Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. All rights belong to their respective owners.
Goldenweek's Report 001: The Mission
This was far more cumbersome than she could've imagined.
A young girl let out another sigh, the sixth one in the last minute. She wore a sky blue blouse; there were small white clouds scattered everywhere along the shirt. Every button was undone, which exposed her dark blue T-shirt with the words "Golden" written in orange letters. A necklace of orange pearls wrapped around her neck, and a green medallion tied with a black string hung just above the neckline of her shirt. She had on a maroon colored skirt with the top portions of it folded down and violet striped stockings. On her feet were cinnabar red hightops—though, the color had faded slightly—with white cuffs and soles. She was short—but for someone her age she thought she was slightly above average—and had crimson-red hair tied into twin braided pigtails that hung loosely by the sides of her head.
And on her head was a wide-brimmed, cherry blossom pink hat that currently had its edges crumpled and pushed upward due to being in a rather...tight space.
Miss Goldenweek sighed. Again.
She should've just stayed on Kyuka Island. It was boring, but at least it wasn't as bad as the situation she found herself in now. She should've just ignored that letter the boss had sent to them, then she could've just avoided this giant—pun not intended—mess and enjoy some tea; even if it wasn't as good as her partner's.
But she could not ever disregard one of the boss's orders; that was suicide. She might prolong telling her partner about a letter the boss had sent, but she would still tell him within a few hours. She just wanted to spend as much time as she could relaxing before they would have to go on whatever mission the boss ordered them to complete.
But in this case, it had not mattered whether or not she chose to accept her orders. Because both she and Mr. 3 would've been in equally horrible situations no matter what their choice had been. And currently, she wondered if going on the run from their boss would've been as bad as hiding in a barrel—a very, very tight barrel—as she prepared to do something she absolutely loathed doing.
Working hard.
Her black eyes were still peeking through the small cracks in the barrel as she waited.
This had been an absolute disaster. Mr. 3 had been defeated by a rookie pirate who by all means should have died the moment her partner had taken out his ultimate technique. That pirate's entire crew should have been wiped out by Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine when they had enacted their plan, but somehow, they were the ones who had been bested. And she definitely should not have been beaten black and blue by an overgrown chicken.
The bruises on her body still stung, but she ignored them.
It really wasn't her day. She had truly believed that Mr. 3 would have beaten the crew of rookie pirates with ease. It was why she had not really bothered to put much effort into the fight itself and thought that it would be perfectly fine to set up her picnic; taking herself out of the fight and just watching while she ate her rice crackers. It was why she had confirmed that Mr. 3's wax was indeed meltable after they had guessed it. She had seen the master of the Wax-Wax Fruit kill hundreds of different pirates with higher bounties than Monkey D. Luffy. And considering how easily she had handled him before, she didn't see a reason to get serious. So, she left the rest of the work to Mr. 3.
She did not think they could ever beat her partner and her fellow agents. But she could not have been more wrong.
After all of the time she had spent in this world—of assassins, murderers, and sadistic psychopaths—she had learned a few valuable lessons. Always make sure the target is dead if those are the orders. Never leave any witness after committing your crime. Always be prepared for any situation and never assume you have won. Some of the stronger agents of Baroque Works had seemed to have forgotten these useful lessons. And as she recalled the day in her mind, she realized that she had gotten careless; that she had been a tad too lazy when she should have put in some effort. She had gotten too comfortable in letting Mr. 3 handle all of the fighting, and had made some rather basic mistakes because of it.
And as a result, she and the rest of her allies had been beaten. In her case, by a glorified pet.
She swore, if she succeeded, that duck would be roasted and in her stomach within the hour.
She heard something creaking, and immediately every muscle in her body tensed. Her eyes shifted to where she heard the noise originate from. And she watched through the cracks of the barrel as a door slowly opened.
And now that she was here, waiting in a barrel with bruises covering her body and dirt in her hair, she could clearly remember the most important lesson she had learned in the five years she had been an agent for.
Always complete the mission.
So even though she wanted nothing more but to eat some of her delicious rice crackers, even though she could have just stayed on Little Garden and act like she was unconscious to avoid doing more work...
She watched as someone stepped through the door. It was a bit hard to make out the person, but she could see strands of blonde hair brushed to one side and a cigarette in their mouth.
...She would not. Because she had a mission. And no matter what, she had to complete it. If she did not...well, the boss wouldn't be very pleased. And the last time he was not pleased, five officer agents had "disappeared."
Her eyes narrowed as the blonde man closed the door behind him; she did not know his name, she had not even seen him once during the fight.
When she first woke up after the duck had beaten her—how much time had passed she did not know—she slowly got up from the jungle floor. It was hard moving her injured limbs, each movement she made caused her to wince and let out small hisses of pain. She was so tempted to go back to Mr. 3's wax house and just rest there for however long she pleased. But she realized the situation she was in, and she could not slack off any longer. The mission was in danger of failing, and someone had to do something to prevent that.
And it was made very clear within twenty minutes of searching the island that it would be her to take up such a tiresome task.
The first thing she had done was assess just how bad her circumstances were. For some reason, after the duck had beaten her up, no one had bothered to either kill her or tie her up. Were they that sure that they had won they did not feel the need to? She had pushed aside questions like those for another time as she made her way through the thick vines and trees that made up Little Garden. She needed to find out if any of her allies were still able to fight. She kept to the shadows, moving as quietly as she could to avoid detection from not only the pirates and giants but also the prehistoric dinosaurs and other animals that were everywhere on the island.
She knew she had thought this before, but the Grand Line was seriously messed up.
She had seen Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine bruised and unconscious bodies only a few feet away from the towering forms of the two giants that they had tried to capture. And in front of them, they were talking to four of the Straw Hat Pirates and the princess, what exactly she did not know. She had stayed a rather far distance away from them, hiding behind a tree as she observed them with half-closed eyes.
Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine were out. Even from so far, she could tell that there was no way they were getting up anytime soon. So, she quietly went off to look for the only another person on the island who could help her. Even though she had been almost right next to him when that duck attacked her, when she first got up Mr. 3 was nowhere in sight. As she searched for her partner she had ended up on the coast of the island. Specifically, the part of the coast where they had docked their ship.
And it was gone. Just like Mr. 3
She had been ditched. Knowing Mr. 3, he probably thought that she had been knocked out just like her fellow agents. He had been injured worse than her, if the shattering of bones she heard when Monkey D. Luffy hit him was anything to go by, so he knew that there was no way he could beat the Straw Hats. So, he had decided that, rather than risk getting killed by these pirates, he instead chose to run. Most likely to try and apologize to the boss about their failure.
She had spent years with the man and knew how he thought. She knew every choice he would make given these circumstances. Just like how she knew the reason why he left her behind.
At any given moment, I can, and will, abandon you if I believe you would be a hindrance to my survival.
He had never said those words to her—out loud, anyway—but he did not have to. It was the same message that was shared between every agent of Baroque Works. Between anyone who lived and worked with criminals. No matter what, they were in it for themselves. They would do anything to rise to the top; even if it meant leaving people behind who they genuinely like. Even if they had worked together for years, they would stab one another in the back in a heartbeat. There were no lines that had not already been crossed by the people who worked under the boss.
There was no such thing as friendship here.
She was not surprised. She knew how he thought, so of course, it was not too hard to believe he would do something like this. She did not feel betrayed by his actions. She did not feel angry or even remotely bitter that he had left her alone.
