That's it! That is it!! I'm not doing any more chapters before this weekend! And then I'm going camping in peace! *Story looks up with large puppy-dog eyes* …

I just read chapter 583 of One Piece (did it come out early, or is it just me?) and WOW LUFFY SUCKS AT LYING!! xDDD God I love that kid. Only he would call someone their friend after they tried to kill him… multiple times, might I add. It's probably why he's all buddy-buddy with Robin, Franky, Vivi, Bon Clay, Hancock, Buggy, almost everyone he met… :I

Luffy has issues. The people he's closest with want to kill him the instant they meet him. THAT'S NOT NORMAL.

I do not own One Piece or Aladdin. BAM, there it is.


"It's all part-and-parcel, the whole genie gig. Phenomenal cosmic powers; itty bitty living space."

~Genie

"… Usopp…?"

"Yes Luffy?"

"… I'm hungry."

"Me too." The two boys were walking through the desert, nothing but dunes as far as the eye could see. Zoro hadn't been lying when he stated that the desert was like a miles-wide oven, and they could practically feel the temperature increase as the sun rose higher and higher. Now though, it was starting to go back towards the horizon. Luffy groaned as he held his stomach.

"I'm bored, too! There's nothing to do out here!" Usopp nodded in agreement. While used to the heat of the desert, trudging along with nothing to do and no specific direction was a real pain. Speaking of directions…

"Oi, Luffy. Where are we going?" Luffy thought a moment.

"I dunno."

"EH?!?! You mean we've been wandering around with no place in mind this whole time??"

"Yep."

"Doesn't that bother you??"

"Nope." Usopp slapped his forehead.

"This is serous, Luffy! We could die in a few days without any water!" Luffy shrugged.

"Then we better find someplace soon! Hopefully they'll have some meat…" Usopp soon gave up hope. Luffy was Luffy, and the most idiotic of any idiot he would ever meet. They walked on in silence for a little longer before Usopp casually asked

"So you weren't lying about the cave? Is that where you found Zoro?" Luffy nodded.

"Yeah. But he was a lot bigger then, and completely green. Plus he had a tail."

"… A tail? Really, Luffy?"

"It's true! It was all green and swirly and misty…" Usopp gave his friend a blank stare for a little longer before sighing.

"Why does he get to go in the lamp while we're out here? Isn't it small in there?"

"He said it cramped like hell."

"Then why did he go in?"

"I dunno." Luffy pulled the lamp out of his pocket and held it up to his ear. He pulled it away and stared incredulously at Usopp. "He's sleeping!"

"Eh??" Luffy held the lamp to Usopp's ear, where he could just hear faint snoring. "How can he sleep in there?!"

"It's a mystery! Let's wake him up!" Usopp held up his hands and waved them in an 'x' sign.

"Nooo way! We are not waking up the homicidal, all-powerful genie! How would you even wake him up anyway?" But Luffy had already picked off the lid of the lamp and was peering inside it.

"Hellooo? Zooorooo~?? Wake up!" Luffy began tapping the sides of the lamp. "Wake up, Zoro!"

"Luffy, I think you're supposed to rub it…"

"What makes you think that?"

"He said something about you rubbing the lamp, right? Try it." Luffy shrugged and complied. No sooner had he given two rubs than the same green smoke began pouring out the spout of the lamp and forming into Zoro's human figure sprawled out on the desert. He was still sleeping. Usopp sweat dropped.

"How can he still sleep…?" Luffy began poking Zoro's face with a stick.

"ZO-RO. Wake up!" Zoro's face twitched before he sat up and rubbed his face. He blinked at the two.

"Oh, it's you." Zoro got up off the ground, dusting off his pants. He then crossed his arms and waited impatiently. "Well? Did you finally think of your wishes?" Luffy shook his head.

"I don't want any wishes." Zoro grumbled as he rubbed his eyes.

"Then why the hell did you wake me up??" Luffy shrugged.

"We were bored. And hungry. And lost."

"I don't sing or dance, I only give food if you wish for it, and I can't give directions."

"Why not?"

"…" Zoro simply began shrinking back into the lamp. Luffy grabbed him before he fully got in.

"Wait! Come on, won't you at least walk with us?? If you're gonna travel with us, you need to walk too! It's not fair if I have to carry you!" Zoro backed out of the lamp and glared at Luffy.

"You're carrying the lamp anyway!" Luffy then handed Zoro the lamp and began walking.

