Coral: To those of you who kept wondering about Xion's updated bounty, or if her bounty got updated, the answer is within this very chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or Kingdom Hearts. I do not own Guthrie and, soon to join, Allen. Well, actually I kind of do own him.
*OPENING*
Let's fly to the sky
(The sun rises as Merry sails across the ocean)
There's not a single cloud in the sky
(All the current Straw Hats watched the sun rises, Luffy on the figurehead)
Let's fly to the sky. (It's time to fly around) Catch the perfect breeze for you
(The camera faces the sky as the title appears on the screen)
Paint the sky with (Let's go to the wonder world) imagination that no one's ever seen
(Camera faces back to the Going Merry as everyone went on with their peaceful business)
OH! OH! Even if it's too dazzling (Come on)
(Xion looked up and saw Marines ahead of them and warned everyone)
OH! OH! under the sun
(They all prepared themselves for battle. Marines fired cannon balls at them)
OH! OH! If it's you, you can make it! Throw away your pride and FLY!
(Luffy, Zoro and Sanji sent the cannons back at them. Usopp fired a cannon of their own with Xion, in her Wisdom Form, unleashed Triple Firaga at them, followed by a Thundaga, clearing their path)
Everyday is plain!
Real talent makes the world go round
(Going Merry sailed through the smoke. Everyone looked content as they enjoyed the sea breeze)
Deceit won't work anymore.
(Scene changed to Jaya in Mock Town, as camera faced each of the Blackbeard Pirates.)
Mayday, the red light is stopping you too
(Scene changed to Cricket's home, showing Cricket with Masira and Shojo side by side.)
Lend me an ear! And I'm gonna stick on my RAP! Wussup!
(Guthrie fights against some pirates and Heartless. One tried to sneak up on him and Chirithy knocked it away.)
"From tomorrow on I'll get serious!"- seriously cut it out with excuses like that
(Allen danced as he dodged the attacks of the pirates and attacked them at the same time)
Increase your money with your dream! Time is money like NASDAQ!
(The Straw Hats looked at Cricket's gold and searched for the South Bird)
When will you do it boy? It's now or never man! This is the moment, right?
(The crew then arrived at the Knock Up Stream and went to the skies.)
Everybody put ya hands in the air and clap ya hands like this like that
Clap ya hands everybody! Everybody just clap ya hands!
(Scenes quickly changed to different scenes. Xion and Guthrie crossed blades, Luffy's one-hit KO on Bellamy, the group trying to catch the South Bird, then finally their first encounter with the Shandia Warriors)
Let's fly to the sky (It's time to fly around) Catch the perfect breeze for you
(The Straw Hat Pirates arrived on Skypiea and were approached by the White Berets and fought them)
Paint the sky with (Let's go to the wonder world) imagination that no one's ever seen
(Scene changed to the group in the Upper Yard fighting against Heartless, Shandians and Priests)
OH! OH! Even if it's too dazzling (Come on)
(Scene changed to Xion fighting against a blonde Organization XIII member with knives and lightning magic)
OH! OH! under the sun
(Changed to Guthrie and Allen teaming up against the Nobodies)
OH! OH! If it's you, you can make it! Throw away your pride and FLY!
(Changed to Luffy battling Enel. In a flash of light, opening ends with all of Straw Hats on Merry, facing the camera)
Last time:
"Why would we need one? I don't need one," Luffy stated.
"Yeah, but people, like me, need it when dealing with YOUR childish behavior!" Xion barked, terrifying Luffy as she turned back to Guthrie again. "While we're still talking about it, are you really any good? I mean, I know you were able to get me back to sanity in the middle of that fight, but still..."
"I am pretty good with words and I have studied a lot in counseling and psychology from the past two years," Guthrie stated.
"Not only that, but he's helped out so many people back in his home town," Chirithy added. "He's always found a way to put a smile back on anyone's face, at any age and any time. At least, that's what I remember from the memories given to me. Either way, he has to be a member of your crew, so he can also be your guardian. So let him join!"
