Chapter 4: Setting Sail
"Sugoi...this is your ship, Koby?" Luffy asked. He looked with awe at how big it was. It looked similar to Garp's old Marine Battleship except instead of a dog as a figure head, it was a green parrot. The side of the ship had a brighter green compared the old designed and sky blue railing/top. On the mast, was the symbol of the new Marines, A sun with a Shield in the center and the initials, NM, which stood for New marines.
Luffy noticed the symbol, but didn't ask about it as his attention was to the rest of the ship.
"Hai. It's a little too big for my taste, but it moves fast and very agile for its size." He told him as he lead him toward the ramp. "Come, we shall go to my office." Luffy pouted.
"Ehhhhh...but I wanna explore the ship..." He groaned in disappointment.
"Sorry, but I want to keep your identity a secret for the moment." Koby stopped walking to tell him. "At least until we reach Neveria."
"What is this Neveraa?" Luffy asked butchering the name.
"It's a new island that was formed after the war. You'll see when we get there." He teased as Luffy pouted.
They board the battleship and despite Luffy's urge to run around the ship, followed Koby into his office., Koby saluting and greeting his fellow Marines. Luffy got excited when they entered the pretty large room of his quarters and started running around, looking at everything he deemed cool.
"Sugoi! What is this? What is that!?" He continuously asked, finding something new to gain his attention. Koby could only chuckle. It was a little weird seeing Luffy act like his old self, but in a much older body. However, he couldn't blame him. After all, his mind was paused while his body grew, making him look a lot more mature than his younger self.
There was a sudden knock at the door that alerted Koby, but didn't bother Luffy as he continued to look around. Koby stood in front of the door, making sure his body blocked anyones view of his office and opened the door.
"Hai?" He asked as he looked and saw Hibari saluting in front of his door. He sighed in relief and smiled at the woman. "Commander Hibari-san, Are we ready to set sail?" Hibari nodded.
"Hai, Admiral Koby-san! We're ready, we can set sail anytime you want." Koby nodded and turned around to look back at Luffy.
"Well, we shouldn't keep our guest waiting long to meet his friends. Then let's sail. Oh, and once we're out at sea, please bring Vice Admiral Tashigi to my my office. I need to apologize to her for suddenly showing up in her jurisdiction."
"Hai!" She saluted him before heading off to inform the Vice Admiral.
Koby closed the door and looked back to see Luffy suddenly slouched in Koby's chair, grumbling. "Hm? What's wrong, Luffy?"
"I'm bored...don't you have anything fun to do here, Koby?" He asked the pink haired Admiral who only chuckled.
"Well, we could play some chess?" He offered.
"Chess? No thanks...Ojii-chan tried to make me play but the rules were confusing and I always got bored." Luffy shuddered slightly at the torture his Grandfather put him through playing a simple game of chess.
Koby sweat dropped at this and chuckled. He knew full well how strict Garp's training was, so he understood why his own Grandson would detest the thinking man's game.
"Sorry. There's not much here. I usually don't stay too long on my ship. If I do, it's because of the mountains of paperwork I have to do." He replied as Luffy slumped even further.
"Mmmmm..." He groaned in boredom.
"How about I tell you some stories? Like how I became an Admiral?" Luffy's eyes widened when he heard this.
"WHAT!? YOU'RE AN ADMIRAL!?"
"Y-You just noticed!?" Koby exclaimed in shock. He then chuckled as he remembered who he was talking to. Luffy may know about Admirals and how dangerous they were, but he was just shocked at how far Koby got.
"Sugoi Koby...you really did become a great Marine! Shi shishishi!" Koby blushed from embarrassment at the praise.
"Thank you. It's all thanks to you, Luffy. Your words back then lit a fire in me and I never stopped driving for my dream." He looked at his hand and clenched it.
Luffy couldn't help the large grin plastered on his face. He could still remember meeting this small, chubby boy who dreamed of becoming a great Marine, and to see him become who he was standing before him made him happy for his friend.
