WAHHHHH! I'M SO SORRY! I made you all wait so long for this! I hope you'll forgive me! Anyway, school's starting up, so my updates are going to become even more sporadic. I apologize in advance.
Also... USOPP HAS OBSERVATION HAKI! I'M SO PROUD OF HIM! And did anyone else watch the 3D2Y special on crunchyroll? That special bit at the end of the end credits made me squeal like a giddy school girl!
Disclaimer: One Piece belongs to Eiichiro Oda, Shueisha/Shonen Jump, and Toei Animation. The only thing I own are my original characters.
Chapter 12: A Rumble in the Jungle
Time: Day at Night
Location: Somewhere in the jungle, not too far from the general locations of the Straw Hats (wherever those are...)
Runo loved his new toys. He'd had some favorites in the past, but these new ones really took the cake. One was strong, one was adorable, and the last one was smoking hot. (Unfortunately, Yari claimed the smoking hot one as one of her dolls for later. Poor thing.)
He stroked the top of the adorable one's (he'd come to call it Fluffy McFluffmeister) head. Fluffy was the only one with him at the moment. The other two, as far as he could sense, were somewhere in the direction Yari had gone in. One factor of his powers was he could always sense where his vict- toys were.
Runo leaned back against the tree trunk and hugged Fluffy close. Using his Hypno Hypno powers for this reason was actually more efficient than using his Haki to keep tabs on his toys. This fact seriously irked and disturbed him. Ever since they landed on this freakish island, it felt like everything had been... muted. Yari had claimed to be having the same problems once they arrived, and announced it openly after those freaking plants caught them for the third time. Vaughan was probably having the same issues, not that the bloody vamp would tell anyone. That guy gave him the creeps.
Pot and kettle, Runo, Vaughan's sarcastic voice echoed in his head.
Great, now he was hearing the blood-sucker's voice in his head. He'd fit right in with all the others he heard.
Back to the muting Haki issue. Besides getting a general feeling that there was currently a good number of people on the island at the moment, he couldn't pinpoint anyone's specific inner voice unless they were ridiculously close.
"- Nami, where are you-"
"- stupid cook-"
"- idiot's tougher than he looks, I should probably end it-"
"- HE HURT ZORO, HE HURT-"
"- WITH A SPOON, SNIPER!"
Like now, actually. What a coincidence. Runo grinned his 'slasher grin' (as Erity had dubbed it) and looked down at Fluffy McFluffmeister.
"What do you say, Fluffy?" he asked his little toy. "You want to have a go at the targets while I go find Yari?"
Fluffy just stared blankly up at him. Runo decided to take that as a yes.
Location: Carrion Bounty Hunter Base Camp
"The ship's been what?!" Carrion shouted into the transponder snail's receiver.
"It is as I said, sir," Yari replied, the snail mirroring what was undoubtedly her somewhat annoyed expression. "The Silverback has been completely destroyed, and all of our men that were aboard have been defeated."
Carrion exhaled loudly through his nose. "How, pray tell, did this happen?"
"I am not claiming to know anything about ships or the infidels you insist upon hiring, but both parties appear to have been cut up by a sword."
"... Mihawk didn't show up on this island when we weren't looking, did he? If I recall correctly, he has a habit of cutting up galleons whenever he's bored."
"I sincerely doubt it, boss."
Carrion frowned. "Then it must have been the Straw Hat Pirates. I'd heard a rumor about the Pirate Hunter cutting apart a pirate's galleon on Sabaody Archipelago."
"That does not surprise me," Yari said with disgust. "I hate to admit it, but if Vaughan had not interrupted our duel, I might have lost my life. Roronoa is a monster of a swordsman."
"It's a shame he gave up bounty-hunting to become a pirate. He'd make an excellent replacement swordsman for you, Yari."
"... Was that really necessary?" She paused. "What I am saying? Of course it was; this is you we're talking about. Whatever. Back on topic, you do not sound all that upset about losing the ship. We will not be able to leave the island now."
"You just let me worry about that, Yari," Carrion said in a cool tone. "I have a plan for every contingency after all. Now, if that's all you have to report, continue your search for the treasure and the Straw Hats. I do believe that along with their generous bounties, they have a perfectly good ship to donate."
"Oooh, devious," Yari cooed appreciatively. "I knew there was a reason I followed you."
"You mean besides the size of your paycheck?"
"But of course. Goodbye." Click.
Carrion replaced the receiver and glanced around the walls of his tent. Yes, he was paying these imbecilic bounty hunters a hefty sum for their services, and they had yet to deliver anything substantial, at least on the island. How long had they been searching? A day? Less than that? The constant changes in the sunrises and sunsets made determining the passage of time difficult. Whatever the case may be, they were no closer to capturing the Straw Hats and Kāla's treasure than they were when they first weighed anchor (an anchor they no longer had, he thought bitterly. And they had just replaced the chains too!).
Oddly enough, the only one who had made any progress was Runo, and that was a rare sight indeed. He'd captured three Straw Hats and had personally rubbed it in the others' faces when he returned to camp that time. Sure, Erity and Vaughan had returned with Siobhan, but the little brat was still refusing to cooperate.
Carrion snarled. He honestly didn't want to kill her... but she was so infuriating that he desired to slit her skinny little throat.
... Wait, he was contradicting himself again, wasn't he? He needed to work on that. Constantly contradicting one's self made one look like a fool.
