(A/N) - Thanks for 1.4k views and 100 votes! ToT, I don't even know what to say <3)
"Straw hat and a skilled cook..."
I fiddled in my seat, inconveniently placed in the middle of the room.
"A swordsman and a long-nosed man..."
'Sniper.' I corrected him in my head.
"... A doctor and a nurse we've never seen before..."
'Oh, I bet it's Nami and Chopper! Smart idea disguising as medical workers. Masks to cover your face and aprons to cover your body.'
"...A woman whose role is unknown..." He glanced up at me
'Ass.'
"...and one more..."
'Robin?! Did he figure her out?! He must have recognized her from her bounty.'
Jonathan slammed another piece on the board, "...who calls herself Major Shephard. That makes 8 people... Now it makes sense..."
He cupped his hand around two of the pawns, moving them off of the board, "We have the ship and 2 of the captured."
He grabbed the white queen and placed it standing on his palm, "And we have a third in the palm of our hands."
'That'd better not be me.'
"The rest are in my hands." He said, a dark tone compared to his childish normal one.
"So what will you do now, Monkey D. Luffy?" He smirked at the chessboard before him, "I'll just sit back and see what you can do." He lowly chuckled to himself, scaring me. He is still a good person, but Jesus Christ.
I have to find a way for him to leave the room for like 5 minutes, then I could escape, with the gold in hand.
~~~
This. Man. Won't. Leave.
He just sits here all day and stares at chess pieces. My plan may not be the smartest, but I need to go through with it to see my friends. I need to get a message to Luffy somehow. Or anyone on my team...
...lightbulb~.
"Jonnnyyyyyy!" I started whining and slugging my way over to his desk. I draped myself near his chessboard, causing the pieces to jump, but not move from their mark.
He looked at me confused.
"Jonnnyyy~! I can't just sit here and do nothing! At least allow me to draw or something like that~!" I groaned, slinking off of his desk and letting out exaggerated sighs.
"Fine, fine, just be quiet!" He went to his desk and pulled out a pen and paper.
"Thank you very much!~" I squealed like a child. I lay on the ground near the door, kicking my feet and pretending to draw.
There was a vent at my side. I could feel the AC on my arms, and it was slightly blowing my paper.
'I guarantee at least one Straw Hat is using the vents to move around.' I etched on the piece of paper, though a small piece. I had to keep most of it so it looked like I was actually drawing.
I wrote my note on the paper and sneakily sent it through the vent.
The problem with Jonathan is that with that smile he has, I can't read him. He could tell it was Robin, and I couldn't tell he knew.
It made me mad to think that a mere Marine was smarter than me. I will not stoop to that level. I will prove I'm the best strategist for the future king of the pirates by escaping the inescapable base!
I watched as my small paper flew through the vents. Now all I could do was hope.
~~5 minutes later, somewhere in the vents~~
"Tch, they're in contact with each other using mini transponder snails." Sanji groaned silently, watching through the grate in the vent.
"Hey, Sanji." Luffy hummed in a hushed tone.
"Hm?!"
"This is kind of exciting, isn't it?"
"Get moving already, you idiot!"
"Oh, I also found this," Luffy showed his cook the small torn piece of paper, "It has (Y/N)'s name on it."
Sanji snatched it and read over it out loud, yet silently to not get caught,
"'If you guys board the ship and In not there, set off without me. I have the gold and I'm waiting for the merry to set off. Signed, (Y/N)'."
"Oh, (Y/N)-chwan is so smart! I'm sure she has an amazing plan and we should trust her!" Sanji cooed silently.
"I trust her... and she has our gold! Awesome, (Y/N)!" Luffy silently cheered to no one in particular. Sanji shoved it into his pocket and the two went on to find their crewmates.
~~~
"Commander... there still haven't been any reports of the other Straw Hats being seen." Drake said, entering the office through the large brown doors.
Jonathan issued a surprise attack at the jail for the Captain and Cook when they go to rescue the other crewmates. I'm surprised he said it openly in front of me. For a guy who thinks this far ahead, it made me curious. He turned to me as if knowing what I was thinking.
