"Oi Sa, where are weee?"

"For the sixth time, I'm not that sure, you bagel!"

The pair continued to creep through the winding, metal hallway, ready to respond any possible sign of danger. Well, Sakura was at least. Luffy chose to trail behind, unconsciously doing a mixture of scratching his head and picking his nose as he looked around.

"...Oi Sa, where are weeee?"

"I will kill you if you don't shut up."

She sighed in exasperation. Choosing to drag Luffy through the weird metal door on the whale's back had seemed like the best option ten minutes ago, when the only other possibilities had been either to pray for a miracle or drown. Now, Sakura was wondering if she should have just stayed outside and prayed.

She peered through down the hallway. It was dimly lit by a single lightbulb that gleamed against the worn metal walls and path. In fact, as far as she could see, everything seemed to be made out of crude metal plates. Was this even possible? "A door and a passageway inside a whale," she murmured, "Do you think it would lead to the whale's stomach?"

Luffy tilted his head. "Huh?"

"We might be able to rescue everybody if this passage can somehow lead to the stomach of the whale," Sakura reasoned, "If we really are, you know, inside the whale." Luffy's eyes widened with understanding.

"Then we can't waste any time!" he yelled, "Let's go!"

Before either of them could move however, a huge rumble filled the air and the ground beneath them began to shake.

"What the hell?" Sakura muttered as she stumbled around. Luffy let out confused cries as he struggled to stay on his feet. Suddenly, there was a huge jolt, and the hallway shook violently enough to send them shooting towards the ceiling. Sakura could feel herself tumbling around painfully, and all she could do was grab onto the back of Luffy's shirt. The last thing they needed was to get separated.

"What the-?! Ahh! What's going on?!" Luffy yelped every time they smashed into another wall.

"Why do I feel like something like this has happened before?!" Sakura wailed as her face smacked a metal plate.

"I think I'm gonna' throw up, Sakura!"

"KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT, EGGHEAD!"

*BAM*

The pair smashed headlong into a wall, before falling back down. Sakura let out a groan of pain but managed to raise her head and look around. The rumbling and jolts had stopped, but from the looks of it, they were in a completely different location. Now, a long river ran through the center of the hallway, dividing it into two different walkways. Strangest of all, the water was tinged a light green. Definitely not normal seawater, from the looks of it.

"What's this? What's going on?" Luffy asked as he peered around them.

"A canal or something?" Sakura murmured back absentmindedly. She was about to stagger back to her feet when the rumbling started again. Both her and Luffy were sent tumbling when the walkway suddenly tilted forward.

"Again?!" she and Luffy shrieked. Sakura attempted to get her feet back underneath but all she succeeded in doing was sending a flying kick to Luffy's head. Oops.

Then, just as quickly as it had started, the rumbling stopped and the ground began to slowly tilt back. Sakura was about to let out a cry of relief when she was suddenly jerked forward by Luffy. She glanced over to see her arm tangled up in his straw hat, and him wildly running down the walkway.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" she yelled as she furiously tried to work her arm free.

"CAN'T...STOP!" he yelled back.

He must have hit the ground running, that stupid pineapple, Sakura thought. The walkways was still slightly tilted forward, which wasn't helping to slow her captain down.

"SOMEBODY HELP! WE'RE GONNA' CRASH" Luffy screamed. Sakura looked up to see them approaching a large metal gateway. In front of the gate stood two strangers, a man and a woman, who looked as equally confused about seeing other people as she was. The man was dressed in a bright green robe with a tacky crown on his head, while the woman had bright blue hair and a light green coat over a blue-striped tank top. As they got nearer and nearer, Sakura managed to pick up a little bit of their conversation.

"What's that, Mr. 9?"

"I don't know, Miss Wednesday!"

Just before impact, Sakura clung tightly onto Luffy's head and shut her eyes. There was a loud crash, followed by several screeches and some colorful curses. Before she knew it, they were soaring through open air. She slowly opened her eyes to see…the Going Merry?

"Huh?" she muttered, still in a daze.

"Luffy?! Chibi?!" Sakura squinted to make out a confused looking Zoro staring right back at them.

"Oh! You guys are safe! Please help us!" Luffy cried.

"STOP CALLING ME THAT, RICE BALL!" Sakura screeched as she and Luffy tumbled into the greenish water.

I hate this place. She thought hopelessly.

"No show of gratitude, chibi? It's not like I just saved your life or anything."

"I'll thank you when you learn to use my name, shitty rice ball. And it was Sanji who fished me out."

"I'LL GLADLY SAVE YOU ANYTIME, SA-CHWAN!"

"Uhh...yeah, thanks, Sanji, I guess."

Sakura coughed and attempted to rub the foul-smelling green water off her skin. The cavern that they had landed in looked really weird, with a painted in sky on the ceiling and a little island in the water a few feet away from the shit. However, if the rest of the crew was here too, it definitely meant that they were in the stomach of the whale. That would mean the green water she had just taken a dive in was the whale's stomach juices or something. Oh...gross…

She glanced curiously at the two newcomers, who had so far not said a word. However, it was obvious through their constant exchanged eye contact that they were wordlessly communicating with each other. Sakura raised her eyebrows.

"Mr. 9….and Miss Wednesday...right?" she asked. The two of them stared at her, their eyes wide with shock.

"H-h-how do you know our names?" the man stammered, presumably Mr. 9.

"It can't be...are you a one of us as well?" the woman, Miss Wednesday, gasped. Sakura hesitated. Would it be best to play along and say she was a member of...whatever they were from? If she did, she didn't exactly have much to go off of.

Before she could say anything however, a large yell could be heard from overhead. Sakura looked up to see a figure standing by the gate. She frowned. It looked like a human but had petal-like protrusions coming from its head. Was it a man or a large flower?

"As long as I'm alive, I won't let anybody touch this whale!" the figure yelled. Sakura raised her eyebrows. Definitely human. But..who exactly was he?

Beside her, Luffy scratched his head. "What's that supposed to mean?" he asked.

"But we're inside the whale now!" Mr. 9 (or whoever he was) screeched. He and the woman Miss Wednesday were now wielding large bazookas, which they aimed straight at the stomach walls of the whale. Wait...where had they gotten those from?

"You can't stop us anymore!" Miss Wednesday cried as they sent two large missiles flying into the air. Sakura instinctively raised her hands, ready to conjure up an energy shield. She wasn't too fond of the whale at the moment, but injuring it probably wouldn't be the best solution seeing that they were inside its stomach. Before her palms could light up however, Zoro blocked her with his arm.

"Taking on two bazooka missiles will hurt, chibi," he grunted. Sakura scowled in annoyance and surprise. Since when did he get so concerned about her wellbeing? Before she could argue back, a large bang filled the air. She whirled her head back to see the flower man falling into the water, smoke billowing from his clothes. What had just happened?

"He used himself as a shield to protect the whale!" Usopp cried.

"He wants to protect the whale?" Nami gasped, "Why would the old man do that?"

"If he can survive some shots, I can too!" Sakura growled, shoving Zoro's arm away.

"It's no use!" Miss Wednesday cackled as she readied her bazooka again, "No matter what happens here, we need the whale for food!"

*BAM BAM*

Both of the newcomers suddenly collapsed onto the floor, courtesy of Luffy's fists. Sakura blinked and slowly smiled. Leave it up to her captain to find the easiest solution to a problem.

"This is an Irish whale from the West Blue, one of the largest species in the world. His name's Laboon. And these idiots come from a town close by. They want to kill Laboon so that they can have his meat for food for several years."

The whole crew had gathered around the old man on the little island to hear him speak, while the bound and gagged Miss Wednesday and Mr. 9 wriggled around a few feet away. The man had introduced himself as Crocus, the keeper of the lighthouse and the caretaker of the whale, who was apparently named Laboon.

A lighthouse keeper living in a makeshift island inside a whale's stomach, Sakura thought, Not weird at all.

They continued to listen as Crocus explained how Laboon had become friends with a pirate crew that had travelled around West Blue. When the crew set out for the Grand Line, they had left Laboon in the care of Crocus, promising to return once they had travelled around the world.

"Laboon smashes into the Red Line everyday to try and get to the other side," Crocus explained, "He just wants to see his friends again."

Nami nodded in understanding. "That would explain the constant rumbling and shaking in here. It's Laboon charging into the Red Live over and over again."

Crocus grunted in agreement. "The only problem is, it's been 50 years now," he continued, "And Laboon still believes his friends will come back."

Sakura stared in shock. 50 years?!

"Here's the exit. You can get out Laboon through here," Crocus grunted as he turned a lever. The crew watched in amazement as a large metal gate swung open, revealing the outside ocean.

"The real sky!" Luffy cheered as they slowly sailed out of the whale.

Sakura turned to look at the canal they had just exited from. "Building a transportation system and a home inside a whale," she muttered, "How is that even possible?"

