Ugh, I've been having other plot bunnies. They are also more popular so I worked more on them than Lost.

Anyways, chapter four here.

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, or anything about it. This story was made for entertainment, not profit. Only thing I own are the OC. They are from my manga story.


Present Time

Zoro panted as he crouched in his hiding place. The ever changing surroundings around him were not helping his concentration in the lest. Suddenly, the tree in front of Zoro was uprooted and the monster chasing him was in his face again. Zoro grit his teeth in frustration.

"Tatsu Maki!" he roared.

The monster disappeared under the flurry of blades. Zoro speed off, looking for the exit before it also turned into sweets. Why sweets? He muttered in his mind. He rounded a corner and-

The dead monster body was in his face again. He turned around and raced off again. Unexpectedly, a large piece of rock candy smashed into his head. Growling, he looked up. He saw the crumbling block, teasing him, "Try again." Slicing through the gloating piece of candy, he ran off, even more frustrated than before.

Where the heck is that stupid end to this level?

\OwO/

Sanji was utterly confused. The mountain wasn't getting anywhere nearer to the group, try as they might to approach the foot of the mountain. And their missing nakama. It was so unlikely to Sanji that Zoro would be reduced to such a pitiful state. Zoro was not one to accept help easily. The large gash also did not seem to be enough too severe that Zoro could not fend for himself without the help of a stranger. He had seen worse at Thriller Bark.

Sighing, Sanji continued through the forest. Chopper eagerly gathered herbs while Luffy was bouncing happily. Robin carefully examined the deep jungle, searching for clues that might help her search for a polygraph. Nami quietly followed Yuro's lead as they guided the party to their destination.

Yuro. She was an odd person to Sanji. He had never met her before, however, he still felt an odd suspicion about her intentions. The lady carried herself with careful distain. Keeping her distance from the pirates. She didn't even seem to care if they followed or got lost. Several times Sanji even believed she was trying to get them lost, to get rid of the unruly pirates.

A mean looking bird flapped past his face, startling Sanji from his thoughts. The animals in the jungle were so strange. Scaly hides shining in the light as birds groomed themselves. Bats with what seemed quite an eagles talons swooped from tree to tree. A sharp pain shot up Sanji's leg. Yelping in surprise he looked down at a small mouse. Even they had some of the sharpest teeth that Sanji had ever seen.

He sighed and slipped past another slim tree. Brushing his hand on a limb, Sanji noted the rubbery texture of the bark. It startled him that trees could feel like that. Slapping the branch away, the party moved on.

Smack!

Sanji reeled from the impact. That branch was crazy sturdy, it seemed impossible that anything could be that stiff and rubbery. Then again, there was Luffy… Sanji didn't dwell on the issue. He was curios why it was so stiff. Kicking at a small sapling, he tried to break it apart.

"Hey, Sanji, what are you doing?" Luffy inquired.

"Nothing much," Sanji huffed, "just trying to find out why these rubbery trees are so stiff."

As he finished his remark, the sapling finally gave way and spewed out a torrent of water, utterly drenching Sanji. He sputtered out in disbelief. How in the world could a tiny sapling contain so much water in its body?

Robin chuckled, "Cook-sama, I believe you helped us discover just why there are no rivers and why the limbs are so stiff."

Yuro waved a hand for Robin to go on with her explanation and turned to Sanji. Muttering an incantation under her breath, Yuro pointed at the water. In a flash of light, the water flew into the air away from the group.

Robin continued, "These tree's rubbery bark keep the water inside of it from escaping easily. The trees were also able to absorb huge amounts of water. This would seem to be the cause of why were no rivers or streams in this place; there wasn't enough water to make one. These animals all had to survive somehow, so they all have a very sharp body part that lets them cut through the bark to gain water."

Sanji nodded, "At least now we know how to get water."

Chopper reached over and sniffed a plant. He smiled, "The water smells clear and free of pollutants. It's safe to drink!"

Luffy gulped down giant mouthfuls of water from the branch Chopper was examining. "SWEET!" he exclaimed.

Sanji broke off different branches and handed one each to Robin, Nami, and Yuro, "For the wonderful ladies here."

Robin and Yuro smiled. "Thank you Sanji," Nami said.

"My pleasure," he beamed.

Sanji brought the branch to his lips. The rubber wood broke in a smooth line, no splinters seeking to hurt their lips. Sipping the clear liquid, he quickly came to the same conclusion as Luffy. The water was really surprisingly sweet, slipping over his tongue and bringing a cool happy feeling to his body. Water was really good for you and this was the best water he had ever tasted.

He was going to bring some back to the ship.

\OwO/

Far away in the castle complex, Zoro was also feeling very smug. The levels were getting fairly easy as he learned a few tricks. Each level seemed to be training the player a different skill. But these seemed to be odd skills. One level he passed a long time ago seemed to be focused on how to defeat several different fire creatures. To his annoyance, there wasn't a single drop of water nearby. He had to keep the strange animals at bay and then run off and jump into the portal, ending the level.

Another level, he shuddered at the memory, dark zombie like shadows shifted everywhere. It was impossible to cut them. Each time he attempted, the damn things multiplied. The exit didn't appear anywhere. He didn't escape that crazy place until a large plastic flask slammed into his head. Cutting the vial open, the contents, poison he quickly learned, crept up his sword. It did help rid himself of the annoying shadows. But it still to several hours for him to level.

Suddenly remembering what the strange lady had said, he wondered if it had really been several hours. If he remembered correctly, she had mentioned something about every event that happened in this room was faster than reality. Something about what felt like several hours inside the room was truly for about thirty minutes. He shrugged and continued.

He had seen a glimpse of yellow as he was thinking. Jumping into the portal, (Why did the thing always squeak like a mouse being choked to death every time I go through? He mused) Zoro landed in the new stage.

"WARNING!"

Zoro flinched, the room had screamed at him the second he arrived. And it wasn't done.

"Mental trauma is not our fault. Weakness in this level is not accepted. You have three choices, die, break, or succeed. I hope you choice the third choice."

Mental trauma? What does that mea-

Flashing in his face, Zoro read the glowing words in the air above him and growled.

"Level fifty; Death"


Wow, chapter 4's done.

And really, I could not think of a name for the new level that would not give away too much.

God, the next story looks like it's going to be another depressing chapter I have to write. Joy.

See next time!

~hp1piececraziness