Boo Jack's blubbery face rippled as the shovel smacked him dead center in the face, sending the pig man flying. He landed on his back with a pronounced thump, groaning in pain as he held his now broken nose. Nami, who was thrown over his shoulder, fell towards the hard ground, only to find herself in the arms of a familiar, brown haired, blue eyed man.

  "Hey Nami, are you ok?" Nick asked, concern written all over his face. At hearing his voice, she felt her mind suddenly clear. Her eyes gained their previous luster, and she was once more aware of the world around her.

  "Nick?" she asked, confused. Or at least she tried to, but with her mouth still gagged, it just came out as muffled nonsense.

  "Oh wait, hang on a second," he mentioned, grabbing the dark yellow substance preventing her from speaking. He tried taking it off but found it to be stuck on too tight for him to do so without injuring her.

  He stopped and gave it a contemplative look, before he seemed to come up with an idea. "Hey didn't blondie over there say this stuff is honey?" he asked, getting a confused nod from Nami.

  "In that case, I know just what to do! All I have to do is eat if off of you," he said, proudly nodding to himself like he just said something extremely profound. Nami's eyes widened when his words finally reached her brain. He couldn't be serious, could he?

  But judging by the way his face was coming towards her own, tongue sticking out, ready to lick the honey from her face, he was very serious. Her face went bright red and she felt her body temperature rise a couple of degrees.

  But there was no reason for her to feel this nervous, was there? "I mean, it's not like he's actually going to kiss me. But wait, what happens when all the honey is gone? Then we will be…" she thought to herself, watching as his face approached closer and closer with each rapid beat of her heart.

  As his lips were about to make contact with her honey covered ones, an angry voice rang out, "Will you people stop trying to eat my honey!" Hearing that made Nami panic, launching her head backwards. Nick, who saw this, became confused before realizing exactly what was about to happen.

  "Nami wait, I was just-" but his words were cut short as she delivered a devastating headbutt to his forehead.

  "Ah, that hurt! What the hell Nami, I was just joking!" he yelled, holding his head in pain. She glared at him, a big red mark on her forehead to match his own.

  "Wer hoo wa I suh hose to noo dat!?" (Well how was I supposed to know that!?) she yelled through the gag, tears in the corner of her eyes. The two gave each other heated looks, her body temperature rising for a completely different reason as sparks flew between their eyes, neither one willing to admit fault.

  Kuro adjusted his glasses, glaring at the man who just might be his most hated enemy, even more than that rubber buffoon. "So, it seems you continue to be a thorn in my side. Why can't you be a good boy and-" he started to monologue, like all villains do, however…

  "Geez, how hard is your freaking head? I think you gave me brain damage," Nick complained, rubbing his sore head.

  "Ahnt doom ahge whoot not ther," (Can't damage what's not there) Nami said. Nick wasn't sure what she said, but he recognized the condescending tone.

  "Huh? Say that to my face, why don't you!?"

  "Ur jost ded!" (I just did!)

  …He was completely ignored. Kuro's eye twitched uncontrollably and he began to shake with fury as he listened to the two of them bicker with each other. Honey Queen, who saw this, backed away with a nervous expression on her face.

  Unfortunately, his rage would only be further exacerbated by Boo Jack, who forced himself to his feet, holding his throbbing head in pain. "Ah, damn it! Where the hell did you come from!?" demanded the large man, glaring at Nick for all he was worth.

  Which wasn't very much.

  Nick turned to him, ignoring the argument he was having with Nami, an excited look on his face. "I'm glad you asked my portly fellow. Allow me to regale you with my tales of heroism!" he shouted, getting mixed reactions from everyone.

  Nami looked annoyed, as did most of the others. But there was a healthy mixture of anger mixed in with a few of them as well, namely Zoro and Kuro. If Luffy was in his right mind, he'd probably be excited for it, but alas, he was not.

  There must have been some part of him that was still there, as he stopped trying to kill Zoro to listen to the story, an odd combination of eager and pissed off gracing his face.

