Chapter 6: Escape from the Desert Kingdom
Disclaimer: I still do not own One Piece, but I'm working on it.
Previously:
After a near-defeat in Alabasta, the Marines come down hard on the pirates. Vivi joins the crew just as they are forced to flee the capital, and Vivi's father entrusts her with a Devil fruit to keep her safe. Robin has taken the Going Merry up the river, while Captain Smoker joins forces with Captain Hina to capture Luffy and his crew.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
"Run!" Usopp screamed loudly, right as the marines started to open fire at them.
The marines had been well prepared. Cannons were established surrounding the palace, and dozens of men with rifles were busying manning them. Within seconds of the pirates bursting out of the palace, men in white uniforms had flocked to them and the bullets started to fly.
A huge bloom of sand exploded in front of them from a nearby cannonball, but the Super Spot-Billed Duck Squad was the fastest for a reason. The huge birds barely even touched the ground as raced across the sand, surprisingly light-footed for animals so big.
Behind them, the palace was erupting into chaos. From the corner of his eye, Luffy glimpsed Chaka being confronted by several angry marines, while trying to feign his best 'Pirates? Where did they come from? ' expression.
The booms of the cannons were like drums resonating through the night. Between the shouting and the gunfire, the normally serene desert vibrated with so much sound it was impossible to hear a thing. Clouds of sand exploded around them, covering everything in dust.
"Vivi!" Luffy shouted loudly, squinting through the sand clouds. "Are you alright?"
"Here!" The girl shouted in response, coughing from the sand. Vivi was riding on Carue, and rapidly catching up from behind. The leader of the Duck Squad was cowardly and spineless, but nothing was faster at running away than Carue. Not even Usopp.
"We've got problems!" Sanji called loudly, riding at the front of the group on a duck with a cowboy hat and glasses. "There are more Marines up ahead!"
Zoro simply smirked, unsheathing his swords. "Not for much longer."
The Marines really had been well prepared. They'd set up another perimeter around the city in the desert, and suddenly there was a line of cannons blocking the way ahead. Zoro duck his heels into his duck, and then the duck, wearing a legionary helmet and an angry expression, responded by charging forward furiously.
The first cannon exploded with a huge boom, and the air blurred as the metal cannonball barrelled towards them in a flash of smoke. Zoro was faster. Within a blink of an eye, Zoro had drawn all three of his swords and was leaping up into the air, spinning quickly.
His sword glanced against the cannonball with almost delicately, yet the razor-sharp edge cut through the metal like it was paper. The two halves of the cannonball ricocheted harmlessly to the side. Zoro grunted in satisfaction.
"Too cool… !" Chopper exclaimed loudly, his eyes glowing with hero-worship.
"Damn marimo…" Sanji grunted, taking a deep breath of his cigarette, and then proclaiming loudly. "Nami! Vivi! I will protect you!"
Cowboy launched forward. The marine perimeter was quickly approaching, and the other cannons were loaded. Sanji flipped around on his duck, doing a handstand on Cowboy's head and spinning his strong legs around in the air. His black, polished, and heavily reinforced shoes glinted in the moonlight.
Luffy joined him quickly. He was riding a duck with a horned helmet and brown goggles, almost twice the size of all the others, but it still easily kept pace with them all. They could see a dozen cannons being aimed and loaded.
The cannons exploded loudly. Both Luffy and Sanji leapt into action. Sanji pushed himself upwards with his hands, twirling his legs around so quickly he blurred. Both feet hit firmly against two cannonballs, and the heavy metal bounds rebounded to the side with two large dents in the side.
"Luffy!" Nami called urgently. "Be careful! You're not rubber any—"
Luffy didn't seem to hear. He lunched forward, jumping straight at the metal spheres that were barrelling towards him. He drew his arm backwards in a huge arch, screaming wordlessly before he released a furious punch. Luffy's knuckles collided with solid steel in a sickening crunch.
The impact caused a small shockwave, but it was the cannon that buckled beneath Luffy's fist and accelerated backwards in a flash. The marines couldn't even flinch before their cannonball returned to them at breakneck speed. Two cannons exploded in a hail of shrapnel, sending the marines diving for cover.
Another four cannonballs were flashing through the air towards the pirates. Luffy didn't hesitate. He moved in a flash, and flickering through the air. Luffy snatched one cannonball from the air, and spun it around like a hammer throw and used it to bat another two of them into the air.
The final cannonball was heading straight for Nami, too close and too fast for her duck to dodge. Her eyes widened in shock. Sanji shouted in exclaim and tried to dive towards her, but Luffy was faster. Within a heartbeat, he was in front of Nami and kicking upwards. The cannonball launched vertically upwards.
Nami sighed in relief, even as Luffy grabbed a hold of her duck and sat down behind her. Nami's heart nearly stopped as he wrapped his arms around her.
"Who needs Devil fruits?" Luffy whispered under his breath, so quiet it was barely audible. Even so, he was cradling his wrist tenderly, and his knuckles were bleeding heavily.
Zoro led the charge against the Marine barricade. Their formation was already in shambles. The sight of a demonic Zoro flashing towards them, three blades glinting in the darkness, was enough to cause a dozen men to simultaneously lose control of their bowels.
His blades cut everything apart mercilessly. Cannons were cut in half and sent flying through the half. The barricade was shredded into scraps. The blood of marines splashed across the sands.
