Chapter 30: Gentle Improvement
Arlong was as terrible of a student as he was a teacher, Aria realized with mirth.
Farren had been released from the guest barracks and brought to Kuroobi's dojo. Currently she sat on the edge of the ring, her arms resting on the ropes and her legs idly kicking as she listened to Arlong's complaints with a toothy smirk.
The rest of the crew present were either trying to hold back a long-suffering sigh or desperate giggles. This was the fourth time Arlong had interrupted the tranquil quiet of everyone's meditations. He simply had no patience for closing his eyes, sitting still, and trying to feel the life around him.
Admittedly, he wasn't the only one. Hachi squirmed or tried to pick at his bandages, only to have his hand smacked by Kakuzu. Chew didn't want to relax at all around Farren, not after she had been a handful on his watch. Kakuzu had to keep an eye on Hachi, who was apparently terrible at resisting the urge to itch his healing skin now that he was up and about. Arlong just encouraged their distraction.
Only Kuroobi and Aria were giving Farren's tutelage their full attention. Kuroobi, at least, had plenty of experience ignoring Arlong's outbursts and the comedy duo that was Hachi and Kakuzu. It was merely an annoyance to have his concentration broken by Chew's attempts to stifle his laughter.
Aria was grasping the concepts well. She was starting to understand that she had been accidently tapping into Observation for years now, likely aided by her devil fruit. Any time Aria felt like she was able to sense someone from far away, she had previously attributed it to sensing their vibrations with her abilities. That wasn't entirely wrong. Her skill at watching enemies and making movements from afar had also been influenced by her latent Observation.
Aria didn't know whether to be frustrated of grateful by these discoveries. Either way, connecting to her Observation intentionally was becoming less of a struggle.
"Listen. You're getting too worked up. Just sit down and clear your head." Farren said cooly as Arlong's tirade came to an end.
"Maybe I could if you'd taught that first!" Arlong snapped back.
Aria noticed that Farren just barely stopped herself from rolling her eyes. "Close your eyes. Calm your breathing with deep, slow breaths."
Arlong huffed but tried to follow her instructions. After a few moments, he seemed a bit calmer.
"Keep breathing slow. Now think about something you're connected to in nature. For me, it is the cold, windy mountains. What do you connect to?"
Arlong grumbled something under his breath. It sounded faintly like, "this is such bullshit." Aria bit back a snicker.
"Let's say it's the ocean." Farren continued. The other fishmen recognized this lecture, this being the second time Farren had tried this angle, and closed their eyes. They allowed Farren's voice to connect to their imaginations, to bring imagery to their connection to haki. "Imagine the tides. Imagine the waves being pulled back and forth by the call of the moon. Imagine the currents, the roadways of the ocean, guiding the water's path."
Arlong scowled, but kept his eyes closed.
"You are not with the ocean, but it still has influence over you. The currents and the tides have not left you. They still push and pull at you from afar. Try to mimic their movements, within your mind. Push and pull at your surroundings with your senses. Feel the air and water around you. Feel how it moves. Connect with it."
Farren let the room lapse into silence. Everyone present was trying their best to connect with the environment. If they could connect with their environment, they could connect with their haki.
For Aria, this was made easier by her connection to sound. She had long since become aware of sound and how the wavelengths ricocheted around rooms by their location's acoustics. Every creature produced sound. Every object produced sound, too. All Aria had to do was lose herself in the acoustics, and she was there.
There was still much to learn. Aria could tell her haki was inexperienced. She was still largely unable to predict movements ahead of time, like the essay mentioned. She couldn't tell what others were feeling or their intent, like Farren could. That would take time and effort. Aria had only grasped the first step.
That still put her leagues ahead of Arlong. He was having so much trouble connecting. He understood the feel of the ocean. It was impossible for him not to. Yet...connecting to it? The ocean was like air. You didn't connect to air. It was everywhere and nowhere. It was a substance that could cover the entire body. You could move through it. You could act on it. You could change it, ever so slightly, and create waves and ripples and tides. But it would always revert to its original shape of fluid.
How could he connect to something like that? It was impossible. This human had to be fucking with him. Her connection was with something solid, the mountains of dirt from her homeland. It wasn't fluid. It was static.
Rage was building up inside him again, and he was so, so tempted to snap at Farren for her shitty teaching again. But he peeked an eye open and glanced at everyone. They were all concentrating fully. They'd all had varying degrees of success today. Even Hachi had managed once or twice.
A bud of inferiority appeared. Arlong hated being slower than everyone else. He was the captain, dammit. How was he supposed to keep his crew safe if he couldn't manage such a small thing?
He forced himself to try again. And again. And again.
The early hours went by quickly. Arlong still wasn't able to connect by the end of the session. They broke for lunch and Arlong's frustrations were evident by his menacing aura. Thankfully, everyone was too preoccupied by the presence of Aria, Hachi, and the new human to question their captain's foul mood.
"Hachi-san! I'm glad you've recovered enough to come eat with us!" Borzoi greeted with a huge grin.
Hachi matched it with one of his own. "So am I, nyuu! If I spent one more day trapped in the infirmary I was going to need to do something drastic."
"I don't think Kakuzu would appreciate that." Aria said. "He already gave me so many lectures about staying in bed." She grimaced.
"If you keep behaving recklessly, I might have to do something drastic myself." Came Kakuzu's voice from behind them. Hachi and Aria slowly turned to see Kakuzu giving them both a stern Kuroobi-level stare.
"Nyuu...I didn't know you were behind us…" Hachi deflated. Aria nodded swiftly, not wanting to incur the doctor's wrath.
Kakuzu smiled, but it felt...dangerous. "Hachi-san is still under my strict observation for a few more days. Just continue to be good little patients and everything will be alright." He slipped by them and made his way over to the lunch buffet. Aria and Hachi shared a glance before breathing a sigh of relief.
Farren, who had been watching the entire conversation play out, broke out into laughter. "What was that? Are you trying to be part of a comedy duo, Aria?"
Aria scowled, and opened her mouth to say something. The other crewmates spoke first.
"Who are you, actually?" Borzoi asked, looming over Farren. "I didn't see you come through the gates this morning, human."
Farren's teeth glinted. "You needn't worry about that. I'm just here to begin a partnership with your captain, and then I'll be on my merry way."
Aria sighed. "That's not entirely true. Farren wants to stay on my island, so she won't be entirely out of our hair."
Borzoi pulled a face. "Well, if that's what Arlong-san wants…" He shrugged. "But I'm still gonna be leery of this new human, Aria-neesan."
Aria blinked at the honorific. When had Borzoi decided on that? She quickly hid her surprise, covering her smirk with her hand.
"That's probably a good idea, Borzoi. Farren here has already gotten into a lot of trouble." Aria's smirk grew wider. "And she's a spoiled rich kid, so she tends to act drastically when things don't go her way."
Farren looked mortally offended. "Spoiled rich kid?! I'll have you know I toiled for countless hours in labs before being allowed to become an Abroader!"
Aria put her hand on her hip, allowing her catty smirk to show to her rival. "Oh? Is that so? The rumours made it sound like you just asked Lady Fennel and Lady Faust for permission to go."
"Well, I suppose that's a more respectable rumor than the one where you pleaded with Queen Grishina!"
Hachi could tell that struck a nerve with Aria, and he stepped between the two sniping women.
"Now, now. Let's get some food, yeah? Arlong's looking impatient."
Aria seemed reluctant to disengage but she did, quickly grabbing herself a plate of food and sitting at the table where Arlong and Kakuzu were seated. Hachi quickly followed suit. Farren took her sweet time at the buffet, having little clue what anything was.
"You looked like you were having fun, Aria-chan." Arlong said when Aria sat down. He had already cleared a few plates.
Aria was taken aback. Did she..? She supposed it had been fun, riling Farren up like that. "It wasn't too bad."
