Hi, I'm back.
Man, what's it been, like a month? Feels like it's been a loooooot longer with all the stuff that happened. Cookies to all you amazing peeps who've been so supportive, I love you guys and you're my ray of sunshine in this dark hole of pain I'll be sure to overcome! Here's to quickly fill you in on what I've been busy dealing with:
Surgery 1: Successful, yay!
I'll get my second one in 10 weeks or so, so that should mean there's (hopefully) finally a moment of peace! Even louder yay! That means I'll finally have the opportunity to write again :D!
Physiotherapy: Slow... but I'm getting somewhere I feel! Or at least I can hope so XD
My physiotherapist is very sweet and always asks if I'm in pain if and can handle it, so she's very encouraging to help me do my best!
Aftermath of surgery and reason it's been a month: It was stupid, I'll just come clean and say that. My stitches kept coming undone, so I was constantly bleeding and eventually, the wound got infected. I'm still on antibiotics, but finally feeling well enough to write again, which, let me tell you, was EXCRUCIATING to be stuck in bed while feeling sick all the time for so long when that's all I wanted to do! Writing and One piece is my life after all! DX
But that's all peaches and cream now, definitely muuuuch more tolerable.
Anyway, this chapter also took some time to write, but it's finally here! I wish... I could tell you it's the most exciting over the top worth-the-wait kind of chapter buuuuuut... I dunno, it at least takes half a turn in its tone, which was honestly kinda nice after all the crap I've already put poor Lu through XD (I-I swear! I'm not evil at all!)
Warning, I repeat, WARNING, this story contains some pretty gruesome explanations regarding injuries and is very heavy on death, even of some beloved characters. A bit of swearing too, but not more than what can be expected for a normal One piece fanfic :)
Enough said! ENJOY!
Chapter 10: Nightmares and a fun game of tag
Fire.
It was everywhere, towering above Luffy's miniature figure in massive inextinguishable pillars of mass destruction.
The 14-year old couldn't make out where he was supposed to be - that is if there even were any surroundings at all.
He'd been staggering forward through the sea of flames for what felt like ages, but the fire just kept burning brighter and brighter, and he seemed to get nowhere no matter how much he walked.
It hurt. So damn much.
The heat was real. Just as hot as Luffy remembered it being - even from that time with the Grey Terminal incident 7 freaking years ago.
His rubbery skin felt like it would literally start to melt away soon. The air was also hot. So hot every breath felt like the inhale was gonna burn him from the inside and make his lungs explode.
His heart was pounding painfully in his chest, his body screaming for rest, eyes teary, feet aching, head thumping, all the while his forearms were just about scorched because he'd been using them as protection for his face.
Luffy hated the pain. But worst of all, he felt terrified, wandering through the hellish sea of flames like this.
He'd watched flames just like these consume and devastate his home right before his eyes. The village. The forest. Even Mount Corvo and all those tough beasts he'd once hunted and cooked. Out of that, all that now remained was probably nothing but a big stinken' pile of ash.
He was helpless against the sheer destructiveness of fire. A puny rubber body was simply no good against it, no matter how much stronger his punches had become.
And yet, despite his powerlessness, still he persisted.
Given his walking (if basically dragging his feet behind him could even be considered that) was slow and the flames surrounding him proved no confirmation that he was actually getting anywhere but…. he just… could not get himself to stop no matter how badly his body was pleading him too.
Ace. The thought of his brother was the only thing stopping him from dropping to the ground and let the flames take him as well.
His brother was out there. Somewhere. All he had to do was find him… then all the pain, all the tormenting memories, all the bad guys and the blood they'd forced on his hands would finally go away.
Or… at least, that was the slim hope Luffy clung on to for his dear life.
"ACE!" The 14-year old called as the top of his crumbling lungs.
…
Silence.
Not that Luffy had expected an answer in the first place. It was like the flames were even swallowing his cries, and with a voice already significantly weaker thanks to his lack of oxygen, there wasn't even much of a yell to be heard in the first place.
He scanned his surroundings for any sign of… well, anything or anybody really, disappointed although not surprised when he failed to do so.
He truly did appear to be completely alone.
...
...
...
NO! No giving up! Not yet!
Luffy wildly shook his head to shake off those stupid thoughts, next taking a deeeep painful breath of 100-degree hot air, filling his lungs for another shout, this time a little louder than before:
"ACE!"
A sudden burst of flames abruptly cut him off, causing Luffy to leap back at full power to avoid being turned into a gross mush of stinky burnt rubber.
His staggering balance, however, finally failed him, and he fell, butt first, onto the soft desert of ash making up the ground beneath him.
Although he had avoided certain death, Luffy found himself unable to move at all as he sat there, staring with those far too familiar fear-written eyes of his into the horrifying glow of the flames.
His heart pounded so hard it felt like it was about to erupt from his chest… His breath was unsteady, body - mostly hands for some reason - trembling, sweat not just from the insufferable heat dripping from his forehead.
Unfortunately, Luffy was no stranger to this stomach twisting dread.
But fear was just one of those things that, no matter how much you experienced it, just wouldn't go away no matter how badly Luffy wanted to not be scared.
He thought he'd long since overcome his childish fears from way back when he was still just a helpless little 7-year old kid whaling uncontrollably at any scary - and even the not as scary - sights or thoughts.
But right now, he felt just as vulnerable, just as helpless, as powerless and as damn cowardly as back then. And anybody who knew even the first thing about Luffy also knew those descriptions weren't supposed to define him.
'Calm down Luffy. The flames don't hurt you unless you touch them. It's gonna be fine, it's gonna be fine… it's… gonna… be…-'
…
Wait just a second, what was that dark shadowy thing that he just saw move by the corners of his eyes?
