A/N: Another chapter ready for you all to read, and I hope that you enjoy it!

Of course when we arrived, Franky himself wasn't there. However, the opened briefcase was there and so were a number of drunk, partying goons whom either ignored the very sight of us or blanched because they recognised Zoro and I from either our wanted posters, or from us just standing by and watching the Merry beatdown of the Franky Family.

"Usopp, grab the briefcase. Ebony, take the left. I'll take the right."

It was only right that in the absence of the Captain, that we would take orders from the First Mate.

"Right!"

Immediately we went the directions that Zoro had told us, knuckledusters making their way quickly onto my fists, with a singular dagger in my right hand. Usopp had his slingshot out and ready, shouting "Sakuretsu Saboten Boshi!"

The attack itself exploded upon impact with the ground, and began showering the ground and people in front of him with quills. The goons in front of Usopp began to scream with pain, but none of us paid any mind

I don't know what it was about my own strength, but these men and women seemed to be exceedingly weak or exceedingly drunk or even both, but my attacks were putting them all down and down very hard. My hands felt wet at times, but surely beneath the gloves I wasn't bleeding? I hadn't cut myself, nor had I been cut, but that didn't stop the anxiety and nervousness from kicking in. I could feel myself begin to panic, but now was not the time. I had to shelve that for later, and when I was alone so that I didn't worry anyone on the crew.

I mean, it was probably good in the long run that I was able to fight and do it well, but on a personal level? I wasn't entirely sure what to think, so I wouldn't at the present.

It didn't take long for the entirety of the Franky Family within the building to be knocked out in various states of health, but the wide ranging destruction within the building was causing some of the pillars to lean dangerously, some looking ready to collapse.

Zoro, ever the emotional one called out, "Ready to head back? We've got the briefcase."

Nodding, I called back to him. "Yeah, just give me a moment."

One of the nearest goons was lying face down, but was probably the least uninjured in my area of the building. He was also wide awake, and from the stench it became clear to me that he had wet himself.

Kneeling down to face him, speaking softly. "I understand that you were only trying to do right by your boss; he'd finally gotten the money that he needed to buy the one thing he'd wanted, correct? Tell him would you that he could have just asked, you know? Oh, and that our ship wants a word."

Usopp, having heard what I'd said, chimed in. "She's not all that patient, so I wouldn't keep her waiting all too long if he can help it."

The three of us walked out of the building in silence, but in the back of my mind all I could hear was static. Something, I could feel it, was going to go wrong very, very soon.

It had to just be my anxiety, my wariness for the world around me. It couldn't be anything else.

Right?

Nico Robin was in town, and being obstinate.

She was seen wandering around the city, alongside members of the Straw Hat crew and she didn't seem to be using them in the way that she had used pirate screws in the past, nor did they seem to be using her for anything, either.

Spandam was almost tearing his hair trying to work out why she was acting the way she had been.

At every turn she had seemingly avoided any and all interactions with any of their operatives, or at least those that weren't deep undercover. He couldn't work out why she was staying with that rookie crew, surely she had come across bigger fish to hide amongst.

Unless?

No, it couldn't be.

She couldn't have actually found a crew that knew all about her and actually liked her enough to let her stay with them?

Spandam sighed, that definitely wasn't it.

They'd have to try and get her alone somehow, and threats against those a person liked and tolerated at least seemed to do the trick.

When Zoro, Ebony and Usopp returned with the missing briefcase, and with a bit over half the money left in the briefcase itself, Luffy decided that he stay with the others, whilst those three went back to the ship for the night. The money in the briefcase was certainly enough, and more, for a decent enough hotel and he knew that some of them would actually appreciate it more than staying (possibly for the last time) on the Merry.

Robin had suggested that she get a separate room, but Nami didn't want her to be alone, and said that she would at least share the same room.

Iceburg had been kind enough to recommend a decent restaurant, although Sanji was being reticent about going, saying that he was perfectly capable of cooking that evening. Ebony had stepped in at the point, and told the chef that one night of not cooking wouldn't do any harm, and that he deserved a break as much as anyone else on the crew.

Sanji folded at her insistence, and the decision was made. Nami wasn't exactly happy to be spending more money, but agreed with Ebony's sentiment that they all deserved to have a little break from things, and if their lives got busier and filled with chaos again sooner rather than later then the reprieve would be welcomed.

Luffy understood that, he really did, but he hoped that whatever restaurant that they went to didn't expect for him to conform to societal standards.

When he voiced this to Ebony, she laughed, "No one here expects you to be anyone other than who you are, Luffy."

Zoro put a hand onto Luffy's shoulder, "Besides, you're a pirate captain worth 100,000,000 beri. Who cares what people think?"

