I know it's been so long,sorry about that I was a little busy,but here's a new chapter so enjoy:)
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Enel withdrew the spear from Luffy's chest, smirking as he watched the charred body collapse heavily onto the deck, smoke rising out from his body.
The lightning man tilted his head as Zoro swung his sword where his head had been, missing by mere inches. Enel gave the swordsman a lazy grin before delivering a kick to his abdomen and sending him crashing back into Sanji who was just about to attack as well.
Part of his head dematerialised into lightning to let Usopp's explosive bullet sail through him, exploding harmlessly behind. He took a glance at the frustrated sniper, who had already lowered his slingshot in defeat.
He smiled arrogantly at the Straw Hats gathered in front of him, resting his spear stained with their Rear Admiral's blood on his shoulder.
"To first defy God, then steal God's ark… How daring of you… All of you shall be subjected to God's judgement."
He raised his hand and electricity began gathering upon his palm.
A huge shadow appeared behind him, a giant fist raised in the air.
Enel was in the process of turning his head before he was smashed face first into the deck with a resounding boom.
Garp's face was contorted with rage, his brows furrowed deeply as he stood over Enel with both his haki infused fists clenched. He roared in anger as he started raining blows upon the man, each blow heavier than the previous one.
Boom.
Boom.
BOOM.
BOOM.
It sounded like a whole armada of battleships firing their cannons simultaneously, the shockwave of each punch causing the entire ark to shake and waves to form on the sea. The Straw Hats watched in stunned silence as they witnessed the fury of a grandfather avenging his beloved grandson. If any Sea Kings were in the area, they definitely had already fled the moment Garp unleashed his fury.
"Vice Admiral Garp! Please stop!" A Marine wearing a beige suit and hat with the Marine coat draped over his shoulders yelled.
He rushed up to the enraged Vice Admiral, attempting to grab at his fists.
"GET LOST!" Garp bellowed, shoving his right hand man away to tumble across the deck.
He reached down with both hands, grabbing on to Enel by his neck and lifting him high into the air. Enel released a burst of electricity from his body, expecting to stun Garp into releasing him. The Vice Admiral did not even blink at the attack, both his hands still holding on to Enel's neck. The lightning man croaked as he felt the fingers tighten around his throat, his vision darkening around him as the cracking sound of something breaking was heard.
"Luffy's still breathing!" Chopper announced, bringing everyone else out of their stupor.
Garp relaxed his grip on Enel, dropping the unconscious man on the deck before turning away from him.
"Cuff him before I kill him," Garp ordered through gritted teeth, his men scurrying to obey.
The Straw Hats gathered around Luffy, worry clear in all their eyes. Chopper was pressing his hooves around the wound, trying to stem the flow of blood as best as he could. His hands suddenly froze, beads of tears starting to form at his eyes.
"Chopper! How is he? He's fine isn't he?" Usopp asked.
Chopper looked up with tears streaming down his face, his hands still on Luffy's chest, "His… His right lung is pierced… His heart… His heart…"
"What's wrong doctor?" Robin soothed, trying to calm him down.
Chopper swallowed, "His heart… He's... Dying…"
The crew gasped collectively, the pool of blood beneath the Rear Admiral continued to increase in size.
Garp dug out Luffy's Vivre card, frowning when it had shrunk to the size of a pinhead.
The Vice Admiral walked up to the reindeer, "Can you save him?"
Chopper's tears start welling up again before he starts crying.
"I'm sorry! I… I'm not strong enough… I'm too incompetent!"
Usopp immediately lifted the doctor to his eye level, "Stop saying that Chopper! You're the doctor Luffy personally picked to be on this crew! You aren't weak! You can save him!"
Chopper sniffed back his tears.
"You're going to be the best doctor in the world! What's a little wound?! Luffy has lived through worse than this! You can do it!"
Chopper glanced at Luffy's unconscious body, "Maybe… A respirator… Some Terminalia Arjuna…"
The doctor wiped his tears away and steeled himself, "take Luffy inside! I will get my things!"
"Aye, aye!" The rest moved immediately, picking Luffy up and moving him to the men's quarters. Garp watched them go before looking down at the Vivre card he held in his palm, the paper shrinking just a little more as he watched on.
Garp furrowed his brows as he closed his fist tightly around it, afraid the wind might blow it away.
The three ships drifted side by side for a day, Garp having his own crew split between the Straw Hat's ships so that Luffy's crew could take care of their Rear Admiral. Chopper had eventually moved Luffy over to the battleship's better equipped medical facilities, working together with the ship's doctors to keep Luffy barely alive.
Barely.
His heart had received a tremendous amount of shock, causing its beating rhythm to beat erratically at times, it was already a miracle that Luffy had not died instantly the day before. With an artificial respirator hooked up to his body, he was at least breathing properly even with his pierced lung.
Within the medical room, the Straw Hats gathered to watch over their Luffy. Chopper stood by the bedside, watching the monitors closely for any signs of his heart giving way.