"Then what do you say, Guthrie?" Xion asked her fellow Keyblade wielder. "Would you mind joining a bunch of pirates?"
Guthrie paused for a moment, thinking things through. Finally, he answered, "Being a pirate means I'll be in constant danger, and based on what you guys said before, you're certainly ones who look for all kinds of adventures. Even so, it might help me out, as well as fulfill the duty that was forced onto me. I'll let my heart be my guiding key, and it says, 'okay'. So let's do it. I'll be your ship's counselor."
"Alright! We have a new member of our crew!" Luffy cheered, jumping in joy with a fist pump.
"Let's hurry back and tell everyone the good news," Xion told him. "Plus, we need to make it back before the sun comes up!" With that, the group shot along the shore of the island, back to Cricket's place and the Going Merry.
At Cricket's place, many of the Straw Hat Pirates and the Saruyama Alliance waited for the arrival of Luffy, Xion, Guthrie and Chirithy. It was morning and, strangely enough, only three of the four returned to them.
"What the hell is he doing?!" Nami demanded. "It's morning already! Morning! He promised to be back 46 minutes ago! We'll miss the current!" She turned to Xion, Guthrie and Chirithy. "You two were with him! What happened that made you separate?!"
"How should we know?! All we know is that he was right behind and the next thing we know, he was just gone!" the male Keyblade wielder explained.
"Knowing him, he must've saw something interesting and went to get a closer look," Xion guessed. "I can't believe I didn't think of that possibility."
"Well, you know what they say, 'First time for everything,'" Chirithy said.
Few seconds later, they heard a call. "OIII~!" Everyone turned to the source and saw their captain running to them.
"It's him! Great, he made it back!" Masira said in relief.
"I did it!" he called.
"Luffy, hurry up! We're past due to set sail!" Sanji called.
"Check it out!" As he ran closer to them, everyone saw he had something in one of his hands. "It's Hercules! It took me forever to find him!"
Seeing that made some of his crew jaw-drop with shark teeth in shock that that was the reason why he disappeared. "A KABUTO BEETLE?!" Nami questioned.
"YOU WENT TO FIND THAT?!" Usopp also questioned.
Luffy, unfazed by their looks and reactions, stopped in his tracks as he saw the new-and-improved Going Merry, who now had parts that seemed like chicken. "Whoa! That's awesome!"
"This is the Going Merry, Flying Model," Usopp introduced.
Hearing the word 'flying' got the straw-hat wearing boy all excited. "IT'LL FLY!"
"Yep~! They did it for us!" Usopp gestured to the Saruyama Alliance, who all posed. Luffy did the same pose. What he didn't notice, though, was a certain female approaching him with a murderous intent. Everyone else flinched at the look in her eyes, except the oblivious Luffy.
"Luffy~" The boy stopped laughing as he heard his name being called as such. He slowly turned and paled as he made eye contact with a bit too happy Xion, her Keyblade in hand. "I see you made it back later than you said you'd be back. Did you forget our number one priority after we get the gold back? You insolent... RUBBER BASTARD!" Next thing anyone knew, Xion was beating the crap out of her captain, which didn't take long.
"Okay. Now let's get sailing! We've wasted enough time as is!" Xion ordered, holding the beaten and bruised Luffy in her hands.
"A-Aye!" most of the group around her responded in fear.
"She's really scary," Guthrie whispered to Robin.
"Well, that's Demon-san," she simply replied.
The crew sailed south, where the Knock-Up Stream was said to be. The Saruyama Alliance took the lead, since they know where the spot is. As they sailed, Xion went to take care of the bad South Bird that they decided to bring along, just so it doesn't cause any more troubles for the other animals living in the forest. As for the good South Bird, whose name was Soula, he decided to be their compass, so to say. Guthrie and Chirithy were also on board, much to the Straw Hats' shock, until Luffy and Xion explained that he was a new addition to the crew.
"Listen up! It is now 7 AM! We'll probably arrive at our destination at around 11 AM!" Masira announced. "Just like Oyasan said, the location of the Knock-Up Stream is different every time! So we need to get there before it happens and determine its exact location!"
