Breed
Part One
The ship was calm, resting on the gentle sea. The moon was hanging low and full in the night sky. The majority of the Thousand Sunny's passengers were in their beds, fast asleep. Usopp, Franky, and Chopper were the only ones pacing around on the deck. Usopp and Chopper were trembling in their samurai garb while they looked around for any enemies that might be lurking around.
Doflamingo! I know he's going to strike at us in the darkness of the night! Usopp thought. He tightened his hold on his slingshot and looked around. Just bring it on! I mean, don't! I really don't want to fight you!
I-I don't think I could sleep even if I wanted to, Chopper thought to himself. He looked around the ship's deck until his eyes landed on Neo. Relaxing a bit just from the sight of her, he smiled. At least she's sleeping peacefully. I'm glad.
Franky, with his binocular against his eyes, yawned. He then reported, "It's all calm all the way to the horizon! Not a soul in sight."
…
Neo sighed in her sleep as she shifted closer into Law's warm embrace; his right arm was loose around her waist. Her peaceful expression faltered and she tucked herself even closer to Law's chest. She opened her eyes when a strong wave of sadness washed over her chest. Clouds were gathering over the moon, blocking out the bright light that lit up the ship. She said, "What is it? What's wrong? Why are you so sad? Who are you?"
She looked over to Usopp when he spoke. He was looking up towards the sky. He said, "What is that?"
Chopper looked back at the sniper. He asked, "What is what?"
"They're so sad," Neo said. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she followed Usopp's gaze and looked up towards the sky. Black images with glowing green rings around them were falling towards the deck of the ship. She placed her hand on Law's chest. "Law!"
Law lifted his chin seconds before the falling images pelted the deck. The ship rocked violently, throwing everyone off balance and waking those who were still asleep. Law locked his arm around Neo's waist when she slammed against him.
"What's going on?!" Caesar demanded when he was jolted from his slumber.
Chopper and Usopp cried out as their bodies were flung backwards. Usopp gasped when his back collided with the Sunny. His arms wrapped around Chopper when the reindeer's smaller body slammed into his.
Neo turned her eyes to Chopper, but it was far too dark for her to see if he was hurt or not. She could only make out their shapes in the darkness. She didn't feel much distress from him, but she was still worried. Before she could call out to him, one of the doors flung opened with a bang. Luffy, flanked by Zoro, Sanji, Brook and Kin'emon, shouted, "What's going on?! Who is it?! Are we under attack?!"
"What's happening?" Law asked. He lifted himself and Neo up to their feet.
"There animals," Neo said. Her eyes locked onto the tall, bulky images standing on the deck.
"Animals?" Law asked her. "What kind of animals?"
"I'm not sure." Neo shook her head. "I've never felt them before. But they're very sad."
"Sad?" Law asked. His attention on her was broke when Usopp and Chopper screamed. Everyone stared out into the darkness at the glowing rings around the tall, dark images that surrounded them. Before anyone could say anything else, one of the glowing rings leaped up and flung itself at the Straw Hats.
Usopp and Chopper screamed again.
Neo searched out for the reindeer and found he was still against the wall where he and Usopp landed. She then looked out at the battling shadows, only able to know who was who from their voices if she couldn't sense them.
"Get off my ship!" Luffy shouted into the darkness. He charged forward just as the rest of the creatures charged at them.
"Where did they come from?" Zoro asked. He pulled out his swords and started swiping them at their attackers.
"There are about thirty of them! Watch out!" Sanji said, dodging and kicking the enemy.
"Thirty?! Really?! I can't see! It's too dark out here!" Luffy shouted.
"Neo?" Law asked.
"He's right. I can't tell what they are without lighting things up with my fire crystals, but there are about thirty of them," Neo replied. She lowered her voice. "Something's wrong. They're very upset. They don't want to do this."
"Huh?" Law looked at her.
"They're quite strong!" Kin'emon said.
"But who are they?!" Law demanded. "What do they want here?!"
Just then a strange squawking sounded out in the darkness. Chopper said, "What? What did you just say?"
Neo's eyebrows perched up at the creature's animalistic words. She pushed past the sounds of the battle and focused on the animals. She tried to connect to them, but they seemed to not hear her. What's going on? Why are you attacking us? Why are you so sad? Why are you hurt?
Another door slammed open, startling Neo's concentration. She jumped when Nami's enraged voice rang out. She said, "Hey, you guys! Keep it down! We're trying to sleep here!"
Nami screamed again when four of their attackers leaped up in front of her.
"Law! We can't fight in the dark! I have to use my crystals." Neo said. Before Law could answer her, a sharp whistle cut through the air. The creatures halted their attack then simultaneously jumped off the ship and into the water.
Law darted his eyes around the darkness in an attempt to locate the source of the whistle, unaware that Neo was moving away from him. She stepped over to the railing. Glancing down into the dark water, she followed the movement of the creatures. Without thinking, she pulled herself up on the railing and dove in.
…
Neo about shivered when the cold water of the ocean brushed over her skin. Sinking lower into the water, she formed a bubble around her head. Once the bubble was in place, she breathed easily and looked around for the animals that she followed. When she found them, they were lining up side by side. She swam up to one. "Hey! What are you doing? Why did you attack us if you didn't want to?"
