The double mahogany doors of the Rain Dinners Casino were thrown open, and a young man in a straw hat stood silhouetted against the desert night, looking like a vengeful god of destruction.
"CROCODILE!!"
Luffy's voice was a sonic boom. It cut through the ambient jazz, the chime of slot machines, and the murmur of a thousand conversations.
"I KNOW YOU'RE HERE! COME OUT! I'M GONNA KICK YOUR ASS!"
For exactly three seconds, the casino froze.
The roulette ball stopped rattling. The card dealers froze mid-shuffle. Every eye in the massive, gold-gilded pyramid turned to the entrance. The silence was absolute. It was the heavy, suffocating silence of a saloon right before a shootout.
Luffy stood there, chest heaving, fists clenched, waiting for the Warlord to descend from the ceiling or explode out of the floor.
One second passed.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
Then, a man at a nearby craps table shrugged, shook his dice, and yelled, "Baby needs a new pair of shoes!"
The roulette wheel spun up again. The jazz band resumed their tune, slightly faster this time. The waiter began fillinng up glasses. The ambient noise returned to a roar.
Luffy blinked. He looked left. He looked right.
Nobody cared.
In a city like Rainbase, amidst the desperation of the desert, a crazy person screaming at the door wasn't an event; it was Tuesday.
"Eh?" Luffy tilted his head, his intimidation aura deflating instantly.
Usopp peeked out from behind Luffy's legs, his knees knocking together. "M-Maybe he's not here, Luffy? Or maybe... maybe we should keep our voices down? This place looks expensive. If we break a vase, we'll be in debt for three lifetimes!"
"But I want to fight the sand-guy!" Luffy whined.
Ben stepped forward, he lit a cigarette, his eyes scanning the floor. He saw the layout: pit bosses watching from the shadows, cameras in the ceiling, and a general air of organized crime masked by luxury.
"He's here," Ben said calmly. "But he's watching. He thinks we're just disorganized pests. He won't come down for a screaming match."
"So what do we do?" Nami hissed, clutching her climatact. "We can't just search the place. It's huge!"
Ben smirked, exhaling a cloud of smoke. "Crocodile is a businessman, right? He runs a casino. Nothing hurts a casino owner more than losing money. If we cause a scene, security throws us out. But if we win... if we win so much that we empty the vault... he has to come down personally to stop the bleeding."
Luffy's eyes turned into stars. "So... we play games?"
"We play games," Ben confirmed. "We gamble until the house breaks."
Nami's eyes narrowed. The Berry symbols appeared, but they were guarded by suspicion. She grabbed Ben's collar.
"Hold on. You want us to gamble my treasure in the enemy's territory? The house always wins, Ben! That's the rule! Are you trying to make us broke before we die?"
"Trust me," Ben tapped his temple. "I have a system. Besides, look at the Captain. Does he look like someone who follows the laws of probability?"
Nami looked at Luffy, who was currently trying to eat a poker chip he found on the floor.
"Fair point," Nami sighed. She reached into her cleavage and pulled out a heavy pouch of Berries—the crew's allowance.
She handed a small stack to Luffy, a stack to Usopp, and kept a large stack for herself.
"Listen to me! This is an investment! If you lose this money, I will charge you 300% interest! Do not lose!"
"Sanji, Zoro," Ben turned to the fighters. "You guys mingle. Keep an eye out for security."
"On it," Sanji said, his voice drifting.
He was already floating away, hearts in his eyes. In the corner, near the VIP lounge, a beautiful waitress in a bunny outfit was waving a tray of cocktails.
"MELLORINE!" Sanji squealed, turning into a noodle of love. "Wait for me, my desert flower! I shall order every drink on the menu!"
"Idiot cook," Zoro grumbled. "I'm going to find something drink."
Zoro looked around the confusing maze of flashing lights and spinning wheels.
"The bar should be... that way."
He pointed confidently at a wall of slot machines and began walking.
"Alright," Ben cracked his knuckles. "Let's break the bank."
---
Ben sat down at the High Rollers Texas Hold'em table. The buy-in was 500,000 Berries.