The seven ducks ran straight through the debris, leaving the remaining men staring helpless at trail. Usopp was at the very back of the group, laughing victoriously as he threw down a smoke bomb to hide their escape route. The pirates disappeared into a cloud of smoke, and then vanished in the darkness of the desert.
Alabasta was vast and empty. The Marines would be suicidal to try to follow them now. The Duck Squad threw up clouds of dust as they pounded across the sands easily, showing no sign of tiring.
Usopp was already laughing and bragging happily. Luffy jumped across to his duck easily, leaving Nami to try to calm her pounding heart.
Already the lights of Alubarna were fading over the horizon. They were all elated after their escape, but Vivi couldn't help but feel nervous. It had hardly been a discreet escape, and the news that the princess had left with the pirates would spread quickly.
"The Marines know which direction we're heading now," Vivi noted to the group, while the ducks were accelerating towards the Sandora River. Now that the fighting was over, Carue was taking his place at the front of the squad as the leader.
"They always did," Nami sighed. "Our ship is in the Sandora River. All they have to do is to barricade off the mouth of the river, and we have no choice except to fight our way out. We're not free yet…"
Vivi nodded hesitantly. Vivi's new Devil fruit was securely and secretly tucked away in Carue's saddlebacks. She hadn't been confident enough to eat it yet.
"We can break through," Zoro assured confidently. "They've tried to capture us before."
Nami glanced downwards at Luffy's new wanted poster. She had been staring at it a lot. "Yes… but now they have 200 million reasons to try harder…"
"Captain Smoker!" Tashigi called loudly, putting down a transponder snail. "There's news from the raid team! The pirates have escaped Aluburna."
There was no shock or disappointment from the captain. He simply nodded. "We knew they wouldn't be able to," he confirmed. "But it doesn't matter. So long as they've left the city, they got to come through here."
He stood at the brow of the battleship, overlooking the rushing waters of the Sandora River. The Going Merry had last been seen sailing upriver, and the captain was unwilling to pursue it and risk something slipping past. Instead, along with eight ships from section 3, they had barricaded the river and were preparing for battle. The pirates would have to attack quickly; otherwise the noose would just gradually tighten as reinforcements arrived.
Smoker was looking grimly up the river, his expression completely focused. Tashigi had seen that look before; it was one of utter determination to a cause. The captain would not allow the pirates to escape this time.
"There were seven," Smoker said finally, counting them up in his head and speaking mostly to himself. "Monkey D. Luffy and Roronoa Zoro may well be the most dangerous. There is also the chef, the navigator, the sniper and doctor, but we can't assume that there would be more."
"We outnumber them a hundred to one." Tashigi noted, pointing to the assembled battleships. A large steel net was across the river, nailed in to the opposing shores so it would impossible for any ship to sneak past.
Smoker scoffed. "These aren't the sort of pirates to care much about numbers."
Smoker smoothed back his white hair absent-mindedly. "Still, they have weaknesses," he mused. "We have more cannons, the positional advantage, and the marines from section 3 are specialists at capturing pirates. When they attack, we'll shred their ship to pieces and leave them stranded. If they try to flee, we'll blow them out of the water. At no point will we allow them to reach the shore."
There were footsteps as Captain Hina crossed over the deck, staring at Smoker with annoyance. "You're taking charge already, Smoker," Hina reprimanded. "Hina will take care of Hina's men. You handle your own men."
Smoker did even turn around, or give any indication that he heard her. "You're back," he stated impassively. "Did you secure the coasts?"
Hina grunted irritably at Smoker's obnoxiousness. "Yes," she confirmed. "And we captured one of Baroque Work's agents; Bentham, aka Mr 2 Bon Clay. He was scuttling around the shoreline; I've brought him back to the hold."
Behind her, Jango and Fullbody, two of Hina's men, were wrestling with the struggling okama. Despite being covered head to toe in iron manacles, he was still squirming like a worm and singing about the "okama way". Both Jango and Fullbody appeared at their wit's end with the cross-dresser as they tried to throw him below deck.
Smoker nodded absent-mindedly, much too focused on simulating the upcoming battle. "They'll try to charge us," he decided finally. "That's the only thing they can do. They'll charge the centre full speed and try to knock a ship out of the formation and break through."
"If they get to one of our ships; it'll go badly," Tashigi said cautiously. "Our men won't last long at close range."
Smoker took a long breath of his three cigars. He was standing at the brow of the ship, his unbuttoned and extremely muscular chest practically glinting in the sun. Hina was standing just behind him, coolly watching over her men as she pulled on her gloves. On the deck, Fullbody and Jango had finished restraining their prisoner, and had just started dancing.
"They don't need to go through our men," Smoker said finally. "They need to get through us."
It was early morning by the time the Duck Squad reached the river, and the Going Merry was anchored idly by the shoreline, just where Robin had promised it would be. The gangway was down and welcoming. The crew was apprehensive as they approached, but Luffy seemed completely carefree.
Nico Robin stretched idly out over one of the chair on deck, casually reading a book. She was wearing a white shirt and tight black pants, which she filled out extremely well, and barely even glanced upwards as the pirates entered.
"Ah… you're here," she greeted nonchalantly. "You're welcome, by the way."
Zoro growled. "Welcome?! You stole our ship!"
"Oi!" Sanji warned, jumping on to the deck. "Show a beautiful lady some manners!"
