Chapter 3
One Piece © Oda
Pokemon © Nintendo, Game Freak
Blizzard, Vice-Admiral Moss, and Captain Knuckle © Me
"Hold still, will ya? How do you expect to get clean if you keep squirming around so much?"
"Stop it, Luffy! You're hurting me!"
"Luffy, you're scrubbing him too hard! What are you trying to do, take off his skin?"
"Sorry!"
Luffy was in the bathhouse with Nami, trying to give Zorua a bath in the sink. However, it proved to be easier said than done. Zorua wouldn't sit still, but it was because Luffy kept scrubbing the little guy much too hard to the point where he was hurting him. Not just that, but he never had this kind of a bath, before.
"Here, Luffy," said Nami as she lathered the soap on Zorua's fur and gently scrubbed his head. "Like this, see?"
Zorua hummed in relaxation as Nami continued to clean out all the dirt and debris out of his fur.
"Good boy, Zorua," said Nami. "Now, you try Luffy."
Luffy nodded before he began to scrub Zorua's back and tail, this time making sure to be gentle with him. The Straw Hat captain smiled and chuckled at how relaxed Zorua was being.
"There you go, Zorua!" he praised.
"Now roll him over so you can scrub his tummy," said Nami, "and make sure none of the soap gets in his eyes!"
Luffy nodded again before he rolled Zorua over in the sink and started to scrub his belly. Zorua seemed to like it very much, for he made small content noises.
"Okay, that's enough," said Nami. "Time for him to get rinsed."
Luffy turned on the faucet and began to rinse Zorua's fur off.
"Could you make the water a little warmer?" Zorua asked.
Nami nodded and turned on the hot water, making the water lukewarm.
"That's better," said Zorua. "Thank you."
Luffy and Nami smiled.
Once Zorua was rinsed off, they took him out of the sink and started to dry him off with a towel, gently.
"There you go," said Luffy. "All clean."
"Thanks, Luffy," said Zorua. "Thanks, Nami."
Luffy put Zorua down on the floor.
"Now, why don't you go play with Blizzard?" he asked him.
"Okay!" Zorua said before he scampered off.
"He's so cute," said Nami. "He's just like a little puppy!"
"Yeah, I know," Luffy said with a snicker.
XXX
Zorua ran out onto the deck to find Blizzard, who was taking a nap on the lawn, under the shade of the tree. The Tricky Fox smiled before he ran up to the wolf-dog and sat on his head. Blizzard opened his sleepy eyes and looked up at him.
"Hi, Blizzard!" Zorua said. "Wanna play?"
Blizzard just stood up and yawned, causing Zorua to roll off of his head. Zorua took it as a sign of playfulness, so he started to nip at the wolf-dog's ears. Blizzard, now getting irritated with the Tricky Fox Pokemon, pulled away from him, grumpily. He gave Zorua a glare that said "Get away from me!"
"Don't you wanna play with me, Blizzard?" Zorua asked.
Blizzard turned away from Zorua and laid himself back down.
Zorua's ears fell to the sides of his head.
He had this distinct feeling that Blizzard didn't really like having him around.
"Hey, Zorua."
Zorua turned and saw Chopper approaching him.
"Oh. Hi, Chopper," he said.
"What's the matter?" the reindeer asked him.
"Blizzard won't play with me," Zorua answered. "I don't think he likes me, at all."
"Oh, no, Zorua!" Chopper said. "It's not that Blizzard doesn't like you! He's just taking a nap, right now, that's all! He doesn't like being disturbed."
Blizzard yawned before he returned to his slumber.
"I see," said Zorua. "Now that I think about it, I'm a little tired, too."
A yawn escaped his mouth.
"Why don't you go ahead and lay down?" Chopper asked.
Zorua nodded before he approached Blizzard, once again, and then brushed up against his side. This cause Blizzard to awaken, but only for the moment. Zorua curled up against the huge wolf-dog, eyes closed and breathing soft.
