Ch. 65- The Secret Island
One Piece © Oda
Story and OCs © Me
The Straw Hats felt their hearts sink all at once as they let the sound of their captain's weeping fill their ears. Zoro closed his eye solemnly while Sanji quietly took a drag from his cigarette. Nami had her hand over her mouth, trying her hardest not to cry herself... and Usopp sighed as he cast his eyes to the ground. Chopper whimpered, clenching his little hooves into fists... and Robin just stood quietly, but her eyes were soft with sadness. Even Franky, Blizzard, Brook, Aika, and Kumi felt the heavy feeling of sorrow that emanated from the memory.
"...I didn't realize that he was that upset about it," Nami said.
"Luffy realized that he was way out of his league," Zoro replied. "I think was a time that he truly felt like he was weak."
"It was already bad enough that he lost to someone like Crocodile," said Franky, "so to lose to an Admiral..."
"It was a really low blow to his pride," Sanji answered. "Luffy's always trying to prove that he can take on anyone and win... but he doesn't realize that sometimes, that mentality might cost you your life."
"...I think Luffy knew that he wouldn't be able to win," Usopp began, "but the fact that what happened pretty much confirmed it only hurt him more."
"It's hard when you lose a battle," Robin spoke. "Especially when you realize that your opponent can easily gain the upper hand in almost an instant."
"...Big Brother..." Aika whispered, sadly.
"...This is so sad..." Kumi muttered. "Luffy must have had a really hard time."
"I was able to heal his injuries," Chopper said, "but... I hadn't realized that this would affect his mind." His ears drooped.
"...Is this not why we're here, though?" Brook asked. "To see why it is that Luffy is the way that he is? To see what he's gone through?"
"It doesn't make it easier..." Blizzard muttered... and that's when the memories began to appear, again. The Going Merry was sailing along the sea, heading towards her next destination and Past Luffy was sitting on the figurehead, as usual, wearing an outfit similar to the one he was wearing during the present day: an orange hoodie with the sleeves torn off. He appeared to be deep in thought, too, perhaps reflecting on his fight with Aokiji prior to this memory.
That's when they heard Past Robin speak.
"If you are a pirate among pirates among pirates among pirates, then bring your steadfast crew to our island. The name of our island is 'Omatsuri'..."
"Omatsuri Island?" Past Usopp repeated, sticking his finger inside a glass bottle while Past Robin was holding some aged parchment, and on a crate, there was an Eternal Pose with the island's name.
"Yes, Omatsuri Island," Past Robin answered. "I've never heard of this island, before."
"W-wait, wait, hold up!" Usopp exclaimed. "I... I don't remember this."
"Yeah, me neither," Chopper spoke up.
"That's strange," Nami said, furrowing her brow in bewilderment. "I don't remember this, either."
"Yeah, me neither," agreed Sanji, just as confused as they were. "Do you remember this, Moss-head?"
"I sure don't," Zoro said. "What about you, Robin?"
"No, I don't," Robin answered as she put her hand to her head in an attempt to search her own memory, yet found nothing. "I don't even have a recollection... and I've never once heard of Omatsuri Island."
"You don't remember this, at all?" Brook asked.
"But you were all there," Franky added. "How could you not remember?"
"No idea," Nami answered... and yet, she had this odd nagging feeling at the back of her head.
"It's a trap," Past Usopp said with his usual caution. "No doubt about it!"
"Why do they call this place Omatsuri Island?" asked Past Zoro, who was lifting weights, as usual. "Do they hold festivals there or something?"
"I'll read the rest," said Past Robin as she held the parchment. "It says... 'Omatsuri Island is the only pleasure island resort in the entire Grand Line and as its name implies, every day on the island is a festival. You will also enjoy our many spas and beauty salons..."
"Spa and beauty salons?!" Past Nami asked as she suddenly appeared with sparkling eyes. "What is this place?! It sounds fabulous!"
"You would get excited over that," Zoro snarked, causing Nami to glare at him.
"Don't you start, mister," she grumbled.
"'Your nighttime life will be filled with beautiful women and a selection of our finest beverages...'" Past Robin continued reading.
"Beautiful women...?" Past Sanji whispered before he appeared with hearts in his eyes. "This place sounds awesome!"
