Chapter Text
While the circ*mstances that cause the Calm Belts are poorly understood even to this day, the effects are clear as day. Wind and surface currents are exceedingly rare within these four strips of ocean that separate the Grand Line from the four Blues, resulting in them being nigh impossible to sail across without alternative means of propulsion, such as rowing or engine driven paddles. Our own research into these regions has been somewhat hindered by the fact that the same factors that prevent clouds from entering the Calm Belts work against our research base.
-Excerpt from ‘The Calm Mystery’, a research paper from the Weatherian Research Institute regarding the Calm Belts.
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The storm struck at noon.
It wasn’t any normal storm.
It was as if the weather itself objected to the Baratie’s continued existence.
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I felt someone knock on my shell. The storm had been tossing the Baratie and the Going Merry around the waves since yesterday, and everyone had to help keep the ships together, literally and figuratively. They’d tied the two ships together to help prevent either of them capsizing. I was pretty sure it was one of the only things keeping us all alive at this point.
I emerged from my shell bleary eyed and with a dry mouth, which felt especially uncomfortable in my full Telesnail form. My shell was shockingly comfortable, and it had felt even better when I had collapsed into this form and curled right up after my last shift on the ropes. One of the chefs was grabbing a box of nails from the hold and was trying to get my attention.
“What?”
“We’ve hit a lull in the storm, and Zeff wants everyone in the dining room for a meeting.” The cook explained.
I waved him off. “Yeah, I’m coming. Anything break while I was asleep?”
He hefted the box of nails. “It started hailing, so we had to board up the windows.”
My mind stalled for a moment. “But we’re near the Calm Belt.” Those were essentially this worlds Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. There shouldn’t have been hail anywhere near here, except on mountains or winter islands down in the Grand Line.
“Zeff said he’d explain.” The chef shrugged before heading up the stairs.
I yawned and stretched as I returned to base form. My clothes were all stiff and moist, but I’d rather ruin one outfit during this storm than have to wash my entire wardrobe. It wasn’t like I was going to have much need for my spare waitress uniform when the storm cleared up, after all.
I had to run through the pouring rain to get from the entrance into the hold to the dining hall. Apparently what the chef meant by ‘lull in the storm’ was that the wind had calmed down to the levels of a wind logia toddler throwing a tantrum. When I fell asleep, it had been closer to a wind logia Enel personally trying to kill us all. I’d take what I could get.
The dining hall had turned into somewhat of a war room. Kaya and a chef were arguing over a map, Franky was standing in a bucket as he drained water from his systems, and Robin had her arms in a bucket of ice water. There were limits to how much second hand rope burn she could take, apparently. Zeff was waiting near the central pillar, sitting in a big armchair without his peg leg on and with ice packs on the old injury. I looked around for Luffy, only to realize he was laying on the floor with a nasty bump on his head, which was itself covered with an ice pack. Sanji came down the spiral stairs from the kitchen along with some of the other chefs carrying platters of food.
(All the customers and Marines left yesterday, right before the storm really started trying to kill us. It was just us out here.)
I grabbed a grilled cheese crab melt as Zeff used his peg leg like a gavel against the pillar to get everyone’s attention. “I have good news and bad news. I know exactly what’s going on.”
There was a moment of silence. “Is that good or bad?” someone asked.
“It’s both. This is a Grand Line hurricane. We’re lucky the most it's done so far was snow and hail.” Zeff continued.
“Wait, how’d it get over the Calm Belt? Isn’t it always calm in there?” I asked.
“It takes a truly horrible storm to make it from the Grand Line to the Blues. This storm used to be much worse before it crossed over, and should blow itself out within the next couple of days. They’re more common in the North and West due to the New World, but this is the first time I’ve seen one form in Paradise. As is, this is a taste of what Grand Line weather is like, brat, so pay attention.” Zeff said, staring at Luffy, who was suddenly standing.
“That Krieg pirate said his fleet was destroyed by a storm.” I remembered.
“This is probably the same storm.” Zeff said.
“Can we get to an island?” Franky asked.
“That’s what we’ve been trying to do, but the compass isn’t leading anywhere!” Kaya said in frustration, holding up three different compasses, all of which were spinning wildly.