As Masira was giving instructions on what to do, Luffy was examining Soula. The said bird was feeling uncomfortable at Luffy's gaze as his head continued to point south. Ussop and Chopper joined Luffy as he twisted Soula's head, while he moaned uncomfortably.
"Watch this," Luffy told the two. He let go of Soula's head, and it instantly shifted back to pointing south. "See, he turned back again!"
"Strange, I've never seen a bird quite like it," Ussop muttered as Luffy laughed hysterically.
"He really can't face any way but south! He's just like a compass!" the captain chortled, while the bird cawed angrily.
"He said to knock it off!" Xion barked, whacking Luffy hard on the head and causing him to collapse. "Soula is willing to help us out, thanks to Guthrie, so don't fool around with him!"
"She does have a point there," Ussop muttered, staying away from her range.
"Yes, ma'am..." Luffy moaned, feeling the lump growing on his head.
"Jyoh, Jyoh!" Soula cawed.
"You're welcome," Xion answered, rubbing his beak.
"Xion-swan's so sexy when she's protecting that dumb bird," a certain love-sick cook swooned.
"Speaking of which, is the other South Bird secured?" Nami questioned.
"Yeah. Xion made sure to chain it down below deck, along with its beak, so it can't summon any Heartless," Chopper explained.
"That's a relief."
Inside Nami's room, Guthrie was pouring over the ship's logbooks, while Chirithy watched the porthole. The door above opened and Robin entered in, coming down the steps.
"Reading our navigator's logs?" the archeologist questioned.
"Pretty much. I'm making sure I'm caught up to speed on the adventures they've had, plus understanding any emotional traumas they might've had so far," Guthrie explained. "I've reached nearly the end of their adventures in the East Blue. So far, the only people who aren't in the crew yet are Chopper and you, Robin."
"You should know about me after the events at Whiskey Peak, if she put me down in them. Just to warn you, I was considered an enemy to this crew for a while. I even was considering Xion a threat to life due to wielding a Keyblade."
Guthrie looked up to her in shock. "You were an enemy? And found the Keyblade a threat?"
"I did, but not any more," the archeologist answered. "The Keyblade is a powerful tool and can cause destruction beyond comprehension if used in the wrong hands. However, I learned she wasn't misusing the Keyblade as I originally thought. Now the only question is how will you favor with the Keyblade?"
Guthrie summoned his own Keyblade, looking at it.
"I can't say for sure," he answered. "I never asked for it, and I'm not sure if I am capable of wielding such a powerful tool. For now, I'll just let my heart be my guiding key. Hopefully it will lead me on the path that is filled with joy for me and for others around me."
"You'll definitely walk the path of light!" Chirithy responded, hopping towards him. "I can guarantee you will not misuse the Keyblade whatsoever. You are Xion's guardian and a descendant of a gifted Keyblade master. You'll be fine."
'At least, I think his ancestor is a Keyblade master,' the Dream Eater then thought. 'What am I saying? Of course she is! ... Or is it 'he'?'
"Let's hope so," Guthrie replied, putting his Keyblade away and going back to the logbook. "For now, I'll do whatever I can to make sure this crew Xion is part of is mentally stable."
"You'll find the crew is filled with multiple personalities. Just a fair warning," Robin chuckled, turning away. "I was gonna brew some coffee. Want some?"
"Yes please, with a little bit of cream," Guthrie answered. Robin understood and left him to do his research.
*A COUPLE HOURS LATER*
"Boss! We have a problem!" one of Masira's crew mates called out.
"What is it?!" Masira asked.
"Night approaching from the southwest! It's a Cumuloregalis Cloud!"
"Really?! What time is it?!"
"10 AM! Much earlier than we had predicted!"
"This is bad... Shojo! Can you make it?!" Masira asked his brother.
Rather than answering, Shojo gave a command to his crew. "Wootan Divers! Get into the water! Find that current!" The divers all dove into the water.
The commotion got the rest of the Straw Hats back on deck.
