Disclaimer: I do not own One-Piece nor any of it's characters. Those belong to Oda Eiichiro.

Nunya Bizniz

Chapter Four: Alabasta

Rachel and Missy were stopped for a short break. They could barely see Reverse Mountain in the distance. They agreed that before continuing they would stop and eat. Rachel sat in one of the bucket seats on the boat while the wave runner was tied off. In her hands was a serving of dried meat, bread and cheese. She threw her head back with a growl. "Practicality sucks," she seethed. Missy chuckled from her spot next to her. Rachel snapped her head to look over at her. "Why aren't you more disgusted with food this bland? I hate being on a 'brat diet'."

"I can't stand it either," Missy admitted. "But we have to consider what limited resources we have on this trip. The speed boat doesn't come equipped with a fridge or even a spot where I could rig something up. Fresh food just isn't a good idea. It will spoil in a day or two. These foods will last at least a week. By then we'll have already made landfall. Besides, it's not like we have to worry about Scurvy or anything. Each time we land we make sure that we eat a balance of fresh food."

"The sooner we reach Alabasta the better," Rachel sighed.

"Why are you so determined to go to Alabasta anyway?" Missy asked.

"What's going on over there right now?" Rachel asked instead.

"Right now they're in the middle of civil unrest."

"Precisely," Rachel pointed a finger towards Missy. "Now, one more question, what is it that I make?"

"Rachel, you're not planning on taking advantage of the war to build a profit."

"Of course I am," Rachel nodded. "It's the fastest way to get us the money we need for a better ship, with a fridge. Besides, I spent a good amount of money on the material I need for it. I'm kind of committed at this point."

"You little brat," Missy said. Her tone suggested that she was only half-way disappointed in her cousin. "You could have talked to me about it first."

"You would have talked me out of it," Rachel shrugged. "Besides, it's not like anything serious is going to come out of this. The rebels will get superior weapons that they won't even need to use until Luffy is fighting Crocodile. Then the entire plot will be exposed and the fighting will end as quickly as it began. The guns will then either be melted down or used to reinforce the Alabasta army, which I have no problem with either way. As long as it's not blood-thirsty pirates or the Marines."

"You really gave this argument some thought," Missy pointed out.

"Of course I did," Rachel nodded. "Knowing you, I had to have a good and strong defense for my actions." Missy nodded in understanding and then went back to her meal. "Besides, it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission." Rachel glanced to see Missy glaring at her. "What?"

"Never mind." After a few more minutes Missy broke the silence once again. "I've been thinking about something," she said. "Do we really need to try our hand at Reverse Mountain? We have no idea if the two watercraft we have will survive. On top of that, what if Laboon is at the bottom once we reach the end?"

"You want to risk racing across the Calm Belt?" Rachel asked.

"Well why not?" Missy asked. "Our boats have engines so it's not like we even need the wind or a current to push us along."

"What about the Sea Kings?" Rachel asked. "It's not like we have a ready supply of Sea Prism coating for the underside of either boat like the Marines use."

"If we go fast enough then it shouldn't be a problem," Missy assured.

"How do you know?" Rachel skeptically asked. "There could be a Sea King that specializes in speed, then we'd be screwed. The next question is, how far is the Calm Belt exactly? Do we have enough energy in the engines to cross it in one go? Remember, we could be attacked by giant crabs at any minute."

"You and those damn crabs," Missy rolled her eyes. "First they were rabid and now they're giant?"

"I'm just saying 'stuff happens to us' and the universe likes to point and laugh. Example: Where are we now and how do we get home?"

Missy stared at Rachel for a long minute. "You suck," she finally said. Rachel smirked, the point had been made and they were going to go up Reverse Mountain. "Don't get so excited," Missy warned. "You're going to be the most exposed as we cross the Mountain."

"I totally know," Rachel grinned. "It'll be just like riding the roller coasters at Cedar Point. It's going to be epic!"

Missy looked up at the sky at this point. "Why do I even bother?" she asked.