“The storm is magnetically charged. We aren’t going to find a port unless we crash into one.” Zeff said grimly.
“What’re you saying old man, we’re stuck in the middle of some weird storm without any hope of rescue?” Sanji asked.
“All we can do is try to outlast it.” Zeff said with an air of finality. “Eat and rest while you can, because this might be the last break we’re getting until the end.”
I finished my sandwich and grabbed another, along with a drink. Was this replacing Krieg? Luffy hadn’t become a chore boy because he didn’t have to repay Zeff for the damage done to the ship, but the universe still conspired to keep us here. f*cking fate, why did it have to come into play already? Was some author, some equivalent of Oda, desperately trying to make money off of this in Shonen Jump?
(Bad thoughts, get out, even if I kinda wanted to see myself in the manga/anime style now.)
I had to learn how to help a ship sail at some point, at least. Better now than before I accidentally crashed us into Reverse Mountain.
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“Would gloves help?” (A more apt metaphor would perhaps have been a clear, concise statement in a language she didn't speak, but her arms were currently aching too much for that to spring to mind.)
Robin looked up from her meal to see someone offering her a pair of work gloves. It was the rainbow haired waitress that Luffy had recruited. They hadn’t had a chance for a proper introduction yet, but his reasoning was something about transponder snails? If she had a garden of the mollusks that was a fine reason, as they didn’t have any snails onboard yet, but she suspected there was more to it.
There had been more to recruiting Franky and Kaya than just needing a shipwright and quartermistress, after all. Luffy had insisted that they defend Syrup to prove they were good pirates. Kaya had begged to tag along, but she’d also survived a gunshot to the head and then helped take down a notorious pirate captain after having been bedridden for a long, long time. There was something going on inside her captain’s mind. He wore his heart on his sleeve, which should have made it easy to figure out what was going on in there, but he never wore sleeves!
This was the grandson of the Hero of the Marines and the brother of the Red Dog. Robin refused to believe he had ended up this naïve, this childish, this simple minded. She’d have him wrapped around her finger as soon as she could figure out where all that competence actually went.
Robin waved off the offered assistance. “No, sadly, clothes don’t transfer when I spawn new limbs.”
“Well, I tried.” The young woman slipped the gloves into a pocket. “You’re uh, Robin, right?”
“Yes, first mate of the Straw Hat pirates. I believe the captain mentioned he recruited you because of snails?” Robin asked,
“You could say that.” Roxie said with a smirk as her mouth widened and her eyes flowed up her face until they became a pair of eye stalks. “I’m the transponder snail Zoan.”
“Oh my.” Robin said. The implications! “What type?”
Roxie blinked. “It might be the Telesnail variant? My full transformation is about that size, and I can feel about that range. I don’t know the name of the fruit, if it was like the ‘transponder transponder fruit: type Telesnail’ or just the general ‘mollusk mollusk fruit: type transponder’ or something else.”
Robin rested her chin on her hand. “Why does a waitress know so much about devil fruits?”
“My hometown was on one of the islands where old high ranking marines go to retire. I’m pretty sure I’ve overheard enough operational and state secrets while working as a waitress that I’d get a decent bounty if I listed off everything I knew to whoever sets those prices.” Roxie explained.
“Oh? Do tell.” Robin asked.
“Well, for one, I know it probably doesn’t mean much, but I’d like to offer my condolences for what happened to Ohara.” Roxie said. With how expressive transponder snail faces could be, it was very easy to tell the Zoan was sincere. “No one deserves to have to survive a Buster Call.”
“Thank you. How much do you know?” Robin asked. It had been quite a while since anyone had the courage to mention her homeland to her face, if they even knew it existed.
Roxie rubbed her chin. “The marine who was there wasn’t that high ranked, but he got high enough to ask why he was forced to help destroy an island. I know it involved a ship full of civilians being sunk, and that it involved research into the Void Century, but he never got quite drunk enough to explain what was so dangerous about that. I also know that you certainly didn’t sink any marine battleships with an ancient superweapon the island supposedly had.”
“That is about the gist of it, yes. Would you like to increase your theoretical bounty by learning more?” Robin inquired.
“I mean, I’m going to be on a crew with you and the Pirate King, so yes. It’s not like the government could want my head anymore than that, after all.” Roxie said.
