Chapter 36 - Rei Meets Rebecca

Meanwhile, beneath the sunflower field in Dressrosa, Zoro was about to blow a gasket in the middle of the "King Riku Army" Headquarters. He had fulfilled his end of the bargain and brought Wicca to the Flower Field. However, a slight distraction caused him to not immediately head to the Thousand Sunny.

What is she doing in a tournament?!, he seethed as he watched the replay of Rei's fight with Jesus Burgess on the projection from the transponder snail, I thought she didn't want to even watch the tournament! She told me not to worry about her and then she pulls this stunt?! She's really testing my limits.

Even with a baseball cap and goggles, Zoro could tell it was her. With that stupid utility belt and the way she moved, he knew it was her without a doubt.

He was also fully aware that he was scaring the Tontatta's gathered around him with his huffing and puffing but he did not care. He watched as they recapped the shockwave that sent her flying through the arena and spitting blood. Even though he already knew the outcome and that she had won, it was still very hard for him to watch. He clenched his jaw as he watched her land shakily.

My Haki, he thought to himself, She used it again. I knew I felt something earlier.

He felt as if someone had reached into the pits of his stomach and grabbed a hold of it. Even as he watched Rei expertly climb around Burgess like he was her personal playground and manipulate him into elbowing himself, Zoro's worry did not subside. By strength alone, Burgess had the upperhand but she had managed to turn his advantage to work in her favor.

When they showed the clip announcing her win and how she had just stayed in the middle of the arena, Zoro's stomach twisted. They showed a close-up of her as she knelt on the floor with only one trembling arm holding her up.

"Zoro!" a voice called from behind him and he turned around to see Franky. He was waving to the swordsman with a smile and a toy soldier on his shoulder.

Zoro immediately grabbed the lapels on Franky's suit jacket and yanked him closer so that they were nose to nose.

"Oy! Franky!" Zoro snarled, "What the hell is Rei doing in a tournament?!"

"She's fighting with Luffy to get Ace's Flare-Flare fruit." Franky said calmly, "She won! She's fine!"

"No, she's not!" Zoro growled, "Did you not see the fight with Burgess?!"

"I was there! She walked off the arena!" Franky replied unfazed, "You need to super calm down."

"Damn that idiot," Zoro snapped as he released Franky and turned his attention back to the screen, which was now showing Luffy and Don Chinjao's current fight. "If there is an event like this, why didn't you guys tell me?! I wanna fight with my swords."

"What are you doing here in the first place?" Franky asked, confused as to what exactly Zoro was angry about.

Before the swordsman could answer, one of the tiny people shouted, "Some legendary heroes have appeared in Tontatta! Their names are Usoland and Robiland and they are on their way here! They also have some friends with them. Their names are Luffyland, Zoroland, Namiland, Sanland, Chopperland, Fraland, Boneland, and Reiland."

Must be Usopp, Franky and Zoro thought with a bead of sweat dripping down their forehead.

"Um, I think I'm Zoroland," Zoro said.

"I'm Fraland. Nice to meet you!" Franky said proudly.

The tiny people cheered.

"Ah! I don't have time for this!" Zoro shouted frustratingly, "The Sunny is in danger and Luffy and Rei are stuck in that stupid tournament!"

"The Sunny?" Franky asked, lifting up his sunglasses.

Back at the stadium, Rei was leaning against the wall at the bottom of the stairs where the competitors would walk down once their match was over. She was the only person not watching the match. Having taken it easy over the last two battles, she felt almost back to her usual self. She waited as different injured competitors were brought down the steps and they walked past her one stretcher at a time. Finally, Luffy appeared at the top of the stairs and they exchanged smiles.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting," he said with a grin.

"I wasn't waiting long. I actually got some more info on the Donquixote family," she stated.

"Ooooh," Luffy said, impressed, "I'm so tired. I need food. Let's go find something to eat and you can tell me all about it."

"STRAW HAT!" Cavendish's voice rang out through the walls.

"Oh no," Rei muttered before they saw the pretentious blonde come running towards them.

"Cabbage!" Luffy said, bracing himself to jump out of the way.

"Don't try to get away!" Cavendish yelled as he wielded his sword.

Rei rubbed her temples to soothe herself while she watched this unnecessary display of violence.

