Ace Appears

A massive sea creature suddenly bursts out of the ocean waves with a loud "Zaba" splash. It has the body of a large fish with scales, but its head is that of a giant, wide-eyed cat with its mouth wide open, meowing loudly. A text box identifies it: "Sea Cat (Marine Mammal) Habitat: Coasts of Sandy Island". On the deck of the Going Merry, Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper scream in absolute terror, their eyes popping out of their heads. Luffy yells, "WHAT THE HECK IS THAT!?" while Usopp screams, "IT'S A MOOONSTEERR!" In stark contrast, Vivi looks delighted and smiles brightly, exclaiming, "IT'S A SEA CAT!"

Luffy and Zoro immediately go into hunting mode. Luffy drools heavily, his eyes wide with hunger as he shouts, "FOOOOOD!" Zoro draws his swords with a fierce grin, yelling, "OUR FIRST MEAL IN 4 DAYS!" Vivi is horrified by their reaction, screaming, "FOOOOOOD!" in shock. She tries to reason with them, saying, "We're still on course, so... We should be almost there by now..." Sanji, however, joins the hunt, shouting, "DON'T LET IT GET AWAY! WE HAVE TO HUNT IT DOWN NO MATTER WHAT!" The Sea Cat, sensing danger, starts to sweat and slowly backs away in the water. Usopp notices and points, "Ahh! It's backing away!" Chopper panics, yelling, "Back the ship up!" but Usopp retorts, "Ships can't move like that!"

Vivi swiftly intervenes, swinging a wooden club and smacking both Luffy and Zoro hard on the head. A loud "Bokaaan" sound effect accompanies the strike. Luffy and Zoro are knocked down, rubbing their heads in confusion. Sanji yells, "YOU CAN'T!" while Vivi angrily shouts, "You can't eat it!" The Sea Cat takes the opportunity to dive back underwater and swim away safely. Luffy, rubbing his bruised head, complains, "THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, VIVI!?" Zoro, equally confused, asks, "W-what was that for, Vivi!?" Vivi sits calmly on the ship's railing and explains, "Sea Cats, Are sacred creatures of Alabasta."

Luffy sits on the deck, crying comically with a large bump on his head, mourning, "The food... The food escaped..." Usopp tries to act tough, boasting to Chopper, "You fought against Sea Kings!? 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 listens in awe, trembling slightly. Sanji, panting, mocks Usopp, "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." Nami calls out to Vivi, "Vivi! The wind and climate seems to have stabilized." Vivi confirms, "Yes, we must have entered Alabasta's climate. The Sea Cat we saw just now is proof of that." Luffy's eyes light up again, "REALLY!? WHAT KIND OF CAT'LL COME OUT FROM THE SEA THIS TIME!?" Vivi reassures him, "Don't worry, you'll soon be able to eat as much as you want." Zoro smirks, looking out at the horizon, "And I guess a sight like 'that' is another proof that we've reached Alabasta."

On the horizon, a large fleet of ships is visible. Luffy points and shouts, "SHIPS!" Zoro remains calm, telling the crew, "Don't lose your nerves, idiots. They're nothing but small fries." Luffy, still obsessed with food, argues, "Wait, no! Eating comes first right now!" Usopp suggests, "Nah, it'll be faster if I just go over and personally kick their asses!" Chopper stammers nervously, "S-s-should we... Pre-emptively attack them while we have the chance!?" Sanji reminds them of their numbers, "There's only 8 of us here." He adds, "That's right. Don't lose sight of our true objective or it'll all be over." Vivi looks through a telescope and is shocked by what she sees. "SO MANY SHIPS!! WHERE'D THEY COME FROM ALL OF A SUDDEN!?" She notices the sails, "AND THEY ALL HAVE B.W.'S MARK ON THEIR SAILS! ALL OF THE ORGANIZATION'S UNDERLINGS MUST HAVE STARTED TO GATHER HERE...!" She explains the threat level, "Those are most likely the 'Billions,' The Officer Agents' subordinates. And there are 200 of them, aren't there... Not only that, they're elite agents who're completely on another level from the regular bounty-hunters you came across in Whiskey Peak."

Zoro sits on the deck, tying a white cloth tightly around his left forearm. He explains, "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 are shown tying similar white cloths around their own left arms. Nami understands the plan, "I see. With this, we can easily confirm each other's identity without any further doubts." Sanji, smoking a cigarette, looks skeptical. "Can he really look that similar to us...? That guy with the mane mane fruit, I mean." Usopp, sitting nearby, confirms the danger, "He doesn't just look like you. He pretty much is you. Too bad you missed him. He gave us quite a show." Sanji dismisses it, "Gawking at okamas ain't my thing." Usopp recalls their previous encounter, "We danced and had a blast without even realizing we were enemies!"

Zoro continues explaining the strategy, "Since we know there's an enemy like him, We can't be recklessly taking solo-actions!" Chopper looks worried and asks, "What should I do?" Sanji reassures him, "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!" Usopp quacks like a duck, mocking Sanji, "Talkin' to yourself now, Usopp?" Chopper nods determinedly, "Do what I can do... Got it!" Luffy stands at the front of the ship, looking serious. "We're close to the port. We'll dock the ship at the Western side since we have to hide our ship." He raises his left arm, showing the white cloth. "Alright! From now on, no matter what happens, This thing on our left arm..."