"Oh, boy..." Sanji groaned, embarrassed at his past self.
"'And banquets will be filled with our exquisite cuisine...'" Past Robin finished reading.
"Exquisite cuisine?!" asked Past Chopper as he came scampering over. "What's that?! What kind of food is it?!"
"Whoa...!" Blizzard said in surprise. "Luffy must really be deep in thought! Usually, he'd jump at the chance of food!"
"That fight with Aokiji must have been tougher on him than we thought," Chopper surmised while the Past Straw Hats were soon clamoring amongst each other about whether or not they should go.
"Man, what a pain..." Past Zoro was heard grumbling before he cast his eyes over to Past Luffy, who was still sitting on his special seat, seemingly not paying attention to what was going on behind him. "What do you wanna do, Captain?"
Past Luffy didn't speak, his eyes still focused on the horizon.
"Hey, Luffy!" Past Zoro called, but again, the Straw Hat Captain still didn't respond, much to the swordsman's annoyance. "LUFFY! DID YOU HEAR WHAT I SAID?!"
The Straw Hats had to admit, it was rather unnerving to have their Captain be so quiet like that. Not that they could blame him, of course, given what happened prior to this memory.
It was then that Past Luffy finally spoke up.
"Hey, Nami," he said. "Read that first part again for me."
"Huh?" Past Nami asked before she took the parchment and read it aloud. "'If you are a pirate among pirates among pirates among pirates, then bring your steadfast crew to our island'."
"...All right," Past Luffy said as he stood up. "I've decided!"
"Huh?" the Past Straw Hats asked in surprise.
"We're going to Omatsuri Island," he said. "The reason being, of course..." He then flashed his signature grin, "is that we're pirates!"
Soon, the memory faded to black, once more, leaving the Straw Hats confused.
"Sounds like something Luffy would say, all right," Zoro mused.
"But what I don't get is why we don't remember any of this!" Usopp added. "Seriously, I'm drawing a blank here!"
"...Hold it," Nami said. "I think I do remember something. We all woke up in the middle of this deserted island... and we had no idea where we were and how we got there."
"That's strange," Robin said. "I think I recall that, too."
"Oh, yeah!" Chopper exclaimed. "We found Luffy lying on the ground, and he looked badly hurt! He was covered in puncture wounds and he had lost a lot of blood, too! It took him about a week to recover from that, too!"
"Now that I think about it," Sanji began, "there was this one time where Luffy was having nightmares for a while, but he wouldn't say what they were about."
"...Wait a sec," Franky said. "Didn't Shade say something, earlier? Back when we were watching the memories of Logue Town?"
"He said... to turn back," Brook recalled, "or else we'll experience true hell."
"...Do you think... that this is what he meant?" asked Blizzard, worriedly.
"I... I dunno," Sanji answered.
"Wait," Aika said. "If you guys didn't remember, but Big Brother did, why didn't you ask him what happened?"
"...We tried," Usopp answered. "He just wouldn't tell us, no matter how hard we pressed him. Whenever we did... he got angry for a minute before he went right back to being all happy-go-lucky, again."
"We decided that he'd tell us when he was ready," Zoro added, "but... he never did. Eventually, we just forgot about asking him after we got to Water 7."
"Well, something tells me we're gonna find out what happened on that island," Nami said in a grim tone, "and I have a feeling that we're not gonna like what we find."
At that moment, the memory shifted...showing the Past Straw Hats standing on a completely empty beach with a lush jungle in front of them. Most of them looked like they were all dressed up for a nice vacation, but so far... it looked like all they had found was a huge disappointment. The only one who seemed excited about it was Past Luffy.
"...Well, this doesn't seem so bad," Brook said.
"Yeah, but... I think you guys might have gotten punked," Franky added... and Past Nami practically yelled the same thing.
"But did something bad really happen here?" asked Usopp. "I mean, this place looks deserted, but pretty peaceful, too."
"I'm not so sure," Robin said. "I don't know why... but I get the distinct feeling that there's something we're not seeing."
"Hmm..." Sanji hummed, gnawing on the butt of his cigarette. For some odd reason, every time he looked at Luffy's past counterpart, he had this uneasy sense of guilt. He didn't know why, though.