Hachi had caught the tail end of the conversation and sat down with a massive grin. "It honestly reminded me of how you and Jinbe-san use to squabble!"
Arlong scowled. "We were nothing like that!" He exclaimed, before stabbing a piece of meat with his fork and shoving it into his mouth.
"No, you two were worse." Kakuzu said, laughing under his breath. "Especially when the crew first formed, you two were always going at it…"
Arlong scoffed. "That's because Jinbe was so high and mighty, even back then! He thought he was too good to be a pirate!"
Aria listened with amused interest. This Jinbe person, they had mentioned him before. He was a marine now, wasn't he? But he used to be a pirate alongside Arlong and the others.
"Jinbe-san just appreciates order and protecting his brethren. Of course, he knows now that being a pirate isn't all chaos." Kakuzu said.
Arlong looked like he wanted to say something cruel, but he caught Aria's curious glance, and Farren sat down, marking the moment as over. He huffed and shoved more food in his face.
"Jinbe?" Farren picked up on the topic at hand. "The latest Shichibukai?"
Aria choked on her food. That's who Jinbe was?!
"Ah, you've heard of him?" Kakuzu asked. He nonchalantly started patting Aria on the back.
"I do try to keep myself well informed on major players." Farren said. "Though I hadn't heard the specifics of why he became a marine. Mind sharing?"
"We do, actually." Arlong snapped at Farren. "You might be Aria's rival and our ally, but some information you just won't be privy to. Got it?"
Farren handled Arlong's sharp words with ease, holding her palms up toward him. "As you say. I was merely trying to fit into the conversation."
Aria was a bit disappointed, since she was also curious as to how this Jinbe person fit into the crew. If he was a Shichibukai now, he must have terrifying strength. Aria frowned and poked at a shrimp with her fork. That must be why they had Nezumi keeping information from reaching the Grand Line. If Jinbe was sent to fight Arlong, would her captain come out on top?
Aria pushed her worries away and tried to focus on the current conversation. Chew and Kuroobi had sat down while Aria was lost in thought. Together they were all discussing plans for the next week.
"So, in about two days we'll take this pain in the ass home to pick up her supplies and wait for that damn bird." Arlong said, pointing at Farren. "Meanwhile, we'll have a team building a house on Aria's island. By the time the team gets back with the bird, Aria should be all healed up.
"Thankfully we picked up some DenDen Mushi on Cinnabar, so keeping in contact with each other as we split our forces will be easier."
Aria's eyes lit up. "DenDen Mushi? You got some?"
Arlong grinned at Aria's sudden glee. "Shahaha, excited, aren't you?"
"I've been dying to get my hands on one." Aria had a glint in her eyes that only a few people seated at the table recognized. "They were too expensive to keep back home, what with their temperature upkeep. If you let me borrow one, I can do so many experiments."
Chew and Kuroobi eyed Aria cautiously. "I think...Aria-san is a bit creepy, chuu…"
Kuroobi nodded.
Aria didn't catch their murmured disgust, too caught up in her zealous imagination.
"Well, I have good news for you, little hermit. We picked up just enough DenDen Mushi that you'll have your very own."
Aria's excitement was nearly palpable. Even Kakuzu and Hachi were starting to get a bit weirded out. Meanwhile, Arlong was practically feeding off Aria's happiness. "Really, Arlong?"
"It's only a short-range DenDen Mushi. But it means you'll be able to contact us here at Arlong Park and we'll be able to discuss any business that comes up without needing to go all the way to your island."
"Ahhh...Even a short-range DenDen Mushi is exciting...I can do so many experiments…" Aria clasped her hands together and grinned. "You're the best, Captain!"
Arlong's chest nearly puffed up with how much that simple statement preened his ego. "You're damn right I am."
"Ah, I see." Farren murmured as she watched the interaction between the captain and the scientist. She had expected their relationship to be different, given what Grenouille had told her. But judging by what Farren had just seen...Aria wasn't just a willful dog on a tight leash. Nor was Arlong just a brutish, greed-filled pirate. The two had come to some sort of a relationship. "How exciting, Aria."
