Another Nakama Omakes:

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece or any of its characters. However, I do own Ricky, Ollie, and Han. Just not the characters the latter two are based off of.

A/N: Happy New Year everybody! Here's the fifth omake in Another Nakama Omakes. It's finally time for the long awaited Ricky-Nami Pool. But before we get into that, I wanted to give a status update on Another Nakama III. As most of you know by now, I plan on starting the newest installment of my story with an original arc. However, while I may be out of school I'm working a lot more now so I didn't have as much time to write as I had thought. I've only got two of the four chapters from the arc done so far. But things are always subject to change so I don't want to post any of the chapters until I've completed the entire arc. Just recently I've incorporated a new change based on new information presented in One Piece chapters 651. So I ask for your patience as I try to completd this portion of my story and hopefully I'll have it posted by February at the VERY latest or maybe as early as week after I post the next omake. I'll be sure to give another status update when I post the sixth omake sometime next week.

Pre-Alabasta Omake:

The Pool:

-x-

The day after Mr. 2's visit on the Going Merry, Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, Sanji, Chopper, Vivi, Mana, Ms. Goldenweek, and Mr. 5 were all gathered in the anchor room.

"Alright everyone!" Usopp addressed the gathered group. "We're here to start a pool." SWISH! He was suddenly wearing a green visor and had a little black book opened in front of him. Usopp the Sniper was gone and in his place was Usopp the Bookie. "The entry fee is two hundred fifty thousand berries. Cough it up and then we can get this thing started."

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ms. Goldenweek asked nervously. "What if they find out? I don't think Ricky and Nami would like this."

"Don't worry," Mana reassured her, "Me, Zoro, Chopper, and Mr. 5 took care of them. They'll be out of the way until we're finished."

"What did you do to them?" Vivi inquired.

-x-

"They're up to something," Ricky stated.

"YA THINK?" Nami snapped. The two of them were tied back-to-back onto two chairs in the galley with a very thick rope.

"Well… our Nakama have never been all that subtle," Ricky admitted.

"What do you think they're up to?" Nami asked.

Ricky closed his eye and focused his Treasure Sense. "They're all in the anchor room," Ricky told her. "I think they're exchanging money. If I didn't know any better I'd say they were making some kind of pool."

"A pool?" Nami repeated. "And they didn't invite us?"

"Can you blame them?" Ricky countered. "Between the two of us, we control all of this ship's finances. And I think they've started to realize how pointless it is to try and win money from us so they got together and are having a pool where they won't have to worry about us swooping in and taking it."

"Okay, smart guy," Nami replied, "what are we going to do about it?"

"Nothing," Ricky decided. "Let's let them have their fun. You and I have our own private thing going on so it's only fair that we let them have theirs." Ricky tilted his head to the side and rubbed it on his shoulder causing his eye patch to slip off of his Red Eye. He craned his neck and looked down at the knot in the ropes and slowly prodded at it with the eyes powers.

SLIK! Nami stood up and smirked at Ricky as she held up her trusty knife. "Need a hand?" she teased him.

Both of Ricky's eyes narrowed, "I was trying to undo the knots so we could still use the ropes," he replied. "We could always use the extra supplies."

"Oh," Nami said as she looked down at the severed ropes that she'd cut herself free from. "I suppose we won't be able to use those then."

Ricky removed the ropes from him and stood up then quickly lowered his eye patch and once again covered his Red Eye.

"So… now what?" Ricky wondered.

"Well… we agreed to let them have their pool," Nami reasoned, "but that doesn't mean we can't scare the crap out of them."

Ricky grinned, "What did you have in mind?"

-x-

"Okay everybody," Bookie!Usopp announced back in the anchor room. "Now that you've all put in your money it's time to place your bets. To do that you've gotta try and predict if Ricky and Nami will… or won't… get together and how it will… or won't… happen. Who wants to make the first bet?"

"RICKY AND NAMI ARE GONNA GET MARRIED!" Luffy shouted.

"This pool's about them getting together not getting married, stupid!" Zoro snapped.

"But..." Luffy protested.

"Save it," Zoro interrupted. "Since our Captain doesn't know what he's doing I'll go first. I've already put some thought into mine. They're gonna get together. But neither of them will confess anything while they're sober. So the way it's gonna happen is: they're gonna get piss drunk… either in a drinking contest or in one of our usual parties, they'll confess to each other, and then they'll wake up together the next morning."

"That does seem rather well thought out," Sanji admitted, "For you anyway, Moss Ball."

"SHUT UP EYEBROW!" Zoro snapped, "What's your bet then?"

"They're not gonna get together," Sanji stated. "Because my lovely Miss. Nami will eventually realize that she doesn't want someone that's liable to trick her out of her money and will turn to me instead!"

"Yeah right," Zoro scoffed, "Dream on, Eyebrow Cook."

