On the Grand Line, the Straw Hats' ship was sailing upstream along Alabasta's Sandora River. They would later land at Erumalu, then go ashore along the inland edge of Alabasta to head for Yuba, where the leader of the rebel army was located.
According to Ace, he was pursuing a major criminal named Blackbeard. This man had committed the most heinous crime possible aboard a pirate ship—he killed one of his own crewmates and then fled.
Moreover, Blackbeard had originally been a member of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division, meaning he was Ace's subordinate. Therefore, Ace felt it was his responsibility to find Blackbeard and deal with him.
The reason Ace had come to Alabasta was because he had received information that Blackbeard had been spotted in Yuba, so his destination was the same as Luffy and the others.
Thus, Ace was temporarily traveling with Luffy and the crew. That evening, everyone on the ship held a lively party to welcome Ace.
Time passed quickly, and before they knew it, the next morning had arrived.
"Hey, I'm Captain Onigiri Usopp! Who are you?"
Early in the morning, in the Going Merry's kitchen, Usopp put his index finger through a rice ball and bobbed it up and down. At a glance, the finger sticking through the rice ball looked a bit like his long nose.
"I'm Riceball Snowman!"
Luffy stacked two larger rice balls together, put two dates in the top one for eyes, stuck in a sausage for a nose, and stuck a fork and knife into the sides of the bottom rice ball for arms, playing along with Usopp.
Sanji, who had gone to call Vivi, returned to the kitchen to find Luffy and Usopp playing with the rice balls he had just made. He immediately lost it, grabbing a frying pan and cracking it over the heads of the two troublemakers. "Don't play with your food!"
After disciplining Luffy and Usopp, Sanji told them to wash the dishes. He was busy and still needed to prepare everyone's lunch boxes before they landed.
Ace, sitting leisurely drinking tea, politely asked if Sanji needed any help. But Sanji said Ace was a guest and should just rest.
It didn't take long for Sanji to realize that letting Luffy and Usopp wash the dishes had been a mistake. Those two were using the rag bucket to wash the dishes, making them dirtier than before.
On the ship's deck, Chopper was sunbathing comfortably. A gentle breeze occasionally blew by, making him feel very relaxed.
Zoro was beside the lounging Chopper, constantly swinging a barbell loaded with several large chunks of iron. His form made it look like he was wielding the barbell as a sword. Sweat poured from him, and each swing of the barbell sent a breeze that cooled Chopper below.
Tom was meditating on the other side of the ship, not training as usual. Recently, he felt his Devil Fruit ability was on the verge of evolving, and he was trying to find a way to develop new techniques.
As Nami was confirming their course at the bow, Vivi found her and asked if they could stop nearby. There was an important mission she wanted to entrust to Karoo.
"Karoo, from here, you must go alone to the palace in Alubarna and deliver this letter to my father."
After landing nearby, Vivi spoke seriously to Karoo, holding a letter. "This letter contains everything about Crocodile and Baroque Works' conspiracy—all the results of Igaram's investigation and mine. It also says that I have returned safely to Alabasta and am with my crewmates."
"You can do it, right? From here on, you have to cross the desert alone."
As Vivi finished speaking, Karoo let out an enthusiastic quack, clearly telling Vivi he could do it.
"Listen carefully. In the desert, you must conserve water."
After tying the important letter to Karoo, Vivi gave him this instruction.
"Karoo, you can do it!"
Luffy encouraged Karoo too.
"There are plenty of predators in the desert too, right? Be careful you don't get eaten."
Tom's words made Karoo's flat duck bill drop open.
"Why are you scaring him?!"
Nami lightly punched Tom in the face.
"You're the one who really scares him when you lose your temper. I bet he's happy now, since he doesn't have to see your scary face anymore. Hahahaha!"
Tom spoke his mind honestly. Nami's face darkened.
"Also, please tell my father that this country can be saved."
After Vivi said this to Karoo with a smile, Karoo let out an energetic quack and ran off swiftly.
"I knew Crocodile was a Warlord of the Sea, but I didn't think he was trying to take over this country. It's a terrible joke."
Ace, staying on the ship, watched Karoo run off quickly and said to Zoro beside him. "A pirate trying to settle down in one place? He can't just be after the king's throne. There must be some other goal behind seizing control of a country."
"Some other goal?"
Zoro was puzzled by Ace's words.
"Drink water slowly!"
After Vivi called out to the distant Karoo, she turned around and said, "Oh, there's something I wanted to ask—"
"What happened to him?"
Vivi had wanted to ask Tom about his encounter with Crocodile the previous day. But when she turned back, she saw Tom lying on the ground with several large bumps on his head, looking utterly miserable. Her jaw dropped.
"Don't mind him. Let's get back to the ship."
Nami smiled brightly and waved to Vivi.
"That's right. The stinky fisherman deserved it."
After Sanji said this, his eyes immediately turned into hearts as he addressed Vivi. "Miss Vivi, I've brewed some tea and made snacks for you and Miss Nami. We can have them together!"
"Sanji! I want snacks too!"
Luffy, who had been about to ask why Nami had beaten Tom, immediately forgot about Tom and dashed back onto the ship, shouting loudly, "Let's set sail!"
"Wait! We haven't gotten on yet!"
Usopp and Chopper, who had just helped Tom up, hurriedly shouted to Luffy as he ran back to the ship.
A while later, Luffy and the others finally reached Erumalu by ship. They were now preparing to go ashore.
"We made it!"
"Time to enter the desert? It'll be so hot."
"For someone who grew up on a winter island, the desert heat might be unbearable. You need to prepare yourself mentally."
