As much as Alexander wanted to admit that he was good, truth was that he was being a bit more wasteful than he wanted to take credit of.
The water was easily rationed and kept him going, but the fruits was consumed a bit faster and the parts he didn't eat were tossed over the side, he staring up to the sky, arm over his face as the boat drifted with the wind, he checking often the direction and adjusted if it seemed he was going elsewhere with the wind. By the next hour or so, he started to think of the plan to go with.
If he set up at the south end, that could interfere with Kuro's plan, but if he hit the north shore, he would be spotted by the Strawhats and Usopp and, considering... he glanced to the sail and hummed as it was just a plain white before focusing his thoughts again on the plan. If he hit the north shore he could play it off, but how many have mechanical right arms in the East Blue, the answer is none, but him and he just taunted the crew with the Death's Ward title, so he was better off just rounding the island and landing on the south side so that he could avoid the issue, also he could add another factor into Kuro's 'three-year plan' that was unexpected and give the cat a ocean bath for being bad.
He nodded with a hum and adjusted in seeing the island and sailing to the north shore first before adjusting to get to the south shore and, sensing no one was actually around to spot him, he ran the boat to ground and bundled up the last of the water with the sailcloth and slung it onto his left shoulder to carry before he headed up and walked the trail toward the village before the sound of a mob reached his ear and groaned, likely timing it to when the trio got to Syrup themselves before he continued on, ignoring the townsfolk to look for some place to just rest and plan before getting a pan to the head, the sounds freezing before Alexander stopped and turned to a scowling woman with a frying pan as she ranted.
"I don't know who you are or if you are part of Usopp's stupid pranks, but I am more than glad..." Alexander wasted no time in throwing a punch into the pan, the metal denting to inches of the woman's face as she paled with everyone else before Alexander spoke, his metal arm keeping the bundle up.
"I'm sorry... but did you NOT just hit me with a frying pan, thinking I was a part of some kid's game here, I think I am in my rights... to break you for such an attack on me..." Alexander spoke before he removed his hand and walked away. "But what is a villager compared to a pirate... just another body..." He smirked as the sounds of people dropping and gurgling reached his ears before he continued, taking it all in and getting a good view around before he located himself on the outskirts of Kaya's manor and resting for the moment as he took the time to think and develop his power.
As a side note, he took notice that there was a embodiment of his devil fruit within his mind or that he was talking to Death himself, but it helped that he could work with souls, even form weapons, armor, and even contracted beings to fight when he didn't want to fight with his fists, getting his focus on Tonfas, Escrima, and even a three-section staff done pat before he looked into another one of his aspects.
As it turned out, in NO small detail, he had the power to see the souls of those watching over anyone, but he could also manifest them into the living plane for a brief time before returning to being spirits watching over them, even could see the spirits of Klabautermann BEFORE their untimely end, but the same was the same, he was not a god to bring souls back to the living, he served as their guardian, their warden and, when the time comes, their reaper to send them on, but he was not complied to just take souls and reap them, he just had a lax job as a watcher.
He opened his eyes to hear a commotion and glance to the manor where it seemed that Kuro had insulted Usopp before he breathed and rolled in as the butler called out to send the pirates and kids away, leaving Luffy to find Usopp, but left him with a stubborn moron and a shy heiress as he snuck on in and waited as Kaya tried to get Kuro or 'Klahadore' to apologize to his refusal before he spoke. "A butler for three years, weak..." Both jumped as Alexander tilted his head to the pair with a smile. "Now, are we going to ignore the fact that a black cat insulted an Emperor's crewmate or move on the notice that the black cat is waiting for his pack to drop on in and raze the town?" Neither spoke in fear, actual fear in Kuro's eyes while Kaya's was surprised fear, as Alexander continued with slipping in. "Still a shame, that after all of the years you have known that longnose, Miss, you don't seem to agree with the idea that Yasopp is actually a VERY well-known crewmate of Red-Haired Shanks, an Emperor among pirates." Kuro regained his composure as he spoke.
"This is private property, I..."
"I'm sorry, but Black Cat, go to your corner and mewl for all I care." Alexander cut in before turning back to Kaya. "Besides, that young man holds to such hope of seeing his dad again that he may run through town yelling, but he has a good heart and better to be entertaining you with stories."
"Sir, I am..."
"Talk out of turn again, Black Cat, and get soaked." Alexander cut again as Kuro started to lose what control he had as Alex continued, keeping his distance in talking. "Now, given that you have been inquired for a ship, likely a caravel, do you or any of your employees have such a ship or should it be made beforehand?" Kuro cut in with stepping in front of Kaya and Alex as he spoke with a harsh tone.
"You are disrupting the Lady Kaya's recovery, now I demand...!" Anymore was lost when Alexander pulled out the jug and dumped it on Kuro's head, shaking it a bit to the boiling temper and light gasp of Kaya as Alexander spoke.
"I believe I am in the right, SIR, now do move along and get cleaned up, the 'adults' are talking and have little time for a mewling cat." Alexander voiced before Kuro stepped away with some resent and Kaya watched before she turned back as she spoke.
"Well, I don't know about any available ships, but I can check if you can just wait."
"That is fair, I can wait by the gate if you will allow it." She paused in thought before she nodded and he headed out and started to wait, keeping in mind that the events to come would happen regardless with some change from him, but in and out Usopp went in warning and going to get the pirates to help save the village and ready as night fell before he readied and moved out, Kaya having been accosted and leaving him without an answer before he reached the north shore where the Strawhat boats were resting and grinned as the ship known as the Bezan Black came to the shore before he extended his hands and Escrimas formed in them with him tossing one about with some words on his tongue, standing at the top of the hill while the pirates unloaded and spotted him.
"Hello, Black Cats, I'd hate to ruin a good time, but I am going to ask you return to your ship, sail the other way, and don't come back to Syrup Village if you want your spines intact." He beamed as he finished. "Are we clear?" The pirates charged and the smile fell as he spoke again, his new tone sending dread down their spines.
"Very well, let's test your nine lives..."
Nami hummed to herself in pondering, something was not right, Usopp thought that the pirates would be coming from the south shore, since that was where Luffy and long-nose spotted Kuro and his second talking at, but the sun was starting to rise and nothing was coming into view, Usopp looking all the more nervous as he wasn't sure if he was right or wrong right now, Luffy and Zoro waited before wandering about before that pondering came to a stop as Luffy called out. "Hey, Nami, check out this boat!"
"A boat...?" Nami huffed as she walked over as she spoke. "What's a boat doing here?"
"Beats me and Luffy." Zoro voiced as he crossed his arms at the sight. "Luffy just saw a random boat and thought it was cool or something." Nami and Usopp came over before Usopp blinked in pondering as he spoke.
"Hey, that's the same boat that was just laying here when Klahadore and that weird guy were talking, but why is it still here, I thought that weird guy came here on it."
"Ugh, give it up." Nami voiced as waved a hand in annoyance. "Whatever plan they were talking about, it's not going to happen here, so let's just..." Nami stopped short with eyes flying open before Luffy spoke.
"Hmm? Nami, what's..."
"We are the only sound here..." The three guys blinked before Nami continued. "I can't hear the wind, no cooking, no shouting, nothing, it is too quiet..." They looked at each other before Zoro got on edge as he fingered the Wado out of its sheathe a bit.
"You're right... why is it quiet...?" The land up the hill didn't make a sound, Nami even cupping her hand over her ears to hear anything, but nothing before she asked.
"Usopp, shouldn't we be hearing anything right now?"
"Uh... sure, I mean, it's a good three minutes from here to the north shore, but that doesn't explain the quiet."
"Luffy... Zoro... let's circle around to the north shore, not go through the forest, got it."
"Alright..." Zoro kept his mouth shut in tension as he sparked the trap, lighting it up, adding volume to the silence as it didn't rage with cracks or pops, it just surged in silence for some reason as the four rounded the shore through the sand line before getting half a distance to the north that sound popped.
"MY SPINE! DAMNIT, HE JUST BUSTED MY SPINE!"
"MY LEG! WHAT KIND OF MONSTER IS HE!?"
"DIE, YOU LITTLE... AHHH!" They picked up the pace and arrived to find what just happened, their boat safe, but the hill was trashed...
...Trashed as in it was littered with the bodies of broken pirates, some making it up the halfway point before something bent their backs or bodies in half, even the hypno guy was found, but both arms were bend in twists that getting him to do anything for a month was no go as their eyes roamed up to a duo of pirates fighting something, but the thin one braced and all watched as bone and arm was smashed inward before the chucky guy made for a belly flop, but his belly just slammed inward before sending him flying into the large ship there as they focused on the figure doing all of it, a young man in a casual sailor attire, handling a pair of sticks in hand that Nami recognized as Escrimas as both clashed and one drew back and they took in the face wielding them, the right arm metallic with an eerie glow to his left eye as Luffy shouted in surprise.
"YOU!" The figure paused to see the Strawhats and Usopp and grimaced as he rubbed his temple with tossing one of the sticks up and catching it.
"Great, another pair to join the fray..."
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE!?" The moment was ruined as the figure turned with a glare to Klahadore standing at the top with a snarl on his face as the figure spoke with turning fully to the butler.
"WHAT does it look like, Kuro? It looks to me that I just destroyed the Black Cat Pirates that you once captained, but abandoned with a weak spine." The figure hurled the sticks behind him and they disappeared into thin air as he spoke with hands in his pockets. "You are weak, you are a moron, you are no pirate worth a Beri, I am surprised that the Marines fell for that little trick with a doppelganger and Morgan, honestly..." The crew blinked as they didn't see this guy at Shells Town, how does he know about Captain Morgan, but whatever it was, it got under Kuro's skin as he pulled out a pair of long claws from the duffle bag he was carrying as he spoke.
"It would seem that you are interfering with my plan as well, a plan that has gone on for three years, who are you..."
The figure stared back at the hatred and spoke. "Do you ask a Reaper his business? No, you know when you see a Reaper, your death is near." Kuro snarled before he dashed.
"Die." It was fast, faster than the crew was expecting before the attack stopped, the blades on the claws stopped... by a sudden grab and turn.
"Pitiful, to think this is what Kuro of a Thousand Plans has become, a mere house cat of utterly worthless traits." Kuro's side went in as he was kicked into the cliff as the figure spoke to the dust. "A pirate doesn't get to run from the ocean, a Marine can for family or business, never a pirate as the sea is their mistress, it has their heart first before anything else." The resulting clash was nothing at all, just the figure dodging slash after slash, like he could tell, he could see, he could evade the slashes as Kuro spoke.
"I will not be a part of that bloody world anymore, I will not slip into such mediocre behaviors when I should be free to do as I please, even cut the loose ends of my past to ensure none will find me."
"That is weakness, not genius." The figure, Nami recalling himself being called 'the Death's Ward', spoke as he shifted and moved before evade an overextend and, to everyone's eyes, swung his leg to create a blade of air that cut into Kuro's shoulder like a blade as he growled with a turn.
"You want to toy, well then..." Kuro smirked as he spoke. "I will toy with you perfectly well, I am the only one who matters here in the first place..." He straightened before hanging forward and swaying, the remaining crewmates yelped at the coming attack and were afraid of death as Kuro shouted. "Out-of-the-Bag Attack!" With that, he vanished and the landscape was torn all, Zoro bracing with a strike as the crew yelled and screamed as the attack slashed through everything in its path before the Death's Ward huffed.
"Parlor trick and one easily remedied..." He spun down with a dodge and lashed out an metal arm in a clothesline to the snap of something and Kuro came tumbling out as he howled and Nami could see why, his legs had slammed into the arm at speeds faster than humanly possible and had actually stuck out of the back of the leg in bone as the figure stood up and turned with speaking, scaling the hill to the downed Kuro. "That attack uses your legs to move faster than the human eye can see, you don't even see who is the target as it is imperfect, flawed, it is without mercy or focus, just bloodlust." With a slow move, a foot slammed into Kuro's back as he howled in pain. "If you were a pirate, you would be learning how to use that technique to better yourself, but instead, you wasted away on an island for a fortune and I will be clear with you... I don't have mercy for such pitiful pirates, the ultimate sin on a ship, in a crew, is to kill one of your own without remorse, that is a betrayal and a death sentence..." Kuro somehow had the energy to quiet down and glare as he spoke.
"My plan... My plan... My plan will not fail... I will not be denied by some child pretending to be some envoy of death, I will dice you to pieces..."
"I don't think you understand..." The figure spoke as he lifted the foot and stomped on the ground, launching a fragment into the air as he spoke. "The only one here pretending... is you..." Without anything to stop it as the figure turned to leave, the fragment came soaring down and Nami gasped with the others as the fragment stuck through the left side of the chest as he spoke. "I am the Death's Ward, any Black Cat Pirate still able to move, grab your crew, give them treatment, and get off this island, that... is your final strike if you refuse..." There was a burst of movement as crewmates moved and took the members on abroad, the Strawhats watching it all, except Luffy as he stared at the figure before they shared a moment and the Death's Ward spoke.
"Keeper of Red-Hair's hat, son of war itself, let none stop you here and show them all that you are here to live." He glared to the side, like right at Luffy's side before he leapt back in a second and vanished, Zoro beaming as he spoke.