Luffy cheered up at that, his insecurities coming from the fact that he wanted to try and make at least a decent impression on the people of Water 7 because he did not want to be blamed for something someone else did, and from what he and his brothers had managed to work out when they were kids, if they acted and dressed a certain way then people didn't seem to take much notice of them because they blended in with everyone else.

Of course, this was all before they decided to dine and dash. Before three became two.

Luffy shook his head of those thoughts. All three of them were alive and well, and that's all that mattered. They were all free to do as they wished, and he was going to fight with everything he had to make sure that his crew was able to experience that as well.

But he couldn't do that on an empty stomach.

Food was waiting!

After the others had left to go back to the hotel, Usopp and I had wandered into what could only be described as the upper class portion of the city. There was nothing overt, but the streets were far cleaner than those we had been walking previously and the shop windows were made from what looked to be solid panes of bullet proof glass.

We were there on a mission to buy, or at least commission a few things. Myself some new boots, and to buy a pair to send back to Bailey as a late birthday gift and Usopp his own gift to send back to Kaya. (And Usopp was adamant that nothing was going on between the pair of them, that they were just really good friends.)

Now that they had a reliable way of sending packages back home, some members of the crew were feeling more comfortable in writing letters to loved ones and friends back in the East Blue. At least that was one major good thing that had come out of training the little murder fleet to deliver and receive things.

The first shop we went into refused to serve us, security turning us away at the door before we could even enter. Words were said, and threats were made before we left. Usopp and I agreed that it would be for the best that neither of us mentioned what had been said to us to Luffy or Sanji; although, if we did, then the business would no longer be in business.

That was a thought for another time, though.

The next shop we went into was far more promising for Usopp, being able to find several small medical textbooks that he knew Chopper had recommended and he was sure that Kaya would appreciate. The bookshop had such an eclectic range of books that I knew I was for sure going to come back here and buy something once we were ready to set sail once again.

Locating the shoe store took enough time that it was almost ready for closing before we walked in; it was out of the way, and tucked into a corner, but the bright neon sign wouldn't be one that was easy to miss. 'Lita and co., shoes for the whole family!'

I could only hope that Lita's had exactly what I was looking for.

The shopkeep was a short, elderly woman with eyes of steel. Punk had never left her either, and she didn't seem to fit into the otherwise neat and tidy street, if not for the price tags attached to some of the more sleek shoes.

"How can I help the Crow Queen and company?"

I wasn't sure if my now infamy would do anything to help, but it never hurt to be polite.

"I'm looking for a couple of things, a new pair of boots for myself and a gift for my sister."

The woman eyed me, looking me up and down before humming.

"Something for battle, for leisure or both?"

"Both if at all possible, and the same for my sister."

The woman grinned, "Your sister a pirate, too?"

I shook my head, "Not at all, just likes the style. And if she's able to defend herself, even better."

She nodded, "I know just the pair. Did you want them matching, or something different?"

"I like my stompers, she's a bit more dainty."

The old woman threw her head back, roaring with laughter. "That's fair."

She led Usopp and I over to a series of what could only be described as platform combat boots, laced high with solid buckles and a zipper closure at the side. The first pair she showed me were exactly what I was looking for, with the second pair being slightly shorter in height, and were bright red with delicate white roses painted along the sides. It was a good thing I knew both my own and Bailey's sizes off by heart, since we didn't have the time to try things on with how dark it was getting out.

"These both have the option of having a seastone based toe box at no extra charge."

The grin she gave was fierce, and one that said that she knew she was about to make a sale.

"What other options could I add to the boots?"

"You're definitely my type of pirate! Always asking the good questions!" She turned the boot around, "See here? This can hold an average dagger and several lock picks."

Oh, that was for sure exactly what I wanted and she knew it, too.

"I'll get these, and the red ones as well. Do you do gift wrapping?"

Picking up the two pairs of boots, the old woman took them up to the counter. "I do, assuming you want to break the boots in now?"

Nodding, "I will definitely need to for sure, anything for blisters?"

It didn't take long to negotiate a price, and get some blister guards before Usopp and I were ready to leave.

Just as we got to the door, I asked a final question, to which the woman grinned at.

"One last thing, do you know anywhere I could get some weapons commissioned?"

The members sent after Nico Robin were expecting far more paranoia than what they received, as though they weren't a threat at all.

The woman in question was sitting atop the bed, reading a nonsense and non-government approved book about East Blue history when they slipped through the windows.

The room itself was pitch black, apart from the single source of light that allowed for the Demon Child to read; there was another in the room, which could be both a good and bad thing. If it was the blonde archivist and chronicler, then they may have had a fight on their hands. She was known to them as someone who was fiercely protective of those she considered friends, very much like her Captain, and wouldn't hesitate to punch them or stab them with a hidden dagger. Upon closer inspection, the CP9 agent felt a sense of relief.

