Woot! Another chapter! And WOW lots of feedback from you guys! You're all awesome :3

For those of you concerned, yes, there will be a bit of a darker tone to this chapter, but I SWEAR IT GETS A HELLUVA LOT FUNNIER WITH THE NEXT CHAPTER SO JUST BEAR WITH ME FOR ONE MORE CHAPTERRRRR

Thanks to: thulium86, DBZGirl182, Awesome Guest (times two! :), KBMaillet , Serendipital, GrandMasters, OrangeWithAfro, amp183, TheRealEvanSG, lilness, Commando Fernando, ZabuzasGirl, DorkyFox, Kaore Ryu, and Momochan77 for the reviews! So many! I love you all! 3

To answer a few your of questions: So, about Luca. Sorry folks, he is NOT based off of Sebastian from Black Butler/Kuroshitsuji (though I can see where you get the idea, with the whole butler thing). But no. If any of you have read the Protector of the Small quartet, then you'll recognize that Luca is based off of the character Nealan of Queenscove (or Neal), a snarky, hilarious knight that is probably one of the best characters EVER.

And I'm kind of sad that Serendipital was the only one that caught onto the one thing that would define the humor in the rest of the story arc, so cyber-hugs and cookies to you, Serendipital :)

But enough of my notes; onwards!

Chapter 35

I stirred slowly awake, struggling back to awareness. I was warm, and I felt comfortable and safe. I could just lay here, and go back to sleep…

SNNNNRK!

I jolted upright at the loud snore, which caused Zoro to jerk awake, falling off the bed in the process. "What the hell?!" he snapped, pushing himself into a sitting position.

"I could ask you the same thing!" I growled back, my good morning ruined. It was then that I realized where we were, and my anger slowly dwindled away to anxiety.

Zoro looked at me for a moment, before sighing, getting up, and rubbing his rump. "Well, in any case, good morning," he said with a yawn, before scratching his chest absently. "Today, we'll try and get into contact with the others, and see if they can help us break out. And if not, then try to bust out ourselves."

I had no qualms with that, and nodded in agreement.

"Will you two shut up? I need all the beauty sleep I can get!" Luca complained across the room, and I smirked.

"If that's the case, then you'd never wake up," I jeered, and Luca sat up, gave me the dirtiest look he could manage, laid back down, and rolled over. I suppose he was doing his utmost best to give me the cold shoulder.

"Just ignore him," Kisa said blearily, pushing herself up out of her bed with a jaw-cracking yawn. "He's not a morning person."

"You're not a morning person," came the faint grumble, and Kisa rolled her eyes.

"My point exactly," she said, grabbing her clothes and heading towards the small door to the side, where I assumed the bathroom was. "You'd best get ready as soon as possible. The man with the cane, Sugar Daddy, doesn't like having to wait for his 'playthings'," she said sourly.

I nodded nervously, and Zoro rolled his eyes.

"Hey, it'll be okay," he replied. "I won't let anything happen to you, got it?"

Just that statement alone made me feel much better already. "Thanks, Zoro."

"Heeey, look at her!"

"She's so cute!"

"Can you get me something to eat?!"

I squirmed away, avoiding looking into their eyes. "S-sure…" The ugly, fat men around me crowed in delight, shoving each other and trying to catch my attention.

After Zoro, Kisa, Luca, and I had gotten dressed, we, and several others, were escorted to a large hall, were several ugly, disgusting, and perverted men and women were waiting.

"Get me some éclairs!"

"I want some lemonade!"

I tried my best to stay by Zoro's side, but somehow, he got surrounded by a ring of women, all of them unattractive and sounding like their noses were stuffed. And judging from the perpetual flush that danced on Zoro's cheeks, he was just as uncomfortable as I was.

Looking through the crowd, I saw Luca flirting smoothly with the ladies around him, his character never breaking in the face of their squealing. Kisa, despite her pretty words, had a fixed smile on her face, looking like she'd give anything to kick someone in the balls.

I let out a squeak of shock when a hand tugged on my tail. "Hey, as your masters, we order you to get us some drinks!"

"Now, men, that is no way a master acts," a smooth voice cut in. Slowly, I lifted my gaze to the speaker, and saw an amazingly handsome man with deep crimson hair, light eyes, and sharp features smirking at me.

"Lord Sweet Lips!" the men around me gasped, and I had to bite down hard on my lip to keep from laughing at the name. But my mirth soon vanished when he turned shockingly cold, cold blue eyes onto me.

"A master acts with grace and poise, but also with a firm hand when his servants don't act as they are ordered to," he said, his lips tilting up into a cruel smirk.

Smack!

My cheek throbbed, and shocked to the core, I lifted my hand up to run my fingers against the throbbing skin. He lowered his hand, and ordered coolly, "Maid, get my companions and I drinks."

I continued to stare at the floor, barely able to comprehend what had just happened. Did he - Did he just - slap me? Did he slap me?!

Apparently, he did, and he wasn't afraid to do it again. My head snapped to the side again, and the other side of my face stung. My eyes watered from the force, and I heard him snap, "Are you deaf? Fetch us some drinks."

Slowly, I looked up at him, and he scowled, before raising a gloved hand and snapping his fingers.

A pair of hands roughly shoved me from behind, and I let out a startled cry as I fell to the floor, hard. I moved to get back up, but a boot on my back pushed me back down to the floor.

"Well, well, well," crooned the voice of the handsome, but cruel man. "Looks like we have a maid that doesn't take to orders pretty well."

The men around us laughed, and through their legs, I could see Zoro struggling to break away from the women, trying to get to my side, but they flocked to him, cutting off his approach. Kisa and Luca looked alarmed, but it only lasted for a moment before they bowed their heads and turned back to their tasks, their eyes dimmer and their expressions grim.

A hand pulled harshly on my hair, and I could feel tears bead at the corner of my eyes. "What's your name?"

When I didn't answer right away, the aristocrat pulled harder on my hair. I let out a moan of pain. "Well?! Give me your name!"

Finally, I couldn't take it any more. "B-Brisa, sir!" I blurted, hoping that they wouldn't catch the fact that I used a false name.

The burning in my scalp increased. "It's my lord. Now, let's try this again. What is your name?"

I was almost sobbing by now, in pain, humiliation, and fear. "Brisa, m-my lord!"

"Good." The weight on my back and the grip on my hair vanished, and weeping, I clambered to my feet. "Now, Brisa, dear, fetch my friend and I some drinks. And be quick about it. I've wasted enough time teaching you the proper way good servants behave. Also, never look me in the eyes. It is not becoming from one of your station."

Swallowing hard and nodding, I scurried off to do as I was told, never looking up from the floor.

I never did see Usopp standing at the entrance of the hall, his eyes wide in shock.

Usopp struggled to close his mouth, stunned by the blatant act of cruelty he just witnessed to someone he considered family. It physically hurt to see Hazel being crushed into submission, and he prayed that Nami and Robin weren't in similar situations.

"Terrible, isn't it?" sighed Picha, coming to a stop next to the sharpshooter. He had met the photographer again that morning with Sanji, Chopper, and Luffy. Upon having the situation explained to him, the man promptly sent them out to check the categories, in hopes of finding one of their crewmates. "I never liked this place. It's probably the worst category out of all of them, because of the harassment that the workers have to endure. At least for the other categories, they're either trying to act like gentlemen, or just gawked at, but this one…" He shook his head with a defeated sigh, and Usopp's mouth snapped shut.

"How do we get them out?" he demanded, and Picha blinked, pushing up his glasses in surprise.

"Get them out?" He shook his head. "No, it's impossible to get them out. This place is run by a man called Sugar Daddy, and he rules this place with an iron fist. He bows to no one save the King of S'agappo, Amo Candy King."

"Usopp!"

The hissed exclamation caught Usopp by surprise, and he stifled a yelp, before meeting Zoro's gray eyes. "Don't do that!" he gasped, clutching at his heart, before blinking in surprise. "Wait, what're you doing here? And what're you doing dressed like that?"

Zoro flushed. "I dunno, I was wandering around before someone threw a sleeping gas grenade at me. The next thing I knew, I was here, and some ladies were making me dress like this."

Usopp sighed uselessly. "You got lost, and that's how they were able to sneak up on you, huh?"

Zoro flushed darkly. "Of course not, idiot! I was just looking around the island!"

Usopp decided to let the matter drop. It wasn't worth the effort right now. "So what do you want us to do? It looks like they took your swords."

