Just A Near Death Experience Via A Giant Rock

Bugs asked for a weird thing: to head to a giant rock sticking out of the ocean. From where we were, it was very tall, but not giant, or wide, or anything like that, and while it did tower to the sky, it was just a rock pillar.

I was kind of busy relaxing after several hours of training and figuring out exactly what I needed to do to gain this 'Haki' ability that Bugs talked about before. But it was interrupted quite badly, as I was thrown around the deck for only a second when Bugs swung and turned the ship instantly towards the rock. I ended up flung off my deck chair where I was laying, and I cursed him for a second before getting up and just going with it. He must have a reason, even if I was mad at him.

'Geez, Bugs! You didn't need to turn THAT quick!'

I shook my head, then dusted myself off, and decided to go with it, put my deck chair back, and headed to the front to look at the pillar. I sat down at the front, and just leaned my head to watch the pillar, which I still didn't know the significance of, so I just sat, trying to relax in a different spot.

Rem came up next to me, and leaned on the railing, still standing for a second.

"Uhm.. Rem? Would you know why Bugs wants to go to this thing?"

She just stared at it, with a questioning look.

'Does she not.. have an idea?'

"Well, maybe it has something to do with his.. captain..... duties?"

Even Rem couldn't convince herself of that being the case, it was obvious. She did look off into the distance, past the pillar, I think she was in her own thoughts.

"Uhm.. maybe we shouldn't think to much about it.. Bugs has some weird plans, and if it has something to do with a giant rock, it may not be good. So.. Rem.. to switch to something that isn't gonna need us to think like him, I don't think I ever thanked you for keeping me safe, and healing me.. so, thank you."

She was shook out of her stare by that, and then sat down next to me while saying"Oh, no worries! Ro-Ro asked me to, and I couldn't refuse her!"

Rem smiled a little weird. 'Is.. is that normal? Is there something I'm not thinking of for her to be like this with Rosa? Wait, Rosa? Couldn't Bugs have asked her to? Would she have healed me if Bugs asked?'

I felt one of my eyes twitch, as I twitched my ears and tail because it felt wrong for them to not move a little for a while.

"Rem.. would you have healed me if Bugs asked?"

She knew I was concerned, as her smile went to her own face of concern.

"Well, Taki.. I wouldn't have... at first. Um.. Ro-Ro, I think.. likes him enough to have asked me anyway.. so I would have even if he didn't asked, even after seeing she wanted to protect you too."

"A-ah. O-okay."

I didn't know wether to be happy she would've healed me no matter what, or to be sad that Rosa would have needed to ask her to do it. So I smiled a little bitterly.

And then, the ship came to a stop, throwing both of us into the railing. This time, I yelled out directly "WHY DIDY YOU DO THAT.. AGAIN?"

And he completely ignored my complaint, and I found that he was in a different state, I could tell by just how he was. He was focused on something.

"Ooooohh. He focused, of course."

Me and Rem both stood up, and watched him climb to the crow's nest, and while confused, I leaned back to find Rosalina was behind us, like.. directly behind us.

'Whats going on here?'

Brushing off my confusion, air being moved out of the way caught my attention. It was Bugs.. punching the rock. Even Rem was utterly disoriented my it. We both leaned against the front railing, and just watched what happened. What we did witness was shocking.

Bugs had continued to punch the rock, his arms floating, covered in black, and some electricity? Why does it look so much like Grim's?

Rem could tell my confusion, and she tried to explain.

"Uhm.. so, Grim? I think you fought him.. uh.. Buggy's new arm has the stuff from Grim's augmentations, so he kinda has an electric generator and fire."

Something finally clicked in my mind.

'So that's what he needed it for! To make his arm! Is it that much of a weapon? I didn't think it had fire AND electricity! Does it have something else?'

I was about to ask, but Bugs had finally gotten to a high speed, and had been attacking for a minute, causing a massive crater to form, bending the rock in.

Shocked at just that, I could only think 'Can I do that?'

And then, for a very short split second, I saw as Bugs pulled his new mechanical arm back, with a massive pulse of electricity going through him, the black emmiting a dark purple energy around it, and fire forming, pushing his arm forward while he punched forward.

That punch was so fast that it was in one place, and then it was at the pillar, I couldn't keep up with it, as I was focusing on the overbearing energy that came off of it, not even the attack itself.

