Kicking down another navy soldier and standing on his back, I looked around. Yep. Still a lot more to go. I could hear some of the marines talking about him being a captain or whatever, but I didn't really care.
"LUFFY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! GET UUPPPP!" it was Usopp who was yelling. I fought my way up the staircase and saw that Zoro was holding the soldiers back from getting the sniper. "I CAME HER TO GET ROBIN! I DIDN'T COME HERE TO SEE YOU! OI, YOU, CP9 CAT! I'LL BE YOUR OPPONENT!" He went on about how he has 8000 men under his command. I could tell he was just trying to provoke Lucci, especially when he called him a kitten. Luffy started responding, telling Usopp to stop, telling Lucci to stop as well. "THEN GET UP! WE CAN STILL SEE THE SKY EVEN THOUGH IT'S BLACKENED! WE CAN STILL SEE THE SEA! THIS PLACE ISN'T HELL! STOP LOOKING LIKE YOU'RE GOING TO DIE, BASTARD! STOP MAKING ME WORRY DAMNIT!" There was a moment where I couldn't hear anything from the column where the main fight was, but judging from Usopp's face, Luffy seemed to be alright. "Luffy.. Beat him! Then we can all go back together!!"
"NO MATTER WHAT!" I heard Luffy call back. I smashed some guys into the floor and threw myself to the ledge. Luffy had steam coming from his body, and his skin was pink. I didn't get to see much more because I was yanked by my foot, getting dragged across the floor. I dug my fingers into the bricks below me and lifted myself up, kicking the man off of me.
I looked to the side and I watched as a guy with a cloth over his mouth and a round hat attacked Zoro. Or rather Zoro attacked him. And then I watched a sin be committed. The entire sword rusted when the guy grabbed it. The sword. Is gone. It is rust on the floor now. I sprinted over to the fight. "I am a rust-human who ate the Sabi Sabi no Mi. You cannot defea- AGH!" I kicked him in the side while he was explaining his power to Zoro. His body flew into the nearest boat.
"YOU JUST DESTROYED THE YUBASHIRI FROM THE 50 SKILLFUL GRADE SWORDS! DIE!" I seethed, my nature as a blacksmith surfacing. I flicked my eyes over to Zoro, seeing him blink at me in surprise with his swords sheathed. "What?"
"Nothing," he responded shorty.
"R-reporting to all ships! Rob Lucci of CP9.. Just now..! Was defeated by Straw Hat Luffy!" the speakers announced, making a grin form on my lips.
"LET'S GO BACK TOGETHER! ROBIN!" Luffy's voice rang throughout the vicinity, and I have never been happier to hear it.
While we were cheering for the victory, other voices came out of the speakers. Oddly familiar ones. I blinked, hearing a weird conversation going on, until they finally revealed that it was actually the Franky Family and the shipwrights. They were holding on by ropes off the ledge of the middle islands so it looked like they fell. Franky started crying from joy and relief, and we all had a wave of hope fill us again. Luffy's victory and the others still being alive made this situation look like we could actually get out of here. Everyone started fighting right after that.
I may have spoken too soon. Turns out, Luffy couldn't get up, and then the ship caught on fire when they attacked it with cannons. How the hell are we leaving now? And what about Kokoro and- Oh. Sanji ran out of the flames with everyone who was on board, finally showing up after who knows how long. The problems didn't stop there, though. Cannon balls started raining down on everyone, and we ended up stranded on one tower. Their next move was to aim only at Luffy's tower to eliminate him. Everyone started shouting cheers for him while we beat marines off of the platform we were boxed into. Usopp started talking about a voice. No one knew what he was talking about until a moment later, even I was hearing something telling me to look below.
"Jump in the ocean!!" Usopp yelled, tears falling from his face. "Robin! Do you think you can get Luffy into the ocean?!"
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?!" Zoro grunted, throwing someone back with his swords.
