Chapter 21/Final: Forever a Pirate! Straw Hats Reunite!

The morning had come after Ash returned from his time with the Straw Hat Pirates. The morning started at the Pokémon Center and Misty began to stir to the sun's rays. She's glad that Ash and his Pokémon came back. She rolled out of bed and opened to find Tracey near the doorway. Togepi heard the door and woke. "Tracey?" she wondered.

"Ash isn't in his room!" he alerted. "He and Pikachu disappeared when I woke up!" Misty sighed, figuring out the ordeal.

"He's probably training after being with those pirates for those few weeks." She picked Togepi up and headed for the kitchen. "Knowing him, Ash'll be coming by for food when he's done." Tracey followed Misty, still irked to Ash's disappearance. As they got closer to the kitchen, the trainers spotted commotion.

"Misty, what's going on?"

"I don't know!" Hearing the brief conversation, one girl turned to Misty and Tracey.

"Say, didn't you come to Doubloon Island with him?" she asked. Neither trainer knew who the girl referred to.

"What are you talking about?" asked Tracey. Another girl stopped to explain.

"That boy with the Pikachu!" she cheered. "You didn't tell me that he's a master chef!" Misty and Tracey blinked before looking in the kitchen. A group of girls, including Joy, fawned to the chef and his preparation of breakfast.

"Someone's a superstar," Misty studied. When they saw the chef, they gasped in shock. Making hash browns, french toast, crescent rolls, scrambled and fried eggs, pancakes, crispy bacon, sausage links… his friends couldn't believe Ash prepared for such an occasion while sprinkling the salt from Water 7.

"I can tell that you're all hungry!" he laughed. "It'll be a few more minutes!" The girls couldn't wait to enjoy Ash's food, the aroma from the meal lured more girls to the kitchen. Misty and Tracey displayed astonished looks, unable to believe their sight.

"He CAN cook!" he gasped. Joy's mouth watered from the scent.

"This is gonna be so good, I'm getting an energy boost with just a whiff!" she yelped.

"It's a little too soon in the morning for something like that." Tracey turned to Misty who looked unconscious standing up. Togepi became concerned for his trainer. "Misty?" The redhead began to topple over when Tracey snagged Togepi. Misty fainted and hit the floor with an irking thud. Looking down, the Pokémon Watcher had an idea what made Misty fall. "My mind's been blown as well, but I don't think you need to exaggerate." Ash served breakfast to those in the Center.

"Trust me," he advised. "My teacher would throw a fit if you threw your food out."

"Now why would we do that?" teased Joy. "This is so good, I may need some of these recipes from your teacher." As everyone enjoyed breakfast with their Pokémon, Misty rebounded from her fainting spell and confronted Ash. The Vice Captain saw his friends approaching.

"Morning, you two! I've got some for you guys as-"

"WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ASH?!" the redhead shouted. Ash scoffed to the yell.

"Take a deep breath, Misty. Just because I've been away with the Straw Hats, doesn't mean all I did was plunder various islands. I learned to cook and defend myself." Tracey chuckled to Ash's unfazed demeanor.

"Apparently, they also told you about dealing with others in disbelief," he teased. "Believe me, when you said you were taught how to cook, we didn't believe it… and now look!"

"Right? By the way, I bet you guys are hungry. Here… breakfast." Misty looked to the plate of food made by her friend.

"I'll admit, Brock might be envious of you if it's as good as they say," she wagered. Taking a fork, she sliced a bite-full of pancakes and scarfed it in her mouth. Instantly, a massive burst of flavor triggered her to freeze and savor. Misty couldn't remove the fork in her mouth as the taste measured beyond what she believed. "WOW!" Ash nodded, positive to Misty's word.

"Good, huh?" Hearing Ash, Misty came face-to-face while removing the fork.

"Good? This isn't 'good,' it's something beyond comprehension! That teacher of yours… I want to meet him! Tell me! Show me! This is some of the best food I've tasted, and I've tasted a lot!" Misty's loud rave to Ash's cooking tempted Tracey and Togepi to try.

