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Chapter 13: Bottled Up

Wind swept across the land, blinding all with the desert sands as Luna hitched one of the black horses with wings. Yume, Luffy, Akumu, and Shuzan spoke to one another, each nodding at Shuzan's plan. After another minute, Yume suddenly tossed Sanji a pair of white robes, similar to Luna's, saying,"Wear it, you're going with her-"

"Thought I was on the 'Assualt the Castle From Behind' Team?" Sanji said, Yume glaerd at him, then kicked Sanji on his leg joint, making him fall to his knee and yell out in pin. "Now I catch you, you just put me up as a handicap."

"We're abandoning that plan, Franky and Usopp are already on their way to the Sunny, they'll deal with the Marines," Zoro explained. "Instead, me, Luffy, and Brooke are going to attack head on in front. Robin and Shuzan would be working on the inside, making sure that hte gates stay open for you and Luna."

"Then what about us?" Matt indicated him, Chehero, Richie and Tsuki. Yume stared at them, then gained an idea,"You people will fallow Luna and Sanji-"

"And what do they do?"

"Do you want to do what they do?"

"Yeah, and what do they do?"

"What they are going to do."

"And what do they do?"

"What they are going to do."

"And what do they do?"

"What they are going to do."

"Hey! Don't get smart with me, Prince o' Persia, I'm not the one who allowed my country fall into some twisted Marine's hands and is asking for help from one of the most powerful pirates that had ever set their feet to the Grand Line!" Yume rolled his eyes at him, Richie suddenly said,"I can create a portal so me and the others could warp to Yume Kado-"

"Ah, what a splendid idea, young Richard!" exclaimed Akumu. "But no, alas, we made you help fight alongside your captain-" He was cut off when there was a roar from a large distance,"THERE THEY ARE! AFTER THEM!" An army of Marines came to the scene, Shuzan grabbed Robin's hand then disappeared with her, leaving hte creew and two princes to fight alone. Sanji (who wore the white robes) instantly got on Luna's horse and took the reins, snapping them and sending the black horse into a gallop. Luna looked over her and Sanji's shoulders and heard Yume shout orders,"Go into the city gates, work your way to the castle and start off from there!"

They rode away from the battle and continued n until they reached a large wall that stretched out as far as hte eye can see, even into a bay were ships were docked. The gate was left wide open, just as Shuzan promised, anji slid off the horse's back and assisted Luna to her feet, then they quickly strode through the gate, heads down, unnoticed by th guards that wore fine armor and spears by their sides. Sanji began mumbling words under his breath, eyes shifting around to make sure they weren't fallowed. Of course, no matter how unaudible he was, she managed to hear every:

"Damn it, dmn it all to hell. I'm stuck with Luna being treated as a handicap, rediculous...now where's that stupid castle?"

"We could use the sewers," Luna suggested, folding her arms as they strode the empty streets of a medevil like city. Dogs barked, people cowered away from them, guards glared, the sun refused to shine upon htem all. Sanji stopped at a bridge, then leaned over the wooden handels and observed hte area.

"No, Yume told me that the city's connected by sewers, it doesn't go to the ones in the castle-"

"Then we run through rooftops."

"What if the guards catch us?" Luna pointed at her nose with her finger, smiling,"I can smell the idiots from a mile away, none of them are up in the air."

"That's not really-"

"C'mon, ya big baby, too afraid o go jump around?"

"It's not that-"

"OI!" they jumped at the voice from an allyway, a group of Marines were fallowed by the Guardian of Darkness emerged. Sanji shoved his hands into his pockets, giving a death glare. "Shuzan-sama told me to fetch you idiots-"

"Ketsuki..."

"Hai?"

"How's Becky?"

"Who, the runt? Ah, she's all right, ready to be rescued in all due respects. I brought a little friend with me, I hope he helps." and with that, Ketsuki faded away in a black mist while tossing Sanji a silver key. In his place, there was a familiar chuckle and seven forms emerged from the darkness,"Feh, feh, feh, now where's old Red?"

"R-RED?!"

Before their eyes stood the deceased Trace and his Ninetailed Brethren, Luna unsheathed her sword, Kira appeared and took the sword in his jaws and crushed it. Shadow and Night snikered in the background, Rao and Spirit stood behind Trace, he too wore hte same outfit as Sanji and Luna. Only his teeth shone, his canines were longer and sharper, only shorter than Luna's. The two gave him a doubting look, then turned, offending the fox as they left him,"I know where to go in order to find the keys." Luna pause, but Sanji kept going, she grabbed his wrsit but he shook her off,"Don't trust the words of a fox-"

"Well...you're one too!" she retorted. "So don't be such a hypocrite. If Ketsuki-"

"If Ketsuki plans to betray Horus, then he might betray us, chances are that all of this was caused by him, after all..." he turned to face her. "Him and Trace are the oldest things I know-"

"Oi! Who're you callin' a thing?! Be respectful!" snapped Kira. "Me and the Brethren are proud to serve under you...powerful freaks, some the location of the keys are engraved in are heads-"

"We got ahold of the same information and are on our merry way to do the task givin to us by th captain-"

"Then where do you search?" Rao asked, Luna piped in,"In the palace over there of course!"

"Feh, that's where Horus stays, it's not the correct area to start off. Just because they're captains doesn't mean they're staying in the same place at the same time. Each of them has certain duties, say for...Gebson, he's in control with the supplies and slaves, he is on his way here from Nagira. It'll be a long tme before he arrives, and Razeh, she's in control of the military shit and waits for weapons to arrive. Of course...that's all we manage to know..." Shadow explained, Night took his place,"Now, the closest one that is in control of all three poor, middle, and rich districts in Yume Kado currently is Siris, the ossan that controls water."

"Give us the place where he rests and we can be done with him." demanded the chef.

"But that is all we know, that's it. I mean...yeah." Trace said, rubbing the back of his head, Sanji and Luna kicked him in the stomach,"What's the point of helping if you don't know anything!"

"WE AID IN COMBAT, GEKI, NOT CLUES!" boomed Geki, padestrians backed away from the group when Geki flashed some lightning so suddenly.

"You seem to be in a bad mood..."

"Why shouldn't they?" Trace whispered into their ears. "You two drowned them. Now, chop, chop!, to work we shall go. Kasu, find Shuzan and tell him of our plan, Night, Shadow, assualt Gebson's caravan, and Rao, inform Yume and Akumu of this too. Return to me when the task is done. Spirit, come with us. And Geki...go to your happy place." Trace added, Geki nodded under his bundle of bandages and then disappeared in water. Spirit railed behind them as they started down a path. "We, all of us, apologize about our interactions with you-" Sanji then suddenly started yelling bloody murder, Luna had noticed why he was so quiet: he was bottling up his feelings, but for what purpose?

"Would you just-just shut up and go away from us?!"

"Sanji..."

"Don't speak, don't utter, don't whisper, don't even mouth anything! I just don't want to take part in all this anymore, I just want to fetch Nami-swan and Becky and get out of this godforsaken kingdom! This is like Arabasta and CP9 all mashed together in some sort of fucked up play! It's too much-"

"You can't trust us, can you?"

"No fucking SHIT!"

"SANJI!" Luna hollored, he whiped around to face her, pointing a finger in her face, shouting,"And you should take better watch of your sister! If you hadn't been so careless, none of this would've happened!"

"What the hell are you even going on about?!"

"Something I wanted to say during my whole time here: if you were a mother, you'd SUCK! Fail! Damnit!" he kicked a barrel in anger. "This is so FUCKED!" There was silence between him and Luna, she then said quietly, but bitterly,"That's the bottom line, you just wanted to say that....why are you telling me all this?"

"Because it's true." Not the best answer, really.

Luna suddenly threw her hands in the air to show capitulation and started walking away,"All right, I admit,all the things you just listed out are true. Thought you promised to protect me, but instead you throw profanity in my face. That's it, we through. Bon voyage. Aloha. Whatever, c'mon Trace, we'll save them without his help." They turned a corner, Sanji shouted to their backs,"Go ahead, see if I care!" A minute passed. He started running ater them, but found that they were gone. Already, regret filled him for saying those things in his outbust.

"Urgh, I'm so stupid."

Sighing, he began to slowly strode down the streets, contemplating on what he should do next. In the rooftops above, Trace and Spirit watched him.

"Perhaps he didn't mean it, ma'am." Trace said, Luna had her back to him.

"Forget the man, I have better things to do than listen to his complaints."

Ouch...