37. Welcome aboard
A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed the story, and all the anonymous readers ^^!
Hi there! This is more of a filler chapter before finally entering Alabasta's Arc. Sorry for the long wait, and also at how awfully short it is! But either way, I hope this doesn't disappoint you!
-Jag: Yeah, I add too much about Koga's demon, but hopefully I can explain in an AN later on. Or, if you want, you can send me a PM. Here's the update, hope you enjoy it!
-PsychopathOnADiet: Thanks! Yeah, he does have a certain moral thinking that will clash with the other Strawhats (the fact that he disregards his own life so much), but all in all he's like everyone. He thinks that women are perfectly able to fight -a conflict with Sanji- and also finds the idea of killing quite disgusting. And you're quite perceptive, I like that! I can't really say anything about his story arc, but you're quite close!
-zerom1v: Yeah, poor dear Chopper T.T Here's the update, enjoy and review xD
-14fox: Hi! I think once in a while Koga can stop being so suicidal xD
Disclaimer: I own nothing of One Piece and Soul Eater but my OC Koga and other OCs that will appear in the future.
Already sailing away from Drum Island, the name revealed by Chopper, the crew obviously threw a grand welcoming party for their newly recruited crewmate. As always, Luffy and Usopp broke with Chopper's initial shyness with their boisterous attitude. The captain ran up and down the deck with chopsticks in his nose, the sniper attempted to raise a toast to Chopper –failing because no one was paying attention, Sanji dished out drinks –thankfully remembering Koga didn't take alcohol very well, and Nami and Vivi too occupied in beating Zoro for leaving Carue behind and freezing in the cold water.
As always when his crew began being too cheerful, Koga merely watched them from atop the railing of the deck, his beloved logbook resting comfortably in his lap. He had attempted to write down everything that happened since he fell too ill to write, but the party amused him too much; so, the chronicler put it aside, thinking it wouldn't hurt anyone to let his duty aside for a few more hours, and watched his crewmates as Chopper finally put chopsticks in his nose and began dancing with Luffy and Usopp with a smile on his face hidden behind his scarf.
"LISTEN UP YOU JERKS!" Usopp roared, raising his mug once again and this time finally catching everyone's attention. "To our newest nakama, Tony Tony Chopper… KANPAI!"
"KANPAI!" Everyone shouted with him, raising their mugs –Koga's filled with orange juice– and toasting cheerfully.
The party went on until past midnight, when everyone slowly succumbed to sleepiness and bid the others good night and retired to their rooms.
xXxNIGTHMARExXx
The fire again. The heat. The awful smell of charred flesh. The unending darkness around me.
I try not to gag, but it's hard. Why am I back here again?
"Nice done, my little pawn."
I whirl around in panic, trying to locate the bodiless voice. Who is it? I can't recognize that voice.
"You've improved. I'm glad. Keep getting stronger, little pawn. Continue like this, and I will finally achieve what I want."
Something burns inside me, drowning my voice, engulfing my senses and turning into hot white pain.
"You're the Key."
Koga bolted up in his hammock, gasping for breath and grasping his chest with both hands. Cold sweat covered his entire frame as it shook from the violent shivers.
"Shit." He cursed, wiping his forehead and looking around.
Surprisingly, he was the only one still in the men's quarters. A quick peep at the only window confirmed that it was already morning and that the others had woken up before him. Rather strange, considering he was one of the first to wake, just after Zoro and Sanji.
Actually, it alleviated him that the others weren't present; that way, he wouldn't have to explain his abrupt wake-up. And now that they had a doctor on-board, he had to be wary too around him.
As he took a shower and dressed up with black cargo pants and a plain tight blue t-shirt, the chronicler managed to calm down his wrecked nerves enough to look more or less awake. He tied up his black combat boots and placed his beloved blue scarf around his neck before taking his logbook and get out of the quarters.
