Back again with another chapter of this. Sorry it took so long, I've been dealing with a lot of personal issues.

I decided to get this chapter out now that I'm good to write again.

It's a short chapter since I'm setting things up for future things and I didn't have much time to write it

I made a Discord server. If you want to talk about fanfiction, ask about any of my stories, or anything else, then feel free to join.

Link: nsUJ9erm

As the waves continued to pound onto the side of his small boat, Naruto woke up from his short nap. Sitting up to take in his surroundings, he wasn't surprised to see nothing but open water still. It's been a little over a month since he left his dad and his crew. A month of sailing and going through the rations he brought with him. Looking over to where the rations, he noted very quickly that he'll have to make it to land soon. He hopes it's soon though, because his already diminished supply may cease to be if it takes too long.

Thinking back to where the Moby Dick was when he disembarked, it wasn't that far into Paradise. The only reason they were in the Paradise section of the Grand Line was because his dad knew in advance that he was leaving to start on his own journey, and his dad knew he wouldn't be able to sail in the New World on a small boat. Like every other pirate, he wanted to find the One Piece. After talking to his dad about his best course of action, he felt like the best move was to go around and find crewmates before going back on the Grand Line to start his journey.

Hearing a noise from above, he saw some birds were flying overhead. It's a beautiful day today, with no clouds in the sky. He wishes he could enjoy it on land though. However with birds flying overhead, he may be getting close to finally stepping on the ground again. As he's sitting there, he begins to think about what he'll need crew wise. His first priority is a navigator. Navigation wasn't something he learned a lot about growing up. He may know some basic navigation skills, but definitely not enough to actually sail the Grand Line. Right now, he's just going where the wind takes him.

As he sat there in his boat, he wondered how he should go about getting a ship. When asking his dad about it, he told him whenever he goes to Water 7, to have him get a ship built there. In order to do that though, he'll need money and an actual navigator. While in Water 7, his dad told him to secure a shipwright if he can find one, so he'll definitely be doing that as well when he gets there. He's thought about maybe stealing a ship so he doesn't have to be in this small boat anymore, but he doubts a chance like that will actually happen. If there is a chance to do it though, he'll take it. He won't necessarily have to worry about damaging the ship either since it wouldn't be his.

Looking up, he finally saw what he's been waiting on. On the horizon, he spots land. Ecstatic at finally being able to step on land again and for a chance to get more supply of food, he went ahead and gathered anything he might need for his stay on the island. He idly wonders if he'll be able to find a crewmate on the island, but he doesn't get his hopes up. Unless they're a navigator or they impress him with their strength, he won't bother.

As he gets closer, he spots a couple of ships docked that seem unmanned. Even if they are, he can't do it in midday. He'd have to do it in the dark of the night to make sure that he can be stealthy and not be caught. Thinking about it, stealing a ship may be his best bet. He's thought about going to some of the other seasto see if he can find any crewmates there. In order to go to one of the seas, he definitely can't travel in this boat he's currently in. If he'll have to fight in order to take a ship, then he's confident he can beat anyone just using haki.

Looking down at one of his covered hands, he does hope that he can find someone strong enough to take his gloves off and use his power. If he were to use his powers on everyone weaker than him, then every fight he encounters would be incredibly boring. If he's by himself and he comes across a Navy ship or a hostile pirate ship, he may just use his powers on the boat after he fought some of the fodder. Fighting too many people at once would most likely get annoying fast.

Thinking on that last point, he kinda hopes he doesn't run into the Navy anytime soon. After getting his first bounty and seeing how high it is just for who his dad is, he doesn't really want to do anything that might draw more attention to him. Yeah he enjoys fighting, but he'd rather not put himself into their crosshairs even more without a crew. A big part of the reason the Navy doesn't come after his dad is because of the crew he has. The other reason of course is him being regarded as the strongest man alive. So when he gets a decent sized crew that can hold their own, he won't need to worry about the Navy.

He wouldn't be surprised if eventually the Navy offered him a Warlord position. If he was to be offered that position, he wouldn't know whether he'd take it or not. The position has both pros and cons to it. The biggest pro of it would be the Navy not being able to come after you, with the biggest con being you'd essentially be a lapdog of the Navy and World Government. Another thing about the Warlord position is he feels like you could almost do whatever you wanted to do without any repercussions. With them essentially being lap dogs, he's not sure if anyone actually looks into what a Warlord does in their own time.

Shaking off those thoughts, he noticed he was finally getting closer to the island.

XXXXXXXX

After docking his boat, Naruto finally stepped on soil again. It's not like he hates being on the sea or anything, he just hates not having a lot of room to move around on that small boat. He was fine on the Moby Dick, given the size of it. So now that he finally has a lot of space to move around, he's definitely going to take advantage of it.

Looking around the island from where he's at, he can tell there's little, if any Navy presence here. He can see all kinds of things going on while looking around. From fighting in the middle of the street to theft. Going off what he saw from the other ships, he's assuming a lot of people here are pirates. All of the ships had a jolly roger on them and everyone here so far is acting like the stereotypical pirate. Thinking about it a little, he wouldn't be surprised if this were some sort of safe haven for pirates.

