I groaned out, lying on my stomach. "It's so hootttt..."
Ever since Luffy used all of the food we had, we went days without food due to bad storms prohibiting us to fish. To put the icing on the cake, we are stuck in unbearable heat, and not a single fish is biting.
Right now, the boys were sitting on the railing, hoping to catch some food. "Wish I could take off my fur... it's not helping right now..." Chopper rasped out, sticking his tongue out.
"I know the feeling, Minks have a low tolerance for heat." Pedro replied, sympathizing with the reindeer beside him.
"If I can't cool off soon, I fear I'm gonna become a mummy." Brook spoke up, causing my head to lift in his direction with an eyebrow raised.
"Uhh... Brook?" I spoke up, gaining his attention. "How could you become a mummy with no skin?"
He was silent, making me think he didn't hear me, until he spoke up again. "Wait, a mummy? Hold on a second, that's a big deal... Heyyy, Nami, (Y/N)? If I become a mummy, that would be like an upgrade for me."
"I don't care." Nami sighed out from beside me, a sorry resting on her lap, Pekoms beside them.
"If I had a fancy sarcophagus, then could I see your panties?" He asked her. Isn't that a coffin...?
"I wish I had the strength to slap you..." She trailed off, not bothering to move.
"Nami... I'm hungry and it's hot and I'm tired!" Carrot complained, a frown on her face.
"I need some nutrition." Pekoms added.
Grrrr.
I stretched my arms out in front of me, towards where the boys were sitting, squeezing my eyes shut. "Have you guys caught anything yet...?!"
"We're trying, but uhh... it's actually so hot, that the water is boiling." Chopper replied to me, causing me to open my eyes.
"You can't be serious..." I pulled myself up off the ground, and made my way over to the railing, coming up behind Chopper and Luffy.
I looked over their shoulder to the sea below, to find the sea was actually boiling. "That's crazy...!" I gasped out, "Nami, he's not kidding!"
"What?!" She gasped out as I turned my head to nod at her.
"So uh, that's a no on the fish then?" Brook asked rhetorically.
"Without a doubt, I mean look!" I pointed to the water. "The fish are probably bones by now with that heat!"
"What should we do...!" Nami groaned, now seeing our only option of obtaining food is unsuccessful.
I watched as Luffy glanced over to Chopper, who perked up stiffly. "Emergency rations..." (Drum Island👀)
"DON'T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT!" Chopper shrieked at Luffy.
I collapsed against the rail beside Luffy, sinking to my knees with my arms over the rail. "Come on Choppers a friend... besides, you still can't cook."
"LUFFY!" Pedro shouted, causing me to perk up. "Pull, quick!"
I looked up to see his fishing pole was bending. He's got something! Luffy began to pull, struggling due to weakness of starvation.
"Don't you dare stop!" I shouted to him, pulling myself off the ground.
The ship began to lean to the side due to the pull the fish had. This thing must be huge if it's pulling the ship! After a bit of struggling, Luffy managed to pull the fish out of the water. "I GOT YOU FISHY!" He beamed, stars in his eyes.
I sighed in relief. "Finally, we can eat..."
"LET'S EAT!" He shouted again, smiling.
"Don't even think about stepping foot in that kitchen." I whipped my head in his direction, giving him the best glare I could muster as the fish landed on the deck.
"Uhh... that color is a bad sign." Chopper spoke up, causing me to turn my head in his direction.
"What do you mean?" I asked him. "So... we can't eat it...?" I pouted.
"Uh, it does look rather suspicious." Brook added, a concerned look on his face.
"If it's a fish, then it's food! You don't know what you're talking about!" Luffy exclaimed, moving forward to take a bite.
I grabbed a hold of his arm, stopping him from advancing. "We should listen to Chopper, Luffy." I watched Chopper rub off to grab Sanji's book about fish, letting go off Luffy's arm. "Seriously, were you about to eat it without knowing if it was poisonous-"
I turned my head back to Luffy and stopped what I was saying as my eyes widened. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! DIDN'T WE JUST SAY NOT TO EAT IT YET!" I shouted as I saw Luffy digging into the fish, eating it like it would disappear.
"YOU CAN'T EAT THE SKIN OF THAT FISH, ITS POISONOUS! EXTREMELY POISONOUS!" I heard Chopper shout as he ran back to us, causing the color to drain from my face. "Sanji made a note about it in here!"
"Chopper... he- he already started e-eating it..." I stumbled over my words, trying to comprehend what was happening.
"HUH?!" He glanced over to Luffy as he ate the skin, sliding on the ground. "LUFFY! I JUST SAID IT WAS POISONOUS, STOP EATING IT!"
"Poisonous, huh?" Luffy asked plainly, not at all caring what he was just told.
Everyone began to back up in shock, as I reached a hand out. "Are you feeling okay...?" This is bad, if he gets sick, who knows how long it'll be before we reach land.
Luffy turned around to face us all, with a blank face. "I ate a bunch."
"And everyone else?" Chopper asked us, to which we told him we haven't touched it.
"I feel great, maybe it's not poisonous after all." Luffy stated, looking at Chopper.
Chopper explained to us that the rest of the fish was safe to eat, just not the skin. Nami offered to cook the fish as Chopper was still worried about Luffy, I was too.
"Are you sure you're okay?" I hesitantly asked in concern as we waited.
"Yeah, I'm totally fine!" He replied before laying back on the grassy deck.
I let out a sigh, closing my eyes. "If you say so... Hey Chopper, are you going to look him over?" I asked him, noticing he brought his med kit.
"Yeah, I'm still worried about the poison." He replied, opening the case, shuffling through it.
"Still, if it was, wouldn't it have taken effect by now?" I asked, glancing down at Luffy. "Cause to me he seems to be doing... fine... Luffy...?" I trailed, staring at him.
"Hey, this isn't funny..." I said, shaking his shoulder slightly. Not getting a response, I began to worry more. "Luffy?! Chopper, something wrong he won't answer...!"
I heard Chopper gasp and I glanced at him out of the corner of my eyes, seeing tears build up in eyes as Nami approached us. "Luffy's doing bad, I'm afraid he's gonna die..."
"I-I'm so cold, Chopper... h-help me..." Luffy stuttered out, making me frown more.
You idiot, you just had to eat the fish didn't you... "-it's no use, I already used all the antidotes!"
I snapped my head over to Nami and Chopper, eyes wide. "W-What do you mean...? Are you saying we can't help him...?!"
"I'm sorry..." Chopper said as he stuffed his face with some of the fish. "Yummy.~ We gotta find an island, Nami!"
I placed my hands over Luffy's chest, pouring my energy into them. "I can't do too much, but I can at least slow the effects down somewhat..." Reversing a wound is one thing, but poison is difficult once it's spread through the body... I bit my lip, concentrating. No, I need to do what I can.
I wiped my forehead after a few minutes, fatigue washing over me. I'm getting exhausted too fast. "(Y/N), take a break for a moment and eat something, you'll pass out at this rate." Nami spoke up, holding a plate of food out for me.
I glanced up at her, shaking my head as I brought my gaze back down to my hands. "I'll be fine Nami, besides, if I stop now... who knows how much longer he'll last before we reach land..." I frowned, "I don't want to see anyone else die..."
There was a moment of silence as I felt her place a hand on my shoulder, however I didn't tear my gaze away from what I was doing. "I understand, but please don't push yourself too hard. I'll leave it here for you when you're ready."
I nodded my head, as she set the plate beside me. "Thanks, Nami."
———
Published: 08/08/2022
Updated: 02/19/2024