Defect or Defend

Chapter Three

Nami squinted into the sun, hand over her face. It was odd to see Enies Lobby again, especially because they were on good terms with the Marines this time. With her now-purple hair and blue eyes, courtesy of her captain, she looked remarkably similar to a long-haired Nojiko, which was, indeed, the name she was going by.

Usopp's nose stood out enormously, but since the Marines hadn't figured out that the curly-haired sniper in the Mugiwara crew as Sogeking, she wasn't worried. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, and was named Saul, as recommended by Robin. His goggles were now a brick red and the glass was tinted orange, positioned over his eyes as they neared the Marine fortress. He was playing fishing with Chopper at the moment, though he glanced over at the building that was closing in once in a while.

Robin had red hair and dark brown eyes. She had strung some pink glasses around her neck, and had a golden headband. She was simply Makino, suggested by Luffy. She was lounging on the deck, reading a book as usual.

Sanji had pink hair similar to Coby's, but a shade darker—Zoro constantly teased him by calling him "Pinkyhead"—in the same haircut that Coby had when he was part of the Alvida pirates, and hazel eyes. His bangs covered both eyebrows, but, just as an extra precaution, the swirly-shaped hair was the same color as his skin and was even shorter. He had equipped his upgraded, metal-braced shoes, courtesy of Franky, and was referred to as "Johnny."

Franky was difficult to disguise. Despite his aversion to pants of any kind, he was forced into black shorts with the cuffs sticking out, much like Luffy's typical ones, leaving his chest bare to the world. He had makeup like Iceberg's on his lips, and was named Genzo. His sunglasses were replaced with normal-shaped glasses with faux glass, and his nose was covered by a fake white mustache, contrasting sharply with his dark red hair. His black eyes looked at the new machine he was testing, an ultra-cannon with auto-hitting skills.

Chopper's fur was dark blue, and his nose was black. His eyes were yellow, pink shorts covered his bottom half, and his treasure hat was left carefully in his cabin. He was considered their pet by the Marines, and always stayed in his mini-form in front of them, helping to heal the wounded instead of fighting. He was Eyelashes, in honor of the perverted camel from Alabasta.

Zoro had black hair and purple eyes. His haramaki was used as a belt, and was now a light shade of green, closer to lime. His typical band on his bicep was pushed down to by his wrists as a bracelet of some sort, and his swords' metal was a harsh red. He was Yosaku.

Brook was, by far, the strangest. He had neon green hair and a blue mask similar to a gas mask that looked like it was cry. He wore a dark purple turtleneck so as to hide the fact that he was a skeleton, and long, loose brown pants. The sleeves of the shirt stretched to his wrists, where they were tucked under dark green gloves. His sword was now in a yellow case and held on a black belt that was wrapped around his waist. He was Crocus, taking the name of the caretaker of Laboon.

So, their crew was officially Himeji, Yosaku, Nojiko, Saul, Johnny, Eyelashes, Makino, Genzo, and Crocus, in order of joining. A strange group, she admitted, and they almost looked as ridiculous as their normal selves. As they were the only ones guarding Thatch, they would, as soon as they left Enies Lobby, become their normal selves as the Mugiwaras. Thatch would be imprisoned soon, anyway, taking the secret with him to the grave.

It disturbed the group to be the cause of the man's eventual death, but, for all they knew, he was a horrible outlaw. It all depended on Luffy's judge of character. If she didn't like him... bam! he would be in Impel Down. Otherwise, he may be able to help them in their plan...

•••

Thatch woke up from his nap with a stiff neck. He popped it as he got out of the bed, wincing at the cold air, and headed to the bathroom. He splashed some water on his face to help him wake up and styled his pompadour—having a few space bottles of gel in case Ace stole it in his jacket did, in fact, help, no matter the teasing from his crew-mates.