111
"Listen up," Zoro said looking at Coby, Johnny and Yosaku. "I've got a bounty on me now, and while I don't really care about that, we don't need people challenging me in the street because they heard you say my name. You got that?"
"Oke-doke big bro Zoro!" Johnny and Yosaku said at the same time, saluting like soldiers.
Earning a glare from the pirate hunter.
"I don't think we should call him by his name around here." Coby whispered, warily looking around. "This island is crawling with marines… so we should be careful."
"Um… okay, only big bro then?"
Zoro nodded.
Unaware of the town's layout, they had no choice but to wander and hope they found a decent weapon store. Time passed in something of a blur, but Coby was pretty sure they'd passed that man selling hats three times now, and his suspicions weren't helped by the confused look he turned on them.
They turned yet another corner, one Coby was certain was not there the first two times, and began walking down another alleyway. Someone screamed down the way, a crowd of people quickly forming where the sound had originated.
Though they couldn't see over the heads of the crowd, Zoro could tell the mass of people had formed around a black-haired woman in glasses carrying a bundle, said woman being harassed by a couple of thugs.
"Hey, what's happening?" Johnny asked.
"We should check it out." Yosaku said, while Zoro and Coby tried to figure out what was happening.
"Those guys are going to kill that poor girl," a woman in the crowd fretted.
"Nah," the man beside her laughed. "I bet she'll give them a good pounding!"
"I think we have to help her…" Coby insisted, his claws already started popping out from his knuckles. With great practice and some Semi-Kikien technique, he was now able to produce claws without bleeding himself.
The two bounty hunters also got ready, though Zoro looked completely uncaring. Even though Zoro couldn't see her face, the way she held her blade, and her movements… all made her look like a trained individual that didn't need any helping.
The woman in question unsheathed her sword, the sword inside catching Zoro's attention. He grabbed Coby by the neck of his shirt, before he could jump in.
"Just watch."
There wasn't much to watch, all in all. The fight was over within a second of the woman unsheathing her blade, both of the men who had been assaulting her crumpling to the cobblestones. Not dead, but not in good condition either.
Some in the crowd laughed and clapped for the woman who only them seemed to notice she was the center of attention. Her cheeks colored as she sheathed her sword, her rush to get away from the attention causing her to trip over her own feet. Her red glasses clattered over the cobblestones, skidding to a stop at the feet of the Straw Hats.
"My glasses!" she called, feeling around in her immediate area for them. "I can't see without my glasses!"
"Here," Coby told her, bending down to pick up her glasses. She smiled in their direction, accepting them. But after seeing the face, almost all of the strawhats had their jaws dropped.
"Thank you," the woman said. "May I ask your name?"
"I-It's Coby." The young one was the first one of the break out from the shock.
But seeing such reactions, the girl in question raised an eyebrow at Zoro and the rest. "Um… is something wrong?"
"Your face…" Zoro said, unintentionally.
"Something wrong with my face?" the woman then touched her face several times. "Eh… but I can't feel anything wrong?"
"No… it's just that your face is very similar to one of our friends." Coby cleared. "You both have similar faces…"
The woman blinked, before smiling. "Well, that's unexpected… but then again there's a bounty hunter turned pirate that looks similar to me." she said with some heat in her voice. The amount of questions she had to face because of that was getting on her nerves.
She was an orphan damn it, it doesn't mean anyone that looked like her was related.
The heat in her voice, made all of them flinch and a bit tense.
"Oh, no no… I'm no pirate." She cleared, chuckling, thinking the group of gentle man had assumed it. "I'm Tashigi, by the way. A marine here in Logue Town, so you guys won't have to worry about any nasty pirates." She said puffing her chest proudly, "Do you need any help…"
All four of the men looked at each other and shrugged. Sure it was a marine, but with how bad Zoro's sense of direction was, it was better to ask for help than spend the whole day on the streets.
"Okay, then can you tell us of a sword shop?" Johnny asked, while Yosaku nodded.
"We're looking for a swordsmith since we came from a different island." Coby said, "Could you help us?"
"Of course! Follow me."
With that the group of four started following him, Zoro still couldn't believe what he was saying. But where was Kuina anyway? She had left for the bakery to check out the sweet food around the island, but in a way, it was good that she wasn't here.
Tashigi turned down the street quickly, marching back the way the pirates had come from. Zoro was fine letting Tashigi prattle on about sword techniques she had seen in the past.
She didn't stop to turn at any point, leading them to a shop called the Kotetsu Ryuu, its name stenciled onto a hanging sign with a dragon motif. Tashigi pushed the door open, causing the tinkling of a bell to ring.
The person Coby assumed was the owner of the shop, a balding man sitting behind the counter, looked up from his newspaper. The store was otherwise empty.
"What do you want?" he began before blinking, recognizing the foremost person in the trio. "Oh, Tashigi. I've finished polishing your sword. Have you brought me, new customers?"
"Hey," Zoro grunted, walking up to the counter while pulling out the four swords they had stolen from the Arlong Pirates, and dropping them on the counter. "We need some swords, two for each of us… well, except him." Pointing at Coby who was looking into the sword just out of curiosity, "…We can trade you these swords… What have you got?"
112
The shop owner stood from his stool and crouched over the counter, picking up one of the blades. He turned it over in his hands, humming.
"They're older and well-used," he noted, squeezing the handle. "The tempering shows they were cooled in salt water as it was forged, suggesting Fishman origins. And they've been freshly polished, even if they have some wear. I'd price each at 25,000."
"You know your stuff, old man," Zoro nodded, Tashigi's eyes widening at the information of the swords' origins.
"Where'd you get Fishman swords?" she asked. And that made all of them blink.
"We ran into a small patrol of them," the swordsman lied.
"Yeah… They climbed onto our ship to attack us, but we managed to fight them off." Coby added.
"You must be a strong fighter to do that," the woman praised with a nod. All of them internally sighed that she bought the story.
"Th-That blade," the shop owner swallowed, a shaking finger pointing at the Sword at Zoro's belt. Akaiittou Nozarashi. "Th-That's a nice blade. Certainly, a higher quality than these. I can give you 200,000 for it. What do you say?"
"No," Zoro answered simply.
"You push a mean bargain. 300,000!"
"It's not for sale."
"600,000, final offer!"
"I'm not selling it."
"750,000, then! I need it!"
"Is that what I think it is?" Tashigi interrupted. But then she shook her head, "No even though it looks like the Nozarashi… it's not."
"Of course, it's not the Nozarashi… that blade is no more." The shopkeeper said, "but that might be one of the best clones out there… which swordsmith did you get it from? It looks new. How long have you been using it?"
"Sorry, not for sale." Zoro cleared.
"Come on, I just want to know."
"That also includes the info."
