Traveling through a desert is not an easy thing to do, unless you have dragons that have adapted to the elements.

Yukiko's Pokemon helped them get into a good distance within half the time, and they had just stopped to rest and eat in a nice shaded area.

"Wow! I cant believe that we made it this far already!" Usopp said now stretching after hanging onto a fast dragon.

Yukiko then let out Kiryu as she fed her Pokémon and the others prepped for lunch.

"Yukiko! Could we have some of your special bento?" Luffy asked.

"Need you ask?" Yukiko said as she took out the bento. As everyone was eating, Luffy noticed his bento was a little different. It had a rice omelet in the shape of his strawhat, pokeball rice balls, and some Jigglypuff Flan.

He smiled to himself as he ate it carefully to savor the taste.

Then he saw the rest of his crew minus Ace looking at him with surprised faces.

"What?" Luffy asked only for everyone else to shake their heads and return to their bento.

'He's not stuffing his face as usual....'

'Is it because Yukiko made it?'

'He's actually savoring his food! Yukiko must be a godsend.....'

'You ARE serious about her little brother.....'

Although suddenly a Sandora Lizard appeared to attack.

But Kiryu intercepted with a strong Draco Meteor, knocking it out.

And to the surprise of the Crew she evolved into Gabite!

"Holy-! What happened to her?!" Ace asked.

"Kiryu evolved! Great job girl!" Yukiko said as the other Pokemon congratulated her.

Cue Sparks.

"Gabite the Cave Pokémon
And the evolved form of Gible.
This Pokémon emits ultrasonic waves from a protrusion on either side of its head to probe pitch-dark caves. Jewels are buried in the caves these Pokémon nest in, but you’ll be torn apart by claws and fangs the moment you enter one of these caves.
There is a long-held belief that medicine made from its shed scales will heal incurable illnesses."

"Whoa! It's Scales can be used for medicine?!" Chopper asked amazed.

"What did Sparks mean by evolved?" Zoro asked.

"It's a process of which a Pokémon becomes a new species and changes. Evolution is not a merely visual change. When a Pokémon evolves, it becomes a new species of Pokémon. This new species has a different Pokédex number and base stats, and may be a different type (although normally at least one of the pre-evolved form's types remains the same), learn different moves, and have a different Ability. Currently, over 80% of all known Pokémon are connected to at least one other through evolution. Pokémon evolutionary families have anywhere between one and three stages. In a one-stage family, there is only a single Pokémon that cannot evolve. In a two-stage family, any member of the family can evolve only once, from the unevolved form into one of the evolved forms. In a three-stage family, like Kiryu, at least one of the evolved forms can evolve once again.

There are also branched evolution Pokémon. A branched evolution family has a member that can evolve into one of several different Pokémon. Eevee is the most extreme example, having eight different possible evolved forms.

There are also different methods of evolution. There is the standard training that is acquired through battle, coming into contact with an Evolution Stone, being traded, Having high friendship, Holding a specific item, The time of day or night, Knowing a certain move or a move of a certain type, The location the trainer and Pokémon is in, or the current weather in that location.

Some evolutions are also dependent on the Pokémon's gender. For example, only female Combee can evolve into Vespiquen—male Combee cannot evolve at all. Similarly, all Snorunt can evolve into Glalie, but only female Snorunt can evolve into Froslass. And only male Kirlia can become Gallade." Yukiko explained.

While it sounded confusing for Luffy, it was something for Yukiko to be excited about, so he smiled.

-----------------------
Later, they had to stop again as night had fallen and they had to set up camp.

Yukiko was ready to turn as she switched Relica for Azar for the night.

"You cold?" Luffy asked Yukiko. She had her own tent for her and her Pokémon but Luffy had decided to stay with her.

"No, not with Azar." Yukiko said

"Arcanine the Legendary Pokémon.
ARCANINE is known for its high speed. It is said to be capable of running over 6,200 miles in a single day and night. The fire that blazes wildly within this POKéMON’s body is its source of power."

Luffy hearing this, snuggled up against the big dog, who did not mind the contact. "Ooh! He is warm!"

"Glad you think so. We'd better sleep. We got a long day tomorrow too." Yukiko yawned as she layed on Azar. "Night Luffy." She said as Pachi snuggled up on her chest.

"Night Yukiko." Luffy said as he leaned against Azar too and looked at Yukiko's sleeping face.

He smiled before going to sleep himself.

----------------
Halfway to Yuba however, the guy Ace was after, Blackbeard was already long gone, according to a traveller, so he had to get going.