“Very well then. Clover, the head of the Tree of Knowledge, knew the name of the kingdom the World Government fought during the Void Century. The leader of the investigation into Ohara shot my teacher right as he was about to say that name, which was supposed to tie everything together. The man who would go on to become Admiral Aokiji let me escape the island after he watched the giant vice admiral John Giant personally turn the Tree of Knowledge into kindling and used part of it to sink the ship carrying the civilians away. You probably know exactly how hard the government has been chasing me ever since.” Robin explained with an air of detachment. It still stung to recall, but she believed that history should be remembered more than she believed in avoiding her own pain. She’d have given up a long time ago if that wasn’t the case.
“Oh my god.” Roxie said, covering her mouth. “Now I’m worried I’m gonna seem like a dick.”
“Why?”
“I was going to lead into the fact I kind of wanted to learn Poneglyphic-”
Robin’s brain stalled out so hard she didn’t hear the rest of Roxie’s statement. “What?”
“I said I wanted to learn how to read and write the language on the Poneglyphs, and you were my best shot at it.” The rainbow haired girl repeated.
“But I just told you what this knowledge did to my homeland. You know how long I’ve been hunted for this.” Robin stressed.
“Yeah.” She said it so nonchalantly too, like this wasn’t anything special.
“Then why do you want this curse?” Robin asked, a hint of desperation and confusion leaking through her usual calm mask.
“Knowledge isn’t a curse, I like learning, and history is important. I’m already saddling myself with being hunted down. Besides, it’d be pretty awkward if I found some world shattering revelation and couldn’t read the f*cking thing.” Roxie said with a smile.
Robin sighed and shook her head. “I suppose you are right. It may be time to finally organize my notes into something resembling a lesson plan, after we survive the storm, of course.”
“Yeah, I think being splattered across the Red Line wouldn’t make for a very good learning experience.” Roxie said.
Robin had to suppress a laugh as she finished her food and the Zoan left the dining hall to help outside. What was it with Ds and knocking on her walls?
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The storm followed them. It was the only explanation. Even in the throes of hunger and thirst, the last of the Krieg pirates could tell that this was the same storm. They had to brave it one last time, just for one or two more days. If this floating restaurant turned out to be a lie, they might just have to eat Gin, but that was a distant thought at the moment. Everyone was far more focused on survival.
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There was so much to fix that Franky found himself remembering all the repairs the entire city needed every year after the Aqua Laguna. This wasn’t the first time he’d been homesick for Water 7, but it was the first time in a while. It was somewhat of a cycle that kept itself going, because whenever he’d remember Water 7, he’d try to distract himself with working on a ship or repairing something, but that would just bring back more memories. At least he kept remembering good advice this time around.
(“Do you see, boys? Feel that flex and sway. Even ships swim through the ocean.”)
“Oi! Cook! Pass the wrench!” Franky called as he stuck an arm out from the crawl space within the Baratie he had shimmied into.
“I’m not joining your crew, you damn robot!” Sanji said as he handed Franky the wrench all the same.
“I never said ya would.” Franky said. “Besides, “I’m a cyborg, not a robot, get it straight.” He activated one of his nipple flashlights to get more light. Lighting a candle would have just done more damage, as he was investigating an issue with the gas tanks.
The cook took a long puff on his cigarette. “Damn stubborn monkey can’t even take no for an answer. Then Roxie joins him like it isn’t anything and even tries to get me to accept his offer! I have more important things to do here than run off to join a pirate crew.”
“Y’know, I was in your position just a couple days ago.” Franky said.
“What, did he eventually break down your iron spine or whatever’s in there?” Sanji asked.
“Worse, he recruited my sister.”
“Roxie isn’t my sister!” Sanji objected.
“That wasn’t my point. Years ago, her family saved me from a shipwreck, and I was in their debt, building ships for them until their deaths. Then it was just us and her butlers, and one of them was a pirate gunning for her fortune. He tried to kill all of us the night after Luffy and his crew arrived. They helped me take down the Black Cat pirates that were coming to take the fortune.” Franky said as he moved a pipe out of the way so he could get a better look at what he’d identified as the fuel main.
“So what, he’s not as sh*tty as most pirates.” Sanji scoffed.
“What I’m saying is that it wasn’t until Kaya tried to run off with Luffy that I accepted maybe tying myself down to repaying some kind of debt instead of trying to fulfill my dream was a mistake.” Franky concluded. “Hand me the epoxy, I think I found the problem.”
“But you’re still with that family. Kaya’s on the crew with you.” Sanji pointed out as he handed Franky a jar.
“Yeah, but that’s not because I’m trying to repay a debt to her parents for helping save my life. It’s because our dreams are compatible, along with the captain’s dream. Building a ship to see the entire world goes well with becoming the Pirate King, don’t you think?” Franky said as he applied a rough fix to the problem. It would be better to replace the pipe wholesale, but covering the hole with a metal patch would work until after the storm had blown over.
“Why would you go and become a criminal for something as childish as a dream?”
“Take it from a guy in his mid 30s who installed flashlights into his nipples because he thought it’d be funny, kid, being childish isn’t that bad. Accepting that is one of the most mature things you can do, far as I can tell.” Franky advised. “Everyone has a dream, even if they don’t realize it. If your dream is to take over this restaurant, I wouldn’t blame you for staying here and trying to do that. If it’s anything else on the seas, Luffy already made the offer.”
Sanji didn’t respond. By the time Franky had wormed his way back out into the kitchen, the cook was gone. Franky went off to find something else to try and fix. He hoped he’d given the boy plenty to think about.
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A pirate with only his feet, head, and hands left to his name drifts on the East Blue on a small raft, desperately searching for his body or his crew. He encounters a small island and helps an old man discover that the treasure he had been searching for all his life was a lie, but that the real treasure was the friends he made along the way. The pirate spends the night on the island before moving on in his quest.
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As Jinbe took a short break from the chaos, he found himself remembering better times. He remembered the days when he could trust that his uncle’s words were right. The days when Fisher Tiger and Queen Otohime were alive and the dream of free fishmen on the surface didn’t seem so impossible. Then things began to go wrong, and there wasn’t anything he could do to stop it.
(He remembered the days before his captain’s death. Koala had bunked with him while they took her home, and he would never forget the constant, disturbingly permanent smile on her face. Watching it slowly melt and break over her days on the ship taught him something. Koala was enough to convince him that humans as a species weren’t the problem, but his uncle never seemed to get that.)
A smell drew Jinbe’s attention. The chef that Luffy kept trying to recruit was approaching him with a steaming pot that smelled amazing. “When was the last time you ate?”
“I…” Jinbe tried to remember, but the last meal he could remember was when Zeff was explaining why they couldn’t find a port. That had been nearly two days ago, hadn’t it?
“I thought so. Here, I remembered your order from the party.” Sanji said, handing the fishman the pot. A couple weeks ago, Arlong had hosted a party at the Baratie as a gathering for Fishmen from across the East.
“Oh, thank you.” Jinbe said before taking the lid off of the pot to reveal a whole slow roasted coconut crab resting on a bed of rice. The delicious smell reminded his appetite of its job, and Jinbe began devouring the crab, using shards of the shell to scoop up the rice.
The cook lit up a new cigarette with a thoughtful expression as Jinbe ate. He looked out the window as the storm raged outside. They were in another calmer period, and Jinbe hoped it was a sign that the storm was finally dying.
“You looked happy during the party.” Sanji said, breaking the silence as Jinbe cleaned his teeth with the thin end of one of the crab’s feet.
“It was fun, and you were great hosts.” Jinbe said. He’d been able to forget they were so far from home, at least for a couple days.
“Why did you leave that crew?” Sanji asked.
Jinbe was quiet for a few moments as he thought about his answer. “I realized my uncle was too far gone.” The cook made a ‘go on’ gesture with his cigarette. “Queen Otohime, the queen of Fishman Island, tried her best to make fishmen accepted above the waves, it was her dream. Fisher Tiger, leader of the Fishman Pirates wanted the same, but he was far more focused on fighting our oppressors than gaining equality. I was the cabin boy on the ship, and my uncle Arlong was an officer on the crew. When Fisher Tiger died, the crew fell apart, and my uncle was only able to keep a small portion of the crew together to form a new crew, the Arlong Pirates.”