"Well then, I'm not holding it anymore! It's your lamp, and you have to carry it!" Zoro scowled at his retreating figure before he noticed his cuffs beginning to glow dangerously. Stuffing the lamp in his waistband, he growled under his breath and began to walk after the two. Luffy and Usopp walked in silence, Usopp stealing glances back to where Zoro was following about five feet behind. He nervously asked

"Did you really have a tail?" Luffy whirled and cried

"Don't ask him that!! He exploded the last time I asked him!" Zoro slapped his forehead.

"Idiot!"


They had all been walking for another hour when Zoro paused, a strange expression on his face. Luffy and Usopp stopped and looked back, bewildered.

"Zoro? What's up?"

"…" Zoro slowly lifted a hand and placed it on his stomach, which was making various noises. "I'm… hungry?" Luffy stared at Zoro.

"We're all hungry! But when we get to the next town we can eat! Maybe they'll have meat! Do you like meat, Zoro?" Usopp rolled his eyes.

"I think what the problem is, is that Zoro's supposed to be an all-powerful genie. How can you get hungry??" Zoro shook his head in exasperation.

"I knew that I was reduced to my human strength when I was in human form, but…" Usopp smirked.

"You've never been human long enough to feel hungry, have you?" Zoro glared at the look on his face, making any traces of smugness disappear instantly.

"I just haven't felt hungry in a thousand years! I forgot what it was like… Why the hell is my strength leaving?!" Luffy grinned.

"That's just part of the adventure! Plus there's nothing like eating when you're hungry! But you can just turn back into a genie if you can't handle it…" Zoro's head snapped up so quickly one might have thought his head would fly off.

"I can handle anything, dammit!" Luffy simply shrugged and continued walking.

"Then let's go! We need to find a town soon, or we could all die!" Zoro twitched and continued walking.

"How the hell can a prince say that with such a straight face??" Luffy blinked.

"What kind of face should I make then?"

"Weren't you raised in a palace?? With servants and food any everything? The sultans I met all cowered in the face of death, and most wished for eternal life." Luffy stared at Zoro oddly.

"Why would they want to do that? Everyone dies, eventually!" Zoro stared at Luffy with an odd expression before shrugging and moving on.

"They do, I suppose. Just aren't that many who would face it so easily, I suppose." Usopp shuddered as he thought about his own close encounter with being executed.

"Facing it sure gives you a real respect for living, I'll say that… By the way, what happened to the sultans that wished for eternal life?"

"They were killed before they could make their final wish. Apparently the people didn't appreciate having a sultan that would live forever, and they all came and killed the sultan."

"And you didn't do anything??"

"It's the rules. I can't save anyone unless they wish to be saved. You could all be sinking in quicksand and I would be forced to wait for any wishes. Simple as that." Usopp stared at Zoro incredulously before shaking his head.

"That must suck, then. What if you wanted to save someone, and they were dying right in front of you?" Zoro stared at Usopp as though he had asked the most retarded question in the world.

"You just watch them die; I've never wanted to really save anyone."


Finally the trio reached a large rock formation and rested. Luffy moaned as he slumped in the shade.

"So hungry…" Zoro shook his head.

"Aren't you two heading for the sea? You should at least know where you're going!" Usopp scowled.

"Aren't you supposed to be all powerful? At the very least, you could provide us with a map!"

"Powerful doesn't mean all knowing! How the hell am I supposed to know where we are?"

"So you're lost too!"

"No I'm not, you are! I'm just forced to be with you!"

"That makes you lost too!"

"Shut up!"

"MEAAAAAAAT!!!!" Both Zoro and Usopp jumped as Luffy suddenly gave a shout and pointed to the sky, where the two could just see a vague outline of a bird. Zoro shaded his eyes as he glanced up.

"What do you know, it's a bird." Usopp grinned.

"Food at last! Go catch it, Zoro!"

"That's considered interfering."

"… You just don't want to, right?"

"Like hell I do."

"I'll get it!!" They turned to Luffy, who was stretching both arms up towards the rock in front of them. He clung to the top and grinned.

"Gomu gomu no…" Zoro blinked.

"Where'd he learn to talk like tha-?"

"ROCKET!!!" Still holding onto the rock, Luffy allowed his arms to snap back in place and was catapulted up to the bird. Usopp blinked as he watched Luffy hit the bird head on.