Aria nodded and stuffed her face with seafood, in too good of a mood now to let Farren bring her down.
"Oh, Farren-chan! If you live with Aria-chan, that means you'll get to use the DenDen Mushi, too!" Hachi beamed at her.
Farren tilted her head. She wasn't sure what to make of the octopus fishman at all. He certainly was being friendly. But why? "I suppose that's correct, yes. But I have no need of a short-range DenDen Mushi. I'm only going to be your ally."
"Arlong-san likes us to be friends with our allies, nyuu!" Hachi continued beaming. "So we might chat with you, if that's okay."
Farren was a bit reckless. She knew that she was arrogant, too. Yet she wanted to test Hachi, even though she was still in enemy territory. Was Hachi really saying he wanted to be friends with her? After she tried to hurt him? Farren frowned. She doubted it. "You know I was your enemy not more than a day ago, correct?"
"Nyuu, that's true…" Hachi looked contemplative. The rest of the table's hackles rose at the reminder. The air was tense. Farren found it a bit hard to breath. She forced herself to stay still and not reach for a bomb in her lab coat. Then Hachi was beaming again. "But that's all water under the bridge now! You're our ally!"
Farren blinked slowly. "You were my hostage. Surely they told you that."
"They did, yeah! Man, you really pissed off Chew with that." The mentioned fishman stabbed at a vegetable a bit harder than necessary and cracked his plate.
"Then why are you so blasé about all of this?"
"I'm fine now, right? I wasn't even awake for any of it. So why not forgive you, nyuu?"
It wasn't the worst answer. It made some sense, Farren supposed. Yet Farren was aware she could quickly negate any forgiveness the octopus had for her. She needed to test him more.
"You shouldn't forgive me because Grenouille is one of my allies, and Grenouille is the one who did that to you, correct?" Farren pointed at the bandages covering Hachi's torso. "If Arlong wants you to consider allies to be friends, that means Grenouille is my friend, doesn't it? Can you be friends with someone whose friend hurts you?"
Hachi frowned, trying to process that logic. The table was quiet as they each thought about what Farren had just said.
"Don't think too hard, Hachi." Aria spoke up. She laid her cheek on her open palm. "The answer is yes."
Surprise was written on everyone's face.
"Oh? Why do you say that, Aria?" Farren asked. She was annoyed by the fact Hachi didn't come to his own conclusion, but it was outweighed by how curious Farren was as to what Aria would say.
"We've already taken Grenouille as one of our allies, despite the fact that he's hurt our nakama." Aria said, her mouth a thin line. She looked up at Arlong, none of the glee in her eyes. "Though as I understand it, he paid severely for his ally's injuries."
Farren recalled Grenouille when she had last seen him. Chained down. Missing limbs. She hadn't cared, then, about his injuries. Perhaps that was careless of her.
Arlong grinned mirthlessly. "Yes, our perfumer paid dearly for his hateful actions toward us. He's on very thin ice. If he misbehaves any more, he might not be our friend any more."
The reactions of the two Aqua Atlus women were polar opposites. Farren shivered, suddenly realizing how dangerous Arlong was. Aria smiled softly, grateful that there was a limit to how much damage the shitty old man could do before Arlong was finished with him for good.
"Anyway, Hachi-nii, don't worry too much about our new friend Farren." Arlong said, gesturing towards Aria. "Our beloved scientist will keep her in line."
Aria scowled. "What? Why me? I'd really rather not."
Hachi bust out into laughter, and suddenly it felt like Farren could breath again.
The next few days were full of preparation. Farren only had a few requests for her house, and a quick blueprint was approved before Gajeel and Dresden went off to grab the materials. A few crewmates had gone to Aria's island and started laying down the foundation for Farren's house, eager to get a start on it.
Farren readily handed over a map to her island, a place in the west named Cave Island. It was severely unpopulated, mainly due to the fact that the island consisted of nothing but hard rock and caves that lead into the island's underbelly. There was little soil above ground for crops and the caves were full of angry graniteworms that liked eating wood and rock.
