Ch. 42- Alignment of Interests
One Piece © Oda
Blizzard, Aika, Kumi, and Jupiter © Me
Dela © Johnny Clegg
After retrieving Caesar, Buffalo, and Baby-5 from the depths of the ocean, as well as getting some new coats to wear after being reminded of the freezing weather outside, the Straw Hats stood on one side of the pier while G-5 stood on the other. The latter had even drawn a line between them.
"Listen up, you ne'er-do-well pirates!" shouted one of the G-5 soldiers. "The tanker is YOUR territory! This is the boundary between justice and evil, so don't you dare cross this line! YOU GOT THAT, STRAW HATS?!"
"What'd you say?" Luffy asked, wearing a pair of brown gloves, red coat with dark brown fur trimmings, an orange belt around the waist, and a design that looked like skull and a cartoon-like lion, and it even had BONE LION in big white letters.
Aika stood next to him, wearing a pair of pink gloves, a dark red hooded coat with light blue fur trimmings and a black butterfly design printed on the back and shoulders. This coat used to be worn by Nami as a child, but she figured that Aika needed it more, so she gave it to her to wear.
"Who told you idiots to waste your time with this?" Smoker asked, holding a Transponder Snail with the letters S.A.D. on the shell. "All I said was not to fraternize with the pirates. You don't have to take it this far."
"If we're gonna do this," a G-5 swordsman shouted, "then we're going in whole-hog, Vice-Admiral Smokey!"
"Also, any medical experts are exempt from the line," said a G-5 doctor.
"I've managed to make contact with G-5 Base," Smoker said. "We'll wait here for the ship to get us."
"Yes, sir!" the G-5 soldiers saluted.
"So you guys are getting arrested anyway, huh, Brownbeard?" Luffy asked, holding Aika's hand. "That's too bad."
"Yeah, and we just started being friends," Aika added.
"Wohoho!" Brownbeard laughed. "It turns out that we were all given trace amounts of poison. He says the Government will treat us if we come quietly, so…"
"Hey, Straw Hat!" shouted a G-5 soldier. "We just told you not to cross this line!"
"Who cares?!" Luffy asked. "That's your stupid rule, not mine!"
"I'd rather rot in jail than be Caesar's guinea pig," Brownbeard said, looking at the defeated Caesar, Buffalo, and Baby-5, all looking half-frozen. "I have no more companions to keep me here, either! Thanks for your help. It felt good seeing you pound Caesar like that. Wohohoho!"
"Shishishishi!" Luffy and Aika laughed.
"MURDERERRRRRR~!"
"Eh? O-oh, no! AAAAAAAAAGGH!"
CRAKK!
"What's all that racket?!" Franky asked as he and some of the G-5 men pulled up the tanker's broken mizzenmast and wearing a blue coat with yellow stars and a scarf with red polka dots (and also had his hair styled into cat ears). "Also, why didn't you guys warn me you were gonna use the tanker?! I wouldn't have fought here if I knew I had to repair it, afterwards!"
"Pull! Pull!" Usopp cheered as he waved a pair of fans around and blew a whistle. The sniper wore a light purple coat with yellow trim, with the letters "U" and "S" written on the front and the number 800 on the back.
Robin, who is wearing a white coat with a hood that looked like Polar Bear ears, just chuckled warmly.
"LUFFY! BLIZZARD! COME QUICK!" cried Chopper, who is wearing a yellow coat. "YOU GOTTA STOP HIM!"
"What are you freaking out about, Chopper?" Blizzard asked.
"It's Law!" Chopper shouted. "He…he's a…m-mud- I mean 'mutter', no- I mean…A MURDERER~!"
"Traffy?" Luffy questioned.
"AAAAAAAAAAAH!" Brook screamed with tears flowing down his face.
"What's wrong with you!?" asked Sanji, who is wearing an orange coat with yellow trims and an "S" design on them.
"I, too, have committed a murder!" Brook cried. "Well, actually, Mister Kin'emon was already dead, but…Chopper screamed, and in my distraction, I accidentally dropped him…AND HE CRACKED TO PIECES!"
"YOU WHAT?!" Luffy and Sanji questioned before they looked down and saw…Kin'emon's shattered body!
"He's already dead, PLUS you cracked him?!" Sanji questioned.
"You cracked him to death!" Luffy cried.
But then…the ash fell apart…revealing Kin'emon, still alive!
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" the samurai screamed.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" Luffy, Sanji, and Brook screamed.
"WHY THE HELL ARE YOU STILL ALIVE?!" Sanji questioned as he kicked Kin'emon in the jaw!
"W-why did you do that, Mister Sanji?!" Brook asked, worriedly.
"How the hell should I know?!" Sanji replied. "You said he was dead, but he's totally fine!"
"That's no reason to kick the poor man!" Brook cried. "Oh, Mister Kin'emon, thank heavens you're all right! I feared the absolute worst!"
Even the G-5 soldiers were surprised to see him alive, but then…
"FATHER!"
Kin'emon looked up to see…a boy, naked as the day he was born, with a topknot and the top of his head shaven. He gasped as tears of joy formed in his eyes.
"M…M…MOMONOSUKE!" Kin'emon cried before he ran to his son and pulled him into his embrace! "Oh, my son! Thank goodness you're alive!"
"AAAAAH! FATHER~!" Momonosuke sobbed.
"Huh? Momonosuke?" Luffy repeated.
"Oh, wait a minute, now I remember!" Blizzard said. "Momonosuke is the name of the samurai's son, right?"
"…Oh, yeah!" Luffy said. "And he did say he used to be human, didn't he?"
"Oh!" Kin'emon exclaimed. "Momonosuke! You're nude!"
"Oh…umm…" Momonosuke muttered, embarrassed.
Soon, Kin'emon placed a rock on Momonosuke's head, and with the exclamation of "POOF", the samurai had made his son a lavender kimono with peach designs, a purple obi, and a pair of geta, or wood-block sandals.
"Hahaha! Much better!" Kin'emon laughed. "A true son of Wano looks best in a kimono!"
"But Father," Momonosuke said, "how did you know…I was…"
GUUUUUURRGGLE! His stomach rumbled again, and Momonosuke collapsed from hunger, once more.
"AAAH! MOMONOSUKE!" Kin'emon cried.
"Not again!" Aika cried.
Concurrently, on the tanker, Chopper is seen trying to get to a door, but Jupiter kept holding him back.
"Stop it! Let me go!" Chopper shouted. "I have a bone to pick with Law! What is he doing in there?!"
"Didn't Law say not to peek?!" Jupiter questioned. "Cool your jets already!"
Just then, Law came outside.
"There you are!" Chopper shouted. "What the hell were you doing in there?! What did you to those poor children?! So help me, if you hurt even one hair on their heads, I'll-"
"You've got nothing to worry about, all right?" Law asked. "All I did…was cut up their bodies to pieces."
Chopper gasped in horror before screaming, "NOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Then, he ran inside.
"DEAR GOD, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" he asked.
"Those were heavy drugs they were on," Law said. "Painful, long-term rehab is unavoidable."
Just then, Chopper entered a room…where he saw the children, alive and well!
"Oh! Mr. Raccoon!" Synd exclaimed.
"Yay!" the kids cheered.
"Y…you're alive?!" Chopper questioned.
"You know the guy with the puffy head?" asked Beeyo. "He took all the bad drugs out of our bodies! It was a little scary, but now we feel fine!"
"It was funny when our bodies were all in pieces and we were all floating around!" said Uzu.
"Oh…" Chopper sighed, relieved. "I see now. Law was just using his powers."
"Hey, Mr. Raccoon," Dolan said, looking at Mocha, who is still unconscious and yet, had a peaceful smile on her face. "Mocha…she still hasn't woken up, yet."
"You said that she was fighting to keep us safe, right?" asked Synd, worriedly. "We didn't know the Master was such a bad guy."
"All my memory's fuzzy," said a black-haired boy with thick lips and was as tall as Luffy, "but I do remember when Mocha coughed up blood, and then she fainted. She's gonna be okay, right Mr. Raccoon?"
"I'm a reindeer," Chopper answered as he looked at Mocha, "and of course! She'll be just fine! We'll all leave this island of nightmares, together."
"Hey! Where's the orange lady?!" asked one of the little girls. "We wanna thank her for helping us!"
"She's gonna take us home, right?" asked Kombu.
"Well…" Chopper began.
"Hello, children."
Everyone turned to see…Tashigi.
"The Marines are going to help take care of you, now!" she said.
"What?!" the kids questioned. "No way!"
Soon, they all started to complain.
"What about the robot?!"
"And the rubber guy?!"
