Chapter 5: "Better This Way"

I don't own One Piece

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After Luffy and Nami were put in Nami's bed, the rest of the crew gathered in the dining room.

"It seems restraining them was a bad idea.." said Franky.

"It's hard to believe they'd just jump into the ocean like that!" Usopp exclaimed.

"Whatever is driving them to be attracted to eachother must have caused them to do that.." remarked Robin.

"Then, what are we going to do about this from now on?" Franky asked.

"I think that's something.." Sanji began, lighting a cigarette, "..for Nami-san and that idiot to decide."

"That's true.." said Franky.

"Well, I'm going to sleep." said Usopp, walking towards the door.

"We should probably all do the same." added Robin, standing up.

"Ah, wait!" Franky shouted, causing everyone to stop and stare at him. "I just remembered, there was something strange about Luffy when he was leaving the bathroom!"

"Well yeah!" exclaimed Usopp. "He was in that weird daze again!"

"No, not that!" replied Franky, impatiently. "Listen, I noticed something at that time when I grabbed his arm. Even though I tugged on it, it didn't stretch!"

"Eh!?" shouted everyone.

"How could that be!?" Usopp yelled.

"This is really strange.." said Sanji.

"Maybe something causes Luffy to lose his devil fruit powers at night when he's like that?" Chopper theorized.

"That would explain why he was unaffected by the water.." muttered Robin.

"Tommorow, I'll start looking through the books I have that talk about the devil's fruit." announced Chopper. "I might be able to find something regarding this."

"That's a good idea." agreed Franky.

Soon after, every one had gone to sleep.

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The next morning, Nami opened her eyes to the familiar sight of her room's ceiling. Against her head was the familiar feeling of her pillow and against her skin was the familiar feeling of her clothes.

"Finally.." she sighed. "It seems the plan worked.."

She closed her eyes and smiled, taking in a few deep breaths.

She was about to sit up when something heavy rolled on top of her, pinning her to her bed.

The navigator slowly turned her head to her side, already having an idea of what she was about to see.

Sure enough, she once again found herself staring into the face of her sleeping captain. He was laying on his side and had an arm hung over her stomach.

Nami stared at him, her face narrowing into an exhausted sort of an expression.

Why did this happen again? Why didn't the plan work? Why was Luffy in her bed? And although she was thankful for this, why were they both fully clothed?

Nami decided that it would be best to ask these questions with Luffy awake and was about to shout at him when she saw his eyes open slightly.

"Awake, are you?" she asked in a grumpy voice.

He just stared at her lazily through half lidded eyes.

"Arm." she said, pointing at what was holding her down and causing her face to be mere inches away from her captain's.

Luffy glanced at where Nami was pointing then returned his stare to her face.

Nami got a little frustrated.

"Luffy! Wake up already! I can't sit up with your -"

Nami was cut off when Luffy did the last thing she could have expected. In fact, it was so unexpected that she wasn't even sure what was going on until a few seconds had passed and she realized that Luffy's lips were on her's.

He had his hand behind her head and was holding her face against his. As he kissed her, he continued to stare at her with lazy, half lidded eyes.

A few more seconds passed before she finally got her senses back.

While still locked in the kiss, Nami lifted her fist high in the air, then sent it plummeting down onto the side of Luffy's head.

This caused Luffy's eyes to shoot open and his grip on her to loosen enough for her to pull back and yell,

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"

Luffy yelped and rolled off the side of the bed, making a loud noise as he hit the floor.

"What?? What?? Where am I??" he asked, turning his head in every direction.

"In my room!" Nami shouted angrily, wiping her mouth with her shirt's sleeve.

"Oh! Nami!" Luffy exclaimed.

Nami glared at him. "What do you think you were just doing!?"

Luffy tilted his head to the side and gave her a confused look.

Nami growled before elaborating. "You just kissed me!"

Luffy tilted his head to the other side, still looking confused. "I did? When?"

"Just now!"

"I don't remember that."