The other players were serious gamblers: a wealthy merchant from the Grand Line, a cowboy type chewing a toothpick, and a disguised Baroque Works Billions agent who was acting as the house 'cooler'.
"New blood," the Dealer said, shuffling the cards with fluid grace. "Buy in?"
Ben tossed a stack of bills onto the felt. "All of it."
The game began.
Ben didn't look at his cards. He sat back, his sunglasses reflecting the green felt.
He didn't need to look at his cards. He needed to look at theirs.
Legilimens.
He focused on the Merchant.
Image: Pair of Queens. Weak kicker. He's nervous about the cowboy.
He focused on the Cowboy.
Image: 2 and 7 off-suit. He's bluffing. He's going to raise big to scare the table.
He focused on the Billions Agent.
Image: Ace and King of Spades. A strong hand. He thinks, 'I'll trap this trench coat idiot.'
The Flop came: Queen of Hearts, 5 of Spades, 10 of Spades.
"Raise," the Cowboy grunted, pushing chips forward.
"Call," the Merchant sweated.
"Raise," the Agent smirked.
Ben smiled. He hadn't checked his cards yet. He picked them up slowly.
Jack of Spades. 9 of Spades.
He had a straight draw and a flush draw.
"Re-raise," Ben said softly, pushing his entire stack forward.
The table went quiet.
The Agent stared at Ben. Is he crazy? Or does he have the straight already?
Ben projected a thought into the Agent's mind: I have the King and Queen. You're dead.
The Agent paled. He folded.
The Merchant folded.
The Cowboy, knowing he had nothing, folded angrily.
Ben raked in the massive pot without showing his cards.
"Beginner's luck," Ben said dryly.
Ten minutes later, Ben had cleared the table. He had a mountain of chips in front of him. The Pit Boss was watching him like a hawk, whispering into a transponder snail.
"Keep watching," Ben whispered to himself. "Call your boss."
---
"Come on, come on, come on!"
Nami sat in front of the 'Golden Crocodile' slot machine. Her eyes were spiraling.
She pulled the lever.
Whirrrrrr... Click. Click. Click.
Cherry. Cherry. Lemon.
"GAH!" Nami slammed her fist on the machine. "So close! One more lemon and it would have been a jackpot!"
She fed another bill into the machine.
"It's rigorous statistics," Nami muttered, her navigator brain trying to justify her gambling addiction. "The machine hasn't paid out in four hours. It's due. The probability curve has to spike!"
She pulled the lever.
Whirrrrrr... Click. Click. Click.
Bar. Bar. ...Fish bone.
"WHY IS THERE A FISH BONE?!" Nami shrieked, shaking the heavy machine. "That's not even on the pay table! This thing is rigged!"
A passing old lady pulled the lever on the machine next to Nami.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
JACKPOT!
Coins poured out in a waterfall of gold.
Nami froze. She looked at the old lady. She looked at her own machine.
A dark aura appeared around the Navigator.
"Ben..." she growled low in her throat. "If I lose this money... I'm selling your organs on the black market."
---
At the Blackjack table, the situation was descending into madness.
Usopp sat with his goggles down. He was sweating profusely.
"Okay," Usopp muttered. "The deck has 52 cards. Three face cards have passed. The probability of the next card being a 10 is 32.4%. My hand is 16. If I hit, the statistical likelihood of busting is high. Therefore, I stand."
"Stand," Usopp said firmly.
The dealer revealed his card. "18. House wins."
He swept Usopp's chips away.
"NO!" Usopp cried, clutching his head.
"Hit me!" Luffy shouted.
Luffy sat next to Usopp. He had a pile of chips so high he couldn't see over it.
Luffy's hand was showing a King and a 6. That's 16.
"Sir," the dealer said, sweat dripping down his nose. "You have 16. Are you sure you want to hit?"
"Yeah!" Luffy picked his nose. "Give me the meat card!"
The dealer dealt a card.
It was a 5.
Total: 21.
"Blackjack!" the dealer choked out.
"YAY!" Luffy cheered. "I win!"
Usopp stared at Luffy. "Luffy... how? How do you keep winning? You don't even know the rules!"
"I do too know the rules!" Luffy insisted, stacking his chips into a tower.
