"Land! I see land! It's the island!"
Luffy's happy shouting drew the crew (excluding Zoro) to the deck. Indeed, the island lay ahead. It was large, and the towns close enough for them to see looked cheerful.
But about halfway across the island from the side they approached on, a giant black wall loomed at least ten meters above ground level, completely dividing the island in half. It had an ominous, forbidding air that the pirates could sense just looking at it from afar.
"That wall looks awesome," Luffy said, quivering with anticipation. He grabbed the edge of the crow's nest and stretched himself down. "I'm gonna go see what's over it!"
"Luffy, wait!" Usopp exclaimed, grabbing his captain and trying to hold him down. "There must be a reason for that wall, so we probably shouldn't go over it, you know? What if it's illegal and we get arrested—"
"Gum-Gum . . ."
"Wait, stupid!" Sanji yelled, grabbing onto Luffy's other side. "Usopp's right, we should ask around this side first—"
". . . ROCKET!"
Luffy launched himself, Sanji, and Usopp high into the air and eventually over the great wall, the latter two screaming as they held onto Luffy.
The rest of the crew stared after them.
Nami sighed. "I guess I'm in charge for now, since Zoro or Usopp can't act as captain. Right, everyone, we're going to explore this side of the island, look for help for Zoro, and learn as much as we can about whatever's on the other side!"
"Okay, captain Nami!" Chopper exclaimed happily, though he threw a worried glance over his shoulder in the direction of the ones who went flying.
"Yes, Navigator-Captain-san."
Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji landed hard on a cobbled street on the other side. Luffy got up, dusted himself off, and laughed. "That was fun! Now, what's on this side—huh? Usopp? Sanji? Why are you sleeping there?"
"It's your fault, idiot," Usopp said through a mouthful of stone.
They slowly got themselves up and picked off all the bits of stone. Luffy looked around.
"This place seems really boring . . . there's no color . . ." Luffy sighed, looking around.
"No color?" Usopp repeated, looking around the street. "What . . ."
Every small house along the cobbled street was the color of stone. There were no vivid plants to be seen, no flowers or trees, and what little grass grew was dry and an ugly yellowish color. Only the sky was a bright, beautiful blue.
"I've got a bad feeling about this place," Sanji muttered, momentarily bringing a flash of red-orange to the surroundings as he lit his cigarette.
Robin and Chopper disappeared below deck and reappeared moments later carrying Zoro (who still had Luffy's drawings on his face) between them. The three climbed down from the ship (Chopper tossed down Zoro to Robin), deciding to take a risk and leave it unguarded, Nami reasoning that there wasn't any treasure on board anyway.
The people were generally friendly to them, though many gave them strange looks. It had to look odd to the townsfolk, these strangers carrying a full-grown man with a mustache, fat eyebrows, and stars on his cheeks. They soon decided to stop and ask for temporary shelter at a house.
Nami knocked on the door three times. It swung open a moment later to reveal a man, probably older than 50, with salt-and-pepper hair. He looked them up and down.
"May I help you?" he asked politely.
"Sorry to bother you, but could we come in for a while? We'd like to ask you some questions about this place, and lay this guy on a bed for a few minutes." She nodded to Zoro.
"Ah, yes, yes," he said, stepping back. "Er, just through that door, you'll find a bed you can put him on . . ."
They entered. Robin and Chopper laid Zoro down on the bed. The owner of the house pulled up some chairs, which they then sat in. He sat in one himself and looked at them.
"What exactly do you want to know?" he inquired.
"Do you know where can we get medical help for him?" Chopper asked, pointing to Zoro. "He's in a coma right now and we don't have the necessary equipment to take care of him."
"Ah, I see," he said. "There's a doctor that lives just down the street. He might be able to help you with that."
"Thanks!" Chopper exclaimed happily.
"But, you know . . ." he added, rubbing his chin and staring at Zoro. "I can't help but feel that I've seen him somewhere before . . ."
"He used to be a bounty hunter," Nami offered. "Maybe that's it?"
"I don't think so . . . but maybe you're right . . ." he stared at Zoro for another minute before turning back to them. "What else did you want to know?"
"Is there any way to get to the other side of that huge wall?" Nami asked. "Our stupid captain launched himself and a couple of others to the other side."
"Your . . . friends are over there?" the man gasped. "Oh, dear. Oh, dear me. That's not good at all."
"What's the matter?" Chopper asked.
He looked at them gravely. "I'm afraid your friends may be executed soon."
Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji turned around at the sound of a whistle. There were running footsteps, moving towards them, accompanied by shouts of "The sound came from over there!" and "We've got you now, criminal!"
"You know, I think we should run," Sanji said casually.
"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Usopp asked in a false-cheerful tone.
The three immediately turned around and ran. They moved past gray houses, gray streets, gray curtains hanging in gray windows.
"I think we lost them," Luffy gasped a moment later.
"Don't let him get away!" someone shouted from a ways off.
"Guess not," Sanji sighed.
A door opened behind them. Before they could turn around, a hand grabbed the back of their shirts—one hand each. They were pulled into one of the gray houses, the door shutting behind them. Quick as a wink, rolled-up cloth was stuffed in their mouths and all three were piled together into a lightless broom closet. Someone shut the door, encasing them in darkness.