It was not a welcoming place.
Arlong and Chew were researching their next target. They had quite a few choices to pick from. Chew was leaning towards the north, away from the Grand Line and subsequently away from any strong marines that might visit Loguetown. Arlong was leaning towards the west, having heard of an island that specialized in mining rubies but was protected by a Marine base.
Now that Farren was available to shed light on Observation, Aria could temporarily turn her attentions to other projects. Aria was focused on studying as many of the books from Cinnabar as possible. There were many crafts made on Cinnabar that could provide useful upgrades for her sound gauntlet. It would also help that the materials would come at a professional grade and for relatively cheap. All Aria had to do was figure out which ideas would prove the most beneficial.
Observation training happened daily, with Aria making the most progress. Arlong was often in a foul mood afterward, as he still wasn't able to grasp the concept of connecting with his environment. Kuroobi and Kakuzu both made fair progress on their own, outside of training. Chew's progress was slow but steady. Hachi was a gamble, with some days having great success while other days were dismal.
Nami was getting antsy to come back to the mainland. After a few days of pestering, she was able to get Touya to take her to Arlong Park for the night. Arlong was miffed that Nami had left until she mentioned that she had nearly ran out of ink. Nami snuck off into town to stay the night with her sister, and then picked up fresh ink.
Everything was going according to plan.
Until Farren met Nami.
"Who's this...small, dirty child?" Farren motioned towards Nami, who had just come through the gates.
Arlong opted to ignore Farren in favor of greeting Nami. "Welcome back, Nami-chan! How was Cocoyashi?"
Nami frowned. Arlong knew how it was. The villagers still hated her. But Nami shoved those thoughts away and focused on the things that would make Arlong happy. "It was alright. I got more ink for my maps! Lots and lots of ink."
Arlong nodded, smiling slightly. "Good, good. You won't run out again anytime soon, will you?"
"Nope! I should be fine for at least three or four weeks." Nami turned to the strange woman in a lab coat. She looked weird. Her hair was two colors! It looked like she was suddenly turning old. "Who's this...strange old lady?"
It took all of Arlong's restraint to not groan. He had thought Aria and Nami getting along was difficult. These two were already insulting each other, and they hadn't even spoken together yet. Humans were insufferable. A real pain in the ass. Why had he decided on letting another stick around?
At least Farren hadn't pulled a scalpel on the kid yet. Arlong counted his blessings.
"Nami-chan, be polite. This is a new ally of ours. She's going to be living on Aria-chan's island. Her name is Farren."
"Hello." Farren gave a small, half-hearted wave. "As the good Captain said, my name is Farren Laurels. And you're Nami?"
Nami nodded. "Yeah." She wasn't excited that this person was an ally of Arlong's. Even though Farren looked weird, Nami still had a childish hope that they might be a hero or a marine in disguise. But she was forced to quickly shake those hopes away. No one would be coming to save her, Nami reminded herself. Nami had to save herself.
"I wasn't aware that you had children, Captain." Farren said, peering down at the child. She had kind of hoped that Arlong was interested in Aria, given that Aria was so fixated on the captain. She had sworn she hadn't seen another human around...Perhaps the mother had died?
It took Nami and Arlong a moment to realize what Farren said.
"I'm not his child," said Nami with vehement disgust.
"She's my cartographer," Arlong snapped, similarly disgusted.
Faren's nose wrinkled. "So you force children into your crew?"
"Yes," Arlong and Nami said in unison.
"I suddenly have a much lower opinion of you." Farren said, crossing her arms. Perhaps she had been wrong about Aria's attraction to Arlong.
Arlong scowled but did nothing but cross his arms.
"When's Farren-san coming to the island?" Nami asked, not caring about Arlong's pride in the slightest.
Arlong scoffed. "I was going to wait until her residence was finished, but I'm tempted to ship her there now."