The sword shop owner clinked his tongue, but nodded anyways. "Oh, whatever," the owner waved, disheartened. "I gave you the offer for the used swords. Between that and the 200,000, that gives you 300,000 to work with. The cheapest stuff I have to offer are the swords in the barrels over there. 50,000 each."
"But if those are the cheapest you have, why are you giving us half that for the swords we brought?" Coby questioned.
"That's a ripoff!" Johnny and Yosaku said at the same time.
"I need to make money, young man," the man shot back. "Plus, they're old. They've probably only got another couple years' use unless you've got a blacksmith to reforge them, and for these, you'd need to go to Fishman Island in the Grand Line. I sure as Hell aren't. Take it or leave it."
"We'll take it," Zoro responded, cutting off Coby's sharp reply. "Hey, start looking."
"But-!" Zoro turned, giving Coby a look. "Fine…"
"Um, if I may, why do you need three swords?" Tashigi asked. "The only person I know of who would carry that many would be the bounty hunter Roronoa Zoro." She spat the name as if it burned her tongue. "Is he an idol of yours or something?" The three of them looked between Zoro and Tashigi.
"You could say that," the swordsman shrugged, not amused. Tashigi's nose crinkled in distaste. "I frequently break swords because I can't afford ones that can stand up to my strength."
"Now that's ridiculous," the woman replied. "I don't mean to offend you, but you'd have to be inhumanly strong for that. That or you have to always have bad blades you don't care for."
Zoro turned to glare at the black-haired woman, but it was Coby that cut him off this time.
"It sounds like you don't like him. Roronoa, I mean. Have you met him before?" Coby said, getting things off tension before Zoro says something unwanted.
"I don't need to," Tashigi sniffed. "He's a bounty hunter who kills people for money. Anyone who does that can't be called a true swordman. The only things worse than a bounty hunter are the pirates they hunt."
"Oh, so you are saying being a marine is better than them?" Coby asked innocently.
"Of course."
"Yeah, sorry miss… but either you are completely delusional or stupid. I hope it's not the latter. Marine being justice is a dream that you are only able to see while you are asleep…" Coby replied, making all of them look at him. "Wake up and try to see things for what they are. I see marines as nothing more than the watchdogs of the world nobles that call themselves god and commit horrifying deeds." Coby said in a flat tone, but there were some heat in his voice.
More so after when the crew found out that the World Goverment was trying to use bounty hunters to cut down Luffy. And with what he found out after joining the crew Coby wasn't a fan of those men.
"Tha…" but before Tashigi could say anything Zoro bonked Coby on the head.
"I hope you don't mind… he has had a rather bad experience with the marines, the poor boy wanted to be one you see. But now, he's better working as a merchant with us, rather then running around the sea hunting down pirates." Zoro said, making up lies before the girl could question otherwise.
Still, Zoro just unintentionally said that being a merchant was better than being a marine.
But it seems that Coby's word left a mark on the Kuina lookalike. "Well, not all marines are bad…" she said softly before turning around and looking through catalogs of swords to keep herself busy.
But her mind was still echoing Coby's words. It was given that not everything the boy said was wrong… but still.
Now that the girl was busy in her own head the rest of the straw hat pirates scattered around the shop to find their weapons.
113
"I'm going to see if he's got any good katanas," Zoro said. "You guys just look around the shelves." The green-haired man left the three alone, and, except Coby, both men immediately went to look at the shelves and see what they could find.
Johnny wasn't exactly sure what it was that he wanted. He and Yosaku had both used Dadao's in the past, but according to Zoro, they had both been in terrible condition. That didn't surprise him to hear; they'd both been using those swords for years.
"What're you going to get?" Yosaku asked as he pulled a Claymore out of a barrel nearby and inspected it.
"I don't know," Johnny replied as he too inspected discounted blades. "It's the perfect chance to change my style up now that Big Bro Luffy is training us, but I'm not quite sure what to choose."
The shop had a vast array of blades, all of which were varying in size and shape. Half of the makes he didn't even recognize, but that was probably why Tashigi said this shop was so good. The variety was just insane.
Looking down, Johnny saw a shield resting on a display near the window. It was an Aspis shield, a bit old looking, and yet when Johnny held it, it was sturdy enough. The shield would last for long… but it didn't feel right for him.
"Hey, Yosaku, come here…"
"What…" Johnny tossed the shield, which the other one caught easily. Surprised and looking it around, Yosaku almost felt nature with it.
"Nice one… I'm definitely going to take it." Yosaku said. "But what about you?"
"Any ideas?" Johnny asked.
"I don't know," Yosaku replied. "What are you looking for?"
"Watching Mihawk with that huge blade was really cool… but Captain's naginata also gave me some ideas… so I was thinking of wielding a spear," Johnny said.
"Not bad… I will look for something to go with my new shield." With that Yosaku tried multiple swords, but they didn't feel right with the round shield. But then a silver-colored axe caught his eye.
It was a one-handed axe, with a wooden grip, but the balance and the sturdiness of the weapon were quite amazing.
"I don't know if Big Bro Zoro can teach you to use that," Johnny said, looking over at his friend's axe. Johnny had already brought a good-looking spear, "My spear is close enough to a naginata… but this is kinda different."
"Maybe," Yosaku replied. "I think I can manage… with the axe, it shouldn't be too tough."
"So a shield and an axe… quite a good combo, if you can manage it." Coby said, as he walked from just around the corner. "But I have never seen anyone fight offensively with a shield, but with the axe, it could work out."
"Yeah, but it will take much hard work with new weapons…" Johnny said, "We both changed styles… so we have our work cut out for us."
"I think so," Yosaku replied. "I may have to work harder than you with a different type of blade, but I'm prepared for that."
"We'll both have to get strong," Johnny agree as he looked down at his shield. "So that we don't bog Big Bro Luffy down on the Grand Line."
"I plan on it," Yosaku said.
Even Coby nodded. Luffy had many grand dreams and all of them required hard work for them to work.
"Are you insane?!" They heard Tashigi cry. Whirling, Coby, Johnny, and Yosaku were just in time to watch Zoro toss a blade up into the air and stretch out his arm. They both watched, horrified, as the blade fell toward his arm. Just as it was about to slice him the blade bent away from his arm, and impaled itself in the ground. Zoro looked up with a smile.
"I'll take it," he said.
"Big Bro!" Johnny cried as he and Yosaku rushed over. "What're you doing?! That was dangerous!"
"You could have lost an arm," Coby said in horror. "Even I don't want to know how much that would hurt."
"I was just testing my new sword out," he said, much to the surprise of both the shopkeeper and Tashigi. "Hey, pick out another sword for me will ya?" Tashigi seemed too shock to process his request at first, but she managed to mumble out an agreement. Before she could do anything, however, the shopkeeper ran off.
