Pickaboo! I see you!
Welcome to the next chapter of Dark Day's!
I hope you have all been enjoying the story so far.
Please sit back and relax as the next chapter brings a new twist into the picture!
The sun had already set and Luffy still hadn't returned since the early morning. "Where is he...?" muttered Sanji glancing up and down the street for any sign of the Straw-hated Mercenary. Nami swiftly pulled him away from the window and pulled him down into one of the kitchen chairs before closing the curtains. "I told you once and I'll tell you again! Stay away from the windows!" she seethed before walking back to the stove. Sanji bowed his head, "I apologise, I'm just trying to keep an eye out for Luffy." he said leaning back in his chair. Silence fell over the kitchen as Nami continued her cooking. "You don't like the Alliance much do you?" muttered Sanji after a while.
Nami stiffened and stoped her work for a moment before sighing. "I have a right to hate your kind..." she whispered with her back turned to him. "Luffy will be back soon." she said a light grin pasted over her lips as she turned around to face Sanji. "He's might have gone to one of my contacts looking for information. Probably Smoker; he knows anything and everything when it comes to Alliance matters." She said taking a seat in the chair across from Sanji. "Lu's strange like that..." she mumbled seemingly to herself.
"Lu?" asked Sanji. Nami nodded, "Yeah Luffy. One moment he would be acting like a child without a care in the world, the next he would be serious and concentrating on his job. I assume you experienced his child-like side this morning judging from all that racket you made." She said grinning lightly. Sanji looked away blushing in embarrassment and subconsciously rubbing where he had hit his head. Just as Nami opened her mouth once again, a strong gust of wind pushed against the frame of the building making the walls creak.
Sanji frowned before looking back to Nami only to find her smiling. "Don't worry about that. Luffy must be nearby. This house seems to know when he's coming home." she said standing up once again to tend to the food on the stove. A few moments later, the shop bell rang downstairs and Luffy's voice drifted up the stairs. "Nami!? Usopp!? I'm back and I've fixed the window!" Down the hallway Zoro could be seen walking out of their room and wondering towards the kitchen. Luffy emerged from the stairwell as Zoro sat down, a deep frown was pasted on the mercenary's face. Marching towards the kitchen he stopped in front of Zoro and Sanji, gazing down at them.
"When were you planning on telling me?" he said with a slight edge in his voice. Sanji frowned, "What are you talking about... We know as much as you do." He said shrugging. "Bullshit!" snarled Luffy slamming his hands onto the table-top. Turning his back he crossed over the kitchen to open fridge and take out a medium sized bottle of apple juice. Drinking nearly the whole thing in silence before Nami voiced that dinner was ready. As they sat down, Usopp dropped through the roof again and tossed something to Luffy.
Luffy gave a half-hearted smile and tried on the new knuckle dusters. "Thanks Usopp, you have no idea how much better I feel having these with me." He said flexing his fingers. Usopp smiled and sat down before pointing at the knuckle dusters. Luffy raised an eyebrow, "You reinforced them with a Titanium alloy? Nice." He muttered examining them now. Nami swatted his hand making him yelp and look up at her, "Not at the table. We're about to eat." She said walking over to the counter and picking up the bowls sitting there.
"I hope you two like pumpkin. We're having Pumpkin soup tonight." Placing the bowls in front of Zoro and Sanji first then going back for her own, Usopp's and Luffy's. Sitting herself down, she began to start up conversation. "So Luffy, where'd you disappear to?" she asked carefully spooning some of the hot soup into her mouth. Luffy looked up, "Oh, you talking to me? Sorry, I have a lot on my mind..." he said lowering his spoon. "I went to go find Smoker. I also went looking for an old friend; Shanks. I couldn't find him though. I've needed to talk to him for some time now." He said before going back to his soup, signalling that this line of conversation had ended.
Zoro frowned. That name sounded familiar for some reason... Shanks... where had he heard that name before? Sighing in frustration he let his mind linger and continued eating. Across the table, Sanji almost spat out the contents of his mouth. "Shanks! As in 'Red-Haired' Shanks!" he yelled. Luffy smiled, "You know old man Shanks?" Sanji shook his head, "No just heard stories. They say that as a child, his hair used to be blond. But one day he came home covered in the blood of an entire Chinese Platoon! From that day on his hair stayed the same colour as the blood of the men he had killed." Luffy scoffed. "Ha! Where'd you hear that one? Nah, Shanks probably made those up for reputations sake." Smirking he leaned in closer, "He thinks that I still believe that rumour but I saw him dying it once." He snickered.
Suddenly Luffy frowned and his eyes flickered towards the window as a breeze found its way through the cracks in the glass. Looking down at his lap, he spoke up once again. "Nami, I need to borrow a few things for this mission. Is that ok?" he said fishing a piece of bacon out of his soup. Nami looked up with a puzzled expression, "Um, yeah I guess so... but why now? You've never asked for any of our weapons before." She said putting down her spoon. "Just what is this job? And since when has the alliance needed a mercenary to do their dirty work!?" she demanded.
Luffy looked down letting his hat hide his eyes and picked at the table with his nails. "I'm sorry Nami... but I can't involve you in this one. Smoker told me that if anyone else gets involved, this could end very badly, not just for me but for them as well." He murmured. "I can tell you where I'm going but nothing else."
Nami slammed her palm onto the table. "What the hell are you talking about Luffy!? Stop telling me fucking shit!" she yelled causing Usopp to push back from the table and cower at the other end of the kitchen. Zoro and Sanji took this as a warning and moved away from the table just in time before Luffy also started yelling. "I'm saying that if you get involved in this you and Usopp will DIE! This job doesn't just involve the alliance; it involves everyone! L.A WAS DESTROYED OVER OF THIS!" he screamed. For the second time in that day the room seemed to go cold.
Nami's hands went to her open mouth to stifle a gasp. "THAT'S RIGHT, I FUCKING SAID IT! The bombings of L.A weren't some fucked up terrorist attack; THAT WAS THE FUCKIGN GOVENMENT TRYING TO DESTROY ALL THE FUCKING EVIENCE!" he roared throwing his bowl across the room only to have it shatter against the wall. Turning his back to the table he strode towards the widow, ripped open the curtains, opened the glass pane and jumped out. Usopp ran towards the window and leaned out only to catch a glimpse of Luffy speeding away on a motor bike. Scowling he turned around and looked at Nami who had by now turned pale and was gazing towards him with teary eyes.
"I-I didn't... H-how could I..." she mumbled trying to stifle her sobs. Usopp walked over and took her into a loose hug. It was times like this he wished he could talk normally. Usually they both knew better than to question Luffy on his work but this time Nami took it to far. Sure they had all had their little arguments in the past but it had never gotten this bad... What about this job was causing Luffy to need to bring up the past even while he slept? Looking towards the alliance members he caught them staring at the window in a mixture of disbelief, shock and maybe even panic.
Gently sitting Nami down he walked over to them and grabbed them both by the shirt before dragging them protesting out of the room. "Hey what the hell do you think you're doing!?" barked Zoro. Usopp's death glare probably wasn't as good as Luffy's, but it sure seemed enough to shut the two men up. Dragging them into the study he tore out a sheet of paper and a pen before furiously scribbling something down and shoving it at Sanji's chest. Sanji took the paper and read it while Zoro read over his shoulder.
'What the fuck is going on!'
"What are you talking about?" muttered Zoro. Usopp snatched back the paper and scribbled more before handing it back.
'Luffy has never gone berserk like that before. Never that bad. This job is messing with his head. What you saw last night; that is the worst attack he has had in years. Just what the hell is going on!?'
If there was such thing as spontaneous combustion, Zoro and Sanji might have actually been incinerated by Usopp's glare. Zoro stared back defiantly and frowned, "This mission was assigned to the mercenary going by the name of Straw Hat Luffy. By Alliance law, I am not required to inform anyone else of this mission who does not go by that name." He sneered. The next thing he knew, a device that looked like the barrel of a cannon, engulfed Usopp's arm was staring him in the face. The look in Usopp's eyes practically spoke for him; "Tell me or, by god, I will blast your brains across that wall behind you."
