Chapter 161, titled The Green City Erumalu, has the crew cross the Sandora River into a ruined town as Vivi recounts the Dance Powder scandal that turned her people against her father.
Summary
The crew crosses the Sandora River and lands beside a town, where they run into a colony of martial-arts dugongs. Vivi explains that these creatures usually live in seawater, but the prolonged drought has turned the river salty, the same blight that hollowed out the settlement before them. Once a lush place known as the green town, Erumalu has endured three rainless years that drove off its people and left only rubble. Vivi notes that Alubarna, the capital and the king's seat, was the lone city spared the water shortage.
Key Events
Vivi recounts the incident from two years prior at Nanohana. A dropped ship's cargo spilled open to reveal a massive quantity of Dance Powder, with the handlers insisting it was meant for the king. The substance, an outlawed material, can force rainfall by stealing the clouds from surrounding regions. Afterward rain fell only near the palace, and the populace grew suspicious of Vivi's father, never knowing the whole affair was engineered by Crocodile. Vivi resolves to end her people's suffering, and the crew stands ready to back her.
Notes
The chapter reveals that the figure behind the Dance Powder plot was Mr. Mellow, the agent ordered to kill Mr. 11 back in Chapter 159. The cover continues Jango's Dance Paradise, volume 27, Shall we DANCE?, with Jango and Fullbody fighting back to back against the Tulip Pirates. This entry is part of the Arabasta arc.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens in One Piece Chapter 161?
Chapter 161, The Green City Erumalu, follows the Straw Hats crossing the Sandora River into the ruined town of Erumalu as Vivi recounts the Dance Powder scandal that turned her people against her father.
What is Erumalu in One Piece?
Erumalu is a once lush town in Arabasta that three years of drought reduced to rubble, forcing its people to flee before the Straw Hats arrive in Chapter 161.
What is Dance Powder in One Piece?
Dance Powder is an outlawed substance that can force rainfall by stealing clouds from surrounding regions, and its illegal use near Nanohana convinced Vivi's people that her father was hoarding rain for the palace.
Who orchestrated the Dance Powder scandal in Arabasta?
Chapter 161 reveals that Mr. Mellow, the Baroque Works agent tasked with killing Mr. 11 in Chapter 159, was the operative behind the Dance Powder plot that Crocodile engineered.
Why do martial arts dugongs appear in the Sandora River?
Vivi explains that the dugongs the crew meets normally live in seawater, but the prolonged drought turned the river salty, driving the creatures upriver.
Sources & Information
Looking for more on Chapter 161? The One Piece Wiki on Fandom has a dedicated page with community notes.
View on FandomThis content is original writing by Daddy Jim Anime based on the One Piece anime series, manga, and official materials. Episode and chapter references are cited where applicable.
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- Created byEiichiro Oda
- Published byShueisha
- Animated byToei Animation
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