MOONLIGHT AND TOMBSTONES

This page is a full-color version of the previous title spread. The Straw Hat Pirates are shown relaxing in a vibrant outdoor setting. Sanji, wearing a red shirt and tan pants, lounges on a yellow floral couch beneath a yellow sign that says "It's funky GOAL?". Usopp, in a white shirt and dark pants, sits beside him holding a purple sign reading "DON'T FUNK". A pink owl sits between them. Luffy is perched on the back of the couch, drinking dark liquid from a giant glass. Zoro sleeps peacefully in the foreground on the green grass, covered by a grey jacket. Nami stands in the background, wearing an orange and green plaid dress, looking at her reflection in a large wooden mirror. The chapter title "CHAPTER 107 'MOONLIGHT AND TOMBSTONES'" is at the top.

The story begins at night in Whisky Peak. A full moon rises over the cactus-shaped mountains. Narration boxes read, "The moon rises. And the welcoming party at Whiskey Peak continues..." Inside a lively building, Usopp is holding a large mug of beer, his face flushed with a drunken blush. He points dramatically and boasts, "'Don't you dare lay a hand on my crewmates, you Sea King bastards!' And so I coolly said to him," The crowd of townsfolk cheers wildly around him, shouting "Cheers!!" and "That's soooo cooooool, Capt. Usopp!" Usopp continues his tall tale, "Well, to be perfectly honest, even I trembled a little during our great escape from Calm Belt... Trembling with excitement, that is...!"

The partying continues with intense drinking and eating contests. In the top panel, Zoro sits calmly with a mug of beer while a large man collapses face-first onto the table, surrounded by empty mugs. The crowd cheers, "Amazing! This man outdrank 10 people! You win." In the middle panel, Nami happily slams a giant wooden stein onto the table, shouting "ORYAAAAA!" as another man falls backward, defeated. The townsfolk exclaim, "And this lady here outdrank 12 people! What a couple of heavy drinkers!" In the bottom panel, Luffy is shown with a massively bloated, perfectly round stomach, still holding a fork and a bone. He demands, "MORE!" while the crowd panics, "Holy moly! Here we have their captain who's eaten enough food for 20 people! The cook just collapsed! Please have mercy on me."

In the top panel, Sanji is surrounded by a group of swooning women. He holds up a glass, smiling charmingly. The townsfolk observe, "He's flirting with 20 women all by himself! And would you take a look at this lady-killer! What a pirate crew!" In the middle panel, the mayor of Whisky Peak, Igaram, laughs heartily, "HAHAHAHA! What a festib- Ma-ma- ahem! Maa~ Festive night this is! Your enjoyment means the world to us!" The bottom panel shows an exterior view of the town square under the night sky, with music notes floating in the air. Igaram's voice continues from inside, "It means the world... Truly..." while a small "sfx: ignore!" points to his throat-clearing habit.

Inside a quiet room, Miss Wednesday and Mr. 9 are sitting on the floor, writing a letter by candlelight. Miss Wednesday dictates, "Although we were unsuccessful in our task to secure food for the town......and so... to make up for our blunder, we have succeeded in... luring those pirates to Cactus Island... Thus ends... our report... Yours sincerely, Baby." Mr. 9 finishes writing. Outside, they approach a small wooden box shaped like a skull with crossbones, labeled "BAROQUE". Miss Wednesday says, "So let's hurry up and put our report in the Unluckies' box." Mr. 9 replies, "Yes. Good... If we send this to the boss, I'm sure we'll be cleared of our shame." They slip the rolled-up report into the box. A bird with goggles and a skull necklace is perched on the box. Mr. 9 adds, "They'll be sure to deliver our report, directly to the boss..."

Back at the party, Nami is in a drinking contest with a muscular woman dressed as a nun, Miss Monday. Nami chugs from her mug, her face flushed, while Miss Monday drinks from hers. The crowd watches in awe, "But this girl's on her 15th! Her opponent is the sister! Ohhh! And he goes down against his 13th opponent!" Zoro is shown slumped over, muttering, "I can't drink... anymore..." Someone comments, "J...eeez... so pathetic, Zoro... It'd be best for you to stop as well for your health's sake, you know?" In the middle panel, Luffy is lying on his back, his stomach enormous, sighing, "I can't eat anymore. Thanks for the meal." Sanji is dancing drunkenly with the women, laughing, "HAHAHAHAHA!" The crowd notes, "3 cooks have collapsed now! She's the type to laugh when drunk!" In the bottom panels, Sanji swoons, "This is surely heaven!" Usopp is passed out on the floor, snoring. Nami finally collapses onto the table with a thud, smiling, "Ah... feels so good... Ah, what a great town this is!" The crowd cheers, "And she's down!"

The town has grown quiet. An exterior shot shows the building where the party took place. A voice notes, "Looks like they've fallen asleep, after all that partying..." Inside, Sanji, Luffy, Nami, Usopp, and Zoro are all shown fast asleep, snoring peacefully. The perspective shifts to outside, looking over the cactus-shaped rocks under the moonlight. The silhouette of Igaram stands in the foreground. He says, "Sweet dreams, my fellow adventurers... O' how beautifully the cactus rocks are, as they dance again, beneath the moonlight tonight..."

Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday approach Igaram from behind. Mr. 9 calls out, "Quite the poet, aren't you, Mr. 8...?" Igaram turns around, his large curly hair prominent. "Oh, it's you..." he says. Mr. 9 asks, "And what about them?" Igaram replies, "They've fallen deeply... To hell, that is..." A caption box introduces Igaram: "IGARAPPOI A.K.A MR. 8".

The door opens, and the muscular nun, Miss Monday, steps out, cracking her knuckles. "Hic! That bunch sure knows how to eat and drink. And I was only drinking sparkling barley tea...!" Igaram addresses her, "Oh dear lord. Miss Monday." Miss Monday looks annoyed, "Is there really even a need to stage this whole welcome party in the first place? I mean, they're only a bunch of weak-looking brats...! We should've just crushed them at the harbor. The town is short enough on food as it is already. And it's not like we can count on getting that whale meat either." A caption box introduces her: "SISTER A.K.A MISS MONDAY". Igaram holds up a piece of paper and says, "Now, now. Just calm down for now and take a look at this. I've done my homework about this crew." Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday protest, "Don't you talk that way about us! That's right! We tried our best, you know!"

Igaram reveals a wanted poster for "Monkey D. Luffy" with a bounty of 30,000,000 Berries. Miss Monday, Miss Wednesday, and Mr. 9 react with extreme shock, their eyes bulging and jaws dropping. "W... WHAT!? TH... THIRTY MILLION BELI!?" Igaram explains, "To judge a pirate's strength from his appearances alone is quite foolish, Miss B- Ma-maa~ Miss Monday." Miss Monday sweats, "Them...!? My apologies..." Igaram continues, "But in any case... they're already out cold. This should make an excellent report for the boss. Now go confiscate any money or treasures on their ship and tie them all up! If we kill them, we'll lose 30% of the bounty money. The government would rather do public executions of criminals, after all."

Suddenly, a voice calls out from above, "Sorry but... would you mind letting those guys sleep for a bit longer? They're all tired from the journey over here." Igaram, Mr. 9, and Miss Monday look up in shock. "!? M-Mr. 8! Ms. Monday! One of their crew has escaped!" Igaram stammers, "Why you...! Weren't you passed out cold after all that drinking just a moment ago...!?" On the roof of the building, silhouetted against the giant full moon, sits Roronoa Zoro, holding his sword. He declares, "A true swordsman never allows alcohol to take control of himself."

Zoro smirks confidently, looking down at them. "So that's how it was... this place is a den of bounty hunters, and you take advantage of the overconfident newbie pirates who've just entered Grand Line...!" Below him, a massive crowd of armed townsfolk gathers, revealing their true nature as bounty hunters. They cock their guns and draw their swords. Zoro stands up on the roof, looking out over the sea of enemies. "Looks like there's about a 100 of you. You'll be a fine opponent for me, Baroque Works."

Igaram and the others are shocked that Zoro knows their organization's name. "WHA!? HOW DO YOU KNOW THE NAME OF OUR ORGANIZATION!?" they shout. Zoro, his face shadowed with a menacing grin, explains, "Back when I was in the same line of business as you, a certain organization tried to scout me but I refused, of course....An organization whose members don't know a thing about each other's real identities, and must refer each other by their codenames. A criminal organization that asks for complete obedience from its members: Baroque Works. And of course, the boss' location and identity are a mystery as well." Zoro adds, "Heh... was that supposed to be a secret?" Igaram then commands his subordinates, "This is quite a shock... but if he knows our secret, then we have no choice but to eliminate him... ANOTHER TOMBSTONE, MUST BE ADDED TO CACTUS ROCK TONIGHT...!"

A large cross-shaped tombstone with "Mr. Sacrifice" written on it stands among the cactus rocks beneath the moonlight. Igaram points at Zoro and shouts, "KILL HIM!" The bounty hunters aim their weapons at the roof, but Zoro has vanished. "He's gone! Where'd he go!?" they yell in confusion.

Zoro suddenly appears right in the middle of the crowd, startling Igaram and the bounty hunters. He smiles fiercely, "Now then... shall we get things started?" The bounty hunters panic and open fire. "You bastard! Shoot!" Zoro moves with incredible speed, dodging the bullets. He strikes a bounty hunter holding a gun, sending him flying backward with a loud "UGH!" The impact is powerful, and the other hunters look on in shock.

Igaram yells at his men, "You fools! He disappeared again! He's too fast! Hurry up and kill him already! He's only one swordsm..." Suddenly, Zoro appears right behind Igaram, resting his sword on Igaram's shoulder. Zoro whispers menacingly, "Are you sure that you want to add only one tombstone tonight?" The bounty hunters spot him and aim their guns again. "There he is!" Igaram panics, waving his arms, "S-stop you fools! Are you planning to shoot me too!? I said stop!"

Zoro leaps away just as the bounty hunters fire, causing chaos among their own ranks. A hunter screams "AGHHHHHH!" as he is hit. Zoro lands safely on a nearby roof, observing the destruction. "Whew... was that a shotgun? Talk about dangerous..." Down below, Mr. 9, Miss Wednesday, and Miss Monday look up at him with intense, angry expressions. Mr. 9 says, "It looks like... we'll have to deal with him personally." Miss Monday cracks her knuckles menacingly.

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