Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece. Have you seen my work ethic? Granted I'm juggling a lot of work this summer, inspiration was difficult, not the same medium, etc. etc., but that doesn't change the fact that I went two months without an update. Oda had friggin' tonsil surgery and he only stopped for two weeks. HUGE difference. I simply don't compare. I can't even say I planned the chapter title for this—it was what I had originally titled it!

Same thing with the new watercolor cover art, really: I commissioned it from Jiayi (deviantArt) at Anime Expo (2014) and she blew me away both in skill and speed; I felt like I was messing it up just getting it scanned to the computer (It came out brighter for some reason!)! Thank you so much once again!

alittlebitlate (not as late as me...)—I distinctly remember Arlong constantly shooting the breeze and passing insults around as he fought the Straw-Hats, and along with his words and actions preceding and following Tiger's death interpreted him as a very talkative character.

Now take that—where he only really knew Nami, and the rest of Luffy and co. were practically strangers, yet he still chatted with them a bunch—and put him up against the person that he heavily blames for Fisher Tiger's death, who also is making a mockery of his culture by imitating his race with Gyojin Karate. That was my thought process. Though I'm not quite sure which exact spot you thought came out OoC. I think I know, but it's a guess really.

As to your other inquiry, well...

Chapter 6: Making Up For Lost Time


On the hardwood table, the moonlight gave the ivory claw an otherworldly glow that easily cut through the darkness about it. Despite the worn bindings that made the necklace as such, its focal point remained ever sharp even as it dug into the table itself with the slightest of leanings. Across the room, the scent of feathers floated throughout the room.

Or at least the sound of the... smell of feathers...?

(East Blue — Warship Island)

Apis cursed in her head as she broke from the trance and awoke fully. With Koala's advice and faith behind her, the young child had tried taking the power of the Hiso Hiso no Mi further than she'd previously believed possible. Considering the stellar results, she supposed she owed her friend for her newfound skill.

Then again... she retorted to herself, rolling over in bed towards the table as she discarded her coverings, she probably didn't think that once I got better at using it that it'd be impossible to turn off...

Letting out a sigh as she rose and donned the necklace, she reminded herself that it wasn't Koala's fault. How was she to know when she hadn't felt the troubles of Devil's Fruit firsthand? Thankfully Ryu-ji's claw didn't make many supernatural sounds during the night for her newfound hearing to pick up, but the dissonance between moonlight and claw-against-wood...

Wait... Supernatural sounds have dissonance...? Ugh, never mind... Gripping her head in anticipation of the headache her powers warned her of, it caught her off guard regardless as she realized how she'd predicted it in the first place. At least my ears don't seem to be taking extra strain from all this, just my brain trying to process it all.

Brushing a stray lock from her face as she walked, her mind ground to a halt and she froze in place to match. Retracing her steps, she recalled the last few moments as she rose from slumber, donned her necklace and walked across the room to the opposite window.

With her eyes closed shut.

Playing with the idea of opening them, Apis quickly dismissed the idea as the shock wore away. The ears are doing all the work—and fine good work to boot. For all I know, seeing with my eyes will just make it harder on my brain with two different kinds of information. So... A smile grew on her face as she leaned towards the sealed window and chuckled at the thought that came to her. "Let's see what we can hear out that window, shall we?" Taking a deep breath, the native focused her mind towards using her power to see her home in a new light.

First, the normal sounds: A light wind sweeping down from the mountain; waves calmly lapping against the coast; the silence of the night buried beneath the chirping of crickets and the sleeping breaths of life... Perhaps it's not yet visible, but the faintest growth in the sound of water lifting from the sea to the sky approaching means the sunlight spreads towards us over the Red Line down into the East Blue. For such a moonlit morning, the sun sounds like it's nearly here...

And beneath the surface... Wait... Listening closely, the young girl's body straightened as she picked up on the unnatural sound from under the waves before opening the window. That 'twist' of current shifting its path...! There's no mistaking where it will end up—a one-way path here to Warship Island!

With rushed footsteps and a series of doors slamming, Apis bolted full-tilt out the door towards the coast, barreling down the hill and dodging trees with ease without a single peek of vision. And there's only one person I know that can shift currents—only one who would be in East Blue at all! Mind resolute in her conclusion, she practically flew through the forest for all the resistance it gave her.

Suffice to say; when a brunette in a one-piece dress leapt from the ocean she was caught by surprise when her trajectory was suddenly on a collision course with her young friend.

She was more so when she was intercepted, let alone kicked back into the water.

With her momentum passed, the blond landed on her feet with ease before walking to the coast, hands folded as she waited for her older friend to resurface. "I know you're down there, Koala..." she muttered loudly after a moment as she scrunched her still-sealed eyelids in a mix of playful irritation and concentration. "Come on out. I'm not really that mad at you; I just needed to get that out of my system."

Rather than answer in person, a lone bubble floated up to the surface and popped with a sound that she didn't need the Devil's Fruit to understand. "Liar..."

Shaking her head at her friend's antics, she began to reply, "And you know that because..." before hearing said friend echo her own word from behind her at the same time. Reflexively ducking, she smacked her own forehead against two outstretched fingers harder than either female intended as the brunette appeared without a single ripple in the water.

"Sorry, little miss whisper..." Koala chuckled as she messed with Apis' hair apologetically. "As I was saying though, I know because I'm awesome. Just. Like. You." Grinning, she massaged her stomach where the kick landed and turned back to the ocean. "If you really want to come traveling with me, you should keep answering questions like that on your own." Giving only a grumble to reply, the younger of the two friends listened as her elder shook her hair spraying water about. The same couldn't be said for her dress, which somehow held the water within like the film of a bubble.

There was a distinct set of sounds, the Devil's Fruit user pondered with new understanding, that correlated with the martial artist's features beyond her specialty outfit. Compared to the others in the village, there was a tense yet flexible sound to her muscles that she assumed was her trained physique. Even without looking into her eyes, there was a roaring like the sea to her eyes that made the shade of dark blue to them ring true. But the sound that now drew her focus was the fading echo of burned flesh from her back...

"...Apis? Hello~?"

Snapping out of it, the blond had the honestly to look ashamed at her prying—though she didn't name it. "Sorry... You were saying?"

The brunette chuckled as she levying a pointed stare before shrugging it away. "I was saying... I'll tell you how I know if you'd like, but more importantly I'd rather you do something for me first."

Sighing, Apis simply conceded with a small nod. "Alright... What?"

"Could...Could you, um...grab your..."

"Huh...?" Opening her eyes, her glance looked to Koala's blushing expression, then herself, then her again as she scratched her cheek and averted her eyes off to the side behind her. Clicking into place, she slowly followed her gaze to the article of clothing hanging on a branch before coming back to her state of dress. Or rather... well...

"KYAAAAAA!"

...you get the idea...

—-—-—

The conflict that became known as the Loguetown Incident within the Marines (sadly they never really got too creative with names) was surprisingly unnoticeable in the current events. Certainly it was discussed and there were important outcomes, but most Marines were more interested in the status of their fellow comrades and where they stood in the fight for Justice. With Captains Smoker and Shū coming out with only wounded prides, the civilians safe and sound, and no resounding pirate victory other than their escape, there wasn't much that drew interest to the skirmish in East Blue.

For the civilians, the Loguetown Incident didn't trickle down to them. At most, a person of the city would be one of those caught in the square during its takeover by the Buggy Pirates. Beyond that, the escape of the Arlong Pirates and the combat that followed went hidden from the average townsfolk. A small few knew more than they'd tell, but the connection between a barkeep, a sword shopkeeper, a fish salesman, and a young girl was never uncovered—those who might have like Tashigi were aboard with Smoker.

Nelson Royale's deposition from command and the subsequent rising of Hardy to Chūsa was of more interest to most of them in the wake of Morgan's arrest and Pudding Pudding's death. With the explosion of demotion and death in the East Blue corps, scrutiny soon led to the same for Nezumi—who among other things was held responsible for the string of Marine deaths including the late commodore at Arlong's hands. The now former Captain was subsequently seen as the cause of the Loguetown Incident by leaving Smoker and Shū unprepared for the pirate crew's true strength, sweeping the remaining unknowns beneath the traitorous rat's growing list of crimes.

Shū was surprisingly quiet in the aftermath, especially compared to his fellow Captain. His own near drowning was barely a concern compared to the large loss of Marine lives from Arlong's opening gambit: After personally apologizing to families, he immediately went back to headquarters for more training.

Smoker, on the other hand, was taking the escape especially hard—which to his benefit meant no one really complained when he went into the Grand Line after Straw-Hat Luffy. He and his men were redoubling their training as they went out to Paradise. That is, except for—

"Mashikaku! Where's Tashigi?" The White Chaser of Loguetown shouted across the deck of the ship as the Ittōhei and his fellows continued their training under the harsh sun of the Calm Belt.

Tilting his head up to see his superior, the square-jawed man spoke with only slightly strained breaths as he continued to do push-ups. "She's been in her room since we left, Taisa. We figured she wanted some time alone, not to mention she's still recovering from her injuries, and—"

Sighing, Smoker puffed out a plume of smoke as he bid for him to stop. "I should have known... She finally made her first kill, huh...?"

"Not only that, sir..." Mashikaku began, "But the way she cut into him was rather...gruesome... Eventually the adrenaline wore off after the Arlong Pirates escaped, and that's when she noticed all the blood on her and remembered." He paused, looking down at the ground as his pace slowed down in thought. "Last we checked in on her she'd thrown her glasses across the room; I doubt it's an improvement from obsessively trying to make them not smell like it..."

"I'd congratulate her on taking down that persistent assassin wanna-be," Smoker spoke up with a shake of his head, "but that'd be the opposite of what she'd want to hear right now."

"Captain... I..."

Turning back to find his subordinate stopped, he saw the Ittōhei's tears soaking into the deck below him. "I'll train harder, and become strong enough... I won't fail again!" Starting his workout again with fervor, he kept going as he finished, "Next time, I'll protect her!"

Walking back towards the other men, the Taisa muttered under his breath as he drew his jitte for practice. "Idiot. Next time, she'll protect herself." If only he felt more confident than he sounded. It's better if she makes a decision on her own, while she still has her options before her, he told himself as he shifted into a fighting stance. It's far easier to walk away while you're part of the Infantry and Sailor Division; once your commissioned, you're tied to the Marines for better or worse.

Unbeknownst to the Marines outside, the woman in question had been watching the training session blurrily from her window. Managing to make out Smoker's face, she caught the quick flash of emotion that none of the other Marines would have recognized. Worry... Turning back to face the dark of her room, she slumped against the wall, her hands clutched against her bandage-wrapped chest.

"Even Smoker is worried... And they're all working hard to improve..." Tashigi sniffed to try and hold back her tears with little success as they slid down her face, the salty fluids stinging as they slid over the slightest trace of the cut across her upper lip. Painful as it was, the attack was shallow enough that once healed wouldn't leave a mark—much the same as the gash on her back. "And yet I keep thinking of him... killing him... It makes me feel so dirty..."

"You complain about being a woman swordsman, but you're still all talk! You're just a naïve little brat who hasn't had to deal with any of life's hardships!"

The dark-haired Marine winced at the memory of those words, unable to shake the lingering doubt that they resonated with in her mind. "Naïve... Have I really been this weak? I wanted to reclaim Meitō from villains and pirates, but I can't even stomach killing one lowlife. No matter how you look at it, good or evil: a true swordsman would rather die than live defeated."

"Doesn't really sound like you want to die, Tashigi-Sōchō..."

"In the moment of danger, I fear death; killing someone shakes my mind apart; and to top it off, I've already brought shame down upon me... Can I really call myself a true swordsman?" Collapsing down into her knees as she began to cry in earnest, Tashigi recognized the feeling of wallowing in her own sorrows.

"You think it's hard being a woman wielding a sword? Try being a slave for a few years and get back to me on how being a woman works out for you!"

Though she flinched through the tears as the former slave's words echoed in her head again, the Sōchō decided that she'd cry about her own woes just this one last time—now that they were considerably more complicated than she had ever imagined.

—-—-—

(Meanwhile — Warship Island)

Whatever Apis had been thinking would happen that morning when she woke up, her best friend showing up hours before daybreak didn't rank high on the list of possibilities, and it most certainly didn't include said best friend working her into the ground with physical exhaustion.

The smell of sweat, she noticed while lying upon the ground, was somehow sweet compared to its salty aftertaste on her tongue. Beyond the sheen, the wind swept the heat from her brow and limbs as the unfamiliar fabrics of her borrowed tank top and shorts seemed to glide about her form in its wake. All of these thoughts were reinforced as her hearing matched her other senses, threatening to add another headache to her constitution.

And yet... the blond found herself thinking, There's something peaceful here, lying in the grass by the coast.

Opening her eyes, she rose from the ground and stretched to the sky as Koala walked over. Compared to the martial artist's normal attire of tea-length dresses, the more casual ware that Apis now wore was a remnant of her friend's early attempts towards developing a wardrobe. Besides the stylistic difference, the dresses like the flowing black garment she wore now retained far more water than the mustard yellow and maroon duo.

On top of the privacy of the rocky coast, the brunette had gone out of the way—despite her claims to the contrary—to dye the clothes in two of her primary colors, both of which helped the younger girl feel less awkward in the hand-me-downs. Still, it was clear that her usual outfits were ill sewn for her friend's physical demands.

Taking a moment to straighten the teal ribbon that held her braid together, Apis slowed the deep breaths that had become the subconscious backbeat of the intense workout to question her taskmaster. "Will you tell me what this is for now? The sun isn't even up yet, you know..."

"Only because you live in a place where Warship Island blocks the sunrise," Koala teased as she ruffled her friend's hair again. She would have challenged the gesture, but the shuffle of cool air between her blond locks made the act refreshing enough to let it be as her senior continued. "That was an impressive display of endurance, Apis. I had no idea you were so athletic, though I suppose now you're back in your element instead of cooped up and in hiding."

"Thanks!" Apis beamed for a moment, then focused in on her inquiry with a squint. "But you still haven't explained what it's all for."

Sighing, the martial artist waved her back down to the ground. "Almost there, hold your horses; this next part is really important... Now, do you remember the stretches we warmed you up with?" Alongside a nod, her friend replied with a quizzical stare. "Now use them for a cool-down."

"How can these be that important?" Despite her continuing inquiries to the contrary, the native girl went to work on them as directed while she spoke. "I understand the purpose of cooling down after heavy exercise, but..."

Koala gave her own limbs a good stretch as she interjected, walking past Apis away from the ocean. "Your flexibility is the crucial part—one that you're particularly stupendous at, I might add—but the exercises themselves show your endurance and strength which will be important later on."

"The technique you are about to learn—one of six—may be the most important thing I will ever teach you, and is a skill that many people take for granted." The brunette muttered and chuckled off to the side, though Apis caught a few words with her hearing, "'No art,' my ass... Ha, ass," before she continued: "Anyways... As I mentioned to you when we were moving you back home, you being able to perform this skill to my satisfaction is the one condition you must fulfill to come with me."

The Devil's Fruit user looked up inquisitively as she held a cobra stretch from the ground. "I remember. Do you really want me to fight?"

Her best friend shook her head and turned back to face her. "I'd prefer if you never had to. More importantly, sailing the seas together with me means you'd be traveling with a pirate and puts you in a lot of danger and risk—not to mention your own involvement with the Marines. What I want you to be able to do is not get hurt. So for your protection, I'm going to hammer the basics into your mind and body until you use it without thinking."

"So what are you going to be teaching me?" Apis asked again with anticipation as she rose from the ground. "Out with it already!"

Silence held far longer than the younger girl needed to know her senior was being dramatic, until eventually she muttered, "Kami-E (Paper Sketch)."

"What?"

"Kami-E," Koala repeated slightly louder. "That is the technique I will be teaching you.

The blond blinked at the explanation, and more importantly the lack thereof. "Oooooookay...and that is...what, exactly?"

"As the name implies," her trainer began, clearly trying to hold a straight face as long as possible, "you must be as a paper sketch untouched as it darts away in the breeze. With flexibility and lithe muscle, you can avoid oncoming danger almost effortlessly."

"...soooo..." Apis droned as she processed the description twice to confirm the one word that she had boiled it down to. "...dodging..."