Zoro huffed. "Find our weapons. They took Hazel's axe, too. Help break us out. Nami and Robin are in the swimsuit category, and they made Robin wear a kairoseki bracelet."

Usopp nodded grimly. "On it. I'll get Luffy to help. Don't go anywhere," he instructed, before quickly hurrying out of the hall.

Zoro nodded darkly, before his gaze roamed over to where Hazel stood, silently crying while holding out a tray of drinks.

They needed to get out. And as soon as possible.

Sanji, Luffy, and Chopper had gone to the underwear category, and despite looking for Hazel, Sanji still found the time to appreciate the beauty of the women that surrounded him.

"MELLORINE~!"

"Hey, have you seen Hazel?" Luffy was asking a nearby model, completely unaffected by their charm and allure. "Or Zoro? Or Nami or Robin?"

The model was looking uncomfortable. "I'm sorry, I don't know who they are."

"Oh, that's right! Hazel's kinda like a monkey, and she's got the coolest tail in the world! Nami's greedy, Zoro uses three swords and he gets lost really easily, and Robin used to be an assassin." Luffy nodded firmly, satisfied with his explanation, but unfortunately, the model was still a little lost with the description.

"Er - you didn't tell me what they look like…"

"Luffy!" Usopp stumbled into the hall with Picha closely following. "I found them!" the sharpshooter gasped, and Sanji was immediately by his side.

"You did?!" He seized Usopp by his overalls. "Where's Hazel?! Where're the ladies?!"

"Hazel and Zoro are in the Butler and Maid hall," Usopp explained, grimacing. "We need to hurry! Hazel was getting kicked around by some asshole noble called Sweet Cheeks."

"No!" Chopper gasped, and Picha nodded solemnly.

"Yes, unfortunately. Sweet Lips and his sister, Candy Lips, are two elite members in the Candy King's court," he explained, and Sanji growled, his expression darkening.

"Take us to them," he ordered, and Usopp gulped and nodded.

Upon viewing a sniffling Hazel cowering in front of a red-haired man and his posse, Sanji almost lost it. In fact, he was about to go run in and beat the shit out of everyone because no one got away with hurting his little sister.

But a firm grip on his arm prevented him from racing in.

"Wait, I have an idea!" Picha hissed. He had also grabbed Luffy by the arm, and Luffy turned dark, angry eyes onto the photographer.

"We don't need ideas! We need to go in an save them!" he insisted, and Sanji found himself agreeing. There wasn't any time for ideas, because some asshole was making Hazel cry.

"No, this'll work, trust me," Picha argued. When Sanji and Luffy relaxed a little, he released his hold on their arms and took a deep breath. "You guys know I'm a photographer, right?" he asked, hefting his camera, and Usopp folded his arms.

"Get on with it," he ordered, and Picha nodded. He looked a little sweaty and clammy, but confident otherwise.

"I can request a photo shoot with the new recruits, and have the rest of you as my photography crew. I can get you inside after everyone is gone," he suggested. Luffy made a face.

"And what good will that do?" he demanded, and Sanji resisted the urge to kick his captain in the face.

"It means that he can get us to the others with less trouble," he elaborated. He dug into his pocket, and pulled out a cigarette. "I'll admit, that does sound like a better plan…"

"…But it means that we have to wait until tonight to get it done," Chopper finished with a sad look over in Hazel's direction. Her head was bowed and her tail was tucked in between her legs as she passed drinks over to the men surrounding her.

Usopp pursed his lips. "It's better than just charging in, though," he pointed out. "I say we do it."

They all turned to Luffy, who was frowning as he thought it out. "Fine," he said with a firm nod. "We wait for tonight."

By the time the Viewing Rings closed for the day, I felt sick; sick and furious. At first, I was upset, shocked, humiliated, and hurt, but as the day wore on, I felt a righteous, burning anger coursing through me.

How dare those bastards do that to me! I wanted to take each and every single one of them, and rip them apart with my axe! I wanted to stomp on their balls, smash in their faces, and make every single one of them pay.

"Don't worry." A large, calloused, and familiar hand landed on my shoulder, and I looked up at a tired Zoro. He grinned. "Usopp found us today, and they're going to break us out tonight."

I stared up at Zoro blankly for a moment. It took a second for his words to filter through my anger to my brain, but when they did, an elated smile broke out across my face.

"Really?!"

"Yeah," he said, nodding at Luca and Kisa. They looked hopeful, and Zoro frowned. "I don't know how they'll get you two out, though."

Their expressions faltered. "What do you mean?" Luca demanded, and Zoro grimaced.

"They're taking in the new 'recruits' in for a photo shoot," he explained, and their faces fell.

"Ah," Luca sighed. "I was afraid something like that was going to happen." He sank down into his chair, and Kisa looked heartbroken.

"Don't worry!" I assured, trying to smile back at her and getting a small one in reply. "We'll come back for you, definitely! We're not leaving until this place is burned to the ground!"

"Promise?" Kisa demanded, her small hands clenching, and I nodded seriously.

"I promise!"

The heavy metal door began to creak open, and we all whirled around to see Sugar Daddy standing there, his disgusting leer on his face. He was flanked by the two goons that threw us in here the other day, but they were also accompanied by a man that I hadn't seen before. He had thick glasses, a lanky, stringy frame, long hair in a ponytail, and an expensive-looking camera gripped in his hands. He was sweating a lot, too, and I resisted the urge to scrunch up my nose in disgust.

"You, and you," Sugar Daddy barked, jabbing a thick, meaty finger towards Zoro and I. "You're coming with us."

Zoro tensed, and stepped in front of me. "For what?" he demanded, but Sugar Daddy smirked and gestured to one of his goons.

My eyes widened when I saw the large man pull out a gun, and Zoro grit his teeth. Sugar Daddy had the biggest, smuggest leer on his face, and he purred, "Don't question, just follow. Now, come to Daddy."

I shuddered violently, and Zoro gripped me tightly as we made our way over to the gross man. I glanced back to see looks of disgust and sympathy on Luca and Kisa's faces, just before the metal door slammed shut behind us.

"Keep moving," one of the goons growled, shoving me forward, and quietly, I fell into line next to Zoro, keeping my head down but my eyes narrowed.

We were led into a large room, with props and sets scattered about. But it wasn't the props and sets that interested me, it was the figures setting up camera equipment that almost had me shouting and jumping for joy.

Sanji grinned and winked at me from behind a familiar pair of glasses, the ones that he wore while he was in Alabasta. Usopp was sporting a beanie and a camera, and he grinned and thumbed his nose. Chopper was practically vibrating in excitement from beside our sharpshooter, his gaze switching between me and Zoro, and Luffy…

Luffy threw up his arm, almost deliriously happy despite the ridiculous mustache he had taped to his face. "HA - MMMMPGHHH!"

I resisted the urge to smack my face. Trust Luffy to almost give us away, and thank god for Usopp, who had dove in to stop him.

"Where are the other two?" The thin camera man was asking, and Sugar Daddy rolled his eyes.

"We'll fetch them in a moment. Now, are you sure you don't need anything? His Highness is really looking forward to this new edition of your magazine."

"I'm absolutely positive. I have everything I need, thank you," the photographer insisted, and Sugar Daddy nodded before beckoning to his two men. Within seconds, they were gone.

I didn't hesitate any longer.

"You came!" I threw myself at Luffy and Sanji, and they caught me with bright, relieved smiles on their faces.

"Of course we did," Luffy chortled, all smiles and laughter, and Sanji shook his head.

"We weren't going to leave you here," he said. "And besides, Usopp was the one that found you."

I detached myself from them and yanked Usopp into a hug. "Thank you, thank you!"

"So what's this about?" Zoro grunted, eyeing the camera man suspiciously. "Who's this?"

The man straightened, grinned sheepishly, and scratched the side of his face. "Ah, I'm Picha. Nice to meet you."

"He's a good guy," Luffy said brightly, slapping Picha hard on the back and nearly causing the man to topple over.

"He's the one that managed to get us in," Chopper said in a hushed, awed tone of voice. "He suggested a photo shoot with all of the new people here!"

"So, how're you two doing? Are you okay?" Usopp asked. At that question, Zoro and I both sobered up, and I unconsciously hugged myself. Usopp looked upset. "I saw what they were doing," he admitted quietly, and Sanji took out a cigarette.

"Those bastards," he seethed. "I'm going to murder each and every single one of them."