'Fine?'
That last part came out as confused rather than reassuring.
Did… did he just imagine that? Or was that shadow actually… tall… wearing a hat… mostly bare-chested… like…
Like... Ace….?
In the blink of an eye, all fatigue, all pain, all fear, terror, bad memories, feelings of hopelessness and vulnerability was lost as Luffy's reflexes kicked in and he with all the speed his weakened muscles could muster, spun around, feeling his heart practically come to a stop at what he saw.
There, amidst the fury of flames, he stood.
Ace.
Luffy was far too overwhelmed with all kinds of different emotions to even know how to react.
Ace…! Ace! ACE! Please… please don't let this be some sick illusion!
But it wasn't.
Luffy blinked. Over and over and over and over again, in case the heat had just gotten to his head or something.
But no matter how long he stared or how much he actually tried to get him to disappear, he wouldn't.
He. Was. Really. There.
He wanted to be so so happy, but he felt the tears might begin to swell up any second now.
He wanted to get up from the ash-covered ground, to run to him and hug him forever without ever letting go, but his body for some reason refused to listen to the order to move.
He should say something… - it didn't even seem like Ace had noticed him yet, and yet, his mouth failed to form even a single understandable word.
Honestly, he was too baffled to move at all. Which wasn't good, because suddenly Ace began walking.
Away from him.
Into the never-ending abyss of the dangerous and horribly malicious flames.
Feeling his eyes widen, panic immediately flushed away all Luffy's lesser concerns of how to approach the situation.
"ACE!"
Luffy shot up after his brother, but running in the ash was difficult and severely slowed him down, unfortunately. By the time he reached the spot Ace had been standing, he was already gone behind the barricade of flames.
Luffy stared into the light but it only made his eyes hurt.
There was no sign of Ace, and he hadn't heard his yell earlier. That meant he, unfortunately, only had one choice if he really wanted to see him, which, of course, was Luffy's only wish.
He gulped nervously thanks to the unwelcome feeling of hesitation that began stirring from within. Another new emotion he'd come to dislike.
No! Just a little more! Just one final push, and then everything would be over! He couldn't allow himself to give up 'cause of a little fire! Ace would call him weak again or yell at him for complaining - like that time with the Gray Terminal - if he did!
He clenched his fist before taking a few cautious steps backward.
The fear was still there, but his determination was stronger.
"Yosh…. wait for me, Ace!"
And with that exclamation, Luffy took one deeeeeep painful breath before clenching his fists, taking 4 steps backward, and after one last glare at the barrier of flames separating him from his brother, courageously dashed forward at full speed - into the abyss of fire that Luffy damn well knew were gonna hurt like hell to pass through.
And it did.
Although he mere moments ago would've doubted anything could ever get any hotter than he already had previously been, he'd been gravely mistaken with that assumption.
It was hot. It was indescribably painful. His skin might as well have been nonexistent since his actual bones were even afflicted by the heat. At least that's how it felt. And he nearly screamed because of it.
But the countless burns he received were far from what hurt the most.
This pain… this insufferable heat… these nightmarish flames… this right here had been what Dadan and many many others had felt in their last moments.
This was the way they had died. This had been the way they had died. This was the excruciating death he had brought upon them. They didn't deserve that. They hadn't deserved to feel all this pain goddammit!
'No! Don't think about that Luffy! Not now that he's this close! Just a little further and then you can finally see him!'
His torture was finally coming to an end. The fire was reaching its limit.
After a counted 3 seconds, he erupted from the fiery sea of flames, eyes still closed, body still burning up, heart still racing uncontrollably, but, he could finally ignore such insignificant details.
He'd done it.
Although he needed a few seconds to recollect himself and get enough actual air into his lungs.
He stood bent over with his head turned to the ground as he lacked the strength to lift it, but the smile on his face would not have gone unnoticed had anybody been around to see it.
Oh yeah, no mistaking that smile.
Luffy took one last deep breath of the air, this time not even bothered by how it harmed his lungs.
"ACE! I'm here! ACE! ACE I-"
As Luffy raised his dangling head, the sight with which he was met was not what he had expected.
His smile alongside all those happy emotions he for so long had been suppressing perished instantly once more.
He flinched, barely believing his eyes were actually not playing some sick trick on him.
"Wh-what i-is this!?" Luffy cried with a voice barely audible, even to himself.
Before him laid an uncountable amount of bodies. Bloody… stinking… all… horribly familiar… dead bodies!
The bandits. The Villagers. Even some people from the Gray Terminal whom he recognized. There they were. Pools of blood underneath them, empty glassy expressions on their daunting faces.
It was too gruesome, even if he knew it was true. That everybody was dead. And that they really had met their end in such a disgusting manner.
He staggered backward, honestly very tempted with running back through the fire if it meant he could be spared from this sight.
Then the desperation came, causing him to grit his teeth.
'Why...!? Why this!? Why now!? Where's Ace!? Where did he go!? Why does everyone have to be dead like this! It's not fair! It's not-'
To Luffy's shock, his thoughts were abruptly interrupted as he felt a hand - a peculiarly cold one even - grab his ankle. Tightly. But even further twisting his stomach was who he saw when he turned to figure out who this person was.
"Makino!"
The straw-hatted boy crashed to his knees, unsure of how exactly to take care of the bruised woman.
She looked just as battered as Luffy remembered her to have been. Bloody, covered in all sorts of bruises and cuts, most of which were probably hidden by her ripped clothes anyway, her hair a mess, breath stale and eyes nearly closed as a consequence of her beating.
"...Why…?"