"You wouldn't be the only one," Tracey pointed out. Ash glanced to the crowd of happy women. Togepi took a bite of some of the hash browns. The Spike Ball Pokémon instantly fell on his bottom while letting out an enormous and endearing shrill. "Togepi likes it, too!" Finally, Tracey stomached what little concern he had and tried the hash browns himself. Quickly, his body became happy. "I've… tasted… HEAVEN!" Ash didn't flinch to the Watcher's glee.

"Another satisfied customer," he mumbled. Ash prepped his plate before grabbing the scrapbook and sitting down with his friends. He opened the scrapbook and revealed a picture of him with Sanji in the kitchen.

"So that's your teacher?" guessed Misty.

"That's him: Black Leg Sanji. His hands are for cooking while his legs are for fighting. He does make Brock look tame around women." Tracey's reaction was of humor.

"What do you mean by that?" he questioned.

"He'd flirt and ask out many women rather than fight them. Heck, he even tried to hit on Jessie." Misty's face transformed to dread.

"Does he have no limit?" she wondered.

"It wouldn't be a surprise if he tried to hit on my mom," Pained faces emerged from the possibility.

"I knew it… no limit on him." Tracey found a page full of the Straw Hats' wanted posters.

"These must be the crew you're with," he noticed. Misty looked to see the lineup, finding Ash's poster by Luffy's.

"They're wanted posters?" she gawked.

"They're from the Marines," Ash explained as he took a swig of iced coffee in the mug supplied by Zoro. "If not for my error in telling who's who, I may not have come back at all." Misty and Tracey blinked to the explanation.

"I don't get it," the redhead muttered.

"The Straw Hats and the Marines were in battle and since their sails were furled, I couldn't tell them apart." Ash's briefing of his blunder made Misty shake her head. Tracey studied Ash's poster which had his Pokémon.

"So you saved the pirates by mistake?" he snickered. "Then explain why they gave you the name 'Beastman'? Is it because of your Pokémon?"

"Yep…"

"And your bounty is 75 Million… B?" Tracey's sudden befuddle got Ash to dig out a 500 Berry bill.

"This is their currency, Berries. Not the same as berries we eat." Pikachu nodded to the information. Misty examined the bill.

"I wonder how many in Berries it'll take to replace my bike that you broke," she sneered. Tracey gawked to Misty's reminder.

"Misty!" he snapped.

"Hey, he's fine! I don't need to tell his mom that he's gone!" Then her growl became a moan. "Then again, I can't believe that you have a fiancee already. Don't get me wrong, she was… nice to us and to Togepi." Misty's Pokémon shrilled to the visit.

"I didn't think Togepi would be frightened at Shirahoshi's size," he expected. "If Charizard and Scyther didn't deter him, I doubt Brook or Franky would either." Tracey found the posters of both names.

"Iron Man Franky, 44 Million," he informed. "And Humming Brook. 33 Million." Misty found Sanji's poster and became rather bemused.

"This… isn't the same Sanji as the picture," she pointed out. Ash knew the tale of Sanji's bad poster.

"It's a long and embarrassing story," he summed up. He explained the ordeal in which all Misty and Tracey did was shake their heads.

"Embarrassing is right," Tracey groaned. He continued on reading the rest of the Straw Hats' bounties. "Sniper King Usopp: 30 Million… Cotton Candy Lover Tony Tony Chopper?" Ash had an answer for that.

"People still regard the reindeer as a pet." Ash's word made Misty gasp.

"Chopper's a reindeer?" she repeated. "From… Santa's workshop?"

"Nope. Chopper's the medic of the ship. He ate the Devil Fruit called the Human-Human Fruit." Misty's eyes shot open wide.

"A reindeer that's a doctor? That's something I'd like to see. Still, only 50 Berries?" Ash shrugged his shoulders to his poor reindeer friend.

"Not as important as say Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro at 120 Million," Tracey showed. That's when Misty spotted the two women with Ash yesterday.

"Tracey, there!" she pointed. The posters of Robin and Nami caught Misty's eyes as she fingered the two posters.

"Devil Child Nico Robin?"

"She was treated like that back in her home of Ohara," Ash briefed. "She's far too nice for her to be called that, and I know it ain't from eating the Flower-Flower Fruit." Despite his smile, Ash shed a tear. Misty saw the tear and began to wonder.