Not to say he didn't find this contradiction justified. The brat knew more than she let on and made a game of not telling him a solitary thing. He recalled the brief conversation he had with her right after Vaughan had taken off with Runo and Runo's toys...
"Holler if you need me, boss," his subordinate said, opening the tent flap.
"Are you insinuating that I can't handle a 10 year old girl?" Carrion asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Didn't Mr. Vaughan and Ms. Erity have to pull her off you after she bit you five times?"
"Just leave."
The lackey shrugged and did so. Once he was gone, Carrion turned back to the little brat herself. She was standing up and leaning against the back of her cage, crossing her arms and looking bored. They stared at each other for a few minutes, glaring bitterly at one another.
"Twelve," Siobhan said at last.
It took a second for Carrion to register that she had spoken at all. "I beg your pardon?"
"I'm twelve. You told your minion you could handle a ten year old girl, and I'm telling you I'm twelve."
"That's hardly relevant to the current matter at hand."
Siobhan smirked. "What matter is there? All you did was come in here and stare at me for two minutes. You haven't brought up any matter whatsoever."
"I think we both know what that matter I have yet to bring up is," Carrion said, smirking back.
"Ah yes, that 'treasure' you're so obsessed with," Siobhan stated, sitting down with her legs crossed. "I won't deny its existence, but what makes you think I know where it is?"
"Call it a hunch, my dear. Now, if you decide to cease being difficult and tell me what I wish to know, I will set you free," he offered.
"Didn't you say you were planning on killing me even if I did tell you?"
"I apologize; I did not truly mean that. I was simply caught up in the moment."
"Uh-huh, sure. You can just screw yourself. I don't know where it is, so I guess you'll just have to search this island for the next hundred years. Not to say you'll ever find it."
Carrion was seriously contemplating taking her out of the cage just so he could beat her smug face in. However, he swallowed the urge given that was probably what the little wench wanted. (The leaving the cage part, anyway.) Instead, he smiled gently.
"You're the guardian of this island's treasure, are you not?" Carrion asked, managing to sound polite. "If I took it off your hands and left it's protection to the World Government, you could finally leave this place. You could find a new home and wouldn't have to be all alone on this small island. Isn't that you want? Isn't that what every lonely person wants?"
Siobhan kept her expression blank, but her golden eyes sparked with fury. Carrion found it to be quite unsettling. That glare alone seemed to make the air itself go stagnant.
"Don't you think for a second that you know what I want, Carrion," she said in a monotonous voice. "True, being alone on this islands gets to me now and again, but I'd rather end up a festering corpse on this rock than see you or your 'World Government' get what they want."
Carrion swallowed, although his mouth was so dry nothing went down. How could such a young child have such a commandeering presence? Not wanting her to see his weakness, he turned to leave the tent.
"Oi, hold on."
Carrion stopped walking, but did not turn to face her.
"I don't know what you think the 'treasure' is, but consider this," Siobhan said with caution. "Somebody went to a lot of trouble to seal it away on a time traveling/space crossing island. Ever wonder why?"
Carrion sunk into his tent's armchair and chuckled darkly. He had wondered why, in the distant past at least. That was before he learned exactly what the treasure was. It would not only be his ticket to being reinstated into the Marines. It would also bring about the end of the accursed New Pirate Age that Whitebeard started.
Maybe he would let the girl live after all, to see him unleash it if nothing else. That would wipe the smug look off her face for sure.
Location: Who even knows at this point?
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'WHAT'S A CLIMA-TACT AND WHAT'S A POP GREEN'?!" Usopp hollered.
"EXACTLY WHAT IT SOUNDS LIKE!" Nami hollered right back.
Nami couldn't believe the sight before here. She knew her crew would be different after two years, but this was really pushing it. Usopp was supposed to be a weak, spineless coward who came through for his friends at the right moments. This Usopp... well, he was probably still a coward given how much he was sweating, but he'd succeeded in hurting Erity when she couldn't. He certainly didn't look weak, what with all those new muscles and that strange ammunition. And what was with that slingshot? It kind of reminded her of a stag beetle's horn, but only vaguely.
"Oh no, it's worse than I thought!" Usopp said with dread. "Somehow being captured by that freakish ragdoll man has erased your memories! Dang it, this is just like the incident with the seahorse all over again*!"
Nami clocked him on the head.
"Ow!"
"You blockhead! I don't have amnesia! And what's this about a seahorse?"
"Never mind the seahorse! If you don't have amnesia, then why don't you know what your own weapon is?" He suddenly looked wary. "You're not an impostor, are you?"
"What? No, of course not!" Nami yelled.
"Prove it! What was the name of the fishman I defeated on your home island?"
"Chew!"
"From whom did we receive the Going Merry?"
"Kaya on Gecko Island!"
"What creature dwells at the bottom of Reverse Mountain?"
"Laboon the island whale!"
Usopp stared skeptically at her for a few moments, and Nami prayed to whatever deity that was listening that he believed her. That last thing she needed was misunderstanding of this nature to add to her already full plate.
"Okay, you're Nami," he decided at last, satisfied. "Now, I repeat; if you don't have amnesia, then what's wrong with you?"
"To make an extremely long story short, I'm not your Nami. In actuality, I'm a Nami from two years in your past," Nami rattled off quickly. "We arrived at this island a little while after your crew did despite the fact we were in Paradise at the time. We've already found your Zoro and your skeleton musician. Me, future Zoro, Sanji, and Chopper came into the jungle to find Luffy after he charged in here like an idiot in order to find you. Got it?"
Usopp stared at her blankly as her words sunk in. After a couple seconds, he gave her his response to all that.
"Are you lying?"
"YOU'RE ONE TO BE ASKING THAT!"
Nami mentally despaired. It was a dark day indeed if she was being accused of lying by Usopp of all people. Then again, her story did sound quite unbelievable, even by his standards.
"Seriously Nami?" Usopp crossed his arms. "I'm the Straw Hat Pirates' number one liar, and even I wouldn't tell that one." He thought for a moment. "Then again, you wouldn't tell such a ridiculous lie in such a serious situation. Maybe you got a head injury! Erity didn't give you a concussion before I showed up, did she?"
Nami frowned. "Who the heck is Erity?"
"That bounty hunter with the mohawk we were just trying to run away from."
"... You're on a first name basis with her?! Usopp!"
"Shut up! I've been following her and her creepy cohorts around for the past day! I just happened to pick up her name during that time!"
"Why were you following a sadistic bounty hunter around when you could have been trying to find your crew?!"
"What do you think I was trying to accomplish by following them around? They captured our friends, I'm not stupid enough to go after them alone, so I was trying to hinder their plans in any way I could! Only then that CP9 wannabe found me and shot my plans to hell!"
Nami was about to retort, when something about his words registered with her. "Our friends were captured? Was I one of them?"
"You were, and now your sudden appearance here is starting to make sense."
Both pirates froze. Usopp hadn't been the one who had spoken. They slowly turned their heads to the side, and not surprisingly, there stood Erity. She didn't look any less angry or unlikely to deprive Usopp of his manhood, but her expression was also oddly contemplative.
"I thought it was weird you looked so different than when I last saw you," Erity noted. "Your hair and your height, for example. Not to mention those meat sacks you call boobs aren't nearly as grossly swollen..."
"Hey!" Nami protested indignantly.
"But if what you just told Sniper King is true, then it all makes sense," the bounty hunter went on. "That's why you did so pitifully back during our... fight, if that's what you want to call it. You're a younger version of Cat Burglar, therefore inexperienced. You haven't learned any of the abilities that make you so formidable in my time."
"What?!" Usopp gasped. He turned to Nami. "So you really are from two years in the past?!"
"Why is it that you believe her right off the bat and not me?!" Nami hollered, whacking him upside the head.
"Ow! Can you blame me? You didn't explain it very well and I thought you were concussed!"
"Arghh, you are such an idiot!"
"Ow! Stop hitting me, Nami!"
Erity watched the argument and sweatdropped. She was half-tempted to let them fight it out themselves, until she remembered everything that longnosed nuisance put her through.
"Kāla's truly a mysterious place, if it's capable of bringing Straw Hats of two different times together," Erity broke in, interrupting the bickering pair. "Personally, I don't really care about any of that. It all comes down to the fact that young or not, you're still Cat Burglar Nami. I can turn in your and Longnose's bounties just as easily either way."
Nami and Usopp took a few nervous steps back. The grin Erity gave them resembled an angry cat that was just two steps away from catching a very persistent and annoying mouse.
"So, who's going to be stupid enough to attack me first?" Erity asked, taking a stance.
Nami shoved Usopp forward. "He is!"
"I was hoping it would be!" Erity admitted chipperly.
Usopp whirled around and gave his comrade look. "Nami, what the heck?! You completely just threw me under the boat!**"
"I'm sorry Usopp, but I'm not qualified to take on a New World bounty hunter!" Nami explained. "As of right now, you're the strongest Straw Hat here, so make her beg for mercy!"
"I'm the strongest Straw Hat here?" Usopp repeated. Realization dawned upon him. "I'm the strongest Straw Hat here." Realization melted away into solid deadpan. "Wow. This is kind of bittersweet."
"Less complaining, more bringing on the hurt!" Nami ordered.
"Right!" Usopp drew back his slingshot and fired. "Phoenix Star!"
A burst of flame in the shape of a bird surged towards the mohawked woman, but this time she was ready. She flashstepped out of the path of the phoenix and reappeared in front of Usopp before he could evade her.
"Shigan!"
Erity jabbed her finger into Usopp's shoulder, and it went in as if she had stuck it into butter instead of human flesh. Blood spurted out and Usopp reeled backward as he cried out in pain.
"The gauntlets make it hurt so much more than it usually would, you know," Erity sneered. She stuck out her right arm and spread out her fingers. "Go Shigan: Flying Stinger!"
From the claws of the gauntlet came five sharp bursts of air, striking Usopp's right arm like gunfire before the sniper could recover from the previous hit. More blood spurted out as Usopp gave an agonized shout and fell to the jungle floor.
"Usopp!" Nami yelled out worriedly. She ran over to him and sat him up. "Are you okay? Aside from the obvious, I mean."
Usopp grunted and gripped his shoulder. "Dammit... she's smart..."
"What makes you say that?"
"I need... both arms to shoot a slingshot."
Nami paled and glanced at his wounded arm. That arm wasn't going to be so much as lifting a fork, let along pull back the strap of a slingshot, any time soon.
"Guess we now know why she wears the gauntlets, though," Usopp went on as Nami helped him stand up.
"Like it?" Erity asked casually, holding one of her armored arms up. "Got the idea from watching that pigeon freak back during training. Claws really open a lot doors when you're trying to kill someone."
Nami had idea what about what she said did it, but suddenly Usopp looked like he'd been electrocuted.
"Pigeon... freak...?" he repeated slowly.
"I assume you know who I'm talking about," Erity continued, walking towards the pair. "My associates told me you even went as far as to challenge him on the Bridge of Hesitation. That was either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid, but taking what I know of you, I'm going with the latter."
She had reached the pair. She kicked Nami aside and roughly pinned Usopp against the bottom of one of the ginormous trees.
"I mean, the only reason you survived this long was because you kept running away instead of facing me at close quarters, and also by catching me off guard." Erity squeezed Usopp's wounded shoulder, making him grunt. "You've got some guts, but at your core, you're just another coward. What a disappointment. Why Straw Hat would let such a letdown onto his crew is beyond me."
I mean, I still can't believe this sniper is really part of the crew he fought so hard for, the bounty hunter thought to herself. I just don't get it.
"You shut up!"
Erity turned her head to the side. Nami was back her feet, shaking but firm. She looked downright murderous.
"Usopp is not a letdown!" Nami seethed, holding her still bruised stomach. "My time's Usopp always comes through in the end, and I know that much won't change two years from now! He would never do anything to hurt this crew or disappoint us! He's going to be a brave warrior of the sea so shut your stupid complaining mouth!"
Erity raised an eyebrow. "Those are just pretty words, girlie, if I don't see actions to back them up. You just stay there while I break your friend's nose. Shouldn't take too long."
She turned her head back to Usopp, only instead being nose to nose with him, she was now staring straight at shell with little holes in it's surface.
"Oh for the love of-" she began.
"IMPACT!" Usopp called out.
"TEKKAI!"
The red-haired navigator didn't know what she had just seen. It was as if some concussive force had exploded from the shell and sent Erity flying backward 20 feet into a massive tree. This time, she didn't get back up.
Usopp slid to the ground and landed on his feet, staggering. Nami was over at his side to steady him almost immediately.
"Good thing I've beefed up some," Usopp commented tiredly, holding the shell up. "If I had done that two years ago, I would have dislocated my shoulder."
"That was amazing! You actually beat her!" Nami gasped. She frowned. "Why didn't you do that earlier?"
"I wasn't close enough," he replied simply. "And of course I beat her! I'm the Great Pop-Greens Master Usopp! I couldn't call myself a Straw Hat if I couldn't do something so simple!"
Nami gave him him a knowing smile. "Then why are your knees shaking?"
Usopp looked down and sure enough, his knees were knocking together at a rapid rate.
"S-shut up! I've been running from her all morning and I'm tired! It's not because I thought she was going to kill me just now!"
"Sure it's not." Nami chuckled. "Glad to see some things stay the same over the years."
"I bet. I still can't believe you're a younger Nami," Usopp said. "How far back are you from?"
"Chopper joined our crew just a few days ago."
"Seriously?! That far?!"
"I'm afraid so. I'll give you better details when we meet back up with your time's Zoro and my time's Chopper and Sanji. And I'll want to know everything that's happened to you."
"Seeing Chopper sounds really good to me right about now," Usopp groaned. He perked up. "Oh hey, does this mean Vivi's with you?"
"She is," Nami answered.
"Aw man, I've missed her so much. It'll be great to see her again." He lost some of his perkiness. "Um, Nami? Did you really mean what said back there? About how I would never do anything to hurt or disappoint the crew?"
"If I didn't meant it I wouldn't have said it, dummy," Nami scolded him lightly, putting his good arm over her shoulders for support.
Usopp grimaced, as if remembering something painful.
"Usopp? Is there something wrong?" the navigator inquired.
"No, there's nothing wrong," the sniper replied quickly. He shifted his weight so Nami wasn't carrying it all herself. "Come on, let's get out of here before that psycho wakes up. I doubt she'll fall for the same trick twice."
"Okay. I'll try to lead us back to my group. Hopefully they've found Luffy and we'll have more man power for when she does wake up and tries to break your nose and/or castrate you again."
"Ugh, don't remind me."
Nami chuckled and the pair started moving in the opposite direction of Erity. They had only gone a few feet when they heard clapping. Not fast, laudatory clapping, but the slow kind people only do when they're being sarcastic.
"Bravo," a male voice said. "I have to say, for being one of the weakest members of the crew, you did remarkably well, Sniper King."
The voice's owner stepped out of the wall of vines and shrubbery that was in front of Nami and Usopp. It was a young man with black hair and red eyes. He had a rifle strapped to his back and two holstered pistols, but what really concerned them was the long broadsword balanced in the crook of his elbow. It looked as if it were forged from some kind of red crystal. There was something on the ground behind him; he had probably been dragging it behind him before he stopped to clap.
"Who are you?!" Nami demanded. She turned her Usopp. "Is he one of the bounty hunters?"
"I am," the man responded before Usopp could. He shifted the sword back into his hand. "My name's Vaughan. As I was saying, getting one over on Erity is no small feat. Color me impressed."
"You should be!" Usopp boasted, looking braver than he felt right now. "I beat her, so don't think I can't beat you too!"
Vaughan smirked. "I said you got one over on her. I never said you beat her." He looked past the pirate pair. "Oi, Erity! How much longer are you going to play possum?!"
