#still wondering WHY crocodile saved ace and luffy...

[hauntingblue]

Vivi wondering what the numbers mean and ending up at: for aesthetic purposes? Naah....

[moonydustx]

Hi, I was wondering if you could do Zoro, Ace, Sabo, Luffy, Crocodile, Mihawk, Buggy (Cross guild), Whitebeard, Izou, and Charlotte Katakuri x Reader where They are in a Disney/ Fairy tale Story? (I've been watching Disney lately, and it's living in my Brain-Free.) Also a bonus: They break out in a song number.~

Hi Hi! I think this was the most complicated request I've ever received and to be honest, all my drafts didn't get anywhere that was interesting to read. So, in order not to be left without an answer, but also not to deliver something terrible, I decided to change the format a little (and I really hope you don't hate me for it)

--

Even though her father (grandfather in this version) is against all this, our little mermaid wants to find the surface world (again, pirate world) and see all the wonders that await him. You'll make different friends along the way and, above all, collect incredible things like a certain hat along the way.

Luffy

Our Beauty and the Beast story is a little more troubled here. Instead of a beast cursed by the witch, we just have an evil-looking and somewhat threatening man who still hasn't found a reason to let anyone get close to him. When the right person arrives, he will definitely become someone lovable - even if it involves some fights, wars and everything that can prevent anyone from interfering in the lives of the two of you.

Crocodile, Katakuri

Living the best life, without growing up, without responsibilities, just him and his people living happily in Neverland and disturbing the life of the pirate who passes by. Despite trying to bring our beloved Peter Pan to the real world, you would ultimately understand that Neverland is the place made for him to be free.

Buggy

I know, I know it's not exactly a fairy tale. But, our beloved Puss in Boots would be just as stubborn, adventurous and showy as this one. His sword would be the sharpest and most agile of all the kingdoms, apart from all the flame that only he has.

Mihawk

Bonus point: in a universe where Cross Guid is made up of enemies and we are in fairy tales/animations, Crocodile would be the wolf in the second film.

This one would be Sleeping Beauty, I don't think we even need to explain why. However, this sleeping beauty here chose to sleep for days straight after being in battle and when you tried to wake him up in a kind way - aka, the kiss of love - he hated it, after all, he was in the best part of sleep.

Zoro (and I'd include Buggy here too, I can see him grumbling about it).

The world was just a small view of the tower his mother trapped him in and of course, his mother knows better. Until he found himself being saved by someone fearless, brave (a bit of a scoundrel) who took him from his cruel mother's clutches and took him to explore the world - and that includes the nearest bakery.

Charlotte Katakuri, Sabo (I mean, his parents were pretty shitty)

He would definitely be Mufasa and he would make us suffer terribly with his loss, but he would have been a great father. (and you can't tell me that Ace wouldn't be the son with the chaotic and adventurous spirit also known as Simba)

Whitebeard

Bonus:

He would have to put up with you singing Let It Go in any situation, but he probably wouldn't get angry about it. Except when you were in a more intimate moment and you said that the cold wouldn't bother you anyway (and of course, he would create little ice drawings for you in the winter)

Aokiji

We also have Snow White: dreamy, kind, fearless too. Instead of seven dwarves, he has loyal companions. Some are more serious and angry, but ready to help our Snow White here and other cute and funny eaters.

Shanks (and yes Benn Beckman is our angry one in this one) ---

a/n: ok, I had more fun writing this than I thought I would

[eroguron0nsense]

The Mysterious Mysteries of Mr Sir Crocodile (Character Analysis)

(Apologies in advance for discrepancies from my usual tone and for holding off on everyone who voted for this on my last poll. Honest to God I hope y'all enjoy this in some capacity because I've been procrastinating on this meta so long it's derailed ALL my other One Piece writing and I only accomplished it through addy-fuelled mania)

This was such a fucking pain to write. I really wanted to say something about Crocodile and what makes him so fascinating that wasn't like, another fan theory or just a set of headcanons, but that's easier said than done?? We could boil it down to immaculate design, screen presence, attitude, or just the fact that he got brought back as an unlikely ally who shocked everyone by saving the protagonist, but I don't know that those factors in and of themselves make for a villain who's become such an object of fandom obsession.

Whatever it is, it's certainly not backstory or depth, because 24 years and hundreds and hundreds of chapters after his introduction, we still know nothing about Sir Crocowani's past beyond a vague confrontation with the Late Great Edward Newgate (that apparently like, ruined his dreams or something?), and some totally-not-just-a-threat-to-out-him-if-he-betrayed-the-alliance blackmail material the Queen of the Queers is holding over his sandy reptilian ass. I was born and grew into adulthood in the time it took Oda to tell the world fuck all about where he's from or his inner thoughts, or his actual honest motivations and traumas.

All we have about this character are questions. Why did he save Luffy and Ace –very conspicuously after both of their lineages were revealed to the world– against all logic and reason? Does he have ties to the revolutionaries? Is he the long-lost son of Rocks D. Xebec? Did he bounce on Comrade Dragon's Monkey D and squirt out the fucking Warrior of Liberation? I assume Oda's going to tell us more about him, but at this point, he's managed to keep a tighter lid on Sir Crocs, Inc.'s past than the fucking Secret History

You may be wondering, dear reader: what the fuck is my point? What is there, at this final stage of Long Running Pirate Manga, for me–Frankie EroGuroNonsense, OP Tumblr Community Z-lister with like, 7 mildly popular meta posts under my belt–to write about the legendary Sir Krokorok that hasn't already been said or theorized? What eagle-eyed observations did I make while rereading Alabasta and writing toxic Crobin fanfic? Am I going anywhere with this? Sorta. Yeah.

Let's start with listing things we actually know about Crockpot, in roughly chronological (??) order: –attended Gol D.'s execution way back when he was my age, along with anyone else who's anyone from his generation.

–At some point, met and was known well enough by Iva that she could effectively blackmail him

–Made it far enough on the Grand Line, somehow getting to the New World, and managed to pick up an 81,000,000 bounty (low end for a warlord, presumably scouted fairly early in his career)

–Wanted to be Pirate King until he gave up on it, not 100% explicitly confirmed but most likely due to getting his ass beat so badly by Whitebeard that he settled for picking off small fry and racketeering behind a government desk job. This makes him profoundly relatable to the rest of us depressed fucking losers who acquiesce to our own mediocrity.

–At 30, after presumably licking his wounds for a hot minute, sets up shop in Alabasta, comes up with a clever evil plan to quietly build up enough arms to conquer the world with a WMD, and then gets his years-long bioterrorist coup attempt foiled by a 17-year-old.

The rest we know: after a brief moment of glory as the unsung MVP of Impel Down/Marineford, he immediately reverts to Failguy Mode, gives all his money to a literal clown, and consequently gets roped into the neverending uncontrollable PR nightmare that is Cross Guild. It's still super vague and we know little to nothing about his past before the Alabasta Saga (for all we know he had a fling with King Cobra)

...Onto his personality and mannerisms. This shit's a lot more revealing. Superficially, he's everything: immaculate Bond villain levels of charismatic villainy, unbelievably ostentatious, dripped out like a Pimp, constantly smoking cigars, absolutely dripping with smugness and grease and disdain. Owns exotic pets and a giant casino, and spends every waking moment either grinning like a maniac when he's got the upper hand or storming around in a fucking mood when anything goes mildly wrong.

He's also pretty hardened underneath all that, obviously couldn't have lived a day on the grand line or survived Impel Down Torture otherwise. But even in Alabasta, Crockery gives off an air of being distinctly more grounded and willing to get his hands dirty than other flashy, established villains who flaunt their wealth and status. A big part of it is just his really hyper-masculine indomitable tough guy persona, but even early on he's very much micromanaging his operation, fighting people hand to hand in (as opposed to, say, Doffy, who literally puppeteers people while lounging around) and makes a point to keep almost all of his followers at a distance and rely on them as little as possible. He rants a bit about how dreams and whatnot are pointless follies, as One Piece antagonists tend to do, and repeatedly taunts Vivi about how her idealism can't save her, but with the context that he wanted to find Laughtale himself, it feels a lot like projection.

The character trait that's harped on a LOT in canon, and probably the most pertinent one to whatever demons he has, is Croconaw's profound pathological distrust for everyone around him. It's a huge part of what makes him a good early foil to the Nefertari family and the Straw Hats, whose collective strength is derived from organic human connection; Crocalor, by contrast, makes sure that up until the very last moment, he keeps most of his people so distant from him that they genuinely have no idea he's even their boss. His relationship with Robin is interesting, but he turns on her immediately when he realizes she either can't or won't give him the location of Pluton and has his dramatic stabbing/"I forgive you" lines about how he never trusted her or anyone from the start. He says the same shit to Mihawk when he suggests they join forces, even citing their mutual distrust as a kind of paradoxical justification for why they'd actually work well together.

Arguably the only exception is Daz Bones, but even that relationship is still a pretty reserved one; one of the few traits Daz exhibits is a similar avoidance of human connections to his boss and even though they've ironically formed a bond despite it, I can't imagine that they're emotionally close. I find these more explicit declarations of paranoia a lot less indicative of what's actually going on in Croconut's head than subtext, but I feel inclined to mention them just because it more or less tells us that his background/trauma has something to do either with betrayal or alternatively just being jaded and deprived to the point of self-isolation.

Krookodile's character gets a little bit more interesting when we get to see him again in Impel Down being a smug little manipulative rascal right up until he gets blackmailed by his endocrinologist, which is definitely medical malpractice but also funny as hell. I also appreciate that literally the first thing he does after getting out of his cell is change into a big coat and cravat to keep up appearances, but it's not until Marineford proper that things get really complicated. Saving Luffy and Ace is the first selfless thing we see Crobat do–while yelling at Luffy that he needs to protect what matters to him properly, no less– and he just keeps fighting for them after that, teaming up with his most hated rival crew to cover Luffy's retreat and telling the entire WG to go fuck itself multiple times over. He fights everyone on sight with no regard for his own safety, talks mad shit to Doffy, and demonstrates a genuinely compelling amount of honest to god chivalry.

For a short time, we see Crocomotive less as a really entertaining cartoon villain and more as a person with hidden, profound emotions and a confusing moral code that's seemingly incompatible with the vicious little creature we met in Alabasta. We come to understand, in a few very brief lines that give us way more questions than answers, that Cromagnon has deep-seated, emotional convictions he actively suppresses, and that whatever baggage he has is probably tied to wanting to or failing to save something of his own. His resentment of Newgate, who he really really wants to have a go at (despite theoretically no longer caring about the ambitions of his youth) is indicative of a desire to revisit the fight that probably ruined his dream and ego, but it's also tinged with a deep-seated grudging respect for a living legend.

Crock–Afire Explosion's obvious seething hatred of Doffy also gives us a few more insights into what's wrong with him. On a surface level, it makes sense that he dislikes a profoundly obnoxious, even flashier fellow warlord who achieved more or less the same goal he set out to in a shorter time, fucks with his business, and then mocks him/tries to recruit him right after his very public defeat and imprisonment. He postures a lot, especially with his lines insisting he's on a higher level and that Doffy could only ever join him as a subordinate, but he's visibly steamed in their initial encounter and clearly hasn't liked him for quite some time. I bring this up because if we stretch our interpretation a little (for the sake of my argument), Croc Holliday's distaste for someone who's (outwardly) so much like himself and embodies all of his villainous characteristics from back in Alabasta might also suggest that deep down, he doesn't actually like the things they have in common; he sees right through Doffy because he's done the same shit and he hates what he sees.

Having gone over all that, I've come up with some key characteristics of Crocomelon that I'll use going forward:

–Extremely performative: puts an ungodly amount of energy into maintaining a carefully curated persona, and projecting a certain amount of power, masculinity, and prestige. Not necessarily an unnatural or inauthentic one, but a constructed and purposeful one nonetheless

–Deep-seated paranoia, hidden secrets; probably intertwined. Keeps personal details on tight, tight lockdown, probably afraid of being known.

–Constant projection of his own insecurities and failures onto other people, making a point to be uniquely cruel in Alabasta to an idealist who loves her people and a dreamer who wants to be the Pirate King.

Ironically, he demonstrably respects and defends two people–Luffy and Whitebeard–who theoretically embody everything he hates or scorns (ambition, goodness, love, connection, romanticism, greatness in the traditional sense) and he intensely dislikes the villain most like himself, or at least the one who shares a lot of his worst characteristics (ostentatious manipulative scheming rat bastard backed by people stronger than himself) –The Grinch's heart grew three sizes at Marineford because of like, the compelling power of brotherly love and reminders of his youth or something

SPECULATION, CONCLUSIONS??

The difficulty with writing anything definitive about Crocko's Basilisk is that he's such a mystery, which functionally lets the fanbase project literally whatever weird personality traits, potential backstories, or anything else they could possibly come up with onto him. So I want to be clear that I have absolutely no interest in theorizing about the specifics of his past or secret identity or potential baby daddy or anything along those lines; I'm only interested in what we can infer about his personality by extrapolating from canon. And the conclusion I keep coming back to, the one that I'm convinced is true on some level, is that Crocodile is living a lie and he fucking hates himself. Everything he does, from how he acts to what he claims to believe, is a desperate effort to cope with his own insecurity and failure and cover up a past version of himself he's deeply ashamed of.

