Chapter 7

One Piece © Oda

Pokemon © Nintendo, Game Freak

Blizzard © Me

"C'mon! This way! Not much farther, now!"

"Ugh…you said that, like, hours ago!"

"Patience, green-haired one. My son speaks the truth. We won't have much further to go, now."

"If you say so."

"Luffy? How are you holding up?"

"It still hurts, a little, but at least I don't feel so dizzy anymore."

Zorua and Zoroark led the Straw Hats through the forest, saying something about a secret place where they could stay and rest until Luffy's wounds that the Illusion Fox Pokemon had inflicted upon him have healed. Chopper said that because the gashes are so deep, Luffy may have to stay for at least two days.

Speaking of Luffy, he is lying on Blizzard's back, belly-up, while Blizzard carried his backpack in his teeth.

"So…what makes this place so secret?" asked Luffy.

"You'll see when we get there, Luffy," Zorua said. "You're gonna like it! I promise!"

Luffy gave a small smile.

"You'll get to meet all my friends, too!" Zorua said. "I can tell that they're gonna like you!"

"We hope so," said Nami.

Robin chuckled.

"Yes," she agreed. "We'd have to leave a good impression, won't we?"

"We've arrived," Zoroark stated as she stopped in front of a huge beech tree.

"It's just a big old beech tree," Usopp said.

"Momma says that the eye can be fooled by what…oh, wait…or is that…?" Zorua started, but then he started trailing off, trying to remember his mother's advice. "Momma, what's that thing you said, again?"

"The mind can be fooled by what the eye sees," Zoroark stated, smiling at her son's innocence.

"Right!" Zorua said, wagging his tail and sticking his nose up with a little pride. "I was gonna say that!"

"So, now what?" Nami asked.

Zoroark's eyes started to glow blue, and then, the center of the tree's trunk…it disappeared, revealing what looked like a tunnel on the other side!

The Straw Hats gasped in shock.

"Whoa~!" Luffy said. "So cool! Guys, did you see that?"

"Yeah," Nami answered.

"But we don't believe it," Zoro added.

"One must take precautions to protect one's lair," Zoroark stated before she looked down at Zorua. "Especially when one has a child, as well."

She turned to the Straw Hats and pointed her claws at the tree.

"This tree that you see before you is an illusion that I have created to protect mine and Zorua's home," she said. "Zorua, since they are your friends, you may lead them inside."

"Okay, Momma," Zorua replied. "Come on, you guys! Follow me!"

The Straw Hats followed Zorua into the tunnel with Zoroark being the last to go in. The moment she entered, her eyes glowed blue again, and the bark of the tree reappeared behind her.

"What did you do that for?" Nami asked.

"To make sure that we are not followed," Zoroark answered. "One mustn't be too careful."

"I see," Nami said.

"Hey, Nami!" Luffy called. "You coming?"

"Yeah!" Nami called back as she ran to catch up with the others.

As the Straw Hats ventured further into the tunnel, they saw a light up ahead. At first, it seemed dim, but as they grew closer, the light grew brighter, so much so, they had to shield their eyes until they finally reached the end.

What they see takes their breath away.

At then end of the tunnel, there lies a wide open grassy field with a beautiful crystal-clear pool of water and trees that bore such big, delicious-looking fruit that were practically ripe for the picking, all surrounded by a huge stone wall!

"Oh…my…god…!" Nami whispered.

"Where are we?" Usopp said.

"The Pokemon Paradise."

The Straw Hats turned to see Zoroark walk passed them from behind.

"This place is home to many different creatures," Zoroark said. "Especially to Zorua and I. This whole oasis is a paradise for Pokemon of different kinds to live in in peace and harmony without worrying about humans ever desecrating this land. Why?" She turned to the Straw Hats with a serious look. "Because I am its guardian. My Mother before me protected this place, just as her Mother before her." She looked down at Zorua, who gave her an innocent smile.

"When my time comes, my son will become the guardian of Lostlorn Island," said Zoroark.