Nami and Usopp's eyes widened as they turned to check on the mohawked woman. As they did, they got twin punches to their faces, sending them crashing to the ground in front of Vaughan.
"I'm done now," Erity said coolly, straightening out and placing her hands on her hips. "And please don't mention possums. They remind me too much of that annoying zoan we turned in last month. Remember him?"
"I do. He was annoying," Vaughan noted. He glanced down at the pirates. They weren't unconscious, just stunned. With a sweatdrop he asked, "Did you have to punch them while still wearing the gauntlets?"
"Yeah, did you?" Nami croaked, holding her bruised cheek.
"Put a cork it, both of you!" Erity snapped. "They had it coming! That sniper hit me in the face with an impact dial!"
"Oh, that explains why your nose is bleeding," the red-eyed man said cordially.
Erity removed a gauntlet and wiped her nose. "I got my Iron Body up in time, which is why my face isn't a mural of smashed bones and cartilage right now. I'm thankful a bloody nose is all I have to worry about." She glanced at Vaughan. "You seem to be sporting more than a few scrapes and bruises yourself. You and Runo have a run-in with somebody?"
"Runo ran off on his own a while ago. I did, however, have 'a run-in with somebody', as you so eloquently put it." He reached down and lifted up what he had been dragging. "See for yourself."
At the sight of his cargo, Erity, Nami, and Usopp's eyes all widened. The first's eyes widened in surprise, the latter two's eyes did so in horror.
Location: Wherever the heck it is Roronoa, Sanji, and Chopper are at this point...
"WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING, MOSSHEAD?!" Sanji hollered up to the future swordsman.
"LOOKING FOR NAMI, WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?!" Roronoa hollered back.
"BY CLIMBING A TREE?!
"YOU SAID GO NORTH, SO I CLIMBED THE TALLEST THING HERE!"
"NORTH AND UP AREN'T THE SAME THING!"
Chopper sweatdropped. "Come on, guys... we need to find Nami..."
After watching Sanji panic and run around in circles about losing his precious 'Nami-swan' for a few minutes, Roronoa had tripped him and told him to get a hold of himself. Once Chopper gave the cook an ice pack, they sat down to figure out what their next course of action would be. Chopper suggested that since Nami had been taking them north, she might try to keep going in that direction. By that logic, they might find her if they kept heading north. Sanji and Roronoa readily agreed, seeing as neither of them had any better ideas.
Which brings them to right now...
"JUST GET DOWN FROM THERE, YOU NINNY!" Sanji ordered.
"DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO, NUMBER 7!" Roronoa argued.
"WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?!"
"WOULDN'T YOU LIKE TO KNOW!"
"Roronoa, Sanji, maybe you two should stop yelling," Chopper said timidly. "You might attract the wrong kind of attention, like more bounty hunters."
"Or maybe Nami and Luffy will hear us and come running," Sanji suggested half-seriously. He took out a fresh cigarette and lit it, muttering, "Damn mosshead... heaven forbid he actually learn the cardinal directions after two crappy years."
Chopper looked up at the cook curiously. "Sanji, why do dislike Roronoa so much?"
"He's mosshead, ain't he?"
"No, I mean you seem to dislike him more than you dislike our Zoro. Is it because he beat you back on the Merry?"
Sanji took a drag and thought that one over. He was sure his... beating (fine, he admitted it) was part of the reason. The other part though...
The two search groups split up. As Sanji's group headed for the jungle and Zoro's headed back to the Merry, the green-haired swordsman made a point of walking past the cook.
"Watch him," he whispered.
He said it in such a quiet voice that Sanji almost missed it. He didn't miss it, however, and gave a brief nod in response.
Sanji didn't like a lot of things about Zoro, but he couldn't deny that man's instincts were usually right. If he thought there was a reason not to trust Roronoa, chances were that there was something not to trust. Though, the chef found his new task rather difficult. Like Luffy had said earlier, Roronoa was still nakama, past or future. Not trusting a member of his own crew left a sour taste in his mouth. And as a chef, he usually appreciated the occasional, subtle sour taste. But not this time.
(Yes, despite popular belief, he did trust Zoro. They were in the same crew, how could he not?)
"Yeah, sure, that's the reason," Sanji told Chopper. "Bigger Idiot Mosshead's too cocky for his own good."
"Oh, alright." That seemed to satisfy the little reindeer. "Hey, actually, why do you dislike Zoro in general? I've been wondering that."
Geez, why did the doctor have to keep asking the difficult questions. Sanji sighed. "It's kind of complicated. You see-"
"Cook, Chopper, heads up!"
It took one second for the aforementioned pirates to turn. It another second for the elder swordsman to jump down from his perch and deflect the attack with Shusui. Said attack appeared to be a glowing slash of air. Once Shusui diverted it's path, it went straight into the tree branch Roronoa had previously been standing on. The branch fell to the ground, looking like it had been cut.
Sanji gaped, looking from Roronoa to the branch. He turned to Chopper. "Please tell me Roronoa didn't just save me."
"But he did save you," Chopper said, confused.
Roronoa ignored the other two, glaring up into the tree adjacent from the one he had been standing in.
"Am I correct in assuming you're the source of all these Tempest Kicks?" he called up.
Chopper and Sanji looked up as well, and were shocked to see two people standing in its branches; a man and a woman.
"You assume correct, Roronoa!" the woman called back. "I'm impressed you were able to deflect it so easily! Then again, I'm told you were the one who beat Kaku, so I shouldn't be too amazed!"