"I only stole it for a little while," Robin clarified, paying little attention to the arguing swordsman and chef. "Besides, I'm giving it back now."
Vivi glared at the older woman with distrust. Carue was hiding behind the princess, trembling silently. "What are you playing at?" She demanded.
"Oh, nothing," Robin smiled innocently, turning to Luffy. "But in return for giving you your ship back, you're going to let me join your crew."
Luffy didn't seem surprised. "Ok then," he agreed simply.
At once, everyone else exploded with outrage. Usopp and Chopper started shaking in fear. Nami shouted in shock. Vivi's outrage was the loudest, and most determined.
"But she's the Vice President of Baroque Works!" Vivi protested at Luffy. "She tried to destroy my country! She nearly killed Igaram! She kidnapped me! She's a villain and murderer!"
Robin thought about it for half a second. "Yep, that just about summarises it," she agreed. "But if it helps, I no longer have any interest in you or your country."
Vivi looked ready to explode again, but Luffy just put his hand on her shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry!" Luffy flashed Vivi a big smile. "She's actually a really nice person."
At once, all of Vivi's protests faded away in her mouth. Luffy had a way of leaving her completely speechless, and he said it with such confidence there was no room for doubt.
Robin stared at Luffy curiously, but didn't say anything. The rest of the crew was inspecting Robin critically.
"Wait a minute…" Usopp said slowly, with unusual perceptiveness, glancing between Robin and Luffy. "Did something happen between the two of you?"
Luffy and Robin locked eyes for a moment. They were both thinking about that moment in the tombs. That moment where Luffy had come back to life with Robin breathing into his lungs.
That moment had been… unique.
Neither of them cared to explain it to the others.
"Nothing important," Luffy said finally. "Trust me; it's going to be fun having her with us."
After that, people started to relax with their newest member. Sanji demanded to know what Luffy had done to such a beautiful woman, but then proceeded to proclaim his undying love to Robin while serving her drinks. Chopper and Usopp took to Robin instantly after she displayed her powers, and she spent the next half an hour sprouting hands across the deck for the two of them to play with, all the while smiling pleasantly.
Nami was a bit more distrustful, yet that evaporated as soon as Robin put a bag of gems on to the table. Zoro glanced at her with caution, but he was not particularly unwelcoming.
The only one that was actually cold to the newest arrival was Vivi, who kept her distance at all times and stared at Robin with serious distrust. Robin took care not to notice, but maintained a cheerful façade as she greeted her new crew.
Occasionally, Robin would steal a glance towards Luffy and hope nobody noticed.
They pulled the anchor up and finally the Going Merry turned downstream. Vivi and Carue waved a tearful goodbye to the Super Spot-Billed Duck Squad, and the pirates were on their way. It was about to become a goodbye party, just before Robin mentioned a sobering statement.
"By the way…" she noted, taking a large sip of her drink. "The Marines have blockaded the river. We'll have to fight our way out."
At once, the mood became quieter. Usopp, Carue and Chopper entered coward mode like a flick of a switch.
"Marines?" Nami demanded urgently. "How many?"
"Not sure," Robin said casually. "At least half a dozen ships, I would expect. They would have had plenty of time to prepare by now. It doesn't look like we're going to escape in one piece."
Luffy shifted uncomfortably. She said that last chilling statement with a weird calmness. "Then what do you suggest?"
Robin smiled gently. "That's up to you, Mr. Captain."
There was a moment's silence. "We fight our way out." Luffy said firmly, clenching his knuckles tightly. "Full speed; we'll attack hard."
The rest of the crew was left speechless at the sudden determination. Luffy had become a lot more serious recently…
"Hmph!" Zoro grunted with satisfaction. "It'd be boring if it was an easy escape!"
Robin's smile became a bit more sincere with that. Luffy started laughing, and at once all the tension shattered. Sanji was already rolling out a selection of sweets for the ladies, and he reluctantly allowed everyone else to have some too. The sound of laughter filled the Going Merry as it started to sail easily down the river.
"This is not that bad," Robin muttered to herself, thoughtfully watching the merriment. "Are they always this cheerful?"
Zoro stared at her with some caution. "Yeah, they're always like that."
For once, Robin smiled with genuine pleasure. "Really?" She mused.
Not even Vivi, as suspicious as she was of Robin, could resist when the party really got underway. Usopp was already flapping around on Carue's head and telling everyone how he had single-handedly defeated Baroque Works, while Chopper and Luffy were playing around the ship. Vivi sat by Nami, watching her tease Sanji into supplying more food.
Eventually, the growing worry in the back of Vivi's mind became too large to ignore, and she glanced at Luffy hesitantly. Finally, she called over the captain while pulling something out of her bag.
"Luffy!" Vivi shouted, holding up the orange Devil fruit hesitantly. "I… I have something I want you to have…"
Luffy stopped and stared at the object in her hand. Nami turned and gasped. "Is that…?" She exclaimed.
The Devil fruit seemed to emit an unnatural aura. Everybody stared at it curiously. Vivi nodded. "Yes. My father gave it to me before we left."
Nami's eyes glinted happily. "But that's worth a lot of money!" She exclaimed brightly. "We could sell it for a hundred million, easy!"
The princess shook her head. "No," she insisted. "I want Luffy to have it. He lost his powers fighting for me; I want to give him something back."
Luffy was left speechless for a while. "What happened to the Gum Gum fruit?" He asked finally, in a quiet voice.
