It's been about an hour since we left. We were currently heading towards Alabasta. Although my face didn't reflect it, I was nervous.
See, I'm joining a syndicate run by the second or third most evil Shichibukai (Depending on whether you consider Gecko Moria eviler or not; Doflamingo is evil without question). However, there is a reason why I'm trying to learn Haki quickly. Logias will be a fucking problem, whether I know their weakness or not, and Crocidile is probably the most annoying Logia to deal with.
'Maybe, just maybe, I'll help Luffy jump Crocodile, but that's only if shit goes south, and I get entangled in canon too much.' He'll I was even considering purchasing seastone cuffs and cashing in Crocodile's bounty when he gets kicked from the Shichibukai.
Anyways, I sat up, walked past the Millions navigating the boat, and approached Mr. 7 and Ms. Father's Day.
Mr. 7, Sniper, Lv.20
Ms. Father's Day, Sniper, Lv.21
"Hey, excuse me. Are you willing to begin Gun Training already?"
Ms. Father's Day slightly focused her attention on me. "We don't have a soundproofed room on here, so no. Just wait until you have some downtime between missions, and we can help you."
Honestly, that answer made a shit ton of sense, and it even wasn't even running on Shonen logic.
"Well then," I pulled out a mini sack of rocks, "Are you willing to help me with a different type of training. It's very simple and easy to do."
"What is it?"
"All you have to do is throw rocks at me, at a steady pace while I'm blindfolded. It's simple as that."
"What type of training is that?" If Haki wasn't a thing in this universe, I'd probably sound stupid.
"Sensory Enhancement and Reaction Training." Well, technically that wasn't a lie, as both were applications of Kenbunshoku Haki.
"Alright. Strange, but I'll do it." I then tossed her the small sack of rocks and prepared. I tied my durag around my eyes and put in my earplugs. You see, many people in One Piece fics do the absolutely stupid thing of not trying to learn haki as soon as possible. I decided by the time I hit the Red Line if I decided to go to the New World, I'm going to be slapping people with Bosushoku.
And thus, began my first steps towards becoming the strongest fucker in Paradise.
It's been around two hours of Rock Throwing, and I currently ain't feeling it, which is understandable. However, I only see darkness, and I can't hear anything, and Mr.7 and Ms. Father's Day are just throwing rocks. I attempted multiple times to deepen my focus and deepen the feeling of my senses, but nothing works.
However, I decided to call it off. I unwrapped my durag and took out my earplugs.
"Alright, I'm done for today," I tell them, and they return to their seats.
"Geez, my arm and shoulder hurt from that." Ms. Father's Day and Mr.7 said in unison. They then just silently polished their guns and occasionally looked out at the ocean.
It was approaching evening, so I decided to ask the navigators.
"Hey, where are we heading, and how long will it take?" I ask the trio of Millions navigating the ship.
"We're heading to Alabasta and it should take another 2 days. We should arrive by sunset on Sunday."
"Alrighty then, thank you." I decided to walk off and just relax. Cardamom was already fed with a little pocket lettuce. For how big Den Den Mushi are, they only need to eat once a day. However, they have the diet of a literal regular snail: lettuce and greens. Anyways, I pulled out a sleeping bag and decided to lay down for the night.
The next morning, I woke up early on my own. No one else was on the outside of the ship except for a different group of millions navigating. I get up, plop Cardamom on my shoulder, and began to do a little workout to keep me sane. I did some basic push-ups, sit-ups, twists, and some stretching. It helped wake me up fully.
Afterward, I decided to ask about the progress of the trip.
"Hey quick question, Where exactly are we?"
One of the Millions answered, "We are currently in the Calm Belt."
If I wasn't awake before, that would've woken me up real quick. We were currently in fucking Calm Belt. It's best if I think about this. There are people who have gone through the Calm Belt before and survived. Don Krieg, who was ravaged by Mihawk, and Arlong were in the Grand Line and they came back to East Blue. There's also the motherfucker known as Silvers Rayleigh who fucking swam through the Calm Belt. But then again he has Haoshoku Haki to repel Sea Kings, which I do not have.
However, either we are lucky or this ship has a coating of seastone at the bottom. I wish for a little bit of both. Speaking of seastone, I should get myself a seastone weapon like Smoker. Everyone clowns on Smoker for jobbing, but a weapon with seastone, even as a devil fruit user himself, is an incredibly smart move. Seastone only weakens upon contact, so all it takes is a sheath and you'll be good. I'll maybe even get seastone bullets for my gun I'll have to remember for later.
For the next 2 days, it followed a set pattern. Whenever someone was available, I had them throw rocks at me, while I was blindfolded and had earplugs in. In Paradise, Kenbunshoku Haki would be more useful than Armament due to the fact that Logias are rare, and no one else has Bosushoku. However, Kenbunshoku can always be used to protect yourself from danger.
Eventually, on Sunday, I could see it. In the distance, there it was: Alabasta.
Erumalu Dock, Alabasta, Grand Line
About 3 hours later, the Millions docked the Gamma Seven on a port and stepped off. The Alabasta sun had set so we had little to worry about in terms of heat. We only have to worry about transport-
And out of nowhere, a supersonic alligator appeared. Following behind it was a surprisingly fast tortoise with a miniature house on its back. More importantly, I tried to contain my nervous excitement, as in front of us was Ms. All Sunday, better known as Nico Robin. She looked at me, and scanned me up and down.
"So you're the new recruit. You're from West Blue?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'm from West Blue. Kept hunting bounties, and I guess my name spread on the Grand Line."
"Alright then, get inside the Kame House, and we'll head to Rainbase for a meeting." After that, she took off leaving a large trail of bellowing sand in the air.
I was one of the first to get inside the Kame House and sit down. Inside there were some pastries and dessert, so I just grabbed a donut. Mr. 7 and Ms. Father's day got in along with the other Millions, and we were off.
An hour later, we made it. Rainbase is the core of the Baroque Works operations, and here I was. The Millions dispersed throughout the city, and the Frontier Agents, including me, were led into a Casino & Bar. We went to an upstairs floor, and there everyone was. The Officer Agents and the Frontier Agents were gathered all in one place, and well, of course, the only person missing was Crocodile. I took an available seat, and now we were all present.
Ms. All Sunday began. "We, the members of the Baroque Works Organization, are here to welcome a new member. Our new member is a bounty hunter for West Blue who has shown enough skill to become a Frontier Agent. Would he like to rise?"
I stood up quietly and pushed my chair in.
"As a Baroque Works Member, you'll now be given a codename. You are now Mr. 12 and you'll now be partnered with Ms. Saturday," A spot line shone on a seat across from mine, but I still kept my main focus on Robin. "You'll now be given the standard Baroque Works Frontier Agent supplies. Which includes Eternal Poses for Alabasta and nearby Islands, A spare Log Pose, A bunch of bounties, and a Baby Den Den Mushi. Your partner also has a Baby Den Den Mushi."
I nodded, took the objects, and quickly packed them away. I went back to my seat and waited. "Your ship is currently being built by the shipwrights among The Billions and from nearby Islands. It should be ready tomorrow. However, with that, this meeting is officially over! Dismissed!"
All the other Officer and Frontier Agents began leaving. All except one, Ms. Saturday. My new partner-in-crime.
