The Thousand Sunny traversed the mild waves as Nami watched the sun rise way over the low clouds that took tones of snow white. She breathed in the fresh, salty air and stepped away from the railing to admire the tangerine trees.

It feels as though today is going to be a slow one…

"Oi, Usopp, you took my sandwich!"

"Never mind that, Chopper! Brook's going for you milk!"

"Yo-ho-ho-ho-ho, where's the loyalty?"

"You're both teaming up against me!"

"You took the last salmon sandwich!"

"Because I didn't want pickled herring!"

Nami furrowed her brow and, walking over to the railing overseeing the main deck, watch as Chopper, Usopp and Brook fought over their tiny sandwich.

"…CAN WE HAVE SOME PEACE AND QUIET ON THIS BOAT FOR MORE THAN TEN MINUTES, PLEASE?!"

As the trio froze and toppled over each other in shock, she wiped her bangs off her face and took another deep breath. "Honestly…"

"My, Nami," Robin chuckled from her chair as she flipped through a magazine, "you sure have a way with words."

I wish, Nami glanced up at the Sunny's head, where their captain sat in his dark green shirt and pants, though I'd have a better time reading minds. Luffy has barely spoken the past few days…could it be the news we received that has him like this?

"…Luffy," she walked over right behind the head, "any plans for your, you know, crew?"

"…I've got some serious things on my mind right now, Nami."

"…Such as…?"

He stretched his arms out and groaned. "Whether we should have rare or well done meat tonight."

Ugh. He's no different.

As she returned to Robin Sanji came up in an orange long sleeve and jeans. "Nami, Robin, I'm about to try out some new smoothie styles. You lovely ladies have any recommendations?"

"Well," Robin thoughtfully placed the magazine on the table beside her, "I haven't had blueberries in a while. What about you, Nami?"

"I'm thinking tangerines," she winked, "but blueberries are sounding pretty…good…now…"

The trio's gaze fell to the table where, underneath the magazine, sat last week's newspaper. Sanji pulled out a cigarette and, lighting it, let out a long length of smoke. "Hey, Luffy, I thought I told you to take care of the newspaper."

"Whoa, whoa, Sanji," Usopp's head popped up from the stairs, "let's not start anything again, please!"

Robin's hand instinctively fell to the paper, where she opened it to the front page. Nami still got chills just form reading the headline, the words almost too painful to read.

PRINCE DEITY ASSUMED DEAD

STRAW HAT PIRATES TO BLAME AS NAVY CEASES SEARCH FOR BODY

MARINE OFFICER TSUKI PROMOTED

"I won't get rid of it," Luffy commanded, "not yet."

"And why not?" Sanji growled as he bit on his cigar. "I don't want to-"

"Sanji."

"…"

Luffy glanced back, his eyes filled with a stern affirmation. "We keep it."

…Luffy, Nami watched Sanji accept their fate and make his way back down the stairs as Robin eyed the paper, even after what you first said when we found out…

"He made his choice!"

The crew of the Thousand Sunny gave their full attention to Luffy as he stood atop the stairs; the newspaper had arrived late that morning, and now sat on the sobbing Chopper's lap as Robin comforted him.

"What are you saying?!" Usopp shook his head in anger. "That we shouldn't even try to investigate?! You told us that Deity would only ring that dock bell when he knew it was safe! Something must have happened!"

"It's not right," Franky slammed his fists together, manly tears flowing down his cheeks, "they're blaming us for all of this!"

Zoro stood and crossed his arms. "Let's hope this wasn't all a ruse to get us into even deeper trouble with the Marines."

"Hey," Sanji glowered at the swordsman, "if you're trying to propose that Deity was tricking us into being his friends, I'm going to-"

"ENOUGH!"

The crew fell silent. Nami didn't push the hair away from her dazed face as she watched Luffy pull his hat over his eyes to hide his true feelings. "It's already been a month since Deity's blood was found on the bell and his body went missing. There's nothing we can do."

"But," Brooke spoke into the silence, "perhaps we should at least tell people that we didn't murder him?"

"No. He was our friend, but he knew what would happen. He wanted whoever killed him to get away; he entrusted us with the blame. He made his choice, and we're going to respect it."

Their captain turned away and walked off towards the Sunny's head.

"We need to honour him. As his friends, we owe him this much."

I know – we all know – that you wanted to save him just as much as we did, Nami did her hair up into a braid, so you don't have to keep the paper around; I know you want to remind yourself of this failure for whatever stupid reason you have, but it will only hurt you more-

"Hey, guys," Zoro called out from the crow's nest, "a small ship is coming up alongside us. It doesn't look to be anything dangerous, but keep your guards up."

"They must be looking for directions," Usopp figured as they skipped down the stairs and joined Chopper at the railing, "what with this fog rolling in."

This fog, Nami felt the crispness of the air, it…shouldn't even be here…?

The ship below them wasn't anything more than a long boathouse bobbing on the waves, its red paint chipping and the roof missing a couple of shingles. At the door-less entrance stood a short, lanky old man in a pink jumpsuit, his dark red hair in thick curls and big round sunglasses covering his eyes, though one was missing its lens. His grey iris looked from face to face aboard the Sunny before he coughed into one of his wrinkly hands and gave a wave.

"Greetings, pirates. I was wondering if I may ask a tiny favour of you, as a fellow sea dweller."

"Say," Usopp called back as the fog thickened, "who are you, and what are you doing so far out here on your own?"

The fog is only growing, Nami checked her log poses and gawked, and, hey, wait a minute!

"The name's Jomei, Doctor Jomei," the old man's protruding jaw made cracking sounds as he grinned, "and I'm not alone. I got a patient on board with me; I've been tending to his wounds for the past few weeks now. My whole life I've been travelling the waters, doing what I love: healing wounded pirates and making the sea a teeny bit safer."

