I don't own One Piece
It's owned by Oda
I only own this story and it's OC's
Enjoy!
Hey guys! Remember when during the "Jou's Adventures" story I came up with the idea to do openings. Well, guess what? We're doing them again while it's early.
Jou: We're trying these again...
I just think it'll be a fun idea.
Jou: Okay, let's give it a shot then.
All Scope Adventure opening: Colors - Flow, Code Geass OP1
(A catchy tune plays as it shows 5-year-old Jou grasping his steel chain in his small hand. He stands before his mother, Kusari Becky, grinning at him with her red chain slung over her shoulder getting ready to begin Jou's training.)
jibun wo sekai sae mo kaete shimaesou an
(Becky runs at him with her red chain and swings at him. The scene transitions to the red chain being wrapped around a 19-year-old Kusari Jou's wrist.)
shunkan wa itsu mo sugu soba ni
(Jou is standing on a grass-covered cliff and looks down and see's the Straw Hat crew. Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and Nami all smiling at him and waving. Jou smiled back at them and then leaps off the cliff as the camera pans into sky title of the story is shown.)
Kakusenu iradachi to,
(The Going Merry is sailing across the ocean as seagulls fly high above the ship. The crew partaking in various activities: Luffy and Usopp playing tag, Zoro napping against the mast, Nami checking their heading with a map.)
tachitsukusu jibun wo mitsume
(It pans over to Jou writing in his journal and behind him, it shows several others the crew has met so far.)
mayoinagara nayaminagra kuyaminagara kimereba ii sa
Kimi ga kureta kotoba hitotsu
Tomadoi wa kiesari
(It shows Vic, Ashe, Nale, and Dot, the villagers of Violet village, Coby, Rika, Ririka, Chouchou, Mayor Boodle, Gaimon, and his animals, Kaya, Merry, and each of the Usopp Pirates. And including a person they haven't met yet with his back turned, a blond young man with a swirly eyebrow and cigarette lit in his mouth.)
karappo datta boku no heya ni hikari ga sashita
(An enemy Pirate crew in their own ship sailed beside the Going Merry brandishing weapons as they grinned at the straw hats. Luffy punched his fist into his palm, Zoro ties his bandana on his head, and Jou stands up and smirks as he shuts his journal and flicks his wrist, and grabs his red chain.)
miageta oozora ga aoku sumikitte iku
(A fight between crews ensues: Luffy throws a Gum-Gum Pistol in a Pirate's face, Zoro wielding all three of his swords cuts through a crowd of the Pirates, Usopp shoots a rotten egg in a Pirates face as Nami knocks the Pirate out with her staff.)
tozashita mado wo hiraku koto wo kimeta
(And finally, Jou wraps his chains around a Pirate's ankles and spins around whilst knocking Pirates away and tossing the Pirate overboard.)
jibun wo sekai sae mo kaete shimmaesou na
(The scene changes to the Straw Hat Pirates drifting across the sea, each of the crew grinning at the setting sun which gave an orange hue in the sky. Zoro with a katana over his shoulder, Usopp had his arms crossed, Nami putting a hand through her hair as a light breeze went through it, Luffy sat in his special seat, and Jou by Luffy's side at the front of the ship, sailing toward the sunset.)
shunkan wa itsu mo sugu soba ni
Don Krieg's galleon split into three pieces as all of his men on board were screamed and were sent flailing off the ruined vessel. Jou, Luffy, and the others were more concerned about their ship and had pulled Johnny and Yosaku out off the ocean who were thrown off the Going Merry which Nami had sailed away with.
Moments before this happened...
Nami was staring at a stack of wanted posters but her attention was on one poster in particular.
"Hey! What's the matter, big sis?" the voice of Yosaku got her attention as one half of the bounty-hunting duo came up with a smile on his face.
"I don't really mean to pry or anything but whatcha looking at?" Yosaku wondered.
"Oh, well it's nothing, really!" Nami lied with a smile.
"Nice!" Johnny grinned as he saw the bounty she was currently looking at. "Now that's a big bounty Pirate. I gotta say, I'm impressed. But big sis, I think you're aiming a bit too high going after Arlong. I'm not kidding; the guy's really bad news. He was playing it cool and laying low for a while and staying out of sight."
"But these days that maniac is causing all sorts of trouble," Yosaku mentioned. "It's kinda tough walking away from a 20 million berri bounty though."
"That guy is so powerful that there is the slightest, tiniest chance we could lose, and both die," Johnny stated.
"Big sis Nami?" Yosaku wondered as he and Johnny turned around and found Nami laying a t-shirt on the ship's railing. Nami turned around and gave the duo a bashful look as she yanked on the collar of her shirt.
"Hey, would you guys mind turning around while I change into something more comfortable?" Nami suggested.
"Y-Yeah, sure!" Yosaku stammered with a tinge on his cheeks. "I don't mind!"
"Changing?" Johnny's demeanor matched his partner's. "Like right now?"
"It's so hot~" Nami added with a wink as Johnny and Yosaku both spun around.
"Yeah, you're hot!" they both exclaimed. "Uh, it's hot!" they quickly corrected as they kept their focus on the open ocean as Nami 'changed' behind them.
"Have you ever met a woman who's that daring?" Johnny wondered.
"What do you say we turn and see if she's done yet?" Yosaku added.
"Good idea!"
the two turned to sneak-a-peek but were soon shoved off the Going Merry by Nami. The duo surfaced from the water with looks of surprise on their faces as Nami had faced away from them.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Johnny questioned. Nami spun around as she gave a trademark smile.
"I'm doing business, of course!" Nami explained. "Use your heads, guys! I'm a thief who only targets Pirates and my next score is this ship! I never said anything about being a member of this crew, I was just traveling with them, nothing more. Even though I only spent a short time with Luffy and the gang, I still had a lot of fun. Make sure to tell them that I said..." she waved as she walked away. "If it's truly meant to be, I'll see them real soon!"
