One Piece Kishi no Kabuto (Entering Paradise Arc)

[CrystalGauntlet]

The sun shone brightly over the clear blue sea as a flock of seagulls flew over a lone ship sailing toward a nearby island. In front of the ship stood a person peering through a telescope, presumably at the nearby island.

"And there it is, Loguetown."

A tall, tan-skinned man with medium-length beige hair, dotted with numerous white spots and smaller black dots at the center of each, peered through his telescope. Through it, he could see the silhouette of the town where Gold Roger was executed. After a long journey, he had finally arrived. He lowered the telescope, revealing his left gold eye and right silver eye. He wore a black long-sleeved shirt beneath a purple poncho. Below, he had on baggy, woolly sweats and hiking sandals. The man descended a ladder to enter his private chambers.

Inside, he gazed at a map spread out on his table, beside a compass and a newly acquired log pose. Next to them were many folded origami animals and objects. A crane, beetle, panda, and even a dragon. He opened a drawer and retrieved his trusty notebook, titled "Kuwagata Kagami's Planner Notebook," and began to write. "Ok, before I kick back and enjoy myself, I need to get food and supplies. After that, I need to buy some herbs and medicine, and then buy some ship parts in case my ship gets damaged," Kuwagata whispered to himself while writing before closing his notebook.
Kuwagata's peripheral vision noticed a painting on the wall. He approached it and discovered a detailed depiction of himself as a child, holding hands with a little girl. Both of them smiled in the painting. Kuwagata smiled faintly at the crooked artwork and adjusted it so it hung straight. Afterward, he headed to the ladder that led down to the kitchen.

"Alright! Then it's settled," Kuwagata said as he climbed back up the ladder. Suddenly, he remembered something important he needed to take with him. In the corner of his room stood a red staff with vantablack rings and two golden kanji symbols spelling "beetle" in the center. Kuwagata picked up the staff, twirled it, and secured it to the strap wrapped around his back. "Almost forgot about you," he chuckled to himself before docking his ship.

***

Kuwagata strolled through the massive, crowded streets. In a way, it kind of reminded him of his hometown. Which might have given him some nostalgia. "After almost a year and a half worth of training, it's good to see actual people again. Now, where to start on my shopping..."

Kuwagata looked around to find the food, medicine, and supply markets. He noticed a nearby food market. "Well, there's my first objective."

***
Kuwagata carried a bunch of large bags. Carrying the bags with ease earned him shocked looks from the crowd.

"What kind of monster is this guy?" A guy in the crowd asked, a bit frightened.

"Wow, he's so strong," a woman in the crowd sighed dreamily.

"That's like over a ton, at least that he's carrying!"

"Am I the only one who notices how unique his hair looks?"

"Those are some weird-looking sandals he has on," a small girl pointed out, pointing to his hiking sandals.

"They're called hiking sandals, kid," Kuwagata responded.

Kuwagata ignored the rest of the murmurs and entered a bar called "The Milk Bar".

***

Inside the bar, loud, drunk pirates laughed and drank to their hearts' content. Some of them sang and danced, or did both, with stupid, unfocused moves to the music. Behind the bar stood a gray-haired, middle-aged bartender, wiping a beer glass with a towel and watching the pirates get wasted at whatever celebration they were having. Kuwagata opened the doors, and the bar fell silent as he entered. The drunken men's once-happy cheers were replaced by judgmental glares and annoyed stares. Like last time, Kuwagata ignored them, walked up to the bar counter where the women stood, and carefully set his bags beside him.

"Oooh, a new face. Welcome to our humble abode, the Milk Bar. What can I get for you?" Her eyes widened slightly as she looked at Kuwagata's face; it bore a striking resemblance to his.

"A glass of milk, please," Kuwagata responded.

The woman shook off her surprise, then smirked and chuckled at that answer. "What gave it away that we served milk as well?"

"Just good intuition, I guess."

"Coming right up, and since you're new in town, the first mug is free of charge."

"Oh, you don't have to do that."

"I insist. I do it with every new face in town," The lady said with a small smile.

"Alright, if you say so. Guess I'm getting a free drink now."

The lady walked over to the liquor stand and searched for a clean mug. "Those are some pretty big bags you were carrying; you must be really strong to carry such weight."

"Oh, don't worry about that; these bags are like feathers to me."
The lady took out a mug and filled it up with milk from a barrel. "Here you go, sir, one mug of fresh milk. Enjoy."

"Thank you —"

A mug slammed down on the counter a few inches beside Kuwagata's hand. A middle-aged man with one silky eye and golden teeth stood right beside Kuwagata, getting in his face, clearly displeased with his presence.

"Hey kid, Hic, this whole place has been reserved for me and my crew only, scram!" The pirate spat the last word with venom and ferocity. The other pirates in the bar sweat, knowing what's coming.

"Hope the kid knows what's good for him," One of the pirates whispered.

"I hope the kid just leaves; the captain is very scary when he is interrupted while drunk."

Despite the vocal threat and the pirates' whispering, Kuwagata remained seated and unmoving.

"Hey, leave him alone, he ain't bothering any-."

A sword was pressed up against the woman's neck by the captain.

"Unless you value your life, lady, I would recommend that you stay out of this and continue being a pretty little face."

The woman sweated, gulping a little before the captain removed the sword from her neck.

Kuwagata looked at the woman and smiled. "It's okay, miss, I've got this."

The captain was getting more annoyed and pissed off. "Hey! Are you deaf!? I said, ' Scram!"

"I heard you the first time. I just chose to ignore you."

The captain violently grabbed Kuwagata by the side of his scarf, jacket, and shirt. "Listen here, boy, I don't like your attitude. And it seems you don't know who you're talking to." The one-eyed captain pulled out a wanted poster for the captain and shoved it in Kuwagata's face. "I'm the captain of the Cross-X pirates. My bounty is nineteen million berries. I have slain countless strong pirates; no one is strong enough to stop me, not even that all-talk marine, Smoker."

