THE CHILDREN Set Sail!
Disclaimer: No ownership of One Piece and Zettai Karen Children. Please don't go suing me unreasonably like those White Berets from the last chapter…
"S-Sorry I'm late, Touno-kun!" a young girl with shoulder-length brunette hair with two pink hair-clips keeping her side-bangs out of her face and brown eyes called as came in running, a bit out of breath.
"…You really are late, Chisato," a young boy with shoulder-length dark-blue hair and equally dark-blue eyes greeted as he watch the girl catch her breath, "What took you so long this time?"
"Well," Chisato Hanai began, "on my way over, I suddenly thought I could invite Kaoru-san, Aoi-san and Shiho-san along as well. But when I try contacting them via cellphone, service says it is unable to connect…"
Masaru Touno hummed in thought at this. "…Could it be they are out of range of any signal?"
"That's what I thought too, but I don't remember them mentioning they were going somewhere far so it was just signal interferences and dial them again. I quit trying though after the fourth time…"
"That's why you were late?"
"…Sorry…"
"Mm, it's alright," Masaru shrugged, "I wasn't actually here long either…"
"Really?"
"Yeah~," Masaru glance onto the busy streets to see that the majority of the road is occupied by bulky vehicles, "…it was kind of hard to get here with the sudden increase of traffic…"
Chisato glance at the traffic and nodded with a sweat drop. "Speaking of which, there has also been many helicopters flying around lately. I wonder what's wrong…"
"Who knows," Masaru shrugged, "maybe they're doing a massive manhunt for criminal…"
"…On this scale?"
Masaru sweat dropped; even he finds it hard to believe that this was really an effort to find a criminal on the run.
"…Well, if you're right Touno-kun, I hope they catch that person soon…"
"Yeah," Masaru nodded, "So…where's this item you wanted to buy…"
"It's in that newly open store in the mall," Chisato informed, "While we're at it, we can go get some cake from that cake store that is selling its special today too…"
"Sounds like a plan," Masaru glee in anticipation as he and Chisato made their way to the mall.
"…It's too bad Kaoru-san, Aoi-san and Shiho-san couldn't come along," Chisato sighed, "I know they're going to be upset that we going to eat cake without them…"
"More likely, they'll question us being together," Masaru sweat dropped.
"T-There's that, too…"
"Wonder what are they doing now? Knowing them, they're probably getting themselves in trouble…"
"Touno-kun!" Chisato pouted at her childhood friend's suggestion, "Those three know better than to get themselves in unnecessary trouble!"
Unfortunately, despite Chisato's belief, reality shows otherwise.
"We were tricked!" Nami complained, "Didn't that Old Lady say, 'you can still go…' but once we did, it became 'illegal trespassing'!? This is a fraud! They can't do this!"
"That's true," Usopp nodded in agreement, "…But…"
"…? But!?"
"Strictly speaking they can, Nami," Aoi sighed, "We knew it was a toll booth, yet we pass through thinking it's okay not to pay. So we can't use the whole 'no knowledge, no crime' excuse…"
"And least you forget, Nami," Shiho added, "You practically made off trying NOT to pay…"
"And even if she'd said 'you may not pass'," Kaoru joined, "we probably would've used force to get through anyway…"
"…Shut up, you three!" Nami grumbled in defeat.
"Anyway, now things have become really complicated," Pagaya noted…standing a good distance from them with Conis, "If you are Class-2 Criminals, we can't help you…"
"WHY DO YOU HAVE TO STAND SO FAR AWAY TO TALK!?"
"While I do understand why they are doing so," Shiho sweat dropped, "I personally think it's pointless though, seeing how they help us so much already…"
"Isn't it amazing how quickly people can turn on you when you get into trouble?" Aoi sighed.
It hasn't been long since their battle with the White Berets; the beaten up soldiers had already picked themselves up and left (military crawling style backwards for that matter).
"Oh well, it doesn't matter," Luffy laughed, "We're already used to being chase by the authorities…"
Aoi sweat dropped. "That doesn't make me happy…"
"Also," Luffy turns to Nami, "why did you come back?"
"…Huh?" Nami blinked in confusion.
"We were just about to set off for that land we must never set foot in to have a great advent—I mean to look for you!"
