Chapter 105: Baroque Works
Baroque Works is a secret criminal organization that operates primarily in the first half of the Grand Line.
It has around 2,000 members. Its headquarters are located on Sandy Island, in the Kingdom of Alabasta. Its main activities include bounty hunting, theft, sabotage, espionage, and assassination.
The company's guiding principle is âmystery.â Employees are required to refer to each other by code names, and revealing or prying into anyoneâs background is strictly prohibited.
The president is Mr. 0. Sir Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, runs the organization while concealing his identity. Under him are executivesâAgentsâeach bearing a "Mr." code number and operating in male-female pairs with fellow Agents.
Agents ranked Mr. 5 and above are known as "Officer Agents." Nearly all of them are Devil Fruit users, and they use their extraordinary strength to carry out important missions.
Below them are the âFrontier Agents,â ranked from Mr. 6 to Mr. 12. They lead subordinates known as "Millions," who handle various tasksâsuch as fundraisingâaround the entrance of the Grand Line.
Mr. 13 and Miss Friday form a pair of animals who serve as enforcers and messengers. They are not included in the standard agent hierarchy.
The companyâs ultimate goal is the creation of an "ideal nation"âmore specifically, the takeover of the Kingdom of Alabasta.
â
âSo, yeah! Thatâs the company overviewâȘ Any questions?â
â...Well⊠yeah, kind of⊠but what I really want to ask isnât about the company. Itâs why youâre doing all this⊠Nue-san.â
âI am not Nue-san!! Right now, Iâm the top Frontier Agent!! Miss Motherâs Day!! And you are Mr. 6!!â
â...Miss Motherâs Day. Why did you infiltrate this organizationâŠ?â
âHmm, Iâve got a few reasons~ But one is that I figured Iâd use this civil war as a chance to train the newbiesâĄâ
âAh⊠so thatâs why you told me to bring the recruits tooâŠâ
On the coast of the Kingdom of Alabasta, IâMiss Motherâs Dayâwas explaining the situation and how we ended up here to Mr. 6, aka Pe-tanâPage One. But he still looked completely baffled, so I decided to explain things a little more to lighten the mood. I glanced at the subordinates Iâd brought, who were waiting among the rocks.
âSee, thatâs what this is about~âȘ Lately, weâve had a lot of newcomers, right? So I thought, why not throw a little vacation-slash-welcome party-slash-war for them!! Donât you all wanna cut loose a bit!?â
âWOOOH!! Of course we do!!!â
âGYA-HAHAHA!! Youâre the best, Nue-san!!!â
âYou mean weâre gonna make this war-torn country even more of a mess!?â
My 500-strong unit of subordinates erupted in cheers at my call. I raised my voice again to get a breakdown of our force.
âYou all seem fired up⥠âBaofan-chan (Aka Bao Huang), whatâs the composition of the team we brought?â
âRogeerrrrr!!!â
A lively voice rang out from atop a tall rocky cliff when I called her name.
The speaker was a young girlânot much shorter than meâwith two horns sprouting from her head. Her face was hidden by a paper mask drawn with a single large eye. Despite her age, sheâs one of our executives. Sheâs also the junior of Sono, who handles schedule management for Kaido and me.
âAt Nue-samaâs command, King-sama assembled a combat forceâabout 500 strong!! And the breakdown isâ!!â
The girl spread her arms and legs and glided down from the top of the rock using her ability. She seems to have a fondness for high placesâa quirk from her powers. Dressed in the Wano style, she wore a short floral furisode that only reached mid-thigh, and strapped a giant fan with the kanji for "wind" on her back. When she landed, the clack of her wooden sandals echoed sharply.
