Foreword: Okay, I know that in the last foreword, I said I would only do once a week updates from here on out. But then y'all blew my story up EVEN MORE to over a thousand views and over a dozen follows and favorites! Your support has been so much greater than anything I expected, so, As A Treat, here's the next chapter a little early. Thank you all so much for enjoying my work. You have no idea how much I appreciate it. Number Go Up Make Monkey Brain Happy.
Back in Water 7 proper, ninja-pirate Itachi Uchiha continued scouring the city for any sign of Robin. The apparent totality of her disappearance was greatly concerning him.
I don't understand what could have happened. Is it possible she isn't even on the island anymore? Enough time has passed since she was last seen that she could have been taken by ship. Perhaps I should check the dock logs.
He sent Shadow Clones to the various ports around Water 7 to break in and check the books. No ships had left port since they had arrived.
Itachi checked a nearby clock resting atop an ornate water fountain. Ten o'clock. Time for Luffy and Usopp's duel.
I can't concern myself with that right now. The mission at hand is to track down Robin. Itachi continued searching for any potential leads, but to no success.
After a couple more hours of searching, he stumbled across the Straw Hats. They informed him of the outcome of the duel, and that Luffy had left the Merry to Usopp anyway, so they were on their way to an inn. Itachi joined them after some convincing, committing to resume the search tomorrow.
The next morning, Zoro, Itachi, and Chopper were all on the roof of the inn, with the former sitting against the chimney, and the latter two looking out at the city over the railing. Eventually, Sanji came up to join them.
"We went through the trouble of renting a room and no one used it, huh? Guess none of you could sleep. Where's Luffy?"
Chopper pointed to a nearby tower. Luffy was perched on its roof.
"Where were you, Sanji?" asked Itachi. "Keeping lookout, I'd guess?"
"Yeah, I stuck around the entrance to the cape, just in case Robin came back." Sanji pulled out a cigarette and gave it a light, taking a hit and exhaling. "She never said anything about leaving. I wonder where she could have gone."
"I'm not sure," admitted Itachi. "I've scoured the city several times over and still can't find a trace of her. I checked the logs at all the ports as well; no ships in or out since before she went missing. I even searched all the ships that are currently docked using my Shadow Clones, but still nothing."
Chopper looked down, his eyes obscured by the brim of his hat. "Ever since we came here, it's been one bad thing after another. Robin went missing, our money got stolen, and then there's everything that happened to poor Usopp. He's still hurt from everything that happened yesterday, and he probably has a fever by now-"
"Chopper," Zoro cut in. "That's enough. Don't talk about him anymore."
"I think I'm gonna try looking around town for Robin today," said Sanji, changing the subject quickly. "Like you said, Itachi, no ships have left since yesterday, so she must still be on this island somewhere."
"I'll come, too!" said Chopper.
"I think I'll accompany you as well," said Itachi.
Nami burst through the door suddenly, breathing heavily after having rushed up the stairs. "Luffy!"
"Nami, what's wrong?" asked Sanji.
"It's awful!" she cried. "The whole city's talking about it! Luffy, it's Iceberg! Last night, he was shot!"
Itachi's eyes widened. Mayor Iceberg was shot? Was this perhaps connected to Robin's disappearance? The timing certainly seemed strange.
Luffy turned around to face the others. "Ice Pops from the shipyard yesterday?"
"Yeah," confirmed Nami. "I hear he's still unconscious."
"I thought everyone here loved that guy," said Luffy. "Who would wanna shoot him?"
"Uh, who are you talking about?" asked Sanji.
"Iceberg is the Mayor of Water 7, and he was also a big help to us yesterday." explained Nami.
Luffy stood up, preparing to leave. "I'm gonna go check on him."
"Wait for me, Luffy! I'm coming, too!" cried Nami, racing back towards the stairs.
"Well, on that note, let's go find Robin," said Sanji, walking to the door.
"I'm concerned about Iceberg, but Luffy and Nami are already on their way," said Itachi. "So I'll still come along with you and Chopper, if that's alright."
"Of course, the more eyes we have on the lookout, the better." Sanji turned to Zoro. "What about you?"
Zoro thought about it for a moment. "I guess I'll just wait around awhile and see how this all plays out."
Sanji shrugged, and the trio went on their way to continue their search. After a while, sirens began to blare all across the city, warning of a severe weather warning due to the Aqua Laguna.
"Damn, bad timing," grumbled Itachi.
"What? What was that broadcast about?" asked Sanji.
Itachi explained the phenomenon to him and Chopper. He had been to Water 7 around this time last year to purchase his sailboat. He remembered having to hole up in the higher levels of Water 7 to wait out the storm.
"Well, damn, that is bad timing," agreed Sanji. "We need to find Robin fast."
"Right," said Chopper, morphing into his deer form to more easily keep up. "Let's get a move on!"
"There's something I need to do first," said Itachi. He tapped the shoulder of a random passerby. "Excuse me, sir, do you have a pen and paper I could borrow for just a moment?"
"Oh, yeah, sure," replied the man, digging into his shirt pockets and producing the requested items. "Here you are, sir."
Itachi took the pen and pad, quickly scribbling something and tearing out the page before handing them back to the man and smiling. "Thank you, kind sir. I truly appreciate it."
"No worries, but you guys should find shelter soon. Aqua Laguna is tonight!"
"We'll be fine, don't worry. Be safe out there!" Itachi waved the man off as he went about his business.
"What was that about?" asked Chopper.
"You'll see," replied Itachi, crossing his fingers and forming a Shadow Clone. "You know where this goes," he said, handing the paper over to the clone. The clone simply nodded and sprang off in the direction of the Going Merry.
"Oh, I get it," said Sanji. "You sent that clone to deliver a message to Usopp about Aqua Laguna. It can place the note and then dissipate, and Usopp will be none the wiser about who left it."
"Exactly," confirmed Itachi. "I'm not an official crew member yet, so I can act as I please without it being a conflict of interest. Now, let's continue our search."
After an hour or two, the trio found themselves in front of the Sea Train station, checking its schedule on the billboard.
"Looks like the noon departure has already left," said Sanji. "And there's another one scheduled for tonight, even with this weather. Headed to a place called Enies Lobby."
"What if she already left on the Sea Train?" asked Chopper.
"Well, that would make things even worse, but that would explain why we can't find her anywhere in the city," said Itachi.
"True," said Sanji. "But I get the feeling she's still in the city somewhere. I'll just have to ask around."
"What if I did something to upset her back at the bookstore?" asked Chopper sullenly.
Itachi remembered his last conversation with her back on the Merry. "No, I highly doubt that's it." he said in an attempt to comfort him.
"Excuse me," asked Sanji to another passerby, holding up Robin's Wanted poster. "Have you seen a beautiful woman who looks kinda like this?"
"You mean the one who's about 20 years older than that picture? If I had, I woulda told the newspapers or Galley La about it. Hard to believe she's an assassin, eh? While I admire your drive to track her down, Aqua Laguna is coming, so I suggest you focus on finding shelter instead." The man walked away as the wind began to pick up.
Assassin? Thought Itachi. So maybe I was right, and she is connected to Iceberg's shooting. If that's the case, she's most likely still here in the city, assuming she hasn't already left on…
"The Sea Train!" exclaimed Itachi. "Sanji, where did you say tonight's departure was headed?"
"I think it was called Enies Lobby?" replied Sanji. "Why, do you know something about it?"
It was all starting to make sense. Her connections to Ohara, the way she was acting during their conversation, her sudden disappearance, her potential connection to the attempt on Iceberg's life, and now a Sea Train bound for Enies Lobby under the cover of Aqua Laguna, the day after said attempt.
"I think I have an idea of what's going on now," said Itachi. "But I'd still like to find her and confirm a few things before I can be sure."
Just then, Chopper picked up something on the wind. "That scent…" he said, then took off running.
"Chopper, what is it?" asked Sanji.
"He must have picked up a familiar scent. Follow him!" said Itachi, and they took off running after the reindeer.
Chopper led them through an alley and down some stairs, losing his footing partway down. When Itachi and Sanji caught up at the bottom of the stairs, he was staring across the canal.
"I knew it," said Chopper, almost in disbelief. There, facing them from the other side of the canal, was Robin.
"Robin!" exclaimed Sanji and Chopper simultaneously. Itachi gritted his teeth slightly.
Robin, where in the world have you been?" asked Sanji. "Everyone's worried; we've been looking everywhere for you!"
"Hang on, Sanji," interrupted Itachi. "I have to ask her a few things first." He turned to face Robin, who immediately averted her gaze by looking at Sanji.
I can't let him look into my eyes, she thought. Or he'll see right through me again.
"Robin," began Itachi. "Is it true that you shot Mayor Iceberg last night?"
"I see you're getting straight to the point," replied Robin. "Yes, I did shoot him. I'm sorry to have pinned such a crime on you all, but as far as my involvement, what the newspapers say is true."
"I see," replied Itachi. "So, you intend to leave the Straw Hats?"
Robin clenched her fist. "Yes, I'm afraid this is where we part ways. I'm sorry. I'm afraid you'll be taking the fall for last night's attack while I escape."
"Escape? With Aqua Laguna on its way, no ships will be able to set sail, meaning you'll have to leave on the Sea Train scheduled for tonight. Am I correct?"
Now it was Robin's turn to grit her teeth. Had he already pieced it all together?
Despite her best attempt to say anything else, she found it impossible to lie to him. Not that lying would do any good. "Yes, I'm leaving on the Sea Train tonight." She turned to leave and escape Itachi's gaze. "I'm sorry, but from this point forward, we will never see each other again."
"Just one more question, Robin," said Itachi firmly. "Did nothing I told you last time we spoke get through to you?"
Robin knew she should bite her tongue. She knew she shouldn't reply. But there was something about Itachi, and about the nature of that question, that compelled her to answer.
"You spoke of faith when we spoke," she said, choosing her words carefully so as not to reveal too much to Sanji and Chopper. "But it's easy for someone like you to have faith, because if the object of your faith fails, you're strong enough to compensate. I have no such strength to fall back on, so faith is something I can't afford. Goodbye, Itachi." She walked away in a hurry, so as not to let the others see her tears, especially not Itachi.
Itachi could easily clear the canal in a single leap and catch up to her, but decided against it. He had told her to have faith in Luffy, so that was who needed to save her.
Sanji, on the other hand, had said no such thing to her, and dove straight into the canal in an attempt to catch up to her, but the rapid water flow that served as a preamble to Aqua Laguna quickly threatened to sweep him away.
"Chopper," said Itachi. "Go find Luffy and the others and tell them what happened here. I'll get Sanji out of there."
"Right. I'll see you guys later!" Chopper took off back up the stairs.
Itachi walked across the water to grab Sanji. Once they were both safely out of the water, Itachi laid out his thought process regarding what just happened.
"I had a private conversation with Robin after the run-in with Aokiji," he explained. "A conversation she asked me to keep just between the two of us, but I believe it's better now to break that promise. But to put it simply, she asked me to join your crew in her place if something were to happen to her. She believed that it was only a matter of time before the World Government captured her, and so wanted me to stick around to prevent Luffy and the rest of you from getting yourselves killed in a rescue attempt."
"Well, that's ridiculous," said Sanji. "There's no way any of us would let someone get in our way to get her back, especially not Luffy."
"I told her that as well," replied Itachi. "but I guess she was unconvinced. Whatever the case may be, it seems to me that she's been captured sooner than expected. Whatever organization or entity has captured her, they seem to have coerced her into carrying out their dirty work in attempting to kill Iceberg, though I'm not sure why he's their target. But we can assume that her captors are working for the World Government, especially since the Sea Train tonight is going directly to Enies Lobby."
"About that," interjected Sanji. "What is that place? When I mentioned it earlier, it seemed like a key piece of information for you."
"It was," confirmed Itachi. "And the reason is that Enies Lobby is where world-class criminals are taken for sentencing. It's one of the greatest strongholds of the World Government, and no one who has been taken there has ever returned."
"World-class criminals like Robin, you mean?" asked Sanji.
"Precisely. I can't be completely sure about this next part, but I would guess that she agreed to assist them in whatever their goal is involving Iceberg, in exchange for your lives being spared when you inevitably were blamed for it. After the task is complete, she'll be taken to Enies Lobby to be sentenced, most likely to death."
"So, then, obviously the goal is to rescue Robin before she can be sentenced," said Sanji. "Sounds to me like we need to board the Sea Train tonight. The others will catch up once Chopper tells them everything, and whatever security they have on the train, you'll be more than enough to handle it."
"You mean, we'll be more than enough," corrected Itachi. "I may be strong, but don't let my presence cause you to underestimate your own strength. You're quite the capable fighter in your own right, Sanji."
Sanji was puzzled at that remark. "But you haven't even seen me fight?"
"True, but I have seen Zoro fight, when the Franky Family attacked the ship, and I know you have to be strong in your own right in order to rival him."
"Well, I appreciate the vote of confidence, even if I'm not particularly thrilled about being compared to Mosshead."
Itachi let out a small chuckle. "Apologies. I look forward to seeing you in action. But, I have one question for you."
"Well, shoot."
"If I hadn't told you any of this. About my conversation with Robin, nor about Enies Lobby, what would you do? Would you still board the train and risk your life for her after what she said?"
Sanji didn't even hesitate to answer. "The way I see it, when a woman lies, a real man forgives her."
Itachi smiled. "That's all I needed to hear. Let's go find a place to hide out."
That night, Itachi and Sanji were hiding in an alleyway outside the train station waiting for Robin and her captors to show up. Eventually, they heard voices from the entryway.
"This is a top secret government operation. Everyone here must be boarded off the books, understood?"
Sanji smirked. "Bingo."
He and Itachi poked their heads out slightly to get a view of what was happening. Robin was heading towards the Sea Train, surrounded by a bunch of men in black suits.
"No matter how you look at it, they're obviously escorting her away," said Sanji in a hushed tone. "But these guys are chumps. If she wanted to run, she could take them out no problem." He looked over to Itachi. "Assuming your theory is correct, I guess she really is intent on upholding her end of the bargain for our sakes."
Itachi nodded. "Seems like it. So, I suppose you'd like to play the part of her prince charming and rescue the damsel?"
Sanji was about to say something, but was interrupted by sudden shouting. "Sir, CP9 is here!"
Itachi gritted his teeth at that. "CP9? This just keeps getting worse."
"Who is CP9?" asked Sanji.
"I'll explain later," replied Itachi. CP1 through CP8 were common knowledge, but even he had never heard of CP9. They were a wild card, and who knew how strong their members were.
Then, a more familiar voice rang throughout the station. They had apparently captured Usopp as well, as well as a blue haired man whom neither Itachi nor Sanji recognized. The two of them were shouting simultaneously, barking out demands to release them before one of the CP9 agents knocked them out with two quick punches.
Itachi caught a glimpse of the one with the long nose, and realized how much worse the situation was than he initially believed..
"Sanji! The one with the long, square nose! That's Kaku! He's the shipwright who came to assess the Merry."
"What, seriously?"
"Yes. Apparently, he was an undercover agent the whole time. If he's been working for Galley La long enough to be recognized as a world class shipwright, this must have been a plan several years in the making. We'll have to be extra cautious."
"But, why does that change things?"
"It doesn't, as far as rescuing Robin. That's still our top priority. But, the presence of CP9 and the insertion of Kaku as a spy in a deep cover op has me reconsidering the significance of what they're after and why. This obviously goes beyond the scope of simply capturing Robin; they have some other purpose behind all this. I'd like to know what their end goal is, and it'll be easier to find out if we keep to the shadows and remain unseen."
"Gotcha," replied Sanji with a nod.
At that moment, the train signals began going off, indicating the train was about to depart.
"What? They're leaving early?" said Sanji. "Must be on account of the weather."
"Then we'd better get a move on," said Itachi. He peeked around and saw no sign of anyone around the entrance.
"It's all clear. Let's go." He and Sanji casually walked into the station, with Sanji stopping to swipe a pen and paper from the front office and write a note to Nami explaining the situation, as well as a small Transponder Snail, which Itachi understood.
Then, Sanji painted a large arrow on the wall pointing to where he left the note, which Itachi found to be slightly over the top, but at least it would be easy to spot.
Then, Sanji wrote an entire extra note above the arrow asking Nami to "please read this" and that "people who aren't Nami shouldn't read this because they're idiots," which Itachi chided him for as a waste of time.
