Zou
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To be honest, I know that I changed what had happened in the actual manga and anime but it works here. Please don't get upset that it is different. I know how it goes but it works. Please, continue if you are okay with that.
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Voices awoke Ash from her slumber. She was pressed against something warm and just snuggled closer. "Do you think they realized what they are doing?" She recognized that voice as Robin. Ash was too warm to care about what they were talking about.
"I don't think so. I' surprised that they haven't woken up yet," Usopp said. Ash was getting aggravated with them talking. They might be whispering but they were bothering her.
"Robin. Usopp. If you want to talk," she sat up and forced her eyes open to glare at them, "please, do it somewhere else." She stretched before closing her eyes and laying back down. She wrapped her arms around the warm object beside her. "I'm trying to sleep and would appreciate it if you left me alone."
She didn't understand what they were talking about but she also didn't care at the time. It was quiet and she smiled. Ash pushed her face into the thing beside her. It was solid yet soft at the same time. She felt it move but thought it was her imagination. Slowly, she fell back to sleep.
A little while later, Ash woke up and noticed something. She was laying next to someone and had her arms around them. She couldn't tell if the person was awake or not, though. Slowly, she sat up and rubbed her eyes before opening them.
"Did you sleep well, Ash-ya?" Her attention snapped to Law who had been the one she had her arms around. Her face heated up at the thought of her cuddling up to him like she had earlier that morning.
"Y-Yes. Did you?" Law sat up and nodded.
"I did." Ash looked away from him as her face continued to burn. She hadn't expected to wake up next to Law. To make matters worse on her, they were in a room together and in the same bed. It felt different and it embarrassed her.
Getting off the bed, Ash stretched before walking to the door. "I'm going to the kitchen to get something to eat. Do you want anything while I'm there?" She turned to him and waited for his response.
"A cup of coffee would be nice." She rolled her eyes.
"Any food?" Ash narrowed her eyes at him. "You need to eat more." She worried about his health. "It restores your strength and helps you heal. What do you want to eat?"
Law sighed. "Anything without bread is fine. Also," he took out his vivre card, "we are getting close." Ash nodded. She left him to go find the kitchen.
On her way there, she saw Zoro passed out in the hallway. She thought to wake him up but decided not to. Ash entered the kitchen and started to rummage through the cabinets and fridge to find something to eat.
Pulling out some ingredients, she started to cook pancakes. It was simple and quick for her. She made pancakes almost every morning when she didn't have to go to work. She also made coffee for her and Law. It was soothing to be able to cook again and it made her smile.
A bit after starting to cook, Bartolemo entered the kitchen. She didn't pay attention to him as she continued. "Ash-senpai, what are you doing?" She had been called that by the man when he found out that she was Luffy's friend. He would glare at Law sometimes when he was around her.
"I'm cooking. I was hungry and wanted to eat pancakes." Bartolemo was smiling as she flipped the pancake in the pan. "I made enough batter to feed everyone. Could you finish cooking them for me?"
"Y-Yes! I can finish for you!" Ash thanked him as she grabbed the two plates she made with the two cups of coffee. She was almost run-down as she walked back to the room Law was in. It was Luffy rushing past her. She was able to keep the plates and cups from falling from her hands.
Back in the room, Ash found Law sitting on the bed with the card in his hand. She tapped the door to get his attention. He looked up at her. "Room service. I was asked to bring food and coffee to this room." Law smiled. "Do I have the wrong room or is this the right one?"
Law chuckled. "And what might be for breakfast, Miss Ash?" She walked in and set one plate and cup down beside him while she kept the other plate and cup.
"Pancakes topped with chopped strawberries, bananas, and blueberries. To drink is a cup of straight, black coffee." She sat with the plate on her lap and the cup on the nightstand beside her. "Complements of the chef." Law continued to smile as they ate.
"Are you sure you have enough on your plate?" Ash gave him a halfhearted glare. Law knew how much she ate when she was hurt and just normally. It was just as much as Luffy but maybe more.
"For now, yes." They continued to eat until the door was flung open. Zoro stood in the doorway. Ash swallowed the food in her mouth before speaking to him. "Is there something you need, Zoro?"
"Robin said that there's a large thing in the water." Law quickly finished his food before getting up to leave. Ash followed suit and walked out the door with him.
