Having trained his senses to be alert even while he was dream-deep into a nap, Zoro woke up swinging after hearing the crash.

"Huh- watch out!" he shouted blindly, rolling up to kneel, a hand already on his katana. He blinked, yawned, and blearily assessed the scene.

One Luffy was sitting up from the ground on the other side of the room, pouting while rubbing a hand on his slightly reddened cheek, apparently having been propelled straight through the counter separating the kitchen and dining area. The other Luffys mimicked him, soothing an invisible marking on their rubber skin.

Zoro's gaze then lazily shifted to the crew, a gathered group of wide-eyed, stupefied faces. The cook was hunched over in a corner, miserably pounding the ground, and his soft cursing drifted pleasantly into Zoro's ears. Nothing wrong with that.

But after him was Nami. Her shoulders were hunched, fisted hands pulling the straw hat's rim down in a poor attempt to hide her face. Underneath it Zoro could clearly see how her cheeks were coloured a deep scarlet.

He stood up and stretched before joining the gawkers, whose eyeballs continued to alternate between one of the Luffys and Nami's embarrassed figure. By now, he had enough to piece the puzzle - Nami must've gotten angry again, hit Luffy, immediately felt ashamed at her rash actions and was obviously trying to hide her embarrassment…

… but some things didn't add up.

It shouldn't be shocking, for instance, that Nami had punched Luffy. That was a regular, if not daily, occurrence. As a matter of fact, he thought warily, despite being weaker in strength, he and the others (sparing the bookworm and doctor) seemed to always be at the receiving ends of her monstrous punches. And she was never ashamed of it, the wicked woman.

He looked back and forth between his captain and navigator before sighing, rubbing his neck and longing for a good bottle or four of booze to balance out what was setting out to be a hell of a day.

"Oi. What'd I miss?"


As an experienced archaeologist, Robin had developed a keen eye for detail. Though the objects of her examination weren't exactly excavated artifacts from an era long thought to be forgotten, they were just as interesting to analyze.

As such, even after being momentarily stunned by her captain's bold move, her sharp gaze didn't miss the immediate reactions of the other Luffys.

As Brook and Usopp took to explaining the swordsman what had transpired as he napped, her amused look turned pensive.

"Luffy," she began, a small frown above her almond-shaped eyes. "All of you... felt Nami's punch?"

Zoro's roar of laughter encompassed the whole dining room, echoing around the Sunny-Go and panicking the neighboring seagulls outside, who flew away from the docks in a flurry of white feathers. Usopp anxiously hissed at the nearly crying swordsman and giggling skeleton to be quiet as Nami's reddened neck snapped over to them.

"Yeah," one of the Luffys answered Robin, looking on as Nami stomped her way to the trio and proceeded to pummel each of them to the ground. He grimaced. "Wonder why her punches hurt so much."

Robin nodded slowly, filing the information away for later.

"And all of you knew when," she continued, "or rather, what Luffy was going to do next?"

"Hai, hai," answered the impatient voice of the Angry Luffy. He looked strangely uncomfortable, Robin noted. "I mean, we didn't know he was gonna do it right away until we all felt it."

"Felt it?" Franky, who had been following the conversation, echoed. "So you didn't read his mind or anything suuuper like that?"

"No, are you stupid? Baka-robot."

"Eh?! Who're you calling stupid?" Franky demanded.

Robin placed a hand on his metal arm to placate him. "What did you all feel?" she pressed.

Angry Luffy shrugged, scowling further and crossing his arms in a way that Robin thought suggested that he knew but didn't want say. She stopped herself from raising an eyebrow. Luffy was usually never tight-lipped about anything.

"I know!" the boisterous voice of Happy Luffy piped up.

Robin turned to him and the joyful captain instantly lowered his voice, sidling closer to her as if he was telling a secret. Anyone within a ten-foot vicinity could hear his attempt at a whisper.

"It was that weird mystery feeling. It started here," Happy Luffy palmed his stomach, "so I just thought I was hungry! But then it went all the way up here."

He trailed his hand up to his chest and patted the spot above his heart twice. "And it started beating really fast."

Luffy giggled before a large, goofy grin spread across his face. "And we just knew he was gonna kiss 'er."

Robin's eyes slightly widened.

Franky whipped his gigantic arm up to his face to cover his unexpected waterfall of tears.

The three Luffys looked at him in confusion as the fourth Luffy without his hat finally made his way back towards them, dusting off a few wooden chips from his shorts.

"Sorry about the kitchen," he apologized, assuming all the fuss was about the ruined counter. He crossed his arms and cocked his head to one side, frowning. "You don't have to cry, Franky."

"I'm not crying, Mugiwara!" the shipwright bawled. "This is all just too- aow! Y-you're all just so simple and- and-"

The rest was drowned out as the emotional cyborg let out another cry before turning away, too swept up by the innocent romance of it all.

Eyes downcast as he continued to rub the ghost of a hit, Sad Luffy reminded them, "But she didn't like it."

The Luffy without the hat pursed his lips. "Guess it was kinda sudden."

Robin turned away from them and watched with a smile as the orange-haired girl continued to yell at her bruised victims (threatening them about the consequences of making fun of her), face still visibly flushed a ripe tomato red.

"I think there's a little more to it than that, Senchou," the archeologist responded mysteriously to Luffy, before calling out to their angered navigator.

"Nami, while this is all very entertaining -" and truly, it was "- earlier you'd proposed a way to find the woman who caused all this…?"

"Ah," Nami stopped mid-scolding and turned to the sitting archeologist. She blinked, then widened her eyes as she recalled their time-limited plan. "That's right, Robin! These idiots are wasting time!"

From the ground, arms still stubbornly crossed, Zoro's eyebrow twitched spastically. "Weren't you just-"

"Chopper!" Nami called, looking at the trembling reindeer who had gone into Guard Point. "It'll be easier for you to trace the woman's scent if you start where she was last seen, right?"

She lifted a limp Usopp by his overalls and dropped him in front of the small doctor, who reverted back to normal.

"Usopp!" Chopper cried, small hooves hovering over the long-nose's numerous wounds. "Are you alright? We need a doctor! Doctor!"

"Y-you are the d-doctor," Usopp whispered helpfully.

"Ah," Chopper remembered. "That's right. Don't die, Usopp!"

"He's fine, Chopper," Nami waved dismissively. "In any case, Usopp knows where we last saw the woman and can lead you there. You two can form the Tracking Team."

Usopp raised a shaky finger. "And w-what if we're successful in tr-tracking her down?" he stuttered through swollen cheeks.

Nami frowned thoughtfully. "...Give us a signal - do one of your Flame Bird thingies or something - and stall her as long as you can. If you have to, fight her, but try not to get caught in her tricks."

"Oi," Usopp objected, recovering quickly. "I'll have you know Fire Bird Star is one of my greatest-"

"Franky, Brook."

"Don't ignore me!"

"While they look for a trail, you two will be in charge of Reconnaissance. The people here must know what's going on in this town, and they might know some information on the whereabouts of the woman. Also, Usopp and Chopper might need quick backup so try to stay close by."

A teary-eyed Franky and a lumpy-headed Brook nodded.

"The rest of you… Robin, Zoro, Sanji-kun-"

At the mention of his name, a sulking Sanji swooped up, swirling over to the beautiful navigator with a resurrected gusto.

"Ah~ It does not matter that your luscious lips have been stained by the carelessness of our idiot captain."

He kneeled, clasping her right hand in his, eyes closed as he poured out his undiminished declarations of love. "Nami-swan. Your heart, what matters most, is still pure and untouched. I am but a lowly slave to your needs, Mademoiselle. Whatever you request, I will do my uttermost best to-"

"Stay here with Luffy."

The way the Cook deflated with her simple and curt order, Zoro almost forgave her for the unnecessary pounding she gave him until he realized what her demand actually meant. He crossed his arms and grunted.

"Hell no," he opposed, ignoring the way the steaming lumps in his head pulsed as silent reminders to her wrath when Nami's head swiveled around to glare at him. "One was enough. I'm not staying here to babysit four Luffys. The captain can take care of himself." And he really needed some booze.

"Oi! Who're you calling a baby, Zoro?!" Angry Luffy growled, indignant.

"I don't wanna stay here, it's boring," Happy Luffy put in his two cents. "Adventure is on the island!"

Sad Luffy stayed quiet, while other Luffy looked on, lips pursed.

"It's not just that," Nami protested, slipping her hand out of Sanji's to gesture convincingly. She carefully avoided all of the Luffys' gazes, afraid of a heart-stuttering relapse.

"We can't have all four of you Luffys running around town. You guys can survey the enemy's ship from here, so if the woman tries to escape, we have six of you monsters here who can stop her. The Sunny needs to be guarded, too."

Zoro shook his head. "That's not-"

"Do it, or I'll raise your debt by four hundred percent."

He narrowed his eyes. "You can't possibly still be holding that-"

"Five hundred then?" Nami hummed.

The swordsman stiffened before grinding his teeth, gritting out, "Greedy witch."

Nami grinned, taking his answer as a grudging consent.

Robin chuckled. "I don't mind staying, actually. I have a few more things to ask of our captains."

"I guess if I'm with the lovely Robin-chwan," Sanji also accepted, perking up at the thought of being with at least one of the beauties. "I don't mind looking after the shitty senchous."

He lit up another cigarette, his last one having been doused by manly tears, and breathed in the addicting tobacco before exhaling coolly.

"And of course," his eyes abruptly changed into pumping pink hearts. "I might get another glimpse of that beautiful mysterious lady~!"

"Yosh!" Happy Luffy exclaimed, excited. "Sanji, since you're with us, you can make more meat!"

"You just ate, shitty rubber gomu!" Sanji retorted, a pulsing tick over his swirly brow. He stared at Luffy's wide grin for a long moment, then, like a flipped switch, went back to sulking in the corner, a dark aura surrounding him.

"Nami-swan... why couldn't it be me… aho-senchou…"

"Okay," Nami finalized. "Now that we all know what we're doing… Tracking and Reconnaissance teams, if you guys don't find anything, meet back with the others on the Sunny by sunset. We'll figure out what to do then."

Determined nods all around from her nakama. She smiled. "Let's-

"Wait, Nami," someone interrupted.

Still in planning mode, Nami was unprepared for the intense gaze that pierced straight into her own as she carelessly faced him.

Shit.

Barely containing an uncharacteristic squeak, her cheeks abruptly flamed a heated red as she was assaulted with the memory of what had happened not even five minutes ago. Nami found herself looking anywhere but her captain. In the unfairly short amount of time she'd had, she'd managed pushed back the events deep into the recesses of her mind but now it resurfaced with twice the ferocity, her pulse quickening and hands trembling. She was also now acutely aware of the hat still sitting comfortably on her head, deliberately teasing her.

"Where are you going?" Luffy asked, seemingly unaware of her flustered state.

It was a good question, and Nami inwardly cursed when the others started to realize exactly how good of a question it was.

"Yeah," Zoro started slowly. "Where are you going? You didn't include yourself staying here, and you're not running around town, either."

They all peered at her curiously now, waiting for an answer.

Nami glanced at the Luffy without the hat, who innocently stared back at her. She fidgeted nervously with her gold bracelet.

Damn him, she lamented in her head, sweating a bit. Now's the time he chooses to be observant?

She couldn't lie to her nakama, so she had hoped they wouldn't have noticed how she omitted herself from each group. She sighed, deciding to spill her own discrete agenda.

"I originally planned on staying on the ship but... since we need more money for food and supplies, I thought a temporary way to solve that would be to search the woman's ship for any treasure. I could easily trade it in for belli at the town."

Her eyebrow twitched a bit, still miffed about their current financial status. "Might as well get something good in all this trouble."

Sanji swooned, back to normal once more."You're so smart and caring, Nami-saannn~! Always thinking of these uncultured swines. They're undeserving of your kindness."

"Sure you weren't gonna keep it all for yourself?" Zoro grunted, knowing there was more to it.

Nami didn't miss a beat, her eyes flashing into shining gold belli signs. "Only twenty-percent of what I find."

"Nami-swan's even more dazzling when she's greedy!"

"Why didn't you tell us sooner, Nami?" Robin spoke up. "It's not a bad idea. We just have to be careful-"

But Nami was already shaking her head. "I'm going alone, Robin. It'll be faster and I -"

"No."

Luffy's voice was sharp and direct. Nami looked at him in surprise, taken aback by his serious tone.

Zoro scowled at her, agreeing. "Don't be stupid."

Her surprise turned into annoyance. "Why not?"

"It's dangerous, Nami," Robin replied.

"No one's on the ship, as far as we know-"

"As far as we know," Usopp repeated smartly, before snapping his mouth shut under Nami's glower.

"-and you monsters would be keeping an eye on it," she finished roughly, crossing her arms.

When their disapproving looks didn't change (even Sanji sent her a soft frown), she huffed. "We need more money. We don't have enough food or supplies. If there's another way, I'm all for it, but that's a pirate ship."

She pointed at the large black and purple ship docked at the far end of the island's coast, locking eyes with a frowning Luffy. "I've done this plenty of times before. Trust me, it's worth going there for easy cash rather than hours going through people's pockets."

When she finished, the others looked at the Luffy who denied her request. Ultimately, it was his decision - he was their captain. All four of them were.

But they were silent.

"She does have a point," Usopp offered.

Sanji took the cigarette from his mouth to flick the ash into a nearby tray. "I don't like it either, but if that's the fastest way…"

"I'm going to need supplies to fix all this," Franky added, eyeing the hole through the counter. "And Sunny's running out cola."

Sans-hat Luffy pouted, torn between the safety of his nakama and the reasonable need for food and supplies. The other Luffys felt more or less the same.

He thought about what she said. He did trust her, but if he let Nami go alone, and she got hurt...

He felt weird. Not mystery-feeling weird but stretchy-weird, like his very gut was getting pulled in different directions. One wanted him to pull the captain rank to make her stay, another wanted to take the opportunity of her not being there to go explore the island, and another told him to let her go, that she would be mad if he didn't…

His scowl deepened. Luffy looked through the galley window to where Nami had pointed, spying the pirate ship bobbing on the rough coastal waters, slightly hidden behind a crag of rocks. It was in sight, but too far for his liking, even if he could stretch his arm or have Sanji Sky Walk over there should she need any help.

What to do, what to do…

As the silence drew out, one of the Straw Hats came to a stunning realization.

"Is Luffy…" Chopper wondered, voice hushed so only a few could hear. "Actually... thinking hard about this?"

"A...Ahh...?!" Usopp's eyes widened to an exaggerated degree, putting both hands to his head in bewilderment. "He is...! What did that woman do to him?!"

"Oi," Zoro sweatdropped. "It really isn't that big a deal…"

"He probably got sidetracked thinking about meat," Sanji reasoned.

"Or panties, yohohoho!"

"No, that's just you, Brook."

"Fools." Franky's unemotional voice stopped their speculations. "You all don't get it, do you? Che. And you call yourselves men."

"Ah?" Brook questioned, remarking how a dark shadow had passed over the usually rambunctious cyborg. "Is something wrong Franky-san?"

Franky only took his sunglasses off to quickly swipe at his eyes and nose. He put them back on and shook his head. "The only thing wrong here… is how you belittle a man's instinct to protect the one he yearns for!"

Usopp, Brook, and Chopper gasped.

"Y-yearns for?" Chopper whispered, eyes wide, completely entranced.

"What the hell is the shitty robot spouting on about?" Sanji muttered, sweatdropping.

"Something a simpleton like you can't understand, aho-cook," Zoro said, although he too only had a little idea of what Franky was saying.

Powerful legs clad in burnt slacks collided strongly with two wielded katana and the dust-accumulating fight began.

Nami, who had only been a bystander in all this, gaped, the now familiar feeling of heat crawling up her neck. She had an inkling as to where this was going but didn't know how to stop it before she was thrown under the ship and forced to drown.

"As men," Franky continued dramatically, "who do not yet understand this kind of pain…"

He sniffled, wiping at another tear before crying out. "We cannot possibly imagine how he feels! So the only thing we can do now is support Mugiwara-senchou!"

Usopp cocked his head in confusion. "E-to… we lost ya there, Franky. What are you talking about?"

"Can't you see?!" Franky pressed, exasperated. "It's because of Na-"

"Franky," Robin interrupted (and Nami had never loved her nakama more, thanking the archeologist a thousand times in her head and promising to buy her a gift with what she would get with her haul). "I think it's best if-"

"I got it!"

Nami's shoulders tensed.

She turned around to find a grinning Luffy.

"I'm coming with you."

"..."

Luffy nodded twice, satisfied with his solution. The answer had turned out to be the most simple one after all.

Nami stared at him, trying to ignore the strange anxiety twisting in her stomach. "This is a stealth operation, Luffy, which isn't exactly your style," she managed.

More importantly, she thought, once again battling with the red creeping into her cheeks as her mind unwillingly replayed the sensations of her first kiss in her head.

I can't be around you right now!

"Well that's why I'm the only one coming. The other mes will stay here," he said, missing the point.

"Huh? When'd we agree to that?" Angry Luffy asked.

"No fair! I want to go with Nami, too!" Happy Luffy pouted.

Sad Luffy frowned, also pouting.

"I'm not going with all four of you," Nami stated, feeling like she was losing control of the situation.

"Luffy," she faced the one who offered to come with her. "Thanks, but I'll be fine by myself. Give me half an hour."

"But that doesn't mean there won't be any danger," Luffy retorted, hands on his hips. "Like you said, it's a pirate ship, so they would be stupid to leave it unguarded. You might need some help."

Nami's eyebrows scrunched down on her forehead, welcoming the irritated feeling rather than the warmth that threatened to encompass her whole body from his apparent concern.

She clenched her fists, fixing him with an annoyed glare. "I can take care of myself."

Did he think she wasn't strong enough? It was true she usually ran away from dangerous fights rather than towards them, but that was just 'cause she had a reasonable amount of fear and survival instincts. She didn't have superhuman strength like the Monster Trio; she had the common sense to gain more information before picking her battles.

However, when the situation was dire, or a friend was in trouble, the metal rods strapped to her thighs combined with her intellect told of a different story - one that made her a formidable opponent.

Nami didn't mind people protecting her - she used Zoro, Sanji, and even Usopp as shields when she felt particularly threatened in difficult battles. But she hated when people treated her as if she was a porcelain doll. Or worse, a prized possession to kidnap and use. She didn't survive eight years of dangerous thieving and enslavement under the Fishman for someone to doubt her skills now, after coming so far.

She scowled harder, eyes shadowed by her bangs. "That hurts, ya know? I thought you of all people-"

"That's not it, Nami," Luffy said firmly, looking at her like he just read her mind. "I know you can take care of yourself. You take care of all of us, too."

He gestured to the crew. They all nodded in agreement from the back, save for Robin, who had her arms crossed in front of her. On the ground, feminine arms restricted Sanji and Zoro from moving and bent them back painfully until they agreed to settle the argument later.

Luffy continued. "You're my nakama. I trust you and your judgement, but I don't trust that lady's ship. Even if there's no threat, it might help if I'm there. I'll be able to sense if there's other presences on board and make sure their out of the way for you."

He suddenly grinned. "Plus, an extra set of hands mean we can carry more treasure, shishishi."

Nami and the crew were speechless. How could she possibly say no to that? Especially the more treasure part.

Nami regarded him warily. This air of maturity surrounding this Luffy was a bit unnerving. The others sensed it, too. The Luffy they knew would have pulled the captain card or have just disregarded the navigator's words in favor of doing his own crazy thing. This time, however, he actually countered Nami's reasoning.

Zoro smirked, freeing himself from Robin's hold. He got it now. So this was how the woman affected this Luffy…

He sighed, ready to stop discussing what they could already be doing. "Oi, Nami, weren't you the one saying we were wasting time? The captain's decided, so just go with it."

Nami barely heard him over her stuttering pulse, pounding in her ears. She refused to admit how attractive Luffy suddenly looked, being all serious and stubborn then chuckling so carefreely.

She bit her lip, scowling to hide her embarrassment. She internally shook her head. Her reactions were ridiculous! This was Luffy - moronic, selfish, nose-picking Luffy.

That's right, she thought, feeling relieved as her pounding heart slowed down to a regular beat. This is Luffy we're talking about. He's still the same, even when there's four of him. Even when h-he… he k-kissed me.

She fought a blush once again, feeling hot. Damn it, it wouldn't do for her to get so flustered when she was around him, much less just thinking about him. She resisted the urge to groan - this was all his fault! If he hadn't gone and stolen her first kiss...

But he only did it because he's under some kind of weird ability from that woman, she countered her thoughts.

She ignored the glaring fact that the devil fruit ability apparently only separated his emotions, so he had to have felt something before acting.

With her heart continuing those dangerous palpitations, Nami sighed loudly, annoyed and slightly rattled by how Luffy had managed to twist her whole plan around.

"Fine," she finally relented, adding, "but you're not getting any of my shares."

Luffy nodded in all seriousness. "'Course not."

He grinned again, then held out his hand in a gesture she hadn't seen since they were on the other side of the Grand Line and she'd only been half-alive. Memories of a freezing cold took hold of her mind, so abruptly that goosebumps actually rose on her arms. There had been slow movements beneath her, a shivering voice, frigid winds battering her hair, then...warmth.

Nami slapped his splayed palm in their own special agreement, nodding back, the tiniest of blushes on her cheek.

His grin got larger and Nami breathed out, heart constricting.

She stepped forward, slowly reaching up to take the straw hat from her head and transfer it back to its owner.

She stepped back to look at him. Better.

She refused to acknowledge the feelings that began to bloom freely inside her chest, ready to suffocate her. She was afraid of what they meant and of how screwed she'd be if they didn't go away.

Instead, she turned to the others and smiled.

"Let's go, everyone."

"Hai!"


End of Chapter 3


Thoughts? ^^

- forgottensongs