Bab 20: Chapter 20
Chapter 20
A/N: Since The Straw Hats are now active as a crew in the background of this story I'm going to mention that their adventures are going to have a lot more 'travel time' built in between islands than popular fan sites like 'Library of Ohara' attest. Luffy going from his starting village to the end of the Skipiea arc in less than 60 days?And then The Straw Hats being scattered by Kuma just a month after that? I don't buy it for a minute.
Hope you enjoy. Lots of vignettes today.
Somewhere Over South Blue
I smoothed out the folds of the aged tan paper in somewhat futility. Even with the two of us coasting along at a speed that one could generously call 'sedate', the wind was still whipping fast enough to threaten ripping the map right from my hands.
"Hmm. What do you think Kiwi?" I asked, mulling my thoughts aloud.. "Do you think they kept riding the Uzisal current or broke off and sailed towards Arghula?"
My companion tilts his neck slightly and a sizable black pupil fixates back at me. "Wee? Wee Wee. Kee-Wee Wee-Kee Kee."
I nodded with a hum. "I suppose that is true. Breaking off and doing a fly by of Arghula to check it out wouldn't delay us too much."
"Kee. Kee-Wee Wee!" The sparrow chirped excitedly.
The wind momentarily abates and one freed up hand slinks down into Kiwi's feathers to scratch at his back. An unconscious habit I've developed over these past few weeks. "You know you've gotten a lot more talkative since our bond reached Lv.14."
I can feel his eyes turn away back to the front. "Kee-Wee. Wee. Wee. Kee-Wee. Kee?"
My head turns up and I mentally stroke my chin at the question. "You know I'm not really sure. The [Game]'s description didn't really tell me much. We'll have to just find out later."
"Kee Kee?" he trilled.
"It caps at 20. Much lower than most other things in the [Game]."
Kiwi turned his head leftwards and scrutinized the giant tree to the west. "Kee-Wee Kee Kee?"
Turning the same way, I briefly considered the towering structure, and then dismissed the idea with a shake of my head. "Doubtful. Depala's been active as a pirate for a few years now. He would know to stay away from Torino. The Masuk- err Makere- umm whatever their name is, the birds that live there are hyper-territorial. Combine that with their stupid-large size and you get an island any decent navigator knows to steer away from."
"Wee Wee Kee?"
I shook my head in the negative. "No, no one told me. I read their entry in a zoology book. Plus it's the island where Chopper got blasted by Bartholomew Kuma in the original story."
If his biology were capable of it, I'm sure Kiwi would've rolled his eyes at me. It's a vague -though distinctly exasperated- impression I get from him whenever I make any mention of the 'One Piece' series. I don't mind that my friend thinks I've got a few screws loose. It's just nice to have someone I can talk out loud to about it.
The wind starts to pick up again and I fold the map up along its creases. "Enough of that though. Let's start heading for Arghula, the weather's on our side so maybe if we're lucky we can find some time to-"
A golden glittering pop-up interrupts me.
Special Event: Torino, Trove of Trinkets and Treasures
Click here to participate.
Time Remaining: 1 Hour, 30 minutes.
There's a short delay in reaction as I blink owlishly at the screen. 'Or...we can see what this is about.'
"Kee-Wee?"
"One sec buddy.." I mutter as I click down on 'here'. "Reading something.."
Special Event: Torino, Trove of Trinkets and Treasures
One of many islands wearing the moniker of 'Isle of Treasure', Torino Kingdom is a well known but immensely unpopular island in South Blue. A 'Kingdom' only in name, Torino is ruled by a giant species of avian known as Masukeredomo Goayu Birds who are known for exactly three things. Their size, their aggression, and their proclivity to steal things that are shiny. From large bronze-trimmed chests down to simple silver bangles. Many sailors have tried their luck over the years attempting to pilfer the gems hidden beneath the straw of these mighty creatures nests. Most of them die. A few escape. Only two have succeeded. Are you willing to test your chances of being number three?
Event: Snatch as many of the birds treasures as you can!
Reward: +1 LUK for every 10 treasures snatched.
Bonus 1: Snatch 150 for 5,000 Exp.
Bonus 2: Snatch 400 for 10,000 Exp.
Note: Regardless of how many items a chest/lockbox may contain it all still only counts as 1.
Time Remaining: 1 Hour, 29 minutes.
Well then...hmm...I'd have to say my first thought about this 'special event' is that it seems a decent chunk more challenging than its predecessor. More dangerous too. A strangely odd notion considering that first one had me wading into thigh-deep water to fight a school of pissed off sharks. My second thought however convinces me to ignore those considerations with is it's logical well reasoned argument of 'What are you gonna do? Not farm the LUK? What are you a little bitch? Get your ass in there.'
And really how is one supposed to argue with that?
"Alright! New plan Kiwi!" I announce, tugging sharply at his bridle. "We're taking a detour! Next stop, that giant ass tree!"
The Super Sparrow adjusts course with only a minimal protest and soon enough the silhouettes of massive birds become distinguishable from the towering structure they're perched upon. Kiwi continues to accelerate as I prod him up to his max speed and the pre-battle jitters soon have me lightly tingling in excitement.
'This isn't going to royally screw over Chopper in some unexpected way right? Ehh..should be fine. Not really my problem anyway.'
Our approach doesn't go unnoticed for long and soon enough one of the circling patrols in the sky lets loose a threatening scree that sends every other bird onto high alert. Several of the roosting animals spread their herculean wingspans wide and begin the laborious process of pushing themselves into flight. Even from this distance I can feel dozens of eyes focusing in on me and I've got exactly one thought as to how I feel about it.
'Bring it on.'
[Geppo] dismounts me from Kiwi's back the moment we're close enough and just like he's trained to do Kiwi immediately breaks off and retreats. The first attack comes a scant few seconds later. With me now at a speed it could comfortably intercept, one of the patrols flexes his talons out and plunges into a breakneck dive.
Masukeredomo Goayu Bird, Lv. 49
Were I still a novice level [Geppo] user the creature may have been successful in its attempt. With the most versatile of the rokushiki at its max level though it's going to find catching me a lot more of a dubious prospect than it expected Especially since-.
The talons try to close in around me and the Roc squawks in surprise as I quite literally vanish from her would-be grip.
-since I've figured out how to add a touch of [Soru]'s speed with it and can now blatantly rip off Rob Lucci's very own 'Kamisori' technique.
A hazy image of my person zigzags through the sky as more and more of the titanic fliers swarm down at me. The beating of so many massive wings adds a bit of turbulence to my flight path but overall it's still a relatively simple task zipping around the airborne goliaths. The fact that one crunch of their beak could turn my legs into paste or one rake of their nails might literally eviscerate me is irrelevant. They're just too slow -and too frazzled- to take an accurate shot.
Straw crackles under my boot as I come to a stop on the first nest and already I can see the first bit of todays haul. A glint of red hiding beneath all the flaxen brown. A furious screech sounds overhead and the nearest Goayu bird is diving with his beak forward and murder in his eyes. A hasty cartwheel backwards accomplishes three things. It gets me out of the way, it launches a medium-sized [Rankyaku] at the bird, and it allows me to snatch the ruby-encrusted pendent as I flip.
You have found one treasure! Running total: 001
The blue crescent breaks across the red beak like the ocean over a stone and I hurriedly backpetal a few extra feet as the animal readies its next strike. 'Oh ho! He didn't even feel that! This is gonna be fun!'
Masukeredomo Goayu Bird, Lv. 50
The nest rumbles and shakes as a second bird lands at the edge behind me. It lowers its neck down and looses some bizarre amalgam of a hiss and a chirp in a manner many would find disconcerting.
Masukeredomo Goayu Bird, Lv. 47
The threat only registers with me on a tertiary level though. I'm much more focused on the dozens of small glittering objects the shaking of the nest revealed to me. Who would've thought there were so many riches hidden beneath such a small veneer of stick and straw?
"Alright boys.." I toss the pendent into the [Inventory] and watch as the creatures eyes turn from murderous.. into confused.. and then into apoplectic when they conclude their treasure is now unrecoverable. "Lets play a game."
"Kiwi! Pickmeup!Pickmeup!Pickmeup!" The hybrid 'Kamisori' technique carries me farther and farther from the island as the 'Alpha' Goayu bird literally barrels through a pair of adolescents to snap at me. "Pickmeup!"
The brown blur finally intercepts me and a nervous laugh comes from my chest as I find myself sinking into the feathers of my companion's back. "Such a good bird.."
Your bond with 'Kiwi' has increased!
Bond Lv. (14/20) → (15/20)
My clothes were soaked. Drenched so thoroughly in sweat that I wonder if I should just toss 'em. It's gonna take more than just one or two washes to get that smell to even start to come out. Behind us some of the Goayu's who were giving chase have decided to break off and seemingly give up the chase.
Not the 'Alpha' though.
He and a quartet of his most obstinate friends are still pushing themselves half to death trying to catch up. I'd say I'm impressed by the tenacity but that's not really true. Surely they realize it's hopeless now? Their species just isn't built for speed in the same way that Kiwi is. Already they're starting to fade into the backdrop alongside their giant tree.
Technically speaking I still have six minutes left on the clock but it was well past time to call it a day and get out of there. Part way through I thought it a good idea to cut down the number of birds harassing me by actually trying to fight them and good fucking god was that a bad idea. Because of that brilliant plan I now have a new 'least favorite' feeling in the world.
Originally it was the relatively mundane experience of my foot being run over by a tire back in my previous life. That was then replaced by the sensation of getting shot for the first time way back when on the night I first met Mori. Then that got set aside after my botched attempt at revenge on the Kid Pirates included a portion where I was set on fire.
Now though? Now it's the sensation of my [Tekkai] shattering like a plane of glass as an 'Alpha' Goayu bird jackhammers me into a tree.
At one point I tried distracting some of my aggressors by tossing a few of the trinkets back out as a diversion and..wouldn't you know it? For some reason that only made them angrier! I'm sure I could speculate all day over what intricacy of giant bird culture allows for that to make any sense at all.. but I think it'd rather just move past it. Focus on things that are more important.
Such as my brand new 23 points in LUK for example.
Also the 5,000 Exp pushing me two-thirds of the way to Lv. 64 but mostly the LUK.
From (48) → (71) it's almost a 50% increase in my...good fortune? Destiny points maybe? Okay, cards on the table, I still don't really know what LUK does or how it operates. I'm hoping that when I eventually hit the [Perk] at 100 that things will become a lot more clear. 'Though remembering what happened with WIS I have to accept that clarity is not always guaranteed.'
I turn my head back towards Torino and see that three of the five still chasing have officially thrown in the towel. The last two are still pushing on but they're just shadows in the distance at this point.
"We'll keep going until they give up buddy." I tell Kiwi as I tenderly pat his side. "After that why don't we find a spot to rest for the night hmm? We can worry about going after Depala in the morning."
The next three weeks saw a continuation of what I have come to term 'business as usual'. Sure, I took a personal day here or there to get some shopping done. Even made time to go visit Guilford in the hospital he was admitted to.
For the most part though.. I hunted. Not just pirates either. Mountain bandits, countryside raiders, there was even the odd mercenary on the list of names I was putting together. All of them problems that I had every intention of removing from the board at some point.
The first group, the largest of them, were the names Mori sent my way.
The earth splintered and cracked where the mans armored gauntlet met the dirt. His teeth gnashed in frustration as a low growl rumbled in his chest. "Just one hit brat!" The muscles of his barrel chest rippled as he stood back up to his full height. "One hit and you'll be done!"
"Maybe." I lightly taunted from the side, my posture relaxed and casual. "Maybe not. It's not like you'll ever land one to find out."
'Maudlin' Mose Meinard, Bandit King of Gliora, Lv. 34
A beast-like roar fueled by indignation ripped it's way free from the fighter as he charged forward once again. A rather comedic sight considering he's got the 'Johnny Bravo' thing going on. That is to say, the main feature of his physique is the classic combo of 'ballooned upper torso' paired with a 'clearly skipped leg day' lower half. 'You know I wonder if there's a term for that body type? It's certainly prolific enough in media to warrant one. Just in this world alone I can think of Jozu, Jesus Burgess, Douglas Bullet, about a half dozen others.. it really should have a proper name.'