  Usopp was more concerned with his brother and Kaya than whatever story he was about to be told. He couldn't do much for his crush at the moment, but he could help Akisu, who was thrown to the side when Boo Jack hit the ground, by being his usual, sneaky self and making his way over to him unseen.

  "There I was, standing alone on a sinking ship, surrounded by water and enemies on all sides. But just as all hope seemed lost, I saw something from the corner of my eye. A cannon, one that I had yet to fire. Upon seeing that, I concocted my plan. One as brilliant as it was stupid," Nick continued, unaware of the growing anger being exuded by a certain glasses wearing Captain.

  "I shot the mast, collapsing it on its side, providing me a bridge to escape to the only ship still seaworthy, the S.S I'm Clearly Compensating for Something with This Big Ass Boat. Not the name I would have chose, but it's not my ship," Nick said with a shrug, getting a smirk from Zoro, and a snicker from Usopp, who held his hand over his mouth, hoping nobody heard him. Nami just rolled her eyes at the juvenile joke.

  "Hey, that's my ship you're insulting!" yelled Honey Queen, looking almost as angry as Kuro at Nick's continued sass. Nick looked her up and down, a suddenly wary expression covering his face.

  "Is that right… You're not from Bangkok, are you?" he asked, getting a confused look from her.

  "Huh? What are you talking about?" she asked.

  "Not important. Anyway, shush, it's story time," Nick chided, making her angry look return. "Now where was I… Oh right, the mast had just collapsed, and it looked as if I was free and clear, but right when I was about to cross it to safety, some assholes appeared out of nowhere. They tried to tell me I wasn't going anywhere and I took offense to that. So I shot em," Nick said, almost casually.

  "But there were so many, and my flintlock pistol only had like… 50 shots left, so I knew I couldn't take them all. But the fear of death made them duck and cover, providing me ample time to climb onto the mast and run towards safety. Oh sure, they tried to shoot me as well, but their aim sucks and I have plot armor, so I made it across unharmed," he continued. Kuro's face was turning more and more red as Nick continued his tale of daring bravery.

  "Once there, I jumped for all I was worth, reaching one of the cannons sticking out of the side of the ship. I shot the startled pirates on the other side before shoving the cannon out of my way. Good thing they didn't think to fire on me, or I would have been toast," Nick said relieved. This of course, only frustrated the leaders of said pirates even more.

  Good help was so hard to find.

  "Once I was in the heart of the enemy ship, I proceeded to fight my way through. I wanted to use some gunpowder barrels to sink that ship as well, but I couldn't find any. I guess I could have fired a cannon facing downward or something… But wait, would the ball just roll out? Eh, food for thought," Nick commented, getting distracted.

  "I think that's quite enough out of you-" Kuro said, trying to end this face of a tale, but Nick was having none of it.

  "But as I was saying!" Nick shouted, louder than before, drowning out Kuro. And that did not help the pirate's blood pressure, not one little bit. He looked angrier than ever, like he was standing over the edge and all he needed was a little push.

  At this point, Usopp finally reached Akisu, shaking him gently awake. The younger boy's eyes slowly opened, looking around groggily. "Usopp, what's going on? Where-" he started to ask, but Usopp silenced him with a hand over his mouth.

  "Shh, quiet. Come on, we need to go. It isn't safe here," Usopp whispered. Akisu looked confused for a second, before he took in what was happening all around him. His eyes widened as he remembered exactly what was going on, before they landed on Kaya, who was still glassy eyed and unaware of her surroundings.

  "But what about Kaya?" Akisu whispered back, worry deep in his eyes.

  "Don't worry, we'll get her back, I promise. But right now, we need to get you to safety," Usopp said, getting a reluctant nod from Akisu. Usopp helped his brother to his feet, where the two of them began to sneak back towards the massive hole in the wall, courtesy of one Zoro. As they were doing this, Nick continued to annoy everyone around him.

  "I eventually made my way to the top, knowing my friends were in danger. I hurried over as fast as I could, ignoring my wounds to the best of my ability. Luckily for me, there was this convenient rope bridge connecting the ship to the shore. I might've used a honey bridge or something to give me more control of it, but I'm sure you had your reasons," Nick said with a shrug, getting an embarrassed look from Honey Queen.

