Hello everybody! I hope everything's alright for you. For me, everything's great, even if my hay fever is slowly killing me, I still have the strength to write this fic. It will be a transition chapter, mainly focusing on the origin of Upper Yard and the reasons why Ash followed the crew.

Well, let's get going !

Ah and before I forget, I'm not the owner of One Piece, Ash is my only possession here.

Chapter 4 - Explanation and meeting God

All the team was gathered on one of the lake's side in the center of which stood the Sacrificial Altar, all sitting around a campfire, sharing a meal made of roasted celestial island fishes while Ussop was busy summarizing everything that happened since their separation at Angel Beach. This way, they all could learn what the others learned on the island. First was Luffy's group, meaning learning about the sky island law the citizen of the sky had to follow, Gan Fall ensuring Conis safety and of course them facing the Trials of Balls with the fight against Satori. Ussop had happily told this story to his companions, although more than 75% had to be corrected by the 3 others members of the group since Ussop kept telling everyone about his heroic behavior no one believed in, except for Chopper. One might as well say that hearing Luffy, and even Sanji, praising the abilities of Ash and how he took care of the Priest by himself gave some of the crew members the right to be suspicious : A guy who appear on their boat without any kind of warning and who is being so useful, it was enough to make a lot of persons suspicious, particularly Nami who had already a bad opinion of the scarf wearing guy. Next came Chopper's story, who told that after the departure of his 3 companions, one of the 3 other Priests, a man armed with a spear that could set aflame everything it touched and teaming up with a fire breathing bird, which explained why the Going Merry was in such a bad shape, but also the wounds on Gan Fall and Pierre, who came to help Chopper after the latter used the whistle offered by the knight of the sky when they first came to the sky island. But what was the most important for the moment, it was what Nami, Robin and Zoro had discovered, which Ussop was already about to summarize.

Ussop (pointing at a chalkboard with a stick): " OK, Thanks for everyone's report. With all those information, a lot of things became clear. However, the most important information is that this island is the one Cricket and his apes friends are looking for ! "

Luffy: " What ?! Really ? "

Nami: " That's what I just said a minute ago. I swear your IQ is getting lower and lower for each passing day or something. "

Nami sighed of exasperation whereas Ash turned to the straw hat wearing captain.

Ash: " It's a mysterious power of Grand Line that sent the golden city to the sky. "

Luffy: " Ah, I get it. Thanks for the explanation, Ash. "

Ash (smiling widely): " No problem. My pleasure. "

Nami gritted her teeth, clearly annoyed, when Ash hand her a book. A book entitled ' How to teach for dummies ' with a small note stuck on it : " I think that you will need this. Ash ". Nami was within an inch of exploding, but showing an exceptional composure, she succeeded in calming down, just throwing the book in the flames of their improvised barbecue, without looking at him. But Ash stretched out, just to whisper in her hear.

Ash : "You know, you'll have a better chance in winning his heart if you stop being such a bitch."

Nami suddenly became as red as the hot coal in the fire, eyes wide before doing what she did best to hide her embarrassment : she slapped the hell out of him. He was sent flying into the tree, under the shocked eyes of the other, who didn't understand what happened. When they turned to Nami to get explanations, they were met with a dark glare stuck on a crimson skin, anger and embarrassment seeping out of her whole being.

Nami : "If someone open his mouth about this, I rip his tongue with my teeth. Am I clear ?"

No one said anything, at least until Luffy decided to broke the ice. But luckily, he wasn't dumb enough to do what Nami just forbid.

Luffy: " Gold, eh ? I've been waiting for an adventure like this ! "

Nami (forgetting all her anger all of a sudden): " Yep, as I am. If you're interested, things shall go smoothly."

Ash (wearing a doctor blouse): "I'm sorry Miss, but I think you have brain cancer. It's the only explanation for your sudden memory loss. You have 3 days to live. I'm sorry. "

Ussop (ignoring Nami throwing everything she could at Ash) : "Oi, Luffy ! Did you forget that rider warning ?! "

Ash: " I think he has. I'm afraid he have the same brain tumor than Nami. "

Chopper: " The God will be angry !? "

Ash: " It's probably going to be the case. "

Robin (giggling lightly): " Fufu sounds interesting... "

Ash: " The treasure hunt or the divine wrath? Be more precise. It's difficult to know with a such tone. "

Sanji: "Nonetheless, with treasure to grab, pirates won't stay silent, yeah ?!"

