The journey through the desert had become surprisingly bearable - thanks mainly to the perpetual cloud cover Nolan had unintentionally provided. Chopper trudged along, the sloth draped across his back like a particularly heavy fur stole.
"Nolan...aren't you rested enough yet?" Chopper panted, his small legs struggling in the sand.
"Hmm? Five more minutes..." Nolan mumbled into the reindeer's fur, not even bothering to open his eyes.
Their peaceful moment was shattered by rising voices up ahead. Vivi and Luffy stood face-to-face, the princess's hands clenched into fists while the rubberman's usua usual grin was nowhere to be seen.
"Listen to me, Luffy!" Vivi insisted, her voice strained. "We can't just charge at Crocodile! We need to stop the rebels first or-"
"I don't care about that," Luffy interrupted, his tone uncharacteristically serious. "You keep saying 'no one should die,' but that's stupid. People are already dying. Your friends are fighting right now."
Vivi flinched as if struck. "That's exactly why I can't let you-"
"Crocodile's the one making this war happen," Luffy pressed on, jabbing a finger toward the distant horizon. "If we take him out first, it all stops. You're just scared."
"I AM scared!" Vivi shouted, tears welling in her eyes. "He's a Warlord! He can turn entire buildings to sand with a touch! What if...what if you..."
The crew watched the confrontation uneasily. Even Zoro kept his hand away from his swords, recognizing this wasn't a fight they could intervene in.
Nolan finally cracked one eye open from his perch on Chopper's back. "Ah...Vivi," he drawled, his sleepy voice cutting through the tension. "Luffy's right, you know."
Vivi whirled to face him, betrayal flashing across her features. "Not you too!"
Nolan yawned hugely before continuing. "Going to the rebel camp...too much effort...for nothing. They won't care...about your speech." He waved a limp hand. "Just punch the problem...at its source."
Luffy nodded vigorously. "See? Even Nolan gets it!"
Vivi's shoulders trembled, her gaze dropping to the sand. For a long moment, no one spoke. Then suddenly, she lunged at Luffy, pounding her fists against his chest. "STUPID! YOU'RE ALL STUPID!" she sobbed, each word punctuated by a weak punch that Luffy absorbed without complaint.
When her anger spent itself, Luffy placed a firm hand on her head. "We're your friends too, dummy. You gotta trust us."
Vivi sniffled, then managed a watery smile. "...Fine. To Rainbase then. But when Crocodile kicks your ass, don't come crying to me!"
Luffy's grin returned full force. "SHISHISHI! Yeah right!"
As the crew resumed their march, Nolan nestled back into Chopper's fur with a satisfied sigh. Conflict resolution accomplished - and he hadn't even needed to stand up. Now if only someone would carry him to lunch...
"Sanji, what's for lunch..?" Nolan asked as Sanji responded with great enthusiasm.
.
.
.
Rainbase glittered before them, its massive casino looming like a golden mirage. Sanji's cigarette nearly fell from his lips. "Whoa... This place actually looks alive!"
Usopp wiped imaginary sweat from his brow. "Civilization! Praise the—"
PFFFFTTT
The familiar sound of billowing smoke cut him off. Slowly, dreadfully, the crew turned to see a very familiar white coat materializing behind them.
"Smoker?!" Nami shrieked, her voice cracking.
The marine captain cracked his knuckles, seastone jutte glinting. "Strawhats. Should've known you'd—"
"RUUUUN!" Luffy screamed before Smoker could finish, sending the crew scattering like startled cockroaches.
What followed was pure pandemonium.
Zoro immediately sprinted in the wrong direction 'IT'S NOT MY FAULT THE STREETS MOVED!'
Nami and Usopp attempted to hide in a fruit stall, only for a pineapple to inexplicably get stuck on Usopp's nose.
Sanji tried to play it cool by casually walking into a ladies' bathhouse—earning himself both a nosebleed and a squadron of angry women wielding wooden buckets.
Meanwhile, Chopper and Nolan might as well have been on a leisurely stroll. The reindeer trotted along calmly while his passenger lazily pointed directions like a sleepy tour guide.
"Chopper... left at the melon stand."
"But that's a dead end—"
"Trust me."
To Chopper's amazement, the "dead end" had a perfectly reindeer-sized gap between buildings. Behind them, an entire marine platoon got wedged trying to follow.
Smoker fumed as his men kept tripping over themselves. "WHY ARE WE ONLY CHASING HALF THE CREW?!"
