Descent

by JustAProblem

Scars are a sign of pride and strength. A sign of survival. Naturally, this only applies to the physical scars and not the mental scars. No, mental scars are almost universally agreed to be negative and for good reason. Physical scars merely change how your body looks. Mental scars change how a person thinks. Rosan just wants to enjoy life. He didn't ask for all this.

40. Chapter 40: Love

Descent

Chapter 40: Love

"Rosan… what are you doing?"

Rosan slowly opened his eyes, glowing gaze roaming over his crew, Franky and Usop- Sogeking.

"I'm meditating," he said simply. "Right now, I have little to no control over my emotions and I'm trying my hardest to not let this anger at Robin get the best of me again."

They flinched at the reminder.

Right… They remembered the words of Rosan right after he exited that strange transformation…

Upset with Robin was a nice way of putting it and they doubted things would suddenly get better after getting her back…

Speaking of which.

"What was that, Rosan?" Luffy asked bluntly, brows furrowed. "First you had a horse then you transformed into something else… I didn't know you could do that."

Everyone nodded. If even Luffy didn't know what that was, it was rather alarming because the brothers had been together for 10 years!

Rosan sighed and closed his normal eyes.

"That… is a problem that has been persisting within me for a long while," Rosan said quietly. "The virus. It is a parasite that has latched itself onto Mod-chan and as a result, me. It is the reason for many of my mental issues."

"Mmm you're too sweet~ If you want, I'll latch onto you too," Pestilence hummed, letting out a pleased sigh.

"Virus…?" Chopper asked in concern.

"Telling them about me so soon? My oh my, I feel so special! This is even faster than precious little Mod!"

Rosan bit back a snarl that he failed miserably to hide, which caused his crew to flinch.

Lately, Rosan had been making far more expressive faces... but watching the once neutral scout scowl and sneer was still foreign to them.

"I don't really feel comfortable revealing anymore information but I will tell you all once this debacle is finished. No offense but I don't really trust everyone on this train," he grunted, trying hard to quell his temper.

"How long until I get Modification fully?"

"I don't have a timer in my head. But it should be soon. What? Not liking my company? I thought we made a pretty good team, Little Rose," Pestilence mocked sadly, sounding exactly like his mother in that moment.

"All this has done, is spare you from my wrath for a moment longer."

"Aww, is this the moment where we swap from haters to lovers and then raise 10 kids? You flatter me, but I don't feel like being the answer to your mommy issues. You're hot but I'm not that easy."

Everyone gained a worried look as Rosan grit his teeth and clenched his fist.

"I hope you remain this fucking confident when we finally meet face to face."

"Mmm, if that's really what you want, then I'll have to do the opposite! Nothing fills me with more bliss than pissing you off. You don't have to worry though, once Mod wakes up, I'll be out your hair sadly."

So the virus was avoiding Mod-chan…

Whatever.

"Let's discuss," Rosan muttered with stormy eyes.

His voice made them all straighten and the group began listening to the tumultuous scout.

"Our mission is to retrieve Nico Robin. To do that, we must fight an enormous amount of World Government agents. Standing at the top of those agents, are CP9 a group of assassins," he began calmly.

"These are the guys who tried to kill Iceburg?" Franky asked curiously, getting a noise of confirmation out of Rosan. "You said they were people infiltrating Water 7 undercover?"

Rosan nodded and began listing off their names. "The ones we know of are, Izumi, Rob Lucci, Kalifa, Kaku and Blueno—,"

"BLUENO?! THAT GUY?!" Franky shouted in shock. Even Kokoro looked stunned by that statement.

The bartender?! He was an agent too?!

Rosan sneered, eyes going dark as he thought about the man with the threatening Devil Fruit. "Yeah. He had a troublesome fruit."

"Why did you let him escape then? I know you said you dealt with it… but how? Is he poisoned?" Sanji pointed out in confusion. Rosan had him right where he wanted him but had let him go in favor of ripping into Robin instead.

"Escape?" Rosan repeated quietly. "No one escapes from me."

Everyone shuddered at that simple and quiet statement.

"Blueno is dead. That I can assure you. What's left of his body, is probably still cooling at Water 7 because those agents were most likely too afraid to touch him," he explained coldly.

"Rosan's really scary right now!" they all thought in horror.

"You don't mess around huh, Red?" Franky asked with wide eyes.

"I will crush all of them beneath my heel by the end of this," Rosan promised.

Kokoro, who had been frowning after Rosan named the agents, suddenly spoke up. "You said someone named Izumi was posing as well? That name doesn't ring a bell. What about you, Franky? I recognized every name except for hers."

The cyborg shook his head. "I didn't recognize that name either. There was no one notable named Izumi on that island and I super knew just about everyone."

Rosan pursed his lips at that. There could be many explanations for that. After all, Izumi could control illusions but for her to not be even slightly known, when all the other agents didn't even bother hiding their names…

She was here for him only then.

Obsessed freak.

"Luffy. You probably don't remember their names, but tell me which one was the strongest."

The rubber boy blinked at the request before nodding.

"Pigeon guy was the strongest," he said eventually.

Rosan nodded. So Rob Lucci was the strongest…

"You can fight Rob Lucci then, Captain," he said simply, gazing at his brother with a serious look in his eyes.

Luffy nodded, just as serious.

"I don't know who will fight who but leave that Rob Lucci to Luffy," Rosan told them all, eyes narrowed. "And you may leave Izumi to me. I have to repay her back for all she's done."

The way he said that, didn't sound reassuring at all.

"Franky, what can you do?" The redhead asked suddenly. "How strong are you?"

The Cyborg grinned. "I'M SUUUUPER STRONG!" The man exclaimed.

Rosan glanced at Luffy and the two exchanged a quick conversation with each other before he nodded.

"Okay. Depending on how many CP9 agents they have, you may need to fight one," he grunted. "Chopper, can you replace my bandages?"

The reindeer jumped at that but nodded, rushing over to the redhead and removing his shirt to pick at his bandage.

None could keep the wince out of their eyes, at the severe damage of Rosan's midsection and they had to wonder how he could even act so calm right now.

Actually, how was he even able to move? It was almost as if he didn't register the wounds on his midsection and that level of pain tolerance was too unnatural, even for their demonic scout.

Had... Rosan been tortured before?

"Are you planning on fighting like that?" Nami asked in visible concern, gazing at his body with wide eyes.

"Of course," he grunted, watching as the red matted bandages piled up.

"What the hell happened to you?!" Franky asked in shock.

"I was tortured on Water 7 by Izumi quite brutally," the redhead replied blandly. "It's why I will handle her. She is obsessed with me and will only target me. It's for the best if she does that because an assassin who can control illusions, will kill you before you noticed you were in one. You guys aren't good at dealing with tricks."

"And you?" Zoro asked with a raised brow.

"She won't kill me regardless of if I win or not," Rosan frowned. "She plans on capturing me and making me her slave, while you all die. I'm very sure she plans on raping and branding me as well."

They froze in horror at that, gaping at the casual way he stated it.

Usopp felt even more guilt at that. So right after Rosan got tortured that brutally… he had to deal with the sniper blowing up on him.

He was the worst...

"Rosan, you shouldn't be fighting!" Chopper begged, eyes pleading with him.

Rosan shook his head in refusal. "You are not strong enough to be worrying about me over yourself; Nothing you say will stop me so just focus on winning your own battle. As long as Robin is in their hands, I will not be satisfied and I will not be able to rest."

His body was still recovering. Modification was coming back slowly but until he was fully functional, the Philosophers Stone would activate in time, but with all these injuries, he would be somewhat drained.

The redhead sighed. He'd be going against Izumi without being fully healed.

How fortunate for her.

"You really care about her don't you?" Franky asked curiously. "You're super pissed at her but you're also risking your life for your woman."

Rosan huffed as his gaze turned murderous. "Regardless of how I'm acting... I'm way more worried then I am pissed but when I'm worried, I get pissed. Every time I think about her, I just think about how big of a hypocrite she is… but I'm also thinking about how I can possibly continue if she dies?"

The redhead closed his eyes and his expression melted away… For a second, for just a split second, they saw a vulnerable redhead with fear on his features.

Fear that they would never associate with Rosan... it was heartbreaking to witness.

"I've been broken once and I'm slowly rebuilding myself. Doesn't she understand that this will break me beyond repair?" he whispered to himself.

The crew looked at his doubtful stance, eyes softening at how conflicted their infallible scout currently was.

Then the anger came roaring back with a vengeance.

"Well if she doesn't understand, that just brings a whole other issue to the table," Rosan snarled, eyes positively glowing. "She didn't tell me a damn thing. She didn't tell me her issues. She just up and fucking LEFT! AND ALL SHE DID WAS LEAVE ME A NOTE LIKE I'D ACCEPT THAT!"

Everyone jumped at the shift in volume and inched away from the furious redhead.

"After everything we said to each other… after I spilled my heart out for her… she tries to make these decisions on her own? I. Won't. Allow. It. Nico Robin is in more trouble then she ever believed," Rosan growled, closing his eyes and forcing himself back into the meditative stance.

"Once I get my powers back, just follow me. I will be leading and I will make my statement. Afterwards, we will split off. If you can avoid a fight and run straight to Robin that would be ideal but I doubt that."

Everyone nodded, stunned that Rosan himself was voluntarily taking charge.

"She'll be cuffed most likely," Franky pointed out.

"I will deal with it… I just need my powers back," he growled.

He felt completely helpless without Modification right now. He was still plenty strong physically but without his ability, it was difficult to do what he wished to do.

Rosan focused and was satisfied to see it was slowly booting up. Better then being completely deactivated.

"Don't hold anything back. Mark my words... by the end of the day Enies Lobby will see that I'm far more dangerous then a Devil," the redhead assured.

"We'll help in anyway we can… Robin's our crewmate too," Nami nodded in determination.

"I've got a bone to pick with the World Government myself so when you say things like that, you get me super pumped!" Franky grinned eagerly.

He liked this redhead. Franky would have done the exact same things if he had the power to save Tom so to see someone going against the very same World Government… it lit a fire under him.

"You might get a bounty for this Franky… is that really okay with you?" Rosan grunted curiously.

The cyborg paused at that question, not considering that outcome at all, before shrugging.

"I'll figure it out afterwards. The World Government really pisses me off so it was bound to happen one day," the cyborg explained.

Rosan shrugged and accepted that answer.

"That reminds me… why exactly did Iceburg want your help? I heard that you dismantled ships, not repair them," Sanji frowned at the cyborg.

Franky puffed up with pride. "I was the student of the best damn Shipwright on the planet with that Iceburg. My skills in crafting are second to none! I even created this super cyborg body of mine by myself!"

Rosan glanced up at him and the crew could just tell his gears were turning at that.

"You're a shipwright?!" Luffy asked excitedly.

"You're a master inventor?" Rosan asked calmly.

"Yup! I'm super good at them but I haven't built anything in a long while..." Franky nodded.

The redhead's gaze looked calculating at that.

By the way Luffy's eyes were sparkling, it was clear what the two were thinking and they couldn't believe it.

They totally wanted to recruit Franky.

But in a move that surprised them all. The two brothers just nodded and let it go.

"You're skills would go well with my abilities," Rosan commented offhandedly, closing his eyes and beginning to meditate again. "We could create inventions on the level of Vegapunk if your claims are true."

Franky's eyes widened at that bold statement and he regarded the focused redhead with a clearly interested eye.

"Just what is your ability?" He asked.

They could reach Vegapunk? What an absurd but confident thing to say! Franky really liked Red already.

Rosan simply inhaled and exhaled quietly.

"If you contribute in saving Robin, I'll tell you. After I deal with her, you will have my attention so you'll find out anyways."

Luffy nodded excitedly. "Yup, but Robin comes first!" The rubber boy chirped.

Everyone shuddered at that statement, Franky included.

"That's… super ominous," Franky said.

"You have our condolences," the crew, barring Luffy told him.

Looks like they better get used to the idea of Franky being apart of their crew. Those psychotic brothers both had their eyes on him.

Franky simply backed away from the suddenly super scary brothers.

---

"Let's talk, Robin-chan."

Robin's eyes narrowed at that voice and she turned away from the window to gaze at Izumi.

"No one should be visiting me. I thought you all made that rule," Robin said icily.

Izumi didn't even flinch. There was a wild, albeit hidden, look in her eyes as she gazed piercingly at Ohara's Devil.

"They don't know I'm in here. All of them have fallen under my spell," she said simply, before taking a seat next to the clearly uncomfortable woman. "Tell me about Rosan's Devil Fruit."

Robin's eyes narrowed in disbelief. "I have nothing to say to someone who won't keep their word."

Izumi raised a brow. "You're talking about what I did to him? Let me ask you something Nico Robin. You saw exactly what he was able to do after what I did. What did you think was going to happen if I didn't incapacitate him?"

Robin said nothing.

"I put a hole in every part of his abdomen, I tied him up with seastone and I even shot him with seastone nails… but he somehow still showed up and killed Blueno in the process. Can you imagine what would have happened if he wasn't injured? Your entire crew would be burned alive by the Buster Call," Izumi hissed, successfully making Robin flinch back.

"I did you a favor by incapacitating him… and he still almost ruined everything," Izumi tutted. "I envy you Nico Robin. Our sweet boyfriend managed to completely fool you."

The Devil Child went still, eyes furrowed in confusion.

"Confused? I don't know why you are," Izumi shrugged. "Can I ask you another question? If Meiko was alive, do you think Rosan would ever give you the time of day?"

Robin knew what her game was. She knew what Izumi was trying to do… but a small part of her had to wonder, would Rosan give her the time of day if Meiko was still alive?

After all, while Robin was in love with Rosan… the redhead didn't show any of the same signs… but he realized he was in love with Meiko after looking at her…

"You see don't you!" Izumi purred. "He's turned you into a loyal slave and you don't even realize it. If it were up to him, he'd discard everything just for a chance to see Meiko again and I'm going to show you that…"

The woman sighed and leaned in close, planting a chaste kiss on the edge of Robin's lips and making the Devil Child reel back with wide eyes.

"You and I? We're not so different you know. We're both loyal to a man that won't appreciate us fully even though we love him but you know what? It doesn't have to be like that," Izumi whispered.

Robin shuddered at the woman talking to her right now, doubt on her face.

"To be honest, I like you Nico Robin. I don't want you to die and I won't let you die," she announced, making Robin's eyes widen in confusion.

"What?" the Devil Child asked in shock.

Izumi smiled gently. "I've already killed someone who was completely innocent in this war between Rosan and I... I would hate myself even more if I killed you too," she admitted truthfully.

The illusionist gazed at her hands. "Every single day, I am reminded that everything in my life went wrong because I killed the most gorgeous and innocent girl I'd ever laid eyes on. That day, Meiko was the last person who deserved to die, yet she did and it was at my hands," Izumi said quietly, dead teal eyes staring directly into her soul.

"Yet here I am, alive with no other purpose but to chase the back of the person who turned me into this."

With her words... with her eyes, Robin distantly thought that Izumi and Rosan were very similar.

"You're just another victim in this battle and I'm tired of hurting victims. You could join me and the both of us could share Rosan. I don't mind since we already are," Izumi said simply.

Robin couldn't understand anything going on in Izumi's mind. The twisted girl had been the one who made her give up and now she was saying she didn't want her dead?

Join her? Was she mad?

"You're thinking why would I even extend the offer when my allies are in the other room?" Izumi guessed, standing up with an unhinged smile. "It's true, Rob Lucci alone is enough to dismantle me but Robin, girls like us don't fight fair."

With a small tug, she pulled Robin up and forced the woman to follow her. Then, Izumi opened the door to the room behind them, filled with every single CP9 agent.

What Robin saw left her stunned.

Every single one of them were sleeping.

They were unconscious, unaware of the world around them as they slept the events of today away.

"Didn't I tell you? They're all under my spell," Izumi crooned, taking a confident step forward. "I don't care about my allies. I don't care about their lives. I don't care about anyone in this train. I don't care about anything except for you and darling."

She walked up to the sleeping Kalifa and boldly grabbed her chest, looking back at Robin and fondling her shamelessly, as the woman showed no sign of waking even as Izumi placed those nails on her pretty face.

"Not her."

Then, she removed her hand and walked over to Kaku, brushing her incredibly sharp nails against the bridge of his long nose. With a small bit of exertion, those claws would pierce into him and take his life and he'd be none the wiser.

"Not him."

Finally, she walked over to Lucci and aimed a finger directly over his heart, drawing an imaginary one over it in the process that belayed the danger of the action.

"And especially not Rob Lucci."

Izumi looked back at her with a grin and an unsettling gleam.

"You see? In just a second, I could kill all of them and be done with it and they'd be none the wiser. No Rokushiki technique is saving them from my magic, yet they praise it as if it's the only thing a person needs…"

Robin shuddered at the psychotic girl, eyes going wide as those dead teal eyes looked at her.

"I don't need to be stronger then them. Every creature has a weak-point, whether it be physical or mental. Every creature has a weakness that a person can exploit to win…" Izumi began.

A hand touched Robin's shoulder and a chest pressed against her back, squishing into her lewdly.

"...That's what I specialize in and I already know Darling's weakness."

Robin jumped at the chilly breath against her ear and rounded on the Izumi behind her.

"W-What?" The Devil Child muttered in confusion, turning back in time to see the Izumi who was next to Rob Lucci, vanish into nothing.

"You've fallen under my spell too," Izumi said calmly, smiling impishly. "Illusions. Such a powerful tool to help people escape from reality… but I myself can never escape from my reality. Fitting isn't it? That I'd eat this fruit?"

"What's real? What's fake?" Izumi questioned and Robin watched as the woman split into 5, before they combined into a giant figure of her… and finally they ended up as Meiko…

"It's hard to separate dreams from reality when there's something you wish for," Meiko said softly. "I will prove to you that Rosan cares about me more then anyone else, even with your life on the line…"

She transformed back into Izumi who leaned in close to Robin.

"...And then I'll save you and let you get your revenge on that traitor," she whispered.

Izumi leaned back with a satisfied smirk and did a little twirl.

"Ah it'll just be perfect! The despair on Rosan's face, when he finds out the one who killed Meiko, was the one who saved his lovely Robin. Mmm just thinking about it~" Izumi giggled psychotically.

"Now go take your seat and let me deal with saving you! We've both got a persona to maintain, don't you think?" The agent grinned psychotically.

Quick as a flash, her face morphed into a lifeless expression.

"Go. Sit," Izumi intoned, before making her way over to her own seat and sitting down.

Robin shakily watched her go, before walking back into her room and subsequently collapsing into her seat.

I already know Rosan's weakness.

"She's going to use Meiko to strike Rosan's weak points," she thought in realization, shuddering at the conversation that just took place.

That… Rosan was in real danger. He… He loved Meiko. He could never strike her…

Not even for her…

Robin's head bowed and she slumped in her seat.

Right… Rosan's heart belonged to Meiko. Of course it did. It always had.

Meiko would never have pushed Rosan away and made him cry.

Meiko would have revealed all her problems right then and there because she had nothing to hide from him.

Not like Robin had so ruthlessly done. Robin knew he couldn't control his emotions and she ruthlessly stomped on them, just so he could get away.

Meiko wouldn't have done that. She would have cried and begged for him to come back and be with her.

That's the type of person this version of Rosan needed. They weren't kids anymore. Rosan had outgrown a person like Robin, who didn't know the slightest thing about helping someone who genuinely needed help.

How could she ever help someone, when she was just as much a mess as them?

Rosan was the sun… and she was the moon. Robin couldn't become a sun for Rosan like Meiko had… because she wasn't fit for it.

Of course she wasn't… why did she think otherwise?

Robin shut her eyes and cried quietly to herself.

---

There were far more people on the train then Rosan expected or wanted.

The redhead opened his eyes and sneered at the others.

The Franky Family had been following them on their King Yagura Bulls and Rosan supposed that because the Aqua Laguna was really kicking up they could come in…

But what were these three Galley-La workers doing here? Not to mention, somehow Kokoro's granddaughter and that weird pet where here too.

It was too crowded. He hated that. And not only that, they were panicking as well. Something about a massive tidal wave coming to hit.

But it wasn't all bad. No, in fact it was great…

Rosan's closed eyes pulsed wildly as he began slowly but surely healing. It wasn't fast by any means, only slightly above a humans but it meant one thing.

He was alive.

"I do quite enjoyed our time together, whore. But that's all from me. If you ever want to use my powers again, you know you just have to let me in. Toodles!" Pestilence hummed, slinking away into their corner and vanishing before he could say a word.

Rosan's eyes shone dangerously, as a feral grin made its way to his face and he abruptly stood up, getting all their attention.

"You mentioned a tidal wave?" Rosan rumbled, clenching and unclenching his fist repeatedly.

They nodded rapidly, eyes wide at the dangerous aura of the redhead before them.

The redhead hummed and seemed to check for something before nodding.

"Alright. I'll deal with it but afterwards I'm going to rest," he demanded, not waiting for anyone's response.

He nudged open one of the windows to the wild sea train and put a foot on the edge.

The redhead ignored everyone's yells of concern and immediately silenced them as a violent and scaly tail burst out, followed by wings.

The Straw Hats eyes widened in joy.

"You got your powers back!" They exclaimed right as the redhead launched himself into the terrible weather.

"So he's a Devil Fruit user too," Paulie muttered.

Everyone glanced at each other for a moment, before they all dashed to get a glimpse outside.

Rosan floated above with a set of gloves on and breathed calmly.

"I'm not fully recovered… but I can make way for the train… Then I need to shut down most of my body functions and rest up for as long as possible."

Deep breaths.

Rosan held both hands out and began accumulating the necessary energy. The redhead inhaled and focused.

"Exoneration."

Everyone's jaw dropped as the giant tsunami was parted straight through the middle by an unassuming red orb that quickly grew massive.

It flew through the air at ridiculous speeds, growing larger and larger, before crashing directly into the wave, ripping open a hole that allowed the train to travel through as if it never existed in the first place.

"H-Holy shit," the Franky Family muttered, glad that he wasn't there to deliver the beat down.

"S-So this is the power of the Red Devil… it seems like if he wanted to kill Iceburg he really would have…" Paulie muttered.

"That's what I was trying to tell you, jackass!" Nami growled, rounding on the idiots with a menacing aura. "Rosan's super talented! He wouldn't fail to kill someone and you wouldn't even know it was him!"

The Galley-La foremen sweat at the scary woman.

"Sorry…" they muttered.

They watched the redhead slowly float down and enter the train again.

"I'm going to rest for a bit. Wake me up if we see the other train or are near Enies Lobby. Do not wake me up otherwise, I need to regain my energy," Rosan grunted.

With that the redhead walked of, slightly modified the area around to make it a suitable resting spot, transformed his raid suit into a set of earmuffs that he placed on, before immediately closing his eyes and falling asleep.

"Let him rest," Luffy said with a confident nod. "No one's more useful than Rosan is!"

"But he needs to have the energy to do it," Zoro nodded in agreement. "I'm gonna get warmed up…"

Sanji nodded. "There's something I want to practice too."

Thanks to Rosan, he got that Geppo and Soru technique down and the intense training, had already increased the strength of his legs to levels he didn't think were possible.

His kicks felt ridiculous! Actually, he kicked so hard, he noticed something and that was what he was trying to currently test out.

"Me too!" Luffy said determinedly.

"That reminds me… I wanted to try something that I talked to Maro about!" Chopper exclaimed, rushing off as well.

Nami clutched Clima and walked off as well. "Let's go practice combinations. I want to increase the speed you can summon that iron cloud as well."

"Understood. Water and Lightning. Fire and Wind. Oh I'm just so pleased," Clima said, sounding pleased.

They watched each Straw Hat leave with wide eyes.

"Those guys are monsters…" Franky muttered, feeling left out because he had nothing to do.

"…" Usopp glanced down. Even the ones who knew who he was under the mask barely gave him the time of day.

He knew why… Robin was super important to get back but it still stung.

He deserved it for acting like this anyways… Rosan had been trying to tell them about Robin while severely injured but Usopp had just blown up on him without a second thought.

He said so many terrible things to the redhead that just wanted his best friend back…

And now they were all throwing themselves into training… while he had nothing to do but recover from his injuries… that he made worse by causing a fight with his former captain.

"Stop beating yourself up," Franky said seriously, slapping Usopp on the back. "You won't be helping anyone like that. If you want to earn their forgiveness, do all that you can to get that girl back."

The liar perked up at that and gazed at Franky… before he nodded in determination and began rummaging through his bag, making sure everything was sorted.

He'd do everything in his power to get Robin back… it was his fault they didn't look for her sooner so he'd do his best.

"For what it's worth, I did think you had potential and I hope you can realize it on your own journey."

Even if they didn't forgive him… it was the least he could do.

---

Rosan glanced down at Mod and Ram's sleeping bodies, both still unconscious from the effects of the seastone, and frowned.

They were out in the rain for who knows how long so they were both thoroughly soaked through.

Neither could get sick from the rain… but despite that Mod-chan looked terrible.

Her face was flush, she was breathing hard, and the woman writhed a bit. It was exactly how she was when they were on Daybreak. Seastone had a terrible effect on her when they were exposed to it for too long.

At least Ram looked fine. Seastone should affect her the least out of the three of them. She wasn't a Devil Fruit after all but their connection still meant that she was slightly affected and she was especially not used to being knocked unconscious.

The redhead bent down and picked them both up, before walking towards their home.

Once inside, the redhead gently began peeling off Mod-chan's dress first and threw it in a basket. He repeated with the rest of her soaked clothing and frowned at the state of the sickly woman before turning to her closet and opening it.

He snorted at seeing only black dresses and grabbed one, before immediately modifying it into thick pajamas that would keep her warm.

Rosan gently hoisted his mother up and began the process of putting the new set of clothes on her.

"Mmm?" Mod made a noise as she blearily opened her eyes. "R-Rosan?" She called, before coughing harshly.

Ah… this was what happened to her… after the seastone… darn it, she was going to be totally useless to Rosan again wasn't she?

"Shhh," he whispered. "Arms up."

The woman obeyed and lifted her arms up to the best of her ability, watching as Rosan put the comfortable and snug top over her frame.

The redhead gently turned her and repeated the process with her pants, sliding them up and securing her under a blanket once he finished.

Then, he walked over to Ram and repeated the process of peeling her outfit off, taking a bit longer because hers was a lot more complicated then Mod's, until she was also free of the soaked clothing.

Ram shot up at that, puzzled as to why she was naked, and glanced around in confusion.

"Relax Ram."

The ring instinctively calmed down at her father's voice and raised her arms so he could place the top over her. The same was repeated once more for her bottom half before she was fully clothed.

Then she noticed her Auntie's condition.

"A-Auntie?! What happened to you?!" Ram shouted in concern, leaning close to the sick woman with a panicked look.

Mod tried to open her mouth to explain, but Rosan put a finger over her lips.

"No talking," he said calmly. "I was captured and shot with seastone nails. This is what happens to Mod-chan as a result."

Mod and Ram's eyes widened at that and they both fully focused on the artificially calm Rosan.

Both of them could feel it almost as clear as day.

Portgas D. Rosan was pissed.

"Do you remember Izumi, Mod-chan?" Rosan asked quietly.

Mod nodded immediately at the name. She would never forget the person who killed Meiko.

"She's joined the World Government. She is the one who used the illusion of Meiko to weaken our guards. After we fell unconscious, she tied me up and tortured me."

At the words torture, tears began springing in Mod's eyes and she was immediately brought back to the traumatic events of Daybreak.

How many times would she be incapacitated, while her baby boy got tortured?!

"WHAT?!" Ram snarled, fury marring her features as rage began mounting. "Who does this human think she is? Where is she? We will return the torture tenfold and you can use me to do it."

Mod frowned deeply, wiping her tears. Something was wrong here. Being tortured wouldn't have Rosan this angry.

Rosan and Mod reacted very differently. This was something that would have the Devil Fruit truly furious but to Rosan, this would be an annoyance that he'd have to deal with. It would make him mad, but not on this level.

Then she noticed.

"Where… is… Robin? Did... you two ever manage... to talk?" The Devil Fruit asked raspily.

Rosan's reaction was all she needed to know that something went terribly wrong.

His face immediately formed into a snarl of pure hatred, as his eyes began glowing bright and the two woman instinctively flinched back at the intense rage in his gaze.

"Nico Robin tried to sacrifice herself to save us, by turning herself in to the World Government," Rosan grit out painfully. "She is currently on a sea train headed straight to Enies Lobby."

Mod's teary eyes widened in terror at that and she shot up.

"W-What—"

Whatever she was about to say was cut off as she broke out into violent coughs that had both Ram and Rosan quickly placing her back down.

Mod's body shook terribly.

How could Robin do something so stupid?! Sacrificing herself to the World Government? Turning herself in? Why? Why would she do that?!

What was she thinking?! Didn't she understand what the consequences of such actions carried?

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?! MOTHER DID WHAT?" Ram screamed, eyes flying wide with rage.

Rosan huffed, anger nearly boiling over again as their emotions struck him.

"I understand how upset you both are because trust me, I am too. We're going to storm Enies Lobby and get her back… and you two won't be helping."

…

"W-What…?" Ram asked in confusion. Her? Not helping Father? But she wasn't sick like Auntie!

Mod frowned heavily and tried to sit up, only to collapse as her weakened body disagreed with the motion.

"Mod is self explanatory. She is in no condition to do anything so for now, just rest," Rosan ordered, getting a noise of protest out of her.

"B-But I can still help! This is Robin... we're talking about! I don't care what condit— I don't care what condition I'm in," Mod coughed harshly, gazing pleadingly at the redhead.

"Well I do care," Rosan said with a glare. "You are in no condition to move about, Mod-chan. Just watch what's going to unfold and focus on getting better. I don't need you for this."

Mod flinched at his somewhat harsh statement and turned subdued, nodding softly.

Rosan's features softened and he immediately scooped her up into a hug.

"Sorry… I didn't mean it like that, Mod-chan… We're practically one and the same… Everything you can do, I can do so there really is no reason for you to overexert yourself. Please, I'm already so worried about her... I can't handle being worried for you either," he whispered, kissing her softly on the forehead.

"I-I know… it's just, I'm so worried… why would she leave us?" Mod whispered in distraught.

"You don't have to wonder. I'm going to drag her back and force her to explain herself," Rosan assured, getting a small whimper out of the teary eyed Devil Fruit.

"And what is your reason for leaving me out, Father?" Ram snarled, disagreeing with him for once. "I can still be useful! I'm not incapacitated like Auntie is!"

The redhead turned to face her. "There is no point in you trying to help. You're just going to hold me back in an already unfavorable situation so I'll go at it alone."

Ram flinched back as if physically slapped by the redhead. To her, she may as well have been.

"Hold you back…?" She whispered in disbelief. Then, Ram's features turned into a truly terrifying scowl.

"HOW WILL I POSSIBLY HOLD YOU BACK FATHER?! SINCE MY CREATION, I'VE DONE NOTHING OF THE SORTS BUT NOW YOU THINK SOMETHING'S CHANGED? HOW?! TELL ME RIGHT NOW WHAT'S CHANGED! IS IT BECAUSE I WAS KNOCKED UNCONSCIOUS?!" she howled, glaring furiously at the redhead.

"I AM NOT USELESS. I WILL NEVER BE USELESS TO YOU SO WHY WOULD YOU EVEN SAY THAT TO ME?!"

Rosan gazed stonily at his weapon, before sighing as he saw actual tears forming in her eyes.

"Can you hit Meiko?"

Ram froze completely.

"Will you take the form of a weapon that will possibly strike down one half of you?" Rosan asked quietly.

"The answer is no. You can't Ram. Because I can't either," he replied softly.

Ram began shuddering, words failing her.

"Izumi already knows Meiko is my weakness. She is going to use her against me. I am already facing inner turmoil, I do not need yours either. Neither of us can deal with seeing Meiko in pain and I won't share that burden with you or Mod-chan."

Rosan's eyes burned fiercely as he stood up.

"This is my burden and mine alone. You did not exist when I created this monster. You should not bear the burden of striking your mother. I already have plenty, one more is nothing."

Ram slumped over in defeat, knowing she really couldn't attack Meiko. It went against everything in her system, striking her deceased mother no matter how fake.

"Can I at least protect you?" She asked quietly, uncharacteristically subdued from the events that had happened.

Rosan nodded. "If that's what you want to do, then yes. I won't dissuade you from contributing if you truly wish to."

"Will you be okay, Rosan?" Mod asked quietly, watching him prepare to depart.

"…" The redhead said nothing for a bit as he pondered the question.

"I have not been okay for a long time, Mod-chan… but for this moment, I will have to be."

And then he vanished.

"Take care of Mod-chan, Ram. Make sure she doesn't do something rash."

Ram nodded, tears of defeat falling from her eyes at the conversation that just took place.

"Auntie… am I useless to Father?" She asked quietly.

Mod frowned sadly and opened up her arms so the woman could crash into her.

"Of course not… Rosan is just… trying to protect you. You're his daughter after all… do you think he'd be able to live with himself if he had to burden his daughter with killing her mother?"

Ram shuddered in the sickly woman's grasp.

"B-But it's my duty to be his weapon! I am his blade and I must strike his targets! If I can't do this… aren't I better off destroyed?" She whimpered.

The Devil Fruit shook her head firmly. "No! Since your creation, you have never failed Rosan. He doesn't even consider this a failure because he himself will struggle with the task… Don't think Rosan will destroy you for one mistake when he's made countless himself. You haven't done anything wrong, Ram."

The ring continued to shudder before she began sobbing.

"T-Then why does it hurt so much?" She blubbered, hot tears spilling out.

Mod's own eyes began watering and she clutched the vulnerable girl as tight as possible.

"The events are overwhelming you. You want to save Robin, but you can't strike Meiko so you feel hopeless. That's okay… you can cry to me, I'll make you feel better here… and Rosan will make you feel better when he handles the situation."

Ram nodded shakily, letting the tears fall freely and Mod just offered her presence.

"Robin… I can't understand why you'd do this… Don't you realize how much everyone loves you? Don't you understand how much Rosan loves you?" Mod thought to herself biting her lip in concern.

---

"We're almost there," Kokoro announced. "I hope you all are ready for a fight."

"OH! I FEEL PEOPLE!" Luffy shouted, peeking out of the window. "WOAH! THAT GATE IS HUGE!"

"Hm?"

Everyone paused as they heard that ominous hum.

Rosan's eyes opened and he calmly set up, clenching his fist repeatedly.

"S-Sorry for waking you!" The Franky Family stammered, despite it being Luffy who had done so.

"No, this is fine," he muttered. They watched the redhead remove his shirt (much to the joy of Mozu, Kiwi and Kokoro) to reveal his bandaged midsection…

And then he ripped every bandage off his body.

"R-ROSAN!" Chopper shrieked in rage, only to pause.

There… were less holes on his body weren't there?

Everyone winced at the injuries on his body, only to go white as one by one, each hole began closing up as if it were never there.

"What the fuck is he?" Everyone thought in terror, going green at the way his skin healed back up.

"I will never get used to that," Nami and Sogeking wheezed.

Rosan effortlessly ignored them. His earmuffs began slowly but surely wrapping around his entire body, until it formed into a wavy black cloak that moved with the slightest bit of wind.

"You said you saw the train?" Rosan muttered darkly, draconic wings slowly sprouting from his back instead of bursting out like they normally did.

Everyone shivered at watching that dangerous tail snake out from behind him.

"Yeah but they might already be going through the gate," Paulie explained. "The fact we managed to catch up to them is a miracle… especially with the lead they had."

Rosan ignored him and began making his way out of the train.

"W-What are you doing?" Zambai asked hesitantly.

"There's a gate right?" Rosan asked quietly. "I'm going to make way for you all…"

The redhead's slit eyes pierced into them all.

"And I'm going to thin their numbers," he promised, flexing his wings and taking off.

"What does he plan on doing?" Franky asked curiously.

"Didn't you hear?" Sanji smirked, puffing once. "He's going to make way for us and thin their numbers."

"...With that attack he used earlier to clear the wave?" Paulie asked curiously.

Zoro shook his head. "It's something a lot more destructive."

Nami nodded. "And massive too."

"Modification: Ragnarok."

"Massive? Destructive? Just what is this redhead capable of—"

Everyone who didn't already know about it, felt a primal fear course through their body as the answers to their inquiries were very quickly found.

"RAOGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Rosan roared in raw unadulterated fury.

"O-Oh," they stammered.

"Yep," the Straw Hats nodded.

---

"RAOGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

It was as Robin crossed through the gates, that she heard that spine chilling roar.

Her dead gaze shot open wide and she jerked in her seat.

"R-Rosan?" She whispered in shock, going white as she heard the pure rage in that roar.

Izumi felt a tremor shoot through her, as she and all her agents shot up at that terrifying roar.

"What? They managed to catch up?! How is that possible?!" Kalifa shouted in shock.

At once, everyone in the Rocketman and the Puffing Tom glanced out the window.

What they saw, would be forever ingrained in their memories.

The creature before them was as magnificent as it was terrifying. Massive, black, menacing… the honest to god Dragon glared down at Enies Lobby with two bright eyes… one purple the other red.

Just like that black creature from earlier…

"S-So this is what a person with a Mythical Zoan is capable of," Kalifa muttered, fear coursing through her body due to the creature staring directly at their train.

"How many forms does he have… he has to be a shapeshifter?!" Izumi thought to herself as that menacing creature growled lowly, razor sharp teeth exposed for all to see as it began snarling.

Lucci was already on the move. He dashed through the door of the train into the first car and roughly grabbed Robin.

"Let the people in the previous cars deal with them. Call in all the agents around Enies Lobby as well. Our mission is to escort Nico Robin to Spandam," he instructed, grabbing the shocked woman and jumping out of the train.

The CP9 agents nodded and followed after him, jumping on the air to make great distance.

Robin felt the world freeze, as Rosan's slits focused on the agents and they made eye contact.

Then, the dragon's visage shifted into a terrifying scowl, smoke began pouring from its mouth and the demon threw his head back.

"RAOGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" it howled once more.

Then the dragon moved.

The CP9 agents couldn't help but pause in shock as the dragon moved with far too much speed for its size.

Rosan crashed into the gate and with a furious snarl, he began tearing at it with his claws, causing them to crumple like paper under his assault until the gate was no more then scraps.

He then turned towards the parked train, filled to the brim with people who could not fly like the agents and curled his clawed hands into a fist.

The first punch, completely broke the Sea Train in half, causing screams to ring out from the vehicle and when the creature pulled its fist back, they saw a copious red liquid dripping from the claws.

"AHHHHH, S-SOMEONE HELP US! W-WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!" The people in the train began screaming, watching the dragon effortlessly break their ship.

Rosan wasn't finished with them. This ship had the most clustered amount of government people in it, so he'd take them out now.

The dragon snarled in hatred, giant spiked tail began to wave about ominously.

They soon found out why.

With speeds too fast to ever react to, the tail ruthlessly slammed into one half of the broken up sea train, flattening it like a pancake and crushing anyone who had been on it.

When Rosan lifted the tail, bits and pieces of not only the train, but the people on it, began falling off the tail.

He gazed at the other half of the train and reached out to grab it.

Screams rang out as soon as his clawed hand pulled it out of the water and Rosan gazed cruelly at the terrified specks inside of it.

The tiny little humans who thought they could oppose his might.

He would show them. He would show them all what it meant to take what was his.

His grip on the sea train tightened and he gazed at the government agents forming on the ground, taking aim at him.

Pointless.

The dragon tensed and launched the train at the people on the floor, instantly causing countless deaths as his aim rang true.

"A-Ah..." one agent backed away in terror, watching his allies get turned into smears on the floor at the hands of something they were not equipped to be facing.

"I'm scared... I'm really scared!" the person next to him whispered, tears falling down his eyes as the dragon focused all his attention on the people beneath him.

"W-What do we do?!"

"What can we do."

"..."

"R-RUN!"

The Dragon snorted at the panic below him.

"Run?" He rumbled demonically, glaring at the few trying to kill him. "There is nowhere to run. No one is making it off this island alive," he promised.

Then the creature took flight and began charging.

Red flames began coalescing in the dragon's maw, spelling doom for everyone in the immediate vicinity, before it aimed straight for the regrouping World Government lackeys.

They shivered in fear as they took aim at that gargantuan creature and began firing, going pale as every bullet failed to even pierce its skin.

Finally, the creature fired.

"ANNIHILATION!" He roared.

The world burned red as the flames washed over them.

The screams were music to Rosan's ears, as he relished in their agony.

Mod shuddered slightly, noting Rosan's sadism with wide eyes.

Angry couldn't even begin to describe what Rosan felt right now.

"AGHH!" the people screeched as they were burned alive. The stench of charred skin began wafting through the air and Rosan snarled once more.

T-Bone, one of the few who had managed to escape from the train before Rosan got his hands on it, looked at the carnage with a look of shock, before looking at the evil creature with an expression of rage.

"You would hurt… no kill my men!" He growled, grasping his sword and charging the obsidian dragon with a purpose.

"You must pay for this, demon! Prepare yourself!" he roared.

T-Bone leapt an impressive height to try and reach the flying dragon…

Only for his efforts to be immediately dashed by the indomitable force before him.

Rosan gazed at the insect and lashed out with his clawed hands, completely goring through the airborne man's midsection with a massive claw.

T-bone hung their limply, as he began slowly sliding off Rosan's gigantic claw and the moment he was fully released, a massive tail crashed into him and crushed him into the pavement below.

Rosan didn't even bother staring at the stain.

"RAOGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The dragon roared its presence to the world, massive height looming over them all.

The CP9 agents stared at the display in horror. This thing was protecting Nico Robin?!

Robin herself, gazed at the display with terrified eyes because with every action Rosan took, the target on his back grew larger and larger.

She just wanted him to stop. She just wanted him to be safe but because of her, everything was getting worse and worse.

The aftermath of this, was on her... she shouldn't have tried to take initiative... what was the point if her decisions made things far more disastrous than anything Rosan had ever done?

"Is this truly what the Red Devil is capable of?!" Kaku whispered in horror, watching as he bathed every single one of their subordinates in that hellishly red fire.

"Where is the backup?" Lucci growled as he continued his course.

"T-There's no need sir. The giants are arriving to stop him," Kalifa shuddered, gazing with terrified eyes as the creature continue to belch out those flames with ruthless precision.

Rosan paused in his assault, as he heard the thud of footsteps of what was bound to be giant creatures.

The dragon methodically turned towards the noise, a snarl emitting from his throat as he gazed at the two giants that even paled in comparison to his dominating size of 50 meters.

"You're the one making all that noise?" Kashii called sleepily before snapping awake as he took in the situation.

Both the giants went pale, as they saw the state of Enies Lobby.

More specifically, they whitened at the sight of the gate they were tasked with protecting.

"YOU DESTROYED THE GATE?! NO!" He roared in disbelief, glaring at the massive dragon with fury in his eyes.

Oimo's eyes flooded with rage as he took in the state of the utterly destroyed gate and the burning entrance.

"H-HOW COULD YOU DO THAT?!" The giant roared in fury. "YOU RUINED EVERYTHING! WE WON'T BE ABLE TO SAVE BROGY AND DORRY LIKE THIS!"

Rosan, who had been poised to actually bite their heads off, paused at the creatures distraught.

Then, a violent grin formed on the Dragon's maw as a thought began running through his head.

"You said Brogy and Dorry? The giants?" The dragon rumbled lowly, tail swishing idly as it effortlessly destroyed a building in the courtyard.

The Giants blinked, anger forgotten at the mention of their captains.

"Do you… know them?" Kashii asked warily.

"But how? They've been arrested for years!" Oimo announced.

Rosan rumbled in amusement.

"We met them not too long ago on Little Garden. They were still having their duel for 100 years now. I very much doubt they've been arrested," he revealed sadistically.

The giants froze.

"100… years?"

"D-Duel? They're still having it?!"

"I don't know your situation… but you were lied to. They were never arrested. Their bounties are still active after all and we became good friends with them even."

"THEY LIED TO US?!" The giants roared, fury in their eyes.

Rosan turned away from them, gazing at the stunned agents with a superior glint.

"They did. I bet you want to make them pay don't you? How about you join us and we'll teach them a lesson?"

"YOU TOOK THE WORDS RIGHT OUT OF OUR MOUTH!" Kashii roared.

"LET'S TEACH THESE BASTARDS A LESSON FOR LYING TO US!" Oimo agreed.

"Good. Now, I need you to stop that approaching train. My allies are in there. They will be helping us," the dragon rumbled.

They nodded furiously and turned away, marching to go intercept the Rocketman with a purpose.

"He managed to turn the idiot giants against us?" Kalifa said in shock, taking a shaky step back as those eyes glared directly at her.

"Devil seems to be too polite a title," Kaku muttered in some fear as they entered the building.

"All this for one person?" Lucci scoffed in annoyance, pushing the cuffed Robin into the building.

"…" Izumi gazed at the massive dragon with a completely white gaze, shaking in place as he peered at her with murder in his gaze.

If not for Nico Robin, they'd probably have already been burned alive... that thought was...

K-Kami, he could kill them all so easily. Without even having to touch the floor. What could they even do against such a gargantuan creature?

H-He was going to kill them all… they needed to call backup. They wouldn't be able to do this without the help of an Admiral.

Robin's head was bowed in defeat. Everything that she wanted to avoid happened anyways and she made it even worse.

Why? Why did they have to be so difficult...

Spandam's smile was wiped off his face, as he gazed outside and let out a terrified bellow.

"W-What the hell is that massive dragon?!" Spandam shrieked in terror, falling.

"The Red Devil?!" Jabra mused, looking at the destruction caused with a slightly nervous expression. "Are any of us equipped to deal with that guy? A Mythical Zoan is no joke and look at the damage he's causing!"

Spandam nodded hastily, rounding on them with bugged eyes. "There's a reason we were told to be wary of the Straw Hats! The power of a Mythical Zoan isn't something to mess with and we were completely outed on Water 7! Who's gonna answer for this?" The man demanded.

Lucci scoffed. "It was Blueno and I's decision to approach Nico Robin and Blueno is dead so I suppose I will have to rectify this," the strongest agent stated.

"You better! We were already warned of the dangers of the Red Devil and Straw Hat and now look! Did you think the warnings were unwarranted?! Look at what one person is doing!" The leader of CP9 pointed, terror rolling off him in waves.

Izumi stamped her fear down at the reminder that they technically weren't even supposed to be messing with the Straw Hats. "I will deal with the Red Devil."

Jabra's brow shot up to his forehead. "You? Puppet? What the hell can you do against that guy? I was thinking someone like Lucci."

Her unnerving teal gaze stared into his own. "None of us have more power then him. Not even Rob Lucci."

Lucci's expression darkened at that.

"I am the one equipped to deal with him so I will deal with him."

The strongest CP9 agent stood over her with a sneer.

"You think you can deal with something I can't, talentless?" Lucci asked curiously.

"Yes."

That was that.

Lucci looked as if he were hellbent on denying her request, but Spandam slapped a hand on his shoulder.

"If the puppet says she has it handled, then let her handle it!" the chief of CP9 said, praying that his fear wasn't visibly showing at the carnage still taking place at the hands of the dragon.

"Why don't we all gang up on him?" Kumadori asked in confusion. "Surely he cannot eliminate all of us!"

"He is not alone," Izumi intoned.

"Straw Hat Luffy, who is probably just as big of a threat as him, along with the rest of the Straw Hats are also en route. He also managed to recruit the two giants just now," Kalifa explained.

Spandam turned towards the subdued Robin with a sneer. "To think they'd go to war with the World Government, just for you. I guess demons really do stick together eh, Nico Robin?"

Robin said nothing. She had done nothing but gaze at the floor since entering the building.

The chief slapped her across the face with an annoyed scowl and floored her. "Don't ignore someone who's talking to you, bitch! That's rude," he growled.

Izumi's eyes flew open at that and a scowl replaced her dead expression.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" She hissed, venomous aura surrounding her as she shoved Spandam away from Robin.

"W-What the hell?! Don't put your hands on me agent! Don't forget your role!" Spandam shrieked, glaring at Izumi now despite the fear from having an assassin looming over him. "I'll have Lucci kill you if you do that again!"

Izumi snarled, making the CP9 agents blink a bit at the uncharacteristic action.

She placed her very sharp nails close to Spandam's neck and the man whitened. If he even attempted to move, those vicious nails would pierce him through so he remained completely still.

"Listen to me idiot. I need the Red Devil to be coherent in order for this to work. If he flies off the handle because he saw you abusing the woman he's trying to save, what I will try to do won't work. Do not touch her again," Izumi stressed.

Spandam was about to argue, but the rush of flames outside immediately silenced him as he realized that yes, the Red Devil was currently wreaking havoc on their troops and if he got any angrier, he might start throwing out even more fire, heedless of the fact that Nico Robin was here.

"S-Smart thinking, Puppet," Spandam nodded, moving away from the bruised Robin.

Izumi's eyes narrowed.

She knew what she had to do now. This man was an idiot with absolutely no clue what he was doing. As long as he was in charge, this entire mission would be in jeopardy.

Robin gazed at Izumi with a puzzled expression.

"The Straw Hat Pirates are attacking us so we must be prepared for them," Spandam announced.

"By the way… how did Blueno die?" Jabra asked. His Devil Fruit was useful, it was such a shame he died.

"The Red Devil used another technique of his to do so… I have no idea what his Devil Fruit is," Kaku admitted.

Spandam blinked at the idiot. "It's a Dragon… like the one outside."

"He transformed into something else to kill Blueno," Kalifa interjected with a nervous expression. "It was black like the dragon but… it wasn't normal. He took control of him and Blueno began attacking us before... before he was violently killed. Truthfully, I found it far more unsettling."

The agents all went silent at the revelation.

A Mythical Zoan that allowed him to transform into multiple creatures? And he was able to control Blueno with it too?

That... didn't sound very good at all.

"On the subject of Devil Fruits…" Spandam muttered. "Kalifa, Kaku. You should probably eat the ones I found."

The two blinked at that before nodding, grabbing at the Devil Fruits with a curious gaze.

"Expect the worst outcome," Lucci announced suddenly. "In case of meeting. Izumi will deal with the Red Devil, I will deal with Straw Hat. Kaku, you will deal with Roronoa Zoro and the rest of you may pick whichever target you want. It does not matter to me."

Kalifa crossed her arms. "Then I'll deal with that girl of theirs."

Jabra scoffed. "I don't know why Kaku gets to deal with Roronoa, but whatever. I'll handle their next biggest target."

Kumadori bowed his head. "As punishment. I will quickly deal with my target and then assist whoever needs it!"

Fukuro was about to say something, before he was summarily hit by Kalifa, Kaku and Lucci.

"Hit him, Izumi," Lucci demanded with narrowed eyes.

The woman, who had no intention of playing their silly game, looked at Lucci before delivering a punch to the man.

Best to just accommodate their wishes. She didn't care either way. They'd all die here if she had anything to say about it.

"Chapapa…" Fukuro paused as he gauged the powers.

Finally the man nodded and announced the list.

Rob Lucci: 4000

Izumi: 2900

Jabra: 2400

Kaku: 2200

Kumadori: 810

Fukuro: 800

Kalifa: 630

"4000?! 2900?! 2400?! What?!" Kaku announced in shock.

Kaku and Kalifa couldn't keep the shock off their face as they gazed at Lucci, the stone faced Izumi and the cocky Jabra.

"Heh, while you guys were slacking off at Water 7, I've been training with little miss Puppet here almost exclusively. I don't know when she got stronger than me, but she did," Jabra announced, sneering at the bothered Kaku.

Rob Lucci gazed at Izumi with a somewhat impressed gaze.

"You are far stronger then last time we met, Puppet. Seems like even talentless trash can get strong with enough work," Lucci announced calmly.

"…" Izumi gazed uncaringly at them all.

"Of course she is! All this Puppet does is train, sleep, and train in her sleep," Spandam laughed, putting an arm across Izumi's shoulder who hardly reacted.

"It's why I was so surprised she even asked to go to Water 7. Turned out for the best though, I heard you were the one who managed to neutralize the Red Devil somewhat so thank you for preventing the mission from becoming even more of a failure," he praised.

"…" Izumi didn't bother responding to anyone or anything.

No, the girl was fuming on the inside.

"2900? That's nowhere near enough to stop a monster like him. I need to be stronger but I don't have enough time to get stronger," she hissed in fury.

Despite his nervousness, Spandam grinned at his bodyguards, completely confident in their abilities to deal with this.

And if things went wrong then well… he always had the Buster Call.

In fact, perhaps he should call reinforcements in case…

As Spandam set out to do just that, he blinked in confusion as his transponder snail activated... before failing to make a call.

The agents watched him continue to try and call anyone to little success.

"What the hell's going on? Why can't I call anyone?!" Spandam shouted in confusion.

"I can explain…"

All eyes turned towards the voice and to their surprise, they saw it was the rookie CP9 agent, Nero.

The man looked deathly nervous, repeatedly glancing outside before forcing himself to look straight.

"The reason you can't make any calls… it's because of the Red Devil," Nero explained. "He… He did some move that disrupted the signals… the foot soldiers have been trying to relay a message to you for a while now."

Robin's eyes widened.

Rosan could disrupt signals even? Was it because of his electricity?

"What have they been trying to tell us…?" Spandam asked wearily.

Nero remained silent. "That the Straw Hats have completely overran Enies Lobby… right now they should be very close to—"

An explosion rocked the Tower of Justice that halted all conversation and the agents looked at each other before rushing out to the balcony.

What they saw, left them stunned.

Enies Lobby was burning. The island was up in flames everywhere and they balked at the damage done.

That quickly, the Straw Hats completely upheaved the island of justice and did damage to it that it had not suffered ever…

And they were standing right across from them.

Robin felt her knees go week, as every single Straw Hat gazed at her with a single minded focus.

