10 Chapter 10: Enough is Enough

"Big bro Usopp...is dead…Nami murdered him!"

Everything seems to freeze in time. No...it couldn't be true...not Nami...she couldn't have done something like that! Johnny starts babbling about how Nami is a traitor and how she killed Usopp until Luffy grabs the front of his shirt.

"Don't say another word or you'll regret it!" Luffy threatens. "She didn't kill Usopp, she wouldn't do that to her friend!"

"But I know what I saw!" Johnny protests.

I clench my paws around Sanji's jacket as a conflicted frown comes to my face. "Pika pi…" 'Nami...it can't be true...' After everything she told me, she couldn't have killed one of her friends! It had to be a lie! It had to!

"What was that about friends?" We all turn and there she is.

"Nami!" Luffy exclaims.

"What are you doing here?" she asks irritably.

"What do you mean?" Luffy asks, "You're our friend; we came to get you."

Nami scoffs, "What a pest…"

Luffy tenses. "Nami…?" I fully face her in Sanji's arms; she has a dead look in her eyes, like all her emotions and feelings had been sucked out of her by force.

"Friends? Don't make me laugh; you're just pathetic." I visibly wince at her tone. That sounded nothing like the Nami who talked to me a few hours ago, the Nami who lost her mother and was risking everything to buy back her village from the pirate that killed her.

"Damn you...you killed big bro Usopp!" Johnny yells.

"Yep, that's right." Nami responds without missing a beat. "So why don't you kill me and get your revenge?" What? That response definitely catches Johnny off guard. Nami twirls her staff casually, "Word to the wise; thanks to your friend's stupidity, Arlong is planning to kill Zoro and his entire crew." she says. "So, you can either stay here and die, or get off this island and live; it's your choice."

I was tensing up with every word she said. Nami, just tell them the truth! Tell them like you told me, you don't have to do this alone!

"Her heartless face is so hot!"

Wait, what?

I look up and am greeted by hearts in Sanji's eyes. "Nami~! It's me Sanji! Let's run away together!"

"Pika pika!" 'Haven't you ever heard of time and place?!'

"Can it Romeo, this isn't the time or place for that!" Thank you, Zoro.

"Excuse me," Sanji says irritably. "Love is like a hurricane, so back off- hey, look at me when I'm talking to you!" Sanji, you can argue/oggle later, we have more pressing issues!

"Nami, where's Usopp?" Zoro asks.

"With the fishes." Nami answers curtly.

"Dammit, cut the crap!" Zoro snaps, unsheathing his sword and charging her. Whoa, Zoro I thought we were all friends here!

Sanji places me on the ground and quickly stops Zoro with a kick that he narrowly dodges. "How pathetic…" Sanji mutters. "A swordsman striking a lady." I deflate with a sigh; here we go…

"Idiot, you're starting to piss me off!" Zoro retorts. Don't even bother Zoro, there's no reasoning with him when it comes to women.

Sanji chuckles, "Well, if someone had stopped me that easily, I'd be mad too." I would say that this wasn't the place to start a fight, but damn! I haven't heard Sanji give a comment that witty in a long time! Need some lotion for that burn, Zoro?

"Better watch your mouth." Zoro says dangerously.

"I'll say whatever I want bastard." Sanji bites back.

Okay, I think that's enough. I can practically see the storm clouds forming between them. I jump between them and look at them. "Pika pika, pikachu!" 'Guys, this isn't the time to be fighting!'

"Better listen to your pet; quit bickering and leave while you can." Nami says coldly. (Hey! Not a pet!) "You have no right to butt into this island's affairs; just take your ship and get out, you're nothing but eyesores."

My expression becomes both saddened and conflicted. "Pika…" 'Why Nami…? What's making you say these things?'