Kaoru sweat dropped at Luffy's words. "You really are a bad liar, Luffy…"
"…? Really?"
"What do you mean by 'really'!?"
"…I can see right through you," Nami sighed before jabbing Luffy in the forehead repeatedly, "WHAT great adventure!?"
SMACK!
"Didn't you hear me!?"
SMACK!
"There are cruel, murderous people on that island!"
SMACK!
"You didn't see them so you have NO right to say that!"
SMACK!
"I don't know if it was God or not, but that horrible, insurmountable power is real!"
SMACK!
"I am not going back; I will NEVER go there a second time~!"
The Children shivered in fear as they watch Nami violently pressed on, jabbing Luffy to the point that he fell down on the ground. Evidently, everyone else also scooted back from the ranting Navigator.
"I never seen Nami act like this," Shiho sweat dropped.
"Well, you weren't there when Nami was fuming very badly over Luffy-han and Zoro-han beating back in Jaya," Aoi sweat dropped in reminisce, "you and Robin-han came back just as she was about to cool off…"
"Though at the time," Kaoru chuckled nervously, "she didn't physically attack anyone…"
"Fine~!" Luffy meanwhile grumbled as he nurses his bruised forehead, "then, you can just wait here while we go…"
"No~ way!" Nami announced, "They're going to come after us! We have to leave this place!"
"Leave here!? Are you nuts!? Don't talk crap! Which is more important to you, adventure or life!?"
"My life, of course! Followed by money!"
"EH~~!?"
"I think only you, Luffy, would put adventure before life," Aoi sighed.
"But having it follow directly by money," Shiho chuckled knowingly, "Such a typical 'Nami's Answer'…"
"Oh~!" Sanji swooned to Nami's side, "Then, next would be me~!?"
"Shut it!" Nami punched Sanji away in annoyance.
"Leaving already, huh?" Kaoru frowned, "…Come to think of it, we were desperately trying to reach this sky island that we never thought about what comes afterwards…"
"…? Afterwards?" Usopp noted in confusion.
"…We weren't thinking at all about how to go back…"
"… …Ah-!" Everyone gawked in realization before face-palming, "…Right~!"
"Even if we want to leave," Aoi frowned, "How exactly are we going to do that?"
Shiho hummed before turning to Kaoru. "Can't you just levitate us down slowly on the Going Merry?"
"That will take a lot of energy!" Kaoru pouted, "Overall, the Going Merry is lighter than an F-22 Fighter Jet, but more brittle! I don't think I have enough power to take all the way down gentle AND keep it in one piece…"
"Seriously…?"
"So using Kaoru-chan's power is out of the option, huh?" Nami grumbled before turning to Aoi, "How about using Aoi-chan's power?"
"That's a no go too," Aoi shook her head, "I can't teleport everyone and the Going Merry all the way down; I can only teleport in a certain range depending on the weight of which I'm teleporting. Otherwise, getting up to Sky Island would have been easy…"
"That's true," Usopp hummed before turning to Conis and Pagaya whom had allowed themselves to get close again. "Say, is there a way for us to go back safely? Can we go back to the Blue Sea?"
Conis glanced downward sadly. "There is a way, though at this point, I can no longer say it's safe…if you go to Cloud End, the farthest edge of the clouds…"
"Cloud End?" Shiho noted, "How do we get there?"
"Cloud End is in the far east. To get there, you need to go down to the White Sea first…"
"Good!" Nami sighed in relief, "Then, we can go back down to our sea from there, right?"
"No!" Luffy declared, "I'm not going back!"
Usopp sighed as he turns to Luffy. "Hey, do you want to stay here and get sentenced to death?"
"In any case, if we stay here, it'll cause trouble for Conis and her dad!" Nami added.
"Oh, it's no trouble," Conis informed.
"Well, even if we run away we may not be able to get away from them," Shiho shrugged, "If that's the case, no matter where we are in Skypiea, it'll be the same…"
Nami nodded at Shiho's reasoning. "Since they know our whereabouts, we'd better leave here right away!" Nami then started towards the ship. "Now, everyone! Let's set sail! Conis~! Mister~! Thanks for everything~!"