All of them were intense, but two glowing eyes pierced into her soul and unleashed all her insecurities to the world, making her falter. She could never stare for long, when those intense eyes gazed so seriously at her.

Rosan, back in human form, said nothing, just staring at the petrified Robin the entire time with a chilly expression. He was the picture perfect of calm, not even a hair out of place on his body.

It was almost like he hadn't been razing Enies Lobby to the ground earlier.

Robin never wanted Rosan to look at her like that...

"Yo Robin, we came to get you back," Luffy greeted cheerfully.

"...You look really lonely," Rosan said coldly.

---

Earlier

Rosan, still in his dragon form, paused as a figure landed atop his head.

"You shoulda brought me with you!" Luffy scowled, sitting cross legged on his brother's draconic skull. "You took out a lot of people without me!"

"It's not even a waste of energy for me," Rosan growled to his brother. "Where are the others?"

The captain shrugged. "I went ahead but they should show up soon."

Rosan nodded, walking forward instead of flying, uncaring of the bodies he was crushing under his massive figure.

"Let's make some more headway then. You sit there and save energy for your battle."

The dragon stopped in front of the gate, before curling his clawed hand into a fist and coating it with armament.

Without any hesitation, he crashed it into the wall.

It never stood a chance.

The plethora of Marines on the other side let out yells of surprise, as they were met face to face directly with the horrifying dragon, Straw Hat Luffy sitting cheerfully on its head all the while.

They went white as the dragon snarled at the mass of people, electricity beginning to spark on his body in red flashes.

"L-Lightning too?!" The agents thought in horror.

That was their last thought.

"EMP: Shockwave."

From all around the dragon, a wave of electricity shot out that quickly caught the helpless foes around him. It completely fried their insides and was packed with so many volts, that they were unable to even let out another noise.

"Wow!" Luffy whistled, completely unaffected by the widespread electric attack that erupted from the Dragons entire body. "You can use lightning in dragon form?!"

"Yes. It's as easy as breathing to use lightning," Rosan rumbled, charring their bodies with the harsh electric attack.

But he wasn't done.

He continued sparking even brighter, uncaring of the screaming going on beneath him.

"Wavelength Disruptor."

A massive circle of electricity rushed through the air, before fizzling out... but the air felt heavier around Rosan.

"What did that do?" Luffy blinked in confusion, watching as a pulse went out.

"My body is currently acting as a wavelength that disrupts other waves. There will be no calls for reinforcement here until I leave or cancel it," he said coldly.

"Awesome! There's a lot of people here already," the rubber boy exclaimed, brows furrowed as he felt the sheer number of people on the island.

"That just means there's less space for them to run," Rosan grunted, gazing back at hearing the massive noise of what could only be his allies.

"ROSAN!" They called, some in happiness, others in sheer horror.

To say the onlookers had been shocked by Rosan's performance, was a gross understatement.

Right after Rosan left, Luffy got bored and rocketed off as well to pursue his brother, much to their resigned acceptance.

They weren't sure what he had done but almost as soon as landing, two friendly giants named Oimo and Kashii, who claimed to know Dorry and Brogy, had caught them and stopped the Rocket Man from crashing into anything.

"You're pet Dragon told us about how the Government lied to us so we're on your side now," they explained.

The group sweatdropped.

Pet dragon… right. If Rosan heard that, he might burn them.

Afterwards, they could only balk at the sheer damage Rosan had caused already while moving forward.

Bodies were littered across the ground, burned beyond recognition as they saw their draconic scout in the distance razing everything to the ground with a fury they had never seen from him.

Someone had made a gagging noise when they accidentally stepped on a burnt and discarded arm.

"S-So this is the Red Devil," Franky muttered in disbelief, gazing at the destruction with wide eyes.

"His power is terrifying," Paulie gaped in horror.

Those who didn't know what Rosan was capable of, realized that he was far more dangerous than they had initially thought.

The knowledge that this monster had been on their island, they had falsely accused him of something and they were still alive after that, would forever be ingrained into their minds.

This carnage... all of this was done by one person?

That almost didn't sound believable, up until they saw the massive dragon that dwarfed even the giants.

"C'mon let's catch up while he's clearing the way for us. This should help us save energy," Zoro grunted, charging forward in the direction of the dragon.

Everyone else nodded their heads and hesitantly followed, gawking at the trail of destruction left behind.

The dragon looked down at his allies, violent tail swishing as it idly destroyed another building.

"Stay close to me."

That was all the creature said.

They chilled at that deep rumble. Rosan never actually spoke to them in this form did he? He just showed up, roared, handled his business and transformed back into a human.

Slowly but surely, they watched Rosan transform back into his human form as he gently placed Luffy to the ground.

"There's a lot of people on this island…"

The wind began picking up around him as red sparks began dancing across his body.

"Let's trim them down a bit."

The redhead rocketed into the sky and gazed at the main courthouse, filled to the brim with Marines waiting for them to approach.

Grouping up like that…

How silly. Strength in numbers was very true...

For him.

Rosan decided to take a page out of Mod's book and become a range fighter for this excursion. Since he wasn't using Ram, his ranged attacks would be far more powerful.

Not to mention, he had gotten quite the upgrade in his arsenal from Skypiea.

He was a force of nature. A living disaster. Something that could not be controlled… something that could not be stopped.

Rosan was something that you could only do your best to prepare for and even then, that may not be enough.

The wind began blowing harshly where the Marines were, much to their confusion.

Their confusion didn't last long.

"Cyclone."

Howls of agony rang through the fields as a surge of violent winds suddenly appeared and began dragging them in, battering them all the more.

Their misfortune only got worse.

"Obliterate."

The ones who managed to avoid getting caught, could only balk in genuine terror, as massive flames flew out from the red dot in the sky, colliding with the heavy winds and turning the environment catastrophic as a result.

"HELP! ARGHH IT BURNS!"

"AGHHHH!"

"M-MY SKIN IS PEELING!"

As the fire combined with the wind, it spread like a disease and set the entire place ablaze. The roars of the flame; the howling of the wind; the screams of the people… all of it combined to make an almost deafening noise.

Rosan gazed down at them, sparks still flying from his skin as he manipulated the electricity next.

Then, he put a hand to the sky and the lightning flew into it.

"All your suffering will end eventually. I will make sure of it," Rosan said softly, as he finished charging his attack.

"Fall."

"EMP: Storm."

Bolt after red bolt of lighting came crashing from the heavens, eerily reminiscent of Enel's "Deathpiea" attack.

What could only be described as the apocalypse, was currently taking place and the allies of the Straw Hats had to wonder if they were really even needed with such a monster lurking around.

Red Devil was a perfectly suitable nickname for the demon known as Rosan because what he was doing right now, was something they'd never in their life want to go against.

"We didn't even know he was capable of all of this…" Sanji sweatdropped, listening to the screams of agony with a wince.

"Yeah he's scarier then normal and I already think he's terrifying," Nami nodded, watching all he could do with the elements with bright eyes.

The spot they were all in was spared from hell on earth, but Enies Lobbies was on fire currently.

"That's one way to declare war on the World Government," Kokoro laughed nervously, as the redhead landed gently in front of them.

"I've thinned down their numbers greatly," Rosan began, getting straight to business. "You all, focus on finding ships and securing an escape. Ensure no one comes to help the CP9 agents. Oimo, Kashii, please continue fighting for us until this is all over. I'd appreciate that."

The two giants nodded without hesitation.

"Of course! You're the one who told us the truth about these lying scum so we giants will repay you back on our honor!" Oimo declared.

Rosan nodded. "Thank you very much."

He turned towards Luffy. "How many people are in that building, Luffy?"

"10 people," Luffy replied. "One of them is really weak though and the other is Robin."

Rosan closed his eyes and nodded.

"Okay. Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Sanji, Chopper, Franky… and Sogeking," he said finally. "The rest of you focus on defense and escaping. You will not want to be on this island by the end of our battles"

Usopp jumped at being called and gazed at the redhead who had been ignoring him with wide eyes behind his mask. "You want me to come with?"

"That's why I said your name."

Franky slammed his fists together. "SUPER! Let's do this."

"Will you be alright Rosan?" Chopper asked worriedly. "You've healed your injuries but you aren't 100% are you? I know how that stone works now."

"No, I'm not 100% that's why I need you all to win your battles. After all this blows over, I'm going to take the rest I desperately need. I'm very tired," he replied softly, not letting any of it show.

Rosan tilted his head and turned around, before jumping into the air once more.

Ragnarok quickly took his form and he lowered his tail for them to all climb.

"Good luck out there! Don't worry about us, we'll do what you asked! Just tell them one thing for us!" Paulie requested.

"THEY'RE FIRED!" He roared, as the dragon took off to the tower.

"Understood," the dragon rumbled.

With that, the gargantuan dragon flew off towards the tower.

"Alright, let's go! We can't let the Straw Hats hog all the work!" Paulie barked.

"YEAH! LET'S HELP IN ANYWAY WE KNOW HOW!"

Rosan's flight didn't last very long and he deposited each member on the roof before transforming back to normal.

Then, he stood on a pillar, aimed his hand out and shot a red blast of energy that collided with the building and shook the entire structure.

He got his desired results immediately.

Every agent rushed out into the balcony and gazed at the Straw Hats with dangerous eyes, looking every bit like the renowned assassins they claimed to be.

But none of that mattered to Rosan. There was only one thing on Rosan's mind and he was gazing directly at it.

Wide blue eyes, filled with a panic and terror stared at them all before zeroing in on him with genuine fear and Rosan felt the anger he should feel melt away.

His face shifted into one of cold apathy and she flinched back.

Memories raced through his head, as he gazed at his cuffed best (supposedly) friend and realized she was mere moments away from being permanently taken away from him.

"I know how it feels to have everything taken from you. It sucks. It's the worst feeling I've ever felt in my life and it must have been the same way with you. The sadness is so much that it makes you wanna crawl somewhere and just sleep it away. The loneliness is so crushing it just makes you want to give up," a tiny, 4 year old, Rosan had said to a just as tiny, 8 year old, Robin.

Wide blue eyes had stared into the royal purples, as the mask of the little girl had threatened to shatter beneath the gaze of the glowing child.

"Yo Robin we came to get you back," Luffy greeted.

"You look really lonely, Robin," 4 year old Rosan had said compassionately, making her flinch back with wide eyes.

"You look really lonely," Rosan said neutrally, watching her flinch once more, eyes just as wide.

"...Why did you come?" She whispered, loud enough for them to hear.

Luffy tilted his head to the side. "To come get you of course."

Rosan's eyes narrowed. "Why did you come? That's the first thing you have to say?" he asked quietly.

Everyone shuddered at the quiet rage in his voice.

"Not, sorry for being a fucking liar, Rosan? Sorry for not thinking of talking to you about this? Sorry for trying to sacrifice myself for you, even though I begged you not to do the same? Instead, you're still trying to act all tough, huh?" He sneered.

Robin bowed her head as his words pierced into her. "You shouldn't have dragged them into this, Rosan. Please just take them all and leave, you still have time to make an escape."

Spandam laughed at that. "Not only is Franky right there for the taking… Your crew is right there and you're telling them to leave! This is rich! You really are a Devil—"

A wave of unfocused pressure, made Spandam fall flat on his ass in terror, as each CP9 agent stepped back unwittingly.

Robin's head snapped up and she focused shuddering eyes onto the furious Rosan, who was looking at her like he didn't even recognize who he was talking too.

"You would look me in the eyes and tell me to leave? After everything we've been through? Are you actually the Robin that I know because you of all people should know that I'd never fucking accept this," Rosan hissed venomously, teeth bared.

"Selfish acts disguised as selfless piss me off the most. Since when are you a fucking hero, Robin?" He scowled, looking unflinchingly into her blue eyes.

"That's not… I'm not trying—" Robin tried to speak up.

"Shut. The. Hell. Up. Robin," Rosan grit out with wild eyes and she reeled back with wide eyes.

He was… being so harsh to her… Never in her life did she expect for Rosan to be talking to her like this. Never did she expect such furious eyes to be directed towards her but it really hurt.

"The one thing I hate, is when someone weaker than me, tries to protect me when they should be worrying about THEIR OWN LIFE!" He roared, eyes blazing brightly.

She took a step back, hurt on her features as he raised his voice at her again.

Then, Rosan took a deep breath.

"Fine. You want to try and save my life right? You want to keep me safe right? You want to sacrifice yourself for a cause you think is so damn great right?" The redhead snarled.

"Spanda was it?" he called.

The chief began shaking as those furious eyes bore into him. "M-My name isn't Spanda it's Spanda—"

"I don't give a shit. Shut the fuck up and listen," Rosan sneered rudely, making the man splutter. "I've got something really interesting to tell you."

Robin's eyes widened in pure dread. She knew her best friend better than anyone else. She knew exactly what he was planning on doing.

"ROSAN STOP! PLEASE STOP!" She shouted, terror filling her eyes as he fixed that malicious gaze onto her.

"Didn't I already tell you? Shut up, Robin. You want to do things without other people's consent right? Now I'm going to do the same thing," he hissed at her and she went silent in shock, shuddering at the fed up tone of his.

"Spanda. I already know the location of both Pluton and Poseidon. If I manage to get off this island without Nico Robin, I will make sure this world is burned down until only ashes remain."

A silence washed over the air, as Robin fell to her knees at the actions of Rosan.

The Straw Hats gazed at Rosan in shock, not knowing he knew that information and not knowing that was his plan.

CP9 froze in horror at that, gazing at the redhead and realizing that perhaps it truly was unwise to go after the Straw Hats.

If he wielded such information.

Franky's eyes bugged at Rosan. "Oi, RED YOU SERIOUS?!"

"I'm dead serious," Rosan said coldly. "I know exactly where they are, I know how to get to them, I know how to activate them. I can even get more dangerous allies than myself to join me because I know they'd be interested in getting their hands on them. By the time you manage to get that information out of Robin, I'll have already started my campaign. Then I'll get her back regardless or the world will burn."

No, no, no, no, no. Why was he doing this? What was wrong with him? She… She knew Rosan was insane but this was too far even for him… Robin felt lightheaded as Rosan painted the most gigantic target on his back for no good reason.

"I-Is that true?" Spandam balked. "No, it has to be true! Look at the way she's reacting?! The Red Devil knows where two of the ancient weapons are located?!"

This was bad. This was absolutely terrible. Nico Robin wouldn't reveal the information before this redhead got his hands on one and in this race, whoever got access to it first would win.

Not to mention... it didn't take a genius to realize who Rosan meant when he said dangerous allies.

If he allied himself with the likes of Whitebeard or Kaido... it would be utterly disastrous. The protection of one of the Emperor's of the seas... he'd absolutely be able to find at least one of the ancient weapons.

They would win the battle if they captured Nico Robin… but they would lose the war to the Red Devil…

"FRANKY! LISTEN TO HIM! ISN'T THIS EXACTLY WHAT YOUR MASTER WANTED TO AVOID?!" Spandam shouted.

He didn't notice the way Franky's gaze darkened.

"IF HE GETS PLUTON… ALL THAT HARD WORK WILL GO DOWN THE DRAIN! GIVE US THE BLUEPRINT SO WE CAN COUNTER HIM! IF NOT WATER 7 WILL JUST BE ANOTHER CASUALTY ON HIS PATH OF DESTRUCTION!" Spandam raved.

"…" Franky said nothing for a moment before gazing at Rosan. "So you aren't actually planning on activating either of those… because you plan on getting your woman back right?"

Rosan's eyes glowed maliciously. "You understand well. I'm beginning to like you Franky."

The cyborg grinned. "That intensity moves my soul, brother! I'll have to match it!"

Everyone watched as the cyborg rummaged in his body, before pulling out a blueprint.

Spandam's eyes widened excitedly.

Were those?!

"This is the blueprint to Pluton," Franky announced with a grin.

"GIVE THAT AND WE CAN—"

Everyone watched, stunned as he launched it up for Rosan.

The redhead opened his mouth and immediately incinerated it on the spot.

…

"Those were the blueprints to Pluton. Looks like these two right here are the only ones who know about em and I reckon Red will definitely be able to find it quicker," Franky shrugged helplessly.

…

Spandam's eyes bugged in rage. "CP9. BRING IN THE RED DEVIL AT ALL COSTS. HIS PRIORITY HAS INCREASED! NO, MAKE SURE NOT A SINGLE STRAW HAT MAKES IT OFF THIS ISLAND ALIVE!"

Robin began panting harshly as a rare anger overtook her.

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT ROSAN? Y-YOU SELFISH BOY!" She shouted angrily, glaring at the redhead who had the audacity to smirk at her.

"YOU… I WOULDN'T HAVE TOLD YOU ANYTHING IF I KNEW YOU WERE GOING TO DRAG EVERYONE ELSE INTO THIS! WHY?! WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS?! WHY WOULD YOU PAINT SUCH A TARGET ON YOUR BACK?!" She screamed, huffing furiously at the redhead who didn't look bothered by her anger at all.

He… Rosan… He was utterly insufferable. What was wrong with him?

There had to have been something wrong with him because he began laughing at her and Robin saw the utterly psychotic gleam of a man who would do anything to get back what was his.

"Kahahahaha! When did I say I was done speaking?" Rosan cackled, eyes pulsing madly. "I've got one other thing to reveal so that you guys really understand just how fucked you are."

Robin turned white.

"No, Rosan... please don't!" She begged, tears of frustration forming as none of her words reached him. "You've already revealed enough. Why must you continue? Please just stop!"

The redhead tilted his head, psychotic gleam never vanishing. "Look at you, trying to tell Death what to do. What makes you think I'll listen to you all of a sudden?" Rosan crooned, cloak on his body transforming into a very very familiar outfit.

Robin never felt as helpless as she did now, as Rosan looked her dead in her eyes and began transforming into a very familiar figure.

None could stop a wave of pure horror, as two black feathery wings burst out from the redhead's back.

His signature black cloak with white streaks formed and everyone watched in a moment of clarity, as a mask began forming over Rosan's face, a single black rose on the porcelain white of it.

"He's gone completely mad," Nami gaped as Rosan took form of the most infamous Bounty Hunter alive.

The CP9 agents realized in moments and in that same moment, Izumi fell on her butt, a look of true terror on her face as Rosan took the form of her neverending nightmare.

"A-Ah. No no no, I didn't mean to," she stammered, eyes turning into pinpricks as her trauma came roaring back with a vengeance.

"Shinigami," Rosan intoned lifelessly, gazing through the petrified CP9 agents.

Franky's eyes bugged out of his skull. "O-Oi, Red... don't tell me you're-"

"Correct. I am the Angel of Death, Reaper," he announced to everyone there.

Franky's jaw dropped in disbelief and he gazed at Rosan like he were a completely new person.

"I put a lot of trust in you already, Franky. Let's keep this between us," Rosan said quietly.

The cyborg blinked before bursting into tears. "YOU'RE TOO NICE RED! TRUSTING ME LIKE THIS?! YOU SUPER BET I'LL KEEP IT BETWEEN US!"

Spandam went completely ashen at that.

"T-T-T-The," he stammered, jaw dropping more and more as the situation became more and more clear to him.

Ohhhh no. Oh no no no no.

"THE ANGEL OF DEATH?!" He screeched in horror.

A cold and oppressive pressure washed over them all and the Angel of Death began gazing at them, expression impossible to tell underneath the shadow of their hood.

You were telling Spandam... that this entire time, the Straw Hats were housing the Reaper in their crew?!

This whole time, the Red Devil had been the Angel of Death...

Oh this was bad. This was really bad. Reaper was the person with a 500 million bounty. Reaper was the ghost who had cleansed the blue seas of hundreds of bounties.

Reaper was currently standing opposite to them, after razing down Enies Lobby in another form.

The Red Devil was more dangerous than they were ever led to believe.

It was impossible for anyone on the World Government's side to hide the unease at the idea of who their opponent was. Everyone knew of Reaper and the fact that he was able to elicit such a strong reaction out of the puppet of all people, only left them more uncomfortable at what looked to be a daunting task.

They were finally realizing that the warnings to stay away from the Straw Hats were not enough. They needed far more than just a warning.

"You've learned quite a lot about me," Reaper said idly, black wings absorbing the very light around him as the cold air around them deepened. "You making it off this island to report all you found and us preventing all that and getting back what's ours... with such high stakes, I can't help but want to put on my best performance."

"But trust me when I say, no one else will learn of me being Reaper today. You will keep my secrets with you whether you want to or not," he promised ominously.

Robin didn't ever think she could possibly get this angry with Rosan but she was furious.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, ROSAN?!" She practically screeched, glaring at the redhead with heated eyes. "WHY?! WHY ARE YOU JUST MAKING THINGS WORSE?! WHY WON'T YOU LET ME PROTECT YOU?! WHY MUST YOU PULL MY TEETH EVERY TIME?!"

The hoodie and mask vanished, revealing the redhead's face once more.

"Angry? Get in fucking line. Maybe now you get a glimpse of how I'm feeling right now," Rosan sneered.

Robin scowled fiercely in return. "Don't you understand anything?! Is this a game to you, Rosan?! Of all the times to be childish, Why is now is when you choose to do it?!"

The redhead had the audacity, the actual audacity, to smile smugly at her. "You of all people should know, that this stopped being a game to me the moment I realized who you were with," he told her.

The smile vanished in favor of a snarl. "A game? Give me a fucking break, dumbass. Here you are, surrounded by people who want you dead and you have the actual nerve to get upset that I want you back?" Rosan growled warningly.

Robin clenched her fist, for once not being cowed by the furious glare in his eyes. "Why don't you get it, Rosan? It's not about us anymore! Think about them! Why are you dragging them into our problems -"

"Why why why why why," Rosan sighed, dismissing her before she could even finish her sentence and glaring at her with a disappointed gaze.

It was a gaze that was telling Robin that she didn't understand something and Robin would be damned if Rosan ever looked at her like that.

"You keep asking me why… but you still don't get it do you, Robin?" Rosan asked bluntly, knowing she didn't.

"What don't I get?!" She hissed, utterly fed up with him because of all he'd done.

The redhead rolled his eyes. "Look around, Robin. I already declared war against the World Government. I've razed this place to the ground. I've killed thousands of soldiers. I've already murdered one of the CP9 agents… and I'm not going to stop. I'm going to kept destroying, I'm going to keep killing until I get you back..."

Robin only got angrier at that.

"...But look at our crew."

She paused and reluctantly followed his demand.

What she saw left her stunned.

All of them… every single one of them were unfazed by the actions of the redhead. In fact, it looked like they wholeheartedly agreed with his sentiment. They were all gazing ahead with pure determination.

Pure determination for her.

"You thought I dragged them into this? Robin even if I wanted to escape, they wouldn't come with me. We're either going to get you back, or we're going to die trying," Rosan said seriously.

"None of us asked you to sacrifice yourself, idiot," Zoro scoffed. "If you were so scared, you should have just brought it up with us and we would have helped you."

"Don't insult her, Marimo! Robin-chan was in a vulnerable state and these dogs took advantage of her!" Sanji barked.

"How could they take advantage of her?!" Chopper frowned deeply. "Aren't they supposed to be the good guys?! Holding such a burden over her head is so scummy!"

"That's all these Government scum are good for!" Franky scowled. "Trickery and trickery, using whatever they can to get whatever they want. They don't care about anything but power."

"Such moves are frowned upon on Sniper Island, so I will have to show them proper justice!" Sogeking declared.

"Taking advantage of your love for all of us… That really pisses me off," Nami snarled, piecing all of Clima together.

"You don't want to die, Robin so we're bringing you back," Luffy declared stonily.

Robin took a step back.

"You need to realize that way more people care about you than you initially thought. It's not just me anymore," Rosan said softly, eyes uncharacteristically soft.

They all… all of them cared for her? It wasn't only Rosan and Mod anymore…

No… even before that. Maro, Angel, Demon… Aiko, Akemi, Ace, Sabo… All of them cared for her.

All of them loved her.

Tears began forming in her eyes and Robin choked out a, "Why?"

They answered without hesitation.

"Because you're our friend."

---

Flashback

"Rosan… can you tell us a bit about Robin's past?"

Rosan opened his eyes at that and gazed at them coolly, before humming and nodding.

"Robin was born in the West Blue on an island of scholars called Ohara," Rosan began softly, bringing up a hologram that looked exactly like his best friend as a child.

They all cooed at the adorable girl and clambered around him as he began to tell his tale.

"Her life wasn't great, she ate her Devil Fruit when she was 6 and because of that, her villagers ostracized her," he explained quietly. "Not to mention, her mother, Olvia, abandoned her when she was only 2 and left her in the hands of her cruel Aunt."

They flinched at that, eyes turning soft as Rosan's face formed into a scowl.

He truly hated Olvia with all his heart because Olvia had the chance to go with Robin. She had the chance to escape.

But no, she left her daughter behind again for some fucking books. Rosan didn't give a fuck what she had to say about history, Robin was supposed to be Olvia's responsibility and she chose history over her own flesh and blood.

It was just so utterly disgusting. Olvia should count her stars that she died because to Rosan, she was even worse than Roger.

Rosan just hoped she suffered every single moment she spent dying. It was befitting for the woman who made Robin suffer for all her life.

"Her only respite, were the scholars of that island and at only 8 years old, she became recognized as an archaeologist by her own intelligence," he continued, looking so proud of her.

The Straw Hats thought it was adorable how just mentioning her accolades, managed to lessen his heavy demeanor.

Then his features darkened again. "But the scholars of Ohara were able to read the Poneglyphs and being able to read one is a crime… because they don't want anyone researching the 100 year void century."

Something went terribly wrong.

"Because of what they could read, the World Government saw the scholars of Ohara as a threat and sent Cipher Pol over there," Rosan's scowl was out in full force.

"Those bastards… they have access to something called a Buster Call and that's when a bunch of battleships are led by Vice Admirals to destroy whatever their target is…"

"No," Nami muttered in horror, hand going over her mouth.

"Right before everything went to hell, Robin made a friend. It was her first friend… his name was Saul," Rosan muttered. "Saul was a giant and he was the only one who didn't care about Robin's Devil Fruit and they became really close…"

A flash of hot rage crossed his features and Rosan unwittingly began snarling.

"But Admiral Aokiji froze him solid, right in front of her. Then afterwards, they summoned a Buster Call and burned the entire island to the ground… Robin was the only survivor and they slapped her with a bounty all because she could read the Poneglyphs," he said gravely.

"It wasn't enough that you emotionally scarred an 8 year old. You want to pin my mental state on her instead of your stupid fucking organization?!"

"Is this your definition of justice, Admiral Aokiji? You kill her only friend in front of her, you burn her island to the ground for no good reason and then you threaten to hunt her down the moment she slips up. Not only that, you have the audacity to blame my actions on her?! WHAT DO YOU UNDERSTAND?! NONE OF THIS HAS EVER BEEN ROBIN'S FAULT!"

"ROBIN WAS COMPLETELY INNOCENT AND YOU FUCKING MARINES RUINED HER LIFE! YOU THINK I'LL LET YOU TOUCH HER?!"

The Straw Hats, Franky and Sogeking all took a step back in disbelief, as they took in the redhead's words with shock in their eyes.

"A few months later, my mother died giving birth and I fled my island in distraught… that's when we met and she... she was like the sun to me, actively making my mental health better and letting me know that there was good in this world," he finished softly.

"That's…" Sanji muttered in disbelief, horror crossing his features.

"They… they destroyed an entire island?" Nami whispered in horror.

"Everyone she loved was killed in front of her?" Chopper felt tears pricking his eyes at that.

Rosan's eyes shut. "When we met, I saw how tired she was. I saw how exhausted she was, despite how hard she tried to hide it. I saw that she was just a scared little kid… just like I was. So I wanted to let her know that no matter what, I'd be there so she could rest easily. As long as we were with each other, we didn't have to be afraid of anything."

"That's why he's so overprotective of her."

Before, they had thought Rosan was going a tad overboard with his over protection… After all, Rosan was so jealously protective of Robin that they realized she was never alone from him when they could see her.

But with what they just learned… it was perfectly normal!

It was no wonder Aokiji had set him off so strongly… especially after seeing the way Robin reacted to him. The sheer terror on the face of their coolheaded archaeologist...

Hell, they were feeling just as protective! They… they couldn't believe Robin had gone through something so awful at just 8 years old...

"The World Government already took so much from us," Rosan said quietly, tiredly.

For once, he wasn't infallible. For once, he wasn't a daunting presence. For once, he wasn't their mysterious scout.

No in this moment, Rosan looked like the scarred man that his past turned him into.

"They took so much from us... I won't ever let them take one of the few things we have left... each other," he whispered vulnerably.

Luffy stepped forward and wrapped his older brother in a hug, watching as the redhead sagged a bit into him.

"We'll get her back no matter what, Rosan. She's our friend and they can't have her!" He said, determination seeping into his voice.

"Yeah!" They said in determination. "We're gonna get Robin back or die trying. Nothing can stop us now, not even her!"

Rosan gazed at them all, a bit of wonder in his eyes and for once, he didn't have a snide remark for his crew.

No, he was just gazing at them with searching eyes.

"You're looking for something you already found, Rosan."

"Thank you… thank you all," he said quietly, ducking his head and showing a side they never saw from him.

Maybe this was why Robin was just as protective of Rosan... maybe she got to see this side of him often.

Maybe Rosan wasn't as invincible as he portrayed himself as and needed more help then he thought he needed.

They gazed at the redhead and nodded, letting his younger brother soothe him.

---

Journeying with the Straw Hats, showed Robin a perspective in life that reminded her of the days she traveled with Rosan when they were just little kids.

Infectious, joyful, always looking out for each other… She found herself growing incredibly fond of them as the days went by.

Rosan may have been opening up to them but he still kept them at a respectable distance… he didn't truly consider himself apart of the crew but it was slowly changing.

Robin wasn't quite the same. She loved them all. She wanted them all to live. She wanted Rosan himself to live and she thought that by giving herself up, they'd be able to live.

But they were looking at her with a gaze that meant… they'd never be able to live with themselves… unless she was living.

Because they loved her… because they cared for her.

In this lonely world, Rosan wasn't her only ally anymore. She had more then just him… she had more people who would be devastated if she died.

She had people who reciprocated the love that she had for them.

She had someone else besides her ray of sunshine who would embrace her loneliness.

She had people that saw her as a human.

Tears began falling freely from Robin's eyes as she gazed at the crew that she loved with all her heart.

"Do you get it now, Robin?" Rosan asked quietly. "I know what you're thinking. You think that in the grand scheme my family will be able to pick me back up if you leave. You have so much faith that I will bounce back because of them... but Robin, they will be just as devastated because this is your family too."

Rosan sighed, anger melting away fully. "It's not about just me anymore Robin… you matter. You've always mattered but you don't realize how much you do. We all care about you. We all love you."

"…R-Really?" Robin sniffed and gazed at her sun, eyes glowing with worry despite his obvious anger at her. Eyes filled with so much compassion, just for her.

"Of course," they all chanted in unison, looking just as worried for her as Rosan was.

"If I have to tear the world apart to save you… you only need to worry about how it'll look after I'm done, not if I'll do it because I'll always do it," Rosan whispered softly.

"And we'll be right there with him!" Luffy grinned, cracking his knuckles.

Robin sniffed again as those words slammed into her, tears beginning to fall in earnest as she desperately tried to hold it all in.

She failed.

Robin broke.

"I-I'm sorry for being so stupid all of you!" Robin sobbed loudly, features contorting as she gazed at them with desperate eyes. "Please! Please take me back into the crew! Please come save your stupid crewmate! I don't want to die yet, I WANT TO LIVE!"

The Straw Hats all grinned ferally at that.

Rosan inclined his head, red sparks beginning to dance across his skin as his eyes shone bright and his wings spread wide. "Of course. I still have to punish you for all of this, so fight with everything you have until I have you again."

Robin nodded strongly, tears still falling. "I-I won't give up for even a second… I'll accept any punishment, just please don't leave me alone again!" She begged.

The redhead vanished from his spot, only to appear directly on the balcony with every single CP9 agent.

"Just wait for me Robin… be strong, I'll be over in a flash." Rosan whispered softly.

"I'll wait a thousand years if I have to!" Robin sobbed.

"Just a few minutes is all I ask for," he stated, mask forming once more on his face.

With just a thought, the edge of the balcony extended outwards ludicrously, until forming a makeshift bridge for the Straw Hats to run across.

Robin was too guarded… he couldn't grab her immediately so he'd take out the most troublesome foe first and let the Straw Hats deal with the rest.

"Straw Hats… go completely wild. I'm going to do everything in my power to get Robin back first but if one of you beat me, I'll do one special favor," Rosan barked, eyes glowing brightly as he locked his gaze onto Izumi.

Izumi was frozen in terror and had no time to react at all, as a fist planted itself into her gut.

"S-So strong," the woman gagged, eyes bugged in agony as his sparking fist embedded itself deep into her stomach.

"You should have lived the life I allowed you to have in peace, Izumi," Rosan said harshly. "Now it's time I remind you about the food chain."

Rosan gazed at her soaring body before glancing back at all the agents, not a hint of fear on his features.

Rob Lucci scowled and dashed forward, intent on impaling the redhead and stopping in shock as it failed to even pierce his outfit.

"Luffy," was all Rosan said.

A sandal planted itself on Rob Lucci's cheek and sent him soaring, before he crashed through a wall.

"I'll deal with him!" Luffy grinned, cracking his knuckles as the strongest agent of CP9 stood back up with a sneer.

"Straw Hat Luffy… I still have to get those answers out of you," Rob Lucci said darkly, a dangerous grin on his face.

Zoro dashed forward, all three blades at the ready before being intercepted by Kaku himself.

"I have orders to take you out, Roronoa Zoro and I'm in a really bad mood to boot," Kaku said lowly.

"I'll cut down anyone who's in my way. I've got bigger things to worry about then some dude with a long nose," Zoro said, grinning ferally.

Sanji dashed straight to Robin at blistering speeds, intent on saving her immediately and getting her to safety, only to be launched away by Jabra.

"You seem pretty strong," Jabra grinned, licking his lips. "You aren't Roronoa Zoro or the Red Devil, but at least give me a good fight."

Sanji pushed himself up. "Just who do you think you're comparing me too?" he asked darkly.

Nami summoned Clima's iron clouds and sent them flying towards the increasingly nervous Spandam, only to let out a yelp as a spiked whip wrapped around it.

"You didn't think it would be that easy, right?" Kalifa asked, adjusting her glasses.

"Would be nice if you just let it!" Nami grit out.

"Let's teach this less sexy then you woman a lesson!" Clima declared.

"I do not need your compliments right now!"

Chopper transformed into walk point and charged Robin at full speed, only for a plethora of hair to wrap around his body and launch him away.

"Such dishonor to let him get this close! As punishment, I'll slit my belly," Kumadori cried, grabbing a blade and stabbing himself, only to fail as he unconsciously activated Tekkai.

"Am I fighting another weirdo…?" Chopper asked hesitantly.

Sogeking saw what they were all trying to do and decided to try his hand as well, loading up a lead star to fire at Spandam's head.

Nero jumped in the way and took the blow meant for him, sneering at the sniper.

"I don't even need to learn Tekken for that," the agent scowled. "This will be quick and then I'll be recognized as a real CP9 agent!"

"You have potential."

Sogeking straightened up and aimed his slingshot at his opponent. "You will soon find out the true might of a warrior hailing from Sniper Island."

Franky aimed a fist out and shot it at Spandam only for Fukuro to leap in the way and weather it with Tekkai.

"Chapapa… his Doriki is higher than mine but he won't win," the agent said confidently.

"You're outta luck. This is my super week and I'm full on cola!" Franky laughed.

Spandam shrieked at the mayhem and grabbed Robin harshly, before rushing off with her, unmindful of the girl struggling in his grasp.

"ALL OF YOU! YOU HAVE AUTHORIZATION TO USE LETHAL FORCE! CAPTURE THE ANGEL OF DEATH AT ALL COSTS AND WE'LL BE PROMOTED TO LEVELS WE COULD NEVER IMAGINE!" He barked.

The chief let out a terror filled scream, as a tanned hand reached out to melt his face off, but he was saved last second as Izumi burst out and pushed him aside.

"Sensory Overload!"

Then, she cast an illusion on every single Straw Hat, disorienting them by throwing off their sense of direction.

"Go. Now," she hissed to Spandam shoving him out of the room with Nico Robin in tow.

"R-Right! Thank you Izumi, I'll make sure you get promoted especially! You deserve it!"

Izumi huffed and gazed at the stunned Rosan. She took a deep breath and rushed him, leaping high into the air before kicking it with brutal force.

"Rankakyu: Line!" She barked, shooting a straight line that crashed into the redhead.

She reached her desired results. Rosan was sent plummeting through the floor and she immediately pursued after him.

"Isolate and trap. Don't be afraid, you have to free yourself," she thought psychotically, soaring through the air and beginning to spin.

"Rankakyu: Corkscrew!"

As she reached the redhead, she landed a devastating dropkick on his midsection, laced with the sharpness of her technique that sent them both crashing into the lowest level of the building, breaking through floor after floor.

Rosan immediately lit himself up with raw electricity and Izumi backed off instantly.

"Finally alone~," Izumi grinned, removing her shades and tossing them aside. "About time, don't you think darling?"

The redhead stood up, no signs of injury on his body as a soft breeze removed the dust off of him and he gently flapped his black wings.

"You can't hide it from me, Izumi," Rosan said softly. "You're afraid. Afraid of what I'm going to do to you and you should be because you of all people should know, what I'm capable of. Do you still think of Izuki?" He asked cruelly.

Izumi's unhinged smile was wiped off her face at his bold statement and she held in a tremor.

"No, don't falter. Your nightmare is right here... we have to deal with this now. We'll conquer our horrors here and then I'll be free."

"It's not me who should be afraid… you should be afraid about what you could do to Meiko," she declared, illusion morphing her into a carbon copy of his deceased girlfriend.

Rosan bit back a scowl. So she really did know his weakness.

"Do you remember those words you said to me that day?" Meiko asked demurely, gazing at Rosan with love in her gaze.

Rosan snarled in annoyance as his resolve wavered.

"Well I do! I will never forget those words darling because they were what fueled me. You and I are connected by this thread we have… You may think it's hate, but I know it's love! I am yours… but you are not mine yet so I'm going to change that today and we'll be together forever... TILL DEATH DO US PART DARLING!" The blonde raved.

Rosan took a deep breath and steeled himself to the best of his ability.

"Sorry Mei, but you're in my way… I think we're gonna need a divorce," he whispered softly, eyes filled with uncertainty.

---

Robin grunted as Spandam violently punched her to the floor, making her head hit the asphalt and causing blood to begin pouring due to her body being so weakened from the seastone.

"Stop fucking struggling!" Spandam snarled, looking at the nuisance of a women. "You don't have to worry about going back to your lover. He'll be brought in with you soon enough. I bet neither of you will be able to stay quiet, if the other is getting tortured right in front of you! I bet he'll start squealing the moment you scream!"

Robin shut her eyes tightly as he forced her to think about a situation where they were both tied up and being tortured violently.

She wouldn't be able to handle such a scenario, Robin would never be able to stay quiet if she heard Rosan screaming.

But it wouldn't come to that, it would never come to that.

Spandam roughly grabbed the woman up and tried to continue walking…

Only to let out a yelp of agony as a foot crashed into his crotch.

"A-AIYEEEE!" He screeched, as Robin turned on her heel and tried to run off.

"Fight with everything you have. Rosan will come. Luffy will come. Someone will come," she repeated to herself.

The cuffed woman wasn't able to make it too far because she heard a strained voice say, "F-Funkfreed," before she was tackled to the ground.

Spandam had a look of fury in his bugged eyes, as he began repeatedly stomping on Robin (all while nursing his sweet spot).

"Stupid. Dumb. BITCH!" He growled.

Robin weathered the blows to the best of her abilities, thanking all the training for being able to do so.

"It's fine… even this is buying time… just buy as much time as possible until someone comes," she thought doggedly, attempting to crawl even further away and only getting harsher stomps as a result.

"Just buy time," she thought.

Rosan… please. She knew it would be hard… she knew she didn't deserve it… she knew she had no right to be asking, but she begged him to please pick her over Meiko… even just this once.

---

(All Fights are taking place at the same time)

Due to the disorientation technique from Izumi, the CP9 agents took full advantage of it right before she left her range and quickly grabbed all of their opponents.

Taking a page out of Izumi's book, the assassins chose to isolate their targets and dragged each of them to a room before they could properly react.

"I expect you all to win your battles. Once you win, assist Izumi in dealing with the Angel of Death and capture him at all costs," Rob Lucci said coldly, punting Luffy far away before immediately pursuing him.

"Right!" They barked, pursuing their own foes.

---

Usopp grunted as he was pushed through a door and he tumbled about in the massive room before catching himself.

"I'm really fighting one of these super strong assassin dudes!" he thought nervously, steeling himself for the upcoming war.

His opponent soon revealed himself and Nero sneered. "It's a shame that I have to fight someone of your caliber but I'm the weakest CP9 member so beggars can't be choosers," he scowled.

That damn Izumi… she was only 3 years older then him so how was she already so much stronger? He had been training at an even younger age then her when she showed up at 13 but now she was only under Rob Lucci in strength…

If she was considered talentless, then what was everyone else?!

"He's the weakest?!" Usopp thought.

H...He could win this!

Withdrawing his slingshot, Usopp aimed at the man and said, "Explosive Star!"

Nero quickly activated Soru and dashed out of the way, appearing above Usopp with a kick at the ready.

"Rankakyu!"

Usopp hastily blocked the incoming attack with his hammer, before dashing a safe distance away.

Nero sneered and activated Geppo, kicking through the air to pursue the masked man.

He dodged shot after shot from Usopp but didn't make much headway himself, as the liar managed to deflect all of his Rankakyus with that strange hammer.

The CP9 agent grit his teeth in frustration…

If he had Shigan, he could have just pierced this man's chest. What a bother…

"This is getting us nowhere," Usopp thought with a frown. The man was like an annoying insect, using strange techniques that he had never seen before to dart around.

He couldn't lock on properly and hit him… this was super frustrating!

Not to mention… he was all out of Rosan's fire filled pellets for a quick finish.

Darn it…

Nero continued to dash around the air, dodging attacks from Usopp all the while, before he suddenly switched tactics.

"Soru."

Usopp had no time at all to react to the man's superhuman speed, as Nero appeared directly behind him.

"Rankakyu!"

"G-Gagh!" Usopp spat out blood as the sharp slice of air slammed into his back, drawing a long line of red and sending him tumbling.

Nero was ruthless.

"Rankakyu!" He repeated, hitting Usopp once more and making the sniper scream, blood beginning to pool on his body.

Finally, the agent pulled out his flintlocks and unloaded two shots into the man, scoffing as Usopp went silent.

"Waste of my time… perhaps I can go help Izumi deal with the Red Devil… defeating and capturing him will surely raise my prestige," Nero muttered to himself.

Usopp lay on the ground in defeat, as blood pooled under him.

"Ah… I should have trained more… I was too afraid to join those monsters but it would have helped a lot."

"Ah… I shouldn't have interrupted Rosan when he was trying to talk, then I wouldn't have to be here fighting this guy because we'd already have Robin back…"

"Ah… I wish I had one more of Ragnarok's pellets. It would have been really useful here but I stupidly left the crew and Rosan wants nothing to do with me."

"Ah… I wish I never left the crew…" Usopp finished with a defeated sigh.

If only he hadn't let something like this tear them apart. Usopp didn't know why they put so much faith in him in the first place...

"They took so much from us... I won't ever let them take one of the few things we have left... each other."

"Please! Please take me back into the crew! Please come save your stupid crewmate! I don't want to die yet, I WANT TO LIVE!"

As his life flashed before his eyes, Usopp recalled the words of his vulnerable scout and archaeologist. The impossibly rare fear in Rosan's eyes… the tears that they had only seen once before in Robin's…

Those two just wanted to be together again…

What was he doing right now? Wallowing in his regrets while wasting away. Right now, his not fully healed scout was fighting with everything he had to get Robin back and Usopp didn't even land a hit on his opponent?

No, his entire crew (yes, his crew!) were no doubt doing the same thing. There was no way they'd let this be the end because they still had so much journeys to go on…

And Usopp wanted to go with them too!

This couldn't be the end. Usopp just needed to get up and win.

But how would he win…?

"You have potential."

Oh… that's right, he would win because this wasn't the limits of his potential. He still had more to do. He still had so much room to grow.

With the Straw Hats, his true crew.

Nero paused in his footsteps, as he heard a noise from behind and he raised a brow at seeing Usopp standing.

"You're still alive, weakling?" He asked himself, shrugging and grabbing his flintlocks. "I'm still sloppy I suppose if I can't even make sure someone is dead… but I'll just make amends."

The long nose was practically dead on his feet already, with blood leaking all over his body so Nero would make this quick.

Aiming his flintlocks at the sniper, Nero pressed the trigger and fired… only to blink at seeing it fail to hit his target.

Huh?

Not one to be deterred, the man fired two more shots, that turned into nearly a dozen as Usopp sidestepped each and every shot with a startling ease.

"W-What? He has Kami-e?!" Nero gaped, taking a step back in surprise before regaining his confidence.

"Well it doesn't matter! Rankakyu!"

Usopp pulled out his hammer and aimed it at the attack before Nero even put his foot up, absorbing the lethal attack.

"W-What? Is he predicting my attacks?!"

The sniper gazed directly at Nero, mind running a mile a minute.

"I can feel him! And not just him… I feel everyone?! I can see their auras too! Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Nami, Rosan, Robin, Chopper. The Agents… Franky… Hell I can feel the people still outside of the tower!"

Was this… Haki? Did Usopp… unlock his own Haki?!

"You have potential."

Rosan was right. ROSAN WAS RIGHT! HE REALLY DID HAVE POTENTIAL AND HE'D STOP PRETENDING LIKE HE DIDN'T!

THE FIRST STEP STARTED RIGHT HERE AND NOW!

Usopp took out his trusty slingshot and took aim at Nero, masked eyes gleaming as he saw the man's next actions.

"Special Attack: Thunder Star!"

Nero took too the skies to avoid the shot, only to let out a strained yell, as his opponent anticipated his exact whereabouts and adjusted his shot.

A flying net lashed out and captured Nero, bringing him to the ground before it began lighting up with electricity.

"G-GAHH!" Nero howled as the net began electrocuting him with ruthless force.

But Usopp wasn't done yet. He pressed a button on his weapon and was satisfied to see it grow to ludicrous lengths.

Introducing the new version of his slingshot, Kabuto! Using a combination of Modification and the Dials he received from Skypiea, Rosan and Usopp had crafted a new and improved weapon that was incredibly versatile in all situations!

It was an incredible weapon, one that Usopp wouldn't have been able to create alone… and one that Rosan wouldn't have been able to create without his help.

(He didn't use it against Luffy because the fight had been over before he could and he wanted to use it as a surprise option in case the rubber boy resorted to Gear 2nd)

He really did have potential and it was time to start living up to to his crews expectations.

It didn't matter if he was the weakest in the crew… he just needed to be stronger then the person he faced.

Being the weakest in a crew full of monsters didn't sound that bad… if they accepted him back.

Aiming the massive slingshot at the writhing Nero trying to take the net off, Usopp planted the weapon on the ground, satisfied to see it standing upright on its own and aimed, before pressing a button.

"Special All Out Attack: Turret Star!"

"ARGHHHH!" Nero shrieked as a water star pelted him with harsh force, before splashing him and magnifying the effects.

But the misery didn't end there.

Then, a plethora of shurikens slammed into his vulnerable body, drawing blood and making the man squeal in agony.

Then the Lead Stars that he insulted before were next and Nero felt his eyes flicker.

This new version of his slingshot, utilized Modification's impressive technology, to seamlessly supply him the pellet he needed, while firing with either his help, or by itself if he was in a bind…

Or if he opted to use his rare close combat.

Like now.

As his slingshot entered "Turret Mode" and bombarded Nero with all kinds of pellets, Usopp decided to cash in his receipt, in the form of the hammer infused with an impact dial that had been absorbing all of Nero's Rankakyus.

"I don't have time to waste on you when Robin is in trouble!" Usopp huffed. "Here, have a taste of your own medicine!"

"Impact Hammer!"

He crashed it on the man's sternum.

The effects were immediate.

Nero's eyes bugged, as his stomach was shredded by the effects of his own power being turned against him. He spat out a river of blood, as red began pooling under him.

Then, his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he went limp.

Usopp huffed in exhaustion, as he fell on his back, before that huff turned into a pained yelp.

Finally, he began laughing in joy at his victory.

He did it! He won and he got stronger from it too!

But he was too injured to really move… darn it, he needed to save Robin…

Usopp groaned and tried to push himself up, opting to crawl instead when that failed too.

First… get Kabuto… then rest up until he could actually move some… Then go get Robin…

---

Franky was fighting a really annoying guy.

Zipper mouth utilized a bunch of weird techniques called Rokushiki (he talked a lot) and it was very stupid to deal with.

The cyborg particularly hated the ones that allowed Fukuro to constantly move around and dodge his attacks.

Even when Franky did hit him, he utilized something called Tekkai and weathered his super strong punches…

It still hurt him because Franky's punches were real iron but still, this fight would have been over a long time ago if these pesky techniques didn't exist.

"Stop moving around so much you super stupid coward," Franky growled to the gossiper.

Fukuro felt a tick form at that. "Chappa! What did you just say?"

Him a coward?! Now he was mad!

"Fine, how about I show you my super-heavy punch thrown with the speed of a Shigan!" Fukuro growled.

"Solid Beast!"

Franky's head flew back as the punch connected to his face, before the cyborg grinned.

"You call that heavy? That's the most gentle punch I've ever felt!" He growled, cocking his fist back.

"Strong Hammer!"

"Tekkai!"

Fukuro's eyes flickered, as the devastatingly strong punch crashed into his face and sent him flying through a wall.

"I'm super full on Cola frog mouth!" Franky grinned, getting into a boxing stance. "You think you stand a chance against me?! You're superrrr wrong!"

The cyborg quickly closed the distance and ducked into Fukuro's guard, before delivering another punch…

Only for the agent to Kami-e out of the way last second.

Then, he activated Soru and vanished from Franky's sight.

"Hm? Where did he go?" Franky grunted in annoyance.

"I'm faster then the eye can see. I am a master of Soru and I attack my prey silently, like an owl. My kills are quick and final, my targets never see me until the moment of their death," Fukuro stated.

Franky let out a yell as a Shigan pierced him directly in the back, drawing out a spurt of blood, before the finger was removed and replaced by one of Fukuro's heavy and fast punches.

He went flying into a wall and before he could catch himself, he heard—

"Iron Ball!"

Franky's eyes bugged, as Fukuro used his own body as a wrecking ball and crashed directly into him.

The force sent him flying out of the tower, where the sea was right below him and based on the structure of Enies Lobby, he'd die very quickly.

"Chapapa," Fukuro said, blood leaking from his body from his battle. "He was strong… but you can't beat Rokushiki with strength alone."

The rotund man tried to walk away, only to pause in shock as something latched around his leg.

"!" The agent's eyes widened in confusion and he glanced down to see a metallic arm gripping his leg with crushing force, before it began pulling him backwards.

In panic, Fukuro began using Geppo to maintain his position in the building and began flying away from the hole in the wall, not realizing he was helping his opponent out in the process.

Franky used his grip on Fukuro's leg to pull himself back up into the building, bleeding harshly from the man's assault and glared at him.

Using his elongated arm, Franky let out a mighty yell and heaved the agent into the ground with concussive force.

"Tekkai!" Fukuro said right before he collided with the ground, weathering the blow easily and pushing himself back up…

Only for teeth to fly as a heavy fist collided with his face.

Before he could fly too far, Franky gripped him and body slammed him into the floor so that he could not escape from him, before delivering blow after blow on the man's body.

"This is bad! He's breaking through my Tekkai so easily!" Fukuro thought in disbelief as he threatened to black out from the assault.

Before that could happen, he activated a last ditch Kami-e and weaved one of the blows, before pushing Franky off of him with all his might and dashing away, entering his Soru enhanced stealth mode once more.

"Chapapa. I'm going to finish this now!" Fukuro shouted angrily, dashing around the whole field.

Franky grunted at that and attempted to adjust his shades, before realizing he didn't have them on.

Oh well, it was the thought that mattered.

"Cola super full, super good week for me, super passionate crew who wants their girl back… He's moving around a lot… but I can hit him," he thought to himself in full confidence.

Franky held out his hand, unmindful of the vanishing agent…

Then he turned around rapidly, facing the surprised Fukoru with a wild grin.

"What?!" The agent thought in surprise, eyes bugging out of his head as he saw the menacing grin on the cyborg.

"Having one obvious weakness can be just as bad for the enemy too!" Franky grinned cockily, aiming squarely at the man.

"Gives them some super nasty tunnel vision. Anyone who wants to take Franky out quick, always tries to go for the back! Too bad for you, Franky is SUPER aware of that!"

"Oh no, he got me. Tekkai—"

"Coup de Vent!"

Franky's arms began to suck in air, causing his arms to rapidly swell before it reached maximum capacity.

Finally, he released the super focused air.

The results were devastating.

The concentrated air slammed right into Fukuro with concussive force, nearly caving his stomach in.

The agent's eyes rolled in his skull, as he was sent flying through the air, crashing into the wall and landing in an unconscious heap.

"SUPER!" Franky slammed his forearms together. "Now, I gotta go save Nico Robin…"

"We could create inventions on the level of Vegapunk if your claims are true."

The cyborg pondered that statement before dashing off.

He kinda wanted to see what Red was talking about...

---

Chopper, when he wasn't practicing with Demon, actually normally spent his time working with his fellow Zoan, Maro.

After their conversation, the two had been practicing utilizing their Zoan's together to... not that much success.

Though, Chopper very quickly realized just how monstrous the Queen was in battle and when you added her Rumble Balls...