Roronoa's eye narrowed ever so slightly at the name Kaku. Chopper looked at Sanji for an explanation, but the blonde shrugged.
"Oi, Pirate Hunter!" the man called down. He had a crystalline red sword tucked through his belt. "Remember me?!"
Roronoa grit his teeth. "You're the red-eyed freak who tranquilized me!"
"They're the bounty hunters?!" Chopper gasped. "Oh no!"
"How the hell did you find us?" Sanji asked.
Erity and Vaughan gave them deadpan looks and said in unison, "We heard you yelling like a bunch of idiots."
Sanji looked down at Chopper. "Not a word out of you."
Roronoa studied the two bounty hunters up above him. They were too relaxed for people who knew there was a prospect for a fight. They knew something the Straw Hats didn't.
He glanced at Vaughan's sword. "Hey, red-eyed freak! You're a sniper and a swordsman?"
"My name is Vaughan, and yeah, I am!" he answered. "I find it useful to have more than one skill set here on the vast Grand Line. Why, you want to fight?"
The green-haired swordsman smirked and brandished his sword. "I do owe you for tranqing me."
"Oh yeah, that. I'm still trying to figure out why you didn't die. That amount of tranquilizer would have dropped an elephant." Vaughan shrugged. "I'll fight you, but you better have improved from the last time I saw you fight. Otherwise you'll bore me."
"How could I have improved over the course of a day?" Roronoa deadpanned.
"What, you think I mean when you fought Yari? That hardly counts. The last time I saw you really fight was two years ago." The red-eyed man smiled darkly. "On Sabaody Archipelago."
The smirk on Zoro's face melted into a hateful snarl. Sanji flinched when he saw it. True, the smug, condescending way Vaughan had said that made him feel angry too, but the look on the swordsman's face gave him chills.
"I watched from behind one of the mangroves. It was good effort, but I felt your performance faltered a little bit at the end there," Vaughan went on. "Not that I stuck around for the whole thing. I hit the road after Dark King stopped old man Kizaru from blowing off your head. Though with your ugly mug, that might've been an improvement."
"You bastard!" Roronoa cursed.
"Why do people always call me that? My parents were happily married long before I was born. Don't take the fact that you're a weakling out on me."
"Get down here so I can gut you, you-"
"Okay, both you shut up!" Sanji broke in. "Clearly, there are some unresolved issues here. But since this is obviously a future thing, I don't want to know about it. What I do want to know are the whereabouts of the older Nami and Usopp." He looked up at the bounty hunters. "We know you did something to them, and you're going to tell us what."
"And if we decide not to?" Erity asked, placing a manicured hand on her chin.
"I would hate to have rough up such a lovely lady, but if it's for my nakama, I will do what's necessary," Sanji said suavely, bowing slightly and placing his hand on his chest.
"Sanji," Chopper said in awe. "That was so cool!"
Sanji smiled. Of course it was. He was way cooler than that swordsman.
Roronoa didn't seem to hear Sanji or Chopper. He was too busy glaring angrily at Vaughan.
Erity raised an eyebrow and gave Sanji a slightly confused look. "'Lovely lady?' Hmm, that's different tune than from what you were singing earlier." She narrowed her eyes, as if studying Sanji more closely. "Oh, wait, hold on, you're the younger Sanji. That makes more sense. Nonetheless, I'd think twice about threatening us if I were you."
Sanji was about to retort, but Roronoa barred him back with his arm. "And why's that?"
Erity swept out her arm grandly. "Vaughan, show them what's behind figurative door number one!"
Vaughan nodded and thrust his hand out. When he did, what appeared to be two bodies shot out of the branches.
It wasn't just any two bodies; it was Nami and future Usopp. They hung in the air, their bodies clenched and stiff looking. Veins throbbed visibly against their skin, and both looked to be in pain. Thankfully they appeared to be conscious.
"NAMI!" Sanji cried out.
"S-Sanji!" Nami choked out.
He saw her multiple and many bruises. He seethed. Those crappy hunters had hurt his precious Nami. They would pay.
"Who's that with her?' Chopper asked. "He kinda looks like..."
"It's Usopp," Roronoa finished for the reindeer. He looked truly and utterly pissed. "My time's Usopp."
"That's Usopp?!" Sanji asked in disbelief.
The cook and the reindeer stared at the sniper for several moments in sheer awe. The sniper looked down at them, eyes looking at them expectantly.
"... FUTURE USOPP'S ALL MANLY!" the duo shouted incredulously.
Roronoa face-palmed.
"WHY IS THAT SO SHOCKING?!" Usopp shouted, his teeth looking comedically shark-like. He looked down at Roronoa. "Zoro, be careful with these two! Vaughan can control blood and I think Erity might be an ex-CP9!"
"CP9?" Roronoa repeated. He frowned. "That would explain how she knows Kaku."
"You're from CP9?" Vaughan asked his companion. "I recognized the fighting style but I never thought you were from them."
"Technically, I was never part of the official team. You see-" Erity began to explain before apparently changing her mind. "Never mind. It's a long story and not one I can tell sober."
"Converse on your own time!" Roronoa broke in. "I don't care what abilities you have or if you're from some defunct black-ops unit! I don't take kindly to a bunch of jackass bounty hunters hurting my crewmates. You're both going down and you're going down hard. I will fight you both if I have to!"