It was just the navigator, a good thief by all accounts, but not someone that they or the World Government should be concerned about in terms of fighting ability.

It didn't take long for Nico Robin to notice that her and the navigator were not alone in the room, and for her to silently put her book away so as to not wake the other woman.

"You've been avoiding us, Nico Robin. Come quietly, or else harm shall befall the members of the crew that you've ingratiated yourself with."

As an afterthought, the man tilted his masked head, "Starting with the orange haired woman here. It wouldn't be difficult…"

The CP9 agent left the thought to linger, as he saw the look of fear upon the Devil Child's face.

"I'll come with you, don't harm anyone here. They're innocent of any of my crimes."

There was a sense of immense satisfaction and relief that overcame the agent, as Nico Robin stood up and gathered her cloak, leaving behind the book atop her bed.

"Good, now justice awaits."

The agent was in such a hurry to leave, and so filled with confidence that he didn't notice in the dark of the room Nico Robin hand a note to a hidden crow as the two escaped through the window, nor see the bird follow after them.

Shanks knew that he probably should have rung Ebony by now, but something was telling him to wait at least a few more days to do so.

All he knew is that the Straw Hats were going to be causing some straight up mischief, and more than likely property damage with Luffy as their captain.

He was proud of the kid, with as far as he had come he still had a really long way to go.

Shanks just hoped that the crew he had made for himself was good enough to keep themselves and each other safe enough to make it to the New World and beyond.

The Red Hair Pirates had been collecting all of Luffy's wanted posters up until that point, and when the first bounties of his crew had come out those had begun to be collected as well.

The current bounty on the entirety of the crew was ridiculously good for a rookie crew who had barely been sailing longer than four months, and considering Shanks had heard that there was currently eight members of the crew, those bounties would more than likely increase.

Though it wasn't always a thing that each member of a pirate crew had a bounty, in a small crew like Luffy's it wouldn't surprise him if all the crew gained bounties before entering the New World.

"Captain! Approaching the Moby Dick!"

Yasopp called out to him, reminding Shanks very suddenly of what they were about to do.

Shanks was still in mild disbelief that Newgate had allowed Ace to go chasing off after Marshall D. Teach by himself and without backup. And whilst, yes it was technically none of his business to interfere with a rival crew, but this was Luffy's older brother and if anything happened to him it would more than likely destroy the little Anchor.

And Shanks was nothing if not overprotective of those whom he called friend.

"Luffy! Robin's gone!"

Nami had come out of the hotel room she shared with the archaeologist immediately after she had woken up to find Melkor holding the note left behind in his beak in front of her.

"She left this!"

Luffy immediately took the note, and went to open it before remembering that his reading ability, whilst it had improved with the help of Ebony teaching him, wasn't the greatest still and handed the note back to Nami.

"I'm not good enough at reading just yet, sorry."

Nami smiled at him sheepishly, she had forgotten about that, but the fact that her captain had admitted a weakness? She wasn't going to call him out on it.

"Should we wait for the others to arrive?"

Luffy nodded, they would all need to be there to figure out what to do next. Obviously they would need to go after Robin, but someone needed to stay behind and protect Merry. Although, after the story that Zoro and Ebony had told him about the klabautermann being able to do the same amount of damage, or perhaps even more, as some of the stronger members of the crew could, Merry could and would more than likely be able to protect herself.

It didn't take long for the others to arrive, although Ebony was being given a wide berth and more than a few suspicious glances. That significantly worried Luffy; had she been outed as an Outlier? No, that couldn't be it. There would be far more shouting and a massive mob after her if that was the case.

"Robin's gone."

Everyone's faces dropped, especially Ebony who looked as though she was trying not to cry.

It seemed that no matter how hard each of them all tried to avoid certain things happening, major events within the world seemed to have a way of resetting themselves, even if they were different to begin with.

Fate apparently did not like to be trifled with, a message that Luffy wanted to rip apart.

"But she left us a note, Melkor also said he followed them."

It hadn't taken much to shoot the man, nor had it taken much to disguise herself as the archivist of the Straw Hat crew, and the fact that they had Nico Robin with them? It would definitely make it look as though the Straw Hats were at fault for the attempted assassination of the mayor of Water 7 and a beloved man in general, Iceburg.

What sort of an alibi would Crow Queen have as a notorious pirate?

No one could possibly vouch for a no good lowlife.

A/N: This one took a bit longer to write, because I'm finding the direction of how I want this arc to go a bit difficult to figure out, but I hope that it was an enjoyable read regardless.

I'm trying to get, and please don't hold me to this because life happens, to nine chapters written this year by the end of 2023. I'm currently at six and have three more to write. Chapter 38 is currently about a third finished, and the other two are planned so whilst I think it's doable, it does depend on university and work, just life in general to be perfectly honest.

Stay safe, and hydrate everyone!~