After eating and drinking their fill, the group walked out of the barbecue restaurant with their round, stuffed bellies.
The night breeze at Rainbase Port dispersed some of the heat from the day. Crocodile exhaled a puff of smoke and moved closer to Luffy without making it obvious, beginning his recruitment plan.
"Straw Hat," Crocodile spoke warmly, with some of a host's hospitality, "It's getting late. I've already arranged a place for you to stay, at our base in Rainbase Port."
"Oh, oh, oh! Really? Thanks so much! Slick-Back, you're such a great guy!"
Luffy immediately raised both hands and cheered, his eyes shining.
"But..."
Crocodile changed his tone, raised one finger, and looked sharply past Luffy toward Sanji, who was standing at the edge of the group blowing smoke rings, "I have one condition. He can't come."
The smile on Luffy's face froze, and he tilted his head in confusion.
"Eh? Why? Sanji's our cook!"
"Because of his identity."
Crocodile sneered and bluntly pointed it out in front of everyone, "He's Rosse's son! In other words, that usurper who treats human lives like weeds is his biological sister!"
"Our base is full of suffering people oppressed by the World Government. How could we let an enemy like him stay there? This concerns our very survival, and it would also be unfair to those suffering people."
Luffy froze. His mind seemed to be struggling to process the complicated relationship between both sides, and he hesitated for a moment.
"Heh!"
Sanji gave a disdainful laugh when he heard this, then ground out his cigarette under his dress shoe.
"You make it sound like I want to go to your base. I didn't want to go in the first place. With that free time, I'd rather find the most luxurious hotel at the port and get a good night's sleep."
"The most luxurious hotel? That's all you aspire to."
Crocodile's tone was full of mockery, but he knew Luffy's weakness all too well. He deliberately raised his voice and said slowly, "Straw Hat, don't underestimate our base. It may not be a grand hotel, but the accommodations are definitely more spacious and comfortable than the best hotels. Most importantly, we have a restaurant that's open to everyone, operating twenty-four hours a day."
Crocodile paused, clearly enunciating his final words, "The finest barbecue, available twenty-four hours a day, with NO! LIMIT!"
"Meat?"
At that word, the hesitation in Luffy's eyes instantly disappeared. It was as if lightning had struck him. His eyes practically turned into two enormous pieces of barbecue, drool pouring onto the ground as even his soul seemed ready to float toward that so-called twenty-four-hour restaurant.
But Luffy was the only person there who was tempted.
Everyone else didn't care about the things Crocodile was talking about. Some of them even wanted to laugh.
Wasn't Crocodile saying all this just to drive the others away?
The reason was probably very simple.
After all, Luffy was the Ancient Weapon.
"Mr. Crocodile..."
Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Koza immediately stepped forward to play peacemaker, "Actually, it isn't that serious. Since Sanji is Luffy's companion, why not let him come along? I guarantee there won't be any problems..."
"No."
Crocodile's tone was firm, directly shutting Koza down, "This is a matter of principle. Either the World Government's crown prince doesn't come, or none of you go to that base. I'll find you somewhere else to sleep."
Now it was Luffy's turn to be completely at a loss.
He grabbed his head with both hands and crouched down painfully.
On one side was Sanji, his companion who had sailed out to sea with him. On the other was Crocodile, who had just kept calling them companions fighting against tyranny at the tavern, and who also had unlimited barbecue.
Simple-minded Luffy felt like his brain was about to burn up. He simply couldn't choose.
He cared deeply about his companions.
But whenever two companions came into conflict, he had no idea how to decide.
Moreover, deep down, he actually had a slightly better impression of Crocodile than Sanji.
Sometimes, Sanji's indifferent attitude was completely impossible to hide.
While Luffy was struggling painfully, Sanji simply shoved both hands into his pockets, put another unlit cigarette between his lips, and turned to walk away.
"All right, stop embarrassing yourself over there, Luffy. I'll figure out my own accommodations."
Without looking back, Sanji threw out in a drawn-out tone, "It's only natural that they wouldn't take a dangerous criminal like me to their base."
At that, Sanji stopped and slightly turned his head toward the other companions, "Hey, do you guys want to come with me? I'll pay for the hotel."