"I see," Nami said. "So, aside from Zorua, this place is another reason why you're the guardian, isn't it?"

Zoroark nodded.

"I suspected as much," Robin said.

Everyone turned to look at Robin.

"What do you mean, Robin?" Usopp asked.

"Now it all makes sense," said Robin. "Remember when I said that Zoroark can create illusionary landscapes?"

Everyone nods.

"Then that means that the forest we saw outside isn't real," Robin concluded. "It was all an illusion created by Zoroark to keep this place safe."

"So…it's a mystery forest?" Luffy questioned.

"Yes, Luffy," Nami said, somewhat irritated. "It's a mystery forest."

Zorua looked up at his mother and gently pawed at her knee, getting her attention.

"Momma?" he asked. "Can Luffy and his friends meet my friends, now?"

Zoroark smiled and nodded her head.

A wider smile appears on the younger Pokemon's face, and he turns to face the wide open field.

AWWOOOOOOOOOO~! He let out a long howl.

"Hey, everybody! I'm back!" he shouted.

A slight pause occurs, but then, the field came alive with all sorts of these strange cries. Then, many different creatures came out of the grass, trees, and lake, all making these different sounds.

"Pansear! Pansear!"

"Pansage!"

"Panpour!"

"Emolga!"

"Purrloin~!"

"Vulpix!"

"Eevee!"

"Osha! Oshawott!"

"Snivy?"

"Tepig! Tepig!"

"Pikachu!"

Soon, all these little creatures came and surrounded Zorua, making all these cheerful cries.

"Hi, everybody!" the Tricky Fox Pokemon said.

"Chopper, do you know what they're saying?" asked Nami.

Chopper shook his head.

"I've never heard their kind of language, before," said the little reindeer.

"I think they're welcoming Zorua home," Luffy said. "I can hear them saying 'We missed you, Zorua'!"

"Wow!" Nami said. "Robin, are these all Pokemon, too?"

"Yes," Robin answered. "Pansage, Panpour, Pansear, Emolga, Mincinno, Drillbur, Purrloin, Vulpix, Eevee, Oshawott, Snivy, Tepig, and Pikachu. These are all different types and species of Pokemon."

"They're also my friends!" Zorua said.

At that moment, the Pokemon noticed the Straw Hats, and immediately ran back to their hiding spots, seemingly frightened by their presence.

"Hey!" Zorua called to them. "Come on, you guys! You're being rude! They're my friends, too, you know!"

"What's wrong with them?" asked Usopp.

"Forgive them," Zoroark said. "They are not used to seeing humans like you, unlike Zorua."

Luffy was the first to attempt to approach the scared Pokemon, and got down on his knees.

"Hey," he said. "It's okay, you guys. We won't hurt you."

The Pokemon seemed reluctant to approach. Luffy didn't blame them, though. Like Zoroark said, they had never seen many humans before, especially ones like him.

"Come on, you guys," Zorua said. "You can trust Luffy and the others!"

A slight pause. Then, Pikachu glanced at his fellow Pokemon, and then turned to Luffy. Slowly and cautiously, he approached Luffy, who gave him a friendly smile.

"That's Pikachu," said Zorua. "He's my best friend!"

"Hi, Pikachu!" Luffy greeted.

Pikachu's nose twitched, and then he returned Luffy's smile.

"Pika!" he cried.

Luffy grinned and chuckled at the mouse-like Pokemon.

"I wonder what these red spots on his cheeks are for," he wondered.

Without warning, Luffy grabbed Pikachu by the sides of his face, taking him by surprise.

"No, no, Luffy, wait!" Zorua cried. "Don't do that!"

"Pika…CHUUUUUU!"

KRRZZZZZZZTT! Pikachu suddenly zapped Luffy with electricity, only for it to have no effect on the rubber-man.

"Pika?" Pikachu chirped, confused.

"Hey," Zorua said. "Luffy, Pikachu zapped you but you didn't get hurt. Why?"

