Early morning sunlight floods in through the window, splashing across disheveled sheets and falling across the red head's exposed back. Run awakens with a sleepy groan, a smile slowly spreading across his face as memories of the night before rush back. He reaches out for the opposite side of the bed only to find it empty. His brow furrows as he quickly turns and sits up. He quickly scans the room, finding it empty but for himself and after a few moments he lies back down.
"Off she goes again," Run mumbles, staring at the ceiling. His hands come up, and he threads his fingers behind his head. Always on the move, always searching for the next answer or the next forgotten piece of history. Several minutes of lying in silence before he finally sits up again, casting his legs over the edge of the bed and coming to an abrupt halt when he notices a neatly folded piece of paper. The red head picks the paper up and unfolds it before scanning the flowing hand writing slowly.
'Dearest Run, I apologize for leaving without saying goodbye but you were sleeping so peacefully I didn't have the heart to wake you. Run, I know you want to help, and I want your help more than anything but you have a crew to look after now. Asking you to choose between myself and Luffy isn't right, and it isn't fair to you. I just have one final thing to do, and then I'm coming home to you...coming home forever. I know no words of mine can convince you that I'll be fine, and so I can only promise that I will do my utmost to remain safe. Yours always, Robin. P.S I promise I'll write often.'
"Coming home forever," echos Run, a gentle smile curving his lips. "It can't be soon enough."
"Ooooiii!" shouts a familiar voice, attracting his attention to the window. "Run! Rise and shine!" The red head rises, quickly slipping on his briefs before approach the window and throwing it open. Luffy, Zoro, Sanji and Usopp stand in the middle of the street looking up at the window. "See? I told you he was here, Zoro!" Run leans against the window frame, staring down at the group. "C'mon, Run! It's time for us to go!"
"Alright, alright. I'll meet you guys at the port just let me grab a shower..."
----
Time to set sail, and leave Cocoyashi village. The Going Merry is being restocked with everything that they might need for the trip to the Grand Line. Zoro carries up the last crate, and hands it off to Run who places it beside another stack of them. "That all the last of it?" Run asks.
"Yeah, that's it, Red," replies Zoro. "We're ready to set sail any time." From the dock, Johnny and Yosaku call to the crew to get their attention. They tell them all that even though they've had a lot of fun its time to get back to their job as bounty-hunters, and that they hope to meet again someday.
"Oi, has anyone seen Nami?" Usopp questions them all.
"Maybe she decided not to join us?"
"Wha?! What do you mean?!" demands Sanji. "Nami is like 98.46% of the reason that I joined!"
"So, you're only 1.54% loyal to the crew, then, cook?" A commotion from the dock again draws their attention to their navigator standing several yards away from the group at the end of the dock.
"Let's get moving!" screams Nami, starting to sprint towards the ship. With some hesitation they do as asked, weighing anchor and setting the sails as Nami draws closer and closer, weaving this way and that through the crowd of villagers gathered together.
"Is it alright to let her do this?" Sanji asks aloud.
"If it's what she wants to do," Luffy replies bluntly. When she reaches the end of the dock, she leaps the distance between the dock and the Going Merry. While they all seem to be upset that they won't be able to say goodbye to one of their own, this seems to disappear when she lifts the hem of her shirt and allows a large number of wallets to drop out.
"Glad to see everything that's happened hasn't put a damper on her spirits."
"She's gonna betray us again, isn't she?"
"Good job, Nami!" With everything and everyone on board...it was time for them to set sail for the Grand Line...
----
"You raised the price again?" Nami interrogates the bird. "Don't you think that you're charging a bit much?" Regardless, she drops the coin into the birds pouch. "Raise it again, and I'm going to stop buying." Nearly whole crew is gathered at the bow of the Going Merry. Usopp is busy making some kind of new ammunition to fire from his sling-shot with what looks like tabasco while Run lounging in the deck chair, watching Nami's argument with the bird with no small amount of amusement.
"Well, way to bully the poor bird," Run tells her, setting down his water glass on the deck beside. The red head crosses his stretched legs and threads his fingers behind his head with a bright smile. "He doesn't set the price, and besides it's just a newspaper."
"Not when you're buying it ever day," Nami retorts. "It adds up!"
"Dahahaha~! There's no need to be so stingy. The road to gold will only lead to ruin, ya know."
"Oh, what do you know? Now that everything is over, I'm trying to earn money for myself!" Her sudden out burst startles Usopp, who nearly spills the tabasco sauce in his eyes. "I don't want to end up some broke pirate who can't even dress up!"
"O-Oi!" shouts Usopp. "Calm down! I'm trying to develop my special Tabasco Star!" Of course, no sooner has he finished asking for peace and quiet than Luffy is suddenly kicked in his direction curtosy of Sanji. Their Captain lands directly in his lap, knocking the bottle out of his hands and splashing the tabasco sauce right into his eyes. "Aah? YEOW!" Usopp leaps up and begins sprinting around the deck. "Water! Water!" Usopp sprints past the red head who quickly reaches out, catching him by the back of his overalls. In one smooth motion he has their sharpshooter lying on his back beside his deck chair and has doused his eyes with his water glass. "Aah...aaaah...thank you, Run."
"Anytime, Usopp," Run tells him, giving him a friendly pat on the chest before reclining back in his chair again.
"Aaah, c'mon!" complains Luffy. "I just want one tangerine! You're such a cheapskate! Bleeh!"
"You're not getting a tangerine, Luffy!" Sanji shouts back, standing defensively in front of the newly planted tangerine trees. "Nami! I'll defend these trees no matter what!"
"Good job, Sanji," Nami tells him, not looking away from the newspaper in her hands. "Ah, the world is such a dangerous place lately. There's been another coup in Villa." Their navigator flips through the papers of the paper, pausing only when a pair of papers fall out, floating slowly through the air and landing on the deck beside her. Emblazoned proudly on the two pairs are two very familiar faces...something that immediately panics both Nami and Usopp. Luffy is quick to snag the papers up, looking at the two of them with a huge grin on his face before turning them around to face the crew.
"Wanted dead or alive," reads Run, a smile slowly spreading across his face now as well. "'Straw Hat' Monkey D. Luffy with a bounty of 30,000,000 Beli! 'Red' Run with a bounty of 20,000,000 Beli! Yeah!" Luffy and Run are practically bouncing off the walls with excitement while Nami is practically beside herself with concern for her own well being. They're fairly decent photos of the two men, too. Luffy is facing the camera while grinning from ear to ear, and Run is smiling rather confidently with arms crossed. "Now we're off to a good start, Luffy! Fifty million for just the two of us!"
"Our first bounties!" shouts Luffy before breaking out in laughter. "We're finally wanted criminals! C'mon! We're nearing the Grand Land, so let's charge straight ahead!"
"It's not that simple," Nami tells him, quickly pulling out a map and spreading it out on the deck and calling the whole crew together. "The only way to reach the Grand Line is through Reverse Mountain."
"What a pain in the ass," complains Zoro. "Can't we just sail straight into it?"
"No," Sanji tells him. "From what the geezer told me, it's the only way that ships can enter."
"Huh? How come?" Usopp asks.
"I don't know. The old geezer didn't tell me much more than that."
"It's because of the Calm Belt," Run tells them. The red head leans forward and points at the map. "Just sailing into the Grand Line is impossible because it's surrounded on the North and South by what's known as the Calm Belt. It's a called as such because it's a stretch of sea with no currents and no winds making it impossible to sail with traditional methods. At least that what's the old man told me."
"Y...Yeah," Nami says, surprised with the red head's knowledge. "Anyway, like I said the only way into the Grand Line is through Reverse Mountain."
"Aaah, but the other way sounds like it's more fun!" complains Luffy. "If we're not going to do that then can we at least stop somewhere to get some meat! I want to celebrate!"