“That’s why a bunch of you had that sun tattoo, yeah?” Sanji asked.
“It was to replace the Dragon’s Foot mark on the former slaves among us and keep anyone from figuring out which of us had been enslaved before. It was Fisher Tiger’s flag. It’s a mark of pride that I don’t regret accepting.” Jinbe explained, pulling aside his shirt to show the mark on his chest. “My uncle insisted we all get new tattoos to mark us as the Arlong Pirates after we set out. That, however, I regret.”
Sanji took a long drag on his cigarette. “This is where it all goes wrong, isn’t it.”
“Fisher Tiger went after marines, slavers, anyone who had an anti-fishman reputation. My uncle went farther.” Jinbe explained. “We attacked civilian ships, ports without marine bases, and more. It wasn’t all at once, but over the years he became worse and worse. He started talking about how we were supposedly superior to humans in every way and thus should have been the ones on top. I argued with him, but he was the captain, and I convinced myself that all of the random harm we were causing was necessary, that my Queen’s dream couldn’t be fulfilled without a threat behind it.”
(He cursed himself for it, sometimes. For being young and taking the easy option of believing that it would all work out, that his uncle was right because he had been in all those meetings with Fisher Tiger that JInbe had been too young to attend. Jinbe knew it was unfair to blame his younger self for having faith in his family, but sometimes, in the dead of night, he didn’t care.)
“What changed?”
“After the party, my uncle gathered everyone below your ship.” There was a flash of lightning. “He said this wasn’t just a party, that he had gathered everyone together for something bigger. He wanted to found a Fishman Empire, so that we could walk on the surface without worrying about slavery or prejudice. It was a wonderful idea, but then he said he already had a target, a village on a remote island, far from any marine bases and with easy access to the sea.” Jinbe explained, memories flashing through his mind. “It was the last straw. I couldn’t take any more, and Queen Otohime would never have approved of founding an empire just to treat humans as horribly as we were treated. I left the Arlong Pirates and searched for someone who might be able to take down my uncle ”
“And you really think that idiot can do that?” Sanji asked skeptically.
“Luffy may be somewhat simple at times, but he is pure of heart. I have seen him fight, and I have watched him battle and win against two of the strongest pirates in the East Blue purely because someone asked him to. I am confident that we may be able to defeat Arlong and end an empire before it starts.” That was saying nothing of Franky and Robin, but the captain’s ideals were just as important as the rest of the crew’s fighting capability.
Sanji was silent for a few moments, and before he could respond, one of the chefs came bursting into the dining hall. “There’s a ship coming, off the port bow!”
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“That’s the Baratie alright, although I thought those other pirates would have left by now.”
“They don’t matter, and even if they do, they’ll make a great start on the Krieg Fleet once again.”
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A galleon with a dragon figurehead slowly approached the Baratie and Going Merry. Zeff and I got a good look at it from the top deck, where I had just finished helping the old man fix a hole in his ceiling after lightning struck the Baratie. The figurehead nearly hit the railing as it stared us in the face. I somewhat wished I had access to what a visual snail could have done, because I kind of wanted to frame the supremely unimpressed expression on Zeff’s face as he stared down the massive flagship.
I could just barely make out the jolly roger of the Krieg Pirates flapping in the wind far above our heads. The moans of the starved crew echoed from across the deck. This was definitely Don Krieg’s ship, and the damage matched a storm just like this one. They may have even been hit by this storm before it was weakened in the trip over the Calm Belt.
(A part of me I was still trying to kill asked if Zeff’s roof being broken and a galleon approaching the ship, just as in the timeline I knew, was a sign that it was all preordained.)
It was at this moment I remembered that Zeff had been to the Grand Line and nearly smacked myself. “Oh yeah, could you teach me Haki?”
Zeff turned to begin heading for the stairs as he answered my question. “I suppose none of the marines would teach you?”
“No, and it was very frustrating because they never talked about how they got it, just that training it was grueling. Every time I tried to ask they refused because I didn’t have clearance.” I claimed, pumping all of my frustration about my own, private failed attempts into my voice.