"Hey, what about us?" Sanji argued, hands in his pockets and tapping the toe of his shoe against the ground. "I'm not letting you play white knight to Nami's damsel in distress."
"They're too strong for you and Chopper," Roronoa retorted. "Besides, you couldn't kick a woman to literally save your life."
Chopper wilted at this news. He'd been hoping he could fight for his crew this time.
"But wait, there's more!" Vaughan said, sounding like a game show host. "If you decide to fight the first and second lieutenants of the Carrion Bounty Hunters, not only do you get the chance to free a navigator and a sniper, but you also get..."
He thrust out his other hand , and another body burst from the trees branches. This one made every present non-captive Straw Hats' blood run cold.
"LUFFY!"
The rubber captain looked terrible. He was covered in dried blood and he had... were those gun shot wounds? Luffy couldn't be shot! He also had cuts, which made a little more sense, but those bruises he had sure didn't. And to make matters worse, he too hung stiff in the air, but he wasn't conscious.
Vaughan haughtily removed Luffy's hat and placed it on his own head. "Have to say, for a near rookie, he didn't do too bad."
"How'd you beat him anyway?" Erity asked. "Past or future, Straw Hat is still a tough one."
"That's a trade secret."
"... You got bored and knocked him out by making the blood rush to his head cause you didn't bring tranq darts, didn't you."
"... You know Erity, if you were a pirate captain, you'd be named Captain Killjoy."
The pirates ignored the bounty hunters. Roronoa looked ready to kill something (preferably said bounty hunters), while Chopper and Sanji looked on in astonishment. Had Luffy been defeated so easily? They knew these New World guys would be tough, but to make their near-unbeatable captain appear so helpless...
"Hello?" Vaughan called down, making the three captive pirate wiggle in the air. "You guys still with us?"
"Stop that!" Sanji yelled, hoping he didn't sound desperate. "You sick piece of crap! Let them all go, NOW!"
"Okay!" Vaughan agreed chipperly.
The three Straw Hats below went blue in the face. He wasn't going to actually...
Vaughan raised his arms up and, before anyone could stop him (namely Erity), thrust them down. Instantly, the captive Straw Hats stopped floating and fell towards the jungle floor. Nami and Usopp screamed, and Luffy... was still unconscious and most likely had no idea as to what was happening.
Lucky for them, their nakama were quick. Roronoa and Sanji both jumped into the air and caught Luffy and Nami respectively before they could hit the ground. Chopper went Heavy Point and caught Usopp.
"Whoa, nice reflexes!" Vaughan complimented. He turned to Erity. "Hey, you see that? That was-"
Erity punched him the face and sent him tumbling out the tree. "MORON!"
The Straw Hats that were all conscious shivered at Erity's heartless action. She's a demon...
As Erity jumped to the ground, Vaughan jumped to his feet and held his cheek. "What the heck, Erity?!"
"How could you just toss our hostages over to them?!" Erity shrieked. "That's against the point of taking hostages in the first place!"
"What do you want me to do? I was getting tired from using my powers all dramatically like that, which, might I remind you, was your idea. So I don't need some old hag nagging me."
"Old hag? Old hag?!" Erity was on the verge of going into hysterics. "Listen here, Enoch, I'm 29! That's only three years older than you! I am not old!"
Vaughan crossed his arms. "I'm 27, Erity. If you were really three years older than me, that would make you..."
"Don't say it!"
"Make you..."
"Don't freaking say it!"
"... 30."
That did it. Erity punched him into the ground again, only this time she wore her gauntlets. There might have been a little Tekkai in there as well.
"I'M STILL 29 DAMMIT!"
While the bounty hunters worked out their issues, the Straw Hats tended to their own. Chopper laid Usopp against a tree, and Roronoa knelt next to him, not relinquishing his hold on Luffy however. Sanji was also perfectly happy carrying Nami bridal style and made no effort to set her down.
"Nami, are you okay?" Sanji asked softly. "Those bruises..."
"I'm fine, worry about Luffy and Usopp!" Nami insisted, letting herself down.
Chopper began examining the two of them. "Oh no, they're both seriously wounded! We need a doctor, is anyone a doctor?!"
"You're the doctor, Chopper!" Roronoa scolded him. They had no time for childish antics.
Chopper stopped freaking out. "R-right. Sorry."
"I'll be okay, Chopper," Usopp said. "Focus on Luffy. He looks worse off than I do."
Roronoa finally set Luffy against the tree trunk so Chopper could do his job, then moved in front of Usopp.
"Usopp, did Nami fill you in?" he asked.
"Briefly," the sniper responded. He clutched his arm.
Roronoa glanced at the wounds. "You get those protecting Nami?"
"Yup," Usopp replied tersely.
Roronoa smiled. "Good man."
"We're nakama," Usopp shrugged (as if that answered everything), then winced in pain. He looked toward Chopper and Luffy. "How's Luffy?"
Chopper lifted his head up, his eyes tearing up. "It's bad... he's lost a lot of blood. He needs a transfusion but I... I don't..."
Before the little doctor could continue, something bizarre occurred. Flowing, floating ribbons of red liquid streamed through air and entered Luffy's wounds. This made Luffy grunt in his unconsciousness, but did not wake him. When they all looked to see where it was coming from, they saw it was coming from a no-longer-being-punched Vaughan.
More specifically, it was coming from his now liquefied sword. Once the red liquid (what they realized was blood) finished entering Luffy, all the wounds scabbed over.