Everyone then started towards the ship, leaving Pagaya and Conis each with a bewildered expression. The Children couldn't really blame for that; in the beginning even they would have been overwhelmed by the Straw Hats' hilarious lifestyle approach. But maybe because they had their share of hilarity back in their world, they got used to rather fast even though the silliness trumps anything their own world could ever dish out.
"…Oh, yeah! I almost forgot!" Luffy suddenly halted as he thumped his palm, "hey, old guy!"
"Hey, Luffy!" Nami fumed as she watches Luffy called back to Pagaya.
"What are you doing now!?" Aoi fumed as well.
"What is it?" Pagaya wondered as Luffy ran back to him.
"Can I take all the leftover food from earlier with me?" Luffy wondered eagerly, causing the Children to comically stumbled.
"It goes back to food," Shiho grumbled tiredly, "Though, I shouldn't anything less, I suppose…"
"Makes you wonder if that's actually the only thing on his mind most of the time," Aoi sighed before sneaking a glance at Kaoru, "Like a particular someone I know who may have nothing but pervert thoughts on their mind…"
Kaoru absentminded nodded. "As I thought, Sakaki and Luffy are on the same level simplicity…"
Back in the Children's world, Sakaki was busy flirting with Double Face when he suddenly sneeze unprofessionally.
"…!? W-What the-?" Sakaki managed in confusion, "I'm not getting sick, am I?"
"How would we know?" Hotaru Nowaki, Level 5 Telepathy of Double Face, giggled, "You're the doctor~!"
"If you don't know," Natsuko Tokiwa, Level 5 Clairvoyance of Double Face, gave smug smirk, "How can we know?"
"…Good point," Sakaki grumbled as he head off back to his lab, "I'll have to give you two ladies a rain-check on that date…"
"Don't hold your breath," the two respond together, causing Sakaki to comically stumble.
"NOT HIM! I meant YOU!"
"Eh~~!?"
"…Why yes," Pagaya meanwhile nodded at Luffy's question, "of course…"
"Alright!" Luffy cheered as he turn to Sanji, "Sanji~, prepare some lunch boxes~!"
"He's on the ball," Sanji sighed as he walked back.
"You're going too?" Shiho frowned.
"Knowing Luffy, he'll eat everything before he gets it back to the Going Merry. Besides, I need to pack some lunches for the journey…"
"… …I suppose," Shiho grumbled to herself in consideration. She has notice that when it comes to food, Sanji is honestly enthusiastic in comparison to habitual enthusiastic around women. She suspected that Sanji actually holds culinary arts above his passions for women; she won't say that out loud in case Sanji gets mad at that. "…Then at least be back soon at least…"
"Well~, I wouldn't want to keep Nami-san and Robin-chan waiting," Sanji hummed before putting his arm around Conis and began to follow Luffy, "Now then, Conis-chan, shall I prepare you one as well before we set off~?"
"… …Oi~~!" What happen to not keeping Nami and Robin waiting, Shiho mentally ponder.
"In that case, can I ask you a favor as well?" Usopp noted in anticipation, "You're an engineer, right, old guy? Would you give me some fixture for the ship repair?"
"Sure, there's no problem," Pagaya nodded, "Then, let's go to our house again…"
"Ah~! I'll come with you on that," Aoi noted suddenly.
"Eh!?" Kaoru blinked in surprise, "What's this all of a sudden?"
"Usopp isn't the only one fixing the ship you know. Besides, in that sense, I need to be there so that I can help pack some of the supply we need for the Going Merry…"
"Ah~! Well then, I'll go too then. It'll be easier that way…"
"That's true," Usopp nodded in thought before the three followed after Luffy.
"Hey!" Nami called to the three, "Where are you guys going!?"
"I'm going to go get some food from them~!" Luffy replied, "You guys go on ahead and prepare the ship for our adventure~!"
"You're STILL thinking about that!?" Aoi frowned.
"Of course!"
"An immediate response!?"
"…He's definitely planning to go there!" Nami grumbled with comical pop vein as she watches them go, before turning to those still going to the ship, "Those guys are really scary, you know!"