The wild haymaker comes swinging and just like the last few times [Kami-e] slips me around it. Not that the [Skill] is even necessary here. Between [Bullet Time] and my DEX I could easily just dodge the normal way, but you have to grind things where you can.
My body straightens out and a [Tekkai] hardened fist slams into the floating ribs of his left side. In the briefest moment before momentum kicks in I can feel his body contorting around the blow. Folding like a cheap suit under the concussive force. Time catches up and Meinard is sent careening into the dirt, rolling and tumbling like he was juts flicked by a giants finger.
147 Damage! (1,089/1,660)
'Oof. Nearly cracked 150. He's gonna be feeling that in the morning. And that's without [Adrenalin Rush] too.'
Meinard eventually slides to a stop and with painstaking slowness pushes himself back up. The back of his hand wipes away the coughed up dribble of blood by his mouth and his breathing is already turning slightly labored. "You're gonna.." he pauses for a pair of heavy breaths. "You're gonna pay for that one."
"Mm hmm." I nod along, patiently waiting for him to get back off his knees. "Hey, you mind if I ask you a question?"
Now back to his full height, the brawler spits a bloody glob to the side in apathy. 'Imma take that as a yes!' "Why is your moniker 'Maudlin'? Doesn't quite seem to fit does it?"
Meinard's face twisted into fury, hinting at some greater backstory that [Observe] left out of it's description. Flames of seething rage burned behind his eyes and his bull rush that followed was that of a berserk wild man.
"You see the only things that I came up with to explain it are," I duck away from his grapple. "One, that that word doesn't mean what I think it means, which I rather doubt," I weave past the right hook. "Or two, someone at Marine HQ likes alliteration just a little too much."
A pop-up alerts me that Meinard's status has changed to [INCENSED!] and he's receiving a relatively minor boost to his DEX in addition to a ever-so-slightly more substantial one to STR.
I hop backward and reapply the minor shielding of [Tekkai Kenpo]. "Though based on your reaction I'm gonna go ahead and guess there's a third possibility." I catch his gauntlet in the flat of my palm and immediately twist to use the mans momentum against him. His footing momentarily falters and it's the perfect opportunity for my other arm to swing up and rattle his jaw with a brutal uppercut.
153 Damage! (936/1,660)
Skill Lv Up! Unarmed Combat (Tekkai Kenpo) Lv (14/50) → (15/50)
-A mixture of instinctive fighting knowledge using your bare hands with the Rokushiki technique: [Tekkai].
Note: At current [Skill] level the strength of your [Tekkai] while in motion is reduced to 30% effectiveness.
Note 2: At current [Skill] level your DEX will be reduced by 70% while attempting to move with [Tekkai] sustained.
'Oh yeah. Now that's the stuff.'
The second group, by a wide margin the smallest, were names I found by accident.
The cutthroat hurriedly backpedaled as Kugizume battered against his oversized butchers blade, yellow sparks flying at every collision. "I yield! I yield! I'll be your servant, your slave! I yield!"
And yet my Meito did not stop. It continued to bash and pummel the grotesque man's frantic -and rapidly weakening- defense. His arms were shaking from the abuse of blocking, his eyes were wide and terror-stricken, and his pleas for mercy ever more pitiful.
But he will not have clemency. Not when he represents what I have been searching for in my purge of South Blue. Proof that I am making a difference here.
I almost didn't recognize him. Though I can remember his appearance from canon he admittedly looked quite different then. His hair isn't in a ponytail, its a black mop falling over his misshapen forehead. His skin isn't quite the deathly pallor that I recall and the mummy-like bandages only cover his chest and upper arms as opposed to 95% of his body.
Still though, it's definitely him. His title gives away the game.
'Gashed' Albion, Fledgling Pirate, Lv. 21
He's a beginner right now. A neophtye in every sense of the word except for his small talent for swordplay. He doesn't even have a proper crew yet. Only a single pair of underlings who were flanking him when he entered the market I just happened to be shopping at.
In a different world he would not be stopped here today. He would slowly carve and butcher his way to infamy. Marines and innocents alike would fall before him as he gained strength bit by bloody bit until his bounty reached a staggering 92,000,000 Beri. Just shy of 'Supernova' status.
