DOUBTS

After taking almost an hour to calm Hancock down, Luffy sat on a boulder and was looking down at her, who had a stone in her hand.

"So, what am I supposed to do now?"

He asked.

"I'm going to infuse Haki into this rock, and then throw it at you. I want you to cover that boulder you're sitting on with Armament Haki as well."

"Why am I doing this again?"

"I already explained this to you. Before I can properly teach you, I must test how strong you're Haki is."

Luffy used his finger to scratch the side of his face, with a confused expression.

"But wouldn't it be better for me to use Haki on myself, and then you throw the rock?"

"No!"

"Woah!"

Hancock's sudden shout knocked Luffy off the boulder. He quickly got up and looked at her.

"What would I do if my Haki is stronger and I end up hurting you?!"

She looked really upset.

"It's alright if you hurt me, you know. Rayleigh did it all the time."

"What?!"

"Yeah. I got hit in the head every day, I almost drown several times, I was buried alive at least twice, and I almost got eaten countless times....Wait, I did get eaten once, but I escaped before I was digested."

"Curse that Rayleigh! Even though, he said that he would keep you safe!"

Hancock growled. Surely somewhere in the world Rayleigh was feeling a cold chill down his spine.

"But, thanks to all that I've gotten stronger. So, I'm grateful for all of it."

Luffy wore a big and innocent smile on his face. It was the same smile that thawed Hancock's ice-cold heart.

"W-Well, if your grateful then I will leave it at that....."

Even the furious Hancock was no match for that warm smile.

"So, hit me with the rock. There's no need to worry. I'm tougher than I look!"

Luffy puffed out his chest as he declared that.

Hancock on the other hand-

'So manly! Luffy is so manly! I was wrong! Yes, you're allowed to hurt the ones you love if it's for their own good! Yes, it's called Tough Love! I'm not hurting him out of spite, I'm doing this to make him stronger!"

She resolved herself.

"Ok, I'll do it!"

Luffy smiled and said "Ok!".

Hancock lifted the rock and positioned herself to throw it. Luffy covered himself with Haki and readied for impact.

"Heh!"

Hancock threw the rock as hard as she could and it shattered on Luffy's skin.

"Wow. Your Haki is already this strong."

Hancock was genuinely impressed. She had thrown the rock with such force that it could easily cut through a tree. But Luffy's body had withstood it with relative ease.

"So, what do you think amazing, right?! If it was a year and a half ago that would've really hurt!"

Luffy energetically boosted the results of his training.

"..... It's shocking how much stronger you became in such a short time. I don't think that you need my help."

Hancock looked as if she was sulking as she spoke.

"What's wrong?"

And Luffy surprisingly picked up on that. But, Hancock hesitated to answer.

"...I'm just a little sad that I can't be of much help to you when you need it the most. And, here I am wasting your time and being a burden to you..."

"......."

Luffy didn't respond, he just looked at her emotionlessly.

"...As I thought, maybe I shouldn't have come to the island....."

Hancock started to sulk even more as she held her head down.

She could hear Luffy walking toward her. She squeezed her eyes shut and started to tremble as she glimpsed his feet.

'Here it is. He's going to tell me to get lost!"

Hancock's mind began to roam once again, but this time it wasn't something good.

"Luff-"

"Silence! Don't call my name out of that filthy mouth of yours!"

Hancock and handsome Luffy were standing face to face. But, Handsome Luffy didn't have the same gentle expression he would always have. He was furious and disgusted.

"You dare trick me and wasted my valuable time for your own self-gain?"

"It isn't like that-!"

"Didn't I tell you to shut your mouth?"

Hancock tried to defend herself, but Handsome Luffy shut her down with a low and intimidating tone.

"No matter what you say, it doesn't change the fact that you betrayed my trust."

"......"

Hancock's body trembled with every word he spoke. She reflexively looked down at the ground as she held her shoulders.

".....I guess I should have never expected better from a former pet."

".......Eh?"

Those words caused Hancock to look up at Handsome Luffy. Her eyes met with his, but the only thing she could see is the look of disgust and repulsion. Those eyes caused her heart to ache.

"You're nothing but a former slave, a former toy of the Celestial Dragons, and yet you dare to deceive me."

"W-Wait Luffy!"

"I don't want to hear the words of a worthless slave."

Handsome Luffy turned his back to Hancock and slowly walked away.

"Lu-Luffy!"

Hancock stretched her hands towards him.

"Bye, False Empress. Someone like you should disappear from the world."

"L.....Lu.....Luffy....."

She brought her hand back to her side and watched his back with dead eyes.

".....I.....I thought.....you of all persons would be the last person to say something like that to me...."

Hancock was alone in the darkest. It wasn't long before tears fell from her eyes.

"....Please.....Don't leave.....Please don't leave me alone.....I'm scared....Luffy."

"Don't leave....."

*Chop*

"Ow!......Eh?"

Hancock who was being devoured alive by her thoughts was brought back to reality when she felt a sudden pain from the top of her head. She slowly looked up and saw a furious Luffy glaring at her. But something was different from the one she just imagined.