"She's gotta be about your mom's age and you liked her?" she guessed. Ash nodded before confessing.

"That's the reason… She was my mom… away from my mom." Misty, Tracey and the Pokémon understood. The scrapbook contained all sorts of pictures within. One picture had Ash and Luffy enjoying a giant slab of meat with their arms around each one's necks. One had Ash and Zoro carrying large sacks of fruit with Lily as her giant self watching them. There was one with Ash and Usopp fishing while Pikachu snacked on the Sniper King's Ketchup Stars. One was Chopper giving Ash a checkup for injuries and fatigue. There's one with Robin using her Devil Fruit powers to wrap Ash in a joyous hug and pecking his cheek. Another picture had Ash and Franky chugging on Cola and one with Ash and Brook singing. One had Ash getting a pair of kisses from Nami and Robin at the same time while another had his face caked with lipstick by Camie and the mermaids in Fishman Island. The mermaids emerged in another picture with Lapras swimming by the cove. There's one with Ash and Shirahoshi sharing a kiss after confirming the engagement. One more photo had the Straw Hats in a group. Robin, Zoro, Sanji, Franky and Brook were in the back, Nami, Ash and Luffy in the middle and Chopper and Pikachu in the front. Ash and Luffy switched hats for the shoot. Months had passed and the scrapbook sat on a desk with the models Franky gave him. The desk was in a bedroom. From the window, a brunette woman wearing a pink blouse, jeans and a flowery straw hat of her own tending a garden in the backyard. She turned to orange flowers blooming in one part.

"I wonder how the other tangerine patches are doing?" she asked herself. "Ash did say he planted some in Professor Oak's ranch for the Pokémon there." Just as she wondered, a gray-haired man in a lab coat on a bike pedaled to the gate which separated the road and her garden.

"Good afternoon, Delia!" he greeted. The woman heard the man and spun to him.

"Good afternoon, Professor Oak! I was just thinking about you! How are the Pokémon doing there?"

"Great!" He saw the flowers blooming. "So, the tangerines Ash planted are starting to bear fruit!" Delia looked to the tangerine flowers.

"They are, but I still wonder where he got the seeds from? Not that I'm complaining, I can't wait to try them for myself." Oak understood Delia's word, and had more.

"Ash has definitely changed since attending the Orange Islands. I'm not sure where he got all of that muscle or the items like that snail or the salt that he brought home." Delia wasn't concerned about the items from his time in the Orange Islands.

"Knowing that my son's still doing what he loves to do, it's all I need to do is support his dream." Delia looked to the sky with her words echoing in her head. On an island far from Delia and Oak, Ash, Misty and their Pokémon were on a beach with a tanned young man wearing a green vest over an orange shirt and brown pants. Ash felt a song coming on as he and Pikachu fished with Usopp's fishing rod, Misty sunbathed and Brock cooked.

"Yo hohoho, yo hohoho Yo hohoho, yo hohoho
Yo hohoho, yo hohoho Yo hohoho, yo hohoho

Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.
Sea wind blows, to where, who knows? The waves will be our guide.
O'er across the ocean's tide. Rays of sunshine far and wide.
Birds they sing, of cheerful things, in circles passing by.

Bid farewell to weaver's town, say so long to port renowned.
Sing a song, it won't be long, before we're casting off.
Cross the gold and silver seas, a salty spray puts us at ease,
Day and night, to our delight, the voyage never ends.

Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.
Pirates, we eternally are challenging the sea.
With the waves to rest our heads, ship beneath us as our beds,
hoisted high upon the mast, our jolly roger flies.

Somewhere in the endless sky, stormy winds are blowing by,
waves are dancing, evening comes, it's time to sound the drums.
But steady men, and never fear, tomorrow's skies are always clear.
So pound your feet and clap your hands 'til sunny days return.

Yo hohoho, yo hohoho Yo hohoho, yo hohoho
Yo hohoho, yo hohoho Yo hohoho, yo hohoho

Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.
Wave goodbye, but don't you cry, our memories remain.
Our days are but a passing dream, everlasting though they seem.
Beneath the moon we'll meet again, the wind's our lullaby.

Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.
Sing a song, and play along for all the oceans wide.
After all is said and done, you'll end up a skeleton,
so spread your tale from dawn 'til dusk upon these foamy seas.

Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…
Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…

Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…
Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…Yo hohoho, yo hohoho…"

Ash's singing made Togepi dance but brought a groan to Misty. "That tells me you miss the crew, Ash," Misty assumed. Ash sighed to Misty's point.

"Can you blame me?" he shrugged. "It just hasn't really been the same since I sailed with them." The teen heard Ash and recalled an earlier event.

"You mean with pirates?" he brought up. "I still find that hard that you actually sailed with them, let alone be their Vice Captain. Then again, it still wouldn't explain how you learned to cook, bring the seasoning known as… Water 7 salt, and gained all that muscle."

"Yeah, I nearly forgot about that," Misty muttered. "I bet Ash could pick me up without a problem." Ash scoffed to the teen's comment. "In fact, I seemed to forget what Ash was before I activated the trap door on Doubloon Island. He changed to something that I feel at ease about."

"Hey, just be glad I could help out when you got sick that one day, Brock," he motioned. Brock nodded to the claim.

"Right,,, after you gave me that medicine from the pirate doctor," he joked. Ash snickered before spotting something in the distance.

"What's that?" Misty and Brock heard Ash and reached his side. Ash had the spyglass out to view the action.

"What is it?" she wondered. "What do you see?" Ash watched a large bubble from far away. Then, a mast appeared. To Ash, his friends have made a return.

"The Straw Hats! They're here!" The Thousand Sunny finished rising from the depths to surface. "Let's go see them!" Ash raced ahead while Misty and Brock started to give chase. Pokémon from around galloped alongside Ash for a little while.

"Ash, wait up!" complained Brock. The Sunny docked by the island which most of the crew stepped off. Luffy took a deep breath as he readied himself to disembark..

"Let's see what Pokémon we can find here," he pondered. Usopp and Chopper followed Luffy to see some Pokémon themselves.

"Sorry, Luffy," Usopp scoffed. "We can't let you go alone."

"You do need us to make sure our captain's safe," Chopper said. Luffy believed they also wanted a Pokémon for themselves.

"Okay!" he agreed. "I thought you guys wanted one to add to the crew."

"Well, not that we don't want to overlook that possibility…" Usopp shyly weighed the option. On the deck, Zoro slept on the grass, Nami and Robin in skimpy bikinis sunbathed and Brook played the violin which lured human-like green creatures with grass for skirts. They looked to seeing the violinist and became scared at the sight. Sanji brought cold drinks to the girls.

"Here you go, Nami-Swan," he offered. "Robin Dear." Nami and Robin took a glass each.

"Thanks!" they praised. Sanji smiled before turning to Jimbei.

"You okay over there?!" Hearing Sanji, Jimbei turned to the cook.

"It just feels nice to step out of Fishman Island sometimes!" he sighed. "Besides, Shirahoshi had a hunch about coming here!" Just then…

"HHHHHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYY!" shouted Ash. Zoro woke, Brook stopped playing and Franky put his Cola bottle down. Nami and Robin sat up and ran starboard.

"Could it be?!" an excited Robin wondered. Usopp gathered his own spyglass and out to the island.

"Let's see…" he checked. Through the spyglass, he saw a happy Ash and Pikachu waiving to the Sunny. "It's Ash! He's here!"

"He made it!" cheered the reindeer. A chorus of splashes summoned the mermaids who became excited to see the Beastman that saved Fishman Island. One big splash, Shirahoshi emerged to see her fiance. Luffy, Usopp and Chopper reached Ash, Misty and Brock before the rest could journey down the ramp to the island.

"Beastman!" cheered Luffy, He and Ash shared a hug by slamming shoulders together.

"Luf-ster!" cheered Ash. He viewed the rest. "Usopp, Chopper, I've been wondering about you guys!" Misty and Brock saw the pirates and were glad to see them for the first time.

"Boy, aren't we glad to see you!" cheered Chopper. When Usopp saw Brock, he didn't realize who joined.

"Wait, you weren't with Ash when we brought him back from Fishman Island," he pointed out.

"See, I was somewhere else than with Ash and Misty," Brock explained. "I rejoined them after they came back from the Orange Islands." Seeing Chopper, Misty snagged the doctor in a hug.