Getting to the deck, she was surprised to see a large object in their path. "That's the island," Law said. Ash looked up to see that it stretched on for miles. She then noticed that it was slowly but surely moving.
The others started talking but she ignored them. Her thoughts were on the island. An elephant. The island is on the back of an elephant. Good idea. Staying in one place might not be a good idea in this world.
Law tapped her shoulder and pointed to the others. She nodded and followed them to the Sunny. It was attached to the leg of the creature. They got on it and said goodbye to Bartolemo and his crew. The other man, Kanjuro, made a dragon to carry them up the side of the elephant's leg. It was cute and big enough for them all to ride.
"Do you think it is strong enough to carry all of us?" she asked the samurai. She worried for its safety and capability along with everyone else.
"Yes. He is safe to ride up the side of the island," he assured her. She still worried for it. The creature was so strange and she tapped its head. The creature looked up to her.
Can you hear me?
"Y-Yes. Can you tell my why I was created?" Ash nodded.
You were created to carry all of us the side of this island. Do you think you can handle it or no?
"I...I think I can. We'll...We'll just have to see." Ash nodded. She patted his head. Luffy came over to them.
"This looks amazing! And we're gonna ride it up to the island?!" Luffy was excited to be able to ride the dragon.
"Yes. He's helping us up the side of the island." Luffy grinned as he stared at the dragon. Soon enough, they were all piled onto the dragon. She felt bad for him and knew that the weight of everyone was going to be a little much on the dragon. She sat in front of Law with Robin in front of her.
Slowly but surely, the started the trek up the island. She felt horrible for doing this to the dragon. At some point, Luffy fell off and almost brought the dragon with him. She held onto him as he struggled to get back on.
Ash rubbed the side of him. Everyone was encouraging him. Please. Just a little bit more and we're there. I know you can do it. She kept rubbing him. Come on. You can rest when we get there. He didn't answer her but just tried harder.
Again, they were on their way. As they got to the top, there was lava and they had to jump off of him. He fell into it and died. She felt bad for him but didn't wan he others to know what he had said. That poor creature. I'm glad he was happy when he died.
Law and Zoro weren't moved by it and just dissed his death. Ash rolled her eyes. She didn't expect anything more or less from the two. They walked into the forest. It was quiet. Too quiet. Ash didn't like it. Luffy ran head of them and disappeared.
Ash walked around the town that they had come across. She knew just by looking at the area that something horrible happened to the people there. She was curious as to why the buildings were off the ground. "Fascinating," she whispered as she leaned down to look at the ground below her. It was about a couple of feet down from where she was.
Suddenly, water flowed down the area like a lake or river. She was surprised to see that the others had gotten to the place she found. "Strange. It's like they built the buildings like they are because of this," Robin said.
"Precisely." Everyone looked to her. "If you know anything about elephants, that is a natural thing." Robin raised an eyebrow while everyone waited for her to explain. "To clean themselves or just to cool themselves off, elephants will use their trunks to suck up water and spray it across their back. Since this elephant is so large and that there is an island on its back, it probably floods the land and they had to build up to keep safe."
"Are you an animal expert or something?" Usopp asked.
"No. I used to like to watch animals in my spare time. They are fascinating creatures and I like them." Law smiled. As the water flowed, two females came floating down the river on a creature. They had Luffy with them.
"Hey! I'm okay!" Ash walked up to look at the new people. The women were not the same creature. One was a dog and the other was a bunny-rabbit. She looked at how the dog woman was dressed.
That was Nami's outfit that she left us in. Why is she wearing it? The dog woman looked to her along with the bunny.
"They are not hurt, if that is what you were thinking," the dog woman said as she walked up to her.
"Nobody said anything about anyone being hurt," Robin said.
"No. I thought it," Ash answered. The dog and bunny seemed surprised. "May I ask you your names?"
"Wanda and Carrot," Wanda answered. She circled her before sniffing her. "Interesting."
"Torao! Your crew wants to see you! They're on the other side of the island!" Ash turned to Law and he nodded to her. Wanda grabbed her arm before she could follow him.
"Please, wait a moment."
Why? I need to go with him. Is there something you want to say or ask? Wanda nodded.