"You have no way to communicate with your friends, you are in Sea Stone, you're trapped in the Commanding officer's office. Tell me, Red (Y/N), what are you thinking about?"
I didn't answer. I just looked at him. Not a glare, but not a look of fear either. Just a blank stare.
After that for a few minutes, Jonathan got up and went near the door, "Well, I'll be out for a little bit. Stay here." Before he could reach for the handle, I stopped him.
"Don't."
I was sitting facing away from him as he froze, hand hovering over the doorknob.
"Don't... what?" He asked, a small smile present.
"Don't pity me."
He looked confused. I sighed;
"Look, I respect you, but you're not the smartest person in the world, Jonathan." I stood up and sat in the chair, "I know you are giving me a chance to escape. You want me to regroup with them because you have something planned, don't you?" I was looking him dead in the eyes, slight anger present in my face, but not my tone.
I heard his breath hitch. I hid my smile and continued.
"I'm assuming, you know the surprise attack won't work. After all, the attack is against our 4 strongest members," I looked out the balcony door window, "So you plan to lead them to another spot somehow and trap the lot of us there. You want us to regroup for one final offensive move."
He was looking at me with wide eyes and mouth agape. His hand was slightly shaking, still hovering over the doorknob. I decided to continue. I stood up and walked next to the window, pointing out the bridge in the distance.
"I know that the small island over there is the prison. And the only way to get here and there is the bridge. You'll sacrifice the bridge, won't you?"
He was now in the middle of the room, advancing towards his chair.
"A-Amazing..." he muttered, causing me to look at him, "Y-You haven't left this room and you know all of that, by the conversations and interactions around you."
He held his hand out towards me and I looked at him confused, "Even though you are my enemy, I respect your intelligence and willingness to think things through, Red (Y/N). For an 18-year-old, you are incredibly smart."
Hesitantly, I returned the handshake, and then we sat in silence for a decent amount of time.
~~~
"Hello? [Jonathan]
"Reporting sir!" [Transponder Snail]
"The one we captured earlier turned out to be a Straw Hat member whose name is Condoriano."
Don'tLaughDon'tLaughDon'tLaughDon'tLaughDon'tLaughDon'tLaugh!
"Condoriano?" [Jonathan]
"Yes, sir." [Transponder Snail]
"He insists that he is Major Shephard... but we think that it's clearly a lie." [Transponder Snail]
I was punching myself trying not to laugh at this point. Luckily, Jonathan didn't hear me.
"Okay, thanks." [Jonathan]
Jonathan hung up the snail and went to his chair. He laughed to himself, "So there are two Shephards, huh?"
After about 15 minutes, loud snores were coming from the Commander.
I didn't use to work at Baroque Works for nothing. Everyone in that line of business has assassin training.
I went full mission mode and inched my way over to the balcony door. If I can get outside and close the door safely, I should be ok to be a little louder.
I was moving at snail speeds, slowly turning the doorknob and opening the door. Thankfully, from seeing all of the Marines earlier and all of the walking around, I knew where the creaky boards were.
I slipped outside and silently shut the door. I pressed my ear lightly to the window and heard that his snoring didn't falter.
I gently walked over to the side where the gold was, and thankfully, the wall between me and Commander was enough cover. I tied the long end of the rope to my waist. With a small tug of the knot, I glanced at the mountain.
'That's a heft climb with hefty Luggage...'
I grabbed the first foothold I could find.
'Get it together, (Y/N). For the crew!'
I started to climb, but underestimated the weight of the gold, yet overestimated how hard the climb would be. I made it to the top of the entire mountain in 10 minutes. I kept glancing back to make sure Jonathan wouldn't sneak up on me and watch me from his balcony.
Besides, climbing this mountain with weight and Sea Stone helps build tolerance. I'll be stronger by the end of this.
At the top of the mountain was a meadow. Few, yet large bushes scattered around. Perfect. I decyphered which bush would get the least amount of attention and settled with one near the exit. No one thinks that the Straw Hats can escape, but I'm going to prove them wrong.
I found a large boulder nearby and started hacking at my cuffs.
