Chapter 5: Departing on an Orange Sunset
Without missing a beat Luffy grabbed Nami and burst through the ceiling of the house, being careful that any shrapnel wouldn't hurt the girl.
…
All those who were left behind were stunned. They were there for barely three seconds and in under a second the person, or people now were gone.
"What are you all just standing around slacked-jawed for?! GO FIND THEM!"
"YES SIR!"
The grunts and lackeys ran off in different directions covering as much ground as possible.
'I didn't think there'd be more than one person but considering how the boy reacted and how fast he got away he's likely the one responsible for taking those three and the one who tried to steal from us earlier. The girl is expected just his underling. No matter, they can run and hide all they want, they'll be caught eventually
-o-
"BLAAACH"
Nami was hunched over the side of the roof she and Luffy were on. Neither she nor her stomach was prepared for the speed with that Luffy put them both through
"S-sorry about that"
…
The awkward silence was filled only by the sound of Nami retching and the barf hitting the ground below them.
"... If it makes you feel any better I burnt up my slippers while trying to escape"
-o-
"I hate you, I hate you if every fiber of my being," said Nami after recomposing herself
"I-... I can accept that" was the only reply Luffy could think of and he looked down in shame.
"But-"
Luffy looked back up
"I would've done the same thing when I saw that guy, heck I may have even left you behind, so… I'm trying to keep myself neutral"
…
"I'm still not going to join your crew."
"Tch!"
"But what was that guy doing here? He should be in the grand line! Not here in the east blue, what would he gain from coming out here?!"
"I think know the reason"
Nami looked back at Luffy
"Basically buggy taxes his men whatever they make. Almost like the warlord system. He and Beast Master Mohji made a competition out of it where they see who can offer up more to Buggy. I talked to one of his men, and while they didn't know Cabaji was here they did mention a due date. Cabaji probably got scared and made his rounds to all of his divisions to check if they made enough."
"...so what your saying is, the reason why one of the top commanders of an emperors crew is here is because of sheer dumb luck"
"...while that's not what I meant…yup, right on the money"
" *$&#^!"
Luffy has impeccable hearing. All of Luffy's five senses are so much greater than what a normal person experiences. Hell, he could tell when someone is lying just by smelling them. But he couldn't understand a damn thing Nami just said.
"W-Woah there I think you should-"
Nami grabbed Luffy by his collar and shook him like he owed her money
"CALM DOWN?! CALM DOWN!? IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO SAY?! HOW CAN I CALM DOWN?!"
Luffy wasn't on the verge of tears… but his eyes were glossy. Nami was very scary. But it didn't stop him from smiling this was the hardest he smiled all day.
"B-by realizing that the more noise y-you make, th-the more likely they are to find us?"
*!-*
Nami had a blank look on her face her entire body was frozen
"N-Nami? Are you okay?"
Nami had let go of Luffy and sat down on the roof beside him. Taking in deep breaths all the while.
"S-sorry, I usually don't get so riled up i-it's that…" Nami began getting more choked up, her face turned red, snot began running down her nose, and tears threatened to break lose any second
"Whoa, uh…" Luffy had no idea how to react to this situation.
"I'm so close."
"Huh?" Luffy thought that Nami was scared because she had just brushed against death. That's how any normal person would react when faced with a threat like an emperor's crew hunting you down. No, she was more concerned with another matter entirely.
"... i-if you don't mind me asking? What is it you're close to?"
…
"Two and a half billion berries"
*?!*
"What?! What in the world would you need two and half billion berries for?!"
"For personal reasons. Reasons that would've never happened if pirates never existed."
Luffy looked down in shame. He had just told this girl that he was a pirate and that she should join his crew. He said yesterday that people shouldn't admire pirates, yet here he was glorifying a pirate's life without considering her circumstances.
"... alright I've decided," said Luffy getting up
"Huh?" replied Nami wiping away her tears
"From this point on I'll be your bodyguard. No matter what I'll get you off this island along with any treasure here, even if it means taking down Cabaji."
"HUH?!"
"After taking a closer look at you, you've got some pretty developed muscles and a bunch of scars. You've gone above and beyond to achieve this goal you've set for yourself. I'd be the world's biggest jerk if I let a couple of pirates get in the way. Oh, and we'll be working as partners, so you don't gotta call yourself a pirate"
He turned to face Nami with his hand extended.
"Deal?" he asked with a look of sheer determination and a big smile.
Nami just looked at him. A million thoughts whirl around in her head.
"Ha Ha Ha!" she laughed. She laughed at the absurdity of the situation unfolding before her.
Luffy quickly adopted a blush across his face
"W-What's so funny?!"
"You've got to be the corniest person I've ever seen," Nami said while wiping tears from her eyes. The good kinds of tears.
The blush from his face looked like it spread to every inch of his being.
"F-F-Fine then! If you don't want my help-!"
"No, no, no. I didn't mean it like that. I'll gladly accept your offer" She said while grabbing Luffy's hand and shaking it.
"Oh, and can you forget about that little breakdown that was kind of- no, really embarrassing." Nami looked down at the ground-the roof- and scratched the back of her head abashedly.
"Oh yeah, don't worry about it!" Luffy reassured Nami.
"So you got any ideas Nami?"
"Hmmm… I think I have an idea."
-o-
'I knew she was gonna backstab me but I didn't think it'd be so blatant'
Luffy could tell the breakdown she had was a complete sham, though he'd be a liar if he said he didn't believe her for a second.
It was just the way she acted was just a bit too janky. Fearing for her life and then, all of a sudden, believing that a stranger could protect her through it all. That and his heightened sense rose many other red flags.
Perhaps a few acting lessons from CP9 could polish up because not only was her acting a bit unnatural, it revealed a little bit of the truth. During her performance, her mask cracked, again just for a second.
If it weren't for that single moment Luffy would've just ditched her entirely. And because of that second, he's bound in rope and sea-stone cuffs, at the feet of all the pirates he was trying to run away from including Circus Master Cabaji, and for some reason, Beast Master Mohji was here too.
"So…who won" Cabaji looked toward Mohji
"Neither of us, I guess. We agreed the winner was whoever captured them, and they did turn themselves in so…"
"...how about… an additional 15% when we make our tributes to the boss"
"... it hurts… but pirates gotta have a code."
'Pirates having a code? What joke." Nami thought to herself, careful not to let her thoughts seep into her face.
"So! I'm sure you can understand my situation. My employer and I were having a little dispute. He's an idiot so I thought I'd join up with you!"
…
"Huh?"
…
"AH HA HA HA!"
All the pirates burst out laughing. Even the stoic circus master couldn't hold back his amusement.
"Idiot, eh? I like the way she operates! What do ya' think Cabajji? Ha Ha Ha!"
"I'd do the same in her shoes. I would never serve an incompetent man" he replied to Mohji
"So? Am I part of the crew?"
"No."
"W-what?"
"Joining an emperor's crew takes more than turning in your boss. It'll put us more on guard, considering the fact you betrayed your employer" Cabaji explained
Nami almost had a heart attack after hearing that.
