This is my first attempt at a one shot so I don't know how it turned out. That's for you to tell me. Anyway, I got this idea from a discussion me and my friend had about what One Piece really is. Oh, and I don't own One Piece or any of the characters in this story. I only own the idea.
One Piece
"Is this really it? Are you sure Nami?!!" Luffy asked in amazement.
"Yep. This is it. I'm sure of it! According to the map we got from Buggy, and what Crocus told us, that is Raftel." Nami replied.
"So that's where One Piece is?" Chopper questioned.
Nami nodded.
"It's kind of s-s-spooky. Are y-y-you sure about t-t-this L-L-Luffy?" Usopp said as his knees shook. "That fog is a-a-awfully t-t-thick!"
"Of course I'm sure! If I'm going to be the Pirate King, then I have to go there and get One Piece!!!" Luffy cried. He could barely contain his excitement.
Sanji and Zoro stood back and watched with mild interest.
Robin, on the other hand, looked quit anxious to dock the ship and go ashore. This was an unusual thing for her but no one was paying attention. They were all thinking of their own dreams and ideas of what One Piece was.
"I'm going to be the Pirate King! I told you I would Shanks! I did it! I really did it!!!" Luffy thought excitedly as the light wind blew onto his face and the fog slowly creeped up on them.
"I wonder if Mihawk is close. Maybe I'll finally get to beat him!" Zoro thought eagerly. A small smirk appeared on his face.
"This is the last island if the Grand Line. When we've visited here, I'll be able to draw my world map!" Nami thought. She could barely contain her excitement and could barely contain a girlish giggle. There was already a wide grin plastered on her face.
"I actually made it to the end of the Grand Line! I really am a great warrior of the sea!!!!!" Usopp thought happily, despite his earlier complaints.
"This is where the crap geezer thought the All Blue would be. I wonder..." Sanji thought as he lit another cigerette in deep thought.
"Doctor H! I traveled the world and met great frineds and learned alot about medicine!!! I really did it!!!!!" Chopper thought as he did his happy dance.
"It was said that Gold Roger could read poneglyphs and that he might have even had the Rio. Could it be possible that it's here?" Robin thought. She usually did not get excited by this kind of thing but this time she couldn't help it. She had never felt hope like this in her life.
"My ship made it!!! I really am the greatest shipwrite of all time!!! Beat that Tom!!!! This is SUPER!!!!" Franky thought as he struck his famous pose.
The feeling of excitement spread throught the whole crew like wildfire, burning itself into the hearts of evryone. They sang and danced as Raftel kept growning closer.
"Okay guys. Time to get serious." Nami said as they drew closer to the island. She was just excited about the rest of them but that didn't mean she could neglect her navigating duties.
The ship suddenly burst into chaos as everyone rushed around in order to follow the orders their navigator was shouting out. Ten minutes later, their hard work paid off. They safely docked Sunny and where currently standing on Raftel's beach. The thick fog made visibility past ten feet nearly impossible.
Now that they had finally reached the shore, they realized they had no idea where to go. They all turned to face Nami and Robin.
"What are you looking at me for?!" Nami cried. "This is the first time I've been here and there aren't any maps of this place because no one's ever been here. So what do you want me to do?!!"
"Miss Navigator, there seems to be a path to the north of here." Robin said.
"Huh?" Nami said, caught off guard.
"I used my hana hana powers to take a look around and I found the the path. I'll lead us there." she said and then started to walk away. The rest of the crew silently followed.
Just as Robin had said, there was a path leading into the thick forest of the island.
"So...now what?" Zoro finally dared to ask.
"Let's go!" Luffy said eagerly and before anyone could stop him, he took off running down the path. Because of the thick fog, the rest of the crew soon lost sight of their captain.
"I guess we better follow him." Sanji said.
They all sighed. Even at a time like this, their captain could be such a pain. But even so, they didn't think it was a good idea to leave him out there on his own. Without another word, they took off after Luffy.
"AHHH!!!!" they heard Luffy yell from up ahead.
"We better hurry!" Nami said as they all quickened their pace.
"Luffy's in trouble!!!" Usopp cried.
"Lufffffyyyyy!" Chopper yelled.
"Calm down you two. It's Luffy." Zoro said.
When they didn't hear Luffy's voice anymore, they began to worry despite what Zoro had said.
"Hey, you don't think something could have-" Nami started to say but she suddenly found herself falling along with the rest of the crew, minus Luffy of course.
"AAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!" they all screamed. They had suddenly found themself falling down a weird type of rock slide.
As they were falling, Nami noticed a drop in the temperature. That meant they were heading deep bellow ground. "Where are we?" Nami thought as they continued to slide down, down, down.
