The Straw Hat's Red Devil - Sky Island Saga (No 3)

by DeadGirlEtarnal

She's the Daughter of Red-Haired Shanks; she was dropped off to live with Luffy. She met Ace & Sabo, but when Sabo died, it was the last for her as she vows to take revenge. Years later she leaves the island and sets on adventures of her own, she soon meets up with her baby brother and travels with him, finding love in more than one place. I ONLY OWN MY OCS!

25. IHBU! IHBI! IHBC! Part 2

I HATE BEING USELESS! I HATE BEING INJURED! I HATE BEING COLD! PART 2

Alabasta Saga - Drum Island Arc - Episode 84 - 91

DAKOTA'S POV:

I wake with a jolt at a crash from inside the room; I look down to see Chopper holding onto the bed frame in fright at something in the other room; I get up feeling the bandages around my hands, ribs and feet. I look down to see I'm wearing a white kimono with a dark green obi wrapped around my waist; I pull it away, revealing my abdomen wrapped in bandages with little spots of dried blood.

Chopper jumps into my arms in fright, clinging to my kimono as I get up from the bed, feeling the cold through my bandages as I walk on the stone floor to the other room. "Be quiet, Chopper!" I hear Kureha shout from another room as one of the books falls causing more noise. I come out of my room to see Nami in bed. I race over, dropping Chopper onto the bed next to her as I pull her into a hug, rocking back and forth as I hug her happily.

"Oh, Nami, you're not dead! Yay!" I cheer, and she hugs me back; I pull away to look at her face seeming less flushed than before and smile at her, glad to see her doing better.

"You shouldn't be out of bed, Dakota." Kureha scolds me as she walks into the room.

"I feel fine." I protest and sit on the bed, pulling Chopper onto my lap.

"I'll have Chopper check on you." She says with no room to argue, so I walk back into my room, letting Chopper down on the floor to check me over, but I listen in on their conversation. "Your fever seems to have come down, little girl. Are you happy?" She asks the same question she asks every one of her patients, and there's a small silence; I try peeking, but Chopper stops me.

"Who are you?" Nami asks the youthful Doctor.

"38.2 degrees… hmm… you're doing more or less all right. I'm a Doctor. Doctor Kureha. Call me, Doctorine." She introduces herself.

"Doctor… then I'm in the…" Nami questions.

"My secret to staying young?" Kureha asks her; I laugh.

"No, she didn't ask that," I yell out, and the witch laughs.

"You're right. You're in the castle on top of the mountain." She assures the sick girl.

"Then there were two others with us, right?" Nami asks.

"Yeah, where are those two?" I ask and walk back in now that Chopper has finished and walks off.

"Yeah, they're sleeping in the next room… very deeply. What tough guys…" Kureha comments and sits on the side of the bed, pulling up her shirt to show a purplish bruising on her stomach. "This was the cause."

"What… is this?" Nami asks as we stare at the bruising on her stomach.

"You were bitten by a bug called Kestia. It's a poisonous tick that lives in jungles with high temperature and humidity. Once you're bitten by it, bacteria come in and keep you in pain by living dormant inside your body for 5 days. It causes high fever of above 40 degrees, coinfection, myocarditis, arteritis, cerebritis! Given the infection's progression from the bitten area, I'd say you've been infected for three days. The suffering must've been unusually harsh, but it would've eased up in 2 more days even without any treatment." Kureha explains.

"In 2 more days…?" I ask her as I sit on the floor.

"Yeah, because you would've died in 2 days." She answers, and I look at Nami in horror, glad we made it.

"What?!" We gasp in shock.

"It's called the '5-days disease'. I heard that Kestia died out 100 years ago, but it was useful that I kept the antibiotic just in case. Where do you guys come from? Were you out walking around with your belly exposed in a jungle on an ancient island or something?" Kureha hits the nail on the head and cackles a little. "Well, that's just silly…"

"Hey, Nami, sorry about burning your shirt again," I tell her, feeling guilty as she glares at me.

"That ring a bell? What a crazy girl…" She comments and pushes Nami back onto the bed, lying down. "Now. Stay in bed. Your treatment hasn't completely finished yet. Dakota, you'll have to wait another few hours till I can take out the stitches, you got yourself good this time." I nod my head, knowing the rules by now.

"Thank you so much. So long as my fever comes down, I'll be fine. My body will take care of itself after that, right?" Nami asks her, though she still has a high temperature.

"You're too optimistic. This disease normally takes at least 10 days to fully treat. Of course, if you want to suffer some more and die… even with my medicine, you'll have to rest at least 3 days." She informs the sick girl.

"What? I can't stay here for 3 days! We have to take Vivi to Alabasta soon!" Nami protests, trying to get out of bed; Kureha gets out her trusty scalpel and pushes Nami down onto the bed, pinning her as she holds the scalpel to her throat.

"When a patient of mine leaves me," She giggles a little creepily, "she's either cured or dead. I won't let you get away. Even Dakota knows this rule."

"Yep," I nod; even though I want to get Vivi home as anyone, I know getting as healthy as possible is best for everyone. "Don't worry, we'll be okay." Kureha gets up from threatening Nami and lets her get some rest. I sit on the chair, slowly removing the bandages around my hands, but stop when I hear Chopper screaming in the room beside mine.

"Ahhhh! Help!" Chopper screams; there's some crashing before he comes running out with Sanji and Luffy on either arm.

"Wait, meat!" Luffy shouts as Chopper tries to run away, and he even tries to bite him; I guess they're feeling better.

"Wait, Luffy! I'll cook this guy!" Sanji shouts over Chopper's screams of fright; they run out of the room, closing the door behind the struggle, then come running through the door, smashing it into pieces as they go through the room again. Luffy seems to notice that Nami's awake and stops, returning to look at our Navigator.

"Nami…" Luffy questions, and Sanji hears, leaving Chopper alone and jumping over, ignoring me!

"Nami-san!" Sanji swoons.

"You look better." Luffy comments.

"Yeah, thanks." She tells him,

"I'm doing good too, thanks." I snap, and they turn to look at me as I sit in the chair; Luffy crushes me into a hug, and I hug back.

"Hey, Big Sis, you look great!" He giggles, and I tighten my hold, glad he's okay.

"Indeed, you look amazing, Dakota-chan!" Sanji swoons happily. "Okay, then! I'll make a nutritious venison dish for Nami and Dakota!" Chopper tries sneaking away, but the boys see him, and he freezes in fear before bolting.

"Wait!" The boys shout and run after him.

"I'm surprised! They can already move around?" Kureha questions as she looks into my room at the mess they've left behind.

"Yeah, that's those two for ya," I smile, glad they're doing okay for now, if Kureha has enough of them.

"What's that talking stuffed deer with a blue nose?" Nami asks Doctorine.

"You asking me what he is?" She asks, and Nami nods her head. "His name is Chopper. He's just a reindeer with a blue nose."

"Reindeer don't speak." Nami points out.

"If he's different from ordinary reindeers in some way," Kureha says, and Nami looks at her oddly.

"If he's different...?" Nami questions the youthful Doctor.

"It's just because he ate a Human-Human Fruit. That's all." I tell Nami, and she seems to understand.

"A Human-Human Fruit… One of the Devil Fruits…" Nami nods along.

"Yeah… he's a reindeer who gained the humans' abilities. And I taught him everything I know about medicine." She tells her, to my shock, she's trying to get Chopper to leave again. I stand from the chair and go to the door opening it.

"Sanji, Luffy, get back here now!" I shout into the hallway and don't feel any pain in my chest.

"Seems your lungs have healed up, you still surprise me. I'll have Chopper take out the stitching later." She says, and I nod as Luffy comes back.

"Sanji's gone to make food!" Luffy cheers, and moments later, Sanji comes in with plates of food for all of us. Luffy eats all of it in a heartbeat while I enjoy it a little more, seeing as I no longer have to fight anyone for food.

"Become one of my crew! Please, old lady! We need a Doctor on our ship!" Luffy exclaims once he finishes eating.

"Luffy… you said that's your name, right?" Kureha asks him holding a finger up, distracting him a little

"Yeah." He answers, as always.

"Did you just say 'old lady'?" She asks him, and I cringe, knowing what's coming next from them.

"Yeah, I did, old la-" He begins to answer, and she punches him square in the face.

"Watch… what you say!" She shouts at him as he goes flying into the wall; Sanji looks over in surprise at her strength, no doubt. "I'm still in the youthful 130s."

"Whoa… what an incredible old hag-" Sanji begins to say when she kicks him into the wall behind me.

"Are you asking me to be a pirate? Don't be ridiculous! It'll be a waste of my glorious time. 'M not interested in the sea." She declines the offer, though someone in this castle is very interested in the sea.

"Who cares? Let's go on an adventure, old lady!" Luffy exclaims in glee, with blood dripping down from his nose.

"Hey, hey. I just told you to watch what you say, didn't I?" She snaps at him, but he pays no mind as he spots Chopper peering into the room the wrong way; as usual, the boys hang their jaws on the floor at the reindeer, who bolts away with them not far behind. Kureha seems to have had enough and rushes out of her chair, knocking it over as she runs after the boys. "Hold it, brats!" She runs into my room which has some weapons, none of them mine. The door slams open, with Chopper screaming as he runs across the room with Luffy and Sanji chasing after him.

"Wait!" Luffy shouts at him, and I get to my feet, walking to Nami's bed as Sanji stops by her bedside.

"Hold on, Nami-san! I'll cook a nutritious reindeer dish!" Sanji promises, but Kureha jumps out with two swords, landing in front of the boys.

"Before that, I'll eat you guys!" She shouts as she goes swinging, and the boys stop in fear.

"Old hag!" They sign their death sentence and run for it with her running behind them. "Where the heck did she come from?! She's coming! She's coming! She's coming! She's coming!" The boys, Chopper and Kureha, run out the door, leaving it open.

"I don't care about the food. I just want some peace and quiet." Nami groans, and a strong wind comes through the door; I see some snow, too, and close the door before it gets too cold. "Snow…? Even though this is inside the castle…?"

"Look like I lost them." Chopper announces as he looks around carefully as I walk over to the bed again.

"I think my fever has gone," Nami says, and I place my hand on her forehead; it has definitely reached average temperature.

"Since Doctorine's medicine works well, the fever goes away quickly. But Kestia's bacteria still remains in your body. Have the antibiotic shot and stay in bed." Chopper tells her.

"Thank you," She says. "You've been attending me, right?"

"Sh-shut up!" He snaps at her, still mistrustful of humans. "I don't wanna be thanked by a human!" He does his funny little dance that says otherwise. "Don't mock me! You jerk! Don't be silly, you dummy! Seriously, don't be so…"

"He's the type that can't hide their emotions, isn't he?" Nami asks me, and I nod as I look at the adorable furball. I remove the bandages, see my hands healed from the frostbite and cuts, and take the wrappings off my feet. I look back up to see Chopper cautiously close to Nami as he plucks up the courage to try poking her hand.

"Are you guys pirates?" He asks her, and she answers; he pokes her hand and checks for something. "R-real ones?"

"Real ones," I answer him this time.

"You have a flag with a skull?" He asks another question.

"It's attached to our ship. Are you interested in pirates?" Nami asks him, and he scurries back into the bookcase, books falling down from the hit.

"No! You, idiot! No!" He yells at her, and a book hits him on the head. "You idiot!"

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. But… then… wanna come, too?" She asks him as she sits in bed; I smile at the idea but am unsure that Chopper will come.

"What?!" He gapes at her in shock.

"To the sea! Why don't you come with us…? Hm? If you do, that'll help me a lot! If we have a Doctor on our ship, I won't have to stay here for 3 days, right? On top of that, on our ship, we-" Nami tries to persuade him, but his mistrust of humans runs too deep.

"D… don't be ridiculous! I'm a reindeer! There's no way I can stay with humans!" He yells, and I look at him sadly and see that Nami is looking at him the same way. "To start with, don't you get scared when you see me? I'm a reindeer, but I stand on two legs, and I even speak…"

"What? Are you trying to scare me?" Nami asks him, not phased by him one bit.

"My nose is blue, too…" He grumbles, and I smile, about to get up when the boys run into the room after poor Chopper.

"There you are!" Luffy shouts.

"Reindeer!" The boys shout and begin chasing him again. "Wait!" They run out of the room again, leaving the door open; I close it, not wanting it to get cold, as Kureha enters.

"Those brats sure are quick." She comments as she sits in the chair at the small round metal table, and I sit back on the bed. "I don't like it… girl... "

"What?" Nami questions as she looks at the female Doctor.

"Are you tempting the reindeer without my permission while I'm not here?" She replies.

"Oh? Do I need permission to make a move on a man?" Nami jokes, and Kureha cackles a little; I snicker at her.

"No, you don't. If you wanna take him, go right ahead. But it won't be easy. He has a scar in his heart… it's a big scar that even I can't cure… the moment he was born into this world, his group and even his parents abandoned him…" Kureha explains. Nami looks at her in shock. "... because he had a blue nose. He always walked at the very back of the group all by himself… even though he was a newborn child… and one day, he ate a Devil Fruit and was treated as a monster even more. The reindeers fiercely pressured him to leave. He was no longer an ordinary reindeer in any way. Still, he wanted friends… so he went down to a village, as a human this time. But his figure wasn't exactly human, either. For some reason, his nose stayed blue, too. He didn't know what was wrong. Nor did he know what to blame...he just wanted friends, yet he was called a monster… he was no longer a reindeer… he wasn't a human, either… he's lived all alone like that… can you guys heal the scar in his heart?" She asks us, and I stand barefoot on the stone floor.

"Hey! I'm his friend! And I know we can!" I tell her, and she nods, glad to hear those words. Sanji comes in with a plate of food for Nami and me.

"In order for you to get a healthy smile back, I prepared an exceptionally nutritious diet…" Sanji says.

"Thank you, Sanji." We both say, making the love-cook blush.

"... though you're both painfully beautiful even after what your bodies' been through…" He coos at us lovingly.

"Good Lord! When did you use my kitchen without asking?" Kureha asks him.

"Madam, the roast over there is for you. It's high in protein and is good for rejuvena- Ahhh!" Sanji tells her and says the wrong word, so she kicks him.

"I'm not a 'madam'." She snaps at him as he slides down the wall onto the floor. "I'm a sparkling single… and still youthful."

"You're still 139 years old… right?" Nami replies when the sound of Chopper screaming cuts through.

"Doctorine! Help me!" Chopper cries for help as he runs into the room with Luffy.

"Wait! Hey! Wait!" Luffy shouts after him; Chopper jumps through the door creating an impression of his tiny body; Luffy tries following him but falls back. Chopper runs out with two barrels chasing him, running for cover behind Kureha's leg, trying to hide from Luffy.

"What're you doing?" Nami asks him.

"This guy's gonna join us and become our friend!" Luffy answers her.

"Oh, really?!" She asks in surprise.

"I didn't say that!" Chopper denies it.

"You did!" Luffy argues.

"I didn't!"

"You did!"

"Be quiet, both of you!" Kureha scolds them as they run around her several times before leaving the room. "Friend, huh? How deep a meaning that word has to him… to ask without knowing that…" She looks over her shoulder at us for a moment. "There was one man whom he opened up to when he was alone… the man's name was Doctor Hiriluk. He was a quack who gave Chopper a name and called him 'son'." She begins to tell the story I've heard before, and I walk out of the room, knowing the whole story already.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

I walk out into the castle, feeling the icy cold winds coming from outside; now inside the vast palace, I try opening some of the doors, but most of them are frozen shut; one of them is locked shut; I look through the keyhole to see weapons and armoury inside. I shrug my shoulders and walk off, continuing to look around the castle for anything interesting.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

I look at him questioningly; I walk around and find Luffy to see him shouting in the kitchen. "Hey! Reindeer! Hey! Reindeer! Join us and become our friend!" Luffy calls into the room. "Hmm? Whoa! That looks delicious!" He exclaims and walks inside; I look into the room, watching him eat the apples happily.

"It's about time you had something healthy," I comment, announcing myself, and he looks at me with a smile.

"It's cool to be a pirate!" He laughs, and I shake my head as he picks up the plate and swallows it.

"Luffy!" I snap at him as he swallows the fruit, pulls the plate out of his mouth, and then continues to eat; at least it's fruit this time.

"Are you… really a pirate?!" Chopper asks him as he comes out of hiding.

"Huh? Yeah, we both are… like I've been saying, join us! It's fun to be a pirate! Pirates sing, too." Luffy tells him, romanticising the idea of piracy.

"What? Th-they sing?" He asks us.

"Yeah. and they dance, too!" Luffy tells the little reindeer.

"You call that being a pirate?!" Chopper scoffs at him.

"No!" I snap as a child of a pirate.

"That's right! And they go on lots of adventures!" Luffy tells him, and it sparks something in Chopper.

"Adventures? So pirates go on adventures then?" Chopper asks more questions.

"Of course! Pirates risk their lives to go on adventures! You can meet lots of amazing people!" It mashes with Chopper as he looks in awe at Luffy.

"Don't look at him that way," I warn him and pull Chopper out of the room, locking the door behind us. "It's bad for him."

"Okay, Ko." As we stand outside, Chopper whispers I keep the keys with me as Luffy glares at us from behind bars.

"Just ignore the idiot. Listen, Chopper, you can decide on becoming a pirate, coming with us or staying here with Doctorine. I know you think it's all fun and games, but sometimes it's about helping and protecting your friends and, yeah, enjoying the time you have with them." I tell him, and I see him tear up a little; I wipe them away before they fall and smile.

"Hey! What're you doing!" Luffy yells from behind bars, trying to break free.

"It's because you're pestering him!" I snap at him.

"Like I said, just join us!" He says to Chopper, ignoring me.

"This is exactly what I mean by pestering him!" I yell at him.

"It's fun to be a pirate!" He sulks a little.

"I've had enough! Just rest in there for a while!" Chopper shouts at him and points the key out in front of Luffy. "Your injuries actually aren't that light, either." Luffy snatches the key off me as Chopper goes to leave. "Geez… what's his problem Ko?" Luffy opens the door alerting Chopper, who breaks out into a run. "Why?!"

"Wait!" Luffy shouts as he runs after him; I walk off after them down the hallway, and Luffy crashes into the wall, breaking the stone away, revealing outside.

"This smell is…" Chopper mutters and transforms into his reindeer form, running off; I look out the window to see three vial human beings standing in the snow.

"Ahh! That bastard!" Luffy growls as he pushes in front of the window.

"I've finally returned!" I hear Wapol laugh from outside.

"That annoying mouth!" He keeps growling, pressing his face into the window and running off, heading outside; I walk back to the clinic room where Nami and Sanji should be.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

"Hey, sorry, not stopping. Wapol's here." I tell them as I walk into my room and get dressed in a black winter coat, top, jeans, brown boots, and a white woollen hat before heading off back out though Sanji joins me this time.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

We make it outside, with Luffy standing out in front of us as I look around the frozen landscape, but it's ruined by the sight of Chess and Kuromarimo kneeling by the edge of the mountain, seeming to be holding onto something. Kureha and Chopper are standing in shock, looking at Luffy, and I walk over to stand with them as we watch them. "Hmm? Why are they here?" Sanji ponders as he stands with us, looking at the three morons.

"Since I had someone injured with me then, I ran, as there was no other choice. But this time… I don't have to hold back any more!" Luffy warns them, seeming overly pleased.

"Hmm, you bastard!" Chess shouts from the edge.