"However, we have no reason to be antagonistic towards you either. You are fairly weak which means that if you do choose to betray us, we can deal with you white little to no effort"
Nami wasn't sure if she should leap for joy after hearing he wouldn't kill her or pass out due to how nonchalantly Cabaji said easy killing her would be.
"Though that last part does lead to a question I have. How did you handle him so easily? He was strong enough to take out three of my men. By east blue standards that should be a monumental feat."
This snapped Nami out of her thought.
"Oh, I snuck behind him and cuffed him with seastone."
*?*
Cabaji walked ass nami and towards Luffy. He crouched down and brushed his hand against the handcuffs, feeling his strength leave him.
"Hmm" Cabaji sat there still crouched deep in his thoughts.
"Alright, this explanation is acceptable."
'YES! Mission: In-n-Out is a success! Pirates are so dumb and easy to manipulate. While they're busy handling Luffy I'll make my getaway. Unfortunately, I have to leave behind all the possible treasures but If I work hard enough I should be done in a couple of months another year at most.'
-o-
"KANPAI!"
Mohji, against the wishes of Cabaji, held a welcome party for Nami. Cabaji at first had deemed the ordeal a 'ridiculous' but his men insisted on it. The men didn't care for nami, no, they just wanted to party. Despite mocking the affair Cabaji gave in when Mohji bribed him with a seventy-five-year-old bottle of South Blue Wyatt wine.
*F-TOMP*
"N-no more…"
"Aw, what's the matter? Can't hold your liquor?"
Nami had gotten herself into a drinking tournament among the crew and just won the finals
"WE HAVE A NEW CHAMPION! HA HA HA!"
"Damn girl! Where'd you learn how to drink like that?!"
There was also a fair bit of betting going on so there was a hefty prize for Nami.
'Twenty-five… twenty-six… twenty-seven million berries! Who 'da thunk I would've managed to rip these guys off? Now, just to party a little bit longer and make my swift get-away'
After counting her bills she walked over to the cage Luffy was in, only to see him pigging out over several sausages links, cornish hens, red meat dumplings, king crab legs, and grilled mochi sticks.
"Wha-, H-how'd you get that? Did someone give some food to you?"
"I grabbed them."
Nami was taken aback by the bluntness and ludicrousy of his answer.
"What?"
"You heard me. I grabbed them."
"N-no, I mean how did you-?"
All of a sudden Luffy, like a damn vacuum cleaner, sucked up all the food that was in front of him leaving no trace that there was any food, to begin with.
Needless to say, this left Nami even more confused
"H-how did do..that? Why did you-?"
"HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! YOU PICKED THE WRONG PARTNER LITTLE THIEF"
Nami turned around to see a slightly intoxicated Mohji walking toward them.
'Did he know that he was heading over here?'
"Partner? She's not my partner!"
"Heh heh heh! Not your partner anymore, eh? Can't blame you, she did betray you after all"
Mohji bent down to look Luffy eye-to-eye.
"The punishment for crossing an emperor's crew is severe! I talked it over with Cabaji and we've decided what your fate shall be"
"Are you gonna let me go?"
"Yes, we're going to let you go- OF COURSE, WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET YOU GO! ARE YOU DAFT!?"
Mohji turned around to face the rest of the crew.
"MEN! LOAD THE HERMIT BALL!"
"YAAR!"
"AYE AYE!"
"HOORAY!"
Cabaji looked from the sidelines laying down on what looked to be a pool chair and sipping a finely aged wine while watching the chaos unfold.
"Hermit ball ready, boss man!"
"Very well! Now for a demonstration of power!"
The men had loaded a cannon with the Hermit ball and pointed it toward a row of houses.
*BOOOM-OOM-OOM-OOM-OOM-OOM*
"Ah-..." Nami was speechless at the destruction caused. A single cannon completely obliterated everything in front of it and spread like a cone causing even more damage. The blast had gone farther than the town itself destroying a portion of the neighboring forest. It had even carved out the earth.
"YAAAY!" the men had cheered in awe of the spectacle
"Ha Ha Ha! Left speech, huh Nami? Don't worry that was just a smaller one, we're only trying to have fun!"
'THAT WAS A SMALLER ONE?!'
"Now it's your turn girlie! Prove your loyalty by blowing your former boss into chunks of meat with this cannon! Show us you're ruthless enough to join an emperor's crew! KILL YOUR FORMER BOSS!
Nami looked at Mohji in shock and then glanced at an expressionless Luffy.
"You want me to… k-kill him? Th-that's okay commander… I don't need to do that… Hey, let's just drink some more instead!? Let's forget about that loser!
"Do it" Mohji said with a grin.
"Um…" Nami couldn't move
"YEAAHH!"
"DO IT NOW! BLOW HIM TO PIECES!"
Nami couldn't think
"BLAST HIM! BLAST HIM!"
"BLOW HIM APART!"
"DO IT!
Nami couldn't breathe
"BLOW HIM TO PIECES"
"NAMI!" Mohji called out "STOP STALING AND LIGHT THE CANNON!"
Nami couldn't kill Luffy
"What's the matter? Your hands are shaking."
"Huh?" Nami looked up from the ground towards Luffy.
In that one moment, the entire world ceased to exist. She couldn't hear the cries from the pirates, she didn't feel bloodlust rising from behind, she had even forgotten her promise to… right now it was only her and Luffy.
"That's what you get… for going against pirates unprepared."
What Luffy said snapped her out of her trance and reminded her of the cruelty of the world.
"Unprepared?! Do you mean not being prepared to kill somebody like it's nothing? Is that what it means to be 'prepared' to be a pirate?"
"No, it means being prepared to put your life on the line for what you believe in," Luffy said with a determined smile.
This snapped nami out of her panic fuel state she was is. For the first time in a good minute or two, Nami could think. And think she did, think about what Luffy just said.
"Tsk, this is taking too long."
One of the pirates said. That same pirate walked forward and made his way towards Nami, snatching the fuse and lighting a match.
"Were ya playing hook or did ya not know how to light-"
The pirate was cut off by a flail knocking his head to the ground. It didn't hurt but it was enough to piss him off. Him and everyone watching.
'Crap! What did I just do?!' Nami thought to herself
"TRAITOR! AND AFTER WE GRACIOUSLY WELCOMED YOU TO OUR CREW!
"Oh! So you are saving me! Shi! Shi! Shi!" Luffy said with a big dumb grin
"Get over yourself! I just got carried away is all… I just don't want to be a murdering-son-of-a-bitch like all of you!"
Nami took a few steps back from the approaching mob
"You pirates took someone dear to me… I'LL NEVER BECOME SCUM LIKE YOU!"
'There it is' Luffy thought 'the truth I saw peaking through the mask'
"You fucking bitch-!"
The pirate that Nami had hit was cut off, not by nami, but by Luffy stretching his leg out knocking him out this time.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!" was everyone's general reaction
'How did he do that?!' Nami thought
'Did Cabaji lie about it being sea stone?!' ran through Mohjis' head
'Those were a hundred percent genuine sea stone, how could he-?!' Cabaji was not able to finish his thoughts due to Luffy interrupting them.
"CAGED TORRENT!"