Before Sanji could react, the miniature cannons twin had been pointed in his face as well. Sanji made a move to slap the gun out of his face but Usopp's glare narrowed and he made a flicking motion with his wrists, causing the guns to click. Sanji narrowed his eyebrows and slowly lowered his hand when he realised what the clicking noise meant; the guns were loaded and Usopp would have no problem shooting both of their brains out. Suddenly the door behind them opened. "Just because Usopp looks scrawny and has a reputation for being a coward doesn't mean he can't look out for himself or his family."
It seemed that Nami had calmed down and was back to her normal self. "Those guns he's carrying are the latest model in laser technology; the Spark-Bazooka 680. These babies' are able to blast through any substance with the force of 200 nuclear lasers. Not only is Usopp able to build weapons, but he was once the most sought after assassin and sniper in the Mafia. He could blast your head off and leave this place totally undamaged apart from the smallest scorch mark on the wall behind you." She said dully. Walking around the two alliance members she went to stand next to Nikko and crossed her arms over her chest and frowned.
"Now, what's this mission all about? Something's got Luffy spooked and we need to know what." She said. Zoro snarled, "If you have any self respect, I suggest you back off. What happens during this mission has nothing to do with you." He seethed. Sanji frowned and smacked Zoro over the back of his head. "Shut up shit for brains. A lady should be treated with the respect she deserves." Seth turned towards Nami, "Due to your kindness for accommodating us, I am willing to tell you where it is we are headed, but anything more and I will have jeopardised this mission." said Sanji.
Zoro scoffed and Usopp could have sworn he head the man mumble something about 'fucking skirt-chasers' and 'code of chivalry'. "Our mission is taking us to the east. You may know where we're going as 'Hell's Gateway'; at least... that is how Straw Hat seemed to refer to it." He said puzzled, becoming even more confused when Usopp and Nami stared at him in horror. "Hell's Gateway..." she whispered looking somewhat panicked.
"What? What's wrong?!" asked Sanji taking a step closer only to be stopped once again by Usopp's gun. Nami looked up at him. "South Carolina is the last place anyone on Earth would want to go. Not only was it Nuked but they say that beasts made by the radiation roam through the wreckage eating anything with flesh, even each other." She whispered with something akin to fear inspired awe. Glancing at Usopp she rubbed her arm.
"But that's not what I'm worried about..." she murmured. Zoro snorted, "If you're not worried about cannibalistic mutants then what else is there?" Usopp glared at him and scowled deeply. "There are worse things than beasts to be nervous about." Nami warned, "If you're going to be travelling with Luffy than you need to know... whatever you do stay out of his way if he gets into a fight."
"How can you put this..." she muttered thumbing her lip. "Luffy isn't exactly himself once his instincts take over... if you want to live, get as far away as possible." Nami shifted her stance and sighed. "I don't know why I'm bothering with this, but I have a feeling you might need to know. Luffy's instincts are different than mine or yours. When you fight, what do you fight for?" she asked.
Zoro raised an eyebrow, "To protect and to become stronger." Sanji nodded in agreement. Nami scoffed, "Ok that might be how the alliance is. When Usopp and I fight, we fight to survive and to live to see tomorrow. Luffy on the other hand..."
"What makes him so dangerous are his survival instincts; he fights as if he's the last person alive. He can't tell friend from foe, it's almost like he becomes a beast himself. All he relies on touch, smell and sound rather than common sense and logic along with his other senses are thrown out the window." She said rubbing her arm and frowning lightly.
"What I'm worried about is these instincts... they're triggered automatically when he feels in danger, or by his hatred for someone. But some of his instincts are set off by his memories."
"Luffy's strongest memories come from where he grew up... South Carolina was Luffy's home when Ace disappeared..."
Ohh! WHats going to happen now that the darker side of Luffy has been revealed.
Well, I still dont know yet myself actually... but I'll think of something.
Well, hope you enjoyed your read.
Until next time!