She hesitated. "I'm not sure," Vivi admitted. "I asked around a lot about it in Alubarna. Apparently, when a Devil fruit reincarnates, the power is sometimes trapped in a nearby fruit of a similar type. But if there are no fruits of the sort nearby, then that power could end up absolutely anywhere in the world," she explained. "I searched the city for any weird fruits after the battle, but I never found anything. It was in a desert, so it's unlikely that the Gum Gum fruit ended up anywhere in Alabasta."
Luffy scratched his head in confusion. Nami sighed and added, "So we'll probably never even see the Gum Gum fruit again, right?"
Vivi agreed, while Chopper was inspecting the Devil fruit with medical curiosity. Usopp looked at it with interest, before asking, "What power is in this fruit?"
She shrugged uncertainly, and Robin spoke up quietly, "It's hard to tell," she explained. "Some fruits have markings and auras that are identified, but most are completely unknown. Generally, known Devil fruits are worth much more than unidentified Devil fruits, as there are a very large range of powers available."
The older woman scratched her chin as she looked at the fruit thoughtfully. "It's possible that that fruit contains a power so incredible it could change the world. It's equally possible, however, that the fruit contains a power so obscure it might even be a disadvantage. I have heard of fruits that have had no obvious effect, or very silly powers, but this is rare too," Robin mused. "Instead, it's much more likely that it will be a 'standard' Devil fruit power, and depend mostly on the user."
Vivi glared at Robin for half a second, before turning back to Luffy. "So…" she offered, holding out the Devil fruit. "Will you take it?"
Luffy was silent for a while, but he glanced downwards at his wrist. His hand had been tender ever since he had punched that cannonball…
"No," Luffy proclaimed finally, his eyes glinting with determination. "I don't want another Devil fruit. I need to get stronger by myself."
Vivi didn't know what to say. She looked at the Devil fruit uncertainly, but Luffy was already pushing the fruit back to her. His hands wrapped around hers firmly, and he looked at her sincerely.
"You should eat it," he said gently. "It was given to you, after all."
For a breathless moment, Vivi was left staring straight at him. This was what I had chosen, she thought to herself, I chose to follow him…
Suddenly, Zoro called down from the prow of the boat, "Make up your mind quickly!" The swordsman shouted urgently. "There's a Marine barricade, coming up quick!"
In front of the Going Merry and rapidly approaching over the horizon, the shapes of several battleships blocked off the river. Everyone seemed to jump into action, with various levels of bravery. Vivi was left motionless, unsure of what to do.
"How many?" Nami demanded.
"Lots!"
"Get to the cannons!"
"This… this is nothing!" Usopp bragged loudly, despite his trembling knees and the fact that he was currently hiding under a table. "I once single-handedly destroyed a hundred battleships! No, a thousand!"
"Wow! Really?" Chopper exclaimed naïvely, joining Usopp in hiding.
Vivi wasn't sure what to do. Carue was busy squawking around the back of the ship, but she just stayed completely still. Even Robin was heading to the prow, glancing at the ships with vague interest while readying for the fight. Sanji lit a cigarette as he walked past Vivi.
"Don't worry Vivi!" The chef declared loudly. "Stay behind me! I will protect you!"
No, Vivi thought quietly, with sudden realisation, I don't want to be protected…
Acting on pure impulse, Vivi suddenly bent over and took a huge bite out of the orange Devil fruit.
The Going Merry's masts unfurled, and the small ship accelerated quickly in the current of the Sandora River. As soon as the pirates came into range, the marines opened fire and launched black spears from dozens of cannons.
Some of them missed. Others were deflected. But the Going Merry was practically a target practice, and there were too many. Metal spears hit the ship from all sides, throwing up clouds of wooden shrapnel as they pierced straight through the hull.
In a blink of an eye, Luffy had to tackle Usopp to the ground to avoid a hail of razor-sharp splinters, but the sniper squirmed out of his grasp a second later.
"Oi!" Usopp shrieked furiously, running to the prow. "Don't you dare hurt the Going Merry!"
"Get down!" Nami yelled, just as another spear nearly took the figurehead off. She pulled Usopp out-of-the-way, while Luffy felt the anger flare in him as his seat was almost destroyed.
"Usopp! Get on the cannon and return fire!" Nami ordered firmly. "Chopper! Get below deck and start patching up holes! You three!" She pointed to Luffy, Zoro and Sanji. "Deflect those spears already!"
"So this is the Black Spear Formation," Robin said calmly. "They fire these spears to pierce the hull, weigh the ship down, and eventually leave it dead in the water. If we take any more, then we're all finished…"
"Stop being so calm about that!" Nami screeched furiously, just as another halo of spears fired from the battleships. The Going Merry was moving sluggishly now, but the distance was closer and even more of the spears hit their mark.
Luffy, Zoro and Sanji did what they could. Several of the spears were kicked, slashed and hit out of the air, but there were just too many. The impact shook the Going Merry dangerously, and Nami could feel the ship sinking slowly.
"This isn't working…" Nami realised with dread. "We're going to have to charge the centre… Let them hit each other with the crossfire, we have to break the barricade…"
Luffy gritted his teeth, but he couldn't stop the spears. Usopp was firing the cannon with unnerving accuracy, but there were too many battleships. I cannot lose here, Luffy thought with determination.
