By god how much I hate life! Okay, guys, I saw the pair of Kingdom Hearts 3 trailers. I love them, except the part where they made us think Xion was going to make an appearance, but the thing is, I do not like... how they made me so anxious for the game that I want to play it! Sadly, I do not have a PS4. Why can't I get one? Because (1) my parents think it's a waste of money and (2) they do not understand the hype for these sort of things! And it does not help that there are rumors about a Kingdom Hearts VR coming out, which got me even more hyped and sad! UGH! And not only that, but the console is so expensive! Even if I were to go on my hands and knees, I highly doubt they would budge! UGH! They just had to put it in a console that I don't have! LIFE SUCKS!
Ahem. Now other than that, as you may all also know, the poll is done. Results are in. We are instantly heading on over to Water 7, so I hope you all enjoy what comes in this arc!
Oh! And with this reveal of the arc is a brand new opening! It is Hello Goodbye by Scenarioart. I tried to translate it as best as I could as there is, apparently, no English lyrics of the song.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or Kingdom Hearts. I do not own Guthrie and I kind of own Allen.
*OPENING*
(Lala intro)
(Xion & Guthrie come down sliding panels one at a time, followed by Nami next to Xion & Ussop next to Guthrie. Nami shows the Log Pose to Xion, telling her where to go, while Ussop looks pompous while Guthrie shrugs his demeanor. Nami & Ussop are replaced by Zoro & Sanji respectively, and glare daggers at one another as Xion & Guthrie push them away from another. The two are replaced by Chopper and Robin respectively. Chopper dives into Xion's arms as she does a spin hug with him, while Guthrie observes the book Robin is reading with interest. The two are replaced by Allen & Chirithy, with Allen patting Xion's back, grinning at her as she blushes a bit, while Chirithy stands on a barrel, both he and Guthrie causing sparks to shoot at each other from their eyes. The two disappear, and Luffy appears between Xion and Guthrie, grabbing their shoulders and pulling them in as he grins. The two look at one another, and grin, as the background scene shifts to them being on the Going Merry, with the rest of the crew behind them.)
Hello, goodbye to repetition
We cannot be stop
Time to go around to our
Happy days, happy days
(The scene shifts to the sky, with the title of the story appearing)
Hello, goodbye, it cannot be stopped
Because there is desire
(Scene shifts to the Straw Hats on the ship, with Luffy & Ussop fishing, Nami looking at the Log Pose, Zoro sleeping on the crow's nest, Xion helping Chopper with medicine while Chirithy watched, Robin reading her book, Allen practicing his dancing, and Sanji cooking with help from Guthrie.)
It's a journey that does not end
Keeps going, going!
(Xion steps back, wiping her forehead, then looking ahead to the endless sea beyond, wondering what lies ahead.)
You, are
Being shaken by your ragged feet
(Panning through a screenshot of Kokoro, Chimney and Gonbe and Yokozuna, to the Galley-La crew, to the members of the Franky Family, with Franky in front of them, to the masked members of CP9.)
Still, still
No one has much of anything!
(Nico Robin turns and walks away to the tower in Eniss Lobby, with Jabra, Kumadori and Fukuro silhouetted above, followed by Spandam, then Xaldin and Saïx. This shifts to the angered faces of Guthrie, Luffy and Xion.)
I feel like I can fly
I can fly anywhere
Whenever I'm with you
(The trio run through the town of Eniss Lobby, striking numerous marines in their way, while the screen circles around the trio, ending with them standing in the middle of their Straw Hat crew (and Sniper King) on top of the building, facing Robin, Franky and CP9.)
No matter where we are
I feel like I am
Shivering everywhere
(The two Keyblade wielders thrust their Keyblades up at the villains, only to be interfered by the two Organization XIII members. They leap towards them, with Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hats following in pursuit. CP9, led by Saïx, Xaldin & Leopard Lucci, leap at them, ready to clash.)
Together when I am with you
If you clench strongly
(Through all the battles of the Straw Hats, Second Gear Luffy starts fighting Leopard Lucci, with Xion fighting Saïx as hard as she could.)
No matter what happens
I'm moving forward
(Guthrie fights and parries off Xaldin, calling out to Robin with a free hand raised to her, as she stands there in the pitch black darkness.)
Together when I am with you
If you clench strongly
(Robin looks back at him, then closes her eyes as she recalls the memories of Ohara. A tear falls from her eyes, hitting a ground, which turns the darkness into the open sea and sky. More teardrops fall, forming white birds that represent each Straw Hat as they soar in the sky together.)
No, no
No matter where we are
I feel like I can fly
(The birds fly over the Going Merry, as it sails into the sun, with silhouettes of the Straw Hats smiling and grouped together as they prepared for their adventure.)
Last time:
"Were we saved?" Chopper asked.
"Seems that way," Robin answered.
"Ha ha ha! Did you see my wonderful work?!" Usopp boasted.
"Usopp, you're so cool!" Chopper cried out.
"Not bad, Usopp!" Chirithy followed.
Luffy let out another laugh. "I wondered what was going to happen for a moment there!"
"That was too close for comfort," Guthrie agreed.
"Yeah, seriously. I thought that was it," Nami said.
But of course, life just had to be so cruel to these poor souls. It was not even a second when Nami said that... that the octopus suddenly shrunk, much to their horror.
"But why?!" Xion questioned.
The crew all screamed once more, as they continued their fall. Even Merry was screaming, as Luffy managed to get Usopp back on deck.
"Everyone! Grab onto something and hold tight!" he then ordered.