"Not too bad of an aim for his first shot." Zoro nodded in agreement. Suddenly his cuffs began glowing and he looked at them in bewilderment.

"Eh?" Usopp followed his gaze and looked at Zoro in alarm.

"The whole distance thing will still zap you??" Zoro shook his head in confusion.

"It only works like that if I try and move away from him with the intention to leave for good. Or if I'm standing still while he's…" Suddenly Zoro's gaze snapped up the bird, which, now compared to Luffy's figure, was very, very large. And was holding Luffy in its beak.

And was now flying away.

"Usopp!! Zoro!! Save meee~!!!" The cuffs began to shock Zoro, and he jumped to his feet and began to run after the bird.

"Shit, shit, shit!! Of all the stupid things to do!" Usopp ran along side him.

"Why aren't you flying; you can fly, can't you??"

"Like hell I'm showing any weakness like that! I can't do anything for him anyway!"

"Hey look, it's people!"

"Oi travelers, can you help us?" Zoro and Usopp blinked as three figures came into sight. They were dressed oddly, and had painted faces that were melting from the intense heat. A key factor that Zoro noticed was that they were all riding horses. The head man began

"Listen here, we're lost and thirsty, and we've been separated from our group! Can you give us directions, or at least a little water-?"

"Move!!" Zoro gave a running leap and landed on the horse at the front, throwing off the rider and giving the horse a zap with his finger. "Yah!!" The horse gave a start and took off, leaving Usopp in the dust. Usopp glanced around nervously as one of the other men jumped off his own horse to help up the man that had fallen.

Well, he did call himself a bandit. While the two men were attending to the fallen rider, Usopp snuck around and climbed on the rider-less horse, giving it a slap and awkwardly holding the reigns.

"…Yah?" Fortunately for Usopp, the horse was very skittish and took off instantly. Unfortunately for Usopp, he had never ridden a horse before and was clinging to the saddle when he nearly fell off of the speeding horse. "GAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" The yell made the men realize that they had been robbed twice, and they all piled on the remaining horse and took off after them.

"Get back here you thieves!!" Usopp clung to the saddle for dear life as the horse caught up to Zoro's horse. Zoro rolled his eyes as he took in Usopp's position.

"Oi, you're supposed to sit on the saddle, not hold it." Zoro shot out an arm and snatched Usopp, placing him back on the seat. "Learn to balance properly and hug it with your knees!" Usopp turned his head at the out of place tone in his voice.

"Are you... actually enjoying this??" Zoro smirked as he glanced back to where their pursuers were falling behind. Piling three men on one horse was proving to be too much for the poor beast, and it could only run so fast.

"I haven't had this much excitement in centuries! If only there was sake..."

"Sake?" Zoro sighed and looked away.

"Never mind..."

"Get back here you damned bandits!"

"We'll kill the lot of you, damned long nose!"

"Yeah, and that damned seaweed head too!" Zoro stopped his horse so quickly that the dust sent up was nearly as large as his genie form. When Usopp noticed that Zoro was no longer following, he blinked and carefully attempted to turn his horse around, instead ending up slamming against the ground near Zoro. Usopp groaned as he picked himself up, the horse running off in the distance.

"Zoro, why did you stop? We're gonna lose Luffy!" Zoro did not answer, but watched the men approach with narrowed eyes. "... Zoro? What are you...?"

Zoro slowly drew two katana, his cuffs sparking. He ignored the small warning jolts as the men finally reached them and jumped off their horse, all drawing their scimitars. The apparent leader stepped forward, smirking. As he opened his mouth to speak, Zoro instead spoke in an icy tone, jumping off the horse and cricking his neck.

"Which one called me seaweed head then...?" He glared when none of them responded, and then dashed forward with the katana, the zaps from his cuffs not even registering in his mind.


Nami swore as she ran from the men, heart racing. She should have seen this coming, in retrospect. When telling another treasure obsessed bandit that she is supposed to confiscate the spoils from their last run, she really should have made sure that she had the firepower behind her threats.

And Buggy was not a man to be intimidated by bluffs. So Nami had backed away slowly from the devil fruit user, putting up a great show of her complacency...

... And had made off with the map to the stash when no one was looking, slipping away like the thief she was. What she had not been expecting was for Buggy to find out before she could skip town, taking Eyelashes and locking him up. And now she was running for her life in the deserted town, Buggy's men right behind her. The men smirked as they advanced on her, slowly closing the distance between them.

"We've got you now, you little thief!"


"Buggy, sir, the men are closing in on her!"

"Finally; catch that flashy double-crossing thief!" The man standing on the roof near Buggy watched the men gain up on Nami from the tallest building in the town. Suddenly, another man blinked at something in the sky, and he yelled

"Buggy! There's something flying in the sky!" Buggy blinked and stared up, noting the odd bird-human shape.

"Well what are you waiting for, then?? Shoot it down!"

"Yes, Buggy, sir!" The man motioned to a group on the other side of the roof, and they pointed a large cannon at the sky, carefully aiming for the bird.


"We've got you now, wench!"

"What made you think that you'd get away from us??" The men were now only five feet behind Nami, and she ran as her life depended on it.

"Shit!" Suddenly the men paused and stared at the sky as another voice sounded from above.

"…aaaaAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!"

"What the-?!" Nami screamed as an explosion sounded behind her, and she looked back to see a young man in an odd straw hat sitting on the ground between her and the men. The man groaned and picked himself up, dusting off his pants.

"That could have hurt so badly… But it's a good thing it didn't…" Nami stared at the man before immediately snatching the opportunity. She cried out as though in horror and dropped to her knees.

"Please sir, I'm so sorry! Don't make me betray Buggy again, please!" The men glanced at the man in confusion, and then slowly shook their heads in amazement.

"So that's why she betrayed Buggy! This creep put her up to it! Come on boys, if we kill him, we'll get the map back!!" The men all raised their swords and charged the boy, who was staring at Nami in complete confusion.

"What are you talking about? Who are-?" Then when he suddenly turned and ducked, one of the scimitars nearly swiped his hat in two. As it were, the hat simply flew off and rolled away, and he turned to the men with a murderous look in his eye as Nami retreated to a nearby building. Luffy punched out the offender, sending him flying back a good ten feet.

"Oi jerks, don't touch my hat!!" The remaining men looked at their fallen comrade uneasily, but then charged Luffy with their swords raised high.

"HAAAAA!!!"


"We're so sorry, sir… We had no idea that you were in such a hurry…" Zoro simply turned and shot them a deadly glare, and they huddled together. Not that they had much of a choice. Usopp and Zoro had bound them together and tied them behind the remaining two horses, although making them walk forced them to slow to only a trot. Usopp glared at the men from his own seat.

"Well thanks to you, we've lost our friend!" Usopp sighed as they cowered back. He pulled his (not nearly as skittish) horse close to Zoro and whispered

"How are we going to find Luffy now?" Zoro shrugged.

"Usually I'd follow the lamp, but…" Usopp scowled as he realized the problem.

"But you have the lamp. Of course that would come to bite us in the ass." They walked along in silence for a bit, and then Usopp looked at Zoro curiously.

"Are those cuffs still hurting?" Zoro shook his head.

"Not nearly as much. I'm putting in an effort to find him, and that's what matters. If I was just plodding along without any intent to find him, I'd be zapped to kingdom come. Plus they're starting to hurt less; we must be getting close."

"So… we're using your pain as a tracking system for Luffy?"

"Exactly."

"… Doesn't that bother you?"

"No, not really." Usopp shook his head in disbelief. Behind them the men began whispering uneasily to themselves.

"Buggy's gonna be so mad…"

"Who's Buggy?" The men gave a start and turned to Usopp, who was watching them oddly. One of the men finally said

"What do you mean, 'who's Buggy'?? He's the infamous Clown Bandit of the east, our leader!"

"You guys are bandits?"

"Does the word infamous mean anything to you??" Usopp huffed, puffing out his chest and jamming a thumb at it.

"I'll have you know that I was once the leader of the infamous Vegetable Bandits, the sole thieves of the East Blue's capital! 'Infamous' means nothing to a great man like me!"

"What happened to the rest of the vegetables?" Zoro turned and gave them a look, and the man quickly revised "N-Not that I'm calling you a vegetable…"

"I had to let them go."

"Obviously they weren't worthy of having such a man as their leader…" Usopp held up his nose in pride before suddenly snapping his head towards the men.

"You guys are making fun of me, aren't you??"

"Yes."

"Zoro, why didn't you kill them??"

"That's against the rules, oh great Usopp-sama."

"Now you're making fun of me too…"

"But Buggy's going to have our heads for this! First we get lost from the rest, and now we're prisoners… He has a devil fruit you know!" Usopp began trembling.

