(A/N: Enjoy!)

Chapter 8: Time to Fight Back! Usopp's Quick Thinking, and Fire Star!

"We made it! Ah! So that's the second island in the Grand Line; Little Garden!"

"W-what's with this island?!"

"Collier Shoot!"

"L-Little Garden?! W-what's so little about this island?!"

"This is an island of ancient times. It's stuck in the age of the dinosaurs!"

"The duel has continued for 100 years now. I've forgotten the reason for it; but that doesn't matter, anyway."

"Then why?!"

"Pride!"

"Man, he's huge..."

"This is Elbaf, the God of War's... judgement! I didn't have his divine protection."

"Who is it?! Come out! You guys spoiled the old giant guys' duel! I'm gonna beat you up!"

"It's no use! Your friends are going to become my works of art!"

"Venus!"

"Luffy!"

"Ahh. Such nice tea."

"He was hit with the Tranquil Green!"

"Such... nice... tea."

"Luffy! What are you doing, you idiot?!" Usopp then spotted the green mark on his vest, and began to sneak up on him.

However, Mr. 5 saw him. "It's over for all of you." He took out his revolver. "This is my ultimate ability!"

"Special Attack: Exploding Star!" Usopp launched a bullet at him, and leaped in the air with Karoo, dodging his gunshots. His bullet hit the target: Luffy!

Ms. Golden Week jumped back when his vest burst into flames, and Ms. Valentine floated up in the air. "What an idiot! He missed his target, and hit his own friend!"

Usopp looked behind his back after Karoo landed. "Where'd his bullets go?!"

"Breeze Breath Bomb!"

Out of nowhere, an explosion erupted, sending Usopp and Karoo tumbling away. "Usopp-kun!" Venus' eye widened.

"I forgot to mention it, but my breath explodes."

Usopp landed with Karoo by the wax cake. "Dammit! This is insane! He had no bullets?! Karoo! You alright?!" He turned to the captain after Karoo quacked weakly. "Hey! You come to your senses?!"

"Y-yeah," Luffy regained his footing, now missing his vest, "I'm awake! Thanks!"

Ms. Valentine glared. "That attack was meant to burn his clothes, and the Trap on it, to undo the manipulation!"

Luffy panted in anger. "I've had enough of that paint! I refuse to let anyone else die! Now I'm mad!"

Meanwhile...

"It's definitely weird," An oblivious Sanji remarked in confusion, now back on the Going Merry, "Damn weird. Why hasn't anyone come back after all this time?" He had his larger catch on the shore close by. "Something must've happened to Nami-san, Venus-chan, Vivi-chan, and the rest. In which case, this is no time to be getting ready to cook a lizard!"

Using his catch as leverage, he leaped down in the jungle, and "persuaded" a saber-toothed tiger to give him a ride. "Nami-san! Venus-chan! Vivi-chan! Hey! Say something! I love you!" He stopped, and jumped down upon noticing a strange, cube-shaped structure. "What's this?"

Mr. 3 laughed evilly. "So what if you're mad? Just look at your friends now!"

"So what?! They're still alive!"

"Are they now? All they need now is some of Ms. Golden Week's paint, and they'll be exceptional wax figures!" Usopp was silent with fury. "You're too late, Straw Hat!" A tree collapsed nearby. "That's correct! You're not only late, but now you can experience even more despair!" More trees suffered the brunt of his next attack. "Move out!" Venus gaped in awe from the ground, as the wax formed a giant, robot-like battle suit. "Candle... Champion!"

Usopp and Karoo screamed in terror. "What's that?" Luffy asked.

"It's said he once took down a 42 million berry bounty with this," Mr. 5 replied.

"It's Mr. 3's ultimate artistic talent," Ms. Valentine added.

"Now, Ms. Golden Week! Perform an artistic paint job on me!"

"Can I take a break after that?"

"Yes, of course! I'd actually prefer you to stay out of this!" She nodded with a small smile. "Like this, I am invincible! This armor is hard as iron, and wrapped around me like velvet! My form now... has no flaws!"

Everyone stared on in silence, before Luffy brightened up. "S-so cool!"

"This is no time to be admiring him!" Usopp shouted.

"Fight!" Venus urged.

While Ms. Golden Week painted, Luffy prepared to attack. "Alright! Gum-Gum..." He reeled his fist into the jungle.

"Paint job complete!"

"Now, then!"

"Pistol!" His fist bounced off of the wax mech.

"Champ Fight! Harvest Field!" He spun the arms ferociously, the boxing gloves digging into the ground, as Luffy leaped away.

"Gum-Gum... Stamp!" He was ejected yet again.

"It's no use!"