"That's because Luffy's made of rubber," said Nami. "Things like blunt attacks or electricity can't hurt him."

The Pokemon glanced at each other, and then, deciding that Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hats didn't mean them any harm, approached them.

The three monkey-like Pokemon approached Luffy after Pikachu.

"Cool!" Luffy said. "Monkeys!"

"These three are Pansage, Pansear, and Panpour," Zorua said. "They're really funny!"

Luffy, of course, decided to try and befriend the trio by acting like a monkey, scratching his sides and making monkey chatter.

Pansear, the red one, looked to Pansage, the green one, and Panpour, the blue one, then back at Luffy. He then approached Luffy and began to beat his chest like a regular monkey.

"Sear! Pansear!" he cried.

"He said, 'I'm stronger!'" Zorua translated.

"Oh, yeah?" Luffy questioned before he started to make even more monkey noises, and even beat his own chest.

Pansear seemed surprised, at first, but then, he began to jump around, cheerfully, and climbed up on Luffy's head. Pansage and Panpour soon followed and began to brush their paws through Luffy's hair, like they were grooming him, making the Straw Hat captain laugh.

"It's about time someone to pick the lice out of Luffy's hair," said Nami, but then, she felt something brush up against her leg. It was the cat-like Purrloin and the six-tailed fox, Vulpix.

"Aww, they're so cute~!" Nami swooned.

"These are Purrloin and Vulpix," said Robin. "Purrloin is called the Devious Pokemon because it likes to steal things from people and play with them. It acts cute only as a ruse. Vulpix is called the Fox Pokemon. It's a fire-type, and when it's born, it only has one snow white tail which splits into six as it gets older. The tails are said to be hot to the touch."

Nami picked up Vulpix.

"This is one is so cute and fluffy," she commented.

"Vulpix!" Vulpix cried and nuzzled Nami affectionately.

"Aww~!" Nami swooned again. "I think she likes me!"

Purrloin was also putting on the charms with Robin, who chuckled as she pet her.

"Purr~," Purrloin purred.

"Yes, yes, Purrloin," she said. "You're very adorable."

"Purrloin, Purr~!" Purrloin mewed.

Zoro is then approached by another Pokemon. He looked like a little otter with a seashell on its tummy.

"Oshawott!" he cried.

"What are you looking at?" Zoro questioned.

"That Pokemon is Oshawott, the Sea Otter Pokemon," Robin pointed. "The seashell on its stomach is called a scalchop. It uses it as a weapon."

"Osha…!" Oshawott squeaked, his eyes fixated on Zoro's swords.

Zoro raised his eyebrow in confusion.

"Seems like he's taken a liking to your swords, Zoro," Robin commented with a chuckle.

Zoro looked back down at the Sea Otter Pokemon with intrigue.

"So, you're like a swordsman or something?" he asked.

"Oshawott! Oshawott!" Oshawott chirped, nodding his head.

Zoro smirked.

"I think I'm starting to like you, already, little guy," he said.

"Osha!" Oshawott cried, the feeling apparently mutual.

"Robin, what about this one?" Usopp called as he picked up Eevee, another fox-like Pokemon.

"That's Eevee," Robin said. "Eevee is called the Evolution Pokemon."

"Evolution?" Franky repeated. "Why?"

"Because Eevee can change into several different forms depending on its environment," Robin answered. "For instance, if Eevee were to come into contact with something such a Fire Stone, it would cause it to evolve into one of its evolved forms, Flareon."

"I think I get it," Usopp said.

"He's kind of soft," Franky commented, gently brushing his robotic fingers through Eevee's smooth, brown fur. The little guy seemed to like it, for he let out this little content squeak.

"Eevee!"

"Aw, look at him!" Usopp said. "He's a cute little ball of fuzz, isn't he?"

"Sure is!" Franky answered.

Usopp put Eevee back down on the ground and watched him run off to play with the other Pokemon, mostly the snake-like Pokemon, Snivy.

