Fujitora
Fujitora tapped his sword sheath on the ground, feeling out for obstacles that might cause him to trip. He paused and looked back at the palace. His mind was wandering over his conversation he just had with Doflamingo. He had told the warlord of his mission to abolish the seven warlords of the sea system. And it was a goal that he planned to see through to the end. He wiped his sword free hand on his clothes as if he was wiping the conversation away from his mind. It was done and over with. He turned and switched his train of thought to the young blue haired pirate woman waiting for him back at the navy post. He needed to get back to make sure she was still safe. And to make sure that man, Cethin, wasn't doing anything to her. Something about that man had really put him on edge and he was still on edge about letting that man go to see her.
Stepping back up on the piece of rubble he flew here on, the admiral lifted it and himself into the air. While flying back to the navy post, he went over ways he could word his conversation with Neo. What he knew of her, he knew he had to be careful with his words and his actions. Despite her usually calm exterior and childlike looks, he knew she could be as volatile as a storm. Until today he didn't know that was actually literal. Half of him wanted to disregard what Doflamingo had said earlier on Green Bit about Neo not being human and what the newspapers have said about her. But it could no longer be denied. Everything seemed to have fallen into place now. It all made sense. Neo wasn't human. That would explain her multicolored spirit he saw when he used his observation haki on her. It explained why she gave off such an inhuman feel like the rumors had said. It explained her crystals, her ability to control nature, and it explained everything.
It also opened up a whole lot more questions about her. She was an elemental. A creature that could control nature through the crystals she summoned. And there were others. At least one of them was in the navy. For now that one wasn't a threat to the navy or to humans, he was a protector of the people, a man of the navy. But Neo was a princess of these elemental people. Would that man turn against the navy if his princess were in danger? Have they even met before? And what about all the other elementals in the world? How many where there? Where exactly did they live? Why hasn't anyone ever heard of them until now? Did anyone else know of these creatures and just not say anything about them? Where they good or evil?
Fujitora chuckled over all the questions his brain was rapidly going over. He cast his blind eyes down to the country that he was passing over. He was far too high up to hear all of the noise the people were making. He was far too high up to smell all of the food people were cooking. But he still imagined it all. In his mind he heard children laughing, dogs barking, adults talking, instruments being played, food sizzling in pans on fires, and all of the other noises that plagued the everyday lives of human beings. Then his mind drifted back to the elementals. He pictured them doing the exact same thing. Sure their ways of doing things must be different from human ways. An example of that would be their crystals. They wielded fire so they probably used that to cook instead of stoves. Or maybe they had stoves. Maybe they didn't constantly use their crystals for everything. Maybe there wasn't much difference between them and humans. Maybe they had more in common with humans than he would ever know. Neo was one of them and blended in with the humans better than he figured she would with feeling as inhuman as she did. So maybe elementals were just like humans beings but only with different gifts. Maybe some were good and helpful while others were bad and harmful, just like humans beings could be.
"Well, let's see what the little princess has to say," Fujitora said upon realizing he had reached his destination quicker than he thought he would. He lowered his rubble to the ground just as a small group of six soldiers ran over to him.
"Admiral Fujitora!" a soldier said with a salute to his superior as they all came to attention. "I'm glad you have come back safely!"
"Yes, of course," Fujitora said, stepping off the rubble. "Has she woken up yet?"
"No, sir," the soldier replied. "She's still unconscious."
"I see. And the man that came here earlier?" Fujitora asked. "Is he still here?"
"Yes, sir. He's-" the soldier started to say.
"He is just leaving. It's been a pleasure. But I really need to get going now," Cethin said while he walked over to them. He shoved his hands into his pockets and placed a practiced bored look on his expression. Without giving the soldiers a chance to ask him questions, he rushed passed them and headed back to the palace.
Fujitora hummed at that bit of information, his closed eyes following the man's retreat. He turned back to his men then said, "Well, he's surely in a hurry. Did he touch her?"
"No, sir. I believe he did not. He just sat with her for a while," the soldier reported. "I peaked in on them occasionally while he was in there."
"Very well. I think I will go in and sit with her until she wakes up," Fujitora said. He tapped the tip of his sword on the ground. Working his way around the soldiers, he headed for the tent with the sleeping elemental in it.
"Uh, sir? Is that a good idea? She's a dangerous pirate after all," the soldier said. He followed after his superior to express his concern while the others soldiers remained standing in place and just watched him go. "And she's not really a devil fruit user. She's not even human. Is it true she's something called an elemental? Would you like us to back you up, sir?"
"I see you have heard of that little information," Fujitora said. He stopped walking at the front flap of the tent. Tuning into this haki, he looked at the multicolored spirit just lying still inside of the tent before him.
"It's spreading through the ranks as we speak, sir," the soldier told him. "The men really want to report this back to head quarters. They're all on edge a bit. A lot of them want to question the woman. They want to know more about her and her people. Some of them are even threatening to just kill her out right. They believe she's a danger by being here since the sea prism stone doesn't affect her."
