Hey guys, I'm back!

So with this being the first chapter back, I'm not sure how many of you will be around, but to those who are, it's really great to have a new chapter here for you guys for the first time in ages. My exams are indeed over now, meaning that hopefully we can get some regular updates together and maybe reach the end of this story before the end of the summer? Well, that's the goal at least.

Also, at some point after putting up the last chapter, we actually reached the big 150 review mark, which is insane actually. I really didn't think this story would even get past 100, so to be on 150 is amazing. Thanks so much for all your support. And speaking of support, a huge thanks to Sev in particular. Your review on the last chapter was up there with the best I have ever gotten, so really thanks for that.

So anyway, let's not waste any more time. Welcome back!

"Meat…"

Nami smiled slightly. She had never been so happy to hear Luffy say that word.

She'd spent the whole night at the hospital. Luckily, after surgery, Luffy was fine, his wound patched up. Of course, it would be a good few weeks before his wound was healed, but honestly, for Nami, the fact that he was alive, and didn't take any long term damage, was more than good enough.

That's why she was actually enjoying watching Luffy sleep that morning, and didn't even mind that he appeared to be dreaming about food.

Just then, the door opened, and in walked Garp. "How's he been? Any problems?"

Nami shook her head. "No, he's been perfect. Slept like a baby. I want so badly to wake him up, but..."

Garp went to Luffy's bedside, as if wanting to get a closer look of the teen's face. "Yeah, you're right to let him rest. Poor kid's been through a lot."

Nami nodded. "Yeah. Also… How's….uh….?"

"Ace? Dunno, he hasn't woken up either. Doctor's won't let me see him though. His condition's a hell of a lot worse than Luffy's, that's for sure…"

Garp trailed off, now gazing intently at Luffy's face. The teen's mouth was hung wide open, with saliva dripping from the sides. He was definitely dreaming about food. At any other time, he'd have looked completely ridiculous, but Garp, like Nami, was just overcome with emotion that he was OK.

"Nami…." Luffy moaned. Nami's heart leapt. She jumped up from her seat.

"…. Please don't hit me…."

Nami rolled her eyes, feeling now a little annoyed. She fell back into her initial position. "So that's what he thinks about when he dreams about me…"

Garp chuckled. "Typical…"

######

"No."

Zoro gritted his teeth, beginning to lose his temper. "Why the hell not!" He barked into his phone.

"I'm sorry, but that is information I can't disclose to anyone outside the force," Marco's voice calmly replied from the other end of the line.

"But I want to help! I want to protect Robin!"

"I know that, but like it or not, the best way to protect Robin is by keeping her's and Nefertari Vivi's location as much of secret as possible. That means that no one outside the force can know where she is. I know it's tough, but you're just gonna have to trust us on this one."

"But you know I can help!"

"Zoro, look what happened to Luffy last night! Do you want that to happen to you?"

"No, but-"

"Just leave this to us, OK? If you want to help us, look after Luffy, and report anything suspicious if you see anything, OK? Leave catching Baroque Works to us, OK?"

"…."

"Zoro?"

"Fine," Zoro grunted.

"Good. Don't worry, they'll be safe here. They're not even allowed to use their phones in case Baroque Works is able to trace calls and so find their location. You'll be the first to know if we make any progress too."

"Whatever…"

"Zoro, I-"

Zoro didn't bother listening to what Marco had to say, instead hanging up. "Damn it…. There must be something I can do…"

Zoro fell back onto his bed, and stared up at the ceiling. He felt completely useless.

######

Mr 2 sighed loudly, turning the corner onto a side street. Mr 1 rolled his eyes. "Still thinking about that kid?"

"What, Luffy? Of course not. I mean, not really…. Come on Daz, is it wrong to feel bad for a kid who's been put in his position?"

"That 'kid' is an enemy of the boss, that's all that matters. He got what he deserved. And even if you disagree, it's not your place to question the boss…. You do know that, right?"

"Oh come on Daz… it's just you and me, we don't need to do this whole 'Crocodile is our God' thing now, do we?"

