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" It is in absolute ignorance of our purpose that is the root of our sadness and disgust."

THE SILENCE OF DESPAIR

To be made of flesh and bleed when you are not human is a humiliation.

She had no idea how it all started, but one thing she was certain of was void. The emptiness she felt within, the flare of this curse, the ability that pulsed through her veins, and the echoes of the hideous laugh that she could hear inside her mind.

Was she insane? According to her, yes. Was she a human being? She doesn't think. So what exactly was she? She doesn't know. Was she a monster? She was certain.

Umekui Dazai was many things: a monster, a curse, a murderer, a thief, a criminal, a mafia, a pirate, a suicidal, but one thing she grasped was that she would never be enough.

Never enough to be a good person, never enough to save them, never enough to feel anything but despair, and never enough to honor her promises.

And then she saw this hand that can rubber itself didn't want to let her go at any cost and the warm smiles of those who call her: nakama. She believes once more that she will never be enough for Monkey D. Luffy and the Strawhats pirates.
UMEKUI DAZAI was abnormal, from her dark hair to her white complexion hidden from the world by so many white layers, and her red-crimson eyes so dolorous and empty from the splattering blood of her enemies. She was an empty being living the treacherous life of a so-called human, trying to find her place in this mealiness world, where the conceit of justice is questioned, and the life of a pirate is a sin, where so-called gods and deities bathe in injustice and cruelty and believe to be immortal, where slavery is a weapon to the arrogant and disgusting being, where freedom is only a dream among others, and where the most unthinkable powers and treasure exist, yet the dreaded reality is that Umekui Dazai was the world's enemy.Ironically, though, since both the existence of the umekui dazai and the life of a pirate are sins, why not kill two birds with one stone? - And so she was hoping that she might find an easy way to end herself painlessly.
"Are you the world's enemy because you are umekui dazai, or are you umekui dazai because you are the world's enemy?"
ARC I - raison d'être 
THE EAST BLUE SAGA

UMEKUI DAZAI - the devil prodigy

" Why can’t I just die already ?"

MONKEY D. LUFFY - the future king of pirates

" The Pirate King! The name's gonna be mine!"

RORONOA ZORO- the future greatest swordsman

“I'm going to be the world's greatest swordsman! All I have left is my destiny! My name may be infamous, but it will shake the world!!!”

NAMI - the beautiful thief and navigator

"Luffy says he will be the “Pirate King” and Umekui promised us to stay alive to find her purpose, so I can't be satisfied with being an ordinary navigator."

USOPP- the future brave warrior of the sea

" AHHHHHH ZORO PROTECT ME ! UMEKUI IS GOING TO KILL ME !"

SANJI- the beautiful boy with gold in his hands

" Welcome to the Damned Restaurant. Got a reservation?"
- the beginning of Umekui Dazai's quest for deliverance and salvation, given to her in the form of a promise of adventures and dreams by a boy whose laugh drowned those cruel laughers in her head and whose smile ignited her empty soul.
 " if i told you about the darkness inside me would you still look at me like i'm the Sun."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

EAST BLUE SAGA 
“My treasure? Why, it’s right where I left it… you’ll just have to search the whole world!” — Gol D Roger
A sloop of amber split away from the sun's rays on a sea where the light wrapped the world in an idyllic hue that might melt any cold heart. When the golden sun and the bluest water of east blue met, the water turned gold from the smooth stroke of the sun; the sound of the waves hitting the boat hull among the singing of a voice.Aā〜akubideta ♪Min'na nikoniko〜♪Aho bakka〜♪A boyish voice came from a sitting lad in a small rowing boat, the first thing that could be seen was an old straw hat with a red ribbon seated at the top of his dark hair, clothed in a handless red shirt with a few buttons and his blue shirt, and looking out at the sea with narrowed eyes."I'M SO HUNGRY, WHERE ARE THE FISH AND MEAT?" cried the black-haired lad.Although he had only been sailing for a few hours after finally leaving his home village, the boy was convinced that he needed to find a cook faster to make him a lot of things to eat since he had been sitting for hours (only five minutes) watching the sea beneath him from his boat waiting for some fish to pass by his boat to capture them and eat them because he was so hungry.He attempted to maintain his balance as waves suddenly started to hit his boat because, if he fell into the water below, he would undoubtedly perish without hesitation due to the seemingly infinite blue that seemed to connect with the sky; this blue was so deep that some may have hypothesized that most of it is actually shrouded in darkness; this blue also stretches so wide that it should be impossible to learn every inch of it in one's lifetime; his only enemy was his throne's of adventures.One thing was certain about this boy: his relationship with the sea was rather weird, though not very unusual. It is the one thing he will never be able to defeat, regardless of how strong he becomes, and it is also the one thing that personifies complete, unrestricted freedom and, along with it, an endless supply of exciting possibilities. However, that was his fate to bear when he ate this fruit and bound himself to a strange power that allowed him to stretch out his body as he pleased and make the unthinkable possible." HUH ?"The boy gazed back at the shadows that he could see in the water and then instantly shone like the sun on dawn because he believed that he would no longer be hungry since he was going to catch and devour the enormous shadows in the water that were definitely enormous fish.He reaches his arms toward the water, drenched in darkness, and then captures the first thing that can be touched, the youngster blinks again because the gigantic fish that was shadowed by the darkness had clothes. With a handful of the shadow's clothes in his hands, he stretched back his hands and hoped that this fish would be as good as his weight." one, two, three !"He counted to three and pulled himself back up onto his feet to quickly get it from the sea. But when he eventually got it out of the water, his gaze was met with a girl, not a large delectable fish. Was she some sort of siren? Did he catch a siren?" A siren! Oh no, she's not a siren, and she definitely doesn't have a fishtail," the boy deceivedly remarked.She was the first sea enigma he encountered and the one who prefigured all the others.He places the girl in his boat and watches her for a moment. Was she dead? He didn't think he was able to see her heartbeat by the raising of her (bandaged) rib cage. What has Makino taught him to do to wake someone who has been underwater for so long and drowed? CP-what?He approached the girl, who was still shivering in the middle of the boat. He noticed her long dark hairs, which were as dark as the limitless sea when night fell, and her white skin as if the sun had never touched it, as well as this mole beneath her left eye. He noted that her entire body was bandaged with many white layers, from the nape of her neck all the way down to her ankles.He wonders where she is from and believes that he can be sure that the light isn't welcomed there, but he also believes that the sun occupies the sky, seawater is salty, the sea is blue, meat is the love of his life, and ultimately he will be the pirate king and he knows that a place without the sun is dull and empty. He also believes that a place that is so dark that the soft stroke of the sun cannot reach it is a place where freedom and dreams can’t exist And he knows that when he uncovers it, he is going to destroy everything about it because absolutely nothing is more awful than being denied the chance to dream.So he crouched in front of her, drew his face near to her, closed his eyes, and slammed his head hard on her own head since he had completely forgotten what Makino had told him about the CP-thing and simply opted to do what his grandfather had always done when he fell unconscious after all his fist of love." ishiiiiiii! fuck! ayeeeeee!" moaned the girl in agony, writhing on herself like a tortoise.He sat up abruptly and leaned forward until his face was inches away from hers, calling out to her. And she turned to face him.Red and dark meet in an explosion of cosmos, her eyes were beautifully scary thought the boy, they were red like the blood that coursed through his veins, she seemed to burn whole in his gaze, but at the same time, those eyes of hers seemed so dead (like Ace's eyes when the big man told them that the flames devoured their precious brother), devoid of light, and devoid of dreams. The boy wondered what they would look like if they were filled with life and endless dreams. And those eyes here blinked back at him, reminding him that they were still alive (but so dead and empty on the inside)."eh? I'm not dead? It didn't work, what a shame!" cried the mysterious girl before throwing herself on her back and staring at the vast sky.The rubber boy frowns, who was stupid enough to feel sad over being alive rather than dead? (Ace was so stupid, stupid to not see how amazing he is, stupid to not look and accept how much he is loved, stupid to wish to die for something that was not even his fault, stupid to refuse his hugs because he believes he deserves nothing but death-)"Ah! You’re awake!” The dead but not quite dead girl closes her eyes for a brief period of time, seemingly trying to hide the fact that he is speaking to her and that she is dead—which is dumb—because why would he be talking to a dead corpse? So he pokes her cheek with his stretched finger under her mole, then sinks deeper when she frowns but keeps motionless. A deep breath escapes her lips, she breathes deeply and ultimately, slowly opens her crimson eyes (cold and dull eyes), allowing him to immerse himself attentively in all of the details of his supposed meal while the beast stares back from the corners of her pupil.Then, as soon she notices his extended finger prodding her cheek and his hand, her eyes spark and stars whirl in her eyes and she looks back at him with a joyful grin before leaping at him and grabbing his hands." Oh, those beautiful hands of yours are magnificent, and so is this power! Would you please grant this beautiful girl her wish and allow her to use your arms as a rope to hang herself and die peacefully?!"He is clearly frowning now, and he tilts his head in order to look at her face a bit more closely."Why ?" "Because every time I tried to hang myself on a tree with a rope, either the rope broke every time or the branch of the tree broke too, and every time I'm offended because I don't think that I'm this fat, let tell you that once some kid called me an old fat hag, firstly I'm neither old neither a hag and lastly not fat, just because I love to eat a lot sometimes doesn’t mean that I'm f-"He frowns once more since she is weird and funny; yet, he cuts her off and asks her again because she doesn't seem to understand the question he's asking."Why do you want to hang yourself ?"This time it's the girl who frowns at him. " duh to die, of course." She lets the sentences flow out of her mouth like water down a cascade, a straightforward acknowledgment of a universal truth, as if he is very stupid to ask her this question when the answer is obvious, which is dumb, because, between him and her, she was obviously stupider (stupid like Sabo who decided to fight those men alone and died alone, stupid like Ace who, even after years, still thinks he deserves nothing)"And why would you want to die ?" The girl tilts her head and frowns even more at him, looking at him as the stupidest person on the planet, and he simply wants to slap this expression off her face." Listen up, buddy! Just let me dive into the water and let death embrace me like she did with her beloved and you! I'll let you go and you'll forget we ever met, ok?"She pushed herself into the waves and let herself drown without waiting a second. The boy blinked back hard and pushed his cheek hard to make sure that he wasn't dreaming, then stretched his arms back toward the sea to catch the dark-haired girl and bring her back to his boat. The girl gazed back at him, spit some seawater from her mouth at his face, wetting him, then glared at him, threw him her finger, and jumped back into the sea. "Rude,' said the straw hat boy.The girl jumped into the water a third time without even looking at him as he stretched his arms out into the water to pull her back to his boat. He huffed again and pulled her from the water, and they continued doing this for another 25 times before she finally gave up and collapsed on the boat, exhausted."You are annoying! do you know that?" said the girl, glaring at him."shi shi shi I know, Ace always said that to me," the rubber boy grinned.The girl stared at him as if he were some sort of alien who had lost his brain cells at birth after being dropped on the floor."You're weird," she said."You're weirder," he replied, grinning."You are stupid," she added."you are stupider (stupid like his grandpa who was against the idea of being free in this endless world even if he knows that he loves him, stupid like Sabo who didn't rely on him to save him, stupid like Ace who is sinking after the death of sabo-)" he replied.The sound of his stomach rumbling stopped her short before she could say anything. The youngster lay back on the boat and cried aloud because he was so hungry, knowing that this strange female was not even a fish, and he couldn't eat her even if he was so hungry.The girl looked down at him and reached inside her plain white kimono, looking for something. She eventually found it and presented the chunk of meat to his face. The youngster inhaled the air before opening his eyes and looking at the succulent piece of meat."Here, after my encounter with a beard, I thought that he could be distracted by this meat but I forgot that brown bear loved honey, and let me tell you that he was offended when I offered him some meat and looked at me like I was the most disgusting being and then when I demanded him to kills me with his soft big paws he looked at me as I was a crazy lunatic that needed to be interned and let me tell you that this time it was me who was off-"With stars in his eyes, he opens his mouth wider and wider and wider like a black hole sucking in all the warmth of the world and grins with a smile so big and bright that it casts a shadow on the sun above them and cuts her off with a laugh full of happiness and life, and the scar under his eye shone with light." OH, MY SAVOIR! ! ITADAKASIMA!"He leaps at her arms, snatches the piece of meat from her bandaged hands, and devours it in one bite. He grinned at her again, his cheeks full of meat and he looked like a cute squirrel after gulping in one mouthful, he reached a hand toward her and exclaimed with a voice full of thousand promises and pledges."MY NAME IS MONKEY D. LUFFY, AND I'M GOING TO BE THE KING OF PIRATES! JOIN MY CREW!"  Umekui Dazai yearned for- she couldn't count the number of times (she was so lost, lost in time, and lost in this place so dark and cold of her mind) she had tried to ultimately succeed at her numerous attempts at suicide. So, when these men with golden teeth and arrogance in their eyes thought they could capture her for the seventeenth time in a row, she sent them a flying kiss before throwing herself into the heart of the cruel waves of the sea, hoping that the sea would not be cruel this time and save her and let her just die.  (because she was sick of living, breathing, fighting, and talking when all she wanted to do was disappear forever because Umekui is someone who didn't die when she should have died-)But the sea seemed crueler this time, and with the world already against her, why would the sea join him? And don't even let her tell you about the sky (the sky was the more merciless of them, holding the deity who looks down at the world from their gold thrones and laughs at the injustice and destruction that they have brought on earth and dances on top of innocent's poured blood and tears, they turn out to be true monsters-)It's not the first time the sea has brought her to someone who holds the kindness of the world in his fist and can melt any cold heart with a smile, but the previous times have ended in despair and grief, with the taste of her own bitter tears and blood (and the cries, and the screams, and the enmity, and the seeds of her ascension-)So, what makes this boy unique? Who is he to prevent her fate from being fulfilled? Was his smile so large and free (this lad had something she'd never known before: freedom) and his laugh so warm and loud that he drowned out those wrathful words inside her head and calmed the raging beast inside her? She who was born with an abundance of inherited monstrosity, not allowed to forget the taste of blood and despair, cursed to exist in this world with a lonely and empty soul, the loudness of her doom flowing through her veins pumping the blood of her hollow heart.Asking her pointless questions, such as why she wants to die when even she has forgotten. Why? Is it because living felt like a sin and dying felt like breathing, while pretending to be a human was nothing more than a treacherous mask, death was her only means of escape and control over this shattered life of hers? All she feels are fear and terror at the realization that she is the only one who is not like the others. It is almost impossible for her to live with other people without ending it ( in flames and destruction). After all, the world was still a realm of infinite dread. It wasn't a place of childlike simplicity, but this childish boy whose name goes by Monkey D. Luffy, vows to be the future king of pirates like it's a truth granted by those who reside in the heavens above them deserve his place in this world more than anyone else, and umekui was just to curl up and hide from disgrace because she doesn't deserve to be surrounded by a boy whose veins are filled with dreams and freedom.But why would he want a suicidal freak, a disgrace to society like her to join his crew, the crew of the future king of pirates? whose adventures and exploits would be engraved in the skies and revered with love and respect (worship her with love? the exact words for her are fears and hatred, an outcast, a monster, an impostor who believed that carrying out the role of a human being would allow her to hope for salvation, but a long time ago, she had met someone who was deserving of adoration and an abundance of love, but they were just unlucky to have someone like her love them. Now that they are gone, forgotten in the depths of the world, the only thing keeping them alive is her memory, yet she was so selfish to want to kill herself and forget them.)"So what's your name?"She blinked hard to drown out the voices and stare at him, but as she looked into those lovely kind brown eyes, she didn't need to try to drown out the voices or numb the flicker of the curse that twitched her hands, since his gaze burnt everything inside her."Umekui," she muttered." Yosh! Now Ume is the first mate of the future king of pirates !" exclaimed Luffy with a huge smile that drove the sun away and stared up at the sky to let the world know that he had found his first mystery and his first partner."Your first mate? I'm not even interested in joining your crew!"" No need! I've made my decision, and you are now my first mate."" eh ?? Who makes decisions like that?""duh your captain, so me !""but if I didn't accept to be part of your crew that means that you are not my captain!"" eh? And who chose this?""dunno life I think !"" Then life is stupid humf" huffed Luffy."it's you who are stupid""nop you are stupider"Irritated by his nonsense Umekui tackled Luffy on his back, set herself on top of him, and stretched his cheek hard."hehe you are so weird, your power is so funny," the black-haired girl grinned down at him."Oisch! Wh't ar' yew d'ing?!""I wonder if your brain cells are so stretched that they not functioning correctly ?!""yew ar attacki'g yewr cap't'n !""I already told you that you are not my captain because I did not join your crew," the girl said, releasing his cheek and standing up from Luffy to sit across from him."shi shi shi then JOIN ME!" exclaimed Luffy, caressing his red cheek with his childish grin."Why would I join you ?""Because you gave me meat (because those dead eyes of yours are so similar to Ace's eyes, because your voice seems so heavy as if just talking hurts you because that body of yours is so white devoid of light (devoid of life, and dreams) hidden by so many layers of white bandages is just so wrong, because how can he be the king of pirates, of this world when this girl is just so void because when he will be king, he wants a world full of pirates, freedom, and dreams)"" heh ?? Just because of that! But tell me, Monkey D. Luffy, why do you want to be the King of Pirates? Do you know what it means to be the king of pirates in this world when pirates' lives are the most horrific crime among the world's wrongdoings? Why would you dream about committing a sin against God?Luffy frowns at her words, and he frowns a lot around her because she always asks stupid questions (like Ace's "Why do you love me?" or his grandfather's "Why do you want to be a pirate?" or Sabo's "Why do you let me be a part of your family?") He thinks that all of the best people in his life are stupid and always ask stupid questions."I don't care about someone as selfish as God, or about selfish people who are foolish enough to decide what is wrong. I just want to see the world and live the unfettered life of a pirate, discovering all the treasures of this endless mysterious world; I just want to be free, and there's nothing wrong with that! And me, Luffy! I'm going to be the King of Pirates and find the One Piece with Ume as my first mate, and nothing nor no one is going to stop us, so Ume! Join me, and let's explore this endless world and have the greatest adventure side by side," Luffy screamed his voice full of promises and freedom.For the first time in her life, Umekui's heartbeat for something, not because of her cursed ability, but because the soul of this boy awakened something in her, something so dangerous (and she was afraid, afraid that history would repeat itself, afraid of her mistakes, afraid that she would never be good enough)."Then, Monkey D. Luffy! Promise me the most dangerous adventure of my life, and if I finally find a way to die painlessly, you will let me die (and when you realize how much I'm a disgusting being who doesn't deserve to be by your side and leaves me behind with a broken soul because it will be too late already because I would have found a way to loves you so much and sacrifices this world for you, I wonder if seeking out a way to die painlessly will no longer be an option),""I will be the pirate king with only you as my first mate, so when we discover all the treasures of this world and find the One Piece, I will let you die painlessly (Luffy knew that he would never let her leave him and die because they are now bound by his will and he is going to let no one take her away from their promises no matter how death always tries to visit her, he will challenge him and kick his ass even if it takes a thousand years, Luffy will be the king of pirates with Umekui as his first mate, they lives and dies together)," Luffy promised her."Name's is Umekui, the first mate of the future king of pirates!""So where is our next destination, my captain? " enquired Umekui, who sat across from him."I don't know!" Luffy exclaimed, delighted to be called captain."Do you even know where you are?" sighs Umekui."shi shi shi nope""You're lucky you found me because you'd be lost without me," the red-eyed girl grumbled to him before getting up and extending her limbs.
(Luffy believes she is correct about him finding her, and he can't envision a future without her by his side because he is certain he will be lost and half empty since a missing piece of his soul is not here.)
"First we need to find provisions because excuse me I don't want to die by starvation or by cannibalism because I'm sure that a hungry luffy is a dangerous luffy and let me tell you my dear that I'm not tasty !"" HAHAHAHAHAHAHA UME, YOU ARE SO FUNNY!"His laugh is so loud, she thinks, louder than those screams in her mind and those whispered in her soul. It's loud and odd, But it's so warm. Is it the song of freedom because he doesn't care what she or anybody else thinks of him laughing? Somehow, she wants to laugh like him, a laugh full of life and freedom, so human, but she knows that with the ability in her veins, she will never have this laugh since it will be a poor imitation of it from her rotting corpse filled with ache and disgust.She blinks back at him and pushes back the pressure of her throat to laugh at the skies with him. " I know! So, my captain, pay attention! We're going to start our criminal pirate life by robbing!" Ume smirked down at him.Luffy crosses his knees and sits up straight, like a child preparing to open his Christmas presents, and looks at her with dazzling eyes and his huge smile, the scar beneath his eye beaming back like a crescent moon."Did you notice the barrel behind me? We're going to go inside it, and I know Alvida's pirates' ship isn't far away, so we're going to infiltrate their ship, steal a boat, and a lot of provisions, so captain, what do you think of the plan?" Umekui inquired, a smirk on her face. Luffy opens his mouth, wider and wider and wider, and smiles at her (she wonders if his cheeks don't hurt from smiling this much, but then again, that boy where the song of freedom vibrates in his voice and heart smiling like the sun is like breathing for him (and she wants to protect this smiles of his so much and fight against the darkness of this unjust world that threatens to devore luffy's light)and lunges at her, arms spread above his head, colliding with her on the boat's floor.Umekui blinked hard and flinched before sharply steadying her body (afraid of burning Luffy's warm body with the poison trekking through her veins, afraid of hurting him with those bandaged destructive hands of hers, afraid of dirtying his soul with her repulsive own), but she lets him hug her because she is a selfish being who longs to be touched with gentleness and love even if she isn't worthy of it.Luffy's smiles tripled as he saw Ume let him hug her because her hidden white bandaged body seemed so lonely under those bandages, and even when she flinched at his touch, she didn't push him away (she flinched like Sabo who was only familiar from the touch of his abusive family, and she flinched like Ace every time he touched him because he thought he didn't deserve to be touched because his blood was filthy)."You are amazing, Ume!" declared Luffy, as if telling her the truth.Umekui didn't trust his words since one day he'd understand that she was nothing (absolutely nothing, but an abominable copy of a human being), and she didn't want to shatter her own heart by reconsidering and believing them."Yosh let's do it !"Umekui advanced approached the barrel and entered it, urging Luffy to join her. The straw hat pirate joined her, smiled, and stretched his arms to bring the barrel cover and close it above their heads."one, two, three! Yosh !"They pushed themselves towards the sea, allowing the waves to carry them to their next destination. Umekui closed her eyes and fell asleep, it had been a long time since she had slept without the screams that reverberated within her brain and the sting of this curse faint inside her, for a long time the creature that lived inside her was so quiet in her soul. She believes it is all due to a certain future pirate king and her new captain, who are bonded to her by vows and promises sealed by the boundless skies and seas.
“I don’t want to conquer anything. I just think the guy with the most freedom in this whole ocean—is the Pirate King!” – Monkey D. Luffy

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"We’re born free. All of us. Free. Some don’t believe it, some try to take it away. To hell with them". -Eren Jaeger

Koby's life is one of servitude and misery, devoid of freedom and justice.Destined to live a life ruled by the strongest of this sea, the garbage of society, ruling over the innocent with their fists and abuse. Sometimes he thinks if he will ever be free to speak about the things that make him smile and give him hope for a better world. Koby wonders if he will ever be on the right side of justice and fulfill his dream in this part of the world where pirates rule over the east blue seas and bask in the richness that they stole from the most deprived and shed tears from the powerless.But in the place where he is imprisoned, if anyone knew what his dream is (a dream that he hoped would one day come true because Koby is tired of this place, of those cruel pirates who rule over him, and tired of this life of submission when all he wants is to be free and fight with justice while wearing these opulent white clothes and saving people and to see their smiles), But he knows he can live this dream and escapes from this damned place because, after two years of suffering, Koby is so tired to the point that he just wants to scream at the world that this is enough, yet this self-made boat that he built is just waiting for him to get on it and sail away and be finally free (but kody above all was afraid because failing meant death and if he dies, he will never join the right side of justice and saves people with a smile, but how can he be a hero when he is coward ?)Seeing those cannonballs shooting toward this cruise ship and hearing the screams of people, Koby knows that this is so wrong and unjust because the people who were hurt did nothing but sail across that sea and get under the radar and avarice of Alvida's crew."CHORE BOY! "YOU COME WITH US!" Alvida shrieked as she departed for the targeted cruise ship (in order to steal and hurt people, and Koby despises it because he wants to be on the other side, to protect - not to hurt the innocent)."Y-YES, CAPTAIN!" Answers Koby because he doesn’t have the choice to close his mouth and obeys again and again. Boarding the cruise ship Koby sees the look of fear on people's faces when they see them.
'don't look at me like that, please! I'm not like them!',
because Koby desires that people will regard him with assurance because they will know he is there to protect them and not to harm them-)" CHEEK-PIGS, YOU COME WITH US!" yelled Alvida's pirates. And Koby obeys as he always does because he can't do anything against those huge men who rule over and conquer the seas with barbarism. After all, he is a coward and a weakling. He wonders once more if he will find the courage to talk about this dream that he has buried deep inside his heart for fear that these tyrants will steal it from him because they have already stolen his freedom.Yet, Koby never imagined that a simple barrel holding the world's future kings (who chose to live the sinful lives of his captors, but when he saw them and spoke to them, they were so different from the men of his nightmares; this boy destined to be king, whose voice echoed with the song of freedom and whose smile brought shame to the sun, and this girl, whose eyes were so red and dead, a shadow that captured the darkness that tried to lurk around her captain, yet so warm and fearless to the awful world and so brave to chants their dreams) would turn out to be his heroes and the hands that pushed him forward to reach his goal without fear because those same hands are the swords that cut off his chains of misery and servitude.The screams outside the barrel wake Luffy up, and given the barrel's stability, he is certain they have reached the ship Ume mentioned. Speaking of Ume, she was still sleeping (with those black circles under her eyes, it had been a long time since she had closed her eyes and slept, and Luffy promised as her captain and friend that now that he was here, she would be able to rest peacefully now that she is no longer alone).Observing her face, Luffy reached out a hand and placed it on her cheek (by the way her body flinched, Luffy knew she wasn't asleep), and she confirmed it by welcoming his gaze with those crimson eyes of hers (red eyes so dead and empty that Luffy just wants to bash his head against hers to pry that emptiness away since Luffy knows he is strong, strong to beat people, strong because of his indestructible body, strong for the simple reason that he will be the king of pirates, but not powerful enough to not sink on the endless sea because he was cursed, and Luffy promises that if he was also cursed to look at the everlasting emptiness of his first mate, he would seek out this deity that cursed him and fight him for more than a hundred years)Umeki smirks at him (and Luffy wants to see her smile and hear her laugh), raises a bandaged hand toward his cheek, and pulls hard to stretch it."Did you really think that I would stay asleep in an enemy territory when my stupid captain sleeps like a bear in hibernation ?"" Ishi', st'p it' s'ry b't I've sl'ep'ng !" "I've seen that! "But don't sleep when we're surrounded by enemies," Umekui sighs and pulls his cheek back."Don't worry, Ume! I'm strong," beams Luffy."Of course you are strong; who would want a weak captain?" And to be king of pirates, you must be the strongest in the world!" Ume explains.Luffy nods in response to her comments. " Ume, let's go at three! Let's break out of this barrel and go find food because I'm starving," Luffy demanded eagerly."You're always hungry," Ume grumbled."ONE, TWO, THREE, YOSH!"Umekui and Luffy burst out of the barrel just as four hostile pirates appeared in front of them, and the duo didn't waste any time in attacking; Umekui put her hands on Luffy's shoulders, pushed on her arms, and lunged at the two pirates, knocking them out with a kick to the face, and Luffy stretched his fist toward the other pirates, knocking them out with a single punch to the face."Waw, they're so strong," mutters Koby, staring at them with awe on his face and admiration in his heart; it's the first time in his life he's seen someone fight against the men of Alvida."Amazing job, Ume!" Luffy praises."It's you, my captain, who is amazing," Umekui declares, a smirk on her porcelain face."Yosh, let's go find some food! and escape this place," shouts Luffy as he dashes to the back of this navire's kitchen.Umekui didn't hesitate for a second before following him like a shadow (and Luffy wants to tell her to run by his side because they are equal and crewmates (she is his first mystery of the sea, his first adventure, his first friend and fist-mate) which means that she is not a shadow in his way to be the pirates' king.)Koby didn't think for a second before following them (and he believes that the God who looked down on him from above finally took pity on him and sent him this strange duo to finally get him out of there and live his dream).When he reached the pantry, he was met by the strange straw hat boy chanting around the food and eating everything with one hand. He searched around the room for his partner (this girl whose white body was veiled by so many bandages that he wondered if it hurt her, and wrapped in this white kimono that made her look like a saint, but he knew that saints never knock pirates out with a single kick)"Looking for something," a cold voice murmured behind him.Koby yells and falls from the stairs to the hard floor of the pantry."Aye aye, ouch," the pink-haired lad mutters as he examines his injured knee." Ume, what are you doing, and who is this boy?" Luffy asks, pausing from eating the fruits in his hands to glance at the pink-haired boy on the floor, and Ume looks down at the pink-haired boy with narrowed eyes."I saw him with the pirates who attacked us, but he appeared vulnerable to me, so I ignored him, but coming here and spying on us since I spared you, it's either stupid or brave of you," says the dark-haired girl in a chilly voice, her red eyes terrifying him.
'brave? If I were courageous, I would have prevented the men of Alvida from harming and killing people, I would have screamed at them without fear about my dream, I would have already departed this miserable place to live my dreams and protect people from pirates, except you are wrong, I'm not brave.'
" YOU'RE WRONG! I PROMISE I'M NOT SPYING ON YOU!" Ume raises an eyebrow at him, urging him to continue, and the strange straw hat boy stops eating to stare at him."It's just that that was amazing back how you have fights, I swear that I mean no harm!"" So, what brought you here? Do you realize we're enemies because your nakamas attacked us?" says the red-eyed girl."THEY ARE NOT MY NAKAMAS!" exclaims the pink-haired teen."Then why were you with them?"At this question, Koby's mouth quivered and his throat burned. "It was a fateful day when I was riding on a rowboat, but it belonged to the Alvida Pirates and they kidnapped me and forced me to become a chore boy, it's been two years that I've been imprisoned by those pirates, and forced in a life of servitude"(Koby didn't tell them about the spelled blood that he was forced to witness, the pains that they inflicted on him, the ways those arrogant men laughed at his tears, the abuse they inflicted on his body, and the nightmares that haunted his sleep, about the chance of freedom and escape becoming a figment of his imagination), but he thinks he didn't need to tell them because the way the bandaged girl's palm turned into a fist and her eyes seemed so dead, and the way the mysterious boy's hat concealed his eyes, told him everything.Suddenly, the mysterious girl kneeled in front of him and reached inside her white kimono for some bandages, wrapping them around his injured knee, and Kody flinched at the contact of her fingers in his knee (because for two years, people's hands had not touched him with care or to heal his injuries, but to hurt him again and again, injuries over injuries without pause).Luffy understands that he will be the pirate king, but he also understands that garbage exists in this world (like those men who humiliated and hurt Shanks while he was too small and too weak to save himself or aid Shanks, like those nobles who brought flames to his village and hurt Ace and killed Sabo, and like those invisible shadows who are hurting his fist mate) and have now stolen freedom from this boy and brought him to a life of misery and servitude." HEY! MY NAME IS MONKEY D. LUFFY, AND I AM THE MAN WHO WILL BE THE KING OF PIRATES! WHAT IS YOUR NAME?"" My name is Koby, eh? What? King of the Pirates?" Koby says (this lad, pirate king? He's a pirate, isn't he? He wonders if the God above him is laughing at his agony right now because this strange couple who gives him hope is pirates, guys who destroy everything in their way and hurt the innocent, they are all the same, they are going to murder him and-)"YOSH! LET'S ESCAPE FROM THIS PLACE TOGETHER, KOBY!" chanted Luffy, stretching out a hand to him.However, when he looks at this white bandage on his knees that was put on with such care by the pirate girl and the promise of escape from this boy and this hand that promises him to be finally free (he thinks that they are perhaps different because they do not look or act like the pirates of his nightmare), he thinks that they are perhaps different." But-" before he could finish his sentence, Koby was cut off by the smashing of the door behind them.They're here! Capture them, it's an order from Alvida-sama," the pirates yelled."Orders?, my captain," the female behind him says to Luffy."shi shi shi "We fight everyone on this boat for hurting Koby, and we escape!" screamed Luffy.The creature inside Umekui stirrers from hunger, and she didn't wait for a second before she ran at speed toward the pirates and knocked them out (she wanted to hurt them for hurting Kody, she wanted them to pay for stealing freedom that wasn't theirs, she wanted to destroy this ship and this Alvida's crew and turn it into ashes) the first pirate she saw was met with a fist to his face, sending him flying in the air, the two others were knocked on the buttocks with a quick slide of her left leg under them, and the pirate behind her was welcomed with a blow of her head against his face and she-"WOW, she's truly amazing," exclaimed Koby." Shi shi shi, this is Umekui! The first mate of the future king!" screamed Luffy."Let's meet on the deck of the ship, my captain!" Umekui exclaimed as she ran from the smashed door, leaving unconscious pirates behind her."YOSH! LET'S GO KOBY"Umekui has lost track of how many pirates she has taken out (and it has been a while since she has knocked out an untested killing, she doesn't want the monstrosity inside her to find its way out because she will never be able to forgive herself, and she doesn't want Luffy to see how hideous and revolting she is, to look at his eyes filled with fear and disgust toward her when he has promised her an adventure written in blood, and their adventure is only starting and a world without Luffy by her side was already beyond her imagination.Arriving at their rendezvous spot, she found Luffy surrounded by the unconscious bodies of Alvida's crew and the large figure of the captain woman of this crew from the top of the stars. Umekui approached them from behind, reaching her hand inside her kimono and pulled out her handgun, feeling the familiar and cold contact."A pirate? By yourself?""Who said he was by himself?" a cool feminine voice spoke behind them." Ume ! YOUHOU!" beamed at her Luffy. The click of a gun could be heard in the air."Don't move if you don't want the world to see what is inside your brain, drop your weapons on the floor and kneel slowly with your hands behind your back, if you turn or try to do anything that is not my instructions, I promise you that the feel of a bullet in your head will be the last thing of your existence?" said the icy voice that came from behind Alvida.Alvida obeyed what she was instructed out of fear for her life."Now we are going to steal a boat with my captain and Kody, with a lot of food and some bellies, and you are also going to present your excuses to Koby, and if he is merciful he will accept them,"Alvida looked at the bandaged and dark-haired girl who had chosen to stand before her with a handgun pointing at her head, and Alvida swore that an abomination was staring at her from those pupils, wanting her to devour her fully."I-I'm sorry Koby for everything." Alvida apologized, her voice shaking with terror." FIRST AND FOREMOST! YOU ARE THE MOST HORRIBLE, STINKING OLD HAG IN THE WORLD, NOT THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WOMAN IN THE WORLD! I'M GOING TO ENGAGE IN MARINES AND CAPTURE PIRATES! AND I GUARANTEE YOU THAT I WILL CAPTURE YOU! BECAUSE I'LL NEVER BE LIKE YOU! I'M GOING TO SAVE PEOPLE! THIS IS MY DREAM TO BE THE MOST POWERFUL ADMIRAL IN THE MARINES, AND YOU ARE NOT GOING TO STOP ME, YOU OLD HAG!" shouted Kody with frustration in his tears.Umekui smirked at that, and Luffy laughed, his laugh being so loud and big that it mirrored Koby's voice when he finally decided to yell his dream for all to hear." YOU ARE THE BEST UME!" raves Luffy with a big smile before leaping at her back and embracing her like a koala from behind (Luffy noted that this time she didn't flinch much and smiled wider at that comment)Umekui fought a hundred times throughout the day to hold back the genuine smile that Luffy evoked from her (because all she knew was to sneer and smile (a smile filled with hollowness and devoid of meaning) and laugh (a laugh loaded with disdain and malice)).Koby has no idea how many times he has prayed to the Gods to send him a sight to help him and end his life of misery, and takes his boat and flees toward the nearest marine base and dictates his heart to his dream, to be in the marine and wear their coat emblemed with the name of justice, and save people and be a hero.However, after all of his suffering, he is now sitting aboard his boat, free from his chains and in a position to pursue his goals, all thanks to this strange duo."Tell me Luffy, you said that your dream is to be the king of pirates and find the Onepiece, that means that you are heading to the Grand line, right ?""Yeah.""This place is called the graveyard of pirates.""Yeah, that's why we need a strong crew, right Ume ?" Luffy stated before leaping at the laid-back girl and placing his head on her stomach." Yeah," Ume muttered, trying not to shift too much because it was the first time someone was so casual in touching her (and she was so tired, this curse in her veins was absorbing so much and hurting her without stopping, but it was weak compared to the other times, she wondered if it was because of Monkey D. Luffy's soul)"Ne koby? How is that pirate hunter guy?" Luffy inquired." Do you mean Zoro? I heard he's being held at a Marine base."" What? He's pretty weak then," Luffy pouts, burying his face into his first mate's abdomen."Not all! He is a terrifying beast of a man! Why are you asking?" says Kody."Because if he is a good person, I might take him on our crew, right Ume ?" stretching his face to look her in the eyes and smile with this dumb adorable smile that wants her to close her eyes (her eyes that are still so empty and vacant and Luffy wants to beat this emptiness outside of her body)"Hum, a pirate hunter? Well, why not?" Umekui smirked, staring at her captain's dark eyes (she wondered if this pirate hunter guy possessed a soul worthy of standing by Luffy's soul because she wanted to find someone who could be there for him she won't be around anynome, someone whose blood could be mistaken for Icore, burning with loyalty and passion, someone who would protect the future king of pirates from her monstrosity and carry the crew on his shoulders without hesitation).Umekui hoped that this man, Zoro, might turn into her wild card in her ultimate scheme of fate.When the night fell, the dark and the water were velvety and caressing, unfolding a core of tenderness, and the night passed with its silent cargo of moons and stars.Koby's eyes opened, welcomed by the gaze of the stars, a minnelium of white sparks radiated in the black night, the moon resplendent as she absorbed her lover's warmth and light.He sat and looked around, seeing with his own eyes that what had transpired today was not a dream, but rather a reality. He looks back at the moon and thanks the deity who lives on the moon for this chance, tears burn his eyes (and he cries, cries because he had suffered for so long, cries because he had faced Alvida and screamed his dream at her face because he was no longer hiding in this closet hoping that those pirates would stop searching for him and hurting him, sobs because he is finally free, and his dreams are within his grasp, and he cries-)"You were brave, brave to escape this place, brave to make this boat, and brave to scream at pirates that your dream is to be a marine," a woman's voice states.And he weep even more (since he believes he is a coward who would never have gotten this far without her and Luffy).After sobbing for a little while longer, he turned to look at his savior. She appeared pale, like a moonlight ghost lost in this seeking world and drowned beneath the dark, strange, endless sea. The dark night wraps around her like a snake, tongues of the dark speak like bones unblocking memories, and odd things dance in the darkness of her eyes (Her red eyes seem redder in the dark, and her face glows in the dark as the white of her skin looks like glass absorbing the light of the moon) yet, with teary eyes, he glances at the bandages that covered her from the crevasse of her neck to her ankles and asks what has been on his mind since the moment he gazed at those layers:"Does it hurt?"Umekui's eyes widened at the question because she had never heard it before. She doesn't fully understand what he is asking, but the only thing she can respond to is:"Not anymore (it hurts her so much, this rotten body of hers cursed to live with it, she wants to burn it but all the things she could do to escape the pain in her mind will be stifled by the endless void inside her, it hurts her so much because the starved beast inside feasted in the agonies of her soul without mercy, and the enormity of her mind disgusts her, but she also knows that if Luffy hadn't been with them, she would have slaughtered this pink-haired youngster and let her beast feast on his soul and dreams with inhumanity because she is nothing in her soul if not a killer-)"Koby looks at her with a pained expression on his face and murmurs, "Oh, I see.And the way he looks at her makes her want to rip out his eyes. How dare he express sadness for her existence? Since she was her own devasting deity, and she was the only one who echs her own wicked flesh (human flesh when everything about her was a rotten replica of it), an untamable demon made of unfilled voids."Goodnight, Umekui," Koby says before turning around and going to sleep.And she wonders, once more, in the darkness of her infinite abyss, what sleep may feel like, knowing that the only slumber that awaits her is the whispering of death, and would it pain if she grabbed her handgun and pierced her head? because Umekui never demanded anything, except death, because living already hurt her a lot (hurt so badly that her vocal cords broke from screaming so loudly that blood drowned inside her mouth; hurt enough that the only thing she could know was blood, breathe in blood, bathe in it, and stay dirty with it: This ability screams in her ears and their hands grab her by the ankles and drag her deeply into the grisly essence of life, they drag her again and ag-)" Ume, what are you doing?" mumbles a drowsy Luffy."Just thinking, my captain."He reaches out for her, puts himself on her lap, and embraces her like a koala, refusing to let go of his tree (because her voice seemed heavy as if living and breathing tortured her, and it's the first time in his life that Luffy doesn't know what to do because the first mystery of his adventure is full of haunted things, and just how can he fight against ghosts ?)"Stop thinking," he murmurs in the crock of her bandaged neck (and wonders if one day she will let him see the canvas of her body and feel the warmth of her boy without the bandages)."Brain needs to think; only stupid people don't think," she responds, her words muffled by the curls of his dark hair, (the hands let go of her ankles and stopped dragging her deep into the void, and the screams in her ears turned into whispers, and the beast inside her stopped feasting on her-)"Be stupid." (Stupid like his grandfather, brothers, and Shanks-)"No one wants to be stupid, captain.""Shanks wants to be stupid," Luffy responds with a laugh (his laugh echoes in her ear, and drowns out the grim voices)."Then Shanks is stupid," Ume says."Yes shishishi, he only loves to drink and party, he is the captain of the Red Hair Pirates and he is the one who gave me my treasure: this hat."He points to the hat beside her, and Luffy tells her about Shanks, his role model, childhood hero, and the man he hopes to one day surpass, and tells her about the promise made between the two that, one day, he will return the hat upon him becoming a great pirate, and Ume lets him lurk her to sleep with his voice that eluded the ephialtes of her mind.And Umekui wishes she could die right now since there is no greater painless death than being held by the boy destined to be king, whose voice kept the shadows of her soul away, enabling her to rest for eternity.
"Do you think your sin will disappear if you lie?"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

" What is a ghost? Something dead that seems to be alive.Something dead that doesn't know it's dead."

SHELLS TOWN
Birds soared high in the clearest sky, and waves sun-kissed by the sand rang with happiness as they signaled the start of the day in Shells Town."YOSH! WE HAVE FINALLY ARRIVED!" exclaims Luffy, his mouth open and beautifully framed by his bright smile.He stretches his hands out, grabs Koby by the waist, lifts him into the air, spins around with him, and laughs."YOU CAN FINALLY LIVE YOUR DREAM, KOBY!" shouts Luffy, looking at the pink-haired boy in his arms. (since Koby is now free from this place, free to live his dream, and free to be happy because Koby was held captive and lonely in this ship where Luffy defeated those pirates, but now Koby is released and happy) and at that knowledge, Luffy laughs with delight for his friend.Koby looks back at the pirate (a kind and brave pirate) and laughs with him (it's been a long time since he's laughed without fear in his heart).Umekui's eyes grew softer as she took in the scene in front of her, and the sound of her captain's laughter resounded within her, allowing her to take a brief respite."YOSH, LET'S GO TO THE BASE, SO YOU CAN LIVE YOUR DREAM, AND UME AND I WILL SEE THIS ZORO GUY," announces Luffy, releasing Koby from his arms and turning to face his first-mate.Ume nods and advances, but before she can take a step forward, someone drops on her back (and she knows the only person stupid enough to touch her without restriction, this ridiculously weightless boy whose scent infiltrates her nose (a scent so unfamiliar and new; a scent of promises and freedom; a scent of sunlight, spices, and meat)."I'm tired so carry me on your back for now, pretty please Ume!" Her captain begs with his adorable puppy eyes (Luffy knows he is not tired because he only slept next to Ume the entire trip and ate constantly, but he just didn't want to let her go because this back of hers seemed so stiff and heavy as if she carries the entire weight of the whole world on her shoulders)."My, My, what a spoiled captain I have," chuckles Ume (and even though she isn't actually laughing, Luffy enjoys her chuckles because they prove she is here and not lost in the darkness of her mind).As he watches the odd first mate and captain, Koby comes to the conclusion that Luffy and Umekui were meant to be together because they inherently balance each other regardless of their outward absurdity.Koby wouldn't say that they appear to be soulmates because no god would be foolish enough to unite two souls that are so divergent yet equally dangerous (because this girl didn't hesitate for a second to follow her captain's orders with her eyes closed and point a gun at the woman who made his life hell and this boy who appeared to control the girl's shadow like breathing was just so amazing).Because their union is the drop of blood that'll sow the order of the oppressors of this soil, it makes sense that their meeting was far more powerful than the control of the celestial beings in the sky.Monkey D. Luffy and Umekui are the people whose parents warn their children against following for fear that they will break all the chains of morality, and he wonders what crew mates this weird pair will grow." Let's go! Zoro guy, here we come!" raves Ume as she runs toward their destination with Luffy on her back (Luffy laughs wildly and passionately, and at the sound of his laugh that reverberates in the recesses of her ears and soul, Umekui unconscionably smiles a sincere smile chock-full of devotion (it's been a very long time since she smiled like that)).Koby followed them with a smile of his own (his eyes are bright with excitement because he is going to live his dream and help people with a smile while wearing this uniform that gives him hope in the world).The sun embraces the new visitor to Shell Town with hope and love, knowing that this town has been ruled by lies and injustice, and hoping that the heroes of today and the demon swordsman will set it free and save it from the chains of falsehoods and corruption.RORONOA ZORO has lost count of how many moons have set in the sky since the days he was crucified, his tongue feels heavy in his mouth, and the emptiness in his stomach causes his body to throb from hungerHe won't be beaten by the snooty marine guy's seal, though; he will triumph instead, and the first thing he'll do when he's free will be to break his ugly nose and wipe his haughty smile on the ground. The emptiness of his swords is like a crushing reminder that his treasures are at this base, miles away from him (and the emptiness of the sensation of her swords in his palm is eating him alive, because he has pledged, with her sword, that he will be the greatest at any cost-)"shi shi shi so you're the pirate hunter guy?" asks a young voice in front of him.When Zoro raises his head, the straw hat that greets him is the first thing to catch his attention. The young boy's large, interested eyes swivel to face him and regard him as though he were the day's gift.
  'tch another fucking weirdo'
" Scram, dipshit! This is not a place for fucking weirdos," Zoro yells angrily.The boys merely laugh at him, and Zoro tries to break free of his restraints and beats him to pieces."He's funny, right Ume?" the boy asks, and Zoro wonders whether the boy is a psycho (since only psychos approach him and laugh without fear for their life, and converse alone, because they're alone here, and this Ume isn't there with them because he'll have seen her-)"Yes and rude, but I don't blame him because I think I'm ruder than him," a feminine voice behind him comments.
'Impossible, I would have sensed her presence, how?'
"Wow, check out those muscles! I wonder if he'll let me suffocate myself with them," she blurts with stars in her eyes.
'Oh great, another psycho,'
and Zoro wants to swivel his head and stare at the maniac behind him in order to knock some neurons out of her skull."shi shi shi, me too one day I am going to get big muscles like him"" Will you then strangle me with them? since you already forbade me from hanging myself with your arm as a rope".
'hang herself? She is completely crazy!'
And the boy in front of him frowns at the female behind him."shi shi shi don't be dumb Ume I will never strangle you""What a loss! But I'm sure that with all of those perfect muscles, this man will be able to strangle me."Zoro felt a bandaged finger caressing the muscles of his left arm, and the only way he could tear it away was to bite it, which he failed to do since her finger was faster." Feisty! Sorry, but I only like my men feisty in bed."
'In addition to being a psycho, she is a pervert'
"Ume, stop saying stupid things and come here so we can introduce ourselves to our future nakama," the black-haired lad pouts., 
'What? future nakama? what fucking shit is he talking about ?'
Suddenly, a girl with long black hair and a body shaped in bandages from the neck to the ankles clad in a white long kimono materialized beside the strange boy.Zoro grey's eyes met red scarlet irises, and something in his blood, something in his soul burned at her searing look. He could feel a smirk building on his face at the sight of this strange duo in front of him because something tremendous in them was blazing and reaching his soul, and Zoro had no idea what it was."Ano? Please excuse me, sir." Behind them, a little voice murmurs,A young brown-haired girl moves toward them, passing past the weird duo who glance at the small girl with curiosity in their eyes and stop before him, and she tends a few rice balls toward him."I know that you've been here for 3 weeks, and you haven't had anything to eat or drink and it's forbidden to give you food, but I still prepared it for you hoping that you would eat it," says the tiny child."Get out of here, little girl! Take your rice balls and get out of my face," Zoro yells.Luffy scowls, How dare this Zoro guy refuse food!" YOU-"Before he could say anything, a hand snatches his hand and he finds himself on the opposite side of the wall, next to Koby. And Luffy pouts looks at his first-mate and says:"Why did you do that Ume ?"" Shut up, come see this!" Ume says, motioning to the opposite side of the walls.Luffy stretches his arms and climbs on her back to see what's going on over her shoulders, while Koby climbs the ladder to join them.Zoro glares angrily at the blonde-haired man and the officer marine."Little girl, what are you doing here?" the blond demands arrogantly.The man grabs the rice balls from her palm and devours one, but spits it back on her face and crushes the other rice balls under his foot." It's disgusting; did you intend to poison me? Get this brat out of here!" yells the man at her." Eh?" "Are you deaf? If you don't want me to notify my daddy about this, do what I say and throw this brat over the wall.""Right away, Sir!" exclaims the marine officer, before approaching the girl and whispering an apology to her before tossing her over the wall.Ume leaps to catch the little girl before she smashes herself on the floor, and Koby rushes to check on the child."Are you okay? What a horrible person! Does it hurt anywhere?" Koby seeks (and Koby's heart hurts for the little girl because she has done nothing wrong, and how can he be a hero in the future if he can’t help her)"You son of bitch," Zoro grumbles angrily (and swears that if he had his swords, he will hack his head off).And the piece of shit laughs in his face (and Zoro swears on his name that he will break his mouth for this because he despises men who laugh at the pain of the innocent above all) and tells him that he was stubborn for surviving this long and leaves the place with his horrible laugh echoing in this place (Zoro is a man of words and promises, and when he says something, he does it and proves to the world that he will always survive)."They say you're a bad guy," says a familiar voice.Zoro raises his head and returns his gaze to the strange boy and girl from earlier. The boy's eyes are fixed on him with determination, and the girl smirks at him (although her red eyes are so lifeless and empty that if it weren't for the smirk and the odd things she said earlier, he would have mistaken her for an empty doll)."You are still here," Zoro grumbles, irritated by their presence (although his souls earn for something that they own)."Being left humiliated there, are you really strong?" says the black-haired girl (since Ume wants to know if this Zoro guy is the wild card she is looking for)."Mind your own business!""I could have escaped in less than three days," claims the lad."If you weren't dead from hunger in one hour," adds the girl."It's not true Ume," the straw hat pouts at his companion."Yes it is, you can't wait five minutes from feeling hungry""Shi Shi, you're right, and Ume, I'm starving! Let's go find something to eat!"But before they could turn around and leave, Zoro shouts out to them and points to the rice balls smashed beneath his feet," Hold on. Could one of you please bring that to me?"Surprisingly, it is the mummy girl who picks up the rice ball and places it in his mouth. She watches him intently with her crimson eyes, and Zoro can feel himself burning alive beneath her gaze (this gaze that looks at his soul and studies the boundaries of his mind, and unconsciously his soul replies back)."Thank you for the food, it was delicious," Zoro says, his scarlet face veiled by the shadows.When the strange girl reached out to take a grain of rice from the corner of his mouth and lifted it into her mouth and ate it, Zoro's eyes winded up in shock."You're right! It was really tasty,"She smirks at him and walks out with her strange companion.
 ' this fucking pervert psycho, he is going to kill her-'
Umekui and Luffy find Koby in a restaurant with the child from earlier, take a seat, and order food because Luffy is starving.It's the little girl's mother who serves them, and Luffy doesn't waste a second before expanding his mouth wider and devouring everything on the table; poor Koby didn't even have time to eat anything.Umekui closed her eyes and sipped the glass of wine in her palm, leaving one eye open to watch Luffy devour like a starved animal." My captain, eat slowly! The food won't get away", she assures."But I'm sew h'ngry," Luffy states, his mouth full of food.Umekui sighs at his poor demeanor."I know but you are eating like an animal and not letting Koby eat something""Hehe don't worry it's okay," Koby states apprehensively."Only tyrants eat without sharing," she argues."eh ? tyrant ?" "yes, selfish people who take without giving and rule with cruelty" (like them, the tyrants who siege the golden thrones (thrones made of bones and blood) and gaze down on the world, control everyone around them, and take, burns and kills without mercy and they-)Luffy frowns."But I'm not a tyrant! I'm just the man who will be the king of pirates!" proclaims Luffy.(And Umekui knows above all that Luffy is not and will never be a tyrant because he will never be like them, someone whose heart thirsts for destruction and blood, she will never let him turn like that, even if it means destroying this world and creating a new one for him and consume the darkness that tries to touch his heart because Luffy will never be like her, a selfish disgusting being-)The restaurant door loudly opens, and the blond-haired man from earlier enters and screams at the people and the mother of the small girl.She purses her lips as she observes the boy boast loudly and order everyone around, observes how the mother of the young girl is bringing him food that she had purchased for them, observes how the civilians cower, and observes how the Marine bodyguards clench his fists and close his eyes in despair at the injustice before him (and he can do nothing because the people who are born with wealth and power are the ones who control them-)."YOU BITCH! Bring me food right away! If you don't want to be like Roronoa Zoro? Hahahaha anyway, I'm going to publicly execute him in three days, which will serve as a good reminder of who is in charge here."At this statement, Luffy gets to his feet. "Three days? You said after ten days he will be released”" Who do you believe you are? It is I who gives the command here, and Roronoa Zoro embarrassing me is a death sentence sealed by me."Umekui thinks that if she can kill him right now, he won't be missed. Trash like him does not deserve to be remembered, and she feels that a certain green-haired man will be glad to kill him himself.However, Luffy satisfies her view by pushing the hideous blond-haired man with his fist and knocking him out with a single shove. 
he is so fucking weak, it's ridiculous
Men who hide behind their positions of authority and don't even know how to punch properly are fucking stupid because they don't realize that when people who aren't afraid of gods break into their lives, they will knock them off their pedestal and make them taste the same injustice that they have been dishing out to the weak.Luffy grabs her by the waist and flees the room, a smile on his face and the echoes of his (loud and free) laugh echoing on the streets of Shell's village."Let's go get our new nakama, Ume!"The voice of the straw hat boy interrupts Zoro's snooze." YOSH! I will free you, and you will join our crew!""What do you mean?""My name is Luffy, and this is Ume! We want you to be our Nakama."Zoro snorts. "Are you inviting me to be a bad person? What the hell is wrong with you?"The boy -Luffy frowns and glares at him, putting his hands on his hips."What is wrong with being a pirate ?""Pirates are just rubbish and I hunt pirates, I don't join them, they are criminals"The boy tilts his head to the side, a puzzled expression on his face."Everyone already believes you're a bad guy. Why should you care?""I don't give a shit what the words say and it's not going to change!""You are as stupid as my captain, if you don't care about what the world says, then why point the life of a pirate as a criminal, it's completely paradoxical?"The young woman points out while raising an eyebrow.Zoro shoots her a scowl because she has been messing with his nerves since this morning."Para-what?" her captain asks."Paradoxical, my captain, it means that what he is saying before and now doesn't make sense because he contradicts himself""Doesn't matter, I'm not becoming a pirate, now scram."The pirate boy then looks up at the sky, cleans his ear with his little finger, and turns to face the female next to him."Did you hear something, Ume ?"Ume grins at her captain and raises her head to gaze at the sky."Nop."The Ume girl then turns to face him again, gives his hands a quick glance, and asks:"You are a swordsman, right ?"Zoro's eyes narrow and he responds simply, "Yes.""Eh ? Swordsman, where are your katanas?" the Luffy guy inquires."That jerk took everything I had; when this deal is done, I'm going to beat him up! They are my most precious treasure."(And her priceless katana, with which he promises to her father that he will be the best swordsman and that he will fulfill this promise because this katana is all that is left of her because she is long gone, and-)"Treasure?!" screams Luffy.And Ume knows how important treasure is to Luffy (because this straw hat is his treasure and he will do anything to protect it, because this hat holds the priceless promise of his deal with Shanks) she noticed this from the way he talked about Shanks guy all night (who has lost an arm to protect her precious captain and anyone who protects her captain is an ally of hers)).(And Ume makes an effort to ignore the burns and heavyweights of the long-forgotten treasure around her neck that were concealed by the numerous layers of bandages; after all, how can it be a treasure when the dreams that it carried have been lost along with it-)"Yes, they are my treasure got a problem?""shi shi shi then I'm gonna get it back for you!""Uh?""But if you want me to give it to you, you'll have to join us!""The hell?!"The girl chuckles in approval, the sound clearly amusing despite the fact that her eyes are so empty and lifeless, and at the sound, Luffy smiles wide and looks at her with the warm of the sun on his face (because Luffy likes the sound of Ume chuckling and he just wants her to laugh with him, wide and long; because Luffy wants to prove to the world that Ume is the best first mate and she is here alive even though her eyes are so vacant and dead)"Then I'm going! Ume, wait for me here!""Okay, Captain,""Oi! The base is the other way around, dumbass!" And Zoro wonders how he could be foolish and get lost while the tower of the base marine is right there in front of them, hard to miss.Luffy laughs and stretches his arms to the opposite side."What? Did he just fucking stretch?" Zoro gasps.The girl chuckles once more at his reaction, and he turns to glare at her."His Devil fruit is so funny," she says simply.Then he peers back at those ( lifeless and scary) eyes of hers and says,"This captain of you is either stupid or powerful, to take the headquarters alone""Wait and see by your eyes if he is simply stupid or just powerful, And you, Roronoa Zoro, are you strong ?"Zoro smirks at her and simply replies, his eyes burning with resolve (and his muscles steer, and the blood in his veins heats at this question, and his soul shouts)"I'm going to be the world's greatest swordsman! So I can't afford to be weak!"Umekui believes she may have found her wild card.The beast within her awakens from hunger, and the soul of this man is burning her own empty soul (if Luffy's soul was lucent and orphic (and young from the innocence of his heart), then Zoro's soul was harsh (not the harshness that makes people flinch, but the harshness that makes a man stand up to death, a harshness that hardens the hands that wield a sword with no hilt) and élan (confident, just like her captain, who declares he will be the king of pirates, confident that if he claims he will be the best swordsman in the world, it would be undeniably a reality),And Umekui wishes above all to be there with them and witness their ascension to these thrones, but Umekui never wishes for anything since the gods above them are cruel and selfish, and they detest her just as she has hated them since the beginning of her existence.At his response, she enters a stare-off with light grey eyes.Grey light explodes in his eyes as he draws a katana from his sheath under a full moon, and he looks stunning in the midst of it all. From his silky green hair to his deep light-grey eyes, he is a handsome man (what a shame he doesn't want to suffocate her with his muscled thighs). He's ready to take on the whole universe in order to achieve the goal he wants to achieve.'He's so many things in one,' she thinks,And it appears that the flames are devouring him completely; he appears to be ready to break anybody who crosses his way. His soul blazes (brilliant gold and green) under her sight, and her beast wants to devour it since this guy is enough to replace the flames of the kingdom of the dead, his own soul tries to respond only to be welcomed by her own vacuum.And her lips pull back into a smirk because no matter how hard he tries to look into her soul, he will find absolutely nothing (because Umekui is empty and dead, disqualified as a human being (being only a poor rotten replica of it) and the only thing that her mind is looking for is a suicide, the feelings of absolute hollowness and nullify as opposed to the emptiness that comes from this cursed ability, this wretched seam dooming her to the life of a-)"Umekui!"Koby's cry interrupts her stare-down."Koby? What are you doing here?""I want to help you guys! Those marines are completely wrong! (wrong like those pirates who make his life a living hell, wrong like those people who hurt the innocent (and when he thinks back on the citizens of this town who recoiled from the terror of the marines, it's just so wrong) My dream is to be a marine, but I am not going to be like them! This justice is so unfair."And Umekui knew that no matter which side you're on, evil always expects evil from others."Listen, Koby, justice is a weapon. it can be used to cause harm, but it cannot protect or save others, it's only you who can do this" declares Umekui, Then she walks up to the green-haired man, reaches inside her kimono, and pulls out her dagger, the familiar cold hilt and the ghost of blood suddenly heavy on her arm, and with a rapid movement of her arm, she cuts the ropes that bind the swordsman.She feels Zoro's annoyed eyes on her, and before he can say anything, she cuts him off, smashes her leg next to his head, and leans down until her face is inches away from his:"Listen here frog-head, If you do not want to be a dead man because the blond bastard is going to execute you; either you fight and join our crew or you die, it's simple,"Zoro glares back at her." Ha ? Simple, my ass? you fucking manipulative psy-"Zoro's insults are cut short by a rush of Marines into the yard, where they find themselves encircled by the Marines' large ugly covered mouth captain."YOU'RE THERE! YOU ARE SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR TREASON AND COMPLICE TO THE MENACE BROUGHT BY THE STAW HAT LAD!"Immediately, Umekui's soul burns as the scent of sunlight, meat, and spices floods her senses as the sun's rays burn through every inch of her body. While Luffy's unique, loud laughter resonates in her ears and heart over the disoriented silence that follows his entrance, she finds herself chuckling (she notices that she chuckles a lot now, and she's not sure if she has to be afraid of it or accept it)."EH OH! UME! ZORO! I'M HERE" Luffy waves at them, unfazed about the armed marines and the large man behind him."I didn't know which katana belonged to you, so I brought them all. Which is it?""All three. I use the Three Swords Style."Ume perks a brown and smirks at that phrase."Really?! That's so cool!" Luffy beams at him like a child at the sight of a lollipop."So frog-head, are you going to run away without your katanas? Or are you going to join us in resisting the Marines and becoming a criminal?" taunts Umekui,"Frog-head? You tissue maniac! Well, whatever. Just give me my katanas. I'll join you." Zoro scoffs, but smirks and extends his hand.Luffy drops his katanas and turns to hug Ume (who, strangely, does not flinch this time)." YOUPI UME! WE HAVE OUR FIRST CREW MEMBERS OF THE FUTURE KING OF PIRATES"Zoro sputters in reaction." What? The king of pirates ?" Luffy laughs, loud and free, full of goals and promises, and Ume smiles (a smile filled with devotion for the boy whose eyes are so sincere and big that they pledge her an adventure she will never forget (if she doesn't kill herself first, because her soul and heart hurts her so much-)), and Luffy reaches a hand toward his hat and the other toward the swordsman," MY NAME IS MONKEY D. LUFFY! THE MAN WHO WILL BE THE KING OF PIRATES! WELCOME TO OUR CREW, ZORO!"Umekui notices Zoro's soul blaze with a spirit stronger than before in response to Luffy's declaration. A storm appears in his eyes, his mouth opens, and he laughs, a laugh of admiration and esteem for this young man whose resolve has reached the apex of the universe because Zoro's conviction that he'll be the best swordsman in the world is inevitably bolstered by Luffy's conviction that he will become the king of the pirates.And Zoro leaps at the marines who attack them, threatening that whoever moves first will have his head rolling on the ground." LISTEN THERE, FUTURE KING OF PIRATES! I PROMISE TO BE A PIRATE! BUT I HAVE MY OWN AMBITIONS TOO!"The gleaming gold and green Zoro's soul blazes brighter once more, and Ume finds herself drawn to it."Ambitions ?""TO BECOME THE WORLD'S GREATEST SWORDSMAN AND IT DOESN'T MATTER IF IT'S AS A DEVIL OR A SAINT, MY NAME WILL BE HEARD ALL OVER THE WORLD!"The thing inside her mixes with the gold and green particles that dance around her, and Umekui decides that this man is more than just a wild card." YOU FOOLS! what are you standing around for? Slaughter them it's an order,"Luffy quickly knocks the marines encircling Zoro with a flick of his stech foot.Umekui hears the click of a gun near her skull and looks to her left to see the blond dude positioning a gun at her head."YOU ALL LISTEN TO ME IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO SEE ME KILL THIS BITCH,""Ara, Ara, don't treat someone with a gun when you can barely hold it and steady yourself.." Umekui smirks at the jerk in front of her, bends forward, and touches her head to the gun." here let me show you how we use guns.." Her eyes light up scarlet red, and his weapon is suddenly engulfed in red light. "Rules one: when you treat a gun at someone's head, you don't tremble because it will kill you..." The gun suddenly rotates on its own and points toward his foot, adds, "And be ready to shoot because it either kills or be killed..." shots were fired at her words,"AHHHHHHH, my foot," the captain's marine kid cries, dropping to the floor with his bloodied feet.Umekui lifts her attention to see that her captain has overcome the marines that surrounded Koby and Zoro has defeated the large captain of the marines, and sliced his hand-axe in pieces,"NICE WORK, UME! ZORO!"Zoro advances towards the long-haired girl with a glance and a smirk, and they both look up at their captain."My pleasure, captain""Ne Zoro, How are you still standing after not eating for three weeks?" Luffy wonders.As at that moment, Zoro's eyes roll back and his body collapses in Umekui's arms.Umekui looked down at him, her lifeless eyes examining her new Nakama's face. And marched toward the restaurant where Luffy and she had eaten, holding her new foolish nakama (letting her hands feel his fantastic muscles). She felt a presence by her side and turned her head to the left, where she was welcomed by large brown eyes."shi shi shi our new nakama is strong, right Ume ?" Luffy grins at them with his endearing smile."Yes, and really stupid like you," (stupid because she knows she will love him as much as she loves Luffy, stupid because all the things she has imagined about him will eventually surpass her expectations, stupid because he reminds her so much of a soul (orange and black) that brightened her world and Umekui is afraid to fall in the dark abyss of the seas again because it's a tragedy for her to always fall for the suns)"shi shi shi you are stupider than us Ume," (Stupid because she isn't still smiling and laughing with him without hiding herself, stupid because whenever she thinks he isn't looking at her, her eyes look at the horizon as if she is trapped in a place where the light doesn't exist and freedom is a sin for her, and Luffy wants his first mate eyes to glow with endless dreams and freedom because she is stupid like Ace (Ace, his dear brother who doesn't understand why he is loved) but the difference between Ace and Ume is the fact that Ace lives for his dream and Ume is unable to live (because she is already dead and Luffy doesn't know exactly how he brings the dead to life (because if he knew he would have been able to bring his dear brother Sabo to life because he is gone, dead, the flames eating-)Ume turns to face her captain and sticks out her tongue."BEhhh! Nope, all I see is your idiotic face, and the last one to arrive is the stupidest!"Then she flees from him, carrying Zoro on her shoulders like a bag of potatoes;"HAHAHHAHAHA" (his laughter echoes red and blue in her body and dances with gold and green particles she has allowed into her soul)Luffy laughs loudly and chases after her, determined to defeat her and prove to her that she is dumber than him.And the sun, who was watching from above, chuckled, searing the world with his heat. The new visitor to Shell Town liberated the town from the men who governed with corruption and injustice.

"Hearts are wild creatures, that's why our ribs are caged"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

" How can you survive this world without becoming a monster ? "

The sun burnt Zoro's body, and the void in his stomach exacerbated the heat, and the only thing surrounding him was the sea and two idiots who were his new crewmates." UME ! I'M SO HUNGRY!" cries his dumb captain."You could have had food for now if you hadn't eaten everything in half an hour like a starving beast," the black-haired girl remarked."But I was hungry," he laments."You're always hungry," she asserts."but it's not my fault if I love foods and meats""and it not of my fault if I love death but here clearly even them don't wants me""It's because you're stupid, and they probably don't want dead dumb people" (and because you have promised Luffy that you will be there with him when he becomes king of pirates, and Luffy has promised the skies that he and Ume will live and die together side by side)"i won yesterday so it's you who is dumb, captain""Ha?! No, Zoro is the one who lost, making him the most stupid of us all"Zoro's brow furrows at that remark, he glares at his weird companion, then points at the girl with the red eyes;"it's because this suicidal maniac threw me on the floor and continued her race"And at this point, the tissue maniac has the audacity to put out her tongue to him:"It's not my fault if you were heavy; you're the one who's supposed to carry me, not me! I wonder where chivalry has gone these days."" You tissue bitch! I am not your servant.""Thank goodness! Because if you were my servant, I would have fired you on the first day, frog-head," she states,and raises her shoulders to establish her claim."You psych-""shi shi shi you're both so dumb it's funny," Luffy laughs (and Luffy knows he has the best crew in the world since Zoro's strength and passion is something he has always aspired to have in his crew someday and admires in him) His first mate's strength is something he trusts with his eyes closed no matter the costs. In order to protect his back and get back at him, Luffy knew that Ume would do everything in her power and witnessing those two is like watching an endless comedy)Zoro notes how their first mate's eyes soften as she turns her head to gaze at Luffy when he laughs. (And Zoro wonders why her eyes look so guilty when she looks at Luffy. It was as if her mere existence beside them was the most heinous thing she had committed. And he thinks once more about what sins she could have committed before meeting Luffy since only someone who has tasted blood on their hands would shoot at someone's feet with a smile on their face (or just a crazy psycho like her)." Oh, Ume! A bird!" Luffy points at the bird with stars in his eyes, and Zoro and Umekui stare up at the bird in the sky.Then his smile broadens as an idea occurs to him:"YOSH! Let's eat this bird!"" hum? How?" Zoro says in confusion." Leave it to me!" exclaims Luffy, stretching his arms at the bird."GOMU GOMU NO ROCKET-"Zoro and Umekui lifted their heads and looked to see their captain prepulse himself toward the bird, only to get stuck in its beak." UME! AHHH! ZORO! HELP ME"Then Umekui and Zoro rush to the oars, Umekui on the left and Zoro on the right, and row as fast as they can to catch up to their captain."this dumbass-i'm going to kills him!" Zoro yells"Not if I kill him first-" curses Umekui. (Luffy has only been her captain for 5 days and is already causing her heart attacks. and she's not sure if she'll die first from his idiocy or if he'll die first from his stupidity. (And Ume knows deep down that she will go to whatever length to protect her captain from death's selfish claws and Umekui acknowledges that she is the most selfish between her and death because.-Zoro's shouts jolt her out of her trance."What are these castaways doing now? I don't care, we're not going to stop if you want to survive, just jump!"Umekui's ears (that hurt so much, and she just wanted to have her captain back in her arms and hear his laugh that drowned out the screaming) were greeted by shouts from the sea, and her sight was met by three pairs of hands that hurled themselves aboard of their boat.Umekui ( the beast inside her stirs and wakes up ) slips a hand inside her kimono and grabs the familiar icy grip of her revolver (and her hand felt so heavy by the weight of the ghost hands of her nightmares that scratched her hand to blood)." Hey ! stop this boat! we're the crew of the buggy the clown! we're taking over this ship" menace the three pirates with a sword pointed toward them.Zoro glares at them, but before he can make them regret their existence, the click of a gun is heard."If one of you moves or tries to threaten the life of my nakama again will have his head and brain blows out, okay ?" Stats his first mate, her handgun aimed at their new guests.And Zoro smirks (he can't wait to see what their first mate has in store for them and to find out why her eyes look so dead and void. And why her figure is always stiff, like if something from within is devouring her alive also why her presence seems nonexistent, as if she doesn't exist or is already dead (and Zoro's tongue feels bitter in his mouth at this idea.)"Yes Madame!" gulps the pirates, terrified for their lives.Umekui stands up and walks towards them, casting a glance over her shoulder."Zoro's sweetheart's hands hurt from rowing." So you're going to take Zoro places and row toward the bird that grabbed our captain like good little guys, okay?."Zoro knows his hands aren't hurting or tired, but the way Umekui threatens those pirates and how they nod at her in fear for their lives like pussies is simply hilarious but wait a minute, what did the psycho just call him?" HA ?! Who are you calling sweethearts, you bandage-wasting device?"Umekui raises her head, stares at him, and sticks out her tongue at him:
'One of these days, I'm going to cut her tongue!'
"You don't have to hide your joy I know you like these nicknames. Oh, I see! You prefer frog-head or Cactus-kun, so this time I provide you an option so you chose!" she mocks"Neither of these two, you tissue maniac!"She completely ignores him and waits for him to come to her side before pointing her handgun at the three morons while showing the oars;"What are you waiting for? A ball in your skulls to rows?" She glares at them, indicating that she will not hesitate to do it."straight away ma'am!" They yell and thrust themselves at the oars, row at an unnatural pace.Zoro smirks at Umekui, amused by his situation."You are a fucking scary witch"" It's you who speaks. Poor Koby nearly pees in his pants at the sight of you I wonder if he was just scared or taken aback by your ugliness.""HA-what did you say, faggot ?" he scream" I wouldn't be surprised if you died a virgin because of your brash personality""Who says I'm still a virgin? I'm sure I have more people throwing themselves at my feet."" It's impossible! You are, how shall we put it, hum-macho! and wait? So little Zoro (Umekui knows that nothing in Zoro is small) is a man now hen" Umekui smiles at him like a pervert."You pervert psycho-"" Oh, look! We've arrived!" Well done! Let us look for our captain before he gets into problems because of his stupidity."The three drained pirates panted and stared at the woman in front of them, threatening to murder them and taunting the demon pirate hunter.
'She's completely insane,' 
Zoro's eyes darken and he glares at the three dipshits,"Now scrams dipshit, unless you want me to dismember you or tell her to shoot a bullet through your heads."The three men cried and fled, terrified that these demons might catch them and slaughter them."I'm going north, and you're going south; if we go our separate ways, we'll find him faster! Knowing him, he's eating somewhere," Umekui states as she marches north of town." ok ! "Don't get into trouble, you too," Zoro simply adds as he follows her."Why are you following me, cactus head ?""I'm not following you. I'm heading south, like you recommended, waste-of-bandages!""This way leads to the north, You lost a child marimo," she responds, pointing in the other direction of him, "the south is this way."Zoro could only blush and glares at her before turning around and heading in the other direction she had pointed.Umekui chuckles at his reaction and gazes at him as he walks away from her, and the gold and green particles in hers leave her, and the void inside her grows more and more bigger.(And at this moment, Umekui wishes she were dead. because how can she be this pitiful, believing or hoping that their souls will always rest in her? (And she instantly removes this thought from her mind. Because Umekui is aware of the atrocious deeds she must commit in order to acquire them. and the mere notion of it makes her want to shoot herself in the head simply because she has the audacity to believe for a split second that the blemishes of this world are nothing more than a hazy retention of the poison that flow through her system and the tragedy that is devouring her insides-)In the summer haze of the sun that a long time ago she had dreamed to see and imagined how it looked like. She let her gaze stray to the marmoris of the sea, that she despises but craves so much. and pleads for just a moment for the warmth of the sun (red and blue) to burn her and the brightness of a soul (gold and green) to make her feel something.For as long as she could remember, Umekui was aware that she was a vindictive being who constantly wrecked things. But who can blame her for craving to feel Luffy's warmth, whose touch makes her want to pull her heart out with her bare hand and offer it to him? (Because his touches take nothing away from her. His touch gives again and again, striving to fill the void in her eyes. And makes her forget the touches that have taken so much from her that will never be returned.-))With the cries and outrage echoing in her ears and head, she turns around and runs north in search of the boy whose laugh drowns out the sacrilege of her existence and tames the madness within her.
' You idiot! I swear if you have put yourself in something dumb I will kill you'
Marching through the streets of this town, Umekui notices that everything is quiet (not the quietness of her void, which leads her to crave blood out of her flesh and beg death to embrace her because it feels so lonely inside her, so lonely that the very existence of death is her sole companion and savior),Everything is deserted in this place; she doesn't see any people or open shops; it's as if this is a ghost town ruled by terror.As she continued on her way, she noticed an open store and moved toward it.HOCKER'S PET SHOPShe wonder if her captain hadn't entered it and eaten the pet's food. because, excuse her, but her captain seems to ingest everything on earth, so little kibble for animals is nothing to him. Some movement catches her attention, and she ponders if it is her captain inside, munching some pet food. If it's him, she's not sure whether she'll beat him or send him to an exorcist.When she entered the shop, she was greeted by a cute huge white puppy instead of her captain. Suddenly, a flowing aura swirls around her, and her eyes sparkle with stars."What an adorable puppy! You are so adorable, omg!!!" She exclaims like a fangirl,She admires him because Umekui has always been fond of cute animals (because animals will never be cruel or heartless like humans). The subject of survival for animals and humans will always be separated by a chasm because survival for humanity means the selfish rights of the most powerful and the annihilation of the innocent. Umekui has knowledge of humans as well as animals, and animals are better since animals kill for food while humans kill because they're just not any good.and she realizes over again that she is far worse than animals and humans cause when she sees those hands that are so heavy from her misdeeds. She swore she'd never touch another animal again (since the first time she did it was the last time she could hope that she wasn't a monster) and taint their purity (their souls that aren't impacted by their owners' evil yet the soulf of this dog is so pure, lonely, and filled with grief);"Are you hungry?" she says as she knelt before him, seeing an ornament around his neck.
'Chouchou'
So his name is Chouchou."Chouchou, you have a beautiful name"And the dog barks at her, and a flowing aura dances around him (since Chouchou was relieved to see a friendly human after such a long time who didn't try to beat him up and damage this pet shop)," YOU! What exactly are you doing here? Get away from Choucou right now!" yells an elderly voice behind her.When she turns around, an elderly man with a spear pointing at her was standing in front of her, wearing a clunky outfit of brown leather armor." Yare yare old man why are you pointing this at me ? I prefer a beautiful lady or young bbeautiful man to stab me. then again if you stab me in the heart i wonder if i will die immediately. neither mind I'm sure that it will hurt. and are you dumb at your old age wearing those and a spear. your back will break from those mouvement. but then again I don't think you have much time left to live.-"The white eyebrow of the old man twitch and an annoyed expression crossed his face,"Ha?! how dares you I'm not that old and what are you doing here ?""I'm searching for my dumb friend who ended up here because of a bird,"At her answers the old man lowers his spear ;"How did he get thrown by a bird? Neither mind stops looking for him he's definitely dead,"Umekui's hands quiver as the poison in her veins burns wanting to destroy everything but she merely smiled. (a smile so lifeless and vacuous that she knows her dumb precious captain hates.)"What do you mean by dead ?" she asks ( and she try to tame back the creature that wants to obliterate everything because if he is dead, gone Umekui swears she'll burn this world down and carries it to her grave.  because a world where Luffy doesn’t exist It's a world that will return her to this place where the sun is merely a fable among others. and he can't be dead since Luffy fucking promised her-)""This town was not like that three months ago; there was a time when Orange Town was bustling with life and people." Everyone lived in peace, and as mayor, I pledged to defend this town and its residents. However, the occupation of a crew that opted to set up their base here ruined this idyllic hamlet then steals, kills, and destroys the village with their canon without mercy. This crew is known as the Buggy Pirates. Because of them, the majority of the inhabitants in Orange Town had fled to other sections of the island. But Chouchou stayed since he didn't want to leave his deceased owner's pet shop, so I'll frequently come here to check on him and feed him,(since it was the only thing he could do. Boodler is aware of his cowardice, but what can he do against pirates? The only thing he could do was uphold his promise to his good old friend and take care of Chouchou)"Umekui now understands why this town is deserted, as well as why this lovely white puppy was alone in this shop (a scent of despair and grief)."Oh, I see. I bet my stupid friends have come across this crew. and are in serious trouble. What a pity, I'm sure Zoro is already kicking ass without me." Umekui sulks as she crunches down and draws some circle on the floor,"What don't you understand by this town is ruled by dangerous pirates and your friends are most likely dead, you insane lady," shrieks the old man at her."Ara ara, old man, that's not how you talk to a beautiful lady." (Umekui is aware that nothing in her is beautiful.) Don't worry, my friends are strong, wannabe pirates will not kill them. (She also knows that Luffy and Zoro have dreams and goals to attain. and they will not be killed when their adventure has just begun.-)" She reassures him as she stands up and winks at him." Listen to me, crazy woman! Get out of this town before you get into trouble and get killed!" he yells at her."What a shame, old man, that I love getting into trouble as much as my friend does and give you a million reasons why I love death. Well, this town is perfect for me. yosh! Now I'm going to look for my friends. and beats some pirates in my passage praying that frog-head didn't have fun without me! Goodbye, old man, and Choucou !" She reveals as she exits the pet shop with merely a wave.As she stepped outdoors, she heard the sound of a cannon ball being shouted from the other side of town and Umekui was ready for her next location plus wager that Zoro and her captain were undoubtedly there.Mohji the Beast Tamer and Richie his lion were taking a tour of town to see if anyone had invaded their territory. because an orange thief and her boss had already caused enough havoc. and Buggy, his captain, ordered him to execute everyone he met in town.Long black hair and a white kimono grab his sight at the end of the street. Mohji grins, having found his prey for the day. He'll take a smart pleasure in playing with her before delivering her to his lion to consume. Richie hasn't eaten an extensive meal in a long time.Running at her with Mohji on Richie's back, he yells for her to halt, and she does."what are you doing here, woman ?!"She turns to face him with her eyes closed (is she blind? and why is she wrapped in so many adages) and smiles properly at him,"Oh, I'm just going to take back my friend from there," she says, pointing to where the steam is coming from.Mohji laughs loudly at her. Richie growls at her. But the odd woman didn't even flinch or exhibit any signs of terror. and Mohji believes he will take great joy in shattering her and fantasizing about her face (young and beautiful and so white) filled with tears and dread."I'm sorry, little lady. But your path ends here, you'll let me kill you nicely and let Richie eat you since he's very hungry and hasn't eaten in a while," he adds, and the lady in front of him shows no fear or reaction to his threat. She only smiles at him, her eyes still closed."and who do you think you are for deciding this ?" She simply asks, and Mohmji cracks up at her foolishness." Mohji the beast tamer, Buggy pirates' first mate. and the one who has the ability to tame any beast!"Chuckles reach his ears. And he stares jaw wide open, at the insane woman in front of him."'the one who can tame any creature ,' hen?" i see." Her eyes then open. Mohji felt fear in his bones as he saw the hues. (her eyes are so frighteningly crimson and wide that she might swallow him up) and Richie below him began to shake."I believe it is your path that ends there since I need to reach my friends. and if I have disregarded you as a result. Then it will be my pleasure.""You bitch! who do you think you are, attack Richie!" He yells as Richie jumps toward her.However, before he could touch her. He and Richie both froze at a single touch of her finger. It was as if the atoms in his body had froze and the blood in his veins ceased to flow. As he finds himself propelled toward the sky and smashed back roughly on the floor, blood erupted from his mouth and nose, and Richie pats cracked. And when he turned to face the woman, who was staring down at him all he could see were her devilish bloodshot eyes and made entirely of darkness. Mohji feels it was a bad decision to cross paths with a monster disguised as a woman."Please have mercy," he begs, tears streaming down his cheeks."Mercy ?" she repeats. "This word is meaningless. Let's just say the creature hasn't eaten in a long time and is starving," she explains simply.And the last thing Mohji knows and hears is pitch blackness. There was so much darkness that it completely consumed him alive. He could feel his insides burning then a monstrous growl that crawled inside him. Mohji fears for the world because a monster like her is free and marching in this world with devastation in her veins. With a last scream and and the faint whimper of his lion, Mohji begged the gods for mercy because this abomination did not do it.NAMI hates pirates.She despises them from the bottom of her heart (this heart, which weighs so heavily in her body, ruined and plagued by her loathing for the most despicable being) since they only know how to destroy and kill and takes again and again without giving back, with the evil shaping their features. And she will resent them for the rest of her life.But why, when she looks at this pirate boy who vowed to be the king of pirates (the monarch of whom wrecked her life who killed the sole warms to her life.) All she sees is a warm, broad smile. (That reminded her of the faints loving fingers that stroked the head of the tiny child she was.)  and whose kindness and passion contradict everything of her morality toward those who are pirates. It is because of this that she has deviated this canon and did not wish to murder him (and Nami was so exhausted from contaminating her hands),And once again. When she looks at this man who has put himself in peril to save her from the pirates of the Buggy crew, he doesn't hesitate to take out these swords and fight against them. For a brief span, she considers that not all pirates are evil. (However, she will not allow herself to be pathetically hopeful. That they are good because Nami understands that nothing in this world is good without sacrifice. Since she is the first to witness and knows it-)But as she looks at him, he's been stabbed in the back by Buggy. and collapses to the ground, his white tee-shirt stained with blood. The straw hat boy screaming out his name with worry in his voice. (Since when do the pirates care about others? Since when did they have a heart?) from the cage in which he is imprisoned. (It's her fault that he's stuck on this cage. It's also her fault that the green-haired strongman is bleeding on the floor. ('It's always her fault,' she believes, but it was for survival. but at what price?))And the echoes of the Buggy crew's laughter fill the air. and laughs at the swordsmen's humiliation on the floor along with his captain trapped in the cage. and nami knows it is her chance to escape and save her life (However, Nami was tired of being selfish. And how dare she flee when these men are sacrificing their lives for her sake? Nami was so sick of it. Why do the good and the sacrifices have to be a part of wings? Why, jut why, why??)And their laughter makes her want to vomit. because they serve as an agonizing reminder of things she is never going to be free of it," Buggy ! Buggy !"They chant, and Nami wonders what good it is to chant the names of evil men. It was absurd, like praying to gods who would never respond only to punish them since the deity above them enjoys cruelty and murder without empathy. (Like those giant beings who destroyed everything that gave her hope to experience the warmth of her home again.-"yare yare. I'm not just here for a few minutes. and my stupid captain gets into trouble. HEY ! OH ! Frog-head, how is the view from the floor ?" a feminine voice from above says. and ends the pirates' vile laughter,"You suicidal maniac!""It took you a while to come," Zoro smirks from the floor, looking at the sun-shadowed figure of the woman. When standing on the roof," YOUHOU UME! "YOU'RE FINALLY HERE! I'VE MISSED YOU SO MUCH!" yells the straw hat boy from his cage, his smile wide and beaming. She then turns around to face the Ume girl. Her gaze is met with long black hairs. and a body bound in bandages from her neck to her ankles, clad in a white kimono. When she looks at her white face (untouched by the sunlight), she thinks this woman is beautiful. But her eyes, marred by a mole beneath one of them, were disturbingly gorgeous. and so crimson, yet so lifeless and void. (They reminded her of big grey eyes wholly dead and soulless and the cold body against her petite frame, and the-)Suddenly, the woman fixed her gaze on her then stars sparkle in her eyes, jumping to her side and delicately took her hand.It has been a long time since Nami's hand has been held with such tenderness) and knelt before her like a knight at her service, pledging to protect her as if she were a princess.(However, Nami is aware that nothing in her life has been of royalty. Since when royalty was a life of stealing and running in the hope of living to see another day. ... nobody can save her or protect her from the vile remedies of her condition.-),"Beautiful..you are a lady as ephemeral and elegant as a lotus bloom, would you be willing to join me in a double suicide ?" She asks, surrounded by shining stars,"heh ?" Nami felt confused by her proposal; had she just asked for a double suicide?"This is not the time for your weird flirting, you suicidal weirdo!" curses Zoro from the floor, wishing to strangle her.Nami feels something drop into her hand, and the beautiful woman winks at her before standing up and turning to cover her behind her."That's not a way to talk to your savior, seaweed !" she smirks down at Zoro, " YOU BITCH! Who do you think you are to interrupt my shows?" Buggy growls at her.She completely ignores him and moves toward the cage where her captain is being imprisoned."My captain, please stop getting into trouble when I'm not around. Do you know about all the work that you give to me?" she alleges. And by lightly touching the lock, with her finger, it snaps and falls to the ground. Suddenly Luffy rushes at her arms and with a flick of her wrist, she cuts his ropes with her blade.Then she carries her captain in her arms and leaps to the top of the cage to avoid the buggy's sword."I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" explodes Buggy, but she merely pulls her tongue out at him with a blank face."Now it's your turn, Belladonna," she remarks, turning to face her and Nami then presses the button in her grasp.Suddenly, an explosion shakes the area, and smoke infiltrates their eyes and noses, causing Buggy and his pirates to cough and rub their eyes.The lady seizes the opportunity to leap to her feet, grab Zoro from the ground, carry him on her shoulder and runs towards her, Luffy close behind. She grabs her waist, slings her over her other shoulder, and sprints with Luffy. Nami wonders what type of mess she got herself into once again. And just who this mysterious person who has rescued them is and planted bombs around the base of Buggy.Umekui sprints towards the pet store, carrying the gorgeous ginger and Zoro on her shoulders. With her captain close behind. (And all she wants is to turn and cradle her captain in her arms then let herself get consumed by the heat of his body and takes Zoro into her arms so she can feel his fantastic muscles then apologize for failing him as his first mate because she was late (it's ironic how her tardiness has been the root of endless tragedies (it's always her fault, and it will never change)),And now he's been hurt and humiliated by those scumbags by her fault. And when she saw her commander in this cage (those cruel cages that Umekui is all too familiar with and despises so much ) She wanted to rip those men's hearts out then sets them on fire and feel their blood in her palms and devour their-)As she enters the pet store, she finds the old man and the dog from earlier."OH old man, it's me again !" she says,The old man's eyes burst out of his body, and Choucou greets her with a bark."My name is not old man. It's Boodler. What are you doing here? and who are they?" He motions to the girl and Zoro on her shoulders Luffy, who has crouched in front of Choucou with stars in his eyes.(Is it wrong to think that Luffy is more adorable than a puppy?)"duh, my friends who I was looking for," she blurted out."So they're not dead," he states."Nope, but frog-head, I don't think he has much time left" she says, pointing to the man on her left shoulder."I'm not going to die, you maniac; now let me go that I can strangle you-" She interrupts his sentence by tossing him on the floor."OUCH YOU CRAZY WITCH-"She utterly disregards him and moves her gaze to the ginger on her shoulder then delicately lowers her on the floor, smiles at her (a meaningless smile because Umekui is nothing more than an unfilled void containing the worst monstrosity lurking inside her.-) and questions,"Are you okay, my lady ?""hum yes, thank you for saving me""There's no need to thank me. I would gladly risk my life for such a beautiful woman as you.""Ume, look! A white dog!"Her captain then snatched her attention by pointing at Choucou, only for him to be bitten by the white puppy."Ahhhhhh he bites me, Ume!" He cries out,She, too, ignores him and turns to the mayor, demanding," Can you tend the wounds of Zoro ?" Boodler glances at the swordsman on the floor, his white tee shirt soaked in blood. He knows that he will never ignore anyone in need of assistance (Because if he turns his back on those young ones, then he will be far worse than the pirates who came to devastate his town.)"yes but how did you survive these pirates?" He asks, bewildered. Because it was the first time that someone has escaped from the wrath of the Buggy pirates,"Like I said. My friends are strong. Don't underestimate us," Umekui demands.Someone jumped on top of her and the smells of sea and spices enhanced her senses. Inside her, particles of red and blue swirl, and the transition of screaming into whispers. With the absence of flinching, makes Umekui know this boy by soul and heart (if she had those, which she hoped she did, because how can she learn to love without a heart?)" Shi shi shi, Ume! I missed you! Where were you?" asks Luffy, his smile burning her. (And Umekui knows she'll let the flames consume her alive just to feel the warmth of her captain and her Nakama)."Don't worry, Captain! I'm here now," she assures her captain.He drops off her back and walks toward the orange-haired girl, presenting her,"This is Nami, she is our navigator !"The (beautiful captivating) Nami girl smacks him on the head with her fist and just says,"I'm not your navigator !""We are so lucky to have such a beautiful lady like you as our navigator," Umekui says with a flowing aura." Guess what, Ume! Nami bought lunch for me!" Luffy tells her, looking at her with his wonderful large caring eyes. Umekui's eyes soften, and she reaches a hand toward his hair, longing to feel the softness of it on her palm. But she drops it because if he learns what she did only hours before, he will slap her hand and those gorgeous eyes of his will gaze at her with scorn and hatred."I'm sure you're hungry right now. Fortunately for you, I did some shopping for you," she says, handing him a bag full of food and meats.Then she marches with an apple and a sandwich in each hand, which she hands to Zoro whose injuries are being treated by the mayor. He thanks her and then moves on to Nami, who glances at her puzzledly,"Here" she tends an apple and a sandwich."Thank you," she says as she takes them from Umekui's hands. (And Nami looks at the food she has in her hand then at the girl who gave her food and wonders how they can be pirates. Pirates are cruel. Pirates do not give; instead, they take again and again and leave a void in people's lives. But? Yet, when she glances at these three, she thinks that perhaps not all pirates are evil-)Umekui sits by Luffy, devouring everything he finds in his bag and pauses to gaze at her and take her hand, holding it there.(Because Luffy saw the hand that tried to touch him drops like touching him is bad for him. And Luffy takes Ume's hand in his to let her know without words that if she wants to touch him, he will never smack her hand away or scream at her for it),Umekui fixes her gaze on the hand that encircles her own then looks at her captain's broad grin before returning his attention to his food.Something in her cracked as she saw the endless exhibition of kindness shown to her yet for that Umekui only wants to hit him in the face and yells at him that she is nothing more than a repulsive monster who didn’t deserve him. However, Umekui is a selfish being so she doesn't try to withdraw her hand. (And something deep within of her brought to mind the soft spearmint scents, whose soul is so tender and caring, and the hazy promises lost in the dark recesses of her memories-)Zoro's gaze travels from the mayor's hands, which are treating his injuries to the ginger girl who is eating the food Umekui gave her. (He notices how often she seems to be staring at them as if they were anomalies that even her dreams was unable to create) to the pair of his dumb captain and first-mate.Umekui's red eyes (which are still vacant and Zoro wants to push her solely to fill them with something.) catch his gaze. and guilt crosses her face; (and once again, Zoro is fucking lost; because he doesn't know why she always feels so guilty when she looks at him and their captain. Then merely blinks at him and shifts her head to gaze at their new navigator,And she examines her as if she were looking at her heart and soul. Zoro smirks because the fucking witch is doing to her what she has done to him. And for this reason, Zoro is cognizant of the reliability of his first mate since she will not let anyone near her captain or on their crew without first studying and assessing them.The mayor then began to explain why this town was deserted. and how the Buggy crew ruined this town and its people. and that they were engaged in combat with some outsiders to this town and not him is a disgrace for him considering his duty as the mayor of this town. Zoro didn't seem interested in what he was saying then shuts his eyes to give himself a brief moment of slumber because the injury inflicted by the clown bitch hurts....Zoro's eyes arouse from his little snooze and focus on his first mate's figure that is in front of him. As he notices the little quiver of her hand and fingers, the only thing he is able to do is grab her hand with his own. Her hands stiffen up on his palm then gently relax. (When she realized it was only him and not something else Zoro frowns at his notion)."Thank you for saving us," he simply mumbled ( even if Zoro is prideful. if someone saves him, he will appreciate it (Because he can't die till he fulfills his goal and becomes the world's greatest swordsman) especially if he finds them powerful." It's nothing. As your first mate, it's my responsibility," she merely claimed. (However, her gaze seemed so far away as if something is taking her away from there, away from them, from him. Zoro squeezed her hand tighter to remind her that she was there with him."And for that, you are one hell of a first mate," Zoro smirks. Her attention was drawn back to him by his comment as she smirks at him. A reel smirk of enjoyment and affection and a glimmer of a smile and Zoro likes this better on her face. (Because she appears to be alive at this moment. Because her skin's white appeared to be light rather than bland white and her eyes are no longer blank but rather a bright crimson)"but seriously from where did you get those bombs, you crazy witch ?" He inquires, amused,"It's a secret," she replies simply as she turns to stare out the window."Where is the mayor, Luffy, and the orange-haired girl ?" he questions, his gaze darting across the room,"They fled outside after the mayor opted to face the pirates alone. I'm curious what these generation's old men drink to be thus foolish. and the navigator and Luffy went after him. I wanted to pursue them but—" and she casts a flimsy look of worry on her face as she stares down at him then shifts her attention to the floor,
' so the suicidal maniac is worried about me hen' 
"I'm fine, I'll sleep a little more and then join you, so don't worry," he asserts to her."HA!, who says that I was worried fucking moron ?"Zoro simply laughed at her reply. (And Umekui likes the sound of his laughter. His laughing echoes with her dear captain's laughter.  Zoro's laugh was different from Luffy's (So loud, wide, and so warm) However, it was a laugh in an act of trust (so deep and strong) that reached the madness inside her and played with the shadows of her monstrosity.)He let her take her hand back.(And Umekui already misses the warmth of his hand with the hardness of his palm, that had been strengthened by the hilts of his swords).She then turns to exit the shop and quietly smiles without turning around to face him, she waves her hand and leaves the shop."See you later, frog-head."After knocking out the mayor because the old man was stupid to try and take the pirates by himself and injure himself. Luffy finds himself up against Buggy and his crew. With his rubber body, he easily distracts them with the deflected cannon balls fired at him by Buggy.So now all he needs to do is beat Buggy. However, the bizarre clown body separating power is quite annoying (and Luffy is simply hungry),Buggy's hands suddenly fly toward his head and throws his hat to the ground,"My treasure," he shrieks, concerned that it may be damaged." Treasure, this hat? hahahhahah. Treasures are gold and silver objects that shine and reflect the owner's opulence, you fool! This awful straw hat is a treasure?! Don't make me laugh." Buggy gestures to his discarded hat on the floor,All Luffy could feel was anger at the mockery of his treasured hat (This hat that gives him Shanks is the vessel of the promises he made to Shanks. pledging to be the greatest pirate of all time and the king of pirates-)"That's Shank hat!" screams Luffy.Buggy's face bursts in rage and disgust as he hears the name Shanks."This the hat of the annoying redheaded bastard!" Buggy hurls three daggers in the direction of the hat at that realization. but before the three knives can cause harm to the hat. A back appeared to shield the hat,"Ouch, this hurts like a bitch," a voice complains, putting a hand toward their back and ripping the three daggers from their backs."UME!" yells Luffy, worriedly.Nami, who is hiding behind a wall, witnesses her actions (Nami thinks that this girl whose eyes are redder than blood and much darker than the night didn't hesitate for a second to protect the treasure (this treasure that he holds so dear in his heart and has told her the tales it contains with a smile so warm and wide-) is prepared to sacrifice her life and soul for him and Nami isn't sure what's most horrifying about it."It's you again. the b*tch of this morning that blew up our base. You're going to pay for it! And let go of this stupid hat!" yells Buggy as he separates a foot from his body. and sends it to the girl who has bent down to shield the hat with her body. His feet hit hard on her back, right where the wounds were, and drew more blood. Buggy burst out laughing and repeatedly struck her back. one time, twice, three times, and so on.Umekui was aware that she would unconditionally let herself crave all of Monkey D. Luffy's warmth and the kindness of his heart the moment she laid eyes on him. And she vowed herself she would do everything for him. (Even if it meant the extinction of this word. and letting her body empty of bloodless. or surrendering her being to the Devil.). She will do anything for him without hesitation. If Umekui has to make a selfish decision only to experience Luffy's soul (so vast and full of love and dreams. red and blue so dazzling. and so soft), she will. Because she is a selfish being (a greedy monster that only knows how to take again and again).Upon arrival and saw her captain being insulted for his hat ( this straw hat that he loves so deeply and dearly). His treasure that all the nights when he holds her with such warmth (Umekui wants to beat him and tells him that she doesn't deserve his touch because she will just taint him) and told her about it (And when she stared at his enormous eyes. that sucked in all the warmth of the sun burns with so much love. that she felt ashamed to just breathe alongside him ) She has vowed to keep this straw hat safe at all costs. Luffy looks into the back of his first mate, whose white (white like her skin, which was never introduced to the sun and devoid of dreams and life) kimono is dripping in blood (purple-red so vivid in contrast to her dark red eyes (so void and dead)).  Something in him was angered (Like the anger that he felt when Shanks (his hero) was humiliated by those bandits and this clown. anger, such as when the Nobles came to their village injured Ace, and killed Sabo. anger like when he was kidnapped, because he was so weak, and let Shanks protect him (but at what cost?) And stares at her as she lets Buggy harm her solely to keep his hat safe. But Luffy dislikes it because why is she allowing herself to be hurt?( 'It's for you' a part whispers. but at what cost?)" UME, STAND UP. AND FIGHT BACK, IT'S AN ORDER!"Luffy then turns to face Buggy then strikes him in the face with a powerful blow. " AND YOU, BIG NOSE! LET GO OF MY FIRST MATE!"Buggy screams and flies away. but rises with a murderous expression on his face. "I WILL KILL EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU. AND NAMI AS WELL, YOU THIEF!" and divides his body and lets his upper body soar in the direction of the Nami girl holding his treasure bag and map;Nami glances up at the sky, where Buggy is throwing himself at her. But before he can reach her side by the bandaged hands, she is carried and ends up on the roof. Nami turns to face her savior (who has already saved her twice today and she won't understand why she is so nice when she is a pirate). Then puts her on the roof with so much delicatessen that she fears she would break her? (And Nami knows that nothing in her boring body is delicate),"Can you keep this? It means a lot to my captain." She puts the hat in her hand. (And Nami is perplexed. Why is this Umekui girl looking at this hat? with an expression that says she doesn't deserve to hold it? since she will merely soil it)"hum yes of course !"Nami looks at Umekui's bleeding back, who jumps at her captain's side who has kicked Buggy in the balls hard." ouch. That must have hurt a lot," Nami remarks, amused.Umekui is by Luffy's side, who is relieved to have her back and declares with a snap of his knuckles,"Let's kick the ass of big nose !"In response, Umekui grins. and leaps along her captain's stretched hand toward Buggy the dumb clown. She won't lie, but the scars he's caused on her back hurt like hell. and umekui despises pain (she despises it so much because it eats her alive every second, every time she talks and breathes it hurts her so much) and his power is so annoying. She and her captain don't have all day. So they'll finish it properly. When she got to Buggy's side, she grabbed his hand. and allow this ability (this venom in her that kills her despite all her core). run through her veins and through Buggy's body. (And the cries and whispers in her ears are so loud that Umekui just wants it to stop since she hates it so much).Buggy's heart stops from dread. His Bara Bara no Mi no longer works. How is this possible? His devil fruit is no longer responding to him and Buggy just wants to scream. He has never seen or felt anything like this in his life, so it's impossible. (And without his power, he feels exposed and vulnerable to the world). It doesn't feel like it exists anymore. Buggy wants to smash his skull against the floor and inquire of the gods how this is possible. Because only a monster rejected by the gods and raised by the darkness may crawl through his veins and rend the devil's fruit. He then catches this girl in the shape of a monster out of the corner of his eye or is it a monster in the shape of a girl? and before he could say anything or scream to the gods to help him. A rubbed hand comes up to his face. And the last thing he sees is the monster's brilliant red eyes as well as the darkness that welcomes him.Seeing the clown fly through the air. and being knocked off by her captain is a wonderful sight. Then the sting of her curse returns to her veins. (But the cries and whispers remain). This power will never end. She will always race her veins and seek the void inside her that eats her alive. (And the ghost's hands burrow into her and seize her ankles and pull her deeper once more and-). Suddenly, the scent of spices and the sea caresses her senses and hands grab her own firmly.(The ghost hands then let her go and cease dragging her). Captain's (adorable and young) face turns to face her. But he isn't smiling and he frowns at her.(And Umekui simply wants to curl up in a ball and ask forgiveness) quickly wraps his arms over her neck, burying his face in her neck. (And she simply wants to push him away and tells him to let her go because what goes through her veins is an abomination. and what she has done weighs heavily on the scale of her misdeeds)."Don't do stupid things again" he says in the crock around her neck,"Yes, captain" She only answers. (in a voice so small and empty since she has disappointed him due to her selfishness)"Promise me. that you would not do something stupid again." (Because Luffy has vowed to be king of the pirates by her side and he won't let her pass away foolishly and he has promised her a painless death. (However, he knows deep down that he will never allow death to take her away from him. since Umekui is his idiotic first mate) and what she had done prior to hurting herself was a dumb act on her side.(Because Luffy isn't the small weak boy he once was. The weak Luffy who let Shanks get hurt and Sabo dies) So he will not allow history to repeat itself for his first mate and their crew."I promise, my captain" (Umekui is well aware that this promise is meaningless since she is so empty inside. and she has already settled her fate in regard to him. Nothing can change it. (And this void promise parallels the promises she keeps deep down hidden away in the cupboards of memories)."Yosh ! Let's find Zoro and our new navigator!" He takes her hand in his and she follows him (like a lost empty vessel),Nami leaps from the rooftop  and comes face to face with the strange duo and hands him his hat while saying," I'll stick with you guys. At the very least, I could steal a lot of money along the way," she explains."YOUPI! Ume, we have a navigator!" He looks at her and laughs out loud and wide. and the scar under his eyes glows. (And the light's guiding awakens her from her mind's roaming)  She smiles at him (a heartbreaking smile that is so soft and lovely),Nami's heart breaks as she sees her smile and she has no idea why. Luffy's smile broadens, and pride fills his chest. (Because his first mate didn't hide her smile. and all he wants to do is hug her tight. yet the sadness in it is so unjust)," OH! LUFFY, UMEKUI, AND MISS THIEF!" calls out Zoro as he joins them."Tough fight, frog-head?" Umekui asks, examining his bloodied self."some acrobat swordsman who played dirty. Don't worry, I kicked his ass hard," Zoro smirks.Umekui returns his smirks, "as you should".Shouts could be heard coming from behind them and as they look up, they see the mayor, who was unconscious, surrounded by armed citizens."wake up mayor, are you okay?!""What the hell happened here?!""It's got to be these pirates again!""No, it was me who knocked him down," Luffy states.Nami's eyes rip from her body and looks shocked at the idiot pirates. While Umekui and Zoro just chuckle at the blunt comments."Are you too pirates?" they question.Luffy smiles, puts his hand on his hat, and says, "Shi shi shi Yes, we are pirates."The citizens yell and rush toward them. Umekui immediately carries Zoro on her back grabbed Nami's hand and flees from them, her captain trailing behind her toward the town's port,"Oh you suicidal maniac, what is all this blood on your back?" shouts Zoro (and Zoro wonders what kind of mess she was involved with this suicidal maniac. But he will never assume it, but a part of him was worried. (Since how can he not be? when this woman appears to be dead and emty on the inside, as pale as a dead corpse)).She doesn't respond. and rushes into their boat and releases Nami's hand for her to board her own boat. Then she twists and gently lowers him onto the deck of their boat then proceeds to the boat's sail and rotates it to allow the breeze to push them." WHAT? YOU LEFT HALF THE TREASURE?" Nami screams and smacks Luffy on the head,"Sorry, I won't do it again," Luffy says, touching the injuries on his head because Nami's fist was made of stones,Umekui kneels in front of Zoro. with a set of bandages and immerses a cloth in seawater before removing his blood-stained bandages and use the soaked cloth to wipe his wound and applies new bandages on him."Thanks,"She merely gives him a nod. Nami calls to her as she stands up making them turn their head toward her,"If you like. I can help you with your back wounds."Umekui, the most wretched and plagued being, could only shout,"NO!"Something twists inside Umekui. Something horrible and disturbing slides down her throat. when she heard that Nami wants her to help her in treating her wounds.(Who claims Umekui wants them to heal? who erroneously assumed she would take care of them and heal them. (And forget about the pain? the satisfaction of feeling the blood trickle. the reminder that she isn't completely void and empty. that she is something (not human and never will be). That this rotten body (this vessel she despises so much) is alive because blood is pouring out and streaming, burning and throbbing ( and the scars ache and throbs as if they were awakening the old wounds and allowing them to open up)) Umekui would never allow anyone see her repulsive figure. (This horror she has inflicted on herself, after they have inscribed in blood and fire and showing her the reminders of the chains she can never break) and never let anyone touch it. Because Umekui's body could be nothing but bruises and scars haunted by the ghosts of the past.Nami was taken aback by her reaction.(and she reminded her so much of her little self when  (they had hurt her so badly that she could only see blood and the memories stung her heart so badly) she declined her beloved sister's offer to help and let herself down in her miserable condition. (And no one can saves her except herself. (But, how can she save herself while Nami is so tired from fighting? and all she wants to do is rest and feel the warmth of the sun and let herself be drowned out by the sound of the sea's waves, which she cherishes))"Umekui, go change your bandages," Luffy says to her and Umekui gives him a short glance.(And Luffy wishes he could puch the looks in her eyes. That brought her back to this place when the sun didn't exist at all in the dark crimson of her eyes (Luffy already misses the pretty scarry red of her eyes)). before leaping on Nami's stolen boat and enters the cabin, locking the door behind her.Zoro knows a few things about his first mate. She is as foolish as Luffy and a suicidal maniac. She is covered in bandages. She constantly has this lifeless and hollow look in her eyes. She flirts a lot. She always find him annoying nicknames. She is also smart and strong. But he has no idea why she is a suicidal crazy. why she has so many bandages. Why is she so terrified to touch them? and why her eyes are usually lifeless and empty? and why she always looks at him or Luffy with guilt on her face.and why he couldn't define her powers (like when she handled this pistol without touching it, why she can jump at an inhumane height, how she broke the lock of Luffy's cage with only her fingertips, and where did she find those bombs-),Umekui is an indescribable person for a variety of reasons. And, to be honest, Zoro has no idea what to think about it. But one thing is undeniable: she is a reliable crewmate and first mate. Softness crawls at the back of her eyes every time she looks at them. Worry consumes her when they are injured. Zoro will never violate her walls or boundaries merely for that. because he knows she will never do it to him, and vice versa.But something in him seeks those answers, and maybe she will be able to escape this place that fills her eyes with such emptiness.

" All the clouds in me are raining."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

" They call us dreamers, but we are the ones who don’t sleep."

Umekui sometimes wonders what humans feel when they cry.Does their anguish go away? Are they allowing the salty tears to escape their eyes in an attempt to release the screams and words they've been holding inside?Do human tears come out like the blood that pours out of her wounds? Do the tears make them feel alive as she does when her flesh goes red and burns? Does their heart race and their hands tremble with need (the need to do so much worse, the need to feel the pain on the outside rather than the inside because it is so empty)?She doesn't know and this makes her head hurt so much because she heard him imply that crying could help her feel better. (And Umekui laughed hard and loud, broken laughter full of madness and insanity as he assured her that crying would make her feel better). Better? What exactly does this word mean? Does it mean death? If that is the case, then the day she will finally cry (It's a hopeless dream because she's so empty and the tears don't exist in her since a being like herself is incapable of crying),It's the day, death will ultimately take her. (However, where? Where will it take her? What comes after death? Is there this heaven and hell mentioned in their tales? If these are correct, her place belongs in the flames of hell because she is nothing more than a fraud whose faults are heavier than the weight of the universe. Solely for this, she wanted to ask Altas. What is heavier, the world or her sins?)He once asked her what the difference was between her and him, when they both had blood on their hands. So what set her apart from him? (Umekui could feel her heart burning since she didn't tell him she had more than just blood on her hands). but she simply told him, 
'You can cry, right?' she asks, staring up at his face.

'Yes...but?' he whispered in his small voice.

'There is no "but," here is our difference: you cry about your pain and the lives you killed, and I can't cry,' she argues.

He gazed at her with a bewildered expression, his eyes brighter with tears than they had been before. The tears on his face made him seem more lovely than he was, and Umeklui wanted to tell him that staying with her would make him just as disgusting as her.
 
'You can't or you don't want?'

She smiles at him, a smile filled with misery and sorrow (and the cries of anger in her head pushed her deeper into the darkness of her torment), and claims, "I simply can't."
 Nonetheless, Umekui resolved to pursue the life of a so-called human. This treacherous existence she craved so badly. (However, why strive to be human when they are the cruelest in the world?). She's looked for a way to cry so she may wear this mask for longer. She has searched again and again and her answers emerged in the shape of blood. She decided that if she couldn't cry with her eyes, her body could do it with her blood.Umekui removes her white kimono and lets it fall to the ground. She shuts her eyes and exhales deeply. She extends a hand to the wounds on her back. The blood on the wounds was completely dry meaning that it briefly stopped bleeding. She grabs the cloth in her hands, gets a bottle from her purse, and places it near her.She starts to remove the bandage from her neck by reaching back with her hands (She considers herself fortunate that it is evening and there is no mirror in this cabin. because she didn't want to see the calamities that resided within her body) from her neck to her abdomen.  She then soaked the cloth in water from the bottle and wiped the blood off her back. (She didn't flinch since she felt nothing at the moment. Umekui could only feel the vacuum and despair gnawing at her insides).She wiped off all the blood from her back, then looked inside the bag for fresh bandages and rolled them up from her belly to her neck. She got up, remitted her bloodied kimono (noting to herself that when they arrived at the next island, she would need to pursue new clothes), and exited the cabin with a heavy heart and exhaustion.Nami had no idea what made her agree to follow those pirates. Pirates who destroyed her life and village. Pirates who stole all of the warmth she had in her painful life. Pirates that look just like the terrifying creatures of her nightmares. And this idiot Luffy has left half of the money in Orange Town (she desperately needs this money. She needs it in the same way that lugs need oxygen. Money is everything in this awful world where freedom can be bought with money).She shuts her eyes and exhales deeply. Smelling the sea that surrounds her, she opens her eyes to the starry skies and glares at him, angry and heartbroken (She stares up at the sky as if it has taken something from her. As if the stars in the sky were the cruelest punishment for humans) as grief and sorrow overflow her heart. She looks around when she hears the cabin opening and closing. The black-haired girl comes into view. Nami believes that the way the moonlight absorbs the white of her body ( She appears to be a fantasy. A ghost from previous lifetimes, yet no one had informed her that ghosts were lovely) the way her black hair glows and reflects the nightlight and her eyes (so red but so dead that it pains Nami's heart to see them) she thinks Umekui is a beautiful woman.She felt heat on her cheeks and ears, and her heart was racing, she didn't know why she was blushing or what was wrong with her heart, so she shifted her gaze from Umekui to the sea."sorry for shouting at you earlier." A low voice spoke next to her.Nami moved her head toward the voice and allowed her gaze to drift to the first mate who sat next to her to gaze out at the sea. (And Nami couldn't figure out why this girl was staring at the sea like Nami was staring at the sky. (A mournful and upset expression))."Oh. It's nothing to be concerned about. I understand." ("I understand the agony of the wounds. I understand the heartbreak. I understand the desire to shun outside assistance. I also understand the gaze you give the sea." Nami wanted to add)."I hope that my dumb captain didn't tire you much before I find him," she asks her, Nami moved her gaze toward Luffy, who was curled and sucking his pounce in his mouth, bogey snoring out his nose, and drooling at the corner of his mouth (he was fantasizing about a feast of meat). Zoro also snored, his hand curled around his sword and his foot slid into Luffy's stomach.Nami chuckles as she recalls the boy who defeated the pirates, who punched his way after her and then ate everything in the restaurant. and talked about his dreams. (And Nami wished she could talk about her dreams as freely as this boy did)."He definitely eats a lot and he is strong,""Thank goodness he is strong. After all, my captain will be king of the pirates." Umekui states firmly as she looks at her captain, who is sleeping like a child. (She imagines what it's like to sleep without hearing cries and murmurs in her thoughts. Without nightmares to haunt you and fear to consume your mind. But she understands that peaceful sleep will only come in the embrace of death.)Nami's heart quivers in her chest when she hears the phrase. Bitterness fills her mouth. because she wonders if she would ever have someone like this girl. who speaks proudly and confidently about her captain's dream. (Deep down, she knows it's all an illusion, an absurd dream, among many other things, and her heart hurts just thinking about it)."Hmm, King of Pirates? You certainly think he'll realize it," she whispers to the sea."Yes, I firmly believe it. Zoro, too, will be the greatest swordsman in the world. These titles were made for them longing to finally belong to them someplace in this immense universe," she says softly.(Nami realizes that this girl with the sharp feathers is incredibly entrancing which is a stark contrast to her softness when she speaks about Luffy and Zoro and their dreams. Nami could feel the sting of jealousy lingering in the depths of her heart wishing to be spoken highly by someone who would cherish her. (And will drown out the shouts of hatred, all the epithets hurled at her, thief, bitch, slut, orphan weird girl, traitor-)"And you, do you have a dream to achieve?" Umekui inquires.A dream? Nami had a million dreams. She dreamed over and over, letting her mind transport her to a world where what damaged her did not exist. (where giant dirty hands do not touch her. when the ghost heaviness of the chain does not exist. where pain does not live as a second skin on her flesh, where grief and despair do not fill her heart) a world in which she is happy and free."Yes like everyone surely, my dream is to be rich" she lies and awkwardly smiles (However, Nami wishes she could scream her dream-like Luffy. She wishes for Umekui to believe in her and her dream, just as she does for Luffy and Zoro. But Nami doesn’t want to hope for things that will only exist in her imaginary world)."I see..." Nami feels hurt by her response because she wants her to know she's lying. "I know that this is not really your dream and you surely have a good reason to lie to me about your dream.." Nami's breath catches in her throat. and glances up at Umekui, who is standing alongside her. "Yet I think that it's a good reason to not tell your dream to someone like me."Someone like her? What exactly does she mean? but before Nami could say anything and queried as to what she meant by this. Umekui leaps to the boat, where her captain is sleeping, lies down next to her captain, and lets Nami see her bloodied back.Nami clenches her fists as disappointment consumes her soul. Her eyelids ache from the weight of unshed tears cuz she's so pathetic, pathetic to perpetually scratch the hands that are held towards her.Nami is well aware that she is a damaged girl who will only cut the people around her with her broken pieces. (And she is afraid. afraid of experiencing the void left by losing someone once more. So Nami believes that it's better to hurt than to be harmed since she is so tired of feeling this way. (However, a part of her realizes that it was a double-edged knife because when she hurts people, she is also hurt).With a slip of the moon in her hair, Nami turns her back and enters the cabin to drown in the desolation of her psyche.Umekui's eyes opened as she heard the cabin close. She pushed herself up and sat at the edge of the boat, resting her head on the boat's board to keep her head steady, and looked up at the sky.Stars dance in the broad dark sky in the vast, endless, and unknowable universe beyond human vision. Even after all these years, she believes sometimes that the sky is merely a painting among others, a legend amid lies, a lie among virtues. How can something be so big and wide, so powerful that he can devour the whole world in the blink of an eye? (A part of her murmurs that this infinite outstanding sky can be held in the palm of her hand).In this velvet darkness, she believes that the light in the stars represents the deceased, whose souls continue to burn even after death. (Bitterness and disgust ache her heart because she knows she will never be one of them). Hatred and self-loathing run through her blood and mind (her head hurts from the screaming and the outrage that are so loud in her head). She wants to laugh herself to insanity because he lied. He fucking lied, telling her that she was not an abomination. Now she wants to yell at him and tell him.
'Look, look at this sky! Tell me who is abominable enough to strip souls of their right to belong to this endless sky?! Tell me! Who else can do it, besides me? Who, except me, is monstrous?!'
Umekui stares up at the stars, her eyes dull and dead. The cold night felt so lonely against her cold heart and stiff bones. Her hands tremble in her lap. Her blood burns, and all she wants to do is scrape this horrible flesh and feel the heaviness of her blood on her fingernails. With a steady palm, she grabbed her hair and tugged firmly. The tingle in her head drowns out the sounds that plague her consciousness.She places it back on her lap and reaches for her heart (She wishes for the void within her to vanish and feels something. Was she truly damned to dwell with this hole inside her? Does she have to continue breathing? (and her lugs hurt tremendously, and the blood burns her inside-) with-).The roughness of a hard palm falls into her lap, tightening her thigh. (She believes that this touch is different from the ones that soiled her body and marked her mind with disgust toward her body). Particles of vivid green and gold light reach her insides and pass between the holes in her heart."Did you treat your wounds ?" Zoro's husky voice asks. Umekui only nods and looks at the large hand on her thigh."Luffy hitched to come and help you yet he surely thinks that it was not a good idea. I was startled because I didn't believe he had a brain and surely thinking must have exhausted his energies, and he fell asleep," Zoro chuckles.Umekui tilts her head and looks into Zoro's gorgeous eyes and notices how his lips quirked from chuckles. (And the screams stop to give way to his chuckles. Umekui like the sound of them). She looks back at him, allowing her eyes to drift to the sword he is holding in his hand."You told us that your swords are your treasure. But this sword seems special to you, why?"Zoro's eyes widen at her query, and he stares at the blade in his other hand before returning his sight to her."This sword belonged to someone I respect. Her name was Kuina, and she was a close friend who was very powerful; I admired her courage and the way she never gave up..." Zoro clenched his fist around the blade in his grasp. "Even if she was a girl which saddened her and she cried a lot about it she never gave up her dream to be the greatest swordswoman in the world but.." His heart feels the shadow of grief in his eyes "When she died from a fall down the stairs one day, I promised her father that I would utilize her sword to fulfill our dream of becoming the greatest swordsman in the world. So great that my name will reach the heavens and reach her ears." He looks up at the sky above him hoping that Kuina heard that he never forgot their deal."I'm sure that you will achieve it and Kuina will be proud of you." Softly, Umekui agrees. Zoro's grey eyes contact hers, and he smirks. His determination flares in his eyes and the heat of this palm burns her body (And Umekui believes it's an exquisite way to die)."Of course, if I say so, I will be. However, we need to find a real boat as soon as possible so that I can resume my training," he explains."I'm hoping on the island, where the lovely navigator is taking us." We'll be able to find a boat. and I will go shopping for clothes for ourselves as well as food for our commander.""Speaking of the ginger navigator, what do you think of her?" he inquires at her, his gazes filled with curiosity. "She's absolutely gorgeous and if she accepted my offer for our double suicide then I'd be a happy woman," she says a flowed aura dancing around her."Not that, you weird pervert woman! I mean what do you think about her as a member of our crew ?" "hum....she seems to be a genius navigator, and about her loyalty to the crew, let's just say that for the time being, I'm keeping an eye on her," she says simply, pensively."You know something, right?" he asks, his eyes narrowing."Maybe yes, maybe no," she shrugs, "but don't worry, I will not let anyone on the crew who can harm one of you," she vows."one of us.""hum?" She lifts an eyebrow in confusion." 'One of you,' you said, like you weren't a part of the crew, or like it didn't matter if anything or someone harmed you," he states firmly, his eyes glaring at her. Her chest throbbed. (Because she is aware that she poses a far greater threat to everyone than anyone else and if she had to bear the sacrifice of the crew, to protect them from harm, she would do it again and again, shielding them from the world).A hand grabs her from her forehead and forces her onto her back to put her head on a hard lap (hard superb muscles). Zoro looks down at her and closes her eyes with his palm."You're talking nonsense, suicidal maniac. After this day, you should rest and allow your wounds to heal. I'm going to keep the watch for today evening, so get some rest." He grunts.Umekui thinks she is in heaven right now and she'd gladly die with his hard palm on her eyes and his muscled things against her head. The heat of this strong palm against her face warms her cold heart and body. The particles inside her glow even brighter (And the shouts are only whispered in her head). The only sound Umekui could hear and allowed herself to be soothed by was the sound of his breathing.So Umekui closes her eyes and sleeps in the warmth of Zoro's heat, allowing her body to recover for the day ahead because she knows her troublesome captain will undoubtedly give them complications.A curly-haired man with a long nose stands on the edge of a cliff, surveying the approaching pirates. He grips his slingshot Ginga Pachinko tightly in his hand and waits for his three crewmates (the only ones who did not reject him and accepted him, even if they are children, are the ones who were kindest) to let out the flags at his signals.When the four pirates arrive, they leap onto the sand. First, he notices a boy wearing a straw hat and a red tee shirt. comes another boy with three katanas (he appears dangerous and he is scared now).  Then there's a pretty ginger-haired girl who doesn't appear particularly scary, but he can detect a hint of wickedness. Finally, there's this long black-haired female with such a white body that he can’t tell her apart from a ghost (and he's scared of ghosts) and the bandages that wrap across her neck to her feet (she resembles a living dead body, a mummy).These pirates appear dangerous and he hopes to scare them away and never see them again. He rose from his hiding spot motioned for his crew members to raise their flags and began firing a hundred shots at their feet. The straw hat boy screams with delight and waves his arms all over the place, thrilled by what is going on (The long-nosed boy believes this pirate is crazy to be so enthusiastic when they are under attack)."I am Captain Usopp, the leader of the great pirate crew that conquered this village! I'm ordering you to leave this island immediately, or my 80 million men will crush you!" He proclaims to them, a smirk on his face indicating that he is not lying.With stars in his eyes, the straw hat boy exclaims, "INCREDIBLE!!" The ginger-haired swordsman glances at him nonchalantly and asks, 'Really?' to their foolish companion. The ghost girl, on the other hand, has a blank expression on her face. Usopp meets her red eyes (which are scary), but the blankness and emptiness make them even more terrifying as she reads his soul and heart in one stare."It's a lie. I had never heard of pirates using slingshots! And it's impossible to stand 80 million men on one island," remarks the short-haired girl.His crew emerges from their hiding area and flees in terror since they have been found. The straw hat guy laughs at him, the swordsman seems amused, and the ghost lady smirks, and they seem more dangerous than they have been." Don't make fun of me! I'm Usopp, the proud Usopp! My slingshots are far more powerful than your average pistol!" exclaims Usopp, threatening them with his weapon pointed at them."Now that you've drawn the weapon. Put your life in danger. Those aren't for threatening people. What you have in front of you are true pirates." Looking up at him from under the brim of his straw hat, which produces planes of shadow over his face that wraps around the curve of his smirk, the straw hat lad declares.Usopp believes that his beliefs about him are incorrect, because this dumb boy, like his crew, is extremely dangerous.The swordsman draws an inch of one of his katanas from his sheath, and the ghost lady next to them pulls a fucking handgun from her white kimono. The clicking sounds of both the katana and the gun's barrel cause Usopp's heart to contract in his chest, causing his body to tremble and sweat to form on his hands."Ahhhhhh, real pirates have way more punch behind their words..." He exhales as the sweat on his hand causes his slingshot to fall.The red tee-shirt boy laughs heartily. (And Usopp enjoys the sound of this laugh, which is wide and loud, with no derision in it, only joy) and the swordsman laughs at him in amusement (deep and strong).The ghost lady hid her handgun in her white kimono and gazed up at him with a flowing aura (She didn't appear as ghostly now). "Oh great Usopp, you are such a cute boy, can you accord this lonely lady her wish, and take a double suicide with her ?" she said.Usopp shirks and falls from the cliff to the ground in response to the question." You crazy suicidal pervert woman! This isn't the time for your weird tendencies," screams the swordsman, slamming his fist on her skull.Usopp glances at the straw hat boy and takes it, "Your dad is Yassop, right?"Usopp's eyes bulged, for how could the boy know who his father was? So he tells him about his father, and Usopp listens with sparkles in his eyes and joy in his heart (his father doesn't forget him), and he talks to him about the straw hat lad named Luffy.When they get to the village's local restaurant, they take seats. Usopp's mouth gapes open at the command of Luffy (this boy is a monster who can eat everything), his crew is calm around him and not surprised at their idiotic friend."My captain, let others eat too what did I tell you the last time about it ?" enquires the ghost lady staring at Luffy (and Usopp finds this girl strange because even when she has an expression on her face, her eyes remain blank and lifeless).Luffy sulks and frowns a little."T't o'y t's its w'h s'i'g," he grumbles, his mouth full of food."Don't speak with food in your mouth, please," she commands, her gaze fixed on Luffy.He mumbles after gulping the food on his throat, "that only tyrants eat without sharing."When Luffy hands them an apple, Zoro and Nami's eyebrows lift and their mouths gape wide."Ne, Zoro, I'm dreaming?" Nami says to him."I'm hallucinating too?" he says back.They pull on each other's cheeks and then release it due to their pain."We are not dreaming," they both say simultaneously.Usopp glances at them with a strange expression, as if it's the first time they've seen Luffy give them food.The ghost lady smiles down at the Luffy, and Usopp thinks it's an unfair smile (such a soft smile from such a sharp person). Luffy beams back at the girl, and Ussop imagines dog ears and tail on Luffy."Good boy," she says, patting the straw hat boy on the head.Usopp glances down at his watch and realizes he is late, so he flies from his chair, quits the restaurant, and sprints to the enormous house on top of the hill.
And hopes that this weird crew leaves his village without causing any trouble.
 Umekui looks fondly at her crew while they eat. She never envisioned having this kind of look again, but here she is.She could sense Nami's intense gaze yet she attempted to ignore it because this girl reeked of sorrow and sadness in her soul and neither Nami nor Umekui were prepared to face it.After that, the cute Usopp guy (Umekui believes she found their next crewmate) flew somewhere. She didn't care to know where, but she was certain (as she is certain that this word is wretched and wrong like she is certain Luffy will become King of the Pirates, like she is certain she is a dreadful beast) that they would meet again in a short time.Ussop's crewmates are children who run into the restaurant and demand to know where their captain is. And she could feel the fear devouring their bones and quivering their bodies as they saw her captain's stomach full.Umekui could feel her pulse pounding with laughter at the amusing sight. To top it all off, Zoro and Nami decided to spice things up."Your captain...was eaten!" exclaims Zoro, a huge grin on his face."AHHHH OLD HAG!" they cry, pointing to Nami."Why are you looking at me?!!" Nami snaps, evidently enraged by their remarks, and smacks them on the head.Luffy and Zoro laugh loudly and widely (and umekui's hearts melt at the sound), and the creepiness of amusement at the scene tickles her inside, so she cannot contain herself and lets it go.She fucking laughed out loud and clear to let the world hears it (And Umeklui wants to shout to the world that she is still laughing after all this time. After all of her fears, sorrows, and loneliness, she finally laughed).((The screams and whispers cease, allowing space for her laugh to dance with Luffy and Zoro's) She is aware that her eyes do not appear to be dead at this moment, the squeezing of her insides is such a fucking nice feeling and she enjoys it (The wardrobe of her memories let out some echoes of laughers that she had concealed deep within her heart)).Luffy glances at Umekui as if she's one of the world's seven marvels, and the sound of her laughter fills his chest with joy. Her body's seeming whiteness had turned redder and more vibrant. Her closed eyes opened, no longer dead and empty, but sparkling with amusement. Luffy adores her laughter.When she laughs Luffy realizes the world has come to a halt. The stars twinkled and the moon shone, the sun shined because the entire world and space knew Ume, his first mate, was rare, but he would scream back to the world that she was, his.Zoro looked at Umekui's laughing face. Her skin no longer appeared pallid and lifeless. Her eyes appeared brilliant and large. Zoro knews at the sounds of her laughs if he could bottle that sound and get drunk every night with it, he would have. Nami is well aware of Umekui's beauty. She knew and saw it since the first moment she laid eyes on those stunning scarlet crimson eyes of hers. But she is no longer just beautiful; she is magnificent. The way the sun shines through her chest and the moon echoes in her eyes. Her laughter spreads like wings from her mouth, and divinity paints her mouth like a pomegranate. Nami could feel her cheeks reddening once more. Her pulse was racing and her hands were twitching from the need to touch her, and feel the warmth of Umekui's heart.Umekui looked at them, the cosmos searing her chest from the way her laughter pushed through her lips, and the particles and loves of their souls burning her within, as she realized and knew from the moment she met them and her future crews:
'I will burn this word for you, and die with a smile on my face for you,' 
 Usopp climbs the large tree and waits for his best friend. Usopp smiles at the sight of her lovely features and blonde locks and opens his mouth to tell her today's story, as he has done for the last few years.Screams from the skies cut Usopp off in his narration. As he glances up, he notices the strange pirates from earlier. Luffy and his crew collide on the floor next to Zoro. The ghost lady falls to her feet with Nami in her arms. (Nami's face was so crimson that Usopp believed she might catch fire) she leaps from Umekui's arms to the ground."Ano? Could we please have a pirate ship?" Luffy's request. Umekui is pleased with himself since he added a touch of politeness."We don't offer pirates anything, scrams. I wouldn't be surprised if you're friends with Ussop, a liar. I knew you enjoyed making up false stories to brainwash the mistress. I've also heard about your father. The mistress doesn't need friends like you, the dirty pirate's son. So, no longer approach the mistress!" yells a male voice at them.The crew and Ussop tilt their heads to stare at the mansion's butler. Ussop could feel rage and humiliation pouring through his body; how dare he talk like way about his father (his father, who is a great sea warrior whom he has never forgotten!). Before he can leap at him, a wrapped hand clutches his forearm."Don't," the ghost girl says, and curiously, the wrath in his veins vanishes in the blink of an eye (as if she could absorb it)."Get out of there!" yells the butler, not allowing Kaya to speak.Ussop departs the scene, enraged and hurt, not realizing that the straw hat boy is following him.Umekui, Zoro, and Nami rest on a modest wooden fence, gazing at the sky, the youngsters of Ussop's crew a few feet away."Zoro, the butler is strange; we should keep an eye on him," Umekui suggested.Zoro tilts his head to look at her, puzzled."What do you mean by that?" he inquires."Something about him bothers me, and his position as a servant in this mansion is to be questioned; since when does a servant give orders in place of his master?" she explains to him without looking back.Umekui could feel the glare of Nami on her. "So what? How does the fact that he is a servant affect him? A servant is not a slave! (Nami knows the cost of slavery, and she knows it well) Yet that doesn't mean he can't make decisions for the sake of his master in her place!" She yells at her,Umekui takes her sight away from the sky and lowers her head to stare at Nami's angry expression."hahaha, you sure are naive my dear Nami.." She chuckles bitterly.(How dare she?? Nami knows that nothing about her is naive. How can she be naive when she is aware of the world's cruelty? When she has lost the warmth of her life in an instant with her freedom. How can she be ignorant when Nami has been in captivity for 8 years for the tyrant who rules with wrath over her village? What a sick joke, nothing in Nami is analogous to naïve)"Tell me, Namy, there's an expression that goes, 'When you give a hand, they'll devour your arm' "Humans are greedy creatures. Consider a wealthy sickly young lady who has lost both of her parents and finds herself the only heir, inheriting a rich family legacy. A servant looks after her and she regards him as her only ' parental figure' and friend. A girl who has never seen the outside world and has no idea how it works. If you believe that no man can take advantage of this situation, you are really naive." She explains while looking down at Nami.Zoro mulls over her words and realizes what she means. He smirks because his first mate predicts everything the way she wants it due to her intelligence.Nami closes her mouth because she now realizes what she means: Miss Kaya is manipulated and controlled by her butler solely for the purpose of stealing her inheritance."And how can we help her ?" Nami worries if their assumptions about the girl who is being controlled are correct."Who said we were going to help her? Well, I will only help her if my captain gives me the order and decides to get involved in their issue; otherwise, I honestly don't care," she says bluntly.Nami's eyes widened and her mouth gaped open in response to the honest and crude statement.Umekui leaps over the fence and begins to make her way back to the village."Bandages maniac, where are you going ?" Zoro shouts behind her,"I'm going to the village to do some shopping, see you later," she says as she waves without looking at them.Umekui walks into the first store she sees in her line of sight. Fortunately, she took enough money from the three islands she visited to claim a fortune in her pocket.She grabs a basket and heads to the men's clothing area. Takes some tee shirts, shorts, boxers, socks, and jackets for her captain, and does the same for Zoro, whose size is plainly three times larger due to his muscles.Then she moves to the women's aisle and buys some underwear for herself and Nami, noting that Nami is a size smaller than her. Then Umekui goes to get Nami some swimsuits and shorts, skirts and dresses (the moment this exquisite red dress caught her attention, Umekui imagined Nami in it), and coats.She took some bikinis, nighties, long vests, and kimonos for her. She was happy to find kimonos in every color she could find (excuse her, it's true that she has suicidal tendencies, but that doesn't mean she can't have fashion taste and die in beautiful clothes), while she changed into a black kimono. Then she moves on to the lecture/art section and some books that may cause her eyes to flutter (Her valued book has been left in the kimono pocket). She takes the large sketchbook and some pencils. Painting objects at the corners of the stand makes her hands quiver. (It's been a long time since Umekui felt the sensation of a brush in her fingers and let the void inside her screams in her painting, but those dirty hands are so heavy from the blood she spilled and the destruction she has caused, but-). She grabs the paint cans and brushes, as well as some empty canvas and a large notebook, and places them in the basket.After paying for them, she had four huge bags in each hand. She goes to the local grocery to get groceries for her dear captain. She takes a basket in her hands and fills it with meats, fruits and legumes, tea, and ingredients, hoping that they will find a cook soon because she knows nothing about cooking and can't even cook a fish without it burning. (It's not like she's never been permitted to eat, the feeling of starvation, the feeling of emptiness, she's grown accustomed to-) yet they need to search for a cook for their captain.She walks over to the cashier to pay for it. Her insides hurt as she stuffs everything into the bags, and the crimson particles burn inside her."Excuse me? can I leave my bags here and come get them later?" Umekui inquires. Before he can say anything, she hands him a bag of berries, and the old man's eyes change to the shape of money."yes of course miss!" Umekui exits the store and runs as fast as she can after his confirmation.The ability explodes through her veins, causing her to jump inhumanely high and move at a light pace. (Her heart is overflowing with murmurs and shouts. Her insides are burning, and Umekui wants to puke everything she's ingested today). The bright red particles burn and scream out to her. When she arrives at a hill, she notices her commander falling face-first. Umekui leaps into the air and flies toward him. She extended her arms to catch her captain's little body.Her heart is racing through her ribs. She knows that even if he falls from this hill with his powers, nothing will happen to him. (However, the twitch of her fingers and the fast beat of her chest ached a lot that Umekui could've thought he was going to come from her chest. Yet, the hopelessness stems from memories of her previous mistakes because she pledged she would never be late again. Never.)
'You fool, you are really going to be the death of me!"
Umekui places an ear against Luffy's chest as she takes in the warmth of his body.
'thump thump'

'He is alive, he is breathing, his heart is beating'

('he is dead, he is not breathing, his heart is quiet')

She reaches for his hair, brushes a few hairs away from his eyes, and deduces from his snoring that he is sleeping. Umekui lets out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and the trembling in her body ceases.She sensed the green and orange particles approaching and turned her head to see them."What happened ?" questioned Nami as she arrived and looked at Umekui's quivering hands that were tightly holding Luffy's body. (She holds him like she has held her cold dead body with desperation and devastation as if it were the last time she would touch her)."He was falling down the hill, and I thought he was hurt or something, but he's fucking sleeping! Yes, he is stupid, but not stupid enough to, sleep at the top of a hill", she exhales."we have seen Usopp runs toward the village, Do you think that he has pushed him ?" Nami inquires,"It's impossible! I don't think and excuse Usopp, but my captain isn't that weak to be pushed like that." Umekui reacts,"There's only one way to find out what happened, and that's to slap him in the face," Zoro asserted as he knelt before Luffy and smacked him in the face to wake him up."OUCH!!" wept Luffy as he sat, putting his palm to his face and glaring at Zoro. "What did you do that ?!""Firstly because it's the only way to wake up your sleepy ass, secondly explains why Umekui has caught you falling from the hill asleep and where Ussop did go ?" asks Zoro, glaring at his captain,Luffy's eyes widen as he recalls what happened and tells them about the butler's and hypnotist's scheme. Their plan is to murder Kaya and the citizens and steal her heritage. The latter hypnotizes him to sleep, causing him to fall off the cliff."And that's what happens," he says, picking his nose with his little finger."How did you guess it ?" Nami says to Umekui," Let's just say I've seen enough of how men's hunger and ambition function. And I sense foul things coming from the butler," she says plainly.(Nami, too, is aware of this man's greed, his long teeth sharp enough to cut her skin and rough fingers holding her body possessively. (Nami recalls all the times she burned her skin with hot water and rubbed her body to forget the sensation of his filthy hands) cruel men will do anything for money and power)."Senses, huh? So you are really a witch " smirks Zoro at Umekui, amusement in his eyes, "Beware, because I could turn you into a frog, cactus-men," she warns, smirking."WAWWWW A WITCH !" Luffy's eyes shone and beamed at her, and his teeth glowed from the sun's rays."No, I'm kidding, my captain, I'm not a witch," she chuckles as she strokes his hair, and Luffy fondles at her touch."But where did Ussop go?" Nami wonders."He's running to warm his village," Luffy replied.When Umekui went shopping in the hamlet, she heard about "Usopp the liar" and his rumors. She bites her cheeks, allowing the metallic flavor of the blood to flow into her mouth."It's a lost cause," she concluded coldly.Nami's crew turns to gaze at her, "What is a lost cause?" she queries."They will not believe him assuming that he is lying again," she says."But I was there! I believe him!" huffed her captain. Her eyes melt at the sight of his pout, 'he is so adorable'."I know, my captain. But he is 'the boy who cried wolf,'" she points out."'The boy who cried wolf' what is that ?" Luffy, intrigued, demands,"It's a popular moral story taught to children about lying. Basically, it's not good to lie because one day when it turns out to be true no one will believe you. If you want, I can tell you the story another time, okay?!" Umekui pats Luffy on the head as he nods at her."But Usopp has someone who believes him, and it's us! Yosh! Let us go find him and help him in saving his village and childhood friend!" Luffy declares,Umekui and the crew find Usopp sulking on the floor at the entrance of the village, wearing a sad expression on his face."Yo!" Luffy calls out to Usopp, notifying him of their presence."It's you again," Usopp said, his eyes widening at the sight of the strange pirates. "What are you doing here?""duh to help you saves your village, of course !" exclaims Luffy smiling broadly and extended his hand to Usopp, inviting him to accept it and help him in standing up."But- will you help me?" Why?""To beat some pirates," Zoro smirks."To steal all the treasure,," Nami adds, her eyes filled with money."Because you are a a good guy and I want to help you," Luffy beams at him."Because my captain wants to help you," Umekui states flatly."And, what are you four good at ?"“Cutting.”“Stretching.” “Stealing.”“Suiciding.” “Hiding.”"You are not hiding, you idiot!" Nami screams at Usopp, strangling him with her hands.Both Zoro and Luffy strike their fists on Umekui's head."Don't say stupid things, Ume !""You maniac it's not the time for your tendencies!""Just kidding!" Umekui says as she caresses the wounds on her hand. (Not really, she could give them a hundred other methods to suicide)."So let's slips slops on the south entrance to prevent the crew of Kuro from reaching the village !" suggests Ussop,They wait at the shore for their adversaries a few moments later after sloping the entrance. They wait for hours until dawn arrives and graces the world with his presence.Umekui finds it strange that no ship has been spotted from afar, so she turned to Ussop."Tell me Usopp, Did you hears in their plans that they were taking this entrance ?""Not really, but it's the only entrance of the village ?""Are you certain? Because we came from somewhere else, right?Usopp's eyes widen in shock as he recalls something."Shit! That is the north entrance!" He confesses before sprinting to the north."Ume ! I'm going to follow Usopp and you, go to the mansion of Kaya and protect her hoping that we are not late !" shouts Luffy as he pursues Usopp to the north,"okay, my captain!" Umekui accepts and jumping at the tree in front of her, disappearing in the forest.Umekui jumps from the windows of Ussop's friend's room and finds an injured servant on the bed and a crying kaya."Luckily I'm not late",Kaya points at the pirate girl outside her window, shocked, as soon as she hears her speak."you are one of the friends of Usopp, the pirate girl of earlier!"Umekui greets her with two fingers raised above her head, "Yo! It's great to see you again, my lovely lady! Today, I will be your knight.""My knight?" Kaya's jaw dropped open, and she peered at her with wide eyes."hum my captain ordered me to protect you and I'm here." She casts a peek at the injured servant on the bed, saying, "As you can see, I don't need to tell you from whom."Kaya bites on her lower lip, her eyes welling up, "but why? I don't understand why he would do this to me. betray my family and I!" With a lump in her stomach, she says."why? It seems that you already understand. He wants your fortune," Umekui blurted out simply as she pointed at Kaya.Her body trembles with betrayal, tears streaming from her eyes. "Merry told me already, but I still don't understand why he would do this? Betrayed me when he was supposed to be my friend?"Bitter chuckles leave Umekui's openly lips, "the greediness of humans can make you do anything, and they will not hesitate to betray and pretend to' play friend' with some naive frail girl. There's nothing to comprehend; you were just the ideal victim for him," Umekui remarks coldly.Kaya sobs even more at her words and lets her heart break at the cruelty of those who will do anything for power and wealth.Umekui looks out the windows and senses an enemy approaching, so she turns to Kaya and says, "There is a pirate enemy in the woods, I will take care of him. And you! You stay there like a good girl and wait for me, okay?"Kaya stares at her with her lovely eyes and nods, holding a handkerchief in her hand as she sobs. Umekui leaps from the windows, and once on the ground, she runs into the woods."Where are you running like that, young lady?" inquires a man with heart-shaped glasses and an odd beard."To eliminate you, of course," Umekui smirks."Here, let me show you a special tour of hypnotism," the man says with a smile."Hypnotism? Then it's you who has hypnotized my captain to sleep and allowed him to fall off the cliff," she says, her eyes narrowed and her jaw tight."hahahahhaa yes it's me the fabulous Hypnotist, first mate of the Black cat pirates, Jango" Jango shrugs his shoulders as he recalls, "I'm surprised on how your stupid captain could have survived this fall."One thing about her captain is that only her and the crew can refer to him as stupid. 'He is her stupid adorable captain,'  Then, without warning, Umekui lunges at him and backhands him, hard enough to cause blood to burst from his nose and trickle down to color his lips and beard. And she quickly reaches inside her kimono, grabs her handgun, and fires a shot at his hand and another at his foot."AHHHHHHHH" shirks Jango beneath her and attempts to lift his head to avoid choking on his blood.Umekui wants to laugh hysterically because he is so fucking weak. They are so fucking weak, him and those foolish clowns and horrible men that put Koby in servitude.  Umekui despises many things, but she despises men who believe they are powerful enough to rule mercilessly. because when a monster like her crosses their path, they become less than bugs. They dare to stand in her captain's way, want to murder him,, and prevent him from becoming the all-powerful pirate king. They're so foolish that Umekui simply wants to burn this ridiculous world down and-
'kills him kills him kills him kills him kills him kills him kills him kills him kills him kills him kills him'
The beast scratched inside her from hunger. Her insides were burning, and blood began to gather in her throat. (The screams are crushing, and her fingers shake from bloodlust).She grabs him from behind, ignores his pleadings and tears, and strikes him in the back of the neck with the barrel of her gun then lets him to pass out on the floor at her feet. And if looks could kill, he'd already be at the gates of hell But she'll behave for today and try not to kill anyone.She reaches for his feet and starts to walk away, dragging him behind her toward her captain's position to aid him in finishing the task because Umekui is so tired from this bullshit and these vermins around her. She only wants to find her crew, get (steal) a ship, and go retrieve her shopping bags back. (and spoils her adorable captain, naps with Zoro's sexy muscles, and flirts with her gorgeous Nami).
'I'm tired of this crap.' (she's tired of living and breathing and Umekui only wants to die-)
What Usopp feels now is that even fear is a poor equivalent for it, yet all the rage in his body killed every fear he once held.How could this butler, this traitor, make his childhood friend cry? His kind friend who has lost both parents. (And Usopp understands her agony so well that all the lies he said to the village and to himself were a way for him to persuade himself that his mother would live and that his father would return, all the tears he has split to his dreams). So what if he's stupid? Usopp loves dreaming. Yet, how can he ever be a brave sea warrior? if he does not protect his villages and friends."Don't move or I'll cut your throat," threatens behind him. Kuro wraps his long claws over his face and before his throat. Usopp felt his heart halting in his chest and his entire body aching. Will he die while he hasn't yet become a fierce sea warrior, when he isn't sure Kaya was saved and alive?!Suddenly, the sounds of shots and screams from Kuro cause Usopp to leap from his captor and spin around to see what the fuck happened? Umekui stepped from the trees, with a gun in her right hand pointed at Kuro and her left hand holding Jango's bloodied and lifeless feet on the floor (Did she drag his body all the way? Usopp's mouth expands in response to the sighs, 'this girl, she is something else')"Oye kaya, didn't I tell you to wait for me in your room like a good girl?" Umekui asks, coming to a halt near his childhood friend. Kaya's cheeks flushed, and she sputtered some incomprehensible words to apologize to her. But Umekui didn't give her a second glance and kept walking toward Kuro, Jango dragging after her."Yosh! Let's end this, Captain! I'm sure you're hungry!" yells Umekui at Luffy. Luffy smiles at her, stretches out a hand to Kuro, and pushes him hard on his face.Umekui leaps into the air and throws Jango over the boat and the rest of the pirates. "Frog-head, don't let any pirates come here!" she says as she notices Zoro at the bottom of the slope.Zoro slashed one of the Nyaban Brothers, Buchi, with his swords and glared at her, "Don't call me that, waste-of-bandages!" and sneered ferociously at the pirates who cowered in fear at his glare, his teeth tainted with blood, "the one who has the balls to pass by me and climb this slope will have this ball cuts!"Umekui smirks, relieved that Zoro has their back, and lets the ability flow through her veins. (the voice is so loud as the void inside her spreads) then feels the cool metal of her long chains unfold from her waist and caress her arm and emerges out the sleeve of her kimono. They attack Kuro and roll down his legs and up his body, trapping and strangling him."Gomu Gomu no Kane"Luffy takes the opportunity and stretches his head at Kuro, knocking him unconscious and shattering his glasses with a 'crack' sending him hurtling down the slope toward the rest of the black cat pirates crews."My name's Monkey D. Luffy, names for pirates are important and for that, I will never give victory to liar and wannabe pirates who hide their names, so remember my name carefully because you will hear it all your life because I will be the king of the pirates!" stated Luffy. "Take your captain with you! Leave this island and never return!" commands Luffy.After taking Kuro and Jango, the Black Cat pirates leap onto their boats and flee this place for fear of this group."YOUHOU! We have saved the village, Usopp!" yells Luffy from the back of Umekui, a huge smile on his face.Usopp, who is seated next to Kaya, looks at them with tears in his eyes and a large smile on his face, stating, "Real pirates are so much cooler-"Zoro's lips smirk as he looks at Usopp as he approaches his teammates, "So he's our new crewmate heh?"" shi shi shi yes !" Luffy beams at him in response and Umekui simply chuckles. "Where is Nami?" Umekui wonders as her eyes search for the gorgeous ginger-haired girl."She passed out," Zoro informs her.Umekui's heart and breath stop as she looks at him with wide eyes, muttering, "What?""Jango slashed her shoulder when she tried to pick my swords" he says.Umekui clenches her fists and digs her nails into her rotting flesh. She just wants to run after the boat and kill Jango. She was too weak to let him live. She is so stupid. She has failed Nami just like she had failed Zoro the day before. (And Umekui wants to curl into a ball and let the despair consume her from within. and let death take her away from here because she just knows how to wreck things and ruin people's lives.)A strong palm grasps her balling fist, and Umekui relaxes at the touch of his warm hand, "She is okay, she is sleeping at some tree," Zoro explains with a hard stare.Umekui then breaks free from his grip and heads to the top of the slope in search of Nami. She searches for her navigator with a worried gaze, at the spots of orange hair she rushes at her and gets on one knee before her. She lets out the breath she had been holding in as she hears Nami's quiet sleeping face's breath. She cradles her softly in her arms and carries her with care (and Umekui is afraid of tainting this beautiful girl with the hideousness that lives inside her and the venom that runs through her veins).She marches with Nami sleeping in her arms toward the rest of the group, and when she sees Kaya, she asks, "Kaya, can you go to your mansion so we can treat their injuries and give food to my captain?"Kaya blushes at her (and Umekui is confused because she didn't flirt with this girl for the first time in her life), agrees swiftly, and turns around to lead them to her mansion.They trail behind her and cast a sidelong glance at Luffy, who is grinning broadly and chatting with Ussop, the latter of whom is also smiling. (From his gorgeous curls to his petite pretty brown eyes, she believes everything about him is soft and his nose, which she believes stands out him. His smile is enticing. Ussop is spring, light, and bright. He feels like the first warm wind of spring and his soul echoes like birdsong when the flowers bloom. A brown so golden, bright, and light that Umekui wishes she could preserve it forever with the others.)"It's good that you didn't injure yourself recklessly this time, frog-head," she says as she senses Zoro walking beside her."Not everyone is a reckless idiot like Luffy," he replied, the corner of his mouth quirked up.She chuckles and adds, "I have never imagined meeting one day a boy who claims that he will be king of pirates but is so reckless that I wonder how he escaped death at every corner."Zoro chuckles. "Neither and here we are." Then he looks down at Nami, who is in her arms, and asks, "She proved us her loyalty today, do you need to keep an eye on her?" as he casts a sidelong glance at Umekui."I never said she wasn't loyal to us, but sometimes loyalty and sacrifice are two sides of the same coin. People make sacrifices for loyalty, and loyalty makes them make sacrifices, but the real question is what? who, and to whom?" She clarifies and looks at the residence in front of them before entering without glancing back at Zoro. Zoro stops and stares at her retreat back, and he can't help but feel frustrated because he doesn't understand this woman—she's so fucking confusing. She talks as if she knows things that even the rest of the world doesn't, and he thinks it's because of that her shoulders are stiff, weighted from the secrets she holds and her knowledge of the world.That excitement jumps in his veins and makes his soul burn because with this boy who claims to be the king of pirates like truth and his first mate whose powers are concealed and whose mind is so vast that Zoro bets he will lose himself in it. Zoro knows he has a heck of a crew and can't wait to sail the seas with them, meet all the mighty men of the world, and defeat them to become the greatest swordsman. But it did not fret him at all; instead, it made him shiver with excitement and passion, and when they finally had a ship, he would resume his training a thousand times more intense than before.Nami's eyelids flutter open like butterfly wings flapping softly. The ache in her shoulder causes her to flinch, yet she attempts to sit despite the discomfort. She takes a look around the room and guesses it's Kaya's bedroom."When didn't you rest on the bed, Nami?" a familiar voice asks. Nami turns around to see Umekui enter the room with a basin of water and some bandages. She approaches her, places them on the nightstand, and turns to look at her."Strip." she simply commands.Nami felt her entire body's blood flow to her cheeks as she gasped and peered at her with wide eyes and her heart pounding, "EH??""I can't heal you with your top on, so take it off before your wound gets infected," she explains as she disposes of everything she needs to treat alongside them.Nami reached her hands toward the end of her top and pulled it over her head, then placed it in front of her breasts to hide them from Umekui (it was the first time Nami was embarrassed by her nakedness in front of someone, her hands were sweaty and the redness on her face wouldn't go away, Nami was confused by her behavior).Umekui got to her side and her fingers drifted first, fluttering over her skin like butterflies, searching for any wounds before she began to rub the blood away with a cloth that she soaked in the basin.It was awful, having her touch her. (Not the awfulness that causes her to puke every time she recalls his giant hand stroking her with possessiveness as if she were an object among others). Awful because her hands on the outside seemed to be connected to something on the inside of her. Every brush and scrape from the pads of her fingers had her stomach clenching, weird tingly feelings shooting through her from somewhere low in her belly. (Nami believes she is clearly sick; yep, it was the only reason she could give). She was worried she could feel it, but Umekui's expression never changed (though Nami isn't sure why her eyes seem so guilty when she touched her with such care and gentleness).Nami hadn’t experienced a lot of gentleness in her life unless it was from her late mother and her dear sister. Receiving it from Umekui was like a drug, and it completely intoxicated her.Umekui smirks down at her as she finishes healing her injuries and bandaging it, "Don't worry. I prefer to strip my partners rather than compel them to do so, as this takes away the element of surprise."Nami choked on her spit, coughed, and hid her scarlet face in her hands as Umekui chuckled (a gentle sound that surprised Umekui) at her embarrassment.Nami caught a glimpse of Umekui's beautiful face through the gap between her fingers, and the way her nose wrinkled from the quirks of her lips, and the beautiful soft sound of her laugh; the way she smiled was genuinely beautiful. Actually,, it was one of the best smiles she had ever seen, including her mother's. Umekui meets her stare (and her eyes don't seem so lifeless now, and Nami wants to watch her alive like that for a millennium since an Umekui laughing is a stunning alive Umekui. (And Nami adores it.)Umekui went for her hair and softly patted her head, as she had seen her do many times to Luffy (and now she realized why Luffy seemed in bliss when Umekui patted him), and ruffled her hair softly before immediately taking it back (as if Umekui was afraid to touch her)."I brought you another top, put it on and join us for lunch before Luffy eats everything," she says as she places the top on her lap.She turns back, and before leaving the room and closing the door behind her, she adds, in a voice that would put Nami to sleep in her arms under the sun, "And Nami? You did well."Nami's eyes well up with tears, and her heart aches. She wants to tell Umekui that she does not deserve her kind words and gentleness since all she knows is how to hurt people and lie over and over. But Nami is so tired of lying and surviving. She is a fool to seek the warmth and love of her crew. when she is nothing more than a traitor who will betray them and flee from them. to return to the man who enslaved her for an eternity of torment." Ano? Thank you for protecting Kaya and saving me earlier," Usopp said as he caught a glimpse of Umekui's back in the corridor."There's no need to thank me, as I told you, it was simply an order from my captain," she replies, turning her head to meet his gaze with those fiery red eyes. (And Usopp eventually realizes that her eyes aren't all that scary)."It seems good to travel and be a true pirate with Luffy," Usopp muses.Umekui's eyes and the sharp lines on her face soften. (And Usopp thinks it's unfair that she's not ugly and horrible, considering how much deadlier and dangerous she is.) It was easier to be scared by ugly things than by beautiful ones, although the latter were the more fatal." It is, indeed. It's just that everything is less scary with Luffy," she said before walking away before he could say anything.Less scary? Usopp wondered what could make things less scary for someone like Umekui, who appears to be so fearless and brave, who doesn't tremble even before death. However, Usopp questions if they will allow someone who is like him—a coward who knows nothing but to cry and hide. join them to travel across the world and the seas in order to fulfill his dream of following in his father's footsteps and becoming the greatest sea warrior.Yosh! He will join them and accomplish what he has always wanted to do. And if Umekui is correct, if everything seems less scary with Luffy, he wants to see it with his own eyes. And if they don't want him. Usopp, the outstanding captain, will give them a list of millions of reasons why they need him on their crew.With this idea, he ran from the mansion to his house to pack his belongings, say farewell, and disband his wonderful crew(and Usopp knows how much he will miss them)."WAWWWWWWW! CARAVEL! LOOKS UME ! OUR FIRST SHIP! YOUHOU!" laughed Luffy, pointing to the ship ahead of them with the galaxy in his eyes and the sun painted on his lips. Umekui simply grins at him and stares at the ship. (And Luffy adores the fact that Umekui's eyes no longer appear to be lifeless. And he promises to never forget the day he finally hears Umekui laugh. like the day his brothers welcomed him as one of their own and swore eternal brotherhood by drinking sake-)."This is a gift for you, as a token of our gratitude for protecting the village as well as Miss Kaya. I designed it, and we hope you will accept it and travel with it to live your adventures," Merry, Kaya's servant, adds. "We already talked about Miss Umekui about the arrangement and where she will put the things she purchased."Nami and Zoro whistle in response to the sigh of the ship ahead of them.A scream from above the slope causes them to turn to see what it is, and they are met by Usopp rolling down the slope with a massive bag on his back. Usopp croaks a thank you as Zoro and Luffy place their feet on his face to stop him.Umekui boards the boat and begins exploring it. Luffy chases her down and begins to inspect and touch everything while screaming "WAW","LOOK UME","WOOO!!" stars in his eyes. With a gentle smile on her face, Umekui follows behind him, making sure he didn't break anything.Zoro joins them with a smile on his face, relieved that he now has a ship and a deck to train on.Umekui goes down to the male quarters to make sure the clothes she brought for the boys are still there. She goes to the female quarters after ensuring that everything is in order and sees that the clothes she ordered for Nami are there, as are her clothes and kimonos, which are in another dressing room next to Nami's.There was a vacant room between the two quarters, which Umekui thought was ideal for putting her painting supplies and the empty frescoes she ordered. She'll paint it and decorate it as she wants tomorrow or tonight.As she climbs to the ship's deck, she hears Usopp and Luffy laughing, 'So he finally decided to come.' Luffy and Usopp both wave at her when they see her."HEY, LET'S PARTY!" exclaims Luffy.As her captain commands, she does. She walks to the kitchen and sets food on the table, some sake for Zoro, beer for Nami, Luffy, and Ussop, a bottle of whiskey for herself(and something in her heart stirs and hurts, but she doesn't want to remind herself about the memories she burned deep down.)Luffy rushes into the kitchen, takes a seat, and begins to eat.  Nami rushes at him and smacks him hard "You stupid! At the very least, wait for us before attacking the food like a starving beast!" Nami, huffs."shi shi shi sorry I was hungry," Luffy apologizes as he rubs his head."You're always hungry," Zoro complains as he takes a seat next Nami.Ussop joins them and sits next to Umekui, about whom Luffy complains that she will sit next to him."I bet I can drink more than you, dead plant," Nami says as she points to Zoro." HA??! How did you call me you witch hag? Don't bet if you're going to lose," curses Zoro, his brow twitching. "g-guys-...calm down!" Usopp, try to calm them down."shi shi shi KANPAI! TO OUR NEW SHIP AND CREWMATE!" Luffy exclaims as he rises from his seat and raises his glass.Umekui shakes her head in amusement at the scene and slams her glass into her captain, "Kaipai.""KAPAI!" exclaim Nami, Zoro, and Ussop as they crash their glasses together.Umekui bathes in the warmth of her crewmates at that moment. The particles of their souls dancing within her (and the cries and murmurs are so faint, and the beast is sleeping, keeping a watch on the particles). Umekui believes she is willing to pay any price to feel the warmth she so desperately craves. There would never be enough words in the world to convey how she felt. It scares her since she has seen the world burn because of her throughout her life, and she believes she will likewise destroy this.Despite this, she knows she is undeserving of their presence and gentle souls. Their auras were warm, they blazed brighter than anybody else, and they provided light to guide the lost souls of this world. After so many years in the cold, their fire embraced and warmed Umekui. Despite the voices in her head warning her that she would be burned alive, she ignored them.For the first time in her tragic existence, Umekui chose to stay, and let herself burn in their world, hoping to kill herself before destroying any of them.Yet, when she looks at them she thinks that no grave can hold her down from them.

"When a child is punished for their honesty, they began to lie."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

" Loneliness, like fever, thrives on night.  Madness, like fever, thrives on art. "

Pain flows through paint.

Painting is an expression of one's feelings.

To paint is to scream.
Whenever Umekui touched a brush and posed in front of an empty canvas, her blood flowed and scorched (not in the manner that makes her curl in a ball and scream and beg the anguish to stop).Her means of painting hue on a blank canvas is like crafting a soul entirely by herself. She remembers how, the first time she touched a brush and painted something, her smile was wide and broken (perhaps because it showed her that she wasn't wholeheartedly lonely in her madness).She realized she held something that even the gods didn't have. (From their almighty throne and subject at their feet, they had everything in this world). But when the gods surrendered into insanity. Their souls consumed it and ascended the darkest recesses of hell. They scorched their bodies from the fire that engulfed them from within, condemning themselves to a life of loneliness.Umekui is well aware that she was lured to all the wrong things: drugs, alcohol, sex, crimes blood and fire, views and ideals, and ultimately descended into nothingness. But will you blame her when the first thing she knew when she stepped on this earth was emptiness?  Emptiness is all, it raised her as she is and rendered her to the monstrous being she is now.The first time, he handed her a brush and a blank canvas and urged her to paint her emotions (she looked at him as if he was the most demented man in the world, and she wanted to cry to him about how she had no feelings because she was an empty vessel that only hold a monstrous being inside her), yet he simply smiled (a warm and charming smile that could put her to sleep for an eternity in his arms) and encouraged her to grasp the brush in her fingers. So she painted, using all the somber colors she could muster on the inside,e and blemished her white canvas with something she couldn't have.
He gently said to her, "It will be your new body. Every time you want to cut or harm yourself, take a brush and paint your empty canvas with the agony that you feel."
She couldn't understand why he devoted all of his warmth and gentleness to someone like her. (She tried to ignore the voices screaming at her that she would only be his damnation because everything with her ended in blood and fire. If there was one thing the gods adored, it was tragedy. with humans that fall and wings that burn).And yet, here she is, facing her new art room's painted blank ceiling. White, blue, and yellow colors flooded her hands and face, yet the starry night she painted filled her with trepidation. The sky occupies the majority of the painting and is composed of volutes and swirls reminiscent of nebulae. The stars and the moon are surrounded by touches of paint, creating a halo.She extinguished the breath she had been holding throughout the creation.Catharsis, the release of emotions, descended upon her by her fallen angel and conveyed to her in the shape of her art; it turned out to be the sole possession that the gods didn't steal from her.After a long and pleasant bath, Nami exits the bathroom wrapped in a simple towel. She stood in front of the dressing room in their newsrooms, her mouth gaping agape in front of all the clothing in her dressing.(Did Umekui buy her everything? only for her? But, why? It was this trait in herself that nami despised: the urge to question all the nice things that had lately happened to her. (Because she wanted to believe that all the beautiful things that happened were not illusions. But she was terrified that it was all a nightmare and that when she awoke, she would be in the arms of the man of her nightmare, surrounded by this prison, the bloody desk and pen, and those chains that felt so heavy on her ankle-)Nami takes a pink rose nightie-style coquette from the wardrobe and wonders if she has the right to wear the clothes that Umekui bought for her. (Nami does not deserve Umekui's gentleness because she will fly away and run from them as she always does (and her heart bleeds at the notion of leaving because Nami feels at home for the first time after a long time.)She drops the towel on the floor, puts on a pair of white underwear (which Nami blushes at the prospect of Umekui buying her as well), and then puts on the cute nightie. Nami smiles as she turns around and stares in the mirror, relieved that she can finally look at herself in the mirror and find herself pretty.A knock on the door was heard. Nami yelled at them to come in.Umekui met her gaze (and the way her eyes softened and a little smile appeared on her lips sent butterflies flying in her stomach)."The pink nightie suits you perfectly, you are beautiful Nami," Umekui remarks sweetly.Nami's toes curl and her cheeks flush as she realizes Umekui's words were like a truth written in the stars above them (Umekui, who doesn't say much but whose voice can put Nami at ease with a single word delivered from her red lips.)She tries to mumble some words, but Umekui's gaze draws her focus away from it. Her tongue rolls in her mouth, and her brain fries. Umekui chuckles at her sturring. (Nami relishes it, and it makes her forget the laugh of this man and his crew when they brutalized everybody in their way).Umekui walks over to her closet and stoops to retrieve something. She gets to her feet, carrying a huge sketchbook and some pencils in each hand."Here. I've heard you like to draw maps, and maybe this sketchbook will help you," she says as she offers it out for her to grab.
thump thump
Nami is convinced that if her heart does not stop racing, it will either leave her chest or burst in her ribs. She reaches for the sketchbook with shaking hands and clenches it firmly with her fingers. (Nami begs the gods above her, who never listen to her pleadings, that what is occurring now isn't just another twisted joke) It was as if Umekui's hands took the shattered pieces of her soul and reassembled them. No, she didn't resurrect her old soul, but rather a new one. Umekui stared at her as if she could see every detail of her existence and if Nami wanted and asked. Umekui could rescue her from her nightmare and protect her from the cruel world.Nami doesn't cry a lot since she keeps everything inside her. (She bears the grief of her mother's passing. Years of abuse and selling oneself as an item to this being. Years of standing in this piece where she adored everything made her want to destroy it. years of fleeing and thieving from the pirates of East Blue in the hopes of acquiring the price she seeks). But she hopes that on the day when she crumbles, Umekui will be there to mend her soul and become her strength."I hope you enjoy it," Umekui stated simply before turning back, but Nami's voice stopped her before she could step outside."m-my dream...is to draw a map of the world!" Nami admitted.Umekui looks at her with those crimson eyes that appear to flame with zeal and Nami bet that even the hottest star in the world didn't sear her to the core like Umekui's gaze did. Umekui's lips curved into a sweet smile, and her eyes flitted across her face in such a way that she could recall every aspect of her face for the rest of her life."It's a fantastic dream. And I know that you'll realize it" She speaks in a way that seems like a simple admission of a universal truth, closes the door behind her, and exits the room.Sometimes Nami thinks that she wants to disappear but all she wants is to be found. And Umekui found her in all the ways she never dreamed it could exist.After the party, Luffy was dragged by force by Usopp to arrange his belongings in their quarters. Even though Usopp did most of the arranging, Luffy enjoyed sitting by his side and listening to some of the stories Usopp told while cleaning the quarter.After that, he returned to the deck. Seeing no one on it, he understood that Zoro had left after the party to begin his training. Nami claimed she was going to take a bath and sketch some maps, and if he came to her quarter to bother her, she threatened to throw him overboard. And Ume didn't say anything, but he noticed her walking to the empty room between the two quarters.  He understood that if somebody came to this area to bother her, she would also throw them overboard. "yushh why woman are so scary ?" groans Luffy.He sits on the stairwell, braces his chin with his palms, and frowns hard because Luffy is bored. Everyone is doing something and him well...nothing at all. "Why are you frowning, my captain?" inquires a voice from behind him. And Luffy knows it was his first mate.Luffy could distinguish Ume solely by touch and smell. He would recognize her even if he was blind and by the way, her breaths came (since only his first mate breathed strangely. She breathed as if something was devouring her and torturing her from inside. She breathed as if simply being alive was agonizing).He stands up, turns around, leaps at her, and hugs her tightly. (Hugs her like he did the last time he hugged Ace before setting sail. hugs her as if she was leaving him and never coming back (hugs her like he hadn't hugged Sabo for the last time before his death-)).In his arms, she chuckles softly. (Even Luffy is stupid and forgets a lot of stuff. When he touches his first mate, he notices that she doesn't flinch as much as she used to. He notices that around them, she has started to smile and chuckle a lot. and Luffy adores it). Her chuckles send vibrations through his body, causing him to smile widely.He takes a step back from her arms and looks at her, spotting some paint on her face. He cocks his head and stretches a finger at her face, brushing the paint away with his finger."shi shi shi why do you have paint on your face Ume ?""I was painting.""Wowwwww! Amazing! Will you let me see? please ?! Please!!!!" Luffy begs, his puppy eyes and lovely smile shining brightly.Umekui knows she can't resist his cuteness and hopes she doesn't go blind from his dazzling and beaming face. She leans out and carefully strokes his hair."No, not yet. But I promise you that someday I will paint a portrait of you, okay?" she offers calmly." wouhouuuu !!! Ume is going to paint me shi shi shi" exclaims Luffy happily stretching his limbs everywhere. "Now you need to sleep, it's getting late," she tells him."Sleep with me then!" he pouts, reaching out to hug her."But-" she tries to counter."There is no 'but' and you promised to tell me the story about the boy who cries wolf" he asserts."Ara Ara, let's go," she adds simply, allowing him to drag her to his quarter.Arriving at the male quarters, the piece was dark, presuming Ussop was already asleep in one of the hammocks. Umekui moved toward the single large bed in the room and lay down softly, and Luffy quickly joined her and jumped into her arms.Umekui makes an effort not to touch him too much (fearful of hurting him, fearful of touching his warm soul, which Umekui has never crossed in her path before and sometimes she wonders if this boy isn't an angel sent by the gods to punish her and rip her apart).She'd never had the chance to be soft. She was always bloodied knuckles and shards of glass. The word always cursed her that she would be humanity's demise, a monster that history had never seen before; they chanted her death and cursed her life.But perhaps she was not destined for destruction; perhaps she was born to meet Monkey D. Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates, and she knows she will do everything for them, even if it means embracing what the world has screamed at her.He softly lays his head on her chest, (Luffy listens to his first mate's quiet heartbeats to assure himself that she is alive and well. Yet he doesn't understand why her respiration is so odd, even the way her chest moves. He needs to find a doctor in their crew as soon as possible to figure out what's wrong with his first mate) and takes her hand in his own.  Luffy frowns at the bandages, hoping that one day he will see his first mates without them, and basks in the warmth of her body."The Boy Who Cries Wolf" is the story of a little boy who has a lot of fun convincing the residents of his town that a wolf is attacking their sheep. They come to his rescue, but each time it is a hoax from the youngster, and their patience runs thin as a result of coming for nothing. The day a wolf appears in front of the little kid, he cries for help from the villagers, who do not respond, determining they are still dealing with a prank on his part and lying to them again. Since no one came to aid him, the wolf devoured the boy, the sheep, and the entire village. The lesson of the story is 'that liars only gain one thing: they are not believed, even when they tell the truth'.""It's stupid," Luffy says flatly."What is stupid, my captain?" she asks confused."Those villagers who did not come to the boy's aid then the wolf devoured them all as a result.""It's because they thought it was a lie again, and as the moral of the story goes, "liars are never believed, and it will cost them their lives.""They are stupid they could have believed him"" Then you will always believe a liar even if they already lied to you, my captain ?" " Of course! Shi shi shi!" A liar is a human and we all make mistakes! The boy may have had a valid cause to lie and play pranks. Perhaps he was just lonely." Luffy describes. (Lonely like Luffy was before meeting his brothers, lonely because he risked his life at every moment and pranked everyone in town in order to avoid feeling lonely. But now Luffy is not alone; he has his crew and is free to explore the world and the seas !)."Lonely?....." whispers Umekui as she gazes at the ceiling with an unconfused gaze. Letting her mind and bones feel the nightmares of the past. Something seethes inside her, clawing at her ribcage, ensnared. The pain suffocates her as her blood burns. Umekui just wants to feel her blood drain from her body because the void inside her is growing."Yes!!! I used to like pranking the villagers on my island when I was younger, but it was only a way for me to avoid feeling lonely. But then I met Ace and Sabo!!!" Luffy enhances as he jumps on her stomach. The beast stops clawing and the emptiness inside her stops.She lifts her head to gaze at the sun cradled in her arms."Who are Ace and Sabo ?" She asks, her voice heavy. Umekui wishes she could just sleep in his arms forever because everything hurts her so cruelly. She is so tired from being alive. So she implores him to talk to her again and again, allowing her to bask in the warmth of his pure soul and listen to his voice that makes the ache inside her stop devouring her fully and surrender to her cruel mind's abyss."Ace and Sabo are my brothers; they are the most important people in my life. When Ace, Sabo and I first met, Ace was much colder than Sabo. But, in the end, they accepted me as one of their own. Ace is now a pirate; he departed four years ago to become a pirate! Sabo, too, wished to explore the world and become a pirate (but now he is dead, gone, the flames devouring him and leaving nothing of him-)" When he mentioned Sabo, Umekui recognized the past sentence, the scent of anguish and grief in his heart, but she kept her mouth shut and continued to listen to him."-And there was this time when we were confronted by this enormous tiger and-" Umekui closes her eyes and lets his voice lull her to a realm where even her own darkness cannot dim the light of his soul.Usopp, who was awake when Luffy and Umekui entered the room, kept his tears from falling when he heard that Luffy would always accept liars, even if they lied to him repeatedly. And when he points out that the kid in the story (whom Ussop oddly makes him think a lot of him ) was probably lying because he was lonely, his heart shook in his chest.Usopp was, indeed, a lonely child. Who had to care for his sick mother and didn't have time to enjoy the peaceful moments of childhood. So he allows his imagination to carry him to the stories he tells in order to forget the solitude of his soul. Yes, he lied because he was lonely, a lonely liar, but will you blame him for lying in the hopes that his mother might live another day? to lie in order to avoid loneliness after his mother's death? for lying since he was the orphaned son of a pirate?
'It is better to reassure himself with a lie than to break his own heart with the truth'.
Yet, Luffy was there for him, believing him when no one else did.Umekui was right; perhaps he could realize his dream of being a great sea warrior beside them. Because with Luffy, everything in this lonely world feels less scary.So he shuts his eyes and lets sleep take over, knowing that he will never be lonely again since he now has companions who believe in him even when he cannot.As Umekui finished painting the walls, the dawn was visible through the little windows of her painting room.On one side, she painted some gray clouds, some plants, and a few stars scattered here and there. She also painted a drab wall with large black specks on top to represent the emptiness she feels inside.She paints four-person miniatures on another wall. Luffy, who is smiling with the smile she adores, Zoro, who is smirking and holding his sword, Nami, who is blushing in a gorgeous red dress, and finally Ussop, who points to himself with a cute smile.Maybe one day she'll paint a portrait of each of them along her future nakamas. (to never forget them and carry their memories with her forever, even after death takes her away. Even when they abandon her because they realize just how disgusting and twisted she is. She will hold those paintings of them to her chest and allow the abyss inside her to devour them and imprison them in this place where time doesn't exist).She takes one last look around the room before leaving to go into the female quarters for a shower and change their clothes. When she awakens from the agony of her nightmares and finds herself in the embrace of Luffy. It hurt like hell to leave him and remove his limbs from hers. He clutched her as if she were the last piece of meat. To distract herself from the torment of her night, she has decided to continue painting the room. So everyone was most likely sleeping at this time. However, she senses Zoro exercising somewhere on the deck. When she walks inside the room, Nami is still sleeping on the bed. She walks across the room and into the restroom. She removes her clothes and bandages and closes her eyes so she won't peer at her body (to avoid seeing the atrocities and tragedies that lay across her, to not gaze at the curses that are devouring her from the inside) and ignore the chilly weight of her treasure around her neck.She washes her body with her body fragrance, quickly dries herself, and grabs bandages from her cabinet to wrap all over her body before putting on a dark red kimono.She exits the bathroom, walks over to their nightstand, and starts brushing her long dark hair. Behind her, she senses Nami walking into the bathroom. She pulls out her drawers, grabs a dark red lipstick, and starts putting it on.(Beauty and the art of seduction were two things Umekui would never forget. Men take people's rights and regard women as nothing more than things in this world (and the ghost's dirty hands that soiled her little body is a small reminder of men's corruption).Umekui is, indeed, a monster and a curse. But, above all, she is a woman (a destroyed woman). Being a woman is both a curse and a weapon, yet something inside her yelled out in outrage because she thinks that before the world drove her to be a woman, she was a small girl, a child. 'But to be a child, you must be human.'Nami exits the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her as she finishes applying her lipstick."Good morning, Nami." she greets, turning to meet her eyes."Good morning, Umekui! You put on makeup, it's so pretty," she beams."Come here," she says, motioning to the chair next to her.Nami sits next to her, looking at her with a confused look on her face. Umekui simply slipped her long bandaged fingers over Nami's chin and applied her lipstick on Nami's lips with her other hand.
Thump....Thump
Nami could feel her heart racing again in her chest. and she seriously felt like she was going to die right now because of Umekui. Nami's head burns at the way Umekui's fingers steady her face and her crimson deep eyes stare hard at her lips." Here! Now you're to die for!" Umekui winks at her and stands up from her chair to fetch a little mirror from the drawers and hold it for Nami.Nami looks in the mirror and thinks she looks stunning with lipstick on her lips. It brought out her doll eyes and her hair colors. And Nami feels herself beautiful without feeling repulsed. The way Umekui makes Nami feel more attractive is surreal, and Nami wishes she could stay that way with Umekui eternally.Nami finds herself less war-torn every time Umekui touches her. She's not sure what peace is supposed to feel like ( how could she know what peace feels like when pirates brought war to her mind? How could she know peace when the single person who stood up for it was murdered right in front of her eyes, and all she could do was weep because she was so weak? ('But I was a child', a part of her cried), But she thinks it feels a lot like Umekui.Umekui turns around and walks out of the room, and Nami wants to chase her down and confess to her all the darkness that runs through her and the weight that weighs on her shoulders.
('But you don't deserve her because you're nothing more than a traitor,' a voice whispers inside her.)

('I know,' she acknowledged.)
Usopp is in the kitchen, making breakfast for the crew. Because neither Zoro nor Luffy can do anything in the kitchen without destroying something. And He does not want to ask Nami or Umekui.Because, first and foremost, they are undoubtedly occupied, and the warning from yesterday is still ringing in the back of his mind. He hopes that they will quickly find a cook for the crew, especially for Luffy, who has a void as a stomach."Good morning, Usopp," a voice behind him says.As he turns around, he finds Umekui sitting at the table, one hand clutching a book and the other a cigarette.Usopp gulped his saliva; he never tried to hide it, but the crimson-eyed girl intimidated him. Not just because of her appearance, those blazing eyes that reminded him of blood, or the voices screaming at him that she was dangerous, but also because of her strength against the black cat pirates.He knew the ghost lady had a deadly cold beauty from the moment he spotted her. He wasn't surprised when Luffy revealed that she was the crew's first mate. Only a fool would fail to notice Umekui's beauty and a part of him wondered if she was more than she let on. He was sure she was more powerful than she appeared, and he couldn't decide whether to fear or admire her."G-Good morning! What do you want to eat?!" he asks nervously."There's no need, I don't eat in the morning," she simply said as she gulped her cigarette and flipped the page of the book she was reading.Usopp furrows his brows. It is dangerous for her to smoke on an empty stomach. He does not respond to her and proceeds to cook breakfast, coffee, tea, and sandwiches. As he finishes, he takes two plates, crosses the table, and places one in front of Umekui and himself.Umekui stares at the dishes facing her with a puzzled expression before looking back at him. He simply blushes and avoids her gaze." You must eat. It's not a good idea to smoke on an empty stomach, and you'll need the energy to get us out of the danger that Luffy will undoubtedly throw at us." He huffs as he bites into his sandwich."Aww, what a sweet boy! Are you sure you don't want to commit suicide with me?" She inquires, fluttering her lashes at him."Don't talk nonsense, woman! And what are you reading?" He looks at the red book she is holding, trying to change the subject."The Complete Manual of Suicide', my favorite book....hum I'm at the chapter that talks about electrocution, really interesting!" She exclaims as she shows him the book.Usopp thinks that this woman is weird. Who is excited to learn how to commit suicide, and what kind of person invites someone to join them in a double suicide?" Ne! Ne! I heard you're an inventor and enjoy making new things! You're in luck because I'm well-known in this field. I have a lot of tricks on my sleeve! I can give you a lot of advice on how to make deadly weapons!" she offers.Usopp abruptly rises from his seat and takes her bandaged hands in his own. He could feel stars in his eyes because this girl in front of him was going to help him to create a lot of new things. And assist him in becoming a great sea warrior, he could envision a lot of ideas swirling in his head at this moment." It would be an honor!" UMEKUI-SENSEI! CAN I BE YOUR STUDENT, PLEASE?""yare who would refuse a cute kohai like you ?" She accepts with her red lips raised together to a little smile on her face."Where are you going?" Zoro says, puzzled, as he enters the kitchen, shirtless, with a towel on his shoulders, and his sword in his hand."You just missed Usopp's marriage proposal," she remarked, smirking." EH?!!" Usopp and Zoro shout." Why are you surprised it's you who asks her to marry you, idiot?" Zoro questions, his face irritated." She's lying! I've just told her I'd like to be her student!" He cries out, hoping Zoro will believe him.Umekui simply chuckles and takes a puff on her cigarette while both of them glare at her. Then Zoro comes and takes a seat beside her, devouring the food on the table."Hey! I prepared it for Umekui, not you!" shouts Usopp, pointing to Umekui next to him." hum ?" Zoro raises an eyebrow and looks at Umekui, wondering whether she is going to murder him for eating her food."I'm not hungry anyway, enjoy your meal," she simply said before standing up and leaving the room, "I'm going to wake up Luffy, Usopp make sure his meat is ready as soon as he gets there.""What a drag," groans Usopp. "We need to find a cook for the crew quickly."Umekui walks inside the men's quarters and finds Luffy snoring on the bed; he sleeps in the same position as a starfish, with his limbs spreading everywhere.She sits alongside him and sows her fingers in his hair like flowers roots in soil."My captain wakes up," she says as she shakes him to wake him up.He continues to snore and shows no signs of waking up. Then she resorts to the only solution she knows will work."There is meat," she whispers against his ear."MEAT?!!!" he yells, leaping from his bed and fleeing the room.She chuckles quietly and shakes her head at his simple mindset while she lays in the warm spot where he was sleeping just a few moments earlier, and stares at the ceiling above her.She contemplates how much time she has left for her. How much time does she have before the thing inside her consumes her completely, denying even the light of Luffy from reaching her? How much time does she have before the void numbs everything and even the touch of her straw hats no longer senses her? How much time does she have before what she loves turns against her? And how much time does she have before they realize what kind of monster she is?But she wants to see them achieve their dreams, and she wants to see this boy (Luffy, who took her and refused to let her go. Luffy, the boy who treats her as if she were someone rather than something. Luffy, whose soul blazes everything inside her and sinks out all the screaming. Luffy, her dumb precious captain who will be king of this world) grows into something significant and gives this dark world a new sun ( and perhaps, he can bring the sun to this damned place where the begging-).She closes her eyes for a moment, letting his warm smell soak into her cold and stiff body.
She thinks before she loses herself in her madness, she has known moments of kindness.

With the way, they promised her humanity and freedom along the road. With the way she clings to them, the way they hold her and swear to never let her lose herself, and the way they have promised her a painless death (although their fate was the worst punishment of her existence that even the meaning of death was an obstruction between their promises and dreams).

They have given her pitiful little-self hope,

( 'what is worse than death?' life asks.

'Hope', replies death.).

and yet - yet she ached the world wouldn't be so cruel to her.

"Do you believe there is another life after death?" he says, his blue eyes fixed on her.

She looks back at him, her pupils dilating, taken aback by his question.

"Why do you want to know ?"

"So if there is another life after death I hope to meet you again in a world where we spill blood is only a nightmare" that's all he said. ("Maybe in another universe, I would ask you to run away with me." )

" Don't be foolish. If someone is fated to suffer in this life, they will suffer for the rest of their lives, even after death," she defines. ("Maybe in another universe, I would have said yes." )

"Is it for this reason that you are seeking a painless death?"

"Maybe yes, maybe no," she shudders.

"Then, if you don't find a solution for a painless death. Come find me, mackerel, and I'll kill you!" A smirk adorns his lovely face.

"ha, you wish, slug !" She blew her tongue at him and struck her nose in the air.

Yet she knows deep down that in all the universes, this one isn't enough, not for now, not for them, and it never will be since it always ends in chaos and blood. When she turned to face grief, she realized it was just love in a heavy coat (she thinks the heaviness of this coat is merely a habit to cover her sins).

" BOOM-",

"BOOM-" 
Umekui's heart leaps from her ribcage, the echoes of her nightmare resonating in her mind. Her body trembles as she hears an explosion from the deck. (Her body aches and her blood blisters, as his voice echoes inside her, and she just wants to forget-).Something twists inside her, and she coughs. She coughs, feeling the harshness on her throat and the distaste on her mind. She coughs in her hand again and again till she feels the awful heaviness of the blood on her palm as the coughing stops. She looks at her bloodied palm and tastes the blood in her mouth (which she despises because the taste of blood in her mouth is so familiar).She inhales and looks up at the ceilings (the screams and indignation echoes in her head, as the ghost's nails claw her ankles to blood). She chuckles quietly because Umekui knows that the insanity has already begun to devour her and her crew is the sole source of stability for her.She sighs as she hears noises on the deck. She bet Luffy did something stupid while she was napping. She gets out of bed and goes to the bathroom to scrub the blood from her hand (but she knows deep down that nothing can clean the blood she has shed; even the gods cannot cleanse themselves of their crimes).As she arrives on the deck, she finds two guests dancing weirdly."What is going on?" she inquires, making her presence known."MAH UME, ME, AND USOPP WERE TRAINING TO SHOTS WITH THE SHIP'S CANNONS. AND WE THOUGHT WE KILLED SOMEONE. THEN THESE MEN ARE FRIENDS WITH ZORO. AND, NAMI SAVED HIS FRIEND, SHE WAS SO AWESOME!!" cries Luffy and Usopp as they jump into her arms."Yare yare, no need to cry now," she reassures them, tenderly caressing their hair. (And she wonders once more how much time she has left before the warmth of her precious crew vanishes. Even though she knows she is the worst thing in the world, she thinks it is cruel for her to bathe in their souls considering that she does not deserve them-.)"So, who are you?" she asks, looking at the two men in front of them."Please forgive us for not introducing ourselves, my name is Jonny," says the man wearing sunglasses and a blue vest. "And I'm Yosku.." stated the man in a green vest, "We are the pirate hunter!" both screamed but shortly after their introduction, Yosuku's eyes went white and he collapsed unconscious on the floor."AHHHHHHH WE KILLED HIM AGAIN!" scream Ussop and Luffy as they dash across the deck."Idiots, he just fell unconscious," Nami sighs, shaking her head at their stupidity.After Zoro takes Yosuku to a room to recover, Luffy and Usopp chat with Jonny in the kitchen while Nami and Umekui read their books." You are looking for a cook ?" asks Jonny. "YES," nods Luffy." hehe, you're lucky you found us because I know where you can find a cook! We'll be there in a few moments," Jonny adds as he points ahead of him.Half an hour later, they gather on the deck to gaze out at the floating restaurant in front of them.
BARATIE
"Amazing! Amazing !" cheers Luffy and Usopp. Suddenly, the shadow of a massive boat falls on them, and the flags of marines attract their attention."A marine ship?!" exclaims Yosaku from behind them.A man appears on the deck of the marine ship and states, "I have never seen your flag, I'm the lieutenant Iron fist full body," as he exhibits his iron-orned fist."I'm the captain Luffy, and our flag was made until yesterday!" claims Luffy.The marine then casts a sidelong glance at the two pirate hunters, asking, "Are you truly pirate hunters? Then you've caught some." He smirks as his blonde companion approaches him and grabs his arm in her own."We catch those pirates, not the nameless ones!" yells Jonny as he pulls the wanted poster from his vest and throws it in the air.Nami looks down at the wanted poster on the floor and collapses to her knees when a familiar one catches her attention. (Her heart pauses in her cage, her blood pounds on her ears, and something familiar twists inside her gut).
Arlong
(The cruel laugh reasons in her head, and the claws grip her mind and body like an empty marionette. Nami wishes to rip and destroy this poster. The hatred and desire for vengeance heat her body and cause her hands and body to shake with rage.)Umekui looks at the shaking Nami from the corner of her eye. The orange light inside her marks and burns her, and the darkness looms around it; Umekui knows Nami is in pain; she has known it since the moment their gazes meet. But for the time being, all she can do is stand back and observe her.If Nami does not reach out to her and ask for her help, she will drown in this darkness, because you can't be saved if you don't want to be saved. But if Umekui has to sacrifice the world to destroy what lurks around Nami's soul, she will do so without hesitation because only a monster like her can consume the darkness that suffocates Nami's soul.In Umekui's heart, there was an empire of corpses growing and growing. She's dead because she's already empty. Everything she valued had died. Everything she had previously pursued had become meaningless. She was a walking dead, daring fate to bring anybody else into her empire. And Nami will not be one of them. Never, ever again.Luffy's stretched limbs drew her attention as he used his body to shield the ship." GOMU GOMU NO...." he caths the cannonball " PACHINKO" with his abdomen, but before he could send it back at the marine ship, his hand slipped and the shot was deflected onto the restaurant Baratie, demolishing the roof."Oh shit," Zoro curses beside her.Yes, shit because they are now in serious trouble.Umekui and the rest of the crew could only watch as Luffy cried and was taken away by the baratie cooks. Umekui sighs, knowing that the day will be long. She turns to face her crew, Nami is normal now, yet she can sense the grief and regret in her heart." I'll attempt to help the captain. We'll meet inside the restaurant in half an hour. If they show out to be unfriendly, I'll simply kidnap Luffy and flee; otherwise, we'll see what happens. But keep on your alert," she simply declares, and with their nods, she turns around and heads toward the restaurant.Luffy realizes he is in huge trouble right now. He gulped the saliva in his throat, frightened, as he glanced at the old man in front of him." Listen, boy. Medical and repair bills are going to be expensive," says the long-dressed mustache man in front of him, as he puts his cook hat on his bloodied head."I'm sorry, but I don't have any money," Luffy admitted." Ha! That is unfortunate. Then you'll have to work here for a year," the old man says." ONE YEAR, YOU SAY?!" gasps Luffy.The old man nods."I refuse. I've waited ten years to be a pirate. I'll work for just a week."A kick strikes his face. The chef looks at him and pulls a large knife from his blouse, and Luffy's eyes shoot."Instead of a year, you will give me your leg!""If you want a leg to free my captain, I will gladly cut mine," an icy voice from behind interrupts." HA?! And who are you, young lady?" Zeff asks the weird woman in front of him."Fist mate of the straw hat pirate, Umekui," she says simply as Luffy leaps onto her arms." Ume, what are you saying?! You are not going to slit your leg! I refuse!" yells Luffy, scowling at his first mate (Because he knows Umrkui is sometimes dumb, selfless, and stupid like Ace and Sabo, like Shanks who lost an arm because of him. and Luffy refuses to have his crew sacrifice anything for him because he is no longer weak)."A leg is nothing to me, my captain. But one year is a long time for you." She simply says to him before looking at the old man. "My captain will be king of pirates and his goals will not stop here because of a silly accident.""You are willing to sacrifice your leg for this young boy's dream," he says, not even flinching from the young lady's scarlet gaze. (Yet Zeff could sense his girl's unwavering devotion to her captain (A boy with golden hair and bright blue eyes stands before him, and the tears in his eyes could make all of his wrinkles disappear)."If I have to cut off all my limbs to see my captain achieve his dream, so be it," she says, looking down at him. Zeff smirks, finding this girl really interesting, and he knows that if a certain boy had been there, he would have kicked him for inciting a girl to chop off her leg. "Ume-," Luffy shouts, but before he can get a word out, she throws him a glare. Umekui glares at him for the second time. (The first time she did it was when the sea delivered her to him. The first time he has to meet a girl whose eyes were as lifeless as her pale body, a girl devoid of life, dreams, and freedom-). "Luffy, you're now a captain; act like it. Do you want to labor here for a year in order to pay off your dumb debts? As your first mate, I must guard my captain's back and find a solution to every problem that arises."(Luffy knows she is right, yet it's wrong. but at what cost? Sacrifices had already been made in the past, and it was enough.)Zeff burst out laughing and sat up on the floor, fascinated by these strangers. And he would never deny it, but the woman in front of him was a beauty he hadn't seen in decades, and if the brat was there, he would certainly drop ahead for her."Hahhahaha no need to cut your leg, I will let your captain work here for one week solely if you pay off his debt with money or treasure, otherwise he will stay here working for one year" he glares at them to show them that it is his final decision."Are you deaf from old age, old man? I told you we didn't have any money!" grumbles the straw hat.Zeff kicks him hard with his feet, and the intensity of his kick creates a hole in the floor, in which the pirate boy falls."Huff these generations have no respect for their elders," sighs Zeff, but before he could turn around and tell the pirate that he needs to start working for the next day of the year, the pirate girl stopped him." Wait. Treasure can pay off my captain's debt, right?" She called as she reached for her neck and yanked a necklace with a ring from beneath the bandages."What is this?" he asks, narrowing his gaze at the jewelry she is holding toward him."My treasure."" Treasure? And do you believe this small ring will cover my repairs and medical expenses?" He glares, because who does she think he is?"Not only that. This treasure, My treasure, can buy you the whole world if you want. This ring is formed out of stardust, a unique and uncommon element that exists in the world. The world's scientists and archaeologists scoured every corner of the globe but never found a smithereens of it. This!" she says, pointing to the dark ring, "is the last fragment of this unique stone.He removed it from her grasp and watched as her flaming eyes and white face remained unflappable as he took her treasure. He wonders once more what this girl is willing to sacrifice for her dear captain. Even loyalty causes men to tumble from their thrones, but when he thinks about it, he thinks that this pirate girl wrecks thrones and destroys their castles." I accept; the debt has been paid. Your captain is free to depart.""Makes him work for a week. It will give him the opportunity to find a cook for our crew," she recommends."You're looking for a cook?" he inquires, and the girl nods in response.Zeff smirks as he considers the ideal cook for them, but the brat is too stubborn to accept their offer. Yet, when he remembers this staw boy's determination and looks at the searing gaze of this girl before him, he thinks they are excellent (and more than he thinks). He hopes those brats will knock some sense into this blond rascal of him. "Good chance, then," he simply replies as he exits the room, knowing that they'll need it with this brat.SANJI tries to ignore the strange crew's loud laughter a few meters away. The straw hat boy's shrieks as he waddles on the ground are the loudest in the restaurant and attract everyone's attention. Some customers appear irritated, and Sanji knows that the moment the head chef presents him to this boy as the chore boy of the week, he knows he is in big trouble.When he sought him to be the crew's cook. Sanji had no choice but to decline because he couldn't leave this place. (He could not leave the man who had saved his life. A man who had saved a child he owed nothing to (and Sanji understood that nothing could repay this man's kindness). Yet Sanji knows that this boy doesn't seem to give up easily, the boy who declares that he will be king of pirates as if it were a factual claim, this person is either bold or completely foolish.Sanji sighs and, before confronting those problematic pirates, he winks at the pretty blond in front of him and pours her a drink of wine.When he arrives at their table, his blood rushes to his cheeks, and he lowers to one knee, asking, "Baby, do you have a map? Because I just got lost in your eyes," Sanji states, his eyes filled with hearts as he gazes at the gorgeous ginger in front of him.The girl blushed beneath his gaze, while the lad with green hair and a large nose glanced at them with disgust on theirs faces. Luffy, on the other hand, was picking on his nose.He held out a gorgeous red rose to her, and she received it kindly. Sanji was pleased to see the gorgeous girl in front of him smiling as she gazed down at the rose in her hand (he thought this smile was lovely on her perfect face)."His flirt lines remind me of someone," Zoro grumbles as he looks at the blond man, and Usopp nods eagerly."AH!?" gasps Luffy as he recalls something.He turns to Usopp and grabs him by the front of his blouse, asking, "Where is Umekui?"" No idea. We thought she was with you," Usopp sweats nervously under his hard stare."Yes, she was with me at first but..." Luffy looks down and nervously chews on his bottom lip. "The old man told me she went back to the boat and he doesn't even want to tell me what Umekui gave him to reduce my punishment to one week" he uttered.Zoro and Usoop glance at their captain, wondering what happened when Umekui left them. As the old man arrived, their attention was drawn back to the fight with the blond dude." Leave with this crew! We don't need you here anymore! All you do is flirt with any pretty woman you come across!" grumbles Zeff (and hopes that this brat will finally open his eyes and take advantage of this opportunity to sail with this crew).Sanji scowled, his mouth thick with frustration because he had no idea what this stupid old man was trying to do right now since he was failing. And who says Sanji cares what the other cooks think of him?He grabbed the withe blouse of this old man in a rage, "If you don't like it, it's your problem!" He yelled at him."How dare you hit your boss..you stupid eggplant!" yells Zeff as he throws him out the door.Sanji expects the impact of his body on the floor but instead finds himself trapped in a bridal way in a pair of arms.A heavenly smell caresses his senses, something sweet and rich, almost like chocolate. "It's the season when a pretty boy falls from the sky into my arms?" a feminine voice contemplates.Did he die after hitting his head somewhere? Because he believes heaven is the only plausible explanation for being in the arms of a divine presence. He leaps from the arms and turns around to confront his savior.Sanji's breath caught in his throat as crimson eyes locked with his blue eyes. As a strange sensation raced down his spine, his feet stuck on the spot as if gravity forced him to bow before her and adore her. Indeed, his heart beats quickly when he sees a woman, but when he looks at the girl in front of him, dressed in a dark blue kimono, he thinks it will finally stop and let him die (and Sanji could never have imagined a better way to die than in the arms of a majestic woman).Her enticing and menacing eyes flickered at him. Her irises draw him in like the sea, but he knows that if he approaches her, he will drown for eternity in her gaze.Straight posture, sharp red eyes that bring men to their knees, blood-red lips, hair as dark as the night that reflects the light of the moon, a kimono that perfectly fits her forms, and skin white as snow and pure as the divine light (yet Sanji wonders why such a beautiful woman as her was wrapped in so many layer bandages and eyes deep like blackness, somber like a catastrophe, and catastrophic like a silence silent like howling.)(And the hazy recollection of a weak smile and gentle voice hurts his heart. For a brief while, Sanji wonders whether he was cursed to face the ghost of the past on his path to serve as a reminder that the past that's trapped in his heart and mind will never die. However, the sight of this girl before him makes him want to let her consume him whole, while the emptiness of her stare and the bandages on her body make Sanji want to burn the world.)In this miserable world, a woman is a precious treasure. Someone who is both strong and fragile, and whose love and gentleness could never stand a chance against angels. Women are Sanji's small hope in the midst of his heart's misery; they are the ones who saved him in such a way that his demons did not swallow him completely and the world will never know the violence it took Sanji to become this gentle and swear to never hurt a woman in his life.)" UMEKUI!" exclaims the chore boy as he leaps into her embrace.
'Umekui'?
Luffy had told him about her, his first mate, the very first member of his crew to accept to follow this imbecile. And Sanji wonders what makes this boy so special that she will follow him without fear of the danger that awaits them. When Luffy informed him, with a wide smile and stars in his eyes, how powerful and fabulous his first mate is, Sanji's throat clenched, and the smoke from his cigarette burnt his lungs more than she ever did. And he wanted to see who would be dumb enough to accept Luffy's proposal immediately.And now, as he looked at the way these Umekui eyes softened at the sight of her captain. How she let him hug her in a way that he bet she couldn't breathe from, nonetheless she didn't mind. Something is wrong with him; her beauty is something he has never seen before, yet the way he is feeling right now baffles him entirely, and his heart refuses to calm down.Sanji is ill. It was the only exploitation he could think of, sick of the exquisite first mate's face, which could make the devil repent and kiss her eyes. He reaches into his pocket with a shaky hand and pulls out another cigarette and a lighter. He took a deep swig of the cigarette and his eyes sprang out of his orbit as Luffy drove Umekui to a seat at the table while he sat on her lap, yet she didn't appear the least bit troubled by it.While Luffy barged her with questions he couldn't hear, he could feel her stare at him with a curious tilt of her head. The only thing he could do was turn around and walk out of the room. It was the first time in his life that Sanji turned his back and walked away like a coward ( the ghost whispers of the past knows too well that it was not the first time), however, who could blame him when this woman walked into his soul like a storm and made his insides burn at the sight of her vacant eyes?And, as always, the only easy thing for a lonely person is to run away.Usopp watches as the strange cooks run away from them, wondering which of the strange trio scared the poor man."So, where were you?" he asks Umekui."Oh. In the boat, sleeping," she merely says with a weak smile (and Usopp's fingers quiver in frustration at the empty smile and the darkness swallowing her eyes. He had no idea why. Why is their first mate behaving this way? why the Umekui of now differ so much from the one of this morning.)Luffy, who is sitting on her lap, stops eating and raises his head to gaze at her."So what did you give to the old man to let me work for only one week ?"" He desired a treasure. So, of course, I give him mine," she responds with a smile and closed eyes (It irritates Usopp. He despises the smile she's giving them; it's lifeless and hollow, and she seems like a ghost and it scares him.)Luffy's eyes are cast in shadow by the brim of his straw hat, and he simply asks, "Why?"Umekui tilts her head, as if she doesn't comprehend his question, and blurs out simply as if it were an oblivious thing. "For my captain."Ussop's eyes widen and his heart screams in fear as Luffy slams his head into Umekui's forehead. He and Nami leap from their seats, watching the interaction of their captain and first mate anxiously.Nami's eyes widen with panic, and her body trembles as she holds out a finger and points at Umekui's forehead."U-Umekui you are bleeding!" She reacts, terrified by the scene before her, but Umekui ignores her, looking up at Luffy's face with a smile on her lips."Go get it back! It's an order," he shouts angrily at her. (Why? Why? Luffy doesn't understand why she merely abandons her treasure just for him. for a careless accident. and it was entirely his fault! But why Umekui merely gave up on her treasure for him it's completely stupid on her part.)" I can't. There is no going back on a deal." (Usopp believes that this woman is insane. Even though her forehead is bleeding and drowning her face, she still smiles and talks as if nothing serious is happening.)"I don't care. Just steal it back!""And take the risk that you'll stay here for a year. No. My captain, you have dreams and goals to accomplish, and my treasure is nothing compared to your path," she comments.This causes Luffy to snap. He leaps from her lap, reaches for her kimono, and tosses her over his shoulder.The customers at the restaurant are terrified, and Usopp swears that if the head chef shows up again because of their problems, they will be the next meals on the menu.Umekui remains on the ground and does not even attempt to stand up to confront Luffy. (At this point, Usopp realizes that Umekui has never fought Luffy, has never raised her voice at him as he and the others have, and has never hit him as they do; on the contrary, she always speaks to him with respect, and gentleness, and does whatever Luffy requests without hesitation. Usopp wonders how willing she is to go to any extent for Luffy (and a small part of his heart wonders whether she will go to any length for them? for him ?))" Luffy stops! Zoro stop him!" shouts Nami, a frightened expression on her face. (Nami's heart aches at the sight before her, and the feeling of powerlessness and weakness causes her eyes to ache. Why are they fighting? She just wants them to sit at the table and laugh together as they always do.) Zoro's hard stare watches Luffy as he sits on Umekui on the floor and shakes her from her kimono as she merely stares at him without reacting.Before she can intervene, Zoro grabs Nami's arm."No, we can't. It's solely between our captain and first mate. We have no authority to intervene. Those are pirate laws," he explains coldly."Laws of pirates ?" Nami mutters, "They're fucking stupid! I don't care, they're our friends," she yells.Zoro does not answer and instead clenches his fist and grits his teeth at their inability.Luffy glares down at his stupid Ume. He stops shaking her and fixes his gaze on her lifeless eyes and bloody face.(Luffy just wants to beat the emptiness out of them. He doesn't know what to do. The only thing he could do was let his body take over and his rage bite everyone. When someone is stupid, he beats them. When someone irritates him, he beats them. He understands how foolish it is of him. Makino constantly scolded him for it when he fought with the kids in his village or the annoying adults.)"I want to be a pirate king alongside you, Umekui. I made a promise to you! I promised the seas and the heavens that with only Umekui as my first mate, I would be king of pirates. Not a half Umekui. A treasure is half the soul of its holder!" (this is what Shanks has told him, and it is because of this. That his hat (his treasure) is the most precious thing to him and defines who he is) because Luffy is simply not Luffy without his straw hat.)Umekui's eyes darken, the red that he loves is no longer visible, and the smile (the empty smile that he despises, not the magnificent beautiful smile that he adores) dims. She appears to be no longer there. (Luffy grips her bandaged wrists hard to convince himself that she is still reel and here.) She pushes him away from her body and stands up, gazing at him as what he has told her has broken her heart in ways that no one else could ever do."Then take it back, and declare to the seas and skies that you will be king of pirates alongside Umekui. Otherwise, you'll find another first mate, with a treasure rather than a first mate with half a soul in them," and with those cold words, she turns her back on him, from them, and leaves the restaurant.

