Chapter 30: Determination

After assuring Usopp he wasn't in 'too' much danger, Thomas found himself standing a few meters across from Lucy. The two had already decided to fight, so the stakes had changed somewhat. Now, whoever won would become the Captain of the Going Merry.

Though he had no desire to be Captain of the Straw Hats(or whatever they would be called under his command), Thomas intended to go all out against Lucy. He had grown tremendously since the embarrassing fiasco that was his encounter with Arlong, so he needed to know how he fared against the person who would have defeated him.

While winding her arm up in a cartoony manner, Lucy's expression was calm yet serious as she asked, "Are you ready, Tom...?"

Lowering himself in a wrestling stance, hazy blue energy began to rise from Thomas's body as he replied, "Let's do this..."

Nodding her head, Lucy suddenly flung back her fist several tens of meters, her body rearing backward as she shouted, "Gomu-gomu-no..."

Clenching his teeth, Thomas prepared to be hit instead of planning to dodge. He wanted to know how strong Lucy was, so he focused his Magical Energy around his face and chest as the obsidian-haired Pirate lurched forward, shouting, "Pistol...!" as her fist flew toward him like an actual bullet.

Lowering his head and bracing himself, Thomas greeted Lucy's fist with his forehead, standing firm despite his feet digging into the ground and creating deep channels as he was driven back nearly ten meters. He felt like someone had rung his brain like a gong, but he managed to retain his focus, rushing forward the moment Lucy retracted her bloodied hand and shouted, "Ah! It hurts...!"

As Magical Energy functioned similar to Haki, Lucy punching Thomas's reinforced forehead was like an ordinary person punching a plate of steel. Her hand and knuckles hadn't broken, a credit to her tremendous strength and durability, but it was the first time in a 'very' long time since Lucy felt pain while punching someone.

Suppressing his apprehensions, Thomas did his best to ignore the fact that Lucy was a woman, tackling her with his face pressed into her soft yet notably 'springy' breasts. When she was forced onto the ground, he immediately got her in a mounted position, knees squeezing into her ribs and feet tucked under her knees as he began pounding her crossed arms with his fists. It was a brutal sight to behold, at least for ordinary people, so Nami immediately shouted, "What do you think you're doing!? Get off of Lucy, you bastard...!"

Before Thomas could even think to comply, Lucy shouted, "No...!" before bucking her hips, knocking the former off balance. Then, despite having very little clearance for a solid punch, she buried her fists into Thomas's body with enough force to propel him several tens of meters into the air. She could lift well over a hundred tons when she wanted to, so launching Thomas's 123kg of muscle was a simple feat.

Flipping onto her feet, Lucy spat out a mouthful of blood before adopting a smile and asserting, "You're pretty strong...!" with sparkling eyes. Then, as Thomas began his descent, she squared her feet and drew her fists near her sides as if she was preparing to power up. Instead, she waited until Thomas was within range before throwing increasingly swift punches at his body, effectively halting his fall as she shouted, "Gomu-Gomu-no-Gatling...!"

("Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck...!")

Though he curled up like a ball to try and resist Lucy's attack, Thomas felt excruciating pain in his arms and legs. Even with a veil of Magical Energy protecting his body, her blows felt like someone was smacking him with a sledgehammer. He had initially panicked when she sent him flying more than 30m into the air, as falling from such a height would have killed him back on Earth, but now he 'wanted' to hit the ground.

Fortunately, just as Thomas was thinking that Lucy wouldn't allow him to fall until he had been knocked unconscious, the attack ended after only a few seconds. Due to her limbs heating up and becoming sore, the current Lucy could only maintain her Gatling Gun for around ten seconds before she 'had' to stop. Just a few seconds longer, she would lose feeling in her limbs, temporarily making them useless...

Despite falling from a height that would have shattered his bones just a year ago, Thomas sustained no injuries as he hit the ground. In fact, he barely felt the impact at all, blinking in surprise as he raised himself from the ground and gave himself a quick once-over.

Interrupting Thomas's brief stupor, Lucy leaned her body forward as she kicked her left foot back, extending it nearly fifty meters as she shouted, "Gomu-gomu-no..."

Instead of waiting around and 'letting' himself be hit, Thomas charged forward like an Olympic sprinter off a starting line. Early Luffy/Lucy had a pretty major weakness that was fairly easy to exploit, so Thomas waited until Lucy began sweeping her legs like a harvesting scythe, leaping over it as she shouted, "...whip!"

Seeing Thomas jump over her attack, a slightly panicked look appeared on Lucy's face as it was nearly impossible for her to cancel her attacks once launched. It also took time for her to retract her limbs, so she was practically defenses as he landed on top of her, pinning her to the ground as he shouted, "Grit your teeth...!"

With force comparable to what he used to break Arlong's neck and spine, Thomas dropped his fist like a hammer into Lucy's unprotected face. He felt an ominous crunch as Lucy's face literally caved under his fist, but he didn't have time to regret his actions as the rubbery woman's fist abruptly connected with his cheek, the force contained within sending him flipping across the rocky terrain several times before his momentum was arrested by his face sliding across it.

"..."