Beasts Pirates âShinuchiâ Baofan (Flying Squirrel SMILE)
âWaiters: 300!! Pleasures: 180!! Gifters: 20!! And three Shinuchi!! This force is led by Tobiroppo member Page One-sama!! A total of 503!! Thatâs it!!!â
âHmm, 503. Not bad. Youâve gotten good at reporting, Baofan-chanâĄâ
âEhehe, thank you sooo much!!â
I patted Baofanâs frizzy head. Our crew has a lot of young but capable executives. The ones like Whoâs Who and Sasaki, former pirate captains who joined us later, are usually strong and ambitious right away, which is greatâbut those born and raised with us like Jack, Ulti, Page One, and Baofan, they tend to grow up fast and turn out powerful thanks to our elite training. Plus, theyâre especially loyal to me and KaidoâĄ
âYou didnât bring the Numbers?â
âNah, theyâd stand out too much hereâŠâ
âKing-sama said the same thing!!â
âAw, really? Thatâs too bad. I was hoping to feed themâit's been a while.â
â...Theyâre not suited for covert work.â
As I murmured my disappointment about the Numbers not being here, another figure appearedâdressed differently from the other soldiers.
Wearing a long black coat and a black mask that only covered her eyes, she had a slit emerald-green dress underneath and a horned hat atop her head. A striking beautyâand one of our Shinuchi with a particularly unique background.
Beasts Pirates âShinuchiâ Dulac â Bounty: 230 million berries
âSo? Why exactly was I summoned personally?â
âAww, Dulac, still as sour-faced as everâȘ Cool is fine and all, but youâre so prettyâyou should smile more! Our crewâs all about fun and laughter, you know!!â
âGYAHAHAHA!! Thatâs right, Big Sis Dulac!!â
ââŠDonât lump me in with people whose only skill is laughing. Now, the reason?â
Oh dear, seems like our noisy Pleasures arenât her thing. Sheâs been with us for quite some time now, but Dulacâs still so cool and kind-hearted. Itâs not like we forced the Pleasures to eat anything. They knew the risks and chose it themselvesâsympathy is a bit condescending, donât you think? Well, anyway, she wants a reason, so letâs give her one.
âThe reason is~⊠Iâm here to retrieve that thing from this country~~âȘâ
â! Donât tell me⊠this country has a Poneglyph?â
âDing ding ding!! Correct answer~~~âȘ One of the reasons we came here is indeed for that Poneglyph!!â
As soon as I hinted at it, Dulac immediately guessed it. Well, if she was summoned and itâs âthat thing,â thereâs really only one possibility. Canât blame her for being surprised.
âI see⊠but if itâs about retrieving it, thereâs no need for me to be here, is there? I could just read it once itâs brought back.â
âHmm, thatâs true, but⊠come on, sometimes going outside leads to something nice, right~?â
ââŠI wasnât hoping for that, though.â
Dulac replied in her usual quiet tone. Still so mysterious and cool. No wonder the male subordinates are so into herâthough Iâm more popular, obviously!!
âSo, Nue-san. In other words, Crocodile and this civil war⊠youâre using the chaos to steal the Poneglyph, right?â
âYep, pretty much~âȘâ
ââŠGot it. But why do I have to pretend to be some weak-sounding guy called Mr. 6ââ
âOh shoot, I forgot!! âHey, you all!! Right now, Iâm not the worldâs cutest Nue-chan, Iâm the star of Baroque Works, Miss Motherâs Day! So address me properly!! And you are all our subordinates, the Millions!!â
âYes maâam!! Understood!! Mr. 6, Miss Motherâs Day!!!â
âYou jumped on that fast, didnât you!? âŠWait, more importantly, Miss Motherâs Dayâwhat are you wearingâŠ?â
"Oh, this? Fufufu⥠Cute outfit, right?âĄ"
I did a little twirl, as if to show off my adorable look that Page One had just commented on.
Right now, I was a sun-kissed, bronze-skinned Arabian dancer version of little Nue-chan.
"Hehe~⥠I got bored waiting for you guys, so I tanned myself and gave my look a makeover to match this countryâs vibeâȘ Pretty good, huh?"
"It looks great, Miss Motherâs Day!!"
"...So it's a disguise for covert operationsâ"
"You look super cute, Miss Mother's Day!!"
"Hehehe~⥠Well, I wouldnât say that... okay, maybe I would!!! Alright, Iâm feeling it now! Time for a live show!! Itâs Nue-chanâs Alabasta Major City Tour, and weâre gonna gain some fans!!"
"Yes, yes, Nue-san!!"
