Ch. 15- Commence Operation
One Piece © Oda
Blizzard, Aika, Kumi, and Jupiter © Me
It had been 15 minutes since Luffy and his team had gone off in search of Caesar. Law and Chopper had gone off to the scientist's laboratory while Blizzard and Jupiter went to find an escape route. Nami and Usopp remained behind with the children and are now waiting for the others to return.
"The plan's just started, and I'm already nervous," Usopp said.
"How do you think I feel?" Nami asked, still stuck in Sanji's body with Aika and Kumi sitting in her/his lap.
"…Hey, Nami?" Aika asked.
"Hmm?" Nami hummed.
"Luffy…he's gonna be okay, right?" Aika asked. "He is coming back…isn't he? 'Cause…he promised."
Nami blinked in surprise at Aika's concern…but then she smiled.
"I wouldn't worry too much about Luffy," she reassured, petting the wolf-girl on the head. "Trust me."
"Yeah!" Usopp agreed. "If there's one thing we know about Luffy, it's that he's a man who keeps his promises."
"…I see," Aika said, smiling. "I know I just met him…but…I already like him, so much! Does…does that make sense?"
"It does to us," Usopp grinned.
"And something tells me that Luffy's grown fond of you, too," Nami added.
"Shishishishi!" Aika laughed.
XXX
"I CANNOT believe the bullshit I'm in!"
Outside the lab, Blizzard and Jupiter are seen walking through the snow, searching the perimeter for an escape route. Along the way, Blizzard continued to rant about Law's plan.
"Of all the dogs I could've been stuck with, I had to be put with YOU!" Blizzard complained.
"Will you stop your whining?!" Jupiter questioned. "You're not the only one who's annoyed about this! If anything, I dislike this idea just as much as you!"
Blizzard growled at this.
"And another thing!" he shouted. "Quit telling me what the fuck to do, old man! You're not my Father!"
"Law put me in charge of this part of the plan," Jupiter said. "You have to do what I say and when I say it, you got me?!"
"The last time I checked, I only take orders from Luffy! Not some dog who belongs to a psychopath like Law!"
Jupiter's left eye went wide…and he growled viciously.
"Fuck you…I'm gonna kill you for that," he hissed.
"Bring it, old-timer," Blizzard growled, and with that, the two canines lunged at each other, biting and clawing at each other, viciously.
XXX
Meanwhile, in another part of the mountains…
"Damn…I must've hit my head on a fall or something."
"And me, as well. I appear to have quite the headache."
"Quit your bellyaching! We've wasted enough time as it is! I just hope that samurai hasn't become an ice cube, yet!"
It is revealed that Zoro, Sanji (still in Nami's body), and Brook are running through the snow, the two swordsman having large bumps on their heads.
"That's what you get for taking detours, cook," Zoro said.
"What are you talking about?!" Sanji questioned. "We ALL CHOSE to go that way!"
"And yet, we weren't able to find it," Brook said. "However, I shall never forget that glorious silhouette for as long as I live! Even though I'm already dead! YOHOHOHOHO!"
"Gloss over stuff much?" Zoro asked. "I specifically heard you shouting 'enemy attack'."
"I did nothing of the sort!" Brook rebuked.
"Well, I for one am a skeptic!" Zoro said.
"Well, I'm a believer!" Sanji argued.
"And I simply wish to enjoy the endless debate!" Brook added.
"Huh," Sanji muttered. "That's a mature stance, Brook. You act so grown-up."
"Well, yes, of course!" Brook agreed. "After all I am old enough to be dead, you know!"
"Well, I don't believe in indecisiveness," Zoro added.
"Eh?!" Brook questioned in shock.
Flashback; 1 hour ago
"Hey, samurai!" Sanji shouted. "Where the hell are you?! Answer me!"
Zoro, Sanji, and Brook had just left the lab, in search of the samurai, when suddenly, the third stopped upon seeing what looked like…giant footprints.
"My word!" he exclaimed. "Look over her, you two! These footprints…could it be that they belong to the legendary abominable snowman?!"
"Don't be ridiculous," Zoro and Sanji said in unison before they came and looked, themselves.
"Whoa! Look at that!" Sanji exclaimed. "He's right!"
"They're HUGE!" Zoro added. "Even bigger than a giant's footprint!"