"Fine. Then, we'll stop here." Nami points at an island on the map. "Loguetown. It's a pretty famous city."
"Loguetown? What? Is it famous for its meat?"
"The town of the beginning and the end," Zoro says. "That's what I've heard."
"It's the town where Gold Roger was born," Nami tells him. "Born and executed. Wanna go?"
"Yeah," chirps Luffy quickly. "I want to see the town where the man who got the One Piece was born and then died! I want to go to Loguetown...!"
----
They docked at Loguetown, and no sooner had they gotten off the ship then Luffy ran off saying that he was going to see Gold Roger's execution platform. The rest of the crew separated as well with Sanji deciding to do some shopping for fresh ingredients, Usopp looking for some equipment for their journey across the Grand Line, Zoro seeking out new swords and Nami some shopping for clothes. While not exactly shopping, he does have some business to take care of as well, and so he scatters with the rest of the crew.
The streets of Loguetown are packed with people, shops and stalls. He strolls down the street, stopping occasionally to peruse the items on offer from the numerous stalls before moving on. It isn't long before his final destination appears in front of him. The post-office seems to be more or less empty as he enters and approaches the old man behind the counter with letter in hand.
"Hey there, old timer," Run offers in way of greeting. "I got a letter needs sent out if ya don't mind."
"Hmm? Well, sure," the old man tells him. "Unfortunately it's the mail has already ran for the day so I'll have to send it out tomorrow." The red head passes the envelope over to the man with a nod of the head and a smile. "Alright, let's see what we've got here...whew! That's an awfully long way, young man. It may take more than a day or two to see it to it's destination. The Grand Line is mighty dangerous these days."
"That's fine. Thanks a lot, old timer." With that the red head turns on his heel and departs, offering a friendly wave of his hand as he exits the post office. He pauses briefly at the entrance and stretches his arms skyward with a loud groan. He freezes the second a familiar perfume reaches his nose, and he rapidly scans the crowd looking for the source. It takes him only a few seconds to spot a purple cowboy hat, and he quickly makes for it, weaving through the crowd after it. The woman easily dodges through the crowd, always a few steps ahead of the red head...at least until the person gives him the slip. "What the...?"
"Looking for me?" suddenly asks a familiar voice from behind. He turns quickly, surprised to find Robin standing there.
"Aah, fancy meeting you here, Robin. I thought you'd have made it to the Grand Line by now."
"I had to make a small stop on the way. I promised to write you, after all."
"Yeah, you did." Run motions down the street. "Walk with me?" Robin nods, and the two begin to stroll down the street. They walk in a comfortable silence, enjoying the company of one another while they pass the shops and stalls. "So, Robin, I...Robin?" The red head stops when he notices that Robin is no longer walking in step with him but has stopped by a small stall selling what seems to be knock off records and other merchandise from a very familiar figure. He approaches, looking at one of the posters showing a young woman in a brightly colored jacket and white dress with multicolored hair; one half crimson and the other white as snow. Run would recognize her anywhere...Uta.
"Seems she's quite popular," Robin says, her voice possessing a frosty edge to it.
"Robin-" She turns away from the stall, and continues down the street leaving the red head to follow quickly. "You know that the two of you are the most important women in my life, Robin."
"Mm, I'm sure she'd be quite upset to hear you say that."
"Uta just...she's...you know she just-"
"That she wants to be the only woman in your life. Yes, she's made that quite clear on several occasions...and several letters." Robin comes to an abrupt halt when a hand captures her own, and she looks back at the red head.
"Aah, I wish that there was something I could do that would help you two see eye to eye."
"That would be very simple, Run. Make her change. As long as she holds that grudge against you and Shanks...we'll just never see eye to eye. Sister or not." Run opens his mouth to respond when she suddenly steps in, pressing a finger to his lips. "Let's not spoil the time we have together."