To be honest, Chopper felt like his battles with Rosan were closer than they were with Maro but he just knew that it was because of their preferred styles and abilities.

They both still destroyed him pretty easily though...

"In theory, we should be able to activate those additional forms without the Rumble Ball," Chopper muttered.

"The Rumble Ball doesn't create new forms for you… it just allows us to manipulate your body in a way that lets you use forms you'd need intense practice to have normally. Like... my mage form for example! It just lets me utilize more of my Dokkaebi magic but I should be able to do without drugs," Maro theorized.

That made a lot of sense actually... it's not like the Rumble Ball gave Maro more magic to use... it just let her utilize more of what she had...

"So you're saying we're basically skipping out on steps with the Rumble Ball… but if I focus on those steps… I could easily activate the forms I use without it!" Chopper exclaimed with wide eyes.

The Queen nodded enthusiastically. "I think so! After that Berserk form incident, Master told me that the form I used seemed related to Devil Fruit Awakening, which is why we lose control. We aren't supposed to be using it yet," she explained to her fruit sibling.

Devil Fruit Awakening? Chopper had never heard of such a thing...

It sounded interesting but apparently, neither Rosan nor Mod-chan knew much about it at all.

"I've been trying to practice activating my new forms without the rumble but it's so hard… ugh I need more control of my body to do it," she whined. Maro was talented, she hated not being able to do something that she felt she could do.

Chopper cupped his chin in contemplation at that.

"More control of the body? That might be it! Maro, have you ever heard of something called Biofeedbac— W-WOAH!"

Whatever the reindeer was about to say, was interrupted by the sight of Maro squealing and glomping him.

"Has anyone ever told you how goddamn adorable you are?" Maro gushed, keeling over at seeing him cup his chin with his little hooves.

Chopper lit up red at that and began wiggling happily. "Who said you could call me adorable, bastard!"

---

Right… he never did tell Maro about his musings…

But there was a reason that memory suddenly sprouted in his head.

Because he was sure he found the answer to he and Maro's worries… The only problem, was that it was very possible he was going to die before he could share his thoughts with the queen.

The reindeer's thoughts were interrupted, as he desperately jumped out of the way of the stick trying to stab into him, blood flying from the movement.

Kumadori, his opponent, utilized a Rokushiki technique called Seimei Kikan and it gave him complete control over his bodily functions. It allowed him to control his hair, weight, etc and Chopper wanted to learn it for himself so that he could teach it to Maro… but… it was really hard.

The reindeer had already expended one Rumble Ball and while he managed to do decent damage, that Tekkai of his managed to help him weather the full 3 minute assault.

He now knew what Rosan meant when he told Maro, 3 minutes was not nearly enough time to defeat him. If you could wait out the 3 minutes, your advantage would be gone.

Without the Rumble Ball, he didn't have enough power to break through the Tekkai without it. If he could just enter Arm Point at will, this would be much easier.

He should have put a more earnest effort into training… if he had perhaps delved deeper into Biofeedback, he might be able to enter his other points at will… and now that he found a breakthrough, he could potentially lose the battle and die.

Consuming a second Rumble Ball, had done nothing for him but make the battle even more one-sided in the agent's favor.

He couldn't control which form he entered after eating a second Rumble Ball and he had suffered heavy damage entering the wrong ones at the wrong times.

Case in point, Chopper tried to enter Guard Point to withstand the Shigan from the man's multiple hair tendrils but entered Heavy Point instead, leaving him vulnerable to the attack and punching holes into his body.

He could do nothing but accept the punishment as he tried desperately to transform into Arm Point…

To make matters worse, the moment he did transform into Arm Point, he had put everything into deliver his ultimate attack and the man withstood it!

This sucked… he just… needed to win this battle… but he was all out of options…

Well, all but one… but… but could he really do that?

The reindeer shuddered at the idea of having to eat a third Rumble Ball.

Last time he had eaten three Rumble Balls, he couldn't even remember what happened but the idea that he couldn't control himself and was capable of causing such destruction…

It terrified him.

He distantly thought back to how Maro had shown no fear at all for eating Rumble Balls. Ever after turning into such a terrifying monster... the only thing that had caused her fear, was the idea that she could have hurt her family...

The actual transformation didn't scare her at all... she wanted to control it of all things so that it never happened again.

He wanted to be like her… Maro was so strong and so fearless but he was so scared! How could he muster up the courage to willingly slip back into a form that wanted to do nothing but cause harm?

What if he really was a monster? Could Chopper live with that? Could he... live with the idea that he was proving all the people who doubted him right?

"You can become our monster and we won't think any less of you, Tony Tony Chopper. Even if everyone fears you, as long as we don't, it'll be okay."

Those were the words of Rosan… as he and Robin smiled encouragingly at him.

Rosan and Robin… those two needed his help. They were relying on him to pull his weight so that they could all save their crewmate.

Rosan was fighting right after getting tortured. He didn't fear himself, he didn't fear what he was doing in pursuit of saving Robin.

He was a monster and he didn't care. He was a monster so that he could save the ones he loved.

The only fear he had shown them, was the fear of losing Robin. And even though Chopper was afraid of turning into something he couldn't control… he was more afraid of losing one of the few people who would accept him for who he was.

"Rumble."

Kumadori blinked in confusion, only for a look of pure terror to cross his features as his opponent began to change.

A shadow formed over the agent's figure, as Chopper began growing and growing until he completely eclipsed him in height. His hooves transformed into hands, but each digit had long thick hooves in the shape of fingers, his fur grew wildly on his upper half, his horns grew massively...

"What is that?!" Kumadori thought in utter horror.

His opponent, had access to a form like this?!

Massive, hairy and not a hint of consciousness in his eyes, Chopper let out a bestial roar as his empty, cyan glowing, eyes stared straight ahead.

"WROOOOOOOO!"

"Y-You… DIE!" Kumadori roared. "Geppo!"

He began flying through the air and beelined straight for the still creature.

Sniff sniff

The creature that was Chopper, suddenly sniffed the air and before Kumadori could even react, the monster whirled around with dreadful speed that belied his gigantic size and smashed his hooved fingers into the man.

"S-Such speed," Kumadori cried out in agony, feeling those keratin hooves nearly carve into him.

The agent felt his bones creaking, as Chopper crushed him into the ground and the man tried to move away, until he saw a clenched fist flying towards him.

In a last ditch effort, the agent attempted to defend himself by saying, "Tekkai-"

The fist crashed into its target with no regard for its safety.

"WROOOOOOO!"

Not finished yet, the monster repeatedly slammed his fist into Kumadori's defenseless form, unmindful of the fact that he was utterly pulverizing the man's body, unmindful of the blood marring his giant hand, unmindful of the fact that his opponent had lost consciousness a long time ago.

He just continued to crush the man beneath his fist, before finally growing satisfied and picking the mangled body up.

"WROOOOOOO!" Chopper roared before launching the broken man at breakneck speed straight through a wall and into the unforgiving water below.

The creature sniffed once more before trudging off.

---

"This entire room is a trap. That woman has a strange Devil Fruit."

A somewhat weakened Nami agreed with that notion. This sexy secretary lady utilized a strange Devil Fruit that she was very clearly excited to try out because she was doing completely ridiculous things and it was kind of annoying.

Still though, it was a formidable fruit… Whatever it was, it had managed to weaken Nami almost the moment Kalifa had made contact with her, while dragging the navigator to her room.

"Normally I'd toy around with someone as weak as you… but if I can assist Izumi, our chances of defeating the Angel of Death should skyrocket," Kalifa muttered, a hint of fear tinging her voice at the thought of that demon of a redhead.

"As if I'd let you make it to Rosan! You have way more things to worry about then him!" Nami barked in annoyance, Clima sparking with electricity.

Clima had been upgraded recently by both Usopp and Rosan. Not only did the redhead implement his own elements into them, their former sniper had put some dials into it as well that would help support her fantasies.

It was time to test it all ou—

Kalifa blurred in front of her, finger raised high to pierce her through.

"Who says you have a choice?" The agent smirked seductively.

A billowing cloud lashed out in front of Nami, stopping the attack in its tracks.

Kalifa withdrew with a hiss, grabbing her throbbing finger with a look of surprise.

Was that cloud made out of iron?!

"I'd stop underestimating me if I were you," Nami said cheekily, spinning Clima and forming a cloud above the woman.

"Thunderbolt Tempo!" She shouted, bringing down the bolt of lightning towards the surprised Kalifa.

An explosion took place, the moment the bolt hit the ground and Nami grinned confidently.

"Keep your guard up," Clima instructed.

The navigator nodded and idly charged up fire this time, waiting for the dust to settle.

She was thankful for Clima's heads up because Kalifa's entire body was encased in some type of soap. Once it dissolved away into bubbles, it revealed the completely unharmed woman to her.

Kalifa smirked. "Finding out the mystery of my power is proving quite difficult, isn't it—"

"Ah! So she's some type of soap woman who can control bubbles," Nami muttered, loud enough for Kalifa to pick up.

"That's the conclusion I came too as well. I'm not sure what the bubbles do, but be wary of them."

The blonde agent blushed and began sweating. "W-Well, just because you figured it out doesn't mean your victory is assured! You impudent girl!" Kalifa stammered.

Nami sweatdropped at the flustered girl. "I feel a little bad for guessing that easily."

"Focus," Clima demanded.

She shook her head and nodded.

Kalifa's eyes couldn't help but go wide, as terribly familiar red flames poured out of Nami's weapon, before taking the form of a whip that the navigator shot out in a wide arc.

She blurred out of the way and felt her horror growing, at the sight of the flame whip slicing through the concrete like it were made of butter.

The blonde's eyes narrowed in worry and she blurred again, appearing behind Nami this time and smirking as the iron like wall blocked her from view.

"Got you!" She thought, activating Soru once more and appearing directly in front of the shocked navigator.

Activating her Devil Fruit, Kalifa threw out a barrage of bubbles that landed on Nami and weakened her tremendously.

Then, she ducked into her guard and grabbed the girl's legs, running up and down on the limbs swiftly.

"Golden Hour," she muttered, turning the appendages useless.

Nami yelped as she slipped and the orange haired girl looked down, shrieking as she saw the state of her feet.

What was this? Why did her body look so smooth and stupid?!

A gust of wind, alerted her to the fact that Kalifa was moving again and she threw up the iron clouds a second too late, as the agent shot a slice of wind that cut her deeply in the stomach.

"Ugh!" The navigator spit up blood, as the force sent her flying.

"You're far more dangerous then I thought," Kalifa muttered, watching the girl bounce across the ground until she crashed into a wall. "I should finish this."

Nami's eyes widened in horror as the agent charged her with Soru but she was quicker to react this time, throwing up an iron cloud that covered her entire body and causing Kalifa to suck her teeth in annoyance.

"If the soap isn't on me, I get my power back… but the whole room is soapy so I was dragged into a really advantageous position for her…" she gnawed her lips.

"Not to mention your legs are useless at the moment. Unless you know how to counter its effects, we will have to go at this in a different manner," Clima pondered.

Nami frowned. She needed to focus on the thing she could do right now, which was get rid of the bubbles in the room.

Then, she could focus on her legs.

The moment the iron cloud went back into Clima, Kalifa was already on the move.

"Rankakyu!" she shouted with a smirk.

Nami tried to move, only to stumble as her legs failed her.

The slicing wind connected square with her body and Kalifa's smirk widened… only to turn into one of confusion as the woman vanished from her sight.

"Over here!" Nami called with a cocky grin, making Kalifa grit her teeth in annoyance.

The agent dashed forward, and prepared to plant a finger in her chest, going slowly so as to not stab the iron cloud and she felt confused as the wall didn't show up.

Her confusion was soon answered, as she once more went through Nami.

"Fast," she thought in disbelief. Was the girl so fast that she could form afterimages of herself?

Such speed—

"Tempest!"

The real Nami had been distracting Kalifa with those mirages, so as to get her next attack ready and it was ready.

She needed to get rid of the bubbles in the room, so she'd get rid of every single bubble.

Nami couldn't help but stumble in exhaustion, as she began accumulating the necessary amount of wind, before letting her attack fly.

"Note to self… using Rosan's half with Clima can drain my energy… must be because we're connected," she muttered but that exhaustion made way for pride because her attack was a sight to behold.

Kalifa let out a yell of surprise as a gale of all things, conjured from nowhere and began sweeping up everything in the room. Debris began flying, the windows shattered from the effects and she herself had to grab onto something to remain in place, wincing and activating Tekkai to weather the powerful winds.

Her shock only got worse, as yet another cloud formed over her and the entire room but this time, it began raining.

"Huh?" Nami said in confusion, as her legs transformed back to normal from the water hitting it. "Oh! Rain turns me back to normal… what a nice coincidence!" she beamed.

"She found out by accident?! Then what is this rain for?" Kalifa thought in concern, turning towards Nami… and stepping back in confusion at seeing 5 of her.

"Do you like my mirages?" Nami asked with a smug grin, all five speaking at once. "You have a one in five chance of finding out which one is me and by the time you do, my attack will be ready and you're going to pay for everything you've done to my archaeologist," she said ominously, brown eyes darkening.

Kalifa grit her teeth and leapt into the air, ignoring the pouring rain and cocking back her feet.

"Rankakyu: Storm!" She shouted, shooting out a barrage of slicing blades towards the Namis and connecting with every single one of them.

The assassin felt an impending doom forming, as not a single one let out a cry of pain from the winds attacking them and instead fizzled out of sight.

"Surprise!" Nami, who was floating above the rain cloud grinned cheekily. "I lied! Did you really think I'd tell the truth there?!"

Kalifa balked at the shameless woman.

"What a ditz," Nami sighed, before finalizing the rest of her attack.

Well it didn't matter if Nami was fighting the smartest person on the planet, she simply couldn't afford to lose this battle.

There was far too much on the line and above all, these people made Robin cry.

"Let this be a lesson CP9," Nami began coolly, twirling her staff with expertise.

"You never mess with one of ours and you never make them cry. We're all quite possessive," Nami smiled.

The twirling stopped and Kalifa went pale.

"Strong winds, heavy rain… a storm cloud… Sorry secretary lady you're completely outta luck today…" she muttered, eyes gleaming sadistically as the winds in the room began picking up slowly.

Nami summoned her iron clouds once more and they slowly began covering her frame, as she gazed at the shocked agent.

"The forecast is saying we're in for quite the…"

The iron cloud completely covered her person, but not before Kalifa heard one last thing that made her go white.

"Hurricane."

Kalifa only had a moment to brace herself, before nature itself imposed its presence onto the woman and overwhelmed her completely.

"T-Tekkai!"

True to its namesake, the entire room was engulfed in heavy rain and winds befitting a hurricane.

And Kalifa was the target for it all.

It tore into the woman with ruthless force, uncaring that she was wholly incapable of defending herself.

Nature did not care of such thing. Kalifa was battered and tossed around, as the dangerous winds upheaved even the stone floor, causing her to get trashed by the debris.

Not even the Tower of Justice, was safe from it's effects and the already beat up building, from all the other battles happening simultaneously, began creaking and tipping in warning.

The woman's eyes rolled to the back of her head, as the unstoppable winds sent her crashing into whatever it so desired.

At this point, it didn't even feel like the attack was meant for her. It just felt as if she were an unfortunate product of a natural disaster striking.

Finally, almost like it weren't even there, it stopped and Kalifa's body dropped to the floor.

Nami sighed in exhaustion and fell to her knees, not expecting a technique from her weapon to drain her so much.

"Ask Rosan to increase my stamina. How can he fling so many techniques around without a hitch after being injured? This is fucking exhausting," she thought in disbelief.

What type of freak of nature was their scout? Nami felt her eyes threatening to close at such a taxing technique.

She idly wondered how exhausting it was to use Modification. Rosan always had it active.

Her iron cloud slowly released her and she surveyed the damage in the room as she gently fell to the floor.

The navigator couldn't help but whistle at the state of the defeated Kalifa. Her outfit had been almost completely torn to shreds by the effects of her artificial hurricane and it left quite the sight.

She felt like a dirty old man for staring…

"I-Incredible!" Clima gaped, gazing at the soaked floor and the torn stone. "That liar really is useful. Without his half, the idea of making a makeshift Hurricane would be inconceivable. Not to mention the rain! And the mirages! Excellently done, Master Nami!"

She beamed at the praise, a little awed at the damage she was capable of causing and gazed at the weapon with an appreciative glance.

That's right… this was a culmination of Rosan and Usopp's efforts and it helped her deal with an assassin of all things.

Hell, she just made a hurricane! That was so fucking awesome! The possibilities of what she could do, were endless!

Now, it was time to go save her archaeologist, then check if anyone else needed help once she did that…

Robin needed them… and the look on Rosan's face… the look of fear at the idea that he'd lose her… the tears in her eyes at the idea that she'd be taken from them...

Nami understood that feeling well. She felt the same way as her older brother so she'd be damned if anyone took the woman from them.

Also getting a favor out of Rosan sounded nice. Asking him something and he'd do anything to grant it? That was too good to be true.

Maybe she'd get him to permanently transform into a woman for a week. Rosanna (Robin told her the name!) was a real beauty.

She clutched her wound and spit up some blood, huffing at the pain and whining as she threatened to fall asleep.

"I don't suppose you can suddenly heal now, can you?"

"No, Master Nami! You'd have to implement such technology yourself! Master Rosan has no interest in learning of medicine and will likely never attempt to learn it."

She groaned and summoned an iron cloud, before sitting on it and summoning a gust of wind to lazily push her forward.

"You are a frightening genius, Master Nami," Clima muttered. He was an AI created by Rosan and the redhead admittedly, didn't know too much about the intricacies of weather like Nami did, so naturally Clima was the same.

Everything he learned, was by being in close proximity to Nami and she taught him a lot.

Nami let out a pained sigh and ripped her outfit up some (reluctantly and painfully) to wrap it around her wound to the best of her ability… without compromising her modesty too much.

"Thank you Clima. You're very useful too. I was getting tired of walking."

---

Sanji was sort of regretting not putting more effort into training with the training freaks (and Robin-chan and Maro-chan!).

Despite his frequent injuries, it's not like his battle was impossibly difficult. His opponent, Jabra, was a Wolf Zoan and that made him quite sturdy while packing a punch.

But he could deal with that honestly.

The problem was that he couldn't figure out this damn technique he was thinking of!

Every time he attempted it, the Wolf Man would punish his mistake and that was really the only reason Sanji was injured.

The chef clenched his teeth in annoyance and idly wiped the blood off his forehead.

"What the hell are you even doing?" Jabra asked with a raised brow.

His opponent had been trading blows pretty evenly with him (with the blonde even getting the advantage at times), but at certain points, he would kick from very far away, curse aloud, Jabra would close the distance with Soru and nick the blonde with his sharp claws before Sanji dashed away with great speed himself.

That technique almost looked like Soru… wait… wait a damn second.

"Rankakyu!" Jabra shouted, shooting a blade of wind at Sanji, who's eyes widened in surprise.

"THAT'S IT—" Sanji was too shocked by watching Jabra use the technique he had been thinking of the entire time, to dodge the attack and it connected squarely with his stomach, sending him flying in a spray of blood.

"So this whole time… you were trying to use Rankakyu?!" Jabra gaped in disbelief.

So this crew really did know CP9 techniques?! He thought Rob Lucci was just kidding but clearly not!

Sanji, blood leaking from his wounds, took out a cigarette and lit it. He took a puff, before pulling himself up.

"I figured it out. Thanks shitty dog," Sanji said calmly. "Now, I can focus on saving Robin-chan."

Jabra raised a brow. "What exactly did you figure ou—"

The agent had no time to react, as Sanji earnestly went on the offensive for the first time this fight.

Jabra only had a moment to say "Tekkai," before a kick nearly shattered his defense and sent him flying.

"Impressive strength," he noted, pushing himself up and grinning wolfishly at the fact that the chef seemed to no longer be holding back.

Maybe he'd finally be able to get a good battle out of someone besides Izumi that didn't involve getting practically drugged like the illusionist loved to do.

The giant wolf pushed himself up and blurred, running straight for Sanji with blood in his eyes.

"Tekkai Kenpo: Wolf Bullet!"

Sanji blurred himself and rocketed off, avoiding the blow before jumping over Jabra.

"Longe!" He shouted, crashing his foot directly on Jabra's back and getting the man to howl in pain.

"That hardening technique of his is annoying… it's like when Rosan coats himself in armament," the chef grunted in annoyance. "I won't be able to take him out unless I up the fire power."

Jabra snarled in annoyance and reached out, gripping Sanji's leg before lashing out with his claws.

"Ten Finger Pistol!" the agent barked as he tried to stab every finger into the chef's midsection.

Sanji grunted and kicked the air hard once, launching himself out of the way.

"Geppo too?! It makes sense that he can use the techniques that requires legs... but who taught him?!" Jabra thought in disbelief, cocking his foot back.

"Rankakyu: Lone Wolf!" Jabra shouted.

A blade of air shot out, bouncing against the ground as it soared to the chef's position.

"Rankakyu!" Sanji shouted in return, grinning eagerly as his own blade of air formed and shot out, clashing with the man's blade and canceling both abilities out.

He learned it already?! How was that even possible.

"What the hell? You've learned it already?!" Jabra grunted in shock, eyes bugging in shock as he gazed at the strange blonde who he had written off earlier.

"...Then that's all that I have left to teach you."

Sanji blinked in confusion. "What?"

"Go ahead and save Robin. With that technique, I know you can do it," Jabra waved him off, taking a seat (still in his wolf form) and loosening his stance until he appeared almost defenseless.

"You all need the key to her cuffs right? Go save my little sister," the agent said, tossing his key to the ground.

The chef blinked again. "Your... sister?" He asked in confusion.

"That's right! We grew up on Ohara together before being forcefully separated... to be honest, I'm only here to make sure nothing bad happens to her," Jabra stated with closed eyes.

Sanji blinked once more… before shrugging. "I guess all the good genes went to Robin-chan... Alright, see ya! Thanks for the key but I don't need it!" He announced, activating Soru and dashing towards the door.

Jabra's jaw dropped and he immediately activated his own Soru to appear in front of Sanji.

"GET BACK HERE!" He howled, only to yell in pain, as a Sanji delivered an upward kick directly to his snout.

"You'll have to lie better than that!" The chef announced, grinning wildly.

Before Jabra could react, the chef used the momentum of his kick to launch the man into the air and kicked the air once, rocketing past the flying man until he reached the apex of their battleground.

Then, the chef began spinning as he descended, reaching Jabra at immense speeds.

"Concassé!" Sanji roared, launching the man towards the floor with crushing force.

The agent rocketed towards the ground and crashed with a loud BOOM, causing dust and debris to fly everywhere.

"Not enough!" Sanji thought, gritting his teeth in annoyance as the agent slowly but surely pulled himself back up.

Jabra snarled and crouched lowly. Not giving Sanji the chance to fully descend, he rocketed off towards the chef.

Activating Geppo, the man began soaring through the air to his target and held both claws up, intent on goring the man through.

"Moonlight Ten Finger Pistol!" Jabra shouted victoriously.

Sanji's eyes flew open and he tried to move out of the way, but he wasn't quick enough and the attack pierced his stomach, before sending him flying into the ceiling above.

He crashed directly through and kept ascending before gravity kicked in, causing him to fall back to the ground with a thud.

"Tch, leaving me with this guy… who does that stupid cat think he is ordering me around. Should have just let me deal with Roronoa Zoro and let the dumb giraffe fight this dumb blonde."

Jabra huffed in annoyance.

Whatever, he'd go deal with the Angel of Death with Puppet. Despite her personality being even more bland then the stupid leopard, he liked her. She was a good sparring partner and any company was better then the dumbass duo of Kumadori and Fukurou.

Yeah, Izumi was the agent he fancied the most so he'd go help her first. He knew what she was capable of and there was no way she could deal with the Red Devil alone... especially considering he had just been revealed to be the daunted Angel of Death—

"What… did… you just say?"

Jabra paused and raised a brow, as his bloodied opponent shakily stood up.

"You're still alive?" He asked, more so to himself as he straightened up once more.

Sanji spat out some blood, shuddering a bit and Jabra snorted loudly.

This guy could barely stand! Look at how much he was shaking!

"You… said I was worse… then the Moss Head?" He asked quietly, voice shaky.

"Obviously," Jabra scoffed, brandishing his claws. "There's a reason he has a bounty and you don't. He's a way bigger threat then you, dumbass."

Shuddering, shaky voice… this fight was as good as ove—

The CP9 agent blinked, as Sanji began spinning in place.

"Oi, you totally lost it haven't you?" Jabra asked with a shake of his head.

Crouching lowly, the wolf activated Soru and blurred forward.

"I do fast kills and you lived way too long. It's time I put you out of your misery."

"Diable Jambe."

"Diable what—" Jabra's eyes widened in confusion, as Sanji's legs lit up of all things. His momentous flight had carried him too far and so he committed to the attack he was planning on doing.

That was a mistake.

"Première Hachis."

Sanji dashed forward at incredible speeds, before leaping into the air and he began rapidly kicking Jabra's Tekkai enhanced body.

Kick after kick slammed into the agent's body, who could only howl in pain as every single one seemed to ignore his defense.

It was then he realized that Sanji hadn't been shaking in fear.

The psycho had been shaking in pure rage.

"YOU THINK I'M WORSE THAN THAT MOSS HEAD?! YOU THINK I'M WORSE THaN THE SHITTY REDHEAD? YOU THINK I DON'T DESERVE TO SAVE ROBIN-CHAN?! YOU THINK I'M THE WEAKEST IN THE CREW?!" Sanji roared, eyes burning as hot as his legs as he pummeled the wolf man with no remorse.

"I-I didn't even say all of that?!" Jabra thought in disbelief as his eyes flickered to the back of his head.

"HOW DO YOU THINK I FEEL, KNOWING THAT ROBIN-CHAN IS IN LOVE WITH THAT SHITTY REDHEAD!" Sanji raved, going mad from Jabra's insult.

"COLLIER!" Sanji roared, slamming a foot into the man's neck.

"HOW DO YOU THINK I FEEL KNOWING THAT STUPID MOSS HEAD HAS HAKI?!"

"RECEPTION!" He shouted, hooking the leg that was still on the man's neck, fully around and slamming him into the concrete below.

"NOW I HAVE SOME SHITTY DOG TRYING TO STOP ME FROM SAVING ROBIN-CHAN?! AFTER CALLING ME A COMPLETE FAILURE?!"

"This guy is totally insane?!" Jabra thought, body screaming in agony as Sanji utterly trashed him.

The assassin tried a last ditch lunge, all fingers brandished to gore him through with the Shigan, but somehow, Sanji seemed to anticipate the movement and effortlessly sidestepped it.

Jabra got another kick to his gut for his efforts and the man hunched over, spitting out saliva and blood from the devastating kick.

The chef effortlessly kicked up the keeled over wolf, suspending him in midair, before he delivered a brutal kick to his midsection once more.

Jabra's eyes rolled to the back of his skull and the noise of bones breaking resounded through the air, as he went flying.

But Sanji wasn't done.

Cocking his molten hot leg back, Sanji said with a tone of finality, "Searing Shot."

He kicked forward and shot out the Rankakyu, heated up to dreadful degrees because of his Diable Jambe.

The blade of wind shot forward and distorted the air around it due to the heat it was emanating.

Jabra's final thoughts before the molten hot blade smashed into his chest was, "What the hell just happened?!"

No blood flew, due to the heat of the attack instantly cauterizing his wound, and the wolf hybrid transformed back to normal, as he was knocked unconscious.

Sanji huffed, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it as his leg transformed back to normal.

He closed his eyes for a long time, before realization struck him.

In the last moments of that battle... Sanji had seen Jabra's last ditch efforts to attack him, well before he actually did it.

That meant only one thing.

Observation.

The chef puffed out smoke, before the euphoria hit and he grinned eagerly.

"That's right! I'm not worse then Moss Head… I'm not worse than the shitty redhead! I've got my Haki now and I just need to pick up my training to catch up to them… yeah that's right!" he said to himself, smile slowly vanishing.

"Robin-chan isn't in love with Rosan… of course she isn't… She was just looking at him like that because he's got a silver tongue… they just bathe together because he's a spoiled brat… yeah. He just gets to see her naked beautiful body because… because..."

"SHUT UP!" Sanji roared, kicking the defeated body of Jabra repeatedly, despite the man not saying a word.

The broken chef huffed, before turning on a heel and rushing off to go save Robin.

---

Zoro could confidently say, he was much stronger then his opponent, Kaku.

He claimed to use 4 swords, including his legs but even with that, he didn't truly have Zoro's level of skills in the blade.

He had reached a new realm of power after his fight with Ohm. With the addition of Armament Haki, his attacks were far more lethal then what Kaku could deal with.

So what was the problem?

Kaku was fast. Faster than Zoro.

The moment their fight had started, Zoro and Kaku had clashed once, before the agent realized the difference in their strength and adopted a different method.

"You're stronger then I expected," Kaku muttered, leaping back to avoid the lethal swing.

Cue, the hit and run game.

It was as infuriating as it sounded. His body being riddled in injuries, while Kaku remained unharmed, was proof of it.

Kaku would run around the room and launch various blades of wind at him that he had no problem deflecting, but became very annoying when the man would blur into his guard and try to pierce a hole into him.

Still, it didn't really pose much of a problem to him. The only thing made apparent, was that he should have followed in Rosan's steps and learned to coat himself in armament.

He did not have the defensive capabilities that Rosan had practiced with the sheen. Zoro had almost been exclusively learning how to coat all three of his blades in them.

He was beginning to regret that. He was sure Rosan would laugh at him knowingly.

The problems truly began, when the man activated his Zoan.

Despite being such a lame giraffe (Kaku took great offense to that), that did not take away from the fact that the man's strength had increased exponentially.

Almost as soon as he transformed, Kaku had used a variation of that Rankakyu technique, where he spun around in a circle and delivered it in every direction, and it nearly severed the top half of the building they were on in half.

Things only got more difficult from there.

Zoro couldn't fully block the gigantic blades now, enhanced by the size of the agent and some managed to nick him.

He couldn't dodge them all, because if he attempted to dodge one, Kaku would use a variation of the attack and shoot out multiple weaker ones that still hurt a lot.

It seemed like now that he was riddled with cuts, Kaku was done fighting like this too.

Zoro held up his swords to block the hybrid giraffe's square nose and grunted as it launched him back, before he slashed the air and shot a razor sharp blade.

Kaku blurred away from the attack, only to appear behind Zoro.

"Nose Pistol!"

Zoro turned just in time to block the attack and grit his teeth, as he forced his feet into the ground to avoid getting launched away.

Kaku's eyes widened in shock as Zoro remained rooted in his spot and had no time to react to the swordsman immediately capitalizing on his opportunity.

"Two Sword Style: Tower Climb!"

A spray of blood spurted from Kaku's chest from the razor sharp blades.

"Tower Climb Return!"

Kaku only had a moment to activate Kami-E, to avoid being decapitated by Roronoa Zoro and he dashed away once more, much to the annoyance of the swordsman.

"Even with all those cuts, he can still attack with such force?" Kaku thought in disbelief.

Well, no matter… it wasn't really his style but fighting that man up close was no good. He'd need to continue his previous course of action and just continue to whittle him down.

The only reason he had gone back to close range, was because he knew he couldn't kill the man by just doing this and perhaps he had grown tired enough… but clearly Roronoa Zoro was a different beast then the bounties indicated.

Then again... knowing of the Red Devil's true identity... perhaps all of the Straw Hats were being grossly underestimated.

That did not change the fact that his skills had truly dulled at Water 7… for him to resort to such tactics.

Ah well, he was an assassin first and foremost. Winning by any means was his priority and it appeared that the pirate crew were not used to handling a group of assassins who resorted to such tactics.

That made sense, they were rather straightforward.

"Rankakyu: Giraffe Shower!"

Zoro looked up in shock, as the tiny blades repeatedly cut into him. It was impossible to block them all, but he tried to the best of his abilities before falling to his knees and panting.

"Rankakyu: Dragon Sever!"

Kaku went for the kill. Kicking both his legs upward and summoning a blade of wind that looked similar to a large cut.

Zoro's chest exploded in a spray of blood, as he was forcefully elevated by the devastating attack.

The swordsman teetered for a moment before collapsing.

---

Flashback

"I have a very obvious advantage over you, that'll make defeating me almost impossible even when you do catch up to me."

Zoro glanced at the contemplating redhead with a confused expression, prompting Rosan to continue.

"It's best if I show you so you understand. Robin?" He glanced at her.

She nodded and stood up, before walking to the middle of their giant sparring building, idly stretching as her exhaustion began wearing off.

Zoro, understanding what he wanted, quickly took his place on the opposite side of the impressive and massive arena and pulled out all three of his blades.

Rosan had Ram transform into a blade that looked like an intricate katana and nodded to the Devil Child.

"Begin," Robin said, stepping to the safe area and being raised out of the way.

Zoro very quickly found out, exactly what Rosan was talking about as the redhead immediately took to the skies.

What followed next, was one of the most frustrating fights of his life.

The redhead would fly in and out, riddling him with light cuts before dashing away so that Zoro couldn't touch him.

It got so frustrating, that Zoro just wanted to get a single hit in on the elusive redhead only to fail utterly.

Before long, the swordsman was left kneeling on the floor, panting in exertion as Rosan flapped his wings above him.

"That Phoenix move of yours is a good ranged option," Rosan praised, smirking smugly at him and looking utterly infuriating. "But you won't have the luxury of aiming that move against someone like me because I'm really fast. You need a good option against a moving opponent who likes to keep their distance."

Zoro huffed. "Any ideas? I can summon wind blades with my sword too but that's probably not what you're looking for."

The redhead idly grabbed Robin off her stand and nodded, landing next to him.

"Yeah actually I do… I've taken particular interest in one of your techniques," Rosan informed him, eyes gleaming. "I'm a little offended by it's name and the effect it has because I want it to do more."

Zoro listened to Rosan's explanation and his eyes went wide in interest.

"Yeah… I could probably do that…" he muttered.

"Good… though, I doubt you'll have to use it in this specific situation often," Rosan shrugged.

Robin sweatdropped. "So why are you teaching him this? You have a point, it's not often he'll run into an opponent who can maintain a safe distance from him or his ranged techniques."

Zoro felt a feral grin forming, as Rosan's own smirk transformed into something maniacal.

"It's not for other opponents but it will certainly help for them," Rosan said, eyes glinting.

"So then, who is it for?" Zoro asked eagerly, having an idea already.

The redhead flashed a demonic grinned. "Me of course."

---

Right… he still had that technique… but the only way he could use it currently was…

Zoro huffed and pushed himself up, blood pouring from his body as he regarded the surprised Kaku.

The half giraffe looked shocked that he was still standing but just came to accept that the swordsman before him was abnormal and continued his assault.

"Giraffe Cannon!" He announced immediately. The agent retracted his neck into his body, before firing it back out like a cannon.

Zoro lunged to the left to avoid the attack, only to get his ribs smashed by Kaku's long neck.

The swordsman tumbled on the floor before catching himself just in time to see a hail of wind shurikens flying towards him.

He held up all three swords and began spinning them in front of him, using the speed to deflect the sharps attack.

"You're strong… but you aren't fast enough," Kaku said truthfully, appearing behind the swordsman.

Zoro's eyes rolled to the back of his head, as 4 blades, two swords and two legs, crashed into his back with devastating force, launching him across the room yet again.

Kaku couldn't stop the cold sweat from forming, as right after hearing the crash, the swordsman shakily pulled himself back up. Blood was pouring out of him in droves, enough to kill any normal person, but despite that, the demon of a swordsman just continued to get back up...

"What the hell? Am I that rusty? No, this has nothing to do with rust... just what is he?" He thought in disbelief.

Why… wasn't he dead yet? What was happening?! How could anyone move when they looked more akin to a corpse?!

Zoro breathed in heavily, before clutching his swords.

Kaku's eyes narrowed heavily and he got on one hand, before he began spinning rapidly.

"Fine then, I'll finish you off with this attack…"

Whatever Kaku was about to say, was cut off and the man's eyes bugged in horror, as before his very eyes, Zoro manifested 4 extra arms and 2 more heads on his body.

The CP9 agent faltered a bit at the bizarre sight, unable to fathom what he was witnessing.

"W-What? Is he some type of Demon God?!" Kaku thought in disbelief.

He attempted to comprehend the sight before him but came up short.

"Demon Aura: Asura."

"I'm getting tired of you running away," all three heads of Zoro said.

Kaku continued to spin, building up the necessary momentum to finish this. "You won't have to worry about it anymore. The only thing you need to worry about, is withstanding this attack."

"Rankakyu: Sky Slicer!"

The circle shaped Rankakyu, threatened to slice the entire top half of the tower where they were fighting.

Zoro looked at the upcoming attack with an almost serene expression.

"I really don't like that you have a technique with dragon in the name… and it's not enough to destroy everything in your path. So let's make it stronger."

He couldn't yet do this attack naturally, so he needed to rely on Asura to do so…

But the results of that...

"Nine Sword Style: Dragon Storm."

What followed next was armageddon. Kaku gazed, utterly petrified, at the incoming attack.

How would he be able… to escape this?

With all nine of his blades, Zoro conjured not just a tornado… but a storm of sharp winds that began cutting into everything it managed to get its hands on...

Kaku happened to be one of those things.

The gigantic torrent of wind reached Kaku in no time at all, smashing through his strongest Rankakyu.

It consumed the entirety of the room. There would have been nowhere for Kaku to run…

So he was forced to take the attack in its entirety.

The man's eyes rolled to the back of his head, as he was repeatedly cut into by the shredding winds, suit tearing completely and blood beginning to pour.

He had tried to activate his Tekkai, but it didn't matter. The attack had pierced his defenses like they didn't even exist.

The whole room was torn apart… No, the entire top half of the tower was currently being cut into ribbons and it was a good thing no one was above the two, else they'd be caught in this crossfire as well.

The only spot that remained untouched, was the area where the serene Zoro was standing.

He watched with an excited gaze, as his attack struck true.

"I need to thank Rosan for this idea. This isn't just useful for flying opponents… this attack is incredible," he thought to himself, before the excitement dimmed a bit.

He glanced at Yubashiri, the sword gifted to him at Loguetown, with a frown.

It was as he feared. This sword couldn't handle the strain of armament or his higher leveled techniques like Wado Ichimonji or Sandai Kitetsu could. He had noticed during training, but it was always more difficult to apply it to the sword he was gifted with.

The cracks riddled all over it, was proof of that.

The swordsman sighed before sheathing all his blades. He tested his step, before nodding to himself and walking off, unmindful of the amount of blood he was leaking.

"Oh and by the way," Zoro called out to the defeated Kaku.

"That Galley-Ga… Paulie, told me to tell you, that you're fired."

With that, he left the room to go pursue Robin.

"Paulie said that?" Kaku rasped to himself, barely awake before falling unconscious.

Zoro grunted, idly spitting out a glob of blood as he continued his trek.

Now where should he go?

---

Robin huffed, body bruised and battered, as Spandam kept punishing her for every attempt she made to escape.

Blood was leaking from her head, her black outfit was scraped, she was in a lot of pain but none of that even came close to the sheer terror she felt at being separated from her crew.

"WOULD YOU STOP RESISTING?! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Spandam roared, yanking her by the hair as she attempted to run off again.

Without any hesitation, he smashed a fist onto her bloodied temple and floored her once more.

"YOU'RE ONLY GOOD FOR DYING!" The man raved, holding her up roughly by her silky hair. "YOU HAVE NO REASON TO LIVE! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

"IF I WANTED TO, I COULD CALL A BUSTER CALL RIGHT NOW AND HAVE ALL YOUR FRIENDS KILLED! ALL OF THEM!" Spandam roared, digging into his pocket as he reached for the Golden Den Den.

Robin huffed slowly, preparing to escape the moment he held her up once more.

There was still time. She wasn't yet on the bridge, being forcefully escorted through the corridor so once she could, she'd make a break for it—

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!" Spandam screeched, eyes bugging in horror. "WHERE IS THE DEN DEN?! WHAT HAPPENED TO IT?! I-IT WAS IN MY POCKET JUST BEFORE?!"

That made Robin react and she regarded him with wide, terror filled, eyes.

"You don't know where it is?! Who has it?!" She asked in shock.

Spandam rounded on her and punched her on the cheek. "SHUT THE HELL UP! IF I KNEW, I WOULDN'T BE WONDERING, BITCH! DON'T EVER TRY TO SPEAK TO ME SO FREELY!" He frothed, digging everywhere in his pocket and going steadily pale as he realized he couldn't find it.

W-When did he lose it? Where was it?! WHERE WAS THE GOLDEN DIAL?!

Did he… forget it in the tower? Did he have to turn back to go look for it? No… he didn't have enough time!

B-But what would Aokiji do to him if he heard that he lost it of all things?!

He needed to turn back and go find it—

The entire tower shaking, halted his thoughts and he gulped.

Could he really go back in there? W-Well… he would just bring Nico Robin there first and have his winning agents bring him the Den Den… right after he could send out calls.

What did that Red Devil do to interfere with his calls? Well... considering he was the Angel of Death, it made sense that he had ways to keep secrets but it was really terrifying knowing that such a monster was lurking on the island, with no one but his agents as backup.

They should easily be able to gang up on him though—

Spandam balked at seeing Robin making great distance away from him, hobbling back towards the shuddering tower with a single minded focus.

Even with all those injuries… she was STILL TRYING?!

"FUNKFREED! DODGE ANY VITALS!" He snarled.

"I don't want to die," Robin chanted to herself as she made as much distance as possible. "I want to travel with the Straw Hats. I want to talk to Angel, Maro, Demon, Aiko, Akemi… I want to grow stronger with them!"

"I want to spend the rest of my days with Rosan! I never want to leave him again!"

The woman couldn't stop the yell of pain, as the elephant tackled into her again, causing even more injuries to bloom on her body as her exposed skin met roughly with the pavement below.

Robin resisted the urge to cry and instead tried to roll away to continue running.

A hand gripped her head and slammed her face into the concrete with crushing force, causing the cry to escape her body.

"Just. Accept. Your. Death!" Spandam hissed. "I already lost the Golden Snail. You think I'm going to lose you too?! You will be turned over to the World Government, Devil."

Blood began pooling under her from all the injuries sustained but still she did not falter.

"Just wait for me Robin… be strong, I'll be over in a flash."

This was nothing… she could still fight. She could still escape. She just needed to wait for an opportunity.

They would save her.

They would save her.

Please save her…

---

Rob Lucci could admit that despite his bounty, despite the fact he was the captain of the Angel of Death, he had not taken much stock of Straw Hat at all.

That was a severe mistake.

The fight had started off simple enough. Luffy and Lucci were clearly testing the waters with each other, exchanging quick blows without much lethal intent.

Lucci's first sign that something was wrong, was the fact that Straw Hat was the one coming out on top of most of these exchanges. The rubber boy easily predicted where he was going to attack and dodged it well in advance, delivering his own attacks in exchange.

That wasn't to say Lucci himself was coming out injured… He just took more hits but they were mostly ineffective due to his combination of Kami-e (that were becoming far more ineffective) and Tekkai.

Straw Hat was also extremely slippery, much like when he got ganged up on by the Galley-La foremen.

It was even more annoying now that it was 1 on 1… even with Lucci not holding back nearly as much.

Luffy threw out a pistol that Lucci weaved with Kami-e, before the agent lunged forward at blistering speeds, finger aimed to stab at him with Shigan.

To his shock, Luffy allowed the blow to hit him and took no damage at all from it, responding with a stretched sandal to the face that Lucci barely activated Tekkai to withstand.

Before Luffy could withdraw his limb, Lucci's eyes heightened in bloodlush and he gripped the leg with crushing force.

"I don't have many opportunities to hurt him, I must make this count," he thought, capitalizing on the fact that Straw Hat didn't know anything about him.

Luffy's eyes widened as before his very eyes, Lucci began to change.

"W-What?! He's a cat?!" He balked, watching the man's skin bulge out, yellow fur beginning to cover his skin as his height exploded, towering over the already shorter Luffy.

The half Leopard yanked Luffy towards him, refusing to let him go for even a second and pierced the rubber boy's chest with his, now sharp, claws.

"Piercing attacks affect you," Lucci snarled victoriously, blood marring the finger as his tail lashed out and gripped Luffy by the neck.

Luffy grunted as he was hoisted up, struggling in the man's grasp.

Lucci pressed his advantage immediately and he sadistically brandished his claws.

"Shigan: Speckles."

Luffy was helpless to resist the barrage of claws slamming into him with ruthless force, blood spurting from each hole being put in his body as Lucci continued to hit him, smiling psychotically at the pain he was inflicting on the rubber boy.

Luffy powered through the pain and huffed, thrusting his arm to the side and beginning to pump it.

"Gear Second."

Lucci had no time at all to react, as a fist blurred and collided with his face with such speed and force, he had no choice but to release the rubber boy. The leopard man and was launched back into a wall.

"What was that?" He thought in confusion, glancing up in confusion.

Luffy was directly in front of him, ignoring his bloodied body as he cocked a fist back and launched it at ridiculous speeds.

"Tekkai —"

Lucci spat out a glob of blood as the attack pierced through his defense like it were made of paper. He was sent crashing into a wall before collapsing on the ground below him.

A sound, eerily similar to Soru, sounded out and he only had a moment to react, before a stomp crushed the floor beneath him like it weren't made of stone.

The agent swiftly scrambled to his feet, only to bend over as a fist planted itself directly into his gut.

Luffy, fist still lodged into the man's gut, hoisted him up and left him airborne before cocking both fist back.

"Gomu Gomu no Jet Gatling."

Lucci's eyes rolled to the back of his head, as Luffy gave him a taste of his own medicine and bombarded him with a barrage of fists that tenderized the Zoan's body.

The agent was sent flying from the assault, hacking in disbelief as he stumbled back to his feet and collapsing to the floor after taking too hard of a breath.

Him attempting to move, was yet another mistake, as a sandal immediately smashed into the side of his head.

"H-How is he moving with all those holes in his body?!" Lucci couldn't help but think, eyes flickering as he resisted the urge to be knocked unconscious.

Luffy panted as the severe blood loss and use of Gear Second, began catching up to him but stood his ground, deactivating Gear Second for the moment, but ready to activate it at a moment's notice.

Pigeon guy was capable of taking a beating, if the way he was forcing himself up meant anything…

These injuries were hampering him by quite a lot. His entire midsection was riddled with bloody holes so he couldn't quite hit him with full power…

Luffy frowned, as his opponent shakily stood up, glaring at him.

"It'll take more then that to take me down Straw Hat… I'll admit you're formidable but with your wounds and the nature of that technique… you won't last long," Lucci observed, wiping the blood from his lips and smirking.

"Seimei Kikan: Return"

The agent huffed as his formerly hulking body shrunk considerably. He became slimmer, looking far more like an actual hybrid between man and leopard as he snarled at the rubber boy.

Lucci discarded the idea of trying to get another hit in immediately. They were both battered and bruised but because of the nature of their fighting styles, Lucci was suffering broken bones, but Luffy was bleeding out.

In this battle of attrition, he had the advantage so long as he could withstand the pain he was in. Not only that, he simply needed to wait for the faster Straw Hat to begin slowing down. As such, he needed something faster and more agile.

It wouldn't be hard to outlast the rubber boy with holes in his body. Lucci just needed to not get hit again.

The agile leopard's eyes widened as Luffy's skin turned steamy once more and he immediately vanished from his spot.

"Such speed!" Lucci thought, activating Geppo and barely managing to escape from the rubber boy.

Luffy looked as if he wanted to stretch his arms to catch him, but seemed to anticipate Lucci going for another grab and refrained himself.

Instead, he pursued the man with his own Geppo, kicking through the air at even greater speeds than Lucci and quickly catching up to him.

But it seemed like Lucci no longer had any intention of fighting him outright.

Lucci immediately descended once more, landing on the floor and as Luffy tried to pursue, the leopard shouted, "Rankakyu: Leopard Tail!"

Luffy grunted as he halted his descent and kicked away from the blade of air shaped into a swirl.

His observation flared and the rubber boy growled in annoyance, as he was forced to dodge even more.

Lucci flicked his fingers repeatedly, shooting out a variation of Shigan that was similar to Rankakyu and forcing the rubber boy to continue to expend energy so as to dodge it.

"Little by little…" he snarled, claws sharpening.

"Rankakyu: Victorious Bird."

He shout out a giant Rankakyu, this one in the shape of a bird that soared towards the frustrated Luffy, who once more avoided the attack.

"If I throw a punch he'll grab me and finish me off…" Luffy frowned heavily, dashing forward at blistering speeds and throwing out a close ranged punch that Lucci evaded with Kami-e, only for him to get caught by the other, sending the man careening.

The leopard's tail lashed out and Luffy leapt back from it, contorting his body to avoid the Rankakyu and hissing as the awkward angle, caused his injuries to flare up.

This caused him to make a slight misstep and Lucci's eyes burned red, like a shark detecting blood in the water.

Lucci didn't waste a single step, as he activated Soru and blurred forward.

Luffy's eyes widened as the leopard placed two fists on his chest with a victorious glint.

"Rokushiki Secret Technique: Rokuogan."

A shockwave erupted from the point of contact between Lucci and Luffy and the rubber boys body shuddered, as the attack devastated his organs.

The captain of the Straw Hat's eyes fluttered, rolling to the back of his head as the attack landed true and he shuddered, before falling back.

---

Flashback

"Gear Third?" Rosan asked with a raised brow, sitting on a whining Maro's back as he pat her head.

The Dokkaebi stopped complaining and glanced over at the rubber boy. "You developed another gear?"

Luffy nodded excitedly. "I've been thinking about it for a while! I need more oomph behind my punches because I can't hit you guys hard enough and make it count!"

Rosan snorted at that and nodded. "Fair point… so you're telling me you developed a form with even more power then Gear Second? The power boost you get from that is no joke."

Seriously, Luffy managed to do nonsense with his fruit that seemed on par with the Mod Mod no Mi. He made his fruit look like way more than a Paramecia.

Maro wasn't fully convinced. She grunted and pulled herself up with a contemplating frown."It has to have a downside. You never develop normal techniques, so show it to us now and we'll figure it out to maybe try and hash out the issues with it."

Robin hummed in interest, eyes narrowing in contemplation. "Just Gear Second alone is incredibly intuitive and you're telling me he's developed another form? You frighten me, captain."

Zoro's eyes glinted in clear interest as well, pushing himself up to gaze at the upcoming fight.

Luffy laughed as he took his position on the arena, standing opposite of the stretching Maro.

"Alright immediately start off with it! I wanna see this technique that can affect me and Master!" Maro shouted, transforming into her full Zoan without wasting anytime.

The captain nodded before biting his thumb.

Everyone watched with curious eyes, as Luffy began to blow into his own body.

"Is this like Balloon?" Maro muttered in interest, watching as the rubber boy's fist became gigantic from his efforts. "But that move is so soft and squishy? How does he expect to hit harder then Gear Second with that?"

His fist looked more akin to a giants honestly… But did Luffy actually do any testing to see how much damage it did?

Rosan, Robin and Zoro were thinking the same thing, sitting back and observing with confused eyes as Luffy cocked his gargantuan fist back.

"Gomu Gomu no Gigant Pistol!" Luffy bellowed, shooting out the giant fist towards the curious Dokkaebi.

They thought Maro was going to take the attack, but to their surprise, the Dokkaebi's orange eyes went wide in disbelief and she immediately teleported from her spot.

They soon understood why Maro moved instead of absorbing the blow.

Everyone watched with wide eyes, as Luffy's fist pulverized the entire section of the arena he had struck.

"Holy shit!" Maro gaped.

Robin had a look of realization on her face. "I get it now. He's not expanding his body... he's expanding his bones," she explained, thinking back to the way he blew into his thumb.

The moment Robin said that, everyone began to reassess the move.

Maro nodded sagely. "My observation told me that I really wouldn't like getting hit by that move! It only looks similar to balloon but trust me it packs a serious punch."

Rosan scowled, mind running a minute as he gleaned all the techniques weaknesses. "That's if he can even hit his opponent with it. This technique is good but it has too many weaknesses. How do you expect to hit me or Maro if we just decide to move around the whole time? Not to mention, you look like you can barely move."

Robin idly slapped the arm of the strict redhead. "It's clear the technique isn't fully polished yet, Rosan. Just the fact he thought of it is deserving enough of praise. If he can hit someone, they will almost certainly feel it."

"Can isn't good enough, Robin," Rosan grunted, eyes narrowed as he absentmindedly flicked her on the head. "There is no point using an attack you think will miss. I like the idea but you have a lot more polishing to do before I'd feel comfortable letting you use it in battle."

Luffy, who frequently asked Rosan for advice, nodded his head. "It's a work in progress but you're right. It has a lot of downsides but when I master it, I'm gonna kick you, Maro, Sabo and Ace's ass with it!"

The redhead nodded, eyes glinting a little excitedly. "I'm looking forward to it. You're pushing this fruit's creativity to its limit. I never thought I'd meet someone as creative with their Devil Fruit as me but you continue to impress me, Lu," he complimented, rubbing the boys head.

"Seeing you two makes me want to attempt to explore my Devil Fruit even further," Robin muttered in a bit of awe, rubbing her forehead a little.

"I've still got more catching up to do," Zoro grunted. "It's only a matter of time before I get put on that list of yours."

Maro laughed and slapped Zoro's back. "Welcome to the club! It's fun being this competitive!"

Luffy laughed as well before exhaling the air used to sustain his technique.

Everyone watched with a blank gaze, as the rubber boy flew around from the force of exhaling all that air… before he landed on his two feet… about three feet shorter.

...

"...What the fuck is this?" Rosan asked calmly, all traces of amusement gone as he stared at his shrunken captain with a painfully neutral gaze.

