Chapter 208 "Guardian Spirit"

A bright sun rises over a city skyline with a tall clock tower. Sound effects read KUHAHA! and tic... toc... In a tense room, a scarred man in a large hat clenches his fist and declares, "I CAN STOP THE REBELLION IF I DO THIS... I CAN STOP IT IF I DO THAT..." Nearby figures react with shock. A close-up shows a hand squeezing a clock mechanism as a voice states, "YOUR UNBEARABLE IDEALISM IS SICKENING!" The clock face spins wildly with large impact effects and tic... sounds. A cloaked figure stands before the massive clock as it begins to activate.

The clock mechanism spins violently with tic... and toc... sounds. A voice declares, "LET ME MAKE THIS CLEAR TO YOU..." Chaos erupts in a wide panel showing multiple figures thrown through the air amid explosions and debris. A close-up reveals a stitched-face man with intense eyes shouting, "THIS COUNTRY! YOU CANNOT SAVE," while glaring forward. Below, the cloaked figure stands alone before the clock as tic... effects continue.

Multiple characters react in panic. A blonde girl exclaims, "With a blast diameter of 5km... The bomb's still gonna destroy most of the city even from all the way up there!" Usopp-like figure yells, "ON A TIMER!I" while another shouts, "CRAP! YOU'VE GOTTA BE KIDDIN' ME! WE STOPPED THE CANNON, BUT THE BOMB IS..." A large panel shows a man with a hook shouting, "DOES THAT MEAN STOPPING THE EXPLOSION WAS IMPOSSIBLE FROM THE VERY BEGINNINGI WHAT THE HELL!" Sound effects include ガン!! and ギーン!! as the group stares at a massive cannon labeled BAROQUE. A small cloaked figure stands in the doorway while another character clenches fists in frustration.

A furious close-up shows a long-haired figure with tears and sweat flying, shouting in rage, "JUST HOW MANY PEOPLE MUST YOU MAKE A MOCKERY OF UNTIL YOU'RE SATISFIED!I" and "JUST HOW FAR DO YOU HAVE TO GO TO MAKE A FOOL OUT OF OTHERS...!" The same character bursts into wild laughter, "KUHAHAHA!" A wide view reveals a sprawling city with towers and bridges as a massive figure plummets through the air amid debris and motion lines, accompanied by the enormous sound effect "CROCOOOODILE!" Below, a silhouetted long-haired person stands on stone steps looking upward at a dark figure perched on a high ledge overlooking the city.

A shattered panel displays a ruined map-like landscape with the declaration, "MY CREW WON'T STOP FIGHTING EITHER!" and the reply, "AS LONG AS SHE WON'T GIVE UP ON HER COUNTRY." In a chaotic street scene filled with smoke and rubble, a spiky-haired man in a dark coat looms over a long-haired figure lying amid debris. Close-ups follow: the long-haired figure's stitched face and eye, the spiky-haired man's intense glare with sweat drops, and his determined expression as he speaks.

Crocodile stands tall in a fur-collared coat while Luffy crouches ready in the background; voices taunt, "LIKE YOU..." and "SOMEONE..." Crocodile looms over a battered Luffy whose face is bloodied and strained, gasping "HUFF... CAN'T BEAT ME...!" and "HUFF..." Crocodile sneers with a wide grin, "All bark and no bite! How fitting for a pathetic mutt like you already on the verge of death." He continues, "So after all that trouble, those words are the only things you can manage to string upI" while gripping his hook.

Luffy stands with his back to the viewer, arms outstretched amid shattering debris and impact lines, declaring, "THE MAN WHO WILL BECOME THE PIRATE KING!" and "I AM..." Crocodile, bloodied and furious, swings his hook while retorting, "As I said before, there's plenty of small-time rookies like you in this world! Listen to me, brat! The more one comes to know of this sea, the less likely one will carelessly spout such boasts!"

A battered young man with wild black hair glares upward in close-up, sweat and blood streaking his face. He is hurled violently through the air, limbs flailing, as a massive shadowy figure looms behind him. The narration declares, "THE HAZIER SUCH DREAMS WILL BECOME!" and "AND THE BETTER YOU KNOW ABOUT THE LEVEL IN THIS SEA." The youth crashes into a huge cylindrical mechanism, hands gripping desperately as impact lines explode around him. A shocked "!!!I" erupts from off-panel. In the final panel the same youth, face bloodied and teeth gritted, stares defiantly at a scarred, menacing man and declares, "I AM... THE MAN WHO WILL SURPASS YOU...!"