The creatures turned their sad eyes to her. Their sadness tightened around her chest to the point she felt like she couldn't breath. She mindlessly placed her hand over her chest and rubbed it. "What's wrong? Why are you doing this? Did we upset you or something? What do you mean you have no choice? Who's doing this to you?"
They didn't answer her. They just started swimming in strange patterns that Neo never saw before. She narrowed her eyebrows in confusion. She watched them for a minute before noticing the ocean around them was starting to move. She looked up and gasped. Their strange movements were creating waves on the surface. The ship was bouncing around uncontrollably. She shot her eyes back down to the creatures. "Stop that! Leave them alone!"
…
"Huh? What was that? What's going on?" Luffy asked.
"Nice to meet you, ladies and gentlemen!" a strange voice said from up above everyone.
They all turned in the direction of the voice. Luffy demanded, "Who are you?!"
The clouds cleared away from the moon, revealing someone standing on top of the crow's nest. The man was smiling. He was of regular size with broad shoulders, thin arms, and a square jaw. His earlobes were large and pierced with large golden loops. His dark eyebrows were accompanied by a black mustache and black goatee. He was wearing a blue, fur-lined jacket with a blue and white ring-leader outfit with a big red bow at his neck and a green monocle over his left eye. The intruder said, "My name is Breed. I am a peto peto eater!"
"Peto peto?" Zoro asked. He, Luffy, Law, Sanji, and Kin'emon were gathered together. All of their eyes locked onto the intruder standing on the roof of the crow's nest.
"What's that?! Are you some kind of slimy man?!" Luffy asked.
"That's not Doflamingo?" Usopp asked. He was still holding onto Chopper.
"I guess not," Chopper said.
Breed grinned. One of the creatures landed beside him with Caesar draped over his shoulder.
"Oh no!" Law gasped when he saw that Caesar was no longer on the ship.
"Caesar!" Franky shouted.
Caesar laughed down at the pirates. He said, "Fools! You can't keep me as a prisoner! Don't ever underestimate Doflamingo!"
"So that guy's working for Doflamingo, huh?" Sanji asked.
"Wait!" Luffy ran forward. He jerked to a stop and turned to his right when something charged towards him. A fist slammed into his cheek. His body flew back. Dust washed up over the ship when his body collided with the wall. He sat up and rubbed his cheek. "Ow, ow, ow, ow!"
"How is that possible?! Your body is made of rubber! There's no way that could have hurt you!" Sanji said. He, Kin'emon and Law looked at Luffy then turned to the thing that hit the captain. "Unless that thing can use haki!"
"You jerk!" Luffy snapped once he was back on his feet. Blood leaked out of his nose and filled the air with the smell of iron.
They looked up when Breed's laughter rang out over the ship. He said, "I'll be taking Caesar now! Goodbye!"
Law cursed. He held up his left hand to form his Room. His attempt was disrupted when the ship started shaking. He turned to Neo to find she was gone. "What now?! Neo! Use your-Neo? Neo!"
"Where is she?!" Chopper asked, his eyes darting all over the ship as panic set into his voice. He started dashing all over the deck in an attempt to find her. "Where is she?! Did they take her too?!"
"What?! They took Neo?!" Sanji asked. His eyes widened with worry.
"No, they don't have her. She's in the water," Law said, without thinking. His angry burned in his chest as he glanced over the railing of the ship. He located her easily. She was in the water and using her crystals against orders. 'Neo! You are in so much trouble! What are you doing down there?! You get your butt back up here! Right! Now!'
He felt Neo flinch. 'I'm sorry, Law. I can't. These creatures are in trouble.'
"What do you mean she's in the water?! Why would she be down there?! She's a devil fruit user! Wait a second…" Sanji ran over to the railing and looked over. His eyes scanned the water until his brain finally registered the truth. His eyes widened and turned towards Law. "She's not a devil fruit user, is she? You're not panicking at all knowing that you devil fruit users will drown."
Law gritted his teeth, his hat fell over his eyes. Luckily with the current commotion of Caesar being taken and the ship bouncing around uncontrollably, no one else heard Sanji. He refused to look at the blonde cook even though he felt the man's intense eyes on him. There was no way to fix this. Sanji knew now for sure that Neo wasn't a devil fruit user. Not only did her diving into the ocean without thinking reveal the secret, so did Law's lack of a panic reaction to her still being down there.
…
Franky ran up to the helm when the sea started pushing the ship around with giant waves decorated with faces of rabbits. He grabbed the helm and tried to get control over the ship. "Hold on, everyone!"
…
Law grabbed the railing to stabilize himself. Breaking out of his thoughts of their secret crumbling apart, he noticed the giant wave picking the ship up. He asked, "Is that a rabbit wave?!"
…
"This is just great! The ship is bouncing around far too much! I can't control it!" Franky reported. He tugged on the helm again, but it still produced no results.
…
Robin and Nami, still up by their bedroom, grabbed a hold of the rail to keep themselves from being thrown to the lower level of the deck. Nami looked up when her eyes caught sight of a giant structure. She asked, "What's that?! Guys, look!"
The ship continued to bounce around on the waves as it moved closer to the giant shape. The pirates looked up at the structure and tried to figure out what it was. "What is that?! Is it a ship?!"
"Or maybe it's an island?! That thing is huge!"
"There's a flag with a jolly roger on it! That means it's a ship!" Sanji shouted, his eyes running over the structure before them as the ship continued to bounce towards it. "That guy is a pirate?!"