"How dare you suddenly attack Wapol, the King of the Drum Kingdom!" Kuromarimo shouts at him.

"That's right! He's the King! How dare you do such a thing to his Excellency, the most excellent ruler of all the citizens on this island!" Chess blabs on, irritating Luffy more.

"Who cares! You guys tick me off!" Luffy shouts back at them, pulling his mouth wide as he yells at them.

"Hey, young man. You know them?" Kureha asks him, and he turns around angrily, pointing at them,

"Yeah, I do! He's that annoying mouth! That annoying mouth, pirate!" He yells, not making any sense.

"That annoying mouth?" She asks him.

"He keeps getting in my way! He ate part of our ship and attacked my friends! I won't let him get away with it any more!" He growls, stomping in the snow.

"Before that, aren't you cold in that getup?" Sanji asks him, and it may sink in a little. "See?"

"Didn't they say he was the King? He isn't a pirate?" Luffy questions as he looks back at them.

"That's what you just released?!" I snap at him, shaking my head at the dense moron.

"Humph! What an idiot! It seems he finally released his rudeness. Wapol is the King of the Drum Kingdom. When he met you before, he was temporarily a pirate for his own reasons. That's all." Kuromarimo explains as if Luffy is listening to them.

"He's done being a pirate and is going back to being the King of this castle and country." Chess adds on, but Luffy isn't paying attention as he shivers, trying to keep warm.

"Hey, this place is cold!" He complains as he rubs his arms, trying to keep warm.

"That's what I've been saying!" Sanji snaps at him.

"It's 50 degrees below, you know!" Chopper weights in.

"They're making light of us." Chess comments, and Wapol gets to his feet a little bloody from Luffy's previous hit.

"Wapol!" Kuromarimo cheers at his ridiculous King.

"I'm really mad now… Straw Hat! I'll bite you off!" Wapol yells, but Luffy runs off, ignoring him, going to find a coat for himself.

"Um, could you hold on a minute, Luffy went to get some clothes," I tell them, smiling at their irritation.

"He's gone?!" Wapol yells angrily, stomping around.

"Let me ask you a question. He… stretched earlier… his arm…" Chopper asks us.

"Yeah, he stretches… it's because he's a Rubber Man." Sanji answers him.

"Wh… what's that?" He asks, not knowing what he is.

"It's a monster!" Sanji and I grin back at Chopper, who blinks a few times in surprise at the answer.

"To sum up, the rebel old hag and some of the Straw Hats are in this castle. Once we eliminate all of them, there won't be anyone else impudent enough to defy me." Wapol goes on, stupid wannabe King.

"Precisely. This will become the bright day of the Drum Kingdom's restoration." Chess plays into him.

"I'll start with you, Doctor Kureha! You've got quite the nerve settling in the castle during our absence and even flying a strange flag!" Wapol yells at her, but she won't take it lying down.

"I made this castle, Hiriluk's grave. I wasn't really interested in such a run-down castle, but this reindeer insisted on flying Hiriluk's flag up there." Kureha replies, and I look down at Chopper, who looks sad at the mention of his name even now, but I know it doesn't ever really go away.

"Grave?! That stupid Doctor's?!" Wapol laughs, angering Chopper and Kureha though he has the nerve to look angry. "How dare you violate my sacred castle with that scum Doctor's flag! Burn down that flag already!"

"I won't let you make it inside this castle…" Chopper snaps as he transforms into his Human-Reindeer Form. "Never!"

"Wapol… he is…" Chess mumbles in shock.

"That's right! From that time… the monster… that followed the stupid Doctor!" Kuromarimo gasps in shock.

"That flag… is the Doctor's faith! So I won't let you take it down! Never!" Chopper snarls at them, but Wapol laughs at him.

"Show them no mercy! We're going into the castle! Take down every single one of them!" Wapol orders his two goons.

"Are you gonna fight, too, old lady?" Sanji asks Kureha.

"Old lady?" She repeats as she looks at the Love Cook and punches him. "If they're more than you guys can handle, I'll give you a hand." She tells him.

"Appreciate that…" He grumbles as he holds his head, and I go to join them, but she stops me.

"I don't think so, your ribs are still healing, and I can hear your heavy breathing, you'll make yourself worse or possibly tear your lung." She warns me; I huff in annoyance and sit in the snow in protest.

"This is so unfair," I grumble as I scowl, cursing Miss Valentine for sitting her boney ass on my chest under my breath.

"Wapol! Please leave them to us! We'll clean up the small fries right away!" Kuromarimo yells and throws a hairball towards Kureha.

"Doctorine!" Chopper shouts in warning, but Sanji lifts his leg, getting the hairball stuck on his leg from saving Kureha.

"Hey, hey, hey, you with the afro. What kind of brother are you, throwing an afro at a lady?" Sanji scolds Kuromarimo.

"Hey, you're getting it now." She grins at him.

"You fell for it," Kuromarimo smirks, seeming smug.

"Huh?" Sanji questions and tries to shake the hairball, but it won't fall off. "Ah! What?! I can't shake it off! What's this afro?! Static electricity?!" He keeps shaking his leg, but it won't budge.

"Exactly!" Kuromarimo laughs.

"Ahh! Dammit! Come off! Dammit!" Sanji shouts as he shakes his leg more violently. "Dammit! What's with this afro? It doesn't come off! It doesn't come off!"

"There's lots more coming!" Kuromarimo shouts as he pulls a ball of his hair from his head, pinching it together, making it bigger. "Marino's Static Cling!" He throws two more at Sanji, getting him on his arms; he tries to remove them, but they keep sticking on.

"What the hell are these things?! They're damn gross! Hey, reindeer! Don't just watch! Help me!"

"Okay!" Chopper calls out and runs over to help Sanji.

"Take these off quick! They're really gross! On top of that, they're plain! Too plain!" Sanji freaks out as Chopper comes over; he attaches one to him.

"Ahh! They're now stuck on me! I'm giving them to you!" Chopper and Sanji start fighting as they try taking the hairballs off themselves before passing them to the other continuously. "Ah! Don't give them back to me! Keep at least one!" "No! They're gross!" "They're gross to me, too!" "Stop it! Don't give them to me!"

"What the heck are you guys doing?" Kureha asks them as we watch them.

"Ahh! Stop it!" They shout at each other.

"Morons," I mutter.

"Humph! They know nothing about teamwork." Kuromarimo spits as he watches them messing around.

"I'll tell you one thing." Chess agrees with his partner and readies his bow and arrow. "Despite their plain look, those Static Marinos burn flashily." He lights the arrowhead.

"Hmm?! Oh no! He's going to burn these afros!" Sanji cries out, and Chopper puts one of the hairballs on him and then runs away.

"Here we go!" Chopper says as he runs away.

"Okay… hey! Where're you going?!" Sanji yells after him.

"Decoy plan!" Chopper shouts back as he runs.

"D-decoy plan? Am I the decoy?!" He yells after the Human-Reindeer who runs for it.

"Checkmate!" Chess yells as he shoots the arrow towards Sanji, he barely misses, and one of the hairballs catches a light; he goes into a handstand, trying to put snow on the fire

"Ah! Ow! Ow! Snow! Snow! Snow!" Sanji yells as he tries putting out the fire, and Chopper runs towards Chess, swinging at him, but Wapol pushes him out of the way, opening his largemouth.

"Move!" Wapol shouts as Chopper comes closer, and he falls into the mouth; Wapol tries chewing him up.

"Stop!" "Darn it!" "Chopper!" Kureha, Sanji and I shout out in worry for the poor reindeer.

"Whoa… this is really warm!" I hear Luffy coming from behind us.

"Luffy!" Sanji calls out to him. "Grab my leg from there!"

"You're leg?" Luffy questions but stops, stretches his arms towards Sanji's outstretched leg, and grabs hold. "Like this?"

"Okay, then! Don't let your hands go!" Sanji tells him.

"Okay!"

"Armee de l'Air Assault… Gum, Shoot!" Sanji swings his leg out, sending Luffy spinning towards Wapol as he chews on Chopper, who reverts to his standard form. Luffy crashes into Wapol's stomach, spitting out Chopper, Wapol goes flying into Robson, who goes flying, and Wapol crashes into the snow.

"Not bad, interesting way of going." I compliment as I get up, feeling cold.

"Th… thank you. You guys're amazon…" Chopper says to the boys.

"Ah! Hey! Luffy! You jerk! Isn't that Nami's jacket?!" Sanji questions our Captain, pointing an accusing finger at the coat.

"Yeah…" Luffy answers him and looks out. "Look! He's still alive, though the hippo flew away."

"Take it off! You jerk!" Sanji snaps as he tries ripping the jacket off Luffy.

"Wapol, are you all right?" Kuromarimo questions the beaten loser.

"They're stronger than we thought. We underestimated them!" Chess concludes, finally realising it.

"I can no longer let them live! Those bastards!" Wapol growls, shocking his subordinates.

"What?!" They gasp in shock.

"I'll show them… the true power of the Munch Munch Fruit!" He tells them angrily.

"Very good sir." Chess agrees.

"I'll show them… Munch Munch Factory!" He yells over at us.

"Oh, he stood up!" Luffy sighs, seeming disappointed.

"Would a normal person stand up after taking that attack?" Sanji questions.

"His body's made tough!" Luffy also questions, though I giggle a little as I stand by Kureha, watching.

"Chess! Call out what I ate today!" Wapol orders him, and he removes a checkered diary from his pocket.

"Well... you ate one better-sauteed cannon and one raw cannon on the ship. Also, cannonball, gunpowder salad, and a toasted house in the village." He lists off; I scrunch my face, disgusted at the thought of eating all that.

"What kind of stuff do you eat?" Luffy questions the other big eater.

"When it comes to omnivores, this guy takes the cake." Sanji comments, and I nod in agreement.

"Wait and see… food soon becomes my blood and flesh…" Wapol grins, having a trump card up his sleeve.

