Stolen // One Piece

chapter twenty-seven

"Here's the plan," Sabo began, as Nami rolled out a map of the island, pinning each corner to the table. "We are here," the blond circled a small area near the shore with a billowy quill, "and from the intel I've gathered from the undercover Revolution members, Luffy should be somewhere," he pulled a compass out from his pocket and compared it to the map, "around," Nami swept her bangs out from her eyes, "here." He pointed to a mountain range at the center of the map, separating both halves of the island.

"Undercover Revolution members?" Ace crossed his arms.

"Yes. I contacted Dragon and asked him to send some so they could track Luffy's movements and collect information on his whereabouts."

"Was Bluejam with him?" Usopp asked, brushing his frizzy curls into a ponytail. Sabo removed a small red velvet-wrapped notebook from his pocket, flopped through its pages, and set it down on the map table.

"No, but Koala said that he wasn't alone. A boy was traveling with him," the blond replied, brushing a stray hair from his shoulder. "We'll first need to pack supplies, like food, water, and maybe first aid simply because we're dealing with Bluejam and for all I know Luffy could be incredibly injured. From the docks we'll take an undocumented shortcut from the path to the base of the mountain, and then meet up with him to bring him back to the ship. Are we clear?" The Straw-Hats nodded. "Then let's go. We have no time to waste."

~   ~   •   ~   ~

They left the ship at dawn.

The clouds in the sky threatened rain, and dry thunder rolled in the distance.

No birds sung. No one spoke. No breeze filled the air.

There was deafening silence all around, other than the sound of determined footsteps crunching through the sand and through the forest.

Sabo led the front. Ace carried the back. Everyone else trudged in the middle.

Fear gripped them all, though the steely expressions each wore would never let on.

Even Usopp, the most fearful, held his tongue, and forced his hands and knees to stay still. He knew Luffy needed them all to be strong. To be brave. So he clutched the slingshot in his hand tighter.

He was going to be brave. For Luffy.

~   ~   •   ~   ~

They trudged for hours until they reached a village, and the chatter of large crowds and the calling of vendors filled the air. They stopped at a large restaurant, each stomach growling louder with every moment that passed. They stocked up on food, filling each bag beyond its seams. Then, they followed the path towards the mountains a short distance, and broke off, taking a narrow trail marked with colored ribbons.

"Rattling bones~," Brook sang under his breath to the chattering of his skeleton body, "rattling bones."

~   ~   •   ~   ~

It was now dusk, and the orange-red light of the sky filtered through the trees. It was an odd moment, as it looked calm, and felt calm, but there was a stillness to the air that sent shivers down Nami's spine. She held her breath, waiting for something she didn't know was coming.

They trudged forward in silence, fear eating at the linings of their stomachs.

At once, the loud shot of a gun rang out, scaring birds from the trees, echoing through the air, followed by a blood-curdling scream that carried just as strongly.