"We have to go after him! We can't let Caesar get away!" Law hissed. Then added, without thinking again, "And we have to go after Neo!"
…
"Huh? Go after Neo?" Nami asked. She looked down at the deck in search of the blue haired woman. "Where is she? Did they take her too?"
Robin remained quiet as she looked at Nami then turned her eyes down to Law. The warlord was refusing to look at anyone. Her eyes then went to Franky when the cyborg spoke. He said, "Luffy! Take the shark submerge! It can only carry three people but it can travel underwater!"
"Okay!" Luffy replied. He ran over to the hatch that led to the Soldier Dock system and threw it open. Before he could leap inside, Chopper jumped onto his shoulder.
"Luffy, I'll come with you!" Chopper announced. "There's something I need to check on!"
"All right!" Luffy nodded. He then jumped them both into the opening.
"Hey, Luffy! What about us?!" Usopp asked while clinging to the ship.
"Look after the Sunny!" Luffy called back up.
"Gotcha! Don't worry about the Sunny!" Usopp said. He pointed at himself and took on an air of confidence.
"The Nose, stay alert!" Law said, running towards the open hatch. He knelt down beside it. "Doflamingo may still come and attack! Be careful!"
"Attack?!" Usopp gasped. His lips twisted in fear as Law disappeared into the hatch. "Wait! Who did you call 'The Nose'?! My name is Usopp!"
Clanking and humming sounded, releasing the Shark Submerge. Usopp ran over the side where Nami and Robin had already descended from their room and was looking down to the ocean. Looking over the rail, he asked, "Did they leave already?! That was fast!"
"Are they going to be okay?" Robin asked. She crossed her left arm over her stomach, cupping her elbow, while pressing her right hand to her chin.
"What? Why wouldn't they be?" Nami and Usopp asked. They turned their eyes to her.
"All three of them are devil fruit eaters so if the unexpected happens…" Robin pointed out.
"Hey, don't worry about it. Neo's down there with them," Sanji said, walking casually over to them. "She'll be easily able to help them if something goes wrong."
"Well, that's nice to know. She does control the elements," Usopp said, calmly. He started to walk away from the rail then realized something. "What?! What do you mean she'll be able to help?! She never got into the shark submerge with them! Did she fall over board or something?! She's drowning!"
"Relax," Sanji said. He pinched his cigarette between his fingers. "She's not drowning. Even if she was, Law could easily bring her into the shark submerge with his powers."
"She's not drowning? But she's a devil fruit user," Usopp said, completely and totally confused. Everyone else turned their attention to the cook and sniper at that point. "And so what if he can do that? The shark submerge can only hold three people. Franky just said that."
"Well, the shark submerge was designed to only hold three people, but it would be fine if she entered into it with them. She's so tiny. She probably weights less than a hundred pounds. Her and Chopper would easily equal to one person. So don't worry about that," Franky said, walking down the stairs. He looked at Sanji. "But what did you mean, bro? How can she not be drowning if she's a devil fruit user?"
Sanji ran his eyes over all of them. Every single one of them wanted an answer to that question, all of them, except for Robin. He couldn't help but noticed she was lacking curiosity considering she was a devil fruit eater herself. He turned away from them and walked towards Robin. "I'm afraid that I can't answer that. You'll just have to wait until she decides she's ready to tell us."
He paused when he was shoulder to shoulder with the black haired woman. Glancing at her from the corner of his eyes, he said, "But you already knew all of that, didn't you? What all do you know about her?"
Robin smiled her typical calm smile. She said, "I'm afraid I can't answer that. You'll just have to wait until she decides she's ready to tell us."
Sanji chuckled. "I should have known you'd say something like that."
…
Under the water, Chopper guided the mini sub around. Luffy was sitting beside him and Law was sitting behind them, fuming.
Law had his senses locked onto Neo's location like a vice. He took several calming deep breaths. He was so angry. He was so worried. How could she have jumped into the water like that? What was she thinking? What was he thinking? He gritted his teeth. He knew the answers to all of those questions. She wasn't thinking at all and neither was he. She got like that when animals were in danger. He should have locked his hand around hers and ordered her not to leave his side when she told him their attackers were animals. This wouldn't have happened if he had been paying closer attention. It was partly his fault for not paying attention. His fervor lightened up a bit. Of course that didn't give her the right to just run off like that. His fervor flared up again.
Chopper looked up from the small helm of the Shark Submerge when he located their attackers. "There they are."
Law frowned when he saw Neo swimming after them. She was clearly keeping her distance, but stayed close enough to not lose them.
"And there's Neo! All right, Chopper, go faster!" Luffy ordered. He then thought about what he said and how Neo was out in the ocean. He screamed, "Ah! Neo's out in the ocean! She's going to drown! We have to save her!"
Law pinched the bridge of his nose. He said, "She's not going to drown, Straw Hat. She's fine."
"Hm? What do you mean? She's a devil fruit user." Luffy stopped his shrieking and looked back at Law. He then whipped his eyes back and forth between Law and Neo several times before shrieking again. "What?! How is that possible?! She should be drowning! But she's not! What's going on?!"
Law clenched his sword so hard that the sheath bit into his skin and his knuckles turned white. With his hat over his eyes, he could feel both Luffy and Chopper's eyes on him. He exhaled. "She's not a devil fruit user."
