Justice

by Black' Victor Cachat

Dealing with villains is all part of being a superhero, the Justice League knows this. So how do they handle the new supervillain gang that can't decide whether they're good or evil? And said gang, the Straw Hat Pirates, are just desperate to get home to fulfil their dreams, whatever it takes. And they have no problems with fighting more believers in 'Justice' along the way

18. Royal Flush

I do not own either One Piece or Justice League Unlimited.

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Beta read by the wonderful rose7anne101 and MasterQwertster. Make sure to check out their own stories! Also thanks to other readers who have given incredible help, like Kolomte'49, lincoln time, mellra, scl04, King of Fans, Anycents, Crossovernaru, TheWhiteTitan, coalface, Creation Teller, Blackwizard71, Bkaa19, and SweetVixen1996. I know several of you will see your contributions here, even if they will be a surprise ;-)

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Guest Review answers :-D

Unnamed

Really appreciate how you noticed it was the anniversary. Means a lot to me! :-D

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Fish in the box

And thanks to you too for noticing, and wow, three years, were does the time go!?

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Zorosavage21

Really appreciate you noticing the three year anniversary, and also all these ideas and suggestions you keep sending me! :-D Also thanks for hoping I and those I love are safe, and the same to you!

Only finally saw One Piece Stampede after the last chapter. Not going to use Douglas Bullet though. First of all, he would escalate the story FAR too much at this point in the timeline, because yeah he is frankly just that powerful. Second, there was unfortunately not enough there to his character's personality for me to really use. He would just keep going on a rampage more calculated and devastating than Doomsday. For Doflamingo and Rob Lucci, I will at least say that they are too powerful to be coming over any time soon. At its current strength, the Justice League would be slaughtered. However their characters are multifaceted and developed enough that they would have a surprising lot to offer in terms of that alone.

You put a lot of thought into Zoro/Wonder Woman, but I already have other plans for her. Also I feel that she is still too black and white in her outlook (at least for now) to have a relationship with a wanted criminal.

Ooh yeah, given how the latest chapters are going, you have me hoping someone writes a Darkseid vs. Kaidou too!

I have different plans for the Night-Breed, an episode I really enjoyed.

Nails I feel would want more of returning to her civilian life than joining up with the Straw Hats.

Ooh, I really like that for Sanji and Calendar Girl. I can totally see him helping her out like that. Not sure where I would take it from there though.

LOL yeah can totally see Livewire having her own Enel moment against Luffy! Originally I was indeed planning to have her join the Straw Hats, but then after seeing some of the things she can do with her powers, including completely controlling computers and such, I realized she would make them too powerful. Got other plans for her.

Oh, I have plans for the Ultimen… :-)

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Jonas

Nice to hear you enjoyed the Omakes so much! I had a lot of laughs too!

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SargentEpsilon

1) Yep, fully agree with you there on Lucci!

2) LOL agreed for that chef feeding Luffy, although apparently his Devil Fruit does not make the food taste good, so an issue there.

3) Yeah, Lockup will indeed not be joining the Straw Hats. That said, he did raise some important points the Justice League is going to have to reconsider. He went WAY too far, but he was not wrong there were serious issues that needed to be resolved.

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Evil Reviewer

My previous self-appointed arch-nemesis says, and I quote: "honey, let him know that I will generously let him keep the title, for now, his performance would decide if he could keep it or not."

Yes, a lot of potential to be mined out of those Omakes! Wait and see what I use.

You are right that the Omake chapter became too much of a monster. Making a separate story for them was something I considered a lot, but what I am doing instead is just making a new chapter after once I have about 20 pages of Omakes. That way the writers still get full visibility for their work, but not so overwhelming.

Your "Deckhands" name is being displayed in this chapter ;-) Also LOL at Grundy dressing up like that! Although I think he will keep his traditional garb. Figure he sees it as part of his identity.

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Door to Nowhere

Yes, Drag0n5on does indeed do some pretty awesome openers!

I admit I find that idea with the Condiment King pretty cool and amusing, but not sure how to do it. Would take a bit of work to develop all that.

That is an important part for the Titans I admit, and I bet that episode with Static was meant to introduce them for the future. I do have an idea on how to touch on them a little bit though.

Cool idea with how Static keeps working to become stronger to best Luffy, but not focusing too much on him here. Maureen's episode really touched me, but Static will not be having regular appearances.

The Fatal Five are not part of the DCAU unfortunately. Also, I am not doing a story with Miss Martian if I cannot have Superboy as well! SUPERMARTIAN FOREVER!

There may be a reference for the Zeta Project, but mainly for Dr. Eli Selig.

Ooh, nice idea for "One Day"! Will pass that on to Drag0n5on to see what they think!

For the SHP doing video games, I admit it had not occurred to me, since I do not really play the sort of games I feel they would find much interesting. At least not the couch potato members :-P

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

At the very least there will be no Doflamingo any time soon, since the Justice League at its present strength would stand zero chance against him.

Spoilers for if Luffy declares war ;-)

Why after the Royal Flush Gang they still have a birthday party to do!

Left an update on "Rise from the Ashes."

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

I will merely say that the Justice Lords arc is a very popular request…

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

For Doflamingo and his crew (minus Baby 5) I will at least say that they are too powerful to be coming over any time soon. At its current strength, the Justice League would be slaughtered. Although yes, I can see them first trying to manipulate the world.

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Joseph

I have no plans for writing more omakes at this time, but I have received a few new ones from others so far.

Magic, as will be explored in later chapters, is indeed a major concern for the SHP. As for Kanjuro, they came from Wano before learning certain details.

Alas for Zoro, this is the DCAU.

I have been brainstorming some Luffy pairings, but none which work out.

Unfortunately we are already past the point in the timeline where Brook could fight Music Master, which I admit is a waste. Also LOL can totally see that with Usopp vs. the giant monkey!

…Given recent chapters, your theory about the Poneglyphs no longer sounds too crazy…

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Yes the Justice League made a bet about why the Straw Hats stayed out of Gotham, and the results were addressed in chapter 16.

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DEF

Yes, those writers really did have some amazing omake ideas! :-D

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Zero

Really enjoyed your short comments for each chapter! :-D But yes, while the Injustice League was indeed formidable, their only real chance of besting Luffy was with Aresia's concoctions.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

How long it takes me to write a new chapter seriously varies. Not just because of what can come up in real life, but also that I am also working on several other stories. Even when fully on a chapter, I have a long editing process that can generally take up to two additional weeks.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Congrats Mr. 1501 Review!

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

In regards to the Straw Hats finding themselves in the Justice Lords-verse, they tend to only declare war if someone they care about is hurt. And even then, tend to restrict themselves to local 'injustices;' they are pirates, not the Revolutionary Army. Also, as shown in this current universe, they wish to lay low as much as possible to get home.

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Kenny G

Great to hear it is going so well with how the villains and Straw Hats interact! :-D I do have some plans for more members, but I am keeping quiet on who. And yes, some people are going to becomemore accepting of who they are.

As for a DCAU version of Impel Down, given how the place is one big torture tower, the Justice League would indeed be opposed to it. That said, the prison conditions they already support are appalling. Zero privacy in Arkham Asylum, and in "Only a Dream," Volcana was locked up in appalling conditions that would fully justify her fury against Superman and society.

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Dr. No Good

Wait and see for Darkseid. If you check the DCAU episode list, you will see "Twilight" is coming up soon ;-)

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Answer to your question about Ace's powers versus the Straw Hats revealed here.

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TheSmartOne

Nth metal will not disrupt Devil Fruit Powers like it does for magic. It will be explored next chapter, but it works completely different. But yes, even without his rubber powers, Luffy is absolutely terrifying.

Washing my hands, doing my best to keep safe, and hoping the same for you :-D Here is the latest chapter, and I hope it was worth the wait! Looking forward to hearing your newest thoughts! :-D

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

You will get an idea here if Ace's powers can affect the Straw Hats here ;-)

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Galatea came from a different project than the Royal Flush Gang. There are many ongoing operations, and not all are under Cadmus' unified umbrella yet.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Wait and see if any Poneglyphs ;-)

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

No, I get why it would be preferable for me to just focus on Justice. It is just that I have so many ideas ongoing in my head that I need to get out.

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TheTurtle

I really can see Lois tracking down the SHP, but she would also call for Superman, and one way or another he would get involved, and that would escalate the story too fast for what I have in mind.

Here is the latest chapter with the Royal Flush Gang for you at last, and I hope it was worth the wait! Looking forward to hearing your newest thoughts! :-D

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Greg

What? "Tofu forever" is something Luffy would never say!

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VioSephy

Thank you, really appreciate your concern in both messages! Staying safe, and I hope it is the same for you! :-D

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The goose

Haki works differently from the Will a Green Lantern's Ring works on. They are very similar, but still fundamentally different enough. That includes not being able to affect the Ring directly. That said, John Stewart has enough Will that not even Roger or Shanks could knock him out with Conqueror's Haki.