They all did just that until eventually... they hit the sea.
The next day, after that horrifying fall, the Straw Hat crew continued sailing on to the next island. However, since they landed quite far from the island they were suppose to be heading towards, the group decided to take their chance and sail to wherever. ... Is what would have happened if the group was as stupid as their captain.
Thankfully, Xion had her flying and swimming Dream Eaters out and search around for the nearest island, as Going Merry had its sails up and remained where it was. As they waited for the Dream Eaters to return, everyone was doing their usual activities, with Guthrie and Xion training each other. Well, it was more of Xion training Guthrie at the moment in magic, as Xion was not to do anything that would strain her arms for a while, so Chopper had told her. Guthrie had on a white, short-sleeved shirt and tanned pants as he was training in his magic.
"I'm so bored..." Luffy complained. "Why can't we just set sail already?"
"And risk getting hit by a bad weather? No thanks Luffy," Nami told him, recalling when they first sailed to the first island in the Grand Line.
"Nami's right. That one time was bad enough and we barely survived that," Xion also recalled. Out of the clothes she wore in Sky Island, Xion now wore a white t-shirt with a short, black jacket over it, blue capri pants and white boots.
"As your captain, I demand we sail now!" Straw Hat exclaimed.
"As your vice-captain, I decline that order!" Starlight Blade retorted. "I'm not dying out there because you can't keep your excitement in! And I know for sure everyone else on this ship wants to live to see another day!"
Guthrie was also taking a sip of some water and wiped his face with a towel that Chirithy got for him. Said Dream Eater and Allen were both by his side, as the trio watched the captain and vice argue.
"Watching them bicker like this makes me wonder if joining was a bad idea," the male Keyblade wielder said.
"You reap what you sow," Chirithy quoted.
"I'm surprised Xion and this crew survived this long with a captain like him. Then again, after what happened in Skypiea, I shouldn't be surprised he's the captain," Allen said.
"Set sail!" Luffy shouted.
"No way!" Xion declined again.
Chirithy sensed something coming their way and looked over the rails to see Pegasus flying/trotting towards them.
"Xion! Pegasus is back!" he told the vice captain, ceasing the argument.
The vice captain waved her Pegaslick down to the ship, in which the Dream Eater safely landed on its hooves.
"How'd it go, Pegasus? Did you find an island nearby?" she asked. Pegasus neighed and nodded in response. "Okay. Think you can lead the way?" Another nod. "Then it's decided. Time to set sail!"
"Aye!" the rest of the crew cried out in response.
"Hey! That's my line!" Luffy complained.
Thanks to Pegasus, after Xion called back all her Dream Eaters, the crew had a somewhat smooth sailing to the next island. Why 'somewhat'? Well... There were some weathers to bypass and huge fish, mainly Sea Kings, to avoid. Yes, it seemed the crew had forgotten how harsh the Blue Sea would be and had a hard time getting through the dangers. Guthrie, Chirithy and Allen managed to keep up with their pace and got through all the obstacles.
"Was it always this crazy...?" a half-dead Chirithy asked, lying on deck with Usopp lying next to him.
"If you mean the weather in Grand Line, then yes..." the sniper of the crew answered. "I forgot how crazy the weather here is..."
"But it sure was a good workout," Allen said, wiping off some sweat or rain water from his face. "It's more tiring than dancing."
"Seeing you standing there smiling like we didn't just go through a set of storms... I'm envious of that stamina you have there..."
"Nami. How are things looking right now?" Xion asked their slightly exhausted navigator.
"The temperature and humidity have stabilized. We won't have to worry about any storms coming for a while," Nami answered.
"Well, that's some good news," Guthrie sighed in relief. "But... do we know where we're going now? After all that work getting out of those storms, we must've gotten lost by now."
Pegasus neighed out some things, in which only Chirithy understood.
"Pegasus said we're going the right way," he translated. Looking up at the crow's nest where Robin was, he called out, "How are things looking, Robin?!"
"I see no signs of danger anywhere around us," she reported.
"Which means we'll have a smooth sailing," Xion said in relief.
"I'm feeling hungry. Sanji! Food!" Luffy shouted.
"I hear you. It's time for lunch anyway," the guy said, heading to the kitchen to make some lunch.
"I'll help out," Guthrie said, following the blonde.
"You can cook?" Sanji asked.
"No. But I can make some drinks. My aunt and late-uncle run a bar, so I know how to make all sorts of drinks. And small snacks. In fact, my aunt said I was pretty good at making drinks that suit people's needs."
Sanji nodded, appreciating the additional help, as both walked in.
Once they were in, Guthrie took out his new counselor's diary on the table, opening it up to the latest reports on the crew. "Let's see... Chopper, Xion and Nami were all feeling pretty worn out, so something rejuvenating for them... Zoro just wants booze, so I'll give him the usual stuff... and for Robin... I already have an idea as to what to make her. Right, let's go check the supplies."
Guthrie walked away and went to the fridge, looking in to see the ingredients he had to work with, all the while, Sanji looked back at him, curious as to what he had in store.
Minutes later, Guthrie and Sanji came out of the kitchen, each of them bringing food and drinks to everyone.
"Lunch is ready, you guys," Sanji told Luffy, Chopper and Ussop, who were fishing at this moment. They all excitedly dropped their poles and raced to get their next meal.
"Here you go, Zoro," Guthrie handed the swordsman his mug of booze, who responded with a grunt of approval.
"As for you guys, I made some non-achoholic spritzers, just to keep you refreshed and ready," Guthrie handed Luffy, Ussop, Chirithy and Allen pale-green drinks.
They all had a sip, and their faces went content as they all said, "So good~!" Luffy and Usopp were a little- no, they were extremely content with the drink.
"As for the three of you, I made banana cocktails. The citrus flavors should help you overcome your exhaustion. Plus, despite the name, there's no alcohol." Guthrie gave Nami and Chopper their drinks, followed by Xion, who took it and sipped it.
"Whoa!" She gasped. "This is really great!"
"It's usually served as a dessert drink, but I figured it works well for when you are worn out," Guthrie stated, as Nami and Chopper also gave exclamations of enjoyment. He wandered down to where Robin was sitting in the deck chair, and placed a drink on the table next to her. "As for you, I made something that might satisfy you. Go on, take a sip. There's no alcohol in this, either."
Robin looked at the drink, picked it up and took a sip. She gave a sigh of content as she stated, "This is really nice. What is it?"
"A Cinderella," Guthrie explained. "A blend of orange, lemon and pineapple juice."
"Is that all? It's really well made," Robin complimented him, taking another sip of her drink. Guthrie bowed in response to her compliment, beaming just the same.
"I really hate that he get complimented by the ladies..." Sanji growled. He calmed himself as he then added, "But I have to admit, I taste-tested the drinks he made, and he's pretty good at it."
"Sometimes, being a good counselor also means you should understand what they need in their bellies in order to soothe their hearts," Guthrie pointed out. "Working at a bar helped me understand what kind of drinks would satisfy different people."
"Then I guess that makes you a counselor and a bartender," Nami stated, toasting him slightly. "Keep making drinks like this stuff, and you can definitely be a big deal to us."
"YEAH! WE WANT MORE!" Luffy, Ussop and Chopper exclaimed, raising empty glasses.
"Got it..." Guthrie muttered with a sweat dropped expression.
'These guys are so childish,' he then thought.
It didn't take much longer for them to see the island Pegasus found.
"Hey guys! I see the island!" Usopp called from the Crow's Nest.
Nami took a look at the island through a telescope. "Hmm... Looks like an uninhabited island," she said.
"Ready the anchor! We'll land on the island!" Luffy ordered.
"Aye!" the crew responded.
As soon as they landed, the first thing that came to mind was food. The reason? Luffy ate most of what Sanji had prepared for lunch. The crew were lucky to even have a few bites before all the food got devoured. As a result for his greed and stupidity, Xion had already delivered the proper 'judgement' for his action.
"Well then, go find some food stuffs," Sanji told them.
"Yeah!" some of the more childish of the crew replied.
"Listen. No rats or frogs, okay?" Nami said, specifically to one pirate, not wanting to have anything weird like back in Upper Yard.
"How self-centered you are. Once it's in your stomach it's all the same," Zoro said. Of course, that only resulted in him getting a few hits to the head by the navigator.
"True as that may be, there is the taste that's the problem," Chirithy pointed out.
"Guy must've lived in the wild to not mind about food," Guthrie could only assume.
After gathering up some food they found, which consisted of fish, shellfish, fruits, and vegetables, the group started to have a barbecue, with Xion reminding Luffy that the food is meant for everyone.
"Yummy!" Luffy exclaimed, eating through some skewers already.
"Hey, Luffy! Don't stuff your mouth like that!" Sanji scolded.
"You ate our lunch earlier. I can't believe you're still eating so much!" Usopp said.
"This still isn't enough!" Luffy told them.
"Seriously?!" Allen gasped. "Is that stomach a black hole or what?"
"Believe me, Allen, that's the question on everyone's mind," Xion said.
"With this amount of food, we're gonna run out quickly," Sanji said, looking at the amount of goods the group brought back.
"Robin. You should eat now or it'll all be gone," Chopper told the oldest member of the group.
"I'm almost done so-"
"No! If you're already reading, you'll become a worm! They call it a bookworm, right?!" Chopper scolded her.
"Wait, that's really a thing here?" Allen asked.
"Not really. That's not even what a bookworm is," Xion corrected. "Though my brother does have a point, Robin. You should eat before Luffy devours it all like he did with our lunch."
"This coming from our vice captain who isn't eating a skewer," Guthrie retorted. "I don't see you eating any."
"Now that he mentioned it, you didn't eat much of anything back on Sky Island either. Not even during the party," Chirithy added.
"Back when we used to hang out, you didn't eat much back then either," Allen also added in.
"I just don't eat much of anything, that's all," Xion said.
"Even so, you need your strength." Allen picked up a skewer that was just done and offered it to her. "Come on. Can't be a hypocrite in this crew, can you?"
For some reason, when he put it that way, Xion couldn't help but agree with him. She accepted the skewer and uttered out, "Yeah. Thank you." The girl then nibbled on the meat.
As she acted this way, both Nami and Usopp looked at each other and gave each other a sneaky grin.
"In any case, Sanji has a point that these aren't enough for us," Guthrie then added. "What say we go out and find some more food after this batch? We could use some more in the fridge, too."
Everyone agreed on the idea.
After that round of barbecue, the crew went out and collected some more goods. As they were gathering some more food, Usopp scooted over to Xion and whispered, "Nami and I have been noticing something weird about you lately. Are you okay?"
"Huh? Yeah. I feel fine, at least," she answered. "Don't I look fine to you?"
"Well, you do now. But whenever you're around Allen, you have this... weird vibe around you."
The mention of their new recruit made her perk up and pause a bit. "What makes you think that?"
"I don't know, like you're so happy around him."
"Well... He was my friend from my past. And he still is, as well as a new member of this crew," Xion said.