All of a sudden, a peculiar sound filled the air: the sound of drumbeats.
"Hey, do you hear that?" asked Past Chopper while Past Luffy listened for the sound, as well.
"This way!" he exclaimed as he ran into the jungle with the others following not too far behind him. As they ran, the sound of the drums began to grow louder in volume, indicating that they were getting closer. After a while, they finally managed to break through, and imagine their surprise when they laid eyes on what they were seeing: it looked like a giant city in the middle of the jungle!
"Whoa!" Franky exclaimed as he lifted his sunglasses. "Check THAT out!"
"It's gorgeous!" Brook added.
"Spas and beauty salons...!" Past Nami whispered in awe as she saw the many buildings nearby.
"Beauties from all over the world...!" Past Sanji murmured as he saw the numerous nightclubs.
"Exquisite cuisine!" Past Chopper exclaimed as he spotted the nearby restaurants.
"This... this place is...!" Past Sanji whispered with tears of joy forming in his visible eye.
"It's everything we've wished for and more!" Past Nami exclaimed, and that's when Past Sanji spotted what appeared to be several women, lined up with feather fans all in a row. He smirked, thinking that he'd found himself a good score... until it was soon revealed that the "women" were actually just a bunch of men in ballerina outfits.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" both Sanjis, past and present, shouted in disgust while Zoro, Franky, Blizzard, and Usopp snickered.
"Not your day, eh, Sanji?" Usopp asked.
"Don't even start," Sanji glared.
"I didn't need to see that..." Brook muttered. "Not that I could see since I don't have eyeballs."
"Hey!" Past Luffy exclaimed. "They've all got leaves growing outta their heads!"
"Hey, you're right!" Past Usopp cried as he pointed to several other people. "And so do they! What's going on?!"
As the Straw Hats got a closer look, they saw that there were indeed little sprouts growing out of the heads of the people.
"That's really weird," said Kumi. "What's with those plants growing out of their noggins?"
"Search me," Chopper shrugged while Robin hummed, inquisitively... and as for Aika, her body began to tremble ever so slightly, and she was taking in deep, subtle breaths.
At that moment, a row of elephants appeared, all of them dressed up like they were on parade. That's when the group spotted a tall man, dressed up in a black flower outfit with red trousers. His hair was braided in long stems that came down his face and a thin mustache that pointed upwards in an obtuse angle. He had a rather mean-looking expression, but it was hard to tell given his choice of clothing. Hell, the guy even had a little toy flower on his shoulder, which had a little face drawn on it.
"I'm guessing this guy is the one in charge," Franky said.
"I guess so," Zoro added, feeling as though as he had seen his before, and yet couldn't quite put his finger on it.
"Do you think he's a pirate or something?" asked Chopper.
"He doesn't look all that dangerous to me," Nami said. "Although, that outfit is a little gaudy..."
"Hmmm... that flower..." Robin muttered as she stared at its smiling face. She didn't know why, but she couldn't help but feel just a little uneasy about it.
As for Aika, her trembling hadn't ceased. In fact, it looked like she was shaking more than before, and her eyes were as wide as dinner plates as she stared at the mysterious man.
"Pirates!" the man exclaimed, causing the drums to stop. "Brave pirates who have traversed the Grand Line!"
"Oh!" Past Luffy exclaimed as he raised his hand. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!"
"Hey, Luffy!" Past Usopp cried, not liking where this was going.
"I congratulate you on reaching Omatsuri Island," said the man. "My name... is Baron Omatsuri!"
"Baron Omatsuri?" the Straw Hats, save for Aika, repeated.
"That can't really be his real name, can it?" Brook asked... but then, out of nowhere, Aika fell to her knees, groaning as she grabbed at her head, causing the Straw Hats to gasp as they all ran to her side.
"Aika?!" Kumi asked, worriedly.
"Aika, what's wrong?!" Robin asked. "What is it?!"
"Does your head hurt?!" Chopper inquired, worriedly.
"Hey, squirt!" Franky cried. "Pull yourself together!"
"So... so much...!" Aika cried as she held her head as if she were in great pain.
"So much what?!" Nami asked.
"Aika, what's going on?!" Usopp questioned. "So much what?!"
"Come on, kid, talk to us!" Zoro shouted.
"What are you feeling, right now?!" Sanji asked.
"So... much... SADNESS!" Aika screamed as she threw her head up to the sky, her eyes welling over with tears. "THERE'S SO MUCH SADNESS HEEEEEEEEEEEERE!"
Then, as the memory faded to black... she collapsed, causing the Straw Hats to cry out her name as she passed out.
After what felt like hours, Aika finally opened her eyes again and groaned as she held her head while Nami carefully propped her up.
"Are you okay, honey?" Nami asked.
"Yeah... I think I'm okay, now," Aika answered.
"What happened, squirt?" Zoro asked. "I've never seen you react like that before!"
"Yeah, Aika!" Kumi exclaimed. "You just keeled over, screaming your head off, and then passed out!"
"...I don't know," Aika replied as she shook her head. "It's just... there was something about seeing that Baron guy. When I was watching him... I was feeling so many things: pain... fear... loss... but mostly, sadness. It just swept over me... and the next thing I knew, I just blacked out."
The Straw Hats looked at each other in concern. Aika's Observation Haki was usually in tune with someone's emotions, so she could always tell which ones stood out the most with someone... so to hear that she felt so much sorrow here was definitely something to be worried about. Something happened in this memory... something that Luffy didn't tell them... and now they were going to find out what it was.
Soon, the memories returned, showing the Past Straw Hats standing before Baron Omatsuri, just like before, all of them excited about taking a vacation at the resort.
"You may enjoy yourselves to your heart's content!" exclaimed the Baron, who grinned at them as he crossed his arms. "However, you must first undertake the Ordeal of Hell!"
Upon hearing that, the Past Straw Hats all froze.
"Yep," said Zoro in an incredulous tone. "Should have figured."
"Why can't things ever come easy for us?" Nami asked, her past self complaining in the same manner.
"For real," Usopp agreed.
"Ordeal..." Past Robin mused.
"...of Hell?" Past Zoro finished, clearly taking an interest.
"Figures that you'd be excited about that, Zoro," said Blizzard.
"Oh, man, I knew it..." Past Usopp muttered as he backed away, nervously.
"Uh, excuse me!" Past Nami called as she raised her hand. "The note we found said something about spas and beauty salons?"
"Spas?" the Baron repeated.
"And beautiful women and a selection of beverages!" Past Sanji added.
"Beverages?" the Baron asked, acting as if this was the first time he was hearing these things.
"And what about the exquisite cuisine?!" asked Past Chopper.
"Exquisite cuisine, you say?" the Baron mused. "Hmm..."
"I think this guy took you all for a ride," Franky pointed out.
"Yeah, I figured that much," Nami groaned.
"That's it, we're leaving," announced Past Nami, Past Sanji, and Past Chopper in unison as they all turned to leave... but Past Luffy stood in their way, pushing them back as they tried to push against him.
"Hey, hey, hey! Old man!" Past Luffy called. "What's this Ordeal of Hell, anyway?!"
"The Ordeal of Hell is a test of strength and skill," answered the Baron. "Countless others have failed to endure the task and have fled the island barefoot from the island."
"Hahaha! That sounds great!" Past Luffy laughed.
"Of course, he's interested in that," Usopp griped.
"Well, what'd you expect?" asked Blizzard. "It's Luffy, for crying out loud."
"Yeah, between him and Zoro, they're the only ones who actually share a brain cell when it comes to this stuff," Sanji added.
"I heard that," Zoro sneered.
"If you do not trust in your crew," said the Baron, "then you will be advised to leave this place!"
"Ha!" Past Luffy scoffed. "Don't be so stupid! We accept your challenge! Shishishishi!"
"LUFFY!" Past Nami shouted as she grabbed him by his cheeks and pulled him down to a squatting position in front of her. "Luffy, are you crazy?! What could we possibly have to gain from any of this?!"
"Even if there was something to gain," Past Sanji began, "we're not obligated to actually participate!"
"They're right, Luffy!" Past Chopper exclaimed. "It's too dangerous!"
"You see, Luffy?!" Past Usopp asked. "I told you it was a trap!"
"It was?" asked Past Luffy.