The two continued to talk as Koby detailed him the day he became an Admiral. After the formation of the New World Government, the reconstruction of the Marines was one of the first things they did. They interrogated many former members of the old guard and let go thousands of Marine officers, Captains and Lieutenants who were found to have been corrupted or not interested in the new path of the New Marines.
Former Marines such as Kizaru and Greenbull, former Admirals, were let go. However, not before the new Admirals challenging and beating them to take their spots. Koby, with a wide smile, told Luffy of his battle with Greenbull where he came out as victorious. Luffy became engulfed with the story of Koby's incredible fight with Greenbull. He rocked back and forth at the edge of his seat as Koby motioned the final blow he used to dealt Greenbull the final blow.
"Sugoi! Koby, you really are amazing!" Koby bashfully chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. Before they could continue to their next conversation, a knock was heard at the door again.
"Ah, that must be Hibari-san and Tashigi-san." Koby smiled and walked to the door.
"Tashigi?" Luffy hummed at the familiar name, but couldn't put a face to it.
Koby opened the door and both females stood in front of it, saluting the higher ranking officer. Koby saluted back, before chuckling. "You know you two don't have to do that. We're friends after all."
"I will always show you respect, Koby-san!" Hibari proclaimed as Tashigi softly smiled at the younger girl. She knew about the girl's crush on the Admiral and wanted to support her no matter. She then looked over at Koby.
"You requested to see me, Admiral Koby-san." Koby nodded.
"Ah, yes! There is something we need to discuss. However..." He paused, creating a small amount of tension between them. Tashigi noticed the change in his demeanor and raised an eyebrow.
"W-What is it?" She asked, fixing her glasses.
"Tashigi-san...there is someone I want you to meet...or rather...you already met them before..." He turned around to head back inside the office, allowing the two female marines to follow.
Luffy had his hands placed behind his head, looking up at the ceiling a bit bored, but looked straight ahead when he noticed people approaching him. "Hm?"
"Oi! What are you doing sitting in Koby-san's chair!" Hibari screamed, pointing a finger at Luffy. She couldn't believe someone would dare sit in her hero's seat. Koby tried to settle the girl down.
"It's alright, Hibari-san. I don't mind."
"You should, Koby-san! You're an Admiral now!" She exclaimed.
Luffy laughed. "You two get along great!"
"Ah! W-We d-do? W-Well...I agree...hehehe..." Hibari blushed, placing her hands on her cheeks, feeling flustered. Koby, oblivious to her feelings tilted his head at her.
Tashigi on the other hand felt confused. There was something about this man before her. He wore a marine outfit, but she never remembered seeing someone like that in the registry for Koby's fleet. She adjusted her glasses to try and get a closer look at the man. She certainly didn't recognize any man with that beard and long hair before. In fact, his hair almost reached the floor with how long it was. How could anyone walk like that.
Luffy noticed her staring at him and looked back. He did feel a familiarity with her. Her glasses, her blue hair that was short and reached just below her jaw, the coat of a Vice Admiral slung on her shoulders as she also wore a light green buttoned shirt and pink pants. She had a sword attached to her waist, one that Luffy never saw before. It had a red hilt that was attached to a black scabbard.
"Ah, sorry. Tashigi-san..." Koby caught her attention as she looked over at him. "...this man...is someone you know..."
"Huh? I do?" She looked back and the both of them were now staring at each intensely trying to remember each other. "Sorry, Koby-san...I don't seem t-"
"AHHHHH! Luffy suddenly slammed his hands on the desk, causing the three of them to flinch. "I remember you know! You're that glasses girl who was always with Smokey! Tapipi!"
"IT'S TASHIGI!" She corrected him angrily. She then paused when she realized her mention Admiral Smoker.
"Wait, you know Smoker-san..." She blinked when another realization hit her. "...wait Smokey?"
"Shishishishi! How is Smokey? Is he still a Marine?" He directed the question to Koby.
