In this chapter, Nami is going to help Ichigo fight Grand Fisher. Again! Of course, even if they do defeat Grand Fisher there still are lots of fishes in the sea...the fishes in question being the Hollows.

And there are bigger fishes in the sea than the Grand Fisher. Scary, isn't it?

There's a lot of fish in the sea in the world of pirates, of course, but that's a bit beside the point.

Seems Grand Fisher doesn't give up easily. Then again, neither does Ichigo. In the anime, he's taken on Sosuke Aizen himself...and failed horribly.

Hopefully they can finish him for good this time. They can't just let him eat more souls. Some of them might be Ichigo's ancestors. And they don't want the Hollow to get even stronger.

Then again, chances are some of them are at Soul Society already.

Chapter 26: Hook, Line, and Sinker

Meanwhile...

Unfortunately, Chessmarimo was a lot stronger than his two individual parts.

"This guy...or should I say guys...is tough." noted Nami.

Part of her wished that she could merge like that.

But it would feel kind of awkward merging with a male crewmate.

She wouldn't mind merging with Ichigo though. They were kindred spirits.

Despite the strength of their new enemy, Chopper wasn't persuaded to give up.

After all, he didn't give up on trying to serve his clients.

Wouldn't want people to think he was a bad doctor.

Fortunately, his Rumble Ball allowed him to take Chessmarimo on.

Chopper punched Chessmarimo.

The fused being collapsed to the ground.

Afterwards, the two split again.

"I did it!" cheered Chopper, raising his hands in the air.

Not bad for someone as small as he was...excluding his Devil Fruit transformations.

It didn't take a doctor to know that using a Rumble Ball could be dangerous...but he was still feeling healthy.

But he was feeling exhausted.

He would sit the rest of the battle out.

The other Straw Hat Pirates were grateful for the reindeer's assistance.

But it was a bit early to celebrate.

They still had Wapol to deal with.

Wapol attempted to swallow Luffy, but he punched his tongue.

"Ow! Now I'm ghoing to be spheaking with a lihsp..." remarked Wapoi.

His companions would probably make fun of him for that.

"I'd consider treating you if you weren't our enemy..." noted Chopper.

Luffy punched Wapol in the face.

He attempted to use his cannon...but it wasn't working in the freezing conditions.

Which was a shame, since it had enough power to destroy an entire ship. In theory, it would be enough to send Luffy packing. Though he wasn't sure if he had enough firepower for the entire crew.

"Maybuh I should haveth picketh a warmer battlefield..." noted Wapol.

Luffy nodded as he kicked his foe.

He fired two cannonballs at the captain with his cannon arms.

The rubber man was hit, but he kept on fighting.

He punched Wapol once again.

The metal man collapsed on the floor.

As he did so, he regurgitated what he ate.

Sanji recoiled in disgust.

Luffy crossed his arms and smirked with satisfaction.

"Way to go, Luffy!" cheered Nami.

She was so proud of her captain.

A short while later...

"So, you're staying with us?" asked Zoro.

He wasn't sure how he felt about having a talking reindeer be part of the crew. Up until now he thought his entire crew was going to be human.

But apparently, he had thought wrong.

Though to be honest, he wasn't sure what wacky companions Luffy would recruit. He sure had broad tastes...and not just in food. Perhaps the next crew member would be a member of the walking dead.

"I figured exploring the seas would be a thrilling experience." noted Chopper. It might be dangerous, but he could live with that. And the way he saw it, he owed the heroes a favor for what they had done.

He wasn't able to swim though. He had learned about the side effects of eating a Devil Fruit after he had eaten it. He he had to be careful whenever he drank from the watering hole...until he entered human society, anyway.

It was best to make sure you knew what you were eating before you ate it. He knew that Devil Fruits wouldn't poison your body though.

Considering how reckless Zoro was, chances are they would have use of Chopper's services very soon.

Suddenly, Nami had a premonition.

"I can't help but shake the feeling that Ichigo could use my help again..." remarked Nami, putting her hand on her chin.

It was just a hunch.

Perhaps she should act upon it. He happened to be a good friend of hers. And they seemed to be a lot alike. Though Ichigo was decidedly more generous than she was.

