Ch. 2- The Island of Passion, Love, and Toys

One Piece © Oda

Blizzard, Jupiter, Monkey D. Aika, Kumi, and Rita © Me

At the coast of Dressrosa, the Thousand Sunny has finally made landfall, and the Straw Hats, plus Law and Jupiter, have disembarked.

"WE'RE HERE!" Luffy shouted. "AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Luffy, how many times do I have to tell you to stop with that shouting?!" Usopp questioned. "We're in enemy territory!"

"OW!" Franky exclaimed. "I'm feeling SUPER this week! I'm in fine condition to find me some factories and blow 'em to smithereens!"

"How are we supposed to find it, anyway?" Aika asked.

"Ooh! I have an idea!" Luffy piped up.

A moment later, the Straw Hat Captain is sitting on a straining Momonosuke's back.

"Fly, Momo, fly!" he exclaimed.

"Cease and desist!" Momonosuke snapped. "Remove thy buttocks from my backside, at once! I cannot fly and I will not venture onto this land! Father has forbade it!"

"What are you talking about, man?" Luffy asked as he got off Momonosuke. "You so did fly! Blizzard, Aika, tell 'em!"

"It's true! He really did fly!" Aika chimed in. "We were there!"

"He flew without wings?" Chopper asked. "But how?"

"I told you, already!" Momonosuke barked. "I do not remember such a thing happening! Also, even if I did fly…"

In his mind, he saw a shadowy hand reach out to grab him.

"I…I shall never do such a terrifying thing again! I SHALL NOT FLY!"

"So…what you're saying is you're scared of heights?" Luffy asked.

CHOMP! Momonosuke bit down on his head in comical anger!

"YOWCH!" Luffy cried. "LEMME GO, YOU LITTLE TURD!"

"How DARE you speak such insolence, you ape!" Momonosuke shouted. "A warrior fears NOTHING!"

"I SAID LEMME GO, DAMN YOU!" Luffy shouted as he socked Momonosuke in the jaw, and soon, the two began to tussle in a comedic fashion, creating a large dust cloud around.

"So what if you're a warrior?!" Luffy questioned. "I'm gonna be the next Pirate King, one day, so THERE!"

"Poppycock!" Momonosuke shouted. "In that case, I will one day rise to become the next shogun of Wano Country!"

"What was that, you slimy little perverted eel?!"

"Bow before me, you disgusting ape!"

"Remember, Luffy," Brook said. "He's only eight years old."

"Cease and desist, Momonosuke!" Kin'emon ordered, causing the two to stop fighting. "Forgive the boy's impudence, Luffy-dono. Though he is but a child, Momonosuke is still a warrior of Wano. He is taught to have pride! But then, the way you bicker with a child of only eight years is most unbecoming."

"Whatever," Luffy said. "I just hate cowards, okay?" He then blew a raspberry at Momonosuke, who blew one back at him.

"I told you to cease this!" Kin'emon shouted, causing the Dragon-Boy to flinch. He was about to use this as an excuse to go and bury his face in Nami's cleavage again…but an ominous glare from Luffy stopped him.

"That's what I thought, you little turd," Luffy hissed.

"Let's get moving," Franky answered. "How are those disguises coming along, Kin'emon?"

"Ah, yes," Kin'emon answered. "The people of Dressrosa wear clothes of his like."

He then showed a picture of a man wearing a black suit…and next to him was a drawing of a woman with nothing on her at all, except for fig leaves around her waist.

"I will transform you accordingly, so that we may pass unnoticed!" the samurai exclaimed with a blush on his face.

"HELL TO THE FUCK NO!" Nami shouted as she hit Kin'emon on the head.

"Hey, Nami-ya," Law said, holding up a small scrap of paper. "Here. Take this."

"What's that?" Nami asked.

"My Vivre Card," Law answered. "It points to Zou, the island we spoke of earlier. If anything should happen to us, you should head there."

"Got it," Nami said.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Usopp piped up. "Isn't there something we should know, too?!"

"Dunno," Law answered.

Behind him, Luffy and Momonosuke, now back in human form, are squabbling again. It seemed the latter had managed to hit the former in his…crown jewels, so to speak.

"Here," Law said as he laid down another slip of paper, which was dirty and torn up, so it had to be taped together, and there was even an ink paw print in the corner, left behind by a certain polar bear. "This is a map that my crew drew up for me."