"I see. Well, there's no point in trying to deny that she's not a devil fruit user and an elemental. But, no, do not report this back to head quarters just yet. You all remain silent on that," Fujitora said.
"Sir?"
"I'll handle that myself. Spread these orders to the men, they are not to report back to head quarters about Trafalgar Neo not being a devil fruit user nor human. I'll take care of that when the time comes. And no one is permitted to harm the young woman. She will be brought to justice in a fair trial just like all of the other pirates the navy has dealt with. No one is going to create a lynch mob just because they found out she's not human. I will not have such a thing happening on my watch. Have I made myself clear?" Fujitora said.
"Yes, sir! Understood! I will spread those orders immediately!" The soldier saluted.
"Also, no one is to enter this tent until I say so," Fujitora added and earned another 'Yes, sir' from the soldier before he entered into the tent. The soldier's voice, as he ran off to spread the orders, was muffled out a bit from the tent flap closing behind him. He glanced over at the pirate asleep on the cot. Feeling his way over to her, his sword tapped against the stool. He tapped his sheath on it a couple more times, coming to the conclusion it was tipped over. Cethin was clearly in a very big hurry to leave. Pushing the man from his thoughts, he grabbed it and sat it back in its upright position before sitting down on it. He rested both hands on the hilt of his sword, his blind eyes skillfully landing on her face. Activated his observation haki again, he ran his eyes over her body, pausing on her stomach.
He sighed when he found the small red dot was still present in her ever changing spirit. He was still worried that his attack earlier might have hurt the child despite having seen the little red dot shortly after attacking her. A weight had finally lifted off his shoulders when it was clear everything was just fine. If something had happened, it would have been apparent by now. His breathing became easier and he settled in to wait for her to wake up.
…
Law groaned internally at the pain shooting through his body and from the hard chair he was obviously chained too. The sea prism stone around his wrists were draining more of his already exhausted energy. He quickly pushed the pain and energy drain aside and searched out for Neo, hoping her magic had returned. He relaxed a bit when he found she wasn't too far away from him. He was also relieved to find her magic had returned, but worried because she was unconscious. He was grateful, however, that she didn't have to feel his pain for the moment. It didn't feel like she herself was hurt, other than from his pain of course, but he did notice a slight pain in his right side that he knew wasn't caused by Doflamingo. He did his best not to show any emotions, to keep his face relaxed so it appeared he was still unconscious himself, as his anger burned through his chest at the thought and feeling. Or was it caused by Doflamingo? What happened after he was knocked unconscious? He knew Doflamingo wouldn't have just immediately brought him to the palace. Doflamingo would have taunted his win in front of Neo and the others, at least until she attacked. But did he touch her? Did he hurt her?
If he did, Law was going to sadistically torture the older man half to the death then nurse him back to health so he can torture him again.
He was pondering on multiple ways to torture the man until the truth struck him. If it were Doflamingo that had her and hurt her then she would have been closer to him than she was right now. So where was she? Who would have taken her? Then he remembered. Fujitora had wanted to speak with her. And if Neo were knocked out, unable to defend herself or be defended by others, the navy admiral would have had the perfect chance to take her. The only one who could possible stop the admiral was himself or Doflamingo. And Doflamingo clearly didn't have her. So it had to be the admiral.
While he didn't want either of them to have her in any kind of way, he knew if he had to choose, he rather Neo be with the navy than in Doflamingo clutches. The navy was just barely favorable over Doflamingo. Besides, he had a strange feeling that Fujitora wasn't going to hurt her or even keep her. But he wasn't sure why he thought that. It was the navy's job to capture pirates. Maybe the navy admiral was going to keep her after all. The admiral didn't personally know Neo and had no reason to let her go. It was his job as an admiral to capture pirates.
Law's heart started to pound in his chest. He had to force himself to stop thinking about that. Neo would be fine. She wasn't a devil fruit user so she could easily escape from the navy if the situation required it. Besides, there was nothing he could do about her or for her until she woke up anyway. For now, he focused on himself and tried to analyze the situation he was in. He knew he was in the palace, chained to a chair, and surrounded by Doflamingo and some of his crew. He kept his eyes closed but figured that Baby 5 and Buffalo would be in this room with Doflamingo. He more or less hung out with them when they were younger. He figured they'd want to be here to see what would happen to him if nothing else. He didn't care. They both were still cowards just like they were when they were younger. Once he was free, he could easily take care of them.
"Law," Doflamingo's deep voice said.
Law took a shallow breath. There was no point in dragging this out any longer. He was going to have to reveal he was awake sooner or later. Might as well get it over with. He opened his eyes. The stone flooring of the palace and the orange rug laying on it was the first thing he saw before lifting his eyes to the pink feather coated man in front of him. Doflamingo was sitting several feet across from him. On the older warlord's left side was a small stone table with a transponder snail, standing on his right side was Buffalo and Baby 5 just like he thought they would be and three average soldiers were behind him. He looked to his left when he felt another presence in the room. Down at the other end of the room sitting on the ground with his hands behind his back was a gray haired old man that had dried blood on his skin and gladiator outfit. Not caring who he was or what he was doing here, Law turned his attention back to Doflamingo.
"Nice to see that you're still alive, Law," Doflamingo said. He propped his elbow up on the armrest of his chair and leaned his cheek against his fist. Forcing back a flinch when he pressed against his damaged gums, he shifted his position a bit to get more comfortable. "Sorry I had to shoot you. But it was necessary. Despite that, there's some stuff we need to talk about. Like the Straw Hats."
Law frowned and didn't say anything but easily noticed the change of movement then the redness in Doflamingo's cheek. He couldn't help but let his eyes wander over the older man's body. He took in every inch of the man until he got down to the older man's stomach. A nice black and blue bruise had formed on the man's toned abdomen that hadn't been there before. And he knew why. He couldn't stop a proud smile from forming on his lips as he brought his eyes back up to Doflamingo's. "She was a lot harder for you to handle than you thought she would be. Wasn't she, Doflamingo?"
Doflamingo's eyebrows twitched.
Law watched as the man's smile faded away from the still fresh memories of Neo landing unexpected blows on him. He could clearly see that Doflamingo wanted to rip her away from the navy and drag her here so he could punish her in front of him. He knew Doflamingo wanted to punish them both for defying him. But that was going to have to wait for now. The man had more pressing matters to deal with.
"She was dealt with easily enough, Law. But we'll get to her soon. Right now I want to know what's going on with you and the Straw Hats. I had the impression that all you guys wanted to do was destroy the SMILE factory and that was it. If that was really all you wanted to do here, then why is it the Straw Hats are working with the little people of Green Bit? This clearly isn't just some random act they're preforming."
"Little people?" Law asked. He wanted to look over at the window. But he forced himself to keep his eyes on the man in front of him. What are those idiots doing?! They're supposed to be destroying the factory!
"I have been recently informed that a couple of the Straw Hats are currently in the underground port. How did they manage to sneak into there? Are they trying to attack Sugar? That has to be the only reason they're down there. They have no reason to take out the port. I don't know what they're up to but they keep doing things that are causing me a lot of grief. If this whole thing is not just a coincidence, then it means that they know what's behind the darkness of this country," Doflamingo said before biting down on his thumbnail. His eyes remained locked onto Law from behind his sunglasses.
Law knew he was waiting for an answer. But it wasn't going to happen. Not only because he had no clue what the Straw Hats were doing, but also because he would defy Doflamingo anytime he could. From the corner of his eye he saw Baby 5 walking over to him. The tapping of her heels came closer before her hand collided with his head.
Baby 5 said, "Answer him! The young master asked you a question, Law!"
Law didn't. He only lifted up and glared at Baby 5 for causing Neo unnecessary pain. The glare caused the woman to dash away from him and grab onto Buffalo and cry. He mentally scoffed at the memories of her doing that exact same thing when they were younger. Coward.
"Don't hit him if it's just going to make you cry!" Buffalo said to the black haired woman clinging to his arm. "You two haven't changed a bit!"
"I already told you. We have nothing more to do with the Straw Hats at this point. I don't understand a single thing you're telling me," Law said, turning his attention back to Doflamingo. "Our alliance is over."
"You don't really expect me to believe that, do you? Neo was clearly still with the Straw Hats when I saw her at the coliseum. Or do you really not know anything about what's going on?" Doflamingo stared at Law, searching for any signs of a lie. "If Violet were with us, she could tell what's in your mind easily. But I suppose it's rather easy to guess what's on your mind at the moment. I'm sure you're wondering where your precious lover is over what the Straw Hats are doing. You must be very worried about her now that you both are my prisoners."
Law narrowed his eyebrows.
"You don't have to worry about her. She's safe within the walls of the palace," Doflamingo said with a grin.
"Liar," Law said with a grin of his own. He had to be careful with what he said. Doflamingo knew too much already. He didn't want to give his enemy any more information on their bond than the older warlord already knew. But he didn't need his bond with Neo to know that she wasn't in the palace. He knew how Doflamingo worked. If Doflamingo had Neo in his grasp then she would have been in this room with them. Doflamingo would have been using her in one way or another against him. "Neo is not that easily captured. I know for a fact you don't have her. You might be strong, but you're not strong enough to stop a storm. If you had captured her, you wouldn't have those battle scars. And she would be in this room with us. She's stronger than she looks."
"I know she's a lot stronger than she lets on. I also can tell that she's suffered some great deal of pain. I see that similarity between us easily. It's plan as day that she has suffered some tragic event. And that leads to her inability to kill," Doflamingo said. He chuckled when Law flinched at his words. "So what is it, Law? What happened to her to cause her such issues with killing? Is her no killing policy set in stone? What would she do if I were on the verge of killing you? Would she get over that and kill me to protect you?"
"Doflamingo," Law said in a dark warning tone. He knew, if push came to shove, that Neo would kill to protect him or someone else she cared about. Her fear of losing someone she loved would shove down her other fears, but it would come at a heavy price. He didn't know exactly how it would effect her, but it would. Even if the person she killed were to protect someone she loves, it would still cause a lot of mental damage to her. "Don't you dare even think about trying something like that with her. If you do, I will kill- Hn!" He flinched at a sharp pain stabbing through his head, through Neo's head.
