Brother on Board

by J0HNS1LVER

Sabo survives the encounter with Saint Jalmack and is fished out of the water by some mountain bandits. Years later, a different Sabo sets sail with his younger brother Monkey D. Luffy to form the Straw Hat Pirates, bringing along his rifle Bonnie Anne. See how the story you know goes differently when Luffy has his brother on board.

33. Chopper

BROTHER ON BOARD

Babyyouknowme13 - The first fight's going to be chaos since there's six people involved. Also, I tweaked Wapol's powers a bit to make him more durable. He's going to need all the help he can get.

yuzukikuran476 - Wow! I'm glad you like my story so much. Don't worry, I'm having a blast writing this and I have no plan to stop anytime soon. Although 15,000 word chapters like these last two take a while to write. I made full use of that extra week.

The Patient One - I doubt Drum would be overly concerned with 'pirate news' unless it pertains to Wapol. Pirates are dangerous outlaws. You can never be too careful. And yes, it was 'she's got a tail'. I told you once that Bonnie Anne would be hard to guess from a One Piece stand point. But if you come at it from the Pirate101 side it's more obvious. I call it hiding in plain sight.

Bluejay Blaze - I only called the rabbits rodents because I was quoting Monty Python. But didn't Ace visit Drum a week before the Straw Hats? Plus he was in a completely different town. Luckily, Luffy and Sabo have ten days to catch up with their brother.

The Keeper of Worlds - I don't have a white paint for Ayako yet. I've got a few ideas. I've got something for orange, indigo and purple. But no white so far. Let me know if you can come up with something interesting. Nami saw Bonnie because she's sick, dying and possibly hallucinating. But they key one is dying.

Starelight - She said 'She's got a tail'. Don't worry though, Nami's recovers in this chapter and tips off Sabo. So it's not a very long mystery.

BillCiTheDemonGuy - Bonnie's got a tail. Or at least Nami's sick and dying hallucination-version of Bonnie has one. You'll see in this chapter if that's accurate.

Guest - And by reindeer standards, Chopper's totally nuts. But unfortunately, he's also young, lonely and highly-impressionable. We'll see how meeting a crazy crew of pirates rubs off on him.

TheREALMightyKamina - It appears that way doesn't it? Now we just need Sabo to find out. Too bad he and Nami don't actually know what Minks are. And how is Sabo supposed to stumble across the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch if Brother Maynard always carries it with him?

Dr. Zenkai - Thanks for pointing that out. Miss Valentine's real name was Mana in another fanfic that I read. I can't tell you how many of those Ayako will be present for but you can safely assume that she's not going to have the best time during the Skypiea Arc.

luvBonnieAnne - Don't worry, Nami's back in commission in this chapter and Sabo will attempt to tackle that very mystery. I'm happy that Ayako's being well received. I think she'll be a fun addition to the crew.

OrangeFrito - ?

Miqila - Don't look at me. Negative 10 degrees Celsius/14 degrees Fahrenheit was the temperature Vivi gave in my manga translation. (I still blame Miss Valentine for the switch to the metric system.) And a few scenes later Luffy and Usopp made snowmen. Maybe there was a wind-chill factor while they were at sea? It was 'She's got a tail'. But don't worry... it won't be a mystery for my longer. (Does that sound cryptic to you?)

rasEnshur1KEn - Unfortunately, Sabo and Nami don't know what Minks are. Fortunately, there's a reindeer-human at the castle they're heading to that can hopefully push Sabo's investigation in the right direction. And yeah, Nami saw Bonnie because she's sick and dying. I know its a little obvious. But remember that the emphasis there is on 'dying'.

A/N: Boy did I need that extra week! Here's my longest chapter yet! Enjoy!

---

Chopper-

Luffy stood at the bottom of Drum Rock with Nami on his back. The doctor's castle was exactly five thousand meters above them.

"Hang in there, Nami," Luffy said. "We've got a long climb ahead of us."

Luffy reached out and grabbed hold of the sheer straight rock face and began to climb upward.

---

Sabo, Sanji and Miss Valentine stood ready to face off with Wapol, Chess and Kuromarimo.

"Hey Sanji… did you notice how much this guy sounds like Don Krieg?" Sabo asked.

Sanji scowled, "If you mean that they're both arrogant blowhards who think that everything should be handed to them on a silver platter based on who they are… then yes."

Wapol suddenly called out, "Snow Kingdom Specialty… SNOW POWDER MAKE UP!"

And like that Wapol and his men were gone.

"Damn coward…" Sabo growled. "Everyone keep your eyes peeled!"

SKISH!

"MARIMO SURPRISE!"

Kuromarimo popped out of the snow and swung a spiked boxing glove at Miss Valentine.

"YAAH!" the blonde yelped and reeled backwards but Sanji quickly sprang in and kicked the former Magistrate's wrist away.

THWAK!

"That's no way to treat a lady!" the cook growled as he spun around and swung his other leg at Kuromarimo's face.

SKISH!

Kuromarimo leapt out of the way just as Chess fired a batch of arrows from his bow.

CHOO!

Sanji swung his leg around in front of him.

WHISH!

The breeze from Sanji's kick blew the arrows off course and caused them to miss their target.

But when they looked up both lackeys were gone.

"You know… I just realized that this might've been a bad idea…" Miss Valentine admitted, "I may still have my Devil Fruit Powers but I don't have any memory of using them in battle…"

"From what I remember," Sabo spoke up, "you'd lower your weight and float in the air with your umbrella then you'd raise your weight and fall on your target."

"Umbrella?" Miss Valentine repeated. "What umbrella? I don't have an umbrella!"

"Great…" Sabo muttered.

SKISH!

Wapol lunged out of the snow and snapped at Sabo's legs.

SKISH-CHOMP!

Sabo jumped over Wapol's snapping snout and aimed Bonnie down at him.

KER-CHOW!

WOOSH!

But Wapol sank back down into the snow and left only a hole and a new bullet hole in his wake.

"Damn it!" Sabo spat when he landed on the ground. "What is this? A game of whack a mole? You wanna fight or not?"

SKISH!

"You fool! That's Snow Country Combat!" Wapol exclaimed as he popped out of the snow some ways away and pointed his arm at Sabo. "MUNCH MUNCH SHOCK… ARM CANNON!"

BOOOM!

Wapol blasted a cannonball at Sabo who spun to the side and avoided it.

Sabo quickly fired off a shot with Bonnie Anne. "RETURN FIRE!"

KER-CHOW!

Wapol covered his face with his cannon arm and Bonnie's bullet blasted a chunk out of the barrel. "Damn pest!"

Swish!

The cowardly King ducked back down into his hole and the game of whack a mole continued.

Meanwhile, Sanji hooked his foot around Wapol's wayward cannonball and redirected it towards Chess who had just popped out of the snow with three new arrows aimed at Miss Valentine.

WHISH!

"WAAAH!" Chess yelped and ducked back down into the hole he'd come out from.

BOOOM!

The cannonball blew a hole in the ground but the archer had escaped unscathed.

"This getting ridiculous," Sanji complained. "The bastards won't stick around long enough for me to get a good kick in."

Down underground, Wapol had a quick strategy meeting with his officers.

"Their teamwork is better than expected," the Minister of Defense admitted.

"Maybe we can focus all our attack on one of them," the Magistrate Suggested.

"Fine! But we're killing Top Hat first!" the King decided.

"SABO! HEADS UP!" Sanji suddenly called out in warning.

CHOO!

Sabo weaved to the side to avoid a flying arrow.

SKISH!

Wapol popped out of the snow with his huge mouth wide opened and ready to swallow Sabo whole. But instead of retreated, Sabo lunged forward and stomped down on Wapol's lower teeth while bracing Bonnie against Wapol's top teeth top to wedge the Munch Munch Man's mouth open.

"Ha! You're not going anywhere now!" Sabo taunted.

"AH 'ON'T 'EED 'O!" was the King's muffled retort. "'UNCH 'UNCH 'OCK… TO'G 'ANN'N!"

Shoom!

Wapol's tongue transformed and became a fully armed cannon that was aimed straight at Sabo.

Sabo pulled Bonnie down and held Wapol's top jaw up with one hand while he pointed her at Wapol's deadly new tongue. He didn't have to bother pulling her trigger. "QUICK DRAW!"

KER-CHOW!

"WAAH!" Wapol wailed in surprise as Bonnie's bullet tore through the barrel of his cannon as it fired.

KA-BOOOM!

The cannon backfired and exploded in Wapol's mouth which blasted the King backwards and knocked him on his back.

Tmp!

Sabo smirked and landed on his feet.

SKISH!

"MARIMO SURPRISE!"

Kuromarimo appeared out of nowhere and swung a spiked boxing glove at the rifle-wielder.

SKISH!

Sabo leapt up into the air to avoid the strike.

"Ha! Right where I want you!" Chess exclaimed as he popped out of the snow and aimed three new arrows at the airborne Sabo.

"Uh oh…" Sabo gasped as he glanced down at the two officers poised below him.

"CHECKMATE!" Chess and Kuromarimo chorused.

"Quick, get on my leg!" Sanji instructed Miss Valentine. He stood on one leg and held his other one out to the blonde.

SKISH!

Miss Valentine lowered her weight then leapt onto Sanji's leg and perched on it.

"ARMÉE DE L'AIR... KILO SHOOT!"

WOOOSH!

The Straw Hat Cook whipped his leg around and launched the blonde woman towards the three men ganging up on Sabo.

"10,000 KILO SMASH!"

WHAAAM!

Miss Valentine slammed into Chess with all of the momentum from Sanji's kick aided by her maximum weight and sent the archer flying.

WHAAAM!

Chess crashed into Kuromarimo and swept the afro-boxer off his feet.

"Huh?" Wapol grunted right before his two officers smacked into him.

WHAAAM!

"AAAAAHHH!" All three went flying off in a distance and showed no signs of stopping anytime soon.

Tmp!

Sabo landed on the ground and stared after their three adversaries. "Thanks for that. I guess that's another win for our crew."

"Oi Sabo… they left their cow," Sanji noted as he pointed at Robson.

"Stand back boys," Miss Valentine instructed. "This requires a woman's touch." The blonde agent smiled warmly as she walked up to the abandoned White Walkie and playfully stroked his furry muzzle. "Hey there, cutie! Was that nasty King mean to you?"

Robson nodded his head sadly.

"Aww… poor baby," Miss Valentine cooed sympathetically. "Don't worry. I'll take care of you. Listen, we're looking to climb that mountain over there. But it's a really long climb. Would you be a dear and give us a lift? Pretty please?" The blonde batted her eyes and smiled sweetly at the hippo.

Da-dum… da-dum!

Robson's eyes became hearts and his tongue lolled out as he frantically nodded his head.

"Aww! Thank you!" Miss Valentine chirped. "There's a good boy! There's a good boy!"

Robson rolled onto his back in the snow and allowed the blonde woman to pat his belly. His right hind leg kicked like a happy puppy's under her affectionate ministrations.

"Now… I don't know what they used to call you…" Miss Valentine admitted, "But since you're a big, white, fluffy, old softie… I think I'll call you Marshmallow. Does that sound good to you, my sweet little Marshmallow?"

Robson… now Marshmallow... rolled over onto his belly again and nodded his head.

"Kyahahaha!" Miss Valentine giggled and looked back at Sabo and Sanji. "Hey guys! I got us a ride!"

Sabo and Sanji shared a look and shrugged. "Works for me."