"Luffy…" Zoro sighed at the idiot.

"I shrink after I use it," Luffy said bluntly, looking nonplussed at the decrease in height.

Maro immediately squealed and hoisted up Luffy, crushing him against her breast with a happy smile. "It's been so long since you've been so small, Luffy! Look at how adorable he is! It's like he's 7 again! You're about to kill me with all this cuteness! Oh, by the way, you are absolutely banned from using this technique in a real battle!"

Her motherly gushing did nothing to hide the firmness behind that final sentence and the chibi Luffy nodded.

Robin couldn't prevent the small coo and snatched Luffy out of Maro's hand.

"He's adorable so don't be too upset with him, Rosan," Robin said, turning towards the utterly unamused redhead and presenting Luffy to him like he were a toy.

Rosan sighed and shook his head. "Luffy, unless you think you can win a battle with this technique. Try not to use it, got it?" He demanded.

Luffy nodded. "So if I can win the fight… I can use it?"

The redhead grunted and waved him off. "If you're in a situation where you have to use this technique to win the fight… Me worrying about you using it will be the least of our concerns."

---

"Rosan's gonna be mad that I had to use this here… I coulda beat this guy without it but I messed up…"

Don't use the technique unless he could win the battle with it…

Luffy huffed as he shakily pulled himself up, nearly collapsing on his feet from the damage done to his insides. Blood steadily dripped from his body, as his legs wobbled and he collapsed on a knee, before hoisting himself up once more.

Lucci stared in complete shock, as his opponent actually got up from a Rokuogan. The leopard had transformed back into his human form, thinking the fight was as good as over.

He was going to assist that useless puppet in her battle against the Angel of Death... but that didn't seem like much of a choice right at the moment because to his immense disbelief… Straw Hat was still moving.

What in the world…

"No matter… you're practically dead on your feet," Lucci sighed, transforming into his normal hybrid form once more.

Luffy said nothing, looking eerily calm as he stared at his hand.

"I need to save Robin… and you're in my way," Luffy said calmly, putting both thumbs up to his mouth.

For Robin… For Rosan… He wouldn't let anyone get in the way of saving his crewmates.

This wasn't just him saving Robin… if he failed here, he'd lose his oldest brother too.

And not just that, everyone would be devastated if she died. How could they ever continue sailing knowing they failed to save one of their friends? How could Maro, Angel and Demon continue to run Celadon, knowing they lost such important people?

How could he ever become King of Pirates with such a cloud over his head?

The answer was that he couldn't. If Luffy lost even one member in his crew, he'd never be able to become the Pirate King because he didn't even have what it took to protect them all.

It didn't matter if he was close to dying. It didn't matter if he could barely move. It didn't matter if his body was screaming in pain for him to stop and sleep.

What mattered was that Robin wanted to live. What mattered was that Rosan had shown fear.

What mattered was that he needed to win this fight.

Lucci went completely still, as a sensation washed over him and froze him to his spot.

The leopards eyes went wide at the terrible sensation and he unconsciously took a step back in confusion.

"This… is just like when the Red Devil was speaking to Nico Robin. This pressure! What is this feeling?!" He thought, shaking himself off as he began rocketing forward to Luffy, intent on killing him here and now.

Luffy glanced at his fists with a puzzled expression, before a look of realization took over and a slight sheen formed.

"Gear Third."

Holding his fists up, Rob Lucci prepared to pulverize Luffy's inside with another Rokuogan.

"Gomu Gomu no…"

"IT'S OVER STRAW HAT! JUSTICE IS ABSOLUTE!" Lucci roared.

"Rokuoga—"

"…Gigant Gatling."

Lucci never got to finish his sentence, as the first fist smashed into him.

Then the second fist hit him… then the third… and all Lucci knew was agony.

"RAHHHH!" Luffy roared, pummeling the man with fist after gigantic blooding fist. He was merciless, unrelenting in his assault as his fists carried the man over to a wall with each bone shattering punch.

Lucci didn't notice the black sheen on the rubber boy's arms, already slipping into a state of unconsciousness as the captain of the Straw Hats proceeded to break every single bone in his body into powder.

He was sent flying through every single wall he crashed into, until his body landed directly outside the Tower of Justice.

Rob Lucci lay there in defeat, unconscious from the assault as a shrunken Luffy panted heavily.

"Tired… hungry… hungry... and hungry but need to save Robin," his squeaky voice rasped, feeling out with his observation as he threatened to fall unconscious.

The rubber boy blinked.

"What happened to Chopper?!"

---

"What the hell happened to Chopper?!"

This was the unanimous thought process of every single Straw Hat, as they gazed up at the soulless eyes of the massive creature that had to have been their doctor.

While running towards Robin's location, they had all met up and subsequently encountered a gigantic brown creature wearing Chopper's hat and pants combo.

"Has he always had that transformation?" Sogeking squeaked in terror, going white as he stared up at the gentle reindeer.

"WROOOOO!" Chopper roared to the heavens.

Sogeking was shoved out of the way by Sanji, as the monstrous hand smashed the floor he was standing in with lethal force.

The liar went even paler, as he realized that hand was covered in someone's blood.

"Yeah!" Zoro barked. "He must have ate 3 Rumble Balls like that one time with Maro!" He announced to everyone.

All who remembered that monstrous transformation, shuddered as they realized it took Rosan dumping Maro in water to cancel that incredibly dangerous form.

"Chopper?! That's your little reindeer friend?!" Franky gaped, in disbelief.

Chopper's stance immediately shifted and quicker than he could react, Franky was hit with a gigantic fist that would have pulverized his insides if not for his physiology.

With no concern for his immense weight, Chopper sent the cyborg flying through a wall, a trail of blood following him.

"Chopper! It's us! Can't you recognize us?!" Zoro shouted, leaping back as the reindeer targeted him next.

Chopper did not respond. Instead the terrifying creature opened its mouth and roared once more, slamming a fist that Zoro hastily threw up two swords to block.

Even after imbuing them with Armament, the momentum of the downward swing nearly forced Zoro into the pavement and his already broken up pieces of Yubashiri, practically shattered beyond repair.

"He gets this strong?!" Zoro couldn't help but balk, diverting the swing to the best of his abilities and dashing out of the way of the rampaging reindeer.

By now, the Tower of Justice had been under so much punishment from their respective battles, it was only a matter of time before it fully collapsed, especially after what Zoro and Nami had done respectively.

With Chopper rampaging like this, the building may collapse while they were still in the building.

Nami shook as she gazed at their once adorable reindeer.

This was the form he was so terrified of entering? I-It was no wonder he was so terrified for Maro... he was so ridiculous right now!

Franky burst out of the rubble with a pissed expression. "YOU'RE SUPER LUCKY YOU'RE AN ALLY OR I WOULD HAVE PULVERIZED YOU!" He roared, huffing in exhaustion.

"This can't possibly be good for him! Remember what happened to Maro? We need to get him out of this form quick!" Nami informed them all, a look of intense worry in her eyes.

The Straw Hats gazed at the reindeer and noted that she was right, Chopper looked as if the very vitality was being drained out of him.

If it was really the same as Maro's, Rosan had prioritized completely neutralizing her over knocking her out because staying in the form too longer would begin killing her.

"How do we stop it?!" Sanji grunted, using Geppo to try and reach Chopper's face.

"CHOPPER, SNAP OUT OF IT! IT'S US!" Sanji shouted, gazing into the creatures unnerving gaze with a look of concern.

Chopper's response was to swing his arm with more speed than he ever showed initially.

Sanji's eyes widened as he saw the hand flying towards him.

"So fast! Chopper could move like this all along?! He's not even thinking in this form because my Observation didn't go off either!" He gaped.

Crap. He was still injured from his fight with the wolf… there was no way he was going to be able to dodge this.

The hand smashed right into him.

"SANJI!" Nami and Sogeking shouted, watching as Chopper embedded the chef into the wall.

Like he were getting peeled off, the chef collapsed towards the floor.

A gust of wind slowed his descent and Nami gazed worriedly at him, wanting to check up on the chef throwing up blood but fearing what the Chopper in the way would do to her.

"Shit… we're all to injured from our fights," Zoro grunted, gazing at the rampaging monster with a frown as he picked up Sanji.

"What do we do?!" Sogeking asked in concern. Things weren't looking good at all.

At this rate, by the time they stopped Chopper, they'd be too beat up to save Robin.

"CHOPPER!" Luffy squeaked, tiredly running into the room of all his allies in his shrunken form. "WHAT'S WRONG?! WHAT HAPPENED?!"

"WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?!" Franky couldn't but roar as he saw the diminutive frame of Luffy.

"Luffy! Chopper is rampaging right now and we can't stop him!" Nami said, balking at the state of his injuries and tiny size too.

She was the best off from the fight. The boys looked like they had gone through a war and Luffy looked like he was seconds away from dying!

"What do we do?! We still need to get Robin!" Sogeking pointed out, squealing as Chopper gazed at him.

"WROOOOOOO!" The beast roared, charging the Straw Hats with a single minded focus.

Luffy frowned as he noticed one was missing. "We can focus on stopping Chopper! Rosan will save Robin!" He announced.

"Where is Rosan? Is he alright?" Zoro asked in disbelief, grabbing his shrunken captain so they could both avoid the wild swings.

"He'll be fine! Trust him!" Luffy shouted in return.

"LURE HIM TO A BODY OF WATER!" Sanji shouted raspily as they all ran away from the reindeer. "IF WE CAN SINK HIM, WE CAN STOP THIS! THAT'S HOW ROSAN STOPPED MARO!"

"RIGHT, LET'S DO THAT!"

With that, the Straw Hats sprinted away, giant Reindeer hot on their heels.

---

Rosan narrowed his eyes and dashed away, avoiding the gunfire of those seastone nails with ease.

Electricity sparked around him and he blurred forward.

Izumi, disguised as Meiko, flinched at the sheer speed and braced herself for the pain, only to let out a sigh of relief as Rosan merely snatched the weapon out of her hand.

Without any hesitation he made it disappear into his Pocket Dimension.

"At the very least, I got rid of that weapon," he thought with a deep frown.

Izumi frowned at the loss of a weapon but it really did seem like her plan was working and... not having to shoot with the gun was more of a relief to her so it wasn't a complete loss.

Rosan sidestepped a sharp stab from Meiko, seeing a plethora of options he could take to kill his opponent, but not going for a single one.

Instead, he modified the ground to attempt to restrain the girl and watched as she kicked upwards, dodging the grabby stone by taking to the skies.

"Ah ah ah!" Meiko chided. "I know you can manipulate the stone! You did it to Izuki! Don't you remember?! When you chose to assault and kill him instead of saving me?"

Rosan flinched back at the reminder, expression turning into guilt as the day of her death replayed in his mind over and over again.

Izumi took full advantage of his weakness. She rocketed towards the redhead, building up momentum and brandishing those sharp claws.

"Shigan!" She announced, attempting to gore him through with all 10 of her sharpened nails.

Much to Izumi's dissatisfaction, that pesky outfit of his weathered her blow easily and Rosan once again tried to restrain her with the chasing ground.

She expected this however and activated Soru, dashing away at immense speeds.

"I know it's not her. I know it's Izumi… so why can't I hit her?!" Rosan thought with a deep glare.

This was one of the most frustrating fights he had ever been in because he was drastically stronger than his opponent... but he couldn't do anything about it!

He could have ended this fight at any time if he just went on the offensive. Izumi was nowhere near him in strength and she was aware of that.

He was faster, stronger, smarter...

But the ballsy girl was relying on his own weakness and chose to tow an incredibly dangerous line to do so.

Incredibly risky…

Not to mention, her illusions were nothing like Maro's.

Maro's illusions were akin to mirages. She could field the terrain around with her magic and trick people with it.

Izumi's illusions were akin to hallucinations. She didn't manipulate the terrain, no she tampered with the person's mind so Rosan could do nothing to get rid of the image of Meiko.

That wasn't all either. The girl was also capable of using her abilities to induce hypnosis upon the person. He had been practically fighting off the urge to sleep the entire fight and when that failed, she heightened his sense of self loathing.

It was torture. Rosan was already replaying the day he got Meiko killed over and over again, Izumi was forcing him to view it as well while simultaneously posing as his dead lover.

He was in hell.

"There has to be some way I can hit her… without feeling like I'm striking Meiko," Rosan thought, gazing at the face of his deceased love with pained eyes.

Ah… maybe he could try that.

Izumi watched in confusion as Rosan closed his eyes.

What was he doing? Was he planning on fighting her with his eyes closed? What would that accomplish? If he couldn't see her, how would he be able to hit her—

"EMP: Shockwave."

A surge of red electricity lashed out in a wave from the redhead, encapsulating the entire room, and Izumi had no time to dodge it whatsoever.

The woman shrieked as it connected to her skin and a surge of electricity pulsed through her.

"A-AGH!" She yelped in agony, feeling the lightning course through her veins and nearly seizing up completely.

This power was ridiculous. W-Why was he so strong?!

Rosan huffed in victory. If he just closed his eyes, he could send out attacks and hit Izumi. Like this, he didn't have to look at Meiko's fac—

"R-Rosa—," Mod coughed as she attempted to speak to the redhead. When that failed she glanced pleadingly at Ram

"F-Father! Auntie is trying to tell you to cover your ears!"

Rosan's confusion only lasted a split moment as realization crossed his features but he was far too late.

Well, even if he did cover his ears, Izumi would have made sure he heard this.

Sniffing froze him in place before the sound of Meiko bawling, brought him to his knees.

A-Ah... no no. He didn't mean to make her cry. Rosan never wanted to be the reason Meiko cried but why was he making her cry?

"R-Rosan why? Why would you hit meeee?!" Meiko wailed, tears spilling from her eyes as she gazed brokenly at the frozen visage Rosan.

Why? Why did he hit her? There had to have been... no, Rosan wouldn't... he'd never even dream of abusing Meiko...

Right? B-But she was dead... because of him.

"I knew it! I knew you didn't love me!" the blonde sobbed, backing away from the redhead as she rapidly shook her head. "Of course you don't love me. I-If you loved me, I wouldn't have died because you'd keep me safe!"

Mod scowled furiously, tears falling from her eyes. T-This underhanded bitch. Just who did she think she was?! How dare she use sweet little Meiko like this.

If she weren't sick, Mod would have done the terrible task of putting her down… is what she wanted to say but not even she could handle seeing the pain on Meiko's face.

She could only imagine what Rosan was going through right now.

"This isn't… is this real? Is this like the dreams I've been having where I speak to Meiko?" Rosan thought, mind in complete disarray as he gazed at the teary eyed Meiko.

How many of this was real? Why couldn't he… Why did he fail her? If he had just… done anything different that day… If he had just been less selfish.

If he just prioritized others over himself, Meiko would still be alive.

"Seems like he's been just as affected by that day as me," Izumi thought, shaking her head as the redhead began shaking in place. She had long broken that mask of his, so she saw his utterly helpless expression.

"Don't you worry at all sweetie, I'll give you someone new to devote your life too. This way, we can both stop suffering," she thought, brandishing her nails once more.

Her nails weren't sharp enough to pierce that cloak of his…

"Seimei Kikan: Tekkai."

Izumi had learned everything there was to learn about CP9. 12 years. She had spent 12 years absorbing all that she could for this moment.

All of them were useless to her goals. None of them were Rosan. None of them filled her with anything like he did... but they had their specialties and she greedily absorbed them, particularly from the stupid mutt Jabra and the suicidal idiot Kumadori.

This was the result here.

Her nails sharpened into something lethal, hardening from the effects of Tekkai and the manipulation of Seimei Kikan.

She pushed herself up and lunged towards the prone Rosan.

Unlike before, her attack managed to pierce directly through that cloak of his and lodged itself into his stomach.

"Shigan: Iron Shelling."

Rosan, still not at 100%, rasped as five razor sharp blades pierced his cloak and tender skin with ruthless force, causing blood to begin spurting as it seeped into her fingers.

To make matters worse, she injected him with that same poison from before and Rosan grunted.

Luckily, he had already built up a resistance to it but even a split bit of attention from the stone in his current state would add up.

Izumi withdrew her claws before plunging them into a different spot and raking upwards, stopping right before reaching his neck.

"Shigan: Iron Lashings!"

There was a deranged grin on her face, unmindful of the spray of blood that landed on her.

Rosan's eyes lolled a bit, as he spit out blood. The redhead let out a strained noise, as his body steadily began healing him up.

"Mmmm~ You're able to take so much punishment! What type of healing is this?! I was wondering how you were moving with holes in your body…" Izumi pondered, gazing at the wounds slowly closing.

She grinned.

"Let's see how much punishment you can take~"

It really wasn't fair, that she was assaulting a mentally helpless Rosan at the moment but…

Girls like her didn't fight fair~

"Shigan: Iron Massacre."

Activating Soru, Izumi began blurring around Rosan, stabbing into anywhere she could reach with those hard and sharp nails.

"R-ROSAN!" Mod screamed in horror, as more and more blood began flying from the redhead. Tears began falling from her eyes and she pushed herself up, only to let out a whine as her body failed.

"F-FATHER!" Ram screeched, eyes flying wide in horror as Izumi lashed out with ruthless precision, avoiding fatal spots and inflicting as much pain as she could on the redhead.

She saw now why Father had forbade her from helping… because true to his words, she hadn't been able to do anything. Even trying to turn into a defensive weapon seemed impossible for her because no part of her wanted to turn against Mother…

But now, now her Father, the one who created her, the one who loved her, was suffering because of her complete inability to do anything.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Ram screeched furiously.

The ring on Rosan's finger, transformed into a massive red energy barrier that Izumi barely managed to leap away from.

"Oh? A bit too late don't you think?" Izumi asked with a smile, unknowingly speaking to Ram.

The damage had been done. Whenever Rosan's body began healing him, Izumi placed a new injury on his body, until the wounds started closing noticeably slower.

Her eyes gleamed at seeing him teeter, not healed instantly from the damage she inflicted and the girl let out a noise of delight.

"So you weren't fully healed from my torture," she crooned, watching gleefully as he swayed and swayed in that red barrier of his.

Izumi slowly transformed into Meiko once more, walking up to the barrier and making sure not to touch it.

"I'm so glad you still love me, to the point where you won't even consider hurting me. I'm so glad you still love me, to the point where just the sound of me crying was able to make you give up," she said demurely, gazing lovingly into his unfocused gaze.

"Everyone dreams of something and you're dream is to see me again. To be with me again. It's a dream that you'll discard everything to reach. At the drop of a hat, if you had the opportunity, you'd throw everything away to see me again," she whispered.

"Father! Please tell me you can keep moving!" Ram begged, maintaining the barrier for as long as she needed to. "Please don't let her win! This isn't enough to stop you!"

"…" Rosan was completely unresponsive, blood just pouring from every crevice in his body as the red and purples of his eyes began flickering.

"Well you can see me again," Meiko whispered soothingly. "Just let go. Fall asleep, Rosan and I'll make all your dreams come true. Doesn't that sound nice? A world where you can be with your soulmate again?" She asked, preying on his weakness with a level of ruthlessness befitting of her.

She grinned wildly as the redhead's swaying got stronger.

"Just let go. It'll all be over soon, darling. Give in to me. Give your heart to me… You won't regret it…"

Rosan collapsed, eyes rolling to the back of his head as he landed in a puddle of his own blood.

"ROSAN!"

"FATHER!"

"...Reaper," Izumi bowed.

---

Rosan despised when people called him a genius or perfect or any other compliment that made him seem like this unstoppable being.

He hated it because in his eyes, he was nothing but a failure.

Yes, he was talented. He was well aware of his skills but at the end of the day, even prodigies could be snuffed and his flames had gotten snuffed a long time ago.

Just look. A girl, who should have been defeated near instantly by him, had managed to wreak this much havoc on his body, to the point where his stone couldn't even heal him properly.

All because she understood his greatest weakness.

Meiko.

He had already failed her so much… how could he fail her again by daring to strike her? How could he live with himself after making her cry?

Even with the knowledge that it wasn't actually her, it still tore at him to hear her cry, too see her tears, to acknowledge her pain…

Because it reminded him that he had failed her thoroughly. Because of him, Meiko was dead. The kindest soul on the planet, the last person who deserved to ever die, was killed because of him.

Because he was stupid. He was no genius. He was not perfect.

He was a failure.

Perhaps this was his punishment. Perhaps his failures had finally caught up to him.

Meiko had told him not to kill the girl after all. She most likely wanted Rosan to forgive Izumi… but he had gone and tortured her instead, breaking her and turning her into his monster. It was his fault that she was like this... Rosan couldn't even say she was unjust to deliver such punishment.

He would be lying if he said he didn't deserve to be tortured by her. After all, he had tortured her first.

Perhaps that was the greatest sign that he had failed Meiko. Twisting her final wishes of sparing Izumi into this. Despite sparing her life because of Meiko, he had still tortured and broken her. He created her and she was here to turn on her master.

Ah, this was karma.

The redhead closed his eyes.

Yes, this was a fine punishment. This was what he deserved. Let this be his final punishment, as the world's greatest failure.

It was Izumi's win. Her goal was to get him and she had done it.

He had nothing left to live for anyways…

He was tired of being the infallible wall. He was tired of being in control of everything. Maybe it was time for him to finally rest…

Yes… rest…

"Please! Please take me back into the crew! Please come save your stupid crewmate! I don't want to die yet, I WANT TO LIVE!"

...Is what he would be thinking if he was fucking STUPID!

Rest? Give up? No. He couldn't rest yet. Rest didn't mean dying. Rest didn't mean allowing some girl to torture him for the rest of his days.

Rest meant spending his days relaxing with Nico Robin… the same Nico Robin that was almost out of his grasp.

The one that he needed to save at all costs.

But there was an obstacle in his way… and that obstacle was Meiko. Could he really hurt her? Could he really risk seeing his deceased love in pain…? Was Rosan strong enough to release the shackles that Meiko had tied him down with? One of the few things that he had that made him strive to stay alive?

…

"I'll wait a thousand years if I have to!"

Yes.

Rosan loved Meiko. That would never ever change, but Meiko was... Meiko was dead and that wasn't something he could change. She would never want him to linger on her to such an unhealthy degree, that another person's life was put in danger as a result.

"Meiko told me that I already found a reason worth living for and I thought about it the entire time I was up there but now I know… Nico Robin, You're the reason worth living for so thank you for putting up with an honest idiot like me... I don't know what I'd do without you."

Rosan snorted… of course she wouldn't. Meiko would tell him to hit her with no hesitation, if it meant they could save someone else they loved. She was so strong... she'd hold in her tears until after all was said and done and then cry on his body about how it didn't hurt.

He was an idiot. A complete idiot.

She wouldn't want to chain him down. Not like this. That was against her character.

She would never want him to pick a ghost over someone that was alive. Meiko's spirit was just too alive for that.

No... it wasn't just Meiko... Rosan couldn't continue to let the past hinder him the way he had done before. He needed to shed the guilt... he needed to understand that he didn't deserve to be hated for things he had already been forgiven for.

He needed to absolve himself of the pains of his past and focus on attaining a more happy future.

His body began thrumming, eyes going bright as something clicked into place.

Rosan loved Meiko... he would never forget her. But Meiko was a memory and Robin was still alive. Nico Robin, his best friend, one of his reasons to live...

He wouldn't let Robin become a memory so it was time to stop letting the memory of Meiko shackle him.

"Sorry Mei… looks like I really do have to move on. I hope you can understand but I need to save Robin," Rosan thought with a bittersweet smile, eyes glowing the brightest they had in years.

Right before he woke up, he could have sworn he heard in his ears—

"Of course I understand, you dummy! It's about damn time, Rosy!"

And then he felt a gentle kiss on his cheek and a firm push.

---

She did it.

After 12 long years… Izumi had done it. She almost couldn't believe that this was real. She... she couldn't believe this day had finally come.

She won.

Rosan's prone body, still being protected by the ominous red barrier, lay there and she stood tall above him.

She did it! She actually did it!

All that blood, sweat and tears brought her to this moment. This sweet moment of victory.

Izumi threw her head back and laughed hysterically, taking it all in as euphoria coursed through her.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHA! I'M FREE! FINALLY FREE FROM THIS CURSE!" She cackled, expression forming into a true genuine smile as tears of joy fell from her eyes.

The lack of sleep because of nightmares, the memory of her brother saying he wished she was never born…

Red and purple eyes choking her until she couldn't breathe.

No more. Rosan had placed her in a neverending nightmare, one that she could finally begin waking up from because she was finally free.

The threat of Rosan looming over her, meant she'd never get to truly enjoy peace. Izumi had tried... of course she tried to live a peaceful life. After joining the Marines, Izumi had initially joined because she never wanted to feel week again... but it was impossible to remove Rosan from her mind because all she saw was red and red and red and red and red.

Rosan was a permanent presence in her life whether she liked it or not and she'd never be able to get rid of him no matter what she chose to do. Even if he were to drop dead right then and there, the mark he left on her would never vanish.

After all, she was probably the only enemy alive, who knew that he was the Angel of Death… the same person who prioritized his anonymity above all.

The one who had suddenly gained a bounty of 500 million. After that, Izumi's paranoia had been at an all time high.

Surely he knew that she was aware of his identity, so she could never throw out the idea that he would change his mind and come kill her.

He had taken everything from her… even her life, but if there was one thing Izumi wanted to prevent above all... it was dying at his hands because she was terrified of dying to him.

Rosan would never make her draw her last breath. Not if she could do anything about it.

But she was weak. She was oh so weak and pathetic.

Rosan made sure she knew and when she joined this trash organization, Lucci made sure to remind her of her place.

This world was not fair. Some people were born better than others and people like Rob Lucci or Reaper, were the ones who benefitted from it.

How was she ever going to defeat someone who was one year younger than her… but so much stronger? When they had met, Rosan was 12 and she was 13... and he could probably have killed her with the least possible effort needed.

So how could she ever catch up to that monster?

The answer was that she couldn't… not by conventional means at least.

Her normal strength would never be enough to even come close to Rosan, no matter what methods she employed.

All that changed one day, when she encountered the Moso Moso no Mi.

Izumi worked almost exclusively alone on missions and that was what she preferred.

She threw herself into training with such ferocity, people around worried that she was going to kill herself but she ignored them all unless it was to gain more techniques, gain more power.

Not only that, she was utterly ruthless despite her age, a fact that her teacher had noticed. The empty look in her eyes, the way she trained... it was clear Izumi didn't have what it took to be a standard Marine so they immediately recommend the girl for Cipher Pol, an offer she readily accepted once she learned about them.

Apparently, Izumi wasn't as talentless as she had first assumed because not too long after joining, she was promoted to train with Cipher Pol 9, the assassin specialists.

She trained and trained, absorbing all the techniques she could and going on as many solo missions as possible because she couldn't stand being in the presence of anyone that wasn't him.

If she couldn't go on solo missions, then she would choose to go with Jabra, seeing as he was the strongest with Lucci and Kaku gone.

But she digressed, on one of her solo missions, after finishing up and killing her targets, the girl's instincts had flared and she whirled around on impulse.

Her dead eyes immediately latched onto a Devil Fruit of all things and she tilted her head, disinterested in it.

That was until she found out what it was.

Izumi was fairly sure, that discovering what her Devil Fruit was, was the first time she had smiled since being tortured by Rosan.

Naturally before consuming it, she had requested a Devil Fruit encyclopedia and spent a while scouring through it, until landing eyes on the picture that matched the fruit in her hand.

"The Moso Moso no Mi… Illusions?" She muttered, nearly dismissing it right then and there.

But then she thought about it. What if utilizing illusions was the way to defeat him?

What if the way to defeat the Angel of Death, was to remind him of his past? To tamper with his senses? What if fighting him fairly was never the correct option...

He may not be affected… but this was a better idea than fighting him with her natural strength. A Devil Fruit that allowed her to circumvent her lack of talent, by supplying her with the utility to take advantage of any opening given to her.

It was a gamble… she was betting her whole life and ability to swim on this risk… but if anything, that just motivated her to eat it even more.

After all, there would probably never be a time where she could think like this. Rosan had taken everything from her… so ideas of gamble and risk hardly crossed her mind. He had stripped her of independent thought and forced her to depend on him to feel something.

The more she thought about it… the more she began to like the idea of it. But no, the main reason Izumi ate the Moso Moso no mi didn't have anything to do with Rosan and the fact that it didn't have anything to do with the one who defined her life, meant it had to be the one.

The reason she truly decided to eat the fruit, was so that she could put an illusion on herself, for one last desperate attempt to escape this hellish reality that she lived.

With enough practice, maybe she would be able to hypnotize herself into a life where she still had her brother and people who loved her…

It was the first thing she attempted to do. She had placed herself under and felt tears forming at the sight of her older brother smiling at her.

But things were not to be.

The few moments of euphoria, were shattered as she saw him.

In her illusion, Rosan himself, those lifeless eyes, was there and he tormented her over and over and over again.

Her entire being had been so corrupted, she even began to unconsciously think about him, to the point where he would appear in an illusion.

That's when she realized.

"I'll never be free of him… not unless I can free myself."

He stained her in a way she'd never be rid of, unless she got rid of the root problem itself. As long as this problem existed between Rosan and Izumi, Izumi would never be free, not even in death.

Only by getting closure, would she be free. Only then would this plague vanish from her body.

Only then would she be able to live in her dream world.

So she continued refining her Rokushiki techniques, her body conditioning and she added her newly consumed Devil Fruit into her training.

While practicing it, she made a plan that involved that beautiful girl who had saved her life…

Meiko. The one person who was the catalyst to both Rosan and Izumi's life going so out of control.

The girl who had shown her unwarranted kindness… that Izumi repaid in blood.

There was a reason she was so afraid of using an actual gun now… Izumi had never meant to kill Meiko. She never wanted the gorgeous blonde dead. How could she?

Meiko was a star. Izumi had played a part in everything going wrong with the kind girl... and she still forgave her so easily.

And what did Izumi do? She killed her. She killed her because of her STUPID BROTHER WHO COULDN'T JUST UNDERSTAND THAT SOME THINGS WERE NOT MEANT TO BE!

But what's done was done, and though Izumi was disgusted… she would need to use the girl she murdered as a source of weakness to the one who had ruined her life.

It was disgusting and if things were different, Izumi wouldn't even dream of taking such a form... but she had no choice.

Besides, that disgust was nothing compared to the sheer apathy that she felt a majority of the time.

It was nothing compared to the love she felt for Rosan.

The disgust was just fuel that would help her muster up the courage to defeat Rosan.

After doing so, she would never have to defile Meiko's image again. Because there would be no one to use it on. Once the moment came, where Izumi finally reached closure, she'd let Meiko rest.

And that moment was here.

Once that barrier fell, she would place Rosan under an illusion, go assassinate Spandam and retrieve Nico Robin as well.

The girl reached into her suit and brushed against something.

Then she'd erase all evidence.

Izumi was brought out of her musing, as the red barrier began faltering and an eager grin quickly made its way to her face—

An intense pressure slammed into her and she fell on her ass, instinctively backing away as confusion replaced joy.

Then she heard it and confusion was replaced by a helpless despair.

Humming. A soothing hum, that wafted through the air. It was a beautiful and gentle sound that would have captivated many.

Izumi was not one of them.

The gentle hum caressed her and put her in a daze but she couldn't enjoy it for even a moment…

Because her instincts were screaming that everything was about to go wrong.

Rosan sighed as he sat up, a small charming smile on his face as he rubbed a spot on his cheek idly. "This pain. These cuts… this exhaustion…"

That charming smile turned into something utterly unhinged, bloodied fangs gleaming in psychotic joy.

Two brilliantly glowing eyes locked Izumi in place and if possible, Rosan's grin got wider.

"Kahahaha! Thanks Izumi, if it wasn't for you… I may have never come to some of the realizations I came to…"

The redhead stood up, ignoring his injuries as he began stretching in place.

Izumi noted in terror, that those predatory eyes never left her person.

"...How about I show you how much I appreciate you?"

---

Ram carried Mod on her back as the woman urged her towards the castle.

The confused and crying ring had done so, hoping her barrier (she didn't know she could do that) could properly protect Father and hoping Auntie had some sort of plan to win them the battle.

As the two made their way over, neither could hide the shock from their eyes at the sight before them.

They watched in complete wonder and awe, as the last and final chain, this one the longest and thickest, slowly began unravelling from the crystalline castle that jailed Rosan's emotions.

Mod let out fitful coughs, as tears appeared in her eyes and Ram steadied the woman as she clambered down her back.

"M-My baby boy is almost free…" Mod cried, voice raspy and weak as she hesitantly walked towards the building. "We're so close to getting him back R-Ram!"

The overwhelming amount of emotion easily reached Ram and the ring teared up, dragging her Auntie into a deep hug.

"We… we weren't useful here to him," Ram whispered. "Father did this on his own but… but next time he'll have us."

Whatever realizations Rosan had come to... it was without them. Ram never thought a time would come, where she was utterly helpless to assist her Father but today had humbled her in a way that she couldn't properly verbalize.

It stung so much to know Father had dealt with all of this alone but that didn't change the fact that they were proud of him. They were proud that even despite how useless they had been, Father was still able to claw his way back up.

He was amazing like that. Even if he insisted the opposite.

Mod shuddered and returned the hug, sinking into Ram's protective hold. "We'll cross the last hurdle together for sure! For now, we just have to support in anyway we know how!"

Ram nodded tightly. "Come on Auntie, Father will be pissed if he sees you outta bed and then I might get in trouble for not keeping you there… let's relax and watch the rest unfold… I think he's got this handled so I'll make you some tea, alright?"

The sick Devil Fruit nodded softly, allowing the ring to pick her up once more and wrapping her arms around Ram's neck once she was settled on her back.

"Please don't put so much sugar in it this time…"

"You have no taste buds, psycho."

"You of all people… shouldn't be saying… someone's a psycho."

---

Rosan's body was hot.

It was burning right now.

Burning because of the pain.

Burning because of the exhaustion.

Burning because of the excitement.

"Focus, Rose," he thought to himself, trying, and utterly failing, to still his flaring emotions.

He had all the time in the world to test this feeling out. These feelings overwhelming him more than he had ever felt.

Right now, he needed to finish this girl off and go save his dumbass best friend.

That meant focusing all these errant emotions onto his current goal.

Defeating Izumi.

"Father…?" Ram called out hesitantly.

Rosan idly touched one of his terrible wounds, excitement only growing at the sharp pain and he hummed.

"I didn't know you could summon a barrier like that Ram. Thank you for protecting me and buying me time," he said truthfully.

The ring lit up at that and nodded furiously. "I-I had too! Y-You needed me in that moment and I'd... never be able forgive myself if I let you lose without doing anything..." she admitted quietly.

Rosan snorted and his affectionate smile widened.

"And you summoned a whole new technique to do it... As expected, my daughter really is too impressive," he said fondly.

"!" Ram's eyes widened to epic proportions and tears of joy formed, as a brilliant smile formed on her face.

The ring didn't even know she was capable of crying happily but she couldn't stop the choked sob from escaping her.

T-That was… that was the first time he claimed her as his daughter a-and it felt so good. How she longed for the moment where he'd finally acknowledge her as his child and now that it was here... Ram felt the overflowing torrent emotions associated with her father, seeping into her.

"I… I just really wanted to protect you a-and I summoned one. I guess the ultimate weapon includes being the ultimate shield too," she whimpered, tucking into a grinning Mod.

Rosan laughed at the sound of her happy cries and vowed to squeeze her cheek later. "Let's test it out some more later. An energy barrier seems cool. I know you're not a fan of defense but it has potential."

"I-I see the potential behind them so I want to practice defensive things too! That barrier w-was really cool," Ram sniffed. "S-Sorry though Father… I won't be useful like you said…"

Rosan merely smirked wildly. "Don't worry about it. I'm gonna win this. Just take care of Mod-chan for me."

She nodded vigorously.

"Rosan, how will you deal with the Meiko issue…?" Mod asked hesitantly, drinking the honey tea with trepidation and spilling a bit from her nervousness.

He hummed. "How will I deal with her? Kahahaha! It's not like she's real, Mod-chan!"

With that simple statement, Rosan focused on the shuddering Izumi.

"I feel bad for you," Rosan said idly, wings flexing warningly. "You've been training for this long all for me… you did so good, got so strong… even got a good Devil Fruit… all for the purpose of defeating me…"

The redhead grinned mockingly, bloody fangs gleaming at her as he began sparking.

"All that just for it to amount to nothing."

Izumi let out a strangled yell as she barely avoided the electrified fist. The woman immediately cloaked herself in the illusion of Meiko and glared at the redhead.

"Ah ah ah, Rosan~ You wouldn't dare touch me would you?" Meiko asked softly, eyes widening innocently as she gazed sweetly at the redhead.

As Rosan's eyes shadowed, Izumi grinned widely.

Yes that was it. It didn't matter if he was still up and about. As long as she was Meiko, he wouldn't dream of putting his hands on her—

"EMP: Static Shock."

Whatever Izumi was thinking, abruptly cut off as she shrieked terribly, body surging as a sparking palm rested on her chest and unleashed bolts into her.

"You are not Meiko," Rosan said calmly. "Pro tip, Meiko loves calling me Rosy. She only calls me Rosan when I'm in trouble," he replied cheekily.

Wind slammed into her with incredible force, before it began lifting her off the ground. The breeze brushed against Rosan and he smiled.

"Gust."

"Is he actually some type of God?!" Izumi thought in terror, mind scrambling at what to do now that her main plan no longer worked. "No, I can still win. It's not obvious but he's really hurt and is just trying to hide the pain."

She just needed to implement her trump card.

Izumi huffed and activated Geppo, ignoring the surges across her body and flying away from the wind harassing her.

The woman glared at the injured Rosan and said, "Rankakyu: Storm!"

A powerful gale surrounded the redhead, before lashing out and smashing into the numerous Rankakyu shot his way, overwhelming and fizzling them out.

The redhead spread his wings and charged her at incredible speeds.

"Trying to stay in the air against me, is one of the stupidest things you could have done, y'know that right?" Rosan stated in amusement, revealing serrated teeth in the process.

Izumi shrieked, as she barely dodged a torrent of flames that threatened to burn her alive. She kicked once to try to make distance but her opponent was the Angel of Death.

Rosan actually yawned as he appeared directly above her, eyes glinting menacingly as a fist crashed against her sternum with brutal force.

"You won't ever be able to fly faster than me. Erase such thoughts from your head," he grinned, eyes lit up in glee.

Izumi rasped in agony as she forcefully met the ground. Even after the last minute Tekkai, that punch from the redhead was too strong.

How could he move with all those injuries? How could he be enjoying this?!

"Trick of Eyes!" She shouted, the moment it looked like Rosan was going to make another move.

Rosan huffed in amusement, at the army of Izumi's charging him, eyes glancing between each one as he remained rooted to his spot.

He once again summoned his electricity (what? He did say lightning was his favorite element and he was a computer man!) and let the wild red lightning lash out.

The lightning reached his palms and without any hesitation, Rosan clapped.

"EMP: Thunderclap."

As soon as his hands connected, a blast erupted in front of the redhead and lightning surged forward in a cone.

Every illusion shuddered as the attack flew through them before Rosan focused on the one furthest away.

He pointed a finger up at the one who avoided his wave and it began sparking once more.

"EMP: Bolt," he intoned, shooting out a single beam of electricity from the finger.

Izumi only had a second to activate Tekkai, before the ridiculously fast bolt slammed into her body. She grit her teeth and weathered the pain. It hurt, but it wasn't anywhere near fatal.

That was when the barrage came.

"EMP: Lightning Bolts."

Bolt after bolt crashed into her and she felt her eyes rolling to the back of her head at the torturous technique. If not for Tekkai, she'd have long been eliminated but as it stood, she was going to lose either way.

Not… yet… Not here.

It was ready… her technique was ready.

"Never Ending Darkness," she gasped, engulfing the redhead in her technique.

Rosan grunted, as he felt some of his senses cut off and his vision darkened to the point of blindness. He couldn't hear or see anything and it was really disorienting right now.

What the hell was this —

"Shigan: Darts."

Rosan didn't even hear the technique get called out but he certainly felt the five sharp projectiles, courtesy of Izumi smashing her claws against the air, slamming into his body.

A fresh gout of blood formed on his body and he coughed, the pain accumulating further and even giving him pause.

It wasn't just the pain from this battle… he hadn't fully healed from getting tortured and he barely got any chance to do so in between.

"Every fighter has a trump card!" Izumi thought victoriously, eyes gleaming predatorily. "How stupid would I be if I only relied on Meiko to win me that battle?! In the first place, I thought you were a psychopath! Never Ending Darkness was always the main plan!"

She continued bombarding the blinded man from a distance using Geppo and there was nothing Rosan could do.

When she saw him prepare to engulf the entire room in his electricity, she had, in a rather smart display, flown through the hole she created when knocking him down here to avoid being damaged by it.

"Ugh," Rosan groaned as the damage kept piling up on his body.

This wasn't good. Even he was beginning to falter from how damaged he currently was and try as he might, he was as helpless as a baby right now.

This was infuriating.

He couldn't do anything right now but wildly flail around. His senses were failing him, even his sense of smell was at the mercy of Izumi.

What a shitty technique.

How was he going to get out of this? How could he stop this —

"Shigan: Iron Lashings!"

Rosan collapsed on a knee, as those five fingers raked downward on his back drawing a river of blood and marring the already heavily stained room.

"F-Fuck…" he shuddered, feeling an immense amount of agony as his body began failing him.

Not yet. He couldn't lose yet… He just… he just needed to feel her.

Izumi glared at him with a glint of finality, making sure that this time he'd go down for the count.

The woman brandished her claws once more and made them grow even longer.

It was time to finish this with the only gun she could use.

"Shigan: Double Iron Massacre."

She lunged forward, both hands outstretched to tear into Rosan like a wild animal…

Only to blink as the redhead effortlessly sidestepped her attack.

Undeterred, Izumi turned on a heel and lashed out for his chest, confusion growing as he backed away the perfect distance to avoid it.

She continued lashing out, growing more and more desperate as Rosan continued dodging her effortlessly, despite still being completely blinded.

It was as if he was dancing to her movements, moving at a steady and enchanting pace.

What was this?! What was he doing?! Did he cancel her technique…? No… even if he did, his eyes were completely closed.

Discarding the idea of just trying to stab him, Izumi began attempting to use every inch of her body to get a single hit in.

She shot out a Rankakyu with her right leg, before spinning on it to deliver a kick to the gut with her left, yet Rosan simply leaned to the side to avoid the air slash, before gently pushing her swinging leg upwards and completely flipping the woman.

Before she could fall on the floor, she caught herself into a handstand and launched herself up into the air.

The woman felt a small shudder of true terror, as Rosan's head followed her movement, all while his eyes remained closed.

She grit her teeth.

"Shigan: Darts!" She roared, flinging her nail enhanced projectiles with deadly precision.

Not finished yet, she kicked out both her legs rapidly and shot Rankakyu after Rankakyu after him.

What happened next, left her completely stunned.

Rosan began dancing to avoid her attacks. That had to have been what he was doing, because he was moving his body to the perfect place at the perfect time with such beauty, it could only be him performing.

Left, right, forward, back… he contorted and turned his body in order to avoid each attack flying his way until Izumi realized this wasn't going to work.

No matter… she would just… use another option. She wasn't proficient in it like Lucci was but maybe she could —

"It's about time I finish this performance. I need to go save that dumbass, I can feel her getting further and further."

Rosan said that statement calmly and surely, as if he knew this next attack was going to finish it.

Izumi grit her teeth in rage and flew towards the redhead at blistering speeds. She activated Soru and began dashing all over, in hopes of throwing him off.

"I WON'T LOSE HERE DARLING! I'VE DEDICATED MY WHOLE LIFE TO THIS AND I WON'T LET IT GO DOWN THE DRAIN! I WILL END MY NIGHTMARES TODAY NO MATTER WHAT!"

The redhead sighed, sparks beginning to slowly but surely come alive.

"Darling this. Darling that. You aren't the first person to be obsessed with me and you probably won't be the last…" he hummed.

His eyes glowed brilliantly as he opened them, knowing exactly what she was going to do next and preparing for it.

Izumi landed and outstretched both her fists, only to blink to see that Rosan had long since anticipated her movement.

"...You'll have to get in line, Izumi. I will say though, you are almost certainly the craziest so be proud of that I guess," he finished, pushing her hands down so that whatever she planned on doing to his insides failed.

Finally, he struck.

"EMP: Burst."

Rosan exploded in a dome of electricity that engulfed the entire room they were in, charring whatever it got its hands on, including Izumi.

She had applied the strongest Tekkai she could muster…

It did not matter.

The woman shrieked as she was caught by the storm of electricity. It slammed into her with brutal force and sent a surge throughout her body.

"K-KYAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Izumi howled, locking up and shuddering in agony as she trashed about.

Fortunately for her, the attack ended as soon as it started and Rosan collapsed on his knees, panting harshly.

"Damn… you're still awake? I must be way weaker than I thought... or you're stronger than I anticipated," he huffed, shakily pushing himself up.

At that moment, Izumi's technique wore off and he regained his senses.

The redhead, who had just unlocked his Observation, could only screech as he was immediately assaulted by the sensations of everything.

"W-What the fuc — Agh! WHAT THE FUCK?!" Rosan groaned, holding his head as the world itself began overwhelming him.

He could feel but it was too much, he could see but it was too far, he could hear but it was too loud.

What was this? Why was his observation doing this to him?! Robin, Luffy nor Maro didn't exhibit such issues when first unlocking theirs so why him?!

"Turn it off. Turn it off!" He howled, as he shut his eyes tightly and collapsed on his knees.

What was going on? Why could he hear them? Why could he feel them so strongly?!

"R-Rosan! Your electricity. Try turning it off!" Mod rasped.

Rosan heard her and did just that and everything stopped. The redhead let out a sigh of relief and shakily pulled himself up once more, holding his head as a strong headache bloomed.

"What… was that?" He asked softly.

"Y-Your Haki reacting with Modification?" Mod pondered, eyes wide as she processed the overwhelming sensations herself.

He huffed, eyes heavy as he heard that.

"I… I think because of how Modification alters your makeup, your newly awakened Observation reacted strongly with all other electrical sources in the vicinity and began latching onto them, increasing the range and sensations you could feel and overwhelming you as a result…"

Seriously? What the hell… So not only was he feeling a person through the natural uses of Observation, but through the electricity in their makeup?

It felt like Rosan could feel all of Enies Lobby and then some... what was the limit? If electrical sources existed, was he just doomed to be completely overwhelmed?

Damnit, being a computer made things so complicated.

"Is that… how Enel could hear everyone on Skypiea? Was he doing something similar?" Rosan muttered in realization.

Could users whose makeup was dominated by electricity use said electricity to enhance their Observation Haki? Would every user of the Goro Goro no mi have ridiculous range? Would he have something similar? It seemed like his was worse because it offered him zero benefits besides a headache.

Rosan experimentally tried to use Observation without lightning this time, only to instinctively howl as his senses immediately went haywire once more.

So even after unlocking Observation, it still gave him these issues. Just another on a long list of things he needed to fix about himself.

Ugh, focus. He had other things to worry about. From what he could tell, his crew had just finished up their battles which meant he was the last one done…

Robin was getting further away from him and he refused that.

Right he still had some energy left… it was time to go—

As Rosan began walking away, he heard sniffing, that broke out into a full blown sob of agony.

"W-Why?!" Izumi sobbed in defeat, as reality finally hit her. "Why did it have to be you? Why did you have to ruin my life?! It's not fair!"

"Why do you get to move on with your life, while I'm stuck here torturing myself because of what you did to me?! Every single day, red and purple burn my vision. I sleep and see images of my dying brother. I keep hearing how he wished I was never born… and you don't care! I've been forced to dedicate my life to you and it still doesn't matter! I want to die but I'm so scared! I want to be free but I never will be," she cried, hot tears spilling down her face as all the years of agony caught up with her.

None of it mattered. None of her training meant a damn thing in the face of overwhelming talent. All she could do here was lie in defeat and cry because that's all she was good for.

Everyone was right, she really did have no talent.

"Kill me, torture me... just get it over with. You have people that want the best for you and I'll never have anything so there's no point in me being alive! I don't care anymore!" she wailed, losing all hope.

Rosan watched the girl have a mental breakdown and he came to a startling realization.

He and Izumi... they were two sides of the same disfigured coin. Both broken on the same day… but doing completely opposite things to move forward.

Rosan lingered on the dead (fitting considering he was Reaper). He couldn't keep his mind off Meiko and how to best accomplish his goal of finding a reason to live. He didn't have time to think of Izumi because Meiko had given him such a daunting task to accomplish...

But Rosan found a family over those years. He was fortunate enough to have people that cared for him and wanted what was best… he was lucky enough that his natural charisma had drawn in so many loving people despite trying to push them away.

Izumi lingered on the living (fitting considering she feared death). She couldn't get Rosan out of her head and devoted her life to getting back at him because he ruined her life. There was nothing else for her to think about.

Both lived toxic lifestyles but unlike him, Izumi didn't have a loving family. The only thing she had… was him. It showed too. Izumi acted almost exactly like he did, when not thinking of the one who ruined her life.

"Remember what I asked you alright? Please don't kill that girl."

"…" Rosan glanced at her. "You never stopped thinking about me… but the reason I don't think about you, is because I never stopped thinking about Meiko," he said quietly.

Izumi sniffed, teal eyes wide in sadness as the tears continued to spill.

The redhead sighed. "For some reason I'll never understand, Meiko saw something in you. She saw something that made her want to spare you, even in death... so that's what I'll do."

The agent sucked in a breath at that.

Rosan's bright eyes stared into her teals and he said, "You won't ever be able to beat me again. I'm just getting started… so you should cut your losses now and move on. You don't gotta worry about me anymore… I won't kill you. Whatever you do with your life now, is up to you."

Izumi's eyes widened in disbelief at that. "W-What?! What do you expect me to do?!"

"I don't know and I don't care. It's late, but at the very least, honor Meiko's last wishes and live the life you wish to live," Rosan said harshly, walking off as red sparks began dancing across his body.

"But... But I know all your secrets! I have no reason to keep them anymore!" Izumi exclaimed.

"...I don't care if you tell the whole world anymore. I'll deal with them as they come. Now fuck off and stop trying to make me reconsider," the redhead snarled, glaring at her and making her seize up in terror.

"But..." Izumi looked lost.

Rosan scoffed. "You should consider this a miracle. I have never once let anyone escape and I'm letting you free twice. Don't waste it by coming after me again."

She spent 12 years obsessing over him. For the entirety of her adolescence, Rosan had been the only thing on her mind. She slaved away just to get close to his level… and now he was telling her to just move on...?

DIDN'T HE REALIZE HOW UNREASONABLE THAT WAS?!

There was no moving on from him anymore. Like it or not, she was attached to Rosan in the most toxic way possible because he was the only reason she still had a purpose. She couldn't simply remove him from her life because half her life had been dominated by him.

Just the idea that he wasn't going to bother thinking about her, should have filled her with relief… but instead she was full of confused terror.

She didn't want to be discarded by the only person who understood all her pain. She didn't want to be ignored by the person who had filled her with such a purpose for so long.

"Is this… some form of Stockholm Syndrome? Why does the idea of never seeing him again fill me with so much fear?!"

Right… because for 12 years he had been all she was thinking about. It wasn't possible for her to remove him from her life anymore and now that she had seen him again, that had transformed into a certainty.

What she was about to do was really stupid…

"Wait," she called out.

Rosan paused, and glanced back. Those red sparks were still surging and Izumi felt herself shudder in fear.

"Hm?" He hummed, raising a single brow.

---

Chopper roared as he smashed his blood stained fist into the wall, snarling as it failed to hit his multiple targets and he lunged forward at tremendous speeds.

"This is ridiculous! How did he get so strong?!" Usopp rasped, wounds from his battle quickly taking its toll on him and slowing him down tremendously.

Nami huffed and summoned a giant gust of wind to try and push Chopper, but the heavy reindeer barely flinched, focusing on Nami instead for her interference.

The navigator yelped as the creature lunged for her and she stepped back in fear, only for Sanji to blur and grab her, before kicking away.

The bloodied chef, huffed as he gingerly set her down and clutched his ribs.

"T-Thanks Sanji!" She said, glancing worriedly at the injured chef.

That hit from Chopper had to have broken a few bones… not to mention his fight with the agent. How was he able to move so calmly? How were they all able to keep moving?

"Anytime, Nami-san," he heaved, falling to a knee and throwing up some blood.

The navigator bit her lip in concern. Sanji couldn't keep going like this. None of them could.

They had all taken their own share of injuries from the previous fights and now they had to stop a rampaging monster?

"Luffy how's it going on your end? Can you push him out? We can't keep this up for much longer!" Nami shouted, wrapping Sanji gently in the iron clouds and moving away.

The bleeding rubber boy huffed as he reverted back to normal and nodded hesitantly.

"I lost a lot of power so I'll need some help!" Luffy shouted. "Buy me some time but don't hurt him!"

The Straw Hats nodded in unison before bursting into action.

Chopper roared in fury and sent a fist flying towards Sanji and Nami, before it collided with two blades.

Zoro grunted as he held the momentous blow back to the best of his ability but he didn't have to worry for long, as a plethora of eggs smashed into the giant reindeer's face.

"WROOOOOOOOOOOO!" Chopper howled in confusion, as he stumbled backwards, flailing about due to being blinded.

Not only that, the rotten eggs quickly overwhelmed his sensitive nose.

Usopp huffed as he placed his slingshot down. "I-I did my part! Someone else please!"

Nami began waving Clima like it were a staff, and a giant gust of wind sent the massive reindeer stumbling backward.

Chopper, in an impressive display of intelligence that did not match his mindless rampage, stabbed his elongated fingers into the ground to root himself.

That only lasted for a split second however as Franky made his presence known.