"Stay right there!" He shouted. Soon he came back carrying another blade, and he presented it to the group. "This is the best blade I have. The sword's name is Yubashiri. Although my shop is lackluster on a world scale, this is the best sword in the shop."
"I don't have money for that," Zoro replied.
"I know," he replied. "I'm giving it to you. I apologize for trying to trick you earlier, but I haven't seen a good swordsman in a long time. So I want you to have this." Zoro shrugged and picked up the blade, weighing it in his hand.
"Thanks, I guess." He said. The man nodded.
"No problem," he said. "Your friends there though, they pay full price."
"You stingy bastard!" Johnny shouted. "We're great swordsmen too!"
"I'm sure," he replied without a care in the world. "But those three weapons are high quality… especially that shield, it might look quite worn out, but it won't break easily. You're lucky I had to put 'em on sale 'cause no one was gonna buy them at the higher prices."
"Which is why they're so good, huh?" Yosaku demanded under his breath.
"Don't be smarmy, boy!" The shopkeeper shouted. "Those two weapons are higher quality than a lot of the trash in here! I'm not going to part with them for anything less than the asking price on the tags!"
"Just pay em boys," Zoro said. "I didn't have to pay, so Nami won't get on us about spending too much money."
Still upset at being insulted by the shopkeeper, Johnny regretfully forked over the money he'd been given, Yosaku following close behind. Coby was the only one that didn't buy any weapon.
"Well, thanks for the service," Zoro nodded, before turning to the Kuina lookalike. "It seems that we will be on our way, miss marine." Tashigi glanced at the clock and yelped.
"Shit!" she cursed. "I'm late for training! Captain Hina is going to kill me! Good luck, you three." She turned, the door slamming in her wake. Another curse drifted in as she tripped, scrambling away.
"Well, at least she isn't one of those corrupt marines."
114
"Well, at least she isn't one of those corrupt marines."
"Yup," the owner answered. "A Sergeant Major and one of the best on the island… I don't know what you suffered kid. But I can understand before Smoker the previous captain wasn't good either."
Johnny nodded. "I'm glad we agreed to not say your name, Big bro Zoro. She really didn't like your reputation."
The shop owner paled. "Y-You're R-R-Roronoa Zoro?!"
"That a problem?" the green-haired man asked.
"No-Not at all! In fact, I'm honored to have you in my shop! You are part of Mario's crew aren't you…" the shopkeeper said, eagerly, "With three named blades, I hope you don't use them for bad stuff."
"Well, we won't," Coby replied. It was good being recognized for being a good deed.
"Good, but if anyone asks, I was never here. At least, not until tomorrow. Let's go, guys." With that, they exited the shop.
"At least we got some good new weapons," Yosaku said as he secured his axe and shield on his back. "I wonder how everyone else is fairing out there."
"I think we'll be able to tell pretty shortly," Zoro said. Looking ahead of them, he saw Nami and Sanji walking towards them, Sanji carrying literally every bag while Nami walked carefreely.
"Hey guys!" Nami greeted with a smile as she ran up to them. "How'd the shopping go?"
"Awesome!" Yosaku shouted as he gestured to his new blade. "Look at what we got!" Johnny opted to show off as well, and Nami just smiled.
"I'm sure those didn't cost a lot of money right?" She asked in a sickly sweet, clearly fake tone. Johnny felt himself sweat as he forked over his change, the other two doing the same. While Coby chuckled nervously.
"Zoro didn't have to pay, so that's good right?" He asked weakly. Nami frowned as she thumbed through the bills.
"Little less than half spent, huh?" She asked. "I could have done better. But at least you didn't blow all of the money."
"Heh… didn't you say you would stay in the ship?" Zoro asked.
"Nah, it got boring… and I found Sanji along the way."
"Nami-swan!" Sanji shouted as he caught up to them. "Where should we look for your new wardrobe next?" Nami rolled her eyes before turning to him.
"I already told you, I just finished." She replied as she glared at him. "Besides, you've got your hands full with that giant fish and my clothes, so we can't really get anything else." Sanji seemingly ignored this completely.
"Well, I guess we should," Yosaku replied. "But we don't know where Big Bro Luffy went, and I doubt he's returned to the ship."
"I think you mean we know he hasn't returned to the ship." Zoro said. "He said we was going to where Roger was executed right? I'm sure we can find him there."
"Yeah probably," Nami said as she looked up. "The weather's nice today, we could stay the day here.. If things don't happen."
.
"Well, at least you have a new weapon now," Gin said as he walked down the street with Usopp.
The marksmen, had been inspecting his weapon ever since the gunsmith had made it for him. Well, the gunsmith was very interested and eager to build a man large-sized slingshot that could be practically used.
Though even the gunsmith himself doubted the practicality of the weapon. Still, the guy was eager to help the friend of Gin.
He'd even cleaned and polished Usopp's revolvers, and Gin's guns as well. The gunsmith was really interested in Usopp's guns and even gave some blueprints and ideas to work with. A gun made out of Adam's wood, that's functional, you don't see it every day.
All in all, he'd been a pretty good guy to them. Well, Gin did know him from way back. Though the shopkeeper didn't recognize that he was a pirate now, it seemed that the gunsmith wasn't that much interested in the current news or any pirate-related news in general. Well, it worked out for him.
After picking up some ammo for him, the two left to return to the Merry. But Usopp seemed dead set on tinkering with his new weapon.
The slingshot had a large handle, with a good design, having five prongs connecting to a single point with some good resistant band. It all practically it more so looked like a cool toy, rather than a deadly weapon. Yet it was anything but that.
The slingshot was tested and it could now reach a long distance, and yet it didn't feel complete. "The problem is, it's firepower… if only I had something to give it a boost in power when shooting with it." the sniper said to himself.
"How long are you going to stare at that thing?"
"Until I find where I can add some mods to it," he replied. "Maybe even make myself some custom ammo too. I think that'd be really cool. Well, I already have some custom ammo for my small slingshot, I only need to make them bigger now."
"Custom ammo?" Gin asked as they walked. "Oh, yeah. The party tricks." said, remembering his fight with Coby and Usopp. Him getting a hot sauce bullet right in the eye, honestly, it was quite irritating.
Usopp nodded, now looking proudly at him.
"Of course," he said. "My specialty with my slingshot is all the types of ammo I can use. That's why I asked the guy for some shell casings, and even gave me a good recipe for some better gunpowder. I'm going to make my own ammo that can explode or create a smokescreen! It'll make me an even bigger threat on the battlefield!" Gin couldn't help but smile at this enthusiasm.
"That sounds cool, I guess… but I prefer sticking to traditional bullets… one to between the eye and dead." Gin added.
Usopp winched remembering what he did to Kuro, before shaking his head.
"But if you do make custom bullets, then look into sea stone bullets…"
Usopp nodded. Luffy had explained how both him and Sparky got the drop on Aramaki with them. Their victory relied on the sea stone cuffs and bullets.