Blizzard looked around to see if anyone had noticed, but Chopper was gone, and as far as he could see, no one else was there to see him and Zorua like this. With that in mind, Blizzard laid back down to continue his nap, but then, he looked to Zorua, and gave a small smile.
He's not really so bad for a little fox thing, he thought before he returned to sleeping.
Little did he know was that he had actually been watched the whole time…by Luffy, who was wearing a grin on his face.
"You can fool the others, Blizzard," Luffy began, "but you can't fool me."
Suddenly, Usopp's voice came on the intercom from the crow's nest.
"Hey, guys! We got trouble! Marine battleship spotted from the rear, and it's coming this way!"
Everybody except Blizzard and Zorua gathered at the aft of the ship and saw that Usopp was indeed correct: a Marine battleship was coming right for them from behind.
"About time," Zoro said. "I was just in the mood for some exercise."
"It looks like I was right," said Nami. "The Marines are after Zorua!"
"Blizzard!" Luffy called.
Blizzard and Zorua, who had woken up from Usopp's announcement, looked up at Luffy.
"Quick, buddy! You gotta hide Zorua! The Marines are coming!" Luffy ordered.
When Blizzard heard "Zorua" and "Marines" in that order, he knew he had to act quick. He picked Zorua up by his mane and then carried him off into the kitchen. He opened the cabinet under the sink and put the little Pokemon there.
"Blizzard, wait!" Zorua called. "Where're you going?"
Blizzard gave Zorua a stern look that said, "Stay put", and that's what Zorua did.
By the time Blizzard came back outside, he saw that the battleship had already caught up with the Sunny and was now beside her.
"Get ready, you guys," said Luffy.
"Right," said Nami.
Just then, Vice-Admiral Moss came out of his quarters, followed by his brother, Knuckle, as well as many other Marine soldiers.
"Well, well, well," said Moss, his hands behind his back and a cigar in his mouth. "If it isn't the notorious Straw Hat Pirates?"
Usopp looked up at Knuckle, and couldn't help but grimace at his Glasgow scar.
"Who the hell are you?" Luffy questioned.
"I am Vice-Admiral Moss," the Vice-Admiral introduced himself before he turned to his brother. "This here is my younger brother, Captain Knuckle."
"Younger?" Sanji repeated under his breath.
"Now, you are well aware that you are all a crew of infamous criminals," Moss said. "As such, my men and I have to apprehend you and take you in."
"Like that'll ever happen!" Nami snapped.
Moss smirked.
"Also," said Moss, "you pirates have something that I want."
"We do not," said Zoro. "Whatever you want, it definitely isn't here!"
"Yeah, so get lost!" Sanji added.
"Yeah!" Luffy chimed in. "Zorua's not here- OUCH!"
Nami drove the heel of her shoe into Luffy's foot.
"Shut up, Luffy…!" she growled.
Luffy grunted in pain as he held his foot and hopped up and down.
"So, it is here, eh?" Moss mused. "Knuckle, if you would?"
Knuckle nodded before he pulled out what looked like a dog whistle, only it was copper. He blew into it, and it made a small toot.
Suddenly, a gray-and-black blur came out of Moss's quarters and soon joined him at his side. It looked like some sort of wolf or a hyena, only its body was a mixture of gray and black with black colorations on its lower legs, clawed paws, and tail. It also had dark, triangular streak patterns below its eyes, which have yellow sclera and red irises. Its ears were rhombus-shaped with dark insides, gray paw pads, and noses that were red in coloration. It also had black, eyebrow-like extensions on its head from the black shaggy "mantle" of fur on its back.
"Is that a wolf?" Chopper asked.
"It looks more like a hyena," said Luffy.
"You're wrong," said Robin. "It's Mightyena."
"Mightyena?" Sanji repeated.
"The Bite Pokemon, and the evolved form of Poochyena," said Robin. "Mightyena tend to have a loyal nature, and are known to bite savagely at their prey, which it brings down in a coordinated attack with its fellow pack members. In the wild, the pack always follow an experienced leader, no matter the species. If it recognizes the person handling it as such, it will obey its orders without question."