  "From there, I saw Porkchop here was getting handsy with my woman," Nick said, pulling Nami to him, who had a strange combination of annoyed, amused, and embarrassed written all over her face. "And I couldn't allow that, so I hit him with a shovel. And now, here we are," Nick finished, looking proud of himself.

  "Soonce whon am oo yer ohman?" (Since when am I your woman?) Nami asked, giving him the stink eye.

  "And she's so thankful she's reducing my debt. Aw, aren't you just the sweetest?," Nick said, making Nami's eye twitch in irritation. She then proceeded to stomp on his foot, which wasn't that easy with her legs tied together with honey, but she did her best.

  "Ow, Nami! Why do you have to pick on me so much?" he whined. He knew she didn't actually say she was going to reduce his debt, but that didn't mean she needed to try and break his toes.

  "Shoot urp! Jooce fer daht, yer dirt oos dooble!" (Shut up! Just for that your debt is doubled!) she yelled.

  "It's ok, I accept your apology," Nick said, petting her on the head, making her growl at him.

  But she wasn't the only one.

  "That's it! I am sick and tired of being disrespected and ignored. Straw Hat, kill him this instant!" Kuro shouted, his hair falling in front of his face and a manic look in his eyes.

  "Huh? Straw Hat? You mean Luffy? Why would he-" Nick asked, before turning to see the enraged form of his friend, glaring at him with pupilless eyes. It was really rather disconcerting.

  "What the hell's wrong with him? Shit, don't tell me…" he mumbled, positioning himself in front of Nami, eyes glancing over at the beaten and bloody form of Jango, remembering he was a hypnotist.

  "Geez, what the hell happened to him? Is he missing an ear?" Nick thought, feeling somewhat shocked by the damaged form of the Michael Jackson wannabe.

  "The moron's been hypnotized so watch out!" Zoro shouted, confirming his thoughts. Nami herself was speechless at this fact. Not that she could talk much anyway with that gag covering her mouth.

  "Well, that's less than ideal," Nick muttered, raising his trusty shovel as he prepared to fight Luffy.

  Which was a terrifying thought. Nick had enough trouble fighting Buchi, how the hell was he supposed to fight the future King of the Pirates?

  "Can't think about how. I just have to do it!" he thought to himself, as Luffy threw a fist in his direction.

  "Gum-Gum Pistol!"

  Nick wasn't entirely sure what to do so he relied on his instincts. He brought the shovel up, like he was playing a game of baseball, before swinging it at the rubbery fist racing towards him.

  He managed to hit it, sending the fist careening to the left, where it bounced off the hardened honey coating the ground and hit Boo Jack square in the nuts.

  The rotund man couldn't even muster up the strength to scream as foam came out of his mouth and his eyes rolled into the back of his head before he collapsed on the ground.

  "Ah, my bad dude," Nick said, not sounding at all apologetic. In his eyes, the not so little piggy deserved it. That was his greedy little navigator he had his dirty hands on.

  He turned his attention back to Luffy, who looked like he was gearing up for a kick. Nick raised his shovel once more, prepared to deflect the blow a second time.

  "Gum-Gum Stamp!"

  Luffy threw his foot directly at Nick, who brought the shovel down right on his foot. Unfortunately, that didn't halt the momentum as much as he thought it would, Luffy's foot bouncing off the ground, cracking the honey before passing between Nick's legs. He could practically feel Luffy's rubber toes tickle his undercarriage as the foot went soaring behind him.

  And he didn't like it.

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  The attack barely missed Nami as well, who fell to her backside when it went by her. She let out a pained grunt as she hit the ground, once, twice, three times. Her ass may not have been made of rubber, but it was firm and perky enough to give her some bounce.

  "Nami, you alright?" he asked as Luffy's foot sprung back towards its owner. Nick gave a little hop, making sure nothing touched this time. Just because he liked Luffy didn't mean he wanted to get a footjob from him.

  Nami made a sound he assumed meant she was fine. Well that, or she was cursing up a storm. The odds were about 50/50 on that one.

  Zoro, who was watching, took this opportunity to try and attack Kuro. All they really had to do was defeat him, and their problems were over. At least for now. But unfortunately for him, his Captain was paying more attention to the battlefield than he thought.

  "Your mine," he said through his sword, racing towards the pirate, who only smirked at him. That's when he saw a foot flying in his direction. Luffy used the momentum of his attack returning to him to immediately launch another one at the swordsman.

  Letting out a swear, Zoro leaned back to dodge, Luffy's foot taking out a few hairs with how close it was. The green haired swordsman leaped back, watching his Captain with narrowed eyes. Part of him was excited to be fighting someone as strong as Luffy, while the rest of him was annoyed by the whole thing.

  "Damn it Luffy, will you snap out of it already!?" he yelled, his annoyance winning out. But unfortunately for him, Luffy was not so eager to surrender just yet. He growled and stomped on the ground, breaking it, before grabbing two large pieces of rock hard honey, brandishing them as weapons.

  "Guess not… Fine, have it your way," Zoro said, raising his swords. Luffy roared and charged at him, with Zoro doing the same. They met in the middle, Luffy using the honey to block Zoro's swords. They struggled for dominance for a bit before Zoro used his third sword to take a swipe at Luffy, who leaned back to dodge before kicking upwards, almost taking off Zoro's head.

  The two then began a deadly dance; dodging, parrying, and blocking each other's attacks. It was easy to see just how skilled the two of them were, just as easy as it was to see who had the upper hand.

  "Shit, Zoro won't last long. Luffy's just too strong and Zoro's already injured. There has to be something I can do," Nick said, looking around the battlefield. That's when he spotted the barely standing Jango.

  "Maybe if I can take him out, Luffy will snap out of it. Not sure if that's how hypnotism works, but I don't know what else to do. I could try and double team Luffy with Zoro but I'd probably just get in the way. Fuck," he thought to himself.

  Kuro and the rest of them were distracted by the fight, so this was his only chance. If only his damn arms would stop shaking. It wasn't because he was afraid, it was because Luffy was way too damn strong for his own good, and blocking two of his attacks left them feeling numb.

  But with the power of shovels and guns on his side, he can overcome any obstacle.

  He held his shovel in one land, the blade resting on the ground. He then pulled out the pistol, using the shovel's handle as a brace. It was still slightly shaky, but much better than before.

  Nami, who managed to sit up, stared at Nick with curious eyes. She saw where he was aiming and silently cheered him on. She also wasn't sure if that would cancel the hypnosis, but even if it didn't, at least he wouldn't be able to hypnotize her anymore. Honestly, she was pretty sure she'd be having nightmares about it.

  Nick thought about aiming for Kuro, but with how fast he was, there was a chance he'd be able to dodge, and shooting Honey Queen would be about as useful as a screen door on a submarine.

  Damn Logia's.

  No, his best bet to make a difference at the moment was to take out the hypnotizing bastard. If he managed to put any more of them under, they would be finished. So he aimed as best he could, taking a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.

  Jango heard the gunshot and then felt a searing pain in his shoulder. He screamed as he clutched the bleeding wound, falling to the ground. Nick cursed, seeing the man still alive. He was aiming for his chest but it seems he was off a bit.

  He then quickly aimed the gun down and fired, hoping to put an end to this. But Honey Queen acted quickly, erecting another wall of honey that absorbed the shots.

  "Fuck!" Nick swore, seeing his plan fail.

  Zoro skidded back several feet after blocking a particularly strong blow from his Captain. He panted with exhaustion, arms shaking from the strain of parrying the powerful attacks. It wasn't as bad as Nick's arms, but if things continued like this, he would lose.

  And that was unacceptable.

  The problem was Luffy didn't seem tired in the slightest. Whether that was because of his natural stamina or due to the hypnosis, Zoro didn't have a clue. All that mattered was he was fighting an uphill battle in quicksand, and he was sinking fast.

  He looked over to see what the commotion was all about; seeing Nick pointing a gun at the screaming man on the floor gave him a pretty good idea of what happened. It was a good plan, one that may have succeeded if they were fresh, but Zoro knew how injured the other man was, so he wasn't surprised when he missed the target.

