Ch. 35- The Island That's There, Yet Isn't

One Piece © Oda

Blizzard, Aika, Kumi, and Jupiter © Me

Meanwhile, in the Secret Room…

"Soldiers of Punk Hazard! You have all been deceived!"

Caesar growled with surprised annoyance upon seeing Brownbeard yelling to one of the monitors while the rest of his followers stood behind him (Caesar) in confusion.

"Brownbeard! What's he doing?!"

"Did he go nuts after the Straw Hats got him?"

"Everything that Caesar had said is nothing more than a lie!" Brownbeard shouted. "Everyone here is going to die! You can see me on a monitor, somewhere right?! I'm going to show you all what Caesar's really like!"

"Brownbeard's right below us," said one of the guards, "on the 1st floor of Building R!"

"And according to Master's plan, the Straw Hats and the Marines should all wind up in that room," said another. "Should we bring Brownbeard up here with us?"

"…No," Caesar said. "There's…no need. I'll go down to him, myself."

'That oaf will ruin everything!' he thought.

"Then we'll go with you!" the guards shouted.

XXX

Soon, in front of Gate R-66 which is located on the 1st floor of Building R, Caesar floated down to Brownbeard while his followers used an elevator.

"Caesar!" Brownbeard barked.

"What do you think you're doing, you stu…pendously talented follower of mine?!" Caesar asked, trying to act surprised. "Knock it off!"

"Give me back my men, Caesar!" Brownbeard shouted. "They had their coats stolen from them, but I know they didn't die! They must've found a way into the lab by now!"

Caesar just stared at Brownbeard before he thought back to when Shinokuni was unleashed.

Flashback

"Hmm?" Caesar hummed as he picked up the Transponder Snail. "Brownbeard's men? What do you want?"

"Master! There are Marines around the front entrance and the doors are closed! We can't get inside! Tell us where to go, please!"

"Oh, dear!" Caesar cried. "What a calamity! Wait there! I'll send a rescue party, immediately!"

"Yes, please do!"

Caesar smirked as he hung up the Transponder Snail and sat down on the sofa, picking his nose.

"Master, how do you plan to get them inside?" Monet asked.

"I'm not," Caesar answered. "Shinokuni will get them soon, so why bother?"

Flashback end

"Hmm," Caesar hummed. "You're right…what could've happened to them, I wonder. I haven't heard a word from them. I can't deny their plight has been weighing on my mind."

Brownbeard seethed. He knew that Caesar was lying about the fate of his men.

'If they're not back by now, then they must be outside,' Brownbeard thought. 'It's too late!'

"I no longer trust your words, you lying bastard!" Brownbeard shouted.

"Hey, what's the matter with you, Brownbeard?!" asked one of the soldiers. "What have you got against the Master, all of a sudden?!"

"Men! Listen to me!" Brownbeard exclaimed. "We've all spend the last 2 years together! We must escape this island, at once! Do you all want to know what Caesar really thinks of you?! In his eyes…you're all nothing more than GUINEA PEAS!"

He gasped when he realized that come out wrong.

"No! Wait!" Brownbeard said. "I meant to say…GUINEA BAGS! …Huh?! G…gingy…pink…!"

Everyone stared at the stammering Brownbeard…before they all burst into laughter.

"DAHAHAHAHAHA! What the hell are you talking about?!"

"Come on! Don't leave us in the dark! Just say what you're trying to say!"

"What is this, some kinda spell?!"

"GYAHAHAHA! You're hilarious, you know that?!"

Brownbeard kept trying to say the words "guinea pig", but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't pronounce them correctly…and soon, he saw why. He looked back and saw Caesar…holding a syringe in his hand before he collapsed.

"Hey! What happened to him, now?!" asked one of the guards.

"Oh, nothing," Caesar said. "Just a little sedative, is all. I'm sure his mouth and body could use a rest, no? Shulolololo!" Then, he went over to Brownbeard and whispered something in his ear.

"That's right…now I remember, Brownbeard. I did happen to talk to your men, earlier…and I left them all to die."

