Chapter 31: Bon Clay and Fire Fist, Arrival in Alabasta

Here we go, straight into Alabasta. Also straight to the point; I want nine (9) Reviews this time. No prob, right?

On an unrelated note, I finally came in contact with one of those Guests. You know, the kind that needs to try to put others down because they have no self-esteem of their own. The nerve of some people.

Chapter 31:

Bon Clay and Fire Fist, Arrival in Alabasta

"I guess we have to catch you up to speed," Nami said the next morning as most of the men cleaned up after the party the night before. The two that were not, Coby and Gin, we're on lookout and steering respectively. The ship was sailing for Alabasta quickly, so Chopper needed to know what they were doing. "We're headed for Alabasta, Vivi's home country, which is caught in a civil war caused by a man named Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."

"So this guy is bad news?" the reindeer asked.

"Really bad news," Vivi answered him. "He's in charge of a secret, underground crime syndicate known as Baroque Works." At this point, Grace and Amy gained sheepish looks, Grace doing so with one of her beloved rice crackers in her mouth. "He leads them with the alias Mr. 0. Under him are 12 male agents with female partners and two animals. These agents are the best of the best ranging from the Mr. 1 pair to the Mr. 12 pair and the animal pair number 13, the Unluckies. However, Sanji killed them when they attacked him on Little Garden. I don't really know much about the top dogs except their codenames. Mr. 1 is paired with Ms. Doublefinger. Mr. 2 has no partner. Mr. 3 was paired with Grace until she joined us. Mr. 4 is paired with Ms. Merrychristmas. And Mr. 5 was paired with Amy. Last we know, both Mr. 3 and Mr. 5 were left on Little Garden."

"So you two use to be part of this Baroque Works?" Chopper asked the sisters.

"We weren't the only ones," Amy defended. "The princess here went by the name Ms. Wednesday for the last two years. Besides, we really didn't have a choice in the matter."

"Really?" Nami asked. "Why not?"

"It involves why we're out at sea," Amy sighed, hugging Grace close. "Three years ago, I turned sixteen and Grace turned nine. We lived in a small village in the South Blue known as Green Bank. It is, or was, really small. Only about 200 people lived there, give or take, so if one person got sick, so did quite a bit of the town, too. One winter, a virus worked its way into Green Bank and quickly killed off most of the village, mine and Grace's parents included. Luckily, I was able to survive it and Grace didn't get sick. The orphans banded together, 17 of us. We lived just outside of town, avoiding the sick.

"Unfortunately, that's what led to us getting kidnapped. A band of pirates known as the Greedy Dog Pirates attacked the town. When they found out that most of the villagers were dead or dying, they took everything they could and abducted the children to sell as slaves here in the Grand Line. They entered the Grand Line with us held in their cargo hold and chose Whisky Peak as their first destination. When they arrived, they were slaughtered by Baroque Works and we were freed. That's why we were part of their syndicate until we learned the truth of Mr. 0... er, Crocodile's plan."

"That's awful," Vivi cried while Chopper gained a sad look in his eye.

"Do you happen to know the name of the disease?"

"No, I don't," Amy answered with a shake of her head. "I don't remember a lot of that time. I've blocked out most of the memories."

"Well, you're with us now," Nami smiled. "We'll be your new home. I'm sorry for not trusting you. Can we start over?" She held out her hand. "Hi. I'm Nami from Cocoyashi Village in the East Blue and I'm the navigator. I like money, tangerines, and my boyfriend, Luffy. I hate people that use others. I want to draw a map of the whole world." Amy took her hand.

"I'm Amy Palant from the South Blue. I like chocolate and my little sister Grace. I dislike most pirates. I'm a sadist, but only to my enemies, and I want to create the world's best-tasting chocolate. This is Grace. She's very lazy and likes tea, rice crackers, and painting. She dislikes work of all kinds with the exception of artwork. She wants to be a famous painter." In response to the last sentence, Grace nodded, still chewing on her cracker.

"Nami!" they heard Coby shout out from the crow's nest where he was on duty. "There's something up ahead! Smoke or something! What should we do?" The navigator moved to the front of the ship, the sisters, Vivi, and Chopper following out of curiosity. In the path of the ship was a column of greenish-blue/white gas floating up from the ocean. While she had never seen it before, Nami had read about it enough to recognize it.