"And the guy with the swirl-y eyebrows?!"
"What about the white doggie?!"
XXX
Meanwhile, Law is seen walking towards what looked like a laboratory below the deck of the tanker with Jupiter following behind.
"So you checked out all the kids?" Jupiter asked.
"Yep," Law answered. "The only one who didn't have any NHC10 was the one named Aika. Even though she said she didn't take the drug, I just wanted to be sure."
"So, why are we going to the lab?" Jupiter asked.
"I just wanted to see something." Law said before he walked up to a microscope, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a tube of red liquid.
"Whose blood is that?" Jupiter asked.
"It belongs to Straw Hat-ya," Law answered. "Tony-ya told me he has anti-toxins in his bloodstream. I just wanted to see if it's true."
Law then put just a drop of Luffy's blood into the slide, which he then put under the microscope.
"Hmm," the Surgeon of Death hummed as he took a look. "…Well, I'll be damned. The raccoon dog was right."
"That kid is just full of surprises, huh?" Jupiter asked.
"…Wait a minute," Law muttered. "Hold the phone…"
"What's up?" Jupiter asked.
Law didn't answer. Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out another vial of blood, which he put on a different slide and looked at through the microscope. After a moment, he looked up with eyes wide in shock.
"…I don't believe it," he whispered.
"You mind letting me in on what you found?!" Jupiter questioned. "Seriously, don't leave me in the dark!"
XXX
"Mmm~!" Usopp hummed as he sniffed the air. "Something's smells good! I wonder what Sanji's cooking! I can't wait!"
Just then, he noticed Nami, who is wearing a black coat, approaching him.
"Oh! Hey, Nami!" he greeted. "So, you finished striking a deal with the Marines about the kids?"
"Mm-hmm," Nami hummed in reply. "I decided I'm gonna leave them with the Marines. I know I talked a big game about saving them, but I'm sure their parents would prefer not to have pirates involved with their children…don't you think?"
"Heh…amen to that," Usopp agreed. "If anything, we'd probably just get blamed for kidnapping them, ourselves! Let the guys do what they do, you know?"
"True," Nami said. "Plus…"
"Please! Please, leave the children with me!" Tashigi's voice cried in Nami's head.
"I kinda have a weakness for powerful stares from female soldiers," Nami continued.
"Female soldiers?" Usopp repeated.
"They put me at ease," Nami said…as she momentarily saw Bellemere's face flash before her eyes.
"Oh, yeah, that's right!" Usopp said. "Your mom was in the Marines, wasn't she?"
"If you wanna be saved, a strong but gentle lady sailor's the best," Nami said.
"Ain't that the truth?" Usopp asked.
A pause came…but then…
"I don't like how you said that, Usopp!"
"Well, you said it first?!"
"Soup's on~!" Sanji called. "Who's hungry?!"
"ME!" Luffy cried.
"Me, too!" Aika exclaimed.
Yip-yip-yap! Kumi barked in agreement.
"Presenting…New Kama Secret Art: 99 VITAL RECIPES!"
Sanji revealed…a giant pot of hot soup, filled with all sorts of ingredients!
"A chilled and worn-out body needs a pick-me-up!" Sanji declared. "I present…Offal Soup with Sea-Pig Meat!"
Soon, the Straw Hat Cook present a spectacular feast, filled with meats, salad, fine wine, the like!
"If you haven't eaten in days," Sanji said, "then I suggest you take your time and start with the soup."
"LET'S EAT!" Luffy exclaimed.
"YOHOHOHO!" Brook laughed in agreement.
Aika blinked at the food before her. In her hunger, she attempted to reach for the soup, but then she stopped.
"Hmm?" Sanji hummed. "Something wrong?"
"Sorry," Aika said, sheepishly. "I forgot my manners for a moment because it looked so good. Can someone pass the soup, please?"
Sanji smiled and gave Aika a bowl.
"Thank you," Aika said before she began to sip it, politely. "Mmm…it's really good!"
"Isn't it?!" Luffy asked. "Sanji's cooking is the best there is! Almost as good as my Mom's!"
Sanji then put down two bowls of soup for Blizzard and Kumi, who eagerly began to eat.
"And of course, our canine friends get to have a meal, too," he said.
"Hey, Momo!" Luffy said. "Why don't you have some, too?! You're starving, right?"
