Chapter 16 - Erick the Sicko?

Now that we had our plan, it was time to get to work. Following the others outside, Nami, Apis, Ussop, and I all watched as Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji punched, cut, and kicked down a whole bunch of trees. When they were done, we found each of them either sitting or standing on top of each pile of lumber they had gathered for us.

"Hey, Nami! Do you think this is enough?" Luffy asked as Nami held up an o.k. sign with one of her hands.

"Yeah, that's good," she answered, before glancing over at Ussop and me.

"Guess we'd better start slapping this thing together," Ussop said, Nami not really having to say anything as he made a face in her direction. "Not that I have any real choice."

Rolling my eyes, I simply grabbed on to the back of his overalls and pulled him along behind me.

"Come on, Ussop. We've got work to do." I said simply, as I let him go so Ussop could walk on his own.

It took us a good while, but between Ussop's inventing skills and my smithing skills, we had it done a lot sooner than what it would have taken just one of us to do.

"Alright, you guys. It's done." Ussop announced, as he finished putting the wheel into place, and hammering a wedge in to keep it connected to the axle.

Wasting no time, both Luffy and Apis jumped on top of it and began bouncing around, testing it out for us. When it showed no signs of falling apart under our captains none too gentle jumps, I figured Grandpa Ryu would be fine. I can't really say for certain though because the real test will be when Grandpa Ryu not only gets on but when we start to move him too. Compared to Luffy and Apis, Grandpa Ryu weights a lot more.

I kept this to myself, of course. I didn't want to dampen Apis' hopes. Besides, with the marines on our tails, we didn't really have a choice at the moment.

"It's so strong and sturdy, that even Grandpa Ryu couldn't break it!" I heard her shout, as I shook my head in amusement.

"Sure is!" Luffy agreed as he and Apis shared smiles. Unfortunately, there was one other matter to discuss before we start celebrating…

"And speaking of breaking, how are we supposed to get through that navy blockade?" Sanji asked. At this, Luffy became a bit serious as he thought it over.

"I don't know. We'll work it out somehow." was his answer.

"Yeah, but how?" Sanji repeated.

"An attack…" Zoro suggested as Sanji cracked a grin at that idea.

"I like the sound of that." He said as I crossed my arms over my chest.

"It's a good idea and all, but it would take you two and Luffy to drag something like a dragon on a cart. Nami and Ussop aren't really built for that kind of fighting, and I wouldn't be able to take the brunt of even half the marines in that fleet on my own. Not only that but with that many enemies, it's also possible that they could easily take Grandpa Ryu or Apis as a hostage." I cautioned, as Sanji and Zoro thankfully both saw my point.

"I think I might have a plan that could work," Nami spoke up, as we all looked in her direction. "However, it's something that's going to require more stealth than strength… One or two of us will have to sneak on board the Going Merry and sail her to the rear of the island. While that's being done, the rest of us here will have to get Grandpa Ryu on the cart, and then figure out how to best get it to where the ship will be at the back of the island."

That's when, completely out of character for once, Ussop stepped forward…

"Since my good friend Kaya gave us the Going Merry, I should go!" he shouted, full of courage I was sure would deflate as soon as he got down to the harbor and saw all the marines that awaited us there. "However, Zoro is coming with me!" he declared a moment later.

Damn, it deflated quicker than I expected. I thought as I sighed internally.

"What!? Why me?" Zoro asked, not exactly thrilled at being singled out. Before he could protest though, Nami nodded her head in agreement.

"That's fine by me, so long as Asuna goes with," she said, as I threw a glare in her direction.

"Let me guess, it's to make sure one doesn't get lost," I began, as I heard Zoro shout 'hey' in my direction. "And the other's 'Cowards-Disease' doesn't kick in." I finished, as I turned an intimidating glare in the direction of Ussop, who had a glare of his own, which deflated rather quickly.

"Correct on both points. I'll be counting on you to make sure the ship gets to where it needs to go should something happen with Zoro and Ussop." Nami stated as she moved to where she could see the coast of the rear of the island. "Once you get on board the Going Merry, bring her to this cape. The one shaped like Ussop's nose," she explained, as Zoro, Ussop, and I moved forward to get a good look at it.

"Sounds easy enough, we'll move out after dark!" Ussop said, his confidence bubbling forth again.

"We can't wait for dark Ussop," I told him, as his whole body froze in place. "You heard that villager from before, the Marines were already blocking off the harbor and coming ashore by the time he reached us. That means we have very little time to get this plan in motion." I explained as Ussop turned a nervous look my way.

"Who knows how far behind us the Marines are? If we leave now, we might just have enough time to get to that cape. Luffy and Sanji should probably be ready for a fight just in case we're late." Zoro suggested, as Nami and I nodded in agreement of this. It might not have been a necessary gesture, but while Luffy agreed willingly enough, we knew that Sanji would refuse. If Nami and I both agreeing on it, he would at least follow through.

