-Chapter Fifty-Eight-
"What are you all waiting for? You heard the woman—go and help stop the rebellion!" I choked out at the men as they continued to just stand around and stare. "Stop standing and staring like a bunch of idiots and go! We need to help Vivi—we can't just keep standing here and gawking! We need to do something!" I sobbed as Nami hugged me tighter.
"B-but—"
"No buts, just go!" I snapped, interrupting Usopp who quickly shut his mouth and nodded. Softly pushing Nami back so that she was now at arm's length from me, I gently wiped at her teary eyes and gave her a wobbly smile. "We're going to help her, but we can't do it by standing here and crying—we need to be strong for her" I softly murmured.
"Y-you're right, let's go" she quietly sniffed, nodding as she wipe away any tears left in her eyes.
-Later-
"Hey, you guys—look there!" Sanji suddenly shouted, causing us to stop what we were doing so that we could look at where he was pointing.
"Crocodile?!" we gasped the moment we saw the Warlord flying high into the sky, a trail of sand following right behind him.
"I don't know how he got there in the first place, but I'm sure that it can only mean one thing..." Sanji grinned.
"I knew it! I knew it! I never doubted it for a second, it can only mean..." Usopp brightened.
"Luffy did it! He won!" we cheered.
"Stop fighting! Please stop fighting!" Vivi continued to scream from the top of the clock tower as small rain droplets slowly started to fall from the sky—I couldn't help but scrunch up my nose the minute I felt a small, wet droplet hit it.
"The rain's starting to clear the air" Chopper commented as the rain started coming down faster and harder, now clearing away the dust cloud and wisps of sand.
"That's a good thing because I think this is something they've all been needing for a long time now" I smiled as the rain pelted down on us, drenching our clothing and hair.
"Couldn't agree more with you" Zoro hummed, wrapping an arm around my waist as he returned my smile which only grew as I wrapped my arm in return around his own.
"Stop fighting! Listen to me!" Vivi continued to shout, her voice now clear as day as the fighting finally came to a halt the second the men noticed the rain.
"They heard Vivi's voice..." Nami softly breathed out as the men all turned to the clock tower the moment they heard the princess' cries.
"Finally, it's about time" I sighed.
"Vivi?"
"The princess?"
"Vivi?"
"I didn't know the princess had come back" someone said just as Crocodile's body roughly hit the ground—crashing right in the middle of the crowd.
"Sir Crocodile?" someone else questioned.
"How did he get here? What happened to him?" another asked.
"Oh, so they're still calling him "Sir Crocodile?" We'll see if he's still "Sir Crocodile" after I tell him what's what" Usopp leered as he started walking toward the fallen man.
"Hold on, just stay here" Sanji said, stopping the sharpshooter in his tracks.
"Once everything's been explained, they won't be calling him "sir" anymore" I said, gaze drifting back up toward the clock tower.
"The rain has returned and will fall again as it used to, our nightmare is over—finally over" Vivi explained, her voice now carried by the wind.
"Our nightmares aren't over, princess, not yet" one of the men suddenly interrupted.
"That man's right" another agreed with more quick to follow. "I wish what happened was a nightmare, but it was real."
"We want justice!"
"We saw King Cobra attack Nanohana with our own eyes!"
"That's right and those damn Royals shot Koza too!"
"You expect us to just forgive them?"
"After what they did?"
"Our nightmare will only be over once we kill every Royal in this country!"
"But that won't solve anything!" I frowned as Zoro quickly gave my side a comforting squeeze.
"Calm down, just wait..." he mumbled into my ear as I irritably huffed.
"Royal Army—drop your weapons now!" a very beaten up raven-haired man suddenly ordered from atop the palace.
"Up there!" someone pointed.
"Chaka?!" Vivi gasped.
"Is he serious?" a Royal soldier asked.
"Yes" a very familiar voice followed by even more familiar singing sad. "That goes for you too, Rebel Army."
"Ah! Igaram!"
"Squad Captain?"
"Igaram!" Vivi brightened, now on the verge of tears.
"He made it back" Chaka sighed in relief.
"Hey, it's that cross-dressing guy from Whiskey Peak" Zoro pointed out before wincing as I smacked the back of his head.
"We thought he was dead up to this point and that's the first thing you have to say?" I scolded.
"He's still alive..." Nami breathed out in relief, smiling at the sight of the familiar man we had met back on Whiskey Peak.
"Ah, hey, who is that guy?" Chopper curiously asked.
"Boy, can you talk to me?" Igaram asked, looking down at the badly beaten-looking child that he was carrying. Before I could hear what the child had to say, I suddenly felt Zoro remove his arm from my around waist and instead grab my hand, pulling on it as he motioned with his head for me to follow.
"It's best that we get out of here now and find Luffy..." he mumbled as I nodded in understanding, quick to follow after him and the others as we walked away from the crowd of people that were currently distracted by Igaram and the hurt child he was carrying.
-Later-
"Come on, Usopp" Sanji groaned when he saw that the sharpshooter was starting to fall behind. "I know you're hurt, but keep up" he huffed.
"I wish I could, but I'm coming down with "If-I-Walk-Anymore-I'll-Die" disease" Usopp panted.
"Sounds deadly" I snorted.
"I'll drag you then" Zoro offered.
"No, wait!" Usopp frantically shouted before yelping as the swordsman suddenly grabbed his ankle and knocked him down onto the ground so that he could drag him.
"You kind of brought this onto yourself with all your complaining" I laughed.
"Let me go or I might come down with "If-I-Get-Dragged-Anymore-I'll-Die" disease!" the sharpshooter whined as he was harshly dragged through the empty streets.
"Found him" Zoro suddenly pointed the second we spotted our captain being carried by someone up ahead of us.
"Who are you?" the man asked, tilting his head as we came to a stop right in front of him.
"Um...just passing through—the guy on your back is one of us as well" Sanji answered as he motioned with his head toward Luffy's unconscious body. "We'll take him now, thanks, old man."
"Hold on, if you're with this young man then you must be the pirates who brought Vivi back to this country" the man realized.
"Wait, how would you know all that?" Sanji blinked.
"Daddy! Everyone!" Vivi suddenly shouted as she came running toward us.