"Who cares?" Zoro grumbled at Nami's complaints, "I don't care either way; don't take it out on me…"
Nami fumed before glancing at Chopper. "Chopper~! You're on my side~…aren't you~!?"
"What-!?" Chopper froze in fear.
"Don't threaten him!" Shiho comically backhanded the desperate Nami.
"You realize that there's no persuading Luffy, don't you?" Zoro rolled his eyes before getting on the ship, "Even if we all get together and protest he won't listen…"
"Fine!" Nami challenged, "Then, I'll stay here!"
"Hmm? Sure, go right ahead…"
"What-!? Go right ahead!? Hey, I'll be killed by those creeps!"
"Ah? Then so be it. Looks like you have go after all," Zoro finalized before falling asleep while resting on the main mast.
"…!? HOW! DARE! YOU~~!" Nami comically fumed, having realized she was played, before calming down, "…Robin-nee-chan~, Shiho-chan~, why don't you two and I beat Luffy together~?"
"That's impossible," Robin admitted.
"We don't have a chance against someone who beat Crocodile anyhow," Shiho reminded, "Besides, if those 'scary guys' are as strong as you say they are, it's all the more reason to keep him in tiptop shape to defend us…"
At that, Nami sighed in despair. "I guess we've got a better chance taking on those creeps, huh? Those White Berets must be gathering other members by now…"
Shiho nodded before noticing that Conis had return.
"Um, excuse me," Conis began, catching everyone's (except sleeping Zoro) attention, "I'd like to discuss something with you all…"
"…Huh?" Everyone noted.
"So there's a special cloud current that can take us down to the White Sea?" Nami repeated after Conis came onboard to inform them.
"Yes," Conis nodded, "By getting on the cloud, you can cross the vast ocean and go to the White Sea. And you can also get to Cloud End without getting lost…"
"Really~!?" Nami exclaimed happily.
"As long as you get on the current, no one can chase after you…"
Nami hummed deeply to herself. "If we don't tell Luffy and get the Going Merry on that current…"
"By the time he notices, it'll be too late, huh?" Chopper guessed.
"But that doesn't mean he'll give up on it," Robin noted at Nami grumbled.
"I can guide you to the entrance of that current ridding a Waver," Conis added.
Nami nodded slyly. "Now all we need to do is keep that fool from noticing. We'll take care of that part…"
"Then please raise anchor and wait for me…"
"Okay~! I really appreciate it, Conis…"
"N-No problem…"
"…?" Shiho couldn't help but notice Conis fidgeting uncomfortably, taking note that even Robin seem to have notice. Unable to contain her curiosity, Shiho smiled innocently before holding out her hand. "Thanks for still helping us to the end~!"
Conis blinked before smiling nervously. "Y-Yes…"
The moment Conis takes her hand to shake, Shiho's hand glow slightly blue. In that moment, Shiho understood the situation and the consequence that their Sky Island friend is holding.
"…Did you figure it out?" Robin wondered quietly to Shiho after Conis got off the ship.
"…Yep," Shiho whispered back as she stared down at the hand that had grasp Conis', "She has her own reasons…"
"For being afraid? Or for deceiving?
Shiho sighed heavily before answering. "…A bit of both…"
"… …I see," Robin hummed; Shiho wasn't surprise that Robin caught on quickly; she wouldn't have survived this long if she hadn't been able to do so…
"Mm~!" Luffy awed as he continued eating, "This is good~!"
"Hey!" Sanji lectured, "Don't eat our lunch!"
"I can't be help~!" Kaoru noted as she stuffed her own mouth, "Everything Sanji makes taste so good to save for later…"
"There's a lot, so don't hold back," Luffy glee.
Sanji rolled his eyes. "You're the one who should hold back…"
Luffy ignored Sanji as he held up his empty cup. "Conis, give me some tea~!"
"Do that yourself!" Sanji grumbled before noticing that Conis had disappeared, "Huh? Conis-chan is not here…"
"…Now that you mention it," Kaoru noted as she notice Pagaya coming in from the kitchen with a tray in hand, "Where's Conis? I was about to ask if she would allow me to get her three measurements—I mean, talk with her for a bit about something…"
"You're too transparent, Kaoru," Aoi commented with a sigh as she help Usopp with the fixing supplies.