Now, unfortunately, Oda did not conceive of Crocodile as a trans man but stories belong to the people and we can do what we want let's forget about that and play it straight because he's constantly performing gender as a means of compensating for a deep-seated shame and self-loathing from whatever traumas and secrets he keeps hidden. Even assuming he's a cis man, he deliberately chooses a hypermasculine persona with a Capital V Villain moniker and pimp outfit and speech pattern he's carefully curated to project masculine power–physical, political, and financial–and we know it's performance because we see him break kayfabe and get legitimately fucking angry whenever he's confronted by a person like Luffy, who's crazy and brave enough to try and do what he couldn't and risk everything for love and hope that he cannot bring himself to feel for another person, or reminders of the past he tries so desperately to bury.

The lessons he's wrongfully obtained from his past are as follows: Idealism is a weakness. Dreaming is a weakness. Connections to other people and being known are crippling liabilities (If he is, in fact, trans and closeted, that's all the more reason to be existentially disgusted by what he used to be). All the hope he brought to the Grand Line, all the excitement of trying to carry on where Roger left off, needs to be purged and buried because all he got to show for it was loss and humiliation. But he can't stop wanting more, and ironically, after he gives up on conquering the Grand Line, he ends up chasing the same fucking poneglyphs and weapons because his ambition's still there; it's just compromised and much more jaded.

Everything he does that's seemingly contradictory makes sense when you realize that Crocodile resents his failure and wants to avenge himself. He makes a big show of talking down to Luffy and Vivi's petty ideals and shit-talking Newgate and his family, but he still wants to fight Whitebeard like he did way back when and help Luffy protect what matters to him. He hates Doffy, who's honestly just a more successful schemer than he is because it's a constant reminder of what he settled for when he took that warlord post and fucking gave up. He claims to trust no one, but he keeps Daz by his side and rewards his loyalty because he can't help but trust someone who respects him so deeply and follows him to the ends of the fucking earth long after losing the material incentive to do so. He claims to look down on people who aim for the stars and fight for love and joy and freedom and yet, in his most vulnerable moments–not in the face of violence or imprisonment, but when he's emotionally compelled to defend a child and help save his brother–we see how badly he wants that for himself.

TLDR: Crockman Holic is deeply insecure in his masculinity, desperately needs psychological help, and his character/potential redemption arc in One Piece is just dealing with his midlife crisis.

[assiraphales]

you havent really been liveblogging your one piece experience much, but since you seem to be through Alabasta at this i was wondering if youd be willing to share any thoughts about the series so far/your takes on the characters in their original forms?

-luffy is a little gremlin who was fed after midnight but stayed cute. 10000 points in mischief. has THE biggest heart and would die for a stranger if he thought it was a worthy cause. much more intelligent (in an unconventional way) than he's given credit for. figuring out crocodile's weakness almost immediately?? hello??

-i like how all the crew mates have different (but very valuable and nourishing) relationships with each other. usopp n luffy's is very sweet because they're still kids at heart (and probably always will be, at least a little) who live by their imaginations and for fun/joy. zoro washing chopper in the bathhouse. usopp and nami being voices of reason for very different reasons, usopp making her a weapon bc she admitted one of her weaknesses to him. nami's love for luffy coming out in concern and sternness because she knows what he's capable of but also how hard he can fall

-some of the emotional moments that affected me the most; nami getting a tattoo for belle mere, nokijo, and genzo. pell sacrificing his life for alabasta and flying the bomb into the sky. sanji n zeff's relationship.

-klahadore is the biggest lil bitch thus far. but shout out to his kitty cat crew for supporting him and trying not to deadname him

-really liked the mihawk fight bc even tho zoro got WHOOPED mihawk was clearly impressed, and let him live for a reason. he also said after watching luffy and zoro together that they were a good team. which.

-luffy and zoro making each other better and worse (depending on how u look at it) and the crew just having to accept that "ok yah. that's their relationship. they're crazy bastards who enable each other and they're dreams are entwined."

-zoro being a secret goofball. I could go on about it. but one of my favorite small moments was when he told the usopp pirates that they were cannibals and ate usopp

-nami has such big dreams but she's so scared to get her heartbroken again. she lost her mom, she thought she lost her town and sister when she went along with arlong..... everything is a defense mechanism. she's a survivor. and she's so hurt. but everyday, from the crew's love to luffy's kindness, she's learning to accept that the world isn't that bleak. that good people exist

-ace's tattoo. um. JUMPSCARE. but he is neat and loves luffy lots

-tony tony chopper I would die for u. kureha is an icon and now I totally understand why people want jamie lee curtis to play her

-i'm glad that luffy n co were able to heal the giants relationship on little garden and now they're broskis who can fight n drink together without worrying about the whole "TO DEATH!!!" thing. zoro trying to chop off his legs and then posing so that he'd look cool if he died is another notable highlight from that arc

-princess vivi and nami. I know what u are. but in all seriousness she was just sixteen and infiltrated a secret assassin organization for her kingdom!!! I love that she had igaram pose for her so she could say goodbye to the strawhat crew properly

-there's just so many good people trying to do the right thing in the face of massive adversity. no matter what the odds, they'll fight to their last breath for what they believe in. and if luffy's there, he'll make sure they don't have to (die, that is)

-luffy managing to befriend the weirdest animals that want to kill him and them eventually saving him (the lapins and the kung fu dungongs)

-luffy asking zoro to save smoker's life because he couldn't swim, and smoker letting luffy go instead of arresting him so he could try and save alabasta

-sanji smoking cigarettes in the middle of a fight and constantly wearing a suit for Aesthetics

-mihawk hunting down the red haired pirates in his coffin throne boat just to show shanks the bounty on luffy's head (also way to go bestie getting it up from 30 million to 100 million in like two weeks)

-zoro sleeping everywhere but mostly near the rest of the crew so he can eavesdrop / be close to them

-the straw hat crew being a bunch of wild animal ragers and turning any event into a PARTAAYYYYY

[majestick-posts-op]

My personal rating and ranking of Luffy's father figures from worst to best

7) Garp (-100000/10)

Yeah, I don't even need to elaborate on this at all. Cause like... we all know how much Garp sucks. We all know how he valued his job and loyalty to the marines more than the actual safety of his family. How he says that he cares... but he truly doesn't do anything at all. AND THAT'S BARELY SCRATCHING THE SURFACE!!! Because in all of Luffy's childhood... I don't think there was a single moment where he was just... kind? Canonically at least. It was always launching your 3 year old in the jungle, in a ravine, in the fucking air tied to baloons just so you can fuck off and do what YOU want. It was awlays ignoring every single one of his dreams. And not only that because while thinking that a life as a pirate isn't ideal is fair, forcing your own phisosophies on your kid and forcefully msking them choose the carrer YOU want isn't. No wonder Dragon is the way he is! And he made Luffy's abbandonment issues WORSE by leaving him in another random place with other random people. And this is only the stuff we saw about Garp... we never saw a house where he lived in any flashback. Did Garp stay in the marine's headquarters? Did Luffy fucking sleep outside in the forest? Luffy looked so exited when Makino got him a shirt. Did Garp never get Luffy clothes? Did he just used random rags he had laying around? When Luffy only got a bowl of rice and a cup of water to eat he said that it was better than what Garp gave him. Did he fucking starve Luffy by making him hunt for all he ever ate since he was a fucking toddler? IS THAT WHY LUFFY IS HALF OF GARP'S SIZE???

But worst of all... he was never there! Not when he got kidnapped, not when they almost burned him alive, not when Ace died, and he never will.

Garp truly did not care enough. And that is what hurts the most.

I'm removing all of his ppint and shoving him into the void.

6) Shanks (6.5/10)

Okay so I'm a little conflicted about Shanks. He has many good things about him. He inspired Luffy and supported his dream, and has shown to be very caring and affectionate. He taught him that some fights are not worth it and that he shouldn't be too hung up on certain things. That's good. But he also indirectely caused him to commit self harm, took a crying bleeding 7 year old in a bar full of alchool, lied to him about what happenned to his best friend, and then he just... dissappeared. I don't fully blame him since he isn't Luffy's primary caretaker, that was GARP and Shanks is already infinitely better since he supported his dream. But Shanks does have this theme where he is bad at communication and doesn't fully commit to certain things. We saw it with Buggy. But hey, at least he gave Luffy that really good advice that its okay to cry but you have to move on. Expect that he never said it directely to his face (or out loud for what matters) and he was only at marineford for 30 seconds.

I'm removing one ppint for him being an idiot, another for abbandonment, and another and a half points for general flaws.

5) Dragon (7/10)

I think people tend to be a bit too hard on Dragon. He was starting a revolution, of course he couldn't have taken care of him for his own safety. And he sadly had no other choice so sadly GARP raised Luffy. I can't rate him any higher tho because we just never really saw him parent Luffy... apart from that one time when he saved him, but then he dissappeared. Still can't believe he raised Sabo instead of him honestly.

I'll remove one point for abbandonment, another point for giving him to his father and a last one for bad eyebrows and bigass forehead genes.

4) Crocodile (adding him because I said so) (7.5/10)

All things considered, Croc didn't exatcly have the best starting point. (He arguably had the worst) But he was 100% one of the most helpful people to Luffy during marineford.

Not only did he save Ace despide hating Whitebeard, but he also blocked Doflamingo's attack and helped him break out. HE WAS MORE HELPFUL THAT GARP GODDAMMIT!!! So maybe Croc's heart isn't exatcly in the right place... but he seems to do much better now.

I'm removing one point for abbandonment and one and a half points for almost killing him.

3) Franky (8.5/10)

Much like croc, Franky didn't have the best start with Luffy, and we don't really see much of just the two of them since he is closer with Usopp, but the few scenes they have togheter paint a pretty good picture. Firstly both Luffy and Franky share an interents in stuff like beams and robots, and Franky is willing to show off for him so in return Luffy does admire this side of him. Franky also tries to avoid toxic masculinity, and never forces Luffy into anything while supporting him unlike GARP. In Dressrosa Franky really looked after and accompanied Luffy to assist him in retrieving Ace's fruit, which Franky understands was very hard for him. He is rensponsable and doesn't let Luffy do anything stupid (like revealing his name) and later that arc there's that one super cute scene where Luffy is just sleeping and Franky is there looking at him while smiling/crying and...

Look at him!!! He's so dad material!!!

Removing one point for hurting Usopp and half a point for mildly enabaling him.

2) Rayleigh (9/10)

Like many others, Rayleigh was also very helpful during the summit war saga, specifically the post war arc. He was with Luffy during his worst time and helped him get through them. Not only that, but he also trained him. Execpt that unlike GARP who would just launch Luffy into a ravine and exept him to get out by himself so he can leave and fuck off where he wants, Rayleigh stuck around and not only gave him useful advice and lessons, but also prevented him from doing things that would have hurt his body like using to much haki. It didn't work but still, he mastered the art of being hard but still very much caring and being present. Plus it was so heart warming seeing him helping Luffy and how much he reminds him of Roger.... Uncle Rayray I love you!!! Give me your wife!!!

Removing one point for... lack of screentime? I guess, I'm not sure.

1) Jimbei (15/10)

We all know that fishdad is the best period, but I really wanna analize him. Jimbei was possibly the one who helped Luffy the most when he came to... everything? I mean he saved him from Akainu, stood by his side when he was still unconscious from his operation, stopped him from committing self harm or worse, comforted him trough his grief and tears, gave him his blood thus saving his life and showing just how much he loved him, offrred to guide him in accomplishing his dream, came back each and every time he was needed, because Luffy needs somebody like him that can ground him and make him reflect but also respect and love him, he believed in Luffy so much to go againsts a Yonko TWICE, and one of these times it was literally a face to face with the scariest person on Earth.

But the best part? Jimbei truly cares about all the young. The new generation that should be hate free and happy. The new generation he fought for multiple times. He knows Luffy can be a major figure in that, but he also just cares for him. He loves Luffy. Unconditionally. I know I may be repeating myself but he is 100% what Luffy needed when he needed it. And I will not shut up about this. Ever.

Bonus:

Trademark dad hawaian shirt.

Adding 5 point for being handsome.

[blacklegsanjiii]

gosh im such a huge fan of your warlord!sanji au esp all the wonderful angst recently <3 is there anything you have to share abt these executions, failed or successful? the pain is delicious >:)

i adore all of ur work so very much ^^ thank u!!

I'm glad you're enjoying everything so far! There is more in the works, for many people to parent Sanji.

Like, they've probably talked about this very frankly growing up with Sanji. He's already guilty by association so becoming a pirate is the worst thing he could have done and then his parents turned against the government or got sent to Impel Down by him and his crew? Sanji would be the first thought of execution by the government, with how interwoven the cook is into piracy and some of the top pirates in the world.

As for the executions? I had a thought, since the warlords and Luffy saved Ace(they still have scars, just no death) I thought about Sanji's execution where they do make it but Sanji's smiling at them, all of them, blood dribbling out of his mouth as he collapses lifeless on the platform. Or Someone gets him out and Sanji can feel the heat from Akainu's lava fast approaching and turns just in time to lose his hands and maybe his life, blinking at the admiral as people scream.

