The Five Elders holding blades nodded.
"This is all we can do for now."
The main reason was that the current strength of the Navy was too great, making them unable to act...
It was more prudent to let the pirates weaken them first.
The tall and thin Five Elders said,
"Since that's the case, I'll contact Red-Haired..."
Among those standing at the pinnacle of the world, there were no fools.
Except for pirates...
----------
Grand Line, Alabasta.
Rain Country, early morning.
This once prosperous city now bore a hint of decay.
The authority of the Alabastan royal family had plummeted due to the scandal of Dance Powder being exposed.
Coupled with the prolonged drought, the people's faces had lost their former luster.
At the same time, there were the rebellious forces sweeping across Alabasta, and the shadow of war loomed over every citizen of the desert.
Inside the Rain Dinners Casino.
Robin stood by the window of the top-floor office of Rain Dinners, gazing at the scenery outside, a frown on her brow.
Crocodile was becoming impatient. After twenty years of forbearance, all for the legendary Pluton, now that the crucial moment was near, no one could remain calm.
In recent times, Crocodile had been frequently disappearing, to the point where even she couldn't track his whereabouts. If this continued, the nation of Alabasta would truly be doomed...
The Revolutionary Army, which should have advanced towards the Grand Line before Crocodile's plan commenced.
For some reason, their offensive had slowed down recently. They wouldn't be able to wait for the Revolutionary Army's arrival at this rate...
Robin's Transponder Snail in her hand was dialed, but there was no response.
She silently put away the Transponder Snail and sighed softly,
"What in the world is happening..."
Unbeknownst to Robin, due to the incident of Transponder Snail eavesdropping, Dragon had not yet notified Robin, so even if Robin dialed, Dragon did not pick up.
He was preparing to find a new Transponder Snail to call Robin back, and at this moment...
Whoosh—
A gust of wind and sand blew into the room, swirling onto the large executive chair and settling.
Crocodile appeared with a smile on his face.
"What, how long have you been waiting?"
Looking at the smile on Crocodile's face, Robin knew that his plan had probably advanced another step...
"No, not long."
"It's just that you disappear every day, Boss."
"It's hard to report on work."
Her tone held a hint of teasing as she looked at Crocodile.
Crocodile leaned back in his large executive chair and chuckled indifferently.
"None of that matters now."
"That old man Cobra is almost at his limit."
"The rebels are about to reach the capital."
"And Pluton is about to be born."
"The future belongs to us..."
Crocodile, from some unknown source, had always believed that Pluton, one of the legendary ancient weapons, was buried in Alabasta.
This was why he had endured for over twenty years in pursuit of his plan...
Now, victory was within sight...
Robin's heart sank slightly, but she smiled and said,
"Then I congratulate you in advance, Boss."
Brrr~ Brrr~ Brrr~
The Transponder Snail in her pocket suddenly rang, it was Dragon calling back.
Robin calmly hung up, which piqued Crocodile's interest, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Why aren't you picking up?"
As his plan reached its critical stage, his suspicion had become heavier than ever...
Robin said indifferently,
"It's just a phone call to report on work."
"You weren't back, and I wasn't idle either."
Crocodile looked at Robin with suspicion,
"Oh?"
"Is that so..."
"Then call back."
"We can report everything together."
Robin shrugged.
"Yes."
She slowly took out the Transponder Snail and dialed back...
----------
South Blue, Bango Island.
The rooftop of the Revolutionary Army's temporary headquarters.
Dragon's eyes narrowed as he stared at the Transponder Snail in his hand.
Robin had called, he went to get a new Transponder Snail to call back, and in just a moment, Robin hung up the phone...
"Inconvenient?"
"Is it... Crocodile?"
Brrr~ Brrr~ Brrr~
Dragon, having formed a guess, quickly organized his thoughts and slowly answered the Transponder Snail, his voice becoming a little calmer.
"Hello, Vice President."
"Regarding the recent situation report..."
After a brief exchange, he was interrupted by Robin on the other end, and the call ended...
Among those standing at the pinnacle of the world, there were no fools...
Except...
----------
Grand Line, Alabasta.
Rain Country, Rain Dinners top floor.
Robin hung up the phone and looked at Crocodile.
Fortunately, Dragon had responded promptly, and Robin had easily brushed him off. Crocodile had not detected any anomaly and nodded slightly.
"Well done."
"Handle all recent matters properly. You'll be needed soon."
"Don't fail me..."
His tone carried a hint of threat and killing intent.
He had risked concealing Robin for so many years precisely to decipher ancient texts, and he would not tolerate any mistakes...
Robin smiled lightly and nodded.
"Yes."
Crocodile waved his hand.
"You may go."
Robin slowly withdrew, leaving Crocodile alone in the luxurious office, envisioning a bright future...
Far outside the city.
On an inconspicuous sand dune.
Enel slowly withdrew his Transponder Snail, the blue light of the office and two small figures simulated by lightning dissipating.
He had used powerful electromagnetic scanning to detect the interior situation of Rain Dinners' top floor, and then used lightning to condense and form it, creating a live broadcast-like experience with sound...
Enel flexed his wrist.
"Should we act now?"
He looked at Carol.
Barrett beside him also clenched his knuckles.
Carol had arranged with Sakazuki yesterday to deal with Crocodile at some point.
However, Carol, fearing any unforeseen circumstances, wanted to resolve it as soon as possible.
Today, he had brought Enel and Barrett as dual insurance.
Everything could be resolved in an instant, and then they could return to the New World without delaying any matters, but...
"Pluton is about to be born?"
Carol pondered for a moment. To be honest...
Although Crocodile's actions were a joke in their eyes.
However, for Crocodile to have played the hero for over twenty years, his source of information should be somewhat reliable. Whether it existed or not, a complete Pluton was worth paying attention to...
After all, although they had the blueprints, the cost of manufacturing a complete Pluton was too high, so they had to settle for the next best thing and chose to manufacture the most powerful Pluton main cannon.
Carol sighed slightly.
"Let's wait a bit longer..."
"Let's monitor it first..."
"We need to see what this Pluton that Crocodile speaks of actually is..."