Kuwagata moved to look at the man and slapped the poster out of his hand. "Look, that sounds great and all, but I only came here to enjoy a nice mug of milk, so we can either move on from this without any conflict, or some bruises are going to have to be inflicted, and I really hope you choose the former."

A vein bulged from the right side of the captain's face. He pulled Kuwagata out of his seat and drove a gut punch into him. The pirate captain screamed the moment his fist made physical contact with Kuwagata's stomach. The captain fell to his knees and grabbed his now-shattered hand in pain; it was like punching a titanium wall.

"Wh-what the hell are you made of!?" The captain demanded.

Kuwagata looked down and smirked. "Just have tough skin."

The captain was now at his patience limit. "Pirates! Kill him!!!" The captain drew his sword with his good hand as the other pirates charged at Kuwagata, their swords drawn, yet Kuwagata just stood there. They closed the distance between them.

Kuwagata, with one hand, grabbed Yuurei and gave it a twirl before he swung it, hitting one of the pirates right in the cheek with bone-crushing force that sent him flying across the bar and crashing through some tables and shattering glass mugs, before flying out through the entrance doors of the bar and making a huge crater on a brick wall. Kuwagata got up from his chair and stared down the rest of the crew, motioning them to face him if they were up for the task.

The captain watched in stunned silence, afraid of this random guy's strength. He watched his crewmates shaking in their boots before he snapped out of his fear and yelled at his subordinates. "What are you waiting for?! I said, Kill him!!!"

The subordinates reluctantly charged at Kuwgata with guttural screams and their swords raised high to strike at him.

Kuwagata felt as if everything was moving in slow motion, and with a low sigh, he muttered one word under his breath: "Idiots…"

***

All of the pirates lay sprawled on the ground, unconscious with huge bumps on their heads. Kuwagata put Yuurei behind his back, under the strap, and sighed. The woman was amazed by the display of how fast and easily this random guy took out the pirates with just Yuurei.

"So much for that nineteen-million bounty," Kuwagata said while dusting off his scarf and jacket. Kuwagata turned around to see the women looking at him with amazement.

"Well, damn kid, it's not every day that I see a random stranger come up here and completely wipe out an entire pirate crew."

"Yeah, I guess so, though I do apologize for wrecking the place a bit...um, what's your name, miss?"

"Just call me Asami."

"Right, I apologize for wrecking this place a bit, Asami-san," Kuwagata bows.

Asami shrugged, "Eh, it's just a broken chair or two, nothing that I can't replace."

"I see. By the way, who is this Captain Smoker that I've been hearing about from this town?"

"Smoker? He's kind of the town's protector. He's a marine that has been rumored to have Devil Fruit powers, specifically a Logia, the most powerful Devil Fruit type."
Kuwagata raised an eyebrow, interested in this Smoker guy. "Wow, he sounds like a very strong and respected person."

"You're damn right, kid. Ever since he came to this town, the number of pirates who come visit here has dropped drastically. Though I guess that doesn't mean he can stop every pirate, since..." Asami motioned to the pirates scattered around the bar.

Kuwagata flinched. "Oh, I can take care of that."

***

In the center of the bar, all of the unconscious pirates were tied up in the center of the bar. Kuwagata finished tying the final knot and dusted off his hands.

"Well, that takes care of that. I guess this Captain Smoker is going to take care of the rest." Kuwagata continued to dust himself off.

Asami took a good look at the faces of the now-beaten pirate crew. She looked at Kuwagata with a toothy smile, "Damn kid, you hit them hard, didn't you?" \\

Kuwagata frowned, "Well, they were putting their noses where they shouldn't be, so I had to do something about it."

Asami's face drooped a little. "I didn't get to say it earlier, but thank you."

Kuwagata raised a brow. "For what?"

Asami smiled lightly. "For saving me and my bar, of course."

Kuwagata scratched his head in embarrassment. "It was nothing, just trying to help as many people in need."

Asami stopped chuckling when she remembered something. "Oh, right! I still have to give you your mug!"

***

"What is this?" Kuwagata held a sheet of paper with his two fingers. It was an old recipe for a milk beverage that Asami had just given him.

"The recipe for our world-famous milk!" Asami smiled at Kuwagata.

"But why give this to a random stranger like me?" Kuwagata asked her.

"Let's just say that you remind me of an old customer of mine," Asami said, pointing a finger and winking at Kuwagata.

"And it's the least I can do for you after saving my life...and my bar."

"Are you sure about this? This is an old family recipe that you're giving away to someone you just met."

"Don't worry, I remember the recipe by heart, and I have a spare copy. Plus, I don't have any children of my own." Asami said the last part quickly.

"What?"

"Nothing important! Now I believe that you should get going, before Smoker comes along and possibly starts interrogating you."

***

"It was good to meet you. I hope I get to see you again!" Kuwagata shouted as he left the bar, waving at Asami.
Asami waved back. "I hope to see you again as well! You're welcome here anytime!"
After Kuwagata was out of sight, Asami lowered her hand and formed a melancholy smile on her face. 'He looked just like him,' Asami reminisced about her days with her friend.

***

A younger Asami was serving a man who bore a striking resemblance to Kuwagata. However, instead of beige hair, he had black hair, and both of his eyes were silver. He wore a headband around his forehead.

Behind him, most of Shirokane's crew drank heavily and had a good time, singing poorly in the background. Others gulped down mugs of sake, laughing as they talked.
The milk bar's interior was brighter, shinier, and livelier than it is now.

Asami placed a mug of milk in front of him. "Here you go, Shirokane, your usual as always."

Shirokane smiled widely. "Thanks, Asami, I've been dying to have this milk again!"

Asami rested her arms on the table and propped her head up with them. "So what brings my favorite customer here after so long?"

"Nothing special, I just thought my crew and I could just take a break and see my old friend."

Asami gave him the look that only Shirokane and his crew would know. "Shirokane, I know when you are hiding something from me."

