Chapter 24

A/N: As promised. Here's the last update before I go dark.

Timber Bay, Sunrise

Oh man are they riled up.

"You four go that way!" "Bastard's creepin' 'round here somewhere!" "Find him! Find him!"

Even after factoring in all the apathy and utter disregard these people seem to possess for their fellow man I'm still surprised at how long it took them to get organized. I thought at most I'd only get an hour or so in before some sort of alarm went out.

Instead I pretty much got to do as I pleased the entire night. Finished filling up the first brig right around 4:30 in the morn and had to move on to the next ship in the lineup. Typical captures were usually worth somewhere in the 50k-80k range but the existence of data outliers did make the actual average quite a bit higher. Highlights from my night include some of the following.

Findorr Carzan. Bounty: 510,000. A real blast from the past this one. Remember that mafia group I got mixed up with back in Caeba? This fellow's one of the goons for what was a rival family of theirs. His description said he was searching for certain information on this island on behalf of his Don, which is a plot hook I am willfully choosing to ignore. I'll let the Marines handle the interrogations on that one. My time is better spent on larger projects.

'Butcher Boy' Morrell. Bounty: 980,000. Not actually a boy at all but rather a man grown who, back when he was 17, butchered several of his neighbors because he -and I'm quoting my [Observe] here- "found them too ugly to live". And not ugly in some metaphorical sense where they were in actuality awful people. Just normal ugly. People who had the simple misfortune of being born with faces hard to look at. I like to think that now he'll find himself hard to look at considering my punch destroyed half his teeth.

Quianna Larson. Bounty: 2,200,000. The first person I've encountered with a price on their head despite only being Lv.4. I almost passed her over as a potential target but her title of 'Black Widow' somewhat gave the game away. See, Quianna the silly silly woman, thought she could get away with poisoning her new husband and taking all of his money. Wasn't the best plan considering the man in question was a Marine officer and the larger organization tends to get pretty upset when you kill one of their young up-and-comers. Her desperate flight to avoid capture eventually landed her in the shithole of Timber Bay where she's been scraping by, scamming whatever gold and silver she could off of the horny and far too drunk.

The biggest unexpected prize of the night though without a doubt goes to one Neegan Ned Needler -try saying that five times fast- and his bounty of 6.45 million which I was just oh so delighted to discover. Listen up kids. If you ever join a gang of pirates, reach a high position by committing all sorts of foul shit against humanity, only to later disband because your captain was killed... you do not get to just walk away from that a free man. Now you might stay under the radar for a while. Maybe a month. Maybe a year. Maybe even three years and five weeks in the case of Mr. Needler. But sooner or later that shit comes back on you. You'll be closing up your bar just after midnight one day when someone like me rushes in from behind and puts your skull through that door you just locked.

I watch the search parties scurry about, checking down alleyways and kicking awake drunkards who napped outside all night. It's kind of funny really. I guess that old adage is true. 'People don't think to just look up.'

Stepping away from the rooftop ledge I stretch my arms overhead and let out a simple yawn. By all rights I should feel more tired than I actually am from working all night and yet my body's still eager to go for more. Maybe I'll try to fit in a nap around noon. Then I can wake up, have a little dinner for breakfast and get right back-

"He's there! On the roof!" My neck lolls around to the next building over where a wide-eyed Lv.9 is pointing at me from a ladder. "I've found him! I've found h-" his voice cuts off as my knee slams into his nose and his face seems to fold in on itself.

With eyes whited out the unlucky soul named 'Jayne' crashes into the dirt below and I make a quick [Observe] of his profile. 'Oof. This one's not even a criminal. My bad guy. You can't be doing things like that though. How else-'

Sparks of gunfire chip the stone ledge near my feet and I blur away from the rooftop!