"A… devil fruit??"

"Yeah, I hope we don't have to go back…" Usopp looked at Zoro worriedly.

"What if Luffy's run into him?"

"Then I can go back to my lamp in peace."

"This isn't funny at all!"

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Usopp gave the dead serious look on his face a single glance and then sadly shook his head.

"Well, even if you don't care what happens to Luffy, I do! And we've got to find Luffy soon, or he could even be dead now…"

"He's not dead."

"Are you sure?" Zoro held up the glowing cuff on his wrist and gave it a tap for emphasis.

"We're getting close."


Luffy huffed as the remaining men ran off, dragging away the wounded. He turned and picked up his hat, inspecting it for damage before placing it back on his head.

"Stupid jerks, messing up my hat like that."

"Hey, you're pretty strong!" Luffy blinked and turned to where Nami hopped off the barrel she had been sitting on, walking over to Luffy with a smirk. "Perhaps you can help me…" Luffy jumped back as she walked up.

"Oi, you're that girl that made them attack me! You wanna fight??" Nami shook her head sadly.

"Oh, but I thought you'd understand… They have something of mine, you see, and I was hoping for a strong man like yourself to help me get it back…" Luffy blinked as she smiled seductively at him, then simply shrugged and walked away.

"No thanks. I gotta find my friends." Nami growled after him, almost in disbelief that he would resist her charms. Suddenly Luffy paused and held his stomach. "Argh, I'm still hungry…" Nami walked over and patted his back.

"I can feed you, then. Come on; let's borrow a house for some… negotiations."


"Clown Bandits?" Nami nodded, still looking down sadly.

"A group of bandits that stole all of my fortunes. It's all that my family has, you see, and-"

"Well, thanks for the food, but I have to go!" Nami stared at Luffy in disbelief and slammed her hands down on the table.

"PAY ATTENTION WHEN I'M RELATING MY SAD STORY, DAMMIT!!!" Luffy blinked.

"Why? I don't even know you…" Nami slapped her forehead, but then tried charming him again, running her fingers up his arm.

"I just want one little favor, and then I can give you something." Luffy blinked and pulled his arm back.

"Like what?" Nami floundered at his stupidity, but then groaned as she realized she was playing the wrong cards.

"Well, I can give you some of the treasure…"

"No thanks."

"Buy you a slave?"

"Naaah."

"Give you a map?"

"A map? As in… directions? You know how to get around the desert?" Nami held up a fist in pride, momentarily forgetting her objective.

"I'm the best damned mapmaker in this country! I can get to any city, any place, in half the time that others spend wandering around without a clue!" Luffy grinned and pumped his fists in the air.

"That's great! You wanna be my nakama then?? We're trying to go to the sea, and we don't know our way at all!"

"I said I'd give you a map, not drag you across the entire desert!!"

"Please~?? I don't know how to read maps…"

"Idiot!! I'll have to go for plan B then!" Nami then pulled out a length of rope, binding Luffy in the next instant. Luffy blinked.

"Eh? What are you doing?" Nami patted the top of his head.

"If you do this for me, I'll take you as far across the desert as you want. Do we have a deal?" Luffy grinned, nodding his head.

"Deal!"


"YOU DIDN'T CAPTURE HER?!?!" The man in front of him trembled.

"But sir, we found out that there was a man who-"

"I DON'T CARE ABOUT ANOTHER MAN; YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO KILL HER!! IF ARLONG FOUND OUT THAT WE TRIED TO KILL HIS LITTLE PET, HE'D HAVE ALL OF OUR HEADS YOU IDIOTS!!"

"But sir-!"

"WHAT?!?!"

"… She's come back. And with the map and the other guy…"

Nami walked up to Buggy's throne then, throwing Luffy at his feet.

"Hello there, Buggy. I've captured the man that was plotting against you! And I've returned your map!" Luffy blinked as the pieces clicked together, scowling up at Nami.

"Oi, you tricked me!" Nami stuck out her tongue at him.

"There's a bigger piece of the picture that you're missing, kid; I'm with them." Buggy laughed as he snatched back the map from Nami.

"Well done, Nami! Men, let's celebrate the return of our comrade! It turns out that she didn't betray us after all!!" The men cheered and brought out the alcohol, slamming Luffy in a cage and partying.