Doflamingo's eyebrows rose on his head at the obvious pain in Law. He chuckled while reaching into his coat and said, "I've done more than just think about doing things with her, Law. I've already got a plan in place for her. That pain you're feeling now isn't yours, is it, Law? It's hers."
"What does that matter?" Law asked, the pain subsiding.
"It matters because I'm the one causing her those headaches, Law," Doflamingo said.
"You really expect me to believe that you are causing her pain? While you're sitting right in front of me?" Law asked. He didn't believe Doflamingo's words, but something started to tickle the back of his mind. He had assumed Neo's headaches were because of her pregnancy. But was it really? She's never had headaches before. While they were common with human pregnancies that didn't mean they were with elemental ones.
"Think about it, Law. Her headaches didn't start until she arrived inside the boarders of my kingdom," Doflamingo said. His hand lingered inside of his coat.
"That doesn't mean anything," Law said. Doubt began to creep up on him more. Doflamingo was right. Her headaches didn't start until they came here.
"It means a lot," Doflamingo said, finally pulling his hand out of his coat to reveal Law's hat.
"That's…" Law gasped at the unexpected arrival of his hat. His eyes narrowed in on his hat, his hat that Neo had stolen from him when they were back on the Sunny, his hat that she should still be wearing. He struggled against the sea prism chains holding him down. He needed to get to her. Now wasn't the time for her to wake up and not be wearing his hat. She was under too much distress as it was. Waking up without his scent around her wasn't going to be good for anyone, especially her and their baby. He could still contact her through their bond, but would that be enough? Would he be able to keep her calm? Or would she freak out? She was going to wake up surrounded by strangers, chains with sea prism stone chains with out him or his hat and her magic could still cut out on them again. Taking anything from her that he had given her was a very bad thing for people to do. The elementals, despite under the darkness crystal's influence, learned that the hard way. He had to start reaching out to her before she woke up, before her magic could cut out again. He had to let her know that she was going to be fine and didn't need to freak out, despite the fact she was going to do it anyway. He could help ease her back into a calm state if he spoke to her before she woke up. And he could feel she was starting to stir from her forced slumber. 'Neo? I know you're just starting to wake up, but I still need you to listen to me. You're all right. You're going to be fine. Okay? You're going to wake up surrounded by the navy and without my hat. Fujitora has taken you. Or I assume it's him since Doflamingo doesn't have you here at the palace with me. But you're okay. I'm still with you. Everything's going to be fine.'
"That's right. This is your hat. She was wearing it before," Doflamingo said. He twirled Law's hat on his finger and chuckled. "I have her in my grasp whether or not you want to believe it, Law. And I will find out what you two are really up to in my kingdom. Or, I suppose it might not be something you two are doing. It could be you, King Riku. The Tontattas did once serve you. Are they acting on your orders?"
Law ignored Doflamingo as he turned to the old man in the room and continued to reach out for Neo. 'You're waking up now. Just remember breath, okay? You're fine. You're temperately away from me, but you're not hurt. I'm not hurt… well, I'm not life threatening hurt. I'm still alive. We're still alive. Remember you've handled yourself very well today. You walked through Dressrosa all on your own, under your own decision. You can handle this problem on your own.'
He cursed under his breath when he felt her magic cutting out on them again. He had no choice but to let her finish waking up on her own and hope she could handle herself. She should be fine considering she managed to walk through Dressrosa on her own. She's grown up a bit more by doing that. She'll be fine, he reminded himself. But he still worried. And not just because her headaches started when they entered into Dressrosa, but also because she really hated waking up with out him being beside her or somewhere nearby on a normal day. And today was anything but normal.
…
Neo groan at the dull throb in her body and head. Through her blurry thoughts, she tired to remember what she was doing and what had happened. She knew she was laying on an uncomfortable bed, but where was she before? She was at the coliseum with Luffy. They were looking for Zoro and Kin'emon and found them shortly before… Her heart tightened in her chest. She remembered. She remembered Law on the ground. Doflamingo had shot him.
'Neo, it okay. I'm fine.'
"Law?" Hearing Law's voice in her head, Neo turned her head to her right. She opened her eyes to a blurry image sitting beside her. She jumped when she noticed the figure didn't feel like Law. She blinked rapidly, clearing her vision. She stared at the old man, not registering who he was, before her before looking around the tent she was in. Her heart pounded inside of her chest, making her body ache more. "Law?! Where am I?! What… what's going on?!"
"Easy, young lady," the old man said. "I'm afraid Law isn't here at the moment."
Neo whipped her eyes back to the old man. She ran her eyes over him before shooting up in bed, noticing for the first time she was wearing sea prism stone chains. Her heart pounded harder and her breathing came in short raspy breaths as she flung herself off the side of the bed in an attempt to get away from the man. She landed on the ground with a painful thud. An unwanted whimper passed over her lips as she pushed up on her arms. Her eyes dropped onto the chains on her arms. She mentally groaned at them and forced herself to remember to act weak. She slumped back down on the ground. Rolling onto her back, she called out for Law. 'Law! I've sea prism stone chains on! Law? Law?!'