"Are you sure it's not something more?" Usopp asked.
Xion was getting a little suspicious with where he was going with this. "Like what?"
"Like, oh I don't know. Say... a little l-o-v-e~"
It took the vice captain a few seconds to process what his assumption was. The very idea of it then made her blush and gawk. "LIKE HELL THAT EVER IS!" she shouted a bit too loudly, causing some nearby birds to fly off.
Everyone looked at their direction, wondering what they were walking about.
"There is no way that is ever possible! You hear me?! DO YOU HEAR ME?!" Xion questioned, shaking the poor sniper senseless.
"AHHHHHH! I-I hear you! Please let me go!"
Everyone sweat dropped, wondering what was going on with that group. Well, all but one that is.
'I'm glad I didn't go up to her,' Nami thought.
Minutes later, after managing to free Usopp from Xion's grasp and calming the girl down, the group continued deeper in the woods for more resources.
"By the way, Chopper. Were you able to find any kind of medical herbs?" Guthrie asked the doctor of the crew.
"Yeah. I collected most of them, but there may be even rarer ones on this island," Chopper said. "More importantly, something's been bugging me for a while."
"Like what?" Allen asked.
"Well, there's this weird groove traveling down this path." Looking down, everyone saw that the man-reindeer was right, as there was a line on the ground, separating the grass.
"Come to think of it, I wonder what it is," Usopp said. "It looks as if a bicycle passed by."
"Hey, hey. This is an uninhabitable island, right?" Sanji asked. "There can't be a trace of a bicycle when there's no one here."
"Yeah, that's true."
For some reason, though, Robin seemed to be in deep thought as she stared at the line. Xion noticed this look, but decided not to pry about it.
"Hey, we're almost through the jungle!" Luffy told them. Soon enough, they were out in the open plains. "We're suddenly out in a large open space."
"It's called a plain," Guthrie corrected.
Chopper noticed something and rushed over to it.
"Chopper-kun, where are you going?" Xion asked.
"Looks like he's getting something from that rock," Zoro answered.
Luffy let out a loud gasp. "Damn that Chopper! He must be trying to have that huge mushroom all to himself!"
"He is nothing like you!" the vice captain exclaimed, as the captain took off after him.
When Chopper made a turn to the rock, he was suddenly knocked down, as though he was either pushed or he bumped into something.
"What's wrong, Chopper?!" Luffy asked.
"Looks like something happened. Let's go!" Zoro said.
Everyone nodded and ran after the two.
When they caught up with their two members, they were surprised to see a tall man standing on the other side of the rock.
"What's with you guys?" he asked so casually.
"What's with you?!" Luffy retorted.
"Who is that huge guy?!" Usopp questioned.
"Who is he?" Nami followed.
The group then heard a gasp and a thud and turned to see Robin... with an unusual expression on her face and in an unusual state. They didn't think it was possible, but Robin fell to the ground in pure terror.
"Robin!" Luffy called.
"What's wrong, Robin-chan?!" Sanji asked.
"Robin!" Nami gasped out.
"Wh-Why are you frozen?!" Usopp questioned.
"Robin... is scared of him?" Xion asked.
"Oh-ho-ho. Now, now. Don't be so bloodthirsty, guys," the tall man told them. "It's not like I'm here on orders. Since it's a nice day, I took a stroll here."
"Orders? From what organization?" Zoro demanded, prepared to take out his sword.
"He's a marine. And he's one of the people known as the World Government's ultimate powerhouses," Robin managed to answer.
"He's a what?!" Guthrie asked.
"This guy?!" Luffy also gasped.
"Yes... An Admiral of the Navy Headquarters, Aokiji," Robin identified.
A smirk formed on the man, Aokiji's, face. "Oh, my, my. You've turned into a good-looking woman... Nico Robin."
"Hang on... An Admiral?! He's an Admiral?!" Xion asked, as she and a few others got their guard up, prepared to fight this potentially dangerous man before them if it meant protecting one of their own.
"What's an Admiral?" Allen asked Nami in a whispered tone.
As if hearing the question, Robin said, "There are only three officers in the Navy who hold the position of Admiral. Akainu, Aokiji, Kizaru... The only one above them is Fleet Admiral Sengoku, who reigns as the top official in the Navy. That man is one of the three men called the World Government's ultimate powerhouses."
"W-Why is someone like that here?!" Usopp asked with a stutter. "Why don't you go deal with big-time pirates with several-hundred-million-Berry bounties?! G-Go someplace else!"
Aokiji looked to the side and saw Nami standing near him. "Oh, my, my..."
"W-What?" the navigator asked.
"Here's another sexy lady with big bozangas! You free tonight?" Everyone was shocked at the statement and question. All but one.
"What's the big idea, you tall, lanky jerk?!" Sanji demanded.
"Pay attention, you jerk!" Usopp followed.
"Is he really a big shot here?" Allen asked Guthrie in a whisper.
"I can't really say for sure..." he answered.
'Especially since I'm not from here,' Guthrie mentally added.
"Hold on a sec, you guys, geez..." Aokiji spoke with his hands up in a surrendering motion. "Did you hear what I said? I said I just took a stroll, didn't I? Don't get so worked up. To start with, you guys are all... whatchamacallit... you know..."
No one knew where he was going with this conversation and waited for him to finish his sentence himself.
"... I forgot. Oh, well." Wait, what?!
"You don't make much sense!" Sanji and Usopp shouted.
"What the heck's with this guy?!" the long nose pirate questioned. "Robin! Aren't you mistaking him for someone else?! There's no way someone like him is a Navy Admiral!"