Sanji was leaning against the window, watching the other Marines trying to fix the hole that Garp made on the ark's deck from his scuffle with Enel.
"Actually, what happened to that Enel guy?" Sanji asked after a while.
"I checked earlier, Mr. Vice Admiral had him chained with Seastone and locked in the ship's brig," Robin answered, standing by the doorway.
"He's still alive huh," Zoro spat, drawing a sword before walking towards the door.
"Wait, wait, wait! Zoro! What do you think you're doing?" Usopp pulled at the swordsman, trying to stop him.
"To give him a piece of my mind," the swordsman continued towards the door without slowing down.
"Zoro! You can't do that now!" Nami stood in the way. "He's a convicted criminal! If you kill him, you'll be charged!"
"You think I care?"
"You should if you still want to be a Marine under Luffy!"
Zoro furrowed his brows before turning back to the room, "Chopper, don't sugarcoat it. Will Luffy make it?"
Chopper's hands froze as he heard Zoro's words, his body trembling a little as he placed the bandages he was about to change down.
"Zoro! You need to trust in Chopper! He's the best doctor there is!" Usopp smacked him on the arm.
A single tear rolled down Chopper's cheek as he turned his head to look at the swordsman in the eye, his lips quivering.
"At most… He'll probably last another three days…"
The Straw Hats gasped at the revelation as Zoro turned towards the door once more. This time, Sanji caught his shoulder and pulled him back.
"Let go, Sanji…" Zoro growled.
He was about to shake the cook off until he saw the same anger he had reflected in Sanji's eyes.
"You're going to do what? Give him a swift death?!" Sanji asked through gritted teeth. "That's a fate too good for a guy like him!"
Zoro lowered his sword, gritting his teeth in frustration.
"Let him rot in Impel Down! Let him suffer there for the rest of his damn worthless life! Death is too sweet for a bastard like him!"
Nami buried her face in her hands and started sobbing, "What's the use for all that gold… If you're not there to share it with us…"
"Luffy's… going to die?" Usopp muttered, his hands trembled at the thought.
Robin looked out the window, her mind wondering what will happen to her if she was no longer under his protection. Most probably another life on the run, unless she decides to end her life once he drew his last breath. She smiled a little, thinking how ironic it was that she was considering of dying together with him like lovers might.
"What will happen to us?" Chopper asked, a question that no one was able to answer.
Garp, who had been standing outside the door, turned on his heels and marched down the corridor, making his way down to the kitchen. He picked up a bowl of fruits and a fruit knife, ignoring the raised eyebrows from the chefs.
Without a word, the Vice Admiral made his way down to the ship's brig, stopping in front of the sole Marine on watch duty who saluted as soon as he saw the Vice Admiral.
"I want to talk to him alone," Garp announced.
The Marine nodded, passing a key to Garp before walking past him to head for the stairs.
Garp held the key tightly as he stepped down the dimly lit corridor, stopping in the only occupied cell in the room. He stuck the key in the lock and twisted it open, stepping in without bothering to shut the door behind him.
The only occupant of the cell was chained at the arms to the far end of the wall, his face still bruised and bleeding from the beating Garp had given him yesterday.
"I brought some fruits for you," Garp grunted, placing the bowl of fruits in front of the Birkan.
"Huh… Ya ha ha ha…" Enel laughed, looking up at the Vice Admiral. "Is this a peace offering? For God to forgive your travesty?"
Garp narrowed his eyes as he sat down in front of Enel, crossing his arms.
"I had heard from Luffy's crew about your... God complex… I did not think it was this serious."
"Yaaa ha ha ha! I am God! There is nothing complex about it!"
"God eh? So what is the all powerful god doing chained to a wall in a small cell on a ship?" Garp growled.
"Foolish Blue Sea dwellers…" Enel smirked. "You can't mock me, I've heard some interesting things down here…"
Garp's frown deepened, he also knew that Enel's so called mantra still allowed him to listen to everything nearby.
"Three days? That's a laugh, he will die sooner, I made sure of that. I gave his heart enough of a shock that it won't recover on its own! What do you think about that? Unable to do anything but watching your grandson die? That's what he gets for defying God!"
Garp furrowed his brows, standing up and smashing Enel's bindings with a swing of his fist.
Enel was taken aback by his sudden freedom, looking down at his arms where the Seastone cuffs had been, the bindings falling on the cell's floor with a loud clang.
As he looked up at Garp in confusion, he saw the Vice Admiral's face contort with rage, a fruit knife with a black coloured blade held in his hand.
Enel only had time to flinch before the blade found itself buried in his neck, drawing a gurgled scream from him. Garp roared as he pulled out the blade, shoving the Birkan to crash on the floor, kicking over the bowl of fruits in the process. Garp descended upon Enel with the same fury he had yesterday, plunging the knife underneath the lightning man's chin and twisting it, breaking the blade inside.
The Vice Admiral tossed the broken handle away, mounting Enel's chest as he rained down blows on his grandson's murderer's face. His hands were a blur as the speed of his punches reached inhuman levels, shattering every bone in Enel's body.