Her question was barely a whisper, and the tone sounded too hoarse to belong to that sweet-hearted gentle woman Luffy held many fond memories off.
"Why did this have to happen to me? Why Luffy…? What did I or Dadan-san and the others ever do to deserve any of this…?"
"Makino! I-I'm sorry… I really am! I… I tried my hardest… I really did! B-but I was too weak… I... I-I couldn't do anything to stop them!"
"Saying sorry… isn't gonna fix any of this… You… did this to us…"
"I-I didn't mean to…! I-I didn't know anything that those jerks were planning! I hate them!"
"So do I… But there's still no changing what's happened. It hurts Luffy, it hurts so much! They did this to us! All because of you… and your...your lineage! If not for that…then we would all be fine and still alive… you did this…. to… us…"
"W-what?"
This was the first time Luffy had ever heard Makino talk like this. It wasn't like her. It wasn't right. She truly didn't feel this way about him… did she…?
"What… what do you mean…?" He hesitantly pleaded to know, horrified when she gave him no answer.
"Oi!"
He gently shook her still being, but still without any reply or even the slightest of a stir to prove she was still awake.
Luffy recognized that blank doll-like expression of hers. It was the face that still haunted him. The look of regret. The look of confusion and a stare directed straight at him, asking him 'why?'
He knew that look meant she was gone. But he didn't want to accept it. His mind didn't accept it.
It just couldn't be true, no matter how many times he recalled what happened and told himself that she was dead. Gone. Forever.
A wetness spreading onto his hands, however, soon snapped him partially out of his thoughts.
His hands were trembling and barely responding as he lifted them up to figure out what the substance causing the wetness was...
Blood.
Makino's blood…
It was… all over his hands...
O-o-O-o-O
Luffy's body shot forward as the sheer horror from the shock he'd just experienced forced his eyes to open and mind to return to reality.
For once in weeks, Luffy was glad he sat in complete darkness. His eyes appreciated not being overwhelmed like that first thing after a nightmare.
A dream. Was that really all that hell he'd just went through had been?
He was drenched in a freezing cold sweat. Again. And his breath was about as unstable as Ace's temper.
He sat for 10 seconds straight, gasping for air but, unfortunately, unable to regain much oxygen before he felt a dangerous twisting in his stomach and a sudden intense wave of nausea overwhelming him.
Not good. The whirlpool in his tummy felt like it didn't want to stay put in there.
The poor 14-year old slapped one of the bandage-covered hands across his mouth in an attempt to keep the content of his stomach in his stomach.
Unfortunately, even that proved to be in vain as a few breaths later, Luffy threw up. All over the floor which his sleepy couldn't even see clearly yet.
The sight in itself was sad, but any stranger would be thrown back if Luffy were to tell them this was his first time puking.
What more was there to say? He'd just never been sick as a kid, and currently, he could only thank Oda for that. It felt disgusting and horrible and he just wanted that stinky chunky fluid to stop coming out of his mouth.
Why it was even happening Luffy didn't know, but he didn't even ponder it, as he was currently busy with focusing on not choking.
Apparently, it was also impossible to breathe when you vomited up the contents of your stomach. Ultimately, that meant he ended up panting even harder than before.
That aside, though, he strangely felt much much better now. The sickness was gone and his head felt delightfully clearer.
He wiped his mouth with his bandage wrapped arm, not even caring that the nasty and smelly throw up got all over it (he'd take off the damn things eventually anyway, so did it really matter in the end?).
The ship had stopped moving, he felt. But currently, his mind was too much of a wreck to care.
Luffy bit his lip. Again. Pictures flashed before his eyes. Again. Like always when he woke up. It was sorta his routine at this point.
'It was really just a dream…?'
The more of those kinds of nightmares he got, the more and more unsure he became of that...
At this point, he'd had so many dreams it was even hard remembering exactly what had happened at Dawn Island and what was merely made up by his mind.
Previously, he could never even remember what the hell he dreamt about… just that presumably, it was always something good, because Ace and Sabo had told him time upon time again that he was just as uncontrollable and lively when he slept as when he didn't.
God how he missed that. Having Ace (and Sabo just as much, especially now) be there when he woke up. He'd never before realized to this extent just the sort of comfort his two brothers had provided when they were younger.
They'd (although a bit reluctantly at times) allowed him to sleep with them when he had nightmares. They were there when he woke up or were the ones to wake him and to reassure him it was all fine and that it was all just a bad dream that wasn't real and wouldn't become real…
Just the thought alone that that could never ever happen again was enough to want to make Luffy cry.
In fact, the familiar stinging in his eyes soon threatened to form tears at the bittersweet memories.
Uh oh. That he couldn't allow to happen. He'd made a promise not to cry (that he'd done plenty off already!) - not even at this!
As a last-minute save, Luffy shook his head wildly, momentarily shutting away any thoughts of Dawn Island, missing comfort, and a crippling feeling of vulnerability behind a brick wall where they couldn't reach him.
He should only worry about that stuff later! After finding Ace!
"Alright then! I better get going! No time to-"
Luffy cut himself off, only now sensing something was horribly wrong. Or more specifically, that something was… missing. A certain item he'd gotten extremely comfortable wearing around his neck within the last few years.
Shanks straw hat! I-it… IT WAS GONE!
Panicking, Luffy stretched his hands to his back, feeling his heart drop all the way to his feet when he, true enough, felt nothing but empty air.
B-but… BUT HOW IN THE NAME OF GOLD ROGER AND OTHER GREAT PIRATES COULD THAT POSSIBLY BE TRUE!?
'No, calm down Luffy! Think, when did you last have it?'
Nervously, Luffy forced himself to sit in a comfortable position with his legs crossed.