The three blondes climbed up into Marshmallow's saddle. Miss Valentine sat in the driver's seat and Sanji was all too happy to sit behind her and wrap his arms around her waist. Sabo slipped Bonnie back onto his back and sprawled out sideways across the back of the saddle.

"Alright, Marshmallow!" Miss Valentine called out, "Take us to Drum Castle!"

"MOFUUUN!" Marshmallow grunted as he stood up to his full height. The hippo's seemingly short stubby legs were actually long like a horse's and left the furry hippo towering over the snow as he raced towards the Drum Rockies.

"WOW!" Miss Valentine exclaimed. "This is amazing! Go Marshmallow! We'll get back to the mountains in no time!"

"Although now I'm getting snow in my eyes…" Sabo complained.

"Don't you have goggles on your top hat?" Sanji asked.

Sabo blinked. "Ya know, I use those things so rarely that I completely forgot..."

---

"Grrr…" Luffy growled to himself as he continued to climb bare handed and practically bare foot up the flat side of Drum Rock.

"MOFUUUN!"

Luffy looked down in surprise and found a furry hippo climbing up the side of Drum Rock after him.

"Hey Luffy!" a goggle-wearing Sabo casually called out from the back of Marshmallow's saddle, "Miss Valentine got us a ride. Want a lift?"

"Sure!" Luffy agreed.

And so Luffy joined them in Marshmallow's saddle. The rubber pirate had made decent progress considering he only had Nami on his back, as opposed to how awkward it would have been climbing up with a second unconscious passenger hanging off of him.

But unlike Luffy, Marshmallow the newly renamed White Walkie had been bred for climbs like this. He easily walked up the flat side of the cylindrical mountain and was completely unencumbered by the five passengers on his back.

The long climb that in another world would have taken Luffy well over three hours only took Marshmallow one hour.

They reached the flat top of Drum Rock and stared up at Wapol's extravagant castle.

"WHOA! That's a huge castle!" Luffy exclaimed as he climbed off of Marshmallow and stared up at the towering structure. Sabo slid down after him.

"Faaan-cyyy!" Miss Valentine remarked as she remained seated on her fluffy steed. Marshmallow squatted back down on the ground and followed Luffy and Sabo as they approached the castle.

"And the class system rears its ugly head again," Sabo grumbled. "King Fat-ass gets to live in this place while the villagers are practically roughing it down below in little huts like Dalton's."

"Hey… is that a black flag flying at the top?" Sanji inquired. He was in no hurry to leave his seat behind Miss Valentine.

"I suddenly like this castle ten-times better," Sabo stated as he craned his neck to stare through his blue-framed goggles up at the black flag while he continued to walk forward. "It looks like a skull… and cherry blossoms… I guess you were right Luffy. This witch really is like a pirate."

"Um… Sabo…" The Quartermaster was so distracted in staring up at the Jolly Roger that he didn't notice that Luffy and Marshmallow had stopped. He also didn't notice the creature standing out in front of the castle's door staring transfixed at Sabo's black top hat.

THUD!

Sabo walked right into a furry brown 'yeti' and they both fell on their asses.

"Sorry about that!" Sabo called out as he and the yeti scrambled back up to their feet.

"Hey there!" Sabo casually greeted the hulking creature that stood nearly two feet taller than him. "You must be the witchdoctor's yeti. That's a nice top hat you've got there."

Sabo eyed the pink top hat while the 'yeti' seemed to be staring at Sabo's black top hat.

"Whoa… is that guy some kind of monster?" Luffy wondered. "That's so cool!"

"Hang back over here, Luffy," Sanji advised. "Your top priority is keeping Nami-swan safe. Let the Quartermaster sort things out with the yeti."

"My name's Sabo," Sabo introduced himself, "I'm the Quartermaster of the Straw Hat Pirates." Sabo smiled and offered his hand to the yeti.

Chopper stared at Sabo and his outstretched hand in shock. Every villager on this island was terrified of 'the yeti'. But this pirate was standing there with his hand outstretched without a hint of fear.

"Doctor… pirates are as brave as you said they were!"

"Hey buddy… don't leave me hanging," Sabo called out as he waved his hand. "C'mon. You shake it."

Chopper suddenly noticed that a human was standing within arm's reach of him. A human with a gun.

"RRRROOOOAAAARRRR!"

Sabo reared back from Chopper roaring in his face then blinked and idly picked at his ear.

"Did you just roar the word 'roar' at me?" Sabo asked.

Chopper backed away and pointed at Bonnie Anne.

"Oh, that's the just Bonnie," Sabo reassured him. "We're just here to see the doctor. I promise I won't shoot you and neither will she."

Chopper pointed at the ground.

"I can't put Bonnie down in the snow…" Sabo protested. "She'll freeze!"

Chopper pointed at the ground more insistently.

"Okay… I understand… you don't like guns…" Sabo realized. "Here… how's this…" Sabo slowly pulled Bonnie off his back and cracked her open. He turned the rifle over and dumped the remaining bullets out into the snow. "There, no bullets. Now I can't shoot you." Sabo snapped Bonnie closed then pointed the rifle at his own chin and pulled the trigger.

Click!

"See?" Sabo asked. "I swear I won't shoot you!"

"I SWEAR I WON'T SHOOT YOU!" shouted a naked man who had once worn a similar top hat.

Chopper flinched at the familiar words from a person in a black top hat. "But I can't put her down…" Sabo continued, "She's… how do I explain this to a yeti? Uh… She's my mate!"

Chopper reeled back with a shocked expression and couldn't help blurting out, "But that's a gun!"

Sabo's jaw dropped and he stared at Chopper with an equally shocked expression. "It talks!"

"Um… I mean… ROAR!" Chopper stammered. Two slip ups in one day! All because of pirates!

Sabo's eyes lit up as he turned to look behind him. "LUFFY! COME HERE! THIS TALKING YETI-GUY IS REALLY INTERESTING!"

ZZZIP!

Luffy was instantly standing beside Sabo.

"I think this guy's a lot smarter than he wants us to believe," Sabo informed his brother.

Chopper backed away further and eyed the two pirates warily.

"Hey! Don't go!" Luffy called out. "We outran a huge avalanche and a pack of polar bears to get here! My Navigator's really sick. We need your help!"

Chopper's eyes went to Luffy's passenger.

"She's got a horrible fever," Sabo explained, "If it keeps up… she could die." He stepped away from Luffy and pointed towards Nami. "Feel her forehead."

Sabo backed away from Luffy and slung Bonnie across his shoulders so she wasn't pointed anywhere near Chopper.

Chopper cautiously approached Luffy and reached over the straw hat pirate to feel Nami's forehead.

Fsssss…

Chopper yanked his hand back and stared at Nami in alarm. "GIMME!" The huge yeti yanked Nami off of Luffy's back and cradled the sick navigator in his arms as he made a mad dash into the castle.

"Luffy!" Sanji exclaimed as he and Miss Valentine charged forward on Marshmallow. "Did you just let that monster steal our lovely thief? What if he eats her?"

"Don't worry about him. I'd be more likely to eat your friend than that big-hearted oaf."

They all turned to see Dr. Kureha standing in the castle's doorway,

"Well, you'd better not!" Sabo warned her, "...she'd probably give you indigestion."

"Hee hee hee!" Dr. Kureha cackled like a witch. "Quite the mouth on you!"

"Hey, are you the witch?" Luffy asked.

"I'm Dr. Kureha, yes," the doctor confirmed. "You can call me Doctorine."

Miss Valentine eyed the ancient doctor's snug midriff baring top, "Aren't you cold wearing that?"

"When you live on a Winter Island for over a hundred years you get used to the cold," Doctorine replied. "Want to know the secret of my youthful appearance? TOO BAD! It's none of your business!"

"I didn't ask that…" Miss Valentine muttered.

Dr. Kureha eyed the new arrivals, "I ran into some friends of yours down on the island who warned me that you'd be climbing up here. Did you all really make it all the way without a scratch on you?"

"Well we ran into some polar bears…" Luffy recalled, "And they caused an avalanche…"

"And we had to deal with a fat, ugly hippo…" Sabo added.

"MOFUUN!" Marshmallow gasped.

"Not you, sweetie," Miss Valentine reassured her fluffy hippo.

"I'm gonna go make sure Nami's okay with that monster!" Luffy called out as he slipped passed Doctorine and dashed into the castle.

Dr. Kureha stared after Luffy, "Oh… sure… just make yourself at home…"

"We do have one other injury we need you to take a look at," Sanji spoke up. He took Miss Valentine's hand in his and led the blonde woman over to Dr. Kureha.

"This is Miss Valentine," Sabo explained as he motioned to the blonde former agent, "She sustained a serious head injury on the last island we were on. Now she's got the worst case of amnesia that I've ever seen or heard of. She doesn't even remember her real name."

"Let's have a look," Doctorine resolved as she stepped up to the blonde and snatched off her yellow hat then tossed it aside with one smooth motion. She grabbed Miss Valentine's chin and tilted the younger woman's face towards her then reached up and prodded the top of her head experimentally.

"Ow!" Miss Valentine yelped and winced at the gentle contact.

"Looks like you've got some bruising and probably internal bleeding," Dr. Kureha observed. "The good news is I can do something about this… The bad news is I'll need to shave your head to do it."

"WHAT!?" Miss Valentine shrieked. "NEVER MI-"

SLIK!

Doctorine casually pulled a syringe out Miss. Valentine's neck as the blonde's green eyes rolled back and she collapsed against the doctor.

"MOFUUN!" Marshmallow growled.

"Easy…" Sanji calmed the White Walkie. "She's a doctor. Now Valentine won't hurt herself."

"This one's lighter than I thought she'd be…" Dr. Kureha mused as she lifted the lightweight, unconscious blonde onto her shoulder.

"She's got Devil Fruit Powers that allow her to change her weight," Sabo informed her. "She probably set her weight at a little less than normal."

"You're sure you can help her… right?" Sanji questioned.

"I can heal the injuries but the memory loss will be much harder to treat," she answered. Doctorine turned toward the castle. "Well, come in, no sense in standing out here and getting frost bite."

Sabo turned to Marshmallow and patted the hippo on the muzzle "We'll make sure she's okay. The only one that's looking to hurt her here is Wapol. If you want to keep helping her… stay out here and stand guard. The second you see, hear or smell any sign of Wapol… sound the alarm."

"Mofuun…" Marshmallow agreed with a nod.

Sabo stopped to pick up Miss Valentine's discarded hat then walked into the castle and found Sanji standing inside the snow-filled entryway. There was a tall five-story column that reached all the way up to the ceiling and had a spiral staircase winding up it. Sabo spotted Dr. Kureha carrying Miss Valentine down a hallway on the second floor.

"You okay?" Sabo asked the cook who was rooted in place.

"Fine," Sanji said. "I just haven't seen the inside of a castle in a long time." Sabo raised an eyebrow while Sanji turned to face him. "You're right. Most spoiled royals don't have a shred of decency in their body. That's why the ones that are actually able to feel compassion are often overlooked. Princesses like Vivi have to be cherished. I'm glad you made peace with her… because if you kept giving her a hard time I was gonna have to kick your face in. "

Sabo stared at Sanji. "Where are you from exactly?"

"Nowhere special," the cook replied. "Just a small kingdom in the North Blue." Sanji looked away. "I think it might be colder in here than it is out there."

Sabo blinked at the abrupt change of subject and glanced around the entryway at the frozen over doors. "Looks like they never close the front door. Do you think we should take care of that?"

Click!

Sabo looked over his shoulder at his rifle. "Really? Why not?"