"What?!" Luffy and Chopper screamed. "What do you mean?!"
"There's no time to discuss that right now," Law said. He pointed out the window. "We have to catch up to them."
…
Neo sighed internally as she continued to follow after the sad creatures. She could feel a slight pain in her hand from Law clenching his sword so hard. She could also feel how upset he was with her. She bit her bottom lip. I'm sorry, Law. I had to.
A school of silver colored fish swam up to her. They circled around her body, creating bubbles that tickled her skin. One swam up to her face and swam in a couple circles. "I'm sorry. I don't have time to play right now."
She scratched the fish under its chin, if fish had chins, and then looked back up to the surface. The ship had settled back down now that the creatures had swam off. She just hoped everyone was uninjured up there. Forcing that from her mind, she used her water crystals to push herself faster through the water.
…
"Hey, Luffy, don't they look like lapins?" Chopper asked.
"Lapins?" Luffy turned his eyes to the reindeer.
"The big rabbits you encountered at the Drum Kingdom where I come from." Chopper returned to his right and looked at Luffy.
Luffy turned his eyes up to the ceiling and hummed, trying to recall what Chopper was talking about. When he remembered, he said, "Oh, you mean those big bear-like rabbits!"
"They look a bit different from those in the Drum Kingdom and lapins can't swim but…" Chopper said.
"I believe they're sea lapins," Law said, breaking in to the conversation.
"What?" Chopper turned around and looked at Law. "You know what they are?"
"I saw them once when I was sailing across the North Blue," Law replied. His eyes still locked onto Neo's distant form. "They don't live in the New World normally. Was that why you came with us, Raccoon?"
"Uh-huh," Chopper said. His eyes fell down to helm before realizing what Law had said. Eyes bugging out of his head, he turned back to Law as Luffy, wrapping his arms around his stomach and kicking his feet, laughed at his rant. "Who are you calling a raccoon?! I'm a reindeer! Got that?! I'm a reindeer not a raccoon! Luffy, it's not funny! Stop laughing!"
"I'm sorry!" Luffy said, but continued laughing.
Chopper turned back to the window. He said, "That's not the only reason I came with you. That animal back on the Sunny…he said that he doesn't want to do this. He didn't want to attack us."
"Raccoon, you can understand what the animals are saying?" Law inquired.
"Yeah. I can understand what they're…Hey! I said I'm not a raccoon!" Chopper snapped. He jumped out of his seat, kicking his legs and flailing his arms wildly. Luffy started laughing again. "Hey, Luffy, stop laughing! Are you even listening to me?!"
Law turned his eyes back to the window. That Breed guy who is leading those sea monsters. Is he really working for Doflamingo? I hope were not getting ourselves into a mess. And Neo…
"Can we talk about Neo now?" Luffy asked. He turned back to Law with his eyes large and round. "Why is she able to swim in the sea like that?"
Law gritted his teeth. "I said we don't have time to talk about that right now!"
"Why not?" Luffy whined. His eyebrows turned up and his lips turned down into a frown.
"Never mind that for now," Chopper said, despite wanting to know the truth himself. He pointed out the window. Luffy and Law looked back out the window to see the Sea Lapins and Neo curving upwards to an opening in the strange ship above them. "The sea lapins are heading inside that thing."
"Follow them," Law said.
Chopper nodded. He guided the shark submerge towards the hole the sea lapins were entering into to.
…
Neo angled herself upwards as the sea lapins disappeared into the opening. She rose up to the opening and stopped. She looked inside. It was too dark for her to see, but she felt the sea lapins continue to move through this ship. She looked back down to see that the little sub Law and the others were riding in was coming closer. She didn't want to go inside without them so she waited until they were closer before entering into the structure.
She used her water crystals to push herself out of the water. When she broke the surface, she summoned her wind crystals and wrapped the wind around her. While hovering in the air, she examined her surroundings and dried herself off. Looking around, she found she was in a circular room with large floor to ceiling windows, a staircase and a cave opening that looked to lead to another room since there was light coming from it. The floor was made of stone and there were rock formations everywhere along with some palm trees.
She narrowed her eyebrows at the cave opening. The animals were inside there. They didn't go up the stairs. She turned back to the opening in the floor when the little submarine's engines and the whooshing of what when it surfaced. She chewed on the inside of her cheek and waited.
…
Once the shark submerge came to a stop, Law practically flew out of his seat. In one stride, he grabbed the hatch and opened it. He jumped out and was quickly followed by Luffy who ran off immediately when his feet hit the floor. When his own feet landed on the ground, his eyes landed on Neo. She met his eyes and shifted. Knowing now wasn't the time to get into an argument, he turned his eyes away from her and exhaled. He said, "We're in the enemy's territory. Everyone, be really careful."
"Hey! It's brighter over here!" Luffy called cheerfully. He waved his hand wildly. He was standing near the cave opening that Neo saw before.
"Don't shout, you idiot! You need to listen to me!" Law hissed with force control. "We're in the enemy's territory here!"
"He's right, Luffy! Listen to him!" Chopper said. He clung to Law's left pant leg with a terrified expression on his face.
Law looked down at the reindeer with a small sweat drop clinging to his left cheek. He could feel Neo trying to fight her giddiness. She clearly thought that the animal clinging to him was cute before quickly trying to conceal her feelings. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he sighed. "Let's just go."