Fortunately, she had the ability to make portals between worlds now. She had been given that power by Soul Society. It made traveling between the world of pirates and the world of samurai so much easier.

However, she couldn't seem to use it while she was in a fight.

Perhaps someone up above didn't want her fleeing from fights like a sissy coward...though to be honest, that seemed something Usopp would do instead of her.

It was still going to be a handy skill though.

She decided she would go check on Ichigo.

While she enjoyed living in the world of pirates (not least due to all the treasure that was to be found), it was a good idea to check on her friends in the world of samurai...and archers.

Meanwhile, Ulquiorra was noticing Ichigo's combat skills.

"Interesting..." noted the Espada.

Yammy sighed. Not having someone to smash disappointed him.

Ulquiorra seemed to be accepting not engaging in acts of violence well though.

However, they were then informed by Sosuke Aizen that Grimmjow had gone against orders.

It seemed that Grimmjow was a bit of a loose cannon. Sosuke Aizen wasn't going to be too pleased with him. Then again, it was generally the law of the jungle in Hueco Mundo before Sosuke Aizen had arrived on the scene. Perhaps following orders was something that would take time getting used to.

Apparently, he was sending his fellow Arrancar to Karakura Town without permission.

Specifically, they were his Fraccion.

Perhaps it would be best if they apprehended him for his behavior. Though if they were lucky they would kill some Soul Reapers...or some humans. They would need lots of death to forge a Soul King Key.

Maybe now Yammy would get someone to smash.

If he smashed Grimmjow however, they might need to find a replacement Espada. Fraccion were more expendable but they were still valuable to Aizen.

Maybe they could ask one of the Privaron?

No doubt the Soul Reapers would be sent to mop up the Arrancar.

Fortunately, Grand Fisher wasn't hard to find. But he was a bit unrecognizable.

Ichigo had heard that Kon had been attacked by the monster.

But to honest, he probably had it coming. Though it would be funnier if the Hollow was female.

"You look...different." said Ichigo, scratching his head.

Not only that, but he seemed stronger than before.

"I've been waiting a long time for this." remarked Grand Fisher, a wide grin forming on his mask (that made him look a bit like Jason Voorhees).

"I'm sure you have." nodded Nami.

The Grand Fisher launched tentacles at the two.

However, Nami slashed them.

"Thank goodness for my Soul Reaper blade..." remarked the girl with orange hair.

But they seemed to be regenerating.

"What the-" thought the pirate to herself.

Perhaps they needed to be thorough to take him down.

One thing was for certain, he was stronger than before. Had Mayuri Kurotsuchi been experimenting on Hollows? His experiments seemed kind of...unethical.

Perhaps it was a better idea to target the mask. It was possible that the Grand Fisher couldn't regenerate that.

Ichigo might not be as experienced with dealing with Hollows than Rukia was (she probably had centuries worth of experience givne how slowly one aged in Soul Society), but that mask seemed to be their weak point.

However, if that were the case, chances are the Hollow would try to defend it. A smart Hollow would be aware of its weaknesses.

Sure enough, when he swung the sword at the mask, the Grand Fisher defended it with his hand.

His hand was cut, of course...but Fisher knew that it could regenerate. Being a Hollow had its perks...even if you had to worry about being hunted by Soul Society or the Quincy. Both of them had it out for Hollows, it seemed.

However, if Ichigo kept hitting him, he might end up overtaxing his healing powers.

Sure enough, his regeneration appeared to be slowing down.

Perhaps he was winning the fight.

Nami followed by zapping Fisher with lightning.

The Hollow let out a screech.

As he did so, some windows were shattered.

Ichigo pulled out his blade and broke the mask of the Grand Fisher.

"Yes!" thought the Shinigami to himself.

The Grand Fisher screamed, and then there was silence.

After killing the Grand Fisher, all the souls that he ate were released.

There was a lot of souls. Seemed that he had been having a grand feast for himself.

Some of them were other Hollows, ironically. But their masks luckily broke upon being released from his stomach.

It was nothing short of impressive that Ichigo and Nami managed to kill him.

He noticed his mother going to the afterlife with angel wings. It seemed that now that the Grand Fisher was no more, everyone he ate was now free.

Perhaps the Quincy had a different afterlife to the Soul Reapers. Though given that he was a Shinigami, he couldn't just walk up and ask them.

