Meeting Mugiwara and Old Foes

Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece.

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Night fell on the town and island of Whiskey Peak and everything was alive with excitement and celebration. As soon as they had docked earlier, the Axe-Heads noticed that another boat was docked nearby and the townspeople were practically worshipping the ground that they walked on. Kirsty, Dusty, Niri and even Chizuru seemed very flattered that they had a lot of young men willing to do anything for their comfort...in fact, they welcomed it!

Devon and Axe were also welcomed with a sight that would've been perfect to any other male. Gorgeous women were pawing at them while grog and food were offered to them, and to the girls, on large platters. Axe turned to the mayor of the town, a large man with a mane of curler-filled blonde hair and a large smile on his face, "Dude, I can so get used to this...,"

"I hope you and the Straw Hats will enjoy your stay here, O Great One," the mayor said with a bow. Axe stopped in his tracks and looked at him, "Straw Hat...Straw Hat Luffy is here?" he asked slowly. The mayor nodded, "Yes...they arrived a little bit before you did. Do you know their captain?".

"...in a way," Axe said with a slow nod, "Anyhoo, let's party down!" he looked at the women around him, "C'mon ladies, lemme show you how we party where we come from!". Devon rolled his eyes and shook his head, grinning, "Nothing gets to you, eh Captain?"

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"MONKEY D. LUFFY!"

The door to the tavern burst open as Axe kicked it hard, startling everyone inside. Axe walked in, leaving the welcoming party and his nakama in his wake. He looked around the tavern and took in the sight, a fierce look on his face.

There were five people in the tavern being welcomed in a manner very similar to his crew. One was a young man in overalls with dark curly hair and a long nose; another was a man with blonde hair that covered one side of his face, his dark suit askew; the third was a man hunched over a table, a mug in his hand, three swords at his side and his green hair standing out of everyone else in the room; the fourth one was the only girl of the group, she had short orange hair and a look about her that reminded him of Niri; then the fifth one...was him.

He sat at a table, plates of food surrounding him and a blank look on his face. Axe slowly made his way up to the table and leaned forward, "I've been looking for you for a loooong time, Mugiwara," he said quietly.

Axe's ears twitched slightly as he heard some of the guests stand up from their seats, while one of them ran away. Luffy stared at Axe and he stared back at Luffy for the longest time.

"Oi...what do you want? You wanna fight?"

"...nah...but I do wanna challenge,"

Luffy grinned, "What kind?"

Axe returned the grin and sat down next to him, taking off his coat, "I've always wanted to see how much you can eat...I've heard alot about you and your strength, and your appetite...I think I can beat you though,".

EVERYONE in the tavern, welcoming committee, Luffy's nakama and Axe's nakama fell over onto the floor. The tension had been so thick when Axe stormed inside, looking like he wanted a fight and all he wanted was an eating contest?!

Luffy's grin became wider and he patted Axe hard on the back, "Yosh!" he turned to the chefs nearby, "MORE FOOD OVER HERE!" he yelled.

Axe's crew stood up and stared at the sight, blinking and thinking the exact same thing.

"Baka...making us worry like that...,".

The party went on normally after that challenge was made. Axe and Luffy were neck and neck in their contest while Dusty, Niri, Chizuru and Kirsty were being fawned over by the blonde man, who later revealed himself to be Sanji of the Baratie, the man Axe had wanted to join as the ships chef. Devon saw this and shook his head, then walked over to the girl and the man of the Straw Hat crew.

"Oi...Roronoa Zolo...," Devon plopped down next to him and joined in the drinking, "Didn't expect to see you again...," he greeted. The legendary Pirate Hunter turned Pirate looked at Devon and grinned, "Well well...the kid from Roguetown,".

Devon nodded, "Yep...it's the kid," he looked down at Zolo's belt and frowned, "I see you got your three swords back...and they look very well on you. Wado Ichimonji, Sandai Kitetsu, and Yubashiri...powerful swords...then again a powerful swordsman like you needs powerful blades,".

Zolo smirked, "You know your swords,"

"Got to know, Roronoa...got to know,"

"What's your name, boy?" Zolo asked as he drank another mug. Devon followed suit, "Name's Devon...but they call me the Demon,". Zolo belched and looked at him, "You're the Demon? Kid, I've seen your poster and I always thought you'd look...,"

"Intimidating? Frightening? Powerful?"

"Older and taller...,"

Devon facefaulted and looked away, "Feh...,"

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Late into the night, the party died down and everyone who had partied down were feeling the effects of the excitement. Axe and Luffy had fallen over backwards in their chairs, bellies large with food as their mouths were covered with specks of grog and meat; Kirsty and Chizuru were slumped together against the wall, content looks on their faces; and Dusty was stumbling towards the exit, hiccuping as she went.

She wandered around the streets for a little bit until she stopped and looked around, "Man...I came out here looking for the bathroom, now I got lost...,". Her ears twitched as she heard footsteps behind her. Grinning, she turned around, "Oh man...look I need help, I can't find the can and I need to go,".