She felt nothing as she looked over the coast with her half-closed black eyes.
She liked Mr. 3. He was nice to her. He was one of the few people in Baroque Works who she thought was, while far from a friend, a decent enough person in her opinion. He had allowed her to eat her rice crackers whenever she wanted. He let her set up picnics as he killed whatever target the boss had assigned her; never doing anything more than irritably grumbling at her lack of seriousness as he proceeded to disembowel a pirate just a few feet away from her. And as much as he might complain about her laziness, he had not once tried to hurt her in an effort to get her to stop being so blasé about everything.
He was a good partner. He gave her the option of being as serious or as lazy as she wanted no matter the mission, and she appreciated that. So, she wished him the best of luck in his endeavor.
Because right now he was a dead man walking. Just like her. The boss would never forgive anyone for failing a mission this important. But her partner would still go to there boss and attempt to plead for his life, even though it would be useless. This was one of the rare moments of pure stupidity Mr. 3 would sometimes get. Her personal favorite had been when he thought it was a good idea to shape his hair into the shape of a giant three.
And while Mr. 3 went off on his personal suicide mission, she had decided to finish the one they had started. Which was why she had run through the forest as fast as she could in her injured state.
And why she was glad to have gotten to the Straw Hats' ship before they did.
Her mind had been working fast to develop some kind of plan, and after a moment she had one. She checked every inch of the ship, setting up her trap and then looked for a decent hiding spot.
And the only one she had found was the barrel full of booze—rum if she had to guess—in the cabin that looked like a combination of a kitchen and a lounge. From there, she dumped the liquid out of the barrel into the canal they had docked their ship in, placed it back in the same spot she found it and hopped inside it as she placed the lid back on top.
Then she waited. She waited as she heard the Straw Hats get back on board. She waited as they set sail from Little Garden. She waited as she felt a ridiculously powerful shockwave shake the ship, making sure not to make a sound as she practically felt like she was flying for a moment.
She waited until the moment where one of the Straw Hats would fall into her trap.
And as she watched the blonde haired one walk on the wooden planks towards the stove, it finally looked like that moment had come.
The man suddenly stopped walking, and while it was hard to tell through the cracks, it looked like he was looking down at the floor.
"The hell's this?"
His voice was low, and she had to strain her ears to properly hear him. But when she did, she instantly knew what he was referring to.
Her eyes glanced down and saw the white tarp she had placed on the floor just a few feet away from the stove.
Come on. Just a little bit more…
"Damn it Luffy."
She heard the blond-haired man sigh as he crouched down.
That's it…
"I told you to clean up your messes after-."
The man reached for the tarp and grabbed a handful of the fabric. And just as he pulled his arm back, he stopped moving. The cigarette fell out of the blond man's mouth and rolled along the floor. He then let go of the tarp in his hand as it fell back to the floor.
And as it fell, underneath the white tarp she saw a familiar green color.
She watched as the blonde man slowly crawled towards the tarp before laying down on his sides right in the center of it. He was no longer facing her direction, and instead looked at the opposite wall
"What's…going on?"
His voice had gone from mildly irritated to calm in an instant. Even though she was sure he was confused as to why he had decided to lay down on the tarp, his words only showed a sense of ease and nonchalance.
And the moment he finished speaking, she felt a familiar rush of power spreading throughout her body before disappearing as quickly as it came.
That was all the confirmation she needed.
She grabbed the paintbrush and palette that she had placed right next to her and slowly got up from her awkward sitting position. She placed one hand underneath the lid and pushed it open.
And then she spoke:
"Colors Trap…"
Her voice had always been quiet, but now she made it even softer than usual. It would be bad if anyone else heard her, after all.
For a moment, the blond-haired man tensed when he heard her speak. But then all of the tension in his body quickly left him, and soothing tranquility took its place.
"Tranquil Green."
With the lid now removed, she carefully made her way over the head of the barrel, legs now hanging over the edge, before hopping down onto the planks below. They creaked slightly, and her head immediately whipped to the door; thankfully, no one came.
She let out the breath she had been holding in since the man entered the cabin. She then walked over to where he was laying, carefully stepping on the planks to make as little noise as possible. And once she circled around the blond man so that she was directly in front of him, she examined him. He wore an almost jet black double-breasted suit with a matching tie and a deep blue buttoned-up shirt—what shade exactly she couldn't tell—underneath it. He had combed his hair to one side of his face, one eye covered by long strands of blonde hair. And above his one visible eye, there was an eyebrow that spiraled like a whirlpool at its end.
It kinda looked like a dartboard.
"Who…are you?"
As Mr. Dartboard Brow spoke, she saw the relaxed grin on his face twitch. His face seemed to strain like he was trying to frown, but it always went back to its calm expression not even a second later.
Well, it looked like he was not as susceptible to her abilities as his captain.
"They didn't tell you about me?"
She spoke in her usual monotone as she raised an eyebrow.
"I would have thought that your comrades would have told you what happened on the island you were just on."
His eyes widened for a moment before returning back to normal size as the calm grin was once again forced upon his lips.
"You're with…Baroque Works."
His voice, the same stiff and slow voice that he had gained since he stepped into her trap, rose in volume. Not loud enough for anyone outside to hear, but to her it was noticeable. So, they did tell him what happened. They just neglected to mention her.
"Yes, I am."
"What…are you doing to me?"
Mr. Dartboard Brow's expression was once again twitching. She could see his legs and arms straining to move, but they could not. It was like an unseen force was compelling his body to remain in his relaxed position on the floor. And really, that was not very far off from what was happening.
"I could explain it to you…"
She slowly raised her palette until it was parallel to her chest. Her other arm brought the paintbrush down to one of the many paints located on the palette.
"But it would not be worth the effort."
So far, her plan was going off rather well. Originally, she had thought about painting their ship in with as many Color Traps as she could spare. True it would be obvious, and her presence would immediately be given away, but at least she would have already set up the perfect battlefield for her to fight in. If they so much as stepped in a single one of her Color Traps they would be out of the fight unless they could smudge the paint off.
But then she remembered just how strong they were. They defeated Mr. 3 and the sixth strongest team in all of Baroque Works. And that was after Mr. 3 had gotten three of their members trapped in his Candle Service Set. That was after knocking out one of the giants and capturing the other one in his wax and driving wax swords through his hands to pin him to the ground.
And yet, even though so much went according to their plan, even though most of the Straw Hats had been seemingly defeated, they still continued to fight. And even with so many advantages, she and the rest of her allies still lost to the rookie pirates.
She realized that even if she had the time to make a detailed and well-constructed plan, she still would not be sure it would work. Mr. 3's plan had seemed flawless—like most of his plans from the past—yet it had failed. So, it was then she decided that rather than try and go for a complicated plan, she would keep it simple.
And so, she had only made one color trap and painted it onto one side of a white tarp in less than a second and placed it in the lounge of the ship where she hid. Her plan was to essentially wait for one of the pirates to step on it, and from there, she would paint another Colors Trap on said person's body. Then, with the new Color Trap etched on their body, the person would attack their crewmates indiscriminately, and as they wondered what was going on, she would paint more Color Traps on them during the chaos until they were all subdued.
And after that, she would kill the pirates; except for the navigator, because sailing was not one of her stronger skills, and then take their ship with the princess on board. And then, she would make some green tea—the ship had the ingredients, she had checked—and finally rest.