"Ah, yes. He's an Admiral like me now." Luffy opened his mouth in awe,
"Really!? Sugoi! Shishishi! Can't wait to see him again." Luffy simply laughed.
"Wait a minute!" Tashigi interrupted them. "Smokey? Whya re you calling him that!?" She asked.
"Why? Cause he's all smokey and stuff..." Luffy answered, remembering all the times he got caught in Smoker's grasp in Lougetown and then the battles they had between each other.
"That's not what I mean!" Koby tried to calm the swordswoman down.
"Tashigi-san. You may want to sit down." He told her, earning a surprise look.
"W-What's going on, Koby-san?" She asked, refusing to take a seat. Koby could tell she wasn't going to sit down and sighed.
"You see...you won't believe this but...this is..." Koby raised an arm towards Luffy.
"I'ts me, Luffy! Shi shishishi!" Luffy suddenly introduced himself. Koby was a bit taken back by his sudden introduction. He looked over at Tashigi to see her reaction and saw that she was staring at Luffy intensely.
"Huh?" What do you mean you're Mugiwara no Luffy?" She asked him, not believing what she was hearing.
"Huh? What are you talking about? I'm Luffy." Luffy stared back, proclaiming who he was to the non-believer.
"Such a terrible lie." She replied, crossing her arms. "Mugiwara no Luffy died seven years ago during the war. There is no way you're him." Luffy furrowed his eyebrows at her.
"Tashigi-san..." Koby tried to tell her the truth, but she interrupted him.
"Koby-san! I understand you miss your friend and as much as everyone wants him to come back, this is just not possible. I don't know who this is, but there's no way he could be h-" Before she could finish her sentence, Luffy stretched his arm behind her, shocking Tashigi. Luffy grabbed a piece of fruit that was on a table by the door and frowned when he squeezed it and saw that it was a fake.
"What is this? Is this even real?" Luffy frowned as he tried to take a bite and tasted nothing but plastic. "Ew...gross..." He then tossed it behind him in disgust.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Tashigi screamed loudly. This startled everyone, but Koby and Hibari fully expected this reaction. "N-No...that can't be...h-how...wait a minute...this doesn't make any sense! Y-You are supposed to be dead! You died seven years ago!" She tried to figure out the situation. "I-I get it, you must be just someone who found his devil fruit and ate it and..."
"Tashigi-san..." Koby placed a hand on her shoulder. "...I know this is a shock, but I have confirmed it myself. I would not have said anything unless I confirmed it myself. This really is Luffy-san. His devil fruit, his laugh, his scars, the way he acts, it's all Luffy-san." Tashigi took in his words and stared back at Luffy with widened eyes.
"No way...b-but how...?" Koby frowned.
"Sadly we don't know. Luffy-san can't even remember what happened during his fight with imu." He explained as Tashigi still couldn't believe this was real.
"Nope. I don't. Shi shishishi!" He laughed.
"W-What? T-This is just...you mean...this is really him...?" Koby nodded. Tashigi had no idea how to feel about this. She felt a little conflicted. She had been chasing Straw Hat for so long, she surprised herself when she decided to join him during the Great War. Along with Smoker and other Marines, she fought along side him to take down Imu and create the New World Government. She looked over at him and the conflicting feelings were still there, but she didn't hold any anger, any grudge towards him. Yes, he was a former pirate she tried to capture, but after what happened, all the Straw Hats had their bounties rescinded with Sabo taking over. "Wait...does Sabo-san know...?"
"Ah, not yet. I was hoping we'd see him soon when we pass by the Headquarters on the way to the North Blue."
"I see..." She turned to Luffy who was rocking side to side in the chair. "Still...I can't believe this..."
"Shi shishishishi! Me too. I have no idea what happened, but I can't wait to see everyone again. Oh, by the way, have you seen Zoro?" He asked her.
"W-What makes you think I know?" She adjusted her glasses, feeling a little embarrassed.
"Huh? Because you wanted to fight Zoro, no?" Tashigi sighed. She felt stupid for getting embarrassed about Zoro. She challenged him who knows how many times to retrieve his powerful swords, but she always lost.
"No." She answered. I haven't heard of his whereabouts in weeks." She told him. "I have people scouting for him, but I haven't heard back from them."
"Ah, then he probably got lost somewhere, Shi shishishishi!" Luffy laughed at his friend's terrible direction, not that he was any better.
"That explains why he's always a pain in the ass to track. You think he goes one way and he goes in a completely opposite direction." She grumbled in annoyance.
"I'm sure you'll find him soon again and beat him, Tashigi-san!" The blue haired girl smiled at her friend.
"Thank you."
"Well, in any case, we are heading first to Neveria. If we're lucky, she might be there." Koby san announced.
"Who?" Luffy asked.
"Like I said, it's a surprise. Oh, and one last thing, Tashigi-san. Don't tell anyone that Luffy-san is alive...at least not until we meet Sabo-san." Tashigi did question that decision, but sighed and agreed.
"Fine."
"Shi shishishi! I can't wait!" Luffy rocked back and forth as the battleship sailed across the sea.
~OP~
After almost 6 hours of sailing, Neveria was finally over the horizon. Koby, who was outside on the deck looked towards the sea and saw Neveria in the distance. He smiled as he knew Luffy would be excited to know they were almost there. Last he saw Luffy, he was fell asleep out of boredom and was knocked out on the couch, a small bubble on his face.
He wanted to tell him that they were getting closer, but held off until they got a bit closer. "We should arrive at Neveria in 30 minutes, Koby-san." Hibari walked over to him.
"Right. Do we have any information about any incidents?" He asked her.
"None that warrant your involvement, Koby-san. We also tracked to see if anyone was infected with Imunemia and we found at least 3 people. We have told the marines stationed there that we will be arriving and to prepare the infected for transport to Sakura." Hibari relayed to him as he nodded.
"I see..." He cursed mentally. More and more people seemed to have started getting infected with the disease. They needed to find a cure as soon as they can. "Very well, prepare the rooms. Make sure they are in a different part of the ship from our prisoner."
"Yes!" Hibari saluted and left to follow his instructions.
Soon, the island of Neveria got closer. Koby then walked towards the office to let Luffy know. When he got there, he saw Luffy was no longer there. "Huh?"
"SUGOI! THAT;S A HUGE TREE!" Koby's eyes widened when he heard Luffy's voice.
"Oi! Get down from there!" He heard one of his soldiers scream as Koby rushed out from his office. When he arrived on deck, he noticed everyone was looking up,s o he followed their gaze. Hanging on the mast, Luffy was staring in awe at Neveria's main attraction, a large tree that was the biggest tree Luffy ever saw. It was even bigger than the ones he saw at Sabaody. In front of the tree was a fairly large building with a dome shaped roof.
Koby sighed and placed a hand on his forehead. He should have known better than to leave Luffy alone for a bit, even if he did fall asleep. "Lu-I mean GRUNT!" He coughed for a moment before yelling at Luffy. Luffy didn't pay him attention as he didn't realize Koby was calling for him. Koby, realizing this, sighed again. Koby jumped up and sky walked toward Luffy to gain his attention which he did.
""Sugoi! You can do that, Koby?" Luffy asked in amazement.
"Of course. I learned it a while ago. Anyway, we are about to reach the island, so come back down and don't use your powers. The other officers are staring at you." Luffy grinned and nodded.
"Okay!" He jumped down and landed on the deck. He laughed and took a step forward, only to land on his long hair and trip forward. Everyone just looked at him in confusion as Koby sighed for a third time.
"I figured he'd slip with how long that hair is." Tashigi commented, crossing his arms as she arrived on deck.
"Well, not like he had an opportunity to ever get it cut." Hibari commented, standing next to the blue haired swordswoman.