"That's amazing!" Chopper awed at the man's courage. "What are your credentials?"

"I make a mean tossed salad."

"THAT DOESN'T COUNT AS A CREDENTIAL!"

"Don't worry, reindeer boy, I did my training way back when. It's pretty basic stuff, but it'll save lives out here in these infested waters."

"Guys," Nami interrupted Jomei, "the log pose has locked onto an island somewhere nearby!"

Luffy flung himself over and onto the stair railing as Brooke tilted his head. "I haven't seen an island anywhere. Then again, I haven't really been keeping an eye on the horizon, even before the fog…not that I have eyes to keep on anything! Yo-ho-ho-ho!"

"Hey, gramps," Luffy asked, "whatcha looking for? We're in a hurry to find a new island."

"A new island?" Jomei squinted into the fog and rubbed his chin. "Hm…they say that out here, there's rumoured to be an island shrouded by plant life…plants that move on their own…"

"What was that?"

"Eh? Oh, nothing, just an old man's ramblings." He gestured into the boathouse. "You see, I've had my patient here with me for weeks now, and we're running out of provisions. The last thing I was able to feed him was some fruit, but from the way he reacted to it I suppose it had gone bad. Might I ask for a small bit of food that'll last us to the next island?"

"Gee," Usopp whispered to Nami as she pieced together what Jomei had murmured about the mysterious plant island, "I don't think I'd trust my life to a doctor willing to feed me bad fruit…hey, Nami, you listening?"

"Hm? Oh, yes, right, neither would I."

An island of living plants? I've heard the rumours, as well, but…I can't remember much.

"Sanji," Luffy called to the chef as he approached Franky by the bottom of the main mast, "we got any spare food to give them?"

"I've got a few barrels of fresh fruit and greens. Franky and I will bring them out."

"We're on it, SUPER!"

"Doctor Jomei," Chopper stood on the railing, "you said you have a patient on board? Do you mind if I have a look? I'm a doctor, too, and I have all my medicines and tools at my disposal!"

"Sure, sure," Jomei waved him over, "the poor man deserves a second opinion, after all."

"Be quick, Chopper," Brooke reminded him, "we need to find out where this new island is, and whether it's safe to land."

Not that it'll keep Luffy from making us go, Nami smirked as Chopper took his more reindeer form and prepared to jump over to the boathouse, danger will only lure him in faster…?

She spotted something dark coming towards the surface of the water between the boats. As she leaned forward to get a better looked, she caught sight of something large looming like a giant shadow in front of the ship.

"Here I go," Chopper leapt off the railing.

"Chopper," Nami cried out, "wait, stop!"

WHAM!

"Whaaaaaaaa!" Chopper screamed at the top of his lungs as an enormous vine burst from the water and sent him flying into the air as it whipped around.

"The mysterious island!" Jomei clung to the entrance of the boathouse as papers and trinkets rolled into the water, the waves crashing against it. "We're right by it!"

"Listen to me, everyone," Nami tried to get the crew's attention as more vines sprouted from the water and bashed against the Sunny, "I remember now! Our log pose is locked onto Shokusei Island! If we don't hurry these vines are going to toss us right into the middle of the dangerous jungles that make up its landscape!"

Sanji ran to the steering wheel and desperately tried to spin it in either direction. "It's not use, it isn't budging! We're surrounded by too many of these stupid vi-"

BAM!

Nami felt her stomach dig into the railing as she clung for dear life, the Sunny beginning to tip forward as the vines pushed it towards the large shadow before them. Jomei's boathouse was shoved away and knocked about. She couldn't see Chopper anywhere.

"Chopper," Robin called out as Luffy kept her from falling, "where are you?! CHOPPER!"

"Quickly," Jomei took a brave step forward, "the island will devour us all if we don't-"

Nami felt her pulse freeze as a large vine broke through the boathouse's outer deck, the old man having vanished. "J-Jomei?!"

We're too late, she could feel the ship moaning as everyone did their best to hold on, the fog was used to lure us in! We've been trapped from the very beginning!

It was then that vines began to trace over the main deck, swiping inches above Nami's head. The Sunny was meters above the water now, and she couldn't see anyone else beyond the green masses.

The shadow is closer than ever!

Two more vines threw Jomei's boathouse into the air, all the belongings inside spreading through the fog as the wood cracked and the entire frame of the ship was crushed. As another vine bent around the ships, Nami could make out a limp body hanging backwards over it, a blanket slipping from their thin shoulders.

The patient…wait…no…it…it can't be…!

Their eyes weren't open and their hair hadn't been brushed, but there was no mistaking the face. She would've cried had there not already been tears from the shock of the attack.

This can't be happening…it can't!

Suddenly the ship turned upside down, and Nami had to cling to the railing with her fingers as she heard the crew around her scream. The patient was disappearing behind the wall of vines before her.

"…Wait, come back, please," she used most of her strength to scream out over the sounds of her crewmates,

"DEEEEEIIIIIIITTTTTYYYYY!"

For over a year now I've contemplated writing a sequel to 'A Prince's Ponderings', and whether or not it would work. I'm hoping that people will be intrigued. I know a lot of people weren't too happy with the ending of the first fanfic, but I'm going to change that. Starting today we begin the continuation of out crew's journey with the curious prince; what will happen to him and the Straw Hat's on this mysterious island? Only time will tell.

Why did I end off the first story with that ending? I felt that, in order to round out Deity's character development, he had to show his loyalty to Luffy and the others. It took getting shot, but he knew what would happen, and despite it he gave his life to keep them safe. However, that doesn't mean the story is over.

For those who were willing, you've waited long enough. Onward we go into the depths of this new tale!