Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece.
"One Piece." – Speaking
'One Piece.' – Thinking
One Piece. – Flashbacks
One Piece. – Devil Fruits and Techniques
Deadly Drinking Pirate
Back In the Grand Line
Previously on Deadly Drunken Pirate,
"Game. Over." Luffy's arm retraced and stretched at the speed of sound which was followed by the sickening sound of a neck breaking. Those who had their eyes on Eneru had seen the 'God' go limp when that punch hit straight on the neckline, shattering the point where the head is connected to the body. And it echoed through the land along with the ring of the bell that never stopped the whole time; yet the limp body did not make a sound when it fell to the ground similar to a sack of potatoes.
Wiper couldn't believe it. The day was finally here. He and his kin had been one edge with the Skypeans for four hundred years while they only lived under fear and tyranny for six years when Eneru took over. Still, it felt like that short era of terror had ended at last when the 'God' was slain by the 'Devil'.
"Luffy…?" Wiper felt his heart jump a little to hear the voice of a concerned woman, turning to see the navigator look over the savior himself. Luffy had not moved when Eneru's body landed unceremoniously to the side. He only gazed to the other side of his body until he lifted his left arm to reveal something shocking: It was made almost entirely out of thunder!
It was late evening when everyone in the heavens had gathered to celebrate their freedom from Eneru's tyranny and hearing the 'Song of the Island' for the first time in four hundred years. The rebels were glad to have their ancestral homeland back but while the thought had come to mind to keep it all to themselves, they were too tired of fighting to consider. The residents from Angel Beach were grateful to party on the 'Holy Verath'.
"I still can't believe it." A rebel by the name of Laki spoke what was on her mind. "How was that boy with the hat able to toy with Eneru and even kill him with his bare hands, after how we have tried and failed to even touch him, Wiper?" The rebel leader just relaxed and nibbled on a meat-stick that was made by the boy's cook; even he had to admit that it was tasty.
"He called it a power that is found in all living beings." Wiper finally responded after taking a good swallow. "One that Mantra is part of, and there is a power that allows one to hit even a Logia user." Laki widen her eyes.
"Can we learn it!?" Wiper felt a smirk reach his lips when she almost shook him by the shoulders to get an answer.
"The boy with the hat and his gang don't plan to stay for long. They could only teach us some much. But you will have to wait a bit." Wiper respond and to show what he meant in that last part, he pointed off in the distance. Laki followed his finger to see the man in question, in good company to say the least; Luffy was dining with Nami getting comfy on his chest while them both were resting on Nola! For an honorable mention, that giant bird from the altar was also resting nearby after being treated by Chopper. "I still say the Blue Sea Dweller is the craziest I ever meet, who else could find out that the Lord of the Sky is actually female and just wanted her old home back."
"I am almost surprised to see that you are being so calm about it. Usually you have something to be mad about." Laki said honestly and Wiper wanted to scowl at least but just released a breath.
"Even I get tired of being angry and I still feel a bit tired from seeing one craziness after another." Wiper responded and reached for another meat stick, they were too good and the wildcard wishes to admit it.
XXXXX
The next morning after the party,
"What do you know?" Luffy asked while the rest of his crew were speechless. They were gazing upon the repaired King's Gourd. Only it was much, much bigger. It was easily twice as big, much trice. The overall design was barely any different, the measurements and positions were adjusted to the new size. The body of the ship seemed to be double decked and there was a third mast complete with a functioning sail that bore their jolly roger. "You people sure work fast." Luffy turned to the crowd on Angel Beach.
"I don't know Luffy-kun." Nami mused, she would rather just nod off on her boyfriend's shoulder. "Sure, there is a lot of space to spare, but a bigger ship is an easier target. Just how will all of us even protect something that is so much bigger than all of us?"
"We will just have to adjust I the best way we can, Nami-chan." Luffy responded and pointed out the crew doing their little self-tours at their own pace. "It is still generous of the locals to not only fix and upgrade our ship but also give up most of their dials. I guess that even rubber bands can make miracles." Nami started to giggle and smile which made her shine much more than her uneasy frown.
"It was so amusing to see the locals who live in the sky and use sea shells for everyday life get on rubber bands like the rarest thing in the world!" Nami added her own two cents and Luffy just chuckled along.
"Come one. We need to get ready to leave for the ocean or else we will lose where the Log Pose points." Nami would care about such details if she wasn't snuggling in her boyfriend's warmth. And Luffy felt a pleasant tingle while he rubbed her head as if an actual housecat.
"Fine. Lead the way, my king~!"
XXXXX
A couple of days later,
"Do you really have to leave?" Conis was along the edge of the Sky Island along with her father and her Sky Fox pet. Gan Fall was also there with his faithful companion, the pink bird that can transform into a lackluster Pegasus. "We were just getting to known each other, especially after how you freed us from tyranny."
"Thanks, Conis, we really appreciate that." Luffy said while leaning over the railing. "But we are still sailors, free sailors that are more often than not called pirates. And our compass will not wait for us when it points to the next island We need to be on the Blue Sea before we lose our place." It was a real petty and even more since they had to lose the other Skypeans and the rebels to avoid any crowd seeing them off.
"Besides, the new and improved King's Gourd is a big bonus to seeing Sky Island and we have that big bad boy to take with us." Luffy used his thumb to point to the rather large column that is truly made of pure gold. It was so massive that the Skypeans had to make another vessel to carry with a chain keeping it attached to the King's Gourd. If you will gaze at the bottom of the vessel whenever a wave comes to shift it up a bit, there are dozens of shells littering on the bottom.