"Take a look behind you," Sanji said as he pointed up at the top of the door. "There's a nest."

Sabo turned and spotted a nest that had been made on the open door. "Oh… you're right… that'd fall if we close the door."

"Sharp eyes on that rifle," Sanji remarked with a small smile towards Bonnie Anne.

"Of course," Sabo agreed. He spotted some stairs off the side and made his way over to them. Sanji followed and the two of them turned down the same hallway that Dr. Kureha had gone down. They found Luffy standing outside a closed door.

"Did you find the cause of her fever, Chopper?" the doctor's voice came through the door.

"Yes, I found a bug bite," a high pitched voice responded. "I think it's a kestia."

"I'll leave her care to you while I deal with the other one."

Sabo looked over at Luffy, "Was there anybody else in there?"

"No… just some tanuki in a top hat that was sniffing around Nami," Luffy answered. "But then the witch showed up and kicked me out."

"Well… it sounds like the doctor and her assistant have things under control," Sanji reasoned. "I'll go search for the kitchen."

"I'm gonna see if I can find that yeti-monster!" Luffy decided. "He disappeared."

Luffy and Sanji each headed off in a different direction and left Sabo standing in front of the door.

"I guess I'll just wait here," Sabo resolved, "...and figure out how we're going to afford this…"

---

Wapol, Chess and Kuromarimo had crash landed in a pile of snow.

"DAMN THOSE PUNKS!" Wapol yelled. "HOW DARE THEY!"

"I'm sorry, sire, it seems we underestimated them," Chess apologized.

"Wait… what happened to Robson?" Kuromarimo wondered. The three glanced around them but saw no sign of the King's furry steed.

"DAMN THEM! THEY STOLE MY HIPPO!" Wapol roared. "I'LL KILL 'EM! I'LL KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF 'EM!"

"GGGGRRRAAAAAAAHHHH!"

Wapol and his flunkies blinked at the loud growling and glanced around them. They were suddenly very aware of the fact that they were surrounded by an angry herd of Lapins.

"I don't have time for this!" Wapol growled. "I'm the King! I'll show them the Munch Munch Factory!"

"Sire… you're going to use that… against some dumb animals?" Kuromarimo questioned.

"I'm not in the mood to hold back anymore!" Wapol snarled. "Chess! List my meals for the day!"

"Yes sire," Chess agreed, "You had one raw cannon, a second cannon sauteed in butter, a cannonball and gunpowder salad… and back in Big Horn you had a grilled house."

"Watch this stupid rabbits…" Wapol growled, "MUNCH MUNCH SHOCK… WAPOL HOUSE!"

SHOOM!

The Lapins backed away as Wapol suddenly grew to be two stories tall. His arms had become cannons, a chimney had grown out of his head and his body had become the house he had eaten down in Big Horn, complete with a door and windows on his chest.

"BOW BEFORE THE KING!" Wapol yelled as he pointed his arms at the cowering Lapins and opened fire.

BOOOM-BOOOM-BOOOM-BOOOM!

The Lapins that had survived Wapol's opening barrage scattered in terror.

"Now let's get back to my castle!" Wapol resolved. "We're going to kill every last person there!"

---

"This place looks familiar…" Usopp remarked.

They'd all survived the avalanche but their sleigh hadn't been so lucky. Now Usopp and Zoro were each riding a ram while Ayako rode behind Vivi on Carue.

"Is it really Big Horn?" Vivi wondered. "It's almost completely buried in snow!"

"I thought you said there was gonna be a fight?" Zoro asked. "Everyone's just standing around."

"Excuse me!" Vivi called out to a familiar bear-lady. "What happened here?"

"It's horrible!" the bear-woman gasped. "Dalton was wounded fighting Wapol and he got buried under that avalanche. But now Wapol's men won't let us back in the village to dig him out."

"So those guys in the uniforms are the enemy then?" Zoro asked as he drew his swords.

"Yup!" Ayako confirmed. "Go get 'em Zoro!"

Zoro charged into the village and began cutting down anyone wearing the familiar uniform.

SLISH! SLIKA-SLICE!

"Hey Usopp… why don't you help him out?" Ayako suggested.

"Um… I think Zoro's got this just fine," Usopp told her, "And some of those guys are pretty big…"

"Colors Trap… Boring Brown!"

Swish!

A familiar brown symbol splattered on Usopp's back. "Those guys won't even notice you now."

A switch flipped when Usopp realized that there was zero chance of him behind hurt… and suddenly the Master Gunner was the bravest man on the island.

"HA-HAH!" Usopp crowed as he drew his slingshot and joined the fray. "YOU'LL NEVER SEE ME COMING! I'M USOPP THE WHIRLWIND! LEAD STAR! GUNPOWDER STAR!"

Choo… choo… KA-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

"Where'd Usopp go?" Vivi wondered.

"He decided to go and help after I gave him a little confidence boost," Ayako replied.

Together Zoro and Usopp made short work of Wapol's remaining men.

"That was almost too easy…" Zoro remarked as he stood next to the pile of defeated soldiers.

Usopp wiped the brown paint off of his back and suddenly everyone noticed him as he struck a pose, "That's because you had Captain Usopp on your side!"

"Those pirates are incredible!" the bear-lady exclaimed. "The one was so strong! And the other was so fast I didn't even see him!"

"COME ON EVERYBODY!" Vivi called out. "THE VILLAGE IS CLEAR! LET'S DIG OUT MR. DALTON!"

"YYEEEAAAAH!" the villagers cheered as they took up shovels charged into the village after the Princess.

---

"KYYYAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Sabo jumped to his feet at the sound of a loud scream.

A moment later the door to the patient room opened and Dr. Kureha came out and took a long swig from a bottle of rum.

"Hee hee hee!" Doctorine cackled. "Both operations were a success. The one girl's fever is already starting to drop. She was suffering from the Five Day Sickness due to a kestia bite. It's a poisonous tick that used to live in prehistoric jungles. I've no idea where you ran into one. But you're lucky that I kept my anti-venom cure around just in case."

"Well… we came from Little Garden," Sabo explained. "There were dinosaurs there. It was really cool. Did you say Five Day Sickness? Does that mean her symptoms would have stopped after five days?"

"Of course," Dr. Kureha answered. "They would've stopped because she would've been dead!"

"Wow… you're a lifesaver!" Sabo exclaimed. "Thank you!"

"Hee hee hee," Dr. Kureha cackled, "Don't thank me. It was my assistant that took care of her."

"Right, well pass on my thanks…" Sabo trailed off when a blue-nosed reindeer in a familiar pink hat slipped out of the patient room and dashed down the hall to the next room. "Was that reindeer wearing a top hat? That's the same thing as the yeti… And Luffy said he saw a tanuki in a top hat..."

"Maybe I like to dress them all the same," Dr. Kureha suggested with a smirk. "Anyway, as a precaution I want to keep her under observation for another three days. Just to make sure she's been fully cured and doesn't die from any lingering bacteria."

"Three days…" Sabo repeated as a blue haired princess flashed through his mind. "We don't have that long… We've got somewhere important to be. We already took a major detour to get here."

"WELL TOUGH!" Dr. Kureha snapped. "I'm not releasing that girl until she's fully cured! The only way I'd ever agree to let her go is if you had a doctor on your crew to keep an eye on her. But good luck finding anyone outside of this castle with that skill level."

"A Ship's Doctor, huh?" Sabo questioned.

"You can have the other one back though," the doctor said, "I treated her head injuries and she just woke up. The scream was when she noticed her hair. She's free to go. Well… are you happy?"

"Yes! Thank you so much…" Sabo said as he offered her a sack. "These pickled plums are for you."

"Who told you I liked pickled plums?" Doctorine asked as she took the sack.

"Um… Dalton?"

"Figures," Dr. Kureha muttered. "He's the only one that knows that. He sends me a box every year on my birthday. You even got me the pitted kind… Not bad. You can go in to see them now."

The doctor stepped aside with her snack sack and Sabo made his way into the room. He first spotted Nami sleeping in a bed by the window and headed straight for her. When he drew close he reached out and placed a hand on the navigator's forehead.

Sabo nodded. "It's gone down. That's a miracle."

"Sabo…"

Sabo turned and his jaw dropped as he took in Miss Valentine's appearance.

"Don't… say… anything…" Miss Valentine growled as she sat up in the bed around the corner.

The top of her head was covered in bandages. Her blonde bang that usually framed the left side of her face was gone, having been shaved off along with all the rest of her hair.

"I've got your hat…" Sabo offered as he held out the yellow hat he'd picked up earlier.

"GIMME!" Miss Valentine yanked the hat out of his hands and stuffed it down over her bandaged head. "Thank you for getting me here."

"Any luck with your memory yet?" Sabo inquired.

The bald blonde shook her head. "The doctor fixed the damage… but she said my memories would eventually come back on their own. Nothing yet though." She hung her head and sighed sadly.

"Don't fret, my lovely valentine! I have prepared a special treat for you!"

The Ship's Cook walked into the room carrying a tray of steaming mugs.

Luffy followed him into the room and had apparently been following the cook for some time. "Come on Sanji! Just let me have one!"

"I already told you that Miss Valentine gets the first one!" Sanji scolded him. "Where are your manners? It's always ladies first!"

Sanji side-stepped Luffy and offered the tray to Miss Valentine.

"What is it?" Miss Valentine asked as she took one of the proffered mugs.

"Hot chocolate," Sanji answered. "I thought it fitting after you named that cow 'Marshmallow'."

"Thanks, Sanji! You're the best!" Miss Valentine chirped. She closed her eyes and took a long sip, "Mmmmm… that's divine. I love chocolate."

Her bright green eyes flew wide open. "I love chocolate…"

She looked down at the cup in her hands then shotgunned the whole thing. "I LOVE CHOCOLATE! HOLY FUDGE! I REMEMBER!"

"Really?" Sabo and Sanji asked eagerly. Neither of them noticed Luffy as he snatched mugs off of the tray.

"I always wanted to be a Chocolate Lady…" Miss Valentine recalled. "I made these chocolate treats that were to die for! I even had a little bakery…"

"Here! Have some more!" Sanji quickly offered as he held out an empty tray.

BURP!

The cook looked back to see Luffy finish off the last mug of hot chocolate. "That was great!"

WHAM!

Sanji smashed the tray on Luffy's head. "SON OF A BITCH! YOU DRANK IT ALL!"

"Hold on… something's coming back…" Miss Valentine said as she scrunched up her face in hard concentration and rubbed her forehead. "Being a Chocolate Lady never paid much… I had to close down my bakery… Being an assassin paid way more… I… I joined Baroque Works because I thought I could use all the money I made to fund a new bakery in Mr. 0's utopia…"

Miss Valentine slipped out of the bed and stood up. She was still wearing Sanji's golden shirt and Nami's white pants. Vivi's white boots and Nami's yellow striped coat were on the end the bed.

The bald blonde stormed up to Sabo, hauled off and slapped him across the face.

WHACK!

"YOU USED ME!" she shrieked. "AS A BATTERING RAM!"

"So you remember Little Garden then…" Sabo realized with his head still twisted to the side.

"You killed my partner…"

"Sorry about that," Sabo apologized.

"Why?" Miss Valentine asked. "We were trying to kill you. And I had just grabbed your junk. Very nice, by the way."

CLICK!

"Like you can do anything with it!" Miss Valentine retorted.

All eyes were suddenly on the bald blonde. "You… know about Bonnie?"

