One Piece (Love Story) [Part One]

Chapter One Hundred and Nine [Rewritten]

-Chapter One Hundred and Nine-

"Okay, I think I've gotten used to it" Luffy said, quickly sitting back up to his full height as he hit his chest as if to prove that he was just fine.

"Yeah, I actually feel much better already" Zoro agreed as I couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of him and the rubber man acting as if they had already adjusted to the altitude like it meant absolutely nothing to them.

"I think they're trying to show off" I whispered to Nami who only hummed in agreement, a slight look of annoyance on her face as she stared the two men down.

"No, no, no—that's not possible" Sky Knight frowned with the shake of his head, clearly not buying into what Luffy and Zoro were telling him.

"So, Mr. Sky Knight, why was that guy running around in the clouds and attacking people?" Chopper curiously asked.

"Now, now, not so fast" Sky Knight said, quick to try and curve us all from asking any more questions. "No doubt you have many questions, but first, we have manners of business to discuss" he said.

"Business?" Nami echoed.

"What kind of business?" I asked, curiously tilting my head.

"You see, I am a soldier for hire—the White Sea can be dangerous" Sky Knight explained. "There are Guerrillas lurking about, like the one you just saw, who would like nothing more than to turn you into fish food for the Sky Fish" he continued. "But if you purchase a 50,000,000 extol One Whistle, I'll protect you" he offered.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Luffy frowned as he, Sanji, and Zoro tilted their heads in confusion.

"Now listen, that price is quite reasonable, I can't afford to lower it a single extol more—I have to earn a living too" Sky Knight defended, already quick to deny any sort of haggling despite the fact that none of us were really asking him to lower the price at all.

"Yeah, but what the heck is an extol? And what's with this whistle thing or whatever?" Sanji asked.

"You don't know?" Sky Knight owlishly blinked. "I don't understand, you came here from the Summit of High West, didn't you?" he asked. "Surely you must have passed an island or two."

"I still don't know what you're talking about" Luffy admitted with a shrug.

"Sounds to me like you're telling us that there was another way up here" I frowned, crossing my arms.

"Wait, let me get this straight" Nami spoke up, her eyes narrowing after a second of thinking over what the man had said. "So you're saying there's another way we could have gone up here where we would have passed an island or two?" she questioned. "As in, there's more than one Sky Island?" she reiterated.

"What? Don't tell me you traveled by way of..." the old man trailed off in a sputter, a baffled look on his face.

"We rode up the Knock Up Stream" Robin answered.

"Yeah, and by the looks of it, we didn't have to" I said, examining the bewildered look the old man was giving us all.

"My word, that monstrous current? So there are still souls in the world brave enough to make the attempt?" Sky Knight muttered in disbelief.

"I knew it! So we risked our lives for nothing..." Nami heavily sighed, her shoulders slumping downwards as she started to silently cry. "Are you happy? We all could have been killed—if we had just asked around a little more we could have found a safer way to get here!" she angrily snapped, harshly shaking our captain back and forth as she chewed his head off.