After escaping the Calm Belt, the Going Merry was back on course to Warship Island.
After a while, the crew hit a fog that was hard to see through.
"We cant see anything." Usopp complained.
"Well we can see the fog." Luffy piped up.
"Apis, is it really around here?" Yukiko questioned they'd been in the fog for a while now and hadn't seen anything remotely like an Island let alone one that was shaped like a Warship.
"Not sure. " Apis said flatly.
"We should be close by." Nami told them as she examined the map.
"That's our Nami-san!" Sanji swooned.
"You sure know your stuff." Luffy said from his place on the figure head.
Then, one of Yukiko's Pokemon, Hielias, returned to the ship. Yukiko sent her ahead to find the island ahead of time.
"Talon, Talonflame." She said as she gave a nod.
"Great job girl. Take a rest." Yukiko said as she returned Hielias to her Pokeball.
"I've been meaning to ask, what kind of creatures did you command?" Apis asked.
"Yukiko is actually from another dimension, where instead of pirates and marines, there are Pokémon Trainers of all sorts. They are like beast tamers. Blaise, Hielias and Pachi are some of thousands of species there."
"Speaking of which, what was Hielias?" Usopp asked.
Then Sparks popped up.
"Bzzt!
Talonflame the Scorching Pokémon.
Talonflame mainly preys upon other bird Pokémon. To intimidate opponents, it sends embers spewing from gaps between its feathers.It dives toward prey at speeds of up to 310 mph and assaults them with powerful kicks, giving the prey no chance to escape.
With top-notch flying capabilities. It flies around easily, even while carrying prey that weighs more than 220 lbs. When it gets excited, it vents sparks from the gaps between its feathers. These unburnable feathers are used as a fireproof material."
"Wow, so she's a bird of prey?" Apis asked amazed.
"Yup. So I bet your friends will be happy to see you're alright." Yukiko said.
"Yeah! I can't wait to see grandpa and everyone." She exclaimed.
"Ah...! Look!" Apis gasped pointing to the approaching shape in the fog.
"Huh!?"
The dark shape grew more pronounced and larger the closer they got. "Oh! It's a sailboat! It's huge!" Luffy said in a bubbly voice.
"Look here you..." Sanji said.
"The word "Huge" doesn't even begin to describe it." Zoro calmly stated.
"That's Warship Island." Apis told them all, "It's shaped like a warship, so it's called Warship Island."
"Amazing." Yukiko said as Pachi nodded.
"Pa-pach."
The fog cleared and they got a clear look at the island for the first time. The ship sailed in to the docks and Zoro dropped the anchor. Sanji dropped the ladders and one by one everyone claimed down.
And they were greeted by village men baring Spears.
'First journey as a pirate and people are already pointing weapons at us. Though not all pirates are good after all.' Yukiko thought.
"Hi I'm home." Apis greeted all the villagers.
"Why are you coming out of a pirate ship?" One of the villagers asked the hostility in the air evaporated when they saw Apis and was replaced by confusion, "What's going on?"
"Say, you guys..." Luffy said, immediately the villagers guards were back up.
"Wh-what?!" A man asked hesitantly.
"Is there a BBQ restaurant on this island?!" Luffy exclaimed.
"Huh?" The villagers were completely baffled and didn't know what to make of the boy in the Straw Hat. "Wh-what's with this guy?"
"Listen! They're pirates, but their good ones." Apis explained she really wanted everyone to be friends.
"-Are they really good pirates?"
"-Yes!" Apis shot back.
Yukiko then stepped up. "Our apologies, but we promised to get Apis home safely." She smiled softly as the villagers all suddenly blushed at the sight of the lovely young lady.
"Ah, we understand." They quickly said.
"Weren't you taken by the Navy in the first place Apis?" One of the men asked.
"Yeah but I managed to escape. And then these guys. Luffy, Yuki-neechan and everyone else saved me!" She told them.
Yukiko and Pachi nodded.
"Yeah." Luffy said.
"What did you do Apis?" The villagers started to question, "We don't know why but the Navy was looking for you."
"You should stay away from your home. They're still around."
"What am I going to do?" Apis fretted she couldn't go back home, the Navy was after her. This was becoming a real problem.
"We'd like to help, but...they're pirates, right?" The village man said reluctantly. Tsuna understood, they wanted to help the child but was afraid of what the Navy might do to them if they got involved with both Apis and pirates. It was selfish but they had to think about their own families first.
"Ahh, what should we do?" Apis pondered.
"Like she said, we're good pirates." Ussop defended.
"Apis!" Someone called. The crowed made way for an old man. Tsuna assumed he was the elder of the village, "come to my house!" He invited.
"Who's that?" Nami asked.
"Don't know." Luffy replied.
"Probably the village elder." Yukiko said.
"Grandpa Bokuden!" Apis exclaimed running up to the aging old and and embracing him in a hug.
Grandpa Bokuden laughed in relief. "I'm glad your safe. Thank you for saving Apis. How about this? I'd like to throw a small welcome party for you."
"Is your place a BBQ restaurant?" Luffy asked hopefully.
"It's not a BBQ restaurant, but Grandpa Bokuden makes the best pork buns on the whole island." Apis explained to Luffy.
"Alright let's go!" Luffy exclaimed.
"We'll go then." Zoro said.
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Although the old man's stories was boring everyone out, Yukiko and Pachi noticed Apis was heading somewhere and decided to follow her.
Although Apis was surprised, she allowed Yukiko and Pachi come along with her as she had a large bag full of pork buns.
"What do you need them for? That's a lot of pork buns, what are you feeding?"
"You'll see." Apis said.
They came to a cave they continued in and deep into the cave, Yukiko and Pachi froze in amazement. There laying right in front of her was the the myth of the island. A Dragon! It was covered all over in green feathers apart from the top of its head which was bald. It looked old and weak meaning he was slowly dying.
"Grandpa Ryu really likes Grandpa Bokuden's pork buns." Apis said softly.
Yukiko sat down at the side of Apis and gently ran her hand through the dragon Ryu's feathers, they felt like silk between her fingertips. "Apis he's amazing, Bokuden-San's story was true dragons really did-still do exist.
"I'm okay." Apis told the dragon.
Yukiko ran her hand over his head and stared into his eyes. She gasped in realisation it was Ryu's voice that she'd heard, the longing she'd felt was his. "So you've lost your friends, huh?" The whitette said sadly.
"How did you-Oh Grandpa Ryu, this is Nee-chan and Pachi. Their some of the pirates that saved me. She's really nice. Sorry I still haven't found it. Although I'm searching very hard, I still haven't found a clue yet."
"Apis how do you under-?" Yukiko stared to ask but was cut off by Luffy's cheerful greeting. "Yo! Apis who're you talking to?"
"Don't just jump out and say "hey"!" Exclaimed the voice of Nami.
"No! Don't come here!" Apis pleaded.
"Apis~" Yukiko trailed off.
"Whoa!" Luffy exclaimed leaning forward and freezing.
"Oh Yukiko. What are you doing heree~!?" Nami screeched also freezing.
Luffy shot forward and started bouncing all over the dragon trying to see every inch of him. "Amazing! Amazing! Amazing!"
"It's this the real thing?! Is it alive?!" Said the over excited Luffy hugging and nuzzling the dragon on its back.
Apis begged. "Stop it! Stop it! I said-"
But then Luffy stopped and leaned forward and stared into the dragons eyes just like Tsuna did moments before. "This is incredible! Where did you come from?" Luffy stilled, "I see, you want to go home, huh?" He said softly.
Luffy had heard Ryu's please as well. Apis stepped back shocked. "Ryu says that you can become his friend-Nee-chan and Pachi too, he wants to be your friend too. He says he can tell that your both good people."
"I'd like to be friends too Ryu." Yukiko said from behind Luffy who just smiled.
"Luffy, how can you and Nee-chan read Ryu's mind?" Apis asked.
"I somehow did..." Luffy told her.
"It's an instinct passed through training. When your companions for 7 years are Animals, you learn how to tell what they are saying." Yukiko explained.
"How did you know?" Luffy shot back.
"Oh, well, I..." Apis trailed off.
Nami gasped. "Could it be... a devil fruit...?"
"Like Luffy!" Yukiko said shocked and wide eyed.
"Yeah that's right. Apis you have the power of a devil fruit, don't you?" Nami questioned.
"Yeah. I ate the one called the whisper whisper fruit or something." Apis told them. "Since then I've been able to read animals minds."
"So that'd why you knew the wind was coming that time!" Yukiko exclaimed smiling.