"Agh!" Nami smacked her forehead and gritted her teeth.

"Anyway!" she huffed. "Clearly, last night's plan didn't work!"

Luffy crossed his legs and rubbed his chin, trying hard to look serious. "Hm.." he muttered.

"I was so sure that plan was going to work.." Nami whined. "Just how much longer is this going to happen!?"

She glanced at the corners of her bed where the ropes that had been holding her down were torn apart. 'Only Luffy could have done that..'

Nami tried hard to remember what happened the previous night but nothing came to her mind.

"We jumped into the ocean." Luffy stated, taking his hand off his chin.

"Ah..! That's right..!" Nami said, memories of the cold waves suddenly coming back to her. "But..I don't remember anything after that.."

"You passed out." Luffy said plainly. "Then I held you above water until the crew found us and pulled us back onto the ship."

"Oh..is that what happened.." Nami muttered, then suddenly turned to stare at Luffy. "Wait. How could you have held me above water? You're a hammer!"

"Dunno." he replied.

"That's..Really weird!" Nami exclaimed.

"Hm...Indeed." Luffy said, still trying to look serious.

"So..What happened after that?" asked Nami, still unable to recall anything on her own. "Why were we in my bed? And why weren't we naked like the last two times?"

"Hm.." Luffy struggled for a few moments before saying, "I don't remember."

"I guess we'll just have to ask the crew.." mumbled Nami.

They stared at each other for what might have been a couple of minutes before Nami finally said, "You can leave now. I need to change my clothes."

"Okay." Luffy stood up and turned towards the door but was stopped by Nami's voice.

"Luffy, what are we going to do if this keeps happening?" she asked, looking at him intently.

He turned around to return her gaze. "I dunno."

Nami tilted her head so she was staring at her knees then breathed out a heavy sigh. "I don't know either.."

Luffy stood silently, waiting for his navigator's order.

After another few moments of silence, she said, "I'm going to take a bath. Just wait for me with the others."

"Okay." he replied, then walked out the door.

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When Luffy entered the dining room, everyone was there and, as usual, they all stopped what they were doing to look at him.

"What's up with you guys?" he asked, making a childish frown.

Franky walked up to him, grabbed his cheek, pulled it out a couple feet, then let it snap back in Luffy's face.

"OW!" the captain yelped. "Franky! What was that for!?"

"Hm..It stretched.." the cyborg muttered.

"It must only be at night when he loses his powers.." said Usopp, who was sitting at the table, putting together some gadget.

Sanji was in the kitchen chopping vegetables while Zoro was leaning against his chair, snoring, and Chopper and Robin were both reading a book. Chopper had a pile of books stacked next to him.

"Strawhat.." Franky began, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall. "..Do you remember what happened last night?"

"Yeah, I guess." replied Luffy. "Nami and I jumped overboard, right?"

"That's right!" said Franky. "You're lucky you're still alive! Why did you do that, anyway!?"

"Hm.." Luffy crossed his arms and looked at the ceiling. "Well, you guys were chasing us and I didn't want to fight you.."

"So you jumped into the ocean..!? Didn't you realize you could have died!?"

"I thought it would be okay."

"You...You thought it would be okay!? How could you think jumping into the ocean would be okay!?"

"I don't know. I just did."

"Luffy," Sanji said, while continuing to chop a cucumber, "you said just now that you jumped off because you didn't want to fight us. Do you mean that even while you're in that weird state, you still recognize us as your crew?"

"Yeah!" Luffy replied, grinning.

"Hmm..That's interesting.." remarked Usopp. "I had the impression that you didn't even know who we were when you were like that.."

"It seems as if we've just learned something new about this.." Franky proclaimed. "..Speaking of which, have you found anything yet, reindeer?"

"No, I'm still looking.." Chopper replied, not putting his book down.

"Sanji!" Luffy yelled while stretching his arm out to grab a piece of meat off a plate Sanji had set aside. "I'm hungry! Hurry up!"

Sanji slammed the handle of his knife down onto Luffy's hand, causing his captain to let out an "OW!" before returning his arm to its normal length. "We're not eating until Nami-san gets here." the cook declared.

Pouting, Luffy took a seat and lay his head against the table.

When Nami arrived, she had a slightly guilty look on her face. After taking a seat, she said,

"I'm sorry, everyone..We caused so much trouble last night..I don't even know why this is happening, and.." she trailed off, unable to think of what to say.

"Nami-san, there's no need for you to apologize. You are the one suffering the most from this." said Sanji as he set a tray of food on the table.

"That's right." Usopp added. "There's no need to worry about us!"

"Anyway, we learned something interesting." said Franky, changing the subject. "It seems that when you guys are like that, Luffy loses his devil's fruit powers. We're hoping that this might be the clue to finding out the cause for it."

"So that's why Luffy was able to survive in the ocean.." muttered Nami.

At that moment, Chopper suddenly shouted, "I found something!"

Everyone immediately gave him their attention.

"This is a book describing the medical dangers to people who have eaten the devil's fruit." he began. "It says here that there is a theory that the "devil" inside one who has eaten the devil's fruit can be suppressed if another soul enters the body."

"Another soul?" inquired Sanji.

"The theory states that in the same way the "devils" within devil's fruits can enter a body through ingestion, the souls of humans and other creatures can do the same." Chopper continued. "In other words, it's possible that the souls of something Luffy and Nami ate are inside their bodies and are causing them to act in strange ways!"

"That would certainly explain a lot.." murmured Franky.

"So, how do we get these souls out of our bodies?" Nami questioned.

"...It doesn't say." Chopper replied gravely.

"It may be impossible." said Robin, putting her book down. "Once a person has eaten a devil's fruit, they are stuck with the ability for the rest of their life. If a "soul" is similar to a "devil", then the rules may be the same."

"Then.." Nami began, a deranged smile twitching at the side of her cheeks, "..This will continue until we die..!?"

"That's not necessarily true." Robin replied. Nami's eyes lit up. "Although a person loses their devil's fruit powers when they die, we have no reason to assume that the same applies with a soul. The souls may remain in your corpses even after you die."

Nami glared at Robin.

"So in that case..." began Franky, "..we'll just have to get used to this from now on."

"Wh-what!?" Nami exclaimed, a look of horror on her face.

"As long as they do it where I can't see them, it doesn't bother me." said Zoro, who had woken up at some point during the conversation.

"Hold on!" Nami shouted. "I haven't accepted this!"

"Franky, would you mind setting up a wall in our room so we each have our own half from now on?" requested Robin.

"Ro-Robin!? You too!?" Nami shrieked, completely unsatisfied with her crew's conclusion.

"That shouldn't be a problem." replied Franky, putting some food on his plate.

"You guys! Why aren't you listening to me!?" Nami bellowed, holding her head with her hands as she turned to look at each one of them.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it.." Usopp replied, chewing on some potatoes as he added the finishing touch to his new "fire bird star".

"Nami-san.." Sanji said in a soft voice, an extremely sympathetic look on his face. Nami looked at Sanji hopefully. Surely he would stand up for her.. "I'll prepare dinner early from now on and I'll always make you a special dessert.."

'Even Sanji-kun!?'

"Nami," Chopper began, setting his books aside so he would have room to eat, "I'll have to give you weekly check ups from now on to make sure you're not becoming pregnant."

"CHOPPER!!" she cried, grabbing her hair and nearly pulling it out.

Amidst all of this, Luffy was stuffing his face with sausages and potatoes, unconcerned with the conversation that was going on around him.

Nami finally turned her pleading gaze to her captain - the center of all her problems.

"Luffy!" she shouted in a pleading voice. "You're not okay with this either, right?? Say something!"

Luffy continued stuffing his mouth while uttering something that sounded suspiciously like, "huh?"

" "Huh"!? " Nami repeated, a rage building up inside of her. "LUFFY! Were you even listening!?"

"Nope." he replied, still eating.

Nami clenched her fists and lowered her head. Her body began shaking violently. Then, she exploded.

She leapt at Luffy, knocking him off his chair and onto the ground where she straddled him.

"Hey, didn't I say not to do that in front of me anymo-" Zoro began, but was cut off as Nami kicked his chair leg out, sending him crashing to the floor.

"LUFFY!!" she roared.

Luffy quickly swallowed the food he had in his mouth and stared up at Nami.

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT IS GOING ON!? THIS IS GOING TO CONTINUE FOR THE REST OF OUR LIVES! WE ARE GOING TO BE HAVING SEX EVERY SINGLE NIGHT FOR THE REST OF OUR LIVES!"

Following a brief interval of time during which Luffy contemplated what he had just heard, the Strawhat captain broke into a grin. "Don't worry!" he exclaimed. "It doesn't really bother me!"

For the next hour, Luffy's tortured screams could be heard throughout the ship.

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Nami stayed in her room for the rest of the morning, threatening anyone who had the nerve to disturb her with a slow death.

"How could they all just accept this!?" she cried, her face buried in her pillow. "This is my life we're talking about! And my BODY!"

She wished she could go back to being the beautiful, virgin, queen of style that she had been only a few days ago.

Thinking about it, she had really intended to stay single her entire life. She had never had the slightest need for romance. She had her family and town back in East Blue, and she had her nakama here. That was enough to make her completely content with her life. In fact, she loved her life!

"Ahhh..How am I going to continue living like this..!?" she exclaimed. "Even if I ran far away, I'd just spend every night looking for Luffy! This isn't how I want to live!"

Nami pounded her fist against her mattress. Why did some souls have to enter their bodies and do this to her!?

She sat up, crossed her legs, and rested her head on her hands. Considering who she could have been paired up with, she supposed Luffy was the best choice. He would do what she said most of the time, he wouldn't lust after her, he'd atleast treat her gently, and she wouldn't have to worry about him going for other girls. But as she thought about it, she realized that wasn't all.

She started imagining what it could have been like if it had been another member of the crew.

The only option she could even consider was Sanji.

He definitely would have treated her kindly and he had always done what she asked him to do..And despite his love for all women, she doubted he would really go so far as to cheat on her..

But it would have been so much more awkward to be pretty much forced to have..SEX with someone who really understood what a big issue it was. He would probably constantly give her sympathetic and apologetic looks and it would wind up taking over not just her night, but her day as well.

There would be an awkwardness between them that would distance them as nakama.

And furthermore, since he would be the only one looking forward to it, she would feel almost like she was being raped every night.

Considering another possibility, even if she got used to it and learned to love him, she would be forced into a mindset that she had no interest in. Since she would have to be around him every day, in order to not make their relationship unbearable, she'd have to return the undying love he would constantly shower her with. Her entire world would revolve solely around love - something she had never been interested in in the first place. She would have to act in ways that didn't match her personality and it would be as if she was no longer herself.

Luffy, on the other hand, never cared about love from the start.

He hadn't treated her any differently since the dining room incident, and she didn't feel awkward when she was around him. They both had their dreams, and this didn't change that. They were still nakama, and this didn't have any effect on the special relationship they had between them AS nakama.

It was also alot easier to be around him after having sex than she imagined it would be with anyone else, simply because he didn't understand what a big deal it was.

She sighed at her last thought. "He really is an idiot.." she mumbled.

Someone knocked on her door.

"Ugh.." she grunted. "..Who is it, I wonder..I thought I told everyone to leave me alone.."

She heard Robin's voice through the door. "Nami, we were thinking we should have a meeting to discuss how to deal with this.."

After a moment of thought, Nami sighed, then got off her bed and opened the door.

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When Nami entered the dining room with Robin, everyone was sitting at the table.

Luffy sat at the head of the table with his arms crossed, trying to look serious, as he often did in tense situations.

Nami took a seat at the opposite end of the table, facing Luffy.

As soon as she took a seat, Zoro started to speak.