As he's walking, he begins to think about which ship he'd wanna take for himself later. Only one of the ships actually caught his eye. Its Jolly Roger was a tongue sticking out from a pair of lips which was in front of the crossbones. It was a nice sized ship and the only one that actually caught his interests, if only a little. The ship only has to last long enough for him to find crewmates and traverse back to the Grand Line and eventually make it to Water 7.

Making his way through the streets, he noticed that he was getting a lot of stares. Overhearing some whispers such as 'look who that is' and 'oh that's Whitebeard's son'. Not caring to hear anything more, he just tuned them out as he searched for a restaurant so he could finally eat. He also needs to find a shop so he can get more rations. Before he left, his father gave him 10 million Beri so he could have the necessary funds available so he could start his journey.

Making his way into the first shop, he idly noticed anytime he got near someone they got out of his way fast like they were scared of him. Even on an island like this, his bounty and who he is is known. This place, Java he supposes it's called. He overheard people saying that was the name of it, so he'll accept that rather than not knowing the name of it at all. With the amount of outlaws here though, he's kinda surprised they'd be wary of him over a bounty.

As he's buying what he needs, he remembers that his dad told him about Java before. He remembers hearing something about a knock up stream that took him to an island in the sky. If that story is actually true, he supposes he'll have to come back here when he has a crew so he can experience it himself. As unlikely as an island in the sky sounds, he knows his dad isn't one to lie about certain things. Thinking about it has him excited for the future. He may even be able to find a unique crewmate while there.

Coming out of his thoughts, he slung the sack he gathered his supplies in over his shoulder while noticing the sun was starting to go down. Looking around in search of a bar so he can get some food on his stomach, he quickly found one. 'Not that it was hard to spot with all the noise coming from it' Naruto thought wryly while walking towards the bar in question.

As he got in, the noise that could be heard from the street got quieter with each passing second until all chatter stopped. Walking to the bar, he felt a lot of eyes follow him with each step he took. As he sat down he heard loud steps behind him until he felt an arm roughly grab his shoulder. Looking at the hand, he turned so he could see who the person in question was.

Looking at the person in question, he noticed it was a tall man with tan skin and short, unkempt blond hair. He has a scar above his right eye and tattoos of eye-like designs on his arms. For his clothes, he wore white pants, a green sash with markings, and a pink sleeveless shirt with a navy blue pirate captain's coat over it.

"Can I help you?" Naruto asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, you can by getting out. Around this time is when my crew and I occupy this bar" The unknown man said, slightly gripping Naruto's shoulder harder.

"Oh, I wasn't aware of that. I'll just be eating and be on my way" Naruto said, while eating the food that was brought to him.

"I thought I told you to get out. I don't care who you are, your bounty is probably only high due to who your dad is. I'm certain I can beat you if I have to." The man said with a glare.

Looking over at the man again, he couldn't help but smirk. The guy before him knew nothing about what he's capable of. Underestimating him for some people would be their first and last mistake they ever made with him.

With this guy though, he could tell he wasn't worth it though. He can tell he's ignorant, maybe misguided with his own strength, but time will change that. The bigger reason he doesn't wanna do anything is the off chance the Navy finds out if he did. His bounty is already big, and he hasn't really started on his journey yet.

Plus if his instincts are right, he'll be taking his ship when he leaves anyways.

Finishing his food, he stood up grabbing his sack of items he gathered today and said "You got your wish. I'm through eating, so I'll get out of your hair." Grabbing his hand and throwing it off of him, he threw the guy a smirk before he left the bar.

Exiting the bar, he couldn't help but laugh a bit at the scene he just left from. Naruto wasn't too sure who exactly it was, maybe just an upstart pirate who stopped on the island to enjoy the lack of Navy presence. He's sure he'll eventually run into him later down the road of his journey, and if the guy wants to test him again, then he'll gladly fight him.

Noticing it was nighttime though, he headed to the docks. He's glad he waited until night to go about his plan on taking someone's ship. If he did it earlier, he'd definitely get caught and that'd just be an annoying situation to get out of that he could've easily avoided.

With the dock coming into view, he spotted the ship he was thinking about taking still there. Seeing that it was still there, he started jogging so he could reach it faster so it lowers the chances of him being caught. As he's getting ready to get on it an idle thought hits him. 'If this ship really does belong to the guy from the bar, I wonder how funny his reaction would be to it being stolen. It's a shame I have to miss it' Naruto thought as he climbed the rope ladder it had to get on the ship.

After he reached the last step and landed on the dock, he quickly saw there were two other people up there. One already kinda close, with the other a bit away. As he landed, the one close to him yelled 'hey' catching the other guy's attention as well. Seeing that they had already noticed him, he quickly coated his arms in haki. He's sure it's a bit overkill, but you never know. Plus, he needs to be quick about this before anyone else comes along.