Ash: " No shit, Captain Obvious. "

Zoro: There is no lack of enemies to fight too ! This is a game of survival ! "

Ash: " Well, you are living to fight. Go find yourself a girlfriend… "

Everybody (except Robin and Luffy): " WOULD YOU STOP WITH THE COMMENTS ?! "

Luffy (getting up, grinning widely): " YOSH ! It's decided ! We'll go and find gold ! "

After everybody agreed on that point, everybody got to work to prepare tonight's dinner, a group gone fetching food in the forest while the others stayed at the campsite. It was the case for Luffy, who was asked to watch the water, actually boiling to become drinkable again for the following day and the gold hunt, Sanji was preparing the meal with what he already had. Nami on the other hand was drawing the full map of Jaya. Lastly, Ash was laid out on a root looking at the surroundings. This is when Chopper and Zoro came back from their hunt with some edible plants and animals.

Chopper: " Sanji, we found a lot of stuff ! Walnut, aloe, bananas and garlic. "

Zoro: " Rats and frogs. "

Sanji: " Great, throw them all into the stew. "

Nami: "Hold it ! There's some weird ones mixed in there."

Sanji: " Oh, it's true, sorry. You don't like garlic ? "

Nami ( Shark-teeth): " That's not that ! "

Ash (turning to Nami): " Are you a cook ? "

Nami: " No. Why ? "

Ash: " Then shut your motherfucking mouth and eat what the chief is cooking. "

Nami (mega irritated): " I really am going to kill you, you fucker."

The navigator was stopped dead in her track when she saw Robin coming back from her exploration, a large blue crystal in her arms.

Nami (stars in her eyes): "Wow, Robin ! What is this blue rock you found ? A gemstone ?!"

Ash (glasses in front of his eyes, writing on a pad): "If the navigator throws a fit, talk about money or treasure to calm her. It's very interesting."

Sanji: "Is that crystallized salt ? What a good find, Robin-chwan!"

Ash (seeing Nami's shoulder dropping a little) : "Is that disappointment I'm smelling ?"

Nami : "Shut up."

Later, everybody was gathered around a campfire so that Nami could explain what she had found about the island. While everyone ate their meal, she explained the situation and the history of the island to the others.

Chopper: "On the Knock-Up Stream ?"

Nami: "It's the best explanation about how the island end up here. Cricket said that the Knock-Up Stream location varies every time. Considering the power of this thing, it is completely possible that it was able to send an island to the clouds."

Ash: "Which explains why nobody have never found the slightest clue about the island. It's because the island didn't sank in the Grand Line, since it has always been here in the sky."

Nami: "Indeed. Now, do you remember what Norland wrote in his diary ?"

Luffy (raising the hand): "I know. He saw gold!"

Ash (faking the surprise): "What a great memory. You didn't crushed your brain by thinking so much."

Robin: "On the last page of the diary … There was something special. ' I saw gold in the right eye of the skull. '."

Nami: "Exactly! Look at that, that's how Jaya looked 400years ago, the same Norland discovered before it was cut in two by the Knock-Up Stream." After that, she put her map to allow the others to see what it was exactly. Actually, the island of Jaya was shaped like a human skull, the current Jaya, still on Grand Line forming the jaws of the skull.

Ash: "So the legendary golden city should be located on Upper Yard ? It's interesting."

Nami: "There's no doubt about it ! There's a huge amount of gold waiting for us here !"

Once the euphoria of the moment fell down, the seriousness disappeared with it as fast as it had arrived, already talking about campfire. The 2 idiots of the group, Luffy and Ussop, refusing to put out the fire like Robin was suggesting, despite knowing really well that it could reveal their position to their enemies.

Luffy (on his knees): "Lighting a campfire is an obvious thing !"

Ussop (in the same position): "It's the way of life to have a campfire on a camping night, even if we die tonight !"

Nami: " You're the ones who are stupid. "

Ash (writing on a notepad): "I can confirm that there is 2 complete morons in this crew."

Zoro: "Yo ! Luffy ! "

By hearing the swordsman voice, they all turned to him, who stood next to a pile of logs, probably made with Sanji who was standing on the other side.