"Ah! The weather's really nice today. The bed at a luxury hotel must be really soft."
Nami was the first to start walking, following Sanji without the slightest hesitation.
"Sounds good. My swords need a quiet place to be maintained, too."
Zoro yawned and naturally changed direction, walking on Sanji's left.
"Wait for me! I, Captain Usopp, also think that occasionally enjoying the corruption of wealth is a form of training!"
Usopp ran after the group with his bag on his back.
For the smart ones among the Straw Hat crew, was there even a choice to make?
Follow the scheming Crocodile to the rebel base?
How could that possibly compare to following the World Government's crown prince to mooch off a top luxury hotel for free?
"Eh? You guys... why are you all leaving?"
Seeing the entire group instantly switch sides and leave him all alone, Luffy hurriedly reached out to call them back.
If they were all leaving, he didn't want to stay either.
But before he could even finish shouting the first word, a thick arm wrapped around his shoulders.
Crocodile held Luffy tightly, calling out earnestly and with a hint of heartbreak, "Look! Straw Hat, look! How can crewmates who abandon their captain at a critical moment and completely disregard their captain's wishes be considered true companions?"
Crocodile pulled Luffy closer to himself, looking as though they had met far too late in life, "If I were your crewmate, I'd listen to everything you said. I would never put you in such a difficult position."
"Besides, if they don't want to go to the base, they can sleep on the Going Merry. What kind of sense does it make to abandon their captain and stay at a hotel?"
His words sounded completely righteous and directly threw Luffy's thoughts into complete confusion.
Before Luffy could argue, Crocodile had already forcefully dragged him along, striding toward the direction of his base.
And in this absurd falling-out, there was ultimately only one person who pushed up his glasses and silently followed behind Luffy and Crocodile.
Kuro weighed the current situation and chose to quietly follow Luffy.
Things would be more interesting on Luffy's side.
He only wanted to move up.
As for everything else, he didn't care at all.
Under the night sky, Crocodile put an arm around Luffy, the corners of his mouth unable to suppress an arrogant and greedy smile.
Driving the others away? It was ridiculously easy.
His thoughts were clear and crazy.
The seemingly idiotic Straw Hat boy before him possessed the power of the Ancient Weapon.
And it wasn't just his Devil Fruit ability.
During the several days of sailing together aboard the ship, Crocodile had long since gotten Luffy's background down to the smallest detail under the guise of sparring and chatting.
The first time he heard those names, even someone as formidable as Crocodile couldn't help feeling his heart twitch hard several times.
'Good grief!'
'His biological father is Dragon, the former leader of the Revolutionary Army who gave the World Government a headache.'
'His grandfather is Garp, an admiral of the NEO Marine in the New World.'
'His sworn elder brother is one of the Four Emperors of the New World, the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates.'
And the person who had led him onto the path of becoming a pirate was actually Shanks the Red-Haired, the strongest pirate in the East Blue, known as the Pirate King of the East Blue.
In Crocodile's eyes, with this background, he was already no worse than Sanji.
Even if this kid really was nothing more than a clueless mascot, as long as he kept him in his hands and made a little use of the resources behind him... taking over mere Arabasta might not be impossible.
Pluton was destined to belong to him.
"Let's go, Straw Hat."
Ambition flashed coldly in Crocodile's eyes, "Tonight's meat is unlimited!"
The night grew deeper as the noise of Rainbase Port was left behind.
Crocodile led Luffy and Kuro through several hidden streets, turning this way and that, before finally stopping in front of an enormous, old-fashioned estate.
Tall stone walls, an ornate iron gate, lush greenery visible through the gaps, and even a clear fountain that could be considered extravagant in a desert country.
As he walked in front, Luffy was still thinking about the companions he had just parted ways with, "Slick-Back, do you think Sanji and the others will run into danger at the luxury hotel? That guy is pretty strong, but what if that scary woman comes again..."
Crocodile took a drag from his cigar, the corners of his mouth curling into a calculating smile.
Of course he knew that meat alone wasn't enough to tie down this Straw Hat boy who valued his companions so highly. He needed to add some seasoning.