Of course, she was well aware as to just how much luck she needed to pull this plan off. So much could have gone wrong, but she had decided to gamble, considering just how much was at stake.
And it had paid off spectacularly. Only one Straw Hat had entered the cabin, ensuring that her presence would not be noticed if say more than one pirate had come into the room and noticed their friend acting strangely. In addition, she had made sure to cover every porthole in the room to make sure that no one could peak into the cabin and see her using her abilities.
Luck seemed to be on her side.
She pressed her brush against the red paint on her palette. She then pressed the now dripping brush on a part of her palette that had a small dollop of black paint—separate from the other larger portion of black paint—and began to mix the two colors.
Hopefully, if her plan went off without any problems, she would be done in a few minutes.
"Colors Trap…"
Once again, she spoke as quietly as she could. And after less than a second of mixing, a deep red paint—though parts of the black paint that had created it could still be seen—now dripped from the hairs of the brush. She then pulled the arm holding her brush back until it was right next to her head.
Mr. Dartboard Brow's eyes widened. And in a second, they would be full of rage.
"Scarlet-."
She never finished as the door the blond-haired man had come from slammed open. Her head instantly whipped towards the entrance.
And she saw a familiar straw hat atop a man with his eyes closed and an almost impossibly wide smile.
…Great.
"Hey, Sanji!"
With that gleeful shout, and this man could seriously scream, he spread his arms out wide as he let out several large chuckles. From behind the captain, the one with the long nose—like a Tengu's—entered the cabin and stood behind him. His expression was just as cheerful as his captain's.
That is, until Mr. Tengu saw just who was standing in the lounge. And the moment he did, fear strangled his expression as his eyes widened to an impossible size. His mouth was almost hitting the floor as buckets worth of sweat cascaded down his skin.
The captain had not noticed the Mr. Tengu's sudden change in demeanor as he continued.
"We're hungry, so could you make us some-!"
He opened his eyes for the first time. And then he immediately stopped talking once he saw who was in the lounge.
…She supposed in this kind of situation, she should come up with some sort of taunt. That was what Mr. 3 would have done.
Straw Hat Luffy's jaw dropped; much like the subordinate next to him. Though, Straw Hat did so out of shock rather than fear.
…Eh, she didn't really feel like taunting. It was never really her thing. Besides, a new opportunity just presented itself to her.
"Ah!"
He snapped one arm forward as he pointed at her.
The opportunity to get rid of the biggest threats on this ship.
"You're-!"
"Scarlet Hatred!"
This time, she was shouting. Before the captain of the Straw Hats could finish speaking, she moved. She turned around and instantly her arm went through the motions she had practiced so many times before. Her brush moved in precise and quick strokes, drawing a familiar circular symbol in the air as it floated for a moment.
And then it propelled itself forward, shooting through the lounge and heading right for her new target. Straw Hat Luffy did not even have time to react as the scarlet symbol crashed into his stomach. Mr. Tengu moved out of the way as his captain stumbled backward from the impact, stepping out of the cabin until his back hit the railings just a few feet behind him. She watched as Straw Hat Luffy did not even bother trying to correct his balance as he fell backward off the railing and onto the main deck below.
And when she heard the crash his body made when it hit the wooden floor of the main deck, she felt another surge of power, once again vanishing after a second.
And just like that, two Straw Hats had succumbed to her abilities.
"What the-?"
"Luffy?"
"Luffy, are you-?"
"Squa?"
Four different voices immediately came from the area near where Monkey D. Luffy crashed. She heard people moving along the deck towards—if she had to guess since she could not see—their captain.
And a few seconds after the four voices spoke, a scream radiating rage spread throughout the ship.
"RAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"
From over the railings, a leg stretched to the sky. The limb kept growing in length with every second, going higher and higher and showing no signs of stopping,
"Luffy, what in the hell are you-?!"
That voice—a deep, shocked and masculine voice she instantly recognized—did not get a chance to finish whatever he was saying as Straw Hat Luffy let out another roar.
"Gomu Gomu no Ono!"
The stretching leg finally seemed to reach its zenith as it stopped growing. And in the next instant, the long limb was brought down, moving through the air like a guillotine as it descended towards the ship
"SCATTER!"
The feminine cry she heard was followed by the stretched-out leg crashing into the deck. The ship lurched as planks of wood flew into the air from the impact. The ship continued to shake; she had to put an effort in keeping her balance as Mr. Tengu turned his head and looked over the railing.
"Luffy!"
Worry was embedded in his voice as his eyes widened. But they quickly narrowed as he turned back to face her, reaching into the satchel on his hips and pulling out a familiar slingshot.
"Let him go!"
He pulled as far back as the rubber bands would allow as he aimed the black pellet within the leather pad at her. Behind him, she could hear the sounds of battle on the main deck. Straw Hat Luffy was truly giving his comrades a fight for their lives as he held nothing back; her abilities had easy control over the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates.
She stared right at Mr. Tengu with unblinking eyes.
"I don't see that happening anytime soon."
Her emotionless reply irritated Mr. Tengu, but he still held back from shooting her. And the reason why he did not shoot was because he was afraid. Despite trying to look intimidating, it was easy to tell that this whole situation—that she—scared him. His legs quivered as sweat, not as much as before but still noticeable to her eyes, descended down his forehead.
"Wh-how are you even here?! I thought Carue and Luffy defeated you and that wax guy?"
The moment he finished, a loud squawk echoed through the ship as splinters of wood shoot into the air, some almost hitting her. And the ship once again shook.
"Perhaps you all should have done a better job in making sure every one of your enemies was down?"
She heard him click his tongue. Mr. Tengu muttered something under his breath that sounded like "damn it, why me?" as he took a step back.
A thought suddenly struck her as she was staring at him.
"Is it safe to say that you people were the ones that took my Senbei?"
Mr. Tengu gulped, and that was more than enough of an answer for her.
"Are there any left?"
Another gulp as more sweat descended down his face.
Her eyes narrowed at his lack of response. Of course, they selfishly ate them all. Of course, they denied her from eating her favorite snack. At least she could still make green tea if she made it through this.
"Do-Don't think I'm scared of you!"
She did not think that. She knew that. Mr. Tengu eyes turned into a glare as he let out a shaky breath.
"I-If you think I'll let continue to let you hurt my friends-!"
"Technically, it's your captain that has been hurting them so far."
Another roar from the rubber man was followed by a shout of "God damn it Luffy! Again!?" as she heard one of the women scream.
"Then you have another thing coming!"
His glare became harsher as it looked like he was about to launch his ammo.
"The Great, Captain Ussop won't let you paint another of your symbols on any-."
"Does 'the Great Captain Ussop' know that he is already in one of my Color Traps?"
Her expression was still blank as Mr. Tengu's face drained of all color. His quivering grew worse as his expression became consumed by fear. He slowly looked down at the floor he was standing on…
And saw nothing.
Because she had been lying. And that lie provided the perfect distraction.
"Colors Trap: Laughter Yellow!"
With a quick dab of the yellow paint on her palette, she swung her brush in swift strokes as another circular symbol appeared in the air before blasting forward. The coward immediately brought his head up just in time to see her symbol hit him in the center of his brown overalls. And in an instant, a bright yellow symbol was etched onto his clothing.
He stood still for a moment, and once again she felt another rush enter her body before vanishing.
"Pfft."
Mr. Tengu let out a sharp exhale; and second later, he was laughing his head off.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The long-nosed man clutched his sides with both arms as his knees hit the wooden floor planks underneath the doorway. As his laughter got louder, he fell onto the floor with his chest as she saw tears brimming in the corner of his eyes.
