This city, known as the "City of Dreams" in Alabasta, is a jewel in the desert—a bustling port city.
In the past, pirates often raided this prosperous city.
That was until Crocodile arrived.
Now, in the top-floor office of Rain Dinners, the largest casino in the country, Crocodile sat expressionlessly on a luxurious leather sofa. He reached out with his only remaining hand and pinched a small flower from the vase.
In an instant, the flower lost all its moisture, withering and drying up completely.
He stood up and walked to the massive transparent floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the city.
In the foreground was a bustling part of the city, filled with traffic and activity.
In the distance, at the edge of the city, stretched an endless expanse of desert.
Rainbase was indeed a port city, but it also bordered the desert.
This was Crocodile's domain.
"Sig is finally coming. I'll have to prepare a proper welcome for him."
Crocodile took a puff of his cigar, blowing out a smoke ring, though his face remained emotionless.
"While I'm away from Rainbase for a few days, don't do anything unnecessary, Miss All Sunday."
Crocodile turned his head and spoke in a low voice.
"Of course, I won't make any unwise choices before obtaining the Poneglyph."
A calm female voice responded.
Nico Robin sat on another sofa, resting her chin on her hand, her eyes fixed on Crocodile with a hint of complexity.
Under her desert cowboy-style hat was a sleek, shoulder-length black bob. At just eighteen years old, Robin already had a strikingly mature figure.
Her black suit was daringly unbuttoned at the collar, revealing a hint of cleavage that added to her allure, belying her age.
"A guest is coming from afar, and you're planning to leave Rainbase temporarily? Mr. 0, you're quite the hospitable host."
About a month ago, while still in the West Blue, she had been approached by agents of Baroque Works and brought to Alabasta to collaborate with Crocodile.
She couldn't quite figure out Crocodile's motives and wanted to probe further.
"That's not something you need to concern yourself with."
"I'll be back by the time Sig arrives."
Crocodile said coldly.
His body turned into sand, drifting out through the open floor-to-ceiling window and gradually disappearing into the distance.
At the port of Rainbase, an ironclad ship arrived.
Laboon, the whale, was mostly submerged underwater, but even so, it drew a crowd of onlookers.
Sig stood at the bow of the ship, looking at the bustling port city with a serious expression.
"The day has finally come."
Sig touched the bottle of liquor at his waist.
He had always been wary of Crocodile and had prepared the bottle specifically to douse him at a critical moment, nullifying his Logia powers.
As for whether he could actually pull it off, Sig wasn't so sure.
"Mr. Sig, President Crocodile is waiting for you at Rain Dinners."
A man in a suit stood on the shore, wearing a polite smile as he waited.
Sig's sense of tension grew heavier. He turned to look at his crew.
Kuro's hair was disheveled, and he looked completely drained, as if all his energy had been sapped.
Arlong, the fishman, made it clear he had no desire to enter this desert kingdom.
The rest of the crew, feeling just as uneasy as Sig, stayed close by.
Soon, the group was led by the suited man into Rain Dinners, the largest casino in Alabasta.
This scene was observed from a distance by Cobra, who was watching from the window of a tall building.
"Sig entered Crocodile's casino?"
"Is he here to gamble, or is he really here to meet Crocodile?"
Behind him, Igaram, the captain of the royal guards, and Pell, the vice-captain, both facepalmed.
"Your Majesty, you're overthinking this."
"Perhaps it's best to return to the royal capital. With Crocodile here, there shouldn't be any problems."
"No... I need to keep watching." Cobra shook his head, still feeling uneasy.
His gaze shifted from the Rain Dinners casino below to the distant horizon, where a gust of wind blew in, causing his robe to flutter.
"Is it getting dark? Is it going to rain?"
Cobra couldn't shake the feeling that, even in broad daylight, the light seemed a bit dim.
Meanwhile, Sig and his crew had just entered the grand hall of the casino, led by the suited man.
The casino was lavishly decorated and bustling with activity.
The man led Sig through the crowd toward the elevator.
"Mr. Sig, our president has been waiting for you on the fifth floor for a while now. Please follow me to the elevator."
Sig immediately grew wary.
He remembered that, in the original story, Luffy and his crew had taken the elevator and ended up trapped in a seastone cage.
"No need. Floors one through four are all part of the casino, right? Before meeting your president, I'd like to take a look around the largest casino in Alabasta."
The suited man looked troubled, but Sig ignored him and headed straight for the stairs.
He casually wandered through the casino floors, trying to buy time to come up with a plan.
But his sense of tension and anxiety only grew heavier.
"Sir, what a shame. You lost again. Care to play another round?"
A provocatively dressed dealer asked with a teasing smile.
Her words drew laughter from the surrounding crowd.
Sig looked over and saw a large group of people gathered around one of the gambling tables, more than at any other table.
Amid the laughter, a middle-aged man's voice rang out.
"Play! Of course, I'll play. I'm sure to win the next round."
Following the voice, Sig was stunned.
The speaker was an unremarkable middle-aged man in a purple robe. He had short hair and a trimmed beard—completely ordinary in appearance.
The only unusual thing about him was the two shocking scars where his eyes should have been.
This was a blind middle-aged man.
"My savior has arrived!"
Sig's heart leaped with joy.
This was none other than Fujitora, the future Marine Admiral!
Fujitora hated evil with a passion and was as strong as a monster. If Sig could get Fujitora on his side, Crocodile would be finished in no time.
After all, this was a bona fide Admiral!
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