The Explorer of the Universe
48

The Going Merry continues to sail the Sandora River. It's lunch time. Luffy and Usopp who were playing around with Sanji's onigiri made them hit with a frying pan by Sanji.

"Don't mess with food!" Sanji was angry. "If you're being rude, do the dishes or help out! Basic, though I have to prepare provisions before we cross the river!"

"You want help?" Ask Ace.

"No, you are a guest on this ship. Sit down and relax." Sanji.

Ace just nodded his head.

Moments later, the Going Merry is anchored off the riverbank at the request of Vivi, who wants to give her pet duck Karu an important assignment

"Karu, from here you should go to Alubarna palace alone and give this letter to my father." Vivi Pinta.

"In this letter, all the secrets of Crocodile and Baroque Works are written based on the information we have and I also tell you that I have returned to Alabasta with my friends." Vivi. "You'll be alone in the desert alone but you can definitely do it!"

Karu also agreed to the task given to him.

"Listen, in the desert you have to be smart to save drinking water, yes." Advice Vivi. "Alright, tell my father that this country can be saved!"

"Karu, fight!" Luffy.

Karu roared and then ran away very quickly to the capital of the kingdom of Alabasta, Alubarna.

"Save your drinking water!" Shouted Vivi then Karu was no longer seen. "Let's just, I'm really counting on you."

"Yosh, let's sail again!" Luffy's orders.

"No, wait, I haven't boarded yet!" Said the panicked Usopp and immediately boarded the ship so that he was not left alone in the place.

Ace is confused when he learns a Shichibukai wants to seize a country or kingdom.

"It's not really a funny joke!" Firm Ace. "There may be another motive behind this coup."

"Another motive?" Ask Zoro.

"Other goals are greater." Reveal Ace.

"Yes, Crocodile's main goal is to get an ancient weapon, Pluton." Think Tanaka. "For the accession of the throne is only an additional part."

Although Tanaka knew about Crocodile's main purpose, he did not tell the others. He only lets the story go as it should, except on the dying Ace part later.

After sailing a few hours later, finally the Going Merry ship arrived at a place not far from the city that would become its destination, the city of Yuba.

"We finally arrived!" Luffy said with excitement.

"We are finally in the desert! It's gotta be hot in there, huh?" Ask Chopper who saw the desert so vast.

"During the day, the temperature can reach 50 degrees." Answer Nami.

"REally?!" Said Chopper who was surprised because all this time he lived on a cold island.

Vivi and Nami wore clothes that covered all parts of her body, except her hands and face, while the men wore sand-eyed traveler clothes with headgear used to protect the sun.

Chopper also wears a desert traveler's outfit but does not wear head protection because he already wears a hat.

"What's up Nami?! Where's the dancer's outfit? Vivi too, why are you wearing those clothes?!" Sanji asked who was surprised when he saw the two women wearing very covered clothes.

"Finally, if in the desert we don't use coverings, our skin can be sunburned!" Vivi.

"Why does it end this way, my dirties." Say Sanji while rolling around on the floor.

"It's ready to go down." Said Zoro ignoring Sanji.

Everyone nodded their heads including Sanji while crying in disappointment.

Zoro who was about to lower the anchor came to a halt because he saw something coming out of the water.

"What's that?" Ask Zoro.

A small but Dugong-like pack of animals appeared and surrounded the Going Merry.

"Turtle?" Zoro.

"Have you ever seen the shape of a turtle or not, Zoro?" Thought Tanaka was sweetdrop.

"Not a seal?" Luffy.

"Kung Fu Dugong!" Vivi.

"'If you want to dock here, beat me first! Otherwise, just go back to the sea there, you loser!' That's what he said." Said Chopper who translated the speech of one of the Dugongs.

"If you were a loser, I wouldn't be able to stay silent! Let's advance!" Said Usopp who got off the ship by jumping to fight one of the animals.

"Wait, Usopp-san!" Pinta Vivi with dismay.

Usopp ignored him and moments later he was easily defeated by one of Dugong's Kung Fu.

"Kung Fu Dugong is strong!" Said Vivi who was late in providing information.

"That one over there seems to win!" Nami said when she saw Luffy managed to defeat one of the Kung Fu Dugongs he fought.

"Win can't either!" Said the worried Vivi.

Dugong who was defeated by Luffy got up and bowed to him.

"What's up!" Luffy.

"If they lose a fight, they will become disciples of the victor!" Vivi.

"Principles of martial arts?" Tanya Zoro who admired Kung Fu Dugong.

The dugongs then looked at Luffy with sparkling gazes and surrounded Luffy.

"The number of your students is increasing!" Said Vivi who was surprised.

