12 Chapter 12: You'll Always Be My Friend

OVER 50 REVIEWS AND OVER 60 FAV/FOLLOWS?! *rolls on floor squealing* YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST!

I've never seen Nami look so intense. That look in her eyes was completely different from when I last saw her; she wasn't backing down this time. Arlong laughs, "Haven't you learned your lesson by now? You've tried to kill me the past eight years and never succeeded; humans can't kill me."

Arceus I wish this guy would quit going on about the difference in species, it makes me want to kill him even more. "I won't kill you Nami," Arlong continues, "But you must stay here as our surveyor...forever." I look at Nami and see her eyes widen, growing desperate and fearful. "If you refuse, I'll kill every pathetic life on this island." I turn back to Arlong abruptly. "But if you come I'll let the villagers live...but..." I flop to the ground as he picks Sanji up by the back of his shirt, "I'm afraid I can't let these pests live." Sanji barely moves; he's just about passed out from lack of air.

I growl and leap towards him. "Pika!" 'Don't touch him you bastard!'

My tail becomes iron again and this time I manage to hit Arlong's arm. He drops Sanji, but still doesn't flinch. I squeal as he grabs me in his massive hand. "It's your choice Nami." Sparks fly from my cheeks as I squirm in Arlong's grasp. He tightens his grip around me, stopping me from shocking him again.

I look at Nami and I can see the conflict burning in her eyes. That choice was beyond unfair! How could he possibly make her choose between her village and her friends? My eyes widen when Nami turns and faces the villagers. "Alright everyone! We'll fight to the death!" she proclaims.

I smile as the villagers cheer loudly. My ears suddenly twitch and I turn just as a giant spout of water shoots into the air. My smile widens as I pick up Luffy gasping for breath and talking to Pinwheel and Nami's sister; guess whose back?

I look at Arlong and notice that he's distracted, his grip around me a bit loose. I quickly give him one more shock, making him drop me. It did next to nothing again, but I was free so who cares? I take a few deep breaths to get my air back and approach Sanji as he opens his bloodshot eyes. "About time, eh Pika-chan?" he asks, glancing over to where Luffy is.

I nod happily. Now this fight is as good as ours. "Took him long enough...idiot." Zoro grumbles as he slowly gets up. I look back to Nami and the crowd and brighten as someone appears in the hole in the wall. Usopp's okay too! He even beat the guy who was chasing him! Things were finally starting to look up again!

My ears twitch again and I look behind Arlong. Oh geez, octopus is waking up. Not on my watch. I send a small but strong lightning bolt towards him and that seems to put him down. We don't need anymore interference, thank you.

Just then, two rubber hands grab the debris, launching Luffy into the air towards Arlong. "I'M BACK!" he yells with a loud laugh. He stretches his head back, "Gum Gum...Bell!" His head snaps forward, nailing Arlong's with a dong following up with nailing him with his leg making him slide a few feet.

Sanji and I make our way away from the fight as Luffy rains rubber fists on Arlong. I was about to go to Zoro to see if he needed help, but he was already walking as if nothing happened. Sanji sits, leaning against the wall near the arch where I had hid Luffy before and I sit on his lap. He tries to light a match, but they're still damp from that water battle earlier.

"Well, this is it, Pika-chan." I look up at Sanji as he flicks his match into the air. "If he loses, then we all die."

I frown at him. "Pika…" 'You sound so cool with it…'

But honestly, I'm not that worried. If Luffy could take down Kreig, then he could take down Arlong, especially with Nami's freedom on the line. Luffy starts stretching, getting ready for the real deal and Arlong stands up. "Tell me, do you know what the difference between you and me is?" he asks Luffy. Ooh, that's a tough one, does he get to phone a friend?

"The nose?" Luffy asks. "The jaw? Oh, the webbing!"

"Species!" Arlong roars. I roll my eyes; what is with this guy and species? It was really getting on my nerves. I flinch as Arlong starts snapping at Luffy like an angry dog. Luffy dodges them and Arlong eventually bites a pillar, but the stone simply breaks under the strength of his teeth. Luffy scrambles away and Arlong turns to him. "I'll show you the real difference between you and I." he says.

Luffy grins, "Go ahead; I'm not losing to you." he says. "Cause I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!" I tilt my head in confusion. King?

Arlong laughs and picks up a small piece of debris. "Please, a puny human like you could never conquer the Grand Line; you can't even crush stone with your jaws."

"He's right." Sanji says.

"Pi?"

"With teeth like that it wouldn't just leave bite marks...it'll snap right through your flesh and your bones like a butcher."

I shudder, imagining Luffy getting a huge piece of himself bitten out of him, and smack Sanji lightly with my tail. "Pika!"

He smirks at me, "What, too graphic for you?"

I smack him again. 'Yes! Knock it off!'