Momonosuke stared at the banquet before him, his stomach roaring and his mouth watering…but then he growled before he grabbed the bowl over his head, preparing to toss it away!
"Hey, hey, hey!" Sanji shouted. "What the hell do you think you're doing, you little punk?!"
"Uh-oh," Luffy muttered.
"Here's trouble," Blizzard added.
"I…I do not want any!" Momonosuke shouted. "I am…not hungry! Not in the least!"
"Now wait just a minute!" Sanji shouted as he grabbed Momonosuke. "I don't care if you're a kid or not! I don't appreciate ANYBODY who wastes food, so if you drop that, then I swear to god that I'll-"
"DELICOUS!"
Sanji and Momonosuke looked and saw Kin'emon, helping himself to the food.
"Hey! Wait a second!" Sanji shouted.
"F…Father?" Momonosuke asked.
"This…this is the finest cuisine I've ever tasted!" Kin'emon exclaimed with a mouthful of food. "I can practically feel my strength come flooding back! Come, Momonosuke! Join me! It is fine to eat!"
"…" Momonosuke just stared at his father, his lip quivering and his stomach growling.
"This one…and this one, too!" Kin'emon said as he kept eating. "These are such delectable dishes in truth! Let us be indebted to these people for this meal! My life was saved as well, on this island, my son. We can trust them! You have not eaten for days, have you? You have been strong, Momonosuke! I know it must have been so hard on you! But it is all right, now! We must have faith that they are also alive and well!"
He looked at Momonosuke…with tears streaking down his stuffed cheeks.
"LET US CHOOSE TO LIVE, MY SON!" he cried.
"…Y…yes, Father!" Momonosuke agreed before he began to feast, as well. As he did, his tears came falling down at full force, too.
"Whoa!" Luffy exclaimed. "Is it tasty enough to cry about it?!"
"You idiot," Sanji muttered. "They've clearly been through a lot, lately. I wonder what happened to them."
All of a sudden, they found themselves surrounded by G-5, Caesar's former test subjects, and the children, all holding out bowls with watering mouths and a chorus of growling stomachs.
"And just WHAT happened to the 'boundary between justice and evil' talk?!" Sanji questioned.
"Temporary ceasefire," said a G-5 soldier.
"Hey, you," Zoro said to another soldier. "Go haul us some booze out of the tanker."
"You got it, pal!"
"Can I have juice?" Aika asked. "Or maybe a cream soda?"
"Hey, Straw Hat-ya!"
Luffy looked up to see Law and Jupiter.
"What's up, Traffy?" Luffy asked.
"We need to leave this place as soon as possible," Law said. "Doflamingo's probably on his way here, and if we stop to eat, we'll be his next targets. Make sure you tell your crew."
"Ah," Luffy said. "Gotcha. Hey, everybody!"
Everyone looked up at Luffy, who crossed his arms with a serious expression.
"I just wanna let you know, someone's coming after us," he said. "So before he gets here…LET'S PARTY~!"
"YEEAAAAAAAAAAAH!" everyone cheered before they began to laugh, eat, drink, and dance like there was no tomorrow.
"…Are you serious?" Law asked.
"Yep…I knew this was a lost cause from the start," Jupiter said.
"Hey, Vice-Admiral Smokey!" shouted one of the G-5 soldiers. "We gotta go back inside the lab!"
"What?" Smoker questioned. "Why?"
"We managed to pry the gas's weakness outta Caesar! There's still time to go back and rescue the others!"
"Ahh…!" Caesar cried, his cheeks and gums being pinched by two pairs of pliers. "Why…is Smoker…alive?!"
"Hey, Brook!" Luffy shouted. "Hit it!"
"Yohohoho!" Brook exclaimed as he held up his guitar and began to play a tune. Not long after, he began to sing.
"One day I looked up and there you were,
Like a simple question waiting for an answer~!
Now I am the whale listening to some inner call,
Swimming blindly to throw myself upon your shore~!"
As Brook kept singing, Luffy held out his hand to Nami.
"May I have this dance?" he asked.
"Did you even have to ask?" Nami asked back before she put her hand in his. Then, the two started to dance to the song.
"What if I don't find you when I have landed?
Will you leave me here to die on your shore stranded?
I think I know why the dog howls at the moon~!
I think I know why the dog howls at the moon~!"
AWWOOOOOOOOOOOOO~! Blizzard, Jupiter, and Kumi howled out loudly at this verse.