~The two were caught up in the current that led right up Reverse Mountain. "Try to keep in the center!" Missy shouted over the rushing water. She wasn't sure if Rachel could hear her or not, but as long as she stayed directly behind the dingy then things should be alright. It was agreed that if Rachel did fall off of the wave runner then it would be best if the speed boat wasn't behind her and potentially hit her on the way up or down. The life jacket she had on would keep her head above water if nothing else. Should the wave runner be totalled it was no real loss. They could take turns operating the speed boat so they could travel longer distances then.

It was harder to steer the boat and Missy could only imagine what Rachel was going through on the runner. She didn't dare look back though, she didn't want to loose course and crash up against the mountainside. Once she was sure the trajectory was fine, then she would look back to her friend.

The Mountain loomed closer and closer, at the speed one would expect from a speeding bullet train. The entrance was finally in sight. Thankfully Missy had the presence of mind before the current got too strong to head for the center of it and put on her own life jacket. As things stood now, she was directly on target. She could only pray that Rachel was in the same position.

As Missy safely passed the gateway, she glanced behind her. Rachel was hunched over the handle bars, pressing herself as close to the center of gravity of the runner as she could to maintain balance. Missy smiled as Rachel's left thumb lifted briefly and went back down. She had seen Missy look back and was letting her know she was fine. Missy glanced at the lines towing the dingy. They were still holding strong and the ropes keeping everything tied down were still secured.

Half an hour passed and the two started passing the clouds. 'The peak should be very soon,' Missy thought. She braced herself to keep from falling out. Even if she was wearing her life jacket, she still didn't like the idea of falling into the raging water. "OH MY GOD!" Missy shouted at the top of her lungs. The speed boat had gone air born. As it came back down Missy could feel herself go weightless. She gripped the steering wheel for all she was worth, turning her knuckles white. She was too scared to worry about Rachel at the moment.

Rachel watched as the speed boat got thrown into the air. She was ready for this. She gripped the handle bars, but let her joints bend and stay loose. More damage could be done to the body if she were too tense. She then felt herself go airborn as well. "Just like a motorcross," she whispered. "This is just like a motorcross, just like a motorcross." As Rachel came down, she was completely lifted from the seat of the wave runner. She still had a grip on the handles, but she was completely exposed now. Once she hit the water if she didn't land just right then she was completely screwed.

Missy landed hard, her teeth jarring and she started seeing stars. She looked to see if the dingy and cargo made it. The boxes were a little wobbly, but nothing looked like it was missing. If they had another bumpy ride, then the goods most likely will topple into the water. Missy then glanced further up to see if Rachel was alright.

As she was coming down, Rachel was praying to make a safe landing. She had never tried something like this before. She knew the theory behind it, but doing it herself was something different. She told Missy she would be fine with confidence, truth was, she wouldn't be surprised if she needed to change her clothes after this. Rachel aimed to plant her feet on either side of the seat as she came back down. Instead of falling and landing hard on it once it hit water, Rachel started to pull herself closer to the runner. She was nearly there when the wave runner was back in the raging water. It submerged a bit, but Rachel kept her grip. The water gave the little extra cushion needed to keep Rachel from loosing her breath.

As she leaned back to keep balance she saw Missy looking at her. Now that the worst was over she could afford to be a bit more daring. Rachel lifted her arm that didn't have the safety key attatched and waved.

Missy could finally see the exit. To her relief, Laboon hadn't made an appearance yet. They weren't sure how much time they gained on the Straw Hat crew, but it was apparently enough that they didn't have to deal with that obstacle. The two could allow their craft to coast to a nice and easy stop at the bottom. Once they were finally there, Rachel sagged across the handles. Missy let out a chuckle at the sight. "Do you want to come over here and rest a bit?" she asked.

"Can't," Rachel waved her off. "Too tired."

Missy laughed outright at that. "Fine, you stay there for a minute." Missy then moved to the back of the speed boat and started pulling the dingy closer. "I'll make sure that everything is tied securely again while you rest." She began to work while Rachel turned to look back at the mountain.