The guard from before rushed down the stairs upon hearing the sounds of a fight, gasping in shock as he found a bloodied Garp standing over a dead Enel, the former god's body crushed beyond recognition. He swallowed the bile in his throat as he noted the cell was completely caked in blood, some of it still dripping down onto the floor.
"Vice… Vice Admiral?" The guard stuttered.
Garp reached down to pick up a fruit off the blood soaked ground, gripping it tightly in his hands as he left the cell.
"Darned prisoner broke his chains and attacked me," Garp wheezed as he passed by the guard.
The guard wisely decided not to point out that the prisoner was cuffed with Seastone handcuffs and should not even have the strength to break them. He resigned himself to clean the cell as best as he could, hoping the blood had not dried yet.
Garp ignored the horrified stares of his subordinates as he made his way back to the medical room, secretly glad that his crew had the brains not to inquire about the blood.
He reached the room to find it in chaos, Zoro frantically pumping Luffy's chest with his hands while Nami blew air into Luffy's mouth at Chopper's commands. Usopp was yelling at the top of his lungs beside Luffy while Sanji held the sniper back from doing whatever he had been trying to do. Robin stood beside Nami, a set of blood soaked bandages dangling in her arms and the only one to notice Garp's entrance with a raised eyebrow.
Garp's eyes flashed to the heartbeat monitor that showed Luffy's heartbeat at an erratic rate, evident signs of him going into cardiac arrest.
The Vice Admiral materialised beside the bed with a quick Soru, pushing the Straw Hats away from Luffy. His fist crushed the fruit that he had been carrying, pouring its contents down Luffy's mouth before closing his mouth and tilting his head to force him to swallow it.
"Vice… Vice Admiral! What did you feed Luffy?!" Chopper demanded, all signs of decorum thrown out the window in worry for his friend.
Before the Vice Admiral could answer, the monitor gave a long beep signalling a flatline.
All eyes turned to the monitor, anxiously waiting for a pulse to appear. Minutes trickled by and Nami was the first to collapse on the floor in tears.
Usopp and Chopper soon joined her while Robin's eyes grew distant.
Zoro just stared at Luffy's still body with his body tensed, his breathing rate increasing without him aware of it.
Sanji stood opposite Zoro with his lips pursed, his hands hanging loosely at his sides.
That was when the monitor started to fizzle out, the display winking in and out of existence. Smoke billowed out of the monitor before it suddenly exploded in a shower of sparks, prompting everyone to turn their attention back to Luffy.
The same smoke was also beginning to spill out from underneath Luffy and the distinct smell of ozone filled the air.
An electrical explosion blasted Garp away from the bed to crash into the wall, leaving his imprint on it.
"Vice Admiral Garp! What did you feed Luffy?!" Chopper asked again.
Garp showed no signs of replying as he kept his head lowered.
Robin's eyes grew wide in realization, "What… What happened to Enel?"
Garp sighed deeply before answering, "he's dead..."
Everyone then realised whose blood Garp was soaked in. A million questions raced through the Straw Hats' minds but before they could be vocalised, a soft but distinct cough could be heard coming from the bed.
"Guys? Gramps?" A voice everyone all too familiar with echoed.
All eyes were on Luffy as he stared at his grandfather slumped down at the wall.
"LUFFY!" His crew surrounded him immediately, Chopper went straight to checking his condition.
"His heart is stable," he announced, sighing in relief.
The rest of the crew let out the breath they had been holding as well but all of them tensed up almost immediately at the same time. They noticed Garp still slumped at the wall and they shared a look with one another before nodding their heads in unison.
Nami immediately pinched his cheek, "Do you know how worried we were? How can you let that happen to you?"
"That was pathetic," Zoro agreed, nodding his head.
"Yeah! Some future Admiral you are, getting ambushed like that!" Sanji huffed.
"Luffy, you still have a long way to go to be a brave warrior like me!" Usopp thumped his chest.
"Hmmm… You had been overconfident, Mr. Rear Admiral," Robin crossed her arms.
"Umm.. Umm… I'm just glad you're alright!" Chopper clutched Luffy's hand tightly.
"Shishishi, sorry guys! I let my guard down!" Luffy scratched his head in embarrassment, before coughing painfully.
"Ah! Your lung is still healing! You should not talk so much!" Chopper admonished.
The crew had expected Luffy to be upset that he was forced fed a Devil Fruit, perhaps even coming to hate his Grandfather for placing such a curse on him. What made it worse was that the fruit had came from an enemy that almost took his life.
Worst case scenario, Luffy might even decide to end his own life.
Garp stepped to Luffy's side, his eyes containing a slight tinge of guilt.
Nami flinched, "Luffy… Don't… Don't blame him… He did it to…"
Garp silenced Nami with an upraised hand, returning Luffy's silent gaze with his own.
"Luffy… I'm sorry," Garp apologised sincerely. That might have probably been the first time he had ever apologised this seriously to Luffy before, mayhap even to anyone else.