"So it's kind of like a dog," mused Nami.
"Oh contraire, Miss Cat Burglar," said Moss. "Mightyena is better than any dog that has been trained in the Marine K9 Unit.. He is able to sniff out anything with no distractions."
Grrrrfff…! Mightyena growled.
"Mightyena," said Moss. "You know what we came here for. Find it."
Mightyena nodded before he jumped aboard the Sunny, startling the crew into backing away. The Bite Pokemon started sniffing around the deck, stopping to sniff the crew, making them nervous, and then going to the one place Luffy (and Blizzard) had been dreading: the kitchen.
"Oh, no," said Luffy. "What if he eats all the meat?"
"I think that's the least of our worries, Luffy," said Nami.
You don't know the half of it, Blizzard thought.
"Hey! Put me down! Let go!"
Mightyena came back out of the kitchen…with Zorua dangling in his teeth by his mane!
"Zorua!" Luffy cried.
"I said put me down!" Zorua snapped. "Who do you think you're dealing with? Let go!"
"Good boy, Mightyena," said Moss. "Now, bring Zorua to me while we arrest the Straw Hats."
Mightyena nodded before he prepared to head back on board the Marine battleship, but then, BAM! Blizzard tackled Mightyena into a wall, forcing him to release Zorua, who was sent flying into the air.
"WHOOOOOOOAAA~!" Zorua cried.
Luffy gasped before he jumped up and caught Zorua.
"Gotcha!" he said.
"Thanks, Luffy!" said Zorua.
Luffy just smiled, widely.
"Luffy!" Nami called. "You and Zorua are headed right for the Marine ship!"
Luffy gasped and looked down to see that Nami was right. He and Zorua were about to land on the battleship.
"Uh-oh," said Luffy.
THWUD! Luffy landed on the deck of the battleship with Zorua still in his arms, and he was soon surrounded by the Marines.
"You have nowhere to run, Straw Hat," said Moss. "Now, give yourself and Zorua up."
"What do you want with Zorua anyway?" Luffy questioned.
"That's none of your concern," Moss answered. "Just hand Zorua over."
"Never!" Luffy spat before he put Zorua down. "Quick, Zorua! Run! Get outta here!"
Not really a wise idea, since there really was nowhere for Zorua to run to. Still, the Tricky Fox Pokemon obeyed Luffy and ran off in a random direction. He couldn't get far, for he ran right towards Captain Knuckle, who prepared to grab him right then and there, but then, POW! Franky seemed to appear out of nowhere and socked the brutish Marine in the jaw.
"Franky!" Zorua cheered.
"OW!" Franky cried as he struck a pose. "Don't worry about a thing, little buddy! I got your back!"
"And don't forget us!"
Zorua turned and saw the rest of the Straw Hats jumping aboard the ship, preparing for battle. Instinctively, he ran to stay out of the ensuing fight.
"Marines!" Moss ordered. "Attack!"
The Marines soon jumped into battle, but ,of course, the Straw Hats were prepared.
"Armaments Hardening!" Luffy cried as his arms went black. "Gum-Gum…GATLING!"
BAP! BAP! BAP! BAP! The Marines soon fell victim to Luffy's powerful punches.
Five more Marines jumped at Luffy from behind, but the captain was one step ahead and jumped out of the way. He turned to them, his leg turning black as it stretched.
"Gum-Gum…WHIP!"
WHAM! Luffy struck the Marines to the side.
Zoro turned to face 23 Marines charging at him with their sabers.
"Only 23?" he muttered. "How boring."
He drew Shuusui from its scabbard.
"One-Sword Style…BIRD DANCE!"
SLASH! A crescent moon-shaped, air compressed slash flew at the Marines from Zoro's blade and cut every one of them down.
Zoro grunted, resting Shuusui over his shoulder, but then, instinctively, he turned to face several more Marines that were coming at him, and brought all three of his swords out.
"Three-Swords Style…CROSSING THE SIX PATHS!"
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! Zoro swung his swords in an inverted S-shape, slashing the Marines six times so fast that he didn't seem to move at all.