Shirokane swallowed the lump in his throat, then sighed in defeat. "Well, ever since my wife had gotten pregnant with our child, I was thinking about retiring and disbanding my crew so I could be there for my family." Shirokane's expression fell more melancholy. "I just hope my crew will understand my choice and accept it, even though it will be painful to split up."

Asami stood there, a bit surprised by this sudden change of heart. It wasn't like him to make such a bold decision to quit the profession he is widely known for. For as long as Asami had known Shirokane, he was proud to call himself a full-blooded pirate through and through.

Not just any pirate, either. Shirokane D. Oukoku was one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, a man whose name struck fear in the core of the Grand Line, yet here he was, talking about walking away from it all for his wife and unborn child.

"That's... a pretty big decision that you're making," Asami said, her eyes slightly wide from the info she'd just received.

"I know, but I have made up my mind; I'm going to tell them the big news when we set sail tomorrow. I just wanted you to know about it first."

"What made you have a change of heart all of a sudden? The Shirokane I know would never think about settling down for a family." Asami said, smirking at him.

"I guess love works in mysterious ways," Shirokane said, shrugging.

"Well, you have my full support on this decision. If that's what you want to do, then do it," Asami said and patted Shirokane on the shoulder.

"Do you support me enough to finally give me your Leche Dulce recipe?" Shirokane said, dumbly smiling at Asami.

"Don't push it," Asami said sternly.

"I expected that, but thank you, Asami; you're a great friend."

"Hey, a friend is supposed to be there for each other; I'm just doing what any friend should do."

Afterward, they both laughed and kept celebrating, enjoying each other's company. Shirokane and Asami were joined by two other people. One was a female fishman with short scarlet hair, wearing a kimono over a sleeveless shirt. Next to her was a pale-skinned and purple-haired man who wore a gray sweatsuit, boots, and black gloves.

Shirokane wrapped his arms around them. "Hibiki! Ryuji! Join us in our conversation!"

Hibiki sighed, smirking at her captain. "You're always like this when we come here."

"I mean, I don't mind," Ryuji said.

"Of course you wouldn't," Hibiki giggled.

Ryuji narrowed his eyes. "Hey, what's that supposed to mean?"

"Alright, you two, knock it off." Shirokane sighed, "I swear, you guys are always so competitive against each other."

"Hey, it's not my fault that he thinks he's stronger than me, even though I have a higher bounty than him!"

"I had a higher bounty when I joined your crew!"

"And that all changed the very next time our bounties got updated!"

"You want me to punch your head off, Fish brain!?"

"With pleasure, Lavender head!"

*BAM* *BAM*

Large bumps formed on both Hibiki and Ryuji's heads. Shirokane's fists clenched, smoke curling from them.

"I told you to knock it off!"

"Sorry, captain…" Hibiki and Ryuji apologized at once.

Asami laughed out loud, "Looks like you two pushed your captain's buttons again!"

The rest of the night continued with laughter and fun times. Unfortunately, that was the last time they would stay under the same roof.

***

Asami chuckled and leaned against the wall of her bar. She looked up at the sky and crossed her arms.

Asami re-entered her bar through a door located behind the bar desk that led to her house. The house was nothing remarkable; it had a kitchen, a living room, a bathroom, and all the essentials for daily living, plus some personal decorations to spice it up. She turned left and entered her bedroom. Crouching, she pulled an old, rusty treasure chest from beneath her bed. Most of the paint had peeled off, and the old wood chipped away. Carefully, she undid the latches, which clicked open, and fully opened the chest. Inside, she found a Jolly Roger flag, featuring a platinum skull surrounded by water.

A wave of nostalgia washed over her as she held the Jolly Rodger close to her chest. "Fate works in mysterious ways, huh, Shirokane?"

***

Kuwagata began putting away his belongings on his ship. First, he placed the food in the kitchen. Next, he stored the medicine and herbs in the medicine cabinet. Finally, he put the ship parts in the ship's bunker. "Alright, that takes care of the shopping. Now it's time to explore the rest of Loguetown and see what else the town has to offer."

Kuwagata stepped off his ship and onto the plank, ready to explore the rest of Loguetown for the day. Strolling through the bustling streets, he searched for something that piqued his interest. He passed by the usual food stands, clothing shops, supply stores, and the local marine base. None of these places stood out, but he noticed a clothing shop that caught his eye, mainly because it was selling ponchos.

As Kuwagata entered the store, he saw a girl with orange hair in front of him, holding numerous shopping bags filled with clothes. She seemed almost familiar to him. However, before he could think further, the cashier noticed Kuwagata and greeted him warmly.

"Ah! Welcome, sir. Take some time to see what you want to buy." The cashier said.

"Hm?" The orange-haired lady turned around to see who was behind her, her eyes widening and her jaw dropping a little when she saw who it was.
"Thanks, I'll take my ti-." Kuwagata stopped mid-sentence when he locked eyes with the person who was in front of him.

The same girl who, on that fateful day, took all of the money he had on his journey. Kuwagata, who normally had a pleasant demeanor, changed to a look of silent anger. The orange-haired girl gulped, knowing Kuwagata wasn't the same guy he was the last time they met. She couldn't explain why, but she felt his aura was strong, even stronger than Arlong's.

The silence was deafening as the two stared at each other until the orange-haired lady spoke up. "O-oh! It's you! How have you been, friend? It's me, your best friend, Nami! It's been a while since we last saw each other. How have you been?"

Kuwagata, not buying it for a second, decided to play along. "Oh, nothing much, a bit of traveling, training, and getting my financial life back in check after a certain someone stole all of my money."

Nami gulped at the last thing he said; he clearly hadn't forgotten what happened over two years ago. "Hey, I know we had a bit of a rough time the last time we met, and I may have thrown you under the bus, but that was over a year ago, and I'm a changed woman now, so can we just let bygones be bygones and go our separate ways? Heh..." She knew there was no way out.

"Give me my money back," Kuwagata said sternly.

"Oh, your money? Well, funny thing, the money is gone, sorry! Nami blurted the last part quickly as she dropped her bags, ran past Kuwagata, left the store, and ran for her life.

Kuwagata sighed at her escape attempt.