"Sleepy." We all turn to Luffy to find that he's fallen over and folded his arms behind his head. Really? Here and now? Well, I'm actually not that surprised. "I'm not gonna mess with this island's problems, they don't matter to me." Luffy says. "But I'm not leaving without you." A smile tugs at my face; this kid really didn't know when to quit.

"Fine! Then just go ahead and die!" Nami explodes and she runs off. I make to run after her but Sanji holds his foot in front of me. I look up at him and he shakes his head, taking a drag of his cigarette. I sigh and watch her go; I hope she doesn't get herself hurt even more.

Zoro sits right in the middle of the road near Luffy, proclaiming that he's staying put with Luffy. Fine with me; I'm not giving up on Nami that easily either. Sanji walks over to a tree and sits against the base in the shade. I follow and hop onto his lap and he pets my head. It's then that he finally notices the bandages around my middle. I had almost forgotten about them, they were doing such a good job at numbing my injury. "You sure you're okay Pika-chan?" he asks.

I nod; to be honest, I think my injury has just about healed up. It only feels like a small bruise compared to earlier. Sanji helps me unwrap the bandages and sure enough, I only have a tiny mark left to show for being kicked. Phew!

Just then, a thought hits me; what the heck is Sanji doing all the way out here? What about Kreig? What about the Baratie? "Pika, pikachu?" I ask, gesturing to the remains of the boat. Sanji looks confused and I inwardly groan. I point to the boat, to Luffy, and then to him. "Pika pi?" 'Why are you here?'

He's silent for a minute but finally puts the pieces together, "Oh, are you wondering why I'm here?" he asks. I nod fighting the urge to roll my eyes. I hate that I have to give vague signs of what I'm saying; it really gets on my nerves after a while. "Well, Luffy defeated Krieg and Ghin left along with all the other pirates; the restaurant, the cooks, and the geezer are fine." I deflate in relief; thank Arceus. "And I decided to join Luffy's crew after that."

I frown and tilt my head. What happened to 'I can't leave this place yet'?

"Pika?" 'Why?' I ask.

"Well, I'm not gonna find the All Blue by working in a restaurant." Sanji says. I roll my eyes; about time he realized that. That dream of his is totally more worth chasing than staying in a restaurant all his life. I look up at him as he pets my head, "And, I had to make sure you were okay."

Wait...he left... because he wanted to find me?

Sanji smiles at me, "Don't give me that look, you're my partner; did you think I was just gonna sit on my ass and hope that you would swim back to me?"

I stare at him in amazement as I feel that warm feeling inside me grow stronger, only this time, it's my trust for him. 'Sanji...'

"And don't worry; I gave Luffy a good kick across the restaurant for throwing you like that." he finishes with a chuckle. I knew that he cared about me, I care about him too after all, but leaving the Baratie for me? A smile grows on my face and I leap up, nuzzling Sanji's cheek.

Sanji laughs and gives me a little hug. "I'm glad I found you." he says.

"Pika!" 'I'm glad too.' I slide back onto his lap and look out onto the path; now we had to do something about Nami. Zoro bids farewell, to Johnny and the other guy who was with him and we all sit in silence.

"Well, what do you think?" Sanji suddenly asks, breaking the silence. "Why was she crying?" My ears twitch; crying?

Zoro looks at him slightly, "I don't know; was she?" he responds.

"She was in her heart." Sanji responds. I inwardly roll my eyes. I know that she's upset, I could tell just from her voice alone; but did he have to make it sound so cheesy?

Zoro scoffs, "If she was they were tears of guilt for killing Usopp." I frown; I'm seriously surprised that Zoro still thinks she was serious. She saved his life, so why would she not save Usopp?

"You really are dense…" Sanji mutters. "Do you seriously think Nami could've killed Usopp?" Zoro stays silent for a few moments. "What about you Pika-chan?" I look up at Sanji. "Do you think Nami killed him?"

I frown and shake my head firmly. "Pi." There was no way Nami was a killer. I knew that for a fact; I still had that feeling around her. That feeling of trust. I wouldn't still be feeling it if she was who she said she is.