"You are so adorable!" she cooed. "I never had a chance to hug a reindeer before!" Chopper shivered in delight from Misty's hug.

"Finally, someone other than me that knows I'm a reindeer," he smiled. The other Straw Hats came off the Sunny to see their Vice Captain again, including Robin.

"My son!" she cheered as she hugged Ash. "I missed you!"

"Hey, Robin!" greeted Ash, "I'd been thinking about you for sometime." Robin wondered as Nami saw her little warrior of a brother.

"How's my little brother doing?" she asked with glee. She hugged Ash before he regained his balance.

"Even better seeing everyone." Nami laughed before she felt her hands grasped.

"Excuse me, miss!" started Brock. He held her hands tight as he's on one knee. "I know we haven't met but at least I know that love comes from nowhere in particular. You must have navigated this huge vessel to find love and I know you were hugging Ash, bu- AAAHHH!" Brock's ear got pulled viciously by Misty. The pain from his ear yanked jarred his hands from Nami's.

"You need to find a new course of action, Cupid!" groaned Misty. As Nami shook her hand of Brock's grasp, Robin turned to Ash about the thought.

"So, what was it that you thought of me?" she asked. Ash began to recall the moment.

"Are you familiar with a Nico Olvia?" he asked. Robin gasped to the name.

"Yes, that's my mother's name!" The discovery confirmed Ash's wonder.

"She had appeared just before we journeyed onto the Whirl Islands… but mainly in my dream. She wanted to apologize for not taking care of you like the mother she wanted to be." Robin shed a few tears to the apology.

"Like mother, like daughter,,," Ash had more from the dream.

"She also wished she brought you to her adventures instead of leaving you with Aunt Roji." Robin trembled at the word of her mother's regret.

"She always had her work ahead of her in archaeology over family. She hated her brother's wife. It's Aunt Roji that made me feel unwelcome in Ohara." Misty heard Robin's tearful tale and comforted her with Nami standing by.

"I'm sorry you had to endure that," she apologized. Robin looked to Misty before she hugged her.

"You may not know half of it but thank you for understanding." Misty patted the woman's back. Unaware to the redhead, Togepi had wandered to Brook who looked down to see the Spike Ball Pokémon.

"You wanna lift?" he asked. A shrill from Togepi allowed him to lean down and lay a hand on the grass. Togepi walked onto Brook's bony hand where he lifted the baby Pokémon. "A baby in my hand… I should feel warm and fuzzy inside." Misty spotted the baby and panicked.

"Togepi!" she shouted before sprinting… and stopping at the sight of the Sunny's musician.

"This must be yours?" Togepi shrilled, inviting Misty over. Viewing from a little distance, Ash palmed his face while Brock studied the scene.

"I guess we shouldn't be surprised that Togepi isn't afraid of someone dead," he sighed. Humored, Nami came to pick the baby Pokémon from Brook.

"So we have a new little warrior," she cooed. "Hi, there!" Togepi chirped to new friends. Robin massaged Togepi's head, which he liked.

"I'd say that little baby's a great new addition to our crew," Luffy suggested. Misty didn't agree.

"Guess again, rubber boy!" she yelled. Usopp clobbered Luffy in the head with his slingshot.

"Make a baby with Hancock before you make such a stupid idea!" he added with volume. Jimbei came forward to see Ash.

"Beastman, it's nice to see that you're doing fine after your fight with Arlong," he noted. Ash sneered to the fishman.

"Why wouldn't I be?" he scoffed. Jimbei smiled before having a report ready.

"While Team Rocket is still jailed for their crimes in helping Arlong's crew, I should tell you that Arlong himself has died. All that remains of the original Sun Pirates is myself." Ash had a suspicion on the rogue fishman's passing.

"I remember that he injected himself with the Energy Steroids." Jimbei nodded to his information.

"The Energy Steroids cause rapid age acceleration. You could say he and the fishmen who also had the drug in their veins aged incredibly fast and soon died thereafter."

"As long as Neptune and the children are safe, that's all that matters." Jimbei nodded to the result. Misty came over to Ash with curiosity.

"Ash, who's he?" she asked.

