A/N: I swear to the lords above if this chapter comes out as a jumbled mess I'm gonna cry. HELLO AGAIN! FINALLY UPLOADING NEW CONTENT AGAINNN! I spent ages working on the reworks, so it's refreshing to write something completely new. You've all waited long enough for this. So enjoy everyone!
"Coffee's ready," Sanji said smoothly. Carry three trays of mugs and pots full of the caffeine bean juice. Sugar, creams and chocolate dust on the side. The crew gathered on the deck in a circle, sitting together while the chef handed out mugs to each crew mate.
Tani took a sip of the fully creamed and sugared monstrosity she called a coffee. It was warming her soul, providing a much needed comfort... That wouldn't last long.
It was about an hour before they were meant to land, when the sound of a balloon wheezing caught the attention of the crew. Nami was the first to notice, as clothing items and hair started floating upwards.
"Is it supposed to do that?" Usopp questioned. Looking up at the pink octopus that was deflating. The crew all looked at each other in shared confusion. They all knew that something was wrong.
"Prepare for a bumpy landing!" Nami yelled. Already running to the railing and looping her arms and legs around it. This caused a slight panic, specifically in the resident cowards.
Zoro held his arms out for Chopper to jump into, the reindeer already sobbing and running towards the towering, moss covered brick. Zoro gripped around the rail guard, unconsciously petting at Choppers fur to calm the little deer.
Robin stayed seated in her chair, still holding her book with a pleasant expression. Sanji stood beside her, offering himself for her to hold onto. She indulged in his offer, letting him hold her hand. It wouldn't do much if the ship just suddenly dropped but it made Sanji happy as a quokka.
Usopp though, being the man of surprises. Took on a brave face as he concocted a plan to slow the descent of the Merry. The boat was looking worse for wear, his hands flew to his bag and retracted with a handful of white dials. He turned to Tani and Luffy with a determined expression.
"We need to get these on the bottom of Merry." he stated, tossing a handful to Tani. "They all have a sticky side, just press it to Merry and they'll stay. Press the top of the dial so we can slow down our fall." Usopp instructed. Luffy took on a focused expression, for once he was actually listening to instructs? A miracle!
"Luffy, loop your arms around me and Tani. Tani I'm gonna need you to get the left side, while I get the ri-"
"ARE YOU CRAZY!" Tani shrieked. She had at least five dials in her hands, that's five too many. "Haven't I thrown myself off high surfaces enough in the last three days?!" she said pathetically. Usopp turned to Luffy, who shrugged in return.
Robin has entered the chat.
"If you don't do it Miss Bell, we will all meet a gruesome end. All our organs and bones crushed from the impact into fleshy pancakes." she said nonchalantly. Turning the next page of her book without missing a beat. Tani wanted to gag.
"Flesh pancakes, or jumping off a boat?" she weighted out her options and decided she wasn't feeling pancakes today. "Fine, let's do this," she said with a grumpy expression.
Luffy was quick to toss his arms around with of their waists. Usopp dived over the side with the grace of a swan. Tani was still a little nervous to actually move.
Robin has re-entered the chat.
The woman spawned an arm and pushed Tani over the edge, the younger girl let out a scream as she was tossed over. Luffy held her tight in his grip, stopping her at the correct length so she could apply the dials.
Usopp moved quickly, slapping the dials down and pushing on them at a speed that Tani wasn't capable of. She watched him plant his fifth dial before she'd even placed her second on. He turned to her and gave her a thumbs up before tugging on Luffy's arm and being pulled back up to the deck.
Tani swayed as she planted the fourth dial, just one more to go and-
The ship plummeted.
Tani was flown upwards quickly, her brain not having any time to register what the hell had even happened. She clutched at the dial in her hands, the wind whistled and shrieked around her ears.
Luffy and Usopp made quick work in reeling her back in, latching onto her and hugging her tightly as the ship dropped like a lead balloon into the ocean below. The crew couldn't even see all too well thanks to the setting sun. All they could really do with hope for the best, that the dials would slow their fall just enough for Merry to survive... And hopefully they can survive too.
The resounding splash! That followed the Merry's rough landing, rocked the boats occupants. Leaving them to fumble over each other or whack into random objects. At least the coffee cups and pots looked fine, the petals drifting from that spot hinting at who was the cause of that.
Tani was clinging tightly to Luffy, her hair frizzled up in a hedgehog fashion. Nails digging into the rubber man's arms while her legs curled around his waist. Yeah you couldn't remove her unless you grabbed a crowbar and pried her off.
Luffy didn't mind at all. He lifted himself off the ground, Usopp still holding onto the captains arm. The sniper let go and straightened himself up. Nami snaked off the railing and hugged Usopp.
"That was a brilliant idea!" she cheered. Usopp felt his ego bloat, singing his own praises. Nami ignored his ramblings, looking around the surrounding ocean. "Now, where are we?" she whispered. Eyeing the large rocky planes that walled the immediate area. She couldn't see any exits.
Luffy wasn't paying attention to Nami or Usopp, instead he moved his arms to hold Tani comfortably to myself. She rested her head on his shoulder, her face hiding in the crook of his neck. She was so done with this god damn sky island bull shit!
"There better be an island underwater somewhere," Tani groaned, Luffy laughed. The shake of body with the laugh made Tani register that... Oh is that the inferno of fluster she can feel.
She decided to embrace the opportunity to be held by her first crush. God he has no right to be this comfortable.
The world was dark, night time having fallen not long ago. The only light came from the building in the centre of the walled off space. Voices that shouted at each other could be heard from said building. The straw hats paid them no real mind.
"Shall we continue with our coffee?" Robin asked. The crew shrugged and sat around the coffee cups again.
...
The marine boats swarmed Merry swiftly, the cover of night being a benefit to them... Or so they thought.
Tani heard the boats coming before they could be seen, Usopp double checked that claim with his goggles. At least five marine boats were sailing towards them, bright lights beamed towards them.