Sea stone bullets in general, were very deadly against a devil fruit user. And in case something like this happened, Luffy told everyone to collect sea stones if they were near.
Even though it was quite rare, now they were near the grandline it would be quite available, later on.
"Hey, you know… it might be a stretch, but I do know a few guys from the back alley around here." Gin said, "Maybe we could find some sea stones or other stuff there…"
Usopp shrugged, he didn't have anything other to do anyway. Also, he was still trying to figure out new tricks with his new slingshot.
115
A bit earlier,
Kuina sat in a small bakery shop, enjoying her pineapple cake. It was quite good, but nothing noteworthy like Sanji's cooking. Still, one of her hobbies was trying out sweet items from every island she visited. So she was only performing her duty.
While the rest of the crew, —that had bounties on them— made some effort on not standing out, by going through back allies, or not being bold. She did no such thing.
She couldn't actually, most of the good sweatshops were near the center of the Logue Town. So she had made an effort to wear a pair of round sunglasses to hide most of her face.
Not that it was working as people would often look at her with recognizable smiles. It was almost if she was well-known around the area. Weird.
For some reason, all of the shops gave her a good discount on each purchase, so she was quite busy going through each shop and eating her fill.
While some women might feel jealous of how much she could eat in one sitting. It was always like that, because of her fast metabolism and being a very active person.
Also, she was trying to learn Life Return from the Rokushiki techniques, and of the easy tricks, one was digesting foods quickly, and using them rather than letting them be stored as fat cells. Which made her eat twice as much, in order to learn it.
For her, Kuina always needed a lot of food because of her constant sword training, so she had to eat quite a lot since she began Life Return training. Which worked out quite well, for her visit.
Anyway, while she was enjoying her third serving of a whole cake. A small girl approached her, nervously.
And that made Kuina look at the nervous girl, she was holding something behind her back.
"Um… big sister, I have a gift for you." The girl said. Before placing the object on the table, and running off.
The femal waiter that came to serve another cake giggled. "It seems she gave you a gift. It's quite good."
Kuina blinked and looked at the said gift, while the waiter went back towards the kitchen section.
The gift was a Marine hat, but it was a bit different, having white cat-like ears on it.
Kuina blinked. This was unexpected, but then again gaining smiles from random people, getting discounts in all the shops she visited and even random marine soldiers giving her salutes were all strange. So the blade user just shrugged and listed it off as another strange thing that couldn't be explained for the day.
She took the white hat, it looked like any standard marine hat. But had white cat ears as decorations, it kind of looked cute. So she wore it, before looking at the glass window's hollow reflection. It didn't go well with her sunglasses, so she took them off.
Now it looked quite well, matching well with her white kimono.
While Kuina was appreciating her new look, a female marine that was going around with two mairne soldiers, looked at the glass and made eye contact with Kuina. The woman looked a bit older than Kuina and just from the glance, the blade user could tell she was a skilled fighter.
So she was on guard when the woman entered the shop. Kuina stood up from her chair when the woman came near her, with two marines following her.
'Did they recognize me from my bounty poster… I shouldn't have take off my sunglasses.' Kuina said to herself. Her grip tightened on her sword.
"Marine Officer Tashigi, this is quite unprofessional of you. Upset, Hina is Upset." The female marine said. She had a justice coat signifying her rank as a marine captain, and her pink hair stood out quite well with her red suit. "You should be on duty now… the shipment for the sea stone have arrived, and have yet to be picked up. Why are you here?"
"…" Kuina didn't say anything, she was genuinely confused.
Taking her silence as an answer, the female marine spoke again. "I didn't know except such unprofessional behavior from you… while Hina might be upset, Hina can understand. You did great work on managing the base in Logue Town while Smoker went out to Sakura Island. But, if you are feeling overworked you should have taken a formal break. A marine shouldn't be lazing around… not when the likes of Fallen Hero Luffy had been seen around these waters."
"What?" Kuina blinked several times. Did the captain get found out in Logue Town, that would shorten her trip here. She still had a few shops that she didn't try out.
Mistaking Kuina's shock as worry, Hina spoke. "Don't worry, it seems that that so-called hero is too of a coward to come here… and straight for grandline."
"Oh…"
Hina nodded. "You should go to the shipment of sea stones with them…" pointing at the two marines that stood behind Hina. "They were going to the shipment anyways, and I was planning on going there to authorize it. But since I found you here, go with them. After that, you can get back at your tea break. Hina understands the importance of taking a break, but duty comes first."
With that the pink-haired woman went off, her white justice coat fluttering at the wind. "Hm… the weather's quite windy today. Nice hat by the way… you look quite good in it, especially without your glass, good to know that you have tried the lens I recommended. It matches your white kamono… when you have time, help Hina buy a good Kamono, I hear good ones are quite comfortable." With that, she was out of the shop, and into another corner, towards the marine office situated on the island.
Kuina blinked, that was odd. But what was going on… why was she mistaking her for someone else. 'It must be the hat.'
"Officer Tashigi… the shipment of sea stones has been on the doc for quite some time. We should go." One of the marine soldiers said respectfully.
Kuina mindlessly nodded. Captain did say something about sea stones being important. Mainly how it could help against devil fruit user… and it was quite expensive. So…
"Yeah, let's go there." Kuina said, nodding at the soldiers as they both took charge while she followed them.
116
A tall figure that wore a dark green cloak with a hoodie, walked down the alleyway of Logue Town. He was an imposing figure, having an aura of mystery and danger around him.
Only the tall man's face could be seen, even his head was covered under the cloak. He had a tribal tattoo that was on the side of his face, and a mane of wild dark hair. This was none other than Revolutionary Dragon. Currently the most wanted man alive.
Dragon walked near the back alley where people shouldn't walk alone. He glanced back without turning his body, someone was following him. But he wasn't worried.
As he walked, suddenly a man came out from the side, passing by Dragon before engaging the unknown follower. This man wasn't as tall as Dragon, having blond curly hair, a scar over his eye, and a unique choice of weapon. A metal pipe.
Sabo was his name. The second in command of the Revolutionary army.
"Who are you? And why are you following him?" Sabo asked with narrowed eyes looking at the unknown figure. But something in the boy told him that the unknown figure looked well familiar.
"Shishishi… is this how you greet your long lost brother, Sabo." Said the figure with the straw hat with a wide grin, easily holding off Sabo's armament-clad pipe with his naginata. "But then again, you are the long lost brother…"
Sabo blinked, a headache assaulting him, while Luffy used the chance to kick him off of him. Sabo jumped back, but didn't attack immediately, holding his head for the massive headache it gave. He… he could recognize the boy.
Not because of his recent fame as a bounty hunter turned pirate… no. It was something more deep. "Just who are you?"