Neo groaned when she noticed her magic failed her once again. She covered her face with her hands before gliding her fingers up into her hair. More panic swelled up in her chest upon realizing she was missing his hat. "Your hat's gone! I don't have it anymore!"
"I'm sorry that you don't have your hat anymore," Fujitora said. "Doflamingo took it. Well, I guess technically its Law's hat."
Neo closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her head felt fuzzy. Her heart was pounding erratically in her chest. She then noticed she felt very disoriented and realized she wasn't completely awake yet. She forced herself into a completely relaxed state. She stopped herself from thinking about where she was, who she wasn't with, and the sea prism stone chains on her wrists. She wasn't sure how long she remained like that, but eventually her fuzzy thoughts cleared and she felt a lot better. She was able to assess her situation and how she had gotten there.
Pressing her forearms to the ground, she pushed herself up into a sitting position and looked back over at the man she was with. He was the Admiral Fujitora. And she was with the navy. Probably surrounded by how many ever men he had with him plus the other navy soldiers that had been in the town, minus the ones who were chasing after the others. She looked around the tent again. Surprise leaked into her mind upon seeing no other soldiers in the tent with them.
"I wouldn't try escaping if I were you," Fujitora said.
Neo slowly drew her eyes back to him. She wondered if she should say anything or just remain quiet. She looked around the tent once more. She finally registered that they were the only ones inside of it. It started to confuse her but the thought quickly left when she remembered the sea prism stone chains on her. There was no reason for any other soldiers to be in here. She lifted her cuffed wrists to look at them before lowering them back down to her lap. If she could just get the key to them she could easily escape.
"Navy soldiers have this tent surrounded. I'd rather not have anyone's blood shed right now," Fujitora said.
"What are you talking about?" Neo found herself asking. "I'm trapped with sea prism stone chains. I'm not going anywhere even if I wanted to."
"There's no need to pretend you are a devil fruit user. I know that you're not," Fujitora said.
"What are you talking about? I'm weakened right now," Neo said, lifting her cuffed wrists to him as if it would prove her point before letting them drop heavily to her lap.
Fujitora chuckled. "There really is no need to pretend anymore. I already know that you're not a devil fruit user. I know you are a creature called an elemental."
"How did…" Neo started. She stopped speaking when her stomach lurched. She placed one hand over her mouth and the other over her spinning stomach, forcing back a gag.
"Are you all right, young lady?" Fujitora asked. "Would you like some water?"
Neo drew in several breaths, calming herself down again. She recalled Law telling her that Doflamingo knew she was an elemental royal. And Fujitora was on Green Bit during that time. Law must have been more worried about Doflamingo knowing than the navy and forgot to tell me about it. She glanced back over at Fujitora. The man was just sitting there watching her through his observation haki she assumed. She couldn't escape without him knowing what she was going to do before hand even if she wanted to attempt it. She was going to have to buy some time until she found the right moment to escape. She pulled her eyes away from him. Curling into herself as much as she could, she wrapped her arms around her knees.
A long moment of silence stretched out between the two before the admiral asked, "Are you calm now? I really didn't mean to upset you. I guess it was unavoidable though. All I wish do to here is talk with you."
Neo turned more away from the navy admiral. She leaned against the cot beside the one she was laying on, crossing her arms over it and trembled. Her eyes dropped down to the chains around her wrists. Despite not being effected by the sea prism stone, she still knew she needed the key to get out of them. But who had it? Did the admiral have the key? Or did one of the other soldiers have it? The only way she could find out was using her earth crystals. She could thread a vine into their pockets. Well, she could do that with the normal soldiers. The admiral, however, she wasn't going to be able to. He was too powerful for that. Plus his senses were sharper due to his blindness.
Neo drew in a slow, deep breath. She was trapped until she could figure out another way to get a hold of the key. She could feel the admiral's attention on her back, just waiting for her to make a move or say something. She didn't want to, but she forced herself to turn around and face him, unaware how comfortable she was turning her back to an enemy. She studied him for any possible weakness and wondered what it was he wanted from her. She was a pirate. So why wasn't she locked up in the brig on a navy ship somewhere? The only way to get that answer was to ask him. But she didn't feel like talking to him, at least not yet. She just wanted to get out of here and go be with Law again.
Another long stretch of silence passed between the two before he said, "My apologies, Trafalgar Neo. I really did not want to hit you earlier like I did."
Neo felt her eyebrows twitch at his words. Earlier? He must mean when I was fighting with Doflamingo. That attack that came out of nowhere and knocked me out, it must have been him. I must have been too focused on Doflamingo to notice his gravity coming towards me. I wonder if Zoro and Kin'emon are all right and if Luffy is still inside of the coliseum. If my magic was working I would be able to sense where Luffy is. And where Law is. I suppose Doflamingo has Law. And, if he does, that mean's he's probably at the palace. Well at least I know which direction to head in if my magic doesn't come back soon.