"Dive!" Nami commanded. Throwing herself over board into the water, the crew swiftly followed suit. Usopp held onto Robin, Zoro grabbed Chopper, Luffy clung to Tani the moment Nami gave her command, Sanji dove beside Tani. The Merry was vacated before the marines could spot them...
Dammit! Tani left her wavers on the ship, at least she has her yo-yo's and backpack but that still doesn't make her a happy camper. Tani and Sanji swam towards the rocky bay, on the outer ring that surrounded the base.
Luffy coughed and sputtered loudly, which caused both Tani and Sanji to slap a hand over his mouth. The spotlights shifted towards them, so they hid behind some rocks. The trio having to squeeze against each other to fit behind the closest space. Tani kept her gaze on the searching light, consciously ignoring the accidental touches or squishing of her organs.
The light lingered on their position for a moment, Tani hushed her companions. Luffy sounded like he wanted to explode, the guy couldn't stay quiet if it meant a matter of life or death... Unless there was meat involved. Luckily Sanji kept his hand firmly around the captains trap, Tani leaning ever so slightly out of the hiding spot to watch which way the light was shifting.
Waiting... Waiting...
The spot light lost interest in their location and turned to the left, leaving Tani with all the information she needed for now.
"Let's go," she said quietly, motioning to the right. The boys followed behind her, letting her take the lead. An unusual occurrence when involving captain McAdventure-pants and the holy chivalry knight of white. Tani felt like she knew exactly what she was doing.
The trio ran around the outer ring, when Tani noticed an entrance to an underground something. She paused, the boys stood beside her... Well Sanji did, Luffy stopped for 0.3 seconds before bursting the door open and walking inside like he owned the joint. Tani face palmed while Sanji groaned with annoyance. The pair followed their idiot captain.
The cave was tunnelled out, with metal beams to support the arch shaped hallways, the place was damp as hell. Which meant they were probably tunnelling towards the main marine base. There were plenty of candles and lanterns to light the pathway, each foot step echoed back. The place seemed to be void of life, sans Luffy, Sanji and Tani.
"Should we be going towards the base? What about the rest of the crew?" Tani asked, to fill in the silence. Sanji huffed.
"They're our nakama, they can handle themselves just fine." Sanji stated confidently. He looked like he was itching to grab a smoke. "I'll kick any marine bastard that hurts my lovely Nami, or darling Robin," he declared with a narrowed brow. Tani snickered.
"Aw, am I not worthy of your protection anymore Sanji?" she joked. Sanji looked at her with horror. He went to open his mouth to protest her claim when Luffy chimed in.
"That's ok! I'll protect you Tani," Luffy said sweetly. "Not that you'll need it, because you're really cool and can kick ass," he added like sprinkles to the top of the sundae.
Tani covered her face to hide her fluster. Luckily Luffy wasn't looking her way... But Sanji was, and he considers himself a love expert. He looked between the two of them, the flushing of Tani's cheeks, the awkward body language, her small squeak that she hoped nobody heard.
A classic case of a first crush. How adorable!
Luffy is as dense as a brick though! He's gonna break Tani dearests heart if he keeps ignoring her feelings like that. A lady with heartbreak is not allowed to happen if Sanji can help it, so help god. If Luffy hurts Tani, the crews gonna need a new captain.
*clack clack clack*
The sound of steel toed boots clicked on the rock floor, the three of them froze in their steps. There wasn't anywhere to hide all three of them, the metal beams could shield one person per side, so one of them would be exposed. Luffy pushed Tani towards one of the beams, while Sanji bounced to the other beam, Luffy launched his arms up to the top of the beam and hung there like a monkey.
A lone marine soldier walked along the tunnel, a long rifle rested on his arm as he marched onward. The den den mushi in his pocket started to ring with a familiar *puru puru puru* which he answered immediately.
"This is cadet Allis reporting," he responded. The voice on the other end spoke up, a hint of excitement in their tone.
"This is cadet Oscar, captain Johnathan has reported that all marines keep an eye out for members of the mystery pirate crew that landed in the middle of our base waters." the voice reported. Allis gave an affirmative before hanging up. Allis continued his walk towards the end of the tunnel, looking more on edge than last time.
*clap clap clap*
Oh no.
The sound of Luffy's sandals rebounded off the walls as he walked behind the marine with a smug grin. The marine would turn around and Luffy would follow, always standing right behind him without a care of being caught.
Hell he held up a leave sign towards his two companions with a wonky smile. Tani had to stop herself from laughing. What a dork.
Before he could get caught, Luffy flung himself back onto a support beam and waited for the marine to walk away. Once his shoes clicks were out of ear shot, the trio made a dash for the other end of the tunnel. Rock turned to metal, many pathways opened up. There were so many different hallways to get lost in.
Luffy sped up and took the lead, the other two followed without question. Knowing Luffy, he'd find something interesting, if not something troublesome.
The smell of food hit their noses, Sanji had to hold back a whack to Luffy's head. The moron always thought with his stomach, not his head. If they were going to infiltrate this base successfully, they would need disguises.
Sanji spotted a vent on the roof, it would be a tight fit but they'd all be able to shimmy their ways through.
"We can take the vents, find a marine or three that are isolated, kick their ass and steal their clothes." Sanji said. Tani had other plans.
"I'm not going all Diehard on in this facility, you couldn't get me in that vent if you paid me." she stated clearly. That movie had scared her for life, so there's no way she was getting in a vent. Sanji looked at her, then the vent with concern. This was the only way to guarantee her safety, as well as navigate without being spotted. Tani gave him a wink.
"They won't find me, you and Luffy go into the vents and find some uniforms," Tani assured. Pushing Sanji towards the vent. Luffy gave her a look, which she returned with a confident one. They stared at one another for a moment, before Luffy grinned. Grabbing Sanji and tossed him into the vent, before slinking himself up.