Maybe they get the whole family up there? Jinbei and Sanji went missing and all of a sudden there's a news article about Sanji, Jinbei, and the others' execution. All lined up and put to death with seastone bullets, or injured heavily. But either way no one ever really recovers from it. Mihawk who was supposed to die by Zoro's blades. Boa who was supposed to die of old age because almost everyone fell in love with her. Jinbei watching everything he's worked for backslide. Doffy who thought he would die by his kid's hands or Law's. Crocodile who was supposed to amass so much wealth he and the others could retire without worry. Sanji who was supposed to find the All Blue and open a restaurant.

Imagine if everyone was there? The White Beard fleet, Luffy and his volunteer fleet, Shanks and his crew, Perona, Law and his crew? Just everyone trying to get to the execution platform and save them. Sanji gives Luffy his biggest smile and thanks him, asks him to find the All Blue for him, and then just slumps forward after a bullet exits the front of his skull. His parents follow one by one as Luffy screams as he loses his cook and his helmsman. Loses his friends and family.

As a sanlu truther through and through Luffy watches the love of his life die and after whatever war happens, as they all leave to recuperate. Luffy is shattered and nothing is helping. Shanks, Ace, maybe Sabo is there but nothing is working until Zoro grabs Luffy and asks him if this is what the cook would want. They have to fulfill his dream too now and Zoro will make sure they do if Luffy can't. Luffy nods and wipes his face. Perona says she'll help, Sanji was her baby brother after all. Then everyone realizes they watched the cook and his family die one by one.

Or maybe they save one warlord. Doflamingo goes on a crazed rampage because of his child and then just shuts down after they leave, just a complete dissociative state. Boa who sobs as she takes out marine after marine and can't stop. Crocodile who doesn't shed a tear and kills quickly, not in a rampage but methodically and pats Perona as she looks at him with tears. Jinbei gets everyone out quickly and safely, he watches the waves in silence. Mihawk who kills efficiently and with no mercy and then Shanks asks why he's crying because he hasn't seen Mihawk in years and didn't know. Mihawk blinks and touches his face to feel the wetness.

[maylovesfiction]

Random thoughts -that no one wants to know- while watching Impel down/Marine Ford for the first time.

ep 474 Oz is still alive? How? Ugh I know he'll probably die and stay dead, but for now it's a small relief. I also don't know yet what Luffys plan is, but at least he got behind the wall. That's a win in my book.

ep 475 Crocodile saving Ace last second!? What!? Why?! He's so cool rn! Crocodile stonks went up! Doflamingo and Crocodile talking like a couple who recently broke up, nice. I feel so sorry for Garp, ughh.

ep 476 Whitebeard casually catching Luffy. An episode that tugs on your heartstrings. Poor Garp.

ep 477 I'm glad Buggy is fine. I really need him because this war is so dark and I want to keep myself from crying. We've established that Luffy shortened his life, should be around 30 years, yea? If I recall is correctly he should have gotten the hormones to keep going three times. I don't know, these episodes are just getting to me. It's depressing.

ep 478 Coby against Luffy. Outcome was obvious from the start. But at least he tried. Luffy getting saved by Hancock again. She's such a simp :) Whitebeard is such a beast. I really want to see him in his prime. I can't wait to see Luffy being able to control his Haki.

ep 479 Everyone being impressed with Luffys Haki and Whitebeard ordering his men to help Luffy in any possible way. Lovely. Crocodile getting in between Mihawk and Luffy, saving Luffy, makes me feel things I didn't think I would be feeling. ;) Buggy saying "Buggy" as he connects his upper body with his lower body again is so darn precious.

ep 480 Garp looks quite hot in the flashbacks with Luffy. See? This is why I currently prefer Kizaru over Akainu. Kizaru fights Whitebeard, Luffy is running towards Ace, Whitebeards like "Just watch" and Kizaru stops fighting for a moment and watches and they talk like an old couple watching TV until they resume their fight. Wonderful. Mr 3 being one of the guards to kill Ace was lucky. But also my dude was comitted to killing Ace there... Then again Mr 3 being touched by Bon chans last words and his last wish is melting my heart and even though he was swinging that sword at Aces neck a few minutes ago I can't keep myself from thinking that he is a hero.

ep 481 I know the outcome of this arc, yet I still feel happy for at least this moment that Ace is free. Epic fight where Luffy and Ace fight together like they never did anything else. Buggy is scheming again. Whitebeard declaring the new era with the flashback of old foes and allies with his flag waving in the background made me cry a little.

[danwhobrowses]

One Piece Chapter 1087 - Initial Thoughts

And We Are Back!

5 long looooong weeks for Oda to acquire his eye surgery laser vision but now we can resume the Egghead arc well...everything but the Egghead arc it seems

Still we finally get a manga dose of One Piece so let's see what we have

Spoilers for the chapter, support the official release also

An Ace cover page this time, shame we didn't do anything with the laser eyes but Ace and Capybaras make up for it

In the G1 shipyard there are two navy ships whose hulls are dented, apparently known as 'battleship bags' which Garp trains with

Jango and Fullbody are surprised that this is Garp's daily routine, but also that the second ship was Aokiji's!

Also these dents are caused by brute strength, no fruit or haki

Reminder too that Navy ship hulls nowadays are layered with Sea Prism, so I think this is the first instance we've seen of Sea Prism being weathered

I get that this dude has been present in the post TS Navy exposition but where's my man Bogard?

Back to Fullalead and Wolf is already in the drink

I mean Garp just tossed the mega-giant into the water like Thames Water dropping sewage

Vasco's next for the attack with a fireball

That's cold Garp, using the lesser pirates as a shield, but I guess since they're not your allies it's not morally ambiguous

Garp ain't even fazed either

Garp's fighting has managed to get all the slaves and marines back on the ship to escape

Oda my man, why did you bring Tashigi if you're not letting her do anything???

Coby, Helmeppo and Grus are fighting with Garp still, but the plan is to fall back

Aokiji's back and he didn't hear no bell

Garp gives the orders for the trio to leave while he holds ground, but Coby spots a woman in danger and jumps in to help

But Grus senses it's a trap, and he's right

Garp steps in but eats a stab from Shiryu!

Garp says the wound is nothing but Coby's still on the guilt

I wonder how Shiryu is bypassing haki? because Coby is known to have great Observation Haki, even sensing enemies below surface level

Cross Guild were foolish enough to bounty Garp? Seems that Crowns are worth 1 billion berry (how does Buggy, Crocodile or Mihawk have that kinda cash?) and Garp has 3, on par with an Admiral...and his otherwise absent grandson

The redshirts try to swarm Garp but Aokiji tells them they still wouldn't stand a chance

Mini flashback of how Aokiji became Garp's protege, turns out Aokiji insisted him into it

Young Garp definitely looks a lot like Luffy

So Kuzan was like 'I've learned everything the marines told me' but didn't know Haki? I thought all Vice Admirals knew it

Joint training led to Garp just venting at Kuzan about his family

"You have a habit of raising enemies" - well 'raising' is used loosely

Double punches from master and student sends both men flying

Now Pizarro starts gloating, taking aim at the escape ship

Pizarro's fruit does just feel like an advanced form of Pica's fruit

Pizarro being annoyed with Blackbeard being on the news is interesting, wonder if there's like a slight bit of dissent among the crew

Hibari, much like Coby, is annoyed that she couldn't help, but gets some reassurance from Kujaku

Garp is hopeful justice will prevail though, as we're left on a cliffhanger

It's good to be back

This chapter could've been a lot more action packed I feel, but I'm happy with what we got. Glad Aokiji showed more fight too, because making him look strong works for both Blackbeard and Akainu as well. Also kinda glad that the other Blackbeard members got involved, seemed weird that they would just spectate.

This is a point where Oda could easily move on to another plot section though, which I hope doesn't happen. But I'd also like Tashigi to do something impressive and if she can do something similar to Zoro's feat against Pica to save the ship that'd do pretty nicely. Realistically thinking there may be some navy backup, but we also can't rule out Perona and Moria getting involved, since Coby only escaped because Perona gave him the keys.

It's been 5 weeks but Oda has us leaned back in

[fallensnowfan]

After bouncing ideas around for a post involving the WT100 popularity poll results for a while, I decided writing out my quick thoughts of the top 50 sounds fun. Don’t take this too seriously, it’s meant to be mostly silly or light-hearted.

Luffy - Always fun to see what following him leads to, a little guy.

Zoro - Like him a lot, though want to see him have more big moments that aren't fights.

Nami - My favorite character in the series, has been given so many varying roles and pulls them all off. Her belief in Luffy during the escape from Whole Cake and when refusing to back down against Ulti, and later Kaido when he claims that Luffy was defeated, are so cool.

Sanji - Once my favorite Straw Hat, has gradually fallen to least favorite since Thriller Bark.

Law - Good character, I'm just not much for moody gloomy characters, not much to say.

Robin - Seeing her gradually develop such a strong belief and connection to her friends is wonderful. Her doing the Huh face at after learning that Luffy was defeated by Kaido is what perfect character development looks like.

Hancock - I think she's a great character though the way the story has handled her trauma is less than ideal to me. Healing from trauma is not so linear, there are relapses, creeping doubts, etc. Her story including some of that and having her work through it by relying on others who have been through similar experiences, Koala perhaps, would make her character that much greater.

Carrot - Chapter 888 is so cool. Best bunny little sister. Pedroooo!

Ace - No strong opinion.

Sabo - No strong opinion, though kinda feel he overshadows Koala a bit too much, who I like much more.

Yamato - Fun character though is built on traits from characters that were already established. Luffy's energy, Tama has a connection to Ace that feels more natural, Kin'emon is Momo's father/mentor, and the Akazaya love Oden more than anyone and inherited his will. The unique part of Yama's character is a wish to be accept by the samurai of Wano, something that has happened now. His story feels complete, though if I were asked why I think his story was included in the manga, I don't think I could give an answer. Forcing Luffy away from reaching the Scabbards on the roof was a stupid and grossly selfish move from Yamato.

Shanks - Mystery man, what are you up to, Red Hair?

Corazon - He's a great character, very intense about his goals and cares a lot the people and things he wants to protect. His dynamics with the Doffy family had me very invested in that story.

Katakuri - Best donut-loving big bro.

Usopp - When he's at his best, he is amazing, though isn't consistently depicted as his best.

Chopper - Me: "Doctor Chopper! I'm impressed by your amazing medical skills, you're so skilled at such a young age!"

Chopper: "Shut up asshole! You saying that doesn't make me happy at all! ehehe." Chopper is so cute y'all. ahhh

Crocodile - Still no backstory yet he doesn't even need one to be one of the best villain in the series. A real love to hate kinda guy.

Jinbei - Shark uncle, we all thought he would be logical with Robin but he just lets Luffy do what he wants(mostly,) amazing.

Marco - Fruit-shaped bird.

Doflamingo - I want to punch him in the face.

Vivi - The original princess, I love her and Luffy's dynamic as leaders that learned from the other.

Bon Clay - The queen of last minutes saves. Bon's introduction wasn't perfect though he has been framed in a positive way and been a great ally since helping the crew escape Hina. I think he's great.

Kidd -  Angry magnet man, I like many of the Supernovas introduced during Sabaody and Kidd is one of the group I enjoy more, though also agree with Oda, nine was perhaps too many.

Oden - Good on him for gathering and uniting the group of wonderful retainers. Terrible leader until he is a great one. No in between measures exist within this man.

Perona - I love how extra she is, I know many find her annoying but that makes her even funnier for me. Acts so above it all though is just as much of a dumb weirdo as Zoro, in her own way. If she had joined the crew at the end of Thriller Bark, I would have been all for it.

Brook - Brook and Thriller Bark signify the biggest shift in what One Piece is as a story in terms of tone and how bizarre it can be. He often fell to the wayside after joining, though has a fantastic story. Really got to shine during Whole Cake and Wano as a great support crew member, graciously allowing others to take the spotlight. Yohohoho.

Smoker - Top ten introductions to a character in the series. At the rate he gets promotions, earned or otherwise, he'll outrank Imu by series end.

Franky - Suuuuuuper! Leave it to Franky. He's great and always reliable for his crew. Can't help but feel kinda bad for the guy. He was so loved pre-ts(not that I was caught up at the time) though just doesn't get as much from the readers these days.

Roger - The man who started it all. The only reason he was allowed to take over the Wano flashback for a bit was because Oda needed time to establish his himbofication. So silly that he told Neptune he thought his daughter would be hairy.

Mihawk - His sudden appearance at the Baratie is what got me hooked on One Piece. Just so cool with his coffin boat and vampire aesthetic. Vastly under-prepared for suddenly gaining two goth family members to take care of and I love it.

Whitebeard - Always the Pops to his crew, wanted a family and was able to have one.

Merry - Best girl.

Rayleigh - He's the best greasy mentor a fella like Luffy could ask for. Love the guy's carefree attitude.

Buggy - He's the great Captain Buggy, words are useless to describe his majesty.

Enel - Playboy acting out the role of god. Part of me hopes that he never shows up again and Oda never explains why beyond a "he left to another galaxy" or some nonsense. I would find that hilarious for reasons I'm unable to explain.

Aokiji - Mystery man the second, what are you up to, ice man?

Woop Slap - Mayor guy.

