*Heads up as I have read some comments and pondered mine future writings.
So, as many might have guessed, a good number of the crew shalt be female. But worry not mine readers! For most shalt not suffer the dread hunger for the will of D(eez ghostly nuts)!
Honestly I had 2-3 at most being interested in and potentially together with my main man, and I'm still debating one for gender identity reasons and another for personality reasons. (No Hancock or similar situations. Any lover would be from the crew.
My reasons for the number gender ratio on the ship being as it was planned to be is mostly due to the canon characters I want and can actually see Adam recruiting just kind of happen to be female because the fairer gender in One Piece tends to be more nuanced emotions and situations where as most males of recruitable potential and strength would be incredibly difficult to sway to join Adam's crew when he could recruit them.
So... to balance the scales somewhat, I shall be making the executive decision to change 23's gender to male in my prior chapter.
Not really difficult since I only mentioned the gender at the end, with the rest staying the same.
Thank you for your time and support!*
Haunt 11.5: Apprenticeship of Ghostlings
-Paradise Island, 7th Division Landing Zone
"How could you not leave me hee anything to doooo~?" Rakuyo complained in his 'style' towards Marco as his division got to work taking care of the slaves freed in this raid and enemies captured.
Some had bounties and would be shipped through a few intermediary shops for a fee to claim them. A fleet such as them certainly wouldn't turn away 'free money' from the world government. The stronger slaves would be offered a chance to join in one of the divisions, most likely the 3rd, 5th or those more combat focused Divisions since the only ones really up to par were the gladiators.
As for the rest, well if they were from Whitebeard turf then no problem, they would help them get home if it still existed or settle somewhere new, and if they didn't then let them work while they earn enough Beli to pay for passage back to their homes.
The 7th was the best at handling situations like this because they were a more supportive division by nature, being capable of filling most roles but specializing in helping their fellow crew members or acting as positive First points of contact alongside the 15th or the 1st when Pops wanted to make a good showing. Their commander was even the best musician and showman in the Whitebeard Fleet, with the division officers mostly making up its commander's 'band'.
And that was why Morgiana had actually been aboard this Division lately, on the orders of Whitebeard after he decided on where the girls his grandson had brought would go. The old man would personally see to Adam because the teen was just too monstrous for any Division to handle and actually nurture fully, but the girls needed to really find their own roles as they both had diverging interests, specialties and talents, causing him to send them to separate groups to grow under until he received notice from their respective Commanders about their progress being satisfactory.
For Morgiana, she actually started under Speed Jiru's 14th Division due to her leg-based combat style being very receptive to the type of training her could offer, followed up with a tour in the 12th under Haruto for further specialized training before coming to the 7th for the last year and a half.
The tweenage redhead being in the process of growing up, having done a good deal of maturing since being somewhat separated from Harribel and Adam most of time. She was still an upbeat and infectiously energetic girl, but one could see that the many things she had witnessed during her tours and the battles she faced had caused changed in the way she expressed herself in certain situations like now.
Not caring at all about their states, Morgiana was busy taking care of the younger slaves by playing with them or dancing/singing. It was her way of making them forget about the horrors and fear they experienced, her kindness and a way to kept them out of the way of the adults as they organized everything.
This was the main reason she actually stayed with the 7th for longer than the other two divisions: Morgiana was a kind soul and wished to help and delight others. It was the main reason she discovered for why she desires strength, to help others and be able to do so while never being on the helpless side like she had been before. And while the 7th was certainly not the strongest, they offered her the most in terms of experience and knowledge pertaining to helping, supporting and entertaining others.
And right now, dressed in a light red Alabastan style top and pants combo as she elegantly danced a few feet above the ground while managing to form delicate bouts of flames and ignite specific emotions in those who witnessed her show.
Seeing this, Adam was actually really impressed.
The display of mastery over Geppo was something else and the artistry on display through her smooth movements as she incorporated her martial arts and spirit ignition were wondrous to behold. That was evident enough by the enraptured children, starry eyed girls and blushing boys as they lost themselves in her bodily story telling.
Delicate feet taping the air as the golden bangles around her ankles jingled rhythmically alongside those on her hips, legs flourishing in movements so smooth one almost couldn't notice the beginning of them, and while she wasn't old enough to develop any kind of significant hips or bust, her flexibility made up for it in swaying motions and a perfectly sculpted midriff which attracted eyes as it shook while her hands and hair seemed to shift with the wind and flames.
"She really is something." Adam commented with a fond smile as he witnessed the scene. "Turning a 'superhuman' martial art move and her spirit ignition into a legitimate art form."
"Those CP bastards would turn over in their graves if they saw their precious martial arts being used like this. Marines using them is already something they don't like because it allows others to copy them too much, so such a young pirate doing it would really piss them off." Marco agreed after finally calming down Rakuyo.
"Ooh~f course! She is our prized back up dancer after all!" Rakuyo exclaimed proudly as he grinned wildly.
He tended to like for extravagant and borderline Rock vibes, so being loud was par for the course as he also had a habit of singing or inputting musical notes while he talked. Adam could only say that the man was very passionate about his music and being a Whitebeard Pirate.
But the fact that he might actually be the one who helped her learn how to be that... artful with her skills does speak highly to his capabilities as the Division Commander. Maybe he can't help her with her combat style, but he certainly helped her hone the skills which supported it.
"Well, for today she's the main show to those kids." Adam softly smiled.
-Cream Fall Island, New World, 8 days later
Currently multiple Divisions of the Whitebeard Pirates and Officers of the Big Mom Pirates alongside their troops were clashing on the Island.
Due to the food centric nature of the island, Big Mom was determined to obtain it for her growing Totto Land, wanting it for her many sweet based areas due to it being said to be the source for the best cream in the New World. The only issue was that it was a bit in Whitebeard territory, so it set off a conflict when Big Mom's scouting parties were discovered.
Currently, the Whitebeard Pirates had the 3rd, 4th and 5th divisions handling matters because the infamous Charlotte Katekuri was leading the conquering force alongside his brothers Oven and Perospero, having also brought a decent number of their siblings for experience such as Amande, Hachée, Effilée, Mondée and Smoothie.
It had been deemed a perfect opportunity for the trio of sisters, two of which were sword users, to face off against the 5th Division due to their specialization in the field, plus Smoothie had shown greater potential than most others and needed experience with her new Devil Fruit. And with Katekuri there, well the Big Mom pirates were feeling very confident in themselves.
Not that the Whitebeard crew was any less certain of victory since Diamond Jozu and Flower Sword Vista were going to be leading the counter attack with Thatch as support, but Katekuri had been acknowledged as one of the monsters under the big three in the New World, someone akin to what Marco was for them.
This could be seen by the fact that both Vista and Jozu had to team up to push the man back, leaving Thatch to handle Oven in a stalemate as the man could handle his foe's heat based powers very well, but that unfortunately left Perospero free to lead the rest of the Big Mom Soldiers in their offensive.
Klang!*
"Jozu!" Vistas yelled out as he went in to strike after seeing his comrade being blown away and possibly injured.
Slashing with petals surrounding him, Vistas was like a whirlwind made of blades as they served to be more than simple decorations. Each petal was a representation of his spirit as a swordsman, capable of cutting foes if they weren't careful.
Unfortunately for him though, the reason why Katekuri was such a feared pirate was due to his immense skill in Observation Haki alongside his control over his Mochi-Mochi Fruit. He could see every attack and then manipulate his malleable body to evade them while preparing pinpoint strikes of power befitting a top tier commander of such a powerful crew. That was why Vistas was slashing out so furiously, because the man had gotten dangerously close to piercing Jozu in an unprotected region of his body and had only been reassured by the sound of the collision and the fact that his comrade had been blown away instead of pierced by the younger man's trident.
Vistas just needed to pressure Katekuri long enough for Jozu to return.
And to his credit, even as strong as Katekuri was, he did need to fully focus on a swordsman of Vistas' caliber. One of the top sword wielders in the world wasn't to be looked down on, especially when he was coming at you seriously.
He might look enraged, but Vistas was a veteran Division Commander and knew how to internally keep his cool to maintain his Observation Haki at all times. He was just a passionate man.