Nami began to walk off and turned around once more to the floating bounty-hunting duo.
"One more thing!" Nami smirked. "Tell Jou that despite how we act toward each other, I enjoyed spending time with him and it's too bad things had to turn out this way!"
"Hey!" Yosaku shook his fist as the two were swept away by a small wave as the Going Merry sailed off.
"We're gonna be in so much trouble!" Johnny cried.
"Our only job was to look after the ship and you're making us fail miserably!" Yosaku shouted. They were then caught up in the big wave that was created by Don Krieg's wrecked Pirate ship.
Present time...
"She really said all that, huh?" Jou asked.
"After saying that, she ran away!" Johnny stated as he bowed with his partner.
"Sorry..." Yosaku murmured.
"Dammit!" Zoro cursed as he slammed a fist into the Baratie. "She just had to make a bad situation worse!"
"The heartless thief!" Usopp growled. "Kaya gave us that ship!"
Jou knew that Zoro and Usopp had all the reason to be angry. Nami's been there since the beginning when it was just himself, Luffy, and Zoro at first. The Going Merry was a gift from Kaya so the ship meant a lot to Usopp.
"Wait!" Luffy announced. "I see a ship!"
"You do?" Jou asked as he stood beside his Captain and pulled out his telescope. He zoomed in and found the Merry sailing in the distance.
"No doubt," Jou said. "It's the Going Merry!" he pointed with his finger so Luffy could see where the ship currently was. "So, what's the plan, Captain?" Jou asked the straw hat. Luffy had only given him a look until he made his way up to Bounty-Hunting Duo.
"Yosaku! Johnny!" Luffy called. "Tell me where your boat is!"
"It's moored to the restaurant," Yosaku said.
"Jou, Zoro, Usopp!" Luffy said to his crewmen. "Go get Nami!"
"On it, Captain!" Jou nodded.
"Forget it!" Zoro said. "Let her keep the ship! Trust me, that woman is way more trouble than she's worth!"
"B-But she took the ship!" Usopp exclaimed. "That ship's important!"
"That's true," Jou spoke up as everyone turned to him. "The ship's important but so is Nami. Just hear me out: Nami may be difficult at times, but we wouldn't have made it this far without her! The ship is important and it means a lot to Usopp since we got it from Kaya and there might be a reason why she sailed off with it herself! How about we follow her and ask why? Plus..." Jou turned to Luffy. "You picked her as our Navigator, and you want her for the job, right, Captain?"
"That's right!" Luffy agreed. "She's the only person I'll accept as our ship's Navigator!"
"There we have it," Jou said as he crossed his arms. "So what's it gonna be, guys?"
Zoro looked between Jou and Luffy. He made eye contact with Luffy, the straw-hat boy gave him an almost pleading look until Zoro finally agreed.
"Fine," Zoro groaned. "I'll do it. You're one high maintenance, Captain, you know that? Usopp, let's go!"
"Okay!" Usopp answered and followed Zoro to the Bounty-Hunting Duo's boat. Johnny and Yosaku rowed their small boat where the crew was.
"The ship's ready for action, big bro Zoro!" the two exclaimed.
"Jou, you coming?" Zoro asked the chain-wielder.
"Yeah, I'm going with you guys," Jou said and looked at Luffy and noticed he didn't move from the spot where he stood. "Are you staying here, Luffy?"
"I should probably stick around here until I get things settled with the restaurant," Luffy decided.
"Understandable," Jou nodded. "We'll get going after Nami. Don't worry, I promise to get her back, Captain."
"I'm not worried," Luffy nodded back. "I have faith in you guys."
"Well, be careful," Zoro told him. "The situation can get really bad, really fast."
"Yeah, got that right," Luffy said.
Jou started making his toward the boat and looked out at the open sea and can still make out the Going Merry sailing away. Her final words to Johnny and Yosaku stuck with him 'Despite our differences, I enjoyed spending time with him, and it's too bad things had to turn out this way'. He was surprised Nami would say something like that, Jou thought he might have got on her nerves. Jou felt the same, he enjoyed spending time with her, too, but he knew so little about her and thought that would change once he revealed some of his own past.
What's going on, Nami? Jou thought. It's something to do with this Arlong, does it? Looks like we're about to find out just what kind of person you are, huh Nami?
The Pirates on Krieg's ship wondered what's was happening as their ship separated. They all became alerted as they saw a man on a small boat just casually drifting through the ship wreckage causing panic among Krieg's men.
"DON KRIEG! THE MAN WHO DESTROYED OUR FLEET IS BACK! WHAT'RE WE GONNA DO!?"
"What now?" Jou wondered as he rose his eyebrows and saw a man on the small boat. "Huh?"
"That's him...!?" he heard Zoro as the green-haired swordsman stared at the man with intense eyes. "That man is...!"
"Hey?" Luffy spoke. "Who's that?"
"Do you know who that is, Zoro?" Jou questioned.
"That's the man I've been looking for," Zoro's voice shook. "Hawk-Eye Mihawk."
"So, he's the guy you talked about?" Jou asked. "The man you're searching for."
"Yeah," Zoro's gaze lowered into a determined glare. "The Greatest Swordsman."
Hawk-Eye Mihawk wore a black hat with a wide brim, a magenta-colored coat that revealed his torso, a necklace hang off his neck with a cross on it, and a large sword settled on his back. The most noticeable feature was his piercing yellow hawk eyes.
Jou felt that Mihawk must have been some kind of badass to be able to cut right through a ship the size of Don Krieg's using only a sword. If he was that strong, then they were all about to find out since Jou noticed Zoro with an eager grin take hold of his white katana.
Is he really going through with it...? Jou thought with a sweat-drop. Is he going to fight him right here and now?
"Why're you doing this to us?" a Pirate shouted at Mihawk. "What the hell have we ever done to you!?"
"Just killing time," Mihawk simply answered.
"BASTARD!" the Pirate pulled out a pair of pistols as Mihawk's response was to reach behind his back for his sword. His weapon was taller than he was, the sword had a wide golden cross-guard and a round blue jewel serving as the pommel. The blade is flat and colored jet-black as it curved upward at the tip. The Pirate fired two shots which were effortlessly deflected as Mihawk used the tip of his blade to redirected them.
"I missed?" the Pirate questioned. "But I aimed straight for him!"
"He diverted them," Zoro mentioned as he was standing behind the Pirate which caused the man to gasp at his sudden appearance. "He changed the course of the bullets using the tip of his sword."
"That can't be...?" the Pirate wondered as Zoro shoved past him and approached Mihawk. "Who do you think you are!?"
"He's got three swords! It couldn't be?"
"I've never seen a sword handled so gently," Zoro smirked. "But with such grace."
"There's no strength in swordplay based on force," Mihawk answered Zoro from the corner of his eye.
"Did you use that sword to slice up this ship?" Zoro asked curiously.
"I did," Mihawk stated as Zoro's grin grew wider.
"Then it's true!" Zoro said. "You're the best!" Zoro declared as he tried his bandana around his head. "I set sail for only one reason, to meet you."
"And what is your goal?" Mihawk questioned.
"To beat you," Zoro said.
"How foolish," Mihawk gave Zoro a mocking grin. Zoro unsheathed his white katana and pointed it at Mihawk.
"You got spare time," Zoro stated. "So let's do this." Krieg's men became shocked once they put together who Zoro was.
"Really?" Krieg said. "A Pirate Hunter?"
"He's a what...?" Sanji wondered as Zeff stood beside him watching.
"Hey Luffy, come on!" Usopp called. "The Going Merry is about to sail right out of sight!"
"We know, Usopp," Jou said as he stood by Luffy's side.
"But the ships-" Usopp continued to argue.
"Sailing Away," Jou finished as he turned to Usopp. "Now, quiet down. We're trying to watch this."
Swords are not my scene, but I can tell Mihawk is strong, Jou thought. Although, Zoro is also formidable. But why can't I help but feel worried for him? Probably just nerves, let's see what happens. I know Luffy's curious.
Jou side glanced toward his Captain. Luffy was staring intently at the scene, his attention on nothing else but on Zoro. Jou looked toward the scene himself as Zoro kept his blade trained on Mihawk.
"A fight?" Mihawk wondered. "You're a weak, pitiful creature." with blinding speed Mihawk landed across from Zoro. "If you are, in fact, a competent swordsman and you should see the disparity in our abilities even before we cross swords. I must ask you? Why have you challenged me? Could it be your courage? Or is it simply your ignorance?"
"My ambition drives me!" Zoro declared as he put his sword in his mouth. "Also, I made a promise I intend to keep."
"The greatest swordsman in the world going up against Roronoa Zoro," Patty said. "Two masters of swordplay. What kind of a fight is this going to turn out to be?"
"There isn't a person alive who can defeat big bro!" Yosaku yelled as Johnny agreed. "He's already the best in the world!" Mihawk reached for the cross hanging off his neck. He revealed it to be a small knife and held it toward Zoro.
Small knife, Jou thought. Though, it's obvious. He isn't taking Zoro seriously.
"Funny," Zoro glared. "What do think you're gonna do with that?"
"It'll be more than adequate," Mihawk remarked. "You wouldn't kill a fly with a cannon, would you? You may have quite the reputation in the East Blue but that doesn't mean much to me, this sea is by far the weakest of the four." Mihawk frowned. "Unfortunately, I don't carry any blade smaller than this one."
Zoro had had enough and charged Mihawk with his Oni-Giri. But Mihawk had countered the attack by thrusting his knife forward. All three of Zoro's katana came to a complete stop with the tip of Mihawk's knife being the cause. Zoro kept going on the offensive and slashed at Mihawk who blocked Zoro's attacks with no effort. Zoro charged Mihawk again as the World's Greatest Swordsman countered or avoided Zoro's swords. Mihawk stepped aside which caused Zoro to fall forward and chopped him in the back of the head with his hand. Zoro got up and approached for another attack but Mihawk side-stepped again causing Zoro to fall once more.
"What is it then?" Mihawk questioned. "What weight do you carry upon your shoulders? Speak up, weakling!"
"How dare you call him weakling!" Yosaku shouted while he drew his sword. "You'll pay for that!"
"We'll teach you a lesson!" Johnny shouted and drew his sword as well.
"No!" Luffy yelled. "Yosaku! Johnny!" Luffy yanked the Bounty-Hunting Duo by their clothes and restrained them as Jou knelt down beside the two.
"Listen, you two..." Jou said. "If you both have a lot of respect for Zoro, then you would know to stay out of this, this is his fight. The two of you would only be in his way."
"Luffy... Jou..." Usopp murmured.
"No, I won't lose!" Zoro exclaimed. "I refuse to be defeated!" Zoro took a stance with the katana in his hands behind him. "Tiger Trap!" Zoro leaped to attack Mihawk but was only met with Mihawk's blade in his chest. Zoro's blood hit the surface beneath his feet as Zoro didn't move from that spot.
"You are defeated yet you won't step back?" Mihawk asked. "Why not?"
"I don't know," Zoro stated as blood poured from the corner of his mouth. "But I will not run. Even if I retreat a single step, I would be shattering the promises I made. I can't run, I would lose my honor. You see, without that there would be nothing left for me here."
"That's what defeat is," Mihawk mentioned.
"Heh..." Zoro chuckled. "Then I won't accept defeat."