Tashigi - People are always wondering if Tashigi is Kuina but no! I figured it out. Kuina is Kuina and Tashigi is Mocha's sword friend!

Reiju - Best part about Reiju and the Vinsmoke siblings as characters is that they show that it's okay to leave harmful blood family behind.

Barto - Broccoli.

X Drake - Quadruple agent shy boy. I want to see his dino ability. He has always been present throughout the New World though hasn't really been given the spotlight, yet I'm hoping.

Koby - First and foremost now, I can't help but think of him as Hibari's senpai. He's grown so much since we met him.

Rob Lucci - Die

Garp - Intense guy who has been through a lot and usually expresses himself through violence.

Pudding - I could write an essay about her, I'll keep it short and say she's one of Oda's most complex characters and so much is shown about how the Charlotte family operates through getting to know Pudding.

Blackbeard - Would you believe me if I told you that it took me until I was reading Zou to realize that he was cherry pie guy? The roughly eight-year break I took between Water 7(just before the Sunny was first uncovered) and Thriller Bark is probably the reason. It really shaped how I view the character and I still find it hard to think of him as a villain because of it. It's somewhat like he and cherry pie guy are different characters in my head, but I know they're the same. It's weird.

Kiku - Perfect and beautiful and resilient and...

Izo - Very cool dual wielder and dramatic in the best way, a legend. I can't believe this man is in his 40s, he's so silly.

Hiyori - Her friendship with Toko is adorable, Kawamatsu is best kappa dad, and there's no way she isn't concealing knives, poisons, seastone needles, etc. in the sleeves or obi of her kimono at all times, Denjiro taught her well. When and how did she learn that someone she could trust was keeping her father's swords safe? When Oden gave his swords to Toki, Sukiyaki would have been imprisoned at the time, though he knew he had grandkids at the end of the arc. Either something is up or Oda didn't quite figure out the details to make everything line up, which is possible.

Shirahoshi - My favorite princess in the series, she is great and so is Otohime and her bros. Has potential to be an all time favorite. I want to see her, Jinbei, Nami, Nojiko, Koala, Hachi, and Aladdin all gather together in one place and all be cute.

[brainfuzzz]

Old Truths Ch. 1 "The Truth"

Yep, another Crocodile learns that he's Luffy's mother fic because why not? Also, I'm making him the Snake Princess before Hancock because I'm already in Crocomom hell so why not pile on more to it, right? Expect a reunion with Dragon as Crocodile goes on a journey for the truth and eventually finds peace.

One week, seven days, 10,080 minutes and the pain in his chest has yet to go away. Physically he is fine. He’s dragged several doctors into their hotel room to prove that. But still, here he is, unable to pull himself from this bed. Unable to eat more then a bite of food a day. Unable to even hurl the smallest of insults and threats to the hotel manager when he comes banging on the door demanding payment or to vacate the room. Daz Bones is the only reason he’s been able to save face from the public, but even he’s growing restless now wondering how Crocodile can be in such a state. Whenever he does ask when they will be leaving, all Crocodile can manage is “I’m tired.”

            Sengoku’s announcement of Dragon’s son is still fresh in his mind. He pulls the covers over his head as if that could stop the memory from replaying over and over again. It doesn’t of course. After a moment of hiding his face, he pulls the sheet down and sits up. Daz side-eyes him from the edge of his own bed, silently wondering if his old boss has finally pulled himself together. Crocodile glances at his reflection in the window, barely recognizing the face staring back. He touches the scarred skin just under the dark circles that have formed under his eyes. There seems to be more wrinkles then usual and with his hair in complete disarray he looks like a mad old man. The announcement trills in his ears again. He closes his eyes until it passes.

            “Enough,” he says, but if it’s to himself or to the memory, even he doesn’t know. He turns away from his reflection and swings his legs over the side of the bed. The floorboards are cool under his bare feet and creaks from his weight as he crosses the space to the washroom. He distracts his thoughts with the routine process of showering. He slicks his hair back, leaving one strand to fall down the side of his face and lets himself go in his familiar grooming patterns. After freshening up, his reflection already looks better. More normal. The dark circles under his eyes are still there but there’s nothing he can do about that now. He starts to reach for the door when the image of that kid screaming next to Portgas D. Ace’s body pierces his mind. He freezes, the familiar ache that has plagued him for the past week throbbing in his chest. Then, a new cry. A single cry from his past brings him to his knees. He lifts his trembling hand and left arm to cover his ears. Desperate to block out that single cry.

            Images from his past flash behind his eyes. Wincing at every memory he grits his teeth trying to will the thoughts away. He must have made to much noise because Daz knocks on the washroom door.

            “Should I send for another doctor?” there’s a small hint of annoyance in his voice. Crocodile can’t blame him. It’s not like they’re friends or anything and he hasn’t been acting like his usual self lately. Crocodile steadies his breathing and ignores the pounding in his chest. With shaky legs he gets to his feet, attempting to collect himself. When the trembling ebbs away, he opens the door and steps out.

            “There’s something I have to do before we head out to the New World.” He says while pulling on clothes. Daz says nothing but crosses over to help with any buttons and laces. Once Crocodile is dressed, he turns to Daz, directly looking at him for the first time in a week. “While I do this, I have a condition. You cannot ask me any questions or ask why we are doing what we are about to do.”

            Daz stares, expression never changing before finally saying, “Fine.”

            Crocodile pulls a cigar out of his coat pocket. Daz lights it, a familiar action that they both find a small sense of comfort in. He leads Daz out of the room feeling weight on his chest with every step. He focuses on his breathing and the taste of his cigar. He won’t let himself crumble ever again.

            They steal a ship and head out. It’s just small enough that both he and Daz can manage it on their own. Crocodile is already forming plans to gather a new crew in the back of his mind while the forefront focuses on his current goal. Daz stays true to his word and never asks a question. He’s never been a big talker to begin with. A trait Crocodile is once again grateful for. Their destination is far and won’t be easy to reach. When they do reach the Calm Belt, Daz frown’s deeper then usual. Confusion apparent in his disapproval. Crocodile positions himself behind the main sail.

            “We don’t have the luxury of having sea prism stones on the ship or poisonous sea kings to deter the other beasts away, so expect a fight every step of the way.” Crocodile summons his sand and sends a swirling mini sandstorm just behind the sails, creating enough wind to keep the ship moving. Daz’s arms turn into blades and not even a second later, the first sea king appears.

            By the time they are even halfway through the Calm Belt they are both worn out from battling the beasts of the sea. The port side has a massive bite mark where one had managed to sink its teeth into their ship and the hull is covered in gashes. But other then that, it’s fine. When Amazon Lily comes into view, Crocodile can feel Daz staring holes into the back of his head. He ignores him and takes in the sight of the island. The place he thought he would never return to. He can’t help but give a sad chuckle. Life keeps throwing him for a loop with no signs of stopping.

            As they grow closer to the island, he begins to make out a familiar vessel anchored close to the island shores. His heart drops to his stomach. The yellow submarine that had carried the kid away along with Jinbei comes into view with its crew resting in front of a wall with the Snake Princesses symbol.

            They brought him here.

            This hadn’t been the plan. His chest aches with heart palpitations while his breathing is quickly becoming labored. He reels himself in as quick as possible. Had he been alone he would have dropped to the floor, letting his face fall into his hand, and focused on calming his heartrate and breathing. But he’s already shown to much weakness in front of Daz. So, he stays strong and ignores his frantic heartrate and fights off the shaking in his legs. Two familiar faces spot him from the shore. One is Jinbei, covered in bandages, the other is a man he doesn’t yet know but vaguely remembers seeing a wanted poster for someone named Law. Law clutches his sword ready for a fight, but Jinbei holds his hand out to stop him. When he disappears into the water, Crocodile takes a long drag of his cigar and doesn’t release the smoke until the fish man is climbing onboard his ship.

            “What are you doing here, Crocodile?” he stands, ready to fight even in his current state, but Crocodile has no interest in fighting him.

            “I’m not here for you, so calm down.” he sits on the railing of his ship. “I never expected that you would bring him here, but now that I think about it, the Snake girl was saying something about Garp being a grandfather-in-law or something of that caliber.”

            He shudders at the thought.

            “If you are not here for Luffy, then why have you come to Amazon Lily?” Jinbei doesn’t lower his guard. Crocodile takes another long drag of his cigar. Luffy.

            “I’m here to see the old lady, Gloriosa.” Crocodile says with an exhale of smoke. Jinbei stares in confusion. Daz hides his own but its still there. “Tell the old hag to meet me on the other side of the island and to come alone. If she doesn’t, then I’ll be happy to drag her out myself.”

            Jinbei finally lowers his guard, frowning at Crocodile. “You saved Luffy and myself in Marineford, so I will do you this service. Though I question your motives behind it.”

            He begins to turn back towards the island when Crocodile finds himself blurting, “Don’t…”

            He stops, staring over his shoulder at Crocodile. Crocodile keeps his face pointed in the opposite direction, not trusting himself to not give too much away. “Don’t tell the kid that I was here.”

            Jinbei says nothing else before dropping into the ocean. Crocodile has his ship circle to the other side of the island. He has Daz drop him off on the shore and then take the ship out a small way so that he might have some privacy. Crocodile leans against a tree, smoking his cigar, cursing himself for being as nervous as he is. He needs to know the truth, but a small part of him just wants to jump back onto the ship and sail away. He snuffs that feeling out quickly. He will not be coward. When footsteps approach from within the jungle, he stands up straight ready to face the old hag again.

            “You’ve got a lot of nerve coming here, man,” her voice is as old and shrill as ever. She finally emerges from the shadows of the trees, frowning and gripping at her snake that she uses as a cane.

            “Granny Nyon,” Crocodile lets the words drip from his mouth, enjoying the sight of her freezing over at the sound of that name being spoken so casually. “It’s been a long time.”

            “I don’t believe we’ve ever met.” Her grip on the snake tightens, her expression serious. “How dare you call me that.”

            “Haven’t we? If I recall the last time I saw you, you were screaming for me to return to the island. Now you want me to leave again? Very rude of you.” Crocodile wears his usual grin. There’s something about staring down someone who is clearly intimidated by him that gets his blood pumping. Granny Nyon stares at him, wide eyed, refusing to believe what she must realize is true. He does look much different then when he lived as a woman. But the similarities are still there and only those who truly knew him back then would be able to pick them out. Granny Nyon begins to shake.

            “You,” her voice is hushed, tears building up in her eyes. “But I heard that you died!”

            “I did, in a way. The old me died so that the person you see before you can thrive.” He leans against the tree again, the anxiety from before nowhere to be found. This was more liberating than he thought it would be.

            “But why? Why would you do this to yourself? As a final act of rebellion? To make it where you could never return home?” she’s raising her voice. To confused and distraught for any of it to make sense.

            “I did this to be myself!” his voice is rising to match hers. They stare at each other, silence falling on them both. After what feels like a lifetime, her face softens as she slightly leans against her cane.

            “I see,” she says, eyes averted from his. “Have you always felt this way?”

            “Always.” His breathing is returning to normal, and his pulse slows to its normal rate. She nods, finally understanding.

            “Very well, then I will find peace in the fact that you are alive and living the life you were meant to live.”

            Crocodile has never needed her approval for anything, least of all this. But still, knowing that she isn’t disapproving of him calms him more then he realized it would.

            “You may have come from Amazon Lily and even been a past Princess, but the fact remains that men are not allowed on this island.” Even as she says it, she knows she’s a hypocrite. Crocodile grins, he knew she would say this no matter the outcome and he’s never been bothered by it. But the fact that there is an entire crew of men anchored on the other side of the island makes this conversation hilarious to him.

            He arches a brow, “A rule that seems to be broken at the moment.”

            She sighs in frustration, “That Hancock is going to be the death of me! One man I can deal with. But an entire crew? What is that girl thinking? Nothing, that’s what.”

            Crocodile takes a small bit a pleasure in knowing that the tradition of giving this woman hell is still going strong. She begins to turn back towards the forest, assuming their interaction is over.

            “This isn’t why I’ve returned to Amazon Lily.” Now his words are laced with venom. She pauses before slowly turning to face him. He stares down at her with the same malice as he would any other victim caught in his clutches. “Seventeen years ago, before I left this island. You told me that my child died in childbirth. Is that true?”

            The color drains from her face. Her ghastly expression answering the question he has been asking himself since Marineford. Since Sengoku announced that Dragon has a son. But he needs hear her say it.

            “Answer me!” his sand swirls around them. she grips her cane for courage.

            “No, it is not true.” Her words pierce him deeper than any sword. He feels tears forming in his eyes but pushes on.

            “And that child, was it a girl?” his voice is faltering.

Granny Nyon closes her eyes before opening them and saying, “No, the child was a boy. You gave birth to the first boy born on Amazon Lily.”  

Read the story HERE on AO3!!!

[victorie552onepiecespeedrun]

Reading One Piece pt 293: Out Of Chains

Chapter 540

Thoughts:

- Cover Art Status: Aww. Robin is reading Straw Hats bedtime stories :)

- “Traps aren’t working!” Luffy won’t be stopped by mere traps!

- “Ace! Where are you! I’m here to rescue you!” :D!

- …wait

- wait, what.

- HE’S ALREADY GONE!!!!???

- THEY ALREADY TOOK HIM!!!

- God, few minutes earlier and they would free him D:

- Well, at least we got Jimbei?

- Jimbei can’t believe Luffy actually got that far

- “Hurry! You may still be able to save him!” yeah!

- …they’re trapping them down there! Both elevator and stairs are blocked! D:

- “Hey, don’t involve us in your crazy schemes!” shut up, prisoners, we didn’t even got your faces

- sleeping gas

- Luffy, come on

- Anubis, HOW DARE YOU be competent

- meanwhile, Ace is having a Bad Time too!

- did he.. did he heard Luffy there?

- “I was hoping it wasn’t true! Why did you come here, Luffy!?” um, TO SAVE YOU!?

- “How did Straw Hat survive this long?” will power

- snip-snip fruit? Wow

- Luffy’s trapped on Level 6 D:

- they already handed Ace to the Navy

- “Let’s get YOU out of here. Just give it up. Leave the rest to Whitebeard” ha. Fat chance.

- Then… I gotta go to Navy Headquarters!” yeah! - “DO YOU REALIZE HOW STORNG ALL PEOPLE THERE ARE!? WHITEBEARD, ADMIRALS OR VICE ADMIRALS OR SEVEN WARLORDS!?” HE DOES NOT AND HE DOESN’T CARE IVANKOV

- “If I give up now… I’ll regret it forever! I’m going!” Luffy…!

- “…!! This feeling! I’ve experienced it before! It’s the same thing I felt with Dragon!” yeah, Monkey family got their charisma stats off the scale

- “If you want out, set me free!” oh hey Crocodile, I wondered when you’ll show up

- “I didn’t think there would be anything for me to do if I were free… but you say there’s going to be a war between Whitebeard and the Navy? Now’s my chance to kill that old geezer” …Crocodile, are you ok? I though you choosing to go to prison was beyond stupid before but now… He was fine with going to IMPEL DOWN, guys. That’s just not a sign of a sane mind

- anyway, he wants out now

- “Forget it! You’re the one who messed up Vivi’s country!” “That’s water under a bridge. I have no interest in Alabasta anymore.” Vivi mention! And hey, Luffy doesn’t just recruit his enemies-turned-alllies all nilly-willy, that’s nice to see actually

- Ivankov say we should take him with us. Take Jimbei too, while you’re at it

- oh look, Ivankov and Crocodile know each other. They stories they could tell us…

- !!! TAKE JIMBEI TOO !!!

- “Please take me with you! I can be of great help to you! I’ve known Ace ever since he joined the Whitebeard Pirates! I’ve heard him talk about his brother all these years! I was thrown in here because I opposed this war! I want to save Ace too! Please! Allow me the chance to die in battle!” …I… …who would say no after that speech

- “…Ok” SEE!!!???

- they freed them! Showtime!!!!

- “Now we got two Warlords with us, if you count Crocodile” SHOWTIME!!

“Two? Who’s the other one?” Goddammit Luffy  

rOP 292  rOP 294

[whirlybirdwhat]

East Sea of Monsters - Chapter 22

Jimbe has always dreamed of suns

--

Shoutout to the wonderful @soccersarah01 who beta’d this fic for me - love you!!!

-

Read the entire series on Ao3 for better quality and author’s notes, especially warnings for content within the fic!! Tag “Ficart” on my blog should also show some fanart and podfics for this fic, as well as the link to translations! give them some love!

Sun - Jimbe

-

Jimbe is the first son of the sea, and he has always dreamed of suns.

Bright, red and bloody – passionate declarations of dreams and something better. A cry of understanding, in the one burned onto his chest, and a shout to the dream of a queen, a race, a kingdom - heralded overhead in bright colors, lighting up the sky.

Suns are red, and yellow, and orange.

Suns mean freedom – mean something better than this.

In his dreams, Jimbe is always reaching out to them. His webbed hand reaching and reaching – for the horizon, for a flag, for his queen, for Fisher Tiger, for something more.

He never seems to reach it.

All he has, when he wakes up, is his hand clutching his own heart, his own personal sun.

It isn’t the same. He’s never grasped that red sun.

Yet now –

Now, in a battlefield beneath a darkened sky, in a war with death in every heartbeat, in a massacre, a hell, Jimbe holds a dying sun.

This sun – it is not red, or bloody, or bright.

This sun is dark, and dying, and a supernova of the deepest pits of hell.

Jimbe holds Luffy as he explodes into something Jimbe can’t quite see, ripping past the Veil and into oblivion; watches Luffy erupt into grief covered by a brother’s blood, holding a sun brighter, and darker, and far more terrifying than anything Jimbe’s eyes have ever seen before.

(There’s something wet running down his face. He thinks his eyes are bleeding.)

Portgas D. Ace dies in his brother’s arms, a burning hellfire finally flickering out, and Jimbe can finally hold the sun.

(As men die and admirals fall, and the world is shaken apart by a grief and monster with insatiable hunger, he wishes he couldn’t.)

-

When Jimbe fights him for the first and last time, Ace is as the sun incarnate - the sun burning - even as he chokes on his own ashes and flares through sea water.

Jimbe had wondered, at first, what kind of strength it took for a devil fruit user to use his powers through the hate of the sea. It wasn’t a kind of strength he had attributed to the young warlord.

Then, Jimbe remembers the bones shaped into the hull of the Spadille; remembers the way Ace cracks apart in the corner of his eyes, and thinks it isn’t strength at all.

He knows the stories of the East. Every fishman does – the way waters corrupt, the way the waters are dark, and the way that monsters lurk beneath their surface, far deadlier than those at the bottom of the sea.

(They say the East has no seafloor – that it aches, forever, a wound into the world’s side, dark and infected. That it was the void from whence all hell poured forth, that it was death.)

Fisher Tiger had told him more, when he could bear to speak of it – monsters in chains, the way slaves and guards alike went missing in the night, the way people had sharper teeth than any animal, there, and were twice as bloody.

(Fisher Tiger hears the story of the bottomless East and laughs.

Dark waters, he says, eyes far away and hands aching for a weapon, are not endless. But you don’t want to know what’s at the bottom. Better it be endless, bottomless, then to know what’s there.

He doesn’t speak of the demon from the seafloor he met at the tower of gods.

Jimbe doesn’t ask.)

By the fire in Ace’s eyes and the unholy fire cracking from underneath his skin, there is no other sea that he could have possibly come from.

(A demon – a demon, a son of the devil-)

Jimbe fights Ace for five days. He hungers, and he thirsts, and he’s so tired, but Ace does not falter in the face of Jimbe’s sea, so he must keep going.

Jimbe burns, ropes of fire winding their way up his arms and down his back. Haki is useless when every hit cracks apart Ace’s skin, molding to his fists because of inhuman capability instead of any devil fruit, and the sea fears nothing but the devil.

(And it can only drown false ones.)

Ace lands a punch on the third day, one imbued with haki and fire and false fire. It hits Jimbe on the side of his face, and even as Ace stumbles and chokes on the way his skin cracks apart, Jimbe burns.

It cracks into his skin, searing apart scales and flesh, and he is marked by hellfire.

The other burns will fade, the ones littering his hands and feet, the ones made by false fire, devil fruit fire. The one on his face, burned into the side like a flame, and the ones wrapping around his forearms by scorching hands, will forever remain.

A reminder, some will say, but Jimbe will remember the way the flag burned at Fishman island by hellfire, and will know it is a sign of war to come.

Ace burns away the fog around them, on this island, showing the secrets of the world, and Jimbe fights surrounded by monstrous spades.

Monsters in human shape that tower above the trees, monsters without faces, monsters with too many teeth and too many limbs, monsters that smiled and cheered as their captain burned through saltwater.

Jimbe falls on the fifth day, a smile gracing his face toward an enemy that is so much more than him.

It is a miracle when Whitebeard arrives.

Otherwise Jimbe thinks he might have followed that sun to see where it may have set.

-

After Marineford, Jimbe shakes at night. He can’t speak of what he saw there, when the sun fell from the sky and became red and dark; when gouges were scarred into the ground and left bloody men in their wake.

After Marineford, Jimbe has another scar from a demon.

This one is not a mark of war.

It is a claim, directly around Jimbe’s heart, as if his future captain understood that the sun there was more precious than anything else.

(A dream)

It scares him, sometimes, that he wants to follow the man who fell the Navy - who ate the hearts and souls and flesh of admirals and spit them back out as dead men walking.

It scares him that he wants to follow Straw Hat Luffy, who wears a crown made of straw - made with room for the horns that sprout off his head -who will be king and who lives a trail of hell in his wake.

Jimbe does not remember Marineford well.

He does not remember –

(The island’s name no longer exists in his memory.

Don’t bring him there, Rayleigh had said, as they followed a submarine towards Amazon Lily. You will all be dead come morning.

Rayleigh smiled like a creature of the deep sometimes.

Jimbe wondered why he didn’t trust it.

Aye, Jimbe, fresh from a war, had agreed, and they didn’t go to Amazon Lily.

They went to–)

The aftermath, beyond the words that fought whatever beast lived in Luffy’s chest, born of loneliness and hell.

Jimbe shakes after Marineford, but now, under the sea, he will not forget the demon who saved an island.

(The brother of the demon who burned their flag.)

Luffy soars overheard, and defeats a legend made of wood and an army made of flesh. 1,000 men are unaccounted for in the aftermath.

Jimbe does not question it, and offers his blood to a demon who doesn’t need it.

(In the end, it wasn’t about blood anyway. It was about the things that bind men, the things like suns on Jimbe’s chest and the vows that still ring in his head.)

Luffy, full of teeth and bloody fangs, smiles at him, then, and Jimbe no longer belongs to himself.

-

In Impel Down, when Ace is chained to the wall next to Jimbe, the very first thing the demon does is laugh.

“It stayed!”

The scar on Jimbe’s face burns.

“You couldn’t bother to say hello?”

Ace laughs again, sparks flying out of his throat despite the sea stone wrapped around his limbs, and Jimbe knows that all the legends are true. “Why would I? There’s more important things going on.” He dismisses, and he is smiling, mouth glowing, despite their situation.

“Hmph,” Jimbe huffs, and settles down for the long wait.

Next to him, the breath of a demon settles into something slower, and though Jimbe’s eyes are long adjusted to the dark, the soft glow of Ace’s heart beat is a comfort.

(He wonders, when Fisher Tiger was chained next to monsters, if he ever felt this way.)

He does not sleep that first night in a cell with a demon. Jimbe, instead, listens to the thrumming of the sea outside his cell, and tries not to think about how the stone sinks around Ace and the hotness in his cell.

He tries not to think of the wet spots all over the walls, the gouges in the corner, and the way men enter and never leave Impel Down’s cold, cold walls.

Across from him, a man made of sand smirks, his hair still impossibly greased and jewels still lining his hand.

“So,” the Crocodile drawls, “They caught you too? A little hunger, picking us off one by one.”

Jimbe has heard how Monkey D. Luffy saved a country on the behest of a single friend; how the Crocodile was the first to fall and Moria didn’t come long after; how even the Marines whisper that he is hungry and Monkey D. Garp laughs at the lists of missing marines following Straw Hat battles.

A man, who hungered for the top.

Who hungered for dreams.

Odd, that Crocodile would assume Jimbe was next.

“No.” He says at last, the word drawn out. “No,” he repeats, and it echoes around the room, “he did not get me.”

The Crocodile cackles then, and it is nothing like Whitebeard’s Gurararara or King Neptune’s Hohohoho – it, instead, is dark like rumbling sands at night, without form or shape in the dark, and Jimbe shivers. “You will,” the Crocodile says. “You’re already marked for it.”

Jimbe has never met Monkey D. Luffy in his life, and the burn scars that arc about his face in a flaming pattern of death are invisible to his beloved crew, to the king, to anyone who isn’t–

Oh, Jimbe thinks and doesn’t say aloud, looking at the Crocodile once more. Oh.

He is glad Ace is the demon he is sharing his cell with.

Then, at the very least, he knows his heart won’t be ripped out of his chest while he sleeps.

-

On Fishman Island, at the bottom of the sea that is brighter than the East, there is a feast, and then a pirate challenges an emperor.

Jimbe is not surprised.

He cannot be.

(Hey, Jimbe, did’ya know I have a little brother?)

He can only watch, as a ship of dreams, of monsters, sails off into the sea without him; can only know that his home, his captain is leaving him.

(Aladine says Jimbe is different after Marineford – that every man who set foot upon that island is. It was war, Jimbe dismisses, but they have fought in wars before, have fought admirals before.

It’s different, fighting a demon, fighting with a demon, fighting for a demon.

It’s different when a demon eats you whole.)

Jimbe wants to go home.

-

Jimbe sees Garp the Fist once before Marineford.

It is in Impel Down, and he is crying from a thousand different eyes.

“Ace,” the grandfather of a dying child says, and it hurts. “Why, dammit! Why!”

His voice is like a choir of growls out of harmony. Still, Ace relaxes in his chains as if it were a lullaby.

���Gramps,” Ace acknowledges, and there is no anger there. “You know… you know why.”

Son of the Devil, Jimbe knows, but it’s more than that, isn’t it? More than Jimbe can see with two eyes made of mortality rather than death.