Thank you, and hope you are staying safe too! :-D

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HelloWorld

Oh sorry, for this series it is the DCAU, so "Justice League Unlimited" is included. I mean, they have some of the best stuff there! Wait and see for which episodes I use, but not too sure about the ones where they go to the future for various reasons. Mainly though that I feel seeing the future basically guarantees that future will be happening from a storyline perspective.

I intend to finish all my stories, no matter how long it takes. But if I do not, I will do my best to let you all know. Because yes you deserve that, and really does burn when people just abandon a story without a word. I do have several other ongoing fics though.

No worries for all the 'PS.'

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B33

It is still 'Captain Marvel' in the DCAU, sorry :-P Tempting idea for him to get a lesson like that for the SHP, but hoping he learns more from the Justice League instead.

If AMAZO can copy Devil Fruit Powers or not will remain as a secret for now, since that would be a Big Deal. I would note though that he likely can handle Order Magic and other lesser forms of magic, since I highly doubt he failed to examine them while staying with Dr. Fate.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Ooh, cool idea for Zoro's cake!

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Honestly, since I have a busy personal life, and I write based upon moods, I cannot really give an estimate when each chapter is going to come out.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

How the Straw Hats got their powers will probably come up at some point, but for many people it would not really matter enough to ask. But yes, they will be curious once they learn the details.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

The problem with teaching Maureen to fight like Kuzan, is that he also has an inhumanly powerful body to go with his Devil Fruit Power. Incredible strength and speed, while Maureen has a regular teenage body which is still recovering from malnutrition.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Yes Parasite could copy Haki if he drained Luffy's powers.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Hmm, hard to say which Smile Fruit I would give Joker. On the one hand, maybe something dangerous and fitting like a hyena or snake. On the other hand, maybe something which manifests in a totally ridiculous way, yet he still masters to a terrifying degree.

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Too guest

Guessing you are responding to the Review about Parasite learning how to use Haki, and yes he can. He copied Superman's powers perfectly once he got them, since in the DCAU he also gets memories.

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Rudy g

Great to hear! :-D

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Luffy Tarufan

I will simply say that the Justice Lord arc is a very popular request from readers…

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Ironfoc

I will simply say that at some point the issue of Annie will indeed be raised regarding Clayface. He may like to forget about it, but people like Batman and Robin have not…

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TheWeirdOne

Yes, the Jewel Cleaver is one of Luffy's ultimate moves! X-D

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Smart cat

I have a lot of other ongoing stories and real life keeping me busy a lot. Less than a year though :-)

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

The Thangarians are receiving reports about the Straw Hats thanks to Hawkgirl, and are making plans similar to how they did with the Justice League in canon.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

Congratulations on being the 1,600 reviewer!

The Justice League will indeed be learning more about the One Piece world as time goes by. How much is yet to be seen.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

For a variety of reasons, the Justice League cast is drawn from the DCAU, not the comics, which changes your comments about Luffy vs. Superman.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

I am definitely considering plans for the Thanagarians and Brainiac.

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Guest (please choose a name/nickname next time)

I do indeed have some plans for the Rogues of Central City ;-)

Here is the latest chapter, and I hope it was worth the . . . well, looks like you did not have long of a wait! Nice! Looking forward to hearing your newest thoughts! :-D

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Justice

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Chapter 18: Royal Flush

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Previously:

At the end of Chapter 15, noting how Zoro was getting antsy again, and having uncovered some useful information, Robin has an early birthday present for him. Nothing like violence and rescuing children to put a smile on his face!

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November 10

On ground cracked with heat from the blistering sun, pirates were on the move, far from their native, watery turf.

While they lived beneath a warehouse by the docks, and liked to go out and enjoy the water now and then, most of the time they considered it to be . . . bittersweet. It was just simply not the oceans they knew and loved. These ones were too tame in comparison, and all mapped out over centuries, removing any surprises. This was done even by satellites!

In a fit of boredom, they had tried the infamous Bermuda Triangle, hoping for some unspeakable monsters, hidden ruins, or horrifying supernatural currents (yes, even Nami, Usopp, and Chopper, that was how bad it was), only to be disappointed. So yes, a desert was a surprisingly welcome diversion.

The six wheel semi-truck roared through the Arizona desert at over two hundred kilometers/hour. It was noticeably, if not suspiciously, bigger than most semi-trucks, which was to accommodate its loud and proud designer and driver, the cyborg Franky. As befitting the man, the colour-scheme was panels of blue and red, with flames of red and blue respectively painted on as well.

Franky was bobbing to heavy metal playing into his ear phones, laughing away as he kept them on track with no road. The upcoming birthday boy, Zoro, was napping and riding shotgun, with little Chopper resting on his lap with the air conditioning blowing on him full blast. Crammed into the deceptively large back was Jinbe, traveling through a desert for the first time, his massive form taking up most of the area. Brook was able to angle his long, lanky body around so he was comfortable, while Robin carelessly lay on Jinbe's thighs due to lack of space, reading the latest edition of the Daily Planet. The others had chosen to remain at home.

Luffy was semi-officially grounded (but since he was Captain, it was more like a combination of begging, distracting him with food, and a new TV cooking show marathon to watch with Sanji) after his trip to the mall a few days ago had ended in disaster. Nami had sworn off deserts unless it was Alabasta, and even then only with Vivi. Usopp had said the same, although with the additional caveat that only if they got their friend to warn them more about the desert beforehand next time. Sanji had also agreed, crying for the princess, who definitely missed him more than anyone else.

Granted, this was an entirely different type of desert from Alabasta, lacking any of its sand dunes, or lethal flora and fauna, yet it was impossible to not make associations with their adventures there. Franky, Brook, and Jinbe had joined later of course, and after her talk earlier with Zoro, Robin refused to let any lingering bad memories slow her down. Zoro was here because it was his treat, while Chopper wanted to be able to help any of the prisoners if they were in a bad way.

Also, being adrenaline junky pirates, none of them were wearing seatbelts.

"Anything interesting, Robin?" asked the skeleton. It was interesting to note how most of the 'adult' (when they wanted to be) members of the crew were present right now.

"Yes, actually. It's a more detailed report by Lois Lane on everything that happened at the mall with Luffy and the others. Plus the League's follow-up fight with this so-called 'Injustice League,' including promises that there's no way Lex Luthor will buy his way out of jail. She also interviewed Superman on what happened there and at the mall."

"Hmph," rumbled Jinbe. "Good to see the League's still doing some good. How fearfully did she write about us?"

"Nothing special. Just how we're criminals," perfectly accurate, "and dangerous," unquestionably. "She's done more research than most though, as it seems she figured out a good chunk of those robberies we've done." Anticipating their next question, Robin reassured them, "Nothing that would give anyone a pattern as to what we're after. Honestly, Lane's mainly concerned about how easily Luffy handled Parasite, and how Volcana, one of our Deckhands, handled two other notable supervillains."

"I beg your pardon? Deckhands?" blinked Jinbe.

"Oh, it came out in an earlier article. Sorry, I guess it didn't come up in our earlier conversation," said Robin with a slight grin, tapping her chin. "They're calling our friends our 'Deckhands,' since they're signing up as junior members and all. A nice play on us being pirates."

"Huh."

"It's all too Human to want to put names to everything," hummed Brook. "Still, I'm surprised it took so long for an article about what happened to come out. Particularly from such a major newspaper."

"Because Miss Lane had a larger goal in mind," Robin said with a wry grin. "She let everybody else rush into putting out news reports, while hers is far better compared to others, as usual. More accurate, more detailed, covering several important angles others missed, and she cites her sources in ways regular people can reasonably confirm. This is the article readers will remember over the earlier ones which were rushed out. While yesterday, what she wrote about was filled with interviews by people about the Justice League."

She waited a few moments for the other two men to catch on. "Ah," nodded Jinbe, jostling Robin a little. "She's working to help manage and protect the public perceptions of the heroes, without looking like it. Clever."

"That's what I believe too. Although, when she writes about them directly, she comes on pretty harshly. It reminds me of the first article she wrote about us after we lost Cherry Blossom Medical, giving them a scathing critique for how they handled it, while also laying out all the genuine issues with our company."

"You think she is trying to disguise her intent?" queried Brook. They were all well familiar with how the World Government worked censorship, especially with only one newspaper which covered the entire globe.

"Possibly," she answered, turning a page to keep reading at the same time. "I think however she sees it as her own way of helping them, by setting them a high standard she believes they can live up—"

In shock, Robin cut herself off as her eyes caught something.

Patiently both men waited, and sure enough, "They think we're aliens."

"Pardon?"

"Aliens like Superman. Luffy said the League had figured out we're from another world, except he assumed Superman knew we were from another dimension. Instead, they think we're from this dimension, except from out in the stars!"

"That does make more sense," Jinbe ruefully admitted.

"Except our comrades, pardon, the Deckhands may believe the same," pointed out Brook.

"Hrm, we should leave it for now," decided Jinbe. "At the very least, it won't hurt our secrecy. We'll tell the others of course, and decide how to play from there."

"Yes, of course," nodded Robin, scanning for anything else of note. Any further talk was cut off at the sound of blaring music as Franky pulled off his headphones. "We're just coming up now," he yelled back, which woke up Zoro and Chopper.

Sure enough, they rounded a clump of rocks to see their target up ahead. It was only a grey blur at the moment, yet it was surrounded on all sides by open space so no one could sneak up. Pressing a few buttons, the front window of the van shifted and magnified to give a close-up look. Tall and intimidating, with a more futuristic look than most buildings on this planet, it was clearly harsh and unforgiving in appearance. All in all, it fit perfectly with the stories Volcana had shared about her own painful childhood as a Human Weapon. There was a good reason she was not with them.

"Looks more like a prison," muttered Chopper.

"Which means we're in the right place," leered Zoro.

"We'll have to take out those communication dishes," pointed out Franky. "Our jammers should handle anything else."

"Shouldn't be a problem," assured the swordsman.

"Actually," the shipwright's grin was positively maniacal, "I've got something else I'd like to try. Trust me, it'll be worth it."

"There will be more guards inside," pointed out Brook.

"Tch, whatever," grunted Zoro good-naturedly.

They drove on in companionable silence for a few more minutes as they approached.

!JUSTICE!

"All good?" asked Cheetah, as she hopped out of the back trailer. It was roomier there, and she felt her bosses deserved some 'alone time.' Plus the trailer came with a mini-bar. If she was going to take a break from her lab, and keep from getting rusty, then at least she could travel with the appropriate creature comforts.

Looking around, she could see they had parked a few hundred meters away from their destination, with the trailer blocking the crew itself from sight.

"Indeed," said Jinbe, taking a long swallow from a barrel of water he got from the bar.

"So how's your first desert going?" asked Zoro. "Besides hot." Even with Chopper hogging the AC, they had been driving in a comfortable environment since before hitting the true heat here.

With a snort, Jinbe shook his head. "Hot. Although nice to see something so new. I've only had glimpses of them before from the coast. Given the stories you told earlier though, I have to wonder how many deserts were as exciting as the stories you've told me of your own adventures in them."

"Alabasta was something else," admitted the swordsman with a grin. "Though given how we came all this way, I sure hope it's as least as 'exciting.'"

"Would be a mighty poor gift otherwise," said Robin, fanning Chopper a bit as he adjusted. Fortunately he was already adapting quickly.

"Ooh my, how precious," gushed Poison Ivy, darting past them to a pair of beautiful, pink flowers poking out of the ground, the only plant-life in eyeshot. "Oh," she cooed, "you're such a survivor, aren't you!?"

"Well, she's happy," noted Cheetah with a slight smile. Apparently Ivy had passed on travelling to deserts before, which made sense given how pale her skin was. To keep from burning up, she was wrapped up in a full-cover hijab. She had borrowed it from the feline doctor, who had been strangely relieved to be rid of it, and whose face had made it clear not to ask any question about how she had come to own one.

Franky took a long gulp from a large bottle of chilled cola, and passed around some drinks to the others to enjoy as well.

"Grundy is hot," panted Grundy, lumbering out too. Given reports the League had lately been giving out to regular law enforcement, there was no reason to keep hiding he had joined up with the Straw Hats.

"Hot enough to dry us out and kill us," agreed Brook, wiping his forehead with his handkerchief. "Oh wait—" he began as the zombie lit up.

"We're already dead!" they chorused.

"Yo ho ho ho~! Skull joke!"

"Ha hah hah hah! Zombie joke!"

With a groan, Cheetah turned her attention back to the pirates. "So now what? We storming that place," and she could see lots of soldiers jogging towards them, and what looked like some turrets on the walls turning towards them as well, "or not?"

"Oh don't you worry!" cackled Franky. "THIS!" His arms flexed above his head in his signature pose. "WILL BE! SUPER!"

!JUSTICE!

Hustling, the soldiers advanced on the vehicle which had no good reason to be here.

They were not opening fire already, as it was entirely possible they were simply very dimwitted travelers or tourists, yet they would still need to be taken into custody for interrogation to be sure. This facility was for a top-secret government program, and no possible threats to it could be tolerated. Not even they knew what was going on inside, keeping all information carefully segregated and compartmentalized.

They were about twenty meters away when the semi-truck suddenly pulled forward a little, and shifted.

Seams appeared and it split apart as machinery extended out and adjusted themselves. It all lifted up as things continued to rotate and move around each other with loud clangs of metal against metal, clicking and whirling, all accompanied by an alien humming sound which nearly drowned out Franky's loud cackling, still in his super pose.

Higher and higher it rose while unfolding, until they registered it was standing on two legs while arms stretched out and a head rose from the top. Red and blue with the flame marks still there, chrome steel limbs, and a small yet clear Straw Hat Jolly Roger icon proudly upon its chest.

A phwmph sound, and the trailer ejected a massive rifle the figure caught without even looking, priming it up with an ominous hum.

"Freedom is the Right of all Sentient Beings!" roared from its faceplate with the voice of Peter Cullen, and the metallic being opened fire.

The first laser blast slagged the communication and satellite dishes, which honestly was barely noticed by the criminals.

"SO COOL!" gushed Chopper with stars in his eyes.

"I shall never doubt you again, Franky!" cried Brook, wiping tears of joy from his eyes.

"Fascinating," murmured Jinbe with clear interest.

"Optimus Prime," gasped out Grundy with childlike wonder.

Zoro just grunted with his arms crossed, yet remained fixated upon the spectacle.

"You made a Transformer," deadpanned Robin as she turned a look mixing exasperation and resignation upon her crewmate.

Their resident dryad glanced up from her plant, only to roll her eyes and go back to crooning over it. Cheetah was equally unimpressed, shaking her head. "If this gets out, it'll just mean another of those terrible Michael Bay movies."

"Hah! Maybe we can threaten the studio so we get more awesome robot time, and less about the whiney Humans!" crowed Franky. "Behold! The SUPER OPTIMUS PRIME!"

Machinegun fire from the guards did nothing against the pseudo Optimus Prime. The artillery was more of a threat, yet the armour held long enough to blast them in turn.

"Hmm, I admit that's a good way to test out your own upgrades," conceded Robin.

"What can I say, I'm not just a pretty face," winked Franky. "Being able to manufacture more wapometal, and use the tech we've been stealing here has been a treat! Mind you, I was already experimenting with building more vehicles like the Black Rhino, except able to blend in on the streets, y'know? Seeing those films gave me all the inspiration I needed!"

Clearly I need to keep a closer eye on his pet projects, Robin ruefully thought. Needing a break from trying to learn how to build a portal home is one thing, but this is a bit much. We also need to be more responsible in monitoring what he is watching.

Holding his massive arms up to his mouth, Franky yelled, "Super Optimus Prime, make a hole for us to go through, and then go to sentry mode!"

"I will defend the line," rumbled that massive figure.

"Is it intelligent?" asked Cheetah. If the man had created a fully functional, transforming android in addition to whatever top-secret project he was usually working on, then that would be . . .

"Nah! Just some pretty basic stuff, and lots of cool dialogue. Even if I could make it sentient, which basically means 'Humans, aliens, and robots who are people,' which is an important distinction, make no mistake. Ahem, anyways, like I was saying, not sentient, and I'm not sure if I'd want to make him that way even if I could. Not ready to be a dad and all."

"And it would be weird to be riding your kids," Zoro jabbed. "Or worse, being inside him."

"Whoa! Not cool!"

"Well then," said Jinbe, "Operation: Alcatraz is a go!"

!JUSTICE!

"Can't you get an alert out!? Contact the nearest military base, or even a satellite!?" yelled Direction Wholeson. He wore a crisp, grey jacket and pants with his black turtleneck, a scar just under the glass orb which replaced his right eye with no eyebrow, tightly trimmed mustache, and bald head.

"Nothing, sir!" cried one technician.

A guard ran into the command center. "Sir! It's the Straw Hats!"

"They're here for the assets. They must be here to take them away!" snarled out Wholeson. Obvious really, why else would they so brazenly attack a government facility without provocation? Well, they would have another thing coming! This would be the perfect time for those ungrateful brats to prove their worth to their country!

. . . But should he unleash Ace?

He grimaced as he considered protocol for just this type of scenario, and if it was wise for this fiasco. While she had not yet achieved her full potential, she remained incredibly powerful thanks to the training and assistance they had already given her. However, she was not suited for fieldwork within a place like this, especially if the Straw Hats split up. Unless they could lure them into one place with her, or they could set up some TV screens, they would risk exposing one of America's most valuable assets to being blindsided by one of several powerhouses. Was that too much of a risk? More importantly, he knew Waller had plans for her. Crucial, long-term ones. While she would not kill him for failure, or for showing initiative, he could not get over his fear of disappointing her.

Plus the other four were pretty strong anyways . . .

