Ch. 55- Bittersweet


One Piece © Oda

Blizzard and Monkey D. Aika © Me

Rokuji © Gakuto1991


Color Spread: The Straw Hats fishing for sharks.


"WAAAAAAAHH! BROOK, HELP ME!"

"CHOPPER! NO!"

In spite of their best efforts...more of Perospero's and Katakuri's men practically came pouring out of the vanity mirror from Luffy and Nami's room. What's worse...they were now at Perospero's mercy. Both of them were now trapped in the candyman's candy, which was beginning to form from their feet and up to their heads, threatening to cover their mouths.

"I admit," Perospero said, "you were impressive...for a while. You managed to chew through a great deal of our manpower...but still, what made you think that you could take back your puny little ship? The difference in strength is clearly stark! You were going up against the crew of one of the Four Emperors! What made you think you had even a ghost of a chance?!"

"Ugh...!" Chopper gasped as tears fell from his eyes while the candy began to cover up his mouth. "I...I can't transform!"

"Stop it!" Brook cried. "Let Chopper go, this instant!"

"Kukukuku!" laughed Perospero. "You fool! This is what happens when you defy the likes of us! I turn you both into candy men and lick you down to nothing! The candy will cover your entire body, then permeate you to your core! It will soon rob you of our ability to breathe, leaving you in complete and total agony..."

"AGH!" Chopper cried as his body was completely covered up. "H...HEEERRP! BWOOK!"

"NO! CHOPPER- GLURB!" Brook cried, only for his mouth to start getting covered, too!

"It's useless to struggle," Perospero said as he held up three fingers. "You will both be dead in 3 minutes! You'll be delightfully sweet, candied corspes-perorin~!"

"S...stop...this!" Brook cried.

"Kukukukuku!" Perospero cackled. "It's too late to beg and scream! Let me remind you that I gave you both a chance to flee with your lives! Just because I can make candy doesn't mean that I'm made of candy! Did you think that defeating me would be so easy?! This island is not all gumdrops and lollipops, you know!"

Soon, a small clock formed on top of Chopper's head...counting down from 3 minutes.

"Kukukuku!" laughed Perospero. "In just 3 minutes, you will be dead! I'll gobble you both up once the timer runs out!"

"Urgh...urrrgh!" Brook cried as he, too, was covered up!

"Kukukukukuku!" Perospero cackled, again. "Ah, sweet, sweet victory~!"

"...Hey, Brother Peros," said Katakuri as he spotted something out of his peripheral eye: the sight of Tree Homies being ripped from the ground.

"Hmm?" Perospero hummed. "Ah...it's probably Mama. We better hurry and bring her to Pudding on Cacao Island. If she finds out I lied about the cake, she'll steal my lifespan!"

"Hold it," Katakuri said. "We're not quite at that stage, yet."

"Huh?" Perospero asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Wed...ding...!" a voice rumbled in the distance, causing Perospero to gasp.

"N...no way!" he cried.

"CAAAAAAAAAAAKE!" Big Mom roared as she appeared...still chasing after Luffy's team!

"KYAAAAAA~!" Nami and Carrot both shrieked.

"We're almost there, Blizzard!" Luffy shouted as he and Nami rode on the wolf-dog's back. "Keep running!"

"I am!" Blizzard answered as he galloped.

"So the only thing the lightning bolt from Zeus wiped out," Katakuri started, "were our own forces."

"Huh?" Blizzard muttered as he squinted his eyes, only to gasp in horror upon seeing Chopper and Brook, trapped in candy. "Oh, no! Chopper! Brook!"

"What happened to them?!" Luffy asked.

"They're trapped inside that candy!" cried Nami.

"Not good!" Jimbei shouted. "If we don't get them out in less than 3 minutes, they're as good as dead!"

"All of you, back inside the mirror!" Katakuri called to his troops. "If you stay here any longer...you'll all be lying at Straw Hat Luffy's feet!"

The men gasped in horror before they all turned and jumped back inside the mirror.

"You heard him, guys!" called one of them. "Into the mirror, and be quick about it!"

"Damn!" Pedro cursed. "It looks like their toughest members have gotten ahead of us! Katakuri and Perospero!"

"Kukukuku!" laughed Perospero as he held up his hand, from which candy syrup dripped from. "I'm impressed that you managed to stay alive...so far. CANDY MAIDEN!"

Soon, a giant Iron Maiden made out of candy formed from the ground, right in the Straw Hats' path!

"A giant candy wall!" cried Carrot.

"I got this!" Luffy shouted as he jumped off of Blizzard's back and charged ahead of the group. "GUM-GUUUUUUM..."

"Shouldn't it be obvious," Perospero began, "that this is no ordinary candy wall?!"

NYOOOORP! The Candy Maiden began to fall toward Luffy...threatening to puncture him with its spikes!

"Uh-oh!" Luffy cried.

"Don't be deterred, Luffy!" Jimbei called. "Just punch right through it!"

"Punch right through?!" Luffy asked.

"You can punch with fire, can you not?!" Jimbei asked.

"...Oh!" Luffy realized. "I get it!" He then grinned as he stretched his arm way behind him and imbued it with Haki. "Okay...GUM-GUUUUUM..."

"Not so fast!" Katakuri exclaimed as he jumped off the Sunny.

"RED HAAAAAAAAWK!"

KABOOM! Luffy's flaming punch blew a gaping hole, right through the Candy Maiden, but once he made it through, Katakuri slightly enlarged his fist with his mochi powers and met Luffy's fist with his own!

"Whoa! Did you see that?!" Blizzard asked.

"He met Luffy head-on!" Nami exclaimed.

"His power's all stretchy," Carrot said, "just like Luffy's!"

Both Luffy's and Katakuri's snapped back into place, both of them glaring at each other fiercely. However, the rumbling footsteps reminded Luffy why they were here in the first place.

"WEEEEDIIIIIIIING CAAAAAAAAKE!" Big Mom shrieked.

"Luffy, what do we do?!" Nami questioned. "We're trapped!"

"Luffy! We must drive Katakuri off the ship!" Jimbei shouted. "We'll focus on setting sail!"

"Don't worry! I'm on him!" Luffy said. "He came through the mirror, right?!"

"Come on, Luffy!" Blizzard said as he stood by his side. "Let's go get him!"

"GUM-GUUUUUUUM..." Luffy roared.

"IRON BULLET..."

"HAWK GATLIIIIIING!"

"FAAAAAAANG!"

Soon, Luffy began to throw furious flaming punches while Blizzard took off at breakneck speed with Haki-imbued fangs, but their attacks only ended up going right through Katakuri...literally right through him, due to his mochi body!

"Damn!" Luffy cursed as he pulled his arms back. "It didn't work!"

FWUMP! Blizzard ended up landing behind Katakuri, whose body began to reshape itself back to normal.

"Is that the best you can do?" he asked.

Pedro growled...but then he heaved a silent sigh as he looked over to Carrot.

"...Carrot," he said.

"Huh?" Carrot muttered. "What is it, Pedro?"

"...Try not to be too stunned by this sudden turn of events," said the Jaguar Mink.

"Huh?" Carrot asked. "What do you mean?"

"I have a suspicion," Pedro began, "that Luffy and his comrades...are those whom our people and the Kozuki Clan have awaited for centuries...the one who will guide us to the dawn of the world!"

"For...centuries...?!" Carrot whispered.

"Mont d'Or!" Perospero called with a Mini Transponder Snail. "Arrange a ship blockade of the coastline, at once!"

"Right away, Brother Perospero!" Mont d'Or answered.

XXX

"Damn..." Mont d'Or cursed as he sat in front of Count Niwatori while holding the log of the Straw Hats' "deaths". "So the Straw Hats are still alive, huh?"

XXX

"RAAAAAAAAARRGH!" Luffy roared as he kept firing his Gum-Gum Hawk Gatling attack at Katakuri, but his punches just kept going right through his body.

"DAMN YOU!" Blizzard cursed as he lunged at the mochi-man from behind and bit his shoulder...or at least tried to. He growled as he tried to lift Katakuri off the deck and throw him off, but he wouldn't even budge!

'What...the hell...is this guy?!' thought Blizzard. 'He's as heavy as a ton of lead!'

"Are you finished, White Wolf?" Katakuri asked before he grabbed the wolf-dog by the throat, causing him to gag, then effortlessly lifted him over his head. "And the next thing you'll say is 'Put me down'..."

"P...put...put me down!" Blizzard choked out.

"If you insist," Katakuri answered...before he threw the wolf-dog into a wall, headfirst!

"BLIZZARD!" Luffy cried before he growled at Katakuri. "YOU BASTARD!"

"A Coup de what-now?!" Jimbei asked, he and Nami already on board.

"A Coup de Burst!" Nami answered. "With it, the ship can fly over a kilometer at once! We need to hurry and use it! If we just keep sailing like normal, Big Mom and her forces will sink us in no time flat!"

As soon as she said, THOOM! Big Mom's foot stomped against the ground, causing it to shake!

"AAH!" Nami shrieked. "And here she comes, now!"

"Carrot, quickly!" Pedro shouted. "Help get the ship ready to sail!"

"Right!" Carrot answered.

"FOUND YOU~!" Big Mom roared. "MAMAMAMAMA! GIVE ME MY CAAAAAAKE!"

"Brook! Chopper!" cried Jimbei as he looked to the two in their candied state. "Are you two still alive under there?! It would be a bitter escape, indeed, if you died in the attempt!"

"...Ugh...uggh...!" Brook and Chopper both groaned, showing that they were both still alive...but the timer was beginning to reach zero!

"Not good..." Jimbei whispered, but then he spotted something out of his peripheral eye, causing him to gasp as he saw that it was the Tarte Ships!

"This is Candy Island Tarte! We've spotted the Straw Hat crew off the Southwest Coast!"

"This is Nuts Island Tarte. Minister Amande, closing in."

"This is getting desperate!" cried Jimbei. "The Tarte Ships are closing in on us at sea, while Big Mom approaches from the land!"

XXX

"Rrrgh...!" Nami grunted as she tried to lift a barrel of cola into the engine. "Just...need to get this cola set! Man, I wish Franky was here! He could do this in a snap!"

XXX

"DAMN YOU!" Luffy cursed as he tried to punch Katakuri, one last time, but his fist ended up getting caught in the mochi-man's sticky body.

"Child's play," said Katakuri as he punched Luffy in the face, causing him to stretch back before he hit the ground, and as if that wasn't bad enough, a giant blob of candy suddenly appeared under the Sunny, completely encasing it!

"Oh, now what?!" Nami questioned as she came outside.

"The ship's stuck in candy!" cried Carrot. "We're trapped!"

"Kukukukukuku!" laughed Perospero, who was standing on the coast. "Candy Wave! I'm a perfectionist, you see!"

"There he is!" shouted Carrot, angrily. "Over there!"

"Not good!" Nami cried. "We can't use the Coup de Burst while we're stuck in this candy!"

"You jerk!" Carrot yelled. "Turn Brook and Chobro back to normal!"

"Kukukukukuku!" Perospero cackled. "Will you be pounded by Mama's fists, first?! Or will the Tarte Ships sink you all?! Ohhh, I can't wait to see!"

"Not so fast, Perospero!"

"Hmm?" Perospero hummed, only to use his candy cane to block a strike from Pedro's broadsword. "And just WHAT do you think you're doing, Pedro?!" He then kicked Pedro to the ground and pinned him down with his foot. "Kukukuku! Did you forget how high my bounty is?! It's worth 700 million Berries! You are nothing compared to...huh...?!"

Pedro grinned as he opened up his jacket...revealing that he had still had his dynamite strapped to his person!

"B...bombs...?!" Carrot whispered in shock.

"...Oh, no..." Nami murmured. "You don't think that he's gonna...?!"

"W-what the-?!" Perospero questioned. "What are you going to do with all those explosives?!"

"This should be sufficient enough," Pedro began, "to undo your candy magic..."

"W-wait!" Perospero cried. "Are you mad?!"

"Pedro, no!" Carrot called out, frantically. "What are you doing?!"

The Jaguar Mink glanced over at Carrot, who gasped silently, as she noticed the sadness in his good eye...but also...a look of triumph.

'I had a feeling...this would be my very last voyage!'

He then put his lit cigarette to one of the fuses.

"...Goodbye...Carrot," he said. "Tell Wanda I'm sorry."

The group all gaped at Pedro, just as the fuse was lit.

"What are you talking about, Pedro?!"

"Carrot...one day, you will understand the true importance of keeping Luffy and his friends alive here, so that their voyage can go on! Listen to me...you-gara must keep moving forward, no matter what!"

KABOOOOOOOOM! Within seconds...Pedro and Perospero were both engulfed in a massive explosion. Luffy and the others, save for those who were unconscious, only gaped in shock and horror...but Carrot...she could only watch as tears fell from her eyes.

"No...!" she whispered. "No!" She then clenched her fists before she let out a heartwrenching sob.

"PEDROOOOOOOOOO!"

XXX

Aika gasped silently before she glanced back in the direction of Whole Cake Island.

"Hmm?" Chiffon hummed as she took notice of the young D. Carrier's sudden change. "Something wrong, sweetie pie?"

"Aika?" Sanji asked. "What's the matter?"

"...Pedro," Aika whispered. "I...I can't hear his voice, anymore...!"


TO BE CONTINUED...


Next time on One Piece: The Whole Cake Island Arc!

Carrot: PEDRO, NOOOOOO!

Nami: STOP, CARROT! I know it's hard, but if Pedro didn't sacrifice himself like he did, we'd still be stuck here!

Chopper and Brook: *gasp for air* WE'RE ALIVE!

Katakuri: Is this really the time to get all emotional?

Carrot: ...You...YOU BASTARD!

Luffy: CARROT, NO! *jumps in the way*

Katakuri: What?! Straw Hat?!

Luffy: Guys! Hold things down without me!

Carrot: Huh?!

Blizzard: *groans as he wakes up*

Luffy: *jumps into the Mirror World while pulling Katakuri with him*

Blizzard: Huh?! L-Luffy! Wait!

*In the Mirror World*

Katakuri: So...you're sure about this?

Luffy: ...I'm sure, alright. *smashes the mirror*

*On the Sunny*

Blizzard: *stares at the broken mirror in horror* He's...going to fight him...without me...?!


...Pardon me, won't you? *goes into a corner and cries*

R.I.P. Pedro.

Review, please.