"Jimbei's the main security in protecting the royal family in Fishman Island. He's known as a fishman, and they've been ridiculed by society for their appearance." Misty cringed to the note.

"Sorry to hear that."

"It's all good, miss," Jimbei acknowledged. Misty heard about the fight and recalled another moment.

"You should've been with us when we stormed Team Rocket's base to rescue a Lugia with Ash's lookalike, Ritchie. He may have torn the base like a… Beastman, per say. He also gave Cassidy and Butch a beating like you wouldn't believe. He may have been easy on Cassidy with a black eye and a busted jaw, but Butch got broken ribs and skull for trying to hurt Lugia." Jimbei snickered while crossing his arms.

"That's certainly our Beastman." Sanji came over when he heard a woman's name and grabbed Ash by the shirt collar.

"How DARE you hurt a woman with gruesome injuries!" he growled. "Maybe I should show you again how to be around women who may need-" Sanji's yelling stopped when he felt tugs. Turning, two fiery redheads showed evil glares to the cook who quickly released Ash.

"Wow, that… looks familiar," Brock shuttered from afar.

"When it comes to women, Sanji's a sheep to even a lioness cub," Chopper summed up. Brock shuttered in thought. Zoro stepped up with a stack of papers.

"I thought I'd let you know that we have had our bounties raised," he brought up. Misty blinked to what Zoro briefed.

"Bounties?" she repeated. Laying the posters down, Ash saw Luffy's first. It showed the captain smiling with his hand out to the frame.

"Nothing's changed about Luffy," he studied.

"Not quite," Zoro corrected as he pointed to the total. Ash's eyes nearly left his head.

"500 Million?! What did you do?!" Luffy smiled like the poster.

"See, we invaded Dressrosa sometime ago," he explained.

"Dressrosa's affiliated with the World Government and we defeated the king, Donquixote Doflamingo," Franky added. "I would say that due to our mess we made before we decided to visit you again, the Marines updated our bounties, including yours." Ash blinked to the news.

"I can understand Fishman Island, but Dressrosa?" he wondered.

"The only reason is that due to your ranking as a Straw Hat pirate that you had some sort of involvement there," Zoro assumed. "Like guidance," Ash pondered the explanation.

"There was a nice young chick that fell for you when seeing your first wanted poster," Franky added. "Princess Rebecca was a sweetheart but she didn't like that you're already taken." Ash shrugged, not sure how else to respond. Ash and Misty saw the other posters starting with Nami tossing her hair.

"If only I had hair like her," Misty joked. Nami's bounty brought a giggle to Ash.

"66 million will get you a lot of shampoo," he pointed out. Chopper's poster was next which had his updated look. "Same Chopper… and only 100 Berries? Still regarded as a pet, little guy?" Chopper whined to the bounty given. Togepi raced over and patted the reindeer to comfort. Sanji came next where there was a picture of him and not some grotesque drawing. Sanji had hearts for eyes. "They finally got you on camera with a 177 million bounty!"

"I know," Sanji sneered. "It's a good look to me!" Next was Usopp's. That one had him with blood down his face and his eyes having no pupils.

"That's freaky," Misty gulped. "And I don't mean the 200 million. And… 'God Usopp'?" The name made Usopp sigh.

"It's a long story," he grumbled. "If I wanted to be a great warrior, I do question the name," Robin's poster was next with her having a hand over her mouth, palm facing the camera. Her bounty's at 130 million. Brook's poster came up but this wasn't the same as the others as it looked more like a concert poster.

"You're definitely rocking this poster, Brook!" chuckled Ash. Brook laughed, amused to the reaction.

"I am the Soul King and reaching the souls of those who listen have felt the music in their bones," he claimed.

"I feel it, Brook," Misty believed. "Just not in the same way you do." Brook laughed a little more.

"Just be glad I'm not after others like Nami and Robin since you've got time to grow up." Misty jumped back in fear while Nami smashed a kick to his skull.

"Too personal!" she snapped. Brook landed in a heap far from anyone else.

"I only meant it as a… compliment…" Seeing Franky's poster, Ash didn't think the silver face was Franky at all.

"Is that the General Franky?" he guessed.