The slide suddenly ended and Nami found herself skidding across the hard, rocky ground. Usopp was next followed by Sanji, Chopper, Robin, Franky, and Zoro. They all followed Nami in the skidding routine until they all crashed into a solid rock wall.
Robin was the only one who avoided this as she had used her hana hana powers to stop herself from crashing into the wall with the rest. She stood up and brushed herself off and soon discovered that they had landed in some kind of underground cave. In the distance, she could here faint footsteps. "I think our captain is near." she said.
Everyone else, who was up by that time, looked at Robin for a farther explination.
"I can hear his footsteps." she explained.
"And I can smell him." Chopper said as his noise wiggled.
"Well, it looks like that's the only way out of here, so let's go." Nami decided for them.
The group began walking down what seemed to be an endless tunnel. Just when it seemed like they would never find Luffy, they came up on a wide ceilinged room. In the center stood a small treasure chest on a short stone pedestal and in front of that stood their captain.
"Luffy? Luffy!" Franky called out.
"It's no use. You just can't get through to that guy." Zoro said.
"Hey Luffy! What's the big deal just running off and leaving us?!!" Nami shouted as she advanced toward him. Everyone else stood back for their own safety. "Luffy!!!! Are you even listning?!!"
Luffy muttered something in reply.
"Hey! Answer me when I'm talking to you!" Nami screamed. She was currently the shade of a tomato.
"One Piece." Luffy muttered as he stared at the chest.
"What are you talking about?! It's just some old-" but Nami stopped when she saw what was on the chest.
The chest, althought it was plain, had the initials GDR, carved into it.
"Gol D. Roger." Nami said in barely a whispher. She knew that this was Luffy's time so she stepped back and joined the rest of the crew at the entrance to the room.
Luffy leaned down and slowly lifted the lid of the chest, almost afraid of what he would find. What he found when he lifted the lid was a scroll sitting on top of Gold Roger's pirate coat. Luffy lifted the scroll out of the chest and pulled on the coat and then turned to face his crew.
"Guys..." he took a long pause, causing the rest of the crew to lean closer in anticipation. "I'M THE PIRATE KING!!!!!!!!!!! THIS IS ONE PIECE!!!!!!!!!!!! I DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" screamed at the top of his lungs.
Once the rest of the crew was able to hear again, they all stared at the scroll in Luffy's upraised fist.
"Umm...what is it?" Franky asked. Everyone else was just getting ready to ask the same question.
"I don't know. But that doesn't matter, does it? This is One Piece, isn't it?" Luffy said as everyone sweat dropped.
"What?!! No treasure? No reward?!!! Just a stupid piece of paper and an old smelly coat?!!!!!!!" Nami screamed. Everyone cowered in fear except Luffy who was either to stupid or not paying enough attention to duck. This unfortunately meant he was Nami's only target. Luffy was sent flying into the cave wall where he left a Luffy shaped imprint in the stone.
"So, what did it say?" Usopp dared to ask.
Everyone else shrugged as a reply as Nami gave Usopp a death glare.
Luffy stood up and dusted him and his new coat off. He then walked over and stood infront of the crew with the scroll in his hand. He slowly unrolled it and took a deep breath. Then he slowly began to read. Everyone else leaned in closer in anticipation of what the former Pirate King had to say.
"To the reader of this scroll, congratulations. You are on your way to becoming the Pirate King. If you want to know what One Piece is, then continue reading.
From the many stories you have read, you probably think that One Piece is some great treasure with tons of gold and riches. Well, I am sorry to say that it is not. The thing that One Piece is, you've had it all along, ever since you began your adventure. That's because One Piece is not a material thing that you can posess. One Piece is the adventure's you've had and the joy you have felt. It is the sorrow and the pain that have made you weep. It is the friend's and enemies you have made and the people you have met. It's all the places you have seen and what is still left to find. It is the hardships you have come across and all the people you have had to leave behind. But most importantly, One Piece is the pursuit of dreams. And learning that, that is the greatest treasure my friend.
So now I would like to congratulate you, the owner of this scroll. You are now the Pirate King. I expect you to carry on for me and not to let the world down. Pirates, good and evil, will now look to you for leadership. Good luck.
-Gol D. Roger
Pirate King"
No one moved as they took all the words from the scroll in. There was no treasure. The only thing here was the scroll and the old coat. The last thing to hit them was that their captain, Luffy, was now the Pirate King.
"Luffy...you're the...the...Pirate King!" Usopp exclaimed, breaking the silence.
Luffy broke into the biggest grin that was very near impossible, even for him. He gave a loud laugh and soon everyone was cheering with him. Even Nami had forgotten about the missing treasure for the moment and was cheering with the rest of the crew. Well, everyone except Robin that is.