***

Nami ran as fast as she could from the shop; she pushed civilians aside, desperate to get away from him. She spotted a nearby narrow alleyway and dashed in to hide from him. She peeked out, looking left, then right, to see if Kuwagata had followed her, but there was no sign of him in this area. With the coast clear, she leaned back against the wall and put her hands on her knees, catching her breath after all that sprinting. "Okay, I think I lost him."

"Oh, did you, now?" A shadowy figure loomed over Nami, saying with the voice of the male Nami was trying to get away from.

"Yeah, I guess I was overreacting over nothing, hmph, all bark but no bite," Nami muttered smugly, still bent over catching her breath.

"Oh, so that's what you think of me?"

Nami's eyes went wide as saucers when she realized who the shadowy figure was. She turned her head and confirmed it was Kuwagata, arms crossed, leaning against the wall. Nami backed out of the alleyway, and Kuwagata walked toward her. "L-look, I know what I did was pretty bad on my part —"

"That was two million berries worth of gold you stole," Kuwagata said.

Nami stuttered, trying to find a way out. "I-If you let me go, I'll show you my breasts for twenty percent off!"

Kuwagata stared at Nami's desperate attempts with a blank expression, "...Really?"

"...Thirty percent off?"

"Enough of this, just give me back my money."

Before Kuwagata could interrogate her further, a black shoe flew toward his head, but Yuurei blocked it. A man in a black tuxedo, with blond hair covering his right eye and a cigarette in his mouth, jumped off Yuurei and landed on his feet next to Nami.

"Head back to the others, Nami. I'll handle this bastard myself." The blonde man said to Nami.

Nami nodded and dashed off in the opposite direction. The blonde man glared at Kuwagata, who now held Yuurei in a defensive stance.

"Who are you?" Kuwagata asked.

The guy in the tuxedo pulled out a lighter from his pocket and lit his cigarette. He took a long inhale, then blew the smoke out. "I'm the guy who is going to kick your ass. Now let me ask you a question: hasn't your mother ever taught you that it is wrong to harass a lady?" He asked the question harshly.

"I can say with certainty that I wasn't going to do anything malicious to her; all I was doing was asking for the two million berries she wrongfully stole from me," Kuwagata tried to reassure him, but the guy in the tuxedo wouldn't listen.

"Shut up! You're worse than that! As far as I'm concerned, you deserved every single berry you had taken away from you!" He assumed a stance resembling a leg-style martial arts stance.

Kuwagata, knowing there was no way out, took an offensive position, ready to fight him. It was a good thing they were in a more secluded part of town; now Kuwagata could fight without worrying about innocent bystanders getting hurt, or worse.

The blonde man shot forward, drew his foot back, and channeled energy into it before yelling, "Mouton!" Kuwagata braced for impact and blocked the flurry of kicks with his weapon, Yuurei. He pushed the blonde man off, sending him airborne as he crashed to the ground. The blonde man gritted his teeth as he charged at Kuwagata again, ready for another attack. He leaped into the air, raising his foot for a roundhouse kick aimed straight at Kuwagata's neck.

"Collier!"

Kuwagata immediately blocked the kick and jumped above the blonde man, striking him on the head. The blonde man went crashing into the concrete below them. Kuwagata landed next to the mini crater where the blonde man lay and turned his back for a moment. However, he quickly spun around when the same man got up again.

The blonde man huffed, "You're going to regret that, bastard."

Kuwagata sighed, "If you really want to do this, then so be it. I enjoy a good fight anyway."

"I'm going to be king of the piraaaaates!!!!!"

The two stopped midway through their charge and looked in the direction the voice came from; then lightning struck from the same place.

"What the heck?" Kuwagata said in confusion.

"Damn it!" I'll deal with you later!" The blond guy ran off to where the lightning struck down.

Kuwagata watched him disappear into the crowd ahead, then backed up slowly in the opposite direction.

***

Kuwagata stood in front of the ship adorned with a large goat head at the front, holding a big white cloth in his left hand. This had to be the ship that Nami and that Tuxedo guy sailed on. As he docked his vessel, he remembered seeing a blond guy and another with green hair arguing as they walked off the ship. Kuwagata intended to rob this ship and take the money he believed he was owed. He knew this was wrong, but at that moment, he didn't care. After what Nami had done to him over two years ago, he felt this was the least he could do to get his revenge. He jumped high and landed flawlessly on the ship's rails, scanning his surroundings to see if anyone was on board.

'Looks like the coast is clear,' Kuwagata thought.

He jumped off the rails and started searching the ship for where the gold was stashed. "Think, Kuwagata, if I were gold, where would I be stashed..." Kuwagata searched the bedrooms, private chambers, kitchen, and even the bathroom, but found nothing. He decided to return to one of the private chambers to see if the gold was hidden in there.

*CREEK*

He accidentally put more weight on his right leg, and one of the wooden planks rose. Kuwagata removed the false plank, and there it was, the stashed gold in all of its shiny glory. "Bingo." He laid out the cloth and placed the gold on it. He collected until it filled the cloth.

"That should be enough debt to pay." Kuwagata folds the cloth around the gold, ties it into a knot, and effortlessly hoists the huge bag of gold behind his back with one hand. Kuwagata heads out of the private chamber and makes his way off the ship before they catch him.

"Please don't steal it."

Kuwagata stopped in his tracks and looked around frantically. It sounded like someone was speaking in his mind, which confused and annoyed him a bit. "Who's there!? Who said that!?"

"Please don't steal their treasure."

Kuwagata hesitated, almost letting go of the bag, but quickly regained his composure and tightened his grip. "I refuse to let another voice in my head stop me from leaving."

Kuwagata jumped out of the ship and landed on the dock. Unfortunately for him, others were there to see him jump off their ship.

"That's the guy I was talking about!"

Kuwagata turned around and saw five people standing in front of him, each displaying a different expression. Three of them were familiar to him: Nami, who looked shocked; the serious, angry blonde guy; and the green-haired swordsman, who also looked serious. The other two were unfamiliar to Kuwagata. One was a guy with a long nose, whose legs were shaking badly, and who was sweating profusely. Finally, in the center stood a guy with a straw hat, wearing an unreadable expression.