Oh man… he wasn't very good at remembering stuff, but he had a faint memory of it still hanging around his neck when he'd fallen asleep…
But then what had happened? There was no wind down here to blow it away, and it's not like it could've just disappeared on its own. Unless Shank's straw hat had been a mystery straw hat all along, there was no way it could've just grown legs or arms and then gone off somewhere!
Luffy desperately began scanning the dark room for any sign of his precious hat. His eyes had just about adjusted themselves to the darkness, but considering the huge mess, spotting it probably wouldn't be that easy.
Oh, how he prayed it was still around here somewhere… how could he possibly explain to Shanks that he'd last his straw hat? If he couldn't find it, would that mean their promise would be broken?
Was he really so incompetent that he couldn't even protect his friend's treasure long enough to hand it back…?
...
No! That… that just couldn't be true! His dream had barely begun… he couldn't start breaking promises already, or otherwise, he'd never be pirate king!
Luckily for Luffy, though, his search ended before he had to ravage through the content of even a single box.
Now paying better attention to every nook and cranny of the compact throw-away room, he caught a glimpse of a small shadow swiftly hurrying to hide behind a stack of dusty crates.
This puzzled the 14-year old greatly, though simultaneously made his curiosity senses tingle to an extent where it was impossible to resist not seeing what that mystery shadow was.
As he arose from the floor and lightly stepped around the massive puddle of throw up (which he was anything but proud off admitting had come from his belly) a small bundle of squeaks that had somehow gone unheard by Luffy before reached his ears.
Alright…
The boxes that thing had decided to hide behind all looked heavy… not that he doubted he couldn't move them, but maybe It would take up more time or effort than he could afford to lose.
What if that thing got away!? And he still couldn't see Shanks hat anywhere amongst the trash...
The stack was pretty tall too. Although that was an obstacle easily overcome as Luffy simply climbed onto the pyramid of crates, surprised by what he saw when he poke his head across.
Right there. Laying in a bundle of hair was one big cat - no wait, that big thing had a naked tail… well, rat then - snuggling. In his straw hat.
Relief only matched by when he awoke from nightmares to the realization that they were non-existent washed over Luffy and showed up in a bright typical D smile - the first in a while, actually.
'My hat!'
Luffy stretched out his hand, easily reaching the hat despite the distance, turning it upside-down to shake out its furry inhabitant without a care that he was disturbing it.
The rat did not seem pleased with the rough treatment just as it was getting comfortable, and after struggling a bit to regain its footing, let out its most intimidating hiss at its home-thief.
Despite the small furry beast's best attempts, though, it didn't seem to face Luffy in the slightest.
The rubber-kid, however, ignored the animal's attempt at threatening him in exchange for plopping the hat back onto his messy black hair. Where it belonged.
"Man, I was worried there for a second… just doesn't feel right without this!" Luffy smirked to himself, adjusting the hat so it would sit the most comfortably on his head and then turning his back on the still very much pissed cat-sized rat with the intention to leave this crappy room before more bad things would happen.
That was a not so smart decision on Luffy's part.
The rat was enraged, and in a snap, had squished itself out from behind the pile of boxes, jumped at the unsuspected Luffy, and gorged its small razor-like teeth into his bare unprotected leg.
"OWIE! Hey, get off!"
Luffy shook his leg in an attempt to shake off the beast, but it reluctantly kept its grip and only dug further into Luffy's skin the more intensely he swung his leg.
Damn thing was persistent. And heavy. With every swing, it felt like a piece of his skin would be ripped off.
"Stupid rat! Fine, take this: Gomu gomu no Muchi!"
Luffy deliberately kicked one of the walls, squishing his attacker against the wooden surface and successfully getting it to let go.
As he retracted his leg, a thump indicated it fell to the floor, very conceivably unconscious or worse after taking such a hit.
Luffy himself remained standing, not even bothering to check the wound. Now that the weight was gone, it just stung slightly. Nothing to be worried about.
Well anyway, he better get back to finding that way out of-
"Hey… did you hear that?" A sudden voice sounded from above where Luffy knew the hatch leading down to his hiding place could be found and opened.
Not good...! Somebody had heard him!
"Kinda hard to miss such a ruckus… let's go check it out. Not even the rats make those kind'sa noises, even if the ship's practically drowning in 'em."
Although Luffy heard no answer from mystery guy number 1, approaching footsteps proved they sought to do just that.
Crap crap crap crap crap crap crap! He needed to hide somewhere!
Luffy frantically scouted the room. His options for hiding where surprisingly vast. The empty closet. The many piles of crates all taller than him. In one of the barrels that hopefully were empty.
He kept switching to and from one to another, unsure which spot to pick. He wasn't smart, so even if he wasn't under time pressure, such a choice was impossible to make wisely.
He finally managed to get his ass moving when the sound of a creaking door send him springing to the closet, nearly ripping off its doors as he as quietly possibly for a Luffy, opened, entered, and shut the damn things, thankful to find himself sitting in a completely empty closet, and for once not in some stinky/hot/cold/uncomfortable space.
From the single crack between the old splintered boards making up the wardrobe doors, Luffy watched as two men - definitely pirates from what their shabby clothes, stubby beards, and strong stenches of alcohol told him - armed with a single candle climbed down into the darkness of the store-away room.
Without noticing, he began holding his breath.
'Don't make a sound Luffy…'
"Yuck, it totally reeks down here. You think the rats brought down some garbage or something?"
"They must've. Let's hurry this up, this room's hella creepy."
A nod from his partner confirmed that he absolutely agreed with that assessment.
