Chapter 24: Battlecry!

"You're dead!" Chopper heard the Baroque's Works Pirate snarl as she and the other rushed at him.

This is bad. He thought as he went into reindeer mode and ran. I can't fight by myself! They're so much stronger than me! What was I thinking! He began panicking. Just then a scream caught Choppers attention as Usopp flew overhead landed between him and the other two pirates and shot at them. The two tiny pellets that he shot, one exploded in front of the two pirates who cried out in pain, the other seeming to be a dud. "What was that Usopp?"

His friend looked down at him. "A mixture of gun powder, the world's hottest pepper and lime juice."

The reindeer cocked his head at him. "Why lime juice?" He asked curiously.

"Ever get limejuice sprintz into your eye while cutting it?" The curly haired teen asked gaining a head shake of a no from his animal friend. "It hurts like a mother, topped with the world's hottest pepper and you're looking at two very uncomfortable pirates."

"Aaaahhhh!" The scream caught their attention. Turning the two watched the man scream as he took out his water from a pouch and poured it on himself.

"That'll make it worse." Usopp commented when the screams intensified.

Suddenly the woman popped up out of the ground like a mole. "You idiot!" Screamed at the man. "Mr 4, I told you to dodge!"

"I tried Miss Merry Christmas!" He screamed.

The woman turned and narrowed her eyes at Usopp. "You're going to pay!"

"Hey Chopper," Usopp began. "Do you know where Luffy is? Sabo wanted me to warm him of the rebels coming."

Chopper looked at him with fear. "I don't know where he is." He said quickly.

The mole woman laughed. "You're idiot of a captain is most likely dead!" She yelled. "My captain is far more intelligent and knows what's going on before anyone else ever does. So if your captain is missing, he's more than likely dead." She laughed. "And in all honesty I'm glad he's dead. He was waste of space." As she laughed she knew she was pulling that out of her ass. She didn't know where the boy was or if he was fighting Crocodile. She just needed to shake their faith in their captain and his cause. "Now long nose, it's your turn!" She began to rush at him from under ground and suddenly snatched his feet and pulled the boy down before digging her claws into his legs.

Usopp screamed in pain before pulling himself out of the hole. The mole woman looked at him with glee. She had hurt him deeply. Looking back at her companion, she spoke. "Can you do something about the reindeer?"

"I can't see very well, but I certainly can try." he said, as he raised the bat in his hand.

"On second thought I have an idea." She stated as her eyes gleamed in the sunlight. "Let's play a little game." She suddenly dove under the ground once again rushing towards Usopp. Popping up out of the ground she grabbed his ankles and began rushing towards her companion who swung his bat at the boy. "Cleanup Hitter!"

Usopp went flying into the sky and landed several feet behind the duo. "USOPP!" Chopper screamed, worry etching his face. "Damn you bastards!" Chopper screamed as tears formed in his eyes he growled with frustration.

"There comes a time in every man's life when he can't run from a fight," Usopp's voice echoed in the desert. "no matter who it's against."

The mole woman look back behind her at the boy who is now standing with blood dripping from his forehead. "No way!" She said disbelief. That boy should've been knocked unconscience with that hit to the head. She thought.

"This time it's because your friends dreams are being laughed at." Usopp groaned. " Luffy is not dead!" he's snarled. "you can't stop him and I know he will be king of the pirates someday. I also know he will defeat your boss!" He tightened his resolve. "And I will never let him be made fun of."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Let's go again. Batter up."

Usopp's speech gave Chopper encouragement. He's right! He thought. "I don't think so!" Chopper transformed himself into a larger form.

Just then the mole lady dove into the desert sand and rush towards Usopp. She jumping out from behind him and she went to grab his ankles once more. This time though Usopp had an idea. "Chopper get behind me right now!"

"On it!" The reindeer yelled, rushing towards his friend.

"Here goes!" The mole lady yelled out as she grasped the teen by his shoes and began pushing him at a fast speed towards her partner.

As she did so, Usopp push down his sniper goggles which helped him focus as he pulled out his green sniper slingshot and shot one of his small pellets at the man in front of him once more. "Smoke star!" he cried out. The pellet exploded, creating a smoke screen in front of the man. Usopp then jumped out of the mole ladies hands and landed on the ground, now missing his shoes.

Having lost her victim, the mole lady yelled out, but lost her balance in her own trap. This caused her to fly into the air and be caught by chopper who caught her in his antlers. "Moletown cleanup hitter!" Usopp cried out in a woman's voice.

Chopper swung his head causing the woman to fly from his antler into the air just as the man swung his bay at her. "What are you doing you idiot! Don't swing that bat!" The mole lady screamed as her companion swung his bat anyway, hitting her in the face.

"Special Attack! Usoccho!" Usopp yelled as he attached a large rubber band onto Chopper's antlers, pull them back and placed a rather large hammer in it before releasing the rubber band. The second companion, Mr 4, turned around just as the hammer was released. "Hammer Morning Star!" Usopp screamed as the hammer shot and hit the man in the chest, sending him flying through the air. Both he and the mole lady were knocked out completely unconscious.

Chopper reverted to his more childlike form before looking up at Usopp quite thankful that the fight was over. When suddenly an unexploded pellet of Usopp's exploded. The resulting shockwave sent both him and Usopp into the air, thankfully, they both managed to land safely. Usopp looked over at Chopper. "So if you don't know where Luffy is, who does?"

The reindeer thought about that for a moment. "That's a scary thought." He stated as they both looked at each other nervously. Just where was their captain?

The rebel army had made it to the streets of the city but had yet to breach the palace main gate. The leader gasped as he dodged another bullet and slammed his back into a fallen barrier wall. "That looked bad." Said a fellow rebel. "Did they hit you?"

The leader looked at the man. "No." He breathed heavily, trying to gain his breath back. Having run nearly quarter of mile nonstop was getting to him. "I am going into that palace one way or another and I'm going to find Cobra. I am going to demand that he surrender."

The fellow rebel soldier's as widened in surprise. "That's nuts! The palace is surrounded by their main forces." he shook his head at his leader. "You'll never get inside. Going in alone is just a suicide mission." he stared at his leader in disbelief.

The leader side with some discouragement in his voice. "Yeah, but it's already too late for anything else. We should've listened to that revolutionary." He stood and jumped over the barrier wall. All the while he heard the voices of his men crying out in pain as they fought for the freedom, they so righteously thought they earned. Koza was little by little believing that they had made the wrong move.

At the palace gates princess Vivi breathes heavily as she approached the guards there. At first they did not recognize her until she stood up right. "Princess Vivi!" They all gasped in disbelief.

"I need you to take me to Chaka now!" She demanded her voice made hard with her exhaustion.

As all the fighting was going on, Sanji, found himself having the hardest fight of his life. One of the Baroque works pirates had an ability that allowed him to transform himself into anybody as long as he had touched that person. Bon Kurei had come into contact with them a few weeks prior to them being in Alabasta. They had all allowed him to touch them, and thus he currently had Nami's face on on his body.

Sanji really did not like this cross-dressing idiot. He also really did not like the fact that he could not fight to him because he currently had Nami's face on him. He really could not, would not, and shall not ever fight a woman. Even if that woman has her face plastered on a man's body. It was a conundrum that he could not come out from.

"I'm so hot!" Bon stated. "Maybe if I just take off some of these clothes!"

Gah! He gasped. "Do not desecrate Nami like that!" He screamed all the while he really did want to see Nami's body.

Bon punched the perverted cook in his face, losing Nami's form for a moment. "You're starting to bore me. Let's just finish this!" He began to spin super fast. "Cross Dresser Memoir of that Summer Day!"

Sanji rubbed his eye as he watched the cross-dressing man spin around creating a semi tornado effect with his attack. "I'm a bore, your attacks are just so pathetic."

Just as the spinning attack was about to hit Sanji a shadow crossed the cooks vision and Sabo landed in front of him, slamming his pipe weapon into Bon's body this sent the cross-dressing man careening into a side building wall.

"Sorry I'm late." Sabo apologized as he scanned Sanji for any fatal injuries.

"Oi, where have you been?" Sanji inquired as the cross-dresser began to get back up.

Is that man one of Ivankov's people?" Sabo wondered. No, he can't be." Sabo turn towards Sanji. "Ace and I we're trying to get the rebels to see another way to this. Unfortunately, it didn't work." he began looking around. "I sent Usopp ahead of me to warn everyone to get out of this city."

"Hmm?" Sanji wondered. "I haven't seen the guy. Of course I've been fighting this cross-dressing loser all afternoon."

Sabo raised an eyebrow at this comment. "Shouldn't you have beaten this guy by now why are you playing around? I know you are strong."

Sanji grinned. "You didn't see what he looked like a few minutes before you appeared." A raise eyebrows his response. "He has a devil fruit that allows him to look like any one he touches. We met him before you and Ace joined up with us. He had touched everyone on board, except for Vivi."

"Shit." Sabo cursed.

"Okay, you're both going to get it now!" Bon growled and frustration at the two. He charged them and as he jumped into the air Sanji jumped into the air reacting to his attack. The two men began blocking each other with leg attacks and thrusts until Sanji had the upper hand and kicked Bon in his stomach sending him into a wall. Soon after the wall came tumbling down onto the man knocking him completely out.

Sanji stumbled in his footing only for Sabo to catch him. "Are you going to be okay? He asked, causing the cook to look at him with a crooked grin.

"Yeah, though that last kick of his was pretty strong." he spoke this out loud even as he rubbed his side. "Need to tell Chopper that I may have cracked a rib."

"Let's go find the others." Sabo said as he wrapped an arm around Sanji's waist and helped him walk through the street of rubble.

Above them in the palace Crocodile watched as the rebels, the Pirates and his own crew fought against each other. Turning he looked at King Cobra. "Your people are going to fight each other until the last one falls." He told the monarch. "Now all you have to do is tell me where that Poneglyph is and I will leave with my people."

The King breathed heavily. He had been beaten for the last several days. His own people didn't even realize that he been replaced by a fake. His only thoughts were that his daughter had actually escaped this kind of torture. Suddenly, the double doors opened to the room, a woman in a black dress, wearing a white cowboy hat walked into the room.

"It would seem that Princess Vivi has returned." She stated as she smirked at the king, knowing he had thought that his daughter was safe and away from this place.

"Oh?" Crocodile, smiled gleefully. "Where is she?"

"She's with Chaka." She answered.

"I suppose it's time we had a little chat with her." He eyed the king for his reaction and wasn't disappointed by the worry and sadness the king had on his face.

"Of course." The woman said as she turned to leave.

"WAIT!" The King cried out. "I'll give you what you want, just leave my daughter out of this." Crocodile's grin spreading across his face, as he believed he had just won the ultimate prize.

M-Angel: Ah, that felt good to write a long chapter for this story. Sorry for the delay. This month has proved itself to be a very stressful one.

Ashlee - *gasp* You don't like this arc of the story? Why? As for the other story, it's on ariveofourown dot org under my name.
Kharaki Taken - I'm glad. I sent you a PM with the information on the new story.

Andy Rahman - Thanks!

Emma - Hope you enjoy this chapter.