[54] Road To Alabasta
[2400 Words]
Bonus chapter
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The Grand Line, Paradise.
In an unknown sea, Ren looked at the system screen in front of him.
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¶ [Ding! Congratulations host, for completing the main mission "Killing a pirate with a bounty of over 100 million 𝕭" and obtaining:"Shigan Scroll"]
¶ [Ding! Congratulations host, for completing the main mission "Defeating a crew of Paradise pirates for the first time" and obtaining:"Observation Haki's Cake"]
¶ [Ding! Congratulations host, for completing the hidden mission "Recruiting a crew member with Rear Admiral strength" and unlocking a new feature: "Pirate Hunting"]
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Ren quickly focused on the last notification, he had many questions in his mind to ask the system about.
"Miss System, who is this crew member? Is it Nami or Nojiko? And explain to me this Pirate Hunting feature" Ren said mentally, and soon a soft voice entered his mind.
[As the host wishes, an explanation of the new feature will be sent.]
After a moment, a new notification arrived.
[Pirate Hunting Feature: Enables the host to obtain random rewards by hunting specific pirates, The host will always receive half of the bounty placed on the pirate's head, and as for the remaining rewards, they depend on the host's luck.]
[As for the member who reached Rear Admiral strength, it's Nami.]
"I see..."
"So, this feature is simply another way to earn rewards and money? Very good!The system is generous."
[Hmph ~ I already know.]
Miss System said in a teasing voice.
Ignoring Miss System, Ren rested his chin in his hands, then fell into deep thought.
This feature was extremely useful; firstly, he would get a certain amount of money after hunting pirates, and there was a good chance he would receive additional rewards along with the money.
This would solve the money problem that had been bothering Ren for a while.
Ren had big ambitions, and he needed money to achieve them, He had a plan to go to Sky Island and visit the City of Gold and...
Ah, that's another story.
"I'll give Shigan to Mikita and The Observation Haki Cake to..Kaya."
When thinking of Kaya, Ren's expression became determined.
'It's time to change that fragile girl's personality' he thought logically.
"Miss System, show me the explanation of "Shigan" skill."
"As you wish, host.
[Shigan: It's a close combat technique, one of the Six Powers, allowing the user to pierce the target's flesh with their finger at extremely high speed. The resulting wound is approximately the size of a bullet hole. It's a highly useful technique that can be executed quickly and accurately. It synergizes well with remarkable speed, and its impact is multiplied several times when combined with Armament Haki.]"
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[After several hours]
The weather was clear, the previous storm had ended, along with the Blood Tiger pirates, and no one knew how they died, except those responsible for it.
Meanwhile, as the golden sun rays illuminated the world of the seas, in the most dangerous sea in this world called the Grand Line, Ren was still continuing his journey towards Alabasta.
All the girls gathered on the deck.
Nojiko, Nami, Kaya, Lorena, Mikita, and Vivi.
"Come on, Mikita, you can do it."
Ren patted Mikita on the shoulder and smiled at her; he had given her Shigan a while ago, making the cheerful girl even more grateful to him.
Grateful because he saved her, and because he rewarded her after the battles ended.
Mikita saw the path to power already, and no longer had any thoughts of leaving the crew or betraying it.
She even felt embarrassed if she thought about it, he had been nice to her and hadn't hurt her except for their first meeting.
She ate the best food, traveled with a strong and reliable person who ensured her safety, in addition to the training that would increase her strength to achieve her goal.
Unlike her previous boss, whom she didn't even know, the difference was like night and morning.
That's why she decided she would follow Ren and take down Crocodile with him.
After hearing her captain's words, she smiled and said:"Kyahahaha~ I won't disappoint you, Captain."
She looked at the big rock in front of her, took a deep breath, became serious, then inquired about the correct way to execute Shigan.
She focused her energy in her finger and positioned it in a way that created a perfect axis between the joints and bones of her arm and the angle of the aim.
"Shigan: Golden Lotus!"
After announcing the name of the technique, she thrust her finger into the rock; normally, her finger would break because of this step, but it went all the way into the rock and smashed it to pieces this time!
*Crack!!*
The medium-sized rock cracked due to the force behind Mikita's finger.
"I did it Captain! Kyahaha~" Mikita smiled and withdrew her finger, then looked at the one who smiled at her.
The other girls did the same thing, although Nami and Nojiko's reactions were somewhat reserved.
"Well done, Mikita, Now you need to execute the other attack I told you about."
Shigan has many variants.
"The Golden Lotus" is where the user directly attacks with their finger in close combat.
"Fling Finger pistol Pick" is sending a shockwave similar to a bullet; the effect is stronger than a regular bullet shot.
"Fling Finger pistol Sting" is an air bullet fired from the user's finger, and this bullet can penetrate Devil Fruit defenses, as Rob Lucci did with Luffy in the canon.
Mikita nodded to him and approached another rock, All these rocks were brought out from Ren's Infinity Space specifically for Mikita's training.
"Shigan:Fling Finger pistol Sting!"
"Boom!"
A shockwave was sent directly from Mikita's finger to the rock, causing a large portion of it to shatter and fall onto the ship's deck.
*Applause*
"Good job, Mikita-san" Kaya said, admiring Mikita's impressive display.
Destroying solid rocks with your finger was an extraordinary feat that even ordinary Paradise Pirates would admire.
"Kyahaha, thanks Kaya."
"Now, only one attack remains" Ren reminded Mikita, who smiled and moved to the final rock.
"Shigan: Fling Finger pistol Pick!"
*Boom!*
An air bullet pierced through the rock, exiting from the other side, then continued on and hit the wooden floor, causing a minor scratch.
"Wow!"
"Her finger is even stronger than a bullet."
"How can there be such magical powers in this world..." Vivi was amazed as she watched the scene unfold.
Nami had previously told her about the supernatural and amazing powers, but seeing them with her own eyes had a much greater impact.
"Congratulations, Mikita, you've passed the test" Ren said, patting her shoulder, Mikita allowed this close contact and laughed.
"Kyahaha, all thanks to Captain Ren."
"You can just call me Ren when you're alone on the ship with your sisters" Ren said, momentarily stunning her.
Had she become a sister without realizing it? In truth, she didn't mind living with these girls on this ship.
But she just wasn't used to friendships; she had been alone all her life and only interacted with people when on a mission.
Ren looked at her and guessed that she was feeling somewhat detached from this crew, so he assigned Nojiki a long-term mission:"Make Mikita adapt more quickly."
Nojiko accepted the mission, knowing that if Ren wanted her to do something, she wouldn't refuse.
After that , Ren open Mikita's condition
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¶- Name: Mikita.
¶- Age: 22 years.
¶- Occupation: Not specified yet.
¶- Affiliation: #### Pirates.
¶- Status:Thriving.
¶- Title: None.
¶- Bounty: 7,500 million 𝕭
¶- Physical Power Level: 16,500 (E).
¶- loyalty: 77%.
¶- Devil Fruit: Kilo Kilo no Mi.
¶- Devil Fruit Rating: ★★★★☆.
¶- Skills: Shigan.
¶- Haki: None.
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Mikita trained diligently, quickly increasing her physical strength under Ren's supervision, Ren smiled approvingly and closed the system interface.
He looked at Kaya and said:
"As for you, Kaya, you'll train with Nami on Observation Haki which I gave you."
"Oh... Yes, Captain Ren" Kaya replied., She didn't like fighting, but Ren insisted, and there was no way to refuse him.
Ren noticed her hesitation and sighed, If she still possessed such a kind and naive personality, it would be better for her to stay in Syrup Village in East Blue and live in her palace.
Ren thought for a moment, then approached Nami and whispered something to her.
Nami nodded and looked at Kaya with a faint smile.
"As for you, Vivi, it's time to talked a little about Alabasta" Ren said.
"Eeeh...?"
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Night fell, and everyone was inside the ship, just finishing dinner.
Ren sat between Nami on his right and Nojiko on his left, with both arms around them.
Each hugged an arm and quietly waited for Ren to speak.
"I'll save Alabasta" Ren said to the princess in just one sentence, but it excited her and made her blood boil.
"R-Really?!"
Before she could rejoice, Ren's voice came again:
"But there are conditions."
Vivi calmed down, remembering that there was nothing free in this world. Of course, the other party would have conditions, and she didn't have any relationship with the pirate in front of her, so he wouldn't help her without benefits.