"He could at least tie it or something." Tashigi added.
"I guess..." Hibari walked over to Luffy. "Oi, you want me to tie your hair?" Luffy raised his head to look at her.
"Huh?" Luffy asked tilting his head.
"You hair! Do you want me to tie in like a ponytail so you stop tripping on it." She offered again.
"Ah, really? You really are nice!" Luffy grinned at her.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT!?" She yelled at him for his rude comment. "You know what, forget it!" She turned around and stomped away, leaving Luffy confused.
"Hibari-san, can you?" Koby dropped down next to her.
"Anything for you, Koby-san!" She proclaimed and did a spin to go back. Koby chuckled at the girl as he watched her tell Luffy to get up so she could tie his hair.
"She likes you, you know." Tashigi said as she approached Koby.
"I know." His answer surprised Tashigi.
"Huh? You knew?" Koby bashfully chuckled.
"Kind of hard to not notice." She eyed him carefully.
"So why not..you know..." She asked, trying to gauge on him. Koby simply stared at Hibari as she gathered Luffy's hair together.
"...I don't know..." He answered honestly. "...I guess I'm just scared..."
"Huh? Scared of what?" She asked.
"...that if I screw up...our relationship would change...she might start hating me instead..." Koby explained.
"I see...I guess I don't have any rights to tell you what you should do...but I'm sure it'll work out." She offered her input.
"...maybe you're right...ah wait..." Koby turned to her. "...you have someone you like too?"
Tashigi's face got red and flustered as she realized what she said. "N-NO! I DON'T! WHAT GAVE YOU THAT IDEA!?" She stuttered bashfully as she gave him light punches.
"Ah sorry...I didn't mean to...sorry..." Koby put up his arms to defend himself from her.
Both Hibari and Luffy looked over at the commotion. Hibari felt something tight in her chest at the reaction the two had and frowned. Luffy noticed this and had no idea what made her upset.
"What's wrong?" He suddenly asked, making the girl jump a bit.
"It's nothing! Turn around so I could finish tying your hair!" She yelled, pushing him to face forward. She began to tie his hair into a ponytail and whens he finished, she softly muttered, "...you don't think Koby-san has a thing for..." Luffy heard her, but he wasn't sure what she was talking about.
"Huh?" Hibari shook her head. She couldn't believe she muttered something like that with someone she barely knew. The only connection she had with this former pirate was that he was Koby's friend.
"Nothing!" She finished tying the hair band and let go of his hair. Luffy looked behind him and snickered at his ponytail.
"Shi shishishishi! Look, it's like I got a tail!" He started moving his head back and forth to whip it around.
"OI! WATCH IT!" Hibari screamed, avoiding his ponytail.
"Shi shishishshi!" He laughed. He then looked at her with a small smile.
"What?" She asked, confused a bit by his smile.
"Thank you." He thanked her. "Oh, and I think Koby likes you a lot."
"Huh!?" Hibari's eyes widened at his words. A small blush on her face.
"Shi shishishishi!" Luffy laughed and then just ran off to get a view of Neveria.
"Oi! You can't just run off after telling me that!" She screamed at him, waving her arms around.
Koby smiled before walking over, placing a hand on Hibari, giving her a warm smile. He then walked over to Luffy, leaving a flustered Hibari to her thoughts and daydream of her and Koby. He approached Luffy and stood next to him.
"Well, we're almost there. Hopefully, she's there." Koby told him.
"Huh? Who?"
Koby only smiled.
~OP~
"Sensai!" A group of children ran towards the large dome shaped building, waving their hands towards the beautiful woman standing in front of it. She was getting ready to enter the building when she heard their voices and looked at them with a warm smile.
"Hello. Are you enjoying the books you borrowed?" She asked them with a mature voice.
"Hai! Thank you for lending it to us! Robin-sensei!"
Nico Robin smiled and chuckled as she smiled warmly at the children who had a huge thirst for knowledge. "I'm glad."
END