Luffy stared back at his grandfather for a long minute, letting the silence stretch before breaking out into a mischievous grin.
"Shishishi! Gramps, what are you sorry for? You saved me! I should be thanking you for that! Thanks Gramps!" Luffy laughed, not an ounce of blame or anger present in his voice.
The two stared at each other before laughing at the same time.
Garp went to smack Luffy on the head while laughing, "See? This is what happens when you get overconfident! What did I tell you about being alert all the time you stupid brat!"
"Shishishi! I was just too excited to see you Gramps! Shishishi!"
"Bwahahaha! Come here you little rascal!"
Garp gave his grandson a tight hug, hiding the single tear that rolled down his face before pulling away to grin at him.
Luffy looked at the rest of his crew, "I guess I'm a lightning man now, huh?"
Everyone nodded, holding their breaths in anticipation of how he might react to his new powers.
Luffy punched his hands into the air, "Cool! Now I'm a Devil Fruit user like Chopper and Robin!"
The other two Devil Fruit users on the crew broke into smiles, along with the rest of the crew.
Luffy then frowned, "oh, but that means I can't swim now... I guess I need to teach Sanji how to fish for Sea Kings himself!"
Sanji's smile cramped a little while Zoro smirked at him.
"And Zoro can help out too, then we can catch more food!" Luffy clapped his hands.
This time it was Zoro's turn to pale.
"Ah but Gramps, you have to teach me how to use the fruit!" Luffy whined.
Garp hit him on the head, "Do I look like a Devil Fruit user to you, you stupid brat?"
"Ahhhh! Stupid gramps!" Luffy grabbed his head in pain.
"How dare you call your grandfather stupid?!" Garp swung his fist down on Luffy again, only to have Luffy dodge it.
"Stupid! Stupid! Stuuuuupid!" Luffy stuck his tongue out at his grandfather.
A tick formed on Garp's head as he rolled up his sleeves, "Why you stupid brat! I need to teach you another lesson again!"
"Vice Admiral! He's still injured!" Chopper protested.
"I don't care! You're the doctor, patch him up after I'm done beating him up!"
"Stupid gramps! I'm a lightning man now! I'll overtake you soon as an Admiral! Then I'll make you bring me meat everyday!" Luffy yelled at him.
Garp pinched his grandson's cheek, "Ha! As if a cheeky brat like you will ever reach there while I'm still around!"
"I will! And you're gonna be the one that presents my new rank at the ceremony!"
Everyone in the room had a face full of smiles as they watched the two bicker back and forth, dutifully ignoring that Garp was still soaked in blood.
The den den mushi near the bed rang, prompting all eyes to rest on it.
"Again? How many times has it been?" Sanji groaned.
Luffy looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Your den den mushi has been ringing continuously since yesterday… But your grandfather insisted that no one answer it." Nami explained.
"For good reasons," Garp muttered under his breath.
Luffy's face cramped as he understood, reaching out to pick up the receiver and placing it near his ear.
"Hello?" Luffy voiced quietly.
"LUUUUFFFYYYYYY!" A female voice shrieked, stunning the Straw Hats while Garp just shook his head.
"Calm… Calm down Hancock…" Luffy winced. Some of the Straw Hats' eyes widened when they heard the name.
"You're ok right?! Why didn't you answer your den den mushi?! Did those disgusting men in the Marines hurt you?!"
"No… I just had an accident, that's all. Don't worry Hancock."
"What kind of accident was it? Your Vivre card had shrunk so much!" Hancock sobbed. "I almost thought I lost it!"
Garp snorted, he knew the Pirate Empress had a special glass display case that she kept Luffy's Vivre card in to fawn over. Not only that, she was the only one allowed to touch it so unless the case was shattered, there was no way she would have lost it.
"I'm sorry, Hancock," Luffy apologised sincerely. "I'll visit you when I next get the chance."
"Oh, don't worry Luffy, I'm on my way to you!" Hancock squealed in excitement.
Garp's jaw dropped at the proclamation, shaking his head frantically as he caught Luffy's eye.
"Errr… Are you sure Hancock? What about your people?"
"Oh they're fine! In fact they insisted we come and check on you! The last time I heard you fell sick or something and that confounded Sengoku couldn't do anything about it! So I'm taking matters into my own hands! I'm bringing your favorite food too!"
Garp face palmed at her answer.
"Oh… Alright then, shishishi! I'll see you!"
"Hyaaaa~~ I'll see you soon Luffy~~ Wait for me~~" Hancock squealed before Luffy hung up the den den mushi.
"Alright, I guess I'll leave before she comes here, I don't want to have to deal with that girl..." Garp waved, making a quick exit to get his crew ready.
"Bye Gramps! See you later!" Luffy laughed while waving his grandfather off.
Sanji pounced on his Rear Admiral, grabbing him by his collar and shaking him, "You! Was that the 'Most Beautiful Woman in the World, Pirate Empress Hancock'?!"