The impromptu leader of the hunting party lowers his rifle in shock. "What the-! Where'd he-?" His morning meal nearly splatters over the ground as my fist sinks in and up into his stomach. On his left, Lv. 7 'Marcus' fumbles to draw the dagger resting in his belt while on the right Lv. 11 'Chūichi' tries to readjust his flintlock down towards me. The fourth mans yelping like he just got jump-scared. Five and six still have yet to take their focus off the rooftop. Seven's head is just now turning to me, and eight is throwing a purely reactionary, not at all aimed, right hook at my sudden appearance.

And they're all moving just so slow.

Even if [Bullet Time] wasn't active. Even if my DEX were only half of what it actually is.

Just so so slow.

There's a whirlwind of movement. Wrists get snapped. Jaws get cracked. And in no time at all the last of the eight men collapses unconsciously to the ground. With a satisfied breath I dust off my hands and take a look at what prizes we've earned. 'Alright let's see, we've got...75,000...58,000...nothing...Ooo 400K that's nice...120,000...nothing...36,000 bleh...and #8 is...nothing.' I dismiss the [Observe] boxes with a mental wave and begin collecting the five with prices attached. 'Not too bad. Cracked beyond half a mil this time. That's better than most trips.'

Without a word needing to be said Kiwi lands down near me and, clearly wanting to be helpful, wraps his talons around two of the unconscious men. "Kee! Kee Kee Wee!" he announces with a little preen.

"Well good morning to you too buddy. You get some good rest?"

"Wee Wee!"

I nod along with a laugh. "Oh I see. Well I certainly appreciate you coming to help. After this though just stay on the ship for me okay? There's a lot of guns on this island and the last thing I need is you getting clipped in the wing."

"Wee! Kee-Wee Wee Kee Kee?"

"Sure thing buddy." I chuckled. "You stay put and you can have an extra snack at lunch."

"Wee!"

A fourth bullet exploded into the corpse followed by a fifth. Blood splurted across the wooden planks of the floor and I cocked the hammer again. A final shot, this time to the head, and I finally feel my breath start to calm as I'm now 300% sure he's dead. 'Holy fuck...that could've been bad..'

I admit it. I was a bit too cocky when I strolled into the inn/tavern that Lannery Storm and her ilk had taken over. It seemed like a simple enough task. Just bust down the door and start knocking heads. I knew she didn't have a Devil Fruit. I knew her first and second mates didn't either. Nothing about her crew seemed threatening. Her level was by a wide margin the best at 33 while no one else even broke into the 20's.

Should've been simple. I've taken worse odds and come out without a scratch.

Never even crossed my mind that one of the grunts might have a Fruit with the potential to kill me in a single touch.

He seemed like just another Lv.10 in the crowd. Not a single unique thing in his dress or appearance to distinguish him from his peers. I was going to take him down in close-quarters just as I had his four nearest friends...when he swiped his hand at a table... and reality sneezed.

Wood. Glass. Metal. All the items atop the table plus the table itself were suddenly flying through the air at me in a fluid liquidy state while still paradoxically being solid matter. It mixed together, blending and sloshing, until the physics-defying amalgam slammed into the back wall with an unearthly shatter that anyone's ear could tell you was unnatural.

The man got half a sentence deep into bragging about the Splash-Splash Fruit and the power to splash anything before my revolver was aimed at his chest and I gunned him down with extreme prejudice. In a way that objectively speaking he probably didn't deserve.

I don't have a formalized 'survival guide' for this world. There's no enumerated list of 'rules to live by' that I've got compiled somewhere. But if I did have one...one of the first items on there would be that you do not fuck around with Paramecia's that can do shit like that.

For all I know one grazing brush against my chest could've sent my insides splattering across the room. 'And to think I almost tried to melee him..'

Do I know for sure his Fruit had the power to do that? Hell no. I don't have a clue what he could or couldn't do and that's the point.

A strained groaning comes from the corner of the inn as Lannery pushes away the hulking 300 pound subordinate that I had tossed at her during the scuffle. Using her cutlass as leverage the captain manages to rise to one knee before she winces sharply in pain. 'No doubt feeling that kick to the ribs from earlier.' On shaky legs she manages to get halfway steady on her feet and as a professional courtesy I don't immediately rush over to knock her back down.