The entire crew—Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Sanji, Chopper, and Vivi—gather in a circle on the deck. They all extend their left arms inward, fists clenched, showing the white cloths tied around their forearms. Luffy declares loudly, "WILL BE THE MARK OF OUR FELLOWSHIP!" He then grins widely and shouts, "Now then... Let's head onshore!"

The Going Merry sails towards a large, bustling port city with domed buildings and minarets, situated on the edge of a vast desert. Luffy stands at the figurehead, pointing forward and yelling enthusiastically, "TO A RESTAURANT WE GO!!!" Sanji yells back at him, "SORT OUT YOUR PRIORITIES!...And then to Alabasta." Nami scolds Luffy, "We're up against an organization of assassins, Luffy! Right, right. So try not to just blindly act on instinct alone, got that!?" Luffy replies cheerfully, "Yup! Got it!" Nami sighs, "Right, right." Vivi watches them with a gentle smile, holding her left arm where the white cloth is tied.

A wide view of the bustling desert city is shown. People in Middle Eastern-style clothing walk through the streets, carrying goods and leading camels. A text box introduces the location: "Kingdom of Alabasta Port City, 'Nanohana'". In the streets, Marine Captain Smoker and Sergeant Tashigi are walking. Tashigi notices a commotion and says, "Looks like there's some kind of ruckus going on in that store..." Smoker, smoking his usual two cigars, asks, "What happened?" A Marine runs up to them, saluting hastily. "Ah, sergeant! Apparently some customer died all of a sudden." Another Marine runs up, shouting in panic, "CAPTAAIIN! Capt. Smoker! YOU'LL NEVER GUESS WHO SHOWED UP IN THIS TOWN!"

Inside a restaurant, a man is slumped forward, face-down in a large plate of food. He wears an orange cowboy hat with goggles attached to it and a red beaded necklace. The restaurant is filled with shocked patrons. One bystander says, "I heard he suddenly died while in the midst of a conversation with the restaurant owner." Another adds, "Since he's a traveller... Some of the people think he might have unknowingly eaten the 'Desert Strawberry'..." The man is shown from behind, revealing a large tattoo on his back: a purple cross with a skull that has a white crescent mustache. A bystander explains the poison, "The Desert Strawberry? It's the nickname for the poisonous spider whose body looks just like a red strawberry. Its poison will cause an abrupt death several days after. The poison spreads throughout the entire body. And for several hours following death,"

A close-up shows the man's face still buried in his meal. A bystander continues, "...There's a lot of unknown dangers in the desert that can take your life. So that's why no one's dared to approach him yet." Another patron points out, "Look. His arm froze up at the exact moment, He was about to raise it up to his mouth... It's no wonder the venom of the Desert Strawberry, Is the stuff of legends...!" Suddenly, the man bursts awake, spitting out food with a loud "PFFFT!?" The entire restaurant erupts in shock, patrons screaming, "AGHH! HE CAME BACK TO LIFE!" The man casually wipes his face with a napkin. A timid patron asks, "A-are you alright?" The man simply replies, "Hmm? Mnn."

The man, Portgas D. Ace, looks around, chewing his food. "Whew- Mnn..." He scratches his head and apologizes casually, "My bad... I must've fallen asleep." The restaurant patrons are flabbergasted, screaming in unison, "You fell ASLEEP!?" One patron yells, "THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! HOW COULD A PERSON FALL ASLEEP WHILE TALKING AND EATING!?" Another points in disbelief, "LOOK! HE'S GONE BACK TO EATING AGAIN AS IF NOTHING HAPPENED!" Ace continues to eat his meal calmly, ignoring the uproar. He looks around at the crowd and asks, "So what's everyone all gathered here for?"

The patrons yell at Ace in frustration, "WE WERE WORRYING ABOUT YOU! ARGHHHH!" Ace looks amused and asks, "You running some kinda comedy club here?" The restaurant owner, sweating, replies, "No, but... Well, I'm just relieved that you're alright." Suddenly, Ace falls asleep mid-chew again, his face slamming back into his plate with a "SLUMP". The patrons scream in exasperation, "AGAIN!?" Outside the restaurant, Smoker arrives with his Marines. He looks at the commotion and says, "What, so nobody died? Hmph! All that fuss over nothing..."

Smoker enters the restaurant and stands behind Ace. The restaurant owner asks Ace, "Something else you need?" Ace, holding up a piece of paper, replies, "By the way... Did a guy like this show up in this town? He's this kid wearing a strawhat..." Smoker observes Ace and says, "You seem to be eating without a care in the world, despite all the attention you're drawing." Smoker then addresses him directly, "What brings the Whitebeard Pirates' 2nd division commander to this kingdom? Well, Portgas D. Ace...?" The patrons in the restaurant overhear this and panic. "W-WHITEBEARD!? HE'S ONE OF THEIR CREW-MEMBER...!?" "AHH! NOW THAT I THINK ABOUT IT, I'VE SEEN THAT MARK ON HIS BACK BEFORE!" "WHAT'S HE DOING IN A PLACE LIKE THIS!?"

Suddenly, Luffy bursts through the restaurant doors, running at full speed and shouting joyfully, "TIME FOR FOOOOOD!" Smoker turns around in surprise, yelling, "NO, WAIT!" Ace, still sitting at the counter, smiles warmly. He answers Smoker's previous question, "Oh, I'm just looking around. For my little brother, that is..." A text box officially introduces him: "Whitebeard Pirates 2nd Division Commander Portgas D. Ace".

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