A/N: Why is this one out so quickly? Well, I thought to myself, 'will anyone notice if the previous chapter was replaced already?' Figured I'd just rush this along. Enjoy!


Chapter 29: Bounty

"Hey, Nami!" Hook found said navigator checking the weather near her grove of tangerine trees. "What's taking so long? Shouldn't we be there by now?"

Nami rolled her eyes at the teen good-naturedly. "You're eager to see Loguetown?"

"And a few things we gotta do there!" Hook counted down on his fingers. "Collect our new crewmates and get ship shape for the Grand Line!"

Nami shook her head at her enthusiastic captain. "Well, calm down anyway. We're not arriving for another hour. We can't even see the island yet, we're so far."

"Good," Ryuji called out as he came running up, "'Cause I just remembered there are a few things I should've mentioned before landing."

Hook and Nami blinked at that announcement. "What, there's something else?" Hook asked.

Nami sighed and shook her head. "Honestly, we've been sailing for a week. How do you keep forgetting to tell us stuff until the last minute?"

"Hey, cut me a break!" Ryuji defended himself on reflex. "Hanging out with you guys is wild! Can ya blame me for forgetting a few things?" As if on cue, an explosion rocked the boat, followed by Ussop flying from the kitchen courtesy of Sanji's boot. Naturally, all three of them stopped talking to see what happened this time.

"Damnit, Ussop!" Sanji snarled after him. "Are you trying to blow up my galley!?"

"Cut me some slack!" Ussop snapped back. "That was the only explosion today!"

"And the fifth one this week!" Sanji rebutted. "Stop working in my dining room!" Sanji stamped out his cigarette before changing emotions when he noticed Silk. "Silk, my lovely ray of sunshine~ I hope that bastard's carelessness didn't bother you~!"

Silk, for her part, didn't seem bothered; in fact, she was so focused on her task, it didn't even look like she noticed the explosion or Sanji. That task: staring at Dorado as it sat on the other side of the ship with extreme intensity. Brow furrowed as she sat cross-leg, she reached out her hand in front of her, the four gold rings on her hand contrasted against her black sleeveless top and gray breeches. She held that pose for about a minute, eyes never leaving the golden weapon… before finally just falling back to lean her head on the railing as she groaned. "Darn it! It's not working still."

"Hm? Uh, what's not working, Silk?" Sanji inquired as Hook and the others came from the aft to join the group. (Zoro was also there, but slept through the explosion and the yelling.)

Massaging the bridge of her nose, the brown-eyed girl said, "I know I was able to call Dorado to my hand back at Cocoyashi. But now, I can't figure out how I did it!" Unfolding from her sitting position, she sprawled out onto the deck, her annoyance plastered on her face. "This sucks! What was that feeling? Why is this so hard?"

"Well, I'm no expert," Nami spoke up, "but, I'm pretty sure since you just got your powers and all, trying to figure out what you can do isn't going to be a one-two thing… I guess."

"What about Hook, though?" the disgruntled blonde pointed out. "He's had his power for about as long!"

Hook just shrugged as everyone looked at him. "I don't know how it works. I just know how my stuff works. I'm sure you'll get it eventually."

"Actually, since everyone's here," Nami began, before a loud snore from Zoro distracted her. "Seriously? Isn't he supposed to be on watch? Oh, Sanji~"

"Worry not!" Sanji cheered, his new cigarette puffing out heart-shaped clouds. "I'll wake up this grass-colored ogre for you~ Oi, dumbass! Nami's trying to say something important, so listen up!"

Sanji made to kick the sleeping swordsman, but he caught the attack with his sheath. "Something important, yeah, I heard. Surprised you heard with all the slobbering you've been doing."

Sanji bristled at that. "Why you-!"

Before they could get into another spat, Hook put two fingers two his mouth and whistled for their attention. "Break it up, guys! Save it for training! Ryuji's got some important stuff to tell us!"

As Hook leaned on the railing, and Silk got back into a sitting position, Ussop clicked his tongue. "Again? He really does forget a lot, huh?"