"Coup de Vent!" he announced, firing a weaker blast that successfully uprooted Chopper and sent him crashing into the wall that would lead outside.

"Gear Third."

Every Straw Hat, sans Zoro, watched with bugged eyes as Luffy's arms grew to massive proportions before he rocketed off towards the struggling Chopper.

With a heave of exertion, the rubber boy placed both hands the massive reindeer's chest and pushed.

The wall never stood a chance and immediately crumbled.

"WROOOOOOOO!" Chopper roared right before plunging in the water.

He instantly reverted to his default form and before he could sink, Sanji grabbed him and swam out of the water.

He deposited the reindeer in front of all of them, before pressing down on his belly to force the water out of him.

"We did it!" Usopp cheered, sitting down in exhaustion and letting out a sigh of relief.

"I'm so tired," Nami sighed, falling flat on her butt.

"We can't stop yet… we still need to get outta here," Zoro grunted, gazing at his utterly destroyed blade.

"We gotta get Robin-chan too," Sanji huffed, clutching his screaming ribs.

"Yeah none of this matters if we don't get her back," Franky muttered.

"Don't worry about it! Rosan's dealing with it!" The chibi Luffy squeaked cheerfully.

They all blinked.

Rosan? Wasn't he still fighting—

A red blur flew past them, sparks flying that sent their hair raising, at immense speeds.

It vanished as quickly as it came and only the sound of thunder followed.

Huh… guess he won.

"Damn it, I really wanted that favor," Nami muttered with a fond smile.

Everyone else nodded sagely.

---

Spandam let out a victorious laugh, as they finally made it to the Bridge of Hesitation.

"Hahahaha!" He cackled, dragging the bloody Robin with him. "Do you see that small gate right there? That's the real entrance! Once you pass through, no one will be able to save you and that marks the end of your miserable existence."

Robin panted harshly, as her fear spiked.

Without any hesitation, she broke out of his grasp once more and ran away with all her might.

A yank on her hair temporarily stopped her but she sacrificed the few strands and immediately broke out of it, only for that same hand to grab her head and slam her into the ground face first.

A spurt of blood shot out and Spandam snarled as he tried to drag her away, balking in confusion as he saw that she was biting the edge of the bridge of all things.

"You're biting the bridge?! What type of rotten loser are you?!" Spandam asked in confusion.

"This obsession with living is disgusting! You chose to be a criminal so now you have to pay! Your only purpose in this world, is to die! Don't choose to die as a coward!" He barked, watching as her teeth began bleeding.

Without any hesitation, he began slamming a foot against her already bruised ribs.

"Just a little longer. I will be saved. They will save me! I don't want to die… I'm so afraid of dying!" She thought even as he continued to punish her.

Finally the beating became too much and she let out a cry of pain, giving Spandam the chance to drag her teeth away from the bridge hair first.

The furious chief, kept his grip on her hair and looked her in her eyes.

"After I turn you in, I'm gonna capture your stupid boyfriend and we're gonna torture him day in and out until you scream out everything we want to hear. Then, I'm calling a Buster Call on your entire crew if CP9 hasn't killed them all yet," he hissed. "We're going to erase them off the map just like we did that traitorous Giant and Ohara 20 years ago."

"!" Robin's eyes widened as she heard the man mention Saul.

"I bet you think I don't know anything?! About the misconduct of Former Vice Admiral Saul, about what happened to your Mother, Olvia. I know ALL OF IT. The one who set foot on Ohara, the land of demons, the one who exposed your whore of a mother's crime and gave the signal for the Buster Call, the man who was director of CP9 at the time…"

Spandam threw his head back and laughed maniacally.

"WAS MY FATHER SPANDINE!" He revealed.

Her pupils shrunk, as memories of that terrible man were brought to the forefront and she began shuddering.

"This man is the son of... he's the one who... everything that happened was because of him and his... Father? He's the reason I lost... Saul and Mom and everyone on Ohara!"

"LOOK, JUST THINKING ABOUT IT IS MAKING YOU CRY!" Spandam howled in amusement, eyes lit up in joy.

"Everyone on Ohara died. All but one little rat. You were only 8 years old but you couldn't trust anyone. You couldn't sleep. Rest. You didn't have any food… how did that feel?! How did it feel knowing nobody loved you?!"

Her tears spilled but she shook her head strongly, refusing to fall victim to his words.

The sound of lightning roared, unheard by both.

"You're wrong! I did have someone to trust. I did have somewhere to sleep. I could rest easy! I did have food! I did have someone who loved me!" She shouted defiantly, hot tears falling as she thought about the only person who made her feel alive for so long.

Spandam's eyes bugged in rage at her defiance. "OH YEAH?! AND WHO WAS THAT?!" He roared, raising a hand to smack her once more.

Before Robin could answer, someone else did for her.

"Me."

Spandam only had a moment to widen his eyes in sheer terror, before a hellishly fast demon smashed into him with bone breaking force and something razor sharp nearly tore his arm off.

It only took Spandam a moment to realize the thing that had almost torn his arm off were claws and the man let out a horrific scream.

Robin felt even more tears fall out of her eyes, as she saw just who it was.

Portgas D. Rosan, was a bleeding and bruised mess but he was alive and he was snarling down at the screeching Spandam with a victorious gleam in his eyes.

"R-Rosan!" She sobbed. "You're here!"

The redhead glanced back at her and she let out another choked sob at that smug glint. "Of course I am, didn't I tell you? I'd be over in a flash," he replied.

"EMP: Paralyze."

Spandam shrieked in agony as electricity coursed through his body and locked up his entire system, preventing him from moving while electrocuting him constantly.

"Just you wait. I guarantee you'll have all my attention soon," Rosan promised, moving away from the leader of CP9 to fully regard the hot tears spilling off his best friend.

Robin saw the furious look in his bright eyes and knew he was about to give her the craziest of lashings but that didn't matter to her.

Because he was here!

Whatever Rosan was about to say, died on his lips as he fully took in Robin's conditions.

His anger melted off his feature, as an eerily calm look befell him instead but none of that translated to the overwhelming rage in his eyes.

Robin watched the brightness in his eyes dim considerably, as he stepped close to her. The redhead gently grabbed her restrained hands, before transforming Ram into a key and placing it into her cuffs.

With a click, it was off and Robin sagged into his body as she felt not only her powers returning to her, but the familiar sensation of Rosan automatically linking to her.

"R-Rosan…" she whispered, tears falling as the urge to wrap herself in his arms almost overwhelmed her.

"MOTHER YOU'RE BACK!" Ram sobbed happily, jumping up and down at finally being reunited with her.

"I-I'm so happy and so angry!" Mod cried, voice raspy.

"Mod-chan… Ram… I'm so sorry you two," Robin whispered happily as the tears refused to stop.

Mod sounded sick… Ram sounded like she had been crying for a while… they must have been so worried for her.

Rosan didn't say anything to her. Instead he was holding her up, piercing gaze inspecting her body.

First, he held her chin tenderly, holding it upward as his eyes roved all over her face.

"Bruises all over, cut on forehead, torn hair places, chipped teeth, bleeding gums, numerous lacerations," he muttered calmly, too calmly for the state that Robin's face was currently in.

Then, he placed both arms on her frame and began slowly glide down in a rather intimate move that Robin wasn't able to fully enjoy because it hurt.

The entire time, he looked her in her soul, gauging her reaction as he continuously found exposed skin from the tears in her outfit.

By the way his eyes were steadily darkening, she must have winced far too much for his liking.

That was fair, every part of her body hurt right now.

After touching her all over, the redhead finally removed his eyes from her face and began glancing at her frame.

"...Your outfit has many tears," Rosan said quietly, too quietly. "I can see a lot of your skin."

Robin hesitantly glanced down at her short black dress and noted that there was a worrying amount of exposed skin being shown.

Finally, Rosan released her and stepped away. She couldn't stop the swell of disappointment at that but it was quickly dashed away in favor of overwhelming happiness.

"ARGGHH THE WORLD GOVERNMENT WILL HAVE YOUR HEAD WHEN THEY LEARN!" Spandam howled in agony. "IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU BLOCKED THE SIGNAL, THEY'LL KNOW WHO DID THIS—"

"Hey, do you recognize this?" Rosan interrupted eerily, calm and frigid gaze staring at Spandam.

Before Spandam and Robin's very eyes, Rosan pulled something very familiar out.

The leader of CP9's eyes bugged, as he gazed at the object in Rosan's hand.

"H-HOW DO YOU HAVE THE GOLDEN DEN DEN?!" He shrieked in disbelief, heart stopping completely at seeing the Red Devil holding the trigger for the Buster Call.

Robin was wondering the same thing, eyes going wide in horror as she saw the direct source of her trauma.

"F-FUNKFREED! SAVE ME! PLEASE STOP THIS DEMON!" Spandam howled, as the sword transformed into an Elephant.

Funkfreed let out a nervous whine as he gazed at the apex predator but he hesitantly followed the order.

That was a costly mistake.

As the elephant charged the redhead, Rosan, who was so pissed he wasn't actually thinking straight, grabbed it by the sharp trunk and hurled it into the ocean with no hesitation, watching it immediately sink to the bottom.

"Ah, Maro might have wanted that… Oh well. I just won't tell her about it," he shrugged.

Spandam went pale, as he saw the monstrous redhead sentence Funkfreed to death without an ounce of hesitation and realized exactly why the whole world was calling him Red Devil.

Not only that, it was dawning on the chief of CP9, that he was alone with the Angel of Death.

No one was coming to help him. None of the agents were here yet...

Oh no no no.

"Looks like you finally realized. You shouldn't be worrying about how I have this Den Den. What you should be worrying about…" Rosan hummed, sneer forming on his face as his calm expression finally melted away in favor of the blistering hot rage that he truly felt.

"…Is what I'm going to do to you."

"Modify: Sensitivity."

Spandam blinked in confusion, before the ground underneath him shifted into tiny stone needles and impaled him through.

"ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The man shrieked at the feeling. This feeling… WHAT THE FU—

"AIYEEEEEEEEEE!" The man couldn't even finish his thoughts as the pain interrupted him completely. It was the worst feeling he had ever felt in his life! W-What was stabbing him?! WHY DID IT HUR—

"No, you aren't going to be sleeping for this," Rosan said sadistically, red sparks dancing on his fingers as he placed them on the man's chest. "You're going to be awake the whole time because you are the most disgusting human I've met in a long time."

"EMP: Neuron Charge."

Robin watched with wide eyes as Spandam's screams reached uncomfortable levels, body sparking with the red electricity as Rosan forcefully kept him awake.

"Unfortunately, I won't be the one killing you because I won't be on the island," Rosan said calmly. "But that just means I can torture you as long as I like. Afterwards… It's such a shame that you called for the destruction of Enies Lobby, but the Straw Hats just proved to be too formidable."

Robin's eyes widened further and she wiped her eyes.

Rosan was he… planning on calling the Buster Call on Enies Lobby?

"H-He's insane. He's planning on activating the Buster Call in my name?!"

Spandam tried to speak, but he wailed instead as the pain inflicted on him overwhelmed the man and he began crying.

"It was funny when Robin was crying, I bet?" Rosan asked gently, nails turning into the sharp claws of his dragon as he idly carved into the man's cheek with a single finger.

"P-Please, please stop!" Spandam sobbed in agony as the nail dug deep into his skin. "PLEASE STOP!"

Rosan, the demon, laughed. He threw his head back and laughed at the sight of Spandam's tears and silenced the man with a punch to the jaw that shattered it.

Spandam garbled uselessly, gazing into those demonic eyes in a moment of true hopelessness.

"Didn't I tell you, you will keep my secrets," Reaper said gently, gazing at the tears and tapping an electrified finger against it.

Robin winced as Spandam attempted to wail with a broken jaw and shuddered at the euphoria radiating off of Rosan.

The Angel of Death smiled down gently at Spandam, insanity clear in his eyes. "Cry all you want, no one will come save you."

"You're stuck with me now," he promised, eyes flickering black.

---

"Wait."

Rosan paused in his step and turned around, raising a brow. "Hm?" He hummed.

Izumi took a shaky breath and whined at the pain it took to stand up.

"What? You want to keep fighting? Is that what you've decided on?" Rosan muttered dangerously.

He had wasted too much time here already. He needed to get Robin.

Her eyes widened in fear and she held a hand out. "N-No! I give up! I won't try and fight you anymore," she whispered, shrinking into herself as terror wafted off her in spades.

A truth.

Rosan loosened his stance a bit but kept his guard up. "So what the hell do you want?" He asked in confusion.

"…"

Izumi took another breath. "Because we failed our mission so catastrophically, CP9 will likely be dismissed and thrown into Impel Down," she told him.

Not only were they advised to be wary around the Straw Hats, they failed to capture Cutty Flam and Water 7 now knew that they were being targeted negatively by the World Government.

They would have been publicly executed if anyone knew who they were.

The redhead raised a brow, expression uncaring. "What the fuck does that have to do with me? I don't give a shit what happens to you guys—"

He paused as Izumi fished around in her suit, before pulling out a Golden Den Den Mushi.

"This is what Spandam plans on using… to call in the Buster Call," Izumi informed him with a conflicted expression, not sure if this would work.

"I stole it from him because I realized he was an idiot… after protecting Nico Robin from being hit further by him."

Rosan's expression darkened at the truth of her words. "You protected Robin from him?" He asked calmly, eyes narrowed.

"Yes he hit her and I stopped him... I was never planning on having her killed," she said hesitantly, looking down at the floor. "I didn't want to be the cause of someone else's death in this war between you and I... so I was going to save her once I won..."

A truth.

"What game are you playing at right now?" Rosan asked calmly, trying to quell his fury at the idea that someone was assaulting Robin. "You gonna press the button? They won't be able to get here fast enough before I kill you, Spandam and escape from this island."

"T-That's not what I'm trying to do," Izumi stammered, averting her gaze. "I… I want to trade you this Golden Den Den, in exchange for my services."

The redhead's brow shot up high at that. "Oh, we're bargaining now? From torturing me to this? You sure are a woman of many skills, Izumi," he mocked with a sneer.

She flinched back.

Rosan grunted and processed her words, not able to wrap his head around it. "You're offering to work for me… after giving me this?" He asked incredulously, tilting his head to the side. "What's stopping me from just taking it out of your hands? It's not like you can stop me. Have I been put under an illusion?"

Izumi shuddered at that and shook her head with enough force to crack it. "N-NO! I haven't put you under an illusion! I fully accept my d-defeat..."

Rosan stared silently at her.

"I knew full well that you just ripping it out of my hands was a possibility when deciding this… but I want to prove that I can be an asset. In the first place this deal only benefits you with no downsides and I gain nothing from it. You are the sole benefactor," she whispered.

She was right. This deal did her no good at all. Which was why none of this made sense to him.

"And why the hell would I want you to work for me? What the fuck are you smoking?" Rosan asked indifferently. "I'm not interested, fuck off."

Izumi began panicking at that.

She couldn't... she couldn't lose her chance to never see Rosan again, no matter how horrible their relationship was.

"But like this, you can keep your secret as the Angel of Death even longer!" She stammered.

"If I cared about it that much, I would have killed you," Rosan countered easily. "It doesn't matter to me anymore. I've learned a lot from this excursion and like I said, I don't care what you do anymore. I already know the downsides of letting you go free but I don't care."

Rosan rolled his eyes as her fear spiked.

What the fuck was her deal? She was wasting his goddamn time.

Fine.

"What can you do?" He asked calmly.

Izumi shuddered. That was the exact same question he asked Izuki.

"I'm a master assassin, I've mastered all Rokushiki techniques a-and I can even share the method of learning them with you, my illusions are valuable as well... as you can tell it's more like hypnosis," she revealed hastily.

Rosan didn't look impressed. "Yeah, I know. You showed me quite a bit. You also forgot to mention that you're very good at being a creep and torture."

She flinched horribly, doubt on her features at how she could possibly get him to agree...

There was only one way she knew how.

Izumi took a deep breath. "I can give you the rest of the CP9 agents too," she whispered quietly.

The redhead paused at that and a dark expression took hold.

That's right, he never did get his hands on the other CP9 agents.

"So you'd sell out your allies just to work under me? Quite low of you, huh Izumi?"

Before she could answer that she didn't care about them, Rosan let out demeaning snort.

"You know what, I don't know what you have planned. I don't know what you're thinking with this… but you haven't lied once and I do want to speak to the other agents. I have no idea why you choose to keep involving yourself with me, but now I just think it's funny," he smiled amusingly, not taking her serious for even a second.

The smile was quickly replaced by something much darker, as he walked up to her and accepted the Den Den.

This close, Izumi saw that he towered over her and the scent of blood from all his wounds was heavy.

How could he even move?

"Understand this, Izumi. I don't like you and I will never like you. I don't trust you and I will never trust you. But I understand how useful enemies can be, so we have a deal. I'll give you an escape. You can round up your allies but do not tell them of this. Make it fast, I've decided to use this Den Den Mushi after I get Robin back."

If Robin was able to accept Crocodile as an ally, despite Rosan wanting to wipe him off the face of the planet, then he'd give this one a chance. He truly didn't care about her anymore.

Izumi shuddered at those bright eyes glowing in a sinister manner, before nodding shakily. "30 minutes is all I need… it'll take another 30 for the warships to reach," she whispered.

"Hmph. We'll rendezvous after I'm healed up. I don't know how you plan on offering up the agents, but I'm sure you'll think of something," he grunted, walking off.

"I'll… need your assistance for that," she said, attempting to move and letting out a cry as her body seized up again.

Rosan ignored her pain and began flapping his wings.

"Sure. I don't really care. Though I was honestly hoping I never got to see you again…"

"Are you sure about this?" Mod rasped with a worried look.

"Yeah... I want to torture her," Ram frowned deeply.

"...I'm not sure. But there's just something so funny about this and I already gave one enemy a chance. If she has her uses, I'll use her. If not, I'll discard her. As simple as that."

Rosan sighed. It was probably because he lost so much blood, because he felt rather demented for accepting this offer in the first place.

"Maybe I am too greedy," he muttered.

---

30 minutes. That's how long Rosan tortured Spandam for and he savored every minute of it.

No part of the man was spared from his wrath and Rosan carved into him with a sadism he hadn't felt since torturing Doc.

Spandam had been forced to endure it, awake the entire time because of Rosan's twisted nature. His broken voice was still crying out and Rosan relished in it.

He removed his bloody fist from the man's unrecognizable face and glared down at him.

"Hurts, I bet?" He taunted, gazing at the constant tears of the broken man."You seemed so hellbent on labeling people Devils, so I decided to show you a real one. Hope you enjoyed," he cackled.

Rosan stepped back, a satisfied smirk on his face as he stared at the mangled body of the whimpering and twitching Spandam.

He modified the floor beneath the man and turned it into a spiked chair, before strapping him to it.

"Enjoy the show, you'll be awake the entire time to witness it," he taunted.

Then, almost as if he were bipolar, he rounded on the wondered and satisfied Robin with a furious scowl on his face.

"HOW COULD YOU BE SO FUCKING STUPID, ROBIN?!" Rosan roared, closing the distance immediately and glowering at her with such palpable fury.

Every Straw Hats words, died on their lips at the sound of Rosan raising his voice with such anger in it, it made them wilt.

Almost like he were an angry parent, they wisely stayed silent so as to avoid his wrath and watched him tear into Robin with sympathetic glances.

Robin was stunned, eyes wide as Rosan glared at her with pure fury in his gaze.

"You thought that just because we lost one fucking fight, you would just go on the deep end and throw your life away to the World Government of all people?!" He asked in disbelief, very much resisting the urge to slap her due to her injuries.

She held her head at that. "I don't... I don't know what I was thinking," she said quietly.

"OF COURSE BECAUSE YOU WEREN'T THINKING!" He roared furiously, glowing eyes staring through her.

She wilted and attempted to step back in guilt, but Rosan wasn't having it.

"HOW THE FUCK DO YOU THINK IT WOULD MAKE ME FEEL IF MY BEST FRIEND, LOST HER LIFE TO THE ONE ORGANIZATION I HATE MORE THAN ANYTHING?!" He snarled, grabbing her arms and spilling his blood on her.

"..." Robin seemed to understand that speaking up right now was a one way ticket to getting further torn into.

She was 28 years old but right now she felt like a little kid again with how harshly she was being scolded...

"Are you even listening right now?" Rosan growled, anger seeming to rise even further somehow. "You're so fucking lucky that you're already so injured because your cheek would be red with how hard I want to smack you! I just can't fathom the hoops you jumped through, to come to the conclusion that killing yourself was the best solution. You have the audacity to say that I overexaggerate?!"

She knew she should be listening to him right now. She deserved it after all for not having any trust in him… but how could she pay attention to the words, when all she could feel was the pure outburst of emotion…

It was just so overwhelming.

Rage. Relief. Worry. Happiness. Terror… Love.

It wasn't like before where they threatened to overwhelm her… No, Rosan's emotions were pouring through so strongly, that she found herself getting effortlessly swept up in the tide.

So despite her better judgment, Robin interrupted the furious redhead.

"If you just stopped to think for one fucking second, that they could lie to you, maybe you wouldn't have done something so incredibly fucking stupi —"

"R-Rosan?" She whispered, gazing into his, so bright, eyes.

He stopped what he was saying and raised both his brows high, wondering if she was stupid and Robin knew that he was very willing to ignore what she just said to continue tearing into her, so she made sure to hastily speak up.

"Did you… lose another chain?" She asked, making the redhead pause.

His eyes narrowed but he nodded. "Yeah… the last chain was my refusal to let my past, especially Meiko go… but if I kept on refusing, Izumi would have beaten me. Don't think you're talking your way outta this one by the way," he explained.

Robin felt the whole world freeze around her, by that simple statement from Rosan.

"You… moved on from Meiko?" Robin asked and if possible, even more tears began welling up in her eyes. "Is that how much I matter to you… that you'd move on from her… for me?"

Rosan sighed, anger melting momentarily as he nodded. "Of course. I couldn't stand to lose you too. I will always hold Meiko dearly but at the end of the day, she's a memory and that memory of her was standing in the way of me saving you… I'd never be able to forgive myself if you became a memory too… even if you fucking want to become one," he replied.

Robin felt lightheaded at that and attributed it to the fact that she was bleeding heavily…

But she knew that played no part in the way she currently felt.

Rosan… he chose to move on from Meiko… he came to terms with the fact that she was gone… he actually managed to overcome his greatest weakness.

Even she herself doubted he'd be able to do so... because Meiko was perfect in every way... and Rosan was a person who loved so much. She didn't think he'd be able to do so...

She was just awful... to the very end, she doubted Rosan's capabilities but she never once should have done that because Rosan was amazing...

She's a memory and that memory of her was standing in the way of me saving you.

He... chose her over Meiko.

I'd never be able to forgive myself if you became a memory too.

He chose to move on from Meiko... just for her.

"Rosan… I love you," Robin said softly, eyes practically glowing as she took in everything about this gorgeous redhead.

Everyone's eyes widened at her declaration.

Well everyone except for one.

"You love me? Of course you love me. What, did you stop loving me during the trip here?" Rosan sneered at her. "Or are you saying that in hopes that I stop being so pissed? Don't think that you can get out of trouble by buttering me up —"

Robin grabbed Rosan's face and slammed her lips against his own without any hesitation.

She poured all her heart into it, unmindful of the fact they were both bleeding, unmindful of the fact that she interrupted him again, unmindful of the state of Enies Lobby.

No, all she cared about was her sun.

She wasn't sure how long she kissed him for but she savored it totally and completely on the off chance Rosan didn't return her affections because he was well within his rights to not do so.

When she pulled back, she saw Rosan's stunned gaze and they made eye contact again.

"No… I love you," she said again.

That felt really good...

"...Oh," Rosan said in a daze, a dark red blush appearing on his stunned face that made her smile despite the situation.

That must have been what she wanted to talk about huh... well... uh...

Huh. What was he talking about again?

She bowed her head slightly, before locking eyes with the shocked redhead. "I know you're mad at me… You have every right to be… I'll do everything it takes to earn your trust again… but right now, I'm just so happy that you said such sweet things and even though you're mad, you make me feel so alive a-and I just thought you looked so beautiful at the moment and I couldn't resist this feeling and it's been steadily building —"

Robin let out a surprised noise, as Rosan suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close, embracing her fully in his comforting warmth.

"I love you too," was all he said.

Then, he smashed his lips against her own and she melted in bliss.

"YES! WE DID IT!" Mod cheered, hugging the ecstatic Ram who was crying tears of joy.

"AFTER SO LONG! WE WON!" She squealed, picking Auntie up and spinning her.

"FINALLY!" Nami cheered, pumping a fist into the air.

"Y-You were supporting this, Nami-san?" Sanji rasped, feeling happy for the both despite his clear devastation.

They… were good for each other.

Yeah… yeah...

"It's about time," Zoro and Usopp sighed in unison.

"...THEY WEREN'T DATING?!" Franky yelled in shock, jaws dropping to the floor.

"Shishishi!" Luffy laughed happily. Now they got to eat the great wedding food!

Robin felt her heart soar, as Rosan returned the kiss with equal vigor and crushed her into his frame with a rare desperation.

Doubt. Fear. Hesitation… all things that showed he was afraid of opening his heart in such a way… but none of that even came close to the overwhelming love he felt for her and it made tears spill from her eyes again.

She couldn't believe she tried to throw this away. She would never try and throw this away again so Robin wrapped her arms around him and returned it in equal fervor.

They ignored everything around them except for each other as they continued to soak in the others presence, lips locked the entire time. As it progressed, they seemed to meld further and further into each other —

"Ahem."

The two jumped at the noise and reluctantly broke the kiss, stepping back like startled cats as they gazed at their amused crew with slightly surprised eyes.

The brunette felt rather disappointed that it ended and judging by his face, Rosan was too.

Robin felt her throat lock up, as she saw all of her allies with their own set of injuries. They looked like they had been in a war and exhaustion seeped into all their frames because of her stupid actions.

But they were all here and alive and they were gazing at her with such relief in their gazes, that she couldn't believe she never saw how much they cared for her.

"You guys…" Robin wanted to cry again, ducking her head. "I'm so sorry… because of me you all got dragged into such a mess… I'm so glad all of you are okay! Thank you so much!"

"We're glad you're okay!" Luffy responded happily, nursing the heaviest injuries next to Rosan.

"You guys did good… finishing your fights before I did," Rosan praised, a proud look in his eyes. "I know I said first one here gets a favor… but since I was the first, I'll do all of you one."

Their eyes widened at that and they gazed at each other, before smiling in unison.

"We want you to go to sleep until you're fully recovered," they all said.

They couldn't keep the satisfaction off their faces, as Rosan's eyes widened in genuine surprise and his mouth opened in shock.

"What…?" He muttered in confusion, scratching his head. "Didn't you guys hear? I, Portgas D. Rosan, will do any one favor I can for you all… each. Separately. One. Not together."

"We know," Luffy beamed.

"But you haven't properly rested since this whole thing started," Zoro shrugged, steadying the unconscious Chopper who blearily began waking up.

"You've been tearing yourself apart in every direction and now look at your condition," Nami chimed.

"You got your blood all over Robin-chan too! We're using our favor to make sure you get a full earned rest, you walking corpse," Sanji barked.

"Rest is vital… I learned this from Sniper Island. A well rested warrior is most important," Sogeking nodded.

Franky cried and wiped his tears. "You guys move my soul! Get that rest brother! You've done enough!"

Robin couldn't keep the shock off her face at their statements and chanced a glance at Rosan.

His eyes were almost innocently wide, unable to believe that someone wouldn't want a favor out of him... and in a way, that was rather heartbreaking because Rosan probably thought the most valuable thing he could offer to people, was his usefulness.

He never thought someone would turn down his resources, because he was so resourceful and this amazing crew must have really caught him off guard.

Finally, his shocked expression turned amused and an actual grin made its way to his face that looked stunning.

"Pft kahahahaha! Alright fine, I'll get some sleep you cute ass kids. Just don't regret this later, I rarely offer something so good," Rosan laughed a genuine laugh of joy as he gazed at his ridiculous crew and they felt their eyes widening at the earnest sound of it.

It… was really endearing. They didn't know Rosan was capable of laughing so innocently…

Robin gazed at the laughing redhead in wonder and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you so much… Rosan," she murmured, taking in everything about him and feeling her defenses weakening once more.

Rosan gazed down at her and sighed.

She was still in trouble but for now… for now he would spare her just for the moment.

Besides… he was just really happy he got her back.

He scooped her up and returned the hug, squeezing her as tightly as he could as relief flooded through him. He desperately planted another kiss on her bloodied forehead and ignored the red marring his lips in favor of the sheer relief flooding his system.

"I'm so glad I didn't lose you," he whispered, shutting his eyes tightly as he let out a shuddering breath.

"He's shaking…" Robin thought in sorrow, just holding the redhead and offering him her presence. "He… I nearly ruined Rosan for life…"

Kami she was so stupid. What was she thinking…?

Never again… she would do anything it took to make sure she got to spend her days with this amazing crew.

Rosan eventually opened his eyes and took a step back. "We need to get off this island. Our allies should have secured themselves an exit by now, but I sent a few birds in case to remind them…"

Robin removed her head slightly from his neck and looked into his eyes. She felt more then a little nervous and reluctantly asked, "Rosan… do you actually plan on pressing that… button?"

Rosan tilted his head. "Robin. I'm going to make sure Enies Lobby is destroyed today and this is the most euphoric way I can do it…"

Then he grabbed her chin and locked his gaze onto her.

"You don't have to be afraid. I'm here for you."

Robin shuddered. Rosan was… he was brimming with charismatic energy. His words demanded attention and who was she to doubt him?

She would never doubt him again. It was her job to always believe in him and she would never forsake such a duty.

"I'm not afraid. Not with you here," she nodded strongly. "Do it. Destroy Enies Lobby. I… I want to see it too."

Rosan grinned wolfishly and Robin was finding that when he grinned like that… Rosan was so beautiful.

Ah… she really did have it bad. She was going to end up following him to the ends of the Earth at this rate.

Rosan hummed and summarily pressed on the Golden Den Den with no hesitation, making sure his disrupter was no longer interfering in case it affected even this thing.

Then, he tossed the snail on top of the shuddering Spandam, still writhing in pain and unable to sleep because of being forced awake by the demon in human flesh.

"Front Row seats to a Buster Call… I hope you enjoy it," Rosan mocked.

Spandam wheezed, and it turned into a squeal of agony, as a foot materialized over his crotch and stomped.

Then, two arms sprouted on his neck and began repeatedly slapping him until Robin grew satisfied.

"It's only right I hurt you while you're defenseless, since you derived so much pleasure from hurting me while I was defenseless," Robin smiled.

"Enjoy the last few moments of your life, Spandam. Your ignorance of the Buster Call is appalling. I would tell you to value human life… but I have no interest in yours anymore."

Rosan smirked at her words, idly squeezing her before he turned serious.

"Alright, those allies of ours should be getting a bunch of escape ships for us all so we'll get outta her—"

Rosan and every single Straw Hat paused, as an urge to walk over to the edge of the bridge came over them and they rushed over.

What they saw left them completely stunned.

Sitting there, in the seas of Enies Lobby, was their very own ship, the Going Merry.

They watched with wide confused eyes.

"M-Merry?!" They shouted in confusion.

"Could you guys join me, for one last ride?" An ethereal voice asked them gently.

"!"

"Sure thing, Merry. If that's your last wish, I'll gladly accommodate it," Rosan said softly.

"That's Merry speaking?!" Usopp asked with wide eyes.

Rosan simply held onto Robin and jumped onto the ship, wincing in pain as he landed and having the Devil Child immediately steady him.

Usopp immediately scrambled after him, yelping as he landed face first on the deck and the Straw Hats followed suit.

"Thank you for accommodating me, you all… I really appreciate it," Merry said happily, sailing them away from the Judicial Island.

"Merry you can… you can speak?!" Luffy balked in confusion.

"This whole time… have you been alive?!" Usopp wondered, mask still on as his emotions threatened to overwhelm him.

"...Yes, you guys breathed life into me," she replied eventually. "All of you. Luffy, Usopp, Rosan, Zoro, Nami, Sanji, Robin, Chopper… I wouldn't have been alive if it weren't thanks to all of you."

The Straw Hats, felt their throats lock up at that as they realized Merry was sailing over to a giant ship.

"Iceburg? What are you doing here?!" Franky called out in shock as they witnessed the Galley-La ship.

"...I'm here to pick you all up," Iceburg said softly, gazing at the crew with an impressed gaze.

To think they had actually managed to completely retrieve Nico Robin without suffering any losses.

What a monstrous crew. They really were crazy.

"Pick us up?" Luffy asked in confusion. "But we already have Merry!"

"Sorry guys, this is as far as I can go."

They blinked in confusion, before horror crossed their features as Merry split in half.

"W-What?!" Luffy and Usopp gasped in shock.

The other members eyes closed as they realized what she meant by one last voyage.

Merry was going to die here…

Rosan frowned deeply, emotions flaring wildly. "One second Merry… you may be unfit to sail, but that doesn't mean you have to sink here… just give me a bit and I'll patch you back up and put you somewhere nic —"

"Rosan… it's okay. Thank you so much for how much you've helped me but you can stop now… My time is up."

The redhead paused at that, before a scowl crossed his features. "So you want to sink here? Why? What's the point of this?! You didn't have a problem when I brought it up on Skypiea but now all of a sudden you want this?" He asked in disbelief.

The crew jolted at that, gazing at the redhead with wide eyes.

"Y-You spoke to Merry already?" They asked in shock.

"...Yes, I did," he said quietly.

"Don't be upset with him… I asked him to tell you guys when I was going to sink at the right time… and I wanted him to keep it a secret," Merry said softly.

They froze at that, remembering how Rosan was trying to nudge them into getting a new ship… remembering how he was so sure that she wouldn't last much longer.

They thought he was just being pessimistic… it was Rosan's job to show them the grim side of the world and keep them set on reality… but to think this entire time, he was trying to break it to them as gently as he knew how.

"I'm sorry for making you keep this a secret… maybe if I told you to tell them immediately they would have been able to cope with it."

The redhead shook his head. "I've kept many secrets. One more is nothing… I'm sorry that despite everything, it still turned into such a mess. I should have played a stronger hand."

Usopp froze at the reveal and he gazed at the redhead with devastated eyes.

So Rosan was just acting on... the requests of Merry. It wasn't just his pessimism and yet Usopp had...

An apology would never make up for what he did…

"So you truly wish to… sink here?" Rosan asked hesitantly, unsure as to why he was feeling this way.

"Yeah Merry, at least let Rosan repair you!" Luffy insisted.

"No… I don't want that. I want to sail with you guys until I sink and that moment has come. It's fine, really," Merry assured them. "Please, let this be our final goodbye."

"B-But Merry!" Nami protested, tears welling in her eyes. "Won't you reconsider—"

"I understand," Rosan said softly, eyes closed in acceptance.

Merry was their ship after all. She probably couldn't stand the thought of them riding another ship, while she was still alive.

But at the same time, she wouldn't bare to kill them because she truly was at her ropes.

"You're a stubborn and selfish girl, Merry. You must have gotten that from Luffy and I."

"...Guilty as charged," the ship laughed.

Luffy stopped protesting as well, realizing the same thing as Rosan. "Alright Merry… but the seafloor is dark and lonely, so we'll see you off," he decided.

"Of course Captain… thank you for being with me in my final moments."

No one else had any complaints, boarding Iceburg's ship with sullen gazes.

"I've never seen a ship like this one," the mayor said quietly. "She was broken up but… she still asked me to repair her so that she could sail one last time. Even with the fact that there was no hope for her, this ship defied all logic and sailed off to come see you guys one last time. There is no ship as incredible as this one… it's... no, she's lived a splendid life."

The more sensitive members of the crew began tearing up at that admittance, bowing their heads at how amazing Merry was.

Rosan summoned the most gentle flames he could muster, before aiming at the Merry and engulfing it.

As it lit up with fire, every single Straw Hat reminisced about a different moment that brought them closer to the ship.

Nami was brought to tears as she remembered the first time they all got the ship.

Zoro stared stonily as he recalled all the places he had slept and all the times he kept watch.

Sanji bit his cigarette as he remembered the time they finally set sail for the Grand Line.

Chopper recalled the incredible sensation of reaching Sky Island and the pleasant feeling of departing on the balloon octopus.

Robin recalled chasing the sickly little redhead all around the ship, leaning onto the railing as she finally captured him and sighing in exhaustion.

Usopp and Luffy recalled every moment they could, as they kept on a brave expression.

Rosan recalled almost nothing which was why he was confused as to why his emotions were overwhelming him again.

It must have been because of the memory of talking to a little ghost, that told him that they were about do sink. Because now that he looked at it again, it crushed his heart from all angles.

"I'm sorry. I wish I could sail with you guys forever. I had so many fun adventures and we experienced so much in such a short time…"

"DON'T APOLOGIZE!" Luffy screamed, tears falling from his eyes as his expression broke. "WE'RE THE ONES WHO SHOULD BE SORRY!"

"I'M NO GOOD AT STEERING SO I RAN YOU INTO ICEBURGS AND I RIPPED YOUR MAST! AND ZORO AND SANJI ARE STUPID SO THEY BROKE ALL KINDS OF STUFF! USOPP AND ROSAN WOULD FIX YOU EVERY TIME BUT THEY AREN'T GOOD AT THAT! WE SHOULDN'T HAVE FAILED YOU, MERRY!"

"But I was still happy."

That simple sentence floored them.

Rosan grit his teeth as his emotions threatened to burst out and he ruthlessly stamped them down. But even despite that, tears began forming in his eyes that he couldn't prevent and he blinked in shock, as a hand inconspicuously formed and began wiping the tears.

He hesitantly turned towards the teary eyed Robin and she smiled encouragingly at him.

"All of you, thank you so much for caring about me," Merry said, a brilliant joy in her voice as she fully sank into the ocean.

"M-MERRRYYYY!"

---

"ADMIRAL AOKIJI HAS CALLED A BUSTER CALL ON ENIES LOBBY!"

"WE'VE SUDDENLY RECEIVED MULTIPLE TRANSMISSIONS FROM THERE AS WELL!"

"WAS THE SIGNAL BLOCKED?! WE'RE RECEIVING FAR TOO MANY CALLS!"

"PREPARE THE BATTLESHIPS FOR ENIES LOBBY!"

---

Everyone on the Galley-La ship watched with blatant interest, as Rosan randomly started a stream.

The screen opened and revealed itself to the whole ship.

"Just a little memento," Rosan stated calmly. "Since we've declared war against the World Government, I may as well start off with a bang. Anyone who has me as an enemy, will regret that decision. Do not touch what's mine."

Robin shuddered at that tone and nodded in his hold, managing to quell the boiling anger momentarily.

Their confusion only lasted a moment, as they saw multiple warships appear outside the vicinity of Enies Lobby.

"...What did you do?" Iceburg asked curiously, a look of trepidation forming on his features.

"Did my boys get off the island?" Franky asked Rosan.

The redhead nodded. "All our allies have escaped, I made sure of it. The only people on that island, are The World Government."

Then he turned towards Iceburg, eyes sharpening into something dangerous.

"They tried to take Robin from me so I'm making a statement," he muttered, holding the woman possessively. "Since this entire thing has started, I've almost completely blocked out what happened to Enies Lobby."

Their eyes widened at that. "You did?!"

Seriously? Was that why no backup arrived despite the mayhem Rosan caused?

Rosan smiled. "Communication is a powerful tool. That's why I always have a way to communicate with you all. Communication allows one to amass information and when one doesn't have information…"

They found themselves nodding at his words, realizing once more how scary Rosan was.

Without Robin and Rosan on Water 7, the Straw Hats realized just how out of depths they were without the two relaying info to them.

"It's very powerful and the more you rely on it, the more devastating it is when you suddenly don't have access," Robin muttered quietly.

A red spark danced between his fingers. "When I made my Cube, I discovered that my lightning can interrupt signals and so I taught myself that first. When you're in a war, everything becomes much easier if everyone is cut off from each other."

Franky chose to speak up. "Cube? What's that?" He asked in interest, remembering the redhead's words earlier about their combined efforts surpassing Vegapunk.

Rosan glanced at him, interest in his gaze. He pulled out his own cube and showed it to him.

"Communicating Using Bio Electricity, or Cube for short, is an invention I made that lets me communicate with other cube users, using my body. As a result, no one can interfere with my signal like the Marines tend to do," he said softly.

Franky's eyes bugged at that. "You made your own communication device?! WHAT?!"

That was incredible! Franky never even thought of something like that... hell, did any other form of communication besides Den Dens exist?!

Red wasn't kidding... if they combined their efforts... they really could make some crazy things...

Rosan saw the fascinated look in Franky's eyes and vowed to explore that after he healed... but for now, he just wanted to enjoy one thing.

The show.

Everyone watched with wide eyes, as the Government ships began unloading shell after shell on Enies Lobby, lighting the place up with fire.

A screen, this one only seen through Robin and Rosan's link, showed Spandam attempting to scream in horror as a cannon fired straight into him with no remorse, smashing into his body and killing him on impact.

"The only thing they should know, is that the Straw Hats invaded Enies Lobby and did an enormous amount of damage due to a dragon that's probably the Red Devil. Afterwards, the signal was cut for a duration… until it suddenly let up again and Spandam requested a Buster Call. Evidently, the Straw Hats proved to be an even bigger threat than they imagined and a Buster Call was deemed necessary to take them out."

Rosan's eyes flashed dangerously. "This is the information I've manipulated. Once they realize we've long escaped and they've destroyed Enies Lobby for no reason. They will understand that Portgas D. Rosan does not take threats to his loved ones lightly. If you touch the things I claim, I will make you regret every decision. I will make you lose. I will make you fear."

He clutched Robin tight and sneered as he gazed at the screen.

"He's terrifying."

Portgas D. Rosan was a monster. To do all this because someone took something he claimed...

Iceburg gazed at the redhead with wide eyes, not believing he had done all this just because they took Nico Robin from him.

If anything, it seemed like Nico Robin was the one preventing him from attempting to destroy the world. Judging by the way his entire stance seemed to lessen the longer he held onto the pleased woman, that seemed to meld into him, that notion seemed to be very true. His highly murderous aura was gone now.

"You might be the scariest person I know," Nami awed, looking at the terrifying redhead who had just destroyed a core Marine stronghold… who had just killed thousands of soldiers... all because they took Robin from him.

When he said he was possessive… they never realized he meant it to such a psychotic degree. Rosan was an actual psychopath.

"I've protected everyone that isn't the Straw Hats identity," Rosan muttered. "All of us will probably get a bounty increase, but you Water 7 folk are safe."

They gazed at the surprisingly thoughtful redhead.

"So you were attracting all that attention… to defend our identities?" Franky asked with wide eyes.

"No. I attracted all that attention because I was really pissed and I felt like killing them all," Rosan said bluntly.

They sweatdropped.

"But… I wanted to repay you all for helping us and I hate owing people favors for a long time. You are free from the criminal life of being branded with a bounty and all of Water 7 will avoid being burned to cinders for the part they played. My debt is repaid," Rosan said bluntly.

Iceburg's mouth opened in shock. "You're… keeping Water 7 safe?"

"Of course. The Franky Family and the Galley-La foremen shouldn't be hard to identify and you see the power of a Buster Call. You went through the risk of becoming enemies of the World Government, so I turned that risk negligible."

"You…" Iceburg gazed at the redhead with a stunned gaze.

"What? Surprised that the partner of Ohara's Devil was capable of this? Hate that two demon's act differently then what you expected?" Rosan asked mockingly.

"I don't like you because you like to judge people without ever meeting them, so I'm gonna do the same. I hate people who can't make judgment on their own and rely on what they hear. I hate people who view the world in two colors. I hate people who won't leave a normal girl alone because she's talented... But Franky is apart of Water 7 and I've gained a lot of respect for him... because he's helped us a lot," he revealed with a frown.

Franky's eyes widened at that and the cyborg began comically crying.

"YOU'RE TOO TOUCHING, RED!" He sobbed, wiping his eyes.

"…" Iceburg said nothing for a moment, before he bowed his head. "I'm sorry to the both of you Portgas D. Rosan and Nico Robin… I've… learned a lot from this and you've helped me grow as a person. You don't ever have to forgive me and I wouldn't be upset... but I did change from this and I have you to thank for that."

"Apology not accepted," Rosan said bluntly, making everyone sweatdrop. "I'm too vengeful to just accept it... but I did lose a lot of blood and I haven't been thinking straight for the last hour so maybe when I heal I'll change my mind."

"I understand. Just know, I'll do whatever it takes to make it up to you," Iceburg said seriously. He then gazed at the defensive Robin with an apologetic gaze.

"I never should have condemned you like the rest of the world did… after hearing what Rosan had to say about you, I realize that I'm no better than the corrupt World Government… sentencing an 8 year old to a life of that… Truly I can't put into words how sorry I am, Nico Robin," he bowed lowly, unmindful of his injuries.

Robin blinked in surprise. "I'm not as vengeful as Rosan so I accept your apology… but what Rosan had to say about me? What did he say…?"

The mayor smiled and recalled the conversation.

"My purpose is for Nico Robin, my best and first friend, to be free to do as she pleases without assholes like you, who'd paint an entire image of a person based off rumors and propaganda, hounding her every time she even blinks. All I want for Robin, is for her to understand that as long as I'm alive, she's allowed to live with the knowledge that someone will always acknowledge her as the human she is."

The archaeologist stood there, stunned as they relayed the words he had said to her and she gazed at the redhead with wide eyes.

"You… you said that?" Mod whispered, tearing up at Rosan's conviction.

"Of course he did! Mother is Father's and Father is Mother's!" Ram beamed happily.

Robin smiled shakily as the redhead tilted his head, unsure as to why she was tearing up again.

Of course he'd be confused. To him, a statement like that was as easy as breathing. He was super embarrassing like that... always saying the most sincere and blush inducing things with no shame at all.

His goal since the first time they met, a lonely four year old boy and an isolated 8 year old girl, had always been to make her feel belonged.

"Yes, you're right Ram… I belong to Rosan," she confirmed.

"...Of course you do," Rosan said simply.

The redhead shut his eyes as a wave of pain washed over him and he rasped as his body began screaming, adrenaline fully wearing off.

Slender arms wrapped around him and he opened his eyes to see the exhausted Robin holding him up.

"We should sleep soon," she murmured. "Our blood is also spilling everywhere on each other."

"Remember Robin, you still aren't out of hot water just yet…" he muttered, eyes shutting as the lull of sleep threatened to overwhelm him.

"I… understand but until then, I'll enjoy this," she replied back.

He picked up his best friend and walked off into some random direction. "I'm gonna go sleep now. I dunno when I'm gonna wake up, I don't even know how I'm walking right now."

"Maybe you shouldn't be carrying me then," Robin muttered, despite enjoying the feeling and hugging him tighter.

"I just lifted an elephant and threw it in the ocean with these injuries… do you really think you're heavy at all?" he replied blandly.

"...I'm not sure how, but for the last hour, you've managed to say the perfect thing every time," Robin said with a small smile.

"Do you know who you're talking to?" Rosan snorted and they disappeared deeper into the ship.

"I'm tired," Luffy yawned, falling back and going unconscious immediately.

"I'm gonna go cry myself to sleep," Sanji said somberly.

"I need to think about this problem," Zoro grunted, referring to his sword.

"I… can't move. What happened? Did we win?" Chopper whined in confusion as Zoro carried him away.

"I'll explain it to you later," the swordsman grunted.

"My outfit got ruined. I'll have to buy an entire new wardrobe as compensation," Nami sighed.

"Just have Master Rosan repair it."

"Oh right. Then I can get the wardrobe as a bonus instead."

"You are utterly unhinged, Master Nami."

"I'm superrr out of cola," Franky grunted, trudging off to go refill.

"Everything hurts," Usopp moaned, falling flat on the floor as his body gave out.

"Get some rest, we'll let you know when we're back on Water 7," Iceburg assured.

The Straw Hats…

Hm, Franky would look good in their crew.

---

As Robin opened her eyes, she was greeted by the most bizarre form of the Mindscape yet.

It seemed like the area had split off into three sections and it was utterly enchanting.

First, was the rainforest. This piece of his mindscape was where Robin and Rosan both woke up at. It was raining as heavily as ever, with the trees sagging at the weight of the water, soaking the duo to the bone. Neither minded though, far too used to the sensation to let it bother them.

What was most interesting, was the thunderstorm accompanying the heavy rain. Thunder roared, as the rain pounded into the ground and lightning struck periodically.

Next, the tropical forest that Robin had loved oh so much had come back and she couldn't keep the fond grin off her face at the memories it invoked.

The sun hovered over it, light being blocked by the densely packed trees and the healthy grass swayed in times with the gentle wind. In the distance, they could see the pink house of their home resting there with a full garden of fruits and flowers.

Finally, the frozen forest gleamed frigidly, as unchanging as the first time it first made its appearance. Unlike the other two areas, nothing moved at all. The trees were utterly still, the wind did not blow, there was no precipitation… it was as tragic as ever and the giant castle loomed above it all, the only thing that changed in that area due to having no more heavy chains surrounding its body.

They all met in the middle, cut evenly into three pieces. It was bizarre to see how nothing spilled into their respective areas, almost like a barrier kept them all separated.

"Not bad," Rosan muttered, hair still flowing free as he gazed at his changed mindscape.

Robin liked that it was still free… but she wanted it just a bit shorter considering it was flowing past his shoulder currently.

His hair grew too fast… She would cut it after they woke up… whenever that was, both were rather exhausted.

"It's beautiful… it really fits the force of nature motif… even your mind is beginning to reflect it," she smiled.

He glanced at her and the smile vanished as she saw his chilly gaze.

"C'mon," was all he said, before walking off.

"...Right," she muttered.

Seems like now that emotional levels were back to stable levels, Rosan was back to being justifiably pissed at her.

The chilly expression was a lot worse than his anger… Robin knew how to deal with Rosan's anger, but she had no clue how to deal with his indifference.

It already stung and he had barely begun…

"Rosan I—" Robin tried, catching up to him.

"Just save it. I'm not trying to hear it right now," he cut her off, pushing open the door to their home.

She flinched at that, feeling a sadness swelling at his words.

She was unable to dwell on it for too long, because her attention was quickly taken away by the two woman crashing into her with enough force to floor her.

"M-MOTHER! I MISSED YOU SO MUCH! H-HOW COULD YOU JUST LEAVE WITHOUT SAYING A WORD?!" Ram sobbed, hugging her with all her might and spilling all the tears on her clothes.

Mod, while not as furious as Rosan, was still glaring at her heatedly, tears falling freely as she gazed at the Devil Child.

"What were you thinking?!" She hissed, clenching the woman desperately. "I can't… I can't believe you tried to sacrifice yourself for us, young lady! I never expected you of all people to make such an idiotic decision! Did you truly think we would have taken that lying down?! You have no idea how much trouble you're in right now!" Mod barked, red eyes glowing brightly with anger, hurt and relief.

Robin's heart clenched at that. She really had only been thinking about how this was going to affect Rosan in the long run but she knew differently now.

She thought that just Rosan being alive, would have eventually caused them all to heal... they would pick themselves back up and hurt... but they would eventually heal.

But she was terribly wrong.

Mod, who had grown oh so emotional over the years, would have been just as big of a wreck as Rosan. She wouldn't have been able to help the redhead back to his feet because she'd be just as broken.

"I'm… so sorry you all," Robin whispered, closing her eyes. "I thought I was doing what was best for everyone but it's only now that I realized, I would have caused the worst outcome with my actions."

Mod's furious gaze turned soft at that, unable to stay mad at Robin for long.

She could never stay mad at any of her children for long.

"After the fight with Aokiji my fear for all of your safety was at an all time high. I thought… if the World Government came for me again, they'd eventually send an Admiral or even call the Buster Call… so I figured that just trading myself in exchange for all of you to be safe would be well worth it instead of you all dying because of me," she explained, shutting her eyes.

"Izumi threatened to reveal Rosan's identity as Reaper if I didn't comply with her," she revealed. "She tricked me. I know now that her goal was always you and she used me to do it… I have no excuse for not seeing through her lies but in that moment, I really was trying to protect you, Rosan," Robin said, a hint of desperation in her voice as she gazed at the frigid eyes of the redhead.

"Oh Robin…" Mod said sadly, forgiving her after hearing the woman spill her heart out. "You should have at least spoken to us, we could have talked this out —"

"So you took advantage of me telling you that I couldn't control my emotions, abused the fact that I couldn't control my emotions to make me cry, ran me off, made me especially vulnerable to Izumi's illusions, wrote me a note saying you were leaving… and then you tried to sacrifice yourself?"

Everyone froze at that ghastly tone and hesitantly turned towards the source.

The look on Rosan's face, was nothing she had ever seen. His eyes were wide in fury, but they were utterly frigid and unfeeling. It almost didn't even feel like he was looking at her but she could tell.

Robin flinched at his reminder, holding her head at the accuracy of his statement.

"You basically admitted to having no trust in me at all… to the point where you'd side with my most hated enemies in the world… and you thought you were doing what was best for me? You thought the best thing for me... was killing yourself?" Rosan whispered in disbelief.

Finally those eyes lost the coldness in them and they were replaced by pure, unadulterated fury.

"You fucking hypocrite."

Robin reeled at that, hurt in her eyes at the words of Rosan.

"R-Rosan wait... she was in a vulnerable state," Mod tried to defend her, stepping up with a nervous expression.

"AND SO WAS I! AND SHE KNEW THAT! SHE FUCKING KNEW I WAS VULNERABLE AND SHE TOOK FULL ADVANTAGE OF ME! SHE USED ME! SHE TARGETED MY DEEPEST INSECURITIES AND ABANDONED ME!" Rosan roared furiously, glaring at the Devil Fruit and silencing her immediately.