The three hurried towards the Straw Hat captain. Once they were with Luffy, they all headed down the small tunnel like hallway. Neo walked along side Law quietly. They were only about a foot and a half apart, but it felt like an entire world was separating them. She cast a quick glance at him. His hat was casting dark shadows over his eyes and his thoughts were blocked from her. Still, she knew she had to warn him. 'Those animals are inside. We're going to get ambushed.'
Law only nodded in response.
Luffy gasped when they stepped into a large, rounded room similar to the last one. Rocks, moss, and palm trees lined the bottom of the room too. The glass extended all the way up to the ceiling just like the other room, but it was more open, giving them all the feeling of being inside of a fish bowl. "Wow! How awesome! It's like a big fish tank! Feels like we're in the sea! Look, Chopper! The window goes all the way to the ceiling!"
"Hey, Straw Hat, will you knock that off?! We're not here for fun!" Law snapped.
"Look, Chopper! It's sparkling shrimp!" Luffy said, ignoring the Heart Pirate. He pointed to the shrimp that swam by.
"Wow! That is cool!" Chopper said in agreement.
"That aside…" Law started just before Neo's predicted ambush happened. All of the sea lapins, an octopus, a penguin, a capybara, and a dugong leaped out from behind the rocks.
"Ah! Ambush!" Chopper shrieked. His eyes bugged out of his head and he flailed his arms.
Luffy chuckled and cracked his knuckles, instantly ready for a fight. He said, "Okay, let's fight!"
The sea lapins charged.
"Room!" Law formed his Room and sliced, in half, over eight of the attacking sea lapins.
Neo took a step back, unsure of what to do. She didn't want to fight animals. She couldn't fight animals. She looked around the room. The penguin and capybara were engaged in hand-to-hand combat with Chopper in his Kung Fu Point form. The octopus was standing off against Luffy. Luffy shouted, "I can have more arms than you!"
Neo relaxed a bit when Luffy matched the octopus's punches blow for blow. Maybe she didn't have to fight. She turned her eyes back to Chopper just in time to see him defeat the two animals he was fighting. Her eyes went back to Luffy when she saw the octopus flying away from the rubber man. Luffy jumped back beside their group and said, "How did you like that?"
"Neo, are you all right?" Chopper asked. Back in his normal form, he stepped beside her. "You look a bit pale."
"I'm okay," Neo replied. "I was just a bit concerned for a second."
"All right then. It's almost morning. We need to get moving," Law said. They all turned, but only got one step before the dugong slammed a haki engulfed punch into the floor right in front of them. They all jumped back from the attack.
"What?!" Chopper shrieked when the dugong's punch shattered the floor. "Sanji was right! That thing does use haki! Be careful, everyone!"
Law lifted his hand to form his Room, but Luffy shot out his arm to stop him. Luffy said, "Hold it. I have unfinished business with this one."
"Straw Hat?" Neo asked.
"It's all right, Neo. I got this one. If he can use haki, then I'll fight with the gloves off!" Luffy announced. He clenched his fists and took a fighting stance, sizing up his dugong opponent. "Let's do this!"
Luffy and the dugong charged towards each other. Their fists slammed together with a sickening crunch that made Neo's stomach turn. They pushed against each other with what seemed like equal strength until Luffy pushed on through the punch. The dugong went flying. He landed with a cloud of dust kicking up around his body. When the dust settled, it was clear the creature was out. Luffy threw his fists up in the air in victory. "I win!"
"Huh?" Neo looked over at the dugong when he sat up, confused about something other than losing the fight.
Law cast a glance at her but didn't say anything.
The dugong then cried out happily. In an instant, the creature was back across the room. He grabbed onto Luffy and started rubbing their cheeks together while making happy squawks. Neo blinked. The dugong was speaking so fast that she couldn't clearly make out what he was saying. But she did catch enough to know that the creature knew who Luffy was and was chattering on and on about how he missed the Straw Hat captain.
Neo gasped. "Huh? Seriously?"
"What's serious?" Chopper asked, looking up at Neo.
"Uh…" Neo shifted, but didn't answer him. Luckily, the dugong's happy squawks became louder and drew the reindeer's attention.
"Hey?! What's going on?! Let go of me!" Luffy said, trying to pull the excited animal off him.
"He's saying, 'Master, long time so see'." Chopper informed them. He was a bit confused until he realized who the dugong actually was. "Oh, don't tell me you're…you became Luffy's disciple in Alabasta! You're the Kung Fu Dugong!"
"I don't think he heard you," Neo said, pointing at the very affectionate animal still rubbed his cheek against Luffy's.
"I guess not," Chopper said with a small chuckle.
"Oh! I remember you now!" Luffy then shouted. "You're the Kung Fu Seal from Alabasta!"
The dugong squawked, finally releasing Luffy from his hold, then bowed his head. Chopper informed them of his words, even imitating the bow. "'It's been a while, Master!'" He said."
"Wow! It has been a while! It's nice to see you again! I can't believe it! How have you been?!" Luffy asked. He grabbed a hold of the dugong's flippers and started dancing around the room with him.
"You two hit it off already?!" Chopper asked. "That was fast!"
"What is going on here? What's this all about?" Law asked. He and Neo dropped their eyes to Chopper.