Luffy unleashed a barrage of kicks that the pirates could not see. As a result, they caught a flurry of feet in their… everything. The only ones who did dodge were Cabaji and Mohji. Nami ducked to avoid getting hit, but the feet weren't going to hit her in the first place.
"Ha! Not so tough are you now-?" it was now Luffy's turn to be interrupted
*BOOOM-OOM-OOM-OOM-OOM-OOM*
… only that this time it was a cannon who was the interrupting
"LUFFY!" Nami called out
'He's gotta be dead' is what the two Master of Festives thought
…
*Cough* *Cough*
From the ashes and smoke, a vantablack silhouette walks out. Only its eyes were visible, its hands bound behind its back, and what looked to be a straw hat resting on its head.
"Just in the nick of time" Luffy had said under his breath
Luffy, still in a coat of vantablack, grabs the back of Namis' shirt with his teeth and jumps away.
…
"I'M GONNA FUCKING KILL THAT ORANGE-HAIRED BIMBO AND STRAW HAT BRAT" Cabaji shouted with pure animosity.
"No"
"WHAT?!"
"I will," said Mohji in a calm voice
"I should've killed them both instead of indulging in my desires. I'll only kill the girl though. Buggy will surely be interested in a boy who is immune to the effects of sea stone" that calm voice Mohji had in the beginning slowly ramped up to a voice restraining one red hot rage.
"...fine. Use your pets to find them" Cabaji walked back to his chair and began drinking his wine. Albeit with a much tighter grip.
Mohji looked down at his waist and grabbed a red and white ball with a black line in the middle.
"Come on out Riche."
He threw the ball out in front of him and the ball opened up with red transparent lighting leaping out of the ball and into the shape of a beast.
-o-
Luffy had leaped from rooftop to rooftop, careful not to leave any tracks.
'We should be far enough away from the tavern. They won't be able to catch up anytime soon…but-'
"What the hell was that Luffy?! Those cuffs are genuine seastone! How could you-"
Nami looked down to see an exhausted Luffy on the verge of passing out.
"Shit!- Hey, Luffy! Stay with me!" Nami said while slapping his face.
"Hah, hah… s-stop slapping me…"
Nami stopped and backed away to give him room to breathe
"D-do you have the key…" Luffy asked
"Uh, yes! Lemme just…got it!"
Nami made her way towards Luffy to unlock-
"RUFF! RUFF!"
"EEP!"
A white dog covered in bandages and scars `had appeared from nowhere and started barking at the duo. This of course startled Nami, dropping the keys.
"Hah! it's just a dog Nami!...*hah *hah*... you scared of dogs or something?"
"Shut-!"
*Chonk* *ulp*
The bickering duo ceased their dispute as they watched this white dog swallow the key.
…
…
…
"-Ah"
"SPIT THAT OUT RIGHT YOU DAMN MUTT, THAT AIN'T FOOD! " Luffy screeched as he proceeded to stretch his arms to strangle the poor dog.
"YIP! YIP!"
"HEY, YOU DERN WHIPPER-SNAPPERS! DON'T YOU PICK ON POOR 'OL CHOU-CHOU"
"Huh? You are you old-timer?" sad Luffy pausing his assault on Chou-Chou.
"Who am I? I'm the mayor of this town, Mayor Boodle, that's who!
-o-
Both Luffy and Nami explained the situation to mayor Boodle, from how they met, what happened at the tavern, and now when Chou-Chou ate the key to the sea-stone cuffs.
"Hm... I see… if you can preserve your…powers, while still where the cuffs can't you just… stretch your arms and hands to the point where you can slide them through." Said Mayor Boodle.
…
"Why didn't I think of that?/that makes sense," said Nami and Luffy
Luffy stretched his hands and arms, with Namis' help to get his hand through the cuffs, it took a lot of effort but they were able to remove the cuffs.
"AAGH!"
*F-TOMP/F-TOMP*
Though both were flung backward when the cuffs came off.
"Arf! Arf! Arf!" and Chou-Chou seemed to be laughing at the two lying on the ground
"Grrr!" Luffy looked ready to fight the dog once again but Nami stopped him
"SO! The dog's name is Chou-Chou?" asked Nami trying to stop Luffy from beating up the dog.
"That's right."
"But whys is he all scuffed up?" asked Luffy
Chou-Chou walks past the group causing the rest to follow.
"There was a shop he was guarding and a couple of days ago I found the poor lad sprawled all over the place lying in a pool of his blood. My best guess is that the ad had a bit of a run-in with the pirates" Answered Mayor Boodle
A dark expression grew on Namis' face
"I took him back to the refuge us towns-folk constructed and patched him up there. But yesterday he was good enough to walk, and despite his injuries, he wanted to go back to the shop he was guarding. All of yesterday and last night he was barking and howling non-stop so I gave in, for my sake and the sake of the others."
"Why does the dog want to go back to the shop so bad?" Luffy asked
"A good friend of mine took care of Chou-Chou for a very long time. And about ten years ago he and Chou-CHou opened up that humble shop. They've got a lot of good memories there, and so do I.." Mayor Boodle's voice got softer and began to faintly crack the more he talked.
"Unfortunately his advanced age began taking its toll… he went to the hospital three months ago and… well I'm sure you can understand"
Namis' expression grew softer, her heart filling with pity for Chou-Chou.
"The poor thing… you mean been waiting for his master all this time?" asked Nami
"Well… that's what everyone says, but… call me a sentimental old fool but I've been around Chou-Chou long enough to know that he's a smart dog… I'm sure he understands his situation"
"Then why does he still guard the store?"
"That store is the only thing left of his dearest friend… it's his treasure. Wouldn't you do the same?" he said while he looked at Nami with a solemn expression
Nami looked down in both understanding and somberness
"I already am," she said just under her breath. Completely unheard of by Mayor Boodle and Chou-Chou but clear as day to Luffy.
"ROOWWRR!"
*KRASH-BOOOM*
"What was that monstrous noise?!" the Mayor asked
"Crap! It must be Mohji!" replied Nami
While the Old man and Thief were panicking Chou-Chou burst forward and ran like his life depended on it.
"Where's Chou-chou going?!"
"...! That sound came in the direction of the store!"
Upon this realization instead of running away, all three ran for Chou-Chou in fear for the dogs' safety. Luffy used his flames to propel himself, actually catching up to Chou. he picked the dog up and carried him the rest of the way. But when they got there nothing was left
"What the…" was all Luffy said
Nami and Mayor Boddle were caught taking in the same sight as Luffy saw
A single building, the source of a raging fire.
Chou-Chou scrambled from Luffys' arms. It tried running in but the heat was much to bear, especially for such an injured dog.
"RUFF! RUFF! RUFF!"
*FWOOOSH*
"RUFF! RUFF! RUFF! RUFF! RUFF! RUFF!"
*ROOOAR*
"RUFF! RUFF! RUFF!"
"Damn pirates, they're all the same! They take what's most precious to a person and trample all over it and laugh" Nami then directed her ire toward Luffy
She walked over to him and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, pulling him down to look her dead in the eye.
"I OUGHTA KILL YOU RIGHT NOW BEFORE YOU CAN GET CREW AND PILLAGE A POOR TOWN!"