"What a stunning discovery!" Brook declared. "Mark my words, gentlemen! If we follow this trail…we may just find…"
'One of life's great mysteries!' they all thought. However, it appears their images to the alleged abominable snowman were quite. Brook's image was a creature with white, shaggy, an antenna sticking out of its head, and two, earmuff-like protrusions on the sides. Sanji's image…was more like an abominable snowwoman…which did not really look that abominable. As for Zoro, he was thinking of a white-furred creature with a tear-dropped shaped head and brandishing a sword.
And so, the three trekked on, following the trail of footprints…until…
"What the hell?" Zoro questioned, standing on the edge of a cliff with Brook and Sanji.
"A dead end?" Sanji inquired, but then, Brook let out a terrified scream, alerting the other two and forcing them to turn around. There, they saw two shadowy figures behind a screen of snowy wind.
"Look there!" Brook shouted. "Two giant silhouettes! Wait…could it be? It might the abominable-"
But before could the skeleton could finish, KA-CHAK! BABOOM! A huge gunshot went off, releasing a huge cloud of gas!
"Ugh…!" Zoro groaned. "W-what the hell is this?! Some…shum….kinda gash…?"
"Unh…!" Sanji groaned as he wobbled in an almost-drunken state, his words beginning to slur. "I…I feel dwunk…I…I can't shpeak right…and I'm sooooo…sleepy…!"
"Ish…an enemy attack?!" Brook hiccupped, attempting to draw his sword.
It is revealed that the ones who fired the gas was none other than the Yeti Cool Bros, Rock and Scotch.
"Even the hardiest drink will fall into a drunken stupor," Rock explained, "after being hit by one of our K.Y.P Gas Rounds! And the foot of that cliff…is Sector F-16."
"The inescapable Ice Spikes!" said Scotch as he and his brother prepared to shoot.
"We'll start with these three!" added Rock.
BOOM! The Yeti Cool Brothers opened fire, sending Zoro, Sanji, and Brook plummeting towards a bed of icy spikes!
"Holy shit!" Zoro cursed. "Hey! You guys!"
When the green-haired swordsman looked, he saw, to his shock, that Sanji and Brook are now asleep with comical snooze bubbles blowing out of their noses.
"Dammit to hell!" Zoro shouted. "Looks like it's up to me…gotta make this quick…losing consciousness…!"
With that, Zoro drew Wado Ichimonji…and cut through the Ice Spikes, and just in time, too!
"Phew!" he sighed. "Man…that was…ZZZZZZZZ…!"
THUD! FWUD! THWUMP! The three Straw Hats fell into snow…asleep.
XXX
"This is Sector F-16, reporting," said a guard as he and a few of his comrades found the unconscious trio. "We've found the 3 Straw Hat Pirates, as mention. We're collecting the bodies as we speak."
But just when one reached down to pick one of them up…Sanji reached up with Nami's hand and grabbed one by the arm!
"W-what the…!?" the guard questioned in shock.
"And just WHOSE bodies are you collecting?" Sanji asked with a menacing glare.
"S-she's alive!" cried one of the guards.
"What's with her voice?" asked another, confused. "It doesn't sound very feminine."
"Who cares?!" asked one more. "Besides, it's just one woman! What harm could she-"
BA-BA-BA-BA-BA-BA-BA-BA-BAM! Sanji stood up and kicked the guards away with Haki imbued legs!
"I don't care how many of you weaklings there are!" he shouted. "No way are you laying a hand on this body!"
Soon, the guards all dropped to the ground, unconscious. However, Sanji already looked like he was out of breath.
"I forgot," he said. "Even though she can Armament's Haki, Nami's not quite as strong as I am. I gotta be careful with her body."
Ironically, however, he chose right then and there to put a cigarette in his mouth and light it.
"Forgive me, Nami," he whispered. "I know I shouldn't smoke with your lungs, but I need a way to relax. I won't breathe in too much, though. That I can promise you. Just…use a lot of mouthwash after this. We don't want Luffy to kiss you when you taste like ash."
Then, he walked over to Zoro and Brook, who are still asleep…before he breathed on his fist.
"WAKE UP, YOU DUMB-ASSES!"
WHACK! GONK!
"AAAAGH! WHAT THE HELL, NAMI?!"
"I'M SANJI!"
"WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?! YOU BOTH ARE ALWAYS HITTING ME, YOU STUPID COOK!"
Flashback end
While Zoro seemed to remain confused as to how he got the bump on his head, Sanji and Brook seemed focused on finding the samurai.
"All right," Sanji said. "No more mysteries, got it?! Now, are you sure this is where you saw the samurai's torso?!"