"The cutest in the world!! Nue-san is soooo cuuuuute!!"
"This is supposed to be a covert mission, right!!? And you guysâstop cheering along!!!"
"...You've got it rough, donât you?"
"Shut up, Dulac!!"
"By the way, Pe-tan got picked by process of elimination~~â« Ulti-chan wanted to come too, but the pair had to be male and female, so no go~~â« And Whoâs-Who and Sasaki had other jobs apparently~~â«"
"...! (Damn it!! Why am I only free at times like this!?)"
"Bored Pe-tan!! Slacker Pe-tan!!"
"Huh!? Who the hell is Pe-tan!!!? Quit calling me names like that!!! Iâll kill you!!!"
"S-Sorry..."
"N-No, I mean, it just feels wrong not to shout along during Nue-sanâs song..."
"Alabasta, one of the worldâs most advanced civilizations... its royal family was once among the twenty kings who stayed on the surface... so why would they possess a Poneglyph with true history...?"
"Why are you calmly theorizing now!?"
"Do you just have to chime in with a retort?"
Oops. P-tan's outburst had the subordinates shrinking back. Well, even though heâs young, he is a Tobi Roppo. Strong enough that even regular fighters and Gifters would naturally be intimidated.
"...So, I understand you're on a covert mission to obtain the Poneglyph of true history... but in that case, are you abandoning the job you were assigned by Baroque Works? Managing this ship?"
"Of course~~â« No need to follow that Croco-bratâs orders to the letterâ« Itâs just camouflage to fool the other employees and the Navyâ« In shortâour identities are a complete mystery!!"
"UNKNOWN, baby!!"
"...This ship is a rainmaking vessel that uses Dance Powder, right? Weâve got something similar back home."
P-tan glanced at the vessel moored on the shoreâBaroque Worksâ artificial rainmaking ship, the Fool. It creates rain using Dance Powder, causing droughts downwind. As he said, since our crew uses something similar, it's easy to recognize at a glance.
"Still... using Dance Powder, which is globally banned, just to manipulate the people's perception... Crocodile really has terrible taste."
"AhahaâȘ Is that supposed to be a dig at us, maybe~?"
"! Thatâs not what I meant..."
"Well, I donât really care either way~⥠Weâre pirates. Whether itâs in poor taste or banned globally, it has nothing to do with us. Weâre not saintsâif we decide to do something awful, we do it."
Pirates donât need to follow societyâs rules. âDishonorableâ means nothing to us. A pirate does whatever they want.
Which is why Crocodile, who uses whatever he can to get what he wants, is more of a real pirate than the rookies out there just playing pretend.
Still, being a Warlord of the Sea is tough. You have to hide stuff like this because if the government finds out, your title's at risk. We use Dance Powder too, but we keep it discreet, just like our other black market dealings. Not that weâd panic even if we were exposed. The governmentâs not gonna start a full-on fight with us over a little Dance Powder at this point.
"Mr. 6 and Miss Motherâs Day... as Frontier Agents, your top priority was to hide and manage the Fool so neither the government nor Alabastaâs people would discover it. âWell, now itâs our jobâĄ"
"If we tip off the government, Crocodile loses his Warlord title, and the Navy comes after him. That would make his whole plan to take over the country meaningless."
"But weâre not going to expose himâĄ"
"Huh...? Then what exactly are you planning to do...?"
Page One looked puzzled. He mustâve assumed that since we said it was a covert mission, weâd be trying to bring Crocodile down with some clever scheme. Even the smart ones like Duraque were wearing the same confused face.
So I explained again what we were really here to doâand more importantly, about the key figures in this whole mess who stood against Crocodile.
"Fufufu~⥠Right now, thereâs only one other group besides us that knows Mr. 0âs true identity and what Baroque Works is plotting."
"...? And that group is?"
"This."
I pulled a wanted poster from the UFO we use as a storage container and tossed it to Page One and the others.
They looked at itâand instead of being surprised, they just tilted their heads in confusion.
"...âStraw Hat Luffyâ?"
"The Straw Hat Crew... Never heard of them."
"Well, that makes sense~. âBaofan-chan, you know them?"