"NOW! NOW! SIMMER-!"
"RUFF! RUFF! RUFF! "
The hostility was broken by the cries of Chou-Chou. Chou-Chou sat in front of the building and barked and howled which was just as loud as the howls and roars of the flame. No one could understand what Chou-Chou was saying except for…
*f-wack!*
Luffy smacked Namis' hand off his shirt and walked up right next to the grieving dog. Luffy, without even blinking, had completely dispersed the flames in an instant only leaving the burnt remains of the shop.
"Don't blame yourself"
This caught everyone off-guard. Chou-Chou especially.
"Even if you were here, the guys who caused this are way outta your league."
"Woof?! Woof?!"
"I can hear you loud and clear"
…
"Arf…"
"You ain't gotta do anything, just leave the rest to me."
Luffy turned around from the burnt building walking just past the shocked duo. And at the top of his lungs-
"HEEEEEEEYYY! I'M HERE DAMMIIITT! COME AND GET MEEEEE!"
…
Silence utter silence
*fwoohm, Fwoohm, FWOOHM*
Followed by the sound of wing flaps slowly encroaching until the figure finally landed in front of Luffy.
"A Teostra? No, it's too big and the colors are a lot more saturated"
"So you're more educated than you look." said a familiar voice coming from the back of the beast.
Mohji jumped down from the custom saddle the Teostra adorned.
A large beastly lion, reminiscent of the manticores of legends but even more incredible. A mane more majestic than could be described, thick scales covering the limbs and torso, dragon wings and tail with a tuft of fur at the end, and a fierce head and two robust horns on either side and its body was covered in a fiery aura. But what stuck the most was the massive box of pet food in its mouth.
"Richie here is a Blast Commander Teostra, far greater than-"
"Who asked," Luffy said bluntly
"Any- w-what?"
"I don't care about that stupid lion. Imma beat that oversized fire cat redder than it already is."
"GRRRRR/HUUH?!" was all Richie and Mohji could say.
And "LUFFY?!/AAARF?!" was all Nami, Boodle, and Chou-Chou could say.
"...Fine then"
Mohji reached down to his waist and grabbed five more red and white balls
"If you don't wanna be caught up in this, RUN." Luffy directed to those behind him. Thankfully they all got the hint, even Chou-Chou.
Mohji threw the ball in front of him forming five monstrous beasts.
"Rhea the Ignition Empress Lunastra, Tetsuo the Berserk Drilltusk Tetsucarbra, Gabriel the Redhelm Arzuros, Avery the Fulgur Anajanath, and Thomas the Boltreaver Astolos. All six members of my party, let's see you 'beat them red' now." said Mohji with a sadistic grin.
"..."
"What's the matter?! SCARED SHITLESS?! HAH! HAH!"
"I wonder, what kind of devil fruit allowed you to tame such 'untamable beasts'" Luffy said with a grin of his own.
"Hmm… it won't matter anyway since you'll be dead in a couple of minutes. I ate the Poke Poke fruit. A devil fruit that allows me to capture any beast or monster and instantly tame them.
Luffy stood there in contemplation, then a mischievous smile spread ear to ear
"So what you're saying is you're a fraud?"
"WHAT?!"
"I mean you're not a beast tamer, you're a devil fruit user. You say you're someone who can communicate with wildlife when all you're doing is using a devil fruit. You should change your name from, Beast Tamer Mohji to Mohji the Hack. Shi! Shi! Shi!"
"KILL HIM! KILL HIM NOW!"
-o-
*BO-HWOOM*
Nami heard a large explosion from behind followed by a shockwave that knocked everyone off their feet.
"W-what the"
*GRAAANH*
*SHNRAAAH-NH-NH-NH*
*NRAOOH*
*BWARAAAH-H-H*
Cut off by the beastly roars, Nami paused and seriously looked back at her own life. From the earliest memory she had to the present, she racked her brain trying to understand how she got to this point in her life as well as trying to make sense of the situation.
She had seen her fair share of monsters but nothing on this scale. Pirates from an emperors crew, a fire boy who could stretch his body- without the use of a devil fruit-, and now what she hears as an actual real-life monster pulled straight from the fairytales Bellemere used to read to her and her sister.
There were so many questions running through her head. 'How did he stretch with the cuffs on?' 'What was the source of the cries she heard'? And the one question she just couldn't stop thinking of was, 'Could Luffy beat him?'
They had all gotten up from the ground, Mayor Boodle, and Chou-Chou ready to start running once again.
"Oi girlie! What are you doing?!"
"Arf! Arf!"
They both turned their heads to check on Nami only to see her running back the conflict.
-o-
*hah* *hah*
Nami had run back only to find buildings utterly decimated and the ground pulverized and in the center of it all, Luffy. Luffy was fighting a giant lighting insect, a lighting t-rex, a monster bear, and a giant frog with one hell of an underbite.
"YOU CALL THIS A CHALLENGE?!"
"GRAAANH!"
The T-rex had lunged its head forward to clamp its jaws around Luffy. Luffy slide underneath the attack and kicked the animal's head from underneath, generating an explosion from his feet for good measure.
"I AIN'T EVEN FIRED UP!"
"What the fuck…" was all she could muster up
She looked on as the battle continued until something caught her eye. It was Mohji and the Manticore from before, but now there was another blue manticore as well. And all three watched on from the distance just as she was.
"SHNRAAAH-NH-NH-NH!"
She looked down back at the action to see that the insect dragon had conjured a beam sword from the crest of its head! And if that wasn't enough the t-rex that Luffy had just knocked out was back on its feet discharging a huge amount of energy. The energy that the insect dragon was absorbing!
The insect dragon blitzed the battlefield charing right into Luffy biting right into his torso.
"WHAT THE?!" Nami couldn't even see the bug move. To her, it looked like the damn thing teleported.
"Shi, Shi, Shi! You're not the only one who can absorb energy!"
Luffy pulled the insect's jaws apart and pushed it back, then charged at the bug releasing a massive explosion.
"Hah! How'd you like-"
*K-SMASH!"
A massive boulder had been flung in Luffy's direction with the intent of crushing the boy but instead shattered to a million pieces upon hitting him.
Luffy looked towards his new target. It was Tests who had flung the boulder using its massive jaws. Luffy's feet erupted with flames propelling him straight at the giant frog.
The frog tried to jump out of the way but it wasn't fast enough. With its belly exposed Luffy delivered a devastating kick to beastly knocking it a good distance away.
Luffy opened his mouth to make another snarky comment only to immediately shut it and get in an athletic stance.
Just then the Arzuros and Anajanth charged at Luffy from both sides at speeds no animals their size should be able to reach.
Right as they were on top of Luffy, the young boy quickly held his breath. An action Nami wasn't expecting.
Then all of a sudden a massive torrent of flames engulfed the monster and Luffy. Once the fire had vanished all that remained were the charred bodies of a t-rex and a bear with Luffy unharmed.
"Haaa, what now 'hack'? Are you going to fight me yourself or are you going to make those two kitten fight for you?" Luffy taunted the animal tamer.
Without a word, Mohji held up two opened red and white balls in each hand, and the once conscious beasts dematerialized and were absorbed into the ball.
"Damn you're annoying! But I haven't been sitting on the sidelines for nothing."
Richie and Rhea rushed upon Luffy. Not at the speed, Astalos went at, but fast enough that their figures were blurred for a second. Luffy quickly got in an athletic stance, once again bracing himself for an attack that never came.
The two mythical beasts did charge at Luffy but instead of attacking him circled him at insane speeds. Then taking flight still circling Luffy. The more they moved the more embers fell off of the two and using their wings concentrated the embers around Luffy.
"What's the matter, straw hat? Scared shitless at the sight of your death! Ha! Ha! Ha!"
Luffy knew that the Manticores were preparing for a big attack, but he couldn't take his eyes off the two beasts. They were moving perfectly synchronously, with each move one made complementing the actions the other made. Then both monsters ignited the ember surrounding Luffy, creating a devastating explosion.
"LUFFY!" Nami called out
Mohji followed that attack by shooting his pistol where Luffy should be standing.
'That boy should have been left vulnerable by that explosion', Mohji thought to himself 'he may be able to create flames, but he isn't immune to the lack of oxygen if he held his breath to create the explosion that took out Avery and Gabriel."
Mohji had intended for the other four party member to take him out, but as the battle progressed, he quickly gave up hope for that endeavor and watched Luffy like a hawk trying to pick him apart.
As the smoke cleared, Mohji got his answer. Luffy was still standing not a hair disturbed. The only difference was that his entire body was covered by vantablack, including his clothes and straw hat.
…
"I'm such an idiot, I can't believe I forgot about that weird haki you have." Mohji facepalmed "Oh well not like it'll change the outcome of this battle."
Richie and Rhea leaped towards Luffy both readying a slashing motion intending on cutting him to pieces. Instead, it was Luffy who made a slashing motion realizing a blade of fire towards the two. But upon making contact the flame blade displeased immediately.
In a split second, Luffy leaped backward to avoid the dual attackers.
"It's no use! The Richie and Rhea's hide it both thick and is lined with hairs that can't be set ablaze. This means, YOUR ATTACK ARE USELESS! AH! HA! HA! HA!" Mohji Luaghed sadistically
"Heh"
"HA!- huh?" Mohji was caught off guard by Luffy's snicker.
"Don't assume if can only make…"
Luffy stretched his arms wrapping them around Rhea's and Richie's bodies.
"FIRE!"
*KRRRZZT*
At that moment, Luffy produced enough electricity to power the entirety of new york for two weeks. While it's not enough electricity for new york to use in the long run, it was more than enough to fry the Blast Commander and Ignition Empress back into the red and white balls.
"H-how?"
"I could tell"
"Huh?"
"During the battle, at a certain point, you began watching me like a hawk. From that point onwards I held myself back a bit so as not to reveal my hand. But it looks like I didn't need to use my whole bag of tricks after all! Shi! Shi! Shi!"
"Grrrr" Mohji was furious. This no-name boy waltz in and beats his entire party, saying he held back, and now's taunting him! "I KILL YOU MY-OOF!
Mohji was cut off by Luffy delivering an absolute haymaker to his stomach knocking him out before he had a chance to use his haki.
"I can also tell you rely on your pets and haki due to your untrained physique," he said as looked down on the sprawled beast tamer
…
"You can come out now, should be fine, I don't sense anyone coming this way besides the old man and Chou-Chou"
"-Ah" Nami walked out from the building and out into the open meeting Luffy eye-to-eye"
"You knew I was there the entire time didn't you?"
"Yeeeah" Luffy put his hand behind his head. "But even if I called out to you, you probably wouldn't have come out, would you? Shi, shi, shi" he said with a playful grin
"..." Nami broke eye contact looking at the ground instead of Luffy. She knew she had no chance of beating those things so why did she feel guilty about not helping out?
"HEY!"
"WOOF! WOOF!
The elderly man and dog both looked like they had heart attacks when they saw what became of their town. Roughly an entire block had been demolished.
Mayor Boodle opened his mouth to say something with a furious expression. He then closed his mouth and thought about what he was going to say. He opened his mouth with a calm expression but was restrained
"If you were fighting anybody else and you caused this much damage, so help me god, I would have your head on a stick."
"Arf!"
"Tch, c'mon not you too Chou Chou!"
"Wait! Hold on a minute!"
Everyone paused to look at Nami
"There are so many things I need to ask you! First, you can talk to animals?!"
"Well I'm not talking to them, I can just understand them" replied Luffy
"Oh, I cAn JuSt UnDeR sTaNd ThEm, you say that as if everyone else can too." Nami facepalmed
"If you can understand them, meaning you don't talk in a way for them to understand, then are all animals intelligent or conscious?" asked Mayor Boodle.
"Well… I'm not sure about ALL animals but the ones I've talked to, and all the ones that probably popped into your head, have the intelligence ranging from a child to a pre-teen but the maturity of an adult if you get what I'm saying."
"Yes, yes I do."
"Oh yeah! And in cases where the animal is around people a lot, they develop the same speaking patterns such as slang or accents, pretty cool yeah?" said Luffy with a big grin on his face.
"Is that so?"
Mayor Boodle looked at the white dog as Chou Chou looked back
"How interesting"
"Can I ask to be a part of this conversation again?" bitterly asked Nami.
"Yeah, but you were never-"
"How did you still stretch?" Nami cut off Luffy not caring what he was going to say "Those were seastone cuffs! how could you still use your powers with those still on!?"
Luffy thought for a moment, literally less than a second, then smacked himself in the head
"That's right! I didn't tell you, Cabaji and his goons interrupted us."
Luffy reached down to touch the floor causing it to explode.
"What the!"
Not just the ground but the entire block had exploded into rectangular ribbons. Then those ribbons formed back into an untouched town. A perfect replication of what it looked like before all the carnage.
"WHAT THE HELL?!/WOOOF?!"
"The second part of my devil fruit, if you remember, is that I can disassemble and reassemble anything I touch and any object in contact with whatever I'm touching can also be disassembled and reassembled. Though I didn't mention that last part when we were talking about it."
"YOU DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT-"
"No, I did, 'Huh? No, my powers aren't that boring. I ate the Pyro Pyro fruit! I can produce and manipulate all forms of heat at will, I can also disassemble or reassemble anything I touch!'. Do you remember now?"
Nami stopped to think
"Yeah you did say that, exactly that… do you have"
"A perfect photographic memory? Yes, I do, it's how I was able to fix this town."
Luffy looked toward Mayor Boodle
"Though I never saw the interiors of the house so I just guessed"
"Well… I'm sure some janky furniture is a small price to pay to avoid months or maybe even a couple of years of work."
"Arf!"
"Thanks for being so understanding! And back to your question Nami." he faces Nami "If you touched me with seastone, do you think it'd reverse what I did to this place?"
"...No?" She replied unsure of her answer
"Yup!" just then three pulsating crystal formations appeared on his body with blue and pink particles surrounding them. Then a diamond, a large sheet of metal, and a blob of rubber seemingly came into existence, the diamond caught Nami's eye the most.