Tashigi adjusted her glasses. "Sir, the others seem to have... a pet reindeer carrying what appears to be a mummy?"
Indeed, Nolan's full-body local garb made him look like a sack of potatoes with legs. His hood even had little tassels that flopped comically with each of Chopper's steps.
At one point, a marine grabbed Nolan's sleeve—only for the fabric to come away in his hands, revealing nothing but more layers of cloth. "SIR! I THINK THIS ONE'S ACTUALLY JUST LAUNDRY!"
Nolan yawned from three feet away. "Warm... out here..."
Back at the casino entrance, Luffy finally stopped running when he realized—"Wait... where's everyone else?"
Smoker materialized before him. "Right here, Strawhat."
"AAAAH! WRONG ONE FOUND ME!"
As the chase continued into the casino, Nolan and Chopper settled at a rooftop café. The sloth sipped mango juice through a straw under his hood while watching the chaos unfold below.
"Should we... help them?" Chopper asked nervously as Zoro ran past—now being chased by both marines and an angry chef waving a rolling pin.
Nolan considered this. Then lifted his hood just enough for a sliver of his face to show—causing a passing marine squad to immediately start arguing about which direction the "angel" had gone.
"...Nah. They're having fun."
.
.
.
Nami rattled the cage bars with growing panic. "Okay, new rule, if we survive this, we're beating up Luffy!"
Beside her, Usopp was trying to chew through the seastone-reinforced metal. "Mmfph! Whfph mmfph!" These tastes awful
Smoker sat fuming in the corner, cigar smoke pouring from his nostrils. "I can't believe I got captured because of you idiots."
Luffy, completely ignoring their predicament, was poking Crocodile's nose through the bars. "Heyyy, hook guy! release us!"
Crocodile's eye twitched violently. "You destroyed six slot machines, two blackjack tables, and my favorite chandelier."
Zoro yawned. "To be fair, that chandelier was ugly."
"IT WAS ANTIQUE!"
Meanwhile...
Robin observed the captured princess with quiet amusement, her trademark smile playing across her lips. The way Vivi desperately tried to maintain her royal composure while surrounded by Baroque Works agents was... charming.
"That's quite the smile," a lazy voice drawled behind her. "Enjoying the show?"
Robin turned—and her smile froze mid-curve.
Leaning against the wall was a young man who looked like the gods had spent extra time crafting him. His dark blue hair framed a face so perfectly proportioned it made Renaissance sculptures look like child's play. Pink eyes that seemed to glow in the dim light regarded her with amused detachment. At 190cm, he towered over her slightly, his lean frame draped in loose desert garb that somehow looked regal rather than practical.
For the first time in years, Robin found herself at a loss for words.
Nolan tilted his head, making a stray lock of hair fall across his forehead. Robin's fingers twitched with the archaeologist's instinct to preserve such beauty. "Cat got your tongue?" he asked, the corner of his mouth quirking up.
Robin recovered swiftly, though her smile now held genuine warmth rather than polite detachment. "My apologies. I was simply admiring the view." Her eyes sparkled with rare mischief. "I don't believe we've been introduced. Miss All-Sunday."
"Nolan," he replied, then gestured lazily toward the casino "Those idiots are mine. Well, technically Luffy's, but you get the idea."
Back at the cage...
Luffy had somehow gotten his arms tangled in Smoker's jacket while attempting to steal his cigars. "Gimme! I wanna try these things!"
"GET OFF ME, YOU OVERGROWN FUCKER!"
Zoro was dozing off. Nami was devising escape plans that all ended with "then we murder Luffy." Usopp had given up on chewing the bars and was now trying to bribe a nearby guard with increasingly improbable lies "...and that's why you should let us go or my 80 million pirate crew will rush here!
Robin observed the chaos using her fruit, then turned back to Nolan with renewed interest. "Your crew is... unique."
Nolan sighed. "They're exhausting." He glanced at her sideways. "You seem like the sensible type. Wanna switch teams?"
Robin's laughter—a genuine, surprised sound—echoed through the area. For once, her smile reached her eyes. "Tempting. But I do have a job to finish first."
Nolan shrugged. "Worth a shot." He nodded toward the Billions. "Mind if I...?"
Robin stepped aside with a playful flourish. "By all means. Though I should warn you—"
She didn't get to finish her words as Nolan just raised a gun that looked quite unique even for her. He pointed at Billions and the muttered.
"Bang"
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