With heavy breaths and a furrowed brow leaking red the pirate raises her arm and looses a trio of pocket-sized smoke bombs from the innards of her sleeve. Three great puffs of white engulf the center of the room and shorty after there's sounds of glass shattering as a silhouette forces herself through a window.

'Aww, she thinks she can run. Isn't that just adorable?'

'[Kami-e], [Kami-e], [Kami-e].' Beckett's sabre continues to swing with abandon, slicing with such intensity that lines of air get visibly displaced from his effort. A splinter of wood cracks off the mizzen mast from an errant pressure wave. Deep gouges are forming in the stairs that lead up to the helm. The railing behind me is slowly ruined as tens of novice-level flying slashes shred it to pieces.

"Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!" The strongest man on Timber Bay -other than yours truly of course- continues to chant like a madman. He's caught in some sort of loop. His arm swings the sword, my body bends out of the way, his rage refreshes, his mind stays clouded, and then he swings the sword again.

To be frank I'm not sure he even still qualifies as 'conscious' at this point. He's just this angry, red-faced, sword-swinging...thing.

Isn't stopping any of his little sycophants from cheering him on though.

"You've got 'im on the ropes Captain!"

"Show that bastard why you don't mess with the 'Brass Pirates'!"

"Hah! All he can do is dodge! Our Captain's gonna kill the 'Sparrow'!

"Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!"

The blade passes by my nose again and I note a slight distortion to their voices now that [Bullet Time] has recently upgraded to Lv.7. It's not really enough to be annoying, and it certainly isn't affecting my ability to understand words -as anyone who's ever watched a video at ¾ speed can attest to-, but it does hint at the fact that somewhere down the line this ability will eventually start having a downside. 'Can only imagine how many years that will take though. Took roughly two months just to go from (6/30) → (7/30) and keeping in mind how each level takes longer than its predecessor... unless I can pick up an absolute crap ton of [Skill Disk]'s somewhere in the future.. I doubt I'm ever seeing (30/30) on this one.'

Ding!

Skill Lv up! Rokushiki Technique #5 of 6. (Kami-e). Lv. (46/50) → (47/50)

-One of the vaunted 'Six Powers.' By handing control of their movements over to the subtle currents in the air, users of this technique can twist their body around attacks and briefly coast along the wind. Masters of this [Skill] can flatten their forms to be paper thin or even invent their own variations of this technique.

My hand clenches down over the berserkers wrist mid-swing. "Thanks for the help." I announce as his trance suddenly breaks. "You got me closer." With a sharp twist Beckett gets tossed over my shoulder and -with a little [Geppo] kick to his sternum for propulsion- plows straight through the wall leading to his private quarters.

"EHHH!?" The surrounding crew responds in unison, their jaws on the floor and eyes comically wide. "THE CAPTAIN GOT DEFEA-"

Three of the loudest mooks suddenly drop as tiny bullets of compressed air strike them near the temple. The others scramble to try and dogpile me but it only makes sniping them off all the easier. I'm not exactly sure when my [Skill] level became high enough to reproduce the 'Tobu Shigan' -also known as the 'Flying Finger Gun'- but I do know that it is very quickly becoming one of the top contenders for 'favorite technique I've blatantly stolen.' 'Not that anything can beat the sheer exhilaration of [Geppo], but the #2 spot is definitely up for grabs.'

The deck of the ship thumps as bodies collapse onto the floorboards one after another. 'Though I do wonder why mine only does blunt damage as opposed to piercing. I mean, it still works so long as I nail 'em in the forehead but I could've sword Rob Lucci's version managed to draw blood.' Beckett flies out of the hole in the wall with bloodshot eyes and his sword in a reverse grip. The blade begins to spin as he prepares some named technique...and with a few finger flicks he's dropped the weapon and is flinching backward, one forced backstep at a time. 'Maybe it's because Lucci has claws. They must add a sharpness element to it. That doesn't quite explain how Stussy managed to kill with the technique though. Unless..she didn't? I don't think it was quite clear whether Du Feld died or not. Was her 'Finger Gun' actually just as blunt as mine?'