"Hah, alright. Consider it dropped." Thunder rumbles loudly in the distance, causing both to look in it's direction at the grey clouds gathering. "Looks like a bad storm is coming. Luffy said he was going to see the execution platform."
"It's at the center of town. Come on. I'll take you there."
"Oh, by all means. Lead the way." She steps around the red head and heads down the street. The clouds begin to roll in fast as they walk, quickly erasing what was once a beautiful azure sky. They walk for several blocks until they turn and end up staring right at the execution platform in the middle of the town square.
"Here we are, and I'm afraid we'll have to part ways."
"You're not coming?"
"I don't think that would be a very good idea."
"Aah, well...don't suppose you'd mind sticking around for a bit then, would you? I've kinda got a bad feeling about all of this, Robin." After a few moments she nods in agreement, and then turns on her heel to disappear into the crowds of people all heading to their homes in preparation for the storm.
"Red! Oi, Red!" calls a voice familiar to the red head. He looks to his right in time to see the approach of his ship mates, all of them apparently having met up somewhere else. Run notes that among them, Zoro seems to be the only one who ISN'T carrying some ridiculous thing. Nami has an outrageous number of shopping bags, while Usopp's back-pack is filled to bursting...and he's helping Sanji carry some amazing looking fish with massive tusks.
"You won't believe all the stuff I found, Run!" Usopp gushes, grinning widely. "I bought some things that belonged to Gold Roger!" He goes on and on about what he bought all the while the red head listens. He's fairly certain that the person who sold the stuff to Usopp might just have ripped him off but...if Usopp is happy with his purchases then there's really no point in trying to burst his bubble. "What about you? What did you do?"
"Just had to post a letter," Run tells him, offering their sniper a smile. "Seems pretty tame compared to your shopping trip, really. C'mon. We should probably find Luffy before the storm hits. He said he wanted to- what in the hell is going on up there?" All heads turn to the execution platform in the town square. At it's base it appears to be surrounded by pirates, and pinned down on top of it appears to be none other than their Captain. "Oh, you gotta be kiddin' me! Zoro! Sanji! C'mon, let's go spring Luffy!"
We'll head back to the ship and get it ready!" Nami tells them as they charge towards the tower in the distance.
"LUFFY!" bellow the three men, earning the attention of the two on the tower, and the majority of the pirates in the area.
"Hey, guys!" Luffy calls back, grinning. "You came to help me out?"
"Yeah, Luffy!" calls Run, reaching up to scratch the stubble on his jaw with a smile. "Now, let's get you-"
"We meet again, red hair!" calls the man standing over Luffy, who Run immediately recognizes by his nose. The man looms over his captain, saber held tightly in his hand as he stares down at the trio gathered several meters away from the tower.
"Buggy! Fancy meetin' you here!" Run offers the man a friendly smile and wave in spite of the circumstances.
"You bastard! You think you can send me on a wild goose chase, make me look like a fool, and there won't be any consequences?! You think I'm a fool?!"
"What? No! Look, I must have written down the wrong place by mistake! Now, whaddya say ya come on down and we talk this out! Let's stop of this foolishness! Nothin' has been done that can't be undone! This time, I'll tell you where the stash is actually-"
"You think I'll be suckered twice?! Don't think you'll get away with cheating me! Once I'm done here, we're going to settle up!"
"Buggy, don't!"
"I hope you take a good look, Run!" Buggy hefts the saber up, grasping it with two hands firmly. The trio of men launch themselves at the pirates cutting a swath of destruction through the crowd of pirates that suddenly spring in their direction.
"Zoro! Nami! Sanji! Usopp! Run!" calls Luffy, grinning from ear to ear like a fool as the blade begins to descend. "Sorry...but it looks like I'm dead!"
"I said, STOP!" bellows Run, his voice echoing across the square like a physical force as pirates near him drop motionless to the ground, foaming at the mouth. Buggy's body pitches forward the blade in his hands falling towards his Luffy's exposed neck...and seconds before it can carry out it's gruesome job, the whole platform is struck by a bolt of lightning. It collapses in a twisted heap of jagged metal and splintered wood...from which emerges Luffy, covered in soot but otherwise appearing unharmed. He retrieves his straw hat from the ground and places it firmly on his head with a grin.
