Corazon attempts to enact his plan to steal the Op-Op fruit for Law, only to find that two young people are one step ahead of him...
Outside in the snow, Corazon, aka Donquixote Rosinante, had just arrived at the Barrels Pirates hideout. He had a foolproof plan to mute himself, attack the place and steal the Op-Op fruit in the confusion. At least, he hoped the plan was foolproof. With his risk of clumsiness, something was bound to go wrong. But he knew he couldn't turn back now. Not with Law's life so at risk.
However, when he brandished one of his bazookas and was about to fire, he immediately noticed something: all the men that were supposed to be standing guard outside were lying still on the ground!
Corazon gave a short gasp, "Did Dofy already beat me here?!"
He stepped towards one of the bodies, where he soon found that there was not a trace of blood on it. He knelt and checked the man's pulse. He was only unconscious, which likely meant ALL the men lying within vicinity was unconscious.
Corazon frowned. If his older brother had attacked the hideout, he would not have been this merciful. There would be a big bloody mess at the scene if he and the rest of the family had already arrived. Only Conqueror's Haki could simultaneously knock out this many people.
His eyes focused on the building standing before him. That meant that someone powerful than the Marines hadn't foreseen had arrived here before he did…but who?
Before Corazon could ponder that question very long, a loud roar rang out from within the building, causing him to tense up and ready his bazooka. What the hell was that?!
Not long after, the ground began to shake, and he heard the shouts of a man coming from inside ("DORY! PLEASE STOP! I'M SORRY! I KNOW I WASN'T GOOD TO YOU! JUST LET ME MAKE IT UP TO YOU!"), followed by a little girl's voice screaming-no, cheering?! ("COME ON, DRAKE! GIVE HIM HELL! HE DOESN'T DESERVE YOUR FORGIVENESS!")
A little girl? Barrels was supposed to only have grown men in his crew, including his own son. What was a girl doing here?!
Suddenly, there were several loud crashes from inside the building, and then one side of it began to break apart, and before Corazon could even guess what sort of beast was breaking out, he was startled by the sight of a DINOSAUR!
His jaw dropped and his body began to tremble. "A dinosaur?! Those are supposed to be extinct!" he thought to himself.
He began debating whether or not to shoot at it until he noticed something: the giant reptile was wearing clothing, which only meant one thing. A Zoan fruit user. So, there was another Devil fruit user on this island, and whoever it is, probably just beat Barrels and his crew to hell.
Corazon tensed up. What did that mean for the Op-Op fruit? Was it still in the base, free for the taking, or did this person have it? What did they intend to do with it?!
"Woo-hoo! We're free!" a girl's voice cried out.
Corazon's eyes snapped over to the back of the beast, where he noticed a little girl mounted on its back, arms thrown up into the air, smiling huge. She seemed to be very young, maybe around six years old, and had short black hair…and was holding the Op-Op fruit in one of her hands!
Before Corazon could wonder about the situation for too long, he heard one of the men lying on the ground near him start to stir awake and slowly get to his feet.
"Ugh, what the hell happened…" he grumbled, before lifting up his head and looking at the dinosaur standing a couple yards away from him.
The man's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. "What the hell! What's Dory doin'?!"
Dory? Was that the Zoan user's name? Wait, Dory was the name of the person the man inside the building was pleading to...
Suddenly, the man began to point his gun at Dory and shout, "Dory! I don't know what you think you're doing but stop it now! You're not supposed to be breaking up the base! Do you want your father to beat you again?!"
The dinosaur seemed to take notice of the man and flinch, almost as if in fear. Despite his great size, this Dory seemed to be scared of the man, or maybe it was the father he mentioned that he was afraid of? Either way, Corazon got the feeling that Dory fought back for his own good and that he'd be better off without a gun pointed at him.
The blond pulled out one of his pistols and shot the man directly in the head, seeming to take the dinosaur and the girl by surprise.