Though he hadn't lost consciousness, Thomas was in so much pain that all he could do was tremble as blood pooled beneath his face. He felt like a motorcycle enthusiast that had just fallen off his bike without a helmet, the friction from his collision with the ground giving him the impression his face had been sanded down until it was a flat, bloody mess...

While Thomas was lying face-down on the ground, Luffy bounced to her feet, her features indistinguishable as the entire front of her face was still caved in. Then, like a literal cartoon character, she 'popped' it back out to reveal a bloodied, presumably broken nose as her only injury. At least that was how things appeared before she abruptly spat out a tooth, remarking, "That was a pretty solid punch."

Hearing Lucy's voice, Thomas reluctantly moved his hands into a push-up position before raising his body to reveal he wasn't nearly as injured as he suspected. There were some pretty nasty friction burns on his forehead and the tip of his nose, but he wasn't the gory mess he pictured within his mind.

Seeing Thomas rise to a knee, Lucy adopted a broad smile that showed off her missing incisor as she asked, "Can you keep going? I don't want to injure you too severely."

Though his pain made it impossible for him to focus, Thomas eventually forced himself to his feet, a grim expression on his face as he stated, "I want to continue until the end..."

Nodding her head in approval, Lucy replied, "Good answer!" before rearing back her right fist, this time adding a bit of twist to it as she exclaimed, "Then this is the last blow! Gomu-Gomu-no..."

Instead of standing in place, Lucy charged toward Thomas for the first time, her speed catching him off guard as she closed the 43m distance between in the blink of an eye, appending, "Rifle...!" as she planted her fist into his stomach with a frightening amount of force. Fortunately, the moment Lucy's fist made contact with his body, giving him the impression he was about to vomit up every single one of his internal organs, Thomas immediately lost consciousness...

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Waking with a start, Thomas's hand instinctively gravitated toward his abdomen, confirming he didn't have a massive hole in place of his abs and intestines. As he did so, a familiar voice stated, "You sustained bruising to your internal organs, but Asclepius was able to treat you without incident, dechi."

Ignoring his unfamiliar surroundings, as he already had a pretty good idea where he was, Thomas looked to Benienma, a wry smile adorning his face as he muttered, "I lost..." in an ostensibly defeated tone.

Nodding her head, Benienma replied, "Lucy-taichou is very strong. Master should not feel bad about losing to her, dechi."

Exhaling a sigh through his nose, Thomas raised his head and passed his gaze over his cramped yet clean surroundings, asking, "Is this the interior of the Going Merry...?"

Offering a second nod, Benienma replied, "Indeed. More specifically, this is the Men's quarters. We moved you here shortly after Asclepius treated you, dechi."

Though he understood the implication of Benienma's words, Thomas's expression became notably melancholic as he asked, "Does this mean Drake already set sail with the Hind...?"

Offering an apologetic smile, Benienma replied, "Indeed...she felt it would make things easier for you if she departed succinctly, dechi. She did leave you a few gifts before departing, however."

Hopping to her feet, Benienma retrieved a bundle from the corner of the room, opening it to reveal Thomas's logbook, a binder filled with sheets of music, an ornate flintlock pistol, a neatly penned letter, a folded map, and two pairs of panties...

"..."

Ignoring the contrasting undergarments, Thomas picked up the letter and read its contents. He expected it to be a farewell letter, but it was a memo detailing Drake's immediate plans for the future. There was nothing even remotely resembling a farewell within the message. Instead, she included a post statement reminding him that he was their Master, so he shouldn't hesitate to call upon them if he required their assistance.

Though he felt slightly touched upon reading Drake's reminder, Thomas's smile cramped when he read the pink-haired Pirate's post-post statement revealing that the larger pair of panties belonged to her while the delicate, lace panties belonged to Beethoven. He already suspected that was the case, but her comment about hugging and sniffing them whenever he felt lonely completely ruined the sentiments contained within the letter...

Dealing critical damage to Thomas's already exasperated mind, Benienma inquired, "Would Master like a pair of Benienma's panties...?"

Closing his eyes, Thomas took a steadying breath before responding, "No, but thank you for your concern..." in a dull monotone. Then, after folding up the letter and tying up the bundle, he asked, "Where is everyone else? Have we already set sail...?"

Shaking her head, Benienma answered, "Everyone else is either on deck or getting settled into the Women's Quarters. We're currently moored near the island where Master and Lucy-taichou did battle, dechi."

"Right..."

As he didn't feel any aches or pains, Thomas rose from the couch he had been lying on, looking around for a set of stairs. Instead, the entrance to the room seemed to be a column beneath the main mast, requiring him to climb through a hatch to reach the deck. It was a peculiar layout, as the central hold was typically used as storage, not a living space, but Thomas didn't question it.

After climbing onto the deck, Thomas was immediately seized by the notion that the Going Merry was 'much' smaller than the Hind. Its main mast was only eleven meters from keel to tip, and its length was a mere thirteen. Despite this, Thomas couldn't help smiling as he gazed around at the 'familiar' setting, excitement comparable to when he first entered the world of One Piece swelling within his chest...

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(A/N: Thomas gave it his all, but there is a reason Lucy has the status of a Main Character xD...)

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