"Oh, he is a Kung Fu Dugong who became friends with Luffy in a kingdom called Alabasta," Chopper informed them. "Kung Fu Dugongs like to fight and will challenge anyone to a duel. Usopp fought him, but lost. Luffy, however, won the match against the dugong. When they lose a fight, they have to they have to become a disciple to the one who beat them. That's what this is about."
"I see. And what are they doing now?" Law asked.
"Huh?" Chopper turned his eyes back to Luffy.
"Like this, Seal!" Luffy said. He was throwing out punches in the air. The dugong was right beside him, imitating his moves. "One, two, one, two! Pull your arm back all the way! Like this! And use the lower half of your body! One, two, one, two!"
"They're getting along so well after fighting," Neo said. She tilted her head like it would help her comprehend the scene before her. She reached behind her back and tugged on a strand of her hair while tapping her bare toes on the floor.
"Yeah. That's Luffy for you. He's not one to really hold grudges against people." Chopper sweat dropped. "He can become friends with just about anybody whether they want to be his friend or not."
"Really?" Neo asked and Chopper nodded. She looked back over to Luffy. He was a lot friendlier than anyone else that she's met. And he's a lot more pushy and excitable than anyone.
"You really are that seal. You got so much stronger, didn't you?" Luffy asked. He squatted down to be closer to the height of his friend. The dugong smiled and pumped his arms in the air in agreement. "Oh, what's that on your chest?"
Chopper moved closer to the two and took in the scar. When the dugong started speaking again, he translated for them. "I saw the scar on your chest in the newspaper and copied it."
"You didn't hurt yourself on purpose, did you?" Luffy asked.
Neo took a couple steps closer so she could look at the mark. She felt like asking the same thing, but quickly noticed the scar wasn't real so she kept quiet.
"I painted it on," Chopper quoted when the dugong answered.
"That's funny!" Luffy said while falling backwards in a fit of laughter.
"He's cute," Neo said. A light pink blush dusted across her cheeks when the dugong noticed her and smiled. She looked around at all the animals then. They had gathered around their dugong friend and were waiting patiently.
Law growled, causing her to flinch. He said, "Now I know that you're Straw Hat's disciple, I want to know why you came here to the New World and kidnapped our important hostage."
The dugong freaked and bowed his head. As he squawked out his reply, Chopper translated for everyone. "I'm sorry for attacking your ship. I didn't know it was your ship, Master. But I do have a good reason for that. When I met you in Alabasta, you said that pirates are free. The sea is vast and there's so much fun out there. Those words really inspired me so I set sail out into the sea all alone with just the dream of becoming a free pirate just like you. I came across some very formidable enemies. I made a lot of friends. We overcame so many difficulties and formed a pirate group of sea creatures. Then we finally entered into the New World. That was when me met that guy, Breed. He wanted us to join his pirate crew. We're all his slaves now. We kidnapped Caesar on his orders."
So that's it. That's why they're so sad. These creatures are slaves. Neo looked over the animals before her. She walked over to the Sea Lapins. Their sad expressions and their guilt were pounding into her eyes and her brain. It was almost over whelming for her. She reached out and stroked one's fur. The sea lapin leaned into her touch and apologized for attacking. She shook her head. Softly, she said, "It's okay. It wasn't your fault."
Law wanted to toss her a warning look but didn't since no one but the animals heard her words. He kept his eyes on the dugong. "Breed. So he's the mastermind here. It seems like Doflamingo has nothing to do with this after all."
"I don't get it," Luffy said. He was now on his feet, but still bending over. His elbows rested on his knees while he tilted his head. "I know you're pretty strong. Why do you have to listen to him?"
"Because…" Chopper started to translate the dugong's replied.
"Fall in, all of you!" Breed's voice rang out, cutting Chopper off.
"Huh? What was that?" Chopper asked. He looked around for Breed's voice and for Breed himself.
"What's wrong?" Luffy asked when he noticed a distressed look on his friend's face. The rings around the animal pirates' neck started to glow.
"He wants us to get out of here," Chopper said when the dugong spoke.
"What?" Luffy wondered. He and the others watched in confusion as the animals struggled against the collars.
"What's going on?" Neo asked. She placed both hands on a sea lapin. The creature shook his head, informing her to get away. Tears stung her eyes as the creature's pain and fear pounded into her head. "No! Stop it! What's happening to them?!"
"Neo?" Chopper turned his eyes to her when he felt her distress. "What's wrong?"
The animals leaped into the air. When they landed, they formed two lines that lead to the cave opening. A few seconds later, Breed stepping into the light. He said, "How are you doing, pathetic humans?"
Neo, in a fit of anger, almost shouted out that she wasn't human. She bit back her voice before her words could roll off her tongue. She bit back another angry growl when the man slapped a whip onto the floor and snapped at the animals.
He said, "You all are far too slow! Listen up! This is how pets should act! First, be loyal! Second, be loyal! Third and fourth, be loyal! And lastly, be loyal! When I say, 'Fall in,' you have three seconds to obey me! Don't you understand that?!" He snapped the whip again before bending down and grabbing the dugong's face. "Hey, Kung Fu Dugong! You have to bring them together! Why are you being so slow?! If you let me down, you're a failure as a pet! You're no better than those stupid humans!"