"Oh, god, it's awful!" Nami exclaimed.

"We should be around here," Law said, pointing to the map. "The team that's going to deliver Caesar will travel through Dressrosa and cross the long bridge heading north to Greenbit."

"So why can't we just go on the ship?!" Usopp asked.

"Apparently, you can't there by water," Law answered.

"Sounds like fun," Robin mused.

"J-just make it a safe trip!"

"Okay, then," Law said. "The ones who deliver Caesar are Long Nose-ya, Nico-ya, Jupiter, and me. Nami-ya, the skeleton, and Raccoon Dog-ya stay here to guard the ship, and keep an eye on the kids."

"I do hope that Kanjuro is alive and well," Momonosuke said, worriedly.

"Wait a minute!" Nami said. "Are you saying the enemy might come after us on the ship!?"

"We're not safe here?!" Brook questioned.

"Well, this is the enemy's home base, isn't it?" Chopper asked. "Luckily, will be here, too, so…" he trailed off when he saw that Sanji, as well as Luffy, Zoro, Franky, Blizzard, Kin'emon, Aika, and Kumi had vanished. "W-wait, where's Sanji!?"

"Where did Luffy and the others go?!" Brook asked.

"A-Aika and Kumi aren't here either!" Nami cried.

"What the hell!?" Law questioned. "Are they stupid?! They're the centerpiece of the plan!"

"But what about us?!" Chopper asked. "Who's gonna protect US?!"

XXX

Meanwhile, there is a huge, bustling city, decorated with tiled rooftops and exotic, tropical flora. The citizens are dressed up in fancy clothing, and the sound of flamenco music fills the air. This is the City of Dressrosa.

Those who visit this land may find their hearts enthralled by a number of things. For one, the fields of beautiful, fragrant flowers, as well as the smells of gourmet food…

"Mmm…that smells good!" Luffy said, his mouth watering and his stomach rumbling.

"I'll say it does!" Franky agreed.

"Not a bad place," Zoro added.

"You can say that again, pal," Blizzard piped up.

For another, the tireless gyrations of their ladies' passionate dances in the streets.

"WHOO!" Sanji whooped, watching some dancer girls. "Look at 'em go!"

In addition to that…

"Hey! Come back here with that!"

WOOF! WOOF! WOOF-WOOF-WOOF!

The group turned…and saw a dog, running by while holding something in his mouth. It looked like…an arm, only there seemed to be cotton coming out of it…and behind him, there was actually a life-sized doll, chasing him with one arm missing.

"Mario!" he shouted. "Gimme back my arm, right now! Come on, be a good boy! The cotton will fall out!"

But the dog wouldn't give it back…and Luffy and the others still watched in shock.

"Was that…a doll?!" Luffy asked.

Just then, a toy marionette soldier with a tin drum appeared, out of the blue, tangled up in his own strings.

"Hello there!" he said. "I'm a soldier! What's this? You seem familiar, friend. Have we met before? I think I might've seen your face from somewhere…ah, yes! From this morning's paper! I-"

THUNK! He tripped on his own strings and fell to the cobblestone ground.

"Oh, dearest me!" he cried. "Tangled again!"

"…Living toys?!" Luffy asked.

"Do me a favor, won't you?" the soldier asked. "Please, help me get untangled!"

That's right. Another source of delight to travelers in this land is the stunning sight of living, breathing, life-sized toys, naturally co-existing with the people.

"There are living toys here?!" Aika asked, causing the group to jump as they finally noticed her and Kumi standing behind them.

"P-Princess Aika?!" Kin'emon questioned.

"What are you doing here?!" Luffy asked. "You and Kumi are supposed to be on the ship!"

"Don't look at me!" Kumi said. "It was Aika's idea! I wanted to stay, but she says, 'Oh come on, Kumi! It'll be an adventure!'"

"Hey! You said you wouldn't tattle!" Aika said.

"Luffy, they're here now," Blizzard said. "We can't send them back, so I guess we're stuck with them."

"I don't mind," Luffy said. "Besides, this is a good chance for me and Aika to bond some more!"

"Yay!" Aika cheered.

"This isn't a bonding trip!" Zoro retorted, but all of a sudden, an ear-piercing scream fills the air.

"Oh, dear god!"

"Someone, come quick! A man's been stabbed!"

"Oh, dear," said the toy soldier. "Not again."

"Not again?" Zoro repeated. "What do you mean? Is there some sort of serial killer on the loose?"