Nami drank the next bandit under the table, smirking to herself. It was a piece of cake, really. All she had to do was wait until the rest of the bandits were drunk or sleeping, and then she could grab the map, free Eyelashes, and then she was home free. She turned to look almost regretfully at the boy who had only gotten caught up by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was staring at the food with a hungry look on his face. Sighing and picking up another plate of food, she walked over to him and slid it through the bars.

"Here." He beamed up at Nami and immediately ate the entire plate, despite Nami feeding him only a little while ago.

"Thanks! You're not so bad after all!" Nami sadly shook her head at his naivety.

"If only you knew, kid…"

"Oi, Nami! What are you doing?" Nami whirled to see Buggy standing behind her with a bottle of rum in his hands. She stuttered for an answer, kicking away the empty plate.

"I was just… telling him what a fool he was for attempting to rob you!"

"Eh?" Buggy laughed, leaning down to smirk at Luffy.

"So you thought that you could put up Nami to betray us, boy? Don't you know who you're dealing with??"

"What are you talking about?" Buggy glared, and then grinned a nasty grin. He turned to the men behind him.

"I've just thought of something fun for us to do! Men, bring out the cannon! And our special ammunition!" Nami watched five men drag a cannon near the edge of the roof, a sinking feeling in her stomach.


Zoro and Usopp hopped off the horses as they came in the town, tying them on the post of the nearest bar. Usopp glanced back at the men, who were trembling at something. He blinked.

"Oi, what's wrong?"

"Th-This is… the town that we were supposed to go to…"

BOOM!! And then a giant explosion collapsed a whole section of the town right in front of them. The men shrank back and wailed

"And now he's mad!! That was his special cannon explosion; he only uses that if he's going to kill anyone who gets in his way!!" Usopp processed this, nodded sympathetically… And threw himself behind Zoro.

"Z-Zoro… are you sure Luffy's here??" Zoro grabbed Usopp and tossed him a few feet away, scowling.

"Yes, I'm sure. I'd think I'd notice if we were going the wrong way."

"What I mean is: why don't you go first?" Zoro scowled down at Usopp, who merely looked up with large, pleading eyes. Zoro rolled his eyes.

"First of all, I've been crammed in a lamp that is only eight inches long with about three inches of it being my living space for a thousand years; do not think that I feel any sympathy. Second of all, we need to keep moving. Try and keep up." And Zoro then stalked away, leaving Usopp to follow and wonder if he had agreed to his request or not.


Nami stared down at the small mach in her hand, and then looked back at the boy in the cage. Even with the cannon pointed directly at him, even with Nami standing right by the fuse with the match and the crowd of murderous bandits cheering her on…

He was staring at her with a blank face. It was an odd look for someone she had thought was incapable of anything but stupidity, and he was watching her very carefully. Nami thought he had every right to watch her; she was about to light his death! But somehow she had a feeling that he could sense her inner turmoil at bringing herself down to a real bandit's level, and he was somehow expecting her to do something stupid and suicidal.

She could feel it coming anyway, even if she did try to maintain a healthy level of self-preservation.

She gave a small start as he then spoke, face still blank. "Your hand is shaking. That's not good." Nami glanced down; huh, so it was. He continued on with the same blank face, as though his life wasn't hanging on Nami's decision.

"I have a friend who's a bandit, too. Usopp's the nicest person I've ever met though… He never even wanted to become a bandit in the first place! Things happen, I guess." Nami snapped up her head at the words; they were describing a very familiar scenario. She snapped back in an attempt to distract herself.

"Not everyone has a choice in how they live! Not everyone has the freedom to make their own decisions like you!" He blinked as though Nami had said something stupid.

"Who said I ever had a choice, either? None of us are free; that's why we left home. That's why we're going to the seas: for the ultimate adventure!" Nami stared at him, awed at his conviction. Was he really…?

"Oi, Nami! It's not that hard to light a fuse!" One of the bandits then came up behind her, snatching away the match and lighting it. Then he held it up to the fuse. "We can't wait all day, you know."

Something in Nami snapped. Maybe it was the stress of plotting against a fellow bandit while not betraying their employer, maybe it was the kindred spirit sitting in front of the loaded cannon speaking of something that Nami could never even dare to dream of, but either way Nami whirled to the offender with a murderous look in her eye. She then yanked out her staff pieces, sliding the slots together in a twirl, and slamming the full-length staff against the bandit's head. Hard.

The crowd went silent at the new development, Buggy stepping forward with a dangerous glint in his eye.

"Nami, what the hell is the meaning of this?! I gave you the honors of terminating the man that made you suffer, and you directly disobey me??" Behind her the boy blinked.

"Oh, so you're saving me now…?" Nami glared; she had a suspicion that he expected it all along.

"Idiot! I'm not saving you! And you" She turned and glared at Buggy. "I don't take orders from you, or any other one of Arlong's goons! My orders come from Arlong himself, and no one else!" Buggy twitched as he glared at Nami.

"Nami…" Behind her the kid blinked at the exchange.

"Arlong…?" Suddenly he yelped. "THE FUSE IS STILL LIT!!!" Nami gasped and turned to the cannon, where the fuse was slowly burning away. Nami then dropped her staff and did something that she would never be able to explain for years to come; she snuffed out the fuse with her bare hands.

Luffy stared at the girl as she shrieked in pain, but then yelled as Buggy sent his men to attack. "LOOK OUT!!"

WHUMP!!

Zoro was suddenly behind Nami, katana held out without being drawn. He glared at the offenders.

"If there's anything I hate, it's attacking from behind with a sword." Luffy grinned.

"Zoro!" A huff came as another figure climbed up at the top of the stairs, collapsing. "Usopp!" Usopp rolled over on his side, staring at Luffy without really seeing his situation.

"Luffy…" Usopp wheezed, pausing to clear his dry throat. "We gotta… get out of here… Buggy… the clown…" Usopp's attention was then drawn by a cough, and he looked past Luffy (why was Luffy in a cage?) to see the entire gaggle of the Clown Bandits staring at the new intruders with their scimitars drawn.

Usopp's eyes rolled back in his head and he fainted dead on the spot.

Nami glanced back to where the green-haired man repositioned his swords back to their original places. She could have sworn that no one was there a moment ago…

"Th-Thank you sir…" The man turned and scowled at her.

"I didn't save you. They were just in my way." Nami blinked at the odd logic before glaring right back.

"Well then, you must have been in a real hurry to get three feet behind me just as they were attacking me! I'm trying to thank you-"

"I. Didn't. Save. You." Nami huffed and turned away.

"Right."

"Nah, it's true. Zoro's not allowed to save people." Nami blinked and turned to the boy that was sitting in the cage, wearing a smile of relief. She turned back to the man; Zoro wasn't it? Was he a slave then? But the scowl on Zoro's face as he glanced back was far from what any slave would show his master.

"You idiot!! Do you realize how long we had to chase that damned bird?! What kind of fool shoots himself up into the sky like that??" The kid shrugged.

"We were hungry, weren't we? You wouldn't get it…" Nami almost went cross-eyed at what their conversation implied. He had shot himself into the sky and was carried off by a bird?! Zoro scowled as he began walking towards Luffy.

"Why you…!!" Buggy then stepped forward with an incredulous look on his face, staring particularly at the three katana strapped to Zoro's side. His face then widened into a large smirk.

"Roronoa Zoro, I presume?"


Cliff hanger!! They're starting to become addicting… And before you ask; no, Buggy is not a thousand years old. I actually like this chapter, kind of… Which probably means that it has way more than the usual load of crap in it. Eh, oh well. I only screwed a little bit with this part… Like the whole conversation thing. Luffy isn't actually calling himself a bandit, you know. And Nami is a bandit herself anyway, so she would have no reason to hate Luffy. I would imagine that she would resent anyone who she thought had a bit more freedom than her…

So instead of the whole 'pirates and their chosen way of life' gig that is supposed to be present, I went with Aladdin's theme of freedom instead. It works, yo. It works.

You know, I was thinking of who the characters most represent, and…

Aladdin would be Usopp.

Abu would be Luffy. (Just mixing around the main character order)

Genie would be Zoro. (Obviously)

Jasmine would be Nami.

Rajah, Jasmine's pet tiger, would be Sanji. (XD)

Jafar would be Arlong, with more than one Iago.

And then the obvious sultan would be Garp. Just less chubby and twice as silly. :D

… Yeah, or something similar. You never know. :3

Special thanks to bookishangel, Kerykeion, eternitybeckons, and NinjaFoodLover for reviewing! I SAY THIS EVERY CHAPTER BECAUSE I'M REALLY GRATEFUL!!! BAM, there it is.

… Why do I say BAM all the time…?? I think I got it from Animal Crossing… :O