I do not own "One Piece" or any of it's characters. Nicoli is a character of my creation.

Chapter 8-

The Thousand Sunny was creeping along the waters of Devil's Maze. Each crewman was attentive on their task. In this strange place, there was simply no room for mistakes. The mood of the ship was a mixture of anxiety and adventure. It had been three hours since they entered the maze, and nothing had happened; that meant trouble.

Nami was focused solely on her job. She was not going to let Luffy, or any of her nakama down. Come hell or high water, she would navigate this maze. As time went by she became more and more tense. At her level of skill, she instinctively knew what all these weather patterns meant. Yet the storm that hung over all their heads wasn't coming. It just continued to roil over. It wore on all of their nerves, but it affected Nami more than anyone.

"I hate this…" she thought to herself. "There's absolutely nothing I can do but wait for the damn storm. It's like waiting for the executioner's axe! I can't stand this!"

Time continued to move- as did the ship. The boat glided further and further along over the sea. So far it had avoided all the dangers this place had to offer. It was the best possible luck they could have… and that really meant trouble. For something this good to be happening, it meant something really awful was just around the bend. It put everyone on edge. That is to say, everyone but Luffy.

Luffy was cool and calm… in a manner of speaking. The best way to put it is that Luffy was Luffy. He didn't let the tension get to him. He simply went about business. His relaxed attitude had a calming effect on the rest of them. His confidence, gave them confidence; but that was how things usually worked.

It was just when Usopp was about to tell one of his tall tales, that something finally happened. Nami's eyes went wide as she felt the ship shake in an unnatural manner. She had caught it before anyone else.

"Franky! Hard to port! Everyone brace yourselves!"

The warning came just in time. No sooner had Franky turned the ship, when a massive explosion burst from the waters in the direction they had been heading. Coral debris flew from the water into the sky in a bright red flame, and came sailing down towards the ship.

"Zoro! Sanji!" Nami called out. Not that she needed to.

The two had everything well in hand. In a great blur of boots and blades, the falling debris was deflected off to the sides of the ship and back into the water. After the coast seemed to be clear, Franky let his question fly.

"What the hell was that?!"

"That was Explosive Coral." Nami replied.

"You're kidding." Franky looked at her dubiously.

"She's not." Robin spoke. "It's a rare species found only in the grand line. As the coral begins to die, the decomposition process creates Nitroglycerin within its body. The more that coral grow, the bigger the explosion will be. We were lucky to have such an early warning."

"What sets off these little tickers?" Sanji was all business at this point.

"Anything can set off Nitro. One good shake and the stuff goes up like one of Usopp's inventions." Chopper answered.

"Hey!" Usopp objected.

"Woow!" Luffy interrupted, ignoring Usopp along with everyone else. "This is a real shaky situation!"

"Luffy!" Nami yelled.

"I'll say..." Zoro piped in. "I'm shaking in my boots."

"Not you, too!" Nami complained.

"C'mon guys, let's get back to work." Usopp broke in. "Shake a leg will ya?"

Nami was officially ready to scream. Robin grabbed her shoulders and tried rubbing them to calm her down.

"Come on, Ms. Navigator. Just shake it off!"

Nami lowered her head in defeat, and sighed.

Somewhere else on the grand line a Marine ship made its way along the water, and this ship was doomsday afloat. With combined force of Smoker, Aokiji, Hina, Tashigi, and the mastermind behind the whole operation- Nicoli. This small assemblage alone had all the power of the dreaded "Buster Call."

With a Naval warship at its disposal, the group was slightly more powerful. Gold Roger himself would have had a handful. This great power that could potentially rival the Four Emperor's themselves, had its sights trained on one single ship. And woe to the crew of said ship.

"The latest intelligence reports state that they have entered the maze."

"I see," was the reply given by Nicoli to Tashigi.

"I've heard rumors of several other ships already in the vicinity. It's all coming to a head now." Aokiji leaned against the rail next to his former pupil.

"Hina, excited."

"I have to admit this was a good plan, kid. You deserve all the credit you'll get if this succeeds."

"Hmmm. If you'll excuse me, I believe I'll have some dinner." Nicoli stepped down off the deck and went below into the galley. The rest remained on deck.

"He's gotten strange these past few days." Tashigi looked in the direction Nicoli had gone.

"Nothing strange about it." Aokiji replied.

"Something you want to tell us?" Smoker puffed away at his two cigars.

"There is nothing to tell. He simply grows quiet before a battle. Think of it as the calm before his storm. The more quiet he is, the greater his fury. He is soon to be as a Typhoon to the Straw-hats."

"Are you sure we can depend on him? Won't his outburst make this all unpredictable?"

"I doubt it. He is not a wild-man. He is simply strong. He will remain as focused as ever. Probably more so."

Thousand Sunny continued to traverse the Maze. Gliding softly along the waters, the pirate ship made it's way through the passageways of interweaving coral. Several more incidents involving Explosive Coral had occurred, but thanks to the sharp mind of its navigator, and the strength of its crew the grand pirate ship remained intact. Standing watch were the sharp eyes and sharp ears of Usopp. He was their best chance of an early warning.

Nami quietly whispered up to the crows-nest. "Usopp, what can you see?"

"The path splits in three directions about four miles up ahead. One turns off to the port and heads south, the middle seems to go straight ahead, and the starboard seems to turn in a nor-norwesterly direction. I can't tell which way is the way to go. They stretch further than I can make out."

Nami raised her hand in a thumbs up to show she heard him, and then looked up at the skies. Not a cloud could be seen. But the wind... it wouldn't sit still. It kept rapidly changing, like it couldn't make up it's mind. Sometimes it was strong, and sometimes soft, and it wouldn't stop changing its direction.

Even Nami had difficulty in predicting the weather. Patterns would form and then dissipate before there could be any real conclusion. It was the greatest challenge Nami had ever faced as a navigator. She had to go by sight and instinct alone. There wasn't a single piece of equipment that would work; not in the Devil's Maze.

'Which way, which way...' She thought to herself.

That is it. Everything I have written for this story. I don't really have anything left. Thank you for all your support. I hope you enjoyed what was available to read. Sorry I don't have more for you.

-Bakagaijin