Luckily, his rush had fulfilled its intended effect and Jozu had rushed back like a diamond cannonball, mowing down anyone in his path as the two Commanders set up a pincer attack.
""Blooming X/Diamond Lariat!!"" The two cried out in unison, forcing Katakuri to prioritize Vistas' attack due to the swords being naturally more dangerous while blunt damage would be mitigated with his fruit and Haki.
As a result, one hand was used to thrust his reinforced trident strike at the crossing blades while the other was positioned in a blocking position as he hopped backwards slightly, allowing himself to be blasted away by the combination attack. The fact that he managed to handle it so well was impressive to say the least, especially since he got away with only with major bruising on his arm instead of a break and a slightly numb arm with chips on his trident.
"What an annoying brat that hag brought into this world." Grunted Jozu as he knew their attack hadn't been as effective as they had desired.
"Me thinks we should have brought our own annoying fighters." Vistas jokingly responded with a smile still plastered on his mustached face. "We do have two of them now."
"Ha! You know Pops wouldn't let the kid out to play here! Plus they're busy teaching some punks a lesson." Barked the diamond man. "But at least we've got one of the little monsters helping out."
Looking over, the two witnessed an interesting sight as many women were currently clashing, interestingly all being hybrids as the now 14 year old Harribel faced off against the older trio of snakeneck swordswomen to an actual stalemate.
The young fish-woman/Kuja hybrid was basically half their age and she still was managing to push them back using her dominating physical aspects combined with her skills.
"Salahaha! She is my prized pupil after all!" Vistas boasted while twirling his mustache.
"You mean yours, Fossa's and Haruta's pupil right?" Jozu asked with a teasing grin as he knew full well how competitive the major sword users in the crew could get, especially when Pops sent one of the two monster girls to them for training.
Everyone understood why Pops was taking care of his 'grandson' personally after witnessing their 'spars' and the training most would think as hellish torture the teen went through, so they focused on the two other talented youngsters they had access to, some even gambling on who they'd learn under next and who they'd like the most.
The little redhead was a crowd favorite by far, being requested by many just so they could have the bright little flower with them to freshen their days instead of only brutish men and women who'd sooner cut their nuts off to make a point than act gently. Unfortunately for them all, Rakuyo had somehow really clicked with her, granting the loud mouth immense bragging rights in the fleet.
He received many envious glares.
Harribel on the other hand was a more niche 'commodity'.
Without a doubt, she was going to be a beauty. Her supple tanned olive skin, silky blond hair framing her maturing looks as her sharp but calm demeanor made her seem like an artful sheath hiding a deadly blade, and her rapidly blossoming body certainly wasn't anything to scoff at even at 14. It's just that she was a swordswoman through and through, being focused and driven, which comes off as somewhat uncaring compared to the more approachable Morgiana.
This just meant that she was treasured differently though.
Over the last two years with the Whitebeard Pirates, Harribel has shown unwavering determination in her pursuit of the blade and immense talent which were allowing her absorb knowledge on swordsmanship at ridiculous speeds.
Whitebeard had actually started her off in the 5th division under Vistas as the place with the most Sword users in general, before she had been sent to Fossa's 15th to train against a swordsman who specialized in her elemental opposite and then Haruta's 12th to work more on her speed and agility before returning to Vistas. It did cause him to brag quite a bit since he was getting her for a second time, especially since other Sword Wielding division commanders gnashed their teeth at him for it, but it was all in good nature.
The fact that the girl did have a rather adorable soft side hidden under her cool and collected self was also a reason why most Sword focused Commanders and Divisions did find her a different kind of breath of fresh air compared to the upbeat Morgiana. After all, a beautifully maturing teenager dedicated to the sword also being secretly caring and capable of cooking? It made many in the crew cry tears of joy and hope that their hypothetical future daughters/daughter-in-laws could be as good as her.
Although their tear filled reactions when she cooked for them did confuse her.
As for Harribel herself, well one could see the clear progress she had made during her time amongst the Whitebeard Pirates, having found Adam's decision to apprentice under them to have been a wonderful one.
Being able to dedicate herself to the sword while surrounded by other experienced fighters. Having a steady stream of battles and spars. Fighting against sword wielding Division Commanders instead of needing to only fight Adam as she branched out in her own way.