"I'm tired!" Luffy complained while trying to rip the sword out of Cavendish's hands, "Why should I fight you?"

"Hey! Straw Hat!" a raspy voice growled.

Rei turned to see Don Chinjao with a shockingly pointed head walking in from the arena. Rei lost her cool.

"Will everyone just leave him alone?!" she shouted angrily as she grabbed her captain's arm and ran as fast as she could in the opposite direction. This time, she remembered to put her free hand on her cap so that it wouldn't fly off. They passed by a very excited Bartolomeo but Rei paid him no attention.

"Straw Hat!" Cavendish and Don Chinjao shouted behind as Rei left them in the dust.

They were able to shake Cavendish and Don Chinjao off their tails when Rei skidded to a halt. The female gladiator with pink hair was standing in the middle of the hallway with her hand held out to them.

"You can follow me," she said, "I know a safe place, Lucy."

Rei looked at Luffy, "Do you know her?"

"Yeah," Luffy said, "It's...uh…"

"Rebecca," the gladiator answered, but she took no offense.

"We met when you were fighting," Luffy said happily, "She showed me this cool statue of a legendary gladiator."

"I see," Rei said as she examined the female gladiator in front of them, "And you're fighting in Block D?"

"Yes," Rebecca said, "We need to hurry before my match starts."

Rei nodded. If her captain was okay with Rebecca, then Rei would give her the benefit of the doubt. They started to follow Rebecca when they spotted a wounded Burgess holding a transponder snail.

He was lying down on a bench due to his broken back but he was able to turn his head to spot Rei and Luffy. He grinned at the sight of them. "Hold on, Captain," he said to the snail, "Straw Hat is here."

He carefully moved the snail in his hand so that Luffy could talk to the man at the other end of the line.

"Are you there, Straw Hat?" Blackbeard's voice asked through the snail.

"You're Blackbeard?" Luffy growled, snatching the snail from Burgess' hand.

"Yes, it's me! It's been awhile!" Blackbeard laughed, "I heard you're fighting in the competition as Lucy!"

"And one of my crewmembers already beat your man," Luffy snarled.

"I didn't know he was one of yours," Burgess said menacingly, "If I did, I would've taken the fight more seriously."

"Your injuries are serious enough," Rei shot back.

"A pity I couldn't get the fruit," Blackbeard said snidely through the snail, "I wanted it to be like old times again with Ace back in the group."

Luffy gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. He was too angry to speak. How dare Blackbeard even speak his brother's name? Rei stepped forward and took the receiver from her captain.

Catcha.

"We have nothing to say to your captain," she said coolly to Burgess once she hung up the receiver, "He will never get near Ace's devil fruit again and neither will you."

Burgess glared at her and tried to move but cried out in pain from his wounds.

"Let's go, Captain," Rebecca said softly and Luffy nodded in agreement.

"Next time," Burgess growled to Rei's back, "I will kill you."

"No," Rei said as she continued to walk, "I'll be the one doing the killing."

Rebecca shivered at the volatile tension building between Burgess and Rei. Is this what it's like when two strong competitors decide to fight to the death?, she thought, Even the aura around them is powerful and scary.

"Rebecca," Lucy said as he and Rei stopped underneath an arch to wait for the female gladiator.

The pink haired gladiator ran after the two and forced herself to forget about Burgess. She had another purpose and she shouldn't forget why she had entered the tournament.

Rebecca led them to a new area in the Colosseum that Rei and Luffy had never seen before. There was a food cart, which Luffy was instantly excited to see.

"Hey lady!" he said running up to the vendor, "Are there any samples?'

"Are you going to just eat samples and not buy anything?!" the vendor accused.

"Rei..er, I mean Raymond," Luffy said as he stuffed three samples into his mouth, "Can you buy me lunch?"

"I gave most of my money to Zoro and Sanji," Rei said sadly, "And I only have some change left and it's not enough."

"I'm sorry, ma'am!" Rebecca said handing out a pile of bellis, "How much do you want, Lucy and Raymond?"

"WHAT?! SO NICE!" Luffy called out while Rei gave her an apologetic smile.

When we get out, I'll pay her back, Rei thought to herself.