"What is it?! What's happening?!" Usopp asked.
"The Cumuloregalis Cloud showed up earlier than they expected! And we still don't know where the next current is!" Nami answered.
One of Shojo's divers emerged from the water. "Echo confirmed! Strong ocean current at 12 o'clock!"
"Large creature detected at 9 o'clock! Might be a Sea King!" said another one of his divers.
"Wave opposing at current flow confirmed at 10 o'clock! It could be a whirlpool!" informed another.
"THAT'S IT!" Masira shouted. "All ships change heading to 10 o'clock! That's where the explosion will happen! Find the whirlpool and don't back out!"
'Why do I have a bad feeling about this?' Xion thought.
All of a sudden, the waves were getting rough for the three sailing vessels.
"What the-?!" Zoro gasped in shock.
"The waves are getting rougher!" Nami stated the obvious.
"You don't say!" Guthrie shouted.
"WE'LL SINK!" Usopp panicked.
"We won't sink!" Chirithy corrected.
"THE EXPLOSION'S ABOUT TO HAPPEN! STAY ALERT!" Masira informed.
Hearing that there will be an explosion frightened Chopper, who was hugging his sister-figure.
"Navigator-san! What does the Log Pose say?!" Robin called.
Nami looked down at the Log Pose attached to her wrist. "It's pointing straight at that cloud!" Everyone looked up at the sky. "The direction of the wind is dead on. The Cumoloregalis Cloud will head straight for the center of the whirlpool!"
The last part confused Luffy. "Oi, what whirlpool? Where is it?"
"Looks like we were right on the mark this time, brother!" Masira called.
"Yeah, and it looks like we don't have to worry about the size of the explosion either!" Shojo agreed.
"So we'll make it?!" Luffy asked.
"Yeah! You will!" Masira dispatched two hooks that latched onto Merry, much to the Straw Hat's confusion. "We're taking you into the whirlpool's current!"
"To the current?!" Xion repeated in a questioned tone, her bad feeling growing by the second.
"And then?! What happens next?!" Nami asked.
"Go with the flow! Get as close as you can to the center of the whirlpool and don't back out!"
At that one sentence, the navigator began to panic. "He never said we had to go INTO it!"
"Don't worry, Nami-san, Robin-chan, Xion-san! I'll protect you!" Sanji exclaimed.
"I can protect myself!" Xion retorted.
"I've never seen a whirlpool this big," Robin said, lightly sweating.
Chopper imagined how they were going to go to the shy from the center of the whirlpool and smiled, hoping they would just be shot to the sky.
"HEY STOP IT! STOP! LET'S GO BACK! I WANNA GO BACK!" Usopp begged.
"Give it up, Usopp. It's too late," Zoro told him. "One of us is already riding high."
"LET'S GO TO THE SKY ISLAND!" cheered the person in question.
"How are you not panicking?!" Guthrie and Chirithy demanded in unison.
A huge Sea King appeared, much to their surprise and shock. Neither passed as they then saw the creature being swept away in the whirlpool.
"Okay guys! You have to take care of yourselves from now on!" Masira called.
"Yeah! Thanks for bringing us here!" Luffy waved back.
"WAIT!" Usopp shouted. "YOU'VE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME! I'M SCARED OUT OF MY MIND! I WANNA GO BACK, DAMMIT! THIS IS CERTAIN DEATH!"
"NO ONE TOLD ME ABOUT A GIANT WHIRLPOOL! THIS IS A FRAUD, I TELL YOU! A FRAUD!" Nami added.
The sky was getting darker for them. "AHH! IT'S NIGHT!" Chirithy informed, just as panicked as the Weakling Trio.
"THE WHIRLPOOL'S PULL IS GETTING STRONGER!" Chopper followed, as their ship was getting closer to the center and their doom.
"We gotta pull out, Luffy! We can still make it!" Usopp begged. "You understand, right?! This whirlpool alone is enough to kill us! Sky Island's just a dream in a dream!"
"A dream in a dream?" their captain repeated.