"Or not. Looks like I made it after all."
"Whew...talk about a lucky break." Run steps forward and pinches Luffy's cheek, stretching it out several times while Luffy laughs. "It's a good thing you're made of rubber, Luffy. Fried by a bolt of lightning isn't a fitting end for the King of the Pirates." Marines begin to fill the streets, surrounding them and attempting to cut off any avenue of escape that they could possibly take. Run releases Luffy's cheek, allowing it to snap back into place quickly.
"What do you wanna do, Luffy?" Zoro asks him.
"Well...I guess we should run for it," Luffy tells them, laughing in response. All three of his crew mates shake their heads in response...before they take off at a sprint in the direction that they believe their ship to be in. Once again they cut a huge path of destruction through the fighting pirates and marines to escape down one of the many streets. The marines are hot on their tail, and gaining ground on the four of them.
"Luffy, not to be that guy but I don't think we're gonna be able to just give 'em the slip!" Run tells him, glancing briefly over his shoulder. "And, ya know, if they catch us then we're definitely not makin' it back to the Merry on time."
"We should just fight 'em and be done with it!" complains Zoro.
"Aah, actually, that's not a bad idea." The red head skids to a stop and turns to face the Marines. "Go on ahead, fellas! I'll take care of things here and catch up!" Luffy skids to a stop seconds later, and turns to complain for only a second before Zoro and Sanji grab him by the back of his collar and start running again.
"Don't do anythin' stupid, Red!" He raises a hand in response, focusing on the Marines rapidly approaching him. The red head cracks his knuckles loudly before launching himself into the group of Marines. He brawls his way through them, relying more on brute strength than any actual technique to beat them. Bob, sway and weave; he won't allow himself to hit by any of them. He's barely finished with the group when another comes running down the street and he's back to work again. One on one he'd mop the floor with any of them but it becomes difficult when it turns into thirty or forty on one.
"Hah, c'mon, fellas! Can't we just talk it out!" He ducks the swipe of a cutlass, and then raises quickly to avoid a knee in the jaw. Someone seizes him from behind, arms wrapped around him to hold him tight. It's easy enough to shake the Marine off...but it costs him precious seconds as a pair of marines with cutlesses draw in, blades prepared to turn him into a pincushion. "Whoa, whoa! Time out, boys!" The next second their heads are wrenched back, their blades clattering to the ground as they reach for the hands pulling their chins skyward.
"Always in trouble, aren't you?" asks a familiar voice, as the marines surrounding the red head drop to their knees in pain. Robin steps out of an alley calmly, arms crossed in an 'X' in front of her. "I guess it's a good thing that I stuck around, hm? Otherwise you might have ended up as a shish kebab."
"Yeah, lucky me. Guess we should get going, hm?" Before either one of them can take a single step, however, a wind stronger than any of them have ever experienced sweeps down the street. It throws them both off their feet, sending them tumbling down the street several meters and blowing the marines away completely. He strikes flat on his back, bounces and slams back first into a number of crates with a loud grunt. Where Robin goes he has no idea as he's covered with splintered wood and the contents of the crates pour all over him. "Aaaah...my back! I think I hit the corner! Ah, fer- why is the corner so sharp?!" When it finally stops Run tosses aside the crates with ease and stands, pressing a hand to his lower back. He arches and several loud 'cracks!' sound and he freezes in place immediately.
"Oh! That...did not feel ideal. That's probably a bad noise." After a few seconds he relaxes, and scans the area quickly. "Robin! Oi, Robin!" He finds the woman in question lying on her side several feet away, a number of toppled boxes surrounding her but thankfully not burying here. He approaches quickly, kneeling at her side. "You alright?"
"Aah, Run? What happened?" Robin questions him, groaning softly as he helps her sit up.