"We all decided to have this meeting in order to -" he began but was quickly cut off by Franky, who said,

"What do you mean, "all of us"!? We're only doing this because you demanded it!"

"Shut up!" the swordsman ordered. "This is necessary to ensure that our crew maintains its dignity!"

"Do you want to elaborate on that, marimo?" asked Sanji, blowing out a circle of smoke.

"We need to make sure that people aren't having sex in places where it causes inconveniences for everyone else." Zoro said bluntly, staring at Luffy while he talked, then looking at Nami after he finished.

Nami took a deep breath, realizing that this wasn't a conversation that could be avoided.

"So, what do you suggest we do?" she asked.

"That's simple." Zoro replied. "Every night, you and Luffy go into your room. What you do after that is your own business."

That was certainly the obvious thing to do. Nami had already realized this. But nonetheless, it was hard to accept.

"Don't you think that's an inconsiderate thing to ask?" questioned Franky. "Love should move at its own pace! You can't just force two people to accept it!"

"You want to bet I can't!?" Zoro shouted. "If the alternative is for my stomach to be used like a one hour hotel, I'll rip their clothes off and force them into their own bed myself!!"

"WHAT!?" everyone yelled.

"Are you a psycho!?" bellowed Franky.

"Don't insult Nami-san like that!" shouted Sanji.

"We should me more worried about you!" exclaimed Usopp.

"Shut up! All of you, shut up!" Zoro thundered. "In any case, I'm not backing off on this! If we are to function as a crew, each crew member has to consider how his actions conflict with the lives of his other crew members!"

"If two crew members have a problem," he continued, "it is their duty to make sure that it doesn't affect the rest of the crew, especially if one of those crew members is the captain!" Zoro glared at Luffy.

Although some disagreed with Zoro's method of delivering it, everyone knew that what he said was the truth.

Realizing that he now had a duty to act as the captain, Luffy finally spoke up.

"I don't mind doing what you suggested as long as Nami doesn't mind." he said simply.

Nami felt the pressure of all the stares she was receiving and for a moment, she considered running away.

Unconsciously, she looked at Luffy for some kind of support.

Her captain had his eyes completely focused on her. He didn't have a humorous expression like usual, but he also didn't look overly serious. Like always, he was himself. Since the first time she saw him, his personality had always remained the same.

She thought about his personality.

He was absolutely and completely devoted to his goal and nothing could stop him from reaching it, but he would still do anything, even give his own life, for the sake of his nakama.

He was ferociously strong, not just in body but in mind too. His will was impenetrable and he could never be swayed by bribes or threats.

She had the utmost trust in him. She had no doubt in his strength - she was positive he could defeat any enemy he came across. And she had no doubt of his loyalty to each member of the crew.

He never treated her more specially than any other member of the crew. He didn't even treat her like a woman..! But she was glad for that. She was glad that he considered all of his nakama equally important and that he didn't have expectations of them based on their gender.

She respected him as a captain. Although he was not commanding and was often irresponsible, there was no one more fit to be their leader. The fact that he required and relied on his nakama in order to survive made each crew member understand their own signifigance and importance as a member of his crew. They weren't his underlings, but rather his companions.

Each member of the crew had a strong and special bond with him. Although she never would have wished it to be so, if that bond were to become love, then she would have an immense love for him. Probably more than she could ever have for anyone else.

She took in a deep breath and glanced at Zoro, then everyone else. "All right." she said. "Luffy can come into my room at night."

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Nami leaned over the rail, watching the sunset. They would arrive at the next island tomorrow. She still fervently hoped it would be inhabited.

She looked out over the ocean, reflecting bright colors of orange, red, and yellow from the sun.

She listened to the pleasant sounds of the waves crashing against the sides of the ship and the wind hitting the sails.

She took in the subtle aroma of salt and fresh air that she had become so accustomed to since she first came out to sea.

She tasted the cool air on her tongue, sending light shivers down her spine.

This was a life she loved. Everything about it, she loved. And she knew that no matter what happened, nothing was going to change that.

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Luffy was sitting at the head of the ship, his eyes closed, enjoying the calm of the sinking sun and the breeze on his face. He heard the footsteps of someone approaching. He sensed the person sit down next to him. He opened his eyes and turned his head to see Nami gazing out at the sunset, a smile on her face.

They both sat there for a while, staring ahead. After a while, Nami slowly put her hand over Luffy's, causing him to look over at her. She didn't say anything.

A little more time passed and she gently eased her head onto his shoulder, causing him to jolt slightly in reaction. He looked at her for explanation, but she still said nothing. He turned his gaze back to the ocean.

They stayed like that for some time, until the sun had nearly sunk below the horizon. Nami lifted her head off his shoulder and looked at him. "..Let's go..?" she asked in a soft voice.

Luffy grinned at her and they stood up together. Holding hands, they walked to her room, where they stopped at the door.

Though she already knew the answer, she had to ask. "This won't change anything between us, right?"

They were staring into eachother's eyes.

"I don't see why anything would change." he replied.

"Okay." she answered, then opened the door.

When they walked in, she closed the door behind her and locked it.

She guided him by his hand to her bed and turned off the lantern.

Silently, they sat on opposite ends of the bed and kneeled down.

Nami stared at her knees for a moment, then said,

"I don't want this to happen while we're under some trance."

She brought her hand up to his cheek, then slowly leaned in and kissed him.

When she pulled back, he was looking at her intently.

"We need to take off our clothes.." she muttered, unbuckling her high heels.

After a short pause, Luffy followed suit, removing his strawhat and sandals.

A minute later, they were both naked.

Nami scooted forward slightly, then wrapped her arms around Luffy in a gentle embrace, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Hug me.." she whispered into his ear.

He brought his arms up around her back and cuddled her up against him.

They stayed like that for a minute, then Nami moved her head back a little to kiss him.

Mouths still touching, Nami leaned backwards, gently pulling Luffy down on top of her.

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Robin took some blankets with her and slept in the dining room that night. She, and Zoro, who was in the crow's nest, both had no problem falling asleep. Franky, Usopp, Sanji, and Chopper (whose room was right beneath Nami's), however, were having some difficulties.

The mixture of creaking floor boards and a woman's moans were keeping the four crewmates awake.

"Wh-when are they going to be done!?" whispered Usopp. "They've been at it for hours! I didn't even think that was possible!"

"We-well..." began Franky, surprised by how long they had been going himself, "..that must just show how much they love each other.."

"But how are we supposed to sleep!?" exclaimed Usopp. "We should tell them to keep it down!"

"Don't even think of it." said Sanji, who was laying in his hammock with a cigarette in his mouth. "That's not something you interrupt."

"I didn't know humans made this much noise when they mate.." muttered Chopper, who was covering his ears with his hooves.

"I didn't either.." mumbled Usopp, turning on his side to face the wall.

"We should arrive at the next island tomorrow.." said Franky. "I'll try to get sealants to make the floor sound proof.."

"I wish you could make THEM sound proof.." grumbled Usopp, still facing the wall.

After another hour, the noise finally ceased and the four were able to fall asleep.

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Nami rested her head on Luffy's shoulder, an arm over his chest.

"You know.." she began, rubbing her cheek against his bare skin, "..We never went into that trance.."

"Yeah." Luffy replied.

"I liked it alot more this way.." she whispered, a smiling creeping up her face.

Luffy grinned. "Me too."

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There were once two fish that had been deeply in love. One day, they got separated when a stream of fish swam by. They spent years searching the ocean for one another. One night, miraculously, they met. Just as they were about to come together and mate, they were both scooped out of the water in a fishing net by Luffy. They were fried and put on the dinner table. By a stroke of fate, Luffy ate the male fish, and Nami ate the female fish. Their love had been so strong that it caused Luffy and Nami to become irresistably attracted to one another each night at the exact same time the fish had been scooped out of the water.