"They called it the Ordeal of Hell!" Past Chopper cried.
"That's right!" Past Luffy replied, brightly.
"We don't know what could happen, though!" Past Usopp argued.
"Yeah! That's the fun part!" Past Luffy said, still grinning dopily.
"Luffy!" Past Chopper shrieked in panic.
"What?" asked Past Luffy with that same impish look, which caused both Past Usopp and Past Chopper to sigh in resignation, realizing that there was no changing their captain's mind.
"Why are you always so carefree?" asked Past Usopp.
"Shishishi!" Aika giggled. "Big Brother's funny!"
"Luffy's never been one to be so easily convinced, huh?" asked Kumi.
"It doesn't matter if it's a trap or not," said Past Luffy. "You guys can handle it!"
The Past Straw Hats all looked at their captain with wide, surprised eyes while he still had that big toothy grin of his, his expression showing absolutely no doubt to be had.
"Besides," he said, "I believe in you guys!"
A pause followed before the Past Straw Hats all blushed at the compliment.
"Captain, you sweet talker!" Past Sanji exclaimed.
"Yohohoho!" Brook chortled. "Such charisma!"
"Even in the craziest of situations, Luffy's never doubted us once, has he?" asked Blizzard.
"Yeah," Zoro grinned, proudly.
"But you gotta admit," Nami began, "you gotta love him even more for it."
"That's true!" Franky grinned.
"Ordeal of Hell, huh?" Past Zoro mused, sporting the kind of grin he wore when he was about to head into a big fight. "Sounds interesting. I'd like to see what this is all about."
"Z-Zoro!" Past Usopp cried.
"I'd like to see it for myself, as well," said Past Robin. "I'm a bit interested in the Baron."
"Robin, you too?!" Past Chopper asked in surprise.
"Oh, well," Past Sanji shrugged as he stood upright. "I'm up for it."
"Ugh, fine," Past Nami sighed. "I guess we have no choice. Let's just get this over with!"
"Luffy... if you're gonna do this, then I'm in, too!" Past Chopper declared.
"Oh, boy..." Past Usopp muttered before he stood up straight with his nose in the air. "Well, then... count me in, too!"
"I see," the Baron said in an almost sinister tone. "So you all wish to participate, do you? Very well! Prepare the Ordeal of Hell!"
Soon, the Past Straw Hats standing on a circular platform surrounded by seawater.
"Whoa! What's going on?!" Past Chopper asked, nervously.
"Oh, man, this is getting exciting!" Past Luffy exclaimed.
"I will now reveal the Ordeal of Hell that you will undertake!" the Baron announced. "It is... Goldfish Catching!"
"Uh... did I hear that right?" asked Kumi.
"Did he seriously just say 'goldfish catching'?" asked Sanji.
"Well... catching goldfish can be pretty hard," said Aika, remembering the summer festivals that her home island would have. "The nets tear so easily in water!"
All around them, an audience that seemed to have appeared out of thin air began to cheer and applaud.
"Suddenly, I'm thinking about the Davy Back Fight," said Zoro as he noticed the crowd.
"These people all have sprouts on their heads, as well," Brook pointed out. "I wonder why that is."
"Probably a gimmick, just like Foxy's crew," Sanji added.
"...I don't think so," said Aika, worriedly. "Something about them... it just seems off."
"I have to agree with Aika," Robin said. "Why do all these people have sprouts on their heads, but the Baron doesn't?"
"Yeah... Robin's right," Nami said.
"Maybe you're overthinking it," Franky pointed out.
"I don't think so," Robin replied.
"Goldfish catching?" Past Usopp repeated as a large circular fish tank rose up from the ground in front of them.
"The rules are simple," said the Baron. "The team that catches the largest goldfish in under 3 minutes wins!" He then held up a small paper fishnet. "Also, I should warn you that this net tears easily in water." He laughed for just a moment. "And now, let me introduce to you my valiant confidant who shall be your opponent! Step forth, Muchigoro!"
"Aye!" a voice exclaimed as a shadowy figure came waddling out into the arena, sending the crowd wild... and he soon came to a stop before the Past Straw Hats, revealing his appearance. He looked to be a man of average size with bug eyes and a long face, and he had a bit of a pear-shaped figure. Just like everyone else on the island, he also had a sprout with two leaves growing out of the top of his head.