"So you noticed…" Franky confirmed. "Probably a good idea since if they had me, they'd walk into a death trap." Misty thought of a request.

"Do you have this General Franky on board?" she asked.

"I do! I can bring it out if you want!" Misty nodded to the request. Zoro's poster came next and it showed only his face.

"What happened?" asked Ash. "Your other poster was awesome!" Zoro shook his head.

"I wondered that myself," he grumbled. "It's not the same badass look I had before." Misty saw the bounty and shivered.

"Roronoa Zoro, 320 Million?" she gasped. "That's second to the captain's!" Zoro shook his head again.

"It would be IF there wasn't one more." There was one more poster. They saw Ash's poster of him in his rage against Arlong and his clothes torn.

"That's what I looked like after that beast in me took over?" he gasped. "Wow, I am a Beastman!" As if that wasn't enough, Franky pointed to the title.

"Look at the price you've won," he showed. Misty also spotted the title.

"Beastman Ash Ketchum," she read. "325 Million!?" Ash gawked to the price on his head.

"325?" he repeated. "How did I get a higher price than Zoro?!" To Brock, his position gave way to the higher price.

"Well, a Vice Captain's second-in-command," he taught. "It only makes sense that you're second highest." Ash shrugged his shoulders, surrendering. "So in total, the Straw Hats' bounties mount up to 1,895,000,100 Berries!" Hearing the amount made Luffy snicker.

"Wow, we're worth a lot!" he chirped. "Just think if we find One Piece!" Ash scoffed when…

"BEASTMAN!" shouted Camie. Following, the mermaids called Ash over by his nickname. He came over to Sharley's employees.

"Beastman, can we see your Pokémon?" asked Sora. Ash grinned to the request.

"Okay!" he agreed. He threw his Pokéballs upward. All five opened and revealed different Pokémon than what he brought to Fishman Island. Appearing was a blue mouse with red spots on its back, a small cyan crocodile with red scales, a greenish-yellow dinosaur with a leaf protruding from its head, a yellow owl with red wings and black triangle feathers and a large blue horned beetle. While the mermaids awed the Pokémon, some were upset.

"What happened to Lapras?" questioned Adele.

"Well, Lapras reunited with his family. I didn't want to release him but he felt happy to be with his own mom." The mermaids awed the news, even Shirahoshi.

"I'm glad for Lapras to be reunited with his pod," she mentioned. Ash had more about his Pokémon.

"As for the rest, Squirtle's with the rest of his gang and now they're firefighters. Charizard's training at the Charicific Valley with other Charizards and the rest are back at Professor Oak's ranch. So now I have Totodile, Cyndaquil, Bayleef, Noctowl and Heracross." The mermaids became happy about the other Pokémon.

"We're so grateful to see new Pokémon," Fillonce praised.

"Especially on your birthday, no less," Camie added. The mermaids became excited to know of Ash's birthday, as well as Nami who got dressed. Ash chuckled to the news.

"I did kinda tell them after I borrowed your PokéDex and saw your stats," the navigator explained. Ash turned to see Meowth's charm with a familiar jewel embedded in it.

"Whoa, is that the Rainbow Gem I found?" he pointed.

"It is! I actually fashioned it to a necklace. It's gotta be a lot of Berries but I'm not gonna sell it to anyone." Ash nodded, knowing that part of the necklace was a treasure to her. "But still… Happy Birthday, Beastman!" When Robin joined up, they hugged him with their breasts burying his face, something Ash got used to before they kissed his cheeks at the same time, leaving lip-shaped dents to his face. Shirahoshi leaned down before going lip-to-lip with her fiance as Franky brought a giant cake to the island using the General Franky. The cake was the shape of Pikachu's face. Brock gawked to seeing the mermaid princess love his friend. He collapsed to a fetal position. Sanji reached Brock's side and patted him on the back while holding a cold glass of juice on a tray.

"I know how you feel, man," he murmured. He got to his feet and rejoined Misty. "Thought you might like something cold to drink." Misty awed the drink by the cook.

"Oh… thanks!" she accepted. Taking a sip, she tasted sweetness and admired the drink immediately. "That's so good! I can actually thank you for teaching Ash how to cook while we finished the Orange Islands." The compliment made Sanji smile.