"Damn it."
She turned around and saw Mr. Dartboard Brow struggling to move. His body was once again shaking as he grit his teeth.
"It's useless to try and escape."
She began to walk towards the doorway, eyes glancing towards her palette as she checked to see how much paint she had left. Hmm, probably enough for a few more Color Traps, maybe eight at most. She had not found her backpack while searching the island, so the only paint she had left was the paint already on her palette.
"Once you have truly succumbed to the effects of my Colors Trap, you cannot break out of them by yourself."
Her explanation was bland—practically bored—as she hopped over the laughing Mr. Tengu; who now seemed to be in pain from all of his laughing as he let out small gasps. Once she was outside, she closed the door behind her, abruptly cutting off Mr. Tengu's laughter as she left the two Straw Hat Pirates. She moved towards the railing and then looked down at the people fighting on the deck.
A large crevice ran through the center of the ship, shattered planks awkwardly sticking out from within the hull. Near the small fissure, Straw Hat Luffy was snarling as he charged forward towards Roronoa Zoro—who held two swords in both hands—before pulling his arms back and stretching them behind him. He had expanded the length of his arms to the point where Princess Nefertari Vivi and Ms. Orange Hair had to throw themselves to one side in order avoid getting hit, almost hitting the railings at the foredeck of the ship as they hit the floor.
"Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!"
His arms snapped back, traveling at high speeds as he hurled them forward. The limbs were sent towards the swordsman, who quickly raised his swords into an x-shape cross to block the rubber attack. Two open palms slammed into his swords—she was sure she saw blood when they made contact—and the force lifted Roronoa Zoro off his feet and sent him flying backward. He crashed through the wooden wall of the cannon deck below her, a large hole now present as dust rose into the air.
"Zoro!"
"Mr. Bushido!"
Her eyes glanced towards the foredeck as Ms. Orange Hair and the princess ran down the stairs to the main deck. Straw Hat let out another shout as he ran towards the hole, and once close enough, jumped through it and into the cabin. She heard more snarls and swords slicing the air, and it was not hard to imagine what was going on in that cabin.
"Luffy, what in the hell do you think you're doing!"
Ms. Orange Hair glared at the hole her captain had went through as she clenched the even harder on the staff in her hands. Her expression was growing angrier by the second, but there was something else there as well. There was concern beneath the anger, and a worried gleam in her eyes as she wondered why her captain was attacking her and the rest of their crew.
It made sense that they did not know what exactly was going on. Scarlet Hatred was painted on Monkey D. Luffy's vest and blended in rather well with the red of said clothing. One would have to look rather hard at his vest to see the symbol. To them, their captain had gone insane for seemingly no reason.
"Nami, I don't think-."
Princess Nefertari's eyes darted across the ship, trying to see if perhaps something was amiss. That maybe something had caused Monkey D. Luffy to act like he was now.
And when the princess' black eyes eventually landed on her standing right behind the balustrades, Nefertari found the cause.
"Miss Goldenweek!?"
Ms. Orange Hair eyebrows shot up when princess Nefertari shouted. She followed the Nefertari's gaze, and the other woman's eyes widen when they locked onto her.
"Hello, princess."
She gave a small wave with her hand as both princess and pirate's eyes shifted into glares.
"Well, that explains a few things."
Ms. Orange hair took a step forward, and the noise from the cannon room seemed to get louder. Remembering what she saw back on Little Garden, she was reasonably sure that Roronoa Zoro would either lose or at the very least be stalled for a while. Of course, there was a chance that he might figure out what was causing his captain's violent behavior.
So…
Her eyes narrowed at the two women on the deck. Princess Nefertari took out two long wires with a sharp green jewel at the end that looked like a peacock feather as she placed the ring connecting to the wires on her pinkies. And Ms. Orange Hair raised her staff and pointed it right at her.
She should probably take care of these two as quickly as possible.
She expertly twirled the paintbrush in her hand.
This time she would not be careless.
"Princess Nefertari Vivi, I don't suppose there is any chance that you will come quietly with me? It would save me a lot of work."
The princess' glare became harsher.
"And let you kill my friends?"
She began to twirl the wires—Peacock Slashers if she recalled—and they looked like green blurs spinning in the air.
"I'd rather die."
She had expected something along those lines. She let out a small sigh.
"I can assure you, princess; it will not be you dying today."
She was already bringing her palette up as the two women tensed. There were about sixty feet from the part of the main deck they stood on to the quarterdeck where she waited. They would have to get close if they wanted to hurt her—since neither of their weapons could reach her accurately from so far away—so with her Color Traps she had the advantage. She just had to be careful and make sure to only strike when she felt they could not dodge or else she would run out of paint and then it would be over for her. But since it was just the two of them-.
Wait a minute.
Mr. Tengu and Mr. Dartboard Brow were behind her in the lounge, and the captain was still fighting the swordsman…
But…where was the duc-?
"SQUAA!"
Her head whipped behind her the moment she heard that scream, and just in time to see the duck jump through the trees on the roof of the lounge. The orange animal was falling through the air right towards her, its head already inches away from hitting her.
She reacted quickly and dived to the side, just barely dodging the duck before it could crash into her. But just before she could get out of its range, the duck thrust its wing to the palette in her hands. And when the wing slammed into her trusted tool, her palette was knocked out of her grip and sent spinning into the air.
Shit.
She went into a roll the moment she hit the floor, holding onto her paintbrush and almost going over the staircase nearby; but she stood up in time to avoid tumbling down the steps. She turned around to see the duck land right on top of the railing, flailing its wings in an effort to stop itself from going over the edge as it quacked in fear. Her eyes were glancing in every direction trying to find her palette, and after a few seconds, she did.
All the way across from her at the other end of the deck.
"Nice job Carue!"
She turned and saw the princess and Ms. Orange Hair running towards her, already almost halfway to the stairs.
She did not waste another moment. She ran towards her palette, but before she had taken even three steps, the duck jumped down from the railing and stood right in front of her.
"Squa."
She supposed that it had tried to make its high-pitched call sound scary, going by the way its' eyes turned into a harsh glare. Too bad the fact that it was a duck made being intimidating next to impossible.
She prepared to go to the right, but the duck saw what she was trying to do and quickly hopped to its left and blocked her path. She tried to fake like she was running to the left, but the duck immediately saw through her feint and remained in its spot.
"Squa!"
This time it was quacking with more ferocity than before.
Damn it. She needed to hurry. A glance behind her and she saw that the two women were already at the base of the stairs. She needed to get past this duck, but as much as she hated to admit it, she couldn't beat it in a fight. It was too strong. In fact, she was almost positive that it was stronger than the average hum-.
She suddenly came up with an idea. Behind her she could hear the princess and her friend running up the stairs.
"Hey."
"Squa?"
The duck's head cocked to the right when she spoke and pointed a wing at itself. All the previous anger from its expression had disappeared in an instant and was replaced by curiosity.
"Yes, you. I have a question."
It tilted its head further as it raised an eyebrow. Or, whatever ducks had that were the equivalent of eyebrows.
Behind her, the two women arrived near the top of the stairs, both their weapons ready to strike her.
"Do all chickens in Alabasta have ridiculous sized beaks or are you just a freak accident?"
She asked her question in a monotone voice. For a moment, the duck stood completely still.