"Good luck you two," Tani whispered before turning towards the empty hallway and proceeding with caution.
She searched her way around like a ninja, making sure to take cover whenever she could find it. All she needed was a supply closet, a dirty laundry basket, honestly anything that holds any type of uniform.
*ring*
Tani froze on the spot. That was a bell, a special bell. It just wasn't one of hers. The chime held an air of excitablity and anticipation. The ring tone itself was more high pitched than her bells...
Was this the marine that Trip was talking about? Was this the vice admiral that was obsessed with bell users?
*ring ring*
The bell sounds seemed to be playing a tune, one that Tani didn't recognise. If she had to describe it, it sounded like a theme tune.
Tani didn't want to risk moving, her bell would give her away. Yet she can't just stand here, what if the marine is armed with a weapon?!
"-And bring along, all your hopes and dreams~" a voice sang, their feet clicking with a skip in their step. The bell bouncing with the tune. Was this the marine? They sounded too young to be such a high ranking marine.
"Together we will find everything that we're lookin for~" they sang some more with cheer, they were getting closer. Tani had to hide! She just couldn't find where-
"One piece!" the marine shouted with a dramatic pose, turning the corner and freezing when they spotted Tani. Tani was frozen too, stuck in the "I'm running away now" pose while the marine was "Final pose for a rock ballad" posing.
Awkward.
Tani was the first to move, bolting towards the lone marine with vigour, her yo-yo's whipped out and ready to strike. The marine snapped out of it and lifted their hands in a holt position.
"Wait wait wait-" they were cut off when Tani smacked the marine in the face with a harsh blow. They rubbed at the cheek with a whine, their other hand still held up in protest. "Stop! Wait, listen-" they cried, Tani continued, she needed their uniform.
They dodged and deflected the blows that Tani threw at them. The marine was still trying to speak.
"Hold on! I'm on your side-"
*whack*
"I can help! I have a spare uniform-"
*whack*
"Tani can you stop!?"
The use of her name made her pause, the marine breathed heavily. Their hands on their knees as they heaved. Holding up one hand with a finger up in pause. Tani had both yo-yo's in her hands, ready to attack if provoked.
She took a good look at the marine. They had their short brown hair tied into a small ponytail, with a marine cap on top. Their skin was slightly tanned, showing their exposure to the sun. They were box shaped in build, with prominent muscles built around the upper arms that could snap Tani in half if she wasn't careful.
"Who are you?" Tani asked cautiously. Her voice giving away her paranoia. The marine lifted their head with a wonky smile.
"The names Oscar, I'm just like you," Oscar said with a relieved sigh. Digging into their pocket and revealing a silver bell. Tani's heart skipped a beat, another bell. This time the user was with it. Tani pulled her own golden bell from her bag to show it to Oscar. The marine looked ecstatic.
"I CAN'T BELIEVE I'VE MET SOMEONE LIKE ME!" they cheered excitedly. Tani shushed them harshly, they quickly covered their mouth with a sheepish blush on their face. "Sorry... Oh uh, follow me!" they said with a wave of their hand. Tani looked at them sceptically, they rolled their eyes and grabbed her arm. Dragging her down the hall while speaking a million miles a second.
"Nami and Zoro should be running around close to the east balcony, Zoro's gonna be caught soon." they stated aloud. Tani blinked in shock, they continued, "Luffy and Sanji would be in the vents, or the kitchen by now. Chopper will be hiding in the doctors hamper. Usopp will be making his way to Merry and Robin will be doing her Robin thing," they concluded.
How the hell?
"We're here," the said, opening a door and pulling Tani into the room. What greeted her was... Not something she expected when thinking of a marine.
Wanted posters of many pirates, covered the walls. She saw Luffy, Zoro and herself on the wall. As well as Ace, Trip, Crocodile was there too, and many others she didn't know. Like a guy with a sword and spotty hat, or the guy with red hair and black lipstick. Oscar started to gush.
"Aren't they amazing! I've been collecting all my favourite characters posters. Just need Enies lobby to happen and I can get the rest of the straw hats, except for Brook. Who hasn't shown up yet, but you know that already don't you?" they rambled. Tani just stared at them wide eyed.
"What are you talking about? What's going on?" Tani interrogated. Oscar looked at her like she was messing around. She wasn't.
"What do you mean? You're in this world, so you must know what One piece is?" they said with a "no duh" attitude. Tani was not having it.
"It's the name of the treasure-"
"On the Grand-line~" Oscar interrupted with song. Tani held her forehead, what were they on about?
"Anyway, I don't know how you know about my crew, we haven't been in the news that often," she pondered aloud, Oscar spoke up.
"Wait... Have you never heard of One-piece? The manga?" they asked with shock. Tani shook her head, she didn't even know what a manga was. "Holy smokes! I just spoiled the story for you," they panicked. Rolling into themselves in despair.
"Luffy will be so dissapointed in me, I spoiled the adventure," they wallowed. Tani looked at them, then the uniform that they'd tossed on the bed for her to wear. She grabbed it and threw it on while they continued to weep. The uniform was a bit tight in the shirt area, probably because Tani had a bigger bust than Oscar did. The pants were too long so Tani had roll the bottoms up. Shoes were a perfect fit but that's to be expected, everyone's feet are the same size here...
Now that hat...
She didn't want to swap her lucky cap for the boring white and blue cap that the marines wore, but for the sake of disguising herself... She sucked it up, pulled her hat off her head and shoved it in her bag. She decided to tuck all her hair into the cap, her long hair would be a dead give away.
"Oscar? Are you alright?" Tani asked, crouching beside the fetus positioned Oscar. They looked at her with a dramatically saddened face.
"No, Luffy will hate me for ruining the adventure." they whined. Tani gave them an awkward pat on the back.
"I promise I won't say anything about it to Luffy," Tani swore, that seemed to instantly perk Oscar up. Who jumped to their feet and beamed from ear to ear.
"I can't wait for chaos to ensue, it's been so boring here," Oscar smiled, opening the door to their room, into the hallway. "Let's head to the kitchen, I'm sure Sanji and Luffy are already there," they said with excitement. Practically dragging Tani towards the pleasant smelling mess hall/kitchen. It smelt like Sanji's work.
The mess hall was brimming with life. Marines all crowded around the open wall that shows the kitchen, men and women alike all taking a gander at the sight. Tani could tell it was Sanji, he has that draw to him when cooking around others, the show-off.
Oscar grabbed Tani's arm and pulled her towards the back entrance to the kitchen. How convenient.
They peeked around the corner, and saw Sanji obliterating some fish meat with a tenderising hammer. His hands moving so fast that they were a blur. Oscar let out a sigh.
"God he's even prettier in real life," they said dreamily. This felt like two school girls staring at their crush from across the hall. Speaking of... Where's Lu-
"Tani who's that?" speak of the devil and he shall arise. Tani jumped in shock, smacking her head into Oscar's chin. The pair grabbing the now throbbing spots. Oscar took a split second to register that Luffy was in their presence. They looked like they were going to blow up with how much they were shaking.
"This is Oscar, they're from my world too." she explained briefly with a quiet tone. Luffy looked at them with no real expression, before turning back to Tani. "They're your friend now right?" he asked, pointing at them. Tani looked at Oscar, who was just as curious for the answer.
"Yeah, they helped me get a uniform." Tani stated. Luffy looked back at Oscar with a grin and laughed his iconic laugh. Oscar looked like they were going to die right on the spot, with no regrets.
"Oi, dish boy! Get back to work," a tall woman with blonde hair tied in a tight bun commanded. Her eyes spotting Tani and Oscar. "Oscar? You're not meant to be on kitchen duty. Who's your little friend?" she questioned. Looking at Tani sceptically. Oscar did a little jazz hand motion towards Tani.
"This is cadet uh, Torao," they responded with a grin. Torao? Is that even a real word? "It's her last name, since she doesn't like her first name." they pointed out to the woman. Tani gave a nod.
"That's right, please call me Torao. As my name is really embarrassing," shit now she need to think up a dumb first name... God this was all going to fall apart as fast as the Star Wars reference back in chapter 25.
"She arrived on the same ship as special agent Shepard this morning." Oscar continued to fib. Tani nodding along, paying close attention to she can keep the continuity. "She got lost and wanted some help finding the bathroom, only to be drawn by the amazing smell of that chef! Is he one of the Marley brothers you mentioned would show up today?" Oscar asked innocently directing the attention to Sanji instead. The chef lady gave a huff.
"He's certainly one hell of a chef, I wasn't expecting much from the Marley brothers. Yet that blonde is one talented man... The raven on the other hand," she motioned towards Luffy, who was shoving three plates of food into his mouth. Sanji would smack him upside the head, but the meals were lost to the Luffy void. "Has been nothing but trouble, he can't even clean dishes well." she glared. Tani took that moment to perk up.
"I can clean those dishes if you need a hand? I don't think my team needs me right now, with Shepard doing their thing." she said sweetly. The lady gave her a curious gaze before turning her head towards Oscar, who gave a thumbs up. She sighed and nodded to Tani. Who saluted and ran off to Luffy's side.
The captain was excited to see her, she gave him a finger to the lips. Silencing him, and started on the dishes. She would wash them and hand them to Luffy, who took a drying rag and dried them all rather poorly. At least they were clean.
Oscar was hanging around,staring at Sanji cook. Their eyes filled with wonder, their fair cheeks flushing a bright pink. Luffy gave a snicker.
"Shishi, Boxcar looks like you when you get all funny in the face," the captain pointed out. Humour in his tone, that caught Tani off guard. Tani turned to spot Oscar pulling out a den den mushi, were they making a call?
"Did you just call him Boxcar? His name is Oscar..." she said, feeling herself get embarrassed at the call out.
Luffy continued to snicker, a sparkle in his eyes that made Tani's heart skip a beat... Shut up heart! He's just looking cute, that's not something to get excited about! Ugh maybe she should just shove her head into the murky sink water to shut her brain up.
"Oi, dish boy." the lady called to Luffy, who turned to her and instantly zeroed in on the steaming plate of food in her hand. Tani and Sanji loooked at the plate with panic. Oscar was snickering behind their hand. "Can you take this to my husband? The moron won't remember to have lunch, unless it's brought to him." she said with tired eyes.
Wasn't it night time not even two hours ago? How is it already lunch time? Then again they did run around outside for a while, and they were underground for just as long. Are there any windows in this building?
"Alright!" Luffy said cheerily, grabbing the plate and ran off to the vice admiral's office. Tani felt a pit in her stomach, which Oscar managed to make even worse.
"He's gonna be found out in the next," they held up a hand and counted down. "About 3 minutes, he's going to eat all the food on the plate." Oscar laughed. That sounds like Luffy...
"Should we tell Sanji?" Tani questioned with rising worry, motioning towards the blonde chef, who was pining for the scary chef lady. Oscar looked nervous with excitement at the idea. "If we get caught, we're fu-"
"Oh, Zoro and probably Usopp now. Have both been captured and sent to the holding cells. Sanji and Luffy break them out so it'll be fine." Oscar assured. Tani took a nervous glance at Sanji, the guy didn't even know she was here right now.
"Let's go talk to Sanji, if Luffy is about to cause trouble. We might not get to see each other again." Tani stated. Plus it looked like Oscar really wanted to meet Sanji. Tani grabbed Oscar's arm and gently guided them towards Sanji. The blonde noticing the pair approaching. He perked up at the sight of the darker girl.
"Hello, cadet dearest," he said with a smug grin, Tani felt Oscar's pulse jump. Tani gave Sanji a lady salute.
"Houston, we may have a problem. Namely a moron captain that's about to blow our cover." Tani informed. Sanji narrowed his gaze at the door Luffy left through and sighed. Oscar decided to speak up.
"I-it's ok though, yo-you both get awa-ay just fi-fine," they stuttered. Throwing their hands to their face to hide it from their idol. The blonde chef turned to the brunette and gave them a smile.
"Who's this?" he said kindly. Tani held out a hand in presentation.
"This is Oscar, they've been helping me hide. They've got bells just like I do," Tani said, Oscar gave Sanji a shy wave before hiding their face again. Sanji laughed heartily.
"Thank you for helping my dearest Tani," he thanked, Oscar nodded in acknowledgement. Sanji turned back to Tani. "Now we need to wait for Luffy to screw up and bring the whole facility down," he sighed. Man he really needed a cigarette right now.
As if on cue, Luffy came bursting through the wooden doors at mach speed. His arms held out in hook shapes that gave Tani flash backs to Loguetown... This wasn't going to be fun. The captain spotted his nakama and instantly honed in on them. Avoiding weapons and obstacles, hooking his arms around Sanji, Tani and Oscar in one swoop. Bolting away down the hall, to who knows where...
Oscar knows where.
"You'll wanna head to the right, there should be a couple more turns, but it'll take you to the bridge that leads to the holding cells." Oscar guided. Luffy nodded and followed Oscar's directions. Putting faith in someone who could be tricking them all right now. Tani wasn't completely clearing her suspicions of Oscar, as nice as they were. Then again... Luffy is an excellent judge of character and if he trusts someone, it's safe to say they're trustworthy.
"Next left and the door outside will be there," Oscar said excitedly. Luffy jumped in the air and kicked the door down with a crunch. The clacking of shoes approaching them, spurred Luffy forward. He dashed across the high suspending bridge in a blur of colour.
"Don't fire! Cadet Oscar is being held hostage!" a voice called out to all the marines who were aiming to fire. Tani turned back to find a gruff looking man, with sideburns that creeped into his cheeks. Oscar faked a fearful expression, adding to the narrative. "One wrong shot and the kids as good as dead. So hold your fire until the cadet is returned safely." he commanded. Leaving Luffy to run across the bridge without trouble.
Luffy kicked in the first door he saw at the end of the bridge, running down the stairs while still holding his nakama (plus Oscar) tightly.
"The marines have stopped chasing us, they're recouping so they can ambush you in the cells. Don't worry though, you'll get away," Oscar informed, straining their voice like they wanted to add more to the conversation. Luffy skidded to a stop. His sandals leaving behind burnout trails.
Sanji pushed himself out of Luffy's hold, dusted off his pants before realising he was still wearing the disguise. Luffy was already removing the white rags from his hat.
Tani stripped the marine uniform off, leaving her in the shirt she had underneath and the shorts she'd managed to hide under the white pants. She folded the uniform and put it in her bag, maybe she can use this later. While she was at it, she swapped the marine cap for her lucky cap. Her hair pooled out of the marine caps casing and coated her back. She missed the look in Luffy's eyes as he stared at the soft curls... Soft.
"Alright, blow this popsicle," Oscar declared. Turning to the boys before they could run off. "One of you needs to carry me around so I still look like a hostage," they said with a sheepish expression.
For once, Luffy didn't take up the role of noble stead. Which was odd because he's always clinging to people and carrying them around like rag dolls. After a beat of silence, Sanji strolled over and placed a casual hand on Oscar's shoulder.
"Normally my arms are reserved for ladies, but I'll make an exception this time," he declared, carefully picking up Oscar and throwing them over his shoulder. One arm on Oscar's back, while the other held their legs. "Let's get going then," the chef said.
"Yosh! Let's go," Luffy pointed towards the on-going hallway and started running, Tani followed beside him while Sanji trailed behind with a flustered Oscar. Who was thanking every god alive, for letting them be held by their idol.
...
The group arrived at the cells not even five minutes later, the cells were held in a dark cave made of the same rock as the tunnel they straw hats had used to get into the base. Meaning they were definitely underground. The room was cleared out, except the bickering sounds of Usopp and Zoro. Thank god they were alive.
Tani and Luffy rolled around the corner and spotted the two captured straw hats sitting in the stone cell with block cuffs over their wrists, while shackled by the ankle to the wall. Usopp's face lit up at the sight of them.
"Tani! Luffy! I'm so glad you're here, get me out. I think my 'I can't be held prisoner or I'll die' sickness is acting up again." he whined. Tani laughed at the statement, but cleared away as Luffy rolled his arm to destroy the metal ba-
"WAIT THOSE ARE SEASTONE!" Oscar called from Sanji's shoulder, the blonde dropped the marine from his hold. Oscar walked towards the cell and turned to usopp. "Impact dial, I know you have one in your right pocket," they commanded. Usopp gave them a confused look.
"Who the hell are you?" the sniper asked with slight aggression. Pulling away from the reach of Oscar. Tani held up her hands to ease the agitated sniper.
"It's alright, they're with us. This is Oscar," she introduced. Oscar waved with a big grin, then bowed. Usopp eyed them suspiciously.
"How do they know about the impact dial in my left! Pocket," Usopp said with emphasis on the word left. Oscar shook their head.
"No, in your left pocket is an aroma dial, and trust me. You don't wanna click that one," they said, eyeballing Luffy. Who looked away with his lips puckered to the right as he denied using it. What the hell did Luffy do to that dial?
"How does this guy know all about my dials? What is going on here?" Usopp questioned. He was within his rights to do so, it's pretty odd that nobody has called to question how this lone marine cadet knows so much about their crew... Well Tani knows why but she's not gonna give them away.
"I know everything that has happened, and will happen to your crew," Oscar answered cryptically, "I also know that Luffy over there," they pointed at Luffy, "Hates a boring adventure. So I'm not gonna spoil this for him." they concluded.
"Wait, you what?! How is that possible?" Usopp freaked out. Oscar laughed.
"Back home, the same home as Tani. There's a story called One piece, it's about your adventures." Oscar explained. All eyes turned to Tani instantly. The girl waved her arms in denial.
"I swear, I've never heard of this story in my life," she assured. Luffy shrugged, honestly he didn't care. As long as she didn't ruin the adventure, he would be happy. "I have a feeling that Oscar is from a whole other spot of the world," she theorised. Oscar gawked.
"One piece is the best selling manga of all time, there's no way you wouldn't have heard of it." Oscar accused. Tani taps her foot. "It's been the best seller since like 2007," they state matter-of-factly...
2007? But... But the years-
"It's 1994, what are you going on about?" Tani questions. Oscar goes to speak again, only for Usopp to call out.
"Shut up and get us out of here," he complained. Zoro was in the back, snoring up a storm in his napping state. Usopp lifted his hips up to bring his right pocket closer. Oscar dug into the pocket and lifted the dial, holding it out to Sanji.
"Tani and I can't use it or our entire arm will explode, Luffy can't touch the sea stone. So you'll have to take one for the team," Oscar explained, handing the dial to Sanji.
*clack clack clack*
"The marines are coming, hurry!" Tani called out. Oscar kept their hand held out, but turned to Tani to tell her something.
"When you escape, head for the abandoned dock, it's number 31. Merry has been moved there. I'll tell Nami and the others where to go." Oscar promised. Tani kept that information in mind.
Sanji snatched the dial from Oscar's hand, stuck it to the bars and round house kicked the poor, unfortunate shell, with the force of a bulldozer. The entire wall busted from the tops and sides of the stone wall. Bending in on itself while it dislodged from the spot.
The dust cleared to the sound of guns clicking. An army of marines had their guns all pointed towards the pirates, moving their weapons away from Oscar's direction. Tani needed to act now, or she was screwed. One shot and she's as good as dead.
Tani assessed her surroundings, right next to her was Oscar. The ally looking as calm as possible. There were also a lot of rocks that looked blunt enough for Tani to grab quickly and fake a hostage situation. Luffy was bullet proof so she'd need to shift herself and her "hostage" to be beside him, if things get messy.
Alright...
One.
She slowly crouched down, the marines kept a focus on the more intimidating looking Luffy and Zoro. The swordsman displaying his strength by literally smash his wooden cuffs over his knee. Shattering the block into saw dust.
Two..
Tani grabbed a rock, she shifted her body to face Oscar. Who was looking at her with their peripheral. Tani nodded slightly to the rock, they understood and remained still.
Three!
Tani lunged for Oscar, who let her take them hostage. Oscar let out a dramatic gasp. All marines shifted their aim to Tani, who lifted her rock up on display for the world. They froze.
"I'm going to bludgeon the hell out of this hostages head, if you even think about shooting my crew mates." Tani threatened with a snarl. Her crew looked at her like a whole new person. They'd never seen her so aggressive in her life. She couldn't turn to face them or assure them that this was all an act.
"Hold your fire," the same gruff man from before commanded, walking to the centre of the standoff. Oscar wallowed.
"Lieutenant Drake," Oscar whimpered, god they're a great actor. "Don't let them hurt me please," they said with a wobble to their tone. This made Tani feel terrible.
"Drake was it?" Tani says, glaring daggers at the man. He looks back with just as much malice. "Let me and my crew pass through safely, or I'm going to make cadet soup with this unfortunate bastards brain matter," Tani threatened. Feeling sick in the stomach at the imagery. Usopp whispering in the back about how hard core that was, is not helping.
"At ease pirate," He snarled at her. She lifted the rock higher, a threat. He tensed, looking into the terrified eyes of Oscar.
Then the rocks shifted beside Usopp and Zoro. A man popped his head through them. He looked like a classic pirate, with his sweaty singlet and ratty face.
"Ah, Condoriano! Are your memories finally back?" Usopp lied through his teeth. The man looked up at the sniper, then the swordsman, then the marines all standing around with their weapons drawn. He started yapping.
"How dare you simpletons point your weapons at me? I'm commander Shepard! When headquarters hears about this-" he was cut off when Sanji kicked him in the head. Everyone froze. The man dropped to the ground in a heap of knocked out flesh.
"We can all agree. That guy was a total pain in the ass," he stated. Funnily enough, everyone nodded their heads in agreement. The tension returned as quickly.
"Let us go, and I'll give back this cadet," Tani demanded. Drake looked conflicted... Letting out a sigh of defeat.
"Lower your weapons,"
"But sir-"
"Lower your weapons!" Drake glared. The nervous cadets did as told. Looking at the pirates like they were scum... Tani felt scummy. She dropped the rock, and pushed Oscar towards Drake. The cadet scampered towards the marines. "Clear a path for the pirates," he commanded. The marines parted like the red sea for them.
The straw hats ran for it. Speeding towards the exit, and without Oscar there to tell them what to expect, or even direct them back to the exit! They got lost... No thanks to Zoro, who managed to make it to the head of the group. They paused on the spot to reevaluate their situation. Which meant Zoro and Sanji arguing while Usopp attempted to defuse the flames of fury. Luffy looked at Tani with disappointment.
"Tani, what you did was really cowardly." Luffy commented. Tani blinked at him with hurt. "Only cowards take hostages." he huffed. Crossing his arms at her.
Tani was at a loss for words. Luffy was telling her off? For solving the situation? But it was a peaceful (relatively) solution. Nobody got hurt and both parties consented.
"Oscar was acting, we were both acting." she explained, Luffy still looked dissapointed. Tani narrowed her eyes, "It's all I could think to do, they had guns. Those could kill me in an instant," she said with a click of her fingers. "One shot to the heart, lung, brain or spot where I won't stop bleeding? Bye bye Tani," she felt heated.
"I'm immune to bullets, I could have protected you." Luffy informed, Tani rolled her eyes.