"He's our boss. I don't believe in God, but he's the closest thing to one for me. And it's the same for you. Unless…."

Mr 1 trailed off, and smirked wickedly. Mr 2 gulped slightly, even him creeped out by the assassin's 'evil smile'. "What is it?"

"Unless you want to go the same way as the kid. I'd have no complaints."

Mr 2 gulped again, inwardly deciding to keep his mouth shut for the rest of the journey. Mr 1 eyed him amusedly, glad that his words had the desired effect.

He was in a pretty good mood that morning. He had always been Crocodile's right hand man, but his feat yesterday of saving his boss and possibly killing Ace had earned him special 'brownie points' with Crocodile. Not to mention he had another opportunity to do so today, with Miss Doublefinger providing him with the location of a new target.

Mr 1 chuckled. "Hurry up Mr 2… This 'Kohza' won't just wait around for us…"

######

"Is it really OK?"

Sanji looked over at Brook, who was staring at the ground. The two, along with Usopp, Chopper and Franky, were in the blonde teen's living room, having gotten back from the hospital a couple of hours ago.

"Is what OK?"

"Giving up."

Franky sighed. "Brook, don't start this…."

Chopper shook his head, a determined look on his face. "Zoro was right. Robin's our friend, we can't just abandon her-"

"Shut up!" Sanji shouted, suddenly losing his temper. He stood up. "We can't do anything! After what happened last night… All we can do is die for her, and would that make Robin feel any better?! Can you imagine how guilty she'd feel if one of us was killed trying to protect her?! We have to leave her alone. Not just for our sake… but for her as well."

"Sanji…"

Sanji shoved his hands into his pocked, and turned towards the doorway. "We can't save her this time. So just forget about it."

Chopper and Brook looked at each other, before sinking back in their seats, admitting defeat. Franky sighed again. Usopp however gritted his teeth, and stood up. "I… I can't accept that."

Sanji turned around and glared at Usopp. He grabbed the long nosed teen by the front of his shirt. "What are you saying? Did you not just hear what I-"

Usopp met Sanji's glare with a glare of his own, admittedly taking the blonde teen by surprise. "Because Luffy wouldn't accept that! Luffy wouldn't give up, ever! He'd always give everything for our sake!"

"Idiot, think about Robin's feelings for a-"

"I'm not the one ignoring Robin's feelings, you are! If you even gave a shit about Robin, you wouldn't be suggesting abandoning her!"

"Eh? Don't tell me I don't care about Robin, you little-"

"Stop it!" Chopper shouted, jumping up from his seat. "Stop fighting! This isn't helping anything!"

The two glared at each other for a second, before Sanji finally released Usopp. Without saying a word, he turned around and left the room.

"You OK, man?" Franky asked Usopp, who was dusting himself off.

"Yeah… I think so…."

Chopper held his head in his hands, tears welling up in his eyes. "This isn't right…."

######

Robin looked expectantly at Marco as he entered the room.

"Don't worry, it doesn't sound like Zoro's going to do anything rash. He, and the rest of your friends, will be fine."

Robin nodded. "Thank you."

Marco smirked. "No worries. You know, that guy really cares about you."

Robin smiled slightly. "Yeah, I know... I'm grateful to have him. And the rest of my friends of course."

"Yeah… So where's your mother? And Vivi?"

"They're in the bedroom. Say, you haven't told her about Ace yet, have you?"

Marco looked away from Robin. "No… I haven't. Although sooner or later, she's gonna wonder why he hasn't come to visit her…"

"I see."

Marco shook his head. "I'm sure he'll be fine. He's tough as nails that guy. Say, are you hungry? I was just about to head back to the station, so I could pick up some pizza or something on the way back. Better than the stuff they have here anyway…"

Robin was about to reply, when Marco's phone buzzed in his pocket. He dug it out of his pocket, before immediately leaving the room, knowing better than to talk in front of Robin in case he received any news she wouldn't want to hear.