"She came for us! We still have another nakama!" the sniper responded. He was still crying.
Who was it? I looked below and my eyes widened. WHAT?! Everyone saw who was here, and I honestly couldn't even comprehend it. I'm so glad it's here. "To the ocean!" we all called out, jumping off the bridge after Robin threw Luffy to the water below. We were getting closer to the surface of the ocean now, but with her, no one had to worry.
"MERRY!" Luffy called out, grinning widely as always. I crashed through the water and my devil fruit undid itself. I groaned in pain, but was thrown out of the ocean in a second when Kokoro saved me once again. I activated it before I could lose any more blood, and I landed in Sanji's arms.
"Knight in shining armor," I mumbled, my eyes half lidded from exhaustion and blood loss. How am I not already dead?
Everyone started questioning how the ship even got here until Zoro told everyone to basically shut up and get us out of here, which everyone complied to. Well, besides Robin, Luffy, Chopper and I. Sanji set me down gently against the railing of the boat, near Robin, before he took off to help Nami like a love sick puppy.
"Ah, that was dangerous, I thought those battleships were gonna kill me! Oi, Robin, you saved me. Than-" a hand sprouted from his cheek and covered his mouth, stopping him from finishing his thought.
The woman looked down for a bit, and then got up, smiling at us all, "Luffy. Actually, everyone. Thank you all!"
Everyone had their own little reaction, until Zoro completely ruined the moment, telling everyone to stop all the mushy stuff so we could leave. This got him attacked by Sanji and Chopper, who could magically move again. Once he realized he could move, he pulled Zoro's legs, ordering him to apologize to Robin. The funny moment was interrupted by the marines because they shot their cannons at us, only to miss. The gates were closing so the whirlpools activated again. This made all the ships crash into each other. We started moving after that, and everyone defended the ship from cannon balls in the back. I watched as Luffy used his chin to move to where everyone was. Maybe I should go too. I got up and started stumbling over to the others, seeing that Luffy was being used as a sheet to catch all the cannon balls and ricochet them back.
"You helped us a lot, captain!" Zoro said with a grin, followed by a similar comment from Sanji. The two perpetrators for that act of evil.
"What, are you guys monsters?!" Usopp shouted at them, only getting a peace sign from all three of them.
I turned my hand into a "U" shaped ramp and used it to throw cannon balls back at them, feeling tired. I need a day long nap. I couldn't even hear anything anymore. Robin stepped in front of me a second later, her arms crossed in the way they do when she uses her power. I looked at where she was facing, seeing Spandam at the front of a ship being bent at a bad angle for him.
"Kill him!" I cheered, raising a fist.
"Clutch!"
I could hear the satisfying crunch of his spine from here. I muttered a little yes, and leaned heavily on the closes person, that person being Sanji. "Time.. Time to.. take a nap..." I slurred out. Then everything went black.
~~~
My vison locked onto wooden boards when I woke up. I looked around. Empty room. I could hear talking outside. I sat up, feeling pain shoot through my abdomen. Looking down, I inspected the bandages wrapped tightly around my torso, slightly red from the blood peeking out from bits of the white cloth. I forced my body upwards and walked out of the room, leaning heavily on the door frame. "Thanks for picking us up, Merry," I said quietly, and then I caught Nami climbing up the stairs beside me.
"Oh hi," I hummed, walking to the stairs she was on. She smiled widely and offered a hand to help me up the steps. I shook my head but thanked her anyway, walking up myself and looking at everyone to give a greeting. Or, I would have if Luffy didn't launch himself at me. "O-oi what the-"
"(Y/N)! YOU'RE AWAKE! I TRIED TO WAKE YOU UP FOR THE PAST FEW HOURS BUT YOU DIDN'T BUDGE!" he exclaimed in excitement, wrapping himself around me on the floor since he tackled me down.