Zoro gives me a look, probably annoyed that he was asking me for an opinion, but he shrugs, "Who knows." he says. "I always thought of her as a small-time crook who wouldn't hurt a fly, but maybe she just snapped."

I tilt my head; I'm not so sure, but the snapped part definitely makes sense based on her childhood and pretty much her entire life. I'm surprised she hasn't completely broken down yet.

"Wait, what'd you say?" Sanji asks. He suddenly lightly pushes me off his lap as he gets up abruptly. "She's not small-time!" I gape; are you kidding me?!

"Is she all you think about?!" Zoro demands, getting his sword ready to block Sanji's oncoming kick and there's a muffled thump followed by a squeak of pain (that's not me, mind you). My eyes widen I sweatdrop; when did Usopp get here? And how did he end up between Sanji and Zoro?

"He's alive!" Sanji says in shock.

"Well he was...I hope he still is…" Zoro says nervously. My ears droop as Usopp falls to the ground. I walk up to him and prod his face for some kind of response. Well, he's twitching, that's a good sign.

A few minutes later, Luffy is holding Usopp a frantic look on his face. "Usoooopp! Did Nami do this to you?!" he asks, shaking him. Uh, I don't think that's good for someone who's face just got smashed.

"Sorry," Sanji says, "Zoro and I did that." I frown at him from my perch on his shoulder; that's not really something you should be smiling about.

"No, you did!" Zoro retorts.

"Luffy…" I look down as Usopp finally wakes up. "You're here…"

Luffy grins, "Yep, sure am!"

"I'm here too; hi there!" Sanji chimes in.

I quickly hide behind Sanji's head as Usopp shoots to his feet, "One of these day's I'll kill you!" he growls, glaring at Sanji. This guy could be pretty scary when he was mad.

"Oh good, you just made a full recovery!" Sanji says, unfazed by his anger. That gives me the courage to peek out from my hiding place.

"Shut up!" Usopp yells.

"Oh and by the way, we heard that Nami killed you." Zoro brings up casually.

"Stupid Johnny; he was just lying the whole time!" Luffy exclaims. Well that, or he needs to get his sunglasses checked.

Usopp looks at the ground. "Well, in a way...it is the truth." he says seriously. "But I'm alive...because she saved my life…" We all listen as he explains how Nami made to stab him but stabbed her hand instead to fool Arlong.

I could feel Sanji tense up at the explanation; hands are a precious treasure to him, especially his own. Seeing someone else damage their hands probably gives him some terrifying images of what could happen to his hands if he's not careful.

"She must have some hidden motive for hanging around a bunch of Fishmen." Usopp says after he's done.

"So now what?" Zoro asks, "We destroy Arlong Park?"

My ears droop. "Pika…" Uh, I wouldn't go that far just yet...not that I would mind tearing that place to the ground...

Usopp waves his hands frantically, "Whoa, don't you think we should find out what's up with Nami?"

"It doesn't matter." A voice says. We all turn to see a lady with blue hair standing before us. "No matter what you do, Arlong's rule won't come to an end."

"Who's that?" Luffy asks. I tilt my head; I have a feeling I caught a glimpse of her nearby when I was sitting with Nami at Bellemere's grave. Or maybe I was just seeing things.

"Nami's big sister." Usopp answers. Oh, that makes sense; I guess I did see her. I give Sanji's head a small smack with my tail when hearts start appearing in his eyes again; seriously Sanji...time and place.

Nami's sister offers to tell us about what's going on with Nami, hoping it will get us to leave but I inwardly snort. I know it will only give them even more motivation to stay. Anyone who wouldn't stay behind after hearing it has no heart.

"I'll pass." Luffy begins to walk off. "I don't care about her past." Um, okay?

"Where are you going?" Sanji asks.