" kings ordered, "Kill your enemy !" and she obeyed him and killed herself"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"it's like drowning but you just don’t fucking die."                                                                                                                                                                           -grief.

Umekui knows that she is strong.Stronger than any being in this universe, stronger than the deity that bathes above them, and stronger than the so-called gods of this awful world.The entire world is conscious of her might. Because of this, she has been deemed as the calamity that will bring the destruction of the world from the moment she was born. So they despised and shunned her. Enslaving her to follow all the wrong paths she could stumble on as a way to survive. Still, who claims that Umekui loved the world? No. She despised them as much as they despised her and rejected them as much as they rejected her.Hell, there were times when she was ready to destroy the world and drag it down with her. The first place that cursed Umekui's being was also the first place that condemned her to the existence of a treacherous human (this place where darkness is a deity among them and the sun is nothing more than a tale told by the most demented, a place where the-).Umekui resents the world (such as how could she like it when they loathed her, tortured her, and marked her in blood and flames into the monstrous being she is now?).The world was brutal, ugly, and selfish. So she wondered why she would live in it, why she had to get up every day and walk and breathe (when everything hurts, fire and blood devour her without letting her escape from this supplice). And Umekui is simply sick of living, so so tired (the tiredness that makes you want to blow your head and seek death so badly that the barrier between reality and dreams is merely an illusion).However, when she considers it. The world was cruel but beautiful. Beautiful because special people are worthy of all the love of the stars and freedom dwells in it (and the delicate aroma of eucalyptus, mint, and pear mingled with earthy sage caresses every part of her and burns her inside whole because she just wants to forget-).
"Maybe in another universe, I would ask you to run away with me."

"Maybe in another universe, I would have said yes." 
But the sweet scent of spices, meat, and sea had consumed her wholeheartedly.He is made of love whereas Umekui is made of war. He mends what he touches, whilst Umekui tears apart what she touches. He strokes bones and hearts, while Umekui breaks bones and hearts.He'll fight for her, and Umekui knows she'll die for him.Every time he screamed her name, 'Ume,' he got blood in his mouth. She had never liked her name, but she embraced it every time he uttered it through his adorable face and outstanding broad smile. She thought 'Ume' was a nice name, yet Umekui had blood on her hands (the heaviness and stickiness of the blood on her hands is as heavy as the echoes of madness on her ruined mind).Monkey D. Luffy is made of love and freedom while Umekui is made of war and serfdom. 
But what makes war and serfdom if not love and freedom?

She once read that "tears were the blood of the soul, so when the soul bleeds, you cry."She ripped the book and set it on fire.When she burned her own hands with the burning book, her eyes didn't even tear up from the pain. (And she knows deep down why, why she couldn't even be someone and merely a thing, it's etched in her blood and-). No, something inside her clawed, tore, and devoured her (she curled in a ball to hide her ugliness from the world and coughed, choked to blood, and allowed the darkness inside her to eat her heart whole) while the agony consumed her and tortured her into a hideous beast.The blade in her palm glistened in the moonlight that filtered through the small window in her painting easel. The blank canvas on the floor stares at her, and Umekui only wants to paint and burn this void inside her.The crimson cut on her arm pours down her hand and onto the black canvas. She takes her blade and slices a long line along her other arm, not even flinching; a being like her was accustomed to it, it raised her to what she is and craved the emptiness within her.Umekui is made of pain, and the fresh and old scars on her arms cast in the moonlight. Those scars ( and this monstrosity inside her that grows each day) are the legacy of Umekui, they are her empire.She can now feel it, this despair that has been going on for a long time, stomach full of blood, heart full of void, hands full of chaos. Scarred skins of millions of heresy, battered and wrecked, ripped to shreds from the inside out this is what Umekui is. when her beloved captain grew upset at her for giving up her treasure (but why does she still call it treasure when it was full of empty promises and dreams, and Umekui is so tired and numb and she just wants to forget-). She couldn't figure out why (The searing crimson particles within her burnt, and the taste of anguish and frustration persisted). Why would her captain feel sorry for her? Indeed, It's true that her treasure, herself, is nothing in his glorious path. She is insignificant.In his glorious path, Umekui is nothing but vermin he will regret taking on his crew and as the selfish being she is, she craves time to stand still so she might drown in the warmth and love of her nakamas.Monkey D. Luffy the boy destined to be king of pirates. The scorching sun of her treacherous and sinful pirate life. He possessed something she had never experienced or known before: freedom. The incarnation of the all-mighty legend of this dreadful place, he is real, he exists and his name is Monkey D. Luffy, her captain.  
Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy, Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  Luffy,  
In her mouth, his name is like a prayer.Umekui has no faith in gods. (She knows they exist, from this place where blood stains their teeth and she is nothing but an omen for their reigh-). She will never pray to them or seek forgiveness from them. (Only a fool will beg mercy from the gods who ingest their tears and lick their wounds from pleasure-). But is there anything more powerful than the gods?
'Freedom,' a small part of her whispers.
Boys made of freedom who bleed sunlight. Golden boy who shadows the sun above them and patches the darkness of this endless world. The brave pirate boy, who is afraid of nothing not even from the poison of her blood, will have the world against him from the simple whisper of her cursed name. 
'Luffy, you silly boy, you will only lose your life and dreams if you stay with me,' she wanted to shout
From the moment, his warm embrace held her from the start and refused to let go, even when she rejected him. Umekui wanted to believe it was just a pipe illusion because she knew the fall would rip her to her core when reality struck her in the face (However, what can you expect from a selfish being like Umekui? she was nothing in her if not obsessive. But who could blame her for seeking the warmth and smile of her beloved captain?).The bitter taste of daring to hurt her captain makes her want to rip her veins and shed her heart. Her selfishness and cruelty injured her dear selfless captain, causing his gorgeous big round eyes to suffer from tears. How can she face him and her nakamas after they got a glimpse of her selfishness? They clearly despise her now. Yet, her crew hating her won't change a thing.
Because no one could ever hate her the way she hates herself.

Let them detest her, like the rest of the world does so that when she ultimately succumbs to death and drowns in this abyss, it won't impact them.
Indeed, it wasn't anything new.Nothing new about the world already abhorring her. Nothing new like the sensation of her heart bleeding. Nothing new like misery consuming her and driving her to this point where her nightmares are merely a vivid reminder of her past. Nothing new, like the blade that sliced along her arms and dripped blood on the black canvas, tainting it crimson (she despises this color, like those damned eyes that give her this-)Maybe if she bleeds for eternity, they'll forgive her and let her die peacefully?The burning sensation of her self-inflicted wounds (and the scars on her body that burn and reopen to allow her mind to ignore the empty inside her) stirs. She lays the blade down on the floor and uses her bare hands to paint her blood on the blank canvas, feeling the relief of giving in to self destruction.Who thought Umekui would paint to forget her madness?She never dared to be naive and foolish; her madness is what makes her what she is.She is madness and destruction, she breathes tragedy and lives in agony (the agony of not being someone, the agony of this curse, the agony of this ability).Madness she is and will always be it. Deep down, he has always known that her heart had no mercy on herself, yet he had never assumed that she would listen to him and paint to forget her loneliness and insanity. Such a foolish idea to taint her canvas and leave her flesh alone. Perhaps he didn't realize at first that anything Umekui touches transforms to chaos. Brushes turn into knives, paints turn into blood, and painting turns into the creation of souls that she will never know the feeling of cradling.But now, she knows that from where he is (in her heart where the empires of copses are growing and growing, screaming and ramping and she just wants to forget-) he has undoubtedly learned how devastating and monstrous she is. In this dark place where the void inside her devours everything, Umekui paints again all the blemishes of her mind and seeks just to forget for a moment and let the misery ingest her whole.Umekui's body is a battlefield, shedding her blood in the moonlight, seeping out of her endless scars and stiff bones, and slithering onto the black canvas underneath her.Her body split what her eyes would ultimately never do ( not because she didn't want to but simply because she couldn't) and her grief was discreet yet as persistent and almost as silent as bleeding from her endless unstitched wounds and burning scars. Zoro stood on their ship's deck, gazing up at the bright night above him. His sword feels so heavy on his hand. (although not like the heaviness on his heart and chest when he saw his captain's clenched fist and sad face, or his first mate's bloodied face and empty eyes).Zoro had sworn eternal loyalty to them since the moment he took their hands in his. Monkey D. Luffy is his sole captain (first and last), and Umekui is his sole first mate (first and last). He vows to them that he will be the greatest swordsman of this endless world. At the thought of his strange flirting first mate, whose emptiness causes his fist to tighten and his blood to boil with bitterness. His first mate, who appeared as if the world was devouring her whole everyday.Everysingle night, the darkness coiled itself around her like a serpent, like a dark forgotten language tongues whispering out the unblocking memories in her rigid bones and for the odd things that danced in the darkness of her eyes.(Her red eyes seemed redder in the dark, he thought, and her face reflected in the dark as the white of her skin looked like glass absorbing the light of the moon) but the redness on them that Zoro liked it emptied her eyes from the minute she met them at this restaurant.He wonders if the emptiness in her expression was caused by her giving away her treasure (and the mere thought of giving away his treasure makes Zoro clench his sword tighter). But, why did she do it? Zoro has known his first mate for a week and a half, but every time he tries to understand her and reach her, she seems so far away.His first mate, whose powers remain hidden and whose mind is so vast that Zoro bets he will lose himself in it, though Zoro has no idea how, but he knows deep down that every time he will gets lost, Umekui will be there to find him. But who would lead his first mate back to them if she got lost? Who would remind her, as Luffy yelled at them, that she would always be their first mate?Umekui, the only first mate of the straw hat pirates.Zoro stares into the sky, swearing that he will beat everyone who stands in their way. He will be the greatest swordsman in the world, alongside his captain, the king of pirates, and Umekui, their sole first mate (frustration flows into his mouth because Zoro doesn't know the dreams of his first mate, but when he remembers her blank white skin and lifeless eyes, he thinks that Umekui is simply devoid of life and dreams-).A dark silhouette catches his sight, he shifts his eyes and his heart dumps in his chest as his first mate appears on the dark night. He wonders if it's not an illusion made up by his own mind, the way her long dark hair absorbs the moonlight and her white complexion appears hauntingly pale, he knows it's her. Finally, their first mate who locked herself for two days alone in this room is out.Usopp delivered lunch to her door for two days, and Zoro noticed how sad his expression was when she didn't even open her door to eat. Nami could barely hold back her tears as she waited on her doorway, waiting for their first mate to eventually come out of this room and talk to them. For two days, Luffy tried to avoid the baratie's cooks by showing up at the deck in the hopes of finding Umekui, but the diverted expressions of Nami and Ussop revealed to him that they hadn't seen her.And how heartbroken and angry Luffy's face looked (angry at himself, angry because he hurts his first mate in such a way that he wonders if she will forgive him, angry because if Sabo was there (alive and breathing), he would have scolded him for his childish attitude, angry because if Ace was there with him, he would have found a way to talk to his first mate without breaking her heart as he did).She is finally there, and even if she appears lifeless and empty, she is reel and there before him. He marches ahead with a heavy heart toward his first mate and takes her hand in his. Her hand was so cold (cold as a dead corpse's, the feeling of grief and the hold of the cold corps of kuina on his mind make his heart ache) in his warm hard hand and the way Umekui stiffened and stops breathing makes Zoro frown (it was not the first time Umekui stiffened and reacted strangely when one of them touched her)."Umekui ?" He calls out her name (because his first mate appears to be so far away, in a place where she seems so dead and lost)When she hears her name, her body jumps and turns to face him (Umekui's lifeless stare meets his own, and Zoro wants to cut it with his sword). The darkness envelops her like a cocoon of nightmares, and she appears to be haunted by so many things that Zoro wonders if she will allow them to witness it one day.Under the glow of the moon, the night smells like Umekui, a void of beauty that appears so lonely and cold against the harsh night. So Zoro doesn't think about it and does the single thing he sees Luffy do to her all the time.Softly, with hands as gentle as the rain that caresses one body and as harsh as the rain that touches the ground, he pulls her in his embrace and hugs her firmly and strongly, hoping that the heat of his body will guide her back to him.Her body was stiff for a while, and he swears he heard her bones cracks, but she eventually eased back against his body (And Zoro's teeth gritted when the smell of blood reached his nose, but he simply sealed his mouth and didn't want to disturb his first mate with questions).Zoro lets his heart rest from the concerns that eat him alive (she is finally there) with Umekui in his arms.Zoro is well aware that he is a cold man who is awkward in many circumstances. He is harsh and rude, but he grows up that way, unlike the other kids in his dojo, because he has plans and goals to fulfill. He was hard on himself for all of the intense training he had done his entire life, and he only stopped when sleep ate him whole.However, when he meets the strange combination of his captain and first mate, Zoro knows that they will mold him into a man he never envisioned he could be, and the notion of changing never passioned and intrigued him as much as it did the minute he joined them.If someone told him months ago that he would be a pirate and someone else with his first mate and his crew in a few months ago, he would just laugh in their face then slit their throat with his sword."Everyone was worried you know ?" With his words, he broke the stillness." Even you?" she asks carefully in the crooks of his neck (and even if Umekui knows Zoro isn't lying, she can't stop the dark things inside her and the voices telling her that no one will ever love her or worry about a monster like her)."Of course, idiot!" he grumbles (and Zoro thinks his first mate is an idiot for not seeing just how important she is to them)."You smell nice," she simply says, fondling herself in his warm hold." HA?! Of course, did you expect me to stink?""if you stick I will not be surprised since it will fit your barbaric personality," she states bluntly.Zoro chuckles and looks up at the moon (and Umekui adores the sensation of Zoro's strong and muscled body, the scent of booze and steel stroking her insides like the gentle stroke of the sun at dawn)."Is Luffy still angry at me ?" she hesitantly asks. "Luffy is never angry at you."She doesn't react, so Zoro inquires as to what was lingering in his heart for a time."Umekui do you h-?"A gurgling sound was heard before he could complete his query. Zoro laughs and lowers his gaze to Umekui, who avoids his stare."Come on, Usopp put your food aside in the kitchen." He takes her cold ghostly bandaged hand in his and guides her through the night like a pollar star.When he arrives to the kitchen, he seats her in a chair, takes her plate of salad and chicken that Ussop had laid aside for her, and places it in front of her with a fork.He sits in front of her and examines her while she eats, noting how her wild feral eyes don't look so dark anymore, how her face is so flawless as if it was carved by golden deity hands, and how her dark long hair floats gently from the tiny movement of her body.Her beauty was like the edge of a very sharp sword, with dimpled cheeks and ruby lips that shone from the light of the piece. Zoro wondered what they tasted and felt like; were they stone and cold like winter, or warm and hungry like the summer sun? Zoro could feel his ears burning and his palms sweltering at the thought, wondering what the hell possessed him to think that.He eventually asks what he wants to ask her earlier as she finishes her meal."Umekui, do you have a dream ?"Zoro knows the answer deep within, but he wants to discover it from his first mate herself.She drops her fork in her plate and rose from her chair; for a brief moment, Zoro thought she would leave without responding to him, but he didn't anticipate that her response would confuse and frustrate him in such a way."A dream? Sorry to disappoint you, but something like me doesn’t have the right to dream."
'Something like her ?The right to dream ?' 
Zoro didn't even have time to ask her what she meant. Umekui left the kitchen, closing the door behind her. He sighs because he had no idea women were so troublesome, and he knows he'll have a lot of work to do because of the women in his crew.In their shared quarters with Nami, Umekui stood in front of her bed. She simply wants to lie down and sleep (but she seeks the kind of sleepiness that sweeps her far away from this word (but where, where would he take her? to another life, to hell, where exactly?)). She sits on the icy sheets of her bed and stares up at the ceiling, allowing her mind devour her and bring her to this realm where monsters that people dread exist.The sound of weeping forces her to stir from her trance; the orange light inside her burns, and the darkness that lurks about her want to consume its warmth.She rose from her bed and turned to face the gorgeous orange hair holder (the first thing she noticed was his hair, beautiful and soft, dazzling and light like glory, and orange like a scorching soft sun at dawn and the crimson glow of the sunset, however, Umekui wishes to forget-). Umekui can tell Nami is having a nightmare because of her weeping and trembling (Inside her, the orange star burns and the darkness creeps like a beast around it).Nami's gorgeous face shines from sweat, and from the frowns on her brows and her fast breathing, Umekui realizes Nami is in pain (how much more will she suffer without telling them, without telling Luffy and asking them to save her).Even if Umekui is aware that she is not an appropriate first mate, she will go to any length to protect her crewmates. (If Luffy still wants her in his crew and by his side, and she doesn't want to remember the pain she inflicted on him, the self-harmed burning wounds on her arms, she deserves them, since she only knows to destroy what she meets), and she promises (promises are so foolish, collecting them in her abyss mind where the soulless ones cry and outrage) that she will never harm one of her crewmates and will protect them at all costs.Umekui is aware that she is a monster who will bring chaos and tragedy to this world ( but she will kill herself before everything, yet what she craves deep down is a painless one, and she thinks that if death takes her, she wants it to be at the hands of her cherished ones).Monsters who devour everything, even the cosmos of the gods above them, monsters who breathe tragedy and stain their teeth with the blood of fallen angels, Umekui knows what it is to be a monster, she scrawls it in the celestial beings above them and explodes it on her bones. And with her hands that glow like the explosive starry skies of this world, she brings it down on Nami's forehead,(The beast wakes up, opens wide, and waits to devour everything, wickedness and cruelty lurk within it, the screams and whispers are so loud, her mind and ears hurt, the dark golden doors open, it hurts so much, it hurts it hurts it hurts it burns it burns it burns and Umekui wants to die die die die die die die).The darkness that lurks around the orange light spreads from Nami's head to her hands (the atrocity bestowed her by the world, Hurts and grows bigger, and Umekui wants to bleed from shame and insanity, loneliness and madness thrive on her like a sword that scars and wounds). But the sight of Nami's peaceful visage and controlled breath Umekui's cursed eyes softens, and a weak pained smile adorns her face.( The thing welcomes the darkness with cruelty and hungers that would make anybody shiver and shudder in terror, yet it wants more and more, and the orange light within its reach appears so to be tantalizing and exquisite, full of dreams and light, a cosmos so pure and courageous, young and pure, it wants it,( I WANT IT I WANT IT I WANT IT  GIVES IT TO ME GIVES IT TO ME GIVES IT TO ME GIVES IT TO ME GIVES IT TO ME  NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW !!!!!!!) )

thump..thump

Umekui's heart hurt from the fast beating and trembling of her hands, and she knew what was going on. (The smell of blood invades her senses, and the darkness tries to consume her whole. The faints' dark bleeding fingers claw her ankles, dragging her to this abominable place. But she vowed it would never happen again. Never).(Engulfed in grief and despair, a fairy night that turned crimson. The splash of blood and insanity took over her mind, and madness blinded her to her core, and this voice, like that banned monstrosity in tragic tales, that breathes in destruction echoes inside her like a broken distorted record.) (The thing laughs at her foolishness and punishes her the inevitable price since she dared to stand in its way (their path) again)The darkness expands and gorges on her heart. Umekui collapses and coughs, and tried to muff the coughing with her hand in order not to wake Nami (everything hurt so much, her insides twisted and burnt, her heart bled, and her veins had consented to swallow the venom that cursed through) the stick and heavy feeling of blood taint her hand (and Umekui is so tired. She was created in blood, bathed in blood, breathes and screams in blood, and the habit of it sickens her to her core).She stands up swiftly, rushes to the bathroom, and locks the door behind her.Umekui desperately wants to laugh out loud because she is so fucking pathetic and miserable. If she is still alive after all of that, she is undoubtedly paying for her sins from another life (and her dreadful idea of living, again and again, makes her want to take out her eyes and open her skull but -
"Maybe in another universe, I would ask you to run away with me." 
 "Maybe in another universe, I would have said yes."  she just wants to forget forget forget forget forget forget forget forget forget forget forget forget)The symphony of broken laughers and the plethora of forgotten memories churn inside her like a raging hurricane, wreaking havoc on her insides. The blood choking her in her throat led her to throw up everything in the sink, and Umekui's hard breathing could be heard echoing in the frigid, dark bathroom.Umekui embodied depressing lifeless, and attractive darkness, drenched in bloody tears and coats grief. She only wants the anguish to end and the darkness to devour her entire being, like the remainder of the world demands.But-but inside her, there is one thing that keeps her and makes her doubt all of the options that lie ahead of her: her crew's 'Staw hat pirates' cry inside her like a new open wound that will never scar or close.But, Umekui only wants to die and avoid being ruined again. but what can they ruin when it remains only dust and void inside her? Nami feels odd when she opens her eyes to be met by the black ceiling of her chamber. (When all her nights are filled with the demonic appearance of Arlong (and this man who destroyed her in all kinds of ways) and the death of her mother. Where loneliness becomes a second bloody skin over her body. When the dark cell and the heavy shackles encircle her body like a snake and poison her head and heart like venom as the faceless shadows stalk her like her own shadow).Her nightmares vanished as if it was sucked out of her soul, allowing her to rest. She sits on her bed, blinking away the perplexing sensation, and notices that the bathroom light is turned on. Nonetheless, she is certain that she switched off the light before retiring to bed. She steps out of her silk sheet, dressed in a green shirt and a white tank, the cold caresses her body and makes her tremble slightly.She stands up in front of the bathroom, and someone pushes the door open before she can open it. Nami lifted her head to meet dark vacant crimson eyes."Umekui..." she murmurs quietly as she looks at her first mate, who is clad in a white kimono and has her hair soaked.She is finally out after all this time, she is finally here! Nami wants to cry with delight because her lovely umekui is in front of her, with red bloodied lips and eyes of darkness (so empty and dead), her first mate is finally out."Umekui !"She could only cry her name in delight. (It's been a long time since Nami has called someone from happiness) and leap into her arms. Umekui is steady in her arms and stops breathing, and Nami realizes that it is the first time she has hugged Umekui ( or someone aside from her mother and sister). Nonetheless, she would rather have her in her arms than be trapped in this room of hers.She lifted her gaze to be greeted by the taller girl's feeble smile. When she sees her thin smile, things fly in her stomach and something unusual happens in her heart. However, the paleness of Umekui's face and the black circles under her eyes make Nami concerned, and an anguished look occupies her face."Are you okay, Umekui ?" she asks carefully. Umekui gives her a simple nod. Nami could sense something unusual in Umekui, but she couldn't pinpoint what it was. So Nami decided to be bold today. She took Umekui by her hands and guided her to her bed to lay on her back, Umekui didn’t question her what she was doing ( and Nami thinks that Umekui was simply too tired to care). Nami moves around the bed and lies down on her right side."I don't like sleeping alone," Nami whispers softly as she looks up at the dark ceiling above them.(In a way, it's both true and false because the last time she slept next someone was with her wonderful mother and her darling sister, letting their warm covers cover her like the sweet embers of summer. And Nami wonders if Umekui could feel warmth under all those bandages. Yet she has never dared to trust someone enough to allow them to sleep alongside her (since she is a selfish vile thief who will harm everyone to achieve her ambitions)).Strangely, she feels that nothing could harm her with Umekui (and the nightmares will end, allowing Nami to step into the world she has imagined. Where tangerine threes lead her to a woman of honor and the warmth of her motherly embrace is echoes of her treasured dreams).Nami turns to view Umekui's sleeping face. Her eyes soften, and she thinks Umekui smells largely like rain. Umekui's beauty is a rainy beauty, a sea creature, a nymph with haunting eyes and otherworldly lips. Her black heavy hair was smelled of roses and sandalwood, and she wondered if Umekui would ever allow her comb her majestic long hair.(The real question is whether she will allow her and Luffy to rejoin their crew after everything is done. Will they forgive her selfishness? Do they value (love) her as much as she does? Then again, Nami was never a woman of tenderness and softness; she was nasty and selfish, letting grief devour her and wrath settle in her pulses. And when the moment comes, she will snap and let her wrath self-destruct her into ashes.)But deep down, she hoped that Umekui, Luffy, Zoro, and Usopp, as well as this pretty blond cook (whose gentleness and delicateness toward her was something she had never seen in other men (when men used her and wanted her solely for her looks and body, using her as an object to their self-pleasure)  would loves her and accept her back.Nami is sick of running and stealing to reclaim something that even the Devil has. The thought of it makes her despise the world for such injustice and cruelty. Power is everything in this world, and money is the price of greed among selfish men (but what makes Nami so different from them when she is a selfish being who seeks money like a drug?)Men buy the world and people for their twisted pleasure.Nami will curse the world for attempting to poet her abuse and suffering. The pain she suffered was unjust and unfair. The earth left her to die and there is no such thing as a hero. The gods enjoyed idly by as she was killed in that dark room (cell ) and not a damn person tried to help her ( then again what could they have done against these monsters? They are more powerful than anybody in East Blue, where order and the symbolism of their cruelty are sought in flesh (the mark on Nami's arm burns and aches and pains and she resents it)).Nami spent her childhood learning to fear and hide, and now she is prepared to spend her last breath reclaiming what is rightfully hers. Even if it means abandoning her precious crew, her new hope in this gloomy world who taught her how to love and smile without shame again.Luffy, the fearless adorable boy who taught her how to smile to life and never fear to talk about her dreams. Whose smile was so broad and warm that Nami could bask in it for the rest of her life. As the ultimate anthem of freedom, his loud and vast laughs resound with the all-mighty echoes of the limitless sea and the endless sky. The boy who wanted her to be a part of his crew, whose obstinacy and childish possessiveness erased the shadowed hands that choked her with objections and sadisty.Zoro, the morose swordsman whose kindness and honor push him to save her when he didn’t even know her. Whose grin and laughter are so contagious that Nami has never thought of being nice, yet she has learned to care for and love someone like him. Whose sake-and-beer competition lets her laugh at the world with him? She had never expected him to be so compassionate concealed behind his hard heart.Usopp, the geeky brilliant boy whose bravery is veiled under his anxious demeanor (She believes that his bravery makes him think of hers, destined to fight alone pirates to rescue their home). A frightened guy would never have the courage, yet Usopp did it without hesitation, and Nami admires him for it. And if they wanted her after this, she wanted to tell him how much she admired and respected him. And how much she appreciated the gentle and thoughtful words that reassured her as they stood in front of the door that separated them from Umekui for two days.Sanji is his name, she thinks. He reminds her so much of the prince from the fairytale book her late mother gave her. With his gorgeous blond hair, picture-perfect smile, and deep bluest eyes that reminded her of the sea she adored. She knows he'll join the crew and be the the cook; no one can resist their adorable captain and intoxicating first mate.She could tell Sanji was about to pass out at the sight of Umekui the instant he saw her (since Nami, too, had never imagined meeting someone as gorgeous and mild as Umekui). Nami thinks it will be too late to spend some time with this prince in their crew, and something hurts in her chest because she thinks she will miss someone like this man whose gentleness and devotion were something she had never known and can patch the blemishes parts of her broken heart caused by those men's brutality.Umekui, her majestic elegant first mate haunted by things that she never dared to speak about. She thinks it is part of her beauty, this quality of being not quite there, dreamlike, ethereal, and ghostly. Whose hands and words repair her broken soul into something wholeheartedly new and alive. Her compassion and outstanding understanding push Nami to look at the mirror and find herself beautiful without the heaviness of disgusting hands on her body. Umekui, the girl with gentle lips and strong hands, saved and found her in many ways that Nami never thought could exist. She switches her focus from the ceiling to the sleeping girl beside her, examining her pale body wrapped in so many bandages and catching a glimpse of the heavy circles under her eyes. She believes that her enigmatic best friend (the world feels strange yet soft inside her soul. Yet she wonders if best friends look at one other with odd feelings in their hearts and stomach). Nami knows that she will never forgive herself for leaving her behind and running away from them with culpability consuming her rotten heart.But deep down, she hopes that Umekui will forgive her for this, for her selfishness and absurdity, and hopes that she will understand her choices. "I'm so sorry.." whispers Nami with a raw throat to the night as a single tear leaves her right eye and drops on Umekui's shoulder. Sanji stood on their sail's balcony, looking out over Krieg's crew's destroyed ship, fragments that were scattered across the sea."WHAT?!" shriek three voices beneath him.He lowers his face to look at the three strange pirates: the grumpy swordsman, the frightened long-nosed boy, and their captain, the dumb chore boy."What do you mean by she stole the boat and left?" Zoro snarls at Yosuku."She stole the going merry?!! Usopp cries out, "This boat was given to us by Kaya and Merry!!""We are sorry aniki, it's just that everything happened so quickly !" Jonny burst out in tears."And Umekui where is she ?"  Luffy demands, alarmed."She left before Nami stole the boat and threw us into the sea" they clarify."She took advantage of us, this witch," Zoro grumbles as he glares at the floor.(However, something isn't quite right. He knows that every time she competed in a beer and sake competition with him, it was real, just like her laughs. Genuine, like the moment she sacrificed her shoulder to save his swords, and like these days when she stood outside Umekui's room door with aching tears in her eyes and a sad worried expression. Zoro has outstanding eyesight and instincts, and he always knows when someone is lying to him, so deep inside he knows Nami was true to them all along, so why did she steal the going merry and flee?).Sanji's forehead furrows in response to their conversation. Confused because this Nami girl is undoubtedly the attractive ginger with whom Sanji had been flirting these days (and Sanji could recognize a sorrowful female by soul), but why did she flee with her crew's boat? Was she afraid of what had been going on?
'Umekui..'
His soul repeats the name like a soft prayer.Bloody empty eyes like a sin. Paler than the dead, with dimpled cheeks and bloodied lips tainted by fallen men, and dark long hair that gleamed brighter than the moon. She was a secret, a dream, the first earth creature.Yet, she vanished from his sight like a ghost, and he never saw her again after their encounters. Sometimes he could see Luffy looking at his ship with regret and gloom, while other times he could see him and Zeff fighting for something about Umekui that he couldn't understand or decipher. His thought stops spinning about this woman as cries can be heard when a tall man in a small boat arrives and jumps at the broken deck of Krieg's ship. The sight of the man causes the people around him to shiver.The Krieg's crew pirates howl in terror. " It's really him..." " The man who destroyed 100 ships in a row !" " The greatest swordsman in the world!" " Dracule "Hawk-Eyes" Mihawk!"      "Fight me!" exclaims the green-haired swordsman as he draws his swords and leaps to the surface where Mihawk stands.Sanji raises an eyebrow at his courage and stupidity (seriously, are all the members in Luffy's crew are as stupid as him?).Sanji thinks that this idiot is letting his pride get the best of him, and he is going to be injured (and most likely killed) yet-.
'When I pledged to be the greatest swordsman in the world, I had already thrown away my life,' Zoro sneered at him.
So Sanji could only watch with a hard gaze as Zoro's three blades were defeated by a small knife, and see him lose his cool in the face of Hawk-Eye's towering, immovable mountain of steel (it was obvious that he would lose, going up against the true greatest swordsman himself, defeat was inevitable. This guy was as stupid as his dream-)
The ghostly scent of chocolate caresses the air,
And such a humiliation to end it with that tiny, mocking knife in Zoro’s chest ( he will die, why would he not give up ? Just why ?). Then, for the second time, Mihwak unleashes his massive blade, severing Zoro's two swords and leaving a mark of flesh and blood on Zoro's chest (he is going to die).
faint ghostly running steps reverberate from above the ship ( fearing that they will be late again because they were cursed to this tragedy) 
With another Hawk-Eye slice in Zoro's flesh, blood bursts from his chest like a fountain (there is so much blood). The two hunters beside Luffy cry out in concern, as Usopp trembles in dread for his crewmate's life, and Luffy's hard fist and dark look convince Sanji to believe that he will undoubtedly attack this Mihwak guy.And Zoro falls into the sea. 
With trepidation and anger in her heart, she runs along the balcony past the cooks and jumps into the endless sea to find her precious cherished crewmate ( she hates herself for being so weak, for being late, for letting her mind take her to someplace that will push her to forget the world and reality, she hates this world, she hates it).
As long dark hair brushes his face and the aroma of chocolate caresses his nose as a red kimono passes by and leaps into the sea, Sanji's eyes widen and his pulse beats strangely faster.
'Umekui...is here'
The water feels so cold and heavy around him. Eating him whole and pushing him into the deepest abyss of it. 
'he has lost..'
Bitterness invades his mouth, and his chest hurts terribly that he feels he's going to die. But he can't die now! He has goals and promises to achieve .Zoro raises a hand above him toward the receding surface, but the light appears to be so far away.He will not die here.His katana, his precious treasure, holder of his promises and dreams, feels so heavy in the palm of his hand.
'he has lost..'
Suddenly the heaviness of the sea around him seems so inexistent. He feels so light.A presence casts a shadow on the light above him. Zoro recognizes her from the slippery grasp. Even if her presence is non-existent around him while he cannot detect her like everyone else, Zoro is able to feel her. Feel her like the rain that caresses his body, like the sun that envelopes him during his training, like the taste of sake on his tongue, and like the hard hilt of his katana on his hands. Umekui seemed to be both nowhere and everywhere at the same time.She scoops him up in her arms, cradles him against her chest, and swims back to the surface.Arriving at the surface, the air around him feels like a drug, Zoro breathes hard and deep to feel oxygen moving in his lungs. Umekui laid him on the hard deck beneath him while the endless blue sky stared back at him.
'he has lost..'
The harsh sun meets his gaze (and Zoro has met the new sun that connects him to a promise, his captain)."It's far too soon to die for you, Roronoa Zoro. Learn about the world. Get to know yourself. I will be waiting at the top of the world for you to surpass me and my sword, no matter how long it takes."Despite the pain that makes everything else blurry and dull, that man's voice, the keeper of his ultimate aim, echoes above him and reaches his ears. Umekui's wrapped fingers caress his wounds (bloody eyes so empty and guilty stare at him, Zoro wants to push her for this expression on her face).Death is nothing on their path, she knows it too well, and Umekui, whose death cruelly plays with her threads, knows the price they have to pay to achieve their aims (since the promise he made to Luffy and Umekui is also their goals).His limbs twitch and shudder. “Zoro! Are you alright?!” Usopp and Luffy's voices call out.  He blinks up at the dark red eyes that look worriedly at his face. He smirks at her because his idiot suicidal maniac is worried about him again.The faint pressure falling away from the hilt in his hand causes him to tighten his grip and raise the sword towards the endless sky, the ultimate witness of his dreams, but the sky is as far away as the strength he requires to achieve his goal of becoming the world's strongest and greatest swordsman.No, this isn't the end of Roronoa Zoro! It's his birth. He will rise from the ashes of his defeats and set out on the path to his triumphant victory.He tightens his grip on the rough familiar weight of the hilt once again (the echoes of another vow to another treasured dead friend ring like a symphony in his head).So he raises his sword high enough to touch the endless sky, letting the sun light up his sword as the world's sole holy artifact, and one day his greatest strength will reach the entire world, sky, and heavens (and took at her door, letting his strength inform her that he has finally fulfilled their promise)." Umekui, Luffy Can you hear me ?"The captain's loud affirmative and his first mate's nods cause him to raise his other hand to Umekui's cheek, her black long hair obscuring him like a shadow."Sorry for worrying you, but if I don't become the greatest swordsman in the world, you will be both in a dilemma now, right ?" He tells them while coughing more blood from his mouth.Umekui reaches out a bandaged hand and intensely grabs the one on her cheek. She held his hand as tightly as the moon in the arms of the sky.But now he will call back to let the entire earth and the boundless sky hear his wows to his precious friends once more. His desire is no longer only a pledge to a fallen friend; it is also a vow for the sake of his captain and first mate."I will...never...lose again!" Until I defeat him and become the greatest swordsman, I'll never be defeated! Any problem with that, Pirate king and First mate ?" He screams to the the sky, allowing the rulers of these infinite skies to hear his vows to his most precious." shi shi shi"Luffy's booming laugh resonates with his vows, and the approving nods of the bloody eyes bearer put his heart at ease."Umekui...you say," Mihwak muses loudly enough to be heard.Suddenly, his first mate tensed and dropped his hand to his chest. Her red eyes burn and seem to glow like flames, while her face is as white as snow. She rises up and turns to face the world's greatest swordsman.Mihwak examined her with golden eyes, took a step toward her, and went for his massive sword." You! What are you doing there?"Luffy's heart was in pain.It hurts him so much (just like when Shanks was hurt because of him, when Sabo died, and when Ace took the seas years before him).And it's been bothering him for days now because he's hurt his first mate, Ume. Every time he tries to escape the baratie's cooks and show up at the going merry, Nami and Usopp would warn him that Umekui sealed herself in her painting room and refused to leave.He considered going to her room and breaking it with his punch, but he knows it would only escalate the situation then he chose to wait for her, and if it meant waiting an eternity for his Ume, then be it.But now, as he looks at her with Zoro, he is relieved that she left this dark room (and Luffy doesn't want to think about how she felt trapped in her own emptiness in this room). Ume had always this expression on her face and a void in her eyes, like she wasn't sure she was supposed to be alive. Yet like a wild storm, she has jumped into action into the sea to save Zoro, their crewmate.But, standing before her, the best swordsman in the world centered his terrible sword at her (the sword that had marked Zoro in flesh and blood, and for a brief moment Luffy feared he had lost him).Ume is finally within his grasp; he can run at her and hold her, hoping that she will accept him as a second heart and skin in her flesh and ribs. But witnessing this man who easily overpowered Zoro makes him angry. Luffy sees red and stretches his arm over the sea, followed by a fist.The baratie's cooks and the Krieg crew's pirates could be heard exclaiming and shouting.Mihwak deftly avoided his strike without even looking at him, prompting Luffy to collide with his first mate, who caught him before he fell.As he felt her embrace around him like a shield, he realized how much he missed her. Missed her voice, her peculiar cool warm, her gorgeous grin and delightful laughing, missed the smell of her that filled his senses like the sea and salt sea and sand that would never leave his body .Her wild lethal feral gory stare glances up at him (the emptiness and guiltiness in it makes Luffy want to slam his head against her own once more). But he holds back because, even if Luffy is stupid and reckless, he doesn't want to see his first mate's heartbroken face. Never again, he swears.(And if Sabo was there, he would pat him on the back and say 'well done' because he was always the mature one between them, while Ace would have simply smirked at him and told him not to be a pussy and to already apologize to his first mate like a true man.)"Straw hat boy. Get away from her if you don't want to be decapitated by my sword," Hawkeye threatens as he moves slowly toward them." Never!" glares Luffy at him."Luffy-" Umekui attempts to talk and pushes him away from her. But Luffy refuses to let her go (he will never let her go again. He will never fail her again. Seeing her turn her back on him aches his heart (and the tears that well up in his eyes are a stinging reminder of Ace fleeing to the sea (but he will see him again, it was their vow). Like the sky' promise that Ace will never die and abandon him))."No! Ume! Listen to me! I'm sorry." He howls at her (and even if the entire world can hear him. Luffy doesn't care because his Ume is the most important to him and he can't be King of the Pirates without her. He promised seas and skies since how can he be the king of pirates, when his Ume is just so void, because when he will be king, he wants her by his side, craved in his soul and flesh, like the taste of meat that would never leave his tongue)."Stop-" she attempts to push him away (her shaking hands flutter over his shoulders like a lineage of guilt and fear)."Listen! I don’t need you to have a treasure to be my first mate! To be by my side! I don't care if you have half a soul. Because I, Monkey D. Luffy, the future king of pirates, shall be half your soul. Ume, I will be your treasure! I will be the treasure that you will never have to be separated from, the treasure you will never be able to relinquish. I am your captain, your friend, but above all now, I am half your soul!"His declaration causes the oceans to tremor and the skies to tremble.((The gods laugh at his absurdity. The foolish boy who dared to love the monster. It will gnaw his skin and bones. Drinks his blood like icare. The skies despise stupid boys who believe they can save the world by carrying the sun in their chest. The sun will be their vengeful deity, burning their wings and allowing them to drown in the depths of the dark sea. Cursing him to drown in the sea, keeper of the world's treasures. Monsters are weapons devised by the all-mighty hypocrite to lure to death the foolish men who believe that honey trickling from their mouths may change the monstrous beings and try to bring down their deity reigh.
yet, who claims that Monkey D. Luffy is their typical foolish boy?

yet, who dared to think that Umekui is their typical monster? 
)

"The sun glows inside his chest. The moon echoes from her eyes always seeking his light."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Hearts are wild creatures, that's why our ribs are caged"

Mihwak was never one to get involved in the world's affairs. He simply didn't give a damn.He was a lone traveler, carving the stars above him as the world's strongest swordsman.One man with ambitions and power did not waste time on pointless activities. He saw the global government's offers to join the seven warlords of the sea as a means of reducing the number of things that annoyed him, such as the self-proclaimed gods of the world and the dog's government.However, as the world's strongest swordsman (a title that pulls the heavens down and hell back. To be the strongest and greatest in the world is to be viewed as the most superior), Miwhak simply slips into boredom. As time passed, he yearned for someone to come and challenge his reign, dispute his right to be the strongest, which he had desired for a long time (And the disappointment of witnessing Shanks lose his arm brought back feelings of indifference and ennui).His life is quite monotonous. He attacks pirates to entertain himself on his identical journey and wrecks their ships to gorge himself on their distressed faces. All the pirates and marines appeared the same, and all the men were the same, always wishing for things that would never come true (richness, power, peace, frame, he met all the same dreams in all the same types of men (so dull and insufficient, they were all missing one thing: will)).As a result of continuously encountering the same type of ignorant men, he gets bored. His life swings like a pendulum backward and forward between boredom and waiting. Waining for the person who will bring back his excitement and curiosity. That would prove to him that the wolf he was looking for hadn't died, so Mihwak traveled again, like the lone wolf he was, to find the new wolf who wouldn't hesitate to sink his teeth and claw at his flesh.Meeting this green-haired boy claiming to be the world's next greatest swordsman (and the determination, splendor, and power that lurked deep within him made Mihwak's blood simmer) perturbed Mihawk's sphere of boredom.He's finally found the one he's been waiting for—the wolf who is going to stake the title as the world's greatest swordsman.Roronoa Zoro's will causes the skies and oceans to quiver because he will be greater than anything else (And Mihwak knows deep down that this boy will make history and become stronger and greater than anyone who has ever walked on Earth's surface). Passion beats like a second heart in his chest, and strength flashes in his veins like Icare concealed deep within him because he is simply not ready; he has so much to do and see ahead of him.Roronoa Zoro's will burns like the stars above him (a million explosions, nebulas as immortal as the sun above them), and the ferocity in his gray eyes causes the blade in his hands to glow and burn.But, to be honest, Mihwak isn't sure if he should be astonished at how fate works. His captain was Monkey D. Luffy, a name that irritated him because Shanks could never stop talking about this youngster who claimed to be the next king of pirates and for whom Shanks, his ex-only rival, sacrificed his arm. For a long time, Mihwak couldn't comprehend how a strong guy like Shanks could give up his arm for a foolish young boy.The straw hat that never left Shank's head shimmered brighter than he had seen it before, a wild loud laugh (that reminded him so much of Shank's annoying laugh) rang in his head, and his curious eyes beheld the unbelievable devil fruit that made him become a rubber man. Now that he encounters Luffy, the stupid boy (who appears to be just as dumb as Shanks and a lot more), he comprehends why his ex-rival did what he did.This boy was capable of making the devil repent and monsters bear a heart. He could end battles with the sound of his odd, booming laugh. So much will and passion in his heart, that Mihwak isn't surprised that a boy like Zoro follows him ( the next king of pirates he claims to be. Mihwak is excited to watch this boy ascend to it and cross his path again to see if he is just a figment of his imagination or if he would perish at his blade. Or will he die at the claw of an abomination like his first mate?)As he observes the long black hairs as dark as the pit of hell, he wonders if Luffy is simply too stupid to be aware that a parasite stands beside him. Her name was engraved in blood and fire to be eliminated, and her head would be presented to the world on a golden plate. Angels await her demise, and whisper in the dark proclaim that the man who exterminates her abomination will be the new hero of dawn.The root of humanity's destruction stands before him. Mihwak wants to laugh loud at the gods who observe from their bloody bones thrones that the monster of destructive tales has finally crossed his path.Yet, as he looks at the way Luffy embraces her and lets his promise be heard by the entire world, mocking the gods and the world, and daring anyone to come at them and take her away from him, Mihwak stares keenly at them and inevitably smirks.Mihwak glances at her, allowing his mind to recall every detail about her. She wasn't just deadly; she was monstrously threateningly beautiful. The being born with the ability to destroy the world by just uttering her name and causing the celestial bodies to shake at her fingertips.So the world has to exterminate this woman? he muses. Indeed, they should fear her bright red lips and those wild dark crimson empty eyes of hers (Mihwak knows eyes that faced death and breed in it, he knows eyes that drank in blood and soaked in murder, he knows bloodthirsty eyes when he crosses ones).
'The Umekui Dazai'
Dazai, the forbidden name: a twisted being, a death-ridden plagued by curses. If they catch you uttering her name, a gun will be next to your head, ending your life. Curse her name, and the entire world will sing your praises. Deliver her head to the deities, and you will be mankind's hero.Funny enough, but who says Mihwak wants to be a hero? Being a hero is simply boring and naive Can they still claim to be world heroes when they have blood on their hands and rotting flesh in their mouths? The world is simply so hypocritical. Mihwak despises hypocrites, especially individuals who pretend to be heroes while the strings of the celestials above them control their will.Unfortunately for them, Mihwak thought.Mihwak is a selfish man who only undertakes things to satisfy his thirst for curiosity and challenge. Because if the rest of the world assumed he was a mindless dog like the other puppets that surround him, they would be disappointed.He repositions his sword on his back and looks at the strange captain and first mate. Mihwak laughs loudly and clearly, and the entire area gapes as the world's best swordsman laughs again and again (entertainment filling every echo of his laugh like a symphony of fate).He laughs as the sea around him howls. 'Half her soul' declared the straw hat boy.If only he knew the truth behind his words (and Mihwak concluded that even if he told him all the atrocities and deadly things that lurked around his first mate, a boy like Luffy would always be dumb and simple-minded). Mihwak relinquished his long-sought curiosity and entertainment for this one cause.Excitement runs through his veins. The cursed and the next king of pirates, is such an odd match, but who says kings have to slaughter monsters to be royalty? Mihwak knows that true kings always allow monsters to be their innermost selves to attain the siege of royalty. Only kings whose shadows are willing to dedicate their being to them and smear their hands with blood for their kings.With one last glance at Zoro on the ground, as well as the bound captain and first mate. (If the world finds out that he crossed her path and allowed her to escape, he will have all the dogs in the world purchase him, such a drag). Yet he hadn't anticipated she'd choose a sea like East Blue to hide (although who says she was hiding? Someone of her obscurity doesn't seem to be the type to hide).Mihwak turns around and leaps into his small boat, allowing the wind to pull him back to the grand line.The sun is burning and the sea is singing. A new generation has been born, and they have finally set sail on the infinite sea to fulfill their ambitions. And from above, the gods sit on their thrones, waiting for the world to be shaken by destruction and warfare. Miwhak knows that fate is amusing because every event that occurs in this world has a consequence that favors the world and spins the dice of fate.
'I will wait for you at the downfall of the world, Dazai: the devil prodigy'
Umekui watches as the world's strongest swordsman leaves. (And the dread and tremor that have consumed her from the moment his golden eyes recognized her made her fingers quiver and the beast snarl). No, she wasn't terrified of being known as the monster she was, but she was afraid of letting her enmity loose and destroying this place, leaving a trail of blood and destruction in her wake.Hawkeye must have recognized her because of where he came from, the skies loathe her, and the world condemns her waiting for her to ultimately set foot in this place and imprison her back in this place (where the sun does not exist and it is merely a fate Umekui treasures). And she swears she'll never return to this revolting ground, and if Mihwak dares to take her back, he'll have his head rolling on the ground.However, she was taken aback when he simply laughed at them. What made him laugh? Is he amused or frustrated by them? She wants to rip his vocal cords out and slice his arms because he has harmed Zoro. And if he was brave enough to touch her captain, she promised that darkness would be the last thing he felt and saw.Speaking about her captain, he is settled on her shoulders, his face tucked in her black hair, and his arms and legs spread entirely over her body like a snake. Luffy does not appear to be willing to let her go."My captain, can you let me go?" she requests, raising her gaze to Luffy."n'hr n'ver," he says, his voice muffled by her hair.She signs and looks at Mihwak's drifting boat."D-Do you mean the things you said?" she says, carefully."HUM," he nods furiously. Umekui glances down at her hands (the phantom heaviness of blood and darkness on her palms makes her heart quake) and shuts them solely.Her treasure? Why would he sacrifice himself for something like her? She is aware that her captain is stupid, but stupidity will never reach his level at this point. The treasure of a monster. Monkey D. Luffy, the golden boy of millennia dreams, aspires to be the treasure of something like her (ugly and selfish, a being devoid of life and dreams. A bottomless emptiness that could engulf the entire world in an instant).Her heart flutters in her chest. Her throat hurts, and she wants to scream and puke because it's unfair to him. Unfair because he has chosen to sentence her to never leave him because he is now her greatest treasure. Half her soul he yelled to the skies, and she knew that the gods were laughing at their foolishness and her tragedy (because why would the golden boy, the hero of dawn, want to complete a soulless creature like her? Why?Why?Why?Why?Why?Why?Why?Why?Why?Why?)Now that she thinks about it, she wants to know who among them is the stupidest. Who is the most selfish? The monster that seeks death every minute and has chosen and pledged her allegiance to the vessel of this legend she never imagined would exist, her glorious King. Or the dumb rubber boy who will be the king of pirates and condemned her to be by his side by the strings of treasure and soul and broke to the skies and seas that she is his only first mate,(But when he realizes who she is and all the wrongdoings she has committed, he will abandon her and take back all the warmth she sought in her flesh. But before the end, she wants to have his blood marked in her flesh so she will never forget him, and even in the numbness of death, his name will be the only prayer whispered by her non-believer being)."my captain, do you know what you mean by those words, you have damned yourself to have something like me by your side until you decide to take it back." (And when he withdraws his warmth from her body. She hopes that her body will be long dead, free of her wrecked mind and the things that cursed her to breathe with this enmity on her body; perhaps it will hurt less because living and breathing with a hole in her heart hurts so much)Luffy frowns because, even if he is stupid and can't understand many things, he has noticed that his ume talks about herself a lot as if she is something terrible for him. (As Ace did at the start of their relationship, the resentment he felt for himself for something so stupid broke Luffy's little heart. (Because why would all the people Luffy loves be so stupid and blind to see how amazing they are?)And why does she have to say ridiculous stuff about him leaving her? He pouts because even though Ace is stubborn, his first mate is worse; she is someone who needs to be beaten around a lot, and perhaps if she eats as much meat as he does, she will stop saying silly things like that." HUM HUM !" nods furiously Luffy "Believe me Ume! I will never leave you and I will never let you leave my side even if I have to tie you to myself."
('Even if I have so much darkness inside me? Even if I have blood on every inch of my body and mind? Even if I'm carrying the world's most cursed thing? Even if you know what I am when you arrive in this huge sea? Even if I crave death more than anything else in this world? Even though I-'
To quiet the frenzy, she closes her eyes and stops those dark thoughts from swirling in her mind."If there is anything I believe in, it's you" she confesses to the sun.(Because Umekui will always believe in boys who cradle a thousand suns in their chests and let her smolder in their warmth. Luffy is simply the gold sun of her treacherous life. The sun on his smile, the light on his face, freedom on his shoulders, his golden radiant mouth who utters her name, the custodian of this legend that she-. How can she not believe him when honey drips from his mouth like gold?)(Luffy's heartbeat increased in response to her responses; why does his heart beat so fast in his chest? Yet the excitement he felt at her words made his cheeks hurt from the broad smile on his face, and the strange feelings in his stomach were surely because he was hungry as usual)."shi shi shi" Luffy giggles like an idiot and hugs her fervently up on her shoulders ( his laughter vines through her long black hair, letting the roots grow in her heart). "Ano guys, Zoro is still bleeding on the floor, and Nami is fading from our sight," Ussop says from behind them.(Yet the softness in Usopp's eyes could cause flowers to bloom and birds to sing, and the sight of his captain and first mate smiling and not fighting eased his heart (and after days apart, Ussop could finally breathe the same air as his first mate and stare at his favorite scary ghost)).
Nami.
Umekui hadn't seen her since last night. (When her heart and mind were in such pain that all the blood she threw up made her feel so heavy in this rotten body of hers and Nami's warm embrace was the only shore that could soothe the waves of madness raging in her head. Nonetheless, the orange light in her hursts and cries, and the ghost-wet tears on her shoulder compel her finger to twitch).The two hunters were already beside Zoro, wrapping his bleeding chest."Zoro can you move ?" Luffy asks from over her shoulders."Yes. Those injuries are nothing," Zoro grumbles as he rises from the floor."And it's me who's suicidal; I've never seen someone as stupid as you, cactus head," Umekui sighs as she places a palm on her forehead." YOU WEIRD SUCI-" glares Zoro at his first mate (however the sight of his Umekui teasing him makes Zoro's lips curl into a smile, and the sheer image of his first mate lost in her dark mind and so devoid of life makes his hands to itch)"Don't worry, Luffy is certainly stupider," she says, cutting him off."Buttttt Umeee we were fine to say that Zoro was the stupidest between us" pouts Luffy as he stretches his neck, moves toward her face, and rubs his cheek over her own.Umekui's lips twist into a little smile at the sight of her captain pouting and touching her cheek with such innocence and fearlessness. But she holds it in because they have more important things ahead of them. (And Umekui just wants to die because she is so tired.  But the sight of her nakamas gives her a little energy to keep going and push those thoughts aside (but it never stops the tingles of this ability that burst through her blood)."Ussop, Zoro follows Nami in the boat that Jonny brought. I will help Luffy in taking care of these pirates," she said as Luffy leapt from her shoulder to stand behind her. As they board the boat, she gives Usopp and Zoro one more glance before they go to fetch Nami back." Usopp, Zoro, a word of advise. Don't believe everything you see or hear. Nami is our navigator and Nakama and Zoro remember what I told you at Usopp village. I count on you."Ussop nods, puzzled, and Zoro stares intently as he attempts to recall what Umekui told him."Bye! awaits our arrival! We'll join you and take the route to the Grand line in the going merry, with Nami by our side!" Luffy raves as he waves to them.Ussop responds with a bright smile, promising to get back the going merry and Nami.Sanji's bloodied head turns to face the chore boy, who yells at him to get up and fight."You don't get it! I have stolen everything from this man, his leg, his power, his dreams..." screams Sanji from the floor.Luffy's hands twitch and his frustration causes him to frown at Sanji. So the only thing he could think about was breaking everything. He stretched his legs as far as they could go and as high as they could go to reach the clouds."GOMU GOMU-!""NO STOP IT! YOU STUPID-" yells Sanji, but he is too late."- NO AXEEE!" Luffy feet's destroyed the Fin. The baratie's pirates and cooks could only gape in shock at what he did. Water pours like rain above them, and the might of the chore boy splits the sea in two, allowing the sea water to soak them and extinguish the flames that surround them."THE FIN IS DESTROYED ?!" screams Don Krieg."Ara Ara my captain do you want to work here for another year" sighs a feminine voice at their left. Sanji tilts his head and looks at Luffy's first mate. Her long dark hair cascades over her body like a cascade of water, the wet red kimono embraces her frame like a golden sculpture, and the fact that her dark crimson iris don't appear as lifeless as before makes Sanji's heart ease. The lengthy chains in her hands form a spiral around her."But Sanji was saying stupid things," Luffy grumbles as he points a finger at him."What the hell?!? It's you who has decided to break the fin," Sanji shouts back, his brows bulging."I wanted to destroy the ship, not the fin," blurts Luffy as he picks his ear with his finger.THE SHIP!? Sanji's eyes widen and his mouth gapes open, and he swears a fly entered his mouth.A muffled laugh can be heard from the first mate, and Luffy pouts and glances at her."Are you laughing at me, Ume?" Luffy asks.Umekui clears her throat, stops laughing, and casts a funny look at her captain."Nop just thinking what did the ship do to you that made you want to destroy it ?""Sanji wants to die for the ship to repay a stupid debt to the old man. So if I destroy the ship, Sanji won't have to worry about dying for his debt," Luffy blurts out.Sanji gets to his feet and gives Luffy a menacing gaze as he prepares to punch him in the face."My captain, you can't change someone's death. If Sanji wishes to die to repay his debts, then be it." ("You can't save someone from death if they choose it since you'll only drown with them and seek in the anguish of death," Umekui thought. and she will never allow Luffy to sacrifice himself for it. She will never let him make the same mistakes she did.)"Ume doesn't say stupid things like that. It's not about death. Only a weak person would die for a debt!" shouts Luffy as he grabs Sanji by the collar."Oh, you two! Stop fighting. Fighting amongst yourselves at this point is ridiculous. You will perish at our hands!" yells Pearls as his fist bursts into flames.Before Preal realized a chain was hurtling toward him. Pearl screams as he gets trapped in Umekui's chains, that wrap around him like a snake.Sanji comes to a halt to stare at the pirate girl. The chains coil around her fingers and hands like snakes. The chains around Pearl wrap around him and break his armor with a single flick of her wrist.She let the chains drag Pearl into the sea. The man's cries could only be drowned out by her chains and the water.Umekui turns around to face the pirates in the water. She declares coldly, with a dark glare that might make anyone piss in his pants."I've shifted chains around the ships. Anyone who dares to cross this line will become entangled in the seeds of the chains and drown in the sea."Some pirates shrink in dread, while the stupidest of them laugh at her, because how could she control chains underwater from where she is?Umekui raises her arm, causing five chains to rise from the seabed like sea kings and attack the laughing pirates. The pirates cry and struggle to break free from the chains, but their efforts are futile because the chain has already pulled them underwater. Admiration fills his entire being, and he can't help but whistle at her show. She is just so perfect, though Sanji."shishi shi Didn't I tell you my Ume was the most powerful first mate?" Luffy snickers beside him.Umekui tilts her head and winks at him.
thump thump
If the pirates or the old man do not kill him today, this girl will be the cause of his death.When Sanji feels a sudden threat coming from behind, he leaps to evade the weapon. He shifts his gaze to Gin. Sanji groans, knowing that the day is going to be long and the pirates are the only menu he is going to cook today.Umekui's sight is drawn to golden blond hair. When she first saw him and caught him in her arms, she thought it had been a long time since she had seen such an appealing face and soothing aroma.His features are heavenly and tender. No, it wasn't like the kindness that carried Luffy, the softness that Ussop possessed, the harsh beauty that Zoro owned, or the stunning feminine beauty carried by Nami. This man was elegantly beautiful, the embodiment of a golden man. Umekui glanced at his exquisite face, with blond hair that reflected the sun's rays in his blue eyes, like a veil of secrets trapped in the abyss of his bluest eyes.His eyes are marked by long eyelashes that resemble butterfly wings, blue eyes reminiscent of the world's throne, hair-like waves, and a soul as big as the ocean. She might even claim he was favored by the gods, with a face that could make anyone pray just by looking at him, bluest eyes that reflected the hues of the world's throne: the sea, and golden blond hair brushed by the sun.She wants to burst out laughing because, if this man is yet another trap set by the gods to drive the creature inside her out, they've certainly won.Still, something. His soul was lonely. He's more lonely than he lets on. Maybe lonelier than he even realizes. "He's our new crew member!" Our splendid cook; isn't he so cool?!" shouts Luffy beside her as they watch his fight against Gin.Umekui simply nods. Sanji's every movement is hypnotized by her eyes. The strikes from gin drain more blood from his wounds, and the blood that flows from him and drenches the floor causes Umekui's hands to twitch.Umekui grabs Luffy's hand at some point to soothe her enmity (and the way he peers up from their hands to her face sent a beaming grin to his face (so wide and heart-warmingly gorgeous that it made the scars under his eyes gleam) makes her heart shake in her cage, like the flickers of trapped bird wings))She can't grasp what she's feeling as she glances at Sanji because every time she comes across a new soul (a soul so wide and warm, a cosmos so pure and tragically destined to the throne of glory), it stirs something in her rather than wrath and hostility (but rather a feeling she is terrified of).  Yet those souls are inevitably tied to be one of the future straw hat pirates and likely piqued Luffy's interest (and she feels sorry for them. Because when Luffy is interested in someone, he will never let them go. And when Luffy loves someone, he loves them forever),(And in her miserable mind and rotten heart, which she despises so much, she wants Luffy to never forget her. She wants him to love her as much as he loves the sea and meat. Like he loves eating and sleeping. Will he love her until she fulfills these promises, which are kept in a warehouse of shattered and empty memories?)Gin's cries jolt her out of her thoughts (and she despises herself, always disconnecting herself from the world like a drug addict, she is so lost in those millions of words and has no idea what is real.Despite this, she believes that the warmth of her crewmates is the only light that can guide her out of her distorted mind. As Luffy has done every day since the first time she met him, as Zoro did, as Nami has done this night, as well as Ussop has done every morning)."I really...I CAN'T KILL THIS MAN! DON KRIEG!!" cried Gin. Sanji, who is pinned beneath him, looks at him, perplexed, because he can't understand why Gin didn't kill him when he had the ideal opportunity."For the first time in my life, someone was kind to me; he fed me when I was near death without expecting anything in return. That's why I can't kill him! So, please, Gin, couldn't we just leave this restaurant alone?!" he begs, tears welling up in his eyes."How could you?! Not only do you disregard my orders, but you also tell me what to do?! Gin, I'm terribly disappointed in you. Didn't I always say I despised those pathetic feelings of principle?" yells Krieg, his face flushed with rage. The golden shield in his grasp opens with a quick movement of his hand.The pirates on the water scream in terror, and Gin trembles as he realizes what his captain is about to do."Don! Stop! That is MH5's lethal gas!!" cries Gin, knowing that his words will never reach his captain.(Can he still call him 'Captain'? when he disobeyed his commands for this man (this man with such kindness in his heart and those hands that may make gods envy). Gin knows he will never regret saving Sanji (because the world needs men like Sanji to help and save the most vulnerable, and youths like Luffy who don't fear death for their treasured dreams).Umekui activated the ability that ran through her veins (And the voices and shouts in her head cause her blood to boil and the monstrosity within her to grow larger, and even after all these years, even after this curse stains her rotting flesh, she never learns how to get used to being a monster).The chains emerge from the sea and swirl around the pirates, and the way Don Krieg's pirates cry and attempt to escape the claws of her madness (no one can escape the vile claws of her monstrosity without being left empty and soulless like her) drives the beast inside her to stir."If you release your poisonous gas, half your crew will perish," Umekui claims loudly so the ugly man can hear her (albeit just speaking and breathing hurts Umekui). She is so tired, tired of living and breathing and fighting and talking to men that make the monster inside her want to eat them raw, tired of being in the presence of humans rather than her nakamas)(Nami is waiting for her (her orange soul cries and burns from pain), and she can't let her leave. Not now, and never.)"Please captain don't do it!" "Let us go!""AHHHHH""T'THIS WOMAN IS CRAZY!""CAPTAIN SAVE US" The pirates lifted by the chains scream in the air and implore Umekui to let them free, but she honestly doesn't care if they shout forever. The pirates on the ship's deck watch in terror as their comrades yell and try to break free from the pirate girl's power.The folly of weak men who believe they are the strongest of the sea urges Umekui to blow up their skulls and let them witness the real monster of the world (and the hatred and rage inside her wants to ruin this sea and bring it to nill)."Are you threatening me with my crew, woman ?!" "In addition to being ugly and looking like a gorilla, you are deaf and blind. What a pity for them to have a captain like you," states Umekui."YOU BITCH HOW DARE YOU TALK TO ME LIKE THAT ?! I'M THE STRONGEST MAN IN EAST BLUE" shrieks Krieg, the veins on his forehead poised to burst.Umekui wants to laugh because this man thought he was the strongest man in East Blue when her captain was standing behind them. (He is no match for Luffy's greatness and might. He dares to call himself captain when he doesn't wear kindness and selflessness in his chest like Luffy. He dares to believe he is the one who would be king of pirates when his smile is just full of hatred and arrogance, while Luffy's smile is the personification of the sun of this miserable world)."The tables have turned. The strongest man of East Blue is the man who will be the king of pirates and the only man who will be king of pirates is my captain, Monkey D. Luffy!" proclaims Umekui with a smirk. "We'll see," Krieg smirks, arrogance burning from his glare. He pulled out his mask and placed it on his face. "I will be king of pirates even without half my crew!"Umekui could never grasp many things (honestly, Umekui had never understood a lot of things). The world's fatality is always split into two equal parts (equal? when one of them always consumed the other, creating devastation and emptiness) the right and the wrong, water, and fire, the sun and the moon, fire and water, love and hatred are always two sides of the same coin. A reflection of what one can be and have, while the other can only watch the world burn in darkness and fire.So, as she looks at this captain who is willing to sacrifice half his crew for his purpose, she wonders if he will be the one to watch the world eat him in fire and allow the curse inside her deprive him of his dreams. However, the idea of her captain doing anything like that for his goal is akin to stating that Umekui is not a monster or that the sky is green and the sea is pink.No, Luffy was not a cruel man. He does not live with rage and hatred in his heart or selfishness in his mind. Luffy will never be like Krieg or Umekui (or those men who carry insanity and bloodthirstiness on their throats, or those celestial beings who stain their teeth with the frail's blood and dance on the ashes of the weak).Yet, even in the weakest sea of the world, Umekui always comes across a rotten soul who pushes her to throw up and rage (because even in the weakest sea of the world, the brutality and cruelty of men make Umekui so void and empty and she simply wants to die simply because those souls devour her raw, allowing the curse to grow again and Umekui simply wants to die because she is so tired)."Ume, drop the pirates into the sea," commands Luffy as he stretches his arms and steals two masks for Gin and Sanji. But by the time he swings around to steal another one for himself and Umekui, the pirates had all went under.Umekui turns around and spots a mask behind Gin and Sanji. One of her chains flies toward the mask, bringing it down to her hand. She immediately rushes to her alarmed captain and forces it on his face, causing him to collapse on his back and allow Umekui to sit on his chest as the canon gas erupts around them, drowning the deck in darkness.'Ah. he will surely hate me for it.' sighs internally Umekui.(And perhaps it will relieve his heart and help him to loathe her when he realizes how dangerous and selfish she is, and perhaps it will ruin her less when the first man who considered her as someone will see her as something to eradicate).In the end, boys like Luffy are destined to do great things and live as the world's freest souls, but things like Krieg and Umekui, whose bodies are soiled by the blood they spilled, are doomed to pave the path for their ultimate ruler.Luffy could only see blackness surrounding him. Even in the dark, he could feel his first mate like a second heart and skin. Her weight on his chest and the force of her hands on his mask drove his heart to quake with terror (she had to do it again. She had to hurt herself because of him. She had to always sacrifice herself because of him).Like the time she wounded her back to protect his hat from Buggy's knives. Like she did with her food everytime he was hungry (since Umekui was the only one in the crew who fed him despite not eating anything). Like she did with her treasure and gave it to Zeff, who refused to tell him what it was and gave it back. And now she's done it again by handing over her mask to him, allowing the gas to engulf her.His Ume is powerful. Luffy is aware that she is stronger than everyone else here. So poisoned gaz is nothing to her, right? It had to be. (This poison will do nothing for her. Because Umekui will not die. He promised, and Luffy never breaches his vow, even if it means fighting death or gods for her.)That is the problem. Luffy will always fight for his Ume, and Umekui will always choose to die for him (which Luffy despises because it's so stupid. Stupid, like Sanji and his sacrifice for Zeff. Stupid like Shanks and his lost arm. Stupid like Ace and his closedown heart. Stupid like Sabo and his sacrifice. Stupid, like his Grandpa and his opposition to him becoming a pirate), but when he thinks about it, Luffy realizes they did it for love.Luffy loves a lot of things. He loves the sea and the sun. He loves meat and sleeping. He especially loves fighting Ace. He loves Makino, who raised him as if he were her son. He also loves his dear brothers Ace and Sabo. He loves Shank and the Red-haired Pirates. He also loves his grandpa.He loves his new ship the Going Merry and his new crew ( he loves them so much. They are a part of him, a part of his treasure, a part of his goal and dream) since he will never be king of pirates without them.But he also loves Ume. His peculiar strange first mate, who sometimes talks a lot (and Luffy loves the way her voice sounds and caresses his mind, always teaching him new words because she is so smart), but who also often doesn't say anything for days and simply basks in their presence,(Like those time when she lay on the deck behind Zoro as he dozed while Nami read a book and across him and Usopp as they played. She observes them as her only hope, the one sting that keeps her from succumbing to the nothingness that consumes her. Or when she leaves this small room with paints dripping down her fingers, cheeks, and kimonos, yet smiles warmly at the sight of them).He loves her even when she says or does things that ire him. He loves her even if she is so empty inside. He loves her despite if she reminds him of a ghost and has those lifeless eyes (he thinks her bloody crimson eyes are his favorite part of her, the first thing he greets when she woke up across him the first time he discovers her in the endless sea making his destiny link with her).So Luffy continues to love his Ume, even if she has to make sacrifices on his behalf (but at what cost? What must he do to prevent her from doing so? To stop herself from injuring herself and to save her from the nothingness within her. If he becomes stronger than he is right now, she will give up forcing her body into the arms of death.But, deep inside, Luffy thinks that even though he is the strongest man in the world and the pirate king. Umekui will never stop sacrificing herself for him because it's simply in the name of love. But why does love always hurt the one who loves him? Hurts Ace because he was terrified of his love, hurts (kills) Sabo because he has protected him, hurts Shanks because he has saved him, hurts his grandfather because he rejected him to be a pirate, and now hurts Ume since he is her captain swearing her to remain by his side by soul, heart, and sea. Around them, the gas haze fades. His first mate's striking features meet his gaze, and the slight grin on her face and the softness of her red eyes relieves his heart of worry and nervousness. Luffy beams with delight since his first mate is simply amazing and powerful.He knows it! Krieg's gas is simply too weak against her, and in any case, Ume promises to never leave him and dies (even when he is the king of pirates, his Ume will never leave him, because when Luffy loves, his love is childish, and possessive, and their single destination had to be their grave side by side)."Shi shi shi," Luffy giggles against the mask, and his first mate smiles bigger (and, above all, Luffy adores his Ume's smile).The pirates and cooks at sea could only gape at the woman who had survived the gas without wearing a mask. Gin, Sanji, and Zeff ponder what motivated this pirate girl to take the danger of sacrificing her life for her captain.Zeff looks at the pirate girl, who appears to have been ruined by the world and now appears to be able to only destroy back, but she is willing to sacrifice her life for this boy with fragile dreams cradled in his heart (and Zeff knows that only love causes you to put your life aside for someone),Because Zeff could only love Sanji and want for his brat to open his eyes, be free of him, and live his dreams. What Zeff did for Sanji was not done to repay him; rather, he did it because he loves this child and wishes for him to find All Blue, as he has always dreamed).Sanji was always against seeing women fighting and putting their lives in danger.(Because they had already fought enough for him. They sheltered him from the world as best they could, with broken smiles and sad hearts and Sanji could never forgive himself for being so feeble and allowing them to make such great sacrifices for his miserable little self).But now that he sees Luffy's first mate, he can't help but wonder how much devotion she has for this boy to sacrifice so much for him. (But why him? Why would she follow a weak dreamer whose aspirations are so much bigger than him, a boy who will take her to the doors of death?'Why follow a boy like Luffy, whose dream is to be king of the pirates? (To be king of pirates is to find the One Piece, a legend among legends, a tale among fables, and an adventure amid tragedies) when his dream is merely impotent in the face of the world's grandeur just as very, very far away from him as the sun is from them. So, why? Why does Umekui have so much faith in this boy, Monkey D. Luffy, and choose to follow him?" Sanji thinks."You stupid girl, Did you choose this place as your grave hahahahah" mocks Krieg. Luffy stands up, and Umekui's fingers quiver. Even though the poisoning didn't kill her, he knows it has slightly hurt her, but she will never admit it since his first mate has always chosen to keep her suffering from them (As she did with her buggy injuries and her empty treasure, but one day she'll realize that if she let him see her frail side, he would be upset with her).He takes the straw hat (his treasure: the keeper of his promises, but now it's also her because his Ume is tied to his soul like the sun is to the moon, and this will never change) and places it on her head (his ume is much prettier with his hat on her head)." Ume go treat Sanji's injuries. Don't interfere until the end of the fight, I will defeat Krieg okay? I promise." tells Luffy.It's his battle now since this man who believes he is the strongest of the sea is nothing more than an obstacle in his path to become the king of pirates. And if he doesn't win, he'll never be stronger nor fulfill his dreams (and maybe his Ume will stop sacrificing so much because (for) him).She will wait for him here, and he vows to return because the moon cannot just continue to light in the absence of the sun's beams. His first mate had already been hurt enough by him those days (and the thought of hurting her makes Luffy want to smash his head on the floor). Now she may rest and see that her captain is stronger than she thought.His first mate nods, and the straw hat on his head shines like a crown on her head (Luffy's lips twist into a big smile at the thought)."Yosh!!!" shouts Luffy as he stretches his arms at Krieg, allowing himself to be thrown at him with force."Here I come, Gorilla man!"Umekui wants to slit her head. How could she wear her captain's hat? How can she carry the holder of his dreams, the echo of his soul, while the darkness within her stirs and voids men from their dreams, leaving them empty like a noisy jar?Indeed, Umekui was never allowed to make sense of anything in her life. All she could do was live with it and let the madness distort her mind and transport her to a realm where the sun is merely a silly fable among others.Boys like Luffy. Humans like her nakamas, who mend hearts with care and warm souls with tenderness, would never be understood by things like Umekui. How can they continue to dream and love in a world ruled by men with cruelty and catachresis coursing through their dark spiteful blood? How can they still wake up every day and allow hope and life to fill them?From the first day of her treacherous existence, Umekui could only have the breath of death sweeping over her collar. The world exhausts her, taking from her again and again, leaving her to wander this cursed earth with a hole inside her, and an impenetrable darkness that lures and devours everything around her.As instance, she doesn't want to tarnish her captain's treasure with venom and despair. Shame floods through her veins at the mere thought that she, a vessel of obscurity, is carrying something so pure and bright. Yet there is one thing her nakanmas and captains would never be: selfish.Umekui is selfish, it's a fact written in blood and fire. Selfish and egoistic because, even if she knows all the containment of her hideousness she seeks, she seeks the light of her nakamas and captain. How can she say no when her captain smiles and looks at her as if she were someone (never something) significant to him? So Umekui realizes she will never be able to change her horrible nature; she is selfish and will remain so until the end. She could only take it again and again, and her captain's treasure was no exception.So she could only lift a quivering hand to his hat and caress it softly (and if he was here looking at her touching something softly with care with those hands that only know how to kill, he would burst out laughing).She exhales a long-held breath (and her lugs throb and burn, and the venom twists in her blood, and the beast devours her again and again, leaving her empty inside).She finally stands up and moves toward Sanji (their new nakama, someone Umekui knows will be trapped under her flesh and heart like a beacon guiding her in her abyss. Someone she will crave as much as she craves her nakamas' warmth. someone Umekui will die for without hesitation and can only hope their names will be the last prayer called by her secular self).Reaching his side, Sanji stares up at her with wide eyes (his eyes are more beautiful near, so much deeper, bluer than the sky and the sea), a soul so blue and bright light up inside her among the four others (it's too late, too late for him to leave her, to escape her beast's claws). He is simply condemned to rest by her side and allow her to crave him till death takes her away (but where? where? Can she live in a world where her nakamas' souls and cosmos don't exist???).The fragrance of cigarettes and delicious vanilla filled her senses, and she unconsciously smiled at him. She certainly appears hideous with a smile on her face, but she can't stop herself because Sanji is their new crewmate, and how can she resist this lovely face chiseled by the gods along with the beautiful blond hair exalted by the sun?"Sanji isn’t ?" she asks, The man could only nod at her with an entranced glance, and she thinks she saw hearts glittering in his eyes (and Umekui wondered whether their new cook is blind not to see the hideous look on her face and the cursed eyes of hers to gaze at her like she was something wonderful to see).She gets down on one knee in front of him and pulls some bandages from the inside of her kimono. She returns her gaze to him and, with a flick of her head to his bloodied legs, asks for permission to touch and bandage him. As he was drugged by something (for a second she believed the poison gas hit him), all he could do was nod at her with a long-lost glance, but the moment her hands touched his calf, Sanji trembled.She tries to ignore her scorning, burning palms. Her captain's yells cause her to tilt her head to watch his combat.Her heart trembles, and the light red inside flares again and again, consuming her entire, her mind twists and something snaps at the sight of her captain's body. There was blood all over his body, and she looked at his quivering hand as he reached for the piece of metal impaled in his body, and the blood exploded on the floor as the piece of metal trembled in his palm.Umekui is aware that her captain is powerful, much more powerful than the arrogant gorilla guy. She knows that to be the kind of pirate Luffy has to be stronger and higher and higher (and she will always be the shadow, the parasite that stinks to his side until she dies and the pain stops devouring her alive because it hurts so much).But when she stares at him, standing on this damaged deck, blood streaming from his skin and flames devouring his fingers. He stands bold and high above this flimsy deck, surrounded by the boundless sea (his demise, the only thing that will always be stronger than him because the gods dared to curse boys whose grin shadows the sun and whose voices are louder than the screams wailing in her mind).For a long time, adoration and awe had never made her heart and body quake as much as they did now, and his loud voice made the silence of the voices inside her feel like salvation, and her name had never sounded so lovely in his mouth as it did now."Our grave?!?" The graves of Ume and I aren't here! We shall not perish here when the seas scream for the adventure we promised each other! The grand line is waiting for us! Our crew is wanting for us, we will not die here!" Hahaha. The gods have become much crueler than before. Umekui realizes she will never be able to escape from this fate. Monkey D. Luffy will be her ultimate downfall, the man the world has been waiting for (he knew it, he fucking knew it, and he didn't tell her. In the end, who was the most twisted of them all?)
' Ne, Oda, You were aware of his existence. The boy from this lost fable, this meaningless dream that I despise so much. You knew it, didn't you?
(Voices scream and rampage within her realm of corpses, and something twists and burns. The exquisite aroma of eucalyptus and mint burns her nose and twists her throat. Madness thrives on the thing inside her that growls and trembles).Her captain won. He'll always win, she knows, since this boy, Monkey D. Luffy, was promised grandeur and greatness. He wins and fulfills his promise (Luffy always honors his promise to her as if she is someone worthy of it). With the gorilla man's head crushed on the deck and his dark blood emptying him, Luffy has defeated the king of the east (he is no king). She leaps to her feet and sprints toward her falling captain. (Because, even if he is strong, her captain is stupid, stupid to not fear the sea, which can completely swallow him and leave nothing of him. The nasty deity had dared to curse him, and for that when Umekui will find him. She will make him, beg and cry for him, and consume him whole, leaving nothing of him ( and at the thought of it, devastation and tiredness feed her emptiness)). With the ability scorching through her veins, the sea surrounding them appears to be invisible. She puts her hand on her captain's cheek, allowing the ability to flow toward him and encircling them like a shield. Luffy's body stops drowning and the natural weight of his body returns; she takes him in her arms and lets her tragedy enroll them in a cocoon of her suffering.To save a cursed boy, the blood of a cursed girl is required.
'No longer human'
What could be more ironic and better than striving evil with evil and handling poison with poison? and her ability is the perfect venom for it.The chore boy won. He won.With metal pieces piercing him whole and fire twirling around him like the shadows of death, he won.With a ridiculous devil fruit power in his veins, he defeated the feared king of the East. With a foolish dream cradled in his chest as a treasure he won. "Ah. I see," Sanji whispers to the huge sky above him.The boy whose dreams are as distant as the sun above their heads. Are closer than Sanji imagined. They're in his veins, in his irritatingly loud voice, which makes everything around Sanji seem peaceful. His dream is simply the sun that shines through his big smile, the brightness that burns with conviction in his heart. Monkey D. Luffy believes in his dreams and his nakamas. Sanji now knows why Umekui is willing to pursue a boy like Luffy. Who aren't afraid to fight and stand up again and again. Luffy inspires people to acknowledge that their dreams are far greater than that. Like the conviction, the Zoro guy possessed in his heart and katana, not weighed down by dying at the sight of Hawkeye. With such faith, the unthinkable becomes feasible, and stories and tales become reality. And when Luffy says something, you close your eyes and blindly trust him.Sanji, like Luffy, wants to believe in his dreams and have the same faith. The All Blue; the keeper of his dream, this place that makes stars swirl in his eyes and a smile explode on his face like a star (the sea that kept him up at night wondering if someday he'd see and find it, but in this damned place where Sanji could only conceal his face in shame, and let his weakness shallow him like hollow echoes of his conviction).But maybe he can be stronger alongside Luffy? Perhaps he can put the ghosts of the past behind him and look forward to an adventure that will inspire Sanji to dream for the rest of his life. Perhaps the cruel clutches of loneliness will finally leave his soul when he sails with this noisy and warm crew. And definitely, the brat has the chance to have a beautiful woman in his crew (a blush crept across his cheeks at the image of the ginger navigator and the first mate).But how can he leave the baratie and Zeff behind when he hasn't made up him for everything he has done for his pitiful little self?"That day, eggplant, when I saved you. It wasn't because of some foolish debt, but because you were so young and full of dreams. I always knew the All Blue was there waiting for you to find him. So go and join them on the high seas, little brat." grumbles the old man behind him before turning around and entering the restaurant, where Luffy is undoubtedly eating everything and his first mate is close behind him.Sanji sits down and lets his tears burn his eyes and drench his cheeks. The cigarette in his palm long forgotten (it's been a long time since Sanji has cried, and the whispers of his long-lost cries of the small kid he was, make his heart bleed).The smell of a smoldering cigarette causes him to lift his head and stare at a bandaged hand that is handing him one. Sanji takes it with a shaking hand, takes a pull from it, and then hands it back to her. When she puts the cigarette back in her mouth to smoke it, Sanji swears his face is red and smoke is flowing from his ears.Umekui stares at him with piercing crimson eyes. (and Sanji felt like he was drowning in them), yet they're not the same as the first time he saw them. (The first time he met them, they were so empty and void that they reminded him of a woman who had so much love in her heart for him. But Sanji knows that the past is the past and there is no turning back, only grief and regret)."So pretty boy, Are you ready to set sail with my captain?" She smirks (and oh god, this woman is breathtaking. Sanji could repeat all the words in the world to describe her beauty, but he knows that no word can equal her magnificence, so he decided to stay silent)."I-" Luffy's loud voice interrupts him, " UMEEEEE WHERE ARE YOUUUU??" Before Umekui could turn around and call him. Luffy's body slams into her back, his arms wrapping around her like a warm blanket. Sanji's brows twitch because how can this boy be so brutal, this is not how we honor a girl.Sanji rolls up his shirt sleeves and approaches Luffy, stretching his cheeks."This is not how we treat a lady, stupid boy!" yells Sanji."Ume is my first mate, not some lady," Luffy says, sticking out his tongue and hugging his first mate fiercely to underline his point."She is my first mate too, stupid boy!" snarls Sanji.Umekui and Luffy both glance at him with wide eyes, as if they didn't hear him well."What? I think we didn't hear you clearly," Luffy asks." I said, "Umekui is also my first mate." As you wanted I will go with you. On this 'road to the pirate king'. Allow me to take up the position of cook abroad your ship." When Sanji notices Luffy's stunned expression, he adds, "You got a problem with that or what?""YESSSSSS!!! GREAT!!! WE HAVE OUR COOK UME YOUPIII!!!" shouts Luffy from Umekui's shoulders, joy and gladness fill the air in an explosion of colors.Umekui smiles at him with her lovely fairytale face. Strange things dance in her eyes, and her gaze scorches Sanji's soul. The sun above them shone brighter than Sanji could have imagined, and the waves of the sea flickered like the pages of a book. Yet the smiles of his new captain and first mate fuse conviction in his soul like the brightest light of the world.But Luffy's loud laugh was cut short by the arrival of a shark on the deck next to them, and Yosaku could only scream in terror at them from the shark's mouth."N' Nami-san is at Arlong Park!" In a town that was once the home of a girl who loved the sea above all, she has witnessed her home burn, surviving the flames at the cost of the pirates cruelty.She had once experienced freedom in a dream that she had long since forgotten. In this paradise of tangerine threes, embraced by the smiles of her dear mother and sister.But all she could feel now was the weight of her grief and the wrath and hatred that were blinding her. Even blind, she could see and feel the weight of the chains on her feet. The gods who could only watch her cry and shout for this tragedy had abandoned her freedom; it was a price she could hope and struggle to reclaim.She will pay the price and die to reclaim the home that her mother and sister adored. A girl with a war in her will bring the battlefield to this place she once called home.In a town that has bound her like a slave for so long, she will be free at any cost, and after all this, she will love the sea again. And maybe, if they forgive her selfishness and don't hate her for leaving them behind, they'll let her back into this crew, which makes her feel so much safer than this place she used to call home.Those males who carry freedom and dreams in their blood, and this empty girl who is haunted by many things, would they still love her and welcome her back in their warm and kind embrace? (that makes her forget the roughness and nasty hands of those men)?But for the time being, Nami could only cast aside her heart and return to this monster-ruled town. To survive the monsters of this town, it is better to out-monster them.Feelings are long forgotten, and to survive in this land of hatred and dread, she must forget them (she can attempt to forget them forever, but her poor heart is unable to forget the love it bears for them).The town where wickedness is sought in flesh and blood (the mark on Nami's arm burns and hurts and stings and she hates it so much) welcomes back the girl who traded her freedom for vengeance.

“There is no light for those who do not know darkness.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Home is the first grave of burning child."

Nami is cold.The type of cold that sharpens your fingertips in ice and destroys your heart. She stands in this room, where the cold strangles her and sorrow has taken over every fragment of her broken mind. (And the warmth of her nakamas (can she still refer to them as such after fleeing and betraying them like the cold-hearted bitch she is) seems so far away). Her knees and fingers shiver at the sight of the desk that she despises so much, the pen smeared with dried blood, and the spot where she had pulled the skin from her fingers so many years ago.The anguish of shredding her skin was the only way out from these nightmares where numbness had taken over her thoughts and locked her, the pain reminding her that she was still alive (she is still alive, alive with hatred encasing her, rage infused in her lungs and revenge proclaimed in her blood).Nami's soul cries and weeps as she views those chains lying in the coin of this room (prison) from the corner of her eyes. The chains darkened up by the dust of time and her long-dried blood lay on the floor like a simple object.(A simple object when Nami can't breathe and moves without feeling them pushing her back into this room. Reminding her that she will never truly be free from the cruelty of those men who treat her body like a plaything for them. Simple object? when those chains bound her to this desk to sketch like a soulless entity to feed men's greed for money and power).Nami is as cold as a corpse.Yes, like a corpse. This place, this chamber, destroyed her, murdered her in such a way that even when she pleaded until her knees bled, no one came to save her. The gods watched her with delight as she was slain as a sacrifice tool to honor them.Honor them? What is noble about her anguish, agony, and loss? What is fucking honorable about her grief? Please tell her what is noble in the price of slaving away her little soul. Feels her dreams, freedom, and will ripped from her back like a fallen angel's wings.Nami wants to cry, laugh, and scream (and sleep because Nami is simply exhausted. Tired of battling for her freedom. Tired of striving to reclaim her hometown. Tired of her mother's ghost bidding her farewell).The only thing that answered her calls and screams of "mama" on all those freezing nights was the weight of the chain around her ankles.She truly wants to be angry with her mother. Blame her for abandoning her in this town while monsters have damaged her in every way. Hates her for abandoning her (a kid so young and delicate and so feeble) to sell her soul and freedom to monsters in the hope of reclaiming her home. Hates her for allowing this man to touch her and soil her like a doll to his desires and pleasures. Hates her for leaving her child's brain to sew the threads for her revenge and to bring peace to her homeland.But, despite her want to resent her mother. She could only feel grief and love for her (and the apologies she couldn't express (sorry for letting you die, sorry for being so weak)). Nami feels incredibly bitter for trying to find a reason to despise her mother, although she was brought up as an orphan and grew up in her care.Nami is aware that she has always been a burden to those who have loved her.A weight for her sister, who looked after her infant self when hunger made their stomach growl in this cold land. A weight for her mother, who gave up herself for her (because she knows that if Nami didn't exist, this money would have been enough for Noriko and her Bellemere to survive) and a burden for this crew, whom she had grown to care for and cherish, once they see how selfish she is they will abandon her like the useless person she is.The chill of the room caused the silent tears to cut her cheeks, and Nami knew she would not even flinch if her cheeks were cut and a rain of blood tainted her face. Because those quiet tears are the ultimate torture for her soul, she let them wet her face and fall on the black dusty carpet. But these are the final tears she will shed.The moment has come for the injustice in this town to end, and the residents' grief over the lives snatched by the monsters is enough. Nami is much more close to freedom right now than she was before. (It's not the same freedom she relished with this crew that made her love the sea and sky again and breathe the salty air with love in her heart. yet, it's still freedom (and at this point, even if she's not with this wonderful group, freedom may mean anything to her hopeless mind).Nami's body is still and crisp when a door opens up behind her. (Fear suffocates her, and she wants to vomit because he is here, this man who has destroyed her more than Arlong ever could). His enormous shadows engulf her body in this miserable prison. She recognized his scent (of rage and vileness) by fear, and she knew the sound of his footsteps as the sound of her damaged mind every time he touched her.A massive dark blue fish hand wraps in her short hair, forcing her to look at the man of her nightmare. The scars on his face and the missing eye on his left make his face much crueler than the rest of Arlong's crew's fishmen. The force of his fist makes her skull throb, and the dark sneer that coils in his face causes the scars on each extreme of his lips to reach his pointed ears.Nami's terrified body moves to face his massive body (even after many years from the first time he stole her innocence. Her small child self's innocence with chains and blood tainting her little body on this bed. She longed that when she grew up, her body would be stronger and higher than him, allowing her to kill him and save herself), but this was a silly dream because he would always be stronger and higher than her (and the tiny kid within her screams from the injustices).His massive dark blue skin was strewn with scars Nami had no idea where they came from (but deep down she wished the wounds hurt as much as her own) stood high before her (and Nami wanted to get out of this room away from his claws and possessive hands)." You're back, my lovely toy! Why didn't you come to greet your master?" mocks the giant fish man while his big hand strokes Nami's face (and Nami wants to cut his hands)."Sorry, I just wanted to visit my room because I missed it, but don't worry, I'm back Master Asura," Nami responds with an empty smile (an empty smile that Nami mastered for so many years to never let those monsters know her true feelings).Asura laughs loudly and pulls Nami's face closer to him, allowing his breath to fan across her face (Nami wished she could puck in his mouth because the loathing she felt for him was unbearable for so long (so she turned the thoughts of disgust to her (and Nami let her mind hate her whole since she could never freely do it to this man))."I love it when you call me Master!" Remember that I am your master, toy! your life, your body, your mind, your soul! I own you all!" Asura sneers at Nami, his sharp fangs blackened by crusted blood, his breath smelling like a putrid cadaver.'Not for long,' Nami thought for the first time in many years.Freedom is close, she could hear it. Heart it in this tangerine garden. Hears it in the laugh of the children of the town (and nothing could make her happier than hearing the mirth of innocent children (since Nami had never had the chance to experience it fully)).She can feel it in her scorching blood and furious soul. She hears it in the song of vengeance that makes her body stand up and breathe. Hearts in each piece of belly she held dear to her soul like oxygen. Hearing it in the heaped bellies, this treasure she had concealed as deep as her heart and feelings in this monster town.Maybe in another life, the gods won't be so callous enough to send those men into her village and watch while  Arlong and Asura take everything from her—her body, freedom, innocence, and existence—leaving her only with despicable anguish.Nami is cold, but hatred and rage flare within her.In the chilly embrace of a monster, Nami swears to steal back her home's freedom. She will fight till her last breath in blood and vengeance (and if she survives, if she isn't loathed by the straw hats, she wishes to fulfill her dreams with the pure song of freedom chanting in her soul).Umekui is flying. Not due to her abilities or anything. But she's flying on a boat due to her silly captain.Seriously, who would tie his boat to a sea cow? Of course, someone as dumb as her captain.So, after her adored captain irritated the sea cow, it flung them up in Arlong town. So all she could do now was cling to the wood of the boat as they sped toward the island's shore.The air crackles with her captain's laugh and Sanji and Yassop's cries. At the sound of her captain's booming laugh, she felt her lips twist up as the wind whipped her long hair around her like a shield.Luffy widens his smile and laughs loudly (and the sound of his laugh stops everything within, no longer screams and cries vibrating on her bones like poison, only Luffy's warm booming voice), and Umekui finds herself smiling unconsciously.They soar until they crash.Umekui leaps at Luffy, grabs him with her right hand, and slings him over her right shoulder. She then turns to Sanji, grabs him by the waist with her left hand, and pulls him closer to her body (and the warm bodies of her Nakama warm Umekui's cold dead body. Their warmth caresses her entire body, binding her to theirs).When Umekui jumps from the boat to the ground, the boat slides through the earth until it collides with another cliff, colliding with Zoro on the way."You bastard! What the hell are you doing?!" yells Zoro as he stands up.Umekui lightly let Luffy jump off her shoulder and Sanji stood on his legs. (And the fact that Sanji's face was as red as a tomato made Umekui want to snigger at him). She pries the dust from her clothes, then removes Luffy's hat off his head to remove the dust off the pieces of wood.He sends his gorgeous broad smile to her as she smoothes his hat back into his soft hair.Luffy then returns his gaze to Zoro, grinning, "Shi shi shi we've come to take Nami back!"Umekui looks at Zoro wrapped in bandages (and the thought that he was hurt and nearly died because she wasn't here sickens her (but deep down she knows that if she gets involved in his battle Zoro will never forgive her).He bickers with Luffy, high and irritated as if he hadn't just been hit by the boat."AND YOU SUCIDAL IDIOT-, WHY DIDN'T YOU WARN ME THAT YOU WERE GOING TO CRASH INTO ME!" Zoro glares at Umekui, the veins on his forehead pulsating."Didn't see your green hair among the green plants and trees around you, dead weed" says Umekui with a deadpan voice."HA-?! You're comparing me to plants?! I'm going to kill you, woman!" shirks Zoro as he draws his sword, but a foot smacks across his face before he can draw his blade."How dare you speak like that to Umekui-chan, marimo head!?" yells Sanji as he approaches Zoro."Pervy cook, I'm going to kill you too," Zoro yells as he draws his sword.Two chains looped around their legs till they reached their necks, stopping them from jumping at each other's throats."Don't be an idiot, Zoro; you'll risk reopening your wounds. Sanji, please don't hit Zoro for the time being, and Luffy, let go of the piece of meat it's full of mud it's disgusting," Umekui sighs as she looks at them tiredly.Zoro huffs and moves his sight away from her, while Sanji nods meekly with hearts in his eyes. Luffy sulked as he let go of the piece of meat."Good boys. Now, where are Ussop and Nami?" Umekui mutters loudly."Ussop is dead," a raspy voice cries.Umekui's heart stops beating as the silence around her causes her limbs to go numb.
'Dead?'
The straw hats and yosaku swivel their heads to look at Jonny's sobbing face as he runs at them and falls into the mud."He is dead! Big bro Ussop was killed by Big sister Nami!" 
Ussop. Nami. Ussop killed? Nami killed him? Nami Killed Ussop? Usopp killed by Nami? Killed. Dead. Gone. 
The words swirl in her thoughts like a hurricane wrecking her insides."She lied to us! She fooled us, this cold-hearted witch!" 
Lied?Fooled? Nami a Cold-hearted witch?
No.Nami is lovely, kind, and warm. (Warmth Nami, whose sun clings to her like a garment. Gentle Nami, whose fragrance was as delicate as a flower in bloom. Kind Nami, whose soul was the shore of Umekui's madness's waves. Worried Nami, whose presence was waiting for her at her door (but Umekui was too gone, too insane to let her see her deformity).Nami, beautiful Nami's soul melts and cries. Orange light, warm, and burning again and over again. She smells the sea breeze and tangerine. Her short hair is lovely and delicate, sparkling and light as glory, and orange like a blazing sun at daybreak. Her beautiful forms may hypnotize any man into death. She possesses the grace and beauty of flowers. Nami was every human's wet fantasy: beautiful as a temptress, wild and daring.But enchanting Nami, whose soul tears every night (and it kills Umekui so badly because she can do nothing but mete in such moments). Nami, who stared at them as if they were a dream from another dimension the first time they met, whose body crisped and terrified them (- and the very thought of Nami or one of her nakamas fearing her makes her dull and dead) because Nami purely hates pirates.Nami, on the other hand, loves them.Nami is a nice person. Nami, who loves Ussop so much. Nami was the first person whose soul cried out and begged for aid, to save him.Nami is as warm as the first sun of autumn, with honey and brown eyes that are filled with admiration for her nakamas.No, Nami's soul will never lie to her, her eyes, her laugh, her sunshine smile. Umekui knows Nami, she sees Nami, she knows her dreams, routine, laugh, and voice, and she knows and feels her soul every day.Nami will never murder Ussop; the concept is ludicrous. And if Ussop was dead, she'd be the first to know and feel it (she could feel it in her bones and inside, as his soul left her and left her even more empty).No, Nami will never be a cold-hearted witch, and the very thought of someone criticizing her like that makes her shudder. Umekui wants to chop their tongue for their slur. Luffy was faster than she could rush at Jonny and beat him senselessly for his comments, jumping at him with wrath like a wild animal.Luffy is screaming and yelling as his trembling hands are knotted in Johnny's shirt, shaking him with barely restrained rage vibrating in his bulging veins. “Say one more thing and I’ll kill you!”"Luffy, stop! It's not like Johnny is to blame here!" Zoro yells, unable to move due to the chains that his first mate has tied around him."My captain. Calm down." Umekui whispers, her stillness oppressing her words, deaf to her captain's fury.She reaches Luffy's side, clenches his red blouse, and drags him backward with a painful walk (her lungs, muscles, everything hurts, she is so tired). Her captain writhes in her grasp like a wild animal, his teeth and claws aimed at Jonny.Umekui gets down on one knee in front of him, blocking his view of Jonny. She guided him to her face by holding his chin and placing her other hand on his cheek (this ludicrous soft cheek that is so tender and warm against her sharp-wrapped fingers).Big wide black eyes with a dark brown tinge stare into piercing crimson eyes."My captain, do you trust me?" Umekui inquires (deep down, she knows his responses since her dumb adorable captain would always stare up at her as if the sun above didn't exist, he always clings to her like the sand of the shore that always clings to the sea as their ultimate shore)."Yes, of course!" nods Luffy fervently (his ume carried his soul, his treasure, she was his half, the shadow that would never leave him. So, of course, Luffy trusts his Ume (as well as he adores her greatly)."Then do you trust Ussop and Nami ?" She inquires once more," Yes! We are nakamas! Nakamas always trust each other".Umekui softly smiles at his words, "Yes, we are nakamas, so we must trust them. I'm sure Ussop isn't dead. Nami is Nakama. Nakama protects each other." "Nakama? Who are you calling Nakama, Umekui?" a distant voice, cold as steel, breaks.Umekui's heart stops beating once she hears the familiar voice. (Within emptiness thrives, depressing and bitter but she doesn't want to be back here devoid of the the warmth of her nakamas. She doesn't want to, she can't, all she wants to do is-)The sun burns Nami's golden form, the rays devouring her body and mind, reminding her of the wrath that raged like a fire inside her, a fire so destructive and awful that it always breaks and hurts the people around her.Nami is selfish, and the town and her sister are fully aware of it (the thief, the witch, the traitor), and all those titles were the sting that seared the scars on her heart. Selfish to hurts everyone who gets in her way (she will eliminate anyone who tries to stand in her way, she can't let anyone stop her while she is so near to her goal).Let the villagers regard her as the villain, as the traitor who sold her soul to the devil for her own gain.(However, no one will know the sorrow Nami endured as her own heart was ripped from her chest, and how her dreams and wings were taken from her at the instant she sold her freedom to ensure the salvation of her homeland).But Nami will reclaim her wings (but what will she do with broken wings? Can she soar back to the sea, the keeper of her dreams?) Even with dead dreams and shattered wings, her home remains her home since this country, this town, is the home of her dear mother and sister.Nami will always give her life to see her dear sister's joy and feel her mother's pride from above.She will risk and sacrifice everything. Even the dreams and the warmth offered by her crew's warm bodies. Her crew? hahaha, Nami genuinely wants to laugh at her foolishness and naivety. Did she really believe they still consider her to be a member of her crew? Perhaps before they realized how selfish and evil she is, but it's too late now.They will witness her true face (true face? What nonsense is she uttering? Whose face is it? The one seeking revenge? The ones aiming to free her home? or the one who seeks irrational dreams? Which of them?)Nami is blazing. She will reclaim her mother's land at any cost, even if it means shedding blood (and how can she still call her hometown a home when blood and destruction destroyed everything she has known before?) and cutting these relationships, which she once considered nakamas, means nothing to her (they mean nothing)."Yes exactly we are nakamas, so we need to trust them. Ussop can't be dead, I know it. and, Nami is Nakama. Nakama protects each other." Her heart quivers and falls (it hurts, it hurts, her heart has never felt heavier than it does right now). Nami's body aches, and she wants to hide and cry. But. It's either now or never. So she tries to push those feelings away and forget about the weight of this thing she calls her heart."Nakama? Who are you calling Nakama, Umekui?" Her throat burns and Nami wants to pull out this voice, those words, this name, Umekui, Umekui, Umekui, Umekui, Umekui, Umekui.How could she mention her name with such coldness (this girl who makes her heartburn and seeks her like an ember, the one who ignited her hope, the one who found her in this darkness that Nami had lost her way in)"Nami!" raves Luffy, happiness and affection brimming in his eyes at her sight.When was the last time someone called her name joyfully and was actually delighted to see her (too long, so far and far ago when her home was her home and freedom could be smelt in her mother's tangerines tree)Umekui looks at her wholeheartedly, and her gaze isn't as dead as it was the last time she saw her (the night Nami felt her embrace, hug, and her scent sticking to her like rain). Nami wants to scream at Umekui to back off ('Please, please, Umekui, please, get out of this town, leave before it's too late,' because if the monsters find them, Nami won't be able to save them, and she doesn't want to lose them too--so please, please-)Nami can only slap Umekui's hand away with a harp slap as she reaches the palm of her hand toward her face. (And she wants to cut her hand for it; how can she hurt Umekui? Nami wants to cry and ask her pardon). She pries her hand, crosses it, and conceals her bloodied hand (it hurts, it really aches, but no scars or wounds can hurt as much as her heart is hurting and begging).Umekui takes a step back, her gaze dulling and the red in her eyes darkening. (And Nami wants to cry and embrace her in her arms, muttering all the apologies she can think of: 'please forgives me, forgive me for being so selfish, pardon me for pronouncing your name with coldness and hitting your hand away').So Nami opens her mouth and lets her words burn everything (and her heart burns and begs her to stop, to stop this madness, to stop hurting the people she loves, to stop hurting the people who love and care about her). "Friends? Nakamas? Don't make me laugh. It seems to me that you are more akin to a pitiful bunch of correlators. Don’t you think? and you're dumb friend Ussop is dead in the bottom of the sea" (Her tongue burns and bleeds as a result of the lies she is telling. How dare she insult them in this way? Those who renewed her love for the sea and her dreams.But the sea and her dreams are meaningless if her house is burning at the hands of monsters and her freedom is still held in this man's fist and confined in this freezing cell.)Jonny screams insults at her, and the coldness of her face is the only response he can elicit from her (he is right. What else can she say? Nami deserves his input; there are simply more terms in her head that remind her of how dirty and hideous she is.But did the monster of her nightmares taint the heart she worked so hard to keep hidden? Did she actually lose herself in this survival game and slaughter Ussop? Is the blood on her shirt hers or his? She has no idea where she is anymore; she is lost, lost, lost-)So she glances intently at the people who restarted her heart and led her out of the darkness into which she had fallen. But she guarantees that after this, those feelings are going to be long forgotten because she will serve as the villain in their tale. (A nameless villain who they abandoned in this place where monsters dance and feast with cruelty and avarice on her freedom. A nameless face long forgotten in their journey, a nameless faceless impediment in the path of the future pirate king's crew),But for the time being, please let her burn their enraged faces in her soul so she will never forget how filthy she has become.Zoro's fierce glares meet her, and she wants to punch him senselessly because this idiot, this soft moron, who always lunges at her to save her has enraged Arlong and Asura. and he can't get away from them because they know him (but they don't know the harsh warmth of his body that never hesitates to defend and rescue her, and it makes her want to scream because how can she forget him when he was the first man who took her and protected her when he didn't even know her).For the first time after always protecting and shielding her home, Nami believed that being protected like she was something important was great and warm and so alien (although she didn't hate it, on the contrary, she loved it, she loved it so much that she can't have it).(And Nami can't shield him from the monsters. She already has her people, her homeland, and this treasure hidden deep among the paradise of tangerine trees to protect. She truly wants to hide from her guilt at her inability to save and protect him from those terrible monsters, but Nami is so exhausted, so tired of always saving and protecting, and the only strength she has left is to reclaim her village's freedom-)Sanji's hazy stare meets hers, and a wide smile covers his face as his heart swirls in his gentle blue eyes.So he joined the crew.She sincerely wants to smile at him and welcome him to this dumb crew (but it's no longer her. Long gone. She is the only one to blame (not the gods, or the monsters of this town, or her lost nakamas, but only herself) for ripping and burning this bond (and at the emptiness and coldness back in her heart, and the loneliness creeps on her like a beat ready to sink her fangs).(A loneliness that Nami never felt at their side.How can she be lonely when Luffy's loud voice and warmth flood her entire being and allow her to take in the song of freedom that Nami craves for herself and her home? Luffy craves her not for selfish reasons, but because he loves her and cares for her, and he wants to travel the globe and be king of pirates with her as his navigator.How can she feel lonely when Zoro's protectiveness is here to protect her back and save her when danger lurks around her, and whose beers and sake competition makes her laugh until her stomach hurts, and the care he feels toward her hidden by his grumpy personality makes her feel truly cared and loved.How can she be lonely when Ussop's sweet voice and vibrant soul are always beside her, eating with her in this kitchen early in the morning, beside her when she made maps, and while he invented new items that she never understood? (However, the way he grins at her and explains what he's doing, even though she doesn't comprehend a word, makes her feel cherished. Even if he talks for hours, she believes that his smile is the only thing Nami cares about (even if her brain hurts from all the words and objects she doesn't understand).How can she be lonely when Sanji treats her with such esteem that she feels unworthy of? Compliments and heartwarming remarks that pour from his tongue like flower petals, honest and kind, with no hidden motive. A man who sees her as a woman rather than an object for men's pleasure. Nami's heart hurts at the thought of not being the one who will be by his side when they take the seas (because his person makes her feel so loved and cared about that Nami can't help but crave it but she can't, she can't when her home is burning).How can she be lonely when Umekui (her darling gorgeous Umekui with the haunted eyes) makes her feel so cherished and seen? The woman who made Nami's inner child so happy and free. Umekui shaped the darkness within Nami as a way to lead her to her. Umekui, whose days are so quiet that all she says to her is how beautiful and amazing she is. Umekui who brought everything she had always wished for, Umekui who always brought her papers and pens to make maps and watched her for hours while she drew.Umekui doesn't say much, but she does a lot for her.Loneliness frightened Nami's soul the instant she encountered those crimson eyes. When Umekui stood alongside her, it never dared to bury its teeth into her blood like a parasite and poison her days. When the scents of rain, roses, and sandalwood coat her like a shield, always there for her and protecting her.(but Umekui can't do anything against true monsters, she can't protect her now, she will die, dead, gone like her mother, and Nami is sick of losing her people every time they try to protect hers). And it hurts so deeply because Nami can't let Umekui love and protect her since she's been selfish enough in her life that she can't give that to her).Her heart is so full of her nakamas that she can't even call it hers (and when Nami harms this crew that has made her feel so loved and cared, it feels like stabbing herself in the heart over and over).Nami returns her gaze to Luffy (she can't look at Umekui out of guilt because she dared to hurt her).Nami wondered if this foolish adorable boy comprehended what she had said them as Luffy blinked hard at her."Umekui, release me! "I swear I'm going to kill this woman!" yells Zoro from his perch, jumping around in an attempt to break free from the chains."You idiot marimo. How dare you talk about Nami-san like that!" snarls Sanji."I'm going to sleep," Luffy groans and drops to the floor.This moron. She is going to kill him. "I told you to leave this island!" yells Nami."Don’t wanna. The road is good," Luffy remarks.Why? Why is this boy so troublesome? Why does he never listen to her words? (And Nami wants to drop on the floor and beg him to leave this place because he will die, and Nami can't do anything to change that, she can't, because those men, those things, those monsters, will find him and eat him raw, leaving nothing of him).Luffy cannot die right now. He can't die in this place that no longer feels like her home (why would it feel like her home after she bloodied it and let her tears saturate the floor with the tsunami of her grief?)The sea is at Luffy's fingertips (Luffy has freedom). This lad, whose loud voice resonates in the stars above her and propels her to the seas and skies alongside him.Luffy is free, and Nami is not. (But she will be, she swears on her life, she will restore her home's freedom (but home no longer feels like Nami's home).Her bloody heart trembles beneath her black glove, and she fists it to halt the shaking (everything inside her shakes and suffers from fear for this stupid crew, who are going to die because of their dumb captain who never listens to her words!).Anger heats her heart and causes her pupils to tremble (they don't understand, they don't understand, they don't understand, they will die, and Nami can't do anything to save them while she is barely surviving)."THEN GO AHEAD AND DIE!"She turns around and runs away (as usual, Nami only knows how to run). Nami has been running to survive since the first time she sold her soul to the devil. She had fled her sister, the pirates, and the people she had stolen from, and now she was fleeing this crew that had made her feel soft and warm.)But Nami is sharp and cold.This town's evils dragged her to hell. They shattered every delicate thing within her and molded her into this cold woman who would stab the world. So, when this crew dies under the claws of Arlong and Asura's crew, they will be able to shatter her and rend her into sheds.Umekui looks at her commander, who is pretending to sleep, then back at the hand that Nami smacked away (It stings. Umekui's heart hurts, and she feels painfully empty within).She is aware that what Nami is telling them is fake. Umekui knows Nami by soul, therefore she knows and feels when she lies to her.Nami is lying and hurting (Nami's cosmos burns Umekui, and the screams of her hurtful soul resound inside her mind like a plea for aid). But Umekui can't help Nami if she doesn't want and seek it (and the way she rejects her hand is a painful slap that reminds her of the abnormalities of her being). Bittersweet invades her mouth as she bites her tongue and blood runs into it (and Umekui despises how well she knows this taste).How can she believe that someone like her could help Nami? No, Nami's soul is meant to be saved by the souls of Luffy and her Nakamas (blazing, dazzling souls with powers that grant freedom).No, not her. Not with death and black blood coursing through her veins. Chaos and devastation are the unchangeable designs of the tragedy that were poured into Umekui's veins, and her strength was so destructive, so blazing that it burnt like darkness, tainting everything in her path and leaving only dust and pain.Her power cannot help people unless she destroys everything around her. Umekui can't be the one people turn to for love and help (since she simply can't give, she only knows how to steal and feed the creature inside on the lives she takes with death chanting in her veins).(And Umekui wants to die. She is exhausted. Tired of feeling the screams and cries inside her never leaving her, constantly reaching and climbing hands at her feet and dragging her to a place where time doesn't exist and the sun is a foe)This island reeks of suffering and death (and Umekui is sick of finding places that remind her of this awful place. Misery and brutality are always present, even in the world's weakest seas).(So, where can she go without feeling her emptiness and the holes inside her growing up? (Nakamas murmurs a voice)).Umekui doesn't know how to aid Nami from this place (because this is Nami's home, and Nami would never forgive her if she dared to soil it with her beast (and Umekui would rather die than hurt Nami)).Umekui is strong, she knows it, the sky and sea that despise her know it, the entire sentences etched in blood on those stone walls know it, and yet she feels stupidly weak. (Always weak in the face of the sorrow of those she cares about, always powerless in the face of human feelings) and Umekui doesn't know what to do, she simply doesn't know how, and in the face of her inability, she wants to bleed from shame.Warm soothing brown light returns to her maddening den. Umekui turns slowly, her body stiff.A boy enters her vision, his hair dancing in the breeze and carrying his aroma to her nose. He's sprinting towards them.He is alive. She knew it. Ussop is still alive. Stupid Ussop, who is terrified of small things (but fearless Ussop, who didn't hesitate to fight deadly pirates to preserve his homeland and childhood friends, and brave Ussop, who never gave up on his dreams despite the mockery of the entire world) is running at them.She takes her chains back from Sanji and Zoro, hoping that they had calmed down and quit arguing like dogs. Usopp collides with them, and the three of them collapse like dominoes on Luffy, who awakens from their weight."Stupid men.." Umekui sighs, shaking her head."AHHH UME save me!" calls out Luffy from beneath his crew, reaching out his hands to his first mate.Umekui sighs, and grabs her captain's soft hands, pulling him from beneath her nakamas."Shi shi shi," Luffy laughs as his body collides with her, allowing him to climb on her shoulders and hug her from behind.Umekui's body softens against his embrace (but her bones and muscles scream, and everything in her body hurts so much that she wants to rip her skin off and forget the slow agony that is infused in her limbs)."Oh, yeah. You were killed by Nami, right?" Zoro asks, brushing the dust off his pants.Ussop looks up at Zoro, confused."Damn him, Jonny was lying all along," Luffy curses from her shoulders."Actually, Nami saved my life. She stabbed herself in the hand to make it appear as if she was stabbing me. So Nami bluffed the 'killing me off' part so I could escape," Ussop explained seriously.(Usopp was perplexed as to why Nami had spared him. Nami could have killed him for no reason if she had been true to those fishmen (but Nami isn't like that. Nami, unlike those fishmen, is not a monster. She was gentle, even if she was tough, and beat Usopp and Luffy at times, because she genuinely cared about them.Ussop is a liar, and the expert liar in him recognizes when someone lies to him, which Nami is doing, but why? Why would she side with the monsters who destroyed her home, why would she side with those who repent dread in her sister's town, why would she do that?? (Because Ussop understands the agony of pirates attempting to steal his home and harm the lives of the people he loves, but Nami saved his home with him, so why couldn't she do the same for this town? ('Because she is alone,' a voice says.) He was alone too, alone against fierce pirates and Nami is alone against creatures far superior to humanity, but Luffy is there, Luffy and Umekui and the crew protected and helped him, so they can-))She knew it. She fucking knew it. These bloodied hands trembled strongly against Nami's chest (the scent of blood that the beast inside her sniffed at the sight of Nami). Umekui's heart wrenched at the sight of this bloodied hand (Umekui prefers Nami to smell tangerine and blossom flowers, not blood and misery)."I think there is a reason for her to be with the fishermen pirates" said Ussop.And Umekui is keen on running at this Arlong Park that mentions Zoro. And kills, kills, kills, kills, kills, kills, kills, kills, letting the taste and smell of blood drown her in this madness that lurks in her beast.(Nami's soul is crying and hurting, and Umekui doesn't want to do anything except let insanity take over and burn those men who have hurt Nami (and she wants to rip them to sheds and burn them in the fire of hell and torture them again and again until she can feel emptiness (empty from bloodlust, empty of ramping rotten souls, but completely of Nami rested soul no longer hurting and crying)."It's useless. Arlong and Asura's reign will not end no matter what you do." raise a female voice.(She is wrong. Everything comes to an end with Umekui. With blood pouring and darkness whispering. And emptiness devouring her.)"Noriko!" states Ussop upon seeing the blue-haired woman.Umekui looks at the woman who approaches them, and the small features of her face and the beauty she possesses remind her so much of Nami (yet she is not Nami).Nami is simply Nami. Like her sweet soul, she is perfect yet ferocious, loving, and warm."Who is this?" Luffy asks, pointing above her shoulders."Nami's older sister," Ussop reveals."Nami's older sister? She's so pretty," Sanji says, his heart in his eyes."Do us a favor. Don't meddle with the village's business anymore. Leave Nami alone" Umekui's fingers twitch, she genuinely wants to hurt someone.( Leave Nami alone? When this place stinks of sadness and devastation. Leave Nami alone? When her soul hurts and cries inside Umekui. When Umekui seeks her warmth like a drug (and she can't leave her yet. Not right now, her heart isn't ready (although she thinks it's better to leave now than later because the falls will hurt). Umekui can't leave when she loves her so much that witnessing her suffer makes Umekui crave to devour the monsters of Nami raw)."I will tell you the reason why. Why Nami is with those fishmen. Once I tell you, you must leave this place" declares Noriko. Did she truly believe that explaining why Nami is with those fishmen would convince them to leave their Nakama? Noriko may be beautiful but she is also foolish. And Umekui doesn't want to hear this because it's Nami's story to tell.(Umekui did not want to offend her past in the same way that she does not want someone to do it for her. Sister or not, Umekui will pass this (and regardless, Umekui already knows enough about Nami to compel her to murder the crew of Arlong)."I'll pass," her captain said flatly.(Umekui adores this trait in her commander. The way his simple-mindedness operates. The way he doesn't care about his nakamas' past, how they try to injure him, how he foolishly and naively trusts and loves them (but would he really do this to her? Will he truly see her as she is when those doors slam shut and the screams of the world drown her out in this corridor of death?)So Umekui views this as a cue to leave white her adorable dumb captain is still sitting on her shoulders."Where are you going?" Sanji inquires from behind."For a walk," Luffy responds."Don't you want to hear the story?" Ussop questions.This time, Umekui responds."There's no need; it won't change our minds. Nami is still our Nami. Nami is our Nakama, and nothing will change that."Noriko's eyes widen as she turns to see the girl with long black hair who fades into the horizon, her captain gleaming proudly from her shoulders.
'So it's this person you've been craving deep inside, Nami. Umekui, the girl who put love back in your heart'
Nami is sinking.In fury and despair.Seeing the marines come to her house and take her treasure fueled her anger, and the moment a bright spray of blood drenched the back of her sister, Nami's heart swelled with fury and vengeance.They fucking shoot her sister. Those marines, those soldiers who wear justice on their backs with pride, are just as corrupt and evil as Arlong and his crew. They all look the same. Always taking from her, leaving her empty like an empty can with grief screaming and seeking this madness to stop."We had a deal with Arlong, little girl," sneered the marine as his comrades took all the gold and money she had accumulated over the years (years of suffering in the twisted hands of those men, years of abuse and grief, years of running and stealing bellies in the hope of reclaiming her homeland, years of waiting: waiting for the moment freedom will be returned in her soul-)But now all of her efforts, all of her tears and blood, all of the pain she endured again and again, were in vain. All of her hope was turned into nothingness.Nami rushes to Arlong Park, her heart pounding with wrath. When she arrives at the massive stone entrance, she pushes it open and enters the court, where Arlong sits on his throne, with Asura close beside him and their crew surrounding them."Arlong" she shrieks loudly, as the sky above her shakes at the call of his name shaking with rage. She pushes through the fishermen's bulk to stand before Arlong and Asura, her body shivering with rage."Oh dear Nami, here you are!" Arlong exclaims, his eyes gleaming with malice. Asura looks at her with a sinister sneer on his face, knowing exactly what they done."Those marines you sent took all of my money! Didn’t you say that you would die before you broke a promise involving money? Right ?! So Why?! Nami shouts at him, "WHY?!?" as she grabs his shirt.A massive hand preys out and strangles her face and neck (her heart trembles with panic, her knees quiver, and Nami is unable to breathe (it hurts, it hurts, please, please))."When I did break our promise, tell me?" Arlong demands, his malicious eyes looking at her own.But Nami can't say anything because his hand is choking her and her heart is pounding in her chest. So, seeing her misery, Arlong, and Asura and their crew laugh hard and loud, their laughter resonating and mocking her (because she lost. she fucking lost and there is nothing that could save her, the gods have abandoned her, and the monsters scarfed her whole). Their laughter makes her want to vomit and cry.The tears well up in her eyes, and her heart is heavy, reminding her of the weight of hopelessness that has taken root inside her, like these men who control her entire being, breaking her apart, feasting on her anguish with euphoria.Another hand grabbed her hair and pushed firmly, allowing her to see Asura's scarred face."What did I say, my toy? Your mind, your heart, and body, everything is mine. You will never be free, and you will never be able to escape us. Try to flee from us, and everyone in this town will be slain, and I promise to bring your sister's head rolling at your feet and her eyes as earing," swears Asura, venom poisoning her bones.Nami's eyes flare. Her heart quits beating and her limbs stop struggling.
'So that’s it. This is what the feeling of nothingness feels like.'
She nods obediently at him, like the empty toy he wants her to be.He lets her go, and Nami turns away from them, leaving the place vacant and dead. Her heart is silent, no longer raging, no longer pushing her forward, no longer echoes of freedom calling her from ahead. Nothing but the terrible silence of her grief and sorrow.Nami is cold, and sick in this body that no longer feels like hers. There's a restlessness in her bones that only caged birds could understand.Nami feels cold as she tries to stop her village's citizens and her sister from heading to Arlong Park (because they will be killed). They are feeble, terribly weak against those fishmen, those monsters who are superior to them. They are nothing but dust at their feet, which they can pry with a quick flick of their palm.Nami is cold and alone, fighting the fury of her townspeople and sister, who have had enough of living in dread and are willing to die to get those pirates out, scream, and flee toward Arlong Park. But what they don't realize is that if they die, all Nami has done and sacrificed would be in vain (and at this point, Nami's heart wakes up and screams from this unfairness).Nothing has changed, and nothing ever will.She goes on her knees, but this time she does not pray and begs the gods to save her from this fate. But to let her anger explode out of her tongue like a broken record, screaming and swearing at them until the very end.Every scream that ripped from her lips shattered the sky like a shard of broken glass.Nami hates it.Hates the misery she endured, the pain she carried like a second skin for nothing. Her sacrifices were insulted again and again, like the clown of their perverse enjoyment. So her indignation and anger for Arlong and Asura intertwine with her long-held self-hatred and misery (the markings of Arlong's crew, the seal that chained her freedom to those guys aches and burns fully).So, with trembling hands like a hurricane, she got hold of her blade and struck the marks over and over, the blood explodes and drenches her body with distress. Because if this body is her home, where her childhood (the one that didn't last) is buried, where nightmares and sleep rise and set inside, where hopelessness and the price of slavery are engraved in her bones, and where the cost of her oblation is scorched, Nami wants to cleanse it with her own blood.Like a mirror that cracks with every blow of her terrible fate, her soul cracked with every stab and scream."ARLONG!"One time (for Bellemere's death and her stolen home, where happiness and joy echoed in those long-gone streets, devastated by Arlong's crew)"ASURA"Two times (for the agreement that forced her to sell her freedom to Arlong and Asura)"ARLONG"Three times (for her body's stolen innocence, which split from her blood as Asura treated her body as a meaningless object)"ASURA"Four times (for all the battles Nami fought alone, only to have the horrible reality stab her in the back and push her down, allowing her to drown in misery)Fi-As Nami attempts to stab her arm for the fifth time, a hand intercepts her blade, only to be stabbed through. From behind, the perfume of rain and roses overwhelmed her, while the scent of meat and sea rose behind her, took hold of her hand.Nami turns and looks at Luffy's frowning expression and Umekui's blank face as she pries the stabbed blade from her palm; with a rapid movement, blood explodes from Umekui's right hand (she has hurt Umekui again and again)."You don't anything of what was happening in this town for eight years," Nami says in a raspy voice."Yeah," Luffy says, nodding. Umekui stands by his side, silent."Didn't I tell you to leave?" Nami whispers, her throat bloody from shouting."Yeah," Luffy says, nodding."Then go away, go away.." Nami's fingers dig into the dirt and toss dust at them, hoping that Luffy and Umekui will turn to dust like her hopes. "Go AWAY, GO AWAY, GO AWAY, GO AWAY!" she wails till her throat hurts and her hands shake.Her tears soil the ground below her. The two figures standing alongside her were silent, watching intently and waiting. Waiting for what? Nami has nothing left to give them. There is nothing!! Arlong and Asure stripped her of everything.Nami is so drained. She can't fight any longer because she's already done so much (for nothing, which hurts so much). There's nothing left in her to fight, she can't do it (please, please let her soul rest, she is so tired), she's already done what she could do for so many years, standing alone in this storm that has wrecked her home.Alone against those fishmen far stronger and larger than hers, alone stealing and fleeing to protect her home, alone, indeed, her bones straining under the weight of this punishment, hurt and broken-( "This is Nami, she is our navigator !"
"It's a fantastic dream. And I know that you'll realize it"

" HA??! How did you call me you witch hag? Don't bet if you're going to lose,"

" Nami, look! it's new glasses that I created, aren’t they so cool ?!"

"Nami-san You are so pretty, please have those roses!" )
The darkness that lurks around her heart and soul dissipated. Alone? (Nami wants to laugh at her stupidity). Stupid Nami has never been alone since meeting Luffy and his dumb fantastic crew. Nami, who has always felt safe in the arms of this crew, will go to any length to protect those they call Nakama. This group holds her heart in their hands like a warm sun at dusk. Those who love and care for her without expecting anything in return, but who give again and again, feeling her entire, alive, and delightfully free at their side.Please, if someone up there is listening, let her be selfish one more time and seek this crew that doesn't deserve her.With aching eyes full of tears, Nami looks up at Umekui and Luffy's faces. "Umeku, Luffy! Help me!" she weeps.Nami's plea echoes inside her like a vow. 
'Help me'
When the darkness grabbed her and dragged her to this place where murder and blood were the only essences she could live in, she realized that a horrible thing like her could never help anyone.She was the dead one, the twisted entity that could only devour souls and confine them in this empire where death is a long-forgotten wish that could free them from this nightmare.Throughout her wretched life, Umekui was surrounded by people who begged the avaricious gods that ruled over them to spare them from her. Who hoped to be saved from their fate, where their bodies were chained and caged and tortured like rats, but they never understood one thing: no one escapes fate.Umekui was simply too empty and dead to fight against what people called fate. Fighting against something that has already been decided by the greedy gods above them seems ludicrous to her.Because every time Umekui wished for something, it was already gone, torn from her grasp by those self-centered gods, leaving her to face the nothingness that lived within her.They were only pawns for those celestial creatures who are blindly worshiped by the dumb mortals of this world. Pawns whose lives were chronicled from the time their eyes opened to the sight of this destroyed world around them.The word decided and sowed that Umekui would be the beast that brought the world to its knees, and that her ugly decaying vessel would only be the thing that destroyed and hindered the people in her path.So it was meaningless for someone to seek her help.This is what she believed before taking care of a lovely ginger-haired girl.Luffy removes his straw and places it on Nami's head. He started walking forward, then stopped for a second to stare up at the sky and screamed loudly enough for the skies and the rest of the world to hear.Luffy marches forward, a determined expression on his face. Back tall, chest heavy, and limbs blazing and ready to fight."Let's go!"Zoro, Ussop, and Sanji, who had been waiting for him ahead, stand up with determination in their veins."RIGHT!"Umekui removes her red haori and drapes it over Nami's shoulders. Nami's freezing body stops trembling from the cold and blood loss, and she lifts her gaze from the red haori on her shoulders to Umekui's face.Bloody crimson eyes soften and grins softly as Umekui reaches for Nami's head and pets it once before turning around."Luffy" she calls out. Luffy and the crew come to a halt and turn to face her."I'll take care of these marines and join you. Call my name, and I'll be there in a second."Her wild, feral eyes locked on them. The rough whispers of the winds dance around her black long hair, allowing her words to reach Luffy and her crew (her devoted nakamas whom Umekui pledged to protect at all costs).Luffy and her crew grin, completely trusting their first mate. They leave with one side's drive and rage blazing through their limbs and hearts, and the other's abilities singing anchors of death and sorrow in her veins.The beast is starving, blood and souls will be served today, and death, oh dear death, which Umekui craves like a drug that she can't have, will leap at the throats of those foolish men who dared to hurt Nami.After jumping via the roofs of the village of Nami; Umekui finally found those marines that she is hunting. The beast awakens, eager for the blood and despair to wash over them like waves of insanity.Umekui leaps at the road beneath her and marches slowly toward their target, like a lion ready to devour whole, leaving nothing but ashes behind.Some marines look at her, as does a strange man who looks like a rat (and Umekui despises rodents). Malice spinning in robs (oh how much joy she will take when she rips them out), looks up from behind his comrades and asks."What are you doing here woman ?""My friend Nami said that you took her money, I'm here to take it back""HAHAHAHAHHAHAHHA-"The marines stare at her and burst out laughing, mocking her."Do you really think we'd give it to you if you asked? Scram, girl! Before we arrest you for interfering with government order,""Oh, I wasn't asking for it! I'm not very polite in the first place, but aside from my captain and Zoro, they're far more disrespectful than me; I'd consider telling Nami and Sanji to teach them how to be courteous-""you're really starting to piss me off! Come here! A stay in jail will do you a lot of good, crazy woman," a marine says as he reaches for her shoulder.But the instant the marine grabbed her shoulder, he literally burst. His blood-soaked Umekui and the marines surrounding them."Didn't I tell you I don't like being touched? Silly me," she deadpans, a soaked hand stuck to her face with the blood of the marine.The marines moved away from her and pulled out their rifles, aiming them at her with shaking hands and glaring at her."Who are you?!" shouts the rat man."Who am I? I am who? who is who? I am I ? Or are you you ?" Umekui mused aloud, raising a finger to her chin." SHOOT!  Shoot me down, this crazy woman!" demands the rat guy, his gaze fixed on Umekui.Marines open fire on Umekui. But before they could touch her hung in the air, the bullets turned towards the marines and struck them, hitting each of them in the forehead and leaving them dead on the ground."Huff! I've never understood why humans are so stupid; when I say I don't like being touched, I also mean objects," Umekui exclaims, her brow furrowed in displeasure.The rat man yells at her, "M-MONSTER!""Then I think you have your answers to "Who I am?" and it would be better next time to ask something like "What are you?" oh silly me! There will be no next time because you will be dead," Umekui chuckles.(The beast growls and laughs. All the blood his vascular flowed around her made her feel entire. The blood, the slaughter, the screams and fears of those doomed souls) have all been missed).Umekui gets a cold grip on her handgun and fires at the rat man's feet. He falls on his buttocks, blood dripping down with his urine.The darkness hides within her (and the screams and cries are so loud that Umekui's head and ears throb, and Nami's misery, combined with her own, drives her insane).The marines' cries, screams, and spilled blood are the only ways to forget Nami's tears and blood. They attacked her Nakama, breaking her and causing her to crack. And Umekui will repay them, soul for soul and blood for blood.Even if it means losing herself to this madness and allowing the beast to devour her whole, Umekui is willing to suffer a thousand agonies for her nakama (and the pain is nothing new for her, the madness is only strings of the past, so be it, let the gods see her as the monster they fear, let them shake from dread in those boneless thrones of theirs at the sight of her horrifying ability).She pulls a dagger from her kimono and stares down at the rat man, bloodlust and hate coursing through her veins."I believe I'll start by digging out your eyes. What do you think ?" The only response she receives is his pleading for mercy. Mercy, oh how she despises this word.Asura hates humans.Humans are the rot of the world, those selfish beings descended from the devil himself. Asura's animosity for them is unrestricted and his resentment for them knows no bounds.Those repulsive weak beings who slaved over many of them and tortured them for years, treating them as rats when they could be loved and praised as gods.Fishmen are the world's future gods, the new gods of their genesis.Asura will never forgive or forget how humanity tortured and experienced him in order to satisfy their heinous desires. The wounds and burns on his flesh, the blasphemy they endured against him, his race, and his family.Asura will never forget how his late wife begged those people to spare her as they peeled off her flesh with those blades, or how his three-year-old daughter sobbed and begged him for aid as they shackled her to that white table and dug her inside out like an animal.He'll never forget the chains that smothered him and closed over his mouth, preventing him the ability to speak or scream. Or how this woman thought his right violet eye was lovely and simply took her sword and caved out his eye for her amusement.The millions of wounds he has on his body are a constant reminder of his history with humans. With wrath in his lungs and hatred in his blood, Asura's hatred is his will, his will to see the annihilation of this repulsive race that degrades this world.It's only a matter of time before they own the sea, the land, the sky, mankind, and all other creatures on the planet. As the fateful gods of this world, the fishmen will exact their vengeance on those creatures, particularly humans and coquers.But now he has some marines to look after; if they believed he and Arlong would allow them to leave this island with the money that his toys had gathered over the years, they were clearly stupid.Ha! Of course, they are stupid; after all, they are humans; Asura grins darkly at the thought."Hum?" His nostrils are filled with the odor of death and blood. When he arrives at the location where he and the marines were supposed to meet, he is confronted with a lake of blood. The blood is flooding the ground and turning the grass scarlet.Dispatched limbs and brain shards were all over the place, and he couldn't tell which bodily part it was. Marine coats and caps were left on the floor, with no sign of their wearer, only mysterious limbs. For the first time in a long time of living in dominance, Asura's heart trembles at the horrible sight, and fear grasps his neck in a death grip.That could only be done by a monster. The only explanation he could think of for the horrific that lay before him was a beast that feasted on human flesh.The blood-soaked beast stood ahead of him. Something dangerous loomed ahead of him, a revolver in their hand, her long black hair matted to her body, covered in crimson bandages, and a scarlet kimono saturated in blood. Their bloody bright crimson bright eyes glow from all the bloodlust that peers at him (and Asura could feel something more dangerous and horrifying peering from her pupils hard through him, something disturbingly inhuman, that held no race, something he had never seen or heard before).Her blood-splattered white pallid face smirks at him."Ne, Are you one of those fishmen who harmed Nami?" inquired a sinister voice from those crimson lips.When Asura hears the name of his toy, he chuckles darkly."What do you want from my toy?" Asura smirks at the mad woman in front of him."Toy?" she asks, tying her neck."HAHAHAH yes, Nami is my toy, my possession! Her mind, body, and freedom are all mine! I don't think your pussy will be as appealing as hers with all this blood, but if you want to be my toy too, why not?" chuckles Asura, but the moment he looks back at her, he finds himself on his back, a death grip on his throat.
'Impossible! 'How quick is she?'
"What is your name?" she asks, her eyes orbs blazing at his face, a dagger hidden beneath his throat."Asura, little girl! the future gods of this world, the fishemen who will conquer all the species of this world and bring them salvation from those weak humans, those rots, the disease of this sick world, and I will begin with you!" shouts Asura as his hand launches at her abdomen, letting his claws out and planting her in the ribs.She leaps away from him and fires her gun at him, the bullets not affecting his hard flesh. "God?" she marvels. "Oh little fish, when I say you are nothing besides the true cruel gods of this world, it's true, you are nothing, only dust at their fingertips, you can't even be a pawn in their twisted games. So, be a good fish, and let me devour you whole."A chain shoots up from the sleeve of her kimono, entangling him as it loops around him."You fucking bitch I'm going to kill you" Claws spring up from his hands and back, breaking the ropes that were encircling him completely. "Now be a little slut like Nami and let-""I'm fed up; my captain is waiting for me. Now I'm just going to get rid of you and make you suffer and after I'm done with you, you'll beg me to kill you."Something dark and shapeless rushed up from her chest to him at her declaration.In the most sinister part of her ability, Umekui's power burns and suffocates her while reminding her of the curse that stripped her whole, leaving her hollow like an empty scuttle that can only be filled with madness and dread.Monsters like Umekui feed on the dreams of others, locking their souls in their ribcage ripping them to shreds, and revealing that dreams are just dreams. Because when you are robbed of your dreams, life becomes a broken-winged bird that cannot fly, and you will find yourself locked behind those doors where the hum of death reaches your eardrums.Let the earth and sky witness Umekui's madness as the beast within her devours like a starved monster. Let the world fear as Umekui craves her way out of this terror with bloodied fangs and flesh in her mouth.Perhaps the tale implies that Umekui is a terrifying monster that the hero of dawn must defeat. But did history tell us that monsters feared their own powers and abilities? Did history prophesy that monsters despised their own flesh and ripped their bodies to shreds just to feel anything that made them less monstrous? Of course not; history will never dare dismiss the worship that they hold for their selfish gods.Or does history convince you that monsters are born rather than made? They're right about this.Monsters are born with the curse coursing in their veins, to play the twisted games of fate, to make history write and sing the praises of slayers who will bring the monster's head to the gods.But history never states that monsters sought to be born. Monsters were just monsters, not because they chose to be, but because their essence was etched in the stones that the dogs of the celestial sought and guarded blindly.But history is irrelevant; if Umekui is their monster, so be it, and if her curses will save and protect the ones she loves and craves with enmity for a moment, she will gladly drown in blood for them.Umekui examines the warm and sticky blood on her hand (which she despises so much that she wants to cut her hands off). But it's a part of her, the blood, the murder, that is the sole symphony of Umekui's curse. Domned to dwell in it when she was cursed for the first time by the feeling of power and revenge, tainted by the drive to kill more and more; till she could experience this feeling that humans were chaste on it (living, human, alive, alive and human, alive alive alive)But she doesn't deserve to be alive; how can a thing like her exist when destruction follows her like a shadow? Allowing Umekui's misdeeds to poison the soil.All that was left on the ground was Asura's body, a crimson-red ball of meat devoid of any sign of skin. The most glum sight was the face. One large white eyeball stared out from the red mass of flesh. Teeth bared, lips spread wide open as if in defiance of whatever was consuming him. Only two small holes remained where the nose had been removed.The ground was a bloody sea of insanity. Finally, the color of his blood is the same as that of the humans he despises. But what a pitiful fate to proclaim that he is the future god of this earth while lying dead at her feet.Oh what a pity, she forgot to feed him his dick. Now she has quickly to rid of those bodies and help her crew to save Nami. 
'Save?'
Umekui's body freezes, and the notion causes her bones to quake. It's not right. There's something horrible about her own depravity saving someone's life. (The creature inside her growls, laughs, and mocks her, and the voices and creams join him in his parade).It doesn't make sense; how can a creature like her be a rescuer when she was trained to kill-
'Trained? Where when ?-' 
Umekui does not help people. How can she help when salvation tastes like blood on her tongue?Yet her crew and Nami (her lovely navigator whose eyes suffer from the price of slavery that Umekui knows all too well) are not people; (and she thinks that's what hurts the most, they're not people, they're so much more, they're what she's been yearning for since-).(Deep inside, Umekui's closed door opened, letting shard glass of memories bleed her heart. And Umekui doesn't want to remember, she can't do it. Not when she failed. ("Be free. Be on the side that saves people. If both sides are the same, then choose to become a good person. Save the weak, protect the orphaned. You might not see a great difference between right and wrong, but... saving others is something just a bit wonderful. And on this side, I promise you that you will find what you are searching for, he is waiting for you, on this road of-" She remembers this man's voice, whose eyes gleamed with a hope that prodded and encouraged her to believe in—))Oh, how wrong he is.Umekui will never be clean from her sin, rotten children don't deserve freedom. There's nothing in here that could turn her into something soft, kind, and good (Umekui isn't like her crew, and it was a painful epiphany and life-changing realization).What sort of goodness can be found in a thing like Dazai Umekui? Her eyelids drop to look at her reflection in the blood pool. The center of her atrocities returns her gaze and smiles cruelly, red spiral eyes staring hard at her, a bloodied hand shooting up from the pool of blood to her chest.Umekui collapses on her back, her eyes turning black and blind to her surroundings. Something twisted, hideous, dark, and shapeless sprang from her chest.The dark matter that emanated from her chest, where the source of her curse resides, disengages the space around her, reaching the dead bodies of the marines and Asura and absorbing them into the matter, but it does not stop until it continues to expand, consuming the trees and -She can't do that now. She can't, not right now, she can't allow the curse repeat itself.Not to Nami's home (this home for which Nami suffered and bled for its freedom, and she thinks that she can't explain how proud she is, and how fabulous her dear precious Nami has been-)Suddenly, the pain surges up at her like a venomous snake biting her in the neck.Everything burns and aches. Red, Red, Red, Red, black, dark, darkness feeds and devours, it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts. She wants to die die die die die, it's her fault, it's her fault, it's her fault, it's her fault, it's her fault! She tried to scream, but the blood filled her throat completely—burns, burns, burns! Someone just killed her!!Someone has to kill her! Not a hero, Not a god- Just someone! Someone kills the monster that Dazai Umekui is. Before it's too late!With eyes as gloomy as a moonless night, she reaches out for anything besides her on the floor with a desperate reaching hand. There was a cursed poem scraped into the walls of her throat that no one could read or hear, but it hears and consumes, it will always be there, and Umekui can do nothing to undo it.A stick found her gasp and with desperation and misery chanted in her throat.With a fast sharp sweep of her hand, she stabbed herself in the throat.Blood explodes from her throat.There is blood everywhere. The blood choked her lungs to the point of torching, and every muscle in her body ached (the pain ate her bones like worms, and Umekui wanted to die, die, die, but it didn't want her to die. It never let her die.). If only she can fucking die. 
But you can’t kill something already dead.
The darkness and the hum of nightmares encircle her and draw her down into this void. Umekui closes her eyes (the darkness renders her blind and dumb, and so dull and dead) and allows herself to be absorbed in the warehouse of memories (and all she wants to do is forget, forget, forget, forget, forget, forget, forget, forget-).
"What are you doing, Dazai?" questions a caring voice from behind.

"Reading," Dazai says plainly.

The man behind her softly laughs at her lack of tact. Looking down as Dazai frowns at the book she holds in her hands; seeing the cover (brown and aged) that is different from the covers of her suicide guide that she always reads,

"What are you reading to have this cute frown on your face?" he asks, intrigued by the new book in her hand.

Her cheeks and ears are flushed, and she mumbles something like "just a stupid book."

"Books are never stupid, my dear Dazai," chuckles the tall guy, his reddish hair reflecting the sun's rays through the curtains.

He reaches for the book in her hand, and she hands it to him; he appears old and worn out by time.

'Is that a logbook? What is a logbook doing here?' the man thought.

So he turns the book to see who signed it, and at the sight of the name, his heart tremors and remains still.

He returns a wide-eyed stare to Dazai, who is staring at the soaring birds with a long-lost expression.

"Did you read it?" he inquires.

She nods absently, "hum."

"What do you think?"

"Like I told you, stupid," she simply replies, her face blank (which is strange and peculiar because Dazai never wore a blank look in his presence (possibly in the past, but not now, after all they-)

"Really?" he wonders, "Where did you find it?"

"Somewhere in a river by the end of the cliff"

"And why did you find the book stupid?" he asks again (because he wants to know; he wants to know the extent to which she puts herself in danger by reading it, since Dazai this suicidal girl could-)

She chuckles, slow, and the pain in it rips his heart open.

She shifts her eyes from the birds in the sky to him. Her red eyes stare at him entire, and he is fascinated by how she can look through him and read him like an open book.

Her small hand moves to the black choker on her throat, a sorrowful grin touching the curls on her lips.

"Because it proves to me again that a thing like me could never have this freedom", 
There is a warm and familiar voice echoing and laughing inside her (the laugh was loud and weird, so loud that it made everything inside quiet; the pain ceases, the grasps and shouts stop, and the darkness sneers at the disruption).She who is born with an abundance of inherited monstrosity, forbidden from forgetting the taste of blood and despair, cursed to exist in this world, the loudness of her doom flowing through her veins pumping the blood of her hollow heart settles in silence to allow the light of a sun to shine through a boy's smile.( "I, Monkey D. Luffy, the future king of pirates, shall be half your soul. I am your captain, your friend, but above all now, I am half your soul!" declares a golden voice dripping honey-like ichor from his sunning smile.)Her fingers uncurl and her limbs ease.The harsh sun above her engulfs her entire being (and Umekui despises this sun because it feels so incorrect, so phony; it's not this sun that warms her rotten heart, it's not this imitation, this ball in the sky that makes her burn, it's him, him, him-)."UME! UME! UME! UME!" The red light, the cosmos of the new sun of Umekui's treacherous life, burns, scorches, and blares.
('Call my name and I'll be by your side in a flash')
She promised. She fucking promised (and Umekui doesn't want another broken meaningfulness promise to be lost in this time warehouse-)No! she refuses! She can't withdraw now, not, it's not the time! Get up, her heart orders. Her crew needs her. Nami needs her.Her blood stirs, and the universe shakes around her (and the tingle of her abilities shouts and whispers-).Every atom explodes, and the cosmos swings back and forth like a pendulum, rendering gravity in her body null, and she finds herself high in the sky.Uemkui teleports above Arlong Park in a hurry, the red light of her ability tainting her body (and Umemkui fights those irritating voices and screams- For her crew. For Nami).Maps, books, and papers swirl toward the sky like an endless loop of words. And this building beneath Umekui reeks of the scent of despair that has clung to Nami like a second skin for so many years (Nami; who deserves to have the stars and beauty of the universe cling to her like a freedom's embrace) and an air of captivity (the faint ghosts of those cages and chains cause Umekui to see red).Luffy yells her name loudly and clearly (this loud boy who never learned to be quiet but is always loud, bright, and present, filling all her thoughts with him- Lufy, Luffy, Luffy-)"UME! BREAK DOWN THIS BUILDING TO THE GROUND!" The sky trembled, the wind died, and fractures could be heard throughout the structure. Umekui raises her arms to the heavens as if she were a god who would bring the ultimate retribution to mortals (but Umekui is no god--she is far worse)."YOU ARE OUR FRIEND, NAMI," Luffy declares to the sky (and Umekui's crimson lips soften into a wide smile at the declaration).
'my dear captain, you are everything.'
Umekui falls towards the structure, intending to demolish it and leave only ruins and ashes behind her (such as when Nami remembers all the anguish she endured, all the abuse she endured, she will only recall ruins and falling dead fishmens ( she has promised it, in blood and ashes, she will free Nami).The edifice breaks under the force of her fist and power (this horrible power, the source of her suffering-).The ability fades, and Umekui's body falls from the sky. Once more, Umekui hears a booming laugh, and she finds herself grinning.A stretched hand wraps around her waist and pulls her to a soft chest, the warm flesh under her cheek shaking from his lips' laughs.Luffy moved her body forward and closer to meet his gaze. He felt warm, solid, and safe. Umekui wanted to cling to his scent enter his chest, and be the second heart that would beat for him, bury her face into the warm curve of his neck, and never let go (but something horrific like her can never beat inside someone like her captain).Big broad eyes gaze at her (Umekui thinks that with all the dried blood on her body and face, she undoubtedly appears horrible and filthy--and Umekui wants to hide from embarrassment, she is so disgusting, touching her captain with this--)"shi shi shi I missed you Ume!" grins Luffy, his warm breath caressing her face."I missed you too-" (although he will never comprehend the anguish Umekui feels every time he or one of the crew is out of her reach for a moment, he will never know the yearning Umekui has for them-)."But I'm a little tired my captain, so let me sleep for five minutes, okay ?" She mumbles (weary, oh, she is so tired--the kind of tired that makes your muscles scream in pain and your thoughts break free from this torment)The blackness attacked her before she could respond, and she collapsed unconscious, her body sinking into his firm grasp.(In the dark corners of her mind, Umekui's consciousness prepares her to pay the price of her curse (but, for the first time in a long time, she welcomes the punishment with open arms and no fear in her heart because she knows that when she wakes up, the warmth of her precious crew will be there, and this is the most important thing)."Arlong Park has fallen!"Cheers and shouts could be heard all around her, as well as laughter and relief from the people of her village. She must be dreaming, because what is happening right now is nothing more than her broken mind's fancy, right?The applause grows louder, reverberating around her like truth, reality. They sing their names, those who guard hopes and freedom. This crew (her crew-) not only brought hope to her heart, but they also brought it to her home.Silent tears stream from her eyes (tears of calming and delight, tears of peace and ease), and she glances up at them with a misty gaze.Luffy (this silly boy who always comes back at her even when she pushes and screams at him, this kind boy, Luffy, whose naivety makes Nami's heart quake with admiration) holds a sleeping Umekui in his arms close to his chest.(Umekui magnificent girl who has always seen through hers. Like a shadow, she was constantly there for her. Always gathering the broken pieces of her soul and constructing a constellation's path to the light. Umekui's hands cross the darkness Nami has created around her to take her down this path Nami has lost herself in. The girl who gave her heart hope and saved her in ways Nami could never have imagined).The straw hat and red hoari on her head and shoulders feel like new wings on her back, propelling her to soar to the sea and live her dreams (because Nami is now free, free, free, free), and the realization makes her sob even more.Children laugh, mothers cry, and fathers raise their fists to the the sky as the sunrise paints the sky red, pink, and salmon, birds chant, and the sea, the water had never smelled so powerful as now, burning Nami's nostrils and stroking her wet cheeks with allegation.Nami hearts it now, hearts it around her, instead of inside her like feverish dream. The sound of freedom has been brought back to her motherland. In the laughter of the children, the tears of the mothers, the applause of the fathers, and the joy of the young and elderly.The weight in her heart and shoulders is lifted from her back, and the ghostly fractures of the chains that imprisoned Nami for years explode free from her body.  As is the absence of weight in her ailing body, she drops to her knees."Straw hats pirates! Straw hats pirates! Straw hats pirates! Straw hats pirates! Straw hats pirates! Straw hats pirates!!"They chant their names, loud and clear, like a new fable sang at dusk. Luffy laughs wildly, his sun-like smile beaming with joy. He lifts his gaze to Nami's face, looking down at Umekui in his arms with a tenderness that might soften any icy heart.Nami's lips twist into a huge, devastating smile. Her cheeks ached from her smile, but she didn't mind since the agony felt good, so warm and free-.She thinks freedom sits well on hers; like a red soft coat that only royals wear; or like a gilt gold burnish of childhood ( that Nami never had the chance to remember and feels-)."Bring the news to the entire island! Tell them that our home is finally free!" exclaims an old voice as applause becomes louder."Nami!" cries forth a familiar warm voice.As Nami turns to face the holder, arms embrace her and pull her into a hug."Nami doesn't scare me like that next time!" weeps Ussop in her arms (dear dumb Ussop who is terrified of everything, but courageous Ussop who fought and won against a Fishman for her cause, he fought and saved her and Nami could never describe how grateful she is-)."Yes-" Nami nods, clutching Ussop tightly.Ussops removes her from her arms and leads her to Luffy, who is seated on the floor with Umekui's head on his lap, with Zoro and Sanji joining them."How was it being the evil witch for a moment?" Zoro snickers beside her.She raises her fist and strikes him across the top of his head. Ussop and Sanji both laugh heartily at him."Well done!" snickers Usopp."Nami-san, you are so strong!" says Sanji, his eyes welling up with hears."Ume! Wake up!" pouts Luffy as he draws his forehead closer to Umekui's."Hum, don't you think you should let her sleep?" suggests Ussop."Nop, she said I should wake her up in five minutes," Luffy states.Her red kimono is stained with dried blood, her white bandages are bloody, and her neck won't let her talk about it; her neck is always bandaged in white but is now stained with black blood. She knows Umekui left to take care of the marines who attacked her and her sister, but Asura disappeared. She hasn't seen him, but she has heard that he left to join the marines, so she believes Umekui found him and fought him.(And Nami will never be grateful for the violence Umekui has fostered for her. Umekui demolished all of the barriers of darkness that had entrapped Nami. Umekui, who destroyed Arlong Park and allowed Nami to see the ashes of this cell she despises)Blood-stained pupils reveal Umekui's open eyes as they encounter Nami's gentle, peaceful soul."Welcomes back, Nami dear" rasp out Umekui, a soft smile curling on her face.  "I'm home," she says, a huge smile on her face illuminating her face with freedom and delight.(If Nami's hometown feels like no home in her heart, then she discovered a new home all along on this lost route she walked to bring freedom to the home of her dear mother and sister.Nami has found a new home in the warmth and affection of this crew, who preaches dreams and freedom like a dunk-up love that blinds you to the boundless sea and sky.Home is where her heart and soul are rested in the safest place on earth, and this place goes by the name of straw hat pirates).The straw hats had been partying for four days, night and day, while their stupid captain had been eating day and night, without stop.Zoro had been drinking in a corner and dozing for days after the village doctor sewed his wounds (which were still stinging like hell-but this scar, those scars, are proof that Zoro needs to be stronger, he will be stronger, and no one will stop him from becoming it-).Sanji has been smocking his cigarettes and occasionally cooking with the moms of the village, praising him as a gentleman for his assistance, while at other times he may be besieged by ladies, flirting with them nonstop.Ussop had been singing his tales and epics to the village from this tour, loud enough for all the citizens to hear his daring exploits and remember him as a hero, but even if half the people could see that he was lying to them, they wouldn't mind because their home had never been so alive for so long.Oh, Luffy, don't let them talk about how this boy is a machine. This kid could eat a whole table in a single second. Drinking and eating till his first mate arrives to put a stop to this madness and explain how disrespectful it is to devour everything without allowing the people to enjoy the food. But he could simply giggle and shove a piece of meat into her mouth to silence her and his first mate could only be embarrassed, her cheeks and ears scarlet, tainting her light white skin, and nibble silently on the piece of meat that Luffy feeds her.Umekui has left for a minute to go merry and take care of her wounds (since Umekui will never let anybody know what is concealed beneath all those bandages, those sins, this curse, is just for her to witness and bear-). She arrives at the party wearing new bandages and an auburn kimono, her long black hair tied into a single long braid on her right shoulder.Luffy's bright smile welcomed her and overcame all the pain in her bones the instant he spotted her. He reached for her waist and drew her closer to him while he ate and fed her everything on the table. Until the crew, sans Nami, joined them and ate together while smiling.Ussop told her about how he fought and defeated a Fishman (and Umekuui could listen to his stories for forever just to bask in his cute smile and warm spring soul). While Zoro and Sanji fought like dogs next to them until dawn.Nami returned with a huge smile on her face and glasses of booze in each hand for them.Seated across from each other, their hearts full of laughter, and the citizens dancing around them. The straw hat pirates basked in the comforting embrace of their nakamas, their faces lit up with millions of ecstasy.From the base of their necks to the arch of their eyelids, in waves of sunshine, the straw hat pirates, their names will be written in stone, this crew who brought salvation to this land they were once destroyed by the wrath of avarice men. Don't forget their names; their grandeur will make gods and worlds tremble.The straw hats, the crew that found and saved Nami and her homeland like the selfless idiots they are. Nami, stood on this cliff, where the endless sea caressed by the sun could meet her sight. Bellemere grave lay before, and Nami sat down before it. "The time has come. I'm going to depart now. Sail to this infinite sea beside my wonderful crew," she declares to the grave, hoping that her mother can hear her clearly."I never had the chance to thank you. So thank you for taking me and Noriko and loving and raising us as your flesh and blood. Thank you for being there every day of my existence-" tears stain her cheeks and her heart trembles as the words tumble from her mouth like flower petals, "Thank you for giving me the biggest birthday in the world and treating me like the princess of your heart. Thank you for being the best mother in the world. Thank you for being so selfless. Thank you for protecting us with your life, because I think without you I could have never met them, and it's the most beautiful heartbreaking gift that you offered me-Thank you for all, Mama.""I will draw a map of this world, I will draw so many maps that the entire world will put on paper, I promised it." From above, a motherly proud smile and soft laugh echo in heaven. 
'Go, my child. Be free, my baby. Fly high and far. '
Nami gets to her feet and sprints ahead to the port where her crew is mooring their sails and luggage. At the sight of the going merry, Nami shouts, "START THE SHIP OUT"Running through the people of Cocoyasi Village and Genzo, who was attempting to stop her, and speeding through Noriko. Nami leaps high and far at her crew's departing ship. She swears she could feel wings coming out from her back. She lands on the balcony and lifts her t-shirt, allowing the wallets and money she stole from the villagers during her escape to slide from her breasts.At the sight of their money, the citizens yell, "YOU LITTLE BRAT!"Umekui's whistles impressed by her performance, and Luffy burst out laughing at the villagers' faces. Sanji collapses on the floor, his nose dripping blood at the sight of her breasts. Ussop and Zoro both looked at her with a grimace."Oh, she hasn't changed, she's still a thief witch," Zoro mumbles. Usopp nodded in agreement to his statements.Nami grins and waves farewell at her homeland.Happiness blooms in her heart, alive and healing, allowing her new home to carry her to a new adventure where dreams come true and freedom is carved into Nami's back with the strength her Nakama love provides.The wind propels their ships into the infinite world, allowing the waves to transport them to their next destination. Nami's eyes are drawn to the smiles of her crew, who were tied together by vows and promises sealed by the wide skies and seas.

"and suddendly, it was all about them."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"How corrupt i must be to shallow calamity and tragedy at once?"

The skies appear as dark as a pit of misery, and the waters descending from the ominous gray clouds cleanse the land with pity and guilt. The land has been so heavily tainted by fire and blood that the clouds, observing from above, could only weep in pity, trying to cleanse the world of the blood so many times spilled by the siege monsters.

In a graveyard, a figure stands with the rain soaking her completely and the earth beneath her shoes seeming to swallow her. The wails of the damned and the prayers of the dead (to whom will they pray? They're already gone. Gone. The gods have abandoned them. Which souls will they be praying for? What is left for them in this place engulfed six feet under except emptiness?) furls in an opus of misery and echoes about her like the raging tempest of the beast that lives within her.

SAKUNOSUKE ODA

1491- 1518

She stood over the grave, emotionless, eyes empty and lifeless, gazing at the name with grief engulfing her heart (and the voices were louder than they had ever been). This awful weight inside her was back, this horrible feeling, this hole in her, the darkness that had lurked in the recesses of her inner being since the beginning of her existence.

Thunder rages in the sky as wrath consumes her entire being, and the chaos of the ashes of grief erupts, hurls, and dances in a horrific form inside her, bones, souls, cries, the empire inside her shattered, and the dead ones strive to escape this cage of dread and darkness.

Vacant, empty, and lifeless, that's what she is. Yet she is not the one in this grave. dead. gone. buried.

'You lied to me. You lied to me. You fucking lied!'

The accusations crashed through her mind like a shattered disc of hopelessness.

He lied because he was dead. Gone. Buried six feet beneath this rough ground, abandoning her.

(The entity within her cackles, taunts, and laughs at her sorrow).

Everything within her cries out (the wounds burn and stir, and she wants to bleed and demand forgiveness) because this isn't how it was supposed to be. No, this wasn't the end for him. He didn't deserve it (but she does; she deserves everything that makes her insides boil and ache with misery, she deserves to suffer for all her faults, she deserves death, and so much more).

The remnants of her ruined heart could only stare at her mind and scream back that it's how it is and nothing will change it. Because she is still alive, breathing and hurting, and the gods drunk on her suffering like a feast for their souls.

She has no idea what is going on; she is lost once more in this absence that no one can save her from (and the beast claw inside her, restricted in this cage, eagerly awaiting her to let them out and bring devastation to the world).

She raises her head and stares at the wailing sky, allowing drops of water to fall on her eyes and stain her cheeks with the imitation of tears (and the imitation of being human and crying for a dear dead friend causes her mind to whirl with disgust).

Ha. The cruel sky can cry out in pity, but a being like her couldn't even cry out in grief. To hell with this world! To heck with him, not grabbing her and letting them perish together in the flames of death.

(Perhaps if she died with him, she wouldn't be alone here, standing before his grave, sorrow chewing on her bones. Perhaps if he was still here, he could have stopped her from leading their doom, with agony singing the tales of the monster hated by the world over and over again).

"Dazai!" screams out from behind her (she never told him how irritating and comforting his voice is. She never told him that even if he had done everything to save her, he would have failed because she was simply too lost in this madness inside her to be saved by him).

Dazai turns her head to look at the boy behind her. The fedora, which she thinks is outrageously cute, stands high on his head, keeping the rain from catching all of his hair. The rest of his orange hair, soaked by the rain, appears deeper than the shades of dawn she sees every day. His dark jacket clings to his body like a veil, shielding him from the outside world (but never from something devastating like her).

"Are you really going to do it!?" he yells, his voice breaking from the pain that's twisting his heart.

"Yes," she simply replies, her gaze returning to the stone cemetery below her (his final words ring in her head like the hum of a tale she has heard before).

"They will kill you! The entire world is coming after your head. You will die!" his voice quivers at the end of his sentence.

Dazai gently hums (a forgotten song that caresses her ears like ghost-gentle hands caress her hair) as the rain pours around them like shattered glass.

So, the time has come. They have heard.

"You crazy woman, why are you singing? Have you gone mad ?" He hurls at her because, even though he knows she's a suicidal freak looking for a painless death, this idiot has delivered the most excruciating death to her doorstep (and if he doesn't stop her, she'll leave him and die, and he can't because he l-).

Mad? Dazai had always been mad. She has been mad from the first time consciousnesses reached her nerves. She was mad and empty from the moment she realized something was missing in her. She was mad from the blood that was spilled around her. Mad from the world's unfairness and cruelty. Mad from grief, mad from the pain that claws at her bones every fucking second. Maybe the best and only way to explain the sorrow inside of her would be to call it madness.

"Let them come. I'll be watching for them. And if I survive maybe I will fulfill his foolish promise." She murmurs the last words to his grave (and perhaps, in this empire of corps yelling walling and ramping, he will hear her words).

As his promise swirls on her head, her eyes bore a heroic grief that no one could bear to hold.
("Be free. Be on the side that saves people. If both sides are the same, then choose to become a good person. Save the weak, protect the orphaned. You might not see a great difference between right and wrong, but... saving others is just a bit wonderful. And on this side, I promise you that you will find what you are searching for, he is waiting for you, on this road of-")
'On the side that saves people,' she never believed someone could say such a stupid thing to her, yet she is not surprised by his words.

Oda was always gentle, hopeful, and loving (especially to a monster like her who brought him to his demise). But look what kindness did to him: death, gone, decaying beneath the dirt (and his soul could only weep, trapped inside her madness).

But.

If it's kindness and hope that bring him to his end, she'll give it a try. Perhaps amid the fires of hell, when she returns to his embrace, he will not scold her and will be proud of whatever little she accomplished. (It will never, ever be enough. Goodness and Dazai are two opposing forces that will never coexist. Such a silly idea of hers to attempt to be on the side of saving people when she is the thing that thrives on murder, blood, and devastation)

If she lives, she will use his vow as a clue to give herself another (final) opportunity in life. It will be her last attempt. And maybe, if his words are right, she could search for this d-.

"I'm sorry, Dazai. But I can't let you do that," he says after a long odd pause, the click of a gun breaking the air around her.

"Come one. Are you playing some games with me right now?"

Dazai twists her body to meet his steely look as his handgun points at her head. "I see," she says again as he remains mute. "Are you the first one they send at me?"

As his blue eyes meet her vacant crimson-red ones, he keeps his mouth shut and his jaw sharp. Dazai's queries were answered by his silence and the tinting of his abilities.

With torment, the dark orange light inside Dazai burns and stirs her scars and wounds. She hadn't thought that her aching heart could be crushed again and again, but there is proof: with his handgun pointed at her, something in her heart hurled and broke, leaving her empty and hollow once more.

Always empty, always a monster.

The sea is a little further away, but she can hear the waves crashing on the slope. On a fateful night when the rain washed the blood spilled by the siege monsters, Dazai was the biggest monster.

As she is immersed in his presence, the concept of surviving is a long-forgotten wish (and she simply wants to die because she can't hurt him. She is unable. She is not going to-).

"When you said you'd kill me someday, didn't you promise me a painless death?" she asks, painfully smiling.

At the very least, she will die next to Oda's grave, allowing the ground to swallow her whole and crawl to his body, while the wind takes her ashes and puts them near him.

And maybe, in the comfort of death, she'll experience Oda's warm embrace (if he lets her because nothing is more revolting than hers).

But Dazai was always the world's biggest idiot.

Did she think the gods would let her die lightly when her very existence was the calamity of this world?

No. The world loves to play with the most depraved, and Dazai was ideal for their twisted games.

('he is dead, he is not breathing, his heart is quiet')

One friend's sacrifice for One monster's freedom

"Maybe I would ask you to run away with me in another universe."

"Maybe in another universe, I would have said yes."

If this universe wasn't enough for them, why would they need another?

Because everything in this universe ends in blood and fire, allowing the curses of her abilities to fall on her as the ultimate judgment of the gods.

"CHU-"

And the burns and blood marks. The agony explodes like a never-ending vacuum.

Please, Please,Please, Please, Please, please, Please, Please, Please. Someone JUST KILLS HER! KILLS DAZAI UMEKUI BEFORE THE MADNESS

TAKES

HER

AND-

JUST KILLS HER!
As dark crimson eyes open, a loud gasp echoes in the air.In an icy room where insanity rules and sorrow taints her paintings, Umekui lies coldly on the hard floor. She swiftly sits down and draws harsh, hard breaths; her eyes are blurred by the pitch-black pupils, and her mind is dizzy from anguish.(her lungs and throat hurt, she only wants to rip them from her body).Drops of sweat stream from her forehead as her limbs tremble and ache from pain (the pain of breathing, the pain of being alive when Umekui simply wants to die, die, die-)The darkness grows and gorges itself on her heart.With her nightmare still echoing in her head, Umekui's heart bursts from her ribcage (and their voices, which Umekui wishes she could forget because no amount of begging would change what she had done. Her body aches and her blood blisters as their voices reverberate loudly inside her, and all she wants to do is forget them-).Something strangles her and seizes her heart, suffocating her.It twisted inside her, and she coughed trying to muff it with her hand. Everything hurt so bad, her insides had been torn and charred, her heart bled, and her veins had agreed to ingest the venom that cursed her. The stick and heavy sensation of blood stain her hand (and Umekui wants to vomit from the disdain she feels for the blood on her palm, the disgust she feels for her).If no one can kill her, then let this sickness do it ( but it hurts so much and there is nothing more than pain that she hates). She was breathed and chanted in blood, and soaked in blood, that her habit of doing so sickens her to her core.She coughs, the roughness of her throat and the distaste in her mind, and this sickness that feasts on every fucking part of her, without allowing her a second of peace (hahaha peace? How could someone like her ever find peace? There is no such thing as peace in this wretched world filled with miseries and chaos).As the coughing stops, she throws up in her hand again and again until she feels the dreadful heaviness of the blood (a color so black and scarlet that it shows up again the abdominally she bears in her) on her palm. She examines her bloodied palm and tastes the blood in her mouth (which she despises since the tastes of blood is so familiar).She inhales and rolls onto her back to gaze up at the ceilings, the starry night she painted staring back at her (the curses of anguish echo around her in this chamber, while the ghost's nails claw her ankles to blood).She's sure they're laughing at her suffering because she deserves it for what she is, what she did, and what she did to them.The dawn could be peering through the curtains she installed days ago. The waves crashing on the ship and the birds in the sky could be heard, and Umekui resented it (because she knew she could never be like those birds soaring freely in the sky or the infinite sea that no one could grasp).Another day will begin and Umekui is so tired, it's not the tiredness that could go away from sleep. No, it's something so heinous that only death can rescue her from it.What could be worse than living because you have no choice but to?Umekui carefully rises and braces herself to avoid falling due to dizziness in her body and sight.Even though she is alone in her enduring of the sickness that torments her every moment, she believes that today will be a bit less terrible than the others from the moment she meets her sun.In this insanity, she is not wholly alone; her crew is here to be the shore that will always catch her (but for how long? How long will they stay around her before figuring out what she is, and what will she be when they will leave her ?).She exits her painting room to go to the bathroom and prepare herself for another day (with the hum of death echoing in her veins never leaving her).Anyway, she has offered to paint Luffy today (if he can stay still for a few seconds without leaping around) and assist Ussop with his invention.Nami is nowhere to be found when Umekui enters her room (and Umekui doesn't want Nami to see her white kimono and blood-soaked hands).Umekui enters her bathroom with a smile on her face, glad to be able to spend another day with her precious nakamas (it's been so long that Umekui smiled unconsciously at the thought of someone, and it feels nice, alive).Sanji whistles as he prepares breakfast for his crew. Ussop and Nami are already at the table, Nami drawing some maps and Usopp concocting something he hasn't thought of.Luffy barged into the kitchen, a ravenous expression on his face and drool on the corner of his mouth."Meat!Meat!Meat!Meat!Meat!Meat!" He looks at him, annoyed, and raises his foot to hit him hard on the head."Sit like normal people at the table and wait nicely for the food to be served!"Luffy groans and touches the lump on his head before turning around and sulking at the table."Why are you sulking, my captain?" Umekui asks as she walks into the kitchen.Sanji spins like a sunflower at the sound of her voice."Umekui-chan! Good morning! How was your night? Did you get enough sleep? Sit down, I'll bring you a magnificent breakfast," Sanji says as he gets down on one knee in front of his first mate.Straight posture, sharp red eyes that bring men to their knees, blood-red lips, hair as dark as the night that reflects the light of the moon attached in a high ponytail, dressed in a long black dress that reached her feet, long sleeves, and a roller collar that perfectly fit her forms, and skin as white as snow and pure as the divine light wrapped in bandages.Sanji could only say that he is blessed to be in the presence of his first mate, who is becoming more lovely day by day.Umekui's dark red eyes soften as she looks at him, and a warm grin curls her lips. Sanji swears that if Umekui wants to eat him for breakfast, he will happily let her."Good morning, Sanji. How was your night?""It's horrible to sleep with those savages! Perhaps your presence will make the night majestic next time!" he says."Ha! Who are you calling sauvage?!" shouts Ussop from his seat at the table."Ume!! Tell Sanji to bring me some meat!!!!"MEAT!!" cries Luffy from his seat."You heard the captain, lovely cook," Umekui remarks.Sanji turns his head to glare at Luffy before returning to his breakfast preparations. Zoro enters the kitchen shirtless, his towel on his shoulders and his katana in his hand, as he finishes the breakfast plates and places them on the table.Sanji shakes his head."Go put on a tee shirt before coming to eat, Marimo head!" "Don’t wanna! Don't tell me you feel inferior in front of my fabulous muscles!" Zoro teases, flexing his biceps."It's not a question, you cretin!""I don't mind your muscles with the scars on your chest, they're so much hotter," Umekui observes while feeding Luffy.Nami laughs as Usopp chokes on his food. And Luffy, well, he's too preoccupied with eating and being fed by his first mate to care.While glaring at Umekui, Sanji sharpens his glares on Zoro."Keep your pervert remarks to yourself, woman!""Ne don't tell me you are still angry about the story of the plants and the boat?" she questions.Zoro huffs and takes a seat near Usopp, who, like Nami, is now staring at Umekui, puzzled."Plants?" Nami inquired."Boat?" Ussop adds.Umekui takes a cigarette from her pocket and glances at Sanji, who promptly lights her cigarette with his lighter when he sits down next to her.She smiled and thanked him as her cigarette lit up before turning her gaze to Nami and Ussop with a smirk."You see, when we arrived in the homeland of Nami flying because of the sea cow who threw us into the air, well when we crashed on the ground, Zoro was hit by the boat and when he screamed at me why I didn't warn him, I just told him honestly that because of his green hair, I couldn't have seen him surrounded by all the plants and trees," says Umekui.Nami and Ussop exchange glances before turning to face a grumpy Zoro in his chaise. They then turn to face Umekui, who smirks before erupting into laughter."AHAHAHAHHAHA-"Luffy pauses his eating and glances at his crew, who are laughing, before joining them and laughing like an idiot. "SHI SHI SHI-"Sanji lit his cigarette as he watched them laugh heartily, and his lips couldn't help but smile."Oh, Umekui-chan! I forgot to give it to you, but the old man told me to give it back to you because you helped us save the baratie," Sanji adds as he pulls the necklace ring from his pocket and offers it up to her.Umekui gazed down at the jewelry he was holding, then up at his face, before returning her gaze to the jewelry and taking it in the palm of her hand.The entire crew glances at them, curious to find out what Umekui offered Zeff to repay their captain's debt.Sanji looks at Umekui's face as she looks at the ring with a lost look in her eyes, lost in her head."What is it?" Luffy inquires, eager to find out what Ume gave Zeff."This, my captain, can buy you the entire world if you so want. This ring is formed out of stardust, a unique and uncommon element that exists in the world. The world's experts and archaeologists explored every corner of this world in search of it, but they never found a smithereens of it." She explains,"Whoa, so cool!!" shout Luffy and Usopp, their eyes sparkling."Yeah. Cool," Umekui murmurs as she looks at the ring with a sorrowful gaze but the expression of grief fades in a second, but not quickly enough for him, and the way Nami and Zoro stare at Umekui means that they, too."Your treasure is so cool, Ume!" expresses Luffy as he throws himself on his first mate's lap, then frowns hard and looks, "So don't give it to anyone else again, okay?""All right," she says softly, lifting a hand to stroke his head.Sanji glares as Luffy tightly embraces their first mate because truly, this lad knows no bounds when it comes to body contact.Then Umekui turns to face him with a gentle grin (the kind that makes flowers grow in your heart and birds sing in your ears)."Thank you, Sanji"Sanji could barely say a few words before his face turned red and he fell faceplate on the table, smocks leaking from his ears."Simp," Zoro and Usopp grumble, while Nami giggles lovingly.It's not an exaggeration to say that Usopp can tell he's excited. He and Umekui are going to make something together at the table in the men's quarters."So what are we doing Umekui-sensei!"Umekui laughs softly and removes some papers from a pouch when she hears her title."This!" she exclaims, holding out the papers to show him the blueprints she created.Ussop, perplexed, takes the papers to see what they are planning to create, and as he looks at the plans, stars flash in his eyes!"Really?!!!" he exclaims to her face."Yes," Umekui says with a veiled smile."We're making rockets!!! It's awesome!!! Luffy will not believe his eyes!" He exclaims as he leaps from his seat and grabs Umekui's hands."Let's get to work then," Umekui says, smiling."Stay still my captain," implores his first mate. Luffy face-to-face with his first mate, who was holding her brushes, painting, and a canvas between them, while he sat on his favorite seat in the going merry.'The portrait of the future pirate king,' Luffy mused, as stars swirled above his head.As she had promised him that she was going to paint his portrait someday, his first mate took him and Luffy could only booze from happiness.(Luffy had never seen his first mate's art; he desperately wanted to visit her painting chamber and view it, but his first mate forbade anyone from entering her painting room. This room where Ume shuts herself in for days, this room where when Umeku comes out, tiredness and emptiness shade her face, and she seems so worn and empty that his heart breaks because there is nothing to beat except ghost and void.)Even though no one told him how tiring it is to sit for hours (it's only been five minutes), Luffy tries not to move too much or be distracted by something for his first mate.
'Oh is this a butterfly?'

'Ne this cloud doesn’t look a lot like Ussop's nose?'

'I'm hungry'

'meat!meat!meat'

'Concentration, concentration, contranation-oh how does crocodile meat taste like again?'

'stop thinking about food, cocendjhdbh-'
His brain hurts from all the thoughts racing through his head.A chuckle reaches his ears. Luffy glances up as his first mate giggles softly, her pale face brightening up and feeling more vivacious than ever and at this sight, Luffy can only beam at her. (And Luffy can't express how happy he is to watch his first mate laugh and smile freely among them without having this void expression in hers (and Luffy doesn't know what to do when his first mate is devoid of life-))."My captain, I can see smoke's meaning from your head from your thoughts" she states."But Ume-It's just that I can't sit down a few seconds without feeling hungry or wanting something to do!" he pouts as he complains."Don't worry my captain, anyway I just finished the sketch of your portrait I just need to paint it!" replies his Ume."Can I look at it? Please, Please," Luffy begs, his eyes gleaming."Of course, but I haven't finished the draft yet; it's just a sketch!" she clarifies again.Luffy jumps from his position to fall beside her, taking hold of her canvas and staring at the sketch she draws."WOW!! UME, YOU ARE AMAZING! T'S SO PRETTY!!" exclaims Luffy, his eyes twinkling at the sight of the drawing.His sketch has softened the features of his face, particularly his smile, his straw hat is enormous on his head as if the sun is above him, his scar striking by the smile she sketched.Luffy hugged Ume tightly, overjoyed with the drawing.Ume's sharp body relaxed against his grip (and Luffy had never understood why his first mate's body was so crisp and still as if something was hurting her from the inside, or why her back was always hard as if she was carrying a heavy, years-long weight on her back.Luffy finds himself helpless once more, feeling as helpless as he did when Ace was suffering, when his foolish older brother bit the world out of fear of being bitten himself, or when those large men burned his villages and killed Sabo (which still makes his tiny heartache and cry).As she was feeling his emotions, his first mate pressed a hand against his soft cheek, tortured it with her fingers, and tugged hard on his cheek."Nah, it hurts, hurts, hurts ouch ouch-" Luffy sobs under her grip.Ume chuckles at his tearful face and releases her hold on his cheek. He brought a hand to caress his scarlet face and pouts at his first mate."Why did you do that Ume?""Because you are impossibly irresistibly cute," she replies, smiling at him before returning her attention to her drawing."But it's not a reason to pull my cheek!" He huffs, crosses his arms, and glares at the skies."Stop pouting..if you stop I will give you the special dessert that Sanji prepares for me and Nami" she proposes.When dessert is mentioned, Luffy quickly turns his attention to his first mate."YES!! PLEASE!! UME, YOU ARE THE BEST FIRST MATE!!"Nami, who is sunbathing on her lounger next to them in a green bikini, rises and smiles at them."I didn't know that you could blackmail the captain, Umekui," she says with a grin."Nami dear, If it's about food, anyone could blackmail the captain," she smirks back at Nami.Nami laughs loudly, "You're right!""It's not like you don't blackmail us apart Umekui about money, thief witch," Usopp grumbles as he glances up from his invention to Nami."What did you say, I think I didn't hear you well, long nose?!" Nami turns quickly to Ussop and glares hard with demon eyes.Ussop takes a deep breath and chuckles uncomfortably, "Ha ha ha nothing nothing!"Ume chuckles at what's going on with Luffy while Nami and Ussop can only look at their fist mate with a tenderness that might make stars hide in shame.As dusk started to give way to darkness, Zoro stood on the deck.His wooden saber shakes in his hands as he delivers hard and fast blows into the air, the hissing of his actions echoing in his ears. His drive to be the strongest and greatest fires in his veins, as his heart beats faster and faster.
"It's far too soon to die for you, Roronoa Zoro. Learn about the world. Get to know yourself. I will be waiting at the top of the world for you to surpass me and my sword, no matter how long it takes."
This man's words echo inside him like gasoline, causing his muscles to quiver and his grasp on his sword to become so tight that he could feel the hilt craking under his palms.His name will make the gods and the world shudder.Zoro pushes hard on his legs to keep his weight on his muscles, and his arms seem light and sharp like the wind that shatters everything. And his determination to be the strongest, to be invincible, causes his ears to ring and his blood to boil.Because Roronoa Zoro will be stronger—not just for himself and his pledge to Kuina, but also for his crew, especially his first mate and captain. Zoro's esteem for his leaders, Luffy and Umekui, makes his dreams even bigger than they were before.How his captain slew the Fishman who terrorized Nami's people, and how his first mate emerged in the sky in an instant and destroyed the tower that had held Nami hostage for so many years with a single punch of her fist.The prospect of the adventure that awaits him and all the people they will face causes excitement to burst in him, and the smirks on his face cause his cheek to sting as sweat clings to his forehead."Why are you smiling like you're planning to murder someone, I hope it's mine?" asks his first mate from above.Zoro stares up at his first mate, who is seated on the balcony's edge."AH- you wish, suicidal maniac!" snarls Zoro."Hahhaa of course, What kind of woman wouldn't be happy to be killed by a handsome man?" She chuckles as the dusk highlights her long, dark hair.Zoro ignores her (but also ignores his burning ears when Umekui calls him handsome) and returns to his training. Feeling her long stares at him, Zoro comes up with an idea. "Fight me!" he exclaims to his first mate, his eyes blazing.His statements seem to have taken Umekui aback, so she gives him a long look, engaging in a staring battle before giving him an icy retort."No.""HA? Why not? I need to get stronger, and you're the perfect fighting partner for me," Zoro protests."You are still weak," she states simply as she lays down on the balcony's edge.Zoro glares at her for her words (although deep down he knows he is still weak, and that he needs to be stronger to face this endless world and sea that awaits them)."What's the big deal? I need to fight someone strong to evolve and become stronger; I need to be stronger! Don't make fun of me by saying you won't fight me again because of this! I know it's not because you think I'm weak, so-"Before Zoro could say another word, Umekui was in front of him, a dagger pressing on his throat. Her fiery red eyes instantly made Zoro feel his heart accelerate."For the simple and good reason that at the slightest uncontrolled move on my part, I could hurt you severely or worse, kill you; if you want to take this risk, then you are much dumber than Luffy as I thought," she said coldly, her words fanning over his face like needles piercing him.Zoro narrows his eyes at her, and Umekui doesn't even flinch."If you thought for a moment that I'm afraid of death or being hurt severely then it means that between us, it's you who is dumber than Luffy," Zoro replies."I-" He cuts her off again before she can say anything else."Umekui, you're my first mate. We're nakamas, and we trust each other, so I trust you not to hurt or kill me!"Zoro trusts his first mate and captain as much as he trusts his nakamas, and their recent fights have proven that nothing can stand in their way. They trust one another and his life is the first thing he will offer to his first mate without question because they have ambitions and goals together (but his heart shakes since this empty first mate of his is devoid of dreams and goals and it's not something Zoro can infuse in her like a god).Umekui's crimson eyes widen as she takes a step back from him.(However, Zoro is unaware that deep within Umekui's corrupt heart. When nightmares feed on her flesh and make her blood and mind quake from screams and cries, another door opens to this warehouse of memories. And something in the bottom of her dead heart (She believed her fucking heart had been ripped to shreds, but how can a shredded heart beat again?). Umekui realized that she doesn't just crave Zoro and her crew for their warmth but she loves them, and nothing aches more in her chest than this curse known as love).As she turns around to leave the deck, Zoro thinks she will remain firm in her decisions, but;"See you tomorrow at dusk on the deck!" she exclaims.Zoro smiles broadly before returning to his training, eager to show her that he is not as weak as she believes, and he will! He won't hold back against her, so all she has to do is not abstain.Nami came from the shower, clad in her red top and short pajamas, ready to retire to bed. Her first mate's long black hair greets her as she enters the room.Umekui had already bathed and was dressed in a long white nightie that reached her ankles; the white nightie made Umekui's face paler and brought out those red eyes and crimson lips; and those bandages that Nami had never seen Umekui without made her heart hurt (though she doubts that the pain in her hearts is more painful than the suffering that forces Umekui to wear those bandages like a second skin).When Nami notices Umekui struggling to comb her long hair, she grabs her bravery in both hands and asks her what she has always wanted to do since the moment she met her."Can I comb your hair?" Nami asks.Umekui's hand moves and turns to look at her with those eyes that make Nami feel like wings are sprouting from her back.Umekui nodded softly and held out the comb.Nami rushes to her side, a bright smile on her face.It's been days since they left her homeland, and Nami has never felt more at peace than she does now, and the company of her nakamas is the reality that what she has struggled against is only ashes and dust behind her (even if it will take a lot to fight those ghosts in her mind, Nami knows she is not alone to do it, and her heart eases at the thought)."I've always wanted to comb your hair, Umekui! They are stunning, dark as the night, and shine like silver in the moonlight!! They are so long and they smell heavenly! like roses and rain-" Nami freezes, realizing that she let herself be carried. Her cheeks and ears heat, and before she can say sorry, Umekui's voice cuts her off."The rain has a smell?" she questions,Nami can't see her face from behind her because their rooms and bathrooms don't have mirrors; the only mirrors Nami has are the ones in her dressing room and the small ones in her stringer. Umekui removed all the mirrors she could find, and when Nami questioned why, she merely said coldly, "I hate mirrors." (Nami can't even ask her why because Umekui would cut the conversation off and go lock herself in her painting room).Nami nods happily as she strokes Umekui's silky smooth hair."The rain smells like comfort and peace. It's light and pleasant, but it's new and fresh, like new beginnings. It smells like freedom and is largely like the sea without the salty air. I love the sea as much as I love the smell of rain; it brings peace to my soul," Nami confesses softly.
'You bring peace to my soul' wanted to say Nami. 
Nami heard Umekui murmur, "You are so kind, Nami," and could tell she was smiling.(Kind? She doesn't think.Nami recognizes that she is human, a human who committed mistakes and bad decisions to survive, and nothing in her past acts qualifies her as someone kind. But she will do her best to be gentler than she was before because Nami is simply free now, sailing the seas and exploring the world with her dear crew by her side and she thinks that her love for her nakamas is what makes her heart ease and soften to the world around her.She will be kind. She'll love the world once more with her crew's help. She will discover the world that her mother loved and protected so deeply, and Nami promised to draw as many maps as her mind can conjure).Luffy's loud cries could be heard from their chamber, and Nami groaned and asked Umekui for it because she was the only one who knew the reasons for his tantrum, as always."Do you know why Luffy is throwing a fit?""He wants to do a sleepover with us""I swear, if they come into our room, I'm going to kill all the boys, starting with Luffy," she threatened darkly.Umekui laughs at her comments before responding."Don't worry, I told him we were going to sleep in their quarters. I think he's making noise to get our attention due to how we take our time," Umekui explains."Ew, in men's quarters, boys are just so gross, imagine while sleeping one of them farts on us or worse, a cockroach walks on us," shrieks Nami, her body shaking with disgust.Umekui laughs loudly and widely, tilting her head back to meet her bright brown eyes (oh dear, Nami could feel her face heating up at Umekui's wide smile and loud laugh. Nami realizes how much she adores her first mate once more)."Nami dear, don't worry Ussop and Sanji are clean freaks, they clean well their quarters, if they weren’t there, their rooms would be a dump," she says."UME!!! NAMII!!" yells Luffy from across the corridor."We have to hurry or Luffy will make another mistake like burning the boat or worse sinking it""Anyway, I finished with your hair!" says Nami as she finishes the end of Umekui's long braid.Umekui stands up and places her braid over her right shoulder before staring her in the eyes with beautiful crimson eyes."Thank you, Nami dear"Nami's cheeks flushed as she could stippur some thanks. But before she and Umekui leave the room, she asks another question to her first mate."Do you also love the rain?"Umekui comes to a complete halt in her tracks, her body rigid and crisp, before turning to face her."Oh me? No, I hate rain," Umekui smiles (and all Nami could see in her eyes and smile was pain and grief, and her heart broke from it).Nami doesn't know much about her first mate, but she notices a lot about her (how lifeless and dead she appears, how empty her eyes and smiles may be, and how Umekui seems to be haunted by a lot of things inside her and don't let her talk about those days when Umekui looks dead and cold and silent like a corpse-).But she also knows that Umekui doesn't talk much with folks who aren't part of their crew. (Their vacation to her homeland confirmed her correctly. Umekui only stayed by their side or remained alone in her corner. (And when women and men captivated by her beauty approach her, she merely smiles politely and declines their invitation. (And Nami despises her meaningless smile). She also knows how silent and ghostly she can be, and she also knows that Umekui hates mirrors and rain, and she doesn't let anyone in her painting room, no one!Nami, on the other hand, adores the rain and Umekui. Nami's rain is Umekui, she is the peace of her soul (in the depths of her soul, Nami vows herself that she will make Umekui love the rain and see how amazing and majestic it can be).Umekui arrives at the men's quarters only to be assailed by Luffy's embrace. The smell of meat and spices caresses her nostrils, and his warm body clings to her cold ones like an anchor (this annoying heat of his that makes Umekui feel alive and breathing).Luffy, dressed in a red tee shirt and shirt pajamas, pulls away from their embrace and looks at her with those large lovely eyes of his and pouts (and those pouts make Umekui do anything for him)."Ume! What took you so long?" He complains,Before Umekui can answer, Nami grabs his tee shirt and pulls it from her, throwing it at the opposite end of the room like a ball."You idiot! Before going to bed, girls need to take care of themselves by doing their hair, skin, and everything else!" Nami remarksLuffy lays back on his couch, frowning, and looks up at the ceiling."Why do you have to do stupid things before going to bed? It seems boring to me!" laments Luffy."Ha?!" Nami's hair rises in rage, and smocks slip from her ears as she walks toward Luffy with the elephant steps.She jumped at him and began slapping him all over, leaving Luffy with no choice but to weep and attempt to escape.Ussop could only squeal as he watched the scenario from the door because Nami is the most terrifying thing in the world when she is angry. So, to avoid Nami's fury, Ussop approaches his first mate and circles her arms around his arm, bringing her closer to him (since Umekui was the only one against whom Nami would never be angry (this witch was always dovey lovey with their first mate))."Scared Ussop?" Umekui asks a mischievous smirk on her face."Did you see her? When she's angry, she's terrifying! A real witch!" Ussop murmurs to his first mate, hoping Nami doesn't hear him and comes up to murder him (his body trembles at the prospect)."I think she's cute when she's angry," Umekui muses as she looks at Nami, who is choking Luffy to death.Ussop chokes on her world, as his eyes burst from his orbit."Nami cute when she's on a rampage? Umekui, are you blind? How can this witch be cute when she is literally choking to death Luffy?" he asks, pointing to the hysterical Nami."Humm," Umekui says, nodding, "She's like an angry cute kitten who bares his claws when he's angry! Angry but still cute," Umekui chuckles gently as she watches her navigator and captain argue like children on the couch.Ussop looks at her smile with a flushed face (damn him and this hot room!)."Besides.." Umekui adds, her gaze fixed on Nami, "I'd rather see Nami like this than when-"Ussop grasped what she meant without her having to continue her sentence. (And the image of Nami's tearful face and bloodied hands pleading with them to save and aid her tormented him for a long time after they left. (And Ussop will never forget the sobs that tore his heart apart when Noriko revealed the truth about why Nami was in Arlong's crew.And Ussop knows he'll never be as brave as Nami, who spent years in the deen of those creatures. (He is too afraid to do something as she did, a coward who would rather hide than battle men twice his size and far more strong than he could be)).Ussop raised his head to look at Nami's disgusted expression when Luffy stuck a snot on her fingers and the way her face lit up and she laughed out loud with Luffy's cheery laugh."Yeah, me too, I prefer her like that," Ussop replies to Umekui, who smiles at him."Don't worry, Ussop, you're also cute. My adorable favorite kohai!"Ussop choked on his spit, coughed, and hid his scarlet face in his hands as Umekui grinned."YOU-aye!"Before Ussop could insult Umekui for taunting him, a pillow was flung up at him and struck him across the face. Ussop glances at his foe, at Luffy and Nami's idiotic broad smile and smirk."shi shi shi, shi shi shi, This is because you did not come to help me!" Luffy snickers."Ha-?! I'd rather die than save you from that witch's clutches!" Ussop says, pointing to Nami.Nami scowls, "Who are you calling a witch, long nose?!"She snatches a pillow from Luffy's grasp and hurls it at him. Ussop yells and leaps to cover behind his smiling first mate, and the pillow accidentally hits Umekui in the face.Luffy and Nami's smiles drop since their first mate is going to kill them. They are aware that those who are never angry are the scariest (The thought of a certain Makino crosses Luffy's head, as does the thought of an enraged Noriko crosses Nami'mind too, causing their bodies to tremble)."Ume I-""Umekui I-"As they were about to kneel and ask her forgiveness, two pillows struck them across the face, followed by their first mate's laughter.Luffy and Nami burst out laughing and shoot back their pillows at Umekui and Ussop. Many feathers fly around them as a result of the cushion being flung so quickly.Ussop gathers his courage and leaps at his captain and navigator, taking Umekui with him. The four nakamas collapse on the couch in a tangle of limbs surrounded by feathers stuck to their cloches and hairs, their loud and wide laugh reverberating throughout the room."What the hell is going on?" snarls Zoro as he storms into the room.Nami exclaims, "The dead weed is there!""The three sword demon is here!" Luffy shouts."The walking cactus has arrived!" Ussop snickers,"Angry daddy is home!" Umekui grins,Zoro glares down at them, his veins pulsing in his forehead, wishing he had his sword to hack them to pieces."Stop glaring Zoro! We are playing!" Luffy pouts,"What are you playing to by making all this noise and throwing all the mess into the room?" Zoro asks with a stern face."This," Umekui says as she smacks him across the face with a cushion. Zoro collapses on his buttocks as a result of the force of her throws."You waste of bandages, I'm going to kill you!" Zoro smirks as he grabs the cushion and leaps at Umekui."Leave our first mate alone, you green demon!" Luffy, Nami, and Ussop yell as they leap onto Zoro's back and smack him hard with their pillows.They laugh loudly as they fight Zoro, who is pinning Umekui down with his body. Umekui laughs heartily as Zoro tickles her in the ribs."Marimo head, what are you doing to Umekui-chan!!" yells Sanji when he sees Zoro atop her, his nakamas on his back beating him with pillows."Shut up, weird eyebrow!"Zoro steals Ussop's pillow and throws it in Sanji's face. As Sanji picks up the pillow off the floor and jumps at them, Luffy exclaims loudly, followed by his laugh, "PILLOW FIGHT!"At his words, the nakamas leap at each other with their pillows, feathers spilling about them. Luffy and Ussop smack Zoro hard as he tries to smack Sanji and Umekui while Sanji shields Nami and Umekui from their pillow throws.Nami leaps onto Umekui's back, and the two of them laugh loudly as Zoro slips and falls on Sanji."Do you think they'll fall for each other?" Nami asks, smirking and hopping on Umekui's back.Umekui jumps to dodge the pillows thrown at them by Ussop and Luffy, as Sanji and Zoro fight like dogs at her feet."Well, they're fighting like dogs in heat, what do you think?" Umekui states, turning her head to look at her gorgeous navigator.Luffy screeches his hands on Umekui's shoulders and drags her in close to him and Ussop. Umekui's foot entangled with Sanji and Zoro's limbs until she collapsed on them, Nami still on her back. As Luffy's arms were wrapped around Umekui's neck, they found themselves falling towards them, Ussop still on his back.The straw hat pirates were a mess of limbs on the floor, each of their body parts stuck and entangled with another, and the couch beneath them was soft from all the feathers on the floor. Their breathing was ragged as if they had run a marathon and at the sound of Luffy's loud laughs (his loud laughs that echo like freedom above their heads and make them love this endless sea as much as they love their dumb captain), the crew burst out laughing at their situation.Their smiles are so broad on their faces that it pains their cheeks, the sunlight bathing in their hearts, their heat dancing around each other like flames that no one can extinguish, their bones and flesh melting into each other, their hearts entwined in an embrace that melts gold into ichor.Their souls danced within Umekui (in this agonizing abyss where her curses ripped her to shreds, let herself sink in their warmth for the moment, forgetting the monster inside her). Umekui's inhumanity transforms into something soft and living, allowing her to forget the dread weight of her fatality, a part of her bestiality allowing the warmth and love of her nakamas to smother her to the bone.The way her crew's enjoyment and her laughter crush her inside with warmth, making her feel alive. This impression that she has never lived in this world. Umekui has never lived, it's written in the stars and scorched into her body. Even from the beginning of her treacherous existence, Umekui had only had to endure, not survive, not live, but endure the consequences of her existence in this world."We'll soon arrive at our final destination before taking the Grand Line!" exclaimed Luffy, looking up at the ceiling above his head."Loguetown!" exclaims Nami, smiling."The island where everything started and ended," says Zoro."The island where the pirate king was born,.." Sanji explains."..And where he was executed," Ussop adds nervously."Gold D. Roger, the man who found the One Piece," Umekui adds (and in the depths of her memory, a tale she had read before was scorching the stings of the past)."Shi shi shi," Luffy laughs, joy coursing through his veins.He stretches his arms and embraces his crew tightly. The straw pirates let their tiresome troublesome captain laugh luring them to sleep in this mess of limbs, warmed by the heat of their captain, this lad who pours love selflessly into the cracks of their hearts.Umekui's smile in this crock of Luffy's neck, her body squeezed between Zoro and Nami, her body scorching from their heat. The smell of her crew calming the madness screaming inside her; her heart quivering in her ribs; shivering from the love she bears for them (and Umekui doesn't want to let them go, she doesn't want them to leave her behind in this insanity of her, she can't, she just wants-).As tiredness grips her bones and causes her eyes to close, Umekui falls slumber in this nest of love, with the souls of her crew protecting her from the shadows of the past, and for the first time in decades, she slept with a smile on her face.In a warm room of the going merry, the dawn peeks from the curtains of the men's quarters.Sanji softly opens his blue eyes to be met by the brightened ceiling above his head. His body felt heavy against the couch under him (and the weight on him caused his fingers and heart to shake for a while, the terror pinching his throat in a death grasp that caused his tiny self to cry and push Sanji to recall but the aching in his bones makes him want to forget at any cost-).He raises his body to shift the weight, and the sight of Luffy and Ussop's limbs calms his breathing. He glances around the room and sees Zoro at his feet and Nami a few feet away, but no sign of his first partner.He carefully stands up and walks over to where Nami is resting, smiling lovingly at her tranquil expression as he covers her with a blanket. After ensuring that Nami is adequately covered, Sanji stands up and exits the room in search of his first mate.When Sanji arrives on the ship's deck, he sees Umekui's silhouette in the distance, but the closer he approaches it, the louder the coughing sounds he hears."Are you okay, Umekui-chan?" He asks behind her,Umekui whips her handkerchief rapidly across her mouth and turns to face him."Good morning, Sanji," she says."Good morning Umekui-chan! I heard you coughing; are you okay?" He asks again, concerned about his first mate's health."Yes, don't worry, just a little cold," she reassures (but Sanji didn't notice the bloody handkerchief Umekui was clutching tightly in her palm to block his vision)."Here come, let me take you to the kitchen so I can make you a warm honey tea for your throat," Sanji says softly as he extends his hand to Umekui, who takes it in her icy hand.The frigid hand of his first mate made Sanji shiver slightly; strangely, even though her skin was bandaged except for her face and feet, Sanji was able to feel the temperature of her body.When they got to the kitchen, he took a blanket, wrapped it around her shoulders, gave her a tender smile, and went to make her some tea.Umekui looks at the back of Sanji and down at the bloodied handkerchief on her shaking hand. (It hurts. It fucking hurts so bad inside, her heart, lungs, and every organ burns and crips, and Umekui can't do anything to relieve the pain. Her bloodied throat burned from coughing, and just as she was about to vomit everything on the deck floor, Sanji's presence and warmth calmed the waves of madness that tore her apart).Umekui's attention is drawn unconsciously to his figures, and the gentleness and kindness in his heart make her want to fall into his arms and let his care burn her flesh and heart. But she is too terrified to burn him with the venom that runs through her veins.Sanji holds his heart in his palm and never hesitates to treat Umekui and Nami as the most treasured women in the world, the most beautiful in the world, he tells them every second. (And the other day, Nami told her that Sanji reminded her of a prince from a book she read a long time ago because of his beauty and tenderness).She is right. Sanji is magnificent. He's so handsome, so horrifically gorgeous, with the prettiest bluest eyes, the prettiest golden hair that gold beside him would be a poor replica, and this smile; oh dear, his smile was so gentle that it mends Umekui organs and bones into something disturbingly human.('The lovely prince and the hideous beast' may be the best title of their tragedy. Sanji is generous, kind, and attractive, whereas Umekui is the polar opposite (and those terrible voices could only taunt her and tell her how correct she is to think that way about herself).Her nakamas are all beautiful and kind, and wherever Umekui stands with them to face the world. She could only think about how wrong she was. She feels like an intruder. How vile she is to pollute their air, and the hatred she bears for her could only drive her to suicide and-)"Here, Umekui-chan, I hope you like it! I made it with love for you!" exclaims Sanji, twirling towards her like a sunflower, hearts in his eyes."Thank you very much, Sanji. Don't worry, everything you make for us is fantastic," she says as she takes a drink of her steaming cup of tea.Sanji beams at her and sits in front of her with a cup of coffee (refraining from smocking because of Umekui's health)."Luffy told me that you had a great dream to achieve, what it is ?" she asks (and Umekui longs to know everything about her nakamas, their dreams, goals, pains, joy, everything)Suddenly, he stares at her, his eyes exploding like fireworks. He stretched his cheeks with the brightest wide smile she could see in him. Excitation exploded from his gaze. (Oh dear, it's burns, this smile seems like a supernova, it burns and heats her entire being, flaming all the screams plaguing her inside)."Have you heard of "All Blue"?" He asks like a curious child, and while Umekui shakes her head, he continues. "It's a mystical sea! Fish from all over the world can be found in that sea- East Blue, West Blue, North and South Blue! It's a culinary utopia for cooks like myself! Can you imagine a portion of the earth where the four seas collide in a collision of all kinds of fish? I could create the tastiest food in the world for our nakamas!" Sanji laughs heartily at his words, the kitchen echoing his dream in a joyful melody.Umekui smiled widely at his dream. The innocence in his eyes and grins remind her so much of her dear captain and crew, and it's this in them that she adores, this part of them that no one can take away, this will to dream and live. Indeed, Sanji was a selfless, caring prince; even his dream was about cooking for them."I would make you and Nami the best dishes in the world! Umekui-chan, you'll see."
'You fool. Stop being so gentle to me, I don't deserve it! Stop being effortlessly beautiful. Stop making me love you more than I am already. Stop!'
"I'm looking forward to it," she says simply as she looks at him with a kindness that feels so out of character for her.Umekui never sought the gods for compassion (why should she beg mercy from those who despised and condemned her?) But there was a time when she asked the creature inside her to stop the slaughter and kill her, and from the constant suffering she realized that begging was merely a miserable act that fueled the gods and monsters' pleasure.But what can she do if asking is futile, if pleading doesn't stop the madness and carnage, what can she do to buy time to herself to witness her nakamas achieve their goals and dreams (please tell her what she can do? She will do everything, burn worlds and empires, brings massacre and death if they wish),But she needs to see her nakamas shining as brightly as the suns of this world. Let her see them sparkling above this dismal world... from the darkest recesses of her mind when they will ultimately become the legends of these tales who marked history and brought the sun to their land. Umekui will finally be quiet, even if it means suffering for centuries again and again because seeing her beloved nakamas happy is the only thing that could allow her to be an idyllic echo of madness).The kitchen doors open, allowing Nami to enter, clad in a blue navy tee shirt and green khaki shorts. When she sees Umekui and Sanji, she rushes over to them and hugs Umekui from her left side."Umekui, you left me with those sticky boys! Luffy drooled on my shoulders, this moron!" She laments,"He did what? I'm going to kill this idiot! Don't worry, Nami; I'll bring you my special wonderful breakfast to help you forget about this unpleasant occurrence!"Sanji gets up and rushes to make breakfast for his lovely navigator.As Nami took a seat near Umekui, the latter reached out a soft hand to caress Nami's head."Don't worry, we'll be sleeping only together this night. Boys are not permitted! So stop pouting and show me your gorgeous smile, Nami," Umekui reassures softly.Nami's cheeks flush as she smiles broadly at her first mate, attempting to slow her heartbeat.'Umekui said my smile was gorgeous,' Nami thought dreamily as hearts twirled above her head."Hum-Simp-Hum," snickers Usopp as he enters the kitchen and notices the blushing Nami next to a smiling Umekui.Nami turns and glares at him, promising him a horrible death (after all, it's not like he was able to talk, he was crimson and shy as a schoolgirl last night when Umekui was talking to him, thought Nami).Ussop gulps on his spit and dashes out of the kitchen, declaring, "I'm going to wake up Luffy!""We'll be in Loguetown in about an hour or so," Nami says to Umekui."Sanji we need to make a list of what we need to supply on the ship, gives me the list of what we need for all that is food and I will see for the rest," she says to Nami as she turns "Nami dear, we will speak about the budget we have for the supplies after breakfast, okay ?"Nami nodded and began to devour the breakfast Sanji had prepared for her; as always, it was extraordinarily excellent, allowing her to forget about the disaster of the morning."Okay Umekui-chan, we can do that together after breakfast, if you like?" enquires Sanji as he returns to complete the breakfast of his crew's imbecile,"Yes," Umekui answers again, sipping her tea."Sanji?""Yes, darling?""Did you prepare Luffy's meat and breakfast?""Soon. Why?""Because he is here in 1..2...3-""MEAT!MEAT!MEAT!"I'M STARVING TO DEATH!" exclaims Luffy, rushing into the kitchen still in his jammies."Calm down, you moron!" Sanji growls "Or I swear I'll give you dog food!""Luffy, be a good boy and come sit down," Umekui reprimands from her seat.Luffy takes a seat before hugging his first mate and sitting like a nice boy alongside her, drooling and watering his mouth, waiting for his food.Ussop follows him and sits in front of Nami, the latter glaring at him for his previous world (albeit he wasn't wrong). Zoro enters the kitchen last, shirtless as usual, his hair unkempt from his slumber, and takes a seat at Ussop's left.Umekui continues to drink softly her warm tea that Sanji had made for her "little cold" (even though she knows what is consuming her from the inside can never be a simple cold). But the way Sanji prepared this for her specifically because he was concerned about her is something she treasures, so she will finish this tea for him)."Luffy in Longuetown doesn't make a huge fuss in this town, okay? We restock our supplies and head to Grand Line!" scolds Nami because she knows how stupid Luffy is and that wherever Luffy goes, danger follows.Umekui turns to face Luffy and narrows her eyes as he continues to eat, stating, "I hope you heard what Nami told you, right?"He swallows hard and nods quickly at the woman in his crew.
'Gosh, why all the women in his life are scary like hell?!'
"I will purchase new swords since mine were destroyed," said Zoro."I will go by new things for my supplies and new goggles!" Ussop exclaims,Umekui nods in agreement and turns to face Nami."And you, Nami?" she seeks out."I guess some shopping," she says as she finishes the final dish on her plate."And you, Umekui, what are you going to do?" Ussop questions."I-""Umekui has caught a cold today; the best thing for her is to stay on the ship," Sanji says."UME! UMEKUI IS SICK!" screams Luffy, Nami, and Ussop, while Zoro frowns at his first mate."You idiots, I'm not sick. Sanji caught me coughing a little, nothing dangerous," she explains, ignoring their concerned looks.(Umekui will never learn how to respond to her crew's concern for her. Something of her impurity does not deserve to be loved or worried about. She doesn't deserve them, and nothing or no one will change her mind)When she notices their fixed stare on her, she gets out of her chair and reassures them once more. "I promise it's nothing, just a little stupid cold. So eat your breakfast and we'll be ready to leave in less than an hour."She turns around and walks out of the kitchen, her heart heavy as ever, because Umekui is a sinful liar.As Ume left the room, Luffy continued eating his food, but he could feel his crew's persistent gaze.He huffs and gulps the meal (yet something in his chest feels heavy, he's not sure why, but it makes him less hungry than before)."What?" he asks, staring at his nakamas.Nami is the first to speak up. "Tell us, Luffy, how did you meet Umekui? She is the only one who is unaware of her first recruitment."(It's true that Umekui was the only one in their crew about whom they knew nothing. Where does she come from? How did she accept Luffy's invitation?)"I found her in the deepest of the sea." he blurts out. "WHAT??" screams his crew, "What do you mean you found her?" Sanji asks, his eyes narrowed."I was fishing for something to eat and when I thought that the big shadow under the sea was a big fish, so when I brought it to my boat, and it was Ume." He explains once more, and although Luffy is stupid and forgets a lot of stuff, his meeting with his first mystery and adventure on his path to becoming King of the Pirates is unforgettable."So you're saying Umekui was drowning at the bottom of the sea when you found her?" Zoro marvels."She wasn't drowning," clarifies Luffy."And then what? If you rescue someone from the bottom of the water, she was almost surely drowning, but how come she ended there in the middle of the sea without being dead-" Ussop adds."She was killing herself-" Luffy blurts out.Nami's glass of water slips from her hands and shatters at his words (inevitably, her heart shatters with Luffy's confession)."What do you mean, are you joking with us?! Because this not funny!" Screams Sanji as he grabs Luffy's shirt.Luffy frowns at him."No! Ume was killing herself. The first thing she said when she awoke on my boat was, "I'm not dead? What a pity it didn't work!" then she threw herself into the sea again, and every time I pulled her out, she jumped again and again until I asked her why she would want to drown herself in the sea, and she said it was because she wanted to die!" Luffy explains as he preys Sanji's hand away from him.(Because Luffy is never a liar. Why would he lie about something as important as that, or his first mate? It's stupid. They didn't see how Ume was the first time he met her (dead, hollow, and lifeless like a corpse), and Luffy would do anything to avoid seeing her again.)"But why? Why would she want to kill herself?" Nami says quietly, but the rest of the crew hears her.Nami's heart hurts. It fucking aches like hell. What did you expect from her sad heart when she learns that someone she cares about wants to die?! Nami has no idea why her first mate wants to be dead because no one wants to kill himself like that (Nami for a moment in her life wanted to die too, she wanted to be gone and rejoin her dear mother because life felt like a nightmare because the loneliness in her heart was so much worse than death).Ussop tries to calm his nerves by asking again, " Luffy, do you know anything about Umekui? Where she comes from, does she have a homeland, and...what powers does she have? She can swim in the sea, thus she doesn't have a devil fruil."Luffy shakes his head and continues eating, "In any case, I don’t care. If Ume wants to tell us something, we will listen to her, but we will never push ourselves on her, did you understand what I mean? It's a captain's order!"The crew nods in response to Luffy's order and continues eating their breakfast, their hearts heavy from the revelation. Yet they know that their first mate was the enigma of their lives, their Umekui who loads unfathomable tenderness for them, Umekui who only talks to remind them how loved they are, yet Umekui who contains so much emptiness and imprisoned herself in this room plagued by her own secrets.She never reaches out to them to save or aid her; instead, Umekui always wears an expression of sorrow on her face since she understands that even if they can see the void in her, they can do nothing to save her. Their fist partner, who concealed what was underneath her body in a cocoon of torment.
Does she even trust them?
At the thought, bitterness makes them want to bite their tongues off because the straw hat pirates despise the helplessness they wield against the weight of Umekui's agony.Yet perhaps the world forgets that her crew is fearless, that nothing can stop them from achieving their dreams, that nothing is impossible, and that they would do anything in their power to save their first mate from her own demons.The straw hat pirates will save and help Umekui at any cost, a pledge etched in blood and the stars above them.Umekui stands at the entrance to Longuetown (the cries and whispers become louder the instant she sets foot in this town; her chest and lungs hurt for no apparent reason)."I'm going to see the execution stand!" screams Luffy as he dashes into town with a big smile."Did he even hear what we told him earlier?" Nami huffs next to her."I don't think, Luffy doesn't even remember his right and left," Zoro grumbles as he enters the town with Usopp.Sanji looks worriedly at the women in his crew and asks, "Are you sure you don't want me to accompany us?"Nami smiles and shakes her head at him, and Umekui adds, "Don't worry Sanji, just make sure to buy everything we have written on the list!"With a stiff nod akin to a knight, he dashes through the towns."Nami if you find some hairpin, can you bring me some, my hair is harder to style these days.""Okay!!"Before fleeing into town, Nami turns to Umekui and hugs her tightly, pulling her tongue and winking at her. Umekui shakes her head and smiles at her ridiculously beautiful navigator.Umekui walks the streets of Longuetown, her heart heavy and odd. With every step, something in her turns and crips, torturing her incessantly. Her organs are on fire, and Umekui has no idea what is going on. (The screams, those cursed voices, make Umekui's ears bleed, and her eyes flicker with memories and voices Umekui had never heard or seen before).Umekui clenches her fists tightly, and the bandages on her hands act as a barrier to pry blood from her. She let the pain of losing her flesh make her forget the ache for a moment. She moves on through the crowded streets, and Umekui needs to find an herbalist quickly. She has to find a few drugs quickly so she can temporarily turn off the pain and voices inside her.She wants to feel normal for a brief time (she needs to blend in this world with this treacherous human being's mask glued to her face).Umekui tries to blend in with the crowd, hoping that the dogs and marionettes of the deities who despise her and want her dead are not present.Umekui finally found the shop she was looking for after walking for several minutes. She walks in, and the soothing aroma of herbs and plants relaxes her muscles."Can I have some hokkaido hemp and cordyceps sinensis?" Umekui inquires of the old man behind the shop's counter."Are those things not dangerous for a beautiful lady like you?" the old guy asks as he goes to his stock."Don't we say that beauty is pain, old man?" Umekui responds with an empty look."To wants some hokkaido hemp I understand, but the cordyceps sinensis is harmful for your period, my lady." He goes on to say,Umekui ignores his words and pulls out her bag of bellies, which she places on his counter. As she waits for her orders, a sharp pain in her brain causes her to clutch her hair in a fist, her legs simmer, and she fears she will collapse on the floor.

(DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI,DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, )

In a symposia, the voice cries forth the cursed name.

(THERE, there, there, WAS, was, was, ONCE, once, once, A, a, a, MAN, man, man)

The whispers recounted a tale that Umekui once heard; it hurts and an intense sound sears her buffers."Here, my lady. Take doses with caution; they can be highly damaging to you!" he warns,"Thanks, old man!"She takes the bag and quickly leaves the shop, her throat burning and her dizziness making her see the world upside down, she finds a dark alley to her right and enters it, in the deepest of the dark allies she falls on her knees and throws up the dark blood through her mouth and throat.

(HE, he, he HAD, had, had, EVERYTHING, everything, everything; WEALTH, wealth, wealth, FAME, fame, fame, POWER, power, power)

This meaningless tale that Umekui despises so much (Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop, Stop,).

(GOLD D. ROGER!GOLD D. ROGER!GOLD D. ROGER!GOLD D. ROGER!GOLD D. ROGER!GOLD D. ROGER!GOLD D. ROGER!)

(Doesn't have enough curses and souls haunting her? then why does this man appear to weigh so heavily in this warren of memories?)This fucking name, what does he want from her, he is dead, he is dead; yet this name seems to follow her like a ghost, and Umekui has no idea why. He was king perhaps, but he is no king to Umekui; the only king she would accept was her captain.Her breach itchiest as the creature crawls within her, awakening the feeling of bloodlust and craving for blood and destruction. (She is so exhausted, she wants to close her eyes and escape this madness and let this thing let her die, die, die, die-everything hurts and Umekui above all hates the pain; she has experienced pain throughout her entire existence and Umekui is sick of it-)

(CURSED GIRL OF THE FORGOTTEN WORLD)

The voices inside her head are loud and distinct.

(DO YOU REGRET TAKING THE VOW?)

Echoes of voices Umekui had heard a long time ago, singing the madness and tragedy bestowed in her sinful blood.Luffy's soul cries in danger as red and blue burn deep within him. Umekui quickly stands up and tries to combat the dizziness drawing her within, ignoring the hands attempting to take her into the silence of this nothingness that devours her whole.Gold D. Roger is no king to her. But Monkey D. Luffy is the golden sun of her miserable existence (this lad, the carrier of this foolish meaningless dream that Umekui hates and believes doesn't exist because it's just a legend among others, but Oda, Oda knows it! He believed her-)With a sorrowful heart, she runs the streets of Longtown, following the warmth of her captain. The sky shakes with dread from above (and Umekui knows that the deities are laughing, amused by Umekui's descent).She runs fast, and her lungs and limbs are on fire. Umekui is unaware of the peril that she risks if she uses the ability and the monstrous curse that is the root of her misery.When Umekui arrives at the street leading to the execution stand, her heart stops and her stomach drops as she sees her captain on the execution stand, being executed by the clown they fought in Shells Town.

(MAN OF THOUSAND DREAMS DIED WITH A LAUGH OF THOUSAND SECRET)

She sprints towards him, aware that Sanji and Zoro are close behind."I'm the man who's gonna be King of the Pirates!!" yells Luffy loudly enough for the entire world to hear.(As the gloomy grey sky shrieks loudly, the gods laugh even louder at this foolish confession). The pirates, marines, and civilians all stare at the stupid youth with wide eyes; it was the first time in history that a man dared to proclaim his desire to become king of pirates in this spot where the last king perished, his head rolling on the floor.Buggy's right hand (his left hand was gone, it died during this meeting with this pirate girl; something happened to him, and his hand died with no sign of life in it. She consumed everything in him from the interiors) extends his sword into the sky, ready to sever Luffy's head (So buggy will take revenge, a hand for a head!)."Ume! Zoro! Sanji! Usopp! Nami! I'm sorry, I died," Luffy apologizes with a wide grin.
("Dazai! "I'm sorry, I'm dying," he whispered, blood on his teeth and tears in his eyes).
(Luffy can't die! He can’t! She's not going to let him! He promised! he promised! he fucking promised! If she had to be the monster of this tale to see her captain become the king of the world, so be it! but no being can kill her captain! If she has to, she will bring hell and the end of time to the world! Because Umekui will never let Luffy go without sacrificing the entire world for him!)Something snaps in the depths of Umekui's chaos. Through her sight, the ability burns and the beast creeps to burn. The darkness of her curse spreads high in the sky, crushing the gods' laugh and enabling the darkness to devour the vastness of the sky that shadows Longtown. And with a loud snarl of the beast, darkness falls on the executive platform, and fires devour the place's destruction.The ability embers in her veins, stirring and turning as it tries to escape, and Umekui wants to die, die-Luffy stands up amid the chaos and exclaims, "I'm still alive! Youpi!""Do you believe in God?" Sanji mumbles, a cigarette dripping from his mouth as he looks down at him, blinking, choked."God doesn't exist," Zoro says, narrowing his gaze at him."Well, if God doesn't exist, who's laughing at us?" Umekui asks, her voice thick.Zoro and Sanji turn to face her, their stomachs sinking at the lifeless sight in her red eyes.Luffy rushes at them and grabs his first mate before sprinting ahead to escape the pirates. Umekui is lost in her own mind, her heart burns as the beast claws at it, and it feels like it may explode in her chest. The rain (oh, how she hates the rain, the source of all her problems, the tears of remorse from the sky that remind her that she can't cry for every crime she commits).Her eyes were dead and as dark as the abyss of her subconscious, she couldn't even see where she was running in the bitter rain, the only thing she could do to keep from drowning in those waves was to clutch onto her captain's warmth. She didn't even notice when a captain Marine surged at them, smoke engulfing them."Straw hat Luffy! I, Smoker, captain of the marines, am arresting you for-" The marine's speech cuts short when he notices the girl beside Luffy.The long dark hair, the bandages wrapped around her like a cocoon hiding her from the world, and those eyes, those dark red sinful eyes, the very root of society. Smoker knows this person, the entire world knows this girl, trained not to fear those devil's eyes, trained to kill and exterminate this curse, eliminating this girl is like breathing for every member of the world government."Dazai! The executive of the Port Mafia underground organization! You are being arrested and sentenced to death, by decree of the world government!" Smoker shouts at the devil.The devil's red eyes meet his own, and there was so much blackness in them that Smocker felt he'd be absorbed by it. The straw hat shifts its gaze from the girl to him, evidently confused about the identity of the girl beside him."Her name is Umekui, and she is my first mate! And she's not going anywhere with you!" screams the straw hat as he tightens his grip on the girl's hand and sprints to their shipAs Smocker rushes to capture them (because he can't let Dazai escape him, this girl where she goes death and destruction follow, from the moment Smocker hears of her, he swears to himself that he will never stop finding her and capturing her to stop the madness from happening and destroying more than she had)."Where are you going, Smocker?" a sword comes up and stops him.Smocker turns to face the man who is preventing him from pursuing Dazai and Luffy."YOU! The government wants your head!" Smocker glares at him."The entire world is waiting for our responses. Those pirates are the dawn that will bring those answers, and I can't allow you to stop them now, while the world is waiting for them?""Pirate?!! Dazai, the girl that is among them, is far worse than an ordinary pirate! You don't get it! She has the means to destroy the world!" Smocker yells angrily."I always knew that the dogs of the world government are as stupid as their deities," the man in his green coat chuckles loudly. "If you only knew why the world sought her, you'd cross the word justice in your coat!"When the man turns and walks away, Smockers goes back to catch Luffy and Dazai, but he notices that their ship has already sailed a considerable distance beyond his line of sight."Fuck!" curses Smocker, his fists quivering with rage, promising to find and sentence them when he will finds them in Grand Line.He can't let her get away from him; he needs to make some calls to warn his supervisor.'Dazai, next time you won’t escape me' vows Smocker.As the sea and sky rage around her, rainfall slaps her face.“The light of guidance is ahead of us. The Grand Line entrance is just up ahead of that light," Nami shouts, turning to grin at her nakamas.Zoro smirks at her remarks, and Luffy laughs loudly enough for the entire sky to hear."It's time for a celebration!" says Sanji as he approaches them with a barrel and dumps it in the middle of her circle.With a bang, Sanji places his foot on top of it, declaring, "To find the All Blue!"The nakamas exchange a glance and rush to join in, putting their feet on top of it."To become the Pirate King!""To become the greatest swordsman!""To draw a map of the world!""T-to become a brave warrior of the seas!" gasps Ussop, nervous about the weather.Waiting for their first mate to rejoin them, they turn their heads to look at her, but the void and heartbreaking smile on her face makes their chests weary and their throat burns, but Luffy chooses to call out her with a wide grin."Come here Umekui!"

(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)

"Luffy. Didn't you realize I don't have any goals or dreams?" She says, and the voice that reaches their ears is bitter and odd.Luffy blinks hard at her words, and her nakamas' smiles dim because they knew their first mate was nothing but emptiness, but hearing her say it hurts a lot, it sears their souls and makes their hands tremble."Luffy at our first encounter, didn't you promise me a painless death on this road to be king of pirates?" She asks once more,"What?!" screams her nakamas at the promise.Luffy nods at her words, ignoring his crew."You didn't say that this morning, Luffy!" yells Zoro at his captain.

(CURSED GIRL DO YOU REGRET, REGRET, REGRET?!)

"If my dream cost a sacrifice. Will you accept the risk of taking me along this road of yours?"Luffy nods once more at her words, and Umekui's smile fades."Then will you take the risk to soil your hands with my blood and bring my head to the cruel gods of this world?"Luffy's eyes narrow and he frowns deeply, the straw hat feeling heavy on his head.

(VOID CHILD OF CENTURY, WHO DEVOURS THE WORLDS WHEN WILL THE MADNESS CEASE?!)

"Umekui, what are you talking about?!" Nami exclaims, her voice shaking.(she doesn't understand, she's fucking lost, as soon as Umekui arrived at the deck, Nami felt something amiss in her, and the way her eyes seemed dead and void, Nami knew Umekui wasn't all right).Darkness' shadows enslave Umekui's heart and mind in a twisted grip.

(MONSTER OF CURSED CENTURY DOESN'T DESERVE FREEDOM!)

"Monkey D. Luffy could you s-"Umekui hadn't even finished her plea before her throat felt heavy and full, full of blood and madness.Blood spurts from her lips akin to a waterfall, smearing her mouth, throat, and white kimono.

(THE VOWS WAS BROUGHT AND BLOOD WILL SHED!)

"UME!" cries Luffy as he rushes to his first mate, his heart shaking at the sight of blood."UMEKUI!" his nakamas close behind him yell.Umekui's body falls motionless in her pool of blood, the rain cleaning the blood beneath her, and the heavy old feeling of blood and rain beneath her, lets the nightmares of the past come out and feast on her agonies.

(DAZAI THE SINFUL BEING OF-)

Hahahaha, now she understands! Umekui will always be prey to the curse that has trapped her in this maddening dance. The screams and whispers deafen her to her nakamas' cries, and the beast claw blinds her to their worried expression. She shuts her eyes, devoid of dreams and life as she has always been, and lets herself be absorbed by the darkness and pay the price of her damned ability. 
"Oda, Chuuya, Forgive me."

"If I can’t have love, If I cant have peace, give me a bitter tragedy that will makes monsters loves and cries"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"What am I, if not human?  What can I do with my bloody hands?  what i'am aches in me.  when my hands are just tainted hands."

THE SILENCE OF DESPAIR

Your bones are only painted blood.

That's why it rots beneath your emptiness. You are not as alive as you may seem.
 UMEKUI DAZAI is well-known around the world solely because of her existence.She is the enemy to annihilate: the executioner, the devil, the prodigy, the enslaved one, the cursed one. Despite the perception that history could show her to be the monster of tales, those who know her well know the sole reason for her existence. And those who are hunted down like prey by the world would only regard her as the one who freed them from the chains of the so-called celestial beings who bathe in cruelty and injustice and think they are immortal.She was everything and nothing all at once, such an abnormality.Her existence began in each place where her madness overcame, and the only thing she remembers is ruin. Perhaps she deserves this agony since she is the root of humanity, as they claim. Yet Umekui Dazai holds no meaning or faith in the thing they call "humanity."In this world, what is humanity? Where is humanity? In a world where it's the first deception individuals peddle and embed into the foolish men of a void century, how would you define humanity?If she holds no resemblance to humanity, then can she claim that she is merely a reflection of the world's cruelty? Slavery, wars, revolution, organization, government, royalties, armies and religions, power, and treasure: does truly the essence of the label humanity reverberate in those allegations?If yes, what a perverted sense of humanity the deities condemn her for lacking. Despite this, they profess to be deities owing to the filth ichor that runs through their blood and the greed that mars their teeth.So the dead ones question, "What exactly are gods with humanity?"'Monsters,' the charred children yell.How Umekui Dazai, a being who carries the weight of the world on her torn back, chosen as the bourreau of fate, is any different from the deities who hover over her from their thrones of bloody bones?'Love,' the heartbroken souls wail.
Oh, love.
Maybe it is love that distinguishes her from the cruel deities, yet it spares no one from sorrow.Can Umekui Dazai truly learn to love after the bearer of this emotion was snatched; ripped from her innards with vengeance and hatred? Is it possible for something corrupted by her inner demons to love others without dragging them with her to her tragic demise? Can a selfish being love and care for others without reenacting the pointless and millions of tragedies that the sky has laughed at in the past?But the worst is yet to come, for what is more agonizing than loving or being loved when Umekui Dazai believes she is unlovable, undeserving, and devoid of everything?Since Umekui once heard this man tell her that when two people love one other, their souls intertwine and merge into one sole entity. At his confession, Umekui was left feeling empty and hopeless as the void devoured her, and the voices inside did nothing but mock her misfortune.The void century's cursed girl is well aware of the cost of loving and being loved as a soulless being. The skies laugh at the recollections, the clouds cry in pity, and the sea devours in rage. Oh-and the world, all of it trembled at the welded tragedy and crumbled into unmemorable oblivion (albeit the tales and chiseled words in those stones of truth retain the evidence clear of this tragedy).Umekui Dazai, as the bourrau of fate, wonders if the curses of her existence could genuinely spare her stupid beloved nakamas, those lovely idiots, who carry dreams in their blood and anthems of freedom in their laughs from the imminent end.ARC II - l'appel du vide

THE ALABASTA SAGA

THE STRAW HAT PIRATES

UMEKUI DAZAI - the cursed one

MONKEY D. LUFFY - her beloved golden sun

RORONOA ZORO - her lovely grumpy cactus

NAMI - her gorgeous navigator

USOPP - her cute admiring kohai

SANJI - her beautiful blond prince
NEFARTARI D. VIVI- the naive princessNEFERTARI COBRA- the deceived kingCHOPPER- the adorable and fascinating doctorDR. KURANA- the weird witch doctorACE- the flaming boyCROCODILE- the desert kingNICO ROBIN- the devil childSMOCKER- the marine captainTASHIGI- the master chief petty officer ODA SAKUNOSUKE - the ghost who carries the sole promiseCHUUYA NAKAHARA- the one who never fully left-In which Umekui Dazai finds herself on a quest with her nakamas to rid the kingdom of Alabasta of corruption and deception and aim to restore a justice in which she holds no faith. While attempting to fight away the most devastating symptoms of her curse and keep her secrets veiled from the sight of her nakamas inside her cocoon of torment. However, royalties and Dazai are two drops of blood that could never blend. Royalties are the favorite subject of their deities' worship, hence Dazai is fated to be their ultimate foe. And Umekui Dazai is aware that fate is always against her...or so she claims. Because she doesn't realize that secrets exist not only in her monstrous self but also in those royal castles where ghosts of the past haunt the hallways as the keepers of the truth that the world fears to be unveiled.As we murmur in those halls, there was a time when monsters were the shadows of those royalties who sold an untrue depiction of themselves to the gods in order for them to conspire behind them and free themselves from their twisted ropes.But Umekui doesn't care about the past because there's a problem; she just dislikes ignorant people, particularly naive princesses, and a certain blue-haired princess is no exception, even if the princess's soul tenderness melts her bones.Yet the encounter with an irresistible adorable doctor and a gorgeous woman who seems to be on the side that wants her dead yet her name echoes inside Umekui's memories like a sting wound, would maybe make the trouble less distasteful for her. And then there is this other soul, which her captain refers to as "family", which Umekui never had seems so sweet and melting. Yet, this fire boy is tortured by secrets that the world despises him for; cursed, he thinks of himself, with dirty blood coursing through his veins that he seeks to erase. This fiery boy is the last thing she wants to learn to love and care for (since she knows the gods adored tragedy, with flames boys who burn their own wings and cursed monsters who consume the fire that burns in his damned soul).II- THE CALL OF VOID
" si vis pacem, para bellum"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Paradise is the first lie sold by the false prophets of the void century"

In an office at the Longtown Marine Base, a man sits in front of a desk full of papers that appear crucial due to the classified logo, bounties, and newspaper articles. Holding a Den Den Mushi, he brings it close to his ears. His foot taps the ground every second he waits, irritated and tense, a catapult of emotions rages in his mind."Here, Marineford is at your disposal," stated a masculine voice on the snail phone."Here, Captain Smocker of Longtown Marine Base, could you please hang up the phone call to your superior quickly?" Smocker responds coolly, looking at the wall ahead of him."Sorry, sir but we can't just hang up you to our superior, they are surely occupied, a mere captain like you can't-"Smocker strikes his hand hard on the desk beneath him, cutting off the officer on the phone."I have the most vital information that must be transmitted quickly. So you'll listen to me and transfer the call if you don't want your impertinence to land you in the darkest prisons for high treason. You hear me, idiot?" Smocker screams into the phone, enraged at the marine's ludicrous actions."Immediately, sir-" the man cried hurriedly.After five beeps, another voice responds, "This is Fleet Admiral Sengoku. What is the critical information, young man?" I hope it's important, otherwise I'll arrest you for defamation.""I could never, Fleet Admiral Sengoku. That information pertains to Dazai, the executive of the Port Mafia underground organization, Fleet Admiral!"As the Fleet Admiral stood up in horror, the snail phone made a loud noise."I'm listening to you, captain.""I faced her at around 10 a.m.; she had crimson eyes, long black hair, and skin as white as a ghost. The worst thing is that she appears to have joined a new group of pirates called straw hat pirates.""A group of pirates?!" gasps the fleet Admiral."They managed to escape with the assistance of Dragon, the Revolutionary Army's supreme commander. But I also have multiple testimonials from residents and marines present at the time when Monkey D. Luffy was about to be executed by the Buggy pirate, that a dark mass filled half of the sky above and destroyed the execution platform.""This dark mass-" started Sengoku,With a sharp intake of breath, Smocker says, "Indeed, Fleet Admiral. It's the same mass that is the origin of the disappearance and annihilation of countless islands."As a rookie Marine, Smocker was one of many who found himself at sea to carry out a duty that had been assigned to them when he first saw this catastrophic force.The sea shook, ready to consume them all raw, the dark sky rocked above their heads, and then they were just a few kilometers from an island that served as their mission point and where half of his comrades awaited them. The sky split in two over the same island, revealing a dark mass that quickly landed on the island, leaving nothing, completely nothingness. His comrades perished, and there were no corpses or evidence of their existence, simply a vacuum.His blood and the hair on his arms raised with dread as he recalled this nightmare, which felt like it happened yesterday."Listen carefully, Captain Smocker, you will track down those new pirates and bring us Dazai; this is your new only duty, do you understand? For your courage and commitment, you will receive one of the finest rewards the world has to offer. For the time being, we will keep this between us because if the ranks find out that Dazai has reappeared among a bunch of pirates, the world will be a massacre; for now, let us attempt to avoid instilling terror in the public. It is a very confidential mission; for my part, I will send spies and assassins to capture it, and I know precisely the people for the job. The capture of Dazai is one of the most important in the world, delivering it half-dead, limbless, blind, and we don't mind! But you must bring it to our feet, do you hear me?!?" demands the Fleet Admiral, his voice intense and brutal."YES, FLEET ADMIRAL!" pleads Smocker as he adjusts the snail phone to end the conversation."TASHIGI," he shouts out.A dark blue-haired woman stormed into his office, clad in her marine uniform, holding a katana and keeping her glasses firmly on her nose."Yes, captain!""Prepare yourself, we're heading to Grand Line!" Smocker orders as he stands up from his chair."Grand line? Are we going to catch the straw-hat pirates, Captain?" Tashigi inquires, and an angry expression crosses her face as she recalls the Zoro pirate."At the time, no. We have something more dangerous to stop, and now is not the time for interrogation. Start to prepare yourself. I give you ten minutes no more!" Smocker grumbles as he picks up the leaves on his desk.Tashigi rushes out of the office, exclaiming, "Right now, Captain!".Smocker closes his eyes for a moment before sitting in his chair and raising his face to look at the ceiling; he is aware that this mission is suicidal. This girl is far worse than anything the world has ever seen; the world is still unaware of the full extent of her power.The first time he heard that this girl had been responsible for the destruction of those islands all over the world (even though she was still a child at the time, Smocker could only scoff since no child can do that; only a monster can). Smocker pledged that one day he would find her and do all in his power to capture her, even if it meant sacrificing his life for the sake of world peace. Every individual who swears under the auspices of the world government has one goal: to eradicate Dazai at all costs.On an isolated island, where the sun burns and peeks through the trees, the sea appears as peaceful as the birds flying far above him. Mihwak, the strongest swordsman, travels through the forest while holding a piece of paper in his palm.The more he ventures into the forest, the more he hears the voices of those he's looking for. When he arrives at his location, he is met by a bunch of pirates who are sneering at him."Where is your leader?" growled Mihwak, glaring."Hi there, Hawk-Eye. What a rare visitor...," says a male voice, his eyes shaded by the sun above him."I do not have any intention of settling things with you now that you have lost your left arm..." Mihwak began, "A story about an interesting boy from a certain village..." he continues as he unfolds the bounty of a certain pirate, which he holds out to them.The pirates' eyes widened in astonishment as they saw the boy on the bounty."So you have made it, Luffy!" laughs the red-haired pirate known as Shanks LeRoux, his close crewmate who appears overjoyed at the sight of the smiling Luffy on the reward."Also he is not alone," Mihwak goes on to say, "The Dazai has rejoined his crew as his first mate."Shanks and his crew choke at the mention of Dazai; "Are you sure Hawkeye?!" he threatens, narrowing his gaze at him."Certain.""AHAHHAHA-" Shanks laughed, tears welling in his eyes.Mihwak's eyes widen as he stares at Shankws, wondering whether he's finally lost his mind as a result of all the alcohol he consumes."So she finally took the seas; the world is going to change, my friends!" screams Shanks, turning to face his crew and raising his glass.Shanks' close crewmates gather around him to cheer. Luffy and Dazai took the seas as a crew; it was the most thrilling news they had heard in a long time."Come here, Mihwak!" Let's celebrate; we can't let you go like that!" chuckles Shanks, grabbing Hakeye's arm and forcing him to sit near him.Shanks' cheeks hurt from the smile on his face; the most important person in his life has sailed the seas, and he can't wait to see them again. He shifts his sight to the sun scorching into the sky and the blue sea, memories swirling in his head, but a particular person close to him sears his heart and softens his gaze.
'She's finally found him. She fulfilled her promise, my dear Odasaku!'

The sea around her feels heavy, crushing her completely. She was drowning, her lungs contracting and water spilling into her mouth and thoughts, but she didn't care; terror never entered her body. She could hear the filthiest blood coursing through her veins, her scorching insides jerking and her heart spasming, and her own skin growing so heavy that she wondered if this was the weight of the curse she conveys.

Her head was pounding, and a headache began to grow.

She was so buried in the darkness that she didn't even think about feeling the sun. She didn't deserve the sun's warmth since she knew that in the end, her unbridled madness would only harm it; no one would be so idiotic as to try to help a thing like her.

The bundled bandages over her body and face allowed only one bloody red to peek through. Her entire body was tarnished by this land of nightmares, as evidenced by the scars and bruises.

She needs to die. She must escape the clutches of fate. She can't stay here when all she wants to do is die; she doesn't want them to use her any more than they already do.

Everything aches, and above all, she despises the pain.

Her little shape feels vulnerable amid the vastness of the ocean, but something inside knows that her blood, her essence, is something so monstrous and limitless that the ocean is unable to hold it back.

(DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,)

Her curse name rages through her head like a hurricane, destroying everything. Reminding her of what she is and who she will never be.

Her skull throbs and the salty water burns her lungs.

'Purify me! Purify me! PLEASE, PLEASE, eradicate EVERYTHING!" cries her little voice, hoping that the sea will eventually obliterate what she is.

She was exhausted; she hadn't even been in this ruined planet for that long, yet her body and mind felt as if she had lived for millennia.

"PLEASE KILLS ME, KILLS ME, KILLS ME!" She begged the ocean once more because if she lived, she would end up in this awful place again, and her heart trembled at the thought.

The heavy choker on her throat tightens around her throat, as if it is about to cut off her head, and she was simply waiting for this to happen, to have her head severed and her life ended.If she dies, the thing inside her will finally come to an end.

As darkness pierced her consciousness like a dagger, she felt hands reach for her. For a brief moment, she wondered if she was back in that nightmare when the hands of those corpses ripped her skin into shreds, or if she was already dead and the beast had swallowed her.

She resists aggressively in that person's grasp; fear grips her nerves and tugs so hard that her blood blasts in her ears. They will take her to this place, this cell, this prison, the root of madness resonates in the halls of this place, she don't want, she doesn't want, she doesn't want, she doesn't want, she doesn't want, she doesn't want, she doesn't want, she just wants to die! Please!

"Here, here! It's fine, calm down. I don't want to hurt you; everything will be fine", reassures a gentle voice.

As she hears the strange gentle voice, she opens her eyes and peers at the person holding her. The sun (this sun, which felt like a legend a long time ago, a myth among others, a dream amid the dreamless) burns her sight, burning everything from above, dark brown reddish hair emphasized by the sun's rays, and brown eyes so honey practically gold burn from this man's stare.

'He's pretty,' she thought.

Pretty like annoying Chuuya (oh Chuuya, for a while she forgets about him, if he finds out that she has escaped again and tried to kill herself, he will be so upset and unhappy (and she hates being the cause of his sadness, she doesn't deserve him-)

"Are you alright? The sea carried you to my house's shore. My house is only a foot away--" He stares at her face and examines the bandages that completely cover her, then his eyes widen at the choker around her neck, then he quickly gets up, her body still in his arms.

His appearance exudes a kindness and tenderness that makes her want to close her eyes and pass away in his embrace. His face is filled with a goodness that disregards the taint of the world, and the lines on either side of his lips indicate that he smiles every day.

"I'm going to take you to my home" He strolls carefully along the beach's sand, then gives her a light smile. "You are obviously hurt and hungry."

"Oh, and before you think I'm a stranger for taking you to my house. "My name is Oda Sakunusuke, but you can call me Odasaku!" He grins down at her, handsome and dazzling. (It burns, it burns, what is he?).

She freezes as she stares up at his smile. Her heart halted and jerked repeatedly, and every time she looked up at his smiling face, it quickened. Thump, thump, thump. Who exactly is he? For what reason did he drag her from the sea—out of the dead? Why is her heart so weirdly drawn to his smile?

His arms are warm and gentle, and the softness of his grip makes her tremble. It's so awful; why doesn't he hit her? Why doesn't he cut her flesh? Why isn't he grabbing her flesh so hard that it goes raw red, bruising purple, and dark--why isn't he snatching her from her, as every perverted man seeks from small girls? why?why?)

"Odasaku-" she whispers, her voice harsh from the salt in her throat. (or from the blood, the curse, or perhaps the screams that claw her throat every night, but she doesn't know anymore-)

"Yes. Odasaku is my name!" The weird man grins, his face gleaming from the sun (or perhaps from his tenderness and gentleness, which softens his features).

'An angel', she has found an angel, or perhaps the angel has found her (Chuuya will undoubtedly be jealous that she has found an angel before him).

"What's your name? It's fine if you don't want to tell me, I understand," he says carefully gazing at her.

For a moment, she considered giving him a phony one, but on second thought, it's better to tell him her miserable name now than later; perhaps when he hears her name, he'll slit her throat and kill her, and that was all she wanted.

"D-Dazai. It's Dazai," she reveals to him, and at the mention of her name, Odasaku pauses for a moment, staring at her with winded eyes, as if in recognition, before grinning broadly.

"Nice to meet you, Dazai! It's a lovely name," he says as he strolls to his house.

'Is he an idiot? Doesn't he know what her name means?' Dazai pondered. As Chuuya often reminded her, angels are undoubtedly idiots.

Upon reaching his house, Odasaku places her on a chair in front of a table in the center of the room. He then swiftly moves to his kitchen and offers her a bowl of soup and an unexplainable part of something. Is he trying to poison her? If so, she is in bliss.

"Here, I cooked some soup. This is an apple pie. It's my first time making one," the odd man confesses timidly stroking the back of his neck.

Dazai stares down at the meals in front of her before returning her gaze to him, her bloodshot eyes staring straight at him. So the unusual thing is an apple pie; she's never seen one.

"Are they poisonous?" she blurts out.

The man was taken aback by her statements and hurriedly waived his arms.

"Never! It's true that I don't cook very well, but I would never poison a small girl!" Odasaku exclaims anxiously, fearful that she might view him as a creepy man.

"He always poisons my meals," Dazai mumbles, recalling a certain demon.

"What?" asks Odasaku,

"Nothing," she answers, staring down at the dish.

'He's so bizarre. Who would rescue someone from the sea and bring them to their home? She could easily murder him, she could let the thing out, destroy everything around her and reduce it to ashes, she could just-'

"Is my meal weird?" His lovely golden eyes peer down at her as he worriedly pleads, "I can make you something else; it's okay if you don't want to eat this."

'Why is he staring at her in the same way Chuuya does? When she doesn't even know him, she is an unknown, an aberration, a fiend. (She took the time to make Chuuya look at her in that way (since poor Chuuya was so furious and resentful at the world that he believed everyone wanted to hurt him. He sometimes thought of himself as a demon, but he was mistaken; in Dazai's opinion, Chuuya was the most human of all the monsters in this place).

"Why?" she asked. "Why did you pull me out of the sea?" (Dazai is so angry now, angry at the world, angry at the sea, angry at Death, angry at this reckless idiot who aided her, when Dazai only wants to die, die, die, die-)

"Hum?" Odasaku tilts his head in response to her question: "Because you were drowning, and if I hadn't come at the right time, you would have died, and-"

"I wanted it! You don't get it! I wanted to drown! I just wanted to die! I need to die-" Dazai murmurs the last words, which Odasaku clearly heard.

"Why? Why do you want to die?" Odasaku asks, staring hard at her bloody eyes.

Dazai chuckles hard at his world, her laughter ringing in the silent kitchen (and this weird man is undoubtedly regretting his decision now; what type of child would laugh at being asked why they want to die, what child would think about death? Dazai feels shame coursing through her body since it is true that no child would crave it, only a monster.

Never a child, always a monster, that’s what she is.).

"Because I need it, it is simple. Sometimes there is no reason, only a desire. As the moon gleamed from the sun's beams, the moon didn't ask the sun to give her warmth to shine, but the sun did it for no cause, just as there is no purpose for my seeking death."

Indeed, there is no reason for Dazai to want to die. It's not a want, but a necessity. A need that was ingrained in her. A need chanted by those cursed voices within her assaulting skull. A craving arose in her body the instant she opened her cursed eyes and saw the bloody world around her, a craving with no explanation because it is simply craved so deeply within her that it is only.

Dazai is meaningless without the longing for death.

Odasaku blinks hard at her and then smiles, as if she had told him the essence of existence. A smile so big and loving that she almost went blind. His lovely white teeth (which have never tasted blood as she does) sparkle so brightly in the light rays that look through the curtains into his kitchen. Dazai could feel something from her traps in his eyes, as the reflection on his stare is so hypnotizing.

"You are wrong," he replies with pained cheeks and unmistakable eyes. "The sun has a reason to warmth the moon; it is in the name of love. The sun loves the moon, and even though they are always separated, the sun sends his warmth to remind his beloved that he is here beside him, covering him in love and warmth. Everything in the world has tales to tell, and every being in the world has the right to love and be loved. So, dear Dazai, you are wrong; you had a reason to die, just as you need to find many reasons to live."

Dazai's heart stops as she allows his words to suffocate her completely. His words cause her to close her eyes and believe him completely. The warmth in his bosom, the care and kindness in his voice, and oh, that smile. It could be one of the marvels of the world, and she could hang it in the sky and stare at it for eternity.

But can she honestly trust in his worldview? When her heart is devoid of faith. Could a being like her be loved? Can she discover her reasons for living and allow them to instill such a strong desire in her that death becomes a distant memory?

Can she really believe in Oda Sasukunude?

She could have killed him the instant he touched her from the sea, but she didn't because she didn't want to. And it's unusual because Dazai is only known for killing and soaking in blood. But here she is, in his kitchen, while he looks at her with those sweet, caring eyes.

Her stomach hurts and rolls, and she feels odd.

"We'll see, Odasaku," she mutters, looking down at the soup and taking the spoon in her hand. But as soon as she puts the spoon in her hand, a scorching electric sensation surges up from her throat and neck.

"AHHHHHHHH-"

Dazai let the spoon fall from her grasp as she fell to the ground, screaming hysterically stretching her hands and clawing at the thick collar around her neck. It hurts as horrible scents of burning flesh enter her nose, her eyes burn, and Dazai wishes to die since she despises this pain so much.

She could feel the thick stick of blood on her neck and throat, like a hefty necklace. Her screams were so loud and bloody that they blended with the flood of screaming voices within her, creating a melody of anguish and despair.

She feels a touch on her forehead and a frightened voice shouting her name.

"DAZAI! DAZAI!"

(DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,DAZAI,)

"UME! UME!"
"UME! UME!" shouts a voice, her face soaked in tears."You, moron! Stop crying; if she wakes up and finds you like this, she will be worried!" Shush a grouchy voice."Luffy! Please get up from her," implores a female voice."Umekui? Can you hear us?" inquires a shaky voice."Umekui-chan! Darling! Wake up, we are worried!" pleads a worried voice.Those voices, this warmth, she recognized it.Even in death's slumber, she recognized and felt their warmth. Even blind, she could still be able to see their faces. Even though she deaf, she could hear their soothing voices. Speak their names over her dead body, and Umekui will come back to life to see them one final time.Gentle sparkling eyes seared her with love and caring, and soft lips formed her name.Ah, love.She knows she loves them, and Umekui wants to die since everything she loves is condemned to perish at her hands (and she is so tired, she has already lost so much, and she doesn't know what she will do when she loses them too).A warm body over her causes her heart cage to flutter and pain. The kind of pain that twists your heart with a rope before handing it over to those hands that caress her face with a gentleness that feels strange to her."UME! UME!"Ume, the nickname given to her by this careless boy who had no idea what her name meant. The tears of him down her face were so heavy that she feared she was going to drown in them like she had done many times in the awful endless sea.He is crying.Luffy is crying. 
Her stupid adorable captain is crying.
The fact makes her stomach turn and burn. Shame runs through her veins, and loathing drives her to reach into her own heart, pull it out with her hand, and give it to him; she despises herself for hurting him and eliciting his tears; she has injured his soul, she has hurt Luffy, and her cursed heart burns and cracks inside.Umekui opens her eyes and looks up at the face above her, the bright sun of her wrecked existence. (the lad with stars around his neck, this silly boy who never learns to be quiet, the boy whose freedom shines from his chest like soaring birds, the boy who is a meaningless legend among others, him, him, him-).He had soft black hair that curled at the end and a straw hat that he wore like a crown. She observed his kind brown eyes and the small scar under his eye. She didn't need to try to shut out the voices or dull the flare of the curse that twitched her hands and squeezed her heart in a cruel grip since his gaze burned everything inside her.Luffy calmed the madness out of her. "My Captain. Why are you crying?" Umekui asks, her voice scratchy and tickled by the roughness of dry blood in her throat.Luffy's teary eyes blink hard as he looks at her face deeply, then his brown frowns again as tears flow from his beautiful eyes."UME!!! I WAS SO WORRIED! DO NOT SCARE ME LIKE THAT AGAIN!" He sobs as he lunges at the crock of her neck, throws his arms around her torso, and hugs her tightly. (Holding her as if he was scared she would vanish; afraid she would abandon him, and that her heart bleeds and breaks because it was unfair. She should be the terrified one he will abandon her like a wounded beast, the one wailing for him; it is unfair--this world is so unfair)."Umekui! How are you?!" asks Nami's voice as she gently strokes her forehead and removes her thick hair with her hand.Nami's eyes were burning, as evidenced by the tears that flowed from them. (And Umekui wished to beg for pardon for the tears they shed for something like her)."Good," she tells her. (It's a lie, it's a lie; she'll never feel good when this affliction, this ability, hangs over her and taints her from within. Umekui will never be good; she accepted this fact a long time ago-)."Umekui-chan, we were so worried," states Sanji as he approaches her bed. His golden hair shines under the caress of the lamp's light. His blue eyes (those gorgeous blue eyes that felt like they were from a fairytale) were filled with concern and tenderness at the regard. His hands clenched hard (because Sanji feels weak at the sight of her tired eyes and pale face)."I'm sorry, Sanji dear," she simply replied.Oh, how Umekui feels sorry for them. She is sorry to have something like her stick around them like a parasite, ruining everything. She feels sorry for them for wasting their time and love on something as worthless as her. She feels sad for them to breathe an air polluted by her calamity; she feels so sorry for them to have a first mate like her; they deserve so much more."What are you apologizing for?" Zoro asked in a hard voice, narrowing his gray eyes at her.Umekui opens her mouth, but immediately closes it.What can she tell him? She is apologizing because she is a sinful liar. Being sorry because the world is coming for their heads and torturing them again and again just for being in the same room with her; what can she convey without revealing things that Umekui wants to forget-(Forget? hahahahaha. Such an absurd and cowardly thought!She may strive to forget, but her body and mind will never forget the misdeeds she bears on her back. Her hands will never forget the blood, which feels like gloves. Her mouth will never forget the taste of destruction and slaughter.And don't let her talk about the souls tormenting her within, with their never-ending screams reminding her how deep in madness she is. Or this curse that consumes her entirely and makes her sick, sick of herself, sick of the word.If Umekui wished to forget, the world and them would never forget about her.Her existence is the blasphemy of humanity's demise).At her silence, Zoro glares at her and turns to leave the room, leaving a chilly feeling in her heart.Something cracks within her. Zoro is mad. He's angry with her, and Umekui has no idea why. Is he angry because she is fucking weak, or is he ashamed to have a first mate like her? His soul steers inside her, and Umekui wants to shred her skin and demands forgiveness, but she just looks down at her hands on her lap, trying to drown out the agonies screaming inside her at Zoro's glare and rejection.
'I'm so so sorry Zoro'
"This marimo! I'm going to kills him, how dare he!," screams Sanji in rage at Zoro's rude action, before turning to look down with caring eyes at his first mate, "I'm going get you something to eat, Umekui-chan! You must be hungry!" he exclaims as he hastily exits the room, leaving her with her captain, Nami, and Usopp.The latter looks at her uneasily, his fingers wriggling, before peering up at her and then down at the floor."Why did you throw up blood, Umekui?" asks Usopp, unease looking at her, worried she will snap at his query.What could she tell them? They can't know, those stupid adorable nakamas of hers, the horror of her existence, the burden she is destined to carry. She isn't ready to leave yet, and looks when their eyes will be filled with hate and disgust. (she would rather be dead right now than face their rejection and terror). So, as always, Umekui knows only to carry the weight of her sins on her back and lie like the coward that she is."It's the poisonous gas used by Krieg during the incident at the Baratie," she lies and raises her sight to stare into her captain's eyes. "The coughing started a little moment after the battle, it was harmless so I decided to keep quiet about it".Luffy blinks at her words (he may be stupid, but he is not blind).( Growing up with someone like Ace, who always lied to him to mask his misery, he would always know when someone lies to him (Sabo, lovely gentle Sabo, taught him a lot of things), and Luffy will always be grateful to his brother since he knows that without him, he would never be where he is today.He vowed to be the best captain and friend in the world.Luffy is aware that Umekui is lying. She has been lying about her since he first met her, and he is aware that something about her is off.  (because no one breathed, walked, or talked like something was hurting them from the inside, like his first mate)But Luffy doesn't mind if she's lying and being stupid (because the dumbest people in the world are the most valued and beloved by him).So Luffy simply smiles at her and hugs his first mate again, allowing his flesh to cover and envelope her frigid body."You could have told me, Ume! Don't worry, I'll have Sanji feed you some meat and contact the old man Zeff for a cure!"He gets up and jumps out of the room, rejoining Sanji in the kitchen. Ussop approaches Umekui's bed, takes something from his pocket, and places it in her lap.It was a bracelet with red stones (red like her cursed eyes, crimson like the blood that never leaves her hands-)."I found those stones in a Longtown market; they remind me of your eyes. So I brought a few stones and made you a bracelet; I hope you like it; next time don't make us worry like that!" Ussop mumbles rapidly, his hand scratching the back of his neck and a little blush staining his cheeks as he glances at her.Umekui smiles as she looks down at the jewelry in her palm and up at his scarlet face. Her heart swells with delight at his adorable and lovely gesture. It was the first time in her filthy existence that someone made her something, and Umekui had no idea how to react. Oh dear, she truly doesn’t deserve him.She tighten her grip on the bracelet in her hand, her heart throbbing with the warmth and love that Ussop poured into his gift.Thank you, Ussop. The bracelet is outstanding; you did an excellent job. You truly are amazing." She compliments him while keeping a grin on her face and softening her bloodshot eyes.Usopp's flush intensified, and he muttered a few words before smock exploded from his ears and flew out of the room with inhumane speed.Nami softly chuckles at his awkwardness as he exits the room and turns to face Umekui. She extends her hands and gives Umekui a firm, warm hug, her hold wavering slightly.Umekui stiffens and slowly settles into Nami's hug (although she is terrified of tainting Nami. Beautiful and gentle, nami was everything Umekui could never be). The perfume of tangerines and sea caresses her nose, overpowering the smell of death, which never leaves Umekui alone. Nami's exquisite body melts against her horrible one, and Umekui is relieved to have those bandages to keep Nami from touching anything as repulsive as her decaying flesh (body, flesh, vessel, whatever she names this thing, this sham that she exploited to mask her inhumanity, the carrier of this curse, this monster).Nami trembled as she held her, and Umekui could feel tears on her shoulder. Nami is crying. First she made Luffy cry, and now Nami. Just kills her right now.Slowly, she lifts a bandaged hand and caresses Nami's short hair while she softly cries in her hold. She is terrible at comforting people (the only time she comforted someone who was weeping was him). She saw a lot of people and children who were crying about their fate; she never really consoled them because what could she say to them? But she believes that the last and first person Umekui comforted was this boy, whose hair was darker than Nami's and whose eyes were the first thing Umekui found beautiful in this ugly world, but it was a long time ago and those memories were something Umekui desperately wants to forget-)"I thought I lost you, Umekui," Nami says, and Umekui's hand goes still. "The moment you returned to the ship, I knew something was wrong, and then-" Nami's voice trailed off since she was unable to understand what Umekui was saying to them, which stung even more. (But one thing Nami did understand is that Umekui is hurting and wants to die); "there was blood everywhere, and you fell; I was so afraid Umekui-" Nami tightened her grip on Umekui's body.(Seeing Umekui's empty, bloodied body reminded her of Bellemere's death (how blood poured from her mouth and she died (how Nami's heart stopped and tears burned her eyes and little cheeks-)).Umekui chewed her tongue hard at Nami's comments. Blood explodes in her mouth, and the familiar taste causes her stomach to roll. Nami was scared and afraid for something like her (and Umekui just wanted to shake Nami's shoulder and yell at her that worrying about something like her would only lead to despair)."I'm sorry, Nami dear," she whispers. (But, as Zoro questioned her, what is she apologizing for? Apologizing because her nakamas are concerned about a walking sinner like her. A fraud who wears a mask of immorality and bandages to conceal her true nature, something they will abandon and regret loving and caring for. Spilling tears for her felt like an offense against the world. They do not deserve to cry or have their soul stained because of her)."You know.." sniffs Nami as she steps back to look at her red eyes. "You are important to us, Umekui. You are important to me not because you are our first mate, but because you are our friend! We know nothing about you, which is fine because we trust you, but telling us that you wish to die breaks my heart and it's hurts Umekui because I l-" Nami comes to a halt as she clenches a palm above her chest, her heart hammering hard and loud in her ears, and her watery eyes meet Umekui's wide ones.
'Important to them?' 
Her heart trembled and shook (the voices lament and scream inside her wretched mind).Umekui takes Nami back in her arms and collapses on the bed. She tightened her grip on Nami and brought her face into the crook of her neck. With Nami in her arms, Umekui lies on her back, staring at the ceiling with aching eyes and wrenching words devouring her whole. She is so so tired. Her libs tremble from tiredness, and she wonders in the depths of her selfishness if eventually, someone will accept the request of death that Umekui has pleaded for countless times before.Indeed, this world and existence had exhausted and tortured her to the point that the only way out was death, but she is afraid. Afraid of being alone in this world of death, with nothing but the broken memories to haunt her. So she wonders if someone will accept her wish and die beside her, keeping her body warm even in the frigid embrace of death.No.She tightened her grip on Nami's trembling body. That is something she cannot do to them. She has already been selfish enough (so so selfish that her egoist self caused anguish in her head and destroyed all the warmth that those people had given her, leaving their memories and souls to haunt her in the empires of corpses trapped inside her-).Her nakamas cannot die now, especially not with something like her. They have dreams and goals to achieve, and there is still so much to do and see. (Umekui had seen enough in this world to rip her flesh to pieces and scream until her throat was filled with blood and devastation. She had seen enough of this world to tire her out and seek death with despair chanting in the walls of her throat). She can't ask them that. Never mind; if she suffered in this life, nothing will change in death (actually, something will change: she will no longer harm people and ruin their lives with her dreadful existence)."After Bellemere's death, I wanted to die," Nami confessed in a quiet voice in the crook of her neck.Umekui's heart stops at her world, and a huge weight presses against her heart with arrows, severing her heart at Nami's statement. Nami hugs her tighter and closes her eyes, attempting to forget those painful memories."I desperately wanted to die because I felt so alone. Alone against the world, grief, Arlong, and Asura. I felt so hopeless and so weak," she confessed in a small voice, ashamed. "But most of all, I was terrified because I didn't know what I needed to do. What can a child do against pirates and witness the murder of their mother? I didn't know what to do, so I thought to rejoin my mother. I believed death was my only way out, my only hope--" her voice broke on her tears, drenching Umekui's shoulders in salty wetness."But I remembered Noriko was still there; I couldn't just leave her alone, so I considered one option to help me get through grief: anger. I was so angry, Umekui! So angry at them because it was unfair, they-" she shook in Umekui's embrace.Blood erupts in her mouth as she bites her tongue in response to Nami's soul suffering. Her trembling palm caressed Nami's delicate hair, making her shiver like a small child. (And Umekui's heart broke because she doesn't know how to console people, what to say to them, or how to hug them and make them feel better. Odasaku is perfect for that, if he is there; if-(the voices howl because he is simply dead, gone, while she is there.)"They treated me like a plaything, and they tormented me with such cruelty that I forgot about my dreams. I forgot what childhood felt like, I forgot what freedom felt like in Bellemere garden as I ran barefoot with Noriko," Nami confesses as she lifts her sobbing face to stare into Umekui's wide eyes, and takes a long breath at her pretty navigator's tearful face. "But when I met you, Luffy, and the others, you reminded me of what freedom and home felt like--and those buried dreams exploded like butterflies. Death was a long-lost wish; I forgot how it felt to crave death, how it felt to have a devastated home," more tears stream from her wonderful caramel eyes, "because you have given me a new home, and I will always be grateful for that!" She ends with her lips shaking and her eyes full of devotion.Nami reaches out her palms to cup Umekui's cheeks. (Umekui tries not to tremble too much at Nami's heated hands on her cold face, this rotting skin). Nami gently bumps her forehead against her own, and Nami softly speaks, allowing her words to fan over Umekui's face like delicate feathers."So, Umekui, please stay with us, stay with me. You will uncover dreams and explore the world with us. You will live with us, breathe with us, and walk alongside us! So, please, Umekui. Do not seek this lonely route that leads to death, and never leave us, never leaves me. Promise me you'll try to live! That you—" Nami's desperate and longing voice echoes around them, like a shield of promise. Her honey eyes, horned by long eyelashes, those doll eyes that make Umekui's heart quake from Nami's attractiveness, encompass her entire being, allowing her to forget about the world around them.She cradles Nami's face in her bandaged hands, wiping away her tears with her thumbs. Oh, dear, soft Nami, how can she say no to her fragile face cradled in her cursed hands, her pink lips whispering her name in desperation, and her eyes bearing this tenderness that makes her bones quiver and bleed?"Okay. okay. I promise that I will try. I promise to stay with you, Nami dear.." She murmurs back to Nami's face, softly closing her eyes and resting her forehead against hers (and when you will figure out what I am. When you look at me with fear and hatred, please break my heart to death; so that when I die, your person will be the last thing I hear and see-So when I-).She lies back in her bed, Nami in her arms. Distorted crimson eyes gaze at the ceiling above her. She promised again, and she wonders if this time she'll end herself caught in her jar of meaningless promises. Are they empty words, devoid of faith? Are they lies she told Nami to comfort her in her distress? (Because once Nami realizes how terrible she is, those promises will be hollowed out and devoid of faith and love, lost in this jar of hatred and self-destruction)."While you were unconscious, we came across a little girl named Apis and her friend, a dragon!" Nami says, setting on her chest."A dragon?" remarked Umekui, confused."Hahhaha! Yes, dragon! He was tracked down by some marines, and as always, Luffy beats them up!" She replies with a small grin, her eyes closed, recalling the cute little child they rescued in the middle of the water."How much did I sleep so you had encountered a dragon and fought against marines?" she wonders as she stares down at the lovely girl in her arms."Five days. You were asleep for five days," Nami states.Umekui lies still, as fear suffocates her heart. Five days? She spent five days lost in her mind, leaving her crew alone. How could she leave them alone for five days while they were being attacked, if one of them was in danger, and she wasn't there to protect them?-oh dear, just kills her now. "Where are we now? if i was aspleep for five days than the entrance of Grand line by the reverse mountain is not far, right?" she inquires to her navigator."HEY! "I SEE THE MYSTERY MOUNTAIN!" screams Luffy from the deck.Umekui and Nami exchange glances before getting out of bed and rushing to the deck.The heavy rain smacks Umekui's body as she steps outside; her white kimono, which Nami has undoubtedly changed her into, clings to her body.  The bracelet Ussop crafted for her clenched tightly in her palm.  The rain drenching her entire body felt stifling, scrubbing her body in an uncomfortable way that made her want to shred her flesh to blood and forget this nasty feeling (oh how she despises the rain, the havoc of the tears that Umekui could never spill, but the cruel heavens could from wrath and pity).The wind is fierce as he swirls her long dark hair around her. Luffy turned his head, and as soon as he noticed her, he reached for her waist and dragged her closer to his body. His body felt hot and warm against her cold, limp body and the chilly rain that drowned them."shi shi we are arriving at the grand line, Ume!" Luffy smiles widely.The sea's rough oscillations cause the deck to become unsteady."Nami! Where is the entrance? We're going to crash into the rocks if we keep going this way!" Ussop shouts, approaching Umekui anxiously."Keep going straight ahead" orders Nami to Zoro and Sanji as they handle the rudder;"To the right, cactus head!" screams Sanji, pushing the tiller to the right."No! To the left, pervy cook!" Zoro screams, pushing the rudder to the left.As they wrestle with the rudder to determine which way the ship should head, the rudder breaks beneath their force."AHHHHH!!""THE RUDDER!""WE ARE GOING TO DIE!" Umekui looks down at Zoro and Sanji before sighing and shaking her head at their stupidity, because she is surrounded by morons, minus Nami, of course.She rapidly jumps to the under deck and runs to the two enormous wooden bars that are positioned opposite each other on the sub deck. She quickly grabs a rope and coils it around the first bar on the left, then runs to the right and repeats the process. She pulls hard on the rope while taking a giant step backward, feeling it stabilized in the two large wooden blocks. Her muscles scream; sleeping for five days has rendered her body numb and still asleep, her blood flowing into her ears while phantom screams shriek within her.Two large sun-kissed muscled hands encircles her from behind and took a grasp of the rop in her tow hands, and pull the rope hard with her.The ship steady its trajectory and narrowly avoids the cliff. The ocean propels them up flowing through the mountain."WE MADE IT" screams with joy her nakamas from above. Umekui let go of the rope and roll up to see Zoro, but before she thanks him and says something, he turns his back and goes up the stairs to the top of the deck. Umekui let go of the rope and turned to face Zoro, but before she could thank him, he turned back and went up the stairs to the top of the deck.She stares hard at his back as the sound of her broken heart and haunting screams engulf her entire being. She glances down at her shaking hands, and for a brief minute, she imagines blood spilling from them and staining the deck beneath them.Zoro has undoubtedly realized how weak she is...and now he despises her for it. Zoro, who loves strong people, will never look at her again without feeling pity for her, and Umekui, above all, despises pity directed at her and she detests it so much when he ignores her like that.Suddenly soft warm hands stretch and encircle her waist and she finds herself flying at her captain's side."shi shi shi that was amazing what you did Ume! You saved us from crashing into the cliff!" Luffy grins at her, stars exploding in his large wide eyes."It's my duty, Captain," she simply answers, smiling affectionately at him."Wow, we're in the clouds," Luffy and Ussopp gasp as they glance around at the clouds that have suddenly surrounded them."We've reached the top of the reverse mountain and we're about to descend! Hold on!" Nami instructs, grabbing the balcony rails firmly."Wohou!!!" Luffy laughs.As he raises his arms to the broad sky. Umekui leaps at him, wrapping her arms around his waist, terrified that he may fall into the sea. (Because, even if he is strong, her captain is dumb to not to be afraid of the ocean, which can swallow him whole and leave nothing of him).The vile deity had dared to curse him, and Umekui would find him. She will make him, beg and cry for him, and consume him completely, leaving nothing else. She doesn't care if they cursed her; she accepted her fate years ago, but she will never forgive them for daring to touch her captain's soul. They will cry for mercy, as her monster devours them whole and leaves a void after them.They will fear what she will do rather than what she can do.Luffy returns his hands to the balcony rails and turns to look at her with an excited expression at the sight before them.When she stares at the vast ocean of majestic lines, a sharp agony strikes her skull.
(WELCOME BACK, VOID CHILD OF CENTURY, DAZAI!)(WELCOME BACK, VOID CHILD OF CENTURY, DAZAI!)(WELCOME BACK, VOID CHILD OF CENTURY, DAZAI!)(WELCOME BACK, VOID CHILD OF CENTURY, DAZAI!)
The shouts are louder now than they were when she woke up. Her blood flames, as the powers attempt to awaken and take control. Her legs trembled, so she clasped her hands over the railing to avoid falling and worry her nakamas again. She could feel blood accumulating in her cells and throat, taste the foul taste of blood on her tongue, and her nostrils were choked by the odor of death and blood.
(CURSED GIRL DO YOU REGRET, REGRET, REGRET?!)(CURSED GIRL DO YOU REGRET, REGRET, REGRET?!)(CURSED GIRL DO YOU REGRET, REGRET, REGRET?!)v(CURSED GIRL DO YOU REGRET, REGRET, REGRET?!)(WELCOME BACK, VOID CHILD OF CENTURY, DAZAI!)(WELCOME BACK, VOID CHILD OF CENTURY, DAZAI!)
Sha cannot fall again; she cannot afford to be weak and disappoint her nakamas. But, please, the pain is excruciating. It hurts, hurts, hurts, it's hurts it's hurt its hurt its hurt , and ache. Umekui hates the pain, which feels like a thousand hands shedding your insides like paper and burning you alive again. STOP! STOP! STOP! STOP! SHE HATES IT SO MUCH!)But she can beg and scream for the torment to cease, yet she keeps recalling that the beast feeds on her pain, the gods drink from her agonies, and she knows deep down that her heart does not pity her. But can't they just let her die? Can they just kill her and let her be free of this anguish, free f-"UME! LOOKS, THIS IS THE GRAND LINE!" Luffy beams as he takes her chilly hand in his warm own.The sweet odor of tangerine and sea caressed her within, suppressing the screaming for a moment (but not the pain; not the curse, what she possesses! There is no cure for her!).Nami encircles her arm with her own and grins at her with her gorgeous smile, making Umekui want to gift her the world's wealth on a golden platform (because money and freedom make Nami happy, but a hypocrite like her can never give Nami a glimpse of happiness).
(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)v(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)(THE PARADISE WHERE THE SEEDS OF EVIL WAS BORN-)
Umekui attempts to suppress her pain while staring at the Grand Line, flanked by Nami and Luffy.  (Foolish men call it paradise, despite all the dark things it bears, all the blood that has been shed on this ocean, all the wars that have wreaked devastation and left children orphaned, and all the slaves who have screamed out from their wretched cells for freedom. She wonders once more where are these echoes of Paradise that they preach, where is this Paradise that this man hoped and prayed to enter, TELLS HER KUMA! WHAT IS PARADISE WHEN THEIR BODIES BEARS THE WORLD'S SACRIFICE? WHERE IS THE PARADISE THAT YOU PRAYED FOR?)The sun scorches her eyes and the ocean hurls (as she gazes at the grand line, all she sees is an ocean of blood, corpses and children wailing and screaming, and tragedy). Her heart aches because Umekui is too far gone, the world has already destroyed Umekui, and she can no longer see anything without witnessing bloodstains and destruction in her view of this world.The world is ugly and cruel. She wants to scream at injustice because even with her nakamas, she is unable to perceive the beauty that they see in this world that they treasure so much.There is no beauty in this world; there is no freedom—"UME! LOOKS!" Luffy exclaims, his laugh extremely loud and peculiar.  (So loud that everything inside became silent; the pain stopped, the grasps and yells stopped, and the darkness sneered at the disruption). So loud and wide that the song of freedom vibrates in his voice and reverberates in the clouds that surround them, and the sun breathes solely for him, leaving Umekui feeling worthless beside him.(But she knows one thing! She wants to protect his smiles so much, she wants his laugh to be the last thing she hears inside her and fend off those awful screams!So, Umekui sees. She sees neither the grand line, the sun above them, nor the ocean that awaits them. She only sees Luffy smile. She hears Luffy laughter.In him, she sees beauty and freedom.
In Luffy, she sees the world.
Her cheeks ache from the shaking smile on her face."Be free. Be on the side that saves people. If both sides are the same, then choose to become a good person. Save the weak, protect the orphaned. You might not see a great difference between right and wrong, but... saving others is just a bit wonderful. And on this side, I promise you that you will find what you are searching for, he is waiting for you, on this road of-" She recalls this man's words, whose eyes shone with optimism, prodding and encouraging her to believe in—Odasaku's voice wounds her heart because she understands that even if his presence haunts her from within, she is reminded that he is gone, dead, and it is her fault. It's her fault, its her fault, its her fault, its her fault, its her fault. But above all Umekui's selfishness prevents her from feeling the warmth of his body or the softness of his hands. So selfish to want to forget, to forget, to forget, to forget, to forget, to forget, to forget.Despite her efforts, she is unable to forget him. She just can't forget him because when she looks at her captain, all she sees is freedom, the freedom Odasku promised her, this lad, this meaningless legend that all the foolish men of this place despise but her-(he exists! Odasaku you knew it right? right? You knew that he was somewhere waiting in this endless world, and her heart bleeds anew since the only thing that answered her was the nothingness of pain, and the heavy envelopes of grief-)But, with this heavy sensation, this cloak of death on her back, who would dare to suggest that Luffy and her nakamas will not be the next tragedies she is cursed to endure?(And Umekui's heart cries because she is terrified, afraid to have faith in something that will leave her empty more than she is, for when everything ends in blood and fire, the only thing that will remain about Luffy and her nakamas is grief and despair-)She tightens her grip on Luffy and Nami's hands, secretly hoping to die before the pendulum of time swings back into silence and emptiness.Finally reaching the ocean of grand line, the frog engulfs them. Luffy jumps with joy since they have finally sailed into the Grand Line. Ussop exhales as he sits on his buttocks on the floor, sighing in relief that they have arrived without dying.Suddenly, there is a sound, and Umekui's heart shifts and burns."Ano guys?" Did you hear anything?" Zoro asks, narrowing his eyes to peer through the frog."It's probably the wind!" replies Nami.Ussop walks to Zoro's side, narrowing his eyes with his googles to stare through the frog, before widening his eyes and turning to look at them.For the second time, she hears the same sound (a loud cry of anguish) and Umekui stops smiling."Zoro is right! There is something ahead of us!""It's impossible, my maps say nothing about this-"Umekui hears the cries loudly in her ears, making her bones shake with helplessness (the emptiness feats on her organs and makes her see the world upside down; the pain in this scream, in this cry causes her throat burn-)"It's a whale!" Ussop shouts."AHHHHH-"Her crewmates all scream in terror and flee across the deck, worry and horror coursing through their veins. But all she could see around her was a blurry image; the anguish inside her began to mess with her eyesight, blinding her to the world around them. So Umekui didn't even see the massive dark blue silky skin as their ship approached. She doesn’t even see when Luffy has heads down below deck.She sees nothing, but she hears everything; she hears this whale's scream, haunting from within, and the cry of hopelessness and sorrow makes her want to bleed her own blood to forget the weighty familiar of misery that this whale is mourning over.
BOOM-
She sees nothing until she hears something unpleasant that causes her body to recoil at the sound of a nightmare.(The horrible sound that ends lives with a flick of the fingers. This awful sound destroys species in a flash. This unjust weapon that destroys creation and existence in flames and death). With the knowledge that her curse is more bigger than this weapon created by humans to empower their abilities. So-called weapons of war to conceal the reality from the innocent. Because, above all, the so-called gods of this new century despise freedom.Her limbs shudder, and she drops to her knees.Nami comes to her, reaches for her shoulders and gently shakes her, her gaze filled with anxiety and worry."Umekui! Umekui!" she cries, shaking from her shoulders.Nami doesn't understand; neither do her nakamas can, this animal! This whale isn't screaming; he's crying! He is hurting! (Inside this realm of grief and anguish, there is a tale, this tale recounted by the most caring eyes that has found her in this darkness. The story of a particularwhale that has made Umekui's bones bleed from unfairnesses due to the tragic sort of loneliness)Luffy returns to the deck and asks if the cannon shot has stopped them from colliding with the whale, and when he spots Ume on her knees, he rushes to her, alarmed.Before he can touch her or cry out her name, the whale cries louder than before.(Yorki,Yorki, Yorki,Yorki, Yorki, Yorki, Yorki,Yorki, Yorki, Yorki, Yorki, Brook, Brook, Brook,Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Brook, Mizuta Madaisuki,Mizuta Madaisuki,Mizuta Madaisuki,Mizuta Madaisuki,Mizuta Madaisuki,Mizuta Madaisuki,Mizuta Madaisuki,Mizuta Mawaritosuk,Mizuta MawaritosukiMizuta MawaritosukiMizuta MawaritosukiMizuta MawaritosukiMizuta Mawaritosukii)The names ring in Umekui's head, memories and loneliness dripping from them, a cry for rescue.The whale's tremendous sound causes all of the straw hats to fall to the floor. But they don't feel the screaming in their bones, tearing them away from the misery, as Umekui does. Umekui's familiar pain causes her to collapse in all four and cover her head with her hands, as if she were a quivering kid.
(stop it, stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,stop it,)
Nami and Luffy's eyes widen as they notice Umekui's afraid and painful expression, but before they can ask her, their first mate covers herself like a terrified kid. Luffy snaps and glares at the whale in rage after realizing that his first mate's unusual behavior was caused by the whale."YOU!-STOP HURTING UME AND OUR NAKAMAS!" Luffy shouts and screeches his fist toward the whale's eye, hitting him hard.His crewmates' hearts sink because of their dumb captain; they are going to perish, and their first mate's pained conduct adds to their anxieties.Nami swiftly takes Umekui in her arms and caresses her back (and the way Umekui flinches and trembles in her arms breaks Nami's heart because she is so helpless to her best friend's anguish).After a few seconds, the whale gazed down at them, and Ussop begged loudly for mercy because this massive dark bulk was about to devour them whole. The whale then began to suck up the water around its mouth, bringing with it the Straw Hats.Luffy falls overboard due to the force and reaches for one of the whale's teeth. Ussop leaps on Zoro's back, grips him tightly, and clings to his muscled back, hoping that those muscles will save him.The darkness sank his teeth into Umekui's consciousness and heart, trapping her in the tortuous dance she is condemned to endure.Sanji rushes toward Nami and Umekui and embraces the two of them, and when Umekui falls still in their grasp; the whale closes its massive mouth over them. Nami and Sanji can only cry her name loudly."UMEKUI!"

"She suffers, again and again. She suffers in a thousands agonies-"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Memory is punishment."

Seated on the beach shore, a few feet away from Odasaku's home, she observes the starry night sky. The stars above her were bright and shining, but all she saw was darkness and souls crying. The cold sand beneath her pickled her body, and Dazai was so uneasy in his rotting body that she despised it, the wounds hurting her, the scars shredding her flesh, and the curses that drew her own fresque of misery.

"Dazai," she hears her name spoken out softly.

She doesn't even quiver at the mention of her cursed name because it's him calling her. Odasaku, clad in a light white shirt and dark jeans, walks up to her and sits next to her. His dark brown reddish hair is illuminated by the rays of the moonlight, and his brown eyes are almost golden.

"The sea is hurting," she whispers, gazing at the calm sea, but something deep within it is screaming and crying, echoing inside Dazai in an echo of help (but something of her monstrosity can't save, it can't; her entire purpose was created to destroy and bring devastation to this world, not to help and save).

"It's surely him again," Odasaku says, staring sadly at the sea. (In his eyes, there is warmth and gentleness that she admires).

She swiftly turns her head to face him, feeling her neck shatter from the forceful move.

"Him?" she asked, her throat aching from the screams and blood that stained her mouth every day.

"Hum," he nods and glances at her, "Laboon."

"Laboon?" she asks slowly. "Who is he?"

"A whale"

Dazai's brown frowns, and the solitary eye protruding from her half-bandaged face peer at Odasaku with perplexity, before she could speak again, he glances down at her and spoke up.

"You like to read stories and hear them, right?"

Dazai nods, admitting that it is true.

All of the books in this dark place were read by her, and those stories and tales are the strings that keep her from going insane (and Chuuya is the only person in this hell who makes things less horrific besides books, and sometimes she can only scream at her weaknesses to protect him from those disgusting men. Chuuya, who will sit by her side for hours while she reads her books loudly for him to hear).

"Then I'll tell you the story about Laboon, the whale. He was a joyful little Island Whale who built a great friendship with the Rumbar Pirates. However, his happiness was destroyed, and he went into profound sorrow after learning that they had departed the Grand Line, leaving him behind. His strong will and resolve were driven by a blind desire to see his pals again, clinging to what little hope he had for their safety, but after years, his companion never returned. As a result, he attempted to break through the Red Line and rammed his head into the reverse mountains without pausing, hoping to reach the West Blue and rejoin his comrades. But the mountain could never break beneath Laboon's strength, so all he has left is his loneliness and misery, which causes him to wail and scream, leaving the sea as the only bearer of his pain," he says.

Odasaku shed a single tear, and Dazai could only reach out her bandaged hand to touch his gorgeous face, allowing the tears to flood her bandages. (She was always captivated by human tears, the blood of their souls that flowed like ichor from their eyes; it was something so sacred).

"It must be painful to wait for his friends who are surely dead," she remarks.

Odasaku looks at the sea with a lost expression on his face, his heart gorged on memories, before blinking and nodding in response to her words.

(There are things Dazai is unaware of regarding Odasaku; he carries a million secrets on his bones that he is unable to reveal, but she is unfazed because she, too, has millions of secrets that she will never have the strength to reveal; those memories and secrets she will carry to her grave).

"Could you someday go to meet him and save him from his pain of loneliness?" he requested.

Dazai's heart sank as she scowled at Odasaku for saying such foolish words.

"Don't be stupid, Oda! You know deep inside that I'm never leaving this place! I will never do good and save peoples hahahaah, what an absurd request! I could never save people; I was created to kill and end, not save and help!" She chuckles a broken and sad laugh that tears Odasaku's heart apart.

This laboon may experience the same pain that haunts Dazai, but she is the wrong being to seek assistance; how can she free Laboon from his loneliness and suffering when those emotions are the foundation of her existence? When she is unable to free herself from her own curse? She accepted her fate long ago: she would never be able to rescue or save anyone, nor would she ever be free.

"Still, please Dazai. It's a request from a dear friend. If someday you could finally sail the oceans and be free. Save Laboon from his anguish and loneliness, and I promise you that the path you seek is somewhere. Promise me," Odasku begs, his eyes revealing a long-hidden sadness.

Dazai sends her dearest friend a hard stare and nods.

"Okay. I promise you, Odasaku, if I ever meet Laboon on this road, this freedom that you vaguely promise, I will save Laboon from his pain," she says slowly, the moon shining brightly overhead.

On this fateful night, Dazai carried for the first time in her life a pledge from another friend in the hopes of saving a massive whale named Laboon. (But deep down inside, she wished to die before everything since, in some twisted reality, freedom was a fable to her that she had no regard for or faith in. and her heart will never be ready to confront the whale's cry, which the sea echoes every day).

But something inside her weeps despite the lack of tears because she wonders if she can actually save. If her fate is not predetermined for the rest of her life, she may be able to pursue her ideal path.

Perhaps life will be less painful with Odasaku and Chuuya by her side. Maybe the three of them could go meet this whale named Laboon, save him, make friends with him, and then sail to the seas and be free together.

A childish and foolish part of her wished for that.

However, reality will never be a childish fairytale with a happy ending. The curse of her existence is well aware of it, and the only proof is the heavy weight of sorrow and misery on her back.

"ODASAKU! CHUUYA!" she yells, the pain echoing in the calls of her dear friends, hoping that this is just another nightmare that her madness has trapped her in.

Once again, she drowns hopelessly in the waves that obliterate everything that Dazai cherished.
Sanji pressed Umekui's frigid body to his own. His arms flutter around her frame, holding her as if she were the most valuable thing in the world. After the big whale devoured them, they found themselves in front of a small island amid green waters, with a clear blue sky above.T he sky above him appeared peculiar, and the hue of the sea was unusual.
'So where the hell are they?'
Nami blinked hard at her surroundings before shifting her sight to him. She looks at their first mate, who was resting in a bridal style in his arms."Is she okay?" she inquires.Sanji looks at Umekui's face, which appears to be hurt by something from within."I don't know," he admits."AHH!" yells Usopp as he points to a big squid emerging from the water.Before Zoro could charge at it and slash it with his swords. Three harpoons punctured the creature's purplish skin, killing him on the spot. Sanji glances confusedly as a man exits the house on the small island in front of them. The strange old man approaches his seat, while staring aggressively at them.He tightens his grip on his unconscious first mate and stares back at him. The old man then settles down in his sun chair and opens his newspaper."At least say something!" Zoro shouts, focusing his glare on the elderly man.At the cactus head's shout, the man lowers his newspaper and continues to stare at them, still silent."Y-you looking for a fight?! You, bastard! Because you will have one!" Usopp yells and declares, despite his shaky knees."We have a cannon!" Nami shouts, as Usoop nods firmly beside her.The weird man keeps staring."Don't, or someone might end up dead." He finally remarks casually, still attempting to drill a hole through them with only his stare."Oh yeah?" Sanji hardens his resolve. "And who might that be?" Because if this strange man tries to fight them when his first partner is still out cold, Sanji will blow up."Me, of course," exclaims the elderly man.When their swordsman opens his mouth to converse with the strange man. Umekui diverts Sanji's attention. She was shivering in his grip, and her face appeared to be in pain. Sanji reached out his hand to her forehead, hissing as the hot flesh of his first mate burned his hand. She has a fever.Fear suddenly grabs his heart in a merciless grip. Sanji, despite witnessing women in pain, particularly sick women (the faint whispers of a gentle voice and tender eyes eaten raw by sickness flash in his head, causing his bones to throb from the painful memories).Sanji returns his attention to the conversation between the elderly man and his nakamas. While still clutching to his sick first mate, he allowed his quick heartbeat to reverberate through hers and felt hers as well. The terror of feeling her heart stop was like a cruel claw scratching and bleeding his heart."If you're looking for an exit, it's right over there." The elderly man-flower informs them with a finger directed toward the steel gates that none of them had seen until then."Let's get out of there!" urges Ussop.When Ussop and Zoro approach the ropes installed by their first mate, the weird green sea, which is the whale's digestive liquid, moves like a stormy sea.They all stumble and roll around, and Sanji falls to the floor on his back to protect Umekui."Hey, what is going on?" Nami presses the old man."This whale has started bashing his head against the Red Line again," states the man named Crocus. His first mate suddenly twitches in his grip and mutters."stop, stop, stop, Laboon, Laboon, I promise it-I-"Sanji reaches out to touch her hot cheek and shakes her awake."Umekui-chan! Can you hear me?"Bloody eyes open, and the grief inside them crushes Sanji all over again."Sanji?" She croaks."Yes, it's Sanji! How are you, Umekui-chan?" He inquires worriedly, his fingers resting on her cheek.She blinks hard at him and looks around them, observing their nakamas ahead of them, attempting to stay steady as the whale's digestive liquid trembles. Then she blinks again, and her eyes widen in dread (And for the first time since he met her, terror gripped her sight)."Luffy? Where is Lufy?!" she exclaims, her voice hoarse and distressed as she fists his blouse."Do not worry! Zoro has stated that he has climbed down the whale; knowing him, he will undoubtedly join us!" He reassures Umekui."The Whale. Laboon. I need to stop him. I promised-" she whispers, but Sanji undoubtedly hears her words.She jumped out of his grip and hurried towards their nakamas. Sanji attempted to call her back because Umekui was still sick and had a fever, but she had already joined Nami's side when Luffy's screams could be heard above them, bursting from the little metal door, quickly followed by a man and a woman.'A woman?' His gaze swirls with hearts when he spots a blue-haired woman.Sanji catches his first mate jumping through the skies to capture their captain, while the other two people fall into the sea. With Luffy giggles in the grip of his first mate and exclaims in amazement that they are flying. Because they are actually flying. Umekui is flying with Luffy in her grasp.Part of him could not wash away his concern about Umekui. (Why did all of the women Sanji cherished and loves have an air of tragedy around them, leaving him helpless and weak in the face of their pain?)  He already misses the way she feels against him, but deep down Sanji's heart hopes Umekui will not be another tragedy. (His heart is exhausted from the loss, his bones shake at the weakness that never leaves him, and those voices that creep back in-).Then Sanji recalls the woman who fell into the green water and dives into it.Luffy is flying."Shi shi shi" he laughs as the air firmly caresses his face and hair, his straw hat sticking to his head as they land in the going merry."Ume! I w-" Luffy gets cut off by a tight hug from his first mate, and he smiles larger because he enjoys it so much (His first mate ultimately embraces him since she isn't frightened to touch him. She doesn't have that look that implies she's frightened of touching and injuring him like she and Ace used to have)."Luffy," she croaks his name, and the dread in her voice hurts his heart. (With terror and sadness, she calls him his name, just as Ace did to Sabo's name as the flames killed him.)So he frowns worriedly since he doesn't grasp Ume's fear. (If the whale injured his first mate again, then Luffy promises he would punch him so hard that he will never dare go near his Ume!)"Never leave my side like that, you understand! You promised Luffy! You promised me! So please don't ever leave when I can't see you without telling me!" Her voice sounds raw, and the quivering arms around him make him even more concerned about his first mate. (she is how he was when he promised Ace to never leave him and die like Sabo did. Luffy will never forget the sorrow in his heart and the tears that suffocated him that day.So he swallows the lump in his throat, smiles broadly, grabs on his first mate's shoulders, and pushes her slightly to meet her eyes. There was a melancholy in them that could break any heart open, but Luffy smiled, and he will always smile for her, for he is no longer weak, no one will ever leave him, as he promised, and Ace and Ume are his first promises, the most precious, the ones he would never leave and who will never leave him!"Shi shi, Ume! I'm here. I'm all right! When the whale attacked us, I just fell from the ship, but don't worry, I'm strong, and I'll always find you, as I promised."Ume nods and smiles slowly, and he can only shine like a sun when he sees her smile."But are you okay, Ume? You were greatly in pain at the whale screaming earlier," he says (since Luffy's heart fell when he saw his covering first mate squeezing her head as if something was hurting her within).Before she could open her mouth and respond to his concerns, the two gigolos that Luffy pushed in his path speak out as Sanji lowers them into the deck.His nakamas approach them, keeping a steady eye on the new arrival, while Sanji looks at the blue-haired woman with a hearts in his eyes."Mr.9, they are pirates!" exclaims the blue-haired woman."Miss Wednesday. I know, but if we talk to them, perhaps-" says the man, who obviously has an odd name; who names his child 9?Surely, dumb people thought Luffy.While observing them, Luffy notices his first mate's movement as she brings her handgun from inside her kimono, which never leaves her. Still, he keeps quiet as she draws her weapon. Suddenly, an elderly voice calls out from behind him.Luffy turns around and laughs at the weird elderly man's strange haircut; it resembles a strange bird that Sabo once showed him in an image book. (Deep inside him, his heart steers because, even after all these years, he misses Sabo so much, and if he loses Ace, Ume, or his crew, he is afraid of what he will do. They are everything to him: his brother, this soul, his future; he simply loves them, and he swears himself that he will never be weak. (to not see Ace's tears, Ume's empty and lifeless body, Nami's bloodied arm and tears, Zoro's wounds, Sanji's pain, Ussop's loneliness, never again). The strange duo draws his attention back as they draw cannons and point them at the sky, which is the whale's stomach wall. However, before they could shoot, his first mate surprised him by jumping right in front of their weapons, two handguns in each hand pointed at the strange couple of 9 and Wednesday."Umekui!" yells Nami from behind.Luffy looked at Ume oddly; it was the first time since she joined his crew that she had done something without his orders or for someone other than their nakamas. Zoro and Sanji also remarked on it because they were astonished by their first mate's strange behavior."If any of you dare to shout at the whale or attempt to kill it. A bullet will land right on your skull, ending your miserable life!" She warns, her chilly tone making everyone shiver.The man and woman's legs shake at Ume's bloody crimson glare."My captain, If I asks you a selfish wish, will you accept it?" She asks, staring at him past the strange duo, her guns still directed at them.Luffy nods eagerly because it's the first time she's asked for something (part of him tries hard to ignore her strange request and the bloody pool she ended up in a week ago)."The whale. He is hurting. And if we leave him like that, I'll never be able to forgive myself, so could we please help him? Can we save Laboon?" She implores, her eyes filled with sadness.Nami's breath caught near him choked up by seeing his first mate in such a state and seeking to save someone Luffy had not yet engaged in.Luffy laughs hard and beams at her, and Ume's eyes soften as she looks at his smiling face, making the world worthwhile for her.He heats his two arms with a stroke of movement, then strokes his two first towards the two hunters, knowing them completely."Shi shi shi, of course, Ume! Anything for you!"Ume looks at him as if he were something she never imagined existed, just like she did when he discovered her in the endless sea of east blue. A flash of teeth brightens his gaze, and Ume smiles so big that he bets her cheeks and eyes hurt from not smiling like that for years.His nakamas had undoubtedly turned blind at the sight of Umekui's unusual wide smile, and the hard sound of another corpse falling on the floor, along with Ussop slapping Sanji to wake up, caused laughter to explode from his lips loudly enough for everyone to hear.Oh god of meat, how the smile of his first mate was breathtaking. Oh, god of sleep, he could tell him all day and night how beautiful and unique the first mystery of his adventure, his Ume, is!Umekui sat on a little island in Laboon's stomach. Nami's body moves closer to her, and she rests her head on her shoulder."Are you okay, Umekui?" She hears her asks,Umekui nods to her question; even if she is lying, what can she tell her navigator?As they meet on this small island where the elderly guy lives, she can feel his lingering look on her, as if he knows something about her. She sighs internally since Umekui has recently crossed paths with many people who know her, and the threat makes her hands itch with the want to kill.Luffy is climbing a banana tree as Ussop yells at him to get down.Then Nami stands up and returns to their nakamas as they listen to the old man's Laboon story (but all she hears are echoes of Odasaku promises intertwined with Luffy's promises). She raises her palm toward the fake sky (yet this sky is so much brighter and truer than the ones that Umekui never dared to look up at) and examines her hand (the sensation of blood reaching through its hull makes her fingers itch and her throat catch).Could she truly save Laboon with the hands that had ruined and killed so much?Her own body seems heavy and foreign, her brain hurls and the injuries ooze inside, shouting that she will never do anything good, and the only thing she knows and tastes is the blood of despair tainting her and turning her into the monster she has become.Yet she deeply wants to believe in Odasaku, just as he did with her, and clutch to her nakamas' warm hands, flying high with them. But she is terrified of being caught in a void of emptiness and having her wings ripped off, allowing her to drown in her sorrow and hopelessness.But for the time being, all Umekui can feel is hopelessness and loneliness, which rips open Laboon's heart. Perhaps with her curse, she can take what belongs in her blood, perhaps she can reclaim what the gods doomed her to have, and rescue Laboon from the cycle that has imprisoned him in a cycle of self-harm for years."How did you know his name was Laboon, Umekui-chan?" asks Sanji (Dear selfless Sanji, who always took care of her useless self when nightmares and curses took over her mind and consciousness)."Someone told me about Laboon a long time ago," she explains, for the first time not lying (her tongue blisters and feels heavy from all the falsehoods she has uttered in her wicked existence).She could clearly feel the elderly man's stare narrowing, but she continued to ignore him."Come on, Umekui! "We're leaving!" yells Usopp as they march toward the going merry.Umekui stands up steadily, the dizziness making her want to vomit, her muscles aching, everything is burning and aching, and she feels extremely tired."If you continue like this, you will die," says the elderly guy behind her.She chuckles and turns to meet his wide look (she could see his recognition for her)."Crocus, right ?"Crocus nods, "It's a surprise to see you there, Dazai."The name hurls inside, wrenching her organs."And why would it be a surprise?" She smiles (empty and lifeless)."That you are still there when the entire world is hunting you," he said, then looked worriedly at her body, "It hurts, right? If you keep doing this, you will die; any doctor would notice that you are suffering from the inside, that you are being eaten raw by something. You are sick!" he whispers-shout the last words."I don't care," she began, and Crocus's breath caught at her confession. "I don't care if something is killing me; I want to die, and this curse is perfect for me, though I wish I could die painlessly-" she chuckles as her heart aches inside her."He would never have wanted it! He cared about your well-being, He wanted you to be free, and-"She cuts him off."He's gone," she spits, anger searing her eyes, but Crocus doesn't flinch, only smiling sadly at her."And yet, here you are. You did come to Laboon, right?"She nods slowly."We knew you were coming," he said, staring at him intently as he confessed, "We were waiting for you. He promised us. And this brat will never lie; he is too good for that, and here you are!" He smiles broadly, his wrinkles shining.Her heart cracks, and a voice cries out inside her. He knew it; he's always known that she'll come. He knew she would leave this place. But why didn't he tell her that when she will escape, he would already be dead, that they would all be gone, and that she would be left alone to face the grief on her own? Why? Why? Why?"So, Dazai, don't lose hope. Even if the world hates you and craves your head, don't give up. Odasaku would never have wished that for you." He then turns to look at her nakamas, who are waiting for her on the deck. "They are good folks that you have found there, and this boy, Luffy, perhaps he is the-""Hurry up, Ume!" yells Luffy, waving his arms at her."See you later, Crocus. My captain is waiting for me, and this lad possesses no patience." She waves goodbye as she races toward the going merry, and Luffy screeches his arms, grabs her by the waist, and brings her to the ship with him."Shi shi shi what were you talking about with the old man?" Luffy inquired."Nothing to worry, my captain"Luffy looks at her face and nods (And she adores this about him. How he never forced her to speak or do things that would purposely upset or hurt her)."The real sky is finally there!" Ussop exclaims cheerfully.Luffy and her raise their heads, gazing at the limitless sky and the sun scorching from above.Then she recalls the two Laboon hunters and marches toward their unconscious bodies, taking their feet in each hand and throwing them high and far into the sea; she doesn't care if they died or drowned; they were attempting to harm Laboon, and their names are vaguely familiar, which she disdain.Then, without notifying her crewmates, she walks toward the balcony and stands up, the wind whipping over her hair.Nami and Ussop notice her body on the balcony and call out her name. She ignores it because Laboon is deep in the sea, hurting and sobbing, and Umekui has a vow to fulfill. She dives into the cold, merciless sea.Laboon is a few meters away, and she swims fast towards him. Reaching within, she activates her ability and allows her cursed to eat the small light she carries in her heart."Nice to meet you, Laboon," she murmurs inside her thoughts, so Laboon can hear her well."What are you doing here, human?" His large eye glares at her."An old dear friend told me about you. Do you remember Odasaku?" She questions (and her heart aches so terribly at the mention of his name and the memories that haunt her-oh how much she misses him)Laboon cries out loudly when his name is spoken, his cries resonating with anguish."I know, he missed you, too. He cried quite a bit when he mentioned you. He was very upset by the memory of you being hurt and hurting yourself." She looks sadly at the wounds on his flesh."I am here, Laboon! So forgive Odasaku for not returning to see you one last time" (she could beg forgiveness, but it's her fault, it's her fault that he's dead, gone-the voices wail inside her and his long gone scent burns her nostrils) "Will you forgive him?" the whale sobs loudly, the waves proudly hurling around them."There's a boy named Luffy. He is my captain. He is stronger than anyone else. He will be king of pirates one day! So I'm certain he will be the one to save you from the loneliness that you trapped yourself in" (not her--she can't save when she is the one who kills--her existence isn't built for that, but Luffy can and will since he is simply so much more than history can write about him).Laboon tilts his large head at her, "Is he the one who pushed my eye?" he asks.Inside her thoughts, she laughs, and Laboon pouts adorably."I wasn't even aware that my stupid captain punched you" She shakes her head, recalling Luffy's tempers. Then she stares hard at Laboon and demands that if she can touch him. Laboon's eyes soften and he nods at her. She gently places her hand between his eyelids and approaches his big head with her forehead.
"I'm sorry for being late, Laboon. Can you allow me to do a favor for our dear old friend?" She demands.
Laboon nods once again."Vivere senza" As she speaks, a green light erupts from her hand and spreads throughout Laboon, causing her blood to shake and the curse to resurface on her heart without pity.She vomits blood, and the water around her turns red. Even though Umekui is familiar with and acclimated to the pain, she will never be numb to it; the void within her paints her bones with a heaviness that drives her into the abyss of the harsh sea. An intense agony jolted her back, as if something was repeatedly stabbing her with a sword. She peers at Laboon's head and notices that all of his scars have vanished.He is incredibly beautiful like that, free of scars, misery, and loneliness. The wounds belong to her; something of her impurity deserves them, not Laboon, so if she can't save him or do good things that Odasaku asks of her, she may take what hurts, like a void consuming everything.She took Laboon scars and carried them on her back like the beast she is; she took Laboon grief and loneliness and allowed her curse and void to feed on it, causing the black hole inside her mind to grow larger and larger, depriving her of all lights and hopes she could grasp.The blood inside her throat chokes her, engulfing her with her blood and seawater. Her vision blanks out (she is so tired; this world, this body, this curse had devoured her whole, allowing madness and exhaustion to take over-)As the darkness welcomes her back into the dark webs of her own depravity, the only thing she remembers is Laboon's wails as he pushes her back to the surface, and warm hands screeching toward her body like sun rays, leaving her closes her eyes with a final smile on her face.As Luffy promised, he will always be there to catch her and bring her back to his side.Something chilly is applied to her forehead. For the first time, the cold did not frighten her; rather, it soothed the fire that was devouring her from within, burning her organs and leaving only the taste of ashes on her tongue.She gently opens her eyes to see green hair and her favorite grumpy face."Are you still mad at me?" She croaks, her throat throbbing with each word, but it's nothing compared to the pain her heart felt when her foolish swordman ignored her.He frowns deeply and scoffs."You're an idiot! How would I be mad at you? he grumbles."You were ignoring me," she claims."Yes, I was," Zoro confirms.She looks at him with a faint glare. "And why? If you are not furious at me, then why did you ignore me all day? Why did y-"He cuts her off, "Because you are a fucking moron who worried me! Why didn't you inform me or any of us that you had been hurt? Why didn't you tell me what harmed you? I was scared, okay! When I saw you limbless in this pool of blood, when you were in so much pain and hiding yourself like a child at the whale's howls, and now when you jumped into the fucking ocean while still burning with fever! You're not alone, Umekui! Your actions harm us, and if the others don't want to tell you, I will!" he adds, his voice raw and filled with sadness.She grabs his muscular arm and pushes him closer to her."I could never. I didn't mean to hurt any of us; I apologize!" she says, her voice cracking. (I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't want to hurt any of you, Please stop being mad, Please, Please, Please, don't leave me!)"Stop it! You're apologizing again! Why? Why are you apologizing, Umekui!" He shouts, his eyes scorching."Because I have hurt us, I'm your first mate, I don't have the right to be weak and worry us!" She replies, her eyes falling with shame as she stares at the blanket covering her lap. Her and Nami's chamber is quiet until Zoro speaks again, loud and harsh."There it is! You do not understand Umekui! You do not need to apologize! It's not your fault that you were hurt! It's okay to be weak sometimes, so don't apologize!" He implored,(He's wrong! Everything is her fault; everywhere she goes, she brings death and repair with her, acting as a catalyst for the world's disintegration. She is weak, and there is nothing more absurd than her daring to be weak while she was supposed to protect them. (But who is going to protect them from her, from this blood, from this curse that has trapped her in her own madness?!)" I've hurt us! I did-""You did nothing wrong!" He cut her off again. He cupped her cheeks with his hard hands and drew her closer to face his gray gaze."You did nothing wrong, therefore never apologize for anything that was not your fault! You understand?"
"You did nothing wrong, stupid Dazai. So quit apologizing, you waste of bandages!" shouts a young boy, his blue eyes and light orange hair burning in her pupils, like the sole light in those dark halls.
She nods at his words, "I understand, Zoro." (He might beat her to blood, and Umekui will never stop thinking that everything is her fault because she is still breathing and existing when she should be dead, gone like them.)He smiles at her words and rest his forehead against her hot one."You stupid waste of bandages, don't ever worry us like that and jump into the sea!" he scolds softly, his breath fanning over her face, allowing her to soak in his scent as if it were the only shore she had face to madness waves."But Laboon was attempting to harm himself again," she defends himself."I don't care! Speaking of Laboon, Luffy beats him hard, and they made a pledge to fight when we return from the Grand Line.""What? Luffy did that?!" Her eyes widen, and a huge smile spreads across her lips; she knows it, she knows that her dumb captain, this selfless boy, would do something like that. The one who will free Laboon from misery!"He and Ussop painted our Roger on his head, too!" he chuckles and Umekui joins in knowing Luffy and Ussop will undoubtedly do so. "We are taking line to our next destination , If you wants to say Goodbye to Laboon its now or never" he goes on to explain.She leaps out of bed and runs to the upper deck, where her nakamas are already waving goodbye to Crocus and Laboon.When she arrives at their side, she looks at a happy Laboon with their Roger painted all over him and chuckles lightly. Laboon laughs loudly and softly at her sight before waving her goodbye with his tail."He is so cute!" comments Nami behind her, while Umekui waves Laboon farewell and nods in agreement.Suddenly, she feels her captain perched over her shoulders, embracing her hard (this boy loves hugs  as much as he loves meat, but she doesn't dislike his hugs; rather, she seeks them like oxygen; his hugs are a part of him, the flesh that heals her rotten bones and keeps her full)."You're awake, Umekui!" Luffy exclaims.She smiles softly at her words, and deep inside, a tiny weight of empty promises is lifted. She maintained her vow to aid and save Laboon, and she did it. Even if the stillness of mourning and the souls locked inside are the only answer to her achievement, the laugh of Luffy above her makes her feel light and free."C'mon, Umekui! Sanji has prepared food for us and some medication for you made from Crocus!" adds Ussop, taking her hand and leading her to the kitchen, where Sanji has laid out a feast for them.Zoro and Nami join them, scowling at each other and preparing for another drinking contest."Food! MEAT! MEAT!" Luffy chants and claps his hands like a child when he sees his favorite meals on the table.Umekui takes a seat with Luffy alongside her, and when Sanji takes a seat to her left, Luffy dives into the massive chunk of meat on the table."Here, Umekui. This is the medicine Crocus has given me for you; please drink it all, okay?" He says this as he holds her a steaming cup of a weird green medicine, his blue eyes staring at her with tenderness and affection, his vanilla scent engulfing her in a warm embrace (Oh dear, why would a gentleman like him waste his kindness on something undeserving like her?).(Internally, Umekui sighs, because Crocus is an idiot when she told him that nothing will help her, it's true, but he certainly did so to avoid raising suspicions among her crew; internally, she thanks him for his kindness-then again, he was Odasaku's friend; what did she expect from him?)"Thank you, Sanji!"Hearts erupt from his eyes, as his cheeks heat and turn scarlet. "Anything for you, Umekui-chan!"Umekui finished the "medicine" with a single drink because it tasted sweet. As she returns her glass to the table, Luffy has already eaten half of the table, Ussop is battling him and slapping Luffy's hand away when he tries to take his food, and Namli and Zoro have already finished their five glasses of alcohol, laughing and mocking each other.She takes a shrimp and holds it to Sanji's mouth. His cigarette falls from his mouth, his eyes widen, and Umekui believes she hears his heart stop for a moment. He swallows his spit and looks at the fork held up to his face before opening his mouth and allowing her to feed him (she observed that because of Luffy, she likes to feed her nakamas)."Thank you for looking after me while we were in Laboon's stomach," she said softly, her eyes softening. (Even if she was trapped in a cyclone of memories, with darkness obscuring all around her, Umekui could never be cold to Sanji's warmth as he shielded and cared for her like the selfless prince he is).He blushes slightly and grabs a folk, feeding her a shrimp."Don't ever thank me for taking care of you, Umekui-chan!" Umekui despises the cruel blue sky and water, but she can never detest his blue eyes if he lets her drown in.Could she die in his eyes when she takes in her last breath? Could the warmth of her nakamas be the grave that let her rotten boy to rest, with their souls burning bright inside her? As she takes and holds Sanji's hands in her own, she wonders if they will murder her and free her when she will be lost in her madness forever, stuck like a lifeless and empty vessel.Sanji tightens his grip on her arm and smiles delicately to let her know that he is here, that they are here, and that they would never leave her. Perhaps they are the ones Umekui has been seeking for all over the corners of the world. Maybe Odasaku was right.She suffocates the terror that is attempting to rip her heart open, the fear of losing them as well, the fear of them rejecting her and abandoning her, shattered, like a ripped toy that a child has grown bored with.But she doesn't mind. She does not care if they use her as a toy, weapon, or object. Just let her stick to their side like a parasite, letting her to love them till death eradicates her from this world. Even if they hurt and break her, let them be, for who says love does not hurt? Love is a dagger that twists your heart and organs into blood, allowing the gods to watch and laugh as you are drained of all your blood.Allow them to empty her of all her blood. She doesn't care about blood since she's been empty since she opened her cursed eyes to the world.Allow the gentle hand that is squeezing her own to kill her and send her to the gods who are seeking all across the earth for her head. She may even beg and ask to be slain by her nakamas rather than those selfish cruel gods and prophets preaching justice and peace when they were the first detonation that shattered the world with cruelty and wars.Let them come at her; Umekui is prepared to rip them to shreds with her own bleeding teeth. To protect the warmth and smiles of those she refers to as nakamas, she will never hesitate to let her true form devour everything, leaving nothingness and flames in its wake.Let them come; she awaits them with a thirst that no beast on this wretched world craves.A mile away, Laboon and Crocus are watching the sundown and the shadows of the ship pirates who had crossed their route. For the first time in years, Laboon laughs and jumps far into the sky, the roger on his head blazing as a reminder of his promise to the straw hat boy.The absence of pain and scars on his skin feels like the beginning of a new book, a new story for him. The flash of a kind and gentle face with reddish hair and gold eyes softens and saddens his human heart a little, but he pries those fleeing because the ones he has been waiting for, the ones this human promised him, have arrived and kept this selfless man's promise, and Laboon closes his eyes and allows joy to stroke his heart.He looks at his good friend Crocus, who returns his gaze: "Odasaku didn't lie, he kept his promise, this brat!" He laughs loudly and fiercely, tears welling up in his eyes, because he misses him too, this selfless man; the world never deserved him, and perhaps that is why he left them early.'So they're the pirates and the girl you've been waiting for, Gold D. Roger and Odasaku?' he wondered, recalling the foolish straw hay kid and the crimson-eyed girl.He sighs at the thought of Dazai, hoping that this idiot will open her eyes and not don’t get lost in her dark path, which will lead her to the secrets she is keeping from her crew and the rest of the world."Survive, Dazai. You'd promised him! So, survive!" he whispered to the sea, his eyes filled with anguish that his aging eyes did not deserve.
"For Him, For Odasaku."

"Today once again on the thread of my sorrows, I have stung the flowers of your memory"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"show me your thorns, and I'll show you hands ready to bleed."

As her dear friend rests next to her in the kitchen of the going merry, Umekui asks, "So what do you think, Odasaku?"
("You did well, Dazai! I'm proud of you!" he chuckles, smoking the cigarette in his mouth.)
"Laboon and Crocus missed you, you know?" She says, her nose tingling from the scent of the cigarette on her other hand, while she looks down at the whiskey glass in her palm.
("I see. I miss them as well," he admits, his long-forgotten tumbler of whiskey on the table in front of him.)
"So, what comes next? Must I subject myself to further agony and allow our memories to resurface?" She murmurs sadly, her throat hurting.
("Why? Do you genuinely wish to forget me? To forget us and those promises you vowed to keep?" he pleads sadly.)
"Hehehe, you've always known I'm a sinful liar, so what did you expect?" she chuckles brokenly into the quiet.
("Are you still attempting to die?" "Are you still trying to kill yourself even if you know you'll never succeed?" he asks worriedly.)
She shifts her head to the right and looks at his mournful expression, his golden eyes no longer as bright as the first time she came across them. His reddish hair appears velvety on his head, and the few hairs on his chin make him appear older than years ago. The black circles under his eyes imply that he has not slept in a while."You should sleep. You are well aware that a lack of sleep causes wrinkles on the face and a lack of lifespan," she emphasizes.
("Hahhaha" he chuckles loudly at her comments before pointing back at her face, "You are the one who talks. The black circles around your eyes are horrible; are you trying to terrify your suitors?)
She glares at him, brings her glass of whiskey to her mouth, and gulps it down."You're well aware that people hate and fear me. Who is stupid enough to approach me?" she says.
("Oh? Are you certain?" he teases.)
"Stop acting dumb, Odasaku," she pinches his ribs.
("Aye, Aye, aye, okay, I'll stop, but please let me go," he begs, twirling from the pain of her pitches. "But you didn't answer me? So?")
"Yes, I'm trying to quit killing myself recklessly, not because it's pointless, but because I promised him and them. But wanting to die is something else; you know deep down that I will never stop seeking this path of death," she admits, her lungs trembling and her muscles pulsing with pain.
("Dazai, don't lose hope. I believe in you, Always," he says softly, smiling at her.)
"Odasaku, you-" she began but was interrupted by Sanji's voice."Umekui-chan! What are you doing alone in the kitchen at this early hour? And are you smoking and drinking on an empty stomach?!" He inquires worriedly.But when Umekui opens her mouth to tell him that she is not alone, she is merely drinking with Odasaku as usual. She turns to face Odasaku, but all she sees is emptiness. There is no Odasaku, no glass of whiskey, and no cigarette; only her half-empty bottle of whiskey and the burning scent of her cigarette remain.Internally, she laughs hard and loudly, drowning out the shouts and murmurs of her doom. So the madness has taken hold of her mind, and Umekui wants to smack her skull hard against the table, ending in a bloody mess. But she doesn't want to scare Sanji, so she attempts to drown out the anguish and insanity while turning to look at her beloved Sanji."Sorry, Sanji. I just wanted a drink and a cigarette to start the day!" She reassures him before putting out her cigarette in the ashtray. She stands up from her seat, places her glass in the sink, and turns to exit the kitchen."With whom were you talking, Umekui?" he remarks, peering at her."No one." It's certainly Luffy speaking loudly in his sleep again. Speaking of him, I am going to wake him up before Nami suffocates him with her pillow." She lies right away and flees the kitchen.Usopp enters the kitchen and is greeted by Sanji's thoughtful expression. Looking at a half-empty bottle of whiskey, he recognizes that the only person who ingests and enjoys the liquor is his first mate."Did you find Umekui drinking and smocking?" he sighs, well aware that his first mate is the only one who will get up early to smoke and drink on an empty stomach."Yes. Does she do it often?" Sanji demands, glancing at his face."Hum," he nods, "At first, she spent days only smocking and drinking, but a little before arriving in Baratie, she quit because Nami and I persuaded her to stop, but-" he sighs as he looks at the half-empty bottle."I heard her voice in the kitchen through the door and believed she was speaking with you. You are the one who gets up earlier than everyone else. On the other hand, she was alone, smoking and drinking."Ussop frowns at Sanji's remarks. Did his first mate converse alone, or don’t tell him that the Going Merry is haunted by ghosts ?!! that she can see?! His body shivers at the terrifying idea."Don't go to ask her because I already did, and she said it was no one, and I could have heard Luffy's loud voice," he muttered and moved to the counter to start preparing their breakfast.A few moments later, seated at the table with his crew, Ussop casts an odd look at his first mate, who is feeding Luffy. When he spots the bracelet he crafted for her on her wrist, his heart flutters and he smiles dumbly at her, and when she notices his gaze, she winks at him before returning her focus to Luffy."Where is Sanji?" asks Nami."He has left to bring some food to the Mister 9 and Miss Wednesday" he indicated.Umekui shifts her focus away from Luffy and onto them when she hears their guest's name. Zoro seated beside Luffy, exchanges glances with Nami before returning to their first mate."Tell me again. Why does my captain have to be both careless and selfless?" She groans and brings a hand to pinch her nose.Ussop snickers and looks back at her annoyed expression. He liked it when his first mate had those looks on her face; she appeared alive and human. Not an empty person with blank eyes, who appears to be uncertain of why she is still alive?"I don't trust them, Umekui," he says since those new guests seem strange. Not strange like his crewmates, but strange in the way that they are suspicious, and why do they have aliases like that? The only theory he could come up with was that they either are spies or a bunch of idiots who like to use days and numbers as nicknames.Sanji walks into the kitchen, cigarette in mouth, and takes a seat next to his first mate. She retrieves a cigarette from inside her dark green kimono and lights it. Ussop frowns because Sanji told him that when he found her this morning, she had smocked a whole packet, and he wonders how long she was drinking and smoking. And she hasn't eaten since she sat down for breakfast."We should be cautious when we arrive at Whiskey Peak. The town is a bounty hunter island that despises pirates and spends their journeys hunting them down for money. We drop those guests in town and then leave, okay?" She states, narrowing her focus to Luffy. "You heard me clearly, my captain?"With a piece of meat in his mouth, Luffy nods and moves on to his next meal."Why do I have the impression that he didn't listen to Umekui," says Nami with a huff.His first mate gets up from her seat and moves toward the door. "Ussop, after breakfast, meet me in the below deck; we will finish what we have begun," she says."You didn't eat anything, Umekui!" Nami says worriedly, looking at her first mate."Don't worry, Nami-dear. I am not hungry!" Umekui answers and exits the room, closing the door behind her.Ussop grimaced and resumed to eat his breakfast. When Sanji rejoined them, he hoped that with such a wonderful cook as him, his first mate would eat a little more. But nothing has changed; his first mate eats so little, sometimes never, and spends her days drinking and smoking, and does she even sleep? Don't even let him mention the black circles beneath her eyes; even when she masks them with makeup, he can easily see them.Helplessness consumes his bones once more, making his heart as heavy as it was when he was so weak and powerless in the face of his mother's illness. Usopp is a coward and a weak person who is terrified of many things, particularly everything. But nothing scares him more than being impotent in the face of the anguish of those he loves.Yes, he was initially terrified of his first mate. Because only a fool would be unafraid in the presence of someone as powerful as her. But how could he be afraid of her when she spoke to him with such warmth and gentleness that his bones melted? How could he be terrified of his first mate? When she is the first one to fight and protect them in the face of danger. He always hides behind her back out of fear. (She has such a broad and wide back that she could shield him from the world forever if he asked. (And deep inside, Ussop wonders what this back has been through to be so sharp and wide as if the world had already tried many times to break it down).His first mate, who was the first to support him and shared his interest in tools. (All those countless nights she spent with him repairing the going merry or making ridiculous gadgets that would explode in their faces while they laughed). And God, don't even let him tell how her smile and laugh cause birds to flutter in his chest, or how his face bursts in a million sheds of red.Perhaps Usopp is a coward who is terrified of many things, but he will never be afraid of his first mate, who is the first person to protect him from the dangers of the world. Indeed, he is not as strong as his crewmates; he doesn't have Luffy's Devil fruit, Zoro's determination and talent as a swordsman, Nami's intelligence and agility, Sanji's strength and combat skills, and don't even get him started on his mysterious first mate, who appears to have been fighting the world her entire life.But at times when his anxiety causes his head to scream and his knees to tremble, he wishes to be worthy of them. He wants to stand by their side and face the world alongside them, not hide behind them. Because his heart hurts so badly every time he hides behind their back, which appears so far away and tall that he will never reach or stand by their sides.Because what is he doing there with them? Why would Luffy permit him to accompany them when he couldn't even summon a glimmer of their courage and strength? Usopp aspires to be strong and flamboyant, therefore he aims to overcome the fear that clouds his vision.His dream is to become a fearless sea warrior. But when he gazes into the mirror and sees his miserable reflection, he often wonders if dreams will remain just dreams.Miss Wednesday is anxious.The anxiousness that rips your organs from the inside and drains you of your blood as the world around you burns and ashes (the ghost taste of ashes and tears on her tongue causes her young heart to quake and wail). Far away where her home is, ashes and tears are all that people who previously loved her family taste. Sometimes, all she can hear are their cries and slurrs, which makes her body tremble and cry out in unfairness when sleepiness doesn't arrive to help her escape from this life).Mr.9, her partner, sits opposite her in the small room of the ship of those unusual pirates who took the seas on the Grand Line and smiles widely as he eats the food that the blond cook prepared for them. And there's one thing she doesn't understand: those pirates are odd, especially their captain, the straw hat boy. She swears her lungs stopped working as soon as he presented himself as the captain of this crew and the new king of pirates.King of the pirates? Miss Wednesday wishes to laugh aloud at his foolish dream. This boy has no idea what this title means, the future king he claims to be; if only royalty was as simple as choosing yourself as a monarch.The Grand Line will consume him whole, leaving nothing but echoes of his absurd dream in the depths of the ocean.When he's as dumb as allowing her and his partner to travel with them on their ship to Whisky Peak. His foolishness will murder him and his crewmates because dumb people who wear their hearts on their sleeves are the victims of the world (her world, which he is burning in fire and blood) They will be killed (she will be killed).She looked down at the breakfast that the blond cook had given them. (And the way he looked at her with hearts in his eyes and compliments gushing from his mouth made her wonder when it was the last time she was perceived as a woman. Someone with a heart, someone who smiles shyly and blushes at a simple remark. (It's been a long time, so so long, a time when her clothing was made from the best tissues in the world and her chamber was adorned with the most beautiful gold and diamonds in the world). Why would he exhaust himself feeding them when they are going to die ('because of her,' she ignores the obscenities shouting in her head) is beyond her comprehension."Those pirates are strange, surely dumb," says Mr.9 as he finishes his lunch, sighs, and lies on his back. "No one told them that kindness on the Grand Line would kill them?" he groans.He is right. On this vast sea of Grand Line, the first thing that slits your throat is kindness.They may be strong, but they are also kind and dumb. These will be their demise. ( At times, she questions whether she sold her soul to portray a character that makes her feel so repulsive about herself was because of the price of kindness. Did she comprehend that kindness is meaningless in the big scheme of justice? Perhaps it is because she is a sinful traitor who has caught herself in a web of betrayal and blood (even though her heart cries to stop the play, to open the curtains and allow her flesh to soften in her old self, the taste of ashes and tears, and the remainder of screams are the only things pushing her forward and continuing this delusion).She looks down at her partner, Mr. 9. Even though she knows the the taste of ashes, it doesn't stop her from getting entangled in those webs and meeting him. Deep down, she has no regrets. How could she be sad when her partner is so amusing and caring with her, and he considers her as his sole friend? Sometimes she wonders what pushed him to enter this world where blood taints their hands and darkens their hearts every day, and a selfish part of herself thanks him for being the one who makes things less terrifying for her, for still making her laugh and smile when her past stalks her like a shadow.She will always be grateful to him for being himself; even if the brutality sharpened their features for the outside world, she knows that when they look at each other, they simply observe each other. Their self which’s did not darken their eyes from the missions that haunted her, and they refused to let her eyes close freely some nights.Suddenly, the door to the room opens, and she wonders if it's the blond cook who has returned to take their dishes. She raises her gaze, and her red eyes cause her body to shake. (Those eyes were as crimson as the blood that soaks her hands, and as red as the bloods that stain the highways of this faraway country she calls home. Bloody eyes reminded her of tales her mother used to tell her, and they frightened her so terribly that she couldn’t sleep without her mother and father by her side-)."Let me be clear with you. By the time we reach your destination. If any of you try to do something idiotic, such as touch my nakamas. I would kill both of you without hesitation," she declared, smiling. (And this smile seemed so empty and fake, much like the woman in front of her).Mr.9 let out a gasp and gave a serious nod to her threat. She turns her scared gaze on her, realizing that she is also waiting for her reply."Of course. We promise to not touch or do anything stupid to your nakamas," she replies in a trembling voice."Promises are meaningless," she sneers.  "Just stay nice and quiet and my blade will not slit your throat," she says as she opens the door. "You have the field free for walking on the deck. But if I find you entering our rooms, I'll cut your members one by one. I'd rather keep you here all along, but my captain doesn't like the thought of you feeling like prisoners,"She finishes and walks out of the room.Mr.9 let out a breath and stated, "I bet she is worse than Miss All Sundays and the Boss"At the mention of Miss All Sundays and this man, she swallows the lump in her throat; horror encircles her heart, and the prospect of this woman being scarier than those two makes her feel uneasy in her skin. The first time she jumped in front of them, she swears there was something dreadful lying in this woman's eyes, crawling about them like a beast waiting for the right moment to devour them whole. However, when this woman looked at her nakamas and captain, her scarry eyes softened and became more gentle.Her fury towards this woman suddenly flares out. The woman looks at them as if they were dust under her feet, which she can easily remove with a flick of her finger. She had the same stare as Miss All Sundays, one of knowledge and power that the rest of the world seeks and envies. But this face, she had to confess that she is pretty, not just pretty, but beautifully scary, the type of beauty that can make you feel dread and intrigue, and this skin, it seemed paler than the dead and so white that if she approached her, she would see her own reflection.But Miss Wednesday is fully aware of how horrible and dangerous beautiful things can be (albeit the face of this woman is so familiar in her young memories as if she had seen her somewhere before)."We do not care," She says coolly, "We will trap those pirates in Whisky Peak and use their bounty to rise in the ranks." Her voice sounds weird. The coldness in her eyes and words is so unfamiliar to her that she wonders for a minute if the part of herself that she frantically tries to hide in her blood heritage has vanished in flames and tears, like her home)."Let's see how those pirates arrive at Whisky Peak without getting killed by the Grand Line ocean," she adds as she gets up and reaches out her hand to aid her partner.Perhaps she's lost her path in the webs she spun on herself years ago. But she knows one thing for certain: those pirates will die, and their first mate scares her more than anything else. (And it's been so long since she's felt this kind of terror; the last time she did, she stopped her thoughts from crashing into her mind and reminding her of the sadness she felt that day).They must come up with a plot to murder this woman because, in this new world that has taught her body and mind to survive, it's kill or be killed.       The pain in Umekui's head is so intense that she feels like tearing out her hair and setting her head on fire. She tries desperately to stop the quivering of her hands and fights the urge that whispers and tempts her to harm herself.Standing on the deck, the horizon of the dreadful sea of Grand Line is beforehand her, but all she sees is an ocean of blood and hears souls screaming and wailing down beneath the waves beckoning to her. To devour and absorb them in this horrific mural she painted all over her body, soaking herself in their blood, lives, dreams, and souls.The curse got worse with each passing day, and she lost feeling in her own body. She feels strange in this body that has harmed her so many times, but she doesn't find anything uncommon in the dirty blood coursing through her veins, chanting this madness, this desire for death that is so familiar to her. She accepted long ago that this curse and blood were hers to bear; she may cry and scream, yet the shadows of her power were the only echoes that would respond.Closing her eyes, she immerses herself in the darkness that is devouring her. She feels and sees the five souls of the new path she chose, that this boy created for her. Five lights, each with their own scent and warmth, make her weak heart shiver and draw her to them like a desperate child. (Child? Something of her inhumanity could never have been a child; a child does not kill, rob, or harm; a child is not a monster. The only child she has knows-(Her skull hurts, and this warehouse of memories yells with indignation).She opens her eyes and clenches her fists.Somewhere ahead in this paradise, the world awaits her, greed and bloodlust tattooed on their features, while others lurk in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to take her back to where nightmares and her blood decorated the halls and her screams reverberated like a melody for them to hear. (They can't, they can't, they can't, they can't, they can't, they can't, she refuses! They can't take her; she's already been through so much! She indeed deserves everything she's been through, but can they truly let her exist and escape this web of fates that surrounds her entity ?).Can the world please allow her to go with her nakamas? Can't they just let her live with her loved ones? Can they simply let her—Blood erupts in her throat, choking her. She can't throw up. So she simply swallowed back the blood that had damaged her since the beginning. She can't, because her nakamas are someplace on the deck behind her.She can't keep worrying them. She cannot take the prospect of being the cause of their anguish and tears. She promised Zoro that she would be good and that no one would suffer due to her worthless self. (She can't because so many people have died and suffered because of her (and all that remains of them are their screams and souls haunting her and torturing her from within, as well as the sins she executed against them).Suddenly, something cold and soft falls over her nose. She lifts her face to the sky, and all she sees is white, so much white; coldness falls from the sky. It's snowing; she raises her hand, and some flakes fall across her bandaged hands. The snow in her hand does not melt when it comes into contact with her body; instead, it remains icy, much like her frozen body, like the damaged heart inside her that makes her feel so cold and lonely. As she looks at the flakes descending from the ruthless sky, her mind transports to this warehouse of memories that she wishes to forget beyond all else. 
"HA TAKE THAT!" someone yells, throwing a snowball at Dazai's face.

Her eyebrow twitches with annoyance as she looks at the boy in front of her.

"Do not tell me you are allergic to snow? It never snows here, so it's an excellent opportunity to play!" The dark orange-haired lad snickers, his blue eyes fixed on her irritated expression.

"It's childish," she sneers as she kicks the snow at her feet (she despises everything in this land, and if the sky could paint the place white and hide their sins, her blood would always be there to cover it up).
 
"You're so lame! You don't need to look at me that way! We have a little time until they track us; isn't this an excellent opportunity to enjoy the snow?" He offers, extending his little hand for her to take.

As she stares at his hand, her hands shake and so does her small heart. She really wants to grasp his hand, but she fears hurting him. She looks down at her hands, and all she sees is blood, soaking them entirely and overflowing the snow floor under her. Her blood cannot touch him since it is cursed and so rotten that it may consume his bones and soul, leaving nothing of the cute child in front of her.
 
Another snowball hits her face, and she raises her head to stare at his snickering face.

'Ugh, this boy,' she huffs before kneeling and taking two snowballs in each hand. She throws them at him and strikes him hard in the face.

"it will teach you to be so annoying, stupid carrot," she says with a smirk.

"How did you call me, bandages bin ?" He sneers and then jumps at her like a cat.

Their little bodies land hard on the white floor. The snow soaked her body and bandages, and her dark short hair was coated. His blue eyes stare at her whole as if he is looking for something on her face; irritated by his actions, her fierce red eyes glare at him.

Then he stunned her by flashing a broad smile.

"What?"

"I knew it," he admits openly.

"What did you know?" she demands, her gaze scorching holes in his face.
 
"That you look good in the snow," he replies with a broad, warm smile (which no one deserves. The entire world does not deserve him, yet it is terrible to allow her to see this gorgeous grin and feel the scorching fire of his soul).

"Idiot!" she exclaims, pushing him away from her, attempting to calm the redness that is spreading across her face and ears.

"Come let's-"

A shadowy voice from behind demands out, "Dazai."

As she turned her sight to meet the man's gaze, she swears she could feel her blood stop flowing to her heart and her eyes become vacant and empty, consuming the light that caused her red eyes to flare.
 
The man extended a hand toward her.

She moves toward him and takes his frigid hand in her little one; these are the hands that Dazai would never be frightened to take and touch, the hands that ripped her to pieces and haunt her nightmares. The hands soaked in blood like her small hands, the hands that understand the feeling of killing lives, the hands who dared to steal countless lives as if they didn't matter in the grand scheme of their terrible and wicked path.

Monster hands, because that is exactly what she is: a monster.

The only ones that accepted the origins of her existence, saw the creature inside her, welcomed it with a huge black smile on their faces, and embraced her as one of their own. Dazai could always take monsters' hands in her monstrous ones since monsters only deserve monsters; nonetheless, she was simply the seed of her own depravity's evil.

"Here you are, my perfect prodigy"

Her heart cracks as she steps into the darkness where she belongs, but she reluctantly turns her head and looks at the kid standing feet away in the snow. His blue eyes sadly look at her fleeing self (and she just wants to shout at him that it's her fate, that it's what she deserves, and that she doesn't need his pity. She doesn't need his kindness, smiles, compliments,  she doesn’t need HiM!!).

He is someone who was dragged into the darkness after being born in the light.

But, since her inception, she has been born in the darkness; it is her only road, her only life (and as a result, she must die). She needs to put an end to this hell-and she pledges, in this sea of blood where she is drowning, that she will release him and push him back to the light he has always belonged).

she pledges that her death will be his freedom.

‘You look good in the snow.’

'No. You're wrong. Nothing can improve my appearance or make me feel better. Not with your sad eyes when you gaze at me! But you! You appear ethereal in the snow, and when all is finished, you will be free. You will see the world through those blue eyes, and there will be a lot of places where the snow never stops, and you will be free to play with all the snowballs in the world! I promise you, Chuuya!'
 Umekui blinked at the sound of her dear captain's voice, allowing her thoughts to push back the memories that were playing in her head. "UME!" yells Luffy, storming into the deck barely covered with a short; his wet hair indicates that Ussop was able to grab and shower Luffy.She runs towards him, removing her red haori from her shoulders. She immediately covers his body and drapes it over his wet head."My captain! You can't go out when it's this cold and snowing; you'll get sick!" She scolds softly, worries visible on her pale face."But, Ume! I wanted to play in the snow since it's the first time in my life I've seen and touched it," he pouts, his eyes looking at her so lovely that she wants to pull her heart out and offer it to him in a plate of meat."I understand, but you can't stay half naked like that," she explains as she compels him to put on her dark haori, securing it tightly around him so he doesn't remove it. She takes a step back and looks at him; the color red suits him perfectly, he looks stunning in it."You look good in red, Captain," she compliments."Shi shi shi, thank you, Ume! But not like you! You look so pretty in the snow!" He smiled broadly at her, glittering eyes fixed on her as if she were the most valuable thing in his life.Her heart flutters.
"You look good in the snow," he says, his smile broad.
Something inside breaks and weeps loudly.(Please do not be another tragedy in my cursed life, Luffy! Please do not end up like them, please, please, please, so please never leave me!)She grabs Luffy in her arms and hugs him tightly (hoping to die in his arms and melt into his flesh). Luffy laughs and lovingly embraces her, cradling her frigid heart in his fiery soul with care and love (which she knows she will never deserve).'Please, Luffy, never leave me', she begs him internally. Allowing the fractures in her frail heart to agony, she begs this boy not to be another wound that forces her to ask death to take her away.They hug each other as if the miserable world did not exist. They hugged like two people exploring the earth (such silly wishes, she could never be human, how could she be human when something is devouring and erasing her from the world).Two friends embracing each other and allowing their hearts to be cradled by the warmth they share. Two beings destined for so many things that the sky could only cry out in sorrow, while the sea laughs viciously at their fate.Here, in the middle of the sea that foolish men call Paradise, between death and life, tragedy and fortune, the cursed monster falls for a boy who wears his heart on his sleeve and freedom worships him in his blood, and somewhere in the dark abyss of Paradise, the condemned souls and preposterous deity bear well the remains of this tune, the tales that played in a century when calamity and freedom were Gods.The wheel of fortune has started spinning and the world awaits the fate of these newcomers on the path of tragedy."We have arrived at Whisky Peak!" Nami shouts from the upper deck.She lowers the desk sword in front of her and stares down at the panting Zoro at her feet. She extends a hand to lift him, and he gratefully accepts it in his, his hard, strong hand will never cease to make her quiver from its warmth.He gets two towels off the floor, wipes the sweat from his face with one, and then holds the other out for her to do the same."Zoro," she calls out.He removes the towel from his face and gives her a curious look."You are very familiar with this island, right? As an ancient bounty hunter." She queries,"yes, those fuckers reached me many times to be a part of them, but every time I refuse them," he says."We have to be careful, okay? Nami informed me that we cannot take the sea till the loge pose has settled. So we must remain on this island, you know what I mean," she continues, her crimson eyes shining with the desire to see bloodshed;"Of course. We kill those fuckers and go out," he smirks harshly at her, his handsome face shining from the rays of the sundeck peeking through the window.She chuckles and extends her fist at him, prompting Zoro to hit his fist back in. The two crewmates smirked at each other, darkly fantasizing about how they would beat to death those hunters who sought them. This island will trap them in a game of hunting, with prey and hunters. But those silly men and women don't realize that they are the prey, while she and Zoro are the hunters.Marching side by side till they reach the deck, she and Zoro tease each other as they always do, allowing his soul to wrap her heart in harsh protectiveness mild enough to make her eyes soften as she looks at his attractive face. His grey eyes, this color, were more lovely than any blade she had ever seen. She stares fondly at his sun-kissed face, jealous of the warm and passionate rays that caress his cheeks (Because she understands that something within her entity cannot craddles him and embrace his flesh like the sun does every day).As they arrived at Whiskey Peak Port, they could hear cheers and laudatory remarks all around them. However, she could only detect lies and wickedness in them, and the beast within was eager to eat them all and feast on their blood."THEY ARE HERE THE HEROES OF THE SEA!""THE COURAGEOUS WARRIORS PIRATES!""WELCOMES! WELCOMES PIRATES!" Their words make her want to puke due to their hypocrisy and stupidity. Only stupid idiots will believe their words blindly. If they thought they were going to believe them, they can put a finger in their ass-"WOW!" beamed Luffy and Ussop, delight flowing from their features, "THEY LOVES US YOUHOU!"Never mind. Of course, Luffy and Usopp will believe anything they say; after all, they are her dumb nakamas.Seating foot on this town, she ignores as a man with strange hair introduces himself and invites her crewmates to join them to narrate their adventures around food. With Nami and Zoro at her side, seated at a table where a spar of booze is prepared, she stands up, makes eye contact with Zoro, nods, and goes to sit on a sofa by her captain, who is devouring the entire table.Ussop is a little away, narrating some stories that are undoubtedly lies (but even if they are lies, Ussop is the second person in this world from whom she enjoys hearing tales and stories; she enjoys observing his face as he talks about things he loves and made up in his head, or the way his dimples are so cute that she always melts when she looks at them-).Sanji sits at another table, with women fawning all around him, hearts erupting from his eyes as he enjoys the women's attention and touches. (And the sight of these ladies embracing him makes her feel so awful inside that she becomes even more disgusted with herself than before).Zoro and Nami are competing in their familiar booze competition, with Nami shattering the score as usual.Umekui chuckles, "That's my girl.""What is making you chuckle, beautiful lady?" a blond-haired girl says as she sits alongside her."Yes, tell us, fairy lady,," adds a black-haired man who sits on her opposite side.She refrains from thinking about cutting their throats and calms her impulse to hurt them. As she glances into their souls, she notices something intriguing and smirks to herself.
'Interesting, they also abilities users.'
"It's my girlfriend that's making me laugh," she explains as she stares at a laughing Nami."Girlfriend?" they both asked.She nods and continues to stare at her nakamas while keeping an eye on Luffy a few steps away from while he is eating anything."Here, the barman made you a specialty he calls 'bourbon of tears,'" says the dark-haired boy, handing her a drink.She takes the glass from him and notices him smirking darkly with his sister. Oh dear; She's excited to kill them.She swallows it in one sip and scoffs internally since those fools thought poison would kill her. (If they knew how many poisons she had consumed in her life and tortured herself with, they would piss in their pants. Poison is nothing; it can hardly damage her; it is severe but it does not kill, therefore it can never kill her. (If it could, she would be dead years ago), but it feeds her filthiest blood with poison, making her veins crinkle and burn, and the desire to slice them causes her finger to tighten around the glass."So, what is your name?" asks the blonde girl, her red lips curled in a smirk and her green eyes scrutinizing her."Umekui," she says coolly, as she places a cigarette in her mouth and lights it, igniting the tip."Umekui hen? It's a strange name," comments the black-haired boy."Humm, Ume-kui, also translated as "Dream eater" muses a loud the blonde one, then she smirks and gazes at her with a dark smile, "Ne Umekui, Are you going to consume our dreams?"Umekui's hand froze and remained immobile. She shuts her eyes and takes a strong pull on her cigarette, allowing the smoke to infiltrate her already rotten lungs and burn everything to ashes on the inside, allowing this filth to stain her organs black just as it has her head and heart are.She chuckles, catching green eyes with her red ones."Depends on it. Are they tasty?" she inquires.The blonde woman licked her lips with her tongue before staring at her twin and opening her cunning mouth to say, "Of course. Nothing tastes better than blood and death, right Umekui Dazai?"Umekui laughs loudly as soon as she hears the cursed name, drawing the entire room's attention to her. Her nakamas from their seats stare at their laughing first mate, who is accompanied by a blond woman and a dark-haired youngster who appear to be twins."Ume, What's funny?" Luffy asks from his seat, meat on his palms."Nothing, Captain. Just this lady here made me have a peculiar thought?" She adds, narrowing her eyes on the blonde, "Ne Can you two have a brief tour outside?"As the blonde woman and dark-haired males get up, she stands up from her seat, looks around the room, makes eye contact with Zoro, and nods, to which he responds firmly.She walks her captain, smiling sweetly, gently laying her hand on his silky hair, his straw hat sits in front of him on the table where many meals are disposed of."Do you believe in me, my captain ?" She asks, looking down at him with loving eyes and an elegant grin on her face."Of course, Ume!" he exclaims, bright and warm."Then eat all you want, my captain. And in the end, I'll be back by your side," she says, caressing his soft hair and allowing her fingers to imprint the feel of them on her fingers as her new imprints."Okay, Ume! Have fun," he says, returning his attention to his food.She withdraws her hand and turns to leave the room, feeling the souls of those waiting for her outside. The chilly breeze of the night on her face greets her outside, causing her to lose her grin, as she senses something nefarious growing in her."Well, I never imagined that the famed Dazai could put a smile on their faces and converse with people without consuming them in blood. It feels awful disgusting." Her red eyes deepen as the nothingness grasps the threads, and she lifts her eyes to stare at the two ability users in front of her. " YES! This is the look that we want from you! The authentic facet of something disastrous like you! The previous mafia member! A monster among humans, an anomaly among mortals, hahhahahah," laughs hysterically the blonde woman, glaring at Umekui with hatred on her face."You asked if we have a dream ?" The black-haired twin sneers, his green eyes flashing with resentment. "Yes. Actually, we have one; it has sickened our hearts and raised our legs with grief. It's filled our hearts with wrath. Our dream is to assassinate the murderer of our elder brother. It's you, Dazai! Our dream is to kill you!" He sneers, spitting out her name with venom."Brother?" she asks casually, tilting her head. "I don't remember killing your older brother, yet I have killed over a thousand humans, so I believe your brother is a nameless, faceless human among others," She shrugged, her red lips shrieking in a devilish smirk."We are going to kill you, YOU MONSTER!" yells the blonde woman, her eyes filled with wrath and tears."I would have loved to be killed by you months ago, but I have a promise to keep, so your way ends here," She smirks, feeding off the twins' hatred and rage.(They may detest her until she dies until she atones for all of her misdeeds, and until she begs the gods to kill her. But she deserves it—their hatred, their wrath. They can scream and cry until they die, but nothing can erase what she did and what she is. Their tears and screams will never bring back their older brother-oh. She remembers now, ahahhahahah, what a cruel fate. She could have known it from the tingle of their familiar abilities and the floral scent of cherries (she knows just one person who smells like that, from the light blonde hair of the woman and the perceptive green eyes of her twin-).'Is this the small brother and sister you were talking about, Izu? They've grown up well,' she thought as she examined them. Her heart aches at the thought of this person, and the shouts and voices inside her head slurred with sheer horror.
Marching in the garden at the place where Izumi sold his soul, to protect those he cares about and exact retribution on those who have wronged him and his family.

He stops when he hears someone whimper and looks around, but no one is there. However, as he approaches some bushes, the sound becomes more audible. Peering through the bushes, his gaze is captured by short dark hair, and a little child is on all fours, hiding their face. Stepping through the bushes toward the child, he was struck by a glare of dark flaming red eyes.

It's a small girl.

Dark short hair that could be mistaken for a little boy, red blazing eyes that are filled with rage against the world. Dressed in a black kimono with large gold earrings in each ear. Before he could speak and ask if she's been hurt, the tiny girl tackles him on the floor and points a blade to his throat and another at his heart.

"Calm down! I mean no harm!" He raises his hands over his head to prove that he is innocent and does not want to hurt her.

"It's him who sent you?!" she sneers.

"Who? I don't know who you're talking about!" He justifies himself: "I am new here! My name is Izumi." He introduces himself, expecting that the enraged girl will relax.

She brought her face closer to his and stared deeply into his eyes, as if she could read what was inside him, inside his heart.

"Did you know that you are weak?" she asks, tilting her head.

'Who the fuck is this brat?'

"Yes, I know; I don't need a small child to tell me," he grumbles, staring slightly at her.

The sight of flames devouring his homeland, the horrible odor of burning flesh, the memory of his mother and father's ashes. His grieving siblings hold hands as they watch fires and wars annihilate everything they once loved. The ghost feeling of weakness and hopelessness pierced his heart and scorched his cheeks with tears as he consoled his younger sibling.

"Your ability is interesting," she responds after a brief pause. " I believe you have one of the strongest abilities. But you are weak; your heart, soul, and body are all weak inside of you." She stares at him, swanning his body with her scarlet crimson eyes.

"You are weird, little kid," he remarks.

The youngster stares at him, sighs, and finally rises from him, concealing her daggers inside her kimonos. She lies on her back next to him, forming a star, and looks up at the grey sky with a longing expression.

"Are you hurt? I heard you whimpering," he says nervously to the young infant beside him.

This child is indeed odd and atypical, but he can't help but be concerned; as an older brother, Izumi can't control how he feels when he sees a child in agony as if he can't bear to see his precious twins in anguish. (He will safeguard them, establish a world free of wars and sorrow, and love and protect them until the end as their sole family and big brother).

"Actually, yeah, I am in excruciating pain. So, can you do a favor for this child by killing me?" She demands an ample display of flowers surrounding her.

"EH?!!!" he gasped. Seriously, which child is that, and how could she expect him to murder her?

"Never mind, it would be a shame to be killed by a weak person," she mutters, her gaze fixed on the sky.

"You are rude, you know that?" he says, as he looks at the young child sprawled on the green grass.

"I know and I don't care," the kid says, unconcerned about him.

"I introduced myself and you didn't even bother to tell me your name!" he says with a huff.

Her ruby eyes meet his gaze and narrow like a feline.

"My name is Dazai, weak-ass!"

His face heats at the child's foolish remarks and insults.

"If my little brother and sister talk like you one day, I hope I'm already dead," he says to himself, because it would be a nightmare for him to see his precious brother and sister speak vulgar language like this small girl.

"Where do you come from, Izu?" She asks in an unconcerned tone, as if she is bored and tired of this existence, and believes that speaking with him will help her forget about it.

"The Kingdom of Yeol," he whispers, referring to the land that is burning and covered in blood.

"Aren't this kingdom at war with the twin kingdom of Seol?" the child says in a flat tone as if the prospect of war bores her.

He nods at her words, "Yes, it's been done for 30 years. The two brothers of this country have chosen to engage in conflicts, with the winner uniting the two kingdoms into one empire."

"Such dumb brothers," sighs the child. "Do you want to kill them, Izu?" a crimson eye peers at him.

"Kills?" he wonders aloud. "Perhaps yes,  since their selfish right and war killed my mother and father. My homeland was burned to ashes,, and now my younger brother and sister are orphans. But what can I do against royals when everything in me is weak?" he sighs, staring down at his hands.

"Be strong, then. Survive here, and if you can do it, kings will be nothing in your way, Izumi," she says, standing up, the wind chattering about them, her crimson eyes shining as if she had already bathed in blood and annihilated hell.  "Then the rage within you will burn back those who have reduced your homeland to ashes," she said, before leaving.

Izumi sat down and blinked hard, wondering how someone so young could talk and act like that.

'Dazai,' he repeats in his thoughts, to never forget the strange boy who inspired him to fight and survive.

A few months later, when the winter cold is as brutal as the training that Izumi endures, he spots small short black hair dark as a moonless night while walking through the halls.

"Dazai!" he screams as he races towards her.

A single crimson eye looks at him with hate, but the wrath fades when she recognizes him.

"Izu?" she whispers.

"Yes, it's me. I'm glad you didn't forget me!" He pointed out, beaming brightly at her and moving the blond curls of his hair away from his green eyes.

"You don't seem weak as the first time I saw you," she remarks.

He takes note of the new bandages covering her right eye and points at it with concern.

"Are you alright? What happened to your eye?" he questions worriedly.

"Nothing. Just an accident," she murmurs, reaching for her bandage with a shaky palm.

A troubled expression crosses his face as he delves into his pockets and takes out a bunch of cherries.

"Here. When my younger brother and sister hurt themselves, I usually give them cherries to cheer them up," he explains happily, holding her little hand in his own and trying hard to ignore the shaking in it while offering her the cherries.

"Cherries?" she repeats, as if she had never seen or eaten them before. Then she places one in her mouth and eats it. "It's sweet and good," she replies, looking carefully at the cherry on her hand. "Thank you, Izu," she whispers quietly, avoiding her gaze from him.

Izumi quietly smiles at her, the image of his sibling morphing in front of him. Then his eyes turn into a sorrowful shade as he looks at the bandages that wrap her; this place, this hell, is not for children, and he wonders why Dazai ended up here. She deserves so much better; she can live a better life in the outer world and be free, ignorant to the weight of blood and agony.

Before turning around and leaving her, he raises a hand toward her hair and gently caresses it, "Take care, Dazai"

Two years later, Izumi, his face soaked in tears and blood, looks up at the little girl he once known as Dazai. But when he looked at her, he observed a monster in disguise; how could she tear someone alive from the inside and behead another without blinking?

"How could you? How can you bear all this blood on your hands like it's nothing?" he asks her, his voice thwarted.

Dazai stares down at him with those vacant dark red eyes that scare him to the core because he would bet that something evil is living in them. "How?" she repeated slowly, the blood in her palms soaking the floor under her. "Sometimes there is no "How", Izumi. Sometimes that's how it is. Blood is insignificant on our ultimate road, Izumi."

After this occurrence, Izumi fled and returned to his home, where he remained for five months. Even though his sleepless nights threatened to twist his head into madness, his little brother and sister, the gems of his life, were the strings that kept him together.

All the blood he spilled, all the lives he killed because he believed that if he was stronger, he would be able to reclaim his homeland and end the war, hahahaha, what an absurd idea.

He, who thought he was a hero to his family to reclaim his homeland, turned out to be a villain more evil than those who massacred his parents.

He is far more horrible than the selfish rulers who massacred everything in their pursuit of power and land. How can he look at his brother and sister and not feel guilty for all the lives he has murdered, for all the children who have seen him murder their families in front of their eyes? (Why? Why?Why?Why?Why?Why?why ?why ?why ?why ? Why is the world so cruel? Why is he continuously used as a pawn for the selfish ones?

Standing in his room, Izumi could hear footsteps approaching from behind.

"Izumi. You are sentenced to death for desertion," proclaims a calm voice from behind. (However, Izumi recognizes this person's voice. He knows dearly the voice of this little girl who once escaped to hide in the bushes and devoured cherries with him, forgetting about the rest of the world).

"Dazai," he says, turning around to look into dark red empty eyes.

"The Port Mafia owns your soul, It is to us that it returns"

Her pale face is expressionless as she looks at him as if he is nothing more than a mere stranger whom she has been assigned to eliminate. He smiles softly at her, a sad and nostalgic smile as he recalls the small child he once met for the first time rather than this girl bereft of life and emotions.

"Do you realize that this existence will never have meaning for you? Tell me, do the souls you slaughtered torment you every night, as mine do when I can't sleep? Do you still hear them scream and cry? Do you feel human with all of that blood on your hands? DO YOU?! TELL ME, DAZAI!" he yells brokenly, tears streaming down his cheeks.

Her crimson eyes glance up at the tears on his face to his shaking hands.

"I never said I was human, Izu. So if this humanness resonating inside me and coursing through my veins can keep everything from coming back at me and ensuring that I never forget the weight of my transgressions, then the answer is no."

"So, what are you? What are you if not human, Dazai?! What are you if you can't even erase the blood off your hands?!"

Izumi feels pain.

Not the anguish that pulls his mind apart and breaks him, but the pain of something piercing you alive, causing your heart and lungs to burn and your blood-filled throat to choke you. Feeling death dance around you one final time before taking your soul to hell. (Because there is his place, where the soul of someone like him should be, in the flames of hell, suffering for all of his sins). He looks down at the hand that is piercing him and palming his heart, then up at the girl who is holding his heart.

Dazai then rests her forehead on his shoulder, preventing him from seeing his cold murderer's face for the final time. (Even if all he sees is a monster before him. Izumi will never forget the child he met for the first time in this place. The young girl who was a light in his hell, even if she was strange and rude for a small child, Izumi will never forget the way her eyes lit up every time he gave her cherries, or how he could tell her all about his loving siblings. How could he forget her when Izumi adored her like an elder brother?)

"I don't know, Izu," Dazai replied softly in his ear, her voice trembling at his nickname.

Lifting a shaky hand to cup Dazai's face and gently urging her to meet her gaze. Her eyes are so empty and despairing that after a long time,, Izumi smiles widely at the feelings in her gaze. Because, even if this girl is immersed in blood and darkness, all Izumi sees is a small child whom he adores and treats as if she were his sibling.

Then he considers that if he was her true older brother, Dazai would never have known the cost of blood and death on her hands. If he had been her true brother in another life, he could have protected her from the brutality of the world.

She would have grown up in love with Hana and Haru, watching them play in flower meadows and laughing like all other children around the world. He would have made her all the best cherry cakes in the world.

In another existence, he would have lived in a world free of wars, without Dazai paying the price for the greedy ones.

However, this is reality. There's no other life for him; he is wrong, because Dazai has been one of the world's most treacherous creatures since the beginning, and his death is her retribution.

Izumi murmurs his dying words to Dazai as he feels his soul and ability leave him. The trembling of her cold body against his own was the last thing he felt before death took him.

Two days later following the devil prodigy Dazai's execution of Izumi Hogosha. The destruction of the kingdoms of Yeol and Seol is signaled all across the world, causing the world government and people to shudder in their seats. After 33 years, the conflict scorching Yeol and Seol is ended and the population of Yeol and Seol vanishes into nothingness.
Her stomach hurts. Yet of course being stabbed by a sword hurt, Umekui wonders as she reaches for the blade and pulls it away from her, blood erupting and soaking her stomach and floor in red."I never thought you, Dazai, could bleed red like us," chuckles the blonde woman. Her brother, close to his twin sisters, sneers at Umekui, "Why aren't you fighting back? Our brother could not have been slain by something so weak! Fight!" he yells at her."Ne, Izu never told me that his loving younger sister and brother are so rude. Yet, I don't blame you, Hana and Haru." Umekui chuckles, spitting blood from her large lips."How do you know our names?" shouts Hana, glaring at Umekui.Umekui reaches for her locks of hair, which are impeding her eyesight. She tilts her head in response to Hana's stupid request."Because Izu told me about you. His beloved young sister and brother. He even told me about the time you trained to swim and Hana drowned because she was afraid of fish, or how Haru began to cry about his sister, you were quiet and cried baby Haru," Umekui chuckles lightly, gazed at them with a hidden softness, "Oh, even this time when you two tried to cook his breakfast and ended up drenched in flour and breaking all the dishes-""SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" Hana yells violently, her eyes welling with tears. "YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO TELL THE NAME OF THE MAN YOU MERCILESSLY KILLED! YOU DO NOT HAVE THIS RIGHT BECAUSE YOU KILLED HIM! YOU KILLED OUR ONLY FAMILY!" "So, you're going to pay for your crime! We are going to kill you to ensure that you will suffer in the flames of hell forever with sorrow and regret for devouring your bones!" Haru exclaims, his hands glowing with the power of his ability.
'Pay for her crimes?'
Isn't her twisted existence the retribution for her crime? Is the blood on her hands and the souls she steals not the punishment that tragedy has heaped upon her? Is it possible, Dazai, that this name, this bearer of tragedy and ruin, is not the driving force behind her painful existence? Didn't she pay, bleed, and suffer enough?But what is enough? Who is able to determine this? Because if the deities above her, who rule over them from their gory thrones, are the only ones who can determine what "enough" is, then Umekui desires her death because the answer will be "never". But is "never" the endless tragedy that she is forced to endure over and over, allowing her darkness to imprison the world's valuable souls? Oda, Izu, and other souls that Umekui attempts so vigorously to forget and omit the feels of their fingers wrapping her heart with guilt and ache. Oh dear, her heart screams and cries, and Umekui's eyes cannot even cry.But how disgusting of her to believe that tears will cleanse her from the darkness mocking inside her with dread? Tears can never wash away her misdeeds, nor will they cleanse her of blood, since this is her fate: to obliterate everything, leaving her wailing alone and hating fate for her existence.The howls weal inside her like charred humans, with her darkness and fire reducing everything to ashes.As Umekui breaks free from the bandages on her hands, the flavor of cherry in her mouth is like blood and dirt. The full moon illuminates her cursed hands, which are familiar with the sensations of blood and ashes on her fingertips (yet all Umekui wants to experience is the soft sensation of her Nakama flesh on her fingertips).Her scarred body burns with shame, and Umekui seeks to get rid of them because when blood soaks her hands, it only erases one thing: the sight of her scars.As the twins charge at her, Umekui activates one of the cursed abilities she was cursed to possess and steal: Izumi's ability (And she truly wants to cry and scream for forgiveness because it is her fault! It's her fault! It's her fault! It's her fault!).
(IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! IZUMI! FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME! )
(The things inside her laugh cruelly, mocking her frail heart and mind. And let the power swallow them whole, the ability to contaminate her blood with venom) her veins hurt, her organs crip and scream, her pulse beats so quickly that she is sure he will explode again in her chest, and the bitter taste of blood chokes her throat with disgust).Umekui is drowning again, and there is no land in sight because no one or nothing can be the shore of something as unlovable as her.As the Haru and Hana swords penetrated her stomach, she grabbed their shoulders and slowly pulled them closer to her body, hugging them firmly and close like the final thing she had done to their older brother."Hey, what are you doing?" yells Hana."Let us go!" shouts Haru.The twins struggled to break free from Umekui's grip, but their efforts were futile because Umkui's's grip was hard and motionless. But when they try to activate their abilities to help them escape her grip, their power does not respond, as if it never been, leaving them feeling empty."Izu was kind and compassionate, and he adored you. I admit that a part of me envied his love for you. Because no one knows how to love me the way Izu does to his siblings. I'm not going to apologize for his death since he'll never come back. But it was for his own good; his death was his freedom--" she says softly, her eyes blank as she rests her face between their shoulders."What do you know about freedom when you are full of destruction!" Hana yells fiercely.Hana is wrong. Umekui knows that freedom is something she will never have; freedom is this straw hat boy, her beloved sun, who shines brightly in the darkness of her monster. Freedom is Luffy, and Umekui could never have Luffy. Luffy is destined to shine as the globe's brightest sun, explore the world, and save humanity. He is the one that the world has been waiting for."You are right, Hana. My bones are black, my heart is empty, and the walls of my throat are resounding with death. Everything about me is full of devastation. Everything I touch and grow near will inevitably be destroyed by me, since that is what I am: a destroyer. But I can't die now; I have to watch this ascent of freedom that I was seeking and Izumi yearned for as well-so I'm sorry, sorry for not letting me kill me and revenge Izu," she says with a raw voice twitch from the blood strangling her. "So forgive me, Haru and Hana," she hugs them tighter, as they try to break free from her grip. "When everything will end. Wait for me in the afterlife and punish and torture me again for the crime I committed against your family." Her abilities burn, the blood flows, and all she wants to do is claw her hands until skin melts against her nails."THIS ABILITY," Hana exclaims, sensing the familiar force."IT'S ONI-SAMA'S ABILITY!" cries Haru, terrified."I'm sorry, Izu," Umekui says softly, as the ability burns her palm and fingertips.When Hana and Haru come into contact with the ability burning her palm, they dissolve into dust in her grasp. Umekui lets out a quivering breath and falls on her knees on the corpses of Izu's young sister and brother."Didn't I already kill enough?" she asserts quietly, staring unblinkingly at her twitching hands. The numerous scars on her flesh felt like humiliation, squeezing the knot in her throat and making her want to scream into the moonlight of night. Then her stomach twists in disgust, and her mind shouts out bloody memories.Umekui recalls Izumi's last words as if he had uttered them to her yesterday.
("I'm glad you killed me before I turned a monster like you, Dazai," Izumi says as life fades from his eyes. Dazai couldn't stop the shaking of her hands due to the blood on them, feeling so dirty and heavy. The bitter taste of blood on her tongue felt like a sacrilege, and she wished to cut this tongue that dared speak 'Izu' name with a gentleness repugnant from something of her monstrosity).
(I'm glad that you killed me before I turn into a monster like you, Dazai, I'm glad that you killed me before I turn into a monster like you, Dazai, I'm glad that you killed me before I turn into a monster like you, Dazai,I'm glad that you killed me before I turn into a monster like you, Dazai,I'm glad that you killed me before I turn into a monster like you, Dazai,I'm glad that you killed me before I turn into a monster like you, Dazai,I'm glad that you killed me before I turn into a monster like you, Dazai,I'm glad that you killed me before I turn into a monster like you, Dazai.)Can this mend the distorted part of her that wishes Izu's death were his freedom? Right, death set him free from the vile world in which they lived? Death freed him from the selfish hold of madness, as the nightmares torched his mind and heart in the darkness Umekui is acquainted to, right? Right ? Right ? Right ? Right ? Right ? Right ?!!!!? Then, when will death claim her as well, releasing her from this harsh reality?The blood-drenched the floor around her, transforming into a lake of blood and terror. The dark void's gaze on her is such a sorrowful sight that she's sure the gods are laughing hard and loudly, taunting her like the creature trapped within her. (Or is she the one trapping it? Is she truly the void vessel that history describes her to be?The dark green kimono, which Nami chose to wear today, is filthy from her poisonous blood. Umekui's throat aches and hurts, and she whimpers as she crouches on all fours, covering her ears to prevent listening to the screams that harass her. Umekui is well aware of her inward tiredness. This feeling of being exhausted and sick of the world, sick of blood, sick of breathing, and sick of enduring when she must die, die like Oda, Izu, Hana, and Haru, like him, like them (so many names, so little time, and innumerable tragedies).Her lungs trembled like caged birds' wings, and the whimpering from her lips could only peer ashamed glances at her empty eyes, devoid of tears. (Oh, how she is exhausted and hurt; this world drained her so deeply that it merely expanded the hole inside her with darkness and loss).Let this floor shallow her entirely so that her body briefly finds Odasaku six feet below.(because, even though the selfish part of her wants to forget him, her heart yearns for him like a flame. She misses him so terribly that she finds it difficult to breathe and live in this world without him. Even if he died because of her! Please let her be selfish another time, and let her feel his kind gentle hands soothing her head, gaze at his soft eyes that look at her with a gentleness that makes her crawl within her bones and hides-please just one more time).
("Sleep, Dazai. You've fought enough today, rest well my dear. I'll take care of you," Odasaku murmurs to Uemkui while massaging her scalp with his fingertips).
Yes, Umekui lost her sanity a long time ago, and madness took a part of her and molded her into who she is now. But if this madness is the illusion that brings back to life the people Dazai killed, Umekui graciously allows herself to lose her sanity a little more than usual. Umekui is willing to pay whatever it takes to experience Odasaku's love and warmth again, even if she does not deserve him.Let her go mad! Let her lose both her mind and her heart! Because something like her does not deserve to have those two! Yet, if she drowns in the waves of madness, Odasaku will be the shore that warms her rotting body. Then kindly allow her to go insane till everything inside her turns to dust.So, with madness humming in her blood and blood choking her life, Umekui softly closes her eyes and lays her scarred body on Odasaku's ghost, who has always protected her from the cruel outside world.
'Please take me with you, Odasaku!'

"Your life is still long, my dear Dazai."
The unconscious reaches her thoughts, bringing starving shadows ready to feast on her agony. Red and green light burns in the vacuum of blackness inside her, causing her to open her eyes. Luffy's soul and Zoro's collide and scream, as ghost needles tear through her skin.
'And in the end, I'll be back at your side, captain.'
Oh. The sole reason Umekui is alive it's for him. He is her new purpose, the one thing she will never have, no matter how much she begs. He is the untouchable and unstoppable one. The freedom that resonates in the boundless sky and illuminates this endless globe with a radiance that no being can match.Nefertari Vivi, formerly known as Miss Wednesday, observes the battle between the straw hat boy and his swordsman in the middle of the street. And how powerful they are, taking down Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine with a single push.Then, as Luffy and Zoro charge back at each other's throats, a familiar figure appears between them. Vivi's body trembled at the memory of her threat and her bloody-red eyes, which stared down at her as if she were nothing more than dirt in her path.Luffy's eyes widen as his first mate's face is an inch of his fist aiming at Zoro, while the latter's Katana falls to the floor, stunned by the presence of her first mate.What makes their hearts race is not her startling appearance, but the blood splashing her dark green kimono and bare hands. It was the first time in months that Luffy and Zoro saw Umekui's hand flesh devoid of bandages, which had previously been hidden from their gaze.But what makes their stomachs twist is the scars all over her hand, with no bare flesh, burn marks all over her palm, and scars of all shapes and lengths (what the fuck happened to their first mate?)."Ume!""Umekui!" Nami cries out, storming at them, and the sight of their first mate covered in blood causes her eyes to shake with horror. (the terror of losing her Umekui again and again, because Umekui is constantly fighting something invisible to them, and Nam can only watch helplessly at the suffering of her first mate).Nami covers her mouth when she gets closer to Umekui and witnesses the scarred flesh on her hands. Umekui's red eyes follow her vision, she stares down at her hands, smiling softly (a smile so empty that Zoro and Luffy want to beat her out of it)."They are quite ugly, right?" she says."No!" Nami responded, her heart pounding and straining the rib cage that had him held. She then raises her hand toward Umekui's body to hug her, but the latter takes a step back and smiles sadly at her."I can't let you touch me for the moment, Nami dear",Nami trembles, desperate to grab her first mate's body, and embrace her tightly, hoping to erase the blank in her gaze and the sad smile twisting Umekui's face into a frozen painting of misery."Why?" The navigator seeks out, her voice cracking (Why can't she touch her? What's wrong with snuggling and holding her as if she's the most valuable thing in the world?! Just why?).Then Umekui's scarlet lips, highlighted by the moonlight above them, chuckled, revealing an unbearable pain inside."I am dirty now, Nami darling. My blood is disgusting, and I don't want to taint you with it, so for the—"Luffy leaps at Umekui's body and hugs her tightly, cutting her off in her remarks since he truly doesn't care. He doesn't care if Ume is covered in blood, water, or sweat; all he cares about is his first mate and nothing else ( her mention of scars and blood reminds him of Ace, who despises himself and his own blood).Umekui becomes silent in his arms, her body crip and still (and she wants to push and tells her captain that she is dirty, a dirty monster who destroys everything it loves)."Here you are, Umekui! You've returned as promised!" grins her captain.As Umekui's body melts in his grip, Luffy's smile widens, and delight blossoms on his face, accompanied by sparkling eyes."Why did you come between me and Zoro? You could have hurt yourself if I and Zoro hadn't seen you, Ume!" Luffy scolded his first mate."I don't care," Umekui shrugs, then looks at Zoro and returns his gaze with a single eyebrow lifted, "Why were you and Zoro fighting for, my captain?""Because Zoro wounded the people who gave us food!" he exclaims, turning his face to glare at Zoro, who returns a glare of his own."Zoro harmed them because they are our enemies, my captain!" she adds, trying not to chuckle at the ridiculous, infantile reason for Luffy's rage."But enemies don't give food!" he pouts, slightly saddened by her remarks.Then a faint laugh reached his ears, and he looked up at his first mate's smiling face. Luffy's smile spread across his face along nakamas, because hearing Umekui's laugh was the most valuable treasure of their adventure."You are quite naive, my captain!" She chuckles and reaches a hand toward his hair, but stops when she realizes her scarred hand is bare and returns it to her side, clenching her fist. "But know one thing, my captain. Your enemies can give you the world and food and still be your enemies in the end,"Luffy nods absently at his words because all he can see is his first mate's shaking scarred hands that are too afraid to touch him (and a small child version of Ace's trembling body materializes before him, trembling with fear at the thought of touching him because stupid Ace was too stupid to realize that Luffy will never be angry or slap him if he touches him)."Now apologize to each other right now, and also apologize to Nami for scaring her!" Umekui says, narrowing her gaze at him and Zoro."I'm sorry," mumbled Luffy and Zoro to each other, before turning to Nami. "We are sorry Nami,"Umekui smiles as flowers bloom all around her, pleased with how considerate Luffy and Zoro can be. Then she shifts her gaze to stare at a young woman with blue hair."Miss Wednesday, what are you still doing here? Are you looking for death wishes? She demands, her eyes ablaze as the curse chants in her ears."Stop, Umekui! Vivi is innocent!" Nami raises her voice."Vivi?" she states, bending her head at the blue-haired woman, who is looking at her with fear. (Umekui does not care if the world is terrified of her, seeks her death, and looks at her with horror and dread; but the day her captain and nakamas bear the same gaze, she will not hesitate to stab her heart with her blade)."Yes, she is the princess of the Albasta kingdom!" Nami confesses, reaching Umekui's side and taking her first mate's scarred hands in hers; the latter flinches and looks at Nami with shocked eyes."You are neither dirty nor disgusting, Umekui! Don't ever say that! and your hands are as gorgeous as you are!" She proclaims fiercely, clutching Umekui's chilly flesh.Luffy and Zoro nod firmly at Nami's words, looking at their first mate with honesty, hoping she will believe them.(Even if Umekui believes their comfort and words, her heart lacks the faith to hang on to them and remove the twisted nasty image she has of herself)"Thank you for your kind words, Nami dear," Umekui adds softly, staring tenderly at their clasped hands.Umekui craved the sensation of warm flesh on her palms and fingertips, distracting her from the tainted blood and the consequences of palming, which she had to peel off with bare hands. Nami's warming hands conceal the scars and burn on her hands like soft waves of the sea caressing the sand of a beach with a tenderness that the sky could only envy.Zoro sits on a barrel with his fist mate, staring at their navigator as she speaks with the blue-haired princess Vivi. Zoro looks down at his first mate's scarred hands sitting on her lap. Then he extends his hands toward them because Zoro has wanted to touch her exposed flesh since the minute he spotted it.He wants his fingers and palm to remember the feel of his first mate's flesh, how the temperature of her hands matches to his heated one, and whether her palm is as rough as his. Are her hands as hard as his, and her fingers as wide and long? He wants to know everything about Umekui.When his fingers come in contact with the back of her hands, his fingertips trace the endless scars on them. (Zoro despises how his first mate flinches, not because she is frightened of him hurting her, but because she is worried her touch would injure him-).His fingers flutter and caress each scar and burn, hoping that one night, under the glow of the moon, his first mate will tell him the story of each one. (Because Zoro cares and loves his first mate, and each scar on her body is valuable because it is the only sign that his Umekui lived to be with them, alive and laughing-).Zoro holds her hands with a fondness that transforms him into a stranger in the world, serving her as her only source of solace.Umekui looks shamefully at their joined fingers and hands, wishing Zoro could see that what he is holding is an impurity between his sacred hands. His hands are filled with passion and determination, his aspirations and dreams cradled in his delicate palms, and they are now touching her, her hands, her decaying flesh as if she were the most valuable and fragile object in the world.Gazing at each other, red and grey like star lovers in the night sky, and with silent words, their hearts connect and understand each other in ways that make language jealous.
'I'm afraid I'll taint you with my scarred hands,' murmurs Red.

'Stain me. I don't care because it's you', replies Grey.
Umekui is the worst of all kinds; she is deceitful and greedy.  So, when she looks down at Zoro's majestic hands and fingers, caressing her own wounded hands as if they were the most valuable thing in the world, she accepts his cares and loves with shame. A shame that sears her insides and crisps her organs with the want to feel and exist. Feel his warmth and affection, be whole, be something other than an oddity designed for tragedy, but be a human among others, and firmly fasten the deceitful mask over her face.Even though her hands, her weapon of chaos, were heavy with the blood she poured, she is revered in a way that makes the gods envious. Umekui accepts Zoro's adoration blindly and hopelessly, for even the tiniest show of affection toward her causes a knot to rise in her throat. So she hopes that her Nakama will fill her with love and care for so long that her empty heart will be able to believe in it. To believe that she deserves their love and care, and to get rid of the humiliation she feels whenever they are so tender and loving with her."Crocodile!" shouts the blue-haired princess.Umekui's body turned motionless and crisp in a way that made everything become stone cold, and Zoro quickly noticed this as he tightened his grip on her hands and looked at her with a confused glance.So both turn to look at Nami and the blue-haired."A warlord of the sea!" Luffy exclaimed, his eyes filled with stars."YOU IDIOT! We will be brutally killed! A warlord's bounty exceeds 80 million berries. And even although this guy might easily steal a kingdom and cause a civil war, he is strong and dangerous!" Nami cries, shaking Luffy's shoulders.Umekui leaps from her barrel and marches toward the blue-haired princess (the notion of this girl being royalty makes her want to vomit); her dangerous red eyes gaze down at her, consuming the sight of her trembling body and frightened brown eyes."Princess," she sneers the term with venom in her mouth. "How can we be sure you are not lying to us? You could be on Crocodile's side, and you are aware that once we learn his name, we will be in danger. Informing his identity has put my nakamas in danger," she pulls her handgun from her kimono and points it at the trembling princess. "You could be lying to us. You had already lied to your kingdom and comrades when you infiltrated the Baroque organization. A spy among spies, a traitor among traitors, since that, is what royalists are in the end: unfaithful scums who bring flames to their kingdom with their deceptions and falsehoods." The clicking sound of her gun's barrel perturbs the air and causes the princess' breath to catch, "So now, princess, Are you a spy of Crocodile or a naïve princess hoping to stop the civil war that is annihilating her kingdom?"I am not lying! I swear to my name! My home is on fire, and I need to save it! I need to travel to Alblasta and get my home back! I swear it! Crocodile is my enemy; I have infiltrated his organization in order to learn who he is and what his goals are! He preaches an ideal nation built on the ashes of my kingdom! What is an ideal nation when children cry and their parents perish? What is the ideal nation when boys and girls are sent to war? How can I be the princess of my kingdom if it is caught in the twisted webs of a man who seeks its destruction and preaches his ideal through corruption and deception?! I will never accept this, over my dead body!" Vivi yells, her eyes welling up with tears and enmity.Umekui allows the princess's words to reverberate throughout her, and she looks into the princess's soul, lowering her gun when she finds no lies. Luffy, Zoro, and Nami are all staring at the disturbance between their first mate and the princess. It would be a lie to suggest they are not astonished by their first mate's attitude toward Vivi. Hearing her remarks, they are certain of one thing: Umekui, who never wears expressions of wrath or hatred on her face, has shown her dislike toward someone for the first time.Umekui dislikes the princess and royalties for reasons that they don't know."My captain will decide whether or not we will accompany you back to your kingdom. But one thing is certain: you are fortunate to have caught paths with my captain and nakamas, for if it's me, I honestly don't give a fuck about your kingdom, or your miserable state of wailing for an abandoned kingdom. Your kingdom is not burning, princess. He's grieving and paying for your ancestors' sins," says coolly Umekui as she recalls Izumi's homeland being burned down by selfish tyrants, and as a result, Izumi has found himself in this living hell (and now he is dead, gone, due to her mistake). "Royals are misleading humans who preach peace while they're the first to scream war. So, listen carefully, Princess Vivi of the Alabasta kingdom; your land is suffering and paying for your sins," she ends coolly, unaffected by the woman's sobs because of her cruel words."Umekui!" Nami exclaims, startled by her comments to the poor girl.Umekui ignores Nami and turns to leave, only to stops and stares at Luffy."I'm going to wake up Sanji and Ussop and start preparing the ship to go. Now it is up to you, my captain, to decide whether or not to help Vivi," she chuckles softly as her eyes soothe," but even without asking, I always knew what you would say from the moment I met you and took sails with you, my lovely selfless captain," she smiled at him and left with those final words.Luffy stares hard at the explosion that killed Igaram, Vivi's friend.(Even though he's known him for hours, Luffy's heart aches for his death. But what's making his small heart race and cry is the ghost memory of his little self standing in the same spot where Vivi is crying over the death of her pal. (How he grieved as he saw the flames eat his little brother Sabo, how he clutched Ace tightly, promising him not to die like Sabo, and abandoning him as Sabo's death did to them)."Let's go!" he yells to his nakamas and Vivi, sprinting toward the Going Merry.Luffy learned one thing about death: when someone you care about dies, life continues. Yes, it is difficult; he grieved a lot, and even after years, he misses Sabo, but life does not stop; they must continue to move forward. Because they are still alive, and the world awaits them, as it does for Vivi.Her life is not over; she will cry and misses her companion, but she cannot abandon now; her kingdom is waiting for her to be freed.His blood heats and plums; they're about to face one of the world's strongest warlords, and Luffy can't wait. His adventure awaits him, never-ending, since he is alive, and he will live and continue because he has goals and dreams to achieve.Yes, your journey is long and difficult, sometimes the heart is screaming with grief, but it will not cause you to lose hope in what you want to achieve.He will be the pirate king, and Vivi will save her home, therefore they cannot stop now.When he arrived at their ship, his first mate, Sanji, and Ussop were already there, getting ready to go. Nami shouts commands, and they find themselves far from Whiskey Peak due to the force of the wind. Part of him is saddened by his departure because this town has provided him with a lot of food, and his stomach laments, missing the taste of all the deserts and meat he ate today."Ouff! What a wonderful getaway," Nami mutters."That's for sure!" says a meticulous voice.Luffy blinks and looks around since this voice does not belong to one of his nakamas or Vivi. Luffy knows his nakamas by their soul, scent, voice tone, and even their breathing patterns. So he frowns deeply since somebody unknown has infiltrated his boat, but where is he?Ussop yells as he points to someone sitting on the balcony of their upper deck.Luffy was welcomed with amused turquoise eyes and a lovely smile on a tanned female face. The woman looks at him with amusement, and her eyes contain something he often sees in his first mate's eyes: knowledge. As if they knew everything the world conceals from them, and what they know and possess is what the world seeks from them."I ran into Mr.8 a short while ago, Miss Wednesday," the strange woman says in an elegant voice."You killed Igaram!" Vivi yells angrily, glaring at her, "What are you doing there Miss All Sunday?!""Miss All-Sunday?! What number is she partnered with?" Nami asks next to him."Is she bad ?" He muses aloud."She is the partner of Mister 0, the boss!" exclaims Vivi, peering fearfully at the dark-blue-haired woman. "It's because of her that I discovered Crocodile's identity.""So she is good!" Luffy exclaims."Let's say that I let you follow me!" Miss All-Saunday shruggers and smiles, amused by the amusing captain."So she's bad?" Luffy frowns and turns to face his first mate, who has been curiously quiet since the woman arrived.Luffy's eyes widen at his first mate's wide crimson eyes, her upper red lips trembling as she looks up at the mysterious woman who has infiltrated their boat."Ume?" whispers Luffy, concerned about his first mate. Her body is trembling so violently that he fears she may collapse."The idea of a foolish princess trying to save her kingdom alone against a dangerous organization, what a funny story," mocks Miss All-Sunaday."Don't you dare to mock me!" Vivi cries angrily, her body shivering at the words of Miss All-Sunday.Miss All-Sunday is suddenly cornered by the blonde cook's gun pointed at her and the strange handgun of the long-nosed lad. The tangerine-haired girl points a baton at her, while the green-haired pulls out his sword.Miss All-Sunday smirks at the lack of weaponry and the rage directed at her by the captain and the woman next to him.Her devil fruit activates, and she looks up to the two boys on either side of her."I would appreciate it if you did not point a dangerous weapon at me," she said, as they both fell from the balcony to the floor, as did the navigator and swordsman's weapons."What kind of Devil Fruit is that?" Nami mumbles, glancing at the woman in confusion.Luffy then feels his straw hat leave his head and materialize in the woman's palm, where she places it on her head."So it's you Monkey D. Luffy ?" Miss Sunday thinks loudly, her eyes as clear as the blue of a summer sea, narrowing in as she perceives him. Then she chuckles lightly as her gaze falls on his first mate beside him, "What an unpleasant surprise to see you there, Dazai!"Luffy hears Dazai's name for the second time. First, there was the Captain Marine in Longtown, and now there's this woman who appears to carry all of the world's secrets in her palm.As Luffy looks toward his first mate to ask her why those folks are calling her that way, he spots his first mate's body leaping at Miss All-Sunday."Umekui!" shouts Ussop.Umekui, with a harsh sound, brings Miss All-Sunday to the floor in front of them. Miss All-Sunday's eyes are stupefied as she looks at their first mate straddling her lap, a knife positioned under her throat."Even after all these years, my devil fruit can't work against you. What an annoying power you have, Dazai," chuckles faintly Miss All-Sunday, then her eyes change into disdain that shadows the blue of her eyes. " So, what? Don't tell me that after joining those pirates you're attempting to play the hero and help this princess," the tanned hand of Miss All-Sunday cupped the cheek of their first mate," I know how much you despise royalties, so what are you playing, Dazai?"Umekui's hand grips her blade tightly, even though she is trembling.Miss All-Sunday smiles broadly at the sight of his first mate's shaking body, "Don't tell me that even after all these years, you can't kill me? My blood is nothing in this sea of blood that you poured, and don't tell me that you've grown up to be even weaker than you were before."Those remarks cause Luffy to snap and stretch two hands toward his straw hat, and another around Ume's waist. Quickly, his hat was back on his head, and his first mate was back in his arms.Miss All-Sunday leaps from the floor and stands on the balcony above them, staring down at him and Umekui with suppressed emotion."Why did you allow his Devil Fruit to touch you? Why did you let his Devil Fruits work when you could wipe off as you did with mines and all the devil's users that crossed your cursed path, Dazai?" she asks, then, at the lack of response from his first mate, turquoise eyes narrow at Ume's form, "Why aren't you answering me? Was your tongue cut by a stray dog?Umekui widens her eyes and looks up at Miss All-Sunday."Never mind," murmured the dark blue-haired woman, "you'll give me your answers when we meet again in Alabasta. If you survive until then," she says before jumping from the back of a gigantic turtle that swims away into the fog."See you, Princess, Strawhats Pirates, and my dear Dazai".Sometimes there are persons Umekui has so much regret for that she wishes she would never see again because she will not accept the deep grief she feels toward them.The type of regret that claws your heart to blood gnaws at your bones and leaves you empty on the inside, the type of sorrow that weighs so heavily on your back that it can't keep her body from crumbling.
(Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, Miss All-Sunday, )
Oh, dear, what did she do? Why is she continuously destroying everything? Why must her deeds always be the rocks that devastate lands and bring disaster to the innocent?Miss All-Sunday, they call her. But Umekui or Dazai do not see the woman who has sold herself to an organization of terror. All she could think of was this girl she used to know, but she abandoned her; when she might have stayed with her, protected her from the world, she could have fled with her, hiding from the twisted worlds that desire their deaths.
Oh. What did I do, Robin?

"She's gone, Dazai. Robin is dead! You can't do anything now!"
Dead? Perhaps Robin is dead, and Miss All-Sunday is just a mask who snatched a leash from Robin's body. But Umekui recognizes this soul, those eyes, that smile, and the touch of her palm as it cups her cheek. She knows it; she hears her heart beating and feels her soul stroking her from within.She is alive. Robin is still alive, but she is no more. Miss All-Sunday, Crocodile's partner, is one of the sea's warlords, one of the men seeking her downfall, and Robin is on his side. Robin wants her death, just as much as the rest of the world and this Crocodile seeks.No, Robin is gone.Robin has died, as has Odasaku, Izumi, and everyone Dazai once loved.That is her fate; Dazai destroys and murders everything she loves and cares about, and as a result, she despises her name and herself.Because who was once the girl Dazai knew and loved has been reduced to ashes, just like everyone else. What remains from this dust is Miss All-Sunday, a woman who, among many other beings, has a global nemesis that the world seeks its death: and it's her.But why is her little miserable heart lamenting and crying as if she killed Robin in her mind again? Somewhere between this Miss All-Sunday and the Robin she knew, a massive grief meandering through an even bigger tragedy is tearing at her heart.So Umekui's only defense against grief is madness. She allowed her mind to go wild, with shadows pulling at her skull and pushing her for her very existence.Because, unlike Robin, Odasaku, and Izumi, she is still alive. Alive unlike him, because she fucking murdered them, and she is still alive, breathing, and roaming with tragedy on her flesh."Umekui, Why was this woman calling you Dazai?" Ussop asks, his voice tense.Umekui's breath is motionless, and she hopes to die as her lungs choke on the blood exploding inside her. But Umekui is insane, ruled by the empires of corpses within her, and blinded by the blood that obscures her eyesight.Her crimson emty eyes detect Ussop forms."This name has died. There is no more Dazai. This name is gone, dead, and cursed!" She forced those words out, her tongue scorching and thick from her deception."But-""Shut up, Ussop," Zoro says harshly."Umekui or Dazai, there is no meaning in them; they are both cursed names with meanings that make my stomach curl with disgust," she adds, her voice thick, and Umekui would have started crying if she were human. (But she can't, she can't, she can't, she can't, she can't, she can't, she can't, she can't, and her heart plummets at the awareness of her humanness). "So tell me Ussop, is Dazai a significant name that you seek to know about ?"Ussop's breath catches at Umekui's mournful expression; in response, he shakes his head, because if Ussop wants to learn anything about his first mate, the painful countenance she wears is unworthy of the knowledge."I'll retreat into my painting room, no one bothers me," she replies coolly, her eyes vacant, leaving them with unresolved questions in their hearts.They all stand motionless when Umekui mentions her painting room because they know that when she is confined in it, she can rest for weeks without eating or seeing them, and every time she returns, fatigue sticks to her feathers, and the void devours her crimson eyes.Luffy frowns, knowing that even if he cries at her not to do it, it will be in vain because something inside him tells him that it is for their own good. She does it to protect them because Umekui is unable to speak about what is causing her so much pain behind closed doors.But when will she be able to trust them and reveal what she conceals from them without fear? Can she one day let them see the painting of her pain etched on her skin just like the scarred hands Umekui despises so much?But Luffy doesn't care because he's there to love Umekui and cherish all her scars, but how can he help her when Umekui is blinded by her pain and only sees the darkness around her?Even though it was difficult for Luffy to care for and love Ace without fear of losing him, he discovered that hardship brought souls closer together. Luffy suffered beside Ace, and as a result, they trusted and loved each other more than anything else in the world.His heart sinks as he looks at the far back of his first mate. Luffy can't do that with Umekui since she suffers and weeps alone, not allowing anyone to see her deteriorating body. Luffy can't save his first mate if she can't see the hands reaching out to her.But he will not give up.Luffy will never abandon Umekui for the rest of their lives. They promised each other, they held out their souls, and only for that, Luffy let his first mate seal the door behind her in this painting room, for when she returns, they will all be waiting for her.Their souls, locked beneath her scarred skin, are filled with love and care. So, even if the world comes to an end, they will all be there for her.They are her nakamas; they are the ones who will fill Umekui's scars with love until she is whole and can see their reaching hands.Luffy and his nakamas will remain patient. They will wait for their first mate forever if necessary. Because nothing means more than seeing Umekui's smile and hearing her delightful laugh again.

"what is grief if not love persevering?"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"god loves you but not enough to save you"

Dazai blinked a few times as she looked down at her bleeding hands and then at the lifeless body at her feet, grasping what was going on.'Clap Clap'"What you can accomplish at such a young age is simply amazing. Look how you killed this child mercilessly, Dazai," says a mi-long black-haired guy, his pale face glimmering in the moonlight that shines through the curtains and contributes to the misery of this place.

His purple-reddish eyes shine down, and a wide grin spreads across his face at the empty gaze of his prized possession ahead of him.

The man crouches down in front of the little girl and cups her cheeks with both of his gloved hands, whispering, "How does feel their ability in your blood, my beloved Dazai?""Good," Dazai mumbles, her gaze buried on the corpse of the child she murdered."Did your friend love his meal?" He beams with a twisted smile and lovingly strokes the small red-eye girl's cheeks."It's not my friend," she mumbles, turning back to face her bloodied hands as a trembling breath escapes her mouth. "Did I have to kill him? His friends will certainly look for him and miss him. I could have killed someone else instead of t-"

'Slap'

Dazai's little body collapsed to the ground as the hands previously gripping her cheeks gave her a violent slap.Cooly the man glares down at her body and states, "Are you doubting my motives, my Dazai?"Then, with a twisted smile, he crouches again toward her, grabs a fistful of her short dark hair, and drags her face closer to his own, allowing his next words to pierce her eyes.

"You're mine, Dazai. I brought you, saved you, and gave you what every child wishes for, and this is how you reward me? By being a disrespectful bitch," his gloved palm squeezed her cheeks hard enough to turn crimson. "What you're doing is for your own sake. You need to do this because it is what monsters do. Now, behave a little good dog only do what I command if you don't want to end up in the red box again-"."No! I will be good, I promise!" Dazai shouts, panic gripping her heart at the thoughts of this box.He smiles at her frightened look and pats her head as if she was his obedient dog.

"Now, let's continue; the day is still long, my dear," he whispers, caressing her face with his knuckles."Let the next one in!"At his command, the massive dark metal doors open up. A girl with purple hair was dragged inside the room by her hair by a pair of guards."Please! Let me go! Please!! MOM! DAD! PLEASE!"The young girl thrashes around, clawing like a wild animal, her nails digging into the guard's palms as he tugs her hair.Dazai's expression is lifeless as she stares at the screaming little girl.

'Show no emotion,' she reminds herself. 'Monsters are empty. I need to be empty so the agony does not consume me. Finish this quickly, and he won't be furious. Finish swiftly, and I can rejoin Chuuya for a brief moment'"She's seven years old. Her blood type is O. She developed her ability when she was five years old. Her ability is called 'Vivere senza', which is a form of healing. Not as good as the Akiko Yasano one. But I'm confident that it will enjoy it," states the purple-reddish-eyed man, glancing at Dazai's lifeless stare.

Then, a crazed smile erupts from his lips, his eyes gleaming with bloodlust."Now, kill her," he commands, his gaze narrowing at her figure. As she pulls her blade, he tututs and lifts a hand, asserting, "Kills her with your bare hand. Show me your talent for art, my beloved Dazai."She froze.'Show no emotions!

A hazardous sound bounces across the room as she drops her dagger to the floor.'Show no emotions!'Dazai walks over to the tiny girl."Show no emotion!!!!"(I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry,

The shackled little girl can only weep lounder as the petite red-eyed girl approaches her.(But all she sees in her crimson eyes is something hideous, a beast she has only seen in books, that makes her nights so dreadful)."PLEASE! I don't want to die!-""Dazai, shut up; her voice is annoying," the man complains."I need to be empty," she thinks as her heart begins to pound and her veins begin to quiver. Her curser awakens in her veins and feels the emptiness all around her and the emotion that consumes her mind and heart, understanding that she must accept her fate as a no longer human being.

She settles on the little girl's stomach, her body shaking, and locks her hands around the child's throat, choking her.Please don't do it! plebssh-"Her hands tremble so much

The small girl below her fights as hard as she can, but Dazai's grip on her neck and the strength of her hands cut her oxygen short.The girl's feet are bound by chains, rendering her unable to fight herself against Dazai.

(She has no idea what the creature above her is (she can't be a child like her!) A child can never do something irreparable! A child does not have something terrifying within them that echoes like a beast of shadows beneath her scarlet gaze-).Over and over, she assures herself, "Monsters are empty.""Now, Dazai! We don't have all the night."

At his words, something dark and shapeless poured up from her eyes and into the small girl's mouth and eyes.Then there's blood, blood gushing from the little girl's eyes and lips, bathing Dazai's face and hands in red.Something heavy builds in her chest (and those screams return, making her want to smash her head against the floor), and her hands shudder at the thought of someone's soul and ability lurking among her empires of the deceased.'Monsters are empty'The tiny girl's breathing, heart, and soul all vanished

"Excellent, Dazai! Now let's see how this ability works," says the dark-haired man, taking the blade from the floor and slashing a long line along his palms, splashing the floor in blood from his wounds.Dazai's stomach burns and rolls as she stares at the little girl's bloody skull, making her want to puke and cry. (But she can't! All of her life's misery taught her that she would never cry because she is cursed, she is not human, and consequently, she will never be like Chuuya!) And she wonders again why she can't die. Why is she here, suffering and killing over and over, when Dazai wants to die like everyone she knows?))She will die, according to Kana.

Kana told her that someone would finally kill her.

Kana promised. But Kana is dead, gone, like everyone else.She pulls up on her bare feet to rise from the corpse beneath her. The sticky sensation of blood soaks her bare feet, as she feels consumed by what she despises.

"Dazai, do not let me repeat myself. Come here so we can try the new ability you've received.""Right now, Mori-sama."Dazai extended a bloodied hand near Mori's wound.(I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry)

"Vivere senza," she murmurs as a green light shines from her hand over the wound.But as she looks at the cut on her master's hand, it closes and disappears. A stinging ache burned her right palm in the same spot Mori had his wound

(I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry,

DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI,

YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER, YOU MONSTER,

I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU, I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU, I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU,  I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU,  I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU,  I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU,  I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU, )

Mori's purple-red eyes notice this and let out a loud chuckle."Is this the curse of this ability? a double-edged power? What an irony of fate. You are doomed to gather these curses in this body of plague, my beautiful Dazai," he grins at her weak shape, his eyes reflecting with madness.Her small head wails and burns. Dazai feels so much pain that she wants to sever her skull with a knife and rip her pitiful heart with her bare hand. She is a horrible, hideous creature who only knows how to kill and consume souls—how can she ever go see Chuuya again? How can she dare to take his little gentle hand into her bloody one?

She was destined for hell's fires, whilst he was destined for the sun's rays.If every ability, those abilities that darken her mind and heart, are burdened by curses that the gods cursed them to carry and pay the price of their very existence. Yet maybe, in this tragedy that the gods bore for them, Dazai can function as their sacrifice, bearing all of the curses that the gods have imposed on them.The cruel gods loathe her, and Dazai despises them, and this will never change.

Kana has always despised them, and Dazai was nurtured on that hatred.So what if Mori recognized the monster in her and pledged to transform her into a voidness beast that would eat the world? Then be it; if she can eventually liberate the curses of those abilities from this world, so be it. If she is destined for Hell, so be it. If Dazai is disliked because she exists in this world dominated by the world government's pawns, so be it.

Even if it aches and she can't cry, she doesn't mind since what matters most to her is seeing Chuuya free from this horrible world. Dazai will go to any length for Chuuya, because he is the sole one who can make her feel human in a world that she resents.