"The centre ship?" Luffy asked Nami insistently. "All I need to do is get the centre ship, right?"
"What are you doing…?" Nami shouted urgently, but Luffy was already moving.
Just as Usopp, below deck, fired the cannon, Luffy was sprinting off the deck and jumped towards the ocean. Nami didn't even have time to gasp as suddenly Luffy managed to catch a hold of the cannonball with lightning reflexes, and he let the momentum pull him through the air.
He was send flying towards the Marine ship in a cloud of splinters.
"Luffy!" Vivi shrieked in panic, running to the side. She was still trying not to vomit from the awful taste of the Devil fruit. It had tasted like hot ash. Luffy had already disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
In a frenzy, Vivi turned to Robin. "Quickly! How do I use my Devil fruit powers?"
"I don't know!" Robin protested weakly. "It just kind of happens…"
Vivi started screaming and throwing her hands wildly, trying to will something to happen. They crew was panicking now. The Going Merry was practically dead in the water, floating along at a snail's pace, and they could see the other marine ships preparing another salvo.
"Damn it!" Zoro screamed, his blades ready but with nothing to cut.
"I've got to do something!" Sanji grunted, desperately trying to protect the starboard side.
Desperately, Nami glanced towards the hole where Luffy crashed into. I really hope this works, she prayed, drawing her Clima-Tact. She disassembled the bo-staff into three pieces, and spun them around expertly. Streams of bubbles, both hot and cold, flew from each side, as Nami manipulated the weather like an artist with a brush.
"Weather forecast…" Nami grunted, trying to measure the atmosphere despite the raging battle. Suddenly, she could visualise the weather, and the wind flow… "Tornado!"
She clicked a switch and three clockwork doves burst from the Clima-Tact, and started spinning furiously as the centrifugal force created a wind that meshed with the artificial climate. Suddenly, a freak burst of wind burst around her, nearly taking everyone down to their knees.
The wind hit the Going Merry straight in the sails, and the ship nearly capsized. The force was enough to thrust the boat forward, and Nami could barely hold on a suddenly the crippled boat was accelerating forward at breakneck speed.
It didn't last long, but it was enough to cause all the spears to miss while the Going Merry burst into to the much larger Marine battleship.
"Brace yourself!" Nami screamed, holding on for dear life before the two boats collided.
Luffy pulled himself out of the debris from the cannonball quickly, but he was already surrounded by men in white uniforms and holding rifles.
"Straw Hat…" A familiar drawled. "Or is that name no longer appropriate?"
Luffy didn't even hesitate. Suddenly, before anyone could pull a trigger, Luffy was flickering through the air and slamming his fist at Smoker's head.
The captain dematerialised into smoke and Luffy went straight through harmlessly, but he didn't even pause. At once, Luffy rebounded off the cabin walls and he was attacking Smoker again, this time with both knives in his hand as he cut through the air.
He was attacking nothing but smoke. He was hitting no resistance and doing no harm, but Luffy just kept on firing his furious assault at Smoker. Anyone else that tried to get in his way never lasted long.
"Why bother?" Smoker rematerialized at the end of the room. "You should know you can't even lay a finger on me!"
Luffy growled, launching himself into another relentless attack. "Because there are stronger guys than you out there!" Luffy screamed. "And I need to learn how to beat them!"
He took a deep breath, before slashing up and down with both knives at flashing speed.
"I swear!" Luffy screamed with fury. "By the end of this fight, I will be able to hurt you!"
Luffy never paused or even hesitated in his futile attack. The knives flashed through the air, chasing after the smoke which filled the cabin. If Smoker ever materialised, he would be sliced to pieces. Luffy charged with an inhuman fury, moving so quickly that Smoker couldn't even retaliate.
It's useless, the captain told himself, he can't hurt me, and he will tire eventually. Then, Luffy would finally be captured.
More marines tried to interfere, but the pirate was too vicious. Luffy barely even gave any of them any notice. The bodies of the men that got in his way fell to the ground quickly, all the while Luffy just kept on leaping off the walls and slicing through the air with his knives. Eventually, to avoid any more collateral, Smoker floated above deck and among the masts, where Luffy followed with unyielding fury.
Around them, the battle was really starting to get underway. The Going Merry crashed into the battleship, and five seconds later the pirates were storming on board. Zoro led the charge, his blades flashing through the air as he cut down everything in his path.
"Roronoa Zoro!" Tashigi challenged, jumping down from above. Her sword was in her hand, and their blades collided with sparks. "You're mine!"
Inwardly, Zoro groaned at meeting her, but he couldn't back down from a fight. "Go on ahead!" He shouted to the others, while parrying Tashigi's flashing blade. "I'll handle this!"
Everything exploded in a chaos of gunfire and falling bodies. Despite their numbers, the Marines were losing badly as the pirates seemed unstoppable. Sanji was at the forefront of the battle, his foot impacting against men so hard that it left his footprint on their spine.
There were screams of triumph as Captain Hina joined the battle. At once, whatever marines that were still standing flocked around their captain. Her ship was very rapidly being destroyed, but she still just stood coolly over the chaos.
At once, Sanji hesitated in front of the beautiful woman. His leg was raised in the air, trembling slightly.
"No…" The chef groaned. "I can't do it… I can't kick a woman!"
"That's good to hear," Hina agreed happily, before darting forward and bringing her arm at Sanji in vicious uppercut.