"It looks like she went to bid a fond farewell to the others," Pagaya answered Kaoru's question, "I brought some tea, if you'd like some…"
"Thanks~!" Luffy cheered as he grabbed a filled teacup and immediately drank it. Well, the result was… "…!"
"Are you alright!?" Kaoru wondered in worry.
"Y-Yeah!" Luffy managed after swallowing his drink, "My mouth is on fire though…"
"That's why you shouldn't drink tea so carelessly~!"
Luffy grumbled at Kaoru's laughter before picking his nose and dropping a bogey into Kaoru's cup.
"But I got to admit, even the drinks in Sky Island taste great~!" Kaoru noted before picking up her cup.
Luffy glee as she brought her teacup closer to her mouth.
"…You don't know what you just miss seeing as you burnt your tongue like that~," Kaoru noted before shoving the tea into Luffy's surprise mouth, "SO YOU DRINK IT~~!"
"GAH-!?" Luffy coughed as he choked on the tea and his bogey, "I can't believe you did that~!"
"Yeah? Well, I can't believe you did that!"
"So," Pagaya meanwhile turn to Usopp who was preparing his repairing set, "you're the shipwright for that ship?"
"Oh no~!" Usopp admitted, "I'm not. I'm a sniper…"
"Oh, that's wonderful~!"
"Right~? Our ship still doesn't have a shipwright…"
"Uh, Usopp-han…?" Aoi suddenly called.
"Well, how should I put it? Since I'm almighty and skillful in everything, everyone depends on me!"
"Uh, Usopp-han…?"
"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha~! It's a lot of work. That ship just wouldn't function without me…"
"…Uh, Usopp-han~…?"
"Although I'm a sniper, it's like I'm also co-captain. And, everyone calls me, 'Captain Usopp'-!"
"Usopp-han~!"
"What~!" Usopp finally responses to Aoi's called, "Can't you let talk while I have a chance at least-!?"
"Oh, dear!" Pagaya meanwhile awed at Sanji as he works to fix up his lunch boxes, "This color arrangement is clearly done by a professional!"
"…Eh-?" Usopp managed in dumbfound.
"Oh, yeah!" Sanji glee happily, "Arranging food is art…"
"…He stopped listening since a while ago," Aoi informed the now depress Usopp, "The only one listening is me and Suu…"
"Suu~!" Suu called out.
"Everyone is so mean~!" Usopp comically sulked.
"Well then," Conis bowed from the shore, "I'll be right back, Heso…"
"See you later, Conis~!" Nami bid farewell before turning back to everyone with a smile, "I can finally see rays of hope. For a while there, I was worried…"
"But," Robin suddenly noted, "I wonder if there really is such a current…"
"Eh?"
"If such a convenient current existed, you'd expect to see more survivors from the Sky Island in the Blue Sea…"
Shiho nodded but did little ease. She knew the truth about the so-call current, as did Robin, but remains quiet for two reasons. First is the fact that Conis would be trouble should the existence of the current is questioned strongly. The second is that there is no safe way to inform everyone what was wrong without affecting Conis. Robin is currently only attempting to give a hint as to what was wrong, but that was all she could do.
Nami however laughed it off. "Don't be silly. Since it's difficult for people to come up here in the first place, it's just natural that not many people escape here safely as well…"
"It's possible," Chopper added, "that quite a lot of the people who tried couldn't escape because they were too slow…"
"That's right. Not knowing when to back off can cost you your life. Now hurry up and get ready to set sail; raise anchor quickly!" Nami began to order as she set off to make her own preparation. "Chopper! Use your Heavy Bonus now and start on the heavy lifting~!"
"Eh!? Um…I told you, it's 'Heavy Point'…"
"What!?"
"N-Nothing!"
"Now," Nami glared at the sleeping Zoro, "wake up Zoro and help Chopper!"
"That's impossible," Robin and Shiho noted.
"Don't worry," Chopper claimed as he set to work on the anchor, "I can do it alone!"
"No," Shiho shrugged, "I can help too…"
"Eh? You don't have to…"
"It's fine, just let me help…"
"Well, if you insist…"
"We'd better hurry up," Nami noted, "Or Conis' kindness will be wasted…"
"Heavy Point~!" Chopper turn to his human form and began to raise the anchor.