"Yeeeeesss?" Luffy replied while being shaken.
Sanji shook him even more ferociously, "How does she know you?!"
"Uuuugghhh…" Luffy groaned, unable to answer from Sanji's frantic shaking.
"Stop shaking him and let him answer!" Nami smacked the chef on the head.
Luffy took a moment to orientate himself, "back when Gramps was training me, he had thrown me out into the sea to learn how to swim. A couple of Sea Kings attacked me which landed me on her ship and we met there…"
The crew took awhile to digest his story.
"If I didn't know you, I would have never believed that kind of story…" Sanji sighed.
"So… Her relationship with you…" Usopp asked.
"She's my fi… Er… Phil… Fig…. Hmmm…" Luffy scratched his head, not remembering the word. "She's a great friend!"
"And that's another Warlord that our Rear Admiral is good friends with…" Zoro mused.
Robin stared at the boy, remembering back to the time when he said that he had connections. She wondered just how many other strong friends he had backing him up. Having apprenticed under the Admirals was already a feat worthy of praise. Having Mihawk's support was just as, if not more, impressive. Just how far does Luffy's influence reach?
"Speaking of which, Chopper! Robin! Could you guys teach me to use my new powers?" Luffy grinned at them.
"I'll do my best!" Chopper saluted, a wide grin on his face.
Robin just shrugged her shoulders, giving a slight smile to the Rear Admiral.
The Straw Hats continued on their way on the ark after Garp bade a hasty farewell, disappearing into the horizon on his ship as though he was running away.
The ark sailed steadily through the waves while pulling Merry along behind it, Nami doing her best to keep it on course with its improvised controls the Skypieans had installed for her.
Luffy was on the ark's deck with Robin, the latter sitting at the coffee table while reading a book, a cup of freshly brewed coffee simmering on the table beside her.
The Rear Admiral stood with his back ramrod straight, his right hand stretched out in front of him, palm facing the sky. A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead as he concentrated on the space above his palm.
"You do not need to be so tense, Mr. Rear Admiral, just feel the power flow into your hand." Robin remarked, not taking her eyes off her book.
Luffy grunted in acknowledgement, taking a deep breath to calm down his breathing before trying again. He imagined a flow of energy coming from deep within himself, flowing from his belly towards his arms and to the tips of his fingers.
He was awarded with his hand turning into pure electrical energy for a full second before returning to its original form..
"I did it! Robin, I did it!" Luffy punched the air triumphantly.
Robin smiled at the straw hat wearing Marine, "congratulations, it will only get easier the more you do it. Once you get the hang of it, you should be able to transform into lightning instinctively."
"Yeah! Maybe I can make this ark fly too!" Luffy laughed.
"Fufufu, you probably already can Mr. Rear Admiral."
"Alright! I can't wait! Let's do it!"
"Fufufu, but since none of us knows how to fly the ship, I suggest you refrain from doing so."
"Awww… Ok then!"
Luffy turned back to resume his training.
Zoro watched their Rear Admiral from a distance away, Chopper had initially forbade Luffy from moving around but with Luffy being Luffy, of course he would not have listened anyway. They then compromised on having at least two people watching over him at all times, one of them would immediately look for Chopper should Luffy's injury act up in anyway.
"Wouldn't have tagged him for a man on his deathbed yesterday," Zoro grinned, leaning against the railing of the ark.
The ships sailed along steadily following the log pose for the next few days, finally spotting land ahead.
"Land ho!" Usopp shouted from the crow's nest.
"Yeah! Time for a new adventure! Let's go see who's on it!" Luffy punched his fist in the air.
"Ummm.. hard to break it to you Luffy, but the island seems to just be a long stretch of plains, there's no one in sight…" Sanji reported after scanning the island with a pair of binoculars.
"EHHH? But I hear voices! There's definitely someone!" Luffy protested.
"Ah right… The electromagnetic waves thing…" Zoro nodded in understanding.
"Anyway, let's land our ships! I wanna go exploring!" Luffy yelled, already pulling on his cloak.
"Luffy! You're still recovering! I forbid you as your doctor!" Chopper protested.
Nami just smiled at him, "Give it up Chopper, once he's like that he won't listen."
"Why don't you go with him Mr. Doctor? Then you can watch over him too," Robin suggested.
Chopper gasped in shock, "Ah! That's right! Good idea Robin, you're so smart!"
Usopp raised a hand enthusiastically, "I'll come too! This island looks interesting!"
They soon anchored the ark near the coast of the island, the exploration team already leaping off the ship to explore.
"Right, we'll wait for you guys here, come back in time for lunch you hear?" Sanji waved a spatula at them.
The three waved their hands in acknowledgement.
"Woah! What's that thing?" Usopp pointed to a long furry animal walking past them.
"Is that a human?" Chopper tilted his head quizzically.
"That's a bear! A long bear!" Luffy laughed.
"Why is it so long then?" Usopp frowned.
Luffy clapped his hands in amusement, "What an interesting island! Come on guys! I hear voices this way!"