And then anger returned to its expression; this time twice as big.
"SQUAAA!"
The duck jumped towards her, nothing but rage in its eyes as it extended its wings to try and strangle her neck. And were she anyone else, her lips might have moved into a small grin at the absolutely ridiculous expression the duck wore.
But they did not; instead, they were still in a thin line as she hit the deck as fast as she could. Her body sprawled on the wooden planks, she glanced behind her just in time to see the duck careening right towards the princess and pirate.
"GAH!"
Ms. Orange Hair was able to dodge the flying duck, quickly moving to the side and grabbing the railing with a scream as the duck passed her.
Princess Nefertari was not so fortunate. The duck hit her right in the center of her forehead with its own head and a loud smack echoed through the ship. She was sure she saw tears brimming both her and the duck's eyes as their pupils rolled up into their sockets.
And then gravity took effect, and they both fell back down the stair. Every time their bodies hit the steps, she saw Ms. Orange Hair wince as she watched in concern. Eventually, the sound of bodies hitting wood stopped and Ms. Orange Hair looked down at the base of the steps.
"Oh…she's going to feel that one in the morning."
"Probably."
Her blank voice made Ms. Orange Hair whip her head towards her. She had already gotten up from the floor and was sprinting as fast as she could towards her palette.
"Hey, wait!"
Yeah, she would wait just because you asked so nicely.
Ms. Orange Hair was right on her heels as she got closer and closer to her palette. But being much shorter than her, Ms. Orange Hair was able to close the distance between them thanks to her longer stride.
Just a little bit more…
She was about ten feet away from her palette when Ms. Orange Hair finally caught up to her, raising her staff with both hands above her head.
"Gotcha!"
She swung the staff low in a horizontal arc, aiming to sweep her legs out from under her. If it hit, there was no doubt that would be it. She would be at the mercy of Ms. Orange Hair and most likely be killed.
But she did not really feel like dying today.
She lunged forward, just barely jumping over the staff as it was inches away from her legs. She flew through the air and once she was within reach, grabbed her palette. Just before she hit the ground, she dabbed her paintbrush on the blue paint before twisting her body to face Ms. Orange Hair.
"Colors Trap: Sadness Blue!"
She painted the symbol in the air and launched it forward just as her back crashed against the railings behind her, the bruises on her body stinging from the impact. Ms. Orange Hair tried to dodge her attack, but she was too slow as Sadness Blue became etched on her abdomen.
A rush went through her as she slowly got up. Ms. Orange Hair was still for a second.
Then tears began to well up in her eyes.
Then her body began to tremble.
And then she promptly fell to her knees, slouched forward and raised her fist before slamming it down onto the wooden planks. All while sobbing uncontrollably.
"Damn it! I couldn't even take down a prepubescent brat! How useless am I?! Just how much do I suck!? Can someone who fails so much even be classified as a human being!?"
Her half-closed eyes watched as Ms. Orange Hair began to slam her fist on to the floor over and over again as her sobbing grew. All while muttering things like "My existence is even lower than a grain of sand on a beach." or "Science can't even quantify just how much of a waste of space I am."
…Huh. This was different. The sobbing part she had expected, but the negative rants were something new. Was her body already in a weakened state that allowed Sadness Blue to be even stronger than usual? Or did her Colors Trap tap into Ms. Orange Hair's own sorrow and amplify its effects?
She looked down at the palette and brush in her hands.
If it was indeed the latter option, then that opened up new possibilities. Perhaps she should change her symbol a bit so that it could access more of her target's own emotions and then make them stronger. But wait, no, that might not work. She would have to know in advance someone's emotional state, and things like sadness would be rather hard to tell by just looking at someone. Her design for Sadness Blue had always been meant to evoke emotions, not manipulate already existing ones.
Though perhaps-?
She shook her head. Those were questions for later. For now…
She moved around the now clinically depressed pirate—her mutterings had been growing more morbid by the second—and walked towards the steps on the side of the quarterdeck. She looked down and saw Princess Nefertari Vivi lying on the wooden deck with her duck laying on top of her. A large, dark bruise was on her forehead and her eyes were closed shut. She seemed to be unconscious, while the duck was moaning as it rubbed the side of its head with one wing.
As she walked down the stairs, she dabbed her brush to the last bits of yellow paint left on her palette.
"Laughter Yellow."
Her emotionless words were once again spoken in a soft, almost inaudible voice.
A few strokes against the air and a yellow symbol was blasting through the air before hitting the duck on the back of its blue hat. And then the duck promptly rolled off the princess and started laughing.
"Squahaha!"
Its wings wrapped around its stomach as it continued to roll back and forth on the wooden deck. Once she reached the bottom of the steps, she walked on the wooden planks towards the unconscious princess. She then dipped her brush in black paint and moved her arm.
"Colors Trap: Betrayal Black."
The black symbol became etched on her forehead. And with this, she had taken out at three of the Straw Hats as well as the Princess and her pet.
There were only Roronoa Zoro and Monkey D. Luffy left. Just two more. That was-.
There was a loud crash that came from behind her. Whirling around, she saw the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates skidding on the deck a good distance away. After several seconds, he eventually came to a stop; Straw Hat was now on his knees and panting slightly, a bit of blood dripping down his face from several cuts.
And his vest had been sliced apart, looking like it had just gotten chewed up by a Sea King. Her Colors Trap had been torn to ribbons in the process.
"Do you still wanna keep going?!"
Roronoa Zoro stepped through the hole—which was even larger than before—as he let out a small growl. He slowly walked toward his captain, both of his swords pointed down as he let out several long breaths. A small trail of blood ran down his mouth and she could see dark bruises near the side of his head. His entire focus was on Monkey D. Luffy, not even noticing her presence.
She was not about to let this opportunity slip.
Her brush was already on her palette.
"Colors Trap-."
Monkey D. Luffy heard her voice, even though it was so soft, and his head immediately whipped towards the stairs. His eyes widened once he saw her before he turned back to face his swordsman.
"Shit! Zoro, look out!"
"Huh?"
But by the time he had spoken, she had already finished drawing her symbol.
"Tranquil Green!"
Her Colors Trap shot through the air in a diagonal line, and when it was more than halfway across the deck, the swordsman turned his head in her general direction and saw the attack racing towards him. His eyes widened as he quickly brought his two swords up to guard—one sword crossed in front of the other—not having enough time to dodge.
Her symbol hit the frontmost sword, the one with the black handle. The moment it made contact it shrank as it etched itself into the width of the katana. Even though it had become much smaller, she could still see the green now painted on the katana as she saw Roronoa go still.
And then the swordsman slowly lowered his swords to his sides.
"You damn midget."
She saw him gritting his teeth as his muscles began to bulge. He seemed to be fighting with his mouth as it went from a smile to a deep frown every other second. He was trying to move, but his body was locked in place. While he was far from tranquil, it was obvious he was still under the effects of her Color Trap. He had enough mental fortitude to somewhat resist the effects, but with time, that would change. And no matter how strong his mind was, the only thing he could do right now was stand completely still.
"Zoro, what are you doing!? Drop your sword!"
"He can't."
Monkey D. Luffy turned to her, snarling.
"What do you mean?"
Her hollow black eyes looked right into Straw Hat's furious irises.
"My Colors Trap makes it impossible for someone to either wipe off the paint by themselves or to let go of any object that bears the symbol. Once it infiltrates their minds, it gives them a silent order to never, ever, try to do anything to either remove the paint from their bodies or whatever object its painted on. Once they get hit, they cannot even try to get rid of the symbols painted on other people. The command is that powerful."