Neo growled when the man gripped the dugong's face harder and pulled him closer. She clenched her fist, a low rumble of thunder released from her. Stepping forward she hissed, "Stop that."
"You're Breed, aren't you? Give us back Caesar!" Law demanded. He stepped in front of Neo to keep her from attacking. 'Neo, I order you to stand down.'
Neo flinched, but her body automatically obeyed his order. Her thunder faded off before anyone could notice it was there.
"Huh?! Shut up, foul human!" Breed snapped. He then relaxed and took a closer look at the pirates. "Oh yeah, it's you guys. Yes, I am Breed! I am also a pirate!"
"A pirate?" Luffy asked.
"I can't believe a warlord like Trafalgar Law is here along with Straw Hat Luffy, a pirate with a 400 million bounty!" Breed said. Both Neo and Law flinched. They waited for the man to bring Neo into his conversation and notice her inhuman nature, since it's typically always happened, but it didn't happen. The man just continued on chatting like she wasn't even there. "Thank you for chasing us all the way here, you pain-in-the-butt-, crappy humans!"
'He must not be strong enough to notice I'm not human. Or he just doesn't care.' Neo thought to Law. She looked over at him when he didn't reply. She sighed internally. He was so angry with her. She looked back at Breed when she saw him lifting his hand from the corner of her eye. Her eyes widened a bit when something formed on his hand and started glowing green.
"You won't be able to hit us with that," Luffy said.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that if I were you!" Breed said. He flung the green substance at them. "Pet-peto!"
Law, Luffy, and Neo easily leapt out of the way. Chopper wasn't as lucky. He shrieked when the flying substance hit him. He flew backwards and hit the floor. Sitting up, he grabbed onto the green substance, which was now a ring around his neck. He asked, "What?! What is this?!"
"Chopper!" Neo ran over to him. She knelt down and tried to pull the green ring off him. "What is it?! It won't come off!"
"How does this thing work?!" Chopper demanded. He tried to pull it off again with Neo's help. It didn't work.
"You okay, Chopper?!" Luffy asked.
"Trafalgar! Straw Hat!" Breed called. "You two are strong. Stronger than me. But is that enough to beat me?! Now, you!"
"What?! What do you want?!" Chopper asked when Breed pointed at him.
Neo gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyebrows at the man. She summoned over fifty of each of her crystals. The crystals flickered with their elements, reflecting her desire to attack, but she held her ground since she was under orders.
"Tear Trafalgar Law and Straw Hat limb from limb!" Breed ordered. His face curled into a twisted grin.
"That's crazy! Chopper would never do that!" Neo snapped, not noticing Chopper's eyes started to glow red.
"What? What's going on?" Chopper asked. Neo turned her attention back to him. They both looked down at the now glowing collar around his neck. He then stood up, but not under his own power.
"Chopper?" Neo asked, worried.
"What's wrong, Chopper?" Luffy asked.
"I can't control my body! What's this?! What's going on here?!" Chopper said. He wobbled around, unstable, then pulled out a yellow rumble ball. His eyes widened with terror. "Not that! Neo! Get away from me!"
"What?! No! I'm not going to just leave you like that!" Neo shouted. She placed her hands onto Chopper's shoulders.
"Neo! Get away from him!" Law said.
"I won't! Something's wrong!" Neo said. She grabbed a hold of the glowing collar and tried to pull it off again. When it didn't budge, she moved a fire crystal closer to Chopper. She flared it up, but stopped when she realized she could hurt him if she was too careless. And she wasn't thinking clearly right now. She banished the fire crystal.
"Neo, please, get away from me!" Chopper tossed the yellow Rumble Ball into his mouth and chomped down on it. He then shed his samurai outfit. His body grew large as he transformed into his monster self.
Law gasped in shock at how Chopper was changing. He stuttered, "H-hey…"
Breed laughed at the change while exclaiming, "That's amazing!"
Neo's eyes widened. Her hands slid off Chopper's collar and onto his now longer and thicker fur. Her fingers curled around it. She gasped while she lifted up with him as he grew. "Chopper! What's happening to you?! What's going on?!"
"This is just one of my forms that I can use when using the rumble ball," Chopper replied. He turned his eyes to her. He was panicking. He didn't want to hurt anyone, especially her. "Please, get away from me."
"I won't!" Neo screamed. Wrapping her winds around herself, she lifted herself up onto Chopper's shoulder. She looked at the glowing collar. "There has to be a way to get that off! Try and fight it!"
"I'm trying!" Chopper said. He pulled back his hand and swung it at Law and Luffy.
"Chopper, what's happening to you?!" Luffy asked just before the over grown reindeer swung at them. He and Law jumped backwards, narrowly missing being smashed, and skidded to a stop. "Why are you attacking us?!"
"That jerk," Law said while Luffy leaped backwards again to avoid another attack from Chopper.
Chopper then raised his right hand and tried to swat Law.
"Chopper! Stop it!" Neo begged. Tears stung her eyes. "Please! Stop!"
Chopper roared. His roar stopped and his red eyes went back to normal. "I'm sorry, Neo! I can't control it! Get away, all of you!"
"What's going on?!" Luffy asked, again.
"It seems he hasn't lost his senses after all," Law said.
"I can't control myself! Please! Get away from me!" Chopper raised his right hand. He struck out against Luffy and Law. The two jumped away from the attack. The whack of Chopper palm colliding with the floor resonated through the room with a loud rumble.