Just then, Vivi and Olivia entered the room. Robin smiled at them. "Hey, you guys hungry?"

Vivi nodded. "Yeah… starving actually. Say, I could've sworn I hear Mr. Marco here…."

"He just stepped out to take a phone call. He's the one who-"

Before Robin could finish, Marco re-entered the room. "Sorry Robin, looks like I'm going to be gone a while. Although… Actually…"

"What is it?"

Marco looked at Robin for a second, as if needing to make his mind up, before sighing. "We intercepted a call. It was a woman… Miss Doublefinger. She's an agent from Baroque Works. She was sending Mr 1 and Mr 2 after someone. You don't happen to know who this 'Kohza' guy is, do you?"

Vivi gasped. "They're after Kohza?"

######

Zoro yawned loudly, making his way down the stairs, his nap over.

It was nearly two in the afternoon now, meaning he'd slept through lunch. That was all he could really think to do, without Robin or his other friends.

"Damn, this is the worst summer ever…" He grumbled to himself as he entered his kitchen. He looked at the fridge, before reaching for his home phone instead, deciding against cooking. That never ended well. He'd just order something from somewhere…

Just then however, the doorbell rang. Zoro groaned, not really in the mood to see anyone. He made his way to the front door, not bothering to hide the scowl across his face.

"What do you want?" He grunted as he opened the door, not recognising the tall man with glasses standing there.

"You! I need your help!"

Zoro mentally slapped himself, it at last dawning on him who it was. "Hey, aren't you that Kohza guy Vivi was…"

"May I please come in? I'll explain everything when we're safe!"

Zoro blinked, but complied, stepping aside to allow Kohza in.

"Thank you," Kohza muttered, taking one last look behind him before entering. When he was done, Zoro led him into the kitchen. Kohza was about to say something when Zoro turned away from him and went to the fridge. He rummaged around in there for a bit, before finally giving up and instead going to tap, pouring a glass of water. He looked over his shoulder and jerked his head to the side, trying to gesture to the table.

"Sit down. You look tired. You need to calm down before you try explaining anything."

Kohza was about to say something, but instead nodded, accepting Zoro's point, sitting down at the table. "You're right. We should be safe here."

Zoro put down the glass in front of him, before sitting down opposite him. "Sorry there's nothing to eat. I was just about to get some lunch when you came."

"N- no, it's fine. Thank you."

"It's no problem. And don't worry, whoever's after you won't find you here. I assume it's-"

"Baroque Works. Yes. I was being followed by two of their members, Mr 1 and Mr 2."

Zoro's blood boiled at the sound of Mr 1's name. He never got to pay him back for nearly killing Robin. "You saw them?"

"No, but they're looking for me."

"After you? Why? How'd you know this?"

Kohza reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He played around on in for a second before placing it on the table, in front of Zoro.

Mr 2 and Mr 1 are coming for you. Hide.

Zoro blinked. "Who's this from?"

"Vivi. Where is she anyway, I figured you'd all be togeth-"

Zoro's eyes widened. "Wait, Vivi sent this?! But Marco said that they weren't allowed to use their phones in case…"

"Marco? Who's that? And what do you mean they're not allowed?"

Zoro didn't bother answering, instead lunging for his home phone. "I have to call him. If she used her phone, then they may be able to find them…"

######

"What?" Marco choked, alerting Whitebeard, who was driving the police car.

"What's going on?" Whitebeard demanded.

Marco ignored him. "Are you serious? OK, stay there with him. Damn, that girl…. OK, thanks Zoro, don't leave your house, we'll handle this. I promise we won't let any harm come to Robin or the others, you can count on us!"

Whitebeard glared at Marco as soon as he hung the phone up. "Oi, you should know better than to ignore me… So you gonna tell me what the hell's going on?"

"We have to head back to the safe house, now! Baroque Works were never after this Kohza, it was a trap!"

"What are you talking about?"