"I fused my body with these three objects giving me the property of a harder diamond, the strongest metal, and the most rubbery and stretchy substance ever made."
Luffy absorbed all three back into his body.
"You get it now?"
"Yeah, it makes sense when you put it like that."
"Okay" Luffy walked away from Nami to Chou Choua squatted to look him in the eye
"Now unfortunately I never saw what your shop looked like before it was torn but-" Luffy reached behind and pulled a box of doggy treats, the one Richie had in his mouth. "Tada! Sorry if it's a bit lackluster the rest got eaten or burned…"
'... He fought an emperor's right-hand man for the dog's sake"
"You did good! Even though I never saw you in action you fought well, I know you did!
…
*chomp*
Chou-Chou bit the box and walked away. But as he walked away he turned around and
"RUFF!"
"Thanks but, you'll need it more than I do! Shi! Shi! Shi!"
"Arf, arf, arf, arf!"
Chou Chou picked up the box back up and turned around continuing to walk back to the refugee camp the townspeople set up. Only this time he seemed to be laughing to himself
"Hmph…" Nami had a sweet expression on her face, happy that Chou-Chou finally had some closure.
"Hey! What did Chou-Chou say?" she asked.
"Oh, he said, good luck"
-o-
"MOHJI WAS DEFEATED!?" Cabaji asked incredulously.
" At's right Captain! He was crawlin' his way back, charred n' bruised!"
…
The crew stood silent and motionless as their captain grew redder and redder and his veins began to bulge.
"DAMN YOU MOHJI! BEATEN BY SOME NOBODY?! IF THIS GETS OUT, OUR REPUTATION'S SCTUTLED!"
He turned back around to face his men.
"LOAD THE CANNONS YOU SWABS! WE'VE GOT A TOWN TO DESTROY!"
-o-
"Hey, sorry I yelled at you."
"Huh? Oh right! Yeah, that's… yeah don't sweat it. I don't know the specifics but your beef with pirates is probably justified, not that I want to hear the details or anything…" replied Luffy
The look Nami gave Luffy almost implied that she had a newfound respect for this stranger.
"Hey, I had one more-"
"UNGRRRR! I CAN'T STANDS IT NO MORE!"
"Huh?!" Nami was cut off by Mayor Boodle's rage.
"I CAN'T STAND ANYMORE OF THIS CRUEL TORTURE! NOT AFTER THE WAY CHOU-CHOU AND THIS MAN FOUGHT BACK SO BRAVELY!"
"I'm only-" Luffy tried to speak up
"WHAT KIND OF MAYOR STANDS BACK AND WATCHES HIS TOWN BE DESECRATED IN THIS MANNER"
"Okay, nevermind" Luffy gave up with a hopeless smile
"Mayor Please! Calm down!" Nami tried to calm the elderly man.
"SOMETIMES A MANS GOTTA DO WHAT A MAN GOTTA DO! ISN'T THAT RIGHT SONNY?!"
Luffy smiled, his flame reignited. "That's right! You said it old man!"
"Forty long and arduous years 'We will rebuild here and forget the homes that those damn pirates destroyed'. Forty years of building this town from nothing, look at it now! This town built of the blood, sweat, and tears of us old-timers now turned into a bustling port! It's OUR life works"
He looked up to the skies and proclaimed to the heavens above
"THIS TOWN AND ITS PEOPLE ARE MY TREASURE! I'D BE A SORRY EXCUSE OF A MAYOR AND A MAN IF I DIDN'T TRY TO PROTECT THE TOWN! I'M GONNA FIGHT-"
-o-
"FIRE THE HERMIT BALL!"
-o-
*KAABOOOM-OOM-OOM-OOM-OOM-OOM*
The entirety of the row of buildings and houses to their left were destroyed. No evidence of their existence other than the rubble and the carved-out earth that replaced what originally stood there.
"KYAAAH!"
"AAARGH!"
"NRGH!
Luffy jumped to protect Nami and Mayor Boodle from the flying debris, stretching his body to shield the two.
*whooo*
A gentle breeze blew through, following the devastating shockwave created by the cannonball
…
"Is everybody alright?" Luffy asked
"Yeah I'm fine" Nami replied
"Same here, thank you lad," said Mayor boodle expressing his gratitude.
Luffy shrank back down to his original shape letting the two take see the aftermath.
"...! THAT TEARS IT"
"Mayor!" Nami called out"
"I CAN'T TAKE ANYMORE! I WON'T LOSE A SECOND TIME TO THOSE SEA RATS!"
His teeth clenched, jaw creaking.
"THESE PIRATES SHOW UP THINKING THEY CAN DO AS THEY PLEASE?!... BUT I WON'T LET 'EM WRECK FORTY YEARS OF HARD WORK"
His grip tightened around the spear, his knuckles turning red.
"I'M THE MAYOR! I WON'T TAKE THIS SITTING DOWN! IT'S TIME TO FIGHT!"
He ran towards the tavern where the pirates made base, but he didn't get far.
"Mayor! Wait, please!" Nami reached out and grabbed him by the shirt.
"LET ME GO, GIRLIE!"
"Getting yourself killed will accomplish nothing! You're being reckless!"
"I KNOW I'M BEING RECKLESS" The mayor shot back instantaneously with tears in his eye, causing Nami to let go.
"...The mayor… he was crying!"
"Ha, ha! Didn't look that way to me! Oh man, things are finally getting fun." Luffy said excitedly.
"This isn't a laughing matter!" Nami shouted at Luffy
"Don't worry! I like that old man I won't let him get himself killed. Besides every matter is a laughing matter!" Luffy said with childlike glee.
"You're crazy! How can you just stand there as if there's no weight to what's happening- what do even get out of this anyways?"
"A good time"
"Wha-" that comment caught Nami way off-guard. Did he mean he enjoyed the fighting? Did he find the situation amusing? Or-
"Why don't you join up with me, I'm not that interested in gold or money. You can have it all! That's what you wanted right?"
"...!" Nami forgot that he was initially trying to recruit her
"I won't become a pirate" she spoke with only truth and bluntness. "Let's just say we'll 'join forces'… working together towards a common goal". It was also the truth his offer was incredibly tempting
-o–
"CABAJIII! COME OUT YOU SORRY EXCUSE FOR A HUMAN BEING!
"Who dares…?"
Cabaji walked over to the ledge to see the face of the monkey who called him out
"State your name, and what mental illness you have for making a fool of yourself." Cabaji said coldly
"I'M THE MAYOR OF THIS HERE TOWN, MAYOR BOODLE! I HAVE BEEN IN CHARGE OF THIS PLACE SINCE YOU WERE PILLAGING NURSERIES AND TERRORIZING YOUR NANNIES! I'M HERE TO KICK YOU OUT, YOU DAMN FREELOADER!"
…
" HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!"
"BWAA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!"
" HAR! HAR! HAR!"
All the pirates fell to the floor laughing so hard they gave themselves stomach cramps and tears.
"Does this old coot think he can beat the captain?! AAH! HA! HA! HA!"
"Hmm…" Cabaji thought to himself "Kick me out? Just move away if we bother you so much it's just some town."
