Time rewinds slightly, to not long before.
At a port in Alabasta, a Marine warship slowly docked, the large 'MARINE' letters on its sails announcing its identity.
"Report! Captain Smoker, Headquarters has replied."
"Speak."
"Headquarters says to observe the situation for now..."
"How can anything get done when we're grouped with those parasites?"
Smoker directly cut off the communications officer, his voice low. "That information the Den Den Mushi intercepted when we passed Little Garden clearly indicated someone is plotting something major in this country. We even captured Baroque Works agents. Can't those fools at Headquarters use their brains?"
"Probably because this is Warlord Crocodile's territory," Tashigi, holding her named sword Yubashiri, stepped forward, pushing up her glasses. "If the Marines enter and conduct large-scale operations without notifying him, Headquarters would have a hard time explaining it to the World Government."
"Hmph. Warlords."
Smoker snorted, clearly holding this system in contempt.
He didn't care about any damn political compromise. He only knew this country reeked of an abnormal atmosphere.
This was his personal conviction.
"Patch me through to Admiral Aokiji's private line," Smoker suddenly ordered the communications officer.
"? Admiral Aokiji?" The officer was taken aback.
Smoker intended to act.
If Headquarters wouldn't give the order, an order from an Admiral would do just fine.
This is what having connections, like his friend Aokiji, got you.
Truly, the power of connections.
Tashigi also made a strange face, adjusting her glasses and muttering quietly, "Is Captain Smoker looking for someone to take the blame again? Admiral Aokiji must be having a hard time. Captain Hina probably gets these requests often too."
Beyond his Marine duties and a sense of justice, there was another important reason Smoker was determined to come to Alabasta.
He had received intelligence that the Straw Hat brat, who had left such a deep impression on him in Loguetown, was also heading here.
That rubber idiot... might also have some connection to that man.
This time, he'd arrest him with his own hands!
Soon, the call connected. Smoker wasted no time, succinctly explaining the situation and his decision to act to the Den Den Mushi.
There was a few seconds of silence on the other end before a lazy, somewhat resigned voice came through: "Yare yare, Smoker... you really know how to make trouble for me... Alright, fine. Proceed. I'll take responsibility."
"Thanks."
Smoker hung up decisively, a slight smirk on his lips, and immediately ordered the Marines to land in Alabasta.
Not long after they landed, they encountered a group of foolish pirates.
Just as Smoker was about to deal with the trash himself, a sudden change occurred!
A golden figure swept past like a phantom, sand swirling.
The pirates didn't even have time to react before they were cut down by countless sand blades amidst miserable screams. Crocodile's form coalesced from the dispersing sand, and he flicked nonexistent blood from his golden hook.
Smoker frowned, his expression grim.
Wait, who were the Marines here?
A pirate had stolen the Marines' job. That was completely backwards.
Especially seeing Crocodile basking in the people's adoration.
Smoker bit down on his unlit cigar, forcibly suppressing his anger. He was about to intervene when the Straw Hat crew and Princess Vivi also arrived nearby, then exposed Crocodile's conspiracy.
So that's how it was?
Smoker's pupils contracted slightly.
Although he had suspicions, hearing it confirmed by Alabasta's own princess was still shocking.
A Warlord of the Sea, a pirate legitimized by the World Government, was the mastermind behind this country's civil war and chaos.
"How ironic."
Smoker instinctively pulled out a lighter, wanting to light the cigar in his mouth to calm his churning emotions.
However, just as the lighter was about to touch the cigar...
Pfft!
The two cigars in his mouth spontaneously ignited without warning.
Orange flames abruptly leaped up, startling Smoker.
He snapped his head up, instinctively looking towards the source.
"Ah, sorry. I was wondering what you were planning to do?"
On the roof of a nearby ruined building, a man in an orange cowboy hat extended a finger, a small flame still dancing at its tip. "Were you planning to make a move?"
Smoker's face instantly turned extremely grave. "What are you doing here? Portgas D. Ace, Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates."
This was merely the first half of the Grand Line.
A division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates should not be in these waters at all.
Ace brushed the dust off his clothes, about to answer.
Suddenly, a restaurant owner wielding a kitchen knife charged over, panting heavily, yelling at Ace: "Hey, you! Pay up!"
This guy ate so much, suddenly fell asleep while talking, fell asleep again while eating, and then suddenly ran out. Was he trying to dine and dash?
"Ahahaha, sorry, sorry!"
Ace scratched the back of his head, laughing heartily without any airs. He very readily pulled out some Berries from his pocket, counted them, and handed them to the owner. "Here, this should be enough."
The owner took the money, blinked in surprise, his anger subsiding as he muttered "That's more like it" and turned to leave.
The nearby citizens who had been watching the commotion only then reacted, their faces showing fear.
"Mister, you actually dared to make a Whitebeard Pirate pay?!"
Owner: "???"
He looked down at the Berries in his hand, then at the beaming Ace over there. His legs began to tremble, nearly fainting on the spot. Ace paid no mind to the little side drama, turning his attention back to the highly alert Smoker, his smile dimming slightly. "Now, back to the main point.
Hey, Marine. Didn't you hear what my little brother and that princess said?
The one who plunged this country into chaos is your World Government's acknowledged hero, the Warlord of the Sea, Crocodile."
Smoker took a deep drag from his now-lit cigar, exhaling thick smoke. "A pirate is a pirate. Whether it's Crocodile, Straw Hat brat, or you. I'll capture you all."
"Big talk."
Ace raised an eyebrow, then seemed to remember something, his smile widening. "You're pretty interested in Luffy?"
Smoker's gaze sharpened. "What's the relationship between Straw Hat Luffy and you?"
"Luffy? He's my little brother."
"Brother?"
Are you kidding me?
Straw Hat brat is the brother of a Whitebeard Pirates division commander? And what about Dragon? What's his relation to him?
This family's relationships are truly complicated.
By the time the battle over there concluded, the entanglement of smoke and fire here continued.
"Forget it. I'm going to arrest Crocodile and stop this country's war."
Knowing he wouldn't get anywhere arguing with Ace, Smoker chose to move to arrest Crocodile.
Ace tugged on his orange cowboy hat, grinning widely. That Sand Croc who'd challenged Pops wasn't the type to die so easily.
Surviving a hit from Luffy like that... though he ran away pretty fast too.
***
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