"Oh, so that's why those guys have been doing weird stuff." Nami said, things suddenly clicking into place. "She doesn't want to live with Aria-chan?"
"It's the other way around, kid. Aria-chan doesn't want to live with her." Arlong smirked.
"Oh!" Nami nodded. "That makes more sense."
Farren balked. "What a rude child."
"I think that was more of a statement on Aria-chan's character than yours." Arlong said, but his smirk didn't waver.
Nami shrugged. "It could go either way, honestly."
Farren looked genuinely offended. Arlong couldn't stop himself from throwing his head back and cackling.
Arlong stepped into his bedroom softly. Aria hadn't noticed him yet, her full concentration set towards deciding what to pack.
If Arlong was honest with himself, he didn't want her to pack anything.
He couldn't be honest.
So instead he leaned against the doorframe and watched.
Kakuzu had given Aria the all-clear to go home yesterday, but she had worn herself out between researching and practicing Observation. Arlong had to pick her up off the floor and put her in bed. It had been then that Arlong realized he wasn't ready for Aria to leave.
But she was going to, and Arlong wasn't going to do a damn thing about it.
He pulled his hat down over his eyes, trying to restrain his foolish self-frustration.
Aria noticed him then. "Arlong? When did you get here? What's wrong?" Her rapid-fire questions were blunt, almost barked out.
"Just now." Arlong sighed. Damn, she was observant.
Aria approached him, a gentle frown on her face. "What's wrong?" she repeated.
Arlong's lips quirked upward. "You know, usually someone asks that sweeter than you do."
That made Aria pause. "What's wrong?" she tried again, her voice much softer and tender.
Caught off guard, Arlong's mouth fell open. He hadn't expected her to actually listen to his teasing! Then again, Aria had been acting strangely the last few days.
"It's nothing!" Arlong lied. "I'm fine, just tired."
Aria raised a brow, doubtful. "The mighty Arlong? Tired?"
She was teasing him. Teasing him. But she was still using that damn tender voice, instead of her usual blunt and sarcastic one. It made his stomach flip.
"Quiet, you. Hurry up and pack so I can take a nap." Arlong grumbled. Aria pouted. "Your stuff is all over the bed."
"Yes, yes. I'll get to that in a moment." Aria waved off, dropping her facade. "While you're here, I might as well give you this back."
"Give me what back?" Arlong frowned. He didn't remember giving Aria anything. He watched as she dug through her pockets and retrieved a small folded handkerchief. Aria handed it over, her nose wrinkling in disgust as she touched the handkerchief.
Arlong opened it and frowned.
Inside was the sea-stone ring.
"What's the meaning of this?" Arlong asked, though it came out as a snap.
Aria's brows knit together and her gaze focused on the floor as she crossed her arms. "You know what the meaning is." Aria snapped back. "We came across a devil fruit user on Cinnabar."
So that's what this was about. Grenouille.
Arlong considered the ring. It would've helped back then. Made fighting that shitty old man a bit easier.
"If you'd kept it, perhaps things would have turned out different." Aria murmured, her eyes trained on the ring.
They would have. Arlong was sure of it. But not for the better. The ring made Aria wary. Distrustful. He never missed how Aria shied away from his touch, the sapping effect weakening her with even the slightest featherlight glance.
Since Arlong gave Aria the ring, she had been so much more relaxed around him. She let down her guard. She trusted him. It was a subtle little thing, but Arlong had a keen eye for small details.
Arlong considered the ring carefully. The small band was like poison to Aria.
"I won't need it." Arlong said. Aria frowned in confusion, which only grew when Arlong wrapped the ring up and held it out for her to take.
"I'm not sure I understand." Aria said, but she took it from him anyways. She looked at the handkerchief with a mystified expression.
"I'll take it back when we go on raids." Arlong said, shoving his hands into his pockets and smirking. "But I don't need it around you, do I?"
"Of course not."
"Good. You said relying on cheap tools won't help me in the long run, after all."
Aria looked up at Arlong with a smile so bright it made his chest hurt.
