Chapter 43: Chapter 43: Repaying Old Debts!
"So what are we going to do now? Which Road Ponyglyph are we going after next?" Yuma asked me.
"Well our next order of business isn't actually going after one of the Road Ponyglyphs." I replied.
"What are we doing then Captain?" Jack asked.
"We will be going to pay a debt I owe." I replied.
"A debt? I didn't think that you were the gambling type Leo." Celeste said slightly concerned.
"No, no. It's not that kind of debt. Most of don't know this but during the War of the Best I was saved by somebody. I'd be dead if it wasn't for his help. In return I promised to help him when the time came, and nows the time for me to settle that debt." I said.
"I see, well if the guy saved your life it's the least we could do to help him out in return. So who is this guy, and where do we need to go?" Yuma asked.
"It's Trafalgar Law, he rescued me from the waters at Marineford and in return I'm going to help him defeat Doflamingo in Dressrosa."
"Dressrosa? Doflamingo?" Isabella asked in a nervous tone.
"Huh? Everything alright over there Bell?" I asked.
"Oh, it's nothing." She said dismissively.
"Anyway that's our next destination but it's not or next objective." I said.
"What do you mean?" Jack asked.
"He means our next objective is a celebration! We just got our first Road Ponyglyph and we beat Big Mom! If that's not a reason to celebrate then I don't know what is!" Sig said enthusiastically.
"Yes, that was my point exactly!" I said. "Bell, some music please."
As our crew celebrated our latest victory, I got a notification from the system.
"Congratulations! You completed another achievement. You defeated an Emperor of the Sea. You received a new draw! You got, the Kiniku Buster from Kinikuman." The system said.
"Oh really, that's awesome. Thanks!" I said.
"W-Wait you're supposed to be upset. That draw sucks. You could have done a Kiniku Buster on your own!" The system said in an aggravated tone.
"Yeah, but I probably wouldn't have thought to do it in my own. I think it's cool." I said dismissively.
Back on the ship I received a call on the transponder snail.
"What a coincidence Law, I was just talking about you." I said as soon as I answered the call.
"How did you know it was me? Never mind, we have more important things to discuss." Law said. "It's time for you to pay your debt to me. "Head to Dressrosa, we'll discuss the details once we meet up there."
"That's fine, I was actually just about to head there myself anyway. I should be there soon." I said.
"I see, you might actually be a reliable ally. Unlike some people…" Law said, seemingly he had already formed his alliance with Luffy and he was a bit exasperated.
"I see Luffy's been giving you some trouble." I said with a laugh.
"Again I wonder how you know these things, but yes he does seem to difficult to reign in. Anyway we will meet up with you at Dressrosa." Law said as he cut the call off.
I then had Yuma set the course to Dressrosa, and we had our next objective clearly set. We were going to defeat Doflamingo. As we were sail towards our destination, I noticed that Isabella seemed a little bit distant and distracted.
"Wanna date?" I asked her.
"Huh? U-um I don't know what to say that's kind of sudden." She said nervously.
"It's not that big of a deal. It's just dried fruit." I said while eating from a bowl of dates.
"Oh, fruit right." She said as she took one of dates I offered her.
"You know, you seem like you've been a bit off since I mentioned that we're going to Dressrosa. Is something the matter?" I asked.
"Well…" She paused a minute before continuing. "I don't really want to talk about it." She said while looking down.
"Ok, if you say so. But if you have a problem you really ought to tell me. I'm your captain after all, helping out my crew is what I'm here for."
"I understand, thank you Captain." Isabella said.
We eventually made our way to Dressrosa. We made it there maybe a few days before Law and Luffy would arrive. After our first night waiting, Isabella disappeared. Yuma woke up in the early morning to inform me of her disappearance.
"Gai! Wake up! We've got a big problem!" He exclaimed.
"Eh? Calm down Yuma it's too early to be so loud, what's all the commotion about?" I asked as I sleepily rubbed my eyes.
"Well apparently, when Claudia got up this morning to prepare for breakfast, she noticed that Isabella was gone." He told me.
"What? What do you mean she's gone?" I asked as my temper flared. "Are you sure she didn't just go to town and will be back soon?" I asked trying to calm myself down.
"I don't know maybe. But I can't see her leaving without saying anything to anyone. Plus, well, my intuition isn't as strong as yours but I just have a bad feeling about it. I mean we're in Doflamingo's territory. I don't know, maybe he took her or something."
"I see, so Doflamingo took her." I said as I calmed down.
"Well, like I said, I don't know for sure it's just a hunch."
"No, you're probably right. This is just the kind of thing scum like Doflamingo would do. It's no big deal, I know exactly how to deal with this." I said. By this time, the rest of the crew had been caught up to the situation and were present for the discussion.
"Really? What are we going to do?" Yuma asked.
"Burn it down." I said calmly.
"Um, what do you mean? Burn what down?" He asked.
"Burn Dressrosa to the ground." I said with a blank expression.