"Then you'll die," Mihawk retorted.
"I'd rather die than give up," Zoro remarked.
Jou knew Zoro was confident in his conquest to become the World's Greatest Swordsman. He was going to do it even if it meant he had to die.
"Zoro..." Jou murmured.
"Sir, state your name!" Mihawk requested as he yanked his blade from Zoro's chest and sheathed his knife.
"I am Roronoa Zoro," Zoro introduced as he held both swords out and spun the one in his left-hand upside down.
"I'll remember it," Mihawk said. "No one as strong as you has come around in quite some time." he unsheathed his sword from his back. "So, as a swordsman's courtesy, I will use the world's strongest black sword to finish you."
"Thank you," Zoro stated. "I appreciate it."
The anticipation really set-in as Luffy's teeth clattered together, Usopp's eyes only opened wide, Johnny and Yosaku shook in worry for their old friend. Jou felt the sweat pouring down his face as he waited for Zoro and Mihawk to strike their final blows on each other.
"That's enough, big bro!" Johnny pleaded. "Stop it!"
"Three-Sword Style Secret Technique...!" Zoro thrust his arms out and spun both swords in each hand as Mihawk dashed at him.
"FALL!" Mihawk yelled.
"Three-Thousand Worlds!" Zoro and Mihawk sliced each other. Zoro's two katana's shattered while he was slashed across his torso as blood gushed out and fell on one knee and sheathed his sole remaining sword and faced Mihawk with his outstretched arms leaving himself wide open. This caused Mihawk to raise his brows in confusion.
"But why...?" Mihawk asked.
"Scars on the back are a swordsman shame," Zoro remarked with a grin.
"Fine," Mihawk returned the grin and sliced Zoro in a diagonal slice as blood spurted from Zoro like a geyser.
"ZORO!" Luffy screamed.
"You shouldn't rush these things, young man," Mihawk told Zoro as the green-haired swordsman fell into the ocean behind him.
"ZORO!" Jou shouted.
"Zoro!" Usopp called after.
"BIG BRO!" Johnny and Yosaku cried.
"DON'T BE STUPID!" Sanji shouted from the Baratie. "GIVE UP YOUR AMBITION AND LIVE!"
"Damn you...!" Luffy growled as he reeled his fist to attack Mihawk.
While that happened, Jou dove into the ocean off of the Bounty-Hunting Duo's boat. He took a deep breath before submerging dz into the water. He frantically looked about under the sea for any sign of his crewmate. Jou's eyes widened as he found Zoro slowly drifting down to the depths unmoving. Seeing Zoro in such a state put Jou's stomach in a knot with worry.
Don't be dead, don't be dead, don't be dead! Jou screamed in thought over and over as he got closer. Please, don't be dead!
Jou reached Zoro and took him by the arm and pulled it around his shoulders and swam up to the surface. Jou took a breath once he came up for air and stared at Zoro. He was relieved he was able to reach the swordsman before he went any lower.
"Zoro...?" Jou said to the swordsman. The only response he got was Zoro hacking out some blood from his mouth which made Jou frown with worry.
"Jou!" Usopp's voice rang out from Johnny and Yosaku's boat, the bounty duo both blubbering in tears for their old friend.
"I got him right here, Usopp!" Jou called back with a wave.
"Hurry and bring him over here!" Usopp ushered for Jou to make his way over.
"OH THANK YOU, BIG BRO JOU!" Johnny and Yosaku shouted thankfully with tears streaming down their faces.
"Hang in there, Zoro," Jou told him. "We're not letting you die here today."
"Zoro!" Luffy shouted as Jou noticed his Captain was on the piece of Krieg's wrecked ship with Mihawk.
Jou made it toward the boat as Johnny and Yosaku lifted Zoro together as Usopp gave Jou a hand to climb in himself. Jou pulled his beanie off his head and squeezed the water out from it and ran a hand through his wet brown hair.
"We need to hurry and patch that wound up!" Jou stated.
"I'll go find some medicine and bandages!" Usopp said urgently and ran into the ship's cabin to find he could. He quickly came back with a small basket with just what they needed to patch Zoro's wound.
"It's still far too early for you to die!" Mihawk called to Zoro. "My name is Dracule Mihawk! You're strong, but there is much for you to learn! No matter how many years it takes, I will hold this title of the greatest in the world and wait for you! Until that day, you must hone your skills, then... SEEK ME OUT! RORONOA ZORO!"
Mihawk's speech to Zoro echoed which made everyone around stare at him. Jou was is impressed that Zoro managed to get Mihawk's respect and pretty much challenged him for the title of World's Greatest Swordsman. It made Jou think that there are all kinds of strong people like Mihawk in the Grand Line.
If that's true then we'll need to be ready for anything, Jou thought.
"You..." Mihawk turned to Luffy. "What is your goal?"
"To be the King," Luffy stated.
"Your ambitions are even loftier than your friends," Mihawk grinned. "That's quite a task."
"Yeah, well you just let me worry about that!" Luffy remarked as he stuck a tongue at Mihawk.
"He's still alive!" Usopp announced which caused Jou to turn his head to Zoro. "He was just unconscious."
"Gave us a scare there," Jou smiled with relief. "Welcome back." Zoro didn't say anything as he only breathed out.
"Big bro!" Yosaku cried.
"If you're alive then say something!" Johnny wept with his partner.
"Zoro!" Luffy called as Zoro's eyes opened and with one hand he pointed his katana in the air.
"Luffy..." Zoro croaked out. "Can you hear me?"
"Yeah!" Luffy answered.
"Zoro..." Jou said as his eyes widened and wondered just what Zoro had to say but stayed silent so he could hear it.
"I'm sorry for disappointing you," Zoro said. "I know that you needed nothing less than the greatest swordsman in the world. I've let you down, please forgive me." Zoro hacked out more blood which causes panic in Johnny and Yosaku.