Pell stares tensely, muttering, "It's that bird-guy..." while distant figures watch an explosion in the snow. Inside a stone corridor, a cloaked man kneels as Pell's voice echoes, "...Your wild reckless behaviours back then, had me throwing up my hands in frustration more times than I could count... PELL! LISTEN!" The cloaked man replies, "This place brings back many memories, doesn't itI This secret base for your Sand Sand Gang..." Outside, panicked guards shout, "DON'T WE TELL YOU EVERY DAY TO NEVER COME NEAR THE GUNPOWDER STORAGE!I" "WHAT WAS THAT EXPLOSION JUST NOW!I AHH! PRINCESS VIVI!I" "W-WHAT WERE YOU DOING IN THE GUNPOWDER STORAGE!I" "THE BOMB IS ON A TIMER! IT'S SET TO GO OFF ANY MOMENT NOW!"

A massive explosion erupts behind Nefertari Vivi as she shields her face. A smiling boy in a turban admits, "Heehee... I wanted to try making some fireworks but I guess I messed up. I wanted some fireworks since today's the anniversary for when you joined the royal guards..." Vivi turns in alarm, "Ah, Pell!" The boy is struck and sent flying. Guards scream, "H-HE HIT THE PRINCESS!" "A G H H H H!" A furious commander bellows in extreme close-up, "HOW MANY TIMES MUST I TELL YOU... TO NEVER COME NEAR THIS PLACE!"

Pell grabs Igaram by the collar, roaring, "PELL! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT YOU JUST DID!I" Igaram retorts, "I'LL HAVE YOUR HEAD FOR THIS!" while Pell growls back. A flashback shows young Vivi sitting alone as Pell approaches. Pell, sweating, asks himself, "If you had been seriously hurt, or worse...!I What would I do..." Back in the present, a small duck-like creature carries Vivi skyward; she cries happily, "HIGHER! TAKE ME HIGHER!" Guards watch from below, one noting, "Commander Pell..." and another adding, "His highness has sternly told me again and again to never take you flying." Vivi cheers, "Awesome! We're up so high! P-princess Vivi! This is absolutely between just the two of us!"

Pell the falcon soars through the sky carrying a young blonde girl on his back. She smiles brightly and says, "You're the one who said you'd do anything I wanted." Pell replies firmly, "Fine, don't do it if you don't wanna! I just won't forgive you forever!" The girl calls out, "Hey, Pell," and he answers, "YesI" In a sweeping panel Pell flies low over rocky terrain as the girl clings to him. She asks, "Why do you train for battle every dayI" Pell answers, "Because I'm a royal guard. One must be strong in order to protect this country." As they glide above a vast desert city at sunset, Pell explains, "It's not that I'm fighting a specific someone, but rather protecting a specific thing." The girl wonders aloud, "Who do you have to fightI" Pell pauses, "Well..." Below, three small panels show shocked onlookers reacting with "HMM... THAT'S WEIRD," "YES, THE OBJECTIVES ARE DIFFERENT," and "IS THERE A DIFFERENCEI"

A wide view of the royal city shows a banner reading "Princess Vivi" amid swirling "toc... toc..." clock sounds. Inside a grand hall a young woman with a dirt-streaked face stares in surprise. A voice declares, "To protect the royal Nefertari household is a duty." The scene cuts to a close-up of Pell in his turban and royal guard uniform, his expression intense. He states, "That I sincerely consider, To be my proudest honour."

Pell in full falcon form smashes through a massive clockwork bomb marked with a skull and crossbones, sending debris flying as the device erupts with "!!!!I". The bomb continues its ominous "toc..." countdown. Vivi stares in shock while other Straw Hat allies react with alarm. A wide panel shows the group: a spiky-haired man, a bear-like figure in a top hat, Vivi, a bandaged mummy-like man, and a wild-haired fighter all gaping upward as the falcon and bomb tumble through the air.

Pell the falcon grips the black spherical bomb in his talons and carries it skyward away from the city. The device ticks "toc..." as it recedes. Vivi watches from below with wide, terrified eyes, screaming as the falcon flies higher. Smaller panels show the bomb's fuse sparking and the distant cityscape. The final close-up captures Vivi's horrified face beside the still-ticking clock face.

A massive armored figure looms in close-up as the scene shifts to a sweeping view of Alabasta's capital. A hand reaches desperately upward amid swirling clouds and debris. The falcon spirit materializes in a burst of light and wind, wings spread wide over the city. "I am..." a voice declares. "The guardian spirit of Alabasta," the narration states as the falcon radiates power. A clock ticks with "チク..." and "...!!" as the falcon circles. "The falcon," the final caption reads, its silhouette stark against the sun.

The falcon spirit unleashes a devastating attack. Massive black symbols and impact lines explode across the page as the spirit declares, "The one who vanquishes," with radiant emphasis. Below, the city of Alabasta shakes violently; citizens react in terror with wide eyes and screams amid flying debris and "パリィィィ!!!" sound effects. The narration concludes, "All enemies of the royal household," as the falcon's power sweeps over the capital in a dramatic wide shot.

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