Garp crumbles, and it is as if Jimbe is seeing the fall of something great.

It’s horrible.

It won’t be the last one he sees today.

Garp leaves after that, to the chuckles of the Crocodile and the howls of the other inmates. There’s bloody marks and gouges on the ground where he was, but there is also something in Ace’s grasp.

It isn’t a key.

Jimbe can’t exactly see what it is, only that when Garp left Ace lunged for some empty spot on the ground, hand slipping out of a cuff with the ease of someone made molten, of someone with scars running down his hand due to a missing pinkie.

(How-?)

When Ace leaves, he leaves behind ash marks and burning droplets at Impel Down. He also leaves something feather soft, that Jimbe can’t quite see, but feels like the comfort of ages.

(Later, when Luffy arrives, he will look into the cell and see not Jimbe, but the place Ace left behind. He will pick up what Garp, what Ace, left between cell bars and he will not smile.

Instead, he will put it into his pocket to the sound of the Crocodile’s jeers.

Did’ya know I have a little brother? Ace had asked Jimbe.

(He knows, now.)

On the way up, when men are eaten alive, the Crocodile will slink next to Jimbe and whisper,

Did you know that the hungry one isn’t the first demon to break out of these walls?

And Jimbe will be left with the reminder that Impel Down has never been able to hold the monsters of the world–

And that they roam free.)

-

At Marineford, Jimbe stood with an emperor against three admirals (stood with men against a monster).

(Or so he is told.)

Now, he stands before an Emperor and does not shake.

A man who is to follow the future king of the pirates, a man who is to follow Luffy, a demon who has daggers in his mouth and boiling blood in his veins, cannot afford to be afraid of a mere emperor.

Big Mom’s eyes are hungry as she stares into Jimbe, but he does not flinch.

He is claimed - by marks around his own personal sun, by a king, by a monster, by a conqueror.

He is not Big Mom’s any longer.

He never was, from the moment Luffy looked into his eyes and took him.

(Jimbe cannot afford to be afraid of  a mere hunger any longer. )

An emperor rages, a deal is done,  and Luffy laughs so bright and loud it burns like the sun, as chaos reigns again, conforming to his will.

Jimbe has never felt so alive –

(Not since before Marineford – not since before the world fell apart.)

-

Jimbe sees Luffy and Ace together twice in his lifetime.

One is at Marineford, when brothers fought together, when the sun went out and the world went black.

(He does not remember it well – Ace’s smile was something almost too private to bear, even as blasts of Conqueror’s Haki illuminated the truth.)

The second, again, is at Marineford, but in it’s bloody aftermath.

When Luffy rings in an era, blood scarred on to his arm by his own hands - a call to his crew, to his family - he stops by the place where his brother died.

Jimbe wonders if this was what Loguetown was like, to see a king stand in ashes.

(The Devil King did not cry at Loguetown, only laughed.

Luffy is crying.)

He sees Luffy cradle bits of Ace’s bonfire in his arms, the only person who could bear to touch it, and sees brothers reunite for one last time.

(There is a chill over Marineford, as Luffy draws in the ashes of Ace’s own body turned funeral pyre. Jimbe can’t read what he writes, but there is a spark, somewhere, in Luffy’s eyes, and something in the air breathes more easily.)

Days after, Marineford sinks to the bottom of the sea, its ravines and cracks from a monster's grief too terrible to sustain – Luffy’s rage, his echoing cry for a new era, is its final send off.

Jimbe wonders if the Eastern sailors found their way home, at the bottom of the sea.

(There’s no sun down at the bottom of the sea.

Jimbe would hate to drown like that.)

-

In the middle of a raging ocean just off of an Emperor’s domain, Jimbe is home, he’s home he’s home he’s home, aboard this ship of dreams but–

He can’t stay.

He can’t.

There is an emperor chasing them, and Jimbe is not scared and he is strong, but his crew–

His beloved crew–

They love him.

He cannot abandon them here, to the mercy of hungry monsters.

(He cannot take them with him, to the crew of a hungry demon.)

Jimbe tells Luffy, soaked and shaking, as such.

“I CANNOT ABANDON THEM NOW!”

And Luffy–

Luffy, who Jimbe held dying in a battlefield that hazes from his memory, who Jimbe watched rise, who went a dark supernova–

Becomes a sun again.

“JIMBE!” Luffy says, and his teeth are snarling and his eyes are hungry, “I AM YOUR CAPTAIN NOW!”

And Jimbe finally holds the red sun of dreams in his grasp.

(Jimbe is the first son of the sea, and his dream is the sun.

Red, bloody, and free.)

[where-s-all-blue]

Hopeless Heroes AU

Support Hero Pack

Law/Surgeon of Death

Law, most commonly known as Surgeon of Death, is a special type of support hero, who is capable of using his ability both defensively and offensively during missions.

He prefers to work on the background, finding his calling to be in healing rather than in fighting.

He was the one who completed the suppressants, which he refers to as devilfruits. These pills are used to suppress abilities that are hard to control to give the heroes the ability to blend into the society smoothly, add control over them and to switch them if the powers prove to be damaging the body of the holder.

He is one of the closest friends of Stealth Black, being one of the few who knows his real identity due to the fact that Law has been the one to patch him up often.

He's a graduating student at the university, while his power does give him a leverage on the field of medicine, he decided to go over the formal training to become an eligible doctor.

His favourite past time is relaxing in a pile which consists of polar bear like creature known as Bepo and his two assistants called Penguin and Shachi. Sometimes they're joined by Usopp, a tech specialist.

Law is also one of the smartest people in the HQ, who has been able to figure out the secret identities of most heroes including Hunter.

Zoro and Law share the same passion for things like ninja, samurai, superhero movies and robots.

Bartolomeo/Barrier

Became a hero upon witnessing the temporary team which consisted of Stealth Black, Hunter and Rubber Man.

He holds great admiration towards the trio and has even studied their fighting methods in order to become a better hero himself.

His main ability is to create barriers, which makes him ideal for damage control and saving missions.

Rumour has it that he has cannibalistic desires, but they were quickly debunked by Barto himself stating that Man Eater and Cannibal are very different terms. He just likes to go out on dates a lot.

He's one of the few heroes who are willing to be interviewed, he provides good distraction and his comments have put a lot of civilians at ease over the wellbeing of the heroes while also explaining why they can't take part in interviews.

Nami relies on him for some juicy hero rumours.

His greatest dream is to be paired with ASL, Stealth Black and Hunter.

He immediately drew parallels between Stealth Black and "Prince".

Like many in the support team, Barto doesn't really like Germa 66 as they tend to leave a lot of citizens in danger along with a lot of destruction. He was glad to learn that 03 left the group and wished him good luck.

He was the one who suggested the colour scheme and the crown to Usopp upon learning that he was working on a suit for Prince/King.

Bartolomeo has a civilian boyfriend whom he affectionately refers to as Prince Charming.

Dr Kureha

Healing specialist.

Currently training the next generation healers, Law, Marco, Caesar and Chopper.

She's also the wife of Dr Hiriluk and the adoptive mother of Chopper (he hasn't been officially adopted yet though).

She's also the supervisor of medical team.

Kureha was notably incharge of project Devil's Fruit, which was left unattended upon the deaths of Hiriluk and his two assistants, who just so happened to be Law's parents.

She sees great potential in her apprentices, which is why she's extra hard on them as her way of attempting to keep them on the right path.

Can and will paralyse you until your body has been completely healed. Pressure points are a bitch.

Was present during the deaths of Roger and Rogue, still blaming herself over them as she wasn't "fast enough" in a situation where nothing could be done.

Rushed to save Ace and Sabo with Garp upon learning what the science ward was doing to them during project REVIVE. She also alerted Dragon about her bad feeling regarding Sabo's family, leading to his eventual saving.

Fully accepted Dragon's resolution to form his own team of heroes, even giving him her at the time top assistants and students.

Keeps in touch with Dragon to tell him how his son is doing.

Affectionately calls Ace "Spitfire".

Marco/Phoenix

Hero who revolutionised what it means to be a support hero with his ability to both fight and heal.

He classifies as support hero, but more than often he goes where he feels like he's needed the most, which just so happens to be in middle of action.

His mother was a healing type while his father was a mix of fire and a bird, hence his ability to turn into an actual phoenix.

If he knew how, his singing would have the same effect of bringing hope and courage to those who hear him just like the mythological beast itself.

He studies traditional medicine directly under Dr Kureha while having formal training from his own university years.

He's a friend and a role model to Ace, often hanging around with ASL even outside their missions.

He is incapable of getting drunk, which is the reason why he often sasses the heroes who tend to party hard as a revenge due to the fact that he's also the one to look after them.

He's pretty much sassy gremlin uncle and most people adore his sarcastic nature.

Bonnie Clay

Part of the diversion team, which was created with the intention of helping to maintain the double lives of the heroes without them being caught.

Usually Bon is paired with Bartolomeo and the duo get along quite nicely.

His special ability is Mimicry, which is perfect for him to pose as his coworkers. Usually he does that to also cheer others up.

Thanks to his special placing in the HQ, he is aware of the most heroes' identities.

He looks up to a vigilante known as Queen, who works with Dragon and is even rumoured to be his lover.

Bon is a fashionista of his own right, his expertise lying in visual kei and kawaii fashion.

Bon's closest friend in the HQ is Luffy, to whom he is very dedicated to as he helped him break out of his former life.

He used to be part of Crocodile's criminal organisation, being lured there as a child from an abusive home life. But unlike Miss Sunday, Bonnie Clay chose to become a hero upon being given the opportunity to by Shanks.

Caesar Clown

No, he and Buggy aren't actually related.

He was formerly contained to a government facility due to his questionable fascination to poisons and gas.

The United Nations chose to hand him over to the United Heroes to ensure that if his intelligence was going to be used, it'd be for something good.

Doctor Kureha has been extra hard on him, constantly steering him away from the more destructive path.

He honestly doesn't really realise that what he does is bad, he was literally raised to be a living weapon and as such emotions and compassion aren't his strongest points.

Caesar is always paired with Law, who appears to be the only one capable of keeping him in line. Nobody knows how he does this and at this point they're too scared to ask.

There was a time when Doflamingo tried to get him to join the Donquixote Family, but Law's stories about what kind of person he was made it so that Caesar was too afraid of the mad man to actually go with it.

Even if he's technically a captive, Caesar feels like he's being treated like a human in the HQ, which is what he had been wishing for most of his life, wondering what it was like to have a normal relationship with other people.

Chopper

Currently, he's the youngest person in the HQ (15), thus he isn't allowed to go on the field.

He was abandoned by his birth parents to the test facility where project REVIVE took place, ultimately becoming one of the test subjects.

He was rescued and illegally adopted by doctor Kureha and doctor Hiriluk, who have been his mentors up until the latter's death.

Kureha is planning on having him take over as the leader of the medical team once the time comes for her to retire.

Chopper prefers the humanoid reindeer look over his actual human one, it makes him feel more confident and in control. It also seems to make others smile.

When someone is stressed, Chopper tends to climb onto their laps, refusing to move until they've relaxed. His soft toy like appearance has helped a lot of workers.

[inupibaldspot]

Saviour : Chapter 7

Most of the banfits were asleep and even ate then some of the food Emilia made.Emilia sighed looking at the sight in front of her.

The mountain bandits were all wasted. It seemed like they drank alot in the short span of time and were currently passed out.

"Let's go upstairs. I made some ointment which will relief the pain and speed up the recovery." Emilia said walking upstairs.

"Ointment?" Sabo and Ace questioned at the same time, they too following up stairs.

"Emilia , has been learning how to make these! Isn't she cool." Luffy said as he opened the door and started walking in.

He finally got my name right. Emilia thought as she picked up her hand made first aid kit which was kept near the window.

"Lets start with Luffy first." Emilia said as the rubber boy ran towards her happily.

Ace and Sabo both watched the girl treat Luffy's injury. After Luffy, Sabo then went towards the girl.

"Woah!! So you're saying you made these?" exclaimed the blonde boy who Emilia was tending.

Sabo was amazed as he stared at his looked at his wrapped hands.As soon as the girl in front of him applied the medicine she made, he felt a cool sensation which made him feel that he wasn't even hurt in the first place.

"Hehehe! Isn't Emeza amazing!" The straw hatted boy boasted, he too wrapped with bandages but much more severe.

"It's Emilia, Luffy." Emilia said soft, And I thought he finally got my name down.

"So...Sabo-kun you're staying with us?."Emilia asked.

"Sabo is fine....Oh yeah...I forgot to mention it. I was kinda worried that Blue Jam and his crew might do something to me when I'm alone and sleeping." Sabo said nervously, scratching the back of his head. "I hope you don't mind."

"You're more than welcome from my side,Sabo." Emilia says as she warps the final round bandage "There done."

"Thanks Emilia!" Sabo grinned as he stared at Emilia and was returned with a soft 'your welcome.'

"Now next." Emilia said looking at the corner of the room where a certain boy was sitting .

Ace was still avoiding her but as soon as she said those words he stiffened. He didn't want to look like a 'softy' who needed his wounds taken care of. He'd rather have his wound and call it 'battle scars.'

"Come on ,Ace. You'll love it! As soon as Emilia applies those menidine , you'll be all Okay!!!" Luffy exclaimed as he ran towards Ace and starts tugging him.