The trio soon came across a long hut in the middle of the plains, a long horse lay resting beside it.
"Hey look, a house! And a saddled giraffe too," Usopp pointed.
"Ummm she says her name is Shelly and she's a horse," Chopper translated after talking to her.
"Cool! What's she doing here?" Luffy went up to pet her, Shelly nuzzling his hand affectionately.
Chopper explained that her owner had gone missing and she has been waiting for him to return ever since.
"Oh, there's a guy high up in the sky though, maybe that's your owner?" Luffy asked, pointing towards a pair of long stilts.
The Rear Admiral disappeared with a small spark, appearing in the air and finding himself face to face with an elderly man with a round white beard.
"Hello! Are you Shelly's owner?" Luffy asked, keeping himself in the air with Geppo.
"Oh, I see you've met my horse, yes I am Shelly's owner. My name is Tonjit," the old man replied, seemingly unfazed by Luffy's sudden appearance.
Luffy nodded to the stilts he was holding on to, "So what are you doing up here old man?"
"Ah… I'm in a predicament you see, ten years ago I tried climbing onto these stilts but now I can't get off of them…"
"Want me to help?" Luffy offered a hand.
"That would be much appreciated." Tonjit grabbed onto the Rear Admiral's hand.
"Shishishi, you're welcome!" Luffy laughed, bringing Tonjit back down on to the ground safely.
Shelly neighs happily as soon as she saw Tonjit, the two sharing a tearful reunion after ten years.
"Come! I must treat you to something, please be my guests!" Tonjit led the way into his house with the trio trailing after him.
Of course, they had all realised that none of the food are edible as they have already soured after ten years of storage. That was also the time that Tonjit realised his village had already moved on without him.
"Shishishi! Hey old man, why don't you come to my ship and have some proper food?" Luffy offered.
"To be saved and be fed by you, I feel embarrassed." Tonjit scratched his head.
The group thus made their way back to the ship, Tonjit riding on Shelly after a long time. Tonjit's jaw dropped as soon as he saw the gigantic ark moored at the bay, the gold glittering in the sun.
"That's… That's your ship?"
"Nope, ours is the smaller one over there!" Usopp pointed at Merry proudly. "We're only using the big one to transport our gold before we disassemble it."
Tonjit nodded in understanding, still gaping at the ark.
"Heeeyyy! Sanji! Is lunch ready yet?! We have guests!" Luffy yelled, stepping on board Merry.
Sanji peeked out from the kitchen, "Oh? Just in time, I was just done. The rest are all waiting inside already. You can leave that giraffe outside on the deck and I'll bring something for it."
"Shishishi! Sanji, it's not a giraffe, it's a hooorse!" Luffy laughed.
The cook stared at his Rear Admiral incredulously before disappearing back to the kitchen, deciding it was not worth his time to argue with him.
The crew soon settled in the dining room, Tonjit sharing his history and the island's peculiarities with the Straw Hats. The peace was soon shattered as a loud crash was heard and the ship shook from the impact.
"Earthquake?" Usopp asked, holding on to the shaking table.
"Nope! There's a ship outside!" Luffy grinned.
Tonjit was instructed to hide inside while they went to check the disturbance.
Upon exiting the kitchen, a large pirate ship with the figurehead of a fox loomed over Merry. The two anchoring paws on either side of the pirate ship anchored on the shore, trapping Merry in between while the ark floated just outside.
"Pirates…" Zoro growled, his hand on his sword.
A short pirate with his hair split into two spiky sections jumped onto the figurehead, "Fehfehfeh! You people down there! We Foxy pirates hereby challenge your captain to a Davy Back fight!"
"A Davy Back fight?" Luffy glanced at his crew.
"It's like a gambling game for pirates," Usopp explained. "Two pirate crews bet their crew and pride in a game and the winner gets to pick crew members from the losing team to add to their numbers. It's a way that pirates in the past competed for competent crew members."
"That's right! I'm the captain Foxy! Is your captain man enough to take the challenge?" The pirate laughed.
"Oh, well then, that's no problem right? We don't need to play their stupid game," Luffy crossed his arms with a huge grin on his face.
"Indeed," Zoro smirked, drawing his blades.
Sanji tapped his foot on the deck, "It's nice to go all out for once."
Usopp donned his goggles, "Time to test out my new weapons."
"Luffy! You shouldn't be moving around that much yet!" Chopper protested.
"They should have quite an amount of gold on that big ship of theirs too," Nami considered.
"Miss navigator, I don't think we need anymore than what we already have…" Robin commented.
The Foxy pirates gasped at the crew's hostility.
"Hey… Hey! This is a sacred game between pirates! You need to honour it as a captain!" Foxy protested.
"That's where you're wrong," Luffy cracked his knuckles.
The whole crew with the exception of Robin turned their backs to them, displaying the word 'Justice' emblazoned smartly on their cloaks to the pirates.
"We're not pirates," Luffy grinned.
"They're Marines!" The pirates screamed in alarm.
"I thought they were pirates for sure! What kind of Marine has so much gold on their ship?!"
"We got tricked!"
"Battle stations!"
"Let's go guys!" Luffy yelled, his leg poised in the air.
"Rankyaku!"
The air blade sliced the figurehead in half, causing Foxy to fall back onto his ship's deck. As if on signal, the Straw Hats gave a war cry and leapt onto the pirate ship, sowing chaos among their ranks.
Luffy appeared on the deck with a crack of thunder, beating down any pirates that came to him. Zoro slashed his way through the pirates, sending many of them flying overboard. Sanji kicked just as many of the pirates into the air, letting them crash down on the deck moments later in various states of unconsciousness.
Nami manipulated her staff to create various bubbles, using mist and fog to confuse her enemies. Usopp sniped down any pirates that were trying to harm his friends from behind, supporting them with covering fire while also testing out his new dials. Chopper wrestled through many of the pirates, his human form's strength surpassing most of the pirates. Robin stood back and summoned hands around the place, putting many of the pirates in various subjugation poses.
"Damnit! Just our luck to run into Marines!" Foxy cursed, glaring at Luffy who stood before him with his arms crossed.
"Noro Noro Beam!" The pirate yelled, firing a circular beam at him.
Not wanting to find out what the beam does, Luffy jumped upwards to avoid the beam, landing behind the pirate captain to give him a swift kick across the face.
"Ahhh! How dare you hit my face! You dirty Marine!" Foxy protested, holding on to his face in pain.
Luffy ignored his protests and rushed forward to give him another punch to the face. Foxy growled in anger as he fired another Noro beam which Luffy easily ducked under.
Luffy grinned as he pointed a finger gun at the pirate.
"Lightning bullet!" Luffy yelled confidently.
Foxy had both his arms thrown up in defence, expecting something to come flying towards him, only to realise that nothing came.
Luffy looked down at his finger in confusion, shaking it back and forth as though expecting the lightning to come out with some prompting.
"Noro Noro Beam!"
Luffy dodged to the side before punching Foxy in the face once more, sending him crashing towards one of the walls.
The Rear Admiral sighed as he looked down at his hands, "Guess I still don't have this Devil Fruit fully under control yet…"
As Nami continued to set up her clouds, a few rose shaped shurikens narrowly miss her, sailing past her side to imbed itself into the deck. The navigator looked up to see a slender woman spinning her baton while wearing a pink jumpsuit and a hat with a white puff ball hanging at the end.
"The Foxy pirates' idol, Porche, enters the battle!" The pirate laughed merrily, spinning her batons even faster.
Nami ducked her head just as a few more flower shurikens sail past her head, clucking her tongue at the female pirate. The navigator swung her staff at the pirate, both of their staffs clashing together.
"What's a weak little girl like you doing in the Marines?" Porche sneered, leaning closer to Nami.
"Why is a conceited little girl like you playing pirates?" Nami sneered back, shoving the pirate back.
The navigator swung her staff once more, sending a few bubbles in her direction. A small dark cloud formed above the female pirate before a lightning bolt descended down on her, shocking the pirate into unconsciousness.
Nami blew a kiss in her direction before rejoining the fight.
Usopp ducked under a pirate's slash before tossing a bag full of pepper into the pirate's face, kicking him overboard while the pirate was blinded.
Out of the corner of his eye, the sniper spots a shadow heading straight towards their ship from below the water.
"Yeah! Sink their ship, Monda!" A pirate shouted from the deck.
A large orange shark with yellow stars on its upper body leapt out of the water, it's jaws wide open as it prepared to bite off Merry's figurehead.
"Not on my watch! Exploding Star!" Usopp shouted, shooting an explosive bullet at Monda.
The shark was sent tumbling back into the water from the explosion, glaring up at the sniper as it resurfaced.
"You want to hurt Merry, you got to get through me first!" Usopp announced, shaking a fist at the shark.
Falling for the provocation, the shark leapt out of the water once more, this time targeting the Straw Hat sniper with its mouth wide open.
"Got you! Tabasco Star!"
The spicy projectile went straight into the shark's waiting mouth, surprising the shark into swallowing it. Fire immediately erupted from within its mouth as it crashed back into the water, thrashing around in agony before hitting its head on Foxy's ship, knocking itself out.
"Take that you stupid fish! You're all weaker than Arlong's crew!" Usopp grinned, returning his attentions to supporting his crew.
Robin lowered her arms as a green skinned fishman stepped in front of her, his arms raised in a combat stance.
"I am Capote! A billfish fishman! I will send all of you back-"
"Ocho Fleur Clutch"
Eight arms sprouted around the fishman and immediately pulled down on him, breaking his arms and legs and rendering him unconscious on the floor.
Robin did not spare the unconscious fishman a second glance as she turned her back to resume aiding the other Straw Hats.
Zoro, Sanji and Chopper stood in a line, opposite them were three giant men similarly lined up with ascending body sizes.
"Now the Groggy Monsters are serious! These Marines won't stand a chance!"
"Go get them guys!"
"Hamburg, Pickles, Big Pan! Mince them all up!"
The pirates cheered for their crew.
"Puh… Puh puh… Hu hu hu!" The smallest among the giants laughed.
"Stop laughing Hamburg, we better get serious… Big Pan, you too!" The middle giant frowned, brandishing two swords from his waist.
"Huuuh?" The biggest of the giants slurred.
"Hu hu hu! Pickles, he didn't hear you!" Hamburg laughed as he took out two iron clubs.
"Let's not waste time with them," Sanji sighed.
"Agreed," Zoro grinned as he tied his bandana around his head.
"Bring it on!" Chopper yelled.
The two groups charged at each other.
Chopper used his arms to block against Hamburg's iron clubs, wincing in pain as the clubs hit his arms. The doctor roared as he tried to punch the human gorilla, only to have his punch blocked by an iron club, Hamburg laughing at the futile attempt. Chopper barely had time to duck as Hamburg swung his other iron club at him, forcing the reindeer back.
Zoro himself was being held back by Pickles with his two swords swinging wildly around him. He would have easily finished him off if it wasn't for the rest of the Foxy crew interfering, firing bullets and cannonballs whenever Zoro tried to take advantage of an opening.
Sanji was faring no better as well when he found out his kicks were barely effective on the gigantic Big Pan with his slippery skin. His kicks were just sliding off the half giant half fishman without doing any damage.
Just as the three Straw Hats were getting frustrated over the fight, a single arrow flew through the mast of the pirate ship with a loud crash, piercing a giant hole and silencing the fight with the unexpected sound.
All eyes turned towards the direction of where the arrow came from, jaws dropping onto the deck and eyes turning into hearts when they saw the source.
A galleon with two giant sea snakes tied to its prow were speeding towards them. On top of one of the snakes was a very, very, very enraged but still breathtakingly beautiful Pirate Empress.
She leapt off her snake, easily covering the huge gap between the ships and landing in front of the three Groggy Monsters.
She rushed up to Hamburg just as he swung his clubs, aiming to knock her off the ship.
Hancock kicked her leg upwards, smashing the once iron club into stone splinters before roundhouse kicking the gorilla human across the head and sending him smashing into the throng of Foxy pirates.
Without pause, she backflipped over a slash from Pickles, landing on her hands to deliver a kick to his abdomen and sending him overboard.
Big Pan tried to swipe at the Warlord, his hands grasping empty air as Hancock leapt into the air, her knee smashing into the chin of the giant and sending him crashing into the ship's half destroyed mast, snapping it in two.
The Pirate Empress landed back on her feet, tossing her hair back over her shoulders with a flourish as her crew cheered their Empress on.
Sanji was already doing his noodle dance the moment she appeared, his bottom half mysteriously turning into stone half way through.
Zoro kept his swords up, still uncertain as to her intentions.
Chopper, Nami and Usopp hid behind Robin, all of them wondering why the Warlord seemed so enraged.
"HOW DARE YOU FILTHY PIRATES HURT MY LUFFY?!" She shrieked, pointing a finger at Foxy while tilting her head towards the sky.
"She's looking down on him so much that she's looking up!" Chopper shouted in amazement.
"YOU MUST BE THE CAUSE FOR MY DARLING'S SUFFERING!"
Foxy could only look at her, his mind a whirl of fear, confusion and lust.
She poses with her hands thrusted forward in a heart shape, fully intent on turning the entire crew to stone.
Luffy jumped out in front of her, arms spread out to block her.
"Hancock! Wait!"
'Ahhh~~ He said my name again!' Hancock swooned as her heart fluttered at Luffy's presence.
"They didn't hurt me, we were just teaching them a lesson. Let them go."
"Yes! Of course Luffy dear!" Hancock agreed immediately, squirming under his gaze.
Luffy turned back to the pirates after getting Hancock's agreement, "I'm letting you guys off with just this much for now, if I ever see you again, I'm throwing you lot inside Impel Down!"
The Foxy pirates scrambled to retrieve their fallen comrades before running off as fast and far as they could, frightened to the core that a pirate Warlord had showed up unexpectedly.
The Straw Hats returned to their own ship with Hancock holding onto Luffy's arm, snuggling him affectionately. Everyone ignored Sanji's jealous cursing as he bit down on his hands, wondering why a beauty like Hancock was all over their Rear Admiral.
"So guys, this is Hancock! One of the Seven Warlords!" Luffy introduced.
Hancock released her grip on Luffy's arm to curtsy in front of the Straw Hats, an action so out of place that it stunned the crew.
"Nice to meet you all, I am Boa Hancock of Amazon Lily, also known as the Pirate Empress and Luffy's fiancee, please take care of me."
There was silence on the ship for a few tense moments.
"EEEEHHH
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And.cut so that is it for this chapter hope you guys enjoyed and see you in the next chapter.bye
chapter 29: Mentor and Mentored