"He's gonna do something!" Chopper mutters as we watch Wapol's head form a chimney in shock.

"What the?!" Sanji gapes when cannon heads replace his arms.

"Munch Munch Shock!" He yells, and his body grows windows and a door, even growing in size. "Wapol House!"

"A house?" I question as I look at the ridiculous self-proclaimed King.

"Sweet!" Luffy being an idiot awes at it.

"It's too soon to be surprised. Now, this is the King's technique!" He yells and opens his mouth towards his cowering soldiers. "Munch Munch Factory!" He starts eating his men, seeming almost bored.

"What the hell?" I gape as I watch him eating his men.

"H… he's eating his own men!" Sanji gasps.

"He's eating his own people!" Luffy gasps, pointing over and swallowing the two men; steam comes out of the chimney and cannon heads, he does a funny little dance for a few seconds before stopping, and smoke comes out of the chimney and cannon heads again.

"He stopped moving…" Chopper states in worry about what's coming next.

"Feast your eyes on this! Come out, miraculous Union!" Wapol yells, and we all look at him in shock.

"Huh?!" Luffy gasps a little in anticipation.

"What?! Union!" Sanji gasps in shock as the door opens in Wapol's stomach, and a hand opens the door.

"I am the strongest warrior of the Drum Kingdom…" They announce as they step out of the door. It is a strange mixture of Chess and Kuromarimo. "Chessmarimo!"

"Sweet!" Luffy exclaims at the ridiculous pair.

"What's sweet about it?!" Sanji snaps at him.

"Don't let your guard down," Kureha warns the boys. "If they were really weak, a stupid act like exiling doctors… would've been stopped by the citizens." I look at the thugs as Kureha calls them, smirking all smug.

"The Drum Kingdom's Constitution, Article 1! 'Those who don't do as the King wishes should die.' that sums up this country! It's because this country is my country,… and this castle is my castle. Of all the flags, don't fly that quack's flag! It will ruin the castle!" Wapol yells and aims his cannon head arm towards the top tower where Doctor Hiriluk's flag flies and shoots the cannon, hitting the flag.

"A pirate flag… Hey, reindeer. That flag…" Luffy says to Chopper, who grows angry and runs off towards Wapol and the goon union.

"You bastard… you attacked the Doctor's flag!" Chopper shouts as he runs under the slow Union, changing into his Human Reindeer and grabbing Wapol. "Doctor… tried to save even you!" He goes to punch the phoney King but stops as if trying to keep to Doctor Hiriluk's word, but it won't work for someone too far gone. Chopper seems to be fighting himself, but he lowers his shoulders. "I… I won't hit you… so leave this country!" He tries negotiating with him, but it won't do anything.

"What're you saying, Chopper?! You think he'll just listen to you?!" I yell out to him, knowing he'll go back on his word.

"But… after all…" Chopper turns to face us, leaving himself open, and Wapol being the creep he is, takes advantage of Chopper's good nature and fires his cannon at Chopper's face, sending him flying.

"Chopper!" Kureha screams for her son as he lands in the snow a few meters away.

"Hey, annoying mouth!" Luffy shouts, and I look for the source of his voice to see him at the top of the tower with the flag, Nami's jacket sleeve missing as it's tied around the pole, keeping the flag up.

"Huh?!" Wapol yells as he looks up to see what Luffy's done. "Straw Hat!"

"You were a fake pirate, right? You don't know what this pirate flag means because you were fake pirates who didn't even risk your lives!" Luffy shouts down; I feel proud of him for that.

"That guy…" Chopper mutters, and I sigh in relief, seeing that he's at least conscious.

"What that flag means, Straw Hat?" Wapol laughs, clearly as dumb as he looks. "Stupid pirate flags have no meaning!"

"That's why you're hopeless!" Luffy shouts at him.

"I would have gone for a stronger word," I mutter, but Kureha hears me as she giggles a little.

"What'd you say?!" Wapol demands in anger.

"A pirate flag isn't something that you can raise as a joke!" He snaps at the fool, King.

"What an idiot! If it weren't for a joke, there's no way I, the King, would raise it! Don't put that stupid flag back up when I take it down!" Wapol shouts and aims his cannon towards Luffy; Chopper jumps to his feet, worried about the goofball.

"Dodge it! Watch out!" Chopper yells up to him as the cannon sails towards Luffy.

"You can't break this flag!" Luffy says as the cannon hits, I close my eyes, but I know he'll be okay.

"Luffy!" Sanji calls out to him.

"It's a direct hit!" Kureha gasps; I open my eyes to see the cloud of black smoke seeming to clear away slowly.

"He must've been blown away! Such an idiot!" Wapol laughs as the smoke clears, revealing Luffy still holding the flag though both are a little beaten up.

"See? It didn't break…" He announces, stopping Wapol's laughter.

"C… can't be! He's stupid!" Chessmarimo exclaims in shock.

"I don't know who the heck this pirate flag belongs to… but since this flag is a person's pledge to risk his life…. It's not raised as a joke!" Luffy snaps at them. "This flag isn't something you can just break while laughing foolishly!" He yells at them, shocking the three morons. "It won't break… never… the skull is a mark of faith!" He makes a brilliant declaration. "Hey, reindeer!" He calls down to Chopper, who looks up at him. "I'm gonna beat these guys up now. What do you wanna do?" He asks, but before Chopper can reply, Wapol jumps in.

"What're you saying? You damn idiot! if you wanna protect the flag that bad, stay there forever to protect it!" Wapol growls as if he has any say.

"Why don't you stop… right there!" Sanji yells as he turns and runs towards them, but as he goes to kick, his spine makes a bad cracking sound as he stops.

"Looks like your backbone gave out… that's just natural. You're moving around too much!" Kureha tells and runs towards him, kicking him in the back as he slowly falls to the ground, "Stop! Doctor's orders!"

"What're you idiots doing!" Wapol laughs. "Just stand there and watch! I'll blow him to bits along with that flag! Time to get blown away, Straw Hat!" He shouts up, but Luffy will be okay.

"Stop it!" Chopper yells and jumps, heading towards Wapol.

"That's the idea! Get him, reindeer!" Luffy cheers for him as he places the flag pole back as Chopper gets closer.

"Wapol! Watch out!" Chessmarimo yells and gets in the way of Chopper's punch.

"The little brat is showing his guts as if he's a fully grown man…" Kureha cackles a little as she watches, and I grow bored and walk over to stand by them.

"Sorry. I won't let you lay your finger on Wapol!" Chessmarimo says, and Chopper shrinks back down. "Really, there are some strange creatures in this world. Seems like you're that 'yeti' the citizens got worked up about at one time. You must really have spent your whole life disliked by everyone. You poor monster. Why's a loner like you trying to save this country? Don't make me laugh!"

"Shut up! Even if I don't have friends, I can still fight! As long as the Doctor's flag exists, I will…" Chopper tells them, with such courage and determination.

"You do have friends!" Luffy and I shout at the little reindeer; he looks back at us. "I am your friend!" We both tell him, and I look back to see Luffy about to slingshot himself back down. He lands hard in front of the screaming Wapol, hitting the snow hard, making the dumb Union and dummy King fall back into the snow.

"Straw Hat!" Chopper calls out to him, but the snow clears, showing Luffy chuckling completely fine. "Are you okay?!"

"I'm just fine… since I'm a rubber man." He tells him.

"A rubber man?!" He asks in shock, never hearing about it as the goon union gets angry with the knucklehead.

"Hey, reindeer! Can you finish that guy?" Luffy asks him as he points over to them.

"Someone like that is a piece of cake." Chopper replies as he looks over at them.

"Then it's decided. My opponent is the annoying mouth!" Luffy grins as he stands and looks over as Wapol approaches his feet.

"How dare you, Straw Hat, flying around like that!" Wapol sneers at Luffy as he towers over him.

"I won't hesitate any longer!" Chopper vows to himself as he looks at Chessmarimo.

"You can take me down?! Huh, you monster?!" Chessmarimo digs at Chopper, but he doesn't even flinch.

"Pot, kettle," I grumble as I watch Sanji struggle to move.

"How dare you…" Sanji snaps as he tries to crawl over to help. "Old hag! I will fight…" She steps harder on his back; I hear the bones cracking a little as he flinches in pain.

"Shut up and watch!" She orders him. "If you keep moving around, you won't be able to walk on your own anymore. Don't worry. When push comes to shove my reindeer can handle things."

"My name is Tony Tony Chopper! It's a name that the world's greatest Doctor gave me! Even if the Doctor forgave you, I won't forgive you for laughing at how he lived!" He yells at Chessmarimo; I grin, glad to see him standing up to those morons.

"I'm the one who'll show no forgiveness! I'll stomp you!" They reply, and Chopper gets a small orangey-yellow ball size of a marble in his hooves.

"Rumble Ball!" He announces; I smile, glad to see him taking the fight seriously. "The effect of the Rumble Ball lasts 3 minutes. I'll take you down in 3 minutes!"

"3 minutes?! You can't defeat me at all, much less in 3 minutes!" Chessmarimo refutes as if they can't be defeated.

"3 minutes? That's amazing!" Luffy marvels at the little reindeer.

"3 minutes? No way!" Wapol scoffs in disbelief, having faith in his men, as Chopper throws the ball into the air.

"We'll be able to see something interesting," Kureha comments as she sits on Sanji's back, stopping him from moving.

"Dammit! Let me fight, too!" Sanji protests, and I look down at him.

"Hey, if I can't fight, then you can't either," I tell him as the small Rumble Ball falls into Chopper's mouth, and he places it between his teeth.

"Rumble!" He bites into the ball, smashing it into small pieces as Chessmarimo takes out two bows and arrows, setting the arrowheads on fire, aiming them towards Chopper.

"What… Did you say you could do?!" They ask him with wide grins. "Marimo's Snow Melting Arrow!" They fire towards Chopper as he runs towards them.