"Yo! I'm Muchigoro!" he declared, holding up a paper fishnet.
"He... looks kinda cute, though," Kumi said.
"Yeah, I actually don't sense anything threatening about him," Aika added.
"What'd he say?" asked Past Zoro.
"I think he said his name was Muchigoro," replied Past Usopp.
"What is he?" asked Past Nami. "Some kind of eel?"
"He looks more like a loach to me," said Past Chopper.
"Nah, he's just an idiot," Past Sanji chimed in.
"No, I'm not!" Muchigoro shouted. "My name is Muchigoro! And I'm Baron Omatsuri's right hand!" He then hopped back and forth, trying to look intimidating... and failing.
"Yep, he's an idiot," Past Sanji muttered.
"Definitely an idiot," Blizzard agreed.
"An idiot for sure," Chopper piped.
Soon, the Baron asked the Past Straw Hats which one of them would be competing against Muchigoro, and naturally, Past Luffy was the first to want to try... until Past Usopp spoke up, saying that he would be the one to do it. Naturally, since they found it would be something as simple as goldfish catching, the sniper was more than up for the challenge, even though he was trembling about it, earlier. He even declared himself as the "Master of Goldfish Catching", which impressed both Past Chopper and Muchigoro. However, after some of his gloating, he soon revealed it to be a bluff... as always.
The Straw Hats, both past and present, knew that much from the start, anyway.
"Muchigoro!" the Baron called. "Don't let them build up momentum!"
"Ah! You're right!" exclaimed Muchigoro. "Sorry, Baron!"
"Now then, let us begin!" declared the Baron. "Ready..."
"Go!" the little flower on his shoulder exclaimed.
"Uh... did that flower just talk?" Brook asked.
"I think it did," Robin replied while Aika stared at the flower... and for a moment, the image of the flower seemed to buzz and blur like static until she saw something that looked like a monstrous head with multiple black dots and a mouth full of sharp teeth. Aika gasped and closed her eyes before she opened them again... and to her surprise, the flower was back to normal.
"What... was that?" she asked.
"What was what?" Nami asked. "What did you see?"
"Well-" Aika started, only to be interrupted by a strange sound coming from the memory... and as the Straw Hats looked up, something came leaping out of the water: a gigantic goldfish with rainbow-colored eyes and a golden headpiece!
"What is THAT?!" Past Luffy questioned in shock.
"That?" asked Muchigoro with a wicked grin. "That's my precious pet, Rosario!"
The goldfish soon landed back into the water, engulfing the Past Straw Hats in a huge wave while the Baron and Muchigoro laughed. Even Past Luffy was laughing, but more out of excitement than mockery as the water receded.
"Hey, wait a minute!" Past Nami shouted. "What's the big idea?!"
"What's the problem?" asked the Baron, smugly. "I did say this was Goldfish Catching."
"How are we supposed to catch that thing?!" asked Past Nami.
"You just put the goldfish in that bucket over there," said the Baron as he pointed at a giant yellow bucket that was floating on the water nearby.
"They seriously expected you to catch that thing?!" Franky questioned.
"It's way too huge!" Brook shouted.
"He certainly didn't mention anything about this," said Past Robin.
"Dammit, we've been duped!" cursed Past Zoro.
"Oh, man, this is really getting interesting!" Past Luffy exclaimed, obviously having too much to care.
"It is not!" Past Nami shouted, and that's when Past Usopp handed her the net and scurried away. "HUH?! Wait a minute!"
"Oh, man, that was embarrassing..." Usopp muttered, ashamed of his past counterpart's actions. "I'm glad I'm not like that, anymore... at least, not as much."
"You've gotten better, Usopp, I'll admit that," Nami said.
At first, Past Nami seemed to have resigned herself to try and catch the giant goldfish... until she saw it looming closer toward her, causing her to just forget the whole thing. That's when Past Sanji leapt into the air and kicked the giant fish away from her, then, upon landing on the ground, he jumped up and kicked it further away into the air... which Past Nami did not notice as she handed Past Zoro the net, causing the cook to fall into the sea in disappointment.