My second hand joins my first in pelting the pirate with a barrage of aerial flicks. None of them really do a ton of damage -outside of headshots that is-, but that's not their purpose. Their value lies in that they keep Beckett perma-stunned. All he can do is stumble backward as his health chips lower.

One last air bullet slams into Beckett's shin and his legs finally give way beneath him. "I yield...I yield.." he gasps from his hands and knees. A palm weakly raises up towards me, "Mercy...please."

"Oh Beckett.." I speak gently, almost pityingly, as I switch my 'Finger Gun' out for a real one. "I've read your poster. I know what you've done." My thumb cocks back the hammer. "No."

+445 Exp!

With that business done I go about clearing text windows and am happy to notice that there's one saying that [Shigan] has grown again. From (40/50) → (41/50). 'Close. I'm so close. Just nine more in [Shigan]. Three more in [Kami-e]. Then I'll gain access. I can feel it.'

The secret 'Seventh Power' that only one member of CP9 was able to unlock.

A legendary skill that's only possible when combining a complete mastery of the other six.

The Rokuogan.

I squinted my eyes as I spotted the massive prison ship approaching on the horizon. "You know lieutenant, you really know how to kill a guys fun. I was thiiiss close to filling up that fourth brig. I really wanted to go five for five."

Yuriko rolls her eyes and tries to hide her wisp of a smile. "Not my fault you didn't think about the logistics. Do you have any idea how much bread and water it takes to feed that many prisoners each day? We can't just hold onto them for the whole blockade. Of course we're going to pass them off."

"But my progress..." I pretended to whine, my voice laced with faux dramaticism. "Now I'm going to have to start all over… three whole days of filling jail cells, undone in an afternoon."

"Weeeell not all undone," Yuriko teases with amusement. "The prison ship's only accepting the first 500. That still leaves quite a few on our end. You can think of them as a head start on your second attempt. Lt. Kyler's got a betting pool open on how fast you can fill them up again y'know? Wanna help me take 'im to the cleaners?"

Letting the theatrics fall away for a moment I heave out a long sigh. "...I can't just stay here indefinitely Yuriko. Well actually I could but I don't know how productive I would be at this point. The people have pretty much entirely evacuated the streets. It's all just entrenched positions and rifles pointing out of boarded windows now. Usually can't even tell who's inside until you smash down the door."

A hand ran through my hair as a dark chuckle rumbled in my throat. "Did I tell you? A seven year old shot at me earlier today. Not that I knew it at the time. I saw the gun flash and..well lets just say I'm really really glad my retaliation strike missed because it turned out to just be a couple of terrified brothel workers and their kids. Nothing quite kills your mood like a child crying 'I'm sorry Mr. Bad Man please don't take us away too'."

I glance back to the lieutenant and see the conflicting emotions playing across her face. "Sorry," I apologize. "I'm ranting a bit I guess. This whole islands just such a shitshow. It's hard to believe I originally flew out here thinking all it needed was a few rounds of spring cleaning."

"So what's your plan going forward then?"

I blew a bit of air out as the question I've been contemplating myself got asked. "I'm not sure. The pirate ships in the bay have been neutralized. Got all three captains, though some of DePietro's crew and his first mate is still hunkered down somewhere in there. Demolished basically all of the shoreline artillery so you guys could go marching in if you really wanted to...though that'll just invite your men getting potshots taken at them. I'll probably hang around at least a couple more days. Progress is gonna be a lot slower going though."

Alert! Your [Den-Den-Mushi] is ringing!