"Walk Point! Leg Boost!" He says as he forms into an ordinary reindeer and swiftly dodges the arrows as he gets closer.

"Humph! Just a transformation?! I was expecting something more! In other words, you have the powers of a Devil Fruit. Zoan-type, just like Dalton! A reindeer human, huh?" Chessmarimo figures they have him pegged, but like me, he's got more up his sleeve.

"Heavy Point! Weight Boost!" He forms into the human reindeer and starts to stand as he runs towards them. "I'm a human reindeer!.

"Same thing! I know everything about the three-form transformation you Zoan-types use." They say something ridiculous.

"Yeah, sure, you do." I scoff as I watch them.

"Marimo's Super Surprise Quattro Hammer!" They yell as they pull out two hammers that look pretty ordinary. "I've seen all your forms. Looks like you're a power fighter like Dalton. But there's no way you can-" They go to swing their hammers towards Chopper as he grows closer.

"Jumping Point! Jump Boost!" Chopper grows slimmer than his human form and jumps high over the morons.

"-overpower me!"

"He jumped! He can really jump!" Sanji gapes as he looks up.

"Whoa!" Luffy beams as he watches.

"What?! What's that form?!" Chessmarimo exclaims as he looks up above them at Chopper's hovering form. "Wasn't his 'human-animal form' the little reindeer from earlier?! How impudent!" They go to swing as Chopper grows closer.

"Guard Point! Fur Boost!" He curls in on himself, growing fur rapidly as the hammer smashes down, and the furball bounces across the snow towards the castle and stops.

"Again?!" Chessmarimo gasps in surprise.

"Whoa!" Luffy beams with surprise, and the furball grows legs, and Chopper's head pops out at the bottom and moves to look up.

"Can't be… I hit him dead on!" They exclaim in disbelief.

"It won't work!" Chopper yells at them.

"I was sure that Zoan-types had a limit of three forms. What the heck are you?" They demand, and I smirk at the little reindeer.

"The Rumble Ball is a drug that messes up the wavelength of the Devil Fruit's transformations. During my 5 years of research after I met Ko, I found 4 more transformation points. 3 transformations plus 4. " Chopper tells them.

"Seven-form transformation? What's the big deal with the number of transformations?!" Chessmarimo exclaims.

"A… A seven-form transforming interesting reindeer!" Luffy beams with stars in his eyes.

"What's the matter with him?" Kureha asks us as Luffy keeps beaming, reminding me of when we were kids.

"Looks like his happiness exceeded its limit after hearing seven-form transformations, Kinda like when we were kids," I tell her as I look over at the over-excited goofball, ignoring Wapol.

"You bastard… What happened to your fight against me?!" Wapol yells at Luffy, who continues to ignore him.

"To hell with seven-form transformations! I won't be deceived by such a sham!" They deny it with their very own eyes.

"It's not a sham!" Chopper shouts and starts bouncing towards Chessmarimo as they go running. "Arm Point! Arm Boost!" Chopper shreds the fur, coming out with muscular upper arms, as Chessmarimo swings their hammers, but Chopper uses his iron hooves to smash the hammer into splinters. They try hitting him with the other hammer, but he beats that one with his other hoove, splinters of wood flying everywhere from the sheer strength behind the hit. "Let me tell you one thing. My iron hooves can smash even rocks!"

"Amazing!" Luffy exclaims in pure joy only a child can display.

"How impudent, you bastard! This'll show you! Marimo's Surprise…" They get out four axes, swinging them around. "Quattro Axe!" They slice down, creating a strong backdraft, slicing into the snow towards Chopper. "Snow Splitting Blade!" One cuts into Chopper's arm only slightly due to his muscles' density, but the castle wall is split open badly.

"Hey… the castle wall got hollowed out!" Sanji comments as he looks at the damage done to the castle wall.

"Tsk! He dodged it. Then, how about… this?!" Chessmarimo yells as they run towards Chopper, swinging their axes at the reindeer. "Omnidirectional Snow Splitter!" Chopper dodges the blades from one form to another as he dodges the swords fast. "What happened to your high spirits from earlier?! You can't win if you just keep dodging, you know!" Chopper keeps changing his form to keep dodging and jumps away from the swinging axes.

"Brain Point! Brain Boost!" Chopper reverts back to his standard form as he begins. "It's not that I was just dodging. I was looking for your weak spot." He tells them as he starts analysing the creature.

"What?!" Chessmarimo exclaims in shock as he watches.

"Scope!" Chopper puts his iron hooves together and looks through as he begins looking from Chessmarimo's weak spot.

"A… a beam! He'll definitely shoot a beam!" Luffy gasps as he looks at Chopper in awe, waiting for what happens next.

"He won't, you idiot!" Sanji yells at our Captain.

"Shut up! It's definitely a beam! I don't care what anyone says, it's a beam! What else could it be?! It's a beam!" He yells back.

"How can you know?! Huh?!" He shouts at Luffy.

"I just know! It's a beam! Beam!"

"Then what kind of beam?!"

"Both of you are morons!" I snap at them, shutting them. "He's not going to shoot a beam!" I watch as Chessmarimo grows angrier, running towards Chopper.

"You were looking for my weak spot?! So what?!" Chessmarimo shouts as they run towards Chopper, who calmly analyses them, and we all wait. "I don't have a blind spot! You're a transforming idiot who can't even attack! You're the one who'll be finished!" He grows closer, and it seems Chopper has found his weak point. As Chessmarimo stops before him, Chopper jumps away, hidden under the snow. "Where'd he go?!"

"Hoofprint…" Chopper reveals himself under the snow in his muscular form. "... Roseo!" He punches up to Chess's chin, knocking them back and unconscious, and Chopper reverts back. "3 minutes."

"Alright, reindeer! You're pretty good, reindeer! Amazing!" Luffy compliments Chopper, which makes the reindeer blush; he pulls his hat down to hide his blush and smile.

"Shut up!" Chopper exclaims in glee, not hiding his happiness as Luffy laughs; I shake my head at them as I look happily at Chopper.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

ZORO'S POV:

We all wait for this Dalton guy to be treated; Vivi keeps pacing, which is getting on my nerves as I try to keep my emotions in control, but her worrying is making me worsen, as I can't help but worry about the others, not Sanji but Dakota the most. "In any event, let's go up the mountain, Usopp, Mr Bushido!" Vivi suggests suddenly. "I can't just sit around and wait! I'm worried what happened to Luffy and the others in that big avalanche! Nami has a very high fever! Dakota could barely breathe! If anything happened…" She worries, feeling the burden of everything.

"You're worried about Nami and Dakota… on top of that, you're worried about Dalton as well as Alabasta, huh? Vivi, calm down! You're carrying too many burdens on your shoulders! Nami and Dakota are with Luffy and Sanji. I'm sure they're okay. They'll be fine! I believe in them!" He tells her, but I see right through him and know how she feels.

"Thank you, Usopp, I…" Vivi goes to say, but I poke him in the forehead.

"For you, it's just that you're afraid of going up the mountain, isn't it?" I ask him as I keep poking him in the forehead, a little harder each time.

"B… but I heard that there're things like a yeti and bear-bunnies there!" Usopp freaks out, and I poke him harder.

"Then say so from the start!" I snap at him, feeling my nerves get the better of me.

"It'll be fine. It's Luffy we're talking about. He'll make it work. I can't help it if I'm scared! Any problem with that?!" Usopp snaps back, and I poke him harder on the forehead, making him cry out, holding a hand against his forehead in pain.

"Dalton!" I hear someone shout from inside the hut; the door opens to reveal the Dalton guy struggling to stand as he comes limping out with a spade to keep him upright.

"Ahh! Dalton!" Usopp gasps as he turns to look at the man.

"Dalton!" Vivi gasps as she turns to him as he limps over.

"Would someone please tell me who the heck this guy is?!" I snap at them as he falls to his knees, still weak, and the villagers and the Doctors come outside to tend to him.

"Dalton! You can't!" The villagers protest.

"Get out of my way! We can't let Wapol in the castle! Never!" Dalton snaps as he tries to get up onto his feet.

"Don't tell me you're heading to the castle!" Vivi gasps in shock.

"In your condition… that's reckless!" Usopp points out in worry for the man.

"When will I fight if I don't fight now? If Wapol goes back to being the King, this country will become rotten forever!" Dalton yells, his words are determined, but he won't make it fast in his condition.

"There's no way you can fight in that condition! We're no match for them, either…" The villagers try to reason with him, but it doesn't seem to matter to him as he gets to his feet shakily.

"I will settle this! No matter how dirty I have to play!" Dalton yells and tries to take a few steps forward, and Usopp steps into his path; he turns around, getting onto his knees.

"Get on my back. I'll take you to the castle. You don't need to be modest! I don't wanna waste your determination. That's all. " Usopp says as he looks over his shoulder.

"Usopp…" Vivi mutters as Dalton leans onto Usopp's back, but he's at least twice the Sniper's size.

"Hold on, okay? I will take you… to the castle now…" Usopp groans as he tries to move, though he still tries; it's painful to watch.

"Usopp…" Vivi mutters again as we all watch.

"It'll work. I'll get you there. You're gonna fight for the country, right?! You're gonna settle this, right?! Don't worry. I'll definitely take you there!" Usopp keeps going; I facepalm at the sight of them.

"Geez, that moron…" I mutter, walk past the civilians towards Usopp, and pick Dalton onto my shoulder, leaving Usopp on the floor. I want to get to the castle to see Dakota; I can't help the uneasy feeling in my stomach as I think about what could have happened to her.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

DAKOTA'S POV:

"Hey, Luffy! Where is that guy?" Sanji asks him as I walk over to Chopper, checking his injuries, seeing as that's the only thing I'm allowed to do.

"That guy?" Luffy asks as he's forgotten about Wapol.