"For a walk." Luffy answers simply. My ears perk up and I jump off Sanji's shoulder, trotting after him. I give Sanji a knowing look along with a nod and his confused face becomes calm again. I want to go find Nami, and Luffy would probably be able to find her. I guess after reading my expressions for a few months, Sanji was pretty used to it. But that didn't mean I always got my point across. If only we could talk directly…

I walk next to Luffy and he doesn't seem to mind me tagging along. I look up at him. "Pika?"

He glances down at me. "Nami's gotta be around here somewhere." he says. I can't tell if it's to himself or to me but I feel a bit relieved anyway. We pass by a few more of those fish guys but they don't give us any trouble. I have to keep sparks from flying from my cheeks; these were the guys who had been hurting Nami all these years…

We enter the village just as a guy wearing a hat with a pinwheel (what…?) is leading a bunch of Marines through the village. Luffy and I turn to them once they pass us.

"A pinwheel…?" Luffy asks softly. Yeah, I don't know either man. "That's so cool!"

I nearly fall over at the sudden exclamation. This kid was really a piece of work. At least he's reliable in a fight. We walk a little more until we stop under a palm tree. Luffy leans against it and I just sit next to him, our thoughts flying around.

I wonder how the Baratie's doing? I have to remember to ask Sanji for more details on how the fight went, since I missed out on the end of it. Shame too, I really wanted to rain lightning on that Kreig guy… Well, I was able to smash that weird Pearl Guy to pieces so I guess that's something.

After a few minutes, we see a group of people gathering around a few feet in front of us. Luffy and I light up; Nami's with them! My smile fades as my ears pick up the conversation they're having.

Nami's sister shot...

Arlong working with the Marines...

all of Nami's money for the village stolen...

My smile fades as Luffy and I walk up to them. I have to remind myself that Luffy didn't hear what they were saying to keep from shocking him when he walks up to Nami with a big smile on his face. "Hey Nami!" He greets. "Need help with anything?"

I flinch and step back in fear as Nami turns around and glares at Luffy. "Why are you still here?" she grabs the front of his vest. "Stay out of my business and just get off our island!" she screams. She throws him aside and runs off.

"Pika!" 'Nami, wait!' I take off after her, staying right on her heels. The aura she's giving off is really scaring me. Anger. Betrayal. Fear. Hysteria. It was all boiling inside her and reaching a critical point. She was at the end of her rope! She needed help! "Pika pi!" I call.

"Stay away!" she yells, not looking back at me. I frown slightly but I don't stop; if I leave her alone now, who knows what will happen! Arlong Park comes into view and I quickly skid to a stop as she enters, slowing to a walk. I quickly hide behind the door and peek out.

Nami storms up to Arlong, "That Marine maggot you sent stole every last berry I had!" she yells. I can practically feel her glare. She grabs the front of Arlong's shirt. "What happened to all that crap about dying before you'd ever break a promise when it comes to money?!"

Arlong doesn't even flinch. "Refresh my memory, did I break a promise?" he asks, almost too gleefully.

"Don't play dumb with me! I know you-" Nami's cut off as Arlong's giant webbed hand grabs her face, covering her mouth. It takes everything for me not to bolt out of there as I see his glare from where I'm hiding.

"Tell me…" he says dangerously. "When exactly did I break that promise?" I let out a low growl as Arlong and all the other fish guys start laughing. I can see tears dripping onto the ground and my anger finally peaks. I've had it with these stupid sardines! But just as I step forward…

"Are you gonna run out on me?" Arlong asks. "Because if you do I'll kill everyone in that little village of yours. Understand?" I freeze in my tracks. That bastard! I step back, sparks flying from my cheeks; if I stepped in now I would just make things worse for Nami and everyone on this island.

Nami wrenches herself out of his grasp and runs out of Arlong Park; I quickly follow. It's taking everything I have to keep up with her; running from kids is one thing but Nami is nearly an adult! Her fear is building up, overriding her anger for now; it's so much fear that even I'm starting to feel scared.

