Chapter 194: Ralph, the Ambassador of Greening!
According to Ralph's calculations, by the time they reached Rainbase, Crocodile should still be in a meeting with his senior agents.
Bon Clay wouldn't have had the chance to cause trouble using the Mane Mane no Mi.
But even so, this mark still held meaning.
It was a trace left behind from their shared adventure.
Proof that they would always be companions.
That night, everyone stayed over in Yuba.
Uncle Toto brought out all the food and water he had.
In the middle of the night, Ralph was awakened by noises outside.
He stepped out of the small house and saw Lufia helping Toto dig a well.
Under the moonlight, Lufia swung her arms wide, her rubber limbs spinning like windmills, sending sand flying everywhere.
Toto watched from the side, both moved and helpless.
He was moved that the princess's friend was so enthusiastic, but helpless because this digging method was too rough and completely lacking in technique.
"In the middle of the night..."
Ralph walked over.
"Ralph!"
Seeing him, Lufia's eyes lit up, "Come help! Uncle Toto said if we can dig out water, we can save this city!"
Ralph sighed.
Since Lufia was already helping, he couldn't just stand by either.
So he joined the well-digging team.
But relying on manpower alone was too slow.
Ralph thought for a moment, then pulled out Munch-Munch, who was sleeping soundly in his arms.
"Little one, wake up."
Munch-Munch drowsily opened its eyes.
"Eat."
Ralph pointed at the sand on the ground, "Good boy, eat all of this."
Although Munch-Munch didn't understand why it had to eat sand, it complied anyway.
It opened its mouth and began devouring the earth.
As it consumed the sand, the well pit visibly deepened at a rapid pace.
Toto watched, dumbfounded:
"This, this is..."
The three of them (two people and one dragon) worked through the entire night.
At daybreak, Toto suddenly cried out excitedly:
"Water! It's water!"
At the bottom of the well pit, there was a small patch of damp sand.
Although it hadn't yet formed a flow, water was indeed seeping through.
"That's wonderful..."
Toto knelt by the well, tears streaming down his aged face,
"Finally... we've finally reached water..."
He turned, fetched a small wooden bucket from inside the house, carefully collected the tiny amount of seeping water, and then solemnly handed it to Lufia.
"Miss Lufia," he said, "This... is for you. Though it's very little, this is water of hope. With it, Yuba still has a chance."
Lufia took the small wooden bucket and cradled it preciously in her arms:
"Thank you, Uncle Toto!"
Everyone gradually woke up and prepared to split up for their tasks.
Usopp, noticing the small wooden bucket hanging from Lufia's neck, asked curiously:
"Lufia, why are you treasuring that so much? Don't we have Munch-Munch? Are we still short on water?"
Lufia shook her head:
"It's not the same."
She turned to look at Ralph, wanting him to explain, but couldn't immediately recall what Ralph had said the previous night, "Ralph, you said yesterday that Munch-Munch can't be used all the time—why was that again?"
Ralph took over:
"Although Munch-Munch can extract water from plants, it can't create water indefinitely.
The roots of desert plants can firmly hold the soil, preventing it from completely turning into sand.
If we eat up all the desert plants just to get water, the soil will lose its anchor, and with the wind, it'll scatter everywhere.
By then, even if it rains normally, it'll be very difficult to form an oasis again."
Chopper listened intently:
"It's like healing a sick land... Ralph, you really know a lot."
Lufia listened to Ralph showing off his knowledge. Though she didn't fully understand, her face was filled with pride.
Meanwhile, Vivi stared at Ralph in shock.
He even knew about environmental transformation?
"Mr. Ralph," Vivi couldn't help but ask, "If it's possible... planting vegetation across the desert, could that create more oases?"
Last night, Ralph had merely been showing off in front of Lufia using knowledge from his past life.
He never expected Vivi to pick up the topic first thing this morning.
But thinking about it, it made sense—
As the princess of a desert kingdom, a princess who cared deeply for her people, Vivi would naturally be concerned about this issue.
So Ralph shared everything he knew:
"Of course it's possible, but it requires the right methods."
"I know a thing or two about methods ordinary people can use, though they'd take more time."
"As for extraordinary methods, they could rely on certain special powers. For example, miraculous plants or treasures from certain islands. The simplest... would be to find the Mori Mori no Mi."
"The Mori Mori no Mi?"
Vivi was puzzled.
"A type of Devil Fruit," Ralph explained.
"After eating it, one can become a Forest Human and control plant growth. With that ability, transforming the desert would be much easier."
