the horizon.
His expression remained calm.
But beneath that calm...
His eyes searched relentlessly.
At last, the strange vessel reached the shoreline. The flames faded. Its wooden hull slid gently onto the sand before coming to a stop. The man stepped ashore without hesitation.
Warm desert wind stirred the beads hanging around his neck as he looked toward the endless dunes stretching inland.
"So..."
He smiled faintly.
"This is Alabasta."
He adjusted the backpack slung over one shoulder before beginning the long walk toward the kingdom. Each step left a clear footprint upon the untouched sand.
A single name echoed through his thoughts.
Marshall D. Teach.
He had followed that trail across half the Grand Line. And he had no intention of giving up now.
Unaware that another Emperor had already arrived...
Unaware that Crocodile's plans were beginning to unravel...
The young commander continued walking beneath the blazing desert sun.
Three powerful pirates.
Three completely different objectives.
One kingdom.
And history was about to choose only one path.