Ace Appears

A massive dripping Sea Cat bursts from the waves with a thunderous “ドドドドン!!” and “ビキビキ!!”, its huge eyes and lolling tongue filling the panel as it roars “Meoo-www!”. A tiny ship is tossed in its wake. Below, the crew reacts in panic: “WHAT THE HECK IS THAT!I”, “IT'S A SEA CAT!”, “IT'S A MOON STEERR!”, and “GAHHH HHH!”. Nami stares in wide-eyed shock while an info box labels the creature Sea Cat (Marine Mammal) Habitat: Coasts of Sandy Island.

Luffy yells “FOOOD!” with arms outstretched as Zoro swings swords shouting “OUR FIRST MEAL IN 4 DAYS!” and “シキーン!!”. The Sea Cat surfaces again with a swirling “あぁぁ” and “FOOOOD!”. On deck Nami calmly notes “We're still on course, so… We should be almost there by now…”. Usopp screams “DON'T LET IT GET AWAY! WE HAVE TO HUNT IT DOWN NO MATTER WHAT!” while the Sea Cat swims off with “Back the ship up! Ahh! It's backing away! Ships can't move like that!” and a small “ズン”.

The Sea Cat is hurled through the air amid a massive “ゴゴゴゴン!!” impact. Vivi shouts “YOU CAN'T!” and “You can't eat it!” while Luffy and others react with “!!I”. The creature splashes down as Vivi demands “THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, VIVI!I” and someone asks “W-what was that for, Vivi!I”. On the quiet deck afterward the narration states “Sea Cats. Are sacred creatures of Alabasta.” The crew stands in silence beneath a small “!!” and “--”.

On the Going Merry, Luffy stares in shock as his meal escapes the plate. "The food... The food escaped..." Usopp gestures wildly while recounting an old tale. "You fought against Sea Kings!I Let Usopp tell you about that one time he faced Sea Kings in the Calm Belt. The biggest Sea Kings you could imagine, my lad!" Chopper pants nervously beside him. "PANT PANT... Heh, looks like you've still got a long ways to go if you get scared at something like that. There sure are a lot of strange creatures in the sea." Below deck, Nami confirms their location. "Yes, we must have entered Alabasta's climate. Vivi! The wind and climate seems to have stabilized." Vivi leans over the railing, spotting a familiar creature. "The Sea Cat we saw just now is proof of that." Luffy gapes in surprise at the sight. "REALLY!I WHAT KIND OF CAT'LL COME OUT FROM THE SEA THIS TIME!I" Nami reassures him. "Don't worry, you'll soon be able to eat as much as you want." In the foreground, Zoro smiles confidently while Nami looks on. "And I guess a sight like 'that' is another proof that we've reached Alabasta."

A massive fleet of ships appears on the horizon. "SHIPS!" The crew reacts in alarm. Zoro warns, "Don't lose your nerves, idiots. They're nothing but small fries." Luffy panics at the wheel. "Wait, no! Eating comes first right now!" Usopp shouts, "Nah, it'll be faster if I just go over and personally kick their asses!" Sanji adds, "S-s-should we... Pre-emptively attack them while we have the chance!I" The distant vessels display the Baroque Works mark. "ALL OF THE ORGANIZATION'S UNDERLINGS MUST HAVE STARTED TO GATHER HERE...! AND THEY ALL HAVE B.W'S MARK ON THEIR SAILS! SO MANY SHIPS!! WHERE'D THEY COME FROM ALL OF A SUDDEN!I" From the deck, someone notes, "There's only 8 of us." Nami states firmly, "That's right. Don't lose sight of our true objective or it'll all be over." She continues, "Not only that, they're elite agents who're completely on another level from the regular bounty-hunters you came across in Whiskey Peak. And there are 200 of them, aren't there... The Officer Agents' subordinates. Those are most likely the 'Billions.'"

Sanji sits on the stairs tying a cloth around his arm. "Just tie it on tight for the time being. There's too much that we don't know about the guys we'll be facing this time." Nami and Vivi examine a strange fruit. Nami smiles. "With this, we can easily confirm each other's identity without any further doubts." Vivi replies, "I see." In another panel, the crew discusses a recent encounter. "Gawking at okamas ain't my thing." "We danced and had a blast without even realizing we were enemies!" "He doesn't just look like you. He pretty much IS you." "Too bad you missed him. He gave us quite a show." Sanji questions, "Can he really look that similar to us...I That guy with the mane mane fruit, I mean."

Chopper asks nervously, "What should I doI" Sanji answers while stretching, "We can't be recklessly taking solo-actions! Since we know there's an enemy like him." Usopp pumps himself up. "Do what I can do... Got it! Talkin' to yourself now, UsoppI Just do what you can. There's no need to do any more than that. If you come across an enemy that's too strong, just run! It's all good as long as you give it your all in anything you do!" Luffy grins with determination. "Alrigh! From now on, no matter what happens. This thing on our left arm..." The ship sails toward a distant port city. "We're close to the port. We'll dock the ship at the Western side since we have to hide our ship."

The Straw Hat crew stands together on the deck with fists extended toward the center in a unified gesture. Luffy's massive grinning face looms on the left side as he declares, "Let's head onshore!" Sanji smirks while extending his fist, Nami smiles confidently, Zoro looks on coolly, Usopp reaches forward from behind with his backpack, and Chopper joins the circle. A large speech bubble proclaims, "WILL BE THE MARK OF OUR FELLOWSHIP!" Someone says, "Now then..."