"Oh, not at all," the soldier answered. "You see, the women in this country are so passionate in their romantic travails that if they're cheated on by their lovers, jealously leads them to stab people."

"Shit, that's scary!" Zoro cried.

"Hey! Don't curse in front of Aika!" shouted Luffy.

This is the island of passion, love, and toys, and its port town is called Acacia.

"So there are living, breathing toys here, huh?" Luffy asked. "Looks pretty cool to me!"

GRRROOOOOOOWWL!

"But first, let's get some food. I'm starving!"

XXX

Later on, the Factory Destruction & Samurai Rescue Team, consisting of Luffy, Zoro, Franky, Blizzard, Kin'emon, Aika, and Kumi, are now in a restaurant. However, to keep from getting noticed, they are now in disguise, wearing black suits (Luffy was actually wearing a navy blue shirt with sunflowers), bowler hats, and sunglasses, as well as fake bears. Even Blizzard had on the same outfit. Aika, on the other hand, wore a dark red shirt with black polka dots and a white skirt with light blue frills, similar to the outfits that the dancer girls wear. She even had a dark red cowgirl hat, which is now hanging on a string around her neck.

"I do not believe that we should fritter away the time here!" Kin'emon whispered.

"Take it easy there, man," Franky said. "The clock may be ticking, but we're better off gaining info than just running around blindly with chickens with our heads cut off."

"Ugh…!" Luffy groaned, his stomach making noises. "I don't care about any of that! I just need something to eat before my tummy caves in!"

"Don't you ever worry about anything than your stomach?!" Blizzard asked.

"Hey," Sanji chimed in. "Don't you think it's pretty weird, though?"

"What's weird?" Aika asked, drinking some juice.

"Think about it," Sanji said. "The guy who was king of this place just resigned from his throne, right? If that's the case, this place should've been in outright chaos by now."

"You think they haven't heard yet?" Zoro asked.

"Nah, can't be," Franky said.

"Why don't we just ask someone?" Luffy inquired as he tried to reach over to an old man. "Hey, dude- UGH!"

"DON'T, YOU IDIOT!" Sanji barked, slamming the heel of his shoe into Luffy's skull. "Don't you get it?! YOUR ugly mug was on the FRONT PAGE today!"

"He's right, Luffy," Blizzard said. "We can't just go around asking people, especially if they know who we are. We'll be hauled off to the Marines before we can so much as put up a fight!"

"Here you are! Your long-awaited food is here! Or not!"

The group turned to see a toy monkey, holding plates of steaming hot food.

"Ooh! That looks yummy!" Aika exclaimed.

"Finally!" Luffy exclaimed, drooling.

"Here you are!" the monkey said as he set down the plates. "We have for you Dress-Shrimp Paella, Rose-Squid Ink Pasta, and finally, a Gazpacho with Fairy Pumpkin! Enjoy, or not!"

Within seconds, Luffy began to scarf down the pasta. Aika had herself some of the paella, sneaking some bites to Kumi, who sat under the table.

"Hey, bud," said Sanji. "What's a Fairy Pumpkin?"

"Ah, yes," the monkey said, clanging his cymbals. "In this land, many still believe the legends of fairies, or not. In essence, we have fairies, or maybe not."

"Fairies?!" Aika asked with a look of whimsy.

"There are fairies here?" Sanji asked. "Kinda hard to believe."

"Yes, quite mysterious, isn't it?" the monkey asked…seeming to sweat nervously. "It's been that way for hundreds of years. Enjoy your time, travelers, but be careful…or not."

"Uh…I think you're the only mysterious one here," Sanji quipped.

"He's…kinda scaring me," Aika added.

"Me, too," Kumi added, eating some pasta that fell on the floor from Luffy's plate.

Just then, the group heard a bit of a ruckus going on behind them.

"Hahahahaha!"

"Oh, dear! Missed again!"

"What's that noise?" Luffy asked.

Franky looked back and saw a bunch of men, standing around a roulette table.

"Seems like that roulette table's the source of all the noise," Franky noted.

"Yeah," Zoro added, "and it looks like a couple of smalltime thugs are bleeding a blind man dry."

"Oh, that's just sad," Blizzard said.

At the roulette table, a bunch of men wearing black suits are seen, standing around an older man with an X-shaped scar on his forehead which extended over his eyes, showing his blindness, and he also had a scruffy goatee and mustache. He wore some kind of white robe around him, but he also had on a purple yukata underneath.