Missy was deep into what she was doing when she heard Rachel calling for her. "What?" she asked as she looked back. She saw Rachel pointing back the way they came. Missy looked in the direction of the mountain and could see the water at the base starting to churn. What looked like a massive boulder came out of the water.

"That's not a moon," Rachel chorused. "That's a space station."

"You're such a dork," Missy snapped as she looked at her.

"Someone has to be," Rachel shrugged.

Missy shook her head and looked back to the 'boulder'. "So that must be Laboon," she muttered. "I guess we have good timing then. Holy smokes is he ever big."

"Are you done fixing the ropes?" Rachel asked.

"Absolutely," Missy pushed the dingy back out. She started to head back to the wheel of the boat.

"Then let's get out of here before the crabs show up."

"SHUT UP!"

"You know some peop..."

"Don't!"

~It took the two of them three days to reach Alabasta. They once again docked their vessels in an area where no one would find them, hopefully. They assembled a cart they had packed with them to carry their goods to and from places. As Rachel started the process of loading it with the most important stuff Missy went to town to look for a place they could rent to set up shop for a little while.

Two hours later Missy came back with information. Rachel was sitting on top of the cart that was now loaded. "We've arrived in Nanohana," Missy announced. "Just as we were expecting to. I also procured us a spot where we can set up shop. The few systems that I have ready and the few guns you have ready can be put up for sale right away."

"Then let's get to work," Rachel hopped down. She started to push the cart as Missy started to pull. They made it to the town just as the sun was starting to go down. "Well, maybe we can get to work tomorrow," Rachel amended.

~Two months passed since Missy and Rachel's arrival to Nanohana. Nearly all of the residential housing and private businesses were set up with solar power and security systems. Rachel had provided the rebel army with a decent amount of musket loaders to help earn them a lot of Beri. They were now just trying to earn as much as they could before the Straw Hat crew showed up.

Missy was out installing the solar panels for a popular restaurant while Rachel managed their temporary store. As Rachel was outside, sweeping, a bunch of burly men walked up to her. They looked like the men from Baroque works, if her memory served her. They had her somewhat surrounded as there were six of them. Rachel gently leaned her broom against the wall and allowed her arms to hang loosely at her side. "Is there something that I can help you with?" she asked.

The larger one, apparently the leader, was the one that spoke. "We heard that you have some superior guns for sale," he started. "We want to have a look at them."

"What makes you think that I'll even allow that?" Rachel asked. "The whole lot of you look far too shady for me to feel comfortable selling weapons to." A smirk spread over Rachel's face when she noticed that a few of her store neighbors had come out of their own stores, armed with various things. A few held a gun she had sold them, others came out with brooms and some with large pieces of wood.

"You're surrounded little girl," the burly man said. "It would be in your best interest to do as we say."

"I don't think you quite understand the position you gentlemen find yourselves in," Rachel taunted. "If you take a look around you'll notice that I have a few friends in the area who have something to say about you trying to bully me." The men started shifting nervously once they did notice the gathering crowd. "Not to mention I have a special friend that would be more than happy to say 'hello'."

"What are you talking..."

Before the man could finish Rachel pulled out a handgun and pointed it between his eyes. "Say 'hello' to my little friend," she smirked wider. "I provide this town with security against thugs like yourselves. What pea brain put the idea into your head that I wouldn't be armed with one of my own creations? Granted, this one is unlike any you've ever seen, but that makes it all the more interesting. How many shots do you think I can get off before I have to reload? I'll give you a clue: you'll all be dead before I do."

The men slowly started to back away. Once they were on the other side of the street they took off running towards the docks. Rachel shook her head as she put her gun back into the holster under her outer robe. It was the reason she liked the loose robes. So many hiding places for secret 'friends'. She smiled and waved to her neighbors to let them know that she was fine. Rachel took up the broom once again and continued to sweep the front of the store.

The sound of clapping distracted her for a minute. She looked up to find the source and saw a man without a shirt walking towards her. He had an orange hat that had a set of strange goggles around it's base. One side was a smiley face and the other was an angry face. 'Shit, and Missy is out for a while,' she thought.