"Rrgh…unh…!" Brownbeard groaned as tears fell from his eyes.

'You son of a bitch!' he thought. 'How dare you abandon…my faithful men!'

"Oh, and while we're at it, one more thing," Caesar whispered. "Do you remember how all these guards here were nearly killed y that awful weapons explosion, 4 years ago? Well…that was me, too!"

Brownbeard gasped at this.

'So…it wasn't Vegapunk?!' he thought. 'Then…he did this to them…and pretended to be a hero, all along?!'

Hearing this, Brownbeard gained a sudden adrenaline rush. He grabbed his sword and swung it at Caesar, who simply turned into gas and let it go through him without getting cut.

"S-stop!" Caesar cried, acting panicked by Brownbeard's "treachery". "What are you doing, Brownbeard! Men! Help me! Help your beloved Master!"

"Right, Master!" the guards shouted.

"Hold it right there, Brownbeard!"

"How dare you try and attack our Master, you fool! Did you forget, he saved you?!"

"RAAAAAAAAAARRRGH!" Brownbeard roared as he swung his sword, wildly at Caesar, who just kept dodging.

'This island is a living hell, all orchestrated by Caesar!' he thought. 'He's a devil in the skin of a man!'

"O-oh, no!" Caesar cried. "Brownbeard…he's gone mad! The Straw Hats must've bewitched him, somehow! It's too late to save him!"

"We have no choice," said one of the guards. "Sorry about this, Brownbeard…FIRE!"

BLAM-BLAM-BLAM-BLAM! The guards fired their rifles at the defenseless Brownbeard, who fell to the floor with tears in his eyes, once more. He tried his hardest to reveal Caesar's true colors to his comrades…but he failed.

"And now, for the final blow!" Caesar said. "GASTA-"

"STOP IT!"

Suddenly, someone appeared between Brownbeard and Caesar…and it is revealed to be Aika, still wearing Luffy's cardigan while standing before Brownbeard with her arms outstretched in a protective manner.

"Huh?" the guards muttered in confusion.

"Hey! It's that wolf-brat!"

"What's she doing here? Shouldn't she be in the Biscuits Room?!"

"You…you little pest!" Caesar hissed. "What are you doing here?! I thought I killed you!"

"EEEEH!?" the guards muttered.

"Uh…did I say 'kill'?" Caesar repeated. "No, no! I meant 'punished' her! You see…she's been a very naughty child for not obeying me, is all!"

"Oh! I see!" said one of Caesar's followers.

"You big fat liar!" Aika shouted. "You threw me in a gas tank and tried to suffocate me!"

"Now, Aika, why don't you be quiet before you say something you'll regret?" Caesar asked. "Or do you want to end up like that oaf behind you?"

"Go ahead and do your worst!" Aika shouted. "I'm not let you gonna hurt anyone, anymore!"

"Have it your way!" Caesar shouted, but before he could make due on his threat…a large, white blur appeared and tackled Caesar, leaving a cut on his right cheek!

"GAH!" Caesar yelled.

"MASTER!" they guards cried in shock.

However, on closer inspection, it looked like Caesar just barely managed to dodge the attack!

"Dammit!" Caesar cursed. "Who the hell did that?!"

The scientist then heard a deep growl behind him. He looked back and he saw Blizzard, licking some blood off his lips before he continued to growl at him.

"White Wolf?!" Caesar questioned. "But if you're here, than that means-"

"ELEPHANT GUN~!"

Caesar turned and yelped upon seeing a huge, black fist coming hurtling towards him before it punched him into a wall! Soon after, the fist shrank and returned to its normal…before snapping back to Luffy, who silently walked over to Brownbeard and gave him a gentle pet on the head.

"Luffy!" Aika exclaimed, happily.

"Straw Hat…!" Brownbeard muttered.

"Straw Hat Luffy?!" the guards questioned.

"B…back to 2nd floor, men!" Caesar cried. "Straw Hat's crew and the Marines will be pouring in, soon! We must prepare the experiment, and make sure that video feed is up!"