Robin wilted at the truth of his words. She wanted nothing more than to crawl in a hole and hide because facing the facts was so hard.

Mod nervously wrung her hands and said nothing, gazing at her fuming son with wide eyes.

Ram frowned sadly and said nothing, watching the exchange with serious eyes.

Rosan was fully incensed. His eyes were glowing like the sun as he gazed at them all. "I SPILLED MY HEART OUT TO HER. I TOLD ROBIN EVERYTHING ABOUT ME! I TOLD HER THAT MY NEW REASON FOR LIVING WAS HER. AND YOU KNOW WHAT SHE DID? SHE SPIT ON EVERYTHING I SAID AND TRIED TO KILL HERSELF! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO FEEL ABOUT THAT?!" He snarled.

They all wilted at the genuine hurt and rage in his voice.

Robin couldn't prevent the tears from forming at the sheer sorrow she was feeling from him.

"I looked Robin dead in her eyes and said I don't care if she's hiding things from me because I know she'd never put me in danger on purpose and she did exactly that," he whispered.

"Robin looked me dead in my eyes and told me to never sacrifice myself for her, then tried to do the exact thing she told me not to do. How am I supposed to accept this? How do you honestly expect me to take this?" He asked genuinely, eyes full of despair as the reality of the situation crashed into him.

Robin bowed her head as the tears fell in earnest, realizing just how torn up Rosan truly was over this.

Rosan wasn't done. The redhead's anger drained off his face as he sagged, trying hard to resist the urge to cry because even if his emotions were out of control he would never cry of sadness.

"And you want to know the worst part?" He whispered.

No one dared to say a thing and Robin shakily looked into his heartbroken eyes, sure that her eyes were reflecting the same thing.

"The worst part is, you loved me and I loved you too... and you were going to die before we could ever talk about it," he revealed.

Robin froze completely at that. "You... you..."

"Loved you?" Rosan asked, letting out a sardonic laugh as he shook his head. "I was going to tell you the same day you drove me away and I'm guessing you were gonna do the same thing... but instead of talking, like I wanted... you just ran and ran and then you made me run. You didn't even plan on telling me that you loved me like that… you were never even planning on giving me the chance to reciprocate my own feelings… you know I have abandonment issues and you left with just a note," he said so quietly they struggled to hear him.

"We finally made so much progress… so why did you try and leave me, Robin? Don't you understand that I just can't handle losing anyone else? Why did you fill me with so much hope and then stomp on it?" Rosan asked brokenly, gazing at her with glistening eyes that shattered all of them.

Twice now… Twice she had made her lovable redhead cry and Robin let out a sob herself at the genuine question. The way he said it… the way he was looking at her… It was asked so innocently and sadly.

But she had no answer for him. How could she ever answer that question? She never wanted to be asked something like that...

Rosan felt his resolve weakening and turned, dashing away from them all as he shut the door behind himself.

They watched him go with tears all falling down their eyes.

"Rosan! Please wait and let me explain!" Robin shouted.

She wasted no time and departed, chasing after the redhead with desperate tears.

"R-Rosan, Robin wait! Please!" Mod tried to shout. The woman pushed herself up and immediately tried to chase after him, only for Ram herself to grab and hold her back.

The ring, who had been completely silent the entire time, was gazing at Mod with a teary, but firm, expression, preventing the woman from chasing after them.

"Put me down Ram! He needs me!" She struggled in the rings grasp.

"No Auntie…" Ram denied, shaking her head.

"But why? I don't care if I'm sick… I'll go speak to him and you won't stop me!" She snarled, eyes glowing bright in warning.

The crying ring whirled Mod around and locked those unique irises onto her own, looking incredibly serious for once.

Mod went still, never expecting Ram to look like that. She looked up at her niece with wide eyes.

"What are you gonna do once you go out there, Auntie?" She asked seriously. "Are you gonna go out there and tell Father how he should be acting? Are you gonna tell Father that Mother just made a mistake and he should forgive her? Do you really think that's the right thing to do?!"

Mod flinched back and her expression turned hurt. "N-No, I was just... I just wanted to make sure it didn't get out of control because..."

"Because what?! Auntie, Father is his own person! Are you saying he shouldn't be allowed to react how he wants to react?!" Ram interrupted her with a deep frown.

The Devil Fruit's eyes went wide and she shook her head hastily. "That's not... that's not what I was going to do..."

"Yes it was!" the silver haired woman shouted, making her go completely silent. "Auntie, you can't coddle Father like this! You were gonna go out there and take mother's side by minimizing Father's anger! Why doesn't he deserve to be angry? Why does he need to be calmed down?! We don't get to decide this! This is his body, Auntie!" Ram said firmly.

Mod wilted more and more at Ram's words, tears beginning to form in her eyes and Ram's expression softened.

"We need to let Mother handle this because it's between those two. If Mother can't handle this alone... then maybe things aren't meant to be. But trust me, Mother will handle this because those two were made for each other," she said softly.

Mod opened her mouth and then closed it, sagging as her tears began harshly falling.

"H-He looked so vulnerable and broken… I was reminded of the days when he was just a tiny boy who couldn't sleep unless I was holding him," she sobbed. "It's so hard to see my baby boy sound and look so sad, Ram! I hate it more than anything!"

"I-I do too Auntie… but this isn't something we can help him with. We don't even know the full scope of what happened because we were incapacitated… our words would just be hollow to his ears… you know how Father is," she explained patiently, hugging and soothing her caretaker.

Mod sniffed and buried herself into Ram, shuddering in the protective hold of the taller ring.

"I know… it sucks so badly. We always want to be there for him… but right now it'll just do more harm then good. Mother is the only one who fully understands right now. Whatever happens with them… should be decided by them alone and not us."

The Devil Fruit hesitantly nodded. "Y-You're right, Ram… I needed to hear that. Thank you… Just now, you were really incredible, y'know?"

The ring smiled softly. "Being so useless while Father did everything, really showed me a lot of things… He looked… really cool figuring all these things out on his own," she said honestly.

Mod blinked at her words in shock, before it became thoughtful. "He did, didn't he… and you're not useless Ram, you managed to summon a barrier that saved him! You're figuring things out on your own too!"

Ram nodded thoughtfully.

"It's… not a bad feeling," she said truthfully.

---

"Rosan, please wait!" Robin shouted, chasing the redhead into the rainforest.

She wasn't even sure he could hear her because of the heavy rain, but Robin would not let it end like this because if she did, she might regret it for the rest of her life.

The redhead, who had been running far too fast, didn't seem to hear her, content to run as far away from the house as possible until he finally seemed to deem this distance enough.

The moment he stopped, he grunted as something crashed into him. They were both brought to the wet floor and he began struggling in their grasp, eyes lit up in warning.

Then, he registered the scent of flowers, even through the heavy rain.

"I didn't ask you to follow me," Rosan hissed venomously, watching as Robin's tears mixed with the rain, both falling on him.

Robin said nothing and Rosan began snarling.

"Didn't you hear me?! LEAVE!" He barked, refusing to allow his weakness to be viewed by anyone else. "JUST GO, ROBIN! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

She shook her head harshly. "No! I can't do that Rosan! I won't let you suffer alone!" she retorted with a sad frown.

If anything, that seemed to infuriate him even further and she winced back as a heavy pressure slammed into her.

"You won't let me suffer alone?!" He hissed venomously. "YOU WON'T LET ME SUFFER ALONE?!" He roared, actually looking like he was about to attack her on the spot.

Robin froze as his eyes flickered to complete black before vanishing.

"This whole thing started because you wanted me to suffer alone! You took my heart, you captured it and then you did whatever you wanted with it and crushed it!" He scowled furiously.

She began trembling atop him and his anger began seeping into the mindscape.

Thunder began crashing harder, the rain began forming a small puddle underneath the group that Rosan began sinking in.

"Please, Rosan! Can't we just talk?" Robin pleaded, refusing to let him go in case he vanished.

It was a miracle he hadn't thought to kick her out of his mindscape yet...

Perhaps it was because he wasn't done lashing out. Nothing Robin said seemed to appease him in the slightest. His eyes were a burning torrent of rage and in any moment, he might actually bite her with those bared fangs.

"Now you want to talk?" He asked incredulously. "All I wanted to do was talk, Robin! I practically begged you to talk to me! I embarrassed myself over and over against asking if we could just talk and you brushed me off every single time!" He howled, struggles intensifying.

Robin wilted at that, holding her head at the truth of his words.

"You said the worst things possible to me! You said you were tired of me! You told me to leave you alone and now that I want to be left alone, you can't accept?!" Rosan growled lowly. "Now that I don't want to talk, you think we have to talk?! Why do you get to decide all these things?! Why am I not allowed to make my own choices?!"

"Because... if we don't talk right now, things might get to a point that I never want it to get to," Robin whispered in defeat.

Rosan finally got up and shoved her off of him with a furious scowl. "You had your chance to talk and you shattered my heart into pieces, Robin. I decided against all odds to put my trust in someone again and you proved to me that I was wrong. I'll talk to you when I'm ready," he said with a tone of finality.

Before he could even take a step, Robin appeared in front of him once more and he clenched his fist.

What didn't she get? Why wouldn't she just leave him alone?! Why did no one ever want to leave him alone—

He froze as he was pushed to the ground and grunted as his body connected to the wet floor.

Before he could properly get up, two arms hoisted him into a sitting position before wrapping around his neck.

Robin, sitting on the redhead now to make sure he didn't run until she at least said this, shuddered into his frame.

"I knew how much you cared for me… but a small part never realized it was to this extent… because a small part of me never thought I'd be able to help you like Meiko did," Robin whispered into his ears.

Rosan went completely still.

"You're right, Rosan. I'm such a massive hypocrite… I did take advantage of your emotions, I did side with your most hated enemies… I did so many things to hurt you and I hated myself for every single second of it!" Robin sobbed.

"When Aokiji froze you solid, I could only think about the day Ohara was destroyed and the fear of losing you made me so irrational. I just… I didn't want everyone to lose your light and I thought the only option, was to give myself up instead."

Robin curled into his frame. "But deep down, I didn't want to leave you… I didn't want to be separated from you for even a second. I was just so scared and I thought the weight of the world was too much for our crew to handle so I gave up before we could crumble…"

"...But I won't give up again. When you fought Aokiji… you didn't do it because you were trying to die for me… you did it because you wanted to protect me! That's always how it's been. You just want to keep me safe a-and I took that for granted but I won't anymore… so please, Rosan… please let me make this up to you in anyway I can because I don't want to lose you!" Robin wailed, desperately clinging onto the redheaded joy like he would disappear from her life at any moment.

She couldn't lose him. Not again. She knew now that her days should be spent with Rosan and the Straw Hats and she didn't want to lose her sun. She knew it was selfish of her and Rosan was well in his right to hate her for what she did... but she just couldn't let it end like this.

Rosan had every right to want nothing to do with her after what she had done to him but she would do anything to get him back —

Two strong arms wrapped around her and she froze at the tender feeling.

"What type of hypocrite would I be, if I made you try to earn my forgiveness?" Rosan whispered softly, eyes tender as they lost the anger. "After what I did to you… you think I'd stoop so low? I won't let you make up anything to me, because there's nothing to make up."

"I understand why you did what you felt like you had to do. I know you got manipulated... but it still hurts alot knowing that you would have just died and left me alone. It felt like such a slap to the face, when I realized you didn't trust me the way I trusted you," he said, wavering slightly.

She narrowed her eyes in guilt at the truth of his statement.

"If I were in your shoes… I never would have even considered that an option and I just assumed you would think like me," Rosan admitted. "But we don't think the exact same do we?"

"You thought I was throwing my life away for no reason against Aokiji… but I thought I was doing everything in my power to protect you from someone who had just threatened you to my face. If we had just communicated properly we could have resolved it," he sighed.

"NO!" Robin shouted, making him reel in surprise. "Rosan… I was the one who wasn't properly communicating. It's like you said... over and over again, you tried to speak to me. If I had just properly conveyed my feelings… if I had just talked to you like an adult… so much could have been avoided. You continuously asked me if I wanted to talk and I constantly blew you off and that lies solely with me," she said shakily.

"I'm glad you're not angry anymore... but surely there's something I can do to make it up to you?" She asked hesitantly.

But to her disappointment, Rosan simply shook his head.

"There is nothing. I have nothing to forgive Robin… because despite everything I said, I still trust you. You're one of the most important people to me on the planet… I was always going to still trust you... I just wanted some alone time to deal with my anger but you didn't wanna let me," he said truthfully, smiling wryly at her.

I still trust you.

Even after what she did. Even after driving him to this state… Even after all that transpired, he could still say he trusted her.

"I lost you once… I refuse to lose you again," he murmured, pulling her close.

Robin bit her lip and then she broke.

"I love you Rosan! I really do love you! Never again. I'll stay with you even if you grow tired of me!" She cried, hugging him with all her might and bringing him to the floor again.

Rosan sighed fondly, glad that the rain had been hiding his tears, and said, "I'll never grow tired of you… but you're probably gonna grow tired of my gaze. Consider yourself grounded," he smiled.

"I accept it!" She said without hesitation. "Ground me for as long as you want… I won't complain, not even once."

"Of course you won't. My best friend is a person who always goes with the flow," he responded gently.

He had been angry. Furious even… but after hearing Robin admit her insecurities about Meiko, it had knocked the wind out of his sails.

After hearing that him being frozen, evoked her ptsd, he realized he could never be angry at this girl…

Because she was his Robin. Rosan had done plenty of idiotic things… it wouldn't be right if he stayed upset at her for doing her own idiotic thing.

As far as he was concerned, she really did have nothing to be forgiven about because this still didn't come close to his sin to her.

So no, he was no longer upset with her at the moment but he'd still never forget this and it may make him even more overprotective of her in the future…

But he didn't think she had a problem with that.

...Good, because he didn't have a problem with her wanting to stay with him either.

Truthfully, he was… wary (terrified) of opening his heart again. But this feeling… he truly did love Robin and… and she loved him too right…? If she really did love him like that…

Rosan chanced it and lifted his soaked head off the floor. He leaned forward and planted a tentative kiss on the woman resting atop him.

His eyes widened as she reciprocated with zero hesitation, forcing his head back onto the ground with the force and molding their bodies as close as possible.

Robin struggled very hard, but eventually broke it and leaned back to gaze at him once more.

"I know you're afraid… I'm afraid too. I'm terrified truthfully," Robin said truthfully, staring into those bright irises that had regained their life because of her.

Robin had played a significant part in him losing every single chain… she didn't matter how selfish it sounded, Rosan needed her and his actions made it clear every single time.

So, now it was time for her to be just as selfish and claim the redhead as hers so no one got any ideas.

"We're both so afraid Rosan but… we shouldn't let our fears conquer us," she said knowingly. "Both of us want this… right?"

"...Yes I do want this," Rosan said with a bit of hesitation, confidence steadily rising as she spoke to him.

"Then why are we letting fear rule us? I… I'll become as strong as possible to alleviate some of your fear… but we should never let fear stop us from being happy and you make me happy," she finished, making sure to never take her eyes off of him for a second.

What she saw, pleased her immensely.

Rosan's trepidation was gone, rain doing nothing to hide his surge of confidence and he nodded strongly.

"Yeah, you're right… I won't be afraid if it will get in the way of me being happy," he said confidently, wrapping his arms around her as he stood up.

"So… wanna go out?" He asked, smiling in a charming manner.

Robin rolled her eyes with a fond smile. "I've kissed you and you've kissed me, yet you still felt the need to ask me that question?"

"Of course, I like to be certain of things so that people have no complaints regarding the actions I take. Wouldn't want any misunderstandings to arise," he replied in amusement.

Robin sighed and nodded, tucking her head into the crook of his neck.

"Yes, Rosan, we're going out now."

She just knew he was smirking that insufferable smirk of his because she was smiling herself.

"So how long have you liked me for?" Rosan asked suddenly, taking in her features with a bit of wonder in his eyes.

Robin blinked in surprise at the question.

"Well... I had a crush on you when we were kids... and I acknowledged that I regained feelings for you at Skypiea... when you told me that I was your new reason to live."

Truthfully, Robin was fairly sure her crush came back after Rosan kissed her at Alabasta but it transformed into love after Rosan's actions in Skypiea.

Rosan pondered that, with a look of surprise. "Huh, same as me then. I had a crush on you when we were kids too... and I'm pretty sure my feelings came back sometime before Alabasta because when I got my emotions back... I kinda got bulldozed by my feelings," he admitted.

Robin actually had a look of surprise. "You had a crush on me when we were kids? You had a crush on me after regaining your emotions?" she asked in surprise.

He nodded, scratching his red hair with a nervous smile. "I didn't want to make things awkward between us so I hid it... but yeah it was really overwhelming. Even just you sleeping on top of me was too much," he revealed with a sheepish laugh.

Robin thought about the implications of that statement. "Oh... wow. I didn't know you had a crush on me when we were kids."

For someone who had such little control over their emotions, Rosan had been very good at hiding his feelings...

Or maybe she was just oblivious.

"Yeah, I realized that I liked kissing you way more than Mod-chan," Rosan told her with a small smile.

Oh so she really was just oblivious.

Go figure.

"You should be thankful I loved you back. Not just everyone will accept you randomly assaulting and kissing them," she retorted with a small smile.

"I guess that's why we're dating now. You're saving all those poor people," he retorted smugly.

She couldn't resist the laugh at that and just sunk deeper into him.

The two just remained their, in the middle of the rain, steadily letting their own emotions reach tolerable levels, but both content with each other.

Well, that was until Rosan slapped her right on the cheek.

The noise resounded even through the steadily calming storm.

"Forgot that I promised I was gonna do that," he muttered, watching as her head turned in shock.

"I know why you did it… I really do but I'm going to kill you, Rosan," she said, lunging on the redhead.

"You literally said you would accept any punishment!" Rosan retorted, fending her off to the best of abilities. He hastily grabbed the arms trying to wrap around his neck and gazed at her with incredulous eyes.

"Yes I did up until you slapped me with ridiculous force! What is wrong with you?!"

"You're lying in our relationship already?! We need to lay some ground rules out about this toxicity."

"I'm beginning to have regrets already, insufferable little boy."

"Get used to it. This is the normal feeling of someone who has to deal with a person as awesome as me."

---

Mod and Ram watched as Rosan and Robin both entered the house with looks of anticipation on their faces.

The best friends looked like they had been arguing harshly and judging by the red mark on Robin's cheek, it didn't look too good for their eyes.

Mod really tried to take Ram's words into account. She really did think Rosan deserved to feel angry at this... but Mod also knew that when Rosan was angry he said things he didn't mean in the long run.

When he was upset, he just wanted to hurt the other person as much as they hurt him... and to her eyes that's probably what he had done...

So she immediately rushed her.

"R-Rosan, please! I know you're upset and you have every right to be, but I don't want it to end like this!" she begged, gazing up at him with desperate eyes. "Please, find it in you to forgive Robin!"

"?" Rosan tilted his head.

"I know what Robin did was so insanely stupid but please just punish her a-and then we can eventually move past this… I love you two so much and I was so happy when you finally kissed and I think you're both so good for each other!"

"Mod-chan."

"I know Ram and I should be more upset too and trust me, we'll never forget this b-but that doesn't mean you should cut her completely off! W-We all make really stupid mistakes! I've made so much errors and yet you forgave me so please forgive Robin!"

"Mod-chan."

"I admit, I haven't caught up on your memories and I'm sure when I do, it'll be so much different but please let me make a selfish reques —"

Mod paused, mouth opening in shock, as Rosan grabbed Robin by the waist and pulled her into a kiss right before their eyes.

"W-W-Wha," she stammered, face going bright red as she watched them with bugged eyes.

"Woah," Ram muttered in awe, eyes glittering.

Eventually, Rosan pulled back and glanced at Mod with amusement in his eyes.

"Surely there would have been a better way of showing her we made up then that?" Robin said with a raised brow. "...Not that I mind your methods."

The redhead snorted. "Sure there are, but should we really do that in front of a crowd?"

Robin paused, before she realized what he meant and she let out a suffering sigh. "You don't have an ounce of shame in your body. Weren't you blushing red when I kissed you at Enies Lobby?"

"I'm bad at receiving a taste of my own medicine," Rosan shrugged helplessly. "But we made up, Mod-chan… and we're dating now."

Mod and Ram blinked owlishly at that.

"You... are?" Mod muttered in confusion.

Rosan nodded with a small smile.

"FINALLY! N-NOW I DON'T HAVE TO READ THOSE ROMANCE BOOKS ANYMORE… I just need to finish the series I started because I'm a completionist… yeah," Ram said, nodding to herself.

"What a normal reaction," Robin smiled in amusement.

Rosan smirked and raked a hand through his hair. "I'd be a hypocrite if I never forgave Robin because despite everything… Robin forgave me when she had no reason to… so of course I wouldn't stay mad at her," he said softly.

"I'm glad that you haven't pushed me away but... I still feel guilty… surely there's something I can do?" Robin muttered with a frown.

Rosan shook his head and dragged her close. "You refused to let me make it up to you back when we first met again… why do you think I'd want you to do that?" He asked in amusement.

Mod watched the two converse and realized Ram was right… this was something they needed to figure out on their own and she was so glad they did...

"I'm so happy for you two. Really, I'm so happy!" Mod sobbed, tears falling freely as she collided with them both.

Robin and Rosan let out equal gasps as Ram joined and tackled them to the floor.

"So do you guys wanna sleep in separate rooms now?!" Ram asked excitedly, eyes glowing. "I-I won't barge into the rooms at certain times but Auntie and I will really miss you sometimes so we have to talk about living arrangements more!"

"You are far too depraved, Ram," Robin pointed out with an exasperated sigh.

"I guess this is a side effect of Maro being her best friend," Rosan muttered, scratching his head at her words.

"OH! I HAVE TO TELL MARO AND EVERYONE ABOUT THIS!" Ram squealed in glee. "WE DID IT! WE FINALLY GOT THEM TOGETHER!"

Both Robin and Rosan blinked.

"Finally got us… together?" Robin muttered in confusion.

"Were you guys… plotting to get us together behind our backs?" Rosan asked with a raised brow.

Wait… that made so much sense.

"They weren't even being subtle," Robin sweatdropped in realization.

Mod began shaking her head in disbelief. "So you guys really didn't realize until now? We all thought this was an elaborate prank…"

Rosan grunted in amusement and stood up, hoisting all of them up with him.

"Nope, I never thought about it. The last time I dated was when I was 12," he replied.

"I've never dated," Robin supplied helpfully.

Mod laughed helplessly at that. The two didn't even realize they both reciprocated each others love so she wasn't even surprised they didn't notice.

"Alright, I promised my crew I was going to sleep until I'm fully healed, and I'm even exhausted in here so I'll go do that now," the redhead muttered.

"Me too," the brunette sighed.

"I still feel a little sick… so I'd like some rest as well," Mod yawned, tucking into Rosan.

"I'm going… to finish this book," Ram nodded, not feeling tired.

"Alright… oh and by the way…"

Rosan glanced over at Mod with a serious look in his eyes and she instantly grew a little apprehensive before stamping it away.

"Once we fully recover, there's something we need to do."

---

"You're telling me that Enies Lobby was destroyed… and the Straw Hats are alive?!" Sengoku asked in disbelief.

At the hesitant nod, the Fleet Admiral felt the worst headache he felt yet since learning of the existence of the Straw Hats.

The entire day was one giant goddamn headache.

Cipher Pol had made the first mistake. It had already been made clear, that the Straw Hats were not an average rookie crew and to err on the side of caution, especially when dealing with the Red Devil.

Going after Nico Robin without knowing the full extents of the Red Devil was incredibly reckless and in their hubris at seemingly doing so, they hadn't even managed to secure the blueprints of Pluton because naturally, Iris D. Rosan had taken egregious offense to that and killed one of the more resourceful members of the assassins.

Not only that, they failed to properly frame the Straw Hats, failed to kill any witnesses and failed to even confirm if the blueprints truly were left with this Cutty Flam.

Now Water 7 was well aware of the World Government's attempts on their mayor's life and they could practically kiss their very beneficial relationship goodbye.

Identity completely revealed, affiliation revealed, no blueprints… and no Nico Robin.

They were supposed to be the best assassins of the generation… yet they had utterly and completely failed. If it were up to Sengoku, they'd be thrown in Impel Down at the earliest convenience but unfortunately, they were likely dead...

But that wasn't even all. In fact, that wasn't even the worst of it.

No the worst of it lie with the Straw Hats and Raisa's goddamn menace of a son.

The Red Devil… Iris D. Rosan had caused complete and utter mayhem on their numbers.

It immediately began when CP9 announced that one of their agents… Blueno was it (his Devil Fruit was a useful asset)? Had been killed by him… and he didn't transform into a dragon to do so.

That had caused the first bout of confusion, hearing about an amorphous black figure that had brutally killed one of the agents had not been what Sengoku was expecting.

Not only that... it was able to somewhat control and caused anything around it to dissolve at a touch. The description confused Sengoku greatly and he frowned in contemplation, before temporarily discarding the thought.

What followed after the news about what happened on Water 7, was what had caused his headache to evolve into a migraine.

The entirety of the Straw Hats, led by the Red Devil had invaded Enies Lobby in order to get Nico Robin back.

In contrast to the reports, the Red Devil had immediately began wreaking havoc on the island… as a dragon not the amorphous black figure he had been described as before.

Now he felt as if he were back to square one on trying to figure out what the redhead's Devil Fruit was. An inky creature with corrosive properties and a Dragon?

Was he a shape shifting Mythical Zoan? One that could transform into any creature it so desired?

That was his surest guess but he had already assumed once about the man's Devil Fruit and refused to do so again. Until they got further confirmation, his fruit would be labeled as unknown and Sengoku would personally have to do research on anything documented.

As they received a report on what was transpiring (it didn't sound great), they suddenly stopped altogether and his subordinates had assumed that their 10,000 soldiers had rallied enough to take care of the Dragon and his other crew members.

After all, it shouldn't have been difficult. 10,000 soldiers and the greatest group Cipher Pol had ever produced should have been more than enough to subdue a small group of pirates…

And that was when they suddenly received a Buster Call order on Enies Lobby along with about a dozen other calls that had no one on the other line.

That was when they realized something…

The reports didn't stop because they were dealing with the Pirates… it stopped because the signal was being blocked.

Someone that was in the Straw Hats, had interrupted the signal to HQ and cut off all connection to Enies Lobby, thoroughly deceiving them in the process.

Sengoku had an inkling on who it was.

Evidently, the Straw Hats were more dangerous then they could ever believe, because a Buster Call was deemed necessary enough to be rid of them and without any hesitation, the World Government had bombed down their own island just to stop a crew with immense potential and Nico Robin from growing more.

But something wasn't adding up.

How was it that they were receiving reports that the Straw Hats were still alive, while everyone stationed on Enies Lobby was killed?

The first thing the Marines had found when inspecting the island… was the burned and mangled body of who they believed to be the director of CP9, Spandam…

The one who called the Buster Call according to Kuzan (he had given him a Golden Den Den and that information made Sengoku grow a few gray hairs).

That cowardly man would never call in a Buster Call, if his life would be put in danger… So clearly, the Straw Hats had done even better then they were expected to do. To the point where Spandam felt the need to call a Buster Call to ensure at the very least, mutual destruction was reached.

But the Straw Hats were still alive and Nico Robin was still free.

How could that be —

...What if Spandam didn't call in the Buster Call?

No… if they were strong enough to dismantle 10,000 agents and Cipher Pol… and then escape a Buster Call even despite the injuries or fatigue they should have…

It took 30 minutes for HQ to reach Marineford… there was no chance they'd be able to escape in that time without at least being spotted.

But the Straw Hats weren't even encountered on the island. They had presumably been killed in the crossfire… but Spandam's body was near the beginning of the Bridge of Hesitation (which was why no one saw him)…

What stopped him from crossing the full distance and saving himself? If he was too injured to move… why was he able to call in a Buster Call?

It had to do with the fact that all the Straw Hats were still alive… Because Spandam wasn't the one who called in the Buster Call.

"The Red Devil is cunning and extremely intelligent. He hides a plotting mind behind immense strength but he has both. While fighting both Hina and I, he lured the rest of our squad to him. The entire time, we were just dancing in his palm and he planned on taking us all out in one fell swoop."

That was part of the report left by Smoker after the events of Alabasta.

Did that mean... Iris D. Rosan had called in the Buster Call? Was he the one that pressed the button?

What on earth was the Red Devil exactly? He had Nico Robin in his palms and the two were so important to one another, he had raided and destroyed Enies Lobby of all places, while seemingly suffering no losses.

They truly were lovers. No one would go to such extents for Nico Robin if they only wanted her for her knowledge in the Poneglyphs.

No one would willingly go to war with the World Government for such a thing unless they had the backing of one of the Four Emperors. No, their bond was genuine so if they intended to capture Ohara's Devil, they'd need to account for something like this happening again.

Iris D. Rosan... he seemed to act more like his uncle than his father. Such a reckless and insane move was eerily similar to —

No, it was best if Sengoku did not think of that day. He already felt his hair graying, thinking Rosan inherited things from his uncle, was a surefire way to an early retirement.

Not only that, one of the Straw Hats (for his sake he wouldn't assume it was Rosan who had done so) had the abilities to cut their communications off completely.

If the Red Devil was allowed to completely grow… if he was as much of a prodigy as his mother and he reached his full potential…

He hadn't even dwelled into the captain of the Straw Hats, Monkey D. Luffy. To readily drag his entire crew to Enies Lobby and to win. His growth was just as dangerous. He was shaping up to be as monstrous as Garp and having a prime Garp as his enemy, was the very last thing Sengoku would want.

This was no normal crew at all. They had not suffered a single casualty? That was utterly absurd...

Sengoku grit his teeth and grabbed his headache pills, that he had prescribed to him coincidentally around the time he learned about the Straw Hats.

"Raisa and Dragon… you two gave birth to such troublesome children," he growled.

---

The Straw Hats and co had come back to Water 7 without a hitch, all sleeping throughout the entire trip and letting their wounds heal.

Once they landed, they were escorted quietly (the citizens wanted to see their heroes) to a nice and comfy house.

That had been two days ago and Rosan, Luffy and Robin were still asleep.

While Luffy had programmed himself to eat while sleeping so as to not miss a meal, both Robin and Rosan were dead to the world.

It was odd to see the redhead sleeping… to be honest, they hardly ever saw him asleep.

Both he and Robin liked sleeping with each other and since there was only the men and woman's room, they slept in his Pocket Dimension to avoid unnecessary breaching of space.

Honestly, they hardly saw Robin sleeping either. Those two just showed up, wide awake and ready to go.

Despite being brought here separately (Franky had carried Rosan and Zoro Robin), the two somehow still ended up right next to each other.

Robin's slightly bandaged body rested atop Rosan's heavily bandaged body, while the redhead had an arm around her waist, keeping her steady. They both let out inaudible snores as they slept their injuries away.

It was surreal to see Rosan's perfectly kept hair so disorderly. Despite disavowing his heritage, the redhead did manage to nail the royalty look very well.

But here he was, keeping a protective hold on Robin and sleeping his injuries away, while she burrowed into him.

It was adorable. The two looked incredibly peaceful…

But of course, that peace never lasted long. Not when the Straw Hats were involved.

The day had started off simple enough. Luffy was sleep eating, Rosan and Robin were still sleeping but their injuries looked fully healed and Franky stopped by to visit them with a proposal.

"I want to make the greatest ship in the world… and I want you guys to ride it," he had offered them with an eager grin.

The Straw Hats who weren't sleeping, Kokoro and Chimney (Usopp was spying on them outside), gazed at the cyborg with raised brows.

Franky explained to them the existence of a piece of rare wood called Adam Wood. It was the strongest, highest-quality wood on the planet. Not only did he manage to secure some for 200 million, he used the other 200 to secure a bunch of materials to make the worlds greatest ship.

And he wanted them to have it…

"I drew some blueprints but after hanging around with you guys, I found myself editing before I even realized!" Franky exclaimed. "I already had a general idea but now I'm going to use everything to make it even better then what I had planned!"

Fantastic! If what Franky was saying was true, then they could get a ship that rivaled that of Roger!

Considering he had used their money to build it... it kinda all worked out and they'd end up getting something better than they ever initially planned for!

As Franky smiled at their enthusiasm, the wall to their temporary base was suddenly smashed open with a thunderous noise that had everyone shrieking in shock.

"W-WHAT WAS THAT?!" Nami shrieked in horror, gaping at the completely destroyed wall.

"WHO ARE YOU?!" Sanji barked warily, pushing himself up and glaring at them.

Then they saw the man's getup.

Oh no… the Marines?! What were they doing here? An entire platoon seemed to be here as well...

This was bad… Rosan and Luffy were both still asleep! Could they wake them up while holding the Marines off at the same time? Just how many were there anyways?

"So you're the Straw Hats…" He mused gruffly, gazing at each one.

It was a gigantic man, dressed in standard Marine attire with unique shoulder-pads. On his head, was a dog mask that hid his general appearance.

Without any hesitation, the man dashed over to the happily snoring Luffy and slammed him into the ground with a heavy punch.

"WAKE UP! DON'T SLEEP WHILE I'M VISITING!" Garp roared indignantly.

Luffy's eyes shot open at that and he yelped in pain.

"O-OW! WHY DID YOU JUST PUNCH ME —"

The Straw Hats watched in disbelief, as the teary eyed Luffy went white in horror.

Their infallible captain, going pale at the sight of someone

"You and Rosan seem to be causing a lot of trouble, well Luffy?" Garp asked in amusement, grinning down at the boy.

"G-GRANDPA?!" Luffy shrieked, eyes bugging in terror.

Eyes snapped open at that scream.

Every Straw Hat froze simultaneously at that.

"G-GRANDPA?!" They repeated in horror.

Luffy's grandpa was a Marine? Wait what the hell was this?! Why was Luffy was terrified of him?!

If possible the situation got even worse.

A figured rocketed forward and slammed into Garp, knocking him straight out of the hole he just created with enough force to bulldoze a few of the Marines waiting outside.

The Straw Hats horror only grew, at seeing the wide awake Rosan glaring through the hole with a scowl set firmly on his face.

"Who the hell said you could visit, dumbass old man?" Rosan sneered.

Garp laughed, utterly unfazed by the redhead's attack as he dusted his outfit. "Well well, if it isn't my most unruly grandson! Still trying to kill me, Rosan?! I thought we were past this stage!"

"If I were trying to kill you, you'd know, Garp," Rosan snarled, shooting out a puff of fire as warning.

"YOU KNOW HIM TOO?!" The pirates shrieked in horror.

Oh right... Rosan was Luffy's brother. Wait hold on, if Rosan hated the Marines and this guy was their grandpa...

Oh no, this guy was really strong! Rosan definitely tried to kill him and failed!

"Didn't I tell you to stop calling me your grandson? I don't claim you dumbass," Rosan said bluntly.

Quicker then anyone could react, they watched in horror as Rosan's body was instantly embedded into the floor beneath him, courtesy of Garp slamming a fist on their scouts head.

"R-Rosan?!" Everyone shouted in disbelief.

"DON'T BE SO HEARTLESS TO YOUR GRANDFATHER!" Garp shouted at the violent redhead.

"OH NO, ROSAN!" Luffy yelled, scrambling to his feet. "QUICK! GET UP SO WE CAN RUN AWAY!"

Garp blinked, before it widened drastically as he saw Rosan still conscious, blocking the punch with both his arms.

"Oh? Looks like you learned some new tricks! And you feel a lot livelier too!" Garp laughed boisterously, as he effortlessly weathered Rosan's Haki enhanced punch to the gut.

Rosan sneered and leapt back, dragging Luffy up in the process. "Yeah no thanks to you. You've been hitting us with these for 10 years and didn't think to explain what it was? I would have liked to steal more techniques from you."

Wait… Luffy and Rosan's grandpa had been hitting them with Haki enhanced punches for 10 years?

What the hell was wrong with him... this monster of a man was a demon too!

"You unruly brats don't ever wanna learn anything from me!" Garp responded with a shrug, before a look of shock crossed his features. "WAIT! YOU MADE ME USE THOSE TECHNIQUES SO YOU COULD STEAL THEM FROM ME?! I THOUGHT MY GRANDKIDS THOUGHT I WAS COOL!" He shouted in disbelief.

Garp raised a fist and gazed at the quivering Luffy and staunch Rosan.

"It looks like I have to give you guys a few more Fists of Love!"

Luffy yelped and hid behind Rosan, who effortlessly shielded him.

"I already told you stop being so harsh with Luffy you stupid old man," Rosan's eyes narrowed and he bared his fangs. "What the hell are you doing here? Who asked you to visit? Here to capture us? I'll rescind my vow to stop killing you if you are."

Luffy peeked his head out from behind Rosan and nodded vigorously.

"I'm not here to capture my Grandkids… I'll just say I couldn't do it," Garp retorted, sticking a finger in his nose.

"Please just say they got away," Bogard, his second in command, replied with a sweatdrop.

"...You're here to visit?...Leave we don't want you here," Rosan said in a deadpan.

He grunted as a fist smashed into him, launching him into a wall and causing spider webs to form.

"BE MORE CONSIDERATE TO YOUR GRANDFATHER! I HAVE FEELINGS TOO!" Garp shook his fist, glaring at his rudest grandson.

Everyone balked at the interaction and gazed at the unhinged old man, realizing where Luffy got his intense will to live and insanity from.

Monkey D. Garp was terrifying.

Rosan huffed, eyes glowing madly as he glared at the stupid old man.

"I'm going to hurt you and I will enjoy every second of it," he growled lowly, peeling himself off the wall.

Before Garp could retort, a tiny yawn made Rosan's head snap in a direction.

"Rosan are you okay?" Robin asked, suppressing another yawn. "You suddenly got out of bed."

Rosan completely disregarded Garp and turned to face her, closing the distance immediately as the anger melted off. "Ah, did I wake you? Sorry about that, my older brother senses were going off."

The Devil Child shook her head and leaned on Rosan for support. "It's fine, I feel like I've been sleeping for far too long anyways —"

The woman froze, as she gazed at the Marines outside and her eyes narrowed…

Until she saw Garp.

"Ah, Garp-san it's nice to meet you… here to visit Rosan and Luffy?" Robin greeted politely, holding out a hand for the stunned man to shake.

"She knows Garp?!" Everyone thought in shock.

"…" Garp said nothing for a second, before the old man laughed boisterously and dragged the shocked woman into a comical hug.

"I KNEW THEY TALKED ABOUT ME!" Garp continued laughing. "MY GRANDDAUGHTER IS SO MUCH NICER THAN MY UNGRATEFUL GRANDSONS!"

"Granddaughter…?! Is he a psychopath?!"

Robin let out a noise of surprise at the strong grip of Garp and that turned into a yelp, as she was summarily ripped out of his grasp by her very possessive boyfriend.

"She's not your granddaughter you senile old man," Rosan snarled, holding the amused woman away from him. "Are you alright? Did that dumbass squeeze you too hard? He's so stupid that he doesn't understand his own strength."

"He's become even more protective somehow," Robin thought in amusement, fondness swelling as she allowed him to fuss over her. "I'm fine Rosan, it woke me up."

Somehow, that was the wrong thing to say.

Rosan scowled deeply and turned a thunderous gaze onto Garp, placing her down gently in the process.

"Listen you 90 something year old fossil," he began, taking a step forward and glaring at the Vice Admiral. "You probably don't realize alot of things since your skull is so damn thick, but you have a freakish amount of strength to compensate for the fact that you're extremely stupid."

Everyone's jaw dropped at the way Rosan was talking to the Hero of the Marines of all people. He spoke to him with such familiarity, that they knew for a fact this wasn't the first time he insulted Garp.

...Didn't Garp mention something about Rosan still trying to kill him? W-What was wrong with their scout?

They knew the redhead showed no fear, but this was ridiculous!

"90?!" Garp barked. "I'm 76 you unruly brat! Even if I were 90, it would take you 20 years to beat me!" He growled back, slamming his head against the redhead.

"You can count past 20?" Rosan hissed, not relenting for even a second and pushing back.

"I have the perfect way to show you!" Garp retorted eagerly..

Before the two could devolve into the many fights that they had constantly gotten into over the years (the score was 871 – 0), Robin gently pulled Rosan away from Garp.

"You just woke up," she chastised. "Stop fighting for just one second please."

Rosan opened his mouth, then scowled and closed it.

"I'm not strong enough yet but I'll get you one day, senile old man," he sneered, allowing Robin to push him backwards.

Garp snorted. "Look at you getting me all distracted… Luffy, I heard you ran into your dad."

Luffy tilted his head. "A dad? Rosan, I have a dad?"

Rosan nodded after a short moment. "Yeah."

The crew balked. "Wait, you know Luffy's dad?! But you told Aokiji you didn't!"

The redhead shook his head. "I told him I don't know my dad. I never mentioned not knowing Luffy's."

Garp picked his nose and nodded. "Yeah… your father's name is Monkey D. Dragon, the Revolutionary."

…

"WHAT?!"

"LUFFY IS DRAGON'S SON?!"

"DRAGON IS GARP'S SON?!"

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH THAT FAMILY?!"

The roar was absolutely deafening.

Luffy scratched his head. "Rosan, who's Dragon?"

"…" Rosan closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh. "Garp… what the fuck? Why the hell would you reveal that information?" He asked genuinely.

Garp sweat a bit as he realized his mistake.

"Oops, I said a little more than I should've!" Garp scratched his head sheepishly. "Just forget what I said… at least I didn't reveal that Rosan's father is Cutter!"

…

"Who?" Everyone else, barring asked with a tilted head.

Rosan's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

---

"Dragon is Sabo's boss, Luffy," Rosan explained.

Luffy's eyes bugged. "REALLY?!"

The Straw Hat's eyes widened. That was right! Sabo was the Chief of Staff so that meant he worked directly under Luffy's father!

That was insane! What was with the Monkey D. Family?!

"But who's Cutter?" Nami muttered in confusion.

Rosan's biological father was someone named Cutter?

The way Garp said it… that should have been a noticeable name… but it didn't ring a single bell…

Maybe if he said the full name?

Robin herself was confused as well because that name rang no bells to her either…

Was Rosan's father someone they were trying to cut out of history? Robin didn't know anyone named Cutter and she was sure Rosan didn't either.

Rosan, who was not at all interested, noticed the look in Robin's eyes and sighed.

"Garp, let's talk in private," he offered, catching the old man's gaze.

Over the years… he had begrudgingly began tolerating the man's presence. Even despite being a Marine, Garp clearly didn't agree with their methods.

He knew full well how corrupt his organization was and it was the main reason that he stayed a Vice Admiral.

That didn't make him better in Rosan's eyes in the slightest, because it just made him look complacent. But… he accepted it because even he realized that compromise was needed. So Rosan wasn't quite trying to kill Garp anymore... but moreso protecting his little brothers from the madman.

So he tolerated him...

Even if the man insisted that he was his grandson.

Garp raised a brow but nodded. "I have things to say to you as well. Luffy, some friends want to meet you," was all he said before he walked off with Robin and Rosan.

The last thing Rosan saw, were two people attacking Zoro and Luffy, only to get disarmed near instantly by the formidable duo.

As the three walked off to an isolated location, Rosan waved his hand and the area around them became walled off so as to be more secure.

"Is it fine that I'm here?" Robin asked curiously. She watched in amusement as Rosan's grip on her, subtly tightened and realized that he probably didn't want her out of his sight for even a little.

Garp snorted. "He was going to tell you whatever we spoke about anyways," the old man retorted.

"Hm you know a bit about me I guess," Rosan praised. "Before I start… what did you want to talk to me about?"

Garp grunted. "The Marine Base in the East Blue… why did you destroy it?"

Rosan eyes flew open at that.

"What? How do you know that?" He muttered in confusion, brows furrowed.

Garp sighed. "There was a call and we heard your dragon's roar. I recognized it instantly but Sengoku found out after the report in Alabasta."

Something clicked.

"That's why my bounty was 100 million," Rosan whispered in realization. "Did that corrupt squealing idiot manage to make a call before I killed him?"

Fucking… how did he make such a mistake? Did he somehow reach the Den Den? Rosan had thought he was out of reach or too lost in his pain to do so.

A foolish oversight on his part...

"Maybe you shouldn't be saying this around Garp?" Robin said softly. She had seen the memory and that man had went out of his way to ruin an entire islands life, just for money...

He deserved to die.

The redhead shook his head. "You shouldn't be surprised Garp. That man was one of the most corrupt Marines I've met yet," he said calmly.

"Keeping an entire island subjugated for 10 years, accepting money from a pirate, refusing to report said pirate for taking over… Just thinking about it pisses me off. People like that are why I hate your organization," Rosan said darkly.

Garp scratched his head. "So it really was because he was corrupt… that makes me feel better for not reporting you… and you didn't do it to anything else… until Alabasta and Enies Lobby at least."

Rosan blinked. "You didn't report me?" He asked, genuinely surprised.

"Of course not… A corrupt Marine is even worse than a pirate. It means no one who can deliver justice to them," The old man sighed tiredly.

"…" Rosan gazed at Garp with… some respect in his gaze. "You've changed a bit Garp. I didn't think someone as stubborn as you could do that."

Rosan grunted at the fist planting itself on his head and glared murderously at the old man.

"I could say the same to you, brat," he grunted. "You're much different… not as shackled like when we first met."

Rosan shared a glance with Robin and smiled. "Then you already know why I attacked Enies Lobby," he said softly.

Garp snorted. "You did it to protect someone you love," he replied, gazing at his granddaughter with a contemplative expression. "I always did think it was stupid that they made a little girl look so dangerous. So she can read? Who cares."

Robin's eyes widened at his words, before she smiled a true.

"You… are a good person, Garp-san. I see why they refer to you as the Hero of the Marines," she eventually said.

That... it felt good to know that good people existed in the world, who understood that she was a victim to the corruption of the World Government.

Garp placed a massive hand on her head and ruffled it with no hesitation, ruining her bedhead even further.

"She's a good one!" Garp laughed. "...Are you sure you want to like him?" he whispered loudly, pointing a finger at the glowering redhead.

"I'm very sure," Robin replied without hesitation, placing a palm on Rosan's chest to stop him.

Rosan grabbed the outstretched arm and pulled her to him, before glancing at Garp. "Garp, how much does the World Government know about my biological parents?" He asked with a frown.

Garp turned uncharacteristically serious for a moment. "We know about both your parents… Why? You want to know about them?"

Truthfully, Rosan didn't give a rats ass about learning about them… but Robin was curious and he knew a curious Robin wouldn't rest until she was sated.

He wouldn't torture her like that so if he could give her answers, he would. Rosan knew she was curious about his family lineage anyways and there was a resource here so may as well.

It's not like he hated his lineage. He just didn't care for them.

"You're so considerate," Robin told the redhead with a grateful smile. "Thank you for accommodating my selfish curiosity."

"Anything for you."

Rosan nodded. "Yeah, tell me what you know."

Garp stuck a finger in his nose. "Well I don't know much about them. I didn't really care enough."

Rosan felt a tick form and resisted the urge to attack him. This stupid goddamn old man… why would he not start off with that?

Robin giggled at his antics.

"I met your mother a few times. She's a lot like you and you look alike too," he grunted, recalling what he knew. "She traveled the New World by herself at a young age... and I think that's where she met your father. From what I know of her, I'm surprised she abandoned you."

"Everyone says she's like me," Rosan grunted at that, unamused.

So his mother was someone with extreme amounts of talent. She was able to traverse the New World at a young age and it had likely been before she gave birth to him...

It truly sounded like Rosan was Raisa's child. He was sure he'd probably be traversing the New World far earlier in his life if he had not gotten robbed of his ambition.

Which meant his father had to be someone dangerous too, if he was able to actually rape her.

"What about my father... You called him Cutter? Based on what Aokiji said, he's quite a bad egg."

"…" Garp frowned at that. "Your father isn't someone that is very well known but he was apart of a crew that was the most dangerous to exist…"

Both their eyes widened in interest at that.

"He was nothing special in the crew, just a little kid at the time. He has a grudge against me so when I was the one sent to capture him in the South Blue, he fought instead of escaping despite how beat up he was," the old man revealed with a severe frown.

"What did you do?" Robin asked in interest, fascinated by hearing about Rosan's parents.

His mother a formidable queen and his father was apart of the most dangerous crew?

Who was this Cutter? What was the story behind Rosan's father?

"That crew he was apart of when he was just a kid... his brother was the captain of it and I defeated him a long time ago. He disappeared for years before suddenly showing up and invading your mother's island, then right after I captured him," Garp grunted.

Rosan hummed, brows furrowed. "His full name… what is it?" He asked.

"…" Garp seemed to age a few years mentioning that name.

"Rocks D. Cutter."

---

"Are you satisfied?" Rosan asked curiously, carrying the tired Robin on his back.

"Quite a bit... Not only did I learn of your Mother and Father. I learned that your uncle was the captain of a crew that had the current Yonko, barring Shanks, in it," Robin said in awe.

There was so much that she learned! Perhaps she could have Ace arrange a meeting between her and Whitebeard to gain more information about it all.

Rosan grunted at that. His uncle on his father's side was named Xebec but that's all Garp felt like talking about.

The Rocks Pirates... he never heard of such a crew. He didn't even know three out of four of the current Yonko had sailed on the same ship.

No wonder they were regarded as such a terrifying crew... and allegedly both his father and uncle had been apart of it... but his father had just been a kid.

Interesting. His father sounded more interesting than his mother... and if he was apart of such a formidable crew, why did he choose Raisa?

Regretfully, it seemed like Rosan was getting curious about his history too.

"Thank you again for accommodating me," Robin said softly, pleased at the information.

"Of course. You just have to ask."

Garp didn't know much about his Father, besides saying he was, "An ambitious, tenacious and vengeful bastard who doesn't know when to quit."

That sounded suspiciously like Rosan.

His name didn't ring a bell to Robin, Rosan or Mod and Garp had already said he was off, so the duo went back to their crew...

"This is Koby?"

...Which is where Rosan was introduced to that cowardly boy way back in the East Blue.

"You're the weak, spineless, crybaby kid?" Rosan asked incredulously, gazing at the pink haired boy with a raised brow.

Koby's smile at seeing his friend, was quickly replaced by comical tears at the words he chose to use.

"Still as rude as ever, Rosan-san!" he weeped.

The redhead snorted. "You've changed a lot, almost as much as Alvida did," he mentioned.

Luffy laughed. "I didn't recognize him either! He used to be just a fat little kid!"

Koby blushed and rubbed the back of his head. "Please don't mention her name… and I think you changed even more then I have! You don't remind me of a machine anymore!"

The pink haired boy suddenly shrieked as two slits appeared directly in front of him, both pulsing a different color as they stared a hole through him.

"Yeah, I'm a Devil now," Rosan smirked, before chuckling in amusement. "You're still a coward, Koby. Some things don't change."

"A-And you're still really mean and scary," Koby rasped, grabbing his beating heart.

"What about me? Do you remember me?!" A random blonde asked eagerly.

Rosan blinked slowly and tilted his head at the fact that another Marine had the audacity to speak to him. "Ugly, blonde hair and a cleft chin…"

"I don't understand why he's so rude!" the sensible Straw Hats cried.

What was with that description?! Why did he always have to go out of his way to say the rudest things?!

The redhead eventually nodded after a few seconds. "Oh I remember you now, you freak. You're that super weak and corrupt Captain's son. The one who kept calling him Daddy. How's his back? I leapt pretty high out when I crushed it into paste."

As Rosan spoke, Helmeppo slowly but surely became more and more depressed.

"I hate you all," he muttered with tears in his eyes, crumpling into a ball.

"You are such an ass, Rosan," Nami sighed.

The redhead tilted his head once more. "What? That's probably the nicest thing I could have said about him. You don't wanna know what I'm actually thinking."

"...Honestly, yeah that's pretty tame of you," Sanji nodded in amusement.

"Y-You have worse things to say?!" Helmeppo gaped.

Rosan glanced at him unimpressed. "Of course I do. Have you ever looked in a mirror?" He retorted with a raised brow.

Everyone collapsed.

"Rosan…" Koby suddenly said, bowing to the curious redhead. "I wanted to thank you for everything you've done for me! I already thanked Luffy so that just left you."

"Hm? I didn't do anything deserving of thanks," he shrugged. He didn't want any Marine thanking him.

"No you did!" Koby exclaimed passionately. "You helped me see that the world isn't all black and white and if not for you, I would have given up long ago! You and Luffy helped give me the resolve to pursue my dreams!"

"Pft," Rosan snorted, shaking his head. "If you ever try to capture me, you'll probably stop thanking me."

Koby balked at that. Rosan was still as scary as ever.

"But you're welcome I guess. Like I said, I just wanted you to understand that not all Marines are good and not all Pirates are evil."

"And you helped me come to terms with that way faster!" Koby smiled.

The redhead rolled his eyes and waved him off.

"You would have come to terms with it without me. You're not completely stupid."

Koby's jaw dropped at that. "Y-YOU THINK I'M SMART?! YOU'RE TOO KIND!" He cried happily.

"When the hell did I say that?" Rosan sweatdropped along with everyone else.

He snorted in amusement and just shook his head.

"Whatever makes you happy. Now, all these Marines are making me grow sick and my wavering mental health can't handle it… Come on Robin," Rosan grunted, walking off. "Sanji did you cook? I'm starving."

"You and me both," Robin sighed, following after him. "How long have we been asleep for?"

"Luffy ate most of it but I'll make you two a feast," Sanji nodded.

"2 days," Nami chimed afterwards.

"That might be the longest I've ever fallen asleep," Rosan muttered.

"I think it's the same for me…" Robin sighed, clambering on Rosan's back once more and wrapping her arms around his neck. "You haven't wrapped your hair up in a bun yet," she mentioned idly, resisting the urge to laugh as the spikes tickled her.