"And he's stealing our money!" Nami shouted, pointing at the large bag he was carrying.

"Bastard, you planned to steal our gold from the start! Didn't you?" The blond guy took a fighting stance.

Kuwagata raised his hand in defense and pointed at Nami. "Relax, I only stole enough gold that this woman over there stole from me."

"Leave Nami out of this!" The blond guy shouted, stepping in front of Nami.

"That's more than enough reason to kick his butt!" Nami shouted.

"Yo, captain, do you want us to take care of him?" The green-haired swordsman asked the straw hat guy.

"For once, I agree with Mosshead."

"Shut it, curly brows!" The green-haired swordsman said angrily at the blonde.

"Y-yeah, and I could unleash my thousand-man army on this guy!" The long-nose guy said, fumbling for words.

"Wait, let him go, guys." The straw hat guy said.
"Eeeehhh!?!?" the rest of his crew, minus the swordsman, screamed in shock and confusion.

"You can't be serious, Luffy!" The blond guy shouted.

"Luffy, you'd better have some plan up your sleeve!" Nami screamed at the now-named straw hat guy.

"There is no plan; he is no threat, and I can sense that he has no ill intent," Luffy said to his crew.

"Well, if that's what the captain said," the green-haired guy said, releasing his grip on one of his swords.

"Tch, fine." The blonde guy begrudgingly listened to his captain.

"Come on, Luffy, you can't let him take our gold!" Nami tried to plead with Luffy, but to no avail.

"Well, if you guys are going to just stand there, I will be taking my leave now. We will probably never meet again." Kuwagata walked past the five crew members and headed back to his ship.

Unfortunately, fate has different plans for our beetle-type friend. Kuwagata noticed a bunch of Marines running toward him. In the center of the lower-ranking Marines was a guy with white hair and two cigars. Based on what the civilians described, Kuwagata guessed this was Captain Smoker. Smoker stood a few inches away from Kuwagata, staring at him as if he were silently judging him. It didn't last long, though, when Smoker pulled out his jitte and pointed it at Kuwagata's forehead.

"Is this another recruited crewmate of yours, Straw Hat!?" Smoker shouted out at Luffy with his gruff voice.

"Oh, this is all a big misunderstanding, I'm not-"

"Yeah, he's part of our crew!"

Kuwagata looked at Luffy in shock, confusion, and disbelief at what he had just said.

"I see, Marines, capture them!"

The Marines started shooting at them, and Kuwagata, who jumped back to avoid the bullets, accidentally dropped the bag of gold in the water.

"No! Not the gold!!!" Nami shouted as she ran and crouched to the spot where the gold dropped. One of the Marines aimed their rifle at Nami.

Kuwagata, seeing this, moved as if his body had a mind of its own and hardened his skin to deflect the bullets in front of her. Nami looked up at Kuwagata, surprised at what he had just done.

"You...saved me?" Nami asked.

"Don't get it twisted, my body moved on its own," Kuwagata said.

A stretched-out hand grabbed Nami, and with a yelp, Luffy pulled her onto the ship, stretching his hand to pull in the others as well.

Kuwagata sensed the other bullets coming his way. He dodged them and, in a last-ditch effort, tried to convince the marines he wasn't part of their crew.

"You got the wrong idea, guys, I'm not even a pirate, just a simple —" Kuwagata is then pulled back by Luffy, extending his arm again and pulling into the ship as well.

"Alright, guys, set sail!!!" Luffy screamed at the top of his lungs.

The ship's sail unfurled, letting them escape quickly from the Marines, who tried to shoot it down, until they were too far out at sea.

 

[CrystalGauntlet]

Kuwagata hit his head on the pole holding the Jolly Roger as Luffy pulled him into the ship, knocking Him out. A large bump formed on his head, and his eyes became pure white.

***

The crew circled the unconscious guy lying on the floor, wondering what to do with him.

"So…what should we do with this guy?" The green-haired swordsman asked.

"Well, I vote to throw him off the ship!!" Nami yelled out.

"I agree with Nami-san!!!" The blonde-haired man said, his eyes turning into hearts as he waved his arms.

"I don't care what you guys do as long as he isn't a threat," the long-nosed man said.

"Take him to the bedrooms," Luffy ordered.

"What!?!?! Why!?!?!" Nami and the tuxedo guy shouted at the same time.

"I said take him to the bedroom hammocks," Luffy ordered again.

Nami punched him in the head, not liking anything her captain was saying.

"Are you Crazy!? In case you hadn't noticed, this was the guy who stole and lost most of our gold!" Nami shouted.

Luffy slowly got up from the blow and rubbed the bump on his head. "I know that you're all not so thrilled about my decision, but I just have a gut feeling that we should keep him on board the ship. Until then, I want all of you to treat him like he's a part of the crew."

The rest of the crew mostly reacted negatively, except for the swordsman, who seemed to stay neutral throughout.

"Hey, Zoro, Sanji, carry him," Luffy said

"Whatever you say, Captain." The green-haired, now named Zoro, obliged.

"Hell no! I won't help someone who tried to assault Nami-san!" The blonde man, now known as Sanji, stubbornly refused.

"Okay, Usopp, help Zoro."

"What!? Why me!?" The long-nosed man, now named Usopp, asked loudly in a panic.

"Because no one else will." Luffy bluntly said

"F-fine, but if he wakes up and starts wreaking havoc, I'm blaming this all on you!" Usopp helps Zoro, and they both carry Kuwagata to the bedroom hammocks.

***

Kuwagata opens his eyes slowly. His vision blurs for a second before his eyes fully adjust to the light. When his vision clears, he finds himself lying on a hammock in a room full of hammocks. He got up from the hammock and rubbed his head in slight pain, clearly still feeling the aftereffects from hitting his head hard.

"Ugh, where am I?" Kuwagata spotted the door and stepped off the ship, finding himself outside the Straw Hat Pirates' ship.

From what he saw, Zoro was sleeping at the left end of the ship, Usopp was working on an invention, and Luffy was sitting on a goat's head.

Usopp was the first to notice him and freaked out.

"Guys! He's awake!" Usopp yelled, waking Zoro.

"Huh, wha-?" Zoro said in confusion, until he also noticed Kuwagata coming down the stairs.

"Oh, look, you're finally awake," Zoro said to Kuwagata nonchalantly.

Luffy stretched out his arm to grab one of the poles, slingshotted himself toward Kuwagata, and landed perfectly on his feet a few inches away from the confused guy.

"I see you're finally awake! Welcome aboard our ship! My name is Monkey D. Luffy! The guy with the swords is Zoro, the guy with the long nose is Usopp, the girl with the orange hair is Nami, and the guy who doesn't like you is Sanji!" Luffy said with his unwavering bright smile.

Kuwagata looked at Luffy, confused, mostly because not only is he on a ship that isn't his, but their captain is welcoming him with open arms, the total opposite of the others. "What happened, and why am I here?"

"You're on my ship after I saved you from that Smoker guy!" Luffy said

"...And how long have I been out?" Kuwagata asked

Luffy thought for a minute and placed his hand under his chin.

"Hmm…About six hours, give or take."

"Six hours!? But my ship and all of my stuff are in Loguetown! Please, you need to take me back!" Kuwagata freaked out and begged.

"Sorry, buddy, but unless you want the Marines to arrest you, you're stuck here with us," Zoro said, then thought for a moment. "Now that I think about it, they think you're part of our crew; they probably have already put a bounty on your head now," Zoro said, slyly smirking at him.

Kuwagata slumped to the floor, realizing he might be a wanted man now. "But I'm not a pirate…I'm just a traveler…" Kuwagata said hopelessly.

"Don't worry, new guy! Being a pirate is a million times better than being a simple traveler! Once you get used to your new life, you'll never want to go back!" Luffy said, slapping Kuwagata's back.

Nami walked out of the kitchen, with Sanji right behind her, eyes like hearts.

"Alright, guys, we're on course to Reverse Mou-"

Nami stopped mid-sentence when she saw Kuwagata slumped on the floor in pure despair. Nami freaked out and hid behind Sanji.

"Please protect me, Sanji!"

"Anything for you, Nami-san!" Sanji swooningly said.

Sanji's eyes returned to normal as he looked back at Kuwagata.

"You're lucky that my captain wanted to keep you on board; otherwise, I would have tossed you into the sea myself."

Nami quickly entered the room she'd come from, with Sanji still swooning over her.

Luffy crouched to Kuwagata's level, his smile still wide and unwavering.

"So, what's your name, spotty hair?" Luffy asked nonchalantly.

Kuwagata slowly raised his gaze to meet Luffy's gaze. "You took me onto your ship against my will, and you think I'm going to tell you my name?" Kuwagata asked Luffy in disbelief.

"Yes."

"...It's Kuwagata"

"Nice to have you aboard, Kabuto!"

"What? No! It's Kuwagata!"

Luffy tilts his head in confusion.

"Isn't that what I said?"

"No, you said Kabuto; it's Kuwagata! Ku-wa-ga-ta!"

"That's what I said, Kabuto!"

"No! My name is Stag-beetle, not Rhinoceros-Beetle, damn it!"

"...What's the difference?"

Kuwagata gives up on trying to correct him and slumps back to the ground.

"Oh, forget it…hmm?"

Kuwagata got up and raised his hand as if letting something small land on it.

"What's gotten into you all of a sudden?" Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow.

Kuwagata rushed to one side of the ship, hoping the waves were still running. Unfortunately, not everyone's wishes come true. Kuwagata looked down at the water, and to his horror, the water was still.

"Oh, no…"

"What's wrong, Kabuto?"

Kuwagata looked at them with panic in his eyes. "Guys, I think we're in the…"

Nami bursts through the door, with Sanji behind her. She has the same panicked expression. "Guys, we've accidentally entered the calm belt!"

"...What's a calm belt?" Luffy asked

"You don't know what the calm belt is!?" Kuwagata asked in disbelief.

"Should we?" Zoro asked

Kuwagata facepalmed. "For the love of—look, between the grandline, there are two ocean belts called the calm belts, which is where we are stuck right now."

"It's called the calm belt, right? And it's pretty peaceful here, so what's the problem here?" Zoro asked.

"The problem is that there are no water currents here; we're sitting ducks here!" Nami explained.

Kuwagata started. "But the worst part is…"

Kuwagata was interrupted when multiple sea kings emerged from the water, looking at the ship hungrily.

"This is the home of the sea kings!" Kuwagata shouted, freaking out with the rest of the Straw Hat crew.

"Do you guys have any paddles!?" Kuwagata frantically asked them.

"Already have them!" Sanji and Zoro spoke at the same time.

Kuwagata sensed something larger. "Guys, we've got a bigger company!"

Another sea creature burst from the sea, forcing the ship back and the other sea kings to move out of the way. It was ten times bigger than all
the other sea creatures, and they lowered their bodies in fear.

"What the heck is that!?" Usopp asked, completely terrified.

Nami mumbled, equally terrified, tears pouring down her face as she gave a despairing smile.

"What are you trying to say, Nami?" Zoro asked.

"This is even worse than all of these sea creatures combined! This is a sea emperor. They are at least ten times stronger and sturdier than your average sea king. But judging by its eyes and skin, it's probably even tougher than that!" Nami blurted out.

"That's not good," Sanji said, sweating

Zoro readied his blades. "Looks like our only way is through them."

Luffy raised his fists, readying an attack. "One gum-gum pistol should do the trick!" Luffy punched the Sea Emperor… nothing happened. "Huh, guess I'll have to use a stronger attack!"

"Luffy, you idiot!" Nami shouted.

The massive creature glared down at the ship, clearly furious about Luffy's actions. The sea emperor lunged at the vessel, preparing to swallow it whole. It opened its jaws wide.