"But well your girl be okay?" Conis asked with actually concern while Luffy wasn't too worried about Nami. To an innocent young woman, the navigator looked brain dead as Nami hadn't even twitched to the side breeze while napping on Luffy's shoulder. But Conis's father and Gan Fall had a good idea on what happened; they praised the wonders of youth and to Luffy for his 'skills with his woman'. Luffy just gave a grin that confirmed what the adults thought.
"I am sure Conis, Nami still feels like queen of the world to witness more gold than several kings put together. Since I got it for her, she 'thanked' me last night." Luffy responded and Nami got a smile as big as a Cheshire cat's while her cheeks were almost neon red. The adult males also felt their faces get red when their imaginations ran wild to picture the 'pleasurable night' between the pirate captain and his girl. "Too bad that the stinking bird had to wake us up late last night." Luffy scowled and bluntly pointed to the South Bird chained up again but also with its beak sealed; the little avian creature certainty got on everyone's bad side when scowls also appeared on their faces.
"Okay, you are almost at the exit!" Conis saw something worth cheering up and pointed out that the cloud stream was leading the vessels. Everyone saw it and hurried over to the side where they can see their friends on the shoreline and said their farewells. Up until Conis shouted, "And beware of The Drop!"
"The what!?"
XXXXX
While everyone was screaming so loud that it will be like trying to hear a dog whistle and staying on the deck was just as easy. But Luffy was able to get himself together to hold on to Nami and make his way to where the helm is. "Okay everyone!" Luffy got everyone's attention, "If this is done right, we can save ourselves, our ships and our loot! Try to hold on to the ship where you won't land hard and wish us luck!"
They only had a second until the larger-than-before King's Gourd slowed down suddenly and almost to a stop. Most were able to grasp the mast so that they won't hit the flooring yet the others could only hang on to the former. After getting over what must be a killer landing, the crew wondered what happened. "Hey! Look at that!" A voice from the railing shouted and when eyes looked at the belly of the ship, they saw it littered with Dials just like the vessel carrying their gold. And half of these Dials were going off let rocket jets, must be what is slowing the vessels to a slow descent.
"Thank god! I am glad that I checked them out before we left Sky Island." Luffy said while wiping off some sweat from his forehead. "Had them fail, we were goners~!" The crew didn't care if that was a joke or not, they were glad to not crash into the ocean. Then again,
"Just how did you get so many Dials? Did those people from up there really gave up so many just for our ship?" Kuro asked to be sure and Luffy just smirked.
"It was a cinch, I just borrowed Usopp's old collection of rubber bands." Nothing much more needed to be said. There were just a lot of bouncing eyebrows sent the sniper's way. Usopp chuckled nervously and shrugged his shoulders,
"I…I was wondering what to do with those old things until Luffy asked if he could have them." Usopp could have rambled on until Kaya gave him a good kiss on the check. That got his brain to shut down for only a bit. Then a thought got it to work, "So what happened to Umi?"
Before anyone could respond, a large door at the base opened out came a certain large sea snake, panting like he was having a heart attack. Luffy walked over with a concerned yet amused expression.
"Hey there boy, I promise you; that is the last time we are going above sea level." The captain said to the Sea King who only rolled around in the sea water and gave an expression that said,
'You better' "You better, he says." Chopper translated. "He is grateful that this new ship has a compartment room just for him." The crew nodded along; a happy Sea King is a friend while an angry one is a predator.
"Now then everyone!" Luffy announced, "One more reminder before you go to bed and expect clouds again, we are back in the Grand Line. Hope you enjoyed our little 'vacation' because it is time to get back to work." As much as they wanted to grumble, the captain was only breaking this to get the gears turning again. "Next, a bit of big news and a present I got for my girl Nami." Turning to the woman in question, "Care to show off a bit?"
Nami's Cheshire smile grew back and, much to shock of everyone present, she turned into a thunderbolt that bounced on and off the deck. It even jumped to hop-skip on the ocean surface. "In case you blinked…" Nami reappeared on the railing, in the stance of feral cat enjoying the looks on the crew. "…my man has gotten his 'hands' on the Goro-Goro No Mi (Rumble-Rumble Fruit) and…after a little persuasion (and a bit of arguing), he gave the fruit for me to devour." No one wanted to hear more so they asked for no more.
"If there are anymore questions, it is time to set sail." Luffy spoke up. "You probably already guessed that the next place of interest will be the carpenter haven, Water Seven. The best part is that even pirates are allowed to enter as customers as long as they behave. We need to find someone there that can fully upgrade our ship to make it more suitable for the New World. After all, bigger is not always better." The crew agreed and even Usopp did, with the promise that the Going Merry stays as she is.
"But before we do, there is a little something that had to wait until the excitement was over. Just a moment." Luffy said and went through one of the doors, leaving his crew wondering what he was talking about. But they didn't have to wait long until Luffy came with what seems to be an ordinarily, standard barrel. "Now." Luffy spoke up suddenly, "Unless you show yourself or I will have to get rough and pull you out myself. And trust me, biting back is a bad idea."
Luffy then put the barrel on its side until it started to tumble a bit. The lid then fell off and when the crew tried to look inside, they flinched. It was the little girl from the rebels, Aisa! "H-hi everyone…"
End of Chapter 43.
*Hey everyone. I am doing okay for myself and have been taking my time with my updates. Hope that you had a good Thanksgiving. Lets hope for a white Christmas for the first time in forever!*