"Medicine." Emilia corrected ,smiling at Luffy's cute behaviour. While Sabo who sat next to her just laughed at them.

Ace then quietly sat down next to Emilia. Emilia smiled and started tending his wound aswell. There was alot of teasing from Luffy and Sabo's side since Ace had a red face and Ace fighting back.

"I'm done,Ace." Emilia said picking up the stuff she used to treat them and put them in the box.

She then stood up and kept the box where she first got it from.

"You guys should go down and eat.I made dinner." Emilia said setting out her futon. This made Luffy break into a large smile and started running.

"What about you?" Ace asked which made Luffy stop and state at her with with two questioning eye behind Ace.

"Don't worry. I already ate." Emilia lied "Also I want to sleep early today."

Honestly, Emilia was hungry but after knowing the bandits ate the food , she realised the remaining wont be enough to satisfy all of them. She'd rather have them happy.Emilia thought as she watched the three children go downstairs bickering.

Emilia then also settled her self in bed and soon fell asleep.

.......

The next day Emilia woke up feeling presence of people other than Ace, Sabo and Luffy.

Recently her observational haki seems to be working even in a subconscious level.

Emilia woke up and saw Dogra shouting for Dadan. "BOSS! WE HAVE A PROBLEM!"

After a few moment Dadan came up stairs along with other mountain bandits, all with equally confused faces.

"Whoah! What is going on here?!" Dadan shouts as she looks at the scene in front of her.

It then struck Emilia. Ah...She doesn't know about Sabo yet...

Dadan then started counting. "1...2...3...hm?..1...2...3...hm?...Ace...Luffy....Emilia...hm?."

Emilia almost laughed at the woman who kept on repeating the same sentence.

"Oi, Brats! Who is that extra person?!" The orange haired woman finally snapped and this caused the sleeping people to wake up.

"Why is there one more brat?" The woman questioned again. "Who are you?"

Emilia was about to answer when Sabo,the extra person himself woke up and started explaining.

"You talking about me? I'm Sabo! And you must be Dadan." The boy said cheerfully.

"Sabo? I know that name."

"Really? That makes it easier. Thank you for taking me in from today."

Wow..This child is totally 'my-pace".. Emilia thought sweat dropping.

Those two continued to argue back and forth.

But knowing Dadan, the woman will surely take him in. Knowing that Emilia went out of the room to went to wash herself ignoring the scene in front of her.

After sometime the children started to run outside directly towards the forest ignoring Dadan's loud shout. Along with that Sabo also gave a warning to Dadan saying that 'the Blue Jam crew might come' causing the woman to turn pale.

Emilia looked infront watching the trio run. It wasn't that she was slow but she walked so that she could watch over Luffy.

Luffy was trying his best to run along side with the older boys and taking part in their conversation which both insulted and praised Dadan.

"Luffy...Its fine. Run more slowly, you'll catch up as you grow older." Emilia said assuring the child who was struggling keeping up with them.

"No! I'm going to be the fastest among you guys!" Luffy said stubbornly.

"Good luck with that." Ace said with a mocking smile on his face.

"What did you say!" Luffy shouted.

"By the way, what are you gonna do now?" Sabo intervened.

"Let's eat!" Luffy shouted cheerfully with everyone agreeing with him.

After going by the nearby river and started fishing.Soon they finally caught one huge fish.

However Luffy couldn't help at all due to the fact that he'll sink in the water.

"But wow Emilia! You're really strong!" Sabo says as he eats the fish. Still amazed at how the girl seemed to knock down the fish with one hit where as Ace and Sabo both required multiple hits to knock out a fish of that size.

"Thank you." Emilia said as she hands a portion of the fish to Luffy.

"So Luffy you ate a devil fruit?" Sabo asked.

"Yeah!" The boy says as he eats the food Emilia handed to him.

"No wonder you can't swim....So what fruit did you eat?"

"Gomu-Gomu."

"Gomu...As in rubber?"

"So you became a rubber and in exchange you lost the ability to swim..How lame." Ace commented smirking.

The continued to fight verbally along with Sabo who just stretched Luffy.

"But this is the first time I've seen a devil fruit user and I think it's pretty cool." Emilia said, finally done eating.

"I know right!" Luffy brighted. "I've also come up with a move called 'Gum-Gum Balloon' which can deflect cannonballs."

"Wow! Demonstrate it for us!" Sabo said excitedly.

"Sure but Ace cant look." Luffy said taking revenge.

The boy then started to suck in air causing him to expand and then finally looking like a balloon just like the name suggests.

Suddenly Ace kicks Luffy causing him to bounce high. "Sabo kick it back!" The blond boy agreed.

Emilia looked at the three boys in front. She may seem boring but she was already quite old if she included her previously life so she felt quite childish if she joined in.

"Emilia wanna join?" Sabo asked cheerfully.

"I'll pass. But you guys be careful." Emilia said.

Ace then kicks Luffy really hard which causes Luffy to bounce towards rocks which then bounced towards the water.

Emilia then quickly stood up and started running towards Luffy, worried that the child might fall in the river and drown.

But before she could even enter the water, a large crocodile came up and ate Luffy and peacefully swam away.

"Wait! You can't just eat and run away!" The two boys shouted.

The three of them jumped , rushing to save Luffy.

Yup...Luffy was really a trouble magnet.

[recentanimenews]

FEATURE SERIES: My Favorite One Piece Arc with Maffew

  I love One Piece and I love talking to people who love One Piece. And with the series going on 23 years now, there is a whole lot to talk about. As the series is about to publish its 1000th chapter, a true feat in and of itself, we thought we should reflect upon the high-seas adventure and sit down with some notable names in the One Piece fan community and chat about the arcs they found to be especially important, or just ones they really, really liked.

  Welcome to the next article in the series "My Favorite One Piece Arc!"

  My next guest in this series is Maffew, creator of the popular pro wrestling web series Botchamania. For my chat with him, he chose the Alabasta Arc, in which Luffy and his crew not only have to save a desert kingdom but also topple Baroque Works and its powerful leader Crocodile.

  A note on spoilers: If you haven't seen the Alabasta arc yet, this interview does contain major plot points. Watch the Alabasta arc starting RIGHT HERE if you'd like to catch up or rewatch!

    Dan Dockery: So I guess my first basic question is, let’s say for some reason, I got to the end of Drum Island and I said “Well, One Piece ends here for me. This seems like a good finale.” What would you tell me to keep me going into the Alabasta Arc in one sentence?

  Maffew: Well, after Chopper has made all the kids cry, you’ll need pickin’ up.

  That’s pretty good! What was the impetus for you getting into One Piece? What made you want to jump into an anime that’s nearly one thousand episodes long at this point?

  I think I tried watching it on YouTube back in 2009, and I just couldn’t get into it. At that point in my life, I wasn’t ready for a character like Luffy and his adventures, and I couldn’t wait for the villains he fought to kill him. So I dropped it. A year later, I’m in Germany and this wrestler ACH was doing a Q&A panel for this German wrestling organization called WXW. And ACH is a REALLY big One Piece fan, and even dresses up as Luffy in New Japan and Ring of Honor. And I was like “Hey, you watching JoJo?” because that was my thing at the time, and he was like “No, no. Just One Piece.” I said, “What else are you watching?” “Just One Piece.” And I’m like “Wait, what? Just the one?” But he was sellin’ it to me like he was a One Piece ad on QVC. And guys like Steve Yurko are so passionate about it, and if one person tells ya to watch something, you’re like “Eh, whatever,” but if five people tell you, you start to pay attention. So I’m gonna blame ACH and my good friend Steve Yurko for this.

    What do you like about this arc in particular?

  You get so much wonderful worldbuilding. They go to Alabasta, meet up with Mr. 2, and it’s one of those cool interactions where they’re meeting, but they don’t know who they are meeting exactly, like when they meet Blackbeard in Jaya. So later on, they’re like “Oh, it’s THEM!” There’s a real sense of everything not being really pre-determined at this point. It’s building everything through a bunch of pirates just doing stuff. Ace shows up, knocks out some assassins so he can get his royalty checks.

  That’s such a funny way to put it.

  Then we get Kung-Fu Dugongs, and they’re a pretty pure expression of One Piece. They’re all synchronized, they’re adorable, they play their part amid all the serious stuff, and they’re completely ridiculous, but they work anyway. And it’s with Alabasta that Eiichiro Oda starts to perfect the tropes that he puts into place throughout, with the new islands, the new leader who everyone loves but is actually a bad person, the crew having to deal with him and the Navy, them having to help put someone back in their position, etc. And even though, on paper, it reads like “Well, he’s gotta beat this dude and this dude and this dude,” it’s so much more chaotic and less formulaic than you’d expect. It keeps things interesting. 

  I agree. I like how he takes all of these pieces and he’s consistent with them, but Oda always plays around with how he sets them up.

    But it’s all a foot massage before the real reason to watch Alabasta: Sir Croc. 

  Are you a big fan of him? That dude is so cool, conniving and powerful. He’s kinda the perfect villain. 

  Back when I was being miserable and first watching One Piece, I really liked him. I like the design, the sand powers that could actually pose a threat. I always appreciate it when a villain provides actual tension. It’s like why I think Goldeneye is still the best James Bond film. Because Alec Trevelyan is constantly reminding Bond “Remember, I could kill you. I’m from the same place as you. I can take your exploding watch and just, eh, I’ll stop that then. Thank you.” And Luffy loses twice to him in the three-match structure that really works here as it did for wrestling in the 70s.

  How so?

  So you’d have somebody like champion Bruno Sammartino and someone like Ivan Koloff or one of the Wild Samoans or Stan Stasiak. They’d have one match where the hero would beat Bruno by disqualification. Bruno’s still around to fight, but he’s lost. Luffy survives being thrown in the sand, but he’s been beaten. Then they have the second match, where Bruno would win because the villain would just give up and leave and get counted out. Luffy attacks Crocodile with water, but it’s not enough, and Crocodile just kinda leaves Luffy thinking it’s all done. And then Bruno would be like “Oh no ya don’t. Next time, you won’t be able to escape, because we’re gonna be in a cage match.” And then Bruno wins, just like Luffy wins by punching Crocodile up through that giant enclosed space. He escapes the cage.

      It’s just so satisfying and that’s a great way to describe it. So, villains in the series have had extensive crew members before, but they haven’t been as recognizable and colorful as Croc’s crew, Baroque Works. Do you have a favorite member?

  They’re all good in their own way, but at this point, I’m gonna go with Mr. 2. Eh, that’s probably too obvious an answer…

  Mr. 2 is a lot of people’s favorite member. 

  Oh, who cares. I’ll go with Mr. 2. I like how Mr. 2 interacts with everyone, having fun with the boys and fighting Sanji with kicks but respecting him. 

  So, in this arc, there’s a lot of government intrigue and a revolution is about to happen, and everyone’s dissatisfied with their perception of the monarchy. How did you react to all of this political drama in One Piece? 

  Well, it’s great because you have Vivi, and you get to learn her motivations and because she’s on the crew, it gives you a reason to care for the crew and how all of the political intrigue affects them. Without her, you’d just hear about a war and say “Oh, sorry about that. Hope it goes well.” And with all this lore being thrown at you because you have Vivi and that connection, it’s adding to the main conflict, rather than distracting.

  Yeah, Vivi really grounds it all with a personal attachment. Because otherwise it’s just savin’ the kingdom, which is cool and they’re good for it, but it doesn’t have the same impact. So, they did this back in the Arlong Park arc, but what returns here is the kind of 1 vs 1 match structure, where a member or members of the enemy crew are matched up against a Straw Hat or Hats. Mr. 1 has knife body parts, so he’s obviously gonna fight Zoro. Mr. 2 kicks and Sanji kicks, etc. What do you think about that kind of matchmaking, because it’s also a little wrestling-esque.

    Yeah, right, like if you have D-Generation X fighting the Nation of Domination, you can’t just have The Rock fighting Triple H. Ya gotta have D’Lo Brown vs X-Pac and The Godfather vs Billy Gunn. I like it because the characters feel like they have to prove themselves, like Zoro’s a swordsman, and he’s gotta test himself against another swordsman. And Usopp does it when he fights Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas with Chopper, because they have a weird dynamic and they’re fighting two people and they have no clue what they’re up against. 

  So, at the end of the arc, they do the iconic “We can’t let Vivi become associated with pirates so we’ll hold up the X symbols on our arms in solidarity” pose. What did you think about that? Because it’s one of the most famous images in One Piece, and it’s hard to avoid it, even if you’ve never watched the series. Was that your first time seeing it?

  It actually was. And I’m glad you brought this up because I was watching it and I thought “Wait, they’re just going? They’re not even keeping the duck?” And then they do that with the X and the original opening starts playing and I get goosebumps just remembering it. That really hit me. Because it finally got me really emotionally invested in the series. Made me feel a bit cheeky. 

      ONE PIECE LIGHTNING ROUND!

  So, considering you’re such a huge pro wrestling fan, your lightning round is gonna be a bit different. I’m gonna say a Straw Hat that’s in the crew at this point and you tell me which wrestler they’re the most like. You can also tell me what time period they’d fit the most in, since wrestler personalities tend to change. So, Luffy?