"That's right, Luffy! I don't think I can do this either!" Nami supported Usopp's suggestion.
"You're the captain, aren't you?!" Guthrie questioned. "Shouldn't you think about your nakama's well beings?! This is too dangerous!"
"An Island that's a dream in a dream? There's no way I can pass an adventure like this!" He turned to the scared members plus Guthrie and they saw his face was nothing but sparkles on excitement.
"He... He's having fun..." Nami and Usopp cried, while their counselor was simply dumbfounded by how little Luffy seemed to care about his friends.
"Hey. While you guys were wasting your time whining..." Zoro spoke, causing them to turn their attention to him. He pointed at the direction their ship was going. "We've entered the whirlpool."
"Now, Nami-san! Press yourself against my chest~!" Sanji 'advised', just when they sailed to the center and started to fall to their doom.
"WE'RE FALLING!" Usopp cried out.
All of a sudden, their fall was cut short.
"It's gone?" Xion questioned.
"How?" Sanji also questioned.
"What happened?" Nami asked, calm now that they were out of death's door.
"T-That giant whirlpool... What's going on?!" Usopp followed.
Nami looked down, eyes wide as if realizing something. "No. It's starting." Everyone looked at her in confusion. "The bottom of the whirlpool was stopped by the sea floor."
Slowly, everyone was starting to get what she meant.
"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" a familiar gruff voice shouted from the distance.
The group turned to see a black-sailed ship coming their way, with the base of the ship looking like an oversized raft. On the front of it were four individuals; two with oars paddling the ship forward, and the other two standing front and center. One of the rowers was familiar to Guthrie, Burgess. The guy that called out to them was familiar to Luffy, Zoro, Nami, and especially Xion; Blackbeard.
"We've caught up to you! Straw Hat Luffy!" he called out to the crew.
"It's him! The guy we met at Mock Town!" Nami realized.
"Blackbeard!" Xion growled, her fists tightening. She had a feeling this wasn't the last time she saw him.
"Well, if it ain't the girl who bested me back in Drum Kingdom!" Blackbeard said, seeing the girl with his prey. "I heard you've been called the Starlight Blade now, eh?!" He boomed with laughter at this.
Everyone turned to Xion, who felt the attention was drawn to her.
"What is he talking about, Xion?!" Ussop questioned. "Did you meet that guy before?!"
"Yeah. I remember him. He was the one that attacked Drum Kingdom and caused Wapol to flee," Xion grimaced, shocking Chopper. "I was there, in my previous life, and fought him. I managed to beat him, but barely."
"He's seriously that strong?!" Nami questioned, her eyes dilated.
"That guy was responsible for what happened back then?!" Chopper questioned in total surprise.
"Captain! I know that other guy with them!" Burgess barked, pointing a spare hand at where Guthrie was at. "He has the same kind of weapon as that girl! He's the one I told you about!"
"Great. He's back again," Guthrie muttered. "What's his deal, anyway?"
"It doesn't matter now, does it?!" Blackbeard roared. "I've come all this way to collect on your captain's 100 million beli bounty! So give up, Straw Hat! And you too girl! Your bounty and life will be an additional bonus!"
The crew became instantly confused as they heard the bounty amount, ignoring the last part of what he said. "My head? What do you mean 100 million?"
"Don't play dumb with me, kid!" Blackbeard retorted, and he raised three wanted posters from his hands. "It says right here; Monkey D. Luffy, wanted for 100 million! For 'Starlight Blade' Xion, 98 million! And for 'Pirate Hunter' Zoro, 60 million!"
Ussop, who was looking through some binoculars, saw the bounties and exclaimed, "It's true! He's got a wanted poster for each of you. Hey, Zoro, congratulations on your new bounty!"
While Sanji was prodding Ussop on seeing if he had a bounty, Luffy and Zoro were eagerly praising themselves for their new or raised bounties, not to Nami's amusement.
"Way to go, Xion!" Chopper cheered, hopping into her arms. "You're bounty is almost as big as Luffy's!"