Zoro: " How's that for a woodpile ? "

Ash (looking at them): " (returning to his notepad) As I was saying, 4 complete morons. "

The 4 morons : " Hey ! "

And soon, despite what Nami and Robin could say on this subject, the woodpile was set aflame much for the joy of the straw hats, even Nami who quickly forgot her anger, and they were even joined ed with the local animals, more precisely some kind of wolf, everyone dancing around the fire, under the amused eyes of Robin, Zoro, Nami and Ash, who had stayed on the sides, two of them busy drinking all they could. Suddenly, a new voice was heard, approaching the pirates.

Gan Fall: " Even the cloud wolves have been tamed. There's nobody else that would dare to cause so much noise in Enel's home. "

The knight of the sky took a seat next to the pirates, before speaking once again.

Gan Fall: " Do you know why it is called the holy land ? It's because here in the sky, this ground was unheard of. The clouds ca nurture the plants, but it can't give birth to them. Greenery and soil are not things of the sky. We call this ' Vearth '. For us, it will forever be admiration itself. "

This small discussion finished, Nami got back on a subject which need to be clarified before getting ready for the next day.

Nami (addressing Ash): " Before going to sleep, I think that it's time for you to tell us why you followed us at Mock Town. And I would also like to know where you are coming from."

Ash (Sighs and sits down) : "OK, where do you want me to begin ? "

Nami: " Your family for example. Wait, lets me guess. Given that you are of the kind of guy who talk big, I think you are a guy who is looking for the thrill of a pirate life but who has to depend on a powerful group because alone he would be unable to do such a journey all alone. Maybe even a spoiled childhood with parents always there for … "

Ash: " My mother was killed in front of me, shot in the head by a son of a bitch in the middle of a street. "

The sudden answer stopped Nami in her rant, her face frozen by the surprise, especially as she just discovered that she had something in common with this guy : their mothers were both murdered, and almost in the same way. What surprised them most however, it was the expression on his face. The usually roguish face of Ash, with a half-smile and a teasing light in his eyes, had completely disappeared, replaced by a dark expression, a bitter smile and a look colder than winter. Apparently, family was a subject more than difficult for him. When he saw Ussop open his mouth, Ash guessed what was going to go out and moved on.

Ash: "As a result, I was alone with my father, a loser who is not the kind of guy who know what family mean. It was 10 years ago."

Zoro: "So, you ran away, that's it?"

Ash: "Not just that. I'm also trying to find the one who killed my mother to punish him since these government fucktard apparently don't care for this kind of crime."

By saying that, he had begun to caress his scarf, in the same way you normally caress a pet, which drew the attention of the pirates.

Sanji: "And this scarf ? It is linked to this story ?"

Ash: "Yeah. It's all I have left from my mother. It's like my treasure in a sense."

Nami: "OK, it's very beautiful and all, but that doesn't explain why you would follow us and not another crew."

Ash: "All the pirates face the Marine, but there are not many who will have the balls and desire to fight against more powerful things, like the World Government. And I have a feeling that you have already put your hand in this affair which shook Alabasta recently."

By ending his sentence, Ash got his usual smile back on his face whereas the others were more than surprised hearing him talk about the kingdom of their friend Vivi. Which meant more questions from the pirates.

Nami: "And what made you think that we had a role in this ? After all, we are pirates. This kind of affair are not our business."

Ash: "As it is, I don't care about the reasons why you got involved in the kingdom affairs, but I am sure at 95 % that you are linked to it. In yesterday's newspaper, there was a whole article which explained how the Marine had dismantled the secret criminal organization of Baroque Works and so revealed the project of Crocodile. But in the same newspaper, there were the new wanted poster concerning your crew. The bonus of your captain passing from 30 to 100 million and the first one for Zoro with 60 million. Yet, according to Log Pose, before Jaya, you have to pass by Alabasta. Which means that you were there when the civil war reached its peak and I find that really strange that the Marine is increasing the worth of your crew from 30 to 160 million Berries without any reason, especially that for such a rise, you probably did something huge. So, am I right or not ?"

Luffy (without any pause): "Yes. Vivi is a friend, so it's normal we helped her."

Rest of the crew (except Robin): "DON'T ANSWER SO QUICKLY !"