Taking the snail out is an almost subconscious action by this point. Phone starts ringing, your arm just naturally reaches to go pick it up. "What's up Mori? You getting-"

"It's him!It's him!It's him!It's him!It's him!" The definitely not Mori voice spits in a panic. "The one you said would come here again! Please! I can't afford to pay any more! We barely put food on the table as is-"

"KIWI!" I suddenly roar to the bird who's fishing nearby. "We gotta go!"

Yuriko's posture is flustered by the sudden tonal shift. "Jack, what's going on?" she asks with her arms slightly flailing. "Who is that-"

I yank the receiver close to my mouth. "Where are you! What island!"

"Jongvale! I'm in Jongvale village!" he woman blubbers. "Please! He's already landing!"

In less than 90 seconds my partner and I are in the air with Timber Bay disappearing behind us. My riding equipment is securely fixed, the wind's on our side, and we have an easy straight heading! 'Jongvale! Not where I would've bet on but talk about a lucky break! I think of all the locations on my list only Rochdale is closer.'

The clouds zoom by as Kiwi pushes himself to the task. Its a race against the clock and neither of us feels like losing. "Come on buddy! You got this! Today's the day we catch him!" 10 minutes goes by and a storm rumbles in the west before disappearing as we pass it.

30 minutes goes by and Mercadia Kingdom appears as a shadow in the northeast. Five minutes more and it's a blip in the distance far to the south of us.

80 minutes goes by and two titanic Sea Kings wrestle each other at the surface of the water. The ocean is disturbed for miles around as their razor-like jaws continue to fail to find purchase upon the other.

2 hours and 17 minutes goes by and the small island containing Jongvale village appears right in our centerline. The silhouette slowly gains definition as trees and then houses begin to take shape. Kiwi begins to circle as he comes in for a landing but that gets put on hold as a small crowd forms beneath us. At it's head is my chosen volunteer, a financially lower-class mother of five who's still holding the Den-Den-Mushi I gifted her.

Then, all in unison, in what has to be something they agreed on the moment Kowalik left...they all point.

'Northwest. Somewhere between 310 and 315 degrees.' Flashing a large thumbs up to the crowd, I twist Kiwi's reins to break off his circling and zoom onward to our new bearing. "We've got him now buddy!"

Petilacounan is not a large island. Some charts don't even bother listing it.

It's a tiny, narrow spit of land that I'd wager is no more than two or three miles in width from tip to tip. Length-wise it's not even a quarter that. Despite the small area though the place is absolutely loaded with greenery. A few meters of white sandy beach is all that separates the ocean from a dense thicket of tropical trees and the typical accompaniment of leafy undergrowth.

Far below my eye-in-the-sky view from the clouds I watch the large paddle wheels of the Molderhulk finally come to a rest just outside the shallows and the ship seems to park itself. With a wave of his arm the minuscule blip I assume to be Kowalik fashions a simple boarding plank into existence, which then continuously extends under his power to ferry eight bodies safely across the remaining sea where they then disembark onto the sand.

I take a peek through my rifle's spyglass and feel a grin begin to spread. 'Oh that's just too perfect.' Four men with shovels slung across their shoulders. A duo of strongmen sharing the load on a rather hefty looking chest. One swordsman-type with a pair of katana's strapped to his back and last but not least the big Captain himself. 'Give it 15 minutes, maybe 20, and they'll be well away on their little loot burying venture. Leaving everyone left on the Molderhulk...for me.'

Kiwi subtly adjusts his position to remain hidden in the clouds and I mull aloud how I want to go about this. "Hmm, what do you think Kiwi? Cannonballs falling from the sky? Definitely effective, though it does have the downside of being rather loud. We certainly don't want our guest of honor rushing back too quickly now do we? We could always do the ol' tried and true rush down and start putting bullets in skulls...though given how non-lethal this particular crews track record is I think I'd feel rude not returning the courtesy."

"Wee Wee. Kee?"

"Oh I know!" I exclaim with a snap my fingers. "There's something I've always wanted to try!"