Well, hopefully when he passed on he could see his mother again. It was a joyful thought.

He was part Quincy so maybe it would work. But he was also part Shinigami. Maybe he would go to some combination between the two afterlives?

As a side note, the Grand Fisher ironically enough seemed to be going to Soul Society as well.

Seemed he wasn't evil before becoming a Hollow...or mutated Hollow. So he wasn't going straight to Hell like Shrieker did.

Soul Society gave Ichigo a gold medal for slaying Grand Fisher.

He made their lives a lot easier. Though they wondered how long it would be before another Hollow like Grand Fisher showed up.

Nami received a golden medal as well.

Of course, she happened to like it that the medal resembled gold.

Perhaps she shouldn't try selling it though.

Later, she decided she was going to kill Arlong.

But much to her surprise, Ichigo wanted in on the action.

"You're coming with me?" asked Nami.

"Well, you helped me get my revenge on the Grand Fisher..." noted Ichigo. He had quite a reputation among Soul Society. Chances are their jobs would be easier with him gone.

Although, Grand Fisher wasn't exactly in control of himself based on experience with past Hollows. Perhaps he was a different person when he was still alive.

Soul Society was impressed with his accomplishment.

Nami noted that it was good that she had a friend like Ichigo around.

Now she could get revenge on Arlong.

He had a lot to answer for. If only fishmen weren't so racist. Maybe if they weren't they could live in harmony with humans. But Arlong wouldn't allow that.

With luck she could wipe the floor with him.

Or maybe she could make him walk the plank.

She would want to make sure there were sharks though. Otherwise walking the plank wouldn't kill him.

Or maybe she could electrify the water.

That would probably work well.

As a side note, it would be pretty ironic if a fishman ate a devil fruit. They were well known for being decent swimmers.

As they left, however, Chad felt the presence of a strong Hollow.

Where was it coming from?

It sounded dangerous.

It seemed this Hollow was stronger than the Grand Fisher.

Things did not look good.

Meanwhile...

At his laboratory, Szayelaporro Granz worked on making a portal to the alternate world.

He hoped that he would get to feast on souls there once the portal was ready.

Although...perhaps they tasted salty. They said that this world was filled with saltwater.

It certainly had more water than Soul Society did.

He might want to be a bit hesitant before he gorged himself there.

Still, the project seemed to be coming along nicely.

Sosuke Aizen would be happy to hear that.

Though part of him wished that he could be where the action was...much like his brother.

Soul Society would inevitably get involved with the action...

...but for some of the Arrancar, they thought it was fun for them to show up. Eating the souls of humans was too easy for them otherwise.

On a sad note, it seemed Grand Fisher had been slain. Seemed somebody wanted revenge for the death of his mother.

Ironically, he heard the same individual who did so was sentenced to execution by Soul Society.

Why wasn't he given the noose?

There went one of his experiments.

But he could always experiment on more Hollows.

The only question was...which one should it be?

There were so many possibilities.

Perhaps his fraccion Vivi Sect would give him an idea.

Fortunately, he didn't seem interested in eating her when in a pinch.

She was too useful for that.

Apparently, there were mysterious fruit in this world that gave you supernatural powers.

He already thought he was an ultimate lifeform, but it might be worthwhile to study them as well.

Perhaps he could use them to create an army of super Hollows.

That would make Sosuke Aizen most pleased.

And he wanted to stay on his good side.

Baraggan had gotten on his bad side and had been thrown in a castle dungeon.

Though Sosuke Aizen had agreed to let him out in exchange for his servitude.

He didn't want to do what the now 2nd Espada did.

Though it would be nice to be King of Hueco Mundo.

Well, time to get back to work.

Chopper is now officially part of the team. Of course, he might be forced to violate his hippocratic oaths. You know, do no harm?

His medical expertise will be very useful in the future.

Wouldn't want to lose a crew member, now would he?

Fortunately, Ichigo killed Grand Fisher. But now he must fight Arrancar! Think human Hollows. Luckily, they're more civilized than a Hollow typically is.

Anyways, you've probably noticed the many similarities between Nami and Ichigo...that's the reason why they're usually together these days.

Maybe they'll tie the knot. Who knows?