The two began to inspect the room, though without touching any of the dust-coated junk and even took extra care to stay just a few extra steps further away from the stuff covered in cobwebs, since those things were very likely to be terribly infested with cripply spiders.
Luffy heard them (thanks to the ancient floorboards that were kind enough to creak under their weight) fumble around in the darkness. But their lack of words was unsettling.
He didn't know what they were thinking - if they had somehow already seen him and were in secret signaling to sneak up on him or something.
His vision was obnoxiously limited, which meant sound was all he really had to go off.
Suddenly, he heard their already slow steps come to a complete halt, in return causing his already racing heart to accelerate even faster.
"Ew! What… what in the hell is this stuff!?"
"Looks like someone threw up down here or something!"
Uh oh.
"Probably just one of those nasty big rats, but still, man that's disgusting!"
Phew!
"Damn straight… makes me wanna puke."
The dude who said that slapped a hand across his mouth to dramatically make his point, even leaning against the nearest wall as if suddenly overcome by nausea.
"Dude, are you alright?"
"Yeah, I just-"
The man suddenly cut himself off, for a reason Luffy couldn't see from his hiding place. The silence that followed didn't help ease his nerves.
"..."
"Oi… what… is this? A coat?"
That statement caused Luffy to freeze. Oh no. Kay's jacket. He'd left it out there for them to find.
"A coat? What's a thing like this doing down here amongst all this other junk? It doesn't even look dirty or dusty like all other crap down here."
"No, that's not what I meant. Look… at the emblem sewed onto it."
A few short seconds of silence suggested the man did just that. There was a gasp, suggesting he definitely recognized it and that it definitely meant no good news.
"W-wait just one second… but… but that's the symbol of the World Government! Does that mean we've been followed ever since that attack 2 days ago without noticing anything!?"
Wait, two days!? Just for how long had Luff been sleeping!? No wait, that was beside the point!
"This isn't good… we've gotta tell the captain straight away!"
"But the captain already went ashore along with the exploration team, remember? And he said only to use the den-den mushi in case of an emergency!"
"Idiot! I'd say this damn well classifies as one! C'mon, let's go!"
Luffy was internally panicking, just as much if not more than the pirates.
'This is bad, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad, this is sooooo so bad!'
He knew he had to do something, or it wouldn't be long before the entire crew would know he was there!
They were once again within his line of sight, and through the crack, he could see them struggle to move as they attempted to hurry through the garbage.
He had to act. Now. No time to think about this!
Gritting his teeth, Luffy mustered up his strength, and in a single powerful leap, erupted from the closet (and nearly broke off the doors by doing so), flying straight towards the pirates who were beyond frightened by his emerge.
"Wh-what the!? A bra-"
The pirate didn't even get to finish his sentence before Luffy planted his fist nice and hard into his and his partner's faces, leaving one with a bloody and possibly broken nose, and the other with a few teeth missing.
Poor fools were unconscious before their bodies hit the ground...
Luffy somehow managed to keep himself standing after this little surprise attack of his. Aside from his knuckles that were now throbbing severely yet again, that had been surprisingly easy.
He remained still, listening for any small indication from above that the ruckus had been heard by other bypassers.
Fortunately, that appeared to not be the case when a full minute flew by with the only sound preventing absolute silence being Luffy's own uneven breath and heart hammering against his chest.
Yosh… now to find his way out of there...
O-o-O-o-O
"So… d'you hear the rumor? The one about those nobles?"
"Nobles? Since when did they ever do anything aside from their usual we-are-superior-to-you-filthy-pieces-of-trash kinda crap interesting enough to start something like that?"
"Well, get this, apparently, the government's been working on setting up some island which an entire kingdom's worth of nobles are just suddenly gonna overthrow! And get this, nobody can seem to figure out where they've all come from! And it's not like they'd all suddenly just decide to move island... that would be far too big a waste of money for those stinking rich bastards."
"But that's…-"
"Hella suspicious, I know! There are already conspiracies suggesting the government's up to something…"
The pair continued to chat away thoughtlessly, ignorant of the small blind-passenger that was also (at least partly) listening in on their discussion.
Luffy watched them with no interest in their conversation and failing to listen further.
He'd managed to escape from the storage room undetected (thank Oda something finally went his way), but he had then quickly gotten himself lost in the hallways that, unfortunately, remained just as disorienting and absurdly confusing as Luffy could remember.
While cursing over the stupid corridors, another group of pirates had damn near walked in on him, had he not noticed how conveniently the roof of the ship was constructed.
The supportive planks were attached just a few feet under the roof itself, leaving room for somebody small enough to crawl on their stomach without getting stuck.
Given, the space between the crossing planks was big enough for him to fall through, so he had to be careful. But as long as somebody didn't look directly up at him, he could possibly get all the way to an exit (he just had to find one) without even having to touch the ground or worrying about getting spotted.
Ha! If that wasn't genius, Luffy didn't know what was!
Currently, he was spying on two pirates walking directly underneath him. He'd kinda given up on trying to make sense of the damn place, so following those guys was his next best bet to getting out.
Although so far, all they'd managed to do was to get into arguments...
"I don't get you man. Why the fuss? So what if a few nobles move?"
"I'm telling you, it's not just a few! We're talking a population bigger than what you'd find on an entire island in the four blues!"
"So?"
"So that means something has happened that's forced them to move!"
"So?"
"So there could be something entirely different going on behind the scenes! Don't you wanna know more!?"
"Not really…"
The gibbering pirate didn't look impressed by his friend's inability to be excited like him.
"Geez man, you're more boring than an old geezer… alright, what about this one then: Red-haired Shanks - the yonko who happens to be known for usually never causing any major trouble - has been wreaking absolute havoc to literally any marine base their ship's crossed paths with! I've heard a total of 3 stations were absolutely decimated just overnight! No survivors to be reported!"
What!
That Luffy didn't fail to hear.
Shanks had!?
He hadn't heard anything concerning Shanks since… forever! But… but Shanks was a real pirate…! The realest and strongest and greatest Luffy had ever met! He simply didn't do mindless killing, so why do this?! (Not that he felt bad for the marines. They worked with the government and while he wasn't gonna judge their organization as a whole just based on that, it was clear that at least some of them were also sincerely screwed up in the head since they wanted to work together with people evil enough to burn islands).
Could he possibly be lying? Or did Shanks have some good reason to, like, if one of his nakama had been in danger?
The man's blabbering, unfortunately, hit Luffy by completely surprise just as he was at a crucial stage of safely crossing the planks. The result was that he failed to realize that he was placing his hand on the non-solid thin air, and by the laws of gravity, caused Luffy to plummet from his hiding spot.
And standing unknowingly right in his path of fall was one of the pirates. The more grouchy one who'd been quick to dismiss anything his chipper friend had been jabbering about.
With a yelp, Luffy collided with the man who was forced to the ground from Luffy's weight.
The straw-hatted boys fall was broken and he was unhurt, but the man underneath him hadn't been quite as lucky... he'd been unprepared for the impact and had gotten his head knocked against the hard wooden boards beneath them.
In other much simpler words, he now laid unconscious.
Uh oh.
The teen met the baffled eyes of the pirate who'd just seen his partner be struck down. He seemed much more confused by Luffy's sudden appearance than concerned for his fellow crewmate though.
Blink blink.
"Where the hell'd you come from?"
"Uhhh….. bye!"
Luffy, unsure of what else to do in these unfortunate set of circumstances, quickly arose from the limp body and ran forward in a random direction.
Getting lost was better than caught.
The man stared after the small child. He'd only gotten a short glance at him but it was pretty damn obvious he wasn't a part of their crew…
3…
Wait, hold on, hadn't he fallen from the ceiling planks? Somebody his size could certainly hide up there…
2…
The captain was away, meaning the crew was currently weakened and without a leader…
1…
The pirate's mind snapped, as finally, he could see the consequences of his discovery.
Cursing under his own breath, he set into a sprint after the brat in the direction he'd seen him run. Dear lord… this was not how he wanted to spend his Saturday morning!
"EVERYBODY ON GUARD! THERE'S A BRAT WHO'S INTRUDED THE SHIP! DON'T LET HIM GET AWAY! I REPEAT! THERE'S AN INTRUDER! WE'VE GOT AN INTRUDER WHO'S A KID! AND HE'S WEARING A STRAW HAT!"
Doors on left and right were opened as pirates emerged from their rooms from the commotion, alarmed and intrigued by this "intruder" who'd somehow snuck aboard.
Of course, as the prideful and strong pirates that they, in fact, were, they couldn't let some kid idiotic enough to invade their ship get away! The humiliation of not noticing earlier was already more than enough!
It took no time at all before all rooms were alerted and in on the chase. That meant bad news for Luffy; he couldn't even find his way around these damn hallways!
What sounded like a stampeding flock antelopes were now on his trail. The pirates' advantage, however, was solely in their numbers.
Luffy was a kid, yes, a kid with much shorter legs than a large majority of adults (the only exception Luffy knew of was Dogra), but despite his handicap he still vastly outsped them.
He might be crappy with directions, but running was one thing he was good at.
Right, left, right, right again, and then straight! Luffy did his best to navigate through the hallways, but it didn't take long before his streak of lucky guessing ran out, and he was met with a wall of pirates blocking his path and ready to snatch him.
And he was running too fast to stop!
"Got you now you little troublemaker!"
A big burly and very sturdy looking man attempted to grasp ahold of Luffy, but he was caught by surprise when instead of crashing straight into his widespread arms, Luffy slid underneath his massive legs, proving their barricade completely useless.
He didn't bother looking back to see what happened after that but a yell: "What are you doing, go after him!" strongly suggested they also joined the crazy flok hoarding together to catch him.
Luffy ignored the increasing steps from behind to stay concentrated on the path ahead.
Good call, because a second later, doors from both left and right burst open, and whaddayaknow, more pirates poured out of each one, attempting to nab him as he rushed past them.
This little strategy of theirs, however, proved to be no less successful than the previous, as Luffy was 1. small and difficult to get ahold off and 2. had the insane reflexes and flexibility to somehow elude all their darndest attempts at getting grabbing something - an arm, a leg, even just that damn hat of his!
While the pirates' level of annoyance at their failing shots to capture just one scrawny kid increased at a dangerously high paste, Luffy was having the time of his life, using his experience (he had the deceased beasts of Dawn Island to thank for this. Unironically, when you didn't want to die, you adapted quickly to constantly having your guard up and dodging) as an advantage to piss off the pirates.
And this was… actually kinda fun!
A grin snuck its way onto his face. All his preceding qualms and worries had dissolved completely, and now a long-thought gone playfulness and glee was basically radiating from him.
He simply couldn't get himself to take it seriously anymore… this certainly felt closer to a just fun game of tag rather than a life-or-death run for your life typa' chase.
The pirates tried to gather together in groups big enough to trap him in a cross-section, but they were unable to anticipate which direction the wild little runt was gonna go next and ultimately failed with that plot as well.
Luffy was really just running wherever… kicking down the pirates who got too close and having fun dodging incoming hands attempting to nab him. The hallways all looked the same, though, so could have been running in circles for all he knew.
This was such a great workout! Just what he needed after remaining still for so damn long!
After delivering a solid knee to the chin of some unfortunate particularly weak and boney pirate standing in his way, Luffy quickly sprung around another corner, overjoyed when instead of more endless hallways, a big wooden door popped up instead.
His smile widened at the sight.
That sure as hell looked like an exit if Luffy had ever seen one!
"Hurry..! He's… already reached the entrance to the deck!"
"How the hell's he managed… *huff*... to outrun us all for this freaking long!?"
"No worries! He can't… *huff* huff* possibly open those doors on his-"
*CRASH*
Well, that assumption was immediately proven to be false.
True, having to stop and push open those doors would have probably taken more time than Luffy could afford to lose in his current situation, even with his massive lead against his pursuers who were all starting to look extremely drained.
But who needed to open doors anyway? If exits were inconvenient, then you could simply make them convenient!
And in this particular instance, that meant punching straight through the thick wood. Simple, right?
Luffy instantly caught the attention of the very unprepared and confused crewmembers who, instantaneously to his break-out stopped with what they were doing, now staring speechless at the sight of a random kid just suddenly breaking through their expensive door.
None of the dumbfounded on-watchers moved to take action against him though, so Luffy could safely ignore their stares and instead made a quick scan of his new surroundings.
It was bright. And so nice and damn warm outside! The straw hat throwing shade across his eyes was probably the only thing preventing him from getting blinded.
The sun shined brighter than Luffy could remember it ever before doing before from a sky even more dazzling and clearer than the glimmering ocean softly rocking the ship in a very calm manner from below.
After being robbed of sights as beautiful as this one for a hot while, Luffy would have certainly stood right there and admired it for longer had something different not diverted his attention.
A smile beyond comparison instinctively expanded across his face.
Alright! He'd had no clue before now how he was supposed to make a clean getaway - he'd thought of maybe stealing a lifeboat and see then see where that would bring him - but that right there, just a gumo-gumo no Rocket away, that was an island!
Small and non-special looking with nothing about it standing out aside from the remarkably sizable buildings that littered it, much unlike what he'd heard about the exciting islands to be explored in the Grand Line from Shanks.
But hey, he wasn't gonna be picky about his islands after everything that had happened. He just prayed it had some good food at least...
'Yosh! It's a little far, but I should be able to make it!''
Unfortunately, Luffy's genius plan would have to stay on hold for now as the 50-something (he hadn't stopped to count before but finally getting a good look at the bunch, he'd say 60 was probably a better estimate) pirates emerging from under deck, breathless, sweaty and most appearing to barely managing to keep themselves standing.
It was only now Luffy finally cared to notice the impressive number of pirates that were spread about on the deck. He sweatdropped upon the realization their little game of tag would take an unfair turn in the pirates' favor.
"What are… *huff huff* you idiots doing!? *huff* CATCH THE DAMN BRAT!" A peculiarly red-faced man (could be from either exhaustion or embarrassment, Luffy couldn't' tell) commanded, pointing his finger at the straw-hatted kid and immediately forcing all eyes back on him.
Uh oh.
After that order was delivered, it didn't take many seconds for the pirates to turn hostile looks at the 14-year old and to immediately bring out their weapons - some of which Luffy didn't even know how worked.
Luffy gulped at this (rubber was a great ability to have when came to dodging men trying to grab you, but it fared poorly when it came to protecting him from sharp objects). The boy turned around to run but found his path blocked by another horde of angry-looking pirates who Luffy somehow knew weren't gonna move out of the way even if he asked them nicely.
A quick 360 turn revealed the same to be true for his left and right side…
That meant he was trapped! Not good! Not good!
"Finally… you've got nowhere to run you little imp!"
"And to think we chased you around for over 15 minutes… the captain sure won't be happy if he hears about this!"
"Well, what are we supposed to do with im'?"
That exact question wasn't answered, but Luffy didn't like the unsettling smiles or giggles the group of pirates who'd wasted their morning chasing him around was giving him.
What they were planning was anything but pleasant, that much was guaranteed.
He nervously backed away from the most psychopathic-looking of the group, not wanting to stand anywhere near those guys, when suddenly, he felt the sun get caught off from above.
When he turned his head to find the source of this, he stared directly up at the absolutely massive wooden pillar that was just one of the ship's gigantic sails.
That made a great idea pop into Luffy's head.
"Alright you little twerp, why don't you just surrender yourself peacefully now that it's finally clear that your chances of escaping are nonexistent? If you go down on your knees and beg we promise not to give you too many booboos." A pirate - this one wielding some kind of spiky club - mocked in a voice that was more suited for talking to a toddler rather than a 14-year old.
Luffy didn't look impressed by his taunt. Instead of getting even the slightest bit intimidated, Luffy smirked widely, mocking the guy back.
"Shishishishishishi! Nope! Not gonna do that!" He proclaimed, only smirking wider when, without even the slightest of awarning to prepare the pirates, Luffy stretched both his arms upwards and successfully got ahold of the edges of the crow's nest.
Alright! And on his first try even!
Of course this sudden reveal caused all pirates aboard to freeze due to shock. It wasn't their first time seeing a devil-fruit user, but children with fruits were certainly a rarity.
"What the hell is that?! Is his arm stretching?"
"Don't tell me that little runt had this all along! He didn't even use it when we chased him earlier!"
"Gomu-gumo no…"
"What's he doing? What's backing up like that gonna do?"
The pirates watched confused as Luffy stepped back further. He was up to something, that mischievous grin on his face proved it…
Then, just a second too late, it all clicked.
"Grab him! Quick! Or else he's gonna-!"
"ROCKET!" The child roared, and forward he flew.
The pirates' jaws dropped to the floor as they stared with eyes denying that what were beholding was actually true.
He'd escaped. By flinging himself. How could they not have been prepared for that!? They should've just jumped at him while they had the chance! That little brat was gonna ruin their reputation if anybody ever found out they had failed to seize him! That was a plausibility that simply could not be allowed to come-
"Byeyouguysthanksalotforplayingitwasfun!" Came a last minute-shout from the dot in the distance that was Luffy, which the pirates were sure was followed by a laugh despite not hearing one thanks to the distance.
Just who the did that cheeky brat think he was!?
Aaaaaannd cut! Wow, I don't think I've felt this refreshed in a while... and you guys are all in luck! The next chapters will (well, at least on the surface XD) take a much more pleasant tone, so expect not as much dark stuff!
...*cough* at least until it *cough*cough*, unfortunately, becomes a little necessary again O.O... (sowy~, although I can promise a happy ending!)
But that's... basically all I have to share with you guys for now! Onto the reviews, as per usual!
Demon-night24: (Oh god, I swear, if my translator messed this awesome long review up then I'm gonna...!) Glad you found it to be exciting! A few twists here and there always help raise the stakes and intensity, plus I find it absolutely thrilling to find out how you guys react to the unexpected! Also, lots of luck to you to become great at English! It's definitely a handy langue when you're on the internet a lot XD
Princess Meria: I am ecstatic to know you found the previous chapter enjoyable! But you've got me curious, what are some of your questions? I'll happily answer them unless they're too spoilery :D Also, hugs, cuddles, and affection accepted and sent right back at you, amazing reader!
Jubsie: Thanks a lot for the reassurance, it seriously helps my paranoia to know you guys have patience with me! And your words have been heard loud and clear dear reader. I'm as careful as possible right now because it'll suck if my stings go up AGAIN so I'll have to go back. No pushing. I'm just sitting here in my comfortable chair taking it nice and sloooowww so I also have the time to think of awesome ideas and twists for you enjoy!
AysaWolf: Thanks. Took me over an hour to fully get those two explanations to make sense XD. And note taken! I now have a semi-idea in my head of how to make this the cutest/saddest? story that my skills will allow me! And yeah, of course, I'll do my very best to stay healthy, you do too, ok? :D
kagome11: Thank you a million for you concern, I'll do my best! And I know, I debated for long if I should go that extra mile but in the end, decided yeah, which then evolved into another entire idea which is secret for spoiler reasons. And I seriously can't wait for everybody reunions either! They're just gonna be so adorable and (well, hopefully?) worth the wait once the time finally arrives!
cobalt eyes: Wait, I feel betrayed here, nurses give popsicles!? Jokes aside, they were all nice and very patient despite how often those damn stitches kept falling out! But oh god, I'm so sorry to hear your cousin had to go through that! I'll give her all my remaining cookies for fighting her way to recovery though, what an awesome girl! Thank you a bunch for the story though, it's incredibly relieving to know I'm not fighting alone :) And really, I just try my best! I believe you can always improve in terms of writing, storytelling and such, and writing a lengthy fanfiction actually helps a lot with getting better I've found out!
Centipede996: Thanks! And here you go!
Luo: Your reviews are always extremely reassuring and amazing to receive. Thank you a lot, it's incredible to have such sweet people like you follow my progress :)
Guest: Thank you, good sir!... um ma'am? XD (Dunno which, but know I'm unconditionally grateful regardless!)
sui: Oh my goodness... I feel moved to hear even a quiet reader, as you claim yourself to be, has gone through the trouble of reviewing! And I thank you eternally for your amazingly sweet words, I still remember receiving your specific review because it was a time where I was really in a lot of pain, so you have no clue how much it really cheered me up back then! You stay awesome too ok? Because I can tell you're also an incredible person from this! HUGS TO YOU!
silverrayn123: All the love to you too.
Asl lover: Happy to know I made you happy! :D Fear not! Not many chapters remain before a certain some won't allow him to endure any more suffering!
Tsunoyo: (I'm using a translator, so so sorry if it's so stupid as to mess up the translation!) Thanks for your words of encouragement! My heart sinks too, all the way to the bottom at the ocean when I go back to proof-read my own chapters and get to experience Luffy's pain for myself DX. But yeah, I think it's needless to explain that neither Whitebeard or Shanks will take any of this lightly... ;)
Kiiro no Akuma: First up, thumbs up for your English, it's pretty perfect if you ask me! Updates will hopefully be just a little faster with this short peaceful time, which I'm totally excited for! I don't at this moment know exactly how many more surgeries I'll have to go through, but I'm hopeful that it's soon gonna be over so all I'll have to do is finish rehab and then I can be done with all this back pain for (hopefully, I do not want to jinx it!) forever. XD :D
Greer123: Yes, the government is in quite the predicament, aren't they? But really, I feel it's a blessing to get to reply to so many of you! Just today, I've already spent over an hour simply replying to you, which I find is absolutely incredible! :D
Sophia Mendes-Coruja: Ahhhhhh! That sounds like it sucks! DX My sis hates school like the plague, which is at least one good side of having back pain (that I have very little homework and receive lectures from home hehe :) Kay's gone... may she rest in whatever the afterlife for One piece may be R.I.P, I had a lot of fun writing her while it lasted ):
But your compliments seriously move me, Sophia! You always bring sunshine to my life, especially now. It's kind of ironic, though... I can bring forth so much excitement with a story this... *cough* dark, but doing so is gonna have the ultimate pay off which I'm totally HYPE for! XD But until next update KISSES AND HUGS TO AN AMAZING READER!
That is all I can squish in to this chapter!
Updates can be expected relatively soon as long as my back plays nice
-Cookie