They sat on the floor as Luffy and Rei ate their lunch. Rebecca had led the way. They were in a floor filled with holding cells. It was towards the top floors of the Colosseum and Rei could see the edges of the island through the barred windows that lined the walls.

"Where are we?" Rei asked in between bites.

"It's the quarters for the gladiators of the Colosseum," Rebecca said, "Some people consider it a prison but you guys can stay here until it's time for the final match."

"Thank you!" Luffy said as he gobbled up his food.

"I was surprised at your strength, Lucy," she said, "and your agility, Raymond."

Rei gave a small smile back but Luffy was too busy eating to respond to Rebecca's compliment.

"Aren't you hungry?" Luffy asked Rebecca.

Rei noticed that the gladiator's face turned solemn and even slightly pained at Luffy's question.

"I don't get hungry," Rebecca said softly.

Suddenly two pairs of hands reached out behind Luffy and Rei and held them against the bars behind them.

"I got you!" one of their captors shouted, "Do it, Rebecca!"

Rei's eyes turned cold as she looked at Rebecca, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Hey, my lunch is spilling out!" Luffy complained as he struggled.

Rebecca reached for her sword and she took a deep determined breath before swinging the sword at Rei and Luffy.

Luffy bit the arm of his attacker, which released him from his grip. At the same time, Rei took the hand of her attacker and broke one of his fingers to loosen his hold. Both Luffy and Rei rolled out of the way just in time to avoid Rebecca's sword.

Luffy jumped up and used his two feet to land on Rebecca's arms, pinning her down while he finished his lunch.

Rei picked up Rebecca's sword and held it in her hands. She looked at her captain for his cue but she already knew how Luffy was going to handle this.

"Do whatever you want," Rebecca said as she readied herself for death, "I'll pay the price."

"I'm not going to do anything to somebody who bought me food," Luffy said.

"I tried to kill you!" Rebecca cried out.

"That's fine. I'm not dead," Luffy said wiping some food off of his fake beard.

Much to Rebecca's surprise, Rei placed her sword back in her hands. Her green eyes pierced through Rebecca's widened brown eyes. "You weren't going to kill us," Rei stated before sitting back against the bars and eating her lunch casually.

"Being forgiven that easily makes it more obvious that it was really unevenly matched, Rebecca," a man behind the bars said hopelessly.

Rei looked closely behind the bars and saw some seriously bandaged men.

"Mummies!" Luffy screamed.

"We're convict gladiators!" one of the men shouted back, "So is Rebecca."

"I don't understand," the rubber man said as he looked at Rebecca in confusion.

"Convicts?" Rei repeated.

"Yes, we're prisoners. The king says we will be released if we can win a thousand times," another man said, "Before then, we're held captive here within the Colosseum."

"What?! One thousand times?!" Luffy cried.

"I told you this tournament was inhumane and barbaric," Rei said softly to Luffy.

"Before Doflamingo became king ten years ago, the matches were not to the death," the man said.

"I'm going to win today's competition. No matter what it takes," Rebecca said as she stayed on the floor, "And I'll kill Doflamingo with the Flare-Flare fruit!"

"To set everyone free?" Rei asked.

"Not just that," Rebecca answered, "Today an army led by Soldier-san will come to let us out by provoking a battle with Doflamingo. If I can get to the Flare-Flare fruit first, Soldier-san won't have to fight."

"Soldier-san?" Rei asked, looking over at Luffy, "The one legged toy soldier we saw earlier today?"

Luffy shrugged back.

Rebecca covered her face with her hands as tears started to fall down, "Soldier-san is going to die."

"You're worried about a toy?" Luffy asked.

"You're not from here so you don't understand," Rebecca said as she sat up and hugged her knees, "They're the same as humans. They are friends for the friendless. They are siblings for those who have none. They are lovers for the loveless."

Rebecca took a deep breath. "Since the day I lost my mother, my only family, Soldier-san raised me. He's like a father to me."

He probably is your father, Rei thought to herself. She clenched her fist but remained expressionless in front of Rebecca. There was no point in telling Rebecca her theory. It would only aggravate the girl and she was about to start her battle.