  Then the wall of honey showed up, blocking any further attempts to take out the hypnotist. That was unfortunate. But what was even worse was him getting Luffy's attention once again, who began charging at the man.

  "Damn it. Nick, look out!" he yelled out, removing the sword from his mouth. He went to run after him, but there was little hope he would be able to catch up with him.

  Nick looked over at the yell, eye widening to the size of saucers as he saw Luffy charging at him like an angry bull, his arms stretched behind him.

  "Crap!" he yelled, moving to get out of the way, but found his feet firmly stuck to the ground. "Huh?" he said, looking down, only to find his feet coated with honey, preventing him from escaping.

  He shifted his gaze towards Honey Queen, who wiggled her finger at him. "You bitch!" he yelled, trying to get his feet out of the honey. He was just about to use his trusty shovel when he heard Luffy calling out his attack.

  "Gum-Gum Double Barrel!"

  Luffy stopped about thirty feet from Nick, give or take, thrusting his arms forward. They stopped after about ten feet in front of him, launching the chunks of hardened honey in Nick's direction.

  The brown haired, shovel loving man crossed his arms in front of him, but it was all for nought. The rubble slammed into his stomach with the force of a wrecking ball. The power of the blow shattered the honey holding him in place, sending him flying backwards until he slammed into the wall of honey behind him, a crater forming at the site of impact.

  Blood flew from his mouth and he could swear he heard his ribs snap. He fell to the ground in a heap, struggling to stay conscious. He wasn't sure if he'd be doing any better if he had taken that hit without any prior injuries. Luffy was just on another level.

  Nami, Usop and Akisu looked on with fearful, worried eyes as Nick struggled to rise, coughing up more blood as he did so. "This is not how I pictured today going," Nick thought to himself, as he managed to get on his hands and knees.

  Zoro was still charging towards Luffy, intent on bashing his skull in and hoping that snapped him out of the trance he was under. Unfortunately for him, Honey Queen pulled the same shit she did with Nick. The ground beneath him softened, causing him to lose his balance.

  "What the!" he exclaimed, as the honey hardened around his feet. "Tsk, like this will stop me," he said, raising his swords up, intent on cutting through the honey and freeing himself. But before he could, thick strands of the goop rose up, capturing his arms and holding them in place.

  "You know, I'm getting real sick of your cheap tricks," he growled, using all his strength to rip the honey off. And he may have succeeded, given enough time, but time was something Luffy wasn't willing to give.

  "Gum-Gum…" Luffy started to say as he ran towards Zoro again, arms stretched behind him. The green haired swordsman's eyes widened in panic, redoubling his efforts to free himself.

  But it was all for nought.

  "...Bazooka!"

  Luffy struck Zoro with both hands, palms open. Like Nick before him, copious amounts of blood spewed from his mouth before he was sent flying. Surprisingly enough, he didn't actually hit the wall, as Luffy managed to send him through the hole he made, right past Usopp and Akisu.

  The two of them had wide, fearful eyes when they saw Zoro fly past, mechanically turning to look at the group of pirates, all of whom had their attention on them.

  "And then there was one," Kuro stated with a smirk, surveying the battlefield around him. Things may not have gone quite to plan, but all's well that ends well.

  "Well Usopp, I can't say this has been fun and I'll be quite glad to be rid of the lot of you. Now, be a good boy and hand over the brat, and I'll let you cower back to the dump you live in," Kuro mocked, fixing his glasses.

  "If you think I'll just hand him over, then you don't know the first thing about me!" Usopp shouted, aiming his slingshot right at Kuro. Even though his knees were making a musical by clacking together, Akisu never thought he looked so brave.

  However, Usopp would never be given the chance to fire, as a rope of honey latched onto his hand, covering it and the slingshot up completely.

  "What the heck?" he questioned, before the rope pulled him towards the wall. He hit it with a hard thud, before he slowly started to sink into it. "Wah! Somebody, help!"

  "Usopp!" Akisu yelled, running towards him. Unfortunately, he barely made it two steps before his feet were trapped in honey. He looked down, confused for a moment, before he started to get dragged away.