"Oh, now THAT'S embarrassing..." Sanji groaned while Zoro snickered.
"Nice show, Dartboard," Zoro smirked.
"Don't even start," Sanji grumbled.
Soon, Past Zoro was about to use his swordplay while holding the fishnet in his mouth... but the Baron shouted at him that no weapons were allowed during the ordeal, forcing the swordsman to swing his sword while it was still in its scabbard like a bat, striking the goldfish down.
"Why didn't he just say that from the beginning?" asked Brook.
"He probably just made it up on the spot, just like Foxy did during the Davy Back Fight," said Zoro.
"Although it would probably be hard to put pieces of goldfish into the bucket," Robin pointed out.
"...There's also that," Zoro agreed.
Soon, Past Luffy wanted to try to catch Rosario, so he asked Past Zoro to give him the net. Soon, he stretched his arm and hit the goldfish with his fist... but in doing so, he got the net wet, and it tore into little pieces, rendering it useless.
Not that it mattered in the first place, for it was soon revealed that Muchigoro had an even bigger net, one that was perfect for catching the giant goldfish. The Past Straw Hats complained, realizing that they had been duped once more... but to everyone's surprise, it was Past Robin who came to the rescue.
"I suppose this means there were never any rules, to begin with," she said as she crossed her arms, creating a giant net of limbs inside Muchigoro's red bucket, catching Rosario and sending her flying across the sky... but she didn't fly far enough, for she was about to land on the Past Straw Hats, who all quickly ran out of the way to avoid getting crushed. However, Past Chopper didn't run. Instead, he chomped on a Rumble Ball before growing into a gargantuan ball of fur, catching the goldfish and throwing her into their yellow bucket.
As soon as he did that, the 3 minutes were up, thus making the Past Straw Hats the winners.
"Wow!" Kumi exclaimed. "That was amazing, Chopper!"
"That was so clever!" Aika added.
"Way to go, little buddy!" Blizzard cheered.
"Heheheheh...!" Chopper laughed as he scratched the back of his head. "Like saying that will make me happy!"
As the Past Straw Hats were celebrating their victory, however, they didn't realize that Past Chopper, dazed by the immense strain of having to use his Guard Point form and making it grow so hugely, was stumbling backward. It was only until Past Zoro cried out that they finally turned around... only for the little reindeer to fall towards the water.
"CHOPPER!" Past Luffy cried as he ran toward the edge. "HANG ON, I'M COMING!
"LUFFY, STOP!" Past Nami shouted, but it was too late, for he jumped into the water, as well.
"Ugh, that moron!" Nami groaned as she slapped her hand over her face.
"Why can't that idiot ever remember that he can't swim?!" Usopp questioned.
Soon, Past Luffy was in the water with Past Chopper and grabbed him into his arms... but as hard as he tried to kick his legs, he was sinking faster than a sack of rocks. Before too long, he opened his mouth, releasing a cloud of air bubbles before he began to sink, as well... but luckily, Past Sanji grabbed them both and began to swim to the surface, bringing the two Devil Fruit users to safety.
"Phew!" Franky sighed in relief. "Close one!"
"Nice save, Sanji!" Brook agreed.
"Thanks," Sanji replied.
"Uh... guys?" asked Usopp as he noticed something out of his peripherals. "What is THAT?!"
As the Straw Hats looked... they all gasped as they saw the ruins of a sunken ship, its wood worn and covered with algae... and it was surrounded by many other ships, some of which looked newer. However... the biggest one of all had a Jolly Roger with two red arrows behind the skull instead of crossbones.
"It's... a ship's graveyard...!" Robin whispered.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Next time on One Piece: The Fire Within!
Past Luffy: What do you mean we can't participate in the next ordeal?!
Baron: Sorry, those are the rules... but please, continue to enjoy your stay!
Aika: ...I don't like this.
Nami (horrified): Usopp... did I really do that?!
Past Luffy: Hey! Who are you?!
Brief: Listen to me. You and your friends are in terrible danger!
Past Usopp: Hey! Has anyone seen Chopper?!
Next time: The Warning
I know what you're thinking, but I just couldn't make the whole into one chapter. It would just take too long and I was already so late with the update, so I'm going to be separating Movie 6 into individual chapters.
Review, please!