"SHUT UP YOU DAMN SEA PUP! I DON'T EXPECT A PIRATE TO UNDERSTAND MY FEELINGS!"
"And I don't expect some senile, dementia-rotting, addled old man to understand my feelings either."
Mayor Boodle opened his mouth to retaliate.
"I am the left-hand man to an emperor of the sea and you DARE to order ME around? I don't think so."
Cabaji reached into his vest pulling out a colt single action army aiming right at the man. And reach down to pull the-.
*!*
He ducked as if he were the one dodging a bullet. His men were confused until the crewmembers standing right behind him were blasted away by a raging fireball. Not even a second after Cabaji had ducked.
"... Strawhat" Cabaji said as if just saying his name was an insult to his own intelligence.
Both Nami and Luffy caught up to the old man. Luffy was walking towards them as if it was another Tuesday, Nami on the other hand looked to be extremely on edge.
"I'm here to clobber you until I see little birdies fly around your head, Shi! Shi!" Luffy proclaimed with a smirk
"You must be a pervert if you're coming back after being handcuffed and locked in a cage." Cabaji bit back.
"Hey Luffy, you can have fun fighting and all but… try not to wreck this place too much, the treasure might get caught up in your brawl as well!" Nami scolded Luffy
"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say"
"You young whippersnappers…"
Luffy and Nami turned their attention to Mayor Boodle.
"You're outsiders, this ain't your fight. It's mines!"
Mayor Boodle made a move towards Luffy trying to knock him out
"IT'S MY TOWN AND I'LL PROTECT IT! SO DON'T INTER-"
*TH-WAK!* *fwump*
Luffy backstepped and kicked Mayor Boodle in the chin knocking him out with little to no effort.
"MAYOR?!" Nami called out
"Huh?.." wall all Cabaji could muster out of his confusion.
"WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU?! WHY'D YOU ATTACK THE MAYOR?!
"He was in the way, could've gotten himself hurt," Luffy said as he cracked his knuckles "HEY CIRCUS EMO! GONNA COME DOWN 'N FIGHT OR ARE YA GONNA STAY UP THERE LIKE THE COWARD YOU ARE?"
"?!HUUUH?!"
"Luffy you-!" Nami ducked away trying to find cover.
"HERMIT BALL THAT PIECE OF SHIT! FIRE! FIRE! FIIIIRRE!"
*KABOOM!*
"That pea-shooter ain't gonna work against me! HUUUUFFFF!"
Luffy sucked up all the air around him inflating himself into the shape of a giant ball.
*FWOOP!*
Catching the cannonball with his stomach
"BOUNCY HOUSE…!"
*POOWF*
"SHIELD!"
And leaching it back to the people who sent it
"AAARRRGGGHH-!"
*KAABOOOM-OOM-OOM-OOM-OOM-OOM*
"Now that should even the odds."
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING! NOT EVE TELLING ME WHAT YOU WERE PLANNING!" Nami once again shook Luffy like he owned her money.
"You've got some nerve…" The some dissipated exposing Cabaji as he held his men up as meat shields. "This is the most I've been disgraced ever since I joined this crew… I'm so furious I can barely form a sentence"
"Nami back up…" Luffy warned Nami under his breath so Cabaji couldn't hear. Nami listened, heck she ran due to the caution he said it with.
"Oh yeah? Why should I care about what you did or didn't do without the backing of an emperor?" Luffy said, this time with confidence and boisterousness oozing from his character.
"Because before I 'HaD tHe BaCkInG oF aN eMpErOr' I wasn't called circus master" a sickly neon green fog and blue pixels began being emitted from Cabajis body. "My name used to be… Mysterio"
Luffy's entire world goes black with the green fog up to his waist.
"Oh, what the heck is this"
"Welcome Strawhatt"
Luffy turned around instantly to see Cabaji standing a good distance away from him.
"To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/To our world/"
From the lone Cabaji, clones of him materialized and surrounded Luffy. All fifty of them threw a throwing knife toward Luffy.
"C'mon I blocked a cannon, do you think that-ARGH!"
All fifty throwing knives penetrated his skin. For a couple of seconds, he was in complete agony then the pain vanished.
"What the?"
"It's my devil fruit" A Cabaji popped into existence and explained what Luffy was going through. "I ate the Illu Illu fruit. It allows me to create illusions that trick ALL five senses. Just then I tricked your sense of touch that you were stabbed by fifty knives"
"Are you serious?!"
"Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup/Yup"
-o-
Nami had gotten to the top of a roof in order to avoid the fog.
"What the hell is he doing?!"
Luffy was scrambling about screaming, he looked to be in pain in one moment then feeling nothing in the second. Not to mention the way he moved seemed that there were barriers in the way of his moving. But the most confusing part was that he was attacking and talking to something that wasn't even there. He'd be throwing fireballs into buildings when Cabaji was standing right in the open.
It took her a couple of minutes to brainstorm what was happening. Luffy was experiencing something she couldn't. Luffy was also constantly in that neon green fog. Not to mention Cabaji didn't move even once, hell Nami was pretty sure he didn't even blink.
'It one hundred percent has to be a devil fruit ability, and that fog has Luffy hallucinating. But what can I do?! It's not like I have-'
Nami realized something. She reach down to her pocket and pulled out the still-locked seastone cuffs she pulled Luffy free from.
-o-
…
Cabaji concentrated all his power attention on Luffy subjecting him to the worst kind of hell he could think of. Normally he wouldn't go this overboard, but this nobody humiliated him. And for that, the highest price must be-.
*Ch-Chink! Chink! Clang! Chink*
*!* *Fwump*
Cabaji felt all his strength leave him as he fell to his knees. He look down to see a chain with a weight at the end of it had been wrapped around his entire body binding his arms down. But what stood out about the chain was the handcuff that the chain was weaved through
"Gotcha bitch!"
He turned to see a familiar face holding the chain
"NAAMII!" He shouted with rage
"LUUFFY! CATCH!"
Nami threw the axe end of her chain towards Luffy
"Nice!"
Luffy grabbed the axe and pulled it it taught
"Oh no," was the first and only thing that Cabaji both said and thought
"OH, YES!" was the first and only thing that Luffy said and thought
Luffy swung Cabaji overhead and sent a powerful electrical current through chain and directly for Cabaji.
"THUNDEROUS SWING!"
Cabaji hit the ground cratering it upon impact and fried just like Mohji.
"LET'S GOOO!"
-o-
"Seven hundred eighty-seven~, seven hundred eighty-eigh~t, seven hundred eighty-nine! Seven hundred eighty-nine million berries! EEEE!"
"So what, wanna join my crew now? Shi! Shi! Shi!"
"For the time being being I guess~."
"That's great! Now let's-"
"Wait hold on a minute!" Nami put a pause on the soon-to-be festivities.
"Huh?"
"I'm carrying a lot of loot. I'll go back to my… base of operations…" She said unsuredly. "And we can meet up later! Hows that sound?"
"Whaaaat that's such a bore" luffy pouted
"How 'bout I sweeten the deal." she pulled out a spare map from one of her pockets.