Even if she is drenched in blood and just feels the coolness of her own rotting body and the corpses she kills with her bare hands, all she wants to do is touch and feel Chuuya in the end. Even if she doesn't deserve him ( How could she deserve a boy so kind and soft who never witnessed the price and cost of death (the only ones who attempted to touch him were slaughtered by her own hands, and Dazai relished every second of their deaths).All that matters to her is Chuuya, regardless of how much she despises the evil people and the wretched places they inhabit, or how much they deepen the hole in her heart

Even if she is Mori's toy and weapon, if she can protect Chuuya in the end, that is enough. To safeguard Chuuya's innocence and heart, she will never hesitate to sell her body to the devil, for her heart will always care about Chuuya and no one else.Because, even if Dazai seized Mori's hand in seeking a rationalization for her twisted existence, she found Chuuya on this path of darkness, and nothing else matters

She will be the worst enemy in the world for her little Chuuya. Yet, she hoped and begged for mercy that nothing would ever change that. She hopes that her small light will always be protected from the darkness of this world and that Chuuya will never have to bear the cost of cruelty again.But, as always, the gods despise Dazai above all else, and her pleas are mere dust in the corridors of those thrones that observe them from above.Even if Dazai weeps, screams, endures, and suffers, she will ultimately turn into the monster that obliterates everything in her path, and her little light will perish due to her curse.
"You lied," she whispers brokenly at Odasaku. "You told me that she was dead,"
("I know but it was both for your best. Robin will be in danger if you stayed with her. You were both still young and weak," he explain softy gazing with sadness at her broken gaze) 
"Weak?!" she sneers," Dazai weak?? Are you joking Oda?? You knows how much the world fears me and seek my head, my death!! for my powers! And you dare to call me weak??!" her red-eyes burning holes at his face. 
("You have always been weak Dazai. It's because you still didn’t found your purpose, you reason of why are you alive?" he says.)
"Purpose? "Alive? hahahahahah," she laughs loudly, her crimson eyes glowing with madness, the glass of whiskey on her palm breaking and cutting her hands, blood dripping into the canvas below her.The darkness in her painting room is milder than the one in her eyes, or the one that paints her paintings in misery.So much sorrow and sadness in each canvas she has painted, all hang within its walls, encompassing her in this prison that is spiraling with hopelessness and anarchy.Umekui could never have expressed or shown her nakamas these paintings because they are just horrifyingly, tragically lifeless. This is what she is: dead. She died from the very beginning and was compelled to endure this curse, with pain eerie her every second."Have you not realized what I'm bound to?! Don't you see how my hands are soaked in blood and destruction? Don’t you see the madness in my eyes, the ghosts and souls caged inside me, that ravage my mind with their screams and slurs?!?" she yells at Odasaku, her pupils quivering with intense anger. "You can, right? Because it was my hands that killed you, while I took your soul!!"( "Dazai I-" )"Odasaku, you're dead. I am the one who killed you. I murdered you in the same way as I murdered Robin, Izu, and his siblings, as well as him! I destroy everything that comes close!!"She collapses to her knees and smacks her forehead against the floor, numbing herself from the pain inside her heart."I murdered you with my own hands, and I devoured your soul like a thirsty monster. I cursed you for this existence when you could have been free!!" She whisper-shouts, her throat raw and bloodied, and her red eyes sear holes in Odasaku's shape.("You did not kill me! You did not curse me!! Stop saying this, Dazai!!" he yells back, his eyes heavy with distress.)"Tell me, Odasaku. Haven't I endured enough? Haven't I killed enough? Why can't I just die and be with you?" She whispers, choking on each inquiry, the blood dripping from her mouth reminding her of the souls she robbed and the blood she poured.("I told you, my dear Dazai, Your life is still long, my dear Dazai," he says, attempting to reach her and console her as he always did, but unable to do so because he is dead.)"Why?" she asks, whispering to the bleeding floor before raising her terrified eyes to meet his golden ones. "Why, Odasaku!! What aren't you telling me? What are you hiding?!"("I am very sorry, Dazai. But I can't tell you. However, keep in mind that the road will continue to be lengthy and difficult. It hurts to see you like this, but believe in your good old friend; I promise you will find what you are looking for. I assure you that you will be saved in so many ways that you will not believe your eyes. But you can't die now, Dazai," he replies, his golden eyes never leaving her red ones)."HAHAHAHAHA-"Umekui laughed loudly and fervently, her broken laugh muffled by the blood drowning her. Then she lifts her bleeding hands to loosen her kimono and bandages that encircle her torso.Odasaku's eyes darken with sorrow as he looks at her upper bare body."Look here, Odasaku. Do you truly believe that my body may still be deemed alive? Can I live with this curse? Look at the price I'm paying for my misdeeds and existence!" Umekui exclaims, raising her arms to show him the most grotesque painting of her awful fate.Her upper body is colored black, crimson, and blue.Burns, cuts, and scars leave no trace of fresh skin.Several scars are the result of sword cuts or pistol shots, while other enormous marks are scars from burns as if the person had burned her living body. There is no trace of light skin free of injury on her skin, arms, or, worst of all, self-harm markings throughout, but her chest and breasts are also covered with scars and burns. Her breast, which defined her as a woman, was scarred, one of her left breasts above her heart forming a large scar as if she had been opened and her own heart ripped from her body.Umekui carries a curse that darkens her body and heart every day, covering the majority of her body. She refers to these injuries as "wounds of darkness" because they cover both of her shoulders in a black mass that resembles the night sky of a galaxy; it's as though the universe's darkness has been painted on her body. This mass also covers part of her right breast and her left elbow. And the pile of darkness covers her above her chest, finishing below her nape."I am not sure what will happen when this thing, those dark wounds, devours me whole, but I must die before the end. It fucking hurts Oda, it's like it's erasing everything in my blood and devouring my skin every second, it's sore so much-Before this thing entirely took over me, so even if I'm lost in my madness, I still need to accomplish my sole goal: to die." She croaks her words, flinching at the rush of anguish."Half of my upper back is completely covered, as is my entire left leg, so Oda, time is running out and I'm still alive. So let me ask again: Why can't I fucking die?" She shouts, holding the bottle of whiskey in her quivering left hand.(Odasaku looks at her body and notices how the wounds of darkness appear to be moving from within, then closes his eyes and says, "I can't, Dazai. So listen to me when I say it's for your own good and-")His statements are cut short when Umekui tosses her bottle of whisker at him, but the bottle does not even hit him. She passed through his body and collided with the painted wall behind him. The force of the bottle's throw caused it to break against the wall, echoing a harsh shriek throughout the room.Odasaku flinches at the sound and notices Dazai's lost, cold, and indignant expression."We're both cursed, Oda. I was doomed to this life, and I cursed you for your death coming here to haunt me for my sins. And do you know what cursed us? Love," she murmurs, falling numb and motionless on the floor.She lays on her back, catching his sorrowful gold eyes alongside her drowsy ones."So can I request you one thing?" She whispers, her voice throbbing so much.(Odasaku nods at her words)."Cry for me, Odasaku. Cry for me since I can't do it because I'm plagued with this emptiness. Cry for me, Odasaku, because little Chuuya will never do it again," she sighs as she closes her exhausted eyes.The dark circle under her eyes shadowed the sharp features on her face, and her long dark hair covered her entire body like a cocoon. Her bloody hand is still bleeding profusely, but Umekui is too tired and numb to feel anything.She smiles sadly as she feels something wet raining on her face and the subtle smell of salt. Odasaku cries quietly, sinking down before his dear friend and placing her exhausted, beautiful face on his lap. His lengthy fingers caress her head, full of anguish and sadness. His cheeks wet from the tears that fell across Umekui's face.("I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Dazai," he murmurs softly, gazing at the sleeping Dazai in his arms).
'No, it's me who is sorry, Odasaku'
Princess Vivi Nefertari could never forget how the hot sand of her hometown felt against her bare feet. She will never forget the blazing sand of Albasta, or the sun that caressed her body with so much warmth and love that she could smile back at him every day, and even when the cold night falls over her kingdom in a frigid breeze, she will embrace it and love it to the core.Because all of the things she loved were in her kingdom, which is now crying and suffering at the hands of those corruptors.
'So, listen carefully, Princess Vivi of the Alabasta kingdom; your land is suffering and paying for your sins,'
Her heart breaks and she tears.Her sins? Perhaps, yes. She has been ignorant for so long, stupid and blind to the agony of people who dwell in her kingdom, deaf to the screams and cries coming from outside her castle, and now she is paying the price for her stupidity and weakness. Perhaps she was so wrapped up in her idyllic existence that she never saw what was going on outside her castle.The rain in her city created a false sense of joy, causing anguish and death for others. She was so dumb and blind that she failed to realize how terrible the outer world was. She was confined in a room with the most exquisite jewelry and gold in the city, as well as garments made of silk, water in the big bath, and food enough to feed an entire village.She was too selfish to step outside her comfort zone.For this, Vivi despises herself so much that she will never forget it. Vivi was too stupid and selfish to see that her home was burning and dying while she was living carefree.Oh, how selfish she is to have neglected all the deceased people who prayed in her family's name as if they were their savior. But they mean nothing to this man, who has opted to frame them for his ideal nation.Ideal nation while ashes and fire burn her lands, the sand that Vivi adored is covered in the blood of her people, and the sun of her homeland is rotting the corpse in ashes, turning it into dust.Then she recalls this woman's disdainful stare every time she sneered at her title "princess," as well as the ones who cursed her name before taking their last breath or were slaughtered by her guards.Her realm is imprisoned in this game where her people eat their own and despise those who previously ruled over them with love and care. Her father and mother were kind and caring; not once did hatred or disdain cloud their gazes. They loved their kingdom above everything else, and they taught that compassion is the most valuable thing for people's hearts.But she wonders if it was the same kindness that framed her family. Kidness was maybe, a double-edged blade that pierced her family name with brutality and set fire to her people's lands, bringing sorrow and war to their doorstep.For all the compassion that little Vivi used to cherish close to her heart is now burning away from the injustice of the world, burning like her tearful eyes. Kindness is burning with a sense of injustice, grief, and anguish. Burning with a desire to reclaim her home and fight until death.And, if the gods are listening, she will take care of this land that she adores; she will love and govern with such love and anguish over her land that has suffered so greatly.She will ask pardon for her people, whom she abandoned when they were calling her name in anguish. She will beg until her knees bleed and her people laugh in ecstasy, with pain receding and joy blazing in their bosom.She recognizes she isn't a good princess and accepts it with grief. But Vivi pledges that when she returns, she will be an honorable princess who will work hard to render her nation the best it can be.But please return her home; that is the only thing she is praying for.She will swallow with remorse the insults of people she abandoned, but all she asks for is to feel the sun of her land and hear the cheers and laughter of children.With her eyes closed and her hands joined in prayer, she pries on a moonlit night on the deck of the ship whose owner promised to bring her back to her hometown.(And Vivi wonders what kind of monarch this young man aspires to be if his dreams come true. He reminds her so much of a hero with those brilliant eyes of his, a smile so broad she bets it might shade the one in Arabasta, and the fierce passion radiating from his soul. Those heroes about whom her mother could tell stories for hours, she would admire with a glittering heart.Perhaps, if Luffy was the prince of Arabasta, he would have done things very differently. Maybe if he had been her, her country would not have paid the prince for her ignorance, and he would have saved it from war and famine. Because every time Vivi looked at him, all she could see was courage and faith glowing from his lovely eyes and strength radiating from his back.In another life, maybe Luffy could have saved her homeland, but in this reality, Vivi is alone, with shame and self-hatred coursing through her veins).
'Your kingdom is not burning, princess. He's grieving and paying for your sins'
She knows. She knows it's her fault, and her nightmares and self-hatred serve as perpetual reminders. And for this, Vivi will go to any length to return to her home and beg for forgiveness. Because, even if her country is mourning and paying for her faults, Nefertari D. Vivi will always love her kingdom and prioritize it over all else."Are you praying, princess?" speaks a voice (and Vivi can clearly hear the disdain in it (but something else clings inside: pain).Turning to meet the fiery eyes of those whose words haunt Vivi's mind. The straw hat's first mate, who had shut herself in this room for four days, stood in front of her. Her red eyes appear worn and empty, and Vivi swears that something could emerge from them and devour her whole; at the thought, she takes a step back in terror.The first mate takes note of this and smirks."Are you afraid of me?""Why would I not be afraid of the same woman who seems to hate me?" She replies, glaring at the woman.Umekui chuckles quietly, amused."Hates? Oh, princess, my feelings for you will never reach the pinnacle of this term. Let's just say that I have no feelings for you; I don't hate you, but I can't stand your presence," she replies, narrowing her tired eyes at her."You hold the same gazes of Miss All-Sunday," she says, and Umekui freezes motionless at the name of this woman."If you don't want me to cut your tongue, princess, don't ever say her name again," she declares, her red eyes shining in the darkness.Vivi flinches and glances at the first mate, wondering how Luffy could have taken a lady like this into his crew.She is the opposite of Luffy. He embodies everything she isn't.Even her nakamas are not like her; they are diverse and kind to her, and even the cold swordsman defends her, whereas their first mate is empty, cold, and rude.But Vivi realizes that to defeat the evil forces attempting to corrupt her kingdom. First, she must fight back and not be afraid of the woman in front of her.Umekui's long black hair hung over her shoulder, and her dark blue kimono was enormous and fell over her shoulders (Vivi wondered why her body was covered in so many bandages). Then she notices something in her left hand; her palm is soaked in dried blood, which appears to be injured, and Vivi's dumb heart can't stop shaking at the sight of it, and she doesn't even bother to wipe the worry off her face as she looks at her hand and walks towards her."Are you alright? Your hands are smeared in fried blood; if you don't sanitize them, they will-" she adds, prying a hand toward the first mate's.But Umekui smacks her palm so hard that Vivi falls on her buttocks and looks terrified at Umekui's shaking hands and eyes."Do not touch me! Don't ever try to touch me when the blood of your kin is running through your veins--Never!" she yells, her red eyes wide and quivering, her arms encircling her body as if to hide herself from Vivi's touches.Then Umekui falls and crouches, throwing up on the deck's floor.At the commotion, the kitchen door opens, and Sanji and Nami rush towards them."Umekui! Vivi!" Nami shouts as she runs at them. She appears disoriented as she approaches their side and looks at Umekui and Vivi on the floor.Nami rushes to Umekui's side and holds her long hair while she vomits. Then Umekui's flaming eyes meet Vivi's, and she speaks something as Sanji approaches her, extending out a hand to assist the princess to stand."Sanji removes the princess away from my sight! Listen, princess. If you ever try to touch me with your hands. I swear I will cut them off!" She says, her crimson eyes flaming with disgust, making Vivi tremble and her eyes ache from the first mate's look."C'mon, Vivi-chan. It is late. Let me escort you to your dorms," Sanji says gently as he takes her hand and leads her off the deck.As she follows Sanji's lead, Vivi notices the agony and dread in Umekui's voice, as if her touches were the worst thing possible. Her heart hurts at the concept; she has no idea what her "kin" did to Umekui to make her so repelled by the title of "a princess". But she is certain that it is something that has wounded Umekui so severely that she vomits up and lowers this woman who gazes at the world with power emanating from her gaze to a little child shivering with fear and pain.And once more, Vivi has never hated herself so much as she does now. 
'So, listen carefully, Princess Vivi of the Alabasta kingdom; your land is suffering and paying for your sins,'
Maybe Umekui is also weeping and suffering for her kin's transgressions, as the first mate tried to explain to her. And even if she begged forgiveness and saved her kingdom, they would forgive her. But something inside her tells her that she will never be able to save and ask Umekui's pardon because this woman is simply too far gone, too empty, and drowning in pain that Vivi could never understand.Because Vivi is the sinner who causes her to suffer so greatly.
'Are you praying, princess?'
Oh, she sees.If Vivi begged the gods to help her save and forgive her kingdom, she would never be able to do the same for Umekui. Because Umekui despises the gods, and the gods despise her, causing her much misery.Only a fool would want to be saved by those who have trapped them in an endless cycle of pain. Like Vivi is a fool for abandoning her land and trying to pry when the gods are always mute to her misery.Umekui despises her royal bloodline because they are the gods who made her suffer in this life.Yet, what hurts the most is that Vivi will never be able to beg Umekui's forgiveness, leaving guilt to consume her entire being and cause her heart to sob from the cruelty and unfairness of the world.Vivi feels helpless from the grief and guilt that are growing like parasites in her heart.She thanks Sanji with a sad smile and enters her room, ready to cry all night alone in bed.Umekui despised royalty. She despises them so much that she is willing to kill them all and erase their presence from the world. The hatred she has for them will never end.The princess attempting to touch her brought back memories of dark chambers and broken hearts (her heart was broken, and her small body bled and screamed). How their touches still linger over her rotting body, and Umekui can't even cry when those men and women treat her like a toy for their own selfish enjoyment).Her heart trembles with hatred and revulsion. Disgust over her body as she recalls how many men and women with royal blood put their hands on her petite body, bruising and sticking her with their essence of pleasure.Oh, how she loathed them.They are the ones who reign with egoism over the suffering ones; they dance and drown in wealth, while many hunger and die from poverty. They share this tainted blood with their people, who worship them like Ichor and regard them as their own messiahs.The devout, the justice ones, are the most corrupted and egoistic individuals Umekui has ever come across.Her heart breaks every time she recalls the times she was chained for days in their beds because Mori sold her body to them. She was treated as if she were an object, a toy that they could use in a variety of ways to fulfill their desires."Do whatever you want with her," Mori would remark, "Broke her to pieces, and I'll rebuild her in one," every time he held down the chain that suffocated her neck.These people will seize this chain, confine her in those rooms that reflect the lifeless existence she once held, repeat her screams, and have teeth gleaming from wealth and jewelry and eyes so greedy and full of lust.Umekui despises those who hold the title of royalty and whose blood is as corrupted as their ancestors. They are all incorrect, from the beginning to the end. And Umekui vowed on her cursed name that if any royalty ever dared to cross her path, she would make them pay and then drown in their blood as life fled them.But this princess, this foolish princess, who believes that by faith and will, she will restore her kingdom, stood before us. Umekui felt hatred for a minute, and she wanted to kill her beyond all else and make her suffer because Umekui had suffered so much due to her kin that death was beyond her grasp.Yet.
"I am not lying! I swear to my name! My home is on fire, and I need to save it! I need to travel to Alblasta and get my home back! I swear it! Crocodile is my enemy; I have infiltrated his organization in order to learn who he is and what his goals are! He preaches an ideal nation built on the ashes of my kingdom! What is an ideal nation when children cry and their parents perish? What is the ideal nation when boys and girls are sent to war? How can I be the princess of my kingdom if it is caught in the twisted webs of a man who seeks its destruction and preaches his ideal through corruption and deception?! I will never accept this, over my dead body!"
Brown's lovely wide eyes glitter with purpose, and her soul chants with compassion and love.This girl reminds her of somebody. Someone with so many dreams and so much conviction that Dazai could admire them for quite some time. The sorrow and pain that echoed in this princess' declaration caused wounds that are still bleeding in Umekui's heart. So Umekui decided to let this girl live, despite the burning desire in her chest and the frail, naive goal quivering in her bones.However, it will never change the girl's roots. She shares the blood of those who have hurt her for so long that Umekui has lost trust in both heroes and deities to save her. And this woman, princess, dared to pry the same ones who cursed Umekui's existence? And the way she felt a hand reach for her, Umekui's gaze darkened, and she could feel all those hands that tainted her little body, covering her body and covering her mouth as they tainted her body with their disgust, lust, and selfish want.How paralyzed and powerless she felt. The chains that bind her little bare body are burning her wrists and feet and suffocating her neck. Perhaps this princess is innocent, but her blood is currently tarnished by the same ones that ruined Dazai's body.Her blood will change her into the same one that spread darkness and damaged Umekui's heart."Are you okay, Umekui?" Nami inquires, rubbing her back.Umekui tried not to flinch at the touch, since if Nami knew what was hidden beneath those bandages, she would recoil in the same way she had at the prospect of the princess touching her."Yes. Don't worry, Nami," she says, then lies on her back with her head on Nami's lap; "Can you let me rest like this for five minutes, Nami dear?"Nami chuckles affectionately while softly looking down at her to meet her red eyes, "You don't need to ask, stupid Umekui. We can even stay like this for hours, even days if you want."Umekui chuckles in response, "I had no idea you were this naughty Nami! I could even say that Sanji has some concurrence with you!" "Boys can't interact with girls in the same way that girls can! So yes, I won over Sanji a hundred times!" She teases, pulling her tongue and winking at her.Umekui shuts her eyes and relaxes in the warmth of her beloved Nami.She is exhausted, both by the world around her and by the illness that is consuming her. Exhausted and ragged from the nightmares that haunted her evenings and days.She is tattered, wormy, and drained by her existence, but in Nami's embrace, she feels a sense of calm come over her. She feels a moment of serenity in her arms, so please Nami, let Umekui rest for a minute, and she swears she'll be ready to face the world again, her curses humming in her veins and screams hurting her thoughts.Nami caressed Umekui's head with her delicate fingertips, much as a mother would.(And her eyes ache because Nami recalls all the nights she slept in Belle-mere's arms and how her lovely mother caressed her head with such love and softness that Nami could only quake with yearning.Nami's heart aches and cries because she misses her mother so much. She misses her every time she looks at the tangerine tree they put in the going merry. She misses her every time Sanji prepares her pancakes because she remembers how Belle-mere made hers before school and burned one of them. She recognizes her in Luffy's bright smile. She misses her in each story Ussop tells her before bedtime. She misses her whenever she drinks with Zoro (because if Belle mere was still alive, she could have drunk with her until late at night as they laughed together.But also, she recalls her lifeless eyes and body every time she looks at her first mate, as well as how useless and helpless she felt in the face of Umekui's sorrow and her mother's death)."Umekui?""Humm?" Umekui hums, her eyes still closed (Nami's heart trembled at Umekui's exhausted stare and dark circles, knowing Umekui hadn't slept in four days when she locked herself in her room, immersed in her misery)."Will you train me to become stronger ?" (Will you help me stand with you and let me protect you as you have done to me so many times?)."If you wish, why not?" she responds quietly.Nami brightens at her comments and bends over to kiss Umekui's forehead."Thank you!!" she beams meeting wide red-eyes. Umekui's ears get red as she mumbles some words, which Nami can only laugh at because it's the first time her first mate has been embarrassed.(Her heart wobbles with the love she has for Umekui).A few seconds later, Sanji reappears on the deck, a cigarette in his hand. When he reaches Nami's side, he meets her worried gaze before looking down at his first mate, who has her eyes closed.Sanji, sitting next to Umekui, inquires, "What happened with Vivi-chan, Umekui-chan?"Nami felt Umekui tense."Nothing. Just don't ever let her try to touch me again," she says calmly."You were terrified, Umekui. I noticed it in your eyes. What's made you so scared? Has she spoken or done anything to you?" Nami swings her fingertips over Umekui's skull.Umekui's crimson, enticing eyes meet blue and brown ones."No. The princess did nothing to me, but-" Then she chuckles quietly sadly, "Sometimes when people have wounded you so badly in the past, you will immediately despise others who bear the slightest likeness to them.""Did Vivi's family hurt you in the past, is it because of that you dislike her?" Nami asks. (Nami tries hard to keep her heart silent because this is the first time Umekui deliberately has opened up about her past with them, and without ending in a pool of blood or locking herself in her room)."No, I haven't heard her family's name before, but the princess is a Nefertari. She is royalty; she has royal blood running through her veins," she continues, frowning. "I know it's pathetic of me to despise her blood because she has never done anything to me. She is still young, but I am reluctant she will turn like all the others who have been caught up in this royal siege," she admits."No! I promise you that you are not pathetic, Umekui! I understand now why you don't like the princess-" she soothes, her eyes welling with sorrow.(Nami attempts to fight back tears since Umekui hasn't told them what those royalties did to them. She knows deep inside that they harmed their first mate to the point that she begged for death. Umekui, who has never shown so much emotion in her face, sees her so terrified and hates Vivi's blood. She is aware that what Umekui has gone through is beyond her imagination)."Tell me Nami, do you hate fishmens?" Umekui inquires, her voice as gentle as Nami's caress.Sanji keeps quiet, sitting with his knees crossed, smocking his cigarettes, and gazing at the moon above them.She swallows the thick lump in her mouth before opening it hesitantly to respond."I don't know," she confessed softly. "When I was a child and saw Arlong viciously slaughter my mother in front of my eyes, my heart was filled with hate and despair. I despised him so much, I hated him for snatching my mother from me, for having Noriko and the other children quiver in fear." A single tear falls from her eyes, and Umekui catches it delicately with an extended finger toward her. "I wanted to murder them. I sought vengeance for the destruction of my home and the death of my mother. I wanted to annihilate every fishmen because what Arlong's crew did was unforgivable."Sanji looked at Nami's face with agony in his eyes and grief in his heart.(Sanji understands the cost of grief, as evidenced by the sensation of a cold corpse in his arms and the captivating blue eyes that Sanji adored, now dead and void. He understands it in the absence of his sole love, her sweet voice and pleasant chuckle. Sanji may try hard to forget and close his eyes from the sorrow of the past, but he knows that his heart will never forget what he has been through-)."But I understand that it may have been easier for me to hate and be angry at them than to accept my mother's death. It was easier to hate the ones to whom I sold my soul and body than to fight and reclaim my home. Maybe if I had been stronger, I wouldn't have known the cost of hatred," Nami adds, her voice cracking."You are wrong, Nami," Umekui responds, her scarlet eyes firm and wrapping her nakamas in comfort. "You were a child. What can a child do against fishmen? How are you supposed to combat bigger men? Nothing. Nothing but hate those who have taken everything away from you. You did nothing wrong, Nami, except live like a child. You hated like a child, sobbed like a child, and it was all because you were a child. A child does not have the right to comprehend the cost of sadness," Umekui says in a voice that adapts Nami and Sanji's bones into gold."But-!" Nami wails, her eyes filled with tears and her heart filled with pain."There's no but, dear. Being a child is not a sin," she tells Nami and Sanji, firmly and loudly.
"Being a child is not a sin, Dazai. You're not a monster, but a child. You don't have to feel guilty for being yourself,' says a soft voice inside Umekui's recollections. Kana's soothing voice and pink eyes were as ethereal as the cherry blossoms that Umekui saw in this place.
Nami and Sanji's hearts jolted at her words, and their eyes widened and froze.
'No matter what happens, don't be sorry you were born,' says Belle-mere in Nami's childhood memories.'Your birth is not a sin, Sanji. You are my precious child, never forget that," says a soothing voice inside Sanji's childhood memories.
Nami's eyes well up with tears, and her body shakes as she feels her heart lift and lighten inside her chest.(The same heart that mouthed ago weighed heavily in her chest, weighted with wrath, grief, and all the anguish she had experienced. But she knows that all of the ones who made her heart ache are gone, in dust and flames, since Umekui and Luffy saved her. Sanji, Zoro, and Ussop (sweet Ussop, who fought for her against a fisherman despite his fear of everything) all saved her, and Nami will never be grateful enough).Sanji's eye let out a single tear, which he hastily brushed away, and there was a knot in his throat that weighed so heavily that he didn't know what to do with it (since Sanji was deeply lost, and the sorrow of the past is a nightmare that he worries he will have to live again)."The world doesn't deserve your pain," Umekui says, looking at Nami and Sanji, before softly smiling at them, "You are both so kind that I'm ashamed to be there with you." She chuckles gently and raises her arms over her eyes, hiding her pained expression from them."It's not true U-"Umekui cuts off Sanji and Nami and says, "You are all still so forgiving, even when I close myself in my painting room for days, welcome me back in your arms as if nothing happened. You've forgiven me for not responding to your questions on several occasions. You are all so unselfish and generous, that I could only shrink in shame within my painting room-".Then she laid back her arm and stared at the starry night sky above her, "The first time Luffy extended his hand to me, I thought he was dumb. idiotic to save an unknown from the sea; dumb to invite someone he doesn’t know to join their crew as his first mate-"Nami and Sanji chuckle gently at the memory of their captain forcing them to join his crew."The future king of pirates, he stated to me," she chuckles softly, "and his dream confirmed that this boy was indeed dumb. When pirates are the world's deadliest foes, and he has no idea if the One Piece exists, only a fool would pursue an unattainable dream. But I recognized that Luffy's main desire was not to be king of pirates, but rather freedom. He wants to be the Pirate King since he is the world's most free man. What a lovely dream it would be to travel the world and sail across the boundless sea. And I knew from the moment I met him that his crew would be as exceptional as he is; the proof is there. I don't think I could have imagined anything more amazing than having you both in this crew, together with Zoro and Ussop," she admits, flashing them a kind smile.Her remarks and smiles cause Nami and Sanji's faces to burst into red."I'm glad to have joined Luffy on his adventure and met you," she concludes with soft eyes that appear unrealistic on hers, closing her eyes to a restful slumber (Because Umekui is so exhausted that the only thing keeping her from going insane is the warmth of those she refers to as nakamas).Umekui awakens at daybreak, wrapped in a soft blanket that smells of meat and the sea of her captain. She might've slept in Nami's arms, which Sanji brought here.Her large kimono falls over her shoulders, allowing the sun's fresh rays to caress her bandaged shoulders. She looks down at her left bandaged hand; definitely, Sanji has taken care of it.She slips her bandaged feet outside the bed and walks out of the boys' room toward the kitchen, where her crew is almost certainly present.As Umekui walks into the kitchen and smells the tantalizing aroma of Sanji cooking, a familiar body grabs her."UME! YOU'RE FINALLY THERE!" Luffy grins in her arms, looking at her fondly.Umekui smiles and nods."I wanted to wake you up, but Sanji dragged me out of the room by force," grumbles Luffy, scowling at Sanji.Sanji twitches his brow and slams his fist against Luffy's skull, "You idiot! I told you Umekui was tired and needed to rest!"Luffy pouts and turns to Umekui, saying, "Come on! Sanji made a feast of meat!""The feast is almost over, you already eat everything!" Usopp laments.Luffy pulls his tongue at him, grabs Ume's hand, and pulls her to her seat. Umekui watches everyone eat breakfast from her seat, her eyes soft."I'm sorry for the last time," she says, and before Nami or Zoro can reprimand her, she continues, "If it's okay with you, can I share something with you?" Her gaze meets her captain's, which is curious."Of course, Ume!""Miss All-Sunday is someone I once knew years ago; her true name is Nico Robin," she says softly as she recalls the woman she once knew and loved, "I thought she was dead, but she is alive and has joined Crocodile."Nami's eyes welled up with sadness at the news; she couldn't image what Umekui went through when she discovered her friend, whom she thought had died, had joined a deadly organization."I don't want to talk about her, only about Dazai. Robin recognized me as Dazai. My name is Umekui Dazai. But I prefer to be referred to as Umekui because I no longer use the name Dazai. That name is dead, as are all of the people who knew me by that name. It is simply dust in the past, and I beg you not to call me like that again," she requests.Her nakamas nod in agreement; of course, they continue to refer to their first mate as Umekui, for they have always known her as such (And the agony she bears in her eyes every time she hears the word Dazai is something they do not want to see in their first mate's gaze)."I also have powers," she lays out.Luffy has stars in his eyes, like a child awaiting a gift."We have witnessed this, but you can swim in the sea, so you don't have a devil fruit, right?" asked Usopp."You are correct. What I have is not a devil fruit, but an ability," she admits, examining her torn hands on her lap."An ability?" Nami asks, tilting her head.Luffy beams, jumping in his childlike manner, saying, "WAWWWWW AN ABILITY SO COOL!!""You have an ability?" Sanji and Zoro gape, their mouths wide open.Nami stares at them, inquisitive, and asks, "Do you know what an ability is, guys?""There are abilities users around the world, some of whom are pirates, but the majority are in the marines, government groups, organizations, secret services, or as pirate hunters. As a pirate hunter, I once met two abilities users whose skills were great and interesting, and they informed me about them and their abilities," Zoro adds with an enthusiastic expression on his face."Some ability users serve for royal families as their weapons. They are minor in comparison to Devil Fruit users, but they are more dangerous since the world government has not found a way to apprehend them in the same manner that it does with Devil Fruit users. Furthermore, a person may be an ability user from birth or develop such capability later in life. However, unlike devil fruit users, whose powers are derived from the fruit they consume, the user abilities have no identifiable origin, which the world has yet to discover or explain. What distinguishes them as outstanding allies or dangerous enemies," Sanji concludes.All of his nakamas stare at him, including Umekui, wide-eyed by his knowledge."How do you know all of this, Sanji?" Usopp says, in awe at him.Sanji blushes and coughs to disguise his embarrassment. "Abilities users, like All-Blue, have always fascinated me, so of course I read a lot of books about them," he explains, avoiding his eyes."They are both correct," says Umekui."So what is your ability, Ume?" Luffy says, shoving meat into his mouth.Umekui's breath catches and she tries hard to suppress the screams in her brain, but when she stares at her captain's lovely eyes and broad smile, she can't help but smile back at him."My ability isn't something formidable," she began, then extended a hand to him. "My power requires a devil fruit, ability users, so can I? If you're afraid, it's okay; I un-"Luffy grabs her hand and pouts, "Stop uttering nonsense, Ume, and show me!""Ara ara, as my captain says as I execute," she whispers, then as the curses begin to stream through her veins, she bites hard with her tongue in her mouth to ignore the anguish spreading throughout her body, this darkness consuming her alive.A blue glow emanates from her palm as it encircles her and Luffy. The latter stares with stars in his eyes, reflecting his first mate's might."Ussop pulls Luffy's cheek for me," she demands, as the latter stands up and approaches Luffy's seat.As Usopp pulls Luffy's cheeks, he notices something strange: Luffy's cheeks do not spread as much as his devil fruit does. No! His flesh is the same as Usopp's. Luffy yells at him to stop since his cheek hurts."It hurts, Ussop!" he moans drastically.Nami, Sanji, and Zoro rise from their seats, shaken, and look up at their first mate and captain with startled eyes."Luffy screeches a fist toward me!!" Zoro exclaims.Luffy stares at him and swings a fist at him, but his body and devil's fruit do not respond, as if they were erased from him; he tries five times before giving up. His devil fruit is absent, and his build is normal, just like any other human. He bites his hand and moans at the pain within his skin.Then, with wide eyes, he looks at his first mate. The latter turns off her power and places her hands on her lap."My ability can nullify any ability, powers, or devil fruits through physical contact," she confesses, avoiding their gaze from shame. Her hands shake violently in her grasp, as Umekui tries desperately to contain her power and avoid doing something catastrophic to her captain power. However, something hurts deep in her heart and veins, causing the beast to growl. There is something tremendous lurking deep within Luffy's devil fruit, something familiar and strong, a strength she has never encountered before (except from Chuuya)."WAWWWWWSHI SHI SHI UME! YOUR ABILITY IS VERY POWERFUL AND COOL!! I'M EVEN JEALOUS!" Luffy shouts loudly, beaming at her with a smile that entices the Sun to hide in disgrace."Your ability is very interesting and unique!" says Zoro, smirking.Sanji remains silent as he gazes at her with wide eyes filled with admiration."So it's because of that, that Miss-All Sunday devil fruit didn't work on you!" Nami asserts, and Umekui nods."You are so strong, Umekui-sensei!!" grins Ussop, springing at her with Luffy and hugging her tightly.Keeping the hums of her skills quiet, that burns and crops like a beast. Umekui melts into the warm embrace of her nakamas. She let her heart rest for a minute in the admiration that her crew felt for her.Even if it is a fictitious representation of her curse that they admire. Umekui couldn't tell her nakamas that each power comes with a curse that can wreck their lives.While Devil fruit users are cursed to drown in the sea and are unable to swim without being dragged to his depths. To all devil users and pirates, it was a cruel curse with a steep price tag. The inability to swim in the boundless sea removes one from the throne of the world: the sea, bearer of all the world's treasures, was a price and cruel acceptance that the devil fruit users acknowledged.But, deep down, Umekui knows that this curse has crippled Luffy to the core. Luffy looked at the sea with wonder coursing through his veins and sparks in his eyes as if it were the most beautiful thing in the world. Luffy, whom she had caught several times frowning at the sea because it annoyed him that he couldn't swim without risking his life for the power in his blood.Luffy, who adores the sea and has always wished to swim in it, gazes at all of the fish that Sanji has told him about, unconcerned that his body will be so heavy and his heart will be so hard that everything will pain. She knows it, and her heart screams at the injustice (if Luffy asked, she would look for the god who cursed him and bring him to his knees before her captain. Because Umekui is willing to do everything for Luffy).If Luffy asked her to tell him about her entire life from the beginning, she would not hesitate. Even though she knows his eyes will be filled with pain and disdain, she will pay the price because it is what she deserves. However, refusing her captain carries a heavy burden in her heart and causes a familiar knot in her throat.But. Umekui understands that her cursed power has the potential to restore Luffy's ability to swim, to fill his heart with such joy that the terror of drowning in the abyss of the dark sea will be a distant memory. Yet, at what cost? Using her power on Luffy is risky for both her and him.Her power is sought by the entire world. It has no limit, and she has no idea how far it goes (but she knows the cost of death, the anguish that haunts her from within, this sickness, these wounds consuming her flesh and blood, erasing her existence and turning her into a matter of darkness).Umekui has always used her power on others, sometimes to save them from the tragedy that comes with their powers (They claim she has released them, but all she can recall is their death). Some to kill them (since it is all she knows how to do (kill again and again like the weapon that the merciless gods built her to be).Yet, all abilities users are aware that their power has a double edge, as it can injure both others and the holder.In contrast to devil fruit, whose fates are all determined by the sea, and a mysterious entity that cursed them with hatred and rage, abilities users are subject to their own powers and deities, albeit some abilities users are unaware of their origins.But Dazai and Chuuya were both aware of the horrible knowledge of their abilities and origins, and this may be why they were destined and chosen as the bourreau of fate, doomed to an endless loop of sorrow.After arriving at Little Garden, Umekui packs her painting supplies and canvas in a backpack that Ussop created for her. Umekui was about to climb up the stairs to the deck when she was interrupted by the sound of a specific princess calling her name."Umekui!" Vivi exclaims as she approaches her and comes to a halt a few meters away."What do you want, princess?" she asks, her steely eyes fixed on the blue-haired woman."I wanted to apologize for what happened last night," she adds, maintaining her brown eyes with feverish intensity."Apologize?" Umekui is taken aback by the princess's remarks, but she brushes it off and hardens her focus on her. "Why do you want to apologize for, princess?""For attempting to touch you when you appeared to dislike me, and I understand that you despise my kin and blood, but" she began, then something burned in her sight as she held Umekui's red eyes without fear, I promise to never try to offend you or touch you without your consent. I promised you that I would return to my kingdom to preserve it, but I am aware that I must change and become a better princess than I was for my kingdom, and I would like to start with you. I want to be a better princess for you too, Umekui, and show you that blood does not define a person," she finishes, her eyes full of ambition and promise."Words are meaningless without actions, princess," the princess flinches at her crude comments, "your apologies won't ever be accepted. I am not a foolish person, princess; I understand that what runs through your blood and what you share with those disgusting beings does not imply that you are the same as them. But, as they say, the apple never falls far from the tree, so create your very own tree princess. Someone who will shadow the sins of your kin," she turns to climb up the stairs and stops without turning back to gaze at the princess, "So I will wait for you to show me that your blood doesn't determine your person," Umekui climbed to the deck with those last words.Luffy has already leaped from the ship, carrying a little bag on his back that she assumes contains food. Upon sighting her figure, he smiled broadly in her direction, "Ume, I'm going to visit the island, are you coming with me?" he asks enthusiastically.She shook her head and brought up her suitcase and canvas to present them to her captain, "I'm going to paint in some places, my captain"Luffy pouts and crosses his arms in response to her rejection, while Umekui smiles at his adorable sight (oh dear this boy is really going to kill her). The princess then asked if she may accompany Luffy to the island, to which he beamed at her, screeched his arms toward his waist, and began running with her."Is it okay for you to allow the princess to accompany Luffy? You don't like her at all," Zoro says, raising a single brown."It's fine, Luffy is strong. And the princess isn't dangerous; it's just what runs in her blood that makes me want to—"She goes silent and stares at her scarred hands.Her tongue is crips and burnt from her hypocrisy.(She recognizes that she is being hypocritical with the princess, condemning her of the blood that flows through her veins for all the wrongs that the monarchy has done to Umekui's life and the people she once coveted. However, her roots are even worse than the princess's blood, and she should be despised by the princess and her crew. Because Umekui deserved everything she went through and endured at the hands of these royals and accepted it as retribution)."Sometimes you can't choose what you hate," she says softly, her words drifting through the wind.(Umekui had never chosen her past or her life, nor had she chosen to be alive, here breathing with a curse consuming her from within. She had never chosen to despise herself more than anything else, and as a result, Umekui will despise everything that defines her.She frequently wonders where the nothingness booms and the graveyard grows if, in the end, her blood does not make her what she is, but rather what she is in her awareness and what she lacks.For it may change its body, what it wants in it, and its entire appearance, but it will never change since it is what makes it, and it is like a seed that will grow indefinitely and that no sword or fire can destroy its roots.And because she has no choice but to do it, Umekui is going to resent herself for it).A solid, warm palm grips her right hand. Umekui looks up into Zoro's piercing grey eyes, and she can't help but be envious of the sun for the way its rays dance across his gorgeous face.She returns her focus to the disappearing back of Luffy and the princess, "And Luffy would cheer her up and help her change the way she wants.He's extremely good at that," She admits with a gentle grin, knowing that Luffy's soul fixes everything cruel inside of her into something soft and new that she isn't worthy of."Hey, marimo head! We are running low on food! Go hunt us some food!" called Sanji, hurrying from the upper deck to their side.Zoro glances at him, nods, and then leaps to the ground."Okay! I'll bring back something you can't possibly catch!" Zoro smirked."Wait! You bastard!" Sanji yells, his eyebrows twitching as he looks down at Zoro."Hmm?"Nami, Ussop, and Umekui cast amusing glances at their exchange."I can't let that remark pass unchallenged! You think you can catch a bigger one than I can?" he asks.Zoro looks up at him fiercely and says, "Of course."Sanji leaps from the ship and runs into the forest, Zoro by his side, "Then it's a hunting match, marimo head!"Ussop and Nami look at one other, tears in their eyes, and sniff, "Why are they like this?"Umekui chuckles and looks at them fondly."Because they're men and stupid. Dumb men have what they refer to as the "honor of manhood. It's clear that testosterone will drive their behavior. And when they are confronted with a challenge from another male whom they perceive to be a predator, they will unavoidably begin to develop a rivalry," Umekui says, smiling.Ussop grunts at her words and looks to the forest where Sanji and Zoro fled.Does that imply that I'm not enough manly? To not have any kind of rivalry with them or Luffy, even if I'm a man? Or maybe I'm just not strong or brave enough?" He mumbles, but Nami and Umekui hear him.Umekui's hands gripped his cheeks and pinched them while Ussop gasped beneath her."Umek'hdh Y'r hurt'nkd m'e!!" attempts to speak Ussop."Do you realize how cute you are, Ussop? My cute genius kohai!" she says, laying her cold hands on his scorching cheeks.Ussop's brain burns and pauses, and his tongue feels heavy in his mouth while his heart feels light in his chest (Ussop is glad to finally feel Umekui flesh on his own).The scene in front of Nami makes her giggle softly, and Ussop's flushed face only makes her laugh harder."You are manly in your own wonderful way, Ussop. It's not because you lack manners like Sanji, Zoro, and Luffy that you're not a man. Everyone is unique in his own way," Umekui states, letting go of his red cheeks."And I don't know how you can call a man who has fought against pirates, marines, and fihsmen anything other than courageous,," Nami replies with a warm smile.(It is true that Ussop is afraid of everything. But Nami knows that a cowardly man would never be brave enough to join the crew of the "Ussop, you are courageous in your own unique manner. So thank you for being yourself, Ussop," grins softly Umekui peering at him with her red eyes.(Looking at Umekui's eyes, Ussop believes he finally found his favorite color).Ussop's scarlet face burns as he mumbles his gratitude to Nami and Umekui for their kind words."Let's go to this island. I'll paint some things, and if you're okay, how about a portrait?" Umekui offers with a wink.Nami smiles heartily and leaps into Umekui's arms, pressing her in a tight hug and squeezing their cheeks together."It is a great idea! Come on, let's go!"Grasping both Usopp's and Umekui's hands, she rushes into the forest.Nami's eyes sprung up from her skull as she saw a massive hand seizing her first mate.Ussop screams in terror, "Umekui!"For a brief while, their visit was tranquil, as Umekui dispatched all the frightening beasts they encountered as they strolled through the forest. But then a big shadow approached them, and out of panic, they assumed it was another terrifying beast, but it was a giant man, and with his giant hand, he grabbed Umekui by the waist and lifted her to his face."He is going to eat her!" shouts Ussop, shaking Nami by her shoulders as she continues to stare in terror at Umekui in the giant's hands.'Giant?'Oh my God, she's so stupid. Nami has entirely forgotten to tell them about the giants on this island, which she reads about in her longuebook. Their names, she thinks, are Brogy and Dorry. They've been on this island for so long that she's forgotten what they were fighting for. Because Nami has no idea what will keep two giants fighting for a hundred years."You. What are you?" the giant says, pointing his massive head at Umekui."This is a good question. But what about you? You're a giant, right?" Umekui asks plainly."Hm" agrees the giant, then sits up and crosses his legs, peering down at the two humans a few feet away, "Are those your friends?"With a nod, Umekui gives him a sharp look and says, "I won't hesitate to fight and kill you if you touch even one hair on their head."The giant laughed loudly at her remarks, "You are quiet funny, pryjatys"Umekui scowls at the nickname."My name is Umekui, not Pryjatys," she tells the giant, giving him a stern look."Umekui, Pryjarus, all of those names echoed in the same meaning, right Dazai?" chuckles the giant."The name is Umekui, not Pryjarus or Dazai," she repeats, upset.The giant laughs again and uses a finger to pet her hair, as one would do to a pestering kid."Do your friends have alcohol with them?" he inquires, changing the subject.When Umekui shakes her head and shrugs, the giant gives her a sadded look and pouts. The giant places her on the floor, and Usopp and Nami rush to her side, taking her by the arms."Are you okay?!" Nami demands, fluttering her hands over Umekui's torso and face to check for any wounds."Did the giant not find you tasty and is now going to eat me or Nami?" Ussop sought shakily.Umekui chuckles at his remarks, "Ussop, giants do not eat humans. You have no reason to be afraid of him, and don't worry, I'm here to protect you." She then turns to Nami's worried expression, "And Nami dear, don't worry! From worrying so much you will develop wrinkles before you're older."Nami's face remains frozen, with fear coursing through it. She then places her hands on her cheek and brings her face near to Umekui. "Don't tell me that I have already wrinkles!!"Umekui shook her head and smiled, "No, don't wo-""Actually, yes! You already look like an old hag hahaha! You even have some white hair and d-"Nami smacked Usopp's head hard with her first, her eyes burning with anger and fury."How dare you, idiot nose head! Take that back!""Sorry!" implores Ussop, attempting to remove her hands from his neck and prevent her from strangling him to death."Guys, do we have any alcohol for the giant here?" Umekui asks, pointing at the monster who is pouting.Ussop is taken aback by how carefree she is about the giant who can crush them with his palm in the blink of an eye. Then he nods and dashes for their ship, which are not too far away. He quickly returned with two kegs of alcohol. He wonders if the terror of being devoured by this giant gave him the strength to carry his two barrels himself and return them here.As he notices the barrel, the giant smiles and introduces himself."Thanks for the alcohol! My name is Brogy, the strongest warrior of Elbaf!" declares the giant with a cocky smirk.The name of the island lingers in Umekui's mind; in the deepest recesses of her memory, she recalls reading about it somewhere. Then Brogy continues to explain how he has been in a one-hundred-year duel with his best friend, Dorry, and that whenever the island's central volcano erupts, they must confront one other in combat.Nami and Umekui notice how Ussop's eyes shine with admiration. Suddenly, the volcano erupts, and Broggy explains that it is the time for his fight against Dorry, and that they are welcome to observe it. Before Nami and Umekui can refuse, Ussop agrees with a bright smile, grabs their arms, and runs behind Brogy to witness his fight.Once they reach a large area like to an arena, Umekui and Nami sit on a rock and watch as Ussop gets caught up in the battle between Broggy and Dorry, a giant with long brown hair. While watching the scene, Umekui got her stretch from her bag and some pencils and started drawing the two giants fighting. As she concentrates on her artwork, she senses Luffy's soul a few feet away and smiles tenderly.She bets Luffy is sparkling at the battle between the two giants ahead of them. She wager how carelessly he has undoubtedly touched everything he has come across on this island, wonderment filling his large warm chocolate eyes.As the volcano erupts again, signaling the end of the fight, Umekui looks down at the finished drawing of Brogy and Dorry. Nami beside her looks down at the drawing and smiles broadly at her (The smile that makes Umekui's heart race and makes her feel human rather than a monster devoid of essence)."You are so talented, Umekui! The drawing is so pretty!" Nami compliments as she gazes at her in awe.Before she can thank Nami, Umekui's smile vanishes as she hears Dorry groaning in pain. And something abominable inside her crips as she detects devil fruits users on the island.A few feet away, she spots Luffy fighting the enormous Dorry, who is attempting to harm Ussop. Ussop, whose eyes were once filled with admiration for the giants, is now trapped and paralyzed in dread, as he sits on his buttocks, watching Luffy and Dorry fight.Umekui rapidly rises to her feet and glances at Nami, who is observing the same thing."Nami, I am going to help Luffy". With a calm voice, she commands, "Go find Ussop and join the princess and her duck who are not far."Nami nods and picks up Umekui's bag. She rushes toward Ussop while Umekui rushes in Luffy's direction.When she gets to Luffy and Vivi, the volcano explodes once more, and Dorry exits to go face Brogy in a new duel."What's going on? Why are you struck under a roak?" she asks, kneeling before her captain.Luffy smiles broadly at her presence before explaining with a grimace, "Dorry and I argued because I tried to stop him from fighting Broggy. Bsince the booze he drank harmed him and erupted within his stomach, so he accused us!"Umekui sighs, knowing that Luffy is the only one who would choose to fight a giant for his well-being. (And Umekui allows shame to stream through her veins because she knows that if Luffy learned how devoid of emotions for the world she is, he would despise her forever. (And nothing hurts more than seeing the people she cares about hate her again).Umekui activates her ability and stares at the princess standing next her, "Princess. Can you move a little further? I need to get my captain out of there."With a nod, Vivi and her duck go a few metres away.Umekui feels the ability to awaken and run through her veins, her heartbeat becoming heavier and heavier, and her vision darkening. But she strives to ignore any callus, especially the voices screaming in her head, and places her hand on the rock that traps Luffy. The rock explodes beneath her palm, freeing Luffy, with a screeching, deafening crack.Izumi's cherry smell stings her nostrils as the voices rage and grieves.Luffy screeches his arms and hops onto her back, holding her from behind. Umekui extinguishes the ability and allows her rotten body to melt into Luffy's absurdly soft one."Listen carefully, Captain. We are under attack by Baroque agents. They are four devil fruit users, so I think they have followed us. Nami and Ussop are a few meters away; could you go find them, my captain?"Luffy sulks, but Ume rarely asks him to do things, so he smiles and grants her wish, hurrying into the forest to find his friends.After Luffy leaves, Umekui turns her intense red eyes on the princess, and the longer she looks at her, the more something hurts inside of her and a poisonous flame burns in her head. Because this girl next to her is tainted by the blood of her foes; she is the dirty one who had her education in the very castles that Umekui despised and destroyed."Do you know their devil fruits and their identities, princess?"Vivi felt herself being studied from within and without by the first mate's steely gaze."I believe it's Miss Valentine, Mr. 5, Miss Goldenweek, and Mr. 3. Mr.5 ingested the Bomu Bomu no Mi, enabling him to produce powerful explosions from any region of his body, even his entire body. Mr.3 ate the Doru Doru no Mi, giving him the ability to make and manipulate candle wax. Miss Valentine ate the Kiro Kiro no Mi, which allows her to control her body weight at pleasure. Miss Goldenweek uses her special painting abilities to use a kind of hypnosis based on colored paint," Vivi explains, trying to recall which of the first mate's suspects she might know.Umekui smirks, her scarlet eyes flashing, "Finally a princess who is not completely stupidly foolish; yet, infiltrating an organization like this changed you, right princess?"As she observes Umekui's bloodlust, Vivi's smile fades. Umekui approaches her, her eyes glowing crimson like the blood that haunts Vivi at night. The first mate's sharp red lips twist into a bitter smile, and Vivi swears her heart stops and something chokes her throat.Umekui's lips brush against Vivi's ears, allowing her vicious words to consume her mind: "Tell me, princess, how many lives did you take? How did your first murder feel in your flawlessly delicate hands?" A wicked smile spreads across Umekui's lips. "Tell me, did they beg you to spare their life, as all your subjects beg the gods to save them from their suffering?"Vivi's breath shook as terror gripped her eyes and heart; the smell of fire and the taste of ashes on her tongue made her want to cry and hide like a small child."Listen carefully, Princess. If any of my nakamas are harmed, or worse, killed, by the group that is hunting them down because of you. I swear I would be so much worse than Crocodile and Miss-All Sunday reunited." She ends with a venomous voice.Umekui turns her back and leaves the princess alone. Allowing the princess to gaze at the first mate's retreating blue kimono and long black hair. When her legs give out, she collapses on her knees, the knot in her throat yielding a series of quivering sounds that shock her to the core.Vivi placed her hand on her mouth, attempting to muffle the sobs that were leaving her lips. She felt fully drained by the world and completely alone in facing all of its trials.Vivi knows she is weak; she has known this from the moment she had to flee her kingdom in order to survive. Running through the dark desert at fourteen till her feet bleed and her lungs choke her completely. At the age of fourteen, she breaks into a sinister organization, the head of which is the root of her family's and her people's misery.
" Tell me, princess, How many lives did you take? How did your first kill feel like on your perfect soft hands?"
Vivi is even unable to remember the ones she eliminated to prove her worth in this organization. She survived and sacrificed so much for a future that seems so far away.The first time Vivi felt blood on her hands, she couldn't sleep for a while without crying and begging the gods for forgiveness for her immorality.

She never look at her hands in the same way again.

Her mother is undoubtedly disappointed in her and turning in her grave for her daughter's foolish and cruel behavior.But how can she gaze into her father eyes again and hide the weight of the blood she spilled?
"Tell me, did they beg you to spare their life like all your subjects are begging the gods to save them from their suffering?" 
The first mate is wrong. Completely absurdly wrong.Vivi was deaf to the cries and pleads of those she had killed in her path. Because the only sounds Vivi knows are the cries of her kingdom, the sobbing and pleas and insults of her name, the images of her pictures and her family burned to flames and cut into sheds.She gets it wrong because, from the moment Vivi dared to soak her hands with her sins, the gods abandoned her and turned a blind eye to her tragedy. Perhaps Umekui sees her as the one who shares the blood of those who have caused her sorrow. Perhaps she views her as one of those who share the blood of those egoistic gods.But the first mate must understand one thing: the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb.Vivi will not let her blood determine her life or who she is. She will not repeat her predecessors' mistakes. She is going to prove to her kingdom that she is not like those greedy rulers or cruel gods who ignored their pleas for help.She is going to be a good ruler—better than any previous ruler in history. She will save those she cares about and provide joy to the hearts of her people.It's a pledge to herself and her late mother.Indeed, Vivi was weak at fourteen, but not anymore. She suffered, she was dragged through fire and dust, she has become accustomed to the pain over time, and with this scorching pain, she will reclaim her homeland.Even if she has to do it alone, she will. She will do anything to rescue her home, even if it means sacrificing her soul.Even if it takes another five or ten years, Vivi pledges that the watt that is destroying her land will end, at whatever cost, and Crocodile will fall.He will crumble on his knees, she promises. He will fall, just as her motherland, as a result of his lies and treachery. After that, she pledges that no harm will come to her land until she dies and that her soul will return to protect the land she loves.Vivi's eyes blaze with wildfire.Yes, Umekui is wrong, so amiss to view her as a naive princess, when a fire is burning inside Vivi's soul. She will show this first mate, who appears to be looking down at the entire world, that she is wrong to condescend to her. Vivi's will fills Umekui's vacant red eyes with shocks, and this beautiful pale face will burn with shame, the shame of looking down on a princess who survived so long amid a den of vipers.The sound of someone approaching causes her to turn fast and stare at Mr.5, a familiar face.Her eyes burn with wrath, and her heart waves.She is going to show to the world, Umekui, and Miss All Sunday that Vivi is a strong woman, not a naive princess, because her hands and mouth are used to the taste of blood.She was cast aside by her blood, her kingdom, and the gods as soon as she disobeyed them.When Vivi's legs start to shake from her intense scorching, she glares ferociously and leaps toward Mr. 5 in a frenzied rush.She has fallen, but she is climbing higher than before; Vivi Nerfertari of Albasta will emerge from the ashes and dust.Zoro and Nami's upper bodies are paralyzed by the power of Mr. 3 devil fruit, and they can only watch down while Luffy behaves strangely."I have no choice," Zoro announces, raising his sword above his head, "but to cut my legs off."Nami's eyes widened in surprise at his words, "You idiot, if you do it, I will kill you!!"Zoro's eyes twitch as he looks at her, annoyed, "Ha you think I'm afraid of you, old witch?!"Nami smacked his head hard, "Who are you calling old witch, you bastard!""Tch. Stop wasting time, Nami. We can’t stay like that. So cutting off my feet is nothing," Zoro continues, his voice gruff and harsh, causing Nami to wince.Nami's lips quiver, her palms tremor and the lump in her throat shrinks. "We can find another solution! Zoro, your legs aren't nothing! They are really important! For your dreams and goals."Zoro stares at worried Nami with an affectionate glance but soon hides it and grumbles, "It's not pretty to see an old witch caring for someone"Zoro is aware that Nami cares about him and their close companions. Even though she tried hard to hide it from them, especially the men on the crew, Nami possessed the most sensitive heart among all of them. She is always the first to call out their name out of concern, the first to rush at them out of fear, and the first to stand at Umekui's door for hours to ensure her well-being.Nami, usually claims to be the weakest of the group, but they all know that their navigator is stronger than she realizes because Nami is a survivor.
"Do you think that I'm weak, Zoro?" Nami once questioned on a full moon, as they sipped alcohol on their upper deck, gazing out at the huge ocean.Zoro looks down at his glass of booze before lifting his attention to the night skies above them. "It depends. You are pretty weak in terms of brute strength and raw fighting ability," Nami nods, looking at his words absently. "But, no weak human could have survived against fishmen, or set a strategy to out-smart them; you are pretty fast too and the most remarkable navigator I have ever known in my life, so you are pretty strong for an old witch!" Zoro smirked

"Who are you calling, old witch?" Nami says, glaring at him as a grin spreads across her lips. "I need to be strong, Zoro. Strong for myself, strong for the crew and Luffy, and strong for Umekui," she continues, a hint of sadness in her voice as she mentions Umekui.Zoro's gray eyes darken at the thought of their first mate; it's been three days since she locked herself in her painting room following the event with the odd Miss All-Sunday.

"Umekui is suffering, Zoro. She rarely sleeps and eats, and she always drinks or smokes, yet we have never caught her drunk or high. She always wakes up before me in our shared quarters, staring at the ceiling with lifeless eyes as if she doesn't seem here with me right now. If it hadn't been for the smile she gives me when she looks at my awake face, I could have thought she was a dead corpse. She never talks about her, and hell, even Sanji has no idea what her favorite meals are, despite knowing all of ours. Every time she tries to talk about herself, her words are rife with hatred and self-loathing," Nami's voice breaks "The worst is when she touches one of us; she appears afraid but not of us. She feels afraid that her touches are poisonous and destructive".She takes a deep breath and gulps her alcohol glass.

"So I have to be stronger for Umekui. Strong enough for her to view me as a pillar for her. Stonger to demonstrate that I can be the shore of her sadness as she is to mine," she says, resting her head on Zoro's broad right shoulder."You're already strong, Nami. Victims have graves, but survivors have the will". Zoro whispers back, placing his head above Nami, "The will to be strong and protect, just for that, you are quite strong." "And if you want to be stronger I will help you Nami"As slumber creeps over her mind. Nami expresses gratitude to her crewmate and loyal friend: "Thank you, Zoro. For everything.

Zoro snickers fondly, hiding it under Nami's orange hair, "There is no need for thanks, old witch."
Nami and Zoro turn to face Luffy and Miss Goldenweek as they hear the familiar noise of chains. With a cry, the little girl is violently encased in a lengthy metal chain around her petite frame. The chain raises the little girl high as she struggles to break free from it, but her efforts are hopeless.Mr.3's mouth opens wide, and as he spots the familiar scarlet eyes shining from the trees and approaching, he whines, dread clinging to his eyes and making his body shiver."It's her. She's there," Mr. 3 murmurs to himself, his eyes glazed over and his forehead dripping in sweat."I don't hate many things," the voice started, and Mr.3 could feel his heart freeze from the coldness in her voice.
"Beware of the monster's red eyes because they will be the last thing you see before you die," advises their Boss in a frosty tone."But now, even if it costs your lives, you bring Dazai to me. Do you understand Golden Week, Miss Valentine, Mr. 3, and Mr. 5?Each member responds to their leader with a firm voice, allowing their commitment and allegiance to reverberate throughout their quarters."Hai! Mr.0!"
"But cowards make my blood boil... dispersing my nakamas throughout this island to tear them apart. What a silly cowardly idea you had, mister 3," Umekui smirks as the sun shines on her captivating crimson eyes and darkens her sneer.Something unsightly crips inside Umekui as she quickly glances at her wounded nakamas and their partially gone cloches.Luffy is still unmoving as if stuck in time, and Umekui knows why when she notices the unusual draw on his red shirt.Mr.3 quickly gulps his alive and stands up straight, with a cold look toward her captain and the blade in his hand, Umekui's eyes blaze. They both rush toward Luffy. Mr.3, who is the closest to him, rushes to his side and raises his blade above Luffy, smiling twistedly.Nami cried out to warm her captain, but Luffy was too far away in his head to hear her.From above, a being shadows the sun, casting a shadow over Mr.3. A foot struck hard on Mr.3's neck, propelling his body far away till it slammed into a three.Umekui's blood boils, but she works hard to quell the storm roaring within her.Luffy's lovely spicy scent draws her bloody gaze to him. She quickly undresses him from his red blouse, and the warmth and familiar gaze of her precious captain causes her heart to race and her breath to relax.Round brown eyes look up at her, and Luffy's huge careless smile spreads across his face."Ume! What are you doing here?" He asks, glancing around, perplexed by what is going on around him.At the sound of their goofy captain, Nami and Zoro grin at one another, relieved that their first mate arrived on time."This is the second time someone has hypnotized you, my captain?" Umekui grabs Luffy's straw hat off the floor and places it on his head, "If you continue like this, the title of the biggest idiot will be yours."Then she removes her white hoari, which she wore over her blue kimono, and places it over Luffy's shoulder to help him wear it.Luffy crosses his arms and sulks, "It's not even my fault!"She focuses her attention on Luffy, ignoring Mr 3's rising and outrage flowing from him."The princess is alone, and she has very certainly met Mr.5. You agreed to protect and aid her in reclaiming her kingdom, right?" Luffy nods at her words, "Then go save her, and I will take care of Mr.3 and free Zoro and Nami." Before he could leave, she embraced him tightly, "Be careful, my captain. Don't be careless, okay? The crew depends on you; they need you are their sole captain"
(I need you. I need you so desperately that being apart from you makes my heart ache and my mind tears. I need you so much that dying slowly feels like ecstasy. I need you because you are you and no one else. You are my sole refuge of solace—the freedom that seemed so far away—and the new sun in my otherwise completely dark existence.)
Luffy presses his forehead against hers and grins with a sun-like grin. "I'm strong, Ume! So do not worry about me! Be careful, too, because I and our nakamas need you!"(I need you, Ume! Not because you are my first mate, but because I adore you. Because all I see is you, Ume, by my side as we travel this never-ending world, I need you—you and your scars, you and your past. Because I feel so bare without you by my side, and I worry that you won't be here forever every time you leave my side)"So now go save the princess, my captain!" She says with a gentle smile, pushing him toward the princess.(Go write this tale that mocks the history of falsehoods. Go guide and save people from their misfortunes and tragedies. You represent the sun that people will always value and gaze upon, and I shall represent the monster that people will pray to the gods to destroy. Go Luffy and write your own destiny!)"Shi shi shi see you later!" Luffy laughs loudly, stretches his arms to two threes, and hurls his body into the boundless sky.Umekui smiles widely, her scarlet eyes filled with care and warmth. Observing his smile and allowing his laugh to resonate in every wall of her miserable mind, and his body floating through the sky like a bird.
'Is this the freedom you were talking about, Odasaku? I bet Chuuya would have loved to see this'
This freedom, however, is not for her. What she was destined for were the webs of destiny that would never let her go, no matter how hard she ran and fought against them.(Dazai learned years ago to stop fighting the inaccessible, yet something blazes inside Umekui's heart, igniting what humans call hope).Mr.3 Devil Fruit active, creating and controlling candle wax, twisting and sculpting the matter into numerous swords pointed at her body.He screams and tosses at her a hundred swords made of candle wax. Umekui smirks as her ability glows light blue, engulfing her whole and expanding in a bull's protective circle around her.No longer human, hums and assaults her inner being, allowing the curse covering her flesh to devour her blood. The wound of darkness numbs her heart and burns her entire body; her right knees snap, but Umekui does not fall or show signs of suffering (she is too familiar with the pain to show it to the world.She has learned well to hold this anguish in her heart, and every time she locks the door to her painting room, she allows the madness to make her scream and cut her body, tainting her floor with nasty blood).As they come into contact with her ability, the sword of candles vanishes into thin air.Mr.3's eyes widen as he realizes what is going on. "So this power exists?!" he shouts, stunned at the sight of Umekui's ability. Before he could open his mouth again, he saw a flash of red eyes.
"Be aware of the red eyes of the monster because it's the last thing you will see before you die"
He hardly had time to realize what was going on when he felt Dazai's palm fisting his hair and his devil power flamed out from his blood. His tower of candles dissipates into the air like a gust of wind, and the other two pirates collapse to the ground as his devil power vanishes from his blood.Then, with an aggressive smash of the Dazai's knees on his face and the breaking of his nose, a knock of a grip gun to his temple blocked his breathing and darkened his eyesight."You’re lucky my nakamas are here. Cause I’d rip your heart out with my bare hand and shove it down your throat," whispers Umekui in a cold tone.With a crack of his neck, he collapses to the floor unconscious. Dull red eyes stare at his corpse indifferently as she struggles to dispel her curse.Her only thought when she thinks of this dreadful ability is of the first atrocity of her existence, which makes her want to rip out her eyes and vomit her organs.No longer human; harms Umekui's body in ways that detach her from reality.(But what exactly is reality? The ones running through her mind? Or the one that haunts her sleepless nights and makes her beg death to take her, or the one who brings hope in the glorious guise of freedom?).The ability causes Umekui to become cold and silent, to the point that her whimpering and screams dull the quietness. But then again, this power brought back chants of doom humming in her consciousness, along with screams that felt distant and familiar. Her body feels like two worlds colliding and utilizing her as their sole vessel.Perhaps Umekui's body is too bitter and lifeless to feel anything, yet as Nami's body interlaces her, the numbness fades.(She wonders once more where the creature inside her has taken over her and nothing about her is left. Is she going to allow Nami to touch and feel her body at the edge of her anguish and madness? Because, for the time being, in a thousand agonies and tortures, Nami exists in Umekui's consciousness, and nothing brings her serenity to her hurricane like Nami's scent and soul are)."Zoro the idiot wanted to cut off his legs to escape Mr.3's devil fruit!" huffs Nami, inflating her cheek and pointing to Zoro with an accusing finger.Uemui tugs hard on his cheek, pinching it with her fingers and narrowing her eyes at him, "I.D.I.O.T! What would you do if you lost our legs? Absolutely Nothing. You'll be like a baby that we need to babysit and take care of," she says, her lips stretching into a funny smile. "Don't tell me you wanted me to babysit you. Do you have a mommy kink?" Umekui teases him with a chuckle."You, bastard! Don't mock me!" Zoro yells with red ears. Bringing a fist to slam on her head, which she quickly dodge.Nami chuckles and raises her arms toward Umekui's neck. Can you lift me for a while, Umekui? I am a little tired.""Of course. Anything for you, Nami dear! Let's go, Zoro, Luffy, and the rest will meet us in the going merry!" She says this as she lifts Nami like a princess in her arms, her muscles flexing during the movement, causing Zoro to glare at her arms."Quit staring at my arms! It's okay to be jealous of my amazing muscles, Algae-head!" Umekui chuckles, Nami already sleeping in her arms with her head on her right shoulder.Zoro follows closely behind her, grumbling between insults and incomprehensible remarks, his tongue heavy from the lack of blood redding his face and ears.Sanji exhaled smoke out of his mouth as he looked down at the baroque members' bloodied bodies, crouching down and picking up the eternal pose from the floor.From the Den Den Mushi, Crocodile demands, "What is this all that noise?""Nothing, boss; I took care of the last straw hat," he says in a cool voice.(And the voice slipping from his lips seems so alien that it's freezing his nerves. (It makes him resemble the ones who share his blood (disgust and self-hatred grip Sanji's head, allowing his blue sky eyes to be haunted by ghosts from the past))."Great job. Did you fetch Dazai as I instructed you?!" he asks, and Sanji thinks he felt Mr.0's twisted smirk at the mention of his first mate.For the woman who restores Sanji's faith in unconditional love, this name feels so alien. It feels inappropriate to even consider calling his first name by this name.He freezes and looks down at the Den Mushi. The notion of Baroque purchasing Umekui makes Sanji's heart race with rage.(Because Sanji cannot bear the prospect of losing her (he loves her too much to let her go).She carries a piece of his heart that only the ghost of his past knew--and foolish little Sanji knows the cost of love. He knows it as well as the heaviness of heartbreak and grief.Those same scars and bruises burn and ache so badly as soon as they come into contact with Umekui's chilly flesh. She ices the bruises and scars on his body, as if rain had extinguished the fire of devastation)."No, she escaped, Sir," he lies.As he waits for Crocodile's response, Sanji's heart races as he struggles to keep his hands steady."Purchase her. Bring her to me at all costs. I need her; she is significant. If you survive, I will make you my right-hand man, because only a hero could take out this monstrous beast-" chuckles darkly Crocodile over the phone.Within Sanji's mouth, blood spurts. He bites his tongue hard to stop himself from insulting Crocodile and threatening to track him down and slice his tongue for his fool utterances. He dared to insult his first mate like this?! How dare he? He knows nothing about Umekui.
'Umekui or Dazai, there is no meaning in them; they are both cursed names with meanings that make my stomach curl with disgust'
His stomach aches and coils.Sanji will never forget his first mate's anguished voice when she mentioned this name.(Sanji is well aware of the melancholy, lifeless eyes carried by those he cares deeply about. He is well acquainted with this loathing, which echoes from his first name every time she speaks about her as if she were the most repulsive thing in the world).He clenches his fist and forces the knot in his throat to loosen."At your command, sir." he declares calmly.At his words, the beep sound of Crocodile hanging up forces him to let go and fall on his buttocks.Fuck. What is he going to tell his crew and first mate now? And how will Umekui react?It's obvious that something is amiss. Something significant and dangerous is taking place. And Sanji has no idea how to stop it or help Umekui. Since he knows nothing at all, how can he possibly help her?(This is wrong. Sanji knows a lot about his first mate; he knows her so well that being away from her hurts him to the core. Because Sanji recognizes the various shades of her eyes and the numerous tones of her voice, he knows the way she smiles and laughs. And oh god, Sanji swears that every time he hears it, he dies and comes back to life.He sees the darkness in her eyes and notices something is plainly off with his first mate (she is hurting and Sanji can't do anything because Umekui doesn't want them to know).Umekui never sleeps, and when she does, she often doesn't wake up until late afternoon. She doesn't eat much; some days she eats nothing and other days she eats so much that he thinks she'll puke. She has an unhealthy attitude of drinking heavily alone and smoking so much that Sanji occasionally deprives her of her cigarettes.And those dark lines beneath her eyes, this worn stare, and thin fingers Sanji understands Umekui is in pain because she walks as if she is being ripped apart from the inside and breathes as if every breath is her last (And the prospect of Umekui taking her final breath frightens and scares Sanji's heart).Sanji knew. He fucking knew he was cursed. Those who share his disgusting blood (and if Umekui knew, if she knew the source of his rotten blood, she would never forgive him) do well to say it to him and haunt him as monsters did in this house that previously held the only person who felt safe and home.Sanji was forced to watch the death of the person he loved in this very home. Because he loves her (so much that he wishes he could go down on his knees and cry and beg her forgiveness just to bring her back). So he wonders if Umekui would meet the same fate as the tragedy that poisoned his life.Red's beautiful eyes, with a tinge of darkness, caress his mind, and the sweet odor of chocolate strokes his nostrils.He must speak with Umekui and comfort her about Crocodile (and Sanji is unprepared to witness the terror freeze her face and pains hold her face in a death grip).If he sees her closing herself off again and allowing her mind to grab her in a twisted grip that turns her into a ghost and bears this fearless stare, Sanji will go to any length to bring her back to him. Because of how Sanji allowed those he cherished to bleed and cry in silence and darkness, he will never allow her to lose herself in her own suffering.(When he has gone through this, he promises on his life that he will never let others he cares about go through the same suffering that has reduced his organs to tears).Sanji knew from the moment he held Luffy's hand and allowed their promises to remain in their hearts that he would do everything for this crew that felt like home (a home he had dreamed about for many sleepless years, a home that his loved one promised he would find one day).And his heart is weak in the face of red soft lips and keen crimson eyes that search every part of his mind like a read-minder. Weak against the voice of the first mate, which shakes his bones like an earthquake, he is just weak because his heart beats so loudly in his ears and on his mind that he can only see her.Yes, love makes Sanji weak, but he will never resent his weakness. He could never detest love because it is what has shaped Sanji into the man he is today. And Sanji would sacrifice everything for his home out of love.Umekui waits by the ship after putting a drowsy Nami to bed. While Zoro is loading the dead animals he brought onto the ship.Nami was too exhausted to wake up, so Umekui merely put her in her bed, and when Sanji returns, she will ask him to prepare something for their navigator.Perhaps Nami is having her period, thus she is sleepy."UMEKUI!!" Ussop screams joyfully as he runs toward her, the princess duck behind him.She grins at his joyful expression, then frowns as she removes crusted blood from his head and elbows."GUESS WHAT? Guess what?!" He beams, clapping his hands in hers and rotating their bodies in a circles."What?" she says, tilting her head (and Ussop's touch and smile let her forget the misery engulfing her)."I fought against Miss Valentine and won!!" he exclaims.Umekui smiled broadly, stopped him from turning, and reached out a hand to stroke his head, "You did fantastic, Ussop! You're getting closer to your dream!"Ussop's ears get red, then chuckle lightly."All thanks to the bombs we created Umekui!" he exclaims, scratching his nose."I'm glad they worked well! But the merit is up to you, don't forget!" She complements him, clutching his cheeks."Uye-Aye-st'p Um'ke"Ussop tries to get free from his hold, but Umekui prevents him because she adores cheeks so much.(Dazai used to crush Chuuya's cheeks so much that one day he tried to set fire to her favorite book in revenge.)"Youhou!! Ume! Ussop!!" waves Luffy from Borgy's shoulder, the princess in Dorry's grasp.Ussop smiles and turns to wave at them, "Luffy!! Vivi!!"Umekui studies Luffy's state and strives to keep her fury under control so that she does not unleash it on the innocent princess. (How can she be innocent when horrific blood runs through her veins and her face has never known the cost of tragedies (her family is the only ones who dare to cause sorrow and tragedy to the innocent)?!(Yet, she realizes that Izu would have adored this girl and attempts to help her return home (since both she and Izu understand the cost of witnessing their homes burn and the taste of ashes).The giants sat down, allowing her captain and princess to descend to the ground.The princess flinches as she notices her dull gaze. (She knows that her comments were cruel and that this princess had nothing to do with her suffering, but every time she looks at her soft eyes and her rose aroma is close to her, an untamed and terrible parasite grows inside her (she wants to devour this princess and leave nothing of her)."Ume I told you that I'm strong and I will beat up Mr.5!!" He beamed as he wrapped his arms around her neck and hugged her tightly. (She melts and inhales his scent since Luffy's body is one of the warmest things she has had the chance to touch).She absently stroked his body to see whether he was hurt. In the absence of any serious injuries, she expelled the breath she was holding in her chest.(After taking so many lives, she will never be able to fully breathe. And she knows that if her nakamas enter this graveyard in Umekui's head. She will never breathe again, allowing her lugs to explode inside her (since how dare she breathe in a world without her nakamas?)"If you ever lose to him, I'll tell Nami to beat you," she threatens, narrowing her gaze at him.Luffy's body is still and crisp from the fear of Nami's rage (her fist hurts more than his grandfather's fist of love. Perhaps Nami is genuinely a witch, as Zoro usually refers to her, and she is hiding her true identity? he smiles dumbly at the idea)."So, how are we going to set sails for Alabasta?" Vivi asks loudly."I know how, my dear princess, your beloved prince is here for the rescue," Sanji shouts as he comes behind her, holding an eternal pose in his palm.Ussop and Luffy's mouth gaps open. And Vivi jumps into Sanji, hugging him so fiercely that his nose bleeds as her breast meets his chest."Pervert," Usopp mutters, peering at Sanji with disgust.Let's go. We don't have time," Umekui interrupts, turning to march toward the Going Merry.As they enter the deck, Usopp looks at the dead animals with horror. Luffy's mouth gapes wide as saliva pours onto the floor."So, who won?" Usopp asks, raising an eyebrow at Zoro and Sanji.They each cross their arms and gesture at themselves with a smirk."Of course it's me!" they exclaim simultaneously, before glaring at each other and dumping her forehead hard."Why didn't you say Pervy cook? It is obvious that I have won!" Zoro exclaims, shoving Sanji down with his forehead."Are you blind, bastard Marimo! It's me who has brought the biggest animals!" Sanji reacts, pushing Zoro with his forehand to assert dominance."Stop being idiots," Umekui grumbles, then casts a bored glance in the direction of the two enormous goldfish in the ocean. "Sanji, could you please prepare some tea and something to eat for Nami? She's not feeling well."Sanji's eyes shout out in heart as he rushes to the kitchen, leaving Zoro to collapse to the floor due to the absence of his body to push him back."Right now, Umekui-chan!!" he calls enthusiastically.Luffy and Usopp point and laugh loudly at the blushing, embarrassed Zoro on the floor."Shut up, dipshit!" groans the swordsman as he stands up from the floor.Dorry and Brogy use their worn-out weaponry to kill the gold big fish that tries to feed on the Going Merry.Vivi applauds the giant's power, while Luffy and Ussop wave goodbye to them."Goodbye, Brogy! Dorry!!""Goodbye, straw hat! Goodbye, Princess Vivi! Goodbye, Pryjarus."She gives the two giants a fierce look as they wave her off and give them a bitter smile.'It's been a long time since I heard this name,' she thought, then 'tch' at the searing sensation in her chest. She sighs and chooses to navigate the ship away from this location because Nami is sleeping for the moment.She grabs the helm of a boat in her arms, allowing the wind to propel the ship far away from Little Garden, and following the arrow in the eternal pose toward Alabasta.Her muscles tightened and her knees trembled as the pain surged back up and devoured every cell in her soul.(She is fucking tired, so tired that she wants to lie next to Nami in her tangerine scent and feel her soft skin beneath her fingertips.But, unlike Nami, she wants to sleep forever (she wants to die because, despite her nakamas' wishes for her to find a reason to live, she is selfish.Selfish to desire to die while her nakamas try to love her and change her perspective on the world (All she can see is darkness and blood, and absolutely nothing can take this sight from her)).But for the time being, she can't die since she has something to accomplish. In this kingdom where dishonesty is destroying the home of this princess whom Umekui dislikes, a woman from her past emerges.Robin's name echoes like a plea in Umekui's heart. An abandoned fragment of the crumbling cathedral from the past, where the music of faith morphs into the same tune, crying and humming the tragic story of her life.

She needs to find Robin.

(Like a beast seeking his prey, she hunts for Robin's soul).

She must see Robin again.

(She needs to touch Robin again, to feel her heart and soul, because Robin was the girl Dazai used to love so deeply that saying her name felt sacrilegious).She wants Robin.(Robin is capable of killing her.Because Robin despises Dazai. Aside from all the world's foes that desire Dazai's head, Robin is both the best and worst option. She would rather be slain by Robin than by the greedy men who seek her blood out of greed. Worst because death by someone you once loved so deeply that grief never faded from their name is the ultimate source of desolation.Because the moment Robin spills her blood and kills her, she will finally be able to let go of Robin's ghost and cling to the harsh reality that Miss All-Sunday's blade will ultimately conquer).Robin, who reads a lot of stories, will finally be the hero of her own story once she kills the monster of the century, Umekui Dazai is. Before it's too late, before her curses take possession of her mind and erase her, she'll deliver a final present to her dear Robin: her death.(She is not sad for her beloved nakamas because she knows that as soon as Crocodile discloses who she is, they will abandon her, broken and desperate on the floor, their hatred tearing her heart to shreds, and she would fucking ask Robin to murder her. She will beg until Robin snaps and her anger destroys Dazai for good). She looks at Luffy, Ussop, Zoro, and Vivi, who are standing on the deck, delighted at the sight of the majestic grand line ahead of them.Yes. It will not bother them to see how terrible she is and leave her behind because her place was never with them (but it will hurt her so much that she will beg Robin for death).She grabs the helm tightly, swallows the lumps in her throat, and tries to ignore the growing void in her heart.Umekui must die because she is unable to survive in a world without her nakamas; the world is too dark and ugly for her, and the prospect of maintaining this torturous existence without the sole source of love and beauty she has discovered is exceedingly lonely.Umekui's red eyes deepen with sorrow and pain, as she grins bitterly.
'It's better to be dead than lonely, right Chuuya?'

"I would ruin myself to fixes you"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

In Dazai's existence, numbness was all that she knew.Numbness fuels the flickering of the curse that flows through her veins. a numbness that dims her view of the outside world and makes her perceive only nothingness.

She always knew that something was wrong with her, that something was missing from within her. Everything about her was strange and weird, yet even when she felt a lot of things, emptiness always compromised everything.

She once knew wrath in Kana's flames, greed in Mori-sama's eyes, sadness in Chuuya's eyes, revenge in Izu's eyes, and fear in Robin's eyes, but she has no idea what she sees in Odasaku's. It aches to stare into his eyes because she has no idea what his eyes are telling her.

In the golden eyes of Oda Sakunasude, she finds compassion and gentleness, but also something greater and more entirely human that she can never acquire.

But even in his final moments, the peculiar feeling that burned over Odasaku's eyes and illuminated his face on Dazai's dark path remained.

His body is so cold in her grasp that Dazai's heart trembles. Because the bitter coldness that has taken over Odasaku's body is the last line of his life. (Because death was the most powerful of all the gods, nothing could ever stop the tragedy from happening, no matter how loudly she screamed and defied them).A bleeding palm cups her cheek, and her lips shiver as she stares at her dear one.

'Why do you have this expression on your face, Dazai?'Dazai, why do you look so sad?' I ask and your only response is through your tearless eyes.

"Don't cry, Dazai," whispers Odasaku in the crook of her neck.

'Tell me, Dazai, will it rain on the earth when you finally cry?'.

I wonder how your lovely crimson eyes will be filled with tears.But I know that your red eyes stare at me intently every time you see me,  and your breath is as warm as the sun that peeks through my house's curtains.

Dazai's mouth parted, and she choked on the thick knot that was strangling her throat."Odasaku... Yasano's ability can save you! You must hold on!" she begs, her voice quivering and clutching his hand as if it is the last time.

'I wonder if you ever know how much you are important to me'

The sight of Dazai's heartbroken, frozen face causes Odasaku's tearful eyes to well up with pain. His bloodied fingers caress Dazai's cheek for the final time, trying to remember how her flesh feels and how his callous hands felt against his Dazai.

'I wonder what will your smiles be like when you are finally free'

"Listen to me, Dazai. I don't have much time left, so please listen carefully." Odasaku began, his breathing rough and heavy as he coughed up some blood to prevent from suffocating.

'My dear Shanks revealed that he finally found him; it's merely the beginning, Dazai. I hope you will forgive me after this.'

Dazai's arms quiver as they desperately hold him tightly.

"Be free. Be on the side that saves people. If both sides are the same, then choose to become a good person. Save the weak, protect the orphaned. You might not see a great difference between right and wrong, but... saving others is something just a bit wonderful", He smiles broadly at her, hoping Dazai will remember his smile, but his smile fades as he coughs up more blood, tarnishing both his and Dazai's clothes. He takes a deep breath and continues, retaining Dazai's broken stare, "And on this side, I promise you that you will find what you have been seeking. He is waiting for you on this road of freedom. He will surpass everything you could have ever dreamed of in your existence. He will shadow all the evil kings and gods who took so much from you. Just go find him, and if you lose hope again, he will find you like a star descending from the sky into the palm of your hands".

"What are you talking about?! Stop it, Odasaku; I'll just take you to Yasano, and you'll be alright. So please, Odasaku-" Dazai yells fervently, her voice quivering and cracking from heartbreak.

'I looked for you in every part of the world. And the instant I encountered your beautiful empty red eyes, I knew it was you.'

"Listen, if you stay there, you will never be happy. You should know this. No matter whether you’re on the side of killing people or saving people, there will never be anything that can surpass your mind. You shall remain forever in the darkness. So promise me, Dazai. Promise me that you will escape and find him. Promise me that my death will be the price for your freedom". Odasaku holds Dazai's gaze intensely, his fingers leaving a bloodstain on Dazai's pale, white cheekbones. "Promise me freedom in your scarlet eyes and desperate voice," he says.

"I promise you! I promise Odasaku, but just lives! Let us escape together! Why can't we just be free together?" Dazai exclaims, her voice fierce as the despair and heartbreak cloud her eyes.

'Because I was ensnared in the webs of fate from the start, and nothing and no one could have changed that'.

"Free together?" Odasaku chuckles softly, disregarding the paralysis in his body as his blood leaves him, "It seems like a wonderful dream to me."He glances up at Dazai with a sad grin and lovely eyes.

Once more, Dazai was met with this look, which she never quite comprehended. Odasaku's eyes never wavered as he looked at her, even on the verge of death. (Her heart weeps and her mind shouts because she has no idea what is happening; she is so lost and weak)."From the bottom of my heart, I love you, Dazai," he admits, his golden eyes staring feverishly at Dazai's heartbroken face.Dazai freezes and recoils at his confession.

"I love you, Dazai. I love you so deeply that my greatest wish and dream is to see you free. So please, my dear, listen to my last words and fly away from her," he adds, softly caressing her cheek, her sweet scent overpowering him from within.

Death feels non-existent in Dazai's arms; there is no agony or terror to suffocate him, only his beloved broken eyes."Love?" Dazai murmurs brokenly, her gaze blank.

The word feels alien on her tongue, sickening her stomach. However, something in her chest trembles desperately. Trembles like every time she's near Chuuya or Robin and Odasaku—in a way that makes her want to hang onto them indefinitely and have them by her side until she dies.

(But Robin is gone-dead, leaving only ashes behind, her heart shouts. And now Odasaku will die as well, leaving us alone as we deserve, shouts her mind.)

'I love you so much, Dazai, that leaving you hurts more than the torment eating through my flesh. I love you so much that I am sorry for what is going on, but I can't do anything. I can't stop my own death. I love you so much that my death is a gift to your freedom. So, please Dazai. Run away. Go find him. He is waiting for you in this endless sea.'

Love? Oh. She wonders if love is the source of her tragedy because she believes that every time her heart catches a glimpse of it, the monster inside her devours it, leaving emptiness in its path. But, as she sees, light sets off Odasaku's eyes. Something else is crawling into her throat and suffocating her heart: grief.

Grief because she is unable to return Odasaku's adoration.

He is dying, and Dazai can do nothing to stop it. She clings to his body, and the way he breathes the smell of her as if it were the only scent he has ever known causes her eyes to blur."Live and be free; that is my last and only wish. I love you, my dear Dazai," he concludes, his chilly hand slipping from her cheek.

'He is waiting for you, your true king. Go find him, Dazai.'

Odasaku feels so weak in Dazai's arms that death carries him far away. (A part of him wishes that death would not take him away from her. But he loves her so deeply that he needs to die and let her go).

'I wanted to capture your happiness when you finally realized who he is. When you find him, take hold of his hand. I was eager to see how freedom felt on you. I longed to see your smile, so I could hear the sound of your laughter echoing away from this place. I wanted to watch how your empty red eyes would be filled with the selfless thing we call love. Above anything, I wanted to see you happy, Dazai'.

With those last thoughts, Odasaku closes his eyes with one last smile allowing death to take him away.

(NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO!, NO! )

She can't let him go (he's all she has). Everyone is gone, leaving only Chuuya and Odasaku (Robin is dead; flames have consumed her, leaving her alone, and anguish has torn her apart). She can't let him die when he still hasn't taught her how to love, told her about all the places he's seen around the world, and baked her the apple pie he promised to make her. He still hasn’t let her read all those books he wrote! He still hasn’t-

She wants to cry, but she can't and doesn't know how (she can only bleed and scream, but her eyes can't tear up). Something hideous and monstrous awakens within her, and for the first time, Dazai accepts it with blood streaming from her lips. She can't let him go forever, not when his voice and face will be long-forgotten memories erased by the sorrow within her.

"Do not leave me, Odasaku. Please, please open your golden eyes, please," she begs repeatedly, blood flowing from her nose, coloring her imploring lips. "I didn't even taste the apple pie you promised to make for me-" she suffocates, her eyes twitching so much that she thinks she'll pass out from the pain.Oh Gods, please save him, do not take him away from me, she begs internally.The gods, as usual, remain motionless, watching the tragedy of her life unfold with cruel laughs that shake the clouds.

She knew Odasaku was selfless from the moment he grabbed her and rescued her from the darkest recesses of the water. She knew as soon as she touched his warm palm and felt his sweet, calming soul that she was selfish, so selfish that she desired to have him by her side forever.Something twists inside, sneering at the disruption in her heart and head. It clawed at her bones in annoyance, allowing the screams and whispers to reverberate louder inside her in an attempt to suffocate her with misery.

But who will tell that this pain will never leave her? It is seared in her blood and body, in her head, and on the walls of her dark psyche.Grief could never fully subside. Not when it is tearing her mind and heart apart in the most silent way and she cannot undo it.

'From the bottom of my heart, I love you, Dazai'

Her eyes glow, and she bites hard on her tongue, gazing down at the dying Odasaku.She pulls her face closer and dumps her forehead on Odasaku's frigid one."No longer human"

Her ability awakens them and envelops them in the pain that Dazai is well-versed in. The beast growls loudly in her head, and there, in the black remnants of her dark world, the beast captures a glimpse of Odasaku's golden soul.

She has always been one of the worst thieves in the world, snatching powers to feed the ugliness within her. Stealing lives as the monster she is, always craving more blood, yet there is one thing that the gods and death despise about her.The way she outstands death, the first enemy of humanity.

Because it simply has no power over her (she can't fucking die; she's cursed, trapped in an eternal cycle of pain).Robbing souls is the beginning of her punishment. Taking the root meme of life, the pinnacle of humanity. A humanity trapped in this circle of injustice, where gods are creators and death is the ultimate end; yet there she is, crossing and scorching the line between them.

She is shaking so hard that she thinks she will break into pieces.

( Odasaku is no more, to hold her back in one flawless piece). So please even if she is selfish, she needs this love that Odasaku carries for her. She wants to consume this thing that she has never felt before (maybe Odasaku's love would transform her into something akin to a human (so his love will be well-deserved in her numbness)).But, aside from sorrow, what does love entail for Dazai?

Love has an echo of sacrifice that Dazai is accustomed to, such as gods and death's chastisement of humanity.It's meant to be a sacrifice for Odasaku and a source of sorrow for Dazai, and she laughs so hard that madness echoes it back with blood, drenching her hands in the blood of her dearly deceased friend.

Gods and death are bereft of love, and Dazai was stripped of it. She has experienced love in various forms of agony, but grief was the worst of them all.

"Take care of Odasaku's soul within us. Keep him safe, protect what is left of him inside us so the world does not hurt him again," she tells the thing inside her. It growls loudly inside her head, but she ignores it and asserts, "Keep him inside us and I will give you a feast that you haven't tasted in a millennia."

At her words, the twisted smile and sneering pain and darkness on her body suggest that he has accepted her offer. She vomits blood on her side as she senses Odasaku's soul enter her while holding his cold corpse in her arms."Freedom?" she thinks aloud, her gaze shifting from Odasaku's motionless body to the scorching crimson sky above her. The lump in her throat is as weighty as the scars on her back. "Isn't freedom death, Odasaku?" she asks his lifeless body, his blood wrapping up them in a cloth of agony. "Or perhaps love is freedom?" she chuckles brokenly, bringing a hand to wipe off the blood from her lips.

But something she hasn't felt in a long time flames through her bright red eyes as she draws Odasaku closer, glaring at the sky and cursing the world for her loss.

Kana's flames flicker in her heart with wrath and unfairness. (She wants the world to be painted in blood and crimson flames, just like Kana wanted; she wants to feel ashes under her tongue and her feet).

Her red eyes blaze and flare as she feels one of her powers rise in her veins, searing and crisping her skin.Fire erupts all around her; the mansion nearby is instantly engulfed in flames, and Dazai ignores the cries of those within. The tree, the grass, and everything around her is burning to the ground, yet not a single hair of Dazai and Odasaku is touched by the flames

She can smell the smell of rotting bodies, but she ignores it, focusing instead on the Odasaku perfume of dusk.She once read that love scorched the wings of a lad who, foolishly enough, fell for the sun and perished at the clutches of the sea

Love has scorched Icare's wings, but Dazai's grief (grief or love, she's unsure what to call this curse). It shall annihilate the world of those egotistical deities. Until nothingness is the last thing Dazai sees and feels, her sorrow will smolder this cruel world to the ground.

And by those vile gods who have taken everything from her, she will start. (Leaving her broken and screaming on the floor, while anguish chokes her with the blood that smears her hands).She stands up on solid legs, holding Odasaku's dead corpse in her arms. But first, she will bury her dearest friend's corpse (and when she finds a way to end her anguish, she will crawl back to Odasaku's grave and remain alongside his bones until death finally claims her).

She walks, surrounded by fire that is blazing and devouring everything. She stumbles and rises again as the flames erupt in the sky, walking with pain in her heart and wrath in her crimson eyes, holding her dear friend's icy form.

‘Ne Kana, Have you ever loved someone in your life? Because this wrath, those flames of yours are akin to my sorrow,' she muses, drawing Oda's body nearer to her own racing heart.

Kana's love was the rage that burned through the flames that now belonged to her, just like the evil thief that she is. With Kana's ability, retribution flows from her mouth like honey, scorching everything in its path.

Dazai was an empty piece waiting to be filled, and now she is trembling with wrath (Love and grief scream in the back of her throat as the souls sealed within her claw at her bones like ravenous beats).

Yes, the instant she opened her eyes and saw the darkness in this world. She was aware that she was only a vessel of fate, created solely for sacrifice and suffering.Because if Icare wished to fly free with the sun by his side, Dazai was doomed to devour the sun at the expense of freedom.

Icare was a foolish boy who believed the gods loved him and would save him from his forfeiture.

At his falling demise, those same gods laughed hysterically, wine stains on their teeth and bloodshed streaming from their fingertips.These are the same gods who remained mute during Icare's prayer to be caught and saved by his beloved gods.Walking across her path of flames, she whispers, "I'm sorry, Odasaku. I'm so sorry to have you love something like me".

And now, those same gods will burn at Dazai's fingertips, erasing their existence into ashes and nothingness.Because, unlike Icare, Dazai is no foolish human; rather, she is the monster that the gods fear from their immortality siege.

Dazai is the monster that Icare would willingly devote his life to destroy for the sake of his inebriated love. And, like the monster she is, she will devour them to fill the void that Odasaku's death triggered within her.

Her head hums with fragments of madness and fire; her final line: she will burn down the chains of fate that control her like a puppet. After that, she will kidnap Chuuya and flee to be free on this endless sea, searching for him.

But Oh dear Dazai, didn’t you understand that it's not freedom that burned Icare's wings but love?
"Crocodile is after your head," Sanji admits, his words spilling out as his heart beats faster in his chest.Umekui next to him stops her knife an inch above the tangerine she is cutting. After a few seconds of stillness, she continues to chop the tangerine.In the silent kitchen, nothing but the sharp sound of the knife on the wood-cutting stand can be heard.After steering the ship into Alabasta, Umekui joined Sanji in the kitchen to cook dinner for their crew and a tangerine tart for Nami, who was still sleeping."We must alert the crew and Luffy, Umekui!", Sanji looks at the still-silent Umekui and says, "Your life is in danger, and if-""We're not telling anyone; it's an order from your first mate, Sanji," Umeki cut him off coolly, not even looking at him while continuing to cut the tangerine.His breath sharpens as his fingers shake; how could she order him that? She is putting herself in enormous danger!"Listen to me, Umekui!" Sanji pleaded, his gaze scorching her form. "You will be murdered! Crocodile is deadly; he has seized an entire kingdom, is a tyrant, and a sea warlord! Do you realize how powerful he is?""Honestly, I don't care if Crocodile is after my head, Sanji. I'm not scared of him. Hell, if he's so obsessed with me, it's perfect to divert his attention away from our crew and the princess," Umekui replies boredly, cutting the remaining tangerines from the platter without even looking at him."How can you talk like that about yourself, Umekui? How can you put yourself in danger by drawing attention away from us? You are not a sacrificial lamb! You are our first mate, crewmate, and friend!" Sanji exclaims, his voice growing louder as he realizes he is speaking to his Umekui. He clinches his fist and apologizes with a distressed expression."Tell me Sanji, why do you value women so much?" She inquires, and Sanji's eyes widen as she utterly distorts the issue in their hands.(The most gorgeous bluest eyes in the world and blond long-haired hair gold and silky as silk flashes across his head (and then there is blood, blood painting the only fresco of love Sanji has ever known))."I'm just an ordinary man; of course, I value women," he lies, his tongue scorching."An ordinary man, huh?" Umekui chuckles quietly, raising her scarlet eyes to him. "You are no ordinary man, Sanji."Then a bitter smile spreads across her crimson lips, "In our terrible world, an ordinary man beats and kills women; an ordinary man uses a woman as his personal toy. An ordinary man kidnaps and rapes women; an ordinary man considers women as the world's greatest illness. An ordinary man lets women die like weeds and kicks their corpse-like dust at their feet," she says, clutching the knife in her hand.Sanji's heavy knot has returned to his throat, and his palm is clutching his fist (Sanji is fully aware of how women are treated in their society; his youthful eyes bore witness to this injustice)."I see. Among those women are Nami and the princess. Even though they were badly hurt, they still persevered in trying to survive. Even if Nami was helpless against gigantic fishmen, she fought alone against those destitute men. Even if men mocked the princess's pain and dismissed her as a foolish lady seeking to recover her crown. They didn't stop fighting. Men don't see women for who they are and what they did; they don't realize how much anguish they went through. Or how much they bleed as women, or how much rage they have inside themselves (Kana's rage is stored in her heart as a second socle)," she says with a bitter smile.Sanji's eyes burn because he knows, he fucking knows, that even if he is here, even if he wants to save a woman from the despair he witnessed in those he loves for so long, he cannot erase the past. (He cannot erase the scars on his back, nor can he erase the memories of blood and loneliness that pillage into his heart).'What about you, Umekui?' Sanji wondered. 'How much did you suffer? As a woman, how much did you have to bear in the dark?' (And Sanji is scared of the responses; God knows what he will do! Sanji knew the answers, as evidenced by her hollow look and pallid face, which reminded him of his past ghosts).His throat shakes so violently that he fears he may never be able to breathe again."But you, Sanji, can see them. You see through them, and this gift of yours, the compassion that mends your bones, makes you no ordinary man." She grins so tenderly that Sanji's lips opens and his air escapes through it (Her crimson eyes and smile are the only religion Sanji has found solace in)."Then Umekui won't be alone in danger. We are here for you. I am there for you. I see you," he begs, his blue eyes fixed on her throughout.Red eyes widen at his words, and with a soft sorrowful smile, she raises a hand to cup his cheek.
('You are mistaken, Sanji. There is nothing in me to see but darkness and scars. Murder and tragedy have stained my blood. There is simply emptiness; nothing else to see').

When Sanji feels Umekui's cool palm on his face, he raises his hand above her and shuts his eyes, imprinting her touch on his mind and cheek. He prays that his flesh will never forget her touch."A life that had no meaning knows no danger," she admits with a frozen smile. "But our crew is my sole reason to fight, and Crocodile is worthless. Let's keep it a secret for now, Sanji. I don't want everyone to worry for nothing."He bit his tongue hard as his brow furrowed at her remarks, then felt angry again (but not at Umekui; he could never be angry at her. But he is enraged at the voices whispering in Umekui's ears that she is nothing. Angry at Crocodile for seeking the life of his first mate)."It's not nothing what-!"He is stopped short by Umekui's finger on his lips, ordering him to remain silent as a mother would with a rambunctious child."Don't try to be a hero and save me from Crocodile claws, Sanji. Even if your morality and emotions are screaming at you to do it, I will be wounded if you try anything idiotic like that, okay?" she demands.(Crocodile is not a villain in Umekui's story. Because Umekui Dazai is the most horrible of them all, and Crocodile is just another pawn in the grand scheme of the gods' harsh dictates).Sanji nods hesitantly and drops his hand to his side as Umekui returns her hand to cut another fruit for Nami.'She doesn't understand!', his heart screams. She doesn't realize that what Sanji is feeling is more than just worry. She doesn't realize how his heart trembles every time he catches a glance of her idle gaze. how his hands tremble with the want to embrace her in his heart and drown in her perfume whenever she is near him, or how his eyes search for her in every nook of the ship and island.Or how many sleepless nights he's spent waiting by her painting room door for her to come out, knowing she's heartbroken and lonely. Or how his blood feels on his tongue (it tastes like weakness and incapability) whenever he remembers that a twisted man like Crocodile is after her (for unknown reasons. He is in the shadows, and Sanji is tired of it)."Why is Crocodile after you?" he says, his eyes not even trembling as he awaits her response or reaction.Umekui chuckles, cold and empty."For my ability, of course; what else? Crocodile is aware of my abilities in dealing with his devil fruit. My abilities could dethrone him from the position of King. So there are two options: either he wants to murder me, or he wants to keep me as his lapdog or something like that," shugger Umekui, moving to cut some bananas in a dessert. "My ability is probably one of the most powerful and dangerous in this world. Someone as avaricious as Crocodile would naturally seek it from me.""So, what will we do now?" he asks, pulling a cigarette and lighter from his pocket."We? What did I tell you about playing the hero beside me, Sanji?" Scarlet eyes tighten in his direction, "You and the crew will help the princess in saving and reclaiming her kingdom, and I will see what I can do about Crocodile once we reach Alabasta. For the time being, let us forget about it and keep it a secret, okay?" She replies, finishing the dish she'd prepared for Nami with Sanji's help.
(I'll be long gone. Dead, as promised, at Robin's hands. You will not stop me because you will despise me so much that you will wish to kill me yourself, my lovely Sanji. You will despise me for taking the frame of a woman, one of your biggest faults, and you will yearn to pull my ugly eyes out since I'm no woman but a monster in a horrible body littered with scars).
He nods again at her words and grabs the cigarette tightly in his fingers. (For a brief second, he believed she'd snap in half. And, in a twisted way, he would have preferred Umekui to snap because it would have been easier to piece her back together, clinging hard to her jagged glass edges (He refuses to let her bleed on the inside when he can do it for her). But now all he could do was watch while emptiness drew the sharp line between sacrifice and loyalty which his first mate had mended in her mind).Again, she fails to see that Sanji is not interested in playing the hero (He is no a hero because a hero might have spared his loved ones from empty gaze and frozen smiles). Sanji is not a hero, but a man in love. She is unaware that love is calling on him to murder Crocodile before he can even breathe in the same room as Umekui, that love is shouting at him to take her in her arms and protect her from the harsh world.A hero only saves those who desire to be saved, who seek the help of their heroes and thank the gods for their salvation.'Well, if God doesn't exist, who is laughing at us?' he recalls Umekui once stating.She is right, but deep down, Sanji worries if their world truly is this terrible—If the gods are truly cruel for letting people starve and die, awful to see and allow the ones he loved to die hopelessly without aid.(His little voice, imploring in the shadows and looking up at the night sky in a belief that his pleas would be answered, is now throbbing with loss and sorrow in his heart.)For his unanswered prayers and begging, Sanji wants to be the voice that answers others searching and asking in the darkness. Oh, how he wants to instill love and goodness in people's hearts and prove to them through his smile that hope and kindness still exist in this world. Because Sanji's goodwill and kindness were sculpted by the brutal hands of sorrow and disappointment, he will never be able to tolerate the thought of someone else going through the same pain.(Luffy, the dumb lad who stood with a straight back and held the light of the world in his palm. He stood up and took his hand when no one else wanted to. He cradled him, his faint dream rattling in his chest. He held onto Sanji with fire and blood, believing that no one could ever see through him. Yet Silly Luffy did.Nami's tears and heartbroken screams, and Sanji will never forgive himself for allowing his navigator to go through so much.Ussop's voice filled with pain as he told him of his town's hatred for him and pirates attempting to murder his only friend and entire childhood village.Zoro's sad eyes as he vowed never to lose again for the sake of an admiring dream  (his chest covered in so much blood that Sanji's eyes flinched).Vivi's crying and dropping to her knees as she pledged to free her kingdom (Sanji thinks the world needs so much more royalty like her, not selfish and cruel (the anguish of those royals still makes his heart ache)), and Umekui-Umekui seems to have lost hope in this world; she appears to have seen so much that she is drained. Umekui that remained still and lifeless in a pool of blood (and Sanji's heart broke when he saw blonde hair and empty blue eyes closing in Umekui's spot). She appears to be already lost in her thoughts and drowning in pain. Sanji can't let her go; he will never let her go, no matter what the cost; even if the entire world is against her, he will stand with her and be there for her)).So Sanji smiles broadly and turns to his first mate, shooting him a glance; she blinks when she catches his smile.He looks at her hard and fiercely, her red lips and eyes glowing in his gaze, her dark long hair falling to each side like silk; he looks, he sees her, and Sanji knows without a doubt that he would die for her, that his heart is creating and linking something so dangerous inside him; he loves her more than he has ever seen or imagined."Umekui," he says, his voice breathy and lingering on each letter of her name.Her eyes widen when she hears him call her name (as if it were the most lovely and delightful thing in the world. Calling her name as if if he didn't do it, he would die from the lack of his tongue rolling each letter).He grins, his smile full of white teeth and eyes as gentle and clear as a cloudless blue sky.(Sh freezes, and hatred takes hold of her thoughts. This tragic look he has in his eyes. Odasaku's stare. He looks at her in the same way Oda did, as if she knows she is already falling and history will repeat itself (terror gripped her tightly).She takes a step back, but Sanji doesn't notice it."I see you, Umekui." He began, "So I will never leave you behind when you face danger on your own again. I see you, Umekui, and I will continue to do so for eternity, as long as I am with you. So take me with you wherever you go so I can still see you. Crocodile be damned, I don't fear him; my only dread is seeing you wounded or worse-" He takes a big breath and doesn't even blink, still capturing her enrapturing crimson eyes in a hard soft stare. "So don't go where I can't follow, don't go where I can't see you," he says, his voice full of reverence and affection."I want to see you and travel with you over the world, discovering new locations. I want you—no!" He shakes his head, "I need you by my side when we find the All-blue. I need you to eat the fish we'll catch and grill for our nakamas. I need you with me, with us, as Luffy becomes the Pirate King. I will never let you go far away, Umekui, so please do not think you are nothing. You are so much more, Umekui (you are my everything)," he persists, his smile expanding as he looks at Umekui with devotion that makes her knees go weak.
('I love you, Umekui')

('I love you, Dazai')

"I-" Umekui opens her mouth but immediately closes it. She does not know what to say.(She is fucking lost; he cannot love her, no! No one can do it, they can't, they can't, he can't, he can't, or he will die, he will fucking die and abandons her, leaving her void after selling her the price of love in the form of sacrifice once more (she is so tired of this cycle that has trapped her in this vortex of love and grief))."Nami is sick!" Ussop cries, interrupting them and entering the kitchen with an anxious expression.Ussop's terrified gaze makes her stomach drop.She returns her gaze to Sanji, then to Ussoo, and takes it off after him, with Sanji following closely behind.'So don't go where I can't follow, don't go where I can't see you.'Oh, dear stupid Sanji, don't make empty promises and beseech for things we won't keep.Nami is sick.Nami is so ill that Usopp is unable to overcome the dread that has gripped his thoughts with cruel memories of his sick deceased mother.She can't die. No, she can't. When she still had dreams to fulfill, not when she promised him she'd be there when he grew into a strong sea warrior.No, Nami cannot die because she still hasn't shown him the map of the world that she intends to sketch (nor can she die because coward Ussop loves her too much to let her go again. He loves her so much that even terror had his cheeks in tears as he looked at the fishmen. Ussop continued to fight for Nami).This world is not this cruel to let Nami die, right? When, after so many years of misery, she is finally free, right? Nami will not die as his mother did, right?But all he hears are the echoes of his cries upon the death of his mother (which he abhors. He hates himself so much for feeling so much guilt for being helpless in the face of both Nami's illness and his mother's passing)."Nami is not going to die, right?" Luffy questioned aloud in the room.Ussop looks at him, glares, and smacks him hard on the head."Don't ever say that, stupid Luffy!" he yells at him angrily.But Luffy ignores him, staring dumbly at Nami."I bet she's starving! If she eats 100 meals, she will be fine!" Then he takes his cheeks and fingers and does something strange with his limbs. "Look Nami!" he exclaims, laughing at his own play.Nami's eyes remain closed, her face flushed from fever, and her breathing is ragged and heavy due to the pain and fever.Ussop clenches his fist and bites his lower lip hard, glaring at Luffy. He doesn't get it! He is unaware of what is going on; Nami is ill and may not survive. (Luffy can not comprehend Ussop's feelings about diseases, this awful sickness that murdered his mother and left him alone, lonely against the world when he was a child)."You-" Ussop began, his fists quivering in anger at Luffy's ignorance.Before he could yell at Luffy, a cool hand rested on his shoulder, stopping him. Umekui's smell envelops him as she stands alongside him, gently smiling down at him (and Ussop recalls the horror he saw in her eyes as he ran at her to inform her that Nami is sick).But now Umekui is calm, too calm; she is always peaceful, but her tranquility is so loud and painful that Ussop's teeth clench. Umekui's fingers trembled on his shoulder for a little while, as if pleading him to calm down."Ussop, can you go fill up Nami's bucket with cold water for her fever?" she asks calmly.She does not wait for his response before approaching Luffy and gently taking his hands in her scarred ones."My captain, Nami, is very ill right now, so she requires some calm, okay? I promise you that when she heals, she will play with you," she says gently, catching his round big chocolate eyes with softness, then she turns towards Sanji, who is gazing at Nami with a pained gaze, "Sanji sweetheart. Can you take Luffy into the kitchen and let him help you prepare Nami's dinner and protein drinks?"Sanji catches her glance and understands what she is asking him to do: 'Keep Luffy busy for the time being'. He sighs, drags his cigarette, and takes Luffy by his ear into the kitchen, the latter crying out for his release.Ussop grabs the bucket and dashes it from the room to the bathroom, filling it with water before quickly returning to the chamber when he hears his first mate speaking to the princess."Princess," she says and the coldness in her voice keeps Ussop at the doorway. "If you have nothing to offer or can do to help Nami, please leave this room," she states, narrowing her crimson eyes at Vivi.Ussop notices how Vivi flinches and clinches her fist under the narrowed gaze of Umekui."I can help you-just tell me what to do!" she begs as she looks at the suffering Nami, who is immobile on the bed, her big doe eyes begging Umekui."Have you ever touched or taken care of a sick person, princess? Have you ever felt disease consuming someone's body from within, helplessly? Have you ever felt how a sick, poor person feels when he doesn't have enough money for medicine or a doctor to save him? Don't try to convince me that you want to help Nami out of sympathy. I will not allow you to insult her like that. When you've spent your entire existence locked up in your castles, watching your own people die of disease and starvation. Don't be a hypocrite princess when I can see through your blood," she sneers at her, then goes toward Nami, never looking back at the silent crying Vivi. "Now get out of there, Princess Nefertari."Vivi looks back at his first mate one final time before running out the door. She pauses once she meets his gaze, takes a deep breath, and runs away, tears in her eyes.Ussop glances at her departing back and enters the room, locking the door behind him with his back and leaning against it."Why did you talk like that to Vivi?" inquires Usopp.Ussop believes that, despite her initial desire to harm them, Vivi is a kind person. Deep down, he understood why she needed to do it. Saves her nation from a powerful sea warlord, Usopp knows that if he were in her position, he would be a cowardly prince, terrified for his life and fleeing far away from his land.Ussop admires her for the ferocity in her eyes and the pain in her voice as she vows to reclaim what is hers. Well, Usopp admires everyone who isn't him (he can barely face himself in the mirror without judging his coward figure), he should despise himself and see himself as a coward rather than to hear it from his nakamas (it's a lie; he knows his stupid nakama loves him too much to insult him in that way)."Nami is unwell, and I don't want a spoiled princess in my way. I need to take care of Nami right away," she answers quickly, charging at him and grabbing the bucket of water from his grasp.She removes the dry towel from Nami's scorching forehead, immerses it in cool water, and swiftly replaces it on Nami's forehead. She pauses and looks at Nami's crimson face, noting how her chest rises and falls quickly, and quivering breath escapes her dried lips.Ussop notices Umekui's shaking hands by her side and instantly clenches them into a fist, plunging her nails in her palms."This is not just a fever," she says quietly. "Something is wrong.""Umekui," Ussop says, his voice shaking as he looks at Nami, anxious and fearful.She redirects her glance to him, and her expression softens as she notices the terror on his face."Nami will heal, right? She's going to be okay?" He asks, his voice trembling.Umekui grasps his cheek and smiles softly as she rests her cold forehead on his warm one."Don't worry, Ussop. Nami is going to heal and she will finally be back on her legs, beating you up with Luffy," she smiles.Ussop's heart eases briefly, and he smiles back at her, believing her words."How about you go into the kitchen and eat dinner with everyone? "I'm coming too and getting Nami's one," she smiled as she pushed him through the door.Again, Ussop frowns as he feels Umekui's quivering hands on his back, but he lets her go and walks to the kitchen.He walks toward their ship's kitchen, hoping that Nami will heal fast, as his first mate promised. He already misses her laughter and shouts that echoed throughout the ship. He already misses her voice as he watches her smiling in the sun and hears her commands on the deck.He does fear death, but nothing worries him more than seeing the people he cares about perish helplessly in front of him. He despises sickness since he has no one to blame for his mother's death, other than the gods, but do the gods even understand what sickness is? How can they create something they've never felt or known?Perhaps Umekui spoke to Vivi in this tone because the royals were ignorant of the realities of poverty and illness. He pauses and looks down at his hard hands, the lines on which remind him of his own small hands. When his mother became ill and his father departed at the sea when he was still a child, living in poverty with his single mother forced him to work long hours at various jobs to pay for his mother's medicine and doctor.He even recalls stealing some medicine for his mother from the market when he was six years old. He still remembers her warm dark green eyes and giggles as she tells him that this medicine is for something else, but she still kisses him all over his face and thanks him for it since he is worried about his precious mama.
"You're so cute, Usopp! Come here in Mama's arms," his mother says, smiling lovingly at his sobbing tiny face.

His eyes sting as tears trickle down his cheeks, but he hastily wipes them away with the back of his palm.'Nami, you witch!! Heal quickly and stop worrying me, you idiot gold digger!' he thinks, biting his lower lip and trying not to cry anymore.Umekui leans against the door as she closes it behind Ussop, dropping on her buttocks.Her vision blurs as she looks at Nami, who is in agony. Her palms are stinging with blood as her nails dig deeply into the flesh.She is no doctor. She has no idea how to save people, and despite her efforts, she is continuously learning. (A pink-haired youngster smiles gratefully at her as she beats up the pirates tormenting his life flashes across her head, marines in flames as chains are broken, sobs of relief resounding in those dark dungeons as she bathes in their gods' blood).But sickness is something she has no control over. (She is the living example, with her roots eating away at her flesh, she gave up the prospect of becoming someone long ago, and her inhumanity is firmly ingrained into her blood to be erased).She only knows one person who is capable of curing any illness and reviving anyone (the hunter in Dazai awakens again and seeks the blood in order to hold this ability in her palm and save Nami). But Nami will already be dead when she goes looking for Akiko.
 "There is an island where winter lasts for eternity. That is where the most talented doctor of the noble line lives," Odasaku chuckles as he recounts one of his numerous excursions to Dazai by moonlight.

Dazai's young face looks up at him with stars in her eyes, listening intently to her close friend's tales and stories, which are everything to Dazai's wretched life. They are her treasure, an escape from her miserable existence, and the way Odasaku describes them causes her to close her eyes for a moment and imagine herself in those places.

Then Odasaku's kind face frowns in a sad little smile.

Odasaku's gentle face frowns in a sad little smile."But-" Odasaku clinches his hand over his legs and looks out at the sea front of them. "This white island has been soiled by the blood of the innocent. Their ruler, Wapol, is cruel and greedy, capturing all of the island's doctors for himself and killing them if they refuse to serve him. He abandoned his own kingdom to illness, letting his people and children die without batting an eye," he gritted his teeth. "Royals like Wapol spread greed and selfishness in all corners of the world. I've never understood how they could live a life of wickedness and brutality when their people are dying and screaming in agony."(Kana caresses her pregnant belly with turmoil and hopelessness)."I've been tainted, Dazai. He tainted me and the infant in my womb with his vile blood."Kana burning in her own fire, with her child in her womb).Dazai bit her tongue firmly at the memories.

"I will kill him," Dazai says quietly. "I can kill him," she says, staring at Oda's golden eyes.He stretches out a hand, gently strokes her short black hair, and smiles at her."Not now, Dazai. When you are free, you will find him and save the people of Drum Island alongside him," he tells her.Dazai scoffs at him and folds her arms under her head as she lays on her back in the sand, gazing at the starry night above them.

"I am stuck there, Odasaku. Someone like me doesn't have the right to be free and live when I have so much blood on my hands," she argues."In this island, there is someone who thinks of himself as a monster, when he is the most kind of all," explains Odasaku, picturing a unique blue nose. "Perhaps one day you will be the one to tell him that he is not a monster, who knows?" shrugged her friend with a sly smile

"Stop talking idiotic things," she snaps at him, diverting her attention to the night sky.Odasaku chuckles into the starry night, ruffling Dazai's hair once more."You'll do it. Because your love for tangerines and lovely scents will drive you to do anything, my dear Dazai," he teases."What the heck are you on about? Since then, do I love tangerines? Are you sure you're not drunk?" She asks, puzzled, narrowing her red eyes at him.Odasaku simply shrugged his shoulders, smiled, and lay beside her, gazing at the stars.
 Umekui blinks and strives to stop her legs from shaking. She quickly stands up and hurries over to Nami's desk, where her maps are kept. After searching through the papers, she swiftly unfolds the map of the Grand Line.
DRUM ISLAND

This is that name. The Grand Line's first winter island.She lets out a quivering breath as she clutches the map in her hands."Odasaku, you sneaky bastard," she breathes out, straining to keep her gaze steady.Her heart hurts (It aches so deeply that she can't believe she's still breathing and marching when she should be dead, like Odasaku and everyone she once knew). She shifts her sight to her beloved navigator, enrolls the map, and conceals it in her kimono. She rushes to Nami, dips the cloth in cool water, and returns it to her forehead.Her flaming eyes meet Nami's, and she leans at her side, touching her cheek with one chilly palm (she swears she felt Nami lean into it)."Maybe I'm cursed to always witness those I love suffer?" whispers Umekui, her thumb softly caressing Nami's cheek.(Kana's flames and teary eyes sear her thoughts, Odasaku's frozen corpse in her hands, Izu's heart pumping in her bare hands, Robin's imploring cries as she leaves (she is gone, dead, for she killed who Robin once was), Chuuy-)"But I pledge that you will not end that way, even if it means burning down this universe and making the gods kneel before you to save you. I will do everything for you, Nami, because you are too important to me to let you down," she says softly, her breath brushing across Nami's cheeks.Then Umekui leans in and kisses her forehead affectionately and longingly."You have so much to do, so many ambitions and dreams to achieve, my beloved Nami. Hell be damned if you die now, Ussop and Luffy still want to take a look at your maps. Sanji still wants you to try all of his specialty drinks and delicious foods, and Zoro still wants to win your drink contest. And I need you to see my painting when she's finished. So, please hold on till we reach Drum Island," she says as she stands up.She once argued with Chuuya over tangerines and oranges. While he assumed they were the same and tasted the same, she always told him that tangerines have a sweet taste that oranges do not have. Tangerines have always been more delicate and sweet than sour oranges.And Nami has proven it. She was fascinated the first time she saw Nami peeling tangerines with her bare hands like she had told her her mother always did.That is the distinction, she reasoned. While men used blades to peel oranges, Nami used her bare hands, and Umekui had never seen anything so fascinating and beautiful.Umekui's famished heart was captivated by Nami (beautiful spring Nami who has fought for so long (the blood of this fisherman still craves her organs)). Umekui wondered what Nami's hands could do to her heart, this longing to be opened, invaded, twisted, and shaken to the core.Nami, silly girl, you made something as monstrous as Umekui tremble at your feet desperate for you. Making her see you as this mural that no human can forget or wipe from their minds.Leaving Nami's room, Umekui hurries to the kitchen to notify her crew that they must sail to Drum Island as soon as possible because this is their final chance to save Nami.Before she could open the kitchen door, the princess's voice made her blood freeze."We need to go to Alabasta quickly! The civil war will soon begin," she pleads, her voice quivering.She grinds her teeth and fights hard to keep her bloodlust under control.They're all the same, those selfish royals! (And Umekui wants to kill her and get revenge for her sorrow! kills her for neglecting Nami's pain and reflecting on the kingdom that she abandoned). She is so tired of those people, all they know is to take again, over and over. She reaches up and painfully clinches her hand above her stomach ( the scars under her bandages burn and ache).At Vivi's request, her nakamas remain silent. If they go to Alabasta, she promises she will destroy this kingdom to the ground (A kingdom means nothing without Nami's life, a thousand lives mean nothing without Nami's life, and the world is meaningless without Nami).Because Nami. Nami, with her gorgeous orange hair, makes the world a less ugly and terrible place. She repairs the globe in a lovely shape with her bare hands. For Nami, she will not hesitate to plant her knife in the princess' throat, even if it means sacrificing her false image (even if they see her as the monster she is (oh dear, she doesn't even want to look at Luffy's eyes as he realizes what she is), she must bring Nami to his island at any cost, and when Nami is finally healed, she will let them go and let the thing take over her).She reaches for her gun and before she gripes it, the princess's voice makes her stop. "But we need to find a doctor for Nami quickly! I'll never forgive myself for letting Nami down when she offered to help me! And when Nami is healed, we shall sail to Alabasta." Vivi says her voice hard and her eyes flaming with a desire to help her friend.Luffy giggles at Vivi's request: "Of course! Nami means more to us than anything. She is our nakama and friend!"
"People can change, Dazai," Odasaku once said to her, taking her bloodied hands in his own. "Everyone could do it." There is no true villain in the world, just as there is no true hero; we all have a selfish side in our hearts, whether it is good or bad. So don't give up faith in our world; it can be both beautiful and ugly, kind and cruel, and that is what makes humans so intriguing. We have this choice, this freedom to do good or wrong; even if we have sinned so much and been ignorant for so long, as long as we are alive, we have the opportunity to change."
'But I'm no human, Oda,' she reflected sadly, 'and I never will be. I can't be like this princess, this naive princess who makes my heart bleed from the sins of her blood'.If someone like the princess can change if the sky can cry while she cannot. Thus, what's left for her? Nothing.She eases the thick bitter knot in her throat and opens the door to enter the kitchen. Her nakamas and the princess turn to face her, and she pulls the map from inside her kimono and dumps it on the table."We are going to Drum Island," she declares. "This island has a doctor who can save Nami. The island is only about a day away; we need to get there fast before Nami's condition deteriorates," she says, turning to her captain.Luffy nods, agreeing to their new destination."At the moment, no one but me approaches Nami's chamber. We're not sure if her disease can spread amongst us. Sanji, you can bring Nami's food to the door and I'll take it." She orders, but before she can turn over and depart, Zoro's voice stops her."You idiot, if you stay with Nami, you run the risk of getting sick," he grumbles at her, his steel gray eyes narrowing at her figure."For our nakamas, I will take any risk, Zoro. Even if it means being sick or worse, I will do anything for them and you. I can't let Nami suffer alone," she smiles sadly, exiting the room before Luffy apprehends her and prevents her from approaching Nami.Princess Vivi's eyes widened at the first mate's comments. She was wrong again, and oh how wrong she was about the first mate.She initially wondered how someone like her could ever be a part of a crew like this, given how lovely and unselfish all of her nakamas are. But now she notices it. She notices the generosity and selflessness that their first mate solely exhibits in her nakamas, and Vivi concludes that Umekui adores her nakamas, to the point where she is willing to give up her health for Nami. She loves them so deeply that Umekui despises Vivi since she was going to harm her nakamas at first (deep down, she accepts Umekui's anger because she deserves it, but-).She swallowed the sour taste of rejection (although she wondered how it felt to be loved by someone like Umekui; she bet the feeling had no name or sense).If Luffy is the sun, warming his loved ones, Umekui is the moon, caring for and protecting them even when no one sees her. She is the sun's shadow, preventing the dangers of this world from hurting her sun and stars.She thinks Umekui is brave. It takes courage to love with a bruised heart. It took courage to let someone like her, whom Umekui despised, board their ship since her captain and navigator required it.Because Vivi knows deep down that if Umekui demands it, Luffy and Nami will not hesitate to give in for the sake of their first mate's sanity.And now she wonders what someone like Umekui is willing to do for her nakamas. Something tells her that death and sacrifice are not impediments to her hollow eyes.Dalton knows that he is no king, even if his people believe otherwise. He is not a hero, even though his people chant his name. How can he be a hero after witnessing so many deaths at the hands of this terrible man? How can he be their king if he has done nothing to earn the title? How can he even hold this title when his previous greedy ruler stained the royal siege?Dalton could never grasp how a single man's actions could bring an entire nation to an end. It's merely unjust.He can't even enter the castle without recalling this man's pompous orders and watching helplessly as the hallways are soaked in the blood of the innocent.This kingdom has suffered greatly, all for the sake of one man's greed and selfishness. But Dalton wonders where this terrible seed originated, surely not with their previous king!Their previous king was compassionate and gentle, and Dalton admired him for that. He loved his king as much as he loved his island; both were everything to him. He joined the army to serve his king, becoming a close confidant and bodyguard.
"Listen to me, Dalton," King Seinei says in an honorable tone, his violet eyes fixed on his confidant.

"My son, Wapol, is drowning in his desires and ambitions. I'm afraid he'll end up ruining and destroying this kingdom due to his temper tantrums. If something bad happens to my kingdom after I'm gone, I'll never forgive myself, even in my tomb. So, Dalton, this is my final request as your monarch and friend: don't allow Wapol to harm the country that we both adore. Don't let the innocent suffer as a result of my cowardice in raising a son like mine. Do not let my family name sink into the abyss of historical falsehoods. Protect the peace of Drum Kingdom, and guide Wapol on a better path," begs Seinei, gripping Dalton's hands in his old trembling ones.

"I promise. I promise to protect the Drum Kingdom and guide Wapol away from selfishness and greed," he says as he kneels before his King.But promises mean nothing when you have a ruler like Wapol. Dalton tried so hard to get Wapol to listen to him and change. But what is his rationale against someone who has already been blinded by greed and ambition?

They are nothing but deafened words, lost in the winter snow. And Dalton had already paid the price in the merciless hands of this cruel king. Man after man was murdered in front of his eyes, with women pleading for their husbands' lives and children sobbing for absent moms and fathers.

Dalton can never forgive himself. He'll never forgive himself for helplessly closing his eyes to his people's pain.

"You can't beat a cruel king on your own," says a voice next to Dalton as he looks out over the sea from a cliff.Dalton, startled by the voice, jumps and turns his wide eyes toward a man with orange-reddish hair. Dalton had never seen a man with golden eyes and strange-colored hair in his village or kingdom.A foreigner? Impossible! How could he have gone through their kingdom's boundaries undetected

"Who are you!" he asks, drawing his sword and pointing it at the strange man.Even this man's attire are odd; his long coat, brown slacks, and white shirt are unlike anything Dalton has ever seen.The man grins and points to himself, "Oh, me? My name is Sakunosuke Oda, but you may call me Oda or Odasaku! Nice to meet you!""What are you doing here? And how did you get there?" he inquires, concentrating his dark brown eyes on him.Odasaku laughs and smiles at him, "It's a secret, and don't worry, I don't mean any harm! I came as a friend!"

Dalton lowers his weapon upon seeing Odasaku's sincere smile."Get out of there before Wapol finds out about you. And makes me execute you for infiltrating his kingdom," states Dalton.Please leave, wished to beg Dalton. Because he is sick of pouring innocent blood for the avarice of a tyrant like Wapol. He has already killed so many people in the name of a wicked ruler (Dalton's heart is so heavy that he wonders how much more he needs to do before Wapol ceases his madness).

He can't look at their charming snow without seeing it turn red from the blood their king has shed (he's no king in Dalton's eyes). A ruler as greedy and monstrous as himself does not serve the crown."Listen to me, Dalton," says Odasaku.

Dalton's massive frame freezes as he recalls his previous ruler repeating those same words. He turns to the smiling odd man, his eyes shaking.

"I promise you that one day your kingdom will be free of your king's terrible grip. They will come to you and plead for your aid, and in return, they will repay you with the most beautiful thing in the world: freedom. I vow that you and your kingdom will be free of selfishness and cruelty. Don't give up hope, Dalton; the world needs more honorable men like you," Odasaku says, smiling at Dalton.Before he can respond and yell at this man for his falsehoods and insanity, a flurry of snow hits them, blinding Dalton for a time. When he opens his eyes, there is no Odasaku.

He rubbed his eyes and pinched his cheeks to ensure he wasn't dreaming, and the sting on his cheeks confirmed that Dalton had spoken with a strange guy who promised him freedom someday.Still, the words of this odd man ignite the fire of hope within Dalton's dead heart.
After so many years, Dalton is still waiting for the madman's promise. Fear grips his heart as he imagines Wapol returning to reignite his terror after abandoning his kingdom to the turmoil of filthy pirates.Dalton will not let his people suffer or die again at Wapol's hands. They name him king and hero, yet Dalton has shown no bravery or fortitude. They seek him like a star, believe him like no one else, and Dalton will not let them down. He can't, and never will."A brave man is a man that protects those he loves at any cost, Dalton", once, his father told him while he readied him for the army.'Oh, father, I wonder whether you are disappointed in me with Seinen from above?', thought Dalton as he clenched his fist and closed his eyes with remorse."Nothing is finished yet. You can still make up for it, Dalton. I believe in you, my dear friend!" said to him once, Hiriluk, this crazy man that no sane person believed in him (but Dalton can only recall his sacrifice as the noblest hero the world has ever welcomed).His sacrifice will not be futile. Never again; their land has already lost and suffered greatly. And Dalton will not allow history to repeat itself as he witnesses pirates entering their harbor.Weapons pull out with his people by his side, as Dalton waits for the pirates of this ship to come out.Not again. Enough is enough. Their previous ruler and pirates had already devastated their homes for so long.His nation and he have already suffered greatly, and their grief remains a sting scar in their hearts that no medicine can heal (even this witch is aware of this since she cannot even heal her son's grief over Hitiluk's death). Dalton notices the straw hat lad and his crew on the deck, and before they can say anything, his loud voice cuts them short.They can't be the ones Odasaku mentioned. Not after pirates had already destroyed their homes. Not when the filthy pirates are as vicious and greedy as Wapol.He glares down at them and raises his hand, prompting his men to point their pistols at them.The five pirates, four-man pirates, and a blue-haired woman pirate look up at them, wide-eyed at the weapons in their hands."Leave immediately this island!" he orders, expecting the pirates to hear them and leave without a fight (Dalton is tired of killing and shedding blood on his white homeland when she has already been painted by the repercussions of a greedy man's choices)."We came here to find a doctor for our navigator!" shouts the straw hat boy."We won't fall for that!", One of his men screams with disdain, "You filthy pirates!""Wow, they definitely hate us!" comments the blond pirate."Shut up!" yells his man, firing at his feet.As the blood man became enraged, a door from behind them opened. When they see another pirate with long dark hair, a white kimono red haori, and bright red eyes, his men gasp in fright.Red eyes are something they had never seen before. Before Dalton could say anything, his man fired on the red-eyed pirate.The bullet gets lodged in the pirate's right eye and throws her onto the floor. Se falls unmoving onto the floor as blood drains from her body.Then there's mayhem."UMEKUI!" they exclaim, a ferocious cry that rocks the sea and sky.The straw hat boy shouts heartbreaking screams that shred Dlaton's heart in pieces."I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"The long nose, with tears in his eyes, directs his pistols at them. The blond pirate collapses to his knees at the sight of his nakama on the floor. The swordsman draws his blades and prepares to lunge at them at any moment, cutting off their heads. The blue-haired woman shakes her legs at the sight of the puddle of blood."Stop!" yells the injured woman. She lifts her face and looks up at Dalton.What is she? How could she still be awake? She received a bullet in the eye; how could she? Her half-bloody visage stares at him, her crimson eyes gleaming, and Dalton takes a step back.(Who is she? How can-?)His heart stopped as she dropped to her knees in front of him and slammed her forehead into the floor."NAMI NEEDS A DOCTOR! PLEASE, SAVE NAMI! YOU ARE OUR LAST CHANCE TO SAVE OUR NAVIGATOR! IF YOU DO NOT LET US INTO YOUR ISLAND, NAMI WILL DIE! WE NEED HER! SHE IS IMPORTANT TO US! SHE'S IMPORTANT TO ME! SO PLEASE LET US IN!" she screams, her voice raspy from shouting. Her body was trembling so much that Dalton thought she was about to crumble or shatter.The straw hat kid approaches the bleeding girl, kneels next to her, and dumps his forehead forcefully, and Dalton swears he heard a crack."PLEASE CALL A DOCTOR! PLEASE SAVE OUR NAKAMA!" begs the straw hat boy in a loud voice. His hand curls above that of the pirate girl beside him, and his shoulder trembles with worry.
'I promise you that one day your kingdom will be free of your king's terrible grip. They will come to you and plead for your aid, and in return, they will repay you with the most beautiful thing in the world: freedom. I vow that you and your kingdom will be free of selfishness and cruelty. Don't give up hope, Dalton; the world needs more honorable men like you,'
The promise of this strange man rings inside him like a plea, and his eyes wind up as he stares at the two bowing pirates."'It's impossible," he mutters in disbelief, taking another step back. 'It can't be them, right? Right, those pirates cannot be carrying this man's pledge, can they?'But as soon as Dalton hears this young boy's voice and looks into this woman's peculiar red eyes, he knows that it's them."I will lead you to our village. Welcome to Drum Island," he declares, turning his back on them and leaving.His heart is pounding so fiercely in his chest that he worries it may stop (he cannot die now! He can't; he must protect this kingdom till the end!).(They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there! They are there!, he thinks chanting loudly in his heart in sole prayer.)Hope is drilling into Dalton's heart, digging a home for these new pirates (please don't make them another blunder in his kingdom's history, he begs within).Dalton is no king, but he is a human.A human who wants and wishes for peace to return to his motherland. A person who committed mistakes and has already paid for them. A person whose ambition is to free and liberate Drum Kingdom from the cruel reigh of Wapol.Dalton is no hero, but he is a human.A human being who trusts in the promise of the odd man with the golden eyes. A human being who accepts the pirates as his only hope.A king can fall, but a human fall is fatal.And as long as Dalton is alive, he is going to fight until his dream is achieved.
"Welcome to Drum Island, warrior of freedom!"
It hurts.It hurts so much. This is not the first time she has suffered an eye injury.The memory of a bloodied spoon and vengeful gaze sears through her brain and heart.Even so, she deserves this anguish. She welcomes the pain. If she had to lose her eye again to save Nami, she would not hesitate to dig out her other eye."Ume" whispers Luffy. (Her heart dropped, and a bill rose in her mouth. Luffy is whispering (loud Luffy who shouts at the world, joyful Luffy laughs so loudly at the world that everyone can hear his laugh).She raises her head and leans in to sit on her buttocks, turning her gaze to meet Luffy's trembling lower lip and brilliant round eyes."Yes, my captain?" She calls back gently, her solo eye staring at him, the other still closed and unnoticed by the blood drenching half of her face, in the horrible red that ruined Umekui's existence.(Loud, cheerful, and lively Luffy has whispered!)Luffy is shaking so much. (He is shaking as he was when he saw Ace's head smeared with blood because those big men had hurt him so badly. He is trembling in the same way when Shank lost his arm as a result of his own weakness. He is trembling so terribly that he fears that flames may come and consume Umekui (as they did to his dear brother Sabo)."Ume," he murmurs again, crawling nearer her, his eyes burning and his body trembling so badly that Umekui worries he will collapse."I'm there, my captain," she says (his name drips like honey from her mouth, like a religion that gives her a purpose to exist).He crawls toward her, collapsing in her arms, and Umekui melts like ice against his warm body."My captain, what did I tell you about not being covered in cold weather?" She asks and grins, discarding her white haori and covering Luffy's upper body and shoulders with a gentle tired smile.Luffy's large round chocolate eyes are wide and aching from unsoiled tears. Then he starts crying out loud. The skies and seas are all watching as the courageous sea lad sobs, his nakamas and princess stare at them with sad expressions on their faces, and their fists clench beside them."My captain, why are you crying? I thought the crybaby on our crew was Usopp?" she inquires, bringing her scarred palms to his face and wiping away his tears.Luffy is crying again, loudly and uncontrollably.Oh, how selfish she is, making this lovely boy cry again because of her stupidity?Ussop stands beside them, sobs aloud, runs at them, and collapses into Umekui's arms. She sighs softly and turns to Usopp, wiping the tears from his face."Here, here, everything is okay, right? Nami is going to be well; they will take us to the doctor," she assures them delicately.Even though they are strong pirates, Umekui sometimes forgets that they are young, so young that the sight of their tear-filled eyes makes her heart surge. They hadn't witnessed the whole extent of this world's wickedness, nor had they seen how dark and depraved it was. They still have so much to do and see, and her heart aches at the injustice. Their eyes will behold the dreadful sight of those gods' and deities' devastating deeds.But for the time being, she wants to safeguard their innocent eyes. She wants to shield their brightness and pure hearts from the darkness and evil of humanity's malice.But for the time being, she wants to safeguard their innocent eyes. She wants to shield their brightness and pure hearts from the darkness and evil of humanity's malice.Her eyes had already witnessed and endured so much (they had already bled for those greedy gods and mankind). If she has to be the shield with poisoned arrows traversing her, she doesn't mind; all that matters to her is witnessing her nakama smile and laugh with delight in their eyes.Luffy and Ussop sniffed on either side of her arms, as her hands stroked their backs. She rested her forehead on their sturdy shoulders. She must safeguard their shoulders from the weight of the world; Atlas has fled and killed himself, leaving her with the curse of bearing the world alone. She promises never to be egotistical and notify her nakamas of the cost of carrying such a heavy load on her shoulders and back. She must do it until the end, that is her punishment. "Those men, they were afraid of us," she says, to which Zoro tsks. "They are all civilians with no knowledge of weapons and fighting. The citizen man was aiming for my shoulder, but it was his first time wielding a pistol in his life. His hands and legs trembled so much that his eyes were filled with panic," she explains.Luffy moves away from her arms and looks up at her, sniffing his tears and snot."We're pirates, my captain. It is comprehensive of them to dread and despise us. What did I tell you when we first met? That pirates' lives are the most horrific crime among the world's wrongdoings. If I have to bleed for our sins, or if I have to bleed to save Nami, so be it. And did you notice how much those men frightened us? We are the villains here, not them. Perhaps they have a horrible past with pirates, therefore we needed to prove to them that we mean no harm, even if it meant sacrificing and begging for their help; they are our last chance to save Nami." She explains to him as she caresses Ussop and Luffy's delicate hair with her scarred fingertips.She lifts herself on her legs and then turns over to her room."I'm going to change Nami and bring her so we can depart, and take care of my eye," she turns to Zoro, who is glaring at the floor. "Calm yourself before leaving the ship, I don't want you to slice some throats." Without looking at Sanji or the princess, she retreats to her and Nami's quarters.He has failed again.Sanji's life is a chain of numerous failures. (pink bright hair and blue eyes crying and pleading for the deities to save him, a pool of blood pouring and crossing the only name given to the infant named Sanji, love painting her golden hair in a tragedy).He tightens his fist and chews his hard tongue (the familiar taste of blood makes his legs tremble). How can he pledge to protect her if the floor is covered with her blood (and when will this madness end? When will their first mate stop being hurt as a result of their weakness?He wants to scream in fury and find the man who wounded his first mate (if Umekui handed him a list of everyone who hurt her, he only needs to burn the entire world to make them pay for their sins).A scorching sense of anguish and sobbing fly through Sanji's organs. Umekui did not have to bleed, be injured, or pay for the island's history. At what cost, and with what injustice, must history repeat itself and demand blood from the innocent?His heart breaks once more. Sanji has escaped the world's darkest corners in search of a sense of new meaning and hope. He carries it in his heart, and he proves that history does not have to repeat itself. Because kindness stems from an abundance of violence rather than its absence.(Sanji's ghost-broken limbs, beaten up face concealed in the shadow of this cell, gory scars filled with marks of hatred, heartbroken screams, and cries for aid that no one listened to).Sanji was a sculptor who embodied both violence and love, trapped between those two paradoxes. Despite everything, he learned and continually understood that kindness and love are all that qualifies to him.He has, however, consistently failed when it comes to love ( again and again). He has failed Umekui like the scumbag he is. Oh, he understands he cannot be the hero in Umekui's life, but his blood beseeches for him to save and protect her.He looks at her pool of blood and his body feels so cold. His throat feels swollen and the thought of Umekui being hurt in the eye makes his knees shake (oh how weak and wretched he is to have violence damage those he loves).Umekui's idea of love is plagued by sacrifices, while Sanji's love is plagued by violence. They wonder which deity cursed them for this fate, which is undoubtedly the end result of everything: grief and death.While the other stands and watches as violence destroys everything he cares about, he pushes up the young kid Sanji was, in a meant to carry kindness and hope in his heart in a world of violence. While the others fall to her knees and watch as sacrifices kill all she once had the opportunity to experience, she bears void and sorrow in her heart in a world full of sacrifices.But how can love and death be in the same equation? Similar to how violence and sacrifices work. How could Sanji and Umekui possibly find love when their paths and hearts are so different?But hadn't they already lost and suffered enough? Can't they just live without the fear of loss and agony pulling them into the depths of grief? Can't they just lie on their backs on the sand, glowing while the sun bathes them in love?(The only sun they know goes by the name of Monkey D. Luffy.)Surprisingly, no tales of a prince falling in love with a monster have been recorded in history. Love does not exist for sad, beautiful princes and ugly monsters with depraved hearts. There is no such thing as innocent as love.Slay the monster and pierce his heart, foolish prince, urge the gods.Cries and grieves, foolish princes, over a world without violence and sacrifices could never exist, mock the gods.Dalton looks at the sick pirate ginger-haired woman on his couch, pensively. Then he redirects his focus to the noisy straw hat pirate cramming his face with food (so much food that Dalton marvels how this little thin boy could fit all of it in his body).Their swordsman is leaning against the wall, taking care of his swords, and Dalton notices his bloodthirsty glare when they meet. The blond-haired man who was formerly noisy in their boat is suddenly silent, to the point where Dalton believes he would explode and beat him up for their show when they arrive. Instead, he is serene as a feather, brewing tea in the kitchen of his house.The long-nosed boy is beside the blue-haired female (she seems familiar, Dalton thought as he narrowed his eyes at her) alongside the couch where the sick pirate girl is sleeping, treating her fever.'Those pirates are peculiar', he thought for the tenth time since he met them.Then his gaze goes to the woman standing near the fireplace. Her beautiful dark hair falls around her like drapes as she wears a long red kimono and a simple white scarf over her shoulders. Her pale white face resembles snow; it is now blood-free, and a single bandage covers her right eye.He grits his teeth as he recalls the previous incident, but Dalton cannot blame his soldiers for their fear (the only person to blame is himself).Her crimson eye is staring pensively at the fire, lost in thought. (And every time he remembers the unusual tint of her eyes, he recalls Odasaku's golden eyes).Dalton becomes mesmerized while peering at the black-haired woman. She is stunning, he thought. She has a beauty that he has never seen before; she appears unreal, but the blood on the deck floor is real and present.The fire appears to dance across her beautiful white face, stroking and shading all of the unseen lines. Her solitary red eye glows in the flames' light (it reminds him of the blood he furiously tried to wipe from his blade). She has a long, tall form and a wide back; he even bets that beneath all of her bandages, her limbs are full of muscles and strength.Her back seems stiff as if it were heavy for her (she reminds him of himself, carrying the weight of all the innocent lives lost as a result of his misdeeds). All of his people's faith and respect for him (which he does not deserve given how many times he has wronged).Odasaku's promises burned inside him like a glimmer of hope he never imagined experiencing again."So, where is the doctor?" the crimson-eyed woman asks, her voice frigid. Her eye burned a hole through him."Our lone doctor is in the ancient king's castle on top of the ice mountain. She is referred to as a witch by the townspeople because she only appears on her broom. She has already arrived in the early morning, therefore the next time she decides to come out will be tomorrow morning," he informs the pirates. Umekui clicks her tongue and fists her palms while looking absently at her navigator."A witch?!" exclaims the long-nosed lad, peering worriedly at his sick nakama."We can't wait until tomorrow morning! Nami's health is at risk. She can't-" protests the blue-haired woman at him.Umekui turns to Dalton and asks, "Do you have cords?""Cords?" He tilts his head then turns to a drawer, pulls out the cords, and hands them to her.She thanks him as she approaches her navigator, crouching on one knee in front of her. The blue-haired woman, steps over to let the first mate take her spot.One of her scarred hands cupped her navigator's hot cheek. Then she smiles softly and gently.(Dalton's breath catches on her smile. A smile seems impossible on the face of someone like her, who appears to sneer at the world with venom. She appears to have lost the ability to smile when her body is wrapped in bandages and her hands are covered in so many scars)."Listen, dear Nami. We're going to head straight toward the ice mountain to find the witch doctor. This is our final chance to save you. I'll be there to protect you, and I swear to go to any length to save you, so a little snow is nothing to me. I promised you'd heal and get back on your feet. So believe in your first mate's words. "Believe in my promises," she says, gripping Nami's hot hand in her icy one and tenderly caressing her cheek with her other hand.Tired, light brown eyes open to greet her solitary crimson eye.Nami's vision is fuzzy; the fever is burning her alive and causing pain throughout her body. But even in the depths of misery, pierced by a thousand needles, Nami will always reach for Umekui's voice. She will recognize her even if she has completely lost her senses, since what matters to her is that Nami's heart already knows Umekui, just as she knows the flavor of tangerine in her mouth and the fragrance of salty sea in her nostrils."I-" Nami responds with a shaky breath, "I will always believe in you, Umekui."With those words, she shuts her eyes, her heart calm and full of faith in Umekui's promises."Zoro put Nami on my back and tie us with this rope around our waists," she commands, carrying Nami in her arms to give her to Zoro.Zoro stares at her with stupefied eyes, "You're going to this mountain alone?"Luffys chuckles and leaps over, "No! We are going together! it's captain orders Ume!" Umekui smiled sweetly and stroked his hair, "Then we both need to take care of our nakama, my captain!""Climbing this mountain is risky! The mountain is a massive 500-kilometer slab of ice! There is no way you can climb this! It's impossible," Dalton shouts, looking at the captain and first-mate pirate in disbelief.Luffy chuckles and clenches his fist, "Shi shi shi, nothing is impossible for us!"Umekui's smirk and her single red-eye look at Dalton, "A mountain of ice is nothing to us, and if I have to crush this mountain to the ground to bring out this doctor witch from her castle, so be it!"Dalton's jaw gaped open as he exclaimed, "You are insane! All of this for a mere navigator.""We don't care about a mere navigator. We only care about Nami; she is our nakama and a member of our crew. She is more important than anything," clarifies Umekui, as she assists Zoro in tying her and Nami together.There are no pirates. No! Dalton has known pirates his entire life, and they have only brought sorrow and anguish to their land. They were selfish, vicious, and greedy, taking everything they wanted without regard, destroying everything without blinking an eye while his people cried out to the gods for grace.But those pirates are the opposite. Ha! Dalton would have laughed if someone had told him that a pirate crew could be entirely selfless and willing to give up everything for one of them. But here they are, standing before him with loyalty in their veins, and passion and love to propel them ahead.He is filled with shame as he stands before them. Disgrace murmurs his name (his people refer to him as a hero, yet those plain pirates are far superior to him). Yet he is confident now that those two are the ones Odasaku promised him.Oh, Dalton has always wondered how freedom will arrive in his home, but now that he sees the wide smile of this straw hat youngster and the fire burning in this woman's red eye, he embraces it with a light smile.Dalton is no king or hero, but the conviction of those two pirates motivates him to take a step toward the light and let go of the chains of failure that have stained his name with shame.After that, Zoro has safely bound Nami to Umekui's back, and his first mate and captain are ready to leave. Standing in the cold outside Dalton's house, Luffy smiles broadly at Vivi and his nakama, "Wait for us there! We'll be back when Nami is recovered!"Umekui pauses in her walk and turns slightly to see Sanji smocking with a scowl and a thoughtful expression beside the door."Sanji," she calls out, and the man blinks a few times before realizing that his first mate is calling him out."Yes, Umekui-chan?" He says, his voice calm and quiet, unlike her usual responses to her calls."Take care of the Princess. Zoro is far too grumpy for that, and Ussop is far too nervous for it," she says with a funny smile, then tenderly smiles at him. "And wait for us safely. Wait for me. I'm right there," she says, pointing to the castle on the giant ice mountain. "We promised each other, huh? So I'm coming back once Nami has been healed."He freezes at her words before smiling back at her. With a nod from him, she departs, Nami on her back and Luffy by her side.Oh, how selfless she is, he reflects. Even with a damaged eye and about to confront the fury of snow, she looked his way to reassure him. He should be the one holding her and telling her everything is fine. Nonetheless, she smiles at him, despite her failure.If Umekui asked that he wait, he would execute. He would wait for her even if she made him wait for a thousand or million years. He will wait for Umekui even when his flesh and bones disintegrate and turn to dust.Even after he dies, his soul will continue to call for her. His ghost will continue to linger and wait. He will not cease waiting.Umekui cursed his soul as the only one for him, and Sanji accepted it gladly."Ume?" Luffy asks, his red jacket pressing him closely (he only wears it to avoid worrying his first mate)."Yes, my captain?" Umekui asks, her crimson eye glancing at him attentively.Their feet felt heavy in the snow, but it didn't matter to them. For the time being, all that matters is getting Nami to the doctor, regardless of the expense, even if they lose their feet in the process."Is your eye still hurting?" he inquires, staring at the bandage over her right eye.He can't image how painful it would be to have a gunshot in his eye. He raises his hand to his right eye, letting his fingertips flutter over his scar. He remembers how much he cried and felt pain after stabbing himself under his right eye. When he was still flesh and blood, without a devil fruit to protect him, his blood leaving him caused him to worry and cry like a baby.Makino chastised him, while his grandfather hit him with a loving fist and cried over his stubbornness (now that he remembers, his grandfather must have cried because he realized he would never be a marine like him, but rather a pirate).But Ume does not have the demon fruit he does; her body bleeds and aches more than his. Clenching his fist as he surveys the bandages covering her body, he makes a self-promise to himself that once she joins his side, the anguish will end. But now she has another bandage over her eye, his stomach hurts, and Luffy feels like a complete failure.As if he failed Sabo and Shanks (why do his blunders keep occurring?)."Not anymore, don't worry," she states to him, smiling. (She appears exhausted, and Luffy wants to battle everything in this world. Perhaps if he beats the entire universe, the exhaustion will leave his first mate alone, and the emptiness she feels will vanish from this world).She is lying. Luffy knows it. He is not as foolish as most people believe. Growing up with his brother Ace (sobbing Ace who believes the world despises him for his blood), he has been accustomed to falsehoods ('I'm alright' 'don't worry', 'It's nothing,' 'I'm fine,' 'I'm not crying', the lies of this brother keep repeating in his head).As he thinks of Umekui and Ace, he realizes that he is still not ready to be king of pirates. Not when Umekui is still in misery and emptiness; he refuses to be king while his Ume remains void. (It feels so wrong, like eating his omelet without rice, like two plus two equals four, like the snow isn't cold, the sea doesn't storm, and Usopp doesn't lie; it just feels wrong in his heart).He frowns at her response and kicks the snow as he walks next to her toward the ice mountain. For five minutes, Luffy kicks the snow and sulks like a child, until the snow he's kicking is actually the buttocks of a lapahn lying beneath it.(He thinks the large guy warned him about the lapanh, but he was too preoccupied with shoving food in his mouth to care).The beast growls, leaps out from behind the snow, and glares at Luffy with keen red eyes. Ume swiftly stretches out his hands, grabs him, and jumps over the beast to escape. They were rapidly enveloped by the lapahn pack as more of them emerged from under the snow."My captain dodge!" Ume yells at him as she vaults over another laphan.Luffy bends fast to avoid another Lapanh's punch. As a lapanh's claws emerge above his head, poised to shatter his skull, a bullet is fired through the beast's paw. It cries loudly and throws its paw to his chest to protect him from the agony.Luffy fights hard against the lapanh that surrounds them, but there are so many that he can't even see Ume and Nami. Fists and knees are flung, and his head even smacks some lapanh. Those lapanh move quickly, but Luffy is aware that he is faster. He activates his devil fruit and launches a massive fist at five lapanh, throwing them hard to the ground.
Crack
Luffy dumbly looks about for the source of the loud noise. Not locating the source, he raises his head to see Ume wiping her hands as she throws the last unconscious lapanh into a pile of them. He beams, but before he can jump over there, he is halted by a louder crash and something rushing at them.Umekui and Luffy raise their heads at the same time, looking at the mountain of snow ahead of them, which appears to be rushing toward them."It's an avalanche," Umekui exclaims, charging towards him with Nami remaining strapped on her back. She grabs him by the waist and points to the enormous tree a little far away "Luffy screeches your arms toward the tree!"With a rapid movement of his arms, Luffy and Umekui find themselves atop an avalanche, watching as the pack of lapanh is wiped out. After a few minutes of waiting for the avalanche to subside, they both leap to the ground. Before they could turn and proceed toward the ice mountain, the lapanh's cries stopped them.Luffy turns to face them, confused."It appears that the chief of their pack is stuck in the snow," Umekui observes."Oh." Luffy simply responds, then moves toward the wailing lapanh with a few scratches to his chin.The lapanh glares at him, and Luffy merely beams back at them, demonstrating that he means no harm. He reaches under the snow, feels the soft fur of the snow beast, and pulls hard to remove it.A tiny lapanh jumps into his father's arms, tears streaming down his cheeks, and departs with a grateful nod to Luffy. His flock turns to Luffy, bows, and follows their leader into the forest."Bye bye!!" Luffy enthusiastically waved behind them.He swiftly turns around and joins Umekui, who is waiting for him with a gentle grin. She notices his red nose and ears and reaches for her scarf."There. I do not want you to get sick," she replies, rolling her scarf over his neck and beneath his nose.The delicate, sweet scent of Ume caresses his nostrils in the same way that food does in his mouth. It causes his stomach to growl and his fingers to sweat, as he feels the need to touch and grip. He's not sure what Ume smells like, but he adores it. He, who only likes and recognizes the aroma of the sea and meats, allows his nostrils to remember Ume's particular scent and revere it. And that is what Luffy admires in his Ume: the unknown she carries within her, the mystery he seeks in each adventure.Ume's first adventure and mystery in his quest to be pirate king.His heart skips a beat, and he wants to laugh so hard that Sabo hears him from above, as well as Ace, Shanks, and his grandfather from the seas. He wants to tell them that he has Ume as his first mate, and nothing makes him happier than that.
Because his Ume is his only one, first mate and soul. 
Ume is wrong because whenever Luffy touches or glances at her, he becomes sick. His heart races in his chest, and his eyes tremble from never blinking since he misses her even when he blinks for a second (he fears that the moment he blinks, she will vanish from his sight).She represents both the beginning and the end of his life until he becomes king.He lunges at her, throwing one arm around her neck and the other around Nami's back, their hair soft under his fingers like Makino's pretty hair."I'm glad that you are with me, Ume! I'm delighted to be your captain and thankful to have you as my first mate! I could never have imagined someone better than you, so thank you for looking after us! Thank you for looking after Nami!" he exclaims, his voice filled with excitement and his round, huge eyes gleaming at Ume.Umekui blinks a few times to register his words, raises a hand to brush Luffy's hair away from his eyes, and stares at him with her crimson eye."Why are you telling me this, captain?" (why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why, why ?)Then, with an even bigger smile (oh, how can he, how can he smile like that when Umekui feels her heart stop every time she sees his smile), Luffy tilts his head."Because I love you Ume!" He speaks in a way that allows the sentences to cascade out of him like water. It's a direct admission of eternal truth, and it makes her seem foolish for even asking such a question when it is the answer is so evident.
(Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love, Love)
Always there to fill Umekui's heart with emptiness. The ultimate tragedy that she was cursed to endure.No, he cannot love her (No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,  No,).He is lying. He has no idea what he is talking about. He doesn't!! (They're gone, dead!)( "You can't love me!" She wants to shout at him and shake his shoulder to wake him up from the madness he is drowning in and dragging her in.)You can't love a monster. You can't love someone who doesn't exist, or someone who is cursed (because she will curse him back, emptying him of all his warmth and blood as she usually does. she doesn’t want, no, no she could never do that, she won't and don’t want).He cannot love her when the price of love for Umekui is sacrifice and sorrow. (And she is so tired of it that she wants and strives to die before history repeats itself and laughs at her face, taunting her again and again with their blood tainting her scarred hands).No! He cannot love someone as terrible as her. She does not deserve him (he ought to love someone like Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, Nami, and the princess, whose souls are as bright as his and who embrace each other with love and freedom. Not her!).She is void and empty. He can't love her until she has a soul to love him back. She is broken, defective, faulty, imperfect, shoddy, deficient, cracked, ripped, and scratched!He can't love her while her beast is trapped inside her, imprisoned by promises she's afraid she'll break again. He can't since no one can know someone's monstrous or damaged until they love the vessel of it, and she can't let Luffy witness this. Umekui is unlovable, unworthy, and bereft of everything, and Monkey D. Luffy cannot love her. He fucking cannot.(The creature within her mocks, taunts, and laughs at her thoughts).This awful weight inside her had returned, this horrible feeling, this hole in her, the darkness that had lurked in the depths of her inner being since the beginning of her existence.Then there's water, so much water that she briefly thought the sea had opened above them. As it does for Luffy, cold water envelops her and encircles her in a bull.She doesn't grasp what's going on. The world inside her is already warping her vision and darkening her head with all of her thoughts, but when she looks at the captive Luffy in the odd bull of water. She acknowledges something that causes her legs to shake with fear.

Luffy cannot swim! Luffy was cursed by the sea! Her mind shouts and screams. Luffy can die because of this entity that cursed him!

(Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Luffy!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!, Because I love you, Ume!).Beautiful, strong, and selfless Luffy! He cannot love or die (all those who loved Umekui Dazai have died, leaving her empty and powerless, their words and promises reverberating inside the void that she calls her heart).Umekui rapidly unleashes her ability as the bull of water lifts her into the sky.'No longer human' hums and stirs in her blood like poison. The shouts are so loud that she can't feel Nami on her back or see Luffy strike the bull of water hard in an attempt to break it.The bull of water blasts around her, and she falls hard to the snow floor. Nami's breath on her neck relaxes her shoulders. Pulling on her legs to get up and calming her frantic breathing (It hurts so much that it feels like someone is ripping her lungs apart). She raises her eyes to find Luffy still inside the bull of water, shouting and pushing against the wall (he feels weak, terribly weak, and Umekui can see the strength leaving his eyes)."Here, here. What a pleasure to have the famous Dazai walk on my king's land," says a voice hidden in the forest's shadows.Umekui's sight is met by blue eyes and short white hair like snow. The man is wrapped in a long blue robe, each ear adorned with several earrings."Who are you?" She yells, her voice agitated, and her fists trembling from the need to tear this person apart.The man smiles, his blue eyes gleaming as he accepts her stare, "My name is Shiki Oron. I am Wapol-sama's first mate, and my ability is known as 'Aqua merilus'.'Wapol', The name ignites wrath in her heart. The selfish king who caused misery in his kingdom (and her disdain for those men who claim to be the god of the world while Icare is as filthy as the water in this city's dark regions. They are all filthy because of their beliefs and depravity (which shape their faces and smiles)."I won't repeat myself. Release my captain right now," she says calmly (although her blood and abilities are churning and combining into one call of resentment)."Your captain, hen," Shiki replies with a smirk, as he watches the lad struggle in his water cage. "Why did you join to play pirate? The last time I heard of you, the world government was cursing and asking the entire world to bring out your head on a golden plate as the biggest display you offered hahahhaha."Nami is secure on her back; the man's abilities cannot touch her, but she can feel Nami's pulse fainting. She doesn't have time; her heart trembles in her chest, and the cold tightens its grasp on her neck.She must immediately take Luffy and flee; even if she loses limbs in the process, she needs to attain the doctor's witch's castle.Luffy's limbs spasm and the water is heavy in his lungs.(Even if he is strong and will be king, Luffy understands that he can do nothing against the sea strength. His greatest ally and enemy the sea is, is capable of devouring him and leaving nothing but him and his dreams. But he has to fight. He needs to rejoin Umekui so that they can save Nami, as promised!)"Ne, Dazai, I never imagined that something like you could have a captain and play the hero," Shiki chuckles, his maniacal laugh echoing over the mountain, then his keen blue eyes narrow, "What about murdering your entire crew and letting me bring your head to Wapol-sama? I shall make you known as my king's treasure. We can even envision what the world's government is willing to give us in return for your head."The water inside the bull of water where Luffy is imprisoned changes shape, and long sharp needles of water pass through Luffy's body, chest, limbs, and legs. The water, which was once clear and blue, is now entirely red and bloody, and she can't see Luffy.
'Bump Bump'
(DAZAI, DAZAI, DaZAI, YOU PITIFUL CHILD DESTINED FOR LOSS, DAZAI, DAZAI,DAZAI)         
'Bump Bump'

'Bump Bump'
Wide, bright luffy, with eyes as warm and vast as the sea. Luffy, whose booming voice and laugh dronws, shuts the voice that was pulling the strings of madness within her thoughts.

(I love you, Ume!)

(i love you! i love you! i love you!)

(from the bottom of my heart, I love you)

(Listen to me, Dazai. Love is a curse. You have been cursed because of your foolish existence. And if someone dares to love your abomination, they shall perish! Do you hear me!!! Stupid girl, don't ever hope that something like you-" shouts a voice full of scorn and contempt.The woman's hand held a bloody, scarlet, and sticky spoon, and Dazai's blood covered her deformed, nasty face. Her red eye rests on the floor, peering back at her. Dazai's little body was soaked in her own essence as blood streamed from the hole where her right eye used to be.
The madwoman grabs a hold of Dazai's short dark hair and pulls her face closer to her own, allowing her next words to penetrate her eyes."Now that you have lost one of your red monster eyes, you can be sure you will never be loved," the woman says, her black eyes glimmering with insanity at Dazai's childlike face.)Luffy, despite everything, loves something like her. (She can't even call him a liar. She can't even yell at him for telling lies. Because she believes in him above all else. She feels his soul brush her insides with tenderness and affection. She can't tell him he's a liar because someone as honest and true, as free and bright as Luffy, never lies).And it aches. What makes it hurt so much is that losing something you've never had and never believed in hurts more than losing something you truly have faith in, like being a believer.
("In another universe, I would have asked you to run away with me, Dazai," Chuuya says, blood streaming from his lips and mouth, his blue eyes staring regretfully at her.

"In another universe, I would have said yes." searing scarlet eyes respond, the bitter taste of blood in her mouth making her body shiver with repulsiveness.)
It hurt so deeply the way she was torn apart from the inside. Left like a broken bird, fate has fractured her bones, causing her to shatter like jagged glass on the floor and bleed from sorrow and loss. It hurts like Icare does when he sees his absurd love burning away from him and feels himself drowning in the ruthless sea, smothering his foolish dreams and love.Oh, love is just as ruthless as those gods who have no idea how this concept even arises.(Kana glares at her growing belly, then turns her blank gaze on Dazai.

"Love is the most twisted curse of all, Dazai. You cannot love; never fall in love".

Burning with a cry of rage and grief, Kana's flames consumed everything, leaving nothing but ashes and fire.)

(i LOVE YOU, UME! UMEKUI! DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI!)

She is blazing with sadness and wrath. Kana's bleeding hands wrap around her throat.(Her head hurts, stings, and screams. One continuous wail, followed by another, one after the other. Shaping her into a being of raw sounds and screams).Her body shakes, as something inside her snaps and bursts into flames. Kana's flames rose into the sky like a Phoenix, painting the vast expanse red.('We are cursed, Dazai, and now you will bear all of the curses that those selfish gods put upon us,' Kana murmurs softly inside her head.)Lavender's smell burns her nostrils, causing her nose to bleed. Blood spurts like water from her nose, soaking the white floor in red and painting it with her misdeeds.Shiki's eyes expand as he sees the fire coming from Dazai's body. The whole area was blocked in a maelstrom of fire.She is angry, he thinks as he watches her rage fury out. Her crimson irise looks at him, and he notices it now. The beast, the monster that the world strives to capture. The monster's hideous shadow peeked out of her one eye, scrutinizing him and ready to spring at him on his master's commands."Wapol, you say," the name rolled off her mouth with disdain.A wicked king who caused despair in his kingdom. A man whose avarice destroyed the lives of innocent people. His royal blood causes her blood to boil and yells out in indignation (Kana's ability emits screams of betrayal and anger).Her crimson eye ignites at Shiki's alarmed expression, "I will be merciful to you, but your king will have no idea what this word means. He'll beg and die till death consumes him like a shattered toy."With her words, the flames erupt in an explosion toward Shiki. Before he could even activate his power, Umekui's wildfire had his body in its deadly grip.At his cry, the bull of water in which Luffy was imprisoned collapses, and his unmoving body falls to the floor. Umekui, with wild eyes, dashes at his wounded figure.She swiftly laid Nami down on the snow, taking off her red hoari and left only her white kimono on. She quickly rolls Luffy in it. She places Nami back on her back and carries Luffy close to her chest. The slight pulse of both of her nakamas causes her to hold their bodies tighter.She doesn't have time. She must reach the top of the mountain at all costs. Kana's ability will protect them for the time being, and once her captain and Nami are safe and saved, she will chase Wapol.Running through snowstorms, she runs and runs till her feet bleed from the cold. Finally reaching the bottom of the massive ice mountain, she grits her teeth and relays the wires that connect her to Nami. She hooks her end of the wires to Luffy's chest.'Hold on, Nami! Luffy!'Sensing that her nakama are both anchored and secured, she digs into the ice mountains' walls with her fingers and nails. She pulled on her muscled arms and started climbing the mountain with her bare feet and hands. She lets Kana's flames softly hug Nami and Luffy, preventing them from freezing to death and preventing frostbite.Even though she can feel her blood screaming and warming from using Kana's power, she ignores the warning and continues to climb the ice mountain with her nakamas, warm, safe, and protected.Umekui comes to a halt in the middle of the high mountain of ice as blood erupts from her mouth like a torrent. The marks of darkness expand, and she can feel them engulfing her entire chest. Her limbs tremble as her blood reserves back in her veins (It feels like she is being erased, just as the water erases the dried sand on Oda's beach).She bites her tongue hard to stop herself from screaming in agony to the skies.

('It hurts so much, Odasaku.'I know. I'm so sorry, Dazai).
Nami's hushed breathing and Luffy's blood on her body bring her back to reality, and she pushes on her shaky legs to continue climbing the ice mountain. She climbs again and again, the terrible storm of snow engulfing her in snow and dread.She feels like she's dying. But she knows it's all a game of torture orchestrated by the gods.
(They laugh as they observe the foolish monster striving to play the hero when there is nothing noble about their existence.)
She can't give up now, though, not with the lives of Nakamas hanging in the balance. (She carries an abundance of lives on her back, but unlike her nakamas, those lives are dead, gone, and imprisoned in the graveyard; they are only her memories).She had lost so many people that she came to believe that grief was ingrained in her long before she was born into this mad world.Even though her hands and feet were dripping with blood, she kept climbing. Despite the blood splattering across her face from her right eye, she continued to climb. She kept climbing even when her fingers slid and her nails adhered to the ice, preventing her from falling back to the bottom.She continued to climb, her heart full of devotion for her beloved nakamas. (For you, my most beloved Nakama.Luffy eats all the meat she can steal from Sanji's kitchen simply to make him happy. Her beloved, selfless king, whose declaration of love rends her open, allowing the sun to enter and warm the chilly, lonely walls of her heart. (and all she wants to say is how much she adores him. She wishes she could never leave his side because there is no life without him, but she is terrified.  She is terrified that she will be abandoned once again, with grief taunting her and dreams and shattered promises lying at her feet).
I would devour the world raw to protect you from his darkness.

Umekui's head rested on Nami's shoulders as she observed her navigator's hands drawing and working. (And Umekui didn't even mention how lovely her hair was in the sun, or how she envied the attention her map received when her doll eyes gazed adoringly at her work). Beautiful Nami, you have so much to see and accomplish in this world. Her life and freedom have only just begun. She needs to draw the world map she promised. (Even if she won't be present to see her map, she still wants to convey how much she believes in her to fulfill her dream).
I would slay entire armies to protect you.

Zoro's gray eyes lock on her with a fist squeeze, and his tongue bites off, words imprisoned in his throat. (Because how can he tell her that he is afraid of losing her when the memories of Kuina's death still sear him with failure and grief?). To show him that she is still with him and not in a grave where his former child self once stood, she has to go back to his powerful, muscular arms.She kept climbing even after four of her nails were torn off and one of her feet snapped.
I shall hold you wholeheartedly like the stars in the moon's arms.

'I am coming back, that is a promise,' she assured Sanji. (Dear gentle Sanji, whose love and care are as selfless as the wounds on his soul, which often howl inside her from sorrow and pain. And she wants to thank him, she wants to thank him for possessing a kindness that could purify any filthy water with a heart as pure as his. She wants to thank him for his eyes full of love (even though she does not deserve any of it).
Even if I don't deserve your love and selfless care, I must swallow it till the end.

With a blurred gaze, nearly blind, she kept climbing with no regard for herself and only the names of her nakama in her mind. The recollections of her and her nakama on the going merry—their grins and laughter as they dance and sing—keep her going even if her body bleeds red and freezes in blue and black.She must return Nami, cured and safe before Usopp's eyes. (Oh, how his soul begged the gods to spare Nami. But she can't tell him that the gods are quiet and cruel, and his prayers will never be answered). Whose terrible stranglehold of illness has already cost Ussop so much? Who still has nights when he is so anxious that she has to encourage him to tell her stories to ease his mind and heart (Ussop, whose love outweighs his fear of the world).
I must guard what you feel for me until you discover what I am and hate me for it. 
If she has to climb for millennia to save her nakamas' lives, she will do so again and again. In each life and universe, she is willing to make any sacrifice for her nakamas.
But for now, allow me to be selfish and hold onto you.
She launches herself onto the mountain's plate surface as she feels the final stone at the summit in her palm. Her breath was rough and rapid, and she sank to her knees, the castle in front of her. She releases her grip on Luffy and allows his head to rest on her lap.She is unable to even glimpse the identities or appearances of the two souls that rush toward her form and show no signs of harm. With a single crimson eye, she looks at them through blurry eyes.
Just one last time.
"Doctor Witch, save my nakama. Saves them. "I'm willing to pay any price," she says, her voice ticking and heavy from blood loss.
So let me pay for you, the cost of loving something that isn't worth loving back.
With those final words, she shuts her eyes and allows the darkness to steal her head, her heart at ease knowing that her nakamas are safe.
In thee and hell, I will bear any sacrifices to protect you, my beloved nakama.)

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"It's me and my head. In madness, I collapse."

Tony Tony Chopper is aware that he is an abnormality. He knows it every time he looks in the mirror and sees his blue nose or when it reflects on the glass of his beaker while he makes a few medications in his lab.

His blue nose was his demise, the beginning of his anguish and pain, forcing him to be an outcast among his birth family. He knew it from his father's skull strike and the scornful glare of his biological mother, as well as the bullying of his brothers and the abandoning of his pack.
His family regarded him as a monster. An anomaly, they screamed angrily.They told him that he was born with an incurable sickness in his blood that caused his nose to become blue and cursed him.However, they failed to tell him that his curse would not protect him from heartbreak, misery, and loneliness. They did not tell him that becoming a monster brings loneliness and misery with no remedy.
In the heartbreak of obtaining a cure for his monstrous nature, Chopper ate the Hito Hito no Mi. As if fate didn't already hate and turn against him, the devil's fruit turned him into a human hybrid. He is trapped between two species that despise him and want him dead for his abnormality.
The devil fruit was claimed to have cursed the user for drowning in the sea, but nobody informed him that it had also imprisoned him in this hideous form. Perhaps he deserves it since fate's vile hands have marked him from the time of his birth, yet it still hurts, it hurts so much to have no place to call home.
He, the monster, emerged with an illness in his blood that had no known cure. Swore to rid the world of all illnesses so that no one would have to experience the same agony that broke his heart. And Chopper found solace in the loving arms of a man whom others deemed dangerous, crazy, and eccentric.
Yet Chopper's dark pink eyes find no insanity and dangerousity in Hiriluk's warm eyes. All Chopper could discover and experience from this man was kindness and selflessness. When his pack wanted him dead and human children beat him unconscious and bloody with rocks, his father saved him. Hiriluk, his father, took him when everyone else abandoned him; he loved him even though the rest of the world despised him; he regarded him as a person with a soul and feelings, not a monster. 
Hirikul embraced him as his son and treated him with unparalleled kindness. Regardless of his appearance or monstrosity, he loved him more than anything else. Still, he thought, No! Chopper believed that with Hiriluk, he could cure any illness, including Hiriluk's own.

'You foolish moron, you can't save a person's life with kindness alone,' yelled Doctorine, her eyes welling up.

His fur was smeared with tears of grief as he cried out for the one who loved him when no one else did, his father's name nailed on the wall of his throat. He cried over and over, believing that his tears would bring back his father.
But as a doctor, Chopper learned that the dead remained dead.

Dead men will never come back.

There is no remedy, no blessing, that can restore a man whose heart has stopped and his warmth has left him. The dead are cold and gone, leaving only an empty vessel where their souls left their bodies. (And as a doctor, Chopper understands how cold and icy the flesh of the deceased feels in his paws. He understands how it feels to hear the last dump of a heart, as well as the cries of sorrow and anguish spilling from people's hearts).

And for heartbreak, there is no cure.

Like there is no cure for his appearance, to be normal rather than an ugly, strange, monster. To be someone rather than something that his family abused and abandoned like a useless object, to be someone rather than a quest that humans want to fulfill.("We'll catch him today, guys!", "The first to kill him wins!", "Hey guys, I missed him", "We need to strike harder this time!")To be someone, a doctor from whom people seek treatment and information, rather than being terrified of him, and to witness parents rage at him in disgust and children wail in fear of his appearance.
And he wonders why the rest of the world can't be like his parents, Hiriluk and Doctrine. Why can't the world be as nice and warm as his figure's parents' souls and hearts? Why can't the rest of the world stop being greedy and simply let go of the darkness that darkens their minds?

"There is no cure for our cruel world, but people like us, my dear son, we could be the medicine that lightens people's hearts, even if only for a brief moment," says Hiriluk, as his gentle old hands caress Chopper's soft brown fur.

Chopper lives for the opportunity to cure disease and bring happiness and hope into people's lives.Doctrine can be both right and wrong.
Indeed, kindness on its alone cannot save a life; instead, a person can be helped and healed from their illness by practices, books, and medication. However, without kindness, there is no warmth or optimism in working and searching for ways to save people's lives.
Something is amazing about aiding and saving people, as well as anguish in falling.
This emotion, this feeling of being on the light side of this dreadful world of being something other than an ugly beast or monster, but of being a doctor, saved Chopper's life in a way that the gods could never comprehend.
Doctrine always told him he was absurd for hoping in a world as lost as theirs. But he knows his mother does not mean what she says; she is simply heartbroken and exhausted from witnessing the depravity of the world for so long. But she could have stopped and become selfish, as Chopper has seen other humans become.
She could have been cruel and kicked him out of her house because of his horrible nature. But she never did; she was always there, caring for him as a devoted mother would, with kindness hidden beneath her wrinkles. She never held him responsible for Hiriluk's death either.
(And if she had beaten him to death and sent him to the wolves, he could not have blamed her. His father, her dear friend is dead, gone, because of him. ( If, in her mind, she does blame him for Hiriluk's death. He sometimes wonders if she doesn't hate him, because if he were her, he would despise himself).
However, she just raged at him for his folly in believing that a miracle drug could exist and cure all diseases in the world. She just told him, through tears, that medical knowledge and abilities are what is genuinely required to save patients' lives, not some magical potion or naive wishes.
She had the choice to cease caring about people and heal them. She could have been like this king, this self-centered tyrant who destroyed everything in his homeland. She may have stopped meeting the villagers to care for them and listen to their concerns.
Even with her strange methods of treating patients—she would even threaten them with violence if they disobeyed her orders—and her rigorous approach to examining them for injuries—she would purposefully poke the injured area, causing discomfort to her patients, and then use him to knock them out as a kind of anesthesia. She still cared about them and saved them because, deep down, she was a wonderful person and doctor.
And now she could have told those pirates to fuck off and left their pals to perish in the snow, but instead, she's taking him on her broom and flying back to their castle, waiting for the three pirates to arrive.
(Pirates, when given this title, retain the string of admiration that Hiriluk taught him, as well as the string of terror, as the people of his homeland despise and fear another destruction at their hands due to their evilness).
But he wonders: where is the evil that the village fears in those pirates? When two of them make the ultimate sacrifice to save their navigator? So, at the castle's door, Chopper waits with anticipation and anxiety for the arrival of his patients."This mountain is 5000 meters high," grumbled Doctrine beside him, peering irritably ahead of her. "How can those pirates clim-"Chopper looks up at Doctrine, whose speaking pauses, and her eyes widen at the sight of something in front of her.He turns his dark pink eyes where Doctrine's gaze is resting, and Chopper catches it.
This bleeding hand, digging in the snow on their ice mountain's plate surface. He sees another hand, dark and crimson, line up in front of the other and grasp, digging their fingers determinedly into the freezing snow.Chopper's heart shook at the sight of those beaten, scarred, bleeding hands trembling so violently.
The hands hurl and shove, throwing a woman to the floor. Her dark long hair is wild on her head, blowing around her due to the mountain's powerful winds. A ginger-haired woman sleeps on her back, bound by a cord. A straw hat boy with a red haori and white scarf is attached to her chest and waist, which Chopper recognizes as belonging to the woman carrying the two unconscious bodies due to her lack of clothing.
Chopper's breathing comes to a halt as she raises her face toward them. Her face is covered with blood, and he is confident it is coming from her right eye, which is wrapped in a bloody bandage. The rest of her body, neck, and arms are completely bandaged, with only her scarred, bloodied hands visible. Her flesh is white and pallid, a pallor known only to the dead, but she stands before him.
Chopper can't stop himself from being fascinated by the color of her eyes. Her eye is a stunning red that gleams in the sunlight, just like the blood that covers her and that Chopper knows is the lifeblood of all living things.
Strange and unusual (like my nose, whispers a voice).Her eye appear to erupt and rage like wildfire.
He finds her very fascinating. Despite having blood on half of her face, she seems surprisingly beautiful. He'd never seen anyone like her, with dark long hair and brilliant red eyes. And in all the horrible snowstorms, Chopper never witnessed someone carry two of his friends through. She even stripped half of her clothes to keep her companions warm and climbed the steep ice mountain while carrying them.
'So these are pirates, father ?', he wonders to himself as he studies the pirate woman in front of him with wonder."Impossible. It can't be her," Kureha murmurs with startled eyes before rushing at the pirate woman.Chopper sprints after her on his little feet. Reaching the pirate woman's side, her final words cause them to cease breathing before she shuts her eyes and falls unconscious.
"Doctor witch, protect my nakama. Saves them. I'm willing to pay any price," she states, her breath hard and her voice ticking.'What price can she still afford? She is already on the verge of death,' Chopper thought in a haze. And now that he is approaching her near and observing her, his eyes treble in size, and the doctor in him awakens."Doctrine! There's something wrong with her; the way she breathes is so strange; I've never seen anyone breathe like this," he says hastily, pointing to the red-eyed woman's chest.
"Chopper, please help me separate her two nakamas from her," Doctorine asks seriously, her eyes narrowing as she places a palm on the orange-haired woman's forehead. "I think this is their navigator, the one with an infection," Doctrine says, recalling the pirates' blue-haired girl and long-nosed youngster.Laying the straw hat boy on his back, Chopper examines his injuries with piercing eyes."The boy has some broken libs and a hemorrhage from his stomach, but nothing dangerous because the cold temperature stops the blood flow. His body temperature is great; it's as if he was kept warm," adds Chopper. "Can I take care of his injuries?" Chopper demands of his mother.
Doctrine nods as she throws the orange-haired girl onto her shoulder."What about her?" Chopper says, worried, pointing to the dark-haired pirate, unconscious and battered into the frozen ground."Don't worry, my son, I'll take care of her," Doctorine adds, throwing the other pirate across her shoulder.Chopper pursues her, carrying the boy pirate on his back (he is warm, he thinks. He wonders if it's because of the red-eyed pirate).
"Doctrine, Do you know the black-haired pirate girl?" he inquires.Doctrine smiles a small and sad smile (Chopper's heart breaks since he hasn't seen his mother's sad smile in a long time)."She is a precious friend of someone I've known," she says, pushing the door to their laboratory with her foot."Her friend was your friend, too?" He inquires because he is unsure which friend she is referring to. His mother, like his father, has only a few acquaintances.
"Yes, a strange one." she simply responds, closing the door behind her as she enters her cupboard.Chopper places the straw hat youngster on the bed of his cupboard and prepares supplies and medicine to care for him (but he can't get rid of the thoughts of a certain red-eyed pirate from his mind).

Doctrine blinks repeatedly as she stares at the black-haired woman on the bed.She calms herself by taking a deep breath and counting the tabloid paramedics.'It cannot be her. It's inconceivable-'.Doctor Kureha has had a long life, and over her lifetime, she has seen and encountered many things. She witnessed what the world might conceal, from the unthinkable to the possible. She has seen and survived death, sickness, misuse of authority, power balance, cruelty, and kindness throughout her life. Even if this world can be dark, she recognizes that it is the most beautiful and strange.
(And if she had one last wish, it would be for Chopper to discover the world. She genuinely wants her son to see what she has seen and understand about the world around them).
Sickness was one of the most perplexing riddles that her existence had led her to find and solve. She was aware that even if she lived another hundred years, she would never be able to find all of the world's illnesses and cures. It's undoubtedly an unachievable dream. However, that is the life of a doctor: to help people overcome their illnesses through medicine and diagnostics, although medicine is not always necessary in the big scheme of things. When death chooses to take away the affliction of souls affected by illness, there is no turning back.
Death is no sickness. It's a fatality that knows no disorders.
Death has no cure, no disease that medicine can treat, and no power that can be neutralized. In death, there are no accidents, coincidences, mishaps, or escapes. Everyone is doomed to die. Death is the ultimate place everyone is meant to go. Nonetheless, she believes that death can provide relief to the sick (Hiriluk's name echoes in a tone of consolation within her).But death also leaves a sorrow, a grief that nothing can cure. Nothing.Perhaps death could only heal one thing: madness.
Kureha has met several insane people. She identifies them and meets them in the biggest towns, hiding from the public as their minds are devoured from within by a disease for which there is no cure (But she is trying, attempting to save those who are suffering from the strings of an illness that causes men's legs to shake with fear).
Kureha, on the other hand, discovered for the first time in her life that there is hope in the anarchy that destroys people's minds. And her companion Hiriluk is an example of it, even if the people on their island refer to him as a madman, a sick man whose life has already been written and passed by the hands of death. Kureha was shown by Hiriluk that there is light at the end of this illness and that he will not allow fate to dictate her course of action.
(She and he were both aware that his life was coming to an end because there was no more time for him. He merely wanted to live his life to the fullest with no regrets, and he did).
Kureha wrote four points in her book that she will always keep in mind as a doctor.1. The illness that affects the mind is fatal. For the time being, there is no way out or a cure.2. Heart disease remains a mystery throughout history. The illness would then expand to the psyche, bringing the sufferer to one final destination: death (for the time being).3. Death is unavoidable and incurable. When a patient is 98% on the verge of death, there is no hope for recovery (for now).
4. People being close to the deceased, regardless of the circumstances of death. Finds themselves impacted by an ailment that has no known remedy in the medical world (for the time being). According to the victims, this condition affects the heart and brain, which causes various symptoms (such as heartache, fatigue, and breathing problems).

'If we finish this Sakura powder, I assure you that the people of Drum Island will return! We can heal them, Kureha!" shouted her silly friend at her door, his strange creature always hanging to his feet.'Get out of here, old man! It's not the time to hear about your strange and foolish experiences', Kureha yelled back, throwing objects at him and telling him to leave her house.

'You call me old man, but you are older than me, HA HA HA!" laughs Hiriluk, with the weird reindeer ducking beneath his feet in dread of her murderous sight."You crazy bastard! How dare you-!" Kureha yells, throwing her chair at them.Hiriluk simply laughs loudly, takes his odd small reindeer in his arms, and flees her anger with a huge smile on his face and his loud laugh ringing in the sky.

A tiny sorrowful smile stretches her lips as she remembers these moments. 
Hirikuk searched for a miracle solution that would heal him of this ailment and restore hope to Drum Island residents' hearts. But it was a forlorn dream since he was gone, leaving behind a sorrowful reindeer with a peculiar blue nose.

"Do you really believe that there is no hope for curing our world's sickness?" asks a child with orange-reddish hair and golden eyes.

"Who are you, brat?" Kureha asks, narrowing her eyes at the weird child in front of her.

"You see, Kureha, I searched for you and eventually found you! My name is Oda Sanusakude. Nice to meet you!" Oda smiles, his eyes are light and gold, yet deep inside they appear much older than Kureha's.Kureha's eyes glare at the weird child, wary of his unusual appearance."Where are your parents? Go away from there; it's not a place for children," she warns.

"I'm there because I need you, Kureha," simply responds the child in front of her, smiling slightly."What do you want from me?" she retorts

Oda smiles broadly at her query."I need you to help someone special to me," he says gently."And where is this person?" Kureha inquires with a brown-up.Oda strokes the back of his neck, timidly."Well, at the moment she doesn't know me or just says that I haven't found her yet"

Kureha's eyes averted in disbelief. This boy is clearly insane; how could he expect her to help him save someone he has never met?"Are you crazy? Did hiriluk send you to irritate me? Listen, if this is a prank between you and your friend, I swear I'll chop your-" She says, pointing her finger accusingly at him.

"Her name is Dazai. Umekui Dazai. Her eyes will be crimson. Crimson as blood, gloomy as a moonless light. Her face will be one of the most beautiful you will ever see, paler than the snow of your kingdom and as light as the moon above us. Her dark hair will be long, draped over her shoulders and back like a coat. And, despite her lifeless glance, you will notice something in her that is flaming with determination and will; in this instant, when your sight rests on her, you will know it is her. She will fight through fire and ice to reach you. That particular curse will only be carried by her, so you will know it's her. She is the only one who can maintain her vacuous gaze while feeling strength in her heart. And her name will forever shake the skies and seas."Kureha's heart shook as the blaze burned in Oda's golden eyes

"The old man is coming to see you, and I know that you can do nothing to help him because it will already be late for him," he says his small voice soiled by a long concealed anguish, then his golden eyes brown and flick up to her with determination. "But not Dazai. She still has time, so please vow to aid her when the time comes. Even if you don't do it because I asked you to, do it because you are a trustworthy doctor!"

Kureha widens her eyes at the child in front of her before nodding and whispering the words that this boy longs to hear: "I will help your friend, little brat. It's a promise"

Kureha's chilly heart was temporarily warmed by Oda's big smile screeching across his face. This is the smile that she always sees on the faces of those she saves and helps.Odasaku's smile burned and lit a dwindling hope inside her heart, for which she will be always grateful to him. 
She blinks again to focus on the dark-haired woman. Her orange-haired friend is resting in another chamber after caring for her, and her son will take care of the remainder. She now has to care for this well-known woman.
Dazai.Unquestionably, Odasaku was correct about something. She may soon meet this girl or wonder if she exists at all. Her name shook the entire world, particularly the Grand and Red Lines. Doctorine could read this name over and over in the several newspapers she could find on her island. And the news regarding this name was never positive.Murder, fraud, genocide, drugs, kidnapping—this name has always been linked to news that makes stomachs coil with dread and loathing.Given the depiction of the global government, she is the worst thing alive. The monster that must be destroyed at all costs to maintain world order and peace.
But. Kureha is intelligent. She knew it from the minute she said her first word as a child, which was something even grown men could not do. Smart and old enough to know all the nasty secrets of the world. She was old enough to have seen and heard things that no one would believe. Old enough to recognize that something is unusual, something is wrong, and something darker is hidden beneath all of the propaganda that the world has been chanting for years.
(But not strong enough to protect her loved ones.) 
Kureha knows. And the knowledge she possesses could endanger her life and others. In her life, in this world, she knew and comprehended something terrible.
Knowledge is power.The Port Mafia, they call them. 
Kureha has lived long enough to know how nasty and greedy they can be. Dazai appears to be about twenty years old, therefore if she allows herself to remember the events that occurred throughout the world involving this girl, she is convinced that Dazai was still a child.(Kureha is aware of the evilness of that man. How many fees and sacrifices is he willing to make for what he desires? Morality and kindness could never flow through his veins.
And as she gazed into Dazai's scarlet eyes, she couldn't help but think of Ogai Mori's ruthless eyes—remembering him made her whole body shudder). Mori's road leads to destruction and ruin, and Kureha will never forget her first encounter with this man—or should she refer to him as a boy? Despite being so young, the chaos and darkness were already eating away at his eyes).
She dismisses her thoughts and returns to her desk, pulling out her book. Odasaku has kept her going about this woman throughout the years, but inside her head, she kept thinking that this young child who had grown into a man was merely crazy, writing her letters to keep his mind sane, and she couldn't even respond. Because, first of all, she had no idea where he was getting his letters, and second, she continued to believe that he was just insane sick to his heart (and when she found out that he had joined the mafia, she realized that he was suicidal and mad to join this group for a mere girl).
But over the years, she documented all of the symptoms that Odasaku sent her. Three years have passed since her last letter and the presence of his woman.It had been three years since his death.She began vomiting blood. Then he has a tremor and a seizure, which causes her to fall unconscious. A decrease in appetite and weight. Nausea and visual loss, as well as instances in which she loses use of all five senses. There is a strange appearance on her body that expands over time. Pain in the heart and brain, which causes these terrible headaches.
Throughout the years, her case has kept her intrigued. Kureha, as a doctor, investigated all possible hypotheses.Her first hypothesis was Lukemia. A disease diagnosed in 1402 by a man in Wano after a young girl became ill. Then she began to think and seek again and again. Regarding the peculiar appearance, she suspected that it was due to the decomposition of her blood cells, as her veins were so tight that her blood couldn't flow, but she soon dismissed the theory. Then he tells her she has a headache and a heartache, and Kureaha loses her mind.
Some of the symptoms resembled Hiriluk (But he's gone, dead, with no remedy for his condition). Her chances of survival are slim if her disease is mostly a mental or cardiac condition. Their world has yet to discover a cure or pursue research on such diseases; they are all terminal illnesses with only one possible outcome: death.
Dazai, on the other hand, appears to have lived far longer than anyone she has known who has experienced some of those symptoms.She sighs as she closes her book, turns around, and walks back towards the sleeping woman. She has to take off her clothes so she can start the autopsy and figure out what's wrong with this woman.Using scissors from her desk, she began removing her bloody clothes and bandages. Kureha's heart stops and her hand stays motionless as she takes in what's in front of her.
''It is impossible! How can this girl still be alive?"She has scars and burns all over her body as if she has been tortured her entire life. And the weird appearance on her body is not what she had anticipated; those things actually seem to be alive, eating away at her flesh and blood. Their colors are also peculiar, giving the impression that she is starting from a night sky. Kureha's eyes shook at the sight of no exposed skin—all that was left were scars and this strange thing that covered half of her body.
Kureha's eyebrows furrow in confusion as she places her stethoscope on the left side of her heart, where her heart beats at an unusually rapid pace. The stethoscope is replaced, and her hand remains on the woman's right breast as she checks over her chest. She glances at the unusually long scars on her chest as if it had been opened bare. Weakly, but unmistakably, she feels the pulse beat in her ears on the right side.'IMPOSSIBLE!'
She rapidly replaces the stethoscope on her left side, hearing the fast and strong beat of her heart, and repeats the process on her right side, hearing the feeble beat of a heart under the long, ugly scar. To prevent herself from believing that she has gone insane after all these years, she places a gloved hand above the scar on her right breast and feels a faint, fast heartbeat beneath her palm. She repeats the process with her left breast.
"She has two hearts?" she mutters in awareness. "It is scientifically and medically impossible! So, how?!"Kureha is lost. She has no idea what to think about this woman. She carries something she has never seen before.In her state of disbelief, she feels as if she is failing Odasaku's plea to help his friend. Because Kureha is ignorant of this unique illness and lacks historical knowledge, she can't comprehend that someone may have two hearts. And the thing that appears to be living on her flesh is not something Kuraha can remove with a surgical procedure.
"First and foremost, I will care for your eye and wounds. When you wake up, we shall talk, young lady!" Kureha huffs as she turns to gather the supplies she needs to take care of this woman.Kureha works hard to consider all of the theories she could bring about this woman's condition while arranging her furnishings. Kureha scoffed at Odasaku's mention of a curse because she obviously did not believe in such stupid things. Curses do not exist in the medical terminology, and they cannot be healed by a blessing from some gods or powers.
Only commitment and the medicine that doctors prescribe can save human lives. Years of work and diagnostics to help humanity evolve over time."Curse," she scowled aloud, "such a stupid concept that prompted humans to give a reason for their suffering".
No amount of prayer could make up for people's suffering and illnesses. Hell, Kureha has seen many try to beg the gods to heal them and their families of sickness throughout their lives because they believed that their sickness was a punishment from the gods. But all was in vain; they could have pleaded for forever, and sickness would not go away so easily. People's lives could not be salvaged simply by a few blessings.
Her gut clenches with distaste. Because there is such a lack of respect for her and all the medical professionals who sacrifice everything and their lives to save patients from diseases and misery. Simply to be spat on and watch people look to the heavens as if it were their only hope for survival.
She looks at the suffering woman on her bed and wonders if she is one of those who turn to implore the sky for salvation, or if she is like Hiriluk (her beloved friend who turned a blind eye to this misery and lived a selfless life with no regrets).

'Odasaku I hope you were not wrong about her!'

"Look, Dazai, what did I find!" exclaims an orange-haired boy whose eyes are as dazzling as the blue sky above their heads.'Miaw!'A little orange cat with blue eyes is cradled in his arms. Daza's ruby eyes glance up at the cat and the boy in front of her."You look alike. Are you sure you aren't brothers?" the small girl asks, staring at them blankly.Chuuya's azure eyes glare at her

"Stupid Dazai, we are not brothers!" he pouts," But he's cute, right?", he adds as he brings the cat closer to Dazai's face.Dazai took a step away from him and gave the cat a quizzical stare."He looks cute. Not like you, though," she replies, marveling at the cat's unusual white paw

Chuuya glares harder, and if looks could kill, Dazai would be dead by now.

"Stop frowning; it makes you less cute," she replies, turning her gaze to the garden in front of her. Before he could shout at her, she returned her attention to him and the cat in his arms."Where did you find it? Cats don't come to this side of this region," she inquires with a puzzled expression

Chuuya blushes and caresses the back of his head, smiling sheepishly."Well, let's say that I managed to get away and make it to the beach at the edge of the forest. Then I found it, and when I caressed it, it refused to leave me and followed me," he confesses anxiously and discreetly, fearful that someone could hear him.Dazai's lifeless eyes enlarge as she glares at Chuuya.

"You did what?!

Chuuya keeps his mouth shut since he understands that what he did was dumb and risky."If someone knows that you break out from there, they will be furious and-" Dazai stops because she can't imagine how Chuuya will be punished for this idiotic action.

"Don't worry, Dazai, no one saw me, and.." he brings the soft and cute paws to Dazai's face, "it's a gift for you. So, when you can't see me, this cat will keep you company so you won't be lonely without me," he says with an adorable grin, his cute cheeks blazing from the sun above them and his light blue eyes smiling fondly at Dazai.

This smile. This stare. This boy. Are what Dazai sought to protect forever and keep out of the terrible claws of this world.Dazai reaches out nervously, shaking palms, toward Chuuya's soft orange kitten. The orange cat's head falls onto her small hands and purrs gently. A little smile spreads across her lips at the lovely act, then gently takes hold of it, letting it rest in her arms while he purrs into her chest.

"Chuuya!" exclaims a soft voice.A tall, slim woman with cherry red eyes and crimson hair twisted into a bun dressed in a black-and-pink kimono with red spider flowers stands a few meters distant.

"It's Ozaki-chan!" Chuuya exclaims as he turns to see the woman beckoning him. He smiles and waves to her.Dazai's scarlet eyes narrow as she notices the woman (her heart aches at the injustice of being separated from Chuuya). But she can't do anything; no one can interfere with Mori's orders. Nonetheless, she is relieved that Chuuya is safe from the darkness of this place; Ozaki is an excellent choice for him. She treats Chuuya like her kid and is a gentle, caring person).

Chuuya deserves the best, and Ozaki is the most suitable and safest option in this cruel place."Take care of Kiki, okay?" demands Chuuya at Dazai's.Dazai nods and pulls the cat closer to her (imagining Chuuya's warmth in her arms and the peaceful sound of his beating heart). Chuuya smiles broadly as she nods and runs toward the woman who has been waiting for him

"See you later!" He waves goodbye and takes Ozaki's healed-out hand.

As she looks at Chuuya's far back, something inside her feels awfully heavy.'Miaow'The sound of the cat jolted her out of her thoughts, and she smiled softly down at the animal."Now I need to figure out how to hide you so Mori-sama doesn't find you," Dazai sighed, letting her hand gently touch Kiki's soft fur.A modest cabin next to a three drew her gaze, and an idea occurred to her. She walks to the small cabin, kneels beside it, and carefully places the cat inside.

"Wait for me there. I'll go find some food for you, okay, Kiki?"The cat looks at her with blue eyes, tilting his head and gently reclining back to look up at her face. Inside Dazai's thoughts, the gentle caress of Kiki's soul soothes her. Dazai smiles for the first time at the realization of her abilities.

She was unaware that she could feel and connect with the souls of animals. Their souls feel light, warm, and gentle, free of the darkness and wickedness that men's souls contain. It comforts her in ways she has never felt before. Her heart melts, and she mentally thanks Chuuya for this wonderful gift

Dazai is soft and gentle, lying next to the cat and reaching out her tiny hands to caress Kiki."You know what? How about a nap? Food can wait, right Kiki?" She murmurs tenderly against Kiki's lovely pink nose.

Kiki miaw at her and softly pressed his head against the crock of her little neck. Dazai shuts her eyes and rests her forehead against Kiki's head, allowing the warmth of the tiny kitten to warm the cold heart that weighs so heavily in her chest. With the small cat by her, Dazai feels safe and shielded from the merciless grasp of this prison, which seeks to suffocate her and kill any hope she has inside her

And just like that, she falls asleep with Kiki's warm soul shielding her from the emptiness that devours her head and heart and chases away the nightmare.

A red eye opened, revealing the world within in an explosion of light in her sight. A searing ache stabbed her in the chest, and something heavy rose up in her throat, bringing her back to Umekui's conscience. She sits down immediately and vomits up the harsh taste of blood, soaking her white kimono and throat.
Her eyes widen as she feels the sticky blood on her neck skin and looks down at her body, which is free of bandages. Her heart thumps in her chest, and her limbs shake with fear.(No! No!No!No!No!No!No!No!No!No!No!No!No!No!No!Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?Where are they?
The lack of bandages on her body drives her insane."Where? Where? Where?" she gasps quickly, her hands seeking everything around her. The bed on which she is lying is too large for her delicate frame.The knot in her neck is so tight that fear has begun to eat at her senses like a parasite. She needs her bandages! The mere thought of being without them makes her eye shake. She needs them to stay on; the only way she can be free of bandages is to die.
Her chest hurts so much, like a dagger starching it with madness.She is still alive, the curse refining her heart and flesh and devouring her alive. She is still breathing, despite the anguish in her lungs. She is still alive, her limbs protesting unfairness. She is not dead; she is still alive to suffer the fate inflicted upon her by the selfish, cruel gods.She is still alive where she should have died (She is so drained that her single eye can only see the pitch-black darkness that is obscuring her thoughts).
If her nakamas saw her in that way, she wouldn't know what to do. They cannot see her without her bandages because they will see her. Above all, Umekui is scared to be seen (She is terrified of their disgusted and repulsed look at her awful figure).(Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please,Please, Please, Please,Please, Please, Please,Please, Please, Please,Please, Please, Please,Please, Please, Please,)Her lungs became thick with air, and she wanted to suffocate. Ghost hands grasp her throat with heartache and fury, her eyes blurring as darkness returns. With a thumb, she falls to the floor, her back against the icy floor, her chest jumping high and low with each harsh breath that escapes her quivering lips.Her hands tremble as she extends one hand toward her exposed chest, her fingers fluttering above the innumerable scars on her flesh.(She is so tired that she wants to close her eyes and escape this chaos, allowing the monster to let her die, die, die, die-everything hurts, and Umekui, above all, despises suffering; she has endured agony her entire life and is sick of it-).
Her nails bit into her flesh and began clawing at her chest like a wild beast. (She hates it!She hates it!She hates it!She hates it!She hates it!She hates it!She hates it!She hates it! This mind! This body!This mind! This body!This mind, this body; this curse! She despises herself so much!).She clawed again and again until the blood on her fingertips was palpable and her flesh adhered to her nails. The sorrow in her chest numbs everything, leaving her floating in an abyss of suffering that plagues her conscience.
The voices in her head are clear and loud. Vestiges of voices that Umekui had heard in the distant past, lamenting the tragedy and madness inherited from her sinful blood. Never letting her alone, always reminding her of the cost of the sacrifices she must undertake."L-Lis..ten..List..en..t..m'y..v...oice.." A voice is calling her. Her ears quiver as she tries to distinguish this voice from the others shouting inside her."Th..ere...Cal..m..you..r....brea..thing," says the voice.
She opens her lips and takes a delicate breath while caring hands carefully pry her bloodied hands from her chest. Fingers curl over her hair as they pry it away from her sight and sticky forehead. Her solitary crimson eye attempted to focus on the person in front of her. Her gaze is focused on grey long hair and aged dark green eyes. Inside Umekui, a part of her reaches out, and her heart softens as she senses the elderly woman's warmth and gentleness."Odasaku didn't tell me you were going to be a troublesome patient," the old woman teases her.She blinks once, twice, three times.

'Odasaku?'

(Golden eyes that bring back vivid memories of the sunset she spent with him. Reddish hair so velvety it made her forget every repulsive image of blood. And a grin full of tenderness and selflessness-golden eyes turning dead as his once warmth body was scorching yet so cold (with blood wiping off the only picture of hope she once had in his smile) 
She swallows the stinging taste of blood in her throat and inquires, "Who are you?"The old woman smirks and replies, "I am the doctor witch you implored me to save your nakamas."Na.ka..mas?

(Short orange hair with a gorgeous grin that could mend all the shattered hearts in his world.)

Naka..mas?

(A voice so loud and warm that fills up all the emptiness within her, and a smile so wide that the sun could only cry in shame.)

Nakamas?

(A fever eating her beloved nakama, and an idiotic boy daring to sink the only sun of this tragic world)

NAKAMAS!
Umekui swiftly sits down, her gaze examining the surroundings. But there is no one, just her and this strange old woman. Her eyes narrowed as she looked up at the elderly woman standing above her.
Umekui blinks again and looks up at the woman, bewildered. The old woman does not appear to be very old because her body is younger than her wrinkled face (Is there a piercing in her navel?!).
"Where are they?" she demands.
"They're resting. Chopper took care of them. Don't worry about your nakama, they are safe under Chopper's care," says the doctor witch. She turns back and pulls up some bandages from her desk. Her green eyes narrow at her figure. "But you! You are still far from being cured. I left the room for a moment to get you some bandages and returned to find you on the ground scratching your chest."
Umekui stands on her feeble legs (biting hard on her tongue to ignore the pain that is eating her alive). Take the bandages from the doctor's hands and turn around to sit on the bed. She turned away from the medical woman and began hastily bandaging her entire body, avoiding the gruesome image of her terrified flesh and dark substance covering half of her flesh.She knew her back was a dreadful sight, but she didn't mind if this doctor saw her. All she cares about now is covering off this horrible sight and going to see her nakama.
"If you continue to act like this, you will never be cured," says the woman from behind her."Cured? I know you are a skilled doctor, and I appreciate you taking care of my nakamas. But you are not a god; you are merely a witch, and no offense to your skills, but my pain has no cure," she replies coldly, continuing to bandage her chest."What a brat you are!" Kureha complains. "Listen to me, you stupid brat! Odasaku, your friend informed me about you, and he trusted me to help you," she continues, attempting to ignore the pain in her heart at the memory of the young boy.
Umekui froze and stiffened at her words. And the blackness within her consumes any thought of remembering this man.

(From the bottom of my heart, I love you Dazai.)

"Forget it; everything he told you was lies", she says coldly, her lifeless gaze directed at the enraged doctor. "Don't tell me you are crazy to listen to the words of a dead man, old woman."
"My name is Kureha, not old woman, you brat!" scoffs Kureha, her emerald eyes fixed on Umekui. "And then tell me about those stains that cover half of your body. They are not simple stains, but something that I have never seen in my entire life, and-"green eyes squeeze at her flesh as she stands up and finishes bandaging her neck. "Why do you have two hearts? It's impossible to have two hearts, so are you even human?"The bandages on her hands drop to the ground in response to her question, and a red eye snaps toward Kureha. Kureha's eyes broaden when she observes the odd woman quietly chuckling at her question.
"Did you go insane like him? Why are you laughing for--" she snapped, angered by the attitude of the brat in front of her. This was the first time in her life that a patient had irritated her to this extent."Well, I'm laughing because, as a doctor, you're asking me a stupid question," Umekui says calmly."And why that?" asked a confused Kureha.
"Well, look at me and my horrible figure. When you discovered that I have two hearts and that half of my body is cursed. Do you still think I'm human?" Umekui asks, her expression bereft of emotion."A curse?" She scoffs again: "What nonsense are you saying, foolish brat? Curses don't exist".With a defiant glare in her cold eyes, Umekui let out a loud, distorted chuckle. With a leisurely step, she approaches Kureha with a lifeless gaze and a cold empty smile.
"Then Kureha tells me. If my existence is not a curse, what am I left with?" She raises her hand, pointing to her chest. "Then what am I?" she asks, brokenly. "You see, Kureha, what's within me is just a punishment for my sins. My existence is ruined, sliced to pieces by fate. So listen to me carefully, no remedy can "help" me, forget what Odasaku told you, and don't try to play doctor with me since I'm not the ideal patient you could wish for." She states calmly followed by a sigh.Kureha's expression is surprisingly quiet as she gaze at her.
"Is this really what you think? That some gods cursed you and you've vowed to live through the misery till you die?" she asks gently, her gaze fixed on the solitary shaking red eye.Umekui holds her mouth shut, her red lips forming a harsh line.
"So what about your scars and burns? How about your damaged body? Do you genuinely believe that it is a punishment? Listen to me, little brat; I don't care about this dumb curse or the deities you believe cursed you as retribution. But all I care about is healing your wounds and figuring out what's going on with you. I promised Odasaku, and it isn't an irrational curse that will stop me."Then she turns around and takes out her book from her desk.
"Now you're going to sit down like a little good girl on the bed and respond to my inquiries like the ideal patient for a doctor," she replies calmly, her eyes narrowing at her form.Umekui sighed and muttered something under her breath: "What a pain in the ass this old lady." She turns around and sits back down on the bed, arms crossed over her chest, and glares at the floor.Kureha pinched her nose, annoyed by the woman's childish behaviors.'What a brat she is.'
"Now tell me why you have two hearts, and since when?" Kureha asks, placing her glasses on her nose and drawing a pen in her palms."I don't know," Umekui claims, staring down at her nails."How come you don't know?" Kureha asks, rising a brown in astonishment."Well, it's not like I wake up one day and put my palm on my breast and realize I have two hearts. And then I was like, 'Wow, I have two hearts, I'm an alien!' and used some dark magic to summon the extraterrestrial hiding in space," Umekui says blandly, staring at Kureha in boredom.
Kureha's brown eyes twitched in irritation, and she reached out a hand at her desk, groping for an object, and flung it at Umekui's head, who dodged it brilliantly.Kureha's wrathful scissors dig deeply into the wall causing Umekui to whistle in appreciation of the elderly woman's strength."Ne a doctor's job isn't supposedly to take care of his patients and not try to murder them?" Umekui points a finger at Kureha, who is boiling.
"Well, when you act like this, I really want to strangle you," Kureha replies with an angry expression."Well, I will be quite grateful if you kill me But you lost the privilege the instant I promised my nakama that I would not kill myself," whistled Umekui. The red-eyed woman cautiously lays on her back, the brown ceiling welcoming her empty gaze. "But If it continues like this then I would find myself with only one heart" she goes on to remark."What do you mean by that?" Kureha wonders.
"What I mean is that my right heart is devouring my left one. Like a parasite eating everything in its path," she says calmly, counting the line on the ceiling to distract herself from the inexorable pain that is eating her alive."A parasite?" Kureha asks, scribbling in her book with a contemplative expression. "Is it Leishmaniasis, this parasite that eats human flesh but then it's impossible, there are no symptoms like yours-" murmurs Kureha, gazing at the woman resting on the bed. 
"Stop it. As I told you, it's not anything that medicine can cure, well nothing can heal me," shrugs Umekui, as she glances at Kureha."Does your nakamas know what is happening to you?" inquires Kureha.Umekui freezes at the question and shakes her head, "Let's call it my filthy secret. Nobody knows about it. You'll keep this between us, right?" A steely eye narrows at her face."Of course. I have what we call medical confidentiality. Something that is only between the patient and the doctor," Kureha nods quickly.
"Well, Kureha. Do you know what an ability is?" Umekui asks out of nowhere."Ability? Of course. Who are you taking me for?" Kureha complained."I have an ability," Umekui confesses, pushing on her elbows to sit down. "And the name of the ability is No longer human."'No longer human?' It's such an odd designation, yet Kureha thought it sounded familiar.
"And it's this exact ability that cursed me. You see, like the devil fruit user, we ability users are cursed, but not by the sea. What have we got? This curse, this punishment, is unique to all ability users; some are unaware, while others are aware, and we are forced to accept it. It was written in our blood, sentencing us to the same fate."

"I am cursed, Kureha. Power is a double-wielded sword, and I have no option but to embrace it," murmurs a man whose voice now rocks the sky and seas at the very mention of this king.

But in Kureha's view, it's just a man accepting his fate as death takes his breath away every second.

Kureha blinked a few times and clinched her fist around the pen."So you are saying that what is happening to you is the fault of your ability?" Kureha asks.Umekui simply nods as a response.
"Then why would Odasaku come to me and beg me for help? if the misery you are experiencing is a result of a user's ability, such as a devil fruit user?" claims Kureha obviously lost.Umekui's ruby irise turns cold at the mention of this man."He clearly lied to you, why would he come back to you to tell you about me?" Umekui speaks coolly.

(Something within her weeps and shouts. Shaking her bones with grief, and repeating the name of this deprived soul that dared to love something like her).

"You're wrong. He didn't come back," Kureha replies, turning to look at her desk chair.
"What do you mean?" Umekui requested, her gaze focusing on Kureha."Odasaku knew about you and told me about you long before you met him. He was aware of your condition and anticipated your arrival, so he requested my help," Kureha confesses, her gaze lost on the ceiling.Umekui's breath became frozen in her lungs as she realized what was going on."So he told you too huh" murmurs sadly Umekui,
A quivering breath leaves Kuerah's lips as she returns her sight to her and asks:"Ne little brat, do you know something about the will of D?"At her query, Umekui feels something tearing her mind apart, with voices shouting and hulling in unison.
(DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI,DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI,)(THERE, there, there, WAS, was, was, ONCE, once, once, A, a, a, MAN, man, man, HE, he, he HAD, had, had, EVERYTHING, everything; WEALTH, wealth, money, FAME, fame, fame, POWER, power, power)
She raises her hands to her head, digging her nails deep into her skull to numb the pain and the voices that haunt her like a broken record that would never stop chanting. She pulls hard on her long dark hair, hoping that the smallest numbness will take over.
(GOLD D. ROGER! GOLD D. ROGER! GOLD D. ROGER! GOLD D. ROGER! GOLD D. ROGER! GOLD D. ROGER! GOLD D. ROGER!)
(CHILD OF THE VOID CENTURY DO YOU REGRET TAKING THE WILL ?!)
The voice asks loudly and clearly in her ears, nails creeping and digging into her heart, yanking and gripping it and causing her entire body to quiver from the despair of feeling her heart being treated like a toy.
The dark matters start to eat away at her from the inside out, causing her entire body to ache and burn.
Umekui feels Kureha's hands shake her and screams her name in concern.
"Gold D. Roger," Umekui gasps softly, "was also cursed."Kureha looks at the women underneath her, gasping in dismay. Her fingers brushed aside the lock of hair stuck to her hot, wet forehead."What's going on? How do you know him?"Umekui looks up at her with a tired smirk and closes her eyes, "The gods despise us. As I told you we have been cursed and nothing can save us Kureha. Not even you."
Umekui closes her eyes with those exact words, and Kureha realizes that the medication she gave her is working. Drugging her into a painless sleep (but when she sees this damaged woman, she realizes that her medicine can never protect her from the nightmares that are sneaking into her head).Something is happening under her nose and Kureha has no idea of it. How could this woman possibly know about the will of D? About Gold D.Roger? This man had died long before her birth.
How does she know about Roger's illness? Only a few people were aware of this!(They call it a curse, but Kureha labels it a disease. Yet, how could she not help them? How can she not save them from this disease that is eating them alive?)Now that she thinks about it, this woman and Roger have slightly similar symptoms. However, Roger believed it was related to his haki, whereas she believed it stemmed from her abilities. Does this woman have the same blood as Roger? Is the name D associated with a pathological illness in their blood?
She focuses her attention on the feathers of the woman sleeping on the bed.No. She might stare at this girl for millennia and not recognize Roger's face. Kureha has never seen this girl's face in her entire life. She has traveled much over this huge world, encountering various creatures and peoples. However, this woman's visage and fiery red eyes are unlike anything she has seen before.
But a part of her heart suspects that this woman hides a lot from her. That is a lot she didn't tell her ( Where did she and Odasaku hide? How did he die? ( How much do you know about Gold D. Roger? And why are your eyes so lifeless, bearing a deep anguish that she knows no medicine can treat?').
But again, who is she to extract secrets from this woman? She is merely a doctor who takes care of people in an unusual way. However, a deep part of her is saddened to face failure once more. Is it really possible for her to turn a blind eye and let this woman die? Can she really betray Odasaku's promise?Can she allow finality to defeat her and consume another poor soul?