Immediately after doing that, Dory began to growl at Corazon and step towards him. Maybe shooting that man wasn't the best move. Corazon was about to try thinking of a way out of this situation until the girl on Dory's back shouted, "Hold on, Drake! He's not a bad guy!"
Drake? Dory also went by Drake? And also, how did that girl know Corazon didn't mean any harm?
The girl stood on the dinosaur's back and hollered, "Are you Corazon?"
Corazon's jaw dropped. She knew his codename! How?! Who was this kid?!
She held up the Op-Op fruit and exclaimed, "Don't worry! We already got the fruit! Just tell us where Law is, and we'll take you to him!"
The dinosaur looked back at Luffy and said, "Is Law the sick friend you're trying to save? How sick is he and how long has he been on this island?"
Corazon's eyes widened. She knew about Law! How was that possible!? All of Law's friends and family died in Flevance. There's nobody else who would know who he is, aside from himself and everyone in the Donquixote family!
Still, this girl had stolen the Op-Op fruit for Law's sake, so Corazon had no choice but to trust her, so he just walked over the dinosaur, wide-eyed and slack-jawed.
The newfound trio made their way to the location where Corazon had left Law, with the tall man sitting on Drake's back and Luffy sitting atop Drake's head. She had her Observation Haki activated to see where Law was and make sure Drake didn't go in the wrong direction.
Thanks to Drake's large size, getting to Law didn't take long and Luffy soon spotted the familiar spotted fur hat he wore when she first met him in Saboady before her crew got split up.
The boy was sitting on the ground, wrapped in a blanket, seeming to stare off into space, until Drake's footsteps seemed to become noticeable to him. He looked over, brow furrowed for a moment, and then rose. In just a few short seconds, Law was scrambling to his feet as fast as he could, screaming. Luffy probably should've figured he'd be terrified of Drake on sight.
"Poor child. He's been taught all his life dinosaurs have been extinct, and now one's walking right up to him!" Umi laughed in her head.
Corazon stood up and hollered, "Law! It's okay! They're friends!" and the boy soon stopped in his struggle to escape, staring at his caretaker wide-eyed.
When Drake stopped walking, Corazon and Luffy climbed off him and he promptly shifted back into his human form. Law's brows rose. "A devil fruit that turns you into a dinosaur? So cool…" Drake smiled and nodded, but then his eyebrows shot up when he seemed to get a good look at Law. "That's…that's Amber Lead disease!" he gasped.
Law winced and looked down at the ground, while Corazon began to shoot the young adult a glare. Before the situation had the chance to turn ugly, Luffy said, "Amber Lead is NOT contagious! The World Government lied to you!"
The three men looked at Luffy wide-eyed for a moment, before Corazon looked at Drake and said, "Yeah, so you have nothing to fear of Law."
Drake winced, "Oh, I didn't know about that. I'm very sorry, Law." He bowed lowly towards the boy.
Law managed a smile, "It's okay. It's not exactly common knowledge…"
Corazon knelt next to Law and held the Op-Op fruit out to him with one hand, while doing the victory sign with the other. "Look Law!" he exclaimed with a smile. "We got the Op-Op fruit for you! Now eat it, quick!"
The man practically shoved the fruit into Law's mouth, making the boy swallow the whole thing, and once he did, Law gave a shudder.
"I…feel different all of a sudden. Is that normal for devil fruit users?" he asked, looking up at his friend and Drake.
Corazon nodded, "Yeah, but the feeling doesn't last too long."
Drake smiled, "You'll get over it pretty quick. Don't worry."
Law nodded and stared at his hands, "So…how do I use this power?"
Before Corazon could say anything along the lines of "I have no idea. You'll have to figure it out", Luffy decided to step up.
"I know the basics of the fruit's power. I could help," she stated.
Law looked at her with a raised brow, "How do you know?"
Luffy bit her lip, "Uh, I read it in the devil fruit manual."