"All right, everybody, follow my moves! Get ready!" Luffy said then showing some movements followed by the Dugong-dugong.

After Luffy finished training the Dugong-dugong, he wanted to continue on his way to the city of Yuba as per the plan that Vivi had made.

"Wait a minute, oi! Want to take them too?!" Zoro asked as the Dugongs lined up neatly behind Luffy.

"No, Luffy!" Reject Nami.

"The Dugongs can't get through the desert." Vivi.

The dugongs then hugged Luffy's leg because they did not want to be left behind by the rubber man whom they already considered their master.

"Why, it feels like doing something sad." Said Nami who felt sorry to see the Dugongs.

"Me too, how's dong?" Ask Vivi.

"Sorry, but you can't come with us. Instead, I'll give you this." Said Tanaka with a smile and thrust a meat at them.

The dugongs quickly came to where Tanaka was. He also gave some onigiri to the Dugongs so that the provisions made by Sanji were reduced a lot.

"Let's continue the journey." Said Tanaka who walked first.

"They want to follow me, why aren't they invited?" Ask Luffy.

"We can't go anywhere if we bring a big group, you idiot! Fuck up! If Tanaka hadn't persuaded them, we'd be in trouble, you know!" Nami.

"Yes, they always say, 'we will follow you!' If they don't get meat they're really following us, you know!" Chopper.

"Geez, because of you, our food supply is reduced!" Sanji said in annoyance.

"That's it, there's no need to argue anymore." Said Tanaka who tried to calm the atmosphere.

"He always makes trouble, yeah." Ask Ace.

"Indeed!" Say Sanji and the others except Luffy, Tanaka and Chopper.

"See you, yeah!" Luffy said as he waved his hand at the Dugongs who were replied by them while eating meat or holding onigiri.

They walk in the desert hot enough because there are no clouds blocking the sun or shade.

After a few moments of walking in the desert with hot weather they stopped walking when they saw a destroyed city and there was only the debris of the building.

"What is this place?" Ask the confused Sanji.

"Is this the city of Yuba?" Ask Luffy the same.

"No, this is Erumalu. The city that is dubbed as Green City." Vivi.

"Green City?" Ask Luffy who does not believe because there is only sand covering the rubble of the building.

There was nothing like trees or green grass in the area.

"Looking at how he is at the moment is clear. What the Baroque Works organization has done to this country.what will the residents of Alabasta experience..." Said the sad Vivi.

They walked into the city of Erumalu deeper while looking right and left.

"Wuah, there's nothing here!" Luffy.

"Right, it's like a ghost town now, but it used to be a thriving city full of greenery!" Vivi said she still remembers how the city is shaped.

"This place, huh?" Said Zoro who did not believe what Vivi said based on what happened to the city at the moment.

Vivi also explained about the condition of the city where the city rarely rains, and the city, but it can still survive and become a green city because they have a large shelter for rainwater when it comes down in the city.

"But, for the past three years, it's never rained in any part of the country." Tell Vivi the sad.

"For three years?!" Sanji said surprised because a year alone does not rain in a place where the sun shines brightly will not be able to survive in a month without water.

"But, even if there's no rain, there's still a river that we just passed, right?" Ask Zoro.

"Truly, can't they make a waterway out of that great river?" Ask Usopp.

Vivi explained that Alabasta although it rarely rains, but it is not too long as it happens at this time. Even to his knowledge, Alabasta had never experienced anything like this for thousands of years.

"But, there is one place where it rains more often than usual. It was the capital of the kingdom, Alubarna. The city where the king's palace is." Vivi. "People call it the miracle of the king but it's not really."

Vivi then told about the discovery of Dance Powder in the port city of Nanohara.

"Dance Powder?!" Nami.

"Do you know about that?" Ask Luffy.

"Yes, it's known as Rain Calling Powder." Nami.

"Callers Rain?" Chopper.

Nami explained about the rain-calling powder to others that the powder was made by researchers from a country that rarely rains.

"By making foggy smoke and directing it to the sky, it will rain. That's Dance Powder." Nami.

"Ah, I understand! You mean that mysterious powder, yeah! I ate it, it didn't taste so good!" Said Luffy who stuck out his tongue as he remembered the taste of Dance Powder.

But no one believes Luffy's words, they just assume Luffy ate something strange instead of the rain-calling powder.

"What the fuck are you guys? You must think I'm lying, right? Hey!" Said the angry Luffy.

"No, I trust you, captain." Said Tanaka smiling.

Luffy was so happy that he laughed.

"Wait, isn't that the perfect way out for this country?" Ask Usopp.