"Straw Hat, do you think those World Government privileged elites would make things difficult for distinguished guests staying at a luxury hotel? The people they're really going to come down hard on are poor people like us who don't even have a place to stay."
Crocodile appropriately put on a heavy expression of concern for the country and its people, pointing at the estate walls as he sighed:
"Everyone staying at this base is a civilian who was driven into a corner by tyranny. And those royal guards of Arabasta, fattened by their generous benefits, are like hyenas that smell blood. They often come harass and arrest us in the middle of the night."
"Eh? They come to arrest people?"
Luffy's sense of justice immediately flared up when he heard that.
"That's right."
Crocodile patted Luffy on the shoulder, "I didn't bring you here just to treat you to meat. With a powerful captain like you here, we can protect more innocent people."
"So I'm planning to give you tonight's guard duty around the estate. Whether the guards come or not, we have to make all the preparations in advance. What, are you scared? If you are, go back and find your crew."
With this perfect combination of sympathy for the weak, provocation, and entrusting him with an important task, simple-minded Luffy instantly took the bait.
"What are you talking about? Of course I'm not scared!"
Luffy pounded his chest with loud thumps. His earlier worries about his companions leaving had already been thrown to the ends of the earth. Full of fighting spirit, he shouted, "Leave it to me! Anyone who dares to come bully the people here tonight, I'll punch them all away! As long as... as long as there's enough meat!"
"Heh! Heh! Of course. There'll be plenty of meat."
Watching Luffy enthusiastically get led away by Crocodile's lies, Kuro, who had been silently following behind them, quietly pushed up his glasses.
He didn't expose Crocodile's trick. Instead, he kept to his own pace and, as he walked, discreetly used the corner of his eye to inspect every detail of the estate.
The place was decorated far too lavishly. Expensive stone, exquisite wood carvings, and even the lampshades on the streetlights were inlaid with costly colored glass.
Kuro turned his head toward Koza, who was walking beside him, and spoke in a casual tone, "Mr. Koza, finding such a large and impressive place to use as a secret base in a port city with such strict controls must have cost quite a bit of money, right?"
"Hahahaha! Cost money?"
Koza laughed heartily and waved his hand, "To tell you the truth, Brother Kuro, we didn't spend a single cent on this place."
Kuro raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Oh? You didn't spend any money?"
"Of course not!"
Koza proudly puffed out his chest, "My public identity is the Minister of Environment of Arabasta. This is the official residence and estate Arabasta assigned to me according to regulations. How about it? Pretty large and well hidden for a base, right?"
Kuro's steps faltered almost a little.
He stared at Koza as if he were looking at an alien. After a full two seconds of silence, he asked somewhat speechlessly, "So you're using the official residence Arabasta assigned to you as a rebel base for plotting to overthrow Arabasta? And you're completely at ease accepting gifts from the enemy? Is that really okay?"
"Of course it's okay!"
Koza had no psychological burden whatsoever. His eyes instead became even more determined, "Lady Nico once taught us that these are sugar-coated bullets and corruption released by the enemy to numb us! But we absolutely won't fall for it!"
"We're going to accept all the benefits these villains give us, turn them into strength for ourselves, and then use those resources to crush them."
Hearing this outrageous argument delivered with such conviction, Kuro, who was known for his meticulous thinking, felt his brain freeze for a moment.
'There's no saving them...'
Kuro shook his head inside.
They lived in a luxurious estate assigned by the government, received generous government subsidies, ate supplies delivered by the government, and then turned around and shouted that the World Government was oppressing their human rights, that it wasn't legitimate, and that they were going to rebel against the government, did these people really understand what they were rebelling against?
Under this extremely sick high-welfare rule, these so-called rebels were less like oppressed warriors and more like spoiled ingrates.
Kuro didn't waste any more time on the subject. His gaze passed through the iron gate and swept across the interior of the estate.
A bonfire was burning in the front courtyard. At least several hundred rebels had gathered around it, eating large amounts of meat and drinking heavily. The atmosphere was so lively that it looked like a banquet.
'This is really... way too well hidden!'
[T/N: A new fanfic is up guys— "Naruto: Transmigrating with a Gift Pack System" so add it to your collections and give some Powerstones. Have a great day, hope you enjoy it~ 🎉🎉]