Ryuji glowered at the jab to his memory. "I don't want to hear that from the Great Exploding Ussop! Anyway, yeah, two things are very important to remember when we land at Loguetown. Me and the guys would be prepared for it, 'cause we live there, but you definitely will want to keep this in mind. Basically, according to one of the others, only 1 out of 10 pirate crews get off of the island these days."

"Huh!?" Ussop gaped. "1 out of 10!? What's going on there!?"

"Well, first off, the Marine stationed there has really been whipping crews left and right. Guy known as Captain Smoker."

"Captain? Like Rat Face from before?" Silk asked. "This doesn't sound too bad. Those other crews just sound weak."

"You don't get it – Smoker's a completely different beast than what you guys have faced before!" Ryuji cut in. "While I've never seen him in person, he has to be terrifying! Don Krieg only stayed in Loguetown long enough to recruit, and he never even made landfall – he trusted it to Gin!"

"To be fair, Krieg was a pushover," Sanji pointed out. "So, him being scared of this guy would be par for the course."

Ryuji shook his head slightly, then seemed to consider whose crew he was on now, before moving on. "Even still, Hook's a wanted man. Plus, I ain't never heard of a starting crew getting three bounties on their first try. We gotta be careful, 'cause if we get bogged down in a fight with this guy, we might not make it to the Grand Line! Even if Hook can take on Smoker…"

"The Vice Admiral you mentioned," Nami deduced. "Smoker might not be tough, but since we don't know if that Marine you guys saw is still around… Hook, I know this might be a tall order, but please don't consider this a challenge!"

To Nami's (and everyone's) surprise, Hook nodded. "Yeah, you're right. No fighting this Smoking Guy."

Nami and Ussop sighed in relief. "Oh, thank God! He listened-"

"Wait for it…" Silk said with a calm smile.

Suddenly, Hook shot up from his resting position, even going so far as to jump in the air with his fist raised. "First, find Gin and the others! Then we kick Smokey's ass!"

Nami and Ussop chopped the air. "Oh, God! For once, listen!"

For their part, Zoro smiled, Sanji seemed to just accept Hook's declaration, and Silk joined in with her own fist. "Gorororo! What did you expect? A pirate scared of the Marines? Whoever heard of such a thing?"

"Speaking of, Silk," Ussop piped up. "You kind of like thinking of yourself as heroic and all. I've wondered… well, could you really attack the Navy?"

Silk frowned as she lowered her clenched hand. "Well, after doing such a rotten thing as accusing me of hurting innocents, and giving me a bounty, they won't get my sympathy! Any organization that's okay with guys like Rat Ass being in it can't be any good anyway! Plus, if they were really good, how come no one ever came to Nami's home and fried those Fishmen?"

Ussop scratched the back of his head as he considered all that. "Well, when you put it that way…"

"Hold on, there's one more thing," Ryuji spoke up. "Speaking of bounties, we need to be careful of hunters after you guys' heads."

"No sweat!" Ussop preened as he stuck his nose in the air in his classic bragging stance. "I've created ingenious disguises to help them blend in! If anyone recognizes them, I'll eat my hat!"

Hook looked over to the sniper. "But, you don't have a hat."

Zoro, suddenly more alert, threw in his two cents. "So, we need to be aware of bounty hunters? Got any particular we need to be aware of?"

"The three most well-known in the area. With Smoker catching every criminal these days, and cleaning up the town, they usually tear through the waters around the island." Ryuji scanned the horizon suddenly as if talking about them would bring the hunters upon them out of nowhere. Satisfied that they weren't about to be ambushed, he turned back to the group. "They're known as the Pride Hunters. While I've never met two of them, I am… familiar with one of them."

"So, you know at least about one of them?" Nami asked, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Well, what do you know about him?"

"Well, uh, actually it's a 'her,'" Ryuji corrected. "All three of the Pride Hunters are women, that much I know."

"An all-female bounty-hunting group, eh?" Hook mused, thinking of three Silks chasing after Merry. "They must be strong."

"Yeah," Silk muttered, thinking of three Namis, with rows of sharp teeth, horns, and claws. "And probably hellish when they're angry."