  Gotta be Cena. Specifically? With Luffy’s attitude? Probably 2015 defending-the-United States-Championship John Cena.

  Zoro?

  He’s all business, he likes to fight. So I gotta go with Cesaro.

  Sanji?

  Going with Eddie Guerrero.

  Usopp?

  That character is all over wrestling - the underdog who isn’t very good and uses every trick in the book to win. Gonna go with MJF. He had one of my favorite matches of this year against Cody Rhodes and he just had to use EVERYTHING to beat him - brass knuckles, distraction, chairs, everything he could to get that win. But he could be MJF, could be The Miz, could be Mikey Whipwreck from ECW, take your pick.

  Nami?

  Hmmm. Becky Lynch. 

  Chopper?

  KeMonito 

  Robin?

  Oh, she shows up after being booed for ages and you’re supposed to like her, so 2019 Charlotte Flair.

      Stay tuned for the next installment of "My Favorite One Piece Arc" as we speak with One Piece's official English manga translator Stephen Paul on his favorite One Piece arc: Skypiea!!

      Daniel Dockery is a Senior Staff Writer for Crunchyroll. Follow him on Twitter!

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: Daniel Dockery

[neverwatchedonepiece]

629: "Violent Shock! Incredible News that Shakes the New World!"

A rocky old place, ain’t it? No white sand beach resorts here. Lots of sunflowers, though. And a Colosseum. Even trattorias and quaint cobbled streets, according to the preview.

This is Italy, isn’t it?

Only had time for one episode but that wasn’t a problem at all. Thankfully, there was a lot to unpack in 629, plus more highlights than 

There was the return of Thriller Bark. Updates on the whereabouts of key OP figures. Luffy yelling down the line at Doflamingo. The reveal of why Law is set on sailing to Dressrosa. Why Kinemon is also keen to go. The arrival of new villains. The reveal of Doflamingo’s cunning plan to snare Luffy. And the reshuffling of the Shichibukai and the appointment of a VERY FAMILIAR CLOWN.

I’m still laughing, btw.

Also have to say I liked the new opening. Seemed spoiler free and it was interesting that they have pitted Luffy so openly against Blackbeard (and Akainu, I suppose. Now there are two Big Bads. Actually beginning to wonder if there ever will be a Final Villain in One Piece).

They Call Him Scoop McGee Absalom

The action picked up with the immediate aftermath of Doflamingo’s resignation from his throne and the post of Shichibukai, which sent ripples through the OPverse. Now the protection conferred by Doflamingo’s Shichibukai status had vanished, his subjects lamented, “Dressrosa is done for!”

Elsewhere, an unwinnable war raged. Unwinnable because the side in question had struck a deal with the Donquixote family. Now Doflamingo is no longer king, the supply chain has dried up.

Various famous faces who had grabbed newspapers were next. Jewelry Bonney was a nice surprise! I thought she’d been arrested by the Marines after that whole thing on the burning island with Teach. She’s obviously in hiding (standard hooded cloak) but still in action. That’s good. There was also a brief shot of Jimbei and Crocodile’s hook.

But who was the mysterious journalist behind the leaking of the Strawhearts alliance? The Kidd/Hawkins/Apoo Alliance? The fact Doflamingo had resigned both throne and warlord role?

He is known only by the name Absa.

I would have struggled to predict who Absa might have been, had they not shown a tiny Thriller Bark satellite ship.

It’s obviously Absalom. Invisibility is his thing. He’s obviously been sneaking about. For what purpose, I have no clue. Maybe Moria is out for revenge? I’m pretty certain he’s still alive as Doflamingo said he disappeared in front of his eyes. I like the thought of Moria getting angry enough to come back into the limelight. (I’m still crossing my fingers he’ll help Luffy and Law with Kaidou. Moria definitely has enough of a grudge to do it.)

We also got hard confirmation that Kidd and co. are after a Yonko. Their target is as much of a mystery to me as Luffy and Law’s is to them. (I still think it might be Shanks.)

I love it when Oda takes time to set his arcs within a wider context. Even more so now. It’s especially relevant here, given the recent emphasis on the interconnected nature of the New World.

And speaking of connections...

Hello. Is it Caesar You’re Lookin For?

Once the contextualisation was out of the way, the action cut back to Sunny. At the end of 628, Doflamingo had finally picked up (after deliberately making Law wait to ramp up the tension. The theme of control is strong with this one).

Of course, Luffy had to formally introduce himself.

“HELLO. I AM LUFFY. I WILL BECOME PIRATE KING. OI, MINGO!” I love Luffy has already given him a nickname. “So you’re that idiot Caesar’s boss? That bastard hurt Brownbeard and the kids! We’ll give Caesar back since we promised but if he ever does anything like that again--” at this point Caesar himself was cringing hard in a corner “-- I’ll beat the crap out of you too!”

To his credit, Doflamingo did not rise to the bait. Sure, a few veins pop and he does questionable things when angered, but in negotiations, he remains cool as a cucumber.

“Strawhat... two years have passed since your brother died and you disappeared from the New World. Where were you and what were you doing?”

At that point, I never realised the significance of Doflamingo’s reference to Ace, so I just thought he was getting a, “Lol, ur brother is ded” dig in.

Of course, Luffy wouldn’t tell.

“I was hoping to run into you,” Doflamingo continued. “I’ve got something here that would make you drool.”

Since Luffy doesn’t do metaphors, he thought Doflamingo was talking about high-quality meats. To be fair, I had no idea what Doflamingo had up his sleeve at that point, so it could have been high-quality meats for all I knew.

Law was annoyed that Luffy had given Doflamingo the chance to control the conversation and snatched the DDM.

“Joker, we will hand over Caesar as promised.”

Doflamingo is not dumb, though. “That’s wise. You know well what would happen to you if you backed out now. First thing’s first, though. I want to confirm that my vital business partner is safe.”

Law held up the receiver. Caesar scooted over.

“JOOOOOOOKEEEEEERRR, I’M SORRYYYYYYYYYYY! YOU LOST EVERYTHING BECAUSE OF ME, BAWWWWWWW--”

And Doflamingo was like, “Yup. Sounds like he’s fine.” 

I lol’d at that. (Was that a lowkey burn from Doflamingo?)

Law continued to keep matters strictly business. “In eight hours we will be on Green Bit. We’ll drop off Caesar there. Pick him up yourself. We will make no further contact.”

“Awwww...” Doflamingo retorted. “And I wanted to have a drink with you now you’re all grown up--”

At that moment, Luffy decided the conversation was at an end.“JUST HANG UP ALREADY!” 

He cut the connection. The Strawhearts were left alone on deck to process what had just happened. Sanji was smart about a loophole Law had left in negotiations. Law had never specified how many people could accompany Doflamingo to pick up Caesar. Theoretically, Doflamingo could arrive with an army at his back.

Law wasn’t worried. The Caesar handover was just a distraction. (Rather bold of him to discuss this in front of Caesar himself, by the way.) Destroying the Smile factory was the real mission. The only issue? Law has no info on the factory. I’m assuming they’ll have to infiltrate Dressrosa and locate the place.

Luffy was like, “You ever been to Dress Roba?” (Lmao, I’m sure he’ll get the name right eventually.)

Interestingly, Law said he had never been! There go my theories of Law growing up in Dressrosa and working for Doflamingo. :(

He definitely hates Doflamingo, though. His reasons for not stepping foot on Dressrosa? “He is king of that land.” Something has gone on between them in the past. Doflamingo has known Law since he was a kid. So did Vergo. What is the connection here??

At any rate, Luffy was blase about the whole affair. Infiltrating hostile territory to find and destroy a factory that will cause shit to hit the fan and draw the ire of the entire New World? Yeah, let’s just make up a plan as we go!

For Law, who is a clever, patient and careful man, this was just too much.

As the Strawhats filed past him into the kitchen for sandwiches, he stared with the vacant expression of a man who has stared into the depths of the abyss and found Luffy’s grinning face staring back.

He snapped.

“I HATE BREAD!!”

Then you have have a gluten free wrap, Law. Chill. Everything’s going to be fine.

At least, I think.

In the kitchen, away from Caesar’s sensitive ears, they discussed where they would dock and other important initial steps of their master plan. Kinemon also revealed why he wanted to travel to Dressrosa.

Apparently, they had set out for a place called Zou but were shipwrecked. Only one of the other samurai reached the shore with Kinemon and Momo. Doflamingo’s people pursued them. Momo tried to slip unnoticed onto a ship but it unfortunately sailed straight for Punk Hazard. Their other companion, Kanjuuro, was taken prisoner.

Law was interested in the whole Zou thing, as he had planned to travel straight there to reunite with his crew (Yay! They’re okay!) after taking care of business in Dressrosa.

Luffy was like, “EXCELLENT! WE’LL GO TO ZOU, THEN TO WANO KINGDOM. I WILL SAVE YOUR COMPANION TOO!”

And Brook randomly farted right in the middle of it, lmao.

There’s a Starman, Waiting in the Sky

And while Luffy and Law were busy making plans for Nigel, an Important Meeting was taking place at Marineford.

A grave Marine called Brannew took the podium in front of a room full of serious-looking, high-rankers (Brannew, get it? He’s a Brannew Marine to the story, ahahaha.) 

“As you all know,” he announced, “there are only seven Shichibukai. They are pirates who have been given permission to plunder by the World Government. In return, they grant us overwhelming power and prestige. Their allegiance to the World Government instills fear in pirates around the world.”

A line up of the more recent Famous Faces flashed across the screen.

Mihawk, Kuma, Hancock, Law, Donquixote Doflamingo, “The Celestial Yaksha” (I have yet to google that to find out what it means) and a newcomer.

Who was this newcomer?

He is the man who rapidly grew strength over the past two years. Commander of the Pirate Dispatchment Org and Living Legend: THE STAR CLOWN BUGGY!!

I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN!!

Of course it could be no one else that Buggy! Who else would have such INCREDIBLE, BEWILDERING LUCK!

Even Buggy admitted he was totally winging it. “It’s not like I asked for this. The World Government kept bugging me so I had no choice. That said, this is only a rung on the ladder. I’m moving up in the world now. In a few years, I’ll be a Yonko.”

And you know what?

I believe it.

Only Buggy would be able to become a Shichibukai by accident. Why not a Yonko too? The World Government must be pretty desperate to fill spare seats if they asked Buggy. 

The serious Marine also spoke of the grave situation surrounding Doflamingo’s sudden resignation. Law’s activity and alliance with Luffy is under suspicion. Depending on what he does next, Law may be stripped of his title too.

Akainu agreed. “We cannot allow Law and Strawhat to do as they please. Smoker from G5 sent me a rather annoying message yesterday. We should observe the situation for another day. I have dispatched Fujitora.”

A couple of things.

Did Smoker send Akainu a message from Kuzan? Is that why the message was “annoying”? Maybe it’s both inconvenient (bad news) and annoying (it came from his old rival).

Who is Fujitora? A new Marine villain, high on Justice? I can but hope.

At any rate, the Marines are also on the move and are watching events in Dressrosa closely. This is good. The more conflict, the better!

You Magnificent Bastard

Meanwhile, in sunny Dressrosa, Doflamingo was also cooking up plans and future conflicts of his own.

In his palace, Doflamingo sauntered down a long corridor and entered a room with four high-backed chairs carved into card suits. As he is the Joker, I’m guessing Doflamingo has a theme going.

He apologised for keeping the others waiting. We only met two of the suit card squad. Diamante and Trebol. Trebol occupies the Clubs suite chair and is creepy. He does not understand personal space bubbles (even with Doflamingo) and he keeps insisting Baby 5 wants to marry him (creepy). His Devil Fruit power is also slightly gross (he blorts everywhere) and he has a perpetual hang snot. Not my kind of villain.

Diamante is at least funny. Example:

Doffy: “The colosseum is as popular as ever. That is thanks to you, Diamante.” Diamante: “Not at all, Doffy.” (I love that they call him Doffy.) “This is due to your charisma as king.” Doffy: “No, it’s because of your talent.” Diamante: “Oh, stop talking like I’m some hero of the colosseum.” Doffy: “But you are.” Diamante: “You exaggerate!” Doffy: “Fine, you’re not.” Diamante: “OKAY. IF YOU INSIST. I AM INDEED THE HERO RAAAARRR!”

Lmao.

That was weirdly humanizing. I get that Doflamingo is the villain here and he has no qualms over sacrificing his people if it needs to happen, but he knows these guys pretty well and gets on with them. Maybe it’s successfully manipulating them, sure, but the man still has social skillz.

Once the comedy moment with Diamante was over, Doflamingo asked Trebol to bring forth the Important Thing.

Trebol handed Doflamingo a mysterious box. “This is sure to pique Strawhat’s interest,” he said. “Their alliance can very easily become a disadvantage to them. I will entrust this super important box to you, Diamante.”

After some funny reverse psychology back and forth, Diamante agreed.

Then Doflamingo made the Big Reveal. The Big, Glowing, Shiny Reveal.

When he said he had something that interested Luffy, he wasn’t lying.

But it wasn’t high-quality meat.

He has Ace’s fruit.

And he is going to use it as leverage to break up Luffy and Law’s alliance.

What a magnificent bastard.

Law was attacked by a pack of wild loaves in his youth. He’s never been the same since.