"Anyway, what are we gonna' do with these two?" Usopp asked as he gestured at their two bound captives, who were still flopping around the ship deck.

"Meh. Just toss them out," Luffy replied dismissively.

"KYAAAA!" Miss Wednesday and Mr. 9 screamed as they were roughly thrown off the ship by Zoro.

"BE MORE GENTLE WITH THE LADY, DAMMIT!" Sanji yelled. Did he really have to be such a gentleman to every lady who passed by?

"Nice meeting you two!" Sakura called out as she began to turn around.

"Wait! You, girl! How do you know our names?!" Miss Wednesday shrieked. Sakura briefly glanced over her shoulder and winked.

"It's a secret!" she replied, grinning as she watched the two hastily converse with each other in the water.

"How do you know their names?" Nami quietly inquired.

"Overheard them talking to each other," Sakura whispered back. Her whispers transformed into laughs as she watched the two hurriedly swim away, shouting out threats as they did so.

"You make it sound like you're pretty familiar with them," Usopp noted.

"That's the point," Sakura replied as she continued to chuckle.

"Her name was Miss Wednesday, right? What an exquisite girl!" Sanji cooed as he dreamily smoked his cigarette.

"Leave it up to the flirty cook to fall in love with a random stranger," Nami groaned.

"But Crocus-san, about the whale," Usopp pressed once the ship had docked onto the Red Line, "Does he still believe his friends will return after 50 years?

Sanji puffed on his cigarette. "Don't be stupid. This is the Grand Line. If it's been 50 years, the crew's most likely already dead."

Sakura watched as both Luffy and Zoro settled down to take naps. "But friends are supposed to keep their promises, right?" she mused, "Laboon can't give up hope now."

"No matter what, staying for 50 years on the Grand Line is impossible," Crocus replied grimly, "The pirates either somehow managed to get out, or died a long time back. There's no other possibility. If you're not strong enough, you can't survive here."

"So either they were too weak, or too scared to face death," Sanji commented, "And decided to leave regardless of their promise."

"That's just too cruel," Usopp softly moaned.

"Why haven't you just told Laboon the truth then?" Nami asked.

"I've told him everything, but he won't listen," Crocus murmured, "He's too stubborn to think that his friends would forget their promise. I've tried time after time with no result. All he'll do is hit the Red Line with his head."

Sakura nodded in understanding. "What could he do anyway?"

Both Nami and Usopp turned to look at her, confusion on their faces.

"I mean, Laboon's from West Blue right?" she continued, "That means he can't go back home unless he wants to brave the Calm Belt, so all he can do is believe that his friends will come back to him."

"Why do you keep taking care of the whale anyway?" Sanji asked, "You've technically been betrayed too."

Crocus gestured at Laboon's head. "Look at the whale's scars. If he keeps at it, he'll die soon. I've stuck with him for 50 years, and I'm not leaving him now."

"YOOOOOOSSSHHHH!" Luffy yelled, disrupting their conversation. The rest of the crew turned to see him leaping onto the Laboon's head, a large pillar of wood under his arm.

"Wait…" Nami grunted.

"Isn't that…" Sakura muttered.

"The Merry's mast?" Usopp finished.

"Most likely…?" Sanji answered absentmindedly.

…

"WAIT, WHAT?!"

"GOMU GOMU NOOO…FLOWER ARRANGEMENT!" their captain screamed as he drove the mast straight into Laboon's head. For several seconds, there was a stark silence, before utter pandemonium was unleashed.

"BOOOHHHHH! BOOOHHHH! BOOHHH!" Laboon wailed as he thrashed around the water.

"AHHHHHH!" Luffy screamed from where he was hanging on tightly to the ship's mast, now imbedded deeply into the crown of the whale's forehead.

"YOU IDIOT!" the rest of the crew screeched, their faces pale with shock.

"HE BROKE THE SHIP'S MAST!" Usopp wailed, tears running down his face.

Laboon let out another roar of anger, and tilted his head forward.

"HE'S GONNA' HIT LAND!" Zoro yelled.

"WHY DID WE PICK A STUPID MUSHROOM TO BE OUR CAPTAIN AGAIN!?" Sakura shrieked.

*BANG*

Laboon drove his head full force into the Red Line, before recoiling back with a wail of pain.

"The kid!" Crocus choked out. Sakura hurriedly wrenched him before he could run forward.