'I'm not so sure if you should be judging a book by its cover here,' Xion thought, as she glanced over to Luffy. The guy's an idiot himself, and yet he's their captain, and a very strong pirate.
"Should you really say that? I mean, Luffy here looks like the fool out of all of us, and yet he's probably the strongest out of all of us and our captain," Allen voiced out Xion's thoughts.
Everyone went silent at the point he made.
"He's right. Besides, my motto as a marine is 'total slovenly justice'," Aokiji said.
"That totally matches your appearance!" Usopp and Sanji shouted once more.
"In any case, well... Oh, excuse me for a sec." Next thing they knew, the guy lied down on the grass. "Standing made me tired."
"Then why were you sleeping standing up?!" Chirithy asked.
He took notice of the Dream Eater and said. "Oh, my, my... A walking, talking kitty."
Annoyed to be called a normal animal, the talking Dream Eater shouted, "I'm not a kitty cat; I'm a Dream Eater!"
"Anyway, to make the long story short, I have no intention of capturing you guys, so don't worry," Aokiji told them, ignoring Chirithy.
"Hey! Don't ignore me!"
"I came to check the whereabouts of Nico Robin, who disappeared after the Alabasta incident, that's all. Just as I thought she's been with you guys."
"This guy sure is apathetic, isn't he?" Sanji said.
"His audacity shows he's a leader, in a manner of speaking," Usopp pointed out.
"I'm going to at least report this to Headquarters, though, as with another wanted person, the total bounty for you guys has now changed. 100 million... plus 60 million... plus 98 million... plus 79 million equals..." Aokiji tried to do the math in his head but... "I don't know exactly, but I'm sure it's not too shabby."
"Why don't you just calculate it?" Zoro asked.
'The total is 337 million, isn't it?' Guthrie thought. 'I'd like to know exactly what he means by 'not too shabby'.'
"Gum Gum-" Before Luffy could do anything he would regret or cause trouble for the crew or even both, Xion called upon her Keyblade and hit him in the head, knocking him down on the ground.
Xion's Keyblade was not Desert Nakama; it was an entirely different Keyblade. The guard was blue, while the handle was orange with pinkish shells on each end. The 'blade' part was a long beanstalk with a bell hanging from the top, acting as the 'teeth'. This Keyblade is her Fire of Shandora Keyblade.
"Idiot! Don't do something you'll regret!" she scolded. "Are you trying to get us all arrested?! He's one of strongest marines!"
"So what?! Then you're saying we're gonna hand over Robin without a fight?!" Luffy demanded, getting back on his feet and in another battle position. "Gum Gum-!"
Before he could attack again, this time it was Sanji, Usopp and Guthrie who stopped him from doing the stupid and held him back.
"Idiot! Listen to Xion-san!" Sanji scolded.
"Yeah! You'll get us killed!" Usopp told him.
"And besides, he just said he won't do anything to us! Don't give him a reason to a thing!" Guthrie added.
Unfortunately, Luffy wasn't having any of it. "I'll beat you up!"
Xion pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance. "Oh for the love of-" She walked over to him and stood in between her captain and the admiral.
"Ah! Xion! Get out of the-"
"Sleep." With that one word, the vice captain used one of her spells and put the ranting rubberboy to sleep.
"Well, that was easy enough," Chirithy stated.
Just then, the group heard footsteps. They all turned and saw many people in tatter clothing coming out of the woods.
"S-So you're a marine..." one of them spoke. "I wish you had told us sooner."
"Who are these people?" Nami asked in shock.
Some of these people collapsed on their hands and knees, worrying them.
"Hey, get a hold of yourselves," Sanji said.
"Then this isn't an uninhabitable island?" Usopp questioned.
"Well, they're probably the passengers who drifted here from a wrecked ship," Aokiji assumed. "About a month ago, there was a report that a passenger liner went missing in this area."
"That's horrible..." Xion said. "In any case, we have to get these people treated. And well fed from the looks of it... Chopper, Sanji."
"Right!" Chopper saluted, already knowing what to do.
"Yes, Xion-san~" Sanji followed, already knowing what the girl was going to say.
"I'll help out with the healing," Guthrie insisted.
It took some time, but Chopper and Guthrie managed to get everyone checked and healed up. Thankfully, the wounds on some injured weren't serious, so it wasn't anything that Guthrie couldn't heal. Xion would help out, but Chopper told her to leave the injured to them, especially when she was suppose to still be healing. For the Sleep magic earlier, it was just a small, simple spell, one that though would knock people out for a minute or so can keep Luffy occupied for approximately an hour. ... Possibly.
As for Sanji, he, Allen and Usopp managed to find some more food and brought some barbecuing equipment from the ship. Currently, the large group were having some skewers, especially the survivors. Whether they were unable to find food or weren't able to cook up such delicious meal, the Straw Hats didn't know, but the innocent people were all happily enjoying and savoring up the food. Oh, and Luffy woke up by the smell of cooked meat.
"You must've been really hungry," Allen said to a couple of kids.
"You don't have to wolf down the food. There's plenty more where that came from," Sanji told them.
"That's right! There's plenty more!" Oh. Luffy woke up by the smell of cooked meat and was stuffing some skewers in his mouth.
"Hey! Why are you eating?!" Chirithy questioned.
"But at any rate, even if this is an uninhabitable island, if you are so inclined, you can find food, you know. This is the problem with amateurs," Usopp said.
"Don't be rude to them, Usopp," Guthrie told the sniper.
