SailorStar9: After getting Chapter 109 out, this is Chapter 110 of this fic. For everyone who put this fic on your favorited and followed lists and/or story alerts, thank you, but remember everyone, a lot of authors (myself included) sustain on readers' reviews.

Pairings: Ace/Sasha, sibling Luffy/Sasha and Sabo/Sasha, patriotic-retainer Law/Sasha

Disclaimers: One Piece belongs to Oda Eiichirō-sensei. Me, on the other hand, own absolutely nothing, except my OC, the pairing and the fic idea.

Chapter 110: Arc 9: Ambush In the Dead Forest

"The ship is drifting astray." Zoro stated. "What the hell are you doing, ero-cook?"

"The steering wheel doesn't move an inch." Sanji replied.

"Even if we used the paddle, there is no way we could overcome those waves." Franky pointed out.

"Since we're going to the island anyway, why not just chill it?" Luffy suggested.

"You are very optimistic about this, aniki." Sasha noted.

"You've completely forgotten about Nami-san, haven't you?" Sanji glared.

"That is..." Robin spotted the large spider's net dangled right in front of the ship.

"A sea web?" Zoro frowned.

"At this rate, we are going to be caught in that web." Robin reminded.

"Ex-quip: Maelstrom Warrior Armor!" Sasha ex-quipped her armor in a flash. "Deep Submerge!" she rose the raging seawater and sent a massive wave crashing into the web. "No use?" she blinked when the web remained intact and the Thousand Sunny ended up trapped within the web.

"Even though the ship is unharmed, with this, we can't go any further." Franky noted, looking at the oversized web. "More importantly, why is this web so freaking huge? This is not good." he mused, after the group disembarked from the ship. "We can't do anything because of this giant spider web."

"I don't like it." Zoro snorted.

"We have no choice but to stay still." Sanji reminded. "Anyways, looking for Nami-san comes first. Let's go."

"Why are there suddenly stairs here?" Sanji wondered, the group descending down the staircase of the moat.

"It said 'entrance', so there is no need to think of it." Luffy declared. "It's filled with skeletons." he noted at the bone-covered floor.

"It's a Cerberus." Sanji recognized the three-headed beast in front of them. "It looks like we are on the path of hell after all."

"It looks cute." Robin gushed.

"Seriously?" Sasha shot the archaeologist a look.

"Those guys wanna fight?" Franky wondered.

"Pretty cheeky." Zoro noted.

"I wonder how they taste." Luffy drooled.

"Suddenly, they get pumped up." Zoro remarked, seeing the Cerberus growl lowly.

"Maybe they are just backed into a corner?" Sanji guessed.

"Let me try to tame it." Luffy grinned.

"This sure is a weird place." Franky admitted, the group entering the forest walking beside the Cerberus which Luffy was riding on. "Because of the fog, I can't judge distance at all."

"There is also the chance that we are walking in circles." Robin reminded.

"That tree-ojiisan and the unicorn are having a drink..." Luffy stammered, his eyes taking in a tree pouring out sake for a bandaged unicorn. "Wait!" he chased the tree, the net in hand.

"Oi, Luffy, what are you gonna do with these guys?" Zoro asked after Luffy and Franky caught the tree and unicorn.

"You two," Luffy's eyes twinkled. "How about joining my pirate crew?"

"Stop joking around!" Zoro and Sanji snapped.

"You know about that treeman and unicorn earlier," Robin voiced as the group continued their way. "What all the strange creatures have in common are bandages, stitches and numbers engraved on their bodies."

"You're right." Zoro agreed, seeing the 82 marked on the Cerberus' hind. "You think somebody is controlling them?"

"Something like that." Robin concurred.

"I can hear something." Luffy noted when he heard one of Perona's Negative Hollows chanting in the air. "There it is! The ghost!" he exclaimed when the Negative Hollow manifested before them. "When he dances, he clones himself!" he added, the Negative Hollow replicating itself before the group.

"I've got a bad feeling about that chant." Sanji remarked.

"It's nothing but a soul." Franky realized. "Fresh Fire!" he exhaled his flamethrower. "Useless, it didn't work." he cursed when the original fled from the flames. "Totally useless..." he moaned when the Negative Hollow passed through his body. "This week I'm totally useless. Whatever I do is completely useless. I've got no confidence in living anymore. I wanna die..." he fell on all fours on the ground.

Why are you getting so emo?" Sanji snapped.

"Alright!" Luffy jumped to grab that Negative Hollow, only to have it pass through him. "You bastard..." the rubber teen fell on all fours beside Franky. "If I get reborn, I wanna be a clam... this sucks... I wanna die..."

"Now what are you two doing?" Sanji retorted. "Stop being emo!"

"Maybe when you're touched by those ghosts, your spirit gets really down?" Robin guessed, seeing the two Negative Hollows floating in the air.

"You guys are pitiful." Zoro scoffed. "You never pull yourselves together. You let some ghost break your spirit. I'm sorry that I was born..." less than a minute later, he was on the ground after one of the Negative Hollows passed through him.

"Enough already!" Sanji roared.

"Really..." Sasha sweatdropped. "Looks like Robin's right on the count."

"They're difficult enemies." Robin admitted. "They have no real body, but when you get touched, your spirit gets shot down."

"Indeed." Sanji agreed.

"Ex-quip: Maelstrom Warrior Armor!" Sasha summoned the armor a second time. Holding the 'Nagelring' Sabre in her hands, she powered up a tooth-shaped water projectile at the edge of the blade. "War Drop!" she fired off the water bullet at one of the Negative Hollows, effectively destroying it and causing the other Negative Hollows to flee. "Looks like seawater still works on these guys."

"Damn you ghosts!" Luffy fumed after recovering. "Next time you show up, I won't forgive you!"

"Although one can make generalizations about those numerous patchwork, those ghosts were entirely different." Robin noted.

"One of them were on the ship." Sanji reminded. "Appearing time to time, observing us. Is somebody behind this?"

"An enormous graveyard." Luffy looked at the graveyard they were passing through. "That's some atmosphere. Let's eat our bento here."

"Idiot, food will taste bad here." Sanji scolded.

"No, let's eat here." Luffy insisted. "Food never tastes bad."

"That's only for you!" Sanji argued. "Let's get going."

"Eh?" Luffy turned when he heard a groan and a soldier zombie emerged from the grave. Walking over, he then pushed the zombie back into the earth.

"Like I'd go back!" the soldier zombie burst out from the grave. "You idiot!"

"An old man with a big wound?" Luffy blinked.

"Can't you see it's a zombie?" Zoro, Sanji and Franky chorused.

"Don't underestimate zombies!" said zombie jumped up into the air, the others following suit.

"Are zombies supposed to be this energetic?" Sanji wondered.

"Tsunami Wave!" Sasha was not in the mood for a prolonged fight and instantly cast her wide seawater wave of the soldier zombies and purifying the undead bodies.

SailorStar9: Any OOC-nes is regretted. *Sighs* Don't you just hate plot bunnies sometimes? Reviews are much appreciated.