Author's Note: Well, this is a bittersweet chapter - More bitter than sweet, since it's the last normal chapter before the epilogue. Hope you enjoy the last chapter.
Oh, and go on Youtube and look up the song Silhouettes by Of Monsters and Men. Play the song while you read the chapter, since the effect is so amazing.
Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece.
Several Weeks Later...
After a long voyage cutting through the Calm Belt to get to the East Blue from the Grand Line, the Capricorns arrived at Goa Kingdom one quiet, foggy night.
"Well... We're here," Yuki-Rin said with a heavy sigh. "I don't know what else to do, though. We're on the lam, three of our crew members are dead, and my Tenryuubito parents are still alive. I think we lost."
"Lost? Lost?!" Ageha yelled. "I am the one who told the crew that it's kill or be killed at this point! That's all we know!"
"Yeah, but, why?!" Hatori asked. "Killing doesn't solve anything! If Yuki-Rin kills her Tenryuubito parents, then we're all done for!"
Everyone turned to look to Hatori.
"Look, it's not like killing all of the Stockholm Syndromes solved anything when we first got into this mess. Kaoru, Mina, and Maki-chan are all dead because of this 'kill or be killed' mentality we've adopted. The sane thing to do is to wait a few weeks and then go back into the Grand Line," Hatori explained.
"Get your shit together, Hatori! Killing Yuki-Rin's parents is for the best! Quit being such a baby!" Heathcliffe yelled. Hatori glared at the Sarutobi.
"Maybe Hatori is right. Killin' does nothin'," Molly said with a shrug.
"Did Yuki-Rin die and make you captain? No, she didn't," Hana answered. "Just let it go. This is the only way to do things."
Molly slowly turned her head to Hatori.
"We need to get out of here. I don't know what's goin' on with everyone anymore," Molly whispered.
"But, who will take us? There has to be somebody out there who is better than Yuki-Rin," Hatori said. "There's always somebody better than Yuki-Rin."
Across town, Saint Ayame and her husband were safe and sound in their plush bed, sound asleep. When their bedroom window was opened and somebody climbed in, they did not stir.
After a few minutes of surveying the room, the intruder climbed onto the bed, readied their katana, and slashed Saint Ayame across the throat. As he her husband began to stir awake, his throat was also slashed. Wasting no extra time, the attacker sheathed her katana and carefully climbed out of the window she came from, leaving behind two, dead bodies and a mystery that would never be solved in the Goa Kingdom - The murder of Saint Ayame and her husband.
By her careful plotting, Yuki-Rin had gotten away with the murder of a Celestial Dragon. She would never be caught due to a lack of evidence.
Twenty-four hours later, the murder of Saint Ayame and her husband was all over the news in Goa Kingdom. To cheer the crew up, Yuki-Rin took them out to dinner at a fancy restaurant.
"We got her money," Yuki-Rin whispered to her crew as they ate at a nearly-empty restaurant.
"How did you get that old broad's money?!" Wolfgang asked, his voice filled with glee.
"My Uncle Howland was my mom's brother. He's a banker, so he was able to get me the money," Yuki-Rin explained.
"Does he know about the murder?" Hatori meekly asked.
"Yep. He's actually glad that my parents are dead," Yuki-Rin answered. "Now, as for the money, we are going to use it to reinvent ourselves."
"Reinvent ourselves? What do you mean by that?" Gareth asked.
"Tomorrow, we will all go shopping for the finest, tailor-made suits and dresses. Nobody would take us seriously if we continued to dress like shabby, hipster peasants," Yuki-Rin explained. "We will buy the finest wines and liquors known to man, and we use Ageha's connections as a doctor to secure some of the most potent drugs ever. Finally, we must be willing to submit ourselves to sexual activity from -"
Yuki-Rin was then cut off by Molly tipping over the table, spilling food and wine everywhere.
"Have you lost your feckin' mind?!" Molly yelled. "I will not pimp myself out to some creep because you want to get your way!"
"I wasn't finished talking," Yuki-Rin stated. "What I meant to say is that if you refuse my demands, you will be kicked out of the crew or executed. Do I make myself clear?"
Everyone but Hatori and Molly nodded in agreement. Instead, Hatori and Molly got up from their seats, grabbed their hands, and walked out of the restaurant, heads held high.
"What the fuck are they doing?!" Enlai yelled.
"Enlai, sweetie, it's a form of resistance," Karin said.