"That one is Snivy," said Robin. "The Grass Snake Pokemon. She's very intelligent and calm, and being exposed to sunlight makes its movements swifter."

"Snivy," the Grass Snake Pokemon said, sticking her nose in the air, all snooty-like.

"Snivy can also be rather vain," said Robin with a chuckle.

"I can see that," commented Nami.

GRRUUUUUUUUMBLE! Luffy's stomach starts growling.

"Aw, man," said the captain. "I'm starving."

"Me, too," Zorua said. "Hey! Emolga! Get us some food, will you?"

"Emol!" Emolga, the squirrel-like Pokemon, chirped before she hurriedly scurried up one of the fruit trees, and then, she opened her arms, revealing a yellow membrane in between her arms and legs.

FWIP! Emolga jumped from the trees and grabbed as much as fruit as possible with her tail.

"Emolga is called the Sky Squirrel Pokemon," Robin said. "She's both an Electric and Flying-type. The electricity made in the yellow pouches on its cheeks are stored in its wing membranes and then released when it's gliding."

Emolga dropped some fruit in Luffy's lap.

"Thanks!" Luffy said gratefully. "It's not meat, but I bet it'll still be good!"

CHOMP! Luffy bit down on the fruit and savored the sweet flavor.

"I was right!" he said.

The other Pokemon surrounded Luffy, eyeing the fruit in his lap.

"Oh, yeah!" said Luffy. "You guys gotta eat, too, right?"

The Pokemon nodded.

"Okay," said Luffy. "Go ahead! Take as much as you want! Besides, I've got my lunchbox!"

Zorua and friends gladly took the fruits from Luffy's lap and began to eat.

"Tepig!" cried the little pig-like Pokemon.

FWOOSH! He blew flames from his snout, roasting the fruit before eating it.

"That one is Tepig, the Fire Pig Pokemon," Robin said as she pet Tepig. "He can deftly dodge his opponent's attacks while shooting fireballs from its nose and when it eats food, it tends to roast it first before eating."

"An animal that can cook for itself," said Sanji. "I kinda like that."

"Tepig!" Tepig squealed.

"It's amazing what kind of creatures you find out here in the New World," said Nami.

"Yeah!" Luffy agreed. "Especially like these guys! Right, Zorua?"

"Right!" said Zorua with a smile before he jumped down from Luffy's lap.

"Come on, everybody!" he said. "Let's go and play!"

The Pokemon let out cries of agreement before they followed the Tricky Fox away.

"Hey, Nami!" Luffy said. "Can I go play with them, too? Please?"

"Me, too!" Chopper said.

WOOF! Blizzard barked.

"Sure," Nami replied. "Have fun."

"Yippee!" Luffy cheered before he ran off to join the Pokemon in play with Chopper and Blizzard following behind him. "Wait up, you guys!"

Luffy, Chopper, Blizzard, Zorua, and all his friends began to playfully chase each other around on the grass, laughing merrily. They would even tackle each other to the ground (not too rough, of course) while Zoroark and the Straw Hats watched from a distance.

FWUMP! Zorua tackled Luffy to the ground, once again, and soon, they were surrounded by the Pokemon, as well as Blizzard and Chopper, once again.

Zorua rested his head on Luffy's chest, a smile on his fuzzy face.

"Luffy," he said. "Thanks for bringing me back home."

Luffy smiled and pet the scruff of fur on Zorua's head.

"Well, I did promise," said Luffy.

"And we'll be friends, forever," Zorua said. "We will, won't we, Luffy?"

"Of course," said Luffy. "We'll be friends, forever, Zorua!"

Zorua giggled as Luffy embraced him while the rest of the Straw Hats came to join them and the rest of the Pokemon.

The only one who stayed behind was Zoroark, who looked at Luffy with this rather bitter glare in her eyes. She turned away, silently, and stalked off into the shadows, alone.

TO BE CONTINUED…

About time I updated this, huh?

Review, please!