"He's completely out of it. But the death penalty in God's Land? That's harsh" said Zoro.
"But it's the truth. It really exists! It's a punishment where you together with your ship, are put on a cloud that you can't escape from, and you keep wandering until you become bones. It's the death penalty!" Conis repeated.
"I see" murmured Robin, crossing her arms over her chest. "That's why that ship fell from the sky"
"What?! What're you talking about, Robin?" cut in Usopp.
"Remember that galleon that fell from the sky? The St. Briss, was it? They might have received that punishment 200 years ago"
Usopp thought about it for a second and gulped when he came to the realization. The other soldiers who were with the captain officer started to shout angrily at you.
"Do you realize what you've done to the Captain?!" one yelled.
"What did you say?!" spat Sanji.
"Sanji-kun, hold on!" Nami stopped the chief from beating them down. "Don't be upset like that. That was by chance"
"BY CHANCE?!"
"You're digging yourself a deeper grave, ginger" you whispered and she murmured your name as a warning to shut up.
"W-well, how should I put it, I unintentionally..."
"UNINTENTIONALLY?!"
"Deeper grave" you called, eyes closed with a slight smirk.
"SHUT UP! U-uhm, you know...it was like an accident..." Nami stammered, continuing to put on an act.
"AN ACCIDENT?! AN ACCIDENT, YOU SAY?!"
"Man, you passed through the earth and went on the other side by how deep you dug"
"(Y/N)!!!!!!!!!!!" snarled Nami, eyes red. But she quickly returned to her innocent act. "That's right! It was an accident! An accident! Cause it's hard to control and ride a waver, right?! On top of that, I rode it today for the first time, so I made a little mistake while turning the handles. I'm clumsy, aren't I?"
"I wouldn't even call it clumsy at this point..." you sweatdropped, turning your face away.
"I guess beginners shouldn't push too hard, after all, should they?" the navigator continued to smile and giggled annoyingly.
"She wasn't having troubles riding it, she looked like she was having lots of fun!" stated stupidly Luffy and you facepalmed.
As to answer to the scary look Nami was giving him, you pulled your fist back and slammed it on his head. It caused your captain to faceplant on the beach, a large bump on top of where you hit him.
"Sorry. My fist slipped"
"Uhm, I'm sorry, but I thought it'd be better to treat Captain McKinley first" interjected Pagaya, approaching the officers. "I'm sorry"
"T-THAT'S RIGHT!!! CAPTAIN MCKINLEY"
"Then, let's carry him over to my house"
"We appreciate your assistance. Heso!"
The officers carried the body of the captain and walked away with Pagaya, but not before one of them ordered you to not go anywhere. Conis sighed and turned to all of you.
"I know you're not bad people. So, please us this chance to get away from here!" she said before running to follow her father.
"Let's do as she said. I saw it with my own eyes. An island with these scary guys on it!" told Nami.
"So you did go to the place they call forbidden sacred ground" said Zoro.
"The place you're never to step foot in. Scary guys..." smiled Luffy with sparkles all around him and Usopp blocked the captain's ears.
"DON'T LISTEN! DON'T LOOK! DON'T TALK!"
"God...guerrilla...That place is no good for sure! In any case, we're leaving!"
"Ahh...It's heartbreaking to be apart from Conis-chan, but if that's what Nami-san says..." sighed Sanji.
"If we stick around, those two may also get in trouble" frowned the navigator.
"That's right! Those guys will just make them out to be our accomplices! So, if we make it so that we run away on our own, it shouldn't cause any trouble for them" said Usopp. "Right?! Okay, that settles it! Let's go!"
Your group except for the monster trio, Nami, and you climbed back on the Going Merry. Luffy refused to leave this place, his stubborn side coming out.
"What're you doing, Luffy?!" asked Nami.
"Why are we running away?" he replied with a question of his own.
"Because we'll be in big trouble!"
"We're always in big trouble"
"It's not just us, Luffy. Conis and the old guy may get arrested too" you told your captain.
"Those two have done nothing wrong" Luffy stated. "The one who arrests them is wrong"
"Please, run!" yelled a familiar voice. "Hurry!"
You all turned to see Conis and Pagaya, along with the White Berets. Nami cursed under her breath, taking a step back. You, on the other hand, were about to ready your guns.
"You shouldn't, Miss. If you say something that defends criminals, you two are also going to pay. As you know, those people are felons who should be sentenced to be banished to the clouds as punishment for their 5th degree crime, caused by all their abusive language toward us along with their obstruction of our official duties" told McKinley.
"Like I said, it was an accident! Come on, already!" snapped Nami, taking Luffy's arm.
"Arrest them!" ordered the captain officer.
Some officers took a step forward with bows in their hands, pulling the string and arrow back, ready to attack.
"Please get out of here! They're beyond your power!" yelled Conis.
"Fire! Milky arrows!"
"A-arrows?!" repeated Nami.
"You go ahead, Nami!" ordered Luffy and the girl didn't need to be told twice.
Your right eye turning purple, you fired multiple bullets toward the arrows, deflecting them. You gasped when one of them zigzagged to you, a trail of purple clouds following the arrow. You jumped back at the last second, but you were caught by another who was shot behind you. The clouds wrapped themselves around your waist and trapped you inside.
"(y/n)!" yelled Luffy.
"What's that?!" you swore, struggling to get out. "It's completely restraining my movements!"
You cried out when suddenly another arrow was shut through the clouds trapping you, and the stem left by it lifted you in the air. You were hung upside-down, blood rushing through your head.
"N-Not into that!" you snarled, your feet and legs kicking the air.
Your eyes widened when the White Berets officers jumped on the clouds and started to skate on them. You gritted your teeth as one of them was coming closer to you, swords in hands. You blinked when the clouds disappeared around and a certain chief knocked down the White Berets officer, a scowl on his face.
"Don't you dare lay a hand on (y/n)-swan, bastard! Your filthy skin will taint hers!" barked the cook.
Sanji swirled around you and took your hand, bowing like a knight.
"I hope everything is alright, Madam"
"Yeah, thank you for the help"
"Ah~ I had the honor of (y/n)-swan thanking me~" cooed the blonde male and you rolled your eyes.
You noticed that both Zoro and Luffy dealt with the others, seeing that most the White Berets were down.
"By the way, Nami! What's our financial situation?" asked casually Zoro.
"We have 50,000 Berries left" she responded.
"50,000? We're that poor?"
"Normally, that'll last a day or two at most"
"Why are we so poor?" complained Luffy. "As your captain, I gotta say this. You should think more about how you use money and..."
"IT'S BECAUSE YOU EAT SO MUCH!" snapped Sanji and your captain gave him a shock expression.
"You fools! You can't go back now!" said a bloody McKinley. "You should've just behaved and done what I told you to...We, the White Berets, are the gentlest upholders of the law in God's Land. However, they are not as nice as we are! You are now 2nd degree criminals! No matter if you cry or scream...you'll be judged...by the priests of Upper Yard!!!" he declared finally. "Heso!"
"...What's their problem?" pouted Luffy when the White Berets finally crawled their way back to the city.
"More importantly, we were tricked! That old lady said it was okay to pass through" said Nami.
"And when we do, they say we entered illegally?! That's fraud! I'll sue for this!"
"Exactly...Of course, even if we were told 'Don't pass through', we would've entered by force anyway" sighed the sniper, which Nami told him to shut up.
"In any case, you are in big trouble" told Pagaya. "Since you've become 2nd degree criminals, we can't...help you"
"WHY ARE YOU TALKING TO US FROM WAY OVER THERE!" barked Nami at the duo who were standing a few feet away from your group.
"Well, what's the fuss? We're used to being pursued" smiled Luffy, chuckling. You brought your foot on the side of his head, a snarl decorating your lips.
"LIKE REALM OF HELL IT'S NORMAL AT ALL?!"
"More importantly, why did you come back?" continued your captain and Nami released an inquisitive sound. "We were finally about to go to that place that we're never to enter for a big advent-err...no, to look for you!"
"You're really easy to figure out" scowled the ginger girl, a thick mark on her head. Luffy was rewarded by a hard flick on his forehead. "WHAT BIG ADVENTURE?! I TOLD YOU DIDN'T I?! YOU CAN SAY THAT BECAUSE YOU HAVEN'T SEEN HOW SCARY THOSE PEOPLE ON THAT ISLAND ARE!"
Nami continued to hit him while you watched the fight with slight interest.
"IT'S TRUE THAT WE DON'T KNOW IF THIS GUY IS GOD OR WHAT, BUT HIS SUPERNATURAL POWERS ARE THE REAL THING!" continued Nami. "I WILL NEVER GO BACK TO THAT ISLAND!"
"Then, you can just wait here while we go" said simply Luffy.
"No way, they're gonna come after me! We have to leave this place!"
"Leave here?!" Luffy stretched his head toward the navigator. "Are you nuts?! Which is more important to you, adventure or life?!"
"What kind of choice is that?" you muttered, and Chopper hummed next to you. "Did you make a remedy for him already?"
"Not at that time" responded the reindeer.
"LIFE. THEN MONEY!" answered bitterly Nami, shoving his head in the cloud sand.
"Oh! Then next would it be me?!" asked Sanji with hearts in his eyes.
"SHUT IT!" Nami punched his jaw.
"But it's true. Come to think of it, we were desperately trying to reach this sky island, so we weren't thinking at all about how to go back" said Usopp. "Say, is there a way for us to go back safely? Can we go back to the Blue Sea?"
"There is a way, though at this point, I can no longer say it's safe..." said Conis with honesty. "...if you go to Cloud End, the farthest edge of the clouds. It's in the far east. To get there, you need to go down to the White Sea first"
"Good! Then, we can go back down to our sea from there, right?" smiled the sniper.
"No! I'm not going back!" refused Luffy.
"Hey, do you wanna stay here and get sentenced to death?" shouted back Usopp.
"In any case, if we stay here, it'll cause trouble for Conis and her dad" enriched Nami, flicking his nose. "Even if we run away, we may not be able to get away from them, though. If that's the case, no matter where we are in Skypiea, it'll be the same. Since they know our whereabouts, we'd better leave here right away! Now, everyone! Let's sail!"
The navigator waved goodbye to both Conis and Pagaya, but Luffy stopped midway, walking back toward the old man.
"Hey, old man! Can I take all the leftover food from earlier with me?"
"Yes, of course" responded Pagaya and Luffy cheered.
"Alright! Sanji, prepare some lunch boxes!"
"He's on the ball" sighed with a small smile Sanji, following his captain.
"In that case, can I ask you a favor as well? You're an engineer, right, old guy? Would you give me some fixtures for the ship repair?" asked Usopp.
"Sure, no problem. Then, let's go to our house again"
"Hey! Where're you guys going?!" snapped Nami.
"I'm gonna go get some food from them! You guys go on ahead and prepare the ship for our adventure!" yelled Luffy.
"He's definitely planning to go there" Nami gritted her teeth and you let out a sigh.
"I will go babysit them. You on the while prepare a plan to get us out of here. I'm tired of all those clouds" you told her, walking behind the divided group.
"At least (y/n) is on my side..." whimpered the ginger girl.
"I'm not" you replied over your shoulder.
You were leaning against the railing of the balcony, watching over the ship and at the same time the morons inside Pagaya's house. Sanji was making the lunch boxes for your next trip while Usopp put in a huge bag all the tools he needed to repair the ship. All Luffy was doing was eating. As usual.
Then, a movement of a dark silhouette caught your line of sight and you whipped your head to see a familiar face. Steven. Eyes widening, you knelt down and took the small piece of wood in your palm.
"Steven? What are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to be on the ship...?"
Steven started to make wild gestures, his carved eyes turning into a panicked look. He pointed with a wooden finger at the Going Merry.
"...There's something coming?" you narrowed your eyes.
As on cue, you heard a loud sound from the sea of clouds, and you turned your head at the source of direction.
"There's something wrong with the ship!" you warned the others.