"Well I got us out of there, without a fight." she huffed, crossing her arms and looking away from her captain. "It also made me feel awful while doing it, so thanks for that," Tani pouted. Looking away from Luffy. Her chest hurt, she didn't want to be upset with him.
"She's got a point Luffy," Usopp pointed out. The captain shot him a look, Usopp didn't stand down. "If it wasn't for Tani and her friend, we would have had to fight our way out. Tani would have been in danger," he pointed out, patting her on the shoulder.
"Can we shut up and get out of here," Zoro groaned. Everyone agreed to that, making a run for the exit.
Tani ignored Luffy while he ran beside her. Acting like nothing had happened, he got over it fast but she wouldn't let it go.
Was it petty? Probably.
Did she care? A little bit, her chest still ached at the claim he made about her.
Would this bite him in the ass one day? Yes. But Tani doesn't know that. Only the author does.
...
After finding the exit and facing off against many marine soldiers, blowing up the bridge, and having to swim to safety (Tani made Zoro carry Luffy), the five of them managed to find dock 31, and just as Oscar had promised. Merry sat there in all her glory.
Usopp jumped out of the water and excitedly greeted Merry. Tani pulled herself onto the dock and headed straight for the women's room. She needed to put away that marine uniform. Leaving the boys behind to talk.
"Luffy," Sanji started, pulling out that long awaited cigarette. He inhaled the nicotine furled smoke and breathed out with relief. Luffy stood there with a curious face. "Are you going to apologise to Tani?" the blonde asked. His head tilted to the right, in a nonchalant pose.
"For what?" the younger questioned. Sanji sighed, smoke danced from his lips.
"For the rude shit you said to her," Sanji almost growled. Usopp stood beside Sanji with his arms crossed.
"Yeah, calling her a coward was pretty harsh." Usopp mentioned. "She was just trying to-"
"What she did was cowardly, I'm right." Luffy claimed, knocking his hat off his head to rest on his back. Usopp hummed.
"You're not wrong, hostage situations are cowardly." he agreed, Luffy went to smile at the validation, but Usopp held up a finger. "But, it was also the smartest action to take during that situation," Usopp stated.
"How? We could have beaten all of those guys up," Luffy argued. Sanji sighed.
"We certainly could have. All of use would have come out of it with barely a scratch." Sanji said. Luffy motioned to the chef. "Everyone, except Tani." he finished. Leaving Luffy with a somewhat shocked expression.
"Have you forgotten that Tani is extremely fragile?" Usopp reminds. "Those marines mentioned that the cadet she was holding hostage, could be killed with a single bullet. The cadet who is from the same world as Tani," Usopp continued. Luffy's face dropped, the realisation dawning on his features, before he stomped on it and doubled down.
"We could have protected her! She wouldn't have died-"
"You don't know that Luffy," Sanji cuts him off. Luffy looked more and more like a kicked puppy. "It takes one split second for a bullet to go flying and hit her," he motioned with his cigarette. Tapping his pointer finger into Luffy's chest. "Right into her heart. Instantly killing her," he said solemnly.
"Tani doing what she did, ensured her own safety while keeping ours in mind too." Usopp added. "Sometimes the cowards way out, means surviving another day." he declared. Luffy seemed conflicted.
At that moment, Tani walked out onto the deck. Sensing an awkward tension in the air. She looked between Luffy, Usopp and Sanji. Luffy's expression was one she'd never seen before.
Guilt.
He looked guilty, and Tani had a feeling that she was the cause of it. Usopp and Sanji looked at Tani, then Luffy.
"Hey Sanji, mind helping me with this thing I need help with?" Usopp asked the blonde. Grabbing his by the arm and pulling him towards the kitchen.
"Of course Usopp, I can help with that thing." Sanji said robotically. Following Usopp away. Leaving Tani and Luffy on deck, with a napping Zoro.
It was awkward. Luffy was avoiding her gaze, opting to stare at the deck with his hands balled. He shook slightly, like he was angry but to who? Tani didn't want to find out.
"I'm gonna go-"
"I'm sorry,"
The world froze, time seemed to stop around the pair. The words that left his mouth, slam dunked into the hoop that is Tani's brain.
"You're sorry?" she questioned. Was he only saying sorry because the boys made him? Honestly though...
"Ok, apology accepted," she smiled. She meant it, being mad at Luffy was hard. He said sorry, and looks like he meant it. So that's a step in the right direction. Luffy lifted his head in shock, like he was expecting far worse. "What? You think I'm gonna stay mad over something so silly. Sure it hurt my feelings, and you were a total ass about it." she giggled. "But I'm fine, we got out just fine and I've always known you were blunt as a rock." she concluded.
Walking briskly towards the frozen boy, she threw her arms forward. Wrapping them around his shoulders in a tight embrace.
Luffy noticed everything. The way her wrists clinked together when the burned gold cuffs made contact. The way she kept her weight on the leg that hadn't taken a direct hit from Enel's lightening. How her torso was leaning so she wouldn't put pressure on her bruised side...
She was fragile. Very easy to break. He could have lost her today, if she hadn't done the cowardly thing... No. It wasn't cowardly, she never put Boxcar in danger. She was lying, just like Usopp would. It felt like he'd taken 100 fists of love from Gramps. It hurt to feel so bad in the chest. He'd never felt this way before.
He lifted his arms and slowly enclosed them around the girl. He held her tight, he wouldn't let anything happen. Tani sighed softly in his ear.
"Thank you," she said simply. No more, no less. It lifted some weight off his chest, yet filled it with something else. That weird hungry feeling he felt back on drum island when she was laughing in the snow. Weird and fluttery.
He liked it a lot.
Luffy grinned and smooshed his cheek into her own. The pair laughing away the tension of their earlier spat. Something that in hind sight, was really stupid. Usopp and Sanji smiled from their spot in the kitchen window, giving each other a fist bump. Mission accomplished.