The impact took Sanji to his knees, but Hina's arm seemed to stretch and wrap around Sanji's torso, before transforming into iron. Within a second, Sanji's arms and chest wrapped in an iron manacle so tight that he could hardly breathe. He collapsed to the ground helplessly. Hina was already walking away.
Suddenly, half a dozen arms emerged from the ground around Captain Hina, combining into a fist that hit her directly on the chin with a sickening impact. The captain took the blow like a champion, and then proceeded to imprison each hand that touched her with iron handcuffs.
Still, the hands simply evaporated into a bloom of petals. Nico Robin stood calmly on the deck.
"I, on the other hand… " Robin said pleasantly. "… have absolutely no problem hitting women."
Hina wiped her chin thoughtfully. "Nico Robin… The Devil Child… this could be interesting."
At once, both women unleashed their powers. Dozens of hands emerged from the ground, were bound by iron manacles, and then simply vanished. Hina caught Robin in a huge iron cage that tried to crush her, but was caught herself in a net of hands that tried to break her spine.
Both women were long-range Devil fruit users, and it quickly became obvious that their match was a stalemate. Still, they kept on fighting while around them the rest of the marines and the pirates collided.
"Captain Hina!" Seaman Fullbody shouted in shock, drawing his iron knuckles. "I will protect you, my love—"
He was interrupted by a sudden kick to the chin from Sanji. The chef jumped to his feet despite the manacles constricting his upper body. If anything, Sanji looked relieved.
"You!" he said thankfully. "I can kick you just fine!"
"We meet again!" Fullbody growled, angrily, pulling up into a boxing pose. "You bloody, violent chef! I'm much stronger now… !"
"I remember you," Sanji muttered, after a few seconds hesitation. "You're that marine commander with no respect for the restaurant…"
Sanji grinned, launching into a sudden flurry of kicks. "Allow me to beat some table manners into you again!"
Next to the battle, Jango tried to come to his friend's aid. An explosive bullet collided with the hypnotist that nearly took him to the ground.
Usopp grinned, already loading another round into his slingshot. "I never did thank you for invading my village, did I?"
Around Zoro, the battle was quickly shifting in favour for the pirates. Luffy hadn't relented on his assault against Smoker, though he had yet to land a single blow. Robin was likewise keeping Hina busy, even if the two seemed equally matched. Sanji was easily winning against Fullbody, despite the manacles restraining his arms. Usopp and Jango were slugging it out in a long ranged battle, but Usopp was simply the better sharpshooter. All the other marines were falling too quickly to even be considered.
Yet Zoro was left facing Tashigi, and that was a battle he was seriously unhappy with.
Tashigi lunged and slashed furiously. She was a good swordsman and she fought with speed and accuracy. Her blade flickered through the air as it targeted at all of his most vital spots. Despite her skill, Zoro just couldn't fight her properly.
He knew that he was the better swordsman. She wasn't bad, he was simply significantly better. That had been proven at Loguetown. If it had been any other foe of equal skill, Zoro would have been quite happy to face his opponent in a true battle.
But his opponent was… her. Zoro couldn't forget that moment when Tashigi had dug him out of the sand. That moment when she saved his life. Every time Zoro tried to imagine her as enemy, he kept on remembering that vision of beauty he had seen then, and he knew that he couldn't attack her properly.
No swordsman could cut something when there was doubt in his sword; otherwise you would end up cutting yourself.
Instead, Zoro was left trying to parry her blows, but he was unable to return any of them. Within seconds, Tashigi was becoming visibly annoyed at him for holding back.
"Why… aren't… you… fighting… back!" Tashigi grunted through every slash. She was becoming faster and more aggressive.
Zoro was pushed backwards, trying to desperately parry her flashing blade. The sparks danced between the swords. "Because I don't want to!" Zoro snapped back, receiving a shallow cut across his neck for his moment's distraction.
"What?" Tashigi growled angrily. "You don't think I'm a worthy opponent?! Because I'm a woman!?"
Zoro was in trouble now. Tashigi's thrusts was unyielding and Zoro had to step backwards just to avoid them. "No!" Zoro snapped at her. "It's got nothing to do with you being a woman!"
Zoro hesitated, just as he parried another slash that nearly took off his head. "Well, it does," he admitted. "But not in the way you mean!"
"Then why?" Tashigi snarled furiously. Her blade was blurring around her now. "Why do you refuse to fight me?!"
"Because…" Zoro hesitated. He tried to step backwards again, but he was out of ship. He had to act now, or he would die.
With a swift movement, Zoro jumped forward. He didn't use his swords, but instead slammed his shoulder into Tashigi and tackled the lieutenant to the ground. The movement caught Tashigi by surprise, but Zoro still received a deep cut across the chest for his trouble.
"I don't want to fight you because…" The words caught in Zoro's mouth. "Because… well… because you're you."
For one moment, he was lying on top of Tashigi, his arms pinning her to the ground. Her lean body struggled underneath his. He was so close that he could see every droplet of sweat on her brow, and her scent overpowered his senses.
Zoro's heart started beating so fast it threatened to collapse. For that moment, there was absolutely nothing on his mind except Tashigi's beautiful face. All he could see was Tashigi's lips.
It wasn't a choice. It was a pure, overwhelming command from his subconscious, and his muscles moved with no conscious thought. Suddenly, Zoro felt himself bending down to press his lips against hers…
The moment their lips touched, a jolt of pure bliss fired through Zoro. Time seemed to stop for him.