The Going Merry sails across the waves toward a coastal town with minarets and mountains in the background. A massive impact SFX "ゴォォォォォ" erupts as the ship approaches. A voice shouts, "...And then to Alabasta. TO A RESTAURANT WE GO!!!" Another warns, "SORT OUT YOUR PRIORITIES!" In a close-up, Nami smiles while holding a Vivre Card marked with a crescent. Below, Nami and Vivi converse: Nami says, "Yup! Got it!" Vivi replies, "So try not to just blindly act on instinct alone, got that!I" Nami adds, "Right, right. We're up against an organization of assassins, Luffy!"

The bustling port city of Nanohana in the Kingdom of Alabasta is shown with crowded streets, merchants, and townspeople. A sign labels the location. In a side alley near the "Spice bean" restaurant, Smoker appears with his jutte, reacting to commotion. Tashigi stands nearby. A panicked man reports, "CAPTAAIN! Capt. Smoker! YOU'LL NEVER GUESS WHO SHOWED UP IN THIS TOWN!" Another says, "Looks like there's some kind of ruckus going on in that store..." A sergeant replies, "Ah, sergeant! Apparently some customer died all of a sudden." Onlookers react with shock as "ガヤガヤ" and "わいわい" fill the air.

Inside the restaurant, a body lies face-down on a plate with food scattered. A hand holds a fork as voices explain: "I heard he suddenly died while in the midst of a conversation with the restaurant owner." "Since he's a traveller..." "Some of the people think he might have unknowingly eaten the 'Desert Strawberry'..." The scene shifts to Sanji seated at the counter with his back to the viewer, surrounded by toppled chairs and debris marked by large SFX "ざわ" and "どっ". A voice states, "The Desert StrawberryI It's the nickname for the poisonous spider whose body looks just like a red strawberry. Its poison will cause an abrupt death after several hours following death. The poison spreads throughout the entire body."

A black-haired man in a cowboy hat lies sprawled across a table piled with empty plates, his exposed arm bearing the tattoo "ASCE". Narration notes the unknown dangers of the desert that claim lives, explaining why no one has approached him yet. In the bustling restaurant, a bearded man in a turban and star-patterned robe stares in shock. "It's no wonder the venom of the Desert Strawberry," he mutters. "Is the stuff of legends...!" A woman in a headscarf adds, "Look. His arm froze up at the exact moment. He was about to raise it up to his mouth..." Suddenly the man bolts upright with a loud "ドクッ!!" Everyone recoils in panic. "AGHH! HE CAME BACK TO LIFE!" "PFFFT!I" "KYAAA!" The man hunches forward, sweat flying, as the crowd stares in disbelief.

Close-up of the black-haired man wiping sweat from his face. "Whew-" "Mnn..." He sits shirtless on the counter, hat and goggles now on, absently scratching his head. A small inset shows the shocked crowd: "You fell ASLEEP!I" "I must've fallen asleep." "My bad..." The onlookers erupt. "LOOK! HE'S GONE BACK TO EATING AGAIN AS IF NOTHING HAPPENED!" "THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! HOW COULD A PERSON FALL ASLEEP WHILE TALKING AND EATING!I" The man calmly continues eating, one boot propped up. "So what's everyone all gathered here forI" he asks, a giant "とぅん!!" sound effect booming as the crowd stares in stunned silence.

The turbaned man sighs with relief. "No, but... Well, I'm just relieved that you're alright." The crowd yells, "WE WERE WORRYING ABOUT YOU!" "You running some kinda comedy club hereI" The black-haired man lounges back, plates stacked high. Suddenly he slumps forward again with a loud "SLUMP". "AGAIN!I" the crowd screams in unison, mouths agape. A close-up shows a spiky-haired man in a headband looking annoyed. In the next panel a broad-backed figure in a jacket marked "正義" stands outside under the clouds, sword on his shoulder. "Hmph! All that fuss over nothing..." he mutters as townspeople watch from a distance. Someone asks, "What, so nobody diedI"

The black-haired man keeps eating while the turbaned man asks, "You seem to be eating without a care in the world, despite all the attention you're drawing. Did a guy like this show up in this townI He's this kid wearing a strawhat..." The man replies, "Something else you needI By the way..." He holds up a wanted poster. A dramatic close-up reveals the spiky-haired man with a cigar, glaring. "Well, Portgas D. Ace...I What brings the Whitebeard Pirates' 2nd division commander to this kingdomI" The restaurant erupts in panic. "W-WHITEBEARD!I HE'S ONE OF THEIR CREW-MEMBER...!I" "AHH! NOW THAT I THINK ABOUT IT, I'VE SEEN THAT MARK ON HIS BACK BEFORE!" "AHHA!" "WHAT'S HE DOING IN A PLACE LIKE THIS!I"

Luffy leaps forward on the deck of the Going Merry, fist raised high with intense motion lines and impact effects surrounding him. He yells desperately, "NO, WAIT!" while a large sound effect "ガガーン!!" erupts nearby. In the background the ship sails through clouds as Luffy continues shouting, "TIME FOR FOOOOOD!" The scene cuts to a close-up of Portgas D. Ace chewing with a cigarette in his mouth. He smirks and says, "For my little brother, that is..." A small "CHEW" effect appears as he adds, "Oh, I'm just looking around." A framed box identifies him as "Whitebeard Pirates 2nd Division Commander Portgas D. Ace."

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