"Yeah. Guess the Alabasta incident gave Luffy a chance to shine and overtake me with a higher bounty," Xion stated.
"I didn't know you had a bounty! And a high one at that!" Guthrie gasped, turning to Xion. "This crew has three high-beli wanted pirates?!"
"Four, actually. Robin also has a bounty of 79 million. Goes by the name 'Devil Child', if I recall."
Guthrie's mouth dropped as he looked to Robin, who nodded in confirmation. "What kind of pirate crew did I end up in?!"
"This crew may be a good one, but the world doesn't think so," Chirithy stated.
Unknown to them, although slowly realizing it, the water below them was slowly rising up.
"Everyone brace yourselves on the ship or get into the cabin!" Sanji advised, as they all ran to wherever seemed safe in their soon-to-be situation.
"THE SEA'S GONNA EXPLODE!" Usopp exclaimed.
Everyone held on tight to whatever seemed safe, considering they would most likely be shot to the sky. Soon enough, as Usopp said, the sea below them exploded, shooting Going Merry up in the air and destroying Blackbeard's raft. Well, not really shooting them up, for Merry was actually sailing up Knock-Up Stream.
"W-What the hell's going on?!" the sniper gasped.
"The ship's sailing straight up the surface of the water stream!" Sanji explained.
"This is awesome!" Luffy claimed.
"HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT?!" Chirithy asked.
Ignoring the small Dream Eater's words, the captain stated to cheer for Merry to bring them to the sky.
Sanji seemed to notice something off about their situation. "Hold on. It doesn't look like it's going to be that easy."
Xion looked and saw what he meant. "He's right! The bull's starting to come loose!"
"But wait! If that happens, we'll fall off!" Guthrie said.
"Y-Y-You can say that, but... W-W-What're we suppose to do?!" Usopp asked, hanging on to the rails. "It's taking all our strength just to hold on!"
Chopper noticed something falling above them. "What's that?!"
Everyone else looked up and saw that it was- "A Sea King!"
"Isn't that the same one that got sucked in the whirlpool earlier?" Guthrie asked, as it fell pass them.
"At this rate we'll end up just like it!" Xion said.
"Oi, oi. That may be true but, this thing's got all the force of that explosion behind it!" Zoro pointed out. "It's too late for us to do anything!"
"So it's really nothing more than a disaster?!" Sanji asked, as debris from ruined ships were falling on them. Seeing them brought Chopper and Usopp in a huge panic.
"Unfurl the sails! Right now!" Nami ordered, apparently with an idea. "This is still an ocean, not a pillar of water. A vertically-flowing current! And the wind that's blowing us up was caused by the explosion of geothermal heat and steam! A vertically-blowing air current! If we got the wind and an ocean, it can still be navigated! Who's this ship's navigator?!"
Hearing how sure she was with her hypothesis and her reasons brought up everyone's confidence.
"You heard our navigator! Get to work!" Xion ordered.
"Aye!" everyone else replied.
"Someone take the rudder so that we catch the wind from the starboard side! Bring the hull in line with the current!" Nami continued.
Although they're doing everything their navigator was telling them to do, it didn't change how Merry was falling off the surface and going to fall back to the sea below. Or so it seemed, when the ship actually did left the water and was literally flying through the air, up to the sky.
"WE'RE FLYING!" Luffy shouted in pure joy. "AWESOME! THE SHIP'S FLYING IN THE AIR!"
"I can't believe we're actually flying," Guthrie said, wide-eyed in shock.
"NAMI-SAN, YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL! AND I LOVE YOU~!" Sanji shouted.
"Why are you confessing your feelings?!" Chirithy asked, eyes bulging out in shock.
"Don't take him seriously," Xion told him.
Nami ignored Sanji's shout as she said, "If we sail along the current using the wind, we can go as high as we want!"
"Oi, Nami! Are we gonna make it to the Sky Island?!" Luffy asked.
"If it really exists, it's just beyond that cloud!"
Luffy looked on ahead, with an excited look on his face. "WE'RE ENTERING THE CUMULOREGALIS CLOUD!"