Pirates: Your emperor has returned!

“Let’s keep walking.” Garp scratched his head and grinned. “It’s still too close here.”

Rowan nodded in agreement.

The two continued walking side by side in the desert.

They crossed a sand dune and saw a ruin that was mostly buried in sand and gravel.

Rowan had investigated the geography of what is now Alabasta, where a palace was likely built a century or two ago.

Time has passed, and the once magnificent palace has long been ruined by wind and sand, leaving only broken walls.

The two stepped through the ruins, Rowan's hand gently touching a broken wall.

He smiled at Karp and said, "I think this place is nice."

Garp glanced at the shadows in the distance, seemingly noticing something, and scratched his head helplessly, saying, "Shall we walk around some more? If we damage too many ancient ruins, my report will be a huge stack!"

Upon hearing this, Luo Wen couldn't help but crack a joke.

“When it comes to cultural relics, I should be the oldest one here.”

"That's right!"

Garp realized what was happening and exclaimed, "Wow, to actually be able to chat and stroll with people from eight hundred years ago! This ocean is truly amazing!"

The two climbed another sand dune, and their steps finally came to a stop.

All around, there was nothing but gravel and ruins, and the only sound was the whistling wind.

Rowan and Garp stood there, facing each other.

……

In the distance, in the shadows of a corner of the ruins, Granny Crane, draped in a cloak of justice, leaned quietly against a pillar.

She looked up and silently observed the scene unfolding on the sand dunes.

Suddenly, Granny Crane noticed the commotion beside her and coughed softly a few times.

"Come out, you young brat, this old woman isn't blind yet."

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding sand surged, and a figure wearing a black fur coat slowly emerged from the sand.

Crocodile, with a cigar in his mouth, nodded to Granny Tsuru and said with a smile, "Truly worthy of being the highest-ranking officer of the Marine Headquarters!"

Granny Crane glanced at Crocodile. "Stop flattering me, you little crocodile brat. You never intended to hide, did you?"

"Hide? Why should I hide?"

Crocodile deliberately put on an innocent expression, "I am, after all, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea recognized by the World Government, and I have helped to eliminate many pirates. The Navy should be thanking me."

Grandma Crane did not answer, but her deep blue eyes stared straight at Crocodile.

The latter suddenly felt as if everything about him had been seen through, and couldn't help but shiver.

"You clever little brat, watch out or you'll give yourself away."

The crane turned its attention back to the hill and said calmly:

“You’re not our target this time, but if you’d like to give it a try, I wouldn’t mind playing along with you, you little brat.”

Crocodile gave a soft snort. He was annoyed, but he didn't dare to provoke the old woman in front of him.

As one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Crocodile knew very well just how terrifying Tsuru's true abilities were!

He had no desire to engage in back-and-forth scheming with a top strategist on the high seas, and he was more concerned with what was happening on that sand dune.

Luo Wen and He can discuss many unspoken meanings and communicate through words.

And Rowan and Karp—

What could these two possibly "talk" about?

……

"Navy reports are so hard to write!"

Karp sighed, "I usually get Tsuru to help me, but this time Tsuru also has to write a report, so I have to write it myself."

Luo Wen thought for a long time, but didn't know how to comfort the other person.

Karp looked miserable. "Can you understand?"

Rowan shook his head. "Usually, Nefertari gives me the battle reports she has written; I don't write them myself."

Garp: "..."

He rubbed his temples and sighed, "So, I hope I can write fewer reports this time."

Now, Rowan had a basic understanding of what Garp meant.

So... you're not going to fight?

"No, Sengoku specifically emphasized that the pressure from the Celestial Dragons was too great and that an explanation was needed."

Garp stroked his beard and recalled earnestly, "In the language of the Warring States period, it was something like 'rites' and 'military'?"

Luo Wen guessed, "Courtesy first, then force?"

"No, not that one."

Garp waved his hands repeatedly, then slapped his forehead and laughed loudly, "Yes—both courtesy and force!"

"I see, I understand now."

Rowan nodded, then suddenly asked, "How many points?"

This was a strange question, but Garp instantly understood Rowan's meaning.

"Hahaha, what an understanding emperor."

Garp stroked his chin, pondering, "A rare opportunity, a perfect ten?"

Rowan laughed and refused, "Hey, I don't want the whole of Alabasta to split apart, and if that happens, your report will probably be more than a hundred pages long."

"Hmm, that makes sense."

Garp nodded, then tentatively asked, "Seven points?"

"It's still too big; it will affect Albana."

Five points!

"A report of about ten pages."

"How about three points?"

"One-page report is about right."

"Okay, it's settled then!"

Karp clapped his hands, finalizing the decision.

The two were talking loudly, so the ruins could hear them clearly.

Crocodile couldn't help but wonder, "What are those two talking about?"

"The two of them were discussing how much force to use in the fight."

Grandma Crane sighed helplessly, "These two men really know how to cause trouble for others!"

How much force should you use to hit it?

Crocodile paused for a moment, and then, considering the conversation between the two men, realized what Tsuru meant.

Tsuru and Garp were sent to Alabasta to communicate with Ryan Rowan, but their missions were different.

The exchange between He and Luo Wen took place on the chessboard. They talked a lot of nonsensical things, but each understood the other's unspoken meaning.

For Garp, his communication style is much simpler and more direct—

Let's have a fight.

Both sides used only a fraction of their strength in the fight.

Tsuru will witness the outcome of this battle firsthand, and then, based on her own judgment, report the results to Fleet Admiral Sengoku, ultimately deciding the Navy's stance on the Ryan Rowan matter!

……

The moonlight gradually dimmed.

At this point, Crocodile was still a long way from carrying out his original plan, and the Dancing Powder had not yet been used, so it occasionally rained throughout Alabasta.

But today the clouds were clearly too thick, a dark mass that had sunk down and obscured the moon.

Two black silhouettes stand atop the sand dunes.

The two heroes bent down, and the howling wind grew even stronger.

A storm is brewing, ready to erupt at any moment!

[Chapter 23: Guns and Fists]

Crocodile rubbed his fingers together and frowned. "It's going to rain."

Due to his own characteristics, as a user of the Sand-Sand Fruit, he dislikes rainy days.

Once their body comes into contact with liquid, they will temporarily lose their ability to transform into an element, and the advantages of Logia-type Devil Fruits will be greatly diminished!

It's raining...

This must be an unexpected and huge disadvantage for Ryan Rowan, who is also a user of the Sand-Sand Fruit!

Crocodile grew increasingly curious about how Rowan would respond.

He walked to a corner where a broken stone wall provided some shelter from the rain, and then smiled at Granny Crane:

"Aren't you coming to take shelter from the rain?"

Grandma Crane looked at the thick clouds overhead, then glanced at Crocodile, and smiled, "Don't worry, Crocodile brat, it won't rain."

"Ok?"

Crocodile was taken aback, then raised an eyebrow and said, "So the Navy's chief of staff knows about meteorology?"

"I only have a slight understanding of meteorology, but whether it is raining now has nothing to do with the weather."

Grandma Crane shook her head, looked at the two people on the sand dune, and slowly added: