Chapter 10: So Many Things, So Little Time

Patnene gather the crew around a table outside the lighthouse. She took a breath and was silent for a moment.

"You guy must be wondering why I turned into a rabbit earlier, right?" asked Patnene.

"Did you eat some sort of Devil Fruit?" asked Luffy.

Pantene snorted, "I wish… then I'd probably be able to control it." She said while pouting.

"So if it's not a Devil Fruit, what is it?" asked Nami.

"You heard about that my island has a curse right?" asked Pantene.

"So wait, are you saying that's you island's curse?" asked Usopp.

"On the island there exists a place known as Jusenkyo, if you fall into it's many springs turn into whatever drowned there last, hot changed the person back yet cold water reactivates the transformation." Said Pantene.

"So wait! There's no cure?" asked Nami.

"There is… but it's a long story, see when I was 10 I lost to a female outsider… I did everything, gave her the kiss of death, chased her down… but when I cornered her I couldn't bare to kill her. When I came back to village I just had to tell the truth, that I failed… so elder Lotion took me to Jusenkyo to restart my training… during the training I fell into Spring of Drowned Rabbit, as punishment I couldn't get a cure for my curse." Sighed Pantene.

"So wait you're saying because of that curse you turn into a rabbit when cold water hits you and back with hot water?" asked Luffy.

"That's right." Said Patnene with a nod.

Luffy walked up to her, for some reason produced a bucket of cold water and a teakettle filled with water. He splashed her with cold water turning her in a rabbit again, Luffy then dumped the hot water on her turning her into a human again.

"Luffy! If you do that repeatedly! I'm going to have to kick your ass!" yelled Pantene.

Luffy sweat dropped, so he changed the subject, "So whatever happened to the whale's friends?" asked Luffy, "After all you did say he's been waiting 50 years."

"Isn't it obvious they died." Said Sanji staring at Luffy.

"Truth is a lot harsher than fiction, they all left the Grand Line." Said Crocus.

"What!" said everyone else.

"But it's impossible to leave, I mean with the Calm Belt!" said Nami.

"Yes, but I got it from a reliable source." Said Crocus.

"That's horrible." Said Mari.

"They have no sense of honor." Muttered Patnene.

"He understand you right, why don't you just explain it to him?" asked Nami.

"I've tried, but he never listen, he still believes they're wafting on the other side of the red line." Said Crocus.

Luffy stared at the whale… he looked at the scars it had all over its face… that's when Luffy had a brilliant idea, it was also extremely insane, but a brilliant idea nonetheless.

"Zoro… he has that look again." Said Kuina with a sweat drop.

"Just ignore him… I'm sure it's not that bad." Said Zoro.

Kuina looked at the whale and then realized something, "This sounds like something I heard a few times." She said.

She magically summoned a rather large book, she began to look though it… what she saw made her smile, it was a sad smile but a smile none the less… she looked at the whale... "That whale shouldn't ever give up hope. Laboon one of your friends still wants to see you, he cant' be he will be able to one day… I'm sure it." She thought looking at Laboon… then he noticed Luffy climbing on the whale… holding the mast… he eye began to twitch.

"Zoro… Tashegi… we have a bit of a problem with Luffy." Said Kuina.

They were first saw what he was doing… that's when he plunged the mast into Laboon's head, causing the whale to scream.

"What is he doing!" yelled everyone, expect for Usopp.

"I just fixed the ship." Cried Usopp.

The two fought, and it ended in a draw…

"Wow your good." Said Luffy.

Laboon began to cry… with that a promise was made, that they would fight again… and Luffy began to pain a "contract" which was poorly drawn version of their jolly roger.

"All right! Don't go ramming your head into the red line or it was wash off!" said Luffy.

"Lunch is ready!" came Sanji's voice.

"Okay!" said Luffy as he ran to the table where Sanji came and delivered the fish that he bought in Rouge town, the only thing Luffy didn't eat from Rouge Town, he was caught before he ate it.

"Hey Nami, what's with the bracelet?" asked Mari noticing a weird bracelet on Nami's wrist.

"Oh yeah, I should show you." Sighed Nami taking out her compass, which was just spinning like crazy.

"What's wrong with it?" asked Mari.

"Crocus told me that normal compasses down work here, we have to use a log pose, which is a special compass used to sail the Grand Line." Said Nami, "Each island has it's magnetic force…"

"Where did you find it?" asked Mari.

"I can't believe you ate all the food… it's been less than a minute!" yelled everyone else… the two decided to ignore that one… and Sanji chasing Luffy.

"I found it on the deck, I think those weird people dropped it." Said Nami, "I better keep my eye on it! I'm never leaving this out of my site."

That's when Sanji kicked Luffy, and the only thing Luffy hit was the Log Pose.

"Sanji, Luffy…" said Nami in all too calm way.

"Yes Nami?" asked Sanji happily.

"Why don't you cool your heads off!" yelled Nami kicking them into the sea.

"If everything is over I'm going to take a nap…" said Zoro with a yawn as he walked back to the ship.

Kuina sighed and sat next to her sister.

"You know you still owe me some berries." She said.

"I know…" whispered Tashegi.

Not too long later, after Sanji and Luffy came back, the two that tired to kill Laboon showed up… well more like Sanji invited the girl… the man just happened to come.

"Please we're on out hands and knees." Said both.

"Sorry… but the long pose broke." Said Nami with an evil smirk.

"What!" yelled the two.

"But Crocus gave us a spare…" said Nami with an evil smile.

"On out hands and knees." Said the two while thinking "That evil woman".

And so they're course was chosen… the town of Whisky Peak.

And so they set sail… with Luffy sailing good-bye to the whale. Zoro was asleep… Kuina and Tashegi walked over to him and plugged his nose. He woke up coughing.

"What is it!" he yelled.

"We need to talk to you." Said Tashegi.

"What about?" asked Zoro.

"Have you heard of Whisky Peak?" asked Tashegi.

Zoro gritted his teeth, "Yes, I have… and please don't tell me that's our next destination."

The two nodded… it was their next designation.

That's when it started snowing… on the ship. Usopp and Luffy were flocking in the snow while Mari and Nami managed to get Sanji to shoveled the snow…. The mysterious woman was on the back at the ship looking at the water… normally she would be complaining about how cold it was and making fun of the navigator about beings N00bs on the grand line… but she didn't felt like it… she just couldn't do it.

"What am I going to do…" she thought at she began to cry, "So many people depending on me… I can't get caught up in my own feelings…"

"Hey!" yelled Patnene finding her, "We need everyone's help on Turing this ship around! We somehow made a u-turn recently"

The mysterious woman wiped away her tears and put on a look on her face that boasted over confidence, "I'm coming, I'm coming…"

"By the way… if you know what's good for… I wouldn't go after Zoro…" said Pantene, "After all form what I can tell your our enemy and there's no way am I going to let an enemy of this crew get their hands on my furnace."

"Fiancé?" thought the woman as she ran past Patnene.

Sometime later… everyone layer out on deck sprawled out…

"So now you know…" said the mysterious man.

"And knowing is half the battle." Said Mari.

Everyone barely managed to sit up and stare at Mari.

"Someone had to say it…" said Mari with a shrug.

"Wow you guys lame!" said Luffy who was the only unaffected by the whole turning the ship around… well him and Kuina, but she was mostly invisible only a few.

"Hey!" yelled Mari throwing her shoe at him… hitting him in the head.

"See told you that would happen." Said Kuina with a laugh.

Zoro managed to get up and walked over to the mysterious pair.

"So what were your names again?" asked Zoro.

"Mr. 9." Said the mysterious man named Mr. 9.

"Ms. Wednesday." Said the mysterious woman named Ms. Wednesday blushing slightly.

"You know those names have been bugging me for a while… now… I've wondered why." Said Zoro with an evil smirk who then nodded at Tashegi.

Zoro got up… and was going to talk to Tashegi when Patnene pulled him aside.

"Okay! You know something about those two… please tell me." Said Pantene.

Zoro sighed, he remembered that Patnene was warrior… sure she turned into a rabbit, but was a warrior nonetheless. "Okay, but you have to follow the plan… and especially don't tell Luffy."

"Okay…" said Patnene nodding.

And so they approached the island, Mr. 9 and Ms. Wednesday both laughed.

"There's the island…" said Mr. 9.

"We should take our leave." Said Ms. Wednesday.

"Bye, bye baby!" said Both.

And both of them jumped ship and swam away.

"There's something off about her." Said Kuina.

"What do you mean?" asked Tashegi looking at her angel sister.

"I don't know… but I have the strangest feeling that she's not evil…" said Kuina.

As they got closer to the island it got foggy.

"So what's the plan?" asked Mari.

"Well we have to stay at the island until the Log Pose sets." Said Nami pointing to the Log Pose.

"So wait… if there's monster we have to stay!" yelled Usopp.

"That's right." Said Nami nodding.

They slowly approached the island as they did they saw moments in the fog…

"There's people here." Said Pantene who had mange dot grab her sword.

"Everyone be careful." Said Tashegi.

That's when the fog began to clear… and everyone got the shock of their lives… the people there were cheering.

"What's going on?" asked Luffy.

And that they got to the first island on the Grand Line… with half of them not knowing hat to expect from this island that is for some reason welcoming them to the island… however three visible members and another that invisible to most knew the truth... whatever that truth was…

Next Time: They arrive at Whisky Peak... and they welcome them with open arms... but they're too nice... The town as it turns out is full of Bounty Hunters... a fact which Zoro and Tashegi known all along. Along with Pantene they fight them off... However things get complicated when one of the bounty hunters there falls for Zoro... what will happen? Find out next time!