It was great!
And her progress could clearly be felt while she fought three out of the quadruplets born of Big Mom mating with a snakeneck tribesman. These three were all recognized as being some of the stronger Big Mom children and had impeccable teamwork from being real sisters who had likely trained and fought together countless times.
Although she did have to lure them near the coast to be able to do so, requiring actual water instead of the cream rivers found on this island to suppress them properly. She was showcasing impressive mastery of water as her entire body was being used to guide it while she struck, slashes of incredibly pressurized water shooting out in tandem with her own body acting as a 'blade', utilizing her own mutation of Rankyaku which far surpassed the cutting power of the original.
This was possible because, like Morgiana's artful usage of Geppo and her spirit ignition, Harribel pushed the martial skill beyond its basic state to achieve the ability to use it in combination with water to act as if she wielded multiple blades. Actually being somewhat inspired by Adam's 'Deep Sea Style: Same no Kage'. Technically, she could send out sword slashes with almost any aspect of her body as well, but it hadn't been honed to practical levels yet.
Her incredible progress in terms Haki being another reason why she could handle the trio, because, very similarly to their older brother, Katekuri, Harribel was a calm fighter by nature. She was used to keeping her cool and getting colder as a fight went on, aiming for the perfect moments to bringing down her enemies in one swift motion, like a true blade, thus her Observation Haki blossomed as she fought more and more alongside the Whitebeard Pirates while her Armament was constantly tested during her clashes against the commanders she was usually under.
On top of that, her 'Breath' had been constantly developed into an ability she has almost managed to turn into a constant buff, causing her physical abilities to skyrocket when in full use. She managed to learn how to control her body to the point that it allowed her to hasten her recovery, bolster her training gains, compress her muscles to give her more explosive power and durability while still being very flexible, even increasing her affinity with water by following specific biological rhythms.
Even the man who taught them, Grandmaster Anguin, would be shocked at what she was developing. And he was the most numb to the little monster trio.
As a result of all of her efforts, Harribel had become someone only lower slightly than her Division Commander in terms of ability, hence why she could match the trio before her near the sea.
Unfortunately, the rest of the crew was not doing nearly as well as she was.
While Harribel was a relatively unknown, and the presence of the 4th Division's Marshall Teach actually managed to somewhat hold back the last snakeman hybrid sister and the teenage Charlotte Smoothie, Perospero was wrecking havoc in the troops as Big Mom's eldest was simply too strong for anyone else to handle when Jozu and Vistas were on complete lockdown by Katekuri.
That is why, to the heavy reluctance of the Whitebeard Pirates, they had to fall back after a week of fighting and lose the Island to the Big Mom Pirates. The opponent simply invested more than they were prepared to for an Island they personally didn't see much value in, but was prized by the other party.
But Harribel was still rather pleased to have been able to take on three rather strong swordswomen regardless.
-Sphinx Island, 2 months after the Raid of Paradise Island
While Morgiana and Harribel continued their apprenticeships around various Divisions, for the last two months Adam had been busy educating Logan.
And yes, Logan, because Adam wasn't going to call him 23 and after giving the young boy a haircut, it ended up with him having a set of horn-like hair, so the name was set.
It was... rough.
Logan was almost completely a wild child due to his upbringing and did not know how to speak, much having received any kind of education beyond 'kill or no food.'
The first time he woke up on the 7th's ship, he tried to jump overboard to escape, which didn't end well since the kid had a devil fruit. He had never seen, or remembered having seen, the ocean before, having also obviously never learnt about the weaknesses of Devil Fruits outside of the Sea Stone chains Adam had found in the boy's cell.
Those would join his exercising equipment to allow him to grow accustomed to them. Currently Logan had been trained to be obedient with them on and a crazed beasts without them, so they would stay hidden for now.
There were also a few triggers ingrained into him like whips, some words like 'kill, maim, slaughter, etc.' and the scent of blood sometimes almost sent him into frenzies, but gradual desensitization was making some progress.
But even after being rescued, Logan kept trying to either find a way out or fight anyone who got close. Well, except for Morgiana who seems to basically turn him into a tame puppy as well as Adam whom he somewhat fears after being beaten down repeatedly.
