The Blind Brawler [ Roronoa Zoro X OC]

Chapter 52: "... a sign of our friendship!"

Night fell as my crewmates and I left the baths to gather once again in the infirmary. Still full of energy, Chopper, Usopp, and Luffy were joking around and laughing. Kaori and Vivi were chuckling at their antics while Nami seemed more annoyed than anything, prompting the dumb cook to chastise them. I merely shrugged as I sat down on my cot.

The orange-haired woman shouted to be heard over the ruckus, "Will you all shut up already?! We need to start planning our escape strategy!"

"Huh, escape?" Luffy asked, puzzled, "But why?"

"We've already been here for three days," Kaori answered sternly, "We can't stay much longer."

Nami frowned and nodded, "Which is why we should leave tonight."

Usopp was shocked by the abruptness of her plan, "Tonight?"

Chopper seemed more confused or sad, "We have to leave?"

"The Marines know we're here. More will be coming," I explained in a dark tone, "I agree with Kaori and Nami: we need to get out now."

"Me too," Curlybrow chimed in, "And not just because they have pretty faces," I felt my lip curl into a scowl as I glared at him.

Before I could say anything, the blind woman snapped at him, "You seriously need to get your priorities straight!"

Usopp turned to our captain, ignoring their bickering, "Do you think we should leave, Luffy?"

"Yeah," The rubber man answered, disappointed. I nodded in approval at his decision, glad to see he was taking the situation seriously. His frown suddenly turned into an eager smile, "But only after we've had some more yummy food!"

I gritted my teeth in frustration, getting to my feet and smacking him on the back of the head, "No, now, you idiot!"

Kaori let out a sigh as she shook her head, "Leaving under the cover of night will help us give the Marines the slip. Plus, I'd rather get moving before the sun comes up and it gets really hot again."

The young reindeer let out a small shriek, "Wait, you mean we have to cross the desert again?!"

The long-nosed man let out a pained moan, "My feet still have blisters from all that walking! I'm certain that I've got I'll-die-if-I-go-into-the-desert-again disease!"

Chopper looked at him indignantly, "That's not a real thing!"

Nami cut off their squabbling with a confident smirk, "We won't have to walk across the desert this time. We can have the Super Sonic Ducks give us a ride the whole way there!"

The cook smiled brightly, "Oh, yeah! They'll get us back to the ship in a couple of hours! Good thinking, Nami-dearest!"

The navigator turned to the princess, "It was actually Vivi who said we should take them."

"O-oh, yes," She stammered, seeming a bit surprised to be addressed.

There was a sudden knocking on the door, causing us all to turn and watch as a palace worker stepped in carrying a large transponder snail. He smiled gently at us, "Good evening! I'm glad I made it here before you all went to sleep for the night. My apologies for interrupting, but there was a call for you all over the transponder snail."

I cast a quick glance at my crewmates, catching some of their eyes. They all seemed as confused as I was. Nami addressed the man with a puzzled tone, "From who?"

The man shrugged, "Don't know. He called himself Bon."

"Just Bon? That's it?" The cook pressed.

Usopp crossed his arms and looked at the snail uneasily, "Never heard of the guy."