The girl standing at the edge of the dock wore a long robe that covered most of her face and body.
But the sea breeze lifted the hood slightly.
A few strands of blue hair slipped free and fluttered in the wind.
Nami froze.
"Vivi?"
The figure stiffened for a moment.
Then, as if realizing there was no point in hiding anymore, she slowly reached up and pulled the hood down.
Princess Vivi stood there with a small suitcase in one hand.
Nami stared at her in disbelief.
"Wait, why are you here? Don't tell me…"
Vivi took a deep breath and her grip around the suitcase handle tightened to give her more courage.
"I want to go with you."
Vivi looked up at Shiki with firm and determined eyes.
"I know this is selfish. I know I'm the princess of Alabasta, and I know I should stay by my father's side after everything that happened."
She lowered her head.
"But I don't know what else I can do."
The wind passed between them.
Vivi took a breath, then continued.
"Even though you saved Alabasta and... killed Crocodile. You saved my father, my people… and me."
Her fingers clenched until her knuckles turned pale.
"I don't have anything worthy enough to repay that."
Nami's expression shifted, softened with worry.
"Vivi…"
Vivi raised her head again.
"So let me sail with you."
"If what you want is a pirate crew, then I'll train and try my best to become stronger. I won't stay weak forever."
She paused for a second, as if embarrassed by her next words, but still forced herself to say them.
"And if you only need someone to pour tea, clean rooms, carry luggage, or act like a maid… then I'll do my best at that too."
Nami nearly choked.
"Wait, wait, wait! What are you even saying, Vivi?! There's no way—absolutely no way, right?!"
She whipped around to Shiki.
"Shiki, you wouldn't actually make her follow through with that, would you?"
Her voice grew quieter with every word.
Because Shiki was standing there with one hand on his chin, looking far too thoughtful for comfort.
If Vivi stayed in Alabasta, she would only remain the princess who had been protected.
If she left, then perhaps one day, she could become someone who was capable of protecting something with her own hands.
After thinking it over for a moment, Shiki suddenly laughed, clearly amused by her resolve.
"You really want to follow me?"
Vivi nodded without hesitation, her blue hair fluttering with the motion.
"Yes."
"Even if the World Government brands you a criminal?"
"Yes."
"Even if your father suffers because of it?"
Vivi's expression faltered.
That single sentence struck her hard in her core.
Nami immediately frowned.
"Hey, that's too much—"
Vivi lowered her head and fell silent for a moment before finally reaching her answer.
"My father will be blamed no matter what."
Her voice was quiet, but clear.
"Crocodile's plan was exposed. Baroque Works was destroyed. The World Government lost face in front of the whole world. Even if I stay quietly in the palace, they won't pretend nothing happened."
She looked back toward the city.
"So if trouble is coming anyway, then I want to become strong before it reaches him."
Shiki went quiet for a while, his golden eyes fixed on her face, before his smile slowly widened.
"Not bad."
Then he raised one hand, and a small object floated out from one of the boxes he had brought aboard before landing gently in front of Vivi.
"Give it to Cobra."
Shiki turned his eyes toward the palace in the distance.
"If those Government dogs come sniffing around Alabasta again, tell your father to use it."
The corner of his mouth rose.
"It'll come in handy in the near future."
Shiki was not only a man of strength, but also a man with brains. He could already guess why the World Government was trying so hard to recruit him, even though the plan seemed foolish on the surface. If he refused, the World Government would only lose even more face—so why take that risk?
Shiki already knew they were not that foolish. If they still dared to make such a move, then it meant they already had something planned.
They were trying to use him to accomplish something of their own.
And since Shiki already knew the anime plot, it was not hard to guess what they would do next.
He had to admit, it was a cunning plan, and it would have worked splendidly if not for him.
That was why, just in case, he decided to leave them a small gift before leaving.
Vivi was still confused at first, but the moment she saw the thing Shiki had left behind, her eyes widened.
Then, after Shiki explained everything to her, tears quickly gathered in her eyes. The gratitude she already felt became even stronger, almost overwhelming her.
She bowed her head again, and this time, she even clutched Shiki's leg once more, as if she did not know how else to express what she was feeling.
Shiki's face twitched at how practiced Vivi had become at doing this, and he had to put in some effort before finally freeing his leg from her grasp.
Then he waved his hand and sent her off the ship once more.
Vivi smiled, waved back at them, and then hurried away.
Nami watched her leave before turning to Shiki with a curious look.
"What did you give her?"
Shiki smiled faintly.
"A Devil Fruit."
Nami nodded to herself.
"Ohh, a Devil Fruit. I see…"
Then, in the next second, her eyes suddenly widened.
"Ehhh?! A Devil Fruit?!"
...
Then, after some time, Vivi came running back, breathing heavily, her face flushed with happiness and the excitement of a new adventure.
Shiki's power lifted her from the dock and carried her gently onto the deck.
The moment her feet landed, Vivi turned back toward Alabasta.
Far in the distance, beneath the bright sun, the palace still stood.
Vivi looked at it for a long moment.
Then she bowed deeply toward her homeland.
"Father… everyone… please forgive my selfishness."
And with that, they set sail.
Back in the palace, King Cobra was crying his heart out, but there was nothing he could do to stop her.
This time, however, Shiki had even left Crocodile's Devil Fruit behind for him, making him a true King Cobra.
That was right.
The gift Shiki had left behind was none other than Crocodile's Devil Fruit.
As for why he did not give it to Nami or Vivi, it was because he felt that Crocodile's fruit was not suitable for either of them.
For Nami and Vivi, he already had two Logia fruits in mind that were far more suitable, both better than Crocodile's Logia, which had an obvious weakness and could not compare to truly top-tier ones.
...
Just as the ship set sail further and further, Nami's mood suddenly sank a little.
In the end, Robin really had not come with them.
But just as that thought crossed her mind, a familiar teasing voice drifted down from above.
"My, my… were you feeling lonely without me?"
Nami froze, then quickly looked up.
There, on the roof of the ship, Robin was sitting calmly with one hand cupping her cheek, looking down at Nami with a mischievous smile.
Nami's eyes widened so much it looked as if they might fall out.
"Robin?!"
Vivi also turned around in surprise.
"Miss All Sunday…?"
Robin tilted her head slightly, still sitting on the roof with one hand against her cheek. Her smile was calm, elegant, and far too relaxed for someone who had apparently snuck aboard a pirate ship without asking.
"My, my. That name is a little cold now, isn't it?"
Nami pointed at her sharply.
"Don't act like this is normal! When did you get on the ship?!"
Robin's smile deepened.
"Before you started missing me."
"I was not missing you!"
"Were you not?"
Nami's face flushed slightly.
"Shut up!"
Shiki, on the other hand, did not look surprised at all. He merely glanced up at her with a faint smile, as if he had already noticed her presence from the beginning and simply could not be bothered to expose her.
Robin's gaze slowly shifted from Nami to Shiki.
The teasing look in her eyes faded a little.
"I read the Poneglyph in Alabasta."
"So, just as you said, the location of the Ancient Weapon really is connected to Wano."
Robin looked at Shiki with quiet curiosity. There was also a faint trace of anticipation in her eyes—something even she herself did not seem to notice.
"Should I assume you can read them too?"
Shiki glanced at her and shook his head.
"I can't read them."
Then he smiled faintly.
"But I do know quite a lot about them… and what they describe."
Seeing Nico Robin fall silent in thought, Shiki did not rush her. He simply waited quietly.
After a while, Robin finally spoke slowly.
"I promise to cooperate with you. But before that, tell me your conditions."
Hearing those words, Shiki looked a little displeased. His expression turned flat, almost deadpan.
Maybe it was because Nico Robin had been alone since childhood. Maybe that was why, even now, she still thought everything had to be treated like a transaction.
After two seconds of silence, Shiki spoke again.
"I don't need to make any agreement with you, and I won't restrict your freedom."
His voice was calm, but there was no room for misunderstanding.
"I simply want to pull you onto my ship."
Shiki looked straight at her.
"Nico Robin, be my partner."
The moment Nico Robin heard those words, her mind suddenly buzzed.
"Partner…?"
When Nico Robin was very young, her mother had left her in her aunt's care in order to search for the historical texts.
However, her aunt had never treated her kindly. She always looked at Robin with a harsh expression, scolding her, blaming her, and finding fault with everything she did.
No child in the village was willing to approach her either.
Some of the more vicious children even insulted her to her face, calling her a "monster abandoned by her mother," and a "wild child no one wanted to raise."
Nico Robin could only hide alone in a place where no one could see her and cry in secret.
Her childhood could only be described as tragic.
And after the destruction of Ohara, the Marines placed the blame for that atrocity on Nico Robin as well. In order to hunt down the only survivor who had slipped through their net, they issued a bounty high enough to make the whole world chase after her.
At this moment, hearing Shiki say that he wanted her to become his partner, Robin tried her best to hold back her emotions.
But even so, two lines of tears still rolled down her cheeks.
Could she really have a partner?
No matter where she fled, Marine Headquarters would always catch wind of her sooner or later.
Pulling her onto his ship was almost the same as making an enemy of Marine Headquarters itself.
Was this man in front of her truly willing to stand against the world for her?