"Hold on, slow down," Usopp instructed as wrote the bets down in his book. "Zoro: yes – drunken confession. Sanji: no – Nami falls for Sanji."

"What's 'get together' mean?" Chopper inquired innocently.

"You remember those stories you read about Princesses?" Vivi questioned. "And how the Prince and the Princess usually went on to live happily ever after?"

"Yes," Chopper answered.

"We're trying to predict the scenario that will lead to Ricky and Nami living happily ever after," Vivi explained.

Chopper's eyes widened in surprise, "YOU MEAN THEY'RE NOT ALREADY?"

"No Tony," Vivi patiently corrected him. "That's what we're trying to decide."

"Why are we letting the reindeer make a bet?" Mr. 5 complained.

"Watch it!" Zoro growled at him, "Chopper's a member of this crew. He has more of right to be here than you do!"

"Oh yeah?" Mr. 5 countered, "Well I'm making my bet anyway. They're not going to get together because they're both going to die before they admit their feelings to each other. I just hope one of you Straw Hats is still alive to give me my money."

"You're such a jerk!" Mana exclaimed. "They will get together. And it's going to be when one of them wins that Swindling War of theirs."

"Hold on, lemme write this down," Usopp requested, "Mr. Jerk: no – death. Mana: yes – one wins Swindling War."

"Nami swindled Ricky," Luffy stated, "RICKY AND NAMI ARE GONNA GET MARRIED!"

"Damn it Luffy!" Usopp snapped. "That's not how this thing works!"

"Aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself?" Mana asked.

"NOPE!" Luffy chirped. "Nami swindled Ricky so they're gonna get married."

Everyone stared at Luffy not sure what to make of the rubber man's strange bet while he made no move to explain it.

"Uhh… right…" Usopp said, "Luffy: yes – marriage… whatever that means."

"What's the difference between 'being together' and the way they are now?" Chopper inquired.

"'Being together' would involve them admitting that they love each other," Mana explained. "They'll kiss a lot more in different ways, they'll touch each other in new ways, and they'll spend a lot more time alone together. It's pretty obvious to anyone whose spent time on this ship or seen them together for an extended period of time that those two have romantic feelings towards each other. You need to try and predict what's gonna lead to them admitting them."

"You sound like quite the romantic," Ms. Goldenweek remarked.

"I am," Mana admitted, "Between that and the chocolate why do you think I picked my old codename?"

"Hmm…" Chopper thought out loud. "In the stories the Prince and the Princess only live happily ever after once the villain is thwarted and the Kingdom is saved. So maybe they'll get together when we've saved another Kingdom."

"I'll take it," Usopp accepted as he wrote down Chopper's bet, "Chopper: yes – save Kingdom. Ms. Goldenweek, Vivi… that just leaves you."

"On Little Garden Nami was so confident that Ricky would save us," Vivi commented. "I think they came close when he took care of her and saved her from her deadly illness. So they'll need something similar to give Nami the final push to admit her feelings."

"I disagree," Ms. Goldenweek argued. After expressing her initial doubt over having the pool she'd remained mostly silent. "From what I hear, Ricky's saved Nami loads of times so she's had loads of chances to confess to him but still hasn't. I think she will save him and that'll push Ricky to confess."

"Interesting," Usopp remarked as he wrote down the two new bets. "Vivi: yes – Ricky saves Nami. Ms. Goldenweek: yes – Nami saves Ricky. That's everyone and that brings the pool's total is two million berries."

"Aren't you going to bet too?" Ms. Goldenweek asked.

"I'm holding the money," Usopp replied. "I want to remain impartial so I'm not going to get involved with the betting."

"Are you sure you can keep that money safe from those two?" Zoro questioned.

"Of course!" Usopp assured them. "They'll never get it out of me! Usopp's Honor!"

"On that note, I guess we're done here," Sanji reasoned. "Let's break this meeting up and free Miss. Nami and Ricky before they come looking for us."

The Straw Hats and the Agents left the anchor room and were met by the sight of Ricky and Nami sitting on a bound and gagged Carue.

"Hey guys," Ricky greeted them. "Your lookout didn't do that good of a job."

"Didja have fun in there?" Nami teased them before sticking her tongue out.

The Straw Hats and the Agents stood stock-still. Even Zoro was scared of what the two might do now that they were free. None of them stopped the two when they grabbed Usopp.

"If you'll excuse us for a moment we need to have a word with Usopp," Ricky stated before he and Nami dragged Usopp into the anchor room and shut the door behind him.

"They got him already," Ms. Goldenweek pouted. "He never stood a chance." Little did they know that Ricky and Nami had only dragged the sniper into the room so they could make their weapon requests in private.

-x-

There you go. The Straw Hats really did start a pool where Ricky and Nami's relationship is concerned. It was mentioned a few times in Another Nakama II and it's going to be mentioned in Another Nakama III so I figured I'd have some fun and write the actual scene.

'Till Next Time…

Peace!