"Just because I lost my memories doesn't mean I'm deaf… or dumb," Miss Valentine replied. "You claimed to have a girlfriend… it wasn't Vivi or Nami… I heard the name Bonnie mentioned a lot… and lo and behold… that's what you call your rifle. I didn't have much else to think about."

"And you're really okay about your partner?" Sabo questioned.

Miss Valentine shrugged. "We weren't that close. He worked well together but he always insisted on keeping things professional. As an assassin your job is to kill your target before they can kill you. Mr. 5 knew the risks. You buried him with his dignity which is more than most assassins get."

"You're taking the head trauma surprisingly well," Sabo commented.

"You concussing me saved my life," Miss Valentine replied. "Not only did you get me off Little Garden but you lived up to your word and got my to a doctor. Otherwise, I would've woken up all alone and been trapped on that island until I eventually died. So… thanks." She leaned in and quickly pecked him on the same cheek that she had slapped.

The Officer Agent spun around and approached Sanji, "You, on the other hand, didn't give me a serious head injury and had no reason to help me… but from the second we met you still treated me like a princess. And… unlike the rifle-guy… you're delightfully single."

Miss Valentine grabbed the surprised cook and kissed him full on the lips.

"Wow…" Sabo remarked. "And it turns out he didn't even need a rifle. Good for you, Sanji."

Luffy suddenly remembered his own first kiss and glanced over at his still sleeping navigator.

Miss Valentine finally pulled away from a bright red Sanji and smiled sweetly at him. "Sanji… thanks for everything. You're a prince."

The emotionally flustered cook gave a barely perceptible twitch that went unnoticed by all the human occupants of the room but then it was gone and he gave the blonde his most charming smile. "Of course, Princess Valentine. If that's the case... just call me Mr. Prince."

"Does that mean her memory's come back?"

Everyone turned to look at the door and spotted a tiny tanuki with a blue nose and antlers 'peeking' in from the doorway. 'Peeking' in that his entire furry brown body was visible except for one hidden eye, ear and antler.

"Hey, that's the tanuki I saw earlier!" Luffy realized.

"I think it's actually some kind of reindeer…" Sanji noted.

"IT'S ADORABLE!" Miss Valentine gushed. "I WANNA HUG IT!"

"DID IT JUST TALK?" Sabo exclaimed.

KER-CHOW!

"YAAAAH!" Chopper screamed at the sound of the loud gun-shot and took off running.

"WAIT! DON'T RUN AWAY!" Sabo called after him. "IT WASN'T A BULLET! IT WAS JUST A BLANK!"

The four of them rushed to the door and didn't notice Nami start to stir after Bonnie went off.

"And just where do you think you're going?" Dr. Kureha demanded as she leaned against the door and casually speared a pickled plum out of a jar with a skewer.

"What was that thing just now?" Sanji asked.

"IT TALKS!" Luffy added.

"Is that your assistant?" Sabo inquired.

"SO CUTE!" Miss Valentine shrieked.

"I guess that cat's out of the bag," Doctorine mused. "His name's Tony Tony Chopper and he's just your average blue-nosed reindeer."

CLICK!

"Yeah! Reindeer don't talk!" Sabo objected.

"Well… he was an average blue-nosed reindeer," Dr. Kureha admitted. "Then he ate a Devil Fruit called the Human Human Fruit which allows him to transform into a human. Now he can do everything a human can."

Luffy burst passed the doctor unable to hold himself back, "COME BACK TRANSFORMING REINDEER!"

The ancient doctor was still off balance from the rubber man rushing passed that she left an opening for Sanji and Miss Valentine to slip out after him.

"CHOPPER! I JUST WANNA HUG YOU!"

Dr. Kureha glared after the other three then turned back to Sabo. "I've trained him as my assistant. He's the one who took care of your friend."

"So he's a doctor… and a talking animal…"

KER-CHOW! KER-CHOW!

Doctorine jumped back in surprise. "What is with that gun?"

"Sorry I've never seen her like this before…" Sabo admitted, "But if you'll excuse me…"

SKISH!

Sabo leapt passed Dr. Kureha out the door and joined the chase. "LUFFY! GRAB THAT GUY! HE'S A-"

Sabo looked down the stairs in time to see Chopper transform from a tiny tanuki into a hulking yeti that suddenly sent Luffy flying.

WHAM!

"GET AWAY! I HATE HUMANS!" Chopper yelled.

"I don't think I wanna hug him anymore when he's like that…" Miss Valentine admitted from halfway down the stairs.

"REINDEER! TURN SMALL AGAIN SO THE LADY CAN HUG YOU!" Sanji ordered.

"Don't worry, Bonnie," Sabo assured his rifle-bound girlfriend. "We're definitely recruiting that guy!"

KER-CHOW!

"EEEEK!" the huge hulking monster screamed like a little girl at the sound of the gun-shot and dropped onto all fours as he transformed into an ordinary reindeer and took off running.

Sabo dashed forward and slid down the icy railing, "COME BACK DR. REINDEER! IT WAS JUST A BLANK! I SWEAR I'M NOT GONNA SHOOT YOU! I'VE GOT A PROPOSITION FOR YOU!"

SKIIIIISSSSSHHH-SKUSH!

Luffy sprang back up just as Sabo landed in the snow at the bottom of the stairs. The rubber pirate had stars in his eyes. "DID YOU SEE HIM TRANSFORM? HE'S GOT THREE FORMS! THAT'S SO COOOL!"

"We've gotta recruit that guy!" Sabo exclaimed.

"YEAH!" Luffy shouted as the two brothers chased after the terrified reindeer.

"It's way too cold to chase that guy all around the castle," Miss Valentine insisted.

"We could always wait here on the stairs for them to chase him back," Sanji suggested.

"That works…" the officer agent said, "But it doesn't help with the cold." The blonde grabbed the cook's arm and put it around her shoulders. "That's better."

Sanji casually fished out a cigarette and made to light it but Miss Valentine caught his hand.

"Smoke that and I'm not kissing you again anytime soon." The cook grumbled and tossed it away.

---

"What's with all the shouting?" Nami wondered as she sat up in bed.

"You're annoying friends are harassing my assistant," Dr. Kureha answered from the doorway as she casually ate a pickled plum off of her skewer. "Normally I'd be chasing them and trying to stop it but the blonde one with the noisy rifle was thoughtful enough to bring along my favorite snack as a bribe. He's fifteen. He's a big reindeer. He can take care of himself."

"So you're…"

"I'm Dr. Kureha," Doctorine introduced herself as she approached the patient's bed. "And you're in my castle at the top of Drum Rock." She left her skewer in her jar and casually pressed her finger to Nami's forehead. "Your fever's down to thirty eight point three degrees. Not bad. Are you happy?"

"But what was…" Nami started to ask but the doctor cut her off when she abruptly grabbed front of Nami's shirt and pulled it up to reveal her stomach… and the purple mark that had been left on it.

"That's what made you sick," Dr. Kureha explained. "It's a prehistoric tick called a kestia. When it's venom enters your bloodstream it causes what we call 'the Five Day Sickness'. It's a period of five days where you suffer through extreme fevers of over forty degrees and inflammation of certain body parts. But those are just the light symptoms. When the bacteria finally finish ravaging the body after the fifth day… the victim always dies."

"..." Nami paled when she realized how close she'd been to death.

"Lucky for you, your friends got you here quickly," the ancient doctor continued. "Judging from the bite you're only on your third day. Hee hee hee! But that's what you get for traipsing half naked around a prehistoric island like Little Garden."

Nami's eyes narrowed, "As opposed to walking around a snowy castle in a crop top?"

"Hee hee hee!" Doctorine laughed, "Oh, you're fun. Looking for the secret of my youth?"

Nami sniffed as she glanced down at the doctor's snack, "It's not pickled plums, is it?"

"Of course not!" Dr. Kureha replied rather quickly as she yanked the jar away. "But if your wit's already returning it looks like you'll make a full recovery. Either way, I still need to keep you here under observation for another three days."

"Three days?" Nami repeated. "I can't stay here that long!"

"I know, I know… you're in a hurry," the doctor scoffed. "Your friend with the top hat already mentioned that. But unfortunately for you… there are only two ways a patient leaves my care."

FWUMP! Shink!

Dr. Kureha shoved Nami on her back and held a scalpel to her throat. "Fully cured… or dead! You're not going anywhere, missy! GET IT?"

"Got it…"

"Good!"

---

"Here they come again…" Miss Valentine observed. At some point the chocolate lover had migrated from cuddling beside Sanji to actually inside his coat. She was also perched delicately on his lap supposedly in order to 'keep her bare feet out of the snow'. "AW! He's in his cute little form again!"

"Don't worry… I'll catch him," Sanji vowed as he stood up and carefully placed Miss Valentine down next to him. It turns out there wasn't actually any snow on that particular step.

"YAAAAAAAHHH!" Chopper screamed as he came running up the stairs as a tanuki with Luffy and Sabo right behind him.

"REINDEER! STOP RUNNING!" Luffy called out.

"We just wanna talk!" Sabo insisted.

Sanji made to grab the tiny reindeer-human hybrid but Chopper suddenly grew and grabbed onto Sanji's shoulders in his yeti form.

SKISH!

Chopper used his 'human' strength to hurtle himself over the cook's head… then transformed into a reindeer in midair before he landed on the top step.

TMP!

"Did you see that little guy's moves?" Sabo asked eagerly as he leap-frogged Luffy and used his rubber brother to springboard over Sanji's head.

BOING!

"SO COOL!" Luffy gushed as he stretched his arm out and grabbed the railing then swung himself off the stairs, around Sanji and back onto the stairs near the top.

WHIING!

Sanji twitched as he turned and stared after the other three, "Didn't even break their stride…"

"Shall we?" Miss Valentine asked.

"Might as well," Sanji agreed as they dashed up the stairs after the others.

"WAAAAAAAAHHH!" Chopper ran screaming down the hallway to the medical wing and bolted through door into the patient room.

"So that's your reindeer?" Nami asked as she sat up in bed while Doctorine sat nearby still casually eating pickled plums from a jar with a skewer.

"CHOPPER! COME BACK!"

"And there are your friends…" the doctor noted.

All four of Chopper's pursuers skidded to a stop when they saw the navigator sitting up in bed.

"NAMI!"

"Hey guys!" Nami replied with a casual wave. "Why're all of you chasing that cute little reindeer?"

The 'cute little reindeer' was currently hiding under Dr. Kureha's chair in his tiny tanuki form.

"HE'S A TALKING, TRANSFORMING REINDEER WITH THREE FORMS!" Luffy gushed as he waved his arms like a wacky waving inflatable tube man.

"I'm chasing him because he's a cute little reindeer," Miss Valentine admitted. "I just wanna hug him and squeeze him and love him to death!"

"I was chasing him because she was chasing him," Sanji said. "Plus, I've got a recipe for venison that's fit for a queen."

"Gah!" Chopper shrieked as he crawled out from under Dr. Kureha's chair and scurried for the door.

"SANJI!" Miss Valentine scolded Sanji, "We're not eating him! No matter how sweet he looks!"

KER-CHOW!

"YAAAAAAAH!" Chopper screamed and ran out the door.

Sabo glanced at his rifle. "I'm not sure why she's so gung-ho about recruiting him. But he's actually the one who treated you. If we can recruit him as our Ship's Doctor you won't have to stay here for three more days."

"HE'S A DOCTOR!?" Luffy exclaimed. "NOW I'VE GOTTA CATCH HIM!"

The rubber pirate bolted for the door. "LUFFY!" Nami shouted after the Captain.