"Captain... if we find that guy again, I am getting a fight out of him."
"Sure..." Luffy answered, but Nami noticed that he was... staring at the spot where the guy was, Kuro still looking alive as he was coughing to being pinned as Nami sighed before speaking.
"Let's... let's just deal with these guys first." Nonetheless, there was little trouble to getting the Black Cats off the island and keeping Nami's treasure secure for her own sake...
Alexander breathed as he came to rest on a nice bed, going through the list of his powers before he figured out where the heck he landed as, when he used Shave, something pulsed under his skin and made his body go elsewhere before coming to rest. He had a few theories as to why that happened.
The first was that he landed on someone's bed in a blind jump and stopped there for the heck of it, but would still lead to someone busting down the door at the sound of it as he had dropped the 'Silent Zone' when he dealt Kuro out, an area-of-effect that prevents anyone beyond it from hearing what was happening inside, so that was a dud.
Second was that his mind was playing tricks and he was just laying on a pile of leaves somewhere in the forest and was believing that it was a bed, but he checked to the soft fluff of a bed and that crossed that out and it was dark, which was weird as it was becoming day otherwise.
The final one... his Devil Fruit, the other side being 'Reaper', had moved his body in the burst to the one place where he would be encountering the Strawhats again, so it stood to reason that he was near something or on a ship, something he took into account when he engaged his sight and took in the appearance of a sleeping young girl in a raincoat, a wooden mallet on a leather belt, against the mast outside and he peered back up in the dark before he thought to himself with sweat running down his face.
'Fudge...' With that in mind, he focused on his other half, his eyes taking in a surrounding of water and looked down to his reflection, it mirroring him except its face being hidden under a bony mask as he spoke.
"What did you do...?"
"Come now, you really believe-"
"Why am I on the Going Merry, Reaper..." The smile hidden slipped as the reflection voiced.
"Your fruit is called the Human-Human Fruit, Model: Death God, so it would be-"
"Reaper, answer the question..." Alexander didn't react to a hand bursting out of the waters and the reflection emerged with the hand as eerie black glared from behind the mask as Reaper snarled.
"Learn respect, runt."
"I know it, you haven't earned it..." The stare-off was real before Reaper released, taking the hand back as he stepped away, distance now set before Reaper spoke.
"When you escaped with the Shave, I tapped into your body and pulled you to a ship viable to be hosting a Klabautermann, it will gain more life as it goes on and I am interested in seeing how this crew will handle it, especially if they know that once they hit the Grand Line, there is no saving the goat." That should have raised Alexander's ire on how casual this form of him was, but he didn't raise to it as he spoke.
"So, you want the Merry's soul... to cripple the crew?"
"We are one, we hold in our grasps the power of life and death in our fingertips." The being smirked with rising its hand. "We could be gods in this world."
"We don't hold the power of the Revive-Revive Fruit, the dead must be left alone." Alexander voiced as he then FORCED this other side through the waters to its panic. "A god of death is nothing special to the other gods, those that have earned and contained that power in their souls and beings, not the Celestial Dragons who are born as nobility untouched, not a god whose ego is bloated to unhealthy levels, we are human with that power in our grasp, but we are still only mortal." He turned to leave as the other half shouted.
"You dare turn your back, you need me, I am the only one who can help you out and guide you through this world of madness, you NEED me!" Alexander paused to the being's smirk, but it dropped fast as he spoke to a door of light appearing to his turn.
"Then I guess I will be learning on the fly, I'll learn my Devil Fruit powers and use them for good, not to be consumed by death and carnage." The being struggled in silent rage as the waters took him back as Alexander walked through with the light returning him back. "I am not one of those who need babying, I just need someone who can actually guide me and not be blind to much more..."
The light flashed him back and he breathed on the bed before he explored his powers quietly to not alerted Merry, if she could be brought alive by his sounds, but could pull someone out to check it out. He had discovered that, through death of time or age, he could turn the air stale and decay anything he was touching, but he also started to... stretch and shoot off limbs to his surprise before he dove in and puzzled it out.
While he couldn't use said powers, it was interesting that his body could mimic those abilities for a short time, timing it to thirty minutes before draining him out of his reserves, so in a word, he did an 'impression' of Luffy and Buggy in powers, but he couldn't be sure if that extended out further as he leapt to the top of the Merry's cabins and fell asleep there, keeping himself silence in cause of trouble...