"Aye aye!! Uhh, letâs see... Straw Hat, Straw Hat..."
Baofan pulled a stack of notes from her hem and started flipping through them. Probably a list of pirate names. Butâ
"Sorry!! Theyâre not in here!!"
"You donât need to apologize. Obviously. Just some low-tier pirate worth 30 millionâno need to remember someone like that."
"Gyahaha!! Heâs got such a wimpy-looking face!!"
"If that guyâs worth 30 mil, weâve gotta be worth at least 100 mil each!!"
"Hah! Has the government lost its mind or what?"
Of course, thereâs no way weâd know about some pirate worth a measly 30 million.
In our crew, a bounty of 30 million might get you in as a regular combatant, maybe even as a Gifter or a Headliner, but even then, you'd be ranked pretty low. Among our Headlinersâmany of whom are former pirate captains or well-known, powerful piratesâpeople sometimes scoff at bounties like that.
That said, it's obvious that what matters more than the bounty is actual strength. I decide to give them a light warning.
"Hey, hey, you guys. Donât judge by appearances, okay?"
"! Ah⊠s-sorry!!"
"Hmph... Idiots. If you were with us, youâd already know appearances have nothing to do with strength."
"S-sorry."
The Gifters and other combatants in our crew who were laughing at the face on Straw Hat Luffyâs wanted poster go stiff the moment I call them out, clearly realizing their mistake. Even the ever-smiling Pleasures start sweating in silence.
As expected, the three Headliners and aboveâstarting with P-tanâalready understood that. They wouldnât say anything based on appearances. âŠThough that doesnât mean they arenât underestimating him. What P-tan cautioned against was judging strength by looks alone.
"So, why exactly is this pirate crew aware of Crocodileâs hidden identity and actively opposing him?"
"Well, apparently, the missing princess of this country infiltrated Baroque Works as Miss Wednesday. While on assignment near the entrance to the Grand Line, she ran into this crew. And just as they met, Crocodile discovered she was undercover. He sent assassins after her, but the crew saved her, agreed to escort her back to the kingdom, and even promised to take down Crocodile."
"A noble rescue mission?"
"Obviously thereâs more to it. Theyâve got no reason to help. Most likely, theyâre after Crocodileâs head, or maybe the Poneglyph of history, or something else entirely..."
"You think theyâre using this conflict with Crocodile as a distraction to steal the Poneglyph?"
"Would these guys even create a decent opening? Theyâre not even good for stalling. Donât forgetâCrocodileâs still a Warlord, rotten or not. Unless theyâve got numbers on their side?"
"âŠThey donât exactly look like captains of a grand fleet."
As I explain, Pe-tan and Dulac go back and forth over the Straw Hat wanted poster, analyzing it in every possible way. Itâs honestly fun to listen to. Of course theyâd react that way. Smiling to myself, I recross my legs and add more information.
"Ahaha!! Well, thereâs only six of them. Even counting the princess, that makes just seven."
"Thatâs way too few... Theyâll get crushed instantly."
"âŠYouâve done your homework, huh."
"Fufun, right?"
I wink and nod at Dulacâs comment. Iâm probably the most knowledgeable person in the world when it comes to the Straw Hat crew right now. Maybe even more than they are themselves.
Which is exactly why I know our crewâs estimates are, unfortunately, completely off.
"ââSo, weâre going to ignore Crocodile and all the Officer Agents and leave everything to the Straw Hats. Meanwhile, weâll cause a bit of chaos and swipe the Poneglyph of history for ourselvesâĄ"
"âŠWhat!?"
Everyone is stunned speechless, frozen in place.
But I ignore them and continue discussing the plan.
"Well, probably, that little sand gatorâs gonna lose anyway. So, first, we head to Alubarnaâ"
"W-weâre just leaving Crocodile aloneâŠ?"
"âŠâŠWell, worst case, even if Crocodile plays it smart, we can just kill him directly and be done with itâŠ"
"Exactly. Like Pe-tan said~âȘ So you all just pray Straw Hat wins and saves us the troubleâoh, Den-Den Mushi."
I brush off my subordinates' confusion, just as my Den-Den Mushi starts ringing. I pick it up. Who could it be?