A tick mark vein pulsed on the brunette's head. "What...?"

"That's it?" she cried out, flinging her hands into the air. "After all that build-up and exercise and, the technique you're going to teach me is... how to dodge?"

"Is there a problem with dodging?" Koala ventured, trying to keep her composure.

"Yeah, because you're pulling my leg on this!" Pointing her finger right into her friend's face, she continued despite the focus of her attention balking. "You're clearly trying to keep yourself calm because it's ridiculous. Dodging?"

"I'm holding it in because you think it's a joke," she gritted through her teeth. "What is so ridiculous about it?"

Realizing she was telling the truth about the technique, the native let out an exasperated sigh. "You can't be serious right now!"

Folding her arms across her chest, her trainer's eyebrow twitched in anticipation of future irritation. "And why not?"

"Because I already know how to dodge!" Apis mock-slapped herself in the head with a cry of, "Duh!" before turning away from her friend, only for her to already be waiting where she turned to.

"Not like this!" the martial artist lectured to her uncooperative pupil, leaping into her gaze with Soru as she repeatedly tried to avert it from her senior. "Stop knocking the technique before you've even seen it!"

Growing tired of the pursuit, the blond stopped avoiding her and held her ground. "I'd have already seen it if it was really so great, then!"

Throwing her would-be pupil off by not leaping in front of her, Koala leaned in on her shoulders with folded elbows. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well," she began her retort as she wriggled out and turned to face the brunette, "it's just you certainly put your dodging prowess on display when I nailed you on arrival!"

Pointing straight between Apis' eyes, she levied a hard stare right back. "Well excuse me for getting distracted when my attacker turned out to be my good friend, who was so intent on hitting me that they didn't even notice that they shredded up half of their nightgown on a tree and were half-naked!"

Silence held as both of them blushed but held their gazes locked as long as they could—their colors growing more flushed with every second passed. Eventually, a snort slipped out so quickly that neither party quite knew whom it belonged to. The dam burst, the two friends were quickly swept into roaring laughter as they collapsed to the ground.

Eventually Koala calmed herself down from rolling on the ground to look over to her junior, who was trying to get there as she clutched her chest. "I do mean it, though. Too many people give dodging too little credit and pay dearly for it. You have excellent flexibility, and though your strength isn't where I'd say the average trainee your age would be that won't matter until after you get Kami-E down; the rest can come later if you really want to pick them up."

Apis stared back from the ground skeptically as her senior pushed off and stood upright. "Even if I get really good at this... 'Kami-E'... I could still get hit if I don't hear the att... tack coming... at me..." The blond froze as realization caught up to her. "Oh."

"Exactly. I may have been embarrassed and caught off-guard, but I still noticed that your hearing skills have improved. So, Whisper-Woman..." the brunette began as she rolled her eyebrow around in exaggerated curiosity, offering a hand to the native to help her up, "How much better are we talking?"

Taking the assistance, she brushed herself off as she thought about the answer. "Well besides you being right about sea creatures, sounds from inanimate objects are audible without much effort now..." Eyes widening for a moment, she narrowed in with an irritated expression as she finished, "...which has made it hard to sleep at nights..."

Her trainer sweated a bit herself before clapping her hands together and bowing before her. "My most humble apologies, Apis..."

The blond blushed and averted her gaze. Damn you and your forward apologies! "M-motions of living things are coming out too, but it's nowhere near as natural right now—I have to concentrate first, and I don't always know what I'm listening for."

Humming, Koala looked up behind her friend for a brief instant before locking eyes with her once more, only increasing her curiosity. "What...?"

"I'm just thinking," she began, "that now's as good a time as any. Give it a shot: see what you can hear."

"I already made that joke to myself earlier, thanks..." With a nod to the young woman—who was muttering about not getting a better reaction from the joke—Apis closed her eyes and listened around her in relative silence before suddenly snapping back. "There's a News Coo flying in behind me!"

"Aaaaaaaand...? How could you tell?"

Pausing, it dawned on the native and she leapt in surprise. "I heard the beat of its wings! I did it really quick, too!" Looking to the brunette as she grinned and flicked a coin up to the bird, the blond couldn't help but wonder, "How do you always seem to know what I need to do?"

"What? You think I just magically obtain the answers to your improvement?" the martial artist chuckled as she caught the paper without looking up to catch it. "Honestly, I'm just putting myself in your shoes and trying to think it out. Putting you on the spot meant you weren't preparing mentally for it, so perhaps you're thinking too much about it."

"Thinking too hard...?"

Ruffling her blond locks, Koala smiled warmly. "It's the same thing you're doing right now, about how you've made leaps and bounds? It's nothing complicated about me, you're just that good!"

Apis blinked at her. "Really...?"

"Hey, don't doubt yourself..." The older woman shook her head, unfolding the paper as she began to scan the headlines. Hmmm...? This article...!

—-—-—

(Meanwhile)

Despite its low initial impact, there were still some Marines who took notice of the discrepancies surrounding one particular pirate involved in the incident. Even with taking down Arlong who's bounty had been confirmed to be undervalued, and escaping the Marines' notice after using Loguetown as a base of operation in East Blue, Kaijōsei Koala was rarely mentioned in the events that took place, nor was her bounty increased for her victory despite Straw-Hat Luffy's getting pushed up an extra 15 million from where it was originally suggested.

Particularly, as one of the Marines who was involved with the trade of Koala's safety for the Sun Pirates, Strawberry-Chūjō (Vice Admiral) was quick to dig into the matter. Perhaps the information—being undiscovered—might have slowed the tide of change, but the small ripple was already on its course.