The individual once known as Edwyn the 'Cack-handed Cur' tipped his hat over his eyes as he rested against the aft railing. Even after a year and a half on this ship he was still amazed at how...efficient..working for Kowalik was. The Wood-Man's reputation in these waters was so established, his constant price so well known, that he had raiding essentially down to a science.

This last time the Captain didn't even need to speak. They just strolled into the square and started collecting. Like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Three warning shots into the shallows. That's how it always begins. The announcing of their avaricious intent as it were. Three warning shots and the villages just start going to work. They understand the message because its the same one its always been. Even in a decade it hasn't changed a word.

'5,000,000 in cash, gold, jewels, or goods and we will leave you in peace.'

5 million. A special number. Just high enough to qualify as a 'small fortune' but not so big that it will cripple the place they're taking it from. Even a village as quaint as Jongvale can gather that much if everyone digs into their pockets a little.

5 million. He chuckled. It was how much Edwyn was worth when Kowalik recruited him all those many moons ago. He can still see the image in his head. His burning ship sinking to the crushing black abyss. Many of the idiots he'd convinced to sail under him falling with it. And then the man who defeated him lending a hand. "You weren't half bad behind that wheel. Been lookin' for a new helmsman. You wanna get rich?"

He brought the brim of his tricorne even lower. He hasn't regretted accepting it for a single day. 'After all. This is probably the best gig in all of South Bl-'

"[RANKYAKU]!"

The Molderhulk buckles as the colossal blue sickle cleaves straight through and slams into the ocean underneath. Like a geyser erupting, a wall of water explodes upward through the gap, throwing screaming men off of their feet. Barrels and cannons go rolling as the decks they're on are no longer level and the two halves of the ship begin to drift apart.

A roaring laughter rips its way lose as I continue to fall. 'Achievement unlocked boys! I'm officially a ship cutter. And not some rinky-dink caravel either! A full sized galleon! Build up on the spin took a little long but I can always work on cutting that down later.'

'Umeji' the Lv.12 deckhand is the lucky winner of being first on my list after I make touchdown. He's barely managed to stand on the steep incline before my boot comes up into the base of his chin. A bullet grazes against my [Tekkai Kenpo] hardened skin and my attention turns to 'Axel' a man who's wrapped his body around the foremast to prevent falling into the water. In a somewhat shaky panic he hurriedly tries to readjust his aim but in a couple blinks I'm already on top of him. My hand pulls his hair back, slams his face down into the wooden pole he's so desperately clinging to and it's lights out for the good ships doctor.

+20 Exp!

Seven more crew members fall swiftly one after another as I continue to bounce around the ruptured vessel. Credit where it's due, the officer at the helm named 'Edwyn' manages to last a whopping six seconds as he's just barely able to frantically weave around my -severely speed reduced- [Tekkai Kenpo] blows. However, when the [Skill] suddenly levels from (15/50) → (16/50), the penalty on DEX eases up an extra 2% and that little bit is all that's needed to utterly ruin his day.

+65 Exp!

Many of those remaining have abandoned ship and are currently slogging through the foamy waves that continuously roll up onto the shore. Two or three at a time they stumble onto the safety of sand and...Ooo is that a Porcupine-Zoan?.. well she just looks barely conscious doesn't she? Poor dear. She's lucky she's got friends willing to drag her ashore.

Letting the shielding and speed penalty of [Tekkai Kenpo] fall away, I utilize the same trick I employed on Torino and 'Kamisori' myself in front of the dripping, beleaguered, and somewhat waterlogged crowd.

"Hello,"

The beating renews in earnest and this time there's barely any resistance at all. Nothing makes a man lose a fight faster than a broken spirit and most of this bunch gave up on the idea of winning when they were forced into taking an involuntary swim. 'Remarkable how low morale gets for mooks without the Captain or first mate around to fight.'

Not even poor soaking wet Ms. Porcupine offers up more than a token of a fight. In her hybrid-state only her back and forearms are protected by the armor of spiky quills and they're hardly a strong deterrent against someone who's body can harden like iron.