"Not good!" Usopp frowned. "The guy's so solid, his attacks don't work!" Luffy landed on the cake by his decapacitated friends, then jumped off. Usopp and Karoo covered their mouths when the rain started falling on them. "Damn! The wax haze!"

"Don't turn into statues!" Venus exclaimed fearfully.

He stared at the white material on his hands. "Wax?" He turned to the spinning top; more specifically, the flaming candles. Flame? Of course! "Yeah! Why didn't I realize it?! The fact it turns into a mist means it can melt!" He turned to the captain, and the witch. "Luffy, Venus! Fire melts this guy's wax! No matter how hard it is, wax is still wax!"

"Yeah!" Venus perked up.

"Zoro, and all the others hardened only moments ago! We can save them!" Karoo quacked.

"What?! For real?!" He beamed.

"Yeah, for real," Ms. Golden Week confirmed.

Mr. 3 gaped in shock. "Don't admit that to them!"

"Too late!" Venus mocked.

"But even if you realize that now, you have neither time, or a chance of winning! 30 more seconds at most! After that, their hearts will completely stop! As we speak, they're probably writhing in pain with what little consciousness they have left, as they experience the terror of dying!"

Karoo pushed Usopp up on his feet. "We don't need 30 seconds! I'll save them now! Special Attack: Fire-"

"Breeze Breath Bomb!" Mr. 5 shot at him again, this time with a direct hit!"

"Usopp!" Luffy screamed.

"Usopp-kun!" Venus cried.

His slingshot was dropped, as he fell on his back. "Did you not hear him say you had no chance of winning?"

"Dammit!" Luffy cursed. "There's no time!"

Mr. 3 then appeared behind him. "Give it up!" Before Luffy could do anything, he was punched into the ground.

Usopp crawled over to Karoo, now with a rope on hand. "Listen, take this rope-"

"Oh?" Ms. Valentine floated over, interrupting him. "This looks like fun! Whatcha planning? Can I join in, too?"

Usopp was fearfully quiet for a few seconds. "Karoo! Run!" He loudly whispered, before finally shouting. "Run! Just run around the candlesticks!" Karoo quickly began doing as told.

Mr. 5 readied his revolver again. "Everything you try is pointless!"

"Pardon me." Ms. Valentine sat on Usopp's back. "Crescendo Stone! How many kilograms can you ensure, I wonder..." Karoo dodged the bullets, as he ran. "10 kilograms... 100 kilograms..." Usopp grunted in discomfort when her weight increased. "200 kilograms..." His eyes were wide, as he felt his lungs being compressed. "300 kilograms..." She was oblivious to Venus sneaking towards her ominously, dragging her heavy mallet restraint.

"Damn nimble bird!" Mr. 5 complained when he couldn't shoot Karoo.

Mr. 3 started punching at Luffy again. "Give it up! Give it up! They've become my works of art!"

"I don't think so!" Luffy leaped into the air. "I won't let you have their lives!" He grabbed his topknot, and made a beeline for the cake. "If fire can melt them, then I'll use this fire!"

"Don't pull! Stop!"

"Luffy!" Usopp protested, as Venus inched closer. He didn't see her either. "That small flame won't do it fast enough! Light Karoo's rope on fire!"

"The bird's rope?!" By now, Karoo had the rope wrapped all around the cake.

Usopp poured some kerosene on his end. "It's a special rope, soaked in oil!"

"Okay! Everyone! Wake up!"

"Hey! Wait! Stop!"

"It'll be a little hot, but endure it." Closer.

"Stop!" With one single touch, the whole structure erupted in flames. "Oww!" Mr. 3 struggled. "Hot! Hot!"

"What a big fire!" Luffy exclaimed. "Are they gonna be alright?!"

"Curse you... curse you, Straw Hat! How dare you destroy my Candle Service Set! You'll pay for this!"

Luffy turned around to find Mr. 3, and Ms. Golden Week attempting to flee into the jungle. "I won't let you get away, you jerks!"

A scared Karoo jumped back and forth, avoiding wax mounts falling around him. "Dammit! How dare you mock us!" Mr. 5 exclaimed.

Ms. Valentine punched Usopp's face. "Now you've done it! Playtime is over!" She shot up in the air. "I'm going to shatter that neck of yours into pieces! Special Attack: 10,000 Kilogram Guillotine!" Closer.

Usopp watched fearfully, as she started rocketing back down. "This is bad!"

Little did she realize, a certain someone was coming for her. Three someone's; Venus finally swung her restraint, while Vivi spun her slashers, and Nami (who was missing her shirt) wielded a staff, all to knock her away. As Venus dragged herself to him, Nami and Vivi stood back-to-back. "That was hot!" Nami remarked. "Couldn't you have done it a different way?"