~~~
... After ALMOST A WHOLE DAY, Explosions, and yelling, I FINALLY got these cuffs off. The first thing I did was immediately touch the ground and the Bags that were carrying the gold. I also replaced the rope with a wood-like vine, as strong as wood, yet as flexible as rope.
I started to search and realized that there are nearly no ships on the water.
I took this moment to check what time it was. It was dark. Just turned it looks like. I would say about 8:40-8:50 ish... I don't see the Merry so I'll wait until-
"(Y/N)!!!!"
A whole jumble of familiar voices filled the air.
It started me and I jumped. I looked over the edge to see the water level was getting lower and the Merry was right in the middle of it.
That's why the Marine ships are docked or hiding. This time must be a frequent occurrence.
"(Y/N)! I WON'T LEAVE THIS BASE WITHOUT YOU!!!" This time, it was a singular voice, Luffy's.
I went to the edge of the mountain right as it started to curve downwards. I made a wooden platform below myself and the gold, still holding it together. I shot an extremely long beam of wood towards the Merry.
Slowly, the crewmembers realized it was me, or rather, the bags I had with me.
"(Y/N)!" Usopp and Chopper shouted.
"Captain! Put a little trust in your Strategist would 'ya?" I mocked as Luffy just laughed his iconic laugh.
I landed on the ship with the gold and retracted the long beam I had made to get here, so no one could follow just in case. I was swarmed with a hug from Usopp, Chopper, and Nami, all crying about how they thought I was going to die.
"Relax. I didn't have it nearly as bad as you guys did. OH Speaking of that..." I turned to Nami, "is a tide coming in?"
She nodded, making me grin, "Perfect. Usopp, follow me and bring your bag. The rest of you, hold onto something."
They all looked at me funny but nodded. I dragged Usopp with me and asked for his bag. I took out his Suction cup shoes and his impact dial. I used the Suction shoes and went down the back of the Merry.
"Uso-WOAH!" Usopp and I were holding on for dear life as we ran into a reef. The tide was going that low.
"Ussop! Tell Nami to come back here and get the rest to repair any damages!" I yelled up to him, dial in hand.
"O-Ok!" He ran and within minutes, Nami was leaning her head over the edge of the railing.
"Nami! If we use this before the tide hits us, and we launch through the air will we be ok when we land?!" I asked, holding up the Impact Dial.
She smirked at me, "Ah, (Y/N), great minds think alike. I had the same idea!" I smiled.
"Alright!" She responded. I didn't notice, but Luffy was next to me on the ground trying to swim. Even though he was laying on the Reef's floor.
"Luffy, get up and start repairing the shi-"
A giant light shone. One on me, one on Luffy, one on the ship, and one next to the ship. I assume a crewmember or 2 is over there. Luffy stood up and looked directly at Jonathan. Oh boy, his smarts are getting on my nerves. That's what you get from a smart Marine...
"You've fought most valiantly against the Navy's great G8 Fortress! I'm impressed, enemy as you are." I heard Jonathan's voice through a loudspeaker, "You've done admirable, but this is checkmate, Straw Hat Pirates!"
"Luffy, tell whoever is behind you to start repairing the holes in Merry!" I whispered to Luffy. He looked at me confused. I showed him the impact dial and he almost immediately did what I asked.
"Listen. Don't even think about trying to escape! I can anticipate everything you might think of!"
"Well, you didn't anticipate someone smarter than you on the Future King of the Pirates' crew, didya?!" I yelled as loud as I could. Luffy silently laughed his signature laugh.
He put his hand on his hat and shielded his eyes.
"Yes, Atta boy. As Commander of Naravone Fortress, I will greet the Straw Hat Pirates with the utmost respect! Give yourselves up quietly!"
"Luffy!" Nami called, worry in her eyes.
Luffy chuckled and smirked, glaring back at Jonathan.
"Straw Hat! You, Roronoa Zoro, and Red (Y/N) all have bounties on your heads" I gulped at the reminder of that,
"So I will have to hand all three of you over to headquarters. But I will guarantee the safety of the rest of your crew! But if you even think of escaping... I'll get mad."