Luffy stopped. "Yeah, Nami?"

"Thanks for getting me up here."

"Of course, you're my navigator," Luffy casually replied. "I'd be lost without you."

Everyone stared after Luffy as he left the room. Nami's cheeks turned the slightest shade of pink.

"Did Luffy really just say that?" Miss Valentine wondered. "That was actually very sweet…"

"Nami-swan, it fills my heart with joy to see you healthy again," Sanji said. "I'll leave the recruitment to the Captain. In the meantime I'll see about making dinner for everybody."

"Excuse me?" Dr. Kureha objected. "Who gave you permission to use my kitchen?"

"Aw, come on, please?" Miss Valentine pleaded. "Drinking a cup of hot chocolate jogged a bunch of my memories. If I go with him and actually make a batch who knows what it could do?"

"It's an unconventional cure… but I suppose if it works there's no harm in it," Dr. Kureha reasoned. "But you'd better make a cup for me!"

"Of course," Miss Valentine agreed. She quickly slipped on Nami's yellow coat and Vivi's white boots then left the room with Sanji.

"Is something going on with those two?" Nami questioned.

"Yeah… but I'm not sure how serious it is," Sabo answered. "She likes the attention and he likes to give it."

"Statistically… someone has to enjoy that overzealous swooning," Nami noted.

"And here I was thinking you'd be jealous," Sabo remarked.

Nami rolled her eyes then smirked, "And cheat on Luffy? That'd break his big rubber heart." She was pleased to see Sabo flinch at the thought. Good to know she was back in form.

"Rubber?" Dr. Kureha whispered to herself as she idly watched the byplay.

"The ship wasn't the same without you, Nami," Sabo said. "I'm glad you're okay." He made his way to the door. "I'm gonna go help Luffy catch and recruit Chopper so we can get you out of here in a timely manner."

"Sabo…" Nami called after the Quartermaster. "Your girlfriend's some kind of monster."

Sabo stopped in his tracks and glared back at Nami, "What?"

"I thought I saw her when I was sick," Nami told him. "She's not human. Maybe some kind of demon."

"Well… there's gratitude for you," he growled as he turned and stormed out of the room.

"She's got a tail…" Nami quietly added but the rifle-lover was already gone.

"I don't think I even want to know what that was all about," Dr. Kureha mused as she ate another pickled plum. "You pirates sure are an odd bunch."

"Most people just call us crazy," Nami informed her.

"Hee hee hee!" the doctor cackled.

The infamous witches of Drum Kingdom and the Conomi Islands were getting along famously.

---

"Can you believe her?" Sabo demanded. "After everything we did to make sure she got here… she goes and pulls that? Not human… that girl's nuts."

...Click!

Sabo stopped and looked down at his rifle. "What's that supposed to mean? Don't let her get to you. We've been over this. You're still a person even if you're trapped in that rifle."

Click!

Sabo stared down at his rifle as if seeing it for the first time. "Wait… you're not human?"

KER-CHOW!

"I think you and I need to have a long overdue talk."

---

Wapol, Chess and Kuromarimo stood at the bottom of Drum Rock.

Wapol's huge two-story body was slow and it had taken them a long while to get there on foot.

"We're here, sire," Chess pointed out. "But I don't see how we'll make it to the top with you in your current form."

"There's a simple solution to that problem," Wapol said. "You two are going to climb up." Wapol suddenly lunged and swallowed his two officers.

GULP!

"The royal secret technique… THE MUNCH MUNCH FACTORY!"

FISSSHHHH!

Steam billowed out of the chimney on Wapol's head as his Munch Munch Fruit Powers worked. "THE MIRACULOUS FUSION!"

Kreeek…

The door on Wapol's stomach opened and a tall figure emerged while two voices called out at once.

"Drum Kingdom's Strongest Warrior has arrived… CHESSMARIMO!"

Kuromarimo had been stacked on top of Chess and the two of them had been nailed together by two metal bars that went over their green, blue and gold outfit like suspenders. Now they had two heads and four arms.

SHOOOM!

Wapol shrank back down to his normal form. "Top Hat and his punk friends have pissed me off way too much for me to consider holding back! We're going full-power right from the start!"

Wapol jumped up and hung off of Chessmarimo's back. "Now… climb!"

"Yes, sire!" the fusion warrior agreed. The two lower arms that had once been Chess's pulled out a large bow and slipped in an arrow with a thick rope tied around the shaft then fired it up overhead.

CHOO!

The arrow sank into the side of the mountain stayed embedded there while Chessmarimo grabbed the dangling rope and used used his hold to walk straight up the cylindrical mountain with Wapol hanging off his back.

Chunk-Chunk!

When they reached the top of the rope, Chessmarimo drove Kuromarimo's spiked boxing gloves into the rock face so they could hang there while Chess's arms reloaded and fired the bow and arrow.

CHOO!

"THOSE FOOLS MESSED WITH THE WRONG KING!" Wapol bellowed as they began the long climb.

---

Sabo sat down on a desk chair in a small room that looked like a chemist's lab.

"First of all…" Sabo addressed Bonnie Anne as he loaded six new blanks into her. "I want to make it clear that no matter what you are… it doesn't change anything between us. You're still the most brilliant person I've ever met… even if you're not a human person. You and I have been through too much together for something like this to change what we have."

KER-CHOW!

Sabo hugged the rifle to him and kissed the nozzle. "Okay… so not human… I suppose I'll have to guess. Are you a female fishman? A fishwoman?"

Click!

"Mermaid?"

Click!

"Giant?"

Click!

"Are you actually a demon like Nami said?"

CLICK!

"Sorry, I had to ask," Sabo apologized. "You know this is my first time off of Dawn Island. I don't know all the kinds of non-humans that exist in this world."

...Click!

"AAAAAHH!" Sabo was distracted when Chopper ran screaming into the room with Luffy chasing him.

"JOIN MY CREW, REINDEER!" Luffy exclaimed as Chopper dove down and crawled under the desk then made a break for the door.

"NO! I DON'T BELONG WITH HUMANS!" Chopper cried out as he ran out of the room.

CLICK!

"Don't worry Bonnie!" Luffy called out as he chased after Chopper, "I'll catch him!"

Sabo blinked and looked back down at Bonnie Anne, "Are you an animal-person like Chopper? Is that why you were so adamant about recruiting him?"

KER-CHOW!

"An animal… okay…" Sabo reasoned. "Now I've just gotta figure out what kind… Um… would you say you're a humanoid animal? Y'know... two legs?"

KER-CHOW!

"Okay… that's a relief. So it doesn't count as bestiality. Wait… humanoid… are you a yeti?"

Click!

"But I'm guessing you have fur though…"

KER-CHOW!

"Any chance you're a reindeer?"

Click!

"Right… that would've been too easy. Um… are you a tanuki?"

...Click!

"You hesitated on that one," Sabo noted. "Does that mean that's the closest?"

KER-CHOW!

"Okay… are you a raccoon?"

Click!

"Are you a dog?"

CLICK!

"Okay... definitely not a dog," Sabo remarked. "Something similar to a tanuki… but not a dog or a raccoon… Now I can't use Chopper for inspiration anymore…"

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN HERE?" Dr. Kureha yelled as she rushed in. "This is a medical ward! It's a place of healing! And no place to be shooting a gun! You're terrifying Chopper!"

"But… I'm not actually shooting her!" Sabo protested. "Look, there isn't a single bullet hole in here. And I swear I'd never shoot Chopper. I'm using blanks!" Sabo pointed Bonnie at his own head and pulled the trigger.

KER-CHOW!

"See? Nothing." Sabo stated as he lowered Bonnie and picked at his ear. "And that was my last one."

"Well… KNOCK IT OFF!" Dr. Kureha snapped. "Your sick friend tells me that you and I still need to discuss the matter of payment."

"She would say that…" Sabo grumbled. "Didn't I already give you those pickled plums?"

"You think that's enough to cover treating a head injury and a near-fatal tick bite?" Doctorine asked. "The plums were a gift. They're the only reason I've tolerated you brats harassing my reindeer. Normally I'd be chasing you and throwing any weapons I could get my hands on. Now pay up!"

"I don't have the kind of money you'd want…" Sabo admitted. "But Luffy once worked out a deal with a shrewd restaurant owner by performing some community service. How 'bout I do the same?"

"What kind of community service?" Dr. Kureha inquired.

"I happen to know that a certain much-despised former King is currently on this island looking to reclaim his throne," Sabo informed her. "Waive our medical fees and I'll ensure that he doesn't."

"How do I know you weren't going to do that anyway?" the doctor countered. "How do I know he's even going to show up?"

"You don't," Sabo answered both questions at once. "But he's bound to show up here eventually. When he does, I'll take care of him and you can keep his castle for yourself without having to worry about the King returning."

"I'm not accepting unless Wapol actually shows up," Doctorine insisted. "Now come with me into the other room so I can make sure you don't run off on me."

"Fine…" Sabo sighed and followed Dr. Kureha and they walked into the patient room just in time to catch Nami sweet talking Chopper.

"So I hear you've been taking care of me..." Nami said. "Thank you!"

"DUMMY! I DON'T NEED THANKS FROM HUMANS!" Chopper shouted… while doing a happy dance. "THAT WON'T MAKE ME HAPPY! JERK!"

"Yeah… I can tell you don't like being thanked," Nami remarked.

"Are you guys really pirates? Do you fly a black flag?"

"Our ship has one," Nami answered. "Do you like pirates?"

"NO! OF COURSE NOT!" the reindeer snapped… with eager stars in his eyes.

"Oh, okay… sorry about that…" Nami said then smirked, "So… do you want to come with us?"

"WAAAAH!" Chopper yelped in surprise, fell to the side and knocked over a bookcase.

"How about it?" Nami pressed him. "It'd really help me out a lot. If I had a doctor on board I wouldn't have to stay here for three more days. And you took such-"

"DON'T BE STUPID!" Chopper yelled. "I'M A REINDEER! I'VE GOT HOOVES! AND A BLUE NOSE! I DON'T BELONG WITH HUMANS!"

CLICK!

"Actually Chopper… you're wrong," Sabo spoke up. "It turns out… you'd fit in on your crew better than you think." Sabo held Bonnie Anne in front of him and patted her barrel. He glanced over at Nami. "Nami… I owe you an apology. You were right. It turns out Bonnie isn't human. She's like Chopper."

"Yeah… well… there was always a chance I was hallucinating," Nami confessed with a shrug. "The bitch hates me anyway so I figured I didn't have much to lose by spilling the beans."

CLICK!

Sabo fully entered the room and knelt down near Chopper with Bonnie in his lap. "See Chopper… like I told you when I first saw you outside the castle. This is Bonnie Anne… she's my girlf-er… mate… and she's a talking animal-person like you. But that doesn't make a difference to me. I still love her."

"THAT'S JUST A GUN! YOU'RE CRAZY!" Chopper shrieked.

"Oh, right, like I haven't heard that one before," Sabo muttered.

"THERE YOU ARE, REINDEER!" Luffy yelled as he ran in through the open door.

"GAAAAH!" Chopper screamed as Luffy dove for him but then he transformed into his reindeer form and leapt over the lunging pirate.

SKISH!

Chopper bolted out the door and down the hallway.

"WAIT! COME BACK!" Luffy hollered as he got back up and chased after Chopper. "COME ON! COME AND BE A PIRATE WITH US! IT'LL BE GREAT!"