"When you come back, can you explain how you can do that? I have never met someone like you." Ash agreed before walking with Law. He held up the card in his hand as they walked.
She didn't say anything as they walked. Ash knew that he was worried and excited to see his crew again. Suddenly, he came to a stop. Ash looked up and saw his crew popped out of the shrubbery. Bepo started to cry before they all ran out to greet them.
"Captain!" They chanted it a few times as Bepo jumped onto Law and started to rub against him. Ash smiled at the sight.
"I was so worried about you!" Bepo cried.
"Bepo, get off of him before you crush him," Shachi said. They didn't seem to notice Ash as of right now.
"Congratulations on taking down Doflamingo. We knew you could do it!"
"No. That was Straw Hat-ya that did-" They cut him off before he could finish his sentence.
"Come. See where we have been staying." Law agreed. Ash kept smiling.
"Ash! You're here as well!" Bepo came running up to her. He wrapped her in a hug and was careful of her back.
When they all said hello, she followed the crew to where they had been staying. It was nice and there were more animal people. She heard Chopper shouting at someone.
"Chopper-ya, are you busy right now?" The reindeer came out of a house.
"I'm free for the moment. Is there something you need?" Law started to whisper in hushed voices to the other. Ash knew what they were talking about. It was her back. They hadn't looked at it since the incident in the hut.
"Ash-ya, can you come with us?" Ash nodded as she followed Law and Chopper into the house. They got her to sit on a bed. There was a large cat-man in one of the beds.
She knew what they wanted her to do and she removed her shirt. Chopper undid the bandages. He gasped when he saw her back. "Law! What is this?! What the hell happened to her while she was there?!"
"That was why I wanted to know if you could take a sample and check it." Chopper came to stand in front of her.
"Are you okay with that? I will have to scrape or cut a piece of your skin off to get a sample." Ash gave him permission to take a sample of what the fuck was on her back.
Grabbing the sides of the bed, she prepared for the pain that was inevitable. When the metal object touched her, she shook at know what was about to happen. Slowly, the scalpel cut into her skin. She gave off an agonizing scream that sounded horrible even to her. She ripped the sheets on the bed as he cut away the piece of flesh from her body.
After he got it off, Chopper quickly backed away from her and Law fixed her back up. "I'm glad that I was able to bring my tools with me." She watched as Chopper walked over to a desk. "I will immediately look into it."
"Chopper." Said man looked over to her. "Luffy is here with everyone else." She smiled a tired but happy smile. Chopper smiled before thanking her. She knew he was about to cry if the tears in his eyes were anything to go by.
With her shirt back on, Ash walked over to the giant can-man. He was sleeping and seemed to be beat up really bad. He was covered in bandages and slept soundly on the bed. She stared at him. "Ash-ya, is there something on your mind?" Law asked as he came to stand beside her.
"Chopper, who is this man and why is he covered in bandages." She placed a hand on the fur on his arm and ran it along his arm. There was something off about it.
"His name is Cat Viper. A small...war started on the island and he took a lot of the damage." Ash knew Chopper wasn't telling her everything. He's holding back something. "Let him tell you. It didn't concern us at the time."
While Chopper examined the piece of flesh, Ash staring at Cat Viper. Law stayed next to her. Slowly, the man started to wake up. He blinked a few times before staring at her. "Hello. You are a new face."
"Hello. You are Cat Viper, right?" He nodded. "I was told that you were watching Law's crew. Thank you for that." She bowed to him.
"Strange. You cat different than most of your kind." He sniffed her. "Interesting."
"What is it?" Chopper asked from his spot at a desk with a microscope.
"Can you feel it Chopper-kun?" All eyes turned to him. He was staring at Ash.
"What do you mean? Explain."
"I feel a friendship towards this girl. I can't and will never raise a hand to her or try to harm her. It is almost like a bond has been made just by meeting her." Law and Chopper looked to her. "You can feel it, right, Chopper-kun?"
"Yes. Since I met her it has been there." He turned back to his work. "I have noticed that the more I stay around her. Do you know why it is there?"
"No. It is something I have never felt toward a human. There is something about her that is different." Ash nodded. She had been told that before.