Luffy's smile dropped a bit, "Well, at least you are alive… and as for who I am. Grandpa said to beat you up, if we ever found you, so that's what I'm going to do."
Luffy honestly asked Garp once what he should do, if he ever found Sabo was alive and lost his memories. The old man gave the simple answer to beat the memories back to his head. And so as an obedient grandson, he was going to comply.
But before Luffy could move towards Sabo, suddenly Dragon appeared above him, with his fist blacked with haki. Luffy was honestly wide-eyed, his Observation Haki couldn't keep up with that kind of speed, but his fighting instincts barely allowed him to react.
Luffy held his naginata, above his head, cladding it with the strongest layer of Armament Haki. Yet he couldn't defend himself, as he was flown away, only stopping himself with Geppo, or he would have gone through a building.
"Come on, old man. Is this the first thing you do, after meeting your son for the first time?" Luffy smirked, while his whole body was shivering from the small clash. Dragon's haki was too strong, it felt like Mihawk all over again.
On that side, Sabo wasn't too weak either, more stronger than Aramaki. That was for sure.
Dragon smirked. "Well, at least, my old man wasn't slaking off on training you, kid." He said, "Haki at that level while still in the east blue… quite admirable. But then again, you are my son." His smirk turning into a full grin.
Luffy just smiled, while he looked at Dragon. It seems that big daddy was praising him. Talking of big… it seems that his blond big bro was confused looking between him and Dragon.
Hm… this will take a while.
.
"Um… Gin, are you sure about this?" Usopp asked as they went through the shady alleyways of Logue Town. Beggers, homeless, and drunkards were a common sights around the areas. It was getting a bit late, the sun might come down soon, so most of the shady business was yet to start.
Even though Logue Town was a very organized city, there were always people in the back alley going around doing their odd jobs. Smoker didn't even try to stop them, as most of them were harmless small-time criminals.
Still, the alley looked quite shady, and of course, the long nose was weak in the knees when it came to this sort of stuff.
"You know for a man that took out a named pirate like Kuro, *cough… you are quite the coward." Gin said, bluntly.
"Coward, who me?" Usopp said, puffing his chest, but jumped when a nearby drunkard coughed. "I-I'm just well situationally aware."
"Mhm-hm." Gin nodded, before shaking his head. But then again that is what made Usopp unique. Even though the man was scared at even his own shadow, he was brave enough to face all consequences when push came to shove. And Gin respected that about him.
Both Gin and Usopp walked through the shady alleyway, taking a few turns around the building. Even though Gin hadn't been here for a long time, he knew the back alleys like the back of his hand.
And soon enough they were in front of an abandoned warehouse. "He used to be here… but it seems quite run down to me. We might not find him here…"
"So, this is the place?" Usopp asked. "Honestly, I was expecting something more scary…"
Gin gave a flat look to Usopp before opening the warehouse door, from where a bunch of bats came out screaming, as if welcoming them to the haunted place.
Usopp gulped, "Maybe I spoke too soon…"
"Hey!"
Suddenly Gin found Usopp on his lap, while the long nose had his revolver out and pointed at the new person that arrived.
It was a woman with red hair, that looked like a street punk rather than anything. She also had her gun pointed at Usopp and by extension Gin.
"Why are you pointing your gun at us, woman?" Usopp was still on Gin's lap, in a princess carry, pointing at the girl.
Both the woman and Gin narrowed their eyes at Usopp. Before Gin, dropped the long nose on the floor.
Usopp yelped falling, before he picked himself up, and acted like nothing happened. His revolver was still pointed at the woman.
"Why are you clowns on my turf?" Asked the woman.
"Your turf…" Gin mused, coughing, "Lady, don't kid yourself. And I'm not here for you anyway, tell me where I can find, Bartolomeo. Before the sniper here pulls the trigger."
The woman narrowed her eyes, "I would like to see you try."
The tension got really thick around the ally, any moment now, something could happen.
But that was when a green-haired man walked out of a nearby building. Yawning, half asleep. He blinked looking at them.
"What happened? Desire?" Bartolomeo blinked, before his eyes comically widered, "Wait, is that Big Bro Gin? But my sources said, you guys were already on the grandline… Wait… does that mean, Fallen Hero Straw hat Luffy is here? Can I meet him?"
Usopp blinked at the new man's multitude of questions. It seems this one was a fan of his captain.
Bartolomeo is a light-skinned, tall and lean yet muscular man. He has light green-colored hair in a wild, Mohawk style and no eyebrows. He has a demonic-looking face, sharp fangs, and a ring piercing on his nasal septum. There are two lines tattooed under his right eye that curve towards his ear. All in all, he looked like a punk that you don't wanna mess with.
Gin frowned, "That's for later, more importantly… You know this gal?"
"You know these men?"
"Yeah, she's Desire. My friend. And Desire, this is Gin. We go way back, he was the one in charge of the mobs before he became a pirate. He's kind of like a big brother to me." Bartolomeo said, before looking between them. "But why are you guys pointing guns at each other."
"We should probably not point our gun now," Usopp said, as he slowly holstered his revolver, the woman doing the same. "So… name's Usopp by the way. And you would be?"
"Oh, my name's Bartolomeo. People call me, Man-Eater Barto around here."
"Wait, you eat man? As in flesh?"
"Nah… they just get spooked 'cause I look scary. I'm actually vegan most of the times when I don't eat meat."
Usopp wanted to point out that's not how it works, but Gin just shook his head. It's not worth it.
"By the way… You with big bro Gin?"
Usopp nodded. "Yeah, well, we are kind of crewmates."
"Wait… crewmates, you don't mean you are a member of the Straw Hat Pirates?" The green head blinked. His face morphed into one that of respect and his eyes sparkled. "Please, guide me senpai?" he said, looking at Usopp with new light.
Usopp puffed his chest, and put one of his legs above a nearby barrel, posing cooly with his gun. "Yes, you have much to learn…" he nodded. "But I will see what I can do."
Gin and Desire looked at them flatly. This is going to take a while.
117
Kuina checked the corners before looking back, the marines were knocked out. None of them have woken up. Good. She had a heavy bag full of things that she took out of the underground storage and walked to the nearby water source.
Some might wonder how she ended up in the situation.
When Kuina was misunderstood as a marine, she received the shipment for Sea Stone, but she didn't steal it then and there. That would be foolish, and too hasty. She may be simple-minded, but she knew some things were better done complicated.
The sea stone that arrived was a bag of powered sea stone, primarily used to make sea stone prisons or Captain Smoker's jitte. By not snatching and running off with the sea stone powder, she was able to locate the storage of the marines. Storage where it was kept with other valuables.
Which was a bit far from the marine base, in a secure underground bunker. It seems it used to be a prison there, but now it was used mostly as storage.