"I'm surprised you survived after a shipwreck in the Grand Line," Nami stated, helping a girl drink up some fruit juice.
"We're the only ones who made it to this island," the guy from earlier said.
"Just what happened to you guys?" Xion asked.
"On our way back from a gourmet tour to the gourmet town, Pucci, our ship collided with a huge frog that was doing a front crawl and shattered into pieces."
Hearing the cause of their situation surprised the pirates.
"A frog was doing a front crawl?!" Nami questioned.
"Don't frogs normally do breaststroke?" Allen asked.
"Interesting! I wanna see it too!" Luffy excitedly said.
"Are you out of your mind?" Usopp asked, wondering if they were seeing things.
"It's true!" the survivor explaining their situation exclaimed.
"Sounds like Yokozuna," Aokiji piped in. The Straw Hats looked at him with confused looks on their faces.
"Then, after a great struggle, we were able to make it to this island. But yet, we lived on the verge of starvation for a month... We rejoiced when we saw someone was coming, but when we looked carefully, he was riding a bicycle on the sea."
That... sounded unbelievable to them, even in the Grand Line.
"Hey now... Under no circumstances can one ride a-"
"Oh. That was me," Aokiji interrupted Usopp, raising their confusion.
"And then, the next one that came was a pirate ship," the survivor ended.
"That must be us," Xion said.
"Then you guys are... whatchamacallit... you know... um... well..." Aokiji tried to say.
"Say it clearly! Clearly!" Usopp and Sanji told him.
Just then, it seemed that Luffy realized something important. "Oh, shoot! I totally forgot!" Next thing everyone knew, Sanji, Usopp and Guthrie once again had to hold their captain back from doing anything stupid. "Hey, you! Don't mess with us!"
"You see him just lying there! How can he possibly do anything to us?!" Xion shouted, not believing how slow and simple-minded Luffy was.
... Oh wait, she can believe it.
"Listen to your crew, will you?" Aokiji told Luffy. "Like I've been saying, I took a stroll."
"Oh, it was a stroll? Then don't go passing a place like this! Leave!" Luffy demanded.
"You don't make sense here."
"Luffy kind of has the upper hand here..." Nami stated in disbelief.
"I can't believe this conversation is really happening..." Xion said, giving up on arguing with the foolish boy.
"Well then, okay... I'm going back. But before that... You guys. Get ready to depart right away," Aokiji said to the stranded people. "Fortunately, there's an inhabitable island not so far from here. You best go there to get any additional treatment you need."
"Hey, you guys! You don't have to listen to him! He's a marine!" Luffy warned them.
... Hang up, wait. What?
"Is there a problem?" the shipwrecked guy asked.
Luffy couldn't believe how 'stupid' he was... Until he realized something. "Oh... That's right. It's fine, it's fine. That's right, it's fine. Normally, marines are your friends and we're the bad guys." Luffy then laughed at his own stupidity.
"This is not the time to laugh!" Usopp said, karate-chopping him on the head.
"Is he... Really this slow...?" Guthrie couldn't help but question.
"You have your work cut out for you, Mr. Counselor," Xion said, already feeling a headache coming on from their captain's idiocity.
"But still, it's good, right? The guy said he'll help them out," Allen said.
"But he doesn't have a ship, does he? How is he going to help them out?" Chirithy asked.
"I don't see any other ship on this island but ours," Chopper pointed out.
"Without a ship, and no Log Pose either, how are they going to get to that nearby island?" Usopp said.
"Well, we still have that spare I got from Logue Town. They can have it," Xion insisted.
"No need for that. They'll be fine," Aokiji said.
"Nothing you say sounds convincing, you know," Usopp told the admiral.
"... He can..." came Robin's voice, bringing all attention to her. "He can make it happen..."
To hear Robin, a pirate who seems to know Aokiji better than any of them, vouch for the man, everyone felt that they had to believe him.
Soon enough, they all found themselves on the edge of the island, with a cart filled with the stowaways' belongings. The Straw Hats gave away some food and water for them to last during their journey to the island Aokiji spoke of. As they helped them prepare for the departure, Luffy ended up getting along with the admiral.
"So what are you going to do?" Luffy asked. "Are you going to swim while pulling these guys and their stuff?"
"Not exactly," Aokiji answered, stepping towards the ocean. "Step back for a bit."
The guy placed his hand in the water. Everyone simply watched, curious to see what he would do to help the innocents go across the water. That was when a Sea King emerged from the sea.
"W-What the heck?!" Luffy gasped out.
"What is that?!" Allen asked.
"A Sea King!" Usopp answered. "And I bet that's the guardian of this area of the sea!"
While everyone else was frightened at the sight, Aokiji just stayed where he was, unfazed by the sudden appearance.
"Hey! What are you doing?! Run!" Xion called out.
"Look out! Gum Gum-" Luffy was prepared to save the admiral, with some of his crewmates joining in on the rescue, when the unthinkable happened.
"Ice Age..." At those two words, the sea king and a large part of the sea froze completely.
Everyone was speechless at what had just occurred.
"But... How did he...?" Guthrie gasped out.
"A Devil Fruit...!" Zoro exclaimed.
"Th-The sea... It froze!" Luffy said.
"This is the power of a Navy Headquarters' Admiral..." Robin told them.
Aokiji got his hand out of the frozen water. "This will probably last at least a week," he informed, walking to retrieve his jacket. "Take your time and head in that direction. You'll get to an inhabitable island in four days. It's a little cold, so dress warmly while you're walking."