Tashigi, for her part, was caught completely and utterly by surprise. She responded by instinctively raising her leg and hitting Zoro directly in the groin with force.
Her knee collided with his crotch with such a sickening crunch that even single man in a hundred yards winced involuntarily. Even Smoker paused to look down at Zoro with an almost sympathetic expression.
Zoro shrieked like a little girl, before collapsing into a heap.
Tashigi pulled herself up quickly. Her emotions were flickering from flustered, to embarrassed, to extremely angry. She was blushing so much her face was bright red. "What are you…?" She stuttered incredulously, staring down at Zoro. She could still feel his lips on hers. "Why would you…? How could…?"
She gulped, desperately trying and failing to make sense of what had just happened. "I mean…" She stammered with shock. "But… But…"
Zoro tried to say something. Tashigi couldn't hear it, but she responded by instinctively channelling generations of women everywhere, and kicking him in the balls again.
"For the love of god!" Luffy called down loudly, temporarily distracted from his fight, his eyes worried. "Someone save Zoro while it is still whole!"
Sanji responded quickly. The chef jumped to Zoro's side urgently, and was uncharacteristically gentle as he lifted Zoro up and took him to safety. All of the marines parted in sympathy to allow the swordsman to escape.
Tashigi was left standing there, touching her lips with shock. Her cheeks never stopped blushing. "Why would he…?"
Smoker grunted with annoyance as he looked across the battlefield of the ship. Things were going badly. The marines were falling and the ship was in tatters. Other than himself, only Captain Hina was still capable of fighting, but she wasn't making any progress against Nico Robin.
The other battleships were incapable of firing without hitting each other. Their formation was falling to pieces. The net was being pulled out of place. It wouldn't be long now before the blockade would be ruined, and then the pirates might escape.
I have to finish this, Smoker thought with determination, gathering billows of smoke around him.
Luffy was still attacking furiously, but he was panting heavily by now. Around them, the masts were demolished by Luffy's attacks. Smoker was still completely unharmed, just very annoyed.
Another knife slashed at Smoker's head. It hit nothing but smoke. Luffy jumped away from another plume of smoke, but this time he was too slow. The smoke wrapped around his body like a snake, and slowly started to tighten. Luffy was left helplessly suspended in mid-air by the smoke wrapped around him.
"I've got you now," Smoker muttered, drawing his Seastone jitte from across his back. He twirled the weapon through the air, before lunging it straight towards Luffy's chest.
The impact was devastating. It knocked the breath straight out of him, and sent him flying across the deck. Smoker pressed on with his attack, smirking ruthlessly. Seastone would steal a Devil fruit's powers, leaving the user helpless. So long as Smoker kept the tip on Luffy, then the pirate would be rendered powerless…
But then, Luffy's reaction caused Smoker to freeze. Instead of disorientation and weakness, Luffy grabbed a hold of the jitte firmly.
"Yeah…" Luffy grinned, keeping a tight hold on the weapon. "That's not going to work on me anymore."
Suddenly, with his remaining hand, Luffy drew a knife and brought it down on Smoker's hand. The captain had no choice but to dematerialise otherwise he would lose fingers, which left the jitte firmly in Luffy's grasp.
Smoker couldn't even curse before Luffy brought his own weapon down straight on his head.
He couldn't phase through Seastone tip, and the jitte itself was heavy metal. The force of the blow sent Smoker crashing into the deck with concussive impact. Vaguely, he could feel blood dripping from his forehead. Smoker never even had time to recover before Luffy slammed the jitte across his skull again.
"I told you I would learn how to hurt you," Luffy panted heavily. He was swirling the weapon with satisfaction. Smoker was still reeling from shock, pain and outrage at the pirate. Luffy looked impressed as he inspected jitte critically.
Smoker was practically burning with fury, but Luffy just grinned widely.
"I'm keeping this!" he called brightly, before suddenly turning around and sprinting away.
The captain transformed into a cloud of smoke to give chase, but Luffy was already jumping over the side of the deck. He landed easily on the crow's nest of the Going Merry, where the rest of his crew was already sailing away.
Smoker watched the pirates laugh as they fled. Smoker's ship had been destroyed. His men were beaten. The barricade was breached. Now, Smoker's entire career was in danger.
That bastard stole my jitte!
The captain took a deep breath. They were getting further and further ahead. The other ships hadn't even managed to turn around yet. A week ago, Smoker might have been relieved if they had escaped; he had enjoyed hunting them, after all. But not now. Not when his entire position in the Marines was threatened…
Behind him, Hina limped to his side. She had held up pretty well against Robin, but Hina hadn't been capable of stopping them on her own. She looked equally annoyed.
"Gather your men and your ships," Smoker ordered firmly, his eyes glowing with barely concealed fury. "We'll pursue them to the edge of the world…"
For once, Hina didn't even argue with her colleagues tone. She just nodded stiffly. Both captains stood still for a long time, watching the little ship slowly disappear over the horizon.
Later that night…
By nightfall, Usopp had already patched up the caravel as best he could, but the Going Merry was a sturdy little ship. The victory party had lasted the whole day, but it settled down a few hours ago. It was easy sailing over a quiet ocean, and there had been no sign of any pursuers. Most of the crew had retired to their rooms for the night, although Luffy was out on deck and busy bench-pressing two of the cannons.
The captain hadn't been sleeping much recently. Being asleep felt too much like being dead, he had admitted to Vivi quietly.
Vivi was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the tangerine grove, simply because it was one of the quietest, most out of the way places she could find. The princess was getting her old gown filthy, but she didn't care. She was staring at her hands with frustration, willing something to happen.
She had tried every action she could think of. She had been flapping her body around like a fool before, desperate to reveal some hidden ability, or strange power that she must have developed. The Devil fruit had tasted as foul as hot ash, and it had been genuine. Curiously, she had gently touched Luffy's new jitte before, only to find her body freeze up on contact with the Seastone.
Vivi had eaten a Devil fruit. But she had yet to discover what exactly her powers were. With dread, she wondered what if it had been a dud. What if it had been something completely useless, like the… Woman-Woman fruit or something? She thought, worriedly biting her lip, or the Useless-Useless fruit…?
She sighed as she glanced out over the moonlit ocean. That Devil fruit was supposed to be her chance to get stronger…
There were footsteps behind her. At once, Vivi turned around with embarrassment, only to see a calm Nico Robin looking down on her.
"What are you doing up?!" Vivi accused suspiciously, glaring at the older woman with distrust.
Robin simply smiled. "Just getting a drink," she explained, holding up a glass of milk as proof. She was staring down at the distraught Vivi softly.
"Don't worry too much about your powers," Robin soothed gently, just as she turned to walk away. "Sometimes it takes a while. You'll find out what they are eventually…"
Vivi watched her go, feeling the anger and the hurt boil up inside her. Suddenly, Vivi felt like she was about to cry, but no tears seemed to come. Furious with the unfairness of it all, Vivi slammed her hand down viciously at a nearby tangerine tree.
Yet there was no impact. Vivi's hand simply phased through the branches, completely dematerialising into dust, before reappearing on the other side. Her hand didn't feel any different.
Vivi glared at the hand in shock, and suddenly she knew that she had found her powers. Around her, the soil was drying up and turning into sand. Nami's precious tangerines were eroded by her presence.
The princess was left motionless, staring at her new-found abilities. She recognised them well…
Vivi had never been one for swearing, but now it seemed like it was appropriate.
"Holy shit! " Vivi gasped quietly, while the sand around her started to swirl.
At the other side of the Going Merry, Zoro staggered out of the bed, frowning heavily. Today had not been a good day, he thought finally.
His fight against Tashigi had been the embarrassing one of his life, and that was even including his regular beat downs from Kuina. He would have loved to forget all about it, but the memory was already scarred into his brain.
He still couldn't walk properly. He was forced to waddle everywhere, and tenderly nurse his crotch back to health. The last time he went to the toilet, there had been a large amount of blood involved.
Plus, Chopper had to bandage up his groin. That had been an experience Zoro was rapidly trying to erase from memory.
And I kissed her, Zoro thought furiously. In the middle of a fight. It was shameful and embarrassing, and he couldn't believe he had actually done it. And the kiss had been…
Well, it had been…
Zoro gulped, taking a deep breath to calm himself. Today had not been a good day, and tonight he was left to do something truly unpleasant.
The swordsman hobbled around the ship, slowly heading towards the kitchen. There was a light on inside the room.
"Nami! Vivi! Robin!" Sanji was singing gently as he cooked. "Three beautiful ladies on one ship! And they will all fall in love with me once they've tasted…"
His voice trailed off as Zoro walked through the door. Zoro was glaring at Sanji unhappily.
"Marimo…" Sanji greeted, the sing-song voice instantly replaced by a cool greeting. "What are you doing in my kitchen?"
Zoro growled, trying to force the words out. "I…" The statement very nearly choked him. "… I need your help…"
Sanji was curious now. He leant back on the benches and lit a cigarette calmly. "Help with what?" Sanji said calmly, looking Zoro up and down.
The swordsman would have much preferred to cut off his own fingers, one by one, than by here. But still, he finally managed to spit the words out.
"I need advice…" he grumbled quietly.
Sanji raised a curly eyebrow. The chef was starting to enjoy himself now. "Advice on…?"
Zoro gulped. He could feel whatever pride he had left being shredded. "If you tell anybody about this," he warned seriously. "I will kill you."
Sanji nodded with bemusement, while Zoro was still wrestling with the words.
"I need advice on…" It was painful to watch. Finally, Zoro's pride collapsed. He sighed in defeat. "I need advice on women…"
The chef nodded, and was silent for several seconds. Then, he slowly took out another cigarette, lit it carefully, before taking a very deep breath.
Sanji's laughter could be heard all the way in Aluburna.
This is marks the end of the first "Arc" of the story, and from now on it's heading towards Sky Island. I'm really looking forward to that story.
So, Vivi got the Sand Sand fruit, because I figured that was just the most fitting power for her. Thanks for all the suggestions, but I really like the irony in Vivi getting Crocodile's old power.
Luffy's got a brand new Seastone jitte, too - Smoker's going to pretty annoyed about that for a while :)
And Zoro got two very unfortunate kicks after trying to kiss Tashigi. Sorry if I shamed him too much, but I was trying to show how completely out of his depth he was.
Plus, I was trying to make it realistic. In my experience, a kick to the crotch is the most common outcome after kissing a girl.
…
… Have I been doing it wrong…?
Next Chapter: "Girl Problems".