The Marines fell behind him.
"Really?" said Zoro. "This is the best you've got? I've seen DOGS fight better than you clowns! Well, one anyway!"
"Dark Ball THUNDER ROD!"
KRRRRZZT! BOOOM! Nami formed a long chain of dark clouds and swung it around like a whip, electrocuting any Marine who was foolish enough to get in her way.
"Certain Death…Green Star…DEVIL!"
TWANG! Usopp fired two Pop Greens, and out of both of them came two huge carnivorous Flytraps that trapped the Marines in their jaws.
"Aw, yeah~!" the sniper cheered.
Sanji was surrounded by Marines, but the cook simply took a drag of his cigarette and blew out a few rings of smoke.
"Sky Walk…"
As soon as the Marines attempted to make an attack, Sanji seemed to disappear. Looking up, they saw that he seemed to be standing…in the sky above them.
"Diable Jambe…"
FWOOSH! His right leg went aflame, startling the Marines into backing away.
"Poêle à Frire: SPECTRE!"
POW! POW! POW! Sanji kicked downward, repeatedly, at the Marines, taking out a great many of them.
He then disappeared, then reappeared in front of another Marine.
"Collier STRIKE!"
BAM! Before the Marine could react, Sanji delivered a devastating kick to his neck.
Chopper stood before several Marines. He was nervous, but he wasn't going to run away, this time.
"Kung Fu Point!"
At that cry, Chopper shifted into his Kung Fu Point, and began to attack Marines left and right, using high-pitched battle cries.
The soldiers stood little to no chance to the reindeer's powerful punches and kicks.
"Mil Fleur!" Robin exclaimed. "Gigantesco Mano!"
SHOOM! A giant pair of legs appeared before the Marines.
"STOMP!"
BAM! The legs stomped down on the Marines in her wake.
Franky, meanwhile, found himself going up against Knuckle in an old-fashioned fistfight.
Well, somewhat old-fashion.
"Strong RIGHT!"
POW! Franky fired his right fist at Knuckle, hitting him right in the gut.
It didn't seem to faze him at all.
"What the-?" the cyborg questioned, but then, BAM! Knuckle punched him in the jaw.
Franky staggered for a moment, but he remained to catch himself. He wiped the blood off of his jaw and smirked.
"Looks like this isn't gonna be easy," he said. "I like that."
WHAM! POW! BAP! The two brutes soon started to throw punches at one other.
Blizzard was on the Sunny, facing off with Mightyena, who growled and snarled at him. It appeared that he was stronger than he thought if he could withstand a full-on tackle from the huge wolf-dog.
Mightyena opened his mouth, revealing his fangs, and as he did, a dark, purple ball of energy appeared between his jaws.
What the hell? Blizzard thought.
Before he could react, Mightyena threw the ball at Blizzard.
BOOM! It exploded, sending Blizzard flying into a wall.
"Blizzard!" Luffy cried.
Moss chuckled.
"Looks like White Wolf has gotten a taste of Mightyena's Shadow Ball attack!" Moss said.
Blizzard shook off his disorientation before he lunged at Mightyena, biting down on his shoulder. Mightyena countered with a bite to his foreleg.
"Mightyena! Use Thunder Fang!" Moss ordered.
KRRZZZZZT! Mightyena's fangs began to crackle with electricity, and then, ZAP! He sent that electricity surging through Blizzard, shocking him.
"Blizzard, no!" Luffy cried. He then turned to Moss and growled. "You bastard! Make him stop!"
"Of course," said Moss, "but only if you give yourselves and Zorua up."
"I said 'never'!" Luffy shouted.
"If you insist," Moss said.
Blizzard howled in pain as Mightyena kept giving him an electrocuting bite. However, he soon bit down on the scruff of Mightyena's neck, and then pulled him off. Then, he threw the Bite Pokemon into a wall.
"Yes! Way to go, Blizzard!" Luffy cheered.
Mightyena growled before he got back up to his feet and tackled Blizzard, again.