Sabo shook his head, "Luffy's recruitment strategy has officially reached a new low…"

"Hee hee hee…" Dr. Kureha cackled from the corner where she'd watched the whole scene play out. "Shame on you, girlie," she scolded Nami. "Trying to seduce my reindeer without my permission!"

"I'm sorry," Nami replied with a smirk, "Did I need your permission to seduce him?"

"Hee hee hee!" Dr. Kureha cackled. "Cheeky little brat. If you want him so bad, you can have him. But I doubt he'll go with you. Chopper's got a scar on his heart that may not ever heal."

"I COME BEARING CHOCOLATE!" Miss Valentine called out as she walked in with Sanji. This time she was the one carrying the tray full of hot chocolate mugs. Sanji had a tray of dinner plates.

"Smells like you raided Chopper's candy stash," Dr. Kureha noted.

"That was his?" Miss Valentine questioned.

"We extracted the chocolate from the candy and melted it down to supply the chocolate for the hot chocolate," Sanji recounted as he handed everyone a plate. He flashed Miss Valentine a proud smile. "She was a natural. It was like her muscle memory just took over instinctively."

"I left a couple mugs in the other room for Luffy and Chopper to find," Miss Valentine stated.

---

"AAAAAHHH!" Chopper screamed as Luffy chased him up the stairs.

"YAAAAAAHHH!" Chopper kept screaming as Luffy chased him back down the stairs.

"WAAAAAAAAHHH!" Chopper was still screaming… as he chased Luffy up the stairs.

"Wait a minute…" Luffy and Chopper froze when they realized they were running backwards.

"AAAAAAAAHHH!" Chopper screamed as Luffy chased him down the hallway into the empty 'kitchen'.

Luffy barrelled in but skidded to a stop when he noticed the two mugs of hot chocolate on the table.

Skeeesssh…

"WAIT!" Luffy called out. "Chocolate break!"

Luffy and Chopper both took one of the mugs and started drinking.

"Yummy!" Chopper exclaimed.

"Good, huh?" Luffy questioned. "This one's even better than the last batch!"

"It's like drinking candy!" Chopper remarked.

They each guzzled down their drink.

"Ready to go again?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah… I guess…" Chopper agreed as he put his cup down and took off running again.

Luffy waited two seconds then chased after him, "COME ON REINDEER! JOIN MY CREW!"

"DUMMY! I DON'T BELONG WITH HUMANS!"

And so the chase continued.

---

"Anyway, the regular hot chocolate was for them," Miss Valentine recounted. "I found your rum stash and Sanji helped me recreate one of my recipes from my Chocolate Lady days for us older drinkers." Miss Valentine offered Doctorine the first mug. "I call it a Hard Chocolate. Enjoy!"

Dr. Kureha took a sip from her mug while Miss Valentine passed out drinks to Sanji, Sabo and Nami.

"Do I taste plum in there?" Dr. Kureha asked.

"I heard you liked pickled plums so I made yours extra special as a thank you," Miss Valentine told her.

"Well, it smells wonderful," Nami remarked as she sniffed her mug. "Congratulations on getting your memory back." Nami prepared to take a sip but Doctrine snatched it away before she could.

Swish!

"None for you!" the doctor scolded her patient, "You're still in recovery."

"You really are a witch!" Nami complained.

"So…" Sabo prompted, "You were going to tell us about the scar on Chopper's heart?"

Sanji and Miss Valentine shared a look then took a seat together against the wall with their dinner.

"You have to understand that Chopper was an outcast from the day he was born," Dr. Kureha began. "His herd didn't like him because of his blue nose. They made him walk at the back of the group. When he ate the Human Human Fruit he became even stranger and they kicked him out of the herd. He was lonely and wanted friends… so he wandered into a village. But the people there only saw a monster and they shot at him. He didn't belong with the reindeer… he didn't belong with humans… he was the loneliest creature on this island."

"That's awful!" Nami gasped. "Poor Chopper."

"I suppose the story really starts with a Quack named Dr. Hiluluk," Dr. Kureha said as she eyed Sabo's black top hat.

And so while Luffy relentlessly chased Chopper all over Drum Castle… Dr. Kureha told everyone else the story of Drum Kingdom's ultimate outcast Tony Tony Chopper and his history with Dr. Hiluluk the Quack who had adopted the young reindeer, raised him like a son… and taught him how to dream.

Dr. Kureha closed her eyes as she pictured Chopper standing out in the snow waving Dr. Hiluluk's flag. The Quack may have sacrificed himself but Chopper inherited his will.

"PLEASE! TEACH ME TO BECOME A DOCTOR! I'LL BECOME THE MIRACLE CURE! I'LL BECOME A DOCTOR THAT CAN CURE ANYTHING! BECAUSE… THERE ARE NO INCURABLE DISEASES IN THIS WORLD!"

"Call me Doctorine."

"That's the saddest thing I've ever heard!" Miss Valentine wailed as she sobbed into Sanji's shoulder. "And I used to crush people to death for a living!"

"If he's got your medical expertise and Hiluluk's faith... he's bound to be the best doctor in the world," Sanji realized.

"Well, we'll definitely accept him," Sabo insisted. "I've recently learned that I have a soft place in my heart for talking animals."

"I think we're all hoping that you and Chopper don't get that close," Nami quipped as she casually speared a pickled plum out of a familiar jar.

"YOU LITTLE THIEF!" Dr. Kureha snapped as she snatched back the empty jar. "This is what happens when I open my castle to pirates…"

But suddenly a loud cry rang through the castle.

"MOOOOFUUUUN! MOOOOFUUUUN! MOOOOFUUUUUUN!"

"What the heck was that?" Nami yelped.

"MARSHMALLOW!?" Miss Valentine gasped as she jumped to her feet.

"I told him to stand guard for Wapol," Sabo stated,

"DOCTORINE!" Chopper shouted as he came running in as reindeer. "IT'S WAPOL! HE'S BACK!"

"Sanji! Marshmallow's all alone out there!" Miss Valentine realized.

"Don't worry, I'll save your cow," the cook assured her as he bolted out the door.

Sabo rose to his feet and turned to Dr. Kureha. "Do you want to accept my deal now? Wapol's here."

"So he followed you here," Dr. Kureha realized. "That's how you knew he was coming. How do I know you can actually beat him?"

Sabo smirked, "Because the last two times we faced him… he only survived because we hit him too hard and he got sent flying away before I could finish the job. But you know what they say… third time's the charm. Wapol represents everything I hate in this world. I can't stand conceited privileged royalty like him. To be perfectly honest with you, I'm gonna take care of him either way. But I'd appreciate it if you'd waive our medical fees in exchange. That way I'd have one more reason to tear that tin-plated tyrant limb from limb."

"Alright, fine," Doctorine agreed.

Sabo grinned and slung Bonnie over his shoulder. "Then let's go find him."

Chopper - still in his reindeer form - glanced over at Dr. Kureha then trotted after him. The doctor shook her head and followed her assistant.

But at the last second she turned around and yanked the door shut behind her.

THUD! Klick!

"Hee hee hee!" Doctorine cackled as she pulled her key out of the lock.

"Was that necessary?" Sabo asked.

"I wasn't born yesterday," Dr. Kureha replied. "I'm not going to walk away and leave the door wide opened so the sticky-fingered plum thief can sneak out while my back is turned. She's not leaving until I give her a clean bill of health."

"Chopper, I'm gonna load some new rounds into Bonnie Anne," Sabo announced. "I know you don't like guns but every single one of them has Wapol's name on it. I swear I won't even point Bonnie at you."

Chopper eyed Sabo. "Are you really going to fight Wapol? You're not from this kingdom."

"Ah, that's what's great about being a pirate," Sabo replied as he cracked Bonnie open and loaded six bullets into the rifle. "Pirates are the freest men in the world. They're not bound to any one kingdom and since they're outlaws they don't have to listen to stupid laws made by sad sorry excuses for royalty like Wapol. I think a better question is… are you going to fight Wapol?"

"This kingdom's my home," Chopper stated. "Wapol's the worst thing about it. He can't come back."

"But y'know… going against the county's king means that you're an outlaw," Sabo pointed out, "And if you're going to be an outlaw… why not go all the way and be a pirate too? You've already got a pirate flag flying outside."

"Knock it off!" Chopper snapped. "I'm a reindeer! I don't belong with humans!"

CLICK!

"I'll have you know that our crew loves animals," Sabo told him. "You might not believe me about Bonnie but we've already got a duck on board our ship. We rescued that hippo we rode up here on from Wapol. Luffy befriended an enormous island whale when we entered the Grand Line. And there was also this awesome otter sketch artist we met back in Whiskey Peak. Luffy and I tried to get him and his vulture friend to join our crew. But it turned out they were already someone else's pets."

"I'm not a pet!" Chopper insisted.

"Do you really think Luffy would have spent all that time chasing you around this castle if he wanted you for a pet?" Sabo countered. "He genuinely likes you and wants you to join our crew."

"Speaking of that punk with the straw hat," Dr. Kureha spoke up, "Where is he?"

"He hasn't chased me for a while…" Chopper admitted. "I thought I finally lost him…"

"Knowing Luffy, he's wherever there's trouble," Sabo reasoned. "Which means he's probably outside confronting Wapol." Sabo blinked as that thought registered then he tore down the stairs. "LUFFY! YOU'D BETTER NOT FIGHT THAT STUPID KING! I CALLED DIBS!"

---

"We've been locked in…" Miss Valentine noted as she tested the door.

"I guess she didn't want me making a break for it," Nami reasoned.

---

A few minutes earlier, Wapol and Chessmarimo had finally reached the peak of Drum Rock.

"ROBSON!" Wapol shouted as he soon as he spotted the White Walkie. "YOU'D BETTER EXPLAIN YOURSELF! HOW DARE YOU BETRAY YOUR KING!"

"Oh… so you're the reason this cow was shouting."

A familiar pirate came out from behind the hippo.

"STRAW HAT!" Wapol exclaimed. "HOW DARE YOU DEFILE MY CASTLE WITH YOUR PRESENCE!"

"I thought this was the witch's castle?" Luffy questioned.

"IT'S MY CASTLE! I'M THE KING!" Wapol yelled. "PREPARE TO DIE!"

"Sorry, I want to but I can't clobber you pests," Luffy replied. "My brother wants to fight you."

"DON'T TOUCH THAT COW!"

Sanji came racing out the front door and skidded to a stop in front of Marshmallow.

"ANOTHER ONE!?" Wapol exclaimed. "BOTH OF YOU PREPARE TO DIE!"

"I'm not here for you clowns," Sanji replied, "I'm just here for my Valentine's cow."

"WHAT?" Wapol yelled. "THAT'S MY HIPPO! YOU PEASANTS DARE IGNORE THE KING!? THAT VIOLATES THE LAW I MADE UP EARLIER!"

"Don't care…" Luffy said. Then he noticed Chessmarimo, "Hey Sanji… wasn't that two-headed guy two guys the last time we saw them?"

"I think so," Sanji answered.

"No doubt you simpletons would be impressed by my magnificent fusion technique!" Wapol gloated. "I used my Munch Munch Factory to combine them together! They were formidable separately… but together they're Drum Kingdom's strongest warrior!"

"WHOA! THAT'S SO COOL!" Luffy exclaimed.

"No it isn't," Sanji snapped, "They're just riding piggyback!"

"Sire, there appears to be a strange flag flying on the tower,"Chessmarimo reported.

Wapol looked up and spotted Dr. Hiluluk's skull and cherry blossom pirate flag.

"WHAT'S THAT WEIRD FLAG DOING FLYING AT MY CASTLE?"