"Our captain's safety shouldn't be the main concern!" she warned. As if to prove her point, Luffy leapt out of the dust from the impact, looking completely unharmed, and sent a punch straight into Laboon's eye. In response, the whale smacked Luffy with his forehead, sending the boy flying back into the Red Line.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Luffy?!" Zoro yelled.

"SO WE'RE EVEN NOW RIGHT?!"

Everybody, including the very enraged whale, stared in confusion at Luffy, who was grinning despite having just been smashed into a rocky wall.

"But we still don't know the result of this fight, so we'll have to fight again," he continued, "Your friends may be dead, but I'm still alive. Once we finish travelling around the Grand Line, we'll come back to see you! So let's fight again next time!"

Everybody watched as tears brimmed around Laboon's eyes, and grins erupted on their faces as the whale let out a cry of acknowledgement.

"Well I'll be damned," Zoro whistled.

Sakura chuckled. "Leave it up to our idiot captain to do something like that."

"Well...it certainly...has Luffy's mark," Sakura muttered as she stared at the her captain's work.

After half an hour of painstaking work, Luffy had managed to paint a lopsided version of the crew's Jolly Roger onto the forehead of the whale. Or Sakura assumed it to be the Jolly Roger. To be honest, the painting was so disproportionate that she wasn't really sure what it was.

"I think you should have done it for him, chibi," Zoro mused as he gazed alongside her.

"This is a sign of the promise between you and me!" Luffy declared, "You can't hit your head or else the sign will disappear. It needs to stay until we come back to see you!"

"Boh."

"Yosh! Then that's that!"

"I don't think it would have the same meaning if I painted it instead," Sakura giggled as she turned away.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in leisure and preparation. Nami settled down to chart their voyage while Sanji busied himself with preparing his long awaited elephant tuna for lunch. Usopp spent his time struggling to repair the ship's mast while cursing under his breath and Zoro chose to nap his time away. As for Sakura, she took the time to catch up on her sketching, choosing to carefully capture a snapshot of Luffy smashing the masthead into Laboon's scarred forehead.

"Luffy showing...his love...for Laboon," she muttered, carefully labelling the drawing in neat print. She lightly touched her necklace charmed, a soft smile on her face. "How's that for ya', Keri?"

"AHHHH!"

Sakura whirled around to see Nami staring horrified at her compass. "It won't stop spinning!" she cried. Sakura frowned. What was that supposed to mean?

Crocus shook his head from where he sat a few feet away. "You really don't know much about navigation on the Grand Line do you?"

"Food is served!" Sanji yelled.

"Hungry hungry!" Luffy chanted as he gobbled up the elephant tuna steaks.

"I could use a break!" Usopp added as he joined in.

Sakura took a seat as well, heartily eating a chunk of the delicious elephant tuna as she listened to Crocus explain how a special compass called the "Log Pose" was needed to navigate through the Grand Line. She almost spat out her food in surprise when Luffy pulled one out of his pocket.

"The weird strangers left it on our ship when Zoro tossed them overboard," he explained as Nami eagerly took it from him and strapped it to her wrist.

Crocus began explaining how exactly the Log Pose was supposed to be used, and Sakura chose to focus her attention back to the rapidly dwindling pile of elephant tuna. She quickly smacked away Luffy's hand and grabbed another portion of fish. Minutes later, the entire table was completely devoid of food.

"Ahhh, let's set sail then!" Luffy exclaimed as he let out a burp. Sanji, Usopp, and Sakura gaped at the bare table. Even the bones had been crunched away by their captain.

"You ate all the precious food I had prepared for Nami-san!" Sanji growled, his eyes alight with flames.

"Luffy's gonna' get it," Sakura sang under her breath.

With a roar of anger, Sanji lashed out his foot and kicked Luffy square in the head, sending him flying straight past Nami. Sakura laughed alongside Usopp at first, but quickly shut up when she saw the murderous look on Nami's face...and the shattered log pose in her hands. Luffy must have smashed it somehow when he had gone flying past her.

"WHY DON'T YOU TWO GO TAKE A SWIM?!" the navigator shrieked as she sent the Sanji and Luffy flying into the ocean.

"Wasn't that the most important tool we had?" Usopp cried.

"So…are we screwed now?" Sakura asked nervously.

"Relax. I have a spare that I'll give you for helping Laboon," Crocus said reassuringly. Nami let out a sigh and slumped her head.

"Thanks, Crocus-san," she muttered.

*Blegh!*

*Cough!*

*Sputter!*

*Gasp!*

Sakura turned to see fours heads emerge from the water and droop over the edge of the land. Two of them were Luffy and Sanji. The other two...were the whale hunters from before? What were they doing here?