"Okay, but how are you guys gonna met us all the way down there?" he asked, as Nami waved him off.

"I've already got that part planned out too. Just leave it to us." She answered. "With that said, we'd better get moving. As Zoro said, we don't know how far they're behind us. You three get going. Sanji and Luffy, you guys get Grandpa Ryu on the cart." she ordered then, going into her navigator role.

"For a navigator, you sure give a lot of orders," Ussop whined, as we began making our way for the path that would take us down the mountain.

The trek down the mountain was a bit tricky with how we took to the bushes, and how fast we kept our pace at to try and gain some ground on the marines. When we finally reached the bottom, we found that they had already reached Apis' house.

A skinny man in a well-tailored suit was standing in the backyard, looking at the trail we had left when Nami brought us up the mountain to meet Grandpa Ryu. Under those set of tracks, where the drag marks from the bag of pork buns Apis had taken the old dragon the night before. Right away, I didn't like the look of the bastard. I wasn't sure why just yet, but I also had the feeling that I would soon find out.

We were about to try and sneak past him, but I wound up having to drag Zoro and Ussop back into the bushes with me when I noticed several marines pouring out of the house, heading in the direction of the skinny guy.

"Hey!"

"Asuna, what the hell!?" they both whispered loudly, as I slapped my hands over their mouths.

Looking over in the direction of the marines, I let out the breath I had taken into my lungs in relief that they hadn't noticed us. Taking the time to see why I had pulled them back, I got two different reactions.

Zoro instantly calmed himself, while Ussop just froze and remained still as a statue. Seeing that I wouldn't get another protest, I fully let them go as we listened.

"Eric! Is it them?" I heard a man in a captain's coat shout, as the skinny man looked back at his name being called.

"I would say that it is. The trail looks fresh and appears to be going up the mountain." Eric answered as the marine captain nodded his head at the information.

"Then up the mountain is where we're going," he said, as he turned to address his men. "Move out!"

The moment this order went out of his mouth, Ussop began freaking out, albeit quietly at least. Before they were to go past, Zoro was able to put Ussop in a lock, while I covered his mouth once more. Between the two of us, we were able to make sure Ussop didn't give our position away. Once they had made a good distance past us, we let Ussop go.

"What the hell was that for!?" Ussop whispered angrily, as I narrowed my amber eyes at him.

"I don't know Ussop, maybe that was us trying to make sure we didn't end up having about twenty gun barrels bearing down on us." I answered him sarcastically.

"But they were coming our way, what did you expect me to do!?" At his words, I couldn't help the growl of anger that left my mouth. Hearing it, Ussop shrank back.

"Alright you two, we need to get going. Now that the marines know to search the mountain, every second we waste here is a second they're closer to the others." Zoro snapped at us, pulling rank as he did so.

Giving Ussop a second longer, I finally let my glare drop. Zoro was right about the marines, plus I knew how much of a coward Ussop was of his own shadow. Taking a deep breath, I let my annoyance deflate. Seeing that I had backed down, Ussop did as well. With that settled, we made our way out of the bushes, and began heading for the harbor.

When we got there, we ducked down behind the corner of what looked to be a boat house. Peering out around the corner, Zoro, Ussop, and I saw just how many marines we were going to have to deal with.

And just like I predicted, Ussop's courage withered up and died.

"See, this is exactly why I wanted to come at night…" Ussop silently wailed, as tears began leaking from his eyes. Pulling back, I watched as Zoro drew Yubashiri, and cut a bamboo drainage pipe into three pieces from the boat house we hid behind before sheathing it.

With the slashes occurring right next to his curly hair, Ussop whipped around to see what the hell was going on.

"What are you-" He began, only for Zoro to shut him up by shoving a bamboo piece in his mouth, nearly choking him with it. Already having his own in his mouth, Zoro held out the third one for me to take.

All I could do was look down at it with disgust. Never mind the fact that it was way too big for my mouth, just think of all the germs that thing probably contained, and the algae. Hell, a squirrel or a seagull could have pissed down it for all we knew, and Zoro was just going to put it in his mouth, and expect me to do the same.

"Thanks, but I uh…" I began muttering as I looked around for something else to use. To my luck, a window to the boat house was left open, and in a small basket I saw a snorkel mask complete with a breathing tube. Reaching in, I grabbed it and held it up for Zoro to see. "I think this will be more suited to me than that thing."

Shrugging his shoulders, Zoro placed it in the bushes next to us to avoid making any unnecessary noise. Putting the snorkel mask on, I then followed Ussop and Zoro into the water. Letting our heads go under the surface, we began swimming towards the going Merry. When we reached where the anchor was located, only then did we bring our heads back up into open air. Pulling the bamboo from his mouth, Zoro dropped it in the water to float away as he began climbing the rope.