"Looks like we have our first defectors," Kartik observed, taking a long drag off of his cigar. "We'll let them off easy this time. A trial period, if you will. Should they act up again, we will punish them."
A few minutes later, Hatori and Molly arrived at the Hyperion, where Hatori was helping Molly pack her stuff.
"Oh, Hatori, what am I goin' to do?" Molly asked. "I thought Yuki-Rin was a decent half-sister, but now look at her. She's a monster now!"
"We're going to get you out of here. It's too risky for me to go with you, and it's too risky for you to stay with your half-sister," Hatori explained.
"She's not me half-sister anymore. Yuki-Rin is dead to me," Molly explained. Hatori sighed.
"I understand," Hatori said quietly.
"But, where am I supposed to go?" Molly asked.
"I can't take you there, but there's a ferry office down the street from here. There's a ship leaving for Cocoyashi Village tomorrow morning, so I think you'll be able to get passage," Hatori explained. "From Cocoyashi, go to the North Blue or the West Blue and lay low. Yuki-Rin would never bother to go to either of those Blues. Wait a few weeks, then go back home to your home island. You have parents who love you and are worried about you."
At that moment, Molly hugged Hatori.
"Thank you, Hatori," Molly said, tears forming in her eyes. "For someone who's been seen as 'useless', you have made yourself useful these past, few weeks."
"Good luck," Hatori said. "We need more people like you in this world, Molly O'Flannigan."
"And we need more Hatori Chidoris in the world," Molly said. "Just not the useless Hatori Chidoris."
As Molly began to walk down the gangplank, Hatori stopped her.
"Molly, wait!" Hatori yelled. Molly stopped and turned back. "Are we... Going to see each other again?"
Molly said nothing as she reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a small sheet of paper. She walked up to the ship's railing and gave the paper to Hatori.
"My Vivre Card. It will show you where I am," Molly said. "You know where to find me."
"Good-bye, Molly," Hatori said.
"Good luck, Hatori," Molly said before she walked down the remaining steps of the gangplank. As Molly walked down the street, she turned back to see the Hyperion one last time. "Go fuck yourself, Yuki-Rin..."
As Molly walked down the street, a voice called out to her.
"Hey! Molly, wait!"
Molly turned back, and she saw Hatori run up to her, holding a heavy-looking suitcase.
"Change your mind?" Molly asked.
"He's not the only one who changed their mind."
Gareth approached the three.
"Gareth? You too?" Hatori asked.
"I just think this whole situation is bullshit," Gareth said with a shrug. "The fact that this crew is suddenly turning bad just seems so unrealistic and surreal. They have no reason to do this."
"That's basically what I've been trying to say to everyone the past few days," Hatori pointed out.
"And, besides, I'm as good as dead weight on the crew. Shortly after you guys left, Teru came back," Gareth explained.
"Teru? Bloody hell, if we ever see the Capricorns again, we're fucked. She's Soren's wife, and Soren does have a lot of authority as a wealthy, married man," Molly explained.
"Molly, this isn't a question of 'if' we're going to see these people again. It's a question of 'when'," Gareth explained.
"Which is why we're here to help."
Isabella and Showtarou approached the three, carrying their own bags.
"What happened back there?" Hatori asked.
"Yuki-Rin told us that Teru was back on the crew, no questions asked, and she kicked me out because I'm apparently 'useless'," Isabella explained.
"Welcome to my world," Hatori pointed out.
"I tried to fight Yuki-Rin on the decision, being that Isabella is one of the coolest people I've ever met, and we got into an argument. Things escalated, I ended up calling Aki a 'whore', and Heathcliffe nearly killed me. Isabella got me out of there before Heathcliffe slit my throat with his scythe," Showtarou explained.
"Okay, we need to get the fuck out of here now. Our crew has just turned on us, and one of us nearly died," Isabella explained.
"Where are we going to go?" Hatori asked as the five began to walk.
"There's a non-descript hotel on the other side of town that caters to Marines and Bounty Hunters. We'll spend the night there, and then we'll leave Goa Kingdom early tomorrow morning," Isabella explained. "From there, we need to lay low somewhere."
"Where?" Molly, Hatori, Showtarou, and Gareth asked. Isabella smirked.
"New Bristol City in the West Blue. Yuki-Rin will never find us there," Isabella answered. "Trust me, somebody has to be the captain now that we're on the run."
Ending Note: Epilogue next chapter. As always, please review.