She glanced to the sobbing narrator on the quarterdeck. To the duck currently laughing its head off and the princess right next to it. And then her eyes rested on Roronoa who was glaring at her from the corner of his eyes.
"Roronoa and every comrade of yours that have been painted cannot do anything to my Color Traps."
She really wanted a rice cracker right now. Doing boring exposition always left her craving for one.
She looked back towards the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates, who was glaring at her as his lips moved into a deep scowl.
"You are the last one. Once I get you, I win."
Straw Hat Luffy continued to glare at her. She felt her body tense as she tried to come up with a plan of attack. She glanced at the palette in her hand. She was out of Laughter Yellow, Betrayal Black and Sadness Blue; there were only small drops of blue, black and yellow left on the palette. Of her remaining paint, she had about enough for two Bullfight Reds and two Tranquil Greens for a total of four Colors Traps. She wasn't sure if she could hit Straw Hat with so few Traps remaining. He was fast, and unlike on Little Garden, he would be expecting her attack so-.
She stopped as she heard someone moaning. A glance and she saw the princess stirring from her sleep as her eyes slowly opened.
What excellent timing.
"Then all I have to do is kick your ass and then get rid of those things myself!"
Straw Hat Luffy clenched his right fist before bringing it up to his head. He then raised one leg and began to pull his arm back.
"Gomu Gomu-."
"Princess Nefertari Vivi, would you mind standing up?"
Her interruption caused Straw Hat Luffy to pause in his attack, confused.
"Wha-?"
"Yes, ma'am."
The captain turned his head in the direction of the new voice. She turned her head as well and saw Princess Nefertari getting to her feet, albeit somewhat shakily. She moved around the still laughing duck—who by this point was gasping for air—and faced both of them. The princess' right eye was twitching, but the rest of her expression was neutral, her face void of any and all emotions.
"Vivi?"
"Back on Little Garden, you experienced this Colors Trap before, Straw Hat Luffy. Colors Trap: Betrayal Black. It's one of my most powerful techniques."
She was still staring at the princess, but she knew that the captain of the Straw Hat's was staring at her. Waiting to find out what she was doing to the princess.
"If someone were to grab an object or step on a surface painted with it, then they would do the exact opposite of what they wanted to do. For example, you wanted to save your friends back on that island, but Betrayal Black twisted your emotions so that you did not want to save them. And if someone were to give you an order, then you would do the exact opposite of what they asked."
She slowly turned her head to face them. Half-lidded eyes that held nothing stared right into his Straw Hat's black.
"But, if I were to draw the symbol directly on the person, the effects would change. They would no longer move, and they would not do the opposite of someone's command anymore."
She turned her head to stare at the princess.
"Instead, they would now follow my every order. So long as they either distrust or do not like me, I can make them do anything I want for as long as Betrayal Black is painted on them. For example…"
She took a second to consider her words.
"Princess Nefertari Vivi, jump."
The moment those words left her mouth, the heir of Alabasta did a little jump.
"What the-?"
"Now, do a twirl."
Before Straw Hat could finish, she gave another command as the princess spun on the spot.
"Take out your Peacock Slasher and hold the jewel part with your fingers."
The princess pulled out the wire and grabbed as she had instructed her to.
"What are you doing?"
She turned to face Straw Hat Luffy as his eyes turned into a glare. He was getting impatient and was just barely restraining from launching an attack, both of his fists clenched.
"Just showing you that Princess Nefertari Vivi will follow my every command. No matter what I say, she will do it. Even if I were to say something like…"
Her expression remained emotionless as she stared into Straw Hat Luffy's eyes. Eyes that were rising with anger with every second.
And her next words would make it so much worse.
"Princess Vivi, slit your wrists."
Straw Hat Luffy's eyes widened.
"Yes Ma'am."
"No!"
"Vivi!"
Along with Monkey D. Luffy, Roronoa Zoro was the only other person to shout. For a moment, the duck that had been laughing on the floor for a moment stopped; its eyes widening as it let out a desperate squawk choked with fear. Ms. Orange Hair—who had at some point gathered the strength to lean on the railing of the quarterdeck despite her depression—stopped sobbing for a second as her eyes became wide with horror.
All while Princess Nefertari Vivi slowly brought the jewel tipped weapon down to her wrist.
"STOP!"
Straw Hat Luffy ran to her, jumping over the large crevice on the ship and crossing half the distance between them in an instant as he roared. His voice held a fiery rage that was even greater than the anger filled shout he had given a moment ago. Black irises that would have intimidated grown men—she knew because Mr. 3 had given glares that made others tremble and yet his gaze was nothing compared to Straw Hat's—glared right at her.
And she kept staring at him with the same empty expression and emotionless, half-lidded eyes.
"Princess Nefertari Vivi, stop."
"Yes ma'am."
Her words caused Straw Hat to stop right in his tracks. His eyes were wide with shock, not expecting her to actually listen as he whipped his head towards the princess; who was holding the green jewel of her weapon inches away from her wrist.
"Straw Hat Luffy…"
Straw Hat's eyes immediately turned to her, rage returning to his expression as he looked ready to charge at her again.
But her next words prevented him from doing that.
"If you do anything to harm me, then Princess Nefertari Vivi will cut her throat instead of her wrist. And she will not stop until she has lost all of her blood."
His eyes widened, all of his rage disappearing as she turned her head to the princess.
"Understood, Princess Nefertari Vivi?"
The princess moved the jewel tip so that it was pressed right against her neck, a small cut now forming on her skin.
"Yes, Ma'am."
"Good."
She turned back to face Straw Hat's shocked, and just a tad fearful, expression.
"Now then, here is what you are going to do. You are going to stand completely still as I paint Colors Trap: Tranquil Green onto your stomach. If you do that, the princess will not slice her throat open."
And that was the captain of the Straw Hat's biggest weakness. His friends. On Little Garden, he had seen just how much he cared for his crew. He would do anything for them. She had seen other captains like him before, and Mr. 3 and herself had come up with several ways to take down big-hearted pirates like him in an instant; that way they did not have to work so hard. Most of them involved threatening the crew of the said kind captain and telling him to either kill himself or watch them slaughter his crew.
And every time so far it worked. And afterward, she and Mr. 3 would deal with the remaining pirates.
Straw Hat Luffy's expression became conflicted, so much so that she could almost see him fighting with himself to come up with a decision. Sweat began to drip down his head as he looked from her to the princess. But she knew what his choice would be.
"Luffy…she's bluffing!"
Straw Hat Luffy's head turned towards Roronoa Zoro the moment the swordsman shouted. He still remained in the same spot—still clearly trying to escape her Colors Trap, going by the way his body was shaking—and was not even facing them. But from the corner of his eye he watched both her and his captain.
"She needs Vivi! If she doesn't take her back to that croc bastard, then her life's as good as over!"
Croc bastard? Was he referring to her boss? The Straw Hat Pirates did know his identity, after all.
"Oh yeah, you're right!"
Straw Hat's eyes widen before they instantly narrowed, fist clenched and arm shaking as he took a step towards her. He was about to attack. One moment away from turning her into a bloody pulp.
Too bad she would not let him.
"Well, either way I'm dead, so why wouldn't I kill her?"
Her emotionless voice made Straw Hat pause again. He stared at her with his black eyes, wondering what she meant.