In a different world this piece of human-shaped refuse would make it all the way to Sabaody Archipelago. He would ally himself with future problems such as 'Lip Service' Doughty and 'Wet haired' Caribou. But while those two would find their pirate careers severely curtailed by the events of the Pacifista's raid and the Straw Hats reunion, Albion would sneak away in the chaos.
In this world though, I am nipping that shit in the bud.
The butchers blade finally buckles under the assault, fracturing into jagged shards. The greenhorn marauder with only a 950,000 price on his head collapses to the ground and then turns to scamper away like the devil himself was chasing him.
For a scant few seconds I let him run. At the six meter mark though my grip tightens over the arming sword and my second hand joins in lifting it over my left shoulder. 'You've practiced the movements.' My knees spread apart. 'You can see the scene in your head.' The muscles in my arms pulse. 'Your [Skill] level is higher now.' My waist begins to swivel. 'So just buckle up and do the damn technique!'
The Meito swipes out in a violent batting motion. A thrust is pushed through my wrist at the exact frame in time that the blade is aligned with Albion's back followed by a push off with my other hand.
The wind splits with a foul shriek as a flying slash flares into existence like a beam of light and barrels down on the fleeing future-problem. Albion wails in pain as the attack finds home and spreads into a crescent gash across his back. The wanted man goes down in an instant as his eyes white out.
+515 Exp!
Skill Level Up! Bladed Weapon Mastery Lv. (17/150) → (18/150)
-Your ability to expertly wield swords, knives, spears, or any other sharpened tools.
I replace Kugizume into its straps at my back. 'Well it's not quite as impressive as Captain T-Bone's technique.. but it's definitely a start.'
And then there was the third group. Names I was seeking on my own time. No Mori required.
Montauban's breathing was heavy and labored as he darted through the jungle. A vicious gash had rendered his left arm just shy of useless and the sounds of gunfire and men screaming still pounded in his ears despite their distance.
'Get away! Get away! Have to get aw-' His boot snags on an upended tree root sending the pirate captain tumbling into the mulchy undergrowth. Mud splashes from his fall, staining his already ruined clothes. He forces his fingers into the damp clammy soil and forces himself back up. 'Don't stop! Don't stop!'
A shortness of breath plagues his chest. The muscles in his legs start to scream as he forces them to push onward. He's so focused on the internal burning in his body that he doesn't notice when the otherscreaming finally stops. One last gunshot rings out and all turns silent except for him and the jungle.
The sunlight from the canopy flickers as a shadow zooms by overhead. "Kee-Wee! Kee-Wee!" The harbinger screeches, it's shrill call crying out like a death knell.
Montauban shifts course, diverting to the west where the jungle eventually turns to swampland. He should be safer there! He won't be found there! The shadow flashes across the sky a second time and with it comes new instructions for its master. "Kee Kee Wee!"
The trees and brush begin to rustle as the reaper draws closer. In a panic Montauban draws his flintlock and tries to train in on where exactly the enemy will appear. His hand is shaking, his lip quivering, his face is a sopping frightful mess.
A blue scythe of energy erupts from the undergrowth!
Montauban cries out in shock as he falls backwards onto his haunches, narrowly dodging the sickle shaped wave. Trees begin to tumble both behind and in front of him. Their near-simultaneous crashes with the ground shake the land with an awful tremor and the pirate captain is too terrified to even stand back up.
A figure emerges from the tree line of the newly created clearing. "Montauban 'The Plague'...we meet at last. Would you like to know why I've hunted you down Montauban?"
"S-Stay away! Y-You stay away from me!" His flintlock flashes twice, the last of his ammo, but even at this close of a range the hunter merely bends out of the way, as though his last hope was a trivial distraction.
"You know when I first learned your moniker, first saw your bounty all those months ago...the idea of fighting you would've made me soil my trousers. Surely someone named 'The Plague' would possess a Devil Fruit deserving of that name. I wanted no part of mixing it up with a Logia or perhaps some toxic Paramecia variant."
The hunter continues to approach and kneels down slowly into Montauban's face. He knows he's whimpering, he knows he's crying, and the last sliver of willpower he has left is spent not pissing himself. "But you don't have any powers do you?" the hunter asks.
"No...the only one in your 199-man crew who even has a Fruit -excuse me, correction- the only one who had a Fruit was your quartermaster and believe me… he was nowhere near creative enough to use the Wool-Wool Fruit effectively."
A blubbering voice somehow manages to crawl up his throat. "Please...money...treasure..whatever you want..."
The hunter ignores him. "You see I hunted you down because it turns out the reason you're called 'The Plague', the reason you have a 41,000,000 price on your head despite how weak you are personally, is because you don't raid villages...you exterminate them. There is more civilian blood on your hands than any other pirate in South Blue."
"Seven times the Marines have almost captured you and seven times you have escaped through...sheer...dumb...luck...266 points of LUK to be exact. It's the highest of your stats by far. I'd be impressed if I wasn't so disgusted with what you've done with it."
The odd sentence replaces a piece of his fear with confusion. Enough to let him speak. "Wha- Luck? What are you talking abo-MMMM! MMM!" He starts to scream as the revolver is jammed into his mouth.
"Shhhhh. Hush now." The hunter whispers softly. "No more. Your luck is done."
His eyes widen even further in terror. Tears are streaming down his face and a yellow puddle starts leaking from his trousers. "MMM! MMMM!"
"Goodbye. Montauban 'The Plague'."
Frose, Sorbet Kingdom, South Blue
I hummed to myself as I combed over the city map. 'Let's see here..Marine Base..Marine Base..where's the Marine Base..' Market street? Pass. Nobility district? Double pass. 'Man this place is big. Maybe I should've tried for a town rather than a capital city.' Then again I'm rather doubtful a smaller town would actually be able to pay for Montauban's bounty. Especially without me calling ahead. At over 40 mil he was one of the five most wanted men in all of South Blue. Not everyone's gonna have that kind of cash on – Ah! There it is! My finger tapped twice over the dot on the map.'Marine Base, Branch 4-0-1.'
'It's a bit of a walk but..eh. No big deal. I wanted to see if there was any good place to stop for lunch along the way regardless.'
My journey down the pavement begins and though I'm excited at clearing the [Quest] for capturing a 40 mil bounty I just can't seem to get a smile onto my face. I imagined today would be quite simple. Finally get a location on one of the highest priority names on my list? Check. Bulldoze through his crew with minimal difficulty? Check. Take the body to a city capable of paying for it? Check.
So far everything I envisioned for today is going splendidly. So what is the problem you ask?
There has been an unforeseen development. And unlike the last two or three of those I've had, this one is definitely not of the good kind. Something happened while I was tearing through Montauban's crew like they were paper mache. An event that has a not insignificant amount of implications.
I reached Lv. 65. Pretty good right? That's the level of strength one can expect from Marine captains. It's the level Eustass was at when I encountered him. What could be wrong with reaching that threshold?
Well I'll tell you. I got the pop-up while only about half-way through Montauban's 199-man crew and from that instant on, all of the grunts, lackeys, mooks, and flunkies below Lv. 15 just stopped awarding me Exp. The [Game] has evidently determined that they are so far below me now that they should be rendered mathematically incapable of advancing me farther.
In addition, since apparently the [Game] felt like hitting me with the 'double whammy', enemies still high enough to grant me something have had their Exp sharply reduced. A Lv. 16 that I would've wagered being worth somewhere in the '380-400' range instead only gave me 30. Fuckin' 30.
I don't know if this is some type of reverse scaling that's been built into the leveling system all along or if it's a case of the 'higher power' that dropped me here just deciding to screw with me a bit. Either way, the message it paints is abundantly clear. 'If you stay in South Blue, you will stagnate.'
Maybe that's true. Maybe the only way to keep growing once all my current [Quest]'s are complete is to head for the Grand Line. Just rushing off there is suicidal though. I'm going to need to ponder over my options very carefu-
"Well ho-ly shit." A surprised voice from behind derails my thoughts. "Wasn't expectin' to find you today." I spin around to face the speaker and my eyes boggle at the sight of someone who is..extremely..out of place. "Y'know this works out real well. My partner and I have been just dyin' to talk to ya."
I know I'm staring but I just can't help it. From his wide-brimmed hat down to his leather vest and western-style boots, it all comes together with a question in my mind.
'...is that a fucking cowboy in my pirate setting?'
The sight is such a departure from what I'm used to that there's a slight delay in me reading his title.
Rowan, Fastest Gun in the South, Lv. 59
A twitch of tension runs through my posture at the level. An imperceptible flicker to most and yet somehow the man catches it immediately. In a flash he's got one hand hovering over one of his six-shooters -a model I idly recognize as identical to my own- and the other raised in a placating gesture.
"Whoa now, easy there pardner. Not looking fer trouble right now. At the moment we're just chattin'."
The tightness in the air eases off just a smidge and Rowan's hand slowly moves away from the revolver. "Mind if I sit down?" he asks as his fingers slip into his pocket.
"Sure.." I hesitantly reply before lightly gesturing to our surrounding."Not a lot of seats here on the sidewalk though."
My intention was to try and move this..whatever it was.. into somewhere a bit more private. Perhaps a cafe or even a booth inside the bar just across the street. Rowan however seems to either miss the social cue entirely or elects to deliberately ignore it. "That's alright." he responds as he pulls a toy-sized carving of a chair from his vest. "I always carry my own." The westerner lets the item fall from his hand and before a single second has fully elapsed its mass has already expanded into a full-sized piece of furniture.
'A size-manipulation Fruit..' I realize with only a slight widening of my eyes. '[Observe]'
Rowan, Fastest Gun in the South, Lv. 59
A native of Banaro Island, Rowan spent all of his childhood years -and most of his adult ones- living in the chaotic sea that is the Grand Line. After eating his Devil Fruit in his early 20's, Rowan joined a guild of bounty hunters where he met his long time friend and partner Towa. Although their group was moderately successful, one too many close calls made Rowan and Towa decide they were better off seeking their fortunes in more peaceful waters. In the past month he has been seeking out the bounty hunter colloquially known as 'Jack Sparrow' in order to speak with him.
[ON EDGE]: Rowan senses how wary you are and it has made him cautious in turn. His reflexes are being increased. DEX +5%.
Health: 2,720/2,720
STR: 54
VIT: 272
DEX: 430 (+5%) = 451.5
INT: 73
WIS: 48
LUK: 22
"There we go.." Rowan sighs as he settles into the seat, sitting backwards with his arms folded over the backrest. "My partner should be along any second now."
"Who.." But before I can even get the words out a dark blur plummets from the sky. An icy grip clenches at my heart as for one terrifying instant I'm worried that something has happened to Kiwi but that flash of dread evaporates when the human-sized avian that lands next to Rowan has black feathers instead of brown.
Also, the massive orange bill is a rather obvious giveaway that this bird isn't mine.
Towa, Wayward Monk, Lv. 73
The tar-colored plumage immediately begins to recede as the Toucan disappears and the Zoan user underneath makes himself known. He's olive-skinned, impressively broad chested and has at least a foot on both his partner and I in height. His wings disappear into bulky, bristling forearms befitting his stature and then surprisingly reappear on his back as a white vestigial pair I mentally associate with Skypieans.
His eyes remain closed and I'm almost ready to admit I'm justifiably nervous about this man when,
"Heso!" he practically shouts with one palm raised flat. A sparkling and joyous smile stretching across his face. "A lovely day for flying is it not?"
'..and suddenly he's not that formidable looking at all.' "Um Heso.." I mutter back, mirroring his hand gesture. "And yes, I suppose it is."
Rowan rolls his eyes at the exchange. "Alrigh' everyone's here. Let's get straight to it then." The sitting man speaks. "Name's Rowan, big feller is Towa. We've been huntin' these waters a good eight or nine years now and seein' your success we thought it prudent... to have a frank conversation with the newbie."
And just like that the tension is back. "What kind of conversation?"
The smiling giant takes over. "We respectfully request that you stop overfishing." he speaks gently, his kind demeanor still present. "The combination of your mobility and overzealousness shows signs of posing a threat to market stability. If you are not stopped or at least considerably slowed then your continued action will irrevocably disrupt the status quo from which we all profit."
My eyes narrow. "Excuse me?"