“Well, they were right, only commodores and above get Haki training, and it’s mandatory for vice admirals. They were also complaining because Haki isn’t something you can be taught in a day, or even a week. It can take years to cover the basics, like learning to cook pufferfish or similar delicacies.” Zeff explained. “There is no quick or easy way to learn how to bring your soul to bear against your opponents. You will need to find a teacher on the Grand Line, and either stay with them for training or convince them to join your crew. I don't even know how to use Haki, or I would have taught Sanji, and he could have taught you.”
I let out a deep sigh as we descended through the ship. “That makes sense, even if I don’t like it. Is there any way to tell who has it?”
“One of the most basic techniques of Haki is using it to sense others using the other two most basic techniques, which can look like a pulse of power or a black coating to the trained eye respectively. The former makes people pass out, and the latter strengthens whatever the user puts their Haki into.” Zeff explained. “You won’t be able to tell just by looking unless someone is using enough Haki that even someone without that technique can see the black covering their skin, but keep an eye out for anyone who could, say, fight off a swordsman with a fork. You should be able to figure it out from there.”
f*ck. “Thank you for the advice.” I knew it wouldn’t be that simple, but I had to try. At least that explained how inconsistent the visuals for Haki were before the timeskip.
We got to the kitchen just as the front doors for the dining hall slammed open. Zeff began preparing to cook a large feast as I went down the spiral staircase and rested my elbows on the railing to watch the proceedings unfold.
Don Krieg was a large man, and his large cloak and well hidden golden armor helped sell that image of him. He also looked more battered and weary than I had expected, but I suppose being chased by the very storm that took them down was more difficult than just fleeing Mihawk. Gin was supporting him and begging for aid from the chefs taking a break in the dining hall, along with a few of my fellow Straw Hats.
“Please, my captain hasn’t eaten in days, he needs food!”
“Shove it, pirate. We’re not serving customers during a storm like this!” Patty retorted, to a general murmur of support from the gathered chefs.
I felt Sanji pass behind me as he went up to the kitchen. “We have money this time!” Gin said desperately. “Please, the storm ruined all our food and water!” Krieg abruptly crashed to the ground. “Captain!”
The pirate admiral rose to a shaky bow on his knees with his head pressed to the ground. “Please… We’ve been drifting for days, I’ll take leftovers, anything…”
Intellectually, I knew what this man had probably done. I knew his reputation just from how everyone was treating him. What I also knew was that I could hear both Sanji and Zeff cooking up a storm in the kitchen above me, and that there was a basket of freshly baked flatbread and a pitcher of water waiting for me to pick up in the area where the chefs left dishes for the waiters. It was pretty clear what they intended for me to do.
“I swear, I’m the new girl around here and even I know this isn’t what the old man wanted when he founded this place. Y'all should be ashamed.” I said as I pushed through the crowd of chefs and began setting up a place setting on the table closest to the front doors.
“What are you doing, Roxie?!” Patty yelled from his place at the forefront of the crowd.
“What one of you should have done when a starving man walked in here. You’re chefs aren’t you?” I crouched down on the other side of the pirate captain from Gin. “Help me get him up to the table.”
Gin blinked at me for a couple seconds. “What?”
“I said help me lift him up so he can sit at the table. This is a restaurant, people eat at tables, not on the ground.” I said.
“Thank…. You…” Don Krieg said, and it honestly made me question just how much of this was an act. Either he was a better actor than I expected, or he was at least partially reduced to this state by sheer hunger.
“Alright, one, two, three!” I counted out the signal to lift the very heavy pirate off the ground and back onto his feet. It took a few heavy steps, but we got him to the table, where he immediately began scarfing down the appetizer of flatbread.
“Your real meal should be here shortly, of course, but this should tide you over till then.” I said, partially slipping into waitress mode.
“What, no, don’t feed him! He’s a dangerous pirate!” Someone in the crowd of chefs objected.
“He’s a starved man out on the open ocean during a storm, with who knows how many others out there on that ship. I swear, am I the only one who actually asked why the old man founded this place?!” I said.
“She’s right.” Sanji said as he descended the stairs, carrying a large bowl of fried rice and a bottle of rum. The crowd of chefs parted to let him approach the table. “I will take it from here, mademoiselle Roxie.”