"Stop it!" Neo shouted. She wrapped her winds around Chopper and lifted him up into the air. She brushed her tears away. Now wasn't the time to be a crybaby. "I'm sorry, Chopper. I can't let you do this. I won't hurt you. I'm just going to levitate you like this."
"That's okay," Chopper said. He huffed a couple times, still swinging his hands at Law and Luffy, but relieved that he could no longer reach them. "At least I can't hit anyone up here. Just be sure to stay far enough away from me. I don't want to accidentally hit you."
Neo nodded. "I'll stay as far away as I can. Don't worry about me. Getting you freed is far more important." Her eyes dropped to the collar. "If only we knew what this collar was made of."
…
Breed growled when his little toy was suspended in the air. "I forgot about her. She's married to that disgusting warlord. Just another pathetic human I have to deal with. You! Attack her! I want her knocked out!"
Breed pointed at one of the sea lapins. The Sea Lapin ducked his head. It struggled against the order. Breed snapped his whip at the creature. "I said to attack her! Get her away from my pet!"
The sea lapin tried to struggle against the order, but lost the fight. It jumped forward. Leaping into the air, it swung its paw towards Neo's head.
…
"I'm going to try one of my fire crystals. I'll be careful as I can. So just hold-" Before Neo could finish her sentence, something whacked her across her head. Her vision blurred, her crystals faded and both her and Chopper plummeted to the floor.
Law grunted at the pain that shot through his head. He hissed when he realized he was too distracted by Chopper to even notice Breed giving one of the sea lapins an order to attack Neo. His own vision blurred from the hit she took and from the anger swelling up inside of him. He winced when he felt her body collide with the ground.
"Neo!" Luffy shouted when she hit the ground.
"Neo!" Chopper cried. He helplessly watched her fly away from him. He winced when she collided with the ground and rolled to a stop.
"Restrain her!" Breed ordered Chopper.
"What?! No!" Chopper protested. But his hand reached out and picked Neo up from the ground. She hung limp in his hand.
"Hey! You leave her alone!" Luffy snapped at Breed. He started to run forward.
"I have no choice now. Room!" Law held up his hand.
"Huh?" Luffy turned back to Law. He ran back and plowed into the Warlord and locked his arms around him. "Don't do it! I won't let you hurt Chopper! Neo's with him too!"
"You idiot! I'm not going to hurt either of them!" Law snapped. He struggled to get free of Luffy's iron grip. "I just want to control him! We can't keep letting him be controlled like this by Breed!"
…
"Huh?" Neo hummed when she started to wake up. Her vision was blurred and her body felt tight. When she tried to move, she found she couldn't. She blinked then noticed a slightly familiar fur brushing across her skin. She blinked again, a bit of the blurriness faded. She saw Law struggling against Luffy. Remembering where she was, she looked to find she was in Chopper's hand then looked towards Breed. The man's hand was filled with that green substance again. She gasped. "No! Law! Look out!"
She called out too late. Breed shot out the substance. The two pirates didn't have a chance to move before it locked onto their necks, forming collars on them too.
Law cursed. He then glared at Breed.
"I ate the peto peto fruit!" Breed said. Glowing green substance clung to his out stretched hand.
"peto peto? Don't tell me it's…" Law started.
"That's right! I can manipulate any living things as I want with my peto peto power!" Breed laughed, manically. "Which means I can make them my pet!"
"Pet? So peto peto means pet?" Luffy asked.
"That's right! I can control any living thing and bring out all of its power! Hold her still! I want her under my control too!" Breed turned towards Chopper. "You'll see how deadly it is!"
"No!" Law growled. His eyes sharpened as he rushed forward. "Stop it! Don't you touch her!"
"Trafalgar, stop!" Breed ordered.
Law growled when his body automatically listened to the man's words. Color drained from his face when Breed turned to face Neo and Chopper. His blood ran cold as Breed held up his hand.
"Hm? What's wrong? You look extremely pale," Luffy asked when he noticed Law's terrified expression.
…
"Hold her out to me," Breed said.
Unable to disobey, Chopper held Neo out to him. His eyes filled with panic, his heart about pounded out of his chest when Breed flung the substance towards Neo. It wrapped around her neck. He said, "Neo…I'm so sorry."
Neo didn't hear him. Her body temperature plummeted. Her breaths became shallow and short. Breed's words were the only thing echoing in her ears. "I can't control any living thing and bring out all of its power!" Those words repeatedly played over and over as painful memories from the past began flashing through her mind. Dark images of people screaming in fear, waves crashing onto the shores, fire flaring up, animals attacking, plants growing rapidly, thunder booming, lightning flashing violently over the island. One single, strangled word escaped her lips, "Mertensia…"
…
Author's Notes: Anyone know for sure if words like Warlord and Haki are capitalized or not? I was doing that, then stopped, now I'm not sure. :/
: Hi. I'll have to PM you that answer if you really want it. So let me know.
PuddyKatz: You're right. She is caring and at that age to be a mother figure.
Apple Bloom: Indeed it is.
Chasegirl11: That would be an interesting twist.
KittyCCCC: Yup, I'm doing the Breed Arc. Nami is loud. Robin totally knows. It's obvious now. We'll know what all Robin knows soon.
Rodinaashraf: Yup, the Straw Hats will know.