Zoro continued to snore away on the floor, without a care in the world.
...
Operation 'Escape from G-8' was in action. Nami and Chopper arrived in no time, donning nurse/doctor attire. Robin was still MIA, but she's Robin. She'll pop up on the boat at some random point in time, and nobody will bat an eye.
Usopp and Sanji actually did end up working on something. Oscar had left the blue prints of a marine ship in the galley, so they crafted a replica outer layer to disguise Merry as a marine ship.
The crew (excluding Robin) were back together. Tani greeted Nami and Chopper, asking them about their adventures in the marine base.
"Well, I had to help Chopper with some emergency surgery." Nami shivered. The small deer doctor snickered.
"The real doctor faints at the sight of blood, so we had to do it." Chopper said, removing the coat he was wearing. "She received a message from some marine rookie, telling her to direct us to dock 31," he informed.
"That was Oscar. They've been helping us the entire time we've been here," Tani grinned. Usopp chimed in.
"They're psychic or something, they know everything that about us... Kinda creepy," he shivered. Nami and Chopper looked at each other.
"Psychic? They can read minds?" the pair looked shocked. Tani held her hands up in an X shape.
"Wrong. Oscar knows everything about all of you," Tani informed. "You're all from something called manga? From my world." she recounted. Nami had an even more confused face.
"We exist in your world?" the redhead blinked, resting her fist in her cheek. "Then why didn't you know who we were?" she asked. Tani had a theory.
"Because this manga doesn't exist yet," she theorised. "Oscar mentioned it being the best selling manga of all time, in the year 2007. The year for me is 1994," Tani concluded. The wind picked up around them, something was coming.
"The tides going to pull out, we need to hurry up, and get out of here." Nami stated. That caught everyone's attention, "Robin will find us, let's get going," the navigator commanded. Everyone jumped to their stations.
Merry was ship-shape within minutes, sailing carefully through the open waters of the marine base. There was a gate, not too far from their location. Oscar must have picked the closest unoccupied dock.
A low humming noise, tickled Tani's ear. She twisted her head around to spot a small figure, gliding along the waters towards them. Black hair waving behind her, purple attire standing out against the navy blue ocean.
"Robin!" came a few cheers, the woman gracefully rode Nami's waver towards the Merry. Which caught Nami's attention.
"Wait a second..." she paused, running into the treasure room. Not even a minute later, came an enraged shriek. "IT'S GONE!" Nami's cries echoed through out the whole base.
Robin arrived quickly, using her many arms to collect herself and the waver onto Merry. Nami was having a small panic attack on the ground, all the treasure was stolen by the marines. Robin walked past her to hand a note to Tani.
"That young marine friend of yours, wanted me to give this to you." she said, handing the note over. Tani flipped it open.
"The treasure is in Johnathan's office. He's the marine boss," oh so the room that Luffy went to, when he was delivering lunch to that chef ladies husband. "The tide will be low soon, but we should still have that octopus... Guys do we still have that octopus?" Tani asked, looking away from the letter.
The crew looked around, until Luffy was shoving his hand into the front of his pants. Pulling it back out with a distraught looking pink octopus. Tani didn't even want to think about how uncomfortable that would have been.
"... Right, now we need heat dials... Oh! we're making a hot air balloon, so we can fly over the wall." Tani concluded. "Here's my den den number, so we can stay in contact." with a smiley face at the end to sign it off. Tani giggled.
She looked over the letter again while the crew got to work. Luffy and Nami jumped onto the waver, so they could retrieve the stolen treasure. Zoro, Sanji and Robin were stretching out the octopus, while Usopp collected all the flame dials he could find. Tani's eyes caught onto a small arrow on the left bottom corner.
"P.S... Be careful of Marineford?" she questioned. Oscar was very clear about not wanting to spoil the adventure. So whatever this was... It must be important. Tani folded the letter and tucked it into her pocket.
The octopus was inflating like a balloon, the ship was sailing closer to the gate. Watching the tide, slowly pull away. Where was Luffy and Nami?
"Go! Go! Go!" came the loud voice of Nami, as the waver sped towards Merry. A massive sack of gold was hanging over Luffy's shoulders. Robin crossed her arms over her chest and summoned many arms to collect the speeding scooter.
"We're ready for take off!" Usopp called from the top of the crows nest, holding up a flame dial.
"Then take off!" Nami barked. "The winds blowing towards north, ride the wind," She instructed. Usopp called back an affirmative.
*Bang*
A loud explosion, hit the walls of the cliff. Rocks tumbled and crashed into the watery depths below. Tani whipped her head around and spotted a lone man in a boat, with a rocket launcher on his shoulder.
"Hey, isn't that the Condoriano guy?" Tani asked Zoro, he lifted his head for a moment, nodded, then went back to fixing the sails.
"Well he missed, it'll take him too long to reload before he can take another shot." Usopp called from his spot, "A rookie mistake," he mocked.
The Merry was floating higher and higher, almost over the whole wall now. Though no more attempts seemed to be made on their flying craft. The wind guided them towards the rising sun.
Once they'd made it out of view of the base completely, did they all sigh with relief. Flopping on the deck and relaxing.
They'd gotten lucky again, if it hadn't been for Oscar. A lot of things would have gone wrong... Oh right.
"Has anyone heard of Marineford?" Tani questioned. There was a choir of unsure hums, nobody was sure... Well, almost nobody.
"That's the marine head quarters, all the higher level marine officials are located there." Robin supplied, "Miss Bell, why do you ask?" she asked with curiosity. Tani sighed.
"The note Oscar gave me, it mentions being cautious of Marineford. But that seems like a reasonable thing to be wary of as a pirate." Tani said. Why would Oscar warn of that place specifically?
Hopefully the warning wouldn't be too important... But this was Oscar the psychic so... Yeah this was gonna be messy.
The crew could handle anything thrown at them. So she wasn't concerned... Mostly.