Sanji immediately got to his feet and stuck out his hand towards the woman. "Allow me to help you, Miss Wednesday," he murmured humbly. Sakura resisted the urge to smack him.

The other one, Mr. 9, stumbled to his feet before turning to face Luffy, who had crawled up from the water and collapsed on top of the table. "Favor. We need a favor!" he gasped.

Luffy tilted his head. "Huh?"

Sakura watched curiously as Mr. 9 bowed his head. "We need to get to Whiskey Peak. It's the town where we live. Please."

Nami smirked. "Trying to kill a whale and then coming back to beg for our help? How thoughtful."

"Who are exactly are you guys anyway?" Usopp asked.

To everybody's surprise, the two newcomers got to their knees and bowed in front of Luffy. "We really can't tell you, but we need to get back to our town! We'll pay you if you want!" Miss Wednesday cried.

The two looked helplessly at Sakura. Oh yeah, that was right. Back at their last meeting, she had made it sound like she was one of them...whatever they were. Judging from their strange codelike names and how they had easily accepted her as one of them, Sakura guessed that they were secret spies or agents working on undercover missions and assumed her to be one as well. She smiled inwardly. Desperate and willing to see her as a secret supporter? Why not toy with them a little bit?

"It wouldn't hurt to let them hitch a ride, but we do have a problem with the uhh..Nami what was it called again?" she asked, winking furtively at Nami. Thankfully, the navigator caught on.

"Oh, the Log Pose? Yeah, I might have broken it," she replied cheerfully, dangling the shattered object in her hand, "But do you guys still wanna' to come along?"

"YOU BROKE IT?! THAT WAS MINE!" Mr. 9 shrieked.

"YOU GUYS CAN'T EVEN LEAVE HERE NOW! HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO GET BACK HOME?!" Miss Wednesday wailed.

"Oh, but Crocus-san did give us another!" Nami cried, giggling as the two whale hunters went back to their begging.

"It's fine. They can come," Luffy said simply.

Sakura grinned. "Captain's orders are law."

Moments later, the crew was ready to set sail. As Nami made last minute confirmations with Crocus, Sakura sidled over to Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday.

"Remember, just sit tight. We'll get back at Whiskey Peak soon," she whispered secretively.

"So...you're really one of us? A number agent?" Mr. 9 asked quietly.

Sakura winked, though her mind was deep in thought. Number agent? Was that what they were called? "Undercover. I was sent to tail these pirates for some reason," she explained.

"The boss will be mad at us," Miss Wednesday moaned, "He already sent the Unluckies to find us."

Sakura frowned inwardly. Boss? Unluckies? What were they talking about? However, she made sure to maintain an air of concern.

"The Unluckies, huh?" she said, furrowing her brow, "That's really...umm...unlucky...for you guys."

Mr. 9 nodded in agreement. "Hopefully trapping this pirate crew will make up for our failed mission. By the way, what number are you? I've never seen you before."

Sakura felt her blood run cold. What did they mean, trapping them? Would there be some sort of ambush at Whiskey Peak? Sakura made a mental note to to warn the crew about it later. She winked again and ruffled Mr. 9's hair, ignoring his yelps to keep her hand away from his crown.

"Best if I kept that a secret, you know?" she whispered, "Me being undercover and everything." With that, Sakura turned and left, grinning as she listened to the pair urgently confide with each other. She walked a few feet away before stopping in front of a certain green-haired swordsman, who still lay snoring on the deck.

"Only a rice ball like you would be able to sleep through all of this," she muttered, a smirk on her face. Zoro grunted in his sleep, completely oblivious. She mentally debated kicking in head, but thought better not to, instead turning back to the front of the ship, where Luffy, Nami, and Usopp was waving at Crocus.

"See you later, flower guy!" Luffy yelled, "Thanks for the help!"

"And the Log Pose!" Nami added.

Crocus grinned. "Come back soon, huh?"

Luffy grinned cheekily before turning back to Laboon, who was peering down at them several meters away.

"I'M GOING NOW, WHALE! BUT I'LL BE BACK!" he yelled. Laboon responded with an equally enthusiastic cry.

Sakura smiled at the ocean and gently touched her necklace charms. Unluckies. The boss. Number agents. Whatever those words meant, they would soon find out. Afterall, it was only the start of the Grand Line. Who knew what kind of adventure lay in front of them?

"SET SAIL FOR WHISKEY PEAK!"