"Oh… right… that pirate flag," Luffy realized as he looked up at the black flag.

"That's Dr. Hiluluk's flag," Sanji stated.

"WHAT'S THAT QUACK DOCTOR'S FLAG DOING FLYING OVER MY CASTLE?!" Wapol demanded. "THAT'S IT! MY FIRST ACT UPON RETURNING TO MY GLORIOUS CASTLE WILL BE TAKING DOWN THAT EYESORE! Munch Munch Shock… ARM CANNONS!"

Sha-Shoom!

Wapol's arms shifted and transformed into cannons. "I'LL TAKE IT DOWN!"

BOOOM-BOOOM!

Wapol's aim rang true and Dr. Hiluluk's miracle flag was blasted off the tower room.

"Well done, sire!"Chessmarimo cheered.

Luffy scowled as he stared up at the now empty roof. "That flag…"

"MY SECOND ACT UPON RETURNING TO MY GLORIOUS CASTLE WELL BE PUNISHING THE TRAITOR!" Wapol shouted as he aimed his cannon arms at Marshmallow.

"MOFUUN!" Marshmallow gasped in alarm.

"Oh no you don't!" Sanji growled as he stood protectively in front the White Walkie.

"Stand aside, peasant!" Chessmarimo as he drew two bows and fired flaming arrows at Sanji. "MARIMO'S SNOW MELTING ARROW!"

SKISH!

Sanji dodged to the side to avoid the flaming arrows but that left Marshmallow wide opened for Wapol.

"ALL TRAITORS WILL BE EXECUTED!" the King shouted.

"QUICK DRAW! BURST FIRE!"

KER-CHOW! KER-CHOW!

The nozzle was blown off of each cannon before Wapol could get off his shot.

"GAAH!" Wapol yelped as his arms returned to normal.

"How many cannons do you even have?" Sabo wondered as he walked out the front door.

"Just the two!" Wapol admitted, "But thanks to my miraculous Munch Munch Fruit Powers I can alter the shape of things that I've eaten. Watch this! Munch Munch Shock… DOUBLE BARREL!"

Shoom!

Wapol's right arm transformed into a cannon. But instead of just one it looked like two cannon barrels melded together. "See? Good as new!"

"You're despicable," Sabo stated. "You have powers that allow you fix things… but instead you only use them to destroy and hoard all the material for yourself."

"I DON'T NEED TO DEFEND MYSELF TO A PIRATE PUNK LIKE YOU!" Wapol snapped.

"Hey Sanji… where'd Luffy go?" Sabo wondered.

"He was just here…" Sanji admitted. "I think he disappeared shortly after the fatass blew up the flag."

"He blew up the flag?" Chopper repeated. He and Dr. Kureha had finally arrived.

Chopper looked up and saw the black flag was no longer flying on top of the tower. Chopper transformed into his hulking human form. "HOW DARE YOU ATTACK THE DOCTOR'S FLAG!"

"I know you!" Wapol realized. "You're the monster that showed up after that imbecilic quack blew himself up! And Dr. Kureha! HOW DARE YOU CLAIM MY CASTLE FOR YOURSELF!"

"I have no interest in this pile of rubble," Doctorine confessed, "That stubborn guy insisted that we make it a memorial to Dr. Hiluluk as his final resting place."

"Well… I looks like everyone that i want dead is all gathered together," Wapol noted.

"HEY FAKER!"

Everyone looked up to see that Luffy had scaled the castle and had tied the flag post back into place with the sleeve of his red winter coat. Dr. Hiluluk's Jolly Roger was flying once more.

"HOW DARE YOU REPAIR THAT FLAG AFTER I TOOK IT DOWN!" Wapol yelled. "YOU'RE DEFYING THE KING OF THE COUNTRY'S WISHES!"

Luffy glared down at Wapol, "A poser like you who only pretended to be a pirate without actually risking your life… COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND THE TRUE MEANING OF A PIRATE'S FLAG!"

"The meaning of that flag?" Wapol repeated. "Mahahaha! Bah! As if there's any meaning behind that stupid pirate decoration!"

"And that's exactly why you're just a lying poser!" Luffy retorted. "This flag isn't something that a fake pirate like you can just wave around as a joke!"

"Oh please!" Wapol scoffed, "You think a King like wants to leave his country and pretend to be a pirate? STOP TRYING TO RAISE THAT EYESORE AND LET IT DIE!" Wapol pointed his double-barreled cannon at the flag. "THIS IS MY KINGDOM! I WON'T ALLOW YOU TO DISGRACE IT BY WAVING THAT DISGUSTING RAG! I'LL KEEP SHOOTING IT DOWN UNTIL IT STAYS DOWN!"

"Luffy!" Sanji called out in warning.

"WATCH OUT!" Chopper shouted.

"YOU DON'T HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO DESTROY THIS FLAG!" Luffy yelled. "A PIRATE FLAG IS A SYMBOL OF CONVICTION!"

Wapol opened fire.

BOOOM-BOOOM-BOOOM-BOOOM!

The smoke cleared and revealed Luffy still standing on top of the tower with Dr. Hiluluk's banner raised over his head.

"See?" Luffy said. "This flag's unbreakable."

---

"We found him! We found Dalton!" someone exclaimed.

Dalton's body had finally been dug out of the snow. But he was half frozen and still had three of Chess' arrows sticking out of him.

"Let us heal him…"

Everyone turned to see the Twenty MDs standing nearby with their sterilized gloves at the ready. They'd managed to reattach Wapol's head when Dalton had nearly cut it off. But in exchange, Wapol had abandoned them all here when the avalanche had hit.

"Dalton isn't dead," one of the doctors stated, "His body and vitals are merely frozen. We can treat him."

But the four Straw Hats were there with Carue and their two rams acting as a barricage.

"I thought you said the witch the others went to was the only doctors on the island?" Zoro asked.

"These are the guys that Wapol kept with him," Usopp explained. "Remember? Sabro tried to get Wapol to loan one of them to us. But that jerk refused."

"They work for Wapol… can we trust them?" Ayako wondered.

"We're your only hope if you want to save him!" the twenty doctors chorused.

But then the Twenty MDs began removing their face masks and glasses.

"It's true that we went along with Wapol's ordersl" an old doctor with a mustache admitted, "But we're all still doctors at heart. And as doctors our job is to treat the sick and wounded. Long ago, a certain Quack taught us to never give up hope. This country can't afford to lose more brave fools like him!"

Vivi stared at the doctors then turned and nodded at the others, "I think we can trust them. We can't let Dalton die. He's this country's chance at finally getting a good King."

The Straw Hats stepped aside and the Twenty MDs got to work treating Dalton.

But as soon as his wounds were patched up, Dalton was ready to go after Wapol again.

"WE MIRACULOUSLY GAINED OUR FREEDOM ONLY AFTER THIS COUNTRY WAS DESTROYED! WE NEED TO TAKE CARE OF WAPOL NOW! IF WE LET THIS OPPORTUNITY SLIP AWAY WE'LL ROT FOR ALL ETERNITY!"

---

"HE'S INSANE!" Chessmarimo exclaimed as they stared up at Luffy.

"I don't know who this flag belongs to," Luffy confessed. "But this is a flag that's backed by a man's conviction and will! It's not something that you can fly on a whim! A BUMBLING IDIOT LIKE YOU SHOULD NEVER TOUCH THIS FLAG!"

"So this is a pirate.." Chopper thought to himself.

"I love pirates!" Dr. Hiluluk has gushed as he proudly displayed his personal Jolly Roger to Chopper. "They're brave, proud warriors and the seas is full of 'em! One day you should venture out to sea and see them for yourself!"

"He's amazing!" Chopper gasped. "Don't worry Doctor… I'll be brave warrior too!" Chopper transformed into his huge human form and charged at Wapol. "HOW DARE YOU SHOOT THE DOCTOR'S FLAG! HE TRIED TO SAVE THIS KINGDOM! HE EVEN TRIED TO SAVE YOU!"

"Oh no you don't!"Chessmarimo called out as he barred Chopper's path to the King.

WHAP!

Chopper collided with Chessmarimo and started angrily grappling with the four-armed fusion man.

"We won't let you lay a finger on his majesty!"

"Grrrrr…" Chopper growled as he struggled against the four-armed man.

"You're quite the curious oddity, aren't you?" Chessmarimo remarked. "I remember you! You're that monster that used to terrify the villagers. The one that Dalton thought. What possible reason could a friendless monster like you have for trying to save this kingdom? ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS!"

"SHUT UP!" Chopper shouted at his two-headed opponent. "I CAN FIGHT EVEN IF DON'T HAVE ANY FRIENDS! I'LL KEEP FIGHTING FOR EVERYTHING THAT THE DOCTOR BELIEVED IN!"

"I'VE GOT HIM!" Wapol called out as he aimed his double barreled arm at Chopper while his fused henchmen held the reindeer-man in place.

"You've got nothing!" Sabo snapped as he jumped up onto Chopper's bulging shoulders then sprang up into the air.

SKISH!

Sabo aimed Bonnie down at Wapol and fired at his cannon arm.

KER-CHOW!

"WAAAH!" The shot blasted a hole straight through the middle of Wapol's arm just as the barrels fired.

KA-BOOOOOM!

Wapol's cannon arm was blown clean off while the recoil from Sabo's shot caused him to flip in the air before he came down and drove both feet into Kuromarimo's face.

THWHAM!

Chessmarimo was sent flying back into Wapol and knocked him over while Sabo landed beside Chopper.

"What's the big idea, Chopper?" Sabo asked. "No friends? I'm your friend. I think you're incredible. Bonnie's your friend too."

"AND YOU'VE GOT ANOTHER FRIEND TOO!" Luffy shouted after using his other sleeve to raise Hiluluk's flag once more. He'd turned his red winter coat into a red winter vest. Luffy grabbed the front of the tower and stretched himself backwards. "I'M YOUR FRIEND!"

SHOOOOM!

Luffy shot himself down from the tower and he slammed into the ground like a meteor.

"GAH!" Chopper shrieked as he shrunk down into his tiny tanuki form. "He's hurt! He needs a doctor!"

"Nope! I'm fine!" Luffy announced as he stood up unscathed. "I'm rubber."

"Rubber?" Chopper repeated.

Sabo smirked, "It means he's a monster. We love monsters on our crew."

"KICK THEIR ASSES!" Luffy cheered. The rubber pirate was barely restraining himself from attacking their recovering enemies. "LET'S SEE WHAT YOU CAN DO, REINDEER!"

"Alright Chopper, how about you let me and Bonnie handle the King," Sabo suggested as he and Chopper stepped passed Luffy, "We'll teach the jerk some manners and bring him to his knees. In the meantime… do you think you can handle the mishmash riffraff that's with him?"

"That guy? No problem," Chopper agreed.

"Great! Go Team Top Hat!" Sabo exclaimed as he held his free hand out to Chopper.

"..." Chopper stared at Sabo's hand perplexed.

"It's a High Five…" Sabo explained. "It's something friends do. You slap it."

"..." the reindeer tentatively reached out and touched his hoof to Sabo's outstretched hand.

"Yeah… we'll work on that," Sabo decided.

"Damn…" Sanji grumbled. "Looks like all the targets have been claimed."

"Didn't you come out there to save that hippo?" Dr. Kureha asked as she looked over at Marshmallow.

"You're right," Sanji realized then glanced at the open castle door behind him. "I should be able to squeeze him through that. Come on Marshmallow… let's get you away from the battle and into shelter."