"Right now, I have nothing to lose. Right now, I am dead. Dead since I cannot harm the princess due to my orders, and as a result, you will 'kick my ass.' And dead because if I do harm the princess, who is currently my only leverage, then my boss will still send someone to kill me. Since I have nothing left to lose.."
Unfeeling eyes—eyes that she knew showed just how serious she was— looked stared right into Straw Hat's. Unafraid, emotionless, and absolutely empty even though she had so much at stake.
And that was what made them so scary.
"I might as well piss him off from beyond the grave. Since he's the reason I'm in this mess, I might as well kill the person he wants if I'm going to die. It'd be the ultimate revenge, don't you think?"
Straw Hat Luffy's fist were still shaking, but this time there was something else in addition to the anger in his eyes. There was a hesitance within them that told him she was not bluffing. That his friend's life was in danger, and if he didn't accept her demands, she would die.
And it would be his fault.
"So, what is it going to be, Straw Hat Luffy? Are you going to beat me like you did to Mr. 3 and kill Princess Nefertari Vivi, or do we have an agreement?"
Straw Hat Luffy let out a growl. His entire body was trembling as he glared at her. His teeth were gritted as he prevented himself from screaming at her. Straw Hat wanted to punch her…but he knew he could not.
Slowly, he opened his mouth to say something-.
"Luffy."
-but paused when Roronoa Zoro said his name. He turned to look at the swordsman, and she did the same. Straw Hat had a better angle on him than she did, so he could probably see his face whereas she could only see the corner of his eyes.
For a moment, he just stared at Roronoa Zoro. He did not say anything, and neither did his crewmate. There was only silence between the two.
And then, Straw Hat Luffy broke his gaze with his crewmate and stared back at her. Any anger in his expression was gone. Now, he looked perfectly calm.
"Okay, I'll do it."
She blinked. His sudden agreement seemed…strange.
"Just stand still, right? And you won't hurt Vivi?"
Her eyes narrowed. This seemed too easy. Was he going to try something? He looked like he was being honest—and she had gotten extraordinarily good at reading people over the years—and she did not see any deceit in his words or expression…but there was always a chance that she could be wrong; no matter how unlikely it may seem.
"I changed my mind. Get on your stomach and do not move."
He did as he was told. And the moment his stomach touched the wooden deck, she moved.
"Tranquil Green."
With those soft words, a green symbol blasted through the air before painting itself onto the back of Straw Hat's ripped vest. And just like that, she had gotten every single Straw Hat into a Color Trap.
Her bluff had worked...
Her eyes were still narrowed at the captain of the Straw Hats.
...or so it seemed.
Why did she suddenly feel like this was not the end of her fight? Could Straw Hat be planning something? Could this man actually have thought of a plan while looking at his crewmate? Or perhaps his crewmate had silently told him a way for him to defeat her by just staring at him? It did not seem likely, but she could not assume anything. She had to make sure that this was not a trick.
That Straw Hat Luffy still didn't have an ace up his sleeve.
She slowly walked towards the seemingly still form of Straw Hat, clenching tightly on the brush and palette in her hands as she got closer. She had to be sure. Remember, never assume anything. This man could be plotting something. He could-.
When she was about ten feet away from Straw Hat, she heard it.
Snoring.
She looked down at Straw Hat. Was he really...?
Once she got closer, she grabbed a handful of his locks—still holding her paintbrush as she did so just in case—and lifted his head up to face her.
And she saw his eyes were closed, a trail of drool running from the corner of his mouth. A large bubble of snot was blowing from his nose and a grin—a big, dumb, stupid looking grin—stretched across his face.
Tranquil Green was supposed to make whoever fell under its effects calm and relaxed. It was not supposed to make whoever she hit sleep. The only way that could happen was if the person who now wore her symbol had such weak mental resistance that her Colors Trap could manipulate them with ease. The weaker the person's mind was, the stronger the effects would be. And even when she added the fact that Straw Hat Luffy had willing allowed her Colors Trap into his mind, there still should have been some subconscious resistance to prevent the symbol from being this effective. So that left her with one question.
The snoring grew louder and the snot bubble got even bigger.
…Just how dumb was he?
She let go of his hair as his head hit the deck with a light smacking sound. She then looked around the ship. To the crying Ms. Orange Hair who was once again slumped near the railing on the quarterdeck. To the duck that was no longer laughing due to literally running out of air, now unconscious on the floor with a wide smile. To the various holes, the long crevice and other such destruction Monkey D. Luffy had made on the ship when under the control of Scarlet Hatred. To Roronoa Zoro whose head was bowed and mouth now a firm line as his body shook.
To finally, the princess, who was still pointing her jewel weapon against her neck. The princess who was completely under her control. Who was no longer being protected from the Straw Hats because she beat them.
She won. She had done what no other agent in Baroque Works, even her own partner, had ever accomplished.
Awesome.
"You can put your weapon away now."
"Yes ma'am."
As Princess Nefertari put her weapon back in her pockets, she looked towards the sleeping captain.
"I suppose it is only fitting that you be the first one I kill."
"No!"
She turned her head up to Ms. Orange Hair, who was struggling to get up as she glared at her through trails of tears. She got about halfway up before her glare faded, all the intensity vanishing in a second. Whatever outrage that was in her had been extinguished in an instant by her Color Trap as Ms. Orange Hair collapsed back onto the floor as her sobbing doubled; Ms. Orange Hair's eyes once again drowning in misery and sorrow.
She glanced back to the captain. She supposed she should find something sharp to kill him, rubber body and all that. The knives she saw in the kitchen might work, and she could kill Mr. Dartboard Brow and Mr. Tengu as she-.
There was a clanging sound to her right. She turned and saw that Roronoa had dropped the katana with the white handle; the one with the Color Trap was still firmly in his hand. He dropped his very sharp, very deadly katana.
That would do.
She slowly walked towards Roronoa, hopping over the crevice and letting out a sigh.
Finally. She was done. She had worked harder in the last ten minutes then she had in the last month. And now, she could rest. Now, once she got rid of the Straw Hat's, she could go sip tea and treat her bruises.
She was about ten feet away from Roronoa. She looked at his face—at his shaking, at the way he was glaring at her—before glancing to the remaining sword he still held. There wasn't a smudge on Tranquil Green. Perhaps she was just being a tad paranoid, but once again she remembered all the lessons she had learned from her time as an agent. And how Straw Hat Luffy looked at Roronoa before accepting her offer.
Her eyes narrowed at the swordsman.
It's not paranoia if your life's actually at stake.
She stared right into his eyes. As if she expected him to leap towards her and cut her heart out. As if he could somehow do what no else had. Her grip on her paintbrush and palette tightened as she prepared herself for anything.
But after a few moments, she realized that even though he was shaking, even though he clearly wanted to cut her to shreds, he could not. He could only glare at her with eyes that had nothing but rage—a truly incredible amount of rage—that could bit ever be released.
Because just like everyone else…
She slowly walked towards the sword on the ground. She placed her paintbrush in the left pocket of her skirt as she extended her arm towards the white hilted blade.
...he couldn't break out of her-.
A hand suddenly grabbed her wrist just as her fingers were inches away from his sword. Pain shot through her body from the strength of the grip, but something overwhelmed that sensation.
Shock.
It took everything she had to keep her mouth from dropping open. Unfortunately, she couldn't do the same for her eyes as they widened to the size of saucers.
There was no way.