"That's right. You need to learn haki." Aria chirped. "Let me finish packing so you can take a nap."
"Just clean off the bed." Arlong said, rolling his eyes. He hadn't been really wanting a nap, but now it sounded nice.
Maybe he could get Aria to take a nap, too.
Kuroobi heard the dojo's doors open, but he didn't bother to turn to see who it was. His katas demanded his absolute attention, and he wouldn't waver for a second. Whoever had entered was patient enough to wait for him to finish.
Kuroobi was surprised when he saw that it was Aria. She stood with her arms crossed and her stance wide, a thoughtful scowl on her face. Kuroobi nearly scoffed, with how her posture resembled Arlong's whenever he had to wait for Kuroobi to finish.
"Aria-san, what do you need?" Kuroobi asked, deciding to cut to the chase. While their relationship hadn't necessary improved dramatically during Cinnabar, they were making small strides towards working together properly. Kuroobi found it was better to be straightforward with the hermit and he appreciated her candid answers.
The hermit in question narrowed her eyes and chewed at the inside of her cheek, as if she was bracing herself for something. Kuroobi tilted his head, finding it strange.
"Cinnabar made me realize a few things." Aria began, speaking slowly. "Namely, I don't want to see Hachi hurt."
Realization dawned on Kuroobi. The hermit had fell victim to Hachi's friendliness, just as they all had. Kuroobi had heard that Hachi had been the one to make Aria truly interested in becoming a crewmate, but he had figured that would be the extent of Hachi's involvement. The hermit was callous and cruel to those she didn't find worth her time, and her stand-offish nature warred with Hachi's desire to be friends with literally anything that breathed.
"But I am weak." Kuroobi blinked owlishly at the blunt self-appraisal. Aria tightly clenched her arms as she spoke, glaring at the floor. "My homeland didn't care for fighting of any sort, even if it meant protecting a friend. Self-preservation was considered more important. As a result, I can't protect anyone."
Kuroobi agreed with that sentiment. Aria was wholly unsuited to protecting anyone but herself with her self-reliant nature.
Aria grit her teeth, her posture still tense as she kneeled. This felt familiar to him. Once again, Kuroobi was struck by the difference in cultures. Fishmen bowed at the knees, bowing all the way to the floor. Nami had bowed at the waist. Aria bowed with one knee touching the ground, her forearm coming to rest on her raised leg while her head tilted downward.
"I know you've already denied Arlong, but I am personally asking for you to train me. If only because I don't want to see someone I care about hurt again." Aria's words were tinged with conviction, and rang full of regret.
Will wonders never cease? Kuroobi couldn't help but muse. Even though it pained Aria to do this, she was willing to sacrifice her pride to ask for his tutelage. Hachi truly was a miracle worker, wasn't he?
"Will you please train me?" Aria asked, her voice cutting through the silence of the room like a knife.
Kuroobi wanted to tell her no. She was a human, an outsider. She was a wildcard with dangerous abilities. She was only on the crew as one of Arlong's whims.
But her conviction was strong, and Kuroobi knew Aria wouldn't kneel to just anyone. She meant what she was saying. Truly, she wished to protect those she deemed nakama.
Kuroobi was almost impressed.
"Fine." Kuroobi allowed, crossing his arms. Aria's head shot up, and she stared at him with wide-eyes like she hadn't expected him to agree. "But I won't be as easy-going as Arlong or Farren. You'll be here every Thursday at 7pm on the dot, or else I won't bother training you anymore."
Aria nodded, and she rose. "Thank you, Kuroobi."
Kuroobi offered her a half-smile. "I'd tell you to address me as 'sensei,' but I have a feeling that would be crossing a line." He said dryly.
Aria scoffed, the corners of her lips forming a smirk. "You've got that right. Thank you, again. I will see you on Thursday." She nodded in parting, and left quietly.
Left to himself, Kuroobi sighed. He hoped he wouldn't regret this.
At least Arlong would be happy.
Kuroobi began his katas again.