Rosan shrugged, repairing the hole in the wall with barely a thought as he walked through it. "You prefer it when it's down, so I'll leave it like this. I don't feel the need to tie it up anymore anyways."

Robin sighed. "Has anyone ever told you just how adorable you are?"

"Stop calling me adorable. I prefer handsome or hot," he retorted.

"If you're adorable that's what you are. Don't be so embarrassed about the truth. You're still as cute as the days of our childhood," she replied, knowing how annoyed he'd get from that.

Her smile vanished as Rosan's grip on her tightened and the redhead smiled at her in a charming manner.

She hated how demonic it looked.

Without any warning, his draconic tail burst out and fully wrapped around her, leaving her trapped against his back, then the tip of it began mercilessly tickling her.

"!" Robin's eyes widened and she gasped. "R-Rosan stop!"

She tried to choke him but was met with a brick wall instead, as the redhead applied armament to his neck.

"Nope," he said smoothly, continuing to walk like he wasn't currently torturing her.

"I'm serious! I haven't eaten in two days and you're tickling me!" Robin tried in vain to struggle but the redhead just ignored her completely.

"Laugh for me and I'll consider it," he replied with a smug smirk.

"…I'd rather die," Ohara's Devil replied resolutely.

"Let's see how long that bravado lasts," his smirk turned into a grin.

Robin's horror grew.

"R-Rosan wait! I'll get upset —"

"Modify: Sensitivity."

To Robin's point, she lasted all of 5 seconds before she broke.

---

Rosan and Robin were resting on a wall, as a party began in full swing with way too many people.

The Devil Child leaned on Rosan with a satisfied smile as he summoned a chair for them to sit on.

"...Rosan, thank you," she said softly.

"For the chair? I can do that as easy as breathing," he replied, amusement lacing his tone.

She shook her head. "No… Thank you for everything… I'm so glad I got to meet and learn about you, Portgas D. Rosan," she admitted.

Rosan and Mod's eyes widened at that, stunned silent.

"Thank you for being the only person to ever get angry at me out of worry. No one's ever done that… no one's ever been mad at me because they care for my well-being, except for you. You hold me accountable for all my stupid decisions when someone should hold me accountable and that makes me so happy," she began.

"Thank you for seeing me as me and nothing else. I've never once been anything but Nico Robin to you… I've never been the Devil Child, a threat to the world, a dangerous person who should be cut down… no to you, I was just a lonely girl who needed a friend more than anything…"

By now, Robin had turned to fully face him, with glistening eyes and a small smile.

"...Finally, thank you for having the courage to give up Meiko just to save me… you have no idea how that makes me feel because I know just how difficult that must have been for you. Thank you for having so much faith in me, that you would even do that," she whispered, tucking her head into his neck and allowing her tears to fall.

"I promise until the day we settle down, I won't let you down," she swore.

Rosan said nothing for a moment, just digesting her words. He could hear Ram and Mod sniffing at the heartfelt words and resisted the urge to smile.

"...Can I be honest with you, Robin?" he asked softly.

"…" Robin didn't trust her words so she just nodded.

The redhead took a deep breath. "Once I finally realized what was at stake… it wasn't hard," he revealed.

…

"What/What/What?" Robin, Mod and Ram asked at the same time.

Rosan smiled a small smile. "Didn't I tell you, Robin? You were my new reason to live and when I said that, I vowed I'd do anything to keep you safe. It was hard coming to terms that I had to let Meiko go... but once I realized I wouldn't be able to save you if I couldn't... it was easy to come to the decision that I had to not let her shackle me anymore."

Robin felt a lump form in her throat at that and she shut her eyes tight.

"You're thanking me for all these things… but you are one of the sweetest, most beautiful and kindest person alive, Robin. In any other circumstance, you wouldn't need to be thanking me because you'd already have dozens of people who love and appreciate you… To me, I'm giving you what you've always deserved."

He gently rubbed her hair as her tears began spilling in earnest.

"It was easy for me to come to terms that I needed to let Meiko go because I'd be a dumbass to prioritize a ghost I love, over someone who's alive that I love and Meiko herself would call me a dumbass if I did…"

Rosan sighed fondly as he felt all three begin crying in earnest.

They were adorable weren't they? He thought it was common sense but maybe not.

"...Meiko and I had an unnatural compatibility and I understand how that would have made us look… but we have an unnatural compatibility too," he said truthfully, grinning down at her.

"You were the first to completely understand me. You're the only one who fully gets me and I'm the only one who fully gets you."

He was right... no one understood Rosan like she did. Rosan told and showed her everything and there were even things he would be afraid to show Meiko.

"Don't go comparing yourself to anyone, Robin. I'll get super pissed if you get insecure about stuff like that. You should know more than anyone, that when I love, it's with all my heart, Robin," he said softly, tucking her into him with a content smile.

Robin didn't even bother hiding how much that speech affected her and silently sobbed in his frame, relief flooding her body as she hugged him tightly.

Words couldn't even begin to describe how much she appreciated hearing those words and any doubt Robin had, were dashed away for good.

"Has anyone ever told you, that you have a way with words that really hit deep?" Robin said, shuddering as she tried and failed to calm down.

"You," he replied easily, peacefully tending to her.

"She's right, you do have quite a way with words. I'm still dwelling on what you said to me back when we first met..."

Robin did a sharp intake and went pale, panic seeping in at seeing Rosan's grip on her tighten.

"...So let's have a quick talk, Nico Robin and Iris D. Rosan," Aokiji said calmly, relaxing behind the wall, parallel to the couple.

Robin shot Rosan a desperate look, clutching him in terror as she saw his eyes narrow.

The redhead caught her gaze and sighed.

"If you wanted, you could've captured us twice now but you haven't… are you really here just to talk? You don't plan on killing us all?" Rosan replied back calmly.

There was a short silence before Aokiji replied.

"I just want to pick your minds is all… After all, storming Enies Lobby just to save Nico Robin is far past what I expected… not to mention Nico Robin refusing to run and turn herself in instead is equally surprising. You have my word, I won't attack you unless you attack me."

Robin blinked in shock as Rosan stood with her.

"You're telling the truth… Alright," he replied calmly.

"...You can tell if people are lying too? You sure are your mother's son" Aokiji sighed.

"Don't be afraid. I won't attack him so we will accommodate him for now and I'll escape as fast as I can," Rosan assured, walking to meet the Admiral with assured steps.

Robin shuddered and clutched him a bit tighter but nodded. "I… I trust you Rosan."

The redhead flashed her a reassuring smile and she shot a shaky smile in return.

---

Rosan was positioned slightly in front of Robin, shielding her from the towering Admiral with a neutral expression.

She hated that Aokiji reduced her to this but… but she just couldn't rid herself of the fear she had for him, so she clutched the back of Rosan's red shirt slightly and allowed him to shield her.

Aokiji gauged them with a severe expression. "I would ask why you didn't run away, but I know the reason already. It's because of Rosan here, right?"

"…" Robin said nothing for a long while. "I love Rosan… I would never run away and abandon him to dying… but it's not just him. If I only cared about him, we would have long escaped… I care about them all," she said quietly.

The man nodded. "So he really was the one you traveled with 20 years ago…" he mused.

"Jaguar D. Saul was a close friend of mine. Since he sacrificed himself to save you, I let you escape from that island with the intent of making sure you didn't waste your life," he revealed eventually.

Robin's eyes widened at that and her breath hitched.

"To be honest, when I heard you had a mysterious partner, I thought you finally managed to find someone to rely on… after all, you had been traveling with him for 4 years and not once did we glean his identity. It was clear you were trying to protect him…" Aokiji began.

"But then he suddenly disappeared and you were on the run again. Alone," he revealed calmly.

Rosan's eyes narrowed as Robin flinched horribly and he reassuringly squeezed her arm.

"He's talking about when I got kidnapped by Doc."

"I've done research on you, Rosan," Aokiji suddenly said to the redhead. "I understand what happened to you as a child. Running away from your island at 4 after your adoptive mother died giving birth… To be honest, I felt bad for you. After all, I thought Nico Robin betrayed a small vulnerable child and got you killed. That's why despite everything, I haven't killed you yet."

Rosan frowned at the amount of information they had on him. To even know he ran away at 4... he underestimated their capabilities.

"I would never betray Rosan like that!" Robin shouted suddenly, stepping out from behind him with a look of rare fury on her face.

"I didn't know that. It's not like anyone was there to correct me," he shrugged. "Regardless, when I saw that you two made contact again, I began thinking that you had truly manipulated him… and the way he was so set on protecting you confirmed it to me…"

"But then I saw how scared you got… for him," Aokiji grunted. "Love is a powerful thing and the two of you have a love for each other that's dangerous… dangerous enough for Rosan here to completely storm Enies Lobby for."

"It's not one-sided. You haven't manipulated anyone, Nico Robin… you didn't condemn an innocent child to death so you could get away… and you've found people to trust and rely on so Saul's sacrifice was not in vain," Aokiji stated, grave expression vanishing.

Robin looked stunned, as Aokiji began walking away from the duo.

"I don't know if sparing you was the right or wrong move… but show them that Ohara is still alive, Nico Robin…"

The Admiral suddenly paused, before glancing back and gazing at Rosan this time.

"And as for you, Red Devil, you may have been an innocent boy before, but things have changed now and you've become an entirely separate threat. If I didn't come here just to talk, I'd have already captured you because quite frankly, you're too big of a threat... but despite everything, I don't think you're a terrible person. I understand your gripes, I even agree with them... but your methods are all wrong. Your absolute hatred reminds me of a terrible person... who is also the reason I agree with your mindset."

"...I admit, my hatred for the Marines can be unfair at times... but you and all of them sit back and allow corruption to run rampant. Why? Are you, as an Admiral, unable to make changes? You are not corrupt, Aokiji so why? Do you even want to make change?" Rosan replied thinking about what he had done to Emma.

That was the one Marine, who hadn't deserved death at his hands. She was simply doing her job but Rosan... had an extreme way of thinking that he was beginning to realize wasn't healthy.

"Change is not easy for everyone, like it is for you," Aokiji said softly, glancing wearily at the redhead.

Rosan scowled at that and shook his head. "It will not end with me. Many others have gotten their lives ruined by this so called Justice. Change is not easy, but sometimes change is necessary," he said firmly, staring fearlessly at the Admiral.

"Deep down, you know that everything that's going on is wrong. That's why you spared Robin... because you understood in that moment, that she was just an 8 year old girl who had just gotten everything taken away from her. That's why you sympathize with my story, because you know that your organization took my mother from me when she was completely innocent."

Robin shuddered at Rosan's tone, glancing at the tall redhead with wide eyes.

"You are not a bad Marine, Aokiji... but that doesn't change the fact that you're a Marine. You are one of the few with the power to make change, but yet you sit here and tell me change is not easy. How can you expect to ever see change when you're too much of a coward to make change?"

"...You really do have a way with your words," was all Aokiji said.

With that, the Admiral departed.

Rosan watched him go with narrowed eyes only to hold up the Robin who immediately collapsed into his arms, sweat falling from her features.

"See? I can be calm as long as someone's not blatantly threatening you," he whispered soothingly.

"Does… does this mean he'll finally leave me alone?" She asked with a small shudder.

Rosan gazed at her with an unreadable look. "Robin, I'll become the strongest in the world. When I become the strongest, you'll never have to worry about anyone coming after you again because they'll be more worried about me."

Robin froze at that.

When was the last time, becoming the strongest was Rosan's dream...? And of course, his primary reason was because of her.

"I know you can become the strongest, Rosan. I will never doubt your claims… if anyone can become the strongest, it's you," Robin said strongly, squeezing him with all her might.

"We'll do it together. We have all the tools needed to become the strongest so I swear we will. We won't let harm befall you Robin," Mod growled possessively.

"Over my dead body! I wanna become stronger too and that means using everything in my arsenal! I'll protect you forever, Mother!" Ram said fiercely, remembering the feeling of actual protecting her father with a defensive weapon.

Robin couldn't keep the fond smile off her face as she listened to the three.

She loved them all so much.

"ROSAN! ROBIN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING OVER THERE?!" Nami shouted out to them.

Rosan, still holding Robin, turned to face her. "My bad Nami, I was just getting ready to force my tongue down Robin's throat and didn't want to cause anyone stress."

Mod turned scarlet and Ram began whistling, as Robin let out a sigh of exasperation.

"Thank you for the lie, Rosan. I'm glad that's what you thought of," Robin said dryly.

"I don't lie."

"I approve… but now that I actually got you two together… it's kinda really gross to hear about you say that," Ram said thoughtfully.

"Please don't be so crude! I'd rather not imagine such things!" Mod gasped in horror.

"Get used to it. I'm very affectionate and older now too. It's gonna happen more often than not," Rosan shrugged.

Robin nodded. "Sorry you two… I also quite enjoy it so I won't stop him."

His mother spluttered. "DON'T SAY SUCH THINGS TO YOUR MOTHER! THINK ABOUT MY FEELINGS! DO YOU THINK I WANT TO SEE THAT?!"

"Gross," Nami said flatly, utterly unamused. "I didn't need to hear that. Imagining you kissing is making me feel icky inside."

"That just means the sibling blood pact is almost complete," Rosan smirked infuriatingly.

Nami opened her mouth… before closing it as a flash of horror crossed her features. "CAN YOU ACTUALLY DO THAT?! IS THAT WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED WHEN CLIMA BONDED WITH ME?!"

Robin let loose genuine laughter at that.

She wouldn't trade this crew for anything in the world.

---

"Franky is building us a ship?" Rosan asked curiously, idly eating an apple as he rested his head on Robin's lap.

"What a cool guy!" Luffy beamed excitedly.

"Oh but he said you can't see the results until he's finished with his work! He said it would take about five days to be done," Nami explained.

The redhead nodded thoughtfully, offering the apple up for Robin.

"No," she denied in a deadpan.

"...That unhealthy lifestyle will do you no favors."

She felt her annoyance nearly spike. "That has nothing to do with this and you know that. I'm not biting into an apple you already bit. Just give me another one."

"…"

Robin closed her eyes at the look on Rosan's face and sighed, before accepting the offer and biting into the apple.

He smirked victoriously and she rolled her eyes, idly pinching the brat's cheek.

"Oh, that reminds me… Luffy, I want Franky to join our crew," Rosan said bluntly, ignoring her pinching. "Do any of you have a problem with that? I know he got on your nerves earlier and I don't really know the full scope but his skills are the real deal."

Luffy shook his head. "I think he's cool! I want him to be our shipwright too!" He exclaimed eagerly.

Zoro shrugged. "If you guys want him, I don't see the issue. He managed to beat an Agent by himself and he is good at building ships."

Robin nodded along with the swordsman. "He sounds like a useful asset… and he moved me with his actions at Enies Lobby when he destroyed the blueprints to Pluton. He had no obligation to do that… but he chose to trust you all. I have no complaints."

Hearing Robin's words, managed to fully sway the conflicted Nami, Sanji and Chopper.

"I'll be keeping an eye on that pervert," Sanji grunted.

"...He made Usopp leave but he also helped us out plenty so I guess we can," Nami muttered, not fully trusting him just yet.

"I trust you guys and if you want him, I won't complain," Chopper nodded eventually.

"If you have any lingering problems, don't be afraid to bring it up," Rosan grunted. "I won't undermine how you all feel. I just think he's useful."

Nami sighed. "He did help us out a lot and he used our money for something we planned on doing anyways… I guess I really don't have a problem with him if the ship turns out amazing."

"Well, we have 5 days to fully decide. No need to rush," Rosan grunted, standing up and stretching. "Since we lost all our money, I'll give you the same cut of gold as last time, make sure not to lose it this time. Use it to stock up on anything we may need and some extra stuff. You guys deserve to spoil yourselves."

The crew forgot that their scout managed to secure them such a massive piece of gold and Nami's eyes turned into stars.

"I can buy so much expensive furniture now!" She gushed happily. "Oh, but where are you going?"

"I'm off to visit Maro… if I'm correct, Angel and Demon should be recovering from a fever," he muttered, a flash of worry on his face at the thought of his little twins.

Due to everything happening, he had forgotten… but being made from him made the twins quite connected to his abilities so if Modification suddenly went dark, they'd be affected somewhat by it as well.

Robin's features turned worried as well and she stood up. "Let's go?"

He nodded and with a short wave, the two vanished.

"A fever?!" Chopper frowned in worry. Those two couldn't get sick… but Rosan had lost his abilities… so maybe they did?!

He hoped they were fine.

---

Maro had been a complete mess these past few days.

Well, that was honestly a nice way to put it. The emotional Queen had been crying uncontrollably and had been completely unable to do her duties.

Why?

Well, Angel and Demon were sick that was why.

She wasn't sure what happened but while cuddling with Angel, the woman suddenly seized up and abruptly fell unconscious.

When she tried to call Demon, who was still at work, the staff had told her that the exact same thing had happened to him too and there was a big fuss.

That was the moment Maro burst into tears.

Naturally, if something simultaneously happened to the twins, there was only one solution and that was her Master…

Except when she tried to call him with her tiara, there had been no response at all.

That's when she started crying uncontrollably because Master never once, missed one of her calls so that meant the reason something was wrong with the twins, was because something was wrong with him.

Thankfully, the two had woken up not long after, but had gained a fever.

It was the first time since knowing them, that Maro ever saw them sick…

The two had been more worried about what could possibly have happened to Master but Maro had been having none of it, fussing over them with teary eyes the entire time and using her just as affected soldiers (and citizens) as emotional support.

She loved all of them so much for making sure she herself was doing okay because honestly, Maro was stressed. She had been almost completely neglecting her duties as Queen and vowed to send Kanna on a vacation at the earliest convenience.

That was two days ago, and the twins were already back at full capacity…

But that begged the question… what happened to Master?

As if the answer to her nonstop musing finally came to her, Maro's teacher himself showed up in her office and she felt a teary grin immediately form.

"MASTER!" She screamed, leaping clean over the table and into his waiting arms. "I-I missed you so much a-and I realized something happened to you b-because I tried to call you through pulling my tiara but you didn't answer and then Angel and Demon both got so sick a-and my citizens did so much to make sure I managed to stay well but I still cried so muuuuch!" Maro wailed, squeezing Rosan with all her might and instantly soaking his shirt.

Robin's eyes once more narrowed in guilt at how many people had gotten affected by this.

"I'm alright now," Rosan soothed, rubbing her back to calm her down. "Why didn't you call me with the Cube? I wasn't able to sense your Save Point because I was neutralized but my Cube was working fairly fine."

Maro sniffed, orange eyes gazing up at him. "The stress made me forget I had it. I haven't gotten used to using it!" she sobbed.

Rosan sweatdropped and just continued to hug her, steadily calming his student down.

"I'll tell you everything but can you call Angel and Demon? I wanna see if they're alright," Rosan muttered, eyes narrowed in concern.

Maro nodded shakily, a little taken aback by his visible concern, before she used her observation to peer into Rosan.

What she saw left her stunned.

The Queen's eyes widened, at the sheer waterfall of emotions crashing into her and she took a step back in shock.

"W-What happened to you?!" She stammered.

"I'll explain it all soon," Rosan assured, hoisting her up and tossing her over his shoulder. "You're taking too long, let's just go find them… they're in the same place anyways."

Maro squealed at the action and shot Robin a confused and helpless look over atop him, as the redhead began walking off.

Robin shot her a shaky smile in return.

Oh they were going to be so mad at her…

---

Angel and Demon, who were both being forced to remain in bed by their incredibly unreasonable Queen, let out noises of surprise as their older brother burst into the room with said Queen on his shoulder and a subdued best friend in tow.

He summarily dropped the Queen on her butt and scooped his brother and sister into a relieved hug.

"Sorry about that you two… I let my guard down and got neutralized with seastone… I don't know what effect it had on you guys…" he muttered in worry, soaking in the sensation of his younger siblings.

He doubted Angel and Demon would die if he were to die, but they were connected to him more closely than most of his modifications.

Rosan had used the same technique he used to create Ram on them after all. The Seed of Life technique used his very essence to fuel them, unlike his other contraptions.

His Modifications were permanent, so even if he died they would remain on a person... but at the same time, they might lose complete access to his abilities if he were to die, so they may enter a coma for a while to accommodate those changes...

Rosan had worked very hard to make them more "human" over the years after all. Dying to causes outside of their control would be a sin Rosan would never forgive himself for. So he worked hard to separate them from himself, all while making them less machine and more biological.

It was a work in progress and he knew that they didn't mind not being human... but Rosan wanted to give them the choice.

"It's fine, Master," Demon replied with a short laugh, returning the hug easily and marvelling at the sight of his older brother being worried about them.

"We weren't even that sick, Maro was just overreacting!" Angel beamed, soaking in his embrace with a pleased smile and readily returning it. She was so ecstatic that their brother was showing emotions so freely!

The doctor nodded in agreement. "We're more concerned about you getting neutralized with seastone! What happened?"

Rosan raked a hand through his hair and sighed. "It's… a long story so just sit back and listen."

---

Maro quickly intercepted the tan hand flying straight for Robin's face and locked an even orange gaze onto Angel's own furious purples.

Robin had been expecting anger but to see Angel try and slap her without any hesitation, stung quite a bit. But... but she deserved it.

"Let me go, Maro. Right now," she hissed furiously, glaring so heatedly at Robin, the brunette was reminded that Angel and Rosan were very much similar in personality.

The female clone shared more than just looks... the two always expressed themselves with anger first.

Rosan had just finished informing them of what had transpired at Water 7 and Enies Lobby and the reactions he got were fairly mixed.

Angel was burning with fury, not believing what she heard for a second but getting steadily more and more upset as she realized Robin's actions caused this. The woman was barely restraining herself from flying off the handle, for respect of her brother but now that the story was over, she was unleashed.

Demon, while not as furious as his sister, was still upset and shot a rather disappointed look that Robin never thought he'd shoot her. She could subtly see him shaking, especially at the part where Rosan mentioned getting tortured.

Maro was the only one not visibly upset with her, opting to hold her wife back with a firm look. She seemed to be the only one who sympathized with Robin's case and the Devil Child was grateful that she was so kind.

But honestly, all three were well within their rights to be furious with her... Robin almost cost them their family and friends.

"No, Angel," the Dokkaebi denied firmly. "Master and Robin already talked it out and clearly she's been through her fair share of things. Think about how she must have felt making these decisions."

"I don't care!" Angel snarled, purple sparks surging from her body as her purple eyes began glowing in fury. "I don't care what she must have went through! That doesn't mean my feelings can just be thrown to the side like dirt! I don't care if they talked things out! Let me go! Let me go right now, Maro or so help me I'll turn on you!"

Demon said nothing, understanding why his sister was so upset. Truthfully, he was just as upset but he expressed himself differently from her.

"Angel. That's enough… I understand how you feel but be more considerate. Robin knows more than any of us, how badly she messed up. Just look at her," Maro said seriously, staring a hole into her and making the redhead reel back.

Finally, Angel's expression cracked and she swung her other arm, only for Maro to grab that one too.

"Angel. Stop," Maro said in a tone of finality, looking every bit like the queen she was.

"WHY?! WHY CAN'T I BE ANGRY WITH HER?! WHY DO I HAVE TO FORGIVE HER?!" She shrieked, struggling fruitlessly in Maro's grasp. "WHY CAN'T I BE UPSET THAT I NOT ONLY ALMOST LOST HER FOR GOOD, BUT I ALMOST LOST MASTER TOO?! I ALMOST LOST MASTER! I ALMOST LOST LUFFY! WE ALMOST LOST EVERYONE MARO, SO WHY?! WHY?!"

Robin shut her eyes tightly at the depressing words of the female redhead.

The woman's anger seemed to drain out of her instantly and she sagged into the sympathetic Maro who just scooped her wife into a deep hug.

"Am I supposed to just forgive her after what I was just told? What type of rational person do you think I am?" She whispered, breaking out into weak sobs.

"I know, honey. I know," Maro whispered soothingly, planting a gentle kiss on her forehead as Angel shuddered and sobbed.

For the umpteenth time, Robin felt her heart constrict, as she saw the tears of defeat forming in Demon's eyes as well.

"I would love to... but I can't help you here," Rosan said quietly, gripping her hand supportively. "This is between you and them. My words won't stop this pain but yours will."

"You managed to reason with Rosan, I know you can talk to them too," Mod reassured.

"You got this Mother. You know what to do," Ram smiled sadly.

Robin said nothing but she knew they were right.

She caused this mess, so she needed to own up and fix it.

"Before landing on Water 7, we ran into Admiral Aokiji of the World Government," Robin began softly, standing up and drawing all eyes to her. "He… He is the one who killed my first and only friend in front of me, Jaguar D. Saul when I was only 8 years old," she revealed.

Maro and Demon's eyes widened sympathetically as they saw the pain in her eyes.

"Ever since that moment… I've been truly terrified of just hearing his name… When we ran into him, he provoked Rosan by using me again and they fought," the brunette continued, shutting her eyes at the memories of Rosan screaming while being frozen.

"Just like that day on Ohara, Aokiji froze Rosan solid, right in front of me with such ease and… it triggered my trauma. I thought I lost him someone else I loved right in front of me and there wasn't a thing I could do about it again."

Angel's anger began slowly vanishing as she saw a tear fall from Robin's eyes.

"I just didn't want to lose him again and the events of it all left me completely irrational. To make matters worse, right as we landed on Water 7, I was immediately bombarded with news of CP9 and... they are the group that played a hand in destroying my island. They approached and threatened to have the entire crew destroyed with the same method they used to destroy Ohara…"

Robin shook her head and began trembling.

"Please understand it from my point of view… The one who killed my best friend and the group who destroyed my island, all on the same night… and I ran into them back to back. I thought there was no way I'd ever be able to escape that fate and I didn't want to drag the crew down with me! I thought if I sacrificed myself, they'd be at the very least safe but I was wrong."

Robin bowed to the three leaders of Celadon.

"I'm sorry for almost undoing all the work made on Rosan. No one knows more then I do, how badly I messed up and like I said to him, I'll work hard to earn your forgiveness… so please allow me to and don't cast me away because... I really do love you all."

They gazed at her in shock, before Maro tentatively released Angel and walked up to Robin.

The Devil Child froze as the Queen scooped her in a tender and crushing hug, rubbing the woman's back and gazing at her with caring orange eyes.

"It must have been so hard for you… I know that you would never leave Master voluntarily so in your eyes, you really thought you were doing the best and it must have destroyed you to make a decision that forced you to be away from him," Maro whispered soothingly.

"As Queen, I have to make difficult decisions too… and I don't know if I'd ever be able to come to such a difficult one like you did. I won't give you any flack because you already punished yourself enough the moment you made such a painful decision."

Robin shuddered at the compassionate words, only to freeze as another set of arms wrapped around her.

"How could I ever blame a person suffering from a trauma attack…" Demon muttered in sorrow. "I had no idea you were exposed to two of your most traumatic moments back to back. It must have been so difficult for you to be forced to make a decision, while in the face of something that filled you with such fear…"

"...It was so hard," she admitted. "Izumi mentioned the Buster Call and Aokiji in one sentence and I gave up resisting."

"I understand," Demon said soothingly.

Robin shuddered in their comforting grasps before they eventually broke it off and she gazed at the teary eyed Angel.

"…" Angel bit her lip and glanced at the floor. Then, she stood up and rushed the Devil Child.

Robin made no move to dodge the woman and with a small "oof" they were both brought to the floor but to her surprise, the woman was hugging her.

"Y-You dummy! We love you too!" Angel sobbed, clutching the woman. "You think any of us wanna be told that you died?! Master wouldn't be the only heartbroken one, all of us would be destroyed! How would we ever be able to continue?!"

"You're apart of our family, Robin! We love you so much so don't ever think you can ever do something like this again… because I really will never forgive you! I can only be so reasonable to someone once and you just wasted it!" The older twin whimpered.

Robin smiled tearfully and returned the hug. "Never again. I know now that I have a loving and caring family who want the best for me and from now on, I'll fight with everything I've got to live."

"You better!" Angel mumbled against her.

Rosan smiled softly. "I'll make sure of it. The girlfriend of the strongest person alive, should be quite impressive herself don't you think?"

…

"Huh?" Maro, Demon and Angel said dumbly.

Girlfriend? What did he just say?

"Did we forget to mention we're dating now?" Robin smiled, planting a kiss on Rosan's cheek to emphasize her point.

That smile turned into a yelp as Rosan immediately turned her and planted one on her lips instead.

…

"Rosan, maybe I need to start expressing some boundaries… such public displays of affection aren't my thing and you know that," Robin reprimanded as soon as he pulled back.

"Stop being such an introvert. If I get the urge to kiss you and then I drag you away, people will think I'm doing terrible things to you and begin expressing concerns," he countered with an amused smirk.

"...I don't know how you always come up with such nonsense arguments… also I hate that you're such an extrovert now. Please go back to being an introvert," she sighed.

Angel, Maro and Demon's jaw dropped to the floor.

"W-When did this happen?" Maro stammered, mind stuck on the short but chaste kiss and having her perverted mind let out a pleased sigh.

T-They were both hot okay!

"We kissed in the middle of a burning Enies Lobby," Robin revealed.

"I was trying to give her a piece of my mind. I was really pissed, before she caught me off guard," Rosan laughed.

"I couldn't help it! Hearing that you lost your last chain made me happy!"

…

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!" They all shouted.

Rosan sweatdropped. "I forgot to mention that. My bad."

---

"S-So you really lost the last chain?" Angel whimpered, eyes glistening as the redhead nodded at her question.

"Yeah," Rosan nodded, tucking his children into his frame and rolling his eyes at their teary giddiness. "It's gone and I'll do everything to make sure they don't come back…"

The redhead sighed and tilted his head back a bit.

"But getting control over my emotions is so hard right now… I can barely manage them at all," he grunted.

Robin rubbed a hand through his long spikes, deciding to finally cut it, and smiled reassuringly. "I'll help you. You know that, Rosan," she murmured.

"We'll help too!" Maro chirped, beaming up at the redhead whose face was no longer a stone wall.

He looked so alive… Maro somehow began to love her Master even more because the one who she had known her entire life, had been a cold and silent teacher, who was detached from the world in a way that truly did make him seem like Reaper even out of his disguise.

Now... now he looked just like how Maro expected Portgas D. Rosan to look and it was breathtaking. She was so glad that her teacher found the answers he was looking for because Maro saw the side of him that everyone wanted back and she was thankful for that.

Angel and Demon were the exact same. The two didn't even bother to hide their tears at listening to their older brother's casual laughter, or his excited rambling... or the way he looked at every single one of them with such unconditional love.

"You have my word that no harm will befall you guys when I get my emotions back if I can help it."

That's... what Master had said when they showed how visibly afraid of him they still were and they felt so stupid for feeling that fear because not an ounce of resentment clouded Rosan's body.

No, every time his bright eyes flickered over to their forms, his expression would light up and he'd just inspect every little thing that he noticed before, but never cared to glean into.

It was just so... it was so surreal.

"Ah, you're all so adorable," Rosan sighed fondly as he sat up and transformed Ram into a pair of scissors, handing it over to Robin so she could do what she wanted to do.

Robin grabbed the scissors and stood behind the redhead, grabbing the long, near back length, hair (why did it grow so quickly?!) and got to work.

The trio watched Robin diligently cut his hair and decided to question the redhead while they still had him.

"So… you ran into the girl who killed Meiko again?" Demon asked hesitantly.

Rosan hummed, resisting the urge to nod due to the scissors currently in his head. "Yeah I did. She's been training this whole time with the sole intention of defeating me and she was really close, but ultimately she failed because her opponent was yours truly."

Robin spoke up this time. "Did you… kill her?" She asked, feeling a little conflicted towards the short agent.

On one hand, Izumi was the reason she had fully given up... but on the other, the girl truly believed that Robin was completely innocent and even vowed to save her once she was done with Rosan.

To Izumi, Robin was just a victim to the redhead. She was wrong but... that twisted point of view didn't hide the fact that she cared for Robin's wellbeing, evidenced by the fact that she protected her from Spandam.

Robin supposed she didn't truly have anymore problems with Izumi anymore... especially considering she failed in her mission.

"No, I didn't. This whole mess started because I twisted Meiko's final wishes and tortured her, so I decided to actually let her live her life without the threat of me," Rosan replied, much to everyone's surprise. "...Izumi and I aren't very different but she just got the short end of the stick… so I spared her and told her to go find a new reason to live. Call it pity or indifference, but Meiko didn't want me to kill her anyways so I didn't…"

They looked at the redhead in shock, not expecting that after hearing what she had done to him.

"That's... oddly mature and not vindictive of you," Robin pointed out, surprised that Rosan was still so capable of showing such growth.

"Tell me about it," Rosan groaned. "I blame it on how empathetic I used to be as a child. I can't believe I actually made a comparison between the two of us," he sighed tiredly.

Maro laughed. "And here I was thinking we were complete opposites! Master, you and I are totally similar!" she beamed giddily.

The redhead rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I guess we are. But I'm not a giant pervert like you are. Now that I have my emotions back, all the memories of you sexually harassing, me have come crashing into me and I feel used. We seriously need to talk about your lack of boundaries when it comes to me."

The queen spluttered. "W-What?! NO! I REFUSE! YOU CAN'T STOP ME FROM BEING WHO I AM! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE MY #1 SUPPORTER MASTER! HOW COULD YOU BETRAY ME LIKE THIS-"

"Kidding kidding. Christ, Maro," Rosan interrupted her with an exasperated sigh. "You'd think that after marrying and banging my just as hot as me sister, you'd have naturally stopped anyways but you're just too greedy. Damn Dokkaebi," he muttered.

Angel turned beet red. B-Banging?!

"M-MASTER!" She shrieked in disbelief. "YOU CAN'T JUST SAY THINGS LIKE THAT! W-WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?! I'M YOUR SISTER!"

Demon erupted in laughter. "So it's fine for you two to sexually harass him, but he can't make jokes? You two are ridiculous!"

His older brother grinned with no shame. "Demon gets it! This is payback! I'm going to terrorize you two for everything you've subjected me to!"

The wives gaped at his words and moaned miserably.

They just got him back and they might have already hated him.

Robin giggled at the interactions, pleased that they were all having so much fun but she couldn't help but dwell on the previous topic.

"You looked like you had more to say about Izumi, Rosan... what happened?" She asked curiously.

"...She's weird as hell," Rosan replied with a frown.

He still didn't quite get her motives but she was right in one thing. It would be best if he kept everyone who knew his secrets, on his side. They were lucky to be spared from Aokiji, but if the World Government sent another Admiral after learning his identity as Reaper, they were screwed.

That's why he accepted the offer after she mentioned handing over the CP9 agents.

"I told her I'd leave her alone. I told her I'd never bother her again and I told her to live the life she wants… and then she offered me her services and handed me the Golden Den Den on a silver platter so that I could destroy Enies Lobby."

There was a pause at that and they digested the information.

"What?" Angel snarled. "Master don't tell me you actually—"

Rosan shrugged. "Yeah, I accepted her offer. I stopped caring about her and she was extremely desperate to keep contact with me, to the point where I found it funny. Besides, she offered me the other CP9 agents… and I never got my revenge on them either plus they know my secret."

They shuddered at his ominous tone.

"Izumi has suffered enough. Training most of your life only for it to not matter, is life ending and if she wants to be my pawn, so be it. I won't turn away a useful subject," he shrugged, before his eyes darkened, cut strands of his red hair falling past.

"But the other agents only had to fight my merciful crew," he said darkly, eyes narrowed into something dangerous. "So I will either subjugate, or kill them."

"Scary," they all thought simultaneously. Hearing Rosan say the things he normally said, with an actual expression on his face was different... Everything was different.

"Will you be sending them to me?" Maro asked curiously.

Trained assassins would be useful but Master would have to ensure they were loyal... and that was hard to do unless he overhauled them all.

Surprisingly, he shook his head.

"No, it's too risky with too little to gain," he denied, much to her agreement. "Not only would the World Government eventually recognize them, there's too many of them for you to account for and they might cause trouble for your soldiers."

Maro nodded thoughtfully. "That's fine with me."

"Good, I wouldn't be able to stand the thought of having to see the girl who killed Meiko," Angel muttered venomously.

"Don't remind me," Rosan sighed, frowning deeply.

Maybe he could renege on the agreement and just kill them all and be done with it...

His greed was getting concerning. Maybe he should start those therapy sessions with Robin.

Robin smiled in satisfaction, inspecting his shoulder length hair and making sure it looked perfect. "I'll support any decision you make… and if you have to, please don't hesitate to use overhaul. I know what I said before but I changed my mind."

The redhead accepted the mirror from Angel and inspected his haircut, nodding at the job well done. "Good, because I was planning on using it at least once but I'm glad you approve now," he smiled, raking a hand through his shoulder length hair.

"Thanks, I've been meaning to get it cut for a while now," he murmured softly.

"It doesn't look bad long, but I'm just too fond of the shoulder length. We can experiment with long in the future," Robin replied, using her fruit to sweep up the hair off the floor.

"Sure. As long as it looks good, I won't complain," he replied. With a quick flash of his eyes, Rosan modified the floor and brought the pile of hair over to the trash, before raising the ground and dumping it in.

"We should be getting new bounties soon, so be on the lookout for that," Rosan informed them, preparing to head back to his crew. "We're also getting a new and improved ship. Once we go, we'll show you guys it."

The three nodded, smiling happily at the duo. "We'll see you guys soon! Please be careful and don't let something like this happen again!"

"I won't," Rosan said, waving at them.

"I've learned my lesson, it won't happen again if I can help it," Robin promised.

"See ya Goblin! Let's hang out soon!" Ram cheered, transforming into human form to quickly hug them all.

"Hell yeah!" Maro beamed, hugging her best friend in return. "I thought you died! You've been way too quiet!"

The silver haired ring rubbed her hair. "I've been brooding and thinking a bit is all."

Maro's eyes narrowed slightly and she inspected her best friend. The two exchanged a quick convo through glance, before the queen nodded.

"We'll talk more later! It's about time we schedule that girl time," the Dokkaebi beamed.

Angel's gaze lit up at that. "Girl time?! Really?!"

"That does sound fun..." Robin admitted. Some downtime after all the stress would be very much appreciated.

"Leave it to me!" Maro beamed. "All of you should come. Ram, Robin, Nami and Mod-chan!"

"Sounds good to me," Rosan nodded with an amused smile. "I'll let Mod-chan take over then and make sure the connection is shut."

"M-Me?" Mod blinked in surprise, taken aback by that.

"You're a girl aren't you?" He asked in amusement. "Have a little fun. We've been saying you need to relax and this is the perfect way to do it."

"That's true... Okay, I'd like to spend time with you all as well," Mod smiled.

"Cool, now that that's settled, we'll be going now," Rosan waved.

The trio grinned and waved back.

With that, the two vanished.

Maro squealed as soon as they vanished. "I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY FINALLY GOT TOGETHER!" She jumped, hoisting both Angel and Demon up and spinning with them.

Angel squealed in turn, just as happy. "They are so cute! I can't believe they took so long to get together. Do you think we should start finding dresses for the wedding? What about buying clothes for their kids?! OH! I CAN START LEARNING HOW TO CRAFT THINGS TO MAKE PARENTHOOD EASIER! I want to be their favorite Auntie! They'll love me!"

Demon sweatdropped despite his small smile. "You're thinking quite far into the future aren't you? I think they're great together too but kids already?"

"Far?! It's never too far!" She beamed. "This calls for celebration!"

"PARTY!" Maro cheered giddily, rushing off to go inform her staff that they were free to take a break for the occasion. "QUEEN MARO'S GONNA BE AN AUNTIE!" She shouted, disappearing.

"YOU WON'T BE A BETTER AUNTIE THAN ME!" Angel retorted, quickly following after her.

"I SO WILL!" Maro screamed.

Demon watched the two go with fond exasperation, before calling in their main force of soldiers to inform them of the upcoming party.

Talking to Mikita or Zala sounded good about now, his sisters were in their unhinged mode and when they got like that, too much ignorance seeping.

"Ridiculous," he sighed fondly. "They really think they'll be better than Uncle Demon."

---

It didn't take long for news of their exploits to reach the world and the World Government made sure to express how good the .

"STRAW HAT, COME LOOK! YOU GUYS ARE IN THE NEWS AND ALL OF YOU HAVE BOUNTIES TOO!" The Franky Family shouted on the day their ship had finished being constructed.

Zambai presented the news first and they all read it with mixed reactions.

Rosan almost smiled at seeing the World Government pin the destruction of Enies Lobby on the Straw Hat crew and no one else.

"R-Rosan was the one who destroyed it and he called that Buster Call too! Don't pin the blame on all of us!" Nami whimpered at how demonic they were being portrayed.

Merciless slaughter, property destruction, ruthless murderers... A-All of this was Rosan's fault! He was the demon!

"Pinning the destruction of an island on one person, looks bad for them," Rosan replied easily. "Imagine if the headline was, the Red Devil singlehandedly destroyed an island while his crew basked in awe at his glory. They'd have to increase my bounty to levels that would begin to concern the world," he explained calmly.

"You also have to take into account that Luffy is the captain of the crew," Robin joined. "The more dangerous Rosan is revealed to be, the more dangerous they perceive Luffy and by proxy, the rest of us. After all, why would someone as dangerous as Rosan, choose to follow someone instead of making his own crew? Why would his allies be weak? They are overthinking it as well."

Zambai quivered and nodded. "S-She's right… just look!"

That brought them to the second bit of news.

Their bounties.

"W-W-Wha," Nami stammered, going white as a sheet.

B-B-But… huh?

What the fuck was this?

Wanted: "Straw Hat" Monkey D. Luffy – 350,000,000 Beris

Wanted: "Red Devil" Rosan – 310,000,000 Beris

Wanted: "Ohara's Devil" Nico Robin – 190,000,000 Beris

Wanted: "Pirate Hunter" Roronoa Zoro – 150,000,000 Beris

Wanted: "Black-Leg" (Photo Not Available) Sanji – 80,000,000 Beris

Wanted: "Sorceress" Nami – 60,000,000 Beris

Wanted: "The King of Snipers" Sogeking: 40,000,000 Beris

Wanted: "Cotton Candy Lover" (Pet) Chopper: 50 Beris

Rosan held his hand out and effortlessly met Luffy's own.

"Look Rosan! We're worth so much!" Luffy laughed, leaping on his brother's back giddily.

"300 million a piece… Damn they really are afraid of us," Rosan hummed, eyes glinting madly. "Looks like they are hell bent on keeping me 40 million lower then you at all times."

"Shishishi!" Luffy cackled.

The redhead gazed at Robin and Zoro with challenging eyes. "Look at the jump for the four of us... Seems like the ones with bounties already, are being bumped by quite a bit," he nodded, holding his hands out.

Robin rolled her eyes and high fived him with no hesitation as Zoro slapped the other with a competitive smirk.

"I did nothing but they increased mine by so much? It appears just the threat of us being lovers is enough for them," she sighed, looking at her enormous bounty with a bit of pride.

"It's only a matter of time before I overtake you, Robin," Zoro said with a wide smirk, gazing at his fellow tortured (courtesy of Rosan) partner in training.

Robin returned the smile, a little competitive spirit rising in her at that claim. "You're up against quite the competition, Zoro and I won't make it any easier for you. I quite enjoy my placement so I'll keep it for now."

"Challenge accepted," he grinned viciously.

...Oh no, she really was becoming as competitive as her family… But it felt kind of good.

"60… 60 million?! I DIDN'T EVEN DO ANYTHING!" Nami was chalk white.

"You summoned a hurricane," Rosan chimed proudly. "That's genius by the way. Mind running through how you did that?"

"NO! LET ME HAVE MY TECHNIQUES AND LET ME FREAK OUT!" Nami shrieked. "LOOK! 60 MILLION?! WHY?! I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU HID WHAT WE DID!"

"Probably because you showcased some of your abilities on Water 7. You summoned my wall to protect yourself and also blew everyone away with my powerful winds."

"I DON'T NEED LOGIC RIGHT NOW!" The Navigator roared.

Rosan immediately mussed up her hair with a proud smile and she stewed but he managed to quell her with his next statement.

"Forget the 60 million… look at your title. Sorceress? That's easily the coolest one here. Sorceress Nami, controlling weather to the point where she looks like she practices witchcraft," Rosan praised, looking a little jealous.

Nami blinked at that, before a red flush marred her cheeks and she grinned bashfully. "Sorceress is pretty damn cool! Makes me feel like a real witch! I kinda like that motif... I wanna lean into it," she decided.

"It's way better than Red Devil, that's for sure. Also, if you wanna dip into your motif, I'm down to help out. Sounds cool," Rosan snorted with a pleased smile.

Nami beamed. Her! A Sorceress! You know what? That was pretty damn cool!

Others were not as happy as Nami suddenly was at their bounty posters.

"W-What is this?!" Chopper and Sanji both whispered in despair.

"I'M A PIRATE TOO! WHY AM I ONLY WORTH 50 BERIS!" Chopper roared in fury, pointing indignantly at the price on his head.

Robin pat his head in sympathy.

"Try again next time!" Luffy cheered.

"For what it's worth, I think you should be worth 100 Beris," Rosan said seriously.

"DON'T BE SUCH A BULLY, BASTARD!" Chopper roared, leaping onto the redhead and getting caught out of midair.

The redhead began tickling him and Chopper squealed, anger forgotten as he began laughing.

"See, no wonder they think you're a pet, look how adorable you are," Rosan cackled, torturing the reindeer with no remorse.

"D-Don't call me adorable, y-you damn b-bastard!" Chopper squealed, squirming helplessly in the man's grasp and completely forgetting he could transform into Heavy Point.

"WHO THE HELL IS THIS?!" Sanji roared, looking at his drawn bounty poster in disbelief.

"What's wrong? That's a great bounty!" Luffy said, patting the blonde on the back as the crew began packing their bags.

"WHO THE HELL CARES ABOUT THAT?! LOOK AT THIS! WHERE'S MY PHOTO! WHY DID THEY DRAW ME?!" Sanji roared, pointing furiously at his bounty poster.

Rosan and Zoro both glanced over simultaneously.

"It looks just like you. What are you so upset about?" Zoro grunted.

"Spitting image. Nothing to be mad about," Rosan nodded in agreement. "If anything, I'd be more upset about the name. Black-Leg Sanji? Is it because you wear a black suit?" He asked with a raised brow.

Sanji began shaking as he gazed hauntingly at the two.

"You know Zeff's nickname was Red-Leg Zeff because his leg was painted red with the enemies blood?" The redhead continued.

Zoro snorted loudly. "And yours is Black-Leg… because you wear a suit. Ridiculous. Almost as ridiculous as the fact that you're 80 million and I'm 150."

"RAGGHHHH!" Sanji roared, leaping at the two with murder in his eyes.

Without any hesitation, Rosan smoothly moved behind Robin and hoisted her up by the waist, stopping Sanji dead in his tracks.

The chef's jaw dropped as the redhead shamelessly used her as a human shield to protect himself and the redhead grinned innocently behind her.

T-This was so unfair.

"...Rosan," Robin said with a hint of exasperation, looking at the despair on Sanji's face. "At least let him engage you in combat, he looks so defeated… I'm beginning to feel bad."

"He's free to engage me… but as my girlfriend it's your job to protect me as I protect you. We're in this together so you can't just let anyone attack me," he replied, refusing to let her go and walking away with her.

"You are such an ass," Robin sighed, knowing that arguing was helpless and letting herself be carried. "Could you at least put me in a more comfortable position?"

Robin should have known that as an insufferable ass, Rosan would do this but she had been hoping that entering a relationship would help him mature and grow as a person.

Of course not.

He effortlessly slung her over his shoulder like he had done so a million times (he did, ever since they met back up) and began walking off, ignoring the way she fruitlessly struggled in his grip.

"Alright, let's go see that ship," he stated, kicking open the door and waltzing through.

"Words can't explain how much I hate you sometimes," Robin said with a flat expression, quickly giving up.

"I kinda like it when you lie, boosts my ego when I sense it," he replied with a cocky smirk.

That smirk was quickly wiped away as a hand yanked his hair harshly and he grunted in annoyance.

Without any hesitation, he dropped Robin and tackled her to the floor.

"Stop messing with the hair. You know how much work I put into it," he hissed, trying to force her limbs into submission.

"You were begging for it," Robin retorted with a glare, struggling to get out of his unreasonable grip and watching as that demonic redhead attempted to grip both her arms with one limb so he could have free reigns with his other hand.

She could not let that happen.

Remembering a key detail about the redhead, Robin suddenly leaned in and kissed him right on the bridge of his nose.

Rosan blinked in shock, dark red covering his cheeks at her actions and she took the chance to flip the two over.

"Underhanded move," he hissed, as Robin instantly summoned her clones to help in holding him down.

"What? You've been kissing me in public nonstop! I guess you really can't handle a taste of your own medicine," Robin taunted, throttling him to the best of her abilities.

"S-Sorry, sweetheart," Crow said apologetically, holding his legs to the best of her ability along with extra arms from her fruit.

"No hard feelings cutie," Canary beamed, holding his left arm with as much strength as she could.

"No hard feelings? I'm enjoying every second of this babe," Raven smirked smugly, squeezing his right arm with a pleased aura.

Robin paused for a moment to regard her clones. "Why do you three already have cute nicknames for him?" She asked slowly, feeling mortification run through her at the smug grin Rosan was shooting her, despite being completely restrained.

"Because these are all the things you want to call him but won't because you're a prude. We are not prudes like you," Raven replied easily.

"W-We shouldn't be saying that out loud! It took me everything to say that and I want to die! You're not making it better!" Crow gaped, blushing red.

"For a Robin… you sure are stupid. I can't believe you came from us," Canary shook her head at Raven.

Raven sneered, unintentionally loosening her grip to regard the happy go lucky clone.

"Wanna say that again, you giggling moron?" She growled.

Canary raised a brow high, loosening her own grip unintentionally, to regard the angry dummy.

"You. Are. Stupid."

Before the two could devolve into argument, the most sensible clone spoke up.

"...Please keep your grips on him firm… he only needs a slight opening," Crow stammered worriedly.

"Too late!" Rosan grinned, breaking free from their weakened grips and grabbing all four Robin's with his draconic tail, getting yelps out of them all.

Robin resisted the urge to scowl as the long tail ensnared all of them. "You two are both incredibly stupid and we need to have a firm talk about understanding the mission. Crow is the only smart one. I don't understand why you two are like this," she said with a sigh.

"T-Thank you but I think we have more things to worry about," Crow smiled nervously.

"You shouldn't be calling clones of yourself stupid, babe. Looks bad for you," Rosan taunted, as he prepared to tickle the hell outta all of them. "Now brace yourselves, each of you are going to pay the price for daring to gang up on me."

Robin had no idea how clones of herself acted so differently to the point it reduced their intelligence, but clearly it was time to talk to them about uniting against one cause.

Namely, beating Rosan. It was imperative that they understood the importance of defeating the insufferable redhead.

"Let's just go without them," Nami sighed, not even bothering to break up the brawl.

"They'll catch up!" Luffy laughed, waving off the worried Franky Family.

"F-Four Robins? All for him?" Sanji muttered in despair, clutching his heart as it threatened to collapse.

As the Franky Family watched everything unfold, they thought to themselves.

"Franky would fit right in."

---

As the Straw Hats approached the dock where their ship was being built, they couldn't help but let out awed noises at seeing the size of it wrapped under that blanket.

"You guys are finally here," Iceburg smiled, yawning as he gazed at the crew.

They greeted all the shipwrights before realizing one was missing.

"Where's Franky?" Luffy asked in confusion.

The Mayor smiled knowingly. "You want to recruit him right? I bet he wants to join you guys too and is trying to hide as a result. He has a stubborn obligation to guard this country so if you want to get him, you'll have to force him."

None of the Straw Hats missed how Rosan's eyes gleamed and they sent out a short prayer for the cyborg.

"Since he's not here, I'll be showing you guys the ship," Iceburg informed them. "I have to admit, when I saw the blueprints, I thought that crazy bastard was trying to make the impossible but he actually did it!"

With this ship, they might actually be able to sail the whole world… it was insane.

"He said "If you want to be King of the Pirates, you need to have the King of Beasts!" and with this, you'll be able to do just that!"

With that, he pulled the drape off and they gazed at it with wide eyes.

"WOAH! IT'S HUGE! AND AWESOME!" Luffy shouted in awe, eyes turning into stars.

"IS THIS FOR US?!" Chopper squealed.

"Nice," Zoro praised. "It's massive… what an impressive looking ship."

"The sail is so big! Is it a sloop?" Nami asked with an excited grin.

"Let me see the kitchen!" Sanji shook giddily.

"We always get the strangest figureheads," Rosan remarked with a small grin, looking pleased.

"It's a lion," Iceburg explained, watching as the more excitable members went to explore.

"That's quite an impressive ship. I think we can do some gardening here," Robin thought, smiling at their new home.

"Mind if I help you with that? I learned some things from Maro and Angel," Rosan commented idly.

"…" The Devil Child gazed at Rosan. "You are so adorable."

The redhead rolled his eyes. "I just wanna grow some roses and other stuff, then modify em. Flowers with unique colors would look good."

"...Like a White Rose," she said fondly, thinking of their ship. "Alright, grow me a black rose and put it in my hair?"

"Deal," he replied easily.

The Thousand Sunny was a sight to behold.

It was a massive brigantine-type ship which mean that it would rely solely on Nami's skills as a navigator, a lawn on her deck, complete with a swing and a slide, as well as an observation tower for a crow's nest.

"He told me about extra additions he thought of that caused him to revamp the ship as well," Iceburg told them. "He expanded the gym and transformed it into a legitimate training area , reinforced it as well so you guys didn't destroy it. Made the ship a little bigger, reinforced the entire thing incase you ever need to transform he said... Oh and for you two," he called, pointing at the couple.

Robin and Rosan both glanced up at that.