Law looked up at Corazon and Drake with a raised brow, where the former said, "There IS a devil fruit manual. It's a pretty popular book."
For the next half-hour, Luffy taught Law the basic abilities of the Op-Op fruit, specifically Room, Shambles, and the thing that allowed Law to remove body parts, inside and out. After having a bit of fun rearranging where Corazon, Luffy and Drake stood within the Room, and removing Luffy's hand and heart (much to Drake's horror), he asked, "So…how do I cure myself with this?"
Luffy shrugged, "I don't know. You may have to figure that out yourself." She honestly didn't know how Law had cured himself of Amber Lead Syndrome. She knew it involved removing the lead from is body, but with what technique, she had no idea.
Law sighed, "So my situation is still hopeless…"
Luffy frowned and gave him a hug, "No, don't say that! You're very smart, so you'll figure it out before it's too late!"
Law frowned, "You've literally just met me. How do you know I'm smart?"
Luffy grinned at him, "I just know!"
Law's brows rose and his jaw dropped slightly, but he soon looked away from her and said, "Well, if you're that sure, then I guess I can do it."
Luffy giggled and Corazon smiled, seeming to appreciate her encouragement.
The tall man looked back at Drake and said, "We didn't really have a chance to do introductions, did we? I'm Donquixote Rosinante but you can call me Corazon."
Drake nodded and stood up straight, "My name is Diez Drake. You're…probably familiar with my father."
Corazon winced, "The Marine who turned pirate? Yeah, I've heard about him."
Drake winced and looked away from the man, but Corazon then said, "But I can tell you're better than him, so don't worry about me judging you based on his actions. I mean, Barrels would've never saved a little girl from trouble."
Luffy grinned, "Yeah, Drake! Don't worry!"
Drake looked back at Corazon and managed a smile, "Thank you, sir."
Luffy looked at Corazon and proclaimed, "My name is Monkey D Luffy! You probably know my grandpa!"
Corazon's brows rose, "As in Monkey D Garp, the Hero?! What the hell are you doing up in the North Blue?! Shouldn't you be living East?!"
Drake crossed his arms as he stated, "She claims she flew over here on a giant bird."
"Which I did," Luffy stated. "Her name's Thora and she's the lightning-bird of the East Blue. She's a Sky Beast."
Corazon's brows rose, "I see…well, either way, your grandfather must be very upset that you're not home now."
Luffy winced, "Upset may be an understatement…"
Law glanced down at Luffy and asked, "How mad would he be if he found out you were here?"
Luffy scratched her head, "Well, knowing him he'd probably be sailing on his ship here at full speed, standing at the front screaming 'LUFFY, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!' the whole time. He'll probably have a sore throat by the time he finds me!"
Law burst out laughing and Drake chuckled, while Corazon smiled, "Yeah, that sounds like him."
Once the laughter settled, Law stated, "My name is Trafalgar D Water Law. In my family, the D has to be kept secret, but I don't understand why…"
Luffy shrugged, "I don't know either." But she mentally thought, "Because the government fears that D." She couldn't just say that out loud, though…
Law looked at Luffy and asked, "Your grandpa is a Marine, huh? Are you going to be a Marine when you grow up?" There was some kind of edge in his voice when he asked. Luffy almost forgot that when Law was younger, he HATED the Marines because of what happened to Flevance.
Luffy shook her head, "Nah, I'm going to be a pirate! But not just ANY pirate; the King of the Pirates!"
Law's brows rose, but then furrowed, "Oh, come on! There's no way you could do that!"
Luffy shot him a determined glare, "Bet on it."
Corazon's brows rose, "That's a pretty serious title to take on, Luffy. If you succeed, you'll be hunted down to the ends of the earth."
Luffy grinned, "That makes it more fun! Shishishi!"
Corazon smiled, but then went back to looking serious, "Well, now since introductions are over, we need to get moving off this island. It's only a matter of time until my brother arrives and sees what Drake had done."