"Is this... a dream...?" the shipwrecked person asked in disbelief. "The sea... has become ground. We can now cross the sea! We can get off this island! Mr. Marine! Thank you! This is a miracle! Without a doubt, a miracle!"
The Straw Hats were just as happy that the people can be off this island and head to civilization.
After the survivors got dressed in warm clothes, the Straw Hats saw them off happily, wishing them best of luck. As they left to the island, the people all said their farewells to them and even thanked them for what they had done for them.
It was starting to get cold for them to be on the ice any longer, and the crew all walked back to the island. Once they returned, for some reason, Aokiji had his eyes on Luffy and seemed to be in deep thought about him.
"What?" the straw hat wearing boy asked.
"How should I put it... You're just like your gramps, Monkey D. Luffy," the admiral said at last.
"W-What?" For some reason, he flinched when he heard that.
"You're free-spirited, or should I say you're hard to figure out?"
The rest of the crew looked on in confusion.
"Gramps? Luffy's?" Usopp asked. They turned to their captain and were surprised to see fear on his face. "Hey, what's the matter, Luffy? You're drenched in sweat."
"Well... N-N-Nothing. No... Well..." Luffy stuttered.
"Your gramps really helped me out a while back," Aokiji continued. "The reason I came here was to have a look at Nico Robin and you. ... On second thought... maybe you should die now, huh? The government is still taking you guys lightly, but if I delve into your history, I can tell that your group has a backbone. Although your group is small, since it's gathering shrewd members, it'll probably become a problem later on. The circumstances that initially led to your search orders, all the actions you took up until now, the speed of your group's progress... I've been dealing with outlaws for a long time, but it worries me to think how you'll turn out."
"Whoa! Wait a second! That's too sudden!" Usopp shouted in a panicked tone. "You said earlier you were just here to check things out!"
"The reason I especially regard you guys as dangerous is you, Nico Robin..."
Hearing that got Luffy mad. "So you're after Robin after all! I'm gonna beat the crap out of you!"
"And..." Luffy paused as Aokiji continued. "I also consider you as dangerous, 'Starlight Blade' Xion."
Those words surprised them even more.
"Me? In what way?" she asked.
"I believe the answer to that is obvious. After all, you have a huge target on your back... by them." When he emphasized on the 'them', the crew knew what he meant. There was only one group who was after Xion after all. "Both you and Nico Robin's bounties aren't just an indication of your strengths; It also indicates the level of danger you pose to the government. That is why Nico Robin has a bounty of 79 million belli on her head at the age of eight. I'm surprised you survived as a child. You betrayed people and ran away. You gained people's favor and used them. You survived in the underworld by being quick to switch sides. So this is the group that you chose as your next hideout, huh?"
Robin flinched at his words.
"Hey, you jerk! How insulting you are! What grudge do you hold against Robin-chan?!" Sanji demanded, prepared to fight this man.
"Stop it, Sanji!" Usopp told him, holding the chef back before he could do anything stupid.
"I don't have any grudge against her. If we are somehow connected, it's that I let her get away once. That's about it. Though it was a long time ago," Aokiji said. "As for you, Xion, if we were to give you an even higher bounty than what you have now, not only would it cause a panic to the world to have such a high starting bounty, but it would also indicate the fear the government have towards the organization looking for you, as well as lead to a misunderstanding that may indicate that we wouldn't give them what they want. Those are something they don't want. Instead, by steadily increasing the bounty on your head, it will show them the progress you have. After all, they did say they were looking for their perfect and most strongest member by your name and face."
'Perfect and most strongest...? Xion is?' Guthrie mentally questioned.
'The only reason why he's saying this must mean...' Chirithy thought.
"If I, my fellow admirals, and even the Fleet Admiral could, we would've just refuse, especially after they threatened to... What was it again... Cover this world in darkness. But unfortunately... They proved to be a group that we cannot outright refuse," Aokiji continued. The pirates were all shocked to hear how powerful Xion's pursuers really were. "Not only are you an apparent member of their group, you wield a weapon quite similar to the leader's and the higher ups of that group, and you defeated quite a few of their members already. You're far more dangerous than Robin. No... You're more dangerous than the previous Pirate King."
Every word coming out of his mouth was increasing Xion's surprise.
To the rest of the Straw Hats, he then said, "You guys will all eventually realize it, too. In the not-so-distant future, you'll regret that you took in a pair of troublesome women. As proof, the organizations Nico Robin had something to do with up until today all got annihilated, except for her. I wonder why, Nico Robin. And as for Xion, she took part in many missions by that organization... Many that included collecting 'hearts'. It makes me wonder... just how many did she kill and how many hearts she collected."
Robin flinched when he said that, while Xion unconsciously clenched her fist.
"Stop that, you jerk! Her past doesn't matter!" Luffy shouted.
"He's right! If you're worried about others' past, you can't be friends with ruffians like a pirate hunter and a former thief!" Usopp agreed.
Nami hit him in the head when he said that. "'Ruffians' are unnecessary!"
"But Usopp's right! What matters is the present, not the past!" Allen shouted. "You talk like you know them, but I speak for these guys that their characters are more important than their backstories!"
"Robin and Xion are our friends and family! Don't badmouth either of them!" Chopper exclaimed.
The two couldn't believe how far the others were willing to go for them. Well, Xion could, but still, she didn't think they, especially Allen, would still defend her so strongly.
"I see... You really did a good job befriending this lot," Aokiji said to them.
Robin couldn't take him any more and crossed her arms. "Just get to the point already! If you want to capture me, go ahead and do it! Treinta Fleurs!" Thirty arms sprouted out from the ground and Aokiji himself and got him in a hold.