"Okay, okay!" Yosaku said. "You can stop saying things now!" Jou put his hands on the bounty-hunting duo's shoulders.
"It's okay, guys," Jou gave a reassuring smile. "Let him talk."
"I solemnly swear from this moment forward... That I will never lose again, until the day comes when I defeat him and take his title! I will never, never be defeated! " Zoro promised as tears leaked from his eyes. "IS THAT OKAY!? KING OF THE PIRATES!"
Great speech, man, Jou thought with a smirk.
"Yep!" Luffy chuckled as he gave a toothy grin.
"You're a good team," Mihawk told Luffy as he turned to leave. "I hope to see you again someday."
"Hey, Hawk-Eye!" Don Krieg said as Mihawk paused in his tracks. "I was under the impression that you had come here to take my life. Weren't you here to kill Don Krieg? Ruler of the East Blue!"
"The thought had crossed my mind," Mihawk mentioned. "But I've had enough fun for today so I'm going home to get some rest."
"I don't care if you've had enough," Krieg smiled as he cracked his neck. "I haven't even gotten started." Krieg's Pirates didn't think it was a good idea to provoke Hawk-Eye but their Captain didn't agree as he revealed the cannons he hid in his gold armor.
"NOW, IT'S TIME TO DIE!" Krieg exclaimed as he opened fire.
"He just won't learn, will he?" Mihawk said as he reached for his sword. Krieg's cannons caused a big splash in the water which knocked all of his men away. The smoke cleared only for Krieg to find Mihawk had gotten away.
"Damn, he escaped," Krieg muttered. Luffy stretched his arms back to the Baratie. The cooks were startled when Luffy appeared on the side of the boat.
"Luffy!" Jou called. "We're gonna get out of here!"
"That's right!" Usopp agreed. "Don't you worry about a thing! We'll get Nami back and make sure you get that cook to join our crew!"
"After that, we'll all head to Grand Line. Together!" Jou exclaimed and turned his head and found Luffy's straw hat on the deck beside his foot. He grabbed it and tossed it toward Luffy. "Sound good, Captain!"
"Yeah, let's do it!" Luffy agreed as his arm stretched to reach for his hat as Jou and Usopp sailed away to go after Nami and the Going Merry.
Along the way, Jou and Usopp went to work on fixing Zoro's wound the best they can since neither of them was a doctor. They wrapped bandages around his torso, Zoro couldn't help but grimace from pain when a sensitive spot was touched but managed to get through the short procedure.
"Okay, that should do it," Jou stated as he helped Zoro up so he could lean against the side of the ship. "Get some rest, Zoro. You're gonna need it but be careful not to strain yourself."
"Yeah, yeah," Zoro said as he started to nod off. Now that Zoro was taken care of, Jou felt it was time to get back to business on following Nami. Since they were going to be sailing for a while, Jou knew the best thing right now was to get some information.
"Johnny?" Jou got the one-half of the Bounty-Hunting Duo's attention.
"What's up, big bro Jou?" Johnny wondered.
"What can you tell me..." Jou asked. "About Arlong?"
The Going Merry sure was quiet as it was only Nami by herself on the ship. It wouldn't be long until she reached her destination so she took this time to change her outfit. Nami wore a green tank top, tight dark-blue leggings that reached below her knees, and brown gladiator sandals.
Nami's mind kept going back to those guys. The ones that called her 'friend'. It made her sad to leave them like this. She stole the ship, so must be angry with her. Even if they show up for the Merry, Nami will give it back to them but she can't go with them. She can't go sailing the high seas with them. Just the thought of that brought tears to her eyes.
"They were good people..." Nami spoke to herself. "I wonder if they'll count me as their friend, the next time we meet..." the tears really started to come down. "I wonder if we can even meet again...?" Nami bit her bottom lip. "I want to hurry up and become free, Bell-mère..."
It was painful to say her name as it only brought more pain. But now wasn't the time for tears, she was nearly there to achieving her 100 million berri goal. Nami had to focus on the task at hand and was close to her current heading. She wiped the tears away and watched with distant eyes of her destination in sight.
I can hardly believe it, there it is, Nami thought as her hair softly blew backward from the wind. My hometown.
Nami saw her home island just ahead and saw the huge yellow and red palace that towered over the small little town that read: Arlong Park. She found a good spot to dock the Going Merry and leaped off the side and started making her way toward Arlong Park up a dirt road carrying only a bag. Nami stopped before the doors and was about to step inside.
"Hey, you get out of my way!" a voice that came from a small boy was heard. "Arlong's going to die today!" Nami turned to face the boy. Tears were running from the boy's eyes as he held a short sword in his hand.
"He killed my Daddy so now I'm gonna have to kill him!" the boy cried as Nami said nothing and only stared. "So move! Or I'll have to kill you too!"
Poor kid doesn't know what he's getting himself into, Nami thought. She reached into her shirt and pulled out her 3-piece staff and swiftly smacked the kid across the face as the boy fell on the ground flat on his back.
"You should know that Arlong doesn't have time to deal with whimpering little punks like you," Nami stated as her staff separated and tucked it away. "You're too young. Go home." she tossed the sniveling child some berri bill's. "Take that with you and use it to keep yourself out of trouble, kid."
"Go to hell!" the kid yelled from where he laid on the ground.
Understand that it's for your good, Nami thought solemnly. Nami opened to door and walked into Arlong Park.
"Nami, you've returned!" the Fishman Arlong greeted her from where he sat.
He is a large, muscular light blue saw-shark type fish-man with a jagged saw-shaped nose. He wears a short-sleeved, unbuttoned yellow cabana shirt decorated with black lightning spots, green Bermuda shorts, and simple sandals. Beside him were 3 other fish-men of a different type: Hachi, Chew, and Kuroobi. Each of them Arlong's top executives.
"I haven't seen you around here for quite a while," Arlong said. "So, how did you do this time?"
"Heh," Nami gave a short chuckle. "Who are you talking to? You know I just can't believe the world is so full of such blind idiots. Wanna see?" she said as she patted the bag she held.
"Shahahaha!" Arlong laughed. "You girl are one excellent liar!"
"That's true," Nami smiled.
"LISTEN UP, EVERYBODY!" Arlong announced. "NAMI'S FINALLY RETURNED! TIME FOR A PARTY!"
A collective cheer came from Arlong's men as they shot up from the water. Just as Arlong announced, the celebration party for Nami's return had begun.
Jou stood at the front of the boat as he looked through his telescope. Johnny had filled them all in who Arlong was. Of course, Johnny mentioned just how dangerous Arlong considering his high amount on his head. They left Yosaku to tell Luffy where Nami was headed was dangerous since it's where Arlong is. Jou spotted the large tower that literally had Arlong's name on it.
"There's Arlong Park," Jou said with his telescope over his eye.
"Yeah, that's the place," Johnny remarked nervously. Zoro opened his eyes to get a look at the tower.
"How much of a pretentious jackass do you have to be to have your own tower?" Jou scoffed. "Something tells me Arlong has a hell of an ego."
"Did Nami really come here?" Usopp questioned as he swallowed a lump in his throat.
"We followed the Merry," Jou said taking his telescope from his eye. "Yeah, she's here. When we find her, she can hopefully shed some light on the situation." he sighed. "Maybe she can tell us what's going on between her and Arlong."
Jou thought he made the wrong choice trying to play that stupid game. But it did let him know one thing, something in Nami's past is troubling her and Arlong is the cause of it. Well, one way or another they'll find out just what's going on.
"Before we do anything stupid, we should probably see if the Going Merry stopped on this island first?" Johnny suggested.
"Yeah, good idea," Usopp agreed.
"Finding the ship might be a good start..." Jou said. "But this time, I think we should try a more direct approach."
"What do you mean by a direct approach, Jou?" Usopp questioned.
"Let's attack," Zoro stated as he slammed his sheathed katana on the deck and used it to stand.
"But I just said we shouldn't do anything stupid!?" Johnny shouted.
"What! Attack!?" Usopp argued. "We know nothing about this place!"
"Yeah, these guys are the Fishmen!?" Johnny added.
"We need some kind of plan to do that!" Usopp exclaimed.
"You two just sound like a pair of cowards," Jou groaned. "Luffy told us to bring her back! And that's exactly what we're gonna do!"
"And while the two of you are busy blabbering and wimping out!" Zoro remarked. "I'm placing my thoughts on the battle we're about to face!"
"Wait, Zoro..." Jou said as he turned to the swordsman. "You sure you want to fight? That wound you got from Hawk-eye Mihawk is still fresh. And isn't exactly closed either with the sloppy, rushed job we did with the bandages."
"Don't worry about me," Zoro assured. "Luffy told us to bring her back and I'll do just that."
Jou really admired Zoro's strength. He was going to fight after receiving the wounds he had. The worse one being across his torso but he wasn't going to let that stop him. Despite what Johnny had mentioned about Arlong, that he was the most dangerous Pirate in the East Blue, Jou was not intimidated. If they deal with Arlong, they can hopefully show Nami that she can rely on them. Although Jou was gearing up to fight, he figured things were likely not going to go as planned.
"Zoro's right." Jou agreed. "Luffy said he wants Nami as Navigator for our crew. So, you two better be ready to fight. If not, leave it to Zoro and I."
"See, Jou gets it," Zoro said. "Let's go!"
"OK-" Jou began to say but soon felt something knock him over the head as he met with darkness.
"What the hell...?" Jou's eyes drifted open as his vision cleared. He blinked a few times and took in his surroundings and found that he was tied to the cabin of Johnny and Yosaku's boat. His wrists and ankles were bound with his chains were in his lap.
"Oh, for crying out loud," Jou groaned and found Zoro beside him. The swordsman was tied up beside him and was out cold.
"Zoro?" Jou nudged the swordsman with his shoulder. "Zoro, wake up!" he nudged him with a bit more force. "C'mon man, open your eyes!"
"Hm?" Zoro hummed as his eyes opened. "What's going on!?" Zoro said as he became more alert. "Jou?" Zoro only frowned at him.
"I know," Jou sighed. He and Zoro looked toward Usopp and Johnny who were too busy talking to each other to notice they were conscious.
"Usopp! Johnny!" Jou called them. "Care to explain yourselves?" the only response Jou got was a side glance from the sniper and bounty hunter but instead went back to looking out to sea.
"There it is!" Usopp pointed. " Found it! The Going Merry it's right over there!" The ship was docked just outside the island.
"Then she has to be on the island somewhere we just have to find her," Johnny stated.
"Don't ignore me, you jackasses!" Jou shouted with shark teeth.
"What do you think your doing!?" Zoro yelled. "Would you idiots untie us! We are not the enemy!" meither Usopp nor Johnny paid the two any attention as they looked at the map.
"We're east of Arlong Park here at Cocoyashi Village," Johnny said as he dragged his finger along the map. "But it's strange? Why would she have stopped so far from the village?"
Jou may currently be upset with Johnny and Usopp for tying up him and Zoro. But what Johnny mentioned made Jou wonder himself. Why would Nami stop so far from Arlong Park and the village? To keep the boat out of sight so no one can find it and keep her arrival discreet from villagers? All good questions, but Jou would be more interested in them if he wasn't so pissed at Usopp and Johnny right now.
"Quit acting like we're not here and untie us, jackasses!" Jou declared.
"Listen to Jou and untie us, dammit!" Zoro shouted.