We watch as Luffy dodges another bite and picks up some fallen swords. "Huh? Luffy's a swordsman?" Sanji asks.

My ears droop as Luffy begins flailing the swords at Arlong. "Pika pi…" 'I don't think so...'

I glance at Zoro who's cringing at his horrible technique; maybe some lessons were in order. Arlong eventually flicks one sword away with his nose and bites through the second, but Luffy quickly punches him in the jaw making his fangs shatter. Nice one!

Luffy stands up straight, "You're right, I don't have a clue how to use a sword." he says. "I'm a terrible sailor...I can't cook...I can't lie...and I can't even shoot lightning."

I sweatdrop; what do you mean 'can't even'? It's not some parlor trick you can pick up you know…

"Without my friends I would've been dead a long time ago!" Luffy yells and I perk up. He considered me his friend too? I feel the trust grow inside me again, feeling stronger. First Sanji, then Nami, and now Luffy? Actually, now that I think about it, I felt it around Zoro too, when we were running through the forest. I even felt it when Usopp picked me up and helped heal me.

What is it about these guys that makes me feel so warm inside? Why them and no one else? Do my memories have something to do with it? I close my eyes as brief flashes of figures both big and small speed through my mind; Arceus, I wish I could remember!

"Wha…!" I open my eyes at Luffy's yell. "He's got new teeth!" I look at Arlong and my eyes widen; his old broken teeth had fallen out and new ones now took their place.

"Whenever the old ones fall out, they grow back even stronger!" Arlong explains. "You humans could never attain this kind of strength!" Oh my Arceus, would you shut up about the species thing already? I'm a yellow mouse who hangs around humans all the time and you don't hear me complaining!

Then as if to prove his point, Arlong pulls out his new teeth and then pulls out the new ones that grow back! "Chuuuu…" I whine, squirming in my spot. That's painful just to look at!

"Geez, if you're this squeamish you won't last a day on the Grand Line." Sanji comments.

"Pikachu!" 'I didn't ask for your opinion!'

Arlong puts his teeth in both his hands, making two extra mouths of sharp teeth and goes at Luffy. Luffy tried to dodge but he's too fast and quickly corners him. I cover my eyes as Arlong begins chomping his extra teeth all over Luffy.

"Arlong please…" My ears perk up at the weak voice and I dare to look. "It hurts…" I let out a sigh of relief; Luffy used a fish guy as a shield. Thank Arceus, I thought he was done for!

"Stand still rubber man!" Arlong yells.

Luffy eyes the teeth and puts a hand on his chin. "That's an interesting idea…" he says to himself.

"Did he come up with a plan?" Sanji wonders.

"Pika…" I answer with a shrug; we'll have to wait and see. Luffy dodges the teeth again and gives Arlong a swift kick to the jaw. Uh, Luffy, I thought we established that taking out his teeth is a bad idea…

Arlong gets up, his new teeth already grown in and Luffy turns to him. "Look! Now I have sharp teeth!" Luffy exclaims, the newly fallen teeth in his own mouth.

...I...I've got nothing...what can I even say to that…?

Now Arlong's really mad. Luffy goes into another round of dodging the teeth but eventually, one of his hand jaws gets Luffy right on the side. Luckily, Luffy's able to bite him right back. "Now we're even!" Luffy says with a smirk. Arlong rips the teeth out of his neck where Luffy bit him and lunges at him with his jaws this time, but Luffy takes the hit with his arm.

I cringe as he screams in pain but he grabs Arlong's head. He raises his leg and slams Arlong's head into the ground. They both lie there for a few minutes until Arlong gets up and jumps into the pool. Luffy gets up a few moments later and rips the jaws out of his side. He looks around, "Hey, where'd he go?" he wonders.

"Luffy, the sea!" Nami yells. We watch as Arlong swims around, his dorsal fin sticking out for a few minutes before going under fully.

"Crap, this isn't good…" Sanji mutters. "His abilities double in strength underwater." Yeah, you know that better than anybody, right Sanji?

I frown at the water, feeling his movements with my instincts. He's diving deeper and slowing down; what is he doing? My ears twitch and my eyes widen as I pick up his position. 'Shit! He's gonna-'

"Hey! Pika-chan, come back!" I bolt towards Luffy at top speed and slam right into his side. We both fall to the ground as Arlong shoots out of the water like a harpoon and flies right into the building, barely missing us. I breathe heavily as I'm clutching Luffy's vest like a lifeline. That was too close!

Luffy sits up and looks at the hole Arlong made. "Man! That was a close one! I would've died!" Yeah no shit, genius!

"I'm impressed that you could dodge that." We both look up to see Arlong glaring down at us. "But the longer you evade your death, the more painful it will be!" Both our eyes widen as Arlong dives right towards us.

