Back in Rainbase, Ryu couldn't help but laugh at himself. Alone in the desert, he hadn't managed to get very far before losing his way—thankfully, he'd run into Luffy and his crew, or he might still be wandering aimlessly.
"Ryu, where are you headed?" Nami asked sweetly.
"Me? I'm on my way to Alabasta's capital," he replied without hesitation.
But as he answered, he instinctively took a small step back. Knowing Nami's personality, her polite tone usually meant she had something up her sleeve.
"Ace is over there?" Luffy asked cluelessly, before Nami could respond.
"No, I lost track of him. I'm just hoping I might find some clues in the capital," Ryu shrugged.
"Is that so? Well, since you're not in a rush, how about sticking around Rainbase for a bit?" Nami suggested, giving her crewmates a subtle signal.
"Hang out? What for?" Ryu blinked, but quickly realized what was going on. Clearly, they wanted him as backup in case they couldn't handle Crocodile.
The other crew members stayed silent; either they hadn't caught on, like Luffy, or, like Zoro and Sanji, they were too confident to consider they might lose.
Just as Nami's patience was about to break, Ryu spoke up again. "By the way, the subordinate I sent to assist you—do you know where she is now?"
"We're not sure. We went to Yuba to look for the rebel army, but they had already moved to Katorea," Vivi explained, stepping forward.
"So, my subordinate might be in Katorea, the oasis closest to Nanohana?" Ryu muttered, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
An idea was forming in his mind. He could contact Marine Headquarters and report Crocodile's actions, which might lead them to order Crocodile's capture and revoke his Warlord status. That would let him officially intervene in the Alabasta incident, bringing him closer to completing his mission.
He knew that the royal family of Alabasta held secrets; within the kingdom, there were rumored to be two Poneglyphs—one with information on the ancient weapon Pluton, and another detailing events from the Void Century.
"Maybe I should capture Robin again? Whether she's part of Alabasta's story from here doesn't really matter," Ryu thought to himself, plotting his next move.
Meanwhile, Nami and the others huddled together, quietly discussing how to get Ryu to help them take down Crocodile.
"I'll be at the Marine base here to contact Headquarters. I won't leave today, so if you need anything, come find me—unless Luffy's worried about me hauling him off," Ryu chuckled, glancing at the surprised Straw Hats before heading for the Marine outpost in Rainbase.
Using the Marine's communications, Ryu managed to contact Raina. She had indeed gone to Katorea and had encountered the rebel army, though they were skeptical of Marines, which led to a near conflict. With no other choice, Raina's team had withdrawn and was waiting for Princess Vivi to arrive to ease the tension.
After contacting Ryu, Raina immediately relayed the information to Marine Headquarters. Soon, they responded with clear orders: Ryu was to gather evidence of Crocodile's crimes, arrest him if necessary, and ensure he failed in his attempt to overthrow Alabasta. Furthermore, he was ordered to capture Nico Robin, who was currently in Alabasta.
The World Government had initially viewed Alabasta's rebels as just another uprising, not worth too much attention. However, Crocodile's recent complaint against Ryu for capturing Robin had raised suspicions. Ryu's report quickly led them to suspect Crocodile's true intentions, prompting this immediate response. Ryu could already guess that CP agents were likely on their way to Alabasta, their target possibly aligned with Crocodile's objective. Previously, the government might have respected an arrangement with the Nefertari royal family, but now that they had an opportunity, they wouldn't let it slip.
He vaguely recalled that Luffy had once stumbled upon the underground chamber containing the hidden Poneglyph. If he could lure Robin there, it would make capturing her easier—but the precise location was unclear to him. Plus, he remembered hearing that the underground scene was an anime-original addition and not part of the manga storyline, so he wasn't certain it even existed.
After coordinating with Raina to gather nearby Marines for a rendezvous in the capital, Ryu headed to Rainbase Casino. By now, Luffy's group was probably causing chaos inside.
Sure enough, when Ryu arrived, he saw Baroque Works agents sprawled outside, and the bridge leading inside had collapsed. Deciding to stay out of the potentially collapsing building, he caught a glimpse of Sanji slipping inside and decided to follow him.
When Ryu reached the underground passage, a key suddenly dropped right in front of him.
"Is this the key to that giant Seastone cage?" he mused, looking down at the key, then at Luffy and the others locked inside the cage below. A smirk crossed his face as he realized he was about to gain a nice little windfall.
"Oh? Someone dared to ambush me?" Ryu stepped forward, holding the key, eyeing both Mr. 3 and Sanji, who were facing off.
"Ryu~~~!" Luffy and his crew, spotting the key in his hand, yelled excitedly.
"Who threw this?" Ryu scratched his head.
"It was him!" they all chorused, pointing at Mr. 3.
"Brat, where did you come fro—" Mr. 3 began, but before he could finish, he slumped to the ground. Ryu, already holding the key, unlocked the Seastone cage in a flash.
"So fast!" murmured both Sanji, who was standing beside Mr. 3, and Zoro from inside the cage.
"Didn't I tell you Crocodile is out of your league?" Ryu grinned, releasing Luffy and the others.
"This isn't the time for that. I'm going to knock that Crocodile flying!" Luffy shouted as he leapt out of the cage, unleashing his pent-up fury on a Banana Gator.
Princess Vivi, watching from the sidelines, couldn't hold back her tears. She had narrowly escaped death from one of those very Banana Gators.
"I'm taking this pirate with me. This place is about to collapse, so we should get moving! By the way—" Ryu had barely finished speaking when the glass ceiling above shattered, flooding the room with seawater and sweeping everyone away in its powerful current.