"Zoro..." Usopp said as he knelt down beside Jou and Zoro. He touched Zoro's wound which caused the swordsman to quiver. "Just sit tight and relax. It's okay rest up, you can help next time."
"Then why the hell would you tie me up?" Jou questioned.
"You were planning on running into Arlong Park along with Zoro," Usopp smiled. "You guys would've gotten yourselves killed from Arlong. Jou, I'm leaving you here to look after Zoro, since he's hurt. Plus he could use some company."
"Then why did you knock me out?" Jou asked not understanding Usopp's reasoning in the slightest.
"It's for your own good," Usopp grinned as he placed his hands on his hips. "Trust me, you'll thank me later."
"Jackass," Jou muttered.
"Fear not, gentlemen!" Usopp remarked proudly. "I will bring back the girl safely!" Usopp proclaimed with a boisterous laugh.
"Looks like skipping Arlong Park has sure cheered you up." Johnny deadpanned.
"Soooo..." Jou drawled. "I assume you're going to call this Captain Usopp's Great Adventure? Just going to do it all by yourself, huh?"
"That's... perfect!" Usopp agreed. "Exactly what I will call this epic voyage! Thank you for the idea, Jou!"
"Don't mention it," Jou muttered.
"Prepare the anchor!" The long nose commanded. "Bring us alongside the Going Merry!"
"Aye!" Johnny said.
"Thanks to Jou's idea for a name to give this voyage..." Usopp announced. "I think I shall call it 'The Great Adventures of Captain Usopp'!" Usopp went quiet as he ducked down in fright. Jou wondered what was even the matter with him.
"What seems to be the problem, Captain Usopp?" Jou asked with sarcasm in his voice. "You were so sure about yourself earlier?"
"What'd ya see?" Johnny asked in a hushed tone. Usopp pointed out what he saw to Johnny as both of them turned into a pair of scared kittens from what they saw.
"It's Fishmen!" each of them saw three Fishmen on a dock where the Going Merry was settled. Instead of docking right there, Usopp and Johnny decide to sail past it.
"Why didn't we just dock right there!?" Zoro questioned.
"Didn't you see that!?" Usopp yelled. "There were 3 Fishmen over there! It's Arlong's crew! We can't stop here right now!" Usopp was met with a kick in the face from Zoro with the use of both feet.
"Do not yell at me!" Zoro shouted.
"We could dock there and Zoro and I can take care of them," Jou suggested. "Oh wait! We're both tied up! If you just Mmpf...!" Jou's lips were covered by the Sniper. Jou wasn't haven't it one bit and then chopped down on Usopp's hand.
"Yowch!" the Sniper yelped as he yanked his injured hand back. "Dammit, Jou! That hurt!" he snapped whilst nursing his hand.
"More where that came from, jackass," Jou remarked. "Why don't you give me your other hand?"
"If there are Fishmen here then this entire area must be under Arlong's control?" Johnny figured. "So what now?"
"We could just say we couldn't find her," Usopp said.
"You gotta freaking kidding me!" Jou shouted. "Luffy gave us one job! One DAMN job! And all you have done is make excuses! Just get us out of these ropes already!"
"Just untie us now!" Zoro shouted.
"Never seen that boat before?" a Fishman on the deck said.
"Suspicious." a second said. Two of the Fishmen dove into the water and started to swim toward the boat. Usopp and Johnny saw them approaching as they immediately became afraid.
"Let's run," Usopp suggested.
"Okay," Johnny agreed.
"Wait?" Jou mouthed. "You aren't just gonna leave us, aren't you?"
Once the Fishmen got closer, Usopp and Johnny jumped ship. Which also left the tied up Jou and Zoro on the boat. Jou could not believe something like this would even happen. Some search mission this really turned out to be all thanks to Usopp and Johnny's stupidity.
"Hey! You two get back here or you're gonna die!" Zoro yelled but Usopp and Johnny were gone at that point. The two Fish-men leaped onto the boat and found the Look-out and Swordsman that were tied up on the boat.
"There's just these two guys?" a fish-men questioned.
"Maybe they just drifted here from real far out or something?" the other wondered.
"Yeah, right," Zoro responded with a grin.
Jou himself didn't even bother moving in his restraints. He had to give it to Usopp that he really knew how to tie some tight knots. Jou and even Zoro couldn't fight back even if they wanted to, so they had no choice but to stay and let the Fish-men take them.
"We're on a lovely cruise," Jou chuckled nervously. "While tied to the boat."
Usopp... Johnny... Jou thought. If I see one of them, they're dead.
"I think we should just take 'em to Arlong." The other suggested with a smile.
The boat started on its way toward Arlong Park. Once it was leaving, Usopp and Johnny surfaced from the water.
"Forgive me Jou and Zoro..." Usopp said sadly. "I will tell Luffy you two were courageous to the bitter end."
"Please forgive me, Zoro, Jou..." Johnny cried. "I'll never forget you guys."
"Okay, now let's find some land," Usopp suggested as he quickly changed his tone.
"Right." Johnny agreed as the two of them swam off. The two of them found a short ledge and climbed it to get out of the water.
"I think this place is called Gosa village," Johnny mentioned. They soon found out that the said village was destroyed. Homes were upside down and a giant groove was cut in-between the homes.
"What happened here?" Usopp wondered with a horrified expression.
"I heard Arlong came through here a few weeks back but never I thought that..." Johnny was speechless as well from the destruction.
"Everything's upside down..." Usopp noted worriedly.
"I've heard people say that Fish-men can be stronger than normal human-beings by a very wide margin," Johnny informed. "I guess this is how strong you have to be to survive the Grand Line."
A pair of footsteps were heard as they approached Usopp and Johnny. The half of the bounty-hunting duo saw who was coming and ran away whilst screaming.
"Maybe but even the streets upside down," Usopp deduced.