"He's not here!" Sanji snaps at him, but Luffy isn't getting it.

"Which guy?"

"That tin bastard! He's disappeared!" He snaps, and Luffy looks around as he yells.

"He came up on the hippo. He wouldn't go down on his own." Kureha remarks as she continues to sit on Sanji.

"When on earth did he…" Luffy wonders as he looks around.

"While you were fascinated by the transformations, of course!" Sanji snaps at him again.

"That bastard! I'll find him right away and finish him off!" He promises as he grows angrier.

"Don't tell me he got into the castle from somewhere… if that's the case, Nami will be…" Sanji panics, and Luffy runs off, yelling to find Wapol, and Kureha gets up, letting Sanji crawl away after Luffy. "That bastard! If he lays his hands on Nami, I'll gut him 100 times!"

"Hold it!" Kureha yells after him, but it falls on deaf ears. "Geez, does he want to die?"

"Doctorine…" Chopper calls out to his mother figure, who looks over at us. "He called me…" He turns around and pulls his hat over his face to hide his blush. "His friend…"

"And what am I?" I ask him as I crouch down, seeing his cheeks grow redder.

"Your Ko, my bestest friend." He answers, and I smile, glad to hear it; I pet his hat as I smile at him, delighted to see him happy again; I hug him as I sit back in the snow as we wait, though it seems quiet from out here.

"I always hated the silence before the storm," I mutter as I watch the palace as it stands in the wind and snow when moments later, the sound of an explosion comes from the castle; I look up to see the top left tower with black smoke coming out from the large hole. I don't smell Luffy's blood, so I know he's not hurt.

"Are you worried about him?" Kureha asks Chopper as she watches us from the gate doors, leaning against them casually.

"I'm not worried about him at all!" Chopper replies, and I believe him. "He's a pirate!" It seems quiet again when it shatters as the top of the left tower pops off, with a badly beaten Wapol coming out, seemingly skinnier than before. "Doctorine…"

"Yeah… it seems that it's finally come… the end of the long nightmare…" She answers him, and I smile as I feel Chopper shift in my hold.

"End…" He mutters to himself as we watch Luffy climb out from the tower's new hole and make his way towards Wapol, who seems alarmed to see him; Wapil screams in panic as Luffy stretches his arms back far.

"Gum-Gum…" He yells, terrorising Wapol, to which I can't help but feel proud.

"Hold on a sec!" Wapol begs as Luffy continues to stretch his arms back.

"Gum-Gum-Gum-Gum-Gum-Gum…"

"I'll give you status and a medal!" Wapol tries reasoning with him, but it won't work as Luffy#s arms slingshot back at a startling rate.

"...Bazooka!" He sends Wapol flying, not being able to see him anymore; I grin as I stand up to my feet and hear the clicks of metal; I turn around to see a port door pop up from the snow; the latch opens up, revealing Zoro dressed as a soldier with Usopp cowering behind him. Chopper runs, not knowing who they are before I can say anything, and I watch him run into the trees as they begin panicking. I look to see Luffy heading towards them, and he seems to see who they are, but it's already too late as he crashes into the snow. I turn my head as I walk towards them, snow flying everywhere, and it soon settles back down; I shake my head as I look at Luffy as he pops out of the snow laughing, and Zoro comes out angry at our Captain, and I see Vivi coming out as well.

"What'd you do that for, you jerk?!" Zoro snarls at him.

"Oh, it's you guys!" Luffy chuckles, not even trying to look bashful. "Since I recognised the clothes you're wearing, I thought you were one of them. So you guys came up too. Usopp didn't you say you couldn't come up?" He asks the cowardly Sniper.

"Don't be silly!" He laughs it off. "If I see a mountain in front of me, I climb it. I'm that kind of guy. But coming up this cliff was quite an adventure." Usopp goes to his usual adventurous lies.

"We came up by ropeway. Luffy, are Nami, Dakota and Sanji okay?" Vivi asks him, and I walk over, gaining their attention; from the looks of it, they all seem relieved, even more so Zoro, which I'm glad to see in some sense.

"I'd say we're pulling through." I joke as I join them, and Usopp babbles, but I don't pay him attention.

"I'm glad to hear that!" Vivi sighed in relief; she must have felt guilty for what happened to Nami and me. "I'm glad…"

"So, what were you doing on top of the castle?" Zoro asks Luffy as I see a badly beaten up Dalton come out onto the snow; I walk over, trying to help him a little.

"I was beating the crap out of the King," Luffy answers him as if it were any ordinary thing, and it shocks Dalton as he takes a few steps forward, and I try keeping him on his feet.

"Then, as I suspected, the one who flew far into the sky earlier was Wapol! You beat him…?!" Dalton asks him, in shock at my little baby brother.

"Yep! Why?" Luffy answers him as if it were nothing.

"So what about his two henchmen?" He asks him another question.

"The reindeer beat them up." He answers again as if it were completely normal, even here.

"Those two… a reindeer did…?" He questions, but Luffy ignores it and turns to Usopp, who's still going on about some fake adventure.

"Oh yeah! Usopp! Listen! I found a new friend!" Luffy tells him, and Usopp stops whatever rubbish he's spouting and turns to look at Luffy.

"Hm? What?" Usopp questions him.

"Reindeer… Reindeer…?" Dalton repeats, and I see Chopper hiding by a tree with everyone able to see him, and Dalton turns to look at the little reindeer. "Blue nose… you are that reindeer… I see… you've been fighting all this time since then!" Dalton lets go of me as he falls to his knees and bows to Chopper as a sign of deep respect for the little guy. "Thank you. Drum will definitely… definitely be reborn…" Some of the village men come out of the stairway, noticing Chopper.

"Wh-what's that strange creature?!" They ask in shock.

"A-A reindeer? No…"

"That's a… m-m-m-mons…"

"Hey, don't shoot!" Dalton yells at them.

"Don't you dare touch him!" I growl as I see them grow scared, and we humans always act out of fear.

"Ahhh! It's a monster!" Usopp yells out, and Chopper runs off, crying, causing Luffy to angrily punch Usopp over the head.

"Don't call him a monster! He's the new friend I was talking about!" Luffy snaps at him. "What?! That thing is?! He got shocked and ran away!" He goes running off into the woods. "Wait! Monster!"

"Hey!" The others yell after him as we watch him chase after Chopper.

"Reindeer! Hey, wait! Hey! Reindeer! You're my friend! Hey! Reindeer!" Luffy keeps shouting after Chopper, who keeps running away; Dalton stands but falls back down again onto his knees; I try keeping him up so he doesn't face-plant the snow.

"Are you alright, Dalton?!" Vivi asks him as the others come over.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just felt a little drained. That's all. I'll be fine if I get some rest." Dalton tells them.

"Hey, you guys!" Kureha calls out to the men, who look over in shock.

"Ah! D-Doctor Kureha!" They all yell in shock.

"Are you happy, brats?" She asks them with a smirk. "Take that injured guy to the medical ward."

"Ahh! You're that damn old hag!" Zoro snaps at her, and she kicks the crap out of him; I run over to his fallen form.

"Zoro! Are you okay?" I ask him as I move him into my lap

"And anyone else injured, too!" She orders them, and they answer in fear. "Don't dilly-dally! Do you want the same experience as this man?!" She stomps off into the castle and kicks down a wall; I hear her yelling and Nami and Sanji screaming. "Dakota, get in there too!" She shouts back over to me.

"I don't wanna!" I whine a little, but she gives me a mean look, and I rush towards her with the men, leaving Zoro and Usopp outside.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

I sit on the bed as Kureha fixes Sanji's back; I wince at every shout of pain with the others as I sit on the bed with Nami lying down; I watch the men around the room shiver in fear as she stops the treatment and comes out giggles as she gets her usual bottle of wine. "As I thought, his injuries have gotten worse… since he overexerted himself." She takes a gulp of her wine. "Now… Dalton… where's the key to this arsenal? You know where it is, right?" She asks him as she looks at him as he lies in the other bed.

"Key to the arsenal… Why do you need such a thing?" He asks her, but she won't answer.

"It's none of your business." She tells him. Called it.

"That key was… always carried by Wapol from long ago. So if it's still the case, it flew off with Wapol into the sky…" He informs her, struggling a little to talk.

"What?! Is that right?! Oh darn…" She sighs, seeming to give up almost, but Nami appears to perk up a little.

"Doctorine…" She calls to her and gains her attention as she sits upright on the bed. "About the treatment fee for our crew… would you make it all free? Also, would you discharge me right away?" She asks the most outrageous thing to ever be asked in the presence of Doctor Kureha.

"Did you ask just for the heck of it knowing it's all impossible? As my fee, I'll take the entire cargo and money on your ship. And you'll stay here and rest at least for two more days!" Kureha tells her. "Though Dakota here is fine, her wounds have healed up nicely, and she doesn't need to pay the fee due to our arrangement." She says, and I feel everyone looks at me a little funny.

"What?" I question, and Kureha comes over with an IV line as she begins my usual blood donation due to its help in cures seeing as I heal at an alarming rate.

"Nami, she's right! You should be treated all the way!" Vivi agrees with the Doctor as she drains my blood.

"I'll be fine since I don't feel like I'll die!" Nami brushes it off with her usual smile that hides everything inside.

"That can't be a reason!" Vivi snaps.

"That's right, at least have a good enough reason as to why we should even let you off of the island," I tell her, and she pulls out a key, spinning it around her index finger with a grin.

"You need the key to the arsenal, right?" Nami questions as she looks at the Doctor with a grin.

"What?! Why did you have that key?!" Dalton questions as he sits upright in shock, ignoring his injuries.

"Is that the real one? How'd you get it?!" Kureha asks her, not sure to believe the thief.

"I stole it," Nami answers them.