"Indeed!" Brook replied. "I informed the good man earlier that I ran across his torso just before the lake! If my hunch is correct, he should be around here, trying to locate it!"
"HEY, SAMURAI~!" Sanji called. "GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE! DID THE ENEMY ALREADY CAPTURE YOU?!"
Soon, the three slowed down into a slow walk…unknowingly stepping upon what looked like a frozen body.
"Hey!" Sanji called. "Are you all right?! Come on out, already, samurai!"
"Oh, Mister Samurai~!" Brook called in a singsong tone. "Yoo-hoo~!"
"Maybe he already found his torso and went to look for his kid," Zoro said before he looked down…and gasped in horror. "SWEET ONI GIRI! I THINK I'M STANDING ON HIM!"
Sanji and Brook looked back to see that Zoro was indeed standing right on top of the samurai's frozen body!
"Holy shit!" Sanji cursed. "He's frozen solid!"
With that, he ran over to the samurai and raised his foot.
"1…2…3!" he counted before CRUNCH! He stomped on the samurai's head, awakening him!
"GAH!" the samurai cried, coughing and gagging, like he was choking on his breath!
"Hey! You okay?!" Sanji asked. "Did someone do this to you?!"
"Haa…haa…!" the samurai gasped. "For some reason…I could no longer move! I almost died!"
"Uh, yeah!" Sanji barked. "Because you nearly froze to death in a fucking blizzard!"
"No!" the samurai objected. "It…it's not that! I am…n-not cold!"
"Like hell, you're not!" Sanji snapped.
"A…a true warrior does not feel the chill!"
"Jeez, what a pain-in-the-ass," Zoro said.
"Couldn't you make yourself a coat or something with your powers?!" Sanji questioned.
"I tried…but…sadly, I cannot," the samurai replied. "M-my sorcery has cursed me with a terrible weakness…making it rather difficult for me to swim!"
"Yeah, yeah!" Sanji said. "That's what a Devil Fruit does!" That's when realization began to sink in. "…Oh, god…don't tell me…!"
"If my theory is correct," the samurai began, "then…my torso might've fallen into water!"
"Water?!" Zoro repeated.
"I can feel…a watery sensation about my chest!" the samurai cried.
"Now I get it," Sanji said. "When your torso fell in water, you suddenly found yourself unable to move and you froze on the spot here, and you can't use your Devil Fruit powers because of the water."
"If that's the case," Zoro said, "then maybe his torso fell into the lake, Brook!"
"Yes, indeed!" Brook agreed. "And it seems the lake is actually seawater!"
"If this half of him is still alive," Zoro theorized, "then that means that the sharks haven't eaten his torso yet. Whatever's in that lake, we should probably fish him out of there, and soon!"
"Yes! Let us make haste!" Brook added.
"If it's in the lake…then you'll have to swim down and search for it!" the samurai cried.
"I already know you can't swim, you worthless bum!" Sanji shouted. "Now pipe down and let me handle this!"
"I…I don't understand," the samurai said. "You…you people are pirates, are you not?! Then why…would you go to such lengths for a total stranger, like myself?!"
Sanji heaved a sigh before he grabbed the samurai by his topknot.
"Because part of me," he began, "has a conscience that wants to see this through to the end…but know this! Once you're put back together, you and I are gonna have us a little duel so I can kick your ass!"
The samurai gasped…but then…he seemed to try and force a smile on his frozen face.
"I…I agree to your duel," he said. "I…am not worthy."
"Well, well," Sanji said as he dragged the samurai along the ground. "Looks like you learned some manners, samurai. Being frozen seems to have its benefits."
Suddenly, the three Straw hats spotted something in the distance, coming straight toward them.
"What the hell's that?" Zoro asked.
"Hmm…oh, dear!" Brook said. "It appears to those Centaurs that follow Brownbeard! The ones we stripped of their coats!"
Truth be told, there was the Centaur Patrol Unit, most of them missing their coats and freezing to death.
"Hang in there!" said a Rhino Centaur. "Just keep running! Stay away from the lake!"
"The monster's on the other side!" cried a Cheetah Centaur. "Report to the Master! Where the hell has that thing been hiding, all this time?!"
"Monsters?" Zoro repeated. "You guys should talk."
"AAAAAAH!" the Centaurs screamed. "It's those pirate bandits, again!"
"And look!" shouted a Tiger Centaur. "That one's still wearing my coat!"
"Forget about it!" shouted a Ram Centaur. "Just get to the lab, and hurry!"