"…I put this one here? No, that's this is the wrong place," Sanji pondered to himself, as he continue to arrange the food in the box lunch, "I put the red one there and move the emerald green broad beans here…Ha, they look more delicious than before! These would be for Nami-san and Robin-chan…"
"… …If I didn't know any better," Kaoru sweat dropped, looking at the content of the lunchbox, "I'd say you were making art…"
"Well, in fact I am, Kaoru," Sanji smirked proudly, "how else can food be best presented?"
"I guess. I wouldn't want to eat anything that looks gross; it'll spoil my appetite…"
"Exactly," Sanji nodded in approval before seeing Conis cautiously entering the rom, "Oh, Conis-chan~! You have return~!"
"H-Heso," Conis greeted with a smile, "I'm sorry for leaving so suddenly like that…"
"You're forgiven," Kaoru innocently smiled before that smile went disgustingly devious, "At least I would if you let me check out your three measurement personally~!"
"…H-Huh?" Conis sweat dropped, backing up a bit as Kaoru slowly approaches with her hand stretch out and fingers wiggling.
"Now, now~! Don't be shy-!"
"Quit it, you dirty old man!" Aoi dive-kicked Kaoru from a blind spot, knocking her out cold, "Conis, pay no attention to this idiot…"
"Uh, sure?" Conis nodded nervously before her eyes lay upon Sanji's lunchboxes, "Wow~! They almost don't look like food anymore! I've never seen such beautiful lunchboxes!"
"Right~?" Sanji glee before handing one of them to Conis, "This one's for you, Conis-chan~!"
"Eh!?" Conis gasped in delight, "You made one for me too?"
"But of course~!" Sanji announced as instantly closed in, "The title of this lunch is 'Love is a Dilemma, the Lunch of Descending Angels'!"
"M-My…"
"What a transparent title," Aoi sweat dropped.
"Well, once they're in your stomach they're all the same," Luffy noted.
"Quit being so rude!" Sanji exclaimed, offended by the way Luffy put it, "How dare you trash my work!"
"Yeah," Aoi sweat dropped, "Don't say stuff that tears down his hard work…"
"Listen, food has to look delicious first; with food, presentation comes first!"
"Really?" Luffy took a bite out of another food, "See, they're the same!"
"You ate it without looking at it!" Aoi exclaimed.
"Really?" Luffy did it again, "See, they taste just the same!"
"You have to savor it with your eyes first!" Sanji proclaimed.
"Whatever! You can't eat with your eyes, can you?"
"That's not what I mean!"
"Maybe I can eat it through my nose; I did it before-…"
"DON'T EAT IT THAT WAY!" Aoi and Sanji exclaimed.
"Oh, never mind; I didn't mean to at that time anyway…"
Conis giggled at the exchanges.
"Now we'll just wait until Luffy and the others come back," Nami breathe a sigh of relief once the ship is all set to launch.
Zoro continues snoring in his sleep.
"… …and of course when sleeping beauty wakes up too…"
"…It's only a matter of time now," Shiho noted as she pretend to look at a watch on her hand.
"…? Time? Time for what-?"
Suddenly the sea clouds beneath the ship explode lightly, causing the ship quake terribly.
"What's happening!?" Nami managed as Chopper went rolling all over the deck from the shaking.
The shake was so bad it even woke Zoro.
"What's going on!?" Zoro managed in shock.
"I wonder if we're already on that current," Chopper managed, after stopping himself from rolling around.
"If only~!" Shiho braced herself, "we barely moved remember?"
"… …Oh yeah," Chopper sweated nervously just as ship started to show signs of moving.
"…!? W-We're moving!?" Nami exclaimed, "Why!?"
"…! Hey! Something's wrong with the ship!" Usopp, who happened to be eyeing the ship from the balcony, exclaimed, bringing everyone hurryingly to the balcony.
"What's going on Usopp!?" Sanji called.
"Look at that!" Usopp pointed out, "The ship is rocking!"
"A party?" Luffy pouted, "No fair, having a party without us!"
"…I don't know," Aoi sweat dropped after looking through a telescope, "They're screaming, but it's not for joy…"
"Ah! Nami-san!" Sanji cried as he peered through a telescope, paling as he did as he just saw something horrible, "W-Why…Why is she wearing a t-shirt?"
"Just where the heck is your mind at!?" Usopp dope slapped Sanji as he gnaws his shirt in agony.
"She's WHAT~~~!?" Kaoru cried in despair too as she gnaws on a handkerchief, "A T-Shirt of all things!? Why can't she just stick with the bikini top~~~!? This is a conspiracy~~~!"
"Get YOUR mind of the gutter!" Aoi dope slapped Kaoru in rage.
"Ah~!" Luffy exclaimed, "The ship started moving!"
"What!?" Kaoru snapped out of her delusion, "Why!?"
"What are they doing? Where are they going?"
"Whoa! It's moving backwards!"
"Really!? That's incredible!"
"That's not it!" Usopp exclaimed, "They didn't set sail!"
"Huh?"
"Look underneath the ship!" Aoi pointed out. Everyone glare to make a faint but large shadow moving along beneath the ship.
"…I-Is something under them?" Kaoru sweat dropped nervously.
"Hold on!" Nami managed, "What is this? What's going on!?"
"Did we get on that current thing earlier than we expected?" Zoro wondered.
"No," Robin pointed over the ship, "it doesn't look that way…"
"And didn't you hear a word I said to Chopper a while ago?" Shiho exclaimed to Zoro as they peered over the ship, "We didn't move yet before this happen!"
In mere moments, a gigantic red lobster, with the English world "GOD" written its forehead, emerged directly beneath the ship, using its giant red claws to grip the broken wings of the Going Merry.
"…W-What the-!?" Luffy and Usopp managed in startle.
"Ah~!" Pagaya exclaimed in shock, "That's…the famous White-White Sea Super-Express Lobster!"
"WHAT!?" Everyone exclaimed.
"It's trying to take us somewhere!" Zoro observed, "Everyone off the ship! There's still time!"
"What about the ship!?" Chopper exclaimed in worry, "If our ship is taken…"
"Don't worry. I'll stay…"
"C'mon!" Nami protested, "What can you do by yourself!?"
"I'll pull it off somehow!" Zoro noted as he leapt off the ship towards the lobster. Once on the creature, Zoro went about to start slicing at it, but for a while the shell didn't seem to sustain so much as a scratch. "So, it doesn't work…?"
"…! No, wait!" Shiho called as she pointed at the areas that Zoro had slash at, "Look!"
No sooner did Shiho point it out, the areas began to crack like crazy.
At this, Zoro smirked in satisfaction as he prepares himself to start slashing again. "Alright, this'll work!"
"Unfortunately, it seems that won't work," Robin suddenly stated, "Come back on board!"
"What you say!?" Zoro turned to Robin in confusion.
"Even if that works, it looks like they'll just move right on to their next move…"
"Huh?" Shiho blinked in confusion.
"Look," Robin pointed a little ways back…where a swarm of large predatory Sky Fish were in hot pursuit, "Large Sky Fish are following us with their mouths open; we can't jump off the ship and escape now. Even if we could defeat them, another batch will probably arrive soon. There's nothing we can do; it's probably already started…"
"Heaven's Judgment, huh?" Zoro frowned, "So instead of sending people after us, they're bringing us in? What an impudent guy…"
"…Then," Nami collapses to her knee in terror, "I'm going back to that island?"
"It appears so," Shiho sighed.
"Luffy! Usopp! Sanji-kun! Kaoru! Aoi!" Nami cried out in agony and despair as they dragged away…towards Upper Yard.
Back at Pagaya and Conis' house, the remaining pirates gawked in disbelief.
"…Why…?" Sanji managed, "Why a t-shirt…?"
"You're still talking about that!?" Usopp dope slapped the pirate chef, before turning to Luffy, "Hey Luffy! This is terrible! What will we do!? What will we do!?"
Luffy cupped his chin in confusion before speaking. "Where'd they go?"
"Where!? Of course-…! Um…"
"So where?" At Luffy's repeated question, everyone sweated nervously.
"Where…" Kaoru turn to Pagaya.
"…did they…" Aoi turn to Pagaya.