Hearing a hollow sound that would have belonged to a dying bird, I glanced over at Ussop to see him struggling to pull his own bamboo from his mouth. Apparently Ussop's actual mouth was smaller than his metaphorical one that always spouted lies.

Reaching over, I grabbed a hold of the bamboo and placed my foot in Ussop's stomach. Pushing him away with my foot, and pulling on the bamboo, I tried to pull it out for him. After a second of me trying, Ussop began fighting it, so I let him go.

"Damn that things in there good." I stated, as I gave Ussop an apologetic smile. "Try a couple more times. If you can't get it, then just be careful as you get on board the Merry. We'll try again once we sail for the cape." I told him, as he nodded his head once in understanding.

Swimming away from him, I followed Zoro's lead and climbed up the rope that held the anchor. I barely got my feet on the deck before I heard something tapping on the side of the ship. Peering over, I spotted Ussop with that blasted bamboo still stuck in his mouth, frozen stiff on the rope while looking down the barrels of three marines. Right away they began firing at him, as Ussop wriggled around the rope like a worm on a hook.

Sighing heavily as I took off the mask, I looked over to where Zoro stood by the anchor lift.

"If you get Ussop and the anchor up, I'll cut us loose and get started on the sails." I told him. Getting a nod of agreement, we got to work.

Moving quickly and silently to the main sail, I quickly cut the rope holding it in place with my sword. Nami would bitch at me about it later, but I'd deal with that when the time came. After all, it's not like circumstances permitted it. With the main sail down, I then ran at the rope tethering the boat to the dock and cut through it along with the ladder.

As the Merry was freed, she caught some of the wind that was blowing about, taking Ussop out of the line of fire as she began moving. A moment after that, Ussop finally made his appearance on the deck. Still unable to speak I might add.

Ignoring him and his continued attempts at taking out the bamboo, I turned to go to the other sail with the intention of opening it too, only to draw up short as I saw that Zoro was already on it. Seeing that, I went to the whip staff instead to man the helm. Opening the door, and leaving it that way to see where I was going, I watched as the Merry began heading a little too quickly at the marine's ship. Moving it to the side, I tried to steer the ship away from it, only to find myself struggling. Not only was the wind too strong, but so was the current!

"Zoro! I could use your help!" I shouted, as he came running into the room without pause. Reaching my side, he wordlessly began helping me try to turn the ship so we wouldn't ram into the marine ship that was dead ahead.

A few seconds later, Ussop ran in and joined up his efforts with our own. He had apparently seen where the ship was going while he was still trying to pull that bamboo pipe from his mouth.

It wasn't until the very last second that we got the ship to turn sideways, but it wasn't enough to keep her from bumping her side into the marine ship's. The force from it rattled us, and we barely got our balance back in time to cover our ears from the horrid sound of the Merry scratched the hell out of the paint on the marine's ship. Once she was free of it, she began picking up speed as the marines regained their own footing, and began scrambling about to give chase.

Moving outside, I went to the side that touched the marine vessel, and looked over the side. Seeing nary a mark, I let out a low whistle. Merry was one tough customer, I'll tell ya that.

"That was a close call." I heard Zoro mutter as he left the cabin. Moving to stand next to me, he looked over the edge of the ship as well.

"I'll say. We're lucky she didn't get stuck, let alone not really damaged." I agreed, as Ussop came stumbling out of the cabin, yelling about something. Not that we could understand him in the first place with that fudging bamboo still in his freaking mouth!

"Any idea what he's saying?" Zoro asked, as I shook my head.

"Just sounds like he's freaking out about something." I muttered, as Zoro turned to look towards the back of the ship, and the marine ships that were just now catching up to us.

Seeing them as well, I gave a heavy sigh as I turned to help Ussop get the pipe out of his mouth. If they got too close to us, and we had to fight, then we'd need Ussop. Grabbing the bamboo pipe with both hands, I began pulling at it with what I had, while using my foot like I had before in trying to keep Ussop in place.

After a few failed attempts, Ussop began cursing at us around the damn thing.

"How close are the marines?" I asked Zoro, as I gave one last big tug on the bamboo pipe.

"Right up our asses." he replied, as one of the navy ships began pulling up beside us. Seeing it as well, Ussop began shrieking with fear. I was still mid tug when he did this, causing the bamboo pipe to come out of his mouth with a loud pop, sending me right to my butt on the deck.

Chucking the now free bamboo piece at his head, I watched with satisfaction as it bounced off his head.

"Warn me next time you plan to scream like that!" I snapped at him, as a red knot began forming where the bamboo had struck. Hearing him mutter sorry, I backed off to glance over at the marine ship that was gaining on us.

Doing the same, Ussop turned to face the cabin.