"Why do you keep saying stuff like that?!"

"Eh?"

"I've already told you that you're someone important to me, but you keep saying negative stuff like that! What are you, Usopp?!"

Hancock was genuinely confused by what Luffy said. It wasn't that she didn't know who the name belong to, it was what Luffy was angry about. She was absolutely sure that he was going to tell her to leave or get angry at her for being useless.

*Chop*

"Why are you crying?!"

Luffy shouted after karate chopping Hancock's head for a second time.

"Listen, Hancock! I'm going to say this for the last time!"

Luffy took a breath so deep that his chest grew four times in size. And then-

"BOA HANCOCK! YOU ARE IMPORTANT TO ME, AND I OWE YOU A LOT! SO, IF YOU DON'T STOP CRYING I'M GOING TO HIT YOU FOR REAL!"

Luffy's shout was so loud his voice reached every living thing on the island.

Hancock's body was trembling but for a whole other reason.

"L-Luffy....!"

She sounded as if she was squealing as she muttered his name.

Luffy who saw that she was crying for a different reason, walked up to her and suddenly hugged her.

"L-L-L-L-Lu-Lu-Luffy?!"

"Makino once told me that I should do everything I can to stop a girl from crying. She said, one way was to make them hold on to my most prized possession to show that I trust them. But I left my hat on the other side of the island. She said another way was to get rid of whatever was causing them grief. And if that didn't work, I should do this."

"......."

Hancock stopped fidgeting and relaxed her body in Luffy's arms.

"You know, Hancock. I may have already told you this, but I was a bit lonely before you came. I'm not lonely anymore with you here."

Luffy looked Hancock in the eyes and put on the purest smile Hancock has ever seen.

"Thank you Hancock for visiting me. It made me really happy."

Those words blew away all of Hancock's inner struggles.

Just to state, Hancock was a woman who wasn't above using deception to achieve her goals. In fact, you could say that she's a pretty ruthless woman. But it was a different case when she was in front of Luffy. A single lie would eat away at her heart forever, even if she herself didn't know it. And there's also the fear of Luffy secretly being disgusted by the fact that she's a former slave. Even though, she knows he's not that type of person, the fear still remained lodged in her heart.

To the eyes of many, Boa Hancock was a strong woman, no a strong person. But even the strongest person has their fears and doubts, so Hancock is no exception. However, Luffy just got rid of all the fears she hid away from everyone around her. And all he did was smile and accept her.

She knows she wasn't the first woman Luffy accepted and she definitely won't be the last. But, she couldn't help feeling happy. She couldn't help falling more in love with him.

".....Luffy....I'm sorry.....I'm sorry for ever doubting you...Please forgive me..."

"What's there to forgive? You didn't do anything wrong."

He continued to smile at Hancock while she tried her best to stop her tears.

"Let's get back to training. Right, Teacher?"

"No, not yet I want to stay like this a bit longer."

"Eh?"

Hancock hugged the confused Luffy as tightly as she could.

"Eh? Hancock?"

"I like this. I'm staying like this forever."

Hancock spoke as if purring. On the other hand Luffy-

"Makino said that this might happen, but I didn't believe it actually would. Ow! Ow! Ow!"

Hancock in her excited state was still using Haki, so Luffy was feeling the full effect of her powerful hug.

Every bone-crushing second.

"Hancock that hurts- Eh?"

Luffy suddenly felt a presence approaching him and Hancock at an incredible pace.

"Is this?"

Before Luffy could guess what it was, it quickly showed itself.

"ROAR!"

A giant monster came bursting from outside the forest and stood in front of Luffy and Hancock.

"It's Boss C!"

Luffy shouted the simple name he gave the monster.

It was four-legged, had brown fur, and a serpent's tail and face. It looked like the cross between a giant lion and a giant snake. The venom that fell from its mouth caused the ground to erode.

"Damn it! Hancock!"

Luffy used one of his arms and wrapped it around Hancock.

"Eh? Luffy? what are you- EHHHHHHH?! When did that get here?!"

Hancock who was lost in her own dream world finally noticed the type of situation she was in.

"There's no time to explain. We can't run from this one, it's too fast! But, I'm going to change locations to more open space! Rayleigh said that it's best to fight in a space I'm more comfortable with!"

Luffy who wasted no time using his Gear Second, sped off as fast as he could. Just like he said, he was changing locations. He spoke to Hancock as he moved from tree to tree.

"Listen, Hancock! That thing is really strong, and it's going to take everything I have to beat it!"

"So, you're saying you won't be able to protect me? Don't worry, I can protect myself! I'll show that monster what happens to those who interrupt our love time!"

Hancock declared loudly.

They were close to an open area where the battle would take place. The monster was chasing them at an unimaginable speed.

"Hancock!"

"Yes!"

Luffy and Hancock burst through the bushes. Luffy had released Hancock a second earlier, and she flipped in the air before landing gracefully. Luffy landed in front of her.

"Let's go!"

As to agree with him, the giant monster burst out of the forest, destroying everything in its path.

The battle of Luffy and Hancock VS Boss C was about to begin!