"What?!" Kureha asks as she angrily leans into Nami's face at the swindling strawberry blond. "You've got guts dictating terms to me like that. You are really an unbelievable girl." Nami giggles a little. "Okay then… you don't have to pay my fee. But that's all." She grabs her leather jacket and slips it on as she walks out. "I can't accept the other term as a Doctor."

"Wait a sec! If that's the case, I can't give the key to you! Give it back!" Nami shouts as she outstretches her hand, wanting the key back, and Kureha spins on the spot, pointing at Nami.

"Listen, girl. I have to leave this room now to take care of things. There's a drawer chest with my coat in the backroom and some of Dakota's spare clothes. And it's not like I'm posting guards… also, that young man's backbone treatment is already complete. But listen, don't you dare escape!" She warns Nami, though the underlining words seep through. "You guys, come with me. I need you for heavy lifting." She orders the men standing around.

"Yes, ma'am." They all agree and head off out, leaving us alone.

"She told me to wear her coat, take Sanji and escape using this chance." Nami questions, and I nod, agreeing with her.

"Yeah… that's how it sounded to me, too." Vivi also agrees, and I help Nami from the bed as she gets one of Kureha's old coats, and I let her borrow some of my old boots for her to wear and take Sanji over my shoulder so they don't drag him.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

Once outside, the snow is still falling, and it's night, with a beautiful full moon; I walk out with Vivi and Nami walking next to me with Sanji still over my shoulder, passed out from the painful procedure on his back. "Tony," Nami whispers, and I follow her eyes to see Chopper standing in the snow a little away from us, looking serious.

"Hey, let's be pirates together! Okay?!" Luffy exclaims, wanting Chopper to join us.

"It's not possible." Chopper denies the offer again, but Luf won't listen.

"Yes, it is since it's fun!" Luffy argues with a weak argument,

"That's not a very good argument!" Usopp yells at our Captain.

"But… but I'm a reindeer! I have antlers and hooves! I even have a blue nose!" Chopper exclaims, feeling of want even more powerful than before. "It's true… that I wanna be a pirate, but… I'm not even a human! I'm a monster! I can't become your friend! So…! So I just came to say thank you… I do appreciate you guys. Thank you for asking me to join you." Chopper says as he's about to burst into tears. "I'll stay here, but… one day… if you feel like it, stop by agai-"

"Shut up! Let's go!" Luffy shouts, and Chopper's tears fall on our loud-spoken Captain.

"You don't ask people to join you by telling them to 'shut up.'" Zoro mutters to himself, but I know he means well; it's been a stressful week. Chopper bursts into tears and cries, wailing into the snowy sky at the generous offer, seemingly accepting the offer and runs off into the castle, leaving us all outside. I carefully place Sanji on the snow as I sit with Zoro, smiling as Usopp makes a snowman next to us.

"Hey, Nami! Are you really okay?" Usopp asks her, concerned for our Navigator.

"I'm fine! I'm feeling great!" Nami assures him with a thumbs up.

"Hey, let's go to say goodbye to that old lady Doctor and Dalton guy, too," Luffy suggests as he rolls atop a giant ball of snow.

"There! To commemorate our reaching here, I built Snow Queen V!" Usopp announces with pride at the three balls of snow on top of each other, and Zoro tries to kick at it.

"Don't be silly." Nami snaps at Luffy with reason. "Let him be alone with Doctorine. It'll be a tearful farewell…"

"Hey, how dare you kick! Snow Queen V! How disrespectful!" Usopp yells at Zoro as Nami talks.

"Doctorine acts like that in front of us, but she is actually a kind person." She says, and I laugh a little; she may be right; Kureha is kind but in her own particular way.

"Hmmm… really?" Luffy questions.

"Then we're really leaving here without saying anything to her, huh?" Usopp asks around.

"Of course. Once Chopper comes, we'll go down the mountain and set sail immediately… to Alabasta!" She answers him. "You're fine with that too, right, Vivi?"

"Yeah, if a Doctor comes with us." Vivi replies, and I nod, glad that little Chopper is joining us and can look after Nami.

"A Doctor?" Luffy questions, not seeming to get that Chopper is the Doctor.

"Okay then, I'll get the ropeway ready." Usopp agrees and starts walking off. "Hey, Luffy! Give me a hand."

"I didn't realise there was a ropeway… that's amazing!" Luffy comments as he goes after Usopp.

"I thought it was destroyed," I mumble with a frown. "Would have made coming up here a lot quicker and easier." The others all sit around as Usopp and Luffy ready the ropeway, and Chopper goes to say goodbye to his mother figure when I hear crying and shouting from inside.

"What's going on? It's noisy inside the castle." Zoro comments as the noise grows louder enough for the others to hear it, and more people shout inside.

"Gee, how thoughtless… Why can't they be quiet when others are saying farewell?" Nami scoffs, and I hear something coming towards us.

"What do you think someone like you can do at sea?!" I hear Kureha shouting in the distance. "Are you gonna live in a fantasy just like that quack did?!" It seems she's sending him on his way with the certainty of his decision.

"Hey, he's coming…?! Hmm?!" Zoro announces, and I also look to see Chopper in his reindeer form attached to the sleigh running towards us, with Kureha running behind him with a weapon, swinging it above her head.

"What's going on?! He's being chased!" Nami gasps, seeing what's happening.

"Hey! The ropeway is rea… hm?" Usopp yells out his announcement.

"Everyone! Get on the sleigh! We'll go down the mountain!" Chopper shouts as he runs towards us, and Kureha lets go of the chain, allowing it to sail in the air towards Chopper's moving sleigh, but it misses just barely as we all hop into the sleigh. Luffy misses as we jump down to the rope. I look back to see Kureha at the edge and give her a thumbs up, promising to look after Chopper for her as we slide down the rope.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

We make it down the ropeway to Kureha's old home with a group of civilians, and we run down, heading back to the ship on the snow-covered paths with Chopper leading the way. I try getting Luffy into the sleigh as he holds onto the back. "That felt good! Hey, do it again!" Luffy requests happily.

"You idiot! We're setting sail right away!" Nami snaps at him.

"I-I thought I'd die…" Usopp moans, looking a little faint.

"Hm? Where am I?!" Sanji questions, gaining consciousness as he leans next to Vivi.

"Ah, Sanji! You came to?" Vivi sighs in relief as we keep I hear the sound of continuous cannon shots.

"Stop, Chopper!" I order him, and he slows down; I jump out of the sleigh, and Chopper changes back into his usual form, and he runs up the small hill of snow as the cannon fire stops; it's silent for a moment before a bright light comes from above the castle illuminating the sky showing a beautiful pink cloud of snow, falling delicately to the ground.

"Amazing…" Luffy awes as we all watch the beautiful sight.

"Yeah…" Zoro agrees.

"It's so beautiful…" Nami gushes and I look down at Chopper, knowing how much he must finally love seeing the Doctor's work completed and for everyone to see. Chopper breaks down into heartbreaking sobs at the cherry blossom tree-like imagery in front of us, and I race up the crying reindeer and sit down next to him, rubbing his back in comfort as he continues to cry. However, he seems to calm down a little enough to begin leaving again.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

Safely back on the ship, we watch the beautiful display, all in awe of the beauty of the cherry blossom tree-like sight. "Whoa!" "Yeah!" Usopp and Luffy gasp in awe even though we've been looking at it for nearly half an hour, but it doesn't get any less beautiful as we slowly sail away.

"It's so beautiful…" I grin as I watch the snow fall in a light shade of pink around us. "Reminds me of cherry blossom trees in my Mother's homeland." I smile as I watch with the others.

"Cherry blossoms, huh?" Zoro hums as I sit next to him, and I look at him when Usopp leans over to the others.

"Hey… is Chopper okay?" Usopp asks them.

"Let's leave him alone for now," Nami tells him, letting Chopper soak in all the new changes.

"He's experiencing what it's like to set out on a journey as a man," Sanji adds, and I nod in agreement.

"Yeah, he is about to leave the island he's spent his entire life in." Vivi joins in, and Usopp nods, seeing as he has also left his home island.

"Yeah…" He mutters as we watch Chopper, who seems calmer now.

"I'm leaving, Doctor… Doctorine… my adventure… is finally starting." Chopper says to himself, and we sail slowly away, letting Chopper settle a little more before we leave Drum Island behind.

"Okay, boys, beer?" I ask them, and they all cheer as I get the barrels out to start celebrating the new arrival; once I return, I see Luffy joking around with chopsticks up his nose and the boys all laughing at the idiot.

"This is a joyous day!" Luffy cheers as he dances around, making the boys laugh more.

"The moon is out, and the cherry blossoms have bloomed." Zoro laughs with the others.

"Chopper! Hey, Chopper! You son of a gun! How long are you gonna be in a daze like that?" Usopp calls out to the reindeer and pulls him in as I pour everyone mugs of beer and hand them out. "Drink?"

"What?" Chopper gasps at the offer.

"Come here and sing!" Sanji suggests.

"What?!"

"Here, stick these chopsticks up your nose!" Luffy orders him; I push him away from the overwhelmed reindeer.

"What?!"

"Really what a grand night time view of cherry blossoms…" Usopp says as he grins, watching Luffy dance.

"How could we not have a party at a time like this?!" Sanji yells as the boys enjoy themselves, and Chopper stumbles away from them into Nami and me.

"Are you surprised?" She asks him as she steadies him. "You made friends with some really crazy guys, huh?"

"Friends…" He repeats, unsure, but all of us are his friends now.

"That's right. They're completely over the top, but since you're one of us now, you'll have to get used to it." I tell him with a reassuring smile.

"Karoo! What were you doing frozen in the river?" Vivi asks the frozen bird as he lies in her arms, squawking a little.

"He probably slipped or something. He's a clumsy one!" Zoro suggests a scenario looking a little guilty.

"Quiet, Mr Bushido!" Vivi snaps at him as he looks at her sheepishly, and Chopper walks over, talking to the bird.