Anyway, there she found more than just sea stones power, there were already some sea stone cuffs, some bags of gold, and other valuables as well. All of them could come in handy. And not only that, it also had an armory section filled with guns and other useful stuff. Especially the large quantity of gunpowder, held in barrels.
Kuina wondered if that's why it was a far away from the central town.
So after leaving, she watched the place for a few hours, The Marines were smart. There was a huge metal door that connected the underground bunker and it had only one side opening. It is from the inside.
So breaking in would be quite tough, even though Kuina was confident in cutting through the thick layer of steel, the marines inside could easily call for backup and it would end up as a heist. And the they would need to move immediately.
That was why after doing a bit of preparation, she used the misunderstanding again and gained entrance the second time. And after the door was opened, dealing with them was quite easy, as she was already familiar with the structure.
This would be quite hard alone. There were a lot of things, and many of them could help the crew. So he brought it back up.
"Take them to the ship, before anyone finds it." Kuina said as she placed the large bag full of stolen goods to Hatchan. Hatchan had already made two trips for the barrels of gunpowder and sea stone, now these were the gold and other stuff Kuina found.
The storage was near the sea, and bringing all the stuff on foot would take too long, and there was a chance to get caught. That's why she brought along Hatchan and Sparky.
Sparky was looking through the armory section of the storage, packing whatever he could find useful. Not all of the guns were useful and the monkey was taking his sweet time going through the inventory. Also, Sparky went a step further and drugged the already knocked-out marines, so they wouldn't wake up for a few days.
"Hey, what happened here." A female voice called out, and Kuina could hear footsteps. Shit, someone was here.
Hatchean was bit surprised. "Don't worry, I will handle it." Kuina said. "You take the stuff back and come for another bag, Sparky should have the other bag packed up by then."
Hatchi nodded, before diving into the water. He was having quite the fun, stealing from marines. It almost reminded him of the old days when him, Jinbie, and Arlong would sneak up on the marines to steal their goods, before they were even pirates.
Thinking of Arlong saddened him a bit, but he didn't pay that much mind to it. Arlong made his choice and he faced the consequences. And Hatchan was making his own choice, which was helping Luffy and the crew.
And he was quite enjoying it.
While the Fishman left, Kuina took her sword and slowly walked toward the female voice. She was about to sneak up on her, but was surprised when she saw her face.
And she wasn't the only one either.
"You!"
"You!"
Both said at the same time, pointing dumbfoundedly at each other. Well, this just got weird.
.
Dragon wasn't surprised by his son's arrival. But he was a bit glad that Luffy didn't hold any grudge against him… but it didn't surprise him. No, what surprised him was the fact that, Sabo was Luffy's brother. Not by blood, but some relations are more deeper than blood.
One the other hand the second in command of the revolutionary army was getting a headache. The number of memories pouring in was almost making him throw up. And yet he felt the most happiest man alive.
He wouldn't feel lost anymore. He did have a past.
And at the same time, he was mad for forgetting such precious memories. He had brothers, one was Luffy, and the other one was Ace. He… he wasn't alone. Sure the ugly memories of his so-called real family also came back, but he didn't pay them mind.
He was more eager to learn about what happened to Luffy and Ace while he was gone.
That was the reason why they were in an underground bar in Logue Town. A few of the revolutionaries watched the interaction between Luffy and Sabo with interest.
Sabo wasn't the only high-ranking member there, there were others. But all of them were quiet listening to the stories shared by the brothers.
"And then Gramps threw me to sea first for skipping training, before throwing Ace later, knowing he would save me… huh, those were the fun days," Luffy said, while Sabo laughed.
"Yeah, gramps can be a bit rough sometimes," Sabo said, while the other listeners questioned themselves on how the Marine Hero Garp treated their grandson. It was no wonder why both of them were so strong.
Also, it made the few members look at Dragon. He was also known for rough training, often throwing new recruits into dangerous situations. So that's where he got that from.
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Dragon of course ignored those looks, he was thinking of something else.
118
Dragon had many things to think about. Especially regarding the future of the revolutionary and the White Beard pirates.
Even though, it wasn't right to think with a business mindset, Sabo and Luffy's relationship with Fire Fist Ace was quite beneficial for his cause. Ace was the second division commander of the White Beard Pirates. If the revolutionaries wanted to spread their influence no better way than having a yonko by their side, just joining them would boost their reputation.
But then again, Whitebeard was more of a peaceful-minded father figure, nowadays. Not wanting to put his sons or daughters in danger. So the alliance might not happen. Still, it was worth the shot. And besides building a relationship with Ace would do them better if Edward ever wanted to retire.
"That's why I was thinking of bringing you along on the Journey," Luffy said, grinning. That brought Dragon's attention back to his son's conversation. "I'm not sure but for some reason, Ace should be on the paradise side of the grandline. And you could meet him there. He will love it."
Sabo blinked, before sighing. "Luffy… I'm not…"
"You can take a break Sabo," Dragon said, cutting Sabo off. "You should get your personal stuff sorted out first. I did make a promise back when I found you, that I would help you find your memories. So treat this as a break."
"Hey, thanks old man." Luffy grinned.
But Dragon wasn't finished. "And besides, Luffy needs someone to teach him the basics of haki. With how strong he has gotten he might grow an ego, it's better to stop the foolishness before it costs something."
"Hey, I can already use Haki!"
Dragon of course ignored the comment. "Luffy's Haki might be strong, but he's wasting too much energy, his Armament needs to improve a lot. And his observation haki is too lacking…" he said as if Luffy wasn't in the same room. "So you can teach him that, while you are with him. I do have some responsibility as his father."
Luffy didn't say anything just pouted, but inside he was thinking of something. Well, Dragon did come here in the original to see Luffy off on his journey. So it might be true, but then again, Dragon might also want Sabo to get in contact with Ace, for his connection to Whitebeard.
Not that something was wrong with it. Luffy was actually hoping that by having Sabo on his side, he could help Ace during his fight with Blackbeard.
What? He knew his brother, Ace was too stubborn to even think of quitting his chase on Teach. So as the saying goes, if you can't stop em, join em. That's what he gonna do. With both him and Sabo, Ace would have a better chance of killing Teach.
Actually, it would end up doing a lot of good later on. Killing that sick bastard early would do him real good in the future.
Also, Dragon was right. Even though Luffy knew of Haki, his Armament or Observation wasn't refined. Sabo should have a few years of experience in the haki department, not quite the Rayleigh figure to learn haki. But he could be very helpful in fixing the small mistakes.
"Wait, before that. I need a favor from you." Luffy suddenly said remembering something. "Also take this… you guys might be able to figure it out, but I do need it back before we leave Logue Town."
Sabo caught the device, it was a small band. But Sabo was able to recognize it, it from the intel they had on the in Vinsmoke family. A device made by Germa 66.