"That makes me glad I can help out." While Ash saw the mermaids with several Water Pokémon. Shirahoshi had two pink heart-shaped fish swimming by her. This made Ash excited.

"What did you get, dear?" he asked before pulling out his Dex. Pointing, he expected to see data.

"Pokémon not found," it computed. This left Ash dumbfounded.

"Not found?" Shirahoshi decided to help as one of the fish reached Ash.

"These are Luvdiscs," she explained with a laugh. "They met me while on my way here today… and when two Luvdisc see a match, they'll celebrate." Sure enough, the Luvdisc danced around happily where the Straw Hats, the mermaids and Ash's friends smiled. The dinosaur growled to the sight. Misty and Sanji came to the dinosaur and petted it.

"Sorry, Bayleef," she sighed. "Ash was already claimed before he met you." Bayleef moaned to the information. Ash enjoyed the Luvdisc swimming around each other.

"I can see…" he laughed. Misty decided to show her Pokémon.

"I got Water Pokémon myself!" she announced. "Here!" She threw her balls. Opened, out came a brown starfish with a ruby jewel in the center, a blue tadpole with a swirl on its abdomen, a pink walking coral, a Goldeen and a yellow duck. The mermaids enjoyed the Pokémon. Misty's Pokémon and the crocodile joined the mermaids for a swim… except for the duck.

"Come on!" urged Mello. The duck retreated back to Bayleef and Misty.

"Psyduck, you don't need to go in the water to meet the mermaids." Psyduck didn't want any part. Luffy decided to show Ash what he brought.

"Say, Ash!" he called out. Ash turned around to see his captain. "I kept my promise!" Ash remembered the promise.

"You got Pokémon?" he guessed. Luffy grinned as he threw up six Pokéballs. They opened to reveal a black dog with curved horns, a large lavender bulldog, an Arbok, a brown porcupine, a large jellyfish and a giant rock snake. Ash awed the lineup. "Houndoom, Arbok, Granbull, Sandslash, Tentacruel and Onix? That's quite the lineup!"

"I know! Can your Pokémon face mine?"

"I think we'll test that theory." That's when Ash wanted to make it special.

"I think I know what's coming," he grinned. As if he had clothes underneath, Ash ripped out of his wear to reveal his pirate outfit. The mermaids cheered wildly while Misty blinked in confusion.

"He changed into that and the mermaids lose their minds?" she summed up. Sanji cut a piece of cake while Brock started the grill with meat, fruits and vegetables ready for the fire.

"Here, a little cake I made," he offered. Misty saw the sponge of the cake with red and brown swirls inside. "I call it my Neapolitan cake: vanilla, chocolate and strawberry." Misty's mouth watered to the flavors.

"Wow, can I?!" Hearing her squeal made Sanji smile. Franky also brought food for Brock and Sanji to grill. Jimbei came forward.

"I've also studied how Pokémon battles work so I'll be in charge of this," he requested. "I also have a Gyarados in training and King Neptune has a Wailord to swim with Hoe." Ash smiled to the information. "Now, you two get ready."

"Okay!" the trainers shouted.

"This will be a full six-on-six Pokémon Battle between Captain Monkey D. Luffy and Vice Captain Ash Beastman Ketchum. Each trainer can switch out any Pokémon and I rule when one is unable to battle. It will also be decided when one trainer's Pokémon is wiped out." Rules established, Ash and Luffy decided to call out their first Pokémon.

"Here we go, Doomy!" started Luffy. His Houndoom came forward.

"Luf-ster, my partner in crime will start things off," Ash sneered as Pikachu came forward. Jimbei raised an arm.

"Begin!" he announced. Houndoom and Pikachu charged in. The battle began between the heads of the Straw Hats. The Straw Hats are searching for the ultimate goal, as is Ash. However, the mermaids, Fukaboshi, Ryuboshi and Mamboshi, who came to see their future brother-in-law in a battle, are looking forward to seeing their sister's happiness once more. Suffice to say, Ash Ketchum and Princess Shirahoshi have found their own One Piece.

END

(Thank you for reading this long story. Soon, I'll be starting new stories with Equestria Girls and a new Legend of Zelda to cross with Pokémon.)