Chapter 325: First Meeting with Sabo
Facing these desert bandits, Ian took the initiative to strike. He drew Thousand Cherry Blossoms and charged forward, instantly cutting down seven or eight of the robbers.
Ian's blade was too fast. These desert bandits, who had plundered in the desert for years, had sharp instincts. They immediately realized they had run into a tough opponent, so they turned their camels and scattered in all directions, not even bothering with their companions' corpses.
Seeing them flee, Ian naturally didn't bother to chase. He sheathed his sword, crouched down, and began searching the bodies of the robbers he had cut down.
Money and such were secondary; what he needed most was food and water. On these seven or eight bandits, Ian found quite a few water skins. Each one carried about three of them. Ian picked up the water skins and estimated their weight, concluding that the bandits' camp probably wasn't too far away. Based on the amount of water each person carried, it was at most a few dozen miles from here.
If it were farther, these bandits wouldn't have brought so little water.
However, pooling the water from seven or eight people was enough for Ian's needs, so he felt satisfied.
Just as Ian gathered the water skins and placed them into BB's hump bag, he suddenly tensed up. He spun around, his hand resting on his sword hilt, and demanded, "Who's there!"
The desert bandits had already scattered, so there shouldn't have been anyone nearby. But because Ian had activated his Psychic Field during the fight, he suddenly sensed someone approaching him and immediately became alert.
In the darkness, a figure slowly walked toward Ian. The moonlight cast a hazy glow over the desert, but it was impossible to make out the person's features, as their face was wrapped in a turban, just like Ian's.
"The bandits rob the merchant caravan, and the pirate robs the bandits!" the figure muttered as he approached. "Quite an interesting turn of events."
Ian ignored the teasing in his words and frowned, asking, "Who are you?"
As he spoke, the figure had already reached Ian. Seeing Ian's hand on his sword hilt, the figure waved his hand and said, "Don't be nervous, Mr. Ian! I came specifically to meet you!"
"Huh!?" Ian was taken aback by the address.
This was the first time someone had called him "Mr."
After saying this, the figure began unwrapping his turban. As the cloth came off, a face that left Ian utterly astonished was revealed.
It was a man with short, wavy blond hair, but on the left side of his face, there was a large burn scar.
"Sa... Sabo!?" Ian couldn't help but exclaim.
Yes, the person standing before him was unmistakably Sabo! The brother of Ace and Luffy!
Ian felt as if a thunderbolt had struck him. He had never imagined that he would encounter Sabo so abruptly, in such a time and place. He was completely stunned.
Hearing Ian call out his name, Sabo was also taken aback for a moment, but then he smiled and said, "So you really do know me."
Then, he walked over to Ian, sat down on the sand, and bowed his head slightly. "Sorry, that was rude of me. Please forgive me for choosing this place to meet you."
Ian steadied himself and sat down as well. "It's nothing. I just didn't expect this."
Then, Ian asked Sabo curiously, "You know who I am?"
"Yes," Sabo said, extending his hand to shake Ian's. He smiled and continued, "I know you're with the Revolutionary Army. Uncle Kuma told me. Actually, your name is now well-known among the senior officers of the Revolutionary Army."
"What do you mean?" Ian asked. "Do all the senior officers of the Revolutionary Army know my identity?"
"No, only a few people know," Sabo waved his hand. "Even among the Revolutionary Army officers, few know each other's identities. Most of us work independently. The reason I say that is because of what you did at Mary Geoise. You know, when we got the real intelligence about the Mary Geoise incident, we were all shocked. We never thought that after Fisher Tiger of the Sun Pirates, someone else would free slaves from the Celestial Dragons and escape from a Marine Admiral."
Hearing Sabo's words, Ian breathed a sigh of relief. He had been worried that his identity as a Revolutionary Army member had become common knowledge within the organization. Now it seemed that only a few key people knew his true identity.
The Revolutionary Army leader, Dragon, definitely knew. Uncle Kuma definitely knew too. And Sabo...
Thinking about this, Ian couldn't help but ask Sabo curiously, "By the way, Sabo, what's your position in the Revolutionary Army now? Ah, sorry, can you tell me that?"
Sabo nodded. "It's fine. For a comrade, this isn't a secret. My current position is Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army. I was just promoted by Uncle Dragon recently."
Ian suddenly understood. So that's how it was. Sabo had indeed become the Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army, the second-in-command. With his status, it was only natural that he would know about Ian.
But... what Ian was most curious about now was why Sabo was in Alabasta.
Meeting Sabo so suddenly was already surprising enough, but what was even more unexpected was that Sabo was in Alabasta at all. In Ian's memory, according to the original history, Sabo had never appeared in Alabasta.
Thinking this, Ian naturally asked.
"It's like this," Sabo said, thinking for a moment before deciding to tell Ian the truth. "Over the past two years, Alabasta has been suffering from continuous drought, and signs of unrest have appeared. In the city of Katorea in Alabasta, a rebel army has formed. They seem to want to start an uprising and overthrow the rule of the Nefertari family, the royal family of Alabasta."
"This..." Ian was a bit taken aback. "You're not thinking of getting the Revolutionary Army involved in this, are you?"
"Not decided yet," Sabo shook his head. "I'm just here in this country with some people to understand the real situation."
Ian asked, "How long have you been here? What have you found out?"
"We've been here for a while, conducting secret investigations," Sabo explained. "Over the past two years, apart from the capital, Alubarna, it hasn't rained anywhere else in Alabasta. This phenomenon is too abnormal. It feels like it's man-made... The people in other cities of this country have been hoping for artificial rain to get water, but when they petitioned, the king refused. And according to the intelligence we've gathered, someone in the underworld has been secretly purchasing Dance Powder and shipping it to Alabasta recently. Although we haven't identified the buyer yet, it's enough to raise our suspicions."
Ian rested his chin on his hand, tapping his leg with his fingers, and said thoughtfully, "So you suspect that the person buying the Dance Powder is the king?"
"That's a possibility," Sabo nodded. "If it's confirmed that the king secretly bought the Dance Powder, then the Revolutionary Army would have a reason to intervene and support the rebels. This kind of country, which disregards the suffering of its people, is exactly what the Revolutionary Army hates the most. However..."
"However what?" Ian asked, noticing Sabo's sudden shift.
"However, I feel like there's something fishy about this," Sabo frowned. "In fact, based on our recent investigations, the Nefertari family has ruled Alabasta for a very long time, and every king has had a good reputation among the people. The current king, Cobra, is no exception. He has always been respected by the people. It doesn't seem like he would do something like this..."
Of course not! Ian thought to himself. This is all Crocodile's doing!
But Ian couldn't say that directly. After all, he had only just landed in this country. How could he know more about the real situation than Sabo, who had been investigating for a long time?
Fortunately, Sabo, as the Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army, was naturally sharp-witted. He had already sensed something was off.
So Ian asked him, "What are you planning to do next? Did you come to see me about this?"