Chapter Text
Usopp walked around on the deck of the Thousand Sunny, grass underneath his boots, a hammer in hand and a bag of nails in the other. The waves lapping quietly against its wooden sides.
It was another night watch for him, no biggie, he could get through it. Besides, he had problem to work on anyways — a fresh new hole on the floor that Sanji had previously kicked Luffy straight through because the raven haired boy left not even a single piece of meat for yesterday’s dinner. Nothing new.
He glanced away from the hole and towards the back of the deck.
There's still burn marks left near the railings after he tried one of his concoctions, it was supposed to be a flaming ball firework — but he accidentally dropped it and set the ship on fire.
A stray hand drifted to his curly strands, tugging on a particular one that was crisped and crunchy from the result. He'd needed to cut that off later.
Luffy was so excited about it too, rambling and throwing his hands around with a toothy grin. When the accident happened, he got his straw hat burnt a little from the way he was leaning forwards when Usopp was boasting about the functions and uses. He felt a little bad for burning his hat, knowing that was the boy's treasure.
(He had been too busy yapping about how amazing and smart he was, totally forgetting that he uses his hands to talk and dropped it.)
"That's soo cool!! Does it explode on impact? What if somebody slices it in half— wait, that just gave me an idea —Zoro! Come over here real quick!"
…
"—Captain's orders!" Luffy added after hearing a muffled grunt, giggling.
A warm sigh left his lips as he recalled the thought, approaching a nearby railing, looking out to the vast sea glittered by the stars above. It still felt like a fever dream, a scruffy kid with a straw hat opening his hand and telling him to join his crew—
“Hey! Usopp!!”
—Speak of the devil.
He turned his head in the direction of the whispering voice just in time to find Luffy with his trademark smile, wide and full of gums and teeth as he waved his hand excitedly, his flip flops slapping against the deck towards Usopp.
His jet black hair looked tussled as if he had just woken up, usual red vest having a few buttons left open, and those jean shorts having a few scruffs.
“Luffy? What are you doing up?” He asked, raising a brow at the state of his captain. “You don’t usually wake up in the middle of the night unless it’s for food…”
“I got hungry.” Luffy said bluntly, grinning widely, a giggle following after. “You wanna raid the kitchen with me? Cmon, Sanji made skewers and I can’t wait for tomorrow to eat them!”
”No way! He’d totally K’O my ass if I did!” Usopp shakes his head quickly in denial. Sanji's kicks would always make his bones ache from the impact.
”Cmon, pleaseee? It’ll be real fun and I know you wannaa!” Luffy begged, clasping his hands together, faking a teary-eyed look and pushed out his bottom lip.
Damn it.
Usopp narrowed his eyes at the puppy-eyed look, his heart threatening to give up and give in against his previous protests. Damn Luffy and those puppy eyes he learned from Chopper.
The sea stilled — a dark shadow looming just underneath the surface. None of them noticed.
He sighed deeply, finally relenting and agreeing to raid the kitchen, stuffing the hammer and nails into his pocket. "Alright fine, but if Sanji finds out I'm blaming you."
Luffy's eyes sparkled with excitement, starting to jump up and around with shouts of yay's and woo-hoo's! Usopp had to remind the boy to shush, hearing a creak echo from the men's room below them.
He didn't want Nami on his ass for "ruining her beauty sleep." As if she was a beauty in the first place. Demon in disguise.
"Okay, lets go! I don't think my stomach can take anymore waiting."
He let himself get yanked by the wrist towards the kitchen, creaking the door open softly to not disturb anyone sleeping nearby. The room was dimly lit, faint smells of spices and grilled meat leftover from today's dinner. Luffy bolted to the fridge, already biting and tugging at the metal chains keeping the door close like a rabid animal at the first scent of meat.
He frowned, his bottom lip pouting out while he tried worked them off, grumbling to himself. "Sanji and his "No Luffy Access After 8pm" rule…"
Usopp let out a breath of disbelief, slapping his forehead with his palm before going up to help the poor boy out. He was going to get the chain even more tangled at this point
"That's not how you do it, you idiot! Here, you twist the chain this way…" He slapped the tan hand away and replaced it with his, twisting and turning the metal before it eventually fell onto the checkered floor below with a clang.