"The monster Moomoo caused this destruction," a voice new mentioned behind Usopp.
"Monster...?" Usopp repeated in confusion. "Don't tell me this place has monsters?"
"We caught him out on the Grand Line and brought him back here with us,"
"From the Grand Line, huh?" Usopp repeated. "Wait...?" he started to sweat as a sense of dread fell over him. Usopp turned around and screamed when he saw a Fish-man behind him.
"You were with that guy from the boat!?" the obese Fish-man realized. The Fish-man tried to grab Usopp but the sniper managed to get away and ran.
"Later!" Usopp called as he dashed down the ruined road.
"Come back here!" the Fish-man gave chase after Usopp.
"Hahaha!" the long-nose laughed victoriously. "You may be a Fish-man but there's no way you can catch me on dry land!" Usopp was too busy running away to notice a foot had tripped him off his feet causing him to collapse on his face and quickly turned around from where he was on the ground.
"What the heck-" Usopp saw a young boy standing over him with a sword in his hand.
"Got you, stupid fish-man!" the boy announced as he rose the sword. "Now, I'll avenge my father by killing you! Ha!" the kid was about to swing the sword on the now frightened Usopp. But the boy was interrupted when someone chopped him in the head.
The person was an attractive young woman with purplish-blue hair with a red ribbon, blue eyes, and fair skin. She had visible tattoo's from her right shoulder to her chest. Her outfit consisted of a yellow tank-top, a gold bracelet on her right wrist, tight blue jeans, and sandals.
"Honestly!" the woman chided the boy. "How many times do I have to tell you Cabo, you do not mess with the Fish-men! It was just one person who decided to stand up to them and they responded by slaughtering everyone in Gosa!" the woman and the boy, Cabo, looked at Usopp. "Hmm? you look and smell just like a fish-man but I can see that you're human." she frowned at the sniper. "Mostly human."
"Mostly!" Usopp certainly resembled a fish-man now with his teeth shaped like a shark.
"Where'd you go!" the fish-man that was chasing Usopp earlier was still on the search for him. "Over here!?"
"Crap!" Usopp said in alarm.
"A Fish-man!" Cabo pointed.
"And this time it's for real," Nojiko stated. The fish-man ran in a different direction in search of Usopp. The Sniper pulled out his slingshot and moved in front of the woman and child.
"Alright, stand back and let me handle this one!" Usopp announced as he aimed his weapon. "Watch as Captain Usopp takes out this fish-man with a single shot! Take this! It's my special attack Led-Star!"
Usopp never had a chance to fire as he was knocked unconscious by the woman with a hammer and handed the tool for Cabo to hold.
"I guess he wasn't listening when I said the Fish-men will kill us if we messed with them," The woman said. "C'mon, tough guy." she took the sniper by the ankles and dragged him out of sight. Once she handled that, the woman came out from the corner of the building and let out a shrill scream.
"What's wrong?" the scream got the fish-mans' attention.
"A long-nosed creepy guy!" the woman exclaimed.
"Which way did he go?"
"That way!" she pointed in the other direction.
"Now I gotcha!" once the fish-man left, the woman knelt beside the unconscious Usopp and Cabo.
"C'mon, if you help me out we can carry him back,"
We're back... with a filler chapter. To be fair, this is merely a set-up for things to come. I know there might be questions about how I plan to do this arc this time around. There are going to be new things I'm going to be trying here.
Jou: What author means is to "expect the unexpected".
Yeah, something like that.
Reviews...
RottingCrow: Thank you. Conversations are actually fun to write between characters.
Guest: Yep, I hope you liked it. Even though this is a filler.
johannvanguard: Jou being horrible at drawing was a last-minute idea I hoped would be humorous.
Jou: I may be a charming, skilled individual. But draw, I can not...
pokemonking0924: That's good to hear. I want this story to be an improvement over the previous one. Glad to hear some people enjoyed the talk between Jou and Nami. The previous idea for a Jou and Nami talk was different and I didn't like the way it went, so I settled for what we have now.
Jou: That's nice, at least some people find me funny.
Some people...
Jou: True, I mean... Hey!
ShadowUzumaki55:
Jou: Next time won't be so long.
You can bet things will become much more pleasant when Arlong is taken care of.
brandonmunoz499: Thanks!
Srika.a: Hope you liked it!
Zeromk7:
Jou: Appreciate it. Thank you.
Deadpool322:
Jou: Haters everywhere.
Well, we're not going to let that deter us. I think one of my biggest regrets from the last story was Jou and Sanji didn't have much interaction. Although, their interactions could stem from the fact they both have an attachment to Nami which could lead to some hopefully amusing scenes between them.
Blackhawk43: From time to time, I think about it. There is one canon character who I'm thinking about adding since I want things to be unique. Just one, though. I don't want to crew to become too crowded.
Jou: It depends how things will go whether author decides for the said character to join the adventure.
GunBlade2021: Thanks!
theGuy696: I've planned most of it and we have so many things that will take time to get to.
Jou: With that, we hope you stay tuned.
searge: This time around I want the romance to hopefully feel natural this time around. Nami was very OOC in the previous story.
Jou: So was I, apparently...
Okay, that'll be all for this one. The next chapter is all done will be out sooner rather than later if you can believe it.
Jou: *gasp* Pigs, cows, dogs, cats, and every other wingless animal are flying now!
Yes, yes, it's surprising but it's also a change of pace from my usual update schedule.
Review, favorite, follow, and I finally bought Nintendo Switch even though they came out about 4 years ago.
Jou: Better late than never...
You seem to be enjoying yourself since you play it more than I do?
Jou: What? Breath of the Wild is fun. So is Pokemon and Smash Ultimate. Why weren't we playing this sooner?
We'll see you guys next time!
Jou: Bye-bye!