Ash: "To help a friend in need, you go fight against one of the 7 Shichibukai ? You really are a one of a kind crew, no doubt about it. Let me guess, the Marine just twist the event to make every one believe they were the one to did it, while the truth is that if it wasn't for a pirate crew, they would have never found anything ?"

Sanji: "Yeah, that's basically what happen. You don't seem surprised that government is doing things like that ?"

Ash: "At the same time, they won't let the newspapers tell everybody that pirates did their job better than them, especially when that reveals that the government is partially responsible for the situation. To explain things easily, you are pirates but you are the kind to do what you want, often for the best. This is why I decided to follow you. Is it enough of an explanation for you ? Well then, I'm going to sleep, see you tomorrow."

While Ash left, falling asleep on a root not far from there, the pirates looked at each other, as to make a decision, while thinking about what their 'guest' had told them.

Ussop: "What do you think, then ? You think he told us the truth ?"

Robin: "I feel that he told the truth, but that he hides quite a lot of details which have certainly a lot of importance in his story."

Zoro: "I don't feel right about this guy. There is too much thing we don't know about him."

Sanji: "Anyway, friend or enemy, he is considered a criminal here, just like us and the Going Merry, even if it is quite in a bad shape, is the only boat with which he could return on Grand Line. Which means that he is not going to try to attack us behind ours back. Or at least not now."

Luffy: "I like this guy. And he has a treasure he want to protect, he can't be a bad guy."

Nami: "This has nothing to do with it, Luffy. Anyway, we are going to let him come with us, but stay all the same on our guard, you never can tell. In the meantime, are going to sleep us, tomorrow is going to be a busy day"

/- The next day -/

All the group woke up almost at the same time, some waking up more badly that others, but Ussop was quite shaken this morning. He had almost jumped up on his friends to tell them something more than surprising: the Going Merry have been repaired over night. Although the pirates thought it was another lie of the sniper or an hallucination, they were all taken by surprise by seeing that the boat had indeed been repaired, metal plates covering the places which were damaged. Even the mast, which had been ripped off and now was put back in place. However, a detail grabbed the attention of the straw hats.

Luffy: " The ship is not in flight mode anymore. "

Ussop: " I've been thinking about that too. How could the guy who fixed out ship know what the Going Merry originally looked like ? "

Ash: " Yeah, because if it's no one of us and knowing that the one who built this boat is probably still back in East Blue , I don't know who that could be. "

Nami: " It doesn't matter. Now that the Merry is fixed, the team ' Escape ' clean up this mess while the team ' Gold hunt ' gets ready to leave. "

Ash: " And those teams are ? "

Nami then explained what group members were. Nami, Sanji and Ussop in the team ' Escape ' would stay on the boat, returning him to Angel Beach to get ready to leave whereas the team ' Gold hunt ', composed of Luffy, Robin, Zoro, Chopper and Ash, would go looking for the golden city, to refill the crew's …

Nami: " and don't forget to bring me as much gold as possible, understood ? "

… Or more precisely the redhead's pocket, the kind of detail bringing a frown on Ash. Having settled the last details, both groups parted. The Merry, towed by the Karasumaru, went further and further away from the Sacrificial Altar, the silhouettes of the other group disappearing more and more through the trees. But Ussop noticed something strange.

Ussop: " It's strange, I see only 4 silhouettes in the other group. "

Sanji (grabbing a spyglass): " Ah it's true. Don't tell me the shitty marimo is already lost ? "

Nami: " Knowing him, it wouldn't be surprising. "

Ash: " Or it's someone who just don't give a fuck. "

Ussop: " Who in the other group would … "

A silence. An annoying silence settled down on the boat, quickly broken by 3 simultaneous roar.

Nami, Ussop, Sanji (surprised): " BUT WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE ? "

Ash (smiling, drinking a soda): " I'm hitching a hike. "

Nami ( Shark-teeth): " WHY AREN'T YOU WITH THE OTHERS, STUPID IDIOT !? "

Ash: " For 2 reasons. One, to balance the strengths, now, we are 4 in each group. Two, because if it's for the gold to end up in your pockets, you can go fuck yourself if you think I'm going to walk through that fucking forest just for you, bitch. "

While Nami began running after Ash, Gan Fall took a seat on the front part of the boat, sat against the railing, to talk to the others about the origins of Upper Yard.

Gan Fall: " As you already know, Upper Yard appeared 400 years ago on the sky islands. Previously, Skypiea was a very peaceful celestial island. From time to time, objects from the Blue Sea reached us thanks to the Knock-Up Stream. For the inhabitants of the sky islands treasure those things. This is how the Vearth arrived here. "

Ash: " And when a whole island made of this ' Vearth ' appeared from above the cloud, they probably saw that as a miracle, a gift from the Gods. "

Gan Fall: " Exact. And as the inhabitants were persuaded that it was about a gift of the sky, as you say, they began to worship it and began considering it as an holy land. "

Ash: " Except that this 'holy earth' was inhabited by the people Norland had met 400 years ago. And that's when a chain of event, which had already arisen more than once in history every time a civilization wanted to seize a land which they saw as sacred : a war. The inhabitants of the sky islands went hunting down those who lived on this island just so they can have their holy land. Which could explain why this group of guerrilleros are trying to fight Enel : they are the descendants of the ones Norland met 400 years ago. "

Ussop: " They just want to get back what belongs to them. But then that means that … "

Sanji and Ussop (pointing at Gan Fall): " So then it's all your fault ! "

Pierre, not liking that those guys were talking badly about his partner, took his equestrian shape to bite the head of both pirates all at once. But Gan Fall didn't deny it, even admitting that it was truly their fault.

Gan Fall: " Yes, indeed. Since then, the tribe of Shandia tried to get back their land we deprived them of. "

Nami: " and this Enel ? Where does he come from? "

The face of Gan Fall darkened, as if the memory of this God was particularly painful.

Gan Fall: " 6 years ago, while I was still a God, he appeared at the head of an extremely powerful group and he gave the Shandian and the God's militia a devastating defeat and he has been in control of Upper Yard since then. Now, the God's militia is forced to collaborate to the projects of Enel, projects of which I ignore everything. Anyway, for Shandia, no matter who carries the name of God, they will do everything to get their land back. "

Ash: " And he set up a sort of tyranny, no ? Forcing the inhabitants to act according to his laws at the risk of undergoing the divine punishment. "

Gan Fall: " Indeed, by forcing the inhabitants to condemn travelers like you, who are automatically seen as criminals, he make remorse grow in their heart, knowing very well that this will make them weaker and easier to control, more easily usable. He act as if he really is an almighty God. He is a powerful man, indeed."

This information was difficult to process for the 4 citizens of the Blue Sea. The situation was much more complicated than what they had thought at first. The inhabitants of the sky islands were prisoner of the terror Enel built and the Shandias had been expulsed of their homeland. In the end, if Enel disappeared, it would solve all of their problem.

Gan Fall: " By the way, what is this golden city you are talking ? "

Everybody turned their head to look at the knight of the sky, almost breaking their neck in the process, absolutely not expecting that he would know nothing about this city.

Ash (thoughts): " How can we find this city if people who lived here all their life have never seen it ? Unless it is hidden, but where ? "

After several minutes during which the crew, mainly Nami, tried to understand how Gan Fall could not know the golden city, they changed subject to talk about the way people are fighting here in the sky. He asked for a barrel which was placed on the boat front deck, a shell identical to the one that Ash had stolen from Satori on it. Then he began talking to Sanji, who held a large hammer in his hands.

Gan Fall: " Hit the top of the barrel with that hammer. "

Ussop: " Wait a sec, Sanji. If you break a hole on the deck, I won't forgive you. "

Gan Fall: " Use all of your strength. Don't hold back. "

Ussop: " Hey ! You can't say that just because this isn't your ship ! "

Sanji: " OK, here I go. "

Despite Ussop's prayers, Sanji struck the barrel with all the strength he could gather, but he didn't broke the barrel. From an outside point of view, it looked like the cook had just put the hammer on the barrel without even trying.

Ash (using in a walkie-talkie): " Michael, you hear me ? Sanji's arm are weak as fuck, do you have a way to get it back ?"

Sanji: " Impossible. I swung as hard as I could. I should've made a big hole. (Turns to Ash) and you, you shut up and where you did you found this thing ? "

Gan Fall: " Now, aim the dial's opening at the barrel and press the top of the dial. "

Sanji did as he was asked, not convinced, but when he finally pressed the button, a kind of explosion came from the dial and the barrel was blown into pieces, the cook was propelled backward, colliding into the railing.

Gan Fall: " This is an Impact Dial. It absorbs and impact to release them later. "

Ash: " So I was right about how those works. This is why that balloon guy could hurt Luffy. An impact is kinda like a shock wave, the damages they are dealing are internal. "

Gan Fall: " Some Dial can be much more powerful than this, and even combined with weapons to give them devastating effects. "

Sanji: " And this Mantra, what it is exactly ? "

Gan Fall: " I don't know how to use Mantra myself, but from what I heard I imagine that Mantra is the ability to listen for the various sounds that a person's body makes. I also heard that they can predict a person's next move by listening. With training, the range of mantra can be increased."

Ash (frowning, thought): " That power looks like the Observation Haki. If this Enel can use it, it's going to make things more complicated than we first planned. *Smelling the air* What is this smell ? Is that … ozone ? "

*KRRZZZZZZT*

Nami and Ussop: " SANJI ! "

In a noise similar to a crackling, a man had just appeared on the railing of the Merry, cross legged in front of a charred up and bloody Sanji. It was a tall man, with short blonde hair covered with a white bandana with brackets shaped eyebrows. Bare-chested, he wore an orange baggy pants with black motives and a blue veil around his waist. He had a kind of golden circle transplanted on his back on which was attached 4 drums. The group understood quite quickly who was in front of them. It was the source of all the problem in the sky. God Ener. And he had just struck Sanji with some kind of lightning.

Ussop: " AAAHH! THAT BASTARD ! HE KILLED SANJI! HIS HEART ISN'T BEATING ANYMORE ! "

Ash: " Ussop, the heart is on the other side. "

Ussop stopped dead. Indeed, he had put his hand on the right side of the cook torso. Placing his hand on his left side, he was relieved, feeling his heart beating, although weakly. His life was still in danger. But alas, he was not the only one whose life was in danger. Ener reappeared abruptly in front of Ussop, striking the sniper without further ado, under the horrified eyes of Nami, Ash and Gan Fall, even if the latter kept a strong composure.

Ash (thoughts): " This guy's power. Could it be ? … If that's the case, I'll need something to fight that guy. I hope that they have some on this boat. "

Discreetly, Ash skipped out of Ener's line of sight, going to look for something he hoped he could find in the boat's hold. But regrettably for him …

*KRRZZZZZZT*

He was thunder struck by Ener, who had seen him trying to escape. Ash, completely burned, fell in the hold through the trapdoor of the main deck, collapsing in a pile of crates. Once our scarf wearing friend was out cold, Ener and Gan Fall were in full discussion.

Gan Fall: " What do you want from us ? "

Ener: " It's been six years since those followers of yours have fell in my hands. Even now they are still quite full of spirit. Some of them even have the guts to disobey ! Anyways, after six years of work… I'm almost done. In other words, I have no more use of this island. I'm just here to say goodbye. That's all. This will make your people very happy, won't it ? Since all they see in this island is the big chunk of 'Vearth' anyways. "

Gan Fall: " What ? What do you mean ? "

Ener: " The reason why we took over this island in the first place, is the same reason to why these punks form the Blue Sea entered this island... It is also the reason why the Shandians keep wanting to take their homeland back ! We all want the legendary golden city of the Blue Sea. We want Shandora. Funnier yet, the ultimate survivor of this game will have all that gold for himself ! And of course, I'm one of the player. "

Gan Fall: " Wait ! Has the God's militia been disbanded ? "

Ener: " That's something only the God can know. "

With this, he disappeared literally in a flash of lightning, leaving behind him a navigator and a knight far too much surprised by everything that had just happened. Once they got over the shock, Nami and Gan Fall had been able to look after Sanji and Ussop and had placed them on mattresses in the boat, but there was a problem. The holds of the boat had been searched, everything they had was scattered on the floor and worst of all, Ash was nowhere to be found.

OK, here we are, it's done. With a small cliffhanger in addition. Sorry if this end is a little botched. I am going to try to correct it in the next one, even if I still have some doubts about the contents of said chapter. See you !

Next time: Survival in the forest ! The heirs of Shandora. Montblanc Noland and Calgara.