Once they arrived at the docking area, the train was already in motion. Perfect timing.
"We'll hop on the rearmost car and work our way up," said Itachi.
"Hey, you two! Who are you?" called a station employee as he rushed towards them. "That's dangerous! Stay back!"
Itachi didn't even look his way, but merely pointed a finger at him, activating Ephemeral. The man stood for a moment, then walked away as if no one was there, mumbling something about his shift finally being over.
"Now then, as I was saying," said Itachi as they prepared to hop on the train. "We'll hop on the rear car and work our way up. We'll go car by car and eliminate anyone in our way until we find Robin."
"Understood. No mercy to anyone who gets between us and Robin."
"Once we deal with one car, cut it loose so that we avoid any loose ends. We need to get to Robin before the train reaches Enies Lobby, so we won't have much time to confirm kills. The safest bet is to cut the cars to keep us from being sandwiched."
Once Itachi and Sanji successfully boarded the train, the first car was easy pickings. Some weird guy of abnormal height named Jerry claimed to be a boxing master, but he was no match for Sanji, and went down in one kick. Itachi dispatched all the subordinates with blinding speed, drawing a kunai and cutting all their throats before they could react.
Sanji looked a little surprised, but ultimately just shrugged his shoulders. "You really weren't kidding about confirming kills, huh? Assault is one thing, but don't you think the World Government might react pretty strongly to us killing their men en masse like that?"
Itachi shrugged. "What are they gonna do? Raise my bounty? That hardly matters at this point, given how high it already is. I could use my powers to hypnotize them, but that's more draining, and I'd rather save my strength for when we go up against CP9."
"You got a point there," admitted Sanji. "Guess we should move on."
In the next car, Itachi and Sanji tried to play it off like they were supposed to be there, but it didn't work. Itachi took the left half of the car while Itachi took the right. In almost an instant, the car was a bloodbath, with Itachi coldly and efficiently slitting the throats of his foes and Sanji kicking his within an inch of their lives. Even the two sitting at the front bar with swords went down within seconds.
Usopp and Franky were tied up and laid out on the floor. Once they heard the sounds of fighting, they poked their heads up.
"Sanji?! Itachi?!" exclaimed Usopp. "You guys didn't hijack this train just to rescue me, did you?"
Sanji lit a cigarette before speaking. "I don't even know what you're doing here. Also, what's your name again? I'm not sure we've met before."
"Sanji, look over here," said Itachi, pointing at the bar where the two swordsmen had been sitting. On the countertop sat several Transponder Snails.
Sanji's face lit up immediately. "Perfect! Now I can contact Nami! Glad we got to this car early, the guys we fought in the last one just had a bunch of masks and costumes and stuff."
Franky wasn't too fond of being out of the loop. "Let me guess," he said. "These two are your pirate friends, aren't they?"
"Ex-friend," said Sanji and Usopp simultaneously.
"And who might you be?" asked Itachi.
"The face of Water 7's underworld. The ship dismantler, Franky."
Upon hearing this, Sanji immediately kicked Franky in the face.
"So you're the bastard who beat up Usopp! He may be dead to me now but he was my friend back then! So, how many pieces should I chop you into?!"
Usopp squeezed in between Sanji and Franky. "Wait, no, it's not like that anymore! A lot has changed since then! He saved the Merry, at least until… Until CP9 came along."
While they kept arguing, Itachi pulled a kunai from his pouch and circled around behind Usopp and latter of whom took notice.
"What, you gonna kill me over all this? That seems kinda extreme, don'tcha think?"
"Shut up," said Itachi firmly. "I have no intention of killing anyone tonight, unless they work for the World Government or the Navy." He flipped Franky over and quickly severed the bag and ropes binding him, then did the same for Usopp.
"Sanji, take a Snail. We need to get on the roof so you can contact the others uninterrupted."
Meanwhile, the rest of the Straw Hats, as well as Paulie of Galley La and the Franky Family were in hot pursuit aboard the Rocketman when Nami's Transponder Snail rang. She picked up almost immediately.
"Nami, can you hear me?" came Sanji's voice from the speaker.
"Yeah," she confirmed. "What's going on, Sanji?"
"Me and Itachi have boarded the Sea Train, but I got some bad news. Things have gotten complicated over here."
"What do you mean, complicated?" She could also hear other voices in the background. "Wait, what was that noise? Is someone else there with you two?"
"It's nothing, just some dumbasses. Forget about that for now. More importantly, Robin is still in the enemy's custody. Itachi has a theory about why she's been doing all this, but until we can speak to her again, we can't confirm anything."
"Actually, we know why she ran away. She explained it all to Mr. Iceberg earlier tonight, but it's kind of a long story and things are crazy over here."
As Nami was explaining the situation (and basically confirming Itachi's theory), Luffy and Zoro were outside carving a path forward through the massive tidal wave caused by Aqua Laguna, causing the train to shudder and shake violently.
Sanji, upon receiving the information, asked to speak to Luffy. Nami passed him the receiver.
"Luffy? That you?" asked Sanji.
"Yep! It's me!" confirmed Luffy. "What's up? Didja save Robin?"
"Not yet, I'm afraid we're still working on that one. Nami just got me caught up on why she surrendered. So yeah, I know everything now. I have Itachi with me as well. He figured this might be the case but it's good to have confirmation."
"Well, in that case, you know what's next," said Luffy. "Give 'em hell, you two."
"Wait, hold on!" Zoro's voice now. "The enemies on that train are really strong and they probably have backup! Are we sure they should go ahead and fight them right now?"
"Of course," replied Luffy. "If you were there, would you wait? If you were in Sanji's position right now, would you sit there and do nothing? There's no use in trying to stop him."
"You read me like a book, captain." said Sanji with a smirk. "But hey, thanks, Mosshead. Didn't know you cared about me so much!"
Itachi sighed. Of course he couldn't resist a parting jab.
"Anyway, that settles it," Sanji continued. "I woulda gone after her even without confirmation, but now that I know, I wouldn't stop even if you begged me."
"Hey, before you go," said Luffy. "I need to speak to Itachi real quick. You said he was with you, right?"
"Yeah, here you go," said Sanji, passing the receiver over.
"Luffy, I'm here. Go ahead," said Itachi.
"Good to hear your voice again," said Luffy. "I know I probably shouldn't ask, since you're not a part of the crew, and you've already done so much for us, but as captain of the Straw Hat Pirates, can I ask you to lend us your strength again?"
Itachi smiled. Making a formal request instead of assuming? The young captain was maturing. "Of course. I'd be happy to lend a hand in this operation, Luffy."
"Thank you," said Luffy, sounding slightly relieved. "I'm not your captain, which means I can't give you orders, so do as you see fit."
The line went dead. Itachi dropped the receiver on the ground and crushed it under his foot.
"Awww, what the hell didja do that for?!" shouted Franky. "I wanted to talk to Straw Hat too, dammit!"
"We can't risk any further communication via Transponder Snail," explained Itachi. "The more we use it, the more we risk the enemy intercepting our calls and discovering us. If they learn about our presence they could prepare a counterattack at Enies Lobby, and that would make this mission far more difficult."
Franky decided to join the effort to rescue Robin as well, stating that he has his own reasons for not wanting her to fall into the hands of the World Government, but Usopp declined, saying that since he's no longer part of the crew, it's not his place to get involved. The three were confused as to where exactly Usopp intended to go, but he went back down into the train cars.
As they were discussing a plan of attack, a Marine poked his head out the window and spotted them, shouting for backup. Itachi was about to throw a kunai into his skull, but something else hit the man first, knocking him into the sea.
Itachi looked in the direction of the projectile, and…
It was Usopp wearing a yellow mask and red cape.
"Your friend told me everything!" he exclaimed. "I understand you're here to rescue a certain mademoiselle, and that alone is reason enough for me to lend my skills and weapons! My name is Sniper King!"
I've seen a lot of silly things since I came to this world, but this is on another level, Itachi thought. But he understood. Usopp's pride wouldn't allow him to face Luffy and the others directly, but the mask would give him deniability. Probably best to humor him for now.
"Very well, Sniper King. Come over for a strategy meeting."
"Oh, uh, sure."
Itachi, Franky, Sanji, and Sniper King all sat in a circle.
"Okay, let's start the meeting for Operation: Rescue Robin." said Sanji.
"We've never met before, so don't any of you have any questions about me?"
Itachi nipped that in the bud quickly. "There'll be time for personal questions later, Sniper King. Right now it's better to focus on the task at hand."
Sniper King paused for a moment before replying. "I see your point. Very well, please continue."
"So, the car you were in was number six," continued Sanji. "Meaning there's five left, but we don't know which one Robin is in. By the way," he turned to Franky. "Are you strong?"
"Are you kidding? I'm super strong! Even more than usual this week!"
"Remember, the goal is to get Robin, not defeat the enemy. In theory. There's tons of Marines in narrow spaces, so we need to make sure we don't get surrounded. We should avoid as many fights as we can. With that in mind, I have a plan. We'll split into two teams. Me, Franky, and Sniper King will be team one. Itachi, you'll be team two. While team one progresses through the interior, we'll inevitably draw attention to ourselves. As more enemies come our way, While team one is causing chaos and attracting the bulk of their forces, Itachi will move outside, picking off stragglers as necessary and searching ahead for Robin. He'll also be responsible for sabotaging enemy tech and communications as much as possible as he goes about his search. Team one will also be detaching cars as we go, to keep us from getting surrounded."
"It's a good plan," said Itachi. "But you're forgetting my unique abilities. Rather than try and sneak around while I search for Robin, I can simply do this instead." He formed hand signs for the Transformation Jutsu, taking the form of the Marine that Sniper King had dispatched earlier.
"Whoa, what the hell?!" exclaimed Franky. "How'd you do that?"
Itachi smiled at him. "It's a secret. This way I can simply walk right through the cars without anyone giving me so much as a second look."
"Right, I forgot you can do stuff like that," said Sanji. "In that case, I guess you should just go on ahead. We'll give you one minute's head start so that you can get a couple of cars ahead before we attack."
"Hold on," said Sniper King. "If he can disguise himself as a Marine, why don't we simply act like he took us prisoner and go with him?"
"There's two problems with that idea," said Itachi. "One, there's no guarantee they'd allow you to go with me to the same car as Robin. A superior officer might insist on taking you himself, and then you'd have to fight your way through anyways and my cover could potentially be blown. Two, it would be very difficult to explain how a single low level Marine managed to subdue all three of you."
"Exactly," agreed Sanji. "Itachi's role in this is primarily stealth. We can't risk blowing his cover. Even though he's the strongest person here, we don't know what kind of power this CP9 group has, so it's better to be cautious and avoid fighting them at all if we can help it."
Itachi stood and began making his way back into the car via the window. "If that's all, I should get in there. The sooner we launch our offensive, the better."
"Go ahead," Sanji nodded. "Remember, you have one minute before we start. Get as far ahead of here as you can within that time."
Itachi nodded and jumped back into the car through the window. Immediately a man with a scary, zombie-like face and a tattered Marine jacket approached him.
"There you are, Private Gast! Where have you been?"
Itachi saluted, guessing this was the Marine's captain. "Sir! I was checking the roof for any sign of the intruders!"
The Captain sighed, apparently relieved that his subordinate was safe. "Good thinking, Marine, but next time tell me before you go off on your own like that! Did you find anything?"
"Apologies, sir. It won't happen again. Unfortunately, I found no sign of the intruders."
"Oh well," sighed the captain. "At least you're safe and sound. You had me worried, Private."
This guy is wasting my time, Itachi thought. "Actually, sir, I'd like your permission to go and change uniforms. The heavy rain soaked me to the bone out there, and I'd like to change before I catch a cold."
"Of course, Private," replied the captain. "You'll find a stash of extra uniforms in car three up ahead."
"Thank you, sir," said Itachi, and headed towards the exit.
He managed to make it to car three without incident. He was stopped once by another Marine, but was allowed through when he explained that "the captain" had ordered him to change uniforms before he got sick.
His minute was just about up. Team one would be starting their attack soon, and he had seen no sign of Robin on his way through cars five and four. If he had to guess, it made the most sense for her to be in car one, with CP9 in car two to intercept potential attackers. A good plan, but one that didn't account for someone with his skillset. He stepped outside into the gangway between cars three and two. Focusing chakra into his feet, he simply walked across the outside of car two, underneath the windows. Unless someone happened to be actively exercising Observation Haki, he was essentially undetectable.
He made it safely to the siding of car one, still walking along the wall. He peeked through the window and saw Robin sitting in the fourth seat from the front, on the left side. He undid the Transformation and knocked on the window next to her, getting her attention.
"Itachi! What are you doing here?!" she gasped, opening the window.
"Good to see you, too, Robin," replied Itachi dryly, after getting inside the car.
"I don't understand, how did you even get here?"
"Sanji and I waited outside the train station for you to show up," explained Itachi as he took a seat across from her. "Then we stowed away in the rear car. Him and Usopp, as well as a blue haired man called Franky, are currently causing chaos back there to keep the enemy's attention."
Sniper King was currently teaming up with Franky to defeat Nero, while Sanji was dealing with some weird wannabe chef who made ramen with his nose.
"Usopp? How did he get here?"
"Apparently he was captured by CP9 alongside that Franky fellow. In any case, Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hats are also heading this way, and from the sound of it, they've brought a small army with them. We should escape before CP9 gets involved in the fighting. I can carry you as I walk along the outside of the train, and we can grab the others on the way."
"No, I'm not coming," said Robin coldly. "I told you I was never coming back to the Straw Hats, and that's final."
"Robin, look at me," said Itachi firmly. She slowly raised her head to meet his gaze. "They know. They know everything about what's been going on: why you surrendered, the deal you made for their lives, all of it. Mayor Iceberg survived and filled them in."
Robin seemed surprised to hear that. "That doesn't change my mind. I still won't go with you, no matter what."
"I told you that day, back on the Merry, that Luffy wouldn't stop until he got you back. The fact that I'm even here is proof of that. He humbled himself in order to formally request my help in this rescue mission even though I'm not actually a crew member. He will do anything, stop at nothing, to bring you back. You said it's easy for the strong to have faith in others because they know they have their own strength to fall back on, but that's backwards. The strong exist so that other people can have someone to place their faith in, and Luffy is much stronger than you give him credit for."
"Well, maybe it's not a matter of faith," spat Robin, averting her gaze. "Maybe I just want to die. Did you ever consider that? Don't you care how I feel?"
"If that's really how you feel," said Itachi calmly. "Then how come you couldn't look me in the eyes when you said it?"
Their conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door. Corgi had overheard Robin's outburst and was coming to check on her.
Itachi dashed to the door in an instant, and the moment it opened, Corgi made direct eye contact with the Sharingan and was instantly under his Genjutsu.
As tempting as it was to torture him a little, Itachi knew he needed to make sure CP9 was none the wiser about his presence. He fed Corgi an illusion that Robin had spilled some coffee on herself, causing him to laugh and hurl a few insults her way before returning to car 2.
Itachi sat back down across from Robin. "Now, back to my question."
There was no time for that, however, as the sound of something crashing through car 2 echoed into their car.
"Damn, seems contact with CP9 is unavoidable after all. We'll continue this conversation in a moment. I have to back up the others." Itachi got up and proceeded towards the door.
Robin was grateful for the interruption. Itachi always knew how to get right to the heart of the issue, and she had no good answer for that final question. She clenched her fists. There was only one thing she could do now.
Itachi entered car 2 just in time to see one of CP9's agents apparently kill one of their own.
"Kalifa," he said. "In our mission report, write that the new guy was too weak, and deemed worthless."
"Understood, sir."
"So," began Itachi, "This is how CP9 treats its members. Disgusting."
The one with the top hat and bird was the first to respond. "Wait, I know your face. You're 'Red Eyes' Itachi, former 4th Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates."
"Indeed. And now, I will be your opponent." Itachi activated his Sharingan and began weaving hand signs. Before he could finish, however, limbs suddenly sprouted from his body, locking up his arms, covering his eyes, and clutching at his throat.
"What the hell?" he gasped.
Blueno didn't hesitate. He knew that if someone as powerful as Itachi was given even a single spare moment, he'd be out of that hold and wreaking havoc on them. Using Shave to close the distance, he launched a Finger Pistol to Itachi's solar plexus. Itachi didn't have time to use Armament Haki to defend himself, but his body was durable enough on its own to prevent the blow from being lethal. Even so, it was sufficient to cause unconsciousness.