Warm Memories and Brotherly Bonds

Chapter 15: Enter the King of Snipers: Usopp

"Ok, can someone tell me how we got back out here?" Franky asked, now annoyed at how they were suddenly back in the creepy forest they left. "And where did the sun go?"

"Do you think we have any more ideas to what's going on than you do?" Nami snapped at him as Robin used her powers to see around the island and get their bearings straight.

"We're in a different part of the forest," she told them all. "Not that far from the ruins. Apparently, we've been running around here while watching everything."

"But...?" Usopp began before he went stumbling around, staring at the sinister-looking trees and up at the scattered stars. "We were in Orange Town in the middle of the day a few seconds ago!"

"The memories are mixed with the island," Robin answered him, "If we continue to search for the creature that's loose out here, then we will be following it through these memories as well." She looked to Zoro and asked, "Didn't you say that the monster hasn't taken on a form yet?"

Zoro nodded, "That's just what I heard. Apparently it doesn't have a mind of its own yet. But it's now lurking somewhere, trying to find a new shape. At least that's what I think is happening."

"So... we just keep going through memories until we find it?" Nami asked cautiously, "And... when we do find it... what next?"

"Lure it back to the ruins and kill it I guess," Sanji muttered, looking around and deciding to head in one random direction. But the moment he went too far from the group, the dark island faded again so that they were out on the sea and the bright sun was overhead.

"Thank goodness, I like being in the sun so much better than the dark, Yohohoho," Brook said happily, being in that forest reminded him too much of Thriller Bark for his liking. He felt much better looking at the blue sky and warm sunshine, even if it was all an illusion.

And it didn't take long for them to spot the two boats, sailing side by side, and coming towards them. "I remember," Nami said smiling as she watched them come closer. She had sailed around with these two for only a few weeks and the time she spent with them had already been more fun than the last eight years of being a thief.

When they came closer they could hear some of the things that they were saying as well as get a good look at them. Luffy was, once again, sitting up on the bow of the ship and enjoying an apple as Zoro was dozing behind him. Nami was rolling her eyes at something Luffy had said and was telling them off for something or other again.

"There's absolutely no way we're gonna make it to the Grand Line in this condition!" Nami said to them in a deeply annoyed voice.

The other two looked back at her, wondering what she was going on about this time. The apple that Luffy had been eating had been reduced to nothing but a core, and he looked at it as he said, "You're right, we're gonna need a whole lot more meat."

"I should've known he'd say that," Sanji sighed.

Luffy finished swallowing the apple core and finished, "Eating fruit everyday is for the birds."

"You can't survive on apples alone," Brook said happily.

"I happen to like fruit," Nami told him darkly.

"We'll also need some booze too," memory Zoro added before Nami lost her temper and threw one of the apples at him.

"Shut up you bone-heads!" she yelled at him as Luffy stretched out to grab the apple she threw and went to eating that one. "That's not what I mean!" she went on, before explaining, "The Grand Line's a dangerous place! We'll need more than beer and meat to survive there! Not to mention that place is crawling with pirates who are also in search of the One Piece! And they all have ships that are way better than this!"