"My last hope..." Robin thought as she bit her lip to keep from crying. She had never felt so devastated since the day Ohara was destroyed. No matter if she wanted to admit it or not, she had always had the faint hope of traveling to Raftel and finding the Rio. But now...well, this was it. "No! You've been dissapointed before so don't start this again. You have a place where you belong now and great frineds. They'll help me keep searching." Robin told herself.
"Robin-chan, what's the matter?" Sanji asked, finally noticing the look on Robin's face.
"Oh nothing she replied as she composed herself.
Sanji didn't seem totally convinced but he left her alone.
Suddenly, Luffy noticed something at the bottom of the scroll as he looked at it once again. He hadn't unrolled it all the way because he didn't think there was anything else on it but now he finally noticed the odd writing at the bottom. He stopped cheering and asked, "Hey! Can anyone read this weird writing?!"
Everyone suddenly became silent as they thought about what Luffy had just said.
"So...is there something else?" Nami asked, hoping for treasure.
"I don't know. I can't read it." Luffy said.
Everyone sweatdropped. "Then why did you bring it up?!!!" Nami cried as she bonked him on the head.
"I dun know. I thought it looked cool." Luffy replied with a shurg. At this, most of the crew fell over.
"Excuse me captain, but can I see that scroll?" Robin asked as she walked over and stood infront of Luffy.
"Sure. Can you read it Robin?" Luffy said eagerly as he handed her the scroll.
She slowly unrolled it until she came to the part with what Luffy called "weird writing." As she saw what it was, she inhaled sharply. Then, when she saw what it said, she gasped and her eyes went wide. "Impossible." she said quietly. No one but Luffy heard her.
"Robin?" he asked. "Are you okay?"
Instead of replying, she dropped the scroll, which Luffy barely managed to catch, and took off running.
"Robin! Where are you going? Robin, come back!!!" the crew cried.
But Robin didn't hear them. She was already to the other side of the stone room and running down the right passageway. If that scroll was right...well, there was no time to waste.
"Should we follow her?" Chopper asked, breaking the silence.
"Robin-chan!!!!!! Wait for me my love!!!!! Sanji's coming to protect you!!!!" Sanji called as he chased after her, leaving behind a trail of hearts.
"Love sick fool." Zoro muttered. Thankfully, Sanji was already gone and didn't hear this remark.
"Robin! Sanji! Wait up!" Luffy yelled as he took off after them.
"I guess we should go after them." Nami said with a sigh.
Everyone else nodded in agreement and they soon gave chase.
Meanwhile, Robin had reached a smaller, but much more spectacular, chamber. The walls were embedded with all sorts of jewels and, after Robin had lit the lantern, they sparkled and cast a rainbow of colors on the floor and vaulted ceiling. But that wasn't the most amazing part. The best part was located in the center of the room.
"So, this is it." Robin said in barely a whispher.
"What's what Robin?" Luffy asked her as he entered the chamber along with Sanji.
"Robin-chan!!!! Are you all right my sweet?!!" Sanji said in a worried voice.
"I'm fine." she replied half heartedly. She wasn't really paying any attention to Sanji.
Luffy finally noticed the large object Robin was staring at. "What is it?" Luffy asked as he gazed at the large stone. "It's more of that weird writing."
At that moment the rest of the crew finally arrived in the chamber.
"OH!!!!" Nami cried excitedly at the sight of all the beautiful gems.
"Robin?" Chopper asked as he looked at Robin with concern.
"After all these years..." Robin said.
"What is it Robin?" Usopp asked.
"This...this is what ?I've been looking for. This...is the Rio Poneglyph." Robin finished.
"What?!!" everyone gasped in shock.
"After all this time...after all the pain...after all the sacrafice..." Robin said as brief flashes of Ohara during the Buster Call flashed through her mind. "After almost giving up...this is it. I've finished my mother's work."
The crew silently watched. They seemed to understand that this was an important moment to Robin and that they weren't supposed to interupt.
After studying the poneglyph for a moment, Robin finally spoke up. "They always said Gold Roger knew how to read poneglyphs and that fact was confirmed in Skypiea. I always wondered if he had ever seen the Rio. I guess I always held the hope that one day I could travel here and find it. And now..." Here she turned around to face the crew. "Thank you all. Thank you for bringing me with you and never giving up on me. Thank you for making me live when I just wanted to die. If you hadn't, I wouldn't be standing here, finally getting something I want in life. Thank you." Robin said as tears appeared in her eyes. They slowly ran down her face as she sunk to her knees.
Nami ran over and pulled her gently into a hug. Robin looked up at her with a shocked expression. Never had anyone held her like that in many, many years and even then, it had been only for a few seconds. It had been the day her mother died. Now, Nami was doing the same thing except this time the situation was different. This time, Robin was sure that they wouldn't leave her. They had already proved that once.