"I sing dela, dela ngyanya dela when I'm with you~!
Dela, sondela mama sondela, I burn for you~!"
Just then…Mocha came outside, alive and well!
"What's going on?" Mocha asked.
"MOCHA!" Chopper cried. "YOU'RE OKAY!"
"We were so worried about you!" Synd said. "Anyway, come and eat!"
"Yeah! The food's to die for!" Dolan said. "Oops! I-I shouldn't say die."
Mocha smiled before she looked at Aika, who looked up at Aika.
"…Hi, Mocha," Aika said.
"Hi," Mocha greeted back. "…Um…Aika? I'm sorry about…the way we treated you. You knew that the Master was a bad man…but we didn't listen."
"Y…yeah," Synd said, hesitantly. "We're sorry we ignored you and all…so can we still be friends?"
A pause…but then Aika grinned broadly and said, "Okay!"
"Yay~!" the kids cheered.
"I've been waiting for you all my life hoping for a miracle,
I've been waiting day and night, day and night~!
I've been waiting for you all my life waiting for redemption,
I've been waiting day and night, I burn for you~!"
Zoro and Robin sat together, the latter bobbing her head to the music while the former draped his arm around her shoulders. Usopp, Chopper, and Blizzard were doing the "chopsticks-in-your-nose" dance with some of the G-5 men and Brownbeard's men, too, while Law and Smoker just watched, clearly not amused.
"A blind bird sings inside the cage that is my heart,
the image of your face comes to me when I am alone in the dark~!
If I could give a shape to this ache that I have for you,
If I could find the voice that says the words to capture you~!
I think I know, I think I know, I think I know,
I think I know why the dog howls at the moon!
I think I know why the dog howls at the moon~!"
Luffy and Nami continued to dance, the former twirling the latter about 2 times before dipping her and then pulling her back up while everyone cheered.
"Yeah! Go Luffy! Go Nami!" Usopp cheered.
"Man, those two can dance!" said one of Caesar's former followers.
"OW!" Franky cheered as he flashed his signature pose. "SUPER~!"
"I sing dela, dela ngyanya dela when I'm with you~!
Dela, sondela mama sondela, I burn for you~!"
Tashigi sat down with everyone else…before she stole a glance at Law…and she seemed to smile and blush a little bit.
"What are you looking at, Tashigi?" Smoker asked.
"Oh, nothing," Tashigi replied, looking away from Law while Brook continued to sing.
"I've been waiting for you all my life hoping for a miracle,
I've been waiting day and night, day and night~!
I've been waiting for you all my life waiting for redemption,
I've been waiting day and night, I burn for you~!
Sondela, sondela mama sondela, I burn for you~!
I've been waiting for you all my life hoping for a miracle,
I've been waiting day and night, day and night~!
I've been waiting for you all my life waiting for redemption,
I've been waiting day and night, I burn for you~!
Burn for you! I burn for you…"
As the song came to a close, Luffy and Nami took a gracious bow, causing everyone (except Law, Smoker, and Jupiter) to applaud.
"Brava! Brava!" Robin cheered.
"Yeah~!" Aika cheered.
"Let's hear it for Brook, too!" Luffy shouted.
"Yohohohohoho!" Brook chortled as he took a bow himself, causing everyone to applaud him, as well.
As everyone cheered for the Captain and Navigator, as well the skeletal musician, Smoker looked at Law, who is sipping up a bowl of soup.
"Trafalgar," Smoker said.
"Hmm?" Law hummed.
"You don't honestly believe that I'd keep an oath to a pirate…do you?"
Law looked at Smoker, who drank his soup as well.
"If you really wanted to silence me," Smoker began, "you had plenty of opportunities. What are you using Straw Hat for? What are you trying to start?"
Law smirked and said, "Using? Who's using whom?"
Flashback
"…When you say 'One of the Four Emperors'," Luffy began, "which one did you mean?"
"Kaido, the 'King of the Beasts'," Law answered.
"Okay," Luffy said. "As long as Shanks isn't the first…then I plan to take down…all 4 of the Emperors!"
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEH?!" questioned Nami, who was in Franky's body back then.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Only 3 chapters left! Can I pull off the impossible?!
I was asked by my friend, gamePyscho11, to put the song "Dela" in this chapter. I think it worked out rather well, but tell me what you guys think. Just...don't be too harsh.
Review, please!