"Yes, Master!" Caesar's men cried as they ran back to the elevator.

At that moment, Momonosuke, who is now conscious again, scurried to Aika's side…and gasped upon seeing Caesar.

"Luffy!" he cried. "He is the one…who lied to all the innocent children!"

"…I know," Luffy answered. "Aika, you stand back, okay?"

"O-okay," Aika said.

"…You," Luffy hissed at Caesar. "Everyone is on this island because you tricked them. What the hell kind of messed up place is this?!"

Caesar angrily at Luffy…but then, his sneer is replaced by a smug grin.

"Shulolololo!" he laughed. "Well, you and your cohorts are about to die here…so I might as well tell you. If I had to describe this place…it's almost like a gas of sorts. An island that's there, yet isn't. That's how we can be so close to the criminal underworld! This is the very stronghold of black science! The ideal location for all the forbidden experiments and test subjects that I could ever want!"

Aika whimpered in fear while Blizzard growled viciously.

'Son of a bitch,' he thought.

"And thanks to my powerful brokers," Caesar continued, "the very existence of everything here is kept under wraps! It's as thought nothing ever happened! People can cry and scream and kick all they want, but no one will be coming to rescue them!"

XXX

In the hallway near the Biscuits Room, Nami, Robin, and Sanji are getting their kids, who had finally snapped out of their withdrawal symptoms, to their feet. Sanji also scolded the G-5 Marines for attempting to use violence on the children when they really did nothing wrong.

Meanwhile, Chopper had found an examination room to treat Mocha, who is currently vomiting blood in a bucket that Kumi had gotten for her.

XXX

"Shulololololo!" Caesar cackled. "You know nothing of this island, Straw Hat! You'll never survive if you go around, sticking your nose into other people's business, and the same goes for your little alliance! Law and his mutt are after S.A.D.! They know I'm the only one who can make it! That's why he's trying to capture me! My S.A.D. gets shipped off to the most dangerous of the Seven Warlords, and then, at Donquixote Doflamingo's factory, it is turned into a fruit known as SMILE! What is SMILE, you ask? Why…it's a man-made Devil Fruit of the Zoan Type! In fact, little Aika there had eaten one of them, giving her the abilities she has now!"

Aika whimpered in fear at this as she hid behind Luffy, who continued to sneer at the egotistic Caesar.

"SMILE is a fruit desired by all who seek power!" Caesar exclaimed. "Doflamingo then cuts deals with the truly BIG PLAYERS in the New World! From what I hear, his top customer is one of the Four Emperors! He's already putting together a huge army of hundreds of Zoan Types, thanks to the SMILE fruit! Makes you want to soil yourself just thinking about it, doesn't it?!"

Luffy just remained silent, but Caesar just kept talking.

"So now do you see the scale of what's happening here?!" Caesar questioned. "If you were to interfere with Doflamingo's business, it will bring upon the wrath of some of the most power people in the world on your head! And it they spring into action the whole world will quake and roil in terror! That's what Law seeks to bring about! You idiots! This is far beyond anything you can ever handle! SHULOLOLOLOLO! So go ahead and catch me if you dare, but I'm untouchable by Doflamingo and an Emperor! Do you really think you have the guts to pick a fight the likes of them and win?! SHULOLOLOLOLOLO!"

"…A fight?" Luffy asked…before he slugged Caesar across the jaw with a Haki-imbued fist, leaving a huge fist-shaped bruise!

Momonosuke and Aika gasped in shock while Blizzard kept looking on at Caesar in anger. The reason: he was just tired of hearing Caesar talk big.

"…A…amazing…!" Momonosuke whispered.

"Luffy's so strong…!" Aika said in awe.

Brownbeard just groaned as his tears spilled from his eyes, unable to move.

'Thank you…Straw Hat,' he thought.

"Picking fights, huh?!" Luffy asked. "THAT'S WHAT I'VE BEEN DOING ALL ALONG!"

TO BE CONTINUED…

It's time to rip Caesar a new one.

Review, please!