Drake raised a brow, "Your brother?"
Corazon and looked back at him, "Donquixote Doflamingo. He was originally after the Op-Op fruit, with the intention of having me eat it, so I can give him the immortality surgery. He doesn't realize it, but I've already eaten a devil fruit, and if he finds out what we've done, he'll be pissed as all hell."
Law nodded, "Yeah, and he's afraid of people who have the 'D' in their name. He might freak out if he meets you, Luffy."
Luffy frowned, "I'm going to give him a LOT of reasons to be afraid of me."
Law rolled his eyes, "I doubt that."
Drake shook his head, "No, she's right; if he finds out she's related to Garp, he might think twice before harming her."
Corazon shook his head, "Dofy doesn't think twice THAT easily…"
Before he could elaborate further, footsteps in the snow could be heard nearby, prompting them all to tense up.
Luffy looked over to see a lone figure walking towards them in the snow, from the shadows of a nearby forest. When he passed in the moonlight, she could see he wore a winter Marine uniform.
Drake's brows rose, "What's a Marine doing all the way out here?"
Corazon furrowed his brow and muttered, "Strange. The Marine unit being sent here wasn't supposed to make their way up here…"
Law looked up at him and asked, "How do you know that, Cora?"
Before Corazon could answer, the Marine seemed to stop mid-step and a familiar voice said, "Corazon! Is that you?!"
Corazon's jaw dropped, "What the-Vergo!" but then immediately clasped a hand over his mouth, shocked at the use of his own voice.
The man walked closer to them at a faster pace, where Luffy could see it was the same Vergo she knew. The one she had tried to warn her grandfather about. It seemed he got the message to Sengoku to late…
He looked pretty much how she remembered knowing him, having the same facial hair and shades, though his hair seemed to be different underneath his hat, and he had a sausage stuck to his beard.
He glared at Corazon and said, "You're able to speak! How long have you been able to? Who are these children?!"
Law's brows rose, "Wait, you're that Vergo guy? The one on that secret mission for the Donquixote family?"
Drake's jaw dropped, "A pirate is undercover as a Marine?! That's not good! What are you doing among them?!"
Vergo furrowed his brow at Law and said sternly, "'That Vergo guy'? If you are going to address me, you should address me as 'Mr. Vergo'!"
Luffy hopped to her feet, glaring daggers at Vergo, and snapped, "We don't have to address you as shit! You don't deserve it! I know the kind of scumbag you are!"
Vergo glared at Luffy and questioned, "And who are you? Dofy told me there was a girl recruited a few years back, but you seem too young to be her."
Luffy looked the man in the eyes and snarled, "I'm a girl who knows your true colors. I know the kind of man you are now and who you're going to be! And because of that, I'm not going to let you leave this island alive!"
Law's brows rose, "Are you serious?! You can't beat this guy! You're just a little kid!"
Luffy looked back at him and said, "I will defeat him, but I'm going to need your help, Law."
Vergo stared at her before tossing his gun aside and taking on his signature fighting stance, "You really think you can take me on, girl? And with that weak-bodied boy helping? Dofy told me he's dying of Amber Lead. He probably doesn't have much time left!"
Luffy stood in her own fighting stance and shouted, "Law has plenty of time, and we can beat you easy. You'll regret underestimating me!"
Luffy managed to get the Op-Op fruit to Law, but she doesn't know how he can cure himself with his new powers, meaning he's still at risk for death!
And to top it all off, Vergo has shown up and learned of Corazon's deceit, and Luffy and Law plan to fight him to prevent the trouble he'd cause over 10 years in the future!
What'll happen as a result of that?
My apologies to the people who were expecting a lot more from Drake fighting against Barrels. I'm not really good at action/fight scenes, so I sort of off-screened it.
I'm going to off-screen Luffy and Law's fight with Vergo a bit too, but that's because the next chapter will primarily focus on Doflamingo!
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