Coming to a decision, he gave brisk orders for repelling the invaders, and to keep Ace secured for now. Also for a vehicle to be prepared to evacuate her if the tide turned against them. Or he would just unleash her upon their enemies. He would decide which one as the battle unfolded. With that handled, he went to the elevator.

A few minutes later he was walking through several armed checkpoints which were always manned. While there was no sound of the fighting at the outer walls, reports were coming in of the guards being overwhelmed.

Finally he came to a long corridor with four rooms on his right. Each was locked, and with steel barred doors.

The resemblance to a prison was not entirely a coincidence.

No turning back now.

He stopped in front of the first cell, which had a large #1 on the wall beside it. Inside was a toilet, standard military bed, and a small table bolted to the wall in the four-by-four meter cell. No privacy.

"What's up, Headmaster?" grunted Ben Tennyson with something barely resembling respect. Brown skin rippled over thick muscles which took most people years of hard labour and athletics to achieve. Wholeson knew the wannabe teen rebel had never broken a sweat in his life.

"The facility has been invaded," he said with icy control. "This will be a true test of your worth."

For an instant there was a hint of defiance in Tennyson's eyes, before he looked down and away, the motion rattling the chain necklace around his neck.

Good. He knew his place. A reminder might be necessary after today though.

Kingsley Shacklebolt was in the next cell, sitting straight and proper like a proper soldier, and bald as his 'headmaster,' and his light green sweater, and grey pants making him seem the most professional of the whole. Of course, he was nothing of the sort. "So we kill them, we pass a test?" he curtly asked, and a stir of interest could be heard from Tennyson and the last cell over.

"Correct."

"Well now, that shouldn't be too hard for us," smirked the next teen. Emma Frost was admittedly gorgeous for a teenager, with her shoulder-length blonde hair, necklace, white halter top, and jean shorts. Personally, Wholeson figured it proved it was a mistake to allow the teens to keep the kind of clothes they had worn before they had been requisitioned.

"Yeah, yeah," sneered the last one. Daniel Jackson was slumped over as was his habit, white t-shirt with red sleeves, and jeans. "What's the catch?"

"Win by any means necessary. Or else."

!JUSTICE!

Straw Hat Base

"But he wouldn't do that to me, would he!?" muttered a frantic Harley Quinn for the umpteenth time, wringing her hands.

Clayface rolled his eyes, and turned his attention back to reading a journal article on Shakespeare. It was an interesting analysis with a few new observations for him, yet he was not convinced of their arguments. Although granted, it was hard to concentrate while also paying some attention to his companion.

Initially Harley had taken the whole bit about Joker teaming up with Luthor and some other villains fairly well. Once the news had broken about the true scope of the 'Injustice League,' and the clown murdering Shade, the confidence she had shown after Luffy returned from the mall, or her 'visit' to Mercy Graves, had popped like a punctured balloon. For over a day she had locked herself in her and Ivy's shared room. Which was a shame, as Clayface enjoyed her new pirate appearance and persona.

When she had finally emerged, it had been to discover her best friend and roommate had already left with the others, and so she had sought out her fellow Gothamite criminal. He figured she did not want to have this talk with their employers, lest she seem like a 'weak crybaby' again. Even if they knew she was getting better.

Also, Sanji had been the one to set everything off.

Except, well, everyone in the Gotham underworld knew she kept saying she was through with Joker, only to crawl back to him later. Ivy had been acting a little off even beforehand, but he bet she figured having to deal with this once more was a bit much, hence why she had taken off to the desert of all places.

He looked at the clock, and decided she had talked herself in circles long enough. "Joker's whole scheme was for killing us all, and he probably blames you for what happened to him in the first place," Clayface said, doing his best to not sound unkind. "And honestly, that scares me, since he's targeting all of us. Including Ivy."

It seemed like he was getting through to her as she slumped over.

"Luffy and the others might not care about you fighting him or something like that to prove you're over him, but he is going to try and come after us."

"Sanji will handle him. Or Zoro," she whispered just loud enough to be heard.

"Or Luffy," he nodded his lumpy head. "For all the captain isn't the type to go around killing his enemies, he's also not the type of guy to tolerate someone like Joker running around when they're right in his face."

!JUSTICE!

The Straw Hats had broken through the outer wall to enter the main facility, only for Warden Wholeson and his people to have an unexpected reprieve from a rather embarrassing mistake the pirates had made: they had forgotten to account for hallways.

Specifically in their rush to get over to the prison, they had not considered how so many of those coming along were, well, quite frankly too tall.

At 7 feet and 10 inches, Franky was a little hunched over as he went inside, while Brook and Jinbe did not even bother entering.

"Grundy stay with Brook."

"Happy to have you along. If we cannot go in, shall we go up?"

"Sounds good," said Jinbe, leaping up dozens of meters without another word, and the skeleton and zombie followed. Atop the roof of the 'secret' facility, the two heavyweights destroyed what was left of any communication gear, and began exposing the interior below by ripping off the ceilings. Along the way they noted how there appeared to be a variety of training grounds placed up there with them. A good way to let people outside, without really giving them the chance to go far.

After some searching, they tore their way into a room full of people and important looking computers, showing various camera feeds, and what looked like status reports. Perfect.

"Oh my, this looks important," commented Brook, tipping his hat to personnel still managing the command center. "Good afternoon, chaps. Would you mind answering some questions?"

"You'll never take us alive!" yelled one security guard, opening fire at the figures looming over them.

Jinbe idly dodged every shot without his massive frame ever seeming to move. Grundy tanked it with a grunt, while Brook hopped aside and pulled out his violin. "Nemuriuta Flanc," he intoned, and with a burst of music from his violin, and the staff were all asleep. "Well, that was easy." A big thud made him turn around. "Oh, sorry Grundy." It took a few pokes to wake their friend back up, while Jinbe was sorting through the prisoners.

Grundy looked back and forth between the pirates for a few heartbeats, before saying, "Brook and Jinbe no like killing at all."

Despite the desert, the area around them chilled as Brook calmly said, "The dead should understand how precious life is. As for Jinbe . . ."

"My first captain taught me the importance of not lowering myself to the level of my enemies. Taking lives only fuels further tragedy."

"Well said. Fisher Tiger was indeed a wise man. Now then, who do we have available to question?"

Jinbe moved to one side a few people in military uniforms with more decorations than the rest. "These seem to be the senior officers present. Do you by chance have one of those computer hacking things?"

"Ah, no, I do not. Robin and Franky do though, but we can't call them."

"An oversight we'll have to correct in the future. We'll do this the traditional way then."

"Yo ho ho~! And the unconventional way! Grundy, if you would guard my body?" With that Brook dropped to his knees, went white as bone, clothes and all, and his soul flowed out to the shock of his protégé.

"Brook!"

"No fear, no fear, I haven't shown you this before, have I? After all, if you can't go through the hallways, just go through the walls! Yo ho ho~!

"Be sure to also ask these fine people after you wake them up, how to work the intercom. We can direct the others that way."

"Right."

!JUSTICE!

It was a strange, furry pair making their way down another bland, metal hallway. All svelte and curvy Cheetah with her fangs and claws, while Chopper was in his blocky Kung-Fu Point.

They had run into a few guards who were handled with minimal issue, and had been quick to assert they knew nothing of importance, including whatever the facility was for, because of 'security reasons.' In fairness, it really did mean they had nothing they could give up under the threat of violence.

Afterwards though, it had just been empty corridors, and neither of them could hear or smell anyone nearby. There were no maps either, so Cheetah was proving her worth in other ways.

"It's in the surveillance layout, including visible and hidden, and the wiring and ventilation," she explained, prying open another wall panel to inspect the innards. "If you know what you're looking for, they'll point straight to the most important rooms. Particularly the ones where they like to keep all the most secured stuff, or a panic room, or being able to isolate biological contaminants, or any combination really."

"Cool!" Chopper gushed. "You're so good at this! I bet Nami's learning a lot from you."

Tail twitching in embarrassment, and praying he would not smell it on her, she managed to say, "We've exchanged some tricks. So, uhm, what do you think the chances are we'll find any research Clayface or I can use?" That was a safe topic, and a familiar one too, given how much time Doctor Tony-Tony Chopper and her had been working on it.

Although their initial work had been impeded by how despite his own brilliance and self-experimentation, and how advanced the Straw Hats were in certain scientific fields, Chopper had never really studied DNA before. Oh, he had managed some impressive chemical alterations to his own biology, particularly with those Rumble Balls, except he had not truly known how they worked. He had only heard of it as the 'Lineage Factor,' without knowing anything more specific than how it was the blueprint of life itself, found within all organisms. Oh, and that people could manipulate it. The way he had mentioned that bit, as the usually cheerful doctor and (mad) scientist tried to suppress his anger, had raised the hairs on her back. She decided then and there she did not want to know.

Whatever had made the little herbivore so dangerous was not her business.

At all.

With some effort she shook off that memory, and returned to the more comfortable subject of her becoming Human again. Because her brilliant colleague and friend had learnt fast about DNA, and there was honestly little now she had to teach him on the subject, doing whatever he could to help her find a cure for herself and the former actor. Plus doing new studies of his Rumble Balls to understand precisely how they altered him when used.

As she had expected, they quickly found themselves comfortably discussing their current research, and doing some idle brainstorming on what they could do next. It was thrilling really, stalking together for answers.

It was almost a disappointment when they came to an extra-reinforced, stainless steel door which just screamed "secrets within."

"Hmm," hummed Chopper as he took in the width and height of the hallway. His Heavy Point should be able to break through, except he was worried about having enough room to properly wind up his punches in that large form. He would also be a big target if people behind the door started shooting. Ah well, his Kung-Fu Point would manage.

"Hold up," said Cheetah, putting a hand on his shoulder. "If this is someplace important, if we start breaking down the door, they might have booby-traps set up. Including ones which destroy any files. So long as it stays secure though, they might hold off. Let the professional go first."

Without another word, she sauntered up to a ventilation vent in the wall, and used her claws to unscrew it. In a single, sleek, smooth motion she was into a crawlspace much too narrow for any regular Human.

The Straw Hat settled down to wait, and sure enough less than two minutes later the door popped open to a smug feline face. Inside, he saw the floor littered with bleeding guards she stepped around and over as she went back in. With a quick assessing look, he knew she had also made sure they would survive. That was nice of her. And like Zoro, a further testament to her skill.

Honestly, it was stuff like this which was why Chopper did not just respect Cheetah for her brilliant mind. You would expect having so completely altered your body, especially without a Devil Fruit, would hamstring your ability to function, and yet she had pulled it off. For all how she was far weaker than him and his nakama, only a fool missed how she remained very dangerous for this world. Like her namesake, she moved fluidly and silently, and was always aware of everything and everyone around her. And always prepared to fight for what was hers. Whatever that may be.

"I was right," she was saying, pointing at a blinking computer. "They were prepared to wipe this if necessary, keying it directly to the door if it was broken open. Looks like it is the central hub for all their research notes. We still need a password, but let me see if I can crack it."

!JUSTICE!

"Incoming," said Jinbe, jumping out of the hole in the ceiling onto the roof of the base. Sure enough, two teenagers were charging at them with hostile intent.

Body tucked under Jinbe's arm, Brook felt the motion and returned just in time to see several jeeps being thrown at them. Well now, while he may have been unsuccessful finding anything inside, something had certainly found them.

"Whoops!" he cried, making space from Jinbe. Not that he was too heavy for the Fishman, why he was all skin and bones! Oh my no! All bones! Yo ho ho ho~!

Serious calculation took over as he assessed that being free to move was more important here. The 'African American' one seemed to be interested in Grundy and Jinbe though; possibly wanting to match his own muscles against them. Which left him with . . .

"You're going down," gloated a blonde teenage girl, wearing a shirt and dress he was very appreciative of.

"Am I?"

"Yes you are, you skeleton freak! Bad luck for you, I'm the strongest of the lot." She paused, before grumpily adding, "Alright, one of the most powerful." She actually looked like she wanted to sulk about it. Nothing to impress him about her maturity there.

"Well now, that's quite something," praised Brook, leaning two hands on his cane a bit. "I have just one question for you?"

"What, begging for mercy already?" she sneered, and metal framework seemed to rip itself out of the walls and reshape into spears pointed hovering in the air at him. "Sorry, this is where I prove myself."

"May I see your panties?"

The improvised spears dropped to the ground in her shock, before wrenching back up as she screamed, "DIE, YOU SICK PERVERT!"

"Oops, oh no!" he cried, running away. "I might actually be killed. Oh wait, I'm already dead! Yo ho ho—whoops!"

He had to duck aside from one particularly close spear despite his speed.

Her powers are surprisingly fast. Only metal though. Coincidence given where we are? Or magnetism? To be safe, I'd better not show my cane sword just yet. Although I will have to be careful in turn of the chance that she can sense it, and still use it against me. If she can't concentrate on me, it should help keep her from manipulating it though. So for now it will be a contest of speed.

Grimacing, Jinbe shook his head. "It appears we've found the ones they are holding captive here to turn into Human Weapons. Even if they're older than just kids."

"You bet you found us," boasted the muscular teen facing off against him and Grundy. "Just your sorry luck, but don't worry, I'll make it fast!"

Grundy sidestepped the punch and grunted out, "Why're you fighting Grundy? Grundy and friends here to rescue super kids here."

"He doesn't care," sighed Jinbe, also stepping up. Honestly, they should have expected something like this. "He just wants to fight someone. Anyone."

"You know it, old men," sneered Tennyson. "You're dead meat!"

"Hah!" barked out Grundy. "That all Grundy is!"

The zombie humour threw off the teen just as Grundy launched forward with surprising speed.

"Monday Punch!" his fist slamming into Tennyson's face.

"Tuesday Hook!" now his left fist digging into the ribs.

"Wednesday Knee!" Right to the gut.

"Thursday Clap!" Both palms smacked Tennyson's ears, rattling his brain.

He grabbed the chain necklace and yanked him close. "Friday Head-butt!"

"Saturday Elbow!" Snapping the head back again.

Dazed and shaken, Tennyson could not do anything as Grundy hefted the smaller man up and over himself. "SUNDAY SUPLEX!" he roared as he reared back, arching his body like a bridge to bring Tennyson down headfirst. The roof shattered beneath them, and they broke through the ones beneath as they went through ten stories before landing in a sub-basement, cratering it with Grundy landing on top.

"Grundy Weeklong Mayhem," he grinned. "And end of you."

Only to be sent stumbling back as with an angry yell Tennyson hefted himself back up. "Hah!" Tennyson tried to laugh out. "That won't work! I don't feel pain, and I'm stronger than anybody! Even Superman! And I'll prove it by kicking your butts!"

"Will you now?" Jinbe calmly asked as he landed beside Grundy. He trusted Brook to handle his own opponent.

"You bet I will!"

Jinbe cracked his knuckles and sighed, "Be it below, or on land, always hotheads."

!JUSTICE!

"Alright, listen up!" ordered Warden Wholeson to most of the remaining guards, having donned a helmet and flak jacket himself. "The assets have engaged the intruders! We'll provide support, flank them, and clear 'em out! Clear!?"

"Sir yes sir!"

!JUSTICE!

Grimly, an isolated squad of security guards steeled themselves, before popping out of cover to open up with their automatic weapons.

Franky grinned in response.

It was not a malicious one, as intimidating as it was, yet entirely satisfied.

While this place was certainly behind in terms of 'super-powered' individuals, it was more advanced than Gaia in weapons technology. The sort of stuff he had adapted with aplomb into his body.

'Modern' armour-piercing bullets ricocheted off the improved plating beneath Franky's skin, and his left arm came up as barrels clicked forward from behind his knuckles and unleashed a barrage of laser fire.

The guards went down screaming as the shots burnt through barricades, armour, and flesh. It was not even necessary to properly aim at them, since the explosions were as good as any of his pre-Earth missiles. He gave the downed men a cursory glance to confirm there were no fatalities or serious wounds, and continued on his way. Just because his metal nose could not pick up the scent of cauterized flesh, did not mean he wanted to stick around.

Now then, where were those imprisoned kids?

Robin was walking behind him, using him as a walking, talking, cyborg-shield of awesomeness. Truthfully, she could have cleaned out this whole place by herself, except she did not want to showcase her powers in front of all those cameras.

After a few turns, and him ripping metal doors out of their frames, they found some computers. "This should do nicely," said Robin, slipping past him into the small room. She inserted a black market portable hacker, which started chugging away at the government firewalls to give them access. Not Franky's work, although he could probably figure it out if he had the time. Instead it was something they had bought from the info broker Karrde.

The mini-hard drive beeped just as his burgeoning Observation Haki sent him a warning. Too little, too late, as he could not move in time.

"Unh!" he grunted as hot impacts hit him in the back.

Only for him to brace himself against the wall with one massive hand to catch his balance, and turn around grinning. "Not bad," he said. "At one time that might've actually hurt."

Because one of the all-too-few perks of being here on Earth was the freedom to have Chopper and Usopp finish armouring up his back where he had never been able to reach before.

Two young men were facing them, one bald with an outstretched hand, and surprise sketched out on his face at seeing Franky shrug his shot off. The other had a goatee and his arms and torso were swelled up in a way which reminded him disturbingly of Luffy's own rubber powers.

"My, oh my," murmured Robin as she stepped up beside him. "Things are certainly getting interesting. Hopefully Zoro's having his own fun. This is a birthday present for him after all."

!JUSTICE!

Zoro scowled as he raced through the halls of the complex, trying to get near a fight. Any fight!

While his Observation Haki let him know where his nakama and enemies were, this fiendish facility's security kept rearranging the corridors to keep him from reaching them!

(After things had calmed down back in Water 7, the witch and Chopper had sat him down to yell at him for being 'reckless' and 'nearly killing' them and such, with various threats if he ever tried to reach someplace by cutting through walls and ceilings again, barring the direst emergency.)

(A guy who was the walls and ceiling like Pica counted in his mind).

So here he was running around trying to reach the ongoing battles before they were over. Especially since he could sense the people his crewmates were up against were strong enough to maybe be interesting. That was important, because he had been sustaining himself mainly on sparring and training, when he needed serious life and death battles if he was to truly grow as a swordsman.

Skidding to a halt, he belatedly remembered he had other options now. Concentrating a bit, his cybernetic eye switched to x-ray vision to see through the walls. Except . . .

"Now I can't tell what's a wall or not!" he growled, swiveling his head around. "Dang it, Usopp! This thing's—"

His face went blank as he froze, looking in the distance.

A flash of light, and Wado Ichimonji and Sandai Kitetsu were in his hands, cutting a hole through the wall. And the next.

Implacable as a storm, Zoro advanced in a straight line.

Through the next hole he emerged among several platoons of guards, who opened fire with heavy, automatic rifles. A wall of hot lead for the man suicidal enough to fight modern soldiers with swords of all things!

In answer his blades wove through the air to deflect every bullet as he implacably advanced. Disciplined shouts became cries of concern as he got ever closer, and next thing they knew he was hacking down whoever entered his reach. Some tried to flank him, only for him to flick a blade and cutting winds mowed them down. Only those who turned their backs to him and ran were spared.

Never once did the Pirate Hunter look anywhere but straight ahead. He did not even notice those who lay bleeding at his feet.

One eye burned with an artificial fire, except it was kinder than his natural one, which promised all the savagery and wrath of Humanity at its worst.

And it was only the beginning. Blood drenched the hall, and more was to follow.

!JUSTICE!

It had taken Cheetah some time, yet they were logged in now, and looking through the scientific records here.

Only the more Chopper read, the faster he started flipping through pages, fury contorting his expression.

These people were as bad as Caesar was! Never mind how brutally they had treated their 'subjects,' some of the experiments they were performing, and planning to perform, could kill these people!

A noise caught his sharp ears, and he shifted forms to leap over a table, and slam open a door. A shivering scientist was cowering in the closet, pointing a gun at him.

!JUSTICE!

Franky fired his laser blasts at the stretchy one, only for him to manage to barely shift around them and get up close. He would have done something about the bearded twerp, except his buddy was shooting energy blasts from his hand again, and this time putting some real effort into it, shaking the cyborg a bit from the impacts.

Jackson leapt at Robin, figuring he would take out the weaker one first. His body flattened out wider as he jumped at her, planning to envelope and suffocate her, only for her to dodge aside.

Fists enlarged and arms stretching, he threw punches at her which also missed, putting craters in the wall. No matter, she could not be lucky forever.

"Shame to have to do this," grinned Jackson. "Honestly, if you were a decade younger, I'd probably try to make a deal with you!"

Robin's eyebrow twitched.

Franky roared with laughter. "Boy! You've gotta lot to learn about women!"

"What do you mean, gramps? I'm just saying she's—"

A massive hand grew out of the wall to squash him flat against the other.

"Honestly, that was for your own good," cackled Franky, leaving Shackelbolt shaken.

Robin walked up to Jackson, the tip of his head and ears till free, with her digit effectively keeping his rubbery jaw dislocated, adding to his sense of helplessness. His slightly bulging eye jumped with fear as she delicately laid a hand on his head. Just like a mother gently chastising her child who made a mess, but knew he had done something wrong. "Now what to do with you? Pluck out your eyes? Stretch you out for the vultures to feed upon? Tie you up and turn you into a basketball? So many things, so little time. But do not worry, in this you will finally serve a purpose in life: being a warning to other foolish young men on how to behave."
In sheer terror, Daniel Jackson's balls shoveled themselves deep inside himself.
"Or," she sweetly said, breathing into his ear, "we could talk about how we felt like coming over here to rescue some kids from being forced into being Human Weapons. Which do you prefer?"

And for Zoro's birthday of course. Although her nascent Haki gave her the impression he was strangely satisfied with the lowly guards he was handling.

To make sure the other punk got with the program, Franky ramped up the power to his Radical Left, and took careful aim so the shots just missed him.

Shackelbolt only had time to widen his eyes at being on the receiving end of high-energy shots, before finding himself abruptly face-planting at the massive cyborg's feet.

Shaking and sweating, he looked back to see the metal floors and walls behind him were a red hot mess. A warning shot which could have killed him instantly.

"Gonna cause trouble?" drawled the blue-haired man.

"N-no sir!"

"Smart kid," nodded Franky. Especially seeing as how he had replaced his old machine guns so that each of the lasers in his hand were now as strong as his old Franky Radical Beam had been!

Granted, he had needed to boost up his cola reactor's efficiency, yet that had been another example of the personal advances he had made with the tech available here on Earth.

Unfortunately, it did not take a SUPER genius like him to figure out these kids were more messed up than they had been hoping. Man, they should have brought Luffy with them; he was good at stuff like this. Of course, his methods tended to involve either tear-breaking displays of kindness and compassion, or to drive the person into such rage they snapped out of their issues on their own.

Eh, they were pirates, not heroes, yet letting people getting locked into this sort of life never sat well with him. Plus, getting their heads on straight would make things unpleasant for the government, which was always worthwhile. Given Robin's act of restraint, he figured she felt the same way.

!JUSTICE!

The rooftop to the facility was now filled with so many holes, and had so many impacts by improvised projectiles, a part of Brook was concerned about the integrity of it all.

"You're going down!" Frost snarled again as she threw more and more metal at Brook. Hating him for dodging, hating his chirpy manner, and hating him for not taking her seriously!

Brook was actually taking her seriously though, finding a genuine opponent useful for him to hone his Observation Haki. He was still working at it, yet the warnings it occasionally provided made all of this nearly unfair. There was another reason he was not attacking of course, as he chose to wait for her to tire out a bit for some actual conversation.

"I'm sorry," he said with sincerity, "but I'm not really feeling it. I've fought many people over the years, and you don't have quite the right tone." He tilted his skull, projecting an aura of concern. "What are you so afraid of?"

Again her metal weapons stumbled in the air, and he saw the flash of fear in her eyes.

With an audible sigh he sat down on a part of the rooftop he had been leading towards for an improvised seat. "Would you like to talk about it?"

"I-I don't need to be afraid of anyone!" she sputtered.

"So why are you here then?" asked the musician. He gestured at her fine clothing, "You look like you'd rather be at a mall shopping, or flirting with boys, instead of being in the middle of the desert, helping a bunch of soldiers."

With every word more of her cockiness was stripped away.

!JUSTICE!

It really was no contest for Jinbe and Grundy.

Maybe their opponent had strength equal to Superman like he claimed, and had some training, except he was also inexperienced, and had none of the hero's other powers. The zombie alone was able to match the Man of Steel's fists when they fought, and with Jinbe's own might, skill, and Observation Haki? No contest whatsoever. He did not even bother to use Armament Haki.

Tennyson stumbled back gasping, as he clutched his stomach with pain he had not felt since he got his powers. This can't be happening! Why's it hurt if I don't feel pain anymore! I'm the strongest! I have to win!

"You are indeed formidable," admitted Jinbe, hefting a fist. "Unfortunately for you, punches from Fishman Karate pass through the skin to hit the organs within. Something it appears you can still feel after all."

"Shut up! There's no way you guys can stop me!"

Grundy slipped in behind Tennyson and put him into a Full Nelson, while Jinbe grabbed his feet to deny him any leverage.

Their captive squirmed and struggled for a minute before Jinbe simply pointed out, "If you are so strong, then why do you remain in this place?" There was nothing like a slave collar on him, yet Jinbe knew not all chains were so conveniently obvious.

At those words, Tennyson lessened his struggles a little, even if he still seemed a bit rabid.

With a heartfelt sigh, Jinbe said with as much empathy —not pity!— as he could manage, "I've had much experience with people who were once slaves. Stolen from their homes, put through horrible experiences, and forced to do things they could never have imagined themselves doing. Even when logically they should have been able to rise up against them.

"One of our friends back at our home base, she managed to escape from a place just like this, yet it took her years to do it."

Ah! Progress. While there was still anger and a corrosive resentment, he was listening.

!JUSTICE!

At last Zoro reached his destination. Behind him was a straight line of ruined walls and violence.

Before him was something more akin to a bank vault, yet with his enhanced vision he knew what lay beyond. Wado Ichimonji was already in its sheath, and now Sandai Kitetsu followed, for while it would be trivial for him to get through on his own, this called for something more . . . diplomatic.

Yes, he was capable of diplomacy!

Hefting up one arm, he held up the guy who acted like he was in charge to the keypad. "Open it."

Shuddering, Warden Wholeson raised a shaking hand. He was a loyal son of America, but he could not find the courage within him to resist. Not after what this monster had already done to his men. Not with that horrifying look in his eyes, which seemed to promise the pirate would eat him if he did not comply!

The fact he could feel those inhuman fingers digging divots into his steel helmet, did nothing to calm his trembling nerves.

So he punched in the combination, and the door popped open. "Good." With that, Zoro slammed his prisoner's head against a wall to put him out like a light.

See, threats and violence against people other than the ones he wanted to meet. Diplomacy!

!JUSTICE!

Ace just sat on her hard bed, hands in her lap as she stared out the barred window, even as the sounds of violence began to die down.

What did it matter to her?

No surprise or alarm entered her heart as her cell door slid open. At least not until she saw the man, tall and muscular, with a glaring red eye, splattered with blood, hands raised and reeking of violence.

Impulsively she used her powers in case he attacked her.

!JUSTICE!

Never let it be said Zoro was a fool. Well, alright, a lot of people ignorantly called him that, but he was alive, and lots of dangerous people who had come after him over the years had lived to regret it. Or not. Whatever. The point was, he was a survivor, not a fool.

So when he walked into the room of someone who the people here had been so afraid of that they gave her such a thick door, and possibly had been too afraid to use against his crewmates, he was on guard. He raised his hands to show they were empty, while his Observation Haki was primed and ready.

Except the only threat he got was . . . a girl no older than Maureen, with black hair, pale skin, and an uncomfortably blank face. His Haki warned him she was planning to . . . aggressively glare at him? That's it?

Her eyes turned yellow, sparkling with moving circles, and only then did he understand as the floor gave out from underneath him.

"I told you, you were weak against women," reprimanded the Copycat Marine Lady, her head on the harpy's body, while the sun shone and the snow fell. She might have said something else, if not for the butterflies that came out of her mouth.

He tasted colour and saw sound.

There was a baby in a diaper, but he knew it was Hawkeye from the goatee and mini-sword he used to beat up marines.

Luffy at Raftel finding the legendary One Piece Bathing Suit, and trying to put it on, while again the sun shone overhead.

Only it was not the sun, it was two suns. Pulsing as they stared down at him from on-high as he—

DEATH! CUT! KILL!

Zoro snapped back to reality as the sense of bloodlust washed over him. A mad craving for battle, bloodshed, and slaughter. An impulse so strong it would drive its own wielder to their death just to satisfy that insatiable hunger. With his mind and spirit being torn apart, this new sensation cut through it like a hot blade, disrupting the first mental influence driving him insane.

In a flash the world returned to normal.

Panting, he stared at the girl as sweat beaded down his forehead.

Scrambling atop the bed, she pressed herself into the corner as she tried to disappear through the wall. "You broke free! How? How!?"

He said nothing, not daring to raise his hand from where it had fallen atop the hilt of Sandai Kitetsu. As his mind had begun to shatter, the cursed blade had deemed him unworthy and planned to kill him. Only that physical connection and sensing the curse had broken him free. Plus of course, his own good luck still was as strong as ever.

Slowly, he pulled it, Wado Ichimonji, and Shusui out of his sash, still in their sheaths, and laid them down on the floor. A gesture of trust he hoped this time she would catch. Not that he was defenseless, as he now understood what her power entailed. With his strength and speed, plus the forewarning of Observation Haki, he was safe. Sitting cross-legged, he waited to see what she would do.

. . . Which was not much. From the look on her face she had retreated inwards, completely shaken and expecting him to kill her.

No matter, he could wait.

.

.

.

It only took about ten minutes before she softly raised her head to look at him.

"You . . . What do you want?" she whispered, clearly out of her depth.

"My name is Roronoa Zoro. You can call me Zoro. What's your name?"

". . . Ace. Just Ace."

He hid any reaction to that name, since a name was just a name. Unless of course it reminded you of someone who had asked you to do something special. Important. Something you failed at.

"Having a dumb little brother, makes an older brother worry. He probably gives you guys a lot of trouble, too. Take care of him for me . . ."

"Ace, huh?" he smiled. "I knew somebody by that name. He was a good guy."

Silence. Her expression remained blank for the most part, yet he could see the confusion and wariness, and trickle of possible, if desperate, hope. Something he had seen all too often as a bounty hunter tracking down criminals, and finding their victims. He had also seen what they were capable of doing to their former abusers if given the chance. So he knew without a doubt that this girl, even if she did not have any other tricks up her sleeves, was very, very dangerous.

"You're not afraid of me?" she finally managed.

"Should I be?"

"Everyone else is. Always."

Cocking his head. "Do you want them to be?"

That stumped her for a bit, trying to work out a foreign concept, before admitting, "No. Except they are. So they want to control me."

"Huh." This sort of stuff was not really Zoro's specialty. What would the Witch or Robin do? Or Brook? Heck, even Luffy or the Idiot Cook. "Can you tell me more about yourself?"

So slowly, hesitatingly, she told him her story. And once she began, the words came pouring out.

How she had as a little child unknowingly driven her parents insane. Of being taken by the government, and given a headband which made her completely compliant until they no longer felt they needed it to make her do what they want. How they told her she was here to protect her, when really it was to protect themselves. To use her.

Of the 'games' the scientists had made her play to test her abilities. Training her. How she would wake up strapped down to an operating table as they implanted wires directly into her brain.

How they would try and reassure her that turning her into a weapon was necessary. For her good and everyone else's.

How it was for "justice."

Ace said that word much like how Zoro would have imagined Luffy's Ace would have.

!JUSTICE!

"Is that it?" hissed Cheetah, claws tickling the throat of the top scientist.

"Y-yes!" he whimpered.

Chopper's hooves flew over the keyboard as he looked through the records. "So you hadn't started these," he choked, "procedures yet!?"

"No, no! We were planning them for next week!"

The reindeer let out a heavy sigh of relief. If they had done those . . . things they had planned for this person —Ace, the piece of filth had called her— might have gained immense power. He was not entirely sure, but he was confident it would have also eventually killed her. An aneurysm probably, and only in a few years.

What good was the ability to warp reality, when you would be dead shortly after? To say nothing of robbing yet another person of their childhood.

Seeing Chopper slumped over the console made the professor regain some of his courage. "J-just go already, she's of no use to you! She can't be controlled! And the government will hunt you down eventually, like the monsters you ar—urk!"

Blood beaded down Cheetah's claws, yet she held off on tearing straight through, looking to Chopper for guidance.

He laughed.

He threw back his tiny, fury, adorable head and laughed! "Yes," he cried out to the heavens. "I am a monster! And proud of it!"

Turning he lunged forward and head-butted the 'scientist,' sending him flying into the wall to collapse unconscious.

Panting briefly from emotion, Chopper headed for the door. "C'mon, we need to find the people held prisoner here, especially this Ace. She needs a check-up! A proper one!"

Obediently Cheetah tailed behind, before her curiosity got the best of her. "Chopper, do you really mean it?"

"Huh?"

"Thinking you're a monster?" He who was so cute and cuddly, and wanted nothing more than to cure the world's sicknesses. Especially since she would have been the first to call that scientist back there a monster.

"I used to be just a reindeer who wanted to become Human," Chopper answered, too distracted by what he needed to do, to really register his own words. "Because I wanted to have friends and be with people, only to be hurt and hunted as a monster. Except when I did get friends, people who meant everything to me, I learnt I would have to embrace being a monster to help protect them. So I did."

Lost in his thoughts of how to help the victims here, he missed the way Cheetah, a woman who had been Human until becoming too much like an animal and getting rejected for it, stared at him in wonder.

Every time she thought she knew these strange and wonderful people, they pulled a surprise like that on her . . .

!JUSTICE!

"Franky?"

The cyborg in question answered the radio in surprise. Zoro's voice was coming from all the radios the guards wore. He admitted he had not expected his friend to think of that. "Sup, bro?" he boomed into it. "Smart idea! Impressed you got this working," he teased.

"Eh, convinced one of the people here to do it," said the swordsman. Ah, that made more sense. Good to know everything was right in the universe. "I need you at, uhm, where are we? Okay, the main detention block. Uh, maybe it'll be on a map? Do they have maps here?"

"No sweat," he assured. "I'll just track your radio there in a flash!" Actually he would be following the GPS implanted in Zoro's eye, but no need to mention that. Of course, once he and Robin got closer (those two kids were told to go meet Jinbe on the roof), they just followed the trail of destruction. Hmm, maybe make that a 'line' of destruction was more accurate, given how unnervingly straight it was? Especially since it was Zoro they were talking about after all.

A few minutes later, he found the swordsman standing in the doorway to an armoured room, and he walked right back in when he saw them.

Popping his head in, Franky saw a young teen in a black blouse and long black dress, short, sleek raven hair, and staring at some sort of golden, metal ring laying beside her like it might bite her if she touched it.

"It's a control collar," Zoro explained aloud. "They put it on her head to make her obey them."

"Ah," grunted Franky in anger. That was pretty disturbing alright. Just another thing from getting back to Gaia. "So what do you need me for?"

"Well, once she picks it up, I want you to help her take it apart. And put it back together."

At that utterly insensitive idea, the kid's head snapped up to stare at Zoro.

"Ah," said Robin as she got it. She sat down beside the younger teen, without touching her. "Zoro wants to give you control over it. But also teach you so that you can dismantle it and other such devices in the future. I've met former slaves, many of whom have become excellent lock pickers after they got free." She gave her nakama a smile. "Good idea."

"Thanks," Zoro flatly said.

Comprehension dawned, and now with a dark resolve and satisfaction, the girl snatched up the collar, and stalked towards Franky.

"Are you afraid of me?" she asked, craning her neck to look up at him.

In answer he leaned to the left, bending that knee while straightening his right the other way. Throwing back his head, he raised his arms over his head to lock the wrists together, back-to-back, and cried out like a proud lion, "AOW! Life's full of things to fear! Why else would we head out to see 'em!? That's the only SUPER way we can make them not so scary!"

For some reason she appeared utterly confused by that piece of sage wisdom. She squinted one eye at him, and carefully held up the headband to him. "Help me. Please?"

"Sure!"

Chuckling, Robin came over and put on a hand on the girl's shoulder. "There are many things to fear in life. Things we ourselves have spent years being afraid of. Only to learn that when we are together, it does not have the strength to rule us."

"We're pirates," grinned Zoro sharp and dangerous. "And we bow to no one, and nothing!"

!JUSTICE!

It took a few hours before they were all ready to leave back to the semi-truck.

Chopper made sure all the four teenagers who had attacked them were all in good shape, and the pirates were definitely taking them along. They might not exactly be the type of people Luffy liked to have hanging around, yet the kids deserved it.

More importantly, their presence would make it easier for Ace to adjust, and they were definitely keeping her. In her own quiet way, she had already won over their hearts.

Robin remained plastered to Ace, despite the girl barely reaching her shoulder. If anything, it almost seemed like a mother working to shield her child, with one arm around her shoulders now.

Brook entertained her by pulling his violin out of his ribcage (she liked that), and began playing Binks' Brew as Franky showed her how to dismantle and put back together her enslavement again and again. Until she could do it with her eyes closed.

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

Zoro had never strayed out of Ace's sight from the start, always being there for her.

~Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.~
~Sea wind blows, to where, who knows? The waves will be our guide.~
~O'er across the ocean's tide. Rays of sunshine far and wide.~
~Birds they sing, of cheerful things, in circles passing by.~

"Ace," Zoro spoke up. "Do you have a Dream? Something you wish to do above all else?"

~Bid farewell to weaver's town, say so long to port renowned.~
~Sing a song, it won't be long, before we're casting off.~
~Cross the gold and silver seas, a salty spray puts us at ease,~
~Day and night, to our delight, the voyage never ends.~

Without hesitation she looked up at Zoro while snuggling deeper into Robin, a small smile lightening up her face. "Yes.

~Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.~
~Pirates, we eternally are challenging the sea.~
~With the waves to rest our heads, ship beneath us as our beds,~
~hoisted high upon the mast, our jolly roger flies.~

She pointed at Brook. "I want to go with you to be a pirate on seas like that."

~Somewhere in the endless sky, stormy winds are blowing by,~
~waves are dancing, evening comes, it's time to sound the drums.~
~But steady men, and never fear, tomorrow's skies are always clear.~
~So pound your feet and clap your hands 'til sunny days return.~

This startled them, until Zoro's smile somehow became all the more fiercer and proud. Robin pulled out a satellite phone, and dialed one phone number.

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

Ace repeated her story over the phone to someone, with strange sounds in the background. Like whoever was listening was also eating. The words flowed out easier this time. They poured out like before, yet this time it was not as painful. Like she was setting aside a burden she had been carrying, making her feel lighter. Freer. At the end she asked one question.

~Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.~
~Wave goodbye, but don't you cry, our memories remain.~
~Our days are but a passing dream, everlasting though they seem.~
~Beneath the moon we'll meet again, the wind's our lullaby.~

"Shishishishi," laughed the listener. "Of course! Besides, even Roger had Shanks for a Pirate's Apprentice! Rayleigh had lots of stories about that! Oh, and Buggy. But yeah, the future Pirate King should have one too! If Zoro and the others say you're up for the job, then welcome aboard!"

~Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.~
~Sing a song, and play along for all the oceans wide.~
~After all is said and done, you'll end up a skeleton,~
~so spread your tale from dawn 'til dusk upon these foamy seas.~

A single tear ran down her face. It had been so long since it was worth crying, she swiped it up to look at it in confusion.

"Well, Ace," Robin softly asked. "Are you ready to leave this place?"

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

"Yes," said Ace, taking one last look at the headband laying on her lap.

Under her gaze it twisted and crunched up.

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

~Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~

!JUSTICE!

"So you're the new meat, are you?" Poison Ivy said in greeting as Tennyson, Jackson, Frost, and Shackelbolt. She was carefully loading some more flowers aboard the truck trailer, planning to replant them elsewhere. She figured circumstances would not remain favourable around here for much longer. "Welcome aboard."

"Thanks," muttered Tennyson, who seemed a bit resentful, while mostly eager. For the rest, there was an unabashed hunger she could see dancing in their eyes. The type fueled by the hope of finding a new place to be, where you could be safe and appreciated.

The sort of eyes she was seeing increasingly often directed towards the Straw Hats.

"New meat indeed," she muttered too quietly to be overheard.

Ivy said nothing more after that, although she raised an eyebrow at the sight of Ace, who had seemed to somehow step beyond the invisible bubble from being a mere Deckhand, and to being a full-fledged Straw Hat. Luffy's reaction would be interesting.

A part of her chest hurt briefly before she dismissed it. Although now for some reason she was wondering if the others would feel jealous, especially at how fast it happened. Hmm, especially Maureen, who was about the same age . . .

Chopper loaded aboard all the research he and Cheetah had uncovered. Even if the means to discover it were reprehensible, it would be wasteful to just dispose of it.

'Optimus' transformed and folded back into a truck to the awestruck eyes of the male ex-prisoners, yet before they all got in to drive away, Zoro said, "Hold up."

For the second time since coming to this accursed world, he drew all three swords, and took a firm stance.

The swords in his hands were held horizontally pointed left, with the one in his mouth the opposite direction, his body blurred to fast to be seen as he roared. "One Hundred Eight Caliber Phoenix!"

A blast of wind and violence and the government facility was torn apart as if tornadoes of blades had been fired into the very heart of it, destroying it all entirely.

"There," he said nonchalantly, sheathing his blades. "Now we can go."

!JUSTICE!

As they drove away, Zoro could not help but draw Sandai Kitetsu to stare at it. That had been too close. If not for his luck helping him brush his hand against the cursed artifact . . .

However now it made him curious as to what else there was to his swords. What more could he learn from the blades themselves? Was there more to them than Hawkeye had told him, wanting Zoro to discover it himself?

Black blades. Cursed blades. How are they made?

!JUSTICE!

It was sunset when Waller's helicopter arrived, her pilot already calling for reinforcements and medical help for the survivors. She could only stare down with a face like iron as she calculated who could be responsible for this.

Later they would be shocked to discover there was only a single fatality: the warden himself, who could have survived if he had been treated in time.

They also learnt who was responsible for this attack.

Just when I was planning to step up my plans for the assets here. Did they somehow know? Is this Straw Hat somehow two steps ahead of me?

A cold fury eased through her veins. Now they have a whole team that is supposed to be able to take on the Justice League, or most of them at least, all for their own. And who knows what they're planning next!?

!JUSTICE!

Author Notes:

Credit to Evil Reviewer for the term "Deckhands!"

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For the Royal Flush Gang names:

Daniel Jackson (Jack)

Emma Frost (Queen, and the 'White Queen' in the X-men comics)

Kingsley Shacklebolt (King)

Ben Tennyson (10)

.

I make no claim to the Transformers franchise.

Also, we are NOT going to be seeing many more of them. They are basically just dumb robots with some general programming by Franky, and there is a limit to how much time and resources he has available.

.

Yes, Zoro is not using Enma still.

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Next Chapter: 'A Knight of Shadows'

(An adaption of the Justice League episode by the same name, which may be helpful to watch beforehand. I also recommend, "The Demon Within," the twelfth episode of The New Batman Adventures.)

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Please Review, and I will get back to you!

Mostly.

The sheer size of my responses for Guest Reviews means I need to start making some exceptions. I will not answer if you are asking when the next update will be, since honestly my answer tends to be, 'I do not know.' Also, for those asking for more One Piece characters, I say, 'Definitely not anytime soon. Maybe later though.' Or 'who would win' questions, since answering those basically counts as giving Spoilers. For those asking about the Justice Lords, I will simply say they are a popular arc request. While Haki is indeed similar in concept to the Will used by Green Lantern Rings, they are still different enough, on different 'frequencies' of willpower if you stretch the analogy, that they do not effect each other in any special way.

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EVERYONE STAY SAFE!