"Zoro, Asuna, I'll man the rudder while you guys take care of the sails. Go! Go!" he freaked out, as Zoro and I nodded our heads in agreement. Rushing off, we set about making the Merry ready to catch more wind. Luckily for us, it was just enough to get ahead of the marine ship once more. No telling how long our lead will last now though.

Running towards the front of the ship, I began looking for the cape Nami had pointed out earlier. It took a few seconds, but soon I was able to spot it as we kept sailing around the island towards the rear. It wouldn't be long now.

"I see the cape! We're almost to it!" I called back to the others.

Zoro ran over to join me, putting himself in a ready position in case while Ussop remained where he was in order to keep the ship on course. Looking back towards the marine ships, I watched as they began catching up to us again.

"It's going to be a close call." I observed as I placed a hand on my own sword.

Looking back at where we were supposed to meet Nami and the others, I noticed something else as well. The Merry was being pushed further away from the coast. Moving to look down at the waves, I nearly swore at what I saw. The waves from the bigger ship were pushing us out.

"Zoro, get in there and help Ussop. Damn marine ship is pushing us away from the cape. We'll be too far out to get the others if this keeps up." I told Zoro, who nodded his head once before running off to do just that.

It took a few minutes, but soon the ship was heading back towards the cape. Not that the fight to stay that way was over just yet. The more the marines tried to catch up to us, the more the waves that originally pushed us away kept coming. It was a bit of a struggle, but we still managed to get kind of close to the cliff that looked like Ussop's nose. The marine ship sat between us and the cliff though, much to our annoyance.

"We just couldn't out run them could we?" I heard Ussop remark sarcastically, as Zoro stepped out from the cabin to join me on the deck once more. Ussop stayed where he was , as before, this time so that we can immediately get sailing once the others were safe for our real escape this time.

"Guess not…" Zoro agreed, as he flicked the Wado a bit from it's sheath. "What the hell, I've been itching for a decent fight anyway."

I moved to draw my sword as well, only to pause when I heard something that sounded like squealing coming from up the mountain. Letting my eyes follow the sound, they soon became wide with shock.

"While I share that sentiment," I began, and I really did. "But what the hell is that flying down the mountain behind them?" I asked, as Zoro looked at where I had indicated. Seeing the same thing I did, he got a what the fuck look that mirrored mine.

As it got closer to the cliff, we noticed that the squealing sounded pretty familiar, as did the saturated teal blob on the cart Ussop and I had built earlier in the day.

It was Apis, Grandpa Ryu, and the rest of our crew barreling straight for the long cliff the marine sat in front of.

"Holy shit! They're gonna land on the enemy ship!" I began freaking out, as Ussop heard my cry, and ran out to see what I meant. The moment he put two and two together, he began freaking out worse than I did.

"You're right! What are we gonna do!?" Ussop shrieked, as the cart flew right off the cape as I knew it was going to.

Seeing a shadow appear over them, the two marines that stood in the crows nest of their ship looked back in confusion. Seeing the cart with a dragon on it nearly made them pee their pants as they scrambled out onto the mast to get out of the cart's way.

Said cart landed on the arm of the mast, as it's forward momentum gust caused the base of the mast snap in half. Effectively causing it to fall towards the Going Merry. With the navy ship being as big as it was, our ship wasn't in any danger of becoming stuck by it toppling over on us.

The moment it hit the water though, it sent the cart with our friends on it skidding across the surface of the sea like a skipping stone. And true to our Straw Hat Luck, it slowed down to a stop in a perfect position behind the Going Merry.

Picking my jaw up off the deck, I glanced over at Ussop and Zoro, who wore the same expression I had previously.

"I-I can't believe that crazy assed plan actually worked…" Zoro stuttered, as I shook the rest of the shock from my body. Glancing at the marine ship, I counted the threat they posed to be diminished. One look at their ship trapped between the main mast and the cliff, and I knew they wouldn't be bothering us for a while.

Certain we would be fine for the moment, I ran off to the side and grabbed the rope we had set out while trying to make it this far, and tossed one end down to Sanji so he could tie it to the cart. Tying my end to the ship, I made sure the knot was tight before I stepped back. Turning around, Ussop grabbed another rope. Handing Zoro one end of it, Ussop then vaulted over the railing to land on the cart, and tied his end to the cart as well, while Zoro did the same to the ship.

Once we were all sure the knots would hold, Luffy, Nami, Ussop, and Sanji all got back on the ship. Apis on the other hand, wanted to remain on the cart with Grandpa Ryu.

"Are you sure you're going to be fine back there after that wild ride?" Nami asked her, as she held a thumbs up.

"Yep, I'll be alright. Too bad we can't do it again though, it was fun." she said, as Luffy bellowed out a laugh.

"It sure was!" he agreed, as I rolled my eyes. Fun my ass. They about gave poor Ussop and I a heart attack for our troubles. And speaking of heart attacks…

"Hey Apis, you mind if I hitch a ride back there with you and Grandpa Ryu?" I asked them. At Apis' shrug, I got ready to head over.