"ââHello, Nue-san? Joker here."
"Yeees~ Whatâs up? Something happen again?"
"Yes. The Navyâs moving. And not just anyone⊠someone big."
"Eh, really!? Whoâs coming? An Admiral? If itâs an Admiral, things are gonna get interesting~⥠Or maybe Garp?"
My heart races as I respond to Joker. If the Navyâs reacting to our movements, itâd have to be someone major. Whoever it is, itâs bound to be fun. So who could it beâŠ? But the answer turns out to be completely unexpected.
"Fufu⥠Yes, itâs a former Admiral. Ever heard of the Pirate Guerrilla Unit?"
"! Ahh, that one⊠which means the one coming isâ"
Thereâs only one person who comes to mind upon hearing that unit name. Heâs famous even among Marines, and a lot of pirates harbor grudges against him. After all, just like Joker saidâ
"Yes. The former Marine Admiral and now Captain of the Pirate Guerrilla UnitââBlack Armâ Zephyr."
Once a Marine Admiral, known as the man who trained an entire generation of Marines⊠a living legendâZephyr himself.
Kingdom of Alabasta, Port Town âNanohana.â
Although it's a member nation of the World Government, the country has no stationed Marines due to the high level of trust in one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea based hereâCrocodile. And yet, Marines were present.
âA Pirate Hunter Task Force!? Thatâs...!!â
âYeah⊠Itâs a mobile unit for hunting down Devil Fruit-using pirates. The squad captain is none other than âBlack Arm Zephyr.ââ
âYou mean Zephyr-sensei? That unit is here?â
The one asking the question was a female Marine with a sword at her waistâTashigi, a sergeant major in Marine Headquarters.
Answering her was a grim-faced officer chewing on two cigarsâMarine Headquarters Captain "White Chase Smoker."
Having pursued the Straw Hat Pirates from Rogue Town in the East Blue on his own authority, Smoker and his elite unit had tracked scant leads across the Grand Line and arrived here in Alabasta, gathering intel on the crewâs movements.
But just then, a transmission came in from HQ. As white smoke billowed from his mouth, Smoker relayed the message aloud.
âAccording to HQâs intelligence division⊠thereâve been sightings of the Beasts Pirates around the Alabasta Kingdom.â
ââŠâŠ!! The Beasts Pirates⊠N-no way, someone that big showing up in the first half of the Grand Line?â
The moment the name âBeasts Piratesâ was mentioned, Tashigi and the other Marines broke into a cold sweat, their faces tightening. Even seasoned officers would go pale if that crew were on the move.
Why would one of the most feared pirate crews in the world be here of all places? Confusion swept through the Marinesâbut Smoker remained calm.
â...Itâs not surprising. The Beasts Pirates⊠especially the Phantom Beast, are known for appearing out of nowhere. There's no place they couldn't be.â
âYou mean Nue the Phantom BeastâŠ? They said he showed up in Rogue Town tooâŠâ
âYeah⊠Most likely theyâre here to investigateâor possibly to eliminate him.â
When it comes to threats as large as the Beasts Pirates, HQ doesnât hesitate to deploy its full strength. Fleets are dispatched at a minimum; admirals or Warlords of the Sea may even be mobilized.
But this time, itâs just a preliminary investigationâto confirm whether theyâre actually here or find any traces. They canât move an admiral or a Warlord without confirmation. Thatâs probably why the Pirate Hunter Task Force was chosen. Smoker reasoned as much.
âSo⊠are we being asked to cooperate?â
âNo. No such orders. They havenât even decided whether to land in Alabasta yet.â
If they happened to cross paths, or if the Beasts Pirates were actually here, they might cooperate as fellow Marinesâbut joining the investigation wasnât their mission. Smoker made that clear to his subordinates. Their mission hadn't changed.
âOur target is still the Straw Hat crew...!!â
âYes, sir!! Captain Smoker!!â
âOf course, if they were to appear right in front of them, theyâd capture them. That resolve was a given.
But first⊠to catch a pirate, you had to find them.
With that, Smoker and his unit began their intel-gathering operation in Alabasta.
