Chapter 58: Chapter 57
On the tenth day since their arrival on the Nanatsu Islands, the Blackstar Crew finally received the newspaper that announced Sin's status as the Eighth Warlord of the Seas.
The Crew's existing bounties were now frozen, and they were free to roam the seas and do as they pleased.
A first major success in their plan.
There was a festive atmosphere on the ship. Everyone was laughing, celebrating, and taking the day off from their training.
And after a sumptuous lunch, the crew left to gather some supplies for their next voyage.
They had finally decided to leave and head to the Arabasta Kingdom to continue their journey and explore the world, and everyone was looking forward to visiting one of the most famous Kingdoms out there.
But where everyone was happy, there was a certain someone who was sad as well. And after everyone left, she mustered up enough courage to approach Sin.
"Master," Pascia called out to him, feeling more nervous when he opened his eyes from his meditative state and smiled at her.
"Yes?"
"Can you accompany me on the search today?" She requested, almost pleading, and it made Sin smile some more.
"Haven't given up yet?" He asked, knowing well that she was talking about searching for the Pasa Pasa no Mi.
"I..." She lowered her head, not sure how to answer him. "I want it." She finally said, voicing her desire.
"Why?"
"I want to grow strong to help you." She said, and Sin could tell that it was the truth. He could sense it from her.
"A Devil Fruit would grant you strength, yes. But there are other ways to become strong too."
"I am aware." She nodded. "But the Fruit is very precious. Everyone says that it might be the best Fruit we would ever come across in our lives. And it is a loss of Billions of Berries."
"That's true." He nodded. "But it isn't on the Islands here. Haven't you guys already checked everywhere?"
"We haven't checked the Mi Island..."
"There are no apple trees there." He shook his head and then watched her lower her head and clench her fists.
Where everyone else had accepted that the Fruit was not present on the Island, Paschia was the only one who was still determined to find it.
Bart had returned to his training on the fifth day, and both Nami and Nojiko had given up on the seventh day.
The group had checked every single Golden Apple tree on the Islands, and they had concluded that it never spawned there or had already been taken by some person or an animal.
However, Paschia still held hope. She had requested Bonney and Robin to help her explore the Yo Island again yesterday. And even after returning without success, she wanted to try again.
"I don't want to remain a burden on you. I want to be your strength." Her voice was weak, but it held a myriad of emotions behind it. "Please help me grow strong." She knelt on her knees and then prostrated to him, holding back her tears.
"You want to grow strong and grow strong fast, don't you?" He asked, and he heard her acknowledge it.
"Yes."
"There is no place for weak people on my ship, Pascia. And even if you don't ask for it, I am going to make you strong since I have accepted you in my crew." He chuckled. "Get up."
The girl stiffened up under his order and immediately complied, standing on her feet.
"There are no shortcuts to becoming strong without any consequences. Even if you eat the Devil Fruit, without working on your physical and mental strength, you won't be able to truly use its powers." He told her.
Pascia listened to his words and nodded her head, feeling a little ashamed, but when she heard his next words, her heart skipped a beat.
"I will give you a task, and if you manage to accomplish it, I will reward you with a powerful Devil Fruit."
She surprisedly looked at him, and nodded her head, wiping away the tear that suddenly slipped out.
"Yes, Master?"
"You have to awaken both Armament Haki and Observation Haki by the end of the next year. You have thirteen months to accomplish the task."
The girl stared at him, her heart going slow, feeling a little dizzy, but then she gripped her emotions and nodded her head again.
It was an extremely difficult task for someone like her who had no combat training at all. She was the weakest in the crew, perhaps only stronger than Nami, but Nami was much younger than her and had not started combat training either.
Her physical fitness was abysmal, and she could not even keep up with Nojiko.
"I will do it."
"Is that so?" He smiled. "We shall see."
Hours later, when the rest of the crew returned to the beach where the Ship was docked, they were surprised to find Pascia running on the sand, haggard and on the verge of falling due to exhaustion.
But as if possessed by some ghost, she was holding on.
"Pascia, enough," Hancock ordered, and her words snapped the girl back to reality, who then swayed on her feet and fell backwards.
Robin was already by her side and caught her, and then she brought the girl onto the ship and took her inside her quarters. And before she left, she threw her brother a calculative glance.
"What happened?" Bonney curiously asked Sin after they approached him, sure that it had something to do with him. And the smile on his lips proved it.
"She has promised me that she will unlock Haki in the next thirteen months."
"What?" The pinkhead was dismayed at his words, and the rest of the crew looked at him in disbelief as well.
Though some of them did not consider it an impossible task, they still felt that it was a crazy goal, especially for someone who had never had any combat training and was even weaker than an average person.
"You are not allowed to dissuade her from her goal, and if she asks anyone of you for help with her training, you will help her if you can. Understood?" He ordered them, and they all tensed up and nodded back to him.
"Why would she make such a promise?" Nami, frowned, voicing her thoughts.
"Because I have promised her a reward." He smiled.
"What is it?"
"A powerful Devil Fruit." He told them, making them look at him in surprise.
"Which one?" Nami impatiently asked, but Sin shook his head at her.
"I am not going to reveal it." He smiled.
"Mean!" She stuck her tongue at him.
Everyone dispersed, lost in their thoughts, and both Nojiko and Kuina left with their brows furrowed.
Neither of them wanted to lose to Pascia, and Kuina was already working on awakening her Haki.
She was quite certain that she would unlock it in the coming few months.
Nojiko, on the other hand, despite being younger, still wanted to unlock Haki before Pascia. She did not want to be overtaken by her. It was an impulsive promise that she made to herself, and it was not without a reason.
Though not as intense as what Pascia felt, Nojiko too did not want to be labelled as the weakest in the crew and be deemed a burden on them. After all, she now looked at Sin and the rest of the crew as her family.
She had seen her mother get killed right in front of her eyes, and seen her entire village become slaves because they were weak. After being with Sin and the rest, she realised that you needed to be strong to be able to protect your family.
Nojiko did not want to see anyone she now considered her family hurt, especially not her younger sister. And she wanted to grow strong for all of them.
Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks and then walked back to Sin, catching the attention of a few crew members.
"If I manage to unlock Haki in the next thirteen months, would you help me find a powerful Devil Fruit too?" She asked.
"Think you can achieve it?" He smiled at her and watched her determinedly nod her head.
"Well, you have my word for it." He promised, and she happily smiled before stepping forward and hugging him.
"Thank you!" She said and then rushed inside the ship to get changed and do some training.
She did not have any time to waste now.
"Should I tell them that you wouldn't have allowed them to consume some average or weak Devil Fruit anyway?" Hancock teasingly said, proceeding to sit next to him.
"Sure." He shrugged, making her giggle.
"You found Pasa Pasa no Mi, didn't you?" She knowingly asked, and he chuckled at her words.
"What gave that away?"
"It is a precious Fruit, but I never sensed you being serious about finding it." She looked into his eyes and smiled some more.
"I found it the very first day, only a few minutes after it spawned." He revealed, and Augur, Bonney, Bepo, and Robin heard his words as well.
"You wanted to see to see which one or them longed for it the most." She understandably nodded her head. "It has worked out well."
"Indeed." He smiled and then planted a kiss on her cheek, making her blush a little.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone