A/N: Thanks for your kind reviews/favorites/follows. Here are my answers to some of your questions:
Pairings: Is this a Harry/ Robin pairing? At this stage, it is just friendship, but who knows what will happen in the future? If there is romance between 2 of my favorite characters, it will be slow building which I think that would be more realistic given their past experiences of being hurt/betrayed, and their personalities.
Wizarding World: No, I have no plans to let Harry return to his home world/wizarding world/Hogwarts. Personally I feel that most of the wizards there are imbeciles and they can clear up their own damn mess. They don't deserve to have Harry Potter. However, there will be mentions of that world, which is necessary for Harry's development, as you will see in later chapters.
Powers: The Harry I have in mind will be a jack-of-all-trades of sorts, but he will not be a heavy hitter that relies on only one single ability. He is a Wizard, and that gives him many options to explore. It would be a pity is he just focuses on one. And no, it will not be a Super-Harry fic, he will experience losses and stronger opponents – I think depicting how he overcomes these would be quite interesting…
Devil Fruit: I am leaning towards Harry not being a Devil Fruit User. Looking at a few of the more famous pirates, for example, Shanks, eating a devil fruit is not a pre-requisite for becoming strong or legendary. Let me know what you think, if you feel strongly that Harry should also be a Devil Fruit User besides being a Wizard. Without further ado, here's the new chapter and my first attempt at a fighting scene here…
Chapter 5: Evolving
The past one-year has been one eye opening experience after another. Harry had no idea how lucky he was that he hasn't met any opponents who seriously wanted to kill him before he accepted Shanks' offer and joined his crew temporarily. He still remembers the first time he fought a Devil Fruit User…well, it wasn't much of a fight really.
HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP
"I'm not a pirate dammit! Stop chasing me!" Harry ducked down as the young Marine stabbed his jutte where his head was barely a moment ago.
"You are onboard the Red-Haired Pirates ship and you are trying to tell me you are not a pirate? Do you think I'm stupid or something! Now, stop using your dirty tricks and fight me fairly!" The white-haired officer somehow managed to growled out without releasing the two cigars he was smoking. At the same time his body slowly dematerializing into white smoke.
What the hell is this? How could a human turn into smoke? Is this…is this a Devil Fruit User? Harry thought frantically as he evaded yet another attack from the persistent Marine.
"Stop dodging and fight me, you cowardly pirate!" The wizard teleported behind the Devil Fruit user and concentrated on shrinking his opponent's boots to make him trip.
"What the…?" The Marine stumbled, and then turned himself into smoke that circled around Harry.
"Shit!" Cursing, the green-eyed youth teleported once again away, escaping just in the nick of time to avoid being trapped. He focused on using Haki to knock out the relentless Marine. A shockwave of unseen force exploded out and some of the others that were caught in it fell unconscious.
However, the white-haired officer only tensed for a moment before shaking it off. He dashed forward and swung his sword towards Harry, who swerved to his right, closed his eyes briefly and cast a bright green light aimed to blind. Having distracted the jutte-wielding Marine, he teleported inside the ship, inside of the cabins to regroup and think up a plan to defeat this troublesome opponent.
If only he hadn't promise Shanks to stay and look after the ship while the whole lot of them go on their fun making ways in town. The young wizard had recently acquired a rare book about the Grand Line and was looking forward to a quiet night of reading. Unfortunately a noisy and irritating Marine, who looks to be about his age, suddenly came onboard and immediately began fighting him. The few crew left on the ship was engaged in an intense battle with the other Marines.
Why do I have to be targeted by this especially troublesome one! And none of my abilities seem to work well against him, that bastard just need to turn into smoke and he could escape my attacks! My other power in knocking others out doesn't seem to work against him either. He must be a strong-willed person…or simply a plain stubborn one…Now what can I do to get him off the ship?
Harry was brought out of his thoughts when smoke permeated the cabin he was hiding in – damn it, he'd been found! He teleported to the deck of the ship and saw Shanks and the rest joining the battle. Great timing!
"What's this? Marines to welcome us to town? Dahahahahahaa! Let's give them a good show guys!"
"Aye Aye, Captain!"
After a short battle, and the Marines really weren't that much of a challenge once Shanks, Beckman, Lucky Roo and the rest joined the fight. The Red-haired captain somehow managed to get around Smoker's Devil Fruit ability and kicked off his ship into the sea, together with rest of the marines who escaped with their tails between their legs.
HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP
After that humiliating cat-and-mouse chase/fight with the Marine whom Harry later heard that was 'Smoker', a Smoke-Smoke Devil Fruit ability user, Shanks taught him Busoshoku Haki to protect himself against Devil Fruit Users attacks.
Busoshoku Haki allows the user to create a force similar to an invisible armor around him. This "invisible armor" can be also be used as a weapon to strike others with. It can be used to augment the user's own attacks, projected ahead of the user as pure brute force, or imbued in weapons to increase their effectiveness. Any attack enhanced by Busoshoku Haki hits immensely harder than it would normally be without it.
Harry was pleased to learn that this type of Haki has the ability to bypass the powers of a Devil Fruit user, touching the "substantial body" beneath whatever protection the fruit provides, such as the case of body-altering Devil Fruits, Logia users – a prime example being Smoker. It would become one of the best defenses Harry can use against future Devil Fruit opponents.
Despite the green-eyed enthusiasm to learn Busoshoku Haki, it took him more than half a year to master it. In between his duties as part of the crew –temporarily only, Shanks! – searching for clues on Robin's location (still unsuccessful by the way), having daily sword practices and those strange yet informative dreams, it was almost a miracle that Harry took only that little time to learn this type of Haki.
Harry was most grateful to Shanks, who taught him many things and was certainly fun to be around too. He was especially thankful to the red-haired captain in training up his non-existent sword fighting skills from an amateur up to a fairly decent level.
That's not to say that Shanks coddled him, though patient, he can be an inventive and somewhat sadistic teacher. Harry still gets chills down his spine when he recalls some of those do-or-die trainings. It was probably silly of Harry to avoid using his abilities during those training sessions, wanted to focus solely on improving his swordsmanship.
The young swordsman had gained a few more scars from that larger-than-normal saber that Shanks used happily on him. Remembering that friendly grin yet evil shine in his mentor's eyes every time he swung it to teach Harry yet another lesson, the brunette shuddered again. It was almost traumatic enough to put him off using any type of saber. Fortunately the sword he bought and now can use with proficiency is a katana.
HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP
"Hey Harry, you doing all right? Look at the size of dark eye rings you have!" Lucky Roo asked while chewing a chicken drumstick.
"Yeah, I haven't exactly been sleeping well…but don't worry, I'm ok. Thanks Lucky Roo." Harry rubbed his eyes tiredly and mustered up a smile.
Truthfully, he had been having some pretty vivid and weird dreams recently. They mainly took place in an ancient, majestic looking castle that somehow also serves as a magical school for teenagers. It was strange dreaming of students going to classes, learning and using magic with a stick of sorts that they call a wand. Since Harry didn't have a wand, he couldn't try out any of the things he learned from those dreams, but they gave him a better understanding of magic. There was a particular branch of magic that may not require use of a wand and the young wizard was just itching to try out.
The study of ancient runes seemed to be something that Harry could use in this world. After a few dream lessons and looking at some of the books (Ancient Runes Made Easy, Rune Dictionary and Magical Hieroglyphs and Logograms), he was ready to put his knowledge into practice. However, Harry didn't think it was such a good idea doing that on Shanks' ship…who knows, he might blow it up accidently.
It was time to find a place on land to seriously practice what he has learned in his dreams.
HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP
"Are you sure you want to leave us, Harry? We have so much fun together!" Shanks put his arms around the young wizard's shoulders and was trying to steer him back into the ship's cabin.
"Yes. Thanks for everything Shanks, I really learned a lot from you."
"Well, I can see you are determined…a man's got to do what he's got to do, so I won't stop you. But remember, you will always have a place with the Red-haired pirates."
Harry smiled gratefully, as the other pirates came around to bid him farewell. He left the ship with a wave and stepped onto the Conomi Islands, the archipelago in East Blue. It was one of the few remaining islands in the Blue Sea that Harry hasn't explored while he was sailing with the Red-haired Pirates. To his immense disappointment, he wasn't able to find even a whisper of clue on Robin's where-abouts. The only good thing was that if Harry wasn't able to find her, it probably means that nobody else (the Marines and Bounty hunters) has found her either.
He heaved out a sigh and took a quick glance around; it seemed to be a simple and peaceful place. With mix feelings – a little lonely, somewhat sad, yet excited to explore an island he hasn't been on before – Harry headed into the village named Cocoyasi.
The villagers were mostly friendly and Harry was enjoying a drink at the local bar, a clean and quaint place, when a striking red-purple haired woman with a rather unique hairstyle similar to a mohawk, entered with a basket of sweet smelling tangerines.
"Good afternoon Genzo! I've brought some tangerines I'd grown myself, try some!"
"Thanks Bell-mere! And how are the girls doing?" asked a gruff looking man wearing a hat with a…is that a pinwheel on top? Strange…
"Oh they are taking their afternoon nap, did I tell you that Nami just said the first word to me this morning? She…" As the proud mother continued to gush about her daughter, Harry tuned out automatically. After finishing the cool mug of beer, he left some Beli on the counter and made to leave the bar.
"Hey young man! Yes you! Would you like to buy some tangerines?" Bell-mere asked cheerfully, holding up her basket of fruits under Harry's nose. He took in the scent and nodded.
"Sure, give me five of them…ah…how much are they?"
"Only 300 Beli! You are new here aren't you? I haven't seen you around before."
"Er…yes, I just arrived today, here's 300 Beli." For some strange reason, this woman made him nervous.
"Oh, how long do you plan to stay? Have you found somewhere to stay yet?"
"Well...I haven't decided how long I'll stay yet, is there other villages or towns on this island?"
Harry gathered from Bell-mere, the chatty mother of two girls, that there is another village on the other end of the island, named Gosa Village. Somehow without the young wizard really noticing it, he accepted Bell-mere's persuasive invitation to lunch at her home. She lived in a small, cozy looking cottage with a tangerine grove on the side. Upon entering her house, they were greeted enthusiastically by a light purple-blue-haired little girl.
"Bell-mere you're home!"
"Nojiko, did you skip your nap?"
"No, I just woke up! Who's that?" The girl stepped right up to Harry and peered to him curiously.
"This is Harry, he is going to have lunch with us. Where's Nami?"
A loud cry interrupted her questioning. She rushed into one of the rooms and carried an orange-haired baby out. "Oh she must be hungry. Pardon me Harry, I just need to get her some milk."
And that was how Harry met his three new friends in Cocoyasi Village.
HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP
Harry had spent four fruitful months in the village since he first arrived at the Conomi islands, and he was making leaps and bounds in improving his magical abilities. There was a nice patch of clearing in a forest nearby he could experiment and practice in. Since Bell-mere has kindly offered him a room to stay at her house, Harry had also gotten addicted to his daily dose of tangerines. The sweet fruit somehow inspired him in using magic better – or maybe it was the quietness that allowed him to focus better.
A high level of focus was exactly what he needed in practicing rune magic. From what he had learned in those 'dream lessons' and some experimentation, Harry was able to complete his first magical ritual using runes to improve his eyesight. He was sick and tired of wearing his old pair of glasses with a wrong prescription – a leftover from his Dursleys days. In fact, he was surprised it lasted as long as it did.
When Harry opened his eyes after the ritual, he was ecstatic to find that it worked and everything looked so clear and vivid now. Wow, he could even make out the patterns on a leaf that was about 6 feet away! His emerald green eyes shone with happiness and he was about to eagerly start his next runic experiment when he suddenly slumped down in a heap. Using runic magic sure takes up a lot of energy!
It took the young wizard almost a week before he could begin his next runic project, enhancing his katana. He would hate to have it break at a crucial time during battle, so tracing the runes for "strengthen"; he made his sword more durable and powerful.
Although runes are useful for many things, such as warding his bag from thefts, creating a 'prison' to trap someone in a square written with runes and rituals to enhance his physical abilities, the disadvantage was it takes quite some time to focus his magic into drawing the runes and he will feel drained after each usage. It was definitely not suitable during battles, and Harry needed something he could use offensively against his opponents in fights.
Unfortunately his attempts to create a wand failed. It seemed that making a magic stick is not as easy as he imagined it to be. Well, as much as a wand would be useful in focusing his magic and shooting some of the spells he learned from those dreams, he just have to work around it somehow. Harry believed that with enough effort, focus and motivation, the sky's the limit. He will become stronger. No, he will need to become stronger or risk dying, for his next destination will be the Grand Line, a dangerous place that he hasn't explored before. Perhaps he would be able to find Robin there, since he wasn't haven't any luck in Blue Sea.
Armed with his evolved magical abilities, reasonably decent swords fighting skill and two forms of mastered Haki, he made preparations to sail to the next island – Logue town.
Logue town is a city on the Polestar Islands East Blue, with the city covering nearly the entire island it is on, save for a few steep hills. Almost all ships, especially pirate ships, pass through to stock up on supplies for the Grand Line since the town is in a convenient location very close to Reverse Mountain.
The Reverse Mountain is unique in that rivers from the Blues flow up the mountain, meet at the top, and then flow down into the Grand Line. Many pirates entering the Grand Line die before they can even get up to the top of the mountain, because the hostile water currents and storms force them to crash into the mountain walls. Well, it would be a lie to say that Harry wasn't the least bit daunted at the odds he would be going against. But he is no coward, and has a great sense of adventure to conquer the unknown. Besides, Robin might be somewhere on the Grand Line, so that was motivation enough.
HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP
"Harry, Harry, don't go!" Nojiko cried as she clung to the black Bermuda shorts that the brunette was wearing.
"Don't cry Nojiko, I will miss you too, but there are things I need to do…"
Bell-mere gently pulled her four-year adopted daughter away from the young man and smiled at him.
"Don't worry Harry, she'll be fine. And I don't believe that this is goodbye forever, we will meet again one day."
Yes, this is only a 'See-you-later', not a final farewell. No matter how vast the seas, hearts that are connected will somehow gather together again. Hugging the three females one after another, Harry took a deep breath and ran to the docks where his new boat was waiting. A new adventure is out there!
HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP/HP/OP
A/N: The next update will be in a few days to a week's time. I wanted to include more interaction between a baby Nami and Harry, but it just wasn't all that believable for a teenage boy to be interested in spending much time with babies. Don't worry, there will come a time where Harry will meet with The Straw Hat Pirates, and boy would it be an exciting first meeting