"This is your dream Robin. We had nothing to do with this. This is your time so go and make the most of it. Luffy got his wish, and the rest of us will in time, but right now, right here, this is your opportunity. Go for it!" Nami whisphered softly. She let go and stepped back.
Robin stood up shakily and slowly made her way to where the poneglyph began. The rest of the crew watched in complete silence except for Franky who was sobbing quietly and muttering something about it being so beautiful.
After what seemed like forever, she turned around and looked directly at Luffy. "Luffy...you're..." but she was cut off by a loud crashing sound farther up the tunnel.
"What was that?" Franky asked in a worried tone.
"WAAHHH!!!!!! IT'S COMING FOR US!!!!!!!" Usopp screamed.
"What's coming for us Usopp?!!!" Chopper cried.
"Relax guys. It's probably just-" Zoro started to say but was cut off when a giant rock fell right beside him. He jumped to the side to avoid a smaller, but no less threatening rock, that had attempted to smash him.
"It's collapsing!!!" Nami cried.
"Nami-san! Robin-chan! Watch out!!!" Sanji cried as he kicked and shattered a rock that nearly hit them. "Run!"
Everyone looked around quickly for a way out with no luck. The only opening besides the one they had entered by, which was now blocked by a rock was a small crack in the wall. None of them could fit through it and time was running out.
"Luffy! Aim a punch at that crack in the rock! I can feel a draft coming from it!!!" Nami cried desperately.
"Gomu Gomu no Pistol!!!" Luffy yelled and punched the cracked wall as hard as he could. It crumbled to reveal an unblocked passageway.
"Come on! Let's hurry before it gets blocked too!!!" Nami yelled and they all took off running. All except Robin that is. She stood looking at the poneglyph in the chamber's center.
"Robin?" Luffy said questioningly as he turned around.
"So this is it...after all this...it's lost forever. You did well, Roger." she said. Then she turned around. "I'm coming Luffy-san."
He smiled. "Come on. We better hurry!" Luffy said. He and Robin ran after the rest of the crew and soon caught up.
"It's weird. This tunnel seems calm." Nami said as they stopped to catch their breath.
"Roger." Robin said quietly.
"What was that Robin?" Luffy asked.
Robin sighed. "Gol D. Roger. He was smarter then anyone ever imagined. Most likely he rigged that tunnel in case any marines ever made it to this place. Only a person who could truly read poneglyphs could have read it. Just the way he planned it."
"Wow! He was awesome!!!" Luffy cried.
"Yeah, well, if we don't hurry and get out of here, who knows what will happen to us. If Roger's as smart as you say he is..." Nami said but there was no need to finish it. Everyone knew what she was thinking.
They all began running again until they finally found the way out of the tunnel.
"Hey! We're exactly where we started!" Luffy exclaimed when he had looked around. It was true. They were standing on the beach where they had started. Thousand Sunny loomed infront of them and the fog had cleared up.
"So...what now?" Franky asked.
"Luffy...you did remember to get the scroll, right?" Nami said as she looked at Luffy with a dangerous gleam in her eye.
"Umm...I think." Luffy replied.
"Luffy..." she said dangerously.
"Found it!" he cried as he pulled it out of the coat pocket.
"Phew." the crew seemed to say together.
"Congratulaions captain. You are now the Pirate King and that scroll proves it." Nami said with a smile.
Luffy grinned.
"So...what now?" Chopper asked.
"Onward to new adventures! This isn't the end to all the great stuff we've done...it just gives us more opportunities!!! After all, we'll always be nakama." Luffy said.
Everyone was standing around him in a circle by then and now they were all smiling. Their captain was right. They had things they still needed to accomplish before their life was over. Sanji had to find the All Blue. Nami had to finish her map. Chopper had tons more to learn about medicine and their was plenty more on top of that.
"To the ship!!!" Luffy cried and raised his fist in the air.
"Aye!!!" everyone else cried and raised their fists up too.
As they walked back to the ship, Luffy walked over next to Robin. "Earlier, after you read that pona thingy...what were you going to say to me?" Luffy asked.
"Oh nothing Luffy-san." she said with a secret smile.
"Oh...okay!!!" he said cheerfully and then ran to catch up with Sanji and talk about their celebration meal.
Robin smiled to herself like she had a secret. Since she was in the back, no one else saw. "Monkey D. Luffy...you're going to make a great change in this world, just like your family before you, even those from 800 years ago. You've got a strange family." Robin thought to herself. She let out a small giggle before catching up with the rest of the crew to help discuss their dinner plans.
So what did ya think? I hope you liked it and I'm hoping to do more one shots in the future because this was fun! Te-he! But anyway, please review! Thanks.