âThat place looks unusually livelyâŠâ
âAnd thanks to their efforts⊠pirates had, in fact, gathered in this town.
âHey, old man. You seen someone like this around here? Wears a straw hatâŠâ
In a restaurant in Nanohana, a young man causing a commotion showed a wanted poster to the shop owner.
Apparently searching for someone, he walked into the establishment after getting a report from one of his subordinates.
âWhat business does the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates have in this countryâPortgas D. Ace?â
âMeanwhile, elsewhere on the outskirts of town, another pirate wasâŠ
âP-... Mr. 6, sir!!â
âWhat is it? Trouble?â
âN-no!! Not exactly that⊠but I spotted someone real dangerousâŠ!!â
âDangerous?â
âY-yes, sir. Itâs just thatââ
One of the subordinates came rushing back from the town center in a panic. As the man known as âMr. 6â listened to the report, his eyes widened in shock.
âWhat!? Are you sure about this intel!?â
âYes!! Itâs definitely himâŠ!!â
âTake me there. Now!!â
âR-right!! This way!! Itâs a restaurant on the main street!!â
âGood!!â
Mr. 6 dashed off, following his subordinateâto crush and capture his target.
âAnd elsewhere again.
As a ship docked at the entrance to the port, a man leapt off the deck and sprinted straight for the town.
âFOOOOOOODâ!!!!â
âWait up, damn it!!!â
Ignoring his companionsâ attempts to stop him, the man in the straw hat made a beeline for the restaurant.
And inside that very restaurant, a man answered a Marineâs question with a fearless smile.
ââŠâŠâŠâŠIâm looking for my little brother.â
âThus, in the Kingdom of Alabasta, a conspiracy-laced upheaval was about to begin.
âThe Grand Line, at sea.
A single ship floated on the ocean, bearing the emblem of a seagull.
It was a sign that the ship belonged to the Marines.
And the pirate ships surrounding itâalong with the bloodied pirates lying motionless on their decksâwhat did they signify?
They were proof.
Proof that these were powerful menâand defenders of justice.
đ” âThe sea watches us... at the world's beginning...â đ”
On the deck of one of the pirate ships stood a lone man.
đ” âThe sea remembers... the world's end as well...â đ”
The voice echoed over the deckâa funeral song, bidding farewell to Marines returning to the sea.
And the one singing it was a giant of an old man.
đ” âSo it guides us... toward the path we must follow...â đ”
The man had purple hair, wore sunglasses, and bore the uniform of a Marine.
Once, he had stepped away from the battlefield, dedicating himself wholly to the training of young Marines.
đ” âSo it leads us... to a just world...â đ”
But for some reason, he had returned to war.
He longed for a world where innocent people would never again suffer unjust sorrow.
And he hated the ones who brought such sorrowâpirates who tormented the innocent and spread tragedy.
đ” âIt embraces pain and suffering... with warmth, with kindness...â đ”
That was why the man had returned to the battlefield.
Even after losing his beloved wife and child, even after his treasured students fell one by oneâand even after his proud right arm had been torn from him.
ââZephyr-sensei.â
â...What is it?â
âAll pirates aboard this ship, including those who tried to flee, have been eliminated.â
â...I see.â
Hearing the report from one of his subordinatesâalso a former studentâhe turned to head back to the warship.
His massive mechanical weapon, Smasher, forged from Seastone and attached in place of his lost right arm, swung at his side as he walked across the deck. He glanced down at a pirateâs wanted poster, his brows knitting together.
â...Stay sharp, all of youâŠ!!â
The pirate in the picture didnât even look the partâfar from it.
But that was the kind of enemy he had come to hunt.
Marine Headquarters â Pirate Hunter Task Force Commander (Former Admiral): âBlack Arm Zephyr.â
âThese arenât the kind of pirates you can take lightlyâŠ!!! Be alert and move with caution!!!â
âSir, yes sir!!!â
Their mission: investigate the Beasts Pirates, and if possible, intercept and eliminate any of their raiding ships.
With that purpose, Zephyr and his Pirate Hunter Task Force set their course for the Kingdom of Alabasta.
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