Luffy grabs me and flips out of the way just in time. We both watch in fear as he slams into the ground without even flinching. Just how strong was that freaking nose of his? My ears suddenly twitch again. "Pika pi!" I exclaim pointing towards the smoke.

"Shark Dive!"

Luffy flips out of the way still holding me; he actually understood my signal! Just as we're about to land, my ears twitch again. "Pika!" I point behind us. He's moving again!

Luffy lands and barely manages to jump, Arlong's nose grazing his vest. Luffy and I land on the concrete and Arlong dives into the water again. Great, another water attack.

"Luffy hide!" Usopp yells. "He went into the water again!"

Luffy grits his teeth, "I'm not hiding." he says.

"Don't be stupid!" Sanji yells. "Get out of there before you both become targets!" He looks like he's trying to get up but I shoot him a glare. 'Don't even think about it.' Sanji was still hurt, he would just get himself killed.

"I said I'm not going anywhere!" Luffy yells. He then looks at me, "Hey, you can tell when he's coming, right?" he asks, completely serious. I nod, a questioning look on my face. Luffy smirks, "Then let's catch that fish!"

I grin, catching onto his plan. "Pika!" I jump onto him, attaching myself to the back of his head. My chin rests on the top of his head and my ears stick straight up, my instincts on high alert. Luffy grabs the fingers on his right hand and we wait. After a few seconds, my ears twitch; he's coming, and he's coming in fast! "Pika!" I cry, gripping his hair.

"Alright! Gum Gum…" Luffy yells, stretching his fingers. "...Shield!" Arlong shoots out of the water and his face slams right into Luffy's fingers. Luffy grins as the nose stops mere inches from his face, his fingers having absorbed the impact of the attack. Maybe this kid was smarter than I gave him credit for.

Luffy bounces into the air from the rebound and lands on the upper wall of the tower face first, me clinging to the back of his vest. "Ha! That attack won't work now!" Luffy laughs. I smile but my ears twitch again.

"Shark…"

"Huh?" Luffy's smile fades.

Man, this guy didn't know when to quit! "Pika pi!" I yell, pointing below us.

"...Dive!"

"Crap!" Luffy kicks off the wall just in time as Arlong bursts through the roof below us. "Bastard! That was a cheap shot!" Luffy yells. Arlong dives towards us again and Luffy weaves his fingers behind his head. "Hey, gimme some lightning!" he yells.

My eyes widen as I realize he's talking to me; now?! But he'll shock himsel- oh yeah, made of rubber, almost forgot. I release my electricity, surrounding Luffy's entire body with lightning. "Gum Gum...Electric Net!" he yells, stretching his fingers towards Arlong. Luffy flips behind Arlong in the air, catching him in his net of fingers and electrocuting him in the process.

"Keep it coming Pika-chan!" Luffy yells as his fingers retract. I obey and tighten my grip on his vest as Luffy starts to flip rapidly. "Now Gum Gum...Lightning Spear!" His feet slam Arlong right into the ground, giving him plenty of lightning along with it. Everyone cheers as we fall down towards Arlong. He's smoking from my lightning and looks pretty worn out.

Luffy and I watch him with anticipation and his eyes open. They're bloodshot and angry; now he's really mad! "You wretched human!" Arlong roars, grabbing Luffy by the hair. We both yell as Arlong begins spinning up around and around until he throws us right towards the tower. I close my eyes for impact when I feel something rubbery wrap around me, cushioning the blow as we crash into the tower.

"Luffy!"

"Pika-chan!"

I feel Luffy sit up and I feel myself get unwrapped. I'm still on the back of Luffy's vest and I spy his arms retracting. Now I see; he wrapped his arms around himself and me in turn, making a rubber shield so I wouldn't get hurt.

"Boy, he's really mad now." Luffy says as I peek over his shoulder. Arlong lunges at us and Luffy flips out of the way just in time. Arlong seems to grab something behind the wall and pulls a giant saw-like sword out. Oh Arceus, this isn't good!

Luffy suddenly grabs me by the scruff, plucking me off his back. "Thanks; I'll take it from here." he says to me with a grin.

What…?

"Hey Sanji! Catch!"

Oh no… nononononono-

I squeal as he throws me into the air. 'Dammit, why does he always have to throw me!' I tumble through the air, closing my eyes until I feel familiar arms catch me safely.

"Dammit Luffy, throw Pika-chan like that again and I'll kick your ass!" Sanji yells. I sigh in relief; at least he didn't throw me out to sea this time...

I look back towards the fight to see that they've disappeared inside the top of the tower. I tilt my head as it suddenly goes quiet; that's odd. I feel myself growing anxious as the silence continues for a few more moments; what is going on up there?

We all flinch when something flies out of the wall. "A desk…?" Sanji asks.