It was one of their prototypes of an invisible device. Now, Dragon and the other revolutionarys looked at Luffy. Surprised. How did he get that… it was even though finding one of their device on the grandline, let alone in East Blue.
"It's an invisible device that I got some a certain someone, with you guys always sneaking up on the marines. I think you guys would need it to turn literally invisible… though, it doesn't work that well against Observation haki user, but I think you guys could replicate and improve on the technology."
Lindbergh, the cat mink that was amongst the army, quickly got of from his chair and came near Sabo. The blonde was a bit surprised when his cat-mink friend snatched the device away from his hand and started inspecting it.
"Hm… this is a good device. It seems to be run on limited battery, and it's a one-piece equipment, so normally it can't be opened." Lindbergh said, humming while he looked closely at the device.
Luffy nodded. This was one of the reasons, the device had a battery, that could only be refilled by the Germa 66. Even though Judge gifted Morgan this device, it was full of strings.
Meaning even if Luffy had the device, without charging it had limited uses. Also somehow the Vinsmoke was able to make it without having any separate parts, so it also can't be opened. And there wasn't any experts in the crew that could do it, that's why in a way Luffy was hoping for a both-way benefit.
"Can you work with it?" Dragon asked.
Lindbergh thought for a while. "It will be tough to figure out in one day, but not impossible." He then gave a thumbs up. "I will even find a way to refill the battery of the thing… you don't know how much you helped us, Straw hat."
Luffy just smiled, "Nah, got to look out for my old man and big bro. Shishishi…"
"I will also see if I can make a refill for it. And I should be able to mass produce it after figuring it out. Though depending on the material they have used, it might not be as effective as this device."
Dragon nodded, "It's expected, but see what you can do." He then looked at Luffy. "What's the favor you wanted?"
Luffy blinked. "Oh, that… do you guys have any medical personnel on your team?"
Dragon frowned and nodded. But he asked, "What happened?"
119
Luffy blinked. "Oh, that… do you guys have any medical personnel on your team?"
Dragon frowned and nodded. But he asked, "What happened?"
"Well, you see two of my crewmates, Gin and Hatchan were got attacked by Aramaki… and they might need some medical attention," Luffy said. "Aramaki has the chemical chemical fruit, so his chemical toxins are messing with their bodies…"
All of the members of the revolutionary were surprised and had frowns on their face, before Sabo could question one of them spoke.
"Wait, Hatchan as in the six-armed fishman?" It was Koala who spoke, she looked a bit worried. "So, he did join your crew? Is he fine?"
Luffy blinked. "Yes, he only lost two of his arms." The girl paled a bit, so Luffy explained. "Don't worry, it seems that Octopus Fishman can grow back their limbs, actually he would love to meet you… you are Koala right?"
The girl blinked but nodded. Before she could say anything Sabo spoke.
"Wait, so the news about you fighting the bounty hunter Aramaki was true… but why would a big shot bounty hunter from the grandline come here? We thought, Morgan, was just hyping up the news about your success." Sabo said.
Well as revolutionary they couldn't believe all the news that the newspaper gave out. "More importantly how are you fine… don't you also need medical attention for that? Chemical poisoning is very harmful to the body. Especially if it's radiation."
"Well… thankfully, Aramaki was too of an idiot to know the full powers of his own fruits. And I have of the marine technique, Life Return. So, I know my body full well enough to negate the side effects of his devil fruit powers." Luffy said, "Why you guys don't use that technique?"
Sabo and the rest of them blinked, "Yeah, but you would have to be a very skilled user that do that… that's quite amazing." The others nodded.
Life return was one of the hardest techniques to learn from the Rokushiki techniques. With Marines being corrupt, their secret techniques were quite out in the open. And in a way, it wasn't completely odd seeing some non-marines knowing how to use the techniques.
"Why did Aramaki attack you in the first place?" Dragon said, returning to the subject in hand.
"Well, someone from the World Government doesn't want me in the seas… so they did a whole setup when I was with my crew in the Sakura Island. Even going as far as to link up a random destruction of a Marine Base in our name." Luffy said.
The others in the room were no unexposed to the scheme of the World Goverment. So they could understand what had happened.
"And Aramaki is well known for taking government contact, and so he was eager enough to go for my head. Though, I was able to survive somehow… but I wouldn't be surprised if that bastard's still alive…"
Luffy was cut off by the sheer ferocity of Dragon's Conquer's Haki. It wasn't aimed at anyone. A muffled use of haki, yet Luffy was on full guard, and he could feel a shiver run down his spine.
"Those fools still haven't learned." He said, with a tightened fist. Luffy could see the sheer anger in his face. The haki lasted for just a second, before it was taken back, but the others in the room also had similar reactions to Luffy.
Dragon's Haki felt suffocating. For one second everyone in the room forgot to breathe. And all of them were well familiar with haki. It just went to show how strong Dragon was.
Honestly, Dragon's Haki might be just as strong or even stronger than Mihawk. But then again Mihawk was testing him, while Dragon here accidentally used haki with raw emotions.
Luffy gulped. The world was still filled with monsters, and he felt quite excited about being one of them in the future. To stand on the top.
.
After the whole ordeal was over, Dragon also promised Luffy to send two doctors to the Going Marry after a few hours. Other than Sabo, the rest of the Revolutionarys wouldn't be staying. They would be crossing to the South Blue, so they didn't want to bring any attention.
Koala also wanted to go to the Going Marry and see Hatchan. She was still grateful for the Sun Pirates did for her, so she wanted to meet the friendly Fishman.
Almost all of the crewmates were out, so Luffy was expecting Sparky, Hatchan and maybe Momoo near the ship. But when he got there, almost all of the crewmembers were on the ship. And then some.
"Hey, guys what happened?" Luffy asked as why all of the crewmates were looking at a pile of something, that was on the dock of the Going Marry. Luffy couldn't see what they were looking at because of the crowd.
Luffy also noticed Bartolomeo and Desire, Luffy almost forgot about them as he was too focused on the Revolutionary Army.
"Oh, Luffy check out my new swords," Zoro said, showing his new blades. Sandai Kitetsu and Yubashiri. Both blades looked strong, they were named swords for no reason.
"Yeah, we bought some as weapon well." Johnny and Yoskau showed their weapons. Johnny had a spear, while Yosaku was wilding a one-handed axe and a round Roman shield.
"Boys and their toys" Nami said, wearing a new dress which she obviously bought from here. "Anyway, Luffy you noticed something different…" she said, batting her eyelashes, before noticing the two new individuals. "Wait, who are they?"
"Oh, this is my long-lost brother, Sabo. Got lost in the sea when we were young, found him by the sea seashore here." Luffy said, jabbing his thumb at Sabo, the blond wanted to say something but Luffy moved on. Pointing at the girl, "And that's his girlfriend Koala."
Koala waved before she blinked. A small blush appeared on her cheeks.