'Kureha, when death is already on our doorstep. We can only accept it in honor and let the roll of fortune sail the seas for the futures ones," Roger says with his wise voice and broad smile.

But if the future is continuously following the past in a death trap, what is the point? What's the point of all those sacrifices if the past keeps repeating the same tragedy that takes so much from people?

(Hiriluk's sacrifice is still a wound dripping in her heart that did not scar at all.)

Kureha clenches her fist and bites her lip, staring bitterly at the sleeping Umekui.
"You were wrong, Roger. Honor means nothing to dead men, not when the past keeps repeating itself," Kureha says regretfully, shallowing the lump in her throat and turning to leave the room with anguish in her old eyes.

Chopper sits at his desk, preparing tea for the orange-haired pirate woman who awakens.Chopper's interaction with the woman was strange, since he expected her to scream in terror at his presence. She merely smiled and expressed gratitude for taking care of him. She didn't even hit him in disdain when his paw stroked her forehead to see if her fever had subsided.
So when she thanked him, he could only blush like a little girl and fled out of her room before she could speak to him about anything.With a steaming cup of tea in hand, he exits his room and marches through the castle's frigid halls. He comes to a halt when he notices his mother staring sadly at the floor, her back against the door of the cabinet, where the supposed other woman pirate is resting.His pitiful heart sinks in his chest at the sight of his mother's defeated and sad expression (the last time he saw her like that was when his father died). Leaving his mother to drink her sadness and grief away.
 "Doctorine," he calls gently.At the sound of his voice, his mother blinks, removing the sadness from her expression and smiling at him (But Chopper knows his mother more than anybody else, and this smile of hers appears so sad and empty that his miserable heart can only weep)."Oh, Chopper. What are you doing there? Did you finish taking care of our guest?" she says."Yes. The navigator's fever had subsided, so I prepared a tea that could purify her stomach. The straw hat boy's wound was quickly treated, and he is currently asleep snoring loudly like a beast," Chopper says.
"Good," Kureha says as she approaches closer him and gently pats his head; "You did a good job. I am proud of you, my lovely son".Chopper blushes at his mother's compliments and swings his body, pleased with her words. But he swiftly shook those feelings aside and looked up worriedly at Doctorine."You're sad, Doctrine. I can see it. Did something happen to your patient?" he asks attentively."It was nothing. Do not worry. How about you rest while I take this tea to the navigator?" Kureha suggests.
Without waiting for an answer, she hurriedly grabs the tea from his hand and rushes back to the navigator's chamber. He shifts his sight to Doctorine's cabinet, where the pirate woman is. Chopper suspects something happened between the pirate and his mother.With this paw, he delicately opens the cabinet door and quietly stalks inside. His gaze is drawn to the woman still sleeping on the bed, dressed in bandages and a monotonous white kimono. Her long dark hair is spread all about her, like a dark hole in a starless sky.
He approaches her with caution and looks at her carefully with his large round dark pink eyes. Then his eyes narrow again as he notices her chest and how it moves. She isn't breathing regularly; something is wrong with her. Her respiration appears labored and contentious as if she is refusing air. Breathing appears to harm her, judging by the way her chest jerks and the breath that exits her red lips and nose.
Chopper moves over to the sofa next to her and takes a seat. Chooper's eyes wander on his mother's diagnostics book as he observes her cabinet. Feeling curious, he jumps off the sofa and proceeds to retrieve the book before hastily sitting back down on the sofa.
He knows that if his mother discovers that he came to her cabinet without her permission and reads through her affairs, she will be furious. But Chopper can't stop himself from wanting to learn more about this strange pirate (and he believes he'll never forget her bloody gaze as she clutches her nakamas close to her as if they're the only things that matter in this world).
(There was so much affection and devotion in her gaze that Chopper wanted to stab his eyes for daring to look into something so perfect).
Before Chooper could open the book in his hand, a cooling voice stopped him."I don't think the witch is going to be happy to hear that you peeked into her belongings, little thing?"Chopper leaped from his seat with a startled yell, and the book tumbled from his grasp to the floor beneath him. He lifts his head, catching the pirate's fascinated crimson stare."I am not a little thing! I'm Tony Tony Chopper, pirate!" Chopper glares, intending to scare her.
"Well, nice to meet you, Chopper! You are the ones who took care of my nakama, right?" questions the pirate.Chopper nods and wonders why she isn't terrified of him. But his heart paused as the woman simply smiled gently at him (he pondered once more who else in his mother and father smiled that way at him?)."Thank you, Chopper, for saving them. "I could never repay you enough for your kind gesture," states the pirate, bowing her head in gratitude.
Chopper tries hard not to blush, and all he can do is grin at her.She smiles at him. At him! He, who only knew the disgusted looks of others and the dreadful remarks that would destroy his heart one after another. He, who has only ever experienced the brutality of people and his birth family, who repeatedly beat him till he bleeds out because he is different nose color.'You're an ugly monster, Chopper!' cries a voice within the recesses of his brain.At the thought, his smile fades to a frown. The pirate girl seemed to sense this, but before she could say anything, he cut her off coolly.
"What did you say to make doctrine sad?" he asks, clenching his teeth."I just told her to give up on doing hopeless things," replies the woman, sighing heavily.Chopper gives her a ferocious gaze in response to her remarks, hoping that she will be slightly afraid of him (after all, how could she not be, given how hideous and terrifying he is?).She only chuckles, saying, "Your glare is adorable. Did you actually believe that staring at me with those cute eyes would intimidate me?"
Chooper's jaw dropped open as he gagged upon her words."Who are you calling cute and adorable, woman!?" Chopper growls at her.(Oh god, he tries so hard to remove the redness off his fur and ears. Stopping forcefully to ignore the way her words cause his heart to leap with joy (he truly wants to trust her words, but how can he when the ghosts of the past are still yelling and pointing at him as if he was the worst thing in the world)?
Chopper thinks this pirate woman is insane as she laughs loudly."You are like the small version of Zoro hahahaa-" she giggles, a goofy expression on her beautiful face, "Are you sure you are not Zoro's lost child? Ne, how about we call you Zoro Junior?" Umekui jokes, smiling."My name is Chopper. Not Zoro Junior!" Chopper shouts, his cheeks flushed.'The hell does she think she is!'
"You are very bold to laugh at a monster face," Chopper growls, snapping his little teeth at her.Umekui's laughter stops as she glances at him in surprise.('That is, fear me, shout at me, and beat me like the rest of humans do when they see me! Look at me! I'm hideous and horrible! Screams in terror at the mere notion that someone as repulsive as me could possibly be in the same room as you!)
('You, who scaled a tall mountain on your hands and feet to save your former companions. You, the one who thanked someone like me for saving and helping your friend! You, who grins and talks to me as if I were the most beautiful thing in the world! You, who appears so empty and aching from the inside, yet smiling as if the pain tearing you apart doesn't hold a candle to the affection you have for your nakamas-')"A monster?" she repeats confusedly. 
Chopper nods forcefully and glares: "Yes! I am Tony Tony Chopper, the monster of Drum Island!"She blinked a few times before grinning broadly at him (the smile on her face appeared weird. It seemed as if she had never grinned like that before. As if she weren't accustomed to smiling. But she wouldn't do that for something like him, right?).
(He always thought humans were ugly. With their avarice and selfishness coloring their faces and twisting their feathers like pointed blades, he could never see beauty in them. Doctorine and Hiriluk were the only ones who carried all of the world's beauty within them. They were gorgeous like the stars that Chopper loves to gaze at every night, pretty like the limitless sea that constantly summons Chopper's heart, pretty like the sun that brings so much warmth on his own-)
But, when he looks at this woman's beaming face, he realizes she is stunningly gorgeous. She is beautiful, like the moon, who carries the stars in her arms every day, and like the sakura blooms that his father had dreamed about for years.She laughs heartily at him, so loudly that the entire castle can hear her, and Chopper has a fleeting thought that the moon has opened his heart to fill it with stars.
"Nice to meet you, monster of Drum Island. I'm Umekui Dazai, the monster's humanity," she grins as her red eyes flare. 
At those words, Chopper stormed from the room, his heart beating so fast in his chest.

Luffy's eyes shoot open as his stomach calls out in hunger."Meat," he says quietly as he pushes on his hands to swiftly sit down.The environment is odd, and there is no sight of food or meat, so Luffy sulks and weans. But just as hope was dying in his heart, a peculiar ball of fur entered the room, and Luffy's eyes lit up.His tongues stick out, and saliva pours onto the floor. His blood screams at him to hunt and devour this juicy ball of meat.Luffy jumps at it with a warrior scream, "Meat!!"
But the ball of furr looked at him with wide round fearful eyes and bolted from the room with a loud yell that echoed throughout the room.And just like that, Chopper escaped from another pirate in less than a few minutes (and if they told him that the two people he is running and hiding from were the captain and first mate, he would start digging his grave right away)."MEAT! MEAT! MEAT!" Luffy howls like an insatiable beast. He jumped through the door and ran after the sprinting meat.The yells and cries of the meat reverberate loudly in the vast empty castle.

Nami glanced at the odd old woman in front of her. While her face is wrinkled and her hair has become gray with age, her figure remains youthful."You are quite important to have the brat girl carry you and the staw hat boy through the storm climbing a high mountain barehand," says the old man, narrowing her eyes at her figure.
Nami gazed down at the hot cup of tea in her hands, smiling softly at the memory of Umekui's words and strong body against her. When Nami was sick, she knew Umekui was there for her. She treated her temperature while also risking getting sick. Never leaving her side, always looking after her and providing her with food and water.
Umekui's strange, icy body was always against her, protecting and shielding her from the outside world. And Nami's selfish side was overjoyed to be taken care of. Her dearest mother was the last one to care for her when she was sick (And her tender heart is aware that her mother is watching over her from above, delighted to see that Nami has people who are selflessly taking care of her).
Nami has always longed to be with someone who will always be there for her (and her heart is unable to imagine a life without Umekui and her crew. She can't face the thought of not having a particular crimson-eyed girl by her side, lurking like the light that traced Nami's new path).
"Ano? Is Umekui doing well?" Nami asks hesitantly (and Nami truthfully wants to beg this old woman to look after her first mate. Her stupid selfless first mate who never worries about herself (and her heart sobs every time she looks into Umekui's tired eyes, which appear to be worn out by the world).Kureha nods at the navigator, "She just needs to let me do some checks up on her, but the brat is too stubborn to let me do anything,"
Nami stares down at her hands, clenching them into fists before raising her gaze to stare at Doctorine with resolve."I know you're a good doctor, which is why I need to make a request. Something is wrong with Umekui. She is in pain, even if she does not want to accept it. And if I can't do anything to repair this part of her, I need your help. Please help her," her hands tremble on her lap, "I can't bear the notion of seeing her drown alone in her anguish while feeling useless. So please help Umekui!" says Nami, tears welling up in her eyes.
"You don't need to ask me for this! What kind of doctor do you think I am for making my patients beg for help?" Kureha grumbles as she stands up from her seat and goes out of the room. "But you need to know that sometimes there is some suffering that has no cure, even for us doctor!" Kureha exits the room and closes the door hard behind her.Nami's attention was fixed on the tea in her hand, allowing Doctorine's words to wander through her mind.

"You need to know that sometimes there is suffering that has no cure, even for us doctors!"

She tightened her hold on her teacup. She understands that doctors are not deities or gods who can heal everything with the snap of their fingers. Hell, she fucking knows it; if doctors could treat any sorrow, the world may be less cruel and unjust.
Perhaps men like Arlong and Asura would be nicer. Perhaps some marines will be less greedy and more empathetic. Maybe her mother would still be alive, and Noriko would never have realized the cost of losing her mother and sister on the path of vengeance. Perhaps she would never have known the weight of slavery and the feeling of thick chains dragging her down over and over.But, most importantly, her first mate could never had this lifeless gaze or the emptiness that seemed to devour her alive. Maybe Umekui would grin brightly into the sky, free of suffering, and tell them about her dreams under the stars.A knock is heard from the door.
Nami raises her gaze to greet the person who has entered her room. When she sees her first mate, her breath itchs in her throat, causing her heart to shake violently."Umekui.." Nami exclaimed, her lips twitching.As she reaches her bed, the latter smiles softly."Umekui.." she repeats eagerly again.
Her eyes ache at the sight of bandages covering her and her crimson eye (which Nami is hypnotized to worship every time she looks at them. Nami weak's heart was strengthened and filled with trust by those ruby eyes).When Umekui gets to her side, she grabs her wrist and pushes Umekui's body up against her."Umekui..Umekui...Umekui.." She whispers her name repeatedly, strengthening her grip on her first mate.Tears well in her eyes as she breathes in the perfume of her beloved Umekui.
Oh, she missed her so much. How much she missed having her name flutter on her lips as she called her first mate's name like a prayer. But Nami is well aware that she was never alone while sick. She sensed Umekui's presence in her soul, like the North Star, guarding and guiding all the lost souls of the sea.
In her horrible fever, which was devouring her organs and mind like a famished beast, she could feel Umekui's cool fingertips caressing her forehead and hair. She could feel her soul grieving as she remembered her mother doing the same thing years earlier (When her homeland was once her home, the only worries she could have were hiding her tangerine pastries from her sister's eager stomach, and the only things that might break her heart were when her crush ignored her or her mother didn't make her favorite dinner).
"There. I'm here, Nami," Umekui says softly into her ears.Nami's head moves away from Umekui's cool tight neck and looks up to her face. She raises a quivering palm over her bandaged eye. A sorrowful and guilty expression crosses her face, making her heart ache."Your eye.." she says, her throat raspy from the tears that are scorching her eyes.Umekui's scarred hand engulfs Nami's warm hand, bringing it to her lips. Softly, she allows her crimson lips to rain kisses on the palm of her hand, while her red eye stares feverishly at Nami's weeping face.
"Why are you crying, Nami-dear?" her first mate asks in a rough voice.Nami closes her eyes briefly and begs her heart to stop thumping so fast in her chest."Are..you.. still... in pain.., my dear ?" Umekui whispers to Nami, each syllable accompanied by a kiss on her palm.An unexplainable emotion rushes at her, filling her bones and flesh with a softness she thinks came from the heavens.Nami rapidly shakes her head, her breath fluttering.
"Then why are you crying, Nami dear?" Umekui says, rolling a lock of orange hair and placing it behind Nami's red ear."Because I'm happy," Nami says as she quickly wipes the tears from her cheeks. "I am glad to have you, Umekui. So happy and grateful. Thank you so much for being there for me."Umekui paused as her ruby eyes met her navigator's honeyed stare. Then her red lips curl into a sad grin, full of concealed remorse and sorrow, and her gaze is filled with an unknown feeling.
"It's that so.." Umekui responds quietly (and her throat burns so much that she wants to die because how can she accept those lovely words given by her navigator when she is rotten to the core). "I will be there for you, Nami," she lies. (And her tongue simmers from the lie she's telling, because how can she be there for this beautiful girl when she'll be long gone, dead..).
"As long as you want me. As long as you need me. I will always be there," she says to her sobbing navigator with words that will be long forgotten in the graves of guilt that she is filling. (When Nami finds out, she will hate her. She will try to kill her, just as she did with those fishmen, and Umekui would rather be dead, suffering under the merciless grip of the gods, than face the loathing gaze of those she names nakamas).
(Wait for me, Robin. I'm coming.)
Nami falls into her lap, melts into her grip, and shuts her eyes as her best friend's fingers massage her skull."Umekui?" Nami whispers softly.Her best friend hums in response, indicating that she is listening."Can you let doctrine take care of you?"
Umekui freezes as she requests."Please, I know that you haven't fully recovered from the incident," begs the navigator (Nami tried hard to forget the memory of Umekui's cold body laying emotionlessly in a pool of blood or the amount of times she passed out as her eyes became so void, so dead)."Nothing will change," Umekui whispers, but Nami hears it clearly.She sighs, placing her fist above Umekui's lap.
In return, Nami whispers, "What are you hiding about you, Umekui?"'A lot. So much so that the truth and lies colliding inside my head are blurring together and I am unable to distinguish between them'.Umekui can only gaze at her navigator in silence. Nami shuts her eyes, sinking further into Umekui's odd warmth."Then do it for us. Do it for me, Umekui. And even if you tried with doctorine and it remains a lost cause, then I will let it go (she would never let it go. She loves her first mate too much to let it go as if it were an easy matter)," Nami whispers gently as her mind drifts to sleep.
Like a train disaster, the fatigue brought on by her illness finally catches up to her. Tired, she shuts her eyes and allows sleep to transport her to a world where her mother is still alive, peeling tangerines on a sunny day.

Umekui looks down at the sleeping orange-haired in her lap, lost in thought.She tries desperately to concentrate on the warmth and sensation of the sleeping girl's soft body, but she cannot. She can't because the pain is ripping her to shreds (and she genuinely wants to beg to die, but she can't because no one can save her from this curse).
It felt like a never-ending circle, with each of her two hundred bones breaking one after the other. She feels as if her lungs and all of her organs are being torn apart and then put back together, and the schema keeps repeating.Repeatedly mending and tearing.She scoffs at the notion that the stupid doctor witch would ever be able to help her find a cure or end her suffering. When will she understand that there is no such thing as hope or a blessing cure? There is no escape from this instance. Nobody knows how to remove the curse, not even the ones who cast it on her.
So, how can a witch hiding in the castle of the previous dictator who seeks her head aid her? And why would she want to help her? Was it because of this bastard Odasaku, or is it simply her job to care for the sick?
But Doctorine needs to understand that Umekui is not a sick person. She is the definition of madness. She is a deranged monster who feeds on death and mayhem. Umekui Dazai is the deadliest thing alive, and the entire world knows it ( and it's because of that every corner of the world is cursing her name in belittling and seeking her head like the one piece).
So, how can she tell her without pulling out every damaged piece of herself and laying it in front of this doctor who believes she can help her? How can you explain to a doctor that you are not sick? That what Umekui has in her blood is far worse than any illness? How will she ever heal, cure, or restore what is missing from her?
What she is, what she lacks, no power, divinity, or remedy can provide.

"Dazai, you are a void. You are empty and dark, and what you are will destroy the entire world. You're an empty vessel that will devour everything," Kana murmurs above her small silhouette. The smile emblazoned on her face- enraged, sad, and heartbroken—glows from the fire blazing from the tiny chimney.

Kana's cool hand flutters across Dazai's little cheek. Her long nails cling to the cold decaying flesh of Dazai's tiny face (so young and small). Her blood, so scarlet and raw, rolls down her cheek and falls into the oily dark floor with each drop (at the same pace as Dazai's beating tiny heart).Her bloodied eyes meet amethyst's idle eyes.

"And when you will ultimately accomplish it? Devours him. Kills him. Leaves him empty, as he did with me. You will revenge me, Dazai. Because the fire within me will no longer be able to hold the wrath and vengeance that it is screaming in my heart," Kana smiles, and Dazai's little sight only sees a broken lady whose dignity and existence have been reduced to ashes as because of what humans refer to as love.

She is a detonating bomb, and the tickling sound of her horologe echoes over the screams and sobs of those she has killed. So, how can she prevent a bomb from exploding if its creation is its only mechanism? How will she keep a monster from being a monster? There is only one equation and its response is as empty and meaningless as the thing she refers to as a heart.She chuckles lightly (an ironic, vacuous laugh with cords of lunacy stretching it) at the thought of what humans call the heart. Her shoulders stumble and quiver from the weight she is carrying as she tries to keep from crumbling from despair and the absurdity of her condition.
A heart? Which ones, specifically? When she feels two of them thumping against her chest. When one is slowly dying each beat causes pain across her entire body. And the other began to be devoured by the creature that lives within her (Then again, is she the one living inside it, or is it living inside her, exploiting her mind and body for his self-satisfaction?).
(And times when she finds herself kneeling over her gory paintings, her sorrow and guilt trying to cleanse her sins. She wonders what inside her is beating for Luffy and her nakamas. Which one shouts out and yells in wrath when she sees her hurt and injured nakamas? Which vessel is carrying the memories of the past that she strives to forget and burn out of her mind? (She doesn’t know and her inability to discern such emotions makes her tremble from unfairness).
Her fingers flutter over Nami's lovely orange hair. She desperately wants to hug her navigator and convey beautiful promises. But it's pointless (Why would she promise anything that will never come true? She's tired of the nest of deceptions she's building in her mind).
She gently grabs Nami's shoulders and moves her to lie on the comfortable bed. She unfolds her shaking legs on the icy floor and reaches over to drape Nami with the white blanket.
After checking that Nami is sleeping peacefully (and that she is still waiting for her dear Nami to tell her about the nightmare that is still devouring her soul) and that she is sufficiently covered, she exits the room and closes the door quietly behind her.
Standing in the dark corridors of this massive castle, Umekui allowed her red eye to squirt down the halls bathed in the blood of many innocents. This place is filled with the sickening smell of grief and sadness, which makes her organs feel repulsed. The cries and screams of the ghost that still haunts this castle echo inside her in one hurl of vengeance against the previous king who stole so much from them.

(At another time, her small body, younger than ten, stood in this castle, drenched in the blood of those she murdered. The shadow of this man follows her, holding the strings of her power at his will (she can scream and beg for help, but no one comes to her rescue. Nobody helped her, as she begged her suffering to cease).

When the shouts and cries of the innocent people who perished within those walls combine with the murmurs and screams that are haunting her head. She wonders who is the worst of the two, her or Wapol (The world will always know only one answer, one name: Dazai!).She looks down at her scarred hands (so many wounds, so many secrets concealed by those scars). The flash of crimson blood causes her shoulders and eyes to shiver (and the blood continues to flow, soaking the dark floor with the fluid she spilled in the name of a man who had played god in her life for so long).
She has bled so much blood and taken so many lives in the name of this thing that is destroying her from within. She did it again and again, taking until her heart and eyes yelled out for this madness to end, but she endured. She sacrificed so much for this thing, and each time she did something for herself, it devastated her and everything around her.
She gave death to many, but when she sought it for herself, it mocked her and imposed it on those around her—leaving her alone, surrounded by corpses, death, and the names of those she loved—scorching her heart and organs with humiliation and guilt.The sound of a door opening ahead of her causes her to raise her head and squint her crimson eye to see whoever it is.
A familiar velvety brown fur attracts her attention. Small ears peer in her direction, and Chooper's gorgeous round dark pink eyes turn toward her. His eyes widen and his mouth expands, possibly in shock or horror. Sweat began to form on his forehead as his paws trembled nervously.Umekui smirks at the sight. Her red lips curl softly, and her dark red eye soften at the sight of the familiar, lovely reindeer. Inside her, his soul is as lovely as the snow on Drum Island, and as warm and sweet as the candy floss she once ate with Odasaku.
His soul reminds her of her nakamas (and something within her pushes her to adore and preserve it as if it were the most valuable and lovely thing in this dark, ugly world).'He is so cute,' she thought, gazing attentively at him.
(But if she examines the inside carefully. She realizes that his soul is filled with grief and regret, and she wonders how an adorable, sweet reindeer like him is punished by this. Those emotions correspond to her; after all, she has done damage to the world, and it has every right to harm her as well. But this sweet, delicate boy does not deserve this misery (Like her nakamas, whose wounds still sting her until she discovers the ghosts who wrecked them and reduced them to ashes (it was the only thing she could ever offer them)).
"From whom are you hiding, cutie-san?" Umekui asks, her words startling Chopper.Chopper turns to face her, his paws on his hips, his gorgeous eyes glaring up at her. She chuckles silently since he clearly isn't aware he's too cute to scare anyone."From your nakama;" Chopper huffs, evidently displeased by his situation. "He wants to eat me! He's yelling "meat! all over the castle in search of me".
This time, her stomach trembles with amusement rather than pain. She laughs loudly and falls to her knees because her laughter causes her to shake. She laughs as hard as she can, and she enjoys it because it keeps the pain from biting her. She exhales loudly to keep from collapsing on the floor and returns her gaze to the stunned Chopper.His eyes are winded and shaking from the unusual sight in front of him. She doesn't blame him; he won't be choking to see someone like her laughing.
"So you have met my captain !", she states.Chopper's mouth drops open, "Your what?!" He quickly shakes his head, "It's impossible! There is no way that guy could be a pirate captain! He looks so-""Dumb and silly?" Umekui commented, chuckling.Chopper gives a stern nod in response to her comments.
She smiles at him as she sits on her butt and says, "Well, this is Luffy for you!""Are you serious when you say that he is your captain?" he questions carefully.Umekui nods and smiles quietly, "One day, he will be king of pirates, and of course, he is my captain.There is no one else like him, no one who could make this dream come true."Chopper's eyes sparkle, "King of Pirates?!"
"Yes," Umekui agrees, her eyes melting at the adorable sight before her."So this title truly exists?" Chopper wonders as he sits in front of her ( and in this house of memories that are the most precious thing for him. The soothing voice of his father tells the tales of that man who conquered the seas and found the most sought-after treasure in their world).
His proud eyes sparkle with amazement and excitement, and his ears perk up to hear this pirate woman's stories."Yes," Umekui says with a smile, "but he's not the only one in our group who has a fantastic dream. Zoro will be the best swordsman in the world, Sanji will discover the All Blue, and Ussop will become a renowned warrior of the sea And Nami is going to draw a world map!"
Every time she mentioned those she refers to as Nakamas, an ethereal expression appeared on her face as if the stars and the sun were tilting toward her. Her voice transforms into the loveliest symphony of the universe, and the names of her nakamas become prayers that no preacher can surpass. And Chopper can't help but gravitate toward this voice, this woman who values and cares for her crew.
Her eye twinkles with a ruby hue, making Chopper want to possess it and study it until the end of time. (And guilt chews his stomach as he recalls how he ran away from her when her crimson eye flared up towards him. Yet he couldn't help but think that something was living inside her eyes and was about to jump out and eat him raw).
She rests her chin in the palm of her hand and tilts her head toward Chopper's lovely face."They are awesome, right?" she asks, looking at his adoring expression.

("Pirates are long chains of courage and dreams," says Hiriluk beneath the full moon.His wrinkled hands caressed the soft head of Chopper, whose body was seated in his lap.Chopper glances up at his father's kind face with curiosity. Listening to the words of the only man who dared to love someone as ugly as him."Pirates are the heroes of the seas!" )

He blinks sweetly at Umekui. A huge smile spreads across his face (his cheeks ache, but the discomfort makes him happy). He nods strongly at her before exclaiming."SO WHOLESOME! You, Umekui, are also amazing! I've never seen somebody climb the highest mountains with bare hands in a deadly cold! You did everything you could to get your nakamas to safety; you saved them, and that makes you formidable! Saving others is so wonderful!" 
( "Saving others is something just a bit wonderful, Dazai!" says Odasaku with a smile.) 
Oh.Her heart stops for a second as she blinks away the voice reverberating in her head.A shaky grin appears as she attempts to soothe the anguish and shame that is eating her from the inside and turning her heart like a rotten apple. Whose bites of shame and mistakes leave her scars and limbs aching.

( "Then why didn't you let me save you, Odasaku ?" )

"You are a doctor, right? Then you've saved a lot of lives, right?" Umekui asks, clenching her fists tightly to keep them from trembling."Yes! I and Doctorine are the only doctors on this island! Well, there was only Doctorine and father at first (the scent of grief has returned), so for years, Doctorine taught me everything I needed to know to be a good doctor (to not repeat the mistakes I made in the past (to not kill someone like I killed father))," explains Chopper.
"Your father and Doctorine were the last doctors because of Wapol, right?" asked Umekui.Dread fills Chopper's face, and his eyes dilate as he asks her, "How do you know about him!!" (and he can't even disguise the fury and dread in his voice at the mention of this vile man)."A dear friend of mine told me about him and the situation in Drum Kingdom," she simply replied.
Chopper is certain that the friend she is referring to is the same as the doctrine mentioned."Hmm! Because of Wapol's avarice, mother and father were the only last doctors in the kingdoms. They were the sole surviving member of the doctor hunt eight years ago. Drum was famed for its great medical expertise, so Wapol intended to make people beg at his knees by taking away the doctors. Many civilians died as a result of his actions, with no hope of being treated or cared for. Some sought to implore the monarch for mercy and safeguard their family, but-" His small hands tremble at his side as he recalls the injustice and the cries of the innocent, "They were killed. When they failed to please the monarch, he slaughtered them. When he got annoyed, he murdered them. When he became bored, he assassinated his people. Again and again. The kingdoms have suffered greatly as because of this man's reign," Chopper adds, his voice frightened.
"I was still young, but whether young or old, we would never forget the blood that stained the snow. Or the corpses blazing in the fire, elderly, young, and children, women and men; Wapol made no distinctions, taking and killing as many as he desired. The village was disintegrating due to sickness and disease, with no doctors available to help them. Mother and Father were still hiding from Wapol, so they couldn't do anything (he believes that regret is still eating away at his mother's heart). Even after he ran from cowardice, the ramifications of his actions lingered in the minds and hearts of Drum Island people. And it is because of this that my mother and I did everything we could to help the civilians of Drum Island. It's the least we can do for the people who have suffered so much at the hands of Wapol," his voice is little and sorrowful as he describes to her the dark past of this land that has tasted injustice and brutality for so long.
He glances up at her scarlet eye from his quivering hands resting in his lap."And-" he grins again (his smile is as beautiful as her nakamas'). "That is the reason. That Doctorine and I are doing everything we can to instill hope in people's hearts (Even if they often fear him). We want to do everything in our power to prevent history from repeating itself and not let the villagers succumb to the wounds of the past. We wouldn't be able to forgive ourselves if we let them. The title of doctor means everything to me, and I will wear it as humanity's last hope for as long as I live," Chopper concludes in a soft voice.
She draws him into her consciousness like the most beautiful sculpture on this world. She sears his words in her mind like a new genesis who has experienced the dawn. She looks at this weird creature with wondering eyes. His soul appears to be split apart, with self-hatred and despair clinging to each piece like an arrow piercing him repeatedly.
Yet. His heart is pure, much like Luffy's. His heart exudes love and sincerity. In a war-torn world, every part of him longs for peace. So she wonders how this tremendous creature could ever be considered a monster. And she wants to know. She wants to know who dared implant terrible thoughts on this cute reindeer's mind." Why-""MEAT!"
Umekui's voice is interrupted by a loud famous voice. She looks over her shoulder, and the sight of her captain screaming and rushing at light speed towards them makes her smile big. She missed him so terribly.Chooper's eyes widen with dread and fear as he sees Luffy approaching at breakneck speed. Dust and flames follow Luffy's run, as if he were a rocket.Before he can stand up and run, a hand screeches around his waist, preventing him from moving away. Luffy's visage appears in front of him, and the pirates' wide eyes look down at him with realization.
"You are not meat!" Luffy shouts, accusing."Of course not! You stupid pirate," Chopper shouts back."AH, IT TALKS!" Luffy yells in terror as he flees from Chopper. "A MONSTER!" he yells, pointing.Umekui flinches at Luffy's words.Monster.
This is the only world that breaks Chopper's heart. He glares at the pirates and flees away. Umekui can't help but see the tears in his eyes as he dashes through the castle corridor.She shifts her eyes to Luffy, who is stunned as he watches the reindeer flee with a mournful expression on his face."My captain, that is a hurtful thing to say to Chopper. Go apologize to him," Umekui tells Luffy, frowning at him.
Luffy blinks rapidly and returns his sight to his first mate. He looks at her for five minutes before cracking a broad smile on his face. He leaps at her and embraces her fiercely."UME! SHI SHI SHI, I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!" beams Luffy.
He hugs her tightly (Umekui can't ignore the shaking in his arms). With Luffy in her arms and she in his. She let it go. She sinks inside his warmth, allowing all the evil things inside her to sleep for a minute until the coldness coating her veins melts away like a dying breath. She smiles into the crook of his neck because this boy in her arms is the only thing she could ever need or want (apart from death, and when will the choice be made? Who will she choose? Death or Monkey D. Luffy ?).
He takes a step back and looks up to her. He appears so innocent in her eyes, with large brown eyes and black hair. It's astonishing and terrifying how just one glance from him can have her nearly falling at his feet. She cups her hands over his round cheeks, feeling his blazing warmth."I was worried about you, my captain. I thought I had lost you for a moment," she exhales.
"Ume, don't say stupid things! We promised to never leave each other! We will live and die together!" declares Luffy, his loud voice echoing along the castle's empty dark passage.She swallows the disgrace in her throat, like a blade poking her insides. (She could never tell him how much he deserved to leave her alone to die (since this dumb boy loves her so much that she wants to scream and pull out everything inside her because he can't! There is nothing to love).

("Because I love you, Ume!")

"I'm glad, my captain," she says softly.Her hands sway against his cheeks, so she snatches them back, but Luffy soon steals them and puts her hands softly between his." So, who is Chopper? Was the strange reindeer by your side?" Luffy inquires, looking around for the familiar reindeer."His name is Tony Tony Chopper. He is doctorine's son and a doctor. "He is the one who takes care of your wounds," Umekui says, staring down at their united hands.
"Doctorine," Luffy repeats, as a memory flashes through his mind: "Oh, it's the old hag! She was quite furious when I called her like this! She struck me hard in the head," Luffy pouts cutely."My captain ?""Yes, Ume ?""Go apologize to Chopper," she says, her brow furrowing to show him she is serious."Why?" Luffy asks, confused by her order, tilting his head.
"You referred to him as a monster," states Umekui (The realization of what she is as an entity burns her tongue, making her want to throw up)."And?" Luffy blinks, lost.He looks intently at his first mate. And Luffy is well aware that she is being dumb as usual. So he merely grins and looks outside at the beautiful scenery (oh, he needs to play in the snow with Ume!).He giggles again.
"What's wrong with being a monster? A monster is cool and strong! A monster is so rare and great because he can accomplish so many things, defeat so many people, and, most importantly, eat so much stuff! Many people have yelled at me, saying things like "I'm a monster shi shi", and for this, I need to know if I'm as strong as Chopper," Luffy laughs.( "YOU ARE WRONG, LUFFY!" 
She blinks three times to allow his words to echo back. She meets his eyes and smiles (like always, there are no lies, no fear). Because Luffy is just Luffy (and so much more). Luffy is strange and weird; everything he does and says is as weird as the smile that never leaves his lips."So you think that a monster is a good thing ?" She asks quietly (she is aware that if she asks louder, her voice would shatter).Luffy nods and beams.
"Yes, because the world would be very boring without them! I dreamed of finding all the monsters hidden and ruling over the seas when I decided to become a pirate and swear to be the king of pirates! Some of them will be my friends! Some of my rivals! Some of my enemies! And the desire to discover them is what I'm looking for on this adventure!" proclaims Luffy.( "YOU ARE WRONG, LUFFY!" )(No. Monsters kill. Monsters destroy. Monsters ruin and take. Monster doesn't cry. Monster has no soul. Monsters are Dazai.)
Following his declaration, there was silence. But Luffy doesn't let it linger long because silence isn't part of his dictionary."There is nothing wrong about being a monster, Ume!"( "YOU ARE WRONG, LUFFY!" )"I see," she simply nods and stares out at the snowy view (her gaze appears so lost and delicate that it might break (but you cannot break what is already broken, shredded, destroyed to dust)."Ume!" Luffy calls out again.
"Yes, my captain?" Ume replies, shifting her tired gaze toward him.His huge eyes met her gaze, and she froze."I love you, Ume," he says, grinning. "I love you a lottttt," he says, expanding his arms into the sky before crossing them over his chest and nodding. "Yes, I really do love you," he admits.The sentence that comes out of his mouth sounds like a universal truth. It feels so natural. As if loving something like her was straightforward.
But Umekui Dazai was not easy to love. She was unlovable, impossible to consider in one's heart.However, Monkey D. Luffy does it as if it were the easiest thing in the world. As if there were no wars or slavery, and as though everyone lived in peace and kindness. He loves her as if it were the most wonderful thing in the world.He loves her as if it were not a sin condemned by the prophets of the celestial nation.
Yet. Her organs are gripped by a sorrowful feeling as she clenches her fist tightly. Luffy also loves the sea yet he cannot swim. And she was much more dangerous than the sea that devoured so much. (This tragic sea, which led her into the arms of those she learned to love, ending with a hole in her chest. She is terrified that her life with Luffy and her nakamas will be the same).If Luffy loves her, he will perish, just like the sea did to his lovers. He will drown in his own love and condemn her for ever daring to love someone as horrible as her).
What a sad way to convey the fact that she is utterly unloveable.She glances into his warm, gentle eyes, which appear to have absorbed the sun in order to be so enticing."Tell me, my captain," Umekui said quietly, yet loudly enough to be heard around them. " I once made a promise to someone. These promises come at the expense of the lives I shall take. Wapol and his man will perish at my hands. So tell me, Luffy. Will you still love me once their blood stains my hands?"
"Of course"! Luffy exclaims without hesitating. Because nothing his first mate does or says will ever change Luffy's feelings for her. "I will never stop loving you no matter what you do. No matter what you did. I love you, Ume!"He screeches his arms above her waist, drawing her closer to him. His nose crushes and his forehead rests against her soft skin."You're my first mate and friend. You're mine, Ume. You have belonged to me since the beginning of time," he giggles softly, his breath carrying over every brush of her face.
His red soul painted her organs and chest cage with affection and splendor. His grin seems like a universal truth, and his laugh is like sea spray. When he speaks of her, her lifeless world becomes green and blue once more.She shuts out the shouts and whispers that are plaguing her and focuses on her beloved captain in front of her. She rested her forehead against his, knowing that if she fell, he would be there to catch her.
"Okay," she says simply, yet those few words mean so much. She accepts him. He and his words. She believes in him and allows him to love her (she is selfish. It is selfish to allow him to adore her when she already knows how it will end for both of them).Luffy grins and hugs her hard (he knows he will never compel her to say the words. He knows she loves him, so nothing else matters. Ume loves him too much. She's given and done so much for him. Her blood and scars are the price of her love for him (his heart shook and cried because he knew that despite everything, when Ume loves, she loves recklessly like Ace)). 
(Oh, Ace, his dear old brother who never believed him till Luffy bled for them. Ace, who will never stop biting and screaming back at everyone, telling them that loving him was the worst thing ever.But Sabo and Luffy loved Ace. They loved him and will always love him (Ace knows. He knows Luffy loves him across the seas, and Sabo loves him over the heavens. Because, after all, those are his silly, annoying little brothers).
'I love you' is echoed by 'I hate you' in Ace's blood. Luffy recalls beating his brother's brain with his bloody fist before accepting those simple words.Sometimes he wonders if the world around him is simply stupid, or if he is too smart for them. Because when Luffy says 'I love you' as if it were the most straightforward thing in the world. Those who hear those words seem to be terrified by them, as if Luffy's love for them is the most awful thing in the world.
They stared at him like his grandfather did when he told him he would be a pirate. As if it were the most horrifying thing in the world. Something that sets him against the rest of the world. Turning him into the world's enemy.)
Internally, he scoffs at their stupidity. In the end, nothing matters because of what they say and do. Luffy will not give up. His love is possessive and childish. What Luffy wants, he gets it. So if Luffy wants to loves Ume, then be it!A thunderous boom from the outside breaks their embrace."Wapol," sneers Umekui as she stares out the window.
She shit a look at Luffy, "My captain, go find a jacket to cover yourself and meet me outside. The war has come knocking at our door-""Let's meet outside, Ume!" Luffy yells as he rushes across the long corridor.She walks over to the window and opens it. The frigid wind does not make her shiver, especially because her own body is as cold as a corpse. She jumps out of the window and begins to run towards the castle's entrance, feeling the icy snow beneath her feet.
Wapol's name rings throughout the storehouse of memories she attempted to forget. But how can she, when this name is tainted with blood and cruelty? When his disgusting blood stems from a falsehood of selfishness and misery that cost so much?Umekui Dazai is no hero; it cannot help humans. All she knows how to do is destroy and kill, and destroying Wapol and consuming his dreams in order to turn him to dust is the only way she can please the wailing ghosts.
So Odasaku keeps a close eye on her from above. See how she morphs herself into the thing that makes people cry out in terror. Seeing her causes nightmares and mayhem in her ruins. The charred ones shout in unison, calling and screaming the death of the monarch who killed them. They seek vengeance for the orphans and the lovers who have died leaving behind a trail of sorrow.
(KILLS THE KING, DAZAI! KILLS HIM! FREE US! OH YOU, THE DESCENDANT OF THE FORGOTTEN TIME!) 
You foolish ruler, whose desire blinded him to the core. Keep in mind that awful things happen to selfish kings! Your moment has come, Wapol. Crimson's eye engulfed in the appearance of a beast will be the last thing you will see, you cowardly king!

Chopper's arms tremble as he stares down at the lavender-haired king (He is no king to him. Not when his hands are soiled with the blood of the man he calls "father").His eyes quake with wrath, and his human shape triggers tremors in his limbs. And the grin and mocking smile of the man before him further feeds his wrath.
 "I won't let you enter this castle!" roared Chopper. His broad frame obstructs this castle's entrance.Wapol glares up at the flag that adorns his fortress roof. How dare those scums invade his sacred castle with this bastard doctor's flag (even after his death, the madman's ideals continue to wreck his castle and kingdom).He narrows his dark violet eyes at the reindeer-human creature in front of him and glares at Doctorine, who is staring at him from her perch at the castle door.
"I will give you one last chance before ordering my men to exterminate you! Join me, Doctorine, and I will spare this monster!"  glares Wapol at Chopper's shape."Go burns in hell, you dickhead!" spits Doctorine.The veins on his temples vibrate with fury. He casts a sidelong glance at Chess before raising his arm. Chess, knowing his king's signal, points and discharges a fiery arrow at the Sakura Jolly Roger.
"YOU BASTARD!" yells Chopper, turning to look at the flying arrow.The clank of chains echoed in a still keen sound. Before the flying arrow can even reach the flag, it is caught by a flying chain. The loud sound of the shattered arrow causes Wapol and his soldiers to gaze at the approaching stranger. Doctorine and Chopper's gazes shift to the familiar pirate woman.Crimson eyes shine, and snow petals dance around her shape. Her beautiful dark hair cascades around her, like water. The long white kimono wraps her body as it falls to the snowy floor. Her eyes and lips were as keen and crimson as a bloodied knife poised to strike at the heart.
She appears to be burning alive, Chopper thought. She looks fascinating to him. She appears to be a pirate on a mission for blood and havoc, and the hair on his fur stands out from her narrowed gaze. She is so pretty and awesome (and Chopper will never comprehend how she could ever be designated a monster since she is just too beautiful to bear such a revolting title).
Wapol watches intently at the approaching stranger before an eccentric smile spreads across his face."HAHAHAHA It's you! I KNEW YOU WERE THERE!" he shouts, his voice pouring with mania.The black-haired woman glares at him. Fire seemed to be smoldering inside her, waiting to erupt and engulf everyone like hungry beats. She narrows her blood-red eye at the fallen king in front of her."I WAS SEARCHING FOR YOU, DAZAI!"
The name in his mouth makes her want to recoil in revulsion."I waited for you, Wapol. Your reign is over," Umekui says coolly, walking gently toward Chopper's side.Wapol blinks before laughing so loudly that the birds across from them flee in fear. He laughs as he crunches his stomach in pain, and takes a long breath before pointing at her with a wicked smirk."You truly think you can stop my reigh. Do not be silly, Dazai. Is this a joke? Since when do you play the hero? Don't let me remind you of how many lives and kingdoms have been lost because of you," he laughed, his mechanical teeth flashing with resent. "You are the monster there, Dazai. Not me!"
Umekui smirks as she says, "I always knew you were a stupid king. Allow me to educate you. Tell me, you disgusting human, how many stories have you read? My favorites are when the monsters devour the fallen kings—I will be courteous and let you open the dance and be the fallen king of my tale."Wapol's face goes red in fury.
"Kuromarimo, chess, bring her to me now!" declares the king."Cutie-san, take care of Wapol for a moment while I deal with his crew, okay?" Umekui adds, casting a sideways glance at Chopper's massive body.The reindeer-human nods sternly at her before charging toward Wapol with all his might.

( "Protect your kingdom, cutie-san" .)

For Hirulik and Doctrines. For all the lives that his father and mother were unable to save because of this greedy man.

"Your wounds are still open, you brat!" shouted the stern voice of doctorine from behind her.
She smiles and turns to face Doctorine's green eyes. Even with all of her wrinkles, the doctor witch failed to conceal her worries."Listen to me, Doctor Witch," Umekui said as she felt her ability activate.Doctorine widens her eyes and looks intently at Umekui's back."After all this. Let's figure out what's wrong with me. And if you can persuade me otherwise, I will gladly accept you."
With both hands glowing, she prepares to face Chess and Kuromarimo's devil fruits. She spreads her hands in front of her, preparing to trap them in the cruel grip of No longer human."I will accept your help, you stubborn witch," she says, grinning faintly.
Doctorine has no idea how much those words mean to Umekui. (For Luffy and her nakamas, she will do it. For them, she will allow her pathetic self to open the door to hope, albeit slowly). Because how could she just give up when Luffy adores her? And Nami begged her? How can she allow herself to drown when they are reaching for her, grabbing her, forbidding her to die, and leaving them?).
Oh, how ironic that she is continually saved from drowning by the same boy whose tragedy is at sea's hands? (When her time comes and the sea takes her along with all the other souls that the world has ever graced, it should be she who saves him, not the other way around.Yet for Luffy and her Nakamas. She will give herself a chance and seek the help of this witch, who appears to be consumed by her failures.
She will let herself dangle on the leech of her own tragedy until two paths emerge as one last choice. Either the cords break her neck (allowing her to eventually fall into the abyss known as death). Or the hope will shock her out of the grip of sorrow (she is terrified of a future she has never dared to conceive. But, for a little moment, when the words "future" cross her head, it's not nothingness that responds, but the familiar smile and lovely laughs of her beloved Nakama).
Umekui, who believes in Luffy's love, allows herself to believe for the first time in the idea of a future borne by her straw hat pirates' dreams."Bring it down, you scum," Umekui smirks as Chess and Kuromarimo devil fruits reach her domain.

"And all of my devotion turns into violence"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"What is a monster not a monster ?"

The sunset's rays blazing clearer seem to droop through the skies of Alabasta.The grandeur of the horizon, bounded by a sea of sand around the kingdom's big capital, reflects in her eyes as waves of color emanating from the hues of the dwellings. Despite all the nuances in front of her sight, one single color always flames through her brain, wreaking carnage on her whole being.Red. Red devours away the azure skies as the waning sun basks and marries the vast horizon. Red as the sand that howls in the wind (it screams, kicks, and cries like the ghosts of those she slaughtered). Red brushing and painting the structures of a kingdom conquered through falsehoods and deception (and there was a time when the sea around her roared and swayed, while she watched the red annihilate an entire civilization within a single instant).Red as those eyes that would never let go of her mind (always lingering, taunting her when she desperately wants to forget because there is nothing that she disdains more than those eyes).Red always reduced to a single call, a single symphony that always returns to the same name: Dazai.Miss All Sunday stood still, her enchanting dark gaze fixed on the horizon (and she still waits, counting down the minutes, hours, and days till she gets there with a drumbeat).'Time is precious. Remember that, Miss All Sunday.'She lets out a dark and lengthy chuckle, which echoes around her in one helpless call ( she wonders the last time she chuckled and laughed without the mask, lies, and self-loathing stapled to her face with strings crafted from long, buried scars ( but call you call scars-"scars" when they are wounds that never healed?). Indeed, time is precious. How could the world ever bring itself to its demise if time was ever desired and sought like a madman seeking solace? How could time not be precious when it is the sole primary factor determining history itself? (when the past pursues and cries for retribution, and the future fears fate; what might the present ever accomplish except destroy itself?).After all, time was what kept Miss All Sunday standing, even when the entire world wanted her dead for the sheer power of knowledge. Then she may use the one thing men could never have: time.'Time is near, Crocodile,' she reflected, her gaze absorbed over the horizon as those familiar crimson eyes continued blazing through the skies.She waits for it with a shattered soul and an empty heart, concealed behind a vile smile and sinful eyes staring down at the world. With a relief she knows she'll never know in her lifespan, hidden beneath those snake slurs and dreadful sentences that sear through her brain.Foolish men have always chased time to conquer it and flee the clutches of death. But Miss All Sunday is no foolish man, there is no foolishness in her like theirs (not when those men are the first to condemn her existence as a sin).Miss All Sunday desires only one thing: the end.She wants everything to end (and when the time is nigh, the end deity's hands tear her. She wouldn't mind if the world around her ended as well. She wouldn't mind if it ended the same way her world did--they call it treason, but yet what could she call it when she was the one at the end of brandishing guns and bloody swords?).'Dazai is near, the world!'Time is cruel, lament the old ones, but Miss All Sunday knows the truth. She witnessed it from the moment she dared to be born in the shadows of the gods (she sometimes wonders if they, like men, fear time; because when she looks at those men who ruined everything in her wretched life, she sees no distinction between those they define themselves as gods and those they call mankind).
They call it destruction, but Miss All Sunday calls it liberation.
The end is close, and Miss All Sunday shall receive it at the grasp of those she detests.
Beware of the red-eyed Monster. 
She raises her arms towards the skies as if she might grasp the red-staining sky and smear it over her cold body. Her eyelashes fluttered like butterflies as she looked up at the crimson skies.
The drums of destruction shall beat.

'I am waiting for you, my dear Dazai.'
A quivering breath escapes his lips as the cold causes his muscles to shake (but he wonders what is worse: freezing in the cold or being stuck in the middle of the desert with his captain and first mate with no meat and water?).He decided on the first alternative after shuddering from fear at the realization that their spoiled captain might eat him whole as a piece of meat while his first mate would gladly help him in chopping and cooking him.The vast expanse of snow in front of him causes him to grunt and shake his head in frustration. Even though they haven't been on Drum Island for a day, Zoro has already decided that he hates the cold, the snow, and everything related to winter.(Oh, how he misses the sun searing through his muscles, sweat blistering his abdomen, and freshwater dripping from his green hair. His training session on the deck, with the mantra of his aim of becoming the greatest swordsman pounding through his mind and throbbing through his blood-(even his nap session with his first mate beneath the sun on the deck. Zoro misses it (but he will never tell his first mate)).He would rather hear his captain's irritating loud voice and Nami's sly words pursuing him for a bet to lose his pocket money (which he always loses and finds himself with no money) than the irritating cold wind noise.Even Ussop's sobs could be preferable. But between the unpleasant voice of the shitty cook and the wind sounds. Zoro would always choose the sour wind over the annoying "Umekui-chan, wait for me!", "Nami-san, my love!" or "Vivi-san, you-"."Vivi-san, don't run like that, darling!" says an obnoxious familiar voice, causing Zoro to groan.He looks behind his shoulder. His two nakama and the princess froze at his sight, stunned. They stare at him intently before Usopp and Sanji laugh hysterically at his form with pointed fingers, mocking him. His upper naked body trembles as he sniffs through his scarlet nose, and he has no idea how red and sore his ears are."He looks like a reminder!" Usopp exclaims, gripping his stomach with laughter."He-" Sanji breathes, holding back his laughter before cackling at him once again, "-looks like a clown fish!""Ha. Ha. It's so funny," grumbles Zoro before scowling at them, "Now give me one of your coats before I freeze to death!""No way!" shouts Usopp, before scrambling to hide behind the princess' back.The crappy cook simply glares down at him, shrugs, and brings his cigarettes to his mouth, "Then die-""You bastard-"Before Zoro can lunge at him and steal his coat, a noise a few feet away catches his attention. The identifiable uniforms of the men they encounter on their way to Drum Island cause him to grunt. He follows his nakamas and the princess as they approach the spot where several citizens are facing off against the familiar men.(Zoro is aware that those men on the seas were one of his quickest and quietest fights.-when Luffy orders them to dump them overboard before Umekui notices their breach into their ship (since how could they add weight to their first mate's concern when she was already caring for their navigator alone when she was barely standing herself (she could never conceal the exhaustion and emptiness of her gaze from him-))."Ne long nose, those guys are our enemies, right?" asks Zoro out of nowhere.Usop gave the familiar pirates an anxious and frightened glance before nodding at him. At the simple signal that those people are their enemies. Zoro jumps at the closest of them, knocking his teeth out with a single punch.Zoro seizes the knocked-out man's coat and wraps it over his form with a hum as he buttons it."Oh, how good it feels!" he growls with a hum.The villagers' mouths gape agape, and his nakamas grumble at him. The princess gives him a terrified expression, and he wonders if she comprehends just how deadly he is."Show off," the pervy cook remarks with a side-eye.Zoro disregards the insults from the pirates and the sound of swords being drawn behind him. Groaning, he spreads his arms over his head, feeling his blood return to his body thanks to the warmth of his coat.(Now that he feels better, he hopes that his captain and first mare have arrived at the doctor's house to heal and save Nami (When the witch gets back on her feet, Zoro will buy her a beer to celebrate her recovery (Even though she took nearly all of his money)).He glances at Sanji and cracks his knuckles, "Pervy cook, how about we unload our rage on those scums? Since Umekui forbade us from hurting the ones who injured her eye-"The pervy cook returns his glance with a diabolical smile, "It's a brilliant idea! I didn’t even know that your empty brain could conjure thoughts!"  The pirates behind him charge forward with a single cry of war. Zoro spins around quickly, his muscles twitching as he grabs his three katana that are fastened to his belt. With his swords held tightly, he leaps at the soldiers, severing and mutilating their limbs with his blade. Rain's scarlet falls over the white snow, as Zoro cuts and shreds again and again (deep down, he knows he'll pour a sea of bloodshed for his first mate if it can bring an ounce of warmth into her eyes).Zoro glares down at the severed limbs, knowing that even if he cuts and shreds all of the people on this island, he will be unable to undo his first mate's wounds. But as he stares at the torrent of crimson splashing the white snow red from the blood and the half-dead (honestly, if they all died, he wouldn't care) he wonders how much he has to spill to release all of his anger and indignation.(How much can he tear apart to avoid picturing and remembering his first mate's wounded form on the deck? kneeling and pleading to some scum to save their navigator.When Zoro knows that if Umekui orders him to eliminate everyone on this island and bring doctors to her feet, he will undoubtedly do it in a heartbeat).How could those pitiful men make his first mate and captain beg for their help? Zoro swings his swords in front of him, slaying the raging fury that won't go away, not even blinking as a head flies and rolls to lie down a short distance away.When he notices that no more pirates are leaping at him since they are either dead or unconscious, he glances at Sanji, who has completed the pile of unconscious and bleeding pirates.Shitty Cook returns his glance, smirking as he stares down at the limbs and sea of blood that surrounds him."Your pants and shoes are soaked with blood. Good luck washing it, because no way I would ever do your laundry!""Like I need your help, shitty cook!" Zoro grumbles as he makes his way to where Usopp is shielding his eyes from the dreadful sight and the princess's face has turned whiter than the snow (no hell he will carry her or anything if she passes out!).He directs his attention onto the villagers, and when they take a step back in fright, Zoro smirks slightly. "Yo, who are those men?" he asks, pointing at the dismembered and mangled pirates.A man approaches him with an intimidating expression, "They are Wapol's soldiers! Thank you for fighting them; they were preventing us from retaining Dalton-sama's body from beneath the snow!""Dalton-san!" gasps Vivi as she rushes in the direction of Dalton's supposed position. She casts a horrified gaze toward them and shouts out, "Zoro-san! Can you retrieve his body?"He marches slowly toward her. "Like I need you to tell me what to do," Zoro scoffs as he starts digging in the snow."Don't talk like that to Vivi-san, stupid marimo!" Sanji screams as he approaches them with furious steps."Is he even still alive?" Ussop says uneasily, pointing to Dalton's frozen form.Vivi's eyes tremble as she shakes Dalton's motionless body with shaking hands. "Dalton-san Wake up! Dalton-san! Dalton-san!"(Not again.Vivi is so sick of witnessing people die at the hands of greedy men who are willing to destroy anything in their path. How could she not get sick of it when that was all she saw through those last years? The helplessness she felt as she peered into lifeless eyes and held cold dead bodies between her fingertips caused her heart to cry and scream with injustice.This injustice took away so much from Dalton and his people, as Vivi could tell by his drained look and shaking shoulders as he recalled how their previous king had ravaged their kingdom.'That is what royalists are in the end: unfaithful scum who bring flames to their kingdom with their deceptions and falsehoods,' scoffs the first mate in a dark voice, anger burning her tongue.(Vivi observed the same anger in the eyes of the villagers and Dalton every time the name 'Wapol' was mentioned).This injustice is well-known to Vivi by the scent of rotting bodies strewn throughout her kingdom's streets. In the cries and screams of a civil war that is spilling so much blood and causing anguish, tears, and mourning. And when she looks at the empty and heartbroken gaze of the citizens of Drum Island, whose scars are flowing wounds gutted by Wapol's deception, her body freezes and cries as she remembers her homeland (after all these years, she begs and prays that the end hasn't crushed all of her people's hopes).Dalton craves peace and hope for his kingdom, just as she sought it for her own. And Vivi can never forgive herself if this man perished before his aspirations could come true (she wants to tell him that despite their different blood and kin. He and She are the same; they both have the same soul, screaming out for help and the same heart, yearning for salvation).She wants Dalton's eyes to be free of remorse and shame, since how couldn’t they be when he sacrificed greater for his home than she gave for her own kingdom? (And, thanks to him, she realized that no bloodline defines an honorable king or princess, because Dalton is a better and kinder monarch than Wapol's lineage).He needs to live for his kingdom, home, and freedom! (A selfish part of her hopes that the freedom of Drum Island will be the fuel that sustains her disappearing hope for the liberation of her motherland.))Tears well up in her eyes as she shakes Dalton's body in despair, "Please Dalton-san, you must stay alive! Your kingdom needs you! Your people need you!"Warm hands rest on her shoulders while Usopp's mournful eyes gaze at her sobbing eyes, "Vivi-chan..."The people's sniffs and sobbing could be heard all around them as they stared helplessly at the single man who bore all of their home's dreams and strength."Dalton-sama isn't dead! His body is just frozen!" speaks a voice.They all turn to face the twenty men standing before them, dressed in pink blouses and white masks."The Isshi-20!" exclaims Usopp, shocked by their appearance."Who?" asks Zoro, who is plainly lost."They're Wapol's doctors!" Sanji glares."Leave Dalton-sama in our care!" says a doctor."Like hell! You, traitors! How dare you show your faces here!" spits a civilian."How can we trust you when you've sold yourself to Wapol?" exclaimed another."If you want Dalton to be saved, you must trust us!" exclaimed one masked doctor.Their eyes widen at the desperation in their voices."Despite everything, we're still doctors!! Our ultimate goal is to help the people of Drum Island!" states a doctor."Bullshit!" screams a woman."Hiriluk's pledge and words are all that keep us going! We've waited long enough to return and break Wapol's grip on us!" cried the doctors, desperate."So please listen to us and let us save Dalton!" they implore.The villagers reflect for a moment before standing back and allowing the physicians to approach Dalton's body. They put their trust in those men, praying that it is not a mistake (they had enough of them when their last monarch forced them to pay for his mistakes).They allow them to save Dalton because they are terrified of losing another of them (since Wapol's treachery has rendered their entire land into a graveyard for their family members and lovers).Above all, they do not want to bury another companion while their cheeks are stained with sorrow and heartbreak. So, please, for all the lost souls and long-gone lives, Dalton's soul needs to rest with them!Dalton, their friend, and hero, who continues to battle and sacrifice everything for them (and even when they value him for his efforts, they know that their glorious king's heart is still burdened with regret and disgrace).They want their true monarch to live; they don't want him to believe that all of his sacrifices and efforts were in vain. Dalton-sama's compassion and smile are the only things that keep the hearts and hopes of the Drum Island people alive.
So please, save him! Oh, traitors from the darkest ages! Saves their glorious king!

Why.

Why does he keep failing? Why, after everything, after all the tears and blood he paid for, he is still failing? Why does this castle keep slowly encircling him, reminding him of all the blood he spilled upon its walls?Why Dalton's regrets and shame are still lodged in the back of his throat, mingled with the blood and flesh of those he slaughtered for Wapol?All for nothing. All for him to sink into despair, his eyes crying and his heart mourning his lost prestige.His soul begs and mourns over everything, asking, screaming, and thrashing: for what cost? Why? Why does one wicked king destroy his home? For what grandeur and honor? Why?How did the frame of royalty devolve into corruption!? he asks! No, he demands! What price, what greed, is worth all the lost lives that his people grieved? All the orphans still awaiting the return of their fathers and mothers! All the men and women that wailed and screamed as they buried their loved ones with strangled sobs.'WHY, WAPOL! WHY? WHY? WHY? TELL ME, WHY ?', His heart yells and bursts in anger and heartbreak.How could this man carry on in his chaos, destroying the kingdom without regard? How could he have Dalton beg and kneel at his feet when he has already done everything for Wapol? How can he spit in his face and order his men to execute him when Dalton's wrath sought to cut Wapol's head and put an end to the corruption and injustices?Even deep within his mind, Dalton can feel the chilly claws of the snow stealing his body's warmth. His pulse weakens with each passing minute, as the wrath and anguish continue to burn his organs.He cannot die now! He cannot die and abandon his kingdom when he has so much to accomplish! He can't give up his people when his past sins have taken so much from them!How dare he abandon them as the pain and shame continue to burn his throat and insides with regret! When the ghost of the innocents curses him and pleads for his blood, redemption!No! There's no way he will die now when he hasn't seen his people fully free!At last, the ones he had been waiting for are there, battling for the liberation of a kingdom that has done them no good! If Dalton wants to face them without shame, he must be present and assist them till the very end.His fingers tremble as they delve further into the bitterly cold snow (he craves to be able to see the peaceful, white snow again with no blood distorting his view!).His hands shake in response to distant shouts and cries of his name (he does not deserve their tears when all he has done is fail them over and over!). Not until Wapol's ending reigh consumes the guilt.The warriors of liberation are fighting, their blood quivering and their hearts thundering. Dalton wants to witness it; he wants to see freedom reverted to his homeland through blood and fire! He looks for the scene where the mad king's head rolls onto the ground, signaling the extinction of a dark age that haunted the nights of an entire nation! "Wapol is...at the castle! Your captain and first mate are fighting him!" Dalton exclaims, gasping. His eyes were drawn to the princess's familiar blue hair and the pirates' long noses, who stood above him beside the green-haired and blond cooks."I want to see them-" his eyes full up with tears, his heart trembling, "the ones who will save the kingdom and put an end to Wapol's rule. I want to see them! I want to observe how the freedom will reveal itself!""Please-" his lips quiver as tears stream down his face. "For all of the lost lives and orphans! For all the sacrifices we made, I beg you, heroes of the sea! Let me witness the ascension of liberation! That is my only wish!" 
'Please let me witness Odasaku's promises brought to life before my very eyes!'
The sound of kneeling bodies in the snow causes the pirate to peer over his people."We beg you-" the doctors and the people of Drum Island kneel on all fours before them. "Carry and bring Dalton-sama to the castle!"His eyes well up with more tears as he hears his people's desperation and dedication, as well as the doctors' redemption."I wonder what the world would be like without my extraordinary strength," sighed the long-nosed pirate as he bent before him.He grasps his shoulders, but Dalton's body does not move in the least. Usopp's visage turns redder as he pulls hard on his legs, only to fall on his bottom. Zoro and Sanji stared down at him before bursting out laughing at his ridiculous act; even the princess giggled."Well, let's go. When you all begged me to be your sole savior, how could I not hear you?" Zoro says, curling an arm over Dalton's right shoulder and lifting him.Sanji's arm folds over the left shoulder, "It's no posture for a king like yourself-" and encourages Dalton's back to stand broader, "There like that, it's better!" He grins, holding a cigarette in his mouth."Let's go!" Usopp exclaims, rushing ahead of them with the smiling princess by his side.The people and doctors all follow suit, smiling broadly and gazing warmly at the scene before them. Pirates are helping them! Even when they were treated as the world's worst things, the pirates continued to help them selflessly! Hope still exists, flowing from Dalton-sama's broad back and the pirates' grins!No longer human, hums and chants through her blood (the voices scaling louder in her brain and bleeding her ears from retribution).Umekui smirks as she observes Chess and Kuromarimo freeze in their tracks as they enter her domain's ability."So this power is not a legend?!" Kuromarimo shouts.Chess looks to his teammate before glaring at Umekui."Like we need stupid devil fruits to fight her!" At his words, both he and Kuromarimo leap at her. Before they could touch her, Umekui chains grabbed Chess' leg and Kuromarimo's arm. Without waiting for a response, she kicked Kuromino in the gut and struck Chess in his skull with her right leg. She grabs her handgun and fires a bullet into Kuromino's leg and Chess' abdomen.Chess screams as he falls to the ground. He put his hand over his splattered stomach, hoping that the bleeding would stop flowing. She pulls the chain fiercely, causing Kuromino's body to fall toward her, catches him with both hands on his shoulder, and twists his right shoulder violently. The loud 'crack' is followed by Kuromino's wail."She broke my shoulder!" he shrieks, tears streaming down his cheek.The two pirates sprawled pathetically at her feet. Umekui's crimson eye shimmers as she stares down at them, and the constant humming of the no longer human causes her whole body to shiver and shudder.'MORE, MORE, MORE, MORE!' it requires, screams, and latches on her organs while wounds of darkness ingest her flesh.It greedily devours the pirates' screams of fright and suffering. Yet it isn't enough, because when Umekui-It peers into the souls that ventured to cross its path. It finds no dreams to keep the soul ablaze, no brightness, only darkness and thirst for destruction.It mocks and laughs aloud, the screams and wails resonating in a single vicious laugh. Let us devour them entirely; it demands. Let's trap them in our haven, It screams.'They dared to mock us. Believing that they are more powerful than us, yet they are pathetically whimpering at our feet, it sneers viciously at the absurd scene.'They dare to stand before us! No dreams, no goals, and no powers roaring in their veins!' it spits twisting between her bones like an enslaved beast.'Kill them! KILL THEM! KILL THEM! KILL THEM! DAZAI! AND DEVOURS THE FOOLISH KING!', The voice demands a horrific tune that oozes with malice.Her hands shake on either side, itching to rip the terrified pirates apart. To bask in their blood while mocking their doom. However, before she was able to pick one devastating blow against the unfortunate souls. The sensation of an ability erupting nearby causes her-it to look over their shoulders.The winds and skies become darker before their eyes. Kureha gazes up from the balcony at the pitch-black sky, which basks on the horizon. A torrent of snow rises in one climate as if an icy beast emerged from the deepest of slumber.'HAHAHHAHAHA YES! YES! THIS POWER I WANT IT!' it's hurled in a voice filled with laughter and chants, vanity and desperation."DAZAI!" the swirling wind and frost tornado shrieked the name like a curse. The scene in front of her made her want to burst out laughing because, no matter where Umekui stood or faced, people would always yell this word and curse her endlessly for carrying this title."SHIKI! MY GLORIOUS ULTIMATE WEAPON! YOU ARE FINALLY THERE TO AVENGE YOUR KING!," Wapol roars, his violet eyes fixed on his loyal knight. His lips screech in a maniacal smile, turmoil, and mayhem distort his vision."I ORDER YOU, SHIKI! DESTROY EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE! WE WILL MAKE A NEW KINGDOM OUT OF THE ASHES! BRING ME DAZAI AS A PRESENT TO YOUR DEAR RULER!" the foolish monarch demands, his eyes eagerly devouring the destruction before him.The dreadful blizzard rises, obscuring the skies and the entire kingdom in frost and dread. In the midst of the storm, growing up, Shiki's blue eyes glare over Umekui's figure. Half of his body and face are metallic, while his ability blasts around him; caused by the frigid cold, his power has evolved into a blizzard of snow, ready to ravage everything.He is ready for his king to plunge the entire kingdom into ice ruins, frozen inside the time."I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR WHAT YOU DID, DAZAI!" Shiki's shout booms throughout the storm.His king discovered him half-dead; the fire had scorched half his face and melted his bones. But, owing to his gracious king and his devil fruit, he now has a new body. A new body preserved him as a weapon for his revenge against Dazai, while he retrieves his king's land.In the thick of the storm that was swallowing the castle and half the island, Umekui's body stood motionless. There are two options before her: jump into the middle of the storm, disable Shiki's ability, and then slaughter him. Or should she take care of Wapol first, and when she murders the king, Shiki's body will disintegrate because she can perceive and feel Wapo's fruit devil keeping him alive?There are risks, too; if she dives into the center of the storm where Shiki is, there's a possibility that 'No longer human' won't be able to reach him as he'll be too far away. And she won't have enough time to take care of Wapol because Shiki would have already frozen the Kingdom in ice by then.'What can she do?!'The thing can't help, of course, as all it knows is to give her orders to kill and slander without any thought or strategy (sometimes she even asks herself if she can't kill herself and let it take care of everything without harming her because she's so sick of the pain).Her mind tells her to dive into the heartstorm and let it kill her. (Why is she even fighting? For what purpose? For what promises?Does the bearer of all those promises, those lost words that she desperately attempted to erase and forget, have a cause? A value? Does the deceased still have a sense of value and promise?No. Dead men are dead men; they have no title, no name, and no claim over the living! Her promises cannot bring them back to life; they are dead, lost in this graveyard, their names erased by time.Just nameless, faceless beings, forgotten in the whirlwind of history, fracturing the threads of the past.So why is she fighting when Umekui just wants to die? Just why? She's tired of fighting, running, and pouring blood when all she wants is to disappear forever!).So! TELL HER WHY SHE’S STILL FIGHTING!"UME! I'M THERE! GO KICK THE ASS OF THE UGLY STORM WHILE I TAKE CARE OF STEEL JAW!-" yells Luffy's booming voice, followed by his legendary laugh, which resonates all over their heads, drawing the attention of the entire world to this silly boy.Umekui's frozen gaze sweeps across Luffy's silhouette like a sun-drenched sunflower. The turmoil within her has been reduced to one single name, one whisper that causes her bones to shake and her organs to melt (it sneers and spits at the disturbance again, as the crimson soul shines, chants, and grins before mocking the roll of fortune that leads her here)."IT'S YOU!" screams Wapol, pointing at Luffy perched on the roof's castle next to the Sakura flag. His rage shows through his glares as he recalls how this lad dared to kick him off his boat at sea."I AM MONKEY D. LUFFY! THE FUTURE KING OF PIRATES!" Luffy exclaims loudly, his thump pointing over him, his smile and face dazzling like a million suns, the scar beneath his eye reflecting and making his eyes glitter.Chopper's large pink eyes glance up at the careless pirate, gleaming with admiration and awe (Are you watching at him from above, father? A future pirate king is standing by your Jolly Roger, contemplated Chopper)."YOU? A FUTURE KING? MAHAHHAHAHA" Wapol broke into laughter, his face arrogantly mocking the boy ahead of him. "YOU NAIVE BOY! WHO DO YOU TH-"A dagger slices across his face, ripping away his right eye and cutting off his laugh and words until breaking into half once it comes into contact with his steel jaw."An eye for an eye," Umekui says in a sinister voice, ridiculing the arrogant king before jumping away.She casts a glance down at the shattered dagger and up to the bloodied enraged face of Wapol, who is screaming with fury. "MY EYE! MY EYE! HOW DARE YOU! DAZAI, DAZAI!" He shrieks in outrage, his palm resting over his right face, blood streaming from both palm and face.Why is she still fighting, right? One name, one boy, casts a shadow over and brings to life all of Umekui's past promises (she is fighting like a beast for one fragrance, one taste lingering in the lips dripping in all of Luffy's 'I love you, Ume!').An arm reaches around her waist, soaring her body toward the castle's roof, and Luffy's comforting heat anchors her body in hold. She smiles as he broadens his grin, his grip tightening around her body.Luffy's joyful smile looks down at the familiar reindeer, and his eyes sparkle at the massive from."Ume! I want him in my crew! He's so cool!" Luffy raves, pointing to Chopper."You need to ask him first," Umekui chuckles as she looks at Chopper, who is staring at them with bewilderment."Let's kick their ace and then kidnap Chopper into our crew!" suggests Luffy. Umekui laughs, and Luffy grins wider."Then there's the plan, captain. You're going to hurl me at the storm guy, but you have to aim exactly where he is, okay? Strongly and quickly, I believe in you!" grins Umekui as she steps in front of Luffy and lets him wrap his hands around her waist and propel her skyward."Yes! Count on me, Ume!" Luffy screams, taking some steps from behind her and pulling and pushing hard on his legs, "GOMU GOMU NO-," his hands hurl Umekui over his head, "-BAZUKA!" with a cry he launches her fast and hard against the storm.He lets out a loud laugh, watching as the body of his first mate soars, tenaciously going for the storm. He looks down and smiles at Chopper, "NE MONSTER-SAN, JOIN MY CREW! BECOME MY NAKAMA!" Chopper stares up at him, shocked. Is this boy stupid? How can he utter the word "monster" as if it's the most amazing thing in the world?He wants him to join his crew? To be his nakama? (nakama, when this term flows with honey and purity from the pirates' lips as if it were the most important and valuable thing in the universe).Could he be a nakama? Nakama: a title, an allegation of dedication and allegiance so powerful that no other words could equal it.Impossible. Chopper isn't important (how dare he think that when the grief staining his fur is proof that he was.Chopper is important! He is important and adored by his father even from above the heavens (since what is his grief if not his father's everlasting love!?). "IMPUDENT BOY, I'M GOING TO KILL YOU ALL!" curses the torn face of Wapol as he races towards the castle.Before Chopper can chase him down and stop him, Chess and Karomino's damaged forms stand in front of him, "You are going anywhere, reindeer!"Luffy's voice makes him look up at him."Don't worry, I'll take care of him until I see Ume return, shi shi shi," replies Luffy, diving from his spot to course Wapol.Chopper glares at the two pirates ready to battle, convinced that Luffy will look after Wapol and protect his mother's home.Her hair flows over her head, while the winds all around her howl like wild beasts. Like a snake's wrath, her fists raised to strike.Breaking through the snowstorm's veneer, she eventually finds herself facing Shiki's half-metallic visage, whose blue eyes are as icy and blue as the fatal ice itself.

'No longer human'

The ability glows in her blood and erupts into a million particles. Erasing, chopping, assembling, and destroying every atom of every human touched by this dreadful poison."You were stupid to come back to face me after I spared you the first time out of mercy," Umekui says, her ability cutting through the storm in a single piercing sound. Shiki cries in protest as the storm stops and the wind dies.(It cracks up and witnesses how it consumes one's blood and might, quenching his hunger with the blood and power of the miserable souls who ventured to cross Dazai's path.)Her blood hums and stirs, devouring Shiki's power from the inside out while feeding the dark wounds that continue to swell. Umekui throbs with envy and hunger at the man's aspirations and desires.Their bodies collapse with a thud onto the icy snow. They rapidly stand on their quivering feet, and circle each other like two predators (you ignorant Shiki, did you forget what was standing in front of you?)."Even if it means losing my life for my king." Shiki rants, "You, Dazai, will perish at all costs!" and then unleashes his knight's golden sword.Umekui smirks as she prepares to deliver one final strike to finish the fight. Her dagger shines from the fire of her gaze, ready to eat everything in her path and paint it in a single hue, bright red.Her eye is fixed on Shiki, who is willing to do anything for his king (in another time, she and Shiki were the same, serving and sacrificing anything and anybody in the name of a godless man. People like her and Shiki, who have only experienced hunger and loneliness, will stop at nothing to lick their masters' bloodied blades and fingers).But she isn't like Shiki anymore. What is she fighting for? Who does she fight for? It is no longer for those men whose gifts were nothing but suffering and retribution.She is fighting for a new future, a fresh hope emerging from her nakamas' hearts. She is fighting for love and salvation, and Umekui will gladly embrace this path of redemption even if it transpires in the form of devastation and bloody swords.She is fighting to hear another 'I love you' from her captain. A future 'I love you' from her nakamas that Umekui will gladly accept with faith.However, Shiki's heart holds no faith in his king, only a responsibility and meaningfulness commitment. He and Dalton stood in a passage in this castle, where Wapol's ghost lineage is found. Yet, Dalton possesses something that Shiki was never able to have. Faith and love. Dalton loves his kingdom and his people more than anything else; he believes in them and his homeland's future. Shiki's aims and goals are as evil as Wapol's soul, stemming solely from hubris and greed.While Dalton's corridor ended with an ascension to be a king, Shiki's path ended with execution.His body collapsed to the floor, and his eyes froze in confusion at what was happening to him. She looks down at his form, knowing that her ability has successfully consumed everything within him. Strings of shadows wrap his body, holding his face and limping in lethal clutches; the metal melts into his face, causing him to wail and scream louder while trashing around like an insect."I pity you, Shiki. I truly do," Umekui states, looking down at his struggling body with a dull gaze.
(The ghost of her petite figure loomed before her, her face wrapped in bandages and bleeding knuckles shaking with shame-"I'm sorry, Mori!"-"I will not do it again!"-"Why can’t I just die?"). 
She approaches him and bets forward to seize his golden sword. Standing over him, she clutches his blade hard and comments coldly, "I once read that there is nothing more dishonorable for a knight to be slaughtered by his sword."In the blink of an eye, she swings the sword and slashes Shiki's throat. Separating his horrified face from his neck, allowing the head to roll down the freezing snow, leaving a trail of scarlet blood."Indeed, I pity you-" she murmurs, staring absently at his dismembered head as she feels his ability rushing through her blood (the voice gets louder, infecting all corners of her consciousness). What a misfortune to have battled and sacrificed all for the enjoyment of one ignorant king's avarice only to end like that.'You deserved better,' she wanted to add because, in the end, she was no different from Shiki and Wapol.
('I deserve better', she once thought in her dark cell, but was too afraid to say it loud, afraid that 'better' would never exist for her.)
Their hasty strides move through the ascending path, the snow swallowing their feet. The final path to the castle was silent, steep, and gloomy, cloaked in dense winter fog.Eyes eager to witness the battle that would decide the fate of the kingdom. The grip and strength of Zoro and Sanji on either side propelled Dalton's body and legs forward. His people and doctors are after them, led by Vivi and Ussop.When they reach the summit of the mountain, they all halt as they stare up at the snowstorm roaring in the sky. The familiar face of a white-haired man, his eyes glaring down at the world, is as blue and icy as the ice that has begun to sculpt itself on the ground."Shiki.." Dalton says, his gaze drawn to his old comrade."Who?" inquired Sanji next to him, as his cigarettes fell from his floor upon seeing the massive, angry storm beast."He is my past comrade. Shiki Oron is Wapol's right-hand man and first mate", informs Dalton."Ano guys, Is this Umekui in the sky?" Ussop says, pointing to the familiar outline of their first partner.Sanji and Zoro raise their stunned eyes to see their first mate's body heading into the storm."This suicidal maniac, I'm going to kill her!" Zoro shouts, his face scowling."Shut up, moss head! Over my dead body, you will touch her!" yells Sanji, glaring at Zoro with piercing eyes.The storm abruptly ends when their first mate disappears into it. Her and Shiki's bodies fell from the sky into the woodland beneath them.An explosion from the castle causes Zoro and Sanji to exchange glances before sprinting towards it with Dalton, the villagers, doctors, Ussop, and Vivi following closely behind.Their mouths widen open when they see a massive reindeer fighting two familiar pirates."This is Chopper. The son of Doctor Kureha," Dalton states, smiling warmly at the familiar reindeer.'Hiriluk, your boy has grown up well. You may be proud of him from above', pondered Dalton.They look up as they watch another explosion emerge from the castle's roof; the smoke and dust part to make way for the familiar captain pirate. The boy is smiling and laughing loudly as he leaps all over the roof, his tongue out mocking Wapol's outraged expression."Shi shi, you are so weak for a king!," Luffy mocks as his hands screeches and make contact with Wapol's face and abdomen.Now that they can see Wapol's face properly, Dalton and his men gasp; Wapol's face is severely damaged, while one of his eyes missing."I'm betting 100 bellies that it's Umekui who crushed his eye," Zoro claims, laughing at the sight of the beaten king.Before Sanji could bet too, Usopp's voice stops them, "How are you making bets when Nami has all of your money?"Vivi laughs as she notices Zoro and Sanji's disappointed expressions.Luffy pokes his ear with his finger and yawns with boredom, "I'm sleepy and hungry, so let's finish this quickly!"He turns his gaze to glance at the horizon, snowflakes flying and dancing all around them. Luffy grins and cracks his knuckles when he finds what he's looking for.Someone is sprinting ahead of them through the blizzard."Special package for UME! GOMU GOMU NO-" his arms seize Wapol's shoulders and throw him toward the sky high-"POWGUN!" Dalton's eyes shook as he watched with trepidation the final moment, battle, and strike that would put an end to all of his people's suffering.A tune hums in the air, as voices yell, cry out, and implore.
(For all the lives lost in this unacceptable tragedy!)
Umekui runs again and again. She runs, her fury boiling, demanding the final piece of retribution from this king, whose name has brought devastation and humiliation to many. This man shares the blood of the gods--the sovereign siege that ruined everything Umekui has ever cherished.Vengeance will be rendered through fire and blood, with deity shadows swallowing dreams and wills.
(Oh miserable souls that have fallen, oh mourning souls that are tormenting the hearts of Drum kingdom peoples!)
The charred ones yell in unison, calling for the execution of the tyrant who murdered them. The familiar scent of sorrow awakens, clutching Umekui in ropes and preparing to be cut as the prideful king's head rolls down.Umekui's feet bend down, like a furry beast. Kana's ability compels Umekui's body to ignite, scorch, and blaze, evaporating snowflakes before they reach her.The captain's soothing and comforting laugh echoes strongly into the silent sky.Her fingers coil tightly against the sword's hilt, as her limbs spasm.The sky trembled and the wind died. She jumps, followed by an explosion, and finds herself high in the sky as every atom explodes and the universe oscillates like a pendulum, neutralizing the effect of gravity on her body.Wapol's bloodied, sobbing face is now in front of her. She raises the sword high over her head as a violent thunderstorm breaks through the gloomy clouds, causing the heavens to shake.The ultimate retribution against the arrogant king has come! Tell me Wapol, Didn’t we warn you that awful things happen to selfish kings?

The time has come, Wapol. Your end is there.

The whole realm shifts its attention, watching with bated breath as a long, dark era is coming to declension. Kureha's wrinkled eyes dilate and mist over ghost tears as she observes Umekui's crimson eye bursting through the fire, ready to torch all their regrets and grief to ashes.

For all who have lived in fear of the mad king returning and stealing the only warmth remaining in your shivering palms.

"GO!! UMEKUI!!" Nami shouted loudly and clearly, her palms folded over her mouth, hoping that her voice would reach her first mate's ears from her balcony seat next to Kureha.For all the lovers who cried and grieved in their cold beds late at night, the return of your lover's warmth holds.Umekui smiles widely as she hears her dear navigator's voice.For all the orphans sobbing over the absence of your fathers and mothers' selfless loves!Chopper's round eyes look up at the first mate as if she were a fallen star sent from the universe. Admiration warms his heart as he looks at Umekui as if she is a legend he could read about forever.Revenge shall be sought through blood and fire, and shall the mad king's head roll down, rotting into the ground! Crimson's eye flash as strings of shadows erupt from her chest and wrap around Wapol's body, ingesting him from within his power, dreams, vows, and desires.

(KILLS THE KING, DAZAI! KILLS HIM! FREE US! OH YOU, THE DESCENDANT OF THE FORGOTTEN TIME!)

Wapol screams, spitting hatred into Dazai's face, his eyes glistening with terror, "DAZAI! I CURS-"

The vow shall be brought by the cursed monster!

The sword glows like the brightest star in the cosmos, and with a hurl, the sword sinks into the king's throat."Off with your head, miserable king!" shouts Umekui's voice, ringing like thunder as the sword cuts Wapol's head.Time stops. Wapol's head falls to the ground with a loud thunk. The pirate's first mate hovers above his corpse with swift breathing, the sword drenched in blood. The king's blood, scarlet and raw, flows down the golden blade and into the snow floor with each drop as scarlet rain. "A life for a life," Umekui whispers, her crimson eye gazing down at the corpse. Her gaze contains no pity, regret, or satisfaction, only blankness.'You deserved a worse death,' she merely thought, hoping that the entity inside of her would torment Wapol's soul to eternity, making him pay for every crime and sin he had committed on his own people.Dalton stares at the scene before him, holding his breath. He blinks a few times to confirm that this is not a dream.One second.They are engulfed by an utter silence with only the humming of the blizzard breeze breaking the calm.Two seconds.He releases his arms from around Zoro and Sanji's shoulders.Three seconds.He maintains all of his legs' force and moves carefully through the snow.Four seconds.  His legs tremble and beg that they cannot go any further. He stood there, his mouth wide agape at the sight of the king's decapitated body and Umekui's hand grabbing Wapol's head. The sword is dripping wet with the blood of the sole man whose blood the whole kingdom desired to see shed.Five seconds.He raises his fist high into the sky, an enormous grin spreading across his face."The king has fallen!" he roars, causing the mountains and skies to shake at his declaration.Cheers and shouts erupt all around Dalton, as do laughter and relief from the citizens of his village. The doctors all cry as they hug each other and the citizens after being separated for so long by Wapol's scheme. Mothers and fathers wail behind him as they collapse on the floor, clutching one other, fear of the mad king evaporated.Dalton feels light as the burden on his shoulders lifts (all the worries, fears, and regrets vanished in an instant). He collapses on his knees, silent tears streaming down his cheeks. His shoulders shook with relief, and Dalton smiled so wide that his cheeks hurt and his vision blurred. The cheers of his people fill his heart with warmth and joy that neither the sun nor the fire can match, making him smile winder through the tears.He tears up and smiles for all the lost ones who can't do it anymore. He weeps for all of the anguish that his heart has harbored for so long since Dalton refused to shed tears or mourn over his people since it was his fault that they died. He couldn't seek pardon as long as his guilt chained him to Wapol. Since how could he beg their pardon while the haughty king was still alive, conveying devastation and spitting on the deceased?But now. Now that Wapol's head is on the ground and his blood is soaking Umekui's sword, Dalton's heart is no longer burdened by remorse.Liberation has come to his home in the form of a flaming storm brought by Luffy and Umekui, and he will never be able to thank their nakamas enough for carrying him to see this final battle.The silence of sorrow dissolves in one explosion, allowing his people's cheers and cries to be heard, besides the laugh of this silly captain, whose sound echoes through the hearts and souls of Drum islanders.He glances up from his trembling hands to the face of the first mate, who now stands over him. Her blank expression transforms into a gentle smile as her crimson eye twinkles and ignites like wildfire. She rests Wapol's head in front of him, showing and proving that this is not an illusion, but the reality: the king's head has fallen off. She lays the sword horizontally and raises it up to him as if she were offering them Wapol's blood.The blade feels like a king's crown in her hands, waiting to be crowned to him. The thought makes him cry even more quietly. He lays his palms on top of his head, ready to accept the golden swords bathed in the blood of the mad king from her gracious hold.Umekui smiles her gaze softening over his teary expression.She delicately places the sword in his hands; the blade feels heavy on his strong hands as if Wapol's blood holds all the lives of those he slaughtered without mercy, just as all of his blood lineages now reside in Dalton's hands."Your tears of remorse will make you a good king, Dalton-san", states Umekui. He pushes on his knees and rises to his feet, facing his people with a broad back and the bloody sword raised over his head by his palms. They all gaze up at him with wide smiles and sparking eyes, then drop to one knee before him, screaming in unison."LONG LIVE, OUR GLORIOUS KING! DALTON, FIRST OF HIS NAME!"Like a brand-new fable spoken at dawn, they chant his name loud and clear. Erasing the many years of suffering caused by the name of a mad ruler, which was only shouted through tears and blood. His name, and his rule, mark the commencement of a new era in their kingdom's history.Luffy laughs wildly, his sun-like smile shining from his perch on the castle's roof.The reindeer Chopper approaches them with slow steps, his face and fur covered in tears.Dalton's lips form a wide, heartbreaking smile. His cheeks ached from smiling, but he didn't mind because the anguish felt pleasant, warm, and free.Freedom is finally there hovering above their heads and reverberating through their hearts and smiles. He thinks freedom feels good on him, like the bloody sword that only royals wield, like Luffy's laugh or the smiles of Zoro, Sanji, Ussop, and Vivi.Freedom feels like the fire exploding from Umekui as she soars far into the sky in a final dance of allegation, severing the tyrant's head and the cords of their long captivity.The navigator's orange hair rushes towards them, and before Dalton can blink, she jumps at the first mate who stands beside him. Suddenly, Sanji and Usopp, led by Zoro, leap toward their first mate.Dalton turns his head and looks at the pirates lying on the white floor. Luffy's loud voice cuts through the air, and Dalton's mouth drops open as he sees the grinning toothy of Luffy swooping down at the stacks of nakamas.With a bang, he collides with the pirate mass, causing everyone to gasp in pain and scream Luffy's name."LUFFY, YOU STUPID! You broke my nose!" Zoro yells from beneath Ussop's weight."I am going to murder you, boys! You're all suffocating me," yelled Nami."Ussop, you are breaking my hand," Umekui moans from beneath Nami."Nami sweetheart, it's Zoro and Luffy who are sticking and suffocating you! Usopp, if you broke my darling Umekui's hand, I swear I'll break all your bones!" exclaims Sanji, who is crushed beneath the combined weight of Zoro and Luffy.Dalton clears his throat, and the straw hat pirates' shouts cease as they turn to look at him. Dalton bows to them, his people and doctors following suit, gazing at them with warm eyes and a broad grin on their faces."From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you! Thank you for defeating Wapol and his troops! We shall eternally be redeemed by your glorious deeds!""Shi shi shi, no need!" smiles Luffy, looking up at his first mate's gaze--then a loud sound from his stomach prompts him to look over Dalton again. "Well, I only want a lot of meat and food!"Umekui and his nakamas laugh at his declaration before pulling each other onto their feet. Dalton lowers his face and bows to Umekui, indicating his undeniable loyalty to her.She just raises her hand to indicate him to stand wide and tall. That's what he does when he turns around, stares at the crowd, and proclaims enthusiastically:"RUNS TO THE CAPITAL AND BRINGS THEM THE NEWS THAT THE KING HAS FALLEN! AN ENORMOUS FEAST SHALL BE PREPARED FOR OUR SAVIORS!"And then the people all run down the hillside, singing and cheering at the news.Luffy's eyes light up when he spots Chopper's familiar furr. The young boy stands beside the massive castle doors, holding the witch doctor's hand."Oh, it's Monster-san!" exclaims Luffy."Who?" questions his nakamas, minus Umekui and Nami."Our new nakamas!" he says, sparkling."Our new what?" Sanji asks, his mouth wide open."We left you a few hours alone and you already converted somebody into your madness!" Usopp laments."We left him with Umekui! She could've kept an eye on him!" Zoro complained glaring over Umekui's head."Well, Luffy is old and mature enough not to make rash decisions," Umekui defends, scowling back at Zoro."Monster-san waits for me!" cracks up Luffy, sprinting after the frightened reindeer that fled inside the castle.Nami asks in a sarcastic tone, "Luffy, mature?" followed by laughter.Zoro glances at his loud, careless captain with exasperation and then asks his first mate, "What were you saying?""Nothing," Umekui sighed defeatedly, "I said nothing.."Usopp blinks as he remembers something, then goes to Nami and jumps into her arms, hugging her fervently, "Nami, you are alive and cured!"He is followed by Vivi and Sanji, who give the navigator a warm embrace, while Zoro just smirks and pats her head as if she were a cat."All thanks to Umekui! You won't believe me if I tell you she carried me and Luffy on her back while climbing the ice mountains with bare hands through a blizzard!" Nami gasps as if it were the biggest drama of the year."SHE DID WHAT!?""Why was she carrying Luffy?!" Sanji asserts, alarmed.They all look at the first mare, waiting for her response with wide eyes. Dalton and Vivi both regard her questionably.She simply shakes her hand in front of her face with a tiny smile. "Don't wor-"

Thump, thump thump.

Her voice freezes like getting choked; her palm drops over her chest, clenching her kimono tightly as if her heart is about to fall off."Umekui, are you okay?" Ussop asks, worried.She breathes out and smiles, "I'am o-".Her voice cuts off once more as she feels her body slip forward toward the floor. Arms grip her shoulders, preventing her from sinking deeper and urging her to lie over a shoulder."What did I say about your injuries? You stubborn brat!"Umekui's smile is faint, her voice wavering as she replies, "I already told you that I'm not a good patient, old hag."Kureha glances over her shoulder at Umekui's nakamas's concerned expression."Don't worry, I'll look after your first mate! So now stop acting so depressed. You all look like stray dogs left behind by their master," Kureha laughs."Who are you calling stray dogs, you s-" Zoro growls, gazing dagger at Kureha, but Nami's hand muffles his insults.Usoop, Sanji, and even Vivi offer Kureha a grateful bow for looking after their navigator and Umekui."Take great care of our first mate! We trust you, Doctorine!" Nami grins heartily as she steps firmly on Zoro's feet.Dalton cast a glimpse over Kureha's shoulder, where the first mate was lying. Then glance around to observe the pirates waving goodbye to Kureha and Umekui while listening to Luffy and Chopper's yells coming from the castle.He smiles and beams up at the sky, 'Your promised ones have found a particular crew and lovely friends, Odasaku!'Kureha's smile fades as she watches Umekui vomit and cough blood into the bucket she has supplied her.
(Roger's smile fades as he collapses in front of her, his lips spewing up blood and soaking the carpet in it. His pained expression and distressed gaze meet her troubled stare as she urgently attempts to figure out what is wrong. Trying to find a way to save him and alleviate his suffering!)
Umekui's body trembles as she wraps her arms around her abdomen, hoping that the pain will cease chewing her alive. Her painful face and vacant gaze meet Kureha's worried gaze with a broken smile."It's my punishment, Kureha," Umekui murmurs slowly, her voice distorted by how painful and swollen her throat feels."What are you not explaining to me?!" Kureha asks desperately. "If you don't tell me everything, Umekui, I can't help you! Information is precious!"Umekui pauses. She lifts her painful expression from above the bucket and leans her head against the edge of the bed. She closes her eyes and takes long, deep breaths, hoping it will not hurt (but, like always, it burns and sears her lungs)."There is something living inside me," reveals Umekui in a whisper. "Or am I the one that is living inside it? I don't know anymore-"Kureha freezes and peers over at the pirate woman sitting before her."What do you mean by something lives inside you?" Kureha replied, concerned."I think this is 'the thing' who is slowly killing me. He coils over my bones and organs as if they are his. Or how he might do or say anything and I morph into an empty vessel submitting to his desires." She shivers, her eyes trembling from a long-hidden terror.Kureha sat on the bed, seeming to be burdened by the knowledge Umekui was revealing, her eyes wide at the revelation."'No longer human' is the thing that lives inside me, inside my blood," Umekui explains, lowering her head slightly to vomit more blood into the bucket beside her. She breathes in and shuts her eyes to rest her head back."Can you imagine how it feels like to be devoured alive every second of your existence, Kureha? To feel your flesh ripped apart and mended into an endless cycle of pain-" her voice sounds distant now as she sniffs the blood flowing from her nose, "To feel your lungs rejecting oxygen and burning without allowing you a moment of rest? To feel your muscles tear and your bones shatter only to be fixed back like nothing? Only the ghostly sorrow and anguish of the wounds to prove that the agony is real and will never go away," Her throat tightens, and her hands quiver on her lap. "Tell me, Kureha—can you imagine the suffering that comes from being treated as though you're dead even when you're still very much alive? To feel someone's hands tearing apart your head and heart? to run and move with gravity dragging you back and draining your life force?" Kureha remains silent and stares at the woman before her, allowing her to release her heart and mind from the misery she is enduring. Kureha is there now, ready to listen, and if she wishes to talk till dawn, Kureha is going to listen to her.Umekui digs whatever nails remain in her palms, "It curses back and drags all those who cross my path to the pit of my mind. My ability, the entity inside me, reveals his existence through hunger. It quenches his hunger to feed on other people's abilities, dreams, and goals," She folds her arms over her knees, which were brought to her chest, and says, "My blood and power are damned. I destroy everything I touch and learn to get close to. It feeds on their darkness and light. It devours them alive, leaving behind a shattered void vessel devoid of powers, dreams, and goals. As if their existence had been nullified into a horrifying silence. And would you like to know what is the most absurd part of all this ?" she smiles, a smile so vacant and broken. Kureha nods and stares attentively at Umekui's face. She is smiling but Kureha knows that she is suffering terribly."Even while it quenches the thing's thirst, it never does for me. I always have this hole in my chest, making me feel empty and devoid of everything. The only thing keeping me alive is the agony that consumes me. No longer human is hunting for something, and I know that even if it wanders all over the world, it will never find it. What I lack, what I don’t have, no deity, no power, can restore to me. It was ripped apart; stolen, and snatched away from me; this ability replaced it. This curse-bearer embodying the pinnacle of hatred and devastation that I carry," she whispers, her gaze unfocused, yet no tears run down her cheeks.Kureha took a big breath before asking, "What is searching for 'No longer human'?"She swallows thickly, as though her next words are sharp pieces of blood: "A soul. He is looking for a soul—my soul."Kureha leaps from her seat, her eyes wide with disbelief, and looks at Umekui as if her confession was the most inconceivable thing in the world."A soul?! That's impossible! You can’t be alive if you don't have-" She halts, realizing something."I can feel and see souls, Doctorine," Umekui said, looking up over the bloody floor to the startled doctor. "Tell me, Kureha; you're a doctor. How much do you know about the significance of souls?"Kureha takes a step back and collapses back on the bed, still astonished stating, "The earliest origins of the concept of the soul are hidden in a remote past around the Age of the Sea Circle. Doctors probably lived then, as most still do, in a state of intense absorption in their surroundings. What appears to have struck these early humans most strongly was the distinction between what is alive and what is dead. This was the distinction intended to be conveyed by the original concept of the soul. Through time and observation, the soul was described as a life-principle, and as such, it was thought to leave the body upon death. The soul is an archive of emotions, desires, and attachments. It's the essence of a person.""You are correct. People who possess abilities are endowed with abilities that reside within their souls; these abilities might be gained over time or are innate ( or they can be bestowed as a curse). Dreams, desires, convictions, and beliefs are all reflections of a single soul's body, that carries its mighty. So when I kill or someone dies by my hand or ability, No longer human snatches their souls along with all that it contains-" Umekui confesses, her head down and gazing at her damaged hands."So Wapol's and his first mate's souls and powers are imprisoned inside you ?" asks Kureha.Umekui chuckles, and it has a hopeless tone to it. "Yes, and not just them. I killed so many-" she stares harshly at her hands. "There is so much blood soaking my hands and so many souls consuming me on the inside."She looks up at Kureha and smiles sorrowfully, "Isn't it ironic that I have such an ability? 'No longer human' Ha-" she laughs hopelessly, "As if my existence was banished from humanity, something void that carries no soul, no dreams, only a destructive curse."She grins, "So, Doctor Witch, can you stop the madness that is consuming me? Can you stop this thing from dragging me into the darkness? To stop the suffering that my body is enduring—""I-" Kureha lowers her head, "I don't know," she says, humility and uncertainty concealing her gaze.Umekui's grin did not diminish or fade away; it was as if she already knew her answer, "I kn-""But I'll help you! I will help you end the misery that is hurting you!" Kureha cut off, her voice is strong and insistent. She looks at Umekui confidently, with fire and trust in her eyes. "I will find a way to cure you, Umekui," Kureha vows.Umekui stands on unsteady legs and looks at her meticulously, "even if it's meaningless?""Yes.""Even it's hopeless?""Yes.""Even it's dangerous ?""Yes."Umekui chuckles, "I didn't know that old woman was this confident and immoral,"Kureha glares, "I am not an old woman, brat! I'm a fantastic doctor witch with a stunning body!""Then, good luck. For the time being, I won't allow my miserable self to hope for things that appear impossible and so far away, but-" She looks over at Kureha with a warm and kind smile, reserved for her nakama.- "I appreciate it. Thank you for not pitying me. Thank you for striving to help something as hopeless and pathetic as myself--you are a wonderful woman and doctor, Doctorine."Kureha blinks aside the tears that threaten to flow and simply grins back.Umekui advances to the door and opens it. Kureha's voice causes her to pause."And Umekui?""Yes, old hag?""What is your heart's desire for change? You have previously declined my request for help, but not now; what is your reason?" asks a curious Kureha.Without turning to face her, Umekui responds, "I once read that love gave wings to a dreamless boy. I want to survive long enough to witness my precious nakamas and captain achieve their dreams. So help me enough to preserve those wings before I fall to madness, Doctrine."She steps out and carefully closes the door behind her.'So it's for them', thought Kureha with a soft smile. She approaches her desk, opens her drawer, and pulls out familiar letters. She has to hand them over to Umekui before she sails into the sea.She has to find anything to keep Umekui's hope alive, at any cost! Kureha does not want to have another life, another name to fade and leave a trail of ashes on her tongue, another person she has let down.Roger and Hiriluk, among many others, are sting wounds that Kureha tries to forget with some alcohol. But she knows how deeply their deaths wounded her (sometimes she worries whether their blood soiled her palms since she failed to save them).She takes a deep breath every time she recalls Umekui's voice telling her about the misery she endures because of her sickness. Kureha tries hard to ignore the ache in her heart and blink away the tears since no one deserves to suffer like that, to be torn apart every second of their existence.So she promises that she will do anything to help; she can't let her go without even trying (how can she when her dear old friend's laughter rings in her mind?)Even if she needs to poison her nakamas with a concoction to keep them asleep for days so they don't go to sea until she finds out information for Umekui. Kureha will do it without hesitation.But a part of her knows that if she tried something foolish like that (like hurting the priceless nakama and wildfire of Umekui's hope), Umekui would undoubtedly slaughter Kureha. Umekui is dangerous, and everyone is aware of it; the entire world dreads her.Now that she thinks about it, Umekui never told her about Odasaku or the port mafia. Kureha, on the other hand, is reluctant to talk about it since she knows how rotten this organization is, especially its leader (Kureha will never forget the terror she felt at his bloodied eyes and face-).However, as she gazes at and speaks with Umekui, she wonders how somebody like her could've fallen into the hands of Mori and his organization. She was just a child. (She wonders if it's about the curse she's referring to--her ability, but also this entire life, which has been marked by wars, bloodshed, and murder-).Well, she is relieved to know that she has found wonderful nakama and friends. She is certain that the care and devotion of her nakamas are the only things keeping her sane right now.But first, she must search around the royal library for answers. She just has a few hours until the pirates return to the sea.With these thoughts, she sprints from her office to the library at breakneck speed.Umekui blinks a few times and glances around to ensure she hasn't transported herself to another place.The warm sunlight is streaming through the large windows of the castle, illuminating the hitherto gloomy hallways and casting a reflection on the beige carpet. Now that the light is clear and nearly all of the candles are lit, the colors on the ceiling's surface reflect onto her vision, and the fresco over the top of her head is splendid.Blue, green, and white blended together to form a sky that Umekui never imagined possible. (How could she have believed that the sky existed when it was just a forgotten tale that a madman would only sing in the shadows? How could she have imagined that one day she would stare with wide horrified eyes at a sky that existed only in that forsaken child's dreams?)Occasionally she wonders if what her eyes see and her fingertips touch can alleviate her guilt over past dreams that she has once heard. If despite her swollen hands and horrible appearance, the sea she felt, the sky she gazed at, and the grass beneath her feet. Do those experiences somewhat soothe the memories of deceased dreamers of this place?Perhaps yes. Because when she glances around the light hallways and marvels at the mural above her. She can hear the laughter, both loud and delicate, of the innocent people who lost their lives inside those walls because of Wapol's avarice. It's as if their souls have been liberated from the chains of wickedness and greed that Wapol sewed around their throats before the slaughterhouse.Perhaps, despite the havoc she has caused, despite the cruel king's blood soaking her palm. It has offered some relief to the sorrowful souls.
(Perhaps Dazai is realizing the unfulfilled promises and dreams of a dark and tragic past that still haunts her. (Maybe their dreams are still within her, waiting to be fulfilled by her. (But how can she carry and accomplish something so promising and magnificent when she is rotten from the inside and out?)).
She moves in the direction of some stairs facing a painting, bends over, and takes a seat on the second step, her hands still shaking lightly on her lap (yet even Umekui grew accustomed to the pain and the condition tearing her part; it had never stopped her from shivering and silently imploring for the agony to cease).The painting on the wall seemed to be staring at her. It appears to be a portrait of someone, but no name is marked in the painting's corners. The woman is beautiful, Umekui thought, yet something familiar emanated from her green eyes: anguish and despair. Umekui notices that despite her angelic appearance, her heart appears to be dripping blood, and her smile betrays a heartache, as though she had accepted something with a heavy soul.Her expression and smile reminded her a lot of Kana. Even though they don't appear alike, while Kana's hair is a darker shade of purple, the other woman has light-blood strawberry hair. The woman's eyes are as green as exotic island soil, while Kana's are pale amethyst. However, the resemblance is in their forlorn glance and sorrowful grin, as the grief in their hearts, has devoured them alive, leaving them with no escape from their fate. (When she looks at this woman and remembers Kana, her organs flare from the inside, and her thoughts can't help but recall the fire that burned everything to ashes, the blood drenching her palms and cheeks, and the last laugh of Kana, filled with madness as she-)She gets up from her seat and hurriedly marches into the corridors, reasoning that if she forgets the painting of this woman, the dark images that are attempting to seize her mind and heart will cease and drift back into her unconsciousness. She rises from her seat and quickly marches down the corridors, believing that if she forgets the painting of this woman, the horrible memories attempting to steal her mind and heart will stop her from falling back asleep.Arriving at the castle's wide-open doors, she immediately strides through them; the bitter cold greets her, even though she can't feel it anymore.(When she is already dying from the inside and her body is as frozen as the bodies she disintegrates along her path. The cold no longer causes her to shiver.Not when she spent her entire existence enduring the bitter cold and darkness of this realm that only foolish men call Hell. (Sometimes she wants to laugh out loud at the outrageous title--if only this void deserved a name, like the grand line called Paradise.(They dare to name it Paradise although this sea is drenched with the blood shed by their misdeeds! So Umekui wonders, if this sea is their heaven, what about this realm where she has endured from the deepest of her roots? What is this realm, where dreams and freedom are sins, merely some myths whispered in the dark?)When she reaches the edge of the cliff behind the castle, she sits down and looks out over the white, snowy landscape with a restless glance.("Look!" the orange-haired boy exclaims with awe."It's claiming that there exists an entire island of ice and snow!"
Blue eyes catch her blank gaze, then look up in wonder at the book once again."Look! Look!" he exclaims, pointing to some lines written in the book: "A region filled with sand exists and is known as the desert! So cool!!" Chuuya sparkles brightly."It must be some lies created by a stupid man," mumbles Dazai beside him, staring down at her own book.

Chuuya pouts gets on his knees, and sits alongside her against the tree, laying his book above hers. Dazai groans and attempts to push him away, but he persists and laughs."Look! There is a place where every kind of flower that may possibly grow exists!" He grinned and brought the book closer to her face.Dazai sighs and glances at his book blankly.
(Seriously, she finds no joy in learning and reading about places and nations they would never visit because no one escape from this place, this organization, especially Mori-sama).
"Let's go to those places someday!" Chuuya exclaims enthusiastically, "We will play in the snow and have a snowball fight! Then run barefoot across the sand! And-" he smiles broadly, his blue eyes sparkling, "We can make a lot of crown flowers! Ozaki-chan taught me how to do some!""We can't leave this place," whispers Dazai, peering regretfully at him."Someday we will!" exclaims Chuuya as he embraces Dazai's small hands. "I promise you, Dazai!")
Oh, Chuuya.She smiles sadly as she looks out at the snow-covered landscape before her.Who would have thought that, in the absence of you, I would see those places you so much wanted to see-'It's your fault, your fault, your fault,' yelled a voice full of rage.'It's my fault, it's my fault, my fault,' she echoes, her heart heavy with grief and guilt.-Yet who would have thought that I would still be alive?Umekui senses someone walking behind her and sitting alongside her--the soul of the lovely reindeer embers and shines like Icore."Thank you very much for rescuing my home and protecting my father's memory and jolly Roger," Chopper's soothing voice speaks.She peers down at him; he is sitting at a distance beside her, his face flushed and his ears down, as if he is too shy to express himself or look at her.He is so cute."No need to thank me," she replies quietly, returning her attention to the pristine horizon.(After all, the blood of Wapol and Shiki does not change the fact that she is a monster and murderer. Everything always ended the same way.Her hands dripped with blood, and the creature feasted their souls and powers.
It does not make her any less selfish and monstrous than she already is).
Chopper looks up sheepishly from his hands to her face and finally to the snowy horizon."I think your nakamas are pretty cool and kind," Chopper comments, his words hardly concealing his admiration for them.Umekui smiles tenderly and meets his stare with a gentle and caring stare as she thinks about them, "They are the most wonderful and lovely nakamas in the world to me. They hold greater significance than anything else in the world," confesses Umekui.His eyes shook at the devotion and loyalty she exuded as she spoke of her nakamas. Chopper understands how important they are to her; she has proven it by climbing the highest ice mountain on the island for them through blizzards and wounds. And something inside him tells him she's willing to do so much more for them.She is certainly admirable, Chopper mused with a broad smile.Chopper realizes that Umekui is the kind of woman who could carve the names of those she loves with a knife inside her heart and not even flinch at the pain.

She reminds him too much of his father.

(The way he cradled him when Chopper clawed his hands. The way he screamed at him and attacked him, assuming that he was another human attempting to hurt him, but his father embraced him and comforted him despite his wounds and harsh remarks).She is too much like his father, and Chopper is well aware of the fates befall those who resemble him (he occasionally wonders if some gods or destiny dooms those with hearts and warmth like his father. Because only they can end tragically, with sorrow coursing through their eyes and affection tinting their lips).People like his father know the pain; they grew up used to it and can conceal it beneath smiles and lovely eyes. So Chopper turns worriedly to Umekui and says, "Are you okay, Umekui?"Umekui freezes and meets his eyes, seemingly taken aback by his question. "I'm fine. For what reason are you asking?""You appear to be hurt by something on the inside," Chopper murmurs, glancing down at his lap. "Did Doctorine not tell you or did anything to help you?""Doctorine is a good doctor, I don't doubt that but-" She pauses and exhales as if she was scorched by something. "Sometimes doctors can't help everyone,"After he confessed, his eyes widened and he stared at her, tears threatening to spill and stain his fur."No!" he shouts. "Doctors can help everyone!"She gives him a wide-eyed look, startled to see how emotional he got at her remarks."Even a monster?" she claims quietly.Chopper blinks and gives her a confused look, "It's impossible, Umekui, you can't be a monster! You are too pretty for that!"Umekui pauses, glances at him, and peers at the sky before laughing heartily."No way! You are far prettier than I am!" she grins."No! I'm an animal! I can't be pretty!" He shoots back.She raises her eyebrows at him, "And who suggested that? Who was stupid enough to think that?"He looks up at his lap and bites his upper lip firmly, keeping himself from trembling. "They told me that something like me is too ugly for this world! That I'm a monster because of my blue nose!" he whispers, but Umekui hears him perfectly.She remains silent for a few seconds before smirking as if she has a brilliant idea and stares at him with her bright ruby eye."Let's play a game, Chopper," she offers.Chopper's adorable eyes stare up curiously, his long lashes delicately caressing his soft fur."A game?" he mutters, then nods at her after a moment's reflection."Draw a monster in your head," she says, lowering her face closer to him as if she is revealing the world's secrets, "and explain to me what he looks like this and the reason why it represents a monster!"Chopper gives her an odd look, tilting his head in response to her strange game."Go! Close your eyes and do it!" urges Umekui.Chopper obeys her and closes his eyes for a few moments before opening them to meet Umekui's intrigued gaze and friendly grin."So what does it look like?" she inquires.Chopper examines his hands before declaring, "He is big, bigger than the castle, and has a scary smile with sharp teeth that could break anything, even rocks."Then he looks up at her bravely "And he has such large, scary, black eyes, and long arms with long nails that can pierce through anything, even walls! And he looks like he hasn't showered in years, and he's cold and gross!""And why is he a monster?" Umekui asks softly, staring down at his lovely eyes."He is a monster because he destroys everything by killing everyone and eating them like they're dessert! He is a monster because he is cruel to innocent people, stealing their homes and food. He is a monster because he harms the weak and powerless! He is a monster because he is evil!" he exclaims, his eyes welling with tears.(In Chooper's mind, all he can think about is this arrogant monster who brutally murdered his father.He remembers the pirates who stole so much from his homeland while cowering in the castle, listening to the innocents' cries and shouts.He remembers the humans who imprisoned him like a wild animal and tried to kill him ruthlessly. Above all, he remembers his family's comments and the skull fracturing his bones, abandoning him alone and injured on the icy ground)."Well, did you ever do what this monster did, Chopper?" Umekui says quietly.Chopper immediately shakes his head, "Never!""I could never hurt people!" His throat tightens and his eyes well up with tears, he continues, "My dream is to become the greatest doctor in the world, so I can cure anything! I want people to be alive and happy! I want to see children laughing and singing as they look up at the sky with hope! What I want is to bring joy and health into people's lives!" Chopper concludes, his voice loud and clear, propelled by a burning will in his heart.("Tell me, Akiko, do you have a dream?" Dazai asks from her small white bed, looking up at the girl standing in front of her.
Akiko's pink eyes meet her red eyes; despite their young ages, their stare appears depleted and tired, as if the world is consuming them alive.

Akiko nods and hums gently as she bandages Dazai's head under Mori's orders.

"What is it?", Dazai wonders again, this time with curiosity. Akiko blinks since this is the first time Dazai has given her attention or interest for this long.

"My dream is to become the greatest doctor in the world, so I can cure anything in the world," Akiko declares gently.

Dazai looks up at her, her gaze dull and expressionless, "It seems quite impossible, right?"

Akiko tilts her head and asks, "And why is that?"

Dazai just smiled. Yet in Akiko's eyes, the smile seems so bitter and sorrowful, "Because it would mean that you would have to cure me too. And we're both aware that it's impossible, right?

Akiko's smile fades.)
Umekui's smile fades."To be able to cure anything in the world?" she seeks out.Chopper nods happily and looks up at the sky, as the sunset descends."Yes! This is my dream!"Umekui conceals her quivering hands and returns the smile to her face before Chopper knows it has vanished."What an amazing dream. I don't doubt that you'll achieve it!" Umekui flashes a soft smile."You mean it?" he asks, glancing timidly at the floor."Yes. Of course, who would ever doubt an adorable doctor and reindeer like you?"(If Chopper has to accomplish his dream and Kureha couldn't help her in fueling that hope. Then she would simply kill herself so that Chopper could cure anyone (how dare she ruin his dream by enduring her cursed existence?)He flushes like a schoolgirl praised by her crush: "Don't think your compliments make me happy!"(They are making him so happy that Chopper thinks his heart may burst from happiness!)She smirks and brings her face closer to meet his dark pink stare, "You are so pretty, Chopper, and your blue nose is so unique and lovely! You are the most pretty reindeer and doctor in the world; kindly keep this between us otherwise Doctorine will kick my ass!"Chopper's fur and face turned red as if he had been splashed with red paint, while he sneered at her, "Stop saying this! Is this a ruse to get me to join your captain's crew!"Umekui chuckles, "Do you genuinely believe I need words to lure you to join my captain's crew? There are more methods like simply kidnapping you—" Chopper gasps in panic, which makes her chuckle even harder. "But I will never lie about you, Chopper! I truly meant every word."He covers his smile behind his grunt and stares back at her, annoyed, "Luffy is annoying--he keeps chasing me and never tires! And he keeps calling me "monster" as if it were the most awesome and cool thing in the world!""Well my captain has a different perception of monsters than the rest of the world," Umekui explains."What do you mean?" asks Chopper, head tilted."He thinks monsters are cool and strong! And rare and amazing because they can do a lot and beat many people. and, most importantly, eat a lot of food, but I'm certain that no one can beat Luffy when it comes to meats and food!" Umekui adds, drawing circles on the white ground. "He even told me the world would be boring without monsters!"Chopper gasps and stares at Umekui as if Luffy is the weirdest and stupidest guy in the world (he is)."Why would he say something like that? Is he dumb?"Umekui grins. "Do you want to hear the most strange and hilarious thing he revealed to me?"Chopper nods suspiciously."He has always dreamed of having a monster as a friend!""Friends?" Chopper murmurs. (Chopper has no friends, a fact he has accepted for years because, after all, who wants to be friends with an ugly monster with a blue nose?)Umekui nods and smiles, "We are friends, You and I, Chopper, right? I hope you'll allow my captain and nakama to offer the same for you."Tears stream from his eyes and smear his fur, making his lip sway.(He has a friend?)He smiles broadly, mouth tasting his tears, and looks up at the lovely face of Umekui.
'Father, I have a friend! Did you see that?'

(A familiar booming laugh comforts his soul as it bounces through his heart.)
"But I'm an animal!" he weeps. (I’m a monster!)"And?" Umekui shrugs and smiles, "My friend is a wonderful doctor reindeer with a beautiful blue nose! It will be an honor to have you as my nakama!"Chopper sniffs and stares up at Umekui, his eyes filled with tears."With me and Luffy at your side. No one will ever hurt you or say hurtful things to you, Chopper," Umekui vows.All he does is nod and weep, as the first mate gives him a gentle smile.
("Do not worry, my son. No one will ever hurt you again if you are by my side," Hiriiluk promises, cradling Chopper's cheeks in his warm hands.)

Indeed, she is too much like his father.

Like a north star, Usopp spotted his first mate. He swiftly runs at her through the snow, covers her back, and shouts:"Umekui, protect me!"Before she could ask what was going on, a huge ball of snow crashed on her face.Nami and Vivi, who were seated slightly distant with a steaming cup of chocolate in their hands, gasped in concern. Sanji calls out her name, alarmed, and hurries to her side.While Zoro smirked and laughed out loud his other hand held a snowball, the weapon of crime, ready to toss the other ball at her face.Ussop gulps and prepares to flee behind Nami and Vivi. But Umekui's hands grip the hood of his coat tightly, preventing him from fleeing her. When Zoro throws the second snowball, she hurls him in front of him like a shield, and when it smacks him fast and hard, he howls in pain.Umekui smirks and stares down at him: "That will teach you,"He fiercely points at her and says, "You-you are evil!""Awww, is Ussop crying?", Umekui taunts."Stop making a fool of me!" He rapidly picked some snow off the floor, but before he tried to throw it at her, Sanji's leg struck him hard on his skull."How dare you use Umekui-chan like that!" Sanji yells, stepping hard on Usopp's face with his feet.Nami and Vivi giggle aloud at the sight before hiding their giggles and grins at Usopp's glare.Zoro approaches them smirking, mocking Ussop. Then he removes his orange scarf from his neck and tosses it at Umekui's face.She grabs the scarf and gives him a confused look."Put it! We don't want you to get sick; it was a pain in the ass to bring the witch here to be treated," grumbles Zoro."Hey! I heard you!" yells Nami from where she sits."And?" glared Zoro at her. "It's not like I fear you, thief witch!""What did you say?!" shrieks Nami standing from her position, but Vivi's arms enveloped her waist, preventing her from charging at Zoro."Let me go! I'll disciple him nicely, this cactus!" Nami curses over Vivi's shoulder.Umekui affectionately gazed at the scarf in her hands before examining Zoro's face. She wrapped the scarf over her and smiled at the scent of Zoro."Don't speak like that to Nami-san, Shitty bastard!"Sanji launches two massive snowballs at Zoro, sending him to crash on his back. Ussop snickers from his position, sniffing the blood streaming from his nose, as Nami laughs wildly at Zoro."Well done, Sanji!" Nami shouts as she throws him a flying kiss.Sanji's face heats up, as smoke spews from his ears. Then he turns to smile warmly at his first mate, pulls for his yellow scarf, and ties it around her neck."There, Umekui-chan! It's freezing today!" He whispers as he ties the scarf around her neck to prevent it from slipping.Her smile faded into something indescribably tender, soothing the bright red in her pupil. The veil of coldness in her gaze and heart melted, allowing the affection of her nakamas to seep into her gaze and embrace her organs.
("There, Dazai." grins warmly Odasaku as he adjusts Dazai's coat. "It's raining today I don't you to fall sick."

"It's not a stupid cold that will kill me," the short girl with black hair scoffs, oblivious to the way her ears start to heat up.)
She bends her head forward and gently rests it on Sanji's surprisingly soft shoulder. The scent of smoke and exquisite vanilla flooded her senses and soothed her in a way that made her forget the agony in her flesh and the taste of blood on her tongue.Sanji stays still, breathes softly, and melts against her as Umekui's forehead strokes the curve of his neck."I'm back, Sanji," Umekui murmurs lightly, with a slight smile curling across her scarlet lips.His eyes widen, and a quivering breath escapes from his mouth.("And wait for us safely. Wait for me. I'm right there," she says, pointing to the castle on the giant ice mountain. "We promised each other, huh? So I'm coming back once Nami has been healed.")"Welcome back, Umekui," Sanji whispers, laying his forehead over the top of her head, praying that his words will cling to her bones and heart.She truly does like them, thought Umekui.(She is so scared, and terrified because Umekui is aware of how her tale will end (everything Umekui grows to love will ultimately be cursed by her filthy blood)."REINDEER, WHERE ARE YOU?" shouts Luffy as he leaps over them from the castle entrance.While running, he didn't realize Ussop and Zoro were still on the floor and trod hard on their stomachs, causing them to gasp in pain."Luffy, you're scaring the poor reindeer by chasing him all over the castle," Nami sighed as she approached him, Vivi, close by her side.Umekui and Sanji turn around to gaze while Luffy ignores Nami's words and shouts for Chopper to come out.Zoro and Ussop rise from the floor, brush away the snow from their hair and faces, and grumble as they approach them."Luffy, stop it, you're making my ears bleed," moans Ussop.Luffy ignores him."MONSTER-SAN! COME OUT!" Luffy urges.Zoro huffs and turns to face Umekui."Make him stop. The reindeer does not want to be a pirate," he argues with a frown.Umekui smiles prettily as she offers him her middle finger and glances at Luffy, who is lying there on the snow, shaped into a star."He's not doing anything wrong," Umekui remarks."Yosh. Let's catch him and kidnap him!" Luffy brightens as if it were the most amazing idea in the world that his mind could come up with.With wide eyes, Vivi gasps and asserts, "Luffy-san, you can't kidnap people like that!""Why? Is it wrong, Ume?" Luffy asks, standing up from the floor and turning, staring up at his first mate with adorable eyes."YES!" shouts his nakamas."No," Umekui beams at his puppy's eyes, "If you demand, I will help you in kidnapping him!""Of course, she'd agree it's Luffy after all," Zoro complains, rubbing his head. Already worn out from their troubles.Nami tries to strike Umekui's head with a fist, but she quickly ducks it with a chuckle, "Umekui, don't help him with his stupid ideas!!""Hey, my ideas are not stupid!" Luffy protests."They are!" Ussop and Sanji both argue."Of course not; they are excellent as always, my captain!" Umekui says as she nods."Ughhh, stop encouraging him, Umekui!" Nami exclaims, infuriated by her captain and first mate.Umekui whistles and looks up to the sky, avoiding Nami's glare."CHOPPER! LET'S BE PIRATE TOGETHER!" Luffy bellows into the skies.A small figure emerges from behind the castle and approaches them. Their little paws move lightly and silently over the snowy ground. The reindeer halt and glare at them, especially Luffy, from a distance ahead."Reindeer!" Luffy sparkles, "Let's be pirates together, okay?!""It won't be possible!" he murmurs, but Luffy hears him."Yes, since it's so fun!" Luffy proclaims with an infectious smile."It's impossible!" He shouts harshly this time, his little shoulders shaking. "I indeed want to be a pirate," he confesses softly, "but I am a reindeer! I am a monster! I cannot be a pirate! So thank you for everything, but... "he sniffs, "I can-"Luffy laughs heartily and dazzlingly. Large, wide eyes gaze at Chopper with an unequaled greatness. The straw hat pirate smiled broadly at him and extended his hand to him."SHUT UP! THERE IS NOTHING WRONG ABOUT BEING AN MONSTER! SO JOIN ME, CHOPPER, AND LET'S REALISE OUR DREAM!"Tears stream down his cheeks as he recalls the selfless pirates' unmistakable kindness and awe toward him.
("Let me tell you a secret, my son," Hiriluk says softly, leaning down to Chopper's head.Chopper looks into his father's lovely old blue eyes, and the nostalgia and regret in them breaks his heart.

"Throughout my long life, I promised myself that I would never die with any regrets. But I know this is a lie. Because I had one that I know I'll never have," he says, his shaking palms stroking softly Chooper's face."The pirate life," he breathes. These words appear to reflect the long-lost dream that his father longed to fulfill.)
"Is it really okay for me to join your crew?" Chopper asks with a broad smile as his eyes get blurry with tears.Luffy merely laughs, his loud laughter filling Chopper's soul with comfort."Of course, Chopper," replies Umekui.
("With me and Luffy at your side. No one will ever hurt you or say hurtful things to you, Chopper," Umekui vows.)
Chopper's tears deepen, and he gives a strong nod through his blurry eyes and damp cheeks."Let's be pirates together, okay?!""Okay!" he says, with a broad grin on his face and tears in his pink eyes.(A pink soul steps into her cocoon of devotion; it hovers with the other five warm souls, the darkness surrounding them providing protection and a promise to keep them safe even in the grip of tragedy.)

"Oh. When you love it!"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Darling, dearest, dead."

Observing his men, who are carrying food and furnishings into the pirate's ship, Dalton smiles graciously at the woman with black hair who is standing next to him."Dalton-san," Umekui says quietly, standing together with him."Yes, Umekui?" asks Dalton, peering at her (her eyes seem to be fixed on the sea in the vicinity of them as if the ocean captured all of the warmth she once felt)."Do you realize what it means now that Wapol and his men have been killed?" she inquires carefully.He stays still but his grin never fades (he had been waiting so long for the freedom to bring his smile back so it would not go now!)."Yes," he says quietly, his fists tightly closed."I know a way to avoid the trials," she claims, glancing up at his dark gaze, then smiles as she observes her captain playing in the snow with Usopp and Chopper."What?! How?" he screams, staring at her with broad eyes."Listen to me carefully," Umekui said. "After I and my nakama depart Drum island, you will need to dial the nearest marines office-"Dalton gasps, looks at her with panicked eyes, and cuts her with a shriek."The Marines! They are the hounds of the world government; why would I call them that? The intent is to avoid the trials of the world gover-"."Shut up," Umekui cuts him off abruptly. She turns her deadly crimson glare on him, causing him to shiver and squeal (after all, this woman slaughtered a king and a knight in the blink of an eye). "I'm the one who is making the instructions."Nodding, Dalton lets her know that he will now pay attention to her."You will call them and repeat the exact words, "Dazai had murdered the king and his entire army.""Dalton froze and took a step back from her, his body shaking with fear."You-" he extends a shaky finger, "you are 'the Dazai'?"It is impossible. She cannot be her, right? She can't be the woman whose mere mention causes every nation to panic. She can't be the world's monster, submerged in the blood of all the wars, massacres, and disappearances she cause.She doesn't appear anything like he expected her to be; when he was by Wapol's side, he remembered his king pursuing this woman whose head could elevate him to the position of a world ruler.A woman whose mysterious and tremendous abilities make all greedy men salivate at the prospect of capturing it in their grasp. She cannot be the woman who hails from an organization that makes children flee from fear and elders to weep out in terror.Dazai, the devil's child, the prodigy mafia—Dalton heard an abundance of names and titles concerning her. But how come she's there with a crew of nameless pirates? How can she be the promised one Odasaku informed him about? (yet Dalton knows absolutely nothing regarding this man who promised him the freedom of his kingdom in a future Dlaton never conceived).Umekui, or Dazai. Dalton doesn't know what to label it anymore. Smiles and winks."Yes. Don't I look monstrous enough to be Dazai, for you?" she asks.No. Not all.Dalton did not have a description of Dazai. Only his king and Shiki were aware of her because it was highly classified information.However, Dalton wonders why, if Dazai is the monster that the world fears, his cowardly king does not fear her. Why shouldn't he tremble in fear at the sound of her name?It's strange as if he knew things about her that only those in his circle knew. (All the royalty who coated in the gold of the poorest and smiled with fangs engrossed in the shed blood of the innocent!)But. Between the woman smiling before him, her gaze tinged with darkness and Wapol's wicked laugh and cruel eyes. Dalton is aware, that Wapol would be the sole monster in his view.He tries desperately to quiet his erratic heart, and the dread strikes him (how could he be terrified of the woman who freed his homeland!("She killed him! Slaughter a king before your eyes! You should be afraid!" yells a part of his consciousness))."Do they know?" he enquired."They know the name but not its meaning," she calmly responds, her gaze shifting to her nakama frolicking in the snow."So, as I previously stated, you'll need to inform them of this. Of course, if they question you if I was alone, you will say, "Yes, and Dazai informed us that Crocodile ordered her to kill the king of Drum Island". And claims that you have been chosen as the next ruler to ensure the land's well-being and future," Umekui states."Crocodile? The sea warlord who chased Princess Vivi out of the Alabasta kingdom?" gasps Dalton.Umekui merely nods."Your accusation will be confirmed by false testimony of your people and doctors. You're going to tell them that I killed Wapol and gave Crocodile the head, of course, but you have no idea why, and the Marines will take care of the rest. They will send a swarm of marines to check the area and, of course, discover the hidden corpses of Wapol and his men, but the head will be missing, certifying your claim," adds Umekui, her voice sharp and serious."How are you so sure that I won't betray you and tell them the truth?" Dalton wonders."I know you're not stupid, Dalton, so avoid asking stupid questions," she states, giving him a displeased expression before answering with a sigh. "Do you honestly think they would believe you if you revealed to them every atrocity that Wapol inflicted against you and the citizens of Drum Kingdom? Do you really think they'll believe that Wapol, who comes from a royal heritage, could do such atrocities against humanity?" she scoffs. "Don’t be a fool, Dalton. If they learn that you have started a revolution against your own king, they will murder you and slaughter all of the residents on this island, eliminating all witnesses."His fist trembles beside him, as he absorbs the reality with bitterness. She gave him a sideways glance and smiled (so void and mournful)."Dalton, did you already forget what world we dwell in? Did you forget who truly rules this hideous world?" She chuckles idly. "Those who reside above us are incapable of delivering forth justice. Accept it, Dalton."He knows.He had accepted it a long time ago. From the cries of the innocent resonating through the miserable cells of Wapol's castle. From the blood that stained his hands and Wapol's face as he laughed, mocking him for flinching. From the voices begging him to save their loved ones and the children imploring him to save their fathers.He bit his lip. He already acknowledged that justice would never be brought to his land by those who rule over them with avarice and wickedness."But," she whispers again. "Remember, Dalton, in our world, justice is a weapon. Justice could only be served against a monster through a bigger monster. Sometimes we can only thrive blood through blood, fire through fire, and evil against evil. So, if you wish to protect this kingdom over which you have fought so long, keep him out of the hands of the world control. You're going to follow my instructions to the letter. Do we agree this time?" she asks, staring hard at him, indicating that if he lies to her, she will find out."It's a deal," Dalton replies with a nod.He stuck out his hand for Umekui to shake.She smirks and looks down at his hand, "Do you know what it means to shake hands with the devil to accept a deal?"He chills and withdraws his hand, staring at her with terrified eyes, waiting for her to demand something like his soul or life (Dalton can't since he has a kingdom and a future to preserve!).She laughs lightly, making Dalton blush. He can't help himself since Umekui's laugh is so soft and lovely, and it's unusual to hear such a wonderful laugh from someone like Dazai.(But when he looks at this woman, whose smile may melt the ice on his country. And, whose eyes are filled with tenderness and devotion to her nakamas and captain, he is unable to view her as the Dazai that the world dreads. She can love and protect, which a monster like Wapol could never manage!)"Don't worry, you are not selling your soul to me," she quips, then smiles as she gently takes his hand in hers. "After all it has waited long years to be free from the suffering that plagued your home, right?" she says softly.Shaking her hand slowly, he lets his fingertips learn every line on her hand and fingers because it was her hands that killed the king and set them free ('but she had killed so much more').He smiles warmly at her. She withdraws her hand and prepares to walk where her captain is calling out her name excitedly."Protect your home at any cost, Dalton," she started marching down the snow before pausing to stare up at a particular hill with a slight smile, "A new kingdom deserves a new name, don't you think?"She gave him a wink and started marching down the cliff, waving to her nakamas to let them know she was coming. She looks back at the castle and smiles. But this time there was a sense of tragedy surrounding it, as if she had accepted something that kept weighing on her.She shakes her head lightly and keeps strolling."COME ON UME!" smiles Luffy, with Chopper on his shoulder and waving cheerfully at their first mate.The remaining nakamas and Princess Vivi have already boarded the ship, waiting for the rest of their nakama to join them.But as Umekui got closer to her nakama's spot. A flying broom and Kureha's loud blasting laugh resound as she soars over Umekui's head, grabs her by the waist, tosses her over her lap, and then rapidly flies to her castle with Umekui in her arms.Dalton's mouth drops open and he blinks to ensure that this is not an odd nightmare.The pirate's mouth drops wide, and Usopp yells in panic. Kureha cracks up loudly from her broom, speeding toward her castle with the first mate on her lap."THE WITCH HAS KIDNAPPED UMEKUI!" Usopp cries out, dashing all over the deck in distress."DOCTORINE!" Chopper shouts, taken aback by his mother's behavior.Luffy's face turns bright red as he sprints across the cliff in pursuit of Kureha."OLD HAG GIVE ME BACK MY FIRST MATE!"Zoro and Sanji jump off the deck and follow Luffy with a curse."WHAT THE HELL IS THE PROBLEM OF THIS WITCH!""UMEKUI-CHAN! WAIT FOR ME, I'M COMING TO RESCUE YOU!"Nami shouts a frustrated screech before jumping from the deck, grabbing Chopper, carrying him in her arms, and sprinting after them. With a panicked shout, Usopp leaps off the deck and pursues his nakamas."WAIT FOR ME GUYS! DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE!" Vivi blinks from her seat on the deck, alone, and stares upward at the screaming outraged pirate. Dalton motions for her to come to his side, and she hops from her spot and approaches him with a smile."You've discovered a particular group of pirates," Dalton admits.She looks to the far back of the sprinting pirates in the snow and smiles gently, "Indeed they are.""You have approximately fifteen minutes until Luffy breaks through the castle's doors. Seventeen minutes before Zoro curses you, causing Sanji to punch him in the face. Nineteen minutes before Nami and Usopp yell at you, although the latter will undoubtedly be hiding behind Nami's back. And Chopper to cry because the poor boy was pulled into this mess," Umekui states, sitting on the floor with crossed legs and peering at the imaginary watch on her wrist."Shut up," Kureha grumbles as she searches through her belongings in her chamber.Umekui tilts her head and rests it on her hand, supported by her leg."What are you doing?" she inquires."Shut up, question later, brat!" grumbles Doctorine from beneath her desk. "There!" she cracks madly as she leaps from beneath the desk, a red book in her hands.She quickly opens it and, seeing the page she was looking for, flashes a smile, jumps over Umekui, and puts the book on her lap."I have found a way to save you, Umekui!" Kureha smiles, her hands on her waist, gazing down at Umekui."If it's some jock, I'll cut your tongue," Umekui said, looking up at her.Kureha raises her leg at Umekui, but she dodges it. "Read it before glaring at me like a mad dog, brat!"Umekui sighs then looks down at the book, reading the words as her eye twitch. She glances back at Kureha with a terrified expression, as if whatever she has read is both absurd and unbelievable."You're implying that a devil fruit can save me?" Umekui asks, her voice dense and odd as if something was growing within her throat.Kureha brightens as if she has discovered the key to her elixir, "The Ope Ope no Mi can save you, Umekui!""Do you ever hear when a patient speaks to you about his issues?" Umekui growls, getting up and dropping the book to the floor."Of course, I'm the greatest doctor in the region!" Kureha scoffs."Then what don't you understand that another power can't work on me since it will be nullified ?!" She grabs Kureha's coat with shaking fingers and snarls, "Is this some game that you're playing, Doctorine?"It's been so long that rage hasn't marked her mind.(The last time she felt it, fire burst from her body, her mad laugh dripped in blood, and the abyss of sorrow raged within her in chaos).But now she's fucking enraged, and the thing is urging her to burn to death Doctorine. How could she mock her like that? How could she laugh at her despairing hope? After all, Umekui confessed through hesitant eyes and a thick voice.The way she has peeled out her flesh and every layer of the lies she feeds to her nakamas, to Doctorine.( HOW DARE SHE? HOW DARE SHE??!!!!)She wants to scream and cry. She can't because Umekui is cursed. She has been doomed to bear this hole inside her for the rest of her life, and this mad doctor mocks it as if it were nothing! That a silly devil fruit could save her?!She confessed. She sold to Kureha something she had once held dear and a portion of herself that disappeared with Odasaku.

(TO ONLY BE MOCKED BACK LIKE A FOOL !?)

(She wants to murder her, kills her, and laughs as she swallows her dreams, goals, and every fucking memory!).She peeled her rotten flesh in front of Kureha, thinking that the woman Odasaku had chosen would be able to help her. (Hahahaha, what did she think? Did she honestly believe that a monster like her could be helped? Umekui Dazai deserves to be burned in the fire of Hell and punished for her crimes! Help is not sold to miserable creatures like her (who lick their deadly blood in the dark).Layer by layer, she has revealed the thousand agonies she is going through in the darkness, only to have her hope crushed by the voices mocking and laughing at her like a circus beast.(THE VOW WAS BROUGHT, AND YOUR BLOOD WAS CURSED, FOOLISH GIRL!) DAZAI, DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI!)"Listen to me, brat!" Kureha yells, the veins on her forehead shaking with rage over Umekui's idiotic outburst.She grabs Umekui's hair and brings her face closer to her to ensure that this foolish brat listens to her."Did you really expect me to give you an absurd solution?! Do you honestly think I'll let you down like that?" Kureha croaks, her eyes swelling with unshed tears.She tightly grips Umekui's shoulders, her nails piercing into her flesh."A hundred people died by my fault because I let them down," she confesses, guilt coursing through her veins. "Hirikuk! Roger! A hundred names and faces followed them into the arms of death because I could not save them!" she shakes Umekui's shoulders, tears streaming down her cheeks.Kureha cannot fail again.She would never forsake those who seek her help again.(She can't even sleep at night without remembering the cries and sobs of her citizens yearning to be saved by a doctor! She couldn't even save them since Kureha was still hiding from the hunt that Wapol had led, his wicked voice cursing her name!)She failed to save Hiriluk.(Oh, dear Hiriluk, whose hope was the embers that kept Kureha going all those years!).She let him die, sacrificing his life for Chopper's better future. He died alone, his laugh the only thing she could hear through her tears and grief. (And this night, she drank everything she could find in the hope maybe in her dreams, the warmth and smile of her kind friend would be there to cradle her shattered heart).She failed him, with time conspiring against her as death hooks dragged him apart from her and their son.She was powerless against Roger's disease, gazing with broad pupils as he accepted his demise with honor (where is the honor, she wanted to shout as she learned about his death through a fucking paper?!The fall of the pirate King; they have written.Where is the fall when his legacy is carved on the hearts of pirates like Luffy? Where is the fall when Roger's smile shines and reflects in Luffy's smile and laughter? Where is the fall when the will that flows through his veins boils through Luffy's soul?)She is tired of letting people sink into death's arms. She is tired of ignoring how her blood roars at her and ridicules her for her mistakes.(How can the world regard her as the greatest doctor it has ever welcomed when her hands are covered in the blood of innocents?!How is it possible for someone with her level of intelligence and medical skills to be among the best doctors in the world and still be unable to save the lives of those who seek her help? How could she be the greatest when the pain creeps into her bones and heartbreak rattles her soul?)So it is selfish on her behalf. If she's being selfish by seeking solace in Umekui Dazai. To find redemption in Umekui, then let it be. If, in the end, she can embrace the loss of those she failed with a light heart and bring back to life her dead heart through Umekui Dazai's grin and laugh of acceptance.Then Kureha is willing to do anything for her. She is willing to turn her back on the entire world to help Umekui Dazai.(How could she not? How can she not grasp Umekui's hands when agony grips her flesh and twists her inside in the deepest torment possible?And she thinks, how many people had hit away the hands that Dazai held out in the past?). "I CAN'T LET YOU DOWN LIKE I DID TO THEM! I PROMISE THAT I WILL HELP YOU UMEKUI! SO PLEASE LISTEN TO ME!" Kureha shouts through tears, shaking Umekui's shoulders in the hopes that this brat will listen to her.Umekui stops, watching Kureha's tears-stained cheeks and the desperation in her voice, her rage slowly fading away from her.She falls back on her buttocks, causing Kureha to tumble to the floor with her. She blinks down at the floor and returns her gaze to Kureha, then laughs quietly. It has a bittersweet yet pleasant tone."I'am listening to you, Kureha." She gazed at her with her ruby eye, fascination in it. "Tell me your genius solution,"Kureha let out the breath she had been holding. She smiled, matching Umekui's."So I am not going to lie, but there will be a risk," she began, her hand twitching slightly before squeezing it in a fist above her lap. "First, here's my theory on the two hearts you're carrying. You told me that 'no longer human' steal abilities and souls from their victims, correct?"Umekui nods, intrigued by Kureha's theories."So, let's see," she says, moving her hands as if to form a sphere. "If we assume that no longer has consciousness and a drive to devour and feed on souls and powers, as you claim. It acts like an organism that requires feeding to grow, it must have a core, right?" Kureha asks, and Umekui nods again."This core is undoubtedly the heart that you are carrying. So we need to extract it," Kureha says. Umekui's eyes widen at the proposal and she nods to show Kureha that she is listening."You told me that powers do not affect you because they'll be nullified by your ability-your blood," she says, her gaze narrowing at Umekui. "You lied to me about it," Kureha states calmly, her gaze scolding Umekui.Kureha cut Umekui off before she could say anything to defend herself."Wh-""Your injuries and scars," Kurea started, narrowing her attention on Umekui's body, "were lethal wounds, particularly those on your chest above your heart. Any surgeon or doctor could see it, and a simple surgery could never have saved you; it is impossible." She reacts bluntly, "So how is it possible?"Umekui's voice comes to a halt in her throat; she takes long breaths before uttering the truth."I have a possibility of 1% for an ability to work on me-" she said, her hands twitching. "The requirement it's for the bearer to have his heart stopped, allowing the patient to die."Kureha freezes. Umekui revealed a method that knocked out her breath. Her throat rumbles as a sudden bitter fear strikes her to the core."You are telling me that you died-" Kureha cries out."If only," Umekui chuckles as something empty fills the air. "No. We merely destroyed me to fix me, as he used to say. If only it had healed the scars so that I was the only one who knew about them, hidden beneath my skin. Hell, I'm sure she could have done it, but he preferred to watch me hide them, cowering behind my scars and wounds like an abused doll. It gives him joy to see me like that," Umekui concludes with a blank smile."Mori," Kureha whispers, spitting at the word with fury and hate.Umekui's eyes widen at the name, and then she smiles, wiping the surprise from her face because, after all, the entire world knows this name. He held a few impressions of the world.(To know that something like her curled at the feet of this man like a ruined beast makes her want to scream and rage). "Akiko's ability, 'Thou shall no die'. is the one that mended my wounds and retrieved me to life every time," she reveals. "Being a corpse is the sole means for a power to operate on me, and the 1% chance of survival is only feasible for only five minutes. When the brains die, it'll be too late," she states.Kureha confirms, "It's a cerebral embolism. A blood clot plugs an artery, starving tissues of oxygen. The brain is extremely hungry for oxygen, and the heart is the sole structure that gives it oxygen through the blood; after five minutes at room temperature, brain cells die, and you pass away. I had my notion, which is why I told you that it had risks-"Kureha glances out her windows as she hears Luffy yelling and sprinting through the rest of the cliff. She rushes to her desk, pulling out a few letters and two bags from beneath it."In the bag, you will find a few medicines that I prescribed to you, as well as the precision written on paper. Those medications could be fatal to you if you do not follow my instructions, so I trust you to read and apply them correctly!" She throws the red bag on Umekui's lap. Then squat in front of her and hold out the letters. "There. Odasaku wrote and sent me letters; some were addressed to me, while the remainder were dedicated to you." She takes Umekui's icy palm in her old hand, lays the letters, and puts her warm palm over them, smiling softly at the shocked Umekui. "He wanted you to read them. That was probably the last thing he wanted to offer you before passing away because he knew you were coming," she muses."I will not ask you how he died until you are ready to tell me, and I will listen to you. Always." She grins affectionately and reaches her hand to pat Umekui's head."But I know he died by your side because that's what he always wanted to do. To die in the arms of someone he unconditionally loved." She grabs Umekui's arms and pulls her on her feet, forcing her to stand up high.Zoro and Sanji's screams could be heard outside, followed by Nami, Usopp, and Chopper's cries."In the bag, you will find a Den Den Mushi, as well as my phone number, which is written on all of the papers I gave you. Your annoying nakamas arrived, so I couldn't continue our conversation, so call me if you're ready to hear the rest of the plan. Call me, and I will answer. Always."She drags Umekui over to the window by her shoulders."Now go, brat! Set sail with your nakamas! Please look after Chopper! My son's heart is fragile; he has already been hurt enough, so please protect his scars from our cruel world, Umekui."Kureha's hands quiver over Umekui's shoulders as she speaks about Chopper.Kureha's leg breaks her immense window opens. Umekui turns and firmly wraps her arms around Kureha's waist."Thank you for everything, Doctorine," she whispers softly.Kureha sniffs out the tears that are about to fall, grabs Umekui's shoulders, and throws her out the windows.Arms stretch and curl around Umekui's waist."I HAVE FOUND YOU, UME!" Luffy raves, embracing Umekui in his arms."Go, brat! Go and take your annoying nakamas with you before I capture you all!" Kurahe yells from her windows, throwing all of her scissors and blades at them.Luffy laughs loudly, dodges a knife, turns around, and sprints away from Kureha's castle.In his arms, Umekui grins.Kureha hops on her broom, knives and swords in hand, and chases the pirates, flinging her weapons at them.Zoro and Sanji stop short in their pursuit when they see their captain and his first mate reaching them. They scream and turn back, racing quickly in the direction of their ship, upon seeing the sparkling swords and knives that the witch is hurling from her broom."THE WITCH IS ATTACKING!" Zoro yelled, fleeing Doctorine's wrath.Nami yells as she sees her nakamas running toward her at breakneck speed, then immediately turns back on her feet to flee toward their ship, cursing her bothersome nakama under her breath."WHAT DID YOU DO TO MAKE HER ANGRY LIKE THAT, UMEKUI?!" yells Usopp, with Chopper crying from his mother's wrath.Umekui burst out laughing, her head tilted back and shoulders shaky. Luffy, who adores his first mate's laugh so much, bursts into further laughing.She leaps from his chest, rushes to Ussop and Chopper's sides, carries them in her arms, and sprints at their ship. She smiles as she stares at Chopper's teary face."You are so cute when you cry, Chopper!" she says as flowers flutter around her.He flushes red and glares, "Who makes weird compliments like that woman?!" while smiling back at her and dancing.Usopp, from Umekui's second arm, side-eyes him and mumbles, "For such a weird compliment, you are rather happy!"Then they both scream in panic as their first mate jumps high toward the deck ship. Her and Luffy's laughter drowned out their cries and screams of fear."WE ARE GOING TO CRASH INTO THE FLOOR, UMEKUI!" Usopp shouts, wrapping an arm around Umekui's neck to protect his eyes from their deaths."AHHHHH UMEKUI!" yells the terrified Chopper, burying his face against her chest.She laughs again, accompanied by Luffy's laugh.Chopper's stiff and motionless form looks up from the rough deck at the smiling faces of Luffy and Umekui."They are crazy...," he mumbles in a heavy breath.
("Run, Chopper hahaha," laughs Hiriluk before carrying him in his arms; "If Doctorine catches us, she is going to kill us and use our bodies in her experiments!"Chopper sobbed louder in his arms, terrified of the witch that his father enjoyed pranking so much."But it's your fault!" Chopper shouts as he wraps his arms around his father's neck, "Why did you replace her paramedic powder with gunpowder!""Because it's funny, hahaha!" laughs Hiriluk as leaps to the side, avoiding Kureha's knife.)
But. They remind him so much of his father. From their laughter and smiles to the way they hold him and promise to keep him safe forever.He rises on his little feet and approaches the balcony to wave goodbye to the people of his homeland (even if they didn't treat him the way he always wanted, he couldn't hate them because, after all, they'd suffered enough by Wapol's grips).Chopper promised his father that he would always save and help others, even if they feared or despised him.("To cure hatred and fear, the antidote is simply love and kindness," grins Hirikuk, pointing to his own heart and then to Chopper's own."And this heart of yours, my son," Hiriluk adds as he tenderly places his palm over Chopper's chest. "It's proof that you are far more human than the rest of the world,""So smiles, my dear reindeer," exclaims his father.
Chopper smiled.For the first time, he smiled at the man who treated him like he was his own flesh and blood and loved him despite his hideous appearance.He smiled broadly despite the tears and sobs suffocating him. He grinned for the first human who cared for him, the first to cherish and protect him.)
"WAWW WHAT IS THAT?!" beams Luffy from Umekui's shoulders, extending his palms to catch pink snow.Pink snow?!Chopper freezes and looks up at the sky. The brilliant blue sky is marred by a huge pink cloud; coming from the mountain where his father and home dwell.The pink cloud brushes and paints the entire sky above Drum Island in pinkish and reddish tones. The white snow eventually vanishes, giving way to a flurry of pink snow. Chopper extends his paw, his eyes widening and tearing up as he gazes at the pink snowflakes in his paw."It's so pretty!" Nami marvels as she scoops pink snow in her palms.Zoro nods alongside her and looks up into the sky with grey eyes.Sanji smoked his cigarette and gazed peaceably at the breathtaking snow falling from the sky."It's so cool!" enthused Ussop, his eyes sparkling.Umekui looks at the pink snow and smiles affectionately, 'Did you know that pink snow could exist, Chuuya? It's as beautiful as you.'Vivi smiles broadly and awes at the rain of pink snow, "It looks like Sakura blossom!"Chopper shudders at Vivi's comments, stifling his loud cries.
("Even if people mock my dream and call me careless fools, I will keep going until my dreams come true!" chuckles Hiriluk, hoisting Chopper on his shoulder and looking up at the full moon.)
From above the cliff, Kureha looks up with a huge smile and tears in her eyes, revealing the admiration and affection she has been holding out for a long time.
("Listen! I'll stick this red clay into the snow till it reaches the atmosphere and paints the sky pink, allowing the sakura blossom to descend into the country! Isn't that a brilliant idea?" Doctor grins as he swings Chopper in the skies.)
He gripped his teeth so hard that they may break, his shoulders shaking, and the hat on his head fell over his tearing-up eyes.
("Even after I am gone, my dream will come true. Believe me!" Hiriluk cracks up into the sky.)
"DOCTOR!" Chopper lets out a loud cry and breaks down to his knees.He yells his father's name while he sobs. The greatest doctor that Chopper has ever known!
("Tony Tony Chopper, it's a lovely name, right? That's what I'm gonna call you!" Hiriluk brightens as he heals Chopper's injuries).
"FATHER!" he wails clutching his hat tightly over his eyes.A hand touches his back as he tears aloud, allowing his grief to spill out. Chopper recognizes Umekui for its peculiar coldness. He lets her hold him, knowing that in the end, she will catch him.
("This has been truly a wonderful life!" grins Hiriluk, his warm voice reverberating in the hearts of people who admired him.)
Kureha raises her fist high toward the sky, her heart saying farewell to her precious son and the pirate woman who has reignited her hope and the dying flame in her heart, which had been stifled by her regret and shame of the past."Goodbye, my dear son. Goodbye, brat," whispers Kureha into the wind as he propels the ship of the straw hat pirates far away from their kingdom. Dalton smiles, tears streaming down his cheeks, "The old man will always amaze us, right Doctorine?"Kureha laughs and looks up at the sky lovingly, "He is too eccentric to be bound down by death!"
("A new kingdom deserves a new name don't you think ?")
Dalron beams and gazes up into the pink sky. "What about the Sakura kingdom? Isn't it a lovely name for our new age?Kureha nods and pats Dalton's chest, chuckling, "Hall hail to the king,"She returns her sight to the sea. "It appears that my son has followed a pair of dangerous captain and first mate.""Did you know about her?" Dalton gasps with wide eyes."Of course! Who are you taking me for? I remind you that I am a decade old!" Kureha huffs."I understand that you saying that she is dangerous but why the captain?" Dalton inquires because while Luffy is powerful, he does not appear to be in any way dangerous; he looks too careless for that."Do you know about Gold D. Roger?" Kureha asks, mischievously smiling."The previous king of pirates? Isn't his name Gold Roger?" asks a dumbfounded Dalton.Kureha laughs and smirks as she turns and heads toward her castle, "That's what they call him. But they could never erase the will of D.""The will of D?" Dalton says, blinking. What the hell is that?He sighs, scratches his head, and departs for his village. He still has a lot of work to do. After all, he struck a deal with the Dazai itself."KANPAI!" yell the straw hat pirates and Vivi, banging their beer cups against one other.They're all gathered around their kitchen table; Sanii has prepared a feast to celebrate Nami's recovery, and Chopper welcomes to the crew. And, as always, Luffy has proclaimed a party.Chopper's red, swollen eyes stare down at his beer but before he can gulp it Umekui grabs it swiftly and replaces it with apple juice. He pouts, grins at her, and sips."You are behaving as if you are his mother," snickers Usopp. Umekui simply winks at him and brings her glasses of whiskey to her lips."Karoo! Are you okay?" Vivi asks worriedly, picking up her duck off the floor."He must have eaten something bad," Zoro snickers behind his beer.Sanji laughs and covers his smiles behind his cigarette and coffee. Chopper leans toward the duck, who is screaming furiously in Vivi's arms."He is saying that the green-haired and blond hair did something to his meal this morning, and now it's making him want to fart a lot," Chopper translates, grimacing at the end.Before Zoro and Sanji could laugh at their trick, Nami's fist struck them hard."Tony-kun, you can understand what Karoo is saying?" asks Vivi.Chopper nods proudly, "Yes, I am an animal by nature, so I can communicate with and understand them!""That is great, Chopper!" Nami beams as she takes a seat near him, "To be able to do that while also having medical skills.""Dummy! Praising me in that way would not make me happy! You jerk," Chopper blushes, dancing strangely in his chair.Umekui chuckles, and her heart melts at Chopper's adorable dance."He sure looks happy," mumbles Luffy, his mouth full of food, before immediately swallowing from the glare of Umekui.She didn't like it when he spoke with his mouth full of food; 'ughh she is like Makino', thought Luffy.Zoro blinks from his seat and stares at Nami, "What do you mean by 'medical skills'?"Nami huffs and stares at him, as if he posed her the stupidest question in the world: "Chopper is a doctor! A first-class one! He was trained by Kureha herself!"Chopper blushes and murmurs, "By Hiriluk, my father, too.""What?! Chopper, you are a doctor!" exclaim Zoro, Sanji, and Usopp. Well, Luffy simply beams while being fed by his first mate."Good Lord! Why are boys so stupid?" Nami scowls at them and asks, "Why did you think Chopper was when Luffy asked him to join us?""A seven-form transforming interesting reindeer," responds Luffy from his chair, having swallowed his food of course. Umekui smiles and pats his head, smiling pleasantly at him."Emergency food," Sanji and Zoro say simultaneously, glaring at each other."What?!" Chopper exclaims, falling off his chair."Our mascots?" Usopp says, gulping a spoonful of rice."An adorable reindeer," Umekui states, her hand resting on Luffy's head."You are impossible," Nami says as she falls back in her chair, chuckling.Chopper slides back to his chair and gasps, remembering something, "Crap! I did not bring my medical bag!"Before he can lament his stupidity, Umekui reaches beneath the table and pulls out a blue bag with Chopper's name stitched on it."There," she places on the table before Chopper.He gasps, hugs his bag, and looks up at Umekui. "How did you know?""The old hag prepared it for you-" she continues as she elegantly sits back on her chair beside Luffy, "she was too scared to bid you farewell without bursting into tears and so she ended up giving it to me.""Why did she even kidnap you like that?" Ussop inquired, both interested and frustrated at his fear of Kureha's wrath."To give me Chopper belonging," she responds, returning her whiskey glass to her mouth."What about the other bag?" points out Zoro to demonstrate that they are not stupid for not noticing the second bag.Her drink of whiskey thaws in her palm, and she murmurs over her glasses, "Just some papers and books;""About?" Ussop inquires, brown up."Secret," Umekui declares."A secret?!" Luffy gasps, then smiles and turns to Umekui, "Tell me! Tell me.""If I tell you, it will no longer be a secret, my captain," Umekui says as she smiles at him, puts her glass on the table, and curls her ring fingers over Luffy's lock of black hair falling on his forehead."No! I wouldn't tell anybody!" Luffy pouts."Who thinks that Luffy couldn't keep a secret even for one minute, lift his hand!" shouts Nami.All of his nakamas, including Vivi, lift their hands. Luffy pouts and crosses his arms, "I'm your captain, how could you vote against me!"Chopper giggles, "You guys are funny!""Yes, of course! But Zoro, on the other hand, no!" Nami says, snickering at the swordsman."I second that!" Umekui adds as she raises her hand."I third that!" Sanji adds from behind the counter, where he is preparing strawberry pastries.Luffy and Usopp snicker as Zoro's brows twitch."Why?" Chopper asks innocently, his lovely eyes fixed on Umekui, waiting for her response.Umekui smirks and throws a devilish smile at Zoro, "Because he eats children. Don't approach him alone, okay Chopper?"Okay!" Chopper nods seriously and casts a curious glance at Zoro. He gasps and rushes to Umekui, grabs her kimono, and hides behind her legs."YOU MORON! STOP FEEDING HIM LIES! HE IS AFRAID OF ME NOW!" screams Zoro, brandishing his katana and bracing himself to charge at Umekui.A pot smacked him in the face, knocking him off his chair and crashing on his back on the kitchen floor."Don't talk like that to Umekui-chan! shitty bastard!" Sanji yells.Luffy, Usopp, and Nami laugh hysterically, squeezing their stomachs as they point to Zoro's funny bloody face.Umekui smiles and winks at Sanji over her shoulder, "Thank you, Sanji dear.""Anything for you, Umekui-chan!" raves Sanji.Chopper looks at Zoro and grins at his bloody face.'They're so hilarious,' he thought, hiding his giggles and grins behind Umekui's legs. The latter looked down and smiled warmly over her glass."Welcome into the straw hat pirates, Tony Tony Chopper," she grins."So Vivi is the princess of the kingdom of Albasta and a man named Crocodile is conquering her kingdom into deception to create a new nation?" Chopper repeats the information Vivi and Nami have given him.Usopp nods from his position on the living room floor, testing upon a new invention."Yes, and Crocodile is also a warlord of the sea!" Luffy says his feet bursting in the air as he lies on his back on the floor."A warlord of the sea?" Chopper asks, confused by the title."The Warlords of the Sea, or simply the Seven Warlords, are a selection of seven powerful and notorious pirates allied with the World Government. Some pirates call them the traitors of the sea or the world's government dogs," Umekui states from her seat on the sofa next to Zoro."Oh, I see," Chopper responds with a straight face."How many days are left before we reach Alabasta ?" asks Zoro as he cleans his blade from the blood of those he slaughtered on Drum Island.Nami glances up from her maps on the table and informs Zoro, "Two days. In two days, we'll arrive in Alabasta's first port town, Nanohana".Zoro nods at the information and mentally prepares new training for him till they get to Alabasta. He must be stronger than he is today at all costs since they will be fighting a strong criminal organization; his blood boils and his heart skips a beat at the prospect of battling more powerful opponents."Princess," Umekui speaks coolly.Vivi freezes in her seat, and Karoo in her lap looks up worriedly at his master.She shifts her focus to the first mate sitting on the sofa alongside Zoro, her head resting against the sofa's head so she can look up at the ceiling. Umekui does not even glance at the princess, implying that she does not merit her attention or time.Vivi suppresses her fears and answers, "Yes, Umekui-san?"Chopper gives Umekui and Vivi a confused look. Umekui and Vivi interact like strangers. Yet Usopp told him that Vivi had been with them for about one week and a half! Even the rest of the team interacts with Vivi as if she has been their friend for a long time. However, the first mate and the princess are in complete contrast, and Umekui even seems to dislike Vivi."We both don't want the Little Garden incident to happen again, right?" Umekui says, tilting her head to narrow her red eye at the princess.
("Listen carefully, Princess. If any of my nakamas are harmed, or worse, killed, by the group that is hunting them down because of you. I swear I would be so much worse than Crocodile and Miss-All Sunday reunited.")
Vivi's body trembles and hugs her duck as she remembers the first mate's bloodlust and threats. "Yes, of course," Vivi says hurriedly."Then I'd like you to describe to us the agents of the Baroque work with whom we'll be fighting. From the lowest hierarchy to the strongest, tell us about them," Umekui requests as she places her hand on the head sofa and lays her hand over it, "Don't tell me you want us to help you without you revealing us information regarding our enemies? You aren’t this foolish princess, right?" "Umekui," Usopp frowns.The first mate ignores him and continues to stare at the princess with a cold expression, "Well, princess?"Umekui's use of the title princess appears to mock and humiliate her every time she uses it. It was as if she was mocking her title and all the strings that entailed royalty.Vivi gulps and looks at Umekui, then at the pirates. "We have already fought off in Little Garden, the agents, Mr. 5, Miss Valentine, Mr. 3, and Miss Goldenweek. In the Officer Agents, it's all left, Mr. 1 and Miss Doublefinger, Mr. 2 Bon Kurei, and Mr. 4, Miss Merry Christmas," she began, her hands curled on a fist above her lap. "All Frontier Agents, which I was part of myself and Igaram," her voice shakes slightly at the name of her deceased companion. "You have already defeated them in Whiskey Peak. Then we have to count foot-soldiers assigned as the agents' subordinates around 200 Billions for the Officer Agents, and 1,800 Millions for the Frontier Agents."Usopp gasps loudly in horror at the number of subordinates. Anxiety and fear were begging to crawl into his blood and head, making him shake from dread."And, of course, the head of this organization, Crocodile, Mr.0, and Miss All Sundays," Vivi concludes, her tone slightly angry at their names.Sanji exhales his cigarette smoke and casts a worried gaze at his first mate at the mention of Crocodile (A goddamn warlord is after her head, and she doesn't want him to inform their nakama! If Luffy discovers this, he will kick his ass--even the crappy swordsman will chop his legs).Nami stares at Umekui with a sad expression, recalling that the woman was once Umekui's friend (Nami is terrified to see her first mate face off with Miss All Sunday; she does not want to see the lifeless gaze and trembling frame of her first mate again).However, Umekui's cold veil remains static when the names are mentioned. She keeps her stare pointed directly at the princess as if she were waiting for her to lie.“Nami dear, Can you give the princess some papers and a pen?" Umekui says, turning to face her navigator.Nami blinks. "Of course!"She grabs some paper and a pen from her notebook and stands up to hand them to Vivi, smiling kindly.Vivi accepts them with a puzzled expression but smiles back at Nami. She casts a questioning look at the first mate."You are going to write us down, All the officers agents, powers, and the head of the organization.""We don't need this!" groans Luffy, rising from the floor. "All I wants is to kick Crocodile's ass and bring Vivi to her home!"Umekui shifts her focus on Luffy and asks, "Do you want our nakamas to die, captain?"Luffy frowns as she asks him the most stupid question in the world, "Of course not!" "Then, if we don't know even the tiniest bit about our opponents. It would be lethal for our nakamas," she stands up from her seat and stares directly at Luffy, "when you chose me as your first mate, captain. You chose me to be the first mate of our entire crew, so it is my responsibility to look after them, do you understand?Luffy pouts, then nods to his first mate."The princess will write down the information and give it to Sanji, who will pin it in the kitchen fridge. You all have two days to memorize the names and powers," she looks around the living room before asking again, "Any objections?"They all shake their heads, except Zoro and Luffy."Let's go, Chopper," Umekui says as she departs the living room.Chopper blinks and stands up on his small feet, asking, "Where?"She smiles."To show you around the going merry? It's your first time on a pirate ship, right?"Chopper nods and cheers before promptly following her out of the room.Usopp let out a breath as his first mate and Chopper walked out of the room."Umekui is scary when she is serious," mumbles Usopp (but he realizes that she is doing this for their safety)."She's not wrong," Zoro adds as he finishes cleaning his blades. "We're all up against a criminal organization. It's not a game; it's something serious which puts our entire lives in danger."Luffy lays back on the floor and looks up at the ceiling, listening to his nakama's comments. Zoro is right, but Luffy doesn't like Umekui's solemn demeanor; she appears to be carrying the weight of their lives on her back.Indeed, when Luffy chose her as his first mate, he also chose her as his first mate for their nakama. But Umekui is also their nakama, and she appears to forget it often, making him frown. Then again, she appears to believe that their lives are more important than hers as if they deserve to live and dream while she does not.(Like Ace, who repeatedly stated that his and Sabo's lives are more significant to him than anyone else's. Crying and shaking his shoulder, screaming that Luffy deserves to live more than him and achieve his dreams.And Luffy recalls the way the rage caused him to shake and beat Ace until his fists were bloody red and white, (because he can't allow his precious older brother to spew such nonsense without beating sense into his rock head!)He wonders if Ace is still engulfed by the sorrow and remorse of Sabo dying in the flames while he survived?)"Don't forget that Umekui is going to fight Miss All Sunday, an old friend of hers," Nami comments as she packs her stuff.Vivi's eyes widen and freeze; "Umekui was friends with Miss All Sunday?"Usopp turns to Vivi and asks, "You weren't there when Umekui shared it?"She shakes her head with a nervous expression."Your first mate does not like me. Well, it seems like she hates me," mumbles Vivi."If she hated you, she would have already killed you," Zoro scoffs, standing up from his seat, annoyed by the conversation.Vivi freezes in fright."Zoro!" Nami gasped, glaring at him."It's the truth," Zoro replies with a shrug. "Well I'm going to train, so don't bother me,""This bastard!" grumbles Sanji, glaring at Zoro as he exits the room."Don't worry, Vivi," comforts Usopp, "Umekui would never hurt you,"Vivi nods with a dismissive look, not believing Usopp's remarks. She wonders if Usopp is lying to himself or to her when he reassures her like that.She wonders if the straw hat pirates are too blind to notice how dangerous their first mate is, or if they simply trust her and believe she will not harm her. Vivi witnessed Wapol's execution; excuse her if she is not terrified of dying under Umekui's blade, as he was.Now that she thinks about it, Umekui committed a major violation against monarchy and the world government! All members of the crew will be targeted as soon as they find out. So, did she truly slaughter a royal without considering the ramifications on her nakama's back?Well, she appears to look down on the world in a way that causes it to hide from her. So, did she truly let her arrogance win and disregard the crime she committed?She is, indeed, a pirate, one of the world's most horrific crimes and sins, but she is a member of a crew, so her actions and crimes will all be held liable, counting them as her accomplices! They now all carry Wapol's blood on their hands, even though it's Umekui who killed him.(However, a part of her knows that if Umekui hadn't killed Wapol, Drum Island wouldn't have been freed. Dalton and his people's sacrifices couldn't have been honored by themselves (how can they when the one who made them suffer and murdered their loved ones is still living, wreaking havoc in his path?!)Killing royal blood is treachery of the highest sort. So Vivi wonders if it isn't Crocodile destroying and snatching her home from her trembling clutches, but rather another royal. How might the world's balance work in her favor?At the simple inquiry, Vivi realized something that caused her bones to tremble from disgrace.She is still not capable enough to take back her homeland.She gritted her teeth, grabbed Karoo, and bolted from the room. The despair and self-pity mocked her inside her mind and flooded through her blood making her realize that no matter the amount of blood she bled, it would never leave her."What is this room for?" Chopper inquired, pointing to her painting room.Umekui looks down at the inquiring doctor, smiles, and responds, "It's my painting room"(She remarked that she smiled often around Chopper. But how could she not when he was so adorable that every ugly and filthy thing inside her softened-)."Painting room.." murmurs, then gasps and peers up at Umekui with sparkles in his eyes, "YOU PAINT?!"Umekui looks at the entrance to the women's rooms instead of meeting his gaze, dreading that her cursed gaze will steal the light from them."Yes...It's something that helps me to keep my emotions in check,"Chopper nods, realizing that she does the same thing as he does while endeavoring to create a new batch of medications."But do you love it?" he questions.(From the darkest to the deepest corners of her mind and heart, Chopper wants to know everything about his first mate).Love? Does she love painting?Maybe before;(When Odasaku's warmth was still on her back, murmuring promises that no longer have value. Chuuya's blue eyes were once her favorite color, so she would paint all of her canvases with that color so that she could stare at the reflection of his gaze indefinitely.Before his blue eyes grow darker than the ocean abyss, and hatred hanging in his heart makes him ill to the world around them-.But now all she could remember was the blood and ashes that had destroyed the only frame of love she had ever known. The blood-stained paintings she once produced, as well as Mori's words, tugged on the strings of madness inside her brain in such a way that the world around her disintegrated); but now she doesn’t think.Umekui is unwilling to concede the perils of acquiring feelings of love for things.(LIAR!She is lying! How selfish and cruel can she be?! Isn't she beginning to love Luffy and her nakamas in ways that no love or devotion could describe?! Isn't she endangering their lives because of her dreadful nature?!)(Dazai, keep in mind that whatever you attempt to love will be condemned to death, it laughs madly)She freezes for a second as she hears the voice. Clenches her fist and turns to smile at Chopper. "I don't think."Chopper blinks at the response; it appears so far away as if she were reciting a mantra that her mind had learned to believe.Her smile is tinged with sorrow, and it makes Chopper's heart rate rush for a split second. There are questions on his tongue that he would like to ask his first mate, but Chopper knows she isn't ready to answer them or hear them.(After all, in Umekui's red eye, Chopper recognizes the pain and despair that he observed in so many patients (the saddest of all is that they are dead, their misery absorbing them alive and sucking their final breath).Yet; she embodies the care and tenderness that Chopper experienced in his father's arms (that was stolen from his quivering palms because of his own mistakes)."I want to see your painting someday," says Chopper, smiling softly at Umekui. "I am certain that they are as pretty as you-If you want, of course." He mumbles, his cheeks flushed, and shifts his gaze to the floor, avoiding the attention of the woman in front of him.Umekui's eyes soften as she chuckles softly, crouching down at his height so she can gaze at him properly."Of course, anything for my pretty reindeer," grins Umekui."YOU DUMMY! STOP YOUR COMPLIMENTS, THEY DO NOT MAKE ME HAPPY!"He blushes even more and moves his body uniquely as he dances.Umekui laughs behind her scarred hand, bringing her face closer to his with a smirk."Are you sure?"He hides under his hat at her closeness, and looks up for a second before murmuring timidly;"No..but don't say it to the others, okay?"Umekui smiles sweetly and adds, "It will be our secret then."Chopper nods, his ears crimson, and then smiles brightly."Aww, you are so adorable. I'm going to die from all your cuteness," Umekui exclaims, gripping her heart over her chest and slowly collapsing to the floor."AHH UMEKUI ARE YOU OKAY!" cries Chopper."What the hell is going on?!" Nami shouts, descending the stairs.She looks at Chopper, then at her first mate, who is lying on the floor, squeezing her heart. Her heart stops for a second and rushes worriedly toward her.Nami shouts, "Umekui?!!" as she kneels alongside her first mate.Umekui lifts her gaze and laughs, causing Nami to halt."It is Chopper! He is so adorable that my heart can't take it!"Nami sighs with a faint smile and gives her first mate an intense look."Don't scare me like that," Nami grumbles before staring at the petrified Chopper. "And don't scare the poor boy like that!""Aye Aye!" Umekui chuckles, then winks at Chopper. The latter passes out from all the blood rushing to his face."UMEKUI!" scolds Nami as she hurries to pick up Chopper from the floor.The first mate simply laughs and heads back to their chambers.Nami's eyes soften as she stares at the back of her first mate, glad that Chopper can make her grin and laugh so easily. It appears that Umekui has a tender spot for cute things.(If it can keep her like that, Nami will not hesitate to steal and seize all the cute things in the world and give them to her first mate.If she could continue to wake up despite the emptiness in her gaze and the sadness on her face and still grin at Chopper or them and sparkle at cute things.Then it all matters to Nami; if in the end she can see her first mate alive and grinning.(She sometimes wonders. If Noriko saw her that way when her urge for vengeance and the pain of grief were the sole things keeping her alive.She wonders if her sister's heart accepted her descent into vindication and heartbreak because it was the only thing keeping her alive and the only reason she got up every morning.Perhaps Noriko accepted her change for only one reason: to see her sister surviving and still breathing, even if it was for vengeance).She smiled regretfully at the thought, the claws of grief still digging into her heart and thoughts.(Nami has never learned how to quit grieving; she has only learned to survive, steal, and run and run over and over, believing that her legs will carry her far away from grief).Even if grief follows her around on a sunny day tanning on the deck, a starry night drinking with Zoro and Umekui, a shopping trip with Sanji and Usopp, or a party dancing and singing with Luffy.She learned a difference that changed everything: ever since she joined Luffy and Umekui, she has never been alone in her sorrow.(It causes her to turn her back on all the nights when she was drowning in her own misery, with Asura's claw covering her neck, forcing her to succumb and let the sorrow swallow her forever).When Luffy and Umekui rescued her, they burned away all the monsters' dark shadows that pushed her to flee from her grief. But now that Nami is free, alive, dancing, and basking in the light's sun, the seawater drenching her hair, she accepts to face her pain without fear and embraces it in her blood.(Because if she turned her back on the sorrow that keeps her awake at night. She is turning away from Bellemere. So, if her mother's love flows through the recessions of sorrow, Nami will embrace it with a wide smile and hearty laugh-)What matters is the truth that she is no longer alone and realizes that her nakamas will always catch her if she falls.She gently stares at Chopper in her arms, hoping that her nakamas will take care of his scars as they did to hers.'Don't worry, Kureha, your son is in good hands', Nami reflected as she entered their quarters carrying Chopper in her arms.
Dark blue, shocked eyes looked up at her.The rain soaked her entire body and her short black hair; as she focused her gaze on the young girl sitting in front of her. The blood dripping from her gloved hands blended with the rain that dropped from the grey skies.

The dark lane is paved with corpses, their blood scoured away by the rain pouring on their heads. The foul odor of death lingers around her, as the blood that drips from her face enables her scarlet eyes to glow and blaze as the darkness consumes everything around them.

"Men as disgusting as ever, attacking a girl alone-" says the child as she raises a gloved hand and wipes away the blood from her chin, "but well, this is war."

Red eyes stare back at the older girl in front of her."You-" Blue's eyes widened. "You are not from here, right?"The long black-haired swallow pushes on her knees and rises, looking at the young child in front of her while shaking her head.

"No-" she says, clutching her injured arm. "I am not from there-"Red's eyes narrow as she takes in the girl's appearance, taking in her flawlessly sculpted face, radiant blue eyes, and golden skin. Even her attire was weird, honestly, who would wear a dress to war?Huffing, Dazai takes off her dark coat and throws it in the direction of the blue-eyed girl, who stares at her disoriented.

"You are from the sea, aren't you?" she asks, analyzing the girl.The young girl nods cautiously holding the coat tightly in her hands."My name is Dazai," the red-eyed child introduced herself, her empty eyes fixed on the girl waiting for her name.The young girl's blue eyes widened as if she recognized or heard the name before. She grabs the coat tightly, pulls it against her chest, and murmurs, "My name is Nico Robin."

"Robin, huh?" Dazai muses out loud, staring into blue eyes.Nico Robin flinches, fearful that the young girl before her may recognize who she is. But if Robin came here, it was the only way to avoid recognition. She squeezes her fist firmly and stares at the ground, ready to activate her demon fruit and kil-."Doesn't Robin mean Nightingale?" the crimson-eyed asks, curiously.

Robin freezes and gazes up with startled eyes at the weird girl in front of her. (Yet the name of this girl cannot be a hazard--from the red scorching glow blazing from her pupils to the pallid face that appears to have never seen a ray of light--this girl. She may be the one she-)."So, little bird, what are you doing there?" Dazai wonders, peering up at the sky as another explosion falls a million feet distant.

Robin chuckles gently at the nickname and looks at Dazai with wonder. Dazai appears younger than her, although their heights are very similar, and she calls her little."Running away from the world," Robin admits truthfully.Laughing, Dazai looks up at Robin through gleaming red eyes that shine in the alley's darkness as her short hair flows in the cool wind.

"You chose the worst place to hide from the world, little bird," Dazai states.She turns her head swiftly as she detects and hears loud voices shouting and rushing toward them. She runs up to Robin, grabs her waist, and throws her over her shoulder, ignoring Robin's loud gasp.She jumps from wall to wall before landing quickly on the stable roof of a building. She gently places Robin on her legs and turns to look at the burning horizon ahead of her.

Robin's eyes freeze, and her entire body trembles at the devastation that lies in front of her.Screams and cries could be heard all across the area. Men race around with weapons in their hands, shooting in all directions, dead men and women lying at their feet. Children weep and sob, choked in strangled dying gasps, as an explosion falls from the sky and destroys everything

'It can’t be possible!' thought Robin as terror gripped her organs.

Dazai walks and stands up before her, and extends her arms, to show her the destruction going on behind her is indeed the reality.

"Welcome to the roots of the world, Nico Robin!" 
 A face emerged from under the water, a loud gasp echoed in the bathroom. Her black long hair sticks to her cheeks, neck, and breasts as her chest jumps and falls back and on-her breathing is harsh and fast as she puts a scarred palm over her chest. A slight pain grasps her heart and pushes her to throw up, her hands curl over her stomach griping her rotten flesh, digging her nails in it hoping that it will stop hurting. Something twists inside her, as she coughs over and over. The heavy familiar feeling of blood splashing on the water of the bathtub, she is lying in it. The cold water turns red from the substance of blood, splashing her naked body with the awful substance as more blood gushes out her mouth as she coughs. She stares at her bloody naked frame sinking in the cold water, her tongue curling over her teeth tasting the blood in her mouth (it makes her quiver from disgust-wishing she could tear apart her throat and tongue).She inhales and looks up at the ceilings (the screams and indignation echo in her head, as the ghost's nails claw her ankles to blood and mind). The wounds of darkness on her body shining over her flesh, devouring her flesh as if it was their favorite meal, they sting and burn even the cold water she is bathing in doesn’t ease the burning. The small window in front of her, is open, letting her gaze up at the starry night as she sinks back into the bathtub. Not even minding that the dirty red water covered her body ( after all it always began and ended in the same way, her rotten flesh and her bones only painted blood. That's why it rots beneath her emptiness and nothing could ever wash away the price of her sins). "Oh, Robin," she whispers sadly into the starry night. Dear little Robin. Dear little bird, whose wings were broken from the world cruelly. ('It's your fault! It's your fault! You ruin everything Dazai!' yells a familiar voice full of rage). She knows, that the last few feathers of Robin's wings were burned down by her fault. She is conscious that she is the last string that has broken the wings of her little bird. (The ghost image of a fifteen-year-old Nico Robin cradled by her younger one causes her bones to ache and scream from the missing feeling, and her palms yearn to get torched and sliced down because Robin's magnificent face is no longer there to embrace in-).
'She hates you as much as the rest of the world!'
She knows while her heart sinks even deeper.
She desires for the world to witness your demise!'
If she can hold her one final time, so be it.
'When the truth comes to light, your nakamas will also despise you!'
She realized and accepted the harsh reality the moment she clutched Monkey D. Luffy's hand.But-She truly wanted to see them accomplish their dreams. She craved to feel their warm souls inside the emptiness consuming her alive.She arched a hand toward the radiant night as if she could catch all the stars within her palm.She sincerely wants to keep the flame of hope burning within her through their souls. Umekui can't help but smile sadly as she recalls Kureha's tears and smile to help her. Her eyes ache, and her throat tightens.She wants to stay with them, learn to adore them and feel their warm frame against her icy one. She wants their voice to be the sole reason, whispers, and religion that keeps Umekui sane (she fears the ruin that will result from her cursed existence if her nakamas abandon her-).
("One day, you will find those who will be by your side till the end of time. I promise you, Dazai." murmurs Odasaku, her head on his lap as they stare at the night sky, his hand caressing softly her short hair).
She swallows the bitter taste of blood, her crimson irises tragically staring up at the stars.'Because of me, I didn't let you become a star, Odasaku.'She has been selfish enough, with her greed eroding everything to dust. (And when the brisk breeze of the past blew through her consciousness, clearing the dust away. The memories chained within her wreak havoc on her heart to the point where she turns to suicide for solace).But it's been enough. This time, she will not let her nakamas pay for her sins; she has reclaimed so much from them that she cannot let greed triumph over her heart's desires.She stood up from the red water, putting one leg and a second out of the bathtub. She grabs her bandages and hastily wraps them over her entire body (all her life, she had hidden her ugliness, her deceit of being something vile beneath layers of white. It blooms in her mind as a seed of hatred).She grabbed her purple kimono from over the sink and put it on, her muscles and limbs shuddering in pain. She crunches and sits down, her back against the door, pulling the red bag Kureha handed her into her lap.The letters of Odasaku were the first thing she noticed; she lifted them with shaking hands and laid them beside her.Then she grabs two wooden boxes from the bottom of the bag. She opens the first and discovers five syringes filled with blue fluid; she places them in front of her and grabs the other wooden box, her hands twitching from the pain. She opens it and discovers five sachets, each with five yellow pills inside.She looks down at the new, odd medication. She looks at the bag and unfolds the pieces of paper, where the instructions have undoubtedly been scribbled.
‘Dear bothersome brat,'If you opened this letter, it means that your pain is worse than ever, right?'
Umekui snorts softly, still hearing Kureha's scolding voice in her head.
'So listen to me, you little shit; those medications are valuable and dangerous. If you don't follow my instructions, I'll hunt you down and kick your ass. Okay?
Umekui nodded, as if Kureha were in front of her, scowling while menacing her with a knife.
'You can see the five syringes in the first box. This substance is known as xenis, and it works to prevent aching muscles and regulate tremors and spasms by promoting blood circulation and heat in your veins. And help you maintain normal breathing! One day at a time will suffice, okay? Two will be harmful to your organisms and risk blowing up your arteries and veins.'
Umekui grabs one of the syringes and stares at them, hoping that it will at least enable her to alleviate the pain for a bit.
'The yellow pills are called oxolium and are extremely harmful. It's a rare drug, but due to my advanced age and lengthy existence, I am familiar with the prescription and have a few of them. The central amygdala is affected by these drugs. These pills can prevent cells in the central amygdala from repeating pain signals sent by your neurotransmitters. In brief, they will prevent your brain from feeling any pain that your body experiences. Those medications were commonly employed in battles, so soldiers were unable to feel pain. I used to give it to some of my patients in their final moments so they could die painlessly-'
She looks at the yellow pills with astonishment. Can those medications actually accomplish that? Umekui has taken several drugs in her life, but they have either caused her to experience euphoria or put her to sleep for days.
'You take two per day. One in the morning, one at noon, okay? I am not joking when I say that those medications are harmful. The side effects remain mysterious. I didn't risk trying them on anyone because, as I previously stated, I exclusively use them during my patients' final moments of death. You stated to me that you are dead yet still alive, so I trust you not to overuse the doses.'
She clenches the wooden box tightly in her grasp, preventing the dark thoughts from giving her suicidal impulses.
'I truly hope they can alleviate your pain, Umekui. On my side, I shall continue to look for a cure for your "illness." So don't give up hope, Umekui; Odasaku would never have wanted you to lose hope after all you've been through. The den moshi and my phone number are available, so you can call me at any moment and on any day. I will always listen to you, Umekiui, always. Call me when you're ready to hear the plan that I shared with you.

You must discuss your condition with my son at some point so that Chopper can make your medication when they're finished (I can make it and ship it to you, but it will take some time). In any case, it is up to you to figure out the situation and determine whether or not to speak with him. But I know my son, and I do not doubt that he will find out sooner or later, even if you do not tell him.Some people love you and want you to live despite everything. Stay safe and alive, brat!Your favorite doctor witch.

Kureha, Doctorine'.

Her hands trembled, causing the letter paper to crumple; Kureha's words, not the agony this time, were what made her tremble.Do people truly love her? (The inquiry makes her heart shake because Umekui knows the people who loved her are gone, dead--and their memory makes her lugs quake and her lips flutter from ghost wails-).But those who survived their past love, hate her now (Robin is a raw wound within her that will never stop bleeding from remorse and sorrow).But if the price of survival for people she cares about is hatred? Then Umekui will accept it with a crimson smile and sorrowful arrows through her back.If her nakama's future survival rests on her palm, yet the price is hatred that would ooze from their hearts and darken their faces, she shall pay it.She takes one pill and dissolves it under her teeth. Takes a deep breath and stands on shaking legs. She collects her belongings from the floor, stares intently at Odasaku's letters, places them in the bag, and quickly seals them. Opens the bathroom closet and hides the bag inside.With one last look at the closet, she turns and opens the door. Green hair and a steely gaze cause her to halt at the door."You took your time. I wonder why a woman spends so much time in the bathroom," Zoro complains as he stares intently at her face."Doesn't Usopp scream at you every morning because you take hours in the bathroom?" Umekui smirks as she muses aloud.Zoro glares at her: "Usopp yells practically every morning. Who claims it was because of me?Umekui only smirks, aware that he is obviously lying."Shut up, now come on-" growls Zoro, holding out a hand for his first mate to grab.She raises an eyebrow, intrigued by his actions."You didn't sleep for almost a week--between night shifts and taking care of Nami," he says, grabbing her hand in his palm and pushing her closer to him. "Let's go sleep under the stars tonight."Someone like Zoro, who wields swords until his hands bleed, fights with fists and bones till they drip and break, and carries resolve and ferocity in his veins, appears to have the sharpest palms in the entire world.But.His palm feels strangely tender. His hand feels searing hot in her cold one. Burning, scorching away the cold and darkness that was creeping into her veins and making her want to hide from the world.Yet. For a brief period in Zoro's hold, she feels light, as if all the ugly and evil things have been reduced to ashes by the simple embraces of Zoro's hand."Is Luffy asleep?" Umekui wonders as she glances around the deserted deck."Yes. He danced all night with Chopper until they passed out from exhaustion," Zoro explains as he sits and rests beside Luffy's favorite spot.He glances up at Umekui, expecting her to lie near him, but she surprises him by deciding to lie over him. Her head lay on his chest, her hand on his abdomen, and her thighs were getting in the way of his right leg and thigh."It's cold tonight, and your body is hot," she explains before he can shout at her.(She's lying. The cold never troubled her, but Zoro's heated body felt so comfortable and safe that she wished she could enter his bones and lie between them forever (maybe Zoro's warmth would keep the nightmare at bay, stopping her from yearning to slit her throat out of disgust)."So you are using me as your blanket ?" He groans as he raises an arm to rest his head on it to glance at the stars.She doesn't answer and keeps cuddling into him. Zoro lets her; how could he not, given that her look was so empty and dark that his touch seemed like the only light inside her?The sea churls sway the going merry toward Alabasta. The warm pleasant brize is finally surrounding them, letting him sigh in relief from the previous weather he had faced on Drum Island."How is your eye?" Zoro says, looking up at the brilliant night.(He tried hard to keep the worry out of his voice since he knew how much his first mate opposed it. (He sometimes pined to hit her skull hard, as he does with his dumb captain, in the hopes that it would knock some sense into her and cause her to stop flinching at the typical things that he offered her. (Yet it appears normal to them, but to their first mate it appeared like the most valuable treasure in the world).Umekui lifted a finger and stroked it over her bandaged eye, "Kureha, give me some medicine for it so it doesn't scar. In two days, my eye will be like new."Lifting a hand, he runs it through Umekui's long hair, feeling it with his palm as he would with seawater. Her hair feels silky and light against his brush, allowing Umekui to snuggle further into his chest."Tell me Zoro, how did your first kill feel?" murmurs Umekui as she runs her fingertips along the lines of his abdomen over his white shirt.Zoro pauses, blinking down at his first mate. His first kill? The question seems weird. No one had ever asked him that, and for a brief minute, he wondered why his first mate would."I was fourteen, and this was my first time hunting pirates as a bounty hunter. The pirate I killed was still a lone pirate, but he was known to steal, destroy, and murder plenty of citizens in the villages of Cascara Island. He was a fierce competitor, a spearman. I determined that he was too bothersome for me to capture and deliver to the Marines, so I sliced down his neck and chest, killing him instantly. But if you asked me how I felt, I'd say I was excited to defeat someone and come a step closer to becoming the world's greatest swordsman," he stated, stroking his first mate's hair."I see," she says quietly, her finger hovering and tracing over his chest."And you?"How did your first kill feel?" Zoro contemplates aloud, his gaze following the path of a fallen star.(He wonders if Nami believes in the legends surrounding falling star wishes. She appeared to be the kind of it, especially when she showed him and spoke for hours about all the stars and constellations she could recognize in the night sky-)Umekui remained motionless, and for a minute she felt like an enormous slab lying on his body. He hums and raises a brow, tilting his head towards Umekui, but her lifeless and vacant gaze causes his muscles to clench (he's unclear if it's from anger or sadness)."My first kill.." she muses aloud, as his first mate's eyelids close, preventing him from gazing long into her dark void gaze. "I don't remember," she lied.Zoro wonders if it was because it was someone unworthy of remembering like he had done with his other kills, or if she simply forgot. Yet the memory of this murder seemed as dark as her lifeless stare.Then she opens her mouth to pose another thought that has been on her mind, "Do killings feel different if they were executed in the worth of dreams?""Yes," Zoro replied without hesitation. Then he moves his palm down her drowsy face, brushing against her forehead, nose, and back to her hair. "Killing someone to achieve your dream is somehow more worthy than killing nameless and faceless people. Some people kill for love, others for their ambitions, some for faith and conviction, and some for their dreams."Umekui feels and hears Zoro's heartbeat under her ear as his words and voice resonate throughout her body. His warm palm stroked each part of her head as if he were wiping away those awful memories that had emerged from the graveyard of her mind.'Kill for love?'She doesn’t think.Every time this cursed emotion was acknowledged and felt by her. All those she once cherished in her twisted manner were drawn into the web of his curse, and they all died, their dreams disintegrating with them. So she wonders how the concepts of dreams and love could ever coexist. One that dreams cannot love and one that love cannot dream.She feels like a parasite, a devourer of dreams and hopes, surrounded by the warmth of her nakama, which radiates dreams, hopes, and love. They are everything she cannot be, and she wonders how Luffy could possibly love something like her (There is nothing in her to adore other than a void that swallows everything and everyone around her).("Dazai, you are a void. You are empty and dark, and what you are will destroy the entire world. You're an empty vessel that will devour everything," )
(I know, Kana.)
Kana serves as proof that love ruins dreams, that love is a disastrous master who rips your wings from the back, letting you fall to your demise.
("Dazai, avenge me! Kill him, the one who wrecked me! Kill the fallen noble and avenge me!")
She hopes to die before meeting him.‘I love you, Ume!'She wonders if the dreamer of this tale, whom she has revered and sought for so long, will not hate her from the moment the war in Alabasta begins. Because what is a war without Dazai herself?(After all, Odasaku's ultimate breath in her arms confessing his love and grinning painlessly at her isn't a death fit of her tragedy?)With those last thoughts, she closes her eyes and lets Morpheus lead her to a space where loneliness is an echo of madness, hoping that Zoro's warmth can at least partially preserve her sanity.Chopper searches around the deck for his first mate. He wonders how he slept without worrying that his new life was a dream that would vanish in the morning. His captain's hilarious dances surely exhausted him, while Usopp's stories lulled him to sleep.Seriously, he had no idea that Usopp was a knight who defeated numerous giants and dragons before becoming a pirate. He is so cool and strong! It's already afternoon, and Chopper has finished all of his medical checkups with all of his crew members, including Vivi. Umekui is the last person left, but Chopper didn't find her at all; he last saw her this morning at breakfast before disappearing.He looks down at his notebook. He did not inform his crew mates that the exam was to assess their physical and mental well-being. Unexpectedly, Nami, Usopp, and Vivi were the ones who were least keen to talk about the mental health part.On the other hand, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji responded to all of the questions without hesitation, although Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji shared some disturbing facts with him.Seriously, Luffy did not hesitate to reveal that he was kidnapped and tortured by bandits when he was seven years old. Since he was eight years old, Zoro has been training and adhering to a regimen meant for soldiers and older men. At thirteen years old, he started his journey as a bounty hunter.Even though Zoro appeared to be rough and crude, he was awkward and kind to him, even when he retrieved him after breakfast while training on the deck.Luffy entered their quarters first to start the visit; his silly captain assumed it would be amusing and entailed some sort of game (I mean, it was like the first time in Luffy's life that he had a doctor's appointment. Was he raised in the jungle?)Well, He also told him that his grandfather beat him and his brothers and called it a 'fist of love'. Chopper has concluded that Luffy's DNA and family are utterly insane and ridiculous. But after five minutes, Luffy stated that he was hungry and fled the room.Zoro had some difficulty answering his questions.Chopper has noted that Zoro has a difficult time expressing his feelings; all of his responses focused on training (as if he was running away from his emotions by practicing like Chopper does with his books and knowledge of medicine). So Chopper simply signed and released him to complete his training after ensuring that all of his wounds had healed properly.Sanji's tour was so normal and perfect that Chopper grew suspicious of his cook. Sanji gently answered all his queries while keeping a warm smile. Even though he disclosed that he had been stuck on a rock amid East Blue as a kid and suffered from starvation for two months along with his adoptive father.He reluctantly admitted that his adoptive father gave up his leg to feed him so he wouldn't die of starvation. (Again, even Sanji could disguise the guilt in his eyes; Chopper would always notice it, from the tick of fingers or minor tremors in a voice-).But before Chopper could demand an examination of his cook's body. Sanji quickly rose from his chair, warned that Luffy's meal would burn if he lingered, and raced out of the room.But then Usopp's tour arrived, his nakama was so anxious that Chopper feared he was going to pass out.Chopper has noticed a few characteristics regarding his nakama. The first concern was Usopp's low self-esteem.The way his shoulders lowered whenever he spoke about him, the way his voice trembled as though he was terrified of his own voice, or the way he was unable to stare him in the eyes and had to look down instead. (He recognized it well; after his father's death, Chopper never went a day without feeling like everything he had accomplished was a series of failures and mistakes. (He was so scared of killing someone like he did with his father.)(For a moment, he wonders if his nakamas would regret putting their trust in him if they knew it was his fault that his father perished (he murdered the very first person who adored him despite everything).Usopp suffered from anxiety. How his emotions felt like ticking bombs for him, exploding in a single sense of terror, how he was bothered by a lot of sounds and change, with no sting of steadiness. Or how many nights couldn't he sleep because his emotions were so overwhelming and evasive that he couldn't close his eyes and sleep.Chopper had promised him that he would prepare something to help him relax and sleep, especially during his emotional crisis.Then there was Nami tour. His navigator was receptive and on her guard; Chopper wouldn't lie, but he was uneasy by her stern gaze. Her physical health had improved since she recovered from her infection, but when Chopper started asking her questions regarding mental health, she turned so cold that he thought he had offended her.However, after a few minutes of examination, Chopper realized Nami was shielding herself, not from him, but from herself. (As if she was too terrified to admit her feelings, fearful that if she fell in front of him, he would pity her--but Chopper would never. Above all, he is a doctor who relishes helping and caring about others).After several questions that made his tiny heartbreak at her answers, he couldn't help but tear.How could he not when she told him she was a victim of slavery by a crew of fishermen who took her hometown and murdered her mother because she didn't have enough money to pay for her place?(And even though Nami tried to hide the guilt from her gaze, Chopper recognized it. The shame of believing that your existence was the fruit of someone's death, who took and reared you as his own flesh and blood).His heart ached and trembled as she hesitantly revealed that she had suffered from abuse of any sort over eight years. Chopper is not naive to grasp how abuse destroys a victim's mind and heart, nor is he ignorant of the fact that abuse can take many forms, including mental, sexual, and physical.He asked her if she had insomnia or nightmares as a result of this encounter, and she hesitated before answering, stating yes. So he told her that he was going to prepare a few things to help her fall asleep.(He didn't mention the nightmares since Chopper knows that no treatment can erase the ghosts that have lingered in your head for so long-).Before she left, Chopper asked her if she was comfortable with doing a session once a week so she could talk about her thoughts in a way that might liberate her from her nightmares. Surprisingly, she accepted him with a broad smile before complimenting him and leaving.Princess Vivi was overly stressed; her body hopped and jumped slightly whenever Chopper asked a question or directed her to perform anything so he could check her physical health.Yet Chopper didn't mind; her attitude seemed understandable given that they were on their way to her kingdom. Chopper couldn't image being hounded to death from your own kingdom, as well as being the subject of rejection and accusations from an entire kingdom.(In some ways, he gets it from his birth father's ruthless beats and the way humans chased and sought his death).A civil war awaits her in the name of her royal family, and he is aware that Vivi is terrified of it. She reluctantly responded to certain questions, while others she remained mute, as if she accepted that this was her only reality, that she was alone against a whole army and an organization. (But Luffy agreed to help her; couldn't she feed some of her concerns into him and his nakamas?).When she stopped replying to his question, he decided to let her go with her duck.So now all that remains is Umekui, but Chopper looked into practically every inch of the deck and found no sign of a red eye or a bandaged first mate."Did you finish all of your appointments, Chopper?" Nami wonders as she steps out on the balcony.Chopper looks at her with a sad expression, "No. It only misses Umekui, but I've been looking for her for hours and haven't found her."Nami smiles weakly as her eyes sadden and responds, "If you haven't found her, it means that she has locked herself up in her painting room.""Locked herself?" mused out loud Chopper. "Does she do it a lot?" He asked."Yes." Nami admits, "The longest that she has done it was an entire week without eating anything,""What?!" gasped Chopper choked. "But why?""I don't know," Nami replies helplessly, crouching down before him and softly grasping his shoulder. "But please, could you go see her? Perhaps she will leave the room to attend your appointment. I don't like it when she walls herself off and locks herself in her room, painting alone without seeing anyone or eating what Sanji has cooked."Chopper gives a solemn nod and runs to Umekui's painting room. He takes a deep breath before knocking at the door.He knocks once again and says, "Umekui, it's Chopper. Could we talk for a few minutes, please?""Chopper?" calls on a drowsy voice from behind the door. His eyes tremble at the worn-out tone in her voice as if his first mate had been drained of life.He waits for a few moments until he hears his first mate walking and doing something behind the door. Then she pulls it open. It was so dark that Chopper could not see anything in her secret painting room, so she swiftly shut the door behind her.His first partner sat on her bottom and leaned against the door, allowing her to gaze into his eyes. The bandages covering her right eye vanished, leaving behind an identical ruby eye, a stained scar, and a mole beneath it. Her crimson eyes are so dark that they overshadow the customary dazzling brightness of her red pupils; his first mare appeared drained and consumed."You wanted to talk, Chopper?" Umekui inquires, looking worriedly at him.Is she stupid? How could she look at him worriedly when she could barely stand up without collapsing from exhaustion?"Yes. I've already had a medical appointment with all of our nakamas and Vivi, and all that's missing is you," he says, quickly displaying her the notepaper in his paws.She quickly looks down at it before glancing at him. "Is refusal an option?"Chopper blinks, as if he didn't hear the question clearly, then glares slightly at her. "No." He sighs softly at her. "But if you want, you can opt not to answer some questions and don’t do things, okay?"Umekui considers it for a few seconds before nodding. She stands up, tells him to wait a moment, goes into her painting room, and returns immediately with a sketchbook and a pencil."How about I draw you while I attend your appointment?" Umekui offers while showing him her red sketchbook.Chopper accepts with a broad smile and heads into their quarters, where his meetings with his first mate could start.He sits in the chair, facing the sofa, and allows Umekui to sit on it. She looks around their accommodations and grimaces at the sight of Zoro and Luffy's clothes lying over the room."A personal cabinet for your work is a good option," she suggests.He smiles, "But the Going Merry is too small for me to have a personal cabinet and I don't think we might replace our boat since Usopp told me that it was a gift of his childhood friend from his homeland-"Umekui smiles gently. "You are right. Then how about I offer you my painting room so you can use it as a cupboard for your work?"Chopper exclaims and shakes his hands in front of his face, "No!"I could never! It's your own private room!""I wouldn't mind if I gave it to you," she says, drawing into her book.Chopper furrows his eyebrows as he peers incredulously at his first mate."Do you always give your things away to people?""Not really. I just do it for my nakama, and I don't have the right to own many things. I don't care to get attached to them," Umekui shrugs."What do you mean by you didn't have the right to have a lot of things?" Chopper observes as he writes down on his paper.Umekui does not answer and keeps silent while sketching in her book.Chopper sighs and glances over her right eye, where the wounds are receding."Your eye seems to heal right." He says to himself, "Doctorine potion would never stop fascinating me."She smiles at him and says, "I'm sure your potion is just as good as hers."Then she raises a scarred hand over her right hand, "But I'll disappoint you if I tell you that it wasn't just doctrine medicine that healed my eye, but also my ability.""You are an ability user?!" Chopper shouts, delighted at his first mate. He has, however, seen her powers used against Wapol and his men."Yes. It's no longer human, and it can negate any powers or demon fruit within its reach or touch-," she adds as she continues to sketch on her book. It? Chopper wonders if her first mate realizes she is talking about her ability as if it were living and distinct from her. Since powers and users are in the same spheres of reality, it appears unthinkable that there could be something that exists with a consciousness and a purpose.(Just as his blue nose identifies him as a monster and an anomaly in his pack. And his devil fruit divides him between the human and animal species (so what is he? Who is he?)."You don't have any firepower?" Chopper wonders, recalling the flames bursting from her body and sword as she slaughtered the wicked king.The pencil stops in her fingers, halting her progress, and she lifts a weak smile to look at him through exhausted red eyes. "No. It's not 'no longer human' power." Again the it.She doesn't go into detail about the firepower, instead blinks as if her eyes were shutting down and return her attention to her drawing."Do you sleep regularly at night, Umekui?" he states, observing all the signs that his first mate is sleep-deprived."I am an insomniac Chopper."It's all she says without looking at him."Do you want me to make you some things to help you sleep well?" he seeks out."No. I don't need it," she admits blankly.Chopper chewed his upper lip and stared intently at his first mate. He can't read her, unlike his nakama and Vivi; she appears to be devoid of any emotions. Yet, it is impossible because Chopper can see that his first companion is extremely exhausted and worn out by her empty, weary gaze (but from what? Who, and why?).It makes his little heart shiver from sadness."Nami told me that sometimes you isolate yourself in your painting room for days. Is this true?," inquires Chopper, concerned.The response is nothing but absolute quiet. After five minutes, Chopper considered that it was again another question that his first mate refused to answer.But he is shocked that his first mate replies to him."Yes," she says honestly, remaining concentrated on her drawing."But why?" asks Chopper quietly."To protect them," she says."From what?" he says, narrowing his eyes.She does not answer, instead casting a glance at him before returning to her sketch."Are you afraid, Umekui?" asks Chopper carefully as he moves his chair closer to Umekui's side.The pencil froze in her fingers, and she chuckled subtly, as if what he'd told her it was a joke. She looks at him through a motionless gaze, as if a curtain of lies and secrets had settled."Me, afraid?" She smiles and looks up, peering attentively at him. "Why would I be afraid when it's the world that is afraid of me?""But one doesn't cancel out the other, does it?"She avoids responding again but continues to stare at him, forcing him to ask another question (he needs to understand his first mate. That she is so much more than this frozen facade. He needs to see that she is not someone whose nothingness emerges through her red eyes.).(How could she when she burnt like a solar eclipse in his homeland, restoring the freedom of the grievers? How could she when she was the wings that prompted him to fly into the seas and fulfill his dream?)"But our nakamas aren't afraid of you, right?"The smile fades as the pencil falls from her grip to the floor in a single sharp sound, making him wince."If our nakamas feel an ounce of fear toward me..." she whispers, her breath thinning. "If you-if one day you all learn to fear me.." she smiles bitterly as her eyes darken from hopelessness, "then it's the fateful day that I will die."She rises from her seat and glances at him before leaving the room."You don't have to work yourself up to auscultate me. Doctorine has already done it," she stated, her smile wide and mourning. "Everything is absolutely fine, Chopper."With those final words, she exits the room and quietly closes the door behind her.His papers shake under his firm grip.
'then it's the fateful day that I will die.'
What does she mean by this? Isn't that what he is thinking?
("Hiriluk wasn't killed," says Doctorine through the door when he locks himself up for days with grief and sadness poisoning his heart."You didn't kill him, Chopper," she adds gently over his choked sobs."He killed himself. He has committed suicide as an ultimatum, my son," his mother announces, revealing the truth that Dalton witnessed and shared through a heartbroken gaze.)
Even if it hasn't been two days since Chopper met his first mate, he knows there is a truth before his eyes that he's too terrified to admit.But from her vacant exhausted eyes to the bandages covering her entire body and those scarred hands (he knows the scars are from self-harm. He is not stupid enough to mention it, but he is too afraid to accept it.)She demonstrated it by offering her room as if she was willing to lose everything in just one instance. She declined his help as if she was ready for death at any second, and helping her was a losing cause that'd fatigue him.
'Sometimes doctors can't help everyone.'
She once told him, but he failed to comprehend the actual significance of her despair.Neither he nor his mother were able to help Hiriluk.(He is dead, gone, and committed suicide to avoid succumbing to his disease.(Or did he do it to prevent the poison Chopper had given him from killing him? (It's a lot like his father; he's so stupid, so selfless, and so caring that he will inflict more wounds on himself to soothe the guilt that's eating Chopper alive).Before he realized it, Chopper was crying. Silent tears stream down his cheeks and fall onto his notepaper.She is too much like his father. And Chopper is afraid of it.He despised it as much as he loved it (he loves the tenderness flowing from her and his father's palms. He adores their unique eyes. He loves how they see him as someone. How they regard him as a soul rather than an ugly monster, yet he despises their selflessness. How stupid they are to sacrifice themselves for those they love. How their eyes are filled with a despair that he tries so hard to heal. How death seemed to linger around their souls continuously, eager to take them away from him-).His little shoulders shake as he raises a paw to wipe away the tears in his eyes."Chopper, why are you crying? Are you hungry?" his captain's familiar voice asks.Chopper lowers his paw from his teary eyes and gazes back at his captain.Luffy is crouching before him, gazing at him with his large brown eyes. The scar beneath his right eye creases as he smiles broadly at him, his white teeth sparkling from the sunset's rays passing through the small window ( or is it simply his wide smile that is beaming back at the sun?).He beams as he tilts his head and waits for his response.Chopper sniffles and wipes away the tears."No..." he says with a little smile, "I'm not hungry.""Then why are you crying if you're not hungry?" Luffy pouts."Do you only cry because you are hungry?" questions Chopper with amusement, sniffing the tears.Luffy frowns. "Of course not.""Then it's the same for me," chuckles Chopper."Oh, I see," answers Luffy, extending his tongue and causing it to spin over itself. Luffy's tongue becomes trapped and slaps him, causing him to fall on his bottom.Chopper laughs and giggles wildly, his eyes staring amusingly at his captain's funny expression. Luffy blinks and beams at Chopper, relieved to see his nakama laugh loudly, letting him forget the previous tears resonating throughout the room.(Above all, Luffy chose his nakama so that he might make them happy and hear their laughter forever. Their smiles and laughs are what keep Luffy beaming at the world every day; they are the sparkles of the dream he is chasing, the future fulfillment of a promise he gave to Shanks)."What is your dream, Chopper?" Luffy asks, grinning.Chopper marvels at him with a broad gaze and exclaims, "To become a doctor who can cure everything in the world!""Shi shi shi it's a cool and awesome dream!" Luffy grins brightly as he stretches his arms around Chopper and drags him closer, hugging him tightly.He stretches his hands, lifts Chopper by the waist into the air, spins around with him, and laughs wildly."Chopper, we will fulfill our dream together! The future pirate king and the world's greatest doctor!"Chopper giggles in his arms, curling his smooth paws around Luffy's neck. (He is so warm that it burns the pain and suffering in his heart to ashes). And the conviction that springs from his captain's soul urges him to believe in Luffy and himself, to not give up, and to embrace this dream, this wish that gives him hope for a world free of illness and sorrow.
For Hiriluk, for his father. 
For Umekui. This sorrow consumes her alive, which she desperately tries to hide from them. But they can never turn a blind eye to her pain, especially when it reveals itself in an empty gaze and a readiness to die. As long as Chopper lives, he would do anything to save his first mate from the pit of despair she is sliding into. He will never be a great doctor if he cannot save his first mate.As long as Umekui suffers in the dark, Chopper's dream of a world devoid of illness and grief can never be achieved.If it came down to Umekui or the world, Chopper would choose his first mate over a thousand choices and lifetimes.How could he not, when the same world resents the one whom he is growing to love?

