บท 58: Chapter 58

"Quite cold today, isn't it?" the man commented. Usopp perked up as if he had just noticed.

"Yeah, it is pretty cold today," he said matter-of-factly.

"Hmm, I know, right?" the man said. The two continued staring at each other while the others watched silently. Finally, Usopp spoke.

"Sooo, how are you standing on the—"

He was interrupted by the sound of water being displaced and their ship being pushed back by the waves as a huge submarine emerged from the water. The submarine quickly converted to a regular ship when the roof reeled itself in. Suddenly the door to the Going Merry swung open and Sanji dashed out. "What are you guys doing!? All this swaying is going to…" He paused, taking a look around. He slowly lit a cigarette and took a drag before letting out a puff of smoke. "So," he said. "What's happening?"

"We're being ambushed," Luffy stated matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, I figured…" Sanji said as several men aimed rifles at his face.

"Hmm, that makes five people. Is this crew really that small?" a fat man wearing white hippo fur said. "Well, not that it matters. I'd like to ask you all a question."

"What is it? We're in a hurry," Luffy said.

The man hummed. "We're on our way to Drum Kingdom," he said as he chewed on a large piece of meat. "But I guess we can take the time to loot your ship. Give us all your treasures," he commanded.

"No," Luffy said with a blank expression.

"Insolent commoner!" one of the intruding men shouted as he addressed Luffy. "You dare disobey the orders of King Wapol!? Know your place, trash!" Luffy turned to him with a glare, and the man froze in fear as his flesh chilled and his blood froze. He took a step back and fell backwards onto the deck, dropping his rifle.

"You can go jump into the sea now," Luffy said, in a simple tone that somehow conveyed that it wasn't really a suggestion. The man scrambled to his feet in terror and leapt over the railing of the Going Merry before a loud splash was heard. Luffy turned back to Wapol, who was staring after the man in annoyance.

"What the hell is wrong with that idiot?" he asked. "Well, whatever." He started to open his mouth. Luffy, whose Observation Haki alerted him to the fact that Wapol was about to eat part of their ship, promptly sent the man flying off of it with a kick. His men all stared in shock for a while before one of his officers spoke up.

"This is bad! His Majesty is an anchor! We have to go get him!" They all prepared to leave in panic, but Luffy spotted something of interest and stopped them.

"Hey, you!" he shouted to a man who he assumed was their navigator. "Is that an Eternal Pose?" The man turned to him in fear and stuttered out an answer.

"Y-yeah, it is." he said.

"Is it pointing to that Drum Kingdom place?" Luffy asked. The man confirmed his theory once again. "Cool," Luffy said. "Hand it over."

The man looked shocked. "Why the hell would I do that!?" he shouted. The answer Luffy provided him with was quite painful, and as Luffy looked over the Eternal Pose labeled Drum in interest, Wapol's officer, the one who had been standing on the water, shouted after him.

"You bastard! We need that to get back to our home country! Give it back before we take it by force!" Luffy turned back to him.

"No, I'm actually going to keep this. You should probably go get that hippo dude by the way. He'll drown soon." The officer looked at him in outrage, knowing he was right, before shouting for Wapol's men to take them in the direction that their king had flown. As the ship pulled away, he shouted one more time over his shoulder.

"You better remember this! Don't you dare forget our faces!"

"We'll have our revenge one day!" the other officer shouted.

I don't think I could remember them even if I wanted to, Luffy thought sardonically.

With their course now set out for them thanks to the Eternal Pose Luffy had acquired, the Straw Hats finally had an idea where they were going. They started following the needle and after a couple hours it started snowing consistently. Nami theorized this meant that they were approaching an island, remembering a conversation she'd had with Vivi about the individual climates of islands in the Grand Line. After another hour, Sanji spotted land. A winter island from the looks of it.

When they got close to the island and got ready to dock, Luffy sensed hostile auras surrounding them and frowned, remembering what happened last time. Zoro suggested that they send a couple people to look for the doctor while the rest wait. They would only travel slower in a large group. Luffy and Sanji both volunteered to go. Only Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji noticed the crowd accumulating on the cliffs surrounding them. "Hey, we've got a welcoming party," Sanji said in a neutral tone that somehow didn't fail to convey his sarcasm.

"Stop right there, pirates!" They all turned to the authoritative voice. "Turn around at once and leave this island," the man said. "Your entrance will not be permitted."

"What?" Nami asked in shock. "You won't even let us dock? Please, we're looking for a doctor! One of our crewmates is dying!" Her voice seemed to falter at the end of that sentence. The man's eyes seemed to widen slightly at this as if it was something he hadn't been expecting, but the surrounding crowd just started shouting at them, rifles raised.

"Your lies won't fool us, scum!"

"We're not letting any damn pirates wreak havoc in our country!"

"Raise anchor and leave, or we'll make you!"

Sanji grimaced. "Well, that was a bad first impression," he commented.

"None of your smartass remarks!" one man shouted, firing once at Sanji's feet. Sanji barely avoided getting shot in the leg due to the guy's impulsive actions, and he immediately turned a glare towards the villager.

"So, you want to play big shot, tough guy?" Sanji muttered darkly. The man gulped but reloaded in response to Sanji's challenge, and Sanji took a step forward, but was held back by Nami and Usopp. Another gunshot went off. It was would have hit Nami in the back had it not rebounded off of Luffy's open palm. The villager seemed undeterred due to the fact that he hadn't successfully hit anyone yet, and continued firing. But the bullets were all either deflected or straight out blocked by Luffy's hand. The man ran out of whatever limited ammo he had, and gulped again. Some of the other villagers got ready to support him, and from the upper deck of the Going Merry, Zoro unsheathed his sword slightly.