"Yeah… yeah… he says that the guy named Zoro was swimming in the river and disappeared. He thought Zoro was in trouble, so he jumped into the river and got frozen." Chopper translates for Karoo.

"So it was your fault!" Nami snaps as she punches the back of his head.

"Tony, you can understand what Karoo is saying?" Vivi asks the little reindeer.

"Yes. I'm an animal by nature, so I can talk with animals." Chopper reminds them.

"You can talk to animals?" Vivi questions in shock.

"That's incredible, Chopper! To be able to do that along with your medical skills!" Nami praises him, which makes him blush.

"Dummy! Praising me like that wouldn't make me feel happy! You jerk!" Chopper gushes as he does his little dance of embarrassment.

"He sure looks happy." Usopp and Luffy comment as they watch him.

"By the way, Nami, what do you mean by 'medical skills'?" Zoro asks her, and I walk over to the reindeer, placing my hand on his hat.

"Chopper is a Doctor… a first-class one with all the medical skills hammered into him by Doctor Kureha. And no one I trust more than to look after all of our medical needs." I inform the boys.

"What?!" The boys gape in surprise at the new information.

"Chopper! You're a Doctor?!" Zoro asks him.

"Incredible!" Luffy gasps.

"No way!" Usopp exclaims.

"Good Lord! What did you think Chopper was when you asked him to join us?" Nami asks Luffy.

"A seven-form transforming interesting reindeer." He answers her honestly.

"Emergency food," Sanji answers, scaring Chopper, who runs over to me in fear of the blond.

"Ah…! Darn it! I forgot to bring my medical tools since I left in a hurry!" Chopper panics.

"Can't be… then what is this?" Nami asks him as she holds up his little blue medical bag.

"What?! My bag!" Chopper exclaims in joy at the sight of his bag.

"It was in the sleigh," Nami tells him.

"How come…?" He wonders aloud.

"How come? Didn't you prepare for the trip by yourself?" Nami asks him, but he shakes his head, telling her no, and it's clear who did. "After all… she knew everything you were thinking,... What a wonderful person she is."

"Ah! I got snot on the chopsticks!" Luffy cries out; I cringe in disgust at him. "Hey, Chopper you try it too!"

"Geez… when you're reminiscing… right Chopper?" She says and looks down at him. "Chopper?" I look down and watch him put the chopsticks up his nose. "Don't!"

"Okay… guys!" Usopp yells with a mug of beer raised as Sanji and Zoro fight. "Attention! Well, I'd lie to introduce our new friend to you! Tony Tony Chopper!"

"Sanji! Go!" Luffy cheers on the blond.

"Zoro! Go!" I cheer on the greenette.

"He'll be our ship's Doctor. To celebrate his coming on board…" Usopp keeps going, but we're not all really listening to him. "Hey! Listen to me, you jerks!"

"I… I… I've never had this much fun before." Chopper exclaims in joy with a smile through the chopsticks.

"Let's toast to our new friend!" Usopp yells, and we all raise our mugs into the air.

"Yeah!" We all yell out. "Cheers!" We all jump into the air to celebrate our new members as we set sail into the vast sea for Alabasta.

ONE PIECE - DRUM ISLAND ARC

It's been a day since we left Drum Island, and Chopper seems to be settling in well with everyone aboard the ship as we travel. I watch him and Luffy at the front of the boat, enjoying the sea view, but I return to the game of poker I'm playing with Zoro, Usopp and Sanji, using my own cards, of course. A shadow looms over for a second before disappearing; I look up to see a giant bird overhead, it seems to be minding its own business till Luffy calls out to it as it comes heading our way, but that's his problem as he cheers from the bird's beak, and Chopper comes running towards us. "Ahh! It's terrible! A bird ate Luffy! This is no time for playing around! Luffy's in trouble!" Chopper cries out as he runs around us, and Usopp deals the cards.

"Did he say he wanted our help?" Zoro asks the furball, who stops in his tracks.

"No, he didn't." He answers.

"Then there's no problem. Don't worry about it." He assures him.

"Gum-Gum… Propeller!" I hear Luffy shout from above our heads.

"Amazing…!" Chopper says in awe when a considerable weight crashes down on us along with Luffy; I land on the floor on my back with Zoro on my chest; I groan in pain due to the sudden weight.

"Hey, Sanji! I've got some meat! Huh? What? Are you guys sleeping?" He asks us, and we all get up.

"It's your fault!" We all snap at him and get to our feet.

How are you gonna fix this situation? I had a good hand!" Usopp demands in anger.

"Really? Sorry." Luffy laughs it off.

"Whoa! That's huge!" Sanji marvels at the sight of the bird.

"Now we can have some decent meals." Zoro comments, and I nod in agreement.

"Is this edible?" Usopp questions.

"Hm? What's the matter, Chopper?" Luffy asks him.

"Yeah… well… pirates are… pirates are incredible after all!" Chopper boasts all of their egos.

"Yeah? Incredible, huh?" Luffy repeats, and I shake my head at the boys as they laugh.

"Other pirates, maybe, them not so much," I remark, getting exclaims of protest from the boys as Nami comes over.

"Hey, you guys! This ship is arriving at Alabasta soon. We don't have time to play around! Move it!" She orders.

"Yeah, right…" We all agree and head down the stairs.

"So, what's Alabasta?" Chopper asks, being so innocent of other things off Drum Island.

"It's the country that Vivi's father governs," Nami tells him.

"A rogue named Crocodile is trying to take over Alabasta right now," Usopp adds.

"I hear that Crocodile is one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea." Sanji comments.

"Seven Warlords of the Sea?" Chopper repeats.

"I'll explain. They're the pirates that are sanctioned by the World Government; basically, they do as the Government wants whenever they demand, and they can do whatever within reason as long as the World Government allows them to roam free." I explain.

"Pirates are authorised by the Government?" Chopper questions in surprise.

"Yeah, but it's only, so they'll do what they want till there are no longer any more pirates then they'll get rid of them. There are always seven of them if one is defeated, found guilty of crimes or killed they're quickly replaced with another. We've already met one." I tell him.

"Crocodile, huh…? I can't wait to see him." Luffy seems pumped at the fight we'll have once we reach Alabasta.

"Crocodile is a hero in Alabasta because he crushes the pirates that attack the towns, but that's only his public face. Behind the scenes, he is pulling strings to cause a civil war in Alabasta. In order to take over Alabasta… no one has noticed it. The citizens... My father… no one…" Vivi explains, almost bursting into sobs at the rough subject.

"All right then! In any case, all we have to do is beat up that Crocodile, right?" Luffy asks though I doubt he cares if we said no.

"Yes, if we can first stop the civil war and expel Baroque Works…" Vivi answers him.

"Baroque Works…?" Chopper repeats, a little clueless.

"Ahh… yeah, you don't know about them either, do you?" Usopp questions. "To be honest, I can't quite understand, either. Baroque Works has a complicated system."

"The system itself is simple." Vivi corrects him. "First, at the top, there's a boss, Crocodile, in other words, Mr 0. There's 12 agents and animals who receive orders from the boss directly. Each of the 12 agents operates separately as a pair with a female agent. Mr 1 and Miss Double Finger. Mr 2 and Miss Hallows Eve." She explains a little further.

"Mr 3 is the candle man we met in Little Garden, right?" Zoro asks her.

"Yes. he was paired up with Miss Goldenweek," Vivi answers him.

"Oh, that girl.." Nami nods along.

"Mr 4 is paired up with Miss Merry Christmas. I don't know much about these two, either." She adds, giving us more information.

"And that snot guy!" Luffy butts in.

"Mr 5." Usopp corrects him, seeing as he was the one who beat him up good.

"Snot?" Chopper asks, not knowing about those before we came to Drum.

"Yeah. his snot is a bomb." Usopp tells him.

"Mr 5's entire body is a weapon." Vivi corrects him a little.

"Miss Valentine has the powers of the Kilo Kilo Fruit," I say with a mean look, thinking about the blond crushing my ribs.

"It's the woman who can change her weight freely, right?" Zoro questions.

"Yeah, and sat on me." I snap in anger at the thought of it.

"From Mr 1 through Mr 5, they're called Officer Agents. They all mostly have the powers of a Devil Fruit. And they work only on really important missions. From Mr 6 through Mr 13, their job is fundraising for the company by leading the employees at the entrance of the Grand Line." Vivi continues to explain.

"Come to think of it, there was a strange monkey and chicken," Sanji tells her.

"They're Mr 13 and Miss Friday. They're a punishment squad. Their main job is to punish those who fail missions. Other than these people, there're 200 subordinates called 'Billions' under the Officer Agents, and 1800 subordinates called 'Millions' under the frontier agents. This is the secret crime syndicate, Baroque Works." She finishes explaining.

"That means… 1800 plus 200, so…" Usopp tries counting up.

"There're 2000 subordinates?!" Chopper exclaims in shock, probably regretting joying for a moment.

"2000!" Usopp freaks out.

"All right! I understand it very well now. In any case, all we have to do is beat up that Crocodile, right?" Luffy questions but clearly doesn't.

"I'm sure you don't get it at all!" Usopp voices.

"If Baroque Works' last big job is to take over Alabasta-" Zoro says, and I nod.

"-the rest of those 'Officer Agents' will all," Sanji joins in on the same thought.

"-gather in Alabasta." Nami finishes it.

"Yes," Vivi answers them.

"I see… then, in any case, we'll beat that Crocodile guy…" Luffy begins saying again.

"That's enough. You keep your mouth shut!" Sanji stops him.

"Okay." Luffy agrees, and I shake my head at them as we continue discussing what we'll do once we reach Alabasta.

Hey, sorry it took so long. It's been a bit of a nightmare, as with Christmas, though I hope everyone had a safe and merry Christmas and then working then coming down with an ear infection, I've not been able to write but still. Thank you all for your comments and hearts! I hope you all have a good New Year too!