But not without giving Luffy a Vivre Card so that they could meet up again in the future.
---------------

When they arrived at Yuba a Sandstorm was raging over it so they had to wait for it to settle down before entering the old oasis which had dried out.

Due to the sandstorm the city was covered in sand, but a man was found shovelling despite the torrent that had just happened.

"Hey, what are you doing shovelling down there?!" Luffy shouted.

"Hello travellers, I see you've come to Yuba. As you can see, we're a little dried out at the moment. So we can't offer you much, but you can pick whichever inn you want. That's what we're known for." The old man said with a smile.

"Actually...we're looking for the Rebel Army, we heard they were stationed here." Nami said only for the man began to throw barrels at her and her nakama, telling them that they better not join them.

"No, we're here to stop them. They are being manipulated and the king is being framed." Yukiko said getting his attention.

"Huh? The king was framed? I knew King Cobra wouldn't do such a thing with Dance Powder." The old man said to himself. "Well I'm afraid you came a little too late. Yuba has been plagued by continuous sandstorms for the past few weeks, so they moved their base to Katorea." The old man told them.

"Wait, Katorea's on the other side of the Sandora River and closer to where we had to restock!" Yukiko remembered.

"Youre kidding me! We flew across the desert for this!" Nami exclaimed.

"Vivi! That means!" Usopp cried out before slapping a hand over his mouth. The man dropped his shovel when he heard the name though, he had heard Usopp say her name. The name of this countries Princess.

"Vivi-chan? Is that really you?" The old man walked up out of the small dune and placed his hands on Vivi's shoulders. While everyone began to freak out about it Yukiko could tell he was relieved at seeing Vivi. "Do you remember me? I know I've lost some weight, Vivi-chan."

"Toto-ojisan? Is that you?" Vivi's eyes were wide in shock as she questionably said his name. Obviously not sure if she was right in here assumption. It had been a long time since she had seen the older man.

"Vivi-chan...I still believe your father, so what if it hasn't rained in three years? I and the greater part of the country believe in him. But those damn fools...they plan to make this next attack their final one. They're going all out with it. They've become blinded by all this foolishness."

He was crying, most likely thinking of his son, the one Vivi had told them about in her story. "They plan on dying. I beg of you Vivi-chan, stop those damn fools."

The poor old man was still crying and held out a handkerchief to him and said, "Toto-ojisan, don't worry. I will stop the rebellion."

"We. We will stop the rebellion." Yukiko said placing a hand on Vivi's shoulder with a smile.

"But we have to do one thing. Crocodile has to be exposed." Yukiko said.

"But the Rebel Army....!" Vivi started.

"The rebels see him as a hero, remember? If he's exposed, the rebels will realize the deception, and the best way to do that is to confront Crocodile."

Before Vivi could retort by saying that the rebels need to know first, Luffy spoke up.

"The rebels will want proof. You only have your words, and the guy with the rollers had the only proof till they got him."

That silenced Vivi. 'Igaram...'

"Baroque Works's defeat will be all the proof they need. Besides if we keep running around in circles looking for the revolutionaries, that will only give Crocodile more time to continue his plan. You're letting yourself be led around by the nose. Haven't you even thought of that?" Yukiko asked.

Vivi turned her gaze to the ground. They were right. Why didn't she see this before? This was just what Crocodile wanted. He knew that she would try to intervene with the revolutionaries while he was preparing another part of his plan.

Luffy and Yukiko was right.

Crocodile had to be exposed.

That's the best way for the war to end.

"Alright, let's head off, do you know where Crocodile could be?" Yukiko asked.

"There is one place. Crocodile is the owner of Rain Dinners, a popular casino and restaurant in Rainbase. Rainbase is also where Baroque Works main headquarters is located. Thankfully, it's not too far from here. We need to head northwest. Im certain he'll be there." Vivi said as they mounted on the dragons again.

"Alright, Melbourne, Relica, Mystic, Koraidon, northwest to Rainbase and step on it! We're paying Crocodile a visit." Yukiko smiled as the dragons took off.

-------------------
There is another chapter!

A few questions as they are important.

I'm also debating when to have Luffy and Yukiko confess their feeling to each other in this arc, should it be before or after the final showdown with Crocodile?

How should I have the crew and Vivi react when Luffy and Yukiko announce they are dating now?

How should the government react when it's announced that Strawhat has a lover?

How much should Yukiko's first bounty be?

How should Luffy's hometown react to Luffy actually dating someone? Along with Makino, Dadan, and the Mayor?

How should Shanks react to this news?

And how should Crocodile react to Yukiko?

Finally........
What songs would fit Luffy and Yukiko's relationship?

Plz comment 🙏