My ears perk up and I glance at Nami. She's staring at the desk with wide eyes. I remember what she told me, about how Arlong would force her to continuously draw maps and sea charts without rest. That must've been the desk where she worked...and Luffy had just thrown it out.

Another crash is heard and hundreds of maps and sea charts fly out, ripped and sliced. I slowly smile as they fall into the pool, ruined beyond repair; Luffy was destroying all the reminders of being Arlong's prisoner. Nami brings her hand to her mouth as tears start falling again and I smile sadly at her. At this point, I knew, everything was gonna be alright.

We all watch with wide eyes as Luffy's foot stretches through the top of the tower before slamming down with a loud crash. We all gape as the tower cracks and completely collapses, creating a huge gust of wind. Sanji holds me close and covers me as best he can, curling against the wall as dust and debris fly everywhere, leaving a giant pillar of smoke behind. We both open our eyes seeing the destruction.

"Luffy…" Sanji says softly.

"Pika…" I agree; I hope he's okay.

I sigh in relief as the smoke clears revealing Luffy standing over the fallen Arlong. He takes a deep breath, "NAMI!" he yells. "YOU'LL ALWAYS BE MY FRIEND!"

More tears start to fall as Nami slowly nods with a smile, "Yeah…" Finally, tears of joy; she deserves them.

I climb onto Sanji's shoulder and raise my paw happily. "Pika pika!" I cheer and Sanji gives me a scratch behind the ears. The crowd erupts into happy cheers as the clouds in the sky clear up.

It was finally over.

I smile from my perch on Sanji's shoulder as the villagers throw Luffy into the air over and over, chanting and cheering his name. "You really had us going for a while Luffy." Sanji says with a smile, walking towards the crowd. "Start dealing with the bad guy sooner next time, idiot." He then looks at me, "And make sure to warn me the next time you charge into a fight like that, I almost had a heart attack."

I feel a bit guilty for making him worry again, but he's still smiling; I can tell he's proud of me. I nuzzle his cheek and he places his hand on the side of my head. We watch as Nami makes her way through the crowd as they accidently drop Luffy. Nami places the straw hat back on his head and they give each other a high five. She's finally smiling.

"Hold it right there!"

Everyone stops and we turn to see a group of Marines standing before us. Wait, weren't these the guys who were working with Arlong? And why is the leader dressed like some deranged mouse? I've looked at this guy for only five seconds and he's already pissing me off!

He comes in all high and mighty and announces that he's taking all the money and treasure that Arlong stole over the years from the village. Yeah, like we'd ever let that happen! The mouse Marine lets out a yell as Zoro appears behind him, grabbing the back of his shirt.

"Trying to rain on these people's parade?" Zoro asks dangerously. "Now that's just rude." He then looks at me. "Hey, rodent!"

I look at him in confusion. "Pi?"

To my surprise, he gives me a smirk. "How about some target practice?"

My face slowly melts into a grin as I nod and leap into the air from Sanji's shoulder. "Everyone stand clear!" Sanji announces.

I charge up the biggest rage fueled lightningbolt I can muster and let hell rain upon the Marines. They all fall over, burnt to a crisp and I land with a triumphant grin. "Pika pikachu!" 'That's for stealing from Nami you jerks!'

Surprisingly, Mouse Marine is still conscious, muttering to himself and to us. "He's still talking?" Sanji asks, annoyed. Huh, guess I didn't shock him hard enough.

Nami walks up to him, her staff in hand. "This is for shooting Nojiko and ravaging Bellemere's tangerine orchard." Nami gives a hard hit with her staff, so hard that he skids across the pool. Alright, go Nami!

"Thanks Nami; that felt good!" Nojiko comments.

"A thousand more and we'll call it even!" Pinwheel guy yells.

Mouse Marine gets out of the water and Nami grabs his whiskers, telling him to help rebuild the town and give back all the money. Of course, Mouse Marine agrees; how can you say no to Nami? He starts swimming away and yells out to us. "I'll get you, you pirates! Mark my words Luffy, major things are gonna happen cause you've made me angry!"

I jump back on Sanji's shoulder as we all frown at him. "Major things are gonna happen?" Sanji asks.

"Pika pi?" 'Can I shock him again?'

"How does he know I'm gonna be King of the Pirates?" Luffy asks.

"That's not what he meant!" Zoro retorts.

"Wait, does this mean we're in big trouble now or what?" Usopp demands.

Ah, who cares? Arlong's dead, the island's free, we shouldn't be worrying! The villagers all run off to tell the rest of the island that Arlong Park has fallen and I jump down from Sanji's shoulder. Luffy pokes Zoro's chest wound making him cringe and everyone laughs, including me.

These guys were a strange bunch...but they were definitely the greatest humans I'd ever met.

Woo-hoo! Battle complete! Now we just have to wrap this baby up and get moving to the next arc!

Thank you guys so much for your reviews and I hope to see more of your loving words in the future!