Mikita, also known as Miss Valentine, leaned against the stone rail, chewing on chocolate shaped like a heart. "Sooo, what do we gotta do now?" she asked with a playful smile, her eyes turning towards the calm man beside her.
Gem, known as Mr. 5, adjusted his shades and stretched his arms with a yawn. "Yeah, Captain Smoker. We work for you now. Just tell us what we need to do. You're the boss."
Smoker stood with his arms crossed, his white coat hanging over his muscular chest. Two cigars burned slowly in his mouth as smoke drifted upward.
"I'm sure Baroque Works is behind this rebellion," he said. "But I don't want theories. I need proof. Real evidence. If you two really were elite agents, then give me some evidence that I can use."
Mikita and Gem exchanged a quick look.
Mikita stopped chewing. Her smile faded a little. "...It's true," she finally said, her voice low but serious. "Baroque Works is the one causing this rebellion."
Gem rubbed the back of his head and sighed. "We agents were the ones who helped make it happen too. I won't pretend we didn't. But if you want proof... it's at Rainbase."
Smoker stared at the two of them for a long moment, then gave a sharp nod. "Alright. We move out. Now."
Mikita groaned. "Ugh, now?! Like right now right now? Can we at least catch our breath or—"
"No," Smoker replied, already turning. "Now."
---
The desert stretched forever, and the heat only got worse the farther they went.
But Smoker didn't slow down. His body constantly shifted into thin smoke as he walked, keeping him cool no matter how high the sun burned.
Gem followed along without breaking a sweat, whistling to himself and tossing mini explosions into the air like firecrackers. "Heat like this doesn't even tickle," he said with a cocky grin. "Perks of my powers."
"Focus. Stop playing around," Smoker said.
"Relax, Captain," Gem replied. "We're just walking. It's not like someone's gonna attack us."
Meanwhile...
"Ughhhh, I'm melting~!"
Mikita trailed behind them, dragging her feet and fanning herself with both hands. Her torn parasol drooped from her wrist, useless in the sun. Her hat sat sideways on her head, and her face was flushed red.
"My poor, delicate, chocolate-making skin!" she wailed. "How can anyone live in this oven?! I swear I saw my soul leave my body five minutes ago!"
"You didn't have a soul to begin with," Gem muttered.
"Captain Smooookeeer~!" Mikita cried out, then suddenly ran forward to cling to his arm dramatically. "You're made of smoke, right? Let me stay inside you! I'll live in the cool air with your manly cigar scent!"
Smoker didn't even blink. "Let go, or I'll disperse and let you fall."
"Ooh~ Dangerous," Mikita purred, still clinging.
Gem snorted. "You're unbelievable."
"You're just jealous because Smoker's way cooler than you," Mikita teased.
"Yeah, and less annoying than you," Gem replied.
Smoker sighed and turned his body to smoke. Mikita yelped as she slipped through him and faceplanted in the sand.
"Bwaaahh! Not the face!"
"You did that to yourself," Smoker said.
---
After a long trek, they reached Rainbase. The noise of the casino was nearby, but the group turned away from it and slipped into a quieter alley behind it.
"This place again…" Mikita muttered. "Creeps me out."
Behind the casino sat a dusty, old pyramid that most people ignored. The group entered and descended into the stone halls. Mikita wiped her brow and leaned against the wall. "Ugh... finally... I'm not dead."
"This is it," Gem said. "Our old hideout. We used to meet here when Baroque Works didn't want anyone listening in."
They led Smoker deeper inside, down a narrow stairway into a dark chamber filled with crates.
Gem popped open one of the crates. Green powder spilled out like soft, fine sand.
Smoker narrowed his eyes. "This is...?"
"Dance Powder," Mikita said. Her voice had lost its usual playfulness. "We used this stuff to control where the rain fell. We'd take it from one place... and dump it all in another."
"We made it rain here in Rainbase," Gem added. "For everyone else, we made sure they got nothing. We told the people the king was hoarding the rain using this stuff."
"And they believed it," Mikita said. "We made it look like the king was the reason the country dried up. That's when people started rebelling."
Smoker stepped forward and crouched next to the powder, rubbing some between his fingers. "So this whole rebellion was fake. Engineered from the start."
"Yeah," Gem said. "It was all part of Project Utopia. Mr. 0's big plan to 'save' the country. By taking it over."
"He wants to rule Alabasta," Mikita said, arms crossed. "And turn it into a utopia."
Smoker stood, his expression unreadable. "And who is this Mr. 0?"
Gem shrugged. "Beats me. We never saw his face."
"Never even heard his real name," Mikita added. "He was always in the shadows. All orders came from above, through codes or calls."
Smoker stared at the crate. Of course he didn't tell his own people who he was, he thought. That guy's one of the smart villains of One Piece.
---
Back in Nanohana, Tashigi was kneeling on the ground, tying ropes around two struggling agents—Miss Wednesday and Mr. 9.
"Stop wriggling," she muttered, tightening the knot.
"Let go!" Miss Wednesday shouted. "You don't understand! I have something to say!"
"You tried to stab me in the back," Tashigi said, fixing her glasses. "You're not in a position to say anything."
"I only did that because—okay, fine, listen! I'm not just Miss Wednesday!" she cried out. "I'm Princess Vivi of Alabasta!"
Mr. 9 froze. "Wait, what?!"
Tashigi stopped mid-knot. "You're… who?"
Vivi took a deep breath. "I've been undercover in Baroque Works. I joined them to find out the truth behind the rebellion. I knew they were behind it… I just couldn't prove it."
Tashigi looked at her face for a long time. Then slowly, she reached for her sword and cut the rope.
Vivi sighed in relief and rubbed her wrists. "Thank you. If you believe me, I can take you to a place. There's something you need to see."
---
Moments later, the two of them were riding on Karoo, Vivi's loyal super-speed duck, headed toward Rainbase.
Inside the casino of Rainbase, lights flashed and people cheered. Vivi and Tashigi sat at a quiet table near the edge of the room.
"Look around," Vivi whispered. "Everyone's happy. There's money. There's water. There's rain."
Tashigi frowned. "But why only here?"
"That's the point," Vivi said. "This place didn't have water before. But a few years ago... it became rich. Prosperous."
"And this place belongs to...?" Tashigi asked, though she already feared the answer.
"Crocodile," Vivi said. "The Warlord of the Sea. Everyone calls him a hero. But I think... he's Mr. 0."
Tashigi gasped. "Crocodile?!"
---
Beneath their table, a tiny ear twitched. A human ear grew from the wood and listened quietly.
Far above the casino, in a quiet room, Nico Robin sat on a velvet couch, flipping a page in her book.
"So," she said, calm and thoughtful. "Miss Wednesday was Princess Vivi after all. And now she's working with a Marine."
Across from her, Crocodile sat in his chair, a cigar between his fingers.
"They're getting close to figuring out your identity," Robin added.
Crocodile smirked. "Are they?"
He stood and flicked ash onto a nearby tray. "Then I suppose it's time."
Robin tilted her head. "Time for what?"
Crocodile turned toward the window, watching the neon lights of Rainbase flicker in the distance.
"Time to welcome our guests."