I barely held back a snort. “As you wish, good sir. I will leave you to it.” I walked off to stand with Jinbe, who was watching the pirate eat with an expression I couldn’t quite read. Luffy was off in the crowd, and I guessed the rest of the crew were dealing with the storm while we all dealt with the pirates.
“What did you mean, that this was why this restaurant was founded?” Jinbe asked.
“I never heard the full story, but Zeff told me it was because he nearly starved after being shipwrecked. One of his dreams during that time was for a floating restaurant to pass by and rescue them.” I explained quietly.
“Most of the employees don’t seem to care about that.” Jinbe pointed out.
“About two weeks ago, I was in the North Blue. I boarded a party ship and got so drunk that when I woke up, I was in the East, on this ship. They fished me out of the ocean, naked and hungover. The story stuck with me.” I explained.
“Why did you want to join our crew?” Jinbe asked.
“Luffy’s brother is cleaning the North. Besides, I had to help the old man get Sanji off this boat somehow.” I said.
“What does Luffy’s brother have to do with this?”
“Don’t you read the newsp-”
My statement was cut off by Krieg slamming down the empty bottle of rum and belching like a king. The sheer improvement the meal had made for him really made me wonder what was going on in this world’s human biology. Just how fast could we absorb nutrients? There was never a concern of forcing the body into shock by suddenly eating too much. I really had to go look at some medical textbooks at some point, if only to know what was going on in my own body.
(Oh by Nikka I was going to have to deal with periods, that was something I hadn’t thought about yet. I promptly locked that thought away until it would eventually be relevant.)
“Ah, that was a great meal. Of course, I expect the rest of my crew to get similar treatment.” Krieg was saying as I zoned back in.
“Of course, sir. Our head chef is preparing a feast as we speak.” I said, attempting to placate the captain, who was eyeing us as if evaluating our fighting capabilities. He hadn’t lashed out quite yet, but that didn’t mean he was docile.
“Good. I’ll expect similar promptness when you are all part of my new fleet.” Krieg said.
I made sure I was standing mostly behind Jinbe as the entire dining hall erupted in objections. The boy wasn’t as large as he would be in his 40s, but he was still a whale shark fishman, and that brought both strength and size.
“This wasn’t what we agreed to, Don Krieg!” Gin said, shouting over the crowd.
“I told you when we approached that we needed more men, Gin. The entire fleet needs to be rebuilt, and this will be a fine start. The rest can come from finer, Grand Line stock during our second attempt to enter that hell of an ocean.” Krieg stated.
“Hey Luffy!” I called across the hall.
“What, snail girl?” Luffy asked as everyone turned to watch the exchange.
“That guy’s got the second highest bounty in the East, I bet you’ll get a pretty big starting bounty if you beat his face in for trying to recruit you.” I said.
“Oh, nice!” was all I got in response before Luffy launched himself at Krieg.
“Did you have to do that?” Sanji asked as he got out of the way of the two brawling captains.
“Yes.” I said, utterly unashamed. They would have started fighting anyway, after all.
“You do realize they’re going to destroy all of our tables, right?” Sanji pointed out, motioning to the already destroyed table that Krieg had been eating at moments before.
“Right.” I nodded. “Luffy! Take him outside!”
“Alright!” Luffy called back as he used the handles on the front door to do a Gum Gum Rocket, which launched both him and Krieg out onto the deck.
“The doors weren’t much better!” Sanji said in frustration.
“Hold on.” I said as the dust cleared. There was suddenly sunlight streaming in through the open doors, and the sky outside showed a mildly cloudy day, but the storm was gone. “Where’d the storm go?”
Before anyone could answer, there was a sound like a thunderclap from outside before a tall, red haired woman in shorts, a tight tshirt, and a cloudy shawl walked through the ruins of the front door. She was dragging Luffy and Krieg by the back of their shirts, and both of them were smoking as if they had just been electrocuted. Krieg was dazed, and Luffy was pouting with an egg sized lump on his forehead. She let them drop to the ground before dusting off her hands, which made me notice her left arm was an advanced metal prosthetic.
“Alright, I need a quick bite before heading off to deal with the chucklef*cks who decided to mess with my hometown. Consider dealing with the storm and these lunatics for you as your payment.”
The Golden Cartographer had arrived.
