Hello, everyone! A special thanks goes out to Kalei and Emily for beta-ing. Thanks, guys!
By the way, check out some of Kalei's Hide and Seek fanart at: http/kalei-chan,deviantart,com
NOTE that the commas should be replaced with periods when pasting the url into the browser. Anyway, I'm not dead yet! XD I should be wrapping up this tale pretty soon, if everything goes according to plan. Thanks!
Sanji snorted awake as soon as Zoro stood up and uttered their captain's name. "--I was having the loveliest dream about Nami-san," the cook blissfully sighed as he twisted into a light stretch. His eyes narrowed when his sleepy gaze fell upon Zoro, however. "Until you interrupted it--" But the blonde man stopped when he saw Zoro's hand about to unsheathed his sword. "…what is it?"
"Luffy," muttered the swordsman. "He's not back yet, and the ground shook." The two events were obviously related, especially given Luffy's track record of wreaking havoc wherever he went. "Something's up." Zoro's dark eyes were unsettled.
"And you wanna go check it out now?" asked Sanji, incredulous. "I thought you were the one who was so insistent on staying out of this whole mess."
"I never promised anyone I'd stay out of anything," growled Zoro, his gaze shifting over to Sanji. "The situation's changed."
Sanji casually watched him for a brief moment, clearly unabashed by the poisonous glare his comrade was giving him. Glancing outside of the cave, he patted his pockets for a cigarette, but found that he had none on him. His irritation grew from there, and it drove him into scoffing at Zoro's last remark. "Just living in the moment, huh? 'S that what you're getting at?" He smashed an old cigarette butt from the other night into the ground, one of his hands slipping into his pocket. "C'mon, then, I don't wanna be wasting time. Let's see what Luffy's up to." He paused, scowling at the smirk he received from Zoro. "But only because it was initially Nami-san's idea until you so rudely--"
"Did I hear someone call my name?" The orange-haired navigator emerged from the shadows of the cave, yawning as she straightened her rumpled skirt. She abruptly stopped when she saw the two men standing as if they were about to depart.
"Ahh, Nami-san!" cried Sanji, whirling around. "Did you have a wonderful night's sleep? I hope these primitive conditions weren't too barbaric for your beautiful self, but I took extra lengths to ensure that this big oaf here wouldn't snore too much--"
"Hey!" snarled Zoro, his teeth gritting. "I don't snore, you--"
"How do you know? You're asleep the whole time--"
"You're just confusingmysnoring for yours--"
"Is Luffy back?" asked Nami, her voice rising above the escalating squabble. All talking immediately stopped, and Sanji swiftly turned to the navigator again.
"Actually, Nami-san, we were considering the possibility of going out and looking for him." The cook beamed. "If it's all right with you, of course."
Zoro snorted. "I don't need her permission to do anything."
Sanji was about to retort when Nami's irritated voice cut him short. "It's about time you decided to go look for him!" The navigator brusquely marched past the men and entered the damp clearing. Pausing, Nami turned to her comrades. "Are you coming or not?"
The blonde chef happily sighed. "Leave it to Nami-san to get straight to the point."
"I would've left by myself if you hadn't interrupted me," grumbled Zoro as the two trailed after Nami.
"More like gotten yourself lost--"
Nami threw a withering glare at the arguing companions as the cave began to grow smaller in the distance. All talking died -- until a mighty roar echoed from just around the mountain. It reverberated along the walls, and the ground beneath their feet seemed to only shake harder. Trees behind them writhed and danced with the force, several leaves falling from their branches. The orange-haired girl's eyes darted around, alert for any signs of danger. "What is that!"
Zoro had already shot into the direction of the awful noise. "Luffy--" he hissed.
"Zoro!' cried Nami. "Wait up!" But the swordsman refused to yield, and his remaining comrades were forced to follow.
Giving another shudder, the cave seemed to be losing any strength it had once possessed. "You meant for this to happen, didn't you!" cried Luffy angrily as he desperately tried to pull his foot out from beneath the rough boulder. "Why don't you fight like a man?" But no matter how many times he yelled and screamed, he was still trapped and he was going to be buried within a cold tomb of dirt and rock forever. The pirate barely flinched as pieces of debris shattered into the ground beside him, sending chunks of stone rolling every which way.
A loud crack! sounded from above, and Luffy's dark gaze looked up just in time to see a massive boulder cut through the air and head directly towards him. Gritting his teeth, the pirate squeezed his eyes shut and braced himself.
But the falling load never came.