The pirates stared at the bounty hunter.
"Sorry," Vaughan apologized. "I forgot to give that back to him after our fight. I hope you'll forgive my negligence." He glanced at his now empty hand, then smacked his forehead in a "d'oh' manner. "Oops, silly me. Now I don't have a sword. I guess I'm going to have to take a rain check on our duel, Pirate Hunter."
"You're a terrible actor," Erity muttered, crossing her arms and rolling her eyes. "I hope you realize this will be a whole lot harder now that we've lost our hostages."
"Have you no faith in your own abilities, Erity?" Vaughan asked.
She rolled her eyes again. "You better hope the boss doesn't find out you messed up so bad."
Roronoa stood up and held up Shusui. "What are you playing at, Vaughan?! Last time I checked, bounty hunters don't help or release their targets!"
"And you would know that, being a former bounty hunter and all," Vaughan agreed. "I'd love to sit down and have some witty pre-battle banter about this, but..."
At the exact moment Vaughan paused in his speech, a strange sound echoed through the jungle. It sounded like some kind of roar, and a pained one at that. It made those who heard it break out into a cold sweat.
"... I'm afraid this is where we make our exit!" Vaughan finished, tossing Luffy's hat to the swordsman.
With that, he snatched Erity's hand and went charging into the jungle, the mohawked woman protesting and cursing the entire way. This left the Straw Hats to wonder what the heck just happened.
However, they didn't have long to muse over it. Not long after that roar sounded, the ground began to shake at even intervals, in unison with loud thumping noises. It was almost as if they were...
"... Foot steps?" Nami thought aloud.
"What could make foot steps that big?" Sanji wondered. "Giants?"
All of sudden, Roronoa stood ramrod straight, as if a charge had gone his spine, and broke out into a sweat. "No... this feeling..."
"Zoro?" Usopp spoke up, pulling himself into a standing position. "Care to share with the class?"
Roronoa didn't answer. He was now staring at Chopper.
Chopper shifted uncomfortably. "Roronoa? Is there something wro-"
"ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!"
The Straw Hats held their ears as the roar resounded through the trees. It was the most horrible thing the younger pirates had ever heard. The elder pirates, on the other hand...
"That roar..." Usopp muttered. He turned sharply to Roronoa. "You don't think it's-"
Roronoa reached down and lifted Luffy up, placing the straw hat back on his captain's crown. "It is."
The sniper grimaced. "That's never good. He never goes for the big guns unless the situation really demands it."
Before any of the others could ask what those two meant, the roar finished and it's owner broke through the trees. Sanji, Nami, and Chopper stepped back in abject terror. This was...
It was a giant, furry creature with hooves, massive arms, and long, black fingers. It's solid white eyes were icy and cloudy, and it's giant antlers look as if they could pierce anything. And for some strange reason, it wore shorts and blue hat that would have been cute in any other instance, but not this one.
The monster let out a long, slow breath, and stared down at them with its blank, cold gaze.
"W-what... is... that?" Nami stuttered.
"That," Roronoa said in deadpan. "would be our doctor."
"WHAT?!"
"ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAR!"
The pirates had to cover their ears again, except Roronoa, who was too busy holding Luffy.
"Hold on!" Sanji yelled over the noise. "How can.. how can that thing be Chopper?! I've seen nearly all of his transformations and he's never turned into that!" Sanji looked down at the doctor. "Chopper, what-"
He stopped mid-sentence when he saw Chopper's face. The poor thing had a horrified, awestruck expression on his face and was shaking so badly you'd think he was having a seizure. It was if he couldn't comprehend the beast before him could even exist.
"T-that f-f-form..." Chopper stuttered. "I-It's..."
"I ate three rumble balls, and then lost consciousness. What happened?" Chopper asked weakly.
"I suppose you could say your devil fruit went wild." Doctorine removed her glasses. "No matter what happens, you can't let yourself go down that path."
"I-It's..." Chopper repeated.
The beast raised it's arm. He was preparing to attack.
"Chopper, what are you doing?!" Usopp shouted frantically. "Talk to us!"
"I don't think he can," Roronoa said tersely. "Dammit, I thought he said this wasn't going to happen anymore...!"
"What's going on?!" Nami screamed. "Why is Chopper like that?! What won't happen anymore? What is this?!"
"It's... It's his...!" Usopp began.
The present Chopper, the young one, swallowed.
"A power that destroys your foes but turns you against your friends and your own body as well? There's only one word for a creature like that."
Tears filled Chopper's eyes.
"A monster."
"... MONSTER POINT!"
"RUN!"
"ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!"
Next Time:
Chapter 13- It's All Hot Air in The Desert
Yeah, I'm not doing the next chapter preview anymore. It's puts me into a box and I don't like boxes. Oh, and if you catch any errors, tell me in a PM, NOT a review. I like my work to have quality after all!
EDIT: Some of you have been "correcting me" on how "Future Chopper can control his Monster Point." I am perfectly aware of this. If you read what happened at the beginning of the chapter, you'd know something was wrong with him courtesy of Runo. I've been hinting at it the entire story. Three "toys," Runo's Hypno powers... come on! It's not that hard!
* This is a reference to the anime-only Ocean's Dream Arc of One Piece. All of the Straw Hats lose their memories of being a crew except for Robin.
** The usual phrase would be "thrown under the bus", but I don't think they have buses in the One Piece world.