"Well," Sanji hummed at the thought of three ladies tying him up and taking him away, "it might not be so bad…"

"You've got nothing to fear, Dartboard," Zoro commented. "You don't have a bounty, which means there are now two reasons no woman would bother with you." That last jab was too much as, regardless of the warning, the two men fought, sword to boot, across the deck.

Nami, who had had enough of their antics by this point, pounded them into the deck with now-smoking fists. "I SAID KNOCK IT OFF! CALM DOWN THE BOTH OF YOU!"

"You should stay calm too, Red," Silk muttered to herself.

Hook, still curious about what Ryuji knew, picked up the discussion. "You said you knew one of them. What's she like?"

Ryuji snorted like Hook told a good joke. "Well, I've never seen her work, but if it's anything like how she usually acts, we're gonna be fine! She hates fighting anyway! Don't even know why she'd want to be a bounty hunter when she prefers to avoid fighting…"

"Hey, Nami!" Ussop called out, as he gazed ahead of the Merry through a telescope. "I think I see land ahead!"

Silk stood up and squinted into the distance. "You might not need a telescope to see it soon, too. It's getting closer."

"The Polestar Islands? Hell yeah!" Ryuji cheered as he ran to the bow. Once he arrived, he pointed at the landmass. "There's home, dead ahead!"

Nami pulled out a compass and double-checked before nodding in approval. "Yep, it's in the right direction! Hook, that's our destination!"

Hook jumped onto the railing. "Then let's not waste time! Break out the oars, and pull up the sails! Let's get there now!"

"Hook, that's really unnecessary! We'll be there in 30 mins, 20 with the wind keeps-" Nami was cut off by Silk, who had already grabbed the oars from below deck, handing one of them to Zoro. "H-hey, are you guys even listening!?"

Hook came over to Nami. "Well, we're trying to avoid a lot of people. Shouldn't we get there sooner, so we don't stay too long?"

"Well… yeah, but-!"

"Then quit worrying about it! If we run into any stormy weather or rough patches, just let us know! I believe in ya, Nami!" Hook finished hit pep talk with a thumbs up.

"Keep an eye out for any sudden clouds, Red!" Silk called out.

"Just tell us if it's the wrong island before we get there," Zoro said on the portside of the ship, oar already in the water.

"Of course we trust you, Nami~ Even if you led us to the end of the Earth!" Sanji saluted before Silk grabbed him to help row.

The group's fate in Nami through their words stunned her; she was a reddening mess before she finally shook it off and seemed to swell with the respect on her shoulders. "Of course! After all, you're looking at East Blue's greatest navigator! Hook, switch with Silk! She needs to be able to steer at a moment's notice! Ryuji, Ussop! You're on sails if we need to drop them! Sanji, get to the crow's nest! If you see any ships coming after us, let us know!" The ship's crew moved to accommodate their new orders, falling into the routine instantly. In no time, they were ready to go! With Hook and Zoro doing the rowing, which they were told to slow down as Nami wasn't sure they were touching the water with how hard they were going, they reached the shore in 15 mins.


"Welcome to Loguetown! Town of the Beginning and the End!" Ryuji's intro hardly did the place justice; even if they knew Loguetown was going to be big, the gang were really not prepared for what that looked like. The buildings were tall, like two or three large houses stacked on top of each other. The streets were flooded with people going here and there; just on the street entering the city were enough people to fill any one of the villages or towns they'd traveled to so far.

Hook whistled in awe, while Silk tried to take in all the activity around them. "Wow, this is… a lot to take in! This place is crazy busy!"

"Boy, you can say that again!" Ussop looked at all the stands lining the streets. "Lots of people, lots of supplies…"

"Lots of uniforms," Zoro murmured, as he saw two policemen walk by, completely engrossed in a conversation. "You sure the Merry's gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, no sweat!" Ryuji waved the comment away. "We parked in the same docking area as Krieg's boat, so you know it's well hidden."

"Except Krieg's a dumbass," Sanji reminded everyone again, "so, we better not dally."

"Actually, one other thing," Zoro cut in before glaring at Ussop. "Are these the best disguises you could have given us!?" Said disguises were handcrafted by Ussop and it showed. Hook, Zoro, and Silk were now wearing black thick-rimmed glasses with a large fake nose and mustache to completely obscure the face.

Ussop laughed nervously, putting himself just a little behind Silk. "Eh he he, look on the bright side. No one who knows you would think you'd actually wear that, so, I call that a win!" If Zoro's growl was anything to go off of, he did not see it that way.

Nami clapped for attention. "Alright, everybody! Let's go over this all one more time! We have a narrow window to grab what we need, then leave."

"Right," Hook nodded. "And you even gave us each 200,000 beris as spending money! Thanks, Nami!"

"She gave you treasure from your ship," Zoro pointed out. "Why are we treating this like a loan?"

"Shut up! Be grateful I'm not charging you 300% interest!" Nami sniffed, hands on hips. "Thanks to Hook, we're pretty well off right now for just the start of our journey. We should use the opportunity to prepare accordingly, especially with extra hands on deck soon. That's why Sanji's the only exception. 500,000 beris should be enough to get rations for a crew of… erm, how many did you invite again?"

Hook counted quickly. "Well, with Ryuji, that's nine, I think. Plus Gin, and the six of us…"

"Geez!" Ussop groaned. "16 people on the Merry? It's gonna get pretty cramped…"

"Well, we don't have enough to buy a bigger boat," Nami pointed out. "We'll have to make do with what we have now. Anyway, Silk and I are going shopping-"

"Which I still don't like!" Silk griped as she adjusted the maroon coat she wearing to hide Dorado. "Why do I gotta go shopping, Red?"

"A) You set sail with three outfits, and you're starting to use some of my underwear, and are currently wearing my coat." Silk had the decency to look somewhat abashed at the accusation, as Nami continued. "And B) I'm gonna need someone to carry all of it back for me, and you're the only one who's free. Why not think of it as training, Blondie?" Silk grumbled about 'red-headed slave drivers,' but made no more of a stink after that.

"Meanwhile, I'll go looking for supplies and equipment," Ussop tossed out. "Hook's abilities are only useful with an arsenal, so if I can find more stuff that you can use…"

"Clakakaka! Sounds like a plan!" Hook crowed, giving the long nose a thumbs up. "I'll leave it to you then!"

"Yeah yeah. We all got places to go," Zoro cut in, as he began walking. "I'm heading for a weapons shop. I need new swords-"

"Zoro, that's the way to the docks!" the crew called out, the green head freezing before turning back to look at them.

"Tch! I knew that! Quit babying me!"

"Then quit being a dumbass!" Nami snarled. "Ussop, change of plans! Pair up with Zoro and keep an eye on him! We don't need him getting lost just walking up the street!"

"Eh!? What's that supposed to mean!?" Zoro roared back. "I know where I'm going!"

"Oh really?" Sanji snickered. "Alright, Marimo. Walk toward that clock tower over there." Zoro huffed in indignation but walked toward the tower anyway… until it suddenly disappeared from his view.

"Huh!? It moved? Where's the…" Zoro was cut off from his thoughts when he noticed Sanji pointing to the swordsman's left… where the clock tower actually was. As Sanji, as well as Hook and Silk, keeled over in laughter, Zoro got ready to kick the chef; the conflict was ended peacefully when Ussop, biting his cheek to not laugh, grabbed Zoro's arm and led him away from the cackling crew.

After Nami finally got her wits about her, she turned to Hook and Ryuji. "And that just leaves…"

"Yeah, we'll handle it," Hook reassured her. "I'll hunt down our recruited and lead them to Merry. If something goes wrong, we'll all meet up at Execution Square."

"Actually, that's our first stop," Ryuji pointed out. "We'd better get going if we want to make it out of the city before sundown." Their times synced up, the group split up for their separate tasks. Unbeknownst to all of them, though, someone had been watching the whole state of affairs before their departure.

"Well well well. If I heard them correctly, that directional-challenged man was Roronoa Zoro. If that's so, I'm betting that one of those two blond fellows is James Hook." The man combed back his purple locks as his sunglasses gleamed in the sunlight. He pulled out the most recent bounty stack and found the poster of Hook. "Iron Fist… I will have your head before today's over!"