"A sea king has told me the same thing. Animals don't wish to harm me or the others in the vicinity of me if I see them as friends." Cat Viper's eyes widened.
"You talked to a sea king?" She nodded. "My. That is a tremendous gift you have." He took her hand in his. "You need to keep that in tact. If this power allows you to gain friends among animals or us, then you are a truly gifted woman."
"Thank you." He let her go. After a bit, Chopper told him that Luffy was there. He immediately wanted to go meet him. Chopper had to hurriedly gather his things and follow after him. Law went with them to meet up with Luffy again. Ash followed.
Worry filled her at the sting in her back. No. Not now. Please. Don't start right now. I don't want to worry anyone. She watched Cat Viper run and crash into the building that Luffy had been sitting at. Law looked up and shook his head. Luffy was jumping up and down on him when they got there.
"Straw Hat-ya," Law called to Luffy. His eyes lit up.
"Wow! Is that your crew?!"
"Yes. There are twenty of them." They all posed and Ash just giggled. She watched Law walk over to Luffy and start talking about the plan. His crew dissed him of making them feel slighted. Ash rolled her eyes. "We don't have to get friendly with them. We're just allies."
"Oh. Sanji went to Big Mom."
"What? He went to Big Mom?" Luffy nodded.
"Yeah. I'm going to go get him back."
Ash walked away to see what Chopper was doing. He was still examining her skin. "Chopper, have you found anything yet?" She came to stand next to him.
"Yes and no."
"What do you mean by that?"
"At first, I thought your skin was decaying because of the black and purple look of it." Ash nodded. "It turns out that it is not decaying. But when I cut a piece off, it seems that whatever is happening has stopped. I can't figure out what was happening because I need it to be attached to you."
"Can you try to look at it while it's still on me?" Chopper removed his hat to scratch his head.
"I...I can try. There is on way of saying it will work but I can always try." Ash agreed and removed her shirt. He removed the bandages and took a magnifying glass to her back. She stayed as still as she could to help him out.
After about ten minutes, she saw everyone outside getting ready for a party. Law came up to them. "Chopper-ya, have you found out what is happening?"
"Not yet. I couldn't figure it out when I cut a piece off of her. It told her that I needed it still attached to her." Law nodded and sat in front of her as they waited for Chopper to say something.
"Ash-ya?"
"Hmm?" She looked up to him.
"Would you like to join my crew?" He sounded nervous to ask the question. He had never asked her it before.
"If I join, won't I be under you?" She liked him a lot but didn't want to be ordered around. Law knew that from being with her for so long.
"You can do whatever you want. That's what most of my crew does anyway." Ash smiled.
"Sure." He smiled. Taking the offer made her giddy and at the same time, calm. She knew it was the right choice to make.
"I found out why her skin is like this!" Chopper exclaimed. He backed up from her.
"What is happening?" Ash asked.
"Your body is trying to heal itself." Law gave him a confused look. "She is trying to heal the wounds but at the same time, her body is losing the battle. Her skin looks like this because it is fighting off infection amongst other things."
"So, it's a matter of waiting to see what will happen?" Law asked.
"Yes. All you have to do is wait to see how it will turn out. That's all we can do now." They both agreed. Chopper and Law helped her get the bandages and her shirt back on.
A commotion made them all look outside. "What's going on?" They walked to the door.
"Who are you? How did you get here?" Wanda held up a weapon to someone.
"I'm sorry to intrude but I must speak with Ash. She is here, right?" Ash knew that voice but couldn't place where she had heard it or who it was.
"Why do you want to talk to her?" Carrot asked. She took a fighting stance. All of the Minks took fighting stances toward the person.
"Wanda. Carrot. Who is that?" Both looked at her. The women moved back and Ash immediately knew who he was. He hadn't changed at all in the past ten years. She only saw him once but that was enough to remember him.
"Good to se you again, Ash. I told you I would see you again. Though, it's a little later than I thought," he said.
"T-Travis?"
Hope you like the chapter. I'm glad to see that you all are liking it so far. Please, tell me what you think. Remember, I love you all and please try to have a good day. Tatty-bye!
P.S. - pinklemonberry27 - I hope you are happy with the answers I gave you. If you want to ask anymore questions, I am free to answer them when I have the time. Mostly during the day or at night.