Nami and Princess Vivi saw Nico Robin suddenly burst into tears. When they thought about everything she had gone through, sympathy immediately rose in their hearts.
For some reason, it seemed as if every woman who became involved with Shiki had carried some kind of tragic past.
Shiki looked into Nico Robin's eyes and instantly understood what she was thinking.
Compared with Nami and Vivi, Nico Robin was truly a mature and composed woman.
Even after Shiki had said this much, she could still force herself to calm down and consider everything clearly.
After a long silence, Shiki finally spoke.
"If you're hesitating because of Marine Headquarters, then you don't need to worry about that."
His tone was calm, almost casual.
"My bounty has already reached four hundred million berries. That's several times higher than yours."
Hearing Shiki's words, Nico Robin recalled the wanted poster she had collected during her previous investigation.
That was right.
The man in front of her was already a great pirate with a bounty far higher than her own. Naturally, he would not be afraid of being implicated by her.
"And you should have already seen the government agents I killed."
Shiki's smile remained calm.
"So really, it's not as if I'm not already on their blacklist. Whether they send more forces after me, or even a Navy Admiral, it won't matter."
His tone was casual, yet filled with absolute confidence.
"They won't be able to do anything."
At that moment, seeing that confident and arrogant smile on his face, Robin's eyes widened slightly.
She bit her lip hard.
During this time, she had come to understand Shiki a little.
And there was one thing she knew clearly.
This man would never say something he did not mean.
Nami suddenly ran over and hugged Nico Robin tightly, speaking with bright enthusiasm.
"Robin, you should accept. Although Shiki sometimes looks like everyone in the world owes him money, he's actually very reliable."
She glanced at Shiki, then smiled.
"I don't know exactly how strong a Marine Admiral is, but Shiki wouldn't say something he didn't mean. So trust him."
Nami's voice softened slightly.
"We'll be partners. We won't let anything happen to you."
Hearing Nami's words, Shiki could not help but cast a look at her.
What was that supposed to mean?
This girl was getting bolder by the day. Now she had even started teasing him openly.
Nami only stuck her tongue out at Shiki in response.
Seeing her playful appearance, Shiki chose silence.
At that moment, both he and Vivi were looking at Nico Robin, waiting for her decision.
Nico Robin gently wiped the tears from her cheeks.
For a moment, she simply looked at Shiki in silence. Then a faint smile appeared on her face, elegant as always, yet softer than before.
"My, my… inviting the Devil Child onto your ship. You may regret being so generous, Captain."
Her gaze lowered for a brief second before returning to him.
"But until that day comes… I'll be in your care."
From this moment on, Nico Robin officially became a member of the Golden Lion Pirates.
Hearing Robin agree, Nami was the first to clap happily.
Now, there was one more girl on the ship.
With three women together, they could finally talk without getting bored.
Although Nami would never say it out loud, she had always complained in her heart about how straightforward and serious Shiki could be sometimes. It made it difficult to have a proper conversation with him.
Just as Nami and the others celebrated the arrival of their new companion, the ship continued sailing forward.
Several days passed in a blur.
And while they moved farther away from Alabasta, a shadow was quietly approaching that desert kingdom.
King Cobra, however, remained completely unaware of the storm drawing near.
Several days after the Golden Lion Pirates left Alabasta, night quietly settled over the desert kingdom.
The palace stood beneath the moonlight, silent and solemn.
Inside the royal chamber, King Cobra sat alone.
The room was dim. Only a few lamps burned at the corners, and their soft flames swayed whenever the night wind slipped through the curtains.
On the table in front of him lay a single fruit.
Its strange spiral pattern looked almost sinister beneath the lamplight.
Crocodile's Devil Fruit.
The Suna Suna no Mi.
Cobra stared at it for a long time.
Even now, he could still remember the words Vivi had brought back from Shiki.
"If the World Government sends people to Alabasta, don't hesitate."
"Eat it."
At first, Cobra had thought those words were too extreme.
But after reading the information Shiki had left behind, Cobra understood.
The World Government would not let this matter end so easily.
Cobra slowly closed his eyes.
For a moment, Vivi's smile appeared in his mind.
His foolish, brave, stubborn daughter.
She had chosen her own path.
Then as her father, he could not remain weak either.
Cobra reached out and picked up the Devil Fruit.
The moment he bit into it, his face froze.
"...!"
The taste was so awful that even a dignified king nearly threw it away on the spot.
Cobra gripped the edge of the table with one hand, forcing himself to swallow.
A strange power spread through his body.
For an instant, Cobra felt as if every grain of sand in the palace was breathing with him.
"So this is… the power that man relied on."
The power that had once oppressed Alabasta had now fallen into the hands of Alabasta's king.
Cobra clenched his fist.
But before he could think any further, his expression suddenly changed.