"I hope that I didn't bring any harm to you two," Fujitora said, breaking Neo's concentration on Law and Luffy.
"The two of us?" Neo asked, turning her attention to him. She kneaded her eyebrows in confusion to the man's words. Who is he talking about? He surely knows that Law was fighting Doflamingo. And Law's clearly not here. There's no one else for him to express concern over. He has to be talking about Law. "What did you do to Law?! Did you help Doflamingo hurt him?! If you did, I'll-"
"Relax, young lady. I haven't done anything to him. Unfortunately, he's in Doflamingo's hands right now. But he was not the one I was speaking of," Fujitora replied.
"Then who? The only other one fighting was Law," Neo said. "You should know that since you were there."
…
Fujitora eyebrows lifted up on his forehead upon the confusion that was clear in her words. Well, this is an interesting development. This young woman doesn't realize she's pregnant. I suppose that's not too odd. She might just not recognize the signs I'm sure she's having. But Trafalgar Law is a surgeon. Surely he knows that she's with child unless…he does know but she doesn't. That would explain her absence on Green Bit and why she was wandering about the town with the Straw Hats instead of begin with her husband or one of her crew like she normally is. Perhaps I should remain quiet about that. She's clearly scared enough as it is. I can feel her trembling from here despite the fact she's trying to put on a brave face. And stress can effect a pregnancy.
…
"And unfortunately?! What do you mean by that?! Because you didn't capture him?!" Neo snapped.
"Not at all. I could easily capture him if I wanted too," Fujitora said.
Neo scoffed. "No. You couldn't."
"Perhaps you are right. I did witness his battle on Green Bit. He's not one to easily give up. Despite that… you're the one I wanted to speak to right now, Princess," Fujitora said.
"Don't call me princess!" Neo snapped. She wrapped her arms tight around her knees.
"My apologies. I didn't not mean to upset you," Fujitora said.
Neo glared at him. But her glare quickly faded at his gently expression he wore. She didn't want to believe him. She wanted to hate this man. He was there enemy after all. He was half responsible for separating her and Law. She just couldn't bring herself to do it. She knew he was a good man by the way he was talking to her and how he didn't make any move to come closer to her like others have done. Silently she cursed her instincts for telling her he wasn't going to hurt her in any kind of way, that he was really only wanting to talk to her. Plus he wasn't the one who actually upset her. That was all Doflamingo's doing. Sighing, she said, "No. Don't apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. It's just… I'm really not comfortable with people calling me that. It just really bugs me."
"I see." Fujitora nodded. "I'll just stick with Trafalgar Neo then. Would that be all right?"
Neo didn't think he understood at all. How could he? How could he know about her past? He only knew what the newspapers had said and a lot of that was just guesses, minus the parts that Doflamingo somehow came to know about. "Neo. Just call me Neo."
"Very well then, Neo." Fujitora shifted on his stool. "I appreciate the simplicity. Let's get right down to it then. I'm sure we both have other things we would like to be doing right now."
Other things? Is he planning on letting me go? Neo wondered.
"I've brought you here to offer a proposition for you," Fujitora said.
"Proposition?" Neo blinked.
"I would like to offer you a position in the navy," Fujitora said bluntly. "You would be serving under me so I could assure your safety."
Neo stared at him. Her mind went blank at his words. She couldn't comprehend it. Her brain just refused to accept what he said. Or maybe she just didn't understand him? Did he really just offer her, a pirate, to become a navy soldier and serve under him? All emotion from her voice had vanished when she asked, "What?"
"I want you to give up the life of a pirate and become a navy soldier," Fujitora said.
Neo bit her bottom lip in a desperate attempt to stop the laughter that was bubbling up from inside of her. She couldn't do it. She laughed. Her bell filled laughter rang out from her lips and filled the tent around them.
"Not exactly the reaction I was expecting. And I'm not sure what surprises me more. The fact that you're laughing or the fact your laughter literally has bells in it," Fujitora said. "Did I really say something so funny?"
"Yes! You just offered a pirate to become a navy soldier!" Neo said, managing to get her laughter under control enough for her to speak clearly. "Why in the world would you even think that I would do that?"
"Young lady, I know that you're not a harsh, murderous pirate," Fujitora said. "From the first time I learned about you, I asked myself 'Why? Why would such a sweet young woman ever want to become a pirate?' It doesn't add up. People with your sweet disposition don't become pirates."
"You don't know me," Neo said. Her laughter was replaced with a harsh glare at the man before her.
"Possibly." Fujitora smiled. "But you didn't deny anything that I've said."
Neo flinched.
"Come now, child. Don't try to deny it now. Most people just don't look past the fact that you're a pirate. But I have. I heard all about you. You never aggressively attack anyone unless they try to harm one of your loved ones. And, for now, those loved ones of yours just happen to be pirates. When you do attack, you never release your full power. You're always holding back. Now, I have no way of knowing how it is you came to be with the Heart Pirates, but I believe if you got to opportunity to become a navy soldier you would have done it," Fujitora said.