Meanwhile, Brook was playing a happy, lively tune on his guitar, and it was making the Marines around him.
"Party Music," the skeleton said.
The Marines were smiling, happily, their minds lost to the spell of Brook's hypnotic music.
Big mistake.
"Quinte Tierce FANTASIA!"
Using a swift draw-and-sheathing technique, Brook cut down every last one of his opponents, and it looked like he hadn't been seen, at all!
Zorua, who had been watching from a safe distance, stared in amazement.
"Wow…!" he said. "They're strong!"
"Gotcha!"
GRAB! Moss picked Zorua up by the scruff of his neck.
"Hey!" the Tricky Fox Pokemon cried. "Lemme go!"
"Zorua!" Nami cried.
"At last!" Moss said. "Zorua is all mine!"
"You put him down!" Luffy ordered.
The Straw Hats began to advance and surround Moss, with the exception of Blizzard, who was still down on the Sunny, and Franky, who was still fighting with Knuckle. However, Moss reached into his coat and pulled out a kusarigama from within, and put the blade up to Zorua's neck.
"Ah-ah-ah~!" Moss said in a warning tone. "Don't any of you take one more step! Give yourselves up, or else I'll slit open Zorua's throat, and believe me, my friends, neither of us want that, now do we?"
The Straw Hats stood, nervously.
"What do we do?" Chopper asked.
"Well, we can't fight him," replied Usopp. "He could kill Zorua!"
"Don't worry about me, you guys!" Zorua said. "Hit him!"
"Dammit," Sanji said. "Looks like we've got no choice."
"It looks like you're right," Nami said.
"Fat chance!" Luffy shouted before BAM! He punched Moss in the face before he could react fast enough, causing him to throw Zorua up into the air.
"WHOOOOOAAAAH!" Zorua cried.
Nami caught Zorua in her arms as he fell.
"Thanks, Nami!" Zorua said.
"Luffy, have you lost your mind?" Nami questioned, angrily. "You could've gotten Zorua killed!"
"Relax!" Luffy said. "I got him back, didn't I?"
"Oh, Straw Hat~."
Luffy looked to Moss, who was swinging the kusari of his kusarigama over his head.
"Didn't your mother ever teach you never to look away from your opponents?" asked the Vice-Admiral.
Luffy narrowed his eyes at Moss, then looked to the others.
"Take Zorua back to the ship!" he ordered. "I'll take care of this guy!"
"Got it!" Zoro said.
"Good luck, Luffy!" Nami added.
With that, the Straw Hats, except Franky, who was still caught in his little fistfight with Knuckle, headed back to the ship.
Speaking of Franky, it looked like he was just about to finish up. He gave Knuckle one last sock to the jaw before the Marine Captain finally collapsed.
"Finally," Franky muttered, breathlessly.
Luffy and Moss were locked in a stare down, the latter still swinging the kusari over his head.
Then, Luffy hardened his arms, again, and stretched them behind himself.
"Gum-Gum…BAZOOKA!"
WROING! Luffy threw his arms at Moss, who smirked.
"As I thought," he mused.
WHAP! He lassoed the kusari around Luffy's outstretched arms.
"Huh?" Luffy gasped.
"You're mine, Straw Hat," Moss said, grinning sinisterly.
Luffy tried to get his hands free, but as he continued to struggle, he suddenly felt like his energy was getting sapped right out of him.
"Ugh…" Luffy groaned. "What…what the hell? What is this?"
"Surprised?" asked Moss. "The chain of my kusarigama is made of sea prism stone. You can't escape."
"Damn…you…" Luffy cursed, his voice slurred.
Moss smirked before he charged at Luffy, armed with the scythe.
However, Luffy may've been weakened, but he was still able to move. Thanks to his Observation Haki, Luffy foresaw that Moss was going to attempt to stab him in the neck once he got close, so he leaned back the moment the Vice-Admiral got within a couple of feet before him.
SWIPE! Moss swiped his small scythe, but because Luffy had dodged at the last second, he ended up missing.