  He tried to halt his momentum by falling to the ground and grasping at anything and everything he could, but it was useless. He eventually came to a stop, right in front of a certain blonde haired woman.

  "Well, well, well, what do we have here? A little rat trying to escape his trap? Can't have that now, can we?" she stated, coyly, using her powers to wrap him a cocoon of honey. He tried to scream, but his mouth was soon covered by the liquid, muffling his protests.

  "Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing!? Let him go right now or-hmph!" Usopp yelled, but was silenced like his brother. At this point, Usopp was completely encompassed in the wall, leaving only his eyes and nose free.

  "Now, now, that's no way to speak to a woman. Honestly, it's sad to see so many men with so little manners," Honey Queen lamented with a sigh.

  "Honey, would you mind collecting the others? I think it's past time we leave," Kuro asked, though it wasn't really a request.

  "Of course Puddin. Anything for you," she said with a simper, skipping off to do just that. She stopped in front of Boo Jack, who was still unconscious, before kicking him onto his back.

  "Wakey, wakey you useless lump. It's time to get a move on," she said, bending over to look at his unconscious face before giving it a good slap. His eyes darted open and he shot up, looking around bewildered, before a throbbing pain in his balls reminded him of what happened.

  "Ow, that hurts! That dirty rotten bastard, when I get my hands on him…" he threatened, standing up on wobbly legs.

  "Yes, yes, I'm sure your talks of avenging your genitals would make for a riveting conversation, but it's time to leave. So make yourself useful and grab the girl so we can go," Honey Queen ordered.

  Boo Jack grumbled, turning his attention to Nami but his eyes gained a twisted light in them when he saw Nick, shaking in pain as he tried to stand, glaring at him with impotent anger as he was unable to make it to his feet.

  "Aw, what's wrong lover boy? I thought you told me to keep my hands off of her? Well guess what, I'm going to touch her all over now, and there's not a damn thing you can do about it," Boo Jack sneered as he erupted into snorting laughter.

  "Bastard…" Nick ground out, wincing from the pain in his ribs. At least the pain everywhere else seemed to dull because of it. Hell, he could barely even feel the gunshot wound in his leg. It reminded him of that 90's film, Major Payne.

  Want me to show you a little trick? Take your mind off that pain?

  His finger might not be broken but several of his ribs were, which might have been even more effective.

  Boo Jack smirked as he watched Nick curse at him, unable to do much else. But there was in fact something the injured man could do. One that required barely any movement at all.

  Unknown to the pig-like man, Nick never released his hold on his gun. Boo Jack just couldn't see it from the angle he was at. Which gave him the perfect opportunity to take him out. He aimed it carefully, being as subtle as he could, not wanting them to discover his plan.

  Honey Queen was watching Boo Jack approach the teary eyed woman who was backing away from him, shaking her head back and forth rapidly, screaming something they couldn't make out, when her eyes drifted back to the much better looking man struggling on the ground.

  He was grinning.

  "Just what does he think is so funny? Don't tell me… could he be a… does the thought of Boo Jack putting his hands on her turn him on or something?" she thought to herself, feeling repulsed by the notion.

  But of course, Nick was no cuck. She watched as he shifted his position and that's when she saw it. The gun.

  "Boo Jack, look out!" she shouted, raising her hand to send out some honey to block the shot. But she was too late.

  Confused, Boo Jack turned to see what the commotion was, only to see the smirking form of Nick, pointing a gun at him.

  "Hasta la vista, fatty," he said, pulling the trigger. But what he heard wasn't the sound of a gunshot, but a click signifying his weapon was empty.

  "Ah, crapbaskets."

  Boo Jack, who had his eyes shut, cringing back in fear, heard the empty click of the gun and opened his eyes. Seeing the defeated form of Nick gave him sick satisfaction, and his lips curled into a twisted smile.

  "You just don't know when to quit, do you? Perhaps I should show you your place!" Boo Jack yelled, approaching Nick before kicking him in his shattered ribs. He screamed in pain as he was flipped onto his back.

  But Boo Jack wasn't done. He stomped on Nick's stomach, once, twice, three times licking his lips as he drew out more and more screams of sheer, utter agony from him.