The flames in the room flickered.
A shadow appeared behind him without warning, along with a cold blade cutting through the darkness.
Puchi!
The sword pierced straight through Cobra's chest from behind.
The assassin's masked face was close to Cobra's ear.
"King Nefertari Cobra."
His voice was low and emotionless.
"By order of the World Government, you are to disappear from history."
But soon the assassin suddenly realized something was wrong.
There was no resistance from the blade.
Cobra slowly lowered his head and looked at the sword passing through his chest.
The pierced part of his body had already turned into flowing sand, scattering around the blade like water around a stone.
The assassin's pupils shrank behind his mask.
"A Logia?!"
Cobra slowly turned his head.
His face was pale, but his eyes were colder than the desert night.
"You chose the wrong kingdom to make an enemy of."
The assassin immediately tried to pull the sword back but the blade would not move.
Sand coiled around it like a living thing, grinding against the metal with a harsh sound.
The assassin abandoned the weapon without hesitation and stepped back, his feet kicking off the ground.
"Soru!"
His body vanished but in the next instant, sand rose from the floor like a wave.
The palace room burst open from the inside.
Golden sand flooded the chamber, swallowing the curtains, the furniture, and the moonlight itself.
The assassin reappeared near the wall, but before he could escape, a sand hand grabbed his ankle.
His body was dragged down hard.
Bang!
The floor cracked beneath him.
Cobra raised one hand.
The sand tightened.
The assassin's breathing became rough.
He struggled violently, but the more he struggled, the deeper the sand wrapped around his body.
Cobra walked toward him step by step.
The sword was still lodged through his chest, but his body had already turned half into sand. The blade slowly slipped out, fell to the floor, and clattered against the stone.
Cobra looked down at the assassin.
"Who gave the order?"
He had always hated violence.
He had always believed a king should protect his people through patience, kindness, and wisdom.
But kindness given to a blade would only invite another blade.
And this blade had not been aimed at him alone.
It had been aimed at Alabasta.
At Vivi.
At everything his family had protected for generations.
"I will ask once more."
Cobra's voice was calm, but every word carried the weight of the desert.
"Who gave the order?"
The assassin clenched his teeth but didn't answer.
A second later, the window shattered.
Two more figures rushed in from outside.
All of them wore white masks.
Cipher Pol.
The moment they saw the scene inside the room, their movements stopped for the briefest instant.
That instant was enough.
Cobra used his Logia power again.
However, although Logia fruits were undeniably powerful, he had only just obtained this ability. He was far from being able to control it freely.
Because of that, the situation quickly fell into a stalemate.
Thinking of a way to break the deadlock, Cobra finally stopped and spoke.
"Go back and tell the people behind you this."
"If another assassin sets foot in Alabasta… If even one more hand from the World Government reaches toward my country, then I will make everything public. The truth they are trying so desperately to hide from the world… and tonight's assassination attempt against a member of the Nefertari family."
The two agents merely exchanged glances with each other, their eyes dark and uncertain.
The Nefertari family was not an ordinary royal family.
Even if they had refused to become Celestial Dragons, their name was still tied to the twenty kings who founded the World Government.
If it became known that the World Government had secretly sent assassins to kill Nefertari Cobra immediately after the Alabasta incident, the entire sea would begin to question them.
And now, to make things worse, Cobra had obtained Crocodile's Devil Fruit.
The World Government could kill an ordinary king but killing a Logia user in Alabasta would not be so simple.
The two Cipher Pol agents exchanged a glance.
Then, without another word, they seized their fallen companion and disappeared into the night.
A moment later, hurried footsteps sounded outside.
"Your Majesty!"
"King Cobra!"
Chaka and Pell rushed into the chamber with the palace guards.
The moment they saw the shattered room, the sand covering the floor, and Cobra standing unharmed in the middle of it all, they froze.
Pell's eyes widened.
"Your Majesty… your body…"
Cobra looked down, then shook his head at them while closing his eyes and taking a deep breath to steady himself.
Part of his arm had not fully returned to flesh yet. Sand still drifted from his sleeve.
"Vivi…"
A faint smile appeared on his tired face.
"Your father will not remain someone who can only be protected either."
The plan was exactly as Shiki had expected.
After he rejected their offer, they would move to kill Cobra, who was already on their death list, and then place the blame on Shiki instead.
That way, Shiki would be painted as a cruel monster who brought death wherever he went.
The citizens of Alabasta could easily be fooled.
Not only would the World Government appear as heroes who had come to help their country, but they would also successfully brand Shiki as a disaster that left destruction in his wake.
At the same time, they would achieve their true goal.
Killing Cobra and taking control of his country but... unfortunately for them, things did not go as they had expected.
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