"Tenderness is a virtue."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Shall i burn to eternity in the flames of your love."

Umekui raises her gaze to the painting before her.A youthful smile worn by an orange-haired boy reflects in her eyes. His eyes, so blue and clear, appeared to be a collision of millions of sea in a single torrent of bright blue light radiating from his stare."If I tell you that we are helping a princess chased from her own kingdom, will you laugh, Chuuyaa?" Umekui asks softly, with a sorrowful smile.She lifts her hand to brush across his cheek but flinches back once she only feels the cold-dried painting under her palm."Ne, Chuuya?" Her voice shaking and heavy with terror, she murmurs again, "Are you too lost in the shadows that I can't feel you anymore?"All that could answer her was silence.She chuckles laughing at her foolishness and immorality;(How dare she ask him that? How could she call his name and seek him out when she is the reason he is lost in this darkness with no light to guide him? Like the light that you throw into the mad sea, letting the waves of cruelness swallow it raw, leaving it empty, dead, silent.(With no dream reverberating through an opus that reminds her of Chuuya, with no meaning that burned from his blue eyes like gleaming sparks)).She smiles regretfully, her eyes obscuring as she recognizes how miserable and awful she is. She gets up on her knees, grabs the portrait, proceeds to the closet, places it inside, refuses to look at the other portraits hidden inside, and closes the closet door loudly.She leans against the closet and wonders how many portraits and faces she needs to paint. How many horrors and tragedies does she need to relive in her conscience without sleeping for an hour to bury them and finally perish in peace?Maybe if she turned her back on those names, those tragedies, those empty promises slithering into her shadow, they would finally let go her, loosening the threads with a hiss of venom.(But then, she can't help but laugh aloud at the absurdity of her condition—how could she conceivably own a shadow when her soul was ripped, taken, and split apart by some god?).She looks up at the starry night she painted on her ceiling, letting her gaze wander over memories bound inside this closet that might make stars drop tears of sorrow and heavens laugh in derision.
"Kill it."'meow'"Kill it, Dazai. What are you waiting for?"She recoils at the cruel nature in Mori's voice. Her lifeless stare is fixed on Kiki, the adorable orange cat Chuuya had offered her."But why?" she croaked, her tiny figure shaking with terror

Mori let out a grim chuckle, "'Why'? Listen, Dazai. What you have is something no one else can have; your power and curse are entirely mine. Don't forget that without me, the world would have used it for their greedy purposes."He crunches down before Dazai, reaching out a gloved hand to stroke her cheek.

"But I saved you, right, Dazai? And you helped me keep this throne within the mafia? He murmurs with a smirk, his eyes failing to disguise the evil and malice that burns inside them. "So you must do what I say-" he grips her cheek hard, causing it to bruise red, blue, and violet in a way that will itch her to disguise it with her bandages.

"Kill it, Dazai. It's the last time I'll repeat the order," he adds sternly, tearing his hand  from her cheek and throwing her body to the ground close to the orange cat.Her trembling crimson eyes focus on the orange cat licking his paws, then on Mori-sama's brilliant blazing amethys bloody eyes."Kill it while using Prisoner 321 ability."

Mori chuckles as he sits on his brown sofa, anticipating his prodigy's show.

Two chains protrude from her little scarred palms, making her grimace from the weight of the steel metal. They move slowly toward Kiki, like two snakes preparing to devour their prey.'Please, no! No! "Not Kiki!" she pleads internally, her entire body quivering with sorrow.Without so much as a wince at the trembling child in front of him, Mori orders coldly, "Do it, Now!"The chain gently and slowly coils across Kiki's torso. His little head and blue eyes meet her glazed and dead-red gaze. He tilts his head and raises a paw toward her small hands, but she takes a step back in dread.
This is absurd that something like this will kill this helpless cat; is flinching and trembling in horror at the notion of Kiki touching her for the final time.('It's Chuuya's gift!' she wants to scream. 'It's Chuuya warmth and hope!' she wants to shout over and over, hoping Mori will put an end to her agony).But perhaps she knew that if Kiki touched her while she stole his soul and cruelly slaughtered him under Mori's wicked order, she would break and quiver on all fours, begging Mori to spare Kiki's soul from her curse.
But Dazai knows better. No amount of praying could save the people she cares about. (Kana's prayers were a prayer for revenge as she allowed heartbreak to consume her alive into the flames of madness).No amount of begging could save the unfortunate people who crossed her doomed path. Mori is aware of this as well, which is why he took her under his wing when the entire world sought her dead.

(Yet she also wants to die. Dazai seeks death. She fucking wants to burn in her own fire, as Kana did. She longs to die and vanish with Kiki's soul forever. Because when she held Mori's bloody hand, Dazai hoped and craved she may find what she had been yearning for since the beginning of time.But there she is, stuck in her calamity, her curse reducing everything around her to ashes, the bitter matter clutching her bare feet like the blood that never leaves her hands.

She was damned, cursed to exact vengeance on those who shall burn brighter than stars she never imagined could exist.The chain quickly cracks Kiki's neck, allowing his small body to collapse to the floor with a muffled whimper

Inside her, she feels the intrusion of Kiki's soul, which is stuck eternally in this graveyard, forming a line of faceless and nameless spirits. She collapses on all fours by her cat's corpse and vomits the vile, heavy substance of blood, her frame shaking from her coughs (or suffocated sobbing, she doesn't know, because how can beings like her ever hope to shed tears and mourn those she kills?)."Get ready for dinner at six. This evening, you have another mission, Dazai," Mori says sternly, rising from his seat and moving toward his office's massive brown door.
Without looking back at her petite body quivering on the floor, her pale face drained from all the blood she coughed up, and the cadaver of the orange cat, he opens his mouth again, allowing his words to cut her open."I hope this served as a punishment for Chuuya's escape, bringing this stray cat inside there. Seriously, brat those days, I would gladly discuss with Ozaki. He says with a huff, "It's the last time, Dazai. Should your precious little Chuuya disobey the rules, the following punishment will be reversed for him. You don't want him to visit the red box, do you?" He conveys aloud, and a sinister chuckle escapes his lips when he hears her gasp and flinches at the mention of the box.He exited his office and allowed the guards to close the doors behind him."Please kill me," she says brokenly, her words echoing in the cold, dark office. Her wrapped hands wrap around her waist, nails digging into her white shirt, wishing to pierce her flesh. "It hurts so much," she whimpers, her lifeless eyes fixed on Kiki's corpse.
She extended a hand to the orange cat, praying that it was just another nightmare ripping her mind apart like every night. The smooth furr feels extremely cold against her palm, making her whimper even more as she slips her fingers into Kiki's orange furr."Please wake up, Kiki," she whispers, her hand trembling over him.

"I am sorry, Kiki. Please wake up." She begs, her throat raw, and feels full from the blood."Chuuya promised he would play with us." Her eyes trembled when she mentioned her dear friend's name. "So wake up, kiki!" She pleads her small head, caressing Kiki's motionless body

He is dead. She knows it. (How could she know when it was the first thing that welcomed her into the world and her rubies eyes were filled with dread?How could she not, when her road is littered with corpses, war, annihilation, the rules of cruel monarchs and deities, and this awful organization that bought her entire being and tied them all to death?When Dazai always hoped, wished, and sought death, only to mock her and steal everything around her, leaving her kneeling alone with bitter palms reaching out!

Kiki's death hurts so much. She genuinely liked him, and she looked forward to the warmth of his fur against her cheek at each slumber hiding in those bushes away from their miserable world. The gentle miaw made her forget the screams and cries that surrounded her and echoed within her as her cursed ability flickered.Because for a brief time, beside Kiki's delicate frame, as her bandaged fingers plunged into his orange fur, like a seed in the earth, she felt safe.

Safe. That was the only thing she wanted for a second. To breathe without feeling it will last an eternity, to sleep without having nightmares and dreading that men and women will drag her into their beds, and to stare up at the vast sky without guilt.

(listening and recalling the dream of those children lost in the darkness of this place where no light, no freedom could ever exist for depraved souls-

THEY'RE DEAD! GONE! IT'S YOUR FAULT, DAZAI!).

And now, that Kiki is dead ( killed by your hands, hiss a voice.); haven will never be sought by Dazai. ('So pitiful, child; whimper, tremble, and beg forgiveness from those you slaughtered, but remember Dazai; your blood is doomed. Those who have been cursed could never wish for deliverance.' It chuckles, crawling in her bones as misery drips from her mouth and shakes her small form.)
The realization of her condition was taunted, mocked by the voice. That she is nothing but a hideous killer makes her nails grasp, claws, and scratch at the spot of her skin where Mori's bruise rests, she whimpers deeper into the cold ground, believing that all she possesses is the ability to do evil.
(If she sheds her skin in a million torture and bleeds for eternity- maybe she can be pure for a single second -and may be able to believe she deserves Kiki's warmth without feeling guilty.)"I'm sorry, Kiki." Umekui rasps into the dark, frigid painting room, closing her eyes as the drug numbs her again and sends her to a state of sleep where no realm exists.
'I'm so sorry Chuuya.'
As dawn flickers in the sky, painting red hues and blue skies, Sanji gets up early, alone, to prepare his nakamas' and the princess' favorite breakfast. He gently hums a melody as he blows out a smock from his mouth, cigarettes burning between his fingers."Good morning, Sanji!" Chopper says sweetly as he enters the kitchen and settles on a chair at the table.Sanji turns toward the reindeer doctor like a sunflower, smiling widely and tenderly, his blue eyes gleaming from the sun's beams."Oh, Chopper! good morning! How are you doing this morning?"Then Sanji laughs softly while staring at Chopper, unable to reach the table due to his short stature. Chopper raises his gaze, beaming at him."I'm fine, thanks for asking!" says the lovely reindeer."How did you wake up so early?" Sanji inquires, returning his attention to the oven."I woke up early this morning to prepare some medicine for Usopp and Nami!" Chopper says, smiling while staring around the kitchen.Sanji's heart pounded briefly as he remembered their meeting with their crew doctor yesterday. It was the first time in his life that he had spoken about his early experiences with Zeff (how could you tell someone that he was fed his adoptive father's flesh for survival? Zeff has given up his dream and power for a foolish brat like him (sometimes he wonders why people sacrifice so much for him when he is just undeserving of such kindness?).Sanji was always conscious that he was a coward (the ghost of his miserable tiny figure still remains in this cell, burying his face from shame and weakness).Knowing that he was a fool for believing that he could save everyone (his name comes from a history of failures, and he now thinks that his nakamas, particularly his first mate, may follow in his footsteps).When Chopper needed a physical test, he felt the world pause around him and the breath in his lungs choke him. So it was no surprise that he flew from Chopper's grips out of terror of letting him touch and view his awful body (there is a horrible past locked inside his flesh, reflected in shattered bits in those scars marking his back)."Thank you for your hard work," Sanj says, turning to gaze at Chopper.The reindeer brightens, flushes, and dances weirdly before stopping for a second and allowing his smile to fade into a sad touch."Are you okay, Chopper?" Sanji softly asks, approaching his nakama and bending down before him, resting an affectionate palm on his head."It's about Umekui," Chopper says quietly, his lower lip quivering.Sanji's breath came to a halt for a split second before he exhaled softly as his expression softened with sadness."Nami told me that she regularly locked herself in her room-" explains Chopper, his little paws firmly grasping his blue tee shirt. "And when I questioned her in our meeting yesterday about it; it was like I was talking with a vessel, it was like she was somewhere lost in her thought."Chopper took a deep breath and stared directly into Sanji's blue eyes."She also told me something that makes me question if our first mate isn't already lost somewhere where we can't help her."Sanji's breath shortens, and his long fingers rush to fist in. He looks at Chopper with eyes as clear as the sky, but as dark and mournful as the sea, which has wrecked the lives and dreams of many tragic souls."What did she tell you, Chopper?" Sanji said, his gaze not quivering."That if someday one of our nakamas learns to fear then it will be the same day she will die. It's as if she was—""-planning her death," Sanji finished, breathing out the words.Chopper glances at him with wide eyes, surprised, and nods."Do you think she will do it?"Chopper knows he's a fool for asking that when the answer is inscribed in her red eyes.He recognizes it from the scars gleaming and scattering in her hands and palms, as if death and self-destruction lingered in each scar, remaining at her side, waiting to break her apart.He knows it because of her sorrowful smile, which resembles Hiriluk's ( and his father's ghost flies all around her, making Chopper want to cry and beg his father not to take Umekui with him. (Away from him, away from their crew, when Chopper believes he has found a place to call home-).He knows it from the smile that his mother, Doctorine, shared with him as she locked herself with Umekui for the first time—a smile she gave him each time she spoke of his father, the taste of sorrow and guilt still lingering in her mouth).He knew it because the moment Chopper looked at Umekui Dazai with wide, petrified eyes, he knew that heartbreak was lurking within her like a gushing wound in his heart, but he also saw this devotion, loyalty, and love she held for her nakamas (and it's for those nakamas that Umekui seems willing to die for in an instant).And now, Chopper is Umekui's nakama. And Chopper loved it as much as he feared it (he is caught between these two paths that love and dedication have mapped out for him).Yet above all, despite everything Chopper wants to be loved. He wants to be loved as much as his father loved him (but what if the outcome of loving him is the same as Hiriluk's devotion?)Isn't love what caused his father's early death? Isn't it because of his love for him that his father committed suicide? What if Umekui does the same because of him? (What if she commits suicide and abandons him, leaving pain and heartbreak staining his fur?).No. He will not let this happen. He is not as ignorant or foolish the way he once was. Chopper now has knowledge passed down from his mother, a wonderful doctor with no rank to match her ability.He is stronger. He's no longer the apprentice doctor, shivering and hiding behind his father's legs. The blue-nosed reindeer hunted in the forests by evil humans, or the hideous monster forsaken by his birth family and pack (yet their ghost bruises and malicious words continue to hover over his wounded heart).Sanji reflects on Chopper's question. Deep down, he knows the answer but is too afraid of expressing it out loud for Chopper to grasp it (Or is he the one who is terrified of the truth hidden within his heart?).But how could he lie to his adorable doctor about their first mate's health? (Yet isn't he lying and withholding information from his nakamas about Crocodile hunting their first mate's existence?).The lies he is trying to spread are no different than the way he lives his life. Sanji is a fresco that depicts deception and forgotten tragic memories. He is a liar; lie after lie burns through his lips and grasps his lungs, dragging him back to his dark prison, where breathing hurts as much as living.Deep down, Sanji is terrified. Afraid in a way that causes him to grip his hair in a bid to relieve the familiar weight on his head. (covering him, hiding him from the world through shame because of his grotesquely weak self)).So afraid that he feels compelled to check Nami every day. To see her there, alive and beaming at the world. (Because Sanji refuses to forgive and disregards how Nami's eyes died as the blade blazed red, cutting her arm repeatedly (wrenching his heart with each hit)).Fearful that this new life and this new journey toward this ambition are foolish hopes that are stoking the lone hope raging from his torn heart inside this dark cell. The hope that Sanji had been longing for; beaming from Luffy's warm palms and huge smile. (And, even though he scolds his dumb captain for eating everything, Sanji knows how much he loves cooking and feeding his captain.How could he not, when Luffy's smile and admiring heart remind him of the first person he loved more than anything else in the world and planned to feed her all the meals he could create to save her-but she is dead, gone, leaving behind her ghost haunting Sanji's nights).Afraid that the love that is sowing his overflowing devotion into his organs and heart would vanish with his first mate. Sanji is terrified that every time Umekui locks herself in her room, he will find a lifeless body lying in a pool of blood that he is so accustomed to.Sanji has no idea what he would do if he ever lost her or one of their nakamas (even the marino head). Because even when the voices in his soul claim that he is weak (weak to love hard and fast, weak to continuously lose, and too weak to lie, casting his back at the scars and wounds of the past), Sanji loves them too much to lose one of them.
'Don't try to be a hero and save me from Crocodile claws, Sanji. Even if your morality and emotions are screaming at you to do it, I will be wounded if you try anything idiotic like that, okay?'
Oh, dear beautiful Umekui, how wrong you are. Sanji is not a hero, and he never will be; he accepted this long ago (because no hero had hidden his face from disgrace and weakness. No hero wears and conceals scars on his back from shame. No hero had to see death lurking in their loved one's eyes until they were reduced to dust at their feet). He doesn't know who he is; he never has, not when his shameful blood steams through his veins and his throat twists from grief.However, Sanji understands that he is willing to go to any length to protect Umekui, their crew, and his nakamas. (And if one day he turns away from those promises blazing through his hope, it shall be when his sinful blood has won and crushed his hopes and dreams, mocking him for his foolishness).So Sanji carefully takes Chopper's paw in his hand and raises a warm palm to stroke Chopper's head, aware that this young boy needs it more than anything."Umekui is our nakama, Chopper. And for nakama, we are willing to do anything, even risk death. Nakama never battles alone, therefore no matter what Umekui is fighting in the shadows, we will always be there for our first mate. We shall all help her in the best way we know how. We are willing to go to any length for those we regard as 'nakamas'."He spoke slowly and softly, allowing his words to pass through Chopper's sad gaze."How?" Chopper croaks, ghost tears burning in his eyes.Sanji lowers his palm toward Chopper's heart, places it over tenderly, and smiles widely."Someone once told me that love and kindness are the best cures for sorrow and darkness! And our hearts hold the key to that antidote."Chopper's eyes widen, as a tear slips from his eyes. Those words are very similar to his father's! The way he taught him to smile at the world and the way he thought a monster like Chopper could have a heart was something he would always remember. And Sanji is doing the same, gazing and patting him as if he were someone precious and lovely, without hesitation or flinching from fear and revulsion.
('I think your nakamas are pretty cool and kind," Chopper comments, his words hardly concealing his admiration for them.

'They are the most wonderful and lovely nakamas in the world to me. They hold greater significance than anything else in the world,' confesses Umekui.)
He sniffs back tears and smiles broadly at Sanji, mirroring the embracing smile of his nakama.Indeed; they are so, so cool and kind! And now they are his nakama in the same way that he is theirs! If his father and Sanji both declare that he has a heart as warm and loving as theirs, Chopper will do all in his power to aid Umekui, his first mate, his nakama--and he will do it for everyone who bears this nakama bond that ignites through his heart.Sanji gets up, turns back to the counter, and smiles over his shoulder."What is your favorite meal, Chopper?" Sanji inquires, preoccupied with the breakfast he is about to serve to his nakama."I love sweet things!" beams Chopper then pauses for a moment before smiling cheerfully, "But above all, I love cotton candy!"Pink cotton candy reminds him of his father's eternal dreams and hopes, pink flowers that Hiriluk talks about for hours every night, and delicious as the ghost aroma that he described with a broad grin. and most importantly, warmth and melting beneath his tongue, reminiscent of the first time his father stole cotton candy for him from the human market (since no man ever dared to sell things to a madman who had a monster as a child)."How about I make you some cotton candy for desserts?" Sanji whirled and peered at him with bright blue eyes.Chopper gasped in surprise because Usopp told him that Sanji exclusively cooks special desserts for the women of their crew, and Sanji values women above all else. His dark pink eyes soften from Sanji's affection, and he smiles broadly, his cheeks flaming."YES! THANK YOU SO MUCH SANJI!" In front of the bathroom mirror, Usopp let out a shaky breath. He stares intently at his reflection, glaring, hoping, praying that all the weak, nasty things inside of him will burn out and disappear.In less than an hour, they reach Nanohana, Alabama's first port town, and Usopp's guts shake with fear. He reached down and pinched himself hard in his right thing, beneath his shorts. The squeeze was hard to bruise, and Usopp prayed that the throbbing pain would consume the fear and terror rushing through his veins.The icy water drops from his face and hair into the sink beneath him, and each intake echoes the heartbeat of panic inside his chest. He looks down at his hands, with his hazel eyes begging, searching, and yearning to feel the strength and might that flow through his hands like they were emanating from his nakama back.Sometimes he wonders why he can't have a powerful devil fruit like Luffy, to feel his body stretch at his will, to not feel the pain clinging his agony and rocking his entire body in panic (the fear of being injured, feeling the wounds searing in his body, and his lungs screaming in protest with each breath).Why couldn't I have been born as an ability user like Umekui, with power radiating from her crimson eyes? Power lurking in her veins, flying, brushing against the sky like a star, not batting an eye at the world around them, the darkness around her not allowing an ounce of pain to reach her.Maybe if he had her power, he would be able to fight people without shaking in fear and distress, tears streaming down his face. He might be able to beat Fishman without begging God for mercy and, like Umekui and Luffy, be able to tear down buildings with just one punch.Nor scared of giants, nor nervous about surviving against ennemies—he may even defeat evil monarchs and knights like Umekui (but is he willing to pay the price? the blood on his hands and the ghosts of long-lost lives never leaving him? Is he even prepared to kill without hesitation, as Zoro and Umekui were able to?)Why couldn't he be as fearless and powerful as Zoro, not even flinching from the pain? Wielding swords as if they were a pair of his limbs. (He could never be like Zoro, not when he hides behind others' backs, flinching at the sight of blood-deep down he hoped he could care less about the world, perhaps it would be easier to defeat (and kill) people with a smirk on his face).He wished he had the same level of selflessness as Sanji when it came to ladies, willing to battle like a sick idiot, using his legs and might to both protect and destroy people. (Because, despite his passion for cooking, Sanji learned to survive and fight without staining his hands, his prized possession for his dreams).Sanji's conviction propels him to fight with his legs while leaving his hands to carry his passion and dreams, willing to sacrifice every aspect of himself.So, what sacrifices did he ever make? What did he give up to fate in the expectation that his dream was hiding somewhere waiting for him? Nothing. Usopp made no sacrifices in pursuit of his dreams (yet he can't help but think that the world is extremely unfair and brutal to expect sacrifices for one's dream).Sacrifices that silly Nami is aware of, scarring her arm and heart with deep, lengthy wounds from the ruthless fisherman. Sacrificing her freedom in the hope and prayer that one day she may be able to achieve her dreams, and now, after a lifetime of sorrow and suffering, witnessing her prison, cell, and chains burn in the flames of freedom delivered by Luffy and Umekui. After so many sacrifices and tears, she is free to laugh, run with him, and swim in the sea that she adores.Sometimes Usopp imagined he could be like her, brave, fierce, and clever, not allowing the world to sink his fangs of dread into his soul.(Yet he understands deep inside that Nami has been terrified for so long that she has let it go, like the rage clawing at her scar).So he curses himself for thinking that way about his best friend, for daring to spit on Nami's sacrifices and suffering because of his cowardice. (When he knows that if he was Nami, he would have given up long ago, letting fishmen destroy everything in the hopes that they would simply murder him painlessly).Don't let him think about Vivi. Him? A prince whose realm was stolen is going to be destroyed in a civil war. He would have fled far from all of this devastation, allowing dread and guilt to consume him, ridiculing him for his weakness. And as Vivi conceals her sorrowful gaze from him, letting her turmoil consume her, Usopp wishes he could hold her hands and convey how much he admires her for all the sacrifices she is willing to make for her kingdom (but he lets it go like he is letting the princess to slip away from him in despair).Even Chopper, their new nakama, is more powerful and helpful than him. A powerful seven-transforming reindeer and a skillful doctor of class S.Usopp curses himself while tugging firmly on his locks. How dare he think so of his lovely and gentle nakama. Usopp's heart melts as he recalls Chopper's concern for his health and pledge to help him overcome the anxiety that is eating him alive.He blames himself for all of his evil thoughts and envy towards his nakamas. But anxiousness is the poison that feeds his thoughts, a venom that blinds Usopp to the outside world. (And he hates himself for carrying this poison in his veins).With the deadly poison nestled in his soul like a snake, Usopp realizes that he will never have the strength and dignity that his nakamas have.The problem has always been with Usopp (sometimes he wonders if his father abandoned him and his sick mother because of his pitiful existence).A single tear escaped from his eye, which he hastily wiped away with his hand. He looks back at his cowardly shape, and resentment wraps around his bones. His dream seems so far away from his shivering palms. Again, his dream appears to glow from every back save his own, and the ugly part of him envies it.He opens the faucet and rinses his face with cold water, clearing the glare of self-hatred. Takes a few deep breaths, repeats some prayers that no one will hear except his deceased mother, and smiles again, ready to leave the bathroom and start the day.From the moment Usopp held Luffy's warm hand, he thrived and clung to the faith that 'dreams are not just dreams'. So, if some compassionate god is watching him from above, Usopp prays that he will keep him safe from the conflict and brutal organization that awaits them at Alabasta.Because all Usopp has to get past dread and worry is the pitiful hope of achieving his dream.'So please god, don’t let my dream be just a dream.' With this final plea, Usopp departs the bathroom, trying to ignore the reflection of his weak self mocking him for his insecurity.Luffy's is warm. Burning, searing like a torch in the sky, never fading despite the wind, cold, and rain.For in her frigid embrace, Luffy ignites and blazes hotter and brightest than he has ever been able to.He knew if he slept beside her door, she'd come out since Luffy knows his first mate will go to any length for him. And it often worries him, this blind devotion and allegiance she has for him-because Luffy knows Umekui's foolish sacrificing side like the lines in the back of his hand or the numerous freckles on Ace's face that he grew up counting.Because Umekui, who remained willing to scar her back to protect his hat, sell off her treasure, feed him while going without food, smile at him despite the pain in her eyes, follow him to realize his dream despite her empty gaze, and prove willing to bear herself off and climb mountains for him, is a lot like Ace.Ace, who repeatedly protects him because he is his beloved little brother. Ace, who did not mourn in front of him after Sabo died, but instead waited till he slept to cry and grieve alone. Ace hides so many scars and wounds from him because his idiotic older brother feels he is unworthy of his love. Ace, who promised to do whatever it took to keep his younger brother safe (and Luffy understands that, despite his eventual rise to the position of pirate king, Ace will always view him as his beloved, little brother, whom he will put his life in danger to protect.)Luffy believes that if people like Ace and Umekui realize that they are worthy of love and dreams, maybe they will stop saying and doing stupid things that make his head throb and their eyes burn.(Maybe Umekui and Ace would allow Luffy to defend them for once, as they have done for him so selflessly (he does not want them to fade away, die like Sabo because; stupid precious Sabo didn't let Luffy and Ace protect him!).So Luffy sinks deeper into her grip, his back pressing against her front, seeking to enter her ribcage and protect her from within.Perhaps Luffy lacks a variety of skills, such as intelligence like Nami or Sabo, cooking like Sanji, inventing great stuff and telling amazing stories like Usopp, wielding multiple swords like Zoro, or being a cool reindeer and amazing doctor like Chopper.He also doesn't know how to hide his emotions and scars like Umekui and Ace do, yet they still safeguard him despite the shadows of the past in their eyes.However, Luffy is capable of doing things that not many people cannot. His grandfather once remarked that he had never seen someone with such tenacity; Shanks said he saw something in him that no one else did which would make him a great pirate; Makino said no one makes her laugh like he does; Dandan, despite her sullen expression, told him he had the strongest heart in their world; well, even Sabo declared that no stupidity could match his.Also, no one has a devil fruit like him. And he is confident that no one loves like he does (Ace told him that his love was too childish and possessive, trying hard to get away from his sticky grips). He smiled and tilted his head to rest it against Umekui's shoulder, gazing up at her with sparkling brown eyes."I love you, Ume!" he beams at her.Her crimson eyes widen, and the dark shadows within them go away, revealing the red color that he adores. He screethes a hand out, the back of his hand caressing her black long hair cascading over her shoulders and his own encasing them in a single cocoon. His fingertips flutter over the scar at the end of her right eye and brown, and he offers a soft giggle and grin."We have twins scars now," he states, showing Umekui the scar under his right eye.Her face melts into his palm, and her chilly face warms sparks into his palm, making him smile widely.A small smile screeches across her red lips, making her eyes glitter in the living room as the sun's rays peak through the windows and mirror her sight in his large eyes.He instantly shifts around to straddle her lap and embrace her tightly, his arms wrapping around her neck and his face inches from hers, allowing his warm breath to clash with her frigid one."I love you, Ume. Forever," he speaks again, his forehead brushing against hers and his words sweeping across her face. (And Luffy hopes the words will pour inside her mouth and imprint themselves on her heart so she will never forget them)."You are so stupid," Umekui says, her red eyes staring all over his face, as if he were a fascination sent by the sea."But I believe in you," she declares, allowing her body to melt against his and reluctantly reaching hands around his waist to hug him back.He chuckles, his warm, cheerful laugh ringing throughout the empty living room. And rests his head in the crock of her neck, clutching his first mate tightly.Umekui is so silly for calling him stupid when she is stupider than him. But never mind, if his idiocy, which she had feared and flinched at, is now the thing keeping the threads of shadows away from her gaze. Then Luffy will be stupid, as Sabo has always pestered him; for Umekui, Ace, and all the others he cares about, Luffy will be their stupid captain, friend, and brother.Luffy will be stupid over and over again because he will be the pirate king and fulfill Shank's promise. And Crocodile or a civil war are nothing in his path; he will win, conviction and dreams reverberating from his loud voice as he remains beside his Ume."Did I tell you about the first time I stole alcohol with Ace and Sabo from Dandan to fulfill our oaths?" Luffy snickers with fondness.His first mate chuckles gently, his chest vibrating against her as if they were one body, and hugs him tightly."No. Tell me about it, my darling captain," Ume whispers softly, her chin resting on his shoulder for support.Luffy giggles and stares up at the ceiling, reliving happy memories of his youth with his adored siblings."It was Ace's idea!" laughs Luffy. "So it w-"Luffy chats and tells stories to his first mate about his childhood, which he cherishes like a treasure (perhaps if Ume had been among them, she would have been less empty, Ace less dumb, and Sabo still alive); then he lights up and continues his story, feeling Umekui's smile across his shoulder and chilly fingertips scorching his spine.Yes, the best thing he knows to do after eating is to love, and he will always do so. It's worth Umekui's smile and laugh, as well as the meat and meals she feeds him every day, and the Sanji dessert she offers him.Indeed, his first mate is the best, and Luffy loves her so much.Vivi looks ahead at the far land that her sight is drawn to from her position.This land she knows like the back of her hand, as do the little scars on her body (how could she not remember those scars when they marked the beginning of her descent into depravity? Perhaps she is collecting scars to prove herself that she is paying for some sins she has committed). ("You will be a good queen, my beloved daughter," the late mother's voice repeats in her head, making her scars ache with remorse.)
'A good queen? Oh, Mother, I wonder how disappointed you are with me.'
Perhaps she was a good heir when the sun bathed her home in love and safety, the sand beneath her bare feet kept her warm, and her family line represented love and reverence.
'Vivi! Vivi! Vivi!' 
When her name was recited with love and respect, sought her, and referred to her as the kingdom's future heir and guardian. When her once-loved childhood friend held her hands with kindness, broad smiles reflecting at her as they ran across the desert, their laughter resounding into the blue-orange skies of Alabasta.Each night, when the nightmares take pity on her and restore the echoes of her childhood memories, Koza's youthful smile and loud voice make her dream of a future in which they can bathe in those unique rivers without fear of destroying their hearts with hatred.Nights when she recalls lying in Pell's falcon form, flying across the high skies of Alabatsa, her eyes blurring from the warm breeze, her wide smile shining like the sun that her civilians enjoy, and her laugh as free as the birds flying and singing by her side.The hot bread melting inside her mouth, and the sweet desserts supplied by her people's kingdom as they shouted her name with affection, while they thanked her family and father for their protection and good actions for their wonderful happy kingdom.But now.Now, the scars of her betrayal sting and slither into her body, mocking her royal blood for her absurdity and foolishness.
'Princess Vivi! 'Princess Vivi! 'Princess Vivi! 'Princess Vivi! 'Princess Vivi!'
The entire kingdom, all souls, yell her name with venom and disdain on their faces and sneers. And she wants to fall on her knees in front of them, begging, pleading, and screaming that she had done nothing wrong, that this wicked man was deceiving them all.

'Crocodile!'

Her soul screams and cries out at this name, full of wrath and bloodlust. This cruel man, warlord of the sea, is to blame for everything. He is the reason her soul and hands knew and tasted the blood of those she killed on her path. It is his fault that redemption and salvation appear so far away, like the scorching sun of her land turning away from them.His avarice, his insane beliefs, and his cravings are the reason behind a long-forgotten trail of deaths that spreads over her kingdom's roads, corrupting their land, walls, and sand with the blood of the innocent.She can imagine his smug sneer mocking her over and over. Mocking her for seeking the liberation of her kingdom, her dreams of seeing the love on the faces of her people, letting his cruel words and laughs to grab her ankles and dig into the loneliness chewing her alive.
("Don't end up like my faults, Princess Vivi," Dalton urges as he looks out at the sea front of them.The shame and anguish that she saw on his face appear to have evaporated after Wapol perished. The straw hats have yet to return from getting their first mate from Kureha, so Dalton is keeping her company while they wait.She looks up at Dalton, confused by his remarks.

"People like us, who bear the guilt and weight of a whole kingdom, will never experience the justice provided by the world government. You sought their aid, invoked their name, and demanded redemption for your land, right?" Dalton questioned with a sorrowful smile."Yes," Vivi stated reluctantly, her palm clenching at her side. "But they abandoned us. They ignored my pleas and remained blind to Crocodile schemes.""Don't wait, Princess Vivi. Do not be consumed by guilt and grief, as I was. Go fight, and reclaim your rightful reign. Only those who have experienced tears and sorrow may free their house from years of agony. It's your time, Nefertari Vivi," Dalton says wisely, his warm smile setting Ingram's soul in front of her

Seeing the straw pirates race for their ship, followed by Kureha's loud laugh, causes Dalton to turn around and climb back the mountain. But before leaving her, he adds."The pirates are your last hope, Princess Vivi. Allow the warriors of liberation liberated Alabasta by your side. Don't struggle alone and succumb to the harsh grasp of despair and revenge. You are not alone in this fight. Please do not end up like me. Loneliness is no good for people like us.")
The straw hat helping her? How can they assist her when it is not their fights or their home, the kingdom, that is burning? She cannot allow herself to be selfish and request their help for Alabasta's salvation, especially when all of those who aided her have died in the shadows.Ingram's name flows from her heart like a wound that is still grieving. She is frightened of allowing her new friends to help her and then perish as a result of her fault, Crocodile blades cutting them and dumping their corpses before her feet, with despair consuming her soul.She fists her hands tightly enough to feel the pain as her nails dig into her flesh.You are wrong Dalton, she thought. There is nothing in her as noble or valiant as him to accept the help of her friends. Not when everything that happens is her fault, standing alone in the midst of conflicts, rebels, and organizations that shed blood for ideas and vengeance.How can she seek Luffy's help? (Vivi knows that if she asked and commanded Luffy to rescue her homeland, this dumb boy would do so without hesitation). Wherever Luffy walks, Umekui and the rest follow blindly, all obediently following their stupid captain to their doom.But Vivi knows what devotion and loyalty do, it's kill. Because those who swear allegiance and loyalty to her lineage are all dead in their blood pool (she thinks the straw hat pirates will be similarly fated)."Are you okay, Vivi?" Nami asks in a worrying tone.Vivi's gaze switches from the distant but still close-by land to the short ginger-haired girl who has joined her on the upper deck."I'm fine, Nami," Vivi lies, offering a sweet smile, hoping Nami will believe her.Nami smiles back and reaches for a hand to hold hers."We are here for you, Vivi. Everything will be fine," she says, clutching her hand lovingly.With a grateful smile, she approaches Nami and curls her arms over her back. She is as warm as the sand on which she laid and dozed under the sun years ago; her tangerine perfume recalls the various oases of her birthplace.She holds her carefully, allowing Nami's hold to soothe her tense heartbeat. She cannot let Nami sink with her; Nami has already suffered enough.(The dark, chilly night appears to devour her alive; she wakes up with a gasp, her hands covering her erratic heart.The nightmares are driving her insane, and the tears in her eyes cause her to curl a hand over her hair, praying that they will go away, just like the harsh nightmares that leave her when she opens her eyes.
The bed beneath appears to shallow her whole (and she wonders, wishes, for a second to be shallowed alive by the bed; perhaps in the silence and harmony of nothingness, Vivi will finally rest, the concerns, anxieties, and dreads allowing her to breathe guilt-free.)

Vivi surveys the room, pausing to glance at Nami and Umekui sleeping in the first mate's bed. Since Vivi joined the group, the first mate has granted her a portion of the room so she can utilize it. But when Nami learned that Umekui was going to remain and sleep in her painting room, she urged her first mate to join her so they could sleep in the first mate's bed and share her chamber.So Nami offered Vivi her bed and a portion of the room with a cheerful grin.

She tightens her shaking hands into a fist, hoping the terror will abandon her. (Abandon her, just as she abandoned Ingram to his death. Abandon her as if she had fled her kingdom, abandon her with the dreams and goals of claiming her motherland free, which appears to be as far as the sun. Abandon her as she did with her humanity from the second she seized a blade and soiled her hand with blood, as she kil-)."Nightmares are cruel, right?" the navigator's lovely voice says.She turns to face Nami, who is sitting on her bed with her back to the wall and her knees up to her chest in an embrace. Nami's mournful expression and stare cause her stomach to twist with rage.

(Is she pitying her? What does this woman understand about nightmares? What does she know about the hopelessness and dread that consumes you and mocks you every night? How could she know this anguish when she appears to be happy and free?Basking in the sun, swimming in the sea, and joking with Usopp as she displays her maps. Dancing and singing with Luffy, always smiling as if the world's calamities did not exist. Every night, Zoro and Nami would joke, train, and drink together. 
Flirting, dancing, and eating with Sanji as his praise could make any woman's eyes melt and her heart stops beating. Hugging, napping, painting with her first mate, looking up at the red-eyed woman with adoration as if she were her sole home, trusting that her first mate would protect her from the cruel outside world.

Nami has everything and everyone that Vivi no longer has.No kingdom to call home while it despises her. No friends to laugh, smile, or dance with since they despise her and pray for her bloodline's demise. No man to flirt with and court her like the woman she is. There's no one to protect her anymore. There is no one to stare at with adoration and devotion back, only venomous and bloodlust glares.

Vivi is alone against an entire organization (she feels so worn out from fighting, pondering about a future that is as dead as her dwindling hope)."I once had a home stolen from me," she states softly. Nami is staring at the ceiling with a melancholy look. "I formerly lived in a small, warm house that was usually noisy due to my bickering with my older sister and my late mother's loud voice. I used to have a tangerine garden where I loved to run about and play with my sister."

Nami grins quietly as she recalls a few lovely recollections.

"I always reprimanded my mother for smocking but she never listened to me because she was always so obstinate, even though I was not her biological daughter, I know that my stubborn and loud side comes from her."Vivi's breath catches as Nami's face, lighted by the moonlight, glows with fondness but also conveys the sorrow that Vivi is familiar with."But nice things don't usually last forever. A group of fishmen emerged from their boats, spreading chaos and panic around. My mother was so selfless and stubborn that she gave up herself for us. When she died, my home no longer seemed like a home, but rather something to buy back. And selling myself to some fishermen in order to reclaim a home that no longer felt like home was my sole dedication. Even if everybody in my town called me a traitor and turned their backs on me, even if my sister and I fought hard, even if I ended up beaten and bruised, selling my freedom to be shackled down by some chains; nothing mattered to me except rescuing my hometown."

She didn't realize it until the tears reached the back of her hand, but Vivi was crying, silent tears streaming down her cheeks at Nami's past.

"I had dreams, even if I often resented them due to the condition I found myself in. Drawing a map of the world was my promise to my late mother, but how could I explore the world while chained to fishermen? Deep down inside my heart, the hope I fought so hard to preserve was guarding my dream."Nami smiles at Vivi while shedding a single tear.'How can she still smile when she tells her about the misery and despair she has endured for practically her whole life?' Vivi thought, devastated.Nami stretches the back of her palm toward Umekui's sleeping face, caressing her first mate's cheek with affection.

"Luffy, Umekui, Zoro, Sanji, and Usopp saved me. They saved and freed the hope I held deep inside, they rescued and stood by me even when I betrayed them, and they freed me and my hometown even when I begged them to leave me alone. But they stayed, saw my distress, and brought ashes to my torment."She shifts her gaze to Vivi, her hand still resting on Umekui's pale cheek."I understand what it's like to have no one and to consider releasing your hometown alone. But we're there now, Vivi. You're not alone anymore. I'll help you. We will help you, I promise. Believe in us, Vivi."
She smiles widely, allowing Vivi to remember and capture Nami's lovely smile in her head forever.She quickly nods while sniffing the tears. She then lies on her bed with Nami's words repeated in her mind to ward off nightmares."Rest well, Vivi. I'll request Sanji to prepare a special breakfast for you tomorrow.")Vivi cannot be selfish again, especially since many people have died as a result of her actions. She cannot let Nami and the others follow all of the unfortunate people who have been caught up in this disaster.Nami has already done enough, they have done enough for her, they have returned her to her land, and all she needs to do now is free her home.A loud scream and cry causes Vivi and Nami to stare at each other in surprise before heading to the balcony to check out that the noise was coming from the sea."Zoro! A man is drowning in the sea! Go get him!" Nami exclaims, glaring at Zoro's form resting on the deck.The swordman stands up, groans, and returns Nami's glare. "Go and save him yourself! Why would you make me do your work?""So you would rather throw a delicate and frail woman like me than save the man yourself?" Nami sighs dramatically laying a palm over her forehead.Zoro's forehead veins throbbed with outrage and annoyance."HA, YOU FRAIL AND DELICATE? YOU'RE A WI-"Before Zoro could finish his curse, Sanji teleported behind him and kicked him hard, hurling him into the sea beside the drowning guy.Zoro grabs the man and swims back toward the merry-go-round, cursing his nakamas beneath his breath.Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper enter the deck with big smiles. When Luffy notices Zoro in the sea, he reaches out his hands and grabs both of them, throwing them onto the deck.Zoro rose up with a grumble, removing his wet shirt and staring at Sanji, who ignored him to stare at Nami and Vivi with hearts in his eyes."Well, thank you for saving me, oh merciful pirates!" exclaims the man, getting up and dancing in a strange dance while tiptoeing on his pink ballerina shoes.The straw hat grimaces at his unusual appearance; his face is plastered in weird make-up that reminds Zoro, Luffy, and Nami of a specific clown with a red nose. Chopper's dread of the flamingos behind him causes him to shelter behind Usopp.Vivi narrows her eyes at the odd man, who seems quite familiar to her. He notices her attention, smirks, and sends her a flying kiss, which makes her grimace slightly."Why did you drown in the sea? Do you also not know how to swim?" Luffy remarks, grinning."Not really! I ate a devil fruit, and as I fell from my pirate ship, the waves sank me!" explains the strange man with a broad grin."What is your devil fruit?" inquires Usopp, interested.The strange man smirks and glances at them attentively, then cracks up loudly when he notices Luffy's fascinated stare."How about I show you?"He leaps in front of Luffy and smacks him hard in the face, causing him to fall onto his back with a groan.Zoro unleashes his swords, Sanji glares at the man ready to fight him off, Usopp reaches for his pistol, and Nami's face twists in rage.Chopper runs up to Luffy, his eyes filled with worry.'Boom'A bullet blows off near the strange man's face."Who do you think you are from trespassing our ship and hitting my captain?" The first mate's chilly voice disturbs the silence; she jumps from above the upper deck and stands towering over the strange man with an a handgun aimed at him."Wait, Wait!"Luffy's voice says, the strange man raises his arms before his face to prevent the first mate from killing him.All the straw hats and Vivi breaths itch as they stare with startled eyes at the strange man in front of them, who returns their gaze with Luffy's expression."Hey, it's my voice and face!" Luffy exclaims, pointing to the strange man."I ate the Mane Mane no Mi, a devil fruit that allows me to transform into a physical lookalike of anyone whose face I have touched with my right hand," he explains, displaying Luffy's visage and speaking with his voice. "And I can return to normal by touching my face with my left hand," he continues, allowing his natural visage to appear."So coolll!" shout Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper, their eyes twinkling with excitement.In their stunned state, the devil fruit user man approaches them and touches Usopp, Chopper, Nami, and Zoro's faces. Before he can touch Sanji, the latter growls at him, and the man backs away with a smirk."Look, I'm you!" he yells, revealing Usopp's face. "And you!" he smirks at with Chopper's lips. "And you, haha!" he says to Zoro mirroring his groan. "Even woman, look at this!" he exclaims as he shows Nami's face, "Even the body!"; before he can remove his garments, another bullet is fired at a hitch in his face, causing him to freeze and touch his face with his left hand returning to normal."Don't you dare," Umekui sneers, pointing her gun with a menacing stare.The devil fruit user gulps and glances at his first mate closely before smiling at the three boys staring at him with stars in their eyes."You are really cool!" remarked Usopp.Chopper nods enthusiastically, "Your power is incredible!""I want to see more!!" exclaims Luffy, clapping his hands enthusiastically."Well, my sweeties, I will grant your wishes because I am a loving person!" says the man, winking at the three pirates.He touches his face with his right palm as a slew of faces materialize one after another, the trio's amazement and shouts becoming increasingly audible.Vivi's heart trembles as her breath catches on a familiar face.
'Father?' 
She blinks rapidly, attempting to comprehend what is occurring. The strange man jumps over a balcony as his pirate ship approaches, then he jumps again as they scream out his name."Mr. Bon Kurei, here we are!" exclaim the pirates from the pink ship.'Bon Kurei?'Oh, she is so stupid! How could she have not recognized him?"Bon Kurei, they said?" Zoro muses.Nami looks at him, perplexed, and then lets out a loud gasp, drawing the attention of everyone."It's Mr.2!""What?!" cries Usopp, choked."So he is not our friend, but our enemy?" Luffy pouts, staring at the farewell pink ship.Vivi gulps hard when she notices the first mate's chilly gaze."Princess Vivi, didn't you recognize him?" Umekui inquired calmly and carefully."I forgot what he looked like. I'm sorry!" she says, tears welling up in her eyes as she leans to apologize."Hey its okay don-"Sanji and Nami's words are cut short by their first mate."Did you also forget Crocodile and Miss All Sunday's faces?" the first mate says while staring down at her.Vivi looks at Umekui with wide eyes, stupefied by her questions."No!" she shouts, "of course not!"(How can she when their faces appear in her nightmares every night, mocking her misguided hope? Their hands were tainted with the blood of those Vivi once loved. She would never forget them and forgave them for their crimes! Never!)"Then I encourage you to never forget their faces again. They are now all your enemies, Nefartari Vivi. "The entire kingdom is against you; if you keep being stupid like that, you will be murdered before you reach your kingdom," Umekui states, turning her back and entering the quarters.She gulps again and stares at the ground, allowing Umekui's words to spiral through her thoughts. The first mate is right; she cannot allow herself to be stupid when her entire kingdom's fate and life depend on her (And now, because of her selfishness, Luffy lives, and the others lie on her back).(Vivi is tired of standing and fighting alone in a world that does not allow her to dream and hope in peace. She is truly so tired. She wants to let go and crumbles from exhaustion and hopelessness, facilitating everything to dissolve to ashes as the wind scatters it all over the Alabasta sand).Usopp's hand rested on her shoulder, compelling her to concentrate on his easy grin."Don't worry Vivi; Usopp the magnificent will find a genius idea!"She let out a tiny chuckle, making Usopp and Chopper smile even bigger.Zoro approaches them with a pen in his hand and suggests."How about we draw a cross on our arm so we can recognize each other?"Ussop gasps, outraged, and glares at his nakama."Hey it's was supposed to be me to find a genius idea!""Too bad, Long-nose! Zoro smirks, mocking Usopp, "I am the new genius now!"Nami's fist struck Usopp and Zoro, knocking them out in pain."It's not the time to fight over stupid things!"She borrows Zoro's pen, grabs all her nakamas and Vivi's arms, and paints a cross on each of them."My first tattoo, Pirate!"Luffy beams at his arm.Chopper laughs and says, "It's not a tattoo, silly Luffy!"But Luffy was so focused on his arm that he didn't hear Chopper's words."I'll go see Umekui so I can draw her arm as well!" Nami says with a smile, turning to their quarters.Vivi grins softly as she looks at the pirates' smiles the, to the mark on her arm and Karo's.'The world requires more pirates like them. So stupid and selfless!'Sanji grins broadly and winks at her while Chopper beams at her letting her heart melt with affection.Yes, she can't be the cause of their deaths either; she'd never forgive herself. At any cost, she is going to fight alone, even if it means crawling like an insect to defeat Crocodile and reclaim her home.The first mate is right: she has been stupid enough. She cannot allow her foolishness to pull her new friends into the clutches of death. It's better that way, that she bleeds, screams, and battles alone rather than sacrificing the lives of those gentle and selfless pirates.Some people are just born to fight alone, she reflects with a sad smile, embracing the despair that creeps into her veins.Nami discovers Umekui in their bedroom, looking through her belongings.Nami sits on their sharing bed (despite though Umekui hadn't slept in it for the last two days). Locking up herself in her painting room always makes Nami stare at it through blurry eyes. (Because, deep down behind those doors, her first mate is hurting and fighting alone against the shadows and nightmares that never allow her sleep soundly (peace seems foreign to her empty eyes))."There. It's for you," Umekui says, her voice soft as a warm summer breeze (it makes her forget the coldness in her voice every time she speaks with Vivi or someone other than their crew).She glances up to see Umekui's reaching hands, holding out a bow.She gasped at the sight of the weapon and blinked down at him before looking up at her first mate with wide eyes."For me?" she whispered."Yes. You wanted to be strong? So you can help the princess, right?" Umekui asks as she sits alongside her on the bed.'Most of all, I want to be strong for you. I want to help you. I want to save you from the emptiness that is devouring you alive, Umekui.'She only nods and grabs the bow with her hands shaking. (He feels heavy in her hands, but knowing that it would help her be strong for Umekui and her nakama makes it lighter than the beating heart inside her chest)."I'll help you use it," Umekui says quietly, her scarred fingers fluttering at the end of Nami's ginger hair."Thank you, Umekui!" Nami hollers, wrapping her arms around Umekui's neck and hugging her firmly.Their shoulders caress each other, and their hair forms a love knot. Umekui melts against her frame, and Nami smiles broadly over Umekui's shoulder, feeling her hugging her back. (She is no longer flinching at her touch, and Nami wants to cry, laugh, and grin with utter joy)."Tell me, Nami, are you happy?" Umekui asks, her hands grasping Nami's red tee shirt firmly.('Are you happy with me?' seeks the desperate part of Umekui's ruined heart.)Nami blinks and takes an inch back from the hugs to look at Umekui's red eyes (the scar beside her right eye makes her stomach turn from remorse (her first mate suffered because of her; for her! And she wonders how many battle scars she is willing to bear for them?).Nami's hands flew over Umekui's face, her thumbs caressing her first mate with tenderness that might make angels weep. She smiles broadly, her cheeks stinging from the way they stretch to her ears.(She now understands why Luffy can smile every day without his cheeks hurting. It's amusing and heartwarming that his devil fruit is a part of his essence, as if this power was created for him and Luffy was born for it)."I am happy, Umekui. Overflowing happy," she reaches a palm over her racing heart, "I'm not sure what to name this feeling because it feels so much more than evident happiness. It relaxes me into a state of complete serenity and freedom."'You make me happy, Umekui. You set me free, my nakamas.'Umekui reflects her wide smile, and her red eyes glitter as the sun shines through her irises. (Oh, Umekui's smile makes her bones melt and her emotions explode with adoration)."Your smile is so beautiful," Nami says softly as she places her forehead on Umekui's icy one."Your soul is gorgeous. Bright orange, like your hair, gentle as the sun's first rays, and majestic like your entire being. You don't even realize just how lovely you are, Nami," confesses Umekui, her words and cold breath brushing across Nami's cheeks and smile.Nami giggles as her ears and cheeks turn crimson red.She quickly hugs her first mate again, hiding her crimson face from Umekui."You make me feel like a stupid schoolgirl," Nami grumbled, smiling.Umekui laughs gently, wrapping her arms around Nami's waist and back.(That is what she admires so much about her first mate. The way she makes Nami's heart explode with emotion. The way she makes her feel like she's living everything she lost out on as a child and adolescent because of Arlong. The way she makes Nami feel loved and beautiful (removing all the shadows of self-hatred that had been lingering in her mind for so long)."If you were a schoolgirl, you wouldn't even blink at me. You have always been destined for greatness, Nami," states Umekui.Oh, how wrong she is.Nami will always seek Umekui like a dreamless idiot sent into the ocean in search of a land of dreams, regardless of all lifetimes and all universes.The only grandeur expressed by her first mate is hers alone.Nami was meant for Umekui, and she could wipe stars and the universe to inscribe this truth in blood.Only a fool would not look at their first mate with awe and admiration. How could anyone pass before this woman without stopping to worship her complete being? From her black long hair and crimson eyes to her pale captivating face, any man or woman will fall to their knees before Umekui."Silly Umekui, it's you who will not even glance at me if we were in another universe."(Umekui wishes to be dead in all other universes (the thought of another her suffering from curses and calamities in another universe sickens her to the core).Nami breaks out of the hug and rests her fingers on Umekui's shoulders, gazing up at her first mate."But I swear that if another life exists then in all another universe, Luffy, I, and our nakamas will seek you like a moth to a flame."Umekui is smiling again, like a sick idiot caught in the web of loyalty and love.Umekui had no idea how to feel, think, or want, but for a second, for each second she spent with her nakamas, she allowed her sorrowful heart to feel, her mind to worry about a future with no hope, and a lingering feeling of longing, craving her nakamas' love."Now give me your hand," Nami says, reaching for Umekui's hand and laying it on her lap. "Zoro despite being brainless has given us a fantastic idea to block Mr.2 from confusing us with his devil fruit." She takes out the black marker and notes a cross on her hand. "Vivi, Karoo and our nakamas each have a cross on their arms and hands, so we can recognize each other."Umekui could have prevented her from drawing the cross with such care on her scarred hand. She could have told her that they were all idiots since they had forgotten that her ability could block any power in the world, meaning Mr.2 Devil Fruit could never function on her.But she remains silent, staring lovingly as Nami draws a cross with soft red eyes.She let her do it. Because for a brief second, she felt human. There was no curse in her veins, no voices in her head, no misery consuming her; just Nami's loving touch and a cross glowing from her hand made her feel like she belonged in her crew with her nakamas.For the first time in her life, since her cursed existence opened her eyes to the beyond. Umekui felt human, with no curse or ability, just a normal woman in a crew of majestic dreamers sailing the seas.Umekui, the first mate of the straw hat pirates, oh how she wants it could remain forever (maybe in a universe where Dazai finally doesn’t exist).As Smoker strolls through Nanohana's streets, the scorching heat on his back matches the rage he feels and the smoke burning from his two cigars.'What the hell is going on!'Nothing is right. Only a few weeks before, he came across the monster and let it escape him because of this man's interference.(How could he have let this creature escape?! Does he not understand how much risk and peril the world will face if Dazai is at liberty? Isn't he aware of the blood and crimes that this creature bears in his back like treasures?)Someone like Dragon, whose wind conveys secrets hidden by the world, makes his veins coil with misinformation (why would he help her? Why would he help those nameless pirates and Dazai?)Still, he is unable to forget his odd words.
("I always knew that the dogs of the world government are as stupid as their deities," the man chuckles deeply. "If you only knew why the world sought her, you'd cross the word justice in your coat!" )
The world undoubtedly sought her demise for the sake of witnessing the end of a monster put down by justice. (Yet something lurks in the shadows that Smoker tries to not dismiss).Perhaps after witnessing her execution, Smoker will be able to move on and let go of all those lives that he remembers losing because of Dazai's existence. (She has slain so many, she is at the center of all the world's transgressions, and it is in his honor, authority, and loyalty to arrest her)."Did you hear there is a man who suddenly died in the restaurant!" exclaims a man."Really?! What a poor man!" remarks a woman.Smoker looks over his shoulder with interest as he witnesses a large crowd rushing into a restaurant. He approaches them quietly his movements hushed and calm, in contrast to the explosive feelings in his heart and the raging blood in his veins."What?! he is alive?!!" a shocked old man gasps."He fall asleep? What kind of man sleeps suddenly like that?" a lady asks, huffing and walking away."Hey, have you all seen this straw hat boy?" seeks a boyish voice from within the restaurant.
'A straw hat boy?'
Smoker freezes. He only knows one person, a boy whose straw hat never leaves his head.‘Monkey D. Luffy!'This reckless boy, who is putting the world in peril by remaining at Dazai's side, clueless about her true identity.He smashes the doors with his leg, causing everyone within to scream in terror at his scowl and glare.The familiar tattoo flaming and searing from the man's back causes Smoker's blood to scorch."I am impressed. You're bold enough to eat in public. Second division commander of the Whitebeard pirates. Portgas D. Ace!" Smoker states coldly, narrowing his grey eyes at the pirate's back."W-Whitebeard!? Like the Whitebeard Pirates!" gasped the cook behind the counter."That dimwit in one of the Whitebeard Pirates?" yells a man."A commander, too?" exclaims another."What is a famous big-shot pirate doing in this country?" Smoker questions, his eyes scorching on the tattooed back."Well...," Ace begins in a playful voice, turning around to smirk at the captain marine; "I'm searching..."
"GOMU GOMU.."
for my little brother!"
"NO ROCKET!" 
Before Smocker had a chance to blink, he was violently knocked from behind, and hurled over Ace's spot, causing him to pass against the restaurant's wall."Shi-shi feeds me food! food! Hurry! Hurry! Before Ume finds me and scolds me!" Luffy shouts eagerly, beaming his broad grin at the stunned cook.Food appears in front of him, and with an ecstatic scream, he devours everything on the table."Ano? "You should probably run away while you can," says the chef hesitantly, glancing at the straw hat boy.Luffy looks over his shoulder. There is no sign of Ume's sharp eyes or Nami's fury."How come? Ume hasn't yet found me!" He responds by shoving another chunk of meat and tomato into his mouth."What the hell did this!" Ace shouts, lifting his head from the ruins. His eyes narrow, and a warm, windy smile spreads over his lips as he recognizes the straw hat. "HEY LU-"He is cut off when Smoker grabs his head and slams it into the ground."STRAW HAT!"Smoker takes angry steps toward Luffy, this foolish boy who is eating quickly, shoving meat and food into his mouth from his chair."Quit eating!"Round, large eyes look up at him, then blink and gulp his food, as if he has realized who he is."Oh, you're the smoke guy! What are you doing here?" yells Luffy.Smoker's veins shake with rage; how dare this stupid boy ask him what he is doing there? When there is only one motive for his presence: to capture the straw hat pirates and exterminate Dazai."Where is Daz-""Hold it!" shouts Luffy.He opens his mouth wide, grabs everything on the table, and dumps everything in his mouth. Then he leaps out of his seat and flies from the restaurant in one swift movement.The smoker's mouth gapes open, blinks, and lunges outside."CATCH THE STRAW HAT BOY!"All of the marines around him stare at the running straw hat boy and chases after him with a war cry."DON'T LET HIM ESCAPE!" he roars, sprinting ahead of them.Luffy glances over his shoulder as he gazes at the running marines.'Ume and Nami are going to kill me!'He gulps and sprints, the shadows of his nakamas concealed behind some rocks make him smile wide and wave at them."HEY EVERYONE I'M THERE!"Ume, who is carrying Chopper on her shoulders is eating candy while they looks at him with big eyes and their mouth dropping open."You idiot! Get rid of them first," Zoro yells from behind the broken wall."There's the straw hat crew! Over there!" yells a marine, pointing to his nakamas.Luffy runs, grabs Umekui's hand, and continues ahead, his nakamas trailing behind them and cursing his name aloud."I WAS JUST HUNGRY!" defends Luffy. "YOU ARE ALWAYS HUNGRY!" Sanji screams carrying Nami and Vivi in his arms."WHY DO YOU ALWAYS STIR TROUBLE, LUFFY!" shouts Usopp, carrying large bags of reserves."DO NOT LET THEM ESCAPE! AT ANY COST, DO NOT LET THE BLACK HAIRED WOMAN GO! SHE IS OUR PRIORITY!" Smoker yells in an angry voice.Luffy felt Umekui's hand tense and freeze, causing him and Chopper to gaze at her worriedly, but she kept going without looking back.Umekui looks over her shoulder as she feels Smocker devil fruit activate. But all of a sudden, a fire erupts out, blocking Smoker and the marine's path.Her ears perk up as she feels her entire senses turn numb; the world comes to a halt around her as her mind boils, stirs, and resonates

(DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI,DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI,)

In a symphony, the voice utters the cursed name.

(TRAGIC BOY WITH THE BLOOD OF D BURNING IN HIS VEINS!)

The voice emerged again.

(CURSED GIRL OF THE FORGOTTEN WORLD!)

The voices within her head are loud and distinct, tormenting her throughout her entire existence and recurring to each tragedy she endures.

(YOUR LONG LINE OF FAILURES HAD BEGAN!)

"Portags D. Ace, what do you think you are doing?!" screams the captain marine in a angry voice.

(IN FLAMES AND HEARTBREAK, THE VOW WILL BE RESTORED!)

The young man laughs lightly while flames engulf his body, igniting, searing, and scorching.Her heart trembles, throbs, and cries as if something was locked inside her in an everlasting hunt, scream, and crave.

(BEWARE OF FLAMING BOYS WHO DIE WITH BLOODY SMILE!)

In her dark vision, a dazzling shining orange-red soul flares lights up, and chars. All she seems to see is this soul in front of her as if it had descended from the skies among the stars to behold her presence."ACE!" Luffy shouts loudly and brightly, joy radiating from his face.

(BEWARE OF THEIR BLOOD, CURSED GIRL OF THE VOID CENTURY!)

Her blood hums and stirs, and her scars and wounds throb every inch of her body. Something is happening inside her, and Umekui feels trapped inside herself. (Her heart twitches as it cracks with fear because Umekui knows, she fucking knows, that nothing good comes from those incidents).'Ace?'("Ace is the most important person in my life," grins Luffy under the starry night, his body resting on Umekui's lap. Then he turns to her and smiles ever wider: "You know, you remind me so much of Ace sometimes.""How come?" Umekui questioned softly, braiding his black hair."Well.." Luffy raises his hand and lifts each finger to his list: "You are stupid like him, stubborn like him, selfless like him, soft like him, and frightful like him-"
"Frightful?" cuts off Umekui's unsure voice.

Luffy nods."You were both afraid of me. Afraid of kindness and affection as if.. (as if you were unworthy of it)."Umekui stays silent and continues to braid his hair."You are both really strong. And you are both the most important to me! I also love our nakamas, of course!" He smiles broadly, looking over his shoulder at Ume's face.

"You truly love Ace," Umekui remarks with a smile.Luffy blinks, smiles broader, and nods."I love you too!""Even if I was a cockroach?" asks Umekui out of nowhere.Luffy burst into laughter, his eyes welling up with tears."Yes!""Even if I was a sea King?"

"Yes!""Even if I was a cherry pie?"Luffy pauses and glances at Umekui's pleased face. What did he say? She is just as stubborn as Ace, asking him whether he loves her even though she is the meal he dislikes the most."Of course, Ume! I love you and I always will! Stop asking ridiculous questions like Ace and tell me a story!" he pouts as he tightly embraces his first mate.)
She blinks as her vision of the world returns, but she is no longer in the alley with the fiery boy and the marines, but rather at the going merry with her nakamas.Her heart stops since she doesn't feel and sees Luffy close to her.'Where is he?'Someone grips her leg, drawing her glance down to Chopper's anxious expression."Are you okay, Umekui?" You seemed to be unable to hear us anymore, so Zoro dragged you there while sprinting to the ship!" explains Chopper's worried voice."I apologize, Chopper. "I'm just tired," Umekui explains as she crouches before him and delicately rubs his head.His worried and sad stare makes her heart hurt with disappointment. Before he could ask another question, she cut him off."Where is Luffy?""He's with his brother! They mentioned they would come to us after they defeated the Marines!"She stands up and rushes toward the upper deck as she senses something approaching."Baroque works! There's the billon's fleet!" Vivi shouts, staring at the ten ships behind them.Umekui was dressed in a black long robe with blue flowers on the sleeves, which Sanji had brought her. (It touches her heart that he offered her something to cover her bandages and body, out of respect). The red veil covering her head and hair causes her red eyes to blaze, burn, and glare down at the world.With a quick jump, she stands over the upper deck balcony before her nakamas, glaring at the fleet ahead."Usopp!" she exclaims."Yes, Umekui?" he replies anxiously, his eyes looking at the ship in fear as he struggles to stand up on shaky legs."Prepare the beasts!" If Luffy isn't there in five minutes, we'll blow up all those ships to the seas!" She declares.'The Beasts!'Usopp cracks up loudly, causing Vivi and his nakamas to look at him with astonishment."What the hell she is talking about?" Zoro wonders.Usopp strokes a finger over his long nose and arches his head as if he knows all the secrets of the universe that his peasant nakamas don't."It's a secret between me and Umekui!" Usopp smirks, sticking out his tongue at them."HA? How dare you keep a secret between you and my beloved Umekui-chan?" Sanji yells, fisting Usopp's dress.It makes Usopp smirk even more, "Die from jealousy, pitiful servant!" "Stop it, you fool! We are being pursued by an entire fleet; this is not the time for your childishness!" Nami yells.Umekui arches her arms as she feels her muscles tighten. (Kureha's medication has temporarily reduced the agony in her flesh and muscles. (When was the last time she could run, talk, and breathe without her limbs and organs screaming in agony? (Yet she knows no medicine could erase the pain of this curse in her blood)).She cracks her knuckles and smirks at the incoming fleet."Nami, let me borrow your bow for a second," she demands, reaching out a hand to her navigator."There!" Nami exclaims, placing the bow Umekui had provided her."Zoro come there." She points beside herself.As Zoro stands by her, she steals his orange veil from his head and coils it around the end of an arrow."HEY! It's my veil!" shouts an irate Zoro.The red-eyed first mate smirks, "I know.""Why didn't you use yours?" Zoro asks angrily."Because Sanji gently offered and brought those clothes to me," Umekui says, as she finishes curling the veil at the end of her arrow."Usopp go prepare the beasts and count to two minutes then unleash two of them, okay?"Usoop gives a short nod and runs for the lower deck."Now Nami learns and watches how we use a bow, darling!" Umekui smirks, winking over her shoulder to her awestruck navigator.Kana's ability emerges a flicker of flame at the tip of her finger. She moves the flame closer to the end of the arrow and smiles as the veil and arrow catch fire. She raises the bow in front of her face, her finger holds the arrow, and her arms push it toward her face till the tip caresses her ear.With a quick release, the arrow travels high and quickly toward the nearby ship, landing in the Baroque works' Jolly Roger."FIRE! FIRE!" yell the agents as they sprint over the deck.Umekui laughs with Sanji and Zoro as they watch the entire Jolly Roger burn, with flames creeping throughout the ship."And now?" Vivi asks, unsure how they will escape an entire fleet.Umekui smirks as her blood stirs, her feet boil and scorch and her crimson eyes flare. (The voices are loud, as Kana's ability awakens and arises from the dust of a graveyard).Her nakamas and the princess's breath abruptly came to a halt at the wild feral gaze on the first mate's pale face."Now. We burn them to the sea, Princess."With those words, Umekui soars into the air, sparks bursting from her sandals.Porgas D. Ace glances at Monkey D. Luffy with black, caring eyes.The smaller hand of his brother's soft, delicate, and oddly unique palm flesh scorched his palm (he laughs at how stupid and dumb he was to reject this warm hand that Luffy had held out to him so many times before).Luffy's huge round eyes shine with excitement and unconditional love as they peer up at him. (After all these years, his foolish dear brother never stops loving him. (Perhaps if Sabo were still alive, it would be the same, because this moron still loved him despite the cursed blood filling his veins).

(Perhaps if his dumb brother was still alive, it would be the three of them against the world venturing as the greatest pirates of this new era).

"Say, what kind of crew do you have?" asks Ace, as he walks alongside Luffy (he can't help but envision Sabo's ghost lingering between them, smiling heartily at the bright blue sky (always with them even after death)."Shi shi shi! A swordsman aims to be the greatest swordsman in the world. A navigator who loves tangerines, maps, and money! A cook who prepares the world's best and tasty meals! Oh, there's a storyteller and a liar! There is also a doctor reindeer!" Luffy looks up at his five raised fingers, then lifts the sixth and final one and beams brighter at Ace. "And finally my first mate, Ume! A stupid strong woman likes you who overthinks a lot!"Ace chuckles "What a variety you have there! I'm surprised you didn't kidnap one of them! How could your first mate be stupid if she thinks so much?"Luffy whistles and peers at the sky, "She is not stupid; rather, she is very smart! Yet she is dumb! She's a lot like you.""Like me?" Ace whispers, his gaze drifting across the azure sky and white clouds. ( All those like him are dead. Sought by the world because of their cursed blood. Someone like him? A prisoner of his own blood, whose lineage forces him to walk away with shame and self-loathing.(Being like him is a curse that Ace would never wish on anyone).The straw hat that has never left Luffy's head since he first met him shimmers, compelling his attention to shift from the fake sun to his truly one.(When Ace encountered Shanks, his heart couldn't help but be grateful for this man, whose promises and goals had set Luffy on his path. (Even if Shanks and Luffy never realized it, his younger brother saved him in a way that no dream, wish, or cure could (because no one would ever love someone like Ace, except his foolish brother).(Sabo's love is still plagued with guilt and weakness that Ace is unable to transcend).Luffy hums and nods."Sabo would have loved her too."Ace's frame freezes at the mention of his dear gone brother then a gentle grin arises on his lips."Sabo loved everyone too easily."'Like you. Only you and Sabo were too foolish to love me, despite my vile blood'.Luffy grins and nods while reciting his journey to Alabasta."What?! Your first mate executed Wapol?" Ace gasp out loud, stupefied by his younger brother's stories."Yes! You could've seen her! Blazing in the skies as she chopped his head! She is so cool!!" "She has a fire devil fruit?" he wonders, his gaze locked on Luffy's large brown eyes.Luffy hurriedly shook his head."No! She is an ability user!" Luffy exclaims, his steps slowing as he mentally recalls something. "But it's strange because her ability nullifies my devil fruit how can she have a firepower?"Ace's heart is racing in his chest."An ability that nullifies powers?" he seeks, his eyes shaking."Yes. It's Ume power!" Luffy smiles proudly.Ace turns and grips Luffy's shoulders, his hands twitching."Do you know your first mate's name?"Luffy nods, perplexed by his brother's question."It's Dazai. But don't call her that because she hates it!"His nails scrape into Luffy's flesh, causing his younger brother to glance up at him worriedly even if he doesn't feel the pain."Where did you find it! How did it join you?! Did it try to injure you, or worse ki-?"Luffy's eyes dilated."You're acting stupid again, Ace. Ume could never hurt me.""You don't know her!" Ace screams, shaking his feeble brother's shoulders (yet Ace recognizes how much power, determination, and devotion those shoulders have).(But stupid Luffy has no idea what kind of monster has joined him! He has no idea how this ability, this name, makes the earth shudder with horror! He has no idea how many nights and days Whitebeard stared at Dazai's name, trembling fingers grasping the paper! Silly, innocent Luffy has no clue what sort of catalyst he's taken with him!)Luffy's lower lip shook briefly before masking it under a smile."I love Ume. I love her. You do not know Ume. You have no idea how she is with me and our nakamas! How much she has done for us! How many she sacrificed for me and our nakamas! Even though she never said it back or aloud, I know Ume loves me! She cherishes our nakamas more than anything else!" His hands strongly seize Ace's hands and pull them away from his shoulders. "Even though you are my older brother, I won't let you spit like that on Ume! Sabo wouldn't either if he was there!"

'SABO IS DEAD! HE IS DEAD! HE IS GONE BECAUSE OF ME!'

Ace longed to shout, ghost tears streaming from his eyes. But he merely steps back, revealing a shaken smile on his lips."I apologize for saying something like that about your first mate," he mumbles."It's okay, Ace! You were just acting stupid for a moment, like usual!" grins Luffy, raising a hand to tenderly grip his hand.(Again no matter how many times Ace tried to reject and harm Luffy. His younger brother is always around, seeking him like a flame and reaching up warm palms to cradle his cold broken heart).They march quickly to the port, ready to find his boat, Luffy's ship, and nakamas waiting for them.(Does Luffy know what Dazai is? What had she done before coming with him?His foolish brother has an executioner and a mafia member by his side. Someone tracking him down as the world's enemy. How many journals did Ace read where this name was cursed and feared? How many people have promised to be the new hero of dawn, delivering her head to the world?The fact that this first mate killed Wapol a king without even batting an eye does not even surprise Ace. Because what is Wapol in this sea of blood that has already drowned so many kings and queens? How many people? How many worlds have sunk into Dazai's wicked one?).He glances at his brother's face.Now Dazai yearns for his brother's world. He can't allow her to do that. He can't let her kill him because it means losing the only one he has (the only one who keeps going and accepts his poisoned blood. Luffy was the only one who saw a future, hope and dreams blazing from Ace's dark eyes as despair engulfed him).(Sabo did it too. He did it so much that he died, and Ace could never forgive himself).He can't let Luffy die the same way he killed Sabo. He had failed once before and Ace pledges to never fail Luffy again, as Sabo's ghost curses him for. (He already had so many nightmares ravaging him from within, so many fears burning him alive, that Ace wished he was dead in Sabo's stead.If he died, maybe Sabo would still be alive. Maybe if he had committed suicide or allowed those men to kill him before meeting Sabo and Luffy, those two would not have had to endure his misery. They could have lived freely in a universe where Luffy was the captain and Sabo was the first mate, and Ace never existed. They could've been happy together!)(He often wonders if he never existed; maybe the woman, this dead ghost haunting him whom his heart and mind call mother, would have lived a long happy life free of the damned strings of this man's blood).Luffy's warm palm grips his palm strongly, forcing him to look back at his broad smile.(The ghost of a small Luffy and a loud laugh booming across the great blue sky appear before him, rushing after a small blond-haired boy with a broad grin and one missing tooth, beaming wide back at him and urging him to hurry).He smiles, his cheeks hurt, and the sunlight soothes his back.Ace will destroy entire worlds just for Luffy's smile. He would slay the entire world to protect Luffy's smile. He would spill his cursed blood to protect his beloved younger brother.Ace's future and dreams are absolutely nothing compared to Luffy's neon ones.(Sabo had a promising future too, but it was ravaged in the same fire that rages through Ace's veins).So eliminating Dazai is nothing besides Ace's desire to protect his younger brother from her dreadful world.He would kill her before she could injure a single hair of Luffy. He would burn her down and present her ashes to Whitebeard (the word "dad" burns his tongue when he refers to Whitebeard because how could he have taken Ace and his tainted legacy under his wing when everything in him makes his eyes flare up with hatred).Ace would go to any lengths to protect Luffy, even if it meant confronting the world government and offering Dazai head. (Even if Luffy never forgives him, Ace will embrace this sacrifice. An angry Luffy is better off than a dead Luffy).His devil fruit hurls, flames, and bursts inside his heart like an eternal flame. His veins are boiling as his palm sears Luffy's entire body.His pupils expand as he observes a dark-haired woman leap from ship to ship, flames hurling all around her like a tornado."Oh, it's Ume!" Luffy says, pointing at his first mate and smiling so broadly that Ace blinks."Go join your nakamas i will help your first mate (the thought of helping something like her making him want to vomit) and join you on your ship!" Ace shouts as he climbs into his small boat and heads in the direction of the baroque fleet.
("Fire is destructive, Dazai," Kana says, looking up at the faint fire a little further away that warns them in this dark, bitter place."But it's warm," Dazai remarks quietly, lifting a little palm toward the flames.Kana giggles as her pale hands caress her growing belly."You are too naïve for this world, little Dazai."Dazai's ears warm up, and she looks down at her naked pale feet, which are grey and dark from dust and coldness."Listen," Kana says softly. "Keep in mind that fire is as devastating as a cracked heart. It burns and destroys everything in its path, like a rotten apple poisoned by her seeds.")
A chilly raw cry causes her to blink, witnessing the man burning alive in front of her. The man twrils all over himself, tearing apart his clothes in the hopes that the fire will cease burning him alive, but it only burns stronger, causing him to fall from the deck of his ship into the waiting sea, drowning him.Her stomach turns over with revulsion at the awful smell of charring flesh and bone ashes (she tried to grow used to the smell of death, but it never ceased to make her want to rip her nostrils out).Fire dances around her like a barrier, preventing any bullets or arrows from striking her. It travels her spin and flares from her back, like fiery wings ready to soar into the sky. (But Umekui knows that it is those same wings, power, and fire that have bound Kana in this hell, imprisoning her to a fate where death is the only salvation).A flashing sound followed by a loud explosion causes her to smile slightly as she observes Usopp's two rockets speeding toward two baroque ships.Usopp's roaring laugh as the rockets rip the two spacecraft apart makes her smile wider. She is pleased to sense his soul shining with happiness and achievement, instead, the way his soul cried and pained her this morning as caused by his dark thoughts is an agonizing reminder that she does not want him to feel this way again. (Because the feelings of cowardice and shame continue to burn in her heart, like an infected scar that cannot heal).Fear has never left her, a haunting beast that feeds on her nightmares and sinks its teeth into her neck like a bloodthirsting monster.( "It's just that everything is less scary with Luffy.")Those words she told Usopp for the first time were also a promise to herself. A promise to never let fear cloud her vision and drown in this graveyard of the past. A pledge not to let her miserable self destroy everything and bring her nakamas with her to calamity because of her fear.An allegiance to this boy, whose smile is brighter than any sun or star the gods could have created. A vow that the world would be terrified if they knew the deepest reality of it. A vow that unites a thousand dreams and centuries into one halo, a unique power that blazes from her palms.A vow to Monkey D. Luffy that no soul or mind would be able to withstand the revelation.
(Oh, Luffy, you have no idea what monster you have cradled in your warm arms and hopeful smile).
The fire burns brighter and stronger, reaching her hair in a single stroke of flame and bursting from her hands and feet. The cries and screams of the burning billions drive the thing within her to grin, crack, and mock.("more! more! more! more! Dazai gives me more!)Now that five burning ships have been taken down, she must rapidly finish the other five. As she jumps to the nearest ship in front of her, a familiar stinging power freezes her feet as they fall on the upper deck balcony.A scent of mist and ashes reaches her nose.Sharp, onyx eyes gaze down at her from the upper deck. There is a raging fire in his pupils, ready to swallow the entire universe and reduce everything to ashes.A constellation of freckles ran all over his face in an appealing manner that anyone might stare at it for hours merely to count them.("Will you laugh if I tell you that I learned to count just to count Ace's freckles?" grins Luffy, sitting in his favorite spot while gazing at her with a warmth that melts her heart."Never, my captain," she says quietly, reclining on the deck and staring at him.Luffy smiles warmly, crosses his arms behind his head, and lies on his back, staring at the vast blue sky."So?" asks Umekui, amused.Luffy hums questionably."So, how many freckles Ace have?" she asks fondly.Luffy chuckles, kind and warm, tickling her heart and kicking the deadly poison out of her organs."Twenty-four." he says with an infectious smile. "And they are as beautiful as your red eyes, Ume!" )Twenty-four stars scattered across his golden kissed face stare back at her monstrous crimson eyes.His reddish-orange soul flashes in her pupils, burning ruthlessly, and Umekui longs to possess, cherish, and cradle it betwixt her torn palms.Darkness reaches out, ready to take this soul and keep it, protect it eternally within her domain. (She needs it like oxygen, like Luffy's majestic smile, Nami's gorgeous hair, Usopp's squeal, Zoro's warm hugs, Sanji's devoted hands, Chooper's adorable eyes--this boy, this soul, she needs it. She wants. No, she needs Ace).Umekui's flames flash into the sky before fading from her body in an itched whisper of longing. Her feet take a single stride forward toward the flame guy, whose name resonates within her like an epiphany.Before she could take another step forward, her entire body froze, as she could sense his soul and thoughts.'He hates me. He thinks I'm dangerous. He knows I am a monster'.Her cold face bears a frozen, meaningless, hollow smile. The bitter truth crept into her throat, searing her stomach."Dazai," Ace says, as flames ignite in his palms."Nice to meet you, Ace," she responds calmly, the frozen smile still on her face.One gorgeous brown ach up to her. He stares at her for a second, no revolting feeling betraying his gorgeous serene expression.'He is so beautiful it hurts.'"Wait for me there," Ace instructs, pointing to the spot where she is standing in her flames, which are scorching the ship all around her.Just like that, he leaps out toward the last ships, raging across the sea on his boat, burning through the sky as his glorious fire destroys ships one after another, ashes flying all around them, drowning out the pirates' shouts and screams. His flames carry an overwhelming scent of despair and sorrow that makes Umekui's heart race.
("Your flames are grieving, Kana," says Dazai's muffled voice behind the gray dusting blanket.Her small red eyes stared up toward the spot where the once-powerful flames were burning, now only a few flickers of the magnificent flames that kept her warm.Dull violet eyes look down at her, as lifeless as the soul reflecting at her.
"They are saying goodbye, my dear Dazai." )She blinks away the memories, trapping herself in the warehouse of horrors.A blazing flame hand reached for her face. Onyx's eyes are fixed on her face, his freckles sparkle like cosmic dust under the sun's rays, and his pink lips extend into a smirk. He crouches on the balcony deck, peering down at her face as his flaming hand extends out for her.He looks like a vengeful deity.Ace's burning hand was an ich next to her face, as a searing hot sensation brushed her cheek. He tilted his head as he waited for something, his veins scorching from his devil fruit.He brings his hand closer, and as a lock of hair catches fire, he tsks and withdraws his hand. His face moved closer to hers, ready for her to confess all her hideous secrets to the nape of his neck."Why didn't you nullify my devil fruit, Dazai?" He asks warily, as if he is prepared to refute any of her lies about her true identity."Because you are my captain's dearest. You're Monkey D. Luffy's brother. The most important person of the man who will be the pirate king, Portgas D. Ace," she replies sincerely.Ace's long lashes flutter in reaction to her words.Then he startle her by throwing his face backward and laughs. He laughs wildly and loudly for the entire world to hear, his white, perfectly straight teeth shining in the bright sunlight. His throat trembles from the delicate, loud, meticulous tone of his laugh, which tickles her heart.Warm rays smear across his face and smile, causing Umekui's red eyes to burn and ache.'He truly is Luffy's brother'.Luffy's brown eyes furrow and cross his arms as he pouts on his ship."If Ace tries to steal my Ume I will kick his ass!""She is not only yours!" Nami grumbles, annoyed.Her eyes were overly narrowed on Luffy's older brother. He is clearly attempting to seduce their first mate (she is already planning ways to rend him to tears)."Umekui-chanhhhhh!! Don't abandon us for his pretty face!" Sanji tears up, clutching his heart."What? Ume is going to leave us?" Chopper shrieks loudly, his adorable eyes watering up.Usopp lets out a terror scream as he races across the deck."How will she protect me if she leaves?! We will be damned if she abandons us with the trio of golden idiots!""Shut it! Who are you calling an idiot, long nose!?" Zoro yells, irritated by their dramatic conduct. He crosses his arms and glares at Umekui and Ace. "Umekui isn't going anywhere, leaving me alone with a bunch of idiots. I will drag her by the hair if needed!"Ace pauses laughing and looks over his brother's too-loud group before focusing on Umekui's dazzling brilliant crimson eyes.The portrayal of her terrible self does not do justice to her beauty. Burning in his gaze like the most magnificent flame he has ever lay eyes on, she is ethereal and scorching. Her pale face and body, shrouded beneath so many bandages, appear so clean and untainted as if they have not touched a drop of blood or sin. How unjust of her to maintain this façade while her hands have been stained by so much crimes.Ace was always aware that the world was unfair. His birth was the first substantiation of it.(No woman. No mother deserves to carry him for too long in order to shield him from the world. No innocents ought to bleed and die because of his very existence. Above all, he had no right to be alive, free, and wandering across the world with that man's blood in his veins!)Yet. Ace knew, but he was too stubborn and ignorant to admit it.So stubborn that Sabo dies because of his mistakes. Too stubborn, that Luffy suffered and cried for him (and this long chain of guilt continues to grow over time and with new victims). Maybe the first mate in front of him isn't the Dazai whose stories make his blood run cold like the world sought him for his blood. Because when Ace looks into her majestic etheral crimson eyes, he sees an emptiness and grief that is all too similar to him. Ace has seen this look in his eyes countless times (a feeling of emptiness, tiredness of the world, anger at life, and a desire to die above all else).Ace wants to laugh and cry because, of course, foolish Luffy is going to stick with this woman. How can any man ignore those majestic eyes, this lovely face that yearns to be caressed, believing that each kiss will wipe the anguish from her eyes?Luffy would never let go of Umekui Dazai in any of his lives.Perhaps Dazai is simply Umekui's curse, which she wishes to hide and forget. And Ace recognizes the distinction between two names that are etched into one's head by the damned blood rushing through the veins.(Because, really, what would Ace be without the name of the mother he holds dear to his heart? Who is Ace without those freckles on his face that Luffy adores? He is merely a cursed boy who resembles too much the man he disdains the most).Luffy and Sabo were always more gentle than him. Kinder to the world (yet why did Sabo died? Why? Why? Why? He demands each night, mourning the dreams and aspirations that Sabo never realized (because he is dead, gone!).His brothers were always less furious, hateful, and selfish. Not like him. Ace was continuously too much. So angry, spiteful, arrogant, and wild.His hostile mind always lashed out his hideous emotions to the world, just as it did for this first mate, who carried a thousand agonies in her eyes. And Ace was well aware of the impact Luffy's smile and heart had over misfortuned souls like him and Umekui Dazai.But he has to know one thing that will convince him that the woman Luffy adores is truly deserving of his sacrificial devotion.(He needs proof that someone other than Sabo merits Luffy's care and love!(Because Ace cannot. Not when the ghosts and nightmares of his blood are wreaking havoc in his soul and his guilt drowning him in heartache)."So it won't be too difficult for me to kill you without your power, Umekui Dazai?" Ace smiles, not revealing any apprehension."Well, I tried and failed. The entire world tried and failed. Perhaps you will be the fated one," Umekui responds, glancing over Luffy's pouting face. "But I can't let you do it. Maybe before, but now you're late, Ace. I promised my captain that I'd die by his side. From the moment I met Luffy, he is the sole one decider of how and when I would die".
("Don't die, Ace." Luffy cries out, his little fists shaking over his straw hat.Ace's small, aching eyes turn away from the sea toward the one boy who persists to meet his gaze without flinching.(His heart tears, yells, mourns, and shouts out- Sabo, Sabo, Sabo, Sabo, Sabo, Sabo- the ghost of his brother bidding farewell.)"Promise me! Promise me you'll never die, Ace!" Luffy pleads, sniffing and staring at him through a drenched, tear-filled expression.(Sabo is gone. But Luffy is still alive. Stupid dear Luffy, who loves him wholeheartedly)."Listen, Luffy!" he exclaims loudly, his jaw throbbing from the bruises.Bright round lovely eyes glance up at him like a moth to a flame.

"I promise I'll never die! How can I leave a wimpy brother like you behind?" He declares loudly to the entire earth and sky that he will preserve his pledge in the heavens.He grins, a thump in front of him. Luffy's sibs and cries get louder."It's a promise from your beloved big brother!")
"It's a promise from my beloved captain!" proclaims Umekui.Ace laughs warmly and his black eyes melt as he gaze at the first mate. Ghost tears sear his dark eyes as his heart drops and thud beats faster.(Perhaps the hope he is clinging to is not lost. Perhaps someone is finally there to care for his beloved little brother in this tragic world.

Perhaps Ace might finally die peacefully and join Sabo.)

His fingers extend and flutter across the scar beside her right eye. A warm wide smile spreads across his face, making his black eyes gleam with satisfaction."Ne Dazai, did your cursed blood vowed you to Luffy as mine did?"A vow made to the next pirate king: to never die. A pledge that the two of them are unsure they will maintain due to their cursed existence; with only the dreamer's loud laugh to keep them alive.All of the vast sky and seas witness this dedication. A pledge held by the blood of this legacy, plagued by the gods and damned to a death without mercy.

(ARE YOU READY, CHILD OF THE VOID CENTURY?!)

A will that sears in dreamers' hearts and rises through the blood of the doomed.

(READY TO TAKE THE VOW AND CARRY THE LEGACY!)

"And shall your tears brings the ashes back to life."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Foolish boy, with bloodied shards glued with the honey of a destiny fuelled by rage, you will burn and mourn in ashes."
There was no moment, no time in his life where Ace didn’t feel guilty. (Did she feel the same way? 
Did his mother, too, gazed at this younger face in her arms and wept from guilt for the short moment they spent together?

The guilt of loving this horrible man.

The guilt of carrying him inside her for so long, running and hiding from the world since the only sin she committed was to love.

The guilt of carrying this lineage in her son's veins. Unaware that he will despise every aspect of his damned existence.)
Guilt for being alive when Sabo is still dead.Guilt about silly Luffy's wounds and bruises caused by his arrogance.Guilt to be so stupid for seeking fame which will never change his destiny.Guilt for hurting and attempting to kill the only man that Ace will ever seek and call father.And now Ace feels like he will succumb to the guilt that is consuming him alive.Crimson eyes flare and scorch brighter than the fire that leads Ace's new path (this fire reflects the darkness and grief that Ace has been trapped in for so long).Those eyes contain a misery that summons Ace's soul like twin stars swirling around each other in the numbness of the universe.For a brief moment, Ace sees what Luffy and Sabo have seen in him. A pain that clings to his flesh like a second skin, an emptiness that discolors everything around him, as if he had become trapped in his own grief, with no sun to guide him home to the light.But why are these woman's eyes crying and screaming in despair and heartbreak, much like his soul?It's unfair! So unfair that Ace wants to burn the world from rage.This woman! This monster! Does not deserve to have such sorrowful eyes.A dog grieving after bitting is no better than an angel crying after sinning! The guilt does not purify!It will not purify Ace's blood flowing through his veins, nor will it ever free him from this man's tread! Nor can Dazai's crimes ever be separated from the world's judgment of her or make her feel as if her hands were free of murder and blood!Even though millions of questions race through Ace's mind and blister his tongue with choked cries. Even though there are a thousand unanswered questions, he seeks only one response, the one that Ace asks himself every night."Why you?" he asks quietly, his throat parched and his eyes blazing. "Why, among everyone, Luffy has chosen you; you?!" he shouts at the last word.('Why me?! Why does Luffy love me? Why did Sabo love me? Why did you die, Sabo?!!') Red lips spread in a sad, tragic grin, and those beautiful crimson eyes gleam from deep heartbreak."I do not know. I never understood why. Not when he could hold the entire world in the palm of his hand. When he could have loved someone more kinder who deserved him. Someone who does not desire death every moment of their life. Not me. A monster whose hands have been stained with so many misdeeds. Someone human and outstanding who is not despised by the whole world."Dazai's eyes fixate on the sun above their heads before catching his angry onyx's gaze."But." 
("Trying to find a reason for someone's love is a waste of time, Dazai," Odasaku states, sipping his whiskey."What do you mean?" inquires a bewildered Dazai.Odasaku grins, twirls his glass, and peers into his favorite red eyes.

"Loving someone is nothing more and nothing less. It's a fact that no deity could undo like the sun is bright, the sky is blue and the sea water is salt. Accept it, and advance forward!"Dazai's confused expression is met by Odasaku's cheerful grin. He chuckles and continues to sip his glass, grinning."Is this again one of your favorite secret lessons that you are teaching me?" Dazai whines.)
Dazai's smile, so broad and sorrowful, compels everything inside Ace to move like butterfly wings."Isn't pitiful to search for a reason for someone's love, Ace?" She turns over to see Luffy standing on their deck, waving joyfully at her with her nakamas. "Sometimes there are questions that we have to let go."His entire body tenses at her words. His heart trembles so violently that Ace fears it will stop, so he lets out a shaking breath to let go of the raging fire in his veins.He fists his hands, preventing them from quivering any further (preventing his devil fruit from erupting in millions of emotions and murdering this immoral woman-but perhaps she will fade away with the hatred and sadness that have plagued Ace for so long-).She doesn't get it! How dare she demand him that?There are so many questions that Ace could never let go! How could he when every query is directed at a ghost that has been tormenting him for a long time? (and Ace is exhausted from the never-ending questions that prevent him from breathing without guilt stinging his tongue!Letting them go is like abandoning this hope that binds him to his new destiny!)She returns his look without flinching, smiles softly, and allows him to sink in the devotion and loyalty that burns in her pupils for Luffy ( this boy who saved Ace in a way that no one could ever dare to-)."As long as he needs me, I shall remain by my captain's side. As long as Monkey D. Luffy lets me rest by his side, I will protect him from the world. So don't worry, Portgas D. Ace; your brother is far more important to me than you could have imagined."Everything's still, and his eyes freeze at her confession.'You are lying! You are like him!'Ace wants to scream those words in her face and reduce her devotion to ashes. But he fucking knows better.(Because didn't Marshall feel loyalty to Thatch and their nakamas? Didn't he smile at Thatch and protect his back like a brother, as Whitebear encouraged them?And now, after his greed and selfishness have burned down to the ground their nakama's strings of loyalty and devotion, Ace feels used and sold off like he has since he was a child, leaving behind the taste of grief of his devoted companion searing him alive.A grief mourning each night the blood that triggers him to scratch his wrist to blood, hoping and wishing to drain the devil's blood from his veins.'He has the devil's blood in his veins, don't touch him!' they would shout every time they caught his angry, dark look.But despite everything, Luffy was the only one who continued to reach out and touch him. Ace believes in Luffy beyond all else, despite his stupidity and recklessness. He knows Luffy better than anyone else. So, if his younger brother has seen something worthy of her in those crimson eyes, then maybe Ace needs to let it go.But it's so hard! (It's as hard as letting go of his mother's ghost, to whom he clung with bloodied hands. Letting go is similar to embracing Sabo's death with his ghost bidding him farewell forever, or letting go of the question that haunts him every day and night of his life).Before Ace could open his mouth to ask her for another answer, a familiar warm palm gripped his waist and threw him into the sky, toward his brother's ship.With a thud, he knocks himself against their deck, before growling loudly and scolding his dumb brother. Ace recalls being surrounded by the famous crew of Luffy, so he instantly rises and turns to face them.Several irritated looks caught his sight. From the pretty ginger-haired girl to the blond-haired man. With the katanas in his hands, the swordsman appears to be prepared to cut him to pieces. And the long nose seemed to glare down as if Ace was the day's nuisance, eager to ride off. Even the adorable reindeer was attempting to scare him away with the glare on his fluffy face.His mouth even falls open when he sees Luffy lifting his first mate in his arms after letting his older brother fall and knock onto the floor like a bothersome bug."Did you try to steal my Ume, Ace?!" Luffy demands, narrowing his gaze as if he were prepared to pick up his lies."She isn't just yours! Idiot!" exclaims the ginger-haired."Umekui is going nowhere with you, pretty boy!" scoffs the blond-haired one."As if she could leave us for your flames when she can have my amazing genius invention!" argues the long-nosed boy."You-!" the reindeer shouts, then jumps in terror and hides behind the swordsman's legs, peering again. "You are not stealing Umekui from us!"The swordsman calmly stares at him, grasping his katana firmly in his palm, ready to pry it out if his captain or first mate orders.Luffy's expression is aggravated by his nakama looking down at Ace. Ready to jump at him and tear him apart if he dared to steal their first mate from their crew.He looks over to where Dazai is, Luffy's palm grasping her waist possessively. Ace expected a sneaky or vile expression on her face to show how she had succeeded in manipulating and commanding the crew of his dear brother.
Thump.....Thump
'Why? Why do you have such a sad expression on your face?'She has no right to look this way! Smile maliciously! Glows those red eyes that the world dreads! Laugh at the crew's absurd and loyal attachment to you!But.Why? Why does she look so heartbroken? As if caring for her and being concerned that she may disappear isn't worth her entire existence. Why does she resemble Sabo when he realizes he is alone against his cruel family, without recognizing or accepting that Ace and Luffy are here to save him?Ace's heart aches as he takes in the smell of ashes and her sad smile (a scent that makes him cry every time he recalls Sabo's flames devouring him, the ashes of a sibling who did not grow up with them to achieve his dreams and be free of his biological family's ties).Where is the red of those she murdered in her eyes? There is just darkness and misery within her pupils, making her face paler than the dead.Where is her wicked smile, which her victims will taste with a blade in their chest? There is simply a hint of grief and madness on her scarlet lips; remorse about her existence; mad that something like her might be cared for.Above all, why does she gaze at Luffy's hand as though it were something priceless and pure, unworthy of even a fleeting touch? Like she despised herself for allowing herself to be selfish for a moment.
("Do you hate me, Ace?" Luffy asks, his eyes filled with tears."Do you always ask stupid questions like that?" Ace complains from his bed.

Sabo has been asleep since the minute they lay down on their mattresses. He's already tried to sleep a few times, but annoying Luffy keeps waking him up to ask him foolish questions or forcing him to accompany him to pee or drink water since he's frightened to go alone.

Luffy is such a crybaby sometimes. Huff! Well, always!"You did not answer! Do you hate me?" urges Luffy."Why do you ask this stupid question?" huffed Ace, rolling on his bed to confront Luffy's sad stare."Well.." Luffy pouts, gulps his tears and stares intently into Ace's black eyes. "Every time I touch you, you appear to despise me. You glare at me, and sometimes you shove me! But sometimes you just look at my hands with a sad face, as if they have hurt you."

Ace's breathing pauses, and his eyes freeze and burn."I love you, Ace. You're my brother. I don't want you to despise me because touching you hurts you."He could never despise Luffy. There is no world, no universe in which Ace could ever loathe Monkey D. Luffy.

His younger brother is just too lovely, selfless, caring, and funny for him to resent.

Rolling to the other side, Ace clenches his small hand and lets silent tears soak his face and land on his white pillow.

No. Ace hates just himself. Ace hates himself for allowing Luffy to touch something abdominal like him. Ace despises himself for being so self-centered and greedy to allow Luffy to touch him rather than hit and hurt him.Ace's only sadness was pity for Luffy's willingness to care enough to be kind to him.He sniffs quietly, rolls back, stares intensely at the ceiling, and breathes out his next words.

"I don’t hate you, Luffy. I could never hurt you since you are my dear little brother! I care too much for you for that!"Luffy's weeps of relief at not being loathed by Ace were a memory that Ace could never erase from his heart. Ace's first breath of relief came from someone's tears and relief at not being loathed by him.The relief of existing for someone's care and worth was all Ace wanted.)
Ace and Umekui share the same fear. The fear of accepting that someone is capable of being gentle with them ( as if touching them without hurting them was an effort that they weren't worth of). But Luffy made the effort. He did it repeatedly, never breaking their trust for a second. And when dumb Luffy lashes out in wrath and desperation, Umekui and Ace are always the first to accept and receive it since Luffy was the first to accept them without slapping away the hands that many have rejected.The first to hold onto them despite Ace and Umekui's countless attempts to push him away, hoping that Luffy wouldn't waste his time running after them seeking them like a naive dreamer.
("I don’t care who is your father. Or how many sins you have committed. The only one I care about is you alone, Ace. You are my brother and I love you!")
Luffy was the first ray of light that proclaimed eternity by their sides.'I see.'Ace smiles gently, capturing the startled gaze of -Dazai- Umekui.He could prove to Luffy how many sins his first mate committed, how many she killed, and how twisted her soul is, but it would all be in vain.Because Ace is the hypocrisy itself. He has a heritage of misdeeds in his blood, years of hiding and running from the world engraved on his freckles, and a long-buried madness in his onyx gaze. Perhaps he should quit being selfish. He needs to stop being selfish and let it go, like Umekui said. Ace must allow other tormented souls to taste the heaven that Luffy has in the back of his hand.If the world hates Dazai, the same can be said for Ace. Let them be loathed by the world and condemned by the dead. They do not care!They only worry about one silly boy who wants to be the pirate king, Monkey D. Luffy! Let them be despised by the rest of the world for this boy to love them! Loved by him is the only quest they require for their wretched existence.He looks across to Luffy and his intriguing nakamas with brilliant black eyes."You've got a great first mate! I would never kidnap her from you, straw hat pirates! She belongs with you." Ace smiles a broad, boyish grin that causes Luffy's crew to blink and flush.He bends down to greet them, then rises, winks at them, and grins flawlessly."It's nice to meet you! My name is Portgas D. Ace. Thank you for taking care of my troublesome little brother!"Zoro's steel stare shifts from his nakamas to the black-haired stranger.Even though he claims to be his captain's brother, they do not resemble each other. Then again, he recalls the evening when he, Luffy, and Umekui slept outside on the deck beneath the stars. Sleeping together, soothed to sleep by the soothing waves of the sea and his captain's childhood stories.If he remembers correctly, Ace is one of his siblings, who was adopted and raised in the jungle by their nanny Dandan. If he followed the lead of Luffy's stories, Ace would be nothing like what he envisioned.He pictured a person who was more simple-minded, savage, and dumb than Luffy. If Ace is the older brother Luffy admires, isn't it reasonable for him to imagine someone worse than silly Luffy?Yet, Portgas D. Ace looks nothing like Zoro anticipated. His face appears too gentle for a child growing up in the jungle with a person like his captain.Compared to Luffy's wild look and the scar beneath his captain's eye. Ace's sun-kissed freckles, sea-dried curls, and charming smile might draw him to get anything.Ace's appeal is too delicate and pretty to match Luffy's wild tales.Yet.Zoro notices something as he looks at those ebony eyes, which appear darker than a moonless night. He sees, or rather recognizes, the cause of his captain's obsession with this boy.Ah. Such a bothersome captain; Zoro has. Why did he have such a problematic, kindhearted, and caring captain? Why did the universe make Luffy so selfish that he is continually aware of the emptiness and darkness of the world around him?Ace's gaze is filled with ghost anguish and scars, similar to his first mate's crimson eyes. Ace can smile, laugh, and joke in front of him, but Zoro will never take away the familiar sorrow in his eyes.
(Not when the source of such emptiness and misery is too deeply embedded in Zoro's heart and soul. That no deity, power, or tragedy could alter Zoro's feelings for Umekui (how could he not when her name is linked to his devotion to his goals and dreams?How could he undo this sorrow when the ghost of Umekui lying in a pool of blood faces him every night-(and foolish Zoro knows that he will never be like Luffy, who can erase the darkness and nightmares with a single glance of his dazzling smile)).
That's why Ace appeared to lean toward his first mate, as if he was prepared to kidnap and take her away from them, from him (never! Zoro is too selfish and greedy to let go of someone who makes his blood boil, someone worthy of possessing his soul and standing beside his dreams).He takes a quick glimpse at his first mate. Zoro couldn't help but feel troubled at her pained expression and the creases forming beneath her eyes. He reached over to her side and took her scarred hand in his hard grip."Are you okay, Umekui?" he asks quietly into the croak of her neck.Her red eye catches his gaze, and she smiles affectionately, hoping to ease his concerns, but Zoro knows otherwise."Just a headache," she murmurs, gripping his hand and leaning gently against his front.Zoro lets out a sigh, well aware that she is lying to him. He merely nods, embraces her tightly, and takes a big breath from her scent (perhaps if she recognized that Zoro's hard grip was a way for him to show her that no matter what she is hiding, he will never let her go.Perhaps, at last, she will see how important and priceless she is to someone like him who didn't give a damn about anything.-maybe she'll stop being so rigid and squirt as if she were ready to hold herself steady as if he or their nakamas could ever let her go).From the corner of his eye, Zoro caught a lock of Umekui's hair burned. He reached out, fingers wrapping around the end of the burnt lock, worried, his forehead furrowed."What happened?" he grumbles.Umekui looks down at the lock of hair in his hand."Oh, that?""Yes. This, Umekui."Zoro persists, his gaze sweeping across her face, hair, body, legs, and arms, checking to see whether she has hurt herself in any way.Zoro understands that scars and wounds are runes that mark their path; he recognizes this in his own scars and wounds every morning in the mirror.He sees it in Usopp's injured knees and knuckles, which he cries and tends to. He recalls it from the bruises on Nami's neck and the long scar on her arm. Sees it in Shitty Cook's bloodied legs and knees but never in his hands (because they are too sacred for his dream to harm).Hell, Luffy never spends a day without getting a fresh scar across his hands and body or a bloodied nose.But.It's feels so fucking wrong on Umekui. Can he honestly blame himself for feeling nervous and upset when Zoro knows that his first mate has enough wounds and scars that make him want to scream wildly at the world?Because someone like his first partner gathers scars and wounds as an ultimate to death's path (as if she had been ready, waiting desperately for the final blow that will end her life—as if she craves wounds and scars as an act of punishment that she believes she sickly deserves). It's not like him, whose scars motivate him to pursue his dreams and conquer the man who awaits him at the top of the world. Not like Usopp, who looks upon his wounds and scars as if they're for his title as a warrior sea. Nor like Nami, whose scars burned down the past of long chains that kept her from the sun, sea, and dreams. Not like Shitty Cook, who gleams at every wound on his body, delighted to shield his hands from blood and harm.And certainly not like Luffy, who grins and smiles with each fresh scar and wound. Hell, he even gave nicknames to his scars or showed them off screaming how cool they are (because they prove to him that he survived without carrying the weight of someone else's injuries and scars on his back with guilt-the scars and wounds are for Luffy alone to bear-not anyone else, never again!).Umekui isn't like that; she can't be, not just now.Not when Zoro knew she still couldn't let them see what was hidden beneath all those bandages, as if she was shielding them from a horror fresco (he wanted to scoff at her stupidity. Seriously, does she believe they would push her away from disgust or take their gaze away from her view?-Never-how could they turn their gaze away from the crescent moon that guides them through the dark, cold, lonely night?)So for now. He can't let her hurt herself (not when she appears to care less--no! as if she doesn't care at all about herself getting hurt or worse--and the numbness toward herself terrifies Zoro more than anything else)."It's nothing, don't worry, Zoro," she adds quietly.What exactly did he say? Always answering the same way, as if she weren't worth his worry (if only she knew how worthy she was in his gaze)."It's not nothing, Umekui." He grinds out, clutching her arm. "What if your face burned, or worse your eye again when it's barely healing?"Umekui chuckles, silently and meaningless. Her eyes were fixed on Ace's face, as if she couldn't take them away from him for a moment."What if, Zoro? I'm not going to die over something so trivial."'I can’t die! Even if I try to burn myself to ashes, it will likely reassemble itself into a senseless sculpture-(And she cannot take the risk. Not when the world is too awful for Luffy and her nakamas to face alone.)'Zoro peered at her intensely and bit his upper lip, suppressing a shout of annoyance, but froze at her next words."Even if I burned to ashes, it won't matter," she murmurs calmly into the wind.His eyes widened, and he turned to face her, his heart and hands trembling as he prepared to shake her and shout at her for uttering such idiotic things."Umekui, you were so cool defeating the billions!" beams Chopper, dashing towards her.Umekui drops to one knee and greets Chopper with a kind smile."Thank you, Chopper!" she says, petting his head, while he beams up at her.Umekui grabs Chopper and carries him in her arms. Muttering that she is hungry; Chopper noddingly agrees, so she makes her way to the kitchen.Sanji's gaze caught them on their way to the kitchen, and before he could hurry after them to prepare something for them, a rough palm gripped his wrist."Ne shitty cook?"Blue eyes as dazzling as the sky and as deep as the sea meet his steel gaze.A question lingered in his head for far too long. He returns his sight to his first mate's back, cooling all the worries that arose in his throat.He looks back at Sanji, who is waiting for his next words."Never mind," he mutters, looking up at the sky. Releases Shitty Cook's hand and turns to face the upper deck to conclude his training. But he pauses and flips over, narrowing his gaze at his cook."Take care of Umekui and-" His gaze falls on Ace's radiant smile, rubbing Luffy's head. "Keep an eye on our new visitor."Sanji's eyes narrow before settling and nodding with a smirk."Like I need you to tell me to do it, Marimo." Sanji scoffed as he followed Umekui and Chopper into the kitchen."You better do it, Pervy," Zoro swears under his breath.Luffy smiles widely, peering up into Ace's black eyes.His palm curled over his brother's, feeling warmer than before (the hands that Luffy dearly wanted to hold above all else--those hands that made Luffy feel safe, treasured, and adored. Those hands, covered in many hidden white scars because dumb Ace was so lost and blinded by despair that he failed to see the love Luffy was holding out for him).After meeting with his crew, Luffy grabbed Ace's waist and dragged him to his favorite spot on the going merry.Shoulders leaning against each other, sitting down on Luffy's spot, the brothers gaze peacefully at the ocean ahead of them. I am so happy!, thought Luffy with sparkling eyes. How could he not? Ace, after so many years, is finally beside him; even though he knows his brother will get back to the sea, he can't help but let his blood and heart explode with joy and excitement at rejoining his brother.(Yet, a part of his little heart misses Sabo. He misses him as much as he misses the way his fingers curl over his blond hair locks. He misses him just as much as his brother's fading voice (biding farewell from the skies)-miss him as much as his beloved elder brother's reprimands and scolding- miss him as much as the shared dreams under the starry night-)."Are you sure you don't want to join Whitebeard crew alongside yours? The old man will gladly accept you among his ranks," says Ace, a smirk forming on his handsome face."Nehhh," grumbles Luffy, dismissing Ace's suggestion. "Listen, Ace. I will be the pirate king with my crew by my side, and no one will stop us," he declares, grinning at Ace.Ace chuckles low and warm (like the fire that continues to burn from his pupils, like his strong voice that convinces Luffy of all his promises-the promise to never leave, to never die, to never let go)."Good Luck! But I will do whatever in my power to make the old man the next pirate king!""Shi shi shi i'am no longer weak Ace don't underestimate me!"A sun-kissed hand reaches out and ruffles his black curls. Ace's big grin catches his gaze."Of course! How can you be a captain if you are so weak, idiot!""Ume also said the same thing to me," Luffy pouts.Ace's smile flickered briefly before returning to normal. But Luffy noticed it. Seriously, Luffy will constantly notice things about his brother or Nakamas."You know, the first time I found Ume, I thought she was dead," admits Luffy.(Luffy will never forget his first meeting with Umekui, even if the earth and cosmos collapsed and a new cycle started.His heart shivers at the memory of how lonely, shattered, and empty she was (for how could someone bear such sadness in their gaze? How can the world allow Ume to suffer? How it's fair for the world to let his Ume suffer, hurts so much!)The dreamless girl, he found lost in the middle of the ocean (yet she appeared so much worse than lost in the ocean, she appeared to be lost in their world--so livid, meaningless, empty, and colorless in her scarlet gaze).Still, lost in this small boat in the middle of East Blue, Luffy has discovered a path within his first mate's lifeless gaze.Inside her darkness, he is building a road of light, dreams, and freedom for his Ume!After all, it's their promise!)He chuckles, turns slightly, and meets Ace's stupified gaze."Dead?" mutters Ace."Yes. I thought she was some dead girl I found in the depths of the ocean because of her countless bandages and her pale, snow-like skin. However, when she opened her red eyes, I knew she was alive. Not because she opened her eyes and sighed, 'What a waste she didn't die-'" he laughs quietly. (Ace's eyes widen as his heart races since Luffy was never quiet. No! Luffy was loud, bold, relentless, but never quiet!)-Luffy brings a hand up to the treasure over his head. "But because there were no dream, no meaning, no faith in her empty eyes which reminded me of so much of your past eyes, Ace."Luffy removes his straw hat and places it over Ace's head (and the way his brother's eyes quivered and his entire body shook made Luffy's eyes soften).'I've seen your pain for so long, Ace. And now I see it in my Ume'."I knew she was alive because it was unfair of me to think that someone who had been through so much sorrow, like my dear older brother, would be so doomed to surrender to death without fighting. It was wrong of her to be empty, dreamless, and colorless. She deserves far more than you could ever imagine. So, Ace, it's a request from your adorable little brother; whatever you think Ume is or was, let it go. Respect her as much as I do, and allow yourself to behold how wonderful Ume is!"Ace's jaw drops open, his hands tremble in his lap, and before he can say anything, Luffy lets out a loud scream that startles him.He sighs aloud after his scream and falls to his back, gazing at the blue sky."Seriously, I've never talked so long in my life about serious stuff! But, for you and Ume, it's all worthwhile!"His stomach grumbles loudly, making him chuckle."Yosh, I am going to eat! I hope Sanji has prepared a lot of meat!"As he prepares to leap onto the deck, Ace's loud, affectionate, boyish laugh stops him."HAHAHAHAHHA- Seriously, Luffy! You never change! You can never stay serious for more than five minutes!" Ace wiped one tear from his eyes.He looks up and smiles warmly (as gentle as the blazing heart Ace strives so hard to hide from the world; as soft as the hands that stroke his and Sabo's hair; as robust and delicate as the hands that could never leave his back (because they are ingrained so deeply in Luffy's heart that he cannot let go of them)."I'll try for you, Luffy (and Sabo). I'll try to accept this Umekui that you grew up to love!"Luffy laughs broadly, jumps at his brother, and hugs him tightly in response. He swiftly gets to his feet, grabs his straw hat, places it back on his head, grabs Ace's hand, and leaps over the deck."You'll see you'll love her too! She is so cool and strong! She even paints, reads books at night, and knows how t-"Luffy led Ace to their kitchen, humming all the compliments he had for his first mate. Warm and fire fluttered in his stomach, making his entire body giddy with happiness.Indeed, Luffy is happy. Happy because the most important people in his life are with him!Umekui let out a short sigh, trying to ignore the boy seated beside her who was staring at her intensely.Didn't he wish to kill and burn her to ashes just an hour ago?She lifts her fork to her mouth and softly chews her tomato (and Umekui knows that if she were the monster Dazai is, she could have stabbed Ace in the throat with her fork for the sheer reason of knowing her identity.For starters, she wouldn't have dared because he is Luffy's beloved brother. Secondly, she would not dare ruin Sanji's dinner and Luffy's meat with blood)."So Luffy told me you're a painter, is that true?" Ace asks in a cooky tone.Umekui nods, ignoring the intense look that burns the side of her cheek (But those eyes, this gaze, this soul burning in her vision, seeking her to take it, seize it, steal it, and conceal it deep inside her, makes every particle of herself shake)."Will you show me your painting?" wonders a curious Ace, getting closer to her space.If he is Luffy's brother, then Umekui bets that he has no concept of personal space."No one sees my painting," she quietly responds."Yet you painted a portrait of Luffy," Ace points out, accusing him."He's my captain. Whatever Luffy asks for, I will give him," she declares obviously as if he is too clueless to think so."I'am your captain beloved older brother. Do I not get a privilege for that?", Ace smirks, brushing some curls out of his gaze."I didn't ask you for a double suicide, it should suffice I think," Umekui replies with a shrug.Ace startled at her words before laughing warmly."You are funny!""I was not kidding," she says blankly."Well I would have accepted if you asked!" smiles Ace, winking at her. Umekui sighs again for the sixty times of the day. Put her fork back on the table, grabs a handkerchief wipes her mouth, and turns her face to the left to stare into Ace's onyx eyes. "Are you flirting with me, Ace?" blurted out Umekui.At her words, she hears Usopp suffocating in his water, and Sanji on his salad. And feels the surprised gaze of Nami, Zoro, and the princess.Chopper simply stares confusedly at the two, while Luffy like always is lost in his feast of meat. "And If I am?" smiles wider Ace, making his perfect white teeth blind everyone in the room. "You are not my type, forget it" lies Umekui ( seriously who could gaze at this boy and dare tell him that they were not his type?). "Well you are mine!" smirks Ace. Usopp and Sanji choke even harder that Vivi and Chopper have hurried themselves to help them smack their back. Zoro eyes narrow on Ace's form as if he could jump at him at any moment and slay his throat. "Are you seriously flirting with our first mate in front of us?," asks Nami, mouth agape at his show. "Well yes. Is it wrong ?" asks Ace back with a smile. Nami stares at him, and now, she is certain that he is Luffy's brother. Because simply an idiot will dare to flirt with their Umekui when she seems ready to pry out Ace's eyes with a fork.         "She is pretty and strong. Totally my type!" says Ace, turning to Umekui to show her one of his wide and pretty smiles.  Umekui huffs and stands up, already annoyed by the conversation. 
'I just want to die or sleep forever in bed'
Feeling the exhaustion of the day or life she doesn’t care anymore, catching up to her, she thinks that she really needs a nap right now. "I am tired. I'm going to take a nap. Nami woke me up before we arrived at our destination. Thank you for the meal Sanji!" Spotting the deckchair that Nami uses to lay on for her tanning moment in their deck. Umekui lays on her back softly, blinking up at the blue sky. 
'Why, among everyone, Luffy has chosen you; you?!'
Her chest hurts.She brings a palm over it, caressing her chest urgently, hoping, wishing the pain to go away. 
'I wonder why too.'
She can think about it each night and day letting this question haunt her forever like a ghost that will never leave her. But Umekui is afraid. Afraid that when she finally finds the answer to this love that Luffy has for her, it will be already too late. Late because this love will be gone ( because he left her and knew what she truly was).Gone like the little hope that she has for this meaningless dream. Maybe he will have mercy and kill her before abandoning her.She lets out a bitter smile at the notion and scoffs internally because she knows Luffy too well that killing her is something that he could never do ( leaving her will be far a deserving punishment for her tragic existence).
Maybe she could pursue Zoro to do it-

No!
Even though she is despicable and desperate for death, she could never punish him like that ( killing someone that you once loved and referred to as nakama is far atrocious to do-But Dazai did it. She did while glaring down at her bloodied hands and his fading bloody smile-Plotting her own death began to hurt her head. So she let out a small sigh and closed her eyes, feeling the cruel darkness reaching for her conscience.  
"Tell me Dazai."

Dazai hums as she lifts her head from the bucket of water she is trying to drown herself to death for the last five minutes.

Her red eyes spot the violet eyes of Akiko.

"Do you feel the pain?" asks softly Akiko, her fingers nervously playing with the end of her skirt.

"Ha? What is this stupid question, Yosano?"  says Dazai while ruffling the water from her short black hair.

Akiko lowers her head as she feels her face heating up from embarrassment.

"Of course, I feel the pain!"

She lifts her head, surprised.

A bitter smile catches her gaze.

"Don’t we all?"

Akiko ran her finger along the scar on her wrist and flinched at the ghost pain.

"Yes," she mumbles, nodding absently. "Is it because of that you are searching to die? Are you willing to die so you could make the pain stop?"

Dazai laughs softly.

Akiko meets her red eyes confused, trying to search for the funny thing she said that made her laugh like that.

"No. I'am not reaching death as an escape from the pain. Rather,.." Dazai hums pensively and smiles as she meets her violet eyes. " it's my purpose!"

Akiko smiles sadly. She has seen death for her entire life, she feels it in the tingling of her ability. She defies death every day and feels the weight of his fatality on her shoulders.

So she doesn’t understand why Dazai has chosen it as a purpose? There is no purpose for dead men ( maybe it's because of that Moru keeps her by his side, chained and destined to revive the men and armies again and again sending them to their death, prisoning them in a web of tragedy and war that know no espace-

But maybe death could be an escape).

She let her finger trace meticulously over the long scar on her wrist. But flinch again and fist her hand by her side.

"But why, Dazai?" she whispers. "Why choose such a tragic purpose?"

Red eyes darken.

The smile on Dazai faints into something heartbreaking, anger and injustice seem to be portrayed on the glare that Dazai was wearing like a shield.

"Who dared to though that I have a choice, Yosano?"
 She caught the hand before it could brush the side of her face. "You have fast reflex," muse the voice of Ace. Opening her red eyes, Ace's face is above her, staring down at her pensively."What are you doing here, Ace?" asked slowly Umekui.Ace's face turns confused at her question. "I was searching for you. I wanted to talk with you!" he answers softly. "No," Umekui shakes her head because he didn’t understand her question. "What you doing her in Alabasta, Portgas D. Ace?"Ace flinches then smiles bitterly and turns to gaze at the sea ahead of him. "I'm searching for a traitor-"His hands shake, but he quickly fists them."He killed my friend-our nakama and fled as he stole his devil fruit!" he explains yet his voice seems too heavy for him ( as if he was still stuck in this day, the moment when he found the corpse of his dear nakama, the pool of blood drenching his shoes and the heavy breathing of his grief suffocating him-)"So it's in my right and duty to find and make him pay for his sin! Marchall D. Teach is going to die!" 
(BEWARE OF THOSE WHO CARRIES THE WILL, CHILD OF VOID CENTURY!)
The voice again.
(THEY WILL BRING MISFORTUNE AND TRAGEDY TO THE WORLD!)
It echoes in a symphonia as blood rushes to her ears. 
(DO YOU REGRET TAKING THE WILL, DAZAI!)
Her head aches and her eyes burn. They sting harder when she reaches for her hair and pulls from the roots."Hey! Are you okay?" calls out Ace, and drops to one knee reaching for her face. She flinches back before he can touch her.Ace flinches back too and steps back with a sad smile. "It's just a stupid headache," she mumbles tiredly as she drops her head back to the deckchair she is lying on. She lifts her tired gaze to where Ace is standing, staring absently at his hand ( and her heart shakes because he seems to be disgusted by his hand as if something revolting and evil was flowing in his veins-)"Are you seeking revenge?" she asks suddenly, needing her question to pry him out of his head. "Revenge..," he repeats quietly. Then fists his hand and stares hard at her. "I call it retribution. Aren’t you familiar with it as an ex-executive?"Umekui ( Dazai) lets out a bitter smile. "It depends." "If they were innocent or not? Or all those you killed were innocents?" A crack echoes in the deck ( or inside her heart ? She doesn’t know and it hurts, hurts, hurts, hurts-). "Are you also going to kill Princess Vivi, too? Aren’t royals drowning in the sea of blood that you imprisoned them in? Or your nakama and Luffy-"The sound echoes louder, as the deck trembles under their feet."-will share the same feat as those you killed? Aren’t you already plotting how to kill your crew and Luf-"Ace gasps loudly and stops as a sharp pain stings from his left cheekbone. He stares with wide eyes at the upper deck broken in front of him and the shards of wood scattered all around them. His blood drips from his cheek to the floor in an echo of this beating heart. Umekui walks toward him slowly and reaches out a finger over his dripping wound. Her finger glows green as she whispers, "Sorry about that. He tends to get angry easily-"There is something warm caressing his wound, he looks up at the first mate's face ( she seems so tired, already dead from the weight of the darkness and emptiness she is carrying inside her eyes).A dripping wound exactly like his appears on her perfect face. As she steps back from him, he fastly reaches a finger over his previous wound and his heart drops as he finds nothing but a perfect no injured soft flesh. "I advise you to not let your mouth run wildly. Emotions are a strange thing, you find yourself still until you are burning. If you are this weak face to your nemesis, then you will fatefully burn in your own flames, Portgas D. Ace." says Umekui as she turns her back to the stairs to leave the deck. The blood from the wound flowed all over her left cheek to her neck and finally landed on her dress. Ace's onyx eyes ache ( and he feels ready to pry out the meal he had from self-disgust-).Reaching the end of the stairs, Umekui brings a palm up and wipes the blood from her cheek. Staring absently at her bloodied hand and trying hard to forget Ace's words, Umekui gazed up at the sky and let out a small disappointing expression as if she were ready to scold someone."He is Luffy's brother. Don’t do it again, Chuuya." Vivi stares at the desert in front of her with aching eyes. She is home. The land of sand in front of her calls her soul like a revelation. From the corner of her eye, Luffy jumps from the ship to the sand with an exciting scream. Landing on the scorching sand, he looks all around him and pouts as he only finds miles and kilometers of orange sand. "Is this Yuba? It seems so boring!" he grumbles, kicking the sand away from his feet. "Hey Zoro, this place is totally a dump-hole!" Zoro grumbles something like-shut up asshole it's not the moment for your complain-from the deck as he tries to steal Ussop's scarf from his hands. "Hey, it's not yours! Go find another scarf bastard!" cries out Ussop, struggling to not let Zoro steal his clothing."Umekui used mine to burn the billion's ships!" growls Zoro, kicking Ussop's feet. "Ouch!" screamed aloud Luffy.He falls on his butt and stares at his red-hot naked feet. They seem to be burned from the scorching sand. "Luffy you need to wear at least something! The sand of Alabasta is hotter than any land it can even reach fifty degree Celsius!" screamed Vivi from the deck staring worriedly at the pained Luffy. The long black hair of the first mate lands on her vision. Umekui lands on the sand and hurries to Luffy's side. She falls on her knees worriedly, brushing her thumb over Luffy's face whipping the sweat away. She brings the sandals of Luffy's feet, mumbling under her breath how troublesome and careless he is. Luffy beams down at her and reaches out hands to pet her black hair and steading the black scarf on her hair. "You are the best, Ume!" he says as a honey-dripping smile caresses his lips. Umekui offers him a small sweet smile as her red eyes soften in a devoting way. "Anything for you, my captain," she whispers back, with a voice too soft and light for someone as harsh as her.Vivi's eyes ache and she quickly averts her gaze from them ( there is something fierce and painful with the way Umekui cares for her nakama and Luffy-and Vivi's terrified of those people who seem ready to burn kingdoms and worlds for the mad reason of loving someone). She clears her throat and says, "We are not at Yuba. We need to cross the north desert to reach there!" "And for how long do we need to walk in the desert?" asks Chopper from Sanji's shoulder-the latter beaming and sending hearts at Vivi. "Hum.." Vivi's hums pensively, then answers. "Half a day!" Ussop gasped aloud outraged and horrified at the news from the floor, hiding his scarf under his stomach. Zoro groans tired and already annoyed by the situation. But continues to kick Usopp's butt for his scarf. "Zoro stop bullying Ussop and everyone get down we need to cross the desert quickly!" orders Nami, appearing on the deck. "Nami-san you are soooo pretty!" beams Sanji. She ignores him and stares at where Luffy and Umekui are but gasps loudly at the strange creatures circling her first mate and captain. "What the hell is that?!" she screams. Vivi gasps in recognition. "It's the kung fu dugongs!" "The what?" says Chopper staring with wide eyes at the strange creatures, glaring at his captain and first mate. "They are very strong creatures of the Alabasta desert. They travel in packs across the desert!" A kung fu gungon jumps at Luffy and pushes him across the face. Sending Luffy's hurling in the sand. "Luffy!" cries worriedly Chopper and Nami. Crimson eyes flare up and glare with hatred at the dungons. Umekui quickly reaches for her handgun inside her dress and points it at the pack in front of her. The creatures glare down at her, cracking their fist, ready to shed blood on her. Umekui smirks but Vivi's shriek and cries stop her before she can pull the trigger. "Don’t hurt them, Umekui-san! Please! We are in their territory it's normal for them to be aware of us! But please don’t hurt them!" begs Vivi, her hands trembling over the balcony. 
("Don’t hurt him, Dazai! I beg you!")
Umekui's red eyes catch the begging gaze of Vivi. 
("Kills it, Dazai! What are you waiting for? Compassion toward animals is absurd!" urges the deep voice of Mori glaring down at her bloodied form.

"I don’t want to!" whispers Dazai's broken voice. )
Her handgun trembles in her grasp.She doesn’t want to. 
She can’t.
She tsk and puts it back inside her dress as she dodges to the side a punch. The princess is begging her to defeat those creatures that dared to hurt Luffy without hurting or killing them ( and Umekui wants to laugh loud from madness because she doesn’t know how to do something without hurting or killing someone-she was created for this-how could she change the way she was created for-)
("People can change, Dazai," Odasaku once said to her, taking her bloodied hands in his own. "Everyone can do it.")

She can’t.

She doesn’t know how. 
How to be less monstrous, less spiteful, and angry? How to have hope in a world that hates her so much? How to feel human when the weight and treacherous mask of her inhumanity feels so heavy?A punch brushed the side of her head. She blocks another fist with her feet and jumps away from the hoard of kicks and punches."Stop bullying and hurting Ume!" screams Luffy from behind her. "GOMU GOMU NO FIST!" With a single punch, Luffy sends the entire pack on their back, laying helplessly on the sand. "Luffy, what did I tell you?!" shierk Vivi. "Shut up! They were hurting Ume!" he grumbles, a finger inside his ear prying the sand out. "I didn’t hurt them! I hit the sand under their feet. The force and sand simply send them away!"He walks toward Umekui and brings a worried face in front of her, staring hard at her red eyes. "Are you okay, Ume?" Umekui nods absently, pry the sand from his hat, and puts it back on his head.Nami followed by the rest of the crew jumps into the land. "Now let go! Time is running short!" Vivi's heart beat faster from anxiety, and her hands shook, but Usopp stopped them as he took hold of them and smiled gently at her. Luffy takes hold of Umekui's hand and follows after his nakamas. Feeling something following behind him he turns and looks with a confused stare. "Ano guys, we have a problem.." calls out Luffy after his nakama."What again?!" huffs Nami already annoyed by the situation. Umekui points blankly at the kung fu dungons following them. Vivi reaches a hand toward her hair and shrieks from annoyance. "That's why I told you to not fight them! Now they have chosen you as their new leader!" "Then let them join us!" answers blandly Luffy. "They can’t! They need to live beside a water source!" says Vivi. Chopper jumps from Sanji's shoulder and approaches the pack of dungeon, trying to communicate with them. After a few minutes, he turns to his nakamas with a defeated expression. "They don’t want. They say that Luffy is their new king and it's in their duty to follow him!" Umekui pats Chopper's head. "Good work! Don’t worry I will take care of them!" She reaches a hand inside her dress-"Don’t!" screams Vivi worriedly, afraid that the first mate will hurt the creature. -and take out a piece of meat. Vivi and her nakama mouth gape open at the piece of meat in her hand. "Ne you?!" calls out Umekui. The animals glances at her curiously. She shows them the piece of meat in her grasp. Their mouth gape open and saliva lurks at the corner of their mouth. She takes a step back. Thows her hand behind her and hurls with strength the piece of meat miles away. "Go get it if you're hungry! As fast as thunder as swift as the wind, the dungons hurl after the piece of meat. Umekui pats her hands with a satisfied smile, turns toward her nakamas, winks, and heads toward their destination."Hey! Why do you have meat inside your dress?!" calls from behind Zoro. Umekui smriks, "For Luffy of course. Who else?" "MEATTT!!" screams Luffy, running after his first mate to reach her and get his beloved precious piece of meat. Vivi stares at the duo with a strange gaze and smiles affectionately ( now that she has stayed so many times with them-maybe- maybe she sees why Luffy and Umekui are strangely alike)."What is this place?" whispers the shaky voice of Ussop. Vivi fists her hands, enough to feel her nails cutting her flesh. This place is what hatred, war and desolation have brought. The ruined buildings around her; the dried blood on the walls and streets, the smell of death and despair, this place is suffocating her. This place is crying from sorrow and injustice. She feels like her nightmare is coming to life, and Vivi hates it. She hates it so much that she wants to kneel and cry to some god how cruel their punishment is ( because how dare they punish those innocent souls that demanded nothing but peace? How dare they bring misfortune and tragedy to a city that was once so alive, so green and free). Death haunts this place like it haunts and hunts Vivi's soul every-fucking-day ( and oh god how tired she is from running-).Nami's eyes shake as she spots the decaying corpses from the corners of the streets. She takes a worried glance at Vivi and her heart breaks at the despair and heartbreak on her friend's face.
'We will help you, Vivi! I promise!'
"Is this Yuba?" Luffy asks again, glancing all around him. "No.." answers the shaky voice of Vivi. "This place is Erumalu: the city of green." "Ha?" Luffy's titls his head. "But I don’t see any green-"Sanji glares at him, but like always Luffy ignores it.Vivi chuckles softly (and the way her voice breaks and echoes inside like a broken record makes everything hurt-)"You are right, Luffy." She stares at the city with a desperate stare ( her body feels so heavy as if her sins are crawling to her shoulder and dragging her down to the ground-ready to make her pay for her hypocrisy and cowardice-).
"You are too late, foolish princess!"
Please don’t let her be ( please don’t let the martyr memories fall in the history of her failures!).Vivi smiles sadly ( she wants to cry and begs forgiveness over and over!)."I have come to this town when I was young. They had one of the best honey in the world! I used to run all over their green oasis and swim in their river-" her smile shakes and her eyes ache-but Vivi keeps smiling. "But for the past three years ago, the rain stopped to shed over Erumalu. Not a drop, a single drop of water was shed over this land!"Her body shakes and the injustice of the world feels so wrong, so heavy that Vivi wants to scream and break all over. She laughs soullessly, "The villagers thought that they were cursed, some thought that the gods had abandoned and forsaken them-" her eyes flare up from anger, "but something strange kept happening in Alabuma; the capital, the rain didn’t stop shedding there. Days and Nights, it will rain while the other kingdom towns die and collapse from dryness. Corpses filled the towns, piling others on top of others, like a pyramid of despair.""Vivi.." whispers Chopper sadly. "Yet, some people knew that was something strange happening in the kingdom. They couldn’t abandon their families to such a misfortunate situation when the capital seemed to drown in water. So, it happened. Three years ago, a group of citizens found a mysterious group using dance powder telling the people that they were sent by the king of Alabasta." Nami gasped loud outraged."But how?! Wasn’t this powder banned from the world government?!" Umekui advances toward a small corpse a few feet away. She drops to one knee beside the corpse.It seems that it was a little girl from the small height of the corpse but she cannot identified from the way flesh dried over the bones, and how insects ate the flesh of the body and face. The little blonde hair that sticks to her head makes Umekui's eyes ache. (That was someone's child, someone with goals and dreams, someone who wanted to live and be free-)("I want to be a pirate someday, Dazai!")"Chopper, do you have a white blanket?" calls out the soft voice of Umekui. The latter reaches inside his pack and brings out the white blanket.Rushing to her side he gives it to her. "Thank you," smiled Umekui while patting his head. She turns over and lays the blanket carefully over the small corpse and stares absently at the corpse in front of her. Chopper glances worriedly at Umekui, bites his upper lips, and reaches for his first mate's hand. He grips it tightly, his petite frame shaking from suffocating sobs. "War is cruel," he whispers sadly. "No." Umekui shakes her head, with a bitter smile. "The world is." "The World Gouvernement banned this powder because of the Yoeal and Seol kingdom accident!" says Nami. Umekui's shoulders crisp at the names of the familiar kingdoms. ("I'am so sorry, Izu!")"This powder brought war and misery to many kingdoms who fought over it. The powder can create an artificial rain once it reaches the sky but-" Vivi wipes a single tear away. "It only brings sacrifices and grief to the victims!""We need to burn them," breaks out the cold voice of Umekui. Her eyes are still fixed on the corpse in front of her as if she couldn’t take her eyes away from her ( how ridiculous is it? Isn’t death alongside her in all paths she carried on? Death, wars, and sacrifices were not strange nor foreign to her-she was accustomed to them. But why? Why can’t she take her eyes away from this corpse-as if something was holding her feet down, banning her from turning her sight away-)
(It hurts! Mom! Dad! Where are you!??)
There are cries all around her-(her ears hurt, her heart hurts-she doesn’t want, no she can't fall with them! Not now!)"What do you mean, Umekui-chan?" asks Sanji carefully, taking a step toward."We need to burn the corpses." says again Umekui. Vivi's breath itches, she stares with wide eyes at the first mate and cries out; "We don’t have the time! Alabuma is days away! The civil war is close! We c-" "THE WAR IS ALREADY HAPPENING!" screams Umekui cutting the princess off. Vivi's voice stops, her cries trapped inside her throat, her chest trembling hard from the way she breathes. Her eyes ache through tears she stares with a shocked expression at Umekui. "This-" whispers Umekui now, as if she was startled by how she screamed. "This is war, princess! The war has always been there! If you don’t burn them, they will never find peace! They will be charred under the sun for days until they turn to dust and haunt this town forever! They will bring sickness through the wind of misery all over your kingdom!"Umekui takes a deep breath, fists her hands, and falls to her knees before the corpse. She carries it carefully in her hands as if she were afraid of hurting it ( but they are dead now. Painless, empty, gone, from this world in a cruel way that no child deserves). 
(FREE US, OH YOU DESCENDANT OF THE FORGOTTEN WORLD!)
"Zoro carry with me the rest of the corpses," orders quietly Umekui. The swordsman follows after her quietly like a shadow. Falls to his knee before a corpse, scatters it in his arms, and follows after his first mate quickly where she has set the first corpse. "Umekui.." whispers Nami sadly. She blinks the tears away and follows after Zoro and Umekui, carrying the corpses and dumping them where Umekui is setting them. Sanji follows them wordlessly, doing the same.  Luffy's eyes fix on Umekui. ("We will see each other in Alabasta, don’t worry!" says Ace with a wide smile patting his head.
"Okay!" beams up Luffy ( yet his eyes ache and his heart trembles because Luffy still doesn’t want to let go of Ace-).

"Luffy.." Ace whispers his name.

"Yes?"

"Tell your first mate that i'am sorry if I have hurt her," says Ace with a small sad smile.

Luffy's eyes grow wide. If Ace hadn’t told him, he would never have noticed that something happened that made his Ume hurt ( and Luffy seems to drown again in this sea of failures he has known from childhood ( he cannot let himself not notice the pain and despair of his loved one- because if he is too late then-(they will burn like Sabo, cries like Ace, and lose like Shanks!)).

"I will! Don’t worry Ace! Take care!" answers Luffy while waving goodbye to his brother.)
Luffy swallowed the heavy lump inside his throat and smiled like always. "Yosh! Let's do it!" he screams while rushing to his nakamas side, helping them. Usopp stops the tremors of his hands. Take a deep breath and joins after his nakamas. "I will gather some wood for the fire!" says Chopper, running to the other side. Vivi stares with teary aching eyes at the straw hats. "Hey don’t bring this arm closer to my face, Luffy!" screams from horror Ussop's voice. "Shi shi shi!""you dumbass stop playing with the limbs!" shrieked Nami. Luffy laughed harder while hiding behind the wide back of his first mate. 
("Don’t you see how courageous and kind they are, Princess Vivi?" smiles softly Dalton while staring at the pirates playing in the snow. "They are the hope and freedom that I was searching and waiting for."

He offers her a gentle smile.

"From the bottom of my heart, I hope that they will be yours too.")
This place that seems to have been already long gone, lost in the shadows of a war that knows no mercy, has been given a glimpse of hope from the straw hats. Erumalu the forsaken city green abandoned by the gods, where no future could ever prosper is glowing in Vivi's eyes ( maybe she isn’t late, if like Umekui said, if the war has always been there, then maybe Vivi is not late to arrest it-maybe she could let go of those souls suffering in this town for the duty of freeing her entire kingdom-). Vivi lets out a shaky smile, her palms brushing the tears away.She takes a step ahead toward the straw hats. 
Let me help you! Let me repent from my sins!

Let me love this city again! Let me have hope for a future that seems to glow from your back!

Let me save what is left of my kingdom, I implore you!

Let me be selfish for the last time! Let me find strength and courage in the flames of those who have fallen!
Don’t let them fall into the past of my mistakes! wanted to scream Vivi. And Vivi wishes to confess all her apologies to the innocents who paid because of her mistakes. (I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!)The corpse in her arms ( she can’t even identify if it was a man or woman, a boy or a girl, was their face young or old-) is too light, yet her feet drag all over the sand as if she was carrying the weight of the world ( oh how heavy her sins feel).An hour later, Vivi finds herself standing beside the straw hats in front of an immense wood fire. The flames brush her face, the dust on her face glowing from the fire's lights. The scent of burning corpses makes her stomach turn over, ready to vomit Sanji's breakfast. "The war is the pinnacle of loss," whispers Umekui beside her. Observing the flames with a faraway gaze, as if she was trapped in past memories that she seemed to hate. Indeed, the war is the pinnacle of loss.And she wonders and worries, will Ermalu ever be the same? Will the gardens grow back, painting the town in her familiar green hue? Will the rain present itself back and offer the rivers that flow in all directions across the town? Will the roots of hope grow back and teach the earth how to heal from her past wounds? And if not, how shall she correct her mistakes? How shall she ever be forgiven? Vivi's shoulders tremble from exhaustion, and the dark circles under her eyes ache. A pale cold hand falls over her shoulder. With aching eyes, Vivi spots Umekui's hand on her shoulder (and her heart trembles so much because Umekui is actually touching her as if she is not disgusted by her anymore-but it's impossible because the first mate hates her, right?)The first mate doesn’t gaze back at her. Yet a tiny smile crosses her pale face. "Don’t abandon now. You’re closer than you think. You are carrying the hope and future of an entire kingdom, Princess Vivi of Alabasta!" Vivi's shoulder trembles harder from her small soundless cries. Yes! She can’t abandoned now! She has no right! Her kingdom is waiting for her! She stares back at Umekui's face through teary eyes. Something raw, fierce, flares inside her. She began to feel a new unfamiliar tendress toward the woman beside her; like she remembered loving the sky of her kingdom. Wanting to swallow it whole and feel it inside her-just to be free forever.How ridiculous for her to feel something like that for someone who seems to hate her and everything related to her--But.She stares softly at the hand over her shoulder ( and now Vivi realizes that she seems so light as if the weight of her sins was stolen from her shoulders). She can’t help herself but sees something inside the first mate-because no one could have such a depressed gaze and an urge to free those corpses beside someone who has tasted darkness and wars for so long. Maybe it's the infinite sadness inside her eyes that draws her to Umekui like a cracked mirror of herself? "Let's go now," announces Vivi as she turns her back to the flames.The sun shining ahead of them causes their bodies to grow heavy from the weight of heat. The sand tires their walks, the uncomfortable granules of sand brushing against their feet and flesh and sticking to their skin from sweat.Sanji's eyes blurred from exhaustion and heat. His headache worsens with each passing second as they trek into the desert. (Yet-he thinks that the heat is soothing and comforting in contrast to the coldness of this corrupt land that freezes his bones and childhood memories in pain and sorrow. This heat feels fresh, new, and free, reminding him of the flames that he might reach for in secret-)"I'am so hungry!" Luffy complains at least 1,000 times since they began crossing the desert."Shut up!" Zoro grumbles from ahead, carrying an agonizing Chopper on his back.Luffy pouts and crosses his arms, scowling like a scolded child.From the corner of his eye, Sanji notices Umekui halting and returning to their captain.She reaches inside her dress and pulls out a piece of meat, which she hands to Luffy with a warm grin. The latter blinks at the chunk of flesh, then at his first mate's face, before smiling so widely and broadly that Sanji bets if it was anyone, their cheeks would bleed."Shi shi shi, you are the best Ume!" Luffy exclaims, jumping to hug Umekui tightly.Umekui's red eyes soften uncharacteristically and extends a scarred hand to smooth his black curls."You are spoiling him too much," Nami grumbled, grinning lightly at Umekui.Umekui smirks reaches inside her dress again, and throws something toward Nami, who catches it with a puzzled expression.Nami gasps at the tangerine in her palms, chuckles softly, and throws a kiss at her first mate."You are certainly the best!"Luffy giggles from Umekui's shoulder, meeting Nami's thrilled gaze: "I told you so!"Sanji smiles unconsciously observing the smiles on the lips of his female crew members. (When they are happy, Sanji feels better and happier than everyone else--because how could he not when they are the most valuable ones in the world?)For a split second, his stomach flames as he recalls Crocodile's threat over his first mate's head. He cast a quick glance at Zoro's face, wondering if his swordsman had noticed it when he wanted to talk to him about something (How long will he conceal this from his nakama and Luffy? (Oh god, he couldn't even imagine Luffy's reaction--this boy is undoubtedly too protective, possessive, and obsessed with Umekui to let go of Crocodile threat-).The sheer decision to curl around Umekui to safeguard her pulls the strings of Sanji's heart wildly.
(It makes matters worse when he recalls Umekui carrying these corpses with a guilty expression, as if their deaths were hers to bear (-her fault.) (the shame of surviving when someone you once loved perished, condemning you to live without them and only the feeling of grief and guilt to maintain you alive)- and this guilt, this grief, Sanji knows it too well to remain blind about Umekui's one-).

But Sanji has no idea why his first mate is plagued by so many deaths as if her existence was the punishment of many tragedies. (And the way he stands in the shadows of his absolute ignorance about his first mate's existence makes everything hurt- maybe if he knew a bit more about her

-maybe she could let him be there for her instead of hiding herself from them, from him-)).
"You don't seem bothered by the heat, Vivi," Chopper observes, intrigued by the princess's relaxed demeanor.Sanji marvels at Vivi's sweat-free face and lovely grin ( her gentle expression eases his emotions, allowing him to temporarily forget the princess's heartbroken look and tear-drenched face.)"Well, that is my homeland, after all. I'm used to this weather and long walks in the desert," Vivi replied fondly, recalling some childhood recollections.Usopp glances at Umekui as she walks effortlessly through the desert with Luffy on her back."Did you also grow up in a weather as hot as Alabasta, Umekui?"Everyone remains quiet and walks slowly, waiting for the first mate to respond."Not all," chuckles Umekui. "On the contrary, this place was always cold.""Did you grow up in a snowland like mine?" asserts an enthusiastic Chopper, eager to learn more about Umekui.Her smile fades, as she opens her lips to respond but immediately closes it.(She despises speaking things that remind her of a past she costly wants to forget. Because if she keeps remembering, who will help her escape memories that could engulf her in her own sorrow and cowardice? Who will be there to grab her hands and thrust her out of-)A soft forehead rested on her head, and arms wrapped around her neck, tenderly stroking her. Luffy's scent soothes her anxiety in ways that no drugs could ever accomplish.She shallows the lumps in her throat and glances up at the blazing sun ( he feels so wrong when the sun of her destiny strokes her shoulders like she is something precious to hold-)."It has never snowed. It was the kind of coldness that no amount of snow, rain, or wind could ever alleviate. A place that even the sun avoided, dooming it to darkness and loneliness. Rendering it impossible for your body to feel warm and your flesh to grow bitter. So this heat feels great against my skin; it's refreshing," she states, raising a hand to the sun and letting the rays caress the back of her palm. "But why don't I feel it? Maybe i'am not feeling it because the coldness of this place is still trapped inside my bones forever, frozen in a time of darkness-reminding me that I could never escape from this fate--" she murmurs the final statement into the wind."It seems like a pretty sad place to me," remarks sadly Vivi.Nami and Chopper offer sad smiles, as Zoro fists his hand with a frown (How to deal with someone from wounds they refuse to display; they contemplate as they stare at their first mate- (the answer is the mocking laugh of fate, forcing them to stare helplessly at Umekui's despair)).Sanji's eyes shook as he gazed straight at Umekui (Oh god, he had never wanted to hug someone more than Umekui).His soul hurts, cries, and shrieks at how Umekui's words, at the description of this place are making him feel ( and he wants to hold her tightly, tenderly, and whisper to her how much he relates to a place where loneliness and coldness make his soul and bones trembles from heartbreak. But Sanji is a disgusting liar who will wear golden smiles on his face to make anyone not pries into the shadows of his past ( they are still too bruised, raw, and dark to let anyone pries into them without fearing that they would bleed worse-)).Umekui lets out a bitter smile at Vivi's words."The world is a sad place," she whispers back ( and her voice feels so drowsy as if she was tired from carrying so much hatred and desolation for a world that could never blink at her suffering ( and it's unfair, so unfair that she has to bleed and sacrifice for a world that hates her so much-)). ("Why did you throw yourself in the river to save the bird if you don’t know how to swim, stupid Luffy?!" scolds Sabo as he glares down at the tears on Luffy's small face. 
"Because he was drowning!" defends Luffy with a hiccup.

"And when you jumped in the river it was you who was drowning, idiot!" grumbles Ace from his spot drying his wet shirt.

"But-" Luffy pouts and sniffs his tears. "The bird fell from his nest to the water, he couldn’t fly back because he is still a baby!"

"So you decided to risk yourself for a bird?" asks Sabo, eyes softening as he reaches a palm to wipe Luffy's tears.

Luffy nods, a finger stroking his wet nose.

Sabo let out a gentle laugh and falls to his knees in front of his younger brother.

"You are so stupid, Luffy!" he says softly and reaches a hand to pat his head. " So stupid, but so selfless and gentle."

Sabo offers a sad smile and reaches to hug Luffy's little shoulders.

"So never change, Luffy. Please stay like you are forever. Stay as the stupid, precious, dear young brother that you are! The world is too sad not to have someone like you!")
Luffy hugs Umekui tightly, so tight that he could her gasp from surprise ( and for a second he regrets not having hugged and held Sabo so much in the past-maybe if he had held him and didn’t let him run into the arms of those horrible cruel men, then maybe Sabo would still be alive and Ace would not be blinded by grief-)("But maybe i'am not feeling it because the coldness of this place is still trapped inside my bones forever, frozen in a time of darkness-reminding me that I could never escape from this fate-")No. If he needs to pry out his bones and offer them to Ume so she could feel a slight ounce of warmth then Luffy would do it over and over. If he needs to fight time and inverse it back, so his precious Ume could breathe without feeling trapped then Luffy would do it forever.If Luffy needs to fight to death fate, so Ume can feel the sun on her flesh and smile without guilt then Luffy would do it over and over again, he will keep standing, facing fate even with broken bones, a bruised body, and a scarred flesh. Yes, Luffy would do anything for his Ume. For his loved ones, Monkey D. Luffy is ready to declare wars, rebellions even the end of the world or turn an entire dynasty to dust."You are warmth, Ume! You feel so warmth and good!" he declares lovely. A trembling breath left her lips as she shook slightly in his hold but Luffy held her firmly so if she let go or collapsed he would forever be there to hold her back ( and she wondered again if would he still hold her with so much gentleness when her depraved body would be recovered with sins and in the blood of those she murdered-).An arm crossed with her, and Usopp's shoulder leaned against hers. "Luffy is right! You are so warm!" remarks softly Ussop with a wide smile. "Your cold body feels so good in this heat!" Umekui chuckles and leans her body against Usopp. "Hey, you pigs! Stop groping Umekui-chan like that!" hurls Sanji while glaring at them. Luffy simply snickers while hugging Umekui and Usopp throws him a middle finger. The vein on his forehead bumps with anger. "You are just jealous that Umekui is hugging us!" snickers Usopp. Sanji's face grows red from embarrassment. "I don’t blame him! I'am also jealous as hell!" says Nami as she eats her tangerine with Vivi. "Like you need to speak, woman! You are already sharing a bed and room with Umekui!" glares Zoro at Nami. Nami smirks wide and throws a hand over her short orange hair. "No need to growls like a dog. Jealousy would simply make you uglier than you already are!" "Ha?! What did you say, stupid wi-"Before Zoro could finish his sentence he finds himself eating the sand ground with a hard thump. Chopper jumps from his back to Nami's arms who is laughing hard at his fall. "Watch your tongue when you talk to Nami-san!" growls Sanji from above Zoro's body. "YOU BASTARD!" screamed Zoro, coughing sand from his mouth. Zoro grabs a fist of sand and throws it at Sanji, but the latter dodges it. Yet while dodging it Sanji forgot that his first mate was behind him. Chopper gasped as the sand slapped Umekui's face. The first mate glares at the men in front of her and the way her red eyes glow from annoyance makes Sanji and Zoro gulp from fear. In the blink of an eye, they speed and run off from their first mate. Luffy and Usopp laugh hard beside Umekui, making the latter laugh softly with them. "Well now we need to catch up to them before Zoro loses his way and Sanji kills him from annoyance", declares Usopp with a laugh.He seized Umekui's hands and ran after them. Luffy smiles broader and laughs heartily above Umekui's shoulders, letting the entire world hear him."Hey, wait for us, guys!" yells Chopper from Nami's shoulders, the latter running after them with Vivi.The only response was the colorful laugh of his three nakamas running across the sand.("Emotions are a strange thing, you find yourself still until you are burning").Her voice refuses to leave his head.It echoes inside his head like a mantra (as if she was reminding him of his true nature. Reminding him that he could never alter who he is from his lineage and past -and Ace hates it.Hate it as much as Marshall's horrible laugh, which is mocking him for disappointing Teacth. (He is dead, as are all of Ace's ghosts.-failing them down like he is failing down his own forfeited promise of a better future for himself-)).The oppressive sun of the desert creeps over his cells, charring up his entire body and distorting his eyesight like a hurricane inside his brain (sometimes he wonders why he couldn't burn to ashes those dreadful thoughts that are plaguing him alive--burning them to feel the familiar feeling of ashes under his fingertips).All he could find in the desert were abandoned towns full of corpses (the taste of the ashes on his tongue after burning them made his stomach flop over).Marshall is nowhere to be seen, nor is anyone who could provide him with information about them.Nothing remains in this place (And Ace wonders if the princess in Luffy's crew is genuinely brave enough to continue fighting for a homeland that appears to root and grieve in the dust of a kingdom once adored and protected--because someone like Ace isn't faithful enough to fight for his own worth).The massive shadow of a ship appears in his view. He blinks three times to make sure that the heat isn't causing him to imagine a ridiculous vision of a ship sailing over the sand of a desert in nowhere."There's a freaking ship roaming the desert. I have not gone mad," he murmurs to himself.Perhaps Blackbeard is there? Or someone who might know him?! Ace's blood boils in his veins, stronger than the scorching weather around him.As his devil fruit restores his senses, fire shoots out of his feet, and Ace leaps relentlessly high into the sky in the direction of the ship. The wind whips his black robe around him.Ace descends on the massive ship's deck with the swift elegance of a hawk. The scene that greets him makes his mouth drop, and he smirks at the sight of his brother pouting, and crossing his arms beside his crew, minus a specific first mate and princess."What did you do again, troublesome Luffy?" Ace's voice breaks into the deck.Luffy's warm brown eyes detect him like a north star at the sound of his lips, then brighten up and smile broadly."Shi shi shi Ace! I missed you!" Luffy shouts, wrapping his arms around Ace's neck.Ace snickers, "We saw each other yesterday, silly Luffy!" Luffy jumps from Ace's arms to face him with a sheepish smile. Ace chuckles, "We saw each other yesterday, silly Luffy!"Luffy leaps from Ace's arms and greets him with a sheepish look."Nami and Vivi, along with Matsuge, were kidnapped so that the latter may be eaten by barber pirates, and when I saw them on this ship, I ran in out of hunger to eat alongside them. But, as I always do when I land, I smash things, so I shattered their mast, preventing them from departing. So Vivi and Ume went with a woman and a man to a certain oasis to bring wood so they may repair the damage," Luffy crosses his arms and frowns even more. "I wanted to join them, but Ume scolded me. She gave me some meat and instructed me to wait here like a good boy because danger follows me wherever I go. Also, Vivi stated that she did not have the time to fix all of the damage that I made when she had a home to return to, so they left without me!"Ace nods intently to his younger brother's words."Who exactly went with your nakamas?" Ace asks the pretty navigator (because truly, someone like Luffy, who doesn't even know where his right and left hands are, could never recall the names of some nameless pirates).The ginger-haired blinks at his query, then thinks for a moment before responding."A pretty woman named Rasa and a man named Zaba. They have been gone for an hour; they wouldn't take any longer before returning bac-"Nami's voice is cut short by an enormous detonation away from them.In an instant, their first mate appears on the deck, carrying Vivi on one shoulder and a passed out Rasa on the other.Barbarossa, captain of the Barbary Pirates, jumps from his perch upon seeing a bruised Rasa."What the hell is going on?!"Ace stares with stupefied eyes as Umekui delicately places the princess on her feet and grabs Rasa's hair harshly. With a quick movement, she draws her handgun and points it at Rasa's head, who is waking up from Umekui's hand tugging her hair."Tell me, Barbarossa, is this how you treat people who want to aid you? Sending treacherous assassins to murder the Princess of Alabasta and myself? "Umekui tsks as the sand pirates draw their weapons and glare at her."Zoro, do you remember the secret bombs of Orange town?"Zoro peers at her curiously, remembering the bombs she unexpectedly used against Buggy the ugly clown, and his minions.She ruffles her black robes, and some lemons fall out."How about another show?" she exclaims, kicking one lemon into the sky.When it reaches the sky, it explodes loudly, causing the sky to sway."Now Barbarossa, do you want your ship to end in ruins?" Umekui smirks, her crimson eyes dangerously flashing at the pirate leader."Rasa! Explain yourself!" Barbarossa demands, his forehead wet from terror."A mysterious woman with blue eyes and short dark hair approached me yesterday noon," Rasa recounts, her voice shaking. Umekui's firm grip on her body caused her to squirm.Ace observed how Vivi and Umekui's eyes widened once she described the mysterious woman."She promised that the kingdom will prosper again," Rasa whispers, her throat scratchy as tears stream down her cheeks. "She promised that Melias would return if I brought her the princess' head and a crimson-eyed, dark-haired woman's head! She promised to restore my home to the way everyone knew it!"She lied! Miss All Sunday has lied to you! Her and Crocodile are the ones that brought treachery and destruction to our kingdom! They are the ones who destroyed our homes!" Vivi shouts, her eyes bulging with tears."Liar!" Rasa growls, shaking Umekui off hold as she glares at the princess. "Do you even know what happened to Melias? To my home! You know nothing! You are only a pathetic spoiled princess who could never imagine the despair of witnessing your home collapse into ruins!"Rasa's throat trembles from the heavy breathing and blurred tears that burn her eyes (and she wonders if it will ever stop. Will this agony, this grief for people, and a home that has been reduced to ruins and ashes because of the king and his entire family would end? Never, whispers a voice. Because she failed, she failed to shed the blood of those who would free her soul and home!)Rasa's hard grip on her hair releases, and she is thrown to the ground. She looks up at the first mate, and her eyes widen as the pirate woman throws her handgun on her lap."Umekui!" cries out Chopper."Have you gone mad, woman? What the hell?!" curses Zoro.Ace stands quietly, staring at Umekui.Vivi looks up from her trembling feet, stunned, at Umekui, who stands high in front of Rasa."Do it," Umekui urges calmly, disregarding her astonished nakamas and Luffy's unusual silence. "Do it, murder me, shed my blood, and deliver my head to this woman who promised you your home."Rasa grabs for the handgun with shaking hands. Glares straight at Umekui and points it at her.She doesn't blink an eye when the green-haired man draws his katanas and the long nose aims his pistol."Do you think I am afraid of you?" That I won't do it? I've seen so many corpses that your imagination couldn't possibly conjure! Corpses crumbling to dust! Corpses hanging out! Men, women, children, even newborns have not been spared from the madness of this wicked bloodline!" roars Rasa, aiming the gun at Vivi and then Umekui.Umekui smiles bitterly and gazes pitifully at the wailing woman."And?" asks coolly Umekui not batting an eye as Rasa flinches at her words."What?" Rasa asks in disbelief her voice raspy."And?" Umekui repeats. "What will happen next? You kill us both, deliver our heads, and then what? A happily ever after? Will the help of your saviors bring the dead back? Your home will be back to new? Will the war conclude and the dead return to life?" Umekui lets out a meaningless, empty laugh. "You're such a poor naive woman, Rasa. Crocodile is no god, no savior, and no deity. He's just a stupid human being who is driven by avarice and power."The first mate takes a step forward Rasa, who growls and points the gun straight."Listen, you foolish woman. Justice could never be brought by the ones above you. Justice will never resurrect the dead! The dead are dead, and there is no turning back." Umekui grumbles in a low, painful tone.Rasa's chest shakes with cries, but the weapon remains pointed. Her bleeding forehead caused her to shake from dizziness, but she remained, fueled by fury and grief."Your home will remain in the ruins already gone in the history of tragedy. Justice will never bring back the home you once knew," Umekui adds, moving a step closer to the gun and Rasa."Remember well! Justice will never bring back what has been lost; you alone can do it. You alone can reclaim what has been taken from you," she whispers. "So Rasa, if you think that my blood can build back what is long gone then take it. Takes it but don’t ever grieve over your acts. Do what is right for your freedom and justice."The handgun in Rasa's grasp shudders.(There was a song that Rasa used to hear in her childhood hometown. A song about freedom and love that an old man in her village always sings. Night and day, he would go through the streets of her village, singing aloud and rocking them to sleep.But. The old man is dead; the village had been ravaged by lack of rainfall and armed conflict, leaving no children to sing them to sleep.
Yet. Rasa is still there. Rasa is still alive, with the old melody humming in her heart and the dream of a village conveyed in the laughter and smiles of children.And. it feels so wrong to her. So wrong to spill blood from these two women in the hope that the old man and his song would return, the village would be reassembled, and the children would be brought to life, running and laughing (but they are gone, and she has to accept it!)

But. Rasa feels lost and alone on her path through mourning. What could she ever do to forget this sorrow mocking her and reminding her every day and night of the family, friends, and hometown she could never save-

And-)
"Rasa," her captain's strangely calm voice speaks. "I always knew you were drowning in your pain, and I sincerely apologize. I've always known that I could never replace your parents, village, or home, but I've always considered myself like a father to you since the moment you grabbed my hand and joined my crew. We, the barber pirates, are your family and home, and we will always welcome you back regardless of what you have done or will do!""Hell yeah!" "Yeah, Rasa you are our dear sister!""We love you! We are family!" Shouts and devoted cries resonated throughout the deck, shouting and chanting her name with warmth and love.Her shoulders tremble so violently that she can't stand and falls to her knees, her head shaking from her loud sobbing. Someone rushes to kneel by her, cradling her shoulders with soft hands.When she hears quiet cries, she lifts her face from her palms and peers wide-eyed at the blue-haired princess on her knees in front of her."Why are you crying?" Rasa requests in a trembling voice."Because you have been suffering for so long," Vivi confesses through tears. "And i'am sorry, so sorry that so many innocents, families, and villages have to pay for Crocodile greed against my family and kingdom."Vivi extends out a hand to Rasa with a broad smile, tears streaming down her cheeks.'Someone as beautiful as she is without a doubt the princess of our kingdom,' Rasa thought."Rasa, I swear to restore our kingdom. It's not the princess of this kingdom promising you that, but rather a desperate woman like you who seeks to restore peace and love in our kingdom," Vivi promises, bending before Rasa.Rasa let out a loud gasp at the gesture.Vivi lifts herself onto her knees and stands up, reaching for Rasa, standing her."You have waited so long for my father and me, Rasa?" Vivi inquires with a sweet sorrowful grin.Rasa takes a step back, her eyes wide."You remember me?" she states, her voice shaky."How could I not?" You gave me a sand sled that never fails to remind me of our vow. I know I'm a greedy princess, but Rasa, could you please wait a little longer for our first promise?" Vivi declares with a tearful grin."You truly never forget me?" Rasa claims, tears streaming down her cheeks."Through wading grass, the months will pass. You'll feel it all around. I'm here, I'm there, I'm everywhere," hums Vivi aloud the cherished song of Rasa's childhood. "So Rasa accepts my apologies and vows in the name of the heir of Alabasta Kingdom but above in the name of Vivi, the woman who like you shares the same dreams and goals!" Vivi declares her vows loudly."I accept them. So Vivi, don't break our pledge; I believe in you and our future!" Rasa exclaims, her eyes softening as she offers a hand.The princess accepts it and smiles broadly, her eyes gleaming.Pirates clap all around them as Barbarossa sniffs his tears and smiles lovingly at the two girls."Huff! For a moment, I was afraid it would end in bloodshed!" raves Usopp, his feet quivering with fear.Zoro scoffs and puts back his katanas. "Certainly not mine.""Is your first mate always.." began Ace."Reckless?" says Nami. "Stupid?" adds Zoro. "Brave?" offers Usopp."Kind?" says Chopper. "Beautiful?" adds heartily Sanji."Yeah," states and nods the nakamas in unison."Oh and Rasa?" calls out Umekui. Rasa glances to the first mate, who has picked up her handgun."The hell-" states Rasa, staring at Umekui, the latter directing the gun at her own head.She clicks on the gun, but nothing comes out, and Umekui chuckles loudly at the woman's terrified expression."I'm not stupid enough to give you a loaded gun when you could've harmed one of my nakamas or the princess with it," Umekui smirks, tucking the weapon under her black robe."You are such a crazy woman," Rasa murmurs. Then she smirks and stretches her hand toward the first mate."However, I admire women like you. I am grateful to meet you, Umekui, first mate of the straw hat pirates!"Umekui takes Rasa's hand and shakes it with a smile.The weightless strange body of her captain sets on her back, arms cradling her shoulders, and Luffy's forehead slams into the back of her head."What did I tell you about doing stupid dangerous things, Ume!" scolds loudly Luffy. "The gun was empty!" tells Umekui.Luffy bangs his forehead against hers again."I do not care! It was dumb, Ume!""If you didn't rush to the ship for food then nothing like that could have happened," mutters Umekui."I have the right to be stupid, but not you, Ume!" grumbles Luffy."Hai Hai! Okay, my captain," Umekui says, stretching out a hand to pat his head."I'm glad you're okay, Ume!" Luffy adds warmly, cuddling into the side of her neck."We promised each other, right? We will always find each other, no matter what," Umekui declares, her eyes softening.('You mean everything to me, Luffy.'
'You are everything to me, Ume.')
"Oh. You're here, Ace," Umekui says, gazing at the gorgeous boy in front of her."Tell me, Umekui?" demands Ace."You like to ask a lot of questions, Ace," Umekui comments. "You aren't Luffy's brother for nothing.""Tell me, Umekui. What are you willing to do for your loved ones? What are you willing to do for Luffy?" Ace requests delicately, his curls tickling his face from the heat breeze.He looks so beautiful under the sun, remarks Umekui (like a beautiful fallen angel descending from the millions of suns)."The answer is obvious, isn't it?" Umekui speaks so gently that she fears her phrase will vanish (afraid that her words have not captured her unique feelings and devotion towards her nakamas).She glances at her joyful nakamas and captain partying with Rasa and the barber pirates (the poor zaba joined them an hour later with a broken arm and a confused mind, and Rasa's tears and excuses to make him forget her foolish mistakes).She blinks up at the sun and peers into Ace's deep ebony eyes.
("What are you willing to do for someone you love, Dazai?" Chuuya says, staring absently at dawn from the rooftop."To kil-"Chuuya stopped her before she could continue her sentence."Don't tell me something so cliche as killing, because murder can never be an act of love from us. Murder and blood are our essence, after all," Chuuya scoffs."Then obviously, to di-"

"Ugh. Don't say something about dying for them. You alone desire to die above everything else. Ozika-chan once told me that love is selfless," declares Chuuya, peering at Dazai from his perch.The latter falls into a state of silence that Chuuya finds unsettling."Then. To live," Dazai murmurs lightly (fearing that once she says it out loud, she may put her faith in it and do something foolish like that).Chuuya's lips form a wide smile as he fixes his gaze on the black short-haired girl next to him.'Then would you live for me, Dazai?')
"For my loved ones, I'am willing to live, Ace."

"Memories don’t always soften with time, some grow edges like knives."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"TELL ME WHERE TO PUT THE ANGER?!"

"According to legend," Odasaku murmurs quietly, his voice like a soft breeze in the cold night air, "each star in the sky is a soul that has fallen, never truly gone, but reborn. The dead aren’t forgotten—they live on in the stars, burning, watching over the ones they loved."

The two of them sit side by side on the bench, gazing up at the endless expanse of stars. The night is silent and heavy, a weighty stillness that fills the void between them. Each star in the sky seems distant, unreachable—much like the memories of those they have lost. The world feels impossibly far away from this place, a place where time seems suspended and all that remains is the overwhelming ache of grief, lingering like the ghosts of the dead themselves.

Dazai’s ruby eyes are hidden in shadow, her gaze lost in the night sky. Her heart is somewhere far from here, somewhere trapped between worlds, where sorrow and regret never fade.

“Do you believe in that, Oda?” she asks, her voice barely a whisper, almost drowned in the silence of the night.

Odasaku’s eyes drift slowly over the heavens, and he exhales, a faint smile playing on his lips. “Of course. Why not?” His voice is calm, steady, yet there’s an undercurrent of something deeper. "I like to think that when I’m gone, I’ll be reborn as a star. I’ll be watching over you, making sure you’re alright."

Dazai doesn’t turn to look at him immediately, but her breath catches in her chest. She can feel the rawness of his words, the weight of them hanging in the air between them, but all she can do is stare at the stars—because for a fleeting moment, she can’t help but want to believe.

"You are not going to die," she says, a softness in her tone that betrays the fear inside her. She knows too well how fleeting life is, and she cannot bear the thought of losing him.

“Everyone dies, Dazai.” Oda’s voice is matter-of-fact, detached. “Some die tragically, some in their sleep, others from illness. That's life. Everything has an end. Even stars burn out.”

Dazai’s heart feels like it stops. The words sting with their truth, and something inside her breaks, a deep, aching emptiness she cannot quiet. Why can’t she have her own end? Why does it feel like the world is conspiring to make her live forever in this torment?

But she doesn’t voice it. Instead, she stays silent, her eyes tracing the constellations that twinkle above them, so beautiful and so unreachable.

“Then what does the legend say about the devourer of stars, Oda?” she asks, her voice flat, distant—almost as if she’s asking a question that doesn't truly matter to her.

Odasaku goes still beside her, his cigarette smoke curling into the air, drifting into the night. His gaze turns toward her with an edge of concern. “Where did you hear this name?” His voice is softer now, as if he can sense the shift in her mood.

Dazai doesn’t meet his eyes; instead, she takes a long pull from the whiskey bottle she’s holding, her grip tightening. She feels the cold burn of the alcohol in her throat, but it does little to dull the ache inside her chest. "Dream-eater. Devourer of stars. Devourer of souls." Her voice is bitter, like poison. "Aren’t they all the same thing?"

Odasaku’s golden eyes widen in confusion and concern, but before he can say anything, Dazai cuts him off with a quiet, almost hollow laugh.

"Umekui," she says, her lips barely moving as if the name alone is enough to drain her of energy. “That’s my name. The dream-eater. The curse of my century. Doomed to feast on the dreams and souls of others... always hungry, never full.”

Her laugh is empty, a sound without joy. Her shoulders tremble, not from the cold, but from something deeper, something colder still—the weight of a life that she has never chosen for herself. She doesn’t even know how to be anything other than cursed.

“Umekui Dazai. The cursed one." Her voice cracks as she speaks, and she lets herself blink up at the sky, her empty smile remains fixed in place. "So tell me, Odasaku, what does legend say about a girl like me? A girl abandoned by the gods, marked for treachery and fate?”

A single tear falls from her Odasaku's eyes, as cold as the rest of the world, but it never reaches the ground. It is as though the earth itself has absorbed their sorrow, swallowing it whole.

Odasaku stares at her, his heart breaking with every word she says, his golden eyes filled with tears and a longing to undo the pain that has been etched into her soul.

"Dazai," he whispers her name with a quiet reverence, his hands trembling as he reaches out. He gently cradles her face in his warm hands, pulling her closer, the heat of his skin a sharp contrast to the chill in her body. His forehead rests against hers in an almost desperate gesture, as if trying to transfer his warmth into her cold, broken soul.

"You will be free, Dazai," he promises, his voice low and full of something that might be hope, though it feels fragile, like the stars themselves. "At any cost. I promise you that."

('You'll seek him down, and you'll both burn in the furnace of fate.')

For a moment, the world fades away. It’s just the two of them, bound by grief, by a shared sorrow that no one else can understand. And though they both carry the weight of the past, in this moment, there is a flicker of something more. Maybe it’s not hope, maybe it’s just the raw, unyielding need to keep going. But whatever it is, it is a promise they make to each other in the silence of the night.

And as the cold wind howls around them, it’s as if the stars themselves weep in sympathy.
"Are you feeling warm now, Ume?" Luffy’s voice is as bright as the stars above, his forehead pressed gently against hers, his laughter laced with the kind of carelessness only he could muster in such biting cold.Umekui blinks up at him, the starlight reflecting in her crimson eyes as she gazes into his—round and golden, so full of life it almost hurts.And he peers back at her, unwavering. Not even a flicker of hesitation. Not the slightest grimace at the sight of her accursed red eyes, the same eyes that had made countless others flinch and turn away. Her nakamas never recoiled, never looked at her with pity or disdain.“You’re the one who’s cold, my captain,” she whispers, her arms encircling his waist, pulling his shivering body closer.His grin grows impossibly wide, his joy infectious, his forehead brushing hers tenderly.The sand beneath her feels as cold as death, a cruel reminder of what she’s carried in her chest all these years. She wonders how Alabasta, a land so blisteringly hot by day, could feel like this at night. But then, perhaps she’d always known. Perhaps she just didn’t want to remember how she learned.The memories are sharp, the whispers of knowledge in her bloodline—a curse more than a gift, handed down through sins she didn’t commit but couldn’t escape."It’s so colddd!" Usopp cries, breaking the quiet.Without hesitation, Luffy stretches a hand to grab his robe and hurls him toward their little corner. Usopp crashes into the tangle of limbs, his body instantly enveloped in the warmth of their embrace.Against her shoulder, Umekui feels Usopp’s heartbeat, quick but steady. His arms wrap snugly around her and Luffy, his brown eyes peering up at them with a kind of quiet relief.“It’s warmer here, right?” Luffy says, his voice radiant.Usopp nods, burying himself further into the cocoon of bodies.A soft sigh escapes her lips, and Umekui closes her eyes, summoning the fire that once coursed through Kana’s blood. She feels the familiar ache bloom in her chest, a sharp, searing pain that pierces her very soul. But she pushes through it. She always does—for them.For her nakamas.Her warmth spreads, not just from the fire she wields but from something deeper. Something Kana once called hope.
"My flames were forged to destroy," Kana had once whispered, her voice trembling with sorrow. "He used them to conquer, to spill blood, to burn everything to ashes in his name. And I— I let him."
Kana’s tearful amethyst eyes had met Dazai’s then, their gaze locked across a fire that burned low, casting shadows as heavy as their hearts."But now…" Kana’s hands, delicate but calloused, drifted to her swollen belly. Her voice softened, tinged with both despair and fragile determination. "For the life growing within me, I will wield my flames differently. Not for chaos, not for vengeance—but to give warmth. To light a path in the dark. To love."That memory—faint and almost forgotten—settles over Umekui like a ghost. The warmth she gives isn’t for herself. It never was.Her lips curl into a soft, almost imperceptible smile as Usopp sighs blissfully into her hold. Luffy’s unruly curls tickle her nose, and she leans into him, savoring his presence as if it were the only thing tethering her to the world.The hunger, though—it lingers. A hunger she doesn’t dare name, one that claws at her chest. The need to feel. To be. To press against the heartbeat of someone alive and whole, someone untouched by the shadows that have claimed her.“Hey, guys, make room!” Nami’s voice lilts, sweet and teasing as she wriggles between Usopp and Umekui.Usopp lets out a half-hearted grumble, but his arms instinctively tighten around the group. He buries his face in Luffy’s shoulder, seeking comfort from the ever-present tide of anxiety that never truly leaves him.Nami nestles against Umekui, her short ginger hair brushing against scarred hands as Umekui strokes it absently.“You’re right,” Nami murmurs, her voice as soft as the night air. “It’s warmer here.”The words tug at something deep inside Umekui. Nami’s head rests against her ribs, and for a fleeting moment, she feels whole.But the ache returns.(The gnawing reminder that she doesn’t deserve this.Yet isn't this a fitting punishment for a monster like her? To want, crave and need someone so much- hold it in her arms and know beyond a doubt that she will never deserve them. Umekui Dazai could never be worthy of the people she worshipped as nakamas.)Zoro’s steady footsteps crunch against the sand, his expression unreadable as he approaches. In his arms, Chopper clings tightly, his eyes wide and starry as he takes in the scene before him. Something warm flickers in the little reindeer’s chest, something so pure it aches.Zoro settles beside Umekui without a word, letting Chopper slide onto her lap. His muscular frame leans against hers, a silent but steadfast presence."I was unaware that you had a tender spot within your tough heart," an gentle voice murmurs near his ear.His heart flutters, but Zoro fights it with a grumble, yet he can't help but smirk softly. He turns his head slightly, brushes his lips against the corners of her neck and earlobe, and whispers back in a hushed whisper.“I bear a heart for you, and you alone.”Her breath catches.His steel-gray eyes meet her crimson ones, unwavering. His hand brushes against hers, rough and strong, grounding her in ways words never could.Umekui’s throat tightens as the words hang heavy in the air.Sanji’s steps are light but purposeful as he approaches the group. He pauses just behind them, his azure eyes softening as they take in the tangled mess of his nakamas, their limbs intertwined like vines seeking the warmth they’d otherwise never admit to needing.His gaze lingers on Umekui for a moment, noting the serene yet faraway look in her crimson eyes as she cradles Chopper and strokes Nami’s hair. There’s something so achingly fragile about her in this moment, a quiet strength masking a depth of sorrow he knows all too well.Without a word, Sanji drapes a thick, warm blanket over Luffy, Umekui, and Zoro, the corners stretching just enough to cover Usopp’s legs. The gesture is small, almost casual, but the care behind it radiates like the fire crackling beside them.Settling behind Umekui, Sanji lowers himself into the sand. His broad shoulders press against hers, firm yet gentle, as though he’s offering himself as an anchor for her to lean on. When her weight shifts back into him, his lips curl into a faint smile, and his hand reaches out to find hers.Her scarred fingers tremble slightly as he intertwines them with his own. His grip is warm, steady, as though he’s silently telling her: I’m here. You don’t have to carry it all alone.“You’re freezing, love,” he murmurs softly, his voice barely above a whisper. It’s the kind of tone that feels like it was meant just for her, a fleeting piece of his infinite kindness.For a moment, Umekui doesn’t respond. Her crimson eyes are fixed on the stars, her throat tight with the weight of everything she can never say. She wants to tell him she doesn’t deserve his gentleness, that his warmth feels like a blessing she’s too broken to accept. But instead, she lets his words settle over her like the blanket he laid across their shoulders—comforting, quiet, necessary.Sanji doesn’t push. He never does.Instead, he lets his presence speak for him, his fingers brushing lightly over hers, tracing invisible paths of reassurance. The sand beneath them feels less cold now, as if his warmth is spreading through her in waves, melting the frost that always lingers in her chest.Behind her, Sanji tilts his head back, closing his eyes as he exhales slowly. In the quiet of the night, his mind drifts to a place he rarely allows himself to go—a field of roses, vivid and alive, their fragrance mingling with the sound of laughter.He sees her there, the woman he lost. Blonde hair streaming in the wind, blue eyes bright with joy. And beside her, a little boy with golden curls, his tiny arms outstretched as he runs through the flowers).Sanji swallows hard, pushing the memory back into the depths of his heart where it belongs. He opens his eyes, grounding himself in the present, in the warmth of Umekui’s hand in his, in the quiet hum of their nakamas’ laughter and sighs around the fire.Umekui shifts slightly, feeling the steady rise and fall of Sanji’s chest against her back. His quiet strength feels like a balm, soothing the jagged edges of her soul.“You’re too kind, Sanji,” she whispers finally, her voice barely audible.His lips curve into a grin, the playful warmth returning to his tone. “I can’t help it, sweetheart. It’s my curse.”Despite herself, a soft laugh escapes her, and she feels a pang of something dangerously close to longing.Sanji leans forward just enough to rest his chin lightly against her shoulder, his blond hair brushing against her neck. “You deserve this, Ume,” he says, his voice low and sure. “All of it. All of us.”Her breath catches. The words are simple, but they unravel something inside her, something tightly wound and fragile.Her eyes flicker to Luffy, whose head rests peacefully on her shoulder, to Usopp, whose arms are wrapped protectively around them all, to Nami, whose soft breaths tickle her neck, to Zoro, whose steel-gray gaze meets hers with unwavering trust.And finally, to Sanji, whose hand squeezes hers just enough to remind her he’s still there.For a moment, the ache in her chest eases.For a moment, she lets herself believe.-And oh god, how she doesn’t want to ruin this-them.Above them, the stars glimmer, but her gaze catches on a familiar figure—leaning against a rock, his flames brushing his fallen asleep face.Portgas D. Ace.A name that stirs a thousand emotions at once: envy, longing, resentment.She envies the love Luffy holds for him, a love so radiant it could make the entire world bow. She envies the freckles dotting his face, like constellations that Luffy counted in wonder and became his favorite number. She envies his time with Luffy—the years spent side by side, dreaming, fighting, living as brothers.But she doesn’t hate him.She can’t.She couldn’t; since Umekui knows no better. Because she knows nothing of the weight Ace carries. Nothing of the ghosts that haunt him, the wounds that fester unseen. And despite his sharp words and his coldness toward her, Umekui understands him.
Perhaps too well.
Her jealousy twists into something else entirely. A longing not to take Ace’s place, but to exist beside him in the world Luffy envisions—a world where they’re all free to love, to dream, to hope.And yet, she feels the cold creeping back in.For tonight, she lets herself drown in the warmth of her nakamas. In their quiet, steadfast devotion.For tonight, that’s enough.From her spot beneath the jagged shadow of a crumbling building, Umekui’s crimson eyes stay fixed on her nakama. They stand unwavering before the broken walls of Ido’s city, their presence casting long, defiant shadows in the flickering torchlight.The men facing them, self-proclaimed rebels, falter beneath the weight of Vivi’s piercing gaze. Sweat glistens on their foreheads, betraying their crumbling resolve.“They say you are the rebels of Alabasta,” Vivi declares, her voice steady, echoing with royal command.Her outstretched hand signals the nakama to advance.Nami lifts the bow Umekui had crafted for her, its arrowhead glinting as it points toward a quivering black-haired man. Beside her, Usopp levels his pistol, his determined stance a contradiction to the nervous tremble in his shoulders.Zoro’s grin is sharp as his blade, his katana glinting under the flickering light as the rebels visibly quake under his glare.And then there’s Luffy. A fist crashes into the wall beside him, the force reducing stone to dust.Ace, leaning casually against the building beside Umekui, watches the scene unfold with an amused glint in his dark eyes. He shifts slightly, tilting his head toward her.“Why didn’t you stand with them?” he asks, his voice low and teasing.Umekui doesn’t move. Her gaze lingers on the nakama. Her heart aches to join them but remains chained by her past. Her voice is flat when she finally speaks.“I only take orders from my captain. Not a princess.”Ace chuckles softly, but his smile fades when he notices the distant look in her eyes, the way her shoulders tense as though bracing against an invisible weight.“I wonder,” he muses, “where your hatred for royals comes from.”His words slice through her like a blade, unearthing memories she’s fought to bury.
(“Hold her still!” a man’s voice commands, sharp and cruel.Her wrists are bound, her body rigid in defiance, but the stench of burning flesh is overwhelming.It’s her own.Her screams echo in the cavernous room, but no one comes to save her. The hands that grip her are unyielding, tainted with greed and lust for power.It burns, it burns, it burns. Oh god, someone save me.The scent of her seared skin fills the air as tears blur her vision. She can’t breathe. She’s choking. Dying. And somewhere deep inside, a voice whispers: You deserve this.)
Her hand flies to her neck, clawing at the bandages that cover scars she can never erase. The pressure tightens, phantom hands squeezing, stealing air. Her chest rises and falls in shallow gasps as the memories claw at her insides.“Hey, are you okay?”Ace’s voice anchors her back to the present, but it sounds distant, muffled beneath the cacophony in her mind.“Yes.” Her voice is colder than she intends, brittle and sharp. She forces her trembling hand to drop, though her pulse thrums in her ears.Her crimson eyes meet Ace’s. He stares at her, curious and concerned, but there’s something else in his gaze—a flicker of anger, of pain buried just as deep as hers.Ace had learned to recognize it in others, the familiar shadow of grief and fury. It’s the same thing he saw in the broken mirror of his own reflection as a child, his knuckles bloodied from fights he started but never finished. Back then, rage was his only weapon. Rage against the world that loathed him before it even knew him.
("Do you know what they called me today?”Ace’s tiny fists clenched at his sides, his young face flushed with humiliation.“They said I don’t deserve to live.” His voice cracked as he stared up at Dadan, his freckled cheeks streaked with tears.She had no words to comfort him. She never did (or she was too lost in her sadness for him to find the right words?). So he learned to wipe his own tears, to stand a little straighter, to spit a little harder at the world.)
“Hatred rots inside all of us, Ace,” Umekui says softly. “Some of us are just too weak to let it consume us.”He frowns, his jaw tightening. “Are you calling yourself weak?”Her lips curve into a bitter smile. “Not just me. You too.”( She already misses her nap on the deck with Zoro and Luffy, her dances with Nami, her inventions with Usopp, and drinking and smocking times with Sanji-because at those moments she feels less dead, less angry at the world than she is ever day.)The words strike him like a blow, and he takes an involuntary step back, his hands balling into fists. “I’m not weak!”But his voice trembles.She doesn’t flinch, her gaze steady and unyielding. “Where there’s anger and hatred, there’s weakness. Even in you, Portgas D. Ace.”Ace’s chest heaves, and his glare sharpens. “What do you know about anger?”
What does she know?
(Anger is a blazing inferno, devouring everything in its path. It’s the sight of Odasaku’s lifeless body in her arms, his blood soaking her hands as flames consume the home they’d built together.It’s Kana’s scream, raw and guttural, as betrayal rips through her heart like a dagger.It’s Chuuya’s shattered fists pounding against stone, his sobs swallowed by the void of grief.)Her voice is quiet and steady. “I know too much. Too much for someone to bear.”Ace looks away, his gaze distant, his shoulders slumping as if under the weight of her words.“And you?” she asks, her voice softer now. “Why do you carry so much anger, Ace? Why does hatred fester in your heart?”His eyes widen, and for a moment, the mask he wears so carefully slips. His hands unclench, trembling slightly. He offers her a sad smile that makes her tired eyes ache and ponders over the sky blue. After a few seconds, he meets her gaze and says softly ( softness looks better on him, she thinks. it makes his freckles less sharpened as if they were ready to cut hands- it makes him look younger and not much more like a child who was forced to grow from the cruelty of the world). “No one’s ever asked me that,” he admits, his voice barely audible.
(“Do you hate your father, Ace?”The question came from nowhere, spoken softly by a boy too wise for his years.Ace didn’t answer at first. His fists were clenched, his nails digging into his palms.“I don’t hate him,” he lied. But the truth was raw and gnawing inside him. He hated the father who gave him life. He hated himself for being born from his blood. He hated the world for knowing his name before he could even speak it.)
“From the moment I can remember, anger was all I had. It gave me strength when I didn’t think I had any. It got me through the nights when I didn’t think I’d wake up again.” He swallows hard. “How can I let go of it? When I know the blood in my veins comes from someone who destroyed everything he touched? When that blood is the reason people want me dead?”(Ace knows too much of the blood that runs in his veins to not be angry about it. This knowledge makes the rage fuel so much inside his heart that he knows he could never find peace.)The vulnerability in his voice is like a knife twisting in her chest.She looks at him, really looks at him, and sees not the fierce pirate or the cocky older brother, but a child—a boy searching desperately for something to cling to in a world that keeps pushing him away-and wonders whose blood inside him made hatred and anger grow the child into this angry man in front of her. "I think if you are this horrible that you think of yourself, then you would have never cared enough to see good in someone. Yet you have hope for Luffy and Whitebeard, you see good in them-" her smile turns into something soft and tender, as you would offer for a grieving child. "Maybe someday you will bear this hope and goodness for yourself as well, Portgas D. Ace. "He stares at her, the words sinking in, and a faint, hesitant smile tugs at his lips.  He glances fondly at his brother laughing with the fake rebels, before catching the red eyes of Umekui. "Maybe you're right," Ace murmurs, his voice unusually soft, almost tender, as though confessing something he had never dared to say aloud. His wide smile returns, dazzling and unguarded, like the sun piercing through a storm. "With Luffy and my crew, I feel less angry. Whitebeard accepted me, loved me—not even batting an eye at how horrible I was with him. Luffy kept chasing me even when I hit his hands away, rejecting him over and over."His voice falters, but his smile doesn’t fade. It only grows brighter, blindingly so, as though trying to banish shadows too deep to reach."How could I not love them? How could I not have hope in them?"Umekui’s crimson eyes flicker with something unspoken, her fingers twitching as though caught between reaching out and retreating. She offers him a small smile, but her heart tightens painfully. His brilliance, his hope—it gnaws at her pride, a gnawing jealousy she’s too proud to admit. Instead, she turns back to the scene before her, unable to keep her eyes away from her nakama for too long.Her heart aches, thundering against the emptiness she’s carried for so long.She wants to tell Ace to hold on to this love and hope, to protect it with all his might. The world is cruel, she knows it too well, and it would not hesitate to rip it from him if it ever dared to hear that Ace had the audacity to love.She wants to tell him to cherish every fleeting moment with his crew, with Luffy, because he is lucky. So lucky to be loved, to love freely, in a world where both love and freedom come at an unbearable price.But how could she say these things, when her own hands tremble with the weight of her losses? How could she admit that she envies him, envies the simplicity of his devotion, when she is damned by her grief?(Damned by the losses she couldn’t prevent.Damned to crumble under the weight of destruction and death.Damned to one day lose Luffy and her crew, her trembling hands unable to hold them back from the abyss she knows too well.No one could love her, she thinks bitterly—not in the ruins she carries in her heart, not in the madness and darkness that devours her piece by piece.)"If you decide to chase the traitor of your crew, you’ll die, Ace," she says at last, her voice low, measured, trembling at its edges. "Don’t be stupid and lose everything to the cruel hands of death. You have a crew to return to. You have a brother to love."Her head tilts slightly, her gaze meeting his wide, dark eyes."I don’t care if you hate me—the entire world already does," she continues, her voice like ice cracking beneath weight. "But there’s one thing I do care about: Luffy, and my crew. Marshal D. Teach—"Her words are cut short as Ace lunges forward, grabbing her by the robe and pulling her forward with a desperate force. His face is inches from hers, his eyes wild, his expression twisting with something sharp and uncontrollable."What do you know about Marshal D. Teach?" he snarls, his voice trembling with fury and something deeper—something raw and desperate.For a moment, she sees it—the vulnerability he so carefully buries beneath his fiery rage. The shaking in his hands betrays him, as does the crack in his voice."I was stupid not to ask you sooner," he growls. "Of course someone like Dazai would know something about a criminal like Teach!"Then, his face changes, collapsing into something fragile and heart-wrenching. His voice drops, almost breaking."Please, Umekui. For my fallen comrades. For the next victims of Marshal D. Teach—I need answers."Reluctantly, she reaches out, her cold hand resting over his shaking one."I’m sorry," she whispers. "I don’t know this man. But what I do know is that it’s reckless—stupid—to chase a dangerous rogue pirate alone. Your dead comrade wouldn’t have wished for this, Ace."His grip tightens, his glare burning with anger and grief."You don’t know Thatch!" he spits."But I know he loves you," she replies, her voice steady despite the storm brewing in his. "More than you think, Ace. He was your nakama. And if there’s one thing Luffy taught me, it’s that nothing—nothing—is more precious or important than nakama."Her cold hands move to his face, cradling his burning cheeks, forcing him to meet her scarlet eyes."I understand your anger. I see your hatred, Ace. But nothing good comes from revenge. Only grief and desolation. You’re the precious older brother of my dear captain. Don’t abandon Luffy to chase a man who will bring you nothing but more hatred and pain."Ace’s breath shudders, his eyes closing against the warmth in hers."I can’t," he says quietly, his voice almost a whisper."What can’t you do, Ace?" she asks gently."I can’t return to Whitebeard without capturing Teach. I can’t bear to see the disappointment in his eyes. I promised—I promised to avenge Thatch. At any cost.""They don’t care about that! Whitebeard loves you, Ace! Your nakama love you, no matter what!"He steps back, her hands falling from his face as he shakes his head again. His eyes meet hers, wide and filled with regret, and his lips curl into a sad, broken smile."It’s not enough," he whispers. "Love isn’t enough if I’m not worth it."(Ace knows too well that he was never lovable. Never the sweet, good child his mother dreamed of. He was wild, selfish, cruel—tearing down others before they could tear him apart. He grew into an unlovable adult, a man who burned his enemies to ash for a single sneer.
And yet, he’s always been a fool chasing love. Like a madman lost in a labyrinth, searching for his sanity. Searching for a reason to live. Searching for worth.

Because what good is his sinful existence if it holds no value?

Perhaps, if he captured the man who took Thatch—the man who stained their family—perhaps then Ace would be worthy. Worthy of Thatch’s kindness. Worthy of Whitebeard’s fatherhood.

