Chapter 5: Flirting with Miss All Sunday

Rainbase; Alabasta Kingdom

Unable to teleport to Rainbase since I had never been their, Kuma send us there via his regained Devil Fruit ability. Much younger and less build like a truck, Kuma looked almost human while doing so.

Arriving at the city in the evening, Rainbase was still full of busteling life, which was in stark contrast to the now rebuilt but lifeless Erumalu, that was for me atleast. As such, as we were walking down the main street that lead to Rainbase lake and Crocodile's Casino the Rain Dinners, with me constantly checking out woman shops and Kuma reverting back to his stoic cyborg behaviour.

Still butt naked and glowing, I naturally drew all attention, making Kuma nothing more than a backdrop despite his still substantial size, as we eventually marched into the Mercenary Guild for registration.

"Hooo-How can I hehel-help you? I-I am Sivia." The cute blond, busty female receptionist instantly greeted us from behind the counter.

"Hello, beautiful Silvia. I am Michael, Michael D. Saint and this is my friend Tibbers..." I friendly said, using the name Kuma and I agreed upon for him to use from now on. "... We are here to register our Mercenary company."

"Oh, that's great..." Replied Silvia, handing us a Company registration paper. "... We always wellcome and encourage registered mercenaries to form their own Companies. Makes it easier for us to send clients your way."

"Yes, I get that. There is only one tiny problem..." I told her, pointing at the column for us to fill in our Mercenary ID number. "Tibbers and I aren't registered mercenaries..."

"Oh, that's no problem. We can do the registration right here right now, as soon as the two of you pay the registration fees." Silvia told as, with an evil smile on her face, as she pushes a piece of paper to me.

Looking at it, I instantly regretted wanting to become a Mercenary. "What the f-ing fuck! Who pays that much just for registration?!" I cursed, before resembling that neither Kuma nore I had any money to begin with, making ymus unable to pay any amount of money regardless of it's size.

"Is there any way we can skip those fees?" I asked,  thinking, that I could retrieve Kumas cybernetic left in Erumalu and sell them.

"No money, no registration, no company." Explained the receptionist apologetically.

"We at Rain Dinners could foot your bill..." I suddenly heared a famivoice say behind me. -Nico Robin. What is she doing here?-

"... That is if you two are willing to become my bodyguards for the next few days."

[...]

Karakuri Island; Future Country Baldimore; Secret Underground Lab

Meanwhile Vegapunk was informed by his own information network that Bartholomew Kuma's mission to apprehend Michael aka Vulkan had failed. Viewing the last transmission from the cyborg together with Ceasar, that being the entire fight between Kuma and Michael, both scientists were in utter disbelief as to what they had created.

"God gracious! Did you see that? Instant teleportation, regeneration, size adjustment and we still don't know what he did to defeat PX-0." Asked Ceasar Clown frantically his still calm colleague.

"I did see that..." Replied Vegapunk slightly absent minded before saying. "... We should inform Comodore Brannew and have Vulcan's Black Bounty tripled at the very least, don't you agree?"

Taken aback by Vegapunk's calm and logical words, Ceasar agreed. "Yes, I guess you are right about that. Let's hope that one or more Warlords hunt Subject 435 next time."

[...]

Rain Dinners; Rainbase; Alabasta Kingdom

Meanwhile, as my bounty was secretly tripled, going from 250.000.000 B to 750.000.000 B, Miss All Sunday and I were having a pleasant conversation over a candle light dinner at Rain Dinners, as Kuma was collecting his Cybernetics from Erumalu.

Taking a sip of very expensive,  but worth it vine, I asked Robin, despite knowing the answer already. "So, Miss All Sunday, what brings you in the service of one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, recognized and backed by the World Government?"

"I guess it was our mutual appreciation of history..." Replied Nico Robin, before countering with a question herself. "... But that's enough of me, what about you? What made you decide to become a Mercenary instead of a Pirate? It is the Golden Age of Piracy after all."

"I guess the idea to become a mercenary comes from me wanting to stay neutral, neither favouring the World Government or the Four Emperors...." I honestly replied, since it didn't really matter if I lied or not. "... But on the topic of history, I am interested in it myself. Maybe you could answer some of my questions regarding a specific era?"

Intrigued by my question, Robin appeared pleasantly surprised. "Oh?! What specific era are we talking about? Not a true scholar on the subject myself, I might still be able to answer atleast some of your questions."

"Oh, that's great! Let's talk about the..." I told her before calculated dropping a bomb on her with only two words. "... Void Century."

Dropping those two words, I could see Robin's face shift from mildly amused to frightened and shocked to her core. "Jus-Just who are you? Did the World Goverment or the Revilutionary Army send you?"

"Neither. As I said, I prefer to be a neutal party..." I calmly told her, ready to bend space around her and imprison her if things ever went south. "... as I assume you do, too. Nico Robin, sole survivor of Ohara."

Having the name of her former home casually dropped, tears instantly gathered in the corners of her eyes as she weakly asked. "Since you appeared to know anything about me, what do you want to do with me..." #sniff# "... I have remind you, I am currently under Crocodile's protection."

"At the moment nothing..." I told her honestly before adding with a wink. "... I am just enjoying a good meal and the company of a beautiful woman."

"Oh, please stop that. I know you told the same to that receptionist back in the guild..." Said Robin sarcastically. "... So stop flirting and answer me honestly. Also what is it with you and clothing."

Deciding that it would be better for me to show her instead of telling her, I placed a napkin over my arm and only five seconds later, the napkin was disintegrated into particles.

"You see, I am unable to wear anything..." I explained to her. "... As for my intentions regarding you, is it so hard to believe, that I just want to save a beautiful princess from an evil crocodile?"

"Hahaha, me a princess?...." Nico Robin nursed out laughing, instantly lifting the heavy atmosphere between us. "... People like to call me the 'Devil Child'. What makes you think of me otherwise?"

"Gut feeling, I suppose..." I lied to her, before asking. "... Why do you need bodyguards even with the protection of Crocodile?"

Showing me one of her most beautiful smiles, she replied with some longing in her voice, as she stood up to leave. "You have said it best yourself. This princess needs brave and powerfull knights to protect her from the evil crocodile."

Seeing, that our dinner had come to an end, I took her left hand, kneeled and kissed it before I said to her. "If that's so, I guess we can take on your commission in exchange for you handling our registration fees. It looks like I will be your knight my lady."

Looking up I saw an embarrassed looking Nico Robin hiding her reddening cheeks behind her still free hand.