"Hey how much space DO you have in those-"
"HERE" Nami shoved the mapp into Luffy's chest
"These are the directions to a floating restaurant I frequent. It's about a day's away but let's meet up in… four days! Hows that sound, and their we can discuss the terms of my… employment. Also they have AMAZING food over there."
"Hmmm… yeah sure, okay. Oh! Lemme go wake up the mayor."
"Great! Now let's-"
"Hey! You guys…'
"Hm?/Huh?" Nami and Luffy looked toward a guy and the large group of people behind him, all holding makeshift weapons.
"..We're the citizens of this here town"
"Did the pirates mutiny or somethin'? C'mon, speak up!" another one chimed in.
"Hoh, just the townspeople, that's a relief. Thought you guys were more pirates for a second." Nami began to talk. "It's a looong story but to sum it up-"
"Hey it's the Mayor!"
"Mayor! Are you okay?!"
"It's these damned pirates fault!"
"Excuse me? You wouldn't happen to know who did this to our Mayor, would you?"
A young but soft-spoken women walked up to Nami and Luffy.
"Huh? Oh it was me." Luffy said as if he were asked the the days weather or date.
"HUH?!"
The entire group, now mob, looked at the duo.
"WHAT THE HELL LUFFY?!"
"Well you said you were gonna sum up what happened, you were gonna tell them anyways." Luffy said as he rolled his eyes.
"I WAS GOING TO LEAVE THAT OUT!" Nami screeched out.
"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO DID THIS!."
"YOU BASTARDS!
"WHAT ARE YOU?! PIRATES?!"
'Ooooh crap. They're really not happy. It's fine, it's fine, as long as Luffy doesn't say anything we should be-'
"Yeah we're pirates."
*!*
"Well, actually I'm not sure about her but-"
"PIRATES!"
"GET 'EM!"
"YOU IDIOT! WHY'D YOU GO AND OPEN YOUR MOUTH?!" Nami ran carrying two bags.
"Well I am a pirate." Luffy also…jogged, but carrying the rest of the treasure bags.
"Besides…" Luffy looked back to see that a good portion of the mob had stayed behind to tend to the Mayor. "They're good people who'll get riled up for their mayor. It probably wouldn't have mattered even if we lied to them."
"...Yeah you're probably-"
"Huh? *!* Quick! Turn into the alley!"
Nami was caught off-gaurd by sudden demand but kept her composure.
"HURRY!" one of the towns people yelled "DON'T LET 'EM GET AWAY!"
"ROAWF! ROAWFF!"
"YIKES!"
"It's Chou-Chou!" Nami exclaimed "Wait… How'd you?-"
"I could smell him, it caught me off-guard but just a little thought and it was obvious he wanted too help out! Shi! Shi!"
"GET OUT OF THE WAY, CHOU-CHOU!"
"THOSE GUYS ARE BAD PEOPLE!"
"Grrrrr… WOOF! Grrrrrr… WOOF! WOOF!"
"MOVE, CHOU-CHOU!"
"RUUFF! RUUFF"
-o-
"Phew Thank goodness for Chou-Chou, right Luffy?"
"Yeah!... this your boat?" Luffy asked Nami
"Yeah, well I stole it off some goobers so…"
"Yeah I remember, you told me, and I had to deal with those guys"
"Yup, That's right! I remember now!"
"Okay, my boat is actually parked on the beach so I best be going, see ya!"
"Okay!"
"Oh Nami, one more thing!"
-o-
"The Mayors coming around!"
"Urgh, my head…" Mayor Boodle sat up cradling his head.
"Mayor! Dont worry we'll get you into a bed so you can rest"
"Tanks you– What the…?"
Mayor Boodle got a good look at the buildings and the pavement the were damaged and the unconscious bodies laying about.
"It was like that when we all got here. Any ideas to what happened?"
"...!"
"There was also this suspicious man and women."
"You mean to say that they're still alive?!"
'Damn that rapscallion knocking me unconscious like that!'
"Don't worry mayor we chase those scoundrels out of town" one of the men spoke up
"Though I kinda wish we caught to them. That guy was practically mocking us."
"We'll teach those dirty pirates what happens when they mess with-"
"SHUT UP! ALL OF YOU BE QUIET!" They Mayor was sent into a rage. "I'M THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN TALK BAD ABOUT THEM. DON"T EVEN THINK ANYTHING INSULTING ABOUT THEM!"
"M-Mayor? Why are you sticking up for-?"
"Darn him! Does he really think he can just walk away without hearin' from me?! WHERE'D THEY GO"
"Th-the docks sir."
"WHY'D YOU TELL HIM JERRY?!"
*WHOOSH* *K-KLANK*
"Quick! After him!"
The Mayor ran stripping himself of the heavy armor he wore and running faster than any of the townspeole have ever seen him run.
'The nerve of this brat! This is my town! I've got a thing or two to say to-'
"RUFF! RUFF!"
The Mayor stopped running and the rest of the towns people caught up. Chou-Chou had caught their attention but what really surprised them is were the five humongous bags Chou-Chou was sitting infront of. Munching down of a doggie treat.
-o-
"FIFTY MILLION BERRIES?! WHY'D YOU DITCH FIFTY MILLION BERRIES WITHOUT ME REALIZING IT ?! BETTER YET, HOW'D YOU GET A DOG TO GUARD FIFTY MILLION BERRIES?!" Nami shaked Luffy like a maraca.
"Well i had an extra doggie treat in my pocket that must've fallen out from the box so I just used that, and these people need money to rebuild their homes with don't you agree?"
"THAN STAY HERE AND FIX IT FOR THEM!"
"But the interiors!"
"HEY KID!"
Nami and Luffy looked at the Mayor along with Chou-Chou and the rest of the town behind him.
"I HAVE SOMETHING I NEED TO SAY TO YOU!"
'I was a desperate man. Mohji and Cabaji wold've made mincemeat out of me, and yet I'm still breathing and my town was saved… and that's all thanks to you'
"THANK YOU FOR EVERTHING!" he shouted with tears in his eyes. "I'LL MAKE SURE OUR FUTURE GENERTATIONS KNOW OF YOUR DEEDS FOR MANY YEARS TO COME!"
"Shi! Shi! Shi! Don't sweat it old man!"
Luffy simply just vanished from everyones eyes, and when they looked for Nami she was already to far out to sea to call for her.
-o-
Luffy had gotten his boat out to sea already and decided he would head to this floating restaurant immediately. Why? Cause he literally had nothing better to do. He looked down at his map for the directions and caught the name of the restaurant.
"Baratie? Huh… Oh! That's, the one fighting restaurant! Shi! Shi Shi! I hope they're cool with sticking around for three days!"
-o-
"Baratie? I needed some real food anyways I've been eating this preprackaged shit for too long, it's messin' up my insides." complained a pink hair glutton
-o-
Alrighty that's the end of this chapter! Sorry it took this long, procrastination and real-life can be such a a bitch. I forgot to mention this in the last chapter, but Nami's design is a mix of her first appearance outfit and her prototype design. Also the axe and rope was originally inspired from Naru from prey but the kusarigama was too cool to pass up so that's why I changed it. Anyways, happy holidays/new years and "work hard and study well. Eat and sleep plenty". Until next time this has been BillyBobGoat, signing out.