But deep down, Ace already knows.
Love wasn’t enough to save Sabo.It wasn’t enough to save his mother.And it won’t be enough to save him.)Ace takes a deep breath, his smile fading as he turns away, his voice barely audible over the pounding in Umekui’s chest."Maybe… one day I’ll understand why they loved me. But not yet."And with that, he leaves, and Umekui can only watch his retreating form, her heart heavy with the weight of words she couldn’t say."So you're telling me that a royal like Wapol is dead?" growled Smoker, his voice like gravel over the den den mushi.The marine at the other end gulped audibly, his hesitation clear even through the static."Y-Yes, Captain Smoker," he stammered.Smoker’s fist tightened around the receiver. His cigarette tumbled to the ground, ash scattering across the cobblestone street. His face darkened, the veins in his neck bulging."YOU FOOL!" he roared, his shout echoing across the deserted streets of Katorea. "How does a king die, and his body vanish, without a shred of explanation?! Speak!"The marine hesitated, swallowing audibly again. "After... after extensive investigation and testimonies from the people of Drum Island," he managed, "we confirmed that a woman with red eyes and black hair executed Wapol. She took his head and fled."Smoker froze, the words hanging heavy in the air. His breathing slowed, but his knuckles turned white around the receiver."And?" His voice was low, dangerous."She claimed she was on a mission from Crocodile... the former Warlord of the Sea."A flash of shock rippled through Smoker’s usually unshakeable demeanor. His mind raced, trying to connect the pieces. Crocodile? What was his angle?"Was she alone?""Yes, sir. All reports state she acted independently. No pirates, no known allies. Just her."Smoker slammed the receiver down, ending the call with a resounding clang. His fists clenched at his sides as smoke coiled ominously from his shoulders."Damn you, Dazai," he muttered through gritted teeth. His gaze flicked toward Tashigi, who was browsing a display of swords at a nearby stall.He lit another cigar, the sharp scent of tobacco grounding him as the enormity of the situation sank in. Dazai, Crocodile, Wapol’s death—it all stank of conspiracy. And now, amidst Alabasta’s rising unrest, he felt like a pawn being moved without his consent.Smoker dropped onto a bench with a heavy sigh, the worn wood creaking beneath him. Every city he and Tashigi had passed through had been a wasteland—deserted, charred, and filled with the hollow echoes of death. The chaos of Alabasta gnawed at his sense of justice.This wasn’t just negligence. It was systematic.He leaned back, exhaling a plume of smoke, only to hear the chatter of two children walking past."Did you hear?" a boy’s voice piped up. "The rebels set up camp near the north tower!"Smoker’s ears pricked. Rebels? Here in Katorea? His gaze snapped to the children."Hey, boy!"The children froze, their wide, frightened eyes locking onto his marine uniform. The girl instinctively shrank behind the boy, clutching his arm tightly.Smoker felt a pang of guilt. He despised this reaction—children shouldn’t cower at the sight of justice. He crouched down, softening his expression."Here," he said, pulling an apple from his coat and holding it out.The girl hesitated, then took it with trembling hands. Smoker watched as they devoured it in seconds, their hunger palpable. His stomach twisted.‘What in hell is happening in this kingdom?’"Are you all right?" he asked quietly, his voice losing its usual gruffness.The girl hid behind her brother again, but the boy glared at him, his small frame trembling with rage."Why do you care?" the boy spat, his voice sharp.Smoker didn’t flinch, meeting the boy’s glare evenly. "Because I’m a marine captain," he replied firmly. "It’s my job to help people like you."The boy’s eyes narrowed, his voice shaking with raw emotion. "People like us? Your kind abandoned us long ago!"The accusation cut deep, but Smoker held his ground. He didn’t try to argue or defend himself. Instead, he softened his expression further, letting the sincerity in his voice show."I’m here now," he said gently. "And I’m here to help you."The boy scoffed, crossing his arms. "You can’t do anything against a bad king."Smoker frowned. "What do you mean?"The girl hesitated, glancing nervously at her brother. "The bad king stole the rain," she whispered, her frail voice trembling. "Mother said he lied and—""Sora, stop!" the boy interrupted, grabbing her wrist."But, Shun—""Enough!"Smoker raised a hand, halting their argument. "I understand," he said. He rose to his full height and turned to leave, but stopped after a few steps."One more thing," he said, glancing back over his shoulder. "Where’s the rebel army camp?"For a moment, he thought they wouldn’t answer. Then, the boy sighed. "Near the north tower, at the city’s edge," he muttered. "But don’t think I told you because I trust you. I only answered because you fed Sora."The girl gave Smoker a shy wave as her brother dragged her away. Smoker watched them disappear into the shadows, his cigar smoldering between his fingers.‘The bad king stole the rain,’ he thought, the words gnawing at his mind.Then it hit him.The Dance Powder.His blood ran cold. The substance, outlawed for its catastrophic effects, was forbidden for a reason. It had destroyed entire nations in its wake.How could Alabasta’s king possess it? And what role did Crocodile play in this calamity? Was Dazai a pawn or a mastermind?"Tashigi!"His subordinate rushed to his side, clutching a new sword. "Captain! I’m ready!"He turned abruptly, his coat billowing behind him. "We’re going to the rebels’ camp."Her jaw dropped. "The rebels?!"Smoker ignored her incredulous tone, his steps resolute. The pieces of the puzzle were coming together, and he needed answers—now. If Dazai, Crocodile, and Alabasta’s king were all part of this tangled web, Smoker would rip it apart thread by thread.Justice demanded it.The blazing desert sun had given way to the cool of the evening, but Smoker’s frustration burned hotter than ever as he and Tashigi approached the rebel camp near the northern tower of Katorea. Smoke trailed from his cigar as his sharp eyes scanned the makeshift base—tents scattered haphazardly, their colors muted by dust and wear. The rebels moved like restless shadows, their movements marked by wariness and exhaustion.A young guard stepped forward, his spear trembling slightly in his grip as he faced the marine captain.“What’s the World Government’s dog doing here?” the guard spat, attempting bravado despite his evident fear.Smoker growled low in his throat, the insult stinging more than he cared to admit. He raised his hands in a placating gesture.“I’m not here to fight you,” he said firmly. “I’m here for answers. Answers that might help end this madness.”The guard hesitated, his eyes darting to Tashigi, who stood quietly at Smoker’s side. With a tense nod, he gestured for them to follow him deeper into the camp.Inside the largest tent, a group of rebel leaders sat around a battered wooden table, their faces etched with fatigue and suspicion. Maps of Alabasta were spread before them, marked with the positions of their forces and those of the royal army.The leader, a burly man with a scar running down his cheek, eyed Smoker coldly. “You’ve got a lot of nerve walking into our camp, marine. What do you want?”Smoker didn’t waste time. He crossed his arms, the weight of his justice hanging heavy in his voice. “I want to know why this kingdom is on the brink of collapse. I want to know why the people are dying in the streets while your armies fight over scraps. And I want to know what the hell Crocodile and Dazai have to do with it.”The rebels exchanged uneasy glances, their silence speaking volumes.“So you do know something,” Smoker pressed, his tone sharp. He slammed a fist onto the table, causing some of the rebels to flinch. “Speak up. I don’t have time for games.”The leader leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing. “Why should we trust you? Marines only care about protecting the World Government’s interests. They’ve turned a blind eye to our suffering for years.”Smoker met his gaze unflinchingly. “I’m not like the rest of them. I serve justice—not the corrupt whims of the World Government. If I turned my back on the people of this kingdom, I’d be no better than the criminals I hunt.”The leader studied him for a long moment, then sighed, gesturing for the others to relax. “Fine. But if you’re lying, marine, you’ll pay for it with your life.”Smoker nodded curtly, his cigar glowing as he took a long drag. “Start talking.”The leader leaned forward, his voice low. “This war didn’t start because of the people. It started because of King Cobra’s downfall.”“Cobra?” Smoker frowned. “The king of Alabasta?”“Yes. He’s been accused of hoarding resources—water, food, you name it. But the truth is, someone’s been manipulating things behind the scenes. We’ve heard whispers about dance powder being used to steal the rain from the skies.”“Dance powder,” Smoker muttered, his jaw tightening. The thought of the forbidden substance being used in such a way sent a chill through him.The leader continued, his voice heavy with anger. “And then there’s Crocodile. He’s been posing as Alabasta’s savior, offering aid and protection while secretly fueling the chaos. The people see him as a hero, but we know better. He’s working toward something, and he’s not alone.”“Dazai,” Smoker growled, his fists clenching at his sides. “She’s been linked to Crocodile. And now I’m hearing she’s the one who executed Wapol and took his head. Tell me—what’s her role in all this?”The leader’s expression darkened. “We don’t know much about her, but wherever she goes, trouble follows. Some say she’s a shadow from the underworld, an assassin sent to sow discord. Others claim she’s tied to an organization far worse than Crocodile. Either way, she’s dangerous.”Smoker took another drag from his cigar, the smoke curling around him like a storm. “Crocodile’s been playing the hero while pulling the strings behind the scenes. Dazai’s his weapon—a tool to eliminate obstacles like Wapol and destabilize the region further. And King Cobra’s reputation has been ruined, leaving the people desperate and divided.”He slammed his fist on the table again, his voice rising with conviction. “All of this—every death, every ruined village—it leads back to them. Crocodile and Dazai are the core of this chaos. If we take them down, this kingdom has a chance to recover.”The rebels murmured among themselves, their skepticism mingled with hope.“And how do we know you’ll keep your word?” the leader asked, his tone wary.Smoker stepped forward, his piercing gaze sweeping across the room. “Because I don’t break my promises. I will help you expose Crocodile for the fraud he is. I will arrest him and put an end to his schemes. And as for Dazai—” His voice dropped, laced with a dangerous edge. “I will find her. I will bring her to justice for every life she’s destroyed.”The room fell silent, the weight of Smoker’s words hanging heavy in the air.The leader finally nodded, his expression grim but resolute. “Alright, marine. We’ll work with you. But if you betray us—”“You won’t live long enough to regret it,” Smoker finished for him, his voice calm but firm. “I wouldn’t expect anything less.”He turned to Tashigi, who had been watching the exchange in silence. “Let’s move. We’ve got work to do.”As they left the tent, Smoker felt the weight of the rebels’ trust settle on his shoulders. He didn’t care about their politics or their grudges against the World Government. All that mattered was stopping the chaos and bringing the guilty to justice.His gaze hardened as he glanced toward the horizon, where the silhouette of Alubarna loomed in the distance.“Dazai,” he muttered under his breath. “You’re the spark that lit this fire. But I’ll make damn sure you’re the one who burns.”The desert sprawled endlessly, a shifting landscape of dunes glowing gold in the last light of the sinking sun.Zoro glares at the miles of lands of sand in front of him. Always the same color, always the same sand that he grows annoyed with. Where is the blue of the sea that he loves, the sound of the waves that beat against their ship, the sings of the birds flying and capturing fishes? There is only the enormous sun glaring and heating their bodies until they melt from exhaustion. Only the numbness of the silence of a desert that no man dares to adventures, yet Zoro and his crew are stupid enough to cross it.Well half crew because of stupid Luffy who made them lose their way from Nami, the princess, Sanji and Usopp. Ace marched ahead, his sharp gaze scanning the horizon for any sign of their crew. Zoro followed close behind, his broad shoulders steady despite Chopper perched atop them, clinging tightly to his green-haired companion. Beside them, Umekui strode with purpose, her powerful form carrying the unconscious Luffy on her back. His straw hat hung limp, tethered to his neck, fluttering weakly in the gathering wind.“Any luck?” Zoro called to Ace, his voice cutting through the eerie stillness.“Nothing yet,” Ace replied, frustration etched in his tone. “They could be anywhere.”"I don’t see them anywhere," says Chopper from his shoulder as he narrows his eyes ahead of him. "Thanks to stupid Luffy we are lost!" glares Zoro over the limp and sleeping body of Luffy on Umekui's shoulders. "It's not his fault if the heat makes him see hallucination and turn wild," defended Umekui glaring at him for glaring at their captain.He huffs and turns his back. "You spoil him too much," he says to Umekui. She didn’t respond but he could feel her snicker and flip the finger behind his back. "Well," inserts Ace's boyish voice. "I'am not surprised that Luffy could see hallucination once he grows too hungry. When we were little, he bit off Sabo's hand, thinking that it was meat.""What?! Is his hand okay?" gasped a horrified Chopper.Ace's smiles gently at Chopper. "Yes. He had a little scar after.""Anyway, Grandpa beats Luffy with his fist of love to turn him unconscious it's not worse than the sedative that Chopper injected him."Chopper shudders from Zoro's shoulders as he gazes widely at Ace. 'Their family is so weird,' he thought, grimacing at the idea of their grandpa who beats Luffy with a "fist of love".A shudder travels Zoro's back as a wave of wind hits his back, the sun fading a little from the sky to let place to the dusk of the desert. "The night is going to rise, so the cold too," states Umekui, her eyes scanning the desert ahead of her for any sight of her nakamas. Chopper shivered as the temperature began to plummet with the fading daylight. “This desert’s not normal… It feels alive,” he murmured, his voice trembling.The wind, a low whistle moments ago, began to grow sharper, whipping at their exposed skin. The sands shifted uneasily, the dunes seeming to ripple like waves under the cool glow of twilight.“We need to find cover,” Umekui said, her voice steady but urgent. “The desert’s about to turn on us.”Ace glanced back at her, his jaw tightening. “We push forward until we find the others.”But the desert had other plans.The first blast of wind hit like a cannonball, sending sand spiraling into the air. Within seconds, the world around them dissolved into chaos.“Sandstorm!” Zoro roared, turning his back against the biting winds to shield Chopper.The storm descended with terrifying speed, howling like a wild beast. Grains of sand whipped through the air, stinging like needles and reducing visibility to nothing. The roar was deafening, drowning out even their shouts.“We can’t stay here!” Umekui yelled, her voice strained as she braced herself against the winds, struggling to keep Luffy secure on her back.“Stick together!” Ace shouted, though his words were swallowed by the storm.The group pressed forward, each step a battle against the furious winds. Zoro shielded Chopper with one arm, his free hand gripping the hilt of a buried sword for balance. Ace lit a small flame in his palm, a desperate attempt to guide the way, but the storm extinguished it almost immediately.Through the whirling sand, Umekui’s sharp eyes caught something—a faint shadow in the distance. “There!” she yelled, “It’s a rock formation! Shelter!”Ace squinted through the storm, hope flickering in his chest. “Go! Head for it!”The group fought their way forward, the silhouette of the rock formation their only beacon in the chaos. But the desert was relentless.A massive gust tore through the dunes, an almost sentient force that swept Ace off his feet. He hit the ground hard, sand cascading over him.The ground trembled with each gust, the dunes crumbling and reforming in an endless, chaotic dance. The storm was alive—a primal force, seething with rage, its voice a deafening cacophony that drowned out all else.Zoro bellowed, only to lose his footing as well, Chopper tumbling from his shoulders into the storm.The desert roared to life, its fury manifesting in a monstrous sandstorm that clawed at the earth and sky alike. The once-placid dunes convulsed violently, as if the land itself had been awakened in wrath. Winds howled like vengeful spirits, twisting the air into a tempest of blinding, stinging sand.“Luffy!” Umekui cried, her hands digging into the sand as she held onto her captain, bringing him close to her chest to protect him. But another wave of wind struck, more violent than the last. It was as if the desert itself had risen up to swallow them whole. As if- 
And then it did.
The ground beneath them gave way as the storm raged on. Dunes collapsed like crashing waves, burying the group beneath an avalanche of sand.  The very air was heavy with malice, as though the desert sought to punish any who dared trespass on its vast, unforgiving domain.Silence followed—a deep, oppressive silence, broken only by the distant howl of the wind overhead. The desert lay still once more, its wrath momentarily spent.The world was silent except for the faint hiss of wind blowing over the dunes. Slowly, the sand shifted, bulging upward before Zoro’s hand emerged, clawing at the surface. With a grunt of effort, he hauled himself free, sand cascading off his body. He shook his head, spitting out a mouthful of grit, and muttered angrily as he rubbed his face.“Damn sand… it’s everywhere,” Zoro growled, peeling clumps of it from his hair and brushing it off his shoulders. His ears itched fiercely, and the grains that had worked their way under his shirt made his skin crawl.As he turned, his hand brushed something soft. Without hesitation, he grabbed hold and yanked, pulling Chopper free from the suffocating sand. The small reindeer sputtered and coughed, his fur coated in a thick layer of grit.“Z-Zoro!” Chopper wheezed, shaking his head violently. “I—I thought I was done for!”“You’re fine,” Zoro said, his voice gruff but his hand steady as he set Chopper on solid ground. “Just stop squirming so I can dig the rest of this crap out of my ears.”Before either could catch their breath, a sudden boom erupted nearby, a plume of fire bursting through the sand. The heat was intense, driving the chill of the storm away as Ace emerged in a blaze of molten fury. His body burned with flames that incinerated the sand around him, his narrowed eyes darting wildly.“Luffy!” Ace bellowed, the urgency in his voice echoing across the dunes. His fire dimmed slightly as he scanned the surroundings, his expression desperate.Zoro rose to his feet, his swords rattling softly in their scabbards as he adjusted his bandana. “We’ll find him,” he said firmly, his gaze moving over the sands. “And Umekui too.”Ace turned sharply, his flames flaring briefly. “Forget Umekui. Our priority is Luffy.”Zoro froze, his brow furrowing as he locked eyes with Ace. “What?”“She’s not important,” Ace said coldly, his voice cutting like steel.  "Luffy comes first.”Zoro’s grip tightened on his swords, his jaw clenching. “Not important?” he repeated, his voice low and dangerous. “She’s our first mate. My first mate. You don’t get to decide who’s important.”Ace’s flames flickered, his frustration boiling over. “You don’t understand,” he snapped. “Do you even know what she’s done? What kind of person she is? She’s a criminal—a monster. You’re trusting someone who could betray you in a heartbeat!”Something inside Zoro snapped. His swords were out in an instant, the steel gleaming in the moonlight. He pointed one directly at Ace, his expression dark with fury.“I don’t care if her hands are drenched in blood,” Zoro growled, his voice like a storm brewing on the horizon. “I don’t care what horrible things she’s done or what kind of monster she was. Because now, she’s my first mate.” His eyes burned with an unshakable conviction, his grip on his blades tightening. “I’ll slay the entire world to protect her. And that includes you, Ace.”Ace’s flames flared brighter, casting sharp shadows across the dunes. He took a step forward, his anger boiling over, but Zoro didn’t back down.“You think being Luffy’s brother means anything to me?” Zoro continued, his voice cutting like steel. “Luffy’s my captain, but Ume’s my crewmate. You insult her, you insult me. And I don’t let anyone—anyone—talk about my crew like that.”The tension between them crackled, the desert air growing hotter from Ace’s fire and sharper from the malice radiating off Zoro.Chopper, still coughing out sand, froze, wide-eyed, and trembling at the confrontation. “Guys… please,” he whispered, his voice almost lost in the heavy silence.But neither Ace nor Zoro moved. The desert, quiet now after its violent outburst, bore witness to the impending clash, their loyalty to their crewmates threatening to spill into violence.Beneath the suffocating weight of the desert, Umekui lay still, the sand pressing down on her like the embrace of an unrelenting tide. The silence around her was deafening, a hollow void that swallowed her thoughts (It was a familiar sensation, cruel and relentless, like the times she had thrown herself into the sea, seeking the abyss to consume her. Back then, drowning had been her escape—a desperate attempt to quiet the curse of her existence.)
(DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! 
DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! )
Her name echoed in her mind, reverberating through the oppressive darkness. Dazai.(It clung to her like chains, each syllable dragging her further into the void. A name that carried the weight of sins, broken promises, and memories that haunted her every waking moment.She felt tired. Tired of the memories. Tired of the endless cycle of guilt and survival. Tired of the hollow, numb existence that clung to her like a second skin).The sand pressed against her chest, her arms, her legs, devouring her, pulling her into its cold, unfeeling embrace.And then, through the darkness, a spark.It wasn’t warmth or light but a presence—vivid, untamed, and red like the heart of a sun. It reached out to her, a soul brighter than the void, more alive than the despair surrounding her. Luffy.His name flared in her mind, burning away the numbness.(He was the sun of her existence, the only light she had ever followed without fear. The breath of her freedom, the everlasting hope that had pulled her from the brink so many times before. In his presence, her curse had no power, her memories no sting. He was her cure, not because he erased the pain but because he made it bearable).But now, he was gone.Her arms, desperate for his warmth, found only the biting cold of the sand. It sank into her flesh, an unbearable reminder that he wasn’t here. The thought of losing him, of not hearing his reckless laugh or seeing his unshakable smile, struck her like a blade.“No,” she rasped, her voice swallowed by the sand around her.She quivered, her body trembling like a wild beast cornered by an unseen predator. Her muscles screamed, her lungs burned, but the fire in her chest drove her forward. She clawed at the sand, her nails scraping against the suffocating grains. The name she wanted to shout was trapped in her throat, choking her with every breath.
Luffy.
She crawled upward, her limbs dragging her through the crushing weight. The world above was chaos—she could feel it even through the muffled void. The storm raged on, uncaring and merciless, but she didn’t care. Her mind was singular, focused only on him.Her captain. Her everything. Losing him was not an option.Through sheer force of will, she pressed on, every movement a battle against the sand (the promises, the memories, the guilt—they all bore down on her, heavy as the dunes above. But she carried them. She carried them because they didn’t matter as much as he did).Finally, her hand broke the surface, clawing into the open air. She dragged herself out, gasping for breath, her body shaking with exertion. Sand clung to her skin, her hair, her clothes, but none of it mattered.Only one thought remained.

Find him. Find Luffy.

Her crimson gaze burned with desperation as she staggered to her feet, her body battered but unyielding. The storm might rage, the desert might devour her again, but nothing would stop her from finding her captain.

Nothing.

The storm had subsided just enough for the winds to howl wildly but not deafeningly. Umekui clawed her way to the surface, her head breaking through the sand like a diver surfacing for air. She gasped, dragging herself upright, her crimson eyes narrowing against the stinging gale. As her body trembled from exertion, her gaze landed on a scene that froze her in place.In the faint moonlight, Zoro and Ace stood facing each other, the tension between them palpable. Zoro’s swords gleamed in the night, drawn and ready to strike, while Ace’s flames flickered menacingly around his clenched fists. The storm’s winds hurled sand around them in spiraling eddies, wild yet eerily quiet, as if the desert itself held its breath.The darkness of the night seemed to coil around them, but neither man moved, their gazes locked in a standoff.“Zoro,” Umekui’s voice cut through the tension, quiet but razor-sharp.Zoro stiffened at the sound, his head snapping toward her. Ace turned as well, his flames dimming slightly, his eyes widening in surprise. But before Ace could speak, guilt flashed across his face like a fleeting shadow. His fiery fist faltered for a moment before he lowered it, his expression tightening as if to hide the crack in his resolve.Zoro, however, was unmoved. He shot Ace a glare that could cut steel, his fingers still gripping his swords. But when he rushed toward Umekui, his anger melted into something softer, something protective.“You’re okay,” Zoro muttered as he pulled her into his arms, the tension in his shoulders easing as he held her tightly.She smiled softly, her scarred hands reaching up to cradle his face. With a gentle touch, she brushed the sand from his hair and cheeks, her fingers moving with a tenderness that stood in stark contrast to the storm around them.Her smile deepened, though her gaze flicked to Ace for a brief moment before returning to Zoro. “ I need you to do something for me now.”“Anything.”“Carry and protect Chopper. Stay with him.” Her tone grew commanding, the quiet authority of a first mate. “I’m going to find Luffy.”“Ume—”“I’ll come back,” she interrupted, her voice unwavering. “With our captain.”Zoro hesitated, but her scarred hands brushed his hair again, soothing him in a way only she could.“Promise,” he growled, his voice low, but he sheathed his swords, his trust in her absolute.“I promise,” she said softly.With that, she turned and began striding toward the heart of the storm. Her silhouette cut a determined figure against the dark night, her hair and cloak whipping wildly around her as she moved farther into the desert.Her body trembled, every fiber of her being crying out in desperation. The cold night wrapped around her, but the absence of Luffy’s warmth burned worse than the frost. Her heart pounded violently, quivering with the unbearable weight of not knowing.Her voice broke free, raw and filled with longing.“LUFFY!”The name tore through her throat as she staggered across the dunes, her crimson eyes scanning the miles of shifting sand. She didn’t stop. She couldn’t stop. The connection between her and his, the bond that had pulled her from the brink so many times, guided her like a thread through the storm.
('Call my name and I'll be by your side in a flash')
She promised. She fucking promised (and Umekui doesn't want another broken meaningfulness promise to be lost in this time warehouse-).“Luffy, where are you?” she choked, her hands clawing at the sand, her heart aching for any sign, any spark of him.But the storm was vast and unyielding, a void of icy darkness that threatened to swallow her whole.From the shadows above, perched atop the ruins of a weathered and crumbling building, a figure watched her. The woman’s dark hair whipped around her pale face, her deep blue eyes narrowing as they tracked Umekui’s every move. Her expression was unreadable, but there was a sharpness in her gaze, a keen awareness.The figure leaned forward slightly, her presence blending seamlessly with the storm. Whatever her intentions, they were as unfathomable as the desert itself. But her focus never wavered from the long dark-haired woman calling out in the void.Above the chaos of the desert, the dark-haired woman stood unmoving, her sharp blue eyes fixed on the scene below. Nico Robin watched as —Dazai, screams into the void, her voice raw with desperation as she clawed through the dunes, searching for that boy.That D.Robin’s brow furrowed as she stared at the frantic woman, her expression unreadable but her mind churning.What could Dazai possibly see in him? Monkey D. Luffy, the cheerful, reckless boy who carried himself with all the weight of a feather and none of the wisdom of the history his name bore. What was it about him that made someone like her—a monster of blood and devastation—bow in unyielding devotion?Robin’s lips pressed into a thin line, but a faint crack formed within her chest. The questions scraped at her mind like an itch she couldn’t reach. Was it because of the name? The “D”? Did either of them understand what it meant? Did Dazai—no, Umekui—know the origins of that title, the curse, and power woven into the veins of those who carried it?And if she didn’t know… should she?Robin scoffed softly, her breath lost to the storm. The sand tore at her skin, but she barely felt it, her mind swirling with irritation and something darker—something more painful. She didn’t care if Dazai was walking straight into danger, didn’t care if this blind loyalty would end in her death. Didn’t she want that?But the way Dazai yelled his name, the sheer desperation that cracked through her voice, made something inside Robin twist uncomfortably. She felt the ache turn into anger. She narrowed her eyes as Umekui suddenly stopped, her scarred hands clawing through the sand with trembling urgency.The faint glimmer of a straw hat emerged from the grains, and with a sudden, violent burst of strength, Umekui pulled Luffy free. His unconscious body fell against her as she cradled him, her arms wrapping around him tightly as if to shield him from the entire world.(Dazai once shielded Robin from the world. She once cradled her bruised body from the world, comforting each other in promises lost in the shadows).Robin’s heart clenched at the sight, the sheer devotion in Umekui’s trembling form sparking something unbearable inside her. It wasn’t pity, nor was it disgust. It was something far messier, far more infuriating. Her nails dug into her palms as she bit back the scream building in her throat.And then, with a smirk that felt like a mask, Robin stepped forward, letting the moonlight cast her shadow over the reunion below.Umekui froze, her crimson eyes widening as the shadow stretched across the dunes. Slowly, she turned, her body still trembling as she stared up at the figure. Her lips parted, but no words came.Robin’s gaze was sharp, her smile cold and unreadable. But there was a glimmer in her blue eyes—a mixture of bitterness and fury she couldn’t entirely suppress.“Well,” Robin said, her voice calm but cutting through the night like a knife, “isn’t this touching?”Umekui’s arms tightened around Luffy as if shielding him from the words themselves.“Robin…” she whispered, her voice heavy with guilt and pain.The sight of that expression on Dazai's face made Robin’s chest burn. Her smile faltered for just a moment before she forced it back, cruel and sharp.“Do you even know who he is?” Robin asked, her tone deceptively light. “What he is? The meaning of the D in his name?”“I don’t care,” Umekui said firmly, her voice trembling but resolute. She buried her face against Luffy’s hair, her scarred hands cradling him protectively. “He’s my captain. That’s all that matters.”Robin’s smirk darkened, but her eyes betrayed the chaos roiling inside her. “How loyal,” she murmured. “But loyalty doesn’t erase the past, does it?”(Not when Robin's scars are too raw and bloody for her to forget, or forgive-.Not when she feels so worthless, and pathetic beside the boy in Dazai's arms (where once Robin laid days and nights in them-)).She stepped closer, her shadow swallowing Umekui and Luffy in its embrace. “We have unfinished business, Dazai,” Robin said, her voice low and dangerous. “I Hope you haven’t forgotten what you did to me.”The words hung in the air like a curse, and for a moment, the storm seemed to still. 'He told me that you were dead! There were only flames and chaos!', wanted to scream Umekui to Robin, but she couldn’t-not when her tongue was so heavy from grief.Umekui’s crimson eyes met Robin’s, filled with a sadness so raw it made Robin’s throat tighten.Robin hated it (she hated the way it made her feel, the way it clawed at her resolve.)With a bitter smile at her silence, Robin turned on her heel, her voice calm and deliberate. “Take care of your captain while you can. You wouldn’t want it to end like our tragedy, right? We’ll see each other again soon, Dazai.”And with that, she stepped into the shadows, disappearing into the storm like a phantom.Umekui was left alone, her arms tightening around Luffy as if holding onto him could keep the darkness at bay. The bitterness of Robin’s words lingered in the air, and for a moment, all Umekui could feel was the cold of the desert night and the unbearable weight of her own memories.“I should’ve saved her,” Umekui whispered into the void, her voice cracking. The stars above blurred as emptinesses welled in her crimson eyes. Guilt coiled around her like a snake, squeezing every ounce of air from her lungs. I was too weak. I failed her when she needed me most.Her hands trembled as they tightened around Luffy, his warmth grounding her even as the darkness of grief consumed her. She pressed her forehead against his, a silent plea spilling from her heart. I’ll protect you, Captain. I’ll protect you like I couldn’t protect her. The weight of her guilt and the ache of her loss crushed her, but she didn’t let go—not of Luffy, not of the promise she made to herself in Robin’s memory. She wouldn’t fail again.Even through the despair, Luffy’s warmth slowly returned, faint and fragile, but enough to keep the void from swallowing her whole.“I’ll protect you,” she whispered, her voice shaking as she cradled him closer. “I won’t let anything happen to you, Captain. Not to you.”The storm roared on, but her resolve burned steady, unyielding against the darkness.Ace’s heart felt like a smoldering weight in his chest, heavier with each step he took through the dunes. The desert was quiet now, save for the occasional gust of wind that kicked up loose sand around him. His flaming hands lit the darkness, their heat barely enough to combat the chill clawing at his soul."Luffy!" he called out, his voice hoarse from yelling, but only silence greeted him. The sand seemed endless, a sea of emptiness that mirrored the hollow ache in his chest.The memories clawed at him with merciless persistence. He saw Sabo's face in his mind’s eye, grinning and full of life, a life cut short too soon. Sabo, who had entrusted Luffy’s safety to him in that silent, unspoken way only brothers could. And now... now, Ace was failing again.His steps faltered as he gasped for breath, though it wasn’t the exertion that crushed him—it was the thought of facing Sabo’s spirit in the heavens, telling him he’d let their little brother slip through his fingers. Luffy wasn’t just their bond; he was their everything. The last link to a childhood both bright and fleeting. If Luffy was gone… it would feel like burning those memories to ashes.Ace clenched his fists, the flames licking his skin brighter, hotter, fueled by his anguish.He hates being weak, he thought bitterly, the fire crackling louder as though responding to his rage. Weakness was a memory he’d vowed never to relive.(It dragged him back to being ten years old, staring through tear-filled eyes at the fire that had taken Sabo. It pulled him further, to when he was five, running from villagers who hurled curses and the name of a father he despised. It reminded him of the ghost of his mother’s tears brushing his cheeks, a promise she left him with her dying breath.)He swallowed hard, a lump rising in his throat. I promised never to be weak again. I promised never to die.(But how could he hold onto those promises when the bearer of them—Luffy, his brother, his anchor—was lost in this endless desert?)A shudder rippled through him as another memory surfaced, one that burned hotter than any fire he could conjure.(Luffy, at seven years old, bruised and crying, his small voice trembling as he clung to Ace. “I hate being alone,” Luffy had sobbed. “I hate it, Ace. It’s so cold when I’m alone.”)Ace’s hand trembled as he wiped at his face, as though the tears might escape if he let his guard down for even a second. He gritted his teeth, his frustration bubbling over. "Luffy hates being alone," he muttered to himself, his voice shaking. "I can’t leave him alone. Not again."He clenched his jaw, his flames surging brighter, defying the oppressive cold around him.And yet, the memories weren’t the only thing tearing at him. Guilt twisted inside him like a knife, sharp and unforgiving. He could still see the look in Zoro’s eyes—fierce, blazing with anger—when he’d spat those cruel words about their first mate, Umekui. The way Chopper’s wide eyes had brimmed with sadness and disbelief. Zoro, with his swords raised, had been ready to strike him down.Ace let out a hollow, humorless laugh, the sound bitter and harsh in the stillness. What a fool I am.But there was no time for self-loathing, no room for regret. He kept walking, striding through the desert with firelight leading his way, though every step felt heavier than the last. His voice cracked as he called out again, “Luffy!”The dunes shifted underfoot, the endless waves of sand blurring into one indistinguishable sea. His body trembled, not from exhaustion but from the weight of it all—the memories, the loss, the fear. His flames flickered, threatening to falter, but he forced them to burn brighter.And then, in the distance, a shadow emerged.Ace stopped, his breath catching in his throat as he squinted through the haze. The figure walked toward him, carrying something in their arms. As they drew closer, the faint outline of a straw hat perched atop the figure’s head became clear.Ace’s heart seized.“Luffy?” he whispered, his voice breaking.The figure stepped into the glow of his flames, and Ace’s breath hitched at the sight. The body in their arms was limp, dusted with sand, but unmistakably Luffy.The shadowed figure’s face lifted, their eyes meeting his.For a moment, time seemed to freeze, the weight of the desert pressing down on both of them. And then Ace was moving, his feet stumbling forward as the flames around him surged with renewed strength.“Luffy!” he cried, his voice raw with hope and desperation.Umekui emerged from the darkness like a ghost, her figure illuminated by the faint glow of Ace’s flames. Her steps were slow but deliberate, her arms cradling Luffy’s unconscious form as if he were the most fragile thing in the world. The crimson of her eyes locked onto Ace, her expression steady yet filled with exhaustion, the straw hat steady on her head.Ace’s breath hitched as he saw them, the knot of fear in his chest loosening just enough for him to exhale shakily. “You… you found him,” he stammered, his voice thick with emotion.Umekui nodded, her face softening, though her voice remained resolute. “I told you, didn’t I?” she said quietly. “I promised I’d find him. I promised I’d protect him.”Ace’s lips trembled, and a shaky smile broke across his face, gratitude and relief washing over him in waves. He pressed a hand to his chest, as though grounding himself. “Thank you,” he said, his voice barely more than a whisper. “From the bottom of my heart... thank you.”For a moment, silence stretched between them, the weight of the night settling like a blanket over their shoulders. Umekui simply smiled faintly, her eyes soft but distant, and shifted Luffy in her arms, holding him closer as if to shield him from even the faintest chill.“Let’s go,” she said, her voice gentle but firm.Together, they trudged back through the sand toward the small rise where Zoro and Chopper were waiting. The swordsman was pacing, his sharp eyes scanning the horizon, while Chopper clutched his hooves nervously, his gaze darting between Zoro and the endless desert.The moment Zoro caught sight of Umekui and Ace, his shoulders relaxed slightly, though his swords remained loosely at his side. Chopper’s eyes widened, relief flooding his face as he bounded forward.“They’re back!” Chopper exclaimed, his voice filled with joy.Zoro took a step forward, his sharp gaze softening as he noted the unconscious figure in Umekui’s arms. “Captain,” he murmured, his voice carrying a subtle note of worry.Chopper hurried to Umekui, clambering up to inspect Luffy. His small hooves worked quickly, brushing sand from Luffy’s face as he examined him with careful eyes. After a tense moment, Chopper’s face broke into a wide smile.“He’s okay!” he said, his voice brimming with happiness. “No injuries! He’s just exhausted!”Zoro let out a small grunt of relief, sheathing his swords with a fluid motion. “Good,” he said simply, his voice low but carrying the weight of his feelings. He stepped forward and gently took Luffy and Chopper from Umekui’s arms, cradling them both against his broad chest as though they weighed nothing.“Rest,” Zoro said firmly, his tone leaving no room for argument. He settled against a large rock, leaning back with Luffy and Chopper tucked securely in his arms.Umekui’s eyes lingered on the three of them for a moment before she turned, her gaze meeting Ace’s. “I’ll keep watch,” she said softly, her tone steady but resolute.Ace nodded and, with a wave of his hand, ignited a small fire. The flames flickered and danced, casting a warm glow over the small group as they settled in.Zoro’s breathing evened out quickly, and Chopper curled up against his side, his small snores filling the air. Luffy remained silent, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm.As the fire crackled softly, Umekui took a position at the edge of the camp, her crimson eyes scanning the horizon. The night stretched on, quiet and endless, the weight of the desert still lingering heavily in the air.Ace joined her after a moment, his flames flickering dimly at his fingertips as he leaned against a jagged rock.For a while, neither of them spoke, the silence heavy but not uncomfortable. It was Ace who finally broke it, his voice low and contemplative.“Umekui,” he began hesitantly, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. “Back there... when you said you’d protect him no matter what...”Umekui didn’t turn to face him, her gaze fixed firmly on the horizon. “I meant it,” she said simply. “Luffy is my captain. My nakama. It’s my duty to protect him.”Ace let out a soft sigh, running a hand through his sand-caked hair. “I’m grateful. But... why?”That made her pause, her eyes narrowing slightly as she tilted her head. “Why?” she echoed, her voice cool but tinged with curiosity.“You’re strong and dangerous,” Ace continued, his voice tinged with frustration and something deeper. “You’re not like me or Sabo—you’re not bound to him by blood or childhood memories. What makes you so loyal? Why would you go to such lengths for him?”Umekui was silent for a moment, her expression unreadable as the wind tugged at her hair. Finally, she turned, her crimson eyes meeting Ace’s with a quiet intensity.“Because he’s the first person who ever gave me hope,” she said softly. “The first person who saw me for who I am, not for what I’ve done. He accepted me and loved me despite my cursed blood. He gave me a chance to be something more than my past.”(He is the meaningless dream that haunted her from the deepest reminiscences of her existence).Ace’s lips parted, but no words came. He stared at her, the firelight reflecting in his wide eyes.“Luffy...” Umekui continued, her voice steady, “is my sole sun in a world that’s always been dark for me. I’d do anything to protect that light. Anything.”Ace swallowed hard, his gaze dropping to the flames. Her words resonated deeply, pulling at something inside him that he couldn’t quite name.“I see,” he murmured finally, his voice barely audible over the crackling fire.They fell into silence again, the weight of their conversation lingering in the air as the night stretched on.The desert night had settled into a deep silence, the flames of Ace’s fire crackling softly in the background. Umekui sat, arms crossed, her crimson eyes watching the sleeping forms of her nakama. Luffy’s soft breathing reached her ears, grounding her in a way the chaos of the storm could not. But her gaze flicked back to Ace, who sat opposite her, his golden-freckled face aglow in the firelight.“Why didn’t you follow Monkey D. Luffy to make him the Pirate King?” her voice broke the stillness, sharp yet curious.Ace laughed, a warm, almost wistful sound, and his lips curved into an affectionate grin.“No one in the world knows how much I adore my troublesome little brother,” he said softly, his voice laden with both love and sorrow. “How much faith I hold in him—” He turned to her, his dark eyes meeting hers with unwavering intensity, the light of the flames reflected in their depths. “Luffy has dreams that could make any sinner believe in him instantly. And I was the first person to have faith in those dreams.”His gaze didn’t waver, but something about it seemed to pull her in, like the tide.‘The first sinner to put their faith in dreams sold out by a courageous boy’s broad smile,’ Ace thought to himself, memories flickering like the firelight. ‘Courageous enough to accept me as his big brother. Fearless enough to love me despite my rotten blood. Brave enough to proclaim his mad dreams to the world.’He smiled, but it was a bittersweet expression, and Umekui felt her heart ache.“Thanks to my beloved little brother, I found faith in my dreams,” he continued, his voice quiet but filled with conviction. His gaze drifted upward, to the vast expanse of stars scattered across the sky. “To seek and find my dream waiting for me somewhere in this endless world—” A small, almost boyish smile tugged at his lips. “I found him. I found the one my soul was always searching for.”Her curiosity was piqued, and she leaned forward slightly, her voice barely above a whisper. “Who?”The words slipped from her lips before she could stop them. She felt a pang of jealousy bloom in her chest at the idea of something—or someone—surpassing Luffy in Ace’s heart.‘Who could you have found that outshines Luffy?’ she wondered. ‘Who could hold your soul so tightly that you would stand against Luffy’s dream?’Ace’s grin widened, and his eyes shone with a warmth that was almost disarming.“A father,” he said simply.The world seemed to drop away for Umekui. The word echoed in her mind, foreign and jagged, scraping against her understanding.“A father...?” she croaked, the word tasting bitter on her tongue. It felt alien, as though her very mind rejected the idea.Ace’s expression softened further, and he chuckled, the sound low and soothing. “Yes, Umekui. A father known as Whitebeard.”Her brow furrowed, her confusion deepening. “But why?” she asked, her voice tinged with frustration. “Luffy told me your dream was to be a famous pirate. Why not become the King of the Pirates if you seek fame? What good is it to have a father as your dream? What makes this man worthy of your loyalty, of your heart?”Ace tilted his head slightly, his gaze dropping to the fire. Its flickering light danced in his eyes, but his expression darkened slightly.“The King of the Pirates...” Ace mused, his tone low and contemplative. “I could never insult Luffy’s dream like that.”He sighed, his hand running through his hair.(Memories of a ten-year-old boy watching flames consume his world flickered in his mind. Of the cruel whispers that followed him through his childhood, voices that cursed the blood in his veins).“I hate the man who once sat on that throne,” Ace admitted, his voice a low growl. “How could I ever take his place? How could I step into the shadow of the man who poisoned my existence from the beginning? I would rather die than become a reflection of him.”Ace’s voice softened again, a wistful smile playing at his lips. “But Whitebeard... he’s different. He’s the strongest man in the world. A man who accepted me even when I sought his death. He took me under his wing despite the vile blood that runs in my veins, despite my sins, my flaws. Whitebeard loves me like a father. And I will give my life to see him take the throne as King of the Pirates.”His voice was steady, but Umekui could hear the deep love and respect beneath his words.Umekui’s crimson eyes burned fiercely as she stared at him, something wild and defiant flickering to life inside her. Slowly, a dangerous smirk spread across her scarlet lips, her sharp teeth glinting in the firelight.“Good luck, then,” she said, her voice low and venomous. She reached for Luffy’s straw hat, spinning it on her finger with an air of calm confidence. “Because the next King of the Pirates is my captain. Monkey D. Luffy will take that throne, and I will see to it that no one—no one—stands in his way.”Ace blinked at her, taken aback by the intensity in her voice. But Umekui didn’t falter.“Whitebeard may be the strongest man in the world,” she continued, her voice rising with conviction, “but he doesn’t know what’s coming for him. Because I, Umekui Dazai, will carve the path for my captain’s rise to the throne. And not even the gods will stop me.”For a moment, the fire seemed to flicker in tandem with her fierce determination. Ace couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head as he gazed at her with newfound respect.“You’re something else, Umekui,” he said with a smirk.She returned his smirk, her crimson eyes gleaming in the firelight as she set the straw hat down beside Luffy. The fire continued to crackle, its warmth chasing away the desert’s chill as the stars watched silently overhead.The faint light of dawn crept into the cave, illuminating the worn and weary faces of the group. Sanji, Usopp, Nami, and Vivi approached cautiously, their footsteps crunching against the dry ground outside. Vivi held her cloak tightly, the cold morning wind tugging at her as if to pull her back.Inside the cave, they finally found their nakama. Luffy lay on the ground, his straw hat tipped over his face. Umekui was curled next to him, her arms protectively around his form, her head resting lightly against his shoulder. Relief flooded through the group.“There they are,” Sanji whispered, his usual flirt replaced by a rare softness. His sharp eyes scanned Umekui, checking her for injuries, before exhaling slowly. “They’re okay.”At the sound of their voices, Luffy stirred. His straw hat slid off, and he blinked up at them with groggy but familiar cheer. “Nami? Vivi? Sanji? Usopp?” His voice cracked with sleep but carried its usual enthusiasm.A loud growl from his stomach followed. “I’m starving!”“You’re always starving,” Nami muttered, but her tone was laced with relief.Umekui’s eyes fluttered open at Luffy’s movement. Seeing the others, she sat up slowly, brushing hair from her face. “You’re back,” she said softly, her voice hoarse from exhaustion. “Good.”“What happened?” Vivi asked, concern lacing her voice.Umekui smiled faintly, her gaze drifting to Luffy. “There was a sandstorm. A bad one. We got separated for a while… but I promised him I’d always find him.” She brushed her fingers lightly against Luffy’s arm as if confirming to herself that he was there. “I kept my promise.”At her words, Luffy grinned wide. “Yeah, you always do. That’s why you’re the best!”Umekui’s smile deepened, her exhaustion momentarily forgotten. “It’s our promise. It’s engraved in the stars, right?”“And our blood,” Luffy added with a bright laugh, patting her hair.Sanji moved quickly, pulling out supplies to prepare breakfast. As he worked, his gaze flicked repeatedly to Umekui, his jaw tightening each time he thought of Crocodile. He knew the Warlord was after her. The thought made his stomach churn and his fists clench. He swore silently that he wouldn’t let anything happen to her, no matter what it cost him."Food, Sanji! Hurry!" Luffy cheered, completely ignoring the cook’s frustration.Zoro sat nearby, sharpening his swords, his usual stoic expression in place. But Sanji noticed the way his sharp eyes tracked Ace, who sat a short distance away. Ace’s gaze, however, was focused elsewhere—on Umekui. His expression was heavy, tinged with longing and something sadder, though he quickly masked it when Sanji glanced his way.As the smell of food began to fill the air, Vivi sat by the fire, her gaze distant. The faint light of the fire danced across her face, highlighting the sadness in her expression.As the smell of sizzling breakfast began to fill the cave, Vivi stepped forward, her voice tentative. “Everyone… we’re almost to Yuba.”Nami nodded, her confidence unwavering. “We’re close. I’m certain of it. The true rebels are there. We’re heading in the right direction.”“Vivi?” Usopp called gently at her sad gaze.Vivi looked up, startled, before offering a sad smile. “Sorry. I was just… remembering.”She took a deep breath and began, her voice soft but steady. “Yuba wasn’t always like this. Before the drought, before all of this… it was a happy town. My father would take me there often. It was free—alive. People laughed and sang, and the desert wasn’t a place of fear. It was our playground.”Her voice faltered for a moment, but she pressed on, her words painted with nostalgia. “Koza and I used to run barefoot in the sands. He’d hold my hand, and we’d race until we couldn’t breathe. He always told me he’d protect me, no matter what.”Tears glistened in her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away. “Now, Yuba is barely holding on, and Koza… He’s the leader of the rebel army. His hometown is his battlefield. I need to find him. I have to stop him from being deceived by Crocodile and Miss All Sunday.”At the mention of Miss All Sunday, a shadow crossed Umekui’s face. Her hands stilled in her lap, her mind clouded by painful memories.(Images of a younger Robin flashed in her mind, of laughter amidst chaos and blood, of whispered promises in the dead of night in a world that was crumbling around them. She saw herself and Robin as fifteen-year-olds, both trapped in a world of violence and despair. She remembered Robin’s quiet strength, the way her hands trembled only when no one was looking, and the weight of her unspoken dreams.Robin’s voice came back to her like a haunting melody: “There’s no place for people like us in this world. There’s no escape for people like us, Dazai. The world doesn’t forgive.”)The vivid memory sent a shudder through Umekui, and she blinked back to the present, shaken.Her chest tightened, the weight of those words as heavy now as it had been then. She hadn’t seen Robin for years until Whiskey Peak, and the reunion had been anything but kind.A light touch pulled her from the dark spiral of her thoughts. Luffy’s hand brushed through her hair, his expression soft and curious.“Hey, you okay?” he asked, his voice quiet but full of concern.Umekui nodded slowly, a faint, grateful smile forming. “Yeah. I’m okay.”“Breakfast is ready!” Sanji called, his voice cutting through the tension. He served the plates with practiced ease, handing Umekui and Luffy theirs first.As everyone gathered to eat, the heaviness of the past and the uncertainty of the future lingered in the air. But for now, they had each other, and that was enough to keep them moving forward.“Here.”The morning light bathed the barren desert in hues of soft gold and burnt orange as Ace handed a small, weathered piece of paper to Umekui. His sun-kissed fingers, calloused and strong, lingered for a moment, as if reluctant to let it go.Umekui looked up from the paper, her crimson eyes sharp with curiosity. Her gaze flicked to Ace’s freckled face, now glowing warmly under the dawn light, and then back to the paper in her hands.It’s a Vivre Card-,” he explained, his voice quiet, measured.“I know what it is,” she cut him off, her tone sharp but her gaze searching. “Why are you giving it to me?”Ace’s lips curved into a faint chuckle, his other hand brushing through his wild black curls. The faint glow of dawn caught the freckles scattered across his face, making them shine brighter than the stars still faintly visible in the sky.“I already gave one to Luffy,” he said, his tone light but tinged with warmth, glancing at his younger brother, who was sitting under a nearby tree, scarfing down his breakfast. A wistful smile crossed Ace’s lips. “But let’s be honest—he’ll lose it. So, I’m giving one to you. If Luffy ever needs me, you’ll know where I am.”He reached into his pocket again and handed her another small slip of paper with a number scrawled on it in bold ink. “And if you hear anything about him—Blackbeard—call me.”For a moment, Umekui didn’t move. Her lips pressed into a thin line, and the tension in her shoulders was palpable. She took the paper without a word, her hand trembling as it brushed against his.“There’s nothing left for me here,” Ace said, his voice dipping lower. His onyx eyes turned to the endless stretch of sand before them, and for a moment, they seemed impossibly distant. “Blackbeard’s not in Alabasta. Staying here is just wasting time.”Umekui swallowed hard, her throat tightening against a sudden, overwhelming weight-a knot of helplessness and dread forming there. She hated this. Hated that she could do nothing to stop him.The thought of Ace continuing his hunt sent a wave of dread crashing through her.
(She knew—she felt—that this pursuit would only end in tragedy. And Luffy… Luffy, who already carried so much pain, couldn’t bear to lose another piece of his family. She knew how this story ended. Knew, deep in her bones, that Ace’s hunt for Blackbeard would lead only to tragedy.

Her captain, the boy she’d vowed to protect from even the smallest drop of sorrow, would be shattered.
And hadn’t Luffy lost enough already? Hadn’t he already buried the pain of losing a family member, his grief a wound so raw it still bled if touched? How could she let this happen again?)Her fingers curled around the Vivre Card, her hand shaking. She wanted to stop him, to beg him to stay, to return to the safety of his crew. But the words caught in her throat, heavy with the weight of grief and memory.Sorrow and misery had shaped her existence for so long (the sorrow in Umekui’s heart weighed her down, a chain forged from her past and the promises she’d made). They were the verses of the poem that had shaped her existence (they had written her story in tears she never allowed herself to shed, in blood she always tasted, in scars etched deep into her body and soul-

They were all she knew.

). 
And when she looked at Ace, she saw it in him too: the same scent of grief and longing buried deep within his soul (she recognized the same shadow that clung to her—grief buried so deeply it had become part of him).(Couldn’t she beg him to stop? To turn back? To return to the crew he loved so much?)But she knew what he would say.(“Love isn’t enough if I’m not worth it.” confessed Ace sorrowfully.)She tightened her grip on the card, steadying herself.“Tell me, Ace,” she said suddenly, her voice quiet but piercing, “what are you willing to do for worth?”Ace turned to her, startled by the question. The question hit him like a blow, his breath hitching. For a moment, his expression was unreadable, but his dark eyes betrayed the storm within—shock, sadness, guilt, and anger all swirling in their depths.His hands balled into fists at his sides, small sparks of flame dancing over his fingers as if his Devil Fruit powers could burn away the weight of her words.Her gaze didn’t waver at the sight of flames.Umekui stepped closer, her voice cutting through the silence. “Let me tell you something,” she said, her tone unwavering. “There’s no worth for dead men. Only darkness. Coldness. Tombstones with forgotten names and grieving beloveds left behind.”Her voice broke slightly, but she pressed on, her crimson eyes meeting his as memories threatened to drown her. Her words dragged a memory from deep within her, one she’d buried but never escaped.
Rain poured relentlessly, soaking her to the bone. She stood in the graveyard, the earth beneath her shoes swallowing her step by step. Her crimson gaze locked onto the tombstone before her, the name engraved in clean, bold letters:

She felt no tears, no sobs—only a vast, empty void. The weight of grief pressed against her chest, suffocating her, louder than any storm raging above.

SAKUNOSUKE ODA

1491–1518

The whispers clawed at her mind, each one an echo of her own failure.

'I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.'

She blinked the memory away, her voice steady but hollow as she continued.“There’s no worth in leaving grieving people behind, Ace. So tell me—what is the worth you’re seeking? What is this worth that makes love… not enough?”Ace’s fists trembled at his sides, and he gritted his teeth, his heart beating violently against his ribcage. Memories of Sabo flooded his mind, unbidden and raw.
"You are good brother, Ace." speaks so gently the voice of Sabo, his blue eyes staring deeply into his.

"How come? I have his blood-I'm dirty, cursed." rasp the quiet voice of Ace, his hand holding tightly Sabo's.

Sabo’s blue eyes shone brightly as he clasped Ace’s shoulder.

“Silly Ace,” he said, smiling gently. “Our blood doesn’t define us—only our worth does.”

Ace’s lips trembled as he gazed at the sunlit curls of Sabo’s hair, his heart aching with warmth and love.
The memory faded, and Ace blinked rapidly, the sting of tears burning his eyes. His fists relaxed, the flames dying down, as he let out a shaky breath.“I was worth Sabo’s love and brotherhood,” he said finally, his voice soft but raw. almost broken.“But…” He swallowed hard, his gaze fixed on the ground. “It wasn’t enough to save him," His dark eyes shimmered, but he refused to let the tears fall. "Sabo died burning in flames. His ashes were devoured by the sea, leaving nothing behind. No body, no dreams, no warmth. Nothing but grief.” His voice cracked, but he forced himself to continue. “If you ask me what I’m seeking, I’ll tell you: retribution. I’m seeking to avenge Thatch. To be free of this burden, so I can finally go back to my crew. I’ll find Blackbeard and put an end to him. Then, maybe, I can return to my family."Ace shoulders sagged under the weight of his words, and he turned away, too ashamed to meet her gaze.Umekui’s breath caught in her chest. She wanted to argue, to tell him it wasn’t enough—but she saw the guilt etched into every line of his face, the weight he carried.“I once loved someone,” Umekui said softly, her voice breaking the silence. "Loved him so much that I thought it could save him."Ace turned, startled, as her crimson eyes glistened with a feeling of sorrow so profound it stole his breath.
Thunder cracked above her as she stood in the storm, her arm outstretched toward the man walking away from her.

“Don’t go!” she screamed, her hand outstretched as the rain poured down. But he had kept walking, his back turned to her, his voice soft yet unyielding.

“This is the only thing I can do..,” he said, his words carried away by the rain.

“Odasaku!” she screamed, her voice raw with desperation.

He didn’t turn back. Dazai stood there, helpless, drenched by the rain as Odasaku walked to his death.
Her crimson eyes locked with Ace’s.“He left,” she whispered. “He’s gone. And I couldn’t stop him. Love wasn’t enough to save him, just like it wasn’t enough to save Sabo. But it’s that same love…” She looked at Luffy, who sat laughing with their nakama in the distance. “…that makes me who I am today. It was enough to change me. Enough to make me quit the Port Mafia and join Luffy side.”Ace looked at her, his chest tightening. He didn’t know this man she spoke of, but he could see in her eyes the same grief he carried for Sabo.Umekui reached into her cloak and pulled out a small scrap of paper. Gently, she placed it in his hand.“When you find the answer to my question, call me,” she said. “I’ll always listen, Portgas D. Ace.”He closed his hand over the paper, her touch lingering for just a moment. “The man who made you leave the Port Mafia…” Ace said softly, his voice full of quiet understanding. “He must have been a good person.”Umekui smiled, a bittersweet expression that spoke of love and pain. “The best of all,” she replied.She turned her gaze to the horizon, the rising sun casting its warmth over the sands. “Sabo was a good brother,” she added gently. “Luffy talks about him often.”Ace’s lips curved into a soft, broken smile. “He loved Sabo so much.”“Loves,” Umekui corrected.Ace blinked, confused.“Love doesn’t fade after death, Ace,” Umekui said softly, a small, sad smile tugging at her lips. Ace let out a shaky breath, his hand closing around the paper she’d given him.He looked at her, his chest aching, and nodded. “You’re right,” he whispered. “Because I still love Sabo. And…” His voice trailed off, almost inaudible. “I still love Thatch.”For the first time, Ace allowed himself to feel the weight of those words—not as a curse, but as a truth.And maybe, just maybe, it was enough.Silence fell between them, heavy with the weight of what they couldn’t say. In the quiet dawn, grief and love intertwined, shaping them into something raw, something fragile, something human.

"if i cannot be loved, i must be feared."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"There is no escape-we pay for the violence and war of our ancestors."
In her long and dreadful existence, Umekui has been a child.The world would scoff at such a claim, dismissing her with narrowed eyes and cruel smirks, hissing that monsters cannot be children. But Umekui dares to remember, dares to reflect—because if she doesn’t, then who else will?Somewhere in the vast expanse of her fractured existence, she had been a child once.Because only a child could possess a body so fragile, so pathetically weak, that it bruised and bled at the slightest touch, every punch and cut branding her as worthless.Only a child could run with all the frantic energy in their tiny legs, only to still be too slow to escape the men who hunted her. Men with greedy hands and hollow eyes who sold her, piece by piece, to the highest bidder ( they always caught her, always dragged her back). And only a child would tremble—no, flinch—at the sight of blood, of murder, but still cling to the desperate, aching hope that someone, anyone, might hold her gently and shed her from the cruel world.
That someone might love her.
She used to think that Kana could be that someone. Kana, with her soft words and tender eyes, the woman who had cradled her belly as if the life inside it was sacred ( but it's the same child Kana carried that burned—ashes scattered by the flames of her madness). But Umekui knew that Kana never loved her like she wished to (How could she? Kana didn’t see a child when she looked at her.She saw a monster in chains, a beast bound by its own unholy curse).Still, Umekui remembers.She remembers the darkness that swallowed her whole, the cold that seeped into her bones like a disease, the chains coiled tight around her neck and ankles, dragging her back into endless torment.She remembers her body folding in on itself as her own ability tore her apart from the inside ( no longer human was always there ; crawling in her veins, tearing her flesh apart making her beg it to stop from destroying her).Umekui remembers the child she was, bowing low before Mori’s cruel, red eyes (the weight of his gaze still lingers, suffocating). She remembers the ghost of other children in those dark and cold cells, cowered—boys and girls too young to understand the price of their innocence, too frail to resist the men and women who eyed them like prey. They were helpless, broken by the world’s greed, their small bodies trembling in fear ( yet she remembers a boy, crying, shedding his body from the world-his name-kuma- a wound bleeding inside her heart).The chains, the cold, the hunger—it all blurred together. But the grief, the grief of watching others suffer as she had, never faded. It was a wound that never healed, a reminder of everything she had lost and could never save- She was never enough, and she had long accepted it, the weight of that truth lodged in her throat like a stone.
Yet, she tainted herself further, immersing in the sins of the Port Mafia, becoming their executor, their prophet. Her hands—those horrible hands—were drenched in the world’s blood, sparing no one, not even herself.

Umekui never dared to save.
Not when she was born to kill, not when every choice she made led only to more loss. She had been molded into something cold, something lethal, and with each life she took, she swallowed a little more of her humanity, until there was nothing left but the hollow ache of emptiness and the endless march toward the inevitable).She was nothing but a street rat ( that’s what they called her—the men and women who spat at her shadow, who jeered at her torn, filthy clothes and the grime coating her skin). A rat with hair like a bird’s nest and crimson eyes too hollow to belong to a child.And yet, despite everything, she had been a child, again the world would sneer and laugh at such a claim.But more than the cold, more than the chains, more than the faces of those who caged her (the men who took her worshiped their gods with empty, fanatical fervor, praising the heavens as they carved her body and broke her)—what she remembers most is the hunger.The gnawing, ravenous void in her stomach, twisting her insides until she could no longer stand.Hunger that made her body so light she thought the wind might carry her away, and so heavy she could barely lift her head. It wasn’t just food she craved; it was everything she had been denied. The warmth of a meal shared with gentle hands (Odasaku (first) and Sanji (last) have been the only ones).A touch that didn’t bruise ( now all she could feel was the lingering touch of her nakamas erasing years of pain, darkness, and slavery-)But little, she got nothing. The world only fed her pain, and still, she was never full. Hunger lived in her like a parasite, devouring everything she was until there was nothing left but a trembling child, alone in the dark.She was not alone in this merciless reality. No, Umekui Dazai had known too many children who bore the same cruel fate, their lives consumed by the same unrelenting despair that had once devoured her own.How could it be any different? To be born in this world was no gift but a curse, a sentence that crawled through their veins, feeding on the marrow of their innocence until only anguish remained.A child was nothing but a vessel for the sins of their makers, a fragile testament to the failings of the adults who brought them into this blighted existence. And the cruelest truth of all, she thought with a deep, aching sorrow, was that no child had ever asked for this.None of them had chosen to awaken in a world so wretched that it crushed them before they could even stand. Their lives were tragedies written before the first breath, unwelcome burdens thrust upon shoulders too small to bear them.In every place, in every world, in every universe, Umekui Dazai finds them—the broken childrens whose hollow gaze locks onto hers, crimson meeting emptiness.She stood at the edge of the sun-shadowed alley, her breath hitching as her cold gaze locked on the frail figure before her.That void is too familiar, too much like her own, and it pleads silently-Don’t turn away.  But seeing means remembering, and remembering tears open the old wounds she’s stitched shut with weary cold indifference.( The cruelty of the world presses down on her, suffocating, pulling her back into that endless sea of helplessness and despair. It’s the only truth she’s ever known—a crushing, relentless reality she endures with the resignation of someone too tired to fight).Her heart aches, heavy as stone, even as her mind clings to gratitude for the clarity pain brings. Her cold, unflinching eyes settle on the child, the shattered soul trailing shadows of countless others she has failed to save.The child—no older than seven, maybe eight, or six—seemed to barely exist within the vast shadow of the crumbling town.Yuba had been a ghostly wasteland when she arrived, the sun-scorched ruins standing as silent witnesses to the drought’s merciless reign. But this… this child was not a phantom. He was flesh, blood, and bone, though only barely so.His fragile body leaned against a splintered wooden crate, knees tucked to his chest as if he could fold himself small enough to disappear from the world. His arms, little more than sticks, trembled under the weight of his own body. She could count every rib through the thin, tattered shirt he wore, its fabric clinging to him like a second skin drenched in the grime of abandonment. His legs were so spindly that she wondered how they had carried him this far.And his face…his eyes were the color of the Alabasta sky, a blue so vivid like the sky that Nami admires, the sea that Luffy loves, yet now dulled and fading as if the life within them was a candle in its final flicker. Those eyes stared ahead, unfocused, glassy, and rimmed with red. Dust caked his golden hair, dimming what must once have been a radiant brilliance. Strands clung together in dirty clumps, the dry air and filth robbing them of their luster.Umekuii’s hands clenched at her sides, this is the same world and children Odasaku believed in—a world so wretched, yet worth dying for. The thought festers, bittersweet and violent, like iron in her mouth. She tastes blood and sorrow and something deeper, something sharper—a grief too vast to contain.The sight of the child stripped her of her resolve, replacing it with an ache that dug into her chest like a thousand needles. Her thoughts swirled: How long had he been here, the only ember of humanity in this abandoned town? What had he eaten, if anything at all? How had he survived while everything else withered and crumbled?The boy’s lips moved, but no sound came out. They were cracked, bleeding at the corners, and his tongue flicked out weakly as though searching for moisture that didn’t exist.She took a step closer, her sandals crunching on the dry ground, the sound startlingly loud in the oppressive silence. His head turned slowly toward her, eyes meeting hers for a fleeting moment before fluttering shut. He swayed, and Umekui’s heart leapt as his frail body threatened to collapse entirely.(She wouldn't be shocked if the child feared her. Hell, the whole damn world trembled in her wake. In that dark, twisted chapter of her past—when Mori had her by the soul, a puppet on strings—there wasn't a child who didn't scream her name, their cries echoing in the hollow of her chest- and it hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts,it hurts, it hurts,it hurts, it hurts).She bends low before him, her body trembling, not from the weight of the world, but from the weight of her own fractured soul.Her red lips twist into a soft smile, one she learned from Sanji, and Chopper—those two gentle souls who spoke in whispers that could shatter even the hardest heart. Their eyes, soft and kind, their smiles like a quiet prayer, had a power that made the cruelest sinner bow in shame.But now, as her lips curl in that same delicate arc, it feels like a betrayal.A mask to hide the raw, gaping hole inside her. A smile carved from sorrow and loss, a hollow imitation of the light that Luffy holds, but she could never bear."Hey!" she whispered hoarsely, the word catching in her throat.She doesn't reach for him. Not when she knows the scars on his body are the testament to a past where touch was never a comfort but a weapon. She doesn't ask who did this to him. She already sees it in his eyes—haunted, lost, afraid to go back to that place, to remember. She doesn't whisper empty promises, because she knows all too well the hollow echo they leave behind, a cruel mockery that only makes the wounds bleed more.She is not Luffy, who can make the darkest soul believe in the light with a smile shadows the sun.She is not Zoro, who stands as a mountain, an unyielding force, convincing others to believe in his strength, his silence, his sacrifice.She is not Nami, who would give up everything for the ones she loves, nor Usopp, who would tear down his own fears just to be seen as worthy of someone else's love.She is not Sanji, whose cooking and gentle hands heal broken spirits, nor Chopper, whose kindness and medicine mend the wounded.She is Umekui Dazai—the executioner, the monster, the devil, the prodigy cursed by her own abilities. She is the thing nightmares are made of, the living embodiment of despair, the one the world trembles at.She is nothing more than a name that drips with the weight of a thousand sins (Dazai!, Dazai!,Dazai!,Dazai!,Dazai!,Dazai!,Dazai!,Dazai!,Dazai!).She is everything and nothing at once. She is Dazai. She is Umekui. Never the two, always the same.She wields her blade with a hunger for destruction, carving smiles of blood into the faces of those who dare oppose her. She is the weapon of ruin, the kind of force that crumbles islands into rubble and turns thriving cities into smoldering ashes.She has learned to sacrifice anything, even the world itself, to feed the desires within her—the desire that nothing can sate, not even the dread and darkness of the Port Mafia.The celestial beings whisper about her in hushed tones, terrified of the power that consumes her from the inside out. The world sees her as a monster.(But not Odasaku. He never dared to insult her like that.)
"Save them. Protect the orphans, Dazai. Stand on the side of the good, even if it means you never see the end of your own torment. You may never escape your despair, but for the others, the ones still suffering in the dark corners of the world, you could be their light. You could be the blade that cuts through their chains, even if it means breaking your own in the process."

Odasaku's smile as always—a faint curve of his lips that held the weight of a thousand untold sorrows. But in his golden eyes, there was something more. A warmth, a kindness, that makes her heart tremble and ache for him.

"Being a child isn't a sin, Dazai," he whispered, voice soft like the hum of a forgotten prayer. "Protect them. Carry them. Shield them from the cruelty of this world, even if it hurts you, my dear Dazai. Carry them as long as you can. Don’t let their screams drown in the silence of your emptiness."

The weight of his words pressed down on her, raw and jagged like the broken earth after a battle lost long ago. In those golden eyes, she saw the echoes of war—the blood, the ashes, the children left behind. The stories that no one would tell, the ones buried beneath layers of dust and blood. And she knew, deep down, that the light he spoke of would never be enough to banish the darkness.

Yet it was all they had left.
The warmth in the street seemed to grow, though the cruel sun remained relentless, a cruel blaze on the barren sands. But within this moment, Umekui’s smile—a smile she hadn’t dared to wear in years—felt like the beginnings of an oasis.It stretched across her face, wide and raw, muscles trembling under the unfamiliar strain. Yet she held it steady, even as it burned, even as it ached. She had never seen Luffy’s wide grin fall even against the toughest moments, she could try, for this child.Her hand hovered over her veil as if she could imagine Luffy’s straw hat shielded her from the unrelenting weight of the world. She spoke softly, her voice carrying the same conviction that kept her crew moving forward."My name is Umekui," she whispered, the words floating like feathers in the still air. "I’m the first mate of the future King of the Pirates, Monkey D. Luffy. Join our crew!"The child’s eyes widened—blue like the sea, wide like the unending sky. In that moment, his wonder pierced through the suffocating despair she carried. She wondered if Odasuku, wherever he was, could see her now- Would he be proud? Could he see how she is trying to keep their promises, the ones forged in blood and sacrifices, for the orphans he gave his life to protect?)With careful movements, she sat cross-legged in front of him, folding herself to his level. She kept her smile soft this time, no longer forced, but genuine."I have a cool crew," she began, her tone light, inviting him into the tapestry of their lives. "A silly captain who can stretch his body like rubber. A swordsman whose blades are as sharp and strong as he is—and his hair is green, just like moss! A navigator who’s the smartest person you’ll ever meet; she loves maps and has a tangerine tree. A sniper whose sharp eyes can see miles away, and he can create amazing things from almost nothing!“And then there’s our chef—Sanji—who makes the tastiest meals in the world. He’d prepare anything you like!" She winked conspiratorially, earning the faintest glimmer of curiosity in the boy’s expression. "And the most incredible of all? We have a reindeer doctor, a healer whose fur is softer than clouds."The boy’s lips parted slightly, his voice barely audible. "A reindeer?"Umekui nodded, her eyes warm. "Yes, a reindeer! His name is Chopper. He comes from a land where the snow paints the earth white."“What’s snow?” he asked, his voice tentative, as though afraid the answer might be out of reach.Umekui chuckled, the sound light but tinged with sadness. "It’s frozen water that falls from the sky. Cold and soft. It blankets everything in white."His small face twisted in confusion. "Water…falling from the sky? That’s impossible. Water doesn’t fall anymore."Her smile faltered, just for a moment, before she forced it back into place. "The world is vast," she said, her voice steady. "Nothing is impossible. Have you ever seen a boy stretch like rubber? Or a reindeer that speaks?"He hesitated, his small hands clutching at the frayed fabric of his clothes. Slowly, he shook his head."Then join me," Umekui urged, her tone gentle but insistent. "Join us, and you’ll see the world. You’ll see water falling from the sky. You’ll never feel hunger or loneliness again—not with my nakama."The word seemed to linger in the air, catching the boy’s attention. "Nakama? What does that mean?"("Dreams!" Luffy’s exuberant voice rang clear.
"Dedication," Zoro’s smirk carried with it unshakable confidence.
"Protection," Nami’s smile, was sweet but steadfast.
"Courage," Usopp’s quiet, heartfelt whisper.
"Family," Chopper’s soft, endearing warmth.
"Love," Sanji’s deep, earnest confession.)"Everything," Umekui said finally, her voice reverent. "In a pirate’s life, nakama means everything."The boy’s eyes—so impossibly blue, untouched by the sea yet drowning in sorrow—lifted to meet hers. His lips trembled as he spoke, his voice still shy but growing bolder."I want to be everything too. I want to see the world. I want to see water falling from the sky. I want to meet the boy who stretches and the reindeer from the snow."Umekui’s smile softened, a warm laugh slipping past her lips as her chest ached with something close to hope. "Anything you desire, I’ll give it to you—" She stopped herself, realizing she didn’t even know his name."Azula," he said quietly, the tiniest smile flickering across his lips. "My name is Azula."Her heart clenched at the name, beautiful and fragile like the child before her. She felt the weight of his smallness, his frailty, but also the quiet strength in his words."Azula," she repeated, her voice like a promise.She noticed how his ears and cheeks reddened at her words, and she couldn’t help but laugh warmly. The sound startled him at first, but then his lips quirked upward, the beginnings of a smile."But first—there!" she exclaimed, holding out a worn but full water bag to Azula.Her crimson eyes glimmered with determination as she knelt down, bringing the bag closer to his trembling hands. "Drink, Azula!" she said. "Drink until your stomach hurts! Drink until you can’t feel the thunder in your chest or the dryness in your throat! Drink until the drought and the dust are nothing but a nightmare, long forgotten!"The boy hesitated, his small hands hovering near the bag as if it were a forbidden treasure. His blue eyes darted between the water and her face, unsure, untrusting, the weight of his life’s scarcity tying him down like chains."It’s okay," Umekui said, her tone softening but never losing its strength. She placed the water bag gently in his hands, guiding his fingers to curl around it. "This is for you. All of it. You don’t have to share, you don’t have to save it. Just drink."Azula’s lips trembled as he lifted the bag to his mouth. The first hesitant sip broke something inside him, and he drank deeper, the water spilling over the corners of his cracked lips. His thin frame shook as the cool liquid rushed down his throat, a sensation so foreign it almost overwhelmed him.Umekui watched, her chest tightening. She couldn’t look away from the way his hollow cheeks filled slightly with each gulp, or how his bony shoulders shook as he drank like he’d never stop. She smiled—soft and full of sorrow—as she imagined how many nights he had curled up, parched and hungry, thinking water was only for those stronger or luckier than him.As Azula finally pulled the water bag away, his chest heaved with deep breaths, and tears pooled in his wide blue eyes. His lips quivered, and he whispered, almost inaudibly, "It’s cold... so cold."Umekui reached out, wiping the water and tears from his face with the edge of her sleeve. "That’s what it feels like to start living again, Azula." Her voice was steady, warm, and unyielding, like the anchor she had become for him.( Because when she had been lost in the vast, cold, cruel sea, when those light hands cradled her, pulling her from the abyss and the echoes of death that haunted the depths of the East Blue, it had been so cold.
So cold, as she trembled in the darkness, pleading, screaming, begging for death, her own ability—the ones once skilled in killing with—becoming the very thing that nearly destroyed her.

Yet, those arms, those hands that could stretch and reach for the sun, had lifted her from the sea.

He saved her. He found her, the one she had been searching for.

He was the warmth that washed away the fire of her pain, the first breath she had taken in the endless night, the first sip of cool, refreshing water she had allowed herself to drink. He was the reason she could breathe again, the light that made her heart feel whole.
Monkey D. Luffy was what it felt like to start living for Umekui.)Azula clutched the bag to his chest, staring at her with an expression that was neither joy nor sorrow but something far more profound—hope."Thank you," he murmured, his voice so small it could have been the wind.Umekui smiled at him again, and this time it didn’t ache as much.Azula, she thought, her crimson eyes burning with resolve. Child of the sky, I’ll protect the light in you at any cost.Chopper sipped the cool water in his glass, his gaze lingering on Sanji, who moved deftly through the abandoned restaurant, a quiet determination in his every motion. Beside Chopper, Zoro sat sharpening his swords, the scrape of steel against stone a steady rhythm as he wiped away the stubborn grains of sand clinging to his precious blades.On the floor, Vivi and Nami crouched around a weathered map. Their expressions were heavy with thought, brows furrowed, as their fingers traced the lines and markings that mapped a kingdom on the brink.From his seat across the room, Usopp fiddled absentmindedly with his tools, his gaze flicking to the two women. He leaned forward slightly, his curiosity piqued.“So the rebels aren’t there?” His voice was tentative, searching.Vivi’s blue eyes lifted to meet his, sadness swirling in their depths. She shook her head, the motion weighed down by defeat.“No,” she said, her voice trembling. “It seems they’ve deserted the city.”Nami offered a small, sad smile as her fingers moved across the map’s surface. “Maybe they’ve pulled back,” she murmured, almost to herself. “If they’ve moved their camps, it could be to Katorea or Aluma. Those cities are closest to the capital—strategically, it makes sense.”“Damn it,” Vivi whispered, the words escaping her like a sigh torn from her soul.“Don’t worry, Vivi-chan!” Sanji’s voice was warm, a bright contrast to the somber air in the room. “We’ll figure this out. How about we rest here for a bit, and then we’ll head toward the next city?” He smiled at her, his optimism unfaltering.Vivi managed a faint smile in return, but it didn’t reach her eyes. As she stared down at her trembling hands, a storm of thoughts roared through her mind (Rest? How could she rest when her people suffered under Crocodile’s grip? How could she even breathe, let alone close her eyes, when guilt clawed at her with every heartbeat?
Her kingdom’s cries echoed in her mind, an endless dirge of pain and despair. Rest was for the unburdened, for the naïve princess she had been years ago—not for Nefertari Vivi.

Not for someone carrying the weight of failure, the blood of her people on her hands).
Chopper’s gaze shifted to Vivi, and the sight of her haunted expression made his stomach twist. No one should bear that pain alone, he thought, his heart aching with the resolve to help her somehow.The tense quiet shattered as the door burst open with a crash. Luffy tumbled through, his wild entrance knocking Usopp off his chair.“Hey! Watch it!” Usopp shouted indignantly, scrambling to his feet as Luffy stood, rubbing the back of his head with a sheepish grin.“This city’s so boring,” Luffy complained, his voice an exaggerated moan. “There’s no food!”“Of course there’s no food, you idiot,” Sanji snapped, hurling a chair toward Luffy, who ducked just in time. “The town’s abandoned because of the drought!”“Still!” Luffy pouted, clutching his stomach. “I’m starving!”From his seat, Zoro muttered, “Stop whining and deal with it.”But Luffy’s grumbling stopped abruptly as his gaze swept the room. His posture straightened, his eyes wide with sudden urgency. “Where’s Ume?” he asked, his voice tight.A heavy silence settled over the room, and Chopper answered hesitantly, “We thought she was with you. She followed you into the town earlier.”Zoro sprang to his feet, his movements sharp and purposeful. “This woman—she’s always wandering off at the worst times.”“Don’t even think about it,” Nami interjected, her tone firm. “If you go after her, you’ll just get lost like always.” She stood, folding the map with swift precision before turning to Luffy. “We’ll go together,” she said.But before they could move, a soft voice interrupted them.“Looking for me?”The room stilled. Luffy spun around like a sunflower, his face breaking into a beam of pure sunlight.“Ume!” he exclaimed, rushing toward her.But his steps faltered as his eyes caught on the figure behind her. Nestled against Ume’s back was a small boy with tousled blond hair that glinted like sunlight on sand. His tiny fists clutched at her black robe, his face half-hidden in the folds of fabric.Luffy blinked, his mind grasping for clarity as the sight stirred an unbidden memory—Sabo’s golden hair, the way it would catch the light in those fleeting days of childhood.The boy’s blue eyes peeked out cautiously, meeting Luffy’s gaze for an instant before retreating to the safety of Ume’s shoulder.Luffy stares harder, his gaze locking onto the frail, trembling boy hiding behind Ume. For a moment, his mind feels like the open ocean—a storm of thoughts crashing and rising like waves. He sees the scars running along the boy’s arms, tiny jagged lines that shouldn’t belong on someone so small. He sees the hollow cheeks, the knobby knees, the way the kid clings to Ume’s robe like it’s the only thing tethering him to safety.His teeth grind together, sharp like a predator’s. Food is everything. Food is joy. It’s strength. It’s life. A kid should never— He swallows hard, his fists curling tight at his sides.Anger surges in him, wild and hot-like when Ace got hurt protecting him. Like when Sabo was trapped in that house with people who didn’t deserve to be called family. Damn it. Sabo.For a second, he’s not in this dry, broken-down restaurant anymore. He’s back in the grey-blue waters of the Goa Kingdom, staring at the burning ship where Sabo was held captive. He’s back to imagining his brother floating somewhere in the sky, finally eating his fill. Did they starve him too, before they—Luffy shakes his head, snapping himself out of it. His eyes refocus on the boy, on his bony hands and the scars etched into his skin. The thought hits him like a punch to the gut: How can someone survive without food? Across the room, Chopper is already moving.The little reindeer’s steps are slow and deliberate, his expression tender but serious. He’s seen too many injuries to hesitate, but his heart squeezes all the same.His voice is soft, kind. “Hey. It’s okay.”The boy flinches at the sound, burying his face deeper into Ume’s back. “You don’t have to hide,” he says, his big brown eyes full of understanding. “I’m a doctor. I can help you.”His heart aches because he knows that look in the boy’s eyes—the fear, the exhaustion, the quiet hope that maybe, this time, someone will care. Chopper swallows hard. He’s just a kid, he thinks, his stomach knotting. Someone hurt him, and now he’s afraid of everyone, even the ones who want to help. But I won’t let him hurt anymore. That’s my duty—to heal, to make it better.Chopper inches forward, his movements gentle, his eyes never leaving the boy’s face. “You’re safe now,” he murmurs. “No one’s going to hurt you. I promise.”Behind them, Vivi watches, her hands trembling as they clutch at the hem of her dress. Her chest feels heavy, as if the air itself is weighing her down. She knows those scars too well, not from her own body but from her kingdom—wounds carved into the people who trusted her, into the land she was supposed to protect.This boy, she thinks, her heart sinking deeper. He’s a reflection of everything I’ve failed to stop. The drought, the suffering, the despair—my people are no better off than he is. Maybe worse. Guilt rises in her throat like bile, threatening to choke her.Her fingers tighten until her knuckles turn white. She wants to do something, anything, to make it better. But the map is still in her hands, and the weight of their mission keeps her rooted in place. “I’m sorry,” she whispers, the words slipping out unbidden. She doesn’t know if she’s apologizing to him, to her people, or to herself.Luffy hears her, glancing over his shoulder. His gaze flickers to the boy again, and his resolve sharpens.“Oi,” he says, his voice steady but firm. “We’re gonna fix this.”For a moment, it’s unclear if he’s talking to Vivi, the boy, or everyone in the room. But there’s no hesitation in his voice, no doubt in the tilt of his hat or the fire in his eyes.The crew exchanges glances, their eyes meeting briefly, but the understanding between them feels eternal. A quiet warmth spreads through the room as small, knowing smiles play across their lips. They’ve heard countless promises, weathered storms of uncertainty and chaos, but if there’s one person whose word they’d follow to the ends of the earth, it’s Monkey D. Luffy.He’s their sun—the light that cuts through their shadows, the unshakable hope that binds them together. No matter how dark their paths once were, Luffy’s unwavering belief in them has made them believe in themselves.Umekui’s eyes flicker, her gaze fixed on the crimson soul blazing within her captain’s chest.It’s a light so fierce, so raw, that it feels like it could burn through even the deepest despair. The memory of Odasku, her lost promise, intertwines with the brilliance of Luffy’s vow, wrapping around her like a lifeline. Her lips part slightly, and she lets herself believe in Monkey D. Luffy again.“You didn’t lie,” Azula says, his words carrying the quiet weight of someone unused to being able to trust. “So you really have a reindeer doctor in your crew?”Umekui laughs softly, the sound warm and low, as she reaches out to ruffle Chopper’s fur.“This is Chopper,” she says, her voice carrying a note of pride as if introducing a treasure.Lowering herself to her knees, she carefully shifts Azula in her arms, bringing him forward. The boy tenses for a moment, but her touch is steady, and soon he relaxes against her. She cradles his frail body protectively, as if shielding him from the world.“Chopper,” she says with a smile, “meet Azula.”Chopper steps closer, his expression brightening into a wide, genuine smile. His small hooves tap lightly against the floor as he leans down, bowing slightly in greeting.“Hello, Azula!” Chopper chirps, his voice kind and brimming with warmth.Azula’s blue eyes blink up at him, curious but still cautious. After a moment, his gaze shifts to the window, his expression wistful.“Is it true…” he begins hesitantly, his voice barely above a whisper, “that frozen water falls from the sky?”Chopper’s eyes widen briefly in surprise before his smile grows even wider. His excitement bubbles over, uncontainable.“Yes!” Chopper exclaims, his tail swishing behind him. “It’s called snow!”Azula’s eyes brighten, the dullness in their depths melting away like frost in sunlight. The word seems to linger in the air, wrapping around him like a warm blanket.“Then it exists,” Azula murmurs, his voice filled with wonder. His fingers clutch lightly at Umekui’s robe as if anchoring himself to the moment. “Water falling from the sky…it really exists.”The words hit Vivi like a blade to her chest. She flinches visibly, taking an involuntary step back. Her hands tremble as she presses them to her sides, her breath catching.He’s never seen the rain, she realizes, the thought piercing through her like lightning. Because of the drought, because of Crocodile, because of her.The guilt crashes over her, a tidal wave of remorse. The image of her kingdom, its dry rivers and cracked soil, flashes in her mind. This boy should have known rain, just as my people should have known peace. Instead, they’ve suffered. They’ve endured years of emptiness, of thirst, because I couldn’t stop it.Her legs feel weak, her body trembling under the weight of her failure. She bites her lip, hard enough to taste blood, but the pain doesn’t distract her from the truth. It’s my fault.She steps back again, as if retreating from the scene, from the boy’s brightened gaze, from the unbearable weight of her own inadequacy. Her head lowers, and for a moment, she doesn’t know if she can keep going.The whispers rise like smoke in Vivi’s mind, curling around her thoughts and choking her resolve. They come with the ashes—the ashes of the corpses burned in Erumalu, where the once-thriving city was reduced to nothing but sand and sorrow. The voices of the dead press against her, screaming, crying, begging her not to abandon them.You don’t have the right, they hiss, their words sharp and jagged like shards of broken glass. Not when so many have died in this madness. Not when we burned, when our blood soaked the ground you vowed to protect.
The weight of their whispers suffocates her, a relentless tide of guilt and grief that crashes over her, dragging her down. She feels it in her chest, a tightening that makes it hard to breathe, and in her legs, trembling under the crushing pressure).
Her knees threaten to buckle, but she forces herself to stay upright. The map in her hands feels heavier now, as though it carries the weight of every life lost to the chaos tearing Alabasta apart.I don’t deserve to rest. I don’t deserve to breathe, she thinks bitterly, her teeth sinking into her lip. Not when my people can’t. Not when I’ve failed them.Her gaze flickers to Azula, the boy so small, so scarred by a life that mirrors her kingdom’s ruin. The brightness in his eyes as he speaks of snow—of a world he’s never seen—only deepens the ache in her chest. This is what’s left of us. This is what Crocodile has done.
Again, Vivi feels herself drowning in a sea of failures and darkness.
"Why are you making that face?" Usopp asked, his voice quiet but carrying a hint of curiosity as he looked at his first mate.She didn’t answer immediately, the expression on her face shifting between annoyance and acceptance. Her crimson eyes fixed on Vivi and Luffy, who were talking to the old man Toto at the far end of the abandoned street. The weight of the conversation seemed to hang in the air, filling the space around them.Azula was still resting, with Chopper tending to his injuries, while Nami and Sanji fussed over him like doting parents. Even though the boy had rejoined their side only hours ago, he had already become someone they all had grown attached to, like a new thread woven into the fabric of their crew."If you were in Vivi's spot, what would you do?" Umekui’s voice cut through the silence, her arms crossed and her body leaning casually against the restaurant wall.A warm breeze tousled her long black hair, and her crimson eyes—still tired, but with a touch more life than before—drifted away from the others, focusing on the ground. The weight of the question hung between them, like the sun-drenched silence of the desert.Usopp opened his mouth, but no words came out. He swallowed hard, the answer he was desperately trying to push back flooding his thoughts, almost overpowering him.He had thought about it so many times, the same haunting question. How could he not, when Vivi’s sad eyes and the sting of her unshed tears still echoed in his chest? His first instinct, the one that always rose without thought, was to abandon the kingdom to its fate.Usopp knew who he was. He was a coward—he’d always been. It was a truth burned into his veins, a constant hum in the back of his mind. He had always been ruled by his emotions, a slave to his fear.But sometimes... sometimes, Usopp was a contradiction. He was terrified, yes, but he had acted in the face of his fear before. He’d trembled at the thought of Kuro and his Black Cat Pirates heading toward his village. He’d almost pissed himself at the sight of the Fishmen in Nami's hometown, when he feared for his life, for Nami’s life. He’d cried when the Fishmen nearly drowned him, when the terror of being devoured consumed him, all while knowing Nami had risked everything to save him. He had prayed for help when trapped in Longue Town, trying to save Luffy from the mad clown.Yet despite all his fear, Usopp had fought. He had fought with every fiber of his being to save Kaya and the village. Fear had not stopped him. He had charged forward for the sake of his friends, his nakama—because their safety mattered more than his terror.He had forced his tears back and stood against his fear, because Nami was in danger, because Nami’s bloody arm and raw cries echoed in his mind like a haunting chant. He had risked everything for the crew, for the people he loved, because Luffy—Luffy was the heart of it all. Luffy was the one who had believed in him when no one else had. Luffy was the first to trust him, to accept him for who he was. Luffy was the glue that held them all together ( and if he is no longer there-then what is left for them?).And Usopp knew, deep down, that he would always risk himself for his nakama. He would swallow his fear and stand tall, even if it meant facing death, because their happiness and safety were more important than his own.Usopp’s eyes flickered back to Umekui, considering her question once more. He turned it over in his mind, trying to understand. Alabasta wasn’t Kaya or his village. It wasn’t Nami’s freedom, and it wasn’t Luffy. Alabasta wasn’t his nakama. Vivi wasn’t him. He wasn’t her. She had her own battles to fight, ones that Usopp could never truly understand.He offered a small, sad smile to Umekui, and after a long pause, he finally spoke."If the kingdom held one of you," Usopp begins, his eyes dimming, "If my nakama was in danger like Alabasta is in danger to Vivi, then I’d fight. I’d fight against every instinct that tells me to run, to hide, to cry... because you’re my nakama. I’d face that fear, even if I trembled and my heart ached with every step. I’d stand, for you." His smile falters, a bitter softness creeping in, revealing the deep pain that lingers in him."But if the kingdom wasn’t mine... If it wasn’t one of my nakama, then it’s just another place in the world, and I’d turn my back on it, like I always do. I’d walk away, even if it tore me apart, because I’m too much of a coward to bear the weight of a stranger’s pain. I know that about myself. It’s who I am."He pauses, his gaze far away, haunted by something deeper than just fear, something more like guilt, more like resignation. "I’m not Vivi," Usopp murmurs, his voice barely above a whisper. "And Vivi’s not me. She carries the weight of a kingdom, and I can’t even carry my own fears without shaking." He exhales, the sorrow in his words sinking into the air. "Each battle, each fight... they’re born from something inside of us. Something that makes us push forward, even when it hurts. I don’t know what it is that drives Vivi, but... maybe I’ll never understand it."He meets Umekui’s gaze, the sadness in his eyes impossible to hide. "But if it were one of you in Alabasta’s place, I would understand. Because then, it wouldn’t just be a kingdom. It would be home. And I’d fight, even if I had to destroy every part of myself to do it."Umekui's wide red eyes meet his warm dark green eyes."And you, Umekui? What would you do if you were in Vivi's spot?" he asks. Umekui's crimson eyes, wide and enigmatic, linger on Usopp’s face for a moment too long, as if weighing his words against a thousand ghosts that only she can see. Her lips curl into a faint, sardonic smile, one that does little to disguise the abyss beneath it."What would I do?" she echoes softly, her voice steeped in a kind of resigned melancholy. The warm desert breeze stirs her hair, and for a moment, it feels as if the past is whispering to her, its voice heavy with blood and smoke. She exhales slowly, almost as if exhaling the weight of an old, unwelcome memory."I think wars are just reflections of people," she begins, her voice as measured as a blade drawn from its sheath. "Ugly, desperate, and always looking for meaning in chaos."Her eyes drift to the horizon, the sunlight caught in their red depths, but they remain cold, untouched. "When you’ve taken enough lives, Usopp, you start to see war for what it is: a graveyard built on ideals no one truly understands. It's the living that suffer, not the dead. And the ones who live? They carry the weight of it forever, their hands forever stained, no matter how much they wash them."Umekui pauses, her smile hardening into something brittle, something aching. "So, what would I do if I were Vivi?" She tilts her head slightly, the question hanging in the air like a challenge to herself. "I would fight, of course. Not because I believe in kingdoms or royals, or even justice. I’d fight because I know what it’s like to be swallowed by the darkness and to see others dragged into it. I’d fight because I can’t stop myself. Because to me, dying for a cause, no matter how futile, is easier than living without one. Well, that’s what the old me will tell you."Her gaze shifts back to Usopp, the barest flicker of warmth behind the vast sorrow in her eyes. "Because in the end, it’s all the same, isn’t it? Fight or run. Save or abandon. We all live with the ghosts of what we choose. Maybe Vivi is stronger than me because she fights for something pure. Maybe I’d just be fighting because I'm searching for a reason for this meaningless world."Her smile twists, bittersweet. "But that’s the thing about battles, Usopp. Whether you win or lose, you never leave them behind. The dead don’t let you."Umekui’s smile tightened, a bitter curve against the cruel sun. "Orders are just orders," she murmured, her voice a razor cutting through the air. "No one is truly innocent, and no one is wholly guilty—except those who wield the power, those who make others pay the price of their royalty and ambition."Her crimson gaze softened, though it remained as deep and distant as the sea, touched by something older than sorrow. "I’ve seen it before. The way power trickles down, like poison in a stream. The soldiers who obey without question. The rebels who fight for what they believe is right. The innocents caught in the crossfire, like Azula and so many more. They all bleed the same, and in the end, they all become just another casualty for someone else’s ideals."The streets of this broken kingdom blurred, and in their place, she saw the carnage she had left behind.( She remembered the silence that hung heavy after each mission, Chuuya’s empty gaze staring into nothingness, his exhaustion speaking louder than any words ever could. His hands, stained red, were steady when they should have trembled, but his eyes betrayed him.
She saw Akiko too, her screams echoing in the sterile rooms of makeshift operating tables, her hands trembling as she revived the dead again and again. Soldiers who would rise only to die once more, their bodies mere tools in an endless game of war and power.
It wasn’t guilt that weighed on her now; she had long since learned guilt was a luxury for those who weren’t raised to wield death as their only weapon. No, what gnawed at her was the futility of it all.)She leaned back against the wall, her arms folded, the weight of her thoughts pressing down like an invisible storm."The truth is, Usopp, wars aren’t about good or evil. They’re about survival. Loyalty. And sometimes, about nothing at all. The world spins on its axis of cruelty, and the ones who pay the heaviest price are always the ones who never asked to play the game in the first place (the voices scream, spit, so many names inside her mind yet she could only whisper Robin name back-)."Her gaze flicked to where Luffy stood, his straw hat tilted as he listened to Toto and Vivi, his usual wide grin softened into something gentler. "That’s why I fight for him," she said, her voice a low whisper. "Because he doesn’t understand power that way. He doesn’t use it to control or crush. He just... lives. And maybe that’s foolish, but maybe it’s what makes him worth following."Umekui’s crimson gaze sharpens, though her voice remains soft, a blade wrapped in velvet. "And it is because of this," she continues, her tone laced with something between bitterness and resignation, "that I could never share Vivi’s beliefs. I could never be like her—not when the blood of her legacy is soaked with sins and wars."She tilts her head slightly, her expression unreadable as she watches Usopp. "Maybe it’s her dedication as a princess that drives her. Maybe it’s guilt. Or maybe she’s trying to atone for the sins of her father and Crocodile, because there’s one thing the world has taught women—" she pauses, her words heavy as the air before a storm. "A woman will always pay for a man’s sins. Used as tools, as pawns. That’s apparently a woman’s place in this world."Her words linger like ash scattered on the wind before her crimson eyes meet Usopp’s dark green ones with a quiet intensity. "Vivi’s fight is admirable, but it is a burden she was born to carry. Me? I could never bear it. I had nothing left to sacrifice for something so tainted. I fight for my own reasons now, selfish or not, but not for legacies written in blood. That’s a chain I refuse to shackle myself to ( Not when she has already shackled herself to the gods and Mori for so long that the only freedom left for her is to turn her back and hate-)"Her lips curve into a faint, sardonic smile as she leans back against the wall, her gaze unflinching. "So, while I find her courageous and foolish, I could never follow the same path. I could never believe in what she fought for. Because in the end, I learned one thing, it’s always women and children left to bear the weight of men’s wars."Usopp blinked, trying to process her words.He had never heard Umekui speak so much, and certainly never with such intensity. It was a side of her he had rarely glimpsed—a side that felt raw and unburdened by the silence that often clung to her like a second skin. She was always the quiet one, the one who would listen, her eyes ever watchful, as though the weight of the world hung heavy on her shoulders.He was used to being the talker between the two of them. He would share his dreams, his childhood, the times he spent working to pay for his mother’s medication, and the stories he wrote in the quiet hours of the night ( it was good for once to be heard without feeling judged and mocked-). But now, he heard her voice, strong and unyielding, words flowing like a river, carving deep paths in his heart. Each sentence felt like a truth wrapped in agony, the kind of truth that could break kingdoms, break men.Usopp had never truly known the depth of her thoughts, the cold storm that lay beneath her cool exterior, until now.As she spoke, he couldn’t help but think back to the first time he met her—shrouded in bandages, a ghost-like figure with an aura of danger and mystery.But now, standing before him, Umekui was something different. She was not the figure he once feared, but something more, something infinitely more terrifying, not because of her strength but because of the quiet, brutal wisdom she held.Her words could tear through empires, unraveling everything that seemed unshakable. She had the kind of wisdom that made nations tremble, that nobles could kill for, that could convince anyone to believe in truth, even if it was a lie, as long as she said it with conviction.She was nothing like Vivi. The princess who carried the weight of a kingdom on her shoulders, the one whose beliefs were wrapped in sacrifice and duty. Vivi’s fight was for her people, for her kingdom, and for the freedom of her land.Umekui, however, fought for no such cause. She fought for her nakama, for Luffy’s dream, and for the future they were all building together. Their ideals were like two opposing forces, yet that was what made them unique, what made them irreplaceable in their own right.Vivi carried the kingdom of Alabasta, the legacy of her ancestors, with every step she took. Umekui, on the other hand, carried the Straw Hat on her shoulders—Luffy’s promise, his dream. They were two sides of a coin, each one different, each one invaluable.Usopp understood, finally for the first time, why Luffy chose Umekui as his first mate. She was the anchor in their chaos, the steady hand that guided them through the storm. She was the shadow that walked beside their captain, a reminder of what it truly meant to live for something greater than yourself.Suddenly, Usopp’s warmth and infectious laughter fill the air, a stark contrast to the storm of thoughts that had just been swirling in her mind and wraps her in a fierce hug."Ughh, sometimes you scare me when you speak like that, Umekui!" Usopp teases, his voice light and full of affection.She doesn’t resist, allowing herself a brief moment of vulnerability in his embrace. His teasing was a reminder of their bond, of the strange, messy family they had become.Even though she usually kept her emotions tightly guarded, there was a part of her—small but undeniable—that appreciated the warmth of moments like this."And it makes you the best first mate in the world!" Usopp continues, grinning widely, his tone shifting to a playful boast. "While not as fabulous as the proud captain Usopp!" He chuckles, squeezing her tighter. "But you’re close behind!"A rare, soft chuckle escapes her lips as she rolls her eyes. It’s a fleeting sound, but it’s enough to remind Usopp that even behind the serious, seemingly cold exterior, Umekui was still, in her own way, part of their family.“Idiot…” she mutters with a fond smile, though there’s no bite to the word.Umekui lets herself linger in the moment, savoring the connection, the warmth that only Usopp’s chaotic affection could bring. And for once, maybe it wasn’t so bad to be reminded of what it meant to be a nakama and a first mate.The sandstorm in Rainbase slapped in sheets, a cold and unrelenting downstorm that seemed to carry with it the weight of a thousand unspoken truths. The Baroque Works headquarters was quiet, save for the occasional creaking of the wooden floorboards the faint murmurs of conversation, and the scent of debauchery of the upper bar where corrupted men and women drowned in their vices.They didn’t know it yet, but the time was coming when their world would be changed forever, corrupted, sinner, preacher, there was no distinction for men who seek power like faith. In the dimly lit backroom, Miss All Sunday stood, her silhouette cast by the faint, flickering lantern. Her dark blue eyes, sharp and unreadable, glanced through the glass, where the massive figures of crocodiles seemed to watch her—their cold gaze ever so patient like a predator biding their time.She turned her attention toward the door, her composed exterior betraying none of the thoughts that simmered inside her. It was a mask she had learned to wear like a second skin, carried with an elegance that only years of discipline could forge."Thank you all for coming to this gathering. Welcome to Rainbase, the largest casino of all!" Miss All Sunday said, her voice calm and controlled, but there was a subtle edge to it, an undercurrent of anticipation lurking beneath her composed tone.The Baroque Works agents, seated across from her at the long table, exchanged uneasy glances. Whispers fluttered through the room as they shifted, awaiting an explanation.M.1, his sharp eyes narrowing, crossed his arms and leaned forward, a hint of impatience creeping into his voice. "Cut the chase, Miss All Sunday. Why did you call us here?"The other agents nodded, their gazes fixed on her, eager for an answer.Miss All Sunday let the silence stretch for a moment, then a knowing smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. "The moment has come to reveal the true identity of your boss," she said, her voice laced with mystery and satisfaction.They could feel it — the shift in the air, a change that came with the arrival of one man, one figure who carried more weight than all the rest combined.A shadow passed by the enormous chair at the head of the long table.

Mr. 0.

The chair slowly turned, and a collective gasp echoed through the room as the man sitting there came into view.His grey, dark, and bleak eyes bore into them, cold and unfeeling, while his long, slick black hair fell in a sharp wave down his neck. A deep scar ran from his forehead to his chin, a permanent reminder of the battles he had fought. The hook on his arm gleamed ominously in the dim light. The long green coat he wore, flowing like a dark omen, completed the formidable image.It was Crocodile.The leader of Baroque Works, the Warlord of the Sea, the man who held the power to shake the very foundations of the world. His presence filled the room, suffocating the air with a chilling dominance. The agents froze, their eyes wide in disbelief as they realized that this was the man they had been serving all along, their mysterious, unreachable boss.The atmosphere grew heavy. His presence was oppressive, a darkness that seeped into every corner of the room. His tall, imposing figure cut through the space like a blade, his sharp gaze cold and calculating as he surveyed his agents. The agents were frozen.Crocodile didn’t acknowledge them. His gaze, predatory and cold, was fixed on Miss All Sunday. But as he spoke, his voice broke the stillness, and the words, when they came, had a weight that crushed the room."I’ve kept you all in the dark long enough," he began, the chill in his voice hanging in the air like a threat. "You’ve all been serving me for one reason — because you wanted power, yes? Because you were hungry for something greater, something more. You didn’t know why I brought you all together, but you trusted in my vision... Now, it’s time you learned the truth."Miss All Sunday did not flinch at his cold tone and words. She had known him for years and knew the depths of his ambition. But for the rest of them, this was a revelation, the unveiling of something far darker than they could ever imagine.Crocodile's presence filled the room like a storm, unrelenting and cold. The agents of Baroque Works stood frozen, their breaths shallow, unsure whether to retreat or listen. His gaze swept across them, his cold eyes glimmering with the promise of something greater, something terrifying.The storm outside raged on, but within the walls of this room, a different kind of storm was brewing ( they are stupid to not know that the source of the sandstorm is this man himself-). His voice, low and gravelly, echoed in the silence of the room."You think you know power, don't you?" Crocodile sneered, his lips curling into a smile, but there was no warmth in it. "You think that being a Warlord, holding a position granted by the World Government, is the pinnacle of success?" His laugh was soft, almost pitying. "How naive."The agents flinched at his words, and a subtle tremor ran through their bodies. They had never seen a leader like Crocodile before — with a raw, unfiltered ambition pouring out like a flood."I’ve seen the way this world works," he continued, his voice darkening with each syllable. "It’s a system built on weakness. A system that rewards the cowardly, the mediocre. The strong are constantly held down by the chains of those who pretend to rule, by the hypocrites who wear the crowns and pass laws, while the world decays beneath their feet."Crocodile’s eyes locked onto each of them, one by one. They could feel the weight of his gaze, the crushing pressure of his intent. His words dug into their hearts like daggers."And I, Crocodile, will burn this system to the ground."He paused, letting the silence stretch, thick and suffocating, before continuing."Alabasta will fall. And when it does, it will mark the beginning of a new world. A world where power is not handed to those who grovel before it, but to those who take it. A world where the strong are no longer trampled by the weak, where the rulers of this world are not some puppet monarchs or corrupt government agents, but men like me. Men who understand what true strength and power is."The air grew heavy with his words as if the room itself was suffocating under the weight of his ambition. The agents of Baroque Works looked at each other, their expressions filled with uncertainty and fear.Crocodile leaned forward, the shadows in his eyes growing deeper, more menacing."You think you are safe because you’re in my inner circle. You think your loyalty is enough to protect you," he sneered, his voice dripping with contempt. "But loyalty means nothing when the world crumbles. And when I take Alabasta — when I take this kingdom — I will show everyone, even the World Government, that I am the one who shapes history. That I am the one who decides the fate of nations."His eyes burned with intensity as he spoke, the cold fire of ambition lighting his face. The agents trembled before him, their knees weak, their hearts racing in fear.The room was silent now, save for the hushed breaths, as if breathing itself was in reverence to Crocodile’s speech.He took a slow step forward, towering over them, his voice softening into something cold, cutting through the tension."I’m going to reshape this world," he said, each word filled with an unshakable conviction. "And when I do, those who doubted me, those who resisted me, will be crushed beneath my feet. There will be no mercy, no second chances. The strong will survive, and the weak will be eradicated. That is the world I’m building — Operation Utopia."The agents stared at him, and for the first time, they truly understood. Crocodile wasn’t just a Warlord of the Sea. He wasn’t just a man seeking power. No. He was a force of nature, and this was his crusade. A crusade to burn away the old world and build something new — something darker, something far more terrifying.And they, the agents of Baroque Works, were nothing more than instruments in his hands."Now," Crocodile said, his voice low and chilling, a final warning as he stood from his seat, "I’m going to show you the fate of the people who dare to deceive me."A guttural scream pierced the air from behind the enormous door. The heavy doors were suddenly flung open, and two underlings dragged the battered form of Mr. 5 across the floor, his body slumped and broken.M.1, Miss Doublefinger, Miss Merry Christmas, M.4, and M.2 stared, their mouths agape, eyes wide in disbelief. The iconic glasses that once rested on Mr. 5's face were shattered, blood seeping from his wounds as his limp body was pulled further into the room.Crocodile stepped forward, his shadow stretching like a dark omen. He approached the broken figure of Mr. 5 with deliberate steps, his cold gaze never leaving the agent. Without a word, he gripped Mr. 5’s throat, lifting him high, forcing him to dangle in the air like a puppet with its strings cut."You told me the Straw Hats were eliminated, and that the princess was captured," Crocodile’s voice was a smooth, dangerous whisper. "You even claimed to have let Dazai flee... Yet here they are, alive, and Dazai is among them. I need her, and you failed to eliminate the pirates. You failed to bring me Dazai!"A sinister laugh echoed in the room, devoid of any warmth. Crocodile’s grip tightened, and his eyes narrowed as he waited for an answer."The black-haired woman," Mr. 5 choked out, his voice barely audible, "is a monster! She killed M.3 and injured Miss Valentine. Her power is dangerous—we are nothing against her—she can erase our pow—""Now, now," Crocodile interrupted with a mocking chuckle, his lips curling into a sadistic smile. "Don’t ruin the surprise for our friends."In an instant, Crocodile’s eyes darkened, bloodlust radiating from him like a palpable force. His body began to shift as the sand from his Devil Fruit powers erupted from his back, swirling around him in a frenzy. The room filled with the unnerving sound of sand shifting, particles of it flying through the air, and with a cruel flick of his wrist, the sand rushed toward Mr. 5.Mr. 5's screams were drowned out as the sand poured into his mouth and eyes, suffocating him in a gruesome display. The sand dried him from the inside out, leaving him gasping for air that would never come. His cries turned into desperate gurgles before they stopped altogether. Within moments, he was reduced to a hollow shell, his body limp, bones and skin dessicated, a mere husk of the man he once was.Crocodile dropped the corpse, letting it fall with a sickening thud as if it were nothing more than a discarded toy. He turned away from the lifeless form and made his way back to his seat, the eerie silence of the room heavy in the air.He turned back to face the room, his cold gaze sweeping over the remaining agents, who were frozen in place, their eyes wide with fear. His lips curled into a final smirk, dark and knowing, as if he had just played his hand perfectly. Without another word, Crocodile turned and made his way toward the door.As the massive doors creaked open, the shadows of the room seemed to stretch, swallowing his form. The agents remained motionless, unable to look away from the lifeless body of Mr. 5, their nerves raw from the merciless display.With a final glance over his shoulder, Crocodile’s figure receded into the darkness of the corridor beyond. The doors slammed shut behind him with a deafening sound, leaving the room in an oppressive silence. His laughter lingered in the air like a dark omen, a haunting reminder of the power he wielded."You will be mine, Dazai, at any cost," Crocodile's voice echoed down the empty hallway, his words dripping with cold promise, sealing the fate that awaited the black-haired woman.The world was on the brink of destruction, and Crocodile would be the one to light the flames, dragging Dazai into the inferno.After all, it took a monster to recognize another.The weight of Toto's desperate plea hung in the air, suffocating her like a storm pressing against her chest.'You are the last hope of Alabasta, Princess Nefertari Vivi. You need to save the kingdom. An entire nation, your father—everyone is counting on you.'Those words had followed her like a ghost through the unforgiving desert. Outside the outskirts of Yuba, the Straw Hat pirates, Azula, and Vivi stood together in the middle of the vast expanse, yet she had never felt more alone.She barely heard the hushed whispers of Nami and Usopp behind her, their soft debate about the rebels' location blurring into the background. The mention of the rebel army struck her like a blade to the heart, tearing old wounds wide open until she felt raw and exposed.
What had she expected?
When the kingdom lay shattered, broken into pieces so jagged they might never fit together again—when the man who once stood as everything to her now stood at the opposite end of those shards—what did she think she would find?Had she really believed she could look at the sun without trembling when the rebellion, her failure, loomed large over her? Her father on one side, Koza on the other—father and friend in everything but blood—each blinded by their belief in a truth she could no longer hold together.Had she truly thought she could breathe without suffocating every time the rebels were mentioned? Every time Koza's name echoed in her ears like a curse?The boy she once knew—the boy who swore beneath the warm, quiet dusk of Yuba to protect their land, to protect her-ridden fields—was gone, consumed by hatred. And that hatred was aimed squarely at her family. Her legacy.He was supposed to be her family once.
Back when the rains weren’t a myth, back when war was nothing but a faint whisper carried by madmen. Back when the streets of Alabasta didn’t drown in dread and blood and the corpses of the innocent.
But the kingdom was gone, and Koza was lost, and now she carried the weight of an entire nation on her back.She was so tired.Her legs trembled beneath her, her breath coming in sharp, shallow gasps. Vivi was tired of standing at the edge of tragedy, looking down into a chasm of despair. Tired of being the pillar that bore the hopes and fates of countless lives. But worst of all—she didn’t have the right to feel this way.The blood on her hands, the weight of her failures—they denied her the luxury of surrender.She can’t quit.Not when children like Azula, boys and girls too young to understand the horrors around them, would perish in the madness unleashed by Crocodile. Not when her kingdom’s people still looked to her as their only light in the darkness.She had to fight. She had to save them, even if it destroyed her.“I quit.”The words shattered her thoughts.Her entire body froze. She turned, eyes wide, as Luffy collapsed onto the sand with the casual air of someone ready for a nap. His hat tilted just slightly, his hands crossed behind his head, and his enormous, earnest eyes locked onto her.“I quit,” he said again, simple and unyielding. Those eyes of his—the ones that seemed to pierce through any mask, any wall—looked straight into hers, unflinching.Vivi’s breath hitched.
What…?
And in that moment, all her tightly held composure, all the desperate resolve she clung to, began to crumble.He promised. He fucking promised!The words looped in Vivi's mind, an unbearable echo that tore through her chest. Angry tears welled up in her eyes, stinging as they spilled down her face. Her hands trembled at her sides, her body rigid and unyielding, desperate to remain upright despite the weight of her spiraling emotions. Her legs felt rooted to the sand, as though if she moved, she would collapse entirely under the pressure of it all.“You promised to take me to Alabasta!” she screamed, her voice raw, cracking under the strain of her fury. It was not a plea but an accusation, each word sharp and jagged.“I did,” Luffy replied, his tone maddeningly calm. Too calm.The ease in his voice fanned the raging fire inside her. How could he? How dare he?“Then why?! Why?!” she demanded, her voice breaking as she took a step closer.Luffy stood, brushing sand from his hands with infuriating nonchalance, and faced her. His straw hat cast a shadow over his eyes, but they gleamed with unrelenting clarity.“You want to save your kingdom, don’t you?” he said, his words measured but cutting. “That means you have to face Crocodile, stop the rebel army, and end the war. And yet you hope to save everyone? You want everyone to make it out alive?” He tilted his head, his expression unreadable. “Isn’t that a little naive, Vivi?”The word hit her like a slap, and she staggered under the force of it. She flinched as though he had struck her physically. Her nails bit into her palms, hard enough to draw blood, but the sharp sting was a welcome distraction from the storm inside her.“Luffy,” Sanji interjected, his voice cold as steel, his eyes narrowing.But Vivi couldn’t stop herself. Her voice tore free again, a desperate cry.“What’s wrong with that?!” Her words wavered, trembling under the weight of her breaking heart. “What’s wrong with wanting to save everyone? What’s wrong with not wanting people to die?”For the briefest moment, silence reigned.Luffy’s expression darkened, his ever-present grin gone. His voice was colder now, his gaze unwavering.“It’s war,” he said simply, as though explaining something obvious to a child. “People die. That’s just how it is.”The world tilted, the desert sun above her scorching and merciless. His words were a knife twisting in her chest. The air around her felt heavy, suffocating, and her body shook as grief and rage collided violently within her.Her mind screamed against him, against his cruelty, against the absurdity in his words.
How dare he? How dare he spit on their sacrifices?
Images seared through her mind—fires consuming Igaram, his final words a plea for their people; bodies strewn across Alabasta’s once-thriving streets, blood soaking the sands; the cries of the innocent.The flames raged hotter inside her, consuming her resolve, her reason until all that remained was an uncontrollable fury.
He doesn’t understand. He doesn’t know the weight of this kingdom, these lives. He doesn’t know what it means to carry their hopes while standing on the edge of ruin.
Her breath hitched, her vision blurred by tears and anger. The image of Miss Wednesday—the assassin she had once been—flashed in her mind, whispering promises of blood and retribution.Vivi’s knees bent, and before she realized what she was doing, her body surged forward, her hand lashing out, aiming for Luffy with every ounce of rage she possessed.But she never made it.Something cold and unyielding wrapped around her ankle, yanking her off balance. The world turned upside down, and her face hit the scorching sand, her body pinned under an invisible weight.Her vision swam, and for a moment, all she could see was the merciless sun glaring down at her, mocking her helplessness.The sharp, cold pressure of a handgun pressed against the back of her head. Fingers wrenched through her hair, forcing her face deeper into the sand.“Didn’t I warn you, Princess?” she spits the title like poison.The venom in the voice froze her blood.It was Umekui, their first mate. Her tone was a blade, slicing through any shred of defiance Vivi had left.“Lay a hand on my captain,” Umekui hissed the promise, her voice low and full of dangerous promise, “touch a single hair on any of my nakama, and I will be so much worse than Crocodile and Miss All-Sunday combined.”The ghost's words pressed down on Vivi like chains, unyielding and suffocating.She wanted to laugh, a hollow, broken sound at the absurdity of her situation. Instead, her body betrayed her. Her shoulders heaved, and her sobs tore free, muffled by the sand against her face.Her cries turn into a muffled laugh, she laughs at her absurdity, at her foolish heart to trust the straw hat pirates. From the first, she was trusting pirates, criminals like Crocodile, who will not hesitate to eliminate anyone who dares to defy them. And suddenly, the last string of hope snapped. It shattered like fragile glass, splintering into nothingness, leaving only the whispers of Igram and Koza’s names to echo in the hollow corners of her heart.She didn’t care anymore. The weight of the kingdom’s fate, of her own failures, pressed down on her until she felt crushed under the unbearable burden. She was so tired—so bone-deep exhausted—that if Umekui didn’t end her suffering with a single bullet to the head, Vivi feared she might beg for it herself.Yet…The memory of Igram’s voice cut through the darkness in her mind, sharp and clear.('Someday, someone will give back the grandeur of our kingdom, Princess Vivi," he had said, his smile wise but heavy with sorrow. "Even if it means burning in the furnace of my faith to you, I believe in you, Princess.')Vivi’s breath caught in her throat. The echo of his faith, his belief in her, reverberated in her chest, forcing her to lift her head slightly, her eyes clouded with tears."How dare you!" she screamed, her voice raw with the agony of her sorrow. "You speak as if the dead don’t matter! As if they’re nothing but a casualty of war, but they do matter! They are my people—my home, my kingdom! And no one—not even you, Luffy—has the right to insult their deaths!"Her voice cracked with the force of her words, a scream that tore through the desert like a brutal wind. The world around her seemed to hold its breath, the silence thick and heavy as her fury bled through her.For a long moment, the only sound was the soft hum of the desert wind.Then, as if he hadn’t been touched by her rage at all, Luffy’s voice rang out, steady and flat."Let her go, Ume."Vivi was released, but the grip of her own fury didn’t loosen. Umekui stepped back, but her crimson gaze remained fixed on the princess, unblinking, unforgiving."No one deserves to die!" Vivi spat, her voice trembling with emotion.Umekui’s lips twitched, almost as if in amusement before she repeated, her tone as cold as the desert night."Deserves?" she echoed, her voice low, mocking. "Since when does the concept of deserving exist in this world? You speak of it as though it's a choice, an apple you can pick off the market. War isn’t a choice, Princess. It’s a game for those at the top, a game where there is no justice, no distinction. War is the great equalizer—no matter what ideals or beliefs clash, in the end, they are all prey to death."She chuckled darkly, her red eyes narrowing as if she could see the very soul of the world and found it lacking."In war, no one wins. Everyone loses. Yet every damn person falls into it, and your history, your legacy, is the first to preach that war is necessary for the good of mankind," Umekui continued, her mouth curling into a sneer as she stared down at Vivi as if the princess was just another misguided child to be discarded, another noble that she wishes to kill.Vivi’s stomach churned with disgust.The words hung in the air like a poison, and every fiber of her being wanted to lash out, to tear them apart. The scorn in Umekui’s eyes was suffocating, and it made Vivi hate her, hate everything about the woman who had become a tool of war, a slave to the very thing she was trying to fight."No," Vivi cried out, her voice cracking. "I’m nothing like them! I’m nothing like Crocodile, nothing like the men who feed on blood and death for their own gain!" She gripped the sand beneath her, her nails digging into the earth as though she could somehow pull the strength to rise from the ashes of her despair."I believe in my people," Vivi choked out, her chest heaving. "I believe in my kingdom, in the hope I promised them, I promised to Igram!… I won't be swallowed by this. I refuse to become just another pawn in this war."The world around her seemed to mock her defiance, the desert wind swirling, the sun blazing overhead, but her heart—raw, burning with sorrow—held fast. She would not be broken, not just yet. Even as the sands of time slipped away, she wouldn’t let herself fall into the same darkness that had consumed so many before her, she will never be like them!Vivi met Umekui's red eyes.She hated that cold, empty gaze.Hated the mocking truth lurking in her words.Umekui moved with predatory grace, stepping toward Luffy until she stood behind him, her back pressed against his like a shadow to his light. Her crimson eyes remained fixed on the horizon, cold and unwavering, while Luffy’s honey-hued gaze bore into her trembling form.“To end this,” Umekui said, her voice low and sharp, each word a blade, “means going for the throat of the monster. It means defying the one pulling the strings and dismantling the empire of deception he’s built, starting at its very heart.”Her words hung in the air, heavy and unrelenting.At that moment, Luffy’s mouth curved into a smirk—sharp, unyielding, and brimming with the kind of reckless confidence only he could muster. As always it was Umekui who understood him the most.“It means we need to defeat Crocodile,” he said, his voice cutting through the desert’s oppressive silence like a battle cry. “That’s how we stop everything.”Vivi’s breath hitched, her voice barely a whisper. “We?”She looked up at him, her gaze desperate and unsteady, as if clinging to the faintest shred of hope.“Yes, together!” Luffy said, his tone leaving no room for doubt.“Why?” Vivi asked again, her voice cracking under the weight of everything she’d endured. Her desperation bled into her words, her body trembling with the last dregs of strength she had left, the sand picking on her bloodied palms.Luffy laughed, a sound so full of life and certainty it seemed absurd in the face of their dire circumstances. He tilted his head back, his grin beaming brighter than the unforgiving sun above.And for a moment, it felt like the cruel desert sky itself recoiled, its harsh light retreating before the warmth of his unwavering conviction.“Because you’re our friend, Vivi!” Luffy declared, his voice carrying an infectious energy that made the desert seem a little less barren. “And for our friends, we’re ready to do anything!”Vivi’s tears spilled freely, her heart a tumult of emotions she couldn’t name. Anguish, relief, guilt, and hope all collided, threatening to undo her completely.In that instant, under the weight of Luffy’s words, she realized she wasn’t alone.Not anymore. She has a bunch of dangerous pirates at her side ( even though the first mat hates her-)"How are Azula's injuries?" Umekui asked, her voice smooth but tinged with a hint of concern. Her sharp red eyes glinted under the shadow of the tree as she leaned closer to Chopper, crouching down to his level.Chopper glanced up at her, the weight of her presence pressing against him, and turned his gaze toward Azula. The little boy was sitting on Zoro’s lap, his small body still, but his eyes were wide as he watched Luffy stretch his body in an exaggerated display of his Devil Fruit abilities. He looked back to his medical bags, focusing for a moment as he searched for a bandage for Vivi’s bloodied palms.He shifted slightly, feeling the hot air of the desert brush past him. Behind him, Umekui remained silent, though Chopper could feel her gaze on him.Vivi was seated against a rock nearby, her body trembling occasionally as Nami wrapped her arms tightly around her, attempting to soothe her out of her dark thoughts. Usopp was standing nearby, attempting to lighten the mood with some of his usual ridiculous antics.It made Chopper smile, despite everything.He looked back at Umekui, who stood with an unnerving stillness, her posture unnaturally straight, her eyes watching Azula. Chopper offered her a soft, reassuring smile, keeping his voice gentle."He’s healing well," Chopper said with a nod, "He just needs a lot of rest and hydration. His body’s still adjusting, but we’ll get through this. He’s resilient."Umekui’s expression softened, her mouth forming a small smile as she patted Chopper's fur gently. The warmth of her touch made him feel safe, even if there was an undeniable coldness underneath.Then his nose twitched, like a sudden chill creeping down his spine, and he smelled it.The familiar scent hit him—a scent he had hoped never to smell again ( not when this scent, this medication curled around his father's dying body-and Chopper could only pray and hope for the medicine to save his father-)The scent. Kureha’s medication.His eyes narrowed instinctively. There was no mistaking it. His stomach sank.Chopper’s eyes fixed on her, voice low but hard. "For how long are you continuing to hide from me that you're taking Kureha's medication?"He didn’t give her a chance to respond, the questions spilling out in a rush. "How long have you been taking them? And why? What happened on Drum Island? What did Kureha find out?"He couldn’t stop himself. The questions burned through him, a fire of concern and fear. He wanted to understand. He needed to know what was going on, what she was hiding.Umekui’s hand on his fur froze. For the first time, her usual cold demeanor cracked just slightly. Her crimson eyes flickered, a brief flash of something he couldn’t read before she turned her head to look at the horizon, a long, distant stare that didn’t give him anything to latch onto.Chopper’s heart tightened. "It’s dangerous, Umekui. I’m a doctor! How could you not talk to me about this? You need surveillance! How deep is the problem?"Her silence stretched out painfully, as if she was refusing to acknowledge his concerns."It doesn’t matter," Umekui spoke softly, her voice void of emotion, empty and distant.Chopper felt a stab of frustration. He could hear her words, but they didn't make sense to him.How could it not matter? It does matter. He wanted to scream, but he held it in, trying to stay calm, trying to make her see reason."Umekui," Chopper said, his voice quieter but urgent, "you need help. You don’t understand the dangers you’re putting yourself in. Kureha knew these medications weren’t safe to take lightly. They were designed to help, yes, but they could also destroy you if misused."Her gaze stayed locked on the horizon, unmoving, unblinking."I’m fine," she muttered, as though brushing him off. "It’s nothing you need to worry about."But Chopper couldn’t stop himself from feeling the weight of the situation. This wasn’t just nothing.For a brief moment, there was a shift in her eyes—a flicker, just a brief one, of something more sorrowful beneath the cold mask she wore. But before he could grasp it, she turned away, the warmth that had briefly returned vanishing like smoke."Please, Umekui," he said, his voice cracking slightly with the emotion he was struggling to suppress. "You don’t have to carry this alone. Whatever it is, we can help. Let us help y-"."Stop-," she said, her voice sharp now. "Just focus on your patients. I’ll handle myself."Chopper stared after her, his heart heavy with the weight of her words, and the nagging feeling that there was so much more to her than she was willing to show.His instincts told him something was wrong. Very wrong."How much?" Chopper’s voice cracked as he called after her, desperation creeping into his words. The fear was thick in his chest, rising like a wave threatening to drown him. He couldn’t let her walk away like this, not without understanding the full extent of what she was dealing with. "You have to tell me! How deep are you in this treatment? How much danger are you in? You can’t just... just keep doing this to yourself!"Her steps faltered, a brief pause before she turned her head just slightly, the cold mask still in place but her eyes betraying the weight of her emotions. For a moment, Chopper thought she might open up, might finally give him the answers he was begging for, but then her lips curled into a bitter smile—one that spoke of old scars, things she refused to confront."Four," she said simply, her voice laced with a resigned finality.Chopper felt his heart sink, the words crashing into him like a tidal wave. Four.Four what? Four doses? Four weeks? Four days? The meaning of the word hit him like a ton of bricks, his vision blurring as the weight of her answer settled in. The desert around him felt smaller, as though the world itself had contracted, and his breath grew shallow, panic rising in his chest.Before he could call out to her again, she was already walking away, her silhouette fading into the distance. Her footsteps were purposeful, resolute—like someone who had already made peace with the consequences of their actions. And just like that, she left, leaving him standing there with a hollow ache in his chest.The whimper that had formed at the back of his throat died before it could escape, swallowed by the suffocating silence. His hands trembled, and his mind raced to catch up with the torrent of thoughts threatening to drown him.
How could he have failed her like this?
She, who had stood by them through everything. She, who had endured so much. And now, she was facing a battle within herself—a battle that no one, not even Chopper, could truly understand.He should have noticed sooner, should have asked sooner, should have done something sooner.The weight of her sacrifice crushed him. She was willing to trade her own health, her life, for their sake, and he hadn’t been able to stop her.His eyes burned, the sting of tears threatening to overwhelm him, but he held them back. He couldn’t afford to break right now. Not with everything else looming ahead. Not with Vivi still struggling to hold herself together, not with Azula still recovering, not with the war at Rainbase pressing ever closer.But it wasn’t just the weight of his failure that consumed him ( It was the haunting echo of his own fears, fears that had plagued him since he was young—fears of being abandoned, of being cast aside because of who he was. Of being seen as weak, as inferior, simply because of his appearance).It was the echo of his father’s absence that gnawed at his heart, a constant reminder that he was alone in a world that didn’t care. It’s unfair, he whispered to himself again.
It’s unfair!
His blue nose twitched, a painful reminder of all the years he had spent running from his own insecurities, hiding behind a mask of smiles. But now, in the quiet aftermath of Umekui’s departure, those feelings were raw and unguarded. The weight of his own inadequacies pressed down on him, and he wanted nothing more than to hide from it all.But there was no escaping now. No running away from the responsibilities he had as a doctor, as a friend, as a member of this crew. The world may have been cruel, but he couldn’t let that stop him from trying to make a difference, from fighting for the people he loved.But it was still so unfair.His thoughts turned inward again, his mind drifting back to the ghosts of his past. The hands of Kureha, holding him as he cried, wishing desperately for his father to survive, to stay with him. It had been a childhood longing that never left, one that had shaped him into the person he was today. But in the face of all this, it felt so small, so insignificant.He wished, more than anything, that things could be different—that he could somehow make things right, that he could somehow protect everyone, keep them safe from the dangers that lay ahead. But it was a fragile dream.And Chopper, as much as he wanted to believe in his own strength, knew deep down that the world didn’t make it easy. It never had.He let out a soft, shaky breath, trying to steady himself, but it wasn’t enough. The ache remained, gnawing at him, relentless. For the crew, for Umekui, for Azula and Vivi and everyone else—he had to keep going.Even if it meant facing the harshness of a world that seemed so unfair. Even if it meant breaking his own heart just a little more every day. A war is waiting for him, a bloodbath is rising on the horizon, dying and suffering people are waiting for his aid, and Chopper needs to be there for them at any cost!Chopper looked down at his hands, his blue nose aching, but he made a silent promise to himself.
I’ll do whatever it takes. I won’t fail anymore. I won’t let down people again. I promise! 
He promised his father after all. "Still, despite everything, you choose to help the princess like the selfless captain you are," Umekui said, her red eyes dark and penetrating as they gazed out toward the distant silhouette of Rainbase. They were close now—closer than ever. The end or the beginning, she thought, was nearing.Luffy blinked, turning his head toward her as if her words hadn’t quite landed. "Of course! Vivi is our friend!" he beamed, his usual carefree smile lighting up his face."The princess is no friend of mine," she replied coldly, her gaze unwavering.Luffy tilted his head, a sly grin tugging at his lips. "You are mine, no?" he teased."Yes," she admitted quietly, her expression softening for a moment. Her hand moved instinctively to his face, brushing back a few strands of his hair, the curls growing long and wild from the journey. "I am your friend, your first mate, your shadow, your right hand—everything you wish for, my captain."For the briefest second, there was something tender in her eyes, something only the crew could see, a glimmer of affection buried beneath the icy exterior. It was rare, precious, this smile she only offered to them, to him."You said people die in war," she murmured, her voice quiet but steady. "Will you accept it if I die in the bloodshed of war?"Luffy’s honey-brown eyes darkened, and his usual carefree demeanor faltered, replaced by a rare, serious expression. He reached out without warning, gripping her cheek with force."No!" he growled, his voice low and fierce. "No one dies on my crew. If you die, I’ll never forgive you. You are mine, Ume! We promised each other to die side by side! Do you understand me?"There was a wild intensity in his words, a primal possessiveness that made her heart stutter in her chest. The weight of that promise—the unspoken vow they had both made in their own way, long ago—echoed through her.Her smile came back then, wide and genuine, her heart trembling at the rawness of his emotion. "Your orders are heard, my captain," she whispered, her voice soft, almost reverent.For a moment, she stood still, allowing herself to drink in the bond they shared—the unshakable loyalty, the unspoken trust between them. But the pull of reality, of the war waiting for them at Rainbase, was too strong.Her gaze shifted toward the horizon once again, her mind racing. She had made a promise to Luffy, to return to him alive—but she knew, deep down, that promise would be nearly impossible to keep without facing the darkness within herself once more. The monster she had become in the pursuit of vengeance. The sacrifices she had made, the things she had done.(DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI!- The voices screamed in her mind, relentless and angry- You pitiful child, holding the leash to your vow—when will you cease your obsession?)She drowned them out, pushing the memories aside, focusing only on the task at hand.From the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Sanji—his hands tucked into his pockets as he walked. She made her way toward him with purpose, her footsteps silent on the desert sands.As she drew closer, she opened her mouth, her words spoken low and measured, so that no one else would hear them except for Sanji.His blue eyes widened at her words, his posture stiffening as the weight of what she was asking settled in. His palms clenched into fists, his jaw tightening as he absorbed the gravity of her plan. After what felt like an eternity, he gave a stiff nod, his blue eyes full of something complex—concern, yes, but something else too. Perhaps she is cruel to asks him that. But she knew he understood—better than anyone, perhaps. After all, he knew that Crocodile was after Dazai.The smile that tugged at her lips now was cold, hollow, and resigned. "Don’t worry," she said softly, almost to herself. "I won’t let anyone down. No more. Not again."She was no stranger to sacrifice. But as she prepared for the inevitable, Umekui couldn't shake the nagging feeling that the cost of this war—this war—was going to be far more than any of them could afford. Crocodile and Robin knew her true identity. The game was over before it even began. It was a twisted dance of cat and mouse, but the roles were shifting, and the hunter might soon become the hunted.Curiosity killed the cat, didn’t it? How poetic, then, that a poisonous mouse might be the end of the king of desert himself.She would give Crocodile what he wanted. Dazai—the weapon, the monster. He desired her, desired the raw power she held. He had no idea that his obsession with her would be his undoing.She would be his undoing.The venom she carried within herself wasn’t just for her enemies—it was for everyone who sought to use her. Every piece of her history, her dark past, the sins she had committed, and the ones she would soon commit -they were all entwined.She’d always been a tool, a pawn in someone’s grand design. Men drowning in their ideals, their power struggles—Celestials, gods, world government, organizations, Mori, Crocodile). All bound by bloodshed, by darkness, by the sacrifices that had marked her existence ( Odasaku name taste bitter on her tongue-). Luffy needed her alive to stay at his side. She would honor that, for now. But when the time came—when Luffy understood the depth of her darkness, the horrors she had unleashed upon the world, and the sins she had already committed—would he still want her beside him?Would he turn his back to her, as she knew he would? Would he let her crumble under the weight of her own despair, watch as her rage burned through Crocodile and consumed everything in its path?)The crew would see her for what she truly was, the cold creature she had been forged into by pain and misdeeds. They would turn away from her just as they had turned away from so many others who wore the mantle of villainy ( she wouldn’t worry, they would take care of Azula-she knows it).Perhaps, then, that would be her end, she would finally die.The voice in her mind laughed bitterly at the thought, mocking her. No promises, no illusions to hold her back.It was true, wasn’t it? In war, everyone lost. But for once, Umekui Dazai would be the one to win. The ultimate victory, the ultimate act, would be her own death—the destruction she would give to the very ideals that had shaped her, that had turned her into the weapon she was now.For once, Umekui Dazai would win. Her plan was set in motion. There was no turning back now.Crocodile would fall. And in the end, so would she.'I'm near Oda, Chuuya-'
"Fate leads the willing and drags the unwilling"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Tell me, in your dreams, have we ever reached each other without hurting each other?"

The first time she met him, Dazai knew—instinctively, irrevocably—that she would hate him.

It wasn’t a simple dislike but something deeper, something rotting at the core of her.

Maybe it was his hair, a wildfire orange that burned too bright, stirring up memories of flames and cinders, of things she had tried to bury. It reminded her too much of destruction—the kind that could warm or consume, protect or devastate. Or maybe it was his eyes, impossibly blue, the color of a sky she had never reached or an ocean too vast to claim. Eyes that held depth, that hinted at something unspoken, something dangerous.

Then there was his skin—untouched, unmarred, too clean, as if the world had not yet left its scars on him. She despised that purity, knowing it would not last. That the world would carve its cruelty into him. That she would. The thought of him—small, fragile—standing beside her in the wreckage of what they might become made something in her twist.

But worst of all was his smile. That hesitant, hopeful thing, peeking out from behind the woman’s legs, too bright against the shadows of everything waiting for them.

It wasn’t a smile meant for this world. For her world. And yet, it lingered. Clung to her like an ache.

Dazai hated Chuuya Nakahara the moment she met him. Not for who he was, but for everything he made her remember—everything she had lost, everything she would never have.

Because more than anything, he reminded her of a truth she had long since buried, a wound so deep it had turned to something worse than pain—emptiness. He was a whisper of every ghost she had failed to hold on to, a cruel echo of the unbearable reality she had spent her life trying to forget: that no matter how tightly she clung, no matter how fiercely she fought, she would never be enough to save the ones she dared to love.

Every fleeting connection she had ever grasped at had slipped through her fingers, leaving only scars in their wake. And now, standing before her, was another wound waiting to happen.

"Dazai, meet Chuuya Nakahara," Mori said, his voice a measured, unshakable weight in the cold of his office. His hand settled lightly on her small shoulder—too light, too knowing, like the whisper of a noose tightening around her throat.

She did not flinch. She would not flinch. That would only amuse him.

Guided by Mori’s touch, her gaze landed on the boy standing barely a foot away. The room felt colder than usual, the scent of antiseptic clashing against the sharp musk of Mori’s cologne.

The boy’s hair was orange—too orange—like a dying ember clinging to its last breath of life. Wild, untamed, as if it refused the order Mori so meticulously imposed. His eyes were impossibly blue, the kind of blue that belonged to open skies and endless oceans, to things too vast, too free, too dangerous. For a fleeting moment, they held hers before flickering away, uncertain.

Like he wasn’t sure if he wanted to see her—or if he was afraid of what he might find.

He was young—too young. Too small for the weight that would be forced onto his shoulders. His hands, clenched into fists at his sides, trembled just slightly, betraying a nervousness he hadn’t yet learned to hide.

He lingered at the hem of a woman’s dress—Kouyou, of course, ever poised, ever perfect—but even in her shadow, his smile still dared to flicker. A small, uncertain thing, but there.

Dazai hated him.

She hated the quiet, desperate hope in his eyes, the defiance just waiting to be sharpened into something lethal, the purity of his presence in a place that would devour him. She hated that he had the audacity to smile in this world of blood and betrayal, of quiet deaths and sharper chains.

Because hope was a dangerous thing. More dangerous than despair. Hope was a fire, the kind that consumed everything in its path. And looking at Chuuya, Dazai knew, with a certainty that settled deep in her bones, that hope would burn him alive.

And if she let it, it would burn her too.

"Hello," Chuuya said, his voice small but steady.

Dazai didn’t answer. Couldn’t. The words lodged in her throat, tangled with memories she refused to name. She wanted to turn away, to sever whatever fragile thread of fate had begun weaving itself between them before it could tighten, before it could become another shackle of cruel fate.

But then Mori’s fingers dug into her shoulder, a sharp, calculated pressure that promised bruises in the morning.

It wasn’t the pain that forced her to speak. It was the reminder. Silence was not an option. Not here. Not with Mori watching.

So she swallowed down the ache, forced something sharp into her voice, let the bitterness stain her tongue.

"Pfft, a new dog for the crew? Where did you find this stinky stray, Mori-sama?"

Her lips curled into a smirk, a mockery of something real. Each word was deliberate, a blade honed to cut. And it worked—Chuuya stiffened, his small hands balling into even tighter fists. But this time, his gaze did not waver. The uncertainty was gone. In its place was something hotter, something reckless and untamed.

"I’m not a stray," he snapped, and though his voice was strong, it cracked at the end.

Dazai tilted her head, her smirk deepening as her dark curls framed her face. He cracks so easily.

"Oh?" she mused. "Then what are you? A house pet? A lapdog? Maybe a little mascot to cheer us all up?"

She leaned in slightly, letting her voice drop to a whisper, the words curling like smoke between them.

"You’ll need to grow up first, though. You’re hardly intimidating like this."

Mori chuckled—soft, indulgent. "Dazai."

His tone was light, but the weight of his grip on her shoulder was anything but. Not quite reprimand, not quite praise—just a reminder.

Everything you do is under my control.

She shrugged, stepping back, but her smirk remained. "Just making sure the new recruit knows where he stands, Mori-sama."

But the truth was—Dazai hated the way Chuuya had already begun to carve himself into her world. She hated that his fire hadn’t flickered out, that his defiance had risen so quickly to meet hers. He was too fragile for this world, too young, and yet, there was something in his gaze that told her he would survive.

Fire burns, even in the smallest of hands.

And fire, she knew, had a way of spreading.

Chuuya glared at her, something sharp and unyielding burning in his too-blue eyes. He didn’t back down. She hated that too. Hated the way it made her feel as if she was staring at something she could not break.

"Well then, Chuuya," Mori said, his voice warm, almost fatherly. But the hand on Dazai’s shoulder was still cold. "Welcome to the Port Mafia."

Dazai turned away, her smirk slipping the moment their eyes were no longer on her. The mask she had worn so effortlessly cracked at the edges, unseen, unheard. Her crimson gaze dropped to the floor, tracing invisible fractures along the pristine tiles—lines she swore were there, even if no one else could see them.

This was the beginning.

She felt it in the marrow of her bones, in the quiet tightening of her chest. A moment she would come to loathe, just as surely as the sun would set on the shadows of their world.

There was no turning back.

From the instant Chuuya Nakahara stepped foot into this place—this wretched, rotting heart of the underworld—his soul was no longer his own. He had given it up, whether he realized it or not. He had let Mori sink his claws into him, had stepped willingly into the hands of men who would mold him, break him, shape him into something he was never meant to be.

And Dazai knew, with a certainty that ached deep inside her, that the Port Mafia would be his end. That when the time came, it would be for the Mafia that his soul burned, that his body was swallowed by the inevitable violence of their world.

She clenched her fists, her nails biting into her palms hard enough to leave crescent-shaped wounds.

Why? she wanted to ask. Why did you come here? Why did you say yes?

She hated him for it.

Hated him for standing there so easily, for the way he carried himself with a fire that had not yet been smothered. Hated him for not knowing what he had lost the moment he had stepped into Mori’s world.

But more than anything, she hated him for what he was.

Not for the way he looked at her with quiet defiance, nor for the sharp edges of his pride—but for the way he endured. For the way he held onto something she had long since let slip through her fingers. For the way his presence felt like a challenge she had never wanted to face.

Hope. Resilience. Fire.

He embodied everything she had tried to bury, everything she had convinced herself was nothing more than a cruel illusion.

And that was unforgivable.
There was one truth Nami had come to accept—the hard, unforgiving reality carved into her soul like lines on a map. When she had taken Luffy’s and Umekui’s hands, whispered yes to the sea, and let herself be pulled into a future she could barely imagine, she had learned something vital:She was the only smart person in the crew.Well—besides Umekui and Chopper.Because Luffy, for all his fire, for all his dreams that burned brighter than the sun, was an idiot. He ran toward trouble as if it were calling his name, his appetite endless, his recklessness even more so. He couldn’t lie to save his life—literally—which made him vulnerable in a world built on deceit.Zoro? Blunt, unyielding, a swordsman whose skill could slice through steel, but whose mind was as dull as the back of his blade. Honesty, in a place like this, was a death sentence, and he was too proud to learn otherwise.Usopp could weave grand tales, spin lies with the ease of an artist, but when reality struck, when fear clawed at his throat, he folded. He could play at being a warrior, but the truth was written in the way his knees shook, the way his voice wavered when the weight of the world pressed down.And then there was Sanji—charming, foolish Sanji, who spent more time lost in the curves of a woman’s smile than thinking with the brain he clearly had but refused to use. His emotions were his weapon, but they were turned outward, a currency he spent on affection rather than survival.In a battle of wits, where emotions were both shield and sword, her crew—her idiot crew—would lose.Luffy couldn’t lie.Zoro wouldn’t lie.Usopp would be too afraid to tell the truth.Sanji would get distracted deciding who to lie to.And Chopper... well, Chopper was too sweet, too kind, too good for that kind of game.But Nami?Nami knew.She understood that emotions weren’t just feelings; they were weapons, sharpened and deadly. A carefully placed word, a tear shed at the right moment, a flicker of hesitation—it could move people in ways brute strength never could.Because at the end of the day, emotions were all she had left. The only thing she could wield with certainty, the only thing she could trust in a world ruled by selfish men.
(For eight years, she had learned to survive. Had been forced to learn.

She had lived under the shadow of the fishmen who stole everything from her, who shattered her home, her heart—who killed her mother and wouldn’t even let her grieve.

They had left her with nothing but desperation. Nothing but a need to survive.

So she had learned. She had carved out her own power, not with fists or blades, but with something far more dangerous.

Emotions.

She had learned to bend them, twist them, sharpen them into something lethal.

Fish men only brought dread and tragedy to her life, and to her sister’s life. And in those years, emotions became her only weapon, her only shield. If she couldn’t trust anyone else, if she couldn’t lean on anything else, she could at least rely on the feelings that twisted and burned within her, the ones that made her move, that kept her alive.

Because if she couldn’t trust the world, if she couldn’t rely on anything or anyone—then at the very least, she could trust the fire in her own heart.

And that?

That was enough.
So yes, emotions were the only thing left that she could wield).In a world as merciless as this, where people were nothing more than selfish creatures clawing for their own survival, Nami had learned to twist them to her will. She had no room for naivety, no luxury of innocence.Emotions were not just fleeting feelings—they were currency, weapons, the only means by which the powerless could seize control.And there was no stage more fitting for her than Rain Dinners, the glittering den of vice where wealth and deceit played the highest-stakes game. Beneath the golden lights and the rhythmic clink of coins, she thrived. Here, charm and cunning weren’t mere tools; they were the sharpest blades, slicing through even the most guarded men.She had every reason to feel powerful in a place like this. And oh, how she relished it.Her grin deepened as she leaned forward, her presence intoxicating to the couple seated before her. They were entranced—by the curve of her smile, the teasing lilt of her voice, the way her fingertips brushed against their hands as if by accident. They were so absorbed in her playful banter, in the sweet melody of her laughter, that they never noticed the deft fingers beneath the table, the effortless way she plucked their winnings and tucked them into the folds of her dress.With a slow, deliberate sip from her glass, she tilted her head, letting her gaze soften just enough to pull them further under her spell.Then, as if the thought had only just occurred to her, she murmured, "Is it true?"Her voice was a delicate whisper, laced with just the right amount of curiosity, just shy of submission—the way she knew most men preferred. "That the master of this place rarely shows his face?"She let her lashes flutter, her gaze dipping demurely, the candlelight catching the smooth line of her collarbone, exposed just enough to keep their attention where she wanted it. Every movement was deliberate, every word honeyed and sharp, designed to disarm.The man across from her swallowed, his cheeks already tinged with the telltale flush of foolish eagerness. Hook, line, and sinker.“Well… yes,” he admitted, his voice faltering. “Mr. 0 doesn’t—he doesn’t make public appearances often.”Mr. 0. The name was a whisper in the underworld, a ghost that ruled from the shadows. Nami knew that already, of course. But knowledge was only as useful as the way you wielded it.“Oh…” She let disappointment flicker across her face, her pout just subtle enough to seem unintentional. Her fingers traced the rim of her glass, her body language an intricate dance of allure and intrigue. Not too eager. Not too obvious. Just enough to make them want to tell her more.“I was hoping,” she sighed, her voice laced with something dangerously close to admiration, “that I might catch a glimpse of him. A man that powerful must be extraordinary to see in person.”The man straightened, as if he had suddenly been given a sliver of that same power. A chance to impress. To be the one who knew something she didn’t.He cleared his throat, puffing out his chest ever so slightly. “Well, uh, he… he doesn’t come here often, but when he does…”Nami leaned in, her eyes locking onto his with a slow, knowing smile. She gave him just enough silence to make him want to fill it.“When he does…?” she prompted, her voice dipped in silk, spun with intrigue.And just like that, he leaned closer, ready to hand her exactly what she came for.It was a game—one she played with effortless grace. She never simply sought information; she coaxed it, wove the illusion that every whispered secret was a gift she cherished. She made them want to tell her, to believe that for just a fleeting moment, they had her undivided attention. Even as she unraveled the threads of their secrets, piece by piece, they never realized she was the one holding the strings.This wasn’t just survival. This was control.And in the dazzling, cutthroat opulence of Rain Dinners, Nami was a queen among fools.“When he does, it’s said he stays in his private lounge,” the man murmured, his voice hushed as if sharing some forbidden truth. His gaze clung to her, wide and unfocused, his cheeks flushed a deep crimson beneath the weight of her attention.
Too easy.
She smiled, slow and honeyed, tucking a loose curl of ginger hair behind her ear in a show of idle innocence. Her brown eyes gleamed, warm and trusting, the perfect imitation of a girl too sweet for a place like this. Somewhere, she could almost hear Zoro or Usopp snorting in disbelief, mocking the way she lilted her voice, the saccharine warmth she layered into each word.“Oh?” she murmured, tilting her head just slightly. “And where is this lounge?” Her curiosity was light, airy—sunlight through sheer curtains. Nothing dangerous. Nothing threatening.He didn’t even hesitate. Hooked.The man leaned in, his breath quickening, intoxicated by the scent of her perfume and the illusion she had spun around him. His voice barely ghosted her skin as he murmured, “Lower level… biggest floor in the casino… only for the elite.”She barely resisted the urge to smirk. And just like that, another secret slips free.Then, before he could lean any closer—before his hand could brush where it was never invited—her expression sharpened in an instant.Without hesitation, she pressed a firm palm against his face and shoved him back.He stumbled, arms flailing as his chair wobbled beneath him, his startled yelp drowned out by the hum of the casino floor.Nami rose gracefully, not even sparing him a glance as she brushed imaginary dust from her dress. As if he was already beneath her notice.“Thanks for the tip,” she said with a sly grin, her voice smooth as silk. Then she turned on her heel, already dismissing him, her mind shifting to far more important matters.Namely, finding her idiotic crew before they shattered the careful illusion she had so meticulously crafted.
“I leave you in the care of the crew, Nami,” Umekui said, her scarred hand brushing Nami’s hair and cheek, the touch tender but carrying an undercurrent of finality. The faintest of smiles curled at the corners of her lips, but it didn’t reach her eyes, those tired, haunted eyes that seemed to carry the weight of an entire world on their shoulders.

Nami couldn’t help but notice the heaviness that lingered in those eyes, the unspeakable burden that made her heart tighten with a sorrow she couldn’t quite name. At least they weren’t empty—not like before. Not like his eyes.

Her first mate’s red eyes, lifeless and vacant, staring into the endless void where the world no longer existed.

“Why? Where are you going?” Nami’s voice quivered, betraying her fear as she grasped Umekui’s cold hand, holding on to it like a lifeline, as though keeping her close could keep her from slipping away, from disappearing like so many had before.

“I’ll be inside Rain Dinners,” Umekui murmured, her body leaning toward Nami as if even the effort to stand upright was a battle she could no longer fight. “But I need to find Miss All Sunday first. She’s the only one who can lead us to Crocodile.”

The mention of Miss All Sunday caused a ripple of surprise through Nami. She knew of the tangled past between them—how Umekui had once called Robin friend, how she had thought her lost forever. It made sense for her to seek her out, of course. Logically, it was the next step. But something in Nami’s gut, deep and unshakable, told her there was more to it.

Something was terribly wrong.

Umekui wasn’t herself—not completely. And Nami had known her nakama too long to ignore the subtle shifts, the cracks forming in her once impenetrable facade.

She was too quiet. Too subdued. Her fire had dimmed to a mere flicker, and her smile—though there—was a shadow of its former warmth. The exhaustion in her eyes was palpable, something deeper than mere fatigue. It seeped into her very bones. Her body seemed fragile, too fragile, as though a slight gust of wind might break her. And her skin—Nami’s gaze lingered, unwilling to look away—was too pale. Far too pale, as though the relentless desert sun could no longer touch her, could no longer warm her.

Nami’s chest tightened. She wanted to demand an explanation, to confront her nakama, to find out what was truly happening. But the words—like everything else in the moment—clung to the back of her throat, heavy and unspoken.

Still, she nodded, obedient, though the dread in her chest was swelling, threatening to swallow her whole.

If there was one person she would follow without hesitation, it was Umekui. The woman who had fought for her. Who had protected her. Who had always believed in her when no one else had.

“See you,” Umekui said softly, almost inaudible, before turning away and heading toward Rain Dinners. Her back was straight, but there was something about the way she moved that made Nami’s heart twist.

For a long moment, Nami stood there, rooted to the spot. Her gaze followed Umekui’s retreating figure, but every step she took seemed to drive a wedge deeper into Nami’s chest, into that aching void that had settled there in the wake of uncertainty.

Then, just as Nami was about to turn and force herself to walk away, Umekui stopped.

For one heartbeat, everything froze. Umekui turned, her silhouette half-shrouded in shadow. And in that moment, Nami saw it—the weight, pressing down on her, making her look smaller than ever before. Her voice was barely a whisper, a breath barely carried by the wind.

“Don’t believe everything you see and hear inside, Nami,” she murmured, her eyes meeting Nami’s, but they were far away. Too far. “Except me.”

And then she was gone.

Nami stood there, unmoving, the words ringing in her ears. Her heart felt like it was in her throat, pounding against her ribs, threatening to break free. Her chest was tight with a suffocating dread, the kind that made every breath feel like a struggle.

Her feet refused to follow, her voice silenced by the unspoken panic in her chest. She could only watch as Umekui disappeared into the night, swallowed by the very shadows she had once stood against.

Regret was a heavy companion, and it would never leave her side.
With a sharp ache clutching her heart, Nami raced through the glittering halls of Rain Dinners, her feet pounding in frantic rhythm as if each step carried the weight of the world.The first person she spotted was Zoro, lounging far too casually in a chair, bottle of booze in hand. He was the picture of laziness, feet propped up on a table, completely unfazed by the life-or-death situation unfolding around them.Her patience snapped in an instant.Nami stormed over, her hand shooting out to grip his ear, yanking him to his feet with surprising force.“Get up! Now!” she hissed through clenched teeth.“What the hell—?! Oi, Nami! What’s your problem?!” Zoro howled, stumbling awkwardly as she dragged him along, the bottle of booze now forgotten.Ignoring his protests, her mind remained laser-focused. They had no time for his usual antics.She scanned the room, her eyes locking onto Luffy and Usopp, still careening wildly across the casino floor, laughing like nothing was wrong. The sight of them, carefree and oblivious, stoked the fire of frustration already burning in her chest.Before she could shout at them, something far more alarming caught her eye. A man in a Marine coat, his stark white hair unmistakable—Smoker, the Marine captain, was closing in on them, his ever-present cloud of smoke swirling ominously.“Luffy! Usopp! Over here!” Nami called out, her voice sharp, cutting through the chaos.Luffy and Usopp froze mid-laughter, their eyes snapping to her. Without hesitation, they broke into a sprint toward her, as if they had known all along she would be the one to save them from their reckless abandon.Nami didn’t slow, her mind racing a thousand miles ahead. She could feel the weight of their lives on her shoulders. There was no room for mistakes.Zoro, ever sharp, spotted Chopper by a row of slot machines. Without missing a beat, he reached out, scooping the little reindeer into his arms as if he weighed nothing at all.“Quit dawdling and move it!” Zoro growled, his voice harsh.“W-What’s going on?” Chopper stammered, his hooves flailing helplessly as he was pulled along.“Trouble,” Nami snapped, her voice low and urgent. “And it’s only getting worse.”Her eyes shot to a polished sign pointing toward the VIP floor. Her pulse quickened. This was it. It had to be. Crocodile had to be here. They had to stop him before he ruined everything. Before Vivi’s home was destroyed.Without a second thought, she surged forward, her crew close behind, her heart pounding with every step.Bursting through the door labeled “VIP Lounge,” Nami expected to see the usual luxury, perhaps a confrontation waiting for them, but instead, her blood ran cold. The floor beneath her feet disappeared in an instant, and her stomach lurched as she realized they were falling.A trapdoor. A goddamn trapdoor.Before she could even scream, the world tilted, and Nami watched helplessly as the ground fell away from beneath them. Her heart thundered in her chest as she tumbled into the dark abyss.The last thing she heard before the darkness swallowed her whole was a familiar, mocking chuckle—Miss All Sunday, her voice dripping with dark amusement, a cruel reminder that they had just walked right into her trap.And there was no escaping now.Umekui often wondered if numbness was merely another shade of pain. It wasn’t the sharp sting of a wound, nor the throb of an old scar, but it was a weight—quiet, unyielding, and persistent. It was something that lived within her, gnawing at her from the inside, a dark shadow that had become her only constant companion.It was a silence that filled the space where a soul should have been, an empty echo that refused to be filled. No matter how much she tried to carve away at it, no matter how much blood she spilled, the numbness never let go. It spread through her like a slow poison, seeping deeper with each passing day. It clung to her, a parasite, as though it were now a part of her very essence.She was cursed, right? She didn’t have a soul—at least, not in the way others did. What could she know of light, of dreams, of warmth? She had long since given up any hope of redemption.To live without a soul was to exist in a hollow, never to be touched by the joys and sorrows that marked the living.She was an observer in a world of passion and fire, bound to watch from the darkness as others lived—alive, burning with emotion, with meaning.The world was cruel, unforgiving, and empty. What could she possibly gain from a world so broken, so irreparably damaged? But there were some whose flames stood out amidst the ashes. There were few she could bring herself to admire.She admired Kana—how fiercely she fought for the redemption she knew she could never have, even as it pulled her toward madness.She admired Oda and Chuuya, both of them carrying their burdens with such weight, yet still standing strong.Luffy, with his wild soul and unshakeable dreams, and her crew—each of them burned with a fire she could never hope to understand, yet something about them made her yearn. Their light, their hopes, their raw emotions—it was all so foreign to her, but it drew her in nonetheless.But then there was Vivi.Vivi, who had everything—everything that Umekui never could. She was a beacon of light, someone who still clung to hope, to love, to purpose. Umekui couldn’t stand her.Vivi’s smile, her voice, her hopefulness—it all grated against the emptiness inside her. Vivi had something so pure, something that Umekui would never be able to touch. It made her heart twist with envy, not because she desired Vivi’s life, but because she hated what Vivi represented. She hated the contrast, the way Vivi’s very existence seemed to mock the empty, soulless shell that Umekui had become.Umekui didn’t just loathe Vivi—she resented her. The world had chosen to give her everything Umekui would never have, and for that, Umekui despised her with an intensity that burned even brighter than the admiration she felt for others.Because, after all, how could she ever admire someone who embodied everything she had lost, everything she could never be?It wasn’t just Vivi’s royal blood that Umekui despised, though that alone was enough to ignite a hatred in her chest. It was the light in Vivi’s soul—the purity of it—that gnawed at Umekui, a constant reminder of everything she could never possess.No matter how many cuts she made into her own skin, no matter how much blood she spilled, the light inside Vivi could never be created inside her. It shone like a beacon in a world swallowed by shadows, a brightness Umekui would never be able to grasp, no matter how deep her own darkness ran.How? How could someone like Vivi, born of that cursed name, legacy—royalty, the same bloodline that had once ruled over others with cruelty—carry such untainted light? How could she remain untouched by the same sins, the same blood-soaked legacy that had suffocated everything good within Umekui?It was a contradiction that cut deeper than any wound. How could someone who was born into so much power, someone who carried the weight of a crown, maintain a purity that Umekui could never even dream of? How could she cling to that fire, to that innocence, when the world around her was disintegrating into chaos?The truth was, it made no sense. And that was what infuriated Umekui the most. Vivi’s light was a cruel reminder of everything Umekui had sacrificed. Everything she had destroyed, twisted by her own hands, all for the sake of a love that had long since turned sour. That love, once so vibrant, had rotted into bitterness, leaving nothing behind but the hollow shell she had become.And there stood Vivi, untouched by the same fate. Pure. Unbroken. A light that no one could steal, no matter how hard they tried. The purity of her soul was a mockery of Umekui’s existence, something that Umekui couldn’t reach, something she could never have.It hurt to look at her.The hatred that burned in Umekui’s chest was sharp, biting, almost unbearable. It surged up from deep within, searing her very being. She wanted to turn away, to ignore Vivi and the light that surrounded her, but it was impossible. The princess stood there like a star—so bright, so defiant, despite the weight of the world pressing down on her. It was a kind of defiance that burned Umekui’s insides, the kind of defiance that mocked the woman she had become.How dare she? How dare Vivi stand tall, proud, and bright, while Umekui had crumbled, twisted by time and her own choices? How dare she remain unbroken when Umekui has been shattered, torn apart by the cost of her survival and sins?It was a truth Umekui couldn’t escape. She would never be able to forget what she had become—and what she could never have again."Do you really believe you can stop Crocodile, princess?" Umekui's voice cut through the silence, sharp and icy, her gaze never wavering from Vivi's face.The title landed like a slap, just as she intended. Vivi flinched, but she caught herself quickly, her expression hardening into a mask of resolve. The strength in her made Umekui's stomach twist, a dark, gnawing desire to break her flickering inside her—to shatter that unshakable will.Vivi met her gaze without hesitation, her eyes burning with the same fire that had always unnerved Umekui. "Yes," she said, her voice steady and unwavering, like thunder before a storm. "I will stop him."The words hung in the air, bold and defiant. Umekui stood still for a moment, watching her, her face unreadable, but her thoughts churning. Then, the corners of her lips curled into a cruel, mocking smirk."Oh?" she said, her voice dripping with ice. She tilted her head, studying Vivi with a casual, almost bored expression. "And how exactly do you plan to do that? With your speeches? Your royal titles?" She leaned in ever so slightly, her voice dropping low, thick with disdain. "Do you think hope will carry you? That your pathetic belief in saving this kingdom will make you strong enough to take him down?"Vivi’s jaw clenched, but she didn’t flinch. The fire never left her gaze. "I don’t need you to believe in me," she responded, her voice firm, unmoving. "I’ve seen the suffering of my people. I’ve felt the weight of their hope. That’s more than enough to keep me fighting."Umekui's laughter broke the tension, dark and cruel, a sound that seemed to bounce off the walls like a taunt. She stepped forward, her eyes glittering with a dangerous, hollow amusement."Hope? That’s what you're betting on?" she drawled, savoring the word as if it were bitter on her tongue. "Hope doesn’t win wars, princess. Blood wins wars. Betrayal wins wars. And sacrifice..." Her voice darkened, becoming almost a whisper. "Are you ready to bleed for your cause? Are you prepared to burn away everything you are—everything you’ve ever believed in—just to protect those you love?"Her words were a challenge, but also a warning. Vivi’s gaze hardened, her resolve unshaken. "If that’s what it takes, then yes. I will bleed. I will sacrifice everything—my life, my title, my soul—if it means saving Alabasta." Her voice rang with unwavering determination. "You don’t scare me, Umekui."For a long, charged moment, silence lingered between them, thick with the weight of their confrontation.Umekui’s lips curved into a bitter, frigid smile. Her crimson eyes glinted, sharp and predatory. "Even your soul?" Her words were casual, but the underlying edge could cut through stone.Vivi’s breath hitched, the question striking her deep, but she refused to waver. Her eyes blazed with the same fire they had held since the beginning."If that’s what it takes to save my people," she said, her voice unwavering, "then I’d sell my soul a thousand times over. Better that than standing by and letting them suffer."Umekui’s laugh was soft, sinister—echoing like a distant, chilling warning. "How... selfless," she murmured, her voice dripping with mockery. "Or perhaps just reckless."The humor drained from her face, replaced by something far more sinister. Her smile twisted into something dark, predatory."Enough with the games," she said, her voice sharp now, cutting through the tension like a blade. Her eyes locked onto Vivi with a predatory intensity, her gaze no longer playful but calculating. "Tell me, princess, why do you think Crocodile chose Alabasta?"Vivi blinked, thrown off balance by the sudden shift. "What?" she asked, brows furrowing in confusion. "Why does that matter?""It matters," Umekui said, her tone icy as she took a step closer. "Because you’re so fixated on saving your kingdom, you haven’t even stopped to ask yourself why it’s under attack. Why Alabasta? Why not another kingdom? Why is your home the perfect target for a man like Crocodile?"Vivi’s lips parted, but no words escaped. She had been so consumed by the desire to stop Crocodile, so focused on protecting her people, that she hadn’t once stopped to consider the reason behind it all. Why Alabasta? What was it about her kingdom that made it so valuable?Umekui leaned in, her voice now a low, venomous hiss. "You think this is just a power grab? That he’s simply after control? Open your eyes, princess. Crocodile didn’t pick Alabasta by chance. He chose it for a reason. And if you don’t figure it out soon, all your noble sacrifices, your lofty ideals... none of it will matter. You’ll lose everything."Vivi’s chest tightened, her breath quickening as the weight of Umekui’s words sank in. The truth was heavier than she could have imagined. She hadn’t even begun to consider the deeper layers of this conflict. "What do you mean?" she asked, her voice trembling as doubt crept into her heart.Umekui’s smile grew—dangerous, knowing, like a predator watching its prey. "You want the truth, don’t you? But can you handle it? Can you truly bear the reason Crocodile is here? The real reason he’s willing to burn everything in Alabasta?"Vivi’s heart pounded in her chest, but she forced herself to stand her ground, refusing to let fear take root. "Tell me," she demanded, her voice trembling with a mix of frustration and desperation. "Why is he doing this?"Umekui’s lips curled into a cruel smile, her eyes glinting with wicked satisfaction. She took a step closer, her presence suffocating, filling the space with an oppressive force. "You really want to know, princess?" Her voice lowered to a chilling whisper, sweet yet venomous. "Do you want me to whisper the world's darkest secret into your ear?"Vivi’s breath caught, her pulse quickening, but she couldn’t look away, couldn’t escape the icy grip of Umekui’s gaze. The abyss in her eyes seemed to pull at Vivi, an unyielding force that made her knees weak.Without warning, Umekui’s hand shot out, seizing Vivi’s wrist in a grip so tight it sent a shock of pain through her arm. Vivi gasped, her body trembling as Umekui yanked her closer, their faces dangerously close now. The air between them felt colder, a weight settling over Vivi’s chest as the dark promise in Umekui’s voice slid into her ears like poison.The flickering lights of Rain Dinners cast long, distorted shadows on the walls, an eerie silence enveloping them. The world outside seemed distant, irrelevant. All that mattered now was the crushing tension between them, the burning certainty in Umekui’s eyes that made every instinct in Vivi’s body scream to run, to fight, to do something—anything—to break free.But she couldn’t. Not when Umekui was like this."You know what?" Umekui’s voice was soft, but it was sharper than any blade, cutting through the silence with precision. Each word felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, deliberate, heavy with meaning. "If there’s one thing you haven’t learned from me, Princess Vivi, it’s that I’m willing to burn this entire world—kingdom and all—to protect my crewmates, my captain... and Robin."Vivi’s throat tightened as she tried to speak, but Umekui wasn’t finished.She stepped forward, her gaze locked on Vivi’s, the fire in her eyes only growing stronger. "Crocodile thinks he controls everything," she continued, her voice low, full of quiet menace. "But he’s wrong. The true power lies with those who are willing to sacrifice everything to protect what they hold dear. That’s why I’m here. That’s why I’ll do whatever it takes, even if it means watching this kingdom burn to the ground."Vivi’s heart twisted. Sacrifice everything. She thought of her people, her family, the kingdom she had sworn to protect. She had always been ready to lay down her life for them, but could she truly understand the depths of Umekui’s words? What would it take to destroy a world for the sake of those you love?"You think burning it all down will protect anyone? It won’t make you stronger. It won’t change anything. It’ll just leave you with nothing," Vivi whispered, her voice raw, as the realization began to sink in.Umekui’s eyes glimmered with an unsettling coldness, her lips curling into a bitter smile. "I don’t need to be stronger," she said, the words laced with something darker. "I only need to protect the ones who matter. And if that means turning this whole kingdom to ash, then that’s what I’ll do."For a moment, the room seemed to stretch, time slowing as Vivi’s mind raced, struggling to find an answer, a way to break free from this suffocating nightmare. She had always believed in hope, in fighting for the future. But the stark reality of Umekui’s resolve shattered that belief."You’re not like us," Vivi said softly, her voice trembling. "You never were."Umekui’s smile faded, replaced by a look that almost seemed like sadness. "No," she murmured, her voice almost too quiet to hear. "I’m not like you, Vivi. And that’s why I’m willing to do things you can’t even imagine."The silence between them grew heavy, the air thick with unspoken truths. And in that moment, Vivi understood something far darker than she ever wanted to. The battle for Alabasta was no longer about kingdoms or wars. It was about devotion—and Umekui had already chosen her side.Umekui moved closer, her grace only enhancing the predatory air around her. The lamplight flickered in the shadows, casting strange, haunting patterns on her face. “You think this is about your petty kingdom?” Umekui’s voice was sharp, her words cutting through the silence like a dagger. “You’re just another pawn on the board, princess. Crocodile thinks he’s the king, moving everyone to suit his little plan. But he’s forgotten something vital.”Vivi’s throat tightened, the words barely escaping her lips as she swallowed hard. “And what’s that?”Umekui leaned in, her crimson eyes locking with Vivi’s in a gaze so intense it felt like the room was closing in. The air grew thick, suffocating, as if the very weight of Umekui’s resolve was pressing down on Vivi’s chest. “Dazai is not a piece to be played. I’m the one who flips the board.”The words hung in the air like a curse, chilling and final. Before Vivi could respond, the world around her shifted violently.A sudden, sharp pain exploded at the back of her skull, and her vision blurred. The room spun, the weight of exhaustion and shock pushing her down. Her limbs felt heavy, as though the very strength had been drained from her. She fought to stay conscious, her mind desperately clinging to the present, but it was like trying to hold onto water slipping through her fingers.She collapsed onto the cold marble floor, her cheek pressing against the smooth stone as darkness encroached.Through the haze, the last thing she saw was Umekui’s expression—a soft, almost wistful smile that wasn’t cruel or triumphant, but simply resigned. Her eyes gleamed, not with malice, but with a quiet certainty that Vivi couldn’t quite understand.It was as if she had already made peace with the destruction she was about to bring, knowing there was no other path forward. The warmth of her gaze seemed to linger, a promise of something irreversible about to unfold.Vivi’s mind felt like it was fading, and just before the darkness fully took her, one final thought flickered in her head. She had fought so hard, given so much, yet it wasn’t enough.As the last strands of her consciousness unraveled, Vivi couldn't help but wonder if there had ever truly been a way to stop it.Somewhere in the depths of Rain Dinners, a storm was brewing, and at its center stood Dazai Umekui, a woman willing to sacrifice everything—herself, the kingdom, the world—for the people she loved.
And no one could stop her.
Something sinister was coming, something that would shake her very soul.There was no escape, no way to stop it now.The shadows were closing in, and in the cold, silent depths of Rain Dinners, Vivi could feel the weight of destiny pressing down on her—unrelenting, inevitable, and far beyond her control.Sanji stood at the edge of the ruined bridge, his gaze unwavering as he surveyed the casino below. A small smirk tugged at his lips, and his sunglasses gleamed in the dim light of the setting sun. If Nami or Umekui were here, they’d definitely swoon, seeing just how cool he looked standing there, calm and collected in the face of danger.Azula with Karoo is safe now all he has to do is the next part of the plan. He cracked his knuckles, feeling the rush of adrenaline begins to course through him. His eyes narrowed, focusing on the casino ahead, full of wealth and power, a fortress teeming with enemies. The men inside turned to stare at him—over fifty of them, all armed and ready for a fight. They looked at him like he was mad, and maybe he was. One lone man against an entire army? But Sanji didn’t care. He had a promise to keep.“I’m coming, first mate,” he muttered under his breath, his voice cold and determined. He wasn’t going to let anything stand in his way.With a shrug, he threw his cigarette away, as if the idea of a fight was little more than a passing distraction. Then, like a beast unleashed, he advanced.As he approached the first row of men, a brutal silence fell over them. They could see the fire in his eyes, the confidence that radiated off him.One of the men, a brute with a scar across his face, lunged at Sanji with a roar, his fist aimed straight for his jaw. But Sanji moved like lightning, his foot sweeping out in a perfect arc. With a swift thud, he landed a powerful kick to the man’s chest, sending him crashing into the side of the casino with bone-breaking force.The rest of the group of billions hesitated, clearly calculating the risk of facing him. But it didn’t matter—they didn’t have time to think. In a blur, Sanji was in the midst of them, his legs a whirlwind of precision and power. Each strike was a flawless dance of brutality. He kicked one man square in the face, his foot slamming into the wall with enough force to crack the concrete. Another man tried to grab him from behind, but Sanji spun around, sending a sharp roundhouse kick to his stomach, sending him sprawling.“Is this all you’ve got?” Sanji taunted, his voice full of that familiar cocky edge.More men charged at him, but Sanji was already moving. He spun and twirled, his legs whipping through the air with deadly grace. A fist came toward him from the left, but he sidestepped it, using the momentum to launch a brutal heel kick into the side of the attacker’s head. The man went down in a heap, groaning.Sanji didn’t stop. He fought with a calm determination, each move deliberate and precise, his body flowing with an intensity that only those who truly knew him could recognize. His eyes were cold, focused on the only thing that mattered: reaching Umekui.Each opponent he knocked down was just another obstacle, another challenge to overcome. Nothing would stop him. Not now, not ever.As the last man standing lunged at him with a weapon, Sanji saw the opening. With a swift, graceful motion, he dodged the strike and delivered a spinning kick that sent the weapon flying from the man’s hand. In the same fluid movement, he followed up with a devastating blow to the man’s ribs, knocking the breath out of him and sending him crashing to the floor, unconscious.Sanji took a moment to catch his breath, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. The casino lay before him, the chaos of the battle already fading into the background. He stood victorious, each of the men now lying unconscious or defeated at his feet.The promise he’d made to Umekui echoed in his mind, and with that same cocky smirk, he cracked his knuckles again.“Guess it’s time to finish this,” he said, his voice full of a quiet, lethal confidence. He strode forward, ready to face whatever lay ahead in the depths of the casino.The scent hit Miss All Sunday before she even saw her. It was familiar, impossibly intoxicating—a fragrance woven into the very fabric of memory, clinging to the air, heavy and almost suffocating. Dazai. That name carried weight, and so did her presence. Miss All Sunday’s eyes widened, heart skipping a beat as the sound of footsteps echoed through the room—soft, deliberate steps that stirred the shadows within Mr. 0's office.It was her.Dazai entered like a ghost, her figure barely visible in the dimly lit room. Her pale face, too stark against the darkness, was framed by the bloodstains that marred her clothes—her body and soul evidently scarred by the brutality of what had transpired. She held Vivi in her arms, limp and unconscious, the princess a fragile, broken thing in her grasp. But it was the blood that sent a chill through Robin's bones, pooling in Dazai’s hands like a cruel, inevitable fate.Miss All Sunday didn’t speak at first. She couldn’t.She stood there, frozen in the presence of someone who had haunted her for years, whose eyes—those crimson eyes—had never truly left her vision. Not even after all this time. Not even after all the pain.Dazai’s smile was small, yet dangerous. It wasn’t the smile of someone who had come to heal, to comfort. It was the smile of someone who had long understood the cold, painful truth of life, and now, in this moment, that understanding burned brightly, burning through the silence between them.“I’ve known you for so long,” Dazai’s voice whispered through the air, almost a ghost of its former self. It was low, soft, and laced with sorrow. But there was a finality to it. A weight. “Longer than you care to remember. There’s only one thing that would make you tie yourself to a man like Crocodile. Knowledge... and history. Isn't it?"She took a step forward, her body moving with a calmness that belied the depth of the emotions raging within her. Her red eyes gleamed with an unsettling intensity, a sharpness that dug into Robin like a dagger. Dangerous. Intimate. And in that moment, it was as though Dazai could see through the very walls Robin had constructed, through all the layers of secrets, pain, and regret.Robin’s breath caught in her throat.“You’ve always been bound to uncover the past,” Dazai continued, her voice brittle with a bitterness so raw it almost tasted like ash. “Books, craved stones, testaments burned to dust... you cling to them as though they could ever save you. Isn’t it cruel?” Her words sliced through the tension in the air like a blade. “sn’t it cruel? Binding your soul to something so rotten, so dark, it’s dragging you into despair, Robin.”Robin’s fists clenched at her sides, her heart pounding painfully against her ribs as Dazai’s words pierced through every scar and wound she had tried so desperately to bury. It was as if Dazai had reached deep into the very core of her being and was twisting every regret, every lost dream, until they bled openly into the air."Nico Robin," Dazai said, the name soft but heavy with meaning, "the woman with a thousand regrets. The devil child. The all-knowing. The woman with a thousand regrets. The woman who knew too much but never enough. Always alone, always carrying the weight of a past that would never let her go." She gestured toward Robin, her voice tightening with barely concealed anger. "And yet here you are, tied to a man like Crocodile. A man who would sell your head to the World Government the moment it suited him."Robin’s chest tightened. A tremor ran through her hands, and before she could respond, Dazai was already drawing a gun from the folds of her blood-stained robe. She aimed it with cold precision, her hand steady, her expression unreadable, except for the gleam of something darker in her eyes.“Do you think you’ve changed me?” Robin hissed, her voice low, shaking with anger and something darker—something deeper. “You’re the one who will always end up alone. Abandoned. Betraying everyone you’ve ever trusted. Just like you always were, Dazai-the executor of the Port Mafia.”Dazai didn’t flinch. She didn’t blink. She just stared at Robin through the barrel of the gun, her face an unreadable mask of emotion. Her lips curled, the faintest trace of a smile tugging at the corners, though it was devoid of humor.“How about we end this?” Dazai’s voice was calm, quiet, but there was a heavy resolve behind it that shook Robin to her core. “I’ll bring an end to Crocodile’s reign. I don’t care about Alabasta. I don’t care about the weapon. All I care about is the safety of my nakama. No matter the cost.”Robin recoiled at the words. The bitter realization, the cruel truth, stung like acid. She tried to steady herself, but her voice trembled as she spat out, “Why him?”Dazai blinked, her expression softening ever so slightly, just enough for Robin to catch a glimpse of something fragile beneath her hardened exterior. Something human. Something that felt like it had never truly left.“What did you find in him that made you so weak?” Robin’s voice cracked, each word feeling like shards of glass scraping against the inside of her throat. “What has Monkey D. Luffy done to you that makes you choose him over everything else?”Dazai’s lips quivered, and for a brief, fleeting moment, Robin saw the crack in her armor. It wasn’t much, but it was there. Her eyes softened, and a warmth—a memory—flashed behind them, so quick it could have been a mirage.“Are you really asking me that, Robin?” Dazai’s voice was low, almost gentle, and it cut through the tension between them like a soft wind on a stormy sea. It was the voice Robin remembered, the one that had once held her together when the world seemed to tear them apart. It was the voice that, for just a heartbeat, made Robin want to believe—made her want to believe that everything could still be fixed, that they could still be saved.But that was a lie. A cruel, fleeting lie.Dazai leaned in, her eyes locking onto Robin’s. “He is everything,” she whispered, her voice filled with something Robin hadn’t heard in years: loyalty. “He’s hope, where there is none. He’s light in the deepest darkness.”Robin felt the weight of her words press down on her, suffocating her. Hope? Light? Could it really be true? Was Luffy truly everything she could never be? Was he the salvation that she had so desperately searched for?How could you look at the sun,” Dazai said, her voice trembling ever so slightly, as though the weight of her words was threatening to crush her, “and not believe in the man named Monkey D. Luffy? He’s everything. He’s hope where there is none. A light in the darkest depths of the ocean.”Her gaze never wavered, as if she could see right through Robin’s shattered heart. “It’s the same as your faith in history,” she murmured, her eyes piercing through the walls Robin had built. “Except Luffy isn’t rotten. He’s pure.”Robin froze. The words held her captive. She couldn’t move. Couldn’t speak. The silence between them became unbearable, like the air itself had thickened to a point where she could no longer breathe.She wanted to scream. She wanted to claw her way out of this suffocating world, this nightmare of regret and betrayal. But she was trapped. She was always trapped.Dazai’s voice broke through the agony, quiet and unwavering. “I can’t let you hurt my nakama. Not now, Robin. Not when I finally found him.”Robin’s hands trembled. The gun in Dazai’s hand trembled.Their eyes locked, but the space between them was vast—immeasurable. Dazai’s grip on the weapon was unyielding, but Robin could see the tremor, the rawness in her fingertips, betraying the inner turmoil she fought so hard to suppress.“I never wanted this for you. For us. All I ever wanted for you is to be free, Robin.” Dazai whispered. Her voice broke, cracking with pain, with regret. And then, before Robin could respond, a single shot rang out.The sound was deafening.The world fell away, spinning in a blur of colors and sounds, and for a long, agonizing moment, Robin couldn’t tell if she was alive or dead. Pain lanced through her chest, sharp and burning, but it was distant.The world slowed, her vision fading, but she could still hear Dazai’s voice, soft and fragile.“Do you think... we could have been together... in another world?”Her voice cracked, a fragile thread of sorrow unraveling into the void. The question hung in the air, suspended in the silence that followed.The weight of what was lost. The weight of everything they could never have. A world without betrayal. A world where they could have been free.
But there was no such world.
Dazai turned, her heart shattering as she walked away from the wreckage. Robin’s form lay in the shadows, an enigma wrapped in sorrow.Robin lay still, her body unmoving, her soul freed from the weight of the past—from the love she had clung to, from the pain she had carried like an unrelenting tide.The fate sealed in blood and regret was sealed. A love undone. A world left in ruins.And for Dazai, there was nothing left. Nothing but the crushing weight of what had been—and what could never be.

"DAZAI, DAZAI, YOU FOOLISH CHILD! DID YOU NOT UNDERSTAND? YOU HAVE BEEN A SLAVE TO YOUR BURDEN SINCE THE DAWN OF HISTORY! DAZAI, CHILD OF THE VOID CENTURY, DO YOU REGRET THE VOW?"

The voice tore through her mind, a relentless force, shaking the very foundation of her soul. It was not a mere whisper, no—this was a scream, a maddening roar that clawed and thrashed inside her skull, reverberating deep within the darkest recesses of her being. It was a curse—a curse that would never leave her. It twisted inside her, pulling her apart from the inside out, its venomous tendrils rooting themselves into every fiber of her being."Fool... child... slave," it hissed, echoing in her veins, through her bones. She could feel it in the marrow of her spine, the burn of it deep in her chest. It was her past. Her curse. Her unshakable inheritance, something she could never escape. No matter how much she wanted to. No matter how much she tried to break free.With every step she took, the voice grew louder, more deafening. It was as if the very world itself was screaming at her—mocking her, condemning her. A cruel symphony, a twisted melody of guilt and despair, blaring in her ears. Every breath she took felt like it might be her last, suffocating beneath the weight of it.And yet, there she was. Walking away. Walking away from the wreckage she had caused. The blood on her hands, the blood on the floor, a stain that would never wash away. It was the price she had paid. It was the price she always paid.Her fingers trembled over Vivi's form, slick with the crimson marks of her decisions, stains marks of blood on the robe. Her vision was blurred, the world swirling in front of her, but it didn’t matter. It didn’t matter because she knew.Deep down, in that twisted pit of despair inside her, she knew. She would never be free.The past was a shadow that followed her. It always had. It always would.Her heart throbbed painfully, as if it were trying to break free from its cage. She could feel it—her chest tightening, her throat choking with the overwhelming rush of regret. The feeling of losing everything, of knowing that this was it. There was no going back.“I’m sorry.”The words left her lips before she could stop them. A whisper. A final apology that would never reach the ears it was meant for. Robin would never hear it. Robin would never understand it. How could she? How could anyone?The truth was, Dazai had been doomed from the start. She had been born into this cycle, a slave to her own burden. She was always meant to destroy everything she loved. She was always meant to ruin it all.Some things never changed.The world had always been this way—empty, cold, cruel. No matter how far she ran, no matter how hard she fought, the shadow of history was always there, dragging her back, pulling her deeper into the void.And the worst part?She could never escape it.Dazai stumbled forward, the weight of it all pressing down on her like a thousand stones. She felt as if the world was collapsing around her. It wasn’t just the physical pain, the blood on her hands. It wasn’t just the brokenness of her heart. It was everything. The weight of all her choices. The crushing knowledge that she had done this to herself.
I was always doomed to ruin everything I loved.
And no matter how hard she tried, no matter how many people she fought for, she would always be a slave to that burden. That vow. The curse that bound her to this fate.“I’m sorry.” she whispered again.But the words would never be enough.She had been a fool. And now she was running from the one thing she could never fix.Everything she loved, everything she tried to protect, would always be lost in the end.And it was all her fault.Dazai’s chest tightened with the unbearable weight of it all. There was no redemption. There was no salvation.She had lost everything. And there was nothing left to save, not even herself except maybe Odasaku's promises.Dazai Umekui turned away with a memory burning in her heart.
“There,” the soft voice of a fifteen-year-old Nico Robin whispered, so light, so fragile, carried by the wind beneath the warm dusk.

Robin’s small hands, delicate as petals, fastened a golden necklace around Dazai’s neck. The cool metal of the chain settled against her warm skin like a secret, a promise that only the two of them shared. The ring at the end of the chain gleamed faintly in the fading light. Dazai lifted her crimson eyes, startled by the tenderness of the moment. She hadn’t known how to accept it, how to hold on to it, but the touch of Robin’s hand, the way she cradled it, made something inside her tremble.

“What is this?” Dazai asked softly, her voice breaking the stillness, the weight of unspoken words hanging between them like an invisible thread.

Robin hesitated, her blue eyes shimmering with the same uncertainty that danced behind Dazai’s own. A faint blush touched her sun-kissed cheeks as she brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear, as if the act itself were a barrier against something too heavy to face.

“It’s a ring that was given to me by the scholars of Ohara,” Robin explained, her voice quiet, reverent, as if she were speaking of something sacred. “A gift for my graduation. This ring is made from a rare stone—Star Stone. It’s worth more than all the gold and treasure in the world.”

Dazai’s breath caught in her chest, her fingers tightening around the ring with an almost desperate tenderness. She could feel it—its weight, its history, the way it seemed to pulse with a promise that was far beyond the physical. A promise that seemed too pure for someone like her to touch.

Robin, her gaze now turned downward, let out a soft, nervous chuckle. She rubbed the back of her neck, her voice betraying a hint of embarrassment. “My sensei told me to give this ring to the one I promise to stand beside forever.”

The words fell like drops of water, each one sinking into the cracks of Dazai’s chest. She felt the tremor in her hands, the tightness in her throat as she reached out, her own fingers, scarred and worn, trembling as they grasped Robin’s delicate ones. The ring was still between them, but Dazai felt the weight of something far heavier than metal—a connection, a promise, something she hadn’t even known she was capable of wanting.

“You mean... you want to stay with me?” Dazai whispered, her voice raw, barely audible, as if saying the words aloud might make them disappear.

Robin’s smile was a burst of light, bright enough to rival the setting sun, and it filled Dazai’s heart in a way that was both overwhelming and terrifying.

Robin nodded, her eyes shining with something far too pure to belong to a world so full of darkness. In that moment, her blue eyes outshone the sky and sea, holding within them a future Dazai had never dared to dream of. 
But dreams, she knew, were fragile.

And now, years later...

The weight of the ring was suffocating. It pressed against her chest like a chain, a reminder of everything she had lost, everything she had failed to protect, it mocked her, cruel and sorrowing.The ring burned against her skin now, but not with the warmth of love. No, it was a cold reminder of something that had never been fully realized, of a promise made in a time when she thought she could still be saved.But that was a lie. The ring was a ghost, a reminder of what could have been, of what should have been, but was now lost to the abyss of regret and tragedy.And now, with that memory gnawing at her heart, she walked away.Her footsteps echoed in the empty corridor, and the world felt like it was closing in around her. The gunshot still reverberated in her ears, the finality of it cutting through the silence like a blade.The shadows in the room seemed to stretch, growing darker and longer with every passing second, as if they were trying to swallow her whole. And in that silence, the faint glimmer of the ring at her neck was the only thing that remained—it felt heavy, suffocating, unworthy of such memories, a cruel reminder of a promise unfulfilled, of a love that had never been given the chance to blossom.The echoes of that memory burned through her, and all that was left was the weight of something she could never change.
Dazai has always been doomed.
Luffy’s glare burned a hole through the cold, unforgiving steel bars that confined him. Every step closer sapped the strength from his limbs, leaving behind a creeping numbness, as if something unseen was draining the very essence of his being. His rubber body—his Devil Fruit powers—were slipping away, dissolving like mist before the morning sun.It shouldn’t have been possible. He was made of rubber, immune to most things, unbreakable in spirit. And yet, this cage, this suffocating steel, held an oppressive force that felt almost alive. The air around it crackled with something unnatural, something meant to keep him weak, to strip him of what made him who he was.His fists clenched, frustration burning in his chest, but his arms trembled when he tried to move. He was trapped.Across the dimly lit cell, Usopp sat curled in a corner, his face pale, sweat dripping down his forehead. His wide, terrified eyes were fixed on the massive glass aquarium built into the wall—the home of a colossal crocodile that drifted lazily in the water, its cold, predatory gaze locked onto them.“L-Luffy,” Usopp stammered, voice cracking. “It’s gonna eat us—I swear it’s gonna eat us!” His whole body shook as he pointed at the beast, his panic barely contained. “We’re dead! This is it!”Luffy forced a weak smile, the usual fire in his eyes dimmed by exhaustion. If he weren’t so drained, he’d probably laugh. Imagine getting eaten by a giant crocodile. He’d have fought it head-on, made a joke about tossing it to Sanji for dinner. But now? Now he could barely keep himself upright.The distant echo of approaching footsteps made his ears twitch. Someone was coming.A gruff voice rang out, cold and sharp as steel.“Stop.”Luffy’s gaze snapped to the far end of the cell. A tall Marine Captain stood there, his white coat draped over his broad shoulders, his expression hard and unyielding. Luffy didn’t remember his name—didn’t care to—but he knew one thing: this man was an enemy.Luffy stepped forward on instinct, fists twitching, ready to fight.“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”The Marine lifted his weapon, its tip gleaming with an eerie, dark sheen. Luffy’s body tensed. There was something about it—something that made his skin crawl, something that felt too familiar.The Captain smirked. “You’ve felt it, haven’t you?” he said, tilting his head. “The way the steel weakens you?”Luffy didn’t answer, but his silence was enough.“That’s because this—” the Captain tapped the bars with his weapon, “is made of sea prism stone. A rare mineral that emits the same energy as the ocean itself. It robs Devil Fruit users of their strength, just like drowning in the sea.”Luffy’s jaw tightened. Sea prism stone. He’d heard of it before, but feeling it firsthand—feeling his power drain from his body so completely—was something else entirely.The Captain’s smirk widened. “Without your abilities, you’re nothing but a weakling now.”The words clawed at Luffy’s pride, but before he could retort, another voice sliced through the air, filled with quiet fury.“Leave him alone.”The tension in the cell shifted.Zoro, with his three swords drawn, their steel glinting under the dim light. His stance was relaxed, but his eyes—sharp, unwavering—promised violence.He grinned, slow and dangerous. “I don’t have a Devil Fruit,” he said, rolling his shoulders. “So why don’t you try me instead?” His blade lifted slightly, a silent warning. “Touch my captain or my crew, and I’ll cut you down where you stand.”The room tensed like a bowstring pulled taut.The Marine’s expression didn’t falter, but his gaze flicked to the others. Nami, holding Chopper protectively in her arms, her lips pressed in a thin line. Usopp, still shaking but standing his ground beside Luffy. The unspoken truth hung between them: they would fight, no matter the odds.The Marine exhaled through his nose, unimpressed. “How touching,” he mused, then tilted his head. “But tell me—where is your precious first mate?”A flicker of something unreadable crossed Luffy’s face.The Captain smirked. “Where is Dazai?”“Stop calling her that,” Usopp snapped, surprising even himself with the venom in his voice.The Marine arched an eyebrow. “Why?” His smirk widened. “It’s her name, isn’t it?”Luffy’s eyes darkened. “Her name is Ume.”“Oh?” The Captain feigned interest, tapping a finger against his chin. “Ume. How sweet.” His gaze turned cold. “Do you really think a name can change what she is? You can dress up a beast in silk, but it remains a beast. She is dangerous. Wild. A mons—”The words barely left his mouth before Zoro lunged, his blade flashing in the dim light.The Marine barely dodged in time, stepping back as Zoro’s sword sliced the air where his throat had been. The fight had begun.But before another blow could land, a dark, rumbling chuckle filled the room.Heavy footsteps descended the staircase, each one deliberate, echoing with the weight of authority. A long green coat trailed behind him, his dark hair slicked back, brushing against the nape of his neck. The glint of gold shone beneath the dim light—the hook that replaced his left hand catching the glow like a beacon of power.

Crocodile.

A name that carried the weight of infamy. A title whispered in fear.The Warlord of the Sea had arrived."Oh, fabulous," Crocodile drawled, his voice dripping with amusement. His golden hook gleamed under the dim light, his smirk razor-sharp. "They say crocodiles can smell blood in the water—fear, especially. And right now..." His dark eyes swept over the cell, lingering on each of them like a predator sizing up its prey. "I can smell it thick in the air."He took a slow step forward, the weight of his presence pressing down on the room like a storm rolling in. The scar on his face caught the light for a brief moment, a cruel reminder of battles won and enemies lost.Suddenly, from the shadows, footsteps echoed—each step deliberate, chilling in its approach, sending a shiver down the spine of anyone who could hear them. The voice that followed was smooth, silken, like poison poured into a cup of honey, each syllable carrying the weight of unspeakable things.“How foolish,” the voice cooed, almost mockingly, as the figure stepped into the dim light. “To think Crocodile still believes he's the apex predator when even a simple snake's venom could bring him to his knees.”Dazai Umekui emerged, her presence suffocating, impossible to ignore. She cradled the limp body of Princess Vivi in her arms, the princess’s face pale, streaked with blood.Dazai's eyes—dark, blood-red, and empty—stared back at them with an unnatural emptiness. The room fell into an eerie silence as all eyes turned to her, the weight of the moment pressing down like a vise.Nami’s voice, barely a whisper, trembled as she spoke, fear threading her words. “Umekui? Are you okay? What happened to Vivi?”Dazai didn’t spare a glance toward Nami. Her gaze was fixed solely on Crocodile, the warlord who sat at the far end of the room. Calm, composed, as always. But there was a glint in his eyes now—something dangerous—at the sight of the unconscious princess and the woman who held her.Crocodile's voice sliced through the tense air, cold and commanding. "Where is Miss All Sunday?"Without hesitation, Dazai’s lips parted. Her voice was like ice, sharp, deadly, and final. “Dead. I killed her.”A gasp tore from Nami's lips, her hands flying to her mouth.Usopp's eyes widened in disbelief, whispering, "W-what did she say?"She stepped toward the table, the heavy thud of her boots sounding like an inevitable countdown, each step marking the tension tightening in the air. She laid Vivi’s body on the table with a soft thud, her hands treating the princess like nothing more than a piece of discarded cargo.Then she casually took a seat at the table’s far end, as if she were simply settling in for a long conversation. Her long black hair hung in wet, bloodied strands, sticking to her neck and forehead, a stark contrast to the dead calm in her posture. The crimson streaks down her skin spoke of violence, yet her expression was eerily composed, cold even.The room was thick with tension, the air so dense it felt like it might crack under the weight of what had just been said. Usopp’s breath hitched in his throat, the realization of Umekui’s words sinking in like cold steel. Crocodile’s gaze never wavered from Dazai, though his face remained impassive, betraying nothing. He was like a predator, calculating, his eyes flickering with something darker. But Dazai's smile was unrelenting—a twisted mockery of joy, as if she was relishing every second of this.“What will you do now, Crocodile?” she purred, her voice deliberately slow, cold with venom. “I’ve taken the one piece you needed to achieve your goal in Alabasta. All your schemes, your manipulations—what do they mean now?”The words hung in the air like a storm cloud, a dagger poised to strike. The silence that followed was suffocating, heavy with the weight of her challenge. Crocodile’s narrowed eyes betrayed the smallest flicker of irritation. He knew the game she was playing—the one where he was no longer the hunter.Now, she was the apex predator.A flick of his wrist sent a blast of sand toward her, sharp and swift. But Dazai didn’t flinch. With a languid gesture, the sand disintegrated in mid-air, vanishing as though it had never existed. Her eyes gleamed darkly as she leaned forward, her posture languid but predatory.“So your power isn't a legend,” Crocodile muttered, the faintest hint of surprise threading through his words. But his voice was controlled, careful. He couldn’t afford to show weakness.Dazai smiled, a smile full of malice, as if savoring every moment of his discomfort. “I’m beyond what you’ve imagined,” she said, her voice soft, dangerous. “And I’m the one who holds all the cards now.”The tension in the room heightened. Crocodile, the so-called King of the Desert, was standing on the edge of a precipice—and he knew it.But he wasn’t the only one who had been playing a dangerous game. Dazai’s voice cut through the stillness, playful yet full of venom.“How about we make a deal, King of the Desert?” She tilted her head, dark hair cascading over her shoulder, the gleam in her eyes nothing short of predatory.Crocodile’s lips twitched. The amusement was there, but it was edged with suspicion. “What kind of deal?” His fingers curled around his golden hook, a silent threat lingering in the air.Dazai leaned forward, her crimson eyes locking onto his with a steady, unwavering gaze. “I know what you want,” she said, her voice a dangerous whisper. “I know what lies beneath Alabasta.”The room felt as if it were shrinking, the air heavy with the weight of her words. Crocodile’s expression hardened, but he gave nothing away. Dazai’s smile only grew.“You want Pluton, don’t you?” she asked, her words dripping with cold certainty. The name seemed to hang in the air, heavy with implication, a name that made even Crocodile’s stone face twitch.For a moment, Crocodile said nothing, but Dazai didn’t give him a chance to respond.“The ancient weapon buried beneath this kingdom,” she continued, her voice smooth like silk. “You’ve spent years chasing it—using Baroque Works, manipulating the rebels amry, causing chaos in Alabasta—all for the power to destroy islands. Control the world.”She leaned in, her breath brushing against the air between them. “But you were missing one thing, weren’t you? The final key to unlocking it.”Crocodile’s jaw clenched. “And you have it?” His voice was tight, the slightest crack in his composure showing.Dazai smirked, her eyes flashing. “Maybe.”The silence that followed was heavy. But before Crocodile could respond, Dazai waved him off, almost dismissively. “Before you waste your breath, let me make this simple for you.”The tension in the room built like a storm ready to break.Crocodile’s patience was wearing thin, but Dazai simply smirked. “You were never going to get it from Nico Robin. She played you, just like everyone else. But she wasn’t going to hand over a weapon capable of destroying entire nations. She had her own agenda.”Crocodile’s gaze darkened, but he said nothing. The pieces were starting to fall into place, and he didn’t like it.Dazai’s smile grew darker, more twisted. “So,” she said, her eyes gleaming with promise and danger, “what will you do now, Crocodile? You’ve lost. Your plans are in ruin. You’ll never find Pluton without Nico Robin.”The room was thick with the promise of violence, but Dazai’s gaze was unflinching, as cold as the grave.“So tell me,” she murmured. “Are you ready to listen?”Crocodile’s lips curled into a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.“And what do you want in return?” he asked, his voice a low growl.Dazai’s eyes narrowed.“Free the Straw Hats. You get the princess, and I get my crew.”Crocodile’s laughter shattered the silence, a deep, mocking rumble that vibrated through the cold, stone walls of the room. It wasn’t the kind of laugh that invited humor—it was a weapon, sharp and biting. "You never changed. Dazai, the executor of the Port Mafia! The demon prodigy!" His words dripped with venom, as if savoring the taste of her past, the darkness that followed her like a shadow.For just a split second, something flickered in his eyes—something almost human. Pity? It vanished so fast that it might have been a trick of the light. In its place was his usual cold, calculating stare, steely and unwavering. He was the predator now, but she had just proven that she could match him blow for blow.The name "Port Mafia" hung in the air like a poisonous fog, thick and suffocating. It cast a shadow over the room, over Dazai, over everything. The Straw Hats were frozen, their faces masks of confusion.Usopp’s voice broke the silence, shaking with disbelief. "The Port Mafia?"The weight of the truth was suffocating. Smoker’s voice cut through the air like a blade, his fury unmistakable."That’s what I was telling you," he growled, eyes flashing with anger. "Your first mate? She’s no saint. Assassin, kidnapper, a monster who’s slaughtered islands without a second thought. Dazai, the prodigy of the Port Mafia—the very beast the world hunts down." The words were a bitter reminder of the darkness Dazai carried with her, a legacy of blood and death.Chopper, his voice quivering, whispered, barely audible, "Is it true, Umekui?" His innocent question hung in the air, the weight of it too heavy for anyone to answer.The room seemed to shrink, the tension so thick it felt suffocating. Dazai didn’t react to their shock, their confusion.She didn’t flinch at the accusations, nor did she offer an explanation. Her tired red eyes remained steady, unwavering, locked onto Crocodile, her focus sharp, like a predator sizing up her prey.Then,in a voice so eerily calm it sent chills down their spines, she spoke. "I’ll be your key," she said, her words cold and precise, devoid of any warmth. "The princess for the kingdom. All you have to do is free my nakamas."Crocodile's laughter was a cruel, biting thing, echoing through the room like the rumble of an approaching storm. "Dazai, you’re still as blind as ever. Even now, you fail to see the truth. Your loyalty to them will be your undoing. How utterly foolish."He raised his hook, pointing directly at the Straw Hats, his eyes gleaming with sadistic pleasure. "You think I’ll just let them go? How about I cut them to shreds with my san—"Before he could finish his sentence, a shift in the air occurred, and the sand surged forward from his body like a deadly wave, aiming to obliterate the crew. But Dazai, with the precision of a shadow, moved before it could reach them, standing between the attack and her nakamas.She flicked her hand with an effortless motion, and the sand disintegrated, vanishing into the air like smoke-.(No longer human hums, crawling beneath her skin like poison—an unshakable burden, dragging her deeper into the sickness of her own existence, a curse that never fades).Crocodile’s eyes narrowed, a sneer curling his lips."We are the same, Dazai," he hissed, his voice low and filled with contempt. "Two monsters, both hunted by the world. Yet—" His gaze darkened with a twisted glee. "I wonder what will kill you faster, your arrogance or your loyalty to the Straw Hats?"The room seemed to hold its breath, and in the span of a heartbeat, Crocodile struck.His hook shot forward like a flash of lightning, a deadly, unforgiving weapon aimed straight for Dazai’s chest. It collided with her body with a sickening crunch, the impact echoing in the stillness. Blood sprayed out, staining the floor in a violent arc of crimson. Dazai’s body jerked violently, her breath catching as the sharp pain radiated from the wound."Ume!" Luffy’s scream tore through the room, a raw, desperate cry filled with horror and helplessness. His voice cracked with pain as he reached out, but he was powerless because of the damned stone.Crocodile's laugh was triumphant, sickening in its cruelty. He reveled in the sight of Dazai’s pain, his voice dripping with mockery."See? I told you your foolish loyalty would be your downfall, Dazai." His words echoed with a malicious delight, savoring every moment of her suffering.Dazai stood there, blood dripping from her mouth, her crimson eyes wide with disbelief. She didn’t collapse, didn’t fall. Despite the wound that should have been fatal, she held her ground, her gaze never leaving Crocodile’s. A tremor ran through her, but it wasn’t fear—it was something darker. Something that made Crocodile pause, a flicker of uncertainty passing through his cold gaze.Nami’s voice broke through, barely a whisper, trembling with fear and concern. "Umekui...!"Suddenly, a crack reverberated through the chamber—the floor beneath Crocodile’s feet splintered with a deafening crack, and a massive foot smashed through the doors."Here comes Mister Prince," chuckled softly Dazai, her lips bloody.Dust erupted, filling the air like a cloud of chaos, and from the smoke emerged Sanji. His body seemed to pulse with unrelenting energy, eyes aflame with the fire of determination.He landed in the center of the room, his stance poised, ready for the battle ahead. "You didn’t think you could get away with this, did you?" Sanji’s voice rumbled, low and dangerous.Crocodile’s lips twitched, but his eyes were sharp—calculating, always calculating. He wasn’t intimidated, but something in Sanji’s presence shifted the air. His posture hardened as if preparing for something bigger.Dazai, blood staining her clothes, slowly lifted her head. Her red eyes locked with Sanji’s, a faint smile tugging at her lips, though pain lingered in the corners of her expression.“I didn’t think you’d be so dramatic with your entrance,” she murmured, the words almost a whisper. “But... you’re not too late.”The room trembled, the presence of water now cascading down from the ceiling, adding chaos to the already fragile atmosphere. Crocodile’s sands began swirling around him, but for a moment, the water threatened to counter his command.A soft cough escaped her, more blood staining her lips as she glanced toward Crocodile.“Looks like you miscalculated, warlord,” Dazai's voice was eerily calm, as if her bloodied state was just an afterthought. She tilted her head slightly, gazing at Crocodile with an unnerving composure.Sanji didn’t wait for any further hesitation. His leg ignited mid-air, his body a blur of fire and speed, as he rocketed toward Crocodile. A loud crack echoed through the chamber as the cell bars exploded outward. The flood of water had weakened the sea prism stone locks just enough for Zoro to rip them apart with sheer strength and his swords. The Straw Hats were free.Luffy, still sluggish from his earlier capture, was the first to move. His muscles rippled with barely contained fury as his eyes burned with a fierce determination. He cracked his knuckles, his voice a low growl.“Oi, Crocodile.” His glare was sharp, dangerous. “You messed with my crew.”Crocodile scoffed, his golden hook still dripping with the evidence of Dazai’s blood. “And what do you plan to do about it, Straw Hat?” His voice was laced with mockery, the air around him still heavy with the threat of his sand.Luffy’s fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white. His body trembled—not from fear, but from the rage boiling inside of him. “I’m gonna punch you so hard, you’ll wish you never set foot in Alabasta.”Crocodile chuckled darkly, his lips twisting into a cruel smile. “Bold words.”Dazai, still bleeding out, let out a weak, rasping laugh.Despite the agony twisting through her, she somehow managed to speak with a lightness in her voice, as if amused by the turn of events. “You should listen to him,” she murmured, her voice almost too calm. “He has a habit of making the impossible happen.”Crocodile’s gaze flickered toward her, irritation flashing across his features. Before he could respond, Luffy lunged, his body coiled with the force of a storm.“GOMU GOMU NO…!” Luffy shouted, the tension in the room erupting as he released his attack.But Crocodile’s smirk never faltered. He turned, reaching down to his desk. Without hesitation, his fist slammed into a single red button embedded within the surface.The room exploded with noise.A deafening crack ripped through the air as the stone floor beneath their feet trembled violently. Jagged cracks spider-webbed outward, splitting the ground like a vicious beast ready to swallow them whole. The very foundation groaned and creaked, as if it were alive—and then, in an instant, the entire room began to collapse.“Not again!” Nami gasped, her hands reaching desperately for something to hold onto, but there was nothing. The ground beneath them gave way with terrifying force."Shit!" Zoro cursed as the world tilted, twisting in mid-air as the void beneath him sucked him down.“Luffy!!” Usopp shrieked, his voice filled with terror as he flailed, his eyes wide with panic. Followed by the screams of Chopper and worried tone of Sanji.Even Smoker, usually composed, let out a low growl as the earth pulled him downward, unable to stop the inevitable plunge into the abyss.Amidst the chaos, Crocodile remained unmoved. His laughter echoed, deep and victorious, the sound of a man who had already won. He had planned this. Every detail. Every step. His trap was flawless.“Ume!” Luffy’s desperate scream echoed through the cold, empty space, his fingers stretching toward her, hoping to catch her, to pull her back. But just as his hand reached out—A cold, iron grip latched onto Dazai from behind. Crocodile's smirk was twisted, dripping with malicious satisfaction. He yanked her back with brutal force, the sound of his dark laughter cutting through the tension like a blade.Luffy’s eyes widened, disbelief and fury flashing across his face as he tried to leap forward, but the air around him seemed to freeze. He could only watch helplessly as Dazai, bloodied and still, was dragged away, her body limp in Crocodile’s cruel grasp."Foolish Straw Hat," Crocodile mocked, his voice echoing in the cavernous darkness. "You think you can save her? She’s nothing more than a tool to everyone"Luffy gritted his teeth at the words.But then, without warning, a wave of water surged behind him, crashing down like a tidal wave. It tore at his feet, pushing him toward the abyss. His gaze locked on the space where Umekui had just been, his thoughts screaming with rage and panic.(Why was he always forced to watch her sacrifice herself, her body laid bare and bloody for him? His heart screamed in frustration, I can protect you, Ume! He wanted to shout it, to tell her that he didn’t care about her past—that she wasn’t Dazai, she wasn’t the monster from the Port Mafia to him. She was simply his. His first mate, his half soul, his treasure, his everything.
But all he could do was watch, helpless, as she threw herself away as if she never mattered. He loved her more than anything. Why couldn’t she see that? Why couldn’t she stop? Every moment, every drop of blood, was a knife in his chest.

When will you stop hurting yourself for me? Luffy was so tired from witnessing his loved ones sacrificing themselves for him.)
He was falling, sinking, his nakama slipping through his fingers just as quickly as he could reach for them.
"Say, my captain," Umekui whispered softly, her cold fingers grazing the back of his cheek.