"That's right. Daytime temperatures can exceed fifty degrees, so Chopper, whatever you do, don't get heatstroke."
As Luffy, Chopper, Tom, and Nami chatted, Sanji saw that Nami was now wearing a robe that covered her completely, unlike her previous dancer outfit. His eyes nearly popped out. "Nami-san! Why are you wearing that?! What about your dancer outfit?!"
"And Miss Vivi! Why are you dressed like that too?!"
Sanji saw that Vivi was also wearing a robe like Nami. He couldn't handle it.
"In the desert, exposed skin gets badly sunburned."
Vivi explained to Sanji, sending him rolling across the deck in despair.
"Put this on."
Nami handed Tom a robe.
"I'm not afraid of getting tanned. Why do I have to dress like a bandit?"
Nami's lovely eyebrows twitched. "Didn't you hear Vivi? What if you get sunburned?"
"I suppose you're right. I'd rather not wear sunscreen like you women. That would be worse."
Tom spoke as he put on the robe.
"What nonsense are you talking? I think you're already pretty bad."
Nami turned her head slightly and muttered quietly.
"Everyone, get ready to go ashore."
"Stop dawdling."
After docking the ship, Zoro and Usopp came to the side and saw a large group of creatures emerging from the sea by the shore.
"Are those turtles?"
"They look more like seals."
"I think you're both wrong."
Zoro, Luffy, and Tom watched the creatures emerge from the sea. They had turtle shells on their backs and looked very cute, with seal-like tails. For a moment, they couldn't quite identify what they were.
"Those are Kung Fu Dugongs!"
As soon as Vivi saw the adorable creatures with shells and seal-like features, she exclaimed.
"Is he saying something?"
Tom saw the Kung Fu Dugong on shore making gestures at them, almost like it was provoking them.
"If you want to come ashore, fight me! If you're scared, get lost, cowards!"
Chopper, who understood animal language, translated the Kung Fu Dugong's words.
"Being called a coward? I can't let that slide."
Usopp confidently jumped from the ship onto the shore.
"Wait, Usopp!"
Vivi saw Usopp jump down and called out urgently, "Kung Fu Dugongs are very strong!"
But by the time Vivi shouted this, the Kung Fu Dugong had already pummeled Usopp until his face was swollen, and he was lying on the ground, temporarily unable to get up.
"The other two idiots won, though."
Nami looked at Luffy and Tom, who had jumped down at the same time as Usopp, and saw that they had already knocked out two other Kung Fu Dugongs.
"Winning is bad too!"
Vivi hadn't expected Luffy and Tom to defeat the Kung Fu Dugongs so quickly. She suddenly felt overwhelmed. "When a Kung Fu Dugong is defeated, they have to acknowledge the victor as their master. It's their rule!"
As Vivi was explaining this to Nami and the others, Luffy and Tom proceeded to defeat a whole bunch more dugongs. Vivi's jaw dropped to the deck. "I haven't even finished talking, and you've already taken on so many disciples!"
"Alright, everyone! Follow me!"
Luffy was surrounded by a group of dugongs. He got into a fighting stance and threw a punch forward. "Like this!"
"Then like this!"
Luffy threw one punch after another, instructing the Kung Fu Dugongs copying his movements. "Keep going! Don't stop!"
The dugongs followed Luffy's lead, punching in perfect unison. With each punch, they let out a fierce battle cry.
Meanwhile, Tom looked at the dugongs he had defeated. They gazed up at him with looks of admiration and cuteness, even bowing to him.
"I'm still so young, and I already have so many disciples. That's pretty nice."
Tom thought for a moment, then said to the dugongs, "From now on, you will walk the path of hunters alongside me."
"Ee!"
The Kung Fu Dugongs responded in unison, all looking very energetic.
"First, as hunters, we must be able to identify our prey in the shortest possible time."
Tom nodded with satisfaction and was about to continue when one of the dugongs from Luffy's group came over to him and started chattering loudly. It even turned around and wiggled its seal-like tail.
"Chopper, translate for me. What's it saying?"
Tom truly couldn't understand animal language, so he turned to Chopper.
"You lousy amateur! Stop misleading people! I'm challenging your style right now! You're scared to accept, aren't you, coward?! I can knock you flying with one tail! If you've got a problem with that, come fight me! Idiot!"
Chopper bluntly translated the Kung Fu Dugong's words.
"I see. They're pure martial artists. When they encounter another style nearby, they immediately challenge it."
Zoro quickly understood the dugong's intent. There was no room for two masters on the same mountain.
"You little turtle! You've got some nerve!"
Tom was instantly enraged upon hearing Chopper's translation. He hadn't expected to be insulted by an animal after coming to Alabasta. Some things could not be tolerated.
"Someone's come to challenge our dojo! Show them no mercy!"
Tom waved grandly to his group of Kung Fu Dugongs. "Go get them!"
I'm a grandmaster now. Why would I bother fighting this little turtle myself? I'll just let my disciples teach him a lesson.
As Tom thought this, the challenger dugong had already been thoroughly pummeled by his disciples and was retreating into its shell.
"Hey! Why are you beating up my disciple?!"
Luffy saw the battered dugong being thrown over by Tom's group and confronted him.
"Your disciple was too arrogant."
"That's bullying!"
"He just got ganged up on."
"You should fight one-on-one!"
"How about you and I have a match?"
As Luffy and Tom argued, they soon started brawling. The surrounding dugongs saw their masters fighting—how could they tolerate that?
The two groups of Kung Fu Dugongs immediately erupted into a massive free-for-all, leaving Zoro and the others, who hadn't yet left the Merry, utterly stunned.
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T/N :
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