"What was that all about Asuna?" Nami asked, as I hopped up on the railing.

"If Apis is going to stay on the cart, then I was thinking one of us needs to be down there too. You know, someone who can swim." I told her, as she made a small 'o' with her lips in understanding.

"Alright then. Just be careful yourself too." Nami cautioned, as I nodded my head once in agreement.

Jumping from the railing onto the wooden cart, I then made myself comfortable up against Grandpa Ryu's side, after I had Apis ask for me of course. Didn't want to be rude after all. Once I was settled, I had Apis sit on my lap, that way I would be able to hang on to her more easily if we were about to fall off or something. Once we were good, Nami turned to face the others.

"Now that Grandpa Ryu, Apis, and Asuna are secure, we can weigh anchor." she declared as Luffy perked up.

"Yeah! We're going to Lost Island. Set sail!" he shouted, giving us the orders needed for the ship to be put into motion.

"Okay, sure…" Ussop began, as he gave Luffy a blank look. "And where is that exactly?" he asked, as Luffy became a little too quiet.

"Uh… That way?" he said, pointing towards the front of the ship. "Or that way…" he continued, pointing off tot he side of the ship instead this time. "Maybe it's behind us?" Yep… Typical Luffy. Only Zoro could become more lost.

"He wouldn't be able to find his head if it weren't attached." I muttered towards Apis, earning a giggle out of her.

"As it was said back in the cave, we'll work it out somehow." Zoro repeated, as Nami gave us all a wink.

"I hope so, because it's not on any of my charts." she warned us, as Sanji went back to his heartfelt creepy pasta dance.

"Can we count that as 'not kid friendly'?" Apis asked, becoming about as creeped out as I normally felt.

"If it means Sanji has to cut it out so long as you're with us, yes!" I declared, as I glanced up at Nami. "Right, little sis?"

Putting a finger to her chin, she thought about it. Then with a sigh of mock disappointment, she caved. "For once, I agree." she stated, as Sanji turned pale white, and went as still as a statue. Ignoring this, Nami turned to head for the front of the ship. "Well, lets go before the marines have a chance to call for back up, or worse, that Sicko guy comes back."

Luffy and Ussop followed right after her, while Zoro snagged Sanji by the back of his chef jacket and hauled his still statue self along. A huge smirk on his face at the chance to man handle the love cook without any repercussions.

"Sicko?" I echoed, as Apis looked up at me.

"Oh him… He was with the marines when they showed up at the cave. He called himself Eric the Whirlwind. Luffy and Sanji got Sicko from the type of fruit he said he ate. The Sickle-Sickle fruit." she explained, as she placed a hand against Grandpa Ryu's side. "He used his power to send this thin gust of wind at them right before we came down the mountain, and it gave Luffy and Sanji small cuts on their arms."

"So like the farming tool, then." I mused, as Apis nodded her head once, as the ship began sailing forward, pulling the ropes tethering the cart to the ship taught. Thankfully, they showed no signs of snapping.

For a while after that, the three of us just sat in silence. Enjoying the peace we had been granted while it lasted. After a good while, Apis glanced back up at me with curiosity in her eyes.

"Hey Asuna, back in the cave. When you asked what Grandpa Ryu meant by you seeming to be familiar. You said he was quite insightful. What did you mean by that?" she asked, as I felt my body tense up a bit.

I was also a bit surprised as well. With that happening so early in the morning I was shocked that she was bothered enough to ask about it, let alone remember it where I had forgotten. To be honest, I wasn't sure how I wanted to answer Apis' question. Yet…

Looking back into her dark chocolate eyes, I found that I could, perhaps, stomach telling her… Sighing heavily, I mentally prepared myself.

"I thought Grandpa Ryu here was insightful because he'd only met me for two seconds, and he already figured out that I was in a similar boat so to speak in finding our lost homes and family." I explained to her, as Apis faced forward once more, a look of surprise on her face.

"Did you get lost from your family too?" she asked a moment later, as I couldn't help the giggle that left my lips.

"No. Not at all." I told her, as my giggles died down, and a bittersweet feeling overcame me. "I actually lost them."

"Wait, they died?" Apis asked, a shocked and saddened look in her eyes.

"Yes…" I told her, as I looked out towards the horizon. "My mother died when I was a baby, and my aunt passed too. I was eleven when she died. My father is still out there somewhere, and when I set sail with these goofballs… I had not only the intention of forging the world's best sword, but also finding my father. As far as he probably knows, I died with my mother. Since that's not true, I want to find him and show him that I am alive." I explained, as a small smile returned to my face.

"So in a sense, you're just like Grandpa Ryu. Only instead of finding an island, you're looking for a person." Apis clarified, as I turned my gentle smile towards her.

"That's about it." I assured her, as she returned my smile.