Hiding her thoughts, Rachel smiled at the newcomer. "Can I help you?" she asked.

"That was some display," the man complimented. "I've never seen grown men run like that from a girl your age before."

"It's a gift," Rachel said. "I don't like people that try to bully their way into getting what they want."

"Well said," the man nodded.

"Was there something that you needed?" Rachel pressed.

The man looked like he had an epiphany. "Oh yeah, I wanted to ask you a question." He started fishing inside his green duffle for a minute. He pulled out a sheet of paper and held it out to Rachel. "Have you seen this guy around?" he asked.

Rachel took the paper to get a good look at it. It was a wanted poster for Monkey D. Luffy. "I can't say that I have," she said. It was true to a point. She hadn't seen Luffy in Nanohana at all. "Though this is a big city." She handed the paper back to him with a smile.

"Well thanks anyway," the man said. He put the paper away, bowed and started walking away. He stopped short and looked over his shoulder. "My name is Ace, by the way. What's yours?"

"I'm Rachel."

"It was nice to meet you Rachel," Ace waved. "I hope to see you again someday." He then continued on his way.

"Even knowing couldn't prepare me for how polite he is," Rachel muttered. She quickly finished her chore and then rushed inside. She flipped the 'closed' sign and locked the door. She then immediately began to pack everything. It would take two trips to get everything to the speed boat. She only hoped that Missy would hurry back so that they could leave soon.

~Missy stretched as she approached the store. It was getting close to noon and it was high time she had a break. Her head tilted to the side when she saw Rachel at the front of the store, tapping her foot impatiently. Once she was close enough Rachel grabbed Missy's hand and yanked her inside without giving the other a chance to speak. The door was locked behind them.

Inside, Missy blinked at the sudden change. The few items that they had on display were packed in boxes and ready to go. Rachel picked up one of the boxes and headed for the back room. Needing no explanation, Missy picked up another and followed. The two secured those boxes to the already full cart and started pushing it out of the city. "So who was it?" Missy asked.

"It was Ace," Rachel said. "He asked me if I had seen Luffy."

"What did you say?"

"Of course I told him that I hadn't," Rachel snapped. "I have not seen him once in Nanohana."

"Gotta love loopholes," Missy chuckled.

At the speed boat and wave runner, which had been hidden behind a couple of large rocks, the two unloaded the cart into the dingy. It was fast work with the two of them working together. Cart unloaded and dingy half full the two rushed back to the city to get the rest of their belongings.

They had just put the last of their things in the cart when the streets started getting louder with shouting. "That's got to be the Marines chasing Luffy," Rachel put in. "We need to hurry up."

The two started rushing the cart down to the water. As they were passing the outskirts of the city Missy said, "Let's get the hell out of Dodge."

"Amen."

Behind a ruined building, the hiding Straw Hat Crew was able to hear the two voices. Zoro took a look around the broken wall. He was stunned to see Rachel and Missy rushing away from the city. He took a step out and raised his hand. As he was about to call out to them, Luffy's voice was heard calling. Zoro looked to see Luffy running towards them, being chased by hundreds of Marines. "You idiot!" Zoro shouted. "Don't bring them this way." The rest of the crew quickly gathered their supplies and started running away. In all the chaos, Zoro had forgotten about seeing the two familiar women also making their escape.

~It was getting to be twilight when Missy and Rachel came across a small island. It was too small for a town, so there were no people around. The two decided to camp there for the night. As Rachel was cooking over the campfire they made small talk. "How much money do we have?" Rachel asked.

"We have One Hundred and Thirty-seven million," Missy answered.

"Do you think we can earn what we need between here and Water Seven?" Rachel asked.

"I don't think it will be a problem," Missy assured. "Our products are highly valued once the towns people come to realize what they can do for them. Not to mention that we hold the market on Solar power here. We should be able to make the difference between here and Water 7 easy."

"Well then, let's rock this world. Dinner's ready."

"What is it?"

"Soup."

"Seriously, what is it?"

"Roasted meat and veggies."

"That's better."