Her eyes quickly darted to the sword he still held in his hand, and the green symbol was still there.
This was impossible.
Her gaze moved up to look at his face.
And she saw him smirking at her, veins bulging near his forehead.
"Surprised?"
She felt all of her breath escape her. She felt her body go still as for one moment—no longer than a second—she thought about running as far away from this impossible man in front of her.
But then she remembered her mission. She still had control. She could get out of this. She had control.
"Let go of me!"
Tranquil Green was still in effect, she knew it was. She saw his body was still shaking, his expression visibly struggling to maintain that arrogant smirk. He was somehow fighting against her abilities, but she could tell it was taking everything she had to act out against them. With her sudden scream, it should be enough to push him back under the effects of Tranquil Green.
She felt his grip loosen, his smirk wavering back into a relaxed smile.
Yes. Yes, just a little bit-!
And a second later his grip was just as tight as before. His smirk was gone, but in its place was a vicious snarl.
A snarl that suddenly looked familiar to her. A snarl that looked like-.
No, stop it. It wasn't...She wasn't facing-.
"I…don't think so…midget!"
His grip got tighter. She heard her bones crack as she grit her teeth. The pain was growing worse—this man's strength was staggering—and she struggled to think of a way to free her hand.
"Do-don't-I-da-damn it, let go already!"
She stuttered. She tried to remain calm, but she couldn't. Not when this man had done something that no one—not even his own captain—had done in the past. It didn't make any sense. This shouldn't be happening. This couldn't be happening and yet, somehow it was.
For a second, Rorona's face looked like it was changing; like someone else was slowly replacing Rornoa inch by inch and was giving her a familiar and an absolutely horrifying-.
God damn it, stop thinking like that!
She watched as he bit his tongue—hard enough to cause a small bit of blood to leak from his mouth—as his glare became all the more violent.
"Not…happening!"
He was shaking as she tried to think of some way to escape. But he wasn't listening to her orders, so what-?
She looked at the brush in her left pocket.
Of course! If she painted another Colors Trap on him, then the shock of having yet another presence invade his mind should be enough to let her go.
She threw her palette to her still trapped left hand, fingers just grabbing it by its edge, as she immediately reached for the brush with her right hand. Just grab the brush and then-.
Suddenly the force and her wrist increased. Before she had just heard her bones crack. Now, she heard them shatter.
"AAH!"
The pain caused her to fall to her knees, dropping the palette as she did so.
"Like…I said...I ain't letting you go!"
She looked up to glare at him.
And once again felt all her breath escape her. It was only now that she realized just why Straw Hat had allowed himself to be placed under her Color Trap. Because one look into Roronoa Zoro's eyes, and the captain knew he could handle the situation without his help.
One look at damn demon, and he knew he didn't have anything to worry about.
She was trembling.
"You threaten my crew…"
The pure hatred she saw in his face was enough to make her heat start hammering in her ears. The rage in his eyes—like a great inferno—told her what this demon was about to do to her.
For another moment, Roronoa's face once again changed to...to...
Oh, God…
"You hurt our ship…"
He took a step forward. And she wanted to scramble and run away. To get out of this ship and never return. But it would be useless.
Because she had made the very grave mistake of pissing Roronoa off.
"And most of all…"
He glanced to the white hilted sword on the ground. And then, his eyes became bloodthirsty. They radiated so much cruelty that it pierced whatever part of her that wasn't absolutely terrified already. She felt like she was being suffocated as air refused to enter her lungs.
"You have the balls to try and use my swords to kill my friends!?"
Rorona's rage, his gaze, the cruelty in his eyes, his entire posture suddenly brought her back to...to...
Only one man on the planet had scared her more than Roronoa, and now because of him she could only see that man's face. A man who she always tried to forget, but like a small smudge in one of her paintings, she could never truly ignore him. He would always be there, lurking in her mind; especially when she was afraid. He was a man who had been able to kill her will to live with just his gaze.
Roronoa was not as scary as that monster.
But by God—in this moment—he was a close second.
"Like hell I'd let you do something..."
She felt an insanely powerful force pull her up into the air, and she was almost thankful for that because she no longer saw him. The demon in front of her then let her go as she floated in the air for a moment.
And then he dropped the sword with her Colors Trap on it. Before gravity could take its toll, a large fist slammed into her cheek with the force of a cannon. Blood jetted out of her mouth as left eye roared with pain.
"AS DISGUSTING AS THAT!"
She screamed as all of her previous injuries seemed like nothing to the new pain she felt. Her body careened over the deck of the ship—her hat having flown off her head at some point—as her screams grew louder with every moment.
Until they abruptly stopped as her body suddenly felt very wet; her clothes instantly became soaked.
Because she had fallen right into the sea.
She heard the splash her impact had made as she began to sink, the lights from the sun becoming obscured by the water's surface.
She was not a Devil Fruit User, contrary to what many of her enemies had believed. She could swim, and both large bodies of water and Sea-Prism Stone did not affect her in the slightest. She was a regular human being who didn't become a hammer in water.
Unfortunately, that was only under normal circumstances. As in, circumstances when she hadn't been hit hard enough for her head to start ringing. Darkness began to rise in the corner of her eyes. She tried to move her body, she tried to ignore the pain and swim as fast as she could to the surface...but she couldn't. Her limbs were locked and her body refused to listen to her as the ringing grew louder. And darkness kept rising with every second as the light from the surface grew farther.
So…this would be how she would die. She had never really thought about how she would die, she just knew that it would probably be painful. And considering that drowning was one of the most painful deaths out there—Mr. 3 and several books she read had supported that fact—she was right in that regard.
She felt her conscious slipping deeper and deeper into the growing darkness. The blood leaving her mouth traveled upwards to the surface in wispy red lines.
Damn…she'd kill for one last rice cracker. If she would have had just one, she could honestly say she'd have no regrets dying here and now. Her favorite food would remind her of better times before her heart would stop beating.
Emotionless black eyes began to slowly close. She could feel the water beginning to enter her lungs as she sunk deeper—the light above looked so appealing now. To her, it honestly looked…beautiful. A single shining light in a growing abyss of darkness would have made for an excellent painting. But as much as she wanted to draw this moment—to do her best to capture this beauty—she couldn't.
If she could've sighed, she would've.
Just as her eyes were almost fully closed and the darkness almost blinded her, she saw something pierce the light above her. She saw something traveling towards her, and for a moment—to her, it looked like a hand, reaching out to try and grab her.
Heh…yeah right.
Why would anyone save her?
Her eyes fully closed as she allowed her mind to freely descend into the void.
Report 001: Completed
Hello, all you wonderful readers out there!
Once again, I have written a new story. This time, a One Piece story centered around a personal favorite side character Eiichiro Oda has created so long ago.
This is a strange idea, I will not lie. But once it appeared in my head, I couldn't get it out until I wrote it down. And hopefully, I can make this concept as great as I believe it can be. And I promise I'll try my best to make this story one of the best there is!
For those of you that follow my other main stories, whether it be GAU or RoR, sorry about not updating in a while. Been crazy busy lately, and I've barely had any time to write. The majority of my focus has been on planning and writing out this story. I'll be working more on them now that I finished this story's first chapter.
If you have any thoughts, suggestions, or predictions, don't hesitate to say so in the reviews! Or if you just want to have a general discussion about this fic, head on over to Space Battles!
This is The Black Mage of Phantasm signing off. I hope you all have a happy Halloween! Peace!