"Come on, white!" he urged as the roulette kept spinning. "Come on!"

"We'll see about that!" said a thug wearing a black horned mask.

Soon, the ball landed in a white slot.

"Well?" the blind man asked. "Where'd it land?!"

"15 black!" the masked man answered.

"What?!" the blind man asked before he spun the roulette again. "Dammit! Well, I'll bet on black this time!"

This time, the ball landed in a black space.

"Ah, what a shame!" the masked man said with a wicked smirk. "It's white this time!"

The patrons looked on with disgusted looks.

"Such shameful behavior."

"I'll say. Those guys are a disgrace to the Donquixote name!"

"Today just isn't my day, I guess," the blind old codger said.

"Now, if you don't mind," said the masked thug, "we'll be collecting your wager."

"What's the call, old man?" asked another thug. "Gonna give up for the day?"

"Man, we make such a killing when Buffalo's not here!" whispered one more.

"Hold it!" the blind old man exclaimed. "One last! I'll put everything in the pot!"

"That's the spirit!" said the masked thug. "I like your spunk, old man! Tell you what. We'll raise you all of our cash, too! Winner takes all, and we'll settle this like men!"

"Really?" asked the blind old man. "I-in that case, I'll take white!"

"You're on!" said the thug. "We'll take black!"

Soon, the roulette started spinning again.

"Come on, white!" the blind man urged. "Please, white!"

Soon, the ball landed in the 27 white space.

"Well?" the blind man asked. "Where'd it land?!"

"Well, I hate to break it to you, old-timer," the thug grinned, "but it's-"

"It's white!"

The thugs gasped as they turned to see Luffy, who is munching on the Ink Squid Pasta.

"What the-!?" the thug questioned. "Who the fuck are you?!"

"The ball landed in a white space," Luffy said, eating the paste. "The blind old dude won, fair and square."

"Look closer, kid!" shouted the hug. "It's on black! And this is none of your business!"

Everyone watched in shock at Luffy's intervention of the game.

"Who is that bearded kid?!"

"Doesn't he know who he's dealing with?!"

Sanji, Zoro, Franky, and Blizzard just groaned.

"There he goes again," Sanji muttered.

"You mean he does this often?" Aika asked.

"Yeah, Aika, he does," Blizzard answered.

"Boy…" said the blind man. "Is it true? Did I really win? Whoever you are, thank you so much for your kindness!"

"No problem, buddy," Luffy answered. "Just called it like I saw it. So, congrats to ya! By the way, judging by that scar on your head, you look pretty tough-"

"HEY!" shouted the lead thug. "Don't you ignore me! You just went and stuck your nose where it doesn't belong, kid!"

Then, he and this lackeys charged at Luffy, drawing their swords.

"If I say it turned up black, then the call is black!" the lead thug shouted. "He can't see anyway! What difference does it make?! Now get your ass outta here before you ruin anything else for us!"

"Big Brother, look out!" Aika cried.

"I can't look!" Kumi added, covering her eyes.

"Hang on, Luffy!" Blizzard shouted as he ran towards him, when suddenly, the blind old man stood up, holding a wooden stick.

"Not good!" he shouted. "My friend, you better get out of the way! I'll have to send these men to hell!"

He then pulled on the top of the stick…revealing a blade inside. All of a sudden, the thugs froze in place…and then, they were suddenly pinned to the floor by an unseen force!

"W-what the?!" the lead thug questioned. "What's going on?! I-I can't move! It feels like I'm being crushed by something!"

CRIK! CRAK! CRRRRUUUUUNNNCH! A huge hole appeared in the floor, and the thugs fell right through, screaming!

"What in the hell?!" Sanji questioned. "Who the hell is that guy?!"

"W-w-w-what did he just do?!" Aika asked, hiding behind Blizzard.

"Holy shit!" Luffy cried. "What a hole!"

The old man soon sheathed his blade before walking away.

"Not having a sight is a blessing," he said. "The world of men…is full of filthy things not worth laying eyes upon."

TO BE CONTINUED…

You're probably wondering why Sanji didn't react to Kin'emons drawing, right? Well, before the events of Dressrosa, Nami and Luffy were woking on Sanji becoming a one-woman man. My friend, gamePsycho11 suggested it become a story, so I might work on that when I find the time.

Anyway, review, please!