One Piece (Love Story) [Part Two]

Chapter Two Hundred and Six [Rewritten]

-Chapter Two Hundred and Six-

"Yeah, that's a good point" Usopp chuckled, agreeing with the blond.

"Hey, check it out! We're almost through the jungle!" Luffy pointed as I lifted my head to see that he was right...yet I couldn't help but cast one more glance down at the groove, cautiously looking back at Robin who was doing the same. Slowly I found myself starting to feel anxious as a sense of unease washed over me. "Well that's a letdown, just looks like a whole lot of nothing out here" the captain pouted as we came out into a clearing that had nothing of interest in it saved for one huge rock in the middle.

"What did you expect from an uninhabited island?" I questioned as Chopper suddenly gasped and rushed ahead toward the huge rock that sat in the middle of the clearing.

"He's excited? Did I miss something?" Luffy blinked, tilting his head in confusion. Curiously, I looked at the rock Chopper was rushing toward...only for my blood to run cold the instant I spotted the black mushroom-shaped hair that was poking out from the top.

'No...it couldn't be...' I quickly shook my head in an attempt to clear it of such thoughts. Surely it couldn't be who I thought—I hadn't seen that man in years, I doubted he'd just magically be on an uninhabited island in the middle of nowhere like this.

"I don't get it either, maybe he found some new herbs" Zoro suggested.

"Huh? Chopper, you cheater!" Luffy frowned the minute he spotted that same head of mushroom-shaped hair. "You were going to hog that big mushroom all to yourself—weren't you?!" he accused, clearly not realizing that what he was looking at was hair and not an actual mushroom. "Get back here!" he huffed as he quickly chased after the reindeer who had disappeared behind the rock. "Hey, what happened?

"Are you okay?" he worriedly asked, attitude quickly changing the second Chopper frantically tumbled back and away from the rock as if he had seen something that had scared him.

"There must be something behind that rock—come on! Hurry!" Zoro motioned as he went after Luffy.

"Whoa! You're not a mushroom..." Chopper nervously noted, trembling at whatever it was hiding behind the rock.

"A raccoon dog?" I paled as soon as I heard that voice—that dreadfully familiar voice that I hadn't heard in years, yet remembered so clearly.

"Can't you see the antlers?! I'm a reindeer!" Chopper snapped, anger temporarily replacing his fear for a brief second.

"I saw you fall—are you hurt?" Luffy asked as he slid near the fallen reindeer. "Who the heck is that?" he frowned as he glared up at the man seated behind the rock.

"What's going on?" Zoro asked.

"I don't know, someone's here" Sanji answered as I started to slow down and stumble. My knees felt weak as I struggled to move any closer—I could feel my stomach churning uneasily as a knot slowly started to build itself up within its pit, making that nauseous feeling I already had worse...

Please...no...please...

Please let it be anyone else but him—let it be someone else, just don't let it be him of all people.

"Do you mind? I was sleeping" the familiar voice yawned as I slowly started to tremble.

"Miss Swordswoman?" Robin quietly questioned, resting a gentle hand on my shoulder as I started shaking my head.

'I don't want to go back...I don't want to go back...I don't want to go back...' was the only thing I could think as fear took a tight hold of me. I didn't want to look and yet couldn't bring myself to tear my gaze away from the rock or that head of hair as I anxiously waited for my fears to be confirmed.