The market in Alabasta had a much wider variety of goods compared to the Port of Canola.
Batu walked ahead like a little monkey that had just left the mountains, bouncing along and occasionally pointing at the trinkets on either side for Giyu to see, seemingly having temporarily forgotten his dislike for this city where the king resided.
In front of a fruit stall, Batu slowed his pace.
His gaze lingered on the shiny red apples, and his throat unconsciously moved. Though he didn't speak, his eyes were practically boring holes through the apples.
"Sweet, sweet apples! How about it, want some?"
Giyu watched silently. Without saying a word, he took out the Belly that Nami had given him from his pocket, handed it to the stall owner, and pointed at the apples.
"For me?" Batu turned around in surprise, looking at Giyu. Unlike his grandfather, this big brother had helped a lot and was definitely a good person. He was also craving that big apple.
"Yeah."
Batu carefully took the large, red apple, vigorously wiped it with his sleeve, and smiled. "Thank you, Brother Giyu!"
He didn't eat it immediately himself. Instead, he broke the apple in half with effort and offered one half to Giyu.
"Brother Giyu, you have some too!"
Giyu looked at the half apple being offered to him, paused slightly, then reached out to take it. "...Thank you."
The two continued walking along the street while eating the crisp, sweet apple. Batu was clearly in a better mood and became more talkative.
"Alabasta is still so lively," he said through a mouthful of apple, "unlike where we live."
"Where you live?" Giyu followed up on his words.
"Grandpa and I usually live in Katorea." Batu swallowed the apple flesh and said, "Grandpa usually brings goods here to sell, so we have a little money to get by."
"But right now, the rebel army is all there! There are so many people!"
Katorea?
Giyu's chewing paused slightly.
He clearly remembered that back in Port Canola, Vivi had told everyone that the rebel army's main base was in Yuba.
Batu didn't notice Giyu's subtle reaction. Instead, he excitedly waved his fists and feet, imitating imagined combat moves. "Brother Giyu! Look at me! Do you think I can join them?!"
Giyu's gaze swept over the child's thin frame and his unskilled movements. "Need more practice."
Batu's shoulders immediately drooped, but he quickly perked up again, vigorously waving his small fists. "I'll definitely practice hard! I want to be as strong as you someday!"
To confirm.
Giyu asked further, "I heard that Yuba is the rebel army's main base?"
"Brother Giyu! Are you looking for the rebel army too?" Batu immediately became interested. Compared to the King's Army, he liked the rebel army much more, and immediately put on a know-it-all expression.
"Yuba? That used to be true! But now it's completely desert there, you can't even find a drop of water. So the rebel army moved their gathering place to Katorea a long time ago!"
Desert?
Vivi and the others had gone in the wrong direction...
Now things had become even more complicated.
Giyu fell silent, continuing to observe his surroundings while listening to Batu's overly excited explanations about the rebel army's movements. Yet most of his attention was focused on figuring out how to handle the current situation.
Just then, a sharp scream from ahead interrupted his thoughts.
"It's you! It must be you people living in Alubarna! You secretly burned that damned Dancing Powder!" a voice filled with malice roared.
A burly man was seen wildly smashing a market stall. His face showed an unnatural fury as he brandished a scimitar—a weapon identical in design to those carried by the King's Army soldiers who had attacked Matar and Batu in the desert.
"It's all of you!! You're the reason other cities haven't seen a drop of rain! You've stolen all the rainwater!"
"It must be you!!"
He continued shouting while swinging his blade chaotically. Fabrics from the stall were sliced and scattered into the air, forcing the stall owner to retreat with screams.
"Are you insane? What does this have to do with us?"
"This is Alubarna's blessing! It's the will of the gods!" Others around attempted to argue with the scimitar-wielding man, but their words had no effect.
Just as the armed man prepared to charge toward more stalls, a calm and magnetic voice cut through the chaos:
"This farce ends now."
The crowd automatically parted to create a path. A tall man draped in a black fur coat approached. His hair was neatly slicked back, a horizontal scar marked his face, and a cigar dangled from his lips, its white smoke particularly conspicuous.
Most striking was his left hand—a gleaming golden hook.
This was the hero in the hearts of the Alabasta people, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea—Crocodile.
Without even glancing at the troublemaker, he casually raised his right hand.
In the next moment, dry sand surged from the cracks between the stone slabs beneath the troublemaker's feet, instantly coiling around his legs and spreading across his body, firmly restraining him in place. No matter how the man struggled, he couldn't move an inch.
"Everything's fine now, everyone."
Crocodile's gaze swept over the terrified crowd, his tone instantly calming those around him with its magnetic quality: "I will ensure your safety."
His eyes scanned the crowd, eventually landing unintentionally on Giyu—who wore a black cloak and remained unfazed by the earlier commotion—and the conspicuously energetic Batu beside him, still waving his fists.
His gaze lingered on Giyu for a subtle moment before curling into a seemingly friendly smile at the corner of his mouth.
Then, without further delay, he turned and left like a true hero amid the grateful eyes and fervent praises of the surrounding citizens, taking the troublemaker bound by Sand Shackles with him.
"Look, it's Mr. Crocodile!!"
Batu exclaimed to Giyu, his voice filled with childlike admiration. "Everyone says he's the nation's hero, always protecting us..."
Batu's naive words and Vivi's earlier description created a stark contrast in Giyu's mind.
Igaram is currently missing, Luffy and Vivi have gone in the wrong direction, and the mastermind behind this country's current state is someone everyone sees as a hero.
We can't afford to wait passively like this any longer... This country doesn't have that much time to wait...
Giyu lowered his head, looked at Batu beside him, and said in the calmest tone possible:
"Where is the royal palace in Alabasta? I'd like to see it."
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