"WHAT'RE YOU DOING?! GET OFF OF HER!" I heard a certain blond yell, kicking the rubber man off of me. His back hit the railing after he rolled a bit, and he looked up only for his eyes to go straight past Sanj to the sea behind him.
"There's a ship coming this way!" he pointed past the man, all of us looking to see a huge ship floating its way over to us. It had Galley-Law displayed across the sails, and we could hear their cheering from here. There was so much people on that ship, but I could distinctly see Iceberg, and Luffy could too. "Ahoy! Ice Pops!"
We all waved at the Galley-La ship, but that moment was stopped when the boat started creaking. I looked over at the main deck, seeing the wood breaking until Merry was split in half, the front of the ship leaning downwards. We were all thrown back from the surprise and force of the breakage.
"Oi what's going on?! What happened all of a sudden?!" Luffy shouted in shock, sitting up from is position.
"All of a sudden? Isn't this natural?" Sanji huffed as he sat up as well. "It was declared that Merry could no longer sail."
Our captain didn't want to accept this so easily, causing him to run to Merry's figurehead and call out to Iceberg to help the ship. He said Merry has been traveling with them for so long, and that we were literally just saved by the ship showing up before we died. It wasn't just luck. Iceberg told us to let the ship rest. He admitted to trying to repair the ship already, which is why she made it this far, and that the ship told him to with the same voice that we've been hearing this whole time. Merry sailed by herself from what he said. "A miracle of a ship that has long past its limits... I've been a shipwright for many years, but I've never seen a pirate ship this incredible. It's lived a splendid life," Iceberg finished as he gazed down at Luffy.
".. Okay..." Luffy breathed out. I sighed, looking at the wooden panels beneath my feet. So this is the last time huh? We all climbed onto a small boat, floating by Merry as Luffy stood on another boat that was much closer to the pirate ship. His hand held a torch. "Well then.. are you guys ready?" Chopper and Sanji replied with a 'yeah'. "Merry... the seabed is dark and lonesome, so we'll watch you to the end." He touched the torch to the wood of the Going Merry. "Maybe it's good that Usopp isn't here. There's no way.. he could bear this."
"Do you agree?" Zoro asked Usopp who was now wearing his Sogeking mask.
"No.. Everyone must someday say farewell. This is a man's parting. Not even a single tear should be shed," the long nosed man replied.
The fire spread throughout the ship, and Luffy started talking again, "Thank you for carrying us for such a long time, Merry." Snow suddenly started falling after that, and I looked at the sky as the fire of the ship became brighter. Nami started shaking beside me, and when I looked at her, I could see the tears coming from her eyes. I didn't cry, but my eyes were definitely at the verge of sweating. I tried to blink away the wateriness.
"I'm sorry.." the same disembodied voice rang through my ears, and judging from the shift in everyone around me, they could hear it too. "I wanted to carry you even further. I'm sorry... I wanted to continue going on adventures with you forever." Nami fell to her knees, and Chopper called out the ship's name. Tears finally spilled out. That was the last straw. I bit my lip to keep myself from making any noises aside from my sniffling. "But I-"
"It's us who have to apologize, Merry!" Luffy screamed, clenching his fists. I'm not good at steering... so I ran you into icebergs at times...There was a time I tore the sails, too. Zoro and Sanji are stupid, so they broke all sorts of things! Usopp would fix them each time, but he isn't good at it! So it's us who have to.." he choked on his own sobs, stopping his speech.
"But I've been happy. Thank you very much.. for taking good care of me all this time. I really have been happy... because I had you all!"
I ran my fingers through my hair and clutched the strands while my eyebrows furrowed in sorrow as I watched the flames overtake the ship, Luffy calling out her name one last time. I never knew I'd cry over a ship like this, but here I am, dying inside for the Going Merry.
---
ok, I'll admit. This one was only 2.3k words. I know. I am shameful. But it made NO SENSE to skip two days ahead after all this heavy stuff in the same chapter. I almost cried again watching this. Like in the middle of class and everything.