'Whaa.. what the heck.. whas that? Why was it so.. strong? What was it?'

I felt my body shake from it, and then, I looked at the pillar, finding something even more shocking than his fearful energy.

There was a hole straight through the rock, and the dust was dissipating, too, so it became easier to see the ocean on the other side.

I was scared by that attack, and wondered if I could even get close to that powerful.

I looked over, and found Rem just as shocked and even slightly shivering from that attack.

'Did.. did Rem never witness something like this?'

And if course, my thoughts were interupted by the rock cracking.

Thanks to the hole, the rock didn't have anything to keep it up, aside from slim rocks on the sides of the hole, which were starting to give out.

Still shocked from the event itself, I watched as the pillar started to fall. Directly towards us. And the height made sure that both ships and all of us would be drowned and killed if it fell onto us.

From the fear, I couldn't do anything except for think 'Bugs, why aren't you doing anything?'

I looked at him to find him completely distracted, and then, I saw the pillar starting to overshadow us.

I still couldn't get any words out, and the pillar started to fall closer and closer to us, even Rem was freaking out, staring at the impending doom of a giant rock.

The shadow became larger, enveloping an entire piece of the ocean, directly where we were.

"BUGGY!"

I heard his name yelled, and then looked to find Rosalina angrily standing, like she just gave her all into breaking him out of his weird trance.

I then looked up to find Bugs, standing there, his sword drawn, and we watched as he turned and swung his sword vertically, making a.. fire? It couldn't exactly be called fire, as it was more than that, hotter than fire. It was even hotter than the electric beam that Grim had made. But he swung and formed a long arc of what I could only think of as fire at the moment, his own blade engulfed in it as well, and it grew.

The arc of flame grew, becoming longer, even longer than the pillar was tall. The actual thing was bright too, as the entire shadow from the pillar had disappeared, and even the sun seemed dark compared to it.

The arc itself ended up longer than the pillar, and as soon as it touched the pillar, it went through it, like it was a ghost moving through it. And once it went through, nothing happened, and sheer dread had washed over me, along with everyone else.

Until, the pillar had a white line appear where the arc hit.

'Huh?'

The line then widened exponentially, until the width was more than the width of the ships themselves. It took me a second to realize, but Bugs had cut the massive pillar of rock in half.

•

I watched as what I could only figure out as the pillar of rock, fell, cut in half, falling to both sides of us, and Surya was smoking for some reason.

'What in Mora's name.. what happened!? Wasn't I just thinking of the attack name "Hand Cannon Ultra Velocity Repeater"? Why am I holding Surya, and why is the blade smoking? Did I.. cut that rock in half too? Why did it fall?'

Slowly, I sheathed Surya, observing my surroundings, finding that the rock now on both sides of us rocking us like crazy from the waves, and yet, it was burnt on the sides, and surprisingly smooth.

'Did I cut this? There's no way! Shouldn't Mihawk be able to do that? I'm not at his level, I don't even remember drawing Surya in the first place, all I remember is.. I think it was Rosa who yelled my name, and she scared me. Did I instinctually draw Surya and somehow cut the rock in half? But I didn't put any energy into it aside from swinging, what is this new ability Surya has? I mean, from the charred, and yet perfect cut on both of those sides that are sinking, did Surya burn it? I don't.. I don't understand this. Maybe I'm thinking too much about it.'

"BUGS!"

'Oh right! I actually have people I care about!'

I leaned over the edge and yelled down "ARE YOU ALL OKAY?"

I found Taki and Rem holding the railing, stabilizing themselves.

"WHAT WAS THAT?"

"JUST.. SOME ATTACKS? I DIDN'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE IN MIND!"

"COULDN'T YOU HAVE DONE IT BEFORE WITHOUT RISKING OUR DEATHS?"

Rem and Taki both ganged up on me, so I just gave up, and with a lower energy, I jumped over the edge, slightly flying, landing down on the deck. I then yelled over to Rosalina "THATS ALL! WE CAN START TO CONTINUE THROUGH TO LOGUE TOWN!"

Everyone was too stunned for a second, but I just started to ready the ship to leave, stuck thinking 'I need to go over Surya and find everything about it. It isn't an ordinary sword, especially if I didn't have to do anything for such an attack to be created.'