"Don't worry about it!" she yelled back to him. "It's just steam from an underwater volcano! Thousands of years from now, it'll be an island!"

"Gotcha!" the boy called back.

"The ocean really is amazing," Chopper gaped. They sailed into the steam, gagging at the sulfur-like smell it exuded. Halfway through, they heard yelling from off to the starboard side.

"Help!" it called. "Help me! I'm in the water!" Luffy ran to the side, squinting into the steam to try to find the person in need. A flailing shadow caught his eye and he threw his arm out to grab it. The person he rescued had black hair slicked back to reveal his ovular face covered in make-up ruined by the water. His clothes were ridiculous shades of pink and blue and mascara lined his eyes. Two decorations shaped like swans sat on his shoulders and his pink coat read "Bon Clay" on the back in kanji. His hairy legs were exposed to the world and his feet were clad in ballerina shoes.

Amy recognized him instantly and drug Grace into the kitchen where Gin was working as acting helmsman while on mandatory, light-work probation until Chopper cleared him. All the alcohol they'd had the night before was not good for his overall healing.

"Oh!" the rescued man called out in a forced high-pitch voice as the ship sailed out of the noxious steam. "I was so sure I was a goner! Thank you ever so much for saving me!"

"What were you doing in the sea like that?" Usopp asked.

"Alas! I had fallen off my ship in this dense fog when one of my leaps went too far. I would have died had you all not come along." The man began practicing ballet.

"Do you know where your ship is?" Sanji questioned, slightly repulsed by the man.

"Alas, I do not. I suppose I will have to wait here for them to find me. To pass the time, would you like to see a special trick?"

"A trick?!" Luffy gasped. Chopper and Usopp joined him in his excitement.

"Yes, it goes like so!" He smacked Luffy with his right hand.

"Hey!" Luffy yelled.

"And now!" the man put his right hand to his face before he changed into an exact copy of Luffy with the exception of his clothes or anything not seen under them like his new tattoo. Bon Clay then proceeded to tap Usopp, Chopper, a sleeping Zoro, and Nami. "Due to the power of my Devil Fruit," -he turned into Usopp, copying his voice as well- "I can mimic any person I have touched or memorized the face of." He changed into Chopper. "This is the power of the Clone-Clone Fruit." He changed into Zoro before becoming Nami. "I can not only copy faces, but also visible body parts as well." He opened his robe to reveal his copied version of Nami's chest. Both Luffy and Sanji were blown back by nosebleeds while everyone else blushed.

"That's not ok!" Nami screamed, punching the visitor over the head. The force of the blow seemed to break his concentration, forcing him back to his original appearance.

Luffy, recovering quickly, jumped back to his feet. "Do some more!" he requested.

"I suppose I have time," he man relented. He proceeded to change his face into those of many individuals including a bald man with a very round face, a woman with red hair and a large beauty spot, and a tan, aged man with curly black hair, sharp eyes, and a well-trimmed beard. After changing into himself again, he danced with the Gullible Three (Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper) and sang about friendship.

Vivi was visibly shaken. She stared at the man with horror, not because of his dancing (which was pretty bad), but because she had seen the face of her father. She knew this man, but should she say anything?

"Sir!" a new voice called out. A pink ship with a swan figurehead had pulled up alongside the Merry.

"It seems that my ship is here," the man sighed. "Though I wish to stay, I have many things I must attend to. But! Though our time was short, I will remember you all! We are friends and I have a feeling we will cross paths again! Un, deux, trois!" He leapt to his ship.

"Welcome back, Mr. 2, Mr. Bon Clay, sir!"

The Straw Hats were only able to watch as the man's ship faded into the steam.

"Th-that guy w-was a Baroque Works agent?" Usopp squeaked.

"And he knows our faces," Nami added. "Shit."

"Alabasta dead ahead!" Sanji called out from the crow's nest. The desert kingdom was steadily growing along with the air temperature. A city could be seen bustling on the shore.

"That should be Nanohana," Vivi announced, fiddling with the wrap on her left forearm. Everyone else on the ship had received a similar wrap after Mr. 2 sailed away. Even if they now had special tattoos, not all of them were hidden by clothing, so the wraps and what was hidden underneath would have to do. "We should be able to stock up on supplies there; we'll need them. We'll have to cross the dessert at some point."

"Whaaa!" Carue quacked. He was pointing to a blue ship anchored near the shore.

"Oh no," Vivi gasped. "That's Mr. 3's ship."

"I thought you said you left him on Little Garden," Chopper commented.

"I guess he and Mr. 5 made their way back here to Alabasta. Who knows what they'll do if we run into them."

"We can't worry about that right now," Nami sighed. She had one hand holding Luffy's collar, preventing him from jumping ship and running off in search of food. "Could one of you please take him?"

"I'll do it," Coby offered. He took the captain from Nami. "I guess Captain Luffy and I are going out to look for food. Would anyone else like to come with us?"

"I'll go," Grace offered. "My paint can calm the captain down if he gets too riled up."

"Thanks, Grace." Luffy gave a particularly hard yank in an attempt to get to shore. "Could you do it now?"

"Colors Trap: Calming Green!"

"Hmm," Luffy hummed with half-lidded eyes. "I'm hungry. Vivi, do you know of any places that sell tea? I'm in the mood for tea."

"We'll go looking, Captain Luffy," Coby insisted. "We just have to drop anchor first."

"Okay."

"Wow," Sanji marveled. "That stuff really works." Grace did not respond. Instead, she held out a list to the chef. "What's this?"

"Ingredients I need," the painter answered. "For paints." Sanji reviewed the list.

"You need rice crackers and green tea as ingredients?"

"No. I need them for food. I'm almost out." In the distance, they heard the telltale splash of Zoro dropping the anchor into the water.

"Come on," Coby told the two. "Let's get going before Luffy's hunger finds a way to override the chemicals you put in his system."

The Straw Hats had dispersed through the town of Nanohana to do their various tasks. Luffy, Coby, and Grace were wandering through the streets, looking for a restaurant to fill the captain's bottomless pit of a stomach. The others had gone to either browse the stores or stock the Merry. Gin and Amy had chosen to stay on the ship on lookout duty.

Coby glanced around at the bustling town, he and the painter following the sedated but hungry Monkey D. Luffy. The wanted pirate had his eyes closed and was only following the scent of food that worked its way into his nostrils.

"You know," Coby began, trying the start a conversation, "my swords were made here in Alabasta."

"Really?" Grace asked through her last rice cracker. "So you've been here before?"

"No I haven't. I got these in Louge Town just before we sailed over Reverse Mountain. I'd love to find the man who made them, but I doubt I'll be able to."

"That's actually pretty cool," Grace conceded.

"Hey, guys," Luffy said in his sedated voice. "We're here." Before them was a small bar without a visible name. "I don't know why, but I feel like I know someone in there."

"Well let's go in and find out," Coby said. They entered the establishment calmly, drawing no attention to themselves for once. All focus in the bar was on two men having a stare down. One man was standing with his back to the door, the other sitting with his face away from the bar. Luckily, the pirates' entrance drew neither of the men's attention. Knowing Luffy, he would have plowed over both of them without realizing they were there in the first place if he wasn't sedated.

The man who was sitting seemed to be in his late teens to early 20's with a mop of jet-black hair under an orange hat. His grinning face was a splash of freckles under his dark eyes that danced with excitement. He wore no shirt to show off his toned torso and six-pack. His shorts were orange in color to match his hat and khaki-style to provide a plethora of pockets. Completing his outfit were black shoes and hat decorations in the form of a happy face and frowny face pair of buttons.

The man who was standing and his blue jutte were familiar to Luffy, but he rang no bells. Luffy did not see the other man, the form of the white-haired human before him blocking his view. Coby did not recognize him either, having never seen him in Louge Town, however he did realize who the shirtless man was.

"You know, you could just let me go," Fire Fist Ace grinned, his voice causing Luffy to straighten. "I'm not here to start trouble. I'm just looking for someone."

"You know I can't do that," the other man growled. "As a member of the Marines, it is my duty to bring your kind in." Smoke slowly started to rise from the arm holes in the man's jacket, but Luffy saw none of that. He walked around the man, up to the wanted criminal, and hugged him.

