Her Wanderlust Odyssey

No-Man's-Land

"Yay! Ace and Sakura are one of us now!" Luffy cheered with a drink in his hand.

"Who said I was joining you?" Ace and Sakura said in sync while pinching his cheeks.

"Ehh, sorry! Sorry!" he complained.

"Don't worry about it! They're always looking for an excuse to drink too!" Nami reassured.

"Are you sure that you guys won't join us?" Luffy asked.

Sakura nodded. "I got my own people to look after!"

"I'm chasing a certain man," Ace took a sip of his drink. "His name's Blackbeard."

"Not that man..." Sakura sighed in annoyance.

"Blackbeard? He's the pirate who attacked the Drum Kingdom!" Vivi pointed out.

"He used to be a member of the 2nd Divison of the Whitebeard Pirates, one of my men. but he committed the worst possible sin on a pirate ship: he killed a crewmember and jumped ship. So, as the commander, I gotta find and get rid of him."

"So that's why you're chasing after him," Usopp murmured.

"I came here because I caught word that Blackbeard was seen in Yuba."

"Then your destination is the same as ours!" Nami smiled. "Then what about you Sakura-san?"

"Eh, I don't mind where I end up. I'll just travel with you guys to Yuba and head back to my men."

"The leader of the rebel army is in Yuba," Vivi mentioned. "Well, it looks like we can travel together for a short while!"

"A rebel army? What is actually happening in this kingdom?" Sakura asked.

"Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, is planning to have Arabasta break out into a civil war again each other. He is the reason behind all the chaos in Arabasta!"

"Ah the Seven Warlords of the Sea, never really liked them. The World Government really thinks that they can get pirates to be loyal to their enemies. Once I return to my men, I will try to meet up with you guys in Alubarna to help."

"Thank you Sakura-san."

=~+~=

|Luffy actually managed to beat up a group of Kung-Fu Dugongs and became their teacher! This reckless idiot... always getting himself into trouble. Now Chopper is trying to bribe them off with like half of our food. If we run out of food before we reach Yuba, I'm going to give him a good punch in the face!|

"Sakura-san, we're leaving now, are you ready yet?" Nami called from the shore.

"Yeah! I'll be right there!"

=~+~=

The journey to Yuba started and as everyone walked to the top of a sand dune, a deserted city destroyed by the sand was discovered.

"What's this? Is this the town of Yuba?" Luffy asked.

"No... this is Erumalu. It used to be known as the City of Green," Vivi frowned.

"City of Green?"

Vivi turned to everyone. "The sight of this town explains everything, what Baroque Works has done to this country, what the people of Arabasta are going through. It's a ghost town now, but up until recently, Erumalu used to be a thriving city full of greenery. Rain was always scarce, but even so, the city was able to manage by saving every last drop of rainwater it could. But, for three years now, not a single drop of rain has fallen in any part of this country."

"For three years?! That long?!" Chopper exclaimed. 

"But even without rain, what about the river we just crossed? Couldn't they just  pipe water from there?" Zoro asked.

"There was a canal that used to bring water in from the Sandora River. Someone destroyed it too. With its canal gone, the City of Green could no longer secure water. Yet, in Alubarna, there was plentiful rain. People called it the 'Kings Miracle.' That was until the Dance Power incident occurred. My father was framed of course."

"What's Dance Powder?" Usopp questioned.

"It's a powder that artificially causes it to rain. Though it sounds like something that would be perfect for Arabasta, there was a big catch. Dance Powder quickly and artificially matures clouds that would normally grow into rain clouds further downwind and causes them to rain. So-"

"Oh, I get it! It steals rain that would've normally gone to a neighboring country!"

"Wow, who knew that it was possible to create a powder that can bring both happiness and dread when used," Sakura sighed.

"Ever since the Dance Powder incident, distrust in the King grows daily. And then the fighting began." Vivi stopped walking. "What did the citizens of this country ever do? These people have worked so hard to live, being natives of a desert land who are forced to fight with nature. Yet he's destroyed their lives! What gives him the right to do that?! All the while, as one of the Seven Warlords, he pretends to be a hero of the people! No one realizes he's deceiving the entire country! I... can't let him get away with this!"

Sakura place her hand on her shoulder. "Well, let's get moving now, we ain't got time to lose!" she smiled. And so, they continued on towards Yuba in hopes of stopping the rebel army.

[End of Part 3]

A/n: Thank you for over 1.2k reads! This shocked me and really gave me another driving factor to finish the fanfiction. I'm truly happy that this many people actually commit to my work! :)