Iceburg resisted the urge to smile. "I thought it was the captain's quarters, but Franky told me to mention that this room was for you two. He said that "a bro needs some alone time with his women and they shouldn't be sharing a room with anyone else. Don't worry, it's soundproof so go wild!" then flashed me a thumbs up."

The two blinked, opening their mouths before shutting it. The faintest dust of red covered both their cheeks as they digested the sentence.

S...Soundproof? That shameless little pervert!

"Where is he? I think I should thank him before forcing him to join the crew," Rosan muttered with a menacing gleam.

Robin nodded with a thin smile, doing her best to banish the embarrassment at the knowing smile on Iceburg's face. "Think of something for me too?"

"You'll love it," Rosan returned with a cruel smile.

---

"Why are you hiding out here for?"

Franky jumped at that voice and turned to face the floating Rosan with a surprised expression.

"Red, what the hell are you doing here?!" The cyborg shouted in disbelief.

"You didn't think we'd just let you hide here without at least thanking you, right?" Rosan said in amusement.

Franky was about to dismiss him, but Rosan wasn't done yet.

"I promised to tell you what my Devil Fruit was, didn't I? You kept up your part of the bargain so I'll keep up mine. Just keep it a secret, alright? You're already keeping one of mine, so I trust you to keep this one too."

The cyborg could tell that the redhead was extremely secretive, so he was touched (moved to tears) that Rosan kept his word and confided in it.

Hell, the redhead was practically like a brother to him already! Revealing all his secrets to the cyborg despite barely knowing him...

Red was Reaper! That was nuts! Rosan was the Angel of Death and he was just waltzing around without a care in the world!

Rosan smiled and said, "My ability is called Modification."

Franky's eyes widened in blatant interest and awe as he heard about what Rosan could do with his ability.

It was no wonder he said they could create inventions that surpassed Vegapunk! Franky could take advantage of his abilities and begin crafting some of the most absurd things on the planet!

Just thinking about it made the cyborg giddy! This fruit was an inventors dream! No wonder Vegapunk showed so much interest in it... the amount of time it could save, the speed that they could finish things at... the ability to potentially circumvent the need of certain materials.

With Modification, he could even make continuous upgrades to the Sunny —

But… they were leaving… and he wasn't planning on going with them.

Damn… he was missing out on a super golden opportunity here, not traveling with this gold mine of a redhead. It was a hard pill to swallow but he had his duties.

Rosan grinned violently at seeing Franky stick to his guns.

"Hey Franky," he called.

"What's up Red?" The cyborg replied curiously.

"Wanna see something else I can do?"

---

Everyone watched Rosan float back into view with a serene expression on his face.

"Where's Franky?" Iceburg couldn't help but ask, finding that expression on the redhead's face to be rather unsettling.

Serene didn't fit Rosan at all. It was... disturbing.

Rosan tilted his head. "Franky'll be here in a few don't worry," he assured.

They shuddered at that tone.

"What did you do to Big Bro?" Zambai couldn't help but ask nervously, being the only Franky Family member here due to... reasons.

The redhead showed off his abnormally sharp fangs, making them shudder at how dangerous they looked.

"I just showed him more of my abilities… and he's not your big bro anymore," he said cryptically, eyes gleaming manically.

…

"Huh?" The Franky Family and Shipwrights stated dumbfounded.

Realization hit the aware Straw Hats immediately.

"You didn't," Nami and Sanji stated in horror.

Then they heard a shrill scream in the distance.

Rosan smiled demonically. "I did."

"REDDDDDDD!" A feminine voice roared as they burst into the scene.

Everyone's jaw dropped, as a fit and uniquely beautiful woman burst into their vision.

She was tall, standing at an impressive height of 7'0, with well toned abs and a very large chest that was barely being hidden by their open Hawaiian shirt.

Long blue hair could no longer be kept up in a pompadour and flowed to her middle back, stopping right above the woman's swim brief clad lower half.

She had angular, three pointed clefs, a prosthetic nose and large forearms that were many times smaller compared to when she was a man.

Everyone, barring the Straw Hats, balked in confusion as they gazed at the woman who seemed to be furious with their scout.

Did Rosan hook up with someone and ghost them? Why did she look so familiar? Wait, wasn't Rosan dating Robin?! WHY WAS HE CHEATING ALREADY?!

The amazonian woman gazed at Rosan, with all the fury a half naked woman could muster.

"RED, CHANGE ME BACK NOW! THIS IS SO NOT SUPER!" She shrieked in rage.

…

It finally hit them all and their eyes bugged out of their heads.

"FRANKY?!" Everyone roared in disbelief, looking at the female cyborg with dropped jaws.

"YES FRANKY!" Franky roared, eyes filled with horror as she glanced down at her body. "I DON'T LOOK THAT DIFFERENT DO I? HOW COULDN'T YOU RECOGNIZE ME?!"

The cyborg whirled towards Rosan with a furious scowl. "RED I'M SERIOUS! CHANGE ME BACK BEFORE YOU LEAVE!"

The redhead had the audacity, to look apologetic. "I only sometimes listen to my allies and I never listen to anyone who isn't my ally. Considering we won't be seeing each other again after this… you're staying a woman forever. But if you join, I can be persuaded to change you back," Rosan shrugged helplessly.

They gazed at the demonic redhead with wide eyes, not believing he would stoop to something so underhanded.

"H-How did you change Franky into a woman?!" Iceburg asked, jaw dropped to the floor.

"It was honestly easier than doing it to a normal person. Being a half cyborg gives me a lot of advantages," Rosan grinned proudly.

"THAT DOESN'T ANSWER THE QUESTION!" Everyone, barring the Straw Hats, roared, gazing at the evil redhead with shark teeth.

"Y-YOU THINK THIS'LL MAKE ME JOIN YOU?! NICE TRY! I'M MADE OF TOUGHER STUFF THAN THAT!" Franky roared, despite the horror at losing his pride and joy as a man.

He (she) c-could live with this. Yeah. Totally!

Definitely!

"Robin, take her shirt."

Everyone's jaw dropped even further (and the Franky Family and Shipwrights flew back from nosebleeds) as a hand sprouted atop of Franky and removed her shirt without any hesitation.

The cyborg mechanically looked down, blinking at not seeing a rock hard midsection and instead, being witness to a soft middle... along with a huge chest.

"Make your decision quick, the briefs are next," Rosan said ruthlessly, not even batting an eye as he smirked like a true Devil at the swapped cyborg.

Robin deftly caught the shirt and placed it on the deck with a coy smile, looking every bit as demonic as her best friend.

"Maybe resist just a bit longer, Big Sis. Put up a fight! Don't let that demon win so easy," Zambai muttered, shooting a thumbs up while a hand covered his gushing nose.

"Yeah it's just a pair of briefs! Put up a fight, Big Sis! Don't let that scare you!" The other perverts agreed, similarly covering their noses.

"I want to die," Sanji said bluntly, curling into himself in horror at how much mental damage Rosan had caused him in one day.

Oh hell no. Franky was not going to be called Big Sis for the rest of her life.

"RED I'M SERIOUS! C-CHANGE ME BACK! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME! I THOUGHT WE WERE LIKE BROTHERS!" She howled, making no attempt to cover her chest from the bugged eyes.

"Your tits are too huge for me to consider you my brother but if you insist on that, I don't judge," Rosan said infuriatingly. "Also, I've done this to my family before! You should see Luffy as a girl! He's adorable as hell!" He beamed.

The captain laughed, almost completely unbothered by reminder and they gazed at the two brothers like they were twin demons from the deepest pits of Tartarus.

"Shishishi! Rosan, I'm banning you from changing him back until he joins us!" Luffy laughed cheerfully, waving the shirt around like a flag.

The scout saluted mockingly, flashing a smug grin at the cyborg. "Aye, Cap'n... Sorry Franky, but it's captain's orders so my hands are completely tied. I wanted to help you, but I'm but a humble scout."

"He's a fucking psychopath!" Everyone cried comically, looking at the way Franky's jaw hung uselessly.

Franky eventually shook her head furiously. "I can't join you guys! This was my last job as a shipwright anyways! I want to go with you but I just can't! I need to stay here on this island because there's something I have to do!"

"But that's not your dream, Franky," Iceburg stated, wiping his bloody nose with a neutral expression.

The Mayor looked at his close friend with a serious expression. "Your dream was to sail the ship that you built to the end of the ocean as its shipwright and this is that ship, Franky."

The woman scowled, rounding on Iceburg (and causing eyes to bug at the sudden movement). "That's not my dream anymore! It changed a long time ago," she tried to say.

"Changed? No… you just suppressed it. Your dream never changed. You stay on this island because of your guilt," Iceburg chastised.

"You blame yourself for killing Tom and because of that, you try and protect this island in anyway you know how. You united all the street punks, you called yourself a bounty hunter just to collect from pirates and keep the island safe… you did all this to protect Water 7…"

"Haven't you punished yourself enough? It doesn't matter if I forgive you or if Tom forgives you… you have to forgive yourself," Iceburg stated seriously.

Rosan's head tilted, expression suddenly thoughtful.

Suppress yourself... giving up your dream... taking the blame for someone's death... Forgiving… yourself.

Maybe he and Franky weren't so different.

Franky leaned back as if struck and tears began forming in her eyes.

Then a massive bag was dropped in front of her and she gazed up at the remaining Franky Family who also had tears in their eyes.

"BIG SIS WE WANT YOU TO GO WITH THEM!"

"WE NEVER SAW YOU AS HAPPY, AS WHEN YOU WERE WORKING ON THE SHIP!"

"WE KNOW YOU WANT TO TRAVEL WITH THE STRAW HATS SO JUST GO!"

Franky shook her head incessantly. "SINCE WHEN CAN YOU GUYS DECIDE THESE THINGS FOR ME?! YOU CAN'T EVEN DO ANYTHING WITHOUT ME! YOU'RE ALL TOO STUPID!"

"WE MIGHT BE STUPID… BUT WHAT'S SO STUPID ABOUT WANTING YOU TO BE HAPPY?!" Zambai roared.

"!" Franky's eyes bugged at that and she took a step back, collapsing on the floor dramatically.

Then the tears began falling like a waterfall.

"Y-You guys!" Franky sobbed.

"Who's the real idiot here?" Everyone barring the Franky Family thought.

"RED WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?! WHY DID YOU MAKE ME MORE EMOTIONAL!" Franky sobbed hysterically, covering her eyes to hide the tears.

Rosan rolled his eyes. He hadn't done a damn thing. Franky was just an emotional idiot.

"Come aboard the ship and I'll fix you right up you emotional machine. Must have been a mistake with my technique," he taunted.

"Yeah! Come join my ship!" Luffy beamed confidently.

Franky sniffed and stood back up, gazing back at Water 7 and then at the ship of her dreams, before nodding.

"Fine! I can't trust you greenhorns with this ship anyways! You need an expert that can take care of it anyways!" Franky declared, standing up and puffing out her chest confidently.

Every Straw Hat grinned easily at that, nodding in approval and welcoming the cyborg aboard.

The moment the cyborg got on the ship, she zeroed in on the one true demon.

"Change me back, Red," Franky demanded, glowering at the redhead as she closed the distance.

The redhead gazed at her, and tilted his head.

Finally, he smiled in that increasingly infuriating smirk of his and said, "Nah, I'll do it when we've made enough distance."

"Oh and get your tits outta my face, I have a girlfriend you know? She's right here."

"I'M NOT A GIRL! CHANGE ME BACK INTO A MAN!" The cyborg roared.

Rosan let out a mocking laugh and waved her off. "...Can't you listen idiot? I said wait. Enjoy being the opposite gender for a bit. Let this be an early warning. Don't mess with me and try not to abuse my abilities too much for your curiosities."

Franky balked at the demon.

"Oh and put on a shirt, you've got your huge goods hanging out. It's embarrassing you pervert," Rosan reprimanded, as if he hadn't been the one to make Robin remove it.

Robin giggled at that.

Franky's jaw dropped even further at the sheer audacity. "W-What type of demon are you?! The news was being too kind when they described you!"

The redhead's eyes gleamed. "You'll find out like the rest of our crew eventually did. Welcome aboard, Franky. I hope you have high tolerance."

She didn't miss the sympathetic glance of all the other Straw Hats.

Just what did she get herself into…

---

"Usopp wants to join the crew again?!" Luffy asked excitedly. The rubber boy was practically bouncing in place at that, eyes wide in happiness.

Sanji nodded. "Yeah, I saw him practicing how to come back."

Luffy, Nami and Chopper began celebrating at that.

"Let's go get him then!" The captain beamed, jumping happily.

Robin didn't miss the way Zoro and Rosan's gaze immediately darkened.

"Absolutely not," the redhead denied instantly, making them go still. "Don't even think about going to get him. If you do, consider me out of the crew because I refuse to follow someone with no self respect."

Everyone froze at that abrupt statement.

"What…?" they whispered in disbelief.

Zoro nodded without hesitation.

"Rosan's right. Luffy and Usopp had a duel with specific conditions and Luffy won. Not only that, he left the ship on his own. Nobody forced him out. He made the choice to leave," the swordsman said gruffly.

Rosan sneered. "I told you guys. What he did to Luffy, our captain, was mutiny. You understand what happens on other ships when mutiny is committed right?" He asked in annoyance.

"They die. Going against the word of the captain, means death."

Nami and Chopper flinched at that, wilting at the word.

Rosan shook his head. "The complete lack of respect Usopp showed, to the one leading us all is only a detriment and I won't allow him to slink his way back into the crew without severe consequences. I don't care at all that he blamed me for his problems. I've never cared about what others had to say, but the fact that he also blamed Luffy, is completely unacceptable."

Zoro nodded, butting the pummel of his sword against Luffy's head. "All of us respect Luffy. Is that in doubt?"

Everyone shook their head in denial, knowing their respect For Luffy was unshakable.

"Then you need to understand that anyone who doubts our captain, doesn't deserve to sail with us," the swordsman said with a tone of finality.

"Look me in the eyes and tell me, Usopp deserves to just waltz back in after spitting in Luffy's face. If you tell me he doesn't deserve an ounce of accountability, and you genuinely believe it, I'll want you gone too," Rosan said firmly.

No one said anything.

"Isn't this a bit much though…?" Nami said, frowning at the two most rigid members of their crew.

Robin sighed, deciding to put this into words that had the tact Rosan and Zoro weren't willing to give.

"Usopp wasn't the only one who willingly left the crew… I did too," she said quietly. "If I didn't take accountability… If I didn't beg you all to come save me at the top of Enies Lobby... if you all managed to save me and I didn't learn my lesson, do you think Rosan or Zoro would ever forgive me? Would you be able to fully forgive me if I resented you for saving my life?"

Their eyes widened and they glanced at the silent Rosan and Zoro.

"No, I wouldn't," Zoro said truthfully.

The redhead shut his eyes, not wanting to think of that future but he'd be a hypocrite if he didn't speak his mind like he had done so freely with Usopp.

"To be honest, if Robin didn't realize what she did and stayed stubborn to the end, then no I wouldn't ever be able to forgive her. I would have lost too much trust to do that. I don't think I'd be able to look at her because it would hurt too much," he admitted softly.

Robin nodded, so glad it didn't come to that. If... if they had saved her stubborn self and she had to deal with being ignored by Rosan for the rest of her life, that may have actually been a worse punishment then being turned over.

"They aren't saying he can't join… they're saying he needs to take accountability and apologize otherwise, he's just undermining Luffy's authority as captain. Once you get away with undermining his authority, it's only a matter of time before the crew collapses," she explained gently.

Seeing the more rational and mature Robin explain it, made them hesitantly agree.

"So if he apologizes, he can join?" Chopper asked hesitantly.

"I can't say for Rosan, but that's enough for me," Zoro said calmly, glancing at the scout.

Everyone turned towards the silent scout, knowing that he probably had the most problems with Usopp rejoining the crew.

The redhead had severe trust issues after all... and Usopp chose to leave when he was at his most vulnerable.

"…" Rosan sighed.

He thought back to the sniper helping with Robin despite having no obligation to and idly squeezed the woman, getting a look of concern out of her.

Usopp did his part… and he did use his favor to ask him to get some rest…

Perhaps he was becoming too sappy.

Mod smiled brilliantly at seeing her son act so human.

"If he apologizes, I'll have no complaints but we're leaving him here otherwise. Agreed?"

They all nodded.

"Agreed."

---

As the Straw Hats were preparing to leave, they heard absolutely terrible news.

"That old dumbass is coming after us?" Rosan snarled at the info that Garp was trying to capture them. "Start sailing now, we stand a much better chance if we're out at sea. We can focus on escaping while I stall them all."

The crew nodded hastily. They didn't have a gauge on just how strong the Hero of Marines were, but if Rosan was willing to forgo the sake of destroying Marines in favor of running, it was in their best interest to listen to him.

As they began setting sail, Garp himself showed up at the helm of the ship and made his presence known…

By lobbing a cannonball at their ship with his bare hands.

The Straw Hats eyes bugged as the cannonball flew with even more force then if it were fired out of a cannon.

A red blast crashed into immediately, detonating the ball early and Rosan scowled, lowering his smoking hand.

Robin shuddered strongly. "Aokiji is on that ship," she informed them all, solidifying the idea that they needed to get outta here and fast.

Rosan's eyes narrowed into slits. "Focus on escaping. Do whatever you have to do and don't hesitate to leave me, I'll catch up."

"LUFFY! ROSAN! SORRY ABOUT THIS BUT SENGOKU DIDN'T LIKE THAT I DIDN'T WANT TO CAPTURE MY GRANDKIDS… SO NOW I HAVE TO SINK YOU HERE! BLAME ROSAN! HE CAUSES A LOT OF PROBLEMS!" Garp shouted to the group of pirates, as a rack of cannonballs were rolled up to him.

His draconic wings burst out of his back and he took to the skies, Ram seeping into his gloves.

"For the last time. I am not your grandson!" Rosan barked, watching as Garp began hoisting up cannonballs.

That freak of a Marine was able to throw cannonballs harder then an actual cannon so if any hit their ship, it would spell big trouble.

Well, Rosan did say he'd show Koby what he'd do once they were enemies so what better time then now?

Everyone watched with wide eyes as Garp lobbed a cannonball towards their ship with hellish force, slamming into a shimmering red flat barrier that protected the Sunny to the best of its abilities, before shattering.

"Practice that more," Rosan and Ram muttered to themselves.

Alright, Garp was dumb but he wasn't that dumb... no, he was that dumb nevermind. But the old man still had priorities and Rosan needed him to stop lobbing all those cannonballs.

So it was time to shift his priority.

Rosan held a hand above his head and began charging.

Koby felt his jaw slacken, as a ball of energy began forming above Rosan that was growing larger and larger.

"U-Uh… I didn't know he was able to do that," Koby squeaked in terror, realizing that Rosan had hid a lot of things from him.

So uh... this was what he meant by seeing how scary he was when they were enemies.

Koby hoped he was never sent to personally chase after the redhead.

As the redhead began gathering more and more energy, a miniature red sun began hovering above his palm that steadily began growing. The redhead locked onto the ship with a murderous and calculating gleam.

Garp had stopped lobbing his cannonballs by now and even Aokiji was looking up at the attack with an impressed gaze.

Rosan sneered as he held the giant ball over his head. This wouldn't even come close to killing Garp but the same couldn't be said for that ship of theirs.

If it was destroyed, they'd have far more things to worry about.

"Persecution."

Rosan lobbed the ball at the ship…

Only for that psychotic old man to rocket off the ship and meet it head on.

"Damn bastard is a complete freak of nature," Rosan snarled as it exploded preemptively, sending a massive shockwave of energy out that only sent both the ships swaying.

He was really hoping that his crew had a way to escape right now. Rosan didn't fancy his chances against Garp just yet...

But that still wouldn't stop him from crushing the stupid old man.

"Alright, time for me to get my first win," Rosan grunted, flexing his wings as the unscathed Garp stared at him with a wide grin.

"How has old age barely slowed him down? I shudder to think how strong he was in his prime."

"I shudder too, but for another reason. It's a shame I'll never be able to kick his ass at his prime but this'll do."

"Psychopath."

"Alright, I haven't trained you in a while. Time to catch up on lost time!" Garp exclaimed with a boisterous laugh.

Rosan sneered and immediately charged, firing ball after ball of energy at the man and abusing the fact that he had wings and Garp had to use his legs to outmaneuver the old man.

"YOU GUYS BETTER BE FINDING A WAY TO ESCAPE RIGHT NOW!" Rosan barked at the crew, transforming Ram into gauntlets in order to block the heavy fists that still sent him flying.

He hastily flew behind Garp and attempted to slam his powered up gauntlets onto the man's exposed back, only for him to whirl around and meet him head on with his own fist... and he won.

"I really hate this old man," Rosan grunted with a scowl as he was launched back from the force of the blow.

"I've got something cooking up! Just gimme time to get it ready!" Franky shouted back, still not transformed to normal.

"As long as it works!" the redhead shouted, unperturbed by the fact that none of his attacks were working.

As they scrambled about to get everything in order, Usopp, who had just shown up, balked in confusion as he watched the mayhem happening.

But what was most concerning, was the fact that they were leaving without him on board.

"HEY WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING?! YOU FORGOT ME!" Usopp shouted, sprinting towards them with wide eyes.

"REJOICE! IT'S ME! I KNOW WE ARGUED A BIT BUT I'M WILLING TO LET SOME THINGS SLIDE!"

He panted and realized none of them were acknowledging him.

"HEY! I KNOW WE MAY HAVE HAD A DISAGREEMENT, BUT AS LONG AS YOU MAKE ME CAPTAIN, I CAN LET IT GO!" He tried, only to be completely ignored once more.

"ALRIGHT, YOU CAN KEEP CAPTAIN! I'LL CONCEDE! BUT SECOND IN COMMAND IS ALL I CAN BARGAIN!"

Nothing, not even a side eye.

"Quit joking around… Are you guys actually leaving?" He asked in disbelief.

Rosan and Garp were still going at it and the redhead was focusing his all on not getting clobbered by the behemoth of a Marine, not even sparing him a single glance despite noticing him.

He could see Nami and Luffy repelling waves of bullets getting shot at them with wind and rubber respectively... The others were furling up the sails, using the opening Rosan was giving them to plan their escape…

Without him.

No way... were they actually going to leave him on the island…?

I can't follow you anymore. Sorry to have been such a burden.

It's my business where I go. I'm quitting this crew!

…

"It's ready!" Franky shouted.

"Go!" Rosan barked immediately, opening his mouth and shooting a gust of fire that, once again had 0 effect on Garp. "We don't have time, I'll catch up!" He ordered.

"Right!" They all shouted in unison.

No. No. No. No. No!

"I'M SORRY!" Usopp shouted with tears running down his face as he finally broke. "I'M SORRY FOR BEING SO STUBBORN! I KNOW I'M BEING PATHETIC! I KNOW I SAID I ALREADY QUIT! C-CAN I TAKE THAT BACK?! PLEASE LET ME TAKE THAT BACK!"

He fell to his knees as the tears began overflowing, seeing the ship get ready to leave and realized hey may never see them again after this moment.

No, he definitely wouldn't see them again. Usopp couldn't continue sailing the seas alone... he didn't want to sail these seas alone.

The only way he would ever want to sail these seas, was if he were with his crew but they were leaving him because he was too dumb to let go of his ego.

He didn't... he didn't want that!

"PLEASE FORGIVE ME! PLEASE LET ME JOIN JUST ONE MORE TIME!"

"THE COUP DE BURST IS READY! BRACE YOURSELVES AND HOLD ONTO SOMETHING!" Franky roared.

Luffy's eyes widened at the apology but right before he could stretch his hand to grab the sniper, the ship surged with energy and rocketed off.

The back of the Thousand Sunny lit up brilliantly, as it began bringing in the air around it before exploding into the sky and beginning to fly of all things!

Usopp watched with despair, as the ship flew through the air and swiftly vanished from their sights.

They were… gone. Just like that.

"No come back!" Usopp sobbed in defeat.

This was… no, he apologized too late. He was such a damn coward and now he lost his one true crew.

If only he could take it all back. He'd do so in a heartbeat! He said such terrible things to Luffy... to Chopper... to Rosan—

Usopp let out a strangled yell as a red blur crashed into him, lifting him by his suspenders and hoisting him up.

"Took you long enough," Rosan scoffed, holding him up with one hand as he fired a laser shaped beam at Garp with no hesitation.

Naturally, it failed.

Usopp let out a sob of relief as he realized there was still one person here for him.

And of all the people, it was the one who had every reason to be the angriest at him!

"I'm so sorry Rosan, for everything! You were just trying to tell us that Robin was in trouble and then I didn't let you get it out and you got tortured b-but I got so angry and started blaming everything on you when you were just looking out for us —"

"I don't need your apologies. You already apologized to Luffy," he replied gruffly, glaring at Garp as his bruises began healing up. "I haven't fully forgiven you... but you helped me save Robin and that's not a debt I know how to properly repay... so I won't hold a grudge. Be grateful for that, I'm normally very vengeful."

Usopp nodded rapidly and the redhead rolled his eyes. "I belong with the Straw Hats! I'll never betray you guys again!"

A truth.

Rosan smiled wryly at that and shook his head, wiping the smirk off his face. "Whatever you say, liar."

"You gotta fly through me to reach your crew!" Garp shouted with a wide grin. "How do you plan on doing that?! You might be able to outmaneuver me, but you aren't that much faster!"

Rosan raised a brow. "The hell are you talking about senile old man? I'm already gone. Don't forget to take your meds."

Garp raised a brow and then his jaw dropped, as Rosan smirked smugly and vanished.

"Since when could he do that?!" Garp muttered.

Bah, his grandson hid way too many things from him.

Aokiji looked at the technique with interested eyes.

"So they really could have escaped at anytime," he mused.

---

"USOPP!" Luffy sobbed as the two crashed into each other.

"USOPP!" Chopper wailed, joining the group hug.

Rosan smoothly moved out of the way and allowed them to greet the sniper.

"I'M BACK AND I'M STAYING!" Usopp cried happily.

The rest of the Straw Hats smiled at that, just as relieved to have him back.

"We didn't think you'd get him Rosan!" Nami teased, wiping her own tears. "I was worried for a split second!"

He rolled his eyes and flicked her on the nose, getting an angry yelp out of the navigator. "I said if he apologized, I'd accept him back. I'm not a liar you know."

The redhead turned towards Franky and placed a palm on the perverted cyborg, eyes flashing as he transformed him back into a man.

Franky began crying comical tears as he felt everything return to normal. "D-Don't ever do that again!"

"No promises. Try not to irritate me, you manly man," Rosan smirked, letting him run of to join the festivities.

Instead of settling down, the group seemed to get even rowdier until a full party was in the swing, celebrating the return of Robin and Usopp, as well as Franky joining the crew.

"I know you've already forgiven me and I know I apologized so many times already… but I really can't put into words how sorry I am for everything," Robin said as she and Rosan sat in a corner, nestled against each other as they ate. "I really don't know what I was thinking... if I just put even a little thought, all of this could have been avoided..."

"I'll say it a million times until you get sick of me… I will never doubt you again, Rosan. Never, not even a little…" Robin swore, tucking herself into his side with a ferverous hold.

The redhead sighed, wrapping an arm around her with a fond smile. "We're both dumbasses who made mistakes Robin… Don't forget the things I've done. We'll just say they evened out and we can start fresh. Say it as much as you want though because I'll never get tired of your voice."

"You have quite the silver tongue," Robin said, flushing a tad at his sincere words.

The redhead raised a brow. "An honest person can't have a silver tongue. Everything I say, I tend to mean," he replied dryly.

Robin rolled her eyes. "Very smooth. I'm lucky to have you," she said sincerely.

"I think I'm luckier… but I'm me so I don't blame you for saying that," he retorted easily.

Rosan suddenly glanced down at her and noticed something.

Robin caught his intense stare and glanced down as well. "...Are you staring at my cleavage? Am I showing too much?" she asked slowly.

Her purple shirt showed a fair amount but Rosan was never such a blatant pervert… he actually wasn't even a pervert…

Should she puff her chest out? She wasn't sure how this relationship stuff worked.

"Not staring on purpose… but I just realized something," he muttered, digging around.

After a short while, Robin's confusion was sated, as Rosan pulled out a very familiar black pendant.

"I never want you remove it again or else I'll be pissed," he demanded, gently wrapping it around her neck despite the harshness of his words.

Robin rolled her eyes and accepted it, smiling happily at having the warm pendant once more. "I never want to remove it again. It lets me know that no matter, what, at just a drop of a hat, you'll be there for me."

He nodded with a superior glint and stood up with her.

"We have our own room… Let's go decorate it and decide what's going where," he muttered, walking off.

Robin smiled at that and quickly followed after. "I don't think the closet will be big enough for both of our clothes and I do still quite like sleeping in the castle, so we have choices now."

Rosan bowed mockingly. "The option of choices… fitting for a queen like you."

The Devil Child rolled her eyes. "I'm not a Queen just yet. We'll have to get married for that, King Rosan."

The smile was immediately wiped off his face and a scowl replaced it. "Didn't I tell you stop mentioning my goddamn royalty?"

She shrugged. "You were asking for it by starting it… Can we figure out what we're going to do with the room first before we fight?"

He paused, before nodding. "Alright, you can decide on what furniture you wanna put in there then. I have some extra stuff in the rooms of the castle we never use, if you want those. Or we can buy new stuff to replace it eventually."

"Are the things in the castle also black and purple?"

"Of course."

"...Let's go get them now then. I'd like to recline in one of those comfortable chairs while I read a book… also let's put a bookcase in there as well… Should we put a coffee machine too? In case I'm feeling lazy in the morning? Let's also make the walls black, like the castle," Robin fired off, brainstorming with ideas of how to make their room great.

Rosan snorted loudly. "Seems like you got mostly everything handled."

She smiled in return and opened the door. "It's not often that I get to decorate… I find myself excited. You don't mind if I take the lead for this?"

He shook his with an amused smile. "Nah, I already took the backseat on the interior for a castle. Feel free to take reign of this room."

Robin nodded, pleased by that. Rosan was a stylish freak, so for him to trust her judgement on how something would look, was practically an honor in itself.

"Use me however you see fit. I'm pretty helpful when it comes to things like this," he informed her.

"That was never in doubt," she responded.

---

To say the past few days had been hectic, was a very generous way of putting things.

This was what every single CP9 agent would tell whoever asked, barring Rob Lucci because he was still unconscious from his extensive injuries at the hands of Straw Hat Luffy.

To start things off, they had all lost their respective battles. Not a single one of them won.

To hear that even Lucci of all people, lost in one on one combat to the captain of the Straw Hats, put it in to perspective that they had grossly underestimated their opponents.

This was added on top of the fact that they had catastrophically failed their mission to secure the blueprints to Pluton. Due to their actions, the Straw Hat pirates had actually stormed Enies Lobby to get the Devil of Ohara back and in the process, they not only succeeded, they had completely decimated Enies Lobby and had murdered their boss, Spandam.

CP9 was aware of the warnings made against the Straw Hats... after all, two people with bounties of 100 million or more, led the crew and one of them had an undocumented Mythical Zoan... a class of fruits you rarely wanted to mess with unless you had intel.

But they had been arrogant. The idea that they could get Nico Robin and the blueprints of Pluton, had clouded their better judgement.

That was a severe mistake. The reports on the Red Devil undersold how monstrous he truly was because he hadn't even shown them everything.

To think that this entire time, they had been dealing with the Angel of Death. If they knew who Rosan truly was, they'd never even conceive the idea of going after him... because he had shown exactly why he got that bounty of 500 million.

Blueno dead. Spandam dead. Enies Lobby completely destroyed and every single agent defeated with heavy wounds to show for it by him and that monstrous crew.

Going back to the World Government and revealing they were alive, would end up in them getting sent to level 5 of Impel Down with no hesitation, where they'd likely be endlessly tortured for screwing up something so greatly.

They supposed it was a good thing they had allegedly been killed in the destruction of Enies Lobby…

Which brought them to the next situation.

The reason they were even alive, after losing their battles. They shouldn't be alive right now, considering Enies Lobby had gotten destroyed while they were still there.

All of them had been knocked unconscious when the attack struck… all except for Izumi, the Puppet. The person who they didn't know a single thing about.

Yes, not a single agent in CP9 knew a thing about Izumi. They didn't know her past, they didn't know her likes, her dislikes... in fact, the most they had ever seen from Izumi, was during this very mission.

They had no idea the puppet had even an ounce of care in her heart, to go out of her way to save them before Enies Lobby was destroyed, especially considering her own extensive injuries that she got from battling the Red Devil.

But they wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. Thanks to Izumi, they got another lease on living.

Well, all except Kumadori. According to the few short words of the rattled Izumi, she never found his body and prioritized getting off the island, so he was almost certainly dead.

They were all currently recuperating on a ship. They did not have the funds to get professional help for their wounds so that left healing the old fashioned way.

"Izumi, why exactly did you save us?" Kaku asked warily, gauging the woman facing away from them. She had scarcely spoken a word to them, just licking her own wounds and vanishing at times. Whenever they discussed, she played no part in it... her motives were completely unknown to them.

"We… or at least I, certainly appreciate the action, but for what reason did you do this?" The long nosed man asked.

Izumi, who had not spoken a word past the first day to any of them, stopped gazing out into the sea to regard the curious agents.

Kaku, Jabra, Kalifa, Fukurou and Nero gazed at her with varying reactions. Rob Lucci was currently unconscious in another room.

"How did you even escape from the Red Devil?" Jabra asked with a raised brow, nursing his battered body.

"We saw what he was capable of… not even Blueno was able to escape," Kalifa whispered. "Not to mention with his revealed identity... how did you manage to get away from him? You two... seem to have history with each other as well."

Kaku nodded, expression puzzled. "Not only did he target you specifically... you seemed to have done the same. Not only that, you didn't react in surprise when he revealed his identity as the Angel of Death... you reacted in fear and recognition."

Izumi inclined her head at that. It was expected for them to notice that. They were all highly trained assassins after all and her reaction had been on pure instinct.

She opened her mouth —

"Izumi wasn't a priority."

And promptly shut it as a cold voice washed over them all.

At once, every agent froze as two figures materialized on their deck like a terrible omen had finally arrived.

It didn't even take them a moment to identify them and because they recognized them, the CP9 agents realized just how terrible the situation had suddenly become for them.

The Angel of Death and Ohara's Devil stared at them both with chilly expressions. In particular, the retired bounty hunter looked as if he had been waiting for this moment for a while.

"CP9… you didn't think I was finished with you right?" Rosan muttered, watching them tense up with a look of trepidation. "You didn't think that after putting my Robin in such a situation, I'd let you guys get away scott free… right?"

Robin shuddered at that, gazing at her boyfriend with wide eyes.

"After all, you all know one of my most sacred secrets. Escape was never an option," the redhead whispered darkly.

Izumi shuddered too, hoping he didn't have the urge to renege on their agreement.

"To answer your question. I was going to retrieve you all before Enies Lobby was destroyed and then torture you to a brink of your life, every single day until I grew satisfied…"

The agents went cold at that, preparing themselves for a battle they probably weren't going to win.

The redhead tossed a head over to Izumi. "But she begged and begged and insisted that you all could be useful to me. So I thought, why the hell not against my better judgement…" he shrugged.

"You should be thanking Izumi. After all, if not for her, I'd be having far too much fun with you, that would only reaffirm my title as the Red Devil. You should have seen what I did to Spandam, that was fun," Rosan replied truthfully.

"He's lying to make me look good?" Izumi thought in shock, sweating in terror at the maniacal gleam in Rosan's eyes.

They had long since enacted their plan but she didn't actually think he would help her out…

Nero, showing his inexperience as a trained assassin, foolishly spoke up first.

"And how are we supposed to know you're being truthful —"

Squelch.

Every single agent bit their tongue, as Nero was suddenly hoisted up into the air, courtesy of Rosan spearing him through completely with a dreadfully intimidating scythe, that was nearly the size of his entire midsection.

Rosan's eyes were smoldering. Without any hesitation, they watched as he lit up the scythe with his terrifyingly familiar flames… all while it was still impaling the newest CP9 agent.

The results were instantaneous.

"ARGGHHHHH! P-PLEASE, I'M SORRY! I-I CHANGE MY MIND! I-I'LL JOIN! PLEASE SPARE ME!" Nero screeched in agony as the flames continued boiling his insides with no remorse.

His insides began boiling as Rosan slowly roasted him alive, taking his time in doing so and the assassin felt true terror, welling in the form of tears, at the sight of those dreadful dual eyes, glowing in the dark of the night.

In that moment, Rosan truly did look like a demon.

"I have no desire to compromise with any of you so I won't. This goes against what I desired doing in the first place so if you give me any reason to do what I planned on doing in the first place, I will gladly take you up on that offer and it won't be as merciful as this one right here. Just say the word. Please. I'm begging you to protest my mercy," Rosan said quietly, not loosening his grip on that scythe for even a second.

No one said anything for a long while, just allowing Nero's screams to ring through the air until they slowly but surely (it still took too long) wore out into a tiny whimper... and then the man's body went limp.

H-He considered this merciful?

"If we join you… you won't torture us?" Kalifa asked hesitantly, shaking in place as Rosan mercilessly let Nero slide off of his scythe with a sickening noise, into the ocean.

"Unfortunately," he replied truthfully, flicking the blood off the weapon and onto them with no remorse. "That was your only question by the way. The next thing that's going to come out of your mouth is either agreeing to work for me, or screaming."

The female agent shuddered in terror as the blood of Nero splattered on her features, nodding tightly and moving over to the neutral faced Izumi.

"I'll join you. T-Thank you for the chance," she said hastily, thankful that Izumi had plead their case. Who knows what would have happened if she didn't do so?

If she had been tortured for the rest of her life by this redhead… she shuddered just thinking about it.

The other agents gazed at Kalifa in cleer shock, stunned by how easily she had agreed to his, frankly psychotic, terms.

Just like that? Did the Angel of Death leave that much of an impact on her…?

Right… after everything she had seen, it was no wonder she didn't want to be tortured by him. She had seen him brutalize Blueno, transform into a dragon, incinerate a massive part of Enies Lobby… and impale Nero just now.

Rosan sneered at her. "What a pity, I was really hoping you said no, secretary. You were one of the ones on Water 7 after all. Spoiling my fun is not cool."

She seized up at that and ducked behind the stone faced Izumi who had yet to say a word.

Izumi was too afraid to speak up in risk of upsetting him or messing up the plan. She already did her part after all… best to just listen to him.

Robin suddenly perked up, catching their attention, and she tugged Rosan's sleeve, pointing in a direction.

Footsteps alerted them all to the presence not yet accounted for and the CP9 agents felt slightly hopeful and fearful, at seeing Rob Lucci himself appear.

The injured agent had bandages all over, not even close to being fully healed, yet he gazed at them all with a neutral expression on his face, before landing on both Robin and Rosan.

Fukurou recovered quickly. Unable to resist due to his nature, he opened his mouth. "Chapapa! Lucci's awake now —"

Before he could even finish his sentence, a finger lodged itself into his stomach faster then he could react. Blood spurted from the bullet sized hole and Fukurou gasped in disbelief.

Every other agents eyes were wide in disbelief at the sight before them.

Why?

Because it was Rob Lucci himself who had plunged the finger into Fukurou's chest.

The injured leopard man wiped his bloodied finger. "I have no interest in fighting with you weaklings against Izumi, Nico Robin and The Red Devil. I have even less interest in losing that battle and being tortured for the rest of my life."

Kaku and Jabra couldn't keep the shock off their faces, as Rob Lucci of all people sided with the Red Devil over them.

It's not as if he was loyal to them… but he followed his own set of justice that should conflict with the Red Devil's… right? He believed that anything that went against the World Government was evil… and the Red Devil was the epitome of that?

So why? What was the purpose of this?

Rosan's expression didn't even shift, as Rob Lucci moved over to Izumi's side. It's almost like he expected this to happen.

Fukurou didn't have any time to react, as a scaly and gigantic tail swiftly wrapped around his entire frame multiple times.

Then, like a Boa constrictor he began to squeeze the man's body with soul crushing force.

"I don't know who you are either so torturing you for a prolonged period of time wouldn't be that satisfying," Rosan remarked, listening to the sounds of bones creaking.

Everyone winced back as Fukurou let out a shriek of agony, as the spikes on Rosan's tails dug into him, causing blood to begin leaking from every direction.

"I don't know you either, mutt," he said quietly, gazing at Jabra. "You haven't answered yet. Stop wasting my time. I'm giving you 30 more seconds to make a decision."

Jabra should have snarled at being called a mutt… but as someone who had eaten a Zoan, he already understood that what he was gazing at was someone higher on the food chain than him.

If his fellow carnivorous Zoan, Lucci, submitted, going against this apex predator was not in his best interests.

"I'll join," he said shortly, doing his best to hide how nervous he was.

"Who's a good boy?" Rosan mocked, scoffing at the man with a condescending look.

"P-Please… I'll join you! I c-can't help but speak out," Fukurou rasped in terror, clutching the serrated tail and wailing as it dug deeper into him as response.

"If you can't help but speak, then I'd have killed you anyways. I have quite a bit of important secrets, you know?" Rosan informed him blandly. As if making his point, he tightened his tail once more with a blank look.

The agents watched in horror, as blood began pouring from their ally's crevices and they realized that this monster held their fates in his hand.

Fukurou tried to scream but found that he couldn't because Rosan was completely crushing every part of his body. He opened his mouth and let out a sickly amount of blood, before the redhead finally decided to end his suffering.

None said anything, but they felt true fear as Rosan completely incinerated the body by lighting his tail on fire.

Not even bones remained... not even the blood that was on his tail was there, evaporated by the superheated temperatures.

"Honestly, after getting my hands on Spandam, I feel pretty damn good… but I'd really have liked if one of the infiltrators on Water 7 said no, after all, you played a hand in manipulating Robin. You dared to order her around, you made her betray me…"

Robin shuddered as a wave of pure hatred crashed into everyone there, Rosan's eyes turning livid as he bared his fangs at them all.

Fire began pouring from his mouth as the anger overwhelmed him immediately.

Those blazing eyes locked onto each and every one of them and Rosan opened his mouth.

Only for a set of hands to shut them right up.

"Relax, Rosan. Please. It's okay," Robin requested gently, frowning at the great surge of rage from the redhead.

None could hide the relief at seeing their lives get saved by the Devil Child. If not for her, they'd probably get sunk by the clearly unstable redhead.

"..." Rosan grit his teeth and let out a deep breath, cancelling Ragnarok so that he could make an attempt to stifle his anger.

Trying to stifle it while the draconic genes were dominating him, was practically impossible.

He finally locked his cruel gaze onto Kaku and sneered. "Could you say no? Accommodate me so I can work this off?" He asked bluntly.

"H-He's terrifying," Izumi thought with a shudder. She had completely set up the agents and now Kalifa was clutching her like she saved them.

W-Well, technically she did?

Perhaps, this wasn't the best of ideas... The redhead looked even more unstable then before and it was clear he couldn't control his rage, considering he had just been about to kill them all.

Kaku couldn't withhold the shudder.

"I should have just stayed on Water 7 as a foreman…" he thought to himself.

"I'll join," he said eventually.

Rosan sighed in actual disappointment.

"Some loyalty you have. Guess the Government didn't keep their dogs satisfied enough. Don't even have enough pride to die following them," he shrugged.

"Well whatever. From now on you take orders from me. Since you know so much about the World Government, you'll keep tabs on them for me. You should know how they operate... in fact, getting back into their good graces isn't a bad idea," he ordered.

G-Good graces?! Was he insane?! How would that even work?

Of course, the idea of protesting out loud didn't once cross anyone's mind. The screams of Nero and Fukurou were still firmly embedded in their minds and it was not lost to them that the one in charge of them was a tyrant.

"And I probably don't have to say this, but don't try and reveal my secrets," Rosan said suddenly. "You can try. I'd welcome one of you to, but you won't even get a peep out before things get bad for you. And they will get bad for you. Feel free to test it out at any time, you can even write a note but it won't matter because I've already infected all of you."

They shuddered at that word.

Infected.

Did... did the thing that happened to Blueno... did he somehow already get them?

"Good. I'm glad you understand. Don't piss me off more than I already am, I only really need one reason. If you find those conditions unfair, I don't care," Rosan grunted, staring a hole into Kalifa.

The blonde wilted in terror as those eyes peered through her.

Finally, Rosan snorted. "Izumi," he said blandly, inclining his head.

Izumi nodded shortly, following after the redhead and Robin until they entered an isolated room that he further fortified.

"I can't believe that plan worked so thoroughly," the woman sighed, neutral expression melting away as she ducked her head to avoid looking at Rosan.

"My plans never fail," he retorted calmly. "You are in charge of Rob Lucci. His job is to protect you with his presence. No one will try to attack him but he is insurance for you. Oh and I wasn't kidding. If any of you try to speak about me, you will suffer until you die and they will never know my secrets," he said warningly.

"It was quite an ingenious plan… they don't realize they've been thoroughly played," Robin muttered.

The plan in question, had taken place long before Rosan had "officially" appeared on board.

No, Rosan had been on board for a very long time already. He had just been cloaked by Izumi's illusions.

With her guidance, she had sent him off to where she kept Rob Lucci unconscious on purpose and the redhead had Overhauled him, making the vulnerable assassin loyal to Rosan.

It was actually exceedingly difficult to do and unlike others who he had Overhauled, it had partially failed with the man. Rob Lucci was firmly set in his ways and that made rewiring his mind hard.

So Rosan used his beliefs against him. Izumi had been vital here by informing him about all she knew of Rob Lucci, who she seemed to despise quite a bit.

Rob Lucci had a belief that weakness was a sin and was extremely violent to boot. With the knowledge that he was no doubt going to be labeled an outlaw for failing his mission, he would no longer be allowed to legally kill.

No, instead he'd be imprisoned in a cell without anyway to sate his bloodthirsty urges.

Rosan took full advantage of the desire to avoid that. As far as Lucci was concerned, Rosan was his ticket to continue being able to exercise his violent nature or else Rosan would exercise his violent nature onto him by torturing him every day until he was bored.

It was a different kind of overhaul, one that didn't fully take over a person's mind but it would serve him fine enough because at the end of the day, Lucci was prideful and arrogant.

Izumi didn't know how he had done it, but she would never forget how Rosan so ruthlessly took control of her body. If he claimed to be able to take over the mind, she wouldn't doubt it and Lucci's showing had solidified that.

"There. In exchange for being my loyal little servant, you have the living agents loyalty," Rosan grunted.

"I doubt we'll be supervising you much, so please take this chance to find your own reasons to live," Robin offered politely, gazing at the woman with scrutinizing eyes. "Though, I do have to ask... did you truly plan on preventing my death?"

Izumi flinched and gazed fearfully at Rosan, who merely inclined his head.

Seeing the state of the woman now… made her feel a tad sympathetic.

Rosan clearly noticed it and raised a brow at her, but said nothing.

"I-I did... I just wanted to... use you as a way to get to Rosan. Um, I really don't think you are as evil as the world makes you out to be.. so I was going to save you and summon the Buster Call before escaping," she revealed.

"A truth," Rosan informed her.

Robin gazed at the woman with a scrutinizing gaze, before simply nodding.

"We've supplied you with some money to do what you need to do. What you choose to do is up to you, but ensure you keep track of the Government's movements."

Izumi bowed. "R-Right… Is there anything else?"

Rosan tilted his head. "Yeah actually. I want you to search for Blueno's Devil Fruit. If you find it, inform me. Other then that, I'll call you if I want you to do something."

She shuddered and nodded. Before turning to leave she bowed to both of them.

"U-Uh, I'm sorry for everything I did… to the both of you… I promise I won't be a threat to either of you again."

"Apology not accepted. You must be out of your mind," Rosan scoffed. "Fuck off. I really don't need or want it."

She flinched back harshly and Robin shot him a look.

"Why the hell should I accept her fucking apology?" He barked in their connection.

"You don't have to accept it… but at least acknowledge her efforts."

He turned his sneer towards Robin for a second and she rolled her eyes.

"I won't hold a grudge against you. You've been torturing yourself for 12 years now so just focus on anything but my boyfriend please," Robin said politely, gripping Rosan's arm.

Izumi nodded hastily. "I-I won't even think about it! I'll take your advice and look for something, maybe… I don't really know…" The woman sounded lost as she spoke.

"…" Rosan offered her no sympathy. "We're leaving, Robin. It's late and I'm tired."

Robin sighed and held onto his arm. "You should spend the time finding a purpose, Izumi. It's a good first step."

The woman didn't look any less troubled. "I'll… try. I'm sorry again for what I did," she murmured.

Rosan truly did always find the best woman… they were all so kind…

The redhead offered her no parting words and the two quickly vanished.

"Wanna make out before we sleep?"

"I'm not even sure what response to muster for that. I just feel exasperated."

"…"

"…"

"Yes, I do. Stop laughing at me."

"I'm turning the connection off. You guys just come inside the mindscape when you're finished."

"You two are gross."

It was now fully occurring to Robin that she was in a relationship with a redhead that had two other conscious in his head… and they happened to be the twos mother and daughter respectively.

She sighed.

Only Rosan. Why did she fall in love with the most complicated person out there?

Wait a minute...

"Mod-chan, if you knew Rosan was in love with me, why didn't you tell me when I confided with you?"Robin asked suddenly. "That would have solved so many issues!"

Mod blinked. "Because you confided in with me first. At that point, I wasn't sure Rosan was in love with you and you also told me not to tell him," she explained rationally.

Rosan blinked, a flash of confusion crossing his features as they entered their room in the ship.

"Wait, Robin told you she was in love with me? And you didn't think to tell me when I was telling you I was in love with her?" He asked incredulously.

The Devil Fruit balked. Were they seriously doing this right now?

"You both told me the exact same things! You said neither of you are ready for a relationship and wanted to wait for the castle! Also I even tried to give you hints and both you told me that you would be able to tell if the other had feelings for you!" She raged.

The duo blinked at that.

"Damn, we're more in sync then I thought," Rosan mused. "We said the exact same things?"

"Practically word for word!"

Robin hummed at that. "We're also rather oblivious," she noted.

Mod grinned victoriously.

"Yeah we are... that's why Mod-chan should have told us. Weren't you trying to get us together? Seriously, we practically handed it to you on a silver platter and we still handled it alone," Rosan sighed. "Unbelievable. I'm beginning to think Mod-chan is woefully inexperienced to anything besides torturing me with her teaching."

Mod let out a strangled yell.

"I HATE YOU! I REALLY HATE YOU! GOOD NIGHT AND IF YOU KNOW WHAT'S GOOD FOR YOU, YOU WON'T COME IN HERE!" Mod scowled, cutting the connection.

"She's upset. You might be in danger," Robin pointed out with an amused smile.

"Nah, she's fine... right, Mod-chan?" Rosan chimed.

...

"Mod-chan?"

---

Cold, boring and nothing to do... sounded like a typical day for him.

But did it really have to be this boring? How long had he even been here? Probably a lot of years now.

He had always been pretty reckless, looks like it finally bit him in the ass. Attacking Garp after that war against Raisa, was probably not the smartest thing he had done.

Yeah... it was really stupid. Honestly, he hadn't expected Raisa to have become such a monster in just two years but she did used to always brag about how no one was like her.

He missed talking to Raisa. The cocky and brash redhead had offered him a brief respite from that boiling rage inside of him and she had been a good friend.

"Why...? Why would you do this... didn't our bond mean anything to you? How could you hurt me like this? I... I trusted you."

He wondered how she was faring these days. His old friend was very emotional and despite the airs she put up, she didn't have as good of a grasp on them as she claimed to.

But those emotions were a wonder... and it made him wonder If Raisa did get pregnant, how was his kid doing...

Were they a boy or a girl? He didn't really care about the gender so he wasn't partial to anything.

Did Raisa kill em? Probably. It went against her nature but the way she had been looking at him... The sheer hate in her eyes as reality of the situation struck, was not one he had seen before.

Guess she was right about him, that deep seated rage in his heart would cause him nothing but trouble.

In the end, this rage didn't really get him a damn thing but time in prison and probably a kid.

He knew Raisa, she didn't have it in her to kill her own family. If she did get pregnant, she probably went through and gave birth to the child.

What she did after? He had no clue but He was sure his kid was... probably out there.

He wondered how they were faring.

Probably fairly well. Raisa was a real beauty and she once admitted that Cutter was handsome in a rough kind of way.

Not to mention, the whole part where Raisa was a queen. Their kid should be living a good life and if they got even half the things from either of their parents, they'd be a force.

He wanted to meet them. Of course he wanted to see his child... though, they probably weren't a child anymore were they?

How long had he been in here again? Impel Down wasn't really good at telling you about time.

Rocks D. Cutter sighed and looked at his chains in indifference.

He hated being restrained but the years had numbed him to it so there was that.

If only he had exercised a bit of caution after his brawl with Raisa. He could have easily gone back into hiding to continue training with his new Devil Fruit but instead, he heard signs that the son of a bitch Garp was coming after him and met it head on.

Not smart. The injuries had been slowing him down tremendously and he couldn't even really get going.

Cue, being captured and slammed into Impel Down for who knows how long.

Lame, he didn't even get to train his new ability all that much.

Now he was here in this dungeon, chained to a wall in a prison.

Cutter sighed again.

If he ever broke out, he was going to destroy Impel Down and everyone in it, then he'd go searching for his kid.

He wanted to meet the product of him and Raisa, that person was bound to be interesting.

---

Wow, quite a big one. A lot happened, a lot revealed, a lot lost... this was a very productive chapter!

I hope you enjoyed... way too much to talk about and this chapter is already long enough so I'll just leave this short!

Next chapter is a cooldown chap. Nothing too crazy will happen before I get into Thriller Bark!

That's all from me, here's the next chapter title.

Chapter 41: A Little Slice of Life 2