"They didn't do that much," I tried to downplay, ducking my head. "They just…"

I trailed off, and Zoro bumped my shoulder. "Well, no matter what they did, we're going to get them back," he said seriously, and I nodded, swallowing down the impulse to cry. Usopp, Chopper, and Luffy all looked grim, and their expressions reminded me how lucky I was to meet them, and to travel with them. To be nakama with them.

The door suddenly swung open, and Sugar Daddy strolled right back in, his goons pushing Nami and Robin in behind him. "Well, here you are," he said, gold tooth glinting in the light of the studio. "Anyone else you would like me to fetch?"

"N-no, this is good," Picha stammered, his hands clenching his camera with a white-knuckled grip. "Thank you. If you'd like, you can go and take a b-break."

'Damn it,' I thought to myself, trying not to grimace. 'He's going to give us away!' It was true. Picha started to sweat, and Sugar Daddy's eyes had narrowed in suspicion.

"…No, I think I'll stay right here," he drawled, striding over to a vacant chair and plopping down in it. His two goons went to stand by the door, flanking it and barring us from escape. "No, I'd like to watch. I've never seen your work before, and I'm very interested." His eyes were glinting malevolently, and he smirked. "In fact, his Highness would like to watch, I'm sure."

"W-what?" squeaked Picha, his eyes bugging behind his glasses, and I felt dread settle in the pit of my stomach.

"Adino," Sugar Daddy beckoned one of the goons over. "Why don't you go and fetch the King? Let him know that I asked for him."

Shit shit shit shit SHIT. He knew, he knew!

I swallowed hard, fingering the hem of my skirt, and I saw Sanji and Usopp conferring with Luffy in the background, while Chopper watched and fidgeted nervously. Nami looked scared, her brown eyes wide and anxious, Robin was looking pale (but whether that was from the Kairoseki or from the news, I'm not sure), and Zoro was looking very tense.

Picha wiped his brow. "Y-yes, o-of course. Very well, l-let's get started."

"NOW!" I jumped at the shout, and at the same moment, Picha crumbled with a grunt. Luffy's fist retracted back, and I realized with a start that Luffy had punched Picha square in the temple. And from the looks of it, knocked him out cold.

"Gomu gomu no…BULLET!" Luffy threw a barrage of punches at the goon, and Usopp shoved us to the door just as the goon guarding it fell. Luffy also threw a few punches at Sugar Daddy, but he blocked the punches and pulled out his gun.

Bang!

I watched Luffy's side stretch, and then snap back into place, embedding the bullet into the wall. Luffy growled and advanced on Sugar Daddy.

"Nobody touches my friends!" he yelled, gearing up for another punch. Sugar Daddy growled, tossed his gun to the side, and grabbed his cane.

I felt a rough shove against my back, and realized that Usopp was still trying to get us out.

"Go, go!" he hissed, but Zoro resisted.

"My swords! Where are they?!" he demanded, and my eyes widened in remembrance.

"Yeah! I need my axe!" I shouted, but Usopp shook his head.

"We'll look for them as we go, now run!"

He shoved us out of the door, with Nami and Robin quickly following, before leading the way. "Come on!"

"Wait, Robin can't run that fast!" Nami shouted after him. "She's still got the cuffs on!"

"I'll take care of it," Sanji said, stepping in smoothly and lifting Robin up into a bridal hold. "Don't worry, my lady, you'll be safe with me."

Robin shot my brother an amused smile. "Thank you, Sanji-san."

Sanji nearly melted, and I clucked my tongue in annoyance. "Sanji-nii, let's go! We need to get our stuff!" Chopper grabbed my hand, and started to pull me along, but I kept my eyes fixed on the blond.

Sanji's eyes snapped back up to me, and he coughed awkwardly. "Yes, right, of course."

We pelted down the halls, and I heard Usopp let out a triumphant shout.

"Found it!" He skidded to a halt in front of a big door, and he shoved it open. When we all stared at him in confusion, he swelled with pride. "I made sure to remember where that guy's office was!"

"What for?!" Zoro demanded irately. "What good's it gonna do for us?!"

"Behold!" Usopp swung open the door, and all of our expressions cleared.

"My axe!" I ran in, sweeping up the weapon and nearly crying in joy at its familiar weight. "Nice job, Usopp!"

"The Kairoseki keys are here too!" Nami exclaimed in delight, and she immediately set to work undoing Robin's cuffs.

"Good job on remembering, Usopp," Sanji said, setting Robin down gently as Zoro strapped on his blades, and Usopp preened.