Rei glanced over at Luffy, who had a very solemn expression on his face. Rebecca won't be getting the fruit from them, that's for sure, but they were still planning on taking down Doflamingo, which would help her in the end. Listening to Rebecca's cries revealed a pain that Rei recognized instantly. It was the sound of agony that could only have come from loss and extended loneliness. There was a darkness to Dressrosa that was beyond what the Straw Hats had expected.

The announcement of the start of the last match, Block D, interrupted any further conversation with Rebecca as it was now her turn on the battlefield. Rei helped her back up on her feet.

"Are you okay?" Rei asked stiffly as Rebecca dried her eyes.

Rebecca nodded her head as she composed herself.

"See you two at the finals," she said as bravely as she could as she slowly made her way out of the room.

"Yeah!" Luffy shouted after her, "Good luck!"

Rei looked over at the monitors where the prisoners could watch the battle. "She must be a crowd favorite," Rei guessed, "She's so pretty and she's a gladiator."

"Not exactly," one the prisoners responded hesitantly.

"What do you mean?" Rei asked.

"Just watch and wait," the prisoner said mournfully.

They all sat in silence as they watched the competitors come out one by one. Suddenly, she heard the boos from the crowd as Rebecca stepped into the arena.

"Here comes the 'Phantom Princess'!" the announcer shouted.

"Princess?" Rei asked.

"Screw you, Rebecca!" the crowd yelled.

"Cut her to pieces!" another group shouted.

Rei was horrified.

"King Riku's line - burn in hell!" a man shouted.

"King Riku?" Rei asked.

"She's the former king's granddaughter," a convict gladiator explained.

"Even if she is, what does that have to do with her?" Luffy asked indignantly.

"Yeah, you're right," the convict agreed, "Even if her grandfather is a king that the whole country despises, Rebecca is our hope!"

"Your hope?" Rei asked.

The group of convicts nodded. "Rebecca and all of us have been fighting desperately to claw our way out of this hell," one of them said, "We were not strong enough so we ended up like this. If she wins and gets the Flare-Flare fruit, things might get better for us here."

Rei and the others watched as the crowds insults got ruder and more violent. Rei felt herself slowly losing her temper. The tournament was more barbaric and viler than she could have ever imagined.

"ENOUGH!" a familiar voice cried as he rode into the arena on a white horse.

The ostentatious Cavendish arrived dramatically, silencing the crowd, as he yelled at them from a bullhorn attached to his steed. "What an ill-behaved crowd! I can't stand it! Shame on you!"

The crowd instantly changed their attitude to shouts of joy at the entrance of the beautiful man. To Rei's disgust, some women even fainted at the sight of him.

"Teach Rebecca a lesson! Kick that tramp's ass!" they shouted to him.

"Shut up, you bastards!" he yelled, silencing them once again, "I don't know why you hate her so much, but she's a young girl who stands in the ring with her life on the line. You guys are not risking your lives so you have no right to jeer at her!"

"Oh! Cabbage spoke up and said the right thing!" Luffy said clenching his fist in joy.

"Who knew he had that side to him?" Rei asked to no one in particular.

"I'm impressed," Luffy admitted, "But I still don't like him."

"Me neither," Rei agreed.

The crowd erupted into a resounding cheer for Cavendish and his valiant speech. "Cavendish! How charismatic!" they shouted.

The blonde swordsman lost his cool composure and started to vamp for the crowd. He posed with his hat and then stood with his cape swung over his arm. He basked in the attention and superficial love that the audience was giving him.

"Yes," Rei said wrinkling her nose at his vanity, "I really don't like him."

Rei knew, when she stepped foot into the Colosseum, just how brutal and violent the tournaments were in Dressrosa but it wasn't until she saw Rebecca's tears and the convict gladiators did she fully realize the extent of it's cruelty.

"Go, Rebecca, Go!" Luffy screamed at the projection as they watched.

Rei wanted to shout out too but she knew it was futile as Rebecca couldn't hear her. One by one, the competitors fell into the water as Rebecca dodged their attacks and lured them close enough to the edge. It was brilliant in that she could eliminate her attackers without actually attacking herself.

"Luffy," Rei said softly, "I want to help her."

"Shi-shi-shi-shi," Luffy grinned, "She's a nice girl, isn't she? You're grateful to her for buying you lunch too, right?"

Rei let out a laugh and nodded to her captain. Sure, she thought, Why can't that be a reason?