Aware of this, Vivi waited for Ren to mention his conditions, determined to achieve them if they weren't too much or beyond her authority and ability.
The atmosphere was tense, and everyone waited for Ren's words. Lorena, being a princess like Vivi, understood the pressure Vivy was under and could only sympathize with her.
But Nami, Nojiko, and Mikita didn't sympathize; it was obvious that Ren wanted benefits from what he was about to do, even though he would have killed Crocodile without any issues in Alabasta Kingdom, But it was good to exploit the situation; after all, they were pirates.
For Kaya, she didn't want to see her friend sad, but she feared that if she spoke, Nami would torment her in training again.
The training for Kaya was like hell, where it seemed that Nami was resentful or something similar; she had experienced a lot of pain while her eyes were closed during Observation Haki training.
For Kaya, this was called Observation Haki Hell!
Various thoughts passed through the girls' minds at lightning speed, and only a few seconds passed in the real world.
Ren, with a relaxed expression on his face, stroked Nami's hair with his hand and said:
"I want Alabasta to be under my rule after killing Crocodile."
"!!"
Vivi was shocked, and even the girls were, too. Did Ren mean he wanted the throne?
'Monarchy... that seems fitting for Ren' Nami thought matter-of-factly and began playing with her hand on His chest automatically.
While the girls had different thoughts, Vivi looked fearfully at him and asked:"Do you mean you want the throne...?"
Vivi was afraid that Ren was greedy for the throne, and what she feared the most was that if she refused, he would kill her, and her father, too, if she answered negatively.
She didn't know how to respond.
But she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Ren shake his head and deny her words.
"You misunderstood me, What I mean is that Alabasta Kingdom will come under my protection, You will pay a small tribute in exchange for protection and assistance from me" Ren said, playfully running his fingers through Nami's silky hair.
Lorena breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Ren's explanation, She had the same fears as Vivi, worried that Ren would kill Vivi if she refused to surrender the nest to him.
But he wasn't coveting the throne, and that was reassuring.
As for Nojiko and Nami, they didn't care much., If Ren wanted to rule the kingdom of Alabasta, they would simply help him by eliminating the king and royal family, crown him, and then live happily in the kingdom, having many children and growing old together...
The two of them drifted off into their own strange thoughts.
Mikita, who had decided to follow Ren, had no problem if he demanded the throne of Alabasta, She would assist him in that.
Back to Vivi, she carefully pondered Ren's words.
It was good that he didn't demand the rule of Alabasta as she initially thought, but making a Country aligned with the World Government receive protection from pirates was challenging...
Vivi was lost in thought, and everyone could tell that the decision was difficult for her to make, It involved the future of her country and millions of lives. Vivi didn't dare to be reckless here.
In this moment, she showed a maturity not typical for a girl her age, making Lorena feel embarrassed about her own childish behavior.
'It's obvious we're both princesses, but why do I feel inadequate?'
This was the first step for Lorena towards change, to become a great ruler in the future.
"Have you not decided yet, Your Highness?" Ren's calm voice broke the silence, Vivi looked at him and opened her mouth.
"I agree with your condition, I swear by the name of the Nefertari ruling family that I'll fulfill your condition as long as You slay Crocodile!"
Her voice was serious, She swore by her royal family name, her ancestors who had ruled the kingdom for hundreds of years, and who still rested in the royal cemetery.
Ren smiled and continued to play with Nami's hair as he said:"Good! Very good, No need to worry, I'll remove Crocodile and show you that your decision has saved your kingdom from destruction."
Ren's voice carried no hint of mistrust, as if he were a god seeing the future, a future where the kingdom would fall prey to Crocodile's claws if someone didn't intervene.
Clearly, that someone was Luffy, but Ren wouldn't allow him to interfere. He had devised a suitable plan to get rid of this nuisance and would execute it soon.
But that's another story.
Vivi smiled as she wiped the sweat from her brow, thinking that the matter had ended here and an agreement had been reached between them, But Ren quickly surprised her again.
"There is still another condition" Ren said with amusement.
"Huh? W-what is this condition?" Vivi asked cautiously.
"You must join my pirate crew."
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Author's gossiping.
Should I make Kayla a cold-blooded killer? XD
If we reach 320 power stone After 24 H from updating this chapter, I'll write another Bonus chapter.