Kuwagata launched himself into the air and drove his fist straight between the creature's eyes. The impact cracked across the Calm Belt like thunder. The Sea Emperor's pupils rolled back, its massive body tipping backward before crashing into the ocean with a tidal splash.

Nami watched in shock and disbelief. "No way…he took it down in one hit…"

"Wow, he's strong," Luffy said with a wide smile.

Kuwagata turned sharply to the Straw Hats. "Paddle, like your lives depend on it, because they do!" Kuwagata shouted to Zoro and Sanji.

"Don't tell me what to do!" Zoro and Sanji spoke simultaneously again.

The two paddled as fast as they could and escaped the calm belt.

***

After a few minutes of paddling, they were back on the ocean current near Reverse Mountain. The Straw Hats and Kuwagata huff and puff after that scary event.

"We made it back to the ocean currents…" Nami said, spotting the red line in the distance

"Guys, I see the red line ahead!"

The rest of the Straw Hats and Kuwagata looked ahead in amazement.

"Whoa!!! It's massive!!!" Luffy shouted out.

"Wow, you can't even see the top of it from these clouds," Kuwagata said.

"Wait a minute."

Nami spotted the Red Line's entrance. It looked like the water was going up the mountain instead of down.

"The entrance to the waterway is going up! We have to go up the mountain!" Nami shouted.

"I can't believe my eyes…" Zoro said

"It's quite the sight," Sanji said with a smirk.

"Alright! Get a good grip on the rudder, guys!" Luffy shouted out

"On it, Captain!" Sanji and Usopp said and entered the room with the rudder.

Holding the ship steady, they successfully entered the mountain.

"We made iiiiiit!!!" Luffy shouted from the top of his rubber lungs.

The Straw Hats celebrated for a little while, and Kuwagata stood there, feeling like the crew's third wheel. So much has happened to him in so little time.

Luffy stretched his arm, looped it around Kuwagata's neck, and pulled him in.

"Come on, Kabuto! Lighten up! We made it!"

Kuwagata can't help but smile as he celebrates with Luffy.

The ship reaches the peak of the reverse mountain. With how fast the ship is going, the ship launches off the mountain a little.

Kuwagata looked in utter awe at the beautiful view: the sky, the sparkling water in the air, and the rainbow the water had created. The whole
view was like a photo waiting to be taken.

The ship stayed in the air a little longer before landing back on the descending part of the reverse mountain at great speed.

"Guys, I can see the Grand Line from here!" Luffy shouted to his crew.

*GROOOOOOO*

Kuwagata immediately covered his ears in pain.

"Hey, what's wrong with you suddenly?" Zoro asked.

Kuwagata squinted at the descending waterfall, and his face shifted from pain to shock and fear. "Guys, we need to stop this ship, right now!"

"We don't take orders from you!" Sanji shouted

"I don't think he's lying; I can hear it too," Zoro objected.

Sanji used a pair of binoculars to see what was causing the noise.

"I hate to agree with Mosshead, but I am starting to see he's not lying. I see some kind of mountain up ahead!" Sanji said, looking ahead as well.

"Don't be ridiculous, there should be no mountains right in front of the entrance!"

"Guys, it's not a mountain…" Kuwagata said, dread on his face.

The fog cleared, and the thought-to-be mountain wasn't a mountain at all; instead, it was a—

"It's a giant whale!" They all shouted in unison.

"We need to slow down this ship immediately!" Kuwagata shouted at them.

"Idiot, we don't have enough time to slow this ship!" Sanji shouted at him.

"Then our only option is to go around it quickly!"

Sanji, Zoro, and Usopp rushed to the rudder and turned the ship tight. Unfortunately, the water currents weren't exactly cooperating.

"It's no use, the water currents are too strong to make a hard turn!" Nami shouted in horror.

"Don't give up, just keep turning right!" Zoro shouted.

"Don't you think that's what I'm doing!?" Sanji angrily asked him.

The ship got closer and closer to the massive whale.

"We're going to crash!" Usopp yelled out.

Luffy fired a cannon from the ship, hitting the whale's lower body with a massive explosion. The shot slowed the ship significantly, but the Going Merry's head hit the whale and flew off toward Kuwagata, who caught it with both hands.

"W-Who fired that shot?" Kuwagata asked.

"No! Not my special seat!" Luffy yelled, clutching his temples, then stormed out of one of the rooms, an enraged look on his face.

Kuwagata didn't want to think any further. "Quick, steer the ship to the right before it notices us!"

They steered the ship and passed the whale; it looked like they were about to succeed until…

"How dare you ruin my favorite seat!" Luffy shouted, winding up his fist, then drove the punch into the whale's eye. To say the rest of the crew and Kuwagata were in total despair would be an understatement.

"That's what you get for wrecking the Going Merry! If you think that's all you're getting, well, you're —"

"Shut up!" Kuwagata punched Luffy hard in the head, knocking him to the ground.

The whale lets out a mighty roar again, and since Kuwagata can't take that much noise up close, he falls unconscious to the ground.

***

Kuwagata slowly opens his eyes to a peaceful blue sky and the sound of calm water.

"Is this heaven?" Kuwagata groggily asked himself.

"Oh, you're finally awake. Welcome back to the land of the living," Zoro said.

"Huh?"

Kuwagata sat up to take in his surroundings.

"Where are we?"

"Inside the whale, apparently," Zoro said.

"We got eaten? This isn't what I had in mind for what the inside of a whale looked like."

"Young man, there are plenty of things you don't understand about this world."

Kuwagata stood up and saw a small island with an elderly man sitting in a chair, staring intensely at him.

"Um, right…uh, who are you and where are we?"

The man stared at him with the same intense look that made him uncomfortable.

"Don't you know it's rude to ask someone's name before—"

"Stop doing that already!!!!" The Straw Hats yell at the old man.

"As I said before, it's a running gag!" The old man retorts.

"Did I miss something?" Kuwagata asked, all confused

"Don't worry about it; all you need to know is that that man's name is Crocus, and we're stuck inside this whale with no visible exit in sight," Zoro explained.

"Oh, the exit is right over there."

Crocus pointed to the large door gates behind the ship.

"It was right behind us the whole time!?" The Straw Hats shouted in unison.

"...That was easy," Kuwagata said.

"Wait, we can't leave this place without Luffy," Zoro informed his crewmates.

"Yeah, but we don't know where he is," Sanji said.

The entire area starts shaking, and the water, or more specifically, the acid here, moves rapidly, creating huge waves.

"What's going on!?"

"Damn it, it's too early!" Crocus said in worry.

Crocus suddenly dived into the acid, shocking Kuwagata and the Straw Hats.

"Is he insane!? That's acid!" Kuwagata shouted.

Crocus emerged from the acid, climbed a ladder beside the gates, and entered through the door at the top.

"That's one tough guy…"

A while later, the rumbling and waves ceased.

"Looks like the whale has calmed down," Nami said.

"Can someone please tell me what's going on?" Kuwagata asked.

The Straw Hats summarized Laboom and his past to Kuwagata.

"Wow, that is very heart-touching, a whale still waiting for his friends even after all those years."

"I said the same thing!" Usopp agreed.

Suddenly, Luffy and two other strangers burst through the doors with Crocus. One was a girl with long blue hair, and the other was a guy with the number nine on both cheeks.

"Oh, hey gu-"

Luffy didn't have time to finish his sentence when he and the others fell into the acid.

"Luffy!!!" The Straw Hats shouted out at their captain.

***

Kuwagata tied up the now-named Mr. Nine and Ms. Wednesday. Now the latter two are surrounded by the Straw Hats and Kuwagata, the latter with a half-lidded expression, looking love-struck at the blue-haired girl, who was uncomfortable with him being so close to her.

"So, you two were the cause of Laboom's tantrum," Kuwagata said.

"That's right! We need that whale to feed our entire village, and we would have gotten away with it if it wasn't for that rubbery brat!" Mr. Nine said.

"These guys are despicable," Usopp said.

They got free from their bindings and stood close to the edge of the mountain.

"It's been fun, but we have to go," Ms. Wednesday said.

"Hasta La Vista!"

They both jumped into the ocean and swam away.

"Um, should we stop them?" Kuwagata asked.

"Let them go; they aren't a threat to us," Zoro nonchalantly said, sitting on the ground with his hands behind his head.

"But I wanted the blue chick to come with us…" Sanji said, distraught.

"Seriously?" Kuwagata said, narrowing his eyes at Sanji.

"Shut up, dirty mop! You don't get to criticize me!" Sanji yelled.

"Dirty mop?" Kuwagata thought to himself about the strange name.

"What's with the sudden nickname?"

"Well, for starters, you're tall, your hair is long, and those white dots make your hair look extremely filthy!"

The Straw Hats and Kuwagata jumped up in surprise at Nami's bloodcurdling scream.

"What's wrong, Nami!? If it's food you want, I could make you the best food you want!" Sanji said with his heart eyes.

"The compass is broken; it's moving in all directions!" Nami wallowed in despair.

"...You guys seriously weren't going to traverse into the grandline with just a compass, were you?" Kuwagata asked Nami.

"You dare question Nami's navigation skills!?" Sanji said, lunging to kick Kuwagata in the face.

Kuwagata dodged the oncoming kick, then another flurry of kicks from the guy in a tuxedo. After dodging another flurry of kicks, Kuwagata had had enough, grabbed both of Sanji's legs, and threw him off the mountain and into the ocean.

"Quit trying to kick me!" Kuwagata shouted in annoyance and frustration.

"Nice throw," Zoro said.

***

Crocus explained the Grand Line's magnetic fields and that the only thing that can help you traverse these dangerous waters is a Log Pose.

"But we don't have a Log Pose; how are we supposed to get through the grandline?" Usopp asked.

"You know, I had a Log Pose…," Kuwagata said.

"You do!?!" The Straw Hats, minus Zoro and Luffy, said in unison.

"Why didn't you tell us about this sooner!?" Nami angrily shouted at Kuwagata

"Okay, I think you misheard me. I said I had it, not that I still have it; that thing is in Loguetown."

"Well, tough luck that mind of yours gave you!"

Kuwagata squinted, furrowing his eyebrows until veins bulged on his forehead.

"...I'm sorry for yelling at you." Nami bowed rapidly in front of him.

"He put fear in Nami!" Usopp said, flabbergasted.

"Do not worry, I'll give you one as thanks for helping Laboon." Crocus gives Nami the log pose.

"Oh, we're saved, thank you very much!" Nami said, with comical tears pouring from her eyes.

Sanji got back to his crew with Mr. Nine and Ms. Wednesday. "Hey! These guys want a favor from us."

The duo wants the Straw Hats to take them back to Whiskey Peak, and Luffy immediately agrees since that was their next destination anyway. They all board the ship, say their goodbyes to Crocus, and set sail for Whiskey Peak.

***

Kuwagata leaned on the ship's railing, listening to the water. Everything up till this point had happened so fast to him, so this was a nice change of pace, a chance to relax and not think about anything at the moment. That was, of course, until he felt someone tapping at his shoulder.

Kuwagata turned around to see all the Straw Hats looking at him with various expressions. Zoro and Luffy stood with neutral expressions, Sanji with a serious and angry face, Nami with beads of sweat running down her face, and Usopp with a surprisingly curious look.

"We want to ask you a question," Sanji said.

Kuwagata looked at them nervously but kept his expression firm. "And what would that be?"

"Why do you hate Nami so much!" Sanji said, getting into Kuwagata's face before Zoro pulled him away.

"What bushy brows meant to say was, what's your grudge with Nami?"

"Yeah, I get that she has done some shady stuff, but what could she have done to garner this much hatred towards her?" Usopp asked.

Kuwagata had a feeling this would be brought up sooner or later, but complied since they were his only source of transportation at the moment.

"If you want to know, then I'll tell you…"