"Luffy!" Ace laughed, returning the hug and completely forgetting the Marine Captain itching for a fight. "How are you? Did you get my message?"

"What message?" Luffy asked calmly.

"The one I left on Drum Island. You had to have been there if you're here. Ah, nevermind. Come 'ere you!" He pulled Luffy into a headlock and two began to play-wrestle, much to the surprise of everyone watching. "Luffy? What's wrong? You're acting different than usual."

"It's nothing," Luffy waved aside. "There's paint on my back making me calm. No big deal."

"Well let me fix that." He shifted his hand to the design of the rear of Luffy's shirt and smudged the green paint.

"ACE!" Luffy yelled, tackling the man off of his chair. "I've missed you so much!"

"I've missed you too, Luffy," Ace laughed, punching him in his rubbery arm.

"Enough!" the marine ordered, getting over the surprise of his main target waltzing in. "Straw Hat Luffy and Fire Fist Ace, you are both under arrest here and now."

"I know you..." Luffy muttered, narrowing his eyes at the man. "Oh! You're Smokey from Lougeville, right?"

"That's Captain Smoker to you!" the man shouted, both of his arms turning to smoke and causing the customers and owner of the establishment to scream and duck for cover. "You may have slipped past me back in Louge Town, but that man isn't here to save you this time! White Snake!" He shot his arm forward to grab the two brothers. Luffy dove to the side while Coby and Grace readied themselves for a fight.

A pillar of fire met the smoke head on, the two attacks cancelling out each other and raising the temperature in the room by a few degrees. It also put a hole in the ceiling.

"Ah ah ah," Ace taunted, wagging his burning finger. "I can't have you touching either me or my little brother."

"Little brother?!" Smoker, Coby, and Grace gasped in unison.

"Cool!" Luffy exclaimed. "Did you eat a Devil Fruit, Ace?"

"That I did," the captain's brother responded. "It's called the Flame-Flame Fruit."

"Oh, Ace! I want you to meet my crew! I've got my own ship and everything!"

"How about later, Luffy?" Ace questioned, gesturing at the angry marine.

"Don't worry about him," Luffy shrugged. "I'm sure someone else will handle him."

"Why you!" Smoker threw another gaseous punch to bring the pirates to justice...

...and watched in confusion as his fist was redirected to a red design on the floor behind him.

"What?!" he yelled in outrage, trying to attack and only hitting the red paint.

"Colors Trap," a girl's voice yawned. "Bullfight Red."

"Who are-?"

"Come on!" Luffy yelled, cutting the marine off. He grabbed Ace's wrist and took off, dragging him behind and out the door.

"Do I have to walk?" Grace whined, one of her lazy fits acting up since Smoker was still attacking the ground. "I don't want to and I'm still hungry."

"What?" Coby asked, confused by her attitude. "We don't have time for this." She stared at the food on the counter, not even bothering to speak. Coby sighed. "Fine. What do you want?"

"Onigiri, please." He walked up to the owner under the angry glare of Marine Captain Smoker.

"Four rice balls, please." The man shakily loaded the ordered food onto a disposable plate and handed it to the rosette. Coby left the money for the food on the counter and walked back to Grace. She accepted the rice balls and happily munched on one. Coby walked up to the marine.

"Marine Captain Smoker!" he said, throwing up a salute more impressive than any Smoker had seen before, much to his confusion. "Thank you for your service. I wish for you to know that once upon a time, I wanted to be a marine. That was before I realized that the government was corrupt and that I could do more good outside the law than within it. Please consider my words and do not blindly follow your orders. Thank you."

"What was that about?" Grace asked as Coby passed.

"Well I..." He stopped. Grace was not following him. "Come on."

"I don't want to walk," she whined.

"But-! …Fine, whatever. I'll carry you back to the ship." The lazy artist climbed onto the swordsman's back, her snack in one hand and her pallet and brush in the other. Coby walked out of the restaurant, feeling the eyes of all of the customers on him. As he exited, he barely heard one man say "Poor kid. He's so whipped and he doesn't even know it."

Despite Coby telling Grace of his reasons for talking with Smoker, he blushed from the accusation all the way back to the Going Merry.

End of Chapter 31

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-SwordOfTheGods