Apis nodded. "Yep. It was the seabirds that told me that. I met Grandpa Ryu thanks to the whisper whisper fruit, too." She went on to tell them about how she was picking flowers in a field when the wind brought with it Ryu's sad voice and how she'd searched the whole mountain until she found him in the cave weak and close to death.
"Grandpa Ryu had lost his energy. He said that he'd gotten separated from his friends and that since then he had been looking for Lost Island," Apis explained, "Where the dragon nest is."
"Didn't that island sink a long time ago?" Yukiko asked confused.
"Grandpa Ryu says that the island will surface again." Apis told her, "he say also it's about time, but he can't clearly remembers where it is. He's gotten very old and lost the energy to fly or stand up."
Apis spun around to look at them. "But he keeps telling me that he wants to go back. I wanna help, but I can't figure out where such an Island exists at all... the legend by its self doesn't really give me a clue..." Apis looked down at her hands, "So I asked the Navy who happened to stop by this island about it. But that was a bad idea, because they were looking for the Dragonite ."
"Dragonite..." Nami gasped, "you mean the one for immortality?"
"That's why they kidnapped you. Because of such a ridiculous thing!?" Yukiko was furious, as she had dragon pokemon, but none of them had bones that could grant immortality.
"Yes. They told me to tell them everything I knew and took me away." Apis said softly. "The pendant that I made with a claw. Grandpa Ryu gave that to me, may have been another reason, though..."
"That's why you escaped in that storm... you are too reckless!" Nami scolded.
"That's why I keep this a secret to the villagers and even to Bokuden-San. I don't want to cause trouble for them. But I want to take Grandpa Ryu back home no matter what it takes." Apis said a determined look in her eyes. "He always tells me he'll get his energy back as soon as he returns to the dragons nest!" She said desperately.
"I'll find it for him no matter how many years it takes." They could all see the fore burning in Apis's eyes, "for sure... No matter what it takes. I'll find it."
Yukiko admired Apis's courage and determination, she too wanted to see this beautiful beast home. "Okay then! I'll take him there!" Luffy exclaimed. Apis gasped.
"No.. don't you mean we. I want to take Ryu home as well. After hearing Apis pour out her heart and soul, how could I not!" Yukiko said beaming.
"Wait! We're you two even listening?! Lost Island sank into the sea!" Nami exclaimed.
"But since the legendary Millennial Dragons actually exists, I'm sure it exists somewhere!" Luffy reasoned with logic that was difficult to dispute.
"An island that's not even on a map?" Nami questioned.
"Still though." Yukiko said getting excited along with Pachi. "Besides, I think if the Island hasn't been seen for so long, there must be a connection between the dragons and how it will return. In fact back home, we have Mysterious places that actually reappear after a certain amount of time has passed. Some take a few years or even up to a century. There may be a chance the Island actually reemerges from the ocean."
"Yeah, that's why we're going!" Luffy said resolutely.
"An island that isn't even on a map, huh?" Nami repeated, "Oh what the heck! Let's go!"
"Yay~!/Chiiii!" Luffy and Pachi shouted.
"Really?! Really?! You mean it?!" Apis asked excitedly.
Yukiko nodded smiling and laughing at the over the moon child. "Yep. We'll help Ryu get home." She told Apis.
Apis jumped up and hugged Yukiko tightly and then ran and did the same to Luffy. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She chanted jumping up and down.
"Now that it's been decided, here, eat more!" Luffy encouraged Ryu, thrusting a pork bun at him.
"No wait-!" Apis gasped. Ryu opened his jaws and took the pork bun and Luffy along with it. Luffy kicked his feet, his head to his waist were in Ryu's mouth, "-I forgot to tell you, Ryu is a little senile." Apis said guilty.
Yukiko and Pachi both burst into a fit of giggles while Nami was slack jawed and stayed a safe distance away from the old dragon.
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Now we have met Ryu!
And Hielias the Talonflame appeared too! She's number 3!
I'm gonna have two Dragon pokemon appear along with two others.
Guess who they will be!
I'm gonna do a vote too.
There will have to be a certain thing Yukiko will do for this Arc.
Decide with a comment below!
Combo Moves
Or
Mega Evolve
I won't do Gigantamax, Z-MOVE or Teraform yet. It will arrive over time.
Please comment!