One Piece: Sea Devil Sanji

8:10 pm, near a destroyed Spiders Café...

*Ittoryu Iai(One Sword Style Re-sheath): Shishi Sonson(Lion's Song)*

Placing the sheathed sword upright and holding it in reverse grip from beside-and-over his head, a bloodied Zoro rapidly unsheathed, attacked, and resheathed his sword, in the blink of an eye.

His opponent Mr. 1, Daz Bonez "The Killer" and user of the Dice-Dice Fruit(Supa Supa no Mi), suffered a diagonal slash accross his c.h.e.s.t and fell to his knees. He spewed blood from his mouth and looked at Zoro in awe "*Huff*... *Huff*...You cut my steel body..." he muttered in a mix of admiration and resignation "*Huff*... *Huff*...I concede defeat..." his eyes went white and fell unconscious on the ground.

Zoro looked solemnly at his downed opponent for a second then slowly removed his black bandana from his head before he too fell, kneeling on the ground spewing tons of blood. He was sweatting profusely as he clutched in agony at his bloddied c.h.e.s.t which suffered multiple slashes "*Pant*... *Pant*... Dammit... I lost too much blood... I should take a nap..." he grunted one last time and fainted on the ground.

That was the end of a ten minute long battle that the rest of the crew were witnesses to. They were standing on a hill not that far away with the rest of Baroque Works Officer Agents chained under their feet.

Earlier at 7:00 pm...

Sanji and Nami reached their destination after a half hour flight. They landed next to Zoro, who stood over the cuffed and gagged Mr. 3, and came upon a battle scene in a half destroyed Spider's Café...

Chopper was engaged in an underground battle with "Town-Collapser" Drophy, better known by her alias Miss Merry Christmas and partner of Mr. 4, she was using her power of the Mole-Mole Fruit(Mogu Mogu no Mi).

Vivi, who was mostly fine except some scratches here and there, was attending to Usopp who layed prone on top of a rock with a bloodied and a broken nose. Otherwise he looked to be fine but unconscious.

"Catcher-Killing" Babe, better known by his alias Mr. 4, was collapsed on the floor with a big bump on his head. By his side, his dog Lassoo, who is actually a gun that has eaten the Dog-Dog Devil Fruit(Inu Inu no Mi) Model: Dachshund, was strewn on the ground with a similar bump on its head.

Robin was sprouting severel arms from her elbows, holding Mr. 4's four tons' bat. She was fighting "Poison Spider" Zala, better known by her alias Miss Doublefinger and partner of Mr. 1, who ate the Spike-Spike Fruit(Toge Toge no Mi). It was a difficult battle with the first to land a solid blow will be guaranteed to win. Eventually though, Robin managed to smack her atop her head by the bat, slamming her on the ground and knocking her out with a bump on her head similar to Mr. 4 and Lassoo.

However, contrary to the others, was the scene between the two bruised forms of Luffy and Bentham of the Wild, alias Mr. 2 Bon Kurei...

"That's sooo cooool!" exclaimed Luffy, sitting on the ground. He was excitedly pumping his fists in the air "You're amazing! Show me more!"

"Un...! Deux...! Trois...! Stooop joooking around!" Mr. 2 Bentham happily obliged as he continued to flamboyantly sing, dance, and spin while using his Clone-Clone Fruit(Mane Mane no Mi) to change appearance.

"Bravo! Bravo!" somehow Usopp and Chopper who just defeated Miss Merry Christmass joined Luffy to cheer and clap at Mr. 2's perofrmance.

Sanji and Nami stared blankly at them. "Yeah... I'm not even going to comment on that" said Nami as she watched the idiot trio of her crew join in with Mr. 2 to dance with their arms around their shoulders.

"What happened, marimo?" Sanji turned to his green-haired crewmate "The ambush was supposed to be an hour lat-..." Sanji stared at empty space for moment then slowly lit a cigarette "Nevermind, I think I know what happened..."

"Yeah... me too" added Nami with a long suffering sigh.

"Luffy..." was Zoro's bland reply.

"*Haa*... Hello, Cook-san, Navigator-san" Robin joined them after she threw the bat from her hands, causing a loud clang and a dust cloud once it fell "*Haa*... Captain-san grew bored after two hours of waiting and attacked on his own" she chuckled behind her hand as she looked at Luffy and company "Though, he appears to be enjoying himself now"

"Yeah, I figured as much" said Sanji before he noticed the blood on her arms and looked at her in worry "Are you ok, Robin-chan?"

Robin steadied her breath and smiled reassuringly at him "These are just some small scratches, nothing to worry about. Miss Double Finger's Devil Fruit is a good counter for mine's so I had some trouble with her but I managed to win in the end"

"Still, have Chopper take a look at them" he disappeared and reappeared with the little reindeer in his hand "Here, I brought you your medicine" he handed him to her.

"Eh!? How did I get here? Wait... I'm a doctor not a medicine!" retorted Chopper with shark teeth then started treating her injuries.

"So, did we let one slip by?" asked Nami as she looked at all the fallen enemies "Shouldn't there be five officers? I only count four and a dog"

"No, these agents just came earlier than scheduled. Mr. 1 still didn't show up" answered Robin "He's someone who's known for his punctuality. He likes to arrive just on time not a minute earlier or later. So he should be here by the appointed time of 8:00 pm"

"We'll just wait for him here. He'll come eventually" said Zoro as he picked up a chair and sat down. He looked at Robin and asked "So, is he really a human blade thanks to his Devil Fruit?"

Robin nodded her head "He can create strong blades from any part of his body. Which makes his body as strong as a sword"

"A steel body then..." Zoro grinned ferally as he patted his swords "Just the opponent I need to asccend to the next level. Once I'm through with him, I'll be a man who can cut even through steel" he then gave Sanji a heavy look "Stay out of my fight, love-cook. Even if I'm at death's door, I'll definetly win"

"Why would I concern myself with your third rate fights, moss-head?" Sanji replied in a bored tone "If you couldn't even beat a stupid assassin, might as well eat your swords"

Zoro leaned back on his chair and spoke, matching Sanji's tone "You can't handle my swords, ero-cook"

"Hey, Zoro" Nami cut in just as Sanji was about to quib back "What do you mean by 'stay out of my fight?' It'll be easier to take down Mr.1, if we team up together"

"No, I'll take care of him alone" he glared at her "I don't need anyone else's help"

"Alone!? Are you serious, Zoro!?" Nami glared back at him "We're a crew here, remember?"

"We are a crew, Nami" he replied tensely "And good crewmates don't interfere with each other"

"No! Good crewmates fight together! Fight to protect each other's back!" She yelled in his face.

"And that's what we shall do and we'll always do!" he growled at her "But this is my fight, can't you understand!?"

Robin sat on a chair, holding a worried Chopper on her l.a.p after he finished bandaging her arms, as they looked at the back and forth between the two of them, gauging the situation.

"Do you want to show off!? Is that it!? Do you have any idea on how your actions affects your friends! You selfish brute!" Nami yelled at Zoro, her failing restraint showing on her face. Her fist moved towards his head to instill some sense into him.

A hand stopped her fist an inch away from Zoro's head, who ignored the incoming punch.

Nami looked up at Sanji, her eyes showing her surprise at him. He smiled as he tenderly kissed her hand then said "Leave him be, Nami-san. You shouldn't argue with a muscle brain, it'll only shorten your life span"

"But San-" he cut her off by putting his finger on her lips then added gently "I know..." he started to lead her away after he adressed Zoro "Next time watch your mouth on how to speak to Nami-san, marimo. Or I'll end up shoving my foot down your throat"

"Then restrain your woman next time, dartbrow" Zoro's replied with a scowl.

Nami calmed down a bit as she let Sanji lead her towards the now empty café, but not before turning to the swordsman one last time "You know I'm right, Zoro" to which he just turned his head away, ignoring her.

Sanji helped Nami sit on a bar stool then went to the other side of the counter where he quickly fixed a bubbling mango drink and slid it towards her "Here drink this. It'll help calm your nerves"

"Thanks" Nami smiled thinly at him and took the drink.

Sanji smiled at her as he watched her slowly drink from her glass, avoiding his eyes "You're beautiful when angry, Nami-san. The finest beauty in this ocean" he knew she was peeved at him for interfering earlier.

She rolled her eyes at his womanizing tactics but couldn't fight a small smile on her lips. She finished her drink with a last gulp and a sigh of satisfaction as the mango smoothie melted in her mouth like a honeyed snowflake then asked the question on her mind "Was I wrong, Sanji-kun?"

After a second of silence, he answered "No"

"Then why did you stop me?"

Sanji exhaled smoke then said "Because he's not entirely wrong either" she lifted a questioning eyebrow at him so he continued "He thinks this is an opportunity for him to grow stronger and a step closer to his dream. To be the World's Strongest Swordsman... So as his comrades and friends, shouldn't we tolerate some selfishness from his part from time to time?"

"Are you saying, I was standing in the way of his dream?"

"To him at least, that's what it felt like" he replied as he walked around the counter and sat down on the stool next to her "Besides, you know how strong I'm. How do you think he'll feel if I easily took care of the guy he wants to overcome? It would have wounded his pride if I did that. He's competitive. We both are" he smirked thinking about how many stupid arguments they'd gotten into in his past life.

"I see..." she turned on her chair and faced Sanji "But are we just supposed to stand and watch then... what if he gets badly hurt?"

"He most definetly will... But that's the path he's chosen. We just have to support him along the way" Sanji held her hand and started brushing his thumb accross the back of her hand "Isn't that what crewmates do, Nami-san?" he smiled at her.

She looked at him for a moment then a long sigh escaped her lips "You're right... but I still don't like it though" a sad expression etched on her face "It makes me feel left out, you know. I just thought that we're all part of the same crew so we should always fight together. I know I'm weak and get nervous at times, but I also want to fight alongside you, Luffy and Zoro. I don't want to be useless"

"What brought this on, Nami-san?" he frowned seeing her downcast eyes. He stopped moving his thumb accross her hand and squeezed her hand a little "You're far from useless. I'll even wage to say, you're the most usefull person around-"

"But I'm, Sanji-kun..." she interrupted him in a defeated voice, her shoulders slumping "From the moment I joined the crew, I was always the one being saved and left on the sideline. On Usopp's hometown, I tried to stop the pirates from invading the island and failed miserably. It was Luffy and Zoro that saved the day. Even Usopp as weak as he is, managed to save Kaya... It was you who freed me from Arlong despite my eight years long efforts. The other day, when that Wapol attacked the ship, all I did was hide in the girl's cabin... And now when I want to help Vivi defeat Baroque Works, I'm supposed to not join in once again. If I'm not useless then what am I, Sanji-kun?" she sniffed a little, staring at her l.a.p.

Sanji looked at her then exhaled deeply. He finished the last of his cigarette with one last puff then smothered the flame in the ashtray to his right "Nami-san. Look at me" he commanded softly, when she would not obey, he put a finger under her chin to lift her face. Tears were threatening to fall from her eyes as they met his "Do you really think we gauge your mettle as a crewmate on your strength?"

"No..." She mumbled quietly. He reached up to put his hands on her upper arms.

"No" he confirmed "So what if you can't fight? That's what we do for you. There are plenty of other things you do for us" he told her gently.

"Like what?" she snapped, slightly irritated at him and hated that he was right.

He didn't get angry at her, though; he just laughed "Well, you are always looking cute and have a healthy sense of style. That makes me for one very happy" he began.

"That's really not helping" she huffed, but he raised one of his hands to place a finger over her lips.

"I wasn't finished... You're our navigator. The best navigator in the world. You save our lives everyday in this ocean. Without you, our ship would be considered just a piece of wood that we're drifting on, and we'd have been fish food by the second day" he continued "You manage all our money too, and you're always so careful to make sure that we buy the right things"

"Well… I don't want to be a broke pirate. If I left Luffy or Zoro alone with our money, they'd waste it in a single day in food and sake..." she admitted, rubbing her hands together nervously.

"That's right, we need a sensible person like you to keep us idiots in line" he chuckled as he nodded "Our ship wouldn't worth its weight in gold if you weren't amongst us"

She felt her self-doubt fading a little but she still protested with a frown "But I'm still weak, though"

Sanji smiled lovingly and poked her nose "For now maybe, but I know you'll grow stronger in the future" her image when she was commanding the weather like some goddess from his past life came to his mind. He patted her t.h.i.g.h over her white overall where she sheathed her Climat-act, that Usopp newly made for her, and smiled "Besides, aren't you already?"

Nami blinked, then blushed and shifted shyly on her stool "Yeah… That's true…" she admitted quietly.

"Please, don't ever doubt yourself again. You're the farthest thing from useless" he smiled as he gently stroked her hair "You're our beautiful and confident Nami-san. The best navigator we could ever ask for"

"Really?" she asked, a smile formed on her lips.

"Yes, really" he looked at her fondly, and then leaned forward to kiss her softly on the mouth.

Nami's soft and full lips were covered in a thin layer of lip balm which transferred to Sanji's lips making the kiss soft and buttery. She began to kiss him back, especially since she was slipping her tongue past the parting of his mouth and it felt delicious like heaven.

The kiss started out innocent and light at first, but it quickly became a ravenous and hungry one. They started to kiss like animals, teeth clashing, lips gaping for more, tongues swirling into one another like cream being stirred into a cup of coffee.

Nami pulled away and jumped on his l.a.p, straddling him and tightly wrapping her legs around his waist. She peered into his visage with hungry eyes and when their gazes met, there was so much emotion held between them it felt like it was in the air. No words were spoken, instead their lips met again and the two began to kiss.

They felt like they were melting into each other, and between gasps and m.o.a.ns, she began grinding against him, grasping at his back and hair with her nimble fingers, while he sn.a.k.e.d his arm around her waist, pulling her closer, one of his hands sneaked inside her clothes, cupping her b.r.e.a.s.ts and the other squeezing her b.u.t.t cheek.

They were so engrossed with each other, they were unaware when someone came into the bar from outside "Sanjiiiiiii! Here you are!" Luffy shouted and catapulted himself across the room to land and cling to Sanji's leg, ignoring Nami's presence.

Sanji and Nami were shocked and their heads snapped in his direction "Luffy?!?"

"Cook me some food! I'm starving!" he demanded loudly.

"Curse you, you rubber bastard and your bottomless pit!" Sanji muttered under his labored breath still in a l.u.s.tful craze, as he g.r.o.a.n.e.d and shook his leg in an attempt to dislodge the imm.a.t.u.r.e captain.

Nami on her end was pulling Sanji closer, shielding her blushing face in his c.h.e.s.t as Luffy continued to w.h.i.n.e "Sanji please, I'm so hungry!"

"Shut up! I'll cook when I'm good and ready, dammit!" yelled Sanji trying to kick the rubber man away. But Luffy continued to scream loudly fo meat, wrapping his arms around Sanji's leg like some octopus "Ugh, fine! If that's what it takes to get you to stop whining!" Sanji glared at his captain and relented in the end.

He grumbled as he tore his eyes away from Luffy and looked back to Nami. He saw her nibbling on her bottom lip with flushed cheeks and a look of unmistakle d.e.s.i.r.e in her eyes 'F.u.c.k, she looks so horny and s.e.xy right now' He hoisted her up onto the counter and gave her one last peck on the lips before he whispered to her "We'll definetly continue this later" she trembled at the promise and nodded in anticipation.

"All right, come on, you buffoon" he sighed and walked out of the room, one leg dragging as Luffy remained resolutely stuck to him "Now where's the kitchen in this shitty place"

"It's to your left" Sanji didn't expect for someone to answer him. He turned his head and found Mr. 2 spinning on one leg like a ballerina a couple of meters away. He added in flamboyant manner "Oh, phooei, sorry for not introducing myself. I'm Mr. 2 Bon Kurei. Luffy told me you're an excelent cook. I'm a little peckish myself and in the name of our new friendship a hot bowl of soup right about now would be smashing if you please- *owee*"

"Oh hell NO!!!" Sanji didn't let him continue as he kicked upside his head with his free leg, rendering his unconcious "Friendship my ass!"

Back to the present...

The crew hurried towards their fallen green-haired crewmate, with the cook being the first to arrive.

Sanji kneeled beside him to check on his condition then sighed in relief as he found him soundly asleep "He's gravely injured but he's a stubborn bastard. He'll be alright" he picked him up then set him on a couch that was thrown to the side.

"Oi, Chopper!" he called for the doctor of the crew "Come quickly! Moss-head is bleeding too much blood!"

Chopper came running right behind him. Once he saw Zoro's conditions, he screamed in panic and started running circles "Gyaaa, he's going to die! We need a doctor! Doctor!"

"You're a doctor Chopper..." Nami reminded him.

"Ah... you're right!" he recovered his bearings and slung his medical backpack off his back and started tending to Zoro's injuries.

Everyone worriedly watched, as Chopper continued to work on Zoro until he paused to briefly wipe his brow. Vivi took the moment to ask "Will he be alright, Tony-kun?"

"The wounds are not too deep but the damage is pretty extensive" he continued to bandage his wounds "I managed to stop the bleeding though, so he'll be ok. But he has to take it easy for the next few days"

There was a collective sigh of relief at Chopper words.

"I knew Zoro wouldn't lose, shishishi" Luffy beamed with his typical confident grin. His smile was contagious, and gradually, everyone started to grin with him.

"So, what is our plan now?" inquired Usopp.

"I called for Banchi, Baroque Works transport-turtle for Officer Agents. It should be here in any moment" answered Robin "It'll take us directly towards Rainbase, so we should arrive there by early morning tomorrow before the meeting with Mr. 0 - Oh, here he is" she pointed behind them.

They turned around and found a giant turtle with a bored look on its face while smoking a cigar and wore a horizontal-striped white cowboy hat. There were purple belts connecting it from behind to a similarly purple and three wheeled carriage with the 'BW' insignia and a crocodile statue on its top.

"Whoaaa, he's so cool...!" exclaimed Luffy with stars on his eyes. He stayed silent for second as if contemplating something then turned to Sanji "Can you cook it for me? He looks tasty" he asked with drool cascading down his mouth, making the turtle drop its cigar in mortification.

"It's our shitty transportation, idiot!" Sanji responded with kick to his face, planting him on the ground "And didn't I just cook you like the whole pantry of this shitty place earlier. Learn some restraint, dammit!"

Vivi wiped away a bead of sweat from her forehead at Luffy's lack of brain, then looked at the rest "Shall we go then?"

"Yeah, let's leave" agreed Nami "We achieved our goal here"

***

The next day at 7:00 am...

Rainbase. One of the few cities within Alabasta that continued thriving even during the drought, mostly due to the gambling industry. Due to this it has been referred to as the "City of Dreams". It also appeared that this city was not very much effected by the drought, having a moat surrounding Rain Dinners.

Rain Dinners was Baroque Works' main base and the casino that Crocodile used as his secret base in Alabasta. It is most noticeable by the golden Bananawani(a giant crocodile with banana-shaped growths on its head) that is located on top of a patterned in blue and gold pyramid-like structure.

The bas.e.m.e.nt below the restaurant is where Crocodile conducts his operations. It is a large room made out of a blue stone and several stories below the main building. In the middle was a large rectangular table where seven cloaked figures sat down.

"How long is he planning to let us wait? I'm hungry" whispered one of them.

"S-shut it, idiot! Do you want to expose us!?" rebuked a nervous voice.

"Could you please wait quietly you two?" said another in exasperation.

"Ahhh! Don't take your bandages off!" came an exclamation from another.

"What, it's my own body" replied a calm tone.

"No means no! I'm the doctor here!"

"I said quiet, guys" a hint of irritation seeped into the voice.

"But, they're itchy and make it hard to move around" was the explanation.

"You're not supposed to move!" came the high pitched response.

"I never cooked a Bananawani before..." said a thoughtfull voice as said animal passed by the glass window on the wall that's connected to the moat outside "Maybe I should catch one or two later and try a new recipe..."

"Quiet please, this is an ambush remember" warned the irritated voice once more.

"I'm bored! And hungry!" w.h.i.n.ed the first voice.

