After a fierce exchange, the two finally stepped back, panting, their eyes locked on each other.
Sabo frowned. Why can't I hurt this person no matter how hard I hit? Then, as his breathing steadied, something else dawned on him. Wait—this place… wasn't I just signing documents at my desk? How the hell did I end up here?
"Alright, kid. The deal's been completed. Time for me to give you your part of the bargain," Anna said hurriedly, sensing the dream beginning to destabilize. She needed to get the words out fast—before Sabo dismissed this encounter as just a dream. If that happened, she'd lose her chance to learn the Dragon Claw Fist.
"Fine," Sabo said warily. "Then tell me—what exactly are you going to share with me? And how do I know you're not full of it?"
"There's no right or wrong here," Anna replied calmly, cloaked in her black robe. "It all depends on your interpretation. This is a revelation, not a strategy. I'll tell you, and you just need to remember."
She smirked inwardly. There's no way the philosophical wisdom of five thousand years can't impress this guy.
"Alright then," Sabo said. "Let's hear it."
Anna lifted her chin slightly. "The value of a commodity is determined by the socially necessary labor time required to produce it. Commodity exchange is based on value—traded at equal value. The law of value governs both production and exchange."
Sabo blinked, speechless for a moment.
Anna mentally thanked her high school politics teacher. Good thing I took liberal arts and chose politics back then. Guess I didn't return all that knowledge to the teacher after the exams. Who would've thought Marxist economics would save me in another world?
Sabo's eyes widened slightly as he thought it over. Wait a second… that urgent document from before I went to bed—it was about that country we just liberated. The one where grain merchants hiked up prices ridiculously. After solving it, we still couldn't decide what a fair price should be…
"Thank you," he said sincerely. "If possible, how can we reach you again?"
"No need," Anna waved him off. "I'll contact you if there's something important."
In truth, she was just relieved that the emergency file mentioned "malicious price gouging." That clue had helped her bluff her way through perfectly. Heh, lucky guess.
"Understood. Thank you, mysterious one," Sabo said. Then he hesitated. "I remember… I was sitting at my desk, signing papers. How do I get back?"
Anna almost laughed. Seriously? This is your dream, and you're asking me how to wake up?
"You'll return once I leave," she said simply, releasing the dream energy that held the world together. Immediately, the entire scene began to crack and dissolve like shattered glass.
"Alright," Sabo nodded, though confusion still clouded his face.
In an instant, he jolted awake—still slumped over his desk, the same urgent document staring him in the face. So I really just fell asleep...
He rubbed his temples, recalling the "mysterious man's" words, and decided to report to Dragon right away.
"Ugh, I'm exhausted…" Anna muttered, floating limply in the dream realm. "I had to reinforce that unstable dream while sparring with Sabo. No wonder I'm wiped out."
She yawned and stretched. Good thing no one woke him up midway. If someone had shaken him awake, no amount of dream energy could've kept me inside that dream.
"Well," she said, glancing around the swirling dreamscape, "there's still a little time before dawn. Let's see what other dreams are out there…"
As she drifted through the glowing orbs, one caught her eye. "Wait—this one's Ivankov's? Oh my god… are transsexuals taking over the world?"
Curiosity got the better of her. She peered inside—and almost fell over laughing.
Inside, transvestites of every shape and size were singing, dancing, and striking dramatic poses. The entire dream was a musical carnival of wigs, makeup, and glittering outfits. Even the nearby dream orbs seemed infected, filled with cross-dressers twirling joyfully.
Anna sighed in awe. "As expected of Ivankov—the King of Okama! There are more transvestites here than I've seen in my entire life."
She drifted away, still chuckling, and soon passed over the dreams of Magellan and other Impel Down personnel.
"Huh. So I've wandered all the way to Impel Down. Too bad Crocodile and Doflamingo aren't locked up here yet, or I could've watched their dreams too."
Bored again, Anna floated onward—until another dream caught her attention.
Inside, she saw Sabo again… this time with two little boys in navy uniforms. Those must be Ace and Luffy, she guessed.
The three of them were laughing together, fighting off pirates—and then being awarded the Navy's highest honor.
Anna squinted. "Wait a second… this feels off. The scheming frog keeps poking your stomach—oh my god, this is Garp's dream."
She pulled out a pair of dream-cloud "glasses," striking a mock-detective pose like a grade schooler solving a mystery.
"Yep," she said, grinning. "Only Garp would dream up something this ridiculous."
Her expression softened slightly. "Poor guy. Guess this is the only place he can imagine something like that happening. In reality, his whole family's either pirates or revolutionaries. Only Coby and Helmeppo actually became marines in the end. That must be the only comfort he's got left."
Anna gazed at the three little brothers in naval uniforms. "If those three really became marines? Yeah, no. That's a total impossibility. Not even worth imagining."
Just then, she felt the dream's surface begin to ripple and burst.
"Oh, looks like it's time. The dream's ending."
With a faint pop, she exited the dream world entirely.
"Alright," Anna yawned, stretching her arms. "Time to start a brand-new day of training."
By evening, she was completely worn out and ended up being carried home under Shanks's arm like a sack of flour.
The moment he set her down at the table, she dove straight into her food. Her energy had been so drained these past few days that she felt like she might actually starve to death—no matter how much she ate, her stomach never seemed to fill.
Finally, after polishing off her plate, Anna let out a satisfied burp. "Finally… I feel alive again."
Shanks looked over with a grin. "Anna, are you ready? A pirate ship will be arriving here in a few days."
Anna froze mid-bite. "They're coming to arrest me?"
She immediately regretted asking—it was obvious. If they're not here for me, then who else would they be after?
"Of course they're coming for you!" Shanks chuckled. "After all, thanks to that newspaper, people across the seas are still gossiping about you. Two of the Four Emperors' crews might even end up fighting over you."
Anna groaned. "Hey, Marco… do you think I should just leave this island? I feel like I'm causing way too much trouble for everyone."
"Don't worry about that for now," Marco said with his usual calm. "At your current pace, you'll be strong enough to set sail in half a year."
"Half a year, huh…" Anna looked up at him, blinking. "Hey—wait a second. Aren't you at least a little surprised? I never told anyone but Shanks that I wanted to go out to sea."
Marco just smiled and rubbed her head. "We all noticed. Every time someone sets sail, the way you look at the ships—you can't hide that kind of longing. If you want, you can join my First Division when the time comes. I think it'd suit you perfectly."
"Yeah," Thatch added, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "We even have a running bet about when you'd finally decide to sail with us."
He sighed, pulling out his wallet. "And I always lose that damn bet."