As it faltered, I dropped mine as well. Turning to look at Grandpa Ryu, I realized that she hadn't become sad or upset. Rather, she was concentrating on what the dragon was saying. When he said his piece, Apis turned back around with a somber smile once more.

"Grandpa Ryu says: Thank you for taking time out of your own search to help an old one like me, and to protect Apis." She spoke aloud the words Grandpa Ryu could not.

Sitting up a bit straighter in surprise, I looked over at the huge amber eye closest to Apis and I. Seeing the old, wise amber eye, I couldn't help but share my small smile with him as well.

"Not a problem, Grandpa Ryu. Not at all." I told him gently, as his eye crinkled once more. As if he were saying thank you all over again. With that, his eye smoothed back out as he closed it. A few moments later, he began taking deep breaths. Grandpa Ryu had fallen asleep.

Motioning for Apis to remain quiet, I then herded her towards the edge of the cart closest to the ship. Having her climb on my back, I made sure she had a good hold on me before I then climbed onto the deck. Once my feet were on the solid wood, I crouched down so that Apis could slide off of me.

"You can keep watch over him here. Just let him sleep for a bit. With his old age, I'm sure that cart ride you guys had took a lot out of him." I told Apis, as she nodded her head once, her smile widening at the memory.

With her agreement, I turned to walk further on the ship, only to pause as Apis hugged my waist. The movement was so sudden, that I froze the moment I realized what was going on. It had surprised me so much that it was a good moment before I awkwardly patted the little girl on the back.

"I know it's been said many times, but thanks Asuna. For everything." she said, as I gave her one last small smile.

"Like the answer that's been given so far, it's no problem." I replied, as Apis took a step back. Moving over to the rail, Apis leaned up against it, her chin in her hand as she watching Grandpa Ryu being pulled along by the Merry. Giving her one last lingering look, I turned and left the rear of the ship.

….…

Zoro…

As I watched Asuna tell the kid about Hawk Eye, I couldn't help but feel a small pang across the scar on my chest. Just like the first time I heard her mention it, I couldn't help but feel a bit shocked at the fact that Hawk Eye was her father. The same man I had every intention of defeating one day. A man I might end up killing in such a fight, if I avoid dying myself.

To be honest, I'm surprised Asuna doesn't hate my guts, or try and challenge me herself in order to prevent me from reaching my goal. Not that I would have let that happen anyway. I did make a promise to Kuina after all. A promise Asuna is the only one outside of my master's dojo I've told about. A promise she somehow understood was important.

Scratching the back of my head, I put those thoughts out of my mind. I had originally been sent to get her by Nami, who wanted to talk with Asuna about something. I never meant to stand here and eavesdrop like some old hag. Yet, for some reason I couldn't bring myself to turn away. Why was that?

Shaking that thought from my head as well, I turned my attention back to Asuna and the kid. By now they had moved from the cart to the rear deck of the ship. Saying a few more words, Asuna turned to leave Apis at the railing, where she kept watching the dragon we hauled behind the ship.

"You seem to get along with the kid pretty well." I remarked, to get her attention. Causing her to jump and send a small glare my way. Ignoring it, I stood to my full height from against the wall I had been leaning on. Seeing that it had no effect, this time, Asuna dropped it all together.

"I guess so." she replied, as she glanced back at the kid. "She just reminds me of me, back before Arlong showed up at Cocoyoshi village. Those details I left out for her innocent mind's sake."

At this omission, I couldn't help but begin to feel sheepish. How did she know I had heard them? She must have saw the question on my face, because a small giggle had me looking back at her.

"If you were standing here long enough to lean against the wall, then you must have heard the conversation too." she answered my unspoken question, as she then became serious. "Now that I think about it, I never really said thank you, did I?" she began, as I became confused.

"For what?" I asked her.

"For setting me straight when I asked you guys to take Nami and run for it." she clarified, as she turned to look up at me. "Instead of doing as I was asking, you took me to the side, talked some sense into me when I needed it the most. Then you, Sanji, Ussop, and Luffy all went into Arlong park, kicked ass, took names, and wreaked havoc all over that hell hole. If it hadn't been for you guys, then every living thing on that island would have been wiped off the face of the earth. And Nami and I never would have been free."

At the end of her explanation, I found myself baffled once more by her. Yeah, I helped to save her and Nami from Arlong Park, but still. How could she not hate me for what I would one day have to do?

I then thought about what I should say to that, but I was snapped out of my thoughts when I felt something land on my face. It didn't hurt or anything, but it didn't move from where it rested. Focusing on what was in front of me, I felt my eyes widen as I realized Asuna had stepped well into my personal space, and had put her hand on my cheek.

"Because its part of the path my father chose when he became the world's greatest. When he let you live back when you challenged him at the Baratie, to seek him out and defeat him as he said to you." she told me, as I felt a blush rise up in my cheeks.

"I said that out loud." I muttered, a little mortified at myself.

A gentle pat on my cheek was my only response, as Asuna withdrew her hand and stepped back.

"Why yes. Yes you did, Roronoa Zoro." She told me, becoming serious. "I've might not have met the man, but I have heard the stories people tell about him. He doesn't really speak to people, and only rarely to those he sees as allies. Most of the men who challenge him don't walk out of it alive either. Believe me, had my father wanted to kill you, he would have cut you in half. Not scar you. I've accepted the fact that he will more than likely die at the hand of the man or woman who will eventually fell him. While it will hurt to lose him, I won't stand there and hate them for it if he dies honorably." she said, as she turned to head towards the middle deck. "Just think about what I said, Zoro. While you do that, I'm going to see what Nami wanted. I'm sure she's the one who sent you after me right?" she stated, as I stood there in silence.

She must have taken it as affirmation, because she walked off without a backward glance as she went to find her sister.

I stood there like a total idiot for a solid minute before I shook my head violently. Muttering to myself at the way I let myself become distracted, I turned to go and grab my weights. After a few swings with them on a metal pole, I couldn't help but smirk at what had just happened.

Not only had I unintentionally told Asuna one of my biggest worries in my eventual defeat of Hawk Eyes Mihawk, but then she proceeds to remind me why I needed to train and get stronger. Her last statement however, made that smirk fade into a frown. She said that she had accepted that death is where her father's fate rested as the world's strongest. So why did that still bother me?

My only guess was because it would cause pain to one of my crew members. And as the first mate, I took it upon myself to protect the crew. Even if they piss me off like Sanji does. Out here in the open sea, anything could happen, so each other was all we had.

Taking a deep breath, I cleared my mind, and only concentrated on swinging the weighted metal pole in my hands.

….…

Asuna…

As I left Zoro standing there speechless, I had to repress the churning emotions that filled my heart. I knew that I had told him that I would go and find Nami, but I just couldn't go to her like this. So instead, I headed down into the women's quarters, as I felt a slight panic attack coming on.

I know that I told Zoro that I accepted the fact that my father's fate ended in a fight to the death over the title of the world's strongest swordsman, but that didn't mean it didn't make me weak in the knees just thinking about it. Aside from Nami and Nojiko, not only is Hawk Eyes Mihawk my father, but the only person still alive who knew about my mother.

I never really asked Bellemere about her because most of the time I mentioned her, Bellemere would always get this pained look in her eyes. Or if it was on a bad day, she would ask me to ask her about my mother some other time. With her dying so long ago, my father is all that's left.

Reaching the right room, I all but broke down the door just to get inside. Closing the door tightly, I went over to my bed, and kicked off my shoes before climbing on top of it. Not long after Arlong's defeat, I had spent most of my time away from the rest of my friends contemplating my father's possible death at Zoro's hands. Or Zoro's death at my father's. What I didn't understand was why I felt this way? Why did it deeply disturb me so much that I felt like this?

Was it something to do with Zoro himself? I mean he is handsome in a rough and gruff kind of way…

At this thought, I froze.

Was I?

NO! That's just impossible. I can't be-. I'm not attra-… No, just no! I mentally fought with myself, not even able to form proper sentences at this point.

"Hormones… It's gotta be…" I silently muttered to myself. After all, I was nineteen years old. A young adult, but still in the range of a teenager, and I read in a book some time ago that high hormones in a teenager could cause such crazy thoughts and actions and what not. It was perfectly normal, right?

Was it?

Stupid, egotistical, rotten bastard that Arlong is! Thanks to his tight leash, I have no idea what the hell kind of out look people have on this kind of shit! I mentally shouted in aggravation, as I began to feel ridiculous.

Taking a deep breath, I took a meditative seated position on my bed, and began taking calming breaths. One by one, I could feel my emotions calming with me, as I kept my breathing slow and even. I was so focused on this, that I missed the door opening, and Nami stopping in the door way to observe me with an amused look on her face.

"Hormones?" she said, repeating it from me as I jumped about a foot off the bed in surprise. For the second time that day, my calm was shattered. Grabbing my pillow, I chucked it at Nami's head.

Dodging to the side, Nami let my pillow sail right over her to land in the hall way. Standing back to her full height, she then reached back behind her to pick it up off the floor. With a giggle, she held my pillow to her chest as she moved further into the room, closing the door as she went. Going to her own bed, she sat back against the headboard. We sat in comfortable silence for a bit, before Nami gave me that knowing look of hers once more.

"You know you're not gonna get out of telling me." she simply stated, as a pit of dread began forming in my stomach.

"It's nothing…" I told her, as I looked away. A scoff was my sister's way of dismissing my bullshit.

"Come on Asuna, I'm your sister. You know you can talk to me about this stuff." Nami said, as I gave her a suspicious look.

"Oh I know. Only problem will be what you decide to do with what I tell you." I retorted, as she gave me a conniving grin.

"Would I really do that to you, Asuna? It's not like there's a cute guy you're interesting in, is there?" she teased, as I felt my mind flash back to the unintended nap I took on a certain swordsman's shoulder. My face going red with the thought.

Crap, she clearly remembered that too.

"You would in a heart beat if you thought it'd be amusing, or something you knew I really wanted." I told her, calling her out on the bull she return fired on me.

Seeing that I wasn't going to cave, Nami dropped all manner of playfulness and teasing.

"Seriously Asuna, if it's something you really need to talk about, I won't hold it over your head. If I do, then you have my full permission to charge me with it." she announced, as I raised an eyebrow in her direction.

"Even with three hundred percent interest?" I questioned, as she sweat dropped. After a what looked to be a very uncomfortable moment, she nodded her head in agreement. Now I knew she was serious.

Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly, and told Nami about the conversation I had with Apis. Then the following one with Zoro, and that odd question he blurted out without knowing, and how that and my own thoughts got me stirred up. At the end of it, I was sporting a blush redder than Nami's hair, while she was practically bug eyed.

"Wow…" was all she could say. "Zoro always struck me as someone who didn't really think much beyond naps, training, and his goal. I never would have taken him as someone who genuinely cared about the well being of the crew. Then here's how he and Sanji fight all the time."

"Far as those two idiots fighting all the time, I think it's because they became good friends and are just too similar to show it like a normal person would. So they fight." I said, stating my thoughts on that matter. " But along the lines of Zoro caring for the crew, we saw proof of that back on Cocoyoshi. That fight at Arlong park, Zoro was lucky to have survived that. Especially when Arlong tore those bandages off of him."

Thinking it over, Nami saw my point.

"Yeah, you're right. Zoro really should have sat that fight out, but he didn't. In fact, I doubt anything could have stopped him or the others from going." she agreed, as we elapsed back into silence. Pushing those thoughts to the side, Nami then went back to the matter that brought her to me.

"Enough of that. It's not what I had wanted to talk to you about anyway." she said, as I gave her my undivided attention. I had my meltdown, now it was back to business.

"It's about Apis, isn't it?" I asked, as Nami nodded her head yes. I knew it wasn't going to be anything about us finding Lost Island just yet anyway. All we could do at the moment was keep sailing, and avoid the marines until either we run across the dang place, or Grandpa Ryu remembers. The second option, might not be one much longer though…

"Unfortunately… I've been thinking over that explanation she gave us back at the cave. On how Apis thinks that elderly dragon will regain his strength once he's back on the island we're trying to find. You've ready about as many books on the sea and sea life as I have. So I'm sure the meaning wasn't lost on you either, Asuna." Nami said, as I gazed at the floor.

"It wasn't." I answered. "If Grandpa Ryu means what we believe, then he doesn't want to find Lost Island to grow stronger. He wants to find it so that he can die in peace. Apis is brave, and very mature for her age, but she's still a child. Her child like innocence in such matters still plays a factor as it would seem."

"Indeed." Nami agreed, as she hugged my pillow to her chest. "I just wish Apis wouldn't have to find this out the hard way. It's not our place to tell her about this, it's Grandpa Ryu's. And if he hasn't told her by now then-" she trailed off, as I sighed heavily.

"Then he doesn't intend to." I finished for her.

As the silence returned, neither of us had the heart to break it. Nami and I sat there, locked away from the others for a few more minutes before we headed back up on deck to rejoin the others.

After all, we were far from being out of the woods just yet. With the marine's on our asses, and a sickly dragon floating behind our ship, the horizon sits before us. In it lies the secret to finding Lost Island. Weather we had problems or not, time was growing short, and our adventure awaited us.

With the wind in the Merry's sails, I knew we'd meet it soon enough.

….…

Next Chapter: Chapter 17 - Dragonite

….….

Yeah, yeah, I know. This story got an update notice, but no new chapters were put out. Well that is because I corrected a really old mistake I had made in an earlier chapter. At the time I wrote the chapter that expressed Asuna's name, I was ignorant of how names in the anime world were shown and said. Upon learning of it, and once I remembered where to find the chapter the mistake was in, I went and fixed it.

Sorry for those of you who were disappointed. To make up for that, I wrote up this little beauty for ya. I do hope you guys enjoyed it, and I'll be off to write my next chapter. Don't worry, I'm still writing. I am also trying to get back into the anime that my other fan fictions dabbled in as well.

Seeing as my time planning skills suck, I'm just not going to make any promises on when I have the chapters done and up loaded.

And head's up, if any of you are interested in Skyrim, I'm trying to put together a fan fiction for that as well. Soon as I have the second chapter for it written up to go with the introduction one, I'll be putting that up as well.

As always, I own nothing but my OCs. So enjoy, and have fun!

Bugg18.