Taking in a shaking breath, the pirate cracked open an eye to see why he hadn't been buried yet. Suddenly, his face melted into an expression of wonder and amazement. "Mister…Monster?"
Sure enough, the blue bulk of a body had wormed its way into the crippled cave and was towering over Luffy, casting a dark shadow over the rubber man. The creature's muscles bulged as he pressed against the weakening cave ceiling in an attempt to hold it up, but he lowered his gaze long enough to stare into Luffy's face with a look that clearly said, Go.
The dark-haired boy wasted no time, his own arms tensing as he poured all of his strength into rolling the boulder off of his leg. With his full concentration and focus in control, he was able to move the rock within a few, anxious moments. Although his now freed limb was bleeding, Luffy's rubber abilities had prevented any bones from breaking. "Thanks, Mister Monster!" The pirate stood up, giving the creature a grateful smile before he darted through a small opening that was wedged between the cave wall and the creature's leathery flesh.
Sunlight poured over his face as soon as he had escaped, and Luffy inhaled the crisp, morning air. Slamming a fist into the palm of his other hand, the captain gave a wide grin as his dark eyes roamed about the terrain before him. "Now all I gotta do is find Rabbles and beat him up."
As if remembering something, however, Luffy turned around and beheld that the monster was still stuck inside the cave. "Hey, Mister Monster!" Luffy called. "I'm okay now, so you can come outside--!" But he was cut off by an awful, low rumble from within the mountain. The ground beneath the pirate's feet trembled as the sound reached thunderous proportions. Luffy gasped, his eyes bulging as a roar ripped at his ears. "Mister Monster!"
It was then it seemed nearly half of the mountain began to collapse in on itself, massive pieces of stone and soil sliding downward in deadly heaps. Luffy wasted no time in running over to the monster's protruding tail, beating on it with his own fists. "Mister Monster, get out of here!" he yelled, quickly wrapping his arms around the tail. He had scarcely begun pulling on it when the appendage suddenly cut through the air, hurling the worn, bleeding pirate across the clearing and into a clump of trees.
By the time Monkey D. Luffy had come to his senses and removed himself from a prison of sharp branches, a strangely somber air had blanketed his body. Stepping out into the grassy clearing, his dark eyes beheld the thick clouds of dust that swirled in the air. Half of the clearing had been swallowed by a sea of rock and dirt. Luffy's savior was nowhere in sight.
Mister Monster had been swallowed, too.
Fists clenching at his sides, Luffy gazed in silence at the bulky mountain of stone that had settled over the apparently doomed creature. He took a step towards the fresh tomb, then another until he abruptly sprinted over to where the monster had been buried.
"Mister Monster!" he yelled, shoving some stones out of the way. They haphazardly tumbled to the bottom of the large heap. "Mister Monster!" Sweat gleamed upon his worn face and the deep gash in his side relentlessly throbbed, but Luffy kept scrambling to push as many boulders out of the way as possible. "Mister Monster!" He received no answer for a moment.
"Luffy!"
Startled, the pirate stared hard at the rock beneath him. "I didn't know you could talk, Mister Monster. Are you okay?"
The voice called out again, more irritated this time. "Luffy! What are you doing up there?" That unmistakable gruff tone was obviously a certain swordsman's, and the rubber pirate whirled his head around.
"Zoro!"
Sure enough, the shirtless, green-haired man stood at the base of the rocky heap, surveying it with raised eyebrows. Then, looking up at his bleeding captain, the first mate spoke. "What's going on? Need help?" Before Luffy could answer, however, Zoro was flanked by both Nami and Sanji.
"Luffy!" called the navigator. "What are you doing up there!" Her eyes had settled upon the once-white shirt that clung to Luffy's shoulders, frowning when she noticed it was almost saturated with blood.
"My friend is underneath these rocks!" replied Luffy, his tone holding a dark, almost angry edge to it. "He saved my life! I need you to dig him out for me while I go after Rabbles!"
"Friend?" inquired Sanji, a quizzical gaze settling onto the pile. Nami seemed just as perplexed, but Zoro disregarded his own wounds and immediately set straight to work. The orange-haired girl and the cook followed suit.
Promptly scampering down the heap of stone, Luffy called out a hurried, "Thanks!" before disappearing into the thick woods. His eyebrows were furrowed, and his teeth were clenched as he thought of how Mr. Monster was trapped.
"Where are you, Rabbles!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. "Come out and fight me, coward! Quit hiding!" He ran a little ways before checking bushes and shaking trees at random. "I'll find you!" he bellowed stoutly. "I'll find you if I have to tear every piece of this island apart!" It seemed as if his blood was beginning to boil and seethe with anger as he ripped at foliage, a flurry of leaves landing at his feet before he moved on to violently shake at another unfortunate tree.
"So much like an angry bull," came a smug voice from his right. Stopping suddenly, Luffy's gaze snapped toward the source of the sound, but saw nothing. "You'll foolishly get yourself killed if you don't compose yourself. After all, it was your recklessness that brought that cave tumbling onto you and that wretched Blue-tailed Fisher."
"Rabbles," spoke the pirate lowly, fist tightening at his side. "I'm gonna send you flying so high that you're gonna forget what land even looks like." An aura of eerie calm had enveloped the teenager, a hard frown creasing into his face.
"My name is--"
"Shut up!" barked Luffy, sending the man into a stunned silence. "I'm done screwing around with you!"
Senses heightened with a newly aroused anger, he firmly planted one foot into the damp dirt and hurled his other leg behind himself. "Gomu gomu no…" It violently stretched outward -- the boy shifted his weight, sending the limb sweeping across the area before him. "Whip!"
The sickening thud of his leg colliding against flesh sounded throughout the still forest. Not far from where his attack had met its mark, a tree violently shook. At its base, Sir William Raffles III flickered back into visibility, his arms tightly hugging his abdomen as his eyes held a dazed look about them.
Raffles groggily stared up at his foe, mouth hanging open when he realized that this animal had actually managed to strike him. The pirate walked toward him as he promptly threw his arm back. "Gomu gomu no pistol!" Luffy's fist suddenly slammed into Raffles' face, sending the hunter skidding across the ground for several yards before sliding to a halt. Cracked and broken, the monocle fell from his bruised face and landed onto the moist ground beside him.
Wiping his crushed, bleeding nose with his fist, the older man stared at the advancing boy, his vision blurry. With a frantically beating heart, he knew the game had changed into something frightening…something primal. Raffles had been forced into a role he was unaccustomed to playing. He was no longer the hunter -- he was the hunted. So, he did the first thing that came to mind.
He scrambled to his feet and ran.
Unfazed, Luffy promptly shot after him like a lion in pursuit of fleeing gazelle. Sweat clung to Raffles's brow as his pulse pounded in his aching head. He barely had time to cast a glance behind himself, his legs being torn at by the sharp brush that tried to tangle him. But Raffles knew he hadn't been caught yet -- he knew the tides could still turn in his favor. "You'll never win!" he shouted, his voice rising as an arrogant tone filled his voice once more. His body was beginning to blend into his surroundings, a mighty laughing trailing after him. "You may be a ruthless animal, but I'm still smarter than you!"
But Luffy was incensed, resilient and determined. Raffles was close ahead -- he could hear his boots slamming into the mud, the frantic panting of his hunted prey as he tried to flee the pirate's capture. The pungent stench of Raffles' bleeding wounds and salty skin almost grasped at his keen sense of smell, urging him to pursue the chase.
What he didn't see was the invisible botanist suddenly sliding to a halt, his feet firmly planting themselves into a tuft of grass. Within a split second, Raffles' hidden form slammed into Luffy. "Didn't expect me to turn on you, did you!" cried Raffles triumphantly as he and the pirate tumbled to the ground. A sharp blade emerged into full view as Luffy angrily threw his fist back to attack. But Raffles had apparently dodged the punch -- the captain's clenched hand met thin air -- and the knife plummeted into his shoulder, a searing agony tearing the muscles apart.
Snarling, Luffy abruptly reached out and gripped his bloodied fingers around the invisible wrist. Hurling his strength to one side, the pirate successfully threw Raffles off of him. A flurry of leaves took to the air, the knife dropped into the grass, and the pair immediately began wrestling. Although Luffy had never engaged in a fight with an enemy that wasn't there, he knew he'd find a way to prevail if he reverted to his basic, innate instincts.
As the pirate kicked the fallen blade away, his hands wasted no time in latching onto an unseen joint -- an elbow, no doubt -- and mercilessly cracked it. A nauseating pop distinctly sounded through the humid air, and a blood-curdling scream resonated through the forest floor and into Luffy's ears. His fingers suddenly loosened their hold -- shrubbery and foliage exploded into the captain's vision -- and when the leaves had settled down once more, Luffy discovered that Raffles had vanished from all of his senses.
An eerie quiet had enveloped the dimly lit forest, blanketing the wounded the pirate with an almost suffocating silence. Suddenly sitting upward, Luffy's dark eyes swiftly scanned his surroundings. His heavy panting diminished as he strained to listen to the dark stillness around him. Raffles was nearby, perhaps even right next to him, and the pirate knew he'd find him -- it was just a matter of exerting enough control not to go tearing apart the bushes and the trees in an effort to discover him. Judging from his previous experiences with the hunter, Luffy knew that creating such chaos would only provide Raffles the cover he needed to slip away unnoticed.
With bated breath, Luffy rested within that same spot without as much as twitching a muscle. His watchful gaze carefully roamed the motionless terrain around him, like a vigilant tiger that was waiting for its meal to come out into the open. The humid air filled the pirate's nostrils, and an overwhelming hush continued to prevail as Luffy willed himself to become part of the natural environment.
It was difficult to tell how many minutes had crawled by when the hairs of Luffy's skin seemed to stand on end. There had been a shift somewhere close by, and his muscles lightly tensed in anticipation. And then it happened -- snap! -- a twig cracked in two, and the captain lunged from his position upon the ground and toward the noise.
A small tornado of leaves flew up from the grass once more -- Raffles had given away his position and was noisily barreling through the foliage in an attempt to escape. The chase was on again, and Luffy was determined to put this sick game behind him. From the corner of his eye, he could tell they were headed toward the spring he and Zoro had located earlier in their adventure.
Raffles' laughter suddenly echoed from in front of Luffy, and the dark-haired boy clenched his fist in an attempt to throw a punch at his enemy. But the hunter took him by surprise when he became visible once more, apparently leaping forward through the air. "Fool!" he cackled tauntingly. "I win!"
"Gomu gomu no pistol!" Luffy's fist connected with Raffles' face, sending the man into a thicket of trees. Precisely at that moment, the pirate's right foot fell upon a full tuft of grass. He heard a splitting snap as an agonizing pain ravaged his ankle, hurling his body into the moist dirt. Back arching, he screamed as his bloodied hands furiously clutched at his leg, his eyes cracking open just enough for him to realize he'd been caught in the claws of a jagged animal snare. Bile rose in the back of his throat as the world spun around him.
Raffles, meanwhile, had emerged from the shadows, beaten and bruised but still triumphant. "You thought you were going to beat me by strength alone," jeered the older man as he calmly approached the writing captain. "But intelligence will always prove itself superior to instinct. Your animalistic tactics are no match for my foresight and wit." Luffy paused long enough to give Raffles a burning, defiant stare. "It was the same for that green-haired fool when I crushed his fingers and sent him plummeting down the crevice, it was the same for that wretched Fisher when he was buried beneath the mountain, and it's the same for poor, pathetic you."
As the man spoke with such smug confidence and blatant disregard for Luffy's friends, the rubber pirate sucked in a sharp, almost quivering breath. Determination and a cold sense of resolve washed over his pale, ashen face. Slowly and painfully, Luffy pushed himself up onto one knee, the other leg still ensnared within the trap.
Despite the momentary confusion that clouded Raffles' eyes, the hunter smirked down at his catch. "That's right. All animals must ultimately bow in submission to the greater creatures of this world."
Luffy was quiet for several moments as his glazed look almost bore a hole into Raffles' soul. "I'm bowing," he said quietly at length, "but not in submission." Suddenly, he stretched his arms behind himself. "Gomu gomu no…" The pirate flung his limbs back, teeth gritting with effort as he mustered as much strength as his injured body would permit.
"What? You're nothing but a foul beast! You're nothing in comparison to me!" Raffles spat as he took a hesitant step backward. But Luffy was not dissuaded, and within a split second he threw his fists forward as if he hadn't heard the hunter at all.
"Bazooka!"
The arrogant hunter had barely closed his mouth when the pirate's fists smashed into his body. The man let out a horrible shriek as his form abruptly launched into the air. Luffy's attack continued gaining momentum, and his flying punch carried him past the trees. With a garbled curse, Raffles sailed into the sky, becoming a mere speck…
…and then nothing.
His arms abruptly snapped back into place and jostled his body backward. Staring off into the trailing clouds, Luffy's eyebrows were furrowed, a hard frown etched into his face. When he realized Raffles was gone for good, however, the pirate's pallid features lip up with a wide grin. "Looks like I won," the captain proclaimed, giving a delighted laugh despite the state of his trapped leg.
But his vision was still blurred and dizzy, he was deeply wounded in at least three places, and he had slept little and eaten nothing within the past 24 hours. His ragged form exhaled the vibrant energy that had vanquished Raffles, not even sparing a thought to the trap that held him. As soon as his heavy eyelids slid shut, Luffy unceremoniously fell onto his face and drifted into an exhausted silence.
To be continued...