"We're sayin' you're huntin' pirates too quick." Rowan interjects, taking control of the discussion again. "Look," he says as he fixes me with a level stare. "Towa and I have had a good gig going here for a long looong time. All you need is one decent catch, say 11 or 12 mil, and two guys can live like kings for a good seven or eight months. Get someone worth just a little bit more and BAM!" Rowan slaps the back of his chair. "You're done working for the year!"
Towa pulls a leather journal from the knapsack at his hip and flips to a page near the back. "By even our least generous estimates you are responsible for removing over 100 million Beri's in value from our waters. Such an amount could sustain a standard family of four for over a century yet alone a single male and his travel companion. Even if one assumes the individual in question to be a man of exquisite or highly refined tastes it is still such an exorbitant sum that it could last decades so long as he is not deliberately wasteful." Towa snaps the journal shut and smiles widely again. "Do you understand the point the two of us are trying to communicate?"
"You're saying that I have enough money to last me literally a lifetime."
Towa nods approvingly. "Precisely. And might I just say from a professional standpoint how impressed we are at how quickly you managed to accumulate it. Just to clarify, we are not requesting a full hiatus on your part but merely a curtailment. At least until the market returns to its healthier state. Can we trust you will be altering your behavior accordingly?"
I look between the two. Towa is politely waiting for my 'yes' while Rowan is pretending to look like he's already lost interest in the conversation. It's almost definitely the wrong move to refuse them. I should probably just lie and continue on as normal but, "No."
For the first time a frown makes its way to Towa's face. "And why ever not?"
"Listen kid," Rowan jumps in again, a tad of aggression bleeding into his tone."You've hunted enough. You've earned enough. Now as we said you don't have to stop completely, but you do need to downscale. Significantly. Already there's been a noticeable dip in new pirate sightings. It's slight at the moment but it is there. If the scales shift enough then the Marine's are going to get a proper grip on this sea for the first time in who even knows how many years and at that point all of us are going to be out of a job."
"So what?" I bite back. "If we're out of a job then that means we did it well! I'm not treating this as a business or to pad my own retirement fund! As long as those fucking animals are still sailing then people can't feel safe! They will keep killing, burning, and raping and until they're gone I will not curtail myself one iota until this ocean is clean!"
Rowan pinches his nose in frustration and groans. "Oh damn it all you're one of those. It's like Zhao all over again." The Banaro islander looks at his partner in resignation. "Towa, I don't think he's gonna come around."
"No." Towa nods his head gravely. "It appears not. How unfortunate."
In a flash Rowan draws his pistol and fans the hammer five times even faster than I could. Great massive gouges are ripped out of the building behind me as the bullets magically explode in size as they leave the barrel and the nearest civilians immediately scatter, all screaming their heads off as they do so.
Bullet Time Skill Active!
-Time is being slowed for you by 18%
"Are you out of your fucking mind?!" I shout as the hasty [Soru] deposits me safely to the side. "We're in the middle of the goddamn capital!"
The cowboy evidently pays my comment no heed. "Woooo wee! Did you see that shit Towa!" he remarks with a sudden flair of excitement. "Kid's learned himself a little marine technique!" Towa calmly pulls a salmon-pink Dial from the innards of his sleeve and slaps it into the westerners waiting palm. Immediately the odd spike-covered shell begins growing through the Paramecia's power until it's the proportions of a full-sized shoulder cannon and the rival hunter grins in my direction. "Hope you don't think that's gonna be enough."
One Billion Beri Quest Tracker
Quest: Pirates. Criminals. Rapers, plunderers, and scum of every kind. No more. It's time to sanitize the South Blue. Capture or kill wanted men in South Blue who's bounties total at least One Billion Beri. Progress:(249,568,200/1,000,000,000)
Jack Parker, The Gamer, Lv. 65
Health: 6,100/6,100
Exp: 410/6,500
Money: 139,721,980 Beri
STR: 335
VIT: 305
DEX: 404
INT: 155
WIS: 155
LUK: 71
Points to spend: 90
Click here to see list of [Skills]
-Current number of [Skills]: 44
Click here to see list of [Perks]
-Current number of [Perks]: 6
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone