Chapter 3: Whisky Peaks
"What's the worst that could possibly happen?..."
Vivi couldn't help but reflect on that statement she made long ago. She didn't give much thought for the most part. But with everything that's happened, it's pretty ironic now.
It was going well at first. Viv used her new abilities to help her kingdom. It was challenging at first, Alabasta was still a desert, but she persisted and it seemed to work.
Until she and Igaram learn that a revered and respected pirate hunter named Crocodile turned out to be a ruthless Warlord plotting to conquer Alabasta and turn it into a 'Perfect Utopia' that can compete with the current World Government.
To achieve this, he created a large crime syndicate called Baroque Works. Their sole purpose is to tear Alabasta apart from the inside out. Unfortunately, they seem very effective, they have already framed Vivi's father for stealing rain from neighboring towns.
With the king's reputation in danger and the nation about to tear itself apart, Vivi and Igaram went undercover to infiltrate the organization and expose the real culprit.
While undercover, Vivi used her forms to attack and sabotage Baroque Operations.
Watching 'Mr. 0' AKA…Crocodile and his Officer Agents scrambled to make up for the setback she caused brought such satisfaction to Vivi seeing karma at its finest.
Despite her effectiveness, she had not yet told Igaram about her powers.
She had planned to tell him when the time was right.
But has a few 'setbacks'…
First, there was the fiasco where she and Mr. 9 had to hunt the Island Whale by Reverse Mountain.
But honestly, Vivi was glad they left the poor animal alone, especially after learning about its tragic backstory.
Then there was being stuck with the Straw Hats on their ship, apart from the crazy weather the trip back to Whiskey Peaks was a breeze.
While there, Vivi had been thankful that they could get them back and hopeful they could bring in a decent bounty to the bosses.
It would've given her a chance to ascend the ranks further, and hopefully help her cause.
Suffice it to say, things didn't end up that simple, especially when you realize that one of the Straw Hats happened to the infamous 'Pirate Hunter' Roronoa Zoro!
Defeating her and hundreds of the Millions agents on the island without even breaking a sweat.
Enough said things were not looking good for Vivi. But they were about to get a whole lot worse…
-x-
Present-
Vivi, her duck companion Karoo, and Mr. 9 were picking themselves up after that embarrassing defeat at the hands of Zoro.
"Honestly, that was not one of my best ideas." Vivi thought to herself and looked down at the arm that had her wristband under her jacket sleeve. "That bushido guy may be skilled, but I doubt he will be a match against my full strength."
On the ground next to them, Igaram struggled to push himself up. "I can't fall in a place like this… I've got an important mission…"
Vivi felt terrible for Ingram, he tried his best but it wasn't good enough.
But before she could comfort him, a person walking up to them mocked them for their failure.
"How pitiful, losing against just one swordsman."
"Hm?!" They all looked up to see a dark-skinned man with dreadlocks wearing sunglasses in a dominantly red outfit with a pink scarf, and a blonde woman with white heels, a yellow lemon-print dress, a yellow dome hat, white gloves, lemon earrings, and holding a yellow and blue striped umbrella.
"Mr. 5! Ms. Valentine! What are you doing here?!" Igaram shouted in shock to see them here.
"Are you guys kidding around?" Mr. 5 scoffed.
"After all, this is the difference between our rank, and yours, isn't it?" Ms. Valentine mocked arrogantly.
"Did you come to laugh at us?" Mr. 8 glared.
"That too, but..." Ms. Valentine laughed again. "Of course, we're here under our mission."
"Thank goodness," Mr. 9 remarked, in relief. "If you help us, that man is no match for us!"
"That's right," Vivi agreed. "Please beat that swordsman right away."
"Huh? Enough with the bad jokes," Mr. 5 dismissed. "Us? Help you?"
"Did you really think that we'd come all the way to the end of the Grand Line for that?" Ms. Valentine added.
"What?" Mr. 9 asked disappointedly. "Then what mission did you come here for?"
"You really have no idea? They're criminals here that are big enough for the boss to send us here to deal with." Mr. 5 explained.
"These're the boss' words: "They've found out my secrets." Of course, I don't know what kind of secrets they are, but our company's motto is 'mystery.' No matter what identity it is, the rule is that you never nose around. If someone finds out the boss' secrets, that's of course, a sin worthy of death."
"So, when we very carefully investigated who learned his secrets," Ms. Valentine laughed.
"But in our search for the rat, we began to notice a strange coincidence. For the past few months, several of the company's operations have been attacked by multiple 'monsters'. Mr. 5 noted.
"We also discovered these same monsters have been seen helping protect Alabasta in the past." Ms. Valentine added.
Vivi's face went pale. "Wait! They figured it out! That's impossible!" She panicked, considering using her powers.
Igaram on the other hand was confused by what they were talking about.
"I-I don't understand… what does any of that have to do with anything?" Igaram demanded.
"Everything! Old man!" Mr. 5 argued.
"Oh boy, it turns out the rat is not only a VIP from a certain kingdom…" Ms. Valentine blabbed. "And they're in cahoots with those pesky monsters!"
Mr. 9 was shocked, scared, and surprised. "W-wait a sec! Although I'm wearing a crown, I'm not a king or anything! It's just my hobby!" He tried to defend himself, thinking he was the target.
"We're not talking about you!" Ms. Valentine barked, as Mr. 9 let out a sigh of relief.
"The sinners are those who're missing from Alabasta Kingdom right now." She explains pointing to Vivi and Igaram.
Igaram was visibly panicking. 'They know! It's all over!' With no other option, he got up and pulled the loops of his bow tie. Suddenly gun barrels pop out of the tube curls of his hair.
"Die! Igarappappa!" He sent a shower of gunshots at the two agents. "I won't let you lay a finger on our princess! On my name as Squad Captain of Alabasta Kingdom Security!"
"Igaram!" Vivi exclaimed fearfully., however, the dust cleared and the two were unscathed and still standing.
"Igaram, the Squad Captain of Alabasta Kingdom Security! And it's Princess Nefertari Vivi! In the name of Baroque Works' boss, we'll eliminate you two." Mr. 5 remarked and held up a photo of Vivi as proof.
Unbeknownst to everyone below, Zoro was watching the whole thing from the roof.
-x-
"Damn…" Zoro muttered to himself watching this turn of events unfold.
He looks to the right and sees a sleeping boy wearing a straw hat and a cartoonishly bloated belly unaware of anything going on.
"And I left Luffy down there..." He curses.
-x-
Back below, Igaram turns to Vivi, very fearful for her safety.
"Quickly, Princess! Please escape!" He begs before suddenly being blown up by an explosive, when the dust settles, Igaram falls to the ground unconscious.
"Igaram!" Vivi exclaimed fearfully.
"It's no use!" Ms. Valentine warned as she floated over, and swiped at Vivi with a kick.
She dodges as it breaks Vivi's ponytail holder making her blue hair flow down, and Valentine lands back on the ground.
"You monsters!" Vivi growled angrily, pulling her sleeve up a bit to reach the wristband.
"You're a princess, Ms. Wednesday?!" Mr. 9 explained, shocked by the revelation.
"Quit being dumb, Mr. 9!" She scolded her old partner.
-x-
Meanwhile, Zoro sneaks around the fight and tries to drag away Luffy.
"This is one screwed-up night!" Zoro remarked. "You guys can do whatever you want!" He says as he frantically drags the sleeping Luffy away.
-x-
"P-Princess," Igaram muttered weakly, showing he was still alive.
"Igaram! Are you alright?!" Vivi asked, worried for the man who was like a second father to her.
"Princess! Never mind me! Just please... escape from here! For our motherland…" Igaram begged Vivi to leave him behind to save herself.
"Without you, our kingdom of Alabasta will be..." He warns. "I-If what they say is true and you do have contact with those creatures, Please… contact them… y-you and those creatures may be our country's last hope… Hurry!"
Then Mr. 5 barges in and starts picking his nose. "You think you can escape from us?"
This was the last straw for Vivi turned to the villainous hunters with fury in her eyes as she whipped out her wristband.
"Don't mess with me!" She roars, ready to transform and rip these two to shreds.
However, Mr. 9 stopped her with one bat held up.
"I'm having a hard time swallowing what's going on here, but we've been a pair for a long time. I'll buy you some time! Get going, Ms. Wednesday!" He says definitely.
"Mr. 9…" Vivi said, touched she had made some real friends in Baroque Works.
"Pretty manly, wouldn't you say? Bye-bye, baby! Hot-blooded Bat..." He says as he summersaults at Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine.
"Mr. 9!" She called out trying to get him to stop, but it was no use.
"All we need is the will to accomplish our mission. A pathetic sense of camaraderie will only bring about death. Time to learn the hard way!" Mr. 5 lowered his hand and rubbed his thumb and index finger together. "Nose Fancy..."
"...of Guts!" Mr. 9 shouts as he prepares to attack.
"...Cannon!" Mr. 5 announces as he flicks a booger at him, resulting in an explosion.
Vivi watched in horror, as he was sent flying back into the river.
"Mr. 9!" She cried out in dread.
Zoro was watching this and was in shock by Mr. 5's firepower.
"Whoa, now! That's some dangerous snot he's got!" He noted.
Suddenly something grabbed him by the leg which startled him. He turned and saw Igaram grabbing his leg.
"What the hell?!" Zoro demanded as he struggled to escape.
"Mr Swordsman! Upon seeing your skill, I have a request, unreasonable as it may be!" Igaram begged Zoro to help them.
"Yeah, right! Screw that! Let go of me!" He refused, due to their past actions against him and his crew.
"As both of those people possess Devil Fruit powers, I can't stop them! Might I ask you to protect the princess in my place?! Please!" He begged.
Zoro stopped struggling. "Huh?!"
-x-
Back with Vivi, Mr. 5 started preparing for another explosive.
So Vivi quickly jumped on Karoo's back.
"Karoo! Run!" She ordered as they began a sprint to safety.
"There she goes," Ms. Valentine observed.
"She can't get away from us. Let's get her, Ms. Valentine!" He shouts chasing after them.
"Right, Mr. 5!" Ms. Valentine agreed as she followed her partner.
-x-
Later, Vivi and Karoo were still running for their lives.
"There's a ship docked behind the cactus rocks! We're going to use it to escape from this island! And then we'll go to Alabasta!" She explained to her duck.
"Hurry, Karoo!" Vivi urged, but an explosion startled her.
"Karoo! Stop!" They screeched to a halt and watched the billowing smoke. Out of it stepped Mr. 5.
"Mr. 5... they've found us! Karoo! This way! Hurry!" She shouted as they ran away with Ms. Valentine drifting down close behind.
"Such pointless struggling," Mr. 5 remarked.
They stopped again when a burly figure stood in their path.
"Ms. Monday?!" She was surprised to see her, and to their surprise, she pointed behind the cactus rocks.
"Go on. You can use the ships through here. I'll hold them off here!" She advised as she stood her ground.
"But..." Vivi tried to get her to stop.
"Thanks to that freakishly strong swordsman, we're all going to get punished for failing our mission anyway." Ms. Monday explained why she was helping her as she carried a long, wooden beam behind her back.
"Plus I'd much rather get my butt kicked shielding a friend." Vivi stayed quiet, feeling choked up.
"C'mon, what're you standing around for?! If you get killed, Mr. 8 and Mr. 9's sacrifices will be for nothing! Get going!" She shouts for her to escape.
Vivi's breath shuddered, as she averted her gaze.
"Thank you…" She almost whispered and rode away.
"First Mr. 9, and now you… Ms. Monday?" Mr. 5 remarked, confused by all the betrayals.
"I won't let you pass! I bet my pride on it!" She shouted as she stood in a fighting pose.
"You're so funny!" Ms. Valentine laughed mockingly.
"You're a disgrace..." Mr. 5 started charging in, fist ready.
Ms. Monday swung her beam, but Mr. 5 dodged and landed his punch. "... to Baroque Works!"
A large explosion goes off, Vivi stops Karoo and turns back at the explosion.
She gaped in horror at the fire brewing, as her comrade fell.
"Ms. Monday..." She mourned, as Mr. 5 went for her next.
"I'm a 'Bomb Man'! I can make my entire body explode. Thanks to this Bomb-Bomb Fruit power, there is no mission I've never completed!" He boasted.
Vivi gasped when she found Ms. Valentine lowering towards Monday, umbrella-first.
"Using my Kilo-Kilo Fruit power, I'll bury that backstabbing Ms. Monday into the ground! I'm able to change my body weight at will!" Valentine explained.
"Right now, I'm light enough to be lifted by the wind! But now it's time to get heavy! 2 kilograms... 3 kilograms..." She says as she begins falling faster.
"5 kilograms... 10 kilograms... 100 kilograms... 1,000 kilograms! 10,000 Kilogram Press!" Valentine exclaimed sadistically as she crashed down onto the muscular woman, and stood back up.
"Well? Do you still think you could survive that?" She asked to get out of the crater.
"There is no possible escape from us." Mr. 5 repeated.
Vivi couldn't speak, noticing one of the green flowers from Ms. Monday's dress laid discarded by her feet, as she was about to cry, but kept strong.
"No! That's it! No more running and no more sacrifices!" She gritted her teeth as she hopped off Karoo's back and pulled up her sleeve as she activated the wristband.
"I will survive, I will return… I will return to Alabasta alive!" She vows as he selects a form.
She was about to slam the faceplate as Mr. 5 readied another booger explosive. "Take this! Nose Fancy..."
Then out of nowhere, Zoro leaped down from nearby in front of Vivi just as she was about to transform.
"... Cannon!" Mr. 5 shouts as he flicks his explosive bogger.
He blocked off the attack with his sword, cutting the booger in half, and the halves exploded behind them and a green flash went off.
"I-I cut his booger!" Zoro exclaimed in disgust when he realized what he had just done.
Then he realized what he was supposed to be doing (Well… only because his crewmate Nami forced him to.)
"Now… where's the Princ- WHAT THE HELL!" Zoro shouts when he looks at what is now behind him.
Vivi was now in her Crystal form, ready to fight.
"Are you serious?! This girl's got a DEVIL FRUIT! Then why the hell am I protecting her?! Couldn't that geezer have told me this earlier!" Zoro growls to himself, looking like he's ready to murder Igaram.
Vivi, on the other hand, looked rather annoyed at Zoro's sudden reappearance.
"Damn you!" Vivi curses as her hands turn into blades, oblivious to his intentions. "You never give up! Now, of all times!"
Zoro, without even trying, uses two of his swords to parry the strikes of her blade hands and points his sword at her throat. "Don't get hasty... I'm here to rescue you."
"Eh?" Vivi asked, confused. "Me?"
"Why would you want to protect the princess of Alabasta?" Mr. 5 asked.
"I got some circumstances of my own, you see," Zoro explained with no plans to clarify why.
"Well, no matter... You're our enemy, one way or another. You're in our way." Mr. 5 says get another booger.
"Yeah!" Ms. Valentine laughed. "He is!"
But before another brawl could commence, a loud shout came out of nowhere.
"There you are!" Luffy came from around the corner and he didn't look or sound happy.
"Zorooooo!" He furiously shouts to the swordsman.
"Now what?!" Ms. Valentine exclaimed annoyed.
"Luffy! Thanks, but I don't need any help! Or does that wench got you in 'debt' too?" Zoro was glad to see Luffy, oblivious to the captain's seething rage toward him.
"I'm gonna make you pay for what you did! Let's fight!" He called Zoro out.
"Huh?! What nonsense are you spewing this time?!" Zoro stated in confusion.
"Shut up! I'm gonna kick your ass for being such an ingrate!" Luffy shouts in a blind rage.
"Ingrate?!" Zoro took offense to that.
"That's right!" Luffy barked, his bloated belly bouncing, as he seethed with fury. "Everyone in town welcomed us, and gave us lots of yummy food! But you cut down every last one of them!"
"Well, yeah, but..." Zoro tried to explain, but what cut off...
"You will pay for this!" Luffy vows as he runs to beat up Zoro.
"W-what a dull-headed person!" Vivi remarked, and Karoo nodded in agreement.
"Internal strife, huh? Talk about lame." Mr. 5 scoffed at the exchange.
"Let's just get rid of everyone who interferes with our mission!" Ms. Valentine laughed.
"Hold on, Luffy. Listen to me; they were actually bounty-hunt-" Zoro sighed in frustration.
"Don't make excuses!" But Luffy wasn't listening, he leaped high in the air, a fist ready.
"LUFFYYYYY!" Zoro dodged to make him punch rocks instead. "Are you trying to kill me?!"
"Yeah!" He confirms. "Die!"
Zoro gawked, before jumping away from a kick.
"Dammit! Listen to me! Hey!" He dodged a headbutt, and rocks crumbled around Luffy.
"That idiot!" He exclaimed as he pulled his head out of the rubble. "He's serious!"
The two agents watched the battle. "Mr. 5, it doesn't seem like they're here to stop us," Ms. Valentine remarked.
"It would seem not," He agreed, "Then let's accomplish our mission quietly."
They turned to Vivi, as Ms. Valentine closed her umbrella. "Our mission is to eliminate Princess Vivi of the Kingdom of Alabasta."
"Why you! Quit running away!" Luffy and Zoro's feud continued between them, and their target.
"H-hold on, Luffy! Hear me out!" Zoro still tried to get Luffy to understand.
"Let's do it, Ms. Valentine!" Mr. 5 offered.
"Yes, Mr. 5!" Ms. Valentine agreed as they rushed to the princess.
Vivi gritted as she raised her blade arms, while Karoo hid behind her.
"Quit screwing around, dammit!" Zoro shouts as he kicks Luffy away, launching him straight into the agents, and sending them crashing into a wall.
"That dumbass!" He panted.
"Now you guys really got in our way!" Mr. 5 growled, done with the antics of the Straw Hats.
"Ugh!" Ms. Valentine sat up. "What the heck's going on?!"
Mr. 5 regained his footing. "If you two wanna kill each other that badly, then we'll kill you both ourselves while we're at it! 'Kay?" He looked down at Luffy, who puffed in anger.
The building was totaled by a bunch of explosions, shocking Zoro and Vivi, with Ms. Valentine flying out of the carnage.
"Now I'm really annoyed! Time to die at the hands of my Kilo-Kilo Fruit power!" She laughed evilly. "Get ready! As I ride this explosive blast, I weigh only 1 kilogram!"
"Mr. Bushido! You have to dodge!" Vivi warns Zoro as she shifts her hands into jagged points and tries to aim at Valentine. "She's-"
But Zoro holds his sword out in front of her.
"Shut up!" Zoro shouts to make the crystalline princess stand down in surprise.
"This isn't the time for that right now!" He explained more focus on dealing with his moronic captain.
Shockingly, on cue, a now skinny Luffy emerged from the smoke, dragging an incapacitated Mr. 5 with him. "That was a good workout! Finally managed to digest that food!"
"M-Mr. 5?!" Vivi exclaimed. "No way! He took out a Baroque Works officer agent?!"
Luffy stared darkly at Zoro. "Now I can fight for real."
"Hold on, Luffy." Zoro was still not wanting to fight.
"Here I come!" Ms. Valentine floated above him.
"Calm down, and hear me out." He tried to examine ignoring Valentine.
"I can change to 10,000 kg!" Ms. Valentine adds.
"Everyone in town was a bounty hunter; our enemy, in other words," Zoro explained making Valentine realize he was ignoring her.
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" She shouts at Zoro, angered by Zoro's lack of focus on her.
"Liar! Enemies wouldn't give us food to eat!" Luffy argued as he dropped Mr. 5's body to the ground.
"Take this! 10,000 Kilogram Press!" Ms. Valentine stated as she started rocketing down to smash her target.
"Luffy," Zoro casually stepped aside, so she crashed into the ground next to him.
"Looks like trying to talk sense into you is pointless." Zoro relents, that there was no convincing Luffy, so he gets ready to fight. Now serious, he tied his bandanna to his head.
"You dumb dimwit! In that case, I'm gonna fight to kill too! Don't regret it when you die!" He offered to battle.
"Sounds great to me!" Luffy accepts Zoro's challenge with a determined smirk.
"Hold on!" Vivi exclaimed to herself, feeling confused, as Zoro held one sword in his mouth.