In no time, we arrive back at the village; all the people are outside and...are they carrying weapons? Are they...planning a rebellion? I nearly slam into Nami's legs as she slows to a walk. "Wait everyone!" I look up at her; she's plastered a smile on her face and acting like nothing's wrong.

Nami…

She starts talking about how she can get the money back and how it's not that much and how she'll be fine and...oh Arceus Nami, please just stop! You don't deserve to have this much pressure on your shoulders, you don't have to carry this alone!

The guy with the pinwheel hat suddenly steps forward and wraps one arm around Nami in a hug. "You've done enough. You've fought very well." he says softly. "Set yourself free from this village." He lets her go and Nami's sister steps up.

"Please Nami; you have great talent and you have a dream! Just leave!" she says.

"No!" Nami yells. "I won't let you go! I'm not letting those monster hurt anyone else!" she pulls out a dagger, pointing it at the villagers.

I slowly walk up and place my paw on her leg, "Pika…" She looks down at me and I slowly shake my head. She can't fight this battle alone anymore, and even if she could, it wouldn't stop these people.

The pinwheel guy pulls out his own sword. "Let's get them!" he yells. "We may die, but we will give them hell!" The villagers cheers and run past us, waving their weapons. I can't help but close my eyes as they pass us; if they go through with this, I can already tell that hardly any will come back.

Nami drops her dagger and falls to her knees, tears streaming down her cheeks. I go up beside her; her face is completely blank, as if her mind and heart had just snapped in half together. She grits her teeth and her eyes fall on her tattoo. She grips it, her nails digging into her bare skin. Her anger is finally taking over. "Arlong…" she mutters softly. "Arlong…"

My eyes widen as she picks up her dagger starts stabbing her arm. "Pika!"

"Arlong! Arlong! ARLONG!" she screams, getting louder and louder as blood pours from her arm.

I run over and grab the arm holding the dagger. "Pika pika!" 'Nami, stop!'

She doesn't respond and throws me off with an angry scream, but before she can stab herself again, someone grabs her wrist.

It's Luffy.

"I thought I told you to leave." Nami says lowly.

"Yep, you sure did." Luffy answers simply.

Nami's fingers dig into the dirt road. "This has nothing to do with you...so just leave!" She begins flinging dirt back at Luffy, halfheartedly yelling for him to leave.

I can't take this anymore. I jump forward into her lap and cling to her, nuzzling my face in her shirt in a kind of hug. I look up at her, my face pleading. 'Please Nami, you've done enough...stop fighting it.'

She looks down at me, tears still flowing down her face. She places a hand over her mouth to repress her sobs that she had held back for so long. "Luffy…" she whimpers, her helplessness and despair finally showing through. "...help me…"

Luffy silently takes his straw hat off and places it on her head. "Of course." he says dangerously but sincerely. He takes a few steps back and takes a deep breath. "HE'S GONNA PAY!"

I grin; that's exactly what I wanted to hear. I look around with Nami in amazement as Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji are all around us, most likely having seen the whole thing. I look up at Nami and give her a smile and a firm nod. There was no need to worry now. I quickly catch up to Luffy and the others.

"Let's go." Luffy orders.

Zoro, Usopp and Sanji all respond, ready for anything. "Right."

"Pika!" I chime in. I walk between Luffy and Sanji, my adrenaline and anger coursing through my body. I was ready for anything. I had a lot of electricity building up inside me and I was itching to let it all out. We weren't going to let these bastards hurt Nami anymore.

We arrive at Arlong Park, the villagers part to let us through, and Luffy punches the door down. "Now, which one of you is Arlong?"

I've always found it fascinating that Pokémon almost have a sixth sense when it comes to intense humans emotions around those they care about. It's almost like they can connect mentally to humans if they want!

Review and let's get this epic battle started!