"Hmm?" Luffy murmured, his voice heavy with sleep as his eyes fluttered, barely open, resting on the desk under the starry night sky.

"You didn’t care that Zoro was a pirate hunter. As if he hasn't hunted and killed countless pirates before. Why? Isn’t it contradictory to take in someone who used to slay pirates?" she asked, her red eyes fixed on his eyelashes, searching.

"I don’t care," Luffy replied bluntly, his words slow and sure. "People change. All I care about is loyalty. A loyalty that lies in each of our nakama, a loyalty that binds us together, protects each other, and helps us reach our dreams."

Then his gaze shifted, resting on his first mate, his voice softening. "Ume, you’re my nakama. But above all, you’re my first mate. We’re linked as one. Our vow, our promise, our loyalty—binding us together. No matter who you were, no matter what you’ve done, what matters is that you’re mine. My first mate. My nakama."

"I see," she whispered softly, resting her head gently on his chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat, just like always. At first, he found it strange, even funny, but over time, he’d grown accustomed to it, as if her presence had become an integral part of him.

"Ume," he called softly.

"Yes, my captain?" Her voice was a soft breath against his skin.

"I love you," he said the words, loud and clear, like he always did, as though reminding both of them.
“Pathetic,” Crocodile sneered, then gripped Dazai by her hair, dragging her closer. He held Vivi’s limp form in his other arm, the blood from his hook staining the floor beneath them. His voice dripped with condescension as he looked down at her, relishing the moment. “Did you really think you could outplay me, Dazai? That you, of all people, could checkmate me?”But then—Something shifted.A flicker in Dazai’s half-lidded eyes. The smirk on her lips grew darker, though pain raked through her body. And then—Vivi’s form, still cradled in Crocodile’s grip, began to disintegrate.It wasn’t blood. It wasn’t flesh. It was sand.Fine grains of golden sand slipped through his fingers like a cruel illusion, fading into nothingness.Crocodile’s eyes widened, his smirk faltering for the first time. “What—?”Dazai’s chuckle was low, taunting, the sound of someone who had already won the game. “What did I tell you, Crocodile?” Her voice was barely above a whisper, her words thick with venom and satisfaction.Crocodile’s gaze snapped back to her, realization dawning too late. She had played him. She had always known. And now—The floor beneath her feet gave way. The last piece of the crumbling ground vanished, and she fell, her body vanishing into the darkness below.But just before the void claimed her, just before the abyss swallowed her whole, she leaned in—close enough for only Crocodile to hear her.“Checkmate.”And then—She jumped.Crocodile stood frozen for a moment, staring at the void where she had just jumped. His hook still glistened with her blood, his fingers curled around empty air, the spot where Princess Vivi had once been now vacant.Slowly, his smirk returned. It was colder now—more dangerous.“You never changed, Dazai,” he muttered, his voice soft but dripping with disdain. There was a strange edge to his words like he was savoring the way the game had shifted.The moment Dazai had resurfaced, everything had shifted. Her presence had turned the game into something far more unpredictable. All his carefully laid plans, all the pieces he had moved into place for this very moment, now felt like fragile glass, ready to shatter at the slightest tremor. She had broken the illusion of control he had so meticulously constructed.The tension thickened, an invisible storm brewing on the horizon. The war was far from over. Dazai had just made it far more dangerous.
For both of them.

"for those i love. I will sacrifice."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Does she even believe she deserves freedom? Or has she worn her chains for so long that she’s convinced they’re a part of her?"

"Do you miss me as much as I do?" Dazai whispered, her voice barely carried by the scorching wind. Her crimson eyes, dull with exhaustion, gazed up at the sky burning in hues of blue and gold. The sand beneath her was hot and coarse, clinging to the sweat and blood smeared across her skin. It was suffocating, grounding her in a reality she wished would dissolve into nothing.Beside her, lay a ghost she could never reach. Odasaku.He lay on the sand, just as he had that night, his form weightless against the shifting grains. A mirage, a memory—too cruel to be real, too vivid to be fake. He let out a quiet chuckle, soft and familiar, the sound curling around her like an old lullaby. His lips curved into that same gentle, heartbreaking smile, his eyes tracing the vast sky above them.For a moment, it felt like the past had never left. Like she had never truly left him behind. But the blood on her hands was warm, and his was long since cold."More than you could imagine," Odasaku murmured, his voice trembling with something raw—longing, sorrow, a grief too deep to name.Dazai’s breath hitched. The wind howled softly through the dunes, carrying the scent of blood, sweat, and something achingly familiar—like cigarettes and old paperbacks, like home long lost.She turned her head ever so slightly, just enough to see him lying beside her, his presence a cruel ghost of a past she could never reclaim. His golden eyes, warm yet heavy with sadness, never left the sky, his red-orange hair dancing in the wind.Dazai swallowed hard, her fingers curling weakly against the burning sand."Then why do you feel so far away?" she whispered.Odasaku smiled—soft, sorrowful, the kind of smile that felt like a goodbye long overstayed."I'm dead, Dazai. Long gone, my dear," he whispered, his voice barely carried by the desert wind.Dazai's breath shuddered. The weight in her chest pressed heavier, deeper, like an ache carved into her very bones. She knew—God, she knew. And yet, hearing it from his lips felt like a fresh wound tearing open, bleeding out all the things she never got to say.Her fingers twitched against the sand, reaching for something—someone—she could never hold again."Is death quieter than this, Odasaku?"Odasaku’s gaze softened, his ghostly form bathed in the dying light of Alabasta’s sun.“Much quieter,” he murmured, his voice carrying the weight of something distant, something lost. "Just… silence.”Dazai let out a breath—shaky, uneven. The heat, the weight of her wounds, the echoes of war—they all felt deafening.She turned her head slightly, crimson eyes searching for something in his face. “Then maybe… just maybe, I’d like it there.”Odasaku’s smile was sad, knowing. “Not yet, Dazai.”"Why?" Dazai whispered, her voice raw, trembling with an emotion she couldn’t hide.Odasaku's smile, small but filled with something tender, held a knowing sadness. "Because he needs you. You’ve found him, haven’t you? The boy of this tale."Dazai scoffed, the sound jagged with pain, like it had been torn from deep within her. "He hates me." Her words cracked, each one laced with self-loathing. "He knows what I am. I'm too broken, too damaged for him." Her gaze dropped to her hands, the blood still staining her skin, the reminder of everything she had ruined.Her fingers trembled, as if the very touch of her own flesh was foreign to her now. "I’m poison. Everything I touch... falls apart. I’m too far gone to be saved. And he... he deserves better than this."The silence that followed was heavy, suffocating, thick with regret, as if the air itself was mourning the truth that Dazai could never escape.Odasaku’s laugh was soft, almost a whisper, but it carried a warmth that made the air feel less suffocating. "Monkey D. Luffy would never hate you, silly Dazai," he said, his voice filled with a tenderness that seemed to contradict the heaviness of her words.Dazai flinched at the sound, her chest tightening, the ache of his kindness making her heart throb painfully. "He should hate me," she murmured, more to herself than to him. "I’m a burden, a curse. I can’t even protect him without hurting everyone around me. How can he not hate that?"Odasaku’s voice softened, but there was a firmness in it, an unspoken certainty. "Luffy doesn’t care about your past, Dazai. He cares about you. The real you, Umekui. You’re the one who doesn’t believe in that."Dazai closed her eyes, fighting the lump in her throat. The weight of it all—her past, her mistakes, the love she didn’t think she deserved—pressed down on her like a thousand stones."I did something unforgivable to Robin," she whispered, her voice raw and trembling. The words hung in the air between them, heavy with a guilt so suffocating it made it hard to breathe.Her eyes squeezed shut, as if closing them could block out the memories that clawed at her mind, the faces, the words, the betrayal. "I broke her. I... I hurt her when all she ever did was try to save me. And now, I’m too tainted to fix it. Too far gone to make it right."Odasaku’s hand fell gently over hers, a soft but steady presence in the chaos of her mind. His touch, even through the veil of death, was warm with sincerity. His voice was tender but weighed with regret as he spoke."I'm sorry if I lied to you all those years ago about Robin," he murmured, his words cutting through the fog of her guilt. "She never died. I saved her—before the flames, before the World Government could take her down."Dazai's chest tightened, the breath caught in her throat as the truth settled into her like a heavy stone."Why did you lie?" she exclaimed, her voice raw and hurt, each syllable cutting through the air like a jagged blade. "Why did you tell me that Robin was dead?"Her hands balled into fists at her sides, her chest heaving with the weight of the emotion crashing through her. The pain of all the years spent mourning someone who was still out there, still alive, it was too much. It was a wound that never healed, and now the truth only made it bleed more."I thought I lost her," she whispered, her voice breaking as she dropped her gaze to the sand, her fingers shaking. "I thought I failed her, just like everyone else... Why didn't you tell me the truth, Odasaku?!"The silence stretched between them, thick with the unspeakable hurt that had lived inside her all these years.Odasaku’s voice was strained, tinged with regret, yet firm. He spoke slowly, as though each word pained him."I can’t tell you now, Dazai… It’s not the right time," he whispered, his tone filled with a sorrow that she could feel deep in her bones. "But you have to understand... both of you were in danger. So many enemies, too many threats. You were both too young... too weak."There was a weight in his voice, a heaviness that felt like a burden too big for one soul to carry. He paused for a moment, the silence thick with things unsaid. His hand gently rested on her bloody hand, though it felt like the touch of a ghost, distant, unable to comfort her the way it once had."Listen to me, Dazai," he murmured, his words almost pleading. "You have so much to see, so much to learn. This world... it’s not as simple as we want it to be. You have to keep moving forward. You have to grow, no matter how much it hurts.""No more," Dazai whispered, her voice cold. Her crimson eyes were heavy with exhaustion, hollowed by the burdens of an existence she couldn’t escape. "I’m tired, Oda."Her gaze drifted to the endless sky above, yet her mind was still shackled to the past, and to the faces of the people she loved and hurt. How much longer could she carry this weight? How much longer before it consumed her whole?"I’m so tired," she repeated, as though trying to make sense of the ache in her chest.A hand gently brushed through her long, black hair, the touch soft, yet filled with an unspoken understanding."I know, my dear," Oda's voice murmured as if offering a fragile comfort. "But you have to keep going—for them, for him."At his mention, she let out a soft smile, but it was a smile laced with sorrow, her cheeks and eyes aching from the weight of the past."Do you think he is hating me from where he is? Imagining kicking off my corpse; and insulting me with dumb nicknames his small brain could think of?" Her voice trembled, but there was a bitter amusement in it. "He was always too reckless and stupid, that mackerel."She laughed, though it wasn’t with joy. It was that kind of laugh you make when you're on the edge, teetering between grief and something that feels like anger but will never come. Was that really love?Odasaku chuckled softly, a sound that seemed to echo through the empty space between them. His presence, once solid and warm, now felt like a fleeting memory, a soft breeze that would soon fade away.His voice, though distant, held that familiar warmth, and as he faded into the ether, his last words lingered like a gentle reminder.“All I know... is that Chuuya’s telling you to keep living, or he’ll come back and kick your ass.”And with that, his presence was gone, leaving behind a silence that was both comforting and cruel in its stillness. Dazai’s breath caught, her chest tightening with something raw, something she couldn’t name. A part of her wanted to laugh, to mock the absurdity of it all, but another part—one deep and hidden—found it too real. Too familiar.Chuuya, always stubborn, always there when she least expected it. Even now, even from beyond, his words cut through her, making her ache in ways she didn’t want to face. But maybe, just maybe, she could try. For them. For all of them. Even if it meant carrying the weight of everything that had come before.And so, with a soft, almost imperceptible sigh, Dazai closed her eyes and let the blood fall from her wounds because her eyes could never cry. For just a moment, she thought.Just a brief moment to close her eyes, to let the pain consume her entirely, until there was nothing left but the raw ache that had become her constant companion. The blood on her lips was a bitter reminder of everything she had lost, everything she had become. A hollow smile, twisted and broken, tugged at the corners of her mouth as the world seemed to bleed away into darkness.She couldn’t—she knew she couldn’t. Not now. Not when the weight of everything was pressing down on her chest like a vice. The war. The weapon. The endless cycle of betrayal and bloodshed. It was all waiting for her. No, there was no time to rest. No time to surrender. Not when her nakamas were still out there. Not when Azul was still somewhere in the chaos. She couldn’t give in.
But God, just for a second, could she not breathe? Could she just close her eyes, forget the pain and the weight of it all?
Her fingers clenched over the gaping wounds in her side, her body trembling with the effort to stay upright, to hold onto some semblance of strength. One wound from a bullet—sharply precise and unforgiving. The other, from the cruel hook of a man who has become her enemy, now looming like an inescapable shadow.She could feel the coldness spreading inside her, the sickness of the blood leaking from her body, the ache of everything she’d ever done and failed to do.But she would stand again. She would fight Crocodile. She would tear through every wall, every enemy, and get her nakamas back. She would find Azul, hold him close, feel the warmth of that innocence again.Then, when the war is over and the world finally stopped trying to swallow her whole—maybe, just maybe—she could run. Run with them. Run far away from this hell, to the endless seas where nothing mattered except the laughter, the smiles, the simple joy of her nakamas dreams.But for now, all she has is the bitter taste of blood on her lips and the weight of the world on her shoulders.The room was suffocating, the smell of ink and blood mixing with the heavy air, thick with despair. The thousand scattered papers that surrounded him were soaked—drenched in his tears, his blood, as if the very essence of his soul had bled out onto the pages.The pencil he clutched in his hand was sticky, caked in dry blood, the once-sharp point now dulled by years of use, years of exhaustion. His fingers bore the imprint of the pen, raw and torn, as if it had been dragged across the page endlessly, without rest, until the skin finally tore.He stretched his aching limbs in his chair, the silence around him stretching into infinity. The darkness of the realm was suffocating, intangible, like a vacuum that threatened to swallow him whole. He lay an arm across his eyes, masking the ache, both physical and emotional, and scoffed aloud, a sound of bitter frustration.Even in death, the weight of fatigue clung to him, the pain in his body, the sadness that lingered like a sickness. He was tired. Tired of the endless cycle, of the stories that kept repeating themselves, of the way they were all bound by forces beyond their control.“Tell me, Overseer,” he asked, his voice raw, his words laced with frustration, anger, and resignation, “Do you even care about the people you control? Or are they just pieces on your board?” His gaze swept across the scattered papers, the torn books, the remnants of lives that had been manipulated, crushed, and discarded. “What is the point of this story if it’s all just for your amusement? What is the point of all this... if Dazai dies in every possibility, in every universe?”His words echoed through the emptiness, a cry of anguish, a plea for meaning. The world he had been part of, the lives he had tried to save, the bonds he had forged—none of it seemed to matter. Every effort, every sacrifice, every tear shed, had been in vain. All paths led to the same end.

Every universe, every possibility, always ends in her death.

Odasaku’s grip tightened around the armrest, his fingers curling like claws as his entire body trembled with raw emotion. The room felt like it was collapsing in on him, the oppressive silence heavy and suffocating, mirroring the chaos inside him. His heart pounded in his chest, a dull, steady rhythm of grief that reverberated in his bones.His voice broke the silence, cracking under the weight of his pain, his raw, heart-wrenching scream echoing through the emptiness of the realm. “You promised me!” The words felt like daggers, sharp and heavy, filled with the suffocating weight of betrayal. “When you revealed yourself to me, you promised me—Dazai would be free! Free of the pain, the death! And yet... in every book, in every universe, in every possibility, Dazai dies!”The tears that had threatened to spill for so long finally broke free, streaming down his face, mixing with the blood that stained his hands, his very being. His breath hitched, pain and desperation clawing at his throat as he shook his head in disbelief, his voice trembling as he spoke again, softer now, but still filled with anguish. “How long do I keep writing? How long do I keep suffering, watching Dazai, watching them suffer, until they finally find the happiness they deserve? Until they are free from all this?”Each word, each syllable, was a desperate cry—a plea carved from grief and rage, hurled into the void like a dying ember fighting against an endless night. His voice trembled, cracking under the weight of an anguish too heavy to bear.His chest burned, his breath ragged as he searched the abyss, eyes wide, desperate, begging for something—anything—to answer him.Then, like a blade through his ribs, the words etched themselves into reality, stark against the empty dark. His golden eyes blurred, whether from exhaustion or the unrelenting sting in his eyes, he didn’t know.

“The System exists to maintain order. Emotional responses are irrelevant to the efficiency of the process.”

The burden of his own ability—the overseer, the system, the thing. A hollow, mechanical decree. The words seems to mock him."I don’t care!"The scream tore from his throat, raw, visceral—more than words, more than defiance. It was grief, rage, love, and loss twisted into something monstrous, something unyielding. His hands trembled as he clutched the pen, knuckles white, ink bleeding into his fingertips."Dazai needs to live!"A declaration. A command. A prayer."I will write it into eternity, whether you allow it or not!"The void did not tremble. The heavens did not break.Only the System remained. Cold. Absolute.

“Defiance of the System will result in corresponding consequences. Proceed at your own risk.”

No sympathy. No hesitation. Just the relentless march of fate, deaf to his suffering, blind to his love.And yet—he would not stop. Even if it destroyed him. Even if the ink ran dry and his body turned to dust. Because this time, the story would be his.The curse of his own ability—an irony so cruel it twisted like a knife in his gut. Odasaku hated abilities. He always had. Hated the way they stole freedom, how they dictated fate without mercy. And yet, here he was, bound by the very thing he despised, forced to wield it in defiance of a world that refused to listen.It was laughable. Tragic.His ability had given him the power to write a future that shouldn’t exist. To carve possibilities into reality. But no matter how much ink he bled onto the page, no matter how many times he wrote the same desperate sentence, the world rejected it.

Dazai lives.

Again. Dazai lives.Again. DAZAI LIVES!But the System erased it, over and over again, as if mocking him. As if laughing at the foolish man who thought he could outwrite destiny.

"Warning: The protagonist’s interference exceeds the designated limits. Unauthorized deviation detected."

The words burned into his skull, a constant reminder of the chains around his throat. But he didn't care. He would never stop. Even if it consumed him. Even if he has to be trapped in this realm for eternity.Because if there was one thing Sakunosuke Oda knew, it was this, he would rather burn the story itself than let Dazai die.

"If I could, I would write you a happy ending. But the world doesn’t work like that, does it?"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"What cannot be said will be wept."
The arguing voices felt like a weight pressing on Luffy’s ears. His eyelids fluttered, and he blinked three times to adjust his eyes to the harsh burn of the sun overhead.The heat of the day clung to his skin, sand sticking to his form like a reminder of everything he couldn’t escape. Water drenched his clothes, dripping onto his skin, the coldness at odds with the overwhelming heat. His hair stuck to the back of his neck, but his hand unconsciously reached up, brushing over the familiar brim of his straw hat. His heart eased slightly, the weight of it grounding him in the chaos."Why did Umekui do this?" Usopp’s voice cracked with anger, a familiar bitterness that tugged at Luffy’s chest."Stop screaming, Usopp!" Zoro snapped back, his irritation cutting through the air."She lied!" Usopp yelled, his voice trembling with frustration, as if he had to scream just to make sense of everything."Guys, stop fighting," Chopper’s voice came in a soft attempt to calm them all, but the tension was too thick.Luffy’s eyes flickered over to Nami, who stood silent, staring at the ground. Her hands were trembling, the quiet terror and confusion clear on her face. She hadn’t said much, but the worry in her eyes spoke volumes."Why did you save the marine, marimo?" Sanji scoffed, his tone sharp as he glared down at Captain Smoker.Luffy blinked again, turning on his back, the sun glaring down on him with no mercy. He felt it sting, like a thousand eyes watching his every move.He stuck his tongue out at the sun, his childish defiance the only armor he had left. But then, his hand moved over his chest, his fingers brushing lightly over the searing pain that gnawed at him (it was more than just physical—it felt like it was deep inside, a hollow ache that reminded him of the emptiness he'd felt when Sabo died; when Ace left for the seas. This felt like that. Like something was missing, like a piece of him was gone).His breath caught, and he stood up, pushing through the raw emotions that threatened to overtake him ( he promised Shanks and Ace to stop being a crybaby!)"Stop it, guys," Luffy’s voice was calm, but there was a hardness to it—the commands of a captain."Luffy!" Nami exclaimed, her voice filled with concern as she rushed forward, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly.Her touch was warm, but it didn’t ease the cold pain inside him. Her eyes were full of worry, her fear almost tangible, but Luffy couldn’t bring himself to say anything back.She let go, and he stood still, staring at the ground. His mind raced with the absence of Umekui, the emptiness that now filled the space beside him (everything felt like it was burning—like he was holding onto something that was slipping through his finger)."Umekui lied! She worked for the Port Mafia! She assassinated and hurt people! Hell, maybe she did so much worse!" Usopp's voice cracked, the tears burning the back of his eyes, his knees trembling beneath him. "She lied to us! She hurt Vivi, and she even killed her friend, Robin, without a second thought!""Shut up, Usopp," Luffy muttered, his voice tight, as he stood there, his fists clenching at his sides.But Usopp didn’t hear him. He couldn’t. His heart was breaking too. His voice was raw, desperate, and it cut through the air like a blade. "She’s heartless! She didn’t even care about us! She did it behind our backs! She—""I told you to shut up!" Luffy’s voice snapped like a whip, filled with rage. Before Usopp could respond, Luffy stretched out his hand, grabbing Usopp’s shirt in a firm, furious grip."UME IS UME! Do you hear me?!" Luffy’s eyes burned with intensity, his chest rising and falling with heavy breaths. "She is your Nakama! She is MY first mate! Do you understand?!"Usopp flinched, his mouth hanging open, struggling to find the words. "But—""Stop it, Usopp," Zoro’s voice cut through the air coldly, his hand resting over the hilt of his sword, his gaze unwavering as he stared down the sharpshooter. "Enough."Usopp’s eyes flickered with anger and hurt, but the words caught in his throat as Sanji spoke, his tone soft but resolute."She didn’t lie." Sanji blinked, staring up at the sky, a wave of memories crashing through his mind like a flood. 
“Listen carefully, Sanji, because you’re the only one who can do this.” Umekui’s voice was soft but serious, her hands reaching down, gently taking his.

Her smile was small, just a hint of something tender, before her face turned serious, determined.

“I know a way to end this. Crocodile has a plan twisted deeper than just manipulating Alabasta; there’s something bigger, darker that he’s hiding. After all, Nico Robin is by his side.” Her voice wavered, and for a moment, Sanji could see the pain behind her words as she swallowed hard at the mention of Robin. It was the kind of pain that cut deep, and he could feel it echo in his chest.

“When we reach Rain Dinner, give a signal so Azul and Karoo get to the capital. I’ll find them after I take care of Robin.”

Her words were clear, yet the weight behind them was impossible to ignore. His chest tightened, a knot forming as the reality of what she was asking of him set in. But he nodded, even though his heart felt heavier than it ever had before.

“Then, I’ll leave a marking over the corridors and floors in Rain Dinner so you can find Crocodile’s office quickly. There you’ll find classified papers—dangerous information that will expose him. I’ll steal them and place them there for you.” She paused for a moment, looking into his eyes with a kind of resolve he hadn’t seen before. “Give them to the Marine members. I know you’re wondering why I can’t do it myself, but you’re the only one who can. Anything in my hands would be too dangerous, too full of lies for the World Government to see. We need to turn them against Crocodile. If he can turn civilians against their rulers, then we have to turn the government against the Warlord.”

The weight of her plan hit him like a freight train. He could feel the intelligence, the pain, and the sacrifice behind every word. His heart was pounding in his chest, his gaze softening as he looked at the woman who had been by their side through everything.

“I can’t show my face to the World Government. You’re the only one who can do this, Sanji. I know it’s cruel of me to ask, but you’re the only one who knows Crocodile’s after me.” Her voice was almost a whisper now, a mixture of regret and hope. She placed a gentle hand on his cheek, her touch soft but firm.

Sanji wanted to say something, to argue, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t find the words. All he could do was nod, overwhelmed by her sacrifice, her determination.

The smile that tugged at her lips wasn’t warm or comforting, but cold, hollow. It was the kind of smile you give when you’ve already resigned yourself to the things you must do for those you love. "Don’t worry," she murmured softly, almost to herself. "I won’t let anyone down."

Sanji’s heart swelled with both admiration and pain. He couldn’t stop himself from feeling it—the ache in his chest, the weight of her actions, the sacrifice she was making to protect them all.
He exhaled deeply, trying to steady himself, his voice trembling as he began to speak.“Maybe about her identity, but it doesn’t matter. She told me about her plans before we reached Rain Dinners. I knew that Crocodile was after her from the moment we entered Little Garden. She was hunted by Baroque Works, and Crocodile—she didn’t want me to tell you guys.”His hands shook as he reached for his robe, pulling out the envelope with the papers inside. “Then... she promised me she would end everything. Told me to retrieve things from Crocodile’s office when we reached Rain Dinners. In that office, there was blood. But no corpse. I didn’t find Miss All Sunday anywhere. But I did find classified papers—dangerous, damning. Umekui put them there for me... and told me to give them to the Marine Captain.”He held the envelope out, the weight of it pressing into his hands like a reminder of all that was lost and all that had been sacrificed—yet he didn’t tell them about the pain in Umekui's eyes, the blood she left behind as a marking for his repairs, or the note with two words aching in his pocket, 'I'm sorry'.The silence that followed was thick, heavy with unspoken truths. The wind kicked up, stirring the sand around them as everyone stood frozen, processing what had just been revealed."Why didn’t you tell me that Ume was hunted by Crocodile? He hurt her!" Luffy’s voice cracked through the air, trembling with a mixture of fury and confusion. His eyes burned with the image of Umekui’s blood, her torn clothes, the bandages stained with blood.Sanji's chest tightened, but he stood firm. "She told me not to say anything!" His voice was strained, raw from the weight of his own guilt. He hadn’t wanted this, hadn’t wanted the crew to know the extent of what Umekui had been hiding, not like this."I’m your captain!" Luffy shouted, his fists clenched at his sides, his anger sharp. The words stung, like a reminder of his responsibility, his need to protect everyone, especially the ones who were closest to him."She is my first mate!" Sanji’s voice came back just as fierce, his eyes burning with a protective fire.For a moment, there was only silence. The crew stood frozen, caught in the tension between loyalty and truth, between what they had known and the reality that had been kept from them."What about Vivi? Didn’t Umekui give her to Crocodile?" Chopper’s soft voice cut through the quiet, his expression full of confusion and worry.Luffy’s eyes narrowed, his face tense. "It’s not Vivi," he said firmly, his voice holding a strange certainty. "It wasn’t the real Vivi. I saw her transform into sand as I fell into the water."A pause settled over the group. Then Usopp, the confusion evident in his voice, asked, "Then where is she...?"Before anyone could answer, a voice rang out, familiar and full of life."HEY GUYS!" Vivi’s voice reached them from above, and the crew’s heads snapped upward in unison. Their eyes widened as they saw her descending from the sky, seated gracefully on the back of a falcon.Luffy’s heart skipped a beat. His expression shifted from anger to disbelief, his mouth falling open as the falcon landed gently on the sand. Vivi, alive and whole, her presence like a breath of fresh air amidst the chaos, smiled down at them, her face filled with relief and warmth.Without a second thought, Usopp leaped toward her, his arms reaching out in pure relief."What happened, Vivi?" Nami asked softly, her voice full of concern as she approached the princess.Vivi blinked, her smile widening as she began to explain, "I was knocked unconscious by Umekui. Then, when I came to, I found myself here, in the back of Pell." She gestured to the royal guard, who was now transforming back from his falcon form.Luffy’s mouth fell open once again as he watched the falcon shift back into human form, an awed look crossing his face.I wonder what falcon meat tastes, he thought absently.Pell, the royal guard, stepped forward, gazing down at the crew. A small, grateful smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he bent slightly, his voice full of respect. "Thank you for protecting Princess Vivi, and for bringing her back to our kingdom of Alabasta."Zoro, ever the skeptical one, narrowed his eyes at the duo. "How did you find Vivi if she was unconscious?" he asked, his tone laced with suspicion.Pell blinked, his expression slightly puzzled before he tilted his head. "I received a letter from someone named Umekui. She is your first mate, correct?""What?" Usopp and Vivi exclaimed in unison, their voices filled with confusion.The crew stood still, processing the new information as the weight of the revelation began to settle in. Pell’s words hung in the air, full of implications they hadn’t expected. Umekui, in some twisted way, had played a role in Vivi’s safety—even if her actions had seemed to betray them all."Explain yourself," Zoro demanded, his gaze sharp as he stepped closer, the tension in the air thickening.Pell straightened, his demeanor calm despite the intensity of Zoro's glare."In the letter," he began, his voice steady, "Umekui told me I could find Princess Vivi on the rooftop of Rain Dinners, so I made my way there quickly." He paused, his eyes flicking to Vivi before continuing. "Once I arrived, she explained the identity of our true enemy—Crocodile, the warlord. She also provided information that would be sent to King Cobra, information I’ve been instructed to keep from you all, as it matters only to the king."The crew stood in stunned silence, processing Pell’s words, a mix of disbelief and confusion washing over them. They had known Umekui to be a mystery, but this... this was something different entirely."What do you mean, 'it matters only to the king'?" Nami asked, her voice tight with uncertainty.Pell’s expression remained unreadable. "The information concerns matters of state and the security of Alabasta. It wasn’t meant to involve outsiders... especially not when the stakes are this high."Smoker, on the other hand, chuckled darkly, his eyes narrowed in disbelief. "You're telling me that Dazai chose to help the royals?" he scoffed, the words dripping with contempt. "Let me laugh at that."Before anyone could react, Zoro's blade was at Smoker's throat, the steel gleaming menacingly in the sunlight. "I only saved you from drowning so I could slit your neck after you slander my first mate's name," Zoro growled, his voice low and filled with rage. A deep silence fell over the group, the tension crackling in the air. Pell stood frozen, unsure whether to intervene or let Zoro have his say. Smoker, still glaring, seemed to weigh his next words carefully.Smoker remained silent, absorbing Pell’s words, but the skepticism still lingered in his eyes. "And what about the rest of you?" Smoker finally asked, his voice quieter but still firm. "Are you all willing to throw your lot in with her, despite the lies, the secrecy? Despite the pain she’s caused?""Yes," Luffy answered without hesitation, Zoro's sword slowly lowering, but his eyes never leaving Smoker’s face. "Because no matter what she's done, she’s my first mate. Our nakama. And we believe in her. That’s all that matters."Smoker let out a slow, measured breath, his gaze shifting toward the horizon as the tension slowly ebbed from his shoulders. "I don’t know what you see in her," he muttered, his voice softer now, "but loyalty, no matter how twisted it seems, still means something.""There," Sanji said, his voice heavy with resolve as he extended the classified documents toward Smoker. "You're a marine, right? Isn’t your emblem supposed to stand for justice?"His eyes burned with intensity, challenging the captain to take the papers, to look at the truth that lay within, and question the very system he was bound to.Smoker’s gaze flickered between the documents and the fiery eyes of Sanji, the words lingering in the air. For a moment, he didn’t speak, his mind racing to process everything. The marine captain, his brow furrowed, finally looked at the papers Sanji had laid before him. The truth behind them—the evidence of Crocodile’s twisted plans, the machinations he had set in motion—was undeniable. Even Smoker couldn’t ignore it.He glanced at the crew of the Straw Hats, at Zoro’s fierce eyes, at Luffy’s unwavering faith in them, at the quiet resolve in Nami’s expression, and the strange, unspoken strength in the silence that surrounded them all. And somewhere, deep down, Smoker knew that they weren’t just fighting for their own survival anymore. They were fighting for something bigger than helping their friend, Vivi."Justice, huh?" Smoker muttered under his breath. He took a deep breath, his hands reaching for the envelope, his fingers brushing against the edge of the papers. The weight of his decision pressed heavily on his chest.Justice—what did it really mean when the world itself had become so tangled in lies and corruption?He took a long look at Sanji, who stood there unwaveringly, waiting for his response. A small, almost reluctant sigh escaped Smoker’s lips as he took the envelope from Sanji's hand."Fine," Smoker said finally, his voice low but resolute. "I’ll take a look at these. But know this—just because I’m a marine doesn’t mean I blindly follow everything they say." His eyes hardened slightly, a flicker of rebellion within them. "And if this turns out to be as bad as it looks, I’ll make sure Crocodile doesn’t get away with it.""Good!" Luffy exclaimed, his voice full of fiery determination as he nodded at Smoker with respect. Then, absentmindedly, he reached up to push the curls away from his face, a small thought crossing his mind. When I reunite with Umekui and we’re back on the ship, I’ll have her cut my hair.He stretched his limbs toward the sky, his body radiating energy, and without another word, began to march fiercely toward his destination."Where are you going?" Nami called after him, her voice tinged with concern.Luffy turned his head, a grin tugging at the corners of his lips. "I’m going to kick Crocodile’s ass and finds Umekui and brings her back to my side!" he declared, his steps unwavering as he pushed forward toward Alabasta.For him, the war, the politics, and the rebels—they didn’t matter. None of it. All he cared about was finding Crocodile, punching him so hard he’d be buried in his own sand. And after that? He would find his first mate, hug her close, and make sure she would never leave him again to carry out reckless missions on her own.
He wasn’t letting her go, not this time, and never again.

Odasaku's eyes, blurred with tears, flickered between the two options—each more painful than the last.

“The progression of the narrative must not be delayed. A choice is required to continue.”

The words were clear. There was no room for hesitation, no room for rebellion. Only the bitter, unforgiving truth: someone had to die, and it was his hand that would decide.

With every ounce of his being, Odasaku screamed in silence, but there was no escape from the demand. The System would not wait.
Crocodile let out a low growl, his golden eyes narrowing as he took in the destruction before him. His office was in ruins—papers scattered like fallen leaves, blood staining the floor in dark, messy streaks. His fingers curled into a fist, trembling with barely restrained fury as his gaze landed on the empty space where classified documents once lay.With a snarl, he lashed out, kicking his desk so hard it scraped against the floor with a deafening screech.“Damn it, Dazai!” he roared, his voice echoing through the wreckage.For a long moment, he stood there, breathing heavily, his frustration rolling off him in waves. Then, slowly, his anger cooled into something sharper—something more dangerous. Exhaling, he reached beneath his desk, fingers pressing against a hidden panel. A quiet click sounded, followed by the soft whir of a concealed drawer sliding open.His smirk returned the moment his gaze landed on the document within.The document gleamed under the dim light, bold and powerful. A relic of devastation, a key to untold destruction.Crocodile chuckled, low and satisfied. Nico Robin was never a wasted investment.With one last glance at his wrecked office, he turned on his heel and strode toward the door.Alubarna awaited. The rebels, the war, the chaos—his grand stage was set.Numbness wrapped around her like a suffocating shroud. Was she dead or alive? She didn’t know anymore.There was an ache—deep and relentless—settling in her chest like a wound that would never close. Her fingers trembled, weak and unfeeling. She didn’t know where she was. She didn’t care.Pain. Betrayal. Hurt. It all consumed her.
"You will find those you call friends someday!"
Jaguar D. Saul’s voice echoed in her mind, a memory so distant yet so unbearably close. But what did it matter now?The taste of blood lingered, bitter on her tongue. Her cheeks burned from tears long shed, from wounds deeper than skin.
No, it didn’t matter anymore.
She let out a slow, shuddering breath and closed her eyes again, welcoming the darkness again.Umekui’s limbs ached with every step as she trudged through the unforgiving desert toward Alubarna. The heat pressed down on her, suffocating and relentless. Blood still seeped from her wounds, staining her clothes, her bandages, leaving a trail behind her. The throbbing pain at the back of her head pulsed in time with her heartbeat, sharp and unyielding.She staggered to a stop, her breath hitching. A violent cough tore through her chest, raw and brutal, and when she pulled her hand away from her lips—red.Her crimson eyes widened, trembling as she watched the blood vanish into the golden sand, as if the desert itself was devouring her piece by piece. The wounds of darkness—old and new—came alive, searing through her body like fire licking at her skin. The scars she carried, both seen and unseen, pulsed with unbearable pain.Her knees buckled. She collapsed onto the burning sand, curling in on herself, arms wrapping around her body as if she could shield herself from the pain of her ability. The wind howled around her, whispering of battles lost and betrayals endured, of ghosts that refused to rest.Her hands trembled as they fumbled inside her dark robe, fingers desperately searching until they closed around the small, familiar box. Kureha’s medicine.Her gaze locked onto the last yellow pills nestled inside the box. It was small, insignificant in the grand scheme of things, yet in this moment, it was everything. A lifeline. A desperate chance to keep moving.With a swift motion, she brought the pills to her lips, swallowing it dry. The bitter taste clung to her tongue, but she ignored it, forcing herself to believe that the pain would ease, that the fire in her veins would dull—if only for a moment.
Just a little longer.
Her breath came in ragged gasps, her body screaming in protest, but she pushed forward. The desert stretched endlessly before her, an unforgiving wasteland, yet she walked. Step by step, wound by wound, she walked.
She had to reach them. She has to end everything before her nakamas could be hurt.
King Cobra knew he wasn’t the greatest ruler a kingdom could wish for.He had made mistakes—some small, some so great that they now loomed over him like shadows, swallowing everything he had tried to protect. The weight of his crown had always been heavy, but now, it felt suffocating. Crushing.For years, he had devoted himself to Alabasta. To its people, to its peace. He had fought against corruption, against the rot that threatened to consume his kingdom from within. He had tried—God, he had tried.And yet, he had failed.Here he stood, watching his country teeter on the edge of ruin, the sands of time slipping through his fingers like grains of desert dust.
Where had he gone wrong?

What fatal mistake had led him here—to this moment, to this unraveling?
Had he been too trusting? Too blind? Had he been so consumed with protecting Vivi, with safeguarding Alabasta’s peace, that he hadn’t noticed the monster growing in the shadows?He clenched his fists.
Crocodile.
The warlord’s name burned in his mind like poison, searing through his thoughts, through his regrets.He lowered his gaze to the paper clenched in his trembling fingers. The words scrawled upon it sent ice down his spine, even as his vision blurred.

The Warlord Crocodile is behind everything.

Beware of Operation Utopia and the weapon whose Poneglyph is hidden beneath Alubarna.

The rebels are close, and the false king has sown doubt and deception into the heart of your kingdom.

—Dazai

Cobra exhaled shakily, his hands gripping the parchment tighter as if it might slip away and take what little hope remained with it.
Dazai.
A ghost, a whisper, a storm that had come and gone before anyone could name it.He blinked hard, his head tilting toward the heavens. His lips moved in silent prayer—for guidance? For mercy? For salvation?—but deep down, he knew the truth.The war raged outside the palace walls, the cries of his people carried by the desert winds. Smoke curled into the sky, a cruel reminder of the destruction unfolding beyond his reach.King Cobra stood frozen, his hands clenched into fists at his sides, his nails digging into his palms as if the pain could ground him. How had it come to this?How had he allowed Crocodile to sink his claws so deep into the heart of Alabasta?Was he stupid? Naïve?Cobra didn't know anymore.He was lost—adrift in the grand scheme of war, where every move had been orchestrated against him long before he had even realized he was a mere piece on the board. Had he been a fool to believe in peace? To think that as long as he protected his people, his daughter, his kingdom, he could keep the darkness at bay?A bitter laugh threatened to claw its way out of his throat.
No.
He had tried.But trying was never enough against men like Crocodile—men who thrived in shadows, who whispered poison into the ears of the desperate and turned the weary against their own.And now, it was too late.A choked laugh bubbled in his throat, bitter and laced with something dangerously close to hysteria. He wanted to throw his head back and let it all out—laugh until his lungs burned, until the sound drowned out the screams outside. He wanted to cry until his body collapsed under the weight of it all.
Is this what my ancestors see now?

Do they watch from beyond the veil, shaking their heads in disappointment? Do they sneer at his foolishness, at the pitiful way he had let Alabasta slip through his fingers?
The great Nefertari line—rulers who had turned their backs on the gods of the New World, who had chosen peace over power, who had once stood strong against the tide of tyranny. They had given their lives, their will, their very existence for this land. And now, in his hands, it crumbled like sand through his fingers.
Is this his punishment?

For believing too much in his people? For thinking he could keep Alabasta safe without bloodshed?
Cobra let out a shaking breath, staring down at the letter in his hands.The World Government would not save him. They never would.Because to them, he was a traitor. The Nefertari had chosen exile from their so-called divine throne, forsaken their place among the so-called gods. And for that, they would never be forgiven.No, there would be no salvation. No justice. Just the slow, suffocating realization that he had been played.King Cobra’s chest tightened, his heart heavy with an overwhelming weight. Rage churned inside him, hot and raw. His fists clenched tighter, nails digging into his palms as he imagined himself standing at the edge of a cliff, screaming at the heavens for the world’s betrayal.Against Crocodile’s machinations, the rebels blinded by their idealism, and the false accusations that had stolen his kingdom’s peace. Yet even as the fury burned within him, a quiet, aching voice in the back of his mind reminded him of the truth—there was no one to blame but himself.He had failed. Failed in ways too cruel to even fully comprehend. His actions had let Alabasta fall to this ruin. He had allowed lies to fester in the dark corners of his kingdom, allowing those who should have been protected to suffer. And worst of all, he had failed her—his precious daughter, Vivi.
What kind of father am I?
He couldn’t stop the thought from repeating in his mind. His dear daughter, only fourteen years old, forced to flee her home, her kingdom—her world—just to survive. He had promised her, vowed to protect her, to shield her from the evils of the world. And now, she was alone, somewhere out there, carrying the burden of their shattered lives while he stayed locked within these palace walls, too weak to help her.Tears pricked the corners of his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. What right did he have to cry?
What kind of father lets his child run for her life, without being able to do anything to stop it? To watch her leave, knowing that it was his failure that pushed her into such an unimaginable life?
Vivi had always been strong, brave. But at fourteen...He could see it in his mind’s eye—her face, a mix of fear and determination as she fled their home, her world crumbling around her. Alone in a cruel, unforgiving world. It cut through him, this realization, sharper than any blade.He couldn’t protect her. He hadn’t protected her. How terrified was she?The thought made him want to break, to beg for her forgiveness—though he knew he didn’t deserve it. He hadn’t been the father he should’ve been. He hadn’t been the king his people needed. The weight of his failures felt unbearable, his throat tightening with a desperate need to make amends, even though he knew it was too late.In the silence of the palace, Cobra let out a jagged breath. He could only hope that somewhere, somehow, Vivi had found the strength to survive—without him. Without her father.His gaze drifted to the classified documents before him—the ones delivered by a ghost, a whisper in the storm. A woman who shouldn't have existed, whose name had been buried beneath layers of secrecy. Dazai.A piece of the past, a force in the present.Cobra exhaled slowly. He wasn’t the best ruler. But if there was still a chance to save Alabasta, then, as its king—he would take it.When Cobra first heard her name, years ago—long before his daughter Vivi had even been born—he had dismissed it as nothing more than a whisper among royals, a murmur hidden beneath the grandeur of their halls.A girl whose blood was sought by the powerful and the greedy.At the time, he had thought little of it. The world was filled with tragedies, with nameless souls hunted for reasons unknown. But as the years passed, the whispers never faded. Instead, they grew, echoing from the lips of nobles and tyrants alike. A child with cursed blood. A weapon in human form. He tasted only disgust and bitterness as he listened to the tyrants and self-serving royals speak of Dazai—not as a person, but as a possession, a precious object to be hoarded, used, and discarded at will.Cobra had always known that the world of the royals was built on filth. But never—not even in his darkest thoughts—had he imagined the depths of depravity they would sink to.The whispers had slithered through the halls of power long ago, each one more insidious than the last. They crawled through the walls like poison, sinking into the heart of the kingdom, and suffocating Cobra with their weight.He had heard of her—a girl passed from hand to hand like a thing, a pawn for the amusement of the powerful, her blood nothing more than a currency to be spent. They called her a prize, a trophy, and the nobles, the so-called rulers, treated her as a thing to be used and discarded like every other twisted desire they held. Her suffering—her pain—was their entertainment, her suffering nothing more than a backdrop to their vile amusement.And yet, despite the cruelty, she had survived.Cobra’s fists clenched at his sides, his nails biting into his palms as a wave of disgust, fury, and helpless sorrow crashed over him. The powerlessness that had consumed him for years—this was the moment it all hit him. He had watched, from the shadows, as the world tore at her, chewed her up, and yet, there she stood. Alive. Unbroken. A force. A vengeance incarnate.For years, Cobra had convinced himself that there was nothing he could do. That it wasn’t his place to intervene. That the world’s cruelty was beyond him. He had accepted it. But now, in the midst of the crumbling kingdom he had sworn to protect, he realized that it wasn’t just his kingdom falling to ruin—it was his soul. His guilt. His failure. The consequences of turning away when the world had treated a child as a weapon.
Why? Why had he never acted?
The question gnawed at him. It tortured him as the flood of memories and whispers raked through his mind. How could a man—no, the man, the head of the Port Mafia—give up his heir to the wolves of the royal court?A man whose hands were stained with the blood of countless, a king of the underworld who had once held immeasurable power, would sacrifice his own heir. It was unfathomable. A trade? A debt? A punishment?The thought twisted Cobra’s stomach, as if a dark, poisonous weight had settled deep within him. What kind of man condemns a child to such a fate? What kind of man lets Dazai be turned into an object, a tool of others, to be violated and broken by the very people who should have protected her?And yet, she had endured. Not just survived—but thrived.Dazai. The name echoed like a death knell in his mind. She had been an object, a tool, a weapon—a beast for others to tame. But in the end, she had become so much more. And what terrified Cobra was not just the scope of her ability, but the fact that she was no longer their weapon. She was free now. Three years ago, the world had learned what it meant to burn. Cobra still recalled the hushed conversations, the silence that followed her name in the halls of the Five Elders. The terror in their eyes when they spoke of Dazai. She had not just broken their world—she had shattered it.Her wrath had taken down the Saints—figures so powerful, so untouchable, that the very thought of them dying was inconceivable. And yet, she had done it. She had torn their lives apart with nothing but sheer fury, leaving behind only devastation in her wake.Saint Rosward. Slaughtered like an animal.Saint Charlos. Left to suffer in agony, his severed arm painting the floors of Mariejois with his blood.Saint Shalria. Her beauty reduced to nothing but melted flesh, her screams echoing in a twisted symphony of pain.The gods had learned that day. The legacy of the Roswards, one of the oldest and most powerful families in the world, had been reduced to ashes—all by the hands of a single girl.The untouchable, the immortal, were not untouchable at all. And all of it—the ruin, the destruction—had been done by the hands of Dazai.Cobra remembered that day clearly. He had sat in the meeting of the Five Elders, watching their faces twist in disbelief as the gravity of Dazai’s actions crushed their so-called invulnerability. They had demanded her execution, her eradication, but Cobra had felt something else stir within him—something far deeper than the fear and hatred that the Elders felt. It was admiration.In that moment, as Dazai’s name echoed through the chamber, Cobra had realized something he had never truly understood before. Dazai was no longer a weapon. She was not some cursed child born to be sacrificed.She was the devil incarnate. A beast that could nerver be tamed. The girl who had once been their possession had turned the tables. She was the one in control now. And those who had once thought themselves gods were the ones who would tremble before her.“The biggest misfortune for Dazai’s enemies,” Cobra had overheard once, “is that they are Dazai’s enemies.”The weight of those words crushed him. To be Dazai’s enemy is to know that your end is certain. It was a cold, undeniable truth. Her enemies were never left alive. To cross her was to invite ruin—utter, irreversible ruin. And Cobra couldn’t help but feel a begrudging respect for the woman she had become.Her power. Her strength. Her ability. It transcended everything. But now, Cobra couldn’t help but wonder; Why was she here? Why was Dazai standing at the gates of Alabasta? He had no illusions left—this was no chance encounter. She had come for a reason. She had come for something, maybe someone?
What was it?

Was it vengeance? Was it the world she had never been allowed to have? Or was it something even darker? Had she come to deliver the final blow to the world that had created her, to finally tear down the kingdom of the fools who had allowed themselves to become her enemies?
A strange, bitter smile tugged at Cobra’s lips. He couldn’t help it. Despite all the fear, despite the way his heart clenched in his chest at the thought of what Dazai could do, there was a part of him—deep down—that respected her. Admired her. She was a force to be reckoned with, and Cobra could no longer deny it.The power she had, the darkness she carried within her, had the potential to bring his kingdom to its knees—but it also had the power to raise it from the ashes. As a conqueror? As tyrant? As a monster? He doesn’t knows.What was Dazai planning? That was the question Cobra couldn’t answer. And, for the first time in his life, he wasn’t sure he even wanted to.“The rebels are approaching the palace, my king. What are your instructions?”His commander's voice snapped him back to reality, and Cobra's gaze hardened.“Gather the troops,” Cobra said, his voice firm, but filled with an edge of weariness. "We cannot afford to be passive. I will meet with them—"The commander hesitated, clearly uncertain. “My king, the rebels—”“I will meet with them,” Cobra repeated, this time with more conviction. “There must be a way to end this without further bloodshed. If I must surrender, I will. But I will face them with honor. Let them hear the truth from my mouth.”His gaze was distant, haunted by the weight of his own guilt, but he snapped back into the present with an edge of conviction. "Demand a negotiation with their leader, Koza." His words were measured, but they burned his tongue as if the very name seared him. Koza. The boy who had once been a child of peace, now lost in the fires of rebellion. And it was because of him.“We are being deceived by Crocodile, the warlord,” Cobra continued, his voice low, like a confession to no one in particular.The commander’s eyes widened in disbelief. He was about to speak, but before he could, a sandstorm roared to life in the grand hall, a sudden, violent force that seemed to materialize from nowhere.The sand whipped through the air, swirling in a frenzy, and the commander let out a strangled cry as the stinging grains tore through him, clawing at his skin. His screams were muffled, drowned out by the gusts of wind and the chaos unfolding around them. Cobra’s heart froze as he saw the commander’s body jerk, dragged along the floor, helpless against the brutal assault of the storm.And then, just as abruptly as it had begun, the sandstorm ceased.The commander’s body lay lifeless at Cobra’s feet, the red blood of the man mingling with the golden grains of sand that had once been the foundation of his kingdom. Cobra stood still, his breath caught in his throat. He couldn’t move, couldn’t speak—his world shattered in a single instant.And then the laughter came.It was cold. It was mocking. It was the sound of a man who knew victory was within his grasp. Cobra felt his blood run cold as the sound of Crocodile’s laughter echoed through the palace, sending chills down his spine.From the shadows, a figure emerged—tall, imposing, with eyes that gleamed dark green under the burning sun. His scar, that emblem of cruelty and power, seemed to glisten in the light, as though taunting Cobra with his own helplessness. And in Crocodile’s hand, the gleaming hook, dripping with fresh blood, was a clear message.Crocodile was here.The warlord’s wide smirk was a mockery of everything Cobra had fought for. The ruthless king of the desert approached, each step deliberate, as though savoring the destruction that had just begun to unfold. His eyes locked onto Cobra with a predatory gleam, and Cobra knew—deep down, he knew—that this was the beginning of the end.And it wasn’t just his kingdom that was on the line anymore.It was everything.Every shred of hope. Every dream he had for peace. Every life, including Vivi’s.The end of Alabasta wasn’t coming in the form of rebels or the forces outside the palace. It had already arrived. And it wore the face of Crocodile.“What does it feel like to taste the ashes of your destroyed kingdom, King Cobra?” Crocodile’s eyes glinted, that signature smirk playing at his lips as he tilted his head ever so slightly, savoring the moment. “You thought you could hold everything together, didn’t you? That your precious kingdom would survive your leadership.”Cobra’s fists clenched at his sides, the anger and regret boiling in his chest. He knew Crocodile had come for more than just power. He came to destroy the soul of Alabasta, to watch the flame of its hope flicker out under his heel.The warlord’s presence was suffocating, a palpable weight that crushed every ounce of life in the room. The once-proud halls of the palace now seemed like a tomb, hollowed out and hollowed even further by Crocodile’s cold, cruel energy.Cobra stood, rooted to the spot, his mind racing. The kingdom... the people... Vivi... His mind screamed for him to act, to fight back. But all he could do was stand there and take the mockery, feeling the weight of his failures press down on him with every passing second.“You’ve allowed this to happen, Cobra,” Crocodile continued, his voice slow, deliberate, like he was savoring the moment. “Your kingdom was weak, and you were weak. You never saw me coming. Now look at you—alone in this ruined palace, with nothing left but the ashes of your own hubris.”King Cobra’s heart pounded in his chest. He could feel the weight of his ancestors on his shoulders, their gazes heavy as if they were silently judging him. He thought of his forefathers, who had fought so hard for peace, for their people. And now? Now, their legacy was being torn apart by the very forces he had sworn to protect against.Cobra closed his eyes for a moment, drawing in a shaky breath, but when he opened them again, there was a flicker of something more than just defeat.There was a quiet, steady resolve.“Your victory is hollow, Crocodile,” Cobra said, his voice steady, though the words tasted bitter on his tongue. “Alabasta may fall today, but it will rise again. Even if I’m not here to see it, the people will rise. And you? You’ll be nothing but a footnote in the history of a kingdom that lived on long after your schemes are buried in the sand.”Crocodile’s smirk faltered for a moment, replaced with a brief flash of irritation. But it was gone almost immediately, replaced with a sickening, predatory grin.“Oh, I’m afraid you misunderstand, Cobra,” Crocodile purred. “I’m not here to just destroy your kingdom. I’m here to make sure there’s nothing left of the world entire, either. Does Pluto ring a bell to you, Cobra?”Cobra’s heart stuttered in his chest at the mention of Pluto. The very name sent a chill down his spine, an echo of a past long buried. He had heard whispers of it for years—the ancient weapon, the one capable of shaking the world to its core. A weapon that should have stayed forgotten, locked away in the dusty corners of history.But here Crocodile was, standing before him, speaking of it as if it was just another tool in his arsenal, a weapon to be wielded for his own insidious desires.Cobra’s throat went dry as the weight of Crocodile’s words settled in. The stakes had never been higher.The warlord’s mocking voice cut through the tension, pulling Cobra back to the present moment. Crocodile stepped closer, his cruel eyes gleaming like twin shards of glass as his sand danced around him, swirling with the rhythm of his power. It was like watching a predator close in on its prey—slowly, methodically.“I’m not just here for your kingdom’s crumbling legacy, no. I’m here to claim the weapon that could erase the world as we know it. And you,” he paused, his voice dripping with malicious intent, “you’re the one who knows where it’s hidden.”Cobra’s mind raced, heart pounding in his chest as he felt his world narrowing into this one, damning moment. The truth was, he didn’t know exactly where Pluto was. But he knew enough—knew that the Poneglyph was buried deep within the ruins of Alabasta, hidden away for centuries by his ancestors to ensure it would never fall into the wrong hands.
And now, Crocodile’s hands were outstretched toward it.
“Tell me,” Crocodile continued, his bloody hook gleaming in the dim light of the palace, “Where is it? Where is the treasure? The weapon that could bring the world to its knees? Tell me, Cobra, and maybe I’ll leave your kingdom to rot in peace.”Cobra stood tall, refusing to let the weight of the situation crush him. His kingdom may have been on the brink of collapse, but he would be damned before he let it fall to a man like Crocodile.“No,” Cobra’s voice was low, steady, despite the terror clawing at his chest. “You won’t get it. Not from me. And not from anyone.”Crocodile’s grin widened at the defiance in Cobra’s voice, but it wasn’t one of amusement. It was a predator’s grin—one that promised pain.“Oh? You think you can stop me?” Crocodile hissed, his eyes narrowing, the sands swirling more violently now, as though answering his call. His hook flicked toward Cobra, the blood dripping off its gleaming surface, a promise of what was to come if he refused to cooperate.Cobra didn’t flinch. He stood his ground, even though his body trembled with the strain of holding his own. His mind raced, searching for something, anything that might save them—might save Alabasta, and perhaps even the world itself.“I won’t betray my people, Crocodile,” Cobra said with quiet strength, meeting the warlord’s eyes without a flicker of hesitation. “Not for any weapon. Not for any treasure. And certainly not for your twisted vision of this world.”The sandstorm swirled violently around them, like the fury of the earth itself, as if even the desert itself was urging Cobra to relent. But he refused to budge.“I’m not afraid of you,” Cobra whispered, his voice barely a tremor. “Do your worst.”Crocodile’s smirk faltered for the briefest moment, his eyes flashing with a cruel, calculating light. He stepped closer, his sand swirling ever more intensely, swirling with the promise of a storm that could tear everything apart.“You’re not afraid? Then you will be, soon enough.” Crocodile’s voice dripped with malice as his laughter echoed through the hall, deep and mocking.In an instant, the sand around him came alive, twisting and churning like a living entity, crackling with the power of his fury. It rose up, swirling into a violent storm that tore through the air with the force of a thousand razors. Each grain of sand became a weapon, slicing the air with deadly precision as it lunged toward Cobra.The king barely had time to react before the sand struck. It shredded through his robes, biting into his skin, the searing pain like a thousand needles.Is this how it ends? His thoughts echoed. The end of Alabasta? The end of me?His vision blurred. Cobra’s breath came in ragged gasps, his body collapsing to the ground, unable to withstand the weight of the attack. The world turned cold. Silent. In that moment, he wasn’t sure if he had been struck down, or if he was merely lost in the shadow of his own failure.Crimson eyes blinked hard, the sting of sand and smoke burning as she took in the devastation before her. The capital of Alabasta was drowning in ruin—flames licking at the sky, blood seeping into the golden sands, the echoes of screams carried by the howling wind. The storm above loomed dark and ominous, thick clouds swirling as if the heavens themselves mourned the city's fate.Sanji had told her that Karoo had taken Azul to the capital, that he would be safe here. But now… now, she could see nothing but chaos.
Where was he?
Her heart pounded against her ribs, a sickening weight settling deep in her stomach. Something was wrong. The battlefield stretched before her—soldiers clashing in the streets, rebels and royal guards locked in brutal combat, the scent of blood heavy in the air.And yet, amidst it all, that feeling lingered. A dark, gnawing unease that dug its claws into her chest.
Where is Azul? Where is the boy to whom she had promised the endless freedom of the seas, the boy who had seen dreams reflected in the smiles of her nakama?

Where is the small child who had never felt the kiss of rain on his skin, only the merciless sun that stole from him again and again—water, shelter, safety?

Where are you?!

The question burned inside her, rising like a scream she wanted to tear from her throat and hurl into the storm of chaos. But the words never left her lips.Because deep down, something told her—something was terribly wrong. 
"You."
The voice slithered through the chaos like a blade pressed against her throat—low, dark, and knowing. "You are Dazai, aren’t you? Red eyes, dark hair, and bandages over skin too pale, too white for a human."Her crimson eyes flickered, her breath steady despite the storm raging within and around her. She had heard this before—variations of it, spat in fear, in hatred, in awe. A monster. A ghost. A legend.Slowly, she turned, her gaze cold, unreadable. The air between them crackled with something tense, something on the verge of snapping."And if I am?" she murmured, voice quiet, yet sharp enough to cut.The man in front of her exuded authority, his very stance demanding attention. A jagged scar ran over one of his sharp eyes, partially hidden behind golden glasses that gleamed under the storm-darkened sky. His blond-ash hair was slicked back, strands stiff from dust and sweat.But it was his expression that caught her the most—something between a sneer and a challenge, the look of a leader who had seen too much, lost too much, and carried the weight of it all."Who are you?" Umekui’s voice was measured, her crimson eyes glowing with suspicion, as she took a step closer, the air crackling with tension.The man before her scoffed, his arms crossing over his chest as if to shield himself from the weight of her gaze. He studied her, though there was something about the way he looked at her—an equation he couldn’t quite solve."Koza," he replied bluntly, his name carrying a weight she should have recognized. The rebellion, she thought. Leader of the Sand-Sand Clan. Vivi Nerfertari’s childhood friend.His gaze drifted to the bandages wrapped around her arms and throat, eyes narrowing with a faint mixture of wariness and judgment. His lips curled into a sneer."And you… you’re the monster they whisper about, aren’t you?" Koza muttered, his words sharp and filled with distrust. "Did King Cobra get you as his weapon?"Umekui’s red eyes flashed with a dangerous intensity, and her posture shifted, the air around them thickening with an unspoken threat. The storm raged in the distance, but the silence between them felt suffocating, charged with something far more dangerous."His weapon?" she repeated, her voice eerily calm, the chill of her words biting through the tense air like a blade. "Do you think he has the power to command me?"Koza didn’t flinch, but there was a flicker of unease in his golden eyes. He stood tall, unwavering, though his body had tensed—like a wolf scenting danger on the wind."King Cobra has no use for monsters, does he?" she continued, her voice smooth, dangerous. "Tell me, Koza… if I were his weapon, would you still be standing here?"The weight of her words hung in the air like a storm cloud ready to break.Koza’s jaw clenched, fists tightening at his sides. "Then what are you?" he spat, his tone cutting, eyes hard as stone. "A mercenary? A wanderer? Or just another vulture, circling this dying kingdom, ready to feast on what’s left?"Her lips curled into a bitter sneer."I am no one's weapon, boy," she hissed, her voice venomous, her hands moving with deadly precision. With a flick of her wrist, a gun was drawn, its cold metal gleaming under the stormy sky. She aimed it directly at Koza’s chest, the barrel steady and unyielding, her gaze unwavering as she sized him up, waiting for his next move.Koza’s heart skipped a beat, but before he could react, shadows seemed to shift, and from every corner of the street, rebels emerged—dozens of them, their weapons gleaming in the dim, storm-choked light. Fourteen pistols, all pointed squarely at Dazai, their cold muzzles reflecting the dim light like ominous stars.Umekui’s eyes glinted with something darker, something that spoke of too many battles fought and lost, too many bloodstained moments etched into her soul. She couldn’t help the bitter laugh that escaped her lips as she surveyed the scene."You think you know what's happening here, Koza?" she scoffed, her voice thick with disdain. "Let me laugh," she continued, her eyes narrowing as she stared him down, her red gaze flickering like the flames of a long-forgotten pyre. "You’re just a fool—a little boy playing war, blinded by your own rage. You have no idea what it costs. You’re holding guns like they mean anything, like they make you more than what you are: a pawn in a game you can’t even begin to understand."The words dripped like venom from her lips, each syllable more dangerous than the last. Her hand tightened on the grip of her gun, her stance unwavering."Now," she said, her voice low and sharp, her gaze sweeping over the rebels that had gathered like vultures around a dying carcass. "Stand down. Before I kill every single one of you where you stand."There was no hesitation in her voice, no room for doubt. The air seemed to crackle with the weight of her command.The rebels, though tense, hesitated, their fingers twitching on the triggers, unsure whether to follow her command or risk testing the fury in her eyes.But Umekui knew. She always knew.Her eyes locked on Koza one last time. "You think you're saving your kingdom? You're not. You're just speeding up its death.""Shut up!" Koza screamed, his voice cracking with raw emotion as he took a step forward, his face twisted with rage. "What do you know about war? About the suffering? You know nothing!" His fists clenched, the heat of his anger rising as his words tumbled out, sharp and accusing. "You think you understand? The devastation, the poverty, the people abandoned by their king, their leader—abandoned by Cobra—the man who swore to protect them, yet let them rot in the dust of this cursed desert!"His words echoed through the chaos around them, his breath heavy, shoulders heaving with the weight of everything he'd seen."You speak of war like it’s some game," Koza spat, his eyes blazing with the fire of his conviction. "But you’re just a monster, aren’t you? Hiding behind your guns, your threats. You’ve never stood where I’ve stood. Never seen what I've seen. How many children die in the streets because of your so-called peace?" He was trembling now, not from fear, but from the depth of his anger, the fury that had built up for years, unchecked and unspoken.Koza’s breath was ragged, his fists clenched so tight they trembled. "You’re no savior, Dazai," he spat, voice shaking but unyielding. "You’re just another part of the problem. Another force that keeps this cycle of madness spinning. So don’t stand there and pretend you know what it’s like to lose everything!"A gunshot cracked through the chaos.Koza staggered back, pain shooting up his leg as the bullet tore into the ground just inches from his foot. His rebels tensed, guns raising in instinct, but before a single trigger could be pulled—Dazai glowed.A deep, ominous red pulsed from her body, flickering like dying embers. The moment the rebels fired, the bullets stopped midair, trembling violently, caught in an unseen force. And then—they reversed.Gasps of shock rang through the group as the bullets shot back toward them, halting inches from their skulls, frozen in time like shattered glass suspended mid-fall.Dazai took a step forward, red eyes burning. Her sneer deepened, sharp as a blade."Savior?" she echoed, mockery dripping from her tongue. "Who dared to say I was one?"The air around her crackled, thick with something suffocating—power. The kind that didn’t belong to heroes or martyrs. The kind that made gods flinch and demons weep."Now," she continued, voice a slow, lethal whisper, "Step down. I have more important things to do than waste my time on a bunch of fools who can’t see past their own rage."The bullets hovering in the air trembled, then shattered into ice, their broken shards glinting in the dimming light.Her red eyes, dark and unreadable, locked onto Koza’s. "The real enemy here isn’t me," she hissed. "It’s Crocodile and Baroque Works. But if you’re so desperate to die fighting an meaningless war—" she tilted her head, the ghost of a grin on her lips, "—I can arrange that.""Now, step aside." Dazai's voice was cold, each word cutting through the chaos like a blade. "You’re blind, boy. Blinded by your own rage. The real enemy here isn’t Cobra. It’s Crocodile and Baroque Works. You are the fool." Her words were like a lash against his face, each syllable a reminder of how badly he had been played.She pulled the documents from her robes, and with a single, swift motion, hurled them at him, the papers flying like a slap to his chest. “Look,” Dazai spat, her eyes seething with contempt. “You’re nothing but a pawn in his game. Operation Utopia—it’s all a lie. He’s been using you.”Koza froze, his hands shaking violently as he caught the papers, his mind reeling with the weight of her words. The truth, like a cruel revelation, clawed its way into his soul. He had been played, a naive fool thinking he was fighting for something real, something righteous.But all of it—a lie, a manipulation. It made his stomach twist with disgust. He wanted to scream, to tear everything apart in his fury.Before he could process what he was holding, the ground beneath them shook. Explosions erupted in the distance, the city trembling with the force of destruction. Smoke began to billow into the sky, painting the horizon with a fiery glow. The cries of the innocent, the screams of the dying, pierced the air.Chaos had descended.Dazai’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous glint flashing in them. Her pulse quickened, her mind racing. She spun to face Koza, fury in her voice as she drew her gun, pressing it hard against his forehead. "What the fuck did you do?" Her voice was venomous, dripping with anger, her finger just a twitch away from pulling the trigger."I swear, they’re not mine!" Koza’s voice cracked, his hands trembling as he raised them defensively. He could feel the cold steel against his skin, but the fear in his eyes was not from the gun—it was from the weight of the reality crashing down on him.Dazai's glare burned through him. Her mind raced, but all she could hear was the explosion of destruction around them. "Baroque Works," she muttered, the realization hitting her like a slap to the face. This wasn’t a rebellion—it was a distraction, a carefully crafted illusion.
Crocodile had orchestrated all of it. This bastard!
"If he has to find Pluto by himself," she snarled under her breath, "then he’s willing to destroy an entire kingdom to drag it out from the darkness." "Fuck Azul," she cursed through clenched teeth. The one person she needed to find—the one person who had been lost in all this madness.Dazai turned and bolted toward the explosions, her feet pounding against the sand, her heart screaming with urgency. There was no time to waste. The kingdom could burn, the rebels could fight their meaningless war, but Azul was the only thing that mattered now.She sprinted, her crimson eyes flashing with a deadly resolve.Behind her, Koza shouted, his voice desperate. "Wait!" His voice cracked, but Dazai didn’t hear him. "Let me help!" Koza called after her, but his words fell on deaf ears. She was already gone, already swallowed by the chaos, her focus single-minded. There was no room for anything but the one goal that burned in her chest: Find Azul.
Odasaku’s breath hitched, his grip on the pen faltering, fingers trembling as he hovered between the two options that shimmered before him like a twisted fate. The words glowed, each syllable burning with an unforgiving light, mocking him in his desperation.

DAZAI DIES -

AZUL DIES

The weight of it was suffocating. His hand shook violently, the ink threatening to spill, his heart fighting to tear itself free from the torment.

Then the System's voice, as cold as ever, sliced through the silence with a cruel finality.

“A choice must be made. There is no escape. Proceed, or face the consequences.”

"There is a legend," his mother whispered, her voice as soft as the desert winds that danced through their kingdom at night. The golden light of the ever-present sun caught in her blonde hair, making it glow like a halo. Her lips were dry, cracked from the heat, but she smiled down at him, her fingers gently threading through his tousled blond locks as he sat curled in her lap.

"In the beginning," she murmured, "the world was divided into two realms. The sea chose one, and the sun claimed the other—forever apart, never meant to meet."

Azul blinked up at her, wide-eyed with curiosity. "Why, Mama?" he asked, his small voice full of wonder.

His mother’s smile was soft, though there was something distant in her gaze, something wistful, like she was looking beyond the walls of their home, beyond the endless stretch of golden sand. Her fingers carded gently through Azul’s wild blond hair, her touch warm despite the harsh dryness of the desert air.

"Because, my love," she murmured, pressing a tender kiss to his forehead, "the world is not kind to those who do not belong."

Azul frowned, shifting in her lap. His small hands clutched at the fabric of her robes, seeking reassurance, seeking answers. "But… don’t the sea and the sun love each other?"

His mother chuckled softly, though the sound held a sorrowful note. "Oh, they do, my little star. More than anything. But love is not always enough to bring two worlds together."

Azul tilted his head, confusion knitting his brows. "Then why were they separated?"

His mother hesitated, her fingers stilling against his hair. The desert wind howled softly through the cracks in their home, carrying with it the whispers of a world that had already decided their fate long before they had even drawn breath.

"Because the gods decreed it so," she finally answered. "The sea, vast and unknowable, could never belong to the sky, and the sun, brilliant and untouchable, could never sink beneath the waves. It was their curse—to love from afar, always watching, never reaching."

Azul’s small hands tightened around her robes. "That’s not fair," he whispered, his voice trembling with a child’s innocent defiance. "If they love each other, they should be together."

His mother smiled again, this time with something more fragile, more bittersweet. "Perhaps," she whispered, "one day, a child of the sun will touch the sea and prove the gods wrong."

Azul blinked up at her, his heart stirring with something deep and unknowable, something vast like the horizon he had never seen.

"Maybe that will be me," he declared, determination bright in his golden eyes.

His mother laughed then, a soft, broken sound, pulling him close against her chest.

"Oh, my little star," she whispered into his hair, her voice barely more than a breath. "I hope you shine bright enough to change the world."
Azul blinked hard through the thick smoke, his small frame trembling as the world around him crumbled. His ears rang from the deafening blasts, the cries of the people, the pounding of footsteps as they fled in every direction. The air reeked of burning wood, of gunpowder, of something far worse—the scent of death. It seemed like his hometown and Azul hates it.Where was Karoo? The thought sent a pang of worry through his chest. He had lost sight of the duck in the chaos. Was Karoo afraid? Was he safe?Sanji—the pretty blond with the kind eyes—had told him to go with Karoo, to head toward Alubarna while he and Umekui went to save Luffy and the others. He had promised that everything would be okay.But now, standing in the middle of the burning city, Azul wasn’t so sure.His mother used to tell him stories about Alubarna—the shining heart of Alabasta, where golden palaces stood tall against the endless blue sky, where dancers spun like flames in the streets, where spices and sweets filled the air with their warmth.But this… this wasn’t Alubarna.There were no dancers. No music. No golden towers gleaming in the sun. Only fire. Only ruin. And Azul, small and alone, swallowed by a war he did not understand.The wind howled through the streets, thick with sand and smoke, stinging Azul’s eyes as he stumbled forward. His heart pounded against his ribs, a frantic rhythm of fear.
Where was Umekui?

Where was the pretty lady whose crimson eyes burned like the sun, whose hands—scarred and wrapped in bandages—had been the first to hold him without cruelty?
The first person to ever look at him, truly look at him—not as something disposable, not as a burden, but as a boy. As someone worth saving.The only one who had ever brought water to his lips with a tenderness he had never known."Umekui," he whispered, his voice swallowed by the storm.The sand shifted beneath his feet, swirling unnaturally as the wind grew stronger, wilder. It howled like a beast, rising in a frenzy, wrapping around his small form.
"Be strong, my child." His mother’s voice trembled, wrapped in sorrow so thick it felt like drowning. Grief had hollowed her out, left her a ghost of the woman she once was. She held him close, hands shaking, as if she could shield him from a world that only knew how to take.
His sister had died weeks ago. Sickness had stolen her breath in the night, and now, the war threatened to steal his.
"While I am here, live longer, my child of the sky."
Live. But how could he?Azul ran.The streets of Alubama were nothing like the stories his mother used to tell. Gone were the golden markets, the dancers spinning beneath a sky of endless blue. Gone were the scents of saffron and sweet dates, the laughter, the music.He bit down his fear, his sobs, his grief. His feet ached, but he couldn’t stop. He couldn’t look at the bodies strewn across the streets, at the crimson staining the sand. He couldn’t listen to the screams, to the clash of steel, to the cries of men dying for a war he didn’t understand.Where was Karoo? Where was Sanji? Where was—The clash of steel rang out around him—the guards, the rebels, all locked in battle, all lost in their own war.But Azul? Azul was just a boy, small and alone, slipping through the cracks of their chaos, searching for—"Umekui!"The name formed like a prayer on his lips, but the wind stole it away."Such a pitiful child," a voice mused, his voice rich, almost kind, but laced with something that slithered beneath the surface. A quiet, creeping malice. "Are you lost, my child? Do you need the Lord to grant you deliverance?"A figure stood atop the crumbling debris, tall and unmoving, his form framed by the dying sun and the thick smoke that curled around him like a living thing. The wreckage of Alubama burned behind him, but he remained untouched, unbothered—as if the destruction were nothing more than a passing breeze.Azul swallowed hard, his heart hammering against his ribs. He took a step back, his small hands curling into fists at his sides. His small body trembled, his instincts screaming at him to run, to flee, to disappear into the chaos. But his feet remained rooted to the ground, as if the weight of the man's presence alone had chained him in place."Who are you?" he asked, forcing his voice not to shake.The man smirked, slow and knowing.His gray hair caught the flickering light of the fires around them, and the lenses of his glasses reflected nothing—not the flames, not the ruin, not the bodies that littered the streets. He moved with purpose, deliberate and measured, like a man who had never once feared the wrath of the world.Then, with a reverent touch, he placed a hand over his abdomen, fingers tracing the silver cross that rested against his chest."Nathaniel Hawthorne," he declared, his voice unwavering, his bow slight but precise. "At your call, child of God."Nathaniel Hawthorne tilted his head, studying Azul with something unreadable in his dark eyes, something cold, something cruel."You have her scent. You were marked by God because of her."Azul stiffened, his breath catching as the man’s words slithered into his ears like poison. Her? His mind screamed at him to run, to escape before it was too late, but his body refused to obey.The man exhaled, almost wistfully, shaking his head. "How unfortunate," he murmured, his fingers tightening around the cross at his chest. "A child like you… tainted by the devil’s hand."The world narrows to the sound of his name.
"Azul!"
It cuts through the chaos like a blade, sharp, desperate—hers.His heart leaps, and for a moment, nothing else matters."I'm here, Umekui!" he screams back, his small voice barely holding against the storm of war.And then—he sees her.Umekui. His Umekui.Long black hair whipping in the wind, red eyes burning like fire, tearing through the battlefield like a force of nature, like the storm itself had bent to her will. She’s coming for him. She found him.His chest tightens, relief crashing over him like a wave. He runs to her, his tiny feet kicking up dust and blood, reaching—
Almost there.

"For your soul to be free of torment and the sins of the devil’s descendants."
The words slither behind him, a prayer drenched in something dark, something final.And then—Pain.So much pain.A searing, burning agony erupts in his chest, worse than the sun, worse than thirst, worse than burying his mother and sister with his own trembling hands.A choked gasp tears from his lips. His body locks, his vision blurs, and the world—his world—fractures.
"Azul!"
A scream. Her scream. Raw, broken, the kind of sound that doesn’t belong in this world.His breath shudders, his knees buckle. The sky above him twists into colors he can’t name.He blinks down.Something is there—through him.
Red.

Blood.
So much blood. A river of it, spilling from his chest, staining the sand beneath him. Is this mine?The blade glows, crimson and damning, a brand upon his fragile body."Scarlet Letter," comes the whisper behind him, and then—the blade vanishes.Like it was never there.But the hole remains.His body tilts, weightless, boneless—falling.The ground rushes up to meet him, harsh and unforgiving. He barely registers the impact, barely notices the sand clinging to his skin, sticking to the blood that won’t stop flowing.His fingers twitch. His lips part.He wants to call her name.To tell her he’s scared.
That it hurts.
 That he doesn’t want to die.
But the words never come.Only tears. Burning, silent.And as the world around him fades, all Azul can think is—I didn’t see the sea. I didn’t see the rain.He wants to say it. Wants to remind her.
You promised me, Umekui. You promised.
But the words won’t come. They’re trapped somewhere deep inside him, sinking like stones in water.His lips tremble. His throat is dry. His body is so, so heavy.The sand clings to his skin, warm, coarse—pulling him down, down, down.His eyes flutter, struggling, fighting. He doesn’t want to close them. If he does, he knows he won’t open them again.But he’s so tired.And then—soft fingers brush through his hair.Familiar. Gentle. Mother.She is there. Or maybe just the memory of her, her touch, her scent, the warmth of her lap beneath a sky that never gave him rain.She is crying. He thinks he hears her whisper, her voice thick with sorrow."Sleep, my child of the sky," she murmurs, stroking his golden curls, her touch light as air."We are waiting for you."Pain. It’s the last thing he feels.It burns—deep, searing, tearing through him like fire licking at dry wood. His body is boiling, fever-hot, but the hands that clutch him are ice.
Umekui.
Her fingers shake against his skin, desperate, trembling, gripping him like she can hold him together, like she can stop the life from slipping through the cracks.Is she crying? The woman who saved him, the woman who whispered promises of the sea and dreams too big for the desert.His thoughts spiral, slipping through his grasp like sand in the wind.
Will Sanji be upset that he lost Karoo?

Will Luffy be sad that they never got to eat meat together?

What about Chopper? The kind reindeer who always smiled so gently—will he cry because he couldn't save him?

Zoro? Nami? His nakamas?
A sob swells in his chest, but it never escapes. He wants to live. He wants to see the sea. He wants to feel the rain on his skin.But life is cruel. His mother is dead. His sister is dead.And now, Azul is dying too.A shaky, fragile breath leaves his lips—And he lets go.Her breathing is too loud. Too ragged. Too desperate.Her hands—sticky, drenched, drowning in blood that isn’t hers. Blood that should never have been spilled.
"Vivere senza."
Nothing.
"Vivere senza."
Again.
"Vivere senza."
Still nothing.
"Vivere senza!"
She is gasping now, voice breaking, shattering against the weight of reality. The white glow of her ability flickers, weak and useless. It fades into nothingness, dissolving like a cruel joke.Of course, it doesn’t work on corpses.Her fingers tremble as they press against his skin—too cold, too still. He’s not breathing. His chest doesn’t rise. His lips are slightly parted, as if he had been about to say something—something he never got to finish.
Azul.

Her Azul.
The little boy who clung to her hand, who beamed at her with wide, hopeful eyes, who dreamed of seas he had never seen.
Gone.
His lifeless, glassy eyes stare back at her, empty, unseeing, his golden curls stained crimson.Something inside her breaks.A scream rises in her throat, but it never comes. Instead, a choked, hollow laugh—raw and bitter—spills past her lips, the sound of someone who has nothing left.The world is collapsing around her. The sky, the sand, the city—it all crumbles, meaningless.But all she can see is him.Dead. Gone. And she—shaking, lost, spiraling into a darkness she cannot escape.Her forehead presses against his, the warmth long gone, replaced by the cold stillness of death.Her voice is a broken whisper, muttering over and over like a prayer, like a curse, like a plea to a god who does not listen.
"I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry."
To whom? For what?For not saving him? For being too slow? For letting him dream of a world he would never see?Because he died.Because he never saw the sea.Never felt the rain.Never knew the weightlessness of freedom, the warmth of the wind on a ship’s deck, the salt on his tongue, the endless sky stretching beyond the horizon.
"I'm sorry," Dazai croaks, her voice broken, barely audible over the pounding rain. Her hands, sticky with Chuuya's blood, shake violently as she pulls him closer, desperately trying to feel any warmth, any life still left in his body. But there’s nothing. His skin is cold, his body stiff. Gone. Forever.

The guilt wraps around her chest like a vice, suffocating her. Her heart feels hollow, aching with the weight of their pact, their promise, and the blood she spilled. This is her doing. Her fault.

"I’m sorry."
But apologies mean nothing.Regret does not turn back time. Grief does not rewrite fate.And forgiveness—Forgiveness does not bring back the dead.
Odasaku’s screams tear through the silence, echoing like a shattered mirror. Each cry, each raw, guttural sob, pierces the air. His grief is a violent storm, shaking the very earth beneath him. His body trembles—whether from rage, sorrow, or the agony of loss,

Dazai cannot tell. Perhaps it is all of them combined. The unbearable weight of the world crushing down on him.

"My children!" Odasaku cries out, his voice breaking apart with each syllable. He falls to his knees, trembling hands clutching desperately at the lifeless bodies of his adopted children. Kōsuke. Katsumi. Yū. Shinji. Sakura. All of them, lying before him in their stillness.

He holds them, trembling as if his touch can somehow wake them, bring them back to life. His tears fall freely, spilling over their cold forms, but no matter how many times he calls their names, no matter how tightly he presses them to his chest, they remain silent, lifeless.

Odasaku’s sobs are primal, a father in agony, but his children are gone. Gone in a way that no amount of love, no amount of sorrow, can undo.

Dazai stands a few steps away, watching. Her hands shakes, clenched tightly at her side.

"Oda," Dazai whispers, her voice soft but heavy with the weight of what they’ve both lost.

Her footsteps are hesitant, like walking through a nightmare that won’t let her wake. She approaches Odasaku, but each step feels like a betrayal—like she shouldn’t be here, not in this moment. Odasaku’s grief is consuming him, swallowing him whole, and Dazai is left standing at the edge of it, watching as the man she admires is breaking.

It’s a pain Dazai can never truly understand, but she feels it all the same. A father's love. A father's devastation. A father who’s lost everything. And all Dazai can do is whispers, her voice barely a breath against the chaos of grief that swallows the world around them. "I'm sorry."

The words are fragile, whispered into the hollow of a shattered soul, but they hold no power here. Not now. Not in the face of this kind of loss.

Odasaku’s body shakes violently, his hands trembling as they clutch the cold, lifeless forms of his children. His sobs are jagged, raw, and full of a pain that drowns every corner of him. The world is a blur of mourning, his grief a crushing weight that he can neither escape nor alleviate.

“I’m sorry,” she repeats, but the words seem to evaporate the moment they leave her lips. The wind carries them away, lost to the storm of anguish.

But the forgiveness, the remorse, the apologies—none of it reaches him. None of it can.

Death is cruel. It takes and takes, and no matter how much you beg, no matter how loud you scream for a chance to undo it, it doesn’t listen. It never listens. It never returns. It never gives back.

And so, Odasaku’s tears fall like an endless river, each drop a plea for something he can never have again. His children are gone, his world broken into a million pieces. His heart, shattered, lies at his feet in the form of their cold, lifeless bodies. The hands he once held out in love can now do nothing but cradle what remains.

Her apology is a mere whisper against a storm. The words are swallowed by the silence, rendered meaningless against the harsh reality of loss.

There is no forgiveness that can undo the finality of death. No words that can heal the wound that will never close.

And in the end, all they can do is stand in the ruins of their shattered lives, knowing that some things—some losses—are beyond even forgiveness.
“It was for his freedom. The poor child was suffering because of your sins, Dazai.”The words land like a slap, cutting through the air with a venom that chokes the space between them. Umekui’s heart tightens, her crimson eyes narrowing, pupils narrowing into dangerous slits. A dark hunger stirs within her, something raw, something that threatens to consume the very fabric of her being.She has been here before. She knows this feeling. The silent storm, the shifting, writhing rage that builds in her chest. It’s an unrelenting force, one that has been chained for far too long, buried beneath a thousand promises and a thousand reasons to keep it down.But now, there is no escape.Her breath comes in shallow bursts, her hands shaking from the unbearable weight of this fury, this burning need to destroy, to rip apart the one who dares to speak like this.The hum of her abilities whispers in her veins, like a dormant beast finally waking from its slumber, its claws raking at her skin.Her body trembles, a violent storm of raw, untamed fury surging through her veins. The anger she’s buried for years—an anger born of destruction, grief, and vengeance—roars to life (It is Kana’s madness, her flames burning in her pupils. It is Odasaku’s wrath, his final cry for justice, a force that led him to his own death. It is Chuuya’s fists, bloody and broken, slamming against the floor in his rage).The words spill from her lips like venom, a low growl, barely a whisper, but each syllable carries the weight of something ancient, something destructive. "Who dares speak of freedom?"(Only one man ever had the right to speak of freedom—Monkey D. Luffy. Luffy, the bright boy whose smile eclipsed the cruel sun; oh Luffy, whose laugh could make even the deepest pain fade into nothingness. He was freedom, in its purest form.)Her gaze locks onto the figure of the man, her eyes glowing with a fury that makes the very air hum. Her entire being is on edge, every muscle wound tight, ready to snap."Who are you?" Her voice, quiet but dangerous, cuts through the chaos of the battle around them. “And what right do you have to stand there and pass judgment?”The man before her doesn't flinch. He merely smiles—a cold, pitiless smirk—as if her rage means nothing to him. His glasses catch the flickering light of the fire that ravages the world around them.He places a hand over the cross on his chest, bowing ever so slightly. “Servitor of God, and member of The Guild. Nathaniel Hawthorne,” he announces with chilling calm, as if he has all the time in the world.Umekui’s breath catches in her throat, her fury now boiling over, the storm inside her a furious howl, roaring in her ears.God. The word is a mockery, a cruel, twisted joke. He dares to use it.The child, Azul, the sweet, innocent child she had promised to protect, had been ripped away. His life had been taken, his soul shattered—and for what? For this man’s twisted sense of justice? For his God? For her sins?Her vision blurs, a searing red that stains the world, and the air crackles with the weight of her wrath. The rage inside her is a wild beast, clawing to break free.She feels like she’s choking on it, the fire burning in her chest, threatening to tear her apart. Azul's blood is all over her hands, staining her skin, and it makes her want to throw up.How dare he. How dare this man stand here, so calm, so smug, with that damn cross around his neck, and speak of freedom. Speak of the child who died in her arms, whose life was stolen by this very man’s hand.Her eyes narrow, a cold, predatory gleam cutting through the darkness, her lips pulling back into a subtle snarl. "What are you doing in Alabasta?" she demands, her voice low, laced with venom and curiosity.The man before her tilts his head, a chilling smirk tugging at his lips as he locks eyes with her. There's something unsettling in the way he moves, as though he's already a step ahead, his mind a labyrinth of secrets she can't yet decipher."You see, the man I serve," he begins, his voice smooth, deliberate, "after my God... he has made a pact with Crocodile." His words linger in the air, weighted with an ominous undertone, as if the very mention of the name Crocodile could ignite a storm. "Does Pluto and the Poneglyphs ring a bell to you?"The question lands like a stone dropped into deep water, ripples of history and fate colliding in the dark corners of her mind. She doesn’t flinch, but the weight of the words presses against her chest, suffocating in its mystery.He smiles wider now, his eyes glinting like shards of glass in the moonlight. "They lead to the Book," he continues, his voice dripping with something darker. "The Book... my lord needs it. Crocodile promised it to him."A long pause. His gaze sharpens, a knowing look flickering in his eyes, like a secret shared between the damned. "What surprise has overtaken my lord when Crocodile promised him the Dazai too?"His words drop like a heavy stone, breaking the fragile silence and sending ripples of confusion and fear racing through her mind. The Dazai? The Book?The voice echoes inside her head, sharp and venomous, like a poisonous whisper that claws at her sanity.
"Child of the void century. Do you regret the vow? Do you regret taking the will? Beware of the children of the Book, they bring misfortune in their wake! DAZAI? DAZAI? DO YOU REGRET?!"
It’s maddening. The voice, familiar but wrong, taunts her, drowning out her thoughts, gnawing at the edges of her resolve. She wants to rip her own head off, to silence it, to twist her neck and bury the sound deep beneath the weight of the storm that is threatening to break free inside her.Her heart stutters, a sharp, painful skip, and in that moment, the darkness inside her stirs—an ancient, insatiable beast that senses blood. It’s alive, hungry, and waiting.“What is it that you truly want?” The words come out as a growl, sharp and dangerous, cutting through the chaos like a blade pressed to skin. Her eyes narrow as she glares at him, the storm swirling just beneath the surface of her gaze. “What game are you playing? And what does your lord want with me?”The man laughs—mocking, twisted amusement in his voice as he watches her struggle. “You are no different than the rest, Dazai. You were born into this. A tool for the gods. A weapon for the forces that move in the shadows. And now, you have a choice.”The weight of his words sinks in, cold and suffocating. “Follow me,” he says with chilling certainty, “or perish in the rubble of a kingdom that has already fallen.”The world is red.A blur of motion, a clash of wills, a symphony of blood and steel—Dazai and Nathaniel move like wraiths through the battlefield, their abilities tearing at the very air between them. The dust and smoke swirl around them, the scent of gunpowder thick as the echoes of war ring in their ears.Nathaniel swings first, his Scarlet Letter carving through the space where Dazai once stood, slicing through debris like paper. The red blade hums with unnatural power, trailing afterimages of crimson light in the wake of his strikes. But Dazai is faster. She twists her body mid-air, narrowly avoiding the slash that would have split her from shoulder to hip, her coat billowing behind her like the shadow of a ghost.Her gun is already raised. A flick of her wrist—bang. The bullet rips through the smoke, aiming for his head.Nathaniel deflects it with a lazy flick of his blade, the impact sending a tremor through the ground beneath them. "Tsk, tsk, Dazai," he muses, tilting his head, glasses flashing in the dying light. "Is that all your rage amounts to? A mere flicker of defiance?"Dazai doesn’t answer. She doesn’t need to.She moves again, faster, lower—her ability pulsing through her veins like liquid fire. No longer human awakens, swallowing everything it touches. The red glow of Scarlet Letter wavers the moment she reaches for it, her fingers skimming the edge of Nathaniel’s sword before it vanishes into nothingness, negated by her touch.He stumbles, eyes widening just slightly.Dazai doesn’t hesitate.She slams the barrel of her gun against his ribs and fires.The shot rings out, and for the first time, Nathaniel falters, blood splattering onto the dirt below. He exhales sharply, but his smirk doesn’t fade. "Good," he breathes, voice laced with something akin to pleasure. "Show me, Dazai. Show me the monster you’ve been trying to bury."A flicker of movement—too fast. Scarlet Letter reappears in his hand, glowing brighter this time, humming with violent fervor. Before she can react, the blade carves through the air and—Pain.It sears through her side, white-hot and immediate, the tip of his cursed blade sinking deep into her flesh. Blood spills, warm and thick, painting her fingers as she grips her wound, staggering back.Nathaniel laughs, watching her with something sick, something reverent. "What a sight you are," he murmurs. "Wrath incarnate. A god's forsaken child."Dazai grits her teeth, tasting iron in her mouth. The grief, the rage, the unbearable weight of everything she’s lost claws up her throat, burning, choking, screaming—She lunges. No longer human, no longer holding back.The air around her crackles. Her body trembles—not from weakness, not from fear, but from something ancient, something dark, something that has been clawing at the inside of her ribs, desperate to be let free.Dazai exhales, slow, steady, and then—
"You wanted a feast."
Her voice is barely above a whisper, but it carries, resonating in the dead air between them. Her fingers twitch, slick with blood, her own or Nathaniel’s—she doesn’t know, doesn’t care.
"You, who have been clawing at my organs and veins—"
A shudder ripples through her body, her ability writhing inside her, hungry.
"Come out and feast—"
Her crimson eyes gleam, wild, feral. A breath, a tremor, the ground beneath her feet cracking.
"No longer human!"
The moment the words leave her lips, it erupts from within her. The very air warps, distorting, devouring—No Longer Human uncoils from her core like a curse finally unleashed.
"DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI! DAZAI!"
It chants the curse. Power erupts like a curse, like a shadowed beast unchained, crawling from the abyss of her soul. It surges forward, lurching at Nathaniel with a hunger so vast it swallows the very light around it.
It lunges.
Claws, jagged and black as a starless void, tear through the air. Teeth, bared and glistening with the promise of agony, snap toward his flesh. The creature is not bound by the laws of men or gods—it is the abyss given form, the embodiment of her grief, her rage, her endless, suffocating sorrow.Ashes rise in choking clouds. Smoke coils through the battlefield. The distant cries of war—of Alabasta breaking, burning—are nothing but whispers in the storm of her fury.Let the world shatter. Let the sky weep.None of it matters.All she needs is him.To tear him apart. To devour Nathaniel Hawthorne’s soul and drag it into the abyss with her.Nathaniel raises Scarlet Letter, the crimson light of his blade cutting through the smoke, but even that holy glow flickers in the face of the void she has unleashed."You—" His voice catches, his stance shifts, but it’s too late.It attacks, a blur of blackened hunger, and Nathaniel barely has time to react before the void sinks its jagged teeth into his hand.A scream tears from his throat—raw, guttural, human. His fingers seize, his grip on Scarlet Letter faltering as the abyss gnaws through flesh and bone. The wet, sickening sound of muscle being torn apart fills the air.Blood sprays, hot and thick, staining the sand beneath them.Nathaniel stumbles back, clutching the mangled remains of his hand, his breaths ragged, his eyes blown wide with something dangerously close to fear.The winds howl like a chorus of wailing spirits, thick and heavy with the promise of destruction, before a sudden calm washes over the battlefield.Umekui’s red eyes are fixed on Nathaniel, teeth bared, her hunger now more insatiable than ever—until the gusts begin to tear through the air, splitting the chaos in two. A violent wind spirals down from the heavens, like a harbinger of some otherworldly force, and with it, a figure descends.The woman touches the earth lightly, the winds still churning around her as if they obey her very will. She is graceful, elegant, her lavender eyes sharp and cold as they survey the wreckage before her. Her honey-colored hair is swept up into a low bun, delicate tendrils escaping to frame her porcelain face, her dress a flowing mint and white contrast to the chaos, a light blue sunhat perched atop her head with a darker blue sash and a white flower pinned on its side.She smiles, a soft laugh slipping from her lips as she watches Nathaniel, his face contorted in pain, his limbs trembling from the agony of losing his hand."Nathaniel, what a sore sight," she purrs, her voice honeyed, like a silk thread being drawn tight with venomous glee. "You who claimed you’d find Dazai and capture it. You’re clearly losing." Her words linger in the air, mocking, filled with a sweet cruelty.Her lavender gaze shifts from Nathaniel to Umekui, locking eyes with the woman whose rage still burns hot enough to scorch the very earth beneath her. Umekui’s stance tightens, her grip on the unleashed hunger within her, her red eyes never leaving the woman who dares to enter her battlefield.With a flick of her wrist, Margaret Mitchell raises a hand and gracefully sweeps the fabric of her dress. The wind stills for just a moment, swirling around her like a protective shield. Her lips curl into a smirk, slow and deliberate. "Margaret Mitchell," she declares, her voice now laced with dangerous amusement, "member of The Guild, at your service."The arrogance in her words cuts through the tension, her casual confidence a stark contrast to the chaos that surrounds them."Now, Dazai," Margaret says with a voice like velvet, her words cutting through the tension like a blade. "If we can’t take you with us, then perish in the rubble of the falling Alabasta."She clicks her fingers sharply, and in an instant, Nathaniel is lifted from the ground, his body suspended in the air, his own screams twisting into the wind as the pain sears through him. His hand, still clinging to the remnants of life, hangs uselessly in the air.Margaret's lavender eyes glow brighter now, wild and burning with an unnatural light, as the very air around her seems to shift. Her presence, her power, floods the surroundings like a storm. The wind howls, the sky darkens, and before anyone can even react, the sand—once a mere backdrop to this war-torn land—starts to rise.She gestures, and the sand that once licked the edges of the streets rises, swirling and spinning like a living beast. It creeps across the sky, blotting out the sun, a blackened storm cloud of dust and ruin. The ground shakes beneath Umekui’s feet as the city around her groans and cracks, the once-mighty buildings now buckling under the pressure of an unrelenting force.Screams rise from every direction, but the sound is drowned out by the roar of collapsing stone, the wails of destruction.The once mighty buildings groan under the pressure of the storm, their foundations cracking as if they too are caught in the fury of something far too powerful to resist. Umekui stands frozen for a moment, her gaze turning to the horizon where she can see the ruins of Alubama falling into chaos. The wind howls past her, as the ground shakes violently beneath her feet. She turns in a sudden jolt, and then—there. Azul’s body lies crushed beneath a collapsing building.Her breath catches in her throat. Her heart seizes. Her body moves on its own, reckless and fueled by grief. She doesn’t think.She just moves, her legs pushing her faster than she’s ever run, her mind fixated on the lifeless form of the child she failed to protect.
Azul. Azul. Azul.
Her hands reach forward, desperate, trembling as they swipe at the wreckage, throwing rocks aside, pushing pieces of stone with a ferocity that betrays her fading strength.A piece of concrete—large, heavy, unstoppable—falls directly in her path, and she is too slow to escape. Pain erupts in her chest as it strikes her, and she stumbles, the world spinning violently.The last thing she sees before darkness claims her is the cold, indifferent weight of the falling debris, and Azul’s face—forever frozen in that final, painful expression, a victim of Dazai's sins.Pain. Cold. Darkness. And the—the world fades into nothingness.Zoro's body is aching, his lungs burning as he coughs, hacking up the dust and sand that cling to his mouth like some cruel reminder of the chaos around him. His hand grips the ground, pushing himself up, every movement sending shockwaves through his battered body. His eyes are wide, unfocused for a moment, just taking in the nightmare that Alabasta has become.The air is thick with smoke and the stench of death. Buildings lay in ruins, the streets littered with rubble and broken bodies. The screams of the fallen, the wails of the living—all blend together in a suffocating symphony of despair. His breath catches in his throat as his hands instinctively reach for his swords. His fingers brush the familiar hilts, and for a moment, it’s the only thing that keeps him grounded. But it’s not enough to still the panic that bubbles up from somewhere deep within him.
Nami…
His gut twists with fear. She had been with him. She was right there, just moments ago. She had to be."Nami!" Zoro roars, his voice hoarse, raw from the dust that’s coated his throat. His steel eyes search frantically through the devastation, each breath labored as his body moves in a blur.The world around him spins. Corpses. Wounded. Children crying.

Where the hell is she?

"Nami!" His voice cracks this time, barely a whisper in the midst of the screaming winds. Zoro’s vision blurred as his mind raced with thoughts of what might have happened. What if she was trapped under the debris? What if she was hurt? What if...A cry, distant but distinct, cut through the haze of his thoughts. He froze, heart lurching in his chest. It was her. He didn’t need to see her to know (he knows his nakama like the back of his hand—each voice, every breath, the scent of them all. Their presence is as familiar to him as the steel of his swords, etched into his soul. Even in the chaos, he can feel them, hear them, know them. They are his dream, his bond, and nothing—nothing—could make him forget them.)."Nami!" Zoro’s voice cracked as he sprinted toward the sound, pushing his way through the wreckage, to find her."Zoro!" Nami's voice echoed through the chaos.She was crouched low, desperately pushing against a piece of rubble trapped over her feet, her body trembling with exhaustion. Blood and dirt smeared her face, but her eyes—those sharp, determined eyes—showed she was still fighting.Zoro didn't hesitate. He reached for her, his calloused hand gently brushing her face, before pulling her into a tight hug. "It's okay. I’ll get you out of here, Nami. We’ll find the others," he reassured her, his voice rough but firm.She nodded, gritting her teeth as he lifted the rubble with all his strength. Her feet were a mangled mess, bleeding, but she was alive—they were alive."What happened?" Nami asked, pain lacing her voice as Zoro carefully lifted her onto his back."We beat Mr. 1 and Miss Doublefinger," Zoro muttered, his jaw tightening as he walked through the destruction. "Then... everything just fell apart.""Do you think it’s Crocodile?" Nami asked, her voice strained as she clung to him. "Or is it one of the Baroque Works agents' devil fruits?"Zoro grits his teeth, his hand tightening around the hilt of his sword as he shifts his gaze across the wreckage. "I don’t know. What matters now is finding our nakama," he says, voice hard with determination.Nami’s voice trembles, barely above a whisper. "Umekui... where do you think she is?" Her eyes scan the destruction, worry flickering beneath the pain in her voice."Hey, guys!" Usopp’s voice breaks through the chaos, and Zoro turns, his expression softening when he sees his long-nosed friend running toward them, Chopper perched on his back.Nami lets out a relieved sigh, her eyes brightening as she sees them. "You’re alive!" she exclaims, the weight of the moment lifting slightly from her shoulders.Zoro’s tension eases, just for a moment, seeing the familiar faces—his nakama, alive and well."Now, all we need is to find Luffy, Umekui, Azul, and the stupid cook," Zoro says.They move quickly, running toward the grand plaza of the capital. There, they spot Sanji, pacing back and forth, his eyes wild with panic. He stops in his tracks when he hears Nami’s voice."Sanji!" Nami calls out, her voice strained with urgency.Sanji’s eyes widen with a mix of relief and worry as he sees his nakamas alive. "Are you okay?" he asks, rushing toward them, his face streaked with dirt and blood."Yes," Nami says, her voice steady despite the chaos, and the others nod in agreement.Chopper’s gaze catches Sanji’s, filled with worry. "What’s happening, Sanji? What about the others?"Sanji’s expression darkens, his smile tinged with sadness. "I found Karoo, but he told me he got separated from Azul. He hasn’t seen him since. As for Umekui... I couldn’t find her anywhere." He takes a deep breath. "But I overheard some rebels. They said they saw Dazai being comforted by their leader, Koza. They mentioned something about her flying toward the chaos."Nami's brows furrow in concern. "Where are they now? And what about Luffy?"Sanji’s face hardens, his fists clenching. "Luffy went after Crocodile. He’s got the king, Cobra, as a prisoner. Vivi’s been freaking out, and Luffy promised her he’d save her father. He headed toward the palace, determined to find him."Suddenly, swords are drawn and pointed directly at them. The emblem of the Alabasta Kingdom gleams on the armor of the soldiers, their stance firm and threatening."Rebels!" one of the soldiers yells, his voice cold and resolute. "You have signed your death!"Zoro’s eyes narrow, a deep scowl forming on his face as he steps forward, hands instinctively reaching for his swords. His nakamas brace themselves, ready for a fight."We need to take care of this first," Zoro growls, eyes flicking to Nami and the others. "Before searching for Luffy, Umekui, and Azul."Sanji cracks his knuckles, his gaze fixed on the soldiers. "If it comes down to it, we’ll make them regret this."Chopper and Usopp prepare their weapons, ready to stand by their friends no matter the odds.Rasa mutters a curse under her breath as she glares down at the unconscious woman lying on their deck. The sight of dirty and bloody Miss All Sunday unconscious, brings a knot of unease in her stomach. What the hell did Umekui take me for?One of her nakama watches her, fidgeting nervously as his eyes dart back to the sleeping woman. “If she wakes up and kills us, Rasa, it’s on your head.”Rasa’s glare is sharp, slicing through the tension in the air. “She stays asleep until Umekui finishes what she has to do. Vivi will free our kingdom first,” she snaps, her voice hard as stone.“But seriously, Rasa… Miss All Sunday on our deck? She could kill us all in an instant,” one of the crew members mutters, clearly still uneasy.“She’s here because she’s part of something bigger,” Rasa responds, her voice steady but laden with complexity. “I trust Umekui. If she wanted us to retrieve her, there’s a reason.”The captain steps forward, arms crossed and his expression thoughtful. “Yeah, I get that, but it’s strange, don’t you think? Why would Umekui want you to safeguard the same woman who wanted to kill her? That doesn’t add up.”Rasa’s gaze lingers on Miss All Sunday, a storm of conflicting emotions churning inside her. "Maybe it’s because Umekui knows something we don’t. Maybe it’s more than just this kingdom or this war. Maybe… she’s playing a bigger game than we can see right now." Her voice is laced with uncertainty, but her conviction remains unshaken. "And I’m not about to question her judgment—not yet."Rasa’s voice drops to a low murmur, the unease in her tone palpable as she looks down at Miss All Sunday. "Well, what’s strange too is that she has blood all over her chest, but when I searched her, there’s no wound." She runs a hand through her hair, clearly unsettled by the discrepancy.The crew exchanges glances, the air thick with tension. "What do you mean? You’re sure?" one of them asks, his brow furrowed in confusion."I’m sure," Rasa responds, her voice tight. "No cuts, no bruises, not even a scratch. But there’s blood. Lots of it."The captain steps forward, his gaze sharpening as he processes the information. "Could it be someone else’s blood?" he suggests cautiously, but there’s an edge to his voice, a hint of suspicion.Rasa shakes her head, still staring at the unconscious woman. "No. It’s fresh. It’s hers.""Let’s just hope she doesn’t wake up and slit our throats," mutters one of her crew members, his voice tinged with both fear and sarcasm.One of the crew members shifts uneasily, glancing at the unconscious woman with wariness in his eyes. "So... what now, Captain? We just... wait?"Rasa's gaze hardens, a quiet resolve in her voice. "Yes. We wait. The war will end soon. I have faith in Vivi and Umekui."
"Do you hears my longing when i'm silent?"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“I shall be nothing, the wind, the sky.”

Koza's chest tightens as he surveys the chaos around him, the weight of his failure sinking deep into his bones. His breath comes in ragged gasps, each inhale a painful reminder of the devastation he has caused. The kingdom he swore to protect lies in ruins, the flames dancing hungrily, consuming everything in their path.Bodies—soldiers, rebels, innocents—litter the ground, their lifeless forms a testament to the bloodshed. The air is thick with the acrid smell of smoke, the cries of the wounded and dying filling the silence between explosions.His hand trembles as he touches his forehead, where the blood from his own wounds mingles with the sweat, stinging like acid. The pain is a distant echo compared to the torment clawing at his heart.He wants to scream, to tear at his own soul, but the only sound that escapes is a strangled sob.A fool. A damn fool. He had thought himself a hero, but now he was nothing more than a puppet in a game too big for him. Too blind to see the consequences of his actions. And now, this—this nightmare that would haunt him forever.
How could he have been so blind? How could he have allowed this to happen?
The guilt weighs on him, crushing him with the full force of its reckoning. He has failed them all. And there is no redemption to be found. Only regret.

Fool. Traitor. You have doomed them all.

“Look,” Dazai spat, her eyes seething with contempt. “You’re nothing but a pawn in his game. Operation Utopia—it’s all a lie. He’s been using you.”

He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using you. He’s been using y-

The words twist inside him, wrapping around his thoughts like a suffocating vine, choking him. He presses his hands to his ears, trying desperately to block out the sound, but it’s impossible. The mocking, cruel laugh of Crocodile fills the silence, like a twisted symphony orchestrated just to break him.The sound is unbearable, like nails scraping against his very soul. It doesn't stop. It won't stop. It never stops.All Koza wanted was to save his kingdom, nothing more, nothing less. He had no grand ambitions, no lofty dreams of power—just the simple wish to restore what had been taken from his people. He had wanted the rain to return, to wash away the years of drought and suffering that had left his homeland parched and broken.All he had ever dreamed of was seeing children laugh and dance in the sun, free from the fear that their next breath could be their last. A life without the choking grip of hunger and thirst, where the future wasn’t a cycle of pain but a horizon of hope and freedom.He had longed for peace. Justice. A fair world where no one had to suffer at the hands of the powerful, where no one had to bleed for the whims of the few who sought to control everything.A kingdom where his childhood friend wasn’t his nemesis, where he hadn’t sold his soul and heart to destroy her family’s bloodline. A time when they had chased each other through the warm sands of Alabasta, their laughter echoing in the sky like a song that promised endless days of peace.All he had wanted was the warmth of dusk, that golden hue stretching over the desert, and to see Vivi’s smile one last time without the weight of betrayal between them. He had once believed that with time, he could protect his people, heal his kingdom, and leave behind the mistakes of his past.But those hopes, those fleeting moments of innocence, had been torn apart. The kingdom was now nothing more than a graveyard of his choices, a land that cried for the peace he could never give.All Koza wanted was peace. But in the end, all he had found was destruction.Koza ran through the desolate streets, the remnants of his kingdom crumbling around him. His heart pounded, each step more frantic than the last. Dust and smoke choked the air, but still, he pushed forward, until his eyes landed on something that stopped him in his tracks.A boy. Walking with a quiet determination, his red shirt flapping wildly in the wind, his straw hat perched proudly on his head. It was a sight so pure, so untainted by the bloodshed around him, that for a moment, Koza forgot the chaos."Wait!" Koza called, his voice desperate.The boy turned, dark curls bouncing as he looked over his shoulder. His wide grin was infectious, as if the world’s weight didn’t touch him. He tilted his head curiously."Hmm? Oh, can you point me to the castle? I'm looking for a guy named Crocodile. Gonna kick his ass!" The boy's smile widened. "Oh, and I'm Monkey D. Luffy. I’m gonna be the next King of Pirates."Koza blinks, his thoughts racing, as the boy's words hang in the air like a ghost. His heart skips a beat.The boy's smile doesn't falter, his voice still full of youthful confidence. "Oh, and did you see my first mate? She has long black hair, wrapped in bandages like a mummy, pale like a ghost, and her eyes are red!"Koza’s breath catches in his throat. He freezes, his mind struggling to process the words that came so casually from this boy. The description hits him like a wave crashing against the shore. Dazai. It could only be her."Dazai is your first mate?" Koza croaks, the words heavy in his mouth, disbelief and a hint of dread twisting in his gut.Dazai? The woman who had been at the center of so much destruction, the one who had haunted his thoughts... and now, she was a part of this boy's crew? The same boy who boldly declared himself the future Pirate King?"You’re going to fight Crocodile?" Koza asks, shock lacing his voice, his heart pounding. "Yes!" Luffy nods enthusiastically, his eyes shining with determination.Koza's chest tightens, and a surge of anger and fear floods through him. "Impossible! You’ll be killed!" he shouts, his voice rising with panic.Luffy’s grin doesn’t waver. "I won’t die! I’m gonna kick his ass and save the day, just wait!" he says, his confidence as bright as the sun.Koza feels a knot in his stomach, a mix of dread and disbelief. This reckless kid, so sure of himself, so full of fire... How can he even think he has a chance against Crocodile? The pain of losing so many, the weight of all his failed choices, crash down on him. What’s left for this kingdom?But Luffy doesn't falter, his eyes locked on Koza with unwavering resolve. "Don’t worry. I’m gonna do it. I’ll make sure everyone’s safe."Koza’s heart races as he hears Luffy’s words, but it only makes him angrier, the desperation building in his chest. "You will die! Crocodile is too powerful for you!" he shouts, his voice shaking with fear.But Luffy just grins wider, as if the idea of danger is nothing more than an amusing inconvenience. Without a second thought, Luffy stretches his head toward a distant tower, his eyes gleaming with unwavering resolve. "Don’t worry, weird glasses guy," he says with that familiar, carefree smile. "I will end it."Koza’s heart pounds in his chest as he sprints through the war-torn streets, blood and debris scattered around him like a graveyard. His mind races—Luffy is going to get himself killed. I can’t let that happen, but Dazai...His eyes scan the destruction frantically. He needs to find her, fast. There’s no time to waste. If Luffy goes down, Dazai will tear everything apart, and he knows it. She won’t survive that.Suddenly, his eyes lock onto something in the distance—a scene that makes his stomach churn. A blood-soaked street, and pieces of bandages scattered along the ground. His breath catches, his body already moving before his mind fully processes the horror. It’s her...He runs toward the wreckage, pushing through the rubble with desperate strength. His hands are raw and shaking, but he doesn’t care. He doesn’t care about the pain, the exhaustion, the blood. All that matters is getting to her. Getting her out of here.And then he freezes, his heart sinking into his stomach. He sees a body beside her. A small body. His blood runs cold.The boy... is dead.Koza doesn’t hesitate. He offers a silent prayer, his eyes full of regret and sorrow, before he grabs Dazai’s limp form. She is covered in blood—too much blood—and the sight churns his stomach, his hands trembling as he holds her. Her once composed, cold exterior now torn and broken, the red staining her like a mark of something far darker.With everything left in him, Koza drags her out from the rubble, ignoring the cuts on his hands, the throb in his head. He throws her over his shoulder, her body cold and unresponsive, but the faintest breath still stirs her chest."I’m sorry... I’ll make this right," he mutters under his breath, his words a promise he may never be able to keep. "I’ll bring him back after the war. I swear it."With Dazai’s limp form in his arms, Koza starts running again, pushing himself harder, the urgency in his every step almost frantic. He doesn’t dare to look back at the devastation, at the destruction that seems to stretch endlessly behind him.Maybe it’s not too late, he thinks, as a fleeting hope rises in his chest.With Luffy taking on Crocodile and Dazai at their side, maybe—just maybe—there’s still a chance to put an end to all of this. He runs faster, as if each step could outrun the crushing weight of his mistakes.Everything aches. Everything burns.Her body, her mind—nothing feels right. It burns from the inside out as she struggles to open her eyes, but the effort is futile. The world spins in a haze of shadows, mocking her, taunting her with its cruel laughter. The darkness is suffocating, wrapping around her like chains, squeezing the air from her lungs."DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI, DAZAI,"The words echo, reverberating through her like a curse she can’t escape, a never-ending chant that drives into her mind with relentless force. They twist and spiral around her, cutting through the silence, as if the very world itself is mocking her suffering.She can’t tell if they’re her own thoughts or the voices of ghosts, but they are there, everywhere, pulling at her, dragging her down into the abyss."Stop," she mutters, her voice barely more than a breath, low and exhausted.Umekui chest rises and falls with each strained gasp, as if the very act of speaking is a battle she can’t afford to lose.The warmth of the sand feels foreign, an unwelcomed embrace against her chilled skin, as if the earth itself is mocking her. Her body tenses, the discomfort seeping deeper than just the physical sensation. The world tilts, spins, as shadows crawl across her vision. The voice calls out to her, insistent, shaking her with urgency."Dazai, do you hear me?"The hands are rough, persistent, but her body refuses to respond. Every muscle aches as if it’s rebelling against her. She wants to scream, to shove the world away, but the words stay trapped in her throat, buried beneath the weight of the chaos. Her fingers twitch, her eyelids flutter, but she remains lost, suspended in the grip of something far more powerful than herself."It's me, Koza! Your captain needs you!" His words tug at her, like a lifeline.
"If we could be a crew of pirates, then I’d be the captain," Chuuya says with his usual arrogance, his smirk bright.

Dazai rolls over, pushing herself up on her elbows, her glare fierce as she meets his eyes. "And why would you be the captain, simpleton?"

Chuuya crosses his arms, looking like he’s won already. "Because I’m simply smarter!"

Dazai scoffs, rolling her eyes. "Ha, you wish!" she mutters under her breath, the familiar banter warming the coldness in her chest.

She looks up at the sky, the weight of the world pressing down on her, but for a moment, it feels lighter. "If you’re the captain," she says with a small smirk, "then I would be your devoted first mate."

And for a fleeting second, everything feels like it used to—like they were unstoppable, like the world was theirs for the taking.

"Join my crew," the voice echoed, filled with promises, dreams, and warmth so pure it could make even the most hardened sinner repent.
The words were soft but powerful, like a magnetic pull to something bigger, something brighter.Dazai’s heart trembled at the familiarity of it. 
"Shi shi shi, You’re my first mate, Ume!" Luffy’s voice rang out in that carefree, stubborn tone she had come to cherish. "Of course, I love you more than anything else!"

She would roll her eyes, the teasing glint in her red eyes flaring. "More than meat?" she’d ask, her tone light, filled with mischievous challenge.

Luffy would just grin wider, that wide, infectious smile that made everything feel like it was possible. "Don’t be stupid," he’d say, his laughter filling the space between them, sweeping away the weight of the world.
Her hands shook, fingers sinking into the trembling sand beneath her, the grains slipping through her fingers like time, as the man’s voice echoed around her.“I was stupid to not see the treachery of Crocodile,” he murmured, his voice thick with regret. “I should have believed Cobra, should have seen with my own eyes the truth. But I was blinded by my rage... I—”She cut him off, a sharp movement as her hand flew to his mouth, her fingers pressing firmly against his lips. “Shut up. You’re making my head ache with your nonsense," Umekui muttered under her breath, her voice low, strained, and edged with frustration.Umekui's eyes narrowed, bloodshot, exhaustion lining every feature, but her grip on his face remained unyielding. She didn’t have the energy for pity, didn’t have the time to hears excuses."Now," she said, her voice cold and commanding as she shifted to sit, her movements sharp and calculated despite the pain that throbbed through her body. The sand beneath her felt like a cruel mockery against her stiff limbs.Her red eyes, dark as blood and sharp as a blade, fixed on Koza. There was no mercy in them, only an icy demand. "Where is my captain? Monkey D. Luffy."Umekui ran through the destroyed streets, her breath ragged, the sound of her pounding footsteps drowning out the chaos around her. She ignored the distant cries of Koza calling after her, each step pushing her further into the depths of her resolve.There was no time to waste, not when the lives she had once cherished were slipping away in the ashes of this damned kingdom.Azul's death gnawed at her like an open wound, the pain an endless, bleeding reminder of everything she had lost. The image of his lifeless body burned in her mind, fueling the fire in her chest. With one hand pressed over her heart, she swore a silent vow—I will come back for you, Azul. (No longer human was still clawing through her veins, a beast trapped in the cage of her skin, pushing and tearing with every beat of her heart. It was wild, unrelenting, craving destruction.)Stupid, reckless Luffy. How could he just rush headlong into Crocodile’s lair like that? Didn't he realize the kind of power he was up against? Didn’t he understand the danger? Of course he didn’t, she thought bitterly. That was Luffy. The magnet for trouble, pulling it towards him like a storm. BShe was going to destroy everything Crocodile sought, tear it all apart with her bare hands. She could already taste his soul in the air, an intoxicating hunger rising in her chest. He had crossed the wrong line, and now, there would be no mercy. She would rip him apart piece by piece, drag his soul through the darkest pits of torment, and feast on the scraps of his shattered dreams, leaving nothing behind but an empty void.Her teeth bared in a snarl, her skin prickling with power. Her ability hummed beneath her, vibrating with the promise of destruction, the sound like the grinding of bones against stone. Every inch of her being screamed for chaos, for the violence that was about to unfold. Crocodile thought he could bend everything to his will, thought he could control this broken world. But she was going to show him what it meant to face someone who had nothing left to lose.Her vision blurs, but not from the heat of the sun. No, it’s the blood that stains her eyes, thick with grief and fury.The world stands still before her, the very air suffocating as time itself seems to mock her—repeating over and over the cruel, unrelenting pain she’s been running from. It is a nightmare, one that she cannot wake from, one that threatens to devour her whole. And in the middle of it all, the one thing she refuses to accept stares back at her, mocking her.
Luffy.
She sees it. The moment he falls, the moment Crocodile’s hook pierces through his chest, leaving nothing but blood and death in its wake.“Luffy!” Her voice tears through the air, raw and agonizing, echoing her despair as it reverberates through the silence of the ruins.Crocodile’s eyes gleam with a twisted kind of satisfaction. He catches her gaze, his grin widening in a sickening mockery of victory. The laughter that follows is cruel, ringing out like a jagged blade scraping against bone, and the sun above seems to mock her too, its scorching rays biting deeper with every moment.The world fades into a blur as Dazai’s bloodshot eyes lock onto the scene. The nightmare has returned, and the agony hits her like a tidal wave.And then, the whisper.

O acquaintances,

It’s Chuuya’s voice, the one she never wanted to hear again, not like this. His forehead brushes hers, his words brushes against her bloody lips.
"Free us of this burden, this curse, Dazai."
She can’t—she can’t hear him. Not now, not with Luffy dying in front of her. Not with the world turning to ash and crumbling under the weight of his last breath. She’s already lost so much, and now this—this is the final blow.
"Take calamity with you and destroy the world." Chuuya’s words are like poison, crawling into her mind, twisting her heart into something unrecognizable.
Her breath catches. Her body feels heavy, like she’s suffocating under the weight of all her broken promises, the shattered pieces of her past.Not again. Not again.All she sees—feels—is Chuuya’s lifeless body, Kana’s, Odasaku’s, and Izu’s blood staining her hands, burning her skin. Azul’s death echoes in her mind, a sharp, guttural scream that refuses to be silenced.

grantors of dark disgrace,

The scent of blood and death clings to her, suffocating her, filling her lungs with the iron scent of destruction. It’s too much. It’s always been too much.Each loss, each moment of despair, it floods her senses, every second drowning her in a tidal wave of pain, of guilt, of failure. And now, now Luffy—her captain, her anchor—is slipping away. The endless cycle of death is closing in, and she’s trapped in it, powerless.The screams of her fallen beloved ring in her ears, echoing like a curse that refuses to fade. And she is drowning in it.And all she can see is red. All she can feel is the unrelenting surge of rage, grief, and something darker—something that calls to her, something that needs to be released. Umekui sees red. And in that instant, nothing else matters.

do not wake me again.

The ability pulses, and the world trembles with it, with the roars of the beast. Umekui Dazai snaps-corruption.

Everything turns red.

Luffy feels tired (like he's gone without food for years—like when he cried himself to sleep after Sabo’s death, or the emptiness that settled in when Ace left their homeland. Like when he threw up after Shanks lost his arm).His hands flutter weakly over his chest, wincing at the sensation of warm blood seeping through his shirt, staining it with crimson.
Not his favorite shirt.
The one that’s been through everything with him. And now it’s ruined. Blood staining the fabric, a reminder of his wound. He can almost hear Sanji’s voice in his head, grumbling about how annoying it would be to wash out the blood, how it’s a pain, how he should just toss it.That thought makes him chuckle weakly, a dry sound that dies before it can reach his lips. It hurts. More than the sting of his grandpa’s fist of love ever could. The bitter taste of blood fills his mouth, thick and metallic, like he’s choking on his own defeat and all Luffy can hear is Crocodile’s mocking laughter, cruel and triumphant, echoing in his ears, taunting him for his loss.
Luffy tilted his head, letting out a small, tired sigh as he rested it in Ume’s lap. Her fingers lightly brushed through his hair, and for a moment, it felt like everything else could fade away.

“Hey, Zoro,” Luffy asked, breaking the silence, “How did it feel to lose against Mihawk?”

Zoro blinked, slowly lifting his head from his nap to look at Luffy, expecting the usual scowl or a growl. But instead, Zoro smiled, a calm, almost serene smile.

“Refreshing,” he replied simply.

Luffy frowned, confused, and pouted when Ume chuckled softly at his confusion. “Refreshing? How?” he asked.

Zoro sat up slightly, his gaze growing distant, a flicker of something almost reverent crossing his features. “When I lost to Mihawk, it didn’t feel like losing at all. It felt like... I was burning brighter. My goal to surpass him, my vow to never lose again—it made me feel more determined, more alive than ever.”

Ume’s hand moved gently over Luffy’s hair, brushing it back from his forehead. Her voice was soft, but firm. “That’s why you can’t give up, Luffy. You’re the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates. Every time you fall, you rise higher. Every time you lose, you fight harder. You’ll be King of the Pirates. I know it.”

Luffy’s eyes lit up at her words, and he grinned widely, the spark of his resolve reigniting inside him. Zoro gave them both a knowing smile, his eyes soft with respect.

“Shi shi. I get it, guys!” he exclaimed. 
He blinked at the darkening sky of Alabasta, confusion flickering through his dazed mind. His hand brushed against the sun—or at least, where it should have been—as he pushed himself up. But something was wrong.
Was this… an eclipse?

Why was the brilliant blue sky of Alabasta fading into darkness?
He pinched his cheek, trying to shake off the haze clouding his mind. Slowly, he pushed himself to his feet, wobbling slightly before turning around—and his heart stopped.Standing before him, bathed in the eerie darkness swallowing Alabasta’s sky, was his first mate.“Ume…?” he murmured, barely above a whisper.Luffy's breath hitched.Long black hair—hair he loved to run his fingers through—now tangled and wild. Crimson eyes, once sharp and full of mischief, now blank, too red, like pools of blood reflecting the dying sun. Bandages, tattered and soaked in dust and blood, clung to her skin, and it felt wrong—so wrong—because no matter how many times they were torn away, they always returned, keeping her just out of reach.Yes, it was her. But something was different.Something was wrong.Strange red marks crawled across her skin like cursed veins, pulsing with an eerie glow. The air around her felt heavier, charged with something unnatural, something ancient—something dangerous.The sand trembles beneath her feets, shifting like a living thing. Above, the sky fractures, and destruction rains down like divine punishment, relentless and unforgiving. The air crackles with an energy that feels almost sacred—or cursed.This wasn’t his Ume.No—Umekui wasn’t like this (his Ume, his first mate, was weird, funny, and sharp-tongued. She was smart, always scheming, always watching. But more than anything, she felt. Whether annoyed or smug, sad or irritated, she showed it. Because deep down, she trusted them—trusted him—enough to wear her emotions openly, without fear of being wronged).But the Ume standing before him now was wrong. This was something else—empty, hollow, a weapon made for destruction, stripped of everything that made her his.And it pissed him off.Crocodile stumbles back, blood spilling from the gaping wound in his side, torn open like by some wild beast. Despite the pain, a twisted grin spreads across his face, his laughter echoing with mocking triumph. His laughter, ragged and strained, cuts through the chaos like a jagged blade. The sound is harsh, mocking, as if he is savoring the torment of both his own suffering and the destruction unfolding before him. His body trembles from the missed flesh, but still, that twisted grin creeps across his face, as if it was the only thing left to cling to."How fitting," Crocodile spits, the blood dripping from his lips, his voice low and dripping with venom. "A beast like her, a weapon of pure chaos... And now, Straw Hat, your first mate is nothing but a tool for my plan.""While Dazai destroys Alabasta to the ground," he calls over his shoulder, "I’ll finish the last part of my plan." Crocodile turns away, disappearing fading into sands.His fists trembled at his sides, clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms. The wound in his chest burned with every pulse, but he didn’t flinch. He couldn’t afford to. First, he had to bring his first mate back. And then, once she was by his side, they would kick Crocodile ass—together.Suddenly, Ace’s words echoed in his mind, raw and aching.
"I’m afraid of nothing in this world more than myself."

"Afraid of what I could do, who I could hurt because of my blood."

"I’m damned to hurt everyone around me."
Little Luffy had frowned at that, confused by the sadness in his brother’s voice. But he hadn't let it linger. Instead, he had thrown his arms around Ace and declared, “Silly Ace, I’ll be there to stop you! I’d knock you hard to bring sense to you, shi shi shi!”And Ace had laughed—really laughed, his smile wide and bright, free of doubt, if only for a moment.Now, staring at the hollowed-out version of his first mate, Luffy felt something hot coil in his chest.
Not again.
With a loud scream, Luffy pulled his fist back, stretching it with all his strength. Then, with everything he had left in him, he sent it crashing into Umekui’s cheek.Luffy's fist shook as it made contact, but even as the impact echoed through him, he couldn't help but feel a strange mix of frustration and sadness. Why always her? Why was it always him who had to knock some sense into his stupid, stubborn first mate?"Why?" Luffy muttered, his voice raw, barely audible over the roaring chaos around them.Why did it always have to be like this? He was supposed to protect her, not be the one to hurt her.Then Luffy threw himself at her and clung to her, his body trembling with fury and desperation, his forehead pressing against hers, no regard for the pain coursing through him as the cursed energy tore at his skin. Blood dripped from his body, mingling with the sand beneath them."Give her back to me!" His voice cracked, raw from the screams and the blood that coursed through his veins like fire. The curse, the power, it cut into his skin, leaving jagged marks, but he didn’t care.If it meant Ume would come back to him, he would bleed, suffer, die a thousand times over. He would do anything to bring his first mate back to him.He couldn't bear the thought of her returning to see the destruction she'd caused, the regret in her eyes, the remorse for what she had become.If he could save her from herself, from the destruction she might cause when she realized what she had become, he would do it, no matter what it took. Because she was his first mate. And no matter how much pain it took, he would always be there for her.
"Call my name, and I'll be there, my captain," Umekui whispered, her voice thick with reverence, as if Luffy had placed the stars in the sky for her.

“I don’t need you to have a treasure to be my first mate! To be by my side!” Luffy had said, clinging to her with a fire that nothing could extinguish. His voice loud and clear to the entire world. “I don’t care if you have half a soul. Because I, Monkey D. Luffy, the future King of Pirates, shall be half your soul. Ume, I will be your treasure! The one you’ll never have to let go of. The one you’ll never be able to forget. I am your captain, your friend, but above all, now, I am half your soul!”
The memory, the promise—his words—tore through him like a holy sword. With bloodied hands, shaking with pain and frustration, Luffy clung to her, refusing to let go, even though every part of him wanted to fall apart."Ume!" His voice cracked, his chest burning with the need to reach her, to pull her back, to make everything right again. The world around them seemed to bend and twist as his scream broke through the silence. “I NEED YOU!”The sky trembled in response, as if the very heavens themselves heard his cry and understood the weight of his desperation. His arms, covered in his own blood, held onto her, not caring about the pain that coursed through his body. The only thing that mattered now was her.Because she was the treasure he could never let go of.She was his first mate, his friend, his soul. And he would never let the world take her from him.The promise he had made to her rang louder in his heart now than ever before. It wasn’t just words. It was a vow, a bond that nothing—no curse, no destruction—could ever break.His favorite crimson eyes flickered, just for a moment, and the veil of destruction seemed to waver.The darkness recoiled, as if trembling before the tempestuous force of fate itself, for in that moment, Monkey D. Luffy stood as its master.A smile so wide, so unyielding, shone against the encroaching shadows, a beacon of defiance in a world shrouded in turmoil. He, the bearer of a promise long etched in the stars, was the harbinger of destiny’s will.And it was he who held the reins of Umekui Dazai’s will, her fate entwined with his own. The winds of the future whispered, the sands of time themselves bending in reverence to his unwavering devotion.As the red lines of curse slowly faded into the ether, like the last remnants of a beast's fury, Luffy cradled his first mate in his arms.Luffy and Umekui collapsed to the ground, their arms cradling each other with tender urgency. Deep red eyes flutter open, blinking through the haze, as a weak, hoarse voice croaks out, "My captain...""Ume..." he whispers softly, his voice full of relief, as a wide smile spreads across his lips, brushing tenderly against hers.Their faces were mere inches apart, their breaths mingling as though they shared the same soul. "Do you hate me now? More than pie?" she whispered, her voice hoarse.Luffy huffed a laugh, the sound warm and light, brushing against Ume's face and lips as he leaned in closer. "Silly Ume," he grinned, his voice filled with affection, "I could never hate you. Never, do you hear me?" clinging to her as if the very air was slipping them away. Ume laughed softly, a sound laced with pain and exhaustion, her body trembling in his arms. "I thought I lost you too," she whispered, her voice breaking as if the weight of her grief had been pressing down on her all along."We vowed to die by each other's side. We’ll share the same grave," Luffy murmured, his voice warm and steady despite the chaos around them. "I could never betray you and die before you, stupid Ume." He laughs loud, his smile wide and free.Umekui stared up at the gray sky of Alabasta, her expression unreadable. "You’re so unfair… so stubborn and foolish. Why would you want a monster like me on your crew?"Luffy frowned at her for a second before his lips stretched into a wide grin. His Ume was back. Umekui and her endless stupid questions—the first mate of Monkey D. Luffy."I don’t care what the world thinks about you, Ume," he said, voice firm and unwavering. "I like monsters. But more than anything—I love you! And nothing, no one, will ever change that."Luffy blinked, his grin softening as he felt her fingers tighten around his. It was a small grip, almost hesitant, but he noticed the way her hand trembled in his."I'm afraid, Luffy," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.And that’s when he realized—she called him by his name. Not "Captain". Just Luffy.Luffy grinned, squeezing her hand just a little tighter. "Then Ume knows that as long as I'm by your side, I’ll fight your fears with you."For a moment, there was silence. Then, Ume smiled—soft, tired, but real. "You've already promised me so much," she murmured.Luffy just laughed, bright and unwavering. "Then what’s one more promise?""You quiet the things inside me that I always believed had no cure," she murmured softly, her gaze lost in the gray sky.For the first time, Umekui felt nothing—no pain, no voices, no ghosts or curses clawing at her soul. She never imagined anyone could silence the storm within her. But then again, she wasn’t surprised.After all, he was Monkey D. Luffy."Are you angry that I decided to do things behind your back, Captain?" she asks, her voice quiet yet steady.Luffy tilts his head, studying her with an unreadable expression. Then, he simply grins."Nah," he says, crossing his arms. "But next time, Ume, don’t leave me out. We’re a crew—we do things together."His voice is light, but there’s something firm beneath it, something unshakable. Umekui exhaled, a small, almost tired smile playing at her lips."Then let's finish this war and take down Crocodile!" she says, determination gleaming in her eyes.Luffy's grin stretches wider, his eyes burning with determination. He cracked his knuckles, rolling his shoulders as if shaking off the pain."Yeah," he says, his voice brimming with confidence. "Let’s end this war and kick Crocodile’s ass! Then feast for days with our crew!"He scoops his first mate up by the waist, lifting her effortlessly in one arm, while stretching the other toward the Alabasta castle. The wind rushes past them as they soar into the sky. Umekui grins, feeling the breeze tugging at her hair, and hears the familiar, booming laugh of Luffy."I missed you, my captain," she says, her voice filled with warmth."I missed you more, Ume," Luffy replies, his grin just as wide as hers.King Cobra coughs, blood spilling from his mouth, his chest heaving as his breath echoes through the tombs of his ancestors. His once proud figure slumps against the cold, unforgiving stone, his thoughts swirling in a haze.
How much time does he have left before his body joins those of his forefathers, or worse, dissolves into sand under Crocodile’s cruel hand?
Crocodile’s laugh echoes in the dimly lit chamber as he cracks his shoulders, the sound grating against Cobra’s ears. His vision swims, blurry from blood loss, but through the haze, Cobra can make out the looming figure of the desert King. His eyes widen in recognition as he focuses on the ancient stones before Crocodile—the Poneglyphs.He’s found it.“It’s pointless,” Cobra croaks, voice raspy and weak, yet still defiant. “You can’t read them. You’ve wasted your time.”Crocodile’s laughter rings out like a conqueror’s triumphant roar. He steps closer to Cobra, his figure looming over him. "Did you really think I could have only Nico Robin as my pawn?" The words are dripping with malice, his victory already in his grasp.At Crocodile's words, a figure steps from the shadows, his presence almost as chilling as the atmosphere in the room. He is dressed in a white mandarin collar button-up shirt, the fabric flowing loosely and effortlessly around his form. A white ribbon is tied carelessly around his neck, adding an air of disarray to his otherwise immaculate attire.The young man’s hair is dark brown, styled in a mullet with purple undertones that seem to shimmer faintly as he moves, his locks hanging just past his neck, partially obscuring his eyes. His gaze is hidden, but the sharp, wild smirk tugging at his lips reveals his true nature."Edgar Allan Poe," he says with a voice laced in amusement, his smirk only growing wider as he steps further into the room. "Member of the Guild. Nice to meet you, King Cobra." His tone is dripping with sarcasm and the air of someone who revels in chaos.Cobra's gaze narrows in confusion and disbelief."The Guild?" Cobra croaks out, his voice barely above a whisper, his mind struggling to grasp the full scope of the situation.Crocodile chuckles darkly, a cruel smile tugging at his lips. "Well, don't tell me, my dear Cobra, that the only organization you've heard of is Baroque Works," he says, his tone dripping with mockery. "Though I’m flattered, of course. The Guild, my friend, is a name that rings much louder in the Underworld. They have a... reputation."Edgar Allan Poe steps forward, his smirk widening as he circles Cobra like a predator sizing up its prey. "We deal in chaos, destruction, and secrets too dark for the average man to stomach. Much more than petty schemes like yours. This is a bigger game, and you're just a pawn in it."Crocodile’s smile widens, his eyes glinting with malice as he leans in closer to Cobra. “You see, Edgar Allan Poe here has a rather unique ability," he says darkly, his voice dripping with satisfaction. "He can understand, read, and speak any language in the world. Let’s just say he’s... a human dictionary."Edgar Allan Poe, standing confidently with his arms crossed, lets out a low chuckle, his dark eyes gleaming with a mix of amusement and arrogance.Cobra’s eyes widen in shock as the weight of the situation sinks in. This man, Allan Poe, holds the key to unlocking secrets that could shatter the very foundations of kingdoms. "A... dictionary human?" he murmurs, barely able to comprehend the implications.Crocodile’s grin only widens as he watches Cobra’s dawning realization. "That's right," he says with a mocking tone, "He’s like a walking, talking encyclopedia—except his mind is a little more... dangerous."Edgar’s smirk grows sharper, and he steps closer to Cobra, the darkness of the room seeming to swirl around him like a tangible force. "I can read and interpret anything—ancient texts, forgotten languages, hidden codes. Anything you thought was lost, I can decipher it with a simple glance."Cobra’s heart sinks as he realizes the true extent of the threat. Poe isn't just a translator—he’s the key to unlocking everything, the secret to what Crocodile has been after all along. The Poneglyphs. The ancient knowledge of the world."This is..." Cobra’s voice shakes with disbelief. "This is about more than just Alabasta. You... You want to change the world itself, don’t you?""Exactly, Cobra. This is bigger than just a kingdom. It's about the ability to rewrite history itself."Crocodile’s voice echoes through the ancient tomb, raw with fury and ambition. He jabs a finger at his own chest, his sharp grin stretching wide like that of a predator closing in on its prey.“The World Government was foolish to turn its back on me!" he roars, eyes burning with contempt. "They thought they could toss me scraps—treat me like some obedient dog! But they underestimated me. I have survived worse, clawed my way through the filth, and risen above those I crushed beneath my heel!"His laughter rings out, cruel and victorious, as the weight of his words hangs heavy in the air.Crocodile sweeps his arm toward the ancient Poneglyph, his voice thick with triumph."And this!" he declares, his grin widening. "This is the key to the world! The foundation upon which empires rise and fall! The knowledge that holds the strings of fate itself—now resting in the palm of my hand! Because, in the end, power is knowledge—"A low, dark chuckle cuts through his speech like a knife."How foolish of you, Crocodile," a voice murmurs, smooth yet razor-sharp. "Power is a trick. You get other people to think you have it."Crimson eyes gleam in the dim chamber as Dazai steps forward, a gun leveled at Crocodile’s head.Crocodile’s smirk falters, twisting into a snarl. “Dazai.”Before another word can be spoken, the entire ceiling erupts. Stone and dust rain down as a massive fist crashes through, shattering the ancient tomb’s silence."CRRROCODILE!"Monkey D. Luffy’s voice booms through the chamber as he descends, fire burning in his eyes."Straw Hat," Crocodile sneers, his voice dripping with disdain. "What a pity… I had hoped Dazai would finish you off herself."A gunshot rings out. The bullet pierces through the air, aimed straight for his skull—only to be caught by swirling sand before it can land.Umekui's crimson eyes glint with cold amusement."It’d be a shame to cut out that sharp tongue of yours," she muses, cocking her gun again. "But I think I’ll leave that honor to my captain—right before he kicks your ass.""I don’t understand," Crocodile spat, his voice laced with disbelief, every word seething with venom. His eyes, cold as desert stone, fixed on Dazai, searching for some semblance of logic in her actions. "Why have you forsaken everything? Why have you thrown yourself at the feet of a nameless pirate like Straw Hat? You, who were born from blood and fate, bound to the doomed legacy of the Port Mafia! You, who should have risen as the Messiah of my vision! Operation Utopia was made for you—for a creature like you. A slaughterer of royals, a destroyer of governments, someone who spits on the very existence of this world! Together, we could’ve toppled the heavens themselves, burned it all to the ground, and from the ashes, we would have reshaped history! You were destined to stand with me! You were made to watch the world burn!"His voice rises, desperate and frantic, but it falters when he sees her unmoving—her stillness chilling, like death itself was standing before him.Dazai’s gaze remains unreadable. The silence between them presses down like a vice, each heartbeat growing louder. She listens to his words, the weight of them heavy in the air—then, just as the tension becomes unbearable, she laughs. It’s a dark laugh, low and mocking, the sound of someone who has long since shed their last remnants of hope or sanity. It echoes through the ruins, sharp and cutting."Messiah?" she echoes, her voice almost amused, as though the very concept of it is laughable. "You really don’t understand a damn thing, do you, Crocodile?"Her crimson eyes gleam with something far more dangerous than contempt—something older, something that carries the stench of a thousand sins. Her lips curl into a sneer, but it’s not one born of anger. No, it’s something far colder. Something darker."Messiah," she repeats again, voice now dripping with venom. "You want me to be a god? To serve your twisted vision? You're just another puppet, Crocodile. Another man who believes he's above the world, playing at divinity while squatting on the bones of the people you've crushed beneath your heel."Her gun is steady now, a weapon forged in death, pointing at him without hesitation. The air crackles with something electric—rage, resignation, something far worse than either. "You think you can shape history from the ruins of the fallen?" Dazai continues, her voice quiet but heavy, like the final sentence in a trial. "No, Crocodile. You're no different from the gods of the New World, deluding yourself with your own power. You're nothing but a child throwing tantrums in the dirt, thinking you can command the storm." She steps closer, unblinking, unwavering, her presence as crushing as the desert sun. "You don’t understand what it means to be free. To break free of destiny. To choose your own path."Crocodile's eyes narrow, confusion turning to fury, but Dazai is already beyond him, her path already set, her purpose clear."My blood and fate may be tied to the past," she says, the finality in her tone ringing like a death knell, "but my captain’s future is mine to follow. And that future?" Her lips twist into a cruel smile. "It belongs to Monkey D. Luffy. The King of the Pirates. And as for you…"A deadly silence fills the space, the wind howling outside, an unholy chorus to her final words."Your reign ends here. King of the Desert."In an instant, Luffy’s laugh rings out, fierce and untamed, a sound that drowns the chaos of the storm around them.
Wild, unshackled, fearless.
His punch hurtles forward with the raw, unrelenting force of a storm—his fist aimed straight for Crocodile’s face, prepared to shatter the very air around him.But Crocodile? He smirks darkly, his eyes glinting with a cruel confidence, ready to dissolve into sands and slip right through the punch like nothing more than a mirage of sands.But then, something changes. The air shifts. Water.Suddenly, a deluge of rain crashes into the chamber, flooding it like an unstoppable tide. Rain pour into the tomb of Alabasta itself—their cold fingers lashing against the walls, flooding the ruins. And then, a stream of water surges up from the ground beneath them, wrapping around Crocodile like chains, dragging him down.King Cobra’s breath catches in his throat as he watches in disbelief, his wide eyes fixed on the spectacle. Dazai's lips curl into a dark, knowing smile. “I knew it,” she murmurs, her voice smooth with disdain. “From the moment we met in the Rain Diner… I realized your weakness.” She steps forward, her crimson eyes burning with satisfaction, "How laughable. To be undone by the very thing you’ve been stealing and controlling in Alabasta for so long."Before Crocodile can muster a single word of rage, before he can even attempt to escape the water that now consumes him, Luffy’s fist slams into his face. The force of the blow sends him flying backward, crashing into the broken remnants of the tomb with a thunderous crash. Dust and debris scatter like fragments of a shattered dream.Umekui's gaze snaps toward Edgar Pollen, the ability user who had been lurking in the shadows. She can feel his presence—his ability to read the Poneglyphs, to know the ancient secrets hidden in this forsaken land."Do you really think," Dazai’s voice drops to a cold, dangerous whisper, "that I’m going to let you read the Poneglyphs?"Her hand moves, lightning-fast, prepared to strike, to nullify Edgar’s ability and put an end to his pathetic existence. Her eyes flicker with a glint of satisfaction—until a noise freezes her in place.A crack. A low, familiar sound that sends a chill down her spine.Dazai’s gaze hardens as she watches a hand emerge from Edgar's back—its fingers sharp and long, like twisted bones. The cracking of his neck echoes, sickeningly clear in the stillness. And then, another hand joins it—reaching up, long and smooth, as though emerging from the very shadows themselves.Dazai’s eyes widen, her breath catching in her throat. No. It can't be...She feels the hairs on her neck stand on end. Her mind races. Impossible... I gave her to Rasa to surveil her. She couldn't have…And then, in an instant, the figure appears.Robin.Her presence is like a nightmare reborn—fingers twisting from Edgar's back, snapping his neck with a grotesque fluidity. Her eyes are dark and calm, like the depths of a forgotten ocean, watching Dazai with an eerie, almost detached expression.“Did you think,” Robin’s voice is a soft whisper, chilling in its coldness, “that I was gone, Dazai?” She steps forward, her gaze unwavering. "Did you think I could be fooled so easily? You never change, don’t you?”Before Dazai could make her move, before she could even react to Robin’s presence, a sudden, sharp pain sears through her skull—a familiar, unwelcome sensation.
"Dazai..."
Her wild eyes snap toward the immense stone of the Poneglyph, where the voice is emanating from. It reverberates inside her mind, shaking her to the core, like a haunting whisper from the depths of history.“Child of the Void Century,” the voice booms, its echo deep and resonant, as though it comes from the very walls of time itself. “You are bound to the Poneglyphs, bound to the blood you cannot escape. You cannot outrun destiny.”Dazai’s breath hitches. She tries to block it out, to push it away, but the words pierce through her like ice. Her heart races as the voice continues, the ancient oracle of fate unraveling her own tangled web of history.“In a country ravaged by corruption,” the voice intones, slow and deliberate, as if savoring the weight of each word. “In a land of steel and shadows, where the winds of change howl beneath the weight of tyranny, there lies the key. The key to the power that will shape the future and awaken the ancient flame that has slept for centuries."Dazai’s eyes narrow as the voice continues, each word more ominous than the last.
“In the land of Wano, a kingdom sealed in blood and sorrow, a hidden truth lies beneath the waves. Where the ancient weapons rest, one slumbers in the depths, waiting for the bloodline to awaken it."
The annoying voice echoes louder as her hands clench her head higher. 
"Pluto—forgotten by time, but not by fate. And the child of this land shall be the one to carry its burden. The wheel of destiny turns, and you, child of the void, are its witness.”
The words reverberate inside her skull, suffocating, consuming, pressing down on her like an iron shackle forged in the depths of time. The weight of the prophecy coils around her ribs, tightening with each breath, a cruel reminder that no matter how far she runs, the past—her past—will always find her.There is no escaping the blood that binds her. No escaping the fate the oracle has whispered into existence.The voice fades into silence, but the echo remains, a ghostly presence lingering over her like a shadow that refuses to be cast aside.
But what does it mean for her? What does it mean for the path she walks now?
Dazai clenches her fists, the nails digging into her palms. It doesn’t mean anything. It doesn’t have to.She doesn’t need the past. She doesn’t need history, the Poneglyphs, the voices buried in stone. She has Luffy. She has her crew. They are her fate. They are her destiny. Not the sins of the past, not the blood that taints her hands, not the whispers of a long-dead era trying to pull her back into the abyss.But then—pain.A sharp, searing agony unlike anything she has ever felt rips through her body, sudden and merciless. It burns like the very essence of darkness itself, like something clawing from the inside out. Her throat tightens—then flames to life in unbearable heat.Before she can even react, blood spills from her lips. Thick, dark, an unrelenting torrent that stains her robe, splashes across the cold stone floor, painting it red in violent streaks. It drips from her chin, a sickening warmth against the cold that suddenly consumes her.She blinks once. Twice.And then, the wounds come back.Every wound she’s ever taken, every injury she’s ever stolen, every pain she’s ever shifted onto herself—they all return.The sharp, gaping hole of the bullet wound she had taken from Robin’s body sears through her side. Nathaniel’s cursed ability, Scarlet Letter, blooms across her skin like fresh agony reborn. Every cut, every burn, every ache that should have long since faded is suddenly there again, alive, screaming.Kuraha’s medicine—her last line of defense—fails. The pills do nothing. The pain is absolute.Her knees give out beneath her. The world tilts, the rain drenches her. She collapses onto the blood-slick floor, vision spinning, lungs gasping for air that refuses to come.A cold dread washes over her, sinking its claws deep into her chest.
Luffy’s going to kill me.
That’s the last thing she thinks—before the darkness swallows her whole.The first time Nico Robin met Dazai Umekui, the sky bled.It was not rain that fell upon the shattered land, but something darker—thicker. A crimson river streaking across the heavens, as if the world itself wept for the lives already lost. The color of blood, the color of fate, the color of the eyes that would haunt Robin for the rest of her days.
Red.
She had seen them before. Not in this life, not in this moment—but somewhere in the echoes of a history neither of them could escape. Eyes like dying embers, like a prophecy written in suffering. Eyes that knew pain, that had seen the end of the world and dared to keep going.
She should have run.
Robin had been running for as long as she could remember. Running from the ghosts of Ohara, from the hands of the World Government, from the bounty that marked her as a devil. From the whispers of scholars whose faces had long since faded, from the scent of burning paper, the ashes of knowledge turned to dust. From the truth buried in stone, in ink, in the Poneglyphs that she had no choice but to read.She had run through continents swallowed by war, through deserts where the sun baked bones into the earth. She had seen kings fall and tyrants rise, had walked through cities where hope had withered, where history itself lay rotting in the dirt. And still—she had kept going.Because to stop meant to remember. And to remember meant to suffer.The voice of the woman she had once dared to call mother echoed in her mind, distant yet ever-present. It was a cruel, angry voice, one that had haunted her in the darkest hours—its venom still dripping through the years.
"Run, Robin. Run, or you will die!"
The words burned into her soul, a constant refrain, the agony of them seeping into every waking thought, twisting her every action. Each step she took carried the weight of that command. Run. Run or die.The ruins of her past were vast and unforgiving. A land where nothing but broken fragments of dreams remained. And no matter how far she ran, no matter how many miles she crossed, those echoes—the ones rooted in blood and fear—never faded. They followed her like shadows, relentless and consuming.She had run for years.And when she stopped—it was never to breath. It was to kill—to eliminate those who stood in her way. To survive. To make sure no one could catch her, no one could threaten her existence again.Her body had grown numb to the betrayals of mankind, to the faces that smiled only to stab her in the back. Her heart, once tender and full of longing, had hardened, calloused by the years of loss and endless run. She no longer remembered the warmth of safety. She no longer remembered the taste of peace.Only the bitter taste of survival.It had ruined her—her mind, her soul, her very sense of self. There were parts of her that no longer existed ( they had vanished, burned away in the cries and blood of her ancestors and family. They had vanished like Saul’s voice, and it hurt).Sometimes, Robin wonders if she has gone ill—mad, just like the title the village had once given to the mother who bore her.Yet, wasn’t madness the only way to keep going, just as it had kept her mother going? (She is dead! hisses a voice.) Wasn’t it the only answer when every step forward dragged you deeper into the abyss of history?To survive, she had learned, was not to live, but to endure. To keep moving even as everything inside her screamed to stop. To let the darkness swallow her whole.Swallowed in a darkness where only echoes remained—the voices of her past, her mother’s voice, the ghost of Ohara, the faces of those she had killed, the blood she had spilled—it all merged into one endless cacophony. They were her legacy now. She had no choice but to carry them, to remember them, even as they twisted her into something unrecognizable.So Robin kept running (maybe she was running from her past, from her legacy. Maybe she was running to finally find a place where Nico Robin was no longer a curse).Because if she stopped... she’d remember.
And remembering meant dying.
But now, in the ruins of a world that had torn itself apart, she found herself standing before Dazai. Not a warlord, not a legend, not the name whispered in fear by those who knew the truth. No, this was a child. A girl with bloodstained hands and a gaze that cut deeper than any blade. A girl whose presence felt too familiar, as if Robin had met her before—before the world had given them reasons to kill and run.The name Dazai echoed in her mind like a curse.Because Robin had read about her. Countless times.Not from a history book—no, there were no books that told the full truth of Dazai existence. But Robin had found the pieces, hidden between the lines, buried beneath layers of secrecy and fear. A name that surfaced in whispers, in footnotes, in stories passed through trembling lips.A girl who should not have existed. A girl born from the sins of the ancient world.They were the same. Two devils standing before each other, bound by fate, by blood, by the sins of a world that had never been kind to them.
Two tragedies, written in the same ink.

Robin’s fingers tighten around Rasa’s throat, her Devil Fruit pulsing with quiet, lethal intent.

“What am I doing here?” Robin rasps, her dark blue eyes burning, wild and sharp as a dagger. Her breath is ragged, her hair clinging to her face, damp with sweat and blood.

Rasa’s eyes are wide with fear, her lips trembling. She doesn’t even try to scream for her crewmates—she knows Robin would slit her throat before a single sound could leave her lips.

Robin’s grip doesn’t loosen.

“Dazai gave you to me,” Rasa chokes out, voice strained, barely a whisper against the pressure on her windpipe. “She told me to safeguard you until she took care of Crocodile.”

Robin’s eyes widen.

“Why?”

Rasa’s breath hitches, her hands gripping Robin’s wrists weakly. “I—I don’t know.”

Robin glances down at herself again, breath shallow, heart pounding. Blood coats her skin, her clothes—dark, warm, unmistakably real.

There is no pain.

But she knows she was shot. She remembers the impact, the force that sent her reeling. She can still feel the ghost of the bullet, a phantom ache where the wound should be.

But when she checks—there’s nothing.

No wound. No hole. Just blood.

Then, it hits her like a blade to the ribs. The realization sinks in, sharp and merciless.

Her lips curl into a sneer. “Dazai…”

A memory crashes into her, sudden and vivid—so sharp it almost feels like she’s reliving it.

"There."

A soft voice. Young, yet already burdened with something far too heavy for her age. Teenage Dazai, red eyes dark and knowing, kneels before her. Her hand glows with an eerie green light as she reaches for the wound on Robin’s elbow.

And then—nothing. The pain vanishes.

Robin gasps, staring in disbelief as the wound disappears from her own skin—only to reappear on Dazai’s elbow, fresh and bleeding.

Dazai barely flinches. She only watches with a quiet, unreadable expression.

"This ability is called Vinzezo Cizera,” she murmurs, voice soft as a secret. “I can heal any wound—but only by taking it onto myself."

Robin, younger then, stares at her in wide-eyed shock.

Now, in the present, Robin exhales slowly, her fingers twitching.

Dazai had taken the bullet wound. Transferred it onto herself.

Robin’s gaze darkens, cold and sharp like the edge of a knife. She looks down at Rasa, who is still trembling beneath her grasp, barely able to breathe.

"Dazai and Vivi are ending the war and freeing Alabasta,” Rasa croaks out, desperate. “That’s all I know.”

Robin says nothing for a moment. The silence stretches long enough for Rasa to feel real, suffocating fear creep up her spine.

Then, Robin smiles.

It’s not a kind smile. It’s not even amused.

It’s the smile of a woman who has killed before. A woman who will kill again.

"Take me there."

Her grip tightens on Rasa’s throat, her Devil Fruit pulsing dangerously.

"Take me to Alubarna."

Her eyes flash with something cruel. Something lethal.

"And if you don’t, I swear I will slaughter every single one of your crewmates with my Devil Fruit before they can even feel death coming."

The words are not an idle threat. They are a promise.

Because in the end—

Robin is a killer, like Dazai.
Dark blue eyes blink hard as Robin stares at the Poneglyph, the truth of Pluto sinking into her mind like a stone dropped into a bottomless abyss. But then—she freezes.A sound. A body hitting the ground, heavy, wet—soaked in blood.Robin holds her breath as she turns.Dazai lies motionless, unconscious in a growing pool of crimson.Her mind goes numb. A coldness spreads through her limbs, creeping, suffocating. Her Devil Fruit pulses through her veins, but all she can hear is the rush of silence, the distant echo of a memory long buried beneath years of running, of surviving.
"What do you mean a double suicide?" Robin had gasped, eyes widening.

Dazai had grinned—wide, teasing, careless, like the whole world was a joke only she understood. "Well, I propose we die together. A double suicide. It means that we die side by side."

"Idiot! I know what a double suicide is! But why?" Robin’s voice had cracked with something she didn’t want to name.

Dazai’s grin had softened then, curving at the edges, sadness bleeding through like ink spreading across paper. "I found great comfort in you, Robin. Someone who shares my despair. I want to die. I must die. Living itself is the source of sin."

Robin had stared, heart pounding, unable to look away from the emptiness in Dazai’s gaze. It was a void so familiar, so much like looking into a mirror, that it had left her breathless.
And now—now Robin stood over her again. After all these years. After all the blood.She had waited so long to find Dazai again. She had vowed to find her.
So what?

Now that she had found her, what had she done?

Nothing.
Robin had always been weak. Weak to trust. Weak to love. And every time, it led to betrayal. Again and again, until she had grown tired—tired of running, tired of surviving, tired of pretending there was anything left for her in this world except the burden of history pressing down on her shoulders.She had nothing left. Nothing at all.So that is her fate.Grief is a cruel, shapeless thing. It has no rules, no structure, no end. It’s an ocean that drags you under when you least expect it, a storm that rages without mercy. And Robin—Robin has never been given the chance to swim in it.Because grief requires time, and time is a luxury she has never had.She has never had the peace to grieve.She has never stopped running long enough to mourn.And even if she did—to whom does she grieve?
To her mother? The woman who left her behind, who loved her but not enough to stay?

To Saul? The giant who taught her to laugh, who died smiling, who left her with nothing but his final words?

To the scholars of Ohara? The only home she ever had, burned to ash before her eyes?

To her teacher? To the voices of the past that haunt her every step?

To whom?!

How does grief even work? Does she scream? Does she cry? Does she tear the world apart the way it once tore her apart?
Or does she just—
Keep moving? Keep surviving? But what is survival without meaning? What is existence without a place to belong? Keep living, even though she has long forgotten what that word is supposed to mean? 
Maybe that is why she has no tears left.Maybe that is why the rage is the only thing that remains.Because grief is for the living.And maybe, just maybe—Nico Robin has been dead for a long, long time.And now, standing over Dazai’s bloodied, dying body, Robin feels the weight of everything crash down on her. The promise, the years of searching, the endless running, and the betrayal—all of it culminating in this moment.Her heart is heavy, but empty. There is no joy in her face, no satisfaction in the silence. Only the crushing finality of it all.She calls to her Devil Fruit. Her hands, long and twisted, extend from her back—aching, trembling, as if the very act of reaching for her own death is a betrayal of some part of herself she can no longer name.She’s already accepted what’s coming. A promise once whispered in the darkest corners of their souls, a promise made between two broken people who had learned that escape was the only thing worth chasing. Dazai and Robin, side by side, an end without a beginning.A final release from a world that never stopped asking for more than they could give.The hands feel so cold, like the last breath of a life she’s never truly lived. Like the final, whispered promise that this will be the end. No more running, no more pain. No more suffering.Dazai’s blood is still warm on the ground, staining the floor, staining everything—just like her past. Just like the lives she’s taken, the lives she’s lost. There is no escape. There is no freedom. For monsters like them. There is only death.So this is it, she thinks, her fingers tightening as the hands close around her throat. This is the end of it all.The hands move closer to her neck, the fatal twist imminent. The escape she has longed for. She takes a deep breath, feeling the air fill her lungs for the last time. Her eyes flutter closed, and for a moment, she almost feels a flicker of peace. The world fades away, and she is left with only the silence."Hey, what are you doing?" cuts off a voice too blunt, too straightforwardly like the person never thinks before speaking.Her eyes snaps open, Monkey D. Luffy stares at her hard, Dazai in his arm, her face in the croaks of his neck. His face is smeared with dried blood, dust, and sweat, his dark, wild hair clinging to his forehead and neck like a messy halo. His straw hat sits firmly on his head, a symbol of resilience and hope, like a beacon in the midst of the chaos surrounding them.The too cheerful straw hat, seems calm, too calm than always that it's freeze Robin. The hands shake over her neck, yet she keeps frozen string into the round eyes of Monkey D. Luffy.Everything trembles around them—the tombstones cracked from the force of Luffy's battle with Crocodile, the chamber on the brink of collapse. Time is running out, the world around them crumbling to dust. Luffy doesn't rush. He doesn't panic. He simply stands there, steady as ever, looking at her with those round, kind, warm eyes that hold something she has never seen in other people."Come on, the chamber's going to collapse. I need to get to Crocodile before he gets too far. Umekui’s fine, she's just out because she's hungry. You’re her friend, right? Nico Robin?" Luffy continues, his voice unaffected by the chaos around them.Robin blinks, dazed, the weight of his words crashing into her like a wave. Her throat tightens as if the world itself is holding its breath. But she feels the hands around her neck fall, the grip loosening as the tension inside her starts to drain away.The weight of her name—the legacy, the bloodline, the world’s hatred wrapped around those syllables—vanishes under Luffy’s unassuming tone.He says her name like it’s nothing, like it isn’t cursed or tainted by a thousand years of history, as though she isn’t the person the world has branded with a target. He says it as if it’s just a name, just hers, and nothing more.And in that moment, she remembers Dazai's words.
“How could you look at the sun,” Dazai had said, “and not believe in the man named Monkey D. Luffy? He’s everything. He’s hope where there is none. A light in the darkest depths of the ocean.”
Something burns in the back of Robin’s eyes. It’s a sharp, suffocating pain that rises from the deepest part of her chest, clawing its way up her throat. She can feel the words scraping their way out, heavy with exhaustion, with hopelessness."Go. Take Dazai and go, Monkey D. Luffy!" she croaks, her voice barely a whisper against the sound of the collapsing ruins. "I have no reason left to live. Leave me here!" The words rip through her, a desperate plea, an admission she had never wanted to make.She shakes her head, as if trying to dislodge the suffocating weight that threatens to pull her under.But Luffy’s frown deepens, annoyed. "Why would I listen to you?!" he says, his voice firm.Without another word, he stretches his hand out toward her, his grip locking around her waist as he throws her over his shoulder with surprising ease. In a fluid motion, he grabs the King Cobra, his other arm outstretched toward the ceiling. Then, with a forceful pull, he leaps into the air, taking her along for the ride.“Wait—!” Robin tries to protest, but the wind rushes past her, and she’s swept up in Luffy’s reckless flight.As they soar through the crumbling chamber, Luffy yells back one more time, his voice booming above the chaos."I only listen to my first mate! And Umekui will be sad if I leave you here!"The sound of his laugh rings out, loud and untamed, echoing through the ruin as they break free of the collapsing structure. It’s wild, full of life, and as carefree as ever.Robin’s mind drifts for a moment, the world spinning around her. Her eyes wide, her breath still caught in her chest, she can’t help but smile—a bittersweet, sad smile.
'You have found an amazing captain, Dazai.'
The thought lingers, a final echo in her mind, before the wind steals it away, leaving only the sound of Luffy’s laughter in its place.Vivi’s wide, petrified eyes take in the carnage surrounding her.Her homeland, once filled with life and hope, is now stained in blood, bodies littering the ground, smoke and fire choking the air. The very earth trembles beneath her feet as everything she once knew crumbles into ruin.Why? The question gnaws at her insides, a scream caught in her throat.Why her? Why her kingdom? What had they done to deserve this? What sins had they committed to incur the wrath of the gods, to be cursed with such misfortune? The weight of the destruction presses on her chest, and she can feel herself on the edge of breaking, the sheer hopelessness suffocating her spirit.
She hates it.
Hates the sight of her people, her kingdom, shattered beyond recognition. Hates the bitter taste of helplessness that coats her tongue as she watches everything she fought for slip through her fingers like sand. She hates the suffocating silence that follows the chaos, the broken cries of the fallen, the suffocating stench of blood and smoke that clings to the air.She hates the feeling of being powerless, of knowing that no matter how hard she tries, she can’t undo the devastation. She can’t bring back the lives lost, the homes destroyed, the dreams erased.She hates that after all this, after everything she’s endured, she’s still standing here, a spectator in the ruins of her own world. The weight of her failure presses on her chest, making it hard to breathe, to think, to move.But most of all, she hates that she can’t stop the tears from falling. But God, she has done so much.She’s tried everything — every plea, every plan, every desperate cry for peace. She has fought against the tide of fate, thrown herself into the storm, sacrificing parts of herself she never thought she'd lose. She’s given her voice to the cause, her heart, her body, every ounce of strength she has left. But no one ever listens. No one ever truly hears her.
Why? Why does the world always drown out her pleas?
The questions claw at her mind like a fever, relentless, maddening.Every failure, every time her efforts fell short, weighs on her like chains. She has seen it all—the death, the destruction, the betrayal, and yet every time she stood up, hoping for change, hoping someone would finally hear her, it was as if her voice was nothing but a whisper in the wind, lost in the noise of a world that couldn’t care less.
Why doesn't anyone listen?
Why is it always her who is left to carry the burden? Why does the suffering fall upon her shoulders? Her kingdom, her people, her blood… everything slipping through her hands. The weight of it crushes her chest, and for the first time, she feels the true meaning of isolation—the crushing loneliness of being unheard, unseen.She thought she could be the one to break the cycle, the one to change things for her people. But now, standing in the middle of the destruction, Vivi realizes the truth. She is just another face in a long line of voices drowned out by the roar of war and death."Hope? That’s what you're betting on?" Umekui had once said, her voice laced with something bitter, something knowing. "Hope doesn’t win wars, princess. Blood wins wars. Betrayal wins wars. And sacrifice..." Her voice had darkened then, nearly a whisper. "Are you ready to bleed for your cause? Are you prepared to burn away everything you are—everything you’ve ever believed in—just to protect those you love?"Those words come back to haunt Vivi now, clawing at the edges of her mind, tearing through the fragile remnants of her resolve. Because she has done all of it. She has bled, she has sacrificed, she has given up every part of herself in the name of saving her people. And yet—She is losing. She has saved no one.Tears cut hot and sharp down her face as the truth sinks in, heavier than any weight she has ever carried.All of this—this war, this devastation, the countless lives lost—was for a weapon forgotten by time. All for Crocodile to seize control, to play god with the world in his grasp. All of this, for one man’s selfish dream of power.And how she loathes him.
Why do men have to be so cruel?
How dare he? How dare he take everything from her for his own twisted ambition?
Her innocence. Her kingdom. Her home. Her people. Her childhood friend.
He has stripped her of everything, reduced her world to rubble, left her screaming into the void with no one to answer.All for what?A sob chokes her, but she swallows it down. She doesn’t have time for grief. Not yet. Not while there is still breath in her lungs and fire in her heart.Her despair is cut off by Luffy’s loud, warm voice as he lands before her, his presence as unshakable as the rising sun.King Cobra steps down from Luffy’s arms, and before Vivi can even process the relief of seeing her father alive, Luffy shoves a bloodied, unconscious Umekui into her grasp."Take care of my first mate," he says, his voice steady, unwavering, "I’ll end this with Crocodile. Don’t worry."And just like that, he takes off—reckless, wild, unbreakable.Vivi’s breath stutters as she looks up at her father, his weary eyes locking onto hers. The moment shatters something inside her.She lets go.She sobs, her tears falling freely, drenching her face as she clutches Umekui tighter."Father," she choked out."Vivi, my dear..." His voice is hoarse, heavy with grief, with love.Before they can reach for each other, the screams of the rebels tear through the air."The King is there with the princess! Take off their heads!"Panic crashes into her like a tidal wave.Her fingers tighten around her father’s hand, her grip firm despite the tremble in her bones. She throws Umekui over her shoulder, her legs already moving."Run!" she gasps. "To the tower—now!"They bolt, feet pounding against the ruined streets, the shouts of the enemy closing in behind them.Vivi's breath comes fast and wild, her heart hammering in terror.From the top of the tower, Vivi stares down with wide, horrified eyes at the bloodshed below. The battlefield is a storm of chaos—rebels, the royal army, civilians caught in the crossfire. And in the midst of it all, her friends—the Straw Hats—fighting desperately to survive."I’m so sorry, my daughter," King Cobra murmurs beside her, his voice thick with sorrow.But Vivi shakes her head fiercely. There’s no time for apologies. No time for regret.Her gaze snaps to Koza, standing among the rebels, his sword clashing against his own people. She can see it—the guilt twisting his face, the pain in his eyes as he fights the very men he once led to battle.Tears spill down her cheeks.She turns again, and her heart seizes. Luffy.He’s locked in battle with Crocodile, their figures like titans clashing amidst the ruins. The ground trembles beneath them, sand whipping violently through the air. Crocodile moves with cruel precision, striking blow after merciless blow, and yet—Luffy still stands. Bloodied, battered, but unyielding.Vivi’s heart cries out in fear, in sorrow, in desperation.There is nothing but war and ruin below her. There is nothing but blood and loss.And she—
She has done nothing.
She takes a breath, her body trembling, and grips the frayed edges of her purple robe.Then she screams.
"STOP! STOP FIGHTING, PLEASE!"
Her voice cuts through the battlefield, raw and desperate, echoing through the crumbling city. The wind carries her cry like a prayer, like a plea.She screams again and again, her voice barely a whisper against the cruel roar of war.
No one listens.

No one stops.
Her throat is raw, torn from desperation, from sorrow, from the weight of everything she has lost. Tears stream down her face, hot and endless, as her body trembles beneath the crushing grief."Please..." she chokes out, her voice breaking.But the battle rages on. The blood keeps spilling. And Vivi—Vivi can do nothing but scream into the storm."PLEASE STOP FIGHTING!"Her voice rips through the chaos, desperate, raw, pleading.Blades clash, gunfire roars, screams drown her out. Blood soaks the ground, staining the land she loves. Rebels and soldiers, friends and foes—they all keep fighting, blind to the voice that begs them to stop.Tears streak down her face as she grips the railing of the tower, her knuckles white, her body trembling. Why? Why won’t they listen? Why won’t they stop?She screams again and again, louder this time, until her throat burns, until she feels like she might throw up blood.
"Please...!"
But war does not listen. War does not pause. Not for anyone—not even for a grieving princess like Vivi. Life was no fairy tale.With trembling hands, Vivi’s heart pounds in her chest as she turns to the battered, unconscious figure of Umekui. Even though their relationship has never been built on friendship, even though the walls between them were once thick with misunderstandings and unspoken truths, Vivi knows this woman.Knows her deeply—behind the pain, the anger, and the betrayal, Umekui has always had something far more precious to protect: her captain, her nakamad.And Vivi knows, without a doubt, that if Umekui doesn’t wake up—if she doesn’t help one last time—everything will fall apart. Her people. Luffy. The Straw Hats. Everything they’ve fought for will be swallowed by the flames of this war.
No, not like this. Not after everything. Not after all we’ve fought for.
Desperation surges through Vivi, her heart aching with the weight of everything at stake. She falls to her knees beside Umekui, her hands shaking as they find her body.Please, please, she pleads silently. She shakes her violently, her voice choked with sobs, breaking through the rubble and the chaos around them.  She doesn’t care if it hurts; she doesn’t care if she’s losing herself in this moment."UMEKUI! WAKE UP!" Her voice cracks, raw and broken."YOUR NAKAMA NEED YOU!" She clutches at her, her nails digging into the skin, her tears falling onto Umekui’s battered form. She doesn’t care if it hurts; she doesn’t care if she’s losing herself in this moment."WAKE UP! Luffy needs you!"The battlefield rages below them, screams and steel and death filling the air. Luffy is out there. The Straw Hats are out there. And if Umekui doesn’t wake up—if she doesn’t fight—they will all die.Vivi shakes her with all the strength she can muster, as if shaking Umekui awake will shake the world back into balance. Her heart screams in agony, her breath coming in ragged sobs."Please! You love them, don’t you?" She leans down, her voice trembling with desperate conviction. "They need you! He needs you!"Tears spill down her face, mixing with the dust and blood smeared across her skin. Her cries echo in the silent space between them, raw and untamed, tearing through her chest like a thousand daggers. For a moment, the world stops. Then—A sharp, shallow breath. Silence falls over her frantic sobs. A flicker of movement.Umekui’s fingers twitch.
"Are you mad at me?" Umekui Dazai asks, her voice soft, as she gazes at the back of her beloved friend with the fiery orange hair.

She can almost hear his faint tch, the familiar sound that always followed when he was frustrated with her. Even in this half-conscious state, caught between the realm of the living and the dead, she can’t help but smile at his presence.

"Are you mad at me, Chuuya?" she repeats, her eyes tender as the wind gently brushes through his wild orange curls.

"Why would I be mad at you, waste-of-bandages?" Chuuya retorts, his voice laced with the familiar sarcasm, as he turns to face her. His blue eyes narrow, though the edge of annoyance is softened by something warmer.

"Thank you." She says softly, her smile tinged with sadness.

"Hm?" Chuuya tilts his head, brow furrowed in confusion.

"Thank you for not hurting my captain," she adds quietly, her voice barely a whisper.

Chuuya's lips curl into a smirk, a glint of something unspoken in his eyes.

"Well, he is our captain now," Chuuya says, his voice dripping with a touch of amusement. "Tell me, Dazai—Monkey D. Luffy is the boy of this tale, right? The lost dream of yours?"

He teases softly, the corner of his mouth curling up slightly, as if he's savoring the unspoken truth between them.

Umekui Dazai laughs softly, her eyes bright yet tinged with a quiet sadness, as she watches the bird soar across the sky. The sound of her hum fills the air, soft and melancholic, as if she’s lost in a memory too deep to fully grasp.

Chuuya steps forward gently, extending his palm toward her with a calm yet commanding presence.

“You’re me now,” he says, his voice steady and resolute. “Go. Protect him. Save this foolish tale that you both admire and despise so much.”

He takes her hand, pulling her towards him, the warmth of his grip a stark contrast to the emptiness she’s been clinging to. 
With a final grin of Chuuya, one that speaks of both reassurance and sorrow, a sharp pain stabs through her chest. Dazai breath catches in her throat, and as she shuts her eyes, and the world around her blurs.

“He needs you. Your nakama need you, Umekui Dazai.”
 The first thing that cuts through Umekui's foggy mind is the desperate cries of Princess Vivi, followed by the familiar chaos of battle—sounds that have become far too familiar to her in this unforgiving world.With a groan, she pushes herself up, her palm stained with blood as she gently nudges Vivi’s body away from her, her movements sluggish."How many times have I told you not to touch me, princess?" she rasps, her voice rough and broken as pain pulses through her, still disoriented from the haze of unconsciousness.Vivi gasps, the sound raw and filled with relief."UMEKUI!", the way her name is cried out—full of relief, a stark contrast to the indifference that once hung between them. "Stop screaming so loud," Umekui mutters, forcing herself to sit up, ignoring the sharp pain that courses through her limbs.She blinks, her gaze unfocused for a moment before settling on Vivi’s tear-streaked face—her eyes swollen, red from crying, blue hair wild, dust and blood covering her face. Then, she looks beyond Vivi to see King Cobra, frozen in place, staring at her as though she were a ghost.A cold, sharp realization cuts through Umekui's fogged mind, and she narrows her eyes at Vivi, her chest tightening with urgency and fear. Her voice croaks, hoarse and bloody, "Where is my captain?"The question hangs in the air, trembling with raw emotion. Her body ached, but the pain faded beneath the terror clawing at her heart."Where is Luffy!?"Vivi’s finger trembles. She points desperately toward the vast desert behind them, her voice cracking with panic. "There he is, fighting Crocodile! You have to help him! You need to help them or everyone is going to die!"The words hit Umekui like a hammer to the chest. Her vision blurs for a split second, pain tearing through her like an endless, burning wave. The ache is unbearable, but she forces herself to breathe through it. No time for weakness. No time for hesitation.The desert stretches out before her, the battles raging on in the distance, and there, standing tall and defiant amidst the chaos—Crocodile, the nightmare of the kingdom she once wished to burn down. Her legs are unsteady, but she rises, pulling herself together as her crimson eyes lock onto Crocodile. This is it. Everything that’s led her here has been to this moment."Even though I wished for your kingdom to burn in flames for all the pain your legacy caused me..." Umekui’s voice is a quiet rasp, her words thick with both bitterness and reluctant truth. She turns her gaze toward Vivi, her eyes softening despite the tension that thrums in the air. "I had no choice but to aid you, Nefertari Vivi."Her smile is fleeting, almost sorrowful as she looks at her captain. "I have fallen for a selfless captain, a man who would move mountains and break universes for his friends. And it is for Luffy—for him—that I will sacrifice everything. My will. My heart. My hatred. My past. All of it." She then glances back at Vivi, her grin sharper now, as if trying to push the weight of the world from the princess’s shoulders. "You have the chance to be his friend, Vivi. You are his ally."Umekui grins, wild and bitter."So... brush away your tears. The end is near, and the rain... the rain is coming."With those final words, Umekui’s figure shines with an intense, bloody red glow, and before anyone can stop her, she launches herself into the air from the top of tower. The wind howls as she fly, her heart thundering in her chest, her back hair wild from the wind. She’s weightless for a moment, her mind clear only of Luffy, of the fight ahead, of the rain that’s coming.The sky trembles, darkening as ominous clouds swirl above, and with a cry that echoes through the heavens, she calls his name."LUFFY!" Her voice rings out, desperate and full of anguish, as the thunder crashes and the heavens rage with an intensity that matches the fury of her heart.

Oh, you arrogant warlord who has brought misfortune and death to the innocent souls of Alabasta.

"Umekui!" Luffy screams, his voice filled with fiery determination as he turns to her, blood and dust smeared across his face. He faces her like a sunflower, bright and unwavering, ready for the fight.

You, who have taken so much with your cruelty and drought.

"Lend me your strength one more time, Chuuya," Umekui prays softly into the wind, her heart pounding as she feels his spirit resonate within her. As if on cue, the sky breaks in two, and the world trembles beneath the force of her will.Umekui smiles; the first tear of rain falls onto her cheek, like a divine answer to her prayer.

To those children paying for the sins of corrupt men—may your souls rest in peace.

"Your end is here, Crocodile!" Luffy cracked his knuckles, his grin as wild as ever, his resolve like iron. "GOMU-"

To the people who buried their loved ones in the sands of time, with bloody, trembling hands—your grief will come to an end.

Umekui ignores her own pain, pushing forward with relentless determination. She activates her power—no longer human—her palm extended toward Crocodile as she falls toward him like a predator, her eyes gleaming with the hunger of a beast. The light blue glow of her ability spirals outwards, the halo of her power dancing ominously in the air.Crocodile’s eyes widen in horror as he catches sight of her gaze, feeling the hum of her ability as it closes in on him, unstoppable, like a beast hunting its prey. There is no escape for the king of the desert.

Shall your tears and grief drown in the rain of Heaven’s tears.

The sky trembles in response, thunder cracking as it shakes the heavens. The rain begins to fall—heavy, unrelenting—like a revelation from the heavens, the tears of a world long forgotten. It pours over Alabasta, washing away years of suffering and sorrow, as though the land itself is mourning the years of pain and injustice."You are taking it away!" Crocodile screams, his voice cracking with rage and terror as he feels his devil fruit power draining away from him. "You... you're taking it from me!""GOMU-!"

For the women who have sold their innocence to survive in a world of men—shall your heart rage like unleashed thunder!

Umekui sinks her nails into Crocodile’s arm, her grip ferocious, like a wild animal claiming its kill. Her power wraps around him, leashing itself inside his body, devouring his devil fruit with merciless cruelty.She grins, a wide, feral smile full of bloodlust as she watches the fear rise in his eyes, his body trembling from her power.

Shall your reign know the despair that you brought upon the people, fallen king of the desert!

"-GOMU NO STORM!" Luffy roars, his body moving with incredible speed as his fists strike Crocodile’s face, each punch landing with bone-crushing force.The blows rain down, a flurry of punches so fast and brutal that Crocodile can hardly react. He tries to summon his devil fruit power, but it’s no more. The impact is too much. His body is pummeled again and again, unable to escape the fury of Luffy’s attack. The storm of fists is endless, unstoppable, as the two of them—Umekui and Luffy—defeat Crocodile.The rain howls louder, as if mocking Crocodile’s downfall. He crashes into the sand, motionless and unconscious, his body crumpled like a ragdoll.
The war is over.
Luffy stands tall, his chest heaving, blood splattered across his face, but his grin wide—too wide—a radiant, almost blinding thing that burns into Umekui’s vision. His fist rises into the sky, triumphant, as the wind and rain whips around them. His laugh echoes over the battlefield, reckless and free, as though the whole world itself belongs to him now."WE DID IT!" Luffy shouts, his voice full of that boundless, fiery energy that always seems to burn the brightest in the face of impossible odds. "WE WON!"Umekui walks slowly toward him, her legs shaky from exhaustion but her smile wide and genuine, the kind of smile she hasn’t worn in years. There’s a tenderness in her gaze, an ache, but it’s warm—comforting, as her ability inside her has finally begun to quiet."Yes... we did it, my captain," she says softly.Luffy, just as worn, his body beaten and bloodied, yet still filled with that unshakable energy, smiles back at her. But it’s a different smile now—one not full of triumph, but one that speaks of relief, of a shared comfort.Before she can even react, he’s already there, pulling her into his arms. The impact of their embrace causes both of them to collapse to the sand, too tired from the battle to stay standing. They laugh together, a sound full of exhaustion and joy, like they’ve finally found peace in the midst of chaos.Luffy cradles her carefully, as if she’s the most delicate thing in the world, even though he’s the one who’s always been reckless, been harsh and wild. Their foreheads rest against each other, both of them breathing in sync, as if nothing else matters anymore—no more war, no more pain.For that moment, it’s just them. The weight of the world fades away, and the only thing that remains is the gentle, rhythmic sound of their breaths, the quiet assurance that they’ve survived this together."Thanks, Umekui," Luffy says, his voice so soft yet so loud so it doesn’t get lost in the wind. "You’re the best first mate I could ever ask for."Her heart tugs, and she chuckles softly, feeling the warmth spread through her chest."No... thank you, my captain," she replies.
Thank you for accepting someone like me into your crew. Thank you for allowing me to exist by your side. Thank you for your kindness, for protecting me, for loving me. Thank you for being you, Monkey D. Luffy, my beloved captain.
Luffy giggles, his breath warm on her face, and it makes Umekui smile until her cheeks ache."Don’t ever leave me, Umekui. You hear me?" Luffy says, his hands clutching her bloody robes tightly.Umekui simply nodded with a soft smile. "How could I ever leave a reckless, wild captain like you? Zoro and Nami will have gray hair before their age."Luffy laughs at the thought of Zoro and Nami with gray hair, the image so absurd that it makes them both laugh.Tiredness weighs heavily on them, their bodies aching, and soon they find themselves on the brink of sleep, the world fading around them. They both stare into the grey sky of Alabasta, letting the rain wash away the blood from their faces.Luffy takes Umekui's hand in his, tightening his grip as he calls her name softly."Umekui?""Yes, my captain," she replies, her voice thick with exhaustion."I love you," Luffy murmurs, his eyes already closing, the weight of the battle pulling him under.Umekui smiles, wide and sorrowful, her heart pounding in her chest."You are my everything, my captain," she whispers back, the words full of a love that has been nurtured through pain and growth.And with that, they close their eyes, hand in hand, the rain falling around them like a final, tender embrace, as her heart blooms with a love she never thought she’d find again.Nami lets out the breath she didn’t realize she was holding as she watches Luffy devour the feast King Cobra had graciously offered him. His wide smile stretches across his face, a familiar, reassuring sight as he piles more food onto his plate.Everything is over; the war that had torn Alabasta apart finally settled, but the weight of the past days still lingers in the air, heavy and undeniable.Alubarna is half-destroyed, scarred by the violence and destruction, and the lives lost—countless, too many to even begin to tally. But despite the devastation, it’s over.Crocodile has been arrested, his reign of terror finally brought to an end. For now, he is kept away in a dungeon, awaiting the judgment of the World Government, though Nami knows that whatever fate awaits him, he will not be free again.Vivi has cried so much, her tears a testament to the pain of loss and the weight of the fatality of her homeland. But Nami has been by her side through it all, offering what comfort she can, but she knows that her friend is strong. Vivi will rise again. Nami believes that with all her heart.
(If Nami can survive grief, if she can rebuild her life from the wreckage of a destroyed home, if she can survive the claws of chaos that only her nakamas have witnessed, then Vivi can too. Martyrs don’t exist in a world where Luffy preaches freedom.)
The Baroque Works agents have been arrested, each one dragged away to rot in a cell for their role in the crimes that tore this kingdom apart. They are no different from Crocodile in their guilt, and Nami is sure that justice will find them, just as it found him.The rain, the very rain that fell across the war-torn land of Alabasta, has brought an end to the fighting. It wasn’t just a storm—it was a message. A message from the heavens themselves, telling all who had fought and bled that the war is over. It’s a testament, a symbol of peace, and with it, the sound of weapons clattering to the ground as soldiers and rebels alike look up at the sky, their faces a mixture of relief and joy. The rain is their salvation, washing away the blood of war, just like the rain Nami had once cried under when Arlong was defeated.
(Tears of freedom, of happiness. The same tears Nami had cried when she was freed from Arlong’s grip, when the cruelty of her past was washed away. Now, she weeps again—this time not for herself, but for the people of Alabasta. For the people who have suffered so long and finally found the freedom they deserve. And Nami knows with that pain comes a power, a strength, a chance for freedom—freedom that her captain, and her first mate, had given her back.
)
Her heart tightens in her chest as she remembers the fear and relief she had felt when she first found Luffy and Umekui, unconscious and battered, side by side on the outskirts of the battlefield. Their wounds were deep, their bodies broken, but they were alive. Crocodile’s body, lying lifeless beside them, was proof enough of the battle they had fought and won.The world is far from perfect, but with her nakamas by her side, Nami feels like she can breathe and learn to live again. And as she watches Luffy eat with his usual boundless enthusiasm, she knows that everything they fought for—everything that was lost—was worth it.It’s been two days since the battle, and Umekui hasn’t woken up. Her condition is critical—Chopper has forbidden anyone from entering her room, and his stern warning has kept the crew at bay. At first, it angered Zoro and Sanji, both of them itching to see their first mate, to know that she was alright, but they quickly backed down when they met Chopper's unyielding glare. The doctor’s decision was final, and they couldn’t argue with it, even though the tension in the air was palpable.Usopp, usually the loudest when it comes to expressing concern, had been unnervingly quiet. Nami knew why. Usopp had been the one who felt the weight of Umekui’s actions, the one who had seen through the walls she’d built around her. The lies she’d told them. The fact that she had kept so much hidden from them all.But Nami also knew that Usopp’s silence wasn’t a sign of abandonment. It was because he didn’t know how to handle it. How to deal with the fact that their first mate—someone they’d fought beside, someone who had protected them, someone who had been with them through so much—had kept so many secrets.Nami, however, had her own way of dealing with things. She kept herself busy, forcing Luffy to focus on eating rather than thinking about Umekui. It was the only thing that seemed to keep him distracted long enough. Luffy, as always, had been fixated on asking about her, constantly worrying, but Nami would push food into his hands, making him eat, distracting him with stories and jokes.Anything to keep him from heading straight to her room to check on her. She knew that if he went, he’d end up sitting there for hours, not listening to Chopper’s warnings, and he wouldn’t be able to help.But Nami knows one thing—her loyalty to Umekui was unwavering, unshakable. Umekui wasn’t just her first mate; she was her first friend, the first person who ever stood up for her, the first person who ever truly protected her. Umekui had broken the chains that many had tried to bind Nami with.She was the wings, the wind that carried Nami to believe in her dream once more. And no matter what happened—no matter the secrets, the pain of the past—Nami would always believe in her and stand beside her first mate. Even if the whole world turned its back on her, even if they sought her death, Nami knew where her loyalty would lie.A bittersweet smile tugged at her lips. The whole world had abandoned her when she was eight years old. And now, years later, Nami was strong enough to turn her back on that world for the sake of Umekui.She wasn’t going to let the world dictate her choices anymore. She wasn’t going to let the weight of the past control her future. No, her future was here, with her crew, with her nakama—and especially with Umekui, the woman who gave her strength when she had none left.
(How could she choose the world over the same woman who fought against it, fought for Nami’s freedom over and over again, without ever looking at Nami like she was a burden?)
No. The choice was simple. There was no choice at all. She would stand by Umekui, always.Nami didn’t care if Umekui had been part of an organization like the Port Mafia, or if she had been a notorious criminal in her past. It didn’t matter. Hell, Nami herself had been a criminal before she met her crew—she had no right to judge anyone.What mattered was this: Umekui was different. Nami had seen criminals who would do whatever it took to survive, to get ahead, without a care for those they trampled on. But Umekui wasn’t like that. Nami knew no criminal who would bear wounds and scars willingly, not for themselves, but for the sake of their crew. She knew no one who would take on pain, who would climb mountains of ice with bare feet and bleeding hands, just to save their nakama.Umekui could be the villain to the world, but to Nami, she was her hero. And Nami knew, deep down, that there was no other person she’d rather stand beside in this chaotic world.
No one else who could understand her like Umekui did. No one else who would fight for her without asking for anything in return.
A knock echoed against the door of Luffy's room, pulling Nami’s attention away from the bustling noise of the crew. She turned just in time to catch the solemn expression on Koza's face as he stood in the doorway. His usually vibrant eyes were shadowed with something darker—something that weighed heavily on him."Excuse me, could I talk to you?" Koza asked, his voice low, almost apologetic.Nami didn’t respond immediately, only studying him carefully. She glanced at Luffy, who was still happily devouring his meal, blissfully unaware of the tension in the air. With a sigh, Nami shot him a pointed look."Stay here, Luffy. Finish your food," she commanded, her tone firm enough to leave no room for argument. Luffy grinned, too focused on the food to pay much attention."Come on," Nami said to Koza, stepping outside the room and gently closing the door behind her. "We can talk."Koza nodded silently, his face drawn and serious. "We were notified that you're searching for a child named Azul. Frail, small, blonde hair..." he began, his voice almost hesitant.Nami froze at the mention of the name, her heart immediately picking up its pace. Her body went rigid, and her mind raced with a million thoughts, none of them good. She nodded, not trusting herself to speak, her breath shallow.And then Koza bowed, his expression grim. The words that Koza spoke next hit her like a hammer, shattering everything."I offer you my condolences," he said, his face grim and somber. "This morning, we finally foud his body... under the rubble. Azul is dead."The words barely registered at first, and Nami froze. Her heart seemed to stop altogether as her chest constricted painfully. The room around her spun.  Nami felt like the ground had vanished from beneath her feet. Her heart clenched painfully, the raw, undeniable truth slamming into her chest like a freight train. She had known it in the back of her mind, ever since Zoro and Sanji had returned empty-handed after searching for two days. She had hoped, prayed, wished it wasn't true—that maybe Azul had been injured, hiding somewhere, or too afraid to come forward. But now, the truth was undeniable.The harsh reality settled in like ice in her veins."I see..." Nami whispered, her voice barely a breath, trembling as she spoke.Koza’s voice cracked with genuine empathy as he looked at her, his eyes filled with sorrow. “I’m... sorry, Nami. I know you were hoping.”The pain in his voice only made the weight of the news feel even heavier. She stood there for a moment, her legs shaky, but she forced herself to stand tall. She had to. For Azul. For herself. For her crew. She had to be strong.Her hands trembled at her sides as she took a shaky breath, trying to force the words out. "Yeah..." she murmured, her throat tight, the fake smile she tried to muster feeling completely hollow. "Thank you for telling me."But inside, Nami felt like she was being hollowed out. She was no stranger to grief, but this was different. Azul had reminded her of her younger self, fragile, scared—someone who didn’t deserve this fate. And yet... here she was, faced with the painful truth that some things, no matter how hard you fight, simply don’t change. And it hurts, oh God, it hurts so much.Grief and Nami had always had a strange relationship. She never knew how to carry it, how to let it be. It came and went, a constant companion, but today... today it felt heavier than it ever had.Her eyes met Koza's, and she gave him a weak, almost imperceptible nod. It wasn't his fault. But it hurt nonetheless."We could wait until Dazai..." Koza clears his throat, his voice faltering slightly. "Your first mate wakes up, and we can hold the funeral for Azul along with the other fallen combatants. This war... we've all lost so much."With those last words, he turns and leaves, the sound of his footsteps fading into the distance. Nami stands there, alone in the cold corridor, grief slowly suffocating her.All Nami can think about suddenly is Umekui. Her heart races, breath quickens, and tears blur her vision as she runs, pushing past the pain and fear.She bursts into the room, her heart hammering in her chest, only to find Umekui sitting silently on the bed, her face still too pale, her red eyes lost in the distant horizon outside the window.Nami stumbles to a stop in front of her, the words escaping her raw and broken, "Azul... Azul is dead, Umekui."Umekui meets her gaze slowly, her expression a mixture of sorrow and understanding, and a quiet, painful smile tugs at her lips. The words that follow shatter Nami in ways she can't explain."I know... I was there.""What?" Nami croaks, her voice barely a whisper as her heart tightens in her chest."I was there, Nami," Umekui repeats, her voice low and distant, her gaze unwavering as she looks at Nami. "I saw him... I couldn’t save him. I failed him like I failed you. Like I have failed so many before him—"Her hands, those battle-worn hands, tremble in her lap as she grips them tightly. "All I do is destroy people’s lives. I’m a poison. Everything I touch is ruined... and Azul is dead because of me.""Stop!" Nami cries out, her voice cracking with emotion as she leaps forward and wraps her arms around Umekui tightly. "It's not your fault, Umekui!"Nami’s sobs are muffled against Umekui’s chest, her heart aching not just for the loss of Azul but for the torment Umekui is carrying alone. She clings to her, refusing to let go, even as her own tears flow freely.
(“It’s my fault if Bellemere is dead,” was all Nami could repeat almost her entire life when her mother died. The words, sharp and suffocating, echoed in her mind. The pain of losing her mother twisted her heart, and in the grief’s cruel grip, Nami believed those words with every fiber of her being.

She thought that if she hadn’t been born, if she hadn’t been there, Bellemere might still be alive.

Yet Nami knows how cruel and selfish grief can be to a victim. It poisons your mind, wrapping around your heart until all you can think and say is that the fatality of such tragedy is the fault of your very existence.

That you, in your flawed being, caused all the pain, all the loss).
Nami shakes Umekui desperately, trying to pull her from the depths of guilt and despair she’s falling into. "It’s not your fault! Do you hear me?!"Her grip tightens around Umekui as if her very life depends on convincing her that she isn’t to blame. "It’s not your fault!" Nami’s voice cracks with a rawness she can’t hide. "Please, Umekui… you didn't cause this. You didn’t cause any of this!"Umekui’s red eyes widen as she stares into Nami’s tear-filled gaze, the weight of her own guilt pressing down on her chest. Her hands, trembling with emotion, wrap around Nami, the sobs escaping from her first mate pulling at Umekui’s heart in ways she can't fully comprehend.“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Nami,” she whispers, her voice hoarse and breaking.Nami’s sobs echo in the quiet room, and Umekui’s arms tighten around her, holding her close, though her own heart feels as hollow as the abyss she carries within.“It’s a request from your selfish first mate,” Umekui continues, her voice barely above a whisper. “Cry for me, Nami. Cry for the guilt and sorrow that my tears could never deliver.”Her words, heavy with grief, seem to hang in the air as Nami’s tears fall freely, soaking Umekui's lap. She wishes she could cry with her, but the curse that binds her soul prevents it—her eyes dry, her heart a barren wasteland of emotions too raw to express.Her fingers tremble slightly as they gently comb through Nami’s short hair, the contact grounding her in the moment, even as her gaze drifts to the window. “I am so sorry,” she whispers again, her sorrowful eyes closing. “I wish I could have been enough.”“You are enough,” Nami whispers through her raw, trembling voice. “You’re enough for me, for us, Umekui. No matter what.”The weight of her tears and grief settled heavy on her, and with her first mate’s warmth surrounding her, Nami finally closed her eyes.Sleep came softly, like a grieving child finding comfort in the embrace of the past, a fleeting sense of peace. The warmth of childhood, stolen so long ago, seemed to return as she drifted into the quiet, letting the sorrow finally be held in silence.Chopper enters the room, his eyes immediately landing on Nami, peacefully asleep on the bed with her head resting on Umekui’s lap. Despite the exhaustion he’s carried over the past few days, his heart tightens as he sees the two of them, the weight of the situation pressing down on him.He quietly takes a seat in front of Umekui, flipping through his medical book, though his mind is clearly elsewhere.Umekui offers him a tired, but gentle smile, the faintest trace of warmth in it. Despite everything, it softens something inside of Chopper, though the pain of the situation still stings.Her gaze drifts out of the window, a faraway look settling in her eyes. After a moment, she speaks, her voice barely above a whisper, "You saw them, didn’t you? When you changed my bandages."Chopper hesitates, his hand pausing mid-turn of the page. He knows exactly what she's referring to. With a deep breath, he responds softly, "What... are they?"Her lips curve into a bitter, sorrowful grin, her red eyes cold and distant."A curse," she murmurs."A curse," Chopper repeats, confusion clouding his features as he looks at her. Umekui's gaze stays fixed on the horizon, her expression distant, almost as if she’s speaking from a place far deeper than the room they’re in."Yes," she says quietly, her voice laced with the weight of years of torment. "Those wounds of darkness you found, the ones you’ve been bandaging up... they’re not just injuries. They’re the mark of a curse, Chopper. A curse tied to my ability, to what I carry inside me... inside my blood."Chopper frowns, trying to process her words. "You... you mean your powers?" he asks, his voice laced with uncertainty.Umekui’s head tilts slightly as she meets his gaze, her eyes heavy with sadness. "Not just my powers, Chopper," she murmurs, "It’s something more. Something that’s been with me for so long and ceasing to grows.""They're devouring you alive, aren't they?" Chopper says, his voice heavy with grim realization. His medical book rests forgotten in his lap as he grips its edges tightly. "When I examined you, I saw it... They're consuming you from the inside out, like a parasite. You've already lost one of your lungs, Umekui."Umekui simply nods."You have two deep wounds—one just an inch from your heart from a bullet wound, another wound tearing through your arm. It's broken. Your ribs… more than a few are shattered. And yet, somehow, you kept fighting, carrying all that pain like it was nothing."Chopper’s sad smile falters, his lower lip trembling as he looks at her."It's unfair..." he whispers, voice cracking as tears spill down his cheeks. "So unfair." He buries his face into his medical book, his small shoulders trembling, as if trying to hide the overwhelming sorrow he can't contain."You are the third person to ever cry for my condition and wounds after Kureha," Umekui states softly, her voice tinged with an odd sense of resignation.Chopper blinks in surprise, his tears still falling as he processes her words. "Mother knows?" he asks, his voice shaky, though a part of him had already known the answer.Umekui nods again, her gaze drifting toward the window, where the rain patters softly against the glass."She figured it out," she admits. "Kureha's sharp like that—there was no hiding it from her."
(Not when Kureha’s guilt and grief stirred so many memories. When Kureha knew about Odasaku—the man Dazai had trusted with everything. Her life, her pain, everything. How could she refuse? How could she turn her back on the desperate pleas of a woman as wise as Kureha?)
Chopper clenches his fists, his heart aching. "Then... did she say anything? About how to help you?" His voice is laced with desperate hope, even as dread coils in his stomach."She suggested that a Devil Fruit called the Ope Ope no Mi could help me," Umekui continues, her voice faltering as she looks down at her hands. "But there’s a condition... I have to die for the fruit to work. Otherwise, my blood will nullify its effects."Chopper freezes, his breath hitching. The weight of her words slams into him like a tidal wave, knocking the air from his lungs. His mind races, frantically searching for another answer—any answer."What? That’s impossible! You can't operate on a corpse!" he whispers, his voice raw with disbelief and panic. His hands clutch his medical book like a lifeline, fingers digging into the worn cover as though he can anchor himself in the face of this terrible truth."No… I won’t accept that," he chokes out, shaking his head violently. "There has to be another way! I can’t lose you. Not like this. We’ll fight it together—we always do! There has to be a way!"Umekui’s lips curl into a faint, sad smile, and she gently places a hand on his shoulder. "You’re a good doctor, Chopper... But some things can’t be healed, no matter how much we try.""Stop!" he hisses, his eyes wide and brimming with tears. "Stop saying that I'm a good doctor if I can't save my first mate! What kind of doctor am I, then?!"His voice cracked with frustration, his fists clenched tight. He’s trembling, his body shaking from the weight of the words he can’t hold back.Chopper’s chest heaves with each desperate breath, his heart breaking. How can I be a doctor if I can’t save the ones I love? His mind echoes with the question that has haunted him for years. What good is my monstrous existence if all those I care about are doomed to die, just like my father?The thought cuts deeper than any wound he’s ever treated. It’s a pain no medicine can soothe, a wound no bandage can cover. The helplessness he feels now is like a crushing weight on his chest. And he can’t bear it. Not again.Umekui’s hand gently falls over his trembling chest, her touch light but grounding. Her voice is a quiet, steady whisper.“I will tell you who you are, Tony Tony Chopper,” she murmurs. “You are the kind of doctor who carries emotions like wings. You’re a reindeer who feels more than any human could, more than anyone should. You’re beautiful, selfless, and so incredibly smart.”Her gaze softens as she watched him, her crimson eyes filled with a tenderness that makes his breath hitch. “Your existence isn’t just meant to help and save others, Chopper. Above all, your existence is for you.”She paused, her thumb tracing gentle circles over his fur, her words settling deep into his heart. “You don’t have to carry everyone’s pain alone. You don’t have to be their savior... not when you’ve already given so much. It’s okay to lean on others. Your emotions are not a burden, Chopper.”The words hit him like a crashing wave, breaking something deep inside him. Before he even realizes it, his tears are spilling freely. He buries his face into Umekui’s chest, his small body wracked with sobs.And for once, he allows himself to cry—not just for her, but for himself.Umekui holds him gently, her arms a safe, unwavering anchor despite her own pain. She presses his trembling form to her, as if trying to absorb his sorrow, even though her own heart is breaking.Once again, she finds herself comforting him when it should be the other way around. How is it that, even in the depths of her own agony, she can still find the strength to hold him?Her fingers ran through his fur, offering the warmth of a love that has never wavered, even when the world feels so cruel and unfair.Nico Robin slumped against the cold stone, her breath ragged and sharp as she tried to steady herself after running desperately from the forces of Alabasta and the World Government. The weight of exhaustion pressed on her chest, each breath harder than the last. Her blue eyes stared up at the dark sky, cloudy and oppressive, reflecting the storm within her.She was so tired. Always running. Alone again, and again. Would it ever stop? Would she ever find peace, the way she and Dazai once had? Their footsteps once echoed side by side, against a world that sought to break them. But now, there was only silence—emptiness that gnawed at her insides.A memory rose unbidden, shaking her to the core.
"There is nothing more ridiculous than being born in this world to be alone. Someday, you will meet brave friends who will protect you. Go and live with them, Robin."
Jaguar D. Saul's voice—so full of hope, so full of warmth—echoed in her mind like a mantra, a constant companion in the years of solitude that followed his death. She’d repeated those words in her darkest moments, and yet, they never felt like they were meant for her."Am I worthy of those friends, Saul?" she whispered hoarsely into the wind, the weight of grief and doubt heavy in her voice. "Can I ever be worthy of that kind of bond?"The question hung in the air, unanswered, as her silent tears fell. But as she turned her gaze toward the Straw Hat Pirates' boat, standing firm before her, their Joger burhsing against the wind—a symbol of everything she’d ever longed for—she knew, deep down, that the answer was already in her heart.

"Let me drown in you until these falling stars are buried in the blur of time."