The more Ralph spoke, the brighter the light of hope shone on Vivi's face.
"Then it's settled!"
She said earnestly, "After we defeat Crocodile and end the war, I'll have my father follow Mr. Ralph's suggestions to transform Alabasta."
"So Alabasta will no longer be a desert nation, but a land full of life!"
Hearing Vivi's grand ambition, Ralph was deeply moved.
"Alright," He nodded.
"I'll definitely help."
Just as Ralph was thinking about leaving a transformation plan for Alabasta later, Vivi was already considering how to "keep" Ralph here.
But that was a matter for the future.
The immediate priority was to resolve the war and defeat the one who caused it.
It was time to split into teams.
One team, led by Vivi, headed toward Katorea—consisting of Nami, Usopp, Sanji, Chopper, and Vivi.
The other team, led by Lufia, advanced toward Rainbase—with Ralph, Zoro, Ace, and Munch-Munch.
Two teams, heading in two different directions.
Their goals differed, but their beliefs were the same:
to save this country and protect their important companions.
Rainbase.
When Lufia's group stepped into the city, everyone was stunned.
Compared to the drought-ravaged cities they had passed along the way, Rainbase felt like another world.
Wide streets, magnificent buildings, bustling crowds.
The streets were lined with shady trees, fountains gushed in the central squares, and water droplets sparkled under the sunlight.
Most eye-catching were the casinos—
neon lights flashing, music blaring, well-dressed people coming and going, their faces showing excitement or dejection.
"..."
Zoro frowned.
"It's like a completely different world from outside."
Lufia, however, didn't overthink it.
As soon as she entered the city, her eyes lit up.
"It smells so good!"
She sniffed the air.
"It's the smell of food!"
And so, this "team with the highest combat power" quickly turned into the "team that could eat the most."
Lufia goes without saying—she alone could eat an entire shop's worth.
Ace, as Lufia's older brother, also has a considerable appetite.
Zoro, while not as exaggerated as Lufia, is still at the level of a big eater.
Munch-Munch... well, Munch-Munch speaks for itself—it even wants to eat the plates.
Ralph, having inherited Munch-Munch's Big Stomach, ate with immense satisfaction, only...
"I feel like the gold coins on me might not be enough..."
He muttered quietly.
But it's fine.
Ralph looked toward the end of the street, at the most magnificent and massive building—the Rain Dinners.
That was the casino opened by Crocodile, the biggest money sink in this city.
He could just go play a few hands later.
Ralph had long wanted to try what it felt like to cheat using Observation Haki.
Not to mention, he also had advanced pickpocketing skills and advanced hypnosis abilities.
With these skills combined...
He was the God of Gambling!
Ralph even began to fantasize about the scene later:
He would enter the casino, play a few low-key rounds, and then start a winning streak.
Gamblers around would gather to watch his performance, the dealer would sweat on their forehead, the casino manager would personally step in... and finally, Crocodile himself would be alerted.
According to the plan, he would win big at the casino, win until Crocodile showed up, win until he lost face, win until he became furious and resorted to cheating.
Then Lufia would step in and take him down in one fell swoop.
The whole conflict would appear to be an accident triggered by a gambling match.
Crocodile would let his guard down, never imagining that their ultimate goal was to eliminate him.
A perfect plan.
If Lufia couldn't handle it, there was Ace; if Ace couldn't handle it, there was Ralph himself.
Ralph patted his chest—
There was a small fragment of Seastone there, "recovered" from Smoker's Jitte a few days ago.
Though small, it was enough to strip Crocodile of his abilities at a critical moment.
Flawless.
Foolproof.
Ralph's eyes seemed to already see the vision of victory:
The high-ranking agents of Baroque Works would all be stunned by his scheme and pledge their allegiance one by one.
Lufia, having defeated one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, would see her bounty successfully rise, and her affection for him would reach a new level.
Simply perfect...
Wait.
Where's Lufia?
Ralph suddenly turned his head.
Lufia, who had been eating grilled meat beside him just moments ago, was gone.
Then, he heard a loud shout—
From the other end of the street, from the direction of the Rain Dinners, came a powerful, full-throated shout:
"Crocodile—!"
The voice was filled with fighting spirit and rage.
"Get out here—!"
All the pedestrians on the street stopped in their tracks, looking toward the source of the voice.
"I'm gonna knock you flying—!"
The expressions of Ralph, Ace, and Zoro all froze!
Munch-Munch stopped chewing on the wooden skewer.
Ralph slapped his forehead.
"It's over..."
She had been so obedient the whole way, why at the final moment...
Did she lose it?!