"See? It's that easy."
"WOAH-?! Usopp you're amazing! How'd you do it?" Luffy hooted, throwing his hands in the air.
"Well- actually, I worked under a metal-breaking mentor for only a month!" He ranted, tilting his chin up high and proudly, his long nose jutting out. "He was impressed by how quickly I could work and officially gave me the total of "The Great Metal Breaker.""
Of course it was a lie.
The only reason he was great at stuff like this is because in Syrup village, Kaya's parents used to lock the window he would usually use to visit her, so he had to find a loophole.
Straw hat wasn't listening though, already having the fridge door open and digging into the skewers, shoveling them into his mouth, his cheeks bulging. He held out a few and shoved it into the sniper's face, crumbs spitting out while he spoke:
"Aren't you going to eat? Hurry up before I eat them for you!"
Shaking his head, he took the sticks into his hands, the smell wafting to his nose. It smelled amazing, finding himself biting down and tearing it off the stick.
Sanji's cooking was always delicious.
Both sat on the floor underneath, the cold surface against their rears. They stayed like that for a few moments, shoving food down their throats and Usopp telling tales here and there, laughing, smiling— content.
Soon enough, they found themselves back outside in the cool night air, leaning against a railing and just… enjoying the moment, at least Usopp was.
Moments like these were rare in the chaotic seas of the Grandline, so he soaked up every attention he had of his captain.
"Hey— Usopp, there's something in the ocean!"
What?
Suddenly, the sea roared as a shadow lept out, battering against the side of the ship, sending it tilting and creaking. Usopp and Luffy barely had time to grasp the railing in time, slamming against it instead. Ouch.
Usopp got a close look as it jumped above their ship, the moonlight highlighting every feature. It was a fish. A gnarly looking one at that.
Green iridescent scales littered its bony structure, seemingly glittering in the dark. It was huge, almost roughly the same size — if not bigger than the Thousand Sunny. It's eyes locked onto them, the pupils a hazy red and cloudy as if drugged.
What the hell is that??
The mouth opened and revealed jagged, cracked teeth that could rival a fine, crafted blade for sharpness. — and dove down.
Straight for Luffy.
Usopp gasped, reaching out his hand for his captain, a shriek of worry tearing from his throat.
"Luffy-! Get out the way!—"
Luffy reared his arm back. "Gomu Gomu no—"
"LUFFY!!"
With a heavy chomp, the fish swallowed Luffy hole, turning around to dive right back into the ocean below, leaving Usopp in total shock and a still pounding heart full of sudden adrenaline.
—
"LUFFY—!!"
Zoro's eyes snapped open, instantly sitting up in his bunk bed. He wasted no time climbing out, distantly hearing the others in the room follow suit.
What did the dumbass get himself into now?
He stomped up the stairs leading to the deck, slamming open the doors open and instantly locking eyes with Usopp. One by one, each crew member found their way up, soon enough crowding the grassy area.
"What happened?" Zoro asked, already stepping towards him, swords in tow.
Usopp had his face twisted in panic, eyes wide and pupils shrunken, his hands scrambling in the air as he tried to explain.
"T-There was this huge fish, It swallowed Luffy and took him into the sea!" He spluttered, hands drawing a big 'O' in the air, emphasizing the size. "It was almost the size of Sunny, green and all— I-I couldn't grab him in time.."
"WHAT?! H-How big was it? Don't tell me it'll swallow us all!" Chopper squeaked, rubbing his hooves together nervously.
Zoro— with no hesitation —stepped onto the railing and jumped right into the ocean.
SPLASH
"O-Oi! Zoro!" Usopp shouted.
Sanji approached the edge of the ship, already lighting up a cigarette, the faint glow providing little light in the night sky. He looked down into the dark waters, cursing softly. "Shitty captain, always causing trouble no matter what time it is…"
"Well, Zoro will get him anyways. I'm charging that idiot a hundred berries just for disturbing my beauty sleep!" Nami frowned, crossing her arms.
Robin stood besides her, a thoughtful look on her face. "Green you say?…"
"Calm down buddy, Zoro has it handled." Franky spoke, his usual booming voice holding a steady tone. He rubbed a big hand down the sniper's back in a soothing motion. He could hear his voice start to slow, finally taking a deep breath. "Luffy will be on the ship in no time."
Brook nodded, his bony hand holding a lantern he yanked on the way to the main deck, a silk bonnet containing his afro. "Yohohoho! What a predicament, hopefully Luffy is alright."
"Yeah, hopefully..." Chopper muttered, more to himself in self conformation.
Zoro held his breath, venturing into the pitch black. Midnight fishes moved away from him as he swam further. Nothing, not even a trace of blood or clothing torn that he could recognize.
He was running out of air but pushed himself further, feeling his lungs burn and cry out for oxygen. Desperately seeking out for his captain, yet nothing was there. He had to turn bad in spite of his hammering heart against his chest that was begging to see even a glimpse of a straw hat.
With a reluctant heart, he turned back to swim to the surface, taking a deep gasp when his head popped out of the salty water. A ladder was thrown down for him to climb, grabbing the first step and tugging his swords along
Water cascaded down his body, his clothes dripping wet and hair like flat moss against his head. He reached the deck, looking up to meet confused and dawning eyes.
"I couldn't find him." He gritted out, eyebrows furrowing.
The Straw hats seeped with worry, Nami's condescending tone suddenly turning sharp and questioning.
"What? What do you mean you couldn't find him? The fish couldn't have gone that far!" She gulped, arms uncrossing and starting to put out a foot when Sanji shot out past her.
Sanji seized the collar of Zoro's cotton shirt, shaking him back and forth with a growl. "Oi— stop joking around! Luffy could die out there or even drown!
Chopper shrieked, his short hairy arms flailing around the air in distress. "W-We need to find him! Who knows what could happen in the time we don't—!"
"Stop."
All eyes swirled towards the grave voice. Robin stood, her eyes downcast regardless of how calm she seemed.
"If Luffy is truly gone, then we have a ticking clock in our hands. There's only so much time before people get wind, and when that happens…"
She looked up, unease set on her face.
"We're sitting ducks on the Grandline."
—
Thatch whistled as he walked through the back main deck of the Moby Dick near the rudder, swinging a spare knife in hand. Everything was normal. Whitebeard at the front, sitting on his throne in the middle of the deck, IV connected to his arm along with a cup of sake in hand in spite of the nurses protests.
He could faintly make out the figure of Marco chatting alongside his pops, seemingly ecstatic about something. Other members were littered around as well— probably playing card games or just enjoying the sunlight.
Just a normal day.
He was still deciding on what to make for supper. Feeding around 1,600 crewmates was no joke— especially after Ace joined, the man could eat for a hundred and still somehow manage space for dessert in that tiny belly of his. Where does it all go anyways??
He stopped to lean against a nearby rail, staring out into the ample sea ahead, glittered by the high sun beating down at it. Birds flying overhead, islands in the far distance, and a monumental, gigantic green fish that was currently hacking up a bleeding kid with a straw hat.
…
Wait a damn minute. Reverse.
Thatch did a double take, scrubbing at his eyes because there was no way in hell a fish could be that fucking huge— and on topic, why is it coughing out a kid?
With a final, heaving choke, the fish spat out the kid, only problem now is that the boy was currently coming full speed towards him.
The knife in his hand clattered onto the wooden planks, arms stretching out wide enough just as the straw hat kid— wet with sea water —bashed into his chest, sending him falling back on his ass.
The fish below closed its jaws, dipping back into the sea and disappearing within the tides.
Thatch looked down, getting a good look at the child. The poor little boy look distraught, passed out yet his face scrunched in pain, deep gashes shaped like teeth marks ran across his left arm and lower right ankle.— he was covered by soaking little blue tank top and jean shorts he had on.
Blood oozed out from the wounds and onto his hands and the pristine chef uniform he had on currently. Thatch could only assume he got these injuries from getting swallowed by the hulking green fish. Nothing too serious, but it was still alerting.
Shit. What if he bleeds out to death?
"Fuck— Marco! Marco! Get your ass over here!" He cried out, cradling the boy carefully in his arms while he dashed towards the middle of the main deck. "MARCO!"
Just a normal day.