  "What's wrong!? I thought you were a tough guy? Well you don't look so tough! Hyahaha!" Boo Jack yelled with glee, stomping on him one last time and grinding his foot into him.

  Nami looked away, unable to stand the sight of Nick being tortured. It helped, but only a little, as it did nothing to dampen the screams he made. Tears fell from her eyes as she apologized to him over and over again in her mind, knowing he was suffering because of her, because he wanted to save her.

  Usopp and Akisu also had their eyes closed, not wanting to watch. Usopp was once more lamenting his own weakness. If only he was stronger, none of this would be happening.

  However, there was one person who refused to look away. Zoro made it back to the battlefield, walking through the opening of the wall and spitting out a glob of blood. He narrowed his eyes, anger coursing through his veins as he watched his friend get tortured.

  He looked down, spotting a large chunk of rock hard honey and got an idea. Luffy wasn't the only one who could launch projectiles. He picked it up and threw it straight into the air before adopting a pose, all three of his swords pointing behind him on his left side. He watched as the chunk fell towards the ground, tensing his muscles in preparation for the attack.

  "Three Sword Style: Dragon Meteor!"

  Zoro swung all three of his blades into the chunk of honey, hitting it with the blunt edge of his swords, sending it hurtling towards Boo Jack at breakneck speeds. The large man had just enough time to look back, confused by the yell, before his face was struck by the honey.

  His nose broke instantly upon impact. The slab of hardened honey continued to speed forward, unimpeded by Boo Jack. The large man, however, did not go flying with the honey. Instead, he spun around and around, his entire form a blur, before his head impacted the ground. Blood spurted from his mouth and there was a sickening crack before he lay completely still.

  The entire battlefield grew quiet, the ocean's waves being the only source of noise. Not even crickets dared to make a sound. Nami and the others looked at Zoro in awe, while Nick did his best to turn his head towards him. Once he did, he forced his arm into the air and gave Zoro a thumbs up before coughing up more blood.

  "You people are like cockroaches. A filthy infestation that I can't seem to get rid of," Kuro said vitriolically as Honey Queen checked Boo Jack's pulse.

  "And you're an annoying bastard who won't shut the hell up," Zoro clapped back, getting a twitch of the eye from Kuro.

  "Honey, is that fool still alive?" he asked, ignoring Zoro's comment.

  "Well, he's breathing," she responded, wiping her hands off on his clothes. His neck was just so greasy.

  "Good enough. Please collect these fools and let's be on our way. Straw Hat, if you don't mind, finish off your friends. I grow weary of their continued existence," Kuro ordered. Luffy yelled angrily before charging at Zoro, who cursed as his battle against Luffy continued.

  "Right away, Kuro dear," Honey Queen said, using her power to pick up Boo Jack as well as Nami and Akisu. The last two tried to struggle for freedom, but there was nothing they could do, Honey Queen's power was just too strong. She carried them back towards the rope bridge, standing next to Kuro and Jango, who managed to get back on his feet.

  "Good, now let us leave. No reason to keep the Bear King waiting," Kuro said, turning on his heels. But before he could leave, a new noise caught their attention. Looking up, they could see the grinning visage of Skunk One.

  "So, how did it go? I trust you were successful?" Honey Queen asked as he landed, an eager look on her face. Skunk One grinned, holding up his hand, revealing a dark blue key. Its teeth were done in an impossibly intricate pattern, etched with symbols that they couldn't decipher.

  But it was exactly what they were looking for.

  "I can't believe it was here the whole time. The Bear King is sure to be pleased with our wedding gifts. Good job," Honey Queen said.

  "It was nothing at all my lady. I was glad to be of service," Skunk One responded with a bow. With no more distractions and no one to bother them further, they continued on their way, walking nonchalantly across the bridge.

  Nick reached towards them, but that was all his battered body could do at the moment. Tears of frustration welled up in his eyes as he watched them walk away, Nami staring at him with desperation and fear.

  Battle for Syrup Village!

  Straw Hats vs Kuro and the Royal Flush Pirates

  Winner

  Kuro and the Royal Flush Pirates