Nami also explained about the impact that occurred on the use of Dance Powder that it will harm neighboring countries because the rain that should have fallen in place is not so.

"Dance Powder creates artificial rain formed from the process of enlarging immature clouds, and the immature cloud will suck the rainwater from the clouds that are ready to rain so that it can rain. That's why..." Obviously Nami.

"Ah, I understand! So the cloud stole the rain from a cloud that was ready to rain in another land." Usopp.

As a result of the rain that should fall into disembarkation it makes the country attack the country that uses Dance Powder so that there is a war that should not occur.

"Since then the World Government has banned the making or possession of Dance Powder." Nami Strictly.

"The powder that can bring happiness as well as disaster, yes." Tanaka.

Vivi again explained about the events of Dance Powder which resulted in the kingdom of Alabasta experiencing a strange weather phenomenon.

"No rain fell in any region except the city where the king was." Vivi.

"Wait for Vivi, that means your father is evil!" Said the angry Luffy.

"She was framed, you know! Vivi's father wouldn't do such an evil deed! Never, never!" Said Sanji while hitting Luffy on the head with his legs continuously.

"Of course, my father wasn't involved with the act, but at the same time, a large amount of Dance Powder was found inside the palace." Vivi.

"They even infiltrated inside the palace, huh?" Ask Zoro.

By that time they had arrived at a place that looked like a road wide enough but the road was covered with sand as it happened to the debris of the surrounding buildings.

"What's this street, Vivi?" Ask Sanji.

"This is not the way." Denied Vivi who was looking towards that place with a sad feeling.

"You said why this city is not a waterway that connects this city with the Sandora river, right?" Ask Vivi.

Zoro and Usopp nodded their heads.

"This is the aqueduct that was once used to channel water from the Sandora river." Vivi.

They were all shocked to hear that except for Luffy and Tanaka. Luffy does not understand what is being talked about while Tanaka knows who destroyed the aqueduct.

"One has destroyed this canal, and in the absence of this canal, the Green City no longer has water." Vivi. "The people continued to pray and wait, but the rain never came."

"Since that Dance Powder incident, distrust in the king has continued to increase." Assert Vivi with a sad face.

"Everything went according to Crocodile's plan, huh?" Think Zoro.

Vivi explained that in the absence of rain that fell with a long enough span of time, coupled with the occurrence of civil war.

"The exhausted people left the city and looked for another oasis to get water. Then the Green City became dry." Reveal Vivi with a sad face.

Suddenly the wind became louder than before.

"Is that someone's voice?" Nami.

"Rebel forces?" Vivi.

"Don't the Baroque Works follow us!" Usopp.

They were all on guard except for Tanaka and Ace.

Ace told the others that it was just the sound of the wind passing through the rubble of the building.

"The sound comes from all directions! How'this? Hey, brother Luffy!" Usopp said to Ace.

"Not dangerous. It's just a gust of wind passing through the city and echoing in the city buildings." Reveal Ace.

"The city of Erumalu was crying." Vivi.

After a strong wind and the emergence of a small tornado that makes them have to survive so as not to be carried away by the sandstorm.

Nami saw a figure in a torn robe lying on a pile of sand.

"There are still people in this city?" Ask Vivi.

"No, it's not a person but ... " Tanaka Mumbled.

Luffy who had run first stopped immediately because he saw that it was just a human body that had become a skull with a large hollow head.

"What's my father's fault? What is wrong with the people in this town? They were born in the desert, since childhood their life was difficult and had to fight against nature, but he destroyed it. Why would he do such a thing?!" Said Vivi who sat on the sand and then hugged the skull head.

"At that time, as one of the Shichibukai, he pretended to be a hero to the residents! No one knows that he has deceived the entire population of this country! I can't forgive him!" Strictly Vivi who was crying and also angry.

Luffy then hit an old building not far from the place, making the building collapse as an outlet of anger.

"Basic, so childish!" Zoro.

Tanaka immediately dug a hole in the sand so that the corpse that had become a skull could be buried properly.

After that, Vivi stuck a marker there.

"Vivi! Let's continue the journey! I'm getting pissed!" Said the angry Luffy.

"Let's go to Yuba!" Nami.

"Where are the rebel forces, right?" Ask Zoro.

"Yes, I will persuade their leader to stop the rebellion." Vivi.

"Dissuade?" Ask the confused Zoro.

"The whole disaster in Alabasta was the work of Crocodile! I'll tell you the truth and stop him from doing anything in vain!" Vivi.

Tanaka wants to say something about Vivi's plan, but she undoes her intention for it because she has promised herself not to change the course of the one piece story except about Ace's death.

They continued their journey to Yuba as in the one piece story.