The transition was jarring. Stepping into Rainbase, the "City of Dreams," felt like crossing into another world.
Behind them lay the skeletal remains of drought-stricken villages; before them stood a verdant paradise.
Massive fountains sprayed cooling mist, emerald trees lined the boulevards, and the air hummed with the sounds of laughter and the clinking of coins.
It was a prosperity built on the dehydration of a kingdom.
"What... what is this?" Vivi whispered, her voice trembling. "How can people be laughing like this while the rest of the country dies of thirst?"
Viktor stood at the corner, his eyes sweeping over the gamblers who mocked the "stupidity" of the Rebel Army between sips of fine wine. His expression grew deathly cold.
"Monopolize the water, numb the hearts with gold." Viktor's voice was a low, dangerous rasp. "A paradise built on the dried blood of others... what a sickening 'Utopia'."
However, for the "Idiot Duo," the politics were secondary to the plumbing.
"WATER!!! SO MUCH WATER!!" Luffy and Usopp, their lips cracked from the desert, looked like they had fountains for eyes. They immediately locked onto the most magnificent building in the city—a giant pyramid topped with a massive crocodile statue.
The casino, Rain Dinners.
"That looks like the place with the most water!! CHAAAAARGE!!" Luffy grabbed Usopp and blurred into motion.
Inside the grand hall of Rain Dinners, the atmosphere was electric and deafening.
"Out of the way!! I need a drink!!" Luffy, acting as a human cannonball, barreled through the crowd, aiming straight for the bar.
At the bar sat a white-haired man in a coat with "Justice" emblazoned on the back, calmly eating a slice of pizza.
CRASH!!
Luffy slammed into the man's back, sending them both tumbling across the floor in a tangle of limbs and pepperoni. Luffy scrambled up, blinking at the man covered in pizza sauce. The man stared back.
"STRAW HAT!!!" Smoker's eyes bulged, nearly biting through his dual cigars.
"WAHH!! SMOKE-GUY!!!" Luffy's eyes popped out of his head. "RUN FOR IT!!"
Chaos erupted instantly. "Catch the Straw Hat!!" Smoker roared, transforming into white smoke and surging forward. Luffy grabbed Usopp and sprinted, colliding with Zoro, Nami, Vivi, and Viktor who had just caught up.
"Luffy?! Is that... Smoker?!" Zoro shouted.
"No time to talk! Move!!" Luffy led the charge. In the frantic pursuit, the group was funneled—perhaps a bit too conveniently—down a long corridor toward a massive door marked "VIP."
"We can lose the smoke guy in here!" Luffy kicked the door open.
The VIP room was dim, lit only by the cold glow of a few crystal chandeliers. There was no exit. At the far end of the room sat a massive leather sofa, and within its shadows sat a man.
He had slicked-back hair, an expensive fur coat, and a cigar clamped in his teeth. A jagged scar crossed his face, and his left hand was a massive golden hook.
Beneath the floor at his feet was a giant glass tank where several "Banana Crocodiles" circled with hungry, predatory eyes.
The Warlord, Sir Crocodile. He had been expecting them.
"Heh heh heh..." Crocodile exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, his dark eyes scanning the intruders. "Welcome to Rain Dinners, Straw Hat Luffy..." His gaze shifted to the black-haired youth. "And... 'Guren' Viktor. I didn't think you'd actually make it here alive."
In that instant, every muscle in Viktor's body tightened. The sheer pressure radiating from the man made his hair stand on end.
Hum—
The Three-Tomoe Sharingan snapped into focus. In Viktor's vision, the man before him wasn't just flesh and blood; he was a terrifying, hyper-concentrated mass of dry sand.
This guy... Viktor's internal alarms blared. His body is entirely flowing sand. In this desert environment, his power is practically infinite. Without a specific weakness, his combat level is on par with a Tailed Beast.
But... sand. Viktor's mind raced. Sand hates water. He didn't have a lake, but he had chakra. He hid his hands behind his back and began to weave a complex series of forty-four signs.
[Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique]. He would strike first to test the Crocodile's depth.
However—
"YOU CROCODILE BASTARD!!"
Luffy, seeing his enemy, didn't wait for a plan. He cocked his fist and lunged. "I'M GONNA KICK YOUR ASS!!"
"Wait! Luffy! Don't be reckless!" Viktor shouted.
But it was too late. Crocodile let out a mocking sneer and pressed a button on his armchair. "Stupid rats."
Click.
The floor beneath them suddenly split open like a trapdoor!
"Eh?!" Luffy's footing vanished. Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and even Smoker, who had just burst in, lost their balance.
"AAAAAAAAHHH!!"
They slid down a massive, slick chute, plummeting toward the trap below. At the moment the floor gave way, Viktor's reflexes kicked in.
Body Flicker Technique! He blurred, attempting to leap toward the only safe ledge.
"Trying to run?" Crocodile cold-snorted. "Desert Spada!" High-pressure blades of sand erupted from the walls, sealing off every escape route and landing spot.
Simultaneously, Viktor saw Nami falling beside him, screaming in terror. "VIKTOR!!" She reached out desperately.
If Viktor forced a breakthrough, he could escape, but Nami would take a dangerous fall and likely be captured alone.
Tch. Viktor aborted his hand signs, the red light in his eyes flickering. He twisted his body mid-air, abandoning his escape. Instead, he dove downward, catching Nami and pulling her into a protective embrace.
"I've got you!"
THUD!!
A second later, the group hit the bottom of a cage constructed from Seastone. Above them, the trapdoor slammed shut with a heavy boom. The light dimmed.
Crocodile walked to the edge of the pit, looking down at the trapped "rats" with a victor's laugh. "Guh-hahahaha! Welcome to my special cage! Enjoy your final moments... pirates."
He paused, glancing at the Marine. "Oh? A Marine too? Doesn't matter. Guh-hahahaha!"
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