"No idea. Felt like a hurricane swept through all at once and then just blew over."
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah. I'm built pretty solid, and luckily enough I think my neck might broke my fall." Robin giggles a bit as Run finally helps her to her feet. "Are you alright?"
"I'm not as tough as you but I think I'm alright."
"Good. C'mon. Let's get back to the Merry. We'll make plans from there, Robin." She offers him a nod in response and they start running down the road as quickly as they can. The Going Merry appears in the distance still anchored off the coast and between them and it a whole gaggle of Marines. "Oh! Well, that's not good. I'm open to ideas here, Robin."
"Oi! Red!" calls Zoro approaching from behind with Luff and Sanji. "It's about...who's that?"
"Ooh! Robin! It's been a while, huh!" laughs Luffy, grinning like a fool. "Oh! If you're here, does that mean you're going to be joining the crew then?! Alright! We picked up another member!"
"That can wait. Any idea on how to get past the Marines?"
"Ah, sure. Just wait here!" He turns on his heel and sprints back in the direction that they'd come from. When he's reached a suitable distance he turns again and launches his arms forward, grasping the remains of two houses on either side of them. "Gum-Gum-"
"He wouldn't!"
"Luffy is as lively as I remember," comments Robin, actually smiling.
"-Rocket!" He launches forward, wraps them all up in his arms and sends them sailing towards the Going Merry. They pass over the Marines, and strike the deck of the Going Merry...some far more gracefully than others if Robin's landing is any standard to measure by. They scrape themselves off the deck while Luffy orders them to weigh anchor, and set sail. The wind is in their favor, and because of it they quickly leave Loguetown and the Marines far behind. When it appears that they're safely out of danger Nami, Zoro, Sanji and Usopp decide that now is a good time to investigate the new arrival onboard the ship.
"So...mind telling us who it is that you've brought aboard, Red?" Zoro questions him, looking pointedly at Robin.
"That's Robin!" Luffy tells him, grinning broadly. "Yo, it's been a while, huh!"
"It has," Robin agrees. "It's good to see you again, Luffy."
"Since you're here, that means you're going to join the crew, right?" Robin looks at Run who offers her a smile and hopeful nod. After a few moments she signs heavily and then nods firmly in response. "Alright! Then, let's hurry up to the Grand Line!" Upon hearing Luffy's acceptance of Robin into the crew the rest of the crew immediately relaxes. It seems that they've accepted the word of their captain completely.
"Well...I won't say I'm not happy to have you along so soon," Run tells her. "But I know that you had something you had to take care of...we can talk to Luffy and see if we can swing it, Robin. I'm sure he'll agree to help you out since you're with us now."
"It wouldn't hurt to have some help," Robin agrees. "But maybe we should wait until we've made it up Reverse Mountain."
"Aah! Look!" Luffy calls, pointing past the bow of the ship towards the horizon. There's a light-house in the distance, which Nami immediately informs them is the 'guiding light' that shows people the entrance to the Grand Line. Naturally, Luffy is raring to go orders them to sail straight on through the storm. It's several moments later that Sanji earns everyone's attention by rolling a barrel over to them.
"Well, since everyone is here...I say we should have ourselves a little launching ceremony," Sanji says, placing a foot on the top of the barrel. "In order to find the All Blue."
"To become King of the Pirates!"
"In order to become a master swordsman!"
"To surpass Shanks!"
"To draw a world map!"
"T-To become a-a brave warrior of the sea!" After he's finished Luffy looks over at Robin, who is standing several feet away from the rest of them.
"Aren't you going to tell us your ambition, Robin?" Luffy asks, surprising the woman.
"There's no shaking us now, Robin," Run tells her, a crooked grin splitting his face from ear to ear. "You're one of us whether ya like it or not." Robin giggles as she finally approaches and places her foot on the top of the barrel.
"To find the Rio Poneglyph."
"Alright!" bellows Luffy. "Let's go to the Grand Line...!"