"When Vivi found out this Kohza guy was in trouble, she texted him to warn him. They wanted her to use her phone so that they'd be able to trace her phone and locate her! This is all my fault, if I hadn't told them, then…"

Whitebeard gritted his teeth, slamming his foot down onto the pedal. "Idiot girl…"

######

Miss Doublefinger chuckled. "That was a genius plan of yours boss."

Crocodile grinned. "Once I found out that brat was here, it was clear he'd be the easiest way to get to Vivi. I remember that fool Cobra being so excited about his little spoilt brat finally making a friend all those years ago. Still, I'm surprised that girl would be so stupid to try to contact him."

"Love, huh? It makes people do stupid things."

"I suppose so. How long will those two be now anyway?"

Miss Doublefinger glanced at her watched. "They'll be back within an hour now that I've given them the location."

"Good, good… Well. I'm bored now."

Miss Doublefinger laughed. "Don't worry. Just sit back and enjoy. Your hard work's finally about to pay off."

######

"So you wanna tell me what the hell's going on?"

Zoro looked over at Kohza, before placing the phone down, and returning to his seat at the table. "Vivi and Robin are in danger."

"What? What happened? Where are they, we have to go help them!"

"I don't know where they are… Something happened last night, and so Vivi and Robin were taken to a safehouse where they could be guarded by the police."

"So what's going on? You said they were in danger. What just happened?"

Zoro bit his lip. It probably wouldn't be a good idea to tell Kohza that Vivi texting him was what had given her location away. "The details don't matter at this point. All we can do is wait."

"You're just gonna sit here and twiddle your thumbs whilst that bastard Crocodile makes his move?! Listen, that may be good enough for you, but I love Vivi, and I won't let her-"

"Shut up!" Zoro roared. "You think I don't care about them? If you're so eager to do something, then tell me… just what can we do? I want to help them just as much as you do, but there's nothing that we can do."

Kohza glared at Zoro, standing up. "And you can just accept that?! Screw this, I'm leaving…"

Zoro glared back, grabbing Kohza's arm. "You're kidding, right? You think by wandering around you're just going to somehow find where they are?"

"I'll do everything I can for Vivi's sake. I won't just sit around while she's in danger."

Zoro released his arm. "Fine. Do what you want. Running around out there won't solve anything, and you know that."

"Whatever. You know, I was really glad to see Vivi had found friends like that Luffy guy. I thought you guys would protect her with everything you have. Guess I was wro-"

Zoro suddenly stood up and grabbed Kohza by the front of his shirt. "What, you think I don't want to protect them?! You think if there was some way I could keep Robin safe from Crocodile, that I wouldn't be doing that?!"

"Then prove it."

Zoro glared heatedly at Kohza, before releasing him. "Like I said, do what you want."

Kohza walked straight past Zoro, out of the kitchen, not looking back once. Zoro fell back in his chair, before sighing. Was there really nothing he could do?

######

Crocodile smirked at the sight of Daz Bones entering the room. "Ah, you're back. How'd it go?"

"Mission accomplished. They're in the basement, all three of them."

"Three? Oh, that's right, Olivia. I forgot about her, silly me. And the police?"

"Seems like we got there before they figured out what was going on."

Crocodile smirked, satisfied. "Good. Come, sit down, get yourself a drink. It's time to celebrate a job well done. Although…" Crocodile's expression shifted from satisfied to irritated. "Where is Mr 2?"

"Said he wanted to check something. Why, you think he's with the targets?"

"Wouldn't surprise me. He's always had a soft spot for Robin…"

Miss Doublefinger giggled. "I like him. The contrast between you two and him is perfect."

"Is that really a good thing though?" Mr 1 grumbled, crossing his arms.

Crocodile yawned. "Probably not. Still, I'll think about what to do with Mr 2 later. For now, let's celebrate. To a plan coming off!"

"Cheers!" Miss Doublefinger and Mr 1 replied simultaneously, holding up their glasses.

So there was a lot of fighting in this chapter, huh? Honestly, I probably went over the top, but I hope it was still OK.

So yeah, this has been the first chapter after a really long time. Hope you guys enjoyed, and as always, thanks for reading and please leave a review if you can.