As it stood, the report was being crumpled in the hands of the Vice-Admiral's superior who was none too pleased with the findings. His own face shaded by his cap as the 'eyes' of the seagull-ornament atop it seemed to bore into his subordinate, he grunted out, "And you're sure these reports are correct?"

"Yes, Sengoku-Gensui (Fleet Admiral)," Strawberry replied, bowing only slightly so as to not bump his very long head into anything. "I had the Cipher Pols confirm the information."

(Grand Line, Paradise — Marineford)

Clenching his fist tighter the man known as Sengoku the Buddha gritted his teeth behind his curved mustache, anger withheld behind his round glasses as he threw the crumpled letter to the goat at his feet. "Raise her bounty..."

"Pardon...?"

Standing up in an instant, Sengoku's voice magnified three-fold. "Raise the bounty on Kaijōsei Koala, immediately!"

Strawberry bowed slightly lower as the goat began gnawing on the parchment. "Sir, if you read the information then you know—"

"Don't screw with me!" the Fleet Admiral shouted back hard enough that his braided beard shifted from his voice alone, "I don't care what the Tenryūbito want, that woman is more important for the Marines to take down than as some slave to those nobles!"

"I-Indeed, sir..."

Falling back into his chair, the leader of the Marines slammed his fist down on his desk. "Damn it... I'll have to try and talk to the Gorōsei, but I'd be better off bringing more to the table than just her..."

The Vice Admiral let the silence settle before he asked, "Should I gather some Marines to go after her?"

"No..." his superior replied after a pause with a reluctant sigh as he shifted his hat, "With the exception of her original crimes, this is the first time she's directly opposed the Navy without provocation. Considering that Nelson Royale seems to be the exception, and his corruption was unveiled in part due to her actions..."

The long-headed man's eyes widened as he stood at the statement. "Sir, what are you—?"

Sengoku's glare stopped his inquiry at once, allowing him to continue. "For now... We'll simply keep tabs with the Cipher Pols. There are plenty of groups in our influence that still hold her as a priority target regardless, and I don't see that going away with her appearance in East Blue. In the meantime, she can simply be glad her bounty wasn't raised for now."

—-—-—

"Damn it..." Koala sobbed comically as she slammed her fist into the ground, "It's not funny anymore..." CRACK "I beat Arlong—" CRACK "—Eric—"

CRACK "Ummm, Koala-san..."

"—tons of starting-up rookies—" CRACK "—all with the Marines watching—"

CRACK "Are you—" CRACK "—alright? You, uh—" CRACK

"—and yet still—" CRACK "—my bounty still sits at a measly 14 Million..." CRACK "I'm still lower than Buggy the Clown!" CRACK

Apis could only stare at the strange mental breakdown occurring before her, not really sure how to go about cheering her friend up. "Hey, uh... I still think you...are a bigger...threat to the Marines...?"

*sniff* "You don't have to try and cheer me up, Apis," the brunette sighed tearfully, dusting off her black sundress. "I'll be okay."

"But...! You've got some..."

Looking down, she realized her hand and chest were bleeding. "Ah, this? I was swinging my hand so wide that I got some on me! I'm fine!" She won't buy that as is, though, she thought as she stood up. It is a good reminder to keep training—not knowing how I compare with both styles means I can't be sure and get lax subconsciously—but I don't want her to worry. "I just needed to get it out of my system, that's all."

"But that's why you became a pirate, isn't it?" the blond reasoned back before balking at her own lack of specificity, "Not hurting yourself, I mean... You're frustrated about the bounty, right? You want it to be high so that Kaikyō no Jinbe would take notice. That's why you took the bounty the Marines put on you in stride and became a pirate, right? It's important to you."

Snorting as she wiped her eyes, the martial artist giggled sarcastically. "For all the good it's done me... Yeah, it is. Thank you, Apis."

"Eh?" the East-born woman simply froze for a moment as her friend turned to her and wrapped her in a tight embrace before returning the gesture. "Um... You're welcome, Koala...?"

Great Apis Distraction Plan: Successful~! Koala pulled back from the hug with a bright smile. No need to make her more worried when I can worry myself in my head; it's bad now, but it ought to be fine...

"Wait..." Apis froze as a fragment from earlier finally sunk in. "Whisper-Woman?"

Dark-blue eyes glinted. "Took you way too long on the uptake, you silly...!" And with that the brunette tackled her to the ground tickling her into a fit of laughter.

Finally breaking free, the blond tried to catch her breath as she chided her friend. "Is this going to be an ongoing thing with you?"

"Oh, you know you love it..." the brunette shot back jokingly before brushing the dirt off herself once more. "Anyways, no time like the present! The sooner you get Kami-E down, the sooner I can introduce you to a few other Rokushiki techniques, and the better I'll feel about you on the Grand Line..."

"Rokushiki...?" She blinked at the unfamiliar term as her mind pondered the choice of name. "Kind of straightforward, huh? What are the other ones?"

"I'm also rather curious..."

Whirling about, Apis let out a cry of surprise as a tall figure in a hood simply walked up the nearby beach out of the ocean. "W-who's that?!"

Koala stared for a bit before her face took on a brighter smile. "You guys came this early, huh? I'm rather surprised. Where's everybody else?"

"Sorry, but the others won't be coming..." the figure replied as he removed the hood attached to his gi, revealing a trio of ponytails with two atop the head.

*sigh* "Figures... In that case, what have you come here for," the martial artist questioned as she cracked her neck, "Kuroobi?"

"You never struck me as the impatient type, Koala; I hadn't finished my sentence..." the ray fishman chided with a small smile before his features hardened. "They won't be coming because they're still looking after our captain."

The brunette blinked. "Looking after him...? What do you mean?"

—-—-—

(Earlier Today — Somewhere in the New World)

"Sensei..."

In the shadows of the moonlight cast across a simple office, a man looked up from his musings his subordinate from behind triangular sunglasses. Shifting back in his chair, the man's form slid out from the dark of dusk, revealing his receding hairline of spiked purple hair. Chest bare with a Marine officer coat across his seat, his large and muscular form made moving the large mechanical arm atop his desk to the wall seem like lifting a small cat by the scruff of its neck. "What is it, Ain?"

At the other end of the room Ain stepped into her own light, moving long strands of dark blue hair from between her focused copper rose eyes and her 'sensei'. Pulling papers from her sleeveless Marine uniform beneath her own coat, she spread them out on the desk so the man could see the information and wanted poster of— "Kaijōsei Koala is on the move. She's been spotted in East Blue, involved in an incident at Loguetown."

"Ah, I heard about that..." The large man replied, flexing his prosthetic right arm back and forth. "What do you want to do...? Do you want to take her down that badly?" He chuckled as he gave her a dry look that she recognized through his shades.

"T-That's not it, but..." the female Marine shifted her eyes from her instructor as his chuckle turned into a hearty laugh, only to draw their focus again as it became a wheezing cough. "Zephyr-Sensei...!"

Finishing his hack with a puff of a brown aerosol as he waved off his subordinate, the man walked over to the window as he withdrew his shades to reveal worn, teal eyes. "Eventually the day may come when we'll come face-to-face with her again. For now, our squad is charged with hunting down criminal Fruit-users; no need to go after a simple martial artist."

Ain looked at him with only partially veiled surprise. "Sensei...?"

Zephyr grinned as he looked out upon the moonlit ocean before him. "I've known for many years that the Marines won't always be heroes or even on the side of good. Sometimes it's nice to think that pirates don't always have to be villains, either."

—-—-—

"Kaijōsei Koala...?"

"Indeed."

"The name is familiar, but..." Pausing in thought, the man leaned back in his stone chair shadowing him from the light pouring in from his wide windows. Kicking up his feet, he poked the Den Den Mushi as he called back into the receiver. "So? Who the hell is it?"

"A pirate who became wanted at the rear end of your father's days as Chief," responded the gruff voice from the Den Den Mushi, accented by a pointed nose and blond mustache. "As I recall, she was being brought to him after her first offense when she escaped the warship. He seemed to take her escape very personally, and sent out agents of various skill levels after her."

"Ah! Now that you mention it... He did mention that pirate scum before: something about stealing a special gift he ordered for me in celebration of my up-and-coming promotion." Pausing, the man took a moment to drink his coffee before continuing. "And? Her bounty isn't exactly high; did my old man screw up, or was he weeding out the weak?"

"From the reports it would seem she mostly escaped through luck, though she's certainly tenacious and swift. After surviving what we assumed were fatal wounds, she dodged further pursuits and stayed off the radar as often as possible."

Shadowed beneath hair and mask, the lanky man's eyebrow raised in irritation. "I take it that's the swift and tenacious part, but where does luck factor in? Once they finally catch up, how did they fail to take her down? She can't have been much of a challenge considering she failed the first time, and I assume they didn't make the same mistake twice."

"Well, the missions were always assigned with multiple hits; it was the only way the Chief could keep her relevant enough to belay the Marines taking her as a priority target—especially the attack squad. But after the first confrontation, when anything resembling combat was met with evasion, and in the pursuit the other targets listed managed to get in the way every time."

"I see now..." the man chuckled as he set his coffee on his desk and shrugged, "There's no way she would know the alternate targets every time, so it's been sheer dumb luck that she throws the right person under the bus."

"We had an agent or two rotating in to try and track her down, but with so many members on missions or standby as of late it had to be suspended. Considering she made it out to the East Blue without us finding out, those searches would likely have been difficult if not futile."

"Heh, that makes things simple, I suppose. What skills does she have besides being quick and hard to kill?"

"Ah yes sir." The caller paused as he shuffled through some papers before resuming. "The recent reports from the Loguetown Incident indicate that she uses some kind of unusual fighting style. This corresponds with other encounters both from our own intelligence and the report from the 8th Division."

Scratching his chin, his superior hummed lazily. "Well, I've got a new recruit that's been itching for some action. Nero's got a long way to go before he'll be on the same level as Lucci, but he's not going to get there sitting around doing nothing. More importantly he's still superhuman and close enough to move in on her."

"Ah, one more thing... Though it's true that Spandine-sama ordered her assassination, you should know that she's wanted alive by the Tenryūbito."

"EH?!" the man screamed into the receiver, "The World Nobles?! What do they care about her for?" Shaking his head, the man interjected his own question. "Never mind that! I'll talk to you later, I've got to call up my subordinate."

"Understood."

Sighing, the thin man set the receiver down and put a hand through his wavy lavender hair. "If we bring her in alive..." he pondered aloud as he looked across the room, a maniacal grin growing with every word, "it'll be better than just having the blueprints of Pluton for the Gorōsei; I'll have the favor of the creators of the world! It's as if heaven is smiling down on me! Now I just have to get Aokij—"

"Um... Chief Spandam?"

"AH!" Crying out as he realized he'd left the Den Den Mushi on for the other line to hear, Spandam quickly sat up and grasped for the receiver, brushing his cup of coffee in the process. "Nothing! Hurry up and get off the li—AH!" *crash* "Shit! Hot hot hooooot!"

—-—-—

"Understoo—*bzzt*—Spanda—" *bzzt* *crash* *bzzt*

(Somewhere in East Blue)

A deep laughter resonated throughout the belly of the vessel as its owner walked slowly through the passage. Walking into the room at the end of the hall, he smiled even wider as the inhabitant rose from the bed. "Nelson Royale, huh...?"

Chuckling again, the humongous man walked closer as light from the porthole of the stolen ship illuminated his features. Taking a deep breath, he shrugged about in the constricting clothes that barely fit around his girth, the seams of the regular garments audibly strained as he spoke. "Walking around is truly a pain, but it will be worth it once we obtain the Elixir. How are you faring today, Eric?"

"The pain is... rather debilitating, admittedly..." the mercenary clutched the bandages about his chest, many already turning red from simply shifting where he lay. "I... Never mind. How did I get here?"

"With those disgusting fish running amok it was surprisingly easy to make an escape from Loguetown," bragged the ex-leader of the 8th Division, rather proud of his accomplishment, "and with Smoker departing for the Grand Line they haven't even figured out that I escaped yet with all the work they're having to do."

The Whirlwind righted himself as he adjusted his hair—still upright but not quite to his liking—and stared down his former employer. "Though I'm flattered, why did you bother saving me? I never pinned you as a charity worker..."

Grinning back, the overweight criminal motioned for him to follow him up to the deck. "I managed to still hold on to a small bit of money—most of which went towards your recovery—but I assumed that immortality was still something you were interested in. Especially with your current state, you might need it."

"And...?" Eric sighed as he put his sunglasses on in anticipation of the light of day. "Do you think Kaijōsei is going to just let us walk up and take the Ryūkotsu?"

"Lucky for us, that wench won't be a problem anymore." Gesturing to the shell attached to his wrist, he opened it to reveal a small black snail. "It seems Cipher Pol is stepping up to take care of her for us. All we have to do is not get noticed, and can simply walk in afterwards and handle it."

Humming back as the sun lit their faces, the hired assassin deflected the sun from his eyes for a brief moment, noting the nails on his hand had grown to their former length. Pros and cons of the power, I suppose, he thought with a chuckle as he drew a nail file from his pocket and began refining their points. "Hmmmm. Seems there's some good news to all this. Very well..." he went on with a sense of irony as he turned to his current partner in crime, Warship Island distantly visible behind him. "As an order from the great Nelson Royale."

—-—-—

(The Present — Warship Island)

"W-What?! Arlong won't wake up?!" The look in the fishman's eyes told her that he spoke the truth, but it was difficult for the brunette to take in. "How? He was still talking and everything after the bout! Will he be alright?"

"That's what I've come to find out," Kuroobi replied as he settled into a wide horse stance with a deep, cleansing breath. "No matter how you slice it, Straw-Hat Luffy is just a straight fighter, augmenting his skills with the abilities of a Devil's Fruit. You, on the other hand, are a human who learned the art of Fishman Karate from a book rather than from a master, if I heard correctly."

Her dark-blue eyes narrowed at the statement while Apis tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean...?"

The male martial artist put a hand up to hold her question. "Please do not misunderstand me. After seeing your fight with Arlong, I have no doubts about your skill in our style. However..." Turning to the blond, he continued his explanation with lighter tones. "Without a master to guide you in training, the effectiveness of one's technique may not be along the same vein as tradition might intend."

"I take it you've come far enough in your training that you can perform strikes with controlled numbers of tiles on the lower end?" the ray fishman questioned his peer as he turned back to her, receiving an affirmative nod and replying in kind. "Then the first step will be simple: clash with me at a low-numbered level; fifty should be about right."

"I don't quite get it, but..." Koala walked forward and set herself in the same stance an arms-length from the male pirate. Both of them stood still for a moment and breathed slowly, leaving Apis slightly befuddled at the silence.

"Um, ar—?" Hearing the sound of their vocal chords beginning to vibrate, she flinched back as they cried out the attack.

"Gyojin Karate: Gojumaigawara Seiken!"

The Whisper-Woman's gut reaction of surprise was fortunate, for their clash shook the air about them as the well-matched strikes were brought to opposition. Amazing... she thought to herself as the two stood there with their fists met, The water in the air resonates like a bell. So beautiful... Hm? Amidst the pleasurably pure tone and the other sounds of their exertion, a quiet sound from each of them caught her attention. "The sound is different...?"

Looking up from the exchange at her muttering, the ray fishman gave the younger girl an inquiring look. "You can tell?"

"Apis...?" Koala gave her friend a worried look.

The blond nodded as she closed her eyes to concentrate on the fading echo of susurration. "Mmm. The strike from Kuroobi-san sounds like...like a drop of water making a ripple in a lake, while yours is more...it's as if you threw a rock in, and the shore is being eroded. Something like that..." Blushing at the attention, Apis drew her hat further down over her face.

"Apis ate the Hiso Hiso no Mi, and became a Hiso-Joshi (Whisper-Woman)," the brunette explained for their company's benefit.

"W-What's that supposed to mean?" the island native stammered with confusion. "Stop coming up with weird nicknames for me!"

She responded first with a pointed stare before lightening up. "Hey now, come on! Most fruit users say they're so-and-so Man, I just thought Hiso-Joshi sounded better than Hiso-Ningen (Whisper-Man). Am I wrong?"

"N-no, but... Ack! Stop it!" Kuroobi simply stared without looking while the two ladies entered another friendly tussle, absorbing the information he'd received.

Finally, Koala broke free of the silliness and addressed their visitor as she dusted off her dress once more. "I take it Aladdin-san is still with Jinbe, otherwise he'd have a prognosis... Well, I know someone out in the Grand Line we can take him to—I have business there that I probably should do sooner rather than later—but it will be better if we get him looked at first. Fortunately, I know someone closer by who ought to be thrilled."

"Are you sure?" Her fellow practitioner failed to hide the surprise on his face fast enough before he spoke. "Arlong is the one who picked the fight to begin with, when he could have been helping us escape."

Looking down, the martial artist stared down at her open palms before clenching them back together. "I'm not sure how yet, but it seems that it's my fault; it's the least I can do. Besides..." She paused to meet his gaze before letting her smile return. "I've been meaning to catch up with you guys for ages! Fighting with Arlong was something I thought might happen, but I was hoping we could just sit down and talk; I still do, really..."

The moment of silence stretched out before it was shattered loudly as Umizoui let out a loud trumpet as it ran down the coast, sliding to a stop and enveloping the girls in a trunk-hug to the younger's surprise and the elder's delight. As the elephant transformed back into a kusarigama about Koala's waist Kuroobi shook his head slightly, the small smile growing on his face unnoticed even to him.

"Good to see you too buddy!" Giving the living weapon a light scratch across one of the handles, the brunette chuckled as the blade shifted into a trunk that wrapped around her neck like a scarf. "Alright, alright! What's going on?"

In that moment, everyone became aware of Apis as she froze at the words 'spoken' by the elephant-weapon. "Is... Is that true, Umizoui?"

Kuroobi frowned at the girl's demeanor and stepped forward. "What is it? What did it say?"

Locking gazes with each other, it didn't take long for Koala to figure out what her partner had said as her friend's eyes watered. "It seems it's time..." Turning back to her fellow martial artist, the young woman gave him a somber face. "We'll head out soon, but it seems that we have some business to sort out first. You're welcome to stay, though; I'm sure Apis doesn't mind."

Getting an affirmative nod from the young girl, the ray fishman looked back at her senior quizzically. "Doesn't min—?!" As he spoke, the ground suddenly shook violently as the sun peeked out from behind Warship Island, the waves trembling about them. "What's happening? What do you mean it's time?"

Grinning slightly, she looked to the sky as numerous specks in the distant clouds approached. Sensing the large disturbance approaching behind her, she began to explain as the creature came to the ground and roared into the sky. "It's been one thousand years at last. Kuroobi, may I introduce you to Ryu-ji and his family: The Millennium Dragons!"

—-—-—

(Meanwhile)

Far above the waters of East Blue, a trio stood silently observing the wave of majestic green creatures migrating across the sky. As the roar from Warship Island echoed up and shook the earth beneath their feet, creatures around them fled in confusion and terror at the unknown. As they stared down at them, one of them began gesturing wildly to the second, while the third seemed to giggle in expectation.

Finally the man in the center couldn't take it. "What are you trying to say?"

Instantly halting his gestures, the other man replied, "It's quite a wonder to behold, isn—?"

"YOU CAN TALK?" the first interjected in shock, while the third chuckled inhumanly and clapped its hands loudly. Calming down, the central man walked forward with metallic steps and surveyed the view below him in confusion. "Hmm...? A carpet?"

Slapping the first in the back of the head, the second cried, "It's a flock of Sennenryū, any way you look at it!" before all three suddenly grouped together for a pose.

"Hai!" "Urah!"

Silence held beyond the sweeping winds and the wing beat of dragons before the central man split from the tableau to draw forth and light a cigar. "So, Doctor Indigo... If we use the Millennium Dragons, how soon will the plan be complete again?"

"Mmmm, let's see..." the doctor stepped forward, shoes creating a farting sound as he did so. "I think considering our preparations, at least a year if not two. Much better than how we've been fairing."

"Excellent. Take Scarlet and anyone else you see fit with you and see it done. And while you're at it," the man paused as he took another draft, knocking off more ashes from the burning tobacco, "Tell the other interested parties that the initiation has been changed."

"Understood, Shiki-oyabun (Boss Shiki)."

Taking a deep breath, the lit cigar illuminated the face of an aging man with a steering wheel stuck into his head. As he let the smoke billow out from his mouth, the wind swept the cloud away while he spoke as his golden hair and elaborate clothes shifted about him before it blew out the embers. "Killing her won't put my plan on track again, but since she's been so helpful in leading us to the next best thing I suppose we can afford her a quick death."


alittlebitlate—...considering what I was already planning, Arlong actually has a decent reason to be a bit OoC, and getting off with only that is lucky...

The lesson for me this Chapter: Whenever a chapter fits length-wise nicely in my head, it means writing it out equals 2 chapters. You'd think I might have picked up on that after Chapters 2 and 3 became Chapters 2-5, but here it is again. Considering that was the inspiration-half of why this chapter took so much time, I hope the delay won't become a regular thing. It's kind of depressing when I spend a month and a half struggling to cram this through my brain onto paper and then the computer, and then suddenly the rest flows out magically in a day or two...

In other news I am indeed paranoid about the M rating, and I will do my best to withhold quick judgments in the future; I just resisted the spontaneous urge an hour ago to write a nonsensical Omake that just popped into my head (after reviewing it on paper, it wasn't very good), so I'm working on it.

Thanks again to all you readers! Now then, I'm off to work on another chapter (and reviewing other people's work that's still backed up)! Hope the ride continues to prove enjoyable; until next time!