Marco just laughed at how the wild child seemed to be capable of giving everyone else the runaround, especially when the kid was running around, naked or otherwise, anytime the word 'bath' was mentioned.
Thankfully, Adam wasn't an idiot.
He picked his Devil Fruit power very carefully and knew the potential its powers held, likely being the most versatile fruit out there alongside the Op-Op Fruit. And one of his powers was the ability to Overshadow others and control them.
It was a bit tricky to get it work with Logan because of his animalistic alpha mindset and Conquerors Haki, but Adam was much stronger in terms of Haki and Spirit than the wild child, allowing him to pull it off.
The reason he resorted to Overshadowing Logan was because it was the quickest way to teach him without taking years to socially rehabilitate and then educate him in a world where that would be incredibly difficult since psychology, or pretty much any other sciences beside medical and technological, wasn't exactly developed and the education system was non-existent. So Adam decided to use the side-effects of Overshadowing, which involve the overshadowed actually remembering the thoughts they had while controlled, allowing Logan to slowly come to understand languages and writing, social cues and body language outside of combat and 'life or death' scenarios. Even going so far as to invade the boy's dreams to continue his rehabilitation.
And it worked, even if Logan's first words were 'Food' and 'More'.
It was progress as he was getting used to being in a relatively safe and nurturing environment without the threat of daily beatings outside of when he was feeling restless and needed an outlet for his energy, resulting in Adam 'playing' with him in the guise of combat training. He still growled often and walked on four 'legs' a lot, but he was getting used to the feeling of being in a 'pack'.
Lots to work on, but Adam was happy to see that Logan was slowly gaining control of his instincts and senses.
Author Notes:
Basically just a bit on what Morgiana and Harribel have been up to while Adam spends his days getting beaten by Whitebeard.
I wanted to show Morgiana being something more than just a female Sanji in terms of fighting style, I decided to have her mix in some elements of Vivi, yes... Okama-Kenpo since it is a style which combined ballet with Karate, and Hancock's way of fighting on top of Sanji's.
But I am moving her away from being a combat or strength nut, because unlike Adam who desires strength to be 'unchained' and Harribel who pursues the sword to protect those she cares for, Morgiana is more caring by nature and wants to be able to support others and make them happy, with strength being lower on her lists of priorities even if she still trains a lot to not be burden on either of those she will sail with.
Harribel on the other hand has been focusing intensely on gaining more experience and shaping her swordsmanship under the masters and experts amongst the Whitebeards.
Her going up against 3/4 of the Snakeneck hybrid sisters was more a show of growth and potential compared to them, with another comparison being made to Katekuri because her reasons for gaining strength are similar and so is her general stoicism and dedication to protecting those she cares for.
Pretty obvious where my general train of thought goes there.
As for Logan... well timeskips are wonderful.
And I really think using Overshadowing and dream invading would be rather smart ways to use Danny Phantom's powers for more than fucking with people or trying to get out of trouble. They're both very versatile abilities, only limited by the fact that Adam has be awake later than and has to constantly suppress Logan's will to get him to learn how to be 'human'.
But worry not, we shall have a wonderfully gruff quasi immortal. He just won't be Canadian.
Sorry if it's very wordy and with little direct action or progress, but I'm trying to power through this so we can get to Adam's own adventure.
Hope you still enjoyed and aren't too upset with the current power levels.
Cause in just 2-3 years, the core Strawhats went from East Blue weaklings to New World Monsters mostly through progressively tougher fights and 2 years of training under some strong or knowledgeable people, so three little monsters who trained at extreme levels under strong veterans and masters while fighting pirates and slavers since youth and using some meta knowledge really shouldn't be underestimated.
Currently (If this Helps as these are guesstimates):
-Adam (14): Mid Level Yonko Commander in terms of Strength (Marco be Top Tier) (About to get Power Jump thanks to Ryuo)
-Harribel (14): High-level Yonko Division Commander/Officer (Near Top-Level) (Vistas and Jozu be low to mid-level Yonko Commanders)
-Morgiana (12): Low-level Division Commander/Officer (close to mid)
-Logan (11): Mid-Level Second-Rate Officer (Maybe Headliners)