WHAM! Luffy then kicked Moss into the air, and then he started to turn around and around and around, causing Moss to whirl around in the air.
"AAAAAAAAAHH!" Moss screamed. "What are you doing? Let me down!"
"Sure!" Luffy said. "Whatever you say!"
"Yo, Straw Hat!" Franky said as he picked up Knuckle's unconscious body. "Catch!"
WHOOSH! He threw the Marine Captain at Luffy, who caught him with Moss, who was still being spun around.
GROWWFF! Blizzard barked from the Thousand Sunny.
WHOOSH! He threw a motionless Mightyena from the pirate ship.
BAM! Luffy caught the Bite Pokemon with the two Marines, and then, THWAM! He threw them down onto the deck. In doing so, he managed to loosen the chain around his arms, and as it fell, his strength soon returned.
"Aw, yeah!" Luffy shouted, flexing his arms.
From the ship, Zorua was watching from Nami's arms, and he was still very amazed by Luffy's display of power and skill.
"Wow!" said Zorua. "Luffy's amazing!"
"He sure is," Nami agreed.
"Okay," said Luffy. "Let's finish this up!"
Crack! He flexed his fingers and his knuckles popped.
Moss stood back up and grabbed his kusarigama. Then he began to swing the chain over his head.
"Don't think you've won, yet!" the Vice-Admiral stated. "As soon as I'm finished with you, I'll take Zorua for myself!"
Luffy was prepared for him, this time, though.
"Gear…SECOND!"
Luffy pumped blood through his arms, making them steamy and pink.
"You think you can scare me with some little tricks?" Moss questioned. "Think again!"
SWISH! He tossed the chain at Luffy, but he disappeared, and then reappeared to Moss's right.
"What the hell?" Moss questioned before…
"Gum-Gum…JET PISTOL!"
POW! With just one hit, Moss was struck in the chest and was knocked out.
Winner: Luffy.
(A/N: Okay, I know I said I'd make the fights longer, but this is the best I could do. Bear with me)
"Man, too easy," said Luffy. "I was hoping he'd be more of a challenge."
"Well, he's down for the count, for now," said Franky.
"Luffy! Franky!" Nami called. "Let's get out of here while we can!"
"Right!" Luffy called back before he and Franky ran to the ship.
The moment they got to the deck, Luffy was soon greeted by Zorua, who was jumping all around him like a kid hyped up on sugar.
"Wow, Luffy!" Zorua said. "You were amazing! You're so strong! Look at you! There's not a scratch on you!"
Luffy scratched the back of his head, sheepishly.
"Ah, c'mon, Zorua," he said. "You're embarrassing me, here!"
"Can you help it if you get a few admirers, Luffy?" Nami asked, teasingly.
Usopp looked to the battleship full of unconscious plus Mightyena.
"You don't they're gonna follow us, right?" asked the sniper.
"Well, we're not staying to find out," said Nami. "Franky! Let's get outta here!"
"Way ahead of ya!" Franky called back as he stood at the helm. "Hang on tight, everybody!"
"Hang on tight?" repeated a curious Zorua. "What's that mean?"
Luffy picked Zorua up and held him in his arms while holding onto the rail.
"You'll see soon enough," said Luffy.
Zorua just tilted his head, confused.
CHINK! Franky pulled the lever while everyone else held onto something. The Sunny's aft cannon began to glow.
"Coup de…BURST!"
BOOM! The Sunny was soon sent flying through the air.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" Zorua screamed, more out of thrill than fright.
However, as the Straw Hats made their escape, Moss began to come to, and could only watch.
"Damn you, Straw Hats," Moss growled, but then…he smirked. "No matter."
By this time, Knuckle also began to regain consciousness.
"Knuckle," Moss said to his brother. "Tend to the injured."
Knuckle nodded before he walked off while Moss returned to his plotting.
Soon, he thought. Soon, I will find Lostlorn Island…and then, Zorua, as well as Zoroark will be mine!
With that, Moss began to let out a malevolent cackle before he clutched at the spot where Luffy punched him in pain.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Review, please!