+110 Exp!

Rushing footsteps and a snarling voice suddenly rumble from the treeline. "Two-sword style:"

In one perfect turn Kugizume swings out and a great clash of metal on metal erupts as the opposing attacks connect. "Ox charge!" the newcomer finishes with a roar.

Reyhan, Oaken Fist Pirates, Lv. 48

"Oh ho! Not bad!" The blades strain against each other for a moment and I meet the warriors scowl with a smile. "But I've seen better." Reyhan's scowl deepens as the pressure increases and he wisely pushes away, putting several meters between us with a few hops backward.

The failure hardly seems to discourage him though as his knees bend the moment he lands and his katana's come together in a claw-like pose. His waist leans forward, his legs push off and "Corkscrew!"

My leg swings up! An extra-large [Rankyaku] carving its way through the sand intercepts the tip of his drilling technique and with a burst of light the two cancel each other out. Reyhan gets forced back, not a bit worse for wear, and continues doing his best to unnerve me with a glare alone.

'Eh. 6 outta 10.'

"Stand down Reyhan," a second figure calls as he materializes from the treeline. "This one's out of your league." the suave oozing with charisma voice continues.

I keep my sword on guard even as I raise a subtly impressed eyebrow. 'Damn..now 'that'...is what I call a proper looking pirate.'

A deep red coat with gold embroidery surrounding every hem and button. Black boots whose ornate design practically screams high quality and a classic cavalier's hat affixed with a colored feather.

'Oaken Fist' Kowalik, Pirate Racketeer, Lv. 79

The swordsman swiftly drops to one knee and bows low. "Captain! Please, allow me the chance to try anyway! I can beat him, I swear it!"

The Captain silently waves him off as he continues his relaxed gait forward. His eyes scan over the damage to his ship and crew -his ship especially- and instead of becoming angry or livid, emotions I'm very used to seeing, he seems...appraising?

"Not too shabby Mr. Sparrow. Truly, not too shabby." he intones as he slowly -almost lazily- begins to roll up his sleeves. "I haven't seen a ship cut like that since the Grand Line. Have you ever been?" he asks conversationally.

I silently answer 'No' as Reyhan carefully backs away, his posture suddenly nervous.

"Oh now that's a shame. There's really no substitute for it." With a sudden downward thrust Kowalik's right arm is enveloped in the shell of a comically wide mallet. Complete with stems and tiny leaves sprouting from its sides. "You really can't appreciate the pleasures of being a big fish in a little pond until you do."

One Billion Beri Quest Tracker (Calculated at time of leaving Timber Bay)

Quest: Pirates. Criminals. Rapers, plunderers, and scum of every kind. No more. It's time to sanitize the South Blue. Capture or kill wanted men in South Blue who's bounties total at least One Billion Beri. Progress:(430,918,700/1,000,000,000)

Jack Parker, The Gamer, Lv. 68

Health: 6,100/6,100

Exp: 4,780/6,800

Money: 234,182,590 Beri

STR: 440

VIT: 305

DEX: 504

INT: 155

WIS: 155

LUK: 77

Points to spend: 105

Click here to see list of [Skills]

-Current number of [Skills]: 44

Click here to see list of [Perks]

-Current number of [Perks]: 7

A/N 2: Ugghhh I really really wanted to fit in the fight with 'Oaken Fist' but unfortunately it's just not finished and I am very very quickly running out of time. So I moved what I had over to the start of what will eventually become Ch.25.

Because I'm in a certain mood though I'll leave you with this teaser.

On top of a variety of overly silly One Piece-esque techniques like 'Birch Buster', 'Spruce Strike', and 'Pine Pincushion', he's got a special one that he's made absolutely sure no Marine has ever witnessed.

'Wood-Wood Secret Technique:... Adam'

Alright. I'm out.

TTFN. Ta Ta For Now.