Luffy and Usopp were already causing a ruckus, with the newly recruited Chopper being dragged along with their jokes. Nami and Vivi were standing at the bow, happily chatting with each other and the navigator occasionally berating at the two –now three– troublemakers running up and down the deck. He couldn't see Zoro or Sanji, but he supposed that the swordsman was training and the cook in the kitchen –obviously.
"Good morning, Koga-san!" Vivi greeted him when the storyteller approached them.
"Mornin'." He answered with a curt nod. The others noticed him as well.
"Hey, sleepyhead!" Sanji got out of the kitchen, a white apron tied around his waist and a frown in his face. "You're the last one in getting breakfast, so c'mon and eat up so I can make lunch!"
"LUNCH!" Luffy bellowed.
"YOU'LL HAVE TO WAIT!"
"EEEEEEEEEEHHH?! But Sanji, I'm hungry!"
"YOU'RE ALWAYS HUNGRY YOU BOTTOMLESS PIT!"
While eating (and protecting the food from Luffy's prying hands), his other hand scribbled down their adventures at best he could, Vivi and Sanji updating him of what happened. Usopp told Chopper some tales that left the small reindeer with sparkling eyes at the sharpshooter –and Koga didn't have the heart to say that the majority of those tales were lies. Zoro had made a small pause with his training and was polishing one of his blade, occasionally arguing with the blond cook so much it enticed a fight –thankfully cut short by Nami's fists forcibly knocking their skulls.
Like every morning, Koga would look at the crew of misfits and smile fondly, his heart growing warm at them. He would remember his first days with the crew, and would wonder where all his natural mistrust went. Sometimes he would ask himself if losing it was a good thing… or not.
That day, Koga asked Zoro if he could train him, and though surprised, the swordsman immediately accepted. In the last battle, the chronicler had realized that he couldn't rely every battle he had in speed, as it could one day fail him and cost him his own life. He had to become not only faster, but stronger and more resilient in order to overcome every battle. And judging that he already had the speed, he could improve in his other traits.
It wasn't long before he briefly regretted this decision, however. Though undoubtedly good-naturedly, Zoro took every training as a real challenge, and he demanded that same seriousness in the storyteller. Sure, the blond could more or less keep up with the pressure by using his own Devil Fruit powers, but more often than not even his enhanced strength wasn't enough to block Zoro's swings. In fact, he found himself questioning if he would ever match his companion in strength without the help of his enhancements.
When Vivi saw his doubts, she quickly reassured him by declaring that, even if he didn't reach Zoro's brutal strength, he was by all means stronger than the majority of the crew, and not only regarding physical strength. Unlike Sanji, Zoro and even Luffy, who relied mostly in their strength, Koga possessed a more balanced and well-rounded variety of abilities. His endurance matched Zoro's, and his speed easily surpassed everyone else's, and even more if he used his newly improved Flash Step. He was an extremely quick analyzer like Nami and his mastery with the demonic weapon he owned made him an even more dangerous opponent. Even more, the Contract he made with Sankaoken provided him with invincibility –or almost invincibility.
"In most of the battles you had, you relied mostly in your speed, your major trait." Zoro explained during one of their small breaks –by Koga's request, of course. "But with last battle, you actually had to improve your technique to avoid getting hit."
Three days had passed since they departed from Drum Island, three days since they welcomed Chopper aboard, and also three days since both swordsman and chronicler began training together.
The blond sighed as he wiped his forehead with a towel; it'd been hot lately. "Yeah, that jester was too fast."
"That's why you need to improve in everything else. You're fast, and that's good, but in case an enemy surpasses you in speed, you'll need to rely in your other abilities. Do you have any technique with strength or endurance?"
"A technique enhancing strength or endurance, you say?" The swordsman nodded. "Well, normally I don't exactly boost my body's endurance because I don't need it," a small grimace that almost went unnoticed crossed the older boy's face, "and I have a couple of force-enhanced attacks with my weapon Sankaoken."
If Zoro noticed the small frown, he didn't comment on it. "You ever tried enhancing two attributes at the same time, say, speed and endurance?"
The storyteller shook his head. "I already tried, and it takes a great deal of concentration. It'd only delay me. It's too dangerous."
"Tsk, a shame." He fell silent for a few moments before remembering something. "And that day when we fought Arlong… That punch you…"
Cold gripped Koga's heart, his whole body going rigid. Zoro noticed and watched him warily, a small frown on his face.
"… That was…" Koga cleared his suddenly dry throat. His head bobbed forwards, his long blond bangs hiding his mismatched eyes. "That… wasn't entirely me."
"What?" The green-haired teen's scowl deepened, this time in confusion. "What do you–?"
"When that… bastard took my scarf, I… I was angry. Furious. I lost control of myself. I admit that I didn't know what I did until I woke up in the Merry, after everything was over. I…" He sighed, a hand pinching the bridge of his nose. "I should've been more careful, more control over my actions. It's been years since I used that."
"That?"
As if suddenly remembering that he wasn't alone, his head shot up towards the inquisitive swordsman, surprise in his scarred face before calming down and gathering his thoughts again. He nodded, once.
"Kaizen Limit: Robot. A technique that I… obtained unwillingly, long ago. It puts my body and mind at their limits, boosting everything, and I mean everything. I can't feel pain, I'm insanely strong, impossibly fast, can detect every little detail that occurs surrounding me… but at the cost of a very limited control of my conscience, and a countdown."
Zoro narrowed his eyes at him. "How much time?"
"Ten minutes, at most. After that, my body shuts down. The longer I use the technique, the more time my body needs to completely recover."
"Can you distinguish enemy from ally?"
"Yeah. At least I have that control over my conscience."
Not giving any comment, the swordsman looked down at his lap, apparently deep in thought, before sighing and standing up, confusing the chronicler.
"… Get up."
"Huh?" Koga so-very-smartly commented, blinking.
"We still have training to do."
"… Oh. Yeah."
After that conversation, the training became even harder; a silent determination oozed from the swordsman, who analyzed Koga's techniques and pointed out the flaws he saw, helping him in developing them even further. He never gave any explanation about that sudden attitude though, and Koga didn't bother asking, simply accepting their new routine.
The following day after a really intense training (which included hanging upside down from the stern pole by their feet with some weights tied on their stretched arms), Koga felt really sore and pained everywhere, and Chopper, seeing the condition he was in, absolutely forbid him to train that day. It was nice to train to be stronger, the reindeer said, but such brutal exercises couldn't be that good for him, especially if he wasn't used to them.
Speaking of the small doctor, in the days he had been on the crew he had easily fitted in, unsurprisingly so. Being the youngest of them all and also one of the most innocent, everyone, even Koga, developed an attitude of older brother/sister-younger brother when being with him. He laughed at Luffy and Usopp's idiocies, listened awe-struck at the sharpshooter's lies or Koga's amazing stories– when he felt like telling one, and even boasted about his medical knowledge to Vivi and Nami.
Right now, after breakfast, Sanji, Zoro, Usopp and Koga had reunited at the stern of the deck to play cards. At the moment, Usopp was at the head, with Koga following closely, then Sanji and lastly Zoro, much to the swordsman's exasperation.
They were so caught up with their games that they didn't notice the giant bird coming at them from above until it crashed onto the stern of the deck.
BOOM!
"Oi Sanji, I got us some meat!" Luffy idiotically proclaimed after coming out from under his catch, and soon noticing the four males sprawled on the deck. "What's with you guys?"
"ASSHOLE!" All four of them shouted, springing back to their feet.
"How are you gonna repay me?! I had a good hand that round, Luffy!" The long-nosed ten blathered about to punch his captain's face.
"Oh? Sorry, shishishishi."