"What's going on?! Weren't these two people friends?!" She asked herself.
"Gum-Gum..." Luffy stretched his arms back.
"Oni..." Zoro charged in.
"...Bazooka!" Luffy then sends his fist flying forward.
"...Giri!" Zoro swings his blade at Luffy.
Their attacks collide and struggle to overpower one another.
"This is the perfect chance to see which is stronger," Zoro remarked, "Brute force, or swordsmanship!"
"Yeah!" Luffy agreed. "Let's find out once and for all!"
"Tatsu-maki!" Zoro sends one spin of his sword sending the captain flying
"Gum-Gum... Pistol!" Luffy landed a punch to Zoro's face, knocking him down, but both were launched into opposing walls.
Vivi waited silently, as the thick cloud of dust cleared. "What now?" She wondered aloud cautiously.
"I want to escape, but will we be alright if we pass through here?" Karoo quacked in agreement, and they started a slow, careful trek through the town.
But they were startled by Luffy and Zoro bursting out of the walls, and continuing their fight. The latter managed to cut the former's cheek, while the former nailed a punch to the latter's gut.
"Damn it!" Mr. 5 complained. "The title of Baroque Works Officer Agent will be shamed, if we let these guys make fools of us!"
"Mr. 5!" Ms. Valentine grinned confidently. "Let's show them how truly terrifying we can be!"
"Let's do it, Ms. Valentine!" Mr. 5 agreed.
"Yes, Mr. 5!"
With that, the two agents charged the feuding pirates.
"Don't mock us! We're Baroque Works Officer Agents!" Ms. Valentine boasted.
Luffy and Zoro turned to them angrily.
"Quit being so damn annoying!" They yelled simultaneously, stopping them.
"You're interfering..." They punched/cut them away. "... with our fight!"
"Damn, they're annoying!" Zoro complained.
"What's their problem?!" Luffy exclaimed.
Vivi could only stare, jaw-dropped. They just took down two high-ranking agents without even trying! "This can't be! Their strength! Unbelievable!"
"Alright then. Let's settle this!" Zoro takes a swordsman stance.
"Yeah!" Luffy agreed.
As Vivi watched nervously, they just stared menacingly at one another. With battle cries, they finally went to attack... only for an orange-haired girl to punch them away.
"Knock it off!" Nami scolded, as they fell to the ground.
"What the heck are you guys doing?! You're supposed to be keeping that princess safe! You almost let a billion berries get away from us!" She stood between them and pulled them up by the scruffs of their shirts. "Understand?!"
"What are you talking about?" Vivi asked Nami.
Nami turned around and wasn't expecting to see Vivi's crystal form.
"What the? Who's this girl? Is she made of DIAMONDS?! Could it be a Devil Fruit? How much would those diamonds fetch for?" All these questions were swirling in Nami's head.
Then Zoro spoke up. "N-Nami… this Diamond-Headed girl is the princess…" He explained to the navigator. "Think she has some weird Devil Fruit or something…"
"Huh… Really?" Nami turned to Vivi and asked.
"Y-yes! That's right! I… ate a Devil Fruit! That's how I got my powers." Viv sheepishly lied.
"Wooooahhhh! That's so cool!" Luffy complemented with wide-eyed wonder that completely threw Vivi off guard.
Earlier, this Straw Hat guy was full of rage and intent on brutalizing Zoro.
"Note to self… Better not get on Luffy's bad side…" She muttered to herself.
Luffy was then about to ask Viv so many questions about her powers. So Zoro punched Luffy in the face to shut him up, which made him kick Zoro back.
"Right! We need to talk about that!" Nami began a negotiation amongst the squabbling. "It's like this; won't you make a contract with me?"
"Contract?" Vivi asked, confused.
Nami finally punched the two boys to the ground. "Quit fighting!"
Vivi stood there watching this as her eye twitched out of control. "THESE PEOPLE ARE INSANE!"
TBC…
Author's note: Let me know what you think and as always. Constructive criticism is allowed. Trolling is not.
Oh, it's gonna get crazier from here on out…
So until next time. AutoHunter, Rolling out of the hunt.