"…go…" Usopp turn to Pagaya.
"…to?" Sanji turn to Pagaya.
"Uh!" Pagaya backtracked when he finally realized they were asking him, "The Super-Express Lobster is a messenger for God. What it transports is an offering to God. So, it's headed to northeast Upper Yard…to the sacrificial altar…"
"Sacrifice!?" Sanji repeated in horror, "Nami-san, Robin-chan, and the rest-…"
"The rest!?" Usopp dope slapped womanizer Sanji.
"…-will be sacrificed!? For that darn God!? That~ son~ of~ a~ bitch~! Don't mess with us! You bastard~!"
"Hold on a second, please!" Pagaya stuttered in fright as Suu ran for cover, "But, I'm sorry. That's not the case!"
"What!?"
"I've heard that although it's called sacrifice, in Heaven's Judgment, there're two kinds of punishment that criminals receive. Sacrifice and an ordeal. They're currently hostages, so to speak, in God's hands…"
"Hostages!?" Usopp frowned nervously.
"So, the ones who are actually being judged are the five of you…"
"Huh? What do you mean?" Sanji frowned in confusion.
At this, Pagaya scratched his head sadly. "If only we had some sort of map…"
"Oh!" Usopp dug into his pocket and pulled out the map that Luffy salvaged, "I have a map of Skypiea with me…"
"Oh~!" Pagaya examined the map, "This one is very old, too. But the shape of the island seems correct…"
Kaoru hummed in thought before notice Conis' pale expression. "Are you all right, Conis?"
"Y-Yes," Conis forced a smile, "But…"
"Don't worry," Luffy grinned to Conis in comfort, "It's them we're talking about. They're fine…"
"How can you be so sure?" Usopp huffed.
"This is where you are right now," Pagaya pointed to the bottom right part of the map before point as at near the top left part of the map, "The sacrificial altar is in the left upper direction, northeast. There is only one way to get there; you take the Milky Road that leaves this island by using a Dial Boat, and go across to the forest where the Priests await you…"
"Well, old guy," Usopp intervened, "instead of taking the trouble of going through the middle of the island, all we have to do is go around the island by boat, right?"
"That Lobster went to Upper Yard that way, too, right?" Luffy noted.
"Well," Pagaya began, "Even if you can go ashore nearby, you can't get to the altar on foot. The biggest difference between this map and the current Upper Yard is the Milky Roads that are stretched all around the island…"
"The cloud canals that you mentioned, huh?" Sanji guessed.
"Yes. I heard that there're several hundred Milky Roads, large and small in size over there…"
"Hmm~!" Luffy hummed as he scratched his nose, "I see…"
"At least act as if you care, Luffy," Aoi doped slapped their captain.
"That's why entering the island by boat and taking the Milky Roads within the island is the only way," Pagaya continued.
"I see," Sanji huffed, "So no matter where we go ashore, the canals will block our way…"
"That's right. By the way, there're men-eating fish in the canals…"
Usopp hiccupped in shock and fright. "M-Men-eating fish!?"
"They've really covered all their bases," Sanji noted, "So, they're saying that if we want our friends and ship back, we just have to come in from the front…"
"So that's our ordeal," Usopp glared off into the distant, "and…Heaven's Judgment!?"
"Yes," Pagaya nodded solemnly, "In the Upper Yard, there are four priests who are strong beyond imagination await you…"
"Oh, sounds like a piece of cake," Luffy declared, "I mean, all we have to do is beat up those priests, right?"
"…You're so simpleminded," Aoi sweat dropped.
"You make it sound so easy," Usopp frowned in agreement.
Luffy suddenly laughed before giving a confident smirk. "Finally, a little action! This is becoming fun~!"
"Please don't be careless!" Pagaya warned, "Those four Priests are stronger than you think! Most importantly, God Enel himself is in Upper Yard!"
"…God Enel, huh?" Kaoru noted, before punching her palm with a smirk, "Well, let's see how powerful this God really is then!"
Normama: "I'm back~~~! And out of school~~~!"
The Children (cheering): "Yay~~~!"
Kaoru: "Does that mean you'll be updating again!?"
Normama: "Of course! So, my patient readers, please R&R my chapter~! See you next time~!"