"Okay," Usopp challenged. "Explain them to me. Why did you hit on 16?"
Luffy looked at Usopp like he was stupid. "Because of the colors, Usopp. See, the King is wearing a red coat. And the 6 is red. So they are friends. If I got a black card, they would fight and I would lose."
Usopp's eyes popped out. "THAT'S NOT THE RULE!" he screamed. "Color has nothing to do with it! It's math! It's addition!"
"No it's not," Luffy waved him off. "And look, in the last hand, I had two Queens."
"That's 20! You should stand!"
"No," Luffy explained seriously. "The Queens are girls. And Sanji says we have to be nice to girls. So you can't leave them alone. You have to give them a friend. So I hit."
"YOU HIT ON 20?!" Usopp shrieked, attracting the attention of the pit boss. "You're insane! You should have busted!"
"But I got an Ace," Luffy grinned.
"Which counts as 1 or 11! That makes 21!" Usopp grabbed his own nose. "You hit on 20 and got the one card that saves you because of... chivalry?!"
"See?" Luffy laughed. "I'm good at this."
"Hit me again!" Luffy shouted for the next hand. He had a Jack and a King (20).
"Sir... please..." the dealer begged.
"Hit me!"
Card dealt: Ace.
"21!"
"GYAAAAH! STOP IT!" Usopp screamed. "THE MATH! THE MATH IS CRYING!"
Around the table, a crowd was gathering. They whispered in awe.
"Who is this guy?"
"He plays like a madman but he can't lose."
"Is he a genius?"
"No, look at his face. He's definitely an idiot. But a lucky idiot."
Luffy's stack of chips was now taller than Chopper. He looked at the Dealer.
"Hey, old guy! Where's the Crocodile? I'm winning all his money! Tell him to come down or I'll take the shiny statue too!"
Gary was trembling. He pressed the silent alarm under the table repeatedly. Boss... please come down. This kid is breaking reality.
----
Sanji drifted through the crowd, a trail of hearts following him.
The waitress, a woman named Camie (not the mermaid, just a coincidental human Camie), giggled as she led him toward the bar.
"Oh, sir, you're so gallant," she cooed, batting her eyelashes.
"Anything for a lady," Sanji swooned, lighting a cigarette with a flourish. "This casino is a desert, but you are the oasis! Can I get you anything? A fruit platter? A perfectly roasted lamb shank? My heart on a silver platter?"
"Just buy a drink, handsome," she winked.
Sanji slapped a stack of Nami's money on the counter. "Barkeep! The finest wine! And one for the lady! And one for every lady in this room!"
As Sanji engaged in aggressive philanthropy, he didn't notice the hulking men in suits slowly encircling him. He was too busy vibrating with joy.
"Best... mission... ever..."
---
Zoro walked with purpose.
His mission: Find a drink, maybe find a strong swordsman to fight, and keep an eye on Luffy.
He turned left at the slot machines.
"Too loud," he grunted.
He saw a sign that said <-- Restrooms | Bar -->
He looked at the arrow pointing Right for the Bar.
He went Left.
He walked down a hallway lined with plush red carpet.
"This hallway is long," Zoro muttered.
He turned right into a door marked Authorized Personnel Only.
"Must be the VIP lounge," Zoro reasoned.
He walked through a kitchen.
Chefs shouted at him. "Hey! You can't be in here!"
"I'm just looking for the booze," Zoro replied, walking past a boiling pot of soup and exiting through the back delivery door.
He stepped out.
The air was hot. The ground was paved. The sky was dark and full of stars.
Zoro looked around. He was in a dark alleyway behind the casino. A stray cat hissed at him.
Zoro blinked. He looked back at the door he just came through.
"Huh," Zoro scratched his green head. "This casino has a really open-concept floor plan. Where did the slot machines go?"
He looked down the street. He saw a neon sign for a pub three blocks away.
"Ah, there's the bar," Zoro nodded, completely convinced he was still inside the Rain Dinners complex. "They really make you walk for a drink in this place."
He started walking down the street, away from the casino, away from his crew, and deeper into the city of Rainbase.
"Luffy better not get lost while I'm gone," Zoro grumbled. "That guy has no sense of direction."