"What?!" they cried, standing up and running to the balcony.
"What's going on, (y/n)-swan?!" demanded the chief, stopping next to you.
"The ship's rocking! And I can see there's a huge thing under it!" you replied.
"A party? No fair, having party without us!" whined Luffy and you punched the back of his head.
"NOT IN THAT KIND OF WAY"
"Ah! Nami-san!" cried out Sanji while looking through a telescope, his face turning blue. "Why...Why is she wearing a t-shirt?"
"Just where the heck is your mind at?!" Usopp slapped him while the cook munched his shirt.
"At least (y/n)-swan is showing us her stomach a little with that sexy top-"
You cut Sanji by kicking the back of his head, sending him directly in the railing. He teeth knocked hard against the marble, almost breaking on contact.
"The ship started moving!" shouted in alarm your captain.
You watched as the Going Merry was sailing further away at the horizon, the shadow under the ship growing in size.
"What're they doing?! It's moving backwards!"
"That's not it! They didn't set sail!" interjected Usopp.
"I told you to look underneath the ship!" you said.
"Ah...it's...the famous White-White Sea Super-Express Lobster!" stated Pagaya.
After the Going Merry disappeared, you were all in an uncomfortable silence. A long pause later:
"Why...? Why a t-shirt...?" said in shock Sanji.
"YOU'RE STILL TALKING ABOUT THAT?!" Usopp slapped him again. "Hey, Luffy! This is terrible! What will we do?! What will we do?!"
"First of all, calm down" you ordered firmly, making shut the sniper. "Now, you will tell us where they were taken..."
You turned to the two citizens who gave each other an uneasy look.
"Erm...The Super-Express Lobster is a messenger for God. What it transports is always an offering to God" explained Pagaya. "So, it's headed to northeast Upper Yard...to the sacrificial altar"
"S-SACRIFICE?!" stammered Sanji. "Nami-san, Robin-san, and the rest..."
"The rest?!" slapped once more Usopp.
"..will be sacrificed?! For that darn God?! THAT SON OF A BITCH! DON'T MESS WITH US! YOU BASTARDS" finished the chief.
"Sanji, stop it. Now" you ordered the chief darkly and he complied. "What's with the sacrifice thing?"
"Well, I've heard that although it's called sacrifice, in Heaven's Judgment, there's two kinds of punishment that criminals receive. Sacrifice and an ordeal. They're currently hostages, so to speak, in God's hands" told Pagaya. "So, the ones who are actually being judged are...the four of you"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"If we had some sort of map..."
"Oh...I have a map of Skypiea with me" said Usopp, pulling out the object in question.
"This one is very old, too. But the shape of the island seems correct" considered Pagaya. "This is where you are right now. The sacrificial altar is in the left upper direction, northeast. There's only one way to get there. You take the Milky Road that leaves this island by using a dial boat, and go across to the forest where the priests await you"
"Well, old guy, instead of taking the trouble of going through the middle of the island, all we have to do is go around the island by boat, right?" asked the sniper.
"That lobster went to Upper Yard that way, too, right?" said Luffy.
"Well...even if you can go ashore nearby, you can't get to the altar on foot. The big difference between this map and the current Upper Yard is the Milky Roads that are stretched all around the island"
"The cloud canals that you mentioned huh?" hummed Sanji.
"Yes. I heard that there're several hundred Milky Roads, large and small in size, over there. That's why entering the island by boat and taking the Milky Roads within the island is the only way" sweated Pagaya.
"I see...So no matter where we go ashore, the canals will block our way"
"That's right" Pagaya nodded to the cook. "By the way, there're man-eating fish in the canals"
"MAN-EATING FISHES?!" screamed Usopp.
"They've really covered all their bases" you murmured. "So if we want our crew and ship back, we just have to come in from the front"
"So that's our ordeal and...Heaven's Judgement?!" asked Usopp.
"Yes. In Upper Yard, four priests who are strong beyond imagination await you"
"Oh, then's easy. To put it simply, all we have to do is beat up those priests, right?" said Luffy before laughing loudly. "This is becoming fun!"