"You just said I have a sweet disposition, yet you want me to become a navy soldier?" Neo said. "Aren't you contradicting yourself?"
"How so?" Fujitora asked.
"The navy isn't exactly innocent. They're not benevolent," Neo said. "There have been plenty of navy soldiers running amok, causing destruction and harm. There have been plenty navy soldiers who have done some terrible things to people they are suppose to be protecting. There have been plenty of times navy soldiers have turned a blind eye to terrible deeds being done by their own people. You people have set up the seven warlords system that allows seven pirates to run around doing whatever they please no matter who they hurt or kill." Her voice rose and tears came to her eyes with each word she spoke. Forgetting about the sea prism stone on her wrists, she pushed herself to her feet. Glaring at the old man before her as she started to scream at him. "They're allowed to hurt, to plunder, to kill, to take whatever they please without any kind of reprimand! All for what?! Giving the government and navy added protection to do their own dirty deeds?! You people killed a man, Fire Fist Ace, all because he was born as the son of the king of the pirates! He didn't ask to be born the son of a pirate! But that doesn't matter, does it?! Even if he didn't become a pirate you people would have still hunted him down and killed him for it! He did nothing wrong and you people murdered him! Why would I want to join that?! Why would I want to join a group of people who want to murder people because they are born different?! Do you have any idea what it's like to be hated just because you were born different?! Do you have any idea what it's like to have people just look at you and know you're not like them?! Do you have any idea what it's like to be completely alone in the world?! Do you?!"
…
Fujitora's eyebrows lifted upon his forehead once more at her words, at the tears she was crying from both her eyes and her soul. The finally piece had fallen into place for him. He knew at that point she wasn't talking about Fire Fist Ace at all. She was talking about herself. She had been hated by people until she had came to be with the Heart Pirates. That's why she was so protective of them. But before he could utter a single word to her, seven navy soldiers ran into the tent, all armed with rifles. One said, "Admiral Fujitora! Are you all right?! We heard the yelling!"
"What's the matter with you, girl?! Are you causing trouble for Admiral Fujitora?!" another soldier asked.
Neo backed up when the soldiers pointed their guns at her. Her legs bumped into the cot she forgot was behind her. She sat down on the bed and dropped her eyes to the floor in a defiant manner she picked up while living among her pirate family.
"You better answer-"
"Enough!" Fujitora said before the soldier could finish. "Everything is just fine. Everything is under control. I just unintentionally upset her. You all may leave now."
The soldiers looked to their leader, exchanged confused glances, and then left without another word. Fujitora waited a couple minutes to be sure that the soldiers were far enough away before turning back to Neo. "That's what happened to you, isn't it?"
Neo flinched. She pulled her feet upon the cot and hugged her knees. She didn't intent to give him enough information for him to come so close to guessing her past. Her emotions just took over her and everything came spilling out.
"You were hated because you were different. I assume that means you didn't grow up around your people," Fujitora said.
Neo remained silent as she just stared down at the ground.
"And I assume that somehow led you to become a pirate," Fujitora continued. "That's what happened, right? Law and his pirate crew found you at some point. They took you in and raised you as a pirate?"
Neo shifted on the cot. "You see rather well for a blind man."
Fujitora chuckled. "In many ways blinding myself has been a blessing."
"You…" Neo lifted her eyes to him. "You blinded yourself? Why?"
"I got disgusted with seeing all of the corruption and evil in the world. So I took my own eyesight so I wouldn't have to deal with seeing it anymore," Fujitora said without hesitation.
"That's stupid," Neo said bluntly.
"How so?" Fujitora asked.
"Just because you can't see it doesn't mean it's not still there," Neo said.
"You are correct. But I do not regret my decision," Fujitora replied. "And if I was faced with the decision again, I would take the same course of action. So, you see, not all of us like what's going on in the world or the navy. Some of us do want to change the evil and corruption going on inside of it. That's why I want to abolish the seven warlords system."
"You want to abolish the seven warlords?" Neo asked.
"I do." Fujitora nodded. "Some time ago one of the seven warlords, Crocodile, tired to take over the kingdom of Alabasta. He almost succeeded."
"Yeah. I've heard about that before," Neo said. "The navy took the credit in stopping him, but it wasn't the navy at all."
"Indeed it wasn't," Fujitora said. "It was the Straw Hat pirates."
Silence then fell upon the two. The tension from before was completely gone. A mutual feeling of trust and understanding passed over them. "You're different from the others."
"Oh?" Fujitora asked.
"There have not been very many people that I've come to trust, especially within the navy. And, despite technically being enemies, there are only three other navy soldiers that I have gained some respect for," Neo said.
"Three others?" Fujitora asked. "I will assume that one of those is one of your people."
Neo thought for a second. She wondered if she should reveal her connection to Jory. She decided it didn't matter. They were connected through their elemental blood and inhuman feeling anyway. "Yes. I'm pretty sure that he's the only one of my people who's serving in the navy. He doesn't mean you any harm. So don't punish him for being different."