"Of course I remembered! For I am the Great Usopp-Sama~! All should know of my brillian -!"

"Whatever, let's get outta here," Zoro grunted, abruptly brushing past the sharpshooter and nearly knocking him over.

"Hey!"

Chopper was nearly hopping up and down in agitation, and I blinked down at him. "What's the matter, Chopper?"

He looked worried. "I can hear people approaching…!"

"Shit!" Sanji cursed, before he headed to the door. "Everyone, we need to get out!"

"What about Luffy?" Nami asked, undoing Robin's cuffs, and Zoro scoffed.

"Our captain will be fine," he said, hurrying out the door. "Now let's go!"

"Right!"

We all hurried out the door as fast as we could, and we were nearing the end of the hallway when we heard a yell, along with the pitter-patter of sandals rapidly approaching us. We tensed and grabbed our blades, only to relax when Luffy came sprinting around the corner with an annoyed look on his face.

"Usopp!" he whined, "Why won't you let me fight them? I can take them!"

Usopp's eyes bugged. "Because we need to get out, that's why!"

"GET BACK HERE, YOU BRAT!"

Sugar Daddy slid around the corner, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he took in the sight of all of us at the end of the hall.

"No one is allowed out," he snapped, moving towards us and raising his cane threateningly. "Get back to your rooms!"

"Go screw yourself!" I snarled, brandishing my axe. A dirty leer crossed his face.

"No thank you, my dear," he crooned, tapping his cane on the ground. "I'd rather screw someone else. Like you."

I froze in disgust and horror, and the majority of the crew's faces paled at his response. Sanji looked absolutely livid, while Chopper and Luffy were totally oblivious to the dirty man's meaning.

"Don't you dare touch her!" Zoro snarled, teeth practically grinding as he readied his blades.

"Hey, Nami, what'd he mean?" Luffy asked the redhead, tugging on her shirt, but she just shook her head, too angry to speak.

Only Robin looked calm enough to speak up. "Luffy." Luffy turned to her, and she gave him a polite, frozen smile. "Do you know the way out?"

Luffy blinked once, twice, then nodded with a grin. "Yup! It's this way!" He grabbed Robin and Nami, towing them towards the entrance. Chopper, unsure of what to do, trailed after them.

By then, I had snapped out of the frozen daze I was in, and I leapt at the pervert. "I'm going to kill you!"

"Hazel!" I was yanked back abruptly by the collar of my shirt, and I gagged. "We need to get out of here!" Usopp said, his eyes darting between Sugar Daddy and I. "Before the others show up! You can murder him later!"

I struggled to get away from him. "Let go of me! You don't know what he's like! You don't know what he did to us!"

A ringing silence fell, and Sanji gently clasped my shoulder.

"No, but we can guess. But as much as I'd like to kill this shitty son of a bitch, we need to go before more people arrive," Sanji told me quietly. I looked up at my adopted brother, and he jerkily gestured to the entrance, his face still mottled with anger and fury. "Let's go."

I hesitated. He had a point. We needed to leave and regroup, recover, get a new change of clothes…but at the same time, I wanted to tear this man apart.

After much internal debating, I let out an shout of frustration.

"AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!" I slammed my axe into the wall, watching as it bit deep into the plaster with satisfaction. Panting, I yanked it back out and growled at the watching man.

"I'll come back for you," I hissed angrily, and before he could reply, we left.

Luffy and the others were already halfway down the street. "Guys, hurry up!" he yelled impatiently. "I'm hungry!"

Sanji huffed in irritation. "We haven't even made it back to the ship!" he snapped, but Luffy ignored him.

"SANJI! FEED ME!"

"Good grief," Usopp muttered as he and Zoro moved ahead of us. "He ate right before we came to get you too."

"Why does that not surprise me," Zoro grumbled. Chopper moved back, and was staring up at me with worried brown eyes.

"You have a big bruise on the side of your face," he stated seriously. "I'll have to treat it when we get back to the ship."

I smiled wanly. "Thanks, Chopper, I -"

"What is the meaning of this?!"

We paused at the new voice, and my jaw dropped at the sight of the fattest man I have ever seen. His neck was the size of my waist, and he was almost three times taller than me. His hands were the size of dustbins, and he was sweaty, and covered in pimples, and gross…

And next to him, were two redheaded twins. In fact, I recognized one.

It was Sweet Lips, and what I assumed was his identical twin.

They both had sneers touching their lips, and their pale eyes cut across us, narrowing suspiciously.

There was also one more standing on the King's right. He was not nearly as fat, but close enough. His skin was pasty, pimply, and sweaty, and he looked like he was constantly confused.

In short, he looked like a moron.

"What is the meaning of this?" the largest man repeated, just as Sugar Daddy burst out of the Viewing Rings Arena.

"Your Highness!" he was squawking. "The merchandise has escaped!"

"WHAT?!" the King roared.

"He just said that the merchandise escaped," supplied the other large man helpfully.

The King rounded on him, a candy crown bouncing furiously on his head. "IT WAS A RHETORICAL QUESTION, BABY CHEEKS!"

The newly-named Baby Cheeks cowered. "O-oh, geez, r-right…sorry…"

The King's eyes swept angrily over us, before they landed on Luffy. Then they practically bulged out of their sockets. "YOU!"

We all traded looks, and Luffy grinned and held up a hand. "Oh, hey, it's the fat ojiisan from the restaurant! Thanks for the cake, it was delicious!"

Absolute silence fell as everyone goggled at my idiotic captain, and I quickly slid my axe onto my back again.

Zoro shot me a wary look. "What're you doing?" he hissed in confusion, and I grimaced.

"We might need to run," I explained, and Zoro, after casting an eye over the situation, nodded in agreement and swiftly sheathed his blades.

I watched the so-called King's jaw work furiously as he tried to speak, before he bellowed, "HOW DARE YOU!"

The twins sniggered maliciously. "Now he's done it," Sweet Lips chuckled, and his sister nodded enthusiastically.

"I AM NOT FAT NOR OLD! AND THAT WAS MY FAVORITE CAKE!" the King bellowed, jowls flapping and spit flying. "LOOK AT THIS FIGURE! IT'S AMAZING!" He gestured angrily at his body, and my mouth started moving before I could stop it.

"If that's amazing, then I'm the Pirate King," I blurted, and another silence fell before Luffy broke it.

"You're not going to be the Pirate King, I am!" I turned a flat stare over to Luffy's indignant face.

"That's not what I meant," I deadpanned, but before Luffy could reply, the King puffed himself up, his face beet red in anger. He kinda looked like a giant, red walrus.

"THAT'S IT!" he roared, and Usopp gulped.

"Uh oh." He took two steps back, spun around, and started sprinting away. "RUN AWAAAAAAAAY!"

Nami was right behind him. "Wait for me!"

"Luffy," Zoro grunted, and Luffy nodded, spinning on his heel to chase after them.

"RUN!" Luffy yelled, and we all started to run. But not before I heard four words that would forever ruin my life.

"Ero ero no beam!"

A rainbow-colored beam slammed into me, and Sanji, who had been running beside me, toppled over. He had been hit, too, it seemed. He pushed himself up, and he was faintly scowling at Zoro, who was yelling for us to run while Luffy doubled back to get us.

Time seemed to slow down, and everything was moving in slow-motion. Somehow, my mind grew detached from the situation at hand, and I felt numb, with a foreign, swelling sensation in my chest.

And for some strange reason, my mind was growing foggy as I looked down, and saw Chopper, grabbing my hand and trying to tug me along…

And that would be the last thing I remembered.

Aaaannnnd...scene! I hoped it was tension-building enough for y'all, and I tried to incorporate more fluffy Zoro/Hazel sibling moments, as well as with a few of the other crew members, but it's hard. Apparently, I really only have a talent for writing slapstick humor and dark, angsty stuff.

But forget that! We're moving on to the more comedic, silly side of One Piece now, and you'll definitely see it in the next chapter. And poor, poor Hazel...suffering all of this, and she's at the beginning of puberty, which probably makes it a million times worse (I'm so mean to her).

Also, you can thank Skitzykat101 for the names of the villains. We were trying so hard to come up with legit names for these guys...and as you can see, it kind of fell apart.

And any guesses as to what's going to happen to Hazel and Sanji? :)

So, we hit 16 reviews last chapter, which is six more than I counted on! So let's bump up the bar! Let's see if we can hit 20 per chapter! LESDOTHIS

Posted and Edited: 9/21/2014, 11:14 AM