"Really now, Little Fox? Because we were thinking of something else you need to do," a cold and familiar voice. Dusty's eyes widened and a low growl emitted from her throat. Finally, two scents reached her nose and she immediately knew who was with the bastard from her past.

"Nya nya...Master, I don't think she's in the mood to see us,"

"It seems that way, kitten...but I think that'll change soon,".

Dusty backed away and reached behind her for her scythes, but were unable to find them.

"Looking for these?" Dmitri asked, holding up the curved blades, "Katt snatched them away while you were partying...I don't think you know what the effect of too much fun can do on your Zoan senses, Little Fox," he explained.

Dusty looked from the tattooed traitor to Katt, the Zoan user from Phlan, the one who had fought against her in Azala's compound, "Well this is just frickin' great...,". Katt snickered and leaned her head against Dmitri's shoulder, "Nya...can I play with her now, Master?" she asked with a cold smile.

"Master? Oh god, Dmitri, you are such a furry-lovin' freak,"

Dmitri reached over to Katt and fiddled with something around her neck. Dusty stuck out her tongue in disgust to see that Katt wore a collar and a leash that Dmitri held in his free hand, "Dude...seriously...freak,". Dmitri glared at her as he detached the leash, "Katt...go and play with her, but don't kill her alright? I still want you to have a playmate for later,"

"Yes Master Dmitri,"

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Devon was also wandering through the streets of Whiskey Peak, the moon high in the night sky. "Always kinda expected the Grand Line to be a big thing...but so far, all we did was party...," he mumbled, scratching his head and yawning.

"You say that like partying is a bad thing,".

He stopped and shook his head, "Dammit, Niri...you know you're gonna give someone a heart attack by doing that,". He turned to his left and watched Niri step out of the shadows, shotgun on her back and pistol on her thigh, "Seriously...cut back on that,".

Niri shook her head, "Nah...I gotta practice my stealth. It was one of my favorite things in Marine training and I use it alot in my money exploits,". Devon frowned, "Speaking of that," he started to walk alongside her, "Since when did Marines start stealing money?" he asked. Niri shrugged, "I've always stole what I could. I never stole from the needy and the good Marines. I stole from the rich and greedy, and the corrupt...I gave what I could to help the others, then kept the rest of the loot for myself," she explained.

Devon was about to ask another question when a loud dull noise ripped through the air. The two of them turned to the direction of where it came from, hands at their weapons. "What the hell was that?" Devon asked quietly. Niri closed her eyes and listened to a second and third sound, exactly the same from before.

"Shotgun blast...but it's weird. It's nothing like any other gun I've heard before,"

"What do you mean?"

"I dunno...it...just sounds off for some reason,"

Click

Devon blinked, "Niri...was that you?"

"Nope...,"

"Company?"

"Yep,"

"...bad for us?"

"Most likely...,".

"...bring it on,"

The two of them turned to see two people standing a short ways away. One was a woman with long pink hair and a hateful look in her eyes, her body nearly camoflauged because of her dark suit and the mixture of the shadows. She had a wicked smile on her face as she leveled a long barreled pistol at Niri while her friend stepped forward towards Devon.

Devon unsheathed his katanas and looked at the man in front of him. He was mostly covered in a tattered brown robe, his orange hair glowing in the moonlight. Devon frowned, "...can I help you, stranger?" he asked, holding up his katanas.

The man with orange hair growled, "YOU IDIOT! YOU DON'T REMEMBER ME AT ALL DO YOU?!" he yelled. Devon frowned, "I don't think we ever met...,".

"WE HAVE YOU MORON! SANCURO RIKUREN, BOUNTY HUNTER!"

Niri raised an eyebrow and looked at Devon, "You got a bounty hunter?"

Devon shrugged, "I guess so...I don't recall ever meeting him,"

Sancuro fell over, "YOU DO THIS EVERYTIME WE MEET!"

"Maybe it's because I don't remember the weaklings I go up against," Devon said defensively, then looked at the woman with pink hair, "Now you...I would've definitely remembered meeting you before,".

Niri blinked a few times then snapped her fingers, "Ah! I remember her now...thanks for the ship, Rose!" she said with a wave and a grin. Rose, the woman gambler who was previously the Tomahawk's owner, seethed and glared at her, "I want my boat back, you cheating little bitch,"

"Fine...let's get this over with," Niri sighed as she pulled her shotgun from behind her back. Devon cracked his neck and twirled his blades, "Whatever...,".

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On the other side of the island, a small man with greasy hair woke up with a pounding headache. He sat up and felt a large goose egg-sized lump on his head. Wincing, he looked around and noticed something was wrong with the ship he was on. He had come down here to give a prisoner his dinner, but something had happened.

The cage prison where the punk was kept looked as thought an animal tore through it and the floor of the cage had burn marks that stretched from the wall to the iron bars. Pierre gulped, "Oh my...oh my, oh my...Miss Rose will not like this one bit...," he groaned.

Outside the ship, a large cloud of dirt and rocks flew through the air as something flew across the ground, over the hills towards the town.

"Heheheheh...nothing can hold me! You think you were quick enough to catch me before...you don't know what it means to be fast. I'll show you true speed!"