"Those guys are gonna pay for what they did to the Boss!" shouted the Doe Centaur from earlier.
And with that, they all ran off.
"Uh…what's their hurry?" Sanji asked.
"Hmm," Zoro hummed as he looked up. "Hey, Brook…those guys are coming from the lake, right?"
"I believe so," Brook answered. "What an astounding deduction, Mister Zoro! But…what makes you say that?"
"Well," Zoro began, "I…don't remember there being a mountain that way."
The three Straw Hats looked up to see…a giant, shadowy creature with glowing yellow eyes.
XXX
Back in Caesar's lab…
"Shulololololo!" Caesar laughed. "The terrible chemical weapon that destroyed Punk Hazard 4 years ago…was the slime itself! Shulolololo! What a bunch of fools they are! They all think that I purified the gas that choked this island?! NEVER!"
"…" Monet just remained quiet, either ignoring him because he was being boastful or she was too focused on her work. It was possibly the former.
"What a waste that would be!" Caesar continued. "No, I didn't purify the gas! I altered into the form of a monster! And THAT is the shape it now takes! It is a manifestation of the world of death that once reigned this island! Man soon forgets the tragedies of his past…but this one hasn't gone away! And I control it in the palm of my hand! SHULOLOLOLOLOLO~!"
XXX
At the front entrance of Caesar's lab, the G-5 Marines had just managed to steal a ship: a Government battleship with Caesar's initials on it.
"All right!" cheered one of the soldiers. "The ship is ours!"
"Get back here with that ship!" shouted one of Caesar's men.
"KYAAAAAA!" Tashigi screamed, uncontrollably using Smoker's powers to fly around. "Smoker! How do I get your legs to turn back to normal?!"
"Just sit and tight and stop screwing things up, Tashigi!" Smoker barked before he turned to his soldiers. "Is the door still closed?! The real enemy's in the lab! Every second we spend out here is wasted time!"
"Sorry, Smokey!" said one of the soldiers "We tried everything, but the door won't budge!"
"Dammit, this is pathetic!" Smoker hissed. "If only I had my own body, then I'd be inside in an instant!"
XXX
At the rear entrance of the lab, Law and Chopper had just arrived their via the former's "Scan" ability.
"Wow! You're pretty neat!" Chopper said, now sitting in a bag that was tied to the hilt of Law's sword. "Did we just warp?!"
"Just shut your mouth and stay in the damn bag," Law said. "We're at the lab's backdoor. Caesar and Monet will be in the main laboratory. I'll find a way to get them outta the room. You study the drug in the meantime."
"But if you're able to walk right up to the Master, then you must be pretty tough!" Chopper said. "Couldn't you just capture him on your own? That way, I'd have more time to study the NHC10!"
"…There's a reason why I can't just do that," Law muttered. "It's why I'm teaming up with you people."
"Huh?"
"Look, I just need you guys to take Caesar out of the picture as quickly as possible. I'll handle the rest. This is why I'm counting on Jupiter and White Wolf-ya to find an escape route."
"AAAAAAH!"
"What the hell was that?" Law questioned.
It is revealed to be Tashigi, still flying around uncontrollably…when she spotted something in the distance…and it was getting bigger.
"Hey…what's that over there?!" she asked. "It looks like some sort of cannonball! No…wait…that's…!"
She was close thought. It was actually none other than…Luffy, in his Gum-Gum Balloon form with Robin and Franky on his back!
BOOM! Luffy collided with the ship, completely destroying it, while Robin used her Cien Fleur Wing to keep herself at a safe distance.
"W-what the?!" questioned one of Caesar's men before one of them got punched out by a huge, metal fist.
Soon, the dust cleared, revealing Luffy, Robin, and Franky.
"AHAHAHAHAHA!" Franky laughed. "That was quite a shortcut!"
"HEY! MASTER~!" Luffy shouted at the top of his voice. "COME ON OUT! WE'VE COME TO KICK YOUR ASS AND THEN CAPTURE YOU!"
"Luffy, that was a secret, remember?" Robin asked.
"Oh, yeah," Luffy said before he started shouting again. "ON SECOND THOUGHT, IGNORE WHAT I JUST SAID!"
"What is that dumb-ass doing?!" Law questioned. "No one said he had to fight anybody!"
"Straw Hat?!" Smoker questioned in shock.
"IT'S THE STRAW HAT PIRATES~!" shouted the G-5 soldiers and Caesar's men.
TO BE CONTINUED…
The plan begins!
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