"At least you could look apologetic, dude…" Koga mumbled with an irk mark on his forehead; he had had a good hand too.
"You guys!" Nami came upstairs with Vivi and Chopper in tow. "We're almost at Alabasta, and we don't have time to be fooling around!"
"What's Alabasta?" Chopper asked curiously as they walked towards the main deck.
"A country Vivi's father rules." The navigator answered shortly.
"There's this really bad guy named Crocodile trying to take it over!" Usopp continued, waving his hands around.
"He's also one of the Shichibukai." Sanji took a drag of his cigarette, suddenly serious.
"Shichibukai?"
"Pirates that work for the Government and defeat other pirates." Koga explained.
"That's the problem however…" Vivi held her hand up to her chin in thought. "Crocodile is considered a hero in Alabasta… He shows up and defeats pirates who attack any Alabastan town, but it's just a front. Crocodile just wants to overthrow the kingdom, and we are the only ones who know this. Not the people, not even my father…"
Her face began showing worry at her grim thoughts. Everyone just looked at her until Luffy slammed his fists together, jarring their attention.
"I just need to kick this Croc's ass, right?" He chuckled with one of his wide grins.
For a moment, the princess' face showed surprise before remembering who she was talking to, and nodded in determination. "Yes… Without Crocodile, Baroque Works would crumble."
"Baroque Works?" The reindeer felt lost again.
"Ugh, that's right, you don't know anything about them either…" Usopp rubbed the back of his head. "Then again, neither do we… Their system is way too complicated…"
"Actually, it's quite simple." Vivi began explaining. "Crocodile is at the top, known only as Mr. Zero by his subordinates, and directly below him are thirteen agents (twelve men and an animal) paired with a female agent who compliments their skills. First, there's Mr. 1 and Miss Doublefinger, Mr. 2 Bon Clay, the only agent with no corresponding female agent…"
"And Mr. 3 was that wax guy we ran into on Little Garden, right?" Zoro added. "Along with that kid."
"Right, Mr. 3 and Miss Goldenweek. Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas, though to be honest I don't know much about them…"
"And then there's the booger guy and the girl who could change her weight." Usopp stated.
"Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine's Day, right… And then, there's Mr. 6… I heard that he's quite a lonely guy that refuses to have a female counterpart… Ah!" Vivi then looked at Koga, who raised a blond eyebrow at her. "You especially should stay away from him."
"Why?" He asked confused.
"I don't know if these rumors are true, but… I heard that he's a skilled demon hunter…" Koga's face darkened at that declaration. "Out of all of us, you're the one who would be in a serious disadvantage against him."
"Demon hunter?" Nami asked in worry at the chronicler's sudden grim face.
"Hunters that kill demons hidden in Cursed people like me. I've never encountered one before 'cause I tried to keep a low profile however."
"Why would they want to hunt you?" Chopper asked with wide eyes.
"The majority of the people who become Cursed make Contracts with the demons willingly, to seek power or vengeance in the most gruesome way they can." He absentmindedly touched his chest with a grimace. "The hunters are considered the 'protectors of humanity' against demons."
"It's like us pirates against Marines." Sanji commented. "The Cursed people are the pirates and the hunters are the Marines."
"Something like that, yeah."
"Yosh, I get it now!" Luffy suddenly shouted, throwing his fist out. "I just have to go and beat up Crocodile, right?"
"… You weren't listening at all were you?" Usopp berated with an exasperated look at his captain.
"If taking over Alabasta is Baroque Works' final plan, then that must mean..." Zoro began, a devil grin forming on his face.
"That all the Officer Agents will be gathering in Alabasta." Sanji finished.
"Where we can beat them senseless. And yeah, Luffy, that's all you need to do." Koga closed Luffy's mouth just as it began to open again. He laughed goofily and nodded in determination, his goal finally clear.
A/N: And that's it!
'Kay, so I'll see you next chap, please feed the hungry beast! Love y'all lots!