One Piece, Volume 20

Chapter 177
As Luffy is being flung out to the dessert he asks everyone to get Vivi safely to the royal palace, while Vivi warns him that there are two of them, Zoro then orders Chopper to take them straight to Alubarna, while Nami tells Vivi that Luffy will be fine and everyone in the crew encourages her. Vivi then shouts at Luffy that they will be waiting for him at Alubarna, miss all Sunday laughs at the fact that Vivi has gotten away, but Crocodile is unfazed asking her to contact their agents in Alubarna. Luffy then comments that though Vivi is weak she is still trying to save everyone, that she wants the rebellion to end without anyone dying, Crocodile scoffs at this saying it is foolish and asking Luffy what he thinks, to which he responds that it is foolish. but he also adds that he will stop Crocodile so that Vivi does not have to work so hard, Crocodile also laughs at this as well saying that he has crushed hundreds of people like Luffy into dust. Luffy responds that Crocodile is pretty stupid which angers him immensely but makes Miss All Sunday laugh, Crocodile then questions what she is laughing at calling her by her real name: Nico Robin, she then leaves for Alubarna while Crocodile throws down an hourglass saying that he will only give Luffy three minutes which is fine with Luffy. Luffy then starts to attack Crocodile who manages to evade his attacks easily or else just lets them pass through him, he then tries to tell Luffy that it is pointless to fight him, but Luffy does not listen and keeps up his assault which angers Crocodile even more.

Chapter 178
Crocodile asks Luffy if they can end the games to which Luffy responds that he has been fighting seriously, Crocodile then comments that they are pirates in two different leagues and attacks Luffy with his escada attack, fortunately Luffy manages to get out of the way in time. Luffy is astonished at Crocodile's power while Crocodile comments that he does not just posses his devil fruit ability like some people, he mastered it and demonstrates this by creating a hole of quicksand. While Luffy is struggling to leave the pit, Crocodile comments that no one can contend with him while in the desert, though Luffy finally manages to get out of the pit. Luffy then comments that if he cannot beat Crocodile, then he will catch him, but this also fails and Crocodile shows Luffy more of his abilities by mummifying his right arm. Crocodile then explains that he merely sucked the water out of his arm, this causes Luffy to run to his water bottle and drink causing Crocodile to comment about it being ridiculous, and Luffy counters saying it is not ridiculous and tells Crocodile the story of Yuba. Luffy then charges Crocodile and literally bites his head off, but Crocodile manages to escape from Luffy's mouth and comment that it is time for him and Yuba to die, Crocodile then creates a sandstorm while commenting on the dryness of the sand that day. Meanwhile people all across Arabasta notice the sandstorm with Vivi realizing that it is Crocodile's doing, Crocodile begins to tell Luffy how strange it is that Yuba keeps getting hit by sandstorms Luffy then puts two and two together, and enraged attacks Crocodile only to be impaled by his hook, while Crocodile comments that pirates like him are coming on the grand line.

Chapter 179
The chapter begins with the Straw Hats getting ready for battle on the giant crab, Hasami. Usopp tells Chopper one of his lie stories again, while Zoro trains by putting Matsuge on top of one of his swords and lifting him. As Usopp tells a horrified Chopper that shrimp are actually crabs in the background, Nami tells Zoro that what he's doing would probably just use up his stamina. Sanji tells Nami to leave him alone, saying that everyone has to do something in order to push away their thoughts about their captain tasting the level of a Shichibukai at this moment. Zoro asks Sanji what he wants to say, and Sanji says that Zoro is scared, thinking what if Luffy lost. Zoro gets annoyed at the word "scared" and calls Sanji "beauty brows". Sanji gets insulted by this and calls Zoro a moss head. As the two are about to start a fight, Nami punches both. Usopp thinks about cheering everyone up as a "vice captain", but Vivi assures everyone that Luffy is okay. Usopp comments that Vivi is the one who should be the most worried and Nami tells Vivi should just focus on worrying about the rebellion and not other things, lightly punching her in the head. Nami officially gives the crab the name "Hasami" and tells him to hurry to Alubarna, while the others comment on the strange name.

Meanwhile in Yuba, Toto finally finds a place that spurts out lots of water, and smiles, not knowing about the sandstorm created by Crocodile approaching.

Back in the fight with Luffy and Crocodile, Crocodile tells Luffy about how everything would go his way, not Luffy's. We see now that Crocodile had stabbed right through Luffy's water bottle around his neck into Luffy. While the water from Luffy's bottle drips onto Crocodile's arm, Luffy suddenly grabs Crocodile's arm and breaks it, despite being half dead. Crocodile is surprised that Luffy is still alive and throws him into the quicksand and Luffy falls deeper and deeper into it.

In Rainbase, Smoker tells Tashigi to go straight to Alubarna by herself and do whatever she feels is her own justice there. Smoker tells her to watch closely how this place will end up, whether it gets destroyed or not, and drives away.

Meanwhile in the desert, rebels ride on horses toward Alubarna. Koza tells Cobra to wait and see how they will destroy Arabasta.

In the royal palace, the soldiers also get ready for battle, and the citizens run away for safety.

Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas are seen with a bloody and captured Cobra somewhere, and while the pair chatter, Cobra tells everyone to stop destroying themselves in his mind.

People who hate the fight, people who fight, people who create the fight, people who stop the fight, they all come to Alubarna to clash.

Back in the quicksand, Luffy's head pops out, and he yells out that he's hungry.

Chapter 180
Luffy thinks back to the final words Crocodile spoke before he was thrown in the quicksand, and tries to escape, but the sands start to drag him down again. Luckily, he is pulled up by Ms. All-Sunday's Hana Hana powers.

After Luffy thanks her for saving him, she asks him why those with D. in their names fight on. As he is clueless, she drops the subject, but the sudden appearance of Pell catches her attention. Ignoring his threats, she suggests that he aids Luffy and tells him that Vivi is going towards Alubarna, before riding off on a F-Wani. Then, Luffy grabs Pell and proclaims that he is hungry.

Meanwhile, in Nanohana, it is finally revealed that Igaram survived back in Whisky Peak, and that he has to hurry in order to stop the civil war. As the rebels ride towards Alubarna, the sandstorm that Crocodile created has reached Yuba. Before it hits the city, Toto yells at it, saying that it can never break Yuba down.

Meanwhile, Usopp is shocked to learn that Hasami cannot cross the Sandora river, as his breed of crabs cannot travel in water. Luckily, Chopper remembers that Hasami is fond of female dancers, which Nami is dressed as. So, to motivate Hasami (much to the joy of Sanji and Matsuge), Nami reveals her dancer's outfit. This makes sure that Hasami enters a whole new level of speed which seems to be enough to traverse the river, but sadly, it is not enough.

Leaving Hasami behind, the crew is forced to traverse by foot, which will take at least one day. To make matters worse, they encounter a Sandora catfish, which attempts to eat the lot of them. Luckily, they are saved by the Kung Fu Dugongs. Apparently, they did so because since they are Luffy's subordinates (as he defeated them some chapters ago), and presumed that the Straw-Hats were so as well. This allows the Straw-Hats to traverse the rest of the river riding on the knocked-out catfish while the Dugong's drag it across.

When they reach the other side of the river, they are saddened by the fact that without Hasami, it will be impossible to get to Alubarna in time, even with Matsuge (who can only carry two persons, preferably female). However, they are saved by the timely appearance of Karoo and the Super Spot-Billed Duck Troops.

At the western gate of Alubarna, the remaining Baroque Works agents are discussing the force they are dealing with, considering that the Straw-Hats managed to defeat six of their agents, not including Miss Wednesday. However, they all agree on the fact that the only thing that really matters is that Vivi must be eliminated.

Chapter 181
The battle between the rebels and royal guards is about to begin with each side getting ready to fight one another as the rebels are just 30 minutes away from Alubarna on horseback. Chaka instructs the royal guards not to let any of the rebels enter the city, ordering them to protect all the gates in every direction.

Outside Alubarna, the Baroque Works' agents are waiting for Vivi, as they are ordered to kill her so that she would not be able to interpose on Crocodile's plan. Suddenly, Mr. 4 spots 6 members of the Super Spot-Billed Duck Troops approaching them, each carrying members of the Straw Hat Pirates. Miss Merry Christmas wonders why there are 6 of them, as they only have information on 4 pirates (Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp). Miss Doublefinger points out that they have another member named Mr. Prince, and with Vivi, the number is accurate. Mr. 1 reminds them that the number does not matter, as they are only after Vivi. The agents are trying to pinpoint which of the ducks are carrying Vivi, however they cannot figure this out, due to each person wearing the same cloaks. At the same time, Mr. 2 notices that the rebels have almost reached the city, they have to do something quick so that Vivi does not meet up with Koza.

Mr. 4 fires an exploding baseball at the Straw Hats but his bomb are ineffective against the ducks' speed, who start to split into small groups of 2. Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas chase after the pair who went south. Usopp fires his Flame Star at Mr. 1, who blocks it with his hand while two more ducks head west. Mr. 2 is ran over by two ducks who head southwest. Mr. 1 and Miss Doublefinger chase the pair that went west, and Mr. 2 chased the pair that went southwest. Unfortunately, the agents are deceived, the six ducks who were rode by Zoro and Nami (who are facing Mr. 1 and Miss Doublefinger), Chopper and Sanji (who are facing Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas), Usopp and Matsuge (who are facing Mr. 2) were decoys.

Vivi, who stayed behind and had been hiding alongside Karoo, was waiting for the path to be clear, thanking the others for acting as decoys. With nobody left in their way, Vivi and Karoo can now catch up with the rebels.

Chapter 182
With Crocodile's orders to not let Vivi and Koza see each other ringing in the minds of the Baroque Works agents, Koza leads the rebels to Alubarna to battle. The impact of more than two million rebels charging causes the cannonballs in Alubarna's fortifications to shake, and right outside Alubarna stand Vivi and Karoo, with Karoo standing steadfastly by his master despite the possibility of them being trampled. Vivi sees Koza's rebels approaching in the distance, and Koza unsheathes his sword as he orders his troops to head through the South Gate so they can bring down the other gates from the inside. As they draw closer to her, Vivi shouts at the rebels to stop, saying this fight is a setup. This piques Koza's attention, but a blast of cannon fire erupts between him and Vivi. He asks his men if they saw a silhouette in front of them, but they do not care, thinking that the forces in Alubarna have already started shooting at them. Vivi is bewildered by the cannon shot, and in Alubarna, Chaka shouts at the soldier who fired before being given the order. The soldier apologizes and claims it was an accident, but in reality is an undercover Baroque Works agent who intentionally did it.

The rebels continue charging undeterred through the sand cloud created by the blast, and Vivi continues shouting in desperation. Koza seems to hear her, but decides that it is just his imagination as he charges right beside Vivi without seeing her. Vivi is shocked to see Koza going past her, and turns around and continues calling out to him, only to be struck by the thousands of oncoming soldiers riding on their camels, and Karoo desperately tries to save her. The rebels draw closer to Alubarna, and Chaka gives the order to fire the cannons as the royal infantry comes out to meet the rebels in battle. Meanwhile, Vivi nurses her wounds, having been saved from being trampled by Karoo, who took the brunt of the damage. Vivi is depressed by their failure, but knows there is still a chance to stop the battle so long as she can get to the site of the current clash, reminding herself of learning from the Straw Hat Pirates to never give up. Suddenly, Usopp comes to Vivi on horseback, telling her to get on. However, right at this moment, the real Usopp is with Matsuge in Alubarna, sheepishly telling Sanji after their ducks had come to him for help that Mr. 2 Bon Kurei defeated them in two seconds. With Mr. 2 nowhere in sight, Sanji realizes that Vivi must be in trouble, and outside Alubarna, the fake Usopp tells Vivi to leave Karoo behind so they can get going. Vivi is bewildered that Usopp did not refer to Karoo by his name, remembering the camaraderie the two had shown before. She then tells Usopp to prove himself, and he shows the cloth on his left arm. However, Vivi immediately knows that he is an impostor, and Karoo picks her up and runs away as fast as possible. Turning back into his real self, Mr. 2 wonders how they knew he was a fake, having heard from Crocodile about the Straw Hats having a cloth on their arms. He then prepares to pursue Vivi and Karoo, saying they will not get away.

Chapter 183
The chapter begins with a flashback of the Straw Hats deciding on their code mark. Since Zoro came up with the idea of putting an X below some bandages, Sanji became suspicious if Zoro was already switched with the transvestite guy. Zoro yells at Sanji that he will cut him to pieces, which assures everyone that it is the real Zoro.

Back in the current time, a half-dead Karoo runs away from Bon Kurei with Vivi on his back. Karoo runs so quickly that he miraculously runs up a vertical cliff to their shock, but just when they reach the top, Karoo loses footing. As Bon Kurei laughs at Karoo, waiting for them to fall, Karoo flaps his wings and flies to the top of the cliff, much to Bon Kurei's shock. When Vivi compliments Karoo and says Bon Kurei will not be able to chase them anymore, she looks down to see Mr. 2 dashing up the cliff yelling there is nothing an okama cannot do, much to their horror.

Vivi asks Karoo if he can get past the battlefield in front of them, and Karoo starts running into the battlefield. As they run from Mr. 2, a passing bullet hits Karoo and Karoo falls to the ground painfully. Vivi cries, asking Karoo if he is ok, and Karoo tells Vivi to go quickly. As Mr. 2 approaches the two, the Super Spot Billed Duck Troops come to the rescue, head-butting Bon Kurei.

Sanji appears, telling the ducks they can go now, and Vivi tells them that she is ok. Vivi tells them to take care of Karoo instead, and Sanji tells her to go, which she nods to. As Vivi runs away, Mr. 2 is enraged and attacks Sanji, telling him to die. Sanji guards by kicking at Mr. 2's leg, telling him to give his sniper's goggles back. Sanji tells Mr. 2 that he is not as weak as the other guys, and Mr. 2 asks Sanji if he is the "Mr. Prince" everyone was talking about. Sanji's glasses fall off and he states that he's not; he's the first-rating cook of the sea, Sanji. Bon Kurei says that he's a first rating okama of the sea himself, and tells Sanji that cooks shouldn't be fighting with dark organizations. Sanji says that he's a cook and a pirate, so that goes for Mr. 2 as well. Mr. 2 agrees, and Sanji tells him to leave the country alone.

Meanwhile in the southeast gate of Alubarna, Usopp finds a wounded Chopper and asks if he is okay. Chopper says he is, and tells Usopp to watch out since the enemy is still here. A pillar falls by itself and Usopp is confused, as there was nobody near it. Chopper tells Usopp that they are underground, explaining that Miss Merry Christmas is a Devil Fruit user of the "Mogu Mogu no Mi", and Mr. 4, her partner, is a "fourth batter" with a dog. Usopp is even more confused at this. Then there is a bark and a baseball comes flying at them. Chopper tells Usopp to get out of its way, and someone hits the ball with a bat. The ball ticks as it gets closer, and right when it's in front of Usopp's nose, it explodes.

Chapter 184
At the southeast gate of Alubarna, Usopp and Chopper recover from the explosion caused by Mr. 4's dog, although Usopp still struggles to comprehend any of it. They then see the dog, Lassoo, and Usopp is appalled at its appearance as it has several gun features on its body. Lassoo sneezes out another exploding baseball, and the two pirates dodge it, but Mr. 4 hits it right toward Usopp with his bat. Usopp ducks under the ball, but it explodes right over him. Chopper holds the dazed Usopp as he notes that the balls are time bombs, and are too much for him to catch due to being heavy as cannonballs, which makes Mr. 4's power to hit them inhuman. Mr. 4 sets down his bat against the wall, but its weight causes it to fall through the wall, making Usopp bewildered at Mr. 4's strength.

Miss Merry Christmas then arrives and berates Mr. 4 for not killing Usopp and Chopper yet, and the two pirates are frightened to see her again. Usopp leaves the fighting to Chopper while he tries to succumb to his injuries, causing Chopper to get angry, and Usopp wonders how he can deal with a bizarre creature like Lassoo. Miss Merry Christmas then reveals that Lassoo is a gun that "ate" the Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Dachshund thanks to special technology allowing inanimate objects to gain Devil Fruit powers. Usopp expresses his disbelief, but Miss Merry Christmas says that it does not matter since him and Chopper are about to die. She tells the two that their territory is named Molehill 4th St. as she partially transforms into a mole, although Usopp thinks that she more resembles a penguin. Miss Merry Christmas burrows into the ground, and Usopp takes the opportunity to escape, but Chopper tells him to look out as Lassoo emerges from the ground and fires a baseball bomb at him.

The ball suddenly curves away from Usopp at the last second, and Mr. 4 hits it high into the air. Usopp mocks Mr. 4's bad hit as the ball lands a ways away from him, but the ball suddenly begins rolling toward his back. Miss Merry Christmas says that Mr. 4 is not an ordinary cleanup hitter as Chopper enters Walk Point and saves Usopp from the blast. Miss Merry Christmas notes that Chopper is a Zoan like her as Lassoo fires more baseball bombs at the two pirates, which they attempt to dodge by remaining in constant motion. Chopper attempts to get rid of Mr. 4 by hurling a baseball back at him, but Miss Merry Christmas grabs him by the ankle as Mr. 4 hits the ball back at Chopper. However, Chopper enters his normal hybrid form, causing the ball to fly over him as he attacks Miss Merry Christmas and Mr. 4. However, the two agents disappear into the mole tunnels as Chopper reflects that using the Rumble Ball would take too much time with them. Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas emerge behind Chopper and start looking for him as Chopper wonders where Usopp is; however, Usopp emerges from the mole tunnel and hits Mr. 4 with a five-ton hammer. Miss Merry Christmas wonders how he is strong enough to wield that, and Usopp tells her that people call him the Lord of Destruction, introducing himself as Captain Usopp.

Chapter 185
Usopp is hitting Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas with a fake 5 ton hammer which is actually a paper mache hammer weighing approximately 4.4 lbs. Mr.4 easily (but slowly) recovers from being hit by the hammer after Usopp hits him. Usopp then charges Miss Merry Christmas with the hammer and attempts to hit her. Miss Merry Christmas burrows in and out of holes to dodge the hammer very similar to the arcade game "Whack a Mole". Usopp then stops to catch his breath, also telling tall tales to Miss Merry Christmas about how great he is, though Chopper full heartedly believes him and is amazed. Miss Merry Christmas grows tired of the game, and claws her way to Usopp, and then violently claws him across the face knocking him backwards. She then yells at Lassoo to take out the reindeer-man. Lassoo fires a gigantic amount of balls, which Mr. 4 hits at Chopper, causing another explosion. Miss Merry Christmas then begins to chase Usopp. Usopp notices there are short walls around which he decides to run over, hoping that Miss Merry Christmas will run directly into the wall. Miss Merry Christmas does run into the wall, but instead of getting injured, she easily takes out the wall. She then grabs Usopp and starts dragging him, bashing him through the walls too. After a while, Chopper finally figures out that their weakness is that all the tunnels Miss Merry Christmas dug are connected. Chopper takes advantage of this by pointing Lassoo's head into a tunnel, causing him to fire repeatedly. Usopp and Chopper then bolt out of the scene, and since all the tunnels are connected, the balls Lassoo fired into them cause a mass explosion all around the tunnels.

Chapter 186
Usopp, beaten on the ground, hopes to himself that Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas would not get back up after their attack is successful. Chopper notices that Mr. 4 is still standing, commenting to himself that he only has a minute and a half left after eating a Rumble Ball. Usopp then begins to flee, yelling out that the pair are monsters that can't be beaten. While Chopper yells to Usopp he can't run away from them, Miss Merry Christmas confirms this, grabbing Usopp's legs from underground. Miss Merry Christmas then comments that if a captain is weak then so is his crewmates, prompting Usopp to ask her what about Luffy. Miss Merry Christmas tells them that Luffy has been killed by Mr. 0 and that the rebellion has started, much to the shock of Usopp and Chopper.

Usopp denies this, yelling at Miss Merry Christmas that Luffy is going to be Pirate King and he wouldn't lose to a "filthy sand gator". Miss Merry Christmas begins to laugh at the idea of Luffy being Pirate King, which enrages Usopp. Usopp then yells out to Chopper, as Miss Merry Christmas drags Usopp's legs and drives him through a wall with her Mogu Mogu Impact attack, also telling Mr. 4 to get his 4-ton bat ready. The pair attack Usopp with Mogurazuka Yonban Kousaten, severely injuring him and knocking him several meters back. However, much to the shock of Miss Merry Christmas, Usopp is still standing, continuing to explain to Chopper that there are times when a man comes to fight, even if there are seemingly no chances of winning, which is when their friends' dreams are being laughed at.

Miss Merry Christmas proceeds to grab Usopp's legs again, driving him towards Mr. 4. As Chopper reveals a new form, Horn Point, Usopp tells Chopper to get behind him as he fires a Smoke Star at Mr. 4. Slipping out of his shoes to escape from Miss Merry Christmas' grip, Usopp tells Chopper to ensnare Miss Merry Christmas into his horns, which Chopper does, running towards Mr. 4. Thinking Miss Merry Christmas is Usopp, and still blinded by the smoke, Mr. 4 uses his 4-ton bat to knock Miss Merry Christmas back, much to his surprise. During the confusion, Usopp uses Chopper's horns and a rubber band as a slingshot to fire his hammer at Mr. 4, using Hissatsu Uso-Cho Hammer Suisei, knocking out Mr. 4 and Lassoo and winning the battle.

Victorious, Usopp collapses, and Chopper panics and asks if there is a doctor around, only for Usopp to proclaim that it's him.