Venus turned to her with a snarky look, as a stray ember ignited her mallet. "Ouch!" She yelped from the burn. "What other option was there, huh?"

An irritated Usopp managed to sit up with the witch's help. "Yeah, don't be fussy! Just be thankful you were saved!"

"You're right," Nami admitted, "Thanks!"

"This doesn't seem real," Vivi remarked, "We're alive!"

"The wax melted," Mr. 5 observed, "What a pain! We can't afford to screw up our mission any further!" He pointed his revolver, alarming the girls.

"Stay behind me," Usopp surprised Venus with his sudden bravery, "Mr. 5! Special Attack: Exploding Star!"

Mr. 5 ate the bullet again. "Fool! I've shown several times that explosives don't work on me! I'm an explosive man!"

"You took the bait!" Usopp grinned.

"Huh?" Venus looked up at him in confusion, and watched their adversary.

He soon sweating profusely, and his complexion was turning red. "So sorry! I'm a liar, you see!" Venus put her fingers to her mouth, stifling giggles. "That wasn't even an Exploding Star! It was a Special Tabasco Star!"

"Spicy!" Mr. 5 screamed, as fire shot from his mouth like a geyser.

Usopp laughed victoriously. "I already proved its effectiveness the hard way!"

"Alright, Usopp!" Venus cheered.

Mr. 5 collapsed to his knees. "Damn you pirates!" He coughed. "How dare you make a mockery of me!" Usopp's eyes widened in terror. "Time to blow up a full-body explosion!" He made a mad beeline for the sniper. "There won't even be bone fragments left!"

Just as he pushed Venus away to safety, he was trapped in a dangerous embrace. "No! Stop!" He thrashed frantically in his arms, but he was too strong.

"Usopp-kun!" She exclaimed.

"No! I'm sorry! I won't do it anymore!"

"Flaming Oni..." Zoro leaped from the fire, swords ready, "Giri!" Only Mr. 5 was affected; he was now ablaze, so Usopp was safe. "Flaming swords aren't too shabby," He remarked.

"Zoro!" Nami addressed him.

They were startled by a sudden quaking; it was Broggy! Also on fire, he stood on his feet, ready to fight. "Yo," Zoro greeted, "Good to see you're alive."

"Yeah," Broggy grinned, but it disappeared when he looked over Dorry's body.

"Master..."

Broggy perked back up, and gazed into the jungle. "That leaves two foes left."

"Bird!" Luffy ran after them with Karoo. "Don't let them get away with this!" They jumped over a fallen tree. "Real men don't spoil people's fights!" They skidded to a stop at what was in front of them: Mr. 3. Lots of him!

"How good of you to come! Welcome to my Wax-Wax Manor!"

"What is this?!"

"Well, then. Can you tell where I am?" Karoo glanced about hopelessly. "It would appear you picked a fight with the wrong people! We're the most intellectual team in all of Baroque Works! A brute force buffoon like you, who acts on instinct cannot catch us! I am Mr. 3. I carry out all assignments given to me flawlessly. Now, then! Step forward! The moment your back is turned to me, I'll stab you..." He had a dagger ready. "Right through the heart."

Through his laughter, Luffy eyed them all carefully... aha! "Gum-Gum... Stamp!" His foot shoved the real one into a tree.

"How... did you know," He stumbled forward deliriously, "I was here?" He then fell on his back in the grass.

Luffy was silent for a moment. "Instinct."

Just then, Karoo noticed Ms. Golden Week sneaking away, and charged in, to her terror.

In the wax house he found, Sanji poured himself some tea. "Afternoons are definitely best with Earl Grey." Just then, it hit him. "Hold on, now! This is no time for me to be drinking tea all fancy-like! Nami-san and the others might be waiting for me to help them!" He set the teacup down, and stood off the chair. "Still, though. What's such a relaxing place doing in the jungle?"

"Beta-beta-beta-beta-"

"Huh?" Sanji turned back at a strange ringing from a woven basket. "What's that?" He walked over, and lifted the top up. "Oh... it's a Transponder Snail." It was a purple snail, with a black handlebar mustache, and a shell that had teal and darker purple vertical stripes. Sanji set it on the table, and promptly answered. "Heya. You've called the Damn Restaurant. You want reservations?" For a few seconds, no one answered.

"Quit fooling around, dumbass," A deep, male voice chided, "Aren't you a bit late with your report?"

"Oh? Report?" Sanji replied curiously. "And who might I be talking to?"

"It's me. Mr. 0." At that, he frowned in determination. Mr. 0, huh?

(A/N: I love Sanji tricking Crocodile here, and later. X'D You know the disclaimer.)