"I have no intentions of doing that," Fujitora said. "And I will do my best to prevent anyone else from doing so. What of these other two?"
"One of them is a young man named Coby. I met him some time ago at the time I met Jory. And the second one is Vice Admiral Smoker," Neo said.
"Smoker?"
"Yes. We met him when we were on Punk Hazard. Coby sees like a very gentle young man who would serve the navy well without becoming corrupted. I also think that Smoker is a good man, too. I noticed while we were on the island that he really cared for his men despite his grumpy outward appearance and attitude," Neo said. "I was actually a bit taken by surprise by him."
"Yes, Smoker does indeed care about his men," Fujitora said with a nod.
"And you do as well," Neo said. When he looked up in her direction she added, "You're a good man. I can tell. You want to end the corruption in the world and in the navy. And you're taking the necessary steps to get there."
"It would seem you have very good eyes as well, Neo," Fujitora said with a smile. "You really are a very kind young woman. If you don't mine me saying so, I believe that you would be a great ruler among not only your people, but humans as well. And you are going to make a wonderful mother."
"Huh?! Why would you say that?! I'm not… Law and I are not having kids! Did you seriously think that we would have kids with how the navy treats kids of pirates?! Did you forget our conversation about Fire Fist Ace?!" Neo snapped. "And what are you smiling about?! This isn't funny!"
"Nothing, nothing," Fujitora said with a chuckle. "Forgive me. It seems I upset you once again. I suppose it does make sense for you to choose not to have a child. But life is just full of surprises. Who knows? Maybe some day you will become a mother. Possibly even sooner than you think."
"Geez! You're starting to sound just like Sanji and Robin- Ah!" Neo grabbed her head when her magic suddenly came back. It was coupled with the confusion of several animals in the country pounded her head. "Stop! It's too much!"
"Are you all right, Neo? What's wrong? What happened?" Fujitora asked. He stood up from his stool and held a hand out towards her.
"Calm down! Please! I can't understand you all when you're talking all at once!" Neo said.
"Talking at once? Who's talking all at once? What's going on?" Fujitora asked.
"Admiral! Admiral!" a soldier shouted before running into the tent. "Admiral Fujitora, we have a problem!"
Neo tensed at the other man in the tent with them but didn't move or say anything. She tried to focus in on all the animals' confused and angry cries. Calm down, everyone. It's going to be fine. I know you're upset and confused. But I can't do anything for you at the moment.
"What is it?" Fujitora asked.
"It's the toys! All of the toys in Dressrosa are turning into humans and animals!" the soldier reported.
"What?" Fujitora asked. "What do you mean?"
"We're not sure! I just started happening!" the soldier said. "Those turning back into humans are very upset about something! They keep shouting out for Doflamingo! They want to kill him for some reason! And the toys that are turning into animals are running wild! They're hurting people! The only way for us to stop them is if we shoot them!"
"I see. Then-"
"No! Don't hurt them!" Neo said, cutting Fujitora off. "You don't have to hurt them!"
"What are you saying?!" the solder demanded. "There are wild animals inside of the country now! Tigers! Lions! Elephants! Large snakes! Gorillas! What are we suppose to do?! Just let them-"
"Let me go," Neo said, looking right at Fujitora.
"What?!" the soldier shrieked. "Are you insane?! You're a pirate! We're not letting you go just because animals are running loose!"
"I can stop them," Neo said, her eyes remaining on Fujitora. "You don't have to hurt them. They're just scared and confused. I can keep them from hurting people. Just let me go."
"You're out of your mind! How could you possible do anything about them?! Besides, you are a pirate with a forty million berry bounty! We're not going to let you go no matter what you say you can do!" the soldier screamed. He pointed his gun right at her. "Now just shut up!"
"We don't have time to argue over this, Fujitora!" Neo said, still ignoring the other soldier's rants. "You know I can help! And I know you don't want anyone to get hurt here! Or at least you want to minimize casualties! I have no idea what's going on, but I do know that I can help! I'm the only one who can!"
…
Fujitora exhaled. He stared in her direction, contemplating on how true her words were. With his observation haki still activated, he found himself focusing his attention on her stomach. He was actually divided on whether or not he was going to release her. Originally, he wanted to let her escape, but he wasn't so sure about it now. He knew they, the pirates, were heading into another fight with Doflamingo. And this time there was no doubt that she would be pulled right into the middle of the fight. His ears twitched at the sound of her chains clanking from her moving. She had lifted her hands up. She was asking him to take off the sea prism stone chains. She was asking to be set free.
…
Inazumame1997: Sorry about that.
SilverHerron: Glad to hear it. I hope what I'm going to do comes out fine. Right now I'm more concerned about the in-between point from now and when Mingo makes him move on Neo. In the show that's when Luffy and Law are on Moocy. I have a couple plans for Neo during that time so she's just sitting there doing nothing, but the rest of it I don't know. Guess we'll see what happens.
Apple Bloom: I suppose it does. There might be more suspense.
Noble Pirate: So true.