"Hey, she's not my girlfriend Luffy," Sabo said, blushing, matching Koala.
"Yes, poor you." Luffy said, ignoring his brother. "Anyway, Hatchi, you recognize her?"
Hatchan who was also amongst the group blinked a few times, before realization hit his face. "Is that you Koala?"
"Yes, it's nice to meet you Hatchan." The girl said recovering from his blush, but felt a bit saddened when she saw Fishman wrapped in bandages, and two of his arms missing.
"Oh, don't worry about them… I will grow them back, but what happened to you." Hatchi said, "You are all grown up now."
Koala blinked, "Well, uh… a lot happened. After Fisher Tiger died, I wanted to change things… and I guess I grew up." She said, smiling. "And it seems that you really changed as well. Joining a crew full of humans. Hack would be surprised seeing you now."
"Wait? Hack's alive? That old man isn't dead… but where is he? Brother Jinbe was looking for him quite a few years back. I thought he died." Hatchan said, before remembering what Luffy said about Koala, and shut his mouth, there were a few new people around here so he didn't want to say something unnecessary in front of them.
Luffy appreciated the friendly fisherman's foresight, and looked at Usopp. He was surprised to see the large slingshot. "It seems you also had your own shopping."
Usopp grinned, taking out his large slingshot. "Thanks, it was Gin's idea. I also got my guns checked there, and have quite a few tricks now."
Luffy nodded, and Gin spoke. "Captain… these are…" He then pushed Bartolomeo forward, "Yeah, I'm not good at introducing people, so go ahead."
"And who might you be?" Luffy asked.
120
Bartolomeo was nervous, fidgeting before taking a breath of air, as he quickly spoke. "Name's Bartolomeo, people call me Man-Eater Bartolomeo," he said puffing his chest, just like Usoop told him to, "So, please let me join the crew!"
"Ok, but what can you do?"
Bartolomeo's shoulder sagged, "Yes, I know you wouldn't let someone like me join the crew… wait, did you just accept my request?" Luffy nodded amused, while the green-headed man jumped with joy, dancing around Desire. "Did you see… big bro Usopp was right. Now, I'm in the crew, yay!"
Luffy smiled, before looking at Usopp who was a bit surprised himself. "Hey, don't think I take anyone in the crew… this guy might look funny, but has quite the potential," Luffy said, yup, observation haki did show him how great-willed he was. "Anyway, what can you do? You might be part of the crew now… but you do need to carry your own weight."
Bartolomeo's shoulder sagged yet again, "Well… nothing that impressive like you. But I do run a small-time gang here." He said nervously chuckling.
Desire who was by his side snorted. "Why don't you show him your special ability? He has some special powers… but unfortunately, he can't swim."
"Hey, don't say that… it's a drawback anyways." Bartolomeo said, remembering how every time Smoker was able to defeat him with his own special powers. "I can't even swim."
"Now, I'm interested… did you eat a devil fruit or something," Luffy said, acting a bit obvious, while the green-headed man nodded. "Then, what's your ability."
Bartolomeo sighed, "This…" he said crossing his fingers while a square shield appeared in front of him, transparent, and yet sturdy.
Luffy didn't say anything, just shot the shield with two of his finger bullets. And unsurprisingly the shield was unharmed. Bartolomeo was surprised and Luffy grinned. "That's some powerful shield you have there… welcome to the crew Barto. You will fit right in."
"Wait, my powers aren't useless?" Bartolomeo blinked before he started to cry in happiness. "See… Luffy-senpai can see my talent!"
Desire just rolled her eyes at her childhood friend's antics. "I told you, to not look down on yourself. That Smoker guy is overpowered as he is, ever since we were kids… he was too stoic. And not to mention his overpowered fruit, so of course he would take you out every time you fought. And it seems that your so-called hero also agrees with me."
Luffy nodded. "So, you also wanted to join the crew?"
"Fuck no." Desire said, "Someone needs to stay back here and piss dear Smokey off from time to time… and the whole sea journey isn't my call. But if I do set sail, I will do it alone, and if your offer still stands in a few years, I will find you then."
Bartolomeo was surprised, "But wait, didn't you promise to start our journey together?"
She shook her head. "I wanted to at first… but I also need to keep Bill and others in check. So no… but hey, if you don't die, you will see me in the sea next year. I would rather sail alone at first, rather than join a crew."
Luffy nodded, "Well, good luck then." He said, as the girl jumped of Going Marry, leaving Bartolomeo behind. "I wont' say goodbye, cause it's not the last time you will be seeing me." Luffy saw her leave and didn't stop her.
Even though she could join the crew. She didn't have any outward talent. And with all the risks moving forward, it would be wrong to make her join the crew just because she was a pretty face.
She was strong no doubt, and also had good potential. But unlike Bartolomeo here, she wasn't that exceptional. Still, who knows if she's willing to join in the future, or even buildup her own crew, he wouldn't mind making her join the fleet.
"Oh, and what were you guys gathered around for, when we came here?"
"Oh, yeah, we forgot. Come see this.." Nami then came and grabbed Luffy's hand bringing him to the pile of ash-like power that was in a barrel. But Luffy was able to guess what it was, and he was surprised. And that wasn't all, there was three sets of cuffs and not to mention a few bags of gold as well.
"How did you manage to get that much seastone powder? That's like one kilogram." Luffy said, touching the stuff, it was a in its purest form. He could feel the energy draining from his body. And there was other stuff as well. Guns, gunpowder, rifles, gold, and tons of things.
In the canon, nothing much was revealed about sea stone other than the fact the people of Wano was able to mold it and many organizations used it to make weapons. In here, the purest form of sea stone, which gives 100% effect was sea stone power, but it needs to mixed with good quality metal to give it diamond-like hardness.
"Who got that? We are pretty much loaded now." Luffy grinned.
"Well, that would be me, captain. And you are welcome." Kuina said, as she sat on her chair enjoying her cake. This day was quite stressful for her, but nothing a tea break couldn't fix.
"Hey, I helped too." Hatchan said, Sparky seconding him. Luffy just grinned, and gave them an appreciating nod.
"That's quite the amount. But how did you manage to get it?" Sabo was the one to question.
"Yeah, how did you actually." Usopp also asked. "With this, we will be able to make a good amount of sea stone bullets. So, how did you get it?"
Kuina just smiled, "Well, I took it from the marines of course. They somehow confused me for someone else. So it was just a case of playing along. Though I did meet quite an interesting person amongst the marines…"
"How…"
Suddenly the door of the Kitchen opened. "Food is served," Sanji said coming out with a large plate full of food.
"How about you tell us while we eat." Usopp said, while the rest of them nodded. Luffy just chuckled, he was also hungry, and he could pretty much guess what had happened. Still, food was first.
——————–
[Never ask A woman her age.
A man his salary.
A Chopper if he's a Tanuki]