Not wasting any time, he rushed the first man. After dodging the first punch thrown from him, Naruto quickly cocked his right arm back and delivered a punch to his jaw that had blood and spit come out of his mouth. Not giving him any time to recover, he quickly delivered another punch to his gut that had him hunched over. Seeing him hunched over, he grabbed the back of his head, and kneed him in the face, knocking him out.

Looking over to where the other guy is, he saw him running towards him with a face flushed with anger for beating his partner. Running over to meet him, he quickly got in range of him, only for him to block a punch with his arm. Shrugging off the weak hit, he punched the guy in the face, followed by a kick to his side, making the guy stumble. Not letting up, he delivered a series of rapid punches to his stomach that had the guy leaning over for a bit, only to get hit hard by an uppercut that knocked him out.

Seeing that both of them were knocked out and dealt with, he threw them overboard into the water. Nodding to himself for a job well done, he quickly prepared the ship to set sail. As he was doing the things he needed, he noted he definitely needs to start working on his crew soon. He won't be able to do everything himself for long. As he finished the last task, he started to sail away, leaving the island, and going to leave the Grand Line for a bit to see if he can find any crew member.

XXXXXXXX

Laying down on his ship, staring at the sky, Naruto was thinking about where he landed up. Landing in the East Blue was definitely something he'll always remember. Naruto remembers his dad telling him about the Reverse Mountain, but he didn't think it was anything like what he experienced. He's more glad than ever now that he stole this ship back in Java. If he was still in the little boat he was in from before, there's no way it'd be able to make it through.

Other than making it across Reverse Mountain, nothing worth noting really happened. The water and weather around him aren't as random as it is on the Grand Line either. He's been in the East Blue for a couple of days now, with nothing really catching his eye so far. He hasn't even seen any Navy ships so far. 'I guess the rumours of the East Blue being fairly calm is true. Ace did say that it's not really dangerous here, but I was expecting at least some type of Navy presence by now,' Naruto thought to himself.

Standing up to see if he could spot anything, he saw what looked like a restaurant built on top of a ship in the middle of the sea. Curious about it, he decided that he'll stop there to see what it's about. As he sails close enough, he docks his ship, and gets off. 'A floating restaurant is definitely something you don't see everyday. It's actually a pretty good idea, I'm surprised there aren't any other places like this in the Grand Line, ' Naruto thought to himself as he walked into the building, looking at the sign labeled 'Baratie'

As he stepped into the building, the first thing he noticed was the liveliness coming from the crew of the restaurant. Looking around, he noticed the dining area was mostly full of customers. Seeing that put his hopes up for the quality of the food. If the food were bad, it wouldn't be as crowded as it currently is. As he was looking around, he saw a crew member come up to him.

"Hello sir, welcome to our restaurant. Will it just be one today?" The man asked.

"Yeah, it's just me today." Naruto replied with a small smile on his face.

"Alright then. Just follow me and I'll show you to a table" The man said with a smile.

Nodding in return, Naruto followed him to the table. After sitting down and the crew member telling him that someone will be out shortly, Naruto took his time to look around the restaurant more. As he was looking around, he noticed someone approaching his table.

It was an older looking man with a chef hat with blonde hair sticking out from it. He has a mustache as weird as his dad except it being blonde in color with a short beard under it. He wore a chef's uniform, with a blue ascot, and white apron. Looking down, Naruto also noticed he had a peg for one of his legs.

"Well what brings the son of Whitebeard to my restaurant?" The man asked Naruto with a raised eyebrow.

"Well since I was curious when I saw this place from my ship. It's not everyday you see a floating restaurant" Naruto answered with a shrug.

"Well it's just surprising to me that you would be in the East Blue of all places. I won't bother you for your reasons on why you're here in this sea since I'm sure you have a reason. All I have to ask is not to cause any trouble while in this restaurant. My name is Zeff and I'm the owner of this place, so I came here personally to ask that of you" The now named Zeff replied

"Oh you'll have no problems coming from me, Zeff. I was just planning on checking this place out a bit, eating, then being on my way" Naruto replied with a smile

"Alright then, well we won't have any problems then" Zeff replied with a nod, giving him a menu, then leaving.

As he saw him leave, he started to look at the menu to see what to get. After deciding on what to get and telling his server what he wanted, he continued to look around while waiting for his food. While looking around, he noticed another crew member flirting with a customer. A blonde haired man in a suit with the weirdest eyebrows he's ever seen. Shrugging it off, he continued to wait for his food. Luckily he didn't have to wait much longer before it got brought to him.

While eating, he noted that he should most likely get a chef for his crew. It's not a need at the moment, but it would be nice to have prepared food instead of what he has been eating, because if he could eat food as good as this everyday, he'd love to eventually get a chef on his crew when he has more people in it.

After eating and waving bye to Zeff, Naruto left the restaurant and got on his ship. After getting everything in order for his ship, he set off to leave in search of an island, and hopefully a crewmate.

So like I said, it's a short chapter. Again, I'm sorry about that. Next chapter will be as long or longer than the first chapter.

Don't worry about him being in the East Blue, he won't be there long. He's there to find a crewmate if he can. He won't be following Luffy's journey, so don't worry about that. He might be involved in some important arcs, but it won't be common.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.