"Robin! Stop it!" Usopp shouted, fearing for the worst.
"Oh, my, my... It seems I've said too much," Aokiji said, not at all frightened by what comes next like the arms were. "It's too bad. I had too high an opinion of you, thinking you were a little smarter than that."
"Clutch!" Next thing they knew, Robin's arms had bent him backwards and he shattered into ice.
"Ahhh! He shattered into pieces and died!" Chopper screamed.
"No... Look again!" Chirithy exclaimed, pointing at the ice slowly coming back together.
"Oh no... We're screwed..." Usopp said in a panicked tone. "H-Hey, guys! Run! Let's get out of here!"
"To where?!" Guthrie questioned. "He's going to come after us whether we like it or not!"
"That wasn't nice," Aokiji said, approaching Robin. He grabbed a handful of grass and froze them, creating an ice saber. "Ice Saber. I wasn't going to kill you, but..."
Just as he was about to swing his weapon, Xion acted fast and went to strike him, thus forcing him to switch his opponent to her. "You leave Robin alone!" she shouted in an enraged tone.
"Oh, and by the way, another thing about your bounty," Aokiji said to her. "It doesn't only show that organization your progress, but also tells us what your current strength is. And as you are now... You cannot beat me either."
"What was that?!"
Aokiji forced her back and froze the ground to where she was landing. Xion slipped a little, but managed to stay on her feet. However, that didn't stop him from extending the freeze to her feet, where she was now unable to move. "What the-?!"
"I suppose you should start first then, as you're the most dangerous one here," the admiral said, charging at her with his blade.
Before he could hit her, however, Zoro blocked the blade with one of his swords. Sanji followed it up with kicking the ice out of his hand.
"Hmph. How dare you butt in, you damn cook?" Zoro questioned.
"The same to you, you natural monument," Sanji retorted.
"Gum Gum...!" Luffy came charging in with his arm stretched back.
While her three crew members were keeping him busy, Xion took the chance to melt the ice on her feet to free herself.
Aokiji, on the other hand, grabbed Zoro and Sanji by the arm and leg respectively.
"... Pistol!" Luffy landed a hard punch on Aokiji's stomach.
The moment his fist landed, however, it started to freeze up. Literally. Not just Luffy's hand, but also Zoro's arm and Sanji's leg!
"AHHH! He froze them!" Chopper screamed out.
"Those three... All at once..." Nami spoke in disbelief.
"Luffy! Zoro! Sanji!" Guthrie called in worry.
The three strongest members of the crew all lied there, withering in pain.
"O-Oh no! They have to be treated right away!" Chopper exclaimed. "If they get frostbite, their limbs will become gangrenous!"
"I'll hold him off as long as possible!" Allen shouted, already charging in.
"No wait, Allen! Don't do anything stupid!" Guthrie called.
The boy didn't listen and instead put on a pair of his favorite gloves. "Flaming Thrust!" He threw his arm forward, palm open and facing the admiral, and unleashed flames from his hidden flame dial at him.
Aokiji widened his eyes with he saw this and immediately had up a wall of ice. "Strange... I could've sworn there was already a pirate with fire powers," he muttered.
When the wall melted, Allen thrusted his other arm at Aokiji. "Impact Thrust!" As soon as his palm made contact with his torso, Aokiji was, once again, shattered into ice. The dancing pirate widened his eyes when this happened. "Again?!"
"Now I see..." Aokiji spoke. "You're using dials that are said to be found on Sky Island. So it really does exist." Allen looked behind him, where the source of the voice came from and saw Aokiji standing there. "I don't know where else you hide then, so to be safe..."
"Allen! Get out of there!" Xion cried out.
It was too late, as the admiral initiated his attack. "Ice Ball." Next thing everyone knew, Allen was encased in a ball of ice. Seeing this, everyone was speechless at what had occurred, but none were as speechless as Xion, who stood there with wide, shocked eyes.
"Allen!" Guthrie called out.
"You've come across such good friends," Aokiji said, walking over to his first target. "But you're still you, Nico Robin!"
"No...! I'm not..." Robin tried to retort, but couldn't find the courage in her to.
Aokiji had his body fall on top of her and wrapped his arms around her, and turned her to ice.
"Robin!" Chopper cried out.
"You bastard!" Luffy shouted at the admiral.
"Don't yell. She'll still live if you defrost her slowly. Same with that winged boy over there. He's not dead, just trapped. Well, not yet at least," Aokiji told him. "However, Nico Robin's body has become fragile, so be careful. If her body is broken, she'll die. For example..." He raised an arm, to their fear. "If you smash it like this..."
Before he got the chance to, something hit him in the face and actually knocked him away. Not break, but knocked him away.
"Whoa! What the-?!" Usopp gasped.
"D-D-Did you see that?!" Chirithy asked.
"I think I did..." Nami answered.
Aokiji got up, rubbing his face in pain. Wait... Pain? There are only two times when that happened. Well, three actually. The first is if his guard is down. The second is if he was facing a certain opponent with a certain ability. And the third...
He looked up and saw Xion standing right where he was, free from the ice. Not only that, but around her body, he saw what seemed like dark wisps all around her and her Keyblade. The girl was also making what sounded like panting- no, seething sounds.
"How dare you..." Xion... snarled? "How dare you... to my friends... I won't forgive you. I won't forgive you! I'LL KILL YOU!" The girl finally lifted her face and he saw them. The one thing that differentiates the higher-ups, the strongest of that powerful group's members from the others; yellow eyes.