"YOU DAMN PIRATE PUNK!" Wapol roared as he stood back up. "YOU'RE UNDERESTIMATING ME! I'LL SHOW YOU HOW TERRIFYING MY POWERS CAN BE! MUNCH MUNCH SHOCK… WAPOL HOUSE!"

SHOOOOM!

Wapol once again grew in size until he was two stories high and a chimney coming out of his head, cannons for arms and windows on his chest.

"Idiot," Sabo scoffed, "That just makes you a bigger target… BURST FIRE BARRAGE!" Chopper flinched and covered his ears when Sabo opened fire.

KER-CHOW-CHOW-CHOW!

The three rounds tore chunks off of Wapol's big stone body and blasted him backwards.

"See Chopper?" Sabo asked. "I told you all six rounds had his name on them. Your guy's wide open now."

Chessmarimo scoffed as Chopper approached him. "Do you actually think you can beat me? You're just a stupid animal!"

"MY NAME IS TONY TONY CHOPPER!" Chopper shouted. "THAT NAME WAS GIVEN TO ME BY THE WORLD'S GREATEST DOCTOR! THE DOCTOR MAY HAVE TRIED TO FORGIVE YOU BRUTES… BUT I WON'T! I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR MOCKING HIM!"

"WE DON'T NEED YOUR FORGIVENESS! YOU'LL BE THE ONE BEGGING FOR FORGIVENESS WHEN WE'RE DONE WITH YOU! PREPARE TO DIE, YOU DUMB MONSTER!"

Chopper didn't back down. He calmly pulled out a small yellow ball. "Rumble Ball!"

"Get ready, boys," Dr. Kureha called out to Luffy and Sabo while Sanji struggled to stuff Marshmallow through the castle door behind her. "My little reindeer is going to keep surprising you."

"Oooh… what's that thing?" Luffy asked eagerly.

"My Rumble Ball lasts for three minutes!" Chopper announced. "I'll have to beat you within that time."

"HAHAHAHA!"Chessmarimo laughed mockingly. "Three minutes? You won't be able to beat me at all! Let alone in three minutes!"

"Hear that Bonnie?" Sabo asked. "Three minutes. I'd love to see that."

"THREE MINUTES?" Luffy gushed, "I'd love to see that!"

"Three minutes?" Wapol scoffed. "BAH! I'd love to see that!"

Chopper flipped the yellow ball into his mouth and bit down on it.

Chomp!

"RUMBLE!"

"And just what was that supposed to do?" Chessmarimo questioned as he pulled out two large bows with flaming hairballs on the arrows. "MARIMO'S SNOW-MELTING ARROW!"

But as the fusion warrior used his four arms to fire both arrows at the same time… Chopper transformed into his reindeer form and rushed forward at top speed. "Walk Point."

SWOOOSH!

Chopper sped passed the arrows and charged towards Chessmarimo.

"So you can transform? That just means you've eaten a Zoan-type Devil Fruit. That means you have three transformations like Dalton. You're just a reindeer-human."

"Heavy Point." Chopper grew in size and transformed into his yeti form. "NO! I'M A HUMAN-REINDEER!"

"WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE!?" Chessmarimo snapped. "I've seen and memorized all three of your forms! MARIMO'S SUPER SURPRISE QUATRO HAMMERS!" The fusion warrior pulled out massive mallets and wielded one in each hand. "I'VE SEEN ALL YOU CAN DO! YOU'RE JUST A POWER FIGHTER LIKE DALTON!"

"Jump Point." Chopper's bulky body suddenly slimmed down and had two pronounced reindeer legs.

"YOU CAN'T BEAT TWO PEOPLE IN TERMS OF STRENGTH!" Chessmarimo shouted as he lashed out with all four hammers.

SKISH!

But Chopper shot straight up into the air and flew all the way up over the top of Wapol's huge castle.

"WHOOAAAA!" Luffy and Sabo both gasped as they craned their necks to stare up at Chopper.

"WHAT FORM IS THAT?!" Chessmarimo demanded. "I thought your hybrid form was that little tanuki… YOU'RE A FREAK OF NATURE!"

"Guard Point." Chopper curled up into a ball as he dropped out of the sky and his fur grew out to make him look like a big brown furball.

WHA-WHOMP!

Chopper was greeted with two brutal hammer shots as he came down and went bouncing away.

"ANOTHER FORM!? IMPOSSIBLE!" Chessmarimo shrieked.

The brown fur ball stood up on four barely visible legs as Chopper's hybrid head popped out the front. "Your attacks have no effect."

"A ZOAN FRUIT SHOULD ONLY GIVE YOU THREE FORMS!" Chessmarimo insisted. "WHAT ARE YOU!?"

"My Rumble Ball is a special drug that I created to alter the wavelengths emitted by each of my forms. After five years of research I've discovered an additional four transformation points!"

"SEVEN TRANSFORMATIONS!?" Chessmarimo exclaimed. "SO WHAT IF YOU HAVE A FEW EXTRA!"

"Huh… what's with that shining?" Wapol grumbled. He looked over at Luffy and Sabo and was nearly blinded by the bright stars shining in their eyes.

"SEVEN TRANSFORMATIONS!?" the two brothers shouted in perfect sync. "THAT'S THE COOLEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE!"

"What's with them?" Dr. Kureha wondered.

"Shut up you guys!" Chopper whined… with a big giddy smile on his face. "Saying stuff like that won't make me happy!"

"I can't believe we're fighting these idiots…" Wapol grumbled as he surveyed the two starry-eyed pirates and the giddy reindeer-monster.

"YOUR EXTRA FORMS WON'T SCARE ME!" Chessmarimo yelled. "YOU'RE ALL SHOW!"

"It's not all show!" Chopper argued, "Arm Point."

Chopper was back on two legs but had kept his reindeer head and antlers. The most notable aspect of this form were his huge bulging arms.

Chessmarimo swung his four hammers at the charging Chopper but Chopper met the swing with his big arms and hard hooves.

KRUUNCH!

Chopper's hooves shattered Chessmarimo's wooden hammers and broke straight through them. "Hmph! How's that for show? My 'iron hooves' are hard enough to smash through solid boulders!"

"WHOOOOAAA-HOOOO-HOOOO!" Luffy and Sabo both cheered.

Sanji looked back at his Captain and Quartermaster just as he finished stuffing Marshmallow through the castle door. "If I ever doubted those two were brothers before… that definitely proves it."

"You conceited little freak!" Chessmarimo snarled as he drew new weapons. "KNOW YOUR PLACE! MARIMO'S SUPER SURPRISE… QUATRO AXES! TRY TO SMASH THESE! SNOW-SPLITTING BLADE!"

SLISH-SLISH!

Chessmarimo drove two axes into the ground on each of his sides and created two blade-like shockwaves that rushed towards Chopper.

Chopper covered himself with his huge arms but got two deep gashes on his arms for his troubles.

"Great… now he's wrecking the castle…" Dr. Kureha grumbled as she looked to the side as saw that Chessmarimo's attack had left two deep gouges going through the front of the castle.

"I'LL SLICE YOU TO RIBBONS!" Chessmarimo shouted as he charged Chopper with his four axes. "ALL-DIRECTIONAL SNOW-SPLITTER!"

SWISH-SWISH-SWISH-SWISH!

The fusion warrior lashed out and swung each of his four axes from a different direction. But Chopper cycled through his forms to dodge the blows. He dashed around some with Walk Point and he jumped over others with Jump Point before he shrunk back down into his tiny tanuki form and ran out of range.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO ALL THAT CONFIDENCE YOU HAD EARLIER!" Chessmarimo taunted. "YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO BEAT ME IN THREE MINUTES BY RUNNING AWAY!

"Brain Point." Chopper skidded to a stop, still in his original hybrid form. "I wasn't just running away. I've been searching for your weak point. It's time to finish you off!" Chopper brought his hooves together and stared through the diamond shaped hole in the middle. "Scope!"

"What's that? Is he gonna shoot a beam?" Luffy asked eagerly. "I wanna see a beam! Beam! Beam!"

"Is that hat cutting of circulation to your brain, boy?" Doctorine wondered.

"Shut up," Luffy retorted petulantly, "Look at how he's holding his hooves! It could be a beam!"

"Luffy… he distinctly said scope," Sabo told him. "You know what a scope is…" Sabo jammed his rifle up against Luffy's face so his brother was staring through Bonnie Anne's scope.

"Yeah! He's scoping so he can fire a beam!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Those idiots are ignoring me…" Wapol growled.

"Did you say you were searching for my weak point?" Chessmarimo questioned. "I'm two men combined as one! I have no weak point! IF ANYONE'S GOING TO BE FINISHING ANYONE OFF IT'LL BE ME FINISHING OFF A STUPID TRANSFORMING REINDEER-FREAK THAT CAN'T EVEN ATTACK!"

"Found it!" Chopper announced as his scope zeroed in on Chess's chin. "His chin."

"RAAAAH!" Chessmarimo charged Chopper and swung his four axes all at once.

But Chopper shifted into his Jump Point form and leapt over all four attacks.

SKISH!

"Where'd he go?" Chessmarimo wondered as Chopper landed behind him.

Chopper's arms bulked up as he transformed into Arm Point. Chessmarimo turned into a big uppercut. "CLOVEN ROSEO!"

WHAAAM!

Chess's chin shattered as Chopper's 'iron hoof' smashed into it and sent the fusion warrior into the air.

"CHOPPER! CHOPPER! DON'T STOP!" Sabo called out eagerly. "THAT'S ONLY SIX! WE WANNA SEE THE SEVENTH FORM!"

"YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!" Luffy chanted. "TRANS-FORM! TRANS-FORM! TRANS-FORM!"

The lonely reindeer's reservations were no match for the enthusiastic cheering and peer pressure. Chopper dropped onto all fours as the fur on his back thickened and his short antlers grew into a huge rack. "Horn Point."

Chopper caught his unconscious opponent on his massive rack of antlers then chucked him back up into the air.

WHISH!

Chopper transformed into Jump Point and rocketed up after Chessmarimo.

SKISH!

Chopper's arms grew as he went back into Arm Point then lashed out with booth hooves at once. "CLOVEN DIAMOND!"

WHAAAAM!

A diamond-shaped indent was left on Kuromarimo's head as he plummeted back to the ground.

"Three minutes!" Chopper concluded as he landed lightly on his feet and shrunk back down to his tiny Brain Point form while Chessmarimo slammed down to the ground next to him.

"WHOOOAAA!" Luffy shouted. "THAT WAS AWESOME!"

"LUFFY!" a starry-eyed Sabo exclaimed. "Don't you dare leave this island without recruiting Chopper!"

Chopper blushed sheepishly while doing a happy dance. "Crazy jerks! Saying that's not gonna make me happy!"

Wapol sneered and pointed his cannon arm at the two transfixed brothers and fired. "DIE, YOU FOOLS!"

BOOOM!

SKISH!

Luffy smirked as he jumped out of the way and heard the cannonball explode behind him. "Nice try!"

"I haven't lost yet!" Wapol shouted. "I've still got a vault full of weapons in the castle! MAHAHAHAHA!"

Wapol made a mad dash passed Dr. Kureha into the castle.

"Hey Sabo! That fat guy's getting away!" Luffy called out.

"Bonnie…"

Luffy went stiff at the weak voice then whirled around to see his brother on the ground behind him.

Sabo was clutching a broken rifle to his chest.

---

I warned you!

Now if you'll excuse me I'll just be hiding in my bunker surrounded by landmines for the next two weeks.

Silver signing off