"Guys, I-I think I'm beginning to get the early signs of I-want-to-leave-this-place-disease. Maybe this is a bad idea afterall"

"I SAID QUIET, YOU BUNCH OF DAMN IDIOTS!" came the loud yell as the irritated voice couldn't take it anymore and whacked the rest on their heads "IF I HEAR ANOTHER WHISPER FROM ANY OF YOU, I SWEAR I'LL TRIPLE EVERYONE'S DEBTS!"

"Yes ma'am / Witch" was the rapid agreement with a single grumble.

"Hehe, you're the only one that can reign them down, you know" giggled the one that was quiet till now.

"Yes, I'm" you could hear the smirk from the reply.

"Fufufu, never a dull momement with all of you around" Robin came down into the room from upstairs, wearing her purple skimpy cowgirl outfit and a white fur-lined coat paired with a white cowboy hat and white high-heeled boots "Mr. 0 is coming right now, so prepare yourlselves" she finished as she approached them.

Before anyone could say anything, suddenly someone materialized on the empty chair at the head of the table. He was a tall and muscular man with pale skin and nape-length black hair kept neatly slicked back. A long stitched scar at the bridge of his nose stretched across his face and a large hook made from a gold alloy was in place of his left hand.

His eyes were deep-set and heavy-lidded as he looked at them, and his thin eyebrows were characteristically drawn upward in the middle, giving his facial expression a feeling of condescension and distrust. He was smoking a thick cigar as he spoke with a deep, relaxed voice "Welcom-"

He didn't get to finish as Luffy threw his cloak away and jumped at him "Crocodile, I'm going to kick your ass!" Luffy punched him in the face but it harmlessly passed through him as his head turned to sand.

"Luffy, you dumbass!" shouted Sanji as he burned off his cloak with his Diable Flames "Didn't Robin-chan tell you that he ate the Sand-Sand Fruit(Suna Suna no Mi)! You can't hurt him with simple attacks!"

Crocodile reformed and spoke with the same relaxed tone "So this betrayal Nico-"

He was interrupted again as Usopp managed to hit him with several bullets from his slingshot "You need water or some kind of liquid, Luffy" spoke Usopp as he continued shooting at him.

Surprise appeared on Crocodile's face to whitch Robin commented about "Fufu... How foolish. I've been your partner for four years, you realize? Of course I knew about your weakness"

"Ah, I forgot!" Luffy brought his fist on the palm of his hand in realization, then drenched himself with water from a nearby container.

At the same time, Chopper transformed into his Heavy Point and jumped at Zoro who was about to join in the fray "No! You're not allowed to move until I say so!" To witch Zoro grunted in dissatisfaction and relented.

And Vivi brought her weapons of choice, her twirling "Peac.o.c.k String Slashers", which are small, sharp discs attached to her pinky fingers by wires and capable of easily beheading someone. She soaked them in water and slashed at Crocodile.

Crocodile easily dodged the attacks coming his way and continued to look at Robin "I never trusted you from the beginning, Nico Robin. But I never expected you to partner up with the little princes and these no name pirates to bring me down. You must have lost your mind somewhere to think that they could beat me even if they knew about my weakness"

"Fufu, you'd be surprised..." Robin smirked at him mysteriously, making him frown. And before he could make sense of what she said, he was met with a black foot to his face sending him craching into the opposite wall and falling to the ground.

"Shitty Logia users who get c.o.c.ky and think they're invincible, tend to have short lifespans in this sea" said Sanji as he brought his foot down "Isn't that right, Crocodile?"

"Ugh!" Crocodile grunted in pain as he clutched his broken nose which was seeping out blood, soaking his scarf red. He propped himself up with the other hand to look at the cook in shock and anger "Haki! You-"

*Thunderbolt Tempo*

Not letting him continue, a powerful lightning bolt came down, striking Crocodile from a cloud floating right bove him "Arghhh!" he screamed as he was electrified.

"Sand isn't immune to lightning too" Nami grinned twirling her Clima-tact in her hands.

"Nami-san, you're so badass!" Sanji swooned at her, doing the noodle dance with heart eyes, to which she playfully sticked her tongue out at him.

"An opening!" Usopp took advantage of Crocodile being immobilized for the moment and poured a whole bucket of water on him, before he kicked him between the legs, making him groan in agony as he clutched his crotch, and bolted away as if the devil was on his tail.

Vivi came right after and slashed Crocodile's c.h.e.s.t with her weapons drawing blood, just as Luffy jumped in the air and started to brutalize him, pummeling him on the ground under a rain of punches. All the while Crocodile was helpless to retaliate.

Robin watched what transpired since the start of the fight and shook her head in a mix of disbelief and amus.e.m.e.nt "Who would have thought that a Royal Shishibukai would end up in such a pitiful state. And at the hands of a bunch of pirate rookies at that"

"I told you, Crocodile woudn't know what hit him until it's too late" said Sanji, grinning at her, and came to her side. He joined her, watching the rest of his crew continuing to beat down Crocodile.

"Fufufu, you certainly did" she chuckled behind her hand.

Another lightning bolt landed on Crocodile, completely burning off his dark green pelted fur coat and signaled the end of the battle, if even we could call it that, as he cried one last time before passing out with smoke rising from mouth, nose and ears.

"Woohoo, we beat his ass!" cheered Luffy as he flexed his rubbery biceps.

"We did it!" Usopp laughed and joined in with him "It was all according to my brilliant plan! Did you see my super secret killing move? I only used it once in the past, against an evil monster~"

"You just kicked him in the balls, Usopp" commented Zoro, drinking some booze at the table.

"You were so awesome, Usopp!" Chopper exclaimed in amazement "Can you teach me?"

"Well, you see my lad" Usopp sported a heroic posture with his hand on his chin "Only a handful of people are capable of learning my technique~" he continued spouting nonsense which Chopper was eating up all the way.

Vivi walked towards the fallen Crocodile and looked down at his bloodied form "Finally, the nightmare is over..." happy tears streaked down her cheeks as she put her hands on her mouth "Alabasta can now be free from his corruption"

She wiped her tears and smiled widely "All that's left is stopping the rebellion now, and everything would be allright once more"

She felt a pat on her shoulder so she turned her head, finding Nami smiling at her "We'll help you stop them, Vivi. If there's something we could do to achieve that don't hesitate to ask"

"That won't be a problem. All I have to do is meet the leader of the rebels. He is my childhood friend, I know I can convince him to stop this pointless rebellion"

"That's not wise, Vivi-chan" interjected Sanji as he approached her, followed by Robin "We should get rid of the rest of Baroque Works agents first. Even though we stopped the Billions in Nanohana, there is another 50 of them inside the Royal guards. I don't forget about the Millions too. They could have agents that infiltrated both the Rebels and the Royal Guards. If you go to the Rebels now, and you somehow get injured by one of these agents, it would result in further escalation the war. Their specialty is assassination, afterall"

"I agree with cook-san" said Robin as she handed Vivi a bunch of files "These are the profiles of all of Baroque Works agents and their missions for the past two years. There's enough evidence of Crocodile's crimes agaisnt your kingdom to prove your father's innocence. You should take them to your father at the earliest, he'll know how to handle the situation"

Vivi took the files and smiled at Robin "Thank you, Miss All-Sunday. Eventhough we started on the wrong foot, it was thanks to your help that we managed to defeat Crocodile so easily. I'll make sure to repay your favor"

"I'm happy for you, little princess" Robin smiled back at her "And there's no need for thanks, I was just fulfilling my end of the deal. Just make sure to keep yours, ok"

"I definetly will" nodded Vivi. She then turned to the rest "Thank you everyone. I don't know what I'd have done without your help. This country owns you a debt that we'll never be able to repay"

"You're our friend, Vivi-chan" Sanji smiled at her as he patted her head "We're just happy to see you smile. So no need for thanks"

"That's right! Besides if you really want to say thanks to a pirate, it'll be with shiny goods if you catch my drift!" Nami winked a Beli sign at her, making her sweatdrop.

"Are you planning to extort the country, Nami?